Foreword: Ugh, sorry this took so long. Some new ideas have been barging into my head, completely distracting me from this one.
Mimi's eyes shot open as the cold assaulted her. Where was her blanket?! She placed her hands on the mattress. Ugh, it was rock hard and… She sat right up, remembering where she was. Hackermon's secret base… fortress… thing! But… what happened? That bright light was gone and there were holes in the wall and floor. The screen was now flashing red with a black symbol. In front of the screen wasn't Hackermon but some sort of two legged lizard with a round head. Its legs looked like plant roots and her arms were leaves. On top of its head was a lovely pink flower.
"Tanemon?" she ventured. A fire erupted in her head. "Oww!" She clutched her head, clenching her eyes shut.
"Mimi! Calm down!" She felt a plant-like warm hand, "It's just the digivice telling you what I am now!" The pain faded and, sure enough, she suddenly found herself knowing things. Tanemon was now Palmon. Her fingers could stretch several times the length of her body and contained a toxin capable of paralysis. Her flower was capable of releasing toxic pollen, sleep inducing spores, or simply different scents. Mimi opened her eyes and looked at her partner. Tanemon didn't exactly bloom the way she expected but that was okay. You're still growing, Palmon.
"I love your flower, Palmon," she said.
"Thanks, Mimi." The two pulled apart.
"What happened to Hackermon?"
Palmon gave a shrug. "I have no idea. It was like this when I woke up. That creepy monitor isn't telling me anything either." Mimi looked at the screen. Normally she liked a deep red; it was the color of love after all. But this red felt more like hate. Just looking at it was uncomfortable, and that symbol… it was just-
"Ow!" The stupid digivice did it again! "Why doesn't it hurt the others like this?! Are they masochists or something?!"
"Maybe they got used to it?" Palmon suggested.
"I don't want to get used to this!" Mimi complained, "Anyways, that stupid symbol means Shadow." Palmon suddenly looked worried.
"We need to get out of here. Can you figure out the map?"
"Map! Right!" Mimi started to concentrate on… what? How did Koushiro explain it? Oh yeah, with lots of those big words he kept making up. Okay then, how did Taichi explain it? He asked the digivice where he was. She took the digivice off her hip and looked at it. Okay, digivice, where am I? Nothing. Where am I? Still nothing. Where?! Am?! I?! Absolutely nothing!
"Mimi…" Palmon started.
"I'm working on it," she responded, "Stupid digivice! Tell me where I am!" Something wrapped around her. Lots of somethings and the next thing she knew, she was being yanked in a direction. Something crashed down right where she was. It stood on two legs but the upper body was twisted at where the stomach would be and tilted sideways. Its shoulders were too, giving it a front arm and back arm instead of left and right. And the front arm wielded an axe. "It's one of Hackermon's guards!" What was it doing?!
The things holding her retreated and shot towards the guard. Palmon's fingers! She should've known it was Palmon saving her! The vines wrapped around the guard but its front arm wasn't bound. It raised its axe and Mimi started simultaneously backing away while pushing herself back to her feet. It swung down, releasing the weapon and it struck the ground right in front of her. She impulsively jumped back and… the floor began rising past her.
I'm falling! "Hel-" Her cry for help became a scream as she hit something, stars exploding in her eyes, leaving everything a blur. Overwhelmed by the pain, she allowed her arms and legs to dangle as she started rolling to the side… and then she was falling again. Even as she processed it, her stomach collided with something narrow, a tinny-tasting liquid bursting out of her throat. And then she slid off, her next crash against her lower back with a shock that went straight through her legs, and fell right off. She landed on her side, hearing a crack and lay still, unable to think of anything but the unbearable pain she was in.
She didn't attempt to stop herself from crying. It felt like a whole heard of those dinosaur digimon jumped on her. She couldn't move; even the slightest twitch of her legs sent jolts of pain through her back. She could barely feel the arm that hit the floor but it hurt plenty enough. Her head started burning, causing a scream to join her sobs.
Severe injuries detected. Condition: Terminal. Medical assistance required immediately.
Terminal?! Mimi cried even harder. Not only was she in this unbelievable pain, there was no way the others would ever find her! She was going to die here! She was going lie here, suffering like this, until she died!
A thud sounded and the floor vibrated slightly. The heavy footsteps told her what it was: that guard had followed her down. Which meant… Palmon… I'm so sorry! I never deserved you! "I'm your opponent, remember?!" Palmon?! She's still alive?! But… so what? Mimi was dying, the digivice said so. She had no idea how to use that mailing thing and even if she did, no one would ever find her.
A weird symbol appeared in her head. And another. And some numbers. Her head started burning again though this time it wasn't nearly as bad as the splitting headache she was already suffering. As more symbols and numbers appeared she found herself looking through them in her head, though how, she had no idea. Probably one of those things Koushiro made up words for. And looking through the symbols and numbers somehow relaxed her a little. Before she knew it, she was following a path, finding herself drawn to specific symbols and numbers.
