After three days of not knowing where Robin, Beast Boy, and Cyborg had mysteriously teleported off to, Starfire and Raven were suddenly transported as well.

"Welcome champions to the Tournament of Heroines!" A voice boomed throughout the large ballroom-like room the girls now found themselves in along with six other super heroines.

Raven glanced around at some of the familiar and not-so-familiar faces and Starfire leaned in to whisper, "Raven? I do not have a good feeling about this." Raven just grunted and turned to study their host. He was massive, twice the size of Cyborg maybe, and covered in white fur except for on his face and chest which was as roughly humanoid as the rest of his body. As peculiar as this beastly man was, what really caught Raven's eye was the large red gem hanging about his neck. It seemed familiar to her, almost like her mirror at home… Almost. Raven got the feeling that that necklace could do more than simply teleport beings into another dimension, which she realized they must be in. For one thing, the gem existed within the dimension it transported them into, unless this dimension was only a single layer, an outer shell to another, deeper level. Or maybe the gem was not really connected to any specific dimensions at all and acted more like a taxi between dimensions for those who knew their location, though that seemed unlikely. If something like that existed Raven would have read about it. So, maybe the gem was more similar to her mirror than she thought. Perhaps this dimension was just the outer shell to the dimension within the gem. She had to find out.

"I will be your host," the massive creature continued, "I am the Master of Games, and this is the Tournament of Heroines! A competition amongst the world's finest young heroines: Starfire, the Tamaranian Princess who packs a punch; Terra, the nomadic earth shaker who's as unpredictable as they come; Pantha, the South American wrestling beast; Raven, the merciless mistress of darkness; Bumblebee, the little bee with a big sting; Jinx, the troublemaking teen who's bad luck is always on her side; Kole, the diamond-hard girl with a soft heart; and lastly Argent, the masterful matter-maker from the north. All of you may compete, but there will only be one winner."

"What do we get if we win?" Bumblebee asked, stepping in front of the crowd and crossing her arms. She surveyed the room, the competition especially. All of them were strangers to her. She knew vaguely of a few of them, like the little villainess scowling off to the side, but the rest of the heroines in the room seemed okay to her, some looking tougher than others (Pantha especially), but Bee knew better than to judge too much on looks alone. She did not exactly look all that menacing herself after all.

The announcer just chuckled and stated, "I guarantee to you that when the tournament has ended there will certainly be glorious prizes. And let us not forget," he added, "That the victor will prove that she is the utmost supreme young heroine on the planet. Although, if there are any among you who would rather not participate in this tournament, you need only say so and I will send you home directly."

Raven raised an eyebrow as the gem around the ape-man's neck began to glow. She glanced over at Starfire who was floating nervously. Bumblebee looked around at all the heroines, no one opting to compete or withdraw and waiting on what everyone else would say. She shrugged, never one for depending on others, and placed her hands on her hips. "I'm in, don't know about anyone else." She eyed a few others enticingly, goading them to accept and join the challenge.

Raven huffed as the competitor who'd spoken, Bumblebee, waggled her eyebrows at her. She could take her in her sleep. Besides, Raven wanted to know what mysteries that gem contained and she was not going to get any answers if she went home now. "Me too," Raven decided and stepped forward.

"And me as well," Starfire sighed. She did not understand the point of this tournament. Why waste their abilities attempting to harm one another? But if Raven thought there was a good reason to compete then she would stand by her friend.

Pantha and several others nodded their assent. Kole also had a hard time seeing any point in competing, but decided that if everyone else wanted to then why spoil the fun. Besides, she had spent so much time away from society she could probably benefit from getting out and meeting some other super girls her age. She was the last to accept the challenge but she did with a definite, "All of us."

"Excellent!" The host boomed, almost relieved, thought Terra. She had a funny feeling about this whole tournament, the host especially, but was not about to pass up the opportunity to test how her abilities had grown since her past several months of apprenticing, and the opportunity to kick Raven's butt of course. "Then let the tournament begin!" The red gem flashed and he disappeared, leaving the girls to socialize briefly before the battles began.

Starfire, just about to consult with Raven on the wisdom of their decision, caught sight of a long lost friend and forgot all about it. She gasped. "Terra!" Starfire floated over to a very surprised Terra and gathered her into a big hug. "It is so glorious to see you again! Tell us, where have you been all this time?"

"Uhh," Terra groped for words while Starfire squeezed the air out of her lungs, "Around. You know me, always traveling." Starfire giggled and released Terra who gulped in a breath of air.

Raven eyed Terra suspiciously, but nodded towards her in greeting just the same. She never trusted Terra very much; she was just like the Master of Games had said, too unpredictable.

Meanwhile Kole walked up to Pantha in greeting, who gladly shook hands with her and began discussing their entirely different worlds. Pantha smiled at the puny girl's relaxed grip. She was no match for her brute strength and combat skill.

Argent first strolled over towards Jinx her equal in height and size, but seeing Bumblebee's objections to a villainess competing amongst heroines she walked over towards Raven instead. "Hello, I'm Argent," she said, extending a hand which Raven took.

"Raven."

"That, communicator on your belt… do you happen to be a member of the Teen Titans?"

"Yeah," Raven answered, surprised, "I am. How do you know about us?"

Argent smiled, "I think just about everyone knows about you guys."

They continued on in happy chatter until the Master of Games' voice rang out throughout the room, "Heroines, Round One, prepare to meet your opponents!"

Aaand, cut! Sorry, didn't want to write too much for the first chapter. Hope you enjoyed the beginning of The Tournament of Heroines! Please review! :D

I've corrected a little timeline mishap I made in this chapter. Thank you Tterit for letting me know! :)