Dinosaur King: The Fossil League

by HunterHQ

The Shadow War has ended and the threat of Arkosaurus neutralised. With the timeline finally reset and stabilised once and for all, it is a time of celebration for Saurus City with the revival of the Greatest Championship of all!

4. Ursula vs Marina

Chapter 4

Ursula vs Marina

It was midday and many of those involved in the Fossil League had went over to the nearby food stalls or eateries that were either within or surrounded the Coliseum for lunch, to take a much needed break after all the excitement they've had in the first 2 rounds, which were merely appetisers for the rest of the Tournament in the audience's hunger for more excitement. First though many felt they had to satisfy their regular hunger instead, while a few of them having less interest in the remaining matches for the day decided to head elsewhere to spend their day completing other errands or to watch from the comforts of their homes. Outside many people and dinos traversed across the food plaza, ranging from a variety of choices from simple food stalls serving on the spot okonomiyaki or hot dogs, to large eateries with dine ins or drive throughs for either fast food or culinary gourmet dining. Needless to say there were many kinds of cuisines ranging about the premises, around the special dino fountain situated in the path to the arena, to fit everyone's different tastes.

At a certain fast food joint, called Jurassic Junction, a building with a prehistoric forest theme covering its' exterior with a t-rex crunching down on a burger as its' logo, there were many people gathered inside to have their next meal in the many seating areas around, the chairs and table resembling large boulders which were placed around different sections from forest themed, wide plain to volcanic areas in the background. The speakers above played all kinds of sounds to match each area as well to make any customer feel as though they were in the prehistoric world. While it was mainly people either seated having their burgers or readily prepared meals or ordering up front at the cashiers, there were a handful of small dinosaurs running about with their owners or being kept in a certain pen in another area at the back.

In one section, a certain friend of the D Team and Alpha Gang granted them all VIP privileges so they were seated further away in a reserved section which was also for those competing in the tournament too, and as of now they were taking full advantage of it.

"MMM! Now this really hits the spot!" Dr Taylor said with his mouth partially full as he began stuffing himself with 'pterodactyl hobtwings' as they were called, fried to a crisp and with an assortment of dips like mustard and ketchup.

"Yeah!" Max agreed with his father after he chowed down on 5 fries at once, "Who knew they'd have such great food here in the future?" He said in amazement and appreciation before moving on to dip the fries in such specially made tomato sauce, despite being the more civilised sort he was finding it hard to resist licking his fingers or stuffing himself like Max and his dad were doing now.

"I could eat this all day and not feel guilty about this at all!" Dr Drake teared up as he gobbled down what was his 4th dino burger in a row before sinking his teeth into his 5th! Doctor or not, he'd regret it if he didn't indulge himself with as much food from the future as possible. A sentiment shared by most of the men present at the big family table, with Dr Owen, Patrick, Spike, Drake and Max as they ravenously began to attack their meal like a pack of starving hyenas! They were right to trust Cera in her fine recommendation and how eternally grateful they were to her for this experience they'd never forget for the rest of their lives.

It wasn't just them though, in a small corner not too far from where they were, was a small feeding station dedicated for dinosaurs too. Though the dinos present were in chibi sized forms, as a feeding robot drone hovered in to dump in some special dino food from cans for the feeding troughs, along with well blended dino drink into the watering dishes, both of which were made to satisfy the pallets of both herbivores and carnivores. Nevertheless even with dinosaurs being accepted into society, this is still an eatery and there were health guidelines to follow, violate any of these guidelines in any established eatery in Saurus City and you could end up banned for life.

"Aww aren't they just adorable?" Aki said rather lovingly at her family and their dinosaurs making pigs of themselves. She could just watch them for hours if she wanted to.

Zoe however was rather put off by the sight, turning almost green like the salad she was having, which also was made using several mesozoic era plants that were properly prepared too, "Ugh, if you call stuffing your face like there's no tomorrow like wild animals adorable that is Mrs Taylor…." she croaked in disgust finding it hard to hold in before swallowing hard and looking away, unable to take the sight much longer.

Needless to say most of the ladies were more civilised when it came to dining both at home or out, though a couple of them chuckled in amusement seeing that things were the same with their families no matter where they went, "Well as long as everyone is happy that's all that matters with me." Mrs Drake smiled seeing her husband stuff a burger down his throat, despite being a doctor he didn't seem to mind his own weight or calorie intake that much, though Reese couldn't help but eye her dad pityingly believing she'd need a defibrillator if he kept this up. It also put off Jonathan a little as he came in with the next few orders from the family having returned from the front, and being a gentleman himself he expected the grown men to have better manners than this.

On Cretacia's side though she couldn't help but smile and laugh out in total amusement, "Hahahaha! Have to say meal times have got to be most fun for you all if this is what you have everyday." She remembered finding dinner times rather dull on her end before Rex was born, given they all ate so civilised and with manners and while good in general, once in a while she wanted to spice things up a little like throw in her own cooking rather than have Johnathan do it every day and then have said cooking appreciated by being wolfed down. So she was also a little jealous her friends from the past had to experience such spice in their lives everyday. Looking to Rex she cheekily elbowed him, "Say Rex, think you or your father could be more like them next time we have dinner at home?"

Her statement made Rex sweat drop back at her, "Err mom….shouldn't you be wanting us to eat with manners though?" he chuckled nervously before looking to his dad on his other side, "Then again…." While not as uncivilised as most of the other men, needless to say Dr Ancient's manners needed a little work in a more different sort of way.

"My how fascinating…." He breathed in awe right after he separated his dino burger to its components of special patty, vegetables, cheese and bun. Instead of eating them, bizarrely he held a magnifying glass to his eyes as he stared down closer at each part rather intently, pinching off a piece of the patty while wearing a sterile glove and studying it closely, even placing it carefully into a sampling jar to take back for closer analysis at the lab before moving onto the bun next. He was so deeply engrossed in his observations he didn't realise his actions were so bizarre that they caught the attention of several other restaurant customers who gave both him and his family strange looks while the fry cook at the joint was sweating anxiously like he was some sort of food critic.

Feeling embarrassed by the looks they were getting, even Cretacia sweatdropped and patted her husband's shoulder, "Oh honey, food's to be eaten and enjoyed not researched like some kind of new discovery or lab experiment." She said getting his attention, making him jump a little in the process. "Come on! Enjoy! That's what we're here for!" She cheered, though she enjoyed strange, wacky and unpredictable, this was a little bit too strange for her taste.

"Hahah I know Cretacia," Ancient laughed back at her in agreement, but he quickly looked back at the food on his plate soon after, "Though in a way this is a new discovery in a way." He muttered with interest as he pondered over the possibilities, "Imagine, being able to eliminate nearly all traces of meat and the many environmental problems that come with its production too." He breathed in awe having realised the immense potential it could have and the benefits for humanity and all life on earth would be limitless, "If we could discover the secret to that….imagine the possibilities…." Being able to make their own substitute meat or even culture it can mean no more need to expand livestock farming to feed the planet, and in turn forested areas can be preserved. Also many buildings in the city are designed in a way they can grow vegetables inside now rather easily.

Super fertilisers to speed up crop growth made with the remains of food scraps and even dino faeces means food supply will always be secure, not to mention most of said waste is used in energy plants here in the future rather than fossil fuels which are far more polluting. Not only that these waste to energy plants not only reduce humanity's impact on the environment but they also come equipped with gas scrubbers to ensure the emissions are always cleaned 100%, the same even being said for water treatment plants here which operate under strict guidelines. Many of these new systems are so efficient it takes a single charge from a lightning dinosaur's attack to power it up for several weeks even! How Dr Ancient marvelled at this future which blended together the past to create an outstanding reality as countless ideas erupted within his mind he lost track of his surroundings and those around him to their amusement.

"Hahah, oh dad…." Rex chuckled seeing he was back to researching again, guess once a scientist always one, though hopefully he wouldn't be THAT devoted.

"Some things just never change…." Cretacia sighed shaking her head in dismay that her husband just wasn't going with the flow, in fact every time they made a new discovery or experience, Ancient would usually try to document it for the future.

A little further away, Cera and her family sat at a smaller table as she ate 'pterodactyl hot wings' with her parents while also watching the events unfold like some popular family drama, "Hehe, that's quite the family dynamic they've got." Lunensis couldn't help but chuckle feeling most amused.

"Haha, I agree with you on that dad." Cera laughed back before sighing a little, "Then again….ours' isn't exactly normal either…." All around her side she could feel the stares of many fans and bystanders given she was now the Commander of the D Lab in the future along with the fact she was friends with the legendary heroes the D Team. Had it not been for the rules where no one outside the VIP boundaries are allowed to disturb anyone within the VIP circle, she and everyone else would have been swamped by fans like a flash flood demanding handshakes, autographs and the like.

Still it was great that they could have such a nice family gathering together after so long. The only thing that would've made this moment complete and perfect was if Miku were around…..then again at least their house sitter robot was around to keep them company for the time being.

"Hey Cera!" A voice called out to her from behind as she looked back to see Spike waving at her, "I have to say this grub is the best we've ever had."

Max grinned with delight mimicking his dad, "Yeah, have to say this even may even give mom a run for her money. And that's saying a lot!" As soon as he uttered those words it made his friends eyeball him questioningly, and before long he and Spike felt a chill down their spines, "Urk!"

As they turned around nervously towards Aki they froze stiff turning pale as she shot them a hard squint and unhappy scowl on her face, "Excuse me Max?" She said in an offended tone, she had moments of being unappreciated and she often let it slide, before but this was one time where she had to put her foot down, "Are you saying you'd rather not have me cook for you or your father anymore hmm?"

"WHA!?" Max widened his eyes as he could feel his mom shoot a soul piercing glare into his and his fathers' souls! "N…No mom! That's not it! I mean your cooking's great and always will be!" He waved out his hands frantically as Aki folded her arms on her hips and pouted.

Spike quickly turned to him frantically, "Max! You'd better apologise to your mother right now!" He yelled trying to sound as disciplining as he could, making Max gasp in shock at how quickly his father sided against him!

"EH!?"

"Hahahaha." Everyone then laughed as Max prostrated himself before her.

"Still Max does have a point," Zoe then spoke up, "For you and your people to enjoy this kind of 5 star cuisine everyday, heh makes me feel kinda jealous." She smiled.

"Indeed," Dr Ancient nodded before looking around them eying the entirety of the joint from lighting and air conditions to some of the areas outside, "And not just that, to think all this energy here is being powered entirely by a fully renewable energy source too in dino faeces and food waste rather than fossil fuels." He commented having recently learnt the power plant that generates most of Saurus City's energy was powered by biogas generated from decomposing food waste and faeces collected from various areas and that such plants were installed across many countries in Cera's world.

"And how all the wastewater and emissions are fully treated with the power of new and improved technology combined with dino power." Cretacia added in awe, also recently learnt from Raina how said emissions from the bio gas are cleaned with impressive gas scrubbers and reactors powered by the energy of lightning dinosaurs in order to supply enough power to run their most efficient generators for months with just a few jolts.

"Not to mention how some dinosaurs can even restore natural habitats and restore deforested areas too." Reese commented for she heard how most devastated areas either from the war or man made were help returned to the wild thanks with the power of nature that grass dinosaurs had. Needless to say that Cera had a most lucky and fortunate upbringing to have grown up in the finest evolution of human civilisation made with pieces of the past.

"Your technology and into here really makes what we have back home look like kids' toys." Rex added before looking around to see so many happy and satisfied faces which brought a smile on his face, "Fact that you've helped solve nearly all the world's problems never ceases to amaze us at how lucky you all are."

Cera blushed red with the compliments as her parents smiled at her and what a shrining example she was to them, "Hee hee, that's really flattering and I appreciate the compliment." She giggled scratching the back of her head before humbling herself a little and not letting it get to her head, "Though honestly you give us way too much credit." She then explained, "Like I said, it's you guys who helped make all this possible in the first place. All we did was pick the low hanging or fallen fruits after you laid down the groundwork and foundation for us. It's you all who deserve the glory and credit more than us." She added at the end which made her friends from the past feel all appreciated and moved by her kind words.

"Aww, that's so sweet of you my dear." Cretacia clapped her hands together lovingly, "We really are blessed to have you as both friend and family." Cheekily she went up to her and put an arm around her shoulder, "Say you wouldn't mind trading secrets with us though won't you?" She then pleaded with puppy dog eyes, which made Rex sigh a little seeing his mom acting childish now. Maybe that's part of her charm which made Ancient fall in love with her.

In response though, Cera didn't give in but smiled back, "Hehe, well we can't give away all our surprises, it's something you all have to find out for yourselves." she giggled bonking her head playfully, "Doesn't that seem more fun to experience it firsthand, not to mention it'd ruin the whole thing if you knew what might happen though?" She made a very good point there, which made Cretacia sigh with sadness as she slouched back into her chair pouting while everyone else laughed.

"Aww…what a party pooper…"

Nearby where the families were sat 4 of the captains who were having their meals too, being Raina, Kaze, Craig and Hua, who looked on as though it were a Saturday morning drama.

"Hee hee, I think the future is in real good hands with such lovely seeds in their hearts ready to grow and bloom." Hua smiled warmly, feeling touched by so much love in the air as she sipped her ice lemon tea.

Craig nodded, "I agree with you on that Hua." He said confidently, "In fact I even see hope in the Alpha Gang too, not much but the fact it exists still explains a lot."

Hua smiled at the earth captain's comment, "Well sometimes you can find a flower among weeds," she replied in agreement, "They just need to uproot whatever holds them back and prune themselves further till they grow most healthy and vibrant."

"Again with the plant pep talk? Don't you ever get tired of it?" Kaze grumbled in annoyance as he had enough of all the family togetherness. Among the captains despite their companionship with one another he always preferred to keep to being alone, being around with so much love and openness with each other was making him nauseous, especially towards Hua whom he often took as being and unrealistic optimist. Given she was usually pacifistic and disliked meat and violence so much she would refuse to be involved with anything having as such, to Kaze he often saw her as something of a hippie being with peace and all.

Raina then stood up from her seat getting their attention, "Heh, if you all don't mind I'm excusing myself for a bit." She said taking her leave, "Gotta go make a few more preparations given my match is right after this one. So bye bye!" She waved cheerfully before skipping off energetically, it was as though she was always on overcharge and overdrive when it came to a new analysis or breakthrough in her research, and as of now she may have thought up a new hypothesis she'd like to try out in her upcoming battle with Max, "Hee hee! With this new data, my winning formula is complete!" She cheered as she left the restaurant.

"Hahah, she's always so full of positive energy." Hua laughed in amusement.

"Yeah, but don't forget what happens when she gets all negative….." Craig added at the end as he shivered at a certain memory that replayed in his mind before shaking his head hoping to blot it out.

"Hmph! Well that goes for me too, I'm out of here." Kaze scoffed as he left his seat too.

Hua blinked her eyes in surprise, "You're not going to stay and watch the rest of the matches?" she asked as his back remained turned to her.

"What for? After all it's not my turn to fight." He responded bluntly without a care in his voice, "Besides, you know I feel about crowded spaces and too many people. It's just not my style. So see ya." He huffed before doing a few hand gestures and then vanishing in a cloud of dust.

"Hmph, as anti social and disagreeable as always…." He had valuable skills when Lunensis recruited him but even though he was their ally he wasn't always on their side, even among joining them always took things seriously and kept his skills and duty sharp, same as before. "He doesn't know what he's missing out."

"Well Kaze doesn't like to be bound by anything and lives freely according to his own rules." Hua replied understandingly, even if he didn't respect others that well at times that doesn't mean he should be disrespected himself. "Not to mention given his line of work, you know how he can't get too close to anyone…." Deep down he did have a sense of loyalty and with his work being a hired mercenary it'd mean he'd put them at risk or they may end up being used against him and hold him back.

Craig folded his arms and scoffed in response, "Yeah I know….Though I don't think I'll ever get used to it."

A little further away within the VIP lounge, the Alpha gang sat together having their own unique family drama unfold amongst one another.

Helga narrowed a sharp look at the children which made them stutter as she caught onto what they were trying to do, "Rod, Laura, don't think I do not notice you hiding your spinach underneath your plates." She pointed out

"I expect you to eat every last bite of it otherwise no apple strudel for dessert." She said wagging her finger at the 2 children which made them both pout and whine.

"Aww Helga…." Rod sighed as he lowered his head.

"Do we have to?" Laura pouted while trying her best to give puppy dog pouts and eyes….to which had no effect on their burly housemaid who maintained her stern look at them which was unwavering.

Fortunately though things weren't the same as they used to be, as their father spoke up, "Come on now Helga, don't you think you're a bit too harsh?" he responded speaking up for his kids, which made them both brighten up with hope and joy.

