Chapter Five
Digital Factory
Raiden grasped vainly at the closing circle. With it vanished her home, her family, her entire world. Even her own mind, she was shocked to discover, was filled with static. Memory was difficult; all she could be sure of was that she was in an alien dimension now.
Her kidnapper lurched down a wide dirt road, in the midst of a young, short treed forest. The creature was bowlegged and grimy, with yellow hands as hard as rock, fleshy vestigial wings, and a perpetual toothy grin. It wafted fear- not its own, but other people's fear. Raiden was determined not to be afraid; she kicked it, but it didn't seem to notice.
The forest soon tapered off, and a strong wind made itself felt. The road crossed a smoothly cresting hill, covered in short yellow grass. Swooping away from the outcropping were a long range of rocky foothills, with a few trees growing only in the valley where they were sheltered from the wind. On this shallow hill's highest point, a plain, black, rectangular building squatted.
It took a while before they neared the building; the nearness was deceiving. Close up, the building was massive, and it emitted something in great waves… Raiden could only call it a presence. Of what, she wasn't sure. She gritted her teeth- already she was getting tired of this confusion. Keeping her slung over its shoulder, her captor shambled to the side of a massive door, closed with interlocking teeth. It licked a shiny pad, grunting, and suddenly a section of the wall above it dissolved into mist. The two dimensional image of a woman appeared in the hole.
The woman was pale, and dressed in black and royal purple. Black ribbons and wings fountained from her back. Her perfect hair was black, and topped with a bizarre ivory crown. From the look of hate in her lovely eyes, Raiden guessed she wore black because it matched her soul. The woman opened her mouth only slightly, and spoke in a voice that was half way between a purr and a mechanical growl. "Welcome home, Vilemon. I see you've brought me the very first human of the season. Please, step inside, and we shall discuss how to reward you."
Vilemon, whose name sounded extremely suitable to Raiden's mind, grunted happily as the gate laboriously parted. Raiden tried again to struggle against Vilemon's immovable arms, finding her voice at last. "I'm not going in there! That vamp wants to eat me, doesn't she!" she yelled.
As the mists re-solidified into a wall, the woman tittered. "They always struggle so, don't they? I've always thought humans fought with so little dignity. So little ceremony. It's to be expected among animals, of course."
Vilemon lugged Raiden, kicking and screaming, into the gloomy building. Inside, gears turned, pistons labored, and wires writhed like living things, all for some mysterious purpose that escaped Raiden. A broad, flat concrete path plowed through the metallic jungle, without any guard rails. It seemed to extend forever, even farther than the building's massive exterior had suggested, but Vilemon seemed to be walking a little more quickly. At intervals, Raiden saw other creatures at work on the machines, either glimpsed through the tangle, or standing on the edge of the path. Practically no two were alike, but they were all twisted and strange, horned and fanged and armored. And they all turned to look hungrily at Raiden as she was carried past. Never before had she felt so weak and threatened.
Finally the path came to an end at a dull gray wall. The machines scraped right up to it, as if eager to spread and grow. There was a polished electrum door, as wide as the walkway, and almost as high as the ceiling. Leaning against the center of the door with its arms crossed was a blue skinned humanoid. The humanoid description was pushed, though, as it had a tail and lizard face. Its helmet and armor appeared to be made out of large cracked eggshells, painted with black and red flames. It had claws as long as Raiden's forearm, appearing useless for grabbing but perfect for disemboweling, and a metallic blade on its nose. Its underbelly was an unhealthy green, and badly scarred.
It leaned forward lazily and sniffed Raiden. "Ooh, will you taste that? Makes me think of the good old days. I wonder if Boss will share some?" Its voice could have belonged to a handsome human man.
Vilemon snorted, blowing a glob of snot into Raiden's shoe. "I doubt it, Flamedramon. You know she's against those sorts of sentiments," it croaked.
"I prefer to be called CorruptedFlamedramon," Flamedramon corrected, leaning back against the door. "Seeing as my content has been altered."
"Yeah, whatever. That takes too long to say. Corrupted is right, though. I don't want you to get all sentimental over the human. You were always too good with them. Are you going to let us through or not?"