Recovery Mode initiated. What?! Something suddenly started crawling through her body and she gagged out a whimper along with her sobs. More words appeared in her head. She started to read it and immediately stopped, feeling even worse. It was a list of broken bones. A long list. Sharp pains erupted all over her body. The arm she was lying on suddenly jolted from under her, straightening itself. Then it was done… and she didn't hurt as much. Bracing complete. Comparing current condition to previously saved condition. The burning in her brain began to spread through her body like a wave. Comparison complete. Initiating recovery process. Estimated time seventy-two hours.
Mimi didn't even try to guess what any of that meant. She was too distracted by the sounds of something whipping against metal. Clang! The floor shook a little and Mimi imagined little Palmon desperately whipping at that brute while its axe came down on her. Palmon. I'm so sorry. If I wasn't so weak, I could've used my digivice without coming here.
The digivice! That little gadget let Taichi, Yamato, Sora, and Koushiro do so much! Couldn't it let her do something too?! Palmon needs help! Do something! All she could see was the timer counting down to when she'd be better. Three days. Another clang. Palmon won't last three minutes like this! Give me something! Anything! Why didn't she pay more attention when the others were practicing?! They had some sort of element things, but what?!
I have to help Palmon! Let me help her! Her head exploded again with new words. Pyro. Cryo. Aero. The Element… Cores! Element Cores! But why did they have to be those confusing words? She knew Pyro was fire and Hydro was water and Electro was just obvious, but what were the others? Yamato-san has, uh, Cryo I think he said? Sora-san had… Aero? So that left Geo, Photo, and Astro. Palmon wasn't alien so not Astro, and she have any camera powers or anything, so not Photo. She told the digivice to send the Geo Core. The only thing she knew about Geo was that geodes were pretty rocks. Palmon wasn't a rock but plants did come from the ground. Was that close enough?
The whipping sounds grew louder. Was the Core helping? Did she pick the right one? Please, let it be the right one! A shout from Palmon froze her heart. A thunk followed and then footsteps. Uneven ones. Mimi opened her eyes and painfully raised her head, the throbs trying to pull her back down. It was the guard, moving around weirdly… and its axe was sticking out of its back, its arms reaching for it but not able to grab it. It stumbled a bit more and dropped out of sight. A distant metallic crunch sounded from below.
"Mimi!" Palmon cried out as she settled her head back down, "Mimi!"
"Palmon…" she muttered as her partner stood over her, "You… did it…"
"Thanks to that Element Core!" Palmon said, "but you're so hurt! Are you going to be okay?!" Tears returned as Mimi looked at the timer again.
"Three… days… I'm sorry…" she started to cry again, "You fought so… hard… and I…"
"Please stop!" Palmon interrupted, tears forming in her own eyes, "Just let me think!" She closed her eyes for a moment and opened them. "Okay! I'm going to try something! You know how I can make spores and pollens and stuff? That Core you gave me lets me create from any kind of plant, not just my flower. Now this is a special mix that the-" her voice took on an irritated tone, "Order of the Green invented." She lowered her head, pointing the flower at Mimi and a green spray emerged. As it covered her, the pain began to quickly fade. In seconds, it was gone, though that timer was still there.
"Palmon…" She started to sit up but Palmon's fingers gently wrapped around her, keeping her down. The fingers, she now noticed, had what looked like shiny rocks poking out, though when pressed against Mimi's body, they were pushed back into the vine.
"Careful, Mimi," Palmon said in a warning tone, "That powder just stopped your pain receptors. You're still hurt, you just don't feel it. The Order's warriors use it on themselves."
"Thank you, Palmon, but we can't just wait here. It's not safe. The digivice is, uh, bracing me. We have to move." Palmon released her and she slowly sat up, paying close attention in case any warnings were sent. Nothing, and she could move normally. "My digivice is in some sort of healing mode, I'll be better in three days."
"That's great but this powder, Painless Powder, only lasts twenty four hours and…" Palmon looked regretful, "I can't give it a second time."
"Why not?"
"Well, I can eventually. After like a week, that's about how long it will stay in your system. But if I give you more while you still have it…" She took a breath and Mimi held on to hers, "You'll get addicted. Your body will start making itself feel pain just to get more. A lot of pain." Mimi's jaw dropped.
"After just one more?!"
Palmon's voice practically became a growl. "The Green's warriors use it with every battle and get addicted. It keeps them loyal." Her voice nearly became inaudible. "Why do I know so much about them?" Mimi gave her a sympathetic smile. She thought it was obvious how Palmon knew but she wouldn't say anything. It really didn't matter.
Mimi slowly pushed herself into a sitting position. Percentages flashed through her mind. They were how much she was straining the braces with her movements. Paying close attention to the numbers, she slowly rose to her feet. The highest percentage was twelve percent. A few unsteady steps gained similar results. "I can move," she reported.
"That's a relief. Can you use your map?"
