Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ The Doctor and the Debutante ❯ Spaceship Wrecked ( Chapter 1 )

Chapter 2 - Spaceship Wrecked

By Time Lady

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"Are they awake yet?" said a strange, white creature.

"It looks like a few of them are waking up," said a creature with a flower for a face. "The ones over here are, at least. I don't know about those others."

"I don't know," said a yellow creature with a hard carapace. "The chests on the ones over here seem to move. The other ones don't."

"Hey," said a green creature with a flower on top of its head, "the one with the funny thing on his face seems to be waking up!" Her three companions bounded over and gathered around.

"Unnngggghh. . .," groaned Jyou. Obviously he wasn't in the safety chamber anymore. Under his fingers he felt grass. His eyes flew open. The young doctor found four faces staring down at him. "GAAAAHHH!!!" he screamed. He tried to get away, but his body was very lethargic after the stasis.

"He's awake," said the white creature.

"You. . . you speak standard?" asked Jyou, surprised that he understood the creature.

"Yes," returned the flower-faced one.

Jyou sat up, took off his glasses, and rubbed his eyes. Then he looked around. Lush vegetation surrounded him. Nearby were the remains of the escape pod. Mimi and the two teens were nearby, lying on the grass. Further away he could see the old couple, the portly man, and the two blue-skinned beings. His medical instincts took over. Here were eight patients in need of emergency assistance. As lousy as he felt, the patients came first.

"Don't move so fast," said the yellow creature. "You've all had quite a bump."

Ignoring the creature, Jyou managed to get to his knees and crawl over to Mimi. He checked her pulse, then breathed a sigh of relief. She was alive. Then he checked the blonde woman and the young man he had shared the safety chamber with. Both of them were alive as well. The young man was first beginning to move. "Lie still," whispered Jyou. "Let me see if I can get my medical kit."

"Wha happen'd?"

"We crashed on a planet," returned Jyou as he managed to get to his feet.

"You really should be resting," said the white creature.

"I'm a doctor. I need to get my medical kit, if it survived." Jyou stumbled towards the remains of the pod. He was visited with a gruesome sight. Near the pod were the crumpled bodies of the old couple. From the state of the bodies, he knew they hadn't made it. The portly gentleman was laid out near them. His face was a ghostly white; his eyes wide open in fear. "Poor guy," said Jyou as he checked for a pulse, then closed his eyes. "I don't think his safety chamber closed properly. They weren't made for people his size." The two blue-skinned aliens were also nearby, the domes on their heads smashed.

"They didn't make it, did they?" asked the white creature as it looked at Jyou curiously.

"No. The older couple must have been on the side that hit the ground. . . and the other two probably suffocated when their breathing system enclosures broke," replied Jyou as he forced himself into doctor mode. The patients were DOA. There was nothing that could be done for them. If he had been called to the scene on any planet, the situation would have been the same. Resolutely, Jyou cautiously entered the remains of the escape pod. The door was askew, but the storage unit was still intact. He slung his carryall over his shoulder, then picked up a stuffed backpack, the case he knew was Mimi's, and another case.

The white creature stuck his head inside and pulled out another case. "Hey Palmon, Floramon," he called to his companions. "You guys are a bit more mobile. Can you give me a hand getting this stuff out? If it's important, we want to have it out of here before Vadermon finds out and tries to scavenge whatever's here." The two flowered creatures joined their companion and began searching for anything important while Jyou brought the remaining packs to the surviving travelers.

"Where are we?" asked the young man as he sat up. He looked at the yellow creature, which was still sitting next to him. "Do you know where we landed?"

"I haven't got a clue," said Jyou as he pulled his medical kit out of his carryall. "What's your name?"

"Iori. Iori Hida."

"I'm Jyou Kido. And I'm a doctor. Now let me check you over before Mimi and the other woman come to."

Iori's eyes focused on the yellow creature next to him. "What are you?" he asked.

"I'm Armadillomon," said the creature. He pointed towards his friends, who were returning with whatever they could carry from the pod. "That's Gomamon," he said, pointing at the white creature. Then he pointed at the one with the flower on top of the head. "And that's Palmon. The other is Floramon."

"But what are you?" asked Jyou as he bandaged a cut on Iori's hand.

"Other creatures like us?" asked Iori.

"There's a village of creatures like you living in a village just through the mountains. One of 'em called us Digimon," said Armadillomon. "He calls this planet the Digital World."

"I heard about that in my science class," said Iori, his eyes going wide. "The Digital World is considered some sort of enigma, where all of the creatures are made up of data."

