Response to Reviews:

Grand Master Raziel – The sword… hmm… well movie 12 is supposed to explain how Trunks got the sword in the first place but the movie doesn't really fit into the series, not if it tries to explain that anyways. The sword, however, is the one from the Trunks Special. No idea where he got it, don't really care. I just know the sheath has the capability of instantly repairing and re-sharpening it when it's re-sheathed.

Cash – Don't worry about the physical form, it will be explained in this chapter.

Dany le fou – Oh yes, Sai and Elena will be very important. They will be probably 2 of the most important OC's. Well Sai anyways, Elena will be on par with Karreth. And thanks about Sapphire; I'll remember to do more character development on her, and everyone else for that matter. As for sword techniques, I've been looking at Chronicles of the Cursed Sword. Quite a good manga series.

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Chapter 16: The Tournament's End

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Explosions rippled throughout the arena momentarily obscuring everyone's view. It was obvious who was dominating this fight. Sapphire stood in the center of the arena with her hands outstretched to either side. The only place in the entire arena that hadn't been scorched or turned into a crater was the arena within the shield around the elven woman. Her opponent, one of the high masters, was getting his ass kicked into the ground and it hardly seemed as if Sapphire was even trying.

Sweat, dirt and blood dripped down the high master's body while Sapphire looked as clean and pristine as she did the moment she had entered the arena.

"Sapphire's seems to be ripping through her competition as easily as you did Trunks." Gohan said in amusement.

Trunks grinned, "Looks that way doesn't it?" He agreed, "I'm glad she's on our side. She'd be able to give even me a run for my money. Her spells don't have the piercing power of our ki attacks but damn, what they lack in piercing ability they make up for sheer power and destructive force."

A massive spike of earth erupted from the ground beneath the high master. He levitated into the sky and cast a counter spell through the spike back at Sapphire. The spike slammed into the shield and was reduced to small granules of sand. The shield barely even registered the attack.

"I understand now why she hid her power until we arrived." Gohan mused.

"Oh?"

A pillar of flame engulfed Sapphire's opponent causing him to erect a rather hasty fire shield to protect him from the assault.

"She possess tremendous power, almost inhuman power when compared to those around her, but now that we're here she's on the same level as us so it doesn't appear nearly as unusual." Gohan said as he revealed his analysis, "What's more is she's one of us, she's on our side. Alone, if enough of them had gathered, they could have overwhelmed her. However with all of us here it's highly unlikely they'll be able to do anything, especially if we're here on 'invitation' from the gods. Some may even think her powers were granted to her by the gods simply by sheer acquaintance to us."

Several more explosions rippled through the arena followed by a massive flash of light as several bolts of lightning slammed the high master into one of the arena's walls.

"Is it safe for her to be alone in the arena waiting area?" Trunks asked. He knew he had felt nervous a time or two while down there. He may be strong, but a knife to the throat while he slept would kill him as easily as anyone else. Tournament competitors weren't allowed to watch their opponents before their match with them and to enforce that all competitors were forced to sleep within specified rooms directly connected to the arena they would fight in.

The high master picked himself from the wall and glared at Sapphire as he yelled several profanities. Sapphire didn't even acknowledge them. She was too busy kicking his ass.

"No, she's fine. Any problems she'll encounter will be when she leaves the city. This is the last place anyone would want to start an unsanctioned fight. You'd have gods, guards, and maybe even other competitors crawling up your ass so fast and hard that you'll wish you had brought an extra large can of ass lube." Gohan replied.

After a long and intricate pattern of hand waving several demonic looks runes appeared in the air. The high master grabbed the runes and slammed them into the ground.

"That's… a rather graphic way of putting it."

The runes exploded into a bright red light as a massive demonic gate rose from the ground. Looking like a typical demon gate it used skeletons, piles of flesh, and tortured souls to make the boundaries.

"Effective though."

A titanic roar echoed through the arena as a demon lord stepped through the gate and stared Sapphire down. The high master ordered it to kill Sapphire. The demon lord wasn't normally one to take orders, and normally he wouldn't, but Sapphire was female, and quite good looking one for that matter. She was for more useful, in many ways, than the summoner.

"But Trunks, I can't believe how much you've improved." Gohan said in wonder.

The ground shook as the demon barrelled down on Sapphire. The high master folded his arms and began to look smug, completely forgetting the fact that summoning a demon without a summoning circle meant he had absolutely zero control over it.

"Yes, this tournament has proven quite useful. I hadn't entered initially to learn anything. I just wanted to do something, didn't feel like sitting on the sidelines for the entire time." Trunks admitted, "But when I finally got a chance to think about it, I realized that this could be more than just a way to stretch my muscles, but also a way to grow stronger."