"Uh, map. Right." She tried concentrating again. Come on, where am I? Help me get out of here. A shape appeared in her mind with a small, green, digivice picture. "I think I have it." She looked around the room. It looked like it matched the shape but lots of those creepy heads were poking out of the walls. They went all the way up, some of them extending over the bridge she and Palmon were on. I'll bet their necks are what I landed on. She suppressed a shudder, remembering that fall.
In front, the bridge fed into a corridor. "Let's just try going I guess," she suggested. Inside the corridor, there was yet another head poking out of the side, a chunk of its head caved in. Mimi tried not to look at it and its enraged expression. There was a door at the end, or at least, Mimi thought it was a door. It looked a bit like one, though instead of a doorknob, it was some small green lights. How do I open this thing? She tried tapping it. Nothing. She tried hitting it. Still nothing.
"Maybe the doors aren't a good idea," Palmon said, "I mean, if the guards have all gone crazy, we shouldn't go anywhere obvious.
"Where else can we go?" Mimi asked, "I don't think you can pull me up those heads back there. And even if you did, we were caught there already."
"I know." Palmon looked thoughtful, "See if you can summon those weapons. Then you could make a path." Weapons? Oh, right, the sword and gun. Mimi suppressed a sigh. She hated weapons but Palmon was right. Now, how did this go? Oh, that was easy. She just had to think about Palmon fighting another one of those guards. As scary as they were, Mimi did not want to just hide while her partner did the hard stuff. She wanted to help too.
Something popped out of her arm, bringing a slight yelp out of her. "I'm never going to get used to this!" But, she had the, uh, CoreSaber. Now for the gun. She thought about it again and something else jumped out into her other hand. The CoreBlaster. "Now what?"
"Practice?" Palmon suggested. Mimi's face heated up from embarrassment. They were alone right now, so it was a good time to get used to summoning and banishing the weapons. Besides, with how it felt bringing those weapons out, it was probably painful, so best to do it with the Painless Powder. Grimacing, she began to focus on banishing the two weapons. Having them pop back into her body felt as bad as coming out. Still, she resummoned them. At least the digivice wasn't warning her about doing any new harm to herself.
While she practiced, Palmon examined the head poking out of the wall. "I think there's a way out!" she announced, "It looks like its going through the wall, instead of growing out of it!" Mimi headed over, refusing to look directly at that hateful face. There was a slight gap between the head and wall, though it was barely wide enough for a finger nail.
She took several steps back until her back reached the wall. "I'm going to destroy the head," she said. Palmon hurried next to her as she summoned the gun. She didn't want to be in biting range in case the head came to life. She held the gun with both hands, aimed at the head, and fired. Her green bolt hit several centimeters to the head's left. Her faced heated up again and she took a second shot. This time it went to the right just as badly. "The others made this look easy!"
"Calm down, Mimi, it's just me here," Palmon said, "I know you haven't done this before. You just need to practice." Mimi gave her partner a grateful nod and aimed the gun again. Still a complete miss, but not quite so bad this time. Eventually, Mimi started hitting the head, at least with about three out of five shots. But they weren't doing any damage. Would the sword work? "Try an Element Core?" Palmon suggested.
"I'd forgotten about those," Mimi admitted with a sheepish laugh. She was so glad Sora wasn't here to see any of this. Of course if Sora was here, she'd be doing this instead of Mimi. Now, what Core to use? The head is made of metal so I guess Electro? She concentrated on the Cores, a lot easier than bringing them up the first time, and willed the Electro Core into the gun. Then, making sure to aim as carefully as she possibly could, she fired. The electric shot struck the head and it lit up and then exploded into those tiny specks, leaving behind a circular hole in the wall.
"I'll check it first," Palmon said as she ran over to it. Mimi stayed back and watched the corridor's entrance for any sign she might have triggered an alarm or something. Palmon grabbed the hole's sides and lowered herself in. "It doesn't go down very far!" she announced, coming back up, "I can carry you down!"
Palmon popped back out of the hole and, reluctantly, Mimi placed herself at its entrance. This really didn't sound like a good idea but it wasn't like she had anything better. She peered into the hole. It was lit up like the room making where the drop ended easy to see though that didn't make going in feel any better. Palmon's vines gently wrapped around her body. "Let me know if I'm squeezing too tight." The percentages increased a little bit but were still very low.
"It's fine," Mimi assured. She slowly sat down and slid her legs into the opening. "Are you going to be able to hold me?" She didn't think of herself as at all heavy but Palmon was so small. The digimon laid down on her stomach.
"My vines are meant to restrain bigger digimon than you," she answered with a smile, "and I have all of them on you. Just tell me if I'm squeezing too hard."
"Don't worry about that," Mimi repeated with a smile of her own, "My digivice's, uh, braces or whatever they are seem pretty strong." Sliding into the hole, she could barely feel Palmon's vines lowering her. Her feet touched the ground beneath and the narrow tunnel went on before her eyes. "I'm on the ground!" she announced and the vines retreated. Seconds later, Palmon herself came lowering down, her vines gripping the hole's edges again. Mimi pressed against the back, giving Palmon just enough space to squeeze in front of her.