"They did manage to finish all their summer homework after all so they do deserve a treat for all their hard work." Their mother then added with a warm smile, "Besides, I also agree that you should lighten up a little too."

"After all we're on vacation and having the time of our lives now, I'd say it wouldn't hurt to cut back a little on all those old rules from months ago." Their father concluded to which his children brightened up and chimed in with joy to have their parents backing them up, oh how good it felt for them to get one over on Helga for once.

"Yay!"

"Hahaha."

As brother and sister both cheered with excitement, Helga shook her head in dismay, "Sigh….And you both spoil them far too much…." She wondered how did she become the unreasonable one now. As much as she would get tough on even Dr Z and the trio, the only ones she would never go against would be Rod and Laura's parents. Why? She didn't know herself, though perhaps there was a certain purity to them both that made her unable to exert any sort of discipline.

A little further away, Ed was busy stuffing his face ravenously with fries and cheesy bites along with Zander and Dr Z. They were having the time of their lives indulging themselves with such delectable food from the future, though not long after that, Dr Z suddenly stopped eating and sported a serious look on his face. Clearing his throat he then shouted out suddenly, "Alright you clods listen up!" He growled making everyone around him look to him in surprise.

"EH!?"

"Hmm?"

"COUGH!" Ed was caught by surprise he ended up choking on his food a little, needing Zander to spank him on the back to help him swallow down. "Wheeze…." He wheeze catching his breath before looking to Dr Z who scowled at him and Zander. The rest of his family eyed him with disapproval wondering what happened all a sudden needing him to act so rudely. Helga was about to step him and reprimand the doctor for his behaviour, till he cleared his throat.

"I'm not going to repeat myself so you'd better listen! Or would you rather I give you the old one two instead!?" He growled threateningly which made both his henchmen sweat and shiver!

"N…NO! NO! That won't be necessary Dr Z!"

"We hear you loud and clear! In fact no need to get any louder than you are now!" They quivered.

Dr Z then nodded back at them, "Good….." Rod and Laura frowned seeing their grandfather acting rather rudely, same for his adopted son, looking at his foster father he wondered where did his kindness go after all these years? Plus he found it unimaginable the heinous crimes he committed a while back.

He felt like giving him a piece of his mind, till he saw the old man suddenly close his eye and tightened his expression, while gritting his teeth as though he were in pain.

"Umm gramps?" Rod asked looking rather worried, believing Dr Z was having an actual problem now, "Do you have a heart burn again?"

"Need us to give you your dose?" Laura asked.

"Be quiet!" He quickly rebuked startling her and the others, "I'm in the middle of something here!"

"GAH!"

Helga wanted to reprimand him real good, but she held herself back to see if he had an explanation for his unusual behaviour, "Grr…why is this so difficult!? To say such simple words…." He hissed to himself as though he would have to wash his mouth out for the very words he was going to say out loud. Taking a breath and realising he had to let it out, "Sigh….Congratulations both of you." He muttered in a low tone but clearly it was painful for him to actually say something nice.

Everyone widened their eyes in surprise at what Dr Z just said, "Huh?" None were more surprised than Ed and Zander, who were beginning to feel Dr Z may have gone senile or sick if he actually said something good to them!

"Laura…did I just hear him right?" Rod breathed tapping his sister's shoulder.

She nodded back at him, "I'm hearing the same thing as you but I just can't believe my ears."

Everyone stared in disbelief at what they witnessed, even Helga was taken aback greatly by the words that parted from Dr Z's lips, and usually nothing ever shook her.

Taking a breath to calm himself down, he cleared his throat before continuing seriously, "You both demonstrated a fine battle in the arena, worthy of me, though just barely." He said at the end holding up his fingers before smiling lightly as he folded his hands back, "But nevertheless I'm…proud of you. So keep at it.…"

Ed and Zander's eyes both sparkled like stars as their eyes began to well up in tears and emotion, "Aww Dr Z…."

"That's the first nice thing you ever said to us in years!" They both cried before saluting him.

"You can count on us to never disappoint you ever again!"

"See that you don't." He then huffed turning red with embarrassment and a little frustration, "Since you did…good enough I'll let it slide the fact you tried to swindle me in the first half of that match." He muttered which made the both of them croak with guilt as they looked away with shame.

"Urk…."

"Just make sure you don't ever try anything stupid like that ever again, I have higher hopes for you from this point on….minimally but still higher than before." He said at the end.

His whole family then smiled happy for human, maybe there was hope for the old goat after all. "Aww grampa, I never knew you actually had such a soft side for Ed and Zander of all people." Laura giggled as her dad decided to throw in a little dino pun too.

"Haha, guess even someone like you can change and evolve too."

"Maybe there is hope for you yet." Their mom added as they began saying all sorts of things to tease or 'encourage' him to keep at it.

Even Helga who was normally stoic and firm, was finding it difficult to hold in some laughter, which may have been the first time in her robotic life she would ever do so.

Dr Z gained a tic mark on his forehead and snapped back irritated at their teasing, "Grr! D…Don't you dare get the wrong idea!" he growling shaking his fists like a child, which the others didn't take seriously, "Fact is now that my expectations of you have gotten higher, you'd better continue to live up to them or continue to exceed them from now on!" He yelled aiming his attention at Ed and Zander, "Anything less and I guarantee that I'll put you all through the grinder and serve you up as dino chow for Terry!" He threatened which made the 2 men cringe.

"GAH! Yes Dr Z!"

"You can count on us that we'll never disappoint you ever again!"

Dr Z then grinned with his trademark sadistic grin, "Heh, well said, be sure to never forget you said that!" He then aimed his attention at Ed and pointed out at him, "Especially you Ed, make sure you don't disappoint in your next match against that Craig guy! Or maybe I should drop you off at his boot camp so he can whip you into shape! Literally!"

Ed gulped down hard swallowing a rock in his throat, "Yes Dr Z….." He sighed lowering heard his head in shame as Zander patted him on the back with sympathy.

"Hee hee…." Rod and Laura couldn't help but giggle a little finding his predicament rather amusing.

Having heard his grandkids snickering, Dr Z sharply turned towards them trying to act tough, "And the same goes for you kids too! You'd better not misbehave or let me down wether or you'll be in for it too!" He ranted only to be stopped by Helga as she stood up and made him stutter back.

"I think not Dr Z." She spoke menacingly as he shuddered and sweated in fear as she loomed over him, "If anything you ought to be following your own advice before forcing it on others." She began to pop her mechanical knuckles which were almost as loud as popping soda cans, "Or would you rather I give you a crash course on manners 101 for the umpteenth time."

"Urk…."

"You know if anyone deserves this motivational message, it should be Ursula." Rod's dad then stated, given that he and her grew up together alongside Zander and Ed, he knew amongst the trio she was the most spoilt and undisciplined of them.

"That's….actually true." Rod replied in agreement before looking around realising she wasn't present with them the entire time, "Say where is she anyways? It's almost time for the next match!"

The others were rather surprised for only now they realised she hadn't been with them the whole time, must be since she was always with them it was a given natural they'd assume her to always join in….no wonder it seemed more quiet than usual.

Ed then put a finger to his chin as he began to recollect something Ursula told him a little while ago before they met up, "I think I heard her mention something about using the little girl's room to powder her nose or something." He said before scratching his head in curious thought, "Though isn't she a little old for that? Also does she really need to put on her makeup at a time like this?"

His blunt clueless comment earned a handful of blatant stares at him, "That's just what they call the women's bathroom Ed…." Laura sighed.

"And that she needs to use the bathroom too." Rod shrugged his shoulders matching Laura's expression which made Ed blink his eyes in surprise.

"Huh? Then why didn't she just say so?" He wondered scratching his head curiously.

Dr Z scoffed, "Hmph! Well whatever she's doing, she'd better not show up late or worse miss the match! It'd ruin my whole reputation as Dinosaur King to have such unpunctual and rude subjects under me!" He growled out making everyone else shake their heads and sigh as they began to lose faith in him and their expectations of him having fallen short once again.

(Meanwhile)

"Achoo! Ugh…." Ursula sneezed and rubbed her nose uncomfortably before hissing in annoyance, "Tch! Someone's talking about me I just know it!" Shaking her head she stomped off down the corridors, "Grr! Lucky for them I've got bigger fish to fry right now!" Growling to herself. Back at the arena, unbeknownst to everyone, Ursula had slipped away from the gang after having overheard some bystanders mention a rather tasty tidbit she couldn't pass up. The fact that Marina, Ursula's upcoming opponent, often performed her shows in the arena whenever she was on tour and made it back to the City. In fact because she was such a big star in the stadium, she was even provided a private dressing room there. Said news screamed huge opportunity for Ursula, after having beaten out the truth out of Marina's fans and now she was following their directions carefully, deciding to stack the deck in her favour before the battle came on.

Reaching into her pocket she fingered over a handkerchief soaked in chloroform as she grinned deviously with intonations to use it, "Hehehe….With this little miss mermaid's gonna go Sleeping Beauty for a looong time." She snickered, "That'll teach her to think she can just waltz right in and steal MY spotlight! Not to mention the man of my dreams!" She thought as she began to daydream of being carried by Blaze like a princess right after shoving a sleeping Marina into a coffin and burying her at the bottom of the sea. Having followed the directions carefully she soon came to a corner, "Now let's see, if what those guys said was true then that hussy's dressing room's gotta be around-"

A few seconds later though, she her smile soon vanished as she slowly stopped in her tracks before coming to a halt as a short memory flashback played back in her mind from the match earlier. How Craig rebuked both Ed and Zander for trying something so underhanded in their battle. "Then again….this does seem kinda petty….." The very words he spoke rang at the back of her mind like a bell, which made her heart ache and wrench within her. In the past she wouldn't have given second thoughts about such cheap tactics but after a long while on the side of good such as aiding the resistance against the Shadow Empire for good and justice, she unknowingly had buried that side of her for a long time….and to dig it up again like this made her feel rather guilty.

Her conscience weighed heavily on her and she felt really conflicted about this, as she gritted her teeth and grasped her head as though she were in pain. This feeling of been torn as 2 sides of her were warring within her each one struggling to take control…..till it came to a cease upon hearing a voice speak out around the corner.

"Good luck out there."

She was then sapped out of her thoughts, "Huh? That voice…" After processing the voice and replaying it in her mind, she blushed red as if on fire upon recognising it, "Oh! It's him! The man who set my soul on fire! Blaze!" Ursula gigged with glee as she became smitten with infatuation for the umpteenth time as she spun around in a ditzy, love blinding all her senses and washing away all her previous thoughts as she skipped around the corridor to meet the man of her dreams….till said dreams were shattered when she saw whom Blaze was speaking with, making her come to an abrupt stop, "Huh?" Quickly taking cover behind the corridor before giving herself away, she peeped her head out to see only to widen her eyes and have her world turned upside down upon seeing Blaze was with the one woman whom she set out to try and eliminate before the match.

"Just know we're all rooting for you to put on a good show." He said encouragingly to his wife who smiled back at him lovingly.

"Hahaha, you always were quite the charmer Blaze." Marina giggled back at him feeling touched as they both smiled at one another as if in dreamland….a moment that would make anyone feel serene with love in the air….all except for one though.

Ursula, hardened her glare into razor sharp daggers and gnashed her teeth like a feral beast upon recalling the harsh humiliation she experienced back in the mines of Dustberg months ago, especially when finding out her perfect man was married, "Grr! And that….sea witch! Just look at her seducing my man! Has she no shame!?" she snarled viciously as her hand gripped the corner of the wall so tightly it began to crack under the pressure! Had it been a certain someone's neck…..

"Don't take too long to get ready now, wouldn't want to disappoint your countless fans out there waiting for you." said Blaze to which Marina giggled.

"Hee hee, you know I'll do anything for my beloved fans…." She then leaned in close to Blaze and pecked his cheek playfully as he smiled back at her, "Especially my number one fan of all."

"AH!" Upon seeing that act of romance from Marina to Blaze, Ursula felt her entire world shatter into a million pieces as her knees began to buckle weakly and she slumped down having lost her motivation and spirit….her drive and energy seeping out of her like a dying campfire in the winter wind….till a sudden spark erupted in her mind making her snap, her emotions taking a 180 degree shift as a huge blaze erupted inside her into a wildfire of rage! Her eyes flared red and she twitched her fingers before giggling to herself like a maniac!

"Why…you…." She hissed ferociously as one thought at the back of her mind became the very fuel for her newfound desire and drive, forget putting her out of commission, she vowed that thieving cat won't live to see tomorrow! She grinned demonically and rubbed her palm together as a most dreadful plan played out in her head like a simulation run multiple times, as soon as Blaze leaves, she'd summon Terry in a heartbeat, smash down that door and having him devour Marina without hesitation! Not to mention she and him practically skipped lunch to get this far so there was no going back for them, plus she'd get her revenge and Terry'd get fed so it was a win win with no downside! How brilliant she told herself, completely wiping out any earlier hesitation or conflicting in herself!

Sadly for her, as with many of her previous plans, a monkey wrench was thrown into it, upon hearing a whistling noise from behind. As she looked around she widened her eyes to see a pair of male troopers from the fire division, wearing carnivore styled helmets over their faces while also sporting their fire uniforms.

"Yes sir! Captain sir!" They saluted him as Blaze eyed them both seriously, folding his arms behind his back.

"Marina's getting ready now for her upcoming match, and I'd appreciate it that you ensure she's kept safe from any….unwanted distractions before she makes her big splash." He instructed them, having recalled times various situations he had to protect his girlfriend from those who had ill intentions towards her, either really crazed fans or the kind of men who either wanted her for themselves or the jealous women who wanted her out of the picture…much like Ursula was right now,

As he looked to his men with a hard look, they nodded with affirmation and saluted him.

"Understood sir!"

He then sported a rather serious look on his face as he gave his last words before leaving, "If necessary, permission to use…..necessary force is granted too."

Taken aback by the scary glare he gave them, they stood still and spoke with upmost affirmation, "Yes sir! You can count on it! We'll let any nosy fan or intruder have it real good!"

"We'll be sure to personally escort Marina ourselves too!" They both said, to Ursula's chagrin as she sweated nervously and gulped hard knowing that getting to Marina wasn't going to be easy, clearly she had bitten off more than she could chew.

Acknowledging that his men would do a good job considering their devotion, he smiled and nodded back, "Good, that will be all now." He said before taking his leave, though stopping for a few seconds as he turned a rather hard eye to his men who froze up at the sight of it, "If anything happens to my wife…."

The 2 men sweated under their helmets but nodded back at him, "Duly noted sir!" They said as Blaze smiled back his usual grin, satisfied with their answer as he took his leave, thankfully heading away in the opposite direction from where Ursula was, as she slumped to the floor in relief.

She then covered her face in her hands and cried into them, "Oh why does everything have to be so complicated!? Just what's so good about her anyways that he'd have to be so overprotective!?" She screamed inwardly, tearing up that the woman she wanted to eliminate was heavily guarded by the man she had fallen for. True she herself had fallen for various other guys in the past but she was sure this time was different! Hardening her resolve she tightened her fists and narrowed her eyes as she made her decision, "Tch! No choice, I've come this far so I might as well see it through!" She thought to herself as she began to reach for her dinoshot, "Sorry, but you guys are just going to have to be acceptable collateral damage when I'm through with that slimy eel!"

Right when she was about to take out her card and slash it, "Say who do you think's gonna win the next match?" One of the men then asked as his buddy looked to him with a confident smirk.

"Heh, are you kidding? It's no contest! Marina's gonna win this easy!" He laughed out loud, which made Ursula freeze up in shock and bewilderment seconds before her card made contact!

"EH!?"

His friend soon snickered in agreement, "Hehe, yeah you're right, who am I kidding….she's gonna wash over the entire competition one sidedly."

"Yeah, plus she's both beautiful and deep like the sea itself." As the 2 men continued to brag about how their idol Marina would trounce Ursula in a heartbeat, they didn't realise they were adding fuel to a really dangerous fire that was beginning to build up.

"Grr….." Gnashing her teeth, her breathing intensified till she began to snort like a mad bull just waiting to let loose and charge at anything that gets in her path!

"On the other hand that Ursula lady…." Hearing her name called out made her cease for a moment, she was feeling hopeful there'd be words of support for her…..till they were shot down instantly, "A total cough drop, she may look sweet and attractive on the outside but in reality she's bitter like bad medicine that's out of date." He said in a disgusted tone.

"Oh yeah, like the evil queen in snow white, who's actually an old hag who's rotten to the core like the apple she used." The other one pointed out further adding fuel to the fire.

"You said it! Hahahaha!" His friend snakily replied as they both erupted into laughter.

