Chapter 1:

At the Kamiya apartment, Kari had invited the whole Digi-Destined team for a slumber
party, Digimon included. The Digimon had to hide in their partners' overnight bags so Kari's
mom wouldn't see them. DemiVeemon, Poromon, Upamon, Patamon, and Minomon were glad to be out
in the open. The In-Training Digimon were chowing down on the great food Yolei had brought
over from her parents' store. Gatomon, as usual, was grimacing at the In-Training Digimon and
their poor eating behavior. She'd tell them to at least use utensils, but then she remembered
that not all of them had hands. Didn't matter, being that most of the food Yolei had supplied
was ready-to-eat and you eat them with your hands. Still, it was no excuse for their eating
habits. She wondered if In-Training Digimon had a few extra stomachs. She was more concerned
about finding Kari when she was Nyaromon she didn't worry too much about when she was hungry,
though she did eat when she was. Patamon ate slower than the rest. At least he has some
manners, Gatomon thought. The Digi Destined each had a small bowl of popcorn while watching a
movie. Kari's parents had already gone to bed, so the living room was theirs for the taking.
Gatomon didn't care too much for the movie. She stretched out and curled up into a ball in
front of the TV, facing away from it.

"Hey, Gatomon! You're missing the movie!" DemiVeemon said, poking her a bit. Gatomon
mumbled and pushed his tiny, chocolate-covered hand away.

"I don't care for any of that, DemiVeemon. I'm tired. I spent most of the day trying to
get a mouse out of its hole. It was laughing at me and I hear it singing Dixie right now,"
Gatomon said, now covering her ears. DemiVeemon blinked; he couldn't hear anything.

"What's she talking about?" Minomon asked.

"Must be a cat thing," DemiVeemon shrugged.

"Shh," the six kids on the couch and chairs said to the Digimon.

"This movie stinks," Yolei said.

"Yeah, change it," TK agreed.

"There's gotta be something on," Davis said, flipping through the channels. He found
something. The Prince of Egypt was on. Gatomon was almost asleep when she suddenly heard the
cracking of the whip and someone screaming. She stretched out, digging her claws deep into the
carpet, clenching her teeth as if it was her receiving the whippings.

"Stop it! Leave that man alone!" the voice of Moses shouted on TV. The whipping on the
TV had stopped, but not the sound in Gatomon's head. Ken was the first to notice.

"Is Gatomon having a nightmare?" he asked. The rest looked.

"Gatomon! Gatomon, wake up!" Kari shook her. At the touch of Kari's hand, Gatomon
screamed bloody murder, as if Kari's hand was on fire. Patamon and the In-Training Digimon
screamed in unison from the sudden outburst. Gatomon woke up. Before she could understand
what was going on, she was being stuffed under the couch along with the other Digimon. Kari's
mother poked her head out of the bedroom.

"Kari, what was that screaming about?" she asked groggily.

"Screaming? Screaming, Mom?" Kari nervously asked.

"Sorry, Mrs. Kamiya. I accidentally sat on the controls and turned the volume up as
someone was screaming in the movie," Yolei said, holding up the remote control.

"Oh. Well, make sure it doesn't happen again. And don't stay up too late. Night,
kids," Mrs. Kamiya said, closing the door as she went back in. The six kids sighed in relief
at the close call, then noticed the Digimon coming back out.

"What was that all about, Gatomon?" TK asked.

"Yeah, you sounded like you were in real pain. Did you dream you were eating Davis'
cooking?" Cody asked.

"Hey!" Davis stared at Cody.

"No, nothing like that," Gatomon said.

"Tell us," Upamon said.

"Yeah, Gatomon. We'll listen," DemiVeemon said.

"We're all ears," Minomon said.

"That's almost about all that we are," Poromon said.

"Sorry, guys, but I'd rather not tell you right now," Gatomon said, heading for Kari's
room.

"Gatomon..." Kari said.

"Not even you, Kari." With that, Gatomon disappeared into Kari's room. She jumped up
onto Kari's bed, made herself a nest at the foot of her bed, and then laid down in it. The
cracking of the whip reminded her too much of when she was Myotismon's slave. She had scars on
her back as proof. You could never see or feel them, however, because they were covered in
such thick fur. She did, however, bear a scar on her paw, which was only seen when she took
that glove off, which she never really did. In fact, how many people alive besides she knows
about that scar? No one but herself. The gloves covered the scars of her past. She was
tired, but she didn't want to sleep. Now that she had the sound of the whip in her mind, she
would be reminded of her past, how Myotismon had tortured her until he finally broke her
spirit. Finally, she surrendered to sleep. She began her dream in the beginning, the day she
was captured by Myotismon.

Chapter 2:

Nyaromon had just digivolved into Salamon when she was walking down a path in the Digi-
World. An apple dropped in front of her, nearly on top of her head. She looked up to see
Elecmon collecting apples in a bag. He looked down at her.

"Sorry, Salamon. Did I almost hit you?" he asked.

"Almost. What are you doing up there?" Salamon asked.

"Giving the fish a break!" Elecmon chuckled. Salamon giggled.

"So you're giving the baby Digimon apples today?"

"Yup! More fun gathering than hauling them back to the Primary Village."

"Can't say I'd know."

"Well, take care of yourself, Salamon."

"You, too." A bit hungry, Salamon took the apple with her as she continued. She
finished the apple and tossed it into a nearby trashcan. Then she heard a voice.

"Well, look here. A Salamon." Salamon looked around. Then she gasped when she saw
Myotismon appear next to a tree. DemiDevimon landed on a branch on that tree.

