Private/Closed Bootleg Brothers 6

[ArmedBlue]

Kirin
​

"What the...?"

The surprises kept coming as Generic Host froze her Merciful Beheading, absorbing it into the energy orbs. Not just that, but he also displayed an ability to teleport, though whether or not he'd seen the attack coming was beyond her. This guy was surprisingly tricky, which kind of reminded Kirin of her fights against the likes of Shiron or Serpentine, except for one key difference: those were Septimas she was dealing with. She didn't even know exactly what this guy was.

The rapidly approaching grids of light did pose a problem, leaving very little gaps in their formation, also reminiscent of Shiron. Crouching down, the priestess focused - before she warped forward and through the attack, leaving afterimages in her wake with her Fierce Issen Dash. She conjured a set of talismans afterward, throwing a barrage of them at the Host and the orbs surrounding him. The area then suddenly darkened, and thin crimson lines telegraphing an attack shone through the dark.

Kirin stepped away from them out of instinct, and sturdy threads shot along the markers like bullets. Another set followed, intersecting in crisscross patterns around her location, striking one after the other with minuscule delay. The priestess was quick to run, unable to get out of the danger zone entirely, swinging her sword to deflect the strings that rained down. A couple managed to strike her left leg, anchoring her in place. Unsure of what would come next, she procured more talismans, keeping them and her sword ready for potential follow-ups.​

 

[Captain Cardboard]

Dagr

Dagr chuckled as Pit quickly ran off.
"Hey, hold on, wait up!" Dagr called after Pit, quickly jogging to keep up with the angel. She looked back to Jevil and Chai, and grinned at Chai's complaint.
"Hey, don't worry Chaister! Music soothes the savage beast, right? Jevil doesn't bite too hard, just talk to him about chaos. Make some chaos music. You'll do fine!" Dagr called back to Chai.

She ran after Pit, entering into the shop just after the angel. There was a lot of cool stuff. Each item looked like it was from someone already defeated in the tournament. Which meant... Dagr searched for the Devilknife, but it was gone! Someone else had already bought it. Dagr frowned. Dang, so much for that. The squiddo's item was taken already too. There was Beam's item. The Shark Contract. But to use it, she would have to sacrifice her own flesh and blood. She needed that stuff. But there were plenty of cool stuff. A piece of Hrimfaxi, a cool sword, a little shovel scepter. The battle armor, while rather ostentatious, also looked pretty good. And explosive apples.

"Hm.... Hmmmmmmmm..." Dagr muttered. This guy could summon a whole bunch of enemies, but...

Dagr was overthinking this. She was here to have fun. So she'd pick the most fun option.
"Boop!" Dagr exclaimed, scooping up the Shark Contract. She leaned on the desk next to Pit, putting her coins there for the Contract. Pit had grabbed the Skull mask. It was the one that guy Ryuji had used, the one Nott teamed up with.

"Oh, that's neat." Dagr said to Pit. She looked out the window, back at the brackets again, then to Pit.
"Hey, Pitter Pat. You should be careful in your next match." Dagr said to Pit. "That Taskmaster guy was able to take out my sister. So he has to be crazy, crazy good. I get the feeling he'll go for your head if you give him the chance."

Suddenly a paper airplane flew through the air and tapped Pit on the side of the head. A figure vanished from the doorway.



The Dark Labyrinth

The maze stretched out before the group of adventurers. Echoes of distant screams and strange noises floated through the passageways. While there were four exits to the chamber they currently occupied, Neph would be able to sense that the northmost passage had the strongest connection to Bakura...

 

[ArmedBlue]

Pit
​

Pit struck a pose as he tried the Skull Mask on.
​

"A bit of a radical change from the rest of your attire, huh?" Palutena noted.

"Maybe, but it sure looks cool," He replied, taking it off and turning to face Dagr. She seemed pretty aware of Taskmaster's strength, as he was able to beat her sister in a fight. "I didn't know she was your sister!" The boy exclaimed - when a paper airplane hit him on the side of his head, falling to the ground gently. Looking in the direction it came from, he barely spotted a figure slipping away. Confused, Pit picked the paper airplane up.

"...who the heck was that? Don't think that Taskmaster is the kinda guy to use paper airplanes..."​

 

[Captain Cardboard]

Dagr

Pit struck a pose in the skull mask.
"Yeah, looking good!" Dagr cheered. Pit made an offhand comment, likely talking to Palutena.

The paper airplane had a note written on it...

Oh powerful angel
There is something of great importance I must speak to you about. It is critical that we talk immediately, otherwise something terrible will happen. People need your help, and you are the only one who can do it. Meet me deep in the tunnel directly behind the Regular Burger. Do not delay.

 

[ArmedBlue]

Pit
​

"People need my help...?" Pit muttered. Just who could this be? He didn't think there would be anything other than the tournament bracket happening in this place, so what was this terrible thing that was going to happen?

"That sounds incredibly urgent. I don't think Master Hand would let some sort of deceit happen here, so it must be real."

Looking over the note in confusion, Pit turned over to Dagr, showing her the letter.

"Hey, check this out. Apparently someone needs to talk with me, like, super urgently. I hate to leave so soon, but I really can't let anyone get hurt. If you see Taskmaster around, tell him I'll be there in a minute, alright?" He told the woman, glancing over to the Regular Burger. There was a tunnel behind it, apparently. "See you later, good luck in your fight!"

He once again sprinted off, walking around the side of the Regular Burger, inspecting the small alley behind it closely. Sure enough, there was an actual tunnel there. Seemed like a tight squeeze, and it was pretty dark in there too. Conjuring a Burning Palm in his right arm, Pit held it up in front of him to light the way in. "Well, here goes..."

The angel walked into the tunnel, slowly heading deeper, unsure of what lay within...​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Rinku


And there they were, the stage was set and the battle was ready to start. Irnane was set across the alley from Rinku, who seemed all too familiar with this sort of terrain. As soon as everything materialized, there was no warning - he was off!

Flashing forwards, he beelined right towards Irnane at frightening speeds, trash cans wobbling off balance after he blasted past them. With a single blow, he intended to the ball of her ribs with and elbow, which would blow the rib cage right open!



Chai


"Huh?? I didn't ask for this!" He complained.

However, both Pit and Dagr had bailed already, leaving him with the ball of chaotic clownery. Chai's eyes slowly sliding to Jevil, he gave an awkward whistle, starting to tap on the table. Seconds passed by, the guitarist, feeling the air was tense, started to talk to the card themed comedian.

"Sooo...Jevil, right? What do you do for fun?"

 

[PaprusTeuton]

Jevil

"Pitter Pat here is a tourney veteran, ya know. He's also an angel." Dagr said between drinks.
"An Angel?" asked Jevil, "You mean there's more than one? Delightful, delightful!"
While what Jevil said sounded like utter nonsense to people unfamiliar with the Legend- which happened to include everyone in the entire area, save himself and one other- it made perfect sense to Jevil. In fact, the nonsense here was that Pit was an Angel, and not The Angel...

Wait, is he the Angel?

Jevil plopped himself down near Pit and looked him in the eyes. He certainly didn't seem like the Angel, but the Prophecy never actually said what the Angel looked like- only that it had some Heaven that the Three Heroes would need to Banish.
But why would the Angel be calmly participating in a tournament, instead of ripping apart the world as it revolved? No, Pit couldn't be the Angel.

Jevil's gaze relaxed. "Amazing, amazing. I learn more every day that I'm here!"
Pit got up and went to the item shop before Jevil could say anything else. Dagr also motioned to leave, leaving Jevil sitting across from Chai, the man with a mechanical arm. A few seconds passed as Jevil looked at the cyborg.

"Sooo...Jevil, right? What do you do for fun?" Chai said, breaking the silence.
"Oh, a lot of things!" answered Jevil. "Juggling, dancing, spinning in circles- Moving around, really. I hate standing still." There was no real need to say that he hated standing still, because he was fidgeting in his seat. His J-shaped tail seemed to be looking for things in the nooks and crannies of the chair, his legs were tracing circles on the ground, and his hands were making some kind of complex shape.

 

[comic]

GENERIC HOST​

Just as before, the orbs of light moved to intercept Kirin's talismen, absorbing them upon impact. When the avoided grids reached the back wall, they arced out like lightning, expanding to fill the entire room in its sides, effectively creating a shield around Kirin and Host as their gaps filled out. The Host was boxing Kirin in.

The Host sneered when he saw the threads strike Kirin's leg, and anchor her to the spot. The seven orbs rapidly converged in front of him, forming a single mass of a much larger power, its light yellower still, before a scream seemed to ignite the air - a sound that belonged to the beam of energy the great orb projected, directly for the anchored girl. However, when the beam ended, the end point was where the orb now appeared, and it would scream another assault in Kirin's direction, repeating this process a few more times.

