A young woman, around 28 years old, stood in the shadows of the arena: afraid to show her face. Her jet-black hair parted down the middle, styled in a short bob cut. She had dull green eyes, bags underneath from sleep depravation: constant nightmares kept her awake at night... Her arms were folded, but her left foot tapped up and down on the floor in a rhythmic pattern. Her gaze darted left and right, scanning over the assortment of strange characters gathered for the tournament. How had she got here? The woman asked herself this in her own mind repeatedly. Her skin was light and fair, pale almost. She was dressed in a grey jumpsuit, the sleeves rolled up to her arms with fingerless black gloves on her hands and black combat boots on her feet, a navy-blue t-shirt visible underneath her jumpsuit thanks to the zip being down just a little. An electronic watch wrapped around her left wrist.

"Kiyoko...?" A voice reached the woman. It was a little deep with hints of a snake hiss. The woman quickly turned around to look into the dark hall behind her.

"Jeri?"

"I'm here... just getting a soda... or is it cola? Cola sounds better to me... you ok?" Jeri's voice called out from the darkness.

"So... this isn't some fucked up dream? Like all the rest..." Kiyoko rubbed her right arm. The sounds of a can of cola falling out of a vending machine rung out. A few seconds of silence. It was opened, the sound of the fizzing liquid reaching Kiyoko.

"If this a dream of yours... I'd like to know how the hell it relates to PTSD." Jeri walked out of the shadows, dragging his tail behind him: a coka cola cherry in his right hand. Jeri took a sip. "Oooh... it tickles..." He commented after lowering the drink back down: the liquid travelling down the little mouth inside his regular mouth. A sage-green M41A Pulse Rifle was slung over Jeri's back via a black strap. His dark navy-blue skin glimmering in the little bit of sunlight that reached him. He walked up to Kiyoko, reaching out to put his right arm around her shoulder after transferring the can to his left hand. Kiyoko letting Jeri's arm come to rest on her... in the past she felt uncomfortable about such contact: even after all the two had went through on the USS Konrad, but she'd warmed up to his caring attitude eventually... Jeri's appearance still startled her from time to time though. "So... where the hell are we? Imagination land? We gonna get unicorns and rainbows to go with this parade?" Jeri was a constant smart-arse, rarely not acting sarcastic.

"What do we do...? They don't look like bad people... and things... well most of them." Kiyoko questioned.

"I wanna introduce you to a personal friend of mine. This is an M41A Pulse Rifle. Ten millimeter, with over-and-under thirty millimeter pump action grenade launcher." Jeri pulled up his gun.

"Jeri, I know what that is... you forget I served as a Marine? But we can't just go in waving a gun about like maniacs, it looks like a festivity of some kind." Kiyoko berated. If Jeri had eyes... he'd be rolling them.

"Ok, I get it... you want me to go first? Sure, send the me in first to break the ice... it's like asking Marines to not shoot first." Jeri took another sip.

"Rude." Kiyoko remarked.

"Oh like it's not true. Now sit tight, uncle Jeri will be back in a few." Jeri threw his empty can into the recycling bin behind him before walking off. Kiyoko fruitlessly reached out to try and bring him back.

"Don't make a scene!" She called out.

"Oh yeah, because I'm the strangest thing here!" Jeri threw his arms in the air as he walked out into the arena. Kiyoko was alone... the dark hallway behind her. Jeri no longer around to keep her company as she hid herself away.

Mewtwo and Kuriza shuck hands, their match having just ended. The Virtua-world faded away and the two found themselves back in the centre of the stadium.

"Impressive techniques..." Mewtwo complemented Kuriza.

"Yours were really impressive, it was a good fight. That teleport of yours really messed with my tactics... it was like sparring with Goku, only you were more serious than he ever is during our matches." Kuriza replied.

"Hey! Can anybody tell me what's going on around here?" Jeri called out as he walked up to the centre of the stadium. Everybody turned their gaze to him. Had he really just spoken? They all wondered this.

"Another participant? How many more are gonna arrive?" Kuriza muttered.

"Is that an Alien...?" Multiple members of the crowd, who knew of Jeri's 'kind', mumbled to themselves in the crowd.

"Quick! Somebody get Sigourney Weaver! Kill it with fire!" Dante jumped up. Jeri flipped Dante off. Jeri had no idea who the hell this 'Sigourney Weaver' was, but the fire comment he understood.

"Because it's an Alien or because Resurrection was a piece of shit?" Jill turned to Dante.

"Xenomorph, guys..." Stewie Griffin shouted out, correcting others on the undefining name of 'Alien'. "Lot of people here are Aliens themselves, that's a Xenomorph specifically."

"NEEEERD!"

"Alright, whoever said that: you wanna throw down!?" Stewie looked around.

"What about the kids?! It'll delay their match!" Goku questioned.

"Sorry." Jeri smirked.

"It actually talks?!" Stewie exclaimed.

"Bah-weep-Graaaaagnah wheep ni ni bong!" Jeri shouted, mockingly doing the 'universal greeting'.

"Bah-weep-Graaaaagnah wheep ni ni bong!" Megatron and Optimus replied simultaneously.

"Sweet! Transformers!" Jeri turned his head towards the two, looking over to the duo sat in the stands. Rayne jumped out of the crowd and out onto the platform where Jeri, Kuriza and Mewtwo all stood. Kuriza and Mewtwo backed away, leaving the stage to those two. Rayne was outfitted in iron boots with red leather underneath the plating: a black denim hosen, black wrappings that covered her upper torso and her arms, starting just above the elbows and ending at the wrists, with a chest plate on her left side and shoulder-piece above, an ebony scarf that dropped down to her waist, with a grey glove that reached to her elbow on her left arm and a black leather gauntlet on her right arm with red leather wrapped around it in a diamond fashion. Jeri turned to her. He looked her over.

"What are you?" Jeri scratched his head.

"Don't ask... but you're one ugly motherfucker..." Rayne revealed one of her fangs with a grin.

"Damn it, Rayne! Wrong franchise!" Dante shouted out to her. Rayne narrowed her eyes. Jeri pulled out a cigar and lit it up with his lighter, placing said lighter back into one of the ammo pockets on his combat belt.

"You should see the Yautja..." Jeri muttered. He placed the cigar back into his mouth after speaking. "So, you want to fight? 'Cause I ain't comfortable with hitting a lady... actually I'm prohibited from harming humans in general." Jeri mumbled, cigar in mouth.

"I was supposed to fight the previous winner... but you'll do. Besides... I ain't human." Rayne responded.

"So is this some kind of fighting tournament?" Jeri asked.

"Why don't you find out?" Rayne cracked her knuckles. Jeri's M41A Pulse Rifle disappeared along with Rayne's wrist-blades as the platform they stood upon began to power up...

"Well... this just got weird..." Jeri joked. He threw away his cigar. "Any time now..." Jeri followed up.

"Guess it's a new contestant..." Vegeta muttered.

"The hell is Jeri doing?" Kiyoko grumbled to herself, placing her right hand on the wall next to her...