"Yeah, boss! Hmm... a shrimp Salamon though," he said.

"That can be fixed," Myotismon said evilly.

"DemiDevimon, who are you calling a shrimp? Have you looked in a mirror lately?"
Salamon, trying to be brave, asked.

DemiDevimon growled, "She's not worth the trouble. Demi Dart!" He threw a dart at
Salamon, who quickly moved. Myotismon smacked DemiDevimon right out of the tree.

"Watch it or you'll be the next one in my slave pit!" While Myotismon was dealing with
DemiDevimon, Salamon took this chance to get away. Myotismon noticed and used Crimson
Lightning as a whip to lash onto Salamon's back ankle and yanked her over to him. "You have no
choice in this matter! Get the bag, DemiDevimon. I don't feel like beating this Digimon
senseless," Myotismon said.

"Yet?" DemiDevimon asked, holding a bag in his talons. Myotismon took the bag, then
grabbed Salamon by her collar and glared into her eyes.

"If you try to escape, I'll break your neck like a twig." Then he stuffed her into the
bag.

"OK, boss, maybe if she digivolves she'll be a good servant, but right now she's a bug,"
DemiDevimon said.

"Shut up, fool!"

"Shutting up, boss." Myotismon put the bag over his shoulder and started walking.

"If you keep this up, DemiDevimon, I'll make hagus out of you."

"But I don't have a stomach."

"You know what I mean! Keep this up and you'll be dinner."

"Got it, Master Myotismon." DemiDevimon saluted with one wing while flapping with the
other, causing him to fly sideways. Myotismon's castle was dark and had a musty smell. He had
put Salamon in a cage hanging by a chain. The space between the bars were too small for her to
squeeze through. Near the cage was a large fire that was very hot. Salamon was just sitting
there, sweating from the fire. She was also put in shackles. Myotismon was in a chair
watching her. In his hand was a glass of blood red wine.

"If you behave, I'll take your shackles off," he said. Salamon snorted at him.
DemiDevimon flew up and landed on top of her cage.

"What are you gonna do with her, boss?"

Myotismon picked up a plate of fish and said, "If she avoids the pit, survives the
Digigauntlet, and defeat my choice of Digimon in the arena, then I'll make her a valuable
servant. If not... it will be fun to watch her suffer." He slipped the plate through the bars
of Salamon's cage. "Don't think I'm getting soft." Salamon, annoyed with DemiDevimon on her
cage, hit the side of the cage to make it shake. DemiDevimon was caught off-guard. He shouted
and fell backwards into the fire. He flew back up, his rear on fire, screaming. He dove into
a nearby fountain to put it out. He sighed in relief. Myotismon smacked the cage, rattling
Salamon. She gripped the bottom of her cage to stop. She looked over at DemiDevimon.

"If I get out of here, you're going bowling!" she growled.

"I'd rather play soccer," DemiDevimon said.

Myotismon took out a cattle prod and shocked Salamon with it saying, "Shut up!" Salamon
screamed and gripped onto the bottom of the cage again when he stopped. "Do that again and
I'll put it to another level."

Salamon gave him a small, weak grin and said, "Don't tell me you wouldn't do that to him
if he bugged you enough."

"Shock her again, boss! Don't let her talk about me that way!" DemiDevimon said,
flapping his wings by Myotismon's head. He shocked DemiDevimon instead.

"Shut up, moron, or you'll join her in that cage!" DemiDevimon's eyes swirled.
Myotismon sat back down with the cattle prod in his hands. Salamon quietly laid her head down
in front of the plate of fish. She was just staring down at Myotismon and DemiDevimon and
sweating from the fire. Myotismon stared into the fire. A few days had past. DemiDevimon
forgot to lock Salamon's cage one night. The thought of escaping from Myotismon had crossed
her mind, but not until she could walk around a bit, since being in that cage left little room
to walk. She was in the halls when DemiDevimon was watching her walk by.

"Hey, squirt. Having a nice walk?" he asked.

"Shut up, pest," Salamon said, passing by. DemiDevimon followed her.

"If Myotismon finds you out here, he'll fry you like an egg."

"So? I'm not afraid of him." DemiDevimon grew curious.

"Why not?"

"Aren't you?" Salamon said that with a smirk.

"Depends if he's constipated or not."

"I'm just not afraid of him, that's all." She paused. "It's the pit that scares me.
I've heard other Digimon screaming when they're over the pit." DemiDevimon nodded.

"I've seen it. Not the best place to be."

"How true. So I'm more afraid of it than of him." Salamon walked ahead.

"He'll be waking up in an hour."

"So he's a little frightening when he wakes up. So what? His fault for leaving my cage
unlocked... or should I say *your* fault?" DemiDevimon grumbled and growled. Then he flapped
off as if he didn't see her. Salamon smirked again and continued walking away. Myotismon woke
up early. He opened one eye.

"What?" He jumped up and looked at Salamon's cage, then noticed the unlocked lock.
"DemiDevimon!" he screamed. Salamon heard and she suddenly quivered.

"He's up early." Myotismon stormed down the hall to look for Salamon.

"The Salamon escaped!" He was close to where she was. He found her and lashed his
Crimson Lightning around her waste. Salamon shouted. "I'll teach you about escaping!" The
whip started to shock her, making her scream out. When he stopped, Myotismon said, "You should
know better. I don't like Digimon who try to escape me." Salamon starred up at him, her eyes
nearly in slits. Myotismon hated those eyes. "Stare at me with those eyes again and it will
be your last!" He dragged her back to her cage. He shoved her into her cage, put a shackle
collar around her neck and locked that onto a bar, then he slammed the door and locked it.
Salamon kept her eyes on him. Myotismon helped himself to some wine and sat back in his chair,
very mad. "Get in here, DemiDevimon!" DemiDevimon peeked behind the corner.