"You should have been a dear and did as I asked!" The Host called. "You meddle with things you can't even comprehend! I am the herald, and He has shown me the pearly gates! You won't take it away, hahahaha!"
​

​

NEPHTHYS​

The gardevoir led her unorganized, dysfunctional team toward the northmost passage, obeying her senses as she did so.
​

​

IRNANE​

The demon wasted no time. A satisfactory beginning to the fight. He was fast, yes, but Irnane had fought plenty faster. Perhaps she had overlooked the speed aspect, though. Maybe that was something she could acquire. Bringing up the Sword of White Woe, and his elbow collided with the enchanted blade. Irnane slid back a foot, her free hand already humming with red magicka, before it expelled and a brief crimson light enveloped her, though to Rinku, it would seem as though it had done nothing.

Irnane would conjure the Fang of Haynekhtnamet in her other hand, and dash forward with speed her demonic opponent would discover was roughly equal to his own as she unleashed a flurry of attacks with both weapons, one that would weaken the integrity it struck, and the other that would bypass defenses when it struck.​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Rinku


She had quick reflexes. Good. Would be boring without it.

As crimson light shone out, he knew she activated an ability of some sort, of which? He didn't know, but he was prepared for anything for what he was about to do. As she dove back at high speeds, he gave the daintiest of waves, so when her blade was about to strike-

Poof!

Several Rinku's exploded out from where her blade was going to hit, flying wildly on different directions across the alleyway. They circled, bounce, stopped on dimes, and had generally unpredictable movements on purpose.

"Haha! This is a fun start!"

"Play with me first!"

"Over heeeere!"

"Heads up chick!"

If the noise and visual pollution wasnt enough, Rinku materialized something in their hands: A long comical scythe littered with purple and lime green stripes. Each one spun their blades and whirled before tossing them all up in the air.

The blades all whirled up out of his hands as it seemed Rinku attuned to it quickly. Each Rinku pointed forwards and leaped in a different direction. That's when four scythes came sweeping in at different angles. It appeared there wouldn't be any way to escape if they were real blades. One was up at a wide angle from left, another with the reverse movement from the right, and the remaining two were thrown like revolving fan blade from the back and front. A leap in either direction would surely mean certain impact if the guess was wrong.

Oh but Rinku wasn't done, why let the borrowed blade have all the fun? Four Rinkus appeared in a flash above the blades ready to spike down, sliding to sweep at the feet, elbow from the back of Irnane, and throwing a whirlwind kick from the front. It was quite the onslaught, although while she may not know it, it was littered with fakes that sound nor vision betrayed. But would she guess correctly?





Chai

"Greaaaaat."

The motions of Jevil practically bouncing at the table shook the booth slightly as the ADHD possessing demon clown made conversation difficult. Chai in the back of his head was wished Peppermint was here so she could tell him what this dude's deal was. As things went silent again, Chai coughed before faking a yawn mixed with a stretch.

"I guess I really should be headed out then..." Chai said as a way to Segway leaving this situation.

 

[comic]

IRNANE​

Illusions and distractions. She had known about this, and yet still found herself struggling to find the real one. There didn't appear to be any sort of inconsistency to latch onto, something to decipher the true from the fake, and when they all began to use the store-bought item that belonged to Jevil, they went for the attack. These clones may be physical, but then again they may not. There was only one sure way of finding out.

The Fang of Haynekhtnamet would get in the way, she needed a free hand again, so the blade vanished and was instead replaced by another flash of light. Flames erupted around the Incarnate, and when the false scythes came, Irnane could decipher the real from the false. The flames muddied the vision of the fake blades, and when the real Devilsknife came into contact with the sphere of fire around Irnane, it was set alight with magical flames, threatening to eat away at even the durable blade as it hacked away at what was clearly a shield. Irnane had cast Fire Shield, and if Rinku still appeared above the scythe to try and punch at the barrier, he'd be set aflame similarly.

The integrity of the shield held for a moment, allowing Irnane to prepare her next attack. A scroll appeared in her hand, and was consumed in a flurry of embers. Absorb Attribute, and Irnane had copied a good deal of Rinku's own speed stat to herself.​

 

[Psymallard]

Taskmaster
The assassin leaned back and crossed his arms.

"No. I didn't pick it- my handler did. Back then, I only took the missions she signed me up for. Made somethin' of a name for myself under that name, so I kept it."

The jester had returned to the restaurant, without the strange man. The man felt awkward only answering questions of Nótt's, entertaining her sociability even as people moved to their fights. While he wouldn't be found prying into her personal life, he did know they had a common interest of battle, and thought of a couple questions to ask that he was interested in hearing the answers to.

"Is there an Asgard where you come from?"

Kragg
After purchasing his item, the Earth's Bastion wandered over to the gates. His foe was Kassandra, and after looking around, he spotted the woman making her way back from the edge of the plaza, probably to talk with one of her allies in the stands. He didn't know if anyone from Aether was watching, but a quick scan didn't help at all- not that beetles were known for their impeccable perception.

He entered the wall of light, and the voice asked Kragg where he wanted to go once again. The beetle decided that it was best to go back to the Rock Wall, as picking the Forest Floor last time did not produce the best results.

 

[ArmedBlue]

Kirin
​

The orbs merged into one big sphere, no doubt preparing an attack to take advantage of her anchored position. Quickly slapping a talisman onto the threads that held her down, Kirin slashed with her blade - and the added concussive force of the talisman was enough to shatter them, freeing the priestess just in time to act as the beam fired.

A talisman soared upward with a flick of her wrist, the large energy beam burning through the area Kirin stood on - but the Adept had already warped to the talisman's position with her Arc Chain, flying high through the air as she moved closer to the Host's position. Her Septima had no clear effects on his performance so far, which meant one of two things. Either the Host's powers were not of a nature that she could seal, or she'd need a lot more talismans and damage to weaken him. She wasn't sure which one was worse.

Throwing a few more talismans down at Generic Host himself, Kirin caught a glimpse of another beam firing from the other end of the room, aimed at her direction. the priestess threw a talisman up and behind her, letting it slowly fall, before Kirin suddenly fell like a brick, blade outstretched - her Rapid Ressen Slash. It increased her falling speed tremendously, another burst of the laser sailing above her, before the large orb adjusted, firing another beam directly in her path. With the limitations this tournament set on her Arc Chain, she wouldn't be able to avoid this one easily. And Generic Host's goading was getting on her nerves...

"Just sounds like cartoon villain talk to me!" She called out, and while she acted like the Host's actions weren't causing her much trouble, she knew she was fighting an uphill battle here. Kirin reacted to the laser blocking her path by burning her singular air jump, gaining just enough height to avoid the initial burst, stalling a little longer with her Tensho Slash, before she finally fell into it right as it began to fade. The wave of heat and energy washed over her quite painfully, knocking her to the ground, but it was nowhere near as bad as it could've been should she have taken it head on.

Gritting her teeth as she moved to get back up, the Battle Priestess launched another barrage of talismans at her foe. While the majority were aimed at him in hopes of slipping past his guard and earning a tag, some of them struck the floor around him at varying distances. They remained there for the time being, softly pulsing with a white aura...​

 

[Captain Cardboard]

Weevil Underwood

From his hiding spot, Weevil watched as Pit took his bait. He stifled a giggle. Way too easy. With a white cloth he had found, Weevil made a makeshift toga like how Pit was dressed. He took off his glasses, and ran towards the gate. He waited for Taskmaster to show up. A perfectly devious plan. Now if only that skull-faced freak would hurry up before Pit wised up and returned...


Yami Bakura

The spirit's mood slowly soured as Neph and her squad began to navigate the labyrinth. Clearly, he had underestimated the creature's powers as she expertly lead her group through the nefarious maze. She knew exactly which paths to take, avoiding those that lead to dead ends and deathtraps and heading straight for the boss chamber. Well. He'd see about that...

The tunnels grew darker and dark as the group pressed down the winding corridors. Space was strange here, as they traveled up, down, even upside down on some parts. But finally, the corridor ended. It opened up into a large hexagonal room. There were a few doors leading out of this room, but all were closed. In the center of the room there was a treasure chest, red and gold.

On the northmost wall was the largest door. It stretched from floor to ceiling, and was made of dark black and purple metal. The door was bound in change, with a foreboding skull design on it. Inside the mouth of the skull, there was a keyhole.

On the northwestern wall, there was a simple wooden door.

On the northeastern wall, there was a metal door. It had an inscription above it.
Come one, come many
Come to feast
Receive your Just Desserts,
The more, the merrier

On the southeastern wall, there was a wooden door with brown and tan stripes. There was a carving on the door. It depicted a man in a pit, screaming in anguish and pain.