"Sorry, Mimi. I didn't think it'd be this tight."
"Better than more of those monster guards." Palmon slipped into the tunnel giving Mimi enough room to squeeze down to her knees. She crawled in after Palmon, feeling extra grateful for Pain Powder. Crawling like this would hurt even without those extra injuries. As she followed Palmon through the tunnel, she found little holes she could look through. She couldn't see much through them but it looked like they were high off the ground. Just how deep underground did this fortress go?
Something flew by. It was those little flying things though their heads looked like they'd been hit by a sledgehammer. "Stop!" Palmon suddenly commanded, "Get away from any holes!" Mimi immediately started back up while Palmon froze. Up ahead, a red light started poking into the holes. Thankfully, Palmon was between them and Mimi wasn't next to any either. The lights waited for what had to be some very long minutes before finally moving in the direction Mimi and Palmon had come from.
The danger passed and the two pressed on. Mimi soon found herself passing holes that lead to a floor. Should we try exiting here? Her question was immediately answered by Palmon. "We've got a big drop ahead and it's too cramped for me to lower you."
"We're next to a floor," Mimi pointed out, "Let's chance it." Now, what would be a good way to break the tunnel open? It would have to be the sword; the gun was too loud. "What would be a good Core?" she asked out loud as she summoned the blade.
"Try the light one," Palmon answered, "Photo, I think. That's what the others use when they want to cut something." Photo? That was light? Well, cameras did have that flash. Photo Core it was.
The PhotoSaber's blade extended with a white light, going right through the tunnel. Mimi found herself staring at the rainbow glow the blade gave off. Now's not the time. She quickly, but carefully, moved the blade through the tunnel wall, slicing a rather awkward square off. She poked her head out.
The room was quite a bit bigger with screens with the tubes connected to them along the walls, each one having that Shadow symbol. On the right, there was a door several meters away, with the same lights as the last one. On the left, right next to the hole she'd cut, was something big. It looked like something used to control computers or machines or something. "It looks safe," she whispered back to Palmon.
She slowly crawled out, watching the door. No reaction. She carefully turned her head left. There was a big black sideways oval and it looked like a bar was going through it, connecting it to the floor and ceiling. Though, looking more carefully, it looked like the bar had grown out of the floor and ceiling. Something white appeared on right side of the oval. No, the oval was rotating. No, the oval was an eyeball, just like those eyes when she went to meet Hackermon, only bigger. They eye's pupil stopped right in front of her and she immediately scrambled back behind the computer thing. Something blue and white exploded against it.
Nothing else happened. Mimi found she was holding her breath and released it. "Th-There w-was a b-big eye, a-and…" she stammered at her partner.
"Let me see," Palmon said and moved past her. She poked her head out for several long seconds, the urge to yank her back growing. Palmon ducked back in with no explosion. "It seems to be some kind of turret but it can't see behind itself." Mimi calmed down a little at the news.
"So if we stay behind it, we're safe?" It wasn't spinning that fast so it didn't sound very hard.
"I think so," Palmon answered, "but I don't know what we'd do. This console's the only thing here and we don't know nearly enough about computers to work it. And, having to hide behind that thing all the time, I don't think even Koushiro could figure it out." Mimi pursed her lips. So this computer thing, console Palmon called it, was all they had here? She considered risking a look herself. Maybe it had an off switch for something? Palmon was too short to really see, after all.
"W-Well, if we can st-stay behind it," she took a deep breath to try and preserve her quickly fleeing courage, "l-let's do that. And get good look around." Yeah, tour the creepy computer screen room behind a laser shooting eyeball. Hopefully Palmon had a better idea. There had to be one, right?
"I'm thinking that too." Darn it! "I'll go in front." Palmon moved back to the edge of the computer th- console and poked her head out. "It's just turning away. Let's go." Mimi nodded and silently followed her partner. Seeing the big black oval, Mimi could only imagine the eye part suddenly deciding the spin the other way and catching her. She forced herself to look away, instead looking at the door at the far end. Same lights as the others so she couldn't open it. And even if she could, what was on the other side? Could be two laser eyes.
She tried looking around for something else. Something that wasn't a screen with that stupid symbol. As her eyes passed over Palmon, she noticed something. A red dot on Palmon's head. It looked like a laser pointer… "Palmon!" she cried out, as she looked at the eye. It was staring right at her, and the pupil was getting that blue and white glow. Her mouth went dry as the horrifying truth dawned on her.
"What? Mimi!" Something snaked around her ankles, yanking her off her feet on to her back as the beam fired right over top. The eye followed her down, lighting up again. From the bottom of her vision, she saw Palmon's vines snake around the room, red dots appearing all over. The eye quickly spun and fired where the two sets of vines met on the opposite side of the room. The vines had already began retracting but the eye spun with left set. It fired again, just missing, and they stretched out again, the eye following. "I can't keep doing this!"