The demon slammed into the shield and bounced off. It sat up and looked at the shield incredulously. By sheer principle shields crumbled at his mere touch. Sapphire was completely calm, even standing in the direct path of a charging demon lord. In fact, she was currently smiling at the demon as she raised a hand towards it.

"True, that sword you carry around is no longer simply something cool looking. It has become a deadly weapon. One that can be used on opponents as strong, if not stronger, than yourself. You no longer have to hope your opponent is weak, and has no weapon knowledge at all to wield it effectively."

A rift in reality appeared above the demon. The demon looked up and screamed, it knew what that attack was, and it wasn't a simple happy banish you back to the demon realm type attack.

"Hey, I beat Frieza with this sword!"

A massive pillar of light shot from the rift and engulfed the demon lord in a world of pain. This attack was one of those 'holy fucking shit just kill me already you sick, twisted bitch' type attacks that was used more to torture information from demons than kill them. However, if the attack was strong enough, like this one currently was, it could do both torture and kill the demon. This was going to be one painful trip back to hell for THIS demon lord.

"My point exactly."

"You can be a little more grateful you know. I did save your planet."

The high master stared at Sapphire in shock as the demon lord was seemingly defeated without effort. Sapphire began to draw an intricate pattern in the air.

"I was, didn't you see me thank you?"

The high master didn't want to wait to see what kind of attack that may be. Runes were only required for the most powerful of spells. The rest could simply be thrown upon command. He shot several globes of fire at Sapphire and erected a wall of earth between him and his opponent.

"No, I just saw you drink my pop."

Sapphire finished and a massive set of runes appeared around her.

"Hey! You offered!"

Sapphire's shield dropped and the arena erupted into a huge globe of blue light encompassing every portion of the arena. A god standing nearby was pouring additional energy into the shield to keep it from collapsing.

"Yes, one, not a dozen. I had to restock that fridge when I got back home!"

"Oh the horror!"

A horrible scream erupted from within the dome of energy as the high master felt all of his protections ripped from him.

"Damn straight, you got any idea how hard it is to find a working pop machine in a world ravaged by androids?"

"You don't NEED a working pop machine; just rip a couple out of a broken one. It's pop for kai's sake, just stick it in the fridge at home for a couple hours and poof, there you go."

A massive explosions echoed through the arena. The energy began to dissipate to reveal a completely unharmed Sapphire, and a rather mangled body of what one would suppose was the remains of the high master.

"I never thought of that."

"…"

The high mastered fell to the ground, dead long before he landed. Sapphire had won yet another match without getting touched.

"Hey, what's that look for?"

"Nothing…"

"AND SAPPHIRE WINS HER TENTH MATCH! Ladies and gentleman, this is one female you do NOT want to mess around with. Not only is it her tenth consecutive win, it's her tenth PERFECT win. She has yet to even be touched by her opponent. Will she keep this streak and be the first person to take the championship without getting hurt? Who knows, but what I do know is that we have a legend in the making here!" The announcer cried. This time it was a Goddess. A younger goddess, but a goddess nevertheless. The spell slinging competition was generally one of the more dangerous and had gods constantly watching it. Some of the spells that were slung back and forth could easily rip the shield to shreds.

A massive roar of approval rose from the crowd as both men and female went wild. In the beginning they had been rather indifferent about her, after all though she was gorgeous, there were other females that were as pretty, if not more so, and wearing far skimpier clothing. However most of THOSE females had been defeated already whereas Sapphire had not. She had the power and brains to back her beauty and that had both females and males rooting for her more than just about anyone else. She had quickly become one of the favorites.

Trunks and Gohan were alone as they watched her match. It wasn't because they wanted to, per-say, rather that Trunks had been granted a private booth that was meant as both a present for coming first and a way to escape the hordes of fan girls that chased him constantly. Gohan was with him because he was Trunks' closet friend and since the booth couldn't hold more than two, and well enough said. Everyone else was in the crowd watching the fight from a less than desirable location that made Gohan glad he was Trunks' friend.

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"I hate this place! Why are we stuck here!" Vegeta snarled as he stared at the two rows of huge, fat people that seemed to enjoy blocking the best parts of the match.

"Shut up Vegeta, we didn't have anywhere else to go. It was here or miss it entirely." Karreth said as she smacked Vegeta lightly over the head.

Blight and everyone else just laughed quietly. They had come to realize that the two of them would never admit that they actually cared about one another like a brother and sister should but it wouldn't stop them from showing it in their own personal kind of way.

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-oo-O-oo-

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A couple days later…

Ashlay… Ashlay...

Blight looked around as he tried to identify the source of the voice.

Ashlay…

Blight began to move forward, and as he did so the landscape changed as it morphed itself.

Ashlay… come here…

Blight frowned, the voice sounded… desperate, almost as if it was a plea for help. He began to move forward and the view changed yet again, and he knew he was no longer on his planet. Everything was foreign to him. Especially the lack of trees, it really hit home considering the majority of his world was covered in huge, lush forests.

