"Oh yeah," Both Tiamatt and Comi kept one eye on the other while sparing the other to glance up at Valian in the Judge Box. "Since you're both new here, the fight starts when we Judges say so. After that, the battle is to the death. Now we just need to find a third Judge, then the battle can commence."
Fishie and Valian looked down at the Field of Battle where Tiamatt and Comi were glaring at each other after they found out the fight couldn't begin till one of the Judges announced it. The other Remnants seemed anything but pleased about being stuck in the stands and several tried to get back to the field but the barrier that protected the stands from anything that might fly out of the Field of Battle, also kept anything from getting in. Kratos and the others were anxious as they watched the field.
"Man, Tia looks down right pissed. I don't think I've ever seen her this mad." Nightfire noted, looking down at the woman down in the pit.
Tiamatt had a white knuckle grip on the hilt of the Oblivion Blade, her eyes dilated to slits, her growls revealing inhuman fangs as her wings flared out behind her. It was evident that she was having a hard time controlling her anger, made all the more apparent as a cracking noise was heard as the bones in her legs and feet shifted till she was standing on clawed toes.
"Um, maybe we should get this battle started." Fishie said, looking at her partner. Valian motioned over to the third Judge seat with his head, drawing her attention towards. "Don't worry about another Judge. I don't think we'll need one for this fight."
"Actually, I was thinking that we could use one of their friends as a third Judge so that we don't have to worry about some random character. Besides, it's not as if we really have to Judge anything unless it's a tie or one side refuses to kill the other. In this case, I highly doubt that'll be a problem," Valian said. He turned toward the stands that held Tiamatt's companions and snapped his fingers, causing Kratos to disappear and then reappear in the Judge's box. "Hello," Valian said while shaking Kratos' hand, "You're the third Judge for this fight." Kratos looked around, confused for a few seconds, before he spotted the babies in a very ornate looking crib and moved toward them.
Fishie stepped in front of Kratos and stopped him with a hand to his chest. "Sorry, you can't access the babies before the end of your group's fight."
"I… just want to hold them." Kratos looked downcast as he turned around. "I haven't even seen them until now." Fishie got a depressed look before Valian coughed into his hand and brought both their attention toward him. He was pointing at Tiamatt in the middle of the Field of Battle. Tiamatt was transforming the hand that held the Oblivion Blade back and forth between Dragon and Human, making a sickening noise as her skeletal structure constantly rearranged itself. Her muscles were rippling as they transformed as well, even though Tiamatt remained in human form. And surrounding her was an obvious aura of complete and utter wrath.
Valian pulled Kratos and sat him down in the third Judge seat. Then he bent over and said, "You do realize the faster you fight and win, the faster you get them back, right?" Kratos got a hardened look and nodded.
Satisfied, Valian nodded, turning towards the center of Battle Theater. "Welcome all to Battle Theater! This is an unscheduled fight between Tiamatt Aurion and the Evil Remnant, Comi!" The crowds cheered loudly before Valian continued. "Let the fight begin!"
Tiamatt didn't hesitate. In less than a second, the Cetra crossed the Field of Battle and attempted to bring her sword down on Comi from above. The startled Remnant barely dodged in time and took to the air, a Materia glowing in his arm.
"Haste!" A green glow surrounded the Remnant just as Tiamatt launched another attack.
Dodging with his newly gained speed, Comi tried to launch his own attack with his claws, slashing at her arms. Tiamatt growled, seeming to ignore the pain as she turned to face him, flinging her arm out and sending Comi crashing to the ground. Glaring at him from her spot in the sky as he got back to his feet, Tiamatt accessed a spell and felt its dark energy surrounded her.
"Death."
The aura left Tiamatt, forming a swirling mass in front of Comi. From it rose a strange skeleton like figure in a black cloak, a scythe in its hands. The Remnant's eyes widened as the reaper raised it weapon before swinging it at him. Comi leapt back, dodging the spell and its instant death effect before leaping up to attack Tiamatt.
"Won't kill me yourself so you use Death? How pathetic…" Comi spat, slashing at Tiamatt with his claws before spinning and hitting her away with his tail. Comi crossed his arms over his chest so that one clawed hand hovered in front of each shoulder, his body trembling as he built up energy. "Shockwave Pulsar!"
Comi flung his arms out. A large, white, pulsating orb of energy appeared in the middle of the Field of Battle, causing the ground to crack. Pieces of the ground began to ascend toward and absorbed into it from the small gravity well. The small, dead star shined brightly too, casting the entire coliseum into shadow and causing every one of the spectators, human and alien alike, to shield their eyes. It gave off immense heat and enormous sparks of electricity and plasma that played across the Field Barrier around the Field of Battle. Finally, it exploded, causing the Field barrier to ripple visibly and sent Tiamatt flying into said barrier as the remains of the star dissipated into nothingness from whence it came. When the light had died, everyone saw that Tiamatt wasn't moving, her form once again a completely fragile human.
"NO! Tiamatt! Get up!" Kratos yelled, jumping to his feet and running to the edge of the Judge Box. His wife didn't respond, still not moving as Comi approached. "Tiamatt!"
"It is probably for the best that this happened. Her anger was controlling her actions to a great extent and clouding her judgment." a familiar voice said from nearby. Kratos turned and his eyes widened when he found that another Tiamatt stood in the stands next to the Judge box with a small green creature standing next to her feet.