"You screamed, boss?"

"Why didn't you lock Salamon's cage?"

DemiDevimon had a large sweatdrop on his head, saying, "Well-uh-I-you see-" Salamon
grinned as she was enjoying watching DemiDevimon sweat. Oh, yes, it was worth it.

"Stop your babbling! Do not let that happen again." DemiDevimon shut up real fast,
saluted with his right wing, nodded, and left quickly. Myotismon rubbed his temple while
Salamon was smirking about DemiDevimon, saying nothing.

Chapter 3:

A week later, Salamon still had no respect for Myotismon or DemiDevimon. Myotismon was
in a foul mood. He unlocked Salamon's cage, ropes in his hands.

"Time for you to meet the pit." At those words, Salamon felt a twist in her stomach.
She looked brave, but she really wasn't.

"I've met it already. We didn't like each other much," came her reply. Myotismon pulled
her out anyway.

"Too bad." He tied her up in the ropes and started taking her to the pit. DemiDevimon
watched them walk by, silently laughing at Salamon. Soon, Myotismon tied her on a rope high
above a covered pit. He pulled the doors apart to reveal a fire pit. Salamon sweated from the
fire as she looked down.

"So, uh, how many Digimon that have gone to the pit come out alive?" she asked.

"None." Salamon softly gulped. The Myotismon began to lower her towards the pit.
DemiDevimon flew up to face Salamon.

"It's been nice knowing you, Salamon. Then again... no it hasn't!" he laughed and flew
back over to Myotismon. Salamon struggled to get free of the ropes. If she only had claws...
"After we're done here, boss, how about I serve you up some extra crispy Salamon?"

"Maybe," Myotismon said. Salamon starred down at DemiDevimon.

"I'll take care of you first if I get out of this!" DemiDevimon pulled down under his
eye and stuck out his tongue. Just to play with Salamon's head, Myotismon stopped lowering her
three inches above the flames. Salamon whimpered, closed her eyes tight, and suddenly began to
glow.

"What?" Myotismon shouted.

"She's... digivolving!" DemiDevimon shouted.

"Salamon digivolve to..." She changed. "Gatomon!" She used her new claws to cut the
ropes holding her, then jumped to safety. She lifted her head up. "Oh, DemiDevimon..." she
said with a growl. DemiDevimon had a sweatdrop on his head as he started flapping.

"Uh-oh."

Gatomon jumped at him shouting, "Lightning Claw!" And that sent him crashing through the
wall before he could even flinch. Myotismon took out the cattle prod.

"OK, little miss!"

"Lightning Claw!" And she smacked the prod right out of his hands before he had a chance
to react. Now that she had digivolved, she had the guts to face him.

Myotismon growled, "Do you wish to fight? Fine. Dokugumon, I've found you a snack!"
The giant spider stepped out and roared. Gatomon twitched her nose.

"He always sends out the ugly ones. Lightning Claw!" she shouted, attacking. Within a
few minutes, she had beaten Dokugumon. Gatomon was dusting off her paws, facing away from
Myotismon, who was madder than hell.

"Stupid little Gatomon bitch! Crimson Lightning!" He snapped it at her. It went all
around her and then shocked her to high heaven. Gatomon screamed; even as a Champion it was
unbearable. DemiDevimon, recovered, was enjoying Gatomon getting her just desserts. Then for
good measured, Myotismon whipped her back a few times saying, "You will go back into your cage.
And if you try to escape, I will turn you into a lab rat." Gatomon was clenching her teeth
during the whipping, sweating slightly. "Do you understand me?"

Gatomon panted, and said a bit shaken, "Y-Yes, Lord Myotismon." She collapsed,
exhausted, then de-digivolved back into Salamon. DemiDevimon picked her up in his talons and
flapped back to her cage. Myotismon took her from him, threw her into her cage, and locked it.
DemiDevimon landed on top of the cage and rubbed his cheek, bleeding a little.

"I hate her Lightning Claw," he said. Myotismon sat down in his chair.

"Maybe so, DemiDevimon, but she *will* be evil," he said.

"Nah, too independent. Not that you don't have the power to break her, boss."

"It's easy to break independence."

"I still think she should be fed to the pit. Or better, an Ultimate Digimon."

"Watch what you say. All you have to do is break their spirit. Then the independence
just melts away." DemiDevimon nodded, flapped, and then kicked Salamon's cage for good
measure. That night, Salamon was lying in her cage, staring at the fire that is always by her
cage. If she had claws, she would be able to pick her lock. She yawned, getting the attention
of a drowsy Myotismon. "Go to sleep, Salamon. Tomorrow you run the Digigauntlet." The
Digigauntlet. He had mentioned that before, but she never knew what it was... or she didn't
want to know. She'd know tomorrow. It came sooner than she thought. Being led on a leash by
Myotismon, Salamon saw several other Digimon in different obstacle courses. The Digimon looked
mean as hell, scared as well. Up ahead, Salamon noticed a male Gatomon with an eye patch over
his eye and a few scars. The Gatomon looked at Salamon, then away. Myotismon stopped in front
of the Gatomon, where they faced what he called the Digigauntlet. Crushers, swinging blades,
and maces were among what the Digigauntlet had. The sight made Salamon shiver.