Behind the corner, Ursula's eye twitched as their words began to replay in her head over and over, "Did…Did they just call me….OLD!?" She thought to herself as that very cursed word, the bane of her existence which she wiped clean from her mind after a long while finally replayed in her mind once more, along with the countless memories she had involving said word and none of them were good! "HOW DARE THEY!?" She exploded in a rage before kicking a nearby bucket near where she was, "GARGH!" She then took in several deep breaths to calm herself, only for her red angry face to turn pale as she realised the error of her actions! As the bucket flew to the wall and smashed against it making a clanging sound!

CLANG!

"Uh oh…" She gulped.

The sound of the bucket clanging across the floor was like an alarm signal which put the 2 guards on alert, "Hey! Who's there!?"

"Come on out here now!" They yelled in the direction of the corner Ursula hid behind, noticing a quivering shadow there.

"Yikes! Gotta run!" She squealed having lost control of the situation and on instinct began to scurry away like a discovered rat!

"Grr! You won't get away you peeping tom!"

"Let's get em!" The guards yelled as they took out their cards and slashed them on their dinoshots, calling forth both an Abelisaurus and Metriacanthosaurus which both roared out in succession!

"AIYEE!" Ursula squealed to herself knowing what that sound was as she picked up the pace, looking back she widened her eyes to see the 2 saurian shadows peep up behind the corner along with snarling and stomping closing in! "This is bad! Real bad! If those 2 knucklehead fanboys get me I'll be the one who gets cooked!" She cried to herself in a panic as she raced down the hallways as fast as she could, but no matter how far she went she could still hear her pursuers not far behind, dead set on making her lunch meat! Her legs began to tire as she panted with exhaustion, on the verge of collapsing she brightened up with a glimmer of hope upon seeing the ladies room coming up, "AH! Here!" Her eyes brightened up as she made a beeline for the bathroom, and rushing straight into an unoccupied lavatory, thankfully no one else was present as most had already gone to the arena to await the match which still wasn't due for a little while.

As she secured herself inside the lavatory and locked the door she then grinned cheekily and covered her mouth hoping to suppress her laughter, "Hehehe, those pea brained bozos and their pet lizards would never find me in-" She was forced to eat her words upon hearing the sounds of approaching stomping and sniffing echoing outside the bathroom, followed by menacing growls which made her heart race out of control in her chest!

SNIFF! SNIFF!

GRR!

"She's in there?"

"Good work you two!" The voices of the dinosaurs' troopers called out as the sound of approaching foot steps came in!

"EEK! How did they-" She yelped before sniffing herself and turning pale upon realising it was her own selection of choice cosmetics which she specially wore for this day, new lavender perfume along with ruby red lipstick and green eye shadow! "Oh no….Curse my beauty!" She wailed at the thought of being betrayed by her own cosmetics that she picked out with love and care! Knowing no matter where she ran she'd be easily tracked down by the dinosaurs, she had to somehow eliminate her scent completely or mask it….though she was trapped inside a lavatory which gave her very few options….

Looking around realising her first priority was to wash her scent off, and looking around her enclosed space….there was only one option open to her, "Can't believe I'm doing this…." She reached out for the only water source available and began splashing herself with it, making sure to wipe off every bit of her skin with it, while cringing and cursing herself deeply for this…atrocious crime against her….

"So the peeper's hiding in there? How despicable!" She heard a voice yell out from the entrance of the bathroom.

She gulped nervously knowing there was no way she could go out the front anymore, it was completely blocked off and she was trapped like a rat.

"Wait till I get my hands on-" Ursula head her breath knowing it'd be a matter of time before she got caught and maybe get cooked even by Marina's rabid bodyguards….but thankfully for her fate hadn't yet abandoned her completely yet.

"Hold up dude, you know that's no man's land right?" His partner then spoke out stopping him from going in, as the first trooper hesitated and sighed.

"Y…Yeah…." Deep down even for a good cause they'd be no better than a peeper themselves if they didn't obey basic courtesy.

"Phew…." Ursula then let out a sigh of relief placing a hand on her chest grateful, before deciding to rub it in and stick her tongue out from inside her hiding spot, "Hehehehe! NYEH!" Once again she was about to eat her own words as karma caught up.

"But then again our dinos are female so I guess technically they can go in where we can't." One of the troopers spoke up as his buddy agreed.

"Hey yeah! Good call there!" As they did a fist bump, Ursula felt a frog wedged in her throat as she swallowed painfully hard!

"Gulp! Why did I have to jinx it!?"

"We'll give you to the count to 3 to come out quietly and surrender now!" One of the trooper yelled out from outside, as Ursula shut the toilet seat and climbed atop the toilet shivering in a fright, "What do I do!? What do I-" As she looked around frantically she felt herself trapped like a rat in a trap, with no way out! Till she looked above her and saw an air vent and a loose grate hanging above where she stood. Gulping down hard and hardening her expression she knew what had to be done, it was do or die, "Okay, no choice now…." Mustering all the strength in her legs she leapt up and was able to knock the grate off its' hinges before hoisting herself inside! "Urgh!" She groaned pulling herself up which was no easy task, no doubt she'd have to cut back on the snacks when this was over with.

Outside, the troopers had reached the end of their patience, "1, 2, 3! Time's up!"

"Go get em!" Upon their command the dinosaurs both rushed into the women's bathroom and began sniffing around for signs of the intruder who dared trespass on restricted grounds! Seeing there was no one in the outside, they turned their attention to the lavatories, seeing all the doors opened widely with the toilets inside….except for one.

ROAR!

Locking onto their target, the abelisaurus rammed her head against it hard like a battering ram causing the door to smash open! As she peered in and found nothing but a wet soaked toilet that was closed, she grunted in annoyance seeing the trail had gone cold. Thankfully for Ursula, her pursuer hadn't looked up yet, had she did she may have been able to notice Ursula in the gaps of the air vents above. She covered her mouth to hide away her noise and stayed perfectly still knowing her movements would give herself away. Inside she sweated profusely, worried her new scent may be picked up….as her heart vibrated like crazy inside her feeling the pressure upon her as she felt completely suffocated by it!

Luckily, upon noticing the metriacanthosaurus leave out of disinterest, the abelisaurus then followed her comrade out as Ursula let out a huge sigh of relief and gasped out uncontrollably having held it in long enough. "That was close….way too close….." She thought to herself moist relieved and utterly grateful for the powers above being merciful to her. Though she wasn't out of the woods just yet, knowing that jinxing things would always turn out bad in the end, as she held her position and waited for a few moments to make sure the coast was clear, and it was good thing she did.

As the dinosaurs returned to their partners and snorted in disappointment, "Huh there's no one in?" One trooper scratched his head puzzled as to how they could be evaded, among Blaze's troops they were 2 of his best, so to lose sight of their target would be bad for their reputation.

The other one hissed under his helmet as he looked the other direction from where they were, "Tch! Let's spread out, no way can that peeper have gotten far!" He grunted as the 2 of them split up in different directions hoping to cover more ground, "It's all to protect our beloved Marina!" He yelled, as Ursula held her position and soon the sounds of stomping began to drown out till eventually she heard no more and she could rest easy for they were gone….for the time being.

"Phew….they're gone now…." She let out a sigh of relief before remembering her situation, being packed in such a dark and cramped space filled with dirt and cobwebs all over! In fact by even placing her hands on the floor of the vent, resulted in soiling her hands carefully moisturised with lotion, her personally tailored outfit and her lovely manicured nails! It was as though she was being eaten alive by the forces of filth and muck! "Tch! Look at me…soiled…filthy…disgusting…." She wheezed before her wet soggy hair began to slip down and smack against her face, now soiling her with even more filth and making her increasingly uncomfortable and smelly!

"UGH! My perfectly quaffed hair is ruined! I really need a shower!" She squealed feeling all queasy inside with each step. Truly today was the worst day of her life and everything she went through was for nothing….or was it? "But wait….." Widening her eyes she realised she can use this opportunity given to her, to get right up to where Marina was and get the drop on her without her knowing! Having memorised the way she came in from, she grinned deviously to herself as she blocked out everything else from her mind and set it solely on one aim, "Hehehehe….Just you wait you slimy sea snake, you're about to be upstaged!"

(Meanwhile)

In a certain private dressing room, which was decorated in navy blue ocean themed wallpaper covering every square inch of wall, with bubbles and wave decorations around them. The floor decorated in green carpeting much like seagrass and all around were various furniture with seaweed themed closets, furniture decorated with colourful seashells and even accessories like mirrors encrusted with corals, and various sea themed decorations hung on the walls or desks like ships in bottle or hanging lamps with ornaments like starfish or seashells hanging above. There was also an impressive art piece hanging which depicted the deep blue sea with whales and dolphins on it swimming together with plesiosaurs and itchyosaurs on it, symbolising how the modern and prehistoric worlds blended together in equal harmony. A glass cabinet on the side had several gold first place trophies and awards for various competitions Marina had won throughout her career, for beauty contests, best actress or even best singing performance too. Each of them had a photo of her dressed in elegant outfits for each occasion, be it cute and frilly for a live on stage performance or majestic and mystical for a pageant. In another corner was another larger cabinet shaped somewhat like an undersea treasure chest and inside it contained various dresses and outfits ranging for all kinds of themes like winter wear, summer sensation or even costumes that Marina used during her underwater performances.

At the front of her dressing table mirror, Marina hummed a little lullaby to herself as she brushed her hair with a seashell embroided comb, her hair flowing like the sea waves as each split end or knot was carefully straightened out. Her table also had a wide range of cosmetics and beauty products ranging from eye shadow, lipsticks, powder, you name it. Most of it being made from natural ingredients mainly from the sea, the same went with her wide range of perfumes which mainly originated from herbs or plants. Around her mirror she had various photos plastered around it reminding her of her successes and exploits over the past years, like winning her 10th pageant in a row, though what she treasured most were the ones with the deepest memories such as one photo depicting her childhood days winning her first talent competition with Camille her camarasaurus, along with being with her family at the beach town where she grew up in.

Right now she sported her Water Captain outfit and after putting on a little face moisturiser she smiled satisfied with how she looked. She could go all the way with her flashiest outfits and best makeup, but today given it was the first Fossil League they had in years she decided to make herself shine in her natural look and to be an inspiration to her many fans and the masses that one can always shine no matter whom they are or where they came from given her humble beginnings, much like how water in its' purest form should be and is essential to all life on the planet. After all, no matter how much makeup or fancy the outfit one can wear or hide behind, without any shine of their own it'd be meaningless or wasted. Also if they only focused solely on the outside, one's inner strength would be lost in turn. Those were the thoughts that she lived by and were passed down to her from her family for a long time.

RING! RING!

Her train of though was interrupted as her phone in her pocket began ringing, "Hmm?" She blinked her eyes curiously as she reached for it and answered, "Hello?" A voice echoed at the other end which made her smile with delight, "Oh hey Dorothy, how have you been?" She felt warmed to hear a call from family back home at the beachside town she lived at, and even after all this time they still managed to keep touch. "I see that's good to know." She replied relieved all was well as usual, "So how has everyone been back home?….That's great, I feel glad the money I helped earn from my work has been put to good use."

She was encouraged to hear that her efforts and investments in order to help preserve her hometown's way of living were still put to good use and she will continue to do so in order to provide for both her family and many others less fortunate around the world. It was never merely for personal fame and glory that a number of celebrities sought out, her devotion was to give back to the very people who needed it most, the common folk where she first began her roots and made her first steps, "Haha, well I'll be sure to put on quite the show for everyone in less than an hour, so stay tuned and be sure not to change the channel." She laughed happily hearing the sounds of cheers and excitement on the other end of the phone, along with some snarling and snapping in the background.

"Oh? Is that Lion I hear acting all mischievous as always?" She asked curiously before Dorothy let out a few other words at the end which made her giggle in amusement, "Hahaha oh dear, guess some things never change." Looking up at the clock which had a dolphin in its' centre face and a seashell decor base, she saw it was almost time, "Well, I've got to be going now, take care and see you soon. Mwah!" She blew a kiss at the end before putting the phone back in its place. Right after that she got out of her seat and exited her room, closing the door behind her.

RUMBLE!

Not after she left though, rumbling came from the air vent right above her room, followed by angry grunting before finally the vent above gave way and Ursula fell right out of it and onto the floor below with a loud thud!

"WAAAAAH!"

CRASH!

"Urgh….They make it look way easier in the movies….." She groaned lying face flat on the carpeted ground, which thankfully helped to soften her fall. She soon removed her face from the floor and looked up, her face flushing red with pain and now her entire body was soiled filthy with the gunk and dust in the air vents. The humiliation and punishment she went through to get here, she grinned maliciously knowing it was all worth it because now she could…."Huh? There's no one here!" She exclaimed in shock and surprise looking around the premises to see no one was around. Clenching her fists tightly and fuming red, veins bulging out of her head as she steamed in irritation, "GRR! After everything I just went through, how dare she leave me to dry!?" She snarled feeling insulted that she went through a humiliating ordeal all for nothing! Not to mention she had to skip lunch and waste so much time being chased around like some cartoonish skit, she was no stranger to having karma hit her in the face but this was already more than she could take.

"When I get my hands on that eel I'll skin her ali-" Before she could finish her sentence, looking to the treasure chest cabinet on the side, Ursula's rage vanished into thin air as sparkles erupted in her eyes upon seeing all the glamorous outfits layered upon one another inside! "WOOOOO! Look at all these ensembs!" She squealed as she rushed towards it, grabbing each one with her soiled hands and twirling around with it before moving onto the next till the room began to get all messed up with clothes all around the floor as Ursula kept tossing them out in enjoyment and excitement flowing through her.

"I have to say she does have great taste in fashion! Of course her sense isn't as nearly as great as mine but-" As expected with her severely limited attention span, the moment she turned her head facing Marina's mirror and dressing room table, her eyes sparkled like diamonds with glee and greed, "Oh and just look at all these cosmetics and jewelry! I've never seen anything so beautiful in my whole life Hoho!" She gazed over the amazing selection of bracelets. ear rings, necklaces and all kinds of cosmetics ranging from eye shade, lipsticks, eye last curlers. It was heaven on earth for Ursula, to be surrounded by such an enormous range of glitz and glamour, unable to choose where to start first, was both a blessing and a curse at the same time.

Ursula continued to raid Marina's belongings and indulge herself in her ecstasy, to her it was a dream come true to be surrounded by the most exclusive and exotic fashions, shoes and cosmetics all rolled together in the finest dressing room of all…and it was all hers to do as she pleased, perhaps this trip wasn't for nothing after all. "Hehehe, all this treasure is wasted on that witch, I'm sure I could put it all to way better use!" She snickered deviously to herself, knowing full well with this knowledge of the future trends to come she'd be able to stay a step ahead of fashion brands in her present and future to come, or in fact with several of these 'borrowed' ideas she'd be able to start new trends of her own! With it she'd definitely make her mark in history as the most successful and beautiful woman of all! Having whatever she wanted whenever she wanted!

Unfortunately for her, being trapped in her own greedy delusions and vanity, blinded her senses to incoming danger.

SNARL!

"Huh?" Ursula blinked her eyes snapped out of her moment upon hearing a low growl echo outside the room. Her heart skipped a beat as a pair of familiar voices echoed outside right after the growls.

"I think I heard something coming from there!"

"In Marina's dressing room!? Unforgivable!" The 2 guards growled angrily as the sounds of approaching footsteps and stomps came rumbling in.

"That's it! Forget taking them in! Let's just roast that peeper alive!" One of them screamed in an enraged tone.

"Isn't that overkill?" His friend asked him feeling a little unsure with crossing the line.

"Relax! After the autographs Marina just gave us on her way out, it's the last we can do for her as part of her fan club!" His friend retorted, "Besides, no one will ever know or care! In fact we'd be doing the world a great deal of service!"

"EEEP!" Ursula found herself in peril once again, her heart racing as soon as she could hear sniffing underneath the doors and the handle being turned! Realising she left plenty of hard evidence around her, she quickly grabbed all the garments lying out on the floor and stuffed them untidily black inside the cabinet as well as put everything back the way they were, in an effort to hide any evidence of her intruding! It was painful for her to part with such once in lifetime chances, but under the circumstances she valued her life way more as she also returned the 'samples' she was 'borrowing' so they wouldn't slow her down. Then with all her strength in a panic she jumped up high to grab the vent's edge above before quickly hoisting herself back up and shutting the grate behind her, as the doors opened and the 2 troopers came in, with their dinos waiting outside!

As they looked around to find nothing out of the ordinary in Marina's room, they both then scowled with disappointment.

"Tch! Nothing again?"

"What a waste of time how lame…."

