It was another beautiful day in the Digital World and in it, Flash and Veemon were running around happily.
The pair ran to the top of a hill with smiles on their lips, both laughing in enjoyment. They turned to each other, not needing to say anything as they just stood there and basked in their friendship. Everything was perfect. Or that's how it appeared.
Suddenly, the clear sky suddenly turned dark, as storm clouds appeared above the pair. This worried them, the sound of thunder filling the air. And before either of them could say anything, a bolt of lightning shot down and struck the ground.
They both cried out as the ground cracked apart where the lightning had struck, creating a giant fissure that split them apart from one another. "Veemon!" Flash cried, as Veemon looked worried. Then, the ground beneath his Digimon broke apart and he fell into the fissure. "NO!" Veemon grabbed the side of the cliff, but the grasp was weak.
Flash called out to him, holding out his hand to try and pull him up. But Veemon couldn't reach.
"Come on!" He yelled, the pair reaching as hard as they could. But the ground finally gave way and Veemon fell into the hole. "NOOOOOOOOOO!" He screamed, seeing his partner disappeared into the darkness of the pit. "VEEMON!" His eyes filled with tears, "I'M SORRY!"
Flash gasped as he sat up in his bed, panting from the horrible dream he had had. But it wasn't a dream.
He looked over at his bedside table, where his Digivice was sat. And on the screen, he saw nothing. It was completely blank, unlike most days when it had his probably still asleep partner snoozing on it. The sight of the blank screen reminded Flash that he was now alone, making him curl up and wrap his arms around his legs.
It had been three days since he had last been in Codex. Three days since he had lost Veemon in an Ante-Battle.
Since then, everything seemed to be absolutely horrible. Food didn't taste as good, the air didn't feel as fresh and life was just pointless. He continued to lay there and let what had happen run through his mind again and again. The entire battle, Jet Set had had the upper hand.
Grabbing those two Digivolution Coins, managing to cut his health down super fast, using the environment to his advantage. There had been nothing Flash could do to stop him. He had out played Flash at every turn and in the end, he managed to win and take Veemon away from him.
Anger coursed through him. Anger at Jet Set for not telling him about partners being up for grabs in an Ante-Battle. Anger at the Codex Commanders for letting players take each others partners. And anger at himself for falling for Jet's trick and not letting Gennai tell him the rules before hand. He was just so angry.
But whilst he felt angry, he also felt worried. Worried for Veemon and what Jet Set was likely doing to him.
Micro Chips had just ported into Codex, Tentomon appearing beside him.
He looked around and let out a sigh, since the place didn't feel as enjoyable over the last few days. The people in it were all looking like they were enjoying the place a lot less, and it was clear why. Seeing someone lose their best friend without even knowing why could sour anyone's opinion on the place.
He walked through the foyer and as he did, he noticed someone whose presence filled him with rage.
Jet Set was talking to somebody who clearly hadn't seen the Ante-Battle, the pair having their Digivices out and looking ready for a trade. "Alright," Jet told him, "I'll give you a scan for that MetalTyrannomon and two Battle Gears. That agreed?" The player frowned, clearly not liking giving up so much for one scan. "This is a very rare Digimon. You won't get a scan of it anywhere else, so I'd suggest agreeing." The teen sighed and nodded, "excellent." The pair completed the transaction and the trade was complete. "Pleasure doing business with you."
The teen walked away and Jet smiled at his new scans, then noticed Micro and smirked. "So, how's your friend doing. Still wallowing over his loss."
"If it was just a loss then he wouldn't care," Micro told him. He stared at the black Digivice in his hand, spotting Veemon inside until Jet put it away. "Have you let him out even once?"
"Why should I?"
"He's your partner, not your pet. If you're just gonna lock him away, what's the point of keeping him?"
"He's a rare Digimon," Jet explained. "As long as I have him, I can trade him for any rare scan I want. He's a gold mine." Micro growled at this, Tentomon pointing at him.
"You're horrible. You don't deserve to be in Codex. Release Veemon this instant!"
"I don't think so," Jet stood up. "The only way he's getting away from me is if someone beats me in an Ante-Battle." He gave Micro a look, "are you gonna risk challenging me." Micro frowned, whilst Jet smirked. "Not like you could. You already have a partner." He turned to leave, "I've got a battle to win. If all you're gonna do is glare at me, I see no reason to continue this conversation." With that, he was gone and Micro could just stand there.
Not to far away, Twilight Sparkle had heard the whole conversation taking place. To say she was upset was also an understatement. Something needed to be done, so she took out her Digivice in order to log out.
The bell rang at Canterlot High and Flash was making his way through the halls.
Everyone was giving him a wide berth, knowing he was upset about something and not to be crossed in his current state of mind. Flash had barely said two words that day, only talking when a teacher spoke to him.
He reached his locker and opened it up, only for someone to march up to him and slam it shut before he could do anything.
That somebody was Twilight, who glared at him as he stepped away from her. "What do you think you're doing?" She asked, as Flash's face remained stoic.
"I'm trying to get my math book before I'm late for class."
