So, I admit the last chapter was a little short, but I guess you all liked
it. I'm uncertain as to the length of this chapter as well, but we'll see
okay?
Scales: Is there where Sauron gets his butt kicked? Me: Maybe. Scales: Will I get to do it?
Me: No, this is Arik's fight. Anyway, let's begin.
It would be an understatement to say the situation was tense. Sauron leered at the heroes. "Well? I'm waiting for my Rubies." Arik slowly touched Scales' hand. The evil raptor sneered. "Don't even think about it. The instant you begin to breathe 'Chronos Control', you and your girlfriend die." Well, there goes my plan to just get us out of here with Chaos Control. Thought Scales. "How did you find where I lived?" Arik asked, trying to stall. Sauron pulled out the red Ruby and flipped it into the air, catching it. "My ancestors left me a wealth of knowledge on how to use the Rubies properly. One of the techniques I've learned from the ancient tablets was how to focus the time-seeing powers of the Ruby and use it to show me whatever I want to. It was simple to use it to figure out where this hut was. And since I knew you two would be going after the last Ruby, why bother trying to get there first when I could just as easily plant an ambush as I have here? Now, I'll only tell you one more time before I tell the troops to kill you. Give me the Chronos Rubies!" Arik was at a loss, until he suddenly saw his only remaining option. "Sauron, I believe in a position like this you are obligated to allow me to do one last thing." Sauron looked puzzled. "What?" Arik narrowed his eyes. "I challenge you to a Duel!" All stared at him for a moment. Then Sauron started laughing. He nearly dropped the Ruby as he fell on his back on the table, clutching his sides and laughing violently. Arik growled. Sauron eventually stopped laughing and got back up. "You're kidding right? You're actually challenging me to a duel?" Arik nodded fiercely. "Yes! And according to the Rules of Combat, you are obligated to accept my challenge." Sauron blinked. "Okay, I accept. What are your terms?" "If I win, I get your Chronos Ruby and your kind forever abates their effort to resurrect the Omnivore Empire. If I lose, all seven Rubies in my possession are forfeit." Said Arik. Sauron cocked his head. "Which of you will be fighting, you or the girl?" "Myself, of course." Said Arik. Sauron grinned sinisterly. "Your loss. The girl actually would have had a better chance at beating me, but you can go ahead and throw away your chances at victory. It'll just make things easier for me." "I'm a better fighter than you think I am, Sauron." Said Scales. "Yes, but are you as good as Scales here? Ah well, it doesn't really matter. Since you wish to make things harder on yourself, let's take this duel to my home. We'll be better suited to fight there." Said Sauron. He held up the Ruby. "Chronos Control!" A white portal shimmered into existence. He nodded to the soldiers. "Okay boys, round em' up!" The troops started poking the two reptiles with their spears, moving them towards the portal. "Ow! Hey, you don't need to poke so hard!" Arik yelled at one of the raptors. "Do you WANT me to rip your heart out?" Scales growled at one of the Massopondylus. The dinosaur responded by poking her a little harder. "Ow! Okay, I'm going!" Scales, Arik and the troops went through the portal. They came out of the portal on a very big balcony jutting from the side of a really big and imposing citadel in the middle of a great city made of stone. Arik looked all around. "What is this place?" he asked. Sauron stepped out of the portal, which immediately sealed shut. "This is the center of omnivorous power, the heart of the ancient empire, rebuilt by my grandfather years ago. Welcome to Sauropolis!" "Nice place you got here. A little imposing, but pretty nice." Said Scales. "Thank you, I redecorated just last month. Now, take them to the dungeon, I have to prepare the arena for combat!" said Sauron. The troops nodded and started forcing the two heroes towards an opening leading into the citadel.
A raptor slammed the cell door. "Now stay in there, and don't cause any trouble!" he growled, walking away. Scales walked over to the door. "So, can I blast the door open now so we can escape?" "No." said Arik. "Well, can we warp out of here so we can form a plan of attack and return in an attempt to steal Sauron's Ruby?" she asked. "No." he replied. "Why not?" she asked, looking a little irritated. "Because it would break the rules." Arik said coolly. "What rules?" she asked. "The ancient rules of combat!" said Arik, sounding a little angry. "What rules would those be?" Scales asked. "The rules laid out long ago by Saurian warriors for one-on-one combat. All fighters, even omnivores, respect these rules." He took a deep breath, then went on. "I have challenged Sauron to a duel to determine who will possess the eight Chronos Rubies. Once the battle is over, it is illegal for either combatant to renege on their side of the bargain. It is also illegal for any but the duelists to interfere in the fight, and the same can be said for attempting to back out of the duel in any way, shape or form. Therefore, I must fight him." "Well, why didn't you allow me to be the dueler to fight him? I beat him last time, I can do it again!" said Scales. Arik shook his head. "That may be true, but my honor dictates that I must be the one to challenge him. He killed my best friend, and that demands retribution. Therefore, I am the only one who can take him down." Scales frowned. "Arik, are you sure about this? We can still get out of this." Arik scowled. "No! We will go through with this. The duel will proceed as ordained." Scales paused. "Exactly what kind of duel is this?" "A series of battles designed to test both duelists. There are three rounds. In the first two rounds, the duelists much each fight a dangerous monster. If both combatants live, they advance to the next round. After they clear both preliminary rounds, they fight each other in the third round. Whoever dies or is unable to continue fighting loses the duel and the winner receives whatever was promised them." explained Arik. "I see." Said Scales. "What kinds of monsters?" Arik shrugged. "It depends on the area. Knowing Sauron, he has a few exceptionally dangerous ones in stock." Scales sighed and slumped against the back wall. "You're sure there's no way I can change your mind about just running away?" "Positive." He said. She got up and kissed him. "Then I want you to do your best out there, understand?" "Perfectly." He said, kissing her back. Just then, a pair of guards came for them. The raptors opened the cell. "Okay you two, the Emperor is ready! Arik, you are to come with me. Scales, you are to go with my companion. Get out here now." "We're coming, we're coming," said Arik. Scales joined the other guard. "What does that creep Sauron want with me anyway?" she asked. "The Emperor stated that you are to observe the duels. I will take you there now. Don't bother escaping, I'll only hunt you down and tear your throat out. This way." The raptor started down the hallway. Before she walked away, Scales craned her neck to see Arik. "Good luck!" she called at him. "Thanks! I'll need it." He called back. "I love you!" she yelled as he receded from her. "I love you too!" he replied. Both turned away and quickly went after their respective guards.