"Uh… Palmon… Right!" Mimi rolled to her front and frantically crawled back up, hearing yet another blast. She took off towards the console; thankfully, she'd only gone a few feet. She risked a glance back at Palmon, only to see the eye staring at her. She jumped down to her stomach, the beam firing right above her. She desperately crawled back behind the console, hearing another blast, but in a different direction.
She reached the corner where the console and room met and pressed against it, sitting with her knees pressed against her chest, trying to blend in with the wall as much as possible. A laser blasted against the console, a whimper followed. Palmon dove in and looked at her. "Mimi! You made it!"
"Palmon…" Mimi barely noticed how blurry the tears made her vision. With a sob, she lunged, throwing her arms around the digimon.
"It's okay, Mimi," Palmon assured, returning the hug, "That eye just aimed at whatever laser I tripped last. I outwitted it." Mimi broke the hug and leaned against the console.
"We're stuck. Unless we go all the way back and somehow climb up those heads."
"Well you did get a look over there," Palmon said, "Maybe your map has something? According to Koushiro, it catches anything you see."
"Oh! Right!" She'd forgotten all about the map. She brought it up, causing the shape of the room to appear in her head. And only the room. The tunnel leading into the room was partially there, but nothing else. Wasn't the map supposed to cover everywhere she'd been? Forget it! I'll just worry about the room! She studied the image of the room. The wall behind her and the wall on the far end both had a bulge in the center. She glanced back. That would be where the doors were. Wait, there was another bulge. It was small and against the wall on the right, practically tucked into the far corner. Pretty much on the opposite side of where Mimi was now. "I think I found another tunnel."
"You did?" Palmon asked, sounding hopeful. Mimi nodded.
"My map has a spot that looks the same as the doors but smaller." She let depression enter her voice. "And it's the farthest corner from us." Palmon shook her head.
"We'd never make it. Maybe we should try looking at the console. At least we won't trip the lasers that way. That thing has to have an off switch."
"Or maybe breaking it will shut the eye off," Mimi suggested. A thought struck her. "Wait, I'm pretty sure that thing shot the console but it didn't do anything." She looked at the floor where the first beam had struck. No mark. "The alley!" she said. Palmon gave her a confused look and her face heated. "I-I mean the al… uh, the metal!"
"The alloy?"
"Y-Yeah! The alloy! It's immune to beams! That's what Wizardmon said, right?!" Palmon nodded. "But I cut through it just fine!" She moved over to the tunnel and summoned the PhotoSaber.
"What are you doing?" Palmon asked.
"I have an idea." She slowly stuck the blade into the tunnel and slowly moved along it a few steps. Then she cut straight a couple centimeters and cut towards the hole. Once she had finished, the long, thin rectangle fell off into the pipe. She picked it up, looking at it closely. It did appear to be the same color as the wall.
"I get it," Palmon said, "Good idea but let me do it. I can't let you hurt yourself again." Mimi nodded, handing the piece over. The two then pressed themselves against the console and Palmon began shimmying to the edge. She stuck the pipe piece out and Mimi held her breath. Moment of truth time. Nothing happened. One of Palmon's fingers stretched out, staying behind the piece. The familiar hum sounded and the finger retracted. The beam blasted through, blowing the piece out of Palmon's grasp.
Mimi slowly released her breath and Palmon's fingers stretched for the piece, snapping it up and yanking it back. "It's not even warm," Palmon said as she handed it to Mimi. True, it felt as cold as everything else here. And, no matter how closely she examined it, there wasn't even a mark. Her plan had a chance.
She looked back at the wall. What was on the other side? If it was more of those guards, then it was over. She and Palmon would never get out alive. She stood up and slowly moved along the wall, keeping an eye on the console, making absolutely certain she didn't step into the eye's sight. She summoned the beam sword and stopped. She had to make this cut very carefully. No telling what was on the other side. I don't know much about walls, but I'm pretty sure they usually have stuff between them. She had to assume that Hackermon's magic fortress walls were the same.
She took several slow steps towards the console's edge, making sure she had just enough room to point the sword at the wall without damaging it. She studied the wall. There was small pipe running along it, with one of its fastenings next to where she was standing. Perfect. She stretched her arms out, plunging the tip of the blade in and slowly moved the blade up, concentrating on keeping the blade as steady as possible. Then she cut down, making sure to go all the way to the floor. First cut was done. Now she positioned the blade as close to the top of the cut as she could while still keeping it perpendicular. She slowly moved towards the console, making sure to keep her distance unchanged. Reaching a length that looked long enough for her and Palmon together, she stopped and examined the pipe. She'd passed a second fastening a couple centimeters ago. Perfect. She made a downward cut and then went right along the floor for the final cut. As she did, Palmon's fingers wrapped around the pipe which was now their shield's handle.
