I do not own Digimon. All Human Characters are original characters.
The Panel Biter Presents...
"Digimon: Vital Spirit"
Chapter 1: Twin Lightning! V-Energy is Born!
Part 1: Ready?
Rith could feel the energy throughout the stadium.
Bump, bump. Bump bump.
People from all walks of life had come here to watch some of the fastest young men and women in the world show off all their hard work. "The Young Olympian Competition" had just begun earlier in the year, but Rith and her high school track team waited months to go watch the 100-meter dash.
"It's just awesome they're all as young as us" one of her friends said.
"Some are even younger" another added.
Rith had been following many of these runners for a while now, she believed that if she were to ever make it to the Olympics one day that she would need to watch her peers closely. "Sometimes one success story can start another" her father used to tell her. It's too bad, she thought, that he couldn't be at the stadium with her today. At least she had her friends.
"Why did you drag me here, again?" Demo asked his roommate.
"Dude, I told you, my friend from Paris is going to be running" Bud replied.
"Well, why did you have to bring me?"
"Demo, you sit on the couch so often I swear there's a crater from your butt in the seat. You gotta get out of the house".
"But I miss the couch".
Demo didn't have a job. He moved out of his parent's home earlier this year. His only friend was Bud and the two of them only knew each other because Bud's mother cleans Demo's parent's house. They weren't the best of friends, but Bud tried to look out for Demo. There was something sad about the guy that Bud noticed.
"Does that guy even do anything?" People often asked Bud.
"No, but he will" he would reply, "He comes from a good family".
According to his parents, Demo went missing for three months when he was twelve, and when the police found him, Demo went on and on about being in a world of monsters. Bud never asked too much about Demo's "world of monsters" but just reasoned that something bad happened to him when he went missing.
As the runners from other nations were preparing, audience members had time to grab snacks before the first race. Demo got up and asked Bud what he wanted. At first, Bud speculated this was Demo's elaborate way to escape.
"You're not going to run off, are you" Bud asked.
"Bud. When have you ever known me to run anywhere?"
"Fair" Bud nodded, "I'll just take a Lemon/Lime soda. I don't want bad breath when I meet Lilly".
"Oh, right. Your French lover from across the world".
Bud gave Demo a playful punch in the arm. Demo.
"Stop him!" Rith yelled as she chased down a thief across the concessions area. The darkly dressed man had taken a small purse from Rith's friend, as well as Rith's watch. He wasn't as fast as Rith, but the crowd of people made it hard for her to catch up to him. With one look behind him, the thief was unexpectedly knocked down when he collided with another man. Both men fell to the ground, the thief dropping the purse, and the man dropping his drinks and snacks.
"Sorry, pal. Here, let me help you" Demo said as he started to get up. As Demo began helping the guy up, Rith cleared the crowd and ran into both of them. Her small, but fast shoulder charge left the three of them grounded.
The thief quickly rose again, but this time Rith grabbed her friend's purse. By the time she realized her watch wasn't on the ground, the thief had gotten away. Before she could scream or sigh, Demo held up her watch.
"I think he dropped this" Demo said.
"Hey! That's mine!" Rith shouted, swiping the watch from Demo. She slapped it back on her wrist and glanced at Demo as he got up.
He was pretty normal looking, Rith thought. He probably needed a hair cut and a trip to the gym, and some more flattering clothes. But for what she assumed was a man in his thirties, not the worst looking person.
Once he was straightened out, Demo looked at Rith and couldn't help but notice how short she was. Her limbs were very thin too. Her hair was cut super short, who would have thought Demo would have longer hair than a schoolgirl.
Demo also noticed Rith's windbreaker jacket, he had seen students wearing them at the park before. And by "seen" he meant "saw out of his living room window". Demo wasn't great at talking to new people, but the ice had already been broken. A long with his tail bone from falling down. Twice.
"Thanks for stopping that guy, Mister" Rith said.
"Mister?" Demo scoffed, "Ah, no problem. Kid".
"Kid?" Rith scoffed back.
"You're a student right? I can tell by the windbreaker. Are you racing today?"
"Oh, as if" Rith laughed, "I'm on a track team, but we're just a school team. We're here to watch the major leagues, ya know?"
"Oh, I understand. Yeah, a buddy of mine dragged me here".
"Dragged you, huh? So you're not interested in running?"
"Do I look like a runner?" Demo cocked an eyebrow.
The two had a laugh. But that laugh fell quickly as the race was announced to start soon. Before parting ways, Rith thanked Demo for his help.
"No big deal" Demo replied, "right place, right time".
Part 2: Set.