Soon enough, they both reached their destinations. The guard led Scales to her seat in an exclusive area close to the fighting and left. She was now in a large room reminiscent of the Coliseum. There were rows of seats, occupied by dozens of bloodthirsty citizens of Sauropolis. The middle of the room, the arena, was very large and sandy. The arena was sunk deeply into the floor. Huge gates lined the walls of the fighting area. Scales noticed a small booth just over the edge of the arena walls. It had a single raptor in it, manning some kind of control panel. As the crowd seemed to calm down a little, a referee or announcer began speaking through a large horn. "Citizens of Sauropolis, welcome to the duel of the century! Our beloved Emperor Sauron will battle one of the vile carnivores to retrieve that stolen from us ages ago, the Chronos Rubies!" Cheers came from the omnivores. "We will have three rounds, in which each duelist must fight a dangerous opponent before fighting each other in the third and final round! To start off the first round, here's our ruler, Sauron!" As the crowd went wild, one of the gates in the arena opened. Sauron walked out into the sandy fighting area, looking ready to break some skulls. "To go to the next fight, he must beat a flesh-eating Cavemaker! Let's all hope he succeeds, 'kay?" Another gate opened, and a big, horrendous dinosaur Scales had never seen before came out. It had four legs and a long, low- slung body about the size of a house. It had a short tail with a few spikes on it. Its neck was long and serpentine, ending in a head surrounded by six spiky protrusions. It had long, sharp teeth and a vicious look in its eyes. It was covered in bony armor plates. The subterranean monster known as a Cavemaker roared and started shambling towards Sauron. The raptor smirked. "This'll be easy." As the Cavemaker lunged forward, Sauron jumped over its head and started running down its neck. When he jumped and landed on the monster's back, the dinosaur turned its long neck around and tried to snatch up Sauron in its jaws. He jumped away at the last second, causing the Cavemaker to break its teeth on its own body armor. The monster screamed in pain, spitting broken teeth all over the place. Sauron ran towards the monster. The Cavemaker tried to swallow him up, but Sauron backflipped then shot forward with a Homing Kick, smashing into the dinosaur's nose. As the Cavemaker reeled back, Sauron stayed on the nose, digging his claws into the creature's flesh. He pulled himself along the Cavemaker's head as it tried unsuccessfully to shake him off. When he got near the beast's left eye, he lashed out with a claw, slicing into the eyeball and blinding that eye. The Cavemaker screamed even louder and thrashed its head hard enough to knock Sauron loose. As he hit the ground, the Cavemaker lunged forward and swallowed him whole before he could escape. The crowd gasped, believing their Emperor to be done for. That's when the Cavemaker's neck suddenly exploded, Sauron leaping out from it. The monstrous dinosaur screamed weakly and collapsed, dying from the large hole Sauron had put in its neck. Sauron was covered in saliva and a little digestive fluid, but was otherwise fine. He raised his arms, grinning as his people cheered for him. A gate opened, and he walked through it, presumably to clean up. A large hole opened in the floor beneath the Cavemaker, dumping it into a long shaft that closed up right away. "Incredible! This is why he's our leader, folks!" yelled the announcer. "Now, let's give it up for our challenger, Arik!" As a gate opened and Arik walked out, pretty much everyone booed and jeered him. Scales was the only one cheering. "To pass to the next round, Arik must also fight a Cavemaker! Let's see if he can match up to the great Sauron!"
Another gate opened, releasing a second Cavemaker. As Arik tensed for battle, Scales cheered for him. "Go on Arik, you can do it! Beat that ugly thing! Prove yourself worthy of marrying me! Yeah!" The monster roared and lunged for Arik. He jumped away and threw energy balls at the thing's head, trying to blind it. The blasts didn't have as big an effect as he had hoped, it only made the Cavemaker angry. It opened its mouth wide and spat acid at him. Arik got out of the way of the acidic burst and started running around the Cavemaker, dodging acid spit and quickly finding himself behind the monster's tail. The Cavemaker seemed to be slow at turning, giving Arik enough time to get an idea. He saw that the end of the tail, in the middle of the spiky cluster growing around it, was unprotected by any armor. He jumped up and lashed at it with his sickle claws, slicing it off. The Cavemaker screamed loud enough to break glass. Evidently that was a sore spot. Before Arik could make a move, the monster reflexively turned around at astonishing speed and gobbled him up. Arik found himself being forced down the dinosaur's esophagus. He was being constricted too tightly to attack, and so could not rip out of the neck like Sauron had. The esophagus spat him out into the stomach, which was filled with glowing digestive acid. Arik grabbed desperately onto a strange hanging organ to keep himself from falling in. As he pulled on it, the stomach rumbled. Curious, Arik pulled himself to a more secure position on the side of the organ. When his claws dug into it, the stomach rumbled louder. Getting a strange idea, Arik pushed off from the organ, then shot at it with a Homing Kick. There was an especially loud rumble, and Arik suddenly found himself being forced back up the Cavemaker's esophagus. He erupted from the monster's mouth, along with several bits of half-digested food. The Cavemaker retched and vomited some more, apparently not agreeing well with the damage Arik had done to that organ in the stomach. Despite being covered in slime and gross stuff, Arik saw he might have a way of killing the Cavemaker. He had to get back inside, but at the moment the monster didn't quite look like it wanted to eat anything for a while. When it had eaten him after he had lopped off the tail, the monster seemed to be acting on a reflex. How could he repeat the process? As he dodged another dose of acid spit, nearly slipping on the undigested food now all over the ground, he noticed that there was a small gap in the armor right at the base of the Cavemaker's neck, revealing unprotected flesh. He hurled an energy ball at the spot, irritating the Cavemaker. It started spitting more acid at him. He ran closer to the monster, dodging the acid spit and getting in range of the flaw in the armor. He shot at it with a Homing Kick. The monster screamed and reflexively shot its head down, gobbling Arik up again. He slid down the esophagus and fell into the stomach again. Instead of grabbing at the organ, he allowed himself to start dropping towards the acid. He cupped his hands at the organ as he fell. "Primal Scream!" The red raptor shot at the organ, exploding and destroying the organ. The entire stomach quaked, heaving all the remaining undigested food to the surface and sending Arik and the food back up the esophagus. He erupted from the dinosaur's mouth along with a lot of vomit, again. The Cavemaker retched up everything in its stomach, looking like it was in great pain. Even when there was nothing left, it kept giving the dry heaves. As its breathing grew weaker, its eyes rolled back in its head. The neck stiffened and fell, bringing the head to the ground with a loud thud. The body collapsed, the legs no longer able to support it. The beast was dead. The crowd booed angrily and tried throwing stuff at the raptor. Scales practically jumped out of her seat, whooping and cheering. A gate opened, and Arik ran through to avoid the projectiles thrown at him. As the gate closed, the sandy floor opened up again, dumping the dead Cavemaker and vomit into a chasm. The floor closed up again, clean and spotless. "Well, that was disappointing." Said the announcer, disgruntled. "Oh well. The Emperor is refreshed and ready for the next match! Here's Sauron!" The crowd went wild as Sauron came out of a gate, completely refreshed. "And he will be fighting against the deadliest of all wild beasts, an omnivorous Redeye!" A different gate opened, and a huge T-Rex stomped out. It roared, shaking the entire arena with its call. "Our Emperor got scarred once by one of these beasts. He killed it for that injury. Will he do the same with this one? Let's hope so!" The Rex roared again and ran at Sauron, shaking the ground with every stomp. Sauron readied himself, formulating a plan. The Rex lowered its head, opening its jaws wide in anticipation of the kill. At the last second, Sauron rolled out of the way of the Rex's charge. He immediately got back up and slashed at the terrible dinosaur's ankles with his claws. It didn't seem to do much damage, but the Rex obviously didn't like it. It turned around and tried to swallow up Sauron. The raptor jumped up and hit the ferocious beast's nose with a Homing Kick, apparently using the same strategy as before. As he climbed up the dinosaur's head, the Rex shook around in vain, trying to dislodge the raptor. Sauron climbed over to the Rex's right eye and blinded it with a swift kick, sending his opponent into a frenzy. The Rex turned its head sideways and started slamming it into the ground, trying to crush Sauron. He jumped away before the head could hit the ground, preparing for his next move. He started hurling dozens of energy balls at the blinded eye, aggravating the dinosaur. The Rex roared in pain and ran at Sauron. He dodged the charge and jumped really high, using a Homing Kick to go alongside the dinosaur's body, leaving a long cut from his attack. As he landed behind the Rex, it tried to squash him with its large tail. Sauron jumped onto the tail and hung on tightly as it flailed around, smashing into the ground in an attempt to knock him off. Despite being slammed into the ground several times, Sauron would not let go of the tail. He sank his jaws into the Rex's tail, causing it to scream in pain. The Rex turned its body to face its tail and reached for the pesky raptor on its tail with open jaws. Sauron dropped from the tail just in time, causing the Rex to bite its own tail! It screamed even louder than before as it let go, hurting from the damage it had inflicted on itself. Sauron jumped high in the air again, grabbing onto the T-Rex's sides. It started for the wall, intending to smash the raptor against it. Sauron quickly climbed up the side of the Rex, reaching the top just as the dinosaur slammed sideways into the wall, which would have crushed him for sure if he hadn't been safely on the Rex's back. He ran along the back, reaching the big dinosaur's neck. He drove his claws in and started digging into the Rex's