The Gatomon said, "I lost my eye in the Digigauntlet, though I like to lie and say I
lost it in a fight with Phantomon. I've seen other Digimon lose their arms, legs, anything,
including their lives." Salamon grimaced as she felt a knot in her stomach. He continued, "It
took the head of a Digimon who went in before me. They still didn't get all the blood off the
course."

"Disturbing," Salamon said.

"Yeah."

"Demon," Myotismon said to the Gatomon, "it's your turn." Demon got ready as DemiDevimon
had a whistle in his mouth.

Demon mumbled, "Kill me this time, Digigauntlet." DemiDevimon blew the whistle and Demon
was off. At the start, he was nearly crushed. But when he got to the middle that was the end
of Demon. Salamon stared at what used to be a live Gatomon, feeling pale. DemiDevimon
snickered as he looked at the mess, thinking that the same fate would befall on Salamon if she
wasn't lucky.

"It appears to be your turn, Salamon," Myotismon said, taking the leash off of her.
Salamon got ready, looking like it was no big deal and she could beat it easily. But she was
afraid of it, as much as the pit. DemiDevimon blew the whistle and she was off. She got hit
by the swinging blades, but didn't lose any parts. But she was getting tired fast. When she
got to the middle, she slipped in Demon's blood and fell. Myotismon watched, an evil look on
his face. A swinging blade was coming at her. Suddenly...

"Salamon digivolve to... Gatomon!" She smacked the blade away with Lightning Claw, then
continued the rest of the course. All the Digimon, except Myotismon and DemiDevimon, applauded
for Gatomon. Gatomon slid to a halt at the end and panted. She paid no attention to the blood
that had gotten on her fur when she fell. She wiped the sweat from her forehead. Myotismon
walked over to her and put the leash on her.

"Congratulations on your success," he merely said. Then he yanked on the chain to make
her start walking. Gatomon, who would normally try to defy him, was too tired to try to
escape... yet. Besides, she wanted to see what he had in store for her next time.

Chapter 4:

The next day, Myotismon led Salamon on a leash again to a room that was once a beautiful
ballroom, now dark and dusty. DemiDevimon had the best seat in the house up at the ceiling on
the chandelier. He had a microphone in his wing that amplified his voice through the speakers
in the room.

"Master Myotismon, ladies and gentlemon, we hope to have a quick fight here today, in
fact by the time you went to get a snack and come back, you can be sure the fight will be over!
In the cobweb corner, we have the Rookie chump-or is it the chumpy Rookie?-Salamon!" he
announced. Then he pushed a button on a machine near him that played a recording of "boos."
He turned it off and continued as a door was opening. "And in the dusty corner, we have the
burrowing Digimon Champion, Drimogemon!" Then he pushed a button on the machine again to
create cheers as Drimogemon appeared.

Salamon squeaked, "Uh-oh..." Drimogemon eyed Salamon and said it was going to be too
easy.

"Enjoy the show, boss!" DemiDevimon said as he started the fight by ringing a bell.

"Crusher Bone!" Drimogemon started it off by throwing a bone at Salamon. Salamon was
thrown back a bit, but regained herself quickly.

"Puppy Howling!" Salamon let out a fierce howling that smacked right into Drimogemon.

"Iron Drill Spin!" Drimogemon's drill on his nose went to stab her, but Salamon quickly
moved. Drimogemon was steamed.

DemiDevimon was waving little cheering fans around, cheering, "Go Drimogemon! Knock her
out now! She's the chump; you're the Champ, go, go, go!" Drimogemon ripped out a pillar and
threw it at Salamon, hitting her pretty badly. He threw another one just as she was
digivolving.

"Salamon digivolve to... Gatomon! Lightning Claw!" She smacked that pillar away. "Are
you tired yet, Drimogemon?"

"No. Are you?" With that, Gatomon pounced and attacked with her Lightning Claw,
knocking Drimogemon over. Drimogemon used his Bone Crusher attack again, only to have Gatomon
knock it away with Lightning Claw. Drimogemon blinked; he couldn't believe that. Then Gatomon
jumped on his drill nose, then stuck her tongue out at him.

"Nyeh-eh! Can't get me!"

"Oh yeah?" He spinned his drill nose, but Gatomon only ran the opposite direction.

"Did I tell you I was a champion log roller?" Gatomon asked. Irritated, Drimogemon tried
to smack her off, only to have her jump up and then back onto his still spinning nose. Gatomon
thought it was time to end the fight, so her eyes glowed a slight red. "Cat's Eye Hypnotism."
Drimogemon was suddenly tired and went to sleep, his nose stopped spinning.

"Boo! Cheater, cheater, Pumpkinmon eater!" DemiDevimon called from the chandelier.
Gatomon, still using her hypnotism attack, sent it at DemiDevimon, who fell asleep right there,
with a snot bubble on his nose. Gatomon got off Drimogemon's nose and dusted herself off, then
looked over at Myotismon. He was using Crimson Lightning and snapped it, getting it close to
her feet. Gatomon jumped around as he continued this.

"You *will* obey me!" he said.

"Never!" Gatomon shouted, then jumped at him shouting out her Lightning Claw attack. She
clung to his face with the attack until he pulled her off and threw her a small distance, both
of her gloves came off. Vegiemon and SkullMeramon caught her.