"Impossible," returned Jyou. He was interrupted by screams from Mimi and the young woman, who had apparently woken up. With a sigh, he said to Iori "Come on, let's get them calmed down, then figure out what we're going to do."

Mimi stared at the two flower-like creatures staring back at them. "JYOU!" she shouted.

"I'm right here Mimi," he replied.

"Jyou, what's going on!?!" she demanded.

"Take it easy Mimi," he said, slipping into his best bedside manner for dealing with hysterical patients, difficult when he was on the verge of hysteria himself. "We crash landed. You're going to be okay. Now let me check you out."

"I DON'T WANT TO BE CHECKED OUT! I WANT TO WAKE UP AND FIND OUT THIS WAS ALL A BAD DREAM!" shrieked Mimi. Armadillomon and Gomamon covered their ears.

"Loud creatures, aren't they?" mused Armadillomon.

A few minutes later, Jyou finished checking out Mimi and the other young lady, who they discovered was named Catherine. In the meanwhile, Iori had been talking with the Digimon. He came over to Jyou, Mimi, and Catherine. "From what I gather, there is a village of humans, or at least humanoid beings, about a four day walk from here," he said.

"A four day walk!" exclaimed Mimi.

"I do not know if I can walk that far," added Catherine, a little more quietly. They noticed Catherine had a distinct accent.

"Besides, how will we find it?" added Jyou. "We don't even know where to go."

"We'll take you," offered Gomamon.

"Yeah," added Armadillomon. "I've been through there a couple of times. Getting there should be easy."

"First things first," said Jyou. "If anyone's going to try and find us, they're going to home in on the pod. We should at least try and find the homing beacon."

"My papa designs the space ships," said Catherine. "I believe I can find it."

"All right," said Jyou. "Mimi, you stay here and watch the bags. Iori, Catherine, and I will try and find the homing beacon and anything else we may need."

"Jyou, don't leave me here with. . . these. . ." began Mimi.

"Digimon," said Palmon. "Don't worry about us. Compared to some of the other Digimon, we're relatively harmless."

"Other Digimon?" said Mimi.

"Relatively harmless?" added Jyou.

"Let's just say, it's going to get dark soon," said Armadillomon. "I'm certain you don't want to sleep here." He looked over at the bodies of their traveling companions.

"Are there any hotels nearby?" asked Catherine.

"Hotels? What are hotels?" asked Floramon.

"No hotels?" whimpered Mimi.

"Mon Dieu!" added Catherine.

"This is going to be a long four days. . ." muttered Iori.

Jyou, Iori, and Catherine began searching the remains of the pod while Mimi convinced the Digimon to dig a large hole. "You want to do what?" asked Palmon.

"Give the bodies a burial," explained Mimi. "Don't you bury your dead?"

"When a Digimon dies, its body returns to data and is reconfigured at the Primary Village," explained Floramon. "We don't have any bodies to bury."

"Well, I don't mind digging," said Armadillomon, who began digging a trench. "Even if the reason makes no sense."

---

"There is very little that is working," said Catherine as she examined the computer systems. "There is no power anywhere."

"I don't think we would have survived if the Digimon wouldn't have pulled us out of the safety chambers," mused Jyou. "Iori, let's see what we might need." The two men began checking compartments while Catherine examined the computers.

"I found the emergency supplies," said Iori as he examined a panel. The electronic controls no longer functioned, so he took a piece of scrap metal and began prying at the panel.

"Take anything that you think might be of value," said Gomamon, his head peeping over the side of the pod.

"How come?" asked Jyou.

"If you don't, scavenger Digimon, like Vadermon, will take whatever is left including the tiniest piece of wire. You might have to barter things along the way. And there might be something they need in the human village."

Jyou gathered the rest of the items from the baggage compartment, even those belonging to the now deceased parties. He reasoned that since the others were dead, not only would they no longer need their belongings. If they were rescued, they could return the things to the families.

"AYE!" exclaimed Catherine. "The homing beacon, it is smashed!"

"Oh great," said Jyou, sitting down on a piece of rubble. "That means we're going to be here for a while longer than we thought."

"Well, look on the bright side," said Gomamon. "At least you're not alone. There's four of you, plus the four of us, and however many humans are in the village."

Jyou rolled his eyes. "Are you always so optimistic?"

"We probably won't go cold or hungry," interrupted Iori as he finished pulling off the panel. He pulled out the contents. "There's two survival domes, micropacked food, medical supplies. . ." Jyou's ears perked up at the last. "Even if we don't find any village, we still have enough supplies for a month or two."

"A month?" exclaimed Catherine. "My papa, my mama. . . we were separated on ze ship. . . I do not know if they survived. . ."