"I mean, what are you doing here. You haven't logged into Codex in three days. How do you expect to get Veemon back if you're not even gonna enter the cyberverse?" Flash said nothing and pushed her aside, opening the locker and taking out his books. "Flash, you can't just stand there and do nothing. Veemon's waiting for you."
Flash slammed the locker shut, "what do you want me to do? How am I supposed to get Veemon back, when I've lost the only Rare Digimon I had? Jet's not gonna agree to an Ante-Battle because I have nothing worth risking Veemon for."
"So you're just gonna give up?" Twilight asked, "that's not the Flash Sentry I know. You can't let one setback stop you from getting him back." Flash didn't say anything, instead just staring at his locker as Twilight groaned. "You told me about how you found Veemon. You found him by moving the Digimental of Courage. The Digimental sensed the courage in your heart and let you lift it, freeing Veemon. But if the Digimental could see you now, I doubt it would have moved an inch." Flash felt a sting at that statement.
He sighed as he turned to her, "what should I do?"
"Find another rare Digimon to scan," Twilight told him. "Jet won't be able to resist if you have something he doesn't have. Beat him and get Veemon back. That's all you can do. Because right now, Jet's using him as his personal trading card. He's scanning Veemon and handing them out to anyone who's willing to give away a good trade." This angered Flash, as the bell rang and Twilight turned to leave. "You have to do this for Veemon. Jet hasn't let him out since he got him. He's a prisoner again. Worse then when he was under the Digimental. At least then, he wasn't conscious."
As she walked away, Flash realised she was right. He couldn't just sit around moping. He had to find a way to get Veemon away from that guy. And he knew how to do it.
Taking out his Digivice, Flash logged in. In the blink of an eye, he was in Codex once again. The sight of the place made him think back to what had happened, but he quickly shook his head before rushing over to the Codex Store.
The robot running the place saw him coming and seemed to recognise the look on his face. "Great. Another human on a life or death mission." Flash reached him and slammed his hands down on the counter.
"I need a Rookie level location scan."
"What kind of location scan?" The robot asked.
"One that I can find a rare Digimon in. The rarer the better." The robot seemed to be thinking, "come on! There's gotta be one scan I can get that'll help me get a rare Digimon."
"There's always Skyborn Revine," a screen appeared in front of him that showed the image of a bunch of giant rocks with flying Digimon soaring above them. "There's mostly bird and other flying Digimon there, but you might be able to get a few rare Dragon Digimon. But the place can be dangerous. It's almost Champion Level."
"Perfect." Flash purchased the location and his Digivice beeped, signalling he now had it. "Time to find a scan so rare, Jet won't be able to resist it." He ran back over to the Digi-Port and teleported away, completely unaware that someone had just seen the whole thing.
"You think he's gonna be okay?" Monodramon asked Shining. The man frowned as he stared at the spot he had just been in, Shining getting up.
"I'm not sure."
As soon as the transportation completed, Flash looked around and saw he was in the exact same spot he had seen in the image.
The place was actually a giant round hole in the earth, creating a bowl-like structure several miles around. Inside that bowl were many rock pillars, sticking out of the ground and creating a forest of rocks.
As he looked up, he saw a bunch of birds flying above them. The Digimon soared overhead and Flash quickly rushed into the shadow a rock, not wanting them to catch sight of him. He quickly took out his Digivice and opened up the decks, but most of them were locked since he didn't have Veemon.
Sighing, he went to the deck for Flamemon and activated it. "Biomerge!" He swung the Digivice around and the cube appeared, with Flamemon inside. The cube quickly flew over to him and he was sucked inside, being transformed into the Rookie would be smaller and more easy to hide in.
Transformation complete, he rushed out of the rocks and started running through the ravine of rocks.
Over the next hour, he began climbing up the sides of the rocks in search of rare Digimon. He kept finding nests full of Digi-Eggs, which surprised him since he thought only Primary Village had them. But unfortunately, he couldn't scan Digi-Eggs so had to search for something else.
The few nests he found without eggs instead had started bird Digimon. Common ones Flash knew wouldn't interest Jet into an Ante-Battle.
"There has to be something here," Flamemon growled as he reached the far end of the canyon. He looked up at a large rock and as he did, he saw something. A Digimon he didn't recognised. It was an odd looking green Digimon, that kind of looked like a seahorse with a dragon's head.
It was looking over the edge of the cliff and quickly pulled back when it saw Flamemon, who ran towards the rock. "Hold on!" He leapt up and used his Digimon abilities to easily climb it. "I just wanna get a quick scan of you." He huffed and puffed, the rock appearing a lot smaller from down on the ground.
When he finally reached the top, he looked ahead and saw the Digimon. It was staring at him, looking angry. And when Flamemon looked around him, he spotted a bunch of small blue Digimon that just appeared to be a dragon's head with a single foot on its bottom.
"Awe," he smiled at them, "you guys are really cute. And I bet you're really rare." He wanted to pull out his Digivice and scan them, but remembered he had to be in human form to do that. "Just give me a second and I can-" But before he could turn back, the green one unleashed a blast of fire right into his face. "Augh!" He was knocked back and accidently fell over the edge. "Wow, wow, wow, WOW!" He fell backwards over the edge, falling to the ground and crashing into the ground. "Ow."