flesh, causing it to scream in agony. He kept a firm grip as the beast thrashed around, digging down through the layers of skin on the dinosaur's neck until he severed something important, probably an artery. Blood started spurting from the gruesome hole he had dug in the Rex's skin, and the dinosaur didn't look so good. It gave a feeble roar, took a few steps forward, and collapsed. Sauron jumped down and took his bows as the crowd went wild. Scales booed, but it was drowned out by the cheers for Sauron. "Amazing! Sauron has done the unthinkable, actually killing two Redeyes in his lifetime! Truly he is a great warrior!" Sauron headed through an open gate to rest up. The hole in the floor opened, getting rid of the deceased T-Rex. "Now the challenger must try and pull off a similar feat to proceed. But there's no way this pathetic carnivore can take on a full-grown Redeye, right?" The gates opened, and Arik and another T-Rex came out. "Let's rumble!" yelled the announcer. The T-Rex roared and ran towards Arik. As it did, time seemed to freeze to him. I don't believe this. He thought. I'm actually facing down a Redeye! There's no way I can win! He scowled. What am I thinking? I have to win this! If I don't, Sauron will get the Rubies when the Redeye eventually passes me completely through its digestive system. Scales will be all alone! I can't do that to her! If my ancestor could kill one of these things, then so shall I! Time seemed to speed up again. The Rex roared again and lowered its head, jaws wide open. This was it! Channeling all his hatred for Sauron and love for Scales into energy, Arik attempted to supercharge his special attack. A ball of red light formed between his hands. "Here we go...PRIMAL SCREAM!" The Chronos raptor formed, larger than before, and shot for the Rex, going right into its mouth. It exploded, ripping the Rex's head to pieces in the blast. The headless carcass of the T-Rex shook for a few moments, then slumped to the ground. Arik stared at the corpse in surprise, as did everyone else. All was silent. Then, the announcer said, "I-I don't believe this...the challenger has managed to slay a full-grown Redeye in under one minute..." That was all he could say before silencing again. A gate opened, and Arik headed for it. As he did, he smiled as he heard a single person cheering for him. "Woo! Go Arik! Go Arik! I said you could do it, and I was right wasn't I? Yeah!" Scales shouted. Arik shook his head in bemusement and went through the gate, which closed behind him. The disposal in the arena opened again, disposing of the headless T-Rex. The announcer found his voice again. "L-ladies and gentlemen, we will now have a short break so our combatants can prepare for their true duel. Please take care of any necessary business within fifteen minutes time, so you will not miss the fight. Thank you." The crowd seemed to break out of their shock at Arik's win. They started talking amongst themselves, while others left the room to use the bathroom or whatever they had in this place. Scales smiled smugly and lay back in her seat, confident that Arik would beat Sauron. "He's definitely the right man for me. I told him he could kill one of those things. I think we're going to be happy together..."
Fifteen minutes later, all the observers were back in their seats. The announcer began speaking. "Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for the moment you've all been waiting for, the duel between Sauron and Arik! The challenger has proven himself worthy of fighting the Emperor, but is he really good enough to beat Sauron? Well, that's what we're here to find out, isn't it? Anyway, here they are, our two duelists!" The gates opened, and Sauron and Arik came out, facing each other from opposite ends of the arena. "Now, I'm sure you're all itching to see Sauron tear Arik apart, so let's get it on!" The crowd cheered and Sauron and Arik charged towards each other. The two raptors met in the center of the sandy area. Despite the fact that Sauron was almost twice his size, he did not intimidate Arik. He was ready to avenge Hercules and protect the timeline from this menace. Sauron made the first move, swiping his tail at Arik. He jumped over the tail and hit Sauron's head with a Homing Kick. The evil raptor staggered back, allowing Arik to kick him in the chest. As Arik was about to kick again, Sauron grabbed his foot before it could impact on his chest and threw Arik away. Arik hit the sand and skidded a few feet away. As Sauron pounced at him, Arik pointed his feet up and kicked Sauron in mid-pounce, knocking him away. Arik pulled himself up and ran towards his foe. Sauron backflipped from the ground, landing on his feet. As Arik lashed at him with his claws, Sauron swiped with his own, blocking the strike. They swiped at each other for a few seconds, neither able to get past the other's claws. Arik tried to swipe Sauron with his claws again. When Sauron blocked, Arik stopped his swipe and kicked Sauron before he could block it, hitting him in the chest. He followed this up by slamming his tail into Sauron's face, stunning the villain. Arik slashed at Sauron with his claws twice before Sauron recovered and tried to hit him with his tail. They faced each other, then started hurling energy balls. Their blasts cancelled each other out before they could get close to their targets, resulting in a somewhat pretty light show. They circled each other, constantly throwing energy balls in an attempt to score a hit. Arik gave up trying to hit Sauron with energy balls and jumped, going into a Homing Kick. Sauron blasted him with an energy ball, knocking him out of the air. Before Arik could get up, Sauron ran over and kicked him hard in the sides, rolling him a few feet away. He ran over and kicked Arik again, sending him another few feet away. As he ran over for another kick, Arik leapt to his feet and sweeped low with his tail, knocking Sauron off his feet. While he was down, Arik proceeded to do to Sauron as he had just done to him, kicking him hard enough to send him rolling away. Instead of trying to kick Sauron again, Arik threw an energy ball at Sauron as he got up, blasting the raptor a few feet back. He then hurled several dozen energy balls at the sand around Sauron, sending up a large dust cloud. As the evil raptor stumbled through the cloud in confusion, Arik hit him with a Homing Kick before the cloud dissipated. When it did, Sauron delivered a powerful kick to Arik, nearly cutting his chest open. Arik blocked his next kick, and hit Sauron with one of his own. He then hit him with an energy ball at close range, throwing both of them back. Sauron quickly recovered and used Arik's same trick against him, hurling energy balls at the sand and forming a dust cloud. When the sand blinded Arik, Sauron ran over and hit him with a Homing Kick. Arik got back up from where the Kick had flung him, and blocked a claw swipe from Sauron. When the villain swung his tail around, Arik grabbed it and started spinning in place, throwing Sauron away. The raptor skidded through the sand face-first for several meters before coming to a stop. As he slowly began to get up, Arik generated and threw energy ball after energy ball, not even bothering to aim properly as he showered the area around Sauron with blasts. A dust cloud formed from all the sand thrown up by the blasts, but he still continued to pour dozens of energy balls into where he had last seen Sauron. Finally, he stopped shooting energy balls and started supercharging his special attack. "PRIMAL SCREAM!" He yelled, firing the enormous red blast into the dust cloud, resulting in a big explosion that sent sand scattering all over the place. When the dust cloud formed by this blast faded, Arik was shocked to see there was nothing there, not even pieces of a corpse! He heard chuckling and turned around, finding Sauron standing right behind him! The evil raptor grinned. "Imbecile. Don't you know never to fire blindly into a dust cloud?" Arik stumbled back. "How-how did you get there?" "Simple. I just used Chronos Control to freeze time right after the dust cloud formed, allowing me to get away from your blast radius and remain unharmed. I decided to wait to attack you because I thought it would be amusing for you to be blasting at nothing while everybody else could see I was already behind you." His grin got wider. "By the way, your aim stinks. You didn't hit me at all before the dust cloud formed." Arik narrowed his eyes. He backflipped away, then cupped his hands at Sauron. The evil raptor whipped out his Ruby and aimed it at Arik. "Temporal Implosion!" The deadly wave rippled out of the jewel. Arik finished charging his attack. "Primal Scream!" The raptor burst forth and shot through the wave, shattering it and hurtling towards Sauron. The villain smirked and held his Ruby in front of him. The attack hit his Ruby and was sucked into it, causing it to glow. Arik blinked. "What? How did you do that?" Sauron chuckled. "Like I said before, I've learned a lot from my ancestors! For one thing, I know that the Rubies can absorb Chronos energy sent at them, giving the user a temporary power boost! Observe!" The Ruby's glow brightened and red static danced over Sauron's body. He raced towards Arik at twice his regular speed, reaching the raptor before he could move. As Arik attempted to defend himself, Sauron slugged him in the face, snapping his head around. He then unleashed a flurry of kicks at Arik's chest, causing more damage with each hit. Arik gasped and fell to his knees. Sauron grabbed him by the neck and held him high, leering deep into his eyes. "Did you really think you could beat me?" he hissed. He hurled Arik away, his increased power smashing the good raptor into the wall. Arik slid down from the wall, not moving. The crowd started cheering again, as Scales looked on anxiously. Sauron walked over, pleased to see Arik appeared to be too hurt to move. Arik struggled to get up, but could barely move a muscle as Sauron loomed over him. He grinned at the helpless raptor. The announcer spoke up. "Arik appears to be unable to continue fighting. Sauron is the winner!" "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" moaned Scales. Sauron laughed. "Ahahahahahaha! You really thought you had a chance against me, didn't you Arik? Well, time to claim my prize." He leaned down and reached into Arik's dimension pocket, pulling out each Chronos Ruby one by one and putting it away. When he took out the last one, the Master Ruby, he admired it for a moment. "Well Arik, it seems you've failed your duty. Congratulations, you've disgraced your ancestors and undone all that has come to pass since the day Slashfang beat my ancestor. Good day." With that, Sauron put the Ruby in the dimension pocket and walked away from the immobile Arik.