Come to me…

Ashlay moved forward again and this time the landscape didn't morph and change, it zipped beneath him at super sonic speeds as he was draw irresistibly towards a certain destination. He stopped moving when he reached a sizeable mountain range and before him towered the greatest mountain he had ever seen. It towered so high that the tip of it disappeared into the clouds above. The cloud, however, was far from normal. It was an inky black color that really didn't look to healthy, and by looking at the dead grass all around him he figured the natural surroundings had agreed with him.

Come… my child…

Blight's eyes widened as he was sucked into the mountain and appeared within a huge cavern. Huge tunnels, large enough to easily stand the tallest trees up on end in, were seen all of the place, but the tunnels, as large as they may be, paled in comparison to the sheer gargantuan size of the cavern. Blight thought that the huge central city on his world could have fit within this cavern, although an exaggeration, it was probably not by very much. Throughout the cavern, massive terraces could be seen jutting from the sides of the cavern with little to no support, while some seemed to just simply hang in mid air.

"What… is this place?" Blight asked in wonder.

"This is where you were born." A voice said.

Blight quickly turned around and there, standing off to the side, was a gargantuan dragon. It was covered from head to tail in large, plates of silver and gold while a long main of silver hair flowed down her head and neck. Eyes, similar in color to the scales, stared down at Blight from the enormous head.

Blight held his head as a couple memories filtered through his mind. "... Mother…?" Blight asked.

The dragon smiled, "I see you haven't completely forgotten me." She replied as she moved closer. She positioned herself beside Blight and wrapped her tail around him. Now normally when a 200 foot long dragon wraps their tail around you it tends to be a little nerve wracking, but Blight felt more safe and secure now than he could ever remember.

"What's going on…? I was sleeping and…" Blight was at a loss for words.

"I brought you here, my child." The dragon said, "I wished to speak with you, for you are the last of my children."

"The last… what do you mean?" Blight asked.

"I mean, all of your siblings have been killed. You alone remain alive because you were sent away when you were but a child."

"So… why now… why speak to me after all these years?" Blight asked bitterly.

"Because you are in danger…" She replied.

"What? What do you mean?"

"They have found you, and are coming for you. You need to flee."

"No." Blight said flatly. "I have friends now and someone to love and care for. I will not abandon it all. Whoever they are, they will not find someone cowering in some deep, dark hole."

"You… have found a mate?" She asked curiously and perplexed. "How is that possible? That world should not have any draconic creatures."

"She's not a dragon, she's a human, but that doesn't mean I love her any less." Blight answered.

"Then I'm afraid both you, and her, will die when they come." The dragoness said sadly.

"Maybe… maybe not." Blight said with a smile. "I've made some friends, some frighteningly powerful friends. Especially the one named Gohan; his power exceeds that of even the gods."

The dragons eyes widened in surprise and then hope. "You are certain of this?"

Blight nodded, "Yes, his friends have all talked about how powerful he is, and I myself have witnessed a portion of it. But what's more, he and his friends have abilities that are capable of destroying solar systems. It's frightening, and comforting at the same time, to be friends with people that possess cataclysmic powers."

"Then maybe…" She pondered for a moment.

"What?"

"I know I have not been a very good mother, and I know that you owe us nothing. But… if your friends are as powerful as you say they are then perhaps they could not only defeat the force that is heading in your direction, but also those that still remain here." The dragon asked.

Blight frowned, "It wouldn't be my decision. It would be there's. If they wish to come, they will, but I will not. My place is where I am now, with the one I love."

"Does she know."

Blight shook her head. "Not yet, but I intend to tell her before things are taken too far. Just in case she feels for some reason she… can't love someone inhuman."

The dragoness nodded. "I see… Well… I have said all I have wished to say. Farewell my son, and may the life you choose treat you well. For the pain I dealt you for not being there to help you grow you shall receive a gift of knowledge when you awaken."

"Wait…" Blight said. There were still many more questions he had yet to ask.

Farewell… my son…

Blight awoke with a start and quickly looked around. He was back in his room, everything was back to normal. He looked beside him and smiled at his love, sleeping softly beside him. It had all been just a dream.

Blight sighed, no, it had been more than a dream. He still remembers it, it wasn't fading in the slightest, and what's more, he knew things he didn't know before. Like how to transform into his draconic state, how to use draconic abilities and spells and many more things, like the geography of his planet, the denizens of the world, and much more information. Things he would have learned had he lived there and not here.

"Mmm… Ash… what's wrong?" Kaitlyn asked as she slowly sat up beside Blight. She yawned and rubbed her eyes as she focused upon him.

"Maybe… maybe a lot of things…" Blight said. Kaitlyn's eyes widened slightly. Normally people would suppose to say 'oh it's nothing'.