The Digimon up on the cliffs all started crying, clearly scared by the strange individual. And as Flamemon picked himself up, something heard the screams and flew down towards him.
"Ahhh," he stood up and held his back, "that hurt." He looked up at the cliff and frowned, wondering if he could climb up in human form. However, something suddenly blocked out the sun behind him before the ground shook. Flamemon's eyes went wide as he slowly turned to see a large blue Dragon Digimon glaring down at him.
The Digimon did not look happy to see him, Flash gulping at the sight. "Oh...hi." The Dragon growled and its mouth filled with fire. "Uh oh."
"Blue Flare Breath!" It roared, the fire exploding from his mouth. Flamemon barely managed to leap out of the way in time, the flames hitting the ground and burning it as he ran for his life.
The Digimon took to the air and chased after him, Flamemon crying out as it began to catch up. It launched several fireballs and Flamemon had to keep jumping from left to right in order to avoid them. But eventually, he turned a corner and found himself trapped in a dead end. "Oh, great!" He spun around, the dragon glaring down at him ready to roast him.
But before it could attack, something shot down from above him. A Digimon Flash didn't recognise, being an armored Digimon with swords connected to its shoulders and a mask covering its face.
It quickly drew its swords and rushed forward, swinging the around to make the dragon leap back. The Dragon launched its flames at the new Digimon, but it connected the blades at the handle and spun them around to deflect the flames. When the attack ended, the two glared one another down before the new Digimon spoke up.
"NOW!" Suddenly, a familiar Digimon shot down from above and tackled the Dragon backwards. One that Flamemon recognised.
"Cyberdramon?" He watched as the Ultimate pushed the Dragon Digimon back until it smashed into a rock, making it fall to the ground in pain. It let out a mighty roar as it did so, the other Digimon turning to him.
"We need to get out of here!" He rushed over and grabbed Flamemon, throwing him over his shoulders before leaping into the air.
"Wait!" Flamemon cried, "I need to get a scan!"
"No time. That Digimon probably just called its friends and I don't wanna be here when they arrive." Flamemon growled at this, but could do nothing as they reached the top of the rock and began running. Cyberdramon followed behind them and once they were safely out of sight of any Digimon, Flamemon was put down.
"DAMN IT!" He kicked a rock, "I could have gotten that scan if you hadn't jumped us out of there."
"You would have been deleted," the Digimon began to glow and transformed. When the light faded, Shining Armor stood in front of him. "You can't save Veemon if you get yourself fragged before you get the chance."
"What are you even doing here?" Flash asked.
"I noticed you at the scan shop and realised in your current state, you'd probably get yourself into a situation you couldn't handle."
"You didn't even give me a chance," Flash argued. "I could have Digivolved to Agunimon and beaten that Digimon."
"And it would have roared like it did. Trust me. I know that kind of roar. When Coredramon make that noise, it means it's calling for backup. You would have been surrounded by a bunch of very angry Digimon you couldn't beat." He tapped Flash on the head, "you've got to think about these things. You don't have Veemon around to protect you when things get bad anymore."
"You think I don't know that!?" Flash asked, "but I have to get a new rare scan or I'll never get him back." He turned away from Shining and stared up at the sky, looking over at the now beginning to set sun. He sat down and felt like he had hit a wall. He was completely lost about what to do. Could he get another rare scan, or was he doomed to never see Veemon again?
Shining sighed as he turned to Cyberdramon, asking for a moment alone. Cyberdramon nodded and took to the air, checking the perimeter for any Digimon that might show up. Shining then stepped over to Flash and sat besides him, the two sitting in silence for a moment or so.
"I know you're hurting after what happened, but you can't let this setback stop you."
"I'm not stopping," Flash told him. "I'm here, aren't I? I'm trying to get Veemon back."
"Yeah, after three days of sitting around doing nothing. If this wasn't getting to you, you would have been out here looking for a rare scan the minute the battle ended." Flash frowned, knowing he was right. "Losing the way you did and losing Veemon knocked you for a loop. And you're still in that loop. It doesn't matter if you found a rare Digimon or not, you can't beat Jet the way you are right now."
"So what am I supposed to do?" Flash asked, "I don't have Veemon anymore. I don't even have a scan of him, so I can't use any of his evolutions."
"You have other scans," Shining told him.
"Not as good as Veemon," Flash frowned. "And even if I did have another Veemon scan...I don't think I can win a fight against Jet on my own. Without Veemon there to help and support me, I'm not good enough on my own." He looked ready to start crying, expecting Shining to say some words of comfort. But instead, Shining flicked him on the head. "OW!" He rubbed his head and turned to glare at Shining, "what was that for?"
"You need to grow up," Shining told him. "I know having your partner there is great, but you can't let yourself fall apart just because he isn't there to help you. You've battled before without him. I watched you fight a few weeks back as a Betamon and Airdramon. You didn't need Veemon to win that battle."
"But that wasn't anything special," Flash stated. "An Ante-Battle isn't something I can take likely."