"They'll be fine," said Iori, coming over and patting her shoulder. "They probably escaped in one of the other escape pods."

"Come on," said Jyou. "We shouldn't leave Mimi alone so long."

The three gathered whatever they could carry. Gomamon led them back to the others. They found Armadillomon had dug a deep trench. Palmon and Floramon were just putting the last of the bodies into the trench. Mimi had gathered some strange flowers that the Digimon assured her were just plain flowers. "I couldn't just leave them here," said Mimi, a tear in her eyes.

"I understand," returned Jyou. "Too bad we don't know their names. Otherwise we could erect some sort of marker."

Armadillomon began pushing dirt back into the makeshift grave. "Seems like a strange custom to me."

"Burial is an ancient practice," explained Jyou. "Many human cultures don't find it acceptable to just leave bodies lying about. Though when land space became a consideration on many planets, cremation became more popular. Different societies have different ways of dealing with the dead though," he replied, lapsing into his clinical mode of speaking. It helped him deal with situations he was uncomfortable discussing.

"Humans aren't reconfigured the way we are," said Palmon. "At least, that's what Rosemon told me."

Respectfully, the humans had a few moments of silence with their heads bowed. Then Mimi lay the wreath on top of the soil.

---

"Why do I have to carry so much stuff?" whined Mimi.

"I agree," added Catherine. "It is not ladylike for us to carry the large bags."

Jyou and Iori tried not to roll their eyes in exasperation. They had spent the last half-hour consolidating the items pulled from the escape pods into easy to carry packs. Mimi and Catherine had been given the lightest packs, but were making a huge fuss about it. Even the Digimon were carrying supplies.

"Fine," said Jyou. "Leave them. But don't complain to me when you don't have a change of clothing, or enough food, or the right medicine."

"We are on a relatively unknown planet," added Iori. "We may or may not find other humanoid life forms. We may _never_ get rescued. And because of your stupid vanity, we may not have enough supplies to make it long enough for anyone to attempt to rescue us." The young man's forest green eyes sparked in anger. He was tired and hungry and wanted to move as far away from the wreckage as he could. At the rate they were going, they would have to set up camp where they were to be ready before dark.

Mimi was incensed. To think that the future wife of a corporate bigwig would have to carry her own bags. She was about to protest further when Catherine sighed and picked up her packs. "It is not worth arguing over," said the younger girl. "I do not wish to sleep so close to where we buried the bodies. And, the farther we go now, the sooner we reach the village."

Defeated, Mimi picked up her pack. With Palmon leading the way, the group began hiking towards a large mountain. Jyou walked next to Mimi. She walked with a scowl on her face. "I don't like lugging these packs around either," he said, "But we need these things to survive." She didn't reply. "If I had my choice, I'd be anywhere but here," he continued. "The choice wasn't ours. The pod's computer probably chose this as the nearest planet with the closest atmosphere to our own."

Jyou's mind wandered as they walked through a wooded area. "With an attitude like that, Mimi is _not_ going to last long here," he thought. "She's a spoiled little rich girl who has had everything handed to her on a silver platter. She's no different than half my patients."

Catherine also seemed to grumble to herself. Iori walked beside her. "Where are we going to stop?" he asked Armadillomon. "It's been a really hard day for all of us."

"There's a clearing a little way from here," replied Armadillomon.

"Oh good," said Jyou, pushing his glasses up. "I'm getting really tired."

"My feet are killing me," whined Mimi. "I'm hungry, and I'm getting cold."

"We're almost there," said Palmon. Like everyone else, she was getting tired of Mimi's whining. Finally they reached the clearing. Iori noticed that not only did there seem to be a definite shape to the clearing, but that the soil seemed denser.

"Is it my imagination, or does this clearing look like a giant footprint?" asked Iori.

"Legends say it is a giant footprint of a now extinct Digimon," said Floramon. "Thousands of years ago, it stamped its foot so hard that the soil compacted and nothing can grow in it."

"Giant, extinct Digimon. Wonderful," muttered Jyou. "And this is where we're spending the night? In a giant footprint?"

"Yep," replied Gomamon. "And there's a stream nearby with fresh water."

"I don't care if it's a giant footprint or there's any streams," began Mimi. "I refuse to go another step." She dropped her pack and crossed her arms over her chest resolutely.

"Me too," agreed Catherine.

"I guess that settles it," said Iori as he set down his pack and began pulling out one of the compressed survival domes. Jyou did likewise. They set the domes down a short distance apart, then activated the expansion controls. The two compressed domes began to expand until they were large enough for several people to enter. They were made of a shiny, silvery polymer material that could withstand extremes in temperatures. Then Iori pulled out several thin, square packages and passed them around, even to the Digimon.