"Hold her down," Myotismon said, grasping his "whip." Gatomon struggled while Vegiemon
and SkullMeramon turned her back to face Myotismon and they each held an arm. Gatomon's heart
had jumped into her throat, waiting for Myotismon to do his evil and was afraid of it. She
didn't dare hide it. "You will regret your actions," Myotismon said, then started to whip her.
The first whip caused her to cry out. DemiDevimon awoke to that shout, so he watched with
great delight at seeing Gatomon get what she deserved. Gatomon's claws wanted to grip
something, but she was standing up with nothing to grip onto. Her teeth were clenched and
tears were in her eyes. "Have you learned your lesson yet?" Myotismon, still whipping, asked.
Hearing his voice, Gatomon became enraged. She tried to get lose from Vegiemon and
SkullMeramon's grips. In the process, one of her paws got whipped. She screamed. Myotismon
grinned evilly, "Guess not." And he kept doing it. A few minutes later, Gatomon couldn't take
anymore.

"No! Stop!" she screamed. Myotismon, still whipping, put his free hand to his left ear.

"What? Speak louder."

At the top of her lungs, Gatomon screamed, "STOP! PLEASE!" By this time, she was crying
something fierce. When he finally stopped, she collapsed on the floor and de-digivolved back
to Salamon. Gatomon's glove disappeared as well.

"SkullMeramon, put her back in her cage," Myotismon said, putting his whip to his belt.
SkullMeramon nodded and picked up the limp body and took her back to her cage. DemiDevimon
flapped back to the ground and noticed quite a bit of blood had dripped off Gatomon and onto
the floor. He grimaced and grabbed a mop and pail. He started mopping.

As he mopped, he asked, "So what do you think, boss? Gatomon only seems to attack you
when she digivolves. Thinks she's better than you or something. Oh, but you're *much* better
than she is, boss."

"Yes. But as you've noticed, she never stays too long when she digivolves."

"True. Just needs a good whipping and she's Salamon again. She's not strong enough
yet."

"She will be. She just needs some... encouraging."

"You mean threatening, right? I mean, the only times she's digivolved is when she's in
danger. The fire in the pit, the swinging blade that almost sliced her in half, and when the
second pillar almost crushed her."

"The more she digivolves, the stronger she'll become. Have someone clean her wounds,
DemiDevimon, otherwise she'll die of gag green in a matter of days."

"Some broken bones for a broken spirit, boss?"

"That's the plan. Tomorrow, I'll put her against the pit."

Chapter 5:

Myotismon was true on his words. Sure enough, Salamon was cleaned and bandaged and
dangling above the pit the next day. One thing was different though. There were a few other
Digimon gambling on whether Salamon will digivolve to free herself of the ropes or not. Some
of the Digimon thought that she wanted to end her suffering and would let the pit be the end of
it all. All this was out of hearing range of Myotismon, of course. Myotismon was lowering
Salamon further to the pit, further down than the last time. And the flames were closer to
her. Salamon digivolved into Gatomon and freed herself of the ropes and landed to safety. The
gambling Digimon cursed and threw down their digi-dollars. Gatomon looked over at Myotismon,
who didn't look impressed.

"What's the matter, steamed because I didn't get barbecued again?" she asked.

"No. I'm waiting to see if you'll try to escape again," Myotismon replied. The Digimon
who lost their money on the bet charged at Gatomon, only to get knocked out by Gatomon in a few
minutes. DemiDevimon was gleefully counting the digi-dollars.

"Sore losers made extra sore. Hee hee hee hee hee..." he said. Myotismon looked over at
DemiDevimon, annoyed, while Gatomon decided to try to make a break for it. Myotismon was quick
enough to noticed, then he snapped his Crimson Lightning and lashed it around her leg. Gatomon
was about to cut it, when Myotismon shocked her with it. After the shock, she fell over,
Salamon again. Myotismon picked her up and then threw her back into her cage, locking it.

"When she wakes up, she's going through the Digigauntlet," he said to DemiDevimon.
Later, a blow of the whistle sent Salamon through the Digigauntlet. She didn't get hit, but
again, a Digimon was killed near the middle and she slipped in the blood again. Before the
swinging blade came at her, she digivolved to Gatomon and used Lightning Claw to swat it away.
She got up and finished the course. She reached the end, and panted. Myotismon, thinking she
was too tired to try to escape, put the leash on Gatomon and started to pull her away. Then
Gatomon stood on her back feet and pulled back. Myotismon growled, looked back at her, and
continued to pull. Gatomon pulled, then cut the leash with her claws, causing Myotismon to
fall back. They stared at each other, Gatomon's eyes nearly in slits. "I've told you not to
stare at me with those eyes! Grisly Wing!" Myotismon shouted. Gatomon was hit with the
attack, shouted, and slammed back against a wall. She groaned, and rubbed her head. "Do I
really need to whip you again, Gatomon?" Gatomon panted, then passed out.

DemiDevimon rolled his eyes, "She'll never learn, will she, boss?" he asked.

"Shut up." A few days later, Gatomon was back in the arena, fighting Scorpiomon.

"Time to die, pipsqueek! Tail Blade!" Scorpiomon shouted. Gatomon barely avoided the
attack.

"Lightning Claw!" A few scratches, but it wasn't enough against an Ultimate. She jumped
onto his back. He tried to get her off, then decided to use his tail. Gatomon jumped off at
the last second, causing him to stab himself with his tail.