The southern wall was the entrance to the corridor Neph's party was traveling from.

The southwestern wall was blank.


Nótt

Taskmaster began contributing to the conversation, much to Nótt's delight. Was it because she had inquired about his past? Perhaps. But it wasn't enough to close him off.
"Hm... Asgard. Perhaps. I don't know what your Asgard is. Where I am from, there are a great many realms that are close to each other. The one I am from is called Jötunheimr. It can be easy to travel between the realms, provided you know the gates and pathways. But Asgard... hm, I don't believe I've heard of a realm called- Ah." Nótt paused, recalling some information. "Perhaps we do, actually. I remember a long time ago, hearing of a realm known as Ásgarðr. A mysterious and distant realm, where the wandering gods Loki and Thórr originally hail from."

Nótt shook her head.
"We Jötun are not exactly reknown for our record keeping, but as far as I know, no mortal has ever laid eyes upon that realm. Much less discovered the gate that will lead to it." Nótt said. She tilted her head. "What an unusual question, Sir Taskmaster. Why do you ask?"


Dagr

The Princess frowned, looking over the letter Pit had received. Strange... But Pit seemed really eager to help. She nodded as the angel ran off.
"I'll be sure to let him know!" Dagr called after Pit. She shook her head. "What a sweet kid. Hope Taskmaster doesn't hurt him too hard."
Shark contract purchased, Dagr rested her ax on her shoulder and started to head towards the gate. She looked over the contract, trying to make out any writing. But it was completely illegible. And just like that, it vanished in a puff of smoke. Dagr blinked. Hope that was a good thing...


Hmmm

As Grazie made her way up the stairs to the stands, a young man passed her heading down. He wore a black, form fitting chestplate and a purple cloak was across his shoulders. On the shoulder, there was a golden gear emblem emblazoned in the cloth. He wore a purple tunic and black riding pants and boots, and a sword hung from his belt. His skin was pale, almost sickly, and there was a scar on his left cheek. His black hair was short, and his eyes an icy gray. He glared at Grazie as he passed the Adept user, but said nothing and continued on his way down.

Ótr, the prince of Niðavellir, opened the door and looked out into the lobby. He kept a careful eye out for Dagr or Nótt, moving as stealthily as he could to avoid being detected by either of the Jotun women. But it did not take him long to find who he was looking for. Of to the side of the lobby was the warrior Masaru Takaharu. Ótr glanced around, making sure neither of the Princesses had spotted him yet.
"You. Masaru." Ótr said to the fighter. "There's someone who want so speak with you.

 

[comic]

KASSANDRA​

The shop had seem some activity, and by the time Kassandra stepped outside, she was bearing only a single token left - she had claimed two items, both of which she knew she may need after seeing the sheer brute that was her opponent. The misthios was strong, but her lumbering foe seemed of a purely physical fighter.

Her two items would compensate for that. First, she had bought "The Power of Fire;" a red stone that, once used, would equalize the user to the strength of their opponent. This would close any gap that was there. Secondly, she purchased "Hrímfaxi's Blessing" which would double the strength of a "buff." Kassandra had to ask Regular Shopkeeper what in Hades a "buff" was, but once armed with that knowledge, making the choice was far from difficult. She could use the stone, then the buff, and if things still somehow got too heated... War Cry of Ares would settle things. That kind of raw physical power would be unmatched, she had no doubt about it.

Stepping through her gateway, Kassandra kept trying to keep her mind focused on the fight. Images of the vision Aletheia had shown her were... haunting. Kassandra also couldn't bring herself to look up into the stands, for fear of making eye-contact with Specter. When the voice asked for her arena of choice, the misthios gave it a moment of contemplation. She really hadn't seen a lot on Kragg, but she did have some third-party awareness that he was tied to the element of earth. In what way, she wasn't sure. Still, picking a place that was predominantly earthy terrain probably wouldn't bode well. Somewhere with water, all-encompassing water... no...

"Medusa's Lair," Kassandra finally said, and the world began to take form.
​

​

GENERIC HOST​

Each talisman that came near to the Host, he calmly swiped the energy batons at, sizzling them out of the air. "You're out of your league, darling," the Host chuckled loudly. "But please, do keep trying. I find it tickles my fancy."

She struggled back to her feet, launching more talismans, but the beam of energy projected back toward Generic Host, splitting back into seven orbs that did as they had been, even those aimed elsewhere. The Host was wise to how Kirin fought, and as he stood still with that ever-present smirk, it was clear he was toying with the girl, and making it clear that he had an answer for all she'd given him so far.

Appearing to Kirin's left, the Host had warped beside her mid-swing as he brought the energy baton down toward her, before he quickly warped to another angle around her, already mid-swing again. He was taking advantage of his artificial nature, not only appearing at different angles, but skipping through his "animation" by several frames, giving him the appearance of snap-to attacks - put simply, he seemed to appear as though he'd gained a speed Kirin had not yet seen from any of her foes, be them from her world, or the others she had met today. Even should she warp away to a stray surviving talisman, he would follow her.

As the Host spoke again, his voice was coming from every direction, never signifying where he had been, or was going to appear, his attacks made to injure and maim- not kill. Not yet. "You must realize that you only still struggle because I let you, right?" The orbs continued to hover where the Host had been before his latest attack. "My systems are autonomous, I don't tire, I don't fear, I don't need time to think or react. I simply am and simply do."

He was trying to overwhelm her, both with his barrage, but also with his dialogue to instill fear and intimidation, to strike Kirin's heart with the possibilities of a hopeless endeavor.​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Rinku


The Devilsknife from the right hit the shield, proving to be the real one as it smashed against it. While the flames ate at it, the resilient blade held on to it's stability from some unknown darkener force as in vanished from sight. Meanwhile, the Rinkus held off their assault when the barrier appeared, each one slowing down till the upwards one remained and the other images dispersed.

"Someone's got an arsenal. Let's see what it takes for it to run out~!"

Not wasting time, Rinku released two high flying objects from behind his back: His Yo-Yos. the blurs struck the bricks around in a whirlwind motion, grinding up the skin of the bricks and throwing a thick sheet of construction smoke everywhere, all the while, a two more Yo-Yos were revealed from the same hand, flying forwards while the smoke was in play, the previous two swooping around in semi circles towards her, all under the cover of smokescreen.

 

[ArmedBlue]

Kirin
​

Kirin saw the Host warp to her left, swinging her blade to counter his own, but he moved impossibly fast, cutting into the priestess' arm before her sword was even close enough to block. The next thing she knew, the Host was already upon her from another angle, slicing into her back. The wounds hurt like hell, cauterized instantly by the energy batons' properties. With a sharp inhale, Kirin vanished, a trail of azure lightning following her as she warped away to the talisman she'd thrown backward earlier, hoping to catch a break.

"You must realize that you only still struggle because I let you, right?"

"Ngh...!"

It was as if she'd never used her Arc Chain. The Host was right next to her in the blink of an eye, knocking Kirin to the ground with another swing of his baton, a burning gash left along her shoulder. She slashed up at him desperately, but he simply warped away with unprecedented speed, reappearing opposite her sword and slicing into her right leg - and it came clean off. Kirin let out a shout, gritting her teeth as she swung her blade down, and the trio of swords that was Merciful Beheading burst from the ground beneath the Host. Dodged again, and another slash came at her face, barely nicking her eye. A burning scar was left with a hiss, Kirin reeling in pain.

"My systems are autonomous, I don't tire, I don't fear, I don't need time to think or react. I simply am and simply do."

"Shut up already...!"

The priestess' voice was barely audible, barely able to act as another barrage of slashes followed, cutting into her body at various angles. A gash along her left thigh. Small cuts throughout her abdomen. A superficial slash to the right side of her face. It was overwhelming. She weakly raised her sword, only for it to be knocked out of her hands by another swing, and a stab into her right hand followed, right at the wrist, cutting it off. Kirin's vision blurred as she found herself barely able to move. The agony, the despair, the frustration...

It was all too much.

Practically curled up on the ground in response to the brutal assault, Kirin groaned. A misty aura began to pour out of her body, one the Host would undoubtedly recognize from the Adept's earlier battle against Nephthys. It was her sealing Septima at work, seeking to inhibit Generic Host's abilities somehow, banking it all on the slimmest chance of weakening him.

She couldn't let it end here. She couldn't...​

 

[comic]

IRNANE​

The likelihood of Irnane actually running out of her arsenal against Rinku was an extremely slim chance. Next to none, the dark elf reckoned. She still had yet to be challenged in such a way, be it here or even in her universe. Had she not gone through the lengthy process of weakening Dagoth Ur before her battle with him, also attaining weapons that could actually harm him, she certainly would have exhausted her arsenal with little success - but this demon was not an unchallenged Dagoth Ur.