The man holding the starting pistol seemed far too eager to start the race. Leading up to the race he had been swinging his arm up towards the sky to limber up.
Rith returned to her friends and told them about what happened.
"So that guy helped you get my purse back?" Nikki asked.
"Yeah, kinda," Rith laughed, "he was involved".
"Well, was he cute?"
"He looked like he was thirty-three and divorced".
"Oh" Nikki paused, "Like, a hot thirty-three and divorced?"
Nikki laughed and Rith rolled her eyes.
The enthusiastic shooter rose his arm up to the heavens, the shiny weapon aimed for the cloudless, blue sky. The racers assumed their starting positions. The crowd waited in bated breath.
Bump, bump. Bump, bump.
Somewhere, in his seat, Bud began crying his eyes out when he realized Lilly from Paris was an Olympic swimmer, not a runner.
BANG!
The runners began, you're not going to believe this, running! The crowd roared in excitement.
Bump, bump. Bump, bump. Bump, bump.
Rith and her friends watched in awe, ecstatic from the physical strength these young people presented. In the front of the race was a boy named Tobe from South Africa. He was expected to win by Rith and her friends. What wasn't expected was what happened next…
Tobe's body began glowing a bright green.
Bump, bump.
Pulsing in and out, strands of the light flashed out and pushed nearby runners to the ground, their bodies trembling. Officials questioned what was happening, coaches and assistants begged Tobe to stop running. But he couldn't. His heart pounded so hard, the thunder inside himself was begging to burst out.
Bump, bump. Bump, bump. Bump bump.
And it did. As Tobe gave off one final flash of light and skid to the ground unconscious, the stadium went quiet. This was something nobody could have expected.
Bump, bump.
And just as the strangeness seemed over and people began to stand and speak, the light reappeared. It burst from the radio tower where the announcer sat. Now he crawled away as the light poured out from his microphone and split into two creatures.
One was a small, blue ball with arms, legs, and a lightning bolt crest on its head. Thundermon!
And the other was not nearly as cute. As tall as a man and as wide as a dumpster, it was a powerful looking dragon man with a black helmet and a green electric hue throughout its body. Bulkmon!
The crowds ran out of the stands, players were dragged off the stadium, pandemonium erupted as the Bulkmon and Thundermon leapt onto the field. Thundermon pointed at some nearby equipment and Bulkmon began picking it up and throwing it at the stands.
Policemen drew their weapons and demanded the monsters stopped, but Thundermon simply chuckled and shot a small electrical bolt towards one of the officers, melting the pistol in his hands. Bulkmon turned his attention towards them next.
As people scuttled over seats to escape the mayhem, Demo stood still watching the whole thing.
Bump, bump.
Bud attempted to shake him back to reality, but seeing these two monsters brought Demo's back to a place he left behind a long time ago.
"They are… Digimon" he said.
Bud pulled on Demo's arm, "Come on, man. We gotta go".
Bud stopped when Demo's rubber bracelet began glowing yellow. Before it was a simple white bracelet with "I have a therapist and that's okay" written on it, but now it became a yellow wrist device. Bud thought maybe it was a watch or a heart-rate monitor that suddenly christened Demo's arm, but when Demo saw it, he had a better idea of what it was.
"It's a Digivice" he whispered.
"A Digi-what?" Bud exclaimed.
One of the police officers managed to outrun Bulkmon and hide in the woman's rest room. As she barged in and locked the door, she turned to see Rith and her friends huddled in the corner.
"Wha-wha-what are you girls doing here!?" The officer asked.
"It's the girl's bathroom?" Nikki replied.
"That's not what I mean!" The officer exclaimed.
"We're hiding from the monster" one of the other girls answered.
"Well, you can't hide here! I'm hiding here!"
"What about protecting the peace?"
"Peace!? That thing is going to bite my head off and spit it out! I saw what it did to Officer Drew!"
"What happened to Officer Drew?" Rith asked.
"You don't want to know" the officer quietly replied.
Bump, bump. Bump, bump. Bump, bump.
Bulkmon and Thundermon approached the bathroom door. Their electrical auras caused nearby vending machines to haphazardly split out cans of soda onto the floor. As they began reaching the door, the Digimon heard behind them.
"Stop!" Demo yelled. He stood confident for the first time in years. Bud cowered behind him, not as confident.
"Are you trying to get us killed?" Bud asked.
"Don't worry" Demo replied, "I know what I'm doing".
Demo glanced at his new bracelet, sure of himself. Sure of what he was supposed to do.
Bump, bump.
"I don't know what you two are doing here" he told the monsters, "But I know how to stop you".
