Graveyard Mound

"Sora Takenouchi, I'm out of strength." In the sky, a giant red bird that seemed to be wreathed in flames spoke. It was Birdramon.

"All right. Birdramon, I'm ready. Gomamon, are you ready?" Sora Takenouchi shouted at the top of her lungs. She was standing on one of Birdramon's claws, while Gomamon sat on the other.

"No problem, Sora Takenouchi. I'm ready." With that, Gomamon leaped hard, clearing the gap between Birdramon's feet and landing beside Sora Takenouchi. This wasn't his first time working with her.

"Okay, Birdramon, fly a little higher. I'll count-one, two, three, jump!" Sora Takenouchi shouted and hurled herself into the air. Gomamon jumped out as well.

"Aaaah!" There wasn't a trace of fear in Sora Takenouchi's scream. Instead, it carried the exhilaration of letting everything out.

"Fish School Stampede!" No sooner had Gomamon called out than the sound of Sora Takenouchi hitting the water followed. Three seconds later, Sora Takenouchi surfaced, surrounded by countless little fish.

Relieved of the weight, Birdramon let out a bright cry in the sky. After seeing Sora Takenouchi surface, Birdramon flew toward the nearest island.

Sora Takenouchi had discovered this bungee-jumping game while they were being chased by Kuwagamon. But Kuwagamon wasn't the one who had injured Birdramon. That had been a Kabuterimon controlled by a Black Gear. Even under that control, those two kinds of Digimon still fought each other.

"Meteor Wing!" Before landing, Birdramon first plowed up the beach with a special move. That precaution had been learned the hard way. After using the move, Birdramon's body shone and reverted to Biyomon.

The newly discovered island here turned out to be part of File Island's coastline, so Sora Takenouchi and the others only needed to climb onto the beach. Some of the places where the island had split apart were sheer, towering cliffs that could only be reached by flying.

"Biyomon, help me dry my clothes." As Sora Takenouchi spoke, she casually wrung out her hair. Sora Takenouchi had always been mature for her age, and after this stretch of adventures, she had developed quite a queenly air.

"Magic Fire!" Biyomon said. Ever since Sora Takenouchi had discovered this bungee-jumping sport, this had become routine. Spiraling green flames spilled from Biyomon's mouth and wound around Sora Takenouchi. Despite their intense heat, the green flames didn't hurt her at all. They merely dried the moisture from her clothes. Complete control-that was the essence of Biyomon's Magic Fire.

"Sora Takenouchi, let's look around the island for controlled Digimon and Black Gears operating the machinery." Gomamon's fur was naturally waterproof. A light shake left it completely dry.

"Not yet. Gomamon, everyone's exhausted, right? You two rest first. I'll go see what I can find to eat."

"Sora Takenouchi, let's go together. Digimon World is dangerous," Biyomon said.

"No need, Biyomon." Sora Takenouchi pulled an enormous red feather from her backpack. "Biyomon, look at this."

"Sora Takenouchi, isn't that the feather from last time?" On the previous island, Birdramon had been struck by Thornmon's special move, Thorn Rain, and nearly lost half a body. Unexpectedly, this feather hadn't been destroyed. It was also because of that injury on the previous island that Birdramon had run out of strength halfway through the flight.

"That's right." Sora Takenouchi smiled faintly. "Rookie Digimon will definitely be scared off by Birdramon's presence. And if it's a Champion Digimon, neither you nor Gomamon has the strength to fight anyway, right?" she told the two Digimon.

After Sora Takenouchi disappeared from view, Gomamon said, "Biyomon, what Sora Takenouchi said sounded pretty reasonable. But I feel like something's wrong with it."

Biyomon nodded too. "Sora Takenouchi's getting more and more amazing. I feel like there's nothing we can't do as long as she's here."

Soon, Sora Takenouchi returned with a pile of food. Although it consisted of all sorts of strange plants, these were foods everyone had already accepted. There was one kind of mushroom that had no effect on people with evil hearts, but made innocent people lose their memories if they ate it. This was all knowledge shared with them by Digimon Birdramon had awakened. In addition, for various reasons, the number of Champion Digimon Birdramon had killed had already reached double digits. The Rookie Digimon were beyond counting.

"Magic Fire!" Biyomon spat out green flames, instantly lighting the firewood. Although they were on a beach, Gomamon had removed all the moisture from the wood, so the fire burned vigorously.

That night, everyone slept soundly. Camping would normally mean encountering snakes, insects, rats, and ants that frightened young girls. But this was Digimon World, where none of those things existed. Of course, for comfort, Biyomon had baked the ground where they slept with Magic Fire. It was even more comfortable than a Simmons mattress. Sora Takenouchi covered herself with the feather that had fallen from Birdramon. Although it was only a feather whose flames had gone out, it was wonderfully warm.

After everyone had fallen asleep, a cluster of white floating shapes darted out in the distance. They were a large group of Bakemon.

"They're all fast asleep. Let's hurry and run away!" This was a timid Bakemon.