"What's wrong." She asked, seriously worried as she wrapped her naked body around his.

"I just had a dream…" He started.

"Is that all?" She asked, her worry ebbed.

"… I think." That wasn't what she had hoped he'd say. "In it a voice kept calling me, and each time it called I would be drawn closer and closer. Soon I was brought to a different planet." Blight looked at Kaitlyn who was giving him a weird look. "I know it's strange but… It brought me into a huge cavern inside a mountain taller than this city. There… " Blight stopped. To go on he would need to tell Kaitlyn about himself.

"Blight?" Kaitlyn asked in concern. She was seriously worried.

"You know how I said I'd tell you later…" She nodded her head. "Well… I think that later has arrived." Blight said as he bowed his head. He didn't want to see her expression when he told her this.

"Take your time… I'm here." Kaitlyn may be pushy but even she knew when she had to let the other choose their own pace.

"What do you know about mythical creatures?" Blight asked.

"Not much, I know about demons, nasty things. And dragons, always wondered what it'd be like to fly. Also I've heard of the terrible Thrask and of angels and fish men, but that's it. Sorry." She said.

"No, it's alright. Well… you know what Emerald said awhile ago, that only bipedal creatures go by that custom where only royalty and nobles had surnames."

"Yes, that's correct, are you some sort of prince...?" She asked. She hoped that was all it is but for some reason she had a feeling it was more than that, otherwise what would be the point of asking about mythical creatures.

"No… I'm… I'm not a bipedal creature." Blight said softly. "I'm a dragon… My dream… in my dream my mother spoke to me, she said she sent me here when I was but a child. I don't know how I came to be in human form but since I never learned how to change or anything about my ancestry, other than that I was a dragon, it was rather easy to blend in with the humans here." Blight finished in a rush, hoping to get it all out before Kaitlyn had a time to respond.

It felt like an eternity to Blight as he sat there with his head bowed, waiting for Kaitlyn to respond. He didn't dare look up. He didn't want to see the look of disgust, horror, or any other expression like that.

"So… you mean… I'm going to be laying eggs?" Kaitlyn asked Blight quizzically.

Blight's head whipped up to meet her eyes. Kaitlyn had a funny scrunched up face as she thought about the problems that involved laying eggs. "You mean you don't…"

"Bah, who cares! You're you! So what if you're a dragon! At least now I can make you pay rent by flying me all over the place! I always did want to fly." Kaitlyn said as she tightened her embrace. She leaned forward and kissed him passionately. When they broke the kiss she looked a little worried. "But seriously, about the eggs… dragon's lay eggs… what does that mean about our children?" She asked.

Blight looked at her in surprise. After everything he told her, her biggest worry was about laying eggs? "I don't know, I just assumed we couldn't produce children."

"Oh, don't worry about that, we can." She said lightly.

"How do you…" Blight's eyes widened as realization dawned on him.

She smiled brightly and kissed him again. "Guess what I just missed love?" She said grinning.

Blight smiled softly as his eyes filled with love. Not only was he completely accepted by the one he loved, but he was going to be a father soon as well. "I… I see. I'm…" He couldn't find the words.

"Hush my love, I understand, now let's go back to sleep, we still have time for a couple more hours of rest." Kaitlyn said as she slowly laid back down, bringing Blight with her.

Blight wrapped his arms around Kaitlyn and whispered, "Thank you." As he drifted off to sleep with his head resting against her bosom.

"No… thank you my love… I don't think you will ever realize how much you mean to me, you are the first, and only, person to ever see me… for me…" Kaitlyn whispered to herself as she pulled the covers up and fell asleep, cradling Blight in her arms.

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-oo-O-oo-

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Later the next day…

"Well ladies and gentlemen; it's time for the final match of the tournament! It's been a long while but the last match is finally here. Not only will this match signal the end of the spell casting tournament, but also the tournament as a whole and what a pair we have today!" The goddess announced. "First off we have a rookie, new to this tournament. Sapphire is her name, and everyone has been talking about her, brains, beauty, power, and a whole lot more. She has dominated this tournament having reached this far after ten consecutive wins without having taking a single scratch. Will she be able to keep this streak or will her competitor this time be able to bring her down? As for her competitor we have Gahlanthas, critically acclaimed as the greatest mage of all time. He's won this tournament since it began, and that makes him very old. But for him, age means power. Being the chosen of the goddess of magic his life span has been increased dramatically from that of other elves and he has only grown stronger over the years. How will Sapphire match up with the greatest mage to grace the mortal races?"

The two approached the center of the arena from opposite sides, stopping just a few meters from one another.

"How goes it Gahlanthas?" Sapphire asked with a smile. She had heard many things about Gahlanthas, and the thought of going up against him excited her.

"I'm well, you?" He replied.

"I'm fine, a little excited."

Gahlanthas just smiled.