"Which is why you need to get stronger as fast as you can," Shining told him. "You want to beat Jet and get Veemon back, don't you?" Flash frowned, not answering. "Don't you?"
"I want to," Flash nodded. "But...what if Veemon doesn't want anything to do with me?"
"What?"
"I'm the reason he's trapped inside Jet's Digivice right now. If I hadn't let him trick me into that Ante-Battle. Or if I'd let Gennai tell me the rules, we wouldn't be in this mess. I messed up and now Veemon must hate me. What if he doesn't wanna see me again?"
"So what?" Flash looked up at Shining in shock. "It doesn't matter if Veemon hates you. What matters is saving him from Jet. If it's really your fault, then you have to be the one to help him. Free him and if Veemon does hate you, you guys can go your separate ways. At least this way, Veemon will be free."
Flash sighed, knowing he was right. "So what do I do? You said I couldn't beat Jet in my current state. How am I supposed to get stronger as fast as possible to save Veemon?"
Shining sighed as he looked out on the surrounding environment. "Unfortunately, Jet has a bunch more experience then you. One of the reason he beat you is because he knew the battlefield so well. If you want to beat him, you're gonna need to hope you get to pick the battlefield and have a place you know inside and out."
Flash frowned, not liking the sound of that. "Any other tips?"
"You need to get better. I could see from your match that you understood the fundamentals of being a Digimon, tapping into its skills and knowledge. But if you really want to beat him, you need to remember you're not just a Digimon. You're human."
Flash raised an eyebrow, "what do you mean by that?" Shining smirked and whistled, Cyberdramon hearing this and flying back to them.
"I think it's better that I show you." Flash gasped.
"Wait," he stood up, "we're gonna battle?"
"Yup. And hopefully, you'll figure out a strategy to beat Jet with." He stood up and as Cyberdramon reached them, he transformed back into Monodramon as Shining held up his Digivice.
"Wait," Flash frowned, "I can't battle you. You're an Ultimate Level. You're gonna have more Securities then me. I won't stand a chance."
"Maybe. But I won't use Battle Gear or items in the match. That should help." Flash didn't think it would, but decided not to argue. Having the chance to battle such a skilled opponent was an opportunity that likely wouldn't happen again. He had to take it.
As soon as they got back to Codex, the pair made their way towards the Beta-Stadium.
At this time of night, barely anyone was in Codex. As such, they were able to make it to the stadium without anyone noticing them. And when they entered, Shining set the battle to be private so nobody could watch them.
They set their Digivices and brought up their decks. As they did, Shining pressed something and Monodramon was sucked into his Digivice. "You're not using him?" Flash asked, as Shining smirked.
"I think this is a lesson I need to teach you on my own. Monodramon will still be able to watch the fight. He just won't be able to interact with me." Flash frowned, wondering what Digimon Shining was gonna use if he wasn't gonna pick Monodramon.
But the question he should be wondering, was what Digimon should he pick?
He brought up the few decks he had that didn't involve Veemon. The only rookies he had were Elecmon, Flamemon and Betamon. He had used them all in test battles, but never in an actual match like this.
"What's the matter?" He turned to Shining, "can't think of a move without Veemon?" Flash frowned, giving Shining the answer. "Digimon partners are important, but you can't let yourself entirely rely on them. The bond you share with the Digimon has to be strong. But that bond can become a shackle if you let it become one."
Flash sighed, knowing he was right. He wanted to get Veemon back, but to do that he would need to learn to win without him. As such, he selected a deck and Shining did the same.
"You ready?" Flash nodded, "Alright. Then I'll select the battlefield. You need to learn how to fight someone in an environment you know nothing about. I select the Rose Morning Star Castle!" Flash frowned, not knowing that location. "Now...LET'S GET DIGITAL!" They both slammed the start button and were surrounded by light, the two transforming into their Digimon forms.
"Elecmon!" Flash cried, as he transformed into the electric mammal. He then turned to Shining, surprised when he saw what Digimon he had become.
"Monodramon!" The small pterodactyl-like Digimon stood before him, looking ready for a battle. This confused Flash, since he thought the whole point of this match was to not rely on one Digimon. So why was he still using his partner, even if he didn't have his partner in his head.
Before he could ask, the room exploded with light and transformed.
In the blink of an eye, he found himself in a strange building. It was light purple in colour and the walls were rather strange, appearing to be made of an odd rock. He was currently in what he assumed was the great hall, with pillars sticking out of the ground that had flames floating above them.
He began to walk forwards, needing to get used to having four legs. And as he did, he made sure to keep his eye out for Monodramon.
"Shining Armor's gonna be a tough opponent," he told himself before realising something. "And he's an Ultimate Level player. That means he'll have five securities. Six if he'd used Monodramon. Is that why he didn't use him? To give me a chance."
"Maybe." He gasped and looked up at a strange looking balcony, which Monodramon was standing on. "Or maybe it was to show you that a player's greatest strength doesn't just come from having a Digimon by your side." Elecmon got into a fighting stance, as Monodramon leapt off the balcony and spread his wings. They weren't big enough to let him fly, but he could glide.
"Super Thunder Strike!" He cried as he unleashed a blast of lightning out of his body, which shot towards Monodramon.