Looking from above from the grate, she gritted her teeth tensely in fear and panic, her heart racing non stop as though it were the tense suspenseful moment of a spy movie where the hero was about to be found by the villain! Only this time if she got caught, the consequences would be way worse than whatever would befall the hero!

Sniff! Sniff!

Down below the dinosaurs sniffed, having picked up the scent of filth and dirt from where they were, and sensing the culprit may not have left the premises as it seemed. Hearing them snarl and grunt, Ursula's heart skipped a beat as it would only be a matter of time when they'd really find her this time! She closed her eyes and prayed silently, as just as they were about to let out a warning cry to their owners-

"Wait….time?" One trooper blinked his eyes in surprise before diverting his eyes at the clock on the wall, seeing it he both widened his eyes in a panic! "WAH! The match is going to begin in 5 minutes!" He exclaimed with his friend mirroring his expression.

"We've gotta go now or we'll miss the big show!" Without any hesitation at all, the 2 men recalled their dinosaurs and raced out the room post haste, leaving Ursula letting out a huge sigh of relief, thanking the powers above for their mercy now that her ordeal was over….or was it?

"Wait a second….5 minutes?" Ursula blinked her eyes as the gears clicked in her brain, and once again she fell into a panic, "WAAAH! This is no time to be late! If I don't make it in time who knows how many of MY fans I'd be letting down!" She screamed to herself before realising the consequences that may befall her right after that! "Not to mention it'd pale in comparison to what Dr Z would put me through…." She turned pale knowing full well what Dr Z will do to her if she put on an even worse example than Ed and Zander, and with no time to waste the crawled through the maze of vents in an effort to try and find the exit again, and in the process getting even more soiled and unclean in the process!

"I can't believe this….being reduced to crawling like some rat! This is so NOT how I wanted to spend my day! This is the worse!" She snared viciously to herself, to go through humiliation which she herself believed she didn't deserve at all! All her efforts completely wasted….she vowed to herself that a certain someone was going to pay dearly for this…..

(Meanwhile)

A little while later at the arena once everyone had gathered together once more in anticipation of the next round, the crowds were more riled up with excitement as many fans and admirers in the seats above gathered banners, foam fingers or wore t shirts or caps in blue or having Marina's logo on them in honour of their beloved beauty. So many of them gathered nearly the entire rows above were coloured in deep blue, and they all cheered her name on as the MC announced her arrival onto the field. "And now, in this corner representing our City's Ms Mesozoic in the Prehistoric Pageant for 5 years in a row, please welcome our Majestic Marine Mermaiden! Marina Ametama!"

The audience roared and cheered with applause as Marina smiled and waved back to them, "Hi everyone! Thank you all for coming! Now is everyone ready for their worries to be washed away!?" With winking and blowing just a few kisses was enough to make the excitement erupt into a wildfire of screams and whistling.

"Marina!"

"Win this for us all!"

"We believe in you!"

"Oh my gosh! She's so elegant and beautiful!" Zoe suddenly gasped in awe and amazement to the surprise of Max and Rex as her eyes sparkled with the light of a hundred stars. A natural reaction she got whenever something caught her eyes, which was usually fancy fashion or jewellery or celebrities. "Eventhough she's wearing something rather simple, she really brings out the best of the outfit! In fact she glistens so much she outshines any outfit she can wear all on her own!" She squealed with delight before blushing red in an ecstasy, "I can't wait to get all sorts of fashion and beauty tips from her when this duel is done with! Maybe even know the latest trends in the years to come from now!" She thought out loud to herself shivering with excitement while Max and Rex sweat dropped at her childish behaviour.

"Hehe, looks like she's got herself a new biggest fan." Cera chuckled knowing Marina would be flattered that one of the legendary heroes she and many others looked up to was admiring her.

Her other 2 friends though didn't share the same enthusiasm she did, "Wow…even after all this time you're still into that huh?" Rex sweatdropped.

"Thought you would've grown out of that nonsense by now." Max muttered with disinterest.

Zoe pouted back at his snarky comment, "Hmph! Once a fashionista always a fashionista!" she responds proudly holding her head high, "Even if you guys had a hundred years you still wouldn't get it."

"Pfft! Yeah right, as if we'd waste any time on something as pointless as that." Max scoffed shrugging his shoulders, which spurred Zoe to suddenly grab him by his collar! "WAH!" He yelped as he came face to face with her mad eyes.

"What'd you say!?" She growled taking offence, "I dare you to say that to my face!"

Max sweated nervously but refused to give into fear as he held his ground, "B…Bring it on! I'm not scared!"

Cera sighed and sweat dropped herself seeing that some things just would never change as she and Rex tried to ignore them. Deciding to change the topic, Rex then looked to Cera curiously, "So Cera, anything you'd like to share with us regarding Marina?" He asked to which Max and Zoe overheard as they stopped their bickering and looked towards her.

"Haha, oh where oh where should I begin?" she laughed in a joyful manner as her friends gathered around to listen, they were interested when she shared to them what she learnt from Craig and it wouldn't hurt to hear more about Marina and the other captains too. That way they'd be able to get to know them more as people and maybe get a better idea of how they'd be in battle or the kind of relationship they have with dinosaurs.

Cera cleared her throat as she began to think back to the days of her youth once more, "Well to begin with I've known Marina thanks to my mom, given they knew each other for a while." She started having once introduced her when she came over to her house when she was quite young, though infant at the time she could never forget the faces of those who have left a big impact on her in that age, "Plus one of her younger relatives, Dorothy, happens to be an old friend of mine who moved back to the beachside town they grew up in. On the outskirts of Saurus City." She said after that given she and Dorothy had gone way back too.

"Wow, sounds like quite a small world there." Max whistled amazed at how easily Cera could be connected to easily with such great people through family connections and not just with her own effort. It made him and the others rather jealous thinking about it since their parents' circle of friends wasn't all that impressive in comparison.

Cera nodded and continued, "That town is rather small and not so developed, in fact they get everything they need thanks to the sea. Be it fishing, water related activities like water sports and diving, you name it." She said, having visited that town once and remembering them being grateful and giving thanks to the sea for every meal they get. At times passing the days there were plenty of bonding activities like swimming through the azure blue waters across the seagrass beds and coral reefs, and at times jet skiing while having an opthalmosaurus pull them too. Fishing was done in unity with either pterosaurs or plesiosaurs whom the locals had a close connection with.

It was then Cera sighed a little as there was always a but to every good story, "Of course like in the past where you guys come from, most natural landscapes or simple lifestyles are at risk from over development, so it wasn't long before even Marina's hometown was at risk at being bought out by greedy tycoons." She recalled a time when a fat, rich and greedy businessman from a wealthy company known as FossilDig Inc, came in and announced with intentions of buying the land and to either drive out all the local residents or force them to work under his CEO, in an effort to add to his company's growing intentions being to purchase the beachside town and upgrade it into a mega resort that would draw in tourists all across the world.

Needless to say that outrageous plan of his didn't hit it off well with the locals, especially Marina and Dorothy's family, who had lived there for many generations and their roots in the land being attuned greatly with the natural order of things. Any rapid developments would put their natural heritage at risk and of course threaten the local environment at risk from pollution and development. "Thankfully though, the local residents weren't going to take being evicted from their homes by outsiders with no respect for them or their ways." Cera added remembering the protests from the residents making a stand though the tycoon wasn't backing down so easily given he either bribed or blackmailed many of the town's leaders, stating they'd never grow without him being in charge of their land and lives, though he was 'generous' to give 3 months to prove to him they could earn the money to keep their livelihoods and prove they could be prosperous without his action.

"Marina vowed to not let her village and community lose their years of livelihood get washed away by this unwelcome storm," said Cera as she had seen this firsthand when she made a vow to the people to stand together and be strong, "So that's when she set off using her many talents to pursue all kinds of careers in order to earn the money needed to preserve their land and to convey her community's bond between them and the dinosaurs, winning the hearts and supports of as many people as possible." She was a woman of many talents in many areas be it from an underwater actress, a model on stage or an idol at a concert. She was also really flexible too catering to different tastes of the masses and getting with the times such as doing something swimsuit showcases or beach beauty contests in the summer or performing icy related performances when the winter came in. This was her biggest strength and within said time she was able to quickly muster enough money to secure their land by the time the greedy tycoon returned.

"Despite earning said money in order to preserve their land, that executive wasn't going to take defeat lying down though." She sighed having seen the news one day when the executive brought a gang of guards with him armed with riot shields and bullet proof vests, along with several robots aiming to drive out the locals by force. It was then the local community, along with Marina leading the charge called out their dinosaurs to make a stand to defend their home despite being heavily outnumbered, "However, thanks to Marina helping everyone band together, we were able to drive off that tycoon and his interlopers off the village's land and we've never had trouble from him since then."

Her friends were sound speechless by her deep story, "Wow…." Rex breathed while Max stood speechless.

"Now that's a story for environmental justice if I ever heard one." Zoe stated, something she felt the world back home really needed more than ever.

Cera leaned her head back into her hands and smiled as she let her mind drift back into pleasant memories, "Since that day I remember Marina continuing on her career as both a model and entertainer, and every time she ventured out into the world to convey her love and sense of community for her home and the dinosaurs….she won the hearts of everyone who witnessed her captivating performances and shows…." She explained, having either watched or been there in person to witness every show Marina took part in. Be it music concerts, underwater shows or beauty pageants, anything to make her many fans and supporters happy and smile with hope along with showcasing the what anyone can accomplish with bonds.

Above all though, there was one thing that pleased the water captain more than making others smile on stage, "And all her fundings from every single show of hers, she always made sure to donate majority of it to help preserve and care for natural environments worldwide." She said father adding to her friends' amazement, "It's thanks to that she gets along really well with Hua, who too loves nature as much as she does….plus it's all too clear as a clean freshwater stream to see why she and Blaze got along as kids too." She added remembering said story from Maia a while back, and how romantic a story it was.

"Hehe, Blaze sure really is lucky to have someone like her in life." Zoe giggled finding it real romantic before elbowing Max playfully, "You could use one yourself too Max. And I don't mean a maid to pick up after your slack every single time you get inside your room."

"Ngh…." Max grunted pouting a little grumpily, given its Rex gone he had to clean the messes all by himself these days, he had to remind himself never to take some for granted again. Something which Rex couldn't;'t help but chuckle at seeing how close they were.

"Marina also really knows how to go with the flow and adapt to the changing times," Cera then continued getting her friends' attention, "Be it improvising on her performances in different roles or leading new fashion trends in the modelling world." She said proudly seeing that as Marina's best trait, "In fact when it came to the war she sure was quick to find a new task at training our Marine Marines unit, and yet beneath the surface she always keeps her philosophy the same of keeping everyone together and showing everyone the love and bond with one another and the dinosaurs is most important of all. Like how water changes form and adapts to different situations you can say she is living water personified."

Max and co widened their eyes and breathed in amazement, "Wow…." such lifelong lessons were priceless and ought to be taken to heart, being applicable to all people no matter the time and place.

"I really have no other words to say…." Rex commented before chuckling, "Heh, I feel really jealous that you've grown up with so many great friends." His expression was mirrored by the others who agreed with a nod.

Cera smiled lightly in response before sighing to their surprise, "Well to be honest during the war they'e been more like trusted teachers than actual friends." She said a little sadly, "Back then there really was little time or room for building friendships, even for Marina while she said bonds were important it was hard to get everyone to be true friends to stick and trust one another through thick and thin." She explained. It was something Cera treasured deeply when taking part in her training course during the war though said message wasn't always well received by every trooper, but the fact Cera received said message wholeheartedly helped motivate Marina to continue trying and doing what she did best to help keep the teams' spirits up.

Her friends though were still taken aback by what she just told them, "Oh….umm….sorry to hear that…." Max scratched his head feeling bad, to which she shook her head and smiled.

"It's fine." She replied calmly, "At least now in this new age….we have a chance….all thanks to you helping to make it happen." Their courage and friendship as a shining example to make it a reality again.

Max placed a hand on hers' surprising her, "You're wrong Cera." He said with a confident smile, "It's thanks to all of us."

Rex and Zoe both nodded, "We made it happen for everyone.

"And we'll be sure to keep it so till the end of time." They each said with confidence to which Cera nodded back with assurance in her heart.

"Yeah, us."

Their moment of close ties and friendship was then interrupted as the MC announced the next contender for the round's winner, "And in the next corner, introducing the Alpha gang's fiery femme fatale! Ursula!" As the MC finished announcing, the crowds and audience cheered and applauded, though not out of support was mainly for the fact that she'd make this battle exciting and nothing more.

Although there was one fan amongst the masses who was genuinely loyal and smitten with her, "AH! My lovely Ursu-" Dr Owen's eyes were filled with hearts and stars as he excitedly awaited his angel to step on stage…..only to find that the woman in questions wasn't there. "Huh!?" His jaw hung as murmurs and a few boos began to echo from the masses.

Down below the A Team present sweated nervously as they became the center of everyone's focus and everyone began eying them questioningly, as Dr Z tried to hide behind Ed and Zander as they began to shudder nervously with so many eyes on them. The whole time they were expecting Ursula to be fashionably late and do some dramatic entry like usual, though sadly it wasn't the case and today may have been one of those times they'd been okay with it.

"Umm….that's unexpected, apparently Ursula isn't present….." The MC then stated awkwardly as many of the spectators began to mutter amongst themselves, making the Alpha gang members rather uneasy as they could hear badmouthing and insults about not being punctual and on time, given what Ed and Zander did earlier didn't help their case very much either.

While most of Marina's fans were disappointed their beloved idol wouldn't be able to strut her stuff and make a big splash, there were a handful who snickered thinking Ursula chickened out and good thing too.

"Man this show's a total flop!"

"I wanted to see Marina make a big splash!"

"BOO!" Even Blaze joined in on the ranting to the surprise of his fellow captains.

On Ursula's fanbase however….which wasn't very large, "WAAH! This is an outrage! How could my lovely angel Ursula be so cruel as to NOT grace me with her radiance!?" Dr Owen let out a heavy outburst and cry of agony as tears welled up in his eyes, "Ursula my love! Please hurry for my very soul weeps for you!" He wailed loudly making many around him uncomfortable as they edged away from him uneasily.

"WAH! Señor! Please control yourself!" Patrick gasped in alarm as he tried to restrain his boss, though to little avail as said boss began thrashing about like a child throwing a tantrum as he flared red and screamed at the top of his lungs, creating a scene which many found bizarre.

"Oh dad….." Rex muttered covering his face and hiding away behind his friends unable to live this down for a while. Max patted his back with sympathy while Cera and Zoe sighed feeling for him.

His associates and friends shared mixed feelings of amusement, sympathy or bewilderment as a result of this too, "I knew Owen was strange, wacky and unpredictable…." Cretacia whispered to her husband, "But to actually LOVE Ursula? That I didn't see coming." As much as she enjoyed the unusual, even she had her limits and this was one of them.

"It's not like Ursula to be a no show for something like this…." Ancient put a finger to his chin curiously in thought to which his wife nodded.

"I agree," Among Dr Z's adopted children and assistants she'd seen how vain and prideful she was, and because she thought herself better than others or tried to steal it through underhanded means it didn't get her a lot of friends back at the orphanage or even in recent years, something she heard from Rod and Laura's parents. "We've known her for a long time, how she can't resist the spotlight or an opportunity to show off and boast about how she is the 'most beautiful woman ever'….." She said doing bunny ears with her fingers, "Though if you ask me she's just hot headed and filled with hot air." She whispered to the other adults who nodded in agreement with her.

"You can say that again." They said in unison, rolling their eyes. Calling her vain and narcisstic would be the understatement of the day.

"What do you think could've happened to her?" Laura wondered while Rod simply shrugged his shoulders.

"Who knows, knowing her I wouldn't be surprised if she got distracted by some new dress or fainted from chipping a nail or something." He said in a sarcastic tone.

"Yup that sure sounds like her." Laura sighed in agreement. Knowing her well when it came to said materialistic matters she had the attention span of a squirrel and even way more messed up priorities to boot.

"In the next 5 minutes, should Ursula fail to make an appearance we shall move on and declare Marina winner by default!"

Some of the fans were on board with the idea and began cheering, but Marina on the other hand pouted feeling disappointed, "Oh bummer, and here I thought I was going to show off some of my new moves and give the audience a wild and wet experience they'd never forget." She was also offended that she'd be stood up like this too, not only was it rude, but it'd make her feel unfitting of this so called win and making one of Dustberg's heroines look bad too.