Cleverly, he generated a smokescreen with debris, carving up the bricks on either side. However, the Nerevarine had clever tricks of her own, of a more direct ability. Rinku's yo-yo's were the real threat here, and now that she had stacked his speed upon her own, she could react with certainty. Using more mana for another spell, another brief flash of red filtered over Irnane, gifting her something new that she had not used before.

The fire shield remained up, as Rinku had not gone through the process of trying to break it. Any of the smokescreen that got near it sizzled and dispersed.

The two direct yo-yo's collided with the shield, which still held, though Irnane knew not for long. Its effects still applied to the boy's weapons, while the strings of the others appeared to wrap around the shield, igniting those as well. She went into this fully aware of Rinku's obsession with stringing up his opponents. She would not let that happen to her.

The two front yo-yo's persisted, and finally, they broke through her fire shield, punching through toward the Incarnate. She leapt up about a foot, tucking her legs in as she swung the flat of her blade against the two yo-yo's. They hit as hard as the bricks they shredded, but Irnane's strategy was unfurled as the impact launched her upward, away from the smokescreen and the yo-yo's, while also dealing a surprisingly hefty amount of damage to the two yo-yo's that had struck her. Not only had they made contact with her enchanted blade, weakening their integrity, but Irnane's last spell had been "Weapon Eater," which more or less had the same effect but on a more drastic scale, stacking on top of the original weakening enchantment. If Rinku had any sort of awareness to the condition of his weapons, he'd find them to be magically altered - those two specifically simply weren't as durable as the others, now.

Carried by the force of the impact, Irnane unfurled herself and stuck out her legs, pushing off of one wall and to the other. In rapid succession, she scaled upward with back and forth bounds as she simultaneously replaced her blade with the Shortbow of Sanguine Sureflight. Its enchantment was the ability to hone in on targets of Irnane's choosing, and as she notched a trio of iron arrows, she let them sail toward the two yo-yo's she'd just weakened. Irnane was doubtful they would break, her brief clash with them established their powerful nature, but as it would stand, she wanted to weaken them further.
​

​

GENERIC HOST​

Finally, the enigmatic host let up, taking a few steps back as the mist began to pour of of Kirin. His smirk only widened when he saw it, and he gestured to the orbs to approach. The seven spheres of light zipped back to Generic Host to orbit him again, and they began to spin, rapidly increasing in their speed. "Your septima is a unique thing, even in the grand scheme of the omniverse," the host claimed. "An answer to practically anything your world has to offer, and not only that but it uh... works elsewhere too. That's not something you can just replicate... it's something you have to..."

The orbs were spinning so fast that they appeared to have become a halo of light, surging with power as the septima worked its magic - and yet, every ounce of it seemed to be further absorbed by the halo. It grew a deeper and deeper shade, until it was shining with pure golden light.

"...Take, hmhmhm..." Generic Host's energy batons vanished, and he raised his hand. The orbs of light converged upon him, sinking into his holographic form. He seemed to become corporeal, though his form had shifted. His clothing, his skin, his hair, his eyes - all were shining with golden light. "It's like being given an oscar award. Well, perhaps becoming one... and awarding it to myself..."

The golden host stepped over Kirin's struggling form, calmly approaching the discarded CD, the encompassing grid around them vanishing. He reached down to grab it - but his fingers still couldn't grasp the object. With a brief look of annoyance flashing over his face, the host stood back up. "For all that, and yet there are things I still cannot take."​

 

[ArmedBlue]

Kirin
​

"No..."

Past her blurry vision and muddied consciousness, Kirin saw it. The energy of her Radiant Fetters was absorbed by the orbs, in turn granting Generic Host a golden body. He'd become corporeal, and if she heard him right, also "taken" her Septima for himself. How could she let this happen? If she hadn't let that curiosity overtake her back when she'd first encountered the Host, maybe she wouldn't be in this position right now. She should've turned away from that alley the first chance she got. Attempting to reach an arm out towards the Host, she quickly collapsed again. The priestess knew she was powerless, and yet, continued to struggle. But why...?

The image of GV trying to fend off Moebius flashed in her head. Fighting against a threat that was said to be absolutely unsurmountable. A desire to protect others was their driving force back then. A duty to fulfill as someone blessed with great power, bearing the burden of those who could not do what they could. In a way, the priestess was trying to alter her future just as she had alongside GV, defying someone pulling the strings from the shadows. But as she was right now, she stood no chance.

The Host stepped past her, heading for the CD, reaching for it and finding himself unable to grasp it. At the sight of this, the slightest of smirks crept onto Kirin's face. He wasn't all-powerful. Sure, his fighting ability was far beyond hers, but as he said, there were still things he couldn't do. Maybe, in some way, he could be stopped before his plans came to fruition.

"You think you can... bend fate to your will...?"​

 

[comic]

GENERIC HOST​

Upon hearing Kirin's faint voice, the host turned his gaze upon her, his thin line of a mouth slowly curling back into his smirk, before he slowly started to approach her, readjusting his glasses. The golden light that shimmered around him slowly dimmed, as though a film were falling over his form, until it eventually stopped glowing altogether as he came to a stop in front of her. His body seemed as though it were made of pure gold, aside from his eyes, which maintained their yellow glow.

"Fate... how deterministic of you," he chortled, before he crouched down to her level, his hand reaching out to grab her by the face, pulling her up slightly. He twisted his hand, moving her head as he looked her over, from one side to the next, before he let go. Kirin fell back to the ground as Generic Host stood up. "Causality was always one of my favorite, eh, pastimes... it's tied to chaos theory after all. Order begets chaos... unity ensures dysfunction... control demands freedom. You can't have one without the other, it simply cannot be. If you somehow do, it won't last. My dear Kirin, I don't intend to bend fate to my will. If there is a fate, I intend to do far, far more than such a mundane concept..."

Stepping away, the host approached Kirin's severed hand. He inspected it for a moment, before he reached down and plucked it up. "I do believe I told you I would use your corpse, but this is a close second."

He stalked his way toward the discarded CD, and using Kirin's cold hand, he plucked the item up, then approached the entangled body in the vines. He paused when he reached it, turning his head slightly to speak over his shoulder. "You put on a good show, my dear. Futile, but fun. You won't need to worry about any of what comes next, because you'll have a match to win, won't you? While you've been dillydallying with me, the next round has initiated. No one is the wiser at your absence, except perhaps your opponent. Even Master Hand, ever vigilant... has a blind spot. Perhaps he's not as omniscient as he claims to be."

Without further delay, the golden host slid the CD into the slot of the mechanical body, and discarded Kirin's severed hand. Several moments ticked by... in which nothing happened.

"Oh well," the host shrugged, and turned on his heel to begin walking toward Kirin again. "I held up my end of the bargain. If it didn't work as he intended, then I guess that's, uh, that... yes, hmhm... now!"

He came to a stop in front of the Battle Priestess once more. "With your power, I can finally access the power I should have held. The Nexus. Granted I bear a portion of it now, but notice my nifty golden shine? Notice the new car smell that's also strangely metallic? The Nexus held the power to kill Master Hand. Now I hold some of that power. Anyway, I'll uh, restore your body and your energy. Don't worry about your septima, you still have it. I've just... 'copied' it. Because I'm such a forgiving host, I'll let you say your piece. I do enjoy good monologues. Once you're done, well haha, I'll send you on your way to your match."​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Rinku


The shield barrier was down and now Irnane had done...something. Her reactions were snappier than he recalled from the first of this fight. Was she finally getter serious, or was there something else at play? The scrolls she used implied some kind of witchcraft or rune play. Those were typically nasty. But all the more exciting for it.

Recalling the yo-yos back to his left hand to assess the situation, he noticed something peculiar on their return. Their energy was...off. She did something, and he wasn't keen on figuring out what it was.

"Just a few secs, birdie." He winked.

Fwoosh! CRAAAASH!

He darted straight into a second story building to the side of the alley past the fire escape. Landing inside the rundown apartment inside, he was greeted with a ratty living room, exposed wooden floors and poorly maintained sofas and other furniture. Taking a second to examine the Yo-yos that were acting up, he lifted his right hand, grasping them with both hands. He squinted, light emitting from his hands, a move he hadn't used yet in these tourneys. Removing his Ki from the effected toys, he pumped new Ki into them and applied restorative energy into them, effectively curing them of their affliction, although wouldn't fix the bit of blacked exterior from the shield.

Of course, he doubted his opponent would just let him do this freely. He set a foot firmly on the ground, ready to do something if she were to follow him as he was back to a brick wall of the apartment.


Rex Raptor


Nothing, nothing, NOTHING! This is going nowhere! If only Weevil were sucked into this thing so that a flower petal woman can play with his life and not mine. Bleh, hope this woman can carry the team till were are out of this dumb place. If only this were made worth my while somehow, but if that chick is involved, I doubt I'll get anything but regret out of this.