A bit later, both Scales and Arik were in the same cell as before. The nurses had healed up Arik pretty well and now he looked pretty much the same as before, with only a few bruises and scars here and there. However, it looked like his spirit was broken. Scales paced the cell nervously, sensing a large buildup of Chronos energy, most likely Sauron attempting to reach godhood. "Can we break out of here and stop Sauron yet?" she finally asked. "No." he said dismally. "And may I ask why not?" asked Scales. "Because I failed." He said. "So?" she asked. "I failed to defeat him. I am not worthy of protecting the Chronos Rubies. I could not avenge Hercules, and have disgraced my family line by losing the fight." He said. Scales stared at him for a moment, then angrily slapped him. "Ow! What was that for?" he asked. She looked at him furiously. "I can't believe you're just giving up like this! We still have a chance of beating him!" "We'll just fail. He is unbeatable." Said Arik. "Oh please! I beat him in the tomb! Just because you failed to defeat him doesn't make him undefeatable or anything." Said Scales. "Yes, but-" started Arik. "Don't but me! From the way you've acted, I can see that you're family's honor means a lot to you! Well, how do you think your parents and sisters would feel about you just giving up after losing one fight? What would Slashfang think, for that matter? Wouldn't it really be breaking your family's honor by doing nothing to stop Sauron from completing his plans? Wouldn't that be the coward's way out?" she demanded. Arik blinked. "I...guess, but I can't beat him by myself!" "Forget being by yourself! I'm here! I'll fight beside you to help take him down!" she said. "But I have to do this by myself, it is my duty!" Arik protested. "No, it's not! You can't do this by yourself. It was never said that you can't fulfill your duty without help, now did it? I mean come on, if you really had to do this by yourself, then why did you come to me for help in the first place?" Scales asked. Arik blinked. "Good point." Scales then laid down the final argument. "And if you don't get up so we can save the universe, I can guarantee you're not getting any more love out of me!" He shot to his feet. "Let's go!" he said urgently "Okay!" she grabbed his hand, focusing on where all the Chronos energy was emanating from. "Chaos Control!" They warped away in a flash of light.
They reappeared in a sacred-looking room. It was round with several pillars all over the place. In the middle of the room, near where they had reappeared, was a circular platform. On the platform were eight small pillars, seven surrounding a central one. A Chronos Ruby was standing on each pillar, glowing brightly. Sauron looked up from his position near the Rubies, surprised. "What? How did you get here?" he asked, startled. "Chaos Control. Gotta love it." Said Scales. "We're here for a rematch, Sauron! You're not going to win this time!" said Arik. Sauron sneered. "You flaming idiots, can't you see it's too late? I've finished preparing the Rubies! My destiny is about to be fulfilled!" As he said this, the Rubies floated off their pillars and formed a spinning orbit around him. "You see? There is nothing you can do now!" "Oh really? Serpent Strike!" yelled Scales. The Chaos snake shot towards Sauron and exploded harmlessly on an invisible force field generated by the Rubies. "Okay, I guess there really is nothing we can do." The Rubies spun faster and faster, their glow brightening. "Yes! Yes! I feel the power! Ahahahahahaha!" The light from the Rubies grew to a blinding flash, obscuring Scales' and Arik's vision. When the glare cleared, they saw it really was too late. Sauron was now standing straight up at a height of ten feet, looking slightly humanoid. His tail had spikes growing from it, like a mace. His feet were heavily taloned and his sickle claws looked more like great scythes. He was now extremely muscular, and when I say muscular I'm talking Super Saiyan 3 here. Static crackled all over his body every few seconds. His flesh had turned as red as blood, with strange black markings here and there. Spikes grew out of his back and his thick shoulders. His head was shaped more like that of a dragon's than a raptor's, with spikes over the eye ridges and two horns growing from the back of his head. Three spikes grew out of the sides of his face, over the jaws. His eyes had become a blazing blue, with tinges of gold. The Rubies still orbited him, now more slowly and not really glowing at all. Sauron grinned at his enemies. "I am...Oblivion!"
TO BE CONTINUED...
Another cliffhanger! Gotta love it. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. Scales: Is the next one where we finally defeat Sauron? Me: It's where you fight him, yes. Now Scales, tell me how you felt about Arik's stubbornness during the chapter? Scales: I thought he was being kind of pigheaded, but at least I managed to set him straight in the end. Too bad we couldn't have been sooner, though. Me: Yeah, that's too bad. So, how did you feel during the fights?
Scales: I was worried when he fought the monsters, especially the Cavemaker. I was terrified when I saw him get eaten! Me: Yeah, too bad he wasn't digested. I mean, good thing he wasn't digested! Scales: (Frowns at me, then goes on.) I'm glad he pulled through when he fought the T-Rex, but I was kind of surprised he lost to Sauron. Oh well, now that we're fighting together, there's no way that goon stands a chance!
Me: We'll see about that. Anyway, here's our usual stuff from fans. First of all, HobbesKnux has kindly explained what he is and granted you and Arik another pair of gift baskets just like the last ones. He's also given you two lovebirds a billion non-spoil chickens that are all-skin, a hundred of which are live. He also said he'd explain the disk's purpose in the next review. Scales: Well, I don't see why we need that many chickens, but thank you HobbesKnux. Me: Maverick's finally made a comeback. He laments that his elixir is useless, but gave us a few things. Scales: What? Me: First he sent us an ice sculpture of a decapitated Sauron, with the head included. Scales: Won't it melt?
Me: Probably. He was going to give you a diamond ring bigger than Ultrafan's, but decided to use it to buy Mars. Instead, he's given ME a lifetime supply of napalm, which I will certainly put to good use in horribly torturing my hostages!
Scales: What hostages? Me: Uh...amnesia dust! (Do I really need to explain this part again?) As a final gift, Maverick got Godzilla to squash Sauron. Scales: But Sauron's turned into Oblivion. He can now reduce Godzilla to nuclear waste with a single shot from his ultimate attack. Me: So that's where that big pile of green goo outside the studio came from. Oh well. He also gave us a pizza that promptly exploded. Scales: Ooooooooooookayyyyyyyyy... Me: Finally, we have stuff from Ultrafan. First off, he's decided to give Camomon a girlfriend. Scales: Aw, how cute! Me: Yeah, we got gifts as well. Turns out the gold Scales Chao is a girl after all. Scales: Well that's good to know. Me: He's generously given you and Arik a pair of tickets to Isle Delphino. Scales: Great! We can go there for our honeymoon! (Frowns.) Wait. Isn't that the place undergoing pollution and vandalism and is also in the Mario world, which I absolutely hate? Me: Yes. Scales: Damn. Wonder if I can exchange these things for tickets to Hawaii. Me: As a gift for Sauron, Ultrafan's rebuilt the airship General Scales had and rigged it with dynamite. Too bad it won't be necessary, considering how Sauron's now Oblivion and doesn't need an airship. Scales: Yeah, too bad. Me: On a final note, Ultrafan X has also rented out Jurassic Park and filled it with omnivores for you and Arik to hunt. He's also left all the sauropods so you can ride them like horses! Scales: Cool! Thank you Ultrafan X! Me: Well that's it for now. See you next time! Scales: Bye! Don't forget to review!