Dr Z clenched his fist tightly and gritted his teeth in frustration, "Grrr! Of all the times that Ursula had to scamper off somewhere to be 'fashionably late' as she says…." He growled as he could hear whispering amongst some of the nearby audience no doubt they were saying bad things about him. Quickly turning to Ed and Zander, "You 2 numbskulls! Go get her now! Even if you have to barge into the women's bathroom to do it, drag her back here this instance!" He demanded to the alarm and surprise of his other 2 assistants.

"Say wha!?" They widened their eyes knowing they'd be breaking so many rules with that.

"Dr Z! Even you should know it's illegal for us men to trespass into forbidden land!"

"Plus no way we can find and bring her back in 5 minutes!" They tried to explain, but as usual Dr Z just wouldn't hear of it.

"Bah! I couldn't care less about any of your excuses!" He ranted throwing his arms out and fuming again for the umpteenth time, "I don't care if you have to turn this city upside down, go find her this instant!" It was then his angered scowl turned to a menacing grin which made Ed and Zander shudder, "Or would you rather I have Helga stuff you both with mush for the next 5 weeks!?" He snickered making them both gulp and then lower their heads in defeat.

"Y…Yes sir…." They groaned unable to resist his threats any longer, before limping away and cursing their fate under their breaths.

On the D Team's side they pondered over what could have kept her all this while, plus it was rather curious they never saw her during lunch too. On one hand as much as they didn't want Ursula to be around bragging and showing off, it still wasn't quite right for her to be kicked off like this nor would did it seem like her to stay out of the spotlight. "Maybe it'd be better if she didn't show…not unless she wants to see what her fanbase is really like." Max muttered as he could hear the jeers and rants echoing from the masses.

"Hmm I wonder…." Cera thought to herself before an idea clicked in her head, strangely in sync with her 3 friends as they looked to each other, "You guys thinking what I'm thinking." She smirked as her expression was mirrored by the others too.

"Mhmm."

The 4 friends snickered together rather mischievously as they began to blurt all sorts of things out loudly, knowing full well no matter where in the world she'd be, Ursula would come running like a vulture to a carcass.

"You know since, Ursula's an old lady I bet she maybe slipped and cracked her back or something." Max called out.

"Heh, well she is in her senior years now is I'm not surprised if that's the case." Rex smirked while shrugging his shoulders, "Bet she's trying to hide all those yucky wrinkles on her face with all that overpriced makeup."

"You know come to think of it, she's so old bet rainbows were black and white when she was young." Zoe added.

"Or maybe she was even around since the dinosaurs were still alive and ruling the earth." Cera concluded.

"WAH!?" Ed and Zander widened their eyes upon realising the D Team had pretty much summoned the apocalypse with those words….and sure enough-

"GRAARGH!" A menacing screech erupted from behind the doors of the coliseum Zander and Ed were hiding towards, followed by heavy rumbling which shook the grounds around them making it feel like a miniature earthquake! The sound of said shriek was also loud enough to cause nearby birds and pterosaurs roosting to scatter to the air in a panic!

Suddenly the ground around them began to shake violently as the crowds and the MC had to hold onto their seats or take cover!

"WAAH!"

"Wh…What's this!? An earthquake!?"

At the D team's side they smirked shrugging their shoulders seeing it to be expected, "Heh, works every time." They said knowing what to expect now….though this time round they were going to be in for a surprise.

"YEEEK!" Ed and Zander were frozen in place, unable to move as their feet were rooted to the spot with the charging foot stomps approaching the doors! It was too little too late as they huddled together when the doors suddenly smashed wide open sending them flying!

WHAM!

"GAAAH!" Both Ed and Zander were then sent flying forward and then face planting on the ground several feet away!

The sight of which was a shock to the spectators gathered since it was less than a minute since the announcement, but even more so was the new arrival who came through the doors….that was what shocked everyone the most when they got a good look at her.

"WHO JUST CALLED ME AN OLD LADY!?" Ursula roared at the top of her lungs in an enraged manner as she stomped out towards the battle field, walking past Ed and Zander who were still lying down on the ground groaning in pain.

"Urgh….I feel like I've been bulldozed by a rhino…."

"Urk….my head…." They moaned as they slowly came to and lifted their heads off the ground and their vision slowly came to, "Hey Ursu-WAH!" The both of them widened their eyes and scurried back in fright when they saw.

When Ursula stepped out into the light, everyone saw how filthy and boiler her clothes were from her upper torso right down to her shoes in brown and black gunk and dust, along with cobwebs stuck all around her soaked green hair which was unkept like seaweed now! Her makeup had gotten all runny all over her face looking almost as though her face was melting and the way she looked was something out of a a fashion expert's worst nightmare! Her eyes too bulged red with stress and frustration as everyone present and worldwide saw her on camera and the very sight of her scarred them for life! Something even the bravest of them found most challenging to bear!

While everyone was put off or unnerved by the sight of Ursula's nightmarish new appearance, there was still one individual who was willing and able to see past her hideous exterior and accept her for who she was, ""Oh my stars! MY URSULA!" Dr Owen sang as his heart began to soar deep inside him, blushing red and hearts began to appear in his eyes blinding him to how she looked on the outside. It didn't matter to him how she presented herself, what did was that she was able to make it in time and that moved him to tears, "I knew she'd never fail or betray me! And as always she's as stunning and radiant as the sun as ever!" He cried with immeasurable amounts of joy, as Patrick patted him on the back out of sympathy.

His forward actions made most onlookers eye him the wrong way, puzzling them how he could love a horrid monster like Ursula, others sighed believing he was a lost cause or that he had to have been blind.

As several onlookers gazed speechlessly at the horrendous mess Ursula ended up as, various comments and murmurs began to arise as they began whispering to one another, "Wonder what kept her." Laura asked curiously.

"Forget that, what happened to her?" Rod widened his eyes creeped out seeing how she looked now, and he thought that Ursula would know how to take better care of herself given how she was a 'style trend setter' as she kept calling herself, unless she was starting a new trend of 'dumpsters for dames'.

"Yeesh! She looks like something the dino dragged in!" Cera cried as she covered her eyes unable to look at her associate any longer, while her friends too shared the same feelings as her.

"Yikes! Talk about a bad hair day…." Zander paled after he and Ed recovered from their fall and having regrouped back at their seating booth.

"That would be the understatement of the century." Ed nodded only to receive a low but deadly growl from Ursula which silenced them both.

"Grrr…."

"Eep!" They yelped knowing they'd be stepping on a landmine if they went any further with the comments.

"Maybe we ought to keep it to ourselves for now, not unless we want to lose our heads." Zander muttered to Ed who nodded back in agreement.

"Ursula!" Dr Z then raged impatiently, unaware he was stepping on the lion's tail, "How dare you keep everyone here waiting and making me your king look bad!?" Being late was the last thing on her mind right now, in fact so many thoughts ran through her mind this very moment, from what purpose she was put on the earth for to suffer so much….or whom but her was to blame for such transgressions committed against her. What she had been put through from being chased by dinosaurs, crawling through the disgusting vents like vermin and having to skip lunch….Dr Z's rants were nothing more than background noise to her right now. "On top of that you look terrible! What were you up to for so long!? You'd better have-" As Dr Z was about to continue-

"Not another word." She suddenly spoke in a dark and very scary tone which made him turn pale and freeze up.

"Gulp!"

"I'm in no mood to put up with your shenanigans today Dr Z…..So I'm just going to go up on stage and get this round over with….and then….I'm going back for a nice long shower….nothing more….nothing less…."

Dr Z swallowed hard unable to respond, "A…Alright then….go right ahead and….make us proud…." He croaked weakly while Ed and Zander clapped nervously hoping to show support for her despite shaking in their boots.

"Yay…."

The MC had no words to announce her arrival on time, in fact he was shivering in terror seeing Ursula look something like out of a horror movie or maybe even gave the scariest monsters nightmares the way she looked now!

Deep inside despite looking as though she was done with life and her own existence, Ursula cursed herself inwardly with self hate like no other, "Sheesh, is this what I get for trying to make myself look the best for my win!? What did I ever do to deserve this!?"

"Umm…." Marina couldn't help but point out a little at her, even though she knew it was rude she couldn't help it this time around, "If that's your idea of a makeover I think it'd be much better if you went without any at all." She said trying to crack a joke but all it did was serve to tick off Ursula a lot more as she flared red and snorted like an angered bull.

"Grrr….."

"Though if you'd like after the duel I'd be happy to offer you some beauty tips and-" Sadly the water captain's kind offer was immediately turned or more precisely shot down.

"Oh shut it! I don't need anyone's help to be beautiful!" She growled, making Marina widen her eyes in shock at such rudeness, as well as putting off many of her fans and the spectators. "In fact I'm plenty gorgeous all on my own! Just watch!" Taking out a cloth from one of her pockets she began to wipe off all the gunk from her clothes, face and hair. She did a rather scrawny job of it too despite getting all the dirt off her hair was still unruly and she still reeked with the stench from the dusty vents, yet she still put on a brave and cocky smirk as she held her head up high, "Ta da! See what I mean!? Just shows I have way better fashion sense than you ever would in a million years! Hahahahah!"

While Marina sighed feeling pity for her opponent, her fans however began to gnash their teeth or clench their fists and snarl in anger that she had the nerve to compare herself or even put herself above their goddess! Most of those who were acquainted with Ursula, sweated nervously or tried looking away avoiding eye contact, not wanting to be on the receiving end of her rabid devoted followers. The Alpha gang and Dr Z included as they shuddered and huddled up together, trying to stay out of sight best they could, while the D Team and their families swallowed hard and sweated knowing she was going to have it later if she didn't keep her big mouth shut….

As before, only one man out of the entire masses voiced out his eternal support and loyalty for Ursula, "Oh my lovely Ursula, just know you'll always be beautiful to me no matter how you look or what you wear!" Dr Owen cried out once more, earning several scowls from the spectators around him, which he was oblivious to, worrying Patrick that they may come for him next should he keep making himself the centre of attention.

"P…Pardon me for sounding rude but….you seem rather….stressed and uptight….." Marina voiced out her concerns, "Is something the matter?" She was soon met with an unexpected response

Ursula's eyes widened with rage and red veins, "I'll tell you what's wrong!" She snapped starling Marina as Ursula pointed at her, "You that's what! You stole the man of my dreams right from under my nose!" She roared aiming her harsh words at the water captain before bursting into comedic tears as she got into her tragedy mode, "He was perfect in every way, only for me to find out he was already hooked by you!" Marina blinked her eyes in surprise at what Ursula said, "It's also because of that I suffered all that humiliation back at Dustberg a while back!"

As soon as she finished her words, several individuals including the Captains and Dr Owen, who had a huge scold on his face began to eye Blaze with suspicion. In response he shook his hands trying to disperse said suspicion, "D…Don't look at me, I have nothing to do with this nor do I have any clue what she's talking about. Please leave me out." He asked hoping they'd leave him alone.

"ACK!" Ursula felt devastated on the inside seeing she was being left to dry out without any backup, "How could….you…." She felt so weak and broken deep down she fell to her knees and tears began to well up in her eyes till she began bawling, "WAH! I thought what we had was special!" She then cried out loudly spewing tears like a fountain as her heart was smashed into a million pieces for the umpteenth time.

"Sigh….here we go again with the water works…." Rod shook his head in disapproval as everyone else who was acquainted with her began to eye her with pity or disgust.

"Mhmm…" They all had the same thoughts in mind, and from this it was clear whom the majority wanted to win or lose in this round.

Having pieced everything together, Marina sighed pityingly at her opponent and also having nothing but pity and disapproval for her, "I see what's going on now…." She said as she closed her eyes calmly, interrupting Ursula's wallowing in self pity.

"Huh?" The old lady blinked her eyes as she tried to process whether she heard right….unfortunately for her not only was her hearing fine but there was a lot more where that came from.

"If I can be honest….there's no other way to put it except that you're both vain and shallow." Marina then said upfront and directly, which made Ursula widen her eyes in shock and triggering her.

"HUH!?"

And Marina wasn't done yet, "I've seen women like you before, driven by materialism and motivated by excitement and infatuation instead of true love." She shook her head in disapproval, "The kind of people who only look at the surface of others at first glance without taking the time to truly get to know the people they truly are. And for that I truly feel sorry for you."

The D Team stared speechlessly upon taking in the words Marina said straight too Ursula's face, not even they could say anything like that so bluntly and upfront, nor would they actually dare to get that direct with Ursula, no doubt Marina had a lot of guts to do just that.

"Wow she sure gets straight to the point…."

"Brutal honesty…."

"Then again she is speaking nothing but the truth." They each said one after the other, with no other words to describe it.

Ursula's eye twitched for a few seconds before she fumed red and stomped her foot enraged, "Grr! How dare you say such things of me….you know nothing about me!" She growled furiously before snorting like a mad bull, "There's nothing wrong with me! I'm perfect in every way! To think a nobody like you has the nerve to utter such mockery at a beauty like me!" She then pointed out at Marina as she made her declaration of war, "In fact when today's done you'll be all washed up and show you the difference between us is incomparable!"

In response to her boastful claim several of Marina's hardcore fans began to boo and rant back at Ursula's outrageous claim.

"How dare she!?"

"What lies!"

"BOO!"

"Get out of here!"

To everyone's surprise instead of cowering in fear at everyone's scorn, she made a sharp turn facing them, "All of you be quiet or I'll set you all ablaze!" She threatened. One glare from her dagger tipped eyes silenced them in an instant to the others' surprise. In an instant fear and terror gripped the hearts of those gathered as they became pretty much petrified by Ursula's gorgon like glare and were unable to pull their eyes away! The D Team had to admit, they may have underestimated the old lady's capabilities once more should she be rubbed the wrong way for too long. Having expected her to be pelted by insults and scorn she instead turned the tables on the haters instead was something they hadn't expected.

Marina sighed shaking her head, "Something you fail to realise is that outward beauty is skin deep." She said, "What's most important is being beautiful on the inside. If only you'd realise that."

Ursula however only scoffed in response, "I have no idea what you just said. All that matters is that beauty is power! I'll show the whole city and this entire world how I trump you in ever way possible!" She retorted wildly with rage.

It was then Marina could see there was no peaceful way to resolve this, "Hmm seems like my words won't get to you at all even if I try my very best." She didn't like resorting to force or violence even when in battle, but with no alternative she had to do something before this got further out of hand, "In that case I'll just have to snuff out that spark of vanity inside you before it erupts into an uncontrollable inferno."

Ursula as usual was having none of it, "Talk is cheap! Let's let our dinos do the stomping instead!" She growled impatiently as the rest of the Alpha gang shivered in terror behind her, huddling up together.

"On that we agree." Marina calmly replied as she took out her dinoshot, "Let's get down to it then shall we." As she finished the 2 of them became enveloped by the dome as they both entered a time warp bringing them to a battlefield which was a large island in a gorged pit surrounded by waterfalls around them pouring in large amounts of water and encircling the area around them making it a water battlefield.

"A…And without further ado let the 3rd match of the first round begin!" The MC was able to bring himself to announced as the crowds cheered with excitement for the next battle.

Marina smirked as she took out just the cards she wanted, "Alpha slash! Wash them away Suchomimus!" A blue light appeared before her and materialising was a suchomimus, but not the kind that anyone would expect as this now has a black back and yellow zigzag stripe bordering the black upper parts of his body along with a dark purple underside!

"And Marina appears with Smith! Her prized partner suchomimus!" The MC proclaimed, attracting several cheers and gasps of awe and amazement, needless to say his coloration brought in awe and amazement to onlookers as Marina and Smith instantly became the center of everyone's attention.

Dr Z along with Ed and Zander widened their eyes in surprise at the unexpected arrival, "AH! Such glorious execution! Those colours can only mean my beloved Alpha dinosaurs haven't gone extinct! Ahahaha! My legacy will surely live on in this glorious new age as all will remember that me the great Dr Z have came up with such a revolutionary feat!"

The D Team widened their eyes in surprise, "An alpha dinosaur!?" Rex gasped caught by surprise.

"I didn't think any would still be around even after the Shadow War…." Max breathed while Zoe looked to Cera.

"Cera, are you sure this is a good idea?"

Looking back to them she sighed slightly, not fully on board with the idea either herself, "I know what you're thinking guys." She stated, "Though if it helps, the only dinosaurs that have gone alpha now are those who were willing or even eager to undergo the process of change…." Cera then looked ahead to see Smith letting out a few pleased cries to greet the fans and audience as Marina blew kisses and struck poses with her partner, which brought a smile to her face, "As far as I know, they've still been the same dinosaurs as they were before too. Plus don't forget we have a way of reversing it whenever they want, so there isn't anything to worry about." She added at the end hoping it would solidify her standpoint.

"I guess if you put it that way…." Rex scratched his head feeling rather unsure and somewhat torn thinking it over as he weighed both sides of the argument, "Though, I'm not sure how to feel about this…." A sentiment shared by his buddies.