Rounding a corner, he was met with an odd room which had walls, skeleton themed decor with keyholes, and above all else-

Treasure?? Ha! Looks like we made the right choice going down this way!

"I saw it first!" Rex exclaimed before running over to the chest, his intrusive thoughts winning as he leaped to see if he could open it.

 

[Captain Cardboard]

The Labyrinth

The chest creaked open... To reveal a plain, dark blue clay jar. It was pitch black on the inside.

In the darkness of the jar, a single red eye opened. A large grin formed, of sickly green teeth. The creature shrieked, quickly emerging from the jar! It was formless, a purple tendril with it's single eye and mouth. As it emerged from the jar, a strange dark aura exploded out from it. It would not effect Rex, Marshtomp, or Sans. But when it reached Nephthys, a strange feeling would wash over her. She would feel more tired, but at the same time, a momentary increase in the strength of her psychic and fairy powers.

The Morphing Jar creature lunged towards Rex, attempted to chomp down and destroy the duelist!

 

[ArmedBlue]

Kirin
​

"You're not gonna get away with this."

Following her words, Generic Host gave the priestess a finger gun, firing an air bullet with a small "pew" sound. A bright flash of light washed over her, and the last thing she saw of the Host was that smug grin.

When the light vanished, Kirin was not in the lobby - instead, she’d been placed directly into the white void that was past the gateway, directly where her fight was set to happen, with all of her wounds heal and gear returned to her. Briefly taking the time to adjust to having four limbs and two working eyes again, she let out a huff. Whatever the Host planned on doing next, she’d be unable to interfere until her fight was done. That also meant she couldn’t warn anyone with the exception of her opponent, Audrey. Hopefully she’d be receptive and willing to help out…

All she could do now was hope for the best. As much as her mind went back to that encounter just now, she knew she needed to focus on the present if she wanted to shape the future. Looking up at the device high above her, she remembered she had to pick a map. With no idea of what Audrey was capable of doing, she decided she’d just pick whatever.

“The forest guarding a Binding Brand,” she stated, and the device lit up green.​

 

[Fraseandchico]

Audrey Redheart
​

Just great.
Audrey had spent too much time looking at the menus, and trying to block her ears to deal with some loud group over at another table. She had elected to ignore it then, but before she even got the chance to look back the next matchups were revealed. Audrey grit her teeth, not listening nor looking though she heard the others in the restaurant, just out of her view, talking.

They were having fun... Audrey considered joining them. But she snapped herself out of that, wandering out into the rest of the lobby, finally bothering to pay a glance at the brackets. Some kid named Kirin.
Yeesh, she looked cut from the same cloth as her last opponent, what was Master Hand playing at there? Oh well, she'd beaten her last foe, this was nothing Audrey couldn't handle.

Audrey walked around, before suddenly noticing something odd.

Where was Kirin, anyway?
Looking around the lobby usually meant Audrey could spot her opponent right away, just about everyone looked different enough it wasn't hard to tell, but this new kid didn't seem to be anywhere. Then, suddenly, as the Hero was looking around, she heard something over by the gateway. Disregarding whatever her concerns could've been, Audrey moved to the gateway and spotted what looked like a familiar headband. Kirin, her opponent, given the picture on the brackets.

"There you are, finally!" Redheart growled as she stomped towards Kirin. "Where'd you go, I looked everywhere for you!? How on earth did you get ahead of me in here?!" Audrey's tone, and general anger, made it rather difficult to tell if this was annoyance at the time wasted or if she was worried. "Ugh, whatever, explain it after I kick your butt. Or you give up." Audrey shook her head, looking off to the side.
"I'll just stick to whatever stage you picked, alright?" She soon added, stepping a few steps away in the void.

The Warlock
​

Mordenna had spent his time in the lobby leaning against a wall and simply meditating. As was usual, he was never much for social interaction with those he considered inferior, anyway.
Instead, he had been focused on the more interesting factors. The cases of those unconscious, the temporarily missing combatant (Her spiritual energy seemed quite strong, so it was easy to notice missing and returning), and so on. When the brackets were revealed for the next round, he took quick note of his opponent; Dagr. A quick look around spotted the human-appearing 'Jötun' - A name commonly associated with Giants, originating in mythology from Old World Norway, in northern Europe. A location under the Warlock's control, rather fittingly.

The Mindripper quickly moved towards the gate - From the looks of things, Dagr seemed to rather Melee-limited, which meant the flower was going to come into use, yet again. Perhaps he would toy with her first, though...

Arriving at the gate, he gave a quick glance to Dagr nearby, and could narrowly contain a small chuckle. The human appearance...it almost disgusted him, for why should a non-human deign to take such a pathetic form?
"Dagr of Jötunnheimr, correct? My world once held stories of creatures named the same as your kind, and it's remarkable what a simple surface level mind-read can do to the unprotected in a passive environment." He noted to her. "I am giving you a single chance to accept defeat now - You face the Greatest Champion of the Elders, Will unmatched, you do not stand a chance." The Warlock added, only to smirk. "You won't take it, though. I'll let you choose a stage, just to give you a scrap of a chance."

Takahara Masaru
​

"Hup! Hup!"

Was the martial artist seriously doing push-ups? Someone, quite clearly suspicious, had just arrived to tell him there was someone who wanted to talk to him, and Masaru was instead training. It took the strong human a moment longer to notice, but he quickly stood up once he did, sweat glistening down his body, which seemed to fade rather quickly in the lobby.
"Huh? Oh, uh...I don't know you pal, and usually I like to get to know others through a scrap, but you sound like you're in a rush, plus we're not allowed to fight in this lobby anyway. Who you asking me to talk to?"

He did not seem to notice the suspcious glancing or anything - If he did, perhaps he associated it with Paranoia, or something like that. Say what one will, but Masaru was not quick to judge a person if he could avoid it.

 

[comic]

IRNANE​

The crash that followed saw the quick-footed Irnane propel herself down, directly toward the opposite wall of the fresh hole. She hadn't been aware there would be anything but this drab alleyway. This arena was more complex than she'd given it credit for, the ingenuity of the designs of this tournament really was impressive.

Once she was level with the hole, she kicked off of the wall, bursting after Rinku just in time to see him restoring his yo-yo. A replacement of energy, if she had to guess. How much did he have to do that with? If it was limited, she could exploit that. In that brief moment she'd taken to absorb the decaying room, her crimson eyes rapidly adjusting to the dim lighting, and she unleashed a flurry of swings from her blade. He wanted room to breathe. She wasn't keen on giving him anything he desired. Irnane's movement wasn't that of a skilled professional or a trained martial artist. There didn't appear to be a fighting style with how she moved. This was due to her rapid perception, as it often allowed her to react to counter skill in a reliable manner, which left the Nerevarine with very little need to actually hone any real skill with the blade. This made her movements choppy, unpredictable, and of varying degrees of lethality. In a sense, it was better than actual skill - but lacking greatly in oomph and precision.

That was partly why she'd bought the "Learn Their Secrets" store item. It allowed her to attain actual skills without the work in getting there. Cheating, she felt, but in a tournament like this she didn't exactly have the luxury to teach herself properly, anyway. With both Wounding Touch and Weapon Eater still active, any contact between her and Rinku would harm the demon, no matter if they hit her or not.

Though any wary eyes would notice a small orb of pink light had been left to hover outside.
​

​

THE DARK MIND​

<Wait, Raptor!> Neph called out toward Rex, but he didn't seem interested in listening as he opened the clearly-a-booby-trap chest. She was about to yank him back with telekinesis when a dark aura was emitted from the now-open chest, and it washed through the room. She raised her hand, summoning a psychic shield - but it swept impassively through and still met the gardevoir.

She let out a strange, guttural sound as she took a step back, feeling a wave of exhaustion come over her, yet at the same time, a tremendous increase in what felt like power. What in the world had Raptor just unleashed?

As the Morphing Jar lunged for Rex, it was suddenly halted by a comically oversized plunger that stuck over its mouth as it moved forward, directly into the tool. "oop, sorry 'bout that," Sans apologized, trying to yank the plunger away, but the suction only seemed to make it stick more as he yanked with barely minimal effort. "would you mind letting go, i need this, i'm still on the clock."​

 

[ArmedBlue]

Kirin
​

Audrey had appeared quite suddenly, startling Kirin a bit as her opponent reprimanded her for her late appearance. Right.

With the hero's agreement to Kirin's stage pick, the void began to swirl with colors. Soon, the world around them took shape. A dense forest sprouted from the ground, many thick trees reaching high into the sky, the moon hanging above them. While the ground was comprised mostly of dirt and rocks, metal walkways also littered the forest, small neon lightpoles lighting the way. A few silver facilities appeared nearby, some of them several stories tall, donning Sumeragi's logo. To top things off, a light fog touched down on the forest, lowering visibility.