"What is it?" asked Armadillomon as he sniffed the package suspiciously.

"Emergency rations," said Jyou with a grimace. "Food that's been treated and vacuum sealed to last indefinitely on long space voyages."

"Eww," said Palmon. "That doesn't sound very good."

"It isn't supposed to be," said Jyou. "It's only supposed to satisfy an empty stomach and provide vital nutrients."

Mimi stared at the package Iori handed her in disbelief. This all seemed surreal. It was a nightmare, and she had to wake up sooner or later. There was no way she could be stranded on a strange world full of freakish creatures with a doctor, the daughter of a spaceship designer, and a college student. She tried pinching herself, hoping she'd wake up on the ship. Or better yet, back on her homeworld. No matter how hard Mimi pinched herself, nothing changed. The package of rations sat on her lap.

"I do no know if I can eat this," complained Catherine.

"You have to eat something," returned Jyou clinically. "I don't know how long we were in stasis, but your body needs solid food. Plus it will replenish your strength after the hike."

"It isn't that bad really," said Gomamon.

"Try taking it out of the package," returned Iori.

"Like peeling a breefruit," said Floramon as she watched Iori, Jyou, and Catherine open their packages. The Digimon did likewise. Mimi still stared at hers.

"Come on Mimi, open yours," coaxed Palmon. "Is it the same as mine?"

"I don't know and I don't care!" snapped Mimi. She tossed her rations package to the ground and stormed into one of the survival domes. Catherine began to stand, but Jyou held her back.

"Give her time. She needs to come to the realization that this is real all by herself," explained Jyou. "It probably still seems like some sort of crazy dream to her." Jyou looked up at the moon-less sky.

"It still feels like a dream to me, but I know it isn't," said Iori.

"Was your family aboard the ship?" asked Catherine.

"No. I was on my way home from college," explained Iori. "My mother and grandfather will be worried. . . probably devastated. You see, my father was with the galactic police." Iori's voice lowered. "He was killed in an encounter with space pirates when I was about five."

"Oh Iori, I am so sorry," said Catherine. "I should not have asked."

"That's okay. I don't remember him very well anymore, except in holo-vids and images my mother still has."

The group sat silently for a while. "It's getting late," said Floramon. "If we want to get an early start, we should go to bed."

"Sounds like a good idea," said Jyou as he stifled a yawn. "Catherine, why don't you join Mimi in the dome. Iori and I will share the other."

"All right." Catherine stood and walked over to the dome Mimi had entered before. Mimi was sound asleep on one of the inflatable mattresses covered with a silvery blanket. Briefly Catherine looked around. At least the manufacturers of the survival domes thought to include some sort of sanitary facility. Earlier on the hike she'd had to do the unthinkable and relieve herself behind a tree. She had felt mortified and filthy, but it was necessary. The sanitary facility wouldn't allow her to take the radiant cleansing she wanted. However, it would have to do.

Ten minutes later she stepped out from behind the curtain of the sanitary facility. Floramon and Palmon were sitting on one of the mattresses.

"We Digimon decided you humans would be safer if we stayed close to you," said Floramon. "Gomamon and Armadillomon are with the other two."

"Merci," said Catherine. "I feel safer with a larger group." She sat down on the other mattress. "Will it be long before we reach the other humans?"

"That depends on how many times we have to stop to rest," said Floramon. "If we have to walk slowly and take a lot of breaks, we'll take much longer. A week maximum if we go steady. Longer if we don't."

"Mon Dieu," muttered Catherine to herself as she lay back on the mattress.

In the other tent, Iori and Jyou were having a similar discussion with Gomamon and Armadillomon. "A week or longer?" moaned Jyou. "I don't know if I brought enough of my allergy medicine. I don't even know what kind of effect this world's pollen will have on my sinuses."

"Maybe it won't be so bad if we pretended we were like the ancient frontier people who forged their way into new lands," offered Iori.

"I'm not looking forward to all that walking myself, but I'm kind of used to it from doing hospital rounds," returned Jyou. "But Mimi and Catherine seem to be another story."

"What do you mean?" asked Gomamon.

"They both come from very wealthy families," explained Jyou. "Or at least I know Mimi does. I'm just assuming with Catherine. But in our world, if you have enough money, you either hire people to do a lot of your manual labor, or purchase machines that do the work instead. Many times walking is even unnecessary. The sidewalks and paths do it for you."

"That sounds weird," returned Armadillomon with a yawn.

"We better call it a night," said Iori. "If we want to have the strength to travel tomorrow."

<to be continued>