Muahaha! Last battle chapter! This will be long! I hope you enjoy!!! Oh, and it wasn't really up to a coin toss, the ending was strategically planned. Surprise ending is in store, hehe, I hope you find it original! This IS NOT THE LAST TOURNAMENT!!! You will see what I have in store for the story. My friend Michael helped me with the setup of the continuation…oh, yeah! More shout-outs to my reviewers: ELM-Tree10, GS Dragono, blaze-firestorm, twisted-writter and all the formerly listed ones. I am LOVING the feedback! Keep it up! Later!
Winner Take What's LeftFinal Round
"Welcome, finalists! This battle will decide the winner of the Tournament of Heroines!" The Master of Games announced as the two girls sauntered out of their rooms.
"So, aside from bragging rights, what's in it for us?" Nightmare asked with a cocky smirk as she ran a clawed hand through her silky black curtain of hair.
"There will be…tremendous prizes after the last battle is waged." The monkey-man said dramatically, though his voice faltered momentarily. Raven eyed him warily, but shook the ominous feeling away.
"Very well, I suppose that will make it worthwhile, yes?" Nightmare asked Raven, who merely smirked with a half-nod from underneath her hood.
"Enough talk, the battle begins, Nightmare vs. Raven!" The Master yelled and both girls were transported to a rocky, barren wasteland. "Fight!"
Nightmare and Raven both surveyed the landscape before beginning their verbal assaults on each other's pride.
"Hmm, a half-demon. I'm 1/3 myself, but you already knew that. I bet you have a hard time controlling your-"
"Shut up!" Raven shouted dangerously, interrupting her opponent. "I can control my powers just fine, thank you."
"But your fear…you fear your own emotions getting loose…under the control of your father, Trigo-"
"I said, shut UP!" Raven yelled, balling her fists as black energy accumulated around them. "I can control my powers just fine, and I'll prove it. Azarath Metrion Zynthos!"
The female necromancer broke the tip off of a stalagmite and sent it flying towards her opponent. Nightmare, who was still quite annoyed about being interrupted for a second time, merely jumped into a side-roll and allowed the rock to smash into the ground where she was formerly standing.
"Ah, it seems I've struck a chord, this battle will be more interesting than you know, sorceress." Nightmare claimed, dusting off once she was back on her feet.
"We'll see." Were the only words Raven graced her with before using her powers to send an endless stream of pointed stones at Nightmare. She dodged mostly by rolling, but not even the demonic speed that her vampiric blood had afforded her could outrun the half demon's projectiles. Nightmare snarled as that blood tricked from various thin cuts across her cheeks.
"Humph. That was completely pointless." Nightmare said in an annoyed fashion, cracking her neck as the cuts slowly folded closed.
"But…you're only 1/3…" Raven gaped, allowing her monotone voice to falter momentarily.
"And your point is? I have more powers than you seem to think." Nightmare replied with a cocky smile. "For example."
The part-vampire created a black orb within her palm and thrust it forward at Raven, causing it to burst and release a horde of sharp-winged, red-eyed bats. They sped towards the magic-user, who created ebony spears to slice through them. This worked only against a few, but the others circled around her and created a strong current of air around her. Her hair and cloak whipping around her, she was unable to see in time to stop or block the boot that collided with the back of her neck. Rolling onto her stomach, she attempted to push herself onto her knees.
"I suppose that 1/3 packs a punch…" Raven breathed heavily, now on her hands and knees. "Or rather, a kick."
Rising to her feet, she prepared her energy, her eyes crackling with white lightning.
"You haven't seen anything yet." Nightmare smirked, focusing her energy into her onyx orb before blackness encompassed her enemy. Raven reacted immediately, zapping the walls with materialized beams of her power. When that didn't work, she resorted to banging the walls with the sides of her fists. Suddenly, the firm walls wobbled and waved to form ones of the same firmness, only reflective. Raven stared at her reflection and gasped when she saw she had four glowing red eyes and a set of pointed fangs.
"No!" She cried, smashing the mirrored wall. It merely cracked to reveal that the reflection was laughing.
"What's the matter, Raven?" The hoarse voice of the now crimson-clad figure growled playfully. "Is that any way to greet your father?"
"You're nothing but his bad influence, I banish you from my mind!" Raven screamed, at which the reflection laughed.