"Ow!" Now he was mad. He went to stab her with his front claws, but Gatomon kept
jumping and moving. She landed in front of Myotismon, pretending she didn't know he was there.
"Twin Sword!" Scorpiomon shouted, sending his attack at her, only to have her move at the last
possible second. Myotismon received the attack instead, and slammed against the wall.
Scorpiomon continued to try to attack her. She climbed up a pillar to get away from him. The
pillar began to crack as Scorpiomon started to attack the pillar. The pillar crumbled and
landed on Scorpiomon. Gatomon was clinging to the ceiling. Scorpiomon struggled out from
under the fallen pillar, madder than hell. Then he threw some of the broken pillar up at
Gatomon. Gatomon grunted when she was hit by one of them, now she was barely able to hang onto
the ceiling. Finally, Gatomon let go of the ceiling and landed on top of his head. It was
hard for him, not for her, then Gatomon jumped off. Scorpiomon fell and was out. Gatomon
panted and wiped the sweat from her forehead. By this time Myotismon, fuming mad, had
recovered. SkullMeramon was nearby.

He took off some chains on him and asked, "Shall I chain her down, Lord Myotismon?"

"Yes. Do that." SkullMeramon growled as he headed for Gatomon. Gatomon was not about
to be whipped again, not without a fight.

"Lightning-!" she began, then got hit over the head with a scythe that belonged to
Phantomon. Then SkullMeramon, Gatomon's back facing Myotismon again, chained her to the
ground. Myotismon prepared to use Crimson Lightning.

"I didn't want to have to do this again so soon," he said. Gatomon panted, waiting for
his evil.

"You don't care if I live or die anyway," she said.

"It's called discipline. Crimson Lightning!" Then he started to whip her. This time,
Gatomon had something to grip onto. Her claws dug into the floor. SkullMeramon held up his
hand to stop for a moment to make a suggestion.

"I hear it hurts worse to wait between whips. Otherwise, the old will dull the new."

Myotismon hesitated a moment, then said, "You have a good point, SkullMeramon."

A sweaty Gatomon sarcastically said, "You have a good point, SkullMeramon."

"Shut up," Myotismon said, then whipped her once. At that, Gatomon screamed out bloody
murder. He waited to whip her every few seconds, every time she would scream. Myotismon drank
every scream as if it was milk. Gatomon clenched her teeth tightly, tears in her eyes.
Myotismon kept this up. "Sooner or later, she'll pass out from the pain and shock." Gatomon's
voice was becoming hoarse. She refused to ask for him to stop. "As much as I enjoy hearing
you scream, Gatomon, my arm is getting tired. So I'll finish this." The last whip included
him shocking her to high heaven. Gatomon's scream could be heard outside the castle. And she
collapsed.

"Nice ending, boss!" DemiDevimon clapped his wings together, a tub of popcorn by his
feet.

"SkullMeramon, take her back to her cage and get someone to clean her wounds again.
DemiDevimon, get the mop," Myotismon said. SkullMeramon took his chains back and took Gatomon
back to her cage. DemiDevimon came back with the mop.

"She's getting stronger," he said.

"I know."

Chapter 6:

DemiVeemon peered into the bedroom, then closed the door to it and climbed back onto the
couch.

"Well?" Kari asked.

"Her back's facing me, but it sounds like she's crying. Maybe she *is* dreaming she's
eating Davis' cooking," DemiVeemon said.

"Hey! You guys don't have to make fun of my cooking! Besides, that might not be the
reason Gatomon's crying," Davis said.

"Matt's cooking is worse, believe me," TK said.

"Kari, do you have any idea what might be wrong with Gatomon?" Yolei asked.

"This is just a guess, but maybe it has something to do with Myotismon. She was his
servant back in the Digi-World," Kari said.

"Gatomon acted like she was having a nightmare when she heard the whipping on TV," TK
remembered.

"You don't think she was whipped before... do you?"

"That would explain why she screamed so loud. Myotismon sounds like a bad egg," Cody
said.

"Sounds like a nicer version of me when I was the Digimon Emperor," Ken grimaced.

"He was anything but nice, Ken," Patamon said.

"Shh," said Minomon, Upamon, and Poromon, who had fallen asleep under the couch.

"Guess that's a good sign to say it's time for bed," Davis said. They turned off the TV,
took their Digimon, and quietly walked into Kari's room. Already in their pajamas, they got
into their sleeping bags and went to sleep. Kari carefully slid under the covers so she
wouldn't wake Gatomon. An earthquake couldn't wake Gatomon right now. She was at the point of
the dream where she was about to meet her first friend in a long, long time. It was about five
months after Gatomon had battled Scorpiomon. Since that time, she's gone through the
Digigauntlet and the arena so many more times. She still tried to escape after she
finished them. She only received whippings after the arena battles. Just a few hours before,
the same paw that was accidentally whipped before was whipped again. Salamon was determined to
get away. Tonight. Myotismon was snoring away in his chair. Salamon quietly digivolved into
Gatomon, easy enough since she had gotten a sore throat from screaming earlier. She used a
claw to pick the lock of her cage, opened the door, and jumped out. Using small steps, she
slipped out of the room. She got outside and climbed over the wall. When she landed on the
other side, she rubbed her paw and looked back up.

"I'll miss you like I miss fleas, Myotismon," she said in a cracking voice, then ran off.
DemiDevimon flapped by the room Myotismon was in, looked in briefly, then passed by. A second
later, he flapped back, his eyes wide.

"Boss!" he shouted, then landed on Salamon's cage, having a large sweatdrop on his head.
Myotismon woke up and stood up.

"What?"

"Umm... we're one slave short..." DemiDevimon said in a small voice. Myotismon saw the
empty cage.

"She escaped? How could you let this happen?"

"She left on my second round?" DemiDevimon was sweat dropping big time.

"Fool!" Myotismon smacked him against the wall.