But before it could reach him, he barrel-rolled to the side and fell to the ground. He quickly skidded to his feet and took a breathed in, "Fire Breath!" A stream of flames shot out of his mouth and slammed into Elecmon, who cried out as he was knocked back.
Elecmon: 3-90%
Monodramon: 5-100%
He groaned as he hit the ground, but realised he didn't take that much damage. "Elecmon's a Data Digimon. Monodramon is Vaccine, I think. That means I've got the advantage."
"Maybe," Monodramon smirked. "But there's more to match ups than just the typings." He raised his claws, "you're an Electric Attribute, right?" Elecmon's eyes widened as he realised what he meant.
"Super Thunder Strike!" He fired the lightning out of his body and this time, Monodramon didn't try to dodge. He crossed his arms and let the lightning hit him.
Elecmon: 3-90%
Monodramon: 5-90%
Monodramon barely seemed to flinch at the attack, instead rushing forward as soon as the bolt finished. Elecmon got ready to dodge when he attacked, but he didn't.
Instead, he leapt into the air over him. "Huh?" He spun around but as he did, Monodramon reached a fire pullar that he kicked off of and flew back towards him.
"Beat Knuckle!" He swung his claws around and slashed at Elecmon, knocking him backwards until he crashed into another pillar.
Elecmon: 3-75%
Monodramon: 5-90%
Elecmon groaned as he tried to pick himself up, whilst Monodramon turned and ran off down one of the passageways. "Hey!" He ran after him, but Monodramon already had a pretty big lead on him. "You're not getting away that easily!" He chased the Rookie down the hallway until he suddenly turned left, Elecmon following him down the tunnel.
At the end of the tunnel was a doorway, which Monodramon quickly opened and ran through.
When Elecmon reach it, he ran inside and was shocked by what he saw. "Huh?" The entire room was a dark void-like place, full of purple staircases that went off in multiple different directions. Flash was reminded of that strange painting his art teacher had once shown him. "What is this place?"
"The Rose Morning Star Castle holds many secrets." Elecmon spun around and saw Monodramon, who was standing on an upside down staircase without anything sticking him to it. "Most Digimon can't hope to understand the mysteries hidden in this lair. But we're humans. We're not bound by Digimon Instincts"
"I don't understand?" He frowned, "I thought we were supposed to listen to our instincts."
"We are," Monodramon nodded. "But unlike Digimon, we can ignore them when we need to." He leapt off the stairs and flew down towards him, "Beat Knuckle!" He landed on the platform in front of Elecmon, slashing at him.
But Elecmon leapt back and jumped into the air. When he did, he didn't feel like anything was pulling him down. It was as if he was trapped in zero gravity. "What is with this place?" Monodramon leapt up and flew into the air with him, using another staircase to push himself towards Elecmon. "Nine Tails!" He spun around and smashed his electrified tails into Monodramon, knocking him backwards as he was shocked.
Elecmon: 3-75%
Monodramon: 5-75%
The impact also knocked Elecmon floating backwards and he landed on a staircase that was sideways, whilst Monodramon landed on one of the floating platforms that were scattered around the room.
He smirked as he picked himself up, whilst Elecmon was still a little freaked out. "This place is insane. Nothing here makes any sense."
"It makes sense if you remember this world is virtual," Monodramon told him. "It doesn't have to make sense if it was programmed to make no sense." He leapt over to another platform before leaping into the air and slashing at something.
That something was a glass vase that Elecmon hadn't notice, which was on a podium in the middle of the battlefield.
When it broke, it revealed an SP coin that Monodramon absorbed before spinning around. "Fire Breath!" The fire stream exploded out of his mouth and shot towards Elecmon, who barely managed to jump out of the way in time. But he was once again in midair and unable to move properly.
This allowed Monodramon to jump around until he reached Elecmon, resulting in him slamming a foot right into his chest. "Augh!"
Elecmon: 3-65%
Monodramon: 5-75%
He flew through the air and slammed into one of the staircases, the impact making him flinch as he bounced off and fell towards a platform.
Elecmon: 3-60%
Monodramon: 5-75%
Elecmon slammed into the ground and let out a groan, as Monodramon flew around until he landed on the same platform. "You're still letting your instincts get the better of you." Elecmon frowned. "Yes, you should have jumped to avoid my fire. But where should you have jumped to? If you only think in the moment, your opponent will have an advantage if they're able to think ahead."
Elecmon growled, realising he was right.
He pushed himself back up, as Monodramon got ready to charge. 'What do I do?" He asked himself. 'There's gotta be a way I can turn the tables on this match.' Suddenly, he spotted another vase not to far off and rushed over to it. Monodramon saw this and smirked, leaping into the air in order to parkour around Elecmon.
The electric Digimon noticed Monodramon's movement and tried to pick up the pace. But the zero gravity thing was still weird to him and he kept moving in the wrong direction.
Eventually, Monodramon flew passed him and approached the base. "Your movements were too obvious," the rookie announced. "You know I have home field advantage here." He landed on the platform with the vase, as Elecmon landed on the side of a podium that was just floating there. "Instead of rushing over here in a panic, you should have tried to fight your way here. I wouldn't have noticed the vase then."