"Let the last battle… COMMENCE!"

"Please, come at me with all your power." Gahlanthas said as he floated away. Massive spell contingencies began to spring up around him.

"Don't worry, against someone of your calibre, I don't feel the need to hold back." Sapphire said as she floated away as well.

"Good, I have great hope for you. To be honest I wish to be defeated."

"What?"

"This tournament has grown boring. It's become… simply a routine adventure on my part, no challenge, no gain. If I lose, I may have lost the tournament but I will end up with more than I started. Now, come at me, let's see how much power you can wield, Chosen of the Universe." Gahlanthas said.

Gasps rippled through the crowd as this declaration was made. They had never heard of such a chosen, but it sounded important.

A powerful shield erupted around Sapphire as she raised her hands. Ten bolts of lightning shot from her finger tips. Gahlanthas smirked as the bolts of lightning slammed into his shield, and did nothing. He raised a hand and snapped his fingers. The huge wall of earth that had arisen behind him to crush him shattered into a million pieces, pieces that were then shot towards Sapphire with mind numbing force.

Only to be stopped and whirled around by a miniature tornado that Sapphire had conjured up. As the tornado barrelled down upon Gahlanthas spikes of earth began ripping through the ground beneath him. He clapped his hands together and turned the ground into mud as he levitated a few feet into the air. A moment later an explosion erupted within the center of the tornado causing it to collapse upon itself.

The stone fragments, now freed from the tornado, resumed their journey towards Sapphire. It was at this time that Sapphire noticed the ground beneath her growing soft and her eyes widened slightly. Gahlanthas was turning the entire arena into a huge mud hole. With a couple quick waves of her hand she levitated into the air, along with the mud. She took the mud and shot it towards Gahlanthas, absorbing the stone fragments along the way.

The wave of mud rippled over Gahlanthas and transformed into water. The water separated into two long sinuous spouts whose heads transformed into the likeliness of dragons. The dragons shot towards Sapphire. Arcs of lightning began to shoot from the dragons as lightning was pumped into them making them even more deadly.

Sapphire raised one hand and pointed one down. Twin dragons of fire appeared from thin air and were sent spiralling towards the dragons of water. There was a titanic crash as the dragons collided in the center of the arena but neither attack ended there. Or rather, both competitors had placed surprises with theirs. Twin dragons of lightning slammed into Sapphire's shield, and this time she did feel it. With a quick wave of her hand she was able to stabilize it and bring it under control just in time to witness her bolt of ether smash into Gahlanthas' shield, and destroy it.

Unfortunately for Sapphire, the shield wasn't the only protective measure Gahlanthas relied upon. Twenty glowing orbs of energy appeared around him and one of them zipped in front of the bolt of ether. There was a small flash of light as the two cancelled each other out.

"Good, good. You're much more talented than many of these self claimed masters." Gahlanthas said happily. He was truly enjoying this battle. It wasn't often that he was given a challenge like this.

The battle began to heat up tremendously at this point. Balls of fire and bolts of lightning lashed back and forth faster than most people could think. Spikes of ice and earth smashed against the protective barriers of the two competitors. Even the force of nature was used against one another as earthquakes, tornados, acid, and magma were thrown against one another. Gahlanthas seemed to have an endless supply of protective barriers, as one disappeared another replaced it, while Sapphire's just seemed to weather them all, regardless of what it was. Even runic magic couldn't take the shield down.

At one point during the fight it look as if a miniature war was taking place right there in the arena. Summons of all kinds were brought forth: from elementals to animals, from ethereal creatures to extra-dimensional beings. Everything seemed to be summoned up and summarily destroyed by the other caster and/or their summons. Soon every part of the arena had been damaged to some degree. The casters had both permanently taken to the air to help reduce the number of spells capable of being sent their way.

But then one of the most dangerous disasters of all began to brew within the arena. Very rarely does such an occurrence happen and generally only during the peak of wars when there are hundreds of mages throwing spells at one another. The very fact that it was happening was a testament to the sheer power the two beings in the arena wielded. To be able to cause a spell storm, perhaps the most dangerous disaster possible, was truly frightening.

A spell storm is a rare occurrence as stated above. Every spell that is cast leaves a trail, a residual behind when it disappears. The residuals disappear, given enough time, usually within an hour or two hence why there is generally a delay between matches to help the residuals dissipate. However, should the rate of spells cast exceed that of the rate of residual disappearance, and should it occur for too long a time, much like what was currently happening, a spell storm occurs. A spell storm is a storm that just randomly lashes out at anyone or anything using the residuals as a source for its spells. What makes a spell storm so dangerous is that it is uncontrolled magical exertion, the spells slung about during a spell storm are generally impossible to duplicate, and always fatal. They defy all laws of magic hence when such a storm occur even bitter enemies become friends for a short while as they fight to protect all existence from the storm.