"I'll go after her when I regain consciousness," DemiDevimon said, sliding down the wall.
The sun was high and hot when Gatomon reached an old digi-western town. Her paw was still
bleeding, so she placed it under running water, supplied by a pump. She winced. She took a
bowl and filled it with water and drank out of it. So cool, refreshing. She had forgotten how
good it tasted outside the castle. She had been Myotismon's slave close to a year, and
she's already forgotten so much of what it was like before Myotismon. But she hadn't forgotten
she was looking for someone. Nothing could make her forget that. Until she found her, she
would keep on going. Then she noticed a Digimon, Wizardmon, had collapsed near her. She put
her glove back on, filled the bowl with water, and went over to him. Wizardmon looked up at
her as she offered him the bowl.

"Here. Drink this." He drank some of the water, coughed, and passed out. "Guess he
passed out. In this heat, who can blame him?" Gatomon wiped the sweat off her forehead. That
night, Gatomon had pulled Wizardmon somewhere green and cool. She had built a fire to keep
them warm. Wizardmon was propped up against a tree. Wizardmon woke up and rubbed his head.
"So, you're awake," Gatomon said.

"You saved me?" Wizardmon asked.

"Well, I couldn't just leave you there, could I?"

"Thank you."

"Forget about it. I'm Gatomon."

"Wizardmon." Gatomon decided to tell Wizardmon about how she was trying to find someone
all her life, but she left out the part about Myotismon. They sat down to eat some apples.
Gatomon could have had better manners. She acted like she hadn't eaten in days. Wizardmon
watched her, his eyes slightly widen. Gatomon took off her gloves, forgetting the mark on her
paw, and started licking the bleeding one. Wizardmon noticed. "How'd you get that?" he asked.
Gatomon quickly put her paw behind her back.

"Get what?"

"That mark on your paw. It almost looks like you were whipped."

"I don't know what you're talking about." She pretended it wasn't there, but she felt
the blood dripping off her paw and to the ground. Her ears twitched, then she quickly hid in
the bushes. Wizardmon blinked then noticed Gotsumon poked his head out from behind a tree.

"Hey, pal, you haven't seen a Salamon or a Gatomon around, have ya?" Gotsumon asked.
Gatomon was afraid. Gotsumon worked for Myotismon. He was here to bring her back. Myotismon
would surely kill her if she was brought back. She tried hard not to breathe loudly. She
wasn't sure if she could trust Wizardmon not to tell. She closed her eyes tightly, held her
gloves close to her chest, waiting for Wizardmon's answer.

"Nope. Well, I saw a Gatomon in a town about 50 miles up that way," Wizardmon said,
pointing at a road. Gatomon was surprised. She opened her eyes and wiped the frightened tears
away.

"Hey, thanks, pal. Bye." With that, Gotsumon left. Gatomon breathed a sigh of relief
and climbed back out.

"Thanks," she said.

"For what?"

"For not telling him I was here."

"Why was he looking for you?" Gatomon was silent. She looked at her paw. Wizardmon
noticed again. "You're a slave, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"Here. Let me clean that." Wizardmon began to clean her paw with a damp cloth. After
that, he bandaged it and put Gatomon's gloves back on. Gatomon couldn't get over it.

"That's the first time in a long time someone treated me kindly. Thanks."

Wizardmon smiled, "A nice gal like you deserves to be treated kindly." Gatomon was soon
asleep. Wizardmon watched her for a moment, then went to sleep himself. In the middle of the
night, they heard a loud buzzing. They both woke up.

"Flymon!" Gatomon shouted.

"Run for it!" Wizardmon helped her up and they started running. They were avoiding the
Flymon and their Brown Stinger attack, but soon were trapped by Dokugumon and SkullMeramon.

"Oh, no," Gatomon said.

"Lord Myotismon will be pleased to have you back, Gatomon..." Dokugumon evilly said.

Gatomon raised her paws up and sighed, "Sorry I got you involved in this, Wizardmon."

Wizardmon raised his hands up and replied, "Don't blame yourself." They were brought to
the castle. SkullMeramon was holding Wizardmon. "Get your hands off me! Gatomon!" he
struggled. Gatomon was chained to the floor again, being whipped by Myotismon. DemiDevimon
was near-by, mop in talons while waiting for the whipping to be over. Myotismon could take his
time, of course. Myotismon was waiting between whips.

Myotismon looked over at Wizardmon and said, "You just might be next, Wizardmon."

"Leave him alone. He doesn't belong here," Gatomon panted, keeping from screaming.

"He does now." When he said that, the whipping became harder for Gatomon. She screamed
out, sweating, panting, and crying. Wizardmon closed his eyes tight. Watching her getting
whipped and hearing her scream was painful enough for Wizardmon than to get it himself.

Gatomon, through clenched teeth, said, "If you're waiting for me to cry for mercy, stop
holding your breath!" Myotismon smiled evilly.

"I'm not. I'm just enjoying hearing you scream," he said. Gatomon screamed more.
Wizardmon was clenching his teeth. Gatomon's front paws slipped in a little pool of blood and
she fell down, limp. Myotismon noticed and stopped whipping. DemiDevimon went over to Gatomon
and poked her.

"Rats. She's still alive," he said.

"Shut up," Myotismon said. He turned to a Digimon. "Put her in her cage... in shackles
this time." The Digimon nodded and carried her away. DemiDevimon began cleaning the mess.
Myotismon turned to Wizardmon. "It *pains* you to see that happen to her, doesn't it?"
Wizardmon glared at him.