Elecmon frowned, realising he was right. But that didn't mean he couldn't still get the coin inside. "Super Thunder Strike!" He launched the lightning from his body and it slammed into Monodramon, the Rookie flinching as he was zapped.
Elecmon: 3-60%
Monodramon: 5-60%
As Monodramon took the damage, Elecmon leapt for the vase and attempted to nab it. But Monodramon thought through the shock and grabbed the vase, pulling it out of Elecmon's way with the electric Digimon slamming into the ground and skidding to a stop.
"Nice try!" Monodramon shattered the vase, "but not good enough." The coin inside was a Digivolution coin and as Monodramon grabbed it, his entire body began to glowed. "Monodramon, Digivolve to..." He grew taller and as the light faded, it revealed a purple and white Digimon wearing green pants. The top of his head was covered in a meant helmet and he had metal on his shoulder, hands, feet and the tip of his tail. "Strikedramon!"
Elecmon gasped seeing the Champion Level standing in front of him, its claws at the ready. "So, what are you gonna do?" He pointed at him, "this is just like last time. Your opponent's way stronger than you now? How ya'h gonna deal with this?" Elecmon wasn't sure, the nine tailed mammal slowly moving backwards. "Scared?"
"I'm not scared," Elecmon cried before charging forward. "And I've still got the type advantage!" He leapt into the air and swung around, his tail sparking. "Nine Tails!" Strikedramon didn't retaliate, instead simply raising his arm and the tail slammed into him with the lightning surging through him.
Elecmon: 3-60%
Strikedramon: 5-50%
"That the best you got?" He asked before swinging his arm and knocking Elecmon away. Elecmon flinched at this and was thrown backwards, getting caught in the zero gravity and remaining in midair.
"Wow!" He cried, trying to gain control with little success.
Strikedramon quickly leapt into the air and flew around the place, dancing from one platform to another with Elecmon unable to tell which direction he was going to be going until it was too late. "Strike Claw!" He shot forward from behind and slashed at Elecmon's back.
"AUGH!"
Elecmon: 3-35%
Strikedramon: 5-50%
As Elecmon was thrown down towards another platform, Strikedramon bounced off another podium and slammed a foot into his chest. "GYAH!"
Elecmon: 3-30%
Strikedramon: 5-50%
Elecmon fell through the air and as he did, he spotted another vase.
Realising this was his chance, he knew he couldn't let Strikedramon see what he was doing. So as he landed on a platform, he saw Strikedramon flying towards him and pretended to charge up an electric attack. But he stopped when Strikedramon got in close and leapt backwards onto another platform.
"Super Thunder Strike!" He launched a blast, Strikedramon ducking under it but being blinded so Elecmon leapt onto another platform closer to the vase. He panted, feeling exhausted. But he couldn't stop now. And as Strikedramon leapt at him again, he jumped into the air and let the zero gravity take him. "Hope this works. Super Thunder Strike!"
Strikedramon saw the lightning coming and once again dodged it, leaping up to another platform. But as he did, he noticed the blast had blown Elecmon backwards and realised where he was going. "Clever!"
Elecmon reached the podium with the vase and quickly smashed it with his tail, revealing a Digivolution coin. "YES!" The energy flowed into him and as Strikedramon charged, Elecmon's entire body was surrounded by like. "Elecmon, Digivolve to..." He grew to the same height as Strikedramon and as the dragon Digimon threw a claw at him, a large hand reached out and grabbed it before the light faded. "LEOMON!"
Strikedramon stared back at his fellow Champion, the two staring each other down until Strikedramon tried to pull its fist out of Leomon's. But Leomon managed to hold on as he raised his own fist and tried to punch Strikedramon, who managed to catch it.
Now both locked in place, the pair struggled against each other and tried to overpower one another. But neither of them were able to get an upperhand, eventually leading them to both freeing the other and leaping back. As they did, Leomon clenched his fist and pulled it back. "Fist of the Beast King!" He thrust it forward and launched the energy blast towards Strikedramon, how crossed his arms as the attack slammed into him and knocked him backwards.
Leomon: 3-30%
Strikedramon: 5-40%
Leomon then drew his sword and leapt at Strikedramon, slashing at him. But the Dragon Man Digimon managed to recover from the attack just in time to see the attack coming, so used the metal parts of his gauntlets to block the sword.
Leomon landed on the platform in front of him and stab at Strikedramon, only for the Champion to dodge the stab and grab his arm. He then did a move so fast, Leomon couldn't follow. All he knew was that in the blink of an eye, his sword was thrown out of his grip and went flying upwards out of the platform's gravity.
He pulled back and as Strikedramon prepared to charge, he swung his leg around to try and hit his opponent in the head.
But Strikedramon managed to block it with his knee, smirking before pushing him back. Leomon then started throwing kicks and punches into Strikedramon, but he managed to block and dodge each and every attack before thrusting a claw into his chest.
"Augh!" He staggered back, holding the slashed area as he felt the pain.
Leomon: 3-25%
Strikedramon: 5-40%
"Man," he hissed, "Strikedramon's a serious fighter."