Bump, bump. Bump, bump.
A light projected from the bracelet as Demo rose his wrist to his heart.
"I was born to stop you".
Bump, bump. Bump, bump, bump.
VITAL BURST!
Part 3: Go!
A yellow, V-shaped energy construct appeared over the bracelet and flew forward. As is soared across the room towards Bulkmon, the energy grew larger and shed light as it revealed what monster appeared from Demo's bracelet.
"Vee Headbutt!"
The enormous forehead of a little blue monster crashed into Bulkmon's stomach. Bulkmon took a single step back and used its arm to swipe at the smaller monster. But as quick as the wind, the blue monster leaped back and lifted his arms up, ready to fight.
"Veemon" Demo called out.
"Hiya, Demo! Long time no see!" Veemon said, half turned to look at his old friend. "Good to see ya".
"It's good to see you too, pal" Demo said, tears in his eyes.
Thundermon began ranting in an unknown language to Bulkmon, prompting the yellow dragon to charge at Veemon.
"Wait, what's happening" Bud tiredly asked as Demo pulled him out of the way. Veemon leaped to the right and Demo and Bud ran to the left.
"Veemon" Demo called out, "Go for his stomach again".
Veemon followed the orders and launched himself forward, attempting another headbutt attack. It was successful, but Bulkmon was prepared this time. Just as Veemon made contact with Bulkmon's body, the electric lizard wrapped its large hands around Veemon's arms and lifted him over its head.
"Veemon!" Demo shouted.
Bulkmon slammed Veemon headfirst into the floor. Veemon then shortly bounced and fell on his chest. Demo called out again and lifted the nearest plastic chair in the lobby.
"Stay here" he told Bud.
"Is there a gas leak or something" Bud asked desperately.
As Demo charged the monster with his trusty chair, Thundermon flew overhead and shot a thunderbolt at the chair, causing Demo to wince and drop the chair. Bulkmon turned at the sound of the chair hitting the ground and walked over to attack Demo. Thundermon stood in the way, though. It pointed at Veemon, who started to get up. Thundermon shouted at Bulkmon some more.
"You always let that pip-squeak tell you what to do?" Veemon asked.
Bulkmon didn't seem to like the question. It leaped forward and crushed Veemon under his feet. Veemon cried out in pain.
"No!" Demo cried out, "Veemon you have to Digivolve!"
"I…can't!" Veemon replied.
Demo was shocked, emotionally and physically. Thundermon blasted a lighting bolt that sent Demo across the room and crashing into the wall. Surely, this was the most physical activity Demo had gotten in years. Bud ran over and helped his friend up.
"We have to get out of here" Bud insisted.
"But, there are people…" Demo stopped talking when Bud pointed towards the girl's bathroom. The door was open and the room looked empty.
Demo looked back at Thundermon and Bulkmon. Bulkmon got off of Veemon and tried walking towards Demo and Bud, but Thundermon flew into its face and yelled at it again. Demo started thinking. It kind of hurt.
"Veemon, I have an idea" he yelled, "Split them up".
Veemon rose, weakened, but still strong, "You sure?"
Demo nodded.
Demo and Bud began collecting soda cans of the ground. Thundermon's rant was then interrupted as Demo and Bud threw soda cans at the flying dynamo. Enraged, Thundermon flew at them. The boys began running, Bud cursing under his breath as they ran.
Meanwhile, Veemon summoned up all his strength and jabbed Bulkmon in the side. Insulted and ready to fight back, Bulkmon took a swing at Veemon. The blue scamp just barely rolled under the punch. Veemon stuck his tongue out and teased Bulkmon.
"Come get me, ya oversized lightbulb!" Veemon shouted as he turned and ran down the hallway. Bulkmon followed.
"It smells like sweat in here" Bud complained. Demo told him to be quiet. The two hid behind a corner in one of the locker rooms. The lights grew brighter as Thundermon approached the room. When it entered, the lights completely burst. It silently floated through the darkened room. Occasionally throwing electrical bolts in different directions.
As it rounded a corner, the boys moved from their spot and into some of the tall lockers. Among jockstraps and foot ointment, Demo and Bud stayed quiet as Thundermon began losing patience. With a loud shriek, it unleashed a wave of electricity that made all the lockers fly open. Demo and Bud fell out and slowly lifted their heads up towards the Digimon. Thundermon smiled in glee and charged two balls of thunder in its hands.
Bud reached behind him and grabbed a sweaty jersey. He cried out in fear and flung the shirt at Thundermon. Thundermon was covered in the stinky shirt and erratically levitated away from the boys, with the electric bolts dispersing and its hands trying to pull the large shirt off. "Thank God for number 94" Demo murmured. Demo and Bud helped one another off the floor and ran out of the locker room. Bud took a chair from the hallway and placed it front of the door, hoping to trap the Digimon inside.