Flamedramon sighed and stuck his claws in an indentation in the door. When he pulled them out, the door slid back into the wall, revealing a monotonous corridor, large and small doors spaced evenly down its ridiculous length. "I'm getting better at controlling my cravings. Do you want me to escort the girl, just, you know, to prove it?"
"What did I just say, Flamedramon? Boss has her eye on you," Vilemon warned. "If she even believes you're thinking about trying any heroics, you'll be deader than an empty room." With that, Vilemon carried Raiden through the door.
Before the door shut again, Raiden heard Flamedramon say, "I know, I know. But don't you also ever wonder if there's something better than data?" Vilemon paid it no notice. The sentry known as Flamedramon might scare the hell out of Raiden, but she had a feeling that beneathitsfrustrated demeanor,it was still noble at the core. She didn't know what made her feel this.
Vilemon stopped at a bolted, human sized door. He licked a panel beside it, and, similar to what had happened at the front gate, the door dissolved. Vilemon dropped Raiden painfully, and held out a yellow hand. "Take off your clothes," it instructed.
Raiden reacted strongly. "No way! I'm not an animal, and I have my dignity!" She wrapped her arms around her bosom.
Grabbing her by the throat, Vilemon snarled at her. "You're in no position to worry about dignity. Such concerns are above your station. Get those clothes off, and you can have the new dress that Dokugumon was so generous to spin."
Reluctantly, since there was undoubtedly no other choice, Raiden changed out of her jeans and t-shirt. Once it had collected her clothes- Raiden noticed it sniffing them- Vilemon pushed her into the room and sealed the door.
Raiden bounced as she hit the floor. Looking around, it appeared the room was made of yellow rubber-or gelatin, though in the static, Raiden couldn't quite remember what gelatin was. There was a rubber bed, without a pillow, upon which clothes of a sort had been placed. Raiden quickly put them on. The shoes looked more like bandages, and the white dress was covered in a spidery pattern. Raiden had a vague suspicion that there ought to be something to go under the dress, but decided to take what she could get, and not be swayed be vague suspicions. For the second time, she cursed this inexplicable mind fog. The clothes were of a soft silk, though Raiden also suspected that such hospitality was inadvertent.
For she didn't know how long, Raiden sat in the room, until she began to get restless. Every minute she expected a hungry monster to come in and take her. She was feeling quite hungry herself. As she thought this, the floor dipped in the center. Raiden slid down the slope, with no handholds to stop her fall. Just as suddenly as it had dipped, then, the floor sprung flat again, with a boing that sent Raiden flying. She landed safely in a wobbly corner. From the dip, also, sprung a bunch of bananas, which landed heavily. They were solid yellow, with no spots of black or green or anything. Cautiously, Raiden approached the fruit. For some strange reason, she was reassured by the fact that it wasn't ticking.
She pulled a banana off the bunch, peeled it- the inside was the same yellow color as the peel- and took a bite. Immediately, she spat it back out. The piece of fruit bounced; it was made of rubber. Well, what Raiden really wanted was something to drink, anyway.Upon the thought, asmall cup formed in the floor, and some of the ceiling dripped into it. Raiden scowled, not even wanting to try and drink it.
So awhile longer she waited, growing hungrier and thirstier and more afraid. She even tried to break her way out several times, but she merely bounced off the walls. The bouncing was extremely powerful, and the walls and floor were soft. In less dire circumstances, Raiden might have had fun. As she was sitting despondently on the bed, another disturbance came.
The room rumbled and quaked, and Raiden feared for her life. The floor ripped open in the center, exposing a tangle of machinery, as in the first part of the building. Something forced its way through the hole; it was a metal pole, with a speaker on the top. A screeching, echoing mechanical voice issued from the speaker.
"I am Machinedramon. I control this entire factory. You are Raiden DeLiberato, the human who was brought here by Vilemon?"
After being frightened initially, Raiden quickly gained courage. She didn't wonder how Machinedramon knew her name. "If you control this factory, then how about you let me out of this prison?" she hazarded.