Strikedramon smirked, "those skills I just used don't come from Strikedramon." Leomon raised an eyebrow. "You don't know what I do for a living, huh?"
"No," he shook his head, "what do you do?"
"I'm a cop." Flash hadn't been expecting that. "I'm an officer in the Canterlot City Police Department. Soon to make detective if everything goes alright. It's a dangerous job, so I make sure I'm ready to deal with anything that's thrown at me. That includes being able to handle someone in a hand to hand fight or knowing how to disarm someone using a blade."
"So that's how he knocked my sword away," Leomon realised.
Strikedramon smirked. "We may be in the bodies of Digimon, but we're still humans. We have our own skills and abilities, which are now more powerful than ever thanks to our Digimon bodies. Have you ever thought of learning a fighting style or defence skills?"
"Not really," Leomon frowned. "Does that stuff really help?"
"You tell me," Strikedramon smirked before charging with a roar. The next thing Leomon knew, Strikedramon was attacking with a barrage of attacks. Punches, kicks, chops, palm strikes, tail attacks and more. Leomon's battle instincts flew through Flash's mind and he managed to block some of the attacks, but more of them kept coming and he was hit several times.
"GYAH!" One kick to the chest knocked Leomon flying backwards, causing him to fall out of the platforms gravity and float away.
Leomon: 3-5%
Strikedramon: 5-40%
He groaned, but as he recovered he noticed his sword floating not to far away from him.
He managed to get into the gravity of another platform and used it to jump up and grab his sword. He panted as he looked around, not seeing Strikedramon anywhere. "Gotta get out of here. This zero gravity environment is something I'm gonna need to practise in to really get the hang of."
He looked around and saw a set of doors not to far away. He started making his way towards them but as he did, he noticed something atop one of the pillars. A coin.
But this one wasn't blue or orange, instead being red with the same shield symbol as his security. "What's that?" Making a quick detour, he flew over to it and caught the shield. As the energy exploded out of it and into him, he felt his strength being renewed. Then, he spotted something in his vision.
Leomon: 4-5%
Strikedramon: 5-40%
"I got another security?"
"You found an HP coin." He spun around and saw Strikedramon standing on an upside down platform. "It's a rare coin that lets you gain a security. Useful for when find yourself in trouble." As he said that, he leapt down and flew towards him with his claws ready.
Leomon quickly leapt away as her pull his fist back and flew towards the door. "FIst of the Beast King!" He launched the lion fireball, which slammed into Strikedramon whilst propelling himself backwards.
Leomon: 4-5%
Strikedramon: 5-30%
The added propulsion allowed him to reach the doors and kick his way through them, gravity returning to normal as he ran down the hallway looking for another area to do battle in.
He found a staircase and headed up into it, carefully looking back every now and then to make sure Strikedramon wasn't following him and preparing an attack. But the Digimon was nowhere in sight.
He eventually came to a doorway and pushed his way through it, finding himself in a round room with two stories to it. Around the edges of the room were pillars leading up to a round balcony on the second floor, Leomon looking around but not seeing anything that might help him.
He sighed, thinking he should be safe there until he regained his strength. But no sooner had he thought this, that the floor suddenly exploded beneath him. "AUGH!" He cried, being knocked backwards as debris slammed into him.
Leomon: 4-0%
Strikedramon: 5-30%
Strikedramon flew out of the hole that had formed, doing a quick survey of the area and spotting Leomon on the ground. The feline Digimon groaned as he laid on the ground, whilst Strikedramon landed and prepared to attack.
But Leomon quickly raised his legs and swung them around, flipping his whole body around like a breakdancer to get back to his feet. And as Strikedramon prepared to attack, Leomon clenched both fists and called upon all the power he could.
"Hyakujuken!" He screamed, thrusting his fists back and forth to unleash a barrage of lion fireballs.
Strikedramon raised his arms and braced himself, the fireballs slamming into him multiple times and dealing damage to him with every hit.
Leomon: 3-100%
Strikedramon: 5-0%
That was as far as he was willing to let this attack go, the Dragon Man leaping right up into the air and over the fireball streams.
Leomon gasped and stopped his attacks, hoping to fire another barrage. But Strikedramon was faster and fell towards him. "Strike Fang!" As he said that, the metal parts of his body grew red hot. So hot that his claws and back burst into flames without hurting him. And as he reached Leomon, he swung the attack around.
"AUGH!" Leomon roared, being knocked backwards.
Leomon: 3-85%
Strikedramon: 4-100%
Strikedramon quickly ran forward, managing to get behind Leomon before he could recover and grabbing him by the back of his mane. He then started spinning him through the air before letting him go with a mighty roar and toss.
Leomon cried out as he was thrown upwards into the second level of the room and close to the ceiling.
And as he reached the top of his arc, Strikedramon managed to leap up and get right above him. The pair made eye contracted, though Leomon couldn't see his eyes behind the helmet, as Strikedramon spun around and smashed his heel into Leomon's gut. The force knocked the wind out of him, as he was sent down towards the ground.