"Ha! You cannot hope to be rid of me so easily, daughter. You are mine." The mirror's inhabitant cackled, at which Raven powered her hands with her ebony energy. However, her hands seemed to move of their own accord and the creature in the reflection guided her hands to be exactly where it wanted them, proving it was in control.
"No! I can't allow you to be in control of my powers!" Raven yelled desperately, trying with all of her might to break his bind on her powers, but failed. His malicious, ear-splitting laughter filled the mirrored room.
"Ha, I already am." He replied maniacally, clearly amused at his daughter's efforts. The reflection now warped and changed into Trigon's true form. Raven backed away until she hit the back wall, watching on in horror as her own powers were turned against her…
Nightmare threw herself back onto a rounded boulder and watched the entranced girl on the ground in front of her.
"This is usually the part where I chop my opponent's head off or put a sword through their heart, but hey, even I have some room for mercy." Nightmare said to herself, leaning back onto her hands and yawning in a bored fashion. "I'll just wait until she drives herself insane or something…"
She continued to watch as the girl whimpered and shifted every-so-often.
"I can't…I won't let you have control of me!" Raven said in a determined growl, somehow managing to focus her energy just enough to move her own arms. Using this opportunity, she thrust a large portion of her energy out of her body, shattering the mirrors, walls and overall illusion. Her formerly lithe form shot up into a standing position.
"What the hell?!" Nightmare asked, flipping backwards to 'hide' behind the rock. "No one has ever broken my illusion before…you truly are very powerful."
"You…how dare you!" Raven snarled, calling upon her powers, which encompassed her hands as usual. Rage fueling her actions, she once again sent a barrage of sharp rocks at her opponent.
"I am impressed, you are a worthy opponent." Nightmare said, narrowly dodging the missiles. "No one has ever overcome my vision before; they all get killed or go insane. Perhaps I have underestimated you."
"You have no idea what you have done! Tampering with my emotions is not something one lives after doing." Raven growled, shooting a large beam of black energy at Nightmare, who took it square in the chest and smashed into a nearby stalagmite.
"I-I guess n-not." Nightmare replied, trying to get up from the stony rubble, but to no avail. "I h-hope it was w-worth it…"
"Winner, Raven!" The Master bellowed, and as always, the loser disappeared in a flash of light. "Congratulations, you are the Champion of Champions!"
"Yeah, whatever. Keep my prizes and just send me home." Raven replied, clearly irritated.
"There were no prizes for you, silly girl. All of the prizes, the powers of the losers, are mine to keep." The Master of Games claimed, waving his ruby in front of her face. "I am the true winner in this battle."
Raven could hear the screams of Terra, Bumblebee, Starfire, Nightmare, Reverie, Jynx and Blackfire coming from the jewel.
"I demand you set them free." Raven growled, entering a battle stance.
"Not without a fight! Raven vs. the Master of Games!" The Master shouted, at which Raven shook her head with an annoyed sigh. Before her opponent could react, she had encompassed the jewel within her ebony energy and summoned it into her own hand. Then, in one swift motion she trapped the Master and flung him into the throne-like chair that towered over the room. From the rubble, a muffled voice saying "I lose." Could be heard before a flash of light took him away.
Raven used her psychic abilities to release the prisoners of the jewel. Bumblebee brushed herself off, as did Blackfire as Reverie clung to Nightmare's trench coat. Terra looked around with a sigh of relief, Jynx scowled and Starfire pulled Raven into a suffocating hug.
"Friend, thank you for my rescue!" Starfire said gleefully, tightening the embrace.
"You're welcome, Star, but I can't breathe." Raven said in a strained voice, at which her fellow Titan released her and apologized.
"Yes, I do believe thanks is in order." Nightmare said, a genuine smile crossing her lips.
"Likewise. Let's go home." Terra said, and with a nod as everyone else's response, Raven tapped into the jewel's power to get them all home, however, unbeknownst to them, 8 familiar bad-guys took their place.
"Welcome, evil-doers, to the Tournament of Villains…"
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NS: Ha! Like the ending?! I hope so! FYI, I will be doing the Tournament of Villains, so I've got a few chapters left! I promise this is the LAST TOURNAMENT!!! The winner will end the chain, I promise. You will LOVE the match-ups! Enjoy!