Marlene awoke to a woman shaking her. "Come on Krueger, I've been waiting for this fight all day!" The Woman exclaimed. "Alright Alright, relax. I'm getting up." Marlene said as She slowly got herself off of her chair. "Pardon my rudeness, but I've just been so excited to see You!" The Woman explained. "What's Your name?" Marlene asked as She rubbed her eyes to wake up. "Ari. Ari Se." Ari responded. "Nice to meet You Ari. Please tell Me You don't have any secret powers or anything..." Marlene said, hoping She won't have to go through a match like her last two. "Eh? Powers? No, I'm just a Martial Artist. I study at the School of War." Ari responded. "School of War? Never heard of it, but it sounds cool. Anyways... I'm gonna head out there. See ya on the stage." Marlene said as She headed out to the Arena Stage.
"Ladies and Gentlemen... I behold to You the final tournament match! In our left corner We have Ari Se!" The crowd erupted with cheers as if Ari were some sort of celebrity. "And in our right corner, the woman who could very likely be our winner, Marlene Krueger!" The Announcer exclaimed as the crowd continued going crazy. "Begin the Match!" The Announcer said, starting the fight. Ari quickly dashed toward Marlene, clearly wanting to make the first move. Marlene got into her stance and watched Ari's movements, trying to come up with a counter for whatever attack She may launch. Ari ended up launching a strong punch at Marlene's chest, which Marlene barely managed to block. The punch was so strong that Marlene was actually being pushed back. "Looks like I'll have to slide You off the edge." Ari said as She continued pushing Marlene with her fist. "Not letting that happen." Marlene commented as She stopped blocking and went around Ari's fist.
"Something tells Me I should make this quick." Marlene said as She launched a barrage of punches into Ari's back. However, Ari turned around as if nothing was wrong. "You should look closer, Krueger." Ari remarked. Marlene looked at her own punches to see what was happening, and Ari was actually catching each individual punch. Despite Marlene's random punch pattern, Ari still knew what moves Marlene was making. "I knew You had some sort of power!" Marlene exclaimed as She kept punching away. "Power? No. I'm just better than You." Ari said with confidence as She kicked Marlene in the stomach. Marlene quickly grabbed her stomach in pain. "What the hell? Even Tuger's attacks didn't feel this painful." Marlene thought to herself as She fell to her knees. "You're gonna have to try harder if You want to win." Ari said as She kicked Marlene's neck, knocking her onto the floor. "She's right..." Marlene thought to herself as She forced herself back onto her feet.
"I'm not going to lose so easily, Ari." Marlene said as She got into her stance. "Glad to hear it. I like challenges." Ari said as She launched a punch at Marlene's face. "Too slow." Marlene said as She caught the incoming punch. "It may have only been a short bit of time since We started fighting, but I already have You read." Marlene said as She sent her knee straight into Ari's gut. However, Ari kicked Marlene away from her, countering her strike. "I guess You didn't read Me well enough." Ari remarked as She took her own stance. "Damn. This might be another tough battle." Marlene thought to herself as She dashed toward Ari. "Try Your hardest." Ari said as She stared at Marlene. "That's what I'm doing!" Marlene responded as She slammed her fist into Ari's forehead. Ari quickly recovered from Marlene's punch, almost like it didn't happen, and kicked Marlene in the ribs as a response to the attack. Marlene held her side in pain and backed up. "You're definitely talented Ari..." Marlene said, complimenting Ari.
"Thanks Krueger. But focus on the fight." Ari said, dashing toward Marlene. Marlene looked at Ari and tried to anticipate her next move, though it was kind of difficult since Ari was running with her arms behind her back. "Feel the force of a Warrior!" Ari exclaimed as She uppercutted Marlene. Marlene was launched up into the air by the attack, but managed to land on her feet. "She's good, but I think I can beat her." Marlene thought to herself as She ran up to Ari and sweeped her legs. She then followed up by putting one foot on Ari's stomach and her other on Ari's neck. "Are you done now Ari?" Marlene asked with a smirk. "I thought You were smarter than this Krueger..." Ari commented as She punched Marlene's ankle, causing Marlene to fall over off of Ari. Ari then kicked Marlene in the stomach, keeping her on the floor. "Come on Krueger, take Me down like all the others. If You don't do it now, I'll win this." Ari said, taunting Marlene. Marlene sighed and quickly got back up on her feet.
"Fine. You want Me to end this? I'll apply what I've learned so far to beat You easily." Marlene said as She took a boxing stance. "Bring it on." Ari said, standing there with no stance. Marlene swooped in and slammed Ari with a right hook, and then started barraging her with right and left hooks that pushed her to the edge of the stage. Not only that, but while She was doing the punches She was launching a Ki wave from her mouth that acted almost like fire breath, doubling the damage of her attacks. Finally, Marlene pushed Ari to the edge. "This is it Ari, any last words?" Marlene asked, ready to punch Ari off. "Hail Ares." Ari said as She dropkicked Marlene back, moving away from the edge too. "Ares? What the hell is that?" Marlene asked, extremely confused. "The God of War, who will give Me the power to put You down." Ari said, clenching her fists. Marlene got back up and ran at Ari, attempting to tackle her. "Ares! Donate to Me but a fraction of Your divine power to win this battle!" Ari exclaimed.
Suddenly, an Aura grew around Ari. An aura so powerful that it blasted Marlene back. Ari's eyes shifted to black and red, and her hair turned bright white. "This is the power of The God of War! The power that will defeat You!" Ari exclaimed as She pointed at Marlene. Marlene stared at Ari and began thinking. "Power of The God of War? If She's actually got the power of some god, this will really be a problem." Marlene thought to herself as She got into her stance and waited for Ari to make a move. "Behold! The Power of Ares!" Ari shouted as a Sword formed of Ki formed in her right hand, and a shield made of Ki in her left. "This Sword will not kill You, though it will be painful!" Ari shouted, dashing toward Marlene. "Great, She has a weapon now." Marlene thought to herself as She tried to dart around Ari, however Ari pushed Marlene down with her shield. "You will fall, Krueger!" Ari exclaimed as She slammed her shield down onto Marlene's stomach, causing Marlene to spit up blood.
"If You're such a Warrior... Why not fight Me with just Your hands...?" Marlene asked as She tried to get up. "Even though I shouldn't, I will make You a compromise." Ari said, disposing of her Ki Sword but keeping her Shield. "That should make things easier. I hope." Marlene thought to herself as She got back up. As soon as Marlene got up, Ari punched her in the gut so hard that She was launched into the air. As soon as Marlene was about to come down She launched her back up with her Shield, and finally let Marlene drop onto the floor. "Okay... You're starting to piss Me off..." Marlene said, barely managing to stand up again. "Face it Krueger, I have won this match. Surrender and You won't suffer any more." Ari said, staring at her. "I'm not going to give up, not as long as I can still stand..." Marlene said as her legs trembled. "Then I will knock You out and end this." Ari said as She approached Marlene.
"I've got to tap into that Ki stuff Master Shi told Me about... If it works like He says it does, it might be the only thing that can make Me win this fight." Marlene thought to herself as She searched for the Ki in her body. Will Marlene be able to gather enough Ki to defeat Ari? Or will Marlene lose the tournament that She's been working so hard to win? Find out next time on Dragon Ball: Lifelines!