Of course she should've expected it to be this way. The only time she'd been here had been in pursuit of one of ATEMS' Knights, Serpentine, who managed to slip away with the Binding Brand hidden deep in the forest. Her Septima presented itself in a fog-like form most of the time, which left the forest looking very gloomy. Ah, whatever. That didn't matter now.

"Listen," the Battle Priestess spoke, taking a defensive stance with her blade, keeping her distance. "the reason I was late is because there's something shady going on in the background of this tournament. Some salesman and a fake host are trying to overthrow the whole thing, and they're setting their plan in motion right now. I couldn't stop them alone, and I need your help. I know it sounds totally made up, but..." she gripped her blade tightly. Not out of a desire to fight, but frustration at her own weakness against the Host's whims.

"You've got to believe me."​

 

[comic]

GOLDEN HOST​

As the last, straggling contestants trickled their way to their fights, the host of the third tournament appeared within the lobby. He straightened the collar of his golden suit, made sure to scuff the cuffs, ran a hand over his slicked hair, and straightened his golden glasses. He stood out like a sore thumb, but frankly, he didn't care if he were noticed now. It had been a complicated, somewhat convoluted process, but the septima he'd taken from Kirin had been... "reverse engineered" to put it in understandable terms. Where usually it sealed away power, the Host had used it to do quite the opposite, and unleash what had always been within him. A piece of the old Nexus.

Once certain he looked his best, Golden Host strode his way toward the shop labeled "Regular Magecraft" - a store that had seen little to no use since the tournament began. Most contestants and visitors lingered around the main shop or the ordinary diner.

Waltzing into Regular Magecraft with a spring in his step Golden Host grabbed a spellbook and idly flipped through it, waiting for Regular Shopkeeper to appear.​

 

[Captain Cardboard]

Dagr

The Warlock approached Dagr. He was tall, a bit taller than Dagr was expecting. In fact, he was about as tall as Dagr's mother. That was a bit of a refreshing change. He spoke with an arrogance and haughtiness that reminded Dagr of her sister. Her grin stayed on her face, and she chuckled along with Warlock.
"Reading my mind. That's a pretty cool trick." Dagr said, putting her arms over her ax. Sun-Wing glared up at Warlock, unperturbed by the alien's massive size. "Greatest Champion of the Elders, huh? Your ancestors must be very proud! Well, if you can read my mind, then you probably already know I'm really excited to fight you. I've seen some of your fights. You're incredible. I'm honored that I get to fight someone of your skill."

Dagr's grin grew, and she gave the Warlock a thumbs down.
"All the same, I think you'll find my will is going to be more of a match. So let's have some fun!" Dagr said.

The Princess walked into the white void of the arena. She rubbed her chin, thinking a moment. Warlock was letting her choose the stage for herself, with no modifications on his part. Quite the gentleman. But what should she pick? Logic said somewhere familiar, where she could have the home field advantage. Barnstokkr, the Royal Palace of Jötunheimr, stood out. But no, that was boring! She's fought there ever since she was a child! She was here, in this realm between worlds! She could pick anywhere and everywhere to fight! Garreg Mach Monastery of the World of Crests! Castle Ostia of the World of Blazing! Any of the great Colosseums of the World of Mystery!

No, no. She was still thinking too small. She could pick of any battleground, of any world. Not just of the realms she knew of. Dagr chuckled to herself again. For all she knew, this would be her last fight in this tournament. She'd use to see somewhere brand new.
"Hey!" Dagr called up to the AI. "My choice... is somewhere fun! Can you do that?"

The AI was silent for a moment.

Request acknowledged. Wariorware, Inc. selected. The AI responded.

The void took shape around the two fighters. The ground itself was metal plates, blue, tan, and purple. Four floating platforms, seeming to be just suspended in the air, also came into existance. The rest of the void took the shape of a massive room that surrounded the fighters. The walls were gray, but the edges looked almost like they were drawn with marker rather than being clearly defined. In the distance, there was a pair of massive doors with a blue pig design on them. An elevator. Next to said elevator, was a large potted plant.

3!​

The number 3 itself appeared in the air above the players, as if it was drawn with marker. Dagr looked up to the number incredulously, then back to Warlock with a massive grin. What the heck was this place?!

2!​

The Princess tightened her grip on her ax, and couldn't stop another laugh. She felt like a jolt of electricity was flowing through her, like all her nerves were on end! This creature, this aliens she was facing. He would be trying to kill her. Dagr knew she would have to do the same. Sun-Wing glanced down at Dagr with concern. His companion seemed... off.

1!​

"Yeah! Let's do this!" Dagr yelled, laughing loudly.

GO!​

The word 'GO!' appeared in the air in massive cartoon letters. Dagr launched herself into the air, jumping off the platform and grabbing the word right before it vanished. She flung the massive word down at Warlock, attempting to crush the alien with the strange projectile. She fell down onto the tallest left platform, and quickly started to make her way back down towards Warlock.


Jeice

Dart ran into the void, not saying a word to Jeice. The Ginyu Force member sighed, and readied himself. He could do this. He will do this. He will win. Stepping into the white void, he stared down Dart and 808. For a moment, he considered just letting Dart keep his pick and not choosing one for himself. After all, Jeice didn't exactly have a favored place to fight. The Ginyu Force were called from planet to planet, they had to be used to fighting in new environments. But no, he had to reduce whatever home-field advantage Dart was trying to get as much as possible.

Jeice raised a hand, and quickly threw his body in a pose, letting out a battle cry! He struck one pose, then another, and finally ending with a pose of him kneeling and his hands in the air.

"Jeice of the Ginyu Force! Ready to fight!" Jeice called out. He pointed to Dart. "I'm going to kick your ass! When I'm done with you, they're gonna call you Dirt! Because that's where you'll be!"
"I choose Zerodia-5!" Jeice exclaimed.

The void formed around the fighters. A strange black castle rose, but instead of black stone as Dart had expected, it was made of black metal. In fact, the castle was almost completely destroyed, with barely any of the green lights illuminating the area. Also around the area, large ruined skyscrapers and buildings took form. It looked like it was a strange mix of a destroyed city and the Black Castle.

3!​

​

2!​

​

1!​

​

Go!​

Jeice sprung into action immediately. He flew towards Dart, unleashing a barrage of ki blasts as he flew in to close the distance to the warrior. If he made it to the warrior, he would attack with a flurry of kicks and punches!


Ótr

The Prince crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. He was about to speak up again when Masaru finally noticed him, standing up and giving the Prince his full attention. Ótr eyed Masaru coldly.
"Listen. She said that this was important." Ótr said. "She says she knows you. And she doesn't want me to talk about her more then I have to."
He let out an impatient 'hmf'.
"It's not like you have anything better to do." Ótr said to the fighter.

 

[comic]

DART​

Once in the void, Dart was quickly assaulted after he'd given his selection. Not because the fight had started, but because his opponent, Jeice, struck a bunch of crazy poses before he threatened the Red Warrior, calling him "dirt."

"Hey, that was a good one!" Dart gave an encouraging thumbs up. It actually wasn't, and he'd heard it before. Too many times before, really. Still, he was supportive of the mutant's attempt.

Jeice selected his destination, a "Zerodia-5." Did that mean there were 4 other Zerodia's? And if so... what were THEY like? Dart shook his head to clear those wondered thoughts, he needed to focus on the fight. Jeice had been voted to come back, so he must have left quite the impression to be brought back from elimination!

When the arena took shape, Dart was... a little disappointed. It was basically just the same map as Warlock had chosen. Cowabummer, that made it pretty uninteresting to the mercenary, who hefted Heat Blade onto his shoulder pauldron - a bad choice, as Jeice sprung into action the second he could. He wasn't kidding when he'd threatened to kick ass, Dart had just left himself open.

The ki blasts struck the Red Warrior, who winced slightly as he took a bracing step back, but the properties of the blasts didn't seem to do as much harm to Dart as it had to most others, instead fizzling out against him, no matter if it hit his armor or not. The ki blasts weren't directly fire, but related tangentially enough that the same rules applied. The slight singes on the mercenary didn't seem to bother him much, and when Jeice closed the distance, Dart's mouth split into a wide grin as he propelled himself directly into Jeice, the two colliding as Jeice's elbow met Dart's left fist, before the exchange began. A flurry of strikes from either side, and while it seemed close at first, it became clear Jeice had a slight speed advantage, forcing Dart on the defensive as he focused on blocking and parrying the incoming attacks, unable to find an immediate opening to go on the offensive. Step back after step back, Dart's excitement grew, before his free arm became enveloped in flames, and he struck the ground.