Scales: Is there where Sauron gets his butt kicked? Me: Maybe. Scales: Will I get to do it?
Me: No, this is Arik's fight. Anyway, let's begin.
It would be an understatement to say the situation was tense. Sauron leered at the heroes. "Well? I'm waiting for my Rubies." Arik slowly touched Scales' hand. The evil raptor sneered. "Don't even think about it. The instant you begin to breathe 'Chronos Control', you and your girlfriend die." Well, there goes my plan to just get us out of here with Chaos Control. Thought Scales. "How did you find where I lived?" Arik asked, trying to stall. Sauron pulled out the red Ruby and flipped it into the air, catching it. "My ancestors left me a wealth of knowledge on how to use the Rubies properly. One of the techniques I've learned from the ancient tablets was how to focus the time-seeing powers of the Ruby and use it to show me whatever I want to. It was simple to use it to figure out where this hut was. And since I knew you two would be going after the last Ruby, why bother trying to get there first when I could just as easily plant an ambush as I have here? Now, I'll only tell you one more time before I tell the troops to kill you. Give me the Chronos Rubies!" Arik was at a loss, until he suddenly saw his only remaining option. "Sauron, I believe in a position like this you are obligated to allow me to do one last thing." Sauron looked puzzled. "What?" Arik narrowed his eyes. "I challenge you to a Duel!" All stared at him for a moment. Then Sauron started laughing. He nearly dropped the Ruby as he fell on his back on the table, clutching his sides and laughing violently. Arik growled. Sauron eventually stopped laughing and got back up. "You're kidding right? You're actually challenging me to a duel?" Arik nodded fiercely. "Yes! And according to the Rules of Combat, you are obligated to accept my challenge." Sauron blinked. "Okay, I accept. What are your terms?" "If I win, I get your Chronos Ruby and your kind forever abates their effort to resurrect the Omnivore Empire. If I lose, all seven Rubies in my possession are forfeit." Said Arik. Sauron cocked his head. "Which of you will be fighting, you or the girl?" "Myself, of course." Said Arik. Sauron grinned sinisterly. "Your loss. The girl actually would have had a better chance at beating me, but you can go ahead and throw away your chances at victory. It'll just make things easier for me." "I'm a better fighter than you think I am, Sauron." Said Scales. "Yes, but are you as good as Scales here? Ah well, it doesn't really matter. Since you wish to make things harder on yourself, let's take this duel to my home. We'll be better suited to fight there." Said Sauron. He held up the Ruby. "Chronos Control!" A white portal shimmered into existence. He nodded to the soldiers. "Okay boys, round em' up!" The troops started poking the two reptiles with their spears, moving them towards the portal. "Ow! Hey, you don't need to poke so hard!" Arik yelled at one of the raptors. "Do you WANT me to rip your heart out?" Scales growled at one of the Massopondylus. The dinosaur responded by poking her a little harder. "Ow! Okay, I'm going!" Scales, Arik and the troops went through the portal. They came out of the portal on a very big balcony jutting from the side of a really big and imposing citadel in the middle of a great city made of stone. Arik looked all around. "What is this place?" he asked. Sauron stepped out of the portal, which immediately sealed shut. "This is the center of omnivorous power, the heart of the ancient empire, rebuilt by my grandfather years ago. Welcome to Sauropolis!" "Nice place you got here. A little imposing, but pretty nice." Said Scales. "Thank you, I redecorated just last month. Now, take them to the dungeon, I have to prepare the arena for combat!" said Sauron. The troops nodded and started forcing the two heroes towards an opening leading into the citadel.
A raptor slammed the cell door. "Now stay in there, and don't cause any trouble!" he growled, walking away. Scales walked over to the door. "So, can I blast the door open now so we can escape?" "No." said Arik. "Well, can we warp out of here so we can form a plan of attack and return in an attempt to steal Sauron's Ruby?" she asked. "No." he replied. "Why not?" she asked, looking a little irritated. "Because it would break the rules." Arik said coolly. "What rules?" she asked. "The ancient rules of combat!" said Arik, sounding a little angry. "What rules would those be?" Scales asked. "The rules laid out long ago by Saurian warriors for one-on-one combat. All fighters, even omnivores, respect these rules." He took a deep breath, then went on. "I have challenged Sauron to a duel to determine who will possess the eight Chronos Rubies. Once the battle is over, it is illegal for either combatant to renege on their side of the bargain. It is also illegal for any but the duelists to interfere in the fight, and the same can be said for attempting to back out of the duel in any way, shape or form. Therefore, I must fight him." "Well, why didn't you allow me to be the dueler to fight him? I beat him last time, I can do it again!" said Scales. Arik shook his head. "That may be true, but my honor dictates that I must be the one to challenge him. He killed my best friend, and that demands retribution. Therefore, I am the only one who can take him down." Scales frowned. "Arik, are you sure about this? We can still get out of this." Arik scowled. "No! We will go through with this. The duel will proceed as ordained." Scales paused. "Exactly what kind of duel is this?" "A series of battles designed to test both duelists. There are three rounds. In the first two rounds, the duelists much each fight a dangerous monster. If both combatants live, they advance to the next round. After they clear both preliminary rounds, they fight each other in the third round. Whoever dies or is unable to continue fighting loses the duel and the winner receives whatever was promised them." explained Arik. "I see." Said Scales. "What kinds of monsters?" Arik shrugged. "It depends on the area. Knowing Sauron, he has a few exceptionally dangerous ones in stock." Scales sighed and slumped against the back wall. "You're sure there's no way I can change your mind about just running away?" "Positive." He said. She got up and kissed him. "Then I want you to do your best out there, understand?" "Perfectly." He said, kissing her back. Just then, a pair of guards came for them. The raptors opened the cell. "Okay you two, the Emperor is ready! Arik, you are to come with me. Scales, you are to go with my companion. Get out here now." "We're coming, we're coming," said Arik. Scales joined the other guard. "What does that creep Sauron want with me anyway?" she asked. "The Emperor stated that you are to observe the duels. I will take you there now. Don't bother escaping, I'll only hunt you down and tear your throat out. This way." The raptor started down the hallway. Before she walked away, Scales craned her neck to see Arik. "Good luck!" she called at him. "Thanks! I'll need it." He called back. "I love you!" she yelled as he receded from her. "I love you too!" he replied. Both turned away and quickly went after their respective guards.
Soon enough, they both reached their destinations. The guard led Scales to her seat in an exclusive area close to the fighting and left. She was now in a large room reminiscent of the Coliseum. There were rows of seats, occupied by dozens of bloodthirsty citizens of Sauropolis. The middle of the room, the arena, was very large and sandy. The arena was sunk deeply into the floor. Huge gates lined the walls of the fighting area. Scales noticed a small booth just over the edge of the arena walls. It had a single raptor in it, manning some kind of control panel. As the crowd seemed to calm down a little, a referee or announcer began speaking through a large horn. "Citizens of Sauropolis, welcome to the duel of the century! Our beloved Emperor Sauron will battle one of the vile carnivores to retrieve that stolen from us ages ago, the Chronos Rubies!" Cheers came from the omnivores. "We will have three rounds, in which each duelist must fight a dangerous opponent before fighting each other in the third and final round! To start off the first round, here's our ruler, Sauron!" As the crowd went wild, one of the gates in the arena opened. Sauron walked out into the sandy fighting area, looking ready to break some skulls. "To go to the next fight, he must beat a flesh-eating Cavemaker! Let's all hope he succeeds, 'kay?" Another gate opened, and a big, horrendous dinosaur Scales had never seen before came out. It had four legs and a long, low- slung body about the size of a house. It had a short tail with a few spikes on it. Its neck was long and serpentine, ending in a head surrounded by six spiky protrusions. It had long, sharp teeth and a vicious look in its eyes. It was covered in bony armor plates. The subterranean monster known as a Cavemaker roared and started shambling towards Sauron. The raptor smirked. "This'll be easy." As the Cavemaker lunged forward, Sauron jumped over its head and started running down its neck. When he jumped and landed on the monster's back, the dinosaur turned its long neck around and tried to snatch up Sauron in its jaws. He jumped away at the last second, causing the Cavemaker to break its teeth on its own body armor. The monster screamed in pain, spitting broken teeth all over the place. Sauron ran towards the monster. The Cavemaker tried to swallow him up, but Sauron backflipped then shot forward with a Homing Kick, smashing into the dinosaur's nose. As the Cavemaker reeled back, Sauron stayed on the nose, digging his claws into the creature's flesh. He pulled himself along the Cavemaker's head as it tried unsuccessfully to shake him off. When he got near the beast's left eye, he lashed out with a claw, slicing into the eyeball and blinding that eye. The Cavemaker screamed even louder and thrashed its head hard enough to knock Sauron loose. As he hit the ground, the Cavemaker lunged forward and swallowed him whole before he could escape. The crowd gasped, believing their Emperor to be done for. That's when the Cavemaker's neck suddenly exploded, Sauron leaping out from it. The monstrous dinosaur screamed weakly and collapsed, dying from the large hole Sauron had put in its neck. Sauron was covered in saliva and a little digestive fluid, but was otherwise fine. He raised his arms, grinning as his people cheered for him. A gate opened, and he walked through it, presumably to clean up. A large hole opened in the floor beneath the Cavemaker, dumping it into a long shaft that closed up right away. "Incredible! This is why he's our leader, folks!" yelled the announcer. "Now, let's give it up for our challenger, Arik!" As a gate opened and Arik walked out, pretty much everyone booed and jeered him. Scales was the only one cheering. "To pass to the next round, Arik must also fight a Cavemaker! Let's see if he can match up to the great Sauron!"