Back at the duel, unimpressed nor did she care for whom her opponent was, Ursula's fingers twitched as she grabbed hold of her dinoshot and gripped it real hard till the handle was starting to crack, "Grr! I'll cook you both to a crisp!" She snarled, "Alpha slash! Blaze Tyrannosaurus!" As Ursula slashed her card it summoned forth Terry, as he stomped his foot down and roared ferociously as it also brought in cheers too, knowing that Terry, one of the legendary dinosaurs who fought in the Shadow War was now here to give them all a show they could remember. As Cera eyed him closely, she narrowed her eyes with some worry, sensing Terry was a lot more on edge than usual….plus she never saw him earlier during lunch….could he actually be hungry? If so…..

"And Ursula leads off with her blazing partner Terry!" The MC announced as the crowds cheered, "Just what kind of battle will these 2 beaming beauties give us! Let's not wait any longer folks! For the match begins now!"

As the battle began Rex narrowed his eyes, "Here we go…." he tensed and paid close attention for whoever wins this round will be his first opponent, as everyone locked eyes on the field and the battle to unfold.

"Go Terry! Rip him to shreds!" Ursula punched forward impatiently and with irritation evident, in response Terry obeyed without question as he roared out a battle cry before charging in head first! Smith held his ground and calmly waited with Marina mimicking the same as him, patiently drawing Terry in, before dodging out of the way in time swiftly! Terry having missed as his jaws snapped but failed to grab anything, his momentum driving him towards the river ahead as he quickly dug in his toe claws to stabilise and secure himself before falling in!

Turning around to see Smith snarl and rush at him, he swung out his tail in retaliation, only for the smaller suchomimus to duck underneath his swipe and then slash with his front claws at Terry's legs! This angered the tyrannosaurus as he tried to stomp on him only for his smaller foe to slip away easily, further angering him as he got out unscathed! Terry roared out and snapped again only for Smith to either dodge to the side and then deliver a counter attack with a tail slap of his own or parry Terry's incoming attacks with his claws as he slashed at the Rex's face and forcing him back! Each failed attack slowly draining his depleting stamina given he didn't have lunch earlier with the other dinos…though in turn it was slowly wearing out his patience and Ursula's….

"No self control…" Marina breathed as she read the flow of the battle and Terry's movements along with Ursula's reckless orders.

"Ursula! Calm down and stay focused!"

"You're making too many reckless moves!"

"Can't you see she's just toying with you!? Even an amateur can see that!" The Alpha gang called out trying to snap her out of her rage but their calls fell on deaf ears.

"Grr! Stay still and let me crush you already!" Ursula growled impatiently stomping her foot on the ground as Terry did the same.

Marina scoffed in response, "And do you actually think I'm going to do that just because you asked?" she responded raising an eyebrow at her, something which made some of her fans snicker in amusement at her joke.

"Why not!? Every one has the common decency to do as their superiors tell them to!" Ursula retorted impatiently, as Terry also let out a feral roar in equal frustration too. Her rude statements continued to earn more scorn and disdain from the onlookers as her impression on the audience was continuing to sour with each word that passed her lips.

Without any command, Terry lunged forward again aiming to grab Smith in his jaws, and Ursula didn't mind as her sole focus was the same as her dino's tearing her hated foe apart piece by piece, all they needed was to land one successful hit….and yet in their one tracked mindset now they threw all caution to the wind and went totally berserk! Being solely focused on his opponent in front yet not where they were fighting, Smith skilfully treated across the soggy flood plain with his feet gripping the surface smoothly while Terry often slipped a bit too far and his jaws narrowly missing each time, which was really wearing away his strength and patience, "Terry! Destroy them completely! I don't care how you do it as long as you get the job done!" Ursula yelled out once more flailing out her arms as the t rex roared out and jumped forward aiming to crush Smith underfoot, only for him to leap out of the way again! This resulted in him getting his feet stuck in the mud as he thrashed violently in an effort to break free! "Grr! I can't take this humiliation!" Ursula screamed her head off, making everyone present unnerved hoping she wouldn't turn said anger on them instead!

Marina narrowed her eyes as Ursula's behaviour continued to confirm her suspicions, "Violent and unrestrained with no discipline at all…." It was clear as a stream to see how Terry was moving much slower in the damp sticky flood plain and how Ursula was completely oblivious to it, and instead acting solely on instinct and her out of control emotions. She then smirked to herself, "Maybe I can use this to my advantage….a risk but well worth it." She could tell she could easily bait Ursula into wasting energy by keeping her and Terry agitated and off focused….of course she'd have to be on guard herself and not get careless. Remaining calm and collected, she could also see the chance to squeeze in some moments to entertain the crowds, but in case the flames reach the point beyond control she may have to douse them out as soon as she can.

Seeing Terry was unable to break free from the mud, Ursula's rage was beginning to reach a tipping point, "So you like to play games huh!?" she growled, "Well I've had enough playing around! Go Fire cannon!" She slashed the move card as the t-rex charged up a fire ball and threw it at Smith's way!

Marina narrowed her eyes and calmly responded, "Hydro cutter!" she countered as Smith generated a blade of water and shot it at Terry, smashing through the fire ball easily to Ursula'a alarm!

"WAH! Terry get out of the way!" Unable to retreat, the blade of water ended up knocking Terry off his feet, freeing him from the mud as he crashed down on the damp ground, close to the river. He then opened up his eyes and growled in annoyance as he got back up and roared out, impressing Marina that he was able to take her attack rather well despite being at an elemental disadvantage, "Grr! Guess I'll just have to turn up the heat! Burst of flames!" Ursula impatiently slashed her next move, as Terry flared red and threw out a stream of fire at the suchomimus!

Marina smirked back, "Then how about this then? Shock wave!" With the next move, Smith generated a veil of water which shielded him from the incoming fire attack causing it to explode in front of Terry's face and forcing him to back away!

Ursula widened her eyes in shock, "Hey!"

Everyone else began to realise that move's striking resemblance to what happened earlier, "Isn't that what I did against you Ed?" Zander pointed out to which his buddy nodded.

"Yeah!" He gasped as many others gasped in surprise to see it again.

As the audience began to clap and whistle praising Marina, who laughed happy for their praise, even the D Team and Alpha family too, Ursula clicked her tongue and fumed, "Tch! What's the matter? Can't come up with anything original?" She scowled.

"I could but I simply saw an opportunity to try something a little new for me." Her foe waved it off before winking Zander's way, "And I have your friend to thank for helping me pick up this new trick along with several others too, which I plan to add in my own unique twist."

Zander gulped turning pale as Ursula's eyes glowed red as she eyed him, causing Dr Z and Ed to also back away from where he was to his surprise. "Grr! Zander! When this is over I'll skin you alive!" She growled menacingly. Zander swallowed hard fearing for his very life as she turned away from him soon after, "Lucky for you I've got bigger fish to fry right now!" She growled as Terry regained his balance and roared out while Smith hissed back at him.

"Oh come on now, lighten up will you?" Marina asked with a smile hoping Ursula would just lighten up and have fun, after all winning isn't everything in this tournament it was also the bond between duelist and dinosaur after all.

Unfortunately her words fell on nonexistent ears as Ursula retorted rudely, "Oh I'll lighten up once you're out of the picture!"

Marina frowned in disappointment that she couldn't get through to this opponent, a first for her, and with no other choice perhaps she may have to focus on just entertaining the masses instead. She then saw the opportunity for another trick she hoped to try out, "Smith hold it!" She called out surprising her partner who looked back to her, but seeing the look in her eyes, he felt calm and confident in her orders and obeyed by arching his back and readying himself, "You wanted me to stand still? Well hope you're happy now." Marina replied, if her hunch was right Ursula would readily take the bait.

Rex blinked his eyes in surprise, "She stopped moving?"

"What is she up to now?" Reese up above pondered curiously as others looked on with interest.

Ursula smirked seeing what looked like an opportunity, unaware that she was being baited, "Heheh! Your goose is about to be cooked! Unleash heat strike!" She commanded slashing the move as Terry cloaked himself in fire and charged forth aiming to ram Smith head on!

Marina sighed with disapproval at Ursula's poor strategical choice once more, "You just don't learn or see it, but you'll just have to realise it the hard way!" She called out as she countered with another move, "River of infinity!" The Alpha suchomimus cloaked himself in a veil of water and then charged head on at Terry, with the force of a rapid river he overpowered Terry's assault and flames, snuffing them out as he was sent backwards and causing him to slump down to Ursula's alarm!

"AH! Terry!" She squealed in shock as the fans cheered once more.

"Wow! Marina and Smith strike with the force of a raging rapid! At the same time they were both keeping their movements calm and collected like a smooth stream." The MC announced clearly his support was on the side of the water captain, along with the tide of everyone's favour shifting further and further away from Ursula with each passing second!

Zoe widened her eyes in amazement seeing how swiftly Marina was able to adapt on the fly, how calm and graceful she was right after attacking with tremendous force and strength, "She really is just like the water…." She breathed as she thought about how quick the sea can change from violent to serene.

Cera smirked finding that to be a most fitting compliment, "That's what you get from someone who grew up with the sea." She commented.

Back at the battle as Terry struggled to get up and Ursula gritted her teeth with anxiety, Marina then smirked her way, "What was that you said about showing everyone the difference between you and me?" she stated rather mockingly, "I think now it's clearly obvious from the start, plus you do realise water douses fire, it's only a matter of time before you're extinguished."

Ursula clicked her tongue in further annoyance, "Tch! You think I care about some dumb physics rule!? Rules are made to be broken and they'll start right here!" She shouted out fuming red, her childish behaviour was earning a mixture of feelings of either fear or disapproval from those looking on, if she was aiming to make a headlight for herself clearly she wasn't doing that right nor was she reading the messages around her.

Scoffing at Ursula's blind rage, Marina found her to be lost cause nor would she be a helpful rival in entertaining the masses, so decided to wrap this up rather quickly, "Hmph! Bubble attack!" Smith blew out a large bubble from his mouth and with his tail slapped it at Terry's way!

Unfortunately this time around, things weren't going to go her way, "HA! Playing with bubbles? And everyone says I'm too old…." Ursula spat as she called out her next attack, "Fire cannon!" With immense rage, Terry charged up the fireball in his jaws with hatred fuelling his fire, launching it with full force faster than expected as it smashed through the bubble and exploded at Smith's feet forcing him to fly backwards!

"AH!" Marina widened her eyes in alarm along with everyone else present, shocked beyond belief that Ursula was finally able to land an actual hit! Smith then somersaulted in his fall managing to land on his feet in time, only to find Terry charge head on towards him and drawing very close!

With no time to escape he tried to ram the rex head on, but to little effect as all he managed to do was barely slow his charge down! In response Terry opened his jaws wide and grabbed hold of the suchomimus' back before raising him up and slamming him down on the ground with tremendous force!

"Oh no Smith!" Marina widened her eyes as her fans gasped in shock that Ursula was able to land a hit on her! Even the D Team were taken aback by her unexpected counter move!

"Did you see that!?"

"No way! That's impossible!"

"What just happened!? That can't happen!"

Ursula grinned and cackled sinisterly seeing the shocked and bewildered looks on everyone's faces, thinking of it to be amazement rather than worry, she had way more where that came from a she pressed her assault, "Ahahaha! I've got you now! Crush her!" She ordered as Terry roared out eager to crush his enemy to dust as he raised his foot up about to bring it down on Smith's head!

Everyone covered their eyes and looked away!

"Don't do it!"

"You wouldn't dare!"

"I can't watch!"

"AH!" The D Team and Alpha Gang widened their eyes stunned at Ursula's drastic actions, for all they knew she had never been this violent before in this new side of hers', and even though she was technically on their side no way could they bring themselves to cheer for this kind of behaviour and foul play!

Right before the foot made contact, Smith was able to roll away in time before the foot stomped on the ground missing its mark, which further angered Terry as he roared out with irritation with fire building up in his jaws!

"Grr! Stop slipping away like a slimy eel!" Ursula shrieked as she stomped her feet more in frustration.

Marina smirked, "I'd take that as a compliment actually, besides eel is a delicacy where I come from, for both me and Smith." She responded calmly.

The D Team could tell Marina knew what she was doing and was really confident she can keep her cool unlike Ursula who was doing the complete opposite! They smiled and cheered for her, rooting for her to come out on top….though Cera, narrowed her eyes feeling rather serious and unsettled, as she saw Terry and Ursula grow even more unhinged by the second.

"Eat this! Heat strike!" Ursula yelled slashing her next move as Terry wrapped himself in fire and charged forth once again!

"Falling water!" Marina countered as Smith fired a jet stream of water at the charging tyrannosaurus! While the attack made contact, it only served to annoy Terry as he was forced to shut his eyes in response! Nevertheless he could tell by instinct the direction the beam of water was as he pressed on, charging through the water to everyone's shock as the water while weakening the flames around him, did little to slow his incoming attack as he made contact! Ramming Smith in the gut and sending him back as he crashed across the ground to his partners shock! "Oh no!"

"Woo hoo! Ursula! I knew you could do it!" Dr Owen cheered his lungs out though it couldn't really reach her ears, as she was getting rather full of herself.

"Ahahaha! Guess I'm just too hot for you to handle now!" Ursula laughed cockily as Terry gained a small but noticeable grin on his face as he could see the slight hint of fear in Smith's eyes as he stepped back. Snarling as smoke steamed from his jaws he licked his lips and growled as Smith stuttered slightly, followed by Marina who sweated and narrowed her eyes as she realised she may have focused a little too much on entertaining the crowds, that oversight made her underestimate Ursula's actual capabilities.

"Incredible! Despite being hit by a direct water move, Terry was able to push through with unrelenting force and land another hit on Smith! Who knew we'd face a fire dinosaur with such determination and resistance against such odds!" The MC announced surprised while Marina's many fans began to worry as they could see her unease.

"Hmm, it seems the direct head on approach isn't going to cut it anymore…." Marina narrowed her eyes realising she couldn't take things as lightly as earlier, though she cheered up soon after, "No matter, just like in a script I'll just have to improvise." Like a river always finds another way when blocked she will just have to try another approach.

Meanwhile Ursula began to hold up her head and gloat over her next successful hit, "Hahaha! If you can't stand the heat little missy then get out of the fight!" she laugh snobbishly, "You're all washed up! Guess you're all pretty and no punch!"

Her fiendish statements angered the many fans above as they yelled back at her and booed her.

"You take that back you witch!"

"Leave our ocean goddess alone!"

Ursula gained a huge tic mark on her forehead as veins bulged in said shape. Turning sharply to them with a piercing glare that silenced them as her eyes met theirs', "Be quiet! Or would you rather I barbecue you all in her place you so called loyal fans!? I'll hunt you all down to the ends of the earth for it!" She growled as they all quieted down in an instant, something which made the others impressed or worried.

"S…She wouldn't dare would she Cera?" Max gulped worried.

Cera surprisingly wasn't as confident as she normally, was but she still had faith they could wring her in if trouble were to come, "D…Don't worry about it, if she tries anything deliberately she'd get way worse than disqualification, make it a lifetime of imprisonment for assault." She said before sweating nervously, "Though to be on the safe side, let's stay out of the firing line for the time being."

They all nodded in response, "Yeah….No way would I go in and try to tame….that…." Max added.

Marina on the other hand took the change in situation rather well, be honest while a little surprised she was also relieved that it didn't go the way she hoped then, now the battle would stagnate and be so predictable, if anything she enjoyed improv now and then like how a river can branch out to many different outcomes, so now there were new ideas she could try out to entertain the crowd. "Go Smith! Time for strike and retreat!" The suchomimus snarled with affirmation as he repeatedly darted at Terry with mock charges making him stumble about in his movements, to charging right at his face and then darting another direction to make him almost trip into the river!

Each time Terry regained his balance too turn around he was met with a slash to his face or a tail slap to his legs, which he reacted with a crunch though he only ended up swallowing nothing but air or even biting the ground itself as Smith either darted to safety or somersaulted back and landing gracefully on his feet! Ursula's eyes twitched psychotically as she was getting annoyed with the hit and run moves which she deemed as just cowardly and cheap as each decoy attack ended up forcing Terry to sue up precious stamina and how easily she was falling for the bait each time!

"Grr! Stop playing around and fight already!" she gnashed her teeth as Terry slammed his tail down on the ground missing Smith once again, it was like chasing a mosquito though small it was still very irritating.

"Were we fighting?" Marina cheekily shrugged her shoulders, "I thought you were just warming up?"

Her snarky comment earned a bunch of chuckles from the crowds but served to rub Ursula the wrong way again, "I was!" She snarled viciously to the worry of her friends.