"How can we run away? We should capture them and hand them over to Lord Lost Satanmon."

"All right. Let's capture them and hand them over to Lord Lost Satanmon." The group of Bakemon reached an agreement.

"Wait, all of you. Don't do anything reckless," one Bakemon said.

"Who's this?" The Bakemon began murmuring among themselves. This was a Bakemon they had never seen before.

"I'm a Bakemon from Mass Grave Mound. They're the ones who stole our territory."

"That's because you Bakemon from Mass Grave Mound are useless. Watch what we from Graveyard Mound can do," the Graveyard Mound Bakemon declared in unison.

"Please don't. Look at what she's holding. That thing can give off golden light. Our Mass Grave Mound combination skill, Bakemon Emperor, shattered just from being struck by that golden light," the Mass Grave Mound Bakemon said.

"Wasn't your Mass Grave Mound destroyed by a boy and an Ikkakumon?" asked a Bakemon who knew the inside story.

"Come on, tell us what happened." The surrounding Bakemon immediately wandered off topic and started gossiping.

It took a tremendous effort for the Mass Grave Mound Bakemon to bring them back on track. "Vaccine-type and Data-type Digimon call them the Chosen Children. There are seven of them altogether."

"Right, right, that's what Lord Lost Satanmon said," a Bakemon agreed.

"No, those were Lord Devimon's instructions."

"Lord Devimon!" "Lord Lost Satanmon!" "Lord Devimon!" "Lord Lost Satanmon!" The Bakemon started arguing again.

"Stop arguing. If you're so brave, let's summon Lord Lost Satanmon right now." The Bakemon were just about to lose their tempers, but hearing Lost Satanmon's name sent a chill through their entire bodies.

"You, go test whether that thing really is so powerful," a Bakemon with the air of a leader told the Bakemon beside him.

That Bakemon cautiously floated over Sora Takenouchi's head. Even in deep sleep, her posture remained graceful. Her hands lay folded over her lower abdomen, with the Digivice pinned beneath them. It hadn't slipped even while she slept.

Two pitch-black hands emerged from beneath the Bakemon's white sheet, their nails gleaming eerily in the darkness. The girl's strength was clearly no match for a Champion Bakemon. With one hand, the Bakemon gently moved Sora Takenouchi's hand aside. With the other, he grabbed the Digivice and withdrew it beneath his sheet.

"It's not nearly as powerful as you said," the Graveyard Mound Bakemon mocked. Before he had finished speaking, countless rays of golden light shot out of his body. He vanished into the air before he could even scream. At the sight, all the Bakemon were too frightened to speak.

Where the Bakemon had vanished, the pure-white Digivice fell out of the air and landed squarely on Sora Takenouchi's nose. Two trails of clear tears immediately spilled from the corners of her eyes. The pain was about to wake her.

"Endless Nightmare!" Digimon World was a place where strength spoke loudest. The leader-like Bakemon could command the others because of his strength. He was the first to notice Sora Takenouchi's unusual reaction and hastily hit her with his special move, Endless Nightmare.

"What do we do now?" Clearly, the leader-like Bakemon excelled only in strength. His intelligence was still sorely lacking. They could only put their heads together.

In the end, everyone made a difficult decision.

The Bakemon lined up one by one before the Bakemon who flatly refused to take off his clothes, their expressions full of anguish.

One Bakemon's body suddenly swelled, flinging his white sheet off and exposing the pitch-black body beneath. Only his teeth and nails shone eerily. By the time the white sheet landed, that Bakemon had already hidden himself away. Was a Bakemon without a white sheet still a Bakemon?

Each Bakemon lined up and handed over his white sheet. The sheet was part of a Bakemon's body, and if left elsewhere, it would disintegrate after a while... But stacking several dozen sheets together here was actually a form of fusion, just like the Bakemon's team special move, Summon Bakemon Emperor. The thing formed from dozens of fused sheets turned pale red with a metallic sheen. Its defensive power could probably reach the Ultimate level. Fragile as Bakemon were, sheer numbers made up for it.

After completing the combination move, the Bakemon who had lost their clothes all hid themselves, keeping a close eye on their companion. If that fellow tried to run away, they would kill him even if it meant throwing every last shred of dignity aside.

Fortunately, the Bakemon's adamant refusal to take off his clothes proved that he valued his dignity above all else. At first he advanced cautiously, but then he suddenly plucked up his courage and charged straight ahead in a single bound. Everyone watched with their hearts in their throats.

Disturbed by the noise, Gomamon murmured unconsciously, rolled over, and fell asleep again. That tiny movement alone scared the Bakemon into a cold sweat. Biyomon slept as heavily as a dead dog. The Endless Nightmare inflicted on Sora Takenouchi seemed to be taking effect, and sweat kept streaming down her forehead.

Seeing this, the Bakemon felt greatly reassured. He wrapped the pale-red fabric around his hand, grabbed the Digivice, and took off running.