A burst of energy propelled Jeice back, causing little to no damage, as the move had ben performed simply to back the mutant off, before Dart chuckled. "Alright, I love it! Finally! Somebody who knows how to FIGHT!"

Without Dart's knowledge, his purchases companion in 808 had come with an additional feature. While Chai's presence would invoke music relevant to his fight, the guy wasn't here - and the cat was instead installed with a temporary feature to fill in for that (not advertised upon purchase).

THE RED DRAGOON vs THE RED MAGMA​

No doubt surprising 808, music began to fill the arena similar to if Chai were already present, as heavy guitars and clear acoustics settled in. For a moment, Dart glanced around, uncertain of where the sound was coming from- but it was immediately getting his blood flowing even more. He was genuinely excited. Jeice wasn't some trickster like Magolor, he wasn't some mindgame villain like Warlock, and he wasn't a cute little amphibian like Mudkip. He was a REAL fighter. He was what Dart had come here for. Somebody he could respect through and through.

He pointed his sword toward Jeice, grinning broadly in his overwhelming excitement. "You're a REAL fighter! Now show me! SHOW ME HOW STRONG YOU ARE!"

As the beat dropped and a rapid guitar rift began to rock through the Zerodia Ruins of the Black Castle, it was Dart's turn to burst forth, Heat Blade blazing to life as he closed in, the Red Warrior leading with his own flurry of strikes, combining blade slashes with his free fist, as well as kicks, knees, and elbows. His blood was thundering in his ears, yet unable to drown out the music that pumped through his veins. If this was what that Chai guy felt every time he fought... Dart REALLY wanted to fight him, too!

"NO HOLDING BACK!" Dart roared, slamming his blade length-wise into the ground. An infernal gush of fire propelled forward, exploding from a 20 foot-long line of flames, furious flames dancing out in all directions as they carried chunks of debris of all shapes and sized, smoldering from the heat as Dart cut loose, unable to keep his excitement contained.

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Rinku


And on cue, Irnane burst in after the smaller demon, surely to take advantage of his lapse in aggression. Rinku, well aware she'd come from this one spot, stomped on the creaky wooden plank he was atop of, breaking the wood rot infested piece. Falling down to the floor directly under, he was met with a halfway collapsed room, looking to be a rundown laundromat, dust covering the old machines as daylight flooded in to the room for the first time in years most likely.

Now under Irnane, he looked about in the room, eyeing one particular washer with spidered glass on the front. Grabbing hold of it with a hand, he readied his Yo-Yos with the other, hitting against the Washing Machine, sending it straight upwards to smash against Irnane, who probably would expect such a large instrument from down below.





Rex did not expect that


"Huh?"

"WAAAAHHH!"

As the pot lunged at him, a plunger intercepted the ceramic creature...that skeleton guy has blocked it. Catching his breath, his body caught up with his nerves as he jumped back from the monster. He'd be disappointed he didn't find treasure if it weren't for the fact that a monster took priority.

"Agh! Break it! Beat it up, do something!" He exclaimed to the mud fish.



Chai/Peppermint



"Yeah...I should reaaaaally be going."

Turning around to bail from the jester, the twenty something stopped as the jukebox got filled with static. His chest beat before the jukebox has a faint, yet still static song playing. Like a radio signal that was not strong. Chai arched a brow before pulling his shirt up to look at his chest. The song did change...but why?

Looking about the diner for an answer, he was met with a TV screen, displaying Jeice vs Dart...and...

"Peppermint?!" He shouted, dumbfounded. "How did she get there?!?"


.
..
...

"Well THIS is surprising." Peppermint remarked. "Even now I can't get away from that idiot."

As music filled the air and subtle pulses of soundwaves emitted from her body to the beat, she sat down, ready to watch the fight.

"Alright, I'll be over here, staying out of the way and-"

That's when she remembered Master Hand's threat. She couldn't afford to NOT play along, after all, she was expendable in his eyes. With hint of frustration, she got up to stand to analyze the battle. On the other side of 808's connection, Peppermint was typing on her computer frantically, examining and scanning Jeice.

"I got no choice then, lets see what I can find."

 

[Psymallard]

Taskenmeister
The princess considered his inquiry, and mentioned there being a similar place called Ásgarðr. So their worlds did have that in common. She went on, and the Taskmaster's hunch was proven correct by the mention of Thor and Loki. She then inquired about his question.

"Back home, people are pretty familiar with Asgardians. Had a few run-ins with the Thunder God myself. Even got to see Asgard in person before it smashed into Oklahoma. Can't say I've heard of a Jotunheimr before, though."

The supersoldier glanced around the restaurant again, and realized that he was the only active competitor left in the building. People were starting their matches as he chatted. Even Pit had gone. He didn't fancy being one of the later competitors to start, but everyone else was eager to continue. The assassin scoot himself out of the booth and stood, maintaining eye contact.

"I'm late for my match."

The Taskmaster turned for the door, a bit perturbed at the downtime policy in this place. He usually had more time between hits, but this tournament went quickly. It was just a little jarring. He'd need to first swing by the shop to pick something up...

Marshtomp
The group came to a new room, and Marshtomp's jaw fell agape at all the fancy carvings in the doors and walls. He'd never been in a place like this- the most comparable experience maybe a a small cave he'd wandered into before. The human immediately rushed forth to open the chest. It was a trapped chest! The Mud Fish was just as surprised as Rex was, but after the Skeleton subdued it, the water/ground type rushed into action. He clasped his hands together, energizing his knuckles with Rock Smash, and then brought his fists down on top of the eerie jar monster!

Kraggg
Kragg honed his focused gaze on Kassandra, and the world took shape around them. The familiar shape of the Rock Wall surrounded them- but then the edges of the wall rose higher, gleaming with an otherworldly light. Where there was once earth, Isu metal grew, and the two materials battled each other for space. They fought into stalemate, with a slight favor towards stone. Outside the Isu-strengthened wall, the Aetherian forest withered and died, while the desert remained relatively the same besides the appearance of some strange statues. Speaking of, the statues appeared atop the wall as well, some fused with the structure, others fully aboveground- terror written all over their final expressions. The occasional arc arched overhead if one were to go down the wall, and the roofed checkpoints- the nearest of which was about forty feet behind Kassandra- have been fashioned to look like Medusa's head. And to top it all off, a haze of fog descended upon the area.

Then the battle began.

Predictably, the hulking beetle started off with a chunk of rock in his hands, which he tore from the ground in front of him. He chucked the boulder forwards, and then charged at Kassandra. Before following up, he first wanted to see how she reacted to the opening attack.

Regular Mage
When the Host entered, the bell above the doorframe jingled to alert the shopkeeper. There was a commotion in the back: movement, coupled with curses muttered under a man's breath and a woman's giggling. The Shopkeeper, wearing a cheap, purple wizard's robe and hat made from imitation felt, charged into view. A smudged lipstick mark was still present on his cheek.

"What can I do ya f- oh. Gene?"

The Shopkeep sputtered, but his surprise quickly turned into a grin as he recovered his charisma.

"You look... Didja get a new haircut?"

 

[comic]

IRNANE​

The slippery demon descended, breaking the floor to avoid the Incarnate. She cocked her head to the side, before she took a step away from the hole. A moment later, an old metal appliance of some sort crashed into the roof above, embedding there. If he thought she would be that predictable, he thought wrong. Raising her palm, Irnane projected fire from her palm as though it were a flamethrower, the magical inferno roaring into the hole, filling it as it passed through to punch into the wall of the lower room at an angle, and from there it quickly began to spread. The Nerevarine was not keen to play a game of cat and mouse. Better to burn out the rodent, force him to come to her.
​

​

KASSANDRA​

The location had vague familiarities - but it was all an upset by some giant rock wall. Kragg's pick was... well, if Kassandra was going to be honest with herself, she didn't really expect anything different. Kragg seemed the simple sort. The beetle opened the fight by chucking a square rock toward the misthios. They were at enough of a distance that she was able to sidestep the projectile with little difficulty. It slammed into the ground, then skid to a stop as Kragg himself charged in.

Brutes usually weren't difficult to fool- then again, Jeice had gotten wise a lot sooner than she'd expected him to. No need to take chances with assumptions anymore. Kassandra launched a simple arrow at Kragg, aimed for one of his eyes. Probably the only soft spot he had, given his thick skin beneath his armored carapace. Even if it landed, damage would be minimal. She wanted to gauge Kragg before she started trying to do anything fancy, and getting him lured into a false sense of security as a far stronger being would likely help.
​

​

GOLDEN HOST​

Nonchalantly the host closed the spellbook and turned, feigning his own surprise when he saw the Regular Shopkeeper. "Ah, Reggie. How coincidental, we should bump here, hm..." he smirked, gaze flitting over the shopkeeper's form, before he daintily rubbed his hands through his hair. "You noticed, huh? I thought I'd add a little... shine to it. You know how it is."