"You don't really think the chair will work, do you?" Demo asked.
"The shirt worked!" Bud replied.
Part 4: Finish!
Officers surrounded the stadium exterior. Rith and her friends stood with the police and tried explaining what happened. But, as you can imagine, eight voices at once do not synch up very well. Unless it's a chorus or something. One of the officers shouted, "Something is coming out".
All eyes turned towards the nearby exit. Veemon ran out, his breathing heavy and sweat dripping from his forehead.
"Jeez" Veemon gasped, "Demo's not the only one who needs to get in shape".
The police shouted again, calling Veemon "the monster" and ordering to fire. Veemon's ears spiked up, he rose his hands and yelled, "What!? Don't shoot me!"
Rith and, as always, her friends, begged the police not to shoot, and that Veemon helped them escape. Kind of. The girls just kind of heard Veemon fighting the monster as they were running away. For survival this time, not sport.
The police hesitated, but many argued to fire anyway just to be safe. Veemon was then struck in the back by a cannonball of thunder that flew out of the exit tunnel. Veemon fell to the ground, exclaiming "I thought I said not to shoot me".
Bulkmon slowly appeared from the tunnel and walked over towards Veemon. The police began to fire bullets, only for Bulkmon's skin to render the shots useless.
"Muscular AND bulletproof!?" An officer exclaimed.
"This is exactly why I left LA" another cop said to himself.
Something rose in Rith's heart. She could't let this happen. Rith ran past the police and stood in front of Veemon.
"Stop" she yelled.
Bump, bump. Bump, bump. Bump, bump.
Bulkmon did as it was told and stood still, glaring down at Rith. The static from Bulkmon's body made the hairs on her neck stand up. It seemed as though with every breath, Bulkmon was sending small waves of force from its body. The police barked for her to move, and her friends insisted she run away, but Rith didn't move.
Her heart raced at first, as expected. But the longer and locked eyes with Bulkmon, the slower her heartbeat became.
Bump, bump. Bump, bump.
This was scary, yeah. But Rith had been through a worse fear. Her heart had raced faster. It didn't matter to her if she lived or died here, she wasn't afraid. Not like she had been.
Bump, bump.
As her pulse became still, so did the waves of energy coming from Bulkmon. It didn't seem angry anymore. It just became still, and calm. Rith began to notice that their heart beats had gained the same rhythm. Still, calm, but active. Bulkmon wasn't afraid either.
Rith's wrist exploded with a green light. The officers and teammates watched on in awe as the light changed Rith's watch into a yellow bracelet. She lifted it to her heart, and never took her eyes off Bulkmon. The green light grew into a V-shape just as Bulkmon began shrinking down into a smaller form.
Rith offered her hand, glowing with energy, "It's okay, little guy" she said, "My name is Rith. What's your name?"
The monster lifted its hand and held it towards her bracelet. It replied, "I'm Pulsemon. And, I think you and I…"
Bump, bump.
It didn't finish its sentence. Instead, Pulsemon burst into green sparks and leaped into the bracelet. The spectators remained quiet.
The silence was quickly broken by Nikki who yelled, "What was that about!? What just happened!?"
The police and Rith's friends tried to calm Nikki down as she flew into hysteria, but Rith stood alone and stared at her new bracelet and its blank green screen. She glanced over at Veemon, but he had vanished.
"You're big friend is gone" Veemon told Thundermon.
The flying dynamo had backed Demo and Bud into a corner, but when Veemon appeared it turned its attention him. Thundermon shouted out multiple times, seeming confused.
"Beats me where he went" Veemon replied, "But now it's just you and me. And trust me, I'm not going to run this time".
Thundermon had a stare down with Veemon for a brief moment, but then fired a lightning bolt at the nearby wall. With a hole blown, Thundermon flew out of the hole and into the city, vanishing among the concrete buildings.
Veemon fell on his butt and sighed, "I am so glad he bought that".
Demo ran to Veemon and kneeled down to look at him, "Are you okay, Veemon?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I just need a nap" Veemon put a hand on the bracelet, "But don't worry, we'll talk later".
Before Demo could ask anything else, Veemon became a ball of yellow light and shot into the bracelet.
Demo stood back up, confused. Bud walked up beside him and the two stared out the hole in the wall.
"I think you owe me an explanation" Bud said, his eyes staying on the city beyond.
"I'll give you one" Demo promised, "But I think I need a nap first".