"Permit me to rephrase that," Machinedramon apologized politely. "I operate the factory, but I receive orders from another, orders I am unable to disobey. I have been directly ordered not to free you. However, I have kept secrets from the mistress, and those secrets are my reason for intruding upon you."
"Who is this mistress everyone talks about?" Raiden interrupted curiously.
Machinedramon hesitated. "She is called Lilithmon," it said.
"Lilith…" automatically, Raiden's hand passed across her chest in the shape of a cross. She wasn't sure what made her want to do that. But even so, the name made her afraid.
"Lilithmon is possessed of terrible power, and commands her followers through pain and fear. Other than a twisted few like Vilemon, there are none who willingly serve her."
Raiden was silent. Machinedramon paused, and spoke again. A compartment opened in its pole. "Reach inside, and you will find my secret. I have saved it for the first person I could trust to pass it on to."
"It's a trap," gasped Raiden. Upon hearing this, a horrible creaking boomed through the speaker. Raiden wasn't sure if Machinedramon was laughing or crying.
"Oh, were I but that subtle," it moaned. A robotic arm extended from the compartment, and dropped what it was holding in front of Raiden. There were three items. One was a tiny chip of obsidian, with a red emblem embedded in the side. One was a vaguely triangular device, bronze and yellow, with three buttons and a screen. The third item was a golden egg. Machinedramon explained somewhat. "There are objects that will help you survive in this world. But they are secondary. Within the Digi-egg is what a human might call my child, a Digimon made from parts of myself. Lilithmon is not aware if his existence. I need you to get him out of here, as I do not want a life of slavery for him."
After that, Raiden couldn't not trust Machinedramon. Not wanting to appear too ignorant, Raiden didn't ask what a Digimon was. But she couldn't avoid saying, "If you can't get me out, how am I supposed to escape?"
"Even the weakest Digimon has the strength to break out of this room…. But I must go now. Mistress is becoming suspicious." The speaker withdrew, back beneath the floor, which sealed seamlessly, as if it had never been broken. Raiden was left alone, not sure what to think.
Sheslipped the chip and device into a fold in her dress. Then she curled up, hugging the egg like a security blanket. The egg grew warm from her body heat, and she felt a bit like a mother bird. It wasn't long when the egg started to shake. Raiden held it out and inspected it. A crack was already splitting through the middle of the egg. Before she had time to react, the egg erupted in a shower of shell fragments. Raiden now held in her hands a small round creature. It had no arms or legs, only a pipe that served as a tail. It had a beak, and two ridges on its back. Its yellow skin had a metallic sheen. It looked up at Raiden with large beaming eyes, and took a deep breath.
Neither one of them noticed the triangular device's screen turning on in the precious, awkward moment. A voice introduced the new arrival. "Imon, a newborn baby Digimon. He may look helpless now, but with love and attention, he will grow up big and strong." Raiden had a feeling that this didn't usually happen, but was grateful anyway.
Imon smiled and chirped. "Wooow, you have really tasty chi! Can we be friends?"
Raiden smiled back. "Yes, lets be good friends. Who else do we have?" She looked around. "I'm not sure you realize this, but we're trapped. Your… parent said that you can get us out. Can you?"
"I know," responded Imon, surprising Raiden. It took another deep breath, and spun around to face a wall. It spoke a short phrase which, it seemed, reacted with the core of this world, whatever that was, and produced a tangible effect. The words were "Bubble Blow," and the effect was Imon's breath becoming a bubble of air. The bubble must have had special qualities of some sort, because it cut through the rubber wall, leaving a ragged hole.
"You're incredible, Imon," breathed Raiden. She scooped up the baby Digimon, who was almost physically swelling with pride in the praise.
"We should save the egg shell. It'll come in handy if I have to Digivolve in difficult circumstances," Imon advised. Raiden didn't ask what Digivolution was, or how Imon knew so many words. The shell had somehow pulled itself together again, but after everything else, Raiden wasn't overly surprised. She took it in the other hand, and leapt through the hole to freedom.
--------
Minutes later, Lilithmon stormed into the room. "All right, Machinedramon, what's this silliness?" she snapped.
But the room was empty.