The final cut finished, the piece of wall started to fall forward. Mimi rushed forward and caught the surprisingly light metal. She looked at Palmon who appeared to have a good grip on the pipe. The digimon gave her a nod and the two pulled. The wall popped right off and they froze, listening for any signs of the guards. Nothing. They took a few steps back. Still nothing. "I'm going to look," Mimi said. Palmon nodded, worry filling her eyes. Mimi agreed but the shield had to be pointed at the eye, so they were exposing themselves to whatever the wall was covering no matter what.
She slid herself along the wall, making sure not to lose her grip on the pipe, and peeked over the edge. It was another wall but this one was giving off that viscous red light. It wasn't an even light, like the wall was covered in distortions. She could swear she saw a couple of the those Shadow symbols though it was hard to tell. She went back over to Palmon. "Creepy, but not dangerous."
"Okay then," Palmon sounded as nervous as Mimi felt, "Remember even if that beam can't break through, it'll still hit hard." Mimi nodded.
"So we keep it pushed against the floor." She and Palmon carefully rotated the shield, making sure to drag it until it was facing past the console. Then she took a step, Palmon following. And another. One step at a time, always looking to the sides, ready to react if she saw even the slightest edge of that eye. They passed the console and… the dreaded hum sounded.
Suddenly, Mimi was slamming into the console, the shield pressing against her. It felt like a gorilla was pounding against it. "Mimi!" Palmon choked.
"I'm… okay!" she tried to assure while pushing back. Palmon pushed her end of the shield out a little. Guess the eye's after me. Still, with the shield slanted like that, the beam wasn't hitting as hard, and she could push back a tiny bit. Just enough to move a little. Bracing herself against the console, she slowly stepped towards Palmon, her partner taking the cue and moving the same way. With each cautions step, she inched past the console and… went stumbling without anything to brace against.
She squeezed the shield as hard as she could as she slammed into the wall, very grateful for the Painless Powder. Of course, tomorrow I'm gonna be feeling all of it. She grimaced at the thought, not to mention the scolding Jou was going to give her. It was so nice to have so much to look forward too.
"Mimi, are you hurt?!" What a question! Of course was, yet wasn't. And the braces for her bones were… thirty seven percent? Uh oh.
"No pain, remember?" she reminded, "But this could be bad for my bracings! We need to get out of here!" The two resumed, Mimi bracing herself against the wall.
"There's a hole!" Palmon cried out. A hole? Mimi checked her map. Nothing there but it wasn't exactly detailed. She sighed. How were they going to get past a hole?
Palmon started pushing against the shield again and, as she moved, Mimi could see the hole. It went right to the wall. Her heart sank. "Should we turn around?" Palmon asked, "It might be easier the other way." Mimi checked her bracings. Forty two percent. She shook her head.
"I don't think my bracings can handle it," she said, "Let's just get this over with!" She could see the reluctance in Palmon's eyes but the digimon didn't argue. She simply started moving around the hole, Mimi taking careful steps the follow. When it was time for her to turn, she took a deep breath and pushed forward with all her weight. The beam almost knocked her over again but she stayed standing. She pressed forward, step after step.
Finally, she was a few steps away from the hole. Now she just had to get across. Still making certain to push forward, she took her first step, noticing how Palmon seemed to match her cues perfectly. Half way past the hole. Forty five percent. She had to resist the urge to speed up. Making sure not to take another fall was most important right now.
"The ground's turning lumpy," Palmon warned. Sure enough, Mimi started noticing bits of the floor that almost looked bubbled up. It was all solid but round and it made steadying her steps- her foot slipped. And the shield was hit. She lost her grip on the shield as she fell over, her back hitting something metal. Then she started to slide off, memories of the fall flashing through her mind.
"NO!" she shrieked, frantically grabbing at the ledge. Her arms wrapped around it and she caught herself, hanging over the edge. I… I did it! I'm not falling! She focused on her breathing in a desperate bid to settle herself down. It looked like she was clinging to the neck of one of those heads and looking up, she wasn't that far down. But she couldn't see the shield anywhere. Did it fall? She looked down and her throat dried. Instead of more of those heads leading down, like before, it was a sea of spinning blades, like a giant grinder.
She looked back up. She could really use Palmon's help right now… Palmon! Where was she? Mimi became aware of the sound of the eye's beam firing. Repeatedly. So the shield was still with Palmon? But how much could a little digimon like her do with it? Hang on, Palmon, I'm coming. She found herself looking down again. Somehow.
She pulled as hard as she could. Her shoulder got a bit above. She pressed herself against it, trying to slide herself on top. Her leg brushed against the side. She started kicking up with it. If she could just get her leg over… she did it! Pushing her leg into it, she managed slide her upper body over the top, the rest of her following. She stopped, lying on her stomach, releasing her grasp on the neck bridge only the smallest amount.