Another gate opened, releasing a second Cavemaker. As Arik tensed for battle, Scales cheered for him. "Go on Arik, you can do it! Beat that ugly thing! Prove yourself worthy of marrying me! Yeah!" The monster roared and lunged for Arik. He jumped away and threw energy balls at the thing's head, trying to blind it. The blasts didn't have as big an effect as he had hoped, it only made the Cavemaker angry. It opened its mouth wide and spat acid at him. Arik got out of the way of the acidic burst and started running around the Cavemaker, dodging acid spit and quickly finding himself behind the monster's tail. The Cavemaker seemed to be slow at turning, giving Arik enough time to get an idea. He saw that the end of the tail, in the middle of the spiky cluster growing around it, was unprotected by any armor. He jumped up and lashed at it with his sickle claws, slicing it off. The Cavemaker screamed loud enough to break glass. Evidently that was a sore spot. Before Arik could make a move, the monster reflexively turned around at astonishing speed and gobbled him up. Arik found himself being forced down the dinosaur's esophagus. He was being constricted too tightly to attack, and so could not rip out of the neck like Sauron had. The esophagus spat him out into the stomach, which was filled with glowing digestive acid. Arik grabbed desperately onto a strange hanging organ to keep himself from falling in. As he pulled on it, the stomach rumbled. Curious, Arik pulled himself to a more secure position on the side of the organ. When his claws dug into it, the stomach rumbled louder. Getting a strange idea, Arik pushed off from the organ, then shot at it with a Homing Kick. There was an especially loud rumble, and Arik suddenly found himself being forced back up the Cavemaker's esophagus. He erupted from the monster's mouth, along with several bits of half-digested food. The Cavemaker retched and vomited some more, apparently not agreeing well with the damage Arik had done to that organ in the stomach. Despite being covered in slime and gross stuff, Arik saw he might have a way of killing the Cavemaker. He had to get back inside, but at the moment the monster didn't quite look like it wanted to eat anything for a while. When it had eaten him after he had lopped off the tail, the monster seemed to be acting on a reflex. How could he repeat the process? As he dodged another dose of acid spit, nearly slipping on the undigested food now all over the ground, he noticed that there was a small gap in the armor right at the base of the Cavemaker's neck, revealing unprotected flesh. He hurled an energy ball at the spot, irritating the Cavemaker. It started spitting more acid at him. He ran closer to the monster, dodging the acid spit and getting in range of the flaw in the armor. He shot at it with a Homing Kick. The monster screamed and reflexively shot its head down, gobbling Arik up again. He slid down the esophagus and fell into the stomach again. Instead of grabbing at the organ, he allowed himself to start dropping towards the acid. He cupped his hands at the organ as he fell. "Primal Scream!" The red raptor shot at the organ, exploding and destroying the organ. The entire stomach quaked, heaving all the remaining undigested food to the surface and sending Arik and the food back up the esophagus. He erupted from the dinosaur's mouth along with a lot of vomit, again. The Cavemaker retched up everything in its stomach, looking like it was in great pain. Even when there was nothing left, it kept giving the dry heaves. As its breathing grew weaker, its eyes rolled back in its head. The neck stiffened and fell, bringing the head to the ground with a loud thud. The body collapsed, the legs no longer able to support it. The beast was dead. The crowd booed angrily and tried throwing stuff at the raptor. Scales practically jumped out of her seat, whooping and cheering. A gate opened, and Arik ran through to avoid the projectiles thrown at him. As the gate closed, the sandy floor opened up again, dumping the dead Cavemaker and vomit into a chasm. The floor closed up again, clean and spotless. "Well, that was disappointing." Said the announcer, disgruntled. "Oh well. The Emperor is refreshed and ready for the next match! Here's Sauron!" The crowd went wild as Sauron came out of a gate, completely refreshed. "And he will be fighting against the deadliest of all wild beasts, an omnivorous Redeye!" A different gate opened, and a huge T-Rex stomped out. It roared, shaking the entire arena with its call. "Our Emperor got scarred once by one of these beasts. He killed it for that injury. Will he do the same with this one? Let's hope so!" The Rex roared again and ran at Sauron, shaking the ground with every stomp. Sauron readied himself, formulating a plan. The Rex lowered its head, opening its jaws wide in anticipation of the kill. At the last second, Sauron rolled out of the way of the Rex's charge. He immediately got back up and slashed at the terrible dinosaur's ankles with his claws. It didn't seem to do much damage, but the Rex obviously didn't like it. It turned around and tried to swallow up Sauron. The raptor jumped up and hit the ferocious beast's nose with a Homing Kick, apparently using the same strategy as before. As he climbed up the dinosaur's head, the Rex shook around in vain, trying to dislodge the raptor. Sauron climbed over to the Rex's right eye and blinded it with a swift kick, sending his opponent into a frenzy. The Rex turned its head sideways and started slamming it into the ground, trying to crush Sauron. He jumped away before the head could hit the ground, preparing for his next move. He started hurling dozens of energy balls at the blinded eye, aggravating the dinosaur. The Rex roared in pain and ran at Sauron. He dodged the charge and jumped really high, using a Homing Kick to go alongside the dinosaur's body, leaving a long cut from his attack. As he landed behind the Rex, it tried to squash him with its large tail. Sauron jumped onto the tail and hung on tightly as it flailed around, smashing into the ground in an attempt to knock him off. Despite being slammed into the ground several times, Sauron would not let go of the tail. He sank his jaws into the Rex's tail, causing it to scream in pain. The Rex turned its body to face its tail and reached for the pesky raptor on its tail with open jaws. Sauron dropped from the tail just in time, causing the Rex to bite its own tail! It screamed even louder than before as it let go, hurting from the damage it had inflicted on itself. Sauron jumped high in the air again, grabbing onto the T-Rex's sides. It started for the wall, intending to smash the raptor against it. Sauron quickly climbed up the side of the Rex, reaching the top just as the dinosaur slammed sideways into the wall, which would have crushed him for sure if he hadn't been safely on the Rex's back. He ran along the back, reaching the big dinosaur's neck. He drove his claws in and started digging into the Rex's flesh, causing it to scream in agony. He kept a firm grip as the beast thrashed around, digging down through the layers of skin on the dinosaur's neck until he severed something important, probably an artery. Blood started spurting from the gruesome hole he had dug in the Rex's skin, and the dinosaur didn't look so good. It gave a feeble roar, took a few steps forward, and collapsed. Sauron jumped down and took his bows as the crowd went wild. Scales booed, but it was drowned out by the cheers for Sauron. "Amazing! Sauron has done the unthinkable, actually killing two Redeyes in his lifetime! Truly he is a great warrior!" Sauron headed through an open gate to rest up. The hole in the floor opened, getting rid of the deceased T-Rex. "Now the challenger must try and pull off a similar feat to proceed. But there's no way this pathetic carnivore can take on a full-grown Redeye, right?" The gates opened, and Arik and another T-Rex came out. "Let's rumble!" yelled the announcer. The T-Rex roared and ran towards Arik. As it did, time seemed to freeze to him. I don't believe this. He thought. I'm actually facing down a Redeye! There's no way I can win! He scowled. What am I thinking? I have to win this! If I don't, Sauron will get the Rubies when the Redeye eventually passes me completely through its digestive system. Scales will be all alone! I can't do that to her! If my ancestor could kill one of these things, then so shall I! Time seemed to speed up again. The Rex roared again and lowered its head, jaws wide open. This was it! Channeling all his hatred for Sauron and love for Scales into energy, Arik attempted to supercharge his special attack. A ball of red light formed between his hands. "Here we go...PRIMAL SCREAM!" The Chronos raptor formed, larger than before, and shot for the Rex, going right into its mouth. It exploded, ripping the Rex's head to pieces in the blast. The headless carcass