Leomon: 3-80%
Strikedramon: 4-100%
Leomon shot towards the ground and fell right through the hole Strikedramon had made, causing him to fall three stories before smashing into the floor of a dark room.
Leomon: 3-70%
Strikedramon: 4-100%
He groaned as he rolled onto his front and pushed himself up, whilst Strikedramon slowly made his way down towards him. He barely managed to get to his feet before Strikedramon leapt through the and swung his leg around, Leomon seeing it coming with his instincts kicking in.
He leaned back and Strikedramon's foot sailed over his head. He then leapt back and spotted his sword on the ground, cartwheeling over to grab it before getting into a battle ready stance.
Strikedramon charged forward and Leomon did the same, deciding he needed to be spontaneous if he wanted to get the upper hand on Shining. So as they got closer, Leomon let his legs bend and he was suddenly sliding along the ground whilst slashing at Strikedramon's chest. "AUGH!"
Leomon: 3-70%
Strikedramon: 4-90%
Leomon quickly jumped back to his feet and spun around. "Fist of the Beast King!" The fireball exploded forwards and smashed into Strikedramon before he could turn to face him, the explosion knocking him backwards.
Leomon: 3-70%
Strikedramon: 4-75%
As Strikedramon hit the ground, Leomon ran forward and leapt up. He let out a roar as he held his sword up and began to fall towards the Dragon Man, ready to stab him in the chest. But before he could, Strikedramon raised both his legs and thrust them into Leomon's chest as he fell.
"Augh!" He was kicked backwards, allowing Strikedramon to roll back to his feet.
Leomon: 3-65%
Strikedramon: 4-75%
Leomon managed to land on his feet, the pair staring each other down as Leomon tried to come up with a way to get the upper hand on him. But there wasn't one. 'Our Digimon are evenly matched,' Flash thought to himself. 'Which means the deciding factor is the skill of the one using them. And Shining's got way more skill and experience than me.'
Strikedramon looked ready to attack, whilst Leomon was still unsure how to get an advantage. He knew he had only one hope. As Strikedramon prepared to attack, Leomon suddenly turned and ran towards one of the staircases in the room.
"Get back here!" Strikedramon roared, chasing after him as the pair ascended.
Flash didn't know where the stairs would lead him, but hopefully they would be to somewhere he could have more of an advantage in. But that was only if Strikedramon didn't catch him, the faster Digimon catching up.
Looking ahead, he saw a candle ring up above him and drew his sword. He threw it and the weapon sliced through the chain and caused the holder to fall. Leomon managed to get passed it before it hit the ground, Strikedramon coming to a stop to prevent getting flattened.
Grabbing his sword off the ground, he continued to run until he reached the top and saw a light flowing out through a doorway.
Hoping this led somewhere better, he ran through it and found himself in a massive dark chamber. Crystal spikes stuck out of the ground, with Leomon stepping out from one, that glowed brightly and illuminated the area around him.
"Wow," he was amazed by the looks. "This place is awesome." And as he looked around, he noticed something inside one of the smaller crystals ahead of him. A Digivolution Coin. "YES!" He ran forward and saw his SP still wasn't regenerated enough for him to use any of his attacks.
As such, he threw a punch at the crystal with everything he had.
The crystal shook and cracked, Leomon punching it again and again. But as the cracks grew larger, he sensed movement behind him. Glancing back, he saw Strikedramon had arrived and was ready to attack. This pushed Leomon to punch the crystal several more times, but it still remain solid as Strikedramon charged.
It was then he had an idea and turned towards Strikedramon, pulling out his sword ready to fight.
But as Strikedramon got in close, Leomon leapt to the side. "RAAAAH!" Strikedramon slashed at him, but missed and instead slashed at the crystal.
This caused the whole thing to shatter and release the coin, which fell towards the ground as Leomon smirked. "YES!" He jumped up, reaching for the coin. But before he could grab it, a large chunk of gem slammed into him. "AUGH!"
Leomon: 3-55%
Strikedramon: 4-75%
He was knocked backwards, as the coin fell to the ground.
Strikedramon chuckled as he stepped forward. "Not a bad idea. Using your opponent to do the work for you. But your intentions were way too obvious. I knew there was something in this crystal the second I saw you hitting it." He reached down and grasped it, "you should have kept hitting it and leapt away at the last moment instead of facing me. That would have lulled me into a false sense of security."
Leomon frowned, not thinking for a second he would have fallen for that either.
"But hopefully, this lesson will help you learn to see things from your opponents point of view. Always ask yourself if you would fall for the same thing if you saw that." Leomon picked himself up, as Strikedramon leapt up into the air. He then landed on top of another crystal, "now it's time to take this battle to the next level." His body exploded with light. "Strikedramon, Digivolve to..." The light merged with his body and caused him to grow buffer and stronger. A bunch of wings shot out of his back and as the light faded, it revealed the Digimon Flash had been expecting to see. "Cyberdramon!"
Leomon gulped at the sight of Shining's ace, knowing this battle had just gotten a lot harder for him.
"Now, then, Flash Sentry. Let's see how well you face off against this challenge." Flash wasn't sure if he could win. But if he wanted to save Veemon, he had to get stronger. And winning this battle would surely help him do that.