"Yes, much anger, that woman has. Much like you, before your training, she is." The creature agreed, leaning on his walking stick. The other Tiamatt nodded and continued to watch.
"She is only attempting to get her children back." Excious said as he stepped up next to the Judge box. "I would expect any parent to react the same." Excious nodded to Kratos who nodded back and then both turned back to watch the battle.
"True, that maybe. Survive this battle, she may not." the creature noted.
The second Tiamatt, next to what Valian described to a questioning Kratos as a 'Yoda', nodded in agreement. "Master Yoda is correct. She is strong enough to win, let there be no doubt of that. If she was fighting at full strength, that Comi would be a pile of ash right now. However, she is using most of her strength within herself, internally battling with her will to save her children, her will to survive, her will to save her loved ones, her will to win, her will to kill those she hates, her will to fight. If she does not focus her will power, focus her mind, on what is in front of her, what she's dealing with at the moment, she will lose."
Excious and Kratos nodded slowly. "So, you're saying our Tiamatt is distracted then?" Yoda nodded and the second Tiamatt crossed her arms.
Comi crouched down beside Tiamatt, her eyes closed and breathing ragged. The pulsar had done its job, weakening her considerable. It didn't help that her body had yet to recover properly from childbirth.
"Now Sister, I can't seriously believe this is all you have." Comi sneered to an unresponsive Tiamatt. "Hmph, you have become weak Sister. Unable to defend yourself let alone your own children. How pathetic!"
"Tiamatt!" Kratos shouted from the Judge Box, "Don't give up! Concentrate! I know you can do it!" Following Kratos shouts, Marth and Nightfire started shouting similar things. That of course only lasted a few seconds before they both started fighting with each other, only to be dragged apart by the security midgets.
Comi laughed, grabbing Tiamatt's throat and lifting her in the air. "Can you hear them Tiamatt?" Comi asked, increasing his grip so that he slowly choked her. "Can you hear the cries of you pathetic lover… your stupid friends… your precious children, as you die? It is because of them that you've weakened, Sister. Having a family has weakened you and in the end that is why you will now die!"
"A change, I sense," said Yoda. The Tiamatt next to Yoda closed her eyes and concentrated before she opened them again and nodded.
"I sense it too, Master." She said, "Her focus is completely the fight now, instead of all over the place like before."
"What do you mean?" Excious asked, turning to them.
"Can't you see it?" asked the other Tiamatt incredulously. Excious shook his head. Tiamatt sighed and explained. "Before, the Lifestream around your Tiamatt was all over the place, complete chaos. When she went to move forward, it pushed her back. When she tried to fly, it pushed her down. Now, it's moving in one direction, her direction. It could be best described as a focused jet of fire." Excious nodded, but he didn't really understand what this Tiamatt next to him was talking about.
"I will not die by your hands!" the Tiamatt below gasped, slowly opening her eyes. She grabbed his arm, sinking claws into his flesh, causing Comi to scream and release his hold. "My friends...my family...they are my strength...with out them I would be nothing. They give my life meaning and purpose and I...I will fight for them!"
Comi didn't even have time to react as the Oblivion Blade slid through his gut before being pulled and slashed multiple times across his chest. In just five seconds, Comi had taken over fifty strikes before Tiamatt leapt away.
Putting a hand to her chest, Tiamatt extracted Holy from her body and put the White Materia in one of the slots originally made to hold the Bahamut Materia, on her sword. Gripping the hilt tightly, the Oblivion Blade began to emit a powerful white glow. A few seconds later, the sword was traveling skyward through Comi, his body still in shock from the surge of attacks moments before. As the sword sliced through the Remnant, Comi began to dissolve in free Lifestream until nothing remained and the glow left the sword. Breathing heavily, Tiamatt turned towards the Judge's box as the awe crowds erupted into deafening cheers.
"I win. Now give me back Eria and Terrance." Tiamatt said, glaring at the two humans.
Fishie looked over at the Remnants who were all looking much less confident after the defeat of Comi. "Do you still want to fight?" Some of the Remnants looked at the girl like she was crazy while other shook their heads. One Remnant glared defiantly but a growl from Tiamatt quickly changed his mind. "Cowards."
"What?!" the defiant Remnant growled, jumping to his feet and glaring at the judge. "How dare you call us cowards! I can not speak for the others but I will fight."
"And you will meet the same fate as Comi!" Tiamatt snarled but the Remnant didn't look fazed by her threat.
"Actually Tiamatt, your fight is over. One of your friends must fight him." Valian pointed out, avoiding Tiamatt's disapproving glare as he turned to face her friends. "Whose next?"
Excious looked at Marth and Nightfire before nodding and standing up. "I'll fight. But please allow Tiamatt to access her children. They need to be with their mother."
Valian nodded and snapped his fingers again, causing Excious and the Remnant to be teleported down the the Field of Battle while Tiamatt appeared in the Judge's Box next to the crib. Any anger Tiamatt might have had instantly disappeared as she set her sword down and gathered the twins in her arms. Kratos began to stand up to join his wife and children but Fishie stepped in front of him again and shook her head.
"Not yet. If no one else wants to fight after this round then you can have them back. Tiamatt is only being allowed to see them since she is the mother and the kids need her." Fishie explained. Kratos' face fell and he looked over to Tiamatt who gave him a reassuring smile before returning her attention to the babies. "Don't worry. It shouldn't be much longer." Kratos sighed and nodded before taking his seat again.
"Alright, " Valian turned back towards the Field of Battle