"Ursula calm down or you'll burn out!" Ed called out hoping to bring his friend back to her senses otherwise she will end up losing badly.

Unfortunately for him Zander could see he was merely wasting his breath, at this point she was pass the point of no return, "It's too late, there's no going back for her now!"

"Ahahahah! Now this is entertainment!" Dr Z laughed in amusement seeing such violence and action, he clapped his hands despite Ursula losing he at least was having a good time. Up above Rod and Laura were feeling real bad for what Terry was being put through, hopefully he'd still be fine when this was over.

"Looks like it's working." More unrestrained she'll exhaust herself now and recklessly giving in to her emotions and anger, only a matter of time

Unaware of Marina's strategy, Ursula continued to let her emotions get the better of her as she continued to play further and further into her foe's hand, "Terry! Fire at will! Let her have it!" She yelled slashing fire cannon again, making the tyrannosaurus charge up the fireball in his jaws before throwing it at full force!

In response Smith leapt over the fireball like a dolphin somersaults through the air before landing on the ground with style once again, "I'm sorry are we just pretending? Let me know when you're actually ready to turn up the heat." Marina chuckled.

"Grr! You want heat? I'll give you more than you can take!" Ursula snarled as she flared red like Terry was right now as he stomped and roared out his frustrations, unnerving everyone present as they were on the edge of their seats as the tension began to peak. Grabbing another move card, Ursula grinned eager to use it, "Time for some real firepower! Volcano burst!" She slashed it as Terry flared red gathering fire in his jaws and began to throw it around! Just before he was able to launch it though-

"Now! Water jammer!" Marina quickly reacted slashing the right move for the situation, as Smith shrieked summoning water into a giant bubble above Terry's head and unloading it in one go as it poured over and swamped over him completely snuffing bout his flames to Ursula's shock!

"WAH! No fair!" She cried out worried for Terry as he coughed out water from his mouth, having swallowed some as it hit and got back up groggily despite being soaking wet and getting chilled from the cold.

Terry then forced himself out of the water, Marina gritted her teeth feeling rather nervous but also impressed of the fire dinosaur's tenacity after taking multiple water attacks for so long, he was a fighter and a survivor that was for sure. "Funny, I was expecting a full on wildfire not a snuffed out matchstick…." she then giggled hoping to lighten the mood and herself a little in turn, thus earning a few good laughs from the crowds and adding to Ursula's predicament.

"Grr! I'll show you wild soon enough!" She tensed her fist as a vein could be seen bulging from it.

"Burning dash!" Ursula commanded as Terry charged up fire in his jaws and rushed towards the suchomimus for a full on assault!

"AH!"

"I can't look!"

"NO!" Many cried as they looked away or panicked.

Marina though smiled rather cheekily in response to the head on assault Ursula was trying to unleash, "My oh my, your t rex's mouth seems to be on fire. Perhaps he ate something real spicy there." she snarked as she fingered another move in her hand, "Maybe he could use a little water, which I'm more than happy to provide! Falling water!" Smith shone blue and fired a jet stream of water right at Terry's face, or more precisely with bullseye accuracy it hit its' mark right at his mouth! The immense water shoved down his throat put out his flames and halted his charge as he stumbled and crashed to the ground choking with water in his throat!

The sight of it surprised everyone greatly as cheers and whistling erupted out loud.

"Say wha!?"

"Whoa! What an unexpected counter attack!"

"Is that even legal!?"

While his friends clapped and cheered for Marina's stunning move, Rex widened his eyes as he began to realise something, "Hey…That's just like…." His mind flashbacked to China when they fought the carcharodontosaurus, now looking closer he could see that fire dinosaurs have their mouths as their strongest weapons, but that also happened to be their biggest weak spots, and Marina took full advantage of that along with an elemental edge too, most impressive.

"Man, never thought Marina would be capable of changing up her tactics this drastically." Max breathed in awe and admiration, realising with such competition with fighters as talented and experienced as her, they'd need to up their game.

"Like how water changes form from ice, liquid and vapour, just shows how unpredictable she can be." Cera commented, "You can be sure to not expect the same move from her twice in a row….or maybe she may do that just to throw you off too…."

Seeing Terry off balance and exhausted, the water captain saw her chance to go on the offensive as she slashed another move, "Neptune stream!" Marina called out as her spinosaur roared out and caused a geyser to erupt from the ground before directing it at Terry before it split into 3 javelin shaped shots at him! The water hit its mark piercing through Terry as he collapsed on the ground to Ursula's horror!

"Terry!" She cried as her friends widened their eyes in shock to see her getting pushed back badly.

Dr Z clenched his fist and gritted his teeth impatiently before yelling out loud, "Ursula! You can do better than that! Stop making me look bad!"

Meanwhile the crowds continued to applaud and cheer even more so for Marina, as she winked back at several fanboys who fainted in love, also blowing a kiss Blaze's way who held a thumbs up back at her.

Seeing her being showered with praise while being continued to be made a mockery of, Ursula's rage was really building to a boil, trying to contain it was doing terrible things to her temper, if only she had consulted a doctor earlier for her anger issues perhaps this may have been avoided. "Grr! I won't let this sea witch make me look bad in front of all these people!" She snarled defiantly as Terry forced himself back to his feet and roared out with equal anger and hatred!

This made Marina blink her eyes in surprise yet again, as the crowds and the D Team gasped to see even after all the punishment they took they were still going at it! "They're strong….after all those water attacks they're still at it…." Clearly she had underestimated their tenacity and ferocity, as if that blinded them both to their pain completely….

"Alright Terry! Playtime's over! Let's take things up a notch!" Ursula growled grabbing her next move this time no mercy! "Burst of flames!" Terry flared red as she shot a stream of fire at Smith's feet forcing him to jump back, but as Terry swept the fire around his opponent he soon had the Alpha dinosaur trapped in a ring of fire! "Ahahaha! You're trapped and about to be boiled alive!"

Marina sweated a little at the heat but soon gained a confident smirk as her calm composure remained firm, "Can't let that happen can we?" She smiled slashing just the right move for this situation, "Time for magic shower!" Smith shrieked out to the sky as the skies began to turn dark as rain clouds gathered all around the battlefield!

"Wh….What the!?" Ursula stepped backwards as everyone else widened their eyes in surprise at the change in weather!

"Whoa!" For all they knew they were to be expecting sunny skies and clear weather for the next few days, the fact that a dinosaur's move could affect the weather and forces of nature itself, humanity real was pushing the potential of dinosaurs now! Before long heavy rain began to pour down upon the battlefield, the healing rain helped to restore Smith's health and heal his wounds, as well as put out the flames burning around him! Terry shivered in the cold and roared out in annoyance as Ursula hugged herself shivering in the cold too!

"No! No! No!" She cried out in exasperation, not only was her plan to trap Smith a failure but now she was getting all soaked and would catch a cold at this rate!

Before long the rains soon disappeared and in place of the clouds was a magnificent rainbow which glowed brightly in the blue sky to everyone's awe and amazement!

"AH!"

"Amazing! What a magnificent performance in the middle of the duel! Just what we'd expect from our beloved beauty from the blue deep!" The MC announced as claps and applause were sounded once more in the arena!

"Thank you! Thank you all! You're far too kind!" Marina cheered back to the crowds before bowing and striking a fabulous pose along with Smith who stomped his feet in joy before shrieking out loudly with pride.

As the audience along with the D Team and even a few of the alpha gang began to cheer and applaud Marina's magnificent performance once more it seems as though there was no one in the entire world whose heart she couldn't capture or captivate….or almost no one.

As the rain stopped Ursula could feel her hair being all slimy and ruined as it lay flat on her face, and it wasn't before long she became a victim of cruel fashion once more, "NO! My hair! It's all soaked! Not to mention my beautiful face! It took me hours to get it this way!" she cried out frantically running around like she was a maniac. Seeing her all drenched and her face even more ruined than before made her teammates cringe now she was an even worse mess than before, "Ugh! Do you have any idea how hard it is to dry this outfit!?" She scowled in disgust towards Marina.

She wagged her finger in response to Ursula's ranting, "I'm afraid you have way bigger things to worry about than your clothes."

"Huh?" Her statement puzzled the old lady for a moment, blinking her eyes as she tried to process what she meant, she soon widened them as she took a closer look at the battlefield and how drastically it had changed as a result from the influx of water from the rain and falls! "Uh oh…." As Terry looked closer he was startled to see the water levels from the river had overflowed their banks and now the entire land based field was soaked up to his ankles! The ground was way more sticky and unstable for him to handle while Smith had no such disadvantage as the water seemed to strengthen him instead and improve his manoeverabilty greatly!

Both Terry and Ursula were unnerved, seeing the water as their danger zone earlier but it with it swamping the whole field, it pretty much became a deathtrap for them now!

Marina grinned having turned the tide of the battle in her favour once more, this time securing it, she lost all caution or any fear and decided to go in for a final assault, "If you can't swim then it's time for you to sink!" She declared with Smith snarling ferociously as he leapt into the water and submerged himself completely underneath! His colours blending into the darkness of the deep waters around them! Terry and Ursula looked around anxiously for any signs of movement knowing if they lost sight of their foe it'd be game over for them!

Everyone tensed up seeing this scenario much like a crocodile before striking its unwary which was exactly the kind of atmosphere Marina was attempting to create. Suddenly without warning Smith leapt out of the water from behind Terry, surprising the viewers! Turning he widened his eyes as the suchomimus snapped at his neck and wrestled him towards the water!

"Hey! That was sneaky!" Ursula cried out as her heart jumped! Terry was able to shake off the smaller dinosaur but as he lunged into bite, his feet got stuck in the mud momentarily preventing him from getting within reach! As he stumbled and fell down, Smith slipped back into the depths once more! Though it didn't take long for him to appear once more as he leapt out of the water somersaulting like a trained seal here and there, surprising Terry and Ursula with each unexpected appearance! Before long everyone realised his disappearing act being much like a magic act as they all cheered and clapped impressed as Marina also took a bow accepting their praised.

Sadly though Ursula wasn't entetained or even amused in the slightest, "Grr! Stop jumping around! This is a battle not a circus act!" Ursula stomped her feet in a tantrum while splashing, "Fire cannon! Go!" Having had enough, Terry charged the fire balls in his jaws and kept firing them in succession each time Smith popped out fo the water, but sadly each one missed its mark as he either dove back under the water or leapt over it skilfully like a dolphin through a hoop!

With a wink from Marina's eye, Smith shot out falling water from behind Terry striking him off guard! As he turned around to face his attacker to find him no longer there, the suchomimus shot out bubble attack right to the side of his face disorienting him as he snarled in annoyance! Then later on leaping out at Terry in the face, catching him off guard before firing a hydro cutter directly at him! Causing him to roar in pain as he fell to his knee in exhaustion!

As the cheers and excitement of the crowds erupted even more than ever, so did the immense anger Ursula was trying desperately hard to contain, and it was evident that she wasn't doing a very good job of it, "GRRR!" her eyes widened with immense rage, the continued hit and run attacks were really getting under her skin, the same being set for Terry, as his energy fell to the red zone, he began to breathe heavily….not out of exhaustion, but out of the burning anger that was synchronising between him and Ursula! Sure they didn't see eye to eye most of the time, but this was one of those days….that they could agree on one thing, Marina and Smith needed to go down big time!

Meanwhile unaware of the fire storm that was slowly brewing, "What a dazzling display of underwater acrobatics!" The MC announced being most captivated himself along with everyone else, in awe at how diverse and flexible Marina's strategies had been from the start of the duel. Much like how water adapts to different situations either freezing to ice in the cold, melting in the warm or even evaporating to vapour in the heat, there really were no amount of words that could fully describe the depth of Marina's capabilities with her dinosaur, both in battle or in contest.

As everyone whistled and cheered, the coliseum was brining with excitement as Cera too felt moved and utterly captivated by the experience, truly it had the makings of a classic and was one of the best battles she ever bore witness. All around her she could see the smiles of bright joy and excitement wherever she looked, Marina truly showcased the importance of bonds and the ties of love, trust and connection not just between people but with the dinosaurs too. She could feel her heart soaring with hope as everyone's laughter and smiles were passed on from one person to the next.

As she cheered she smiled with glee expecting everyone to be having fun and smiles as the next person was…..till her heart skipped a beat and her smile vanished, upon realising there was a sinister peril hiding underneath the beautiful smiles and joy.

"She's making a mockery of me!" Ursula hissed enraged, clench fist so tightly she could snap a bone with her bare hands! She gnashed her teeth furiously with envy and frustration at Marina stealing her spotlight, Cheer but then widen eyes, while Terry, feeling his pride damaged beyond repair was fuel for the fire of vengeance that was stirring within him. Despite not being the best of bonds, both he and Ursula were alike in having their sense of pride and a very short fuse too. And now….things were really pushing them over the edge they could explode at any second!

"Hmph, is that all? Honestly you give both fire and women a bad name." Marina then scoffed in disappointment as Ursula remained silent, the insults gripping around her heart painfully, never before had she suffered such humiliation and disrespect herself. "It just goes to show your so called beauty is shallow as you are," She then declared pointing out at her, "And no matter how much makeup you cover over outside, your heart inside will always be that of an old witch, rotten to the core."

Ursula's heart skipped a beat upon hearing the forbidden word uttered her way, "What….did you say?" She spoke rather menacingly as a shade covered her eyes under her hair and she remained most unresponsive.

Marina's snarky comment ended up starting a chain reaction of snarks, jokes and snickers from her many fans as they began to pour on the hurt and humiliation her way, so much even the D team and their families were swept up in it.

"OH! She just got burned there!"

"Ahahaha! Classic!"

While everyone began laughing out loudly or throwing even more mockery at Ursula's way, Cera could feel a growing tension in the air which was making her skin crawl. A dark red aura was beginning to form around Ursula and Terry, as she widened her eyes and her heart raced anxiously as she knew gallons of gasoline was being thrown onto a really dangerous fire, "Marina….don't push it…." She wanted to say it out loud, but the immense rage building from Ursula and Terry was so immeasurable she found herself petrified and unable to utter a word to call it off as everyone was completely oblivious to it….till it was too late.

Ursula suddenly shot a blood thirsty glare towards the water captain, making her heart skip a beat for the first time since this battle started! "GRRR! I've had all I can take with this!" She suddenly roared so loudly her voice sounded demonic! It put a chill down everyone's spines as they stared speechless and stunned by Ursula who was now pushed over the deep end and with these veins evident around her face and arms, her eyes glowing dark red as her teeth seemed to sharpen into fangs! "Forget beating you, no, I want to completely annihilate you!" She growled as Terry began to glow bright red along with her own aura and he gained a menacing look on his face! "Terry! The gloves are off! Feel free to rampage to your heart's content! I'll give you full permission and all the power you need!" Terry's eyes glowed red and he erupted with immense power sensing shockwaves through the entire area as Ursula too joined in with a battlecry of her own! "RAAAARRRGH!"

"URRRGH!" Everyone cried as they braced themselves for the immense wave of energy coming their way!

"Wh…What's happening!?" Rod and Laura cried as Helga shielded them with her own body!

"This is getting crazy!" Ed and Zander cried out while Dr Z cackled maniacally!

"Ahahaha! This is getting good!" He grinned knowing what this meant!

Down below Cera too picked up on what was going on as her friends braced themselves, "Oh no…." Cera breathed widening her eyes despite everyone covering theirs', "Not that!"

As the light died down, Terry emerged from the fires in his awakened form! Now coated in a fiery aura of red, black and yellow!

"AH!" Everyone couldn't believe their eyes at the sudden change and it was clear that once more the tables had turned and they all stared speechlessly as they tried to comprehend what they just witnessed.

The MC was caught off guard by the unexpected development, he stuttered for moments and stared in shock before he could finally get it out, "N…No way!? Ursula has awakened the power of her tyrannosaurus! Now in this new state, could we actually see a turning point in this match!?"

Marina sweated nervously as Smith stepped back, his danger senses running off the charts inside while Ursula grinned rather demonically as she began to cackle like a witch, "Hee! Hee! Hee!"

After Terry followed up with a roar, she tried to muster all the courage she could, "Tch! Looks like your outside is finally matching your inside." She clicked her tongue before slashing a more, "Time to put you out! Falling water!" Smith snarled and charged a beam of water in his jaws and then fired it Terry's way, who surprisingly didn't move from where he stood!

"Ha! That weak little sprinkler's going to get you nowhere!" Ursula boasted with fire in her eyes, this time it was arrogance blended together with confidence, as the water struck Terry in the face, but instead of doing any damage it evaporated into vapour upon con tact with scales! He roared out unscathed as Marina widened her eyes in alarm.