However with this fight the only two at risk were Sapphire and Gahlanthas as additional gods came to reinforce the shield. It didn't matter if the two combatants died. The last to die would be the winner and they'd simply be brought back anyways so they considered the spell storm as a way of insuring the battle didn't last too long.

"A spell storm, been quite some time since I last witnessed one of these." Gahlanthas said as he threw bolt of ether after bolt of ether.

"This is my first time seeing it. It's pretty is it not?" Sapphire said as she gazed directly at the clouds of magic gathering at the upper reaches of the shield.

"So, another finally thinks the same as me." Gahlanthas said with a grin. "Truly one of the greatest wonders of nature and the one force that has yet to be controlled. The ability to watch and study such a storm shall make me a winner in my mind, regardless the outcome of this match."

"Then let us create a storm such that its likeliness shall never be seen again." Sapphire said as she stretched her hands out to the side and closed her eyes.

Gahlanthas did like wise, mimicking Sapphire's stance. It wasn't that he was copying her, but merely that it was the position that allowed for the greatest concentration and control over the ether, and therefore, spells.

The crowd was awed into silence as the amount of spells that lashed back and forth doubled, and then tripled as every conceivable spell, and some made up on the spot, were slammed against the other. A whirlwind appeared around the edges of the arena as the spells continued to lash out at ever increasing rates. The entire arena floor, the air, and all the moisture within it, became a vessel of attack as the two wrestled over control of the natural elements around them. Spirit lances, powerful enough to tear apart the souls of even the highest order demon, were thrown back and forth. Waves of fire, geysers of magma, sheets of lightning, cones of acid and blizzards filled with razor sharp ice crystals, all were slung back and forth. The air howled and screamed as it was torn apart. The earth moaned and cried as it was shredded and reduced to nothing. Even the very fabric of reality was bent in places as spells of god like power were tossed back and forth like they were nothing more than simple play toys.

And then the storm opened, raining down death from above.

Crystals the size of mountains fell, bending time and space around it as it threatened to trap all within its grasp. Balls of pure, uncontrolled force ripped around the arena with minds of their own, seeking out blindly anything they could as if they were possessed minds of their own. Death in its purest form, a black, inky cloud, washed down and blanketed the arena floor, and out from the depths eyes stared out, innocent in every way, completely oblivious to all the evils of the world. Fire and water, combined to create an impossible element rebounded off the arena's shields, as it hungrily searched for something to impale. Beams of positrons rained down from above, shattering everything they touched and through it all Sapphire and Gahlanthas weaved and dodged around the attacks, all the while still firing spells of mind numbing force between each other at a furious pace.

And then luck seemed to strike out against Sapphire.

Multiple powerful spell piercing attacks slammed into Sapphire at once, momentarily destroying her shield but before she had a chance to bring it back up a bolt of fire and water slammed into her from behind. A massive explosion rippled through the arena as more and more spells, both from the spell storm and from Gahlanthas slammed into her.

Gahlanthas smirked, thinking he had won, but suddenly an even greater explosion rippled through the arena. With a piercing cry that surpassed the ability of his mind to comprehend it resounded through the arena as a massive, soundless shockwave rippled out from Sapphire.

Gahlanthas' eyes widened when he saw her. She was completely unharmed. The attacks had done nothing. Sapphire opened her eyes and stared directly at Gahlanthas and he realized he was wrong. Her eyes were gone, replaced entirely by pure magic. The spells hadn't gone off, they had been absorbed.

Sapphire raised her hand and pointed it at Gahlanthas and raised the other to the sky.

"I wasn't intending to use this but now is as good a time as any." Sapphire said quietly, her voice echoing with power.

Another soundless shockwave ensued and suddenly the spell storm seemed to bend and twist as it was drawn into Sapphire's palm. Soon all spells were drawn into her upraised hand and consequentially into her body. Her body began to vibrate and glow with every color of the spectrum and when every last residual of magic had been collected Sapphire tilted her head and smiled.

It was only a small ball of energy that left her outstretched hand, about the size of a hardball. Of course, most hardballs don't warp reality as they fly through the air. They also don't move at several hundred times the speed of sound. And what's more, they don't impact with world shattering force, which is exactly what this little ball of energy did. This ball of energy was pure, unaltered, liquid magic; magic in its absolute purest form, and beyond the ability of most mortals to even comprehend.

So it was a very surprised Gahlanthas that received the first globe of pure magic to ever exist within the mortal realm. With an explosion on par with the planet killer Kid Buu used to destroy Earth the globe of energy detonated upon Gahlanthas' chest.

The entire arena erupted into a huge, fiery ball of death and destruction. Everyone was forced to shield their eyes until the light dimmed down. When everything cleared only one thing remained in the arena: Sapphire. No dirt, no moisture, nothing, just Sapphire hovering in a vacuum similar to that of space. There was short, but powerful rush of wind as the shield was lowered and air rushed back into the arena allow Sapphire to finally breathe.