She looked up again. She could easily climb out but then what? Every time the eye attacked, it always directly at her, unless Palmon tripped one of those beams. And we weren't so close to each other. That was a thought. With Palmon in another part of the room, Mimi might have a chance to move without getting noticed. At least until she tripped a laser. Well, first thing is to find Palmon.
She slowly pushed herself to her knees, trying to stop her shaking. She carefully rose to her feet, making sure to stay as centered on the bridge as possible. Why couldn't these heads have some railing on their necks? Putting one foot right in front of the other, she made her way across the bridge, making absolutely certain not to look down.
She made it. She looked up the wall. She could just reach over the top. Swallowing hard, she raised her hand, reached over, and then quickly pulled it back. No response from the eye. She tried again, leaving her hand there for a few long seconds. Still nothing. The eye was too interested in poor Palmon to notice her. She took a breath, fighting the urge to look down again. The wall was smooth so she couldn't climb it. She'd have to jump. With a running start.
She carefully turned and walked back, this time keeping her legs spaced normally. The neck was wide enough but only just. She'd have to run in a straight line. Just a few steps, but if she slipped… she shook her head. Best not to think about that. She faced the wall again and bent her knees, ready to run. Another deep breath. Don't look down. Don't look down. Don't look down.
She took off, resisting the urge to just close her eyes. She reached the wall and jumped, both her elbows getting over the top as she slammed into it. She frantically pulled herself up and over, stopping on her knees. She did it! The eye wasn't looking at her. It was firing beams into the corner she and Palmon were heading towards. The shield was there, too, Palmon obviously behind it, but there was no way that little digimon could move it on her own.
Now she just had to get behind it herself. She got ready to run again. The moment she got close to the shield, the eye would probably see her, so no point in being sneaky. Just be fast. Besides, if she was already running, the eye might have a slightly harder time aiming at her. She started to bend her knees again when she remembered how she fell in first place. I can't run here. The floor's too lumpy. But the lumps didn't go very far past the pit. She should still be too far for the eye to notice.
She took a careful step. A red dot appeared on her foot. What was… A laser! Those lasers surrounding the eye! She'd forgotten all about them! To her absolute horror, the eye was already rotating towards her. She turned back to the pit. The neck was directly beneath her. She dropped down, going to her knees as a beam exploded right at the edge of the floor. She pushed herself against he wall, pulled her knees to her chest, and closed her eyes, trying to keep her profile as small as possible.
Silence. And then beams started again, same as before. I'm sorry Palmon! I can't do anything! That little digimon, stuck behind the shield and Mimi who was stuck here. But at least I can move. Palmon can't go anywhere with those beams hitting her. She forced herself to stand up. For Palmon she'd find a way. I dragged Palmon into this. I have to get her out.
She stared at the wall. It was the only piece of wall she could reach down here. She'd have one chance to cut a new shield. But what would she hold it with? If she grabbed the sides her fingers would be burned off. She summoned the PhotoSaber and moved back so once again only the tip of the blade was going through. The tall rectangle finished, she let the slab fall into her hands. Behind was that weird red light again. Unfortunately, the back end was just as smooth as the front. Why couldn't you have a handle or something?!
A handle? An idea formed. The slab wasn't exactly thick but it wasn't just a sheet of metal either. She propped it against the wall and knelt down. She inserted the PhotoSaber, this time not even half of the tip going in. She made a line wide enough for her fingers. She banished the weapon and quickly checked the slab's opposite side. No damage, she hadn't cut though. Perfect. She set it down again and resummoned the weapon. She made another line beneath the first and then moved the blade up and down between them. Those movements were quite a bit harder, she had to be careful not to get impatient and swing hard enough to overshoot the lines. In time, however, she finished clearing out the metal between the two lines, leaving a crevice just big enough to slip her fingers in.
Nervously, she checked the slab again. Once again, she didn't cut all the way through. Now she had to clear out another crevice beneath the first. This second one didn't feel quite as long; knowing she was capable of pulling this off made quite the difference. But now the hard part began. Two crevices with a bit of metal between them. She needed to cut away some of that metal and turn it into a handle. She set the slab flat down on the bridge and poked the PhotoSaber in at the necessary angle. She didn't dare clear it like with the crevices; far too likely to cut all the way through. Instead, she concentrated on cutting a tiny rectangle out.
Done. She now had a handle she could grip the shield with. Not a very good handle; it was a tad wide and cut into her fingers but she should be able to hold it while getting hammered by the beams. The front was still undamaged though she didn't dare press against it or anything, not with how thin it had to be by now. But, she noted with a sigh, it was just one handle. She was going to need two to keep her grip.
After what felt like hours, though she was almost certain it was just minutes, lots of minutes, she'd finally finished. She had a new shield. Now she just had to back up there. She raised the shield over the wall and carefully slid it out, keeping her hands on it. She probably had nothing to worry about, the eye only cared about her and Palmon, not the pieces of metal moving around, but this was the only shield she had. If it got knocked into that grinder below, it was over.