"No way! No effect!?" She gasped as all others present began sharing the same look she did.

"AH!"

"This is just like….." Zoe widened her eyes remembering their battle against Sheer at Dustberg, how none of their enemies' attacks had any effect on Terry at that point, now he was completely unstoppable and uncontrollable as Ursula was!

Marina narrowed her eyes, realising the more angry Ursula gets the more violent and unrestrained she becomes along with Terry. Simply dousing the flames of hatred and rage won't cut it anymore, at this rate it would erupt into an uncontrollable blaze! No way waiting out her opponents were an option anymore.

"I'll have to make this quick….Or else everyone will be in danger…" She thought to herself as she decided to bring in the big waves, "Bermuda triangle!" Smith roared summoning a red bubble above Terry's head.

Ursula grinned maniacally, unwilling to just sit back and let herself get hit again, "Oh please! Blast that bubble out of the sky with fire cannon!" She slashed the move as Terry charged up a powerful fireball in his jaws and blasted it, causing it to explode into vapour on contact!

"N…NO!"

"Eheheheh! Now I'll show you some real fire power!" Ursula cackled as she drove Marina into a corner she couldn't escape from! With each step he took, the water bubbled and steam violently around Terry's feet and it was so hot Smith could feel the water around him begin to warm up just by Terry's body heat alone! To his and Marina's alarm they could see the water levels was beginning to recede in the immense heat!

Marina was shocked beyond belief, she was used to the unexpected and was always ready to adapt and improvise on the spot, but this time around she had no other script to work with! "Get out of there Smith! Hurry!" She cried out in desperation. Sensing the imminent danger he was in, Smith backed away and leapt into he water hoping to escape Terry's range and to attack from a better vantage point…..

This time however, things were VERY different, "There's nowhere you can hide nor run from me!" Ursula yelled out in defiance while grabbing a card from her dinoshot, "If you won't come out then I'll force you out!" As she yelled, Terry stomped his foot on the ground and let out a mighty roar signalling the end was coming! "Magma blaster!" Slashing it, Terry flared bright red and stomped his foot on the soggy ground, but the immense heat from his body and awakened form caused the water around him to bubble and steam on contact with his scales! Charging up a massive ball of fire in his jaws he launched it as an immense magma stream before throwing it all around the entire battlefield causing huge amounts of steam to erupt from the contact with the water!

It was so hot the water evaporated completely in contact with the magma causing the ground to become scorched despite being dampened by water! It wasn't long before Terry aimed said magma streams at the waterfalls ahead of him causing huge explosions to erupt and clouds of vapour as well to swell up!

BOOM!

"What is this!? Could Ursula be attempting to set the entire floodplain on fire!? Talk about excessive! WAAAAH!" The MC cried out as he could feel the heat rage through the barrier and envelop the entire arena ads everyone had to cover their faces and look away at the bright red light and fires!

"WAAAH!"

"I knew she was mad but this is nuts!" Cretacia cried out as she and the families covered their eyes from the fiery light!

"No! Marina!" Blaze cried out in horror as the heat erupted in a massive explosion sending a huge heatwave swallowing the entire arena from the barrier!

"AAAAAH!"

Thankfully it didn't take long for the eruption to subside, but as it did there was a cloud of black smoke obscuring the dome….but as it cleared up everyone stared in utter horror and astonishment, as the once lush floodplain was reduced to a dried up and brunt barren land as a result of the fire! The trees were torched and crumbled to dust, the waterfalls and cliffs surrouding the field cracked apart with a massive magma scar lining the walls, and plants having been blunted to a crisp and not a single drop of water remained in the once lush field. Though a time warp and temporary, the mere sight of it was enough to scar everyone with how lifelike it was up close….and the horrible implications it had too.

"Ah….."

"It's….horrible…."

"All that…destruction…." Cera breathed having the life choked out of her as the devastation seemed to have brought back several bad memories of the Shadow War before, and to have everyone be reminded of those dark days on this new moment in their world's history…..A feeling that many more were experiencing first hand as it reminded them of said times too, times they had wished to move past and now being forced to relive once again like bad medicine.

Down below, Marina panted heavily with exhaustion and desperation evident on her face, as she was soaked in sweat and fatigue under the merciless heat generated from Terry and the desolate battlefield around them! Smith limped onto the fiery scorched field, having been forced out fo the water from the immense heat and now severely dehydrated he gasped weakly as he looked ahead to see Terry stand strong and roar out ferociously his way and Ursula right behind him!

"I…I don't believe my eyes! Terry has reduced the entire flood plain to a ruin! And now Marina and Smith are both exposed and vulnerable!" The MC gasped stuttering in fear and alarm to see how quickly the rich floodplain was reduced to a barren wasteland, all the plants had burned up and water dried, leaving nothing but solid charred ground all around them. The tables had turned, and now Terry held the field advantage and the higher ground!

"What will she do now?" Zoe swallowed hard hoping that there was still a way out for Marina to turn this around.

Unfortunately not even Cera knew the answer to that, "Good question…."

"Hehehe….Looks like water won't always win against fire!" She chuckled maniacally before a really sadistic grin appeared on her face, making everyone's souls jump, "Even I know my physics enough that if you heat water hard enough it'll boil and evaporate to nothing!" She declared pointing out at Marina who now had a look of shock and worry on her face all over, "Which is exactly what I'm going to do to you!" Terry roared ferociously as he stomped towards Smith, who was paralysed by his thunderous cry, and Marina, was was so used to adapting on the fly and always able to go with the flow….found herself for the first time without any tricks to save herself this time, "It's out of the frying pan and into the fire with you! Get ready to be flambe'd!" Ursula cackled deviously.

Gritting her teeth in frustration, "I have to try and regain control of the field!" Marina thought as she wasted no time doing so, "Technical rain!" She cried desperately to replenish the water in the field and regain control, but Ursula who had it up to here with her cheap tricks, or maybe even higher, wasn't about to let go of the lead she finally gotten.

"Flare sword!" She countered as Terry roared out summoning a fiery sword which pierced through the rain clouds gathered dissipating them in the heat as the blade struck down on Smith causing him to shriek in pain!

"AH!" Marina widened her eyes as Smith crashed to the ground helpless like a fish out of water!

She could only look on helplessly as Terry charged in for the final blow! "Now to hang you to dry! Crimson flames!" Ursula yelled out loud slashing the card with all her strength! Flaring red, Terry swiped out at Smith's head disorientating him momentarily! As the suchomimus tried to escape, Terry charged in and using his head scooped up Smith and flung him high into the air before firing several fireballs that struck their mark while he was completely helpless! As he collapsed down to the ground, Terry pinned him down and mercilessly unloaded a barrage of fire all across his body burning him alive as he screeched in agony with the flames eating him alive!

"AAAAH!" Everyone widened their eyes in utter horror.

"Smith!" Marina cried out painful tears to see her partner badly wounded and burned without mercy, before he cried out one more pained cry before reverting to a card. "No…."

The MC stuttered and shuddered upon looking out from his podium, just as shocked as everyone else was. "I….I don't believe it….Just when it seemed victory was at hand for Marina, Ursula not only escape the jaws of defeat but turned overcame said jaws with fiery fangs of her own!" He announced trying to make it sound as good as he could and hoping that everyone would cheer in support of the duel, "In an overwhelming one sided reversal, Ursula advances to the next round!" Terry roared victoriously with pride and exhaustion as he reverted to normal form. He hunkered down as the fatigue and hunger finally caught up to him, as he reverted back to a card before returning to Ursula's hand.

There were no sounds, no cheers especially…the entire arena was silent like ghost town, as everyone stared in utter disbelief trying to process what they just saw happen and they couldn't believe it. How much they wished what they saw was an illusion and that Marina their beloved idol would make a miraculous return…but no….the outcome was clear as day, Marina had lost and Ursula won…in a most despicable way possible….

"Hehehe….Ahahahahahahah!" At that point, Ursula finally calmed down at last, having burnt out all her stress and steam she finally reverted back ton her old self, and believing everyone to be amazed and in awe she decided to take advantage of the situation and promote herself even more, "Ahahaha! Woo hoo! Yay me! Thank you! Thank you! Mwah!" Ursula cheered jumping up and down with joy before doing a few ditzy spins and dances in her elated stated, even blowing several kissed of her own the audience's way, oblivious to the real reason why everyone was still speechless, believing them to be in awe. Grinning sadistically at Marina, she pointed out, "Well Miss Mermaid? Ready to admit who's the better beauty now? Or are you going to run home and cry me a river? Hohohoho!" She spat mockingly at Marina's way.

The Water captain sighed most disappointedly, but in spirit of the duel she conceded, "Sigh….yes I admit it….you've won fair and square against me. Victory is all yours so go ahead and gloat all you want." She muttered in disgust that of all the people she'd lost to, she'd fall against the one type of person she despised the most, and worst of all despite her best efforts she hadn't learnt single thing from what she was trying to tell her.

"Ha! I knew it! I knew it! When it comes to battling ability, prestige and beauty I have no equal!" Ursula gloated sticking her tongue out at Marina as she began celebrating it as the first thing that went right all day for her.

"But was it worth it though?" Marina then replied which made her blink her eyes in surprise as it interrupted her moment of glory.

"Huh?" Ursula found it a rather strange question, of course one would have the right to gloat and brag for winning….but as she looked closer at Marina's hard look her, she could see that wasn't the case here.

"Now that you've shown your true colours, what do you think others would think of you now?" Ametama questioned her, "Do you believe they'll give you the admiration and adoration you strived for?"

Blinking her eyes momentarily before looking around, Ursula widened her eyes and stepped back upon seeing so many different faces of emotion aimed at her and none of them were positive in the slightest. Many of the audience were utterly mortified by Ursula's brutality and stared speechless, others aimed looks of scorn or anger towards her for her sheer disrespect towards her opponent in battle. Many of these came from Marina's fans including her husband Blaze, whom Ursula had hoped to impress most of all….only to gain the opposite result as she intended from her efforts.

Looking to her friends and family, even Ed, Zander and Dr Z stared terrified of Ursula. Rod and Laura especially, as they eyed her with shock or disapproval believing she may have gone way too overboard this time around.

"Oh…." Was all Ursula could mutter out as her legs began to buckle and she fell to her knees looking down on the ground in utter shock herself, as though her world had been turned upside down, she was used to insults and ranting from harsh critics but to be shown utter disgust and scorn, was something she never felt before in life, and despite having won, she felt she actually lost….

Marina, being a good sport walked up to her and spoke with concern, "Now that you realise it….what will you do now?" She asked hoping that Ursula would open up her eyes and realise the truth now after what they just went through.

Ursula continued to stare into blank space for a few moments, and it looked as though tears were coming into her eyes. Marina expected her to have realised it herself…..but her hopes were a little too high as way more tears than she thought began to accumulate in Ursula's eyes, "Oh world! Why oh why me!? Why do you have to be so heartless to doom me to such cruel and cold loneliness!?" She wailed as she completely immersed herself in self pity without putting any blame on herself but cursing the whole world instead for an unfair fate. Despite having won the battle she lost the popularity war in the process, "Oh the tragedy of being the best! It's all meaningless that means you have no one by your side to acknowledge you!"

Seeing her react so immaturely, made the water captain sigh and shake her head seeing little to no hope for her changing, and also fearing the future of fire dinosaurs and for Blaze even.

"Ursula! I love you!" A voice suddenly called out getting Ursula's attention as she opened her eyes widely in surprise.

"AH!" She brightened up with joy believing someone finally recognised her for the beauty she was! As she turned in the direction it came from, her mood suddenly soured upon seeing Dr Owen yell out loudly through a mega phone voicing out his praises and appreciation.

"That was marvellous! Absolutely fantastic! Just know if the world turns its' back on you I'll never abandon you till the end of time!" he cheered at the top of his lungs as Patrick and Jonathan tried but sadly failed to restrain or calm down the fiery blaze of love in his heart, "It's destiny! Written in the stars I tell you! We were made for each other baby!"

The sight of that made her rather nauseous as she then slumped down back to her knees taking back what she said, "Err….On second thought, maybe being lonely isn't so bad….." She muttered to herself as she lowered her head down and sulked, requiring Ed and Zander to pat her on the back to comfort her.

Below at the D Team booth, Rex sighed in embarrassment and exasperation as Dr Owen's overdramatic behaviour earned even more hard glares or annoyed looks aimed at either him or Rex, given he was cheering for the villain here who brought Marina down so badly and even rubbed salt in her wounds on top of that, "Oh dad…." Rex facepalmed wishing he were someplace else. Clearly he wasn't going to live this down now that everyone in the entire world now knew of Owen's connection with him and he could imagine the endless teasing that would be coming for him in days time.

It was then Cera put a hand on his shoulder and eyes him seriously, "You'd better get yourself prepared Rex….cos you're going up against her next time." She said looking to Ursula up ahead, despite her moping, the fact remained she had proven herself to be a very dangerous opponent regardless.

Rex nodded as a bead of sweat dripped down his cheek, "Yeah I know…." he gulped down a little nervously as a bead of sweat dripped down his cheek. For a long time he and the D Team often took Ursula and her cronies to be no more than nuisances, but now having seen a new side of her on the battlefield and the power she and Terry both wielded, he knew he'd have to up his game and be at his very best, for that very power and unbridled wrath was clearly not to be trifled with.

And thus the 3rd battle concludes with Ursula's ferocious fiery flare overcoming Marina's aquatic assault. Weren't expecting that now right? It's fun to throw in the unexpected in once in a while, just goes to show if you get on Ursula's bad side enough her fire will erupt into an uncontrollable blaze too hot to put out. To let you know, the D Team would use the dino tectors mainly against those who can use it too just to be fair though there is no guarantee the A Team will the same. Also here we see the connection with Terry and Ursula, despite being not the best of pairs, the fact remains they have similarities being prideful and violent when they go berserk and lose control. (Also Terry being agitated from hunger here kinda like with Max and Chomp before, though Ursula she is more in frustration tying with Terry as a result). Also the way some fires can't be easily put out as we've seen in recent wildfires….

With Marina decided to base her somewhat off Gym Leader Nessa in Pokemon Sword and Shield who also came from the seaside, a water specialist, lives swimming and is a model too. And also Elesa who shines brightly too with a sense of charisma as well. Also much like in pokemon sun and moon where the local people are very tuned to nature and the natural world living alongside it as well. Something to add with Marina being an old friend of Maia's also and being Dorothy's older cousin who is also a friend of Cera. Small world huh? That's how Cera got affiliated with her.

In case you're wondering how Marina lost, the entire time her main focus is not merely on winning a duel but also to make it meaningful hoping to create a bond with the audience and even those she competes against seeing the battlefield as a stage for a performance, so her attacks while mainly flashy they weren't meant to be severe. If she had been serious on winning the battle may have turned out differently but focused a bit too much on making the battle entertaining and thus getting cocky which lead to Ursula getting the upper hand against her.

Used a line from Avatar when Uncle Iroh speaks to Zuko about the 4 elements-Water being change and its people being adaptable and having love for community which holds them through anything. Represents Marina well in being flexible in many talents and areas like water flows and adapts the shape of its container. Also loving her community too, and being a deep person as the sea unlike Ursula who is shallow.

Craig using Earth Kingdom quotes-Is perseverent and enduring. Be sure to see air for Kaze and fire for Blaze in due time.

Side note regarding Dinosaur Land from Carnival of Chaos I'd like to say that place actually exists in Cera's time today. Something to point out some captains either raised their partner Dinos from eggs or revived them from fossils. That note next chapter will help shed light on how the future came to be and how they have some of their methods. As of now what I stated like eliminating meat and being renewable in energy….some of the things I wished could be real in our world today.

(You can use the cafe in Power rangers dino charge as a reference to how it looks along with the food served and the placings of the seating or kitchens, also from the game Fossil League and Dinosaur King DS how you heal your dinos with Din o food and Dino Drink respectively, those were featured in the restaurant)

Reply to reviews

tsukikami02

-Yup am with you there on the first part. Forgot about the Mouth of truth moment, some friendship that is. Do expect more past times with Cera and the Captains and backstory to come through the chapters. Liked the scene I included with Marina chatting with Dorothy over the phone?

Drew Luczynski

-I didn't watch that pokemon episode but a nice call. I plan on diving a bit more into each captain and Cera's history with them, each being a teacher she learnt something from. Guess you can say they managed to reenergise after the lecture Craig gave and when they armoured up. I found Tank to be the stronger between the both of them since Spiny is actually the weakest of the Alpha Gang dinos like his rival Paris being the weakest on the D Team no offence.

Think this battle had enough emotion for you? Also look forward to seeing how you explore that dimensions concept. Got me thinking example like the manga how Max has Mini King and Rex with an irritator.