A goddess appeared in the arena where Gahlanthas once stood and held her hands out wide as she concentrated. Slowly but surely Gahlanthas' body was reconstructed and his consciousness replanted within it. After all, he was the chosen of that goddess. She rescued his mind and soul at the last possible moment and returned them to the body she reconstructed. Sapphire's attack, much like the spell storm she absorbed, defied all laws of magic. It would have destroyed the mind and soul as well as the body if the goddess had not intervened. Magic, was not a tangible force, yet she had turned it into such.

"I… Well… What… DID YOU SEE THAT!" The announcer screamed in shock and excitement. "THAT WAS AMAZING! SAPPHIRE IS THE WINNER OF THE TOURNAMENT WITH ONE HELL OF A CLIMATIC ATTACK!" Just because she was a goddess didn't mean she got to see liquid magic every day. In fact, it was rare for that to occur, even in the pantheon of the gods. She took a deep breath and continued a little more calmly. "For the first time since the creation of this tournament Gahlanthas has been defeated! This match… this match is one for the record books."

"I guess I win." Sapphire said with a smile as she stretched out a hand towards her opponent.

"Yes, you did." Gahlanthas said as he grabbed it in return. "And a well deserve win it is. I had grown tired of winning anyways. Much like with your friend Trunks, learning was more important than winning."

Sapphire's blinked in surprise as they shook hands. "How did you know?"

Gahlanthas smiled, "I may be old, but I'm not blind. We are both winners this time. You may have taken the championship, but I've taken something much more valuable."

"What?" Sapphire said as they released each other.

"Because of you, I have uncovered the secret to controlling spell storms. There is a whole new plateau of magic waiting for me to tap into. When next we meet, I won't be so easily beaten." Gahlanthas replied.

Sapphire smiled back.

Trunks turned Gohan from up where they were sitting in the booth. "Gohan…"

"Ya?"

"Remind me to never piss Sapphire off."

"Alright… never piss Sapphire off."

"…"

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-oo-O-oo-

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Several hours later…

The top four competitors from each category were gathered in the huge, central arena where Gahlanthas' and Sapphire's match had spectacularly ended only a few hours prior. It was time for the awards to be handed out.

"The top four martial artists are, in order: Solar, Blight, Bardock, and Titan." The admin of the games said as he stepped up before the four competitors.

"Titan, for placing fourth, shall receive fifty thousands gold pieces for coming forth." Titan grabbed the bag of money and grinned. He could buy a lot of slaves for that mount of gold.

"Bardock, who came in third, shall also receive fifty thousand gold pieces, as well as a pair of magical rings that will enhance energy attacks." Bardock took the prize and smirked. The gold he didn't care about, but the rings were a nice prize.

"Blight, for taking second place, shall receive half a million gold pieces and have his status raised to that of a noble and have the surname Mythril added to his name." Blight bowed and graciously accepted both the gold and the title. He had a feeling that a certain someone had a hand in the last part of his prize. The admin of the tournament had almost absolute power. There were only three things he couldn't do. Give people away, grant godly gifts, or do anything that would affect any of the current ruling families. And the last could be done if at the request of a ruling family. Up in the crowd Kaitlyn's eyes sparkled happily. After all, she was gaining a lot from this tournament: A husband, a child, and half a million gold pieces. After all, all good husbands share their wealth, right? And if Blight wasn't willing at first, she knew a few ways to… persuade him.

"And for Solar, who reigns as champion for the second time, you shall have one wish granted, as long as it is within our power to do so." The admin said.

"Yes, I know this from my last tournament." Solar said as she looked at the ground. She sighed and looked up, "There isn't anything I want, or rather, the things I do, can't be granted."

The admin blinked in surprise. "Are you sure? You can have one wish…"

Solar smiled sadly, "One wish… I think I'll pass on it then. The only things I desire can't be given." Solar replied.

The admin nodded, "Alright, I understand. That concludes it for the martial artists! Everyone, give them a big round of applause!"

The crowd roared its approval as the four stood there, basking in the glory. It was, after all, their right for coming this far relying on their own strengths.

A while later they finally got around to dealing with the sword masters.

The first received the same prize as Titan, fifty thousand gold pieces whereas the third received two hundred thousand.

"Zaknafein, for coming in second you shall receive this ancient scroll taken from deep within our vaults. Being as renowned as you are, gold isn't really a problem. The exact value of this scroll is unknown but within it are several weapon techniques that have been sealed for ages. We believe that you, if anyone, are capable of not only mastering these techniques, but making sure they aren't used to dominate others." The admin said as he handed an ancient scroll sealed within an air tight canister to Zaknafein. Zaknafein bowed his head as he took the canister. He knew what was within these scrolls, many did. Within them were some of the most deadly and destructive moves ever created for weapons.