No reaction from the eye. So once again, she took her running start and made her way to the top. She immediately grabbed the shield and put it between her and the eye. She looked to the corner the eye was shooting. How was she going to handle that lumpy floor? One blast from that beam and she'd be back down the hole, only this time away from the bridge. She swallowed hard. The only answer was to move away from the hole, far enough that a couple hits wouldn't send her over.
She stepped towards the eye, making sure to pay attention to the shield's sides. If she tripped one of those lasers, it would appear there first. Nothing. Another step. Nothing. A few more steps. The red dot appeared. She caught her breath but the eye didn't respond. The eye doesn't care about the shield! Just me and Palmon! So this was as close to the eye as she could get. She looked back. The hole was far enough she could take a hit without falling in, maybe even two. Maybe.
She looked to the corner. Still a lot of lumps on the floor. They smoothed out as they got further from the hole but it was still a treacherous looking path. But she knew she only had a few steps before she'd hit another laser. She'd have to start running now. While keep the shield pointed at the eye… uh oh. She couldn't possibly do that. Even Taichi and Sora probably couldn't. But she just had to get past the hole. Then she'd get pushed against the wall again and could slide over to Palmon.
It's not that far. You can do this. It's not that far. You can do this. She held the shield in front and took off, nearly slipping off the first lump. The eye stopped firing. She steadied herself as it rotated towards her. She managed to get a solid step as it looked at her. She twisted her upper body to move the shield between her and the eye as it lit up. Her toe hit a lump and she stumbled to the left. The beam fired, hitting the shield off center to the right, pushing her away from the hole. She frantically swung the shield back as the eye lit up again. Too far, the beam hit the shield on the left side now, sending her stumbling the same way.
She suddenly realized her back was turned to the eye and she could already hear the hum of the next shot. In a panic, she threw herself to the floor while twisting to try and get the shield in place. The beam struck the top left corner and bent a little, nearly tearing it out of her grasp. She landed on her back but managed to roll into a sitting position, slamming the shield down right in front. The next hit threw her back on to her back, the shield slamming into the ground just past her head. Only thinking to move, she started to rolling while frantically getting the shield back in place. Get up! Get up! Get up! Get up! Her legs wouldn't listen and she was blasted on to her back again.
She tucked her legs as she sat up again and slammed the shield down, making sure to push down on it and keep her grip as tight as possible. The impact was followed by the beam flashing overhead but at least the shield didn't bounce so high. Another hit, same result. With the third she realized she had the shield tilted towards herself so the beam wasn't hitting as directly.
But it was also exploding against the wall she wanted to get to and the hits were pushing her towards it. She had to get up. After the fourth hit, letting the heat from the blast motivate her, she let out a cry and drove herself to her feet, forcing herself forward to resist the beam. The hit still threw her back a few steps but she used the momentum to carry herself to the wall. She let out a sigh of relief as her back touched the metal, bracing her against the following hit.
She looked over to the bigger shield. Palmon was behind it, looking right at her. The digimon's eyes were wide and Mimi couldn't imagine what feelings were behind them. She quickly slid along the wall, barely noticing the beam impacts until she finally managed to slip behind the bigger shield.
"Mimi!" Palmon wailed, still holding the big shield. Mimi dropped the smaller one and grabbed the big one again. Palmon's eyes widened. "Your hands!" Mimi looked and caught her breath as the sight of the red liquid dripping from her grip on the shield. She pulled one of her hands away and started to look, quickly turning away at the blood. It looked like it came from her fingers… oh.
"Th-That other shield," she explained, "The handle cut into me. But the digivice didn't give any new injuries so I guess it's not too bad…" She was not looking forward to when the Painless Powder wore off.
""Well, at least you won't feel Jou's disinfectant," Palmon said with a weak smile. Mimi inwardly flinched. As much of a pushover Jou was, when he got mad, even Taichi backed down. She was honestly dreading facing him more than the Painless Powder wearing off.
"I so messed up."
"Come on, we're almost there." Yeah out of this one room, out of who knows how many. Still, she gave her partner the best smile she could muster and the began sliding along the wall. Once they reached the door, Mimi's heart started to race. She could just imagine it opening and revealing one of those axe guards or maybe another eye. Thankfully, it stayed closed. Hopefully it would remain that way.
They finally reached the far corner. There was an opening in the wall with a face just sticking out. "Let's set the shield up like before," Palmon suggested. Mimi nodded and she held her end while Palmon pushed, setting it to bridge across the corner. Mimi summoned the Electro Blaster and shot into the face's mouth, reducing it to the specks, revealing a tunnel. Palmon reached in and Mimi waited. "Hm, it's like the last one. It feels like you could even bring that small shield. Unless we should try the door?"
Mimi thought about that. The last tunnel lead them here. Not exactly a good place but it wasn't like she could expect any safe places here. It was probably best to keep going in one direction and now that she thought about it… "Let's stick with the tunnel. Since this place is supposed to protect Hackermon, there's probably a control center or something like that at the bottom so we should keep going down."