"Like *you* care."

"But *you* do." Wizardmon looked away. "I'm giving you a choice, Wizardmon. If you
join me, I'll seize my whippings on Gatomon." Wizardmon looked back at him.

"How do I know you're not lying?" Myotismon grinned evilly.

"If you hear her screaming in the night, you'll know I am. Of course, you're welcome to
leave anytime... but you'll only increase *her* suffering." Wizardmon looked skeptical. "What
you've seen done to her tonight will be far more worse in the future." They both looked at the
blood on the floor. "She's already lost so much blood. If she loses anymore..."

"Can I have your word she won't get whipped?" Wizardmon asked.

"Do you join me?" Myotismon asked.

Wizardmon slowly nodded, "Yes."

"Then she won't be whipped anymore. My word as Myotismon. Now, you'll be shown to your
room." He called after Wizardmon as he was being led out, "Remember... make any attempts to
escape or defy me, she shares your punishment." After Wizardmon was led out, Myotismon went to
deal with Gatomon. Gatomon was in her cage, in shackles. Myotismon took a bottle of wine and
poured it into a glass.

"What have you done to Wizardmon?" she asked.

"Done? I haven't done anything to him. Actually, he did me a favor. He joined me,"
Myotismon said, twirling the glass a bit. Gatomon's heart sank. It was visible in her face.

"You're lying. He didn't join you."

"Oh, but he *has.* He said it would be an honor to serve me." Gatomon couldn't believe
it. Myotismon kept his evil grin, knowing he had broken her heart, and quite possibly her
spirit. The perfect opportunity. "You must be parched," Myotismon said, pushing the glass
through the bars.

"I don't like wine."

"It isn't wine." Gatomon covered her mouth with a paw and coughed. She was already
getting sick. She picked up the glass and looked at it. If it wasn't wine it was poison. She
drank anyway, so she could end it all. Myotismon watched evilly. Soon as Gatomon finished it,
started to cough as if she was choking and dropped the glass to the ground, shattering it. It
was free of any liquids. Then she passed out. Myotismon picked up the pieces of the shattered
glass. "Took a little longer than I thought, but I've finally broken her. When she wakes up,
she'll remain Gatomon and she'll be totally loyal to me. If she won't try to escape, she won't
get whipped." He evilly chuckled.

Chapter 7:

Gatomon recalled the rest of her time as Myotismon's servant. She had forgotten her time
with Wizardmon, however, until Wizardmon helped her remember. It was Wizardmon who reminded
her that she had been looking for Kari, the Eighth Digi-Destined, her whole life. When
Myotismon found out that Gatomon was the Eighth Digimon, he used her to find Kari. Myotismon
was releasing his Grisyly Wing attack on Kari and Gatomon. The first seven Digi-Destined and
Angemon watched terrified.

"Kari!" Tai shouted. Then Wizardmon stepped in front of Kari and Gatomon at the last
possible second, receiving the full effect of the attack. His hat flew off in the process.
Then Wizardmon fell back. Gatomon couldn't believe it.

"Next time, don't get in my way!" Myotismon growled.

"Oh, no!" Gatomon cried. Kari knelled down to Wizardmon.

"Wizardmon! You're gonna be all right. Please don't leave, Wizardmon," she said.
Gatomon stepped up and looked down at her dying friend. Wizardmon looked over at her.

"Are you alright, Gatomon?" he asked.

"You saved me. I'm sorry," Gatomon, crying, said.

"About what?"

"Sorry I got you involved in this."

"Don't be sorry. You've said that to me before when we were trapped between Myotismon's
henchmon. And you know what? I don't have any regrets. If I hadn't met you, my life would've
had no meaning. I'm glad that you and I were friends."

"That's forever."

"Thank you for everything, Gatomon." And then he closed his eyes and became limp.

"Wizardmon? Are you OK? Please answer," Kari said. She threw her head back and
screamed. Gatomon would never forget that day. And seeing Wizardmon's ghost not too long ago
had made her miss him even more. How she wanted to see him again and to just give him a hug,
something she never gave him, but always wanted to give. Gatomon opened her eyes in Kari's
room, tears in her eyes. She looked around to see everyone had fallen asleep. She put her
head between her paws and softly cried.

"Gatomon?" a voice said. Gatomon opened her eyes and looked to see Davis was awake.
"Are you OK?"

"I don't wanna talk about it, Davis," she said, looking away.

"It's a little late to talk anyway. Do you... want to sleep in my sleeping bag, if it'll
make you feel better? Or do you feel better with Kari?" Gatomon hesitated. As good as Davis
was, Kari was almost the only person she'd stay near, because she was there when Wizardmon was
killed and Gatomon had spent her whole life looking for her, and now that she found her, she
didn't want to leave her side. She wasn't sure if she wanted to be near anyone else. "C'mon,
Gatomon. It's not like you're a million miles away from Kari. Just a jump and you're back
with her."

"I'm more worried about your snoring."

"I've got these band-aid things to prevent snoring." Gatomon got up and jumped down,
settling into Davis's sleeping bag. Soon both were asleep. Kari opened an eye and noticed
Gatomon with Davis, and smiled softly. Davis can be a nice guy if you let him. Then she went
back to sleep. Gatomon will tell them about her past, when she feels like it. No rush.
Gatomon was dreaming of Wizardmon. Wherever he was, she knew that he was smiling. And so was
she.

The End

Hope you enjoyed my first Digimon fic. Also check out my other fics, "Fire Cat of Courage," "Lost Digimon," "Anti-Virus," and "The Upgrade!"