"And Trunks, for placing first, you shall be granted one wish if it is within our power." The admin said.

Trunks nodded and grinned. "I've thought about this and I know what I want." Trunks said as he reached behind and unbuckled his sword. "I noticed that all of the weapons here were enchanted, however mine is not. I would like it to be enchanted as much as possible so that it's stronger, faster, sharper, and perhaps a couple of other extras like only I, or those I specifically choose, are capable of wielding it." Trunks said as he held his sword out before him.

"You mean to say you won without an enchanted sword?" The admin asked incredulously.

One of the gods stepped forward and took the sword and examined it carefully. He unsheathed it and his eyes widened in surprise. "It's made out of pure runite." He said in wonder. Eyes widened across the arena, everyone had heard of runite.

Runite was one of the rarest metals in the universe. It was, however, quite common in the fourth universe but they didn't need to know that but anyways. Not usable unless a large amount of it was compressed and molded together and even then it required extreme temperatures to do such a thing. It would have bankrupted a planet and depleted half the runite resources in the third universe to create such a blade. However, should one manage to create such a blade, they would hold within their grasp a weapon of inestimable value. Should any other medium be used to create a weapon only a single layer of runes could be laid upon its surface. However, with runite the medium would absorb the runes, allowing for an infinite amount of runes to be casted upon the blade. This, combined with its natural strength, would create a weapon fitting of a god.

"Your wish shall be granted." The admin said.

"Don't worry little one." The god said. "I shall personally over see the enchanting of this blade. It is much too valuable to leave solely in the hands of mortal enchanters. You shall have it back by the end of tomorrow, and it shall be a blade that will outshine all others."

"Thank you." Trunks said, bowing deeply. He honestly had no idea his blade was made out of runite. But then, he never had been all that into metals. He had simply received it as a gift from Tapion after the androids mortally wounded him after killing Hildegarn.

And finally it was time for the last four people to be granted their prize. The fourth received the gold; he did have several debts he had to pay up. The third place person received some valuable scrolls.

"Gahlanthas, we are not quite sure what to reward you with. The past several tournaments you asked for nothing with your wish." The admin said. "However, if you wish, we could always reward you with half a million gold coins. I know you don't really need money but a little more never really hurt."

Gahlanthas chuckled, "It's quite alright. I'll accept it. Don't want to appear rude and turn down the administration too many times." Gahlanthas replied. He graciously took the bag of coins and tied it to his belt. Truth be told his next adventures were going to require quite a bit of funding and every little bit helped.

"And Sapphire, you have now taken title of the greatest mage of all time. Your reward shall be, of course, something you wish. Simply name it, and it will be granted." The admin said solemnly as he bowed to Sapphire. After all, he too was a mage while he wasn't running the tournament and Sapphire had just surpassed him and became his superior.

"What I want is the Staff of Destruction, and someone who can train me in the use of it." Sapphire said with a smile.

The admin blinked in surprise while Gahlanthas laughed, "You hardly need that Sapphire." Gahlanthas said.

"I know, but it just looks cool, and if I'm going to be carrying it around I might as well know how to use the thing." Sapphire said with a grin.

Gahlanthas laughed heartily, as did many others. "Well, if they can grant you the staff, I'll be able to train you in its use. I do, after all, wield the staff of domination, albeit more as a walking stick than anything else. They're both a part of a group of five staves."

The admin nodded his head, "Alright then, if Gahlanthas thinks it's alright then I have shall also think it's alright. The staff shall be delivered to you as soon as we unseal it from it's holding in the vault."

"Thank you." Sapphire said happily.

To be continued…

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A/N: And so ends the tournament. Didn't get to quite where I wanted but its 8k words so I might as well finish there. Hopefully I can finish this world in the next chapter, if not than for sure the one after. I seem to have a habit of drawing things out. There will be LOTS of plot/character development in the next chapter. And all the side characters (those not part of the main group) will be fleshed out as far as I'll take them. I also hope to bring to light more about Sapphire.

A/N: Yay, Sapphire's special ability has been brought to the fore front! She can absorb magical attacks; however like Blight it does have its downfalls. Think of what happens when you blow too much air into a balloon.

A/N: The gold is all in bags of holding, also a concept taken from Forgotten Realms. Bags of holding are basically doorways to extra-dimensional chambers that can hold an extremely large amount of stuff.

A/N: About Tapion and Hildegarn (I know I spelt that wrong) Hildegarn is far stronger than the androids, but the androids of Trunks' time had limitless supply of energy, and Hildegarn was far too stupid to try and overwhelm them all at once. He had simply been worn down and destroyed after several months of constant battle. Also since it was merely a pair of legs attack them it really wasn't all that much of a problem.