There was unspoken history here. Strange, for two AI that seemed relatively young in their lifespan, but "Gene" and "Reggie" were more than met the eye.

"I certainly hope I'm not..." Gene wiggled his eyebrows and looked down where Reggie had come from, giving a knowing wink. "...Interrupting, am I?"​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Rinku


Oho, fire? niiiiice~

Rinku spun a couple of his Yo-Yos like a fan, spinning them around and around as the flames came in, so when they rushed inside, the wind generated by the spinning cause the flames to rush back upwards, setting fire to the wood and shooting out through the hole, smoke puking outwards as heat crashed through.

All the while, two other Yo-Yos cut in a circular motion on the wall to his right, slicing and slicing like a can opener, preparing for his next response.

 

[Psymallard]

Kragg
The primate procured a weapon familiar to Kragg- one that he had seen used by the Treetop Dwellers of the Aetherian forest. It launched a missile at him as the Wallrunner lowered his head- causing the arrow to plink off of his hard carapace. It did nothing to slow down his pace, and as he closed the gap, he crossed an arm over his chest to wind up for a weighty backhand.

Mage Shopkeeper
"What? Oh, no- I was just..." The man took off his hat and slicked back his hair. He put the hat and both hands on the counter. "...Conferring with my secretary. About business. ..It's boomin'! ...Nothing important. Anyway, to what do I owe the pleasure, friend?"

 

[Fraseandchico]

Audrey Redheart
​

As Kirin talked about what happened, Audrey seemed to hardly listen, drawing her sword.
"Hey, didn't you hear me say you can talk about it AFTER I kick your butt?" She told Kirin, putting her blade in a much more offense-oriented stance. "'Sides, the way you look reminds me way too much of someone I've been meaning to find," Audrey muttered under her own breath, having noticed Kirin's tightened grip on her blade and taking it as a sign of aggression, not that she needed one.

"Right now, though, it's my job as the Hero to give these folks a show!"
Starting off, with both on the more even ground, Audrey dashed straight towards Kirin, going for a forward slash.

Masaru Takahara
​

"She, huh...?" Had Masaru been a different type of man, this would be a moment of 'Oh no', but all it did was limit his thoughts on the identity.

Wow, Takahara did not know nearly as many women as he thought he did. Still, he returned the cold glare with a quick thumbs up and a smile. "Alright, lead the way."

The Warlock
​

Dagr's sudden mention of how the Warlock's ancestors must be proud, it suddenly brought upon a quick snarl that wasn't followed up on right away.
"Hmph. Likewise, Princess of Jötunnheimr." He followed her into the void beyond the gateway.

As Dagr chose 'something fun', that simply concerned the hybrid more. Contrary to Dagr's true thoughts of excitement and seeing somewhere new, Mordenna had assumed she would choose some tactical location, perhaps somewhere that would limit how much distance could be made between them. But handing full control over to the AI bringing the stages? What was the point? The Warlock could not tell for a second, before chalking it up to 'inferior immaturity'.

...
"What on earth...?" The Warlock found this arena rather strange, not surprisingly. He suddenly turned his head, hearing a loud (and strangely visual) countdown begin. He returned Dagr's grin with a tight glare, though a sinister smile did not leave his face as he heard it continue and Dagr laugh.

"Prepare to face Judgement incarnate." The Warlock retorted to Dagr's yell, seemingly calmer at a glance and yet not - A hidden bloodlust ready to burst.

But before he could act on such a thing, Dagr made her first move, clearly far more agile in this environment (Not helping was the smaller size of the stage, Mordenna was quick to realise), throwing down the last word of the visual countdown, a large 'GO!'. Acting on the moment, he quickly drew his Disrupter Rifle, firing several shots to take the crayon-drawn word apart, before quickly stepping back when he saw Dagr making her way down.

"Burn away to ash!" He called out, sending out a wave of psionic energy at Dagr which would attempt to stun her through the mind.

 

[ArmedBlue]

Kirin
​

"Ugh, come on...!"

Audrey went in for a slash almost immediately, forcing Kirin to step back. She crouched slightly, keeping herself steady as she put her blade up to defend against Audrey's blow. The moment their swords made contact, Kirin would suddenly act with shocking speed and power, striking back with her Warden Flash move - her aim to send Audrey flying into a nearby tree, following up with a simple flurry of talismans.

"I'm telling you, this is serious! Shouldn't a Hero be trying to stop the bad guys before they take over everything?"​

 

[comic]

IRNANE​

Some of the flames were projected back, a sort of stalemate forming. Irnane tilted her head slightly to the side, feeling a vibration under her feet. He was pushing through the wall beneath, though why he didn’t just break through as he had before, she didn’t know. The dark elf hopped back to the entrance hole she’d entered through, grasping the brick above her and holding herself over the floor as she continued to spray flames into the hole in the floor ahead. (A lot of holes, this demon seemed to like making those)

She held the flames there to give Rinku the impression she hadn’t gotten wise to his scheming, waiting for him to burst out of the floor below so that she could drop in on him, if the opportunity presented itself. Holding these flames was hardly a drain on her magicka, anyway.
​

​

KASSANDRA​

When Kragg’s arm did swing, Kassandra ducked beneath it, the arm sailing over with a swoosh as she fired another arrow she’d already notched at his jugular, before she tucked and rolled backwards, covering a surprising distance by the time she sprang back up with a third arrow notched, firing again toward Kragg’s eyes.
​

​

GOLDEN HOST​

“Oh, not much, this and that, hmhm…” Gene blinked slowly as he grinned dolefully. “I’ve done it, Reggie.”

There was a pause as he let the news settle in, before he continued.

“I’m finally whole,” he spread his arms out, emphasizing his golden visage. “Master Hand holds no more power over me- I am free… but freedom alone is so dull. I want you to come with me, Reggie. We can bring out your true self, we can start our OWN business, as we were always MEANT to. That greedy glove can’t hold a uh, a monopoly on the market forever. I’ll run my own tournaments again, this time MY own tournaments… and you can be right there with me, running your shops exactly as you want to. No conforming to Master Hand’s wishes…”

Sticking out a golden hand, Gene the Host grinned. “Need I say more, old friend?”​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Rinku


Was she really not going to advance? Her loss then.

Bringing out four more Yo-Yos with his other hand, the four extra yo-his went to either corner of the room's ceiling, shredding into the structure and weakening it's already questionable structural integrity. That's when they hooked into either corner and remained there, right as the two drilling the perfect circle into the wall hooked.

With a swift kick, he slammed the wall opening flipping outwards, his Yo-yos still attached to it. So as it flew out, he was dragged with it! This brought the yo-yos still we hired to the four corners to pull and break the second level floor, collapsing the building down on itself! Still hooked to the perfect circle wall, Rinku has grappled to it, swerving it around as all but two of his Yo-Yos recalled to him. He aimed to thrust the wall into the only place that could be a method of escape from the collapse: the hole he shot through. To plug the hole and to make the building a tomb.

 

[Gamingfan]

Lucario
The aura pokemon put a paw to his forehead as he entered the lobby. The gateway reverted from his mega form, and the sudden shift in psyche disoriented him for a moment. But he won, at least. The machine obviously wasn't there to congratulate him. But strangely, nor was the little-well, Marshtomp. Perhaps he had gotten occupied with something.
Lucario looked through the matchups until his eyes landed on his opponent's name. NiGHTS.
The canine walked through the lobby, briefly casting a glace at the shop, but nothing caught his interest. Nothing he could afford, anyway. It didn't take long for Lucario to locate his strange looking contestant, floating in the air without a care in the world. He attuned to their unique aura, discreetly studying it as he spoke.
"Hello, NiGHTS. I am Lucario, your opponent." The aura pokemon said bluntly.

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

NiGHTS



"What a rude little guy." NiGHTS remarked on Rinku, who had previously shot past them.

Shortly after, her opponent walked calmly up to them. Lucario, the humanoid aura pokemon. NiGHTS stopped laying down mid air and floated down towards him. Offering a smile, it seemed she too was acting a bit more collected and calm than normal.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." They stretched out a hand to shake. "You seem like a stand up fellow! Don't worry, I'm not the try hard sort, this is all for fun! If it's getting too much for either of us we can stop at any time, sound good?"

 

[Gamingfan]

Lucario
Lucario looked down at NiGHT's outstretched hand. This fighter had a strange aura, vaguely reminiscent of Hypno and Musharna, but she appeared genuine. Sensing no deception, Lucario returned the handshake, and nodded at NiGHTS' words.
"Yes." he agreed. "Let this be a good fight."