of the T-Rex shook for a few moments, then slumped to the ground. Arik stared at the corpse in surprise, as did everyone else. All was silent. Then, the announcer said, "I-I don't believe this...the challenger has managed to slay a full-grown Redeye in under one minute..." That was all he could say before silencing again. A gate opened, and Arik headed for it. As he did, he smiled as he heard a single person cheering for him. "Woo! Go Arik! Go Arik! I said you could do it, and I was right wasn't I? Yeah!" Scales shouted. Arik shook his head in bemusement and went through the gate, which closed behind him. The disposal in the arena opened again, disposing of the headless T-Rex. The announcer found his voice again. "L-ladies and gentlemen, we will now have a short break so our combatants can prepare for their true duel. Please take care of any necessary business within fifteen minutes time, so you will not miss the fight. Thank you." The crowd seemed to break out of their shock at Arik's win. They started talking amongst themselves, while others left the room to use the bathroom or whatever they had in this place. Scales smiled smugly and lay back in her seat, confident that Arik would beat Sauron. "He's definitely the right man for me. I told him he could kill one of those things. I think we're going to be happy together..."
Fifteen minutes later, all the observers were back in their seats. The announcer began speaking. "Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for the moment you've all been waiting for, the duel between Sauron and Arik! The challenger has proven himself worthy of fighting the Emperor, but is he really good enough to beat Sauron? Well, that's what we're here to find out, isn't it? Anyway, here they are, our two duelists!" The gates opened, and Sauron and Arik came out, facing each other from opposite ends of the arena. "Now, I'm sure you're all itching to see Sauron tear Arik apart, so let's get it on!" The crowd cheered and Sauron and Arik charged towards each other. The two raptors met in the center of the sandy area. Despite the fact that Sauron was almost twice his size, he did not intimidate Arik. He was ready to avenge Hercules and protect the timeline from this menace. Sauron made the first move, swiping his tail at Arik. He jumped over the tail and hit Sauron's head with a Homing Kick. The evil raptor staggered back, allowing Arik to kick him in the chest. As Arik was about to kick again, Sauron grabbed his foot before it could impact on his chest and threw Arik away. Arik hit the sand and skidded a few feet away. As Sauron pounced at him, Arik pointed his feet up and kicked Sauron in mid-pounce, knocking him away. Arik pulled himself up and ran towards his foe. Sauron backflipped from the ground, landing on his feet. As Arik lashed at him with his claws, Sauron swiped with his own, blocking the strike. They swiped at each other for a few seconds, neither able to get past the other's claws. Arik tried to swipe Sauron with his claws again. When Sauron blocked, Arik stopped his swipe and kicked Sauron before he could block it, hitting him in the chest. He followed this up by slamming his tail into Sauron's face, stunning the villain. Arik slashed at Sauron with his claws twice before Sauron recovered and tried to hit him with his tail. They faced each other, then started hurling energy balls. Their blasts cancelled each other out before they could get close to their targets, resulting in a somewhat pretty light show. They circled each other, constantly throwing energy balls in an attempt to score a hit. Arik gave up trying to hit Sauron with energy balls and jumped, going into a Homing Kick. Sauron blasted him with an energy ball, knocking him out of the air. Before Arik could get up, Sauron ran over and kicked him hard in the sides, rolling him a few feet away. He ran over and kicked Arik again, sending him another few feet away. As he ran over for another kick, Arik leapt to his feet and sweeped low with his tail, knocking Sauron off his feet. While he was down, Arik proceeded to do to Sauron as he had just done to him, kicking him hard enough to send him rolling away. Instead of trying to kick Sauron again, Arik threw an energy ball at Sauron as he got up, blasting the raptor a few feet back. He then hurled several dozen energy balls at the sand around Sauron, sending up a large dust cloud. As the evil raptor stumbled through the cloud in confusion, Arik hit him with a Homing Kick before the cloud dissipated. When it did, Sauron delivered a powerful kick to Arik, nearly cutting his chest open. Arik blocked his next kick, and hit Sauron with one of his own. He then hit him with an energy ball at close range, throwing both of them back. Sauron quickly recovered and used Arik's same trick against him, hurling energy balls at the sand and forming a dust cloud. When the sand blinded Arik, Sauron ran over and hit him with a Homing Kick. Arik got back up from where the Kick had flung him, and blocked a claw swipe from Sauron. When the villain swung his tail around, Arik grabbed it and started spinning in place, throwing Sauron away. The raptor skidded through the sand face-first for several meters before coming to a stop. As he slowly began to get up, Arik generated and threw energy ball after energy ball, not even bothering to aim properly as he showered the area around Sauron with blasts. A dust cloud formed from all the sand thrown up by the blasts, but he still continued to pour dozens of energy balls into where he had last seen Sauron. Finally, he stopped shooting energy balls and started supercharging his special attack. "PRIMAL SCREAM!" He yelled, firing the enormous red blast into the dust cloud, resulting in a big explosion that sent sand scattering all over the place. When the dust cloud formed by this blast faded, Arik was shocked to see there was nothing there, not even pieces of a corpse! He heard chuckling and turned around, finding Sauron standing right behind him! The evil raptor grinned. "Imbecile. Don't you know never to fire blindly into a dust cloud?" Arik stumbled back. "How-how did you get there?" "Simple. I just used Chronos Control to freeze time right after the dust cloud formed, allowing me to get away from your blast radius and remain unharmed. I decided to wait to attack you because I thought it would be amusing for you to be blasting at nothing while everybody else could see I was already behind you." His grin got wider. "By the way, your aim stinks. You didn't hit me at all before the dust cloud formed." Arik narrowed his eyes. He backflipped away, then cupped his hands at Sauron. The evil raptor whipped out his Ruby and aimed it at Arik. "Temporal Implosion!" The deadly wave rippled out of the jewel. Arik finished charging his attack. "Primal Scream!" The raptor burst forth and shot through the wave, shattering it and hurtling towards Sauron. The villain smirked and held his Ruby in front of him. The attack hit his Ruby and was sucked into it, causing it to glow. Arik blinked. "What? How did you do that?" Sauron chuckled. "Like I said before, I've learned a lot from my ancestors! For one thing, I know that the Rubies can absorb Chronos energy sent at them, giving the user a temporary power boost! Observe!" The Ruby's glow brightened and red static danced over Sauron's body. He raced towards Arik at twice his regular speed, reaching the raptor before he could move. As Arik attempted to defend himself, Sauron slugged him in the face, snapping his head around. He then unleashed a flurry of kicks at Arik's chest, causing more damage with each hit. Arik gasped and fell to his knees. Sauron grabbed him by the neck and held him high, leering deep into his eyes. "Did you really think you could beat me?" he hissed. He hurled Arik away, his increased power smashing the good raptor into the wall. Arik slid down from the wall, not moving. The crowd started cheering again, as Scales looked on anxiously. Sauron walked over, pleased to see Arik appeared to be too hurt to move. Arik struggled to get up, but could barely move a muscle as Sauron loomed over him. He grinned at the helpless raptor. The announcer spoke up. "Arik appears to be unable to continue fighting. Sauron is the winner!" "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" moaned Scales. Sauron laughed. "Ahahahahahaha! You really thought you had a chance against me, didn't you Arik? Well, time to claim my prize." He leaned down and reached into Arik's dimension pocket, pulling out each Chronos Ruby one by one and putting it away. When he took out the last one, the Master Ruby, he admired it for a moment. "Well Arik, it seems you've failed your duty. Congratulations, you've disgraced your ancestors and undone all that has come to pass since the day Slashfang beat my ancestor. Good day." With that, Sauron put the Ruby in the dimension pocket and walked away from the immobile Arik.
A bit later, both Scales and Arik were in the same cell as before. The nurses had healed up Arik pretty well and now he looked pretty much the same as before, with only a few bruises and scars here and there. However, it looked like his spirit was broken. Scales paced the cell nervously, sensing a large buildup of Chronos energy, most likely Sauron attempting to reach godhood. "Can we break out of here and stop Sauron yet?" she finally asked. "No." he said dismally. "And may I ask why not?" asked Scales. "Because I failed." He said. "So?" she asked. "I failed to defeat him. I am not worthy of protecting the Chronos Rubies. I could not avenge Hercules, and have disgraced my family line by losing the fight." He said. Scales stared at him for a moment, then angrily slapped him. "Ow! What was that for?" he asked. She looked at him furiously. "I can't believe you're just giving up like this! We still have a chance of beating him!" "We'll just fail. He is unbeatable." Said Arik. "Oh please! I beat him in the tomb! Just because you failed to defeat him doesn't make him undefeatable or anything." Said Scales. "Yes, but-" started Arik. "Don't but me! From the way you've acted, I can see that you're family's honor means a lot to you! Well, how do you think your parents and sisters would feel about you just giving up after losing one fight? What would Slashfang think, for that matter? Wouldn't it really be breaking your family's honor by doing nothing to stop Sauron from completing his plans? Wouldn't that be the coward's way out?" she demanded. Arik blinked. "I...guess, but I can't beat him by myself!" "Forget being by yourself! I'm here! I'll fight beside you to help take him down!" she said. "But I have to do this by myself, it is my duty!" Arik protested. "No, it's not! You can't do this by yourself. It was never said that you can't fulfill your duty without help, now did it? I mean come on, if you really had to do this by yourself, then why did you come to me for help in the first place?" Scales asked. Arik blinked. "Good point." Scales then laid down the final argument. "And if you don't get up so we can save the universe, I can guarantee you're not getting any more love out of me!" He shot to his feet. "Let's go!" he said urgently "Okay!" she grabbed his hand, focusing on where all the Chronos energy was emanating from. "Chaos Control!" They warped away in a flash of light.
They reappeared in a sacred-looking room. It was round with several pillars all over the place. In the middle of the room, near where they had reappeared, was a circular platform. On the platform were eight small pillars, seven surrounding a central one. A Chronos Ruby was standing on each pillar, glowing brightly. Sauron looked up from his position near the Rubies, surprised. "What? How did you get here?" he asked, startled. "Chaos Control. Gotta love it." Said Scales. "We're here for a rematch, Sauron! You're not going to win this time!" said Arik. Sauron sneered. "You flaming idiots, can't you see it's too late? I've finished preparing the Rubies! My destiny is about to be fulfilled!" As he said this, the Rubies floated off their pillars and formed a spinning orbit around him. "You see? There is nothing you can do now!" "Oh really? Serpent Strike!" yelled Scales. The Chaos snake shot towards Sauron and exploded harmlessly on an invisible force field generated by the Rubies. "Okay, I guess there really is nothing we can do." The Rubies spun faster and faster, their glow brightening. "Yes! Yes! I feel the power! Ahahahahahaha!" The light from the Rubies grew to a blinding flash, obscuring Scales' and Arik's vision. When the glare cleared, they saw it really was too late. Sauron was now standing straight up at a height of ten feet, looking slightly humanoid. His tail had spikes growing from it, like a mace. His feet were heavily taloned and his sickle claws looked more like great scythes. He was now extremely muscular, and when I say muscular I'm talking Super Saiyan 3 here. Static crackled all over his body every few seconds. His flesh had turned as red as blood, with strange black markings here and there. Spikes grew out of his back and his thick shoulders. His head was shaped more like that of a dragon's than a raptor's, with spikes over the eye ridges and two horns growing from the back of his head. Three spikes grew out of the sides of his face, over the jaws. His eyes had become a blazing blue, with tinges of gold. The Rubies still orbited him, now more slowly and not really glowing at all. Sauron grinned at his enemies. "I am...Oblivion!"
TO BE CONTINUED...
Another cliffhanger! Gotta love it. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. Scales: Is the next one where we finally defeat Sauron? Me: It's where you fight him, yes. Now Scales, tell me how you felt about Arik's stubbornness during the chapter? Scales: I thought he was being kind of pigheaded, but at least I managed to set him straight in the end. Too bad we couldn't have been sooner, though. Me: Yeah, that's too bad. So, how did you feel during the fights?
Scales: I was worried when he fought the monsters, especially the Cavemaker. I was terrified when I saw him get eaten! Me: Yeah, too bad he wasn't digested. I mean, good thing he wasn't digested! Scales: (Frowns at me, then goes on.) I'm glad he pulled through when he fought the T-Rex, but I was kind of surprised he lost to Sauron. Oh well, now that we're fighting together, there's no way that goon stands a chance!
Me: We'll see about that. Anyway, here's our usual stuff from fans. First of all, HobbesKnux has kindly explained what he is and granted you and Arik another pair of gift baskets just like the last ones. He's also given you two lovebirds a billion non-spoil chickens that are all-skin, a hundred of which are live. He also said he'd explain the disk's purpose in the next review. Scales: Well, I don't see why we need that many chickens, but thank you HobbesKnux. Me: Maverick's finally made a comeback. He laments that his elixir is useless, but gave us a few things. Scales: What? Me: First he sent us an ice sculpture of a decapitated Sauron, with the head included. Scales: Won't it melt?
Me: Probably. He was going to give you a diamond ring bigger than Ultrafan's, but decided to use it to buy Mars. Instead, he's given ME a lifetime supply of napalm, which I will certainly put to good use in horribly torturing my hostages!
Scales: What hostages? Me: Uh...amnesia dust! (Do I really need to explain this part again?) As a final gift, Maverick got Godzilla to squash Sauron. Scales: But Sauron's turned into Oblivion. He can now reduce Godzilla to nuclear waste with a single shot from his ultimate attack. Me: So that's where that big pile of green goo outside the studio came from. Oh well. He also gave us a pizza that promptly exploded. Scales: Ooooooooooookayyyyyyyyy... Me: Finally, we have stuff from Ultrafan. First off, he's decided to give Camomon a girlfriend. Scales: Aw, how cute! Me: Yeah, we got gifts as well. Turns out the gold Scales Chao is a girl after all. Scales: Well that's good to know. Me: He's generously given you and Arik a pair of tickets to Isle Delphino. Scales: Great! We can go there for our honeymoon! (Frowns.) Wait. Isn't that the place undergoing pollution and vandalism and is also in the Mario world, which I absolutely hate? Me: Yes. Scales: Damn. Wonder if I can exchange these things for tickets to Hawaii. Me: As a gift for Sauron, Ultrafan's rebuilt the airship General Scales had and rigged it with dynamite. Too bad it won't be necessary, considering how Sauron's now Oblivion and doesn't need an airship. Scales: Yeah, too bad. Me: On a final note, Ultrafan X has also rented out Jurassic Park and filled it with omnivores for you and Arik to hunt. He's also left all the sauropods so you can ride them like horses! Scales: Cool! Thank you Ultrafan X! Me: Well that's it for now. See you next time! Scales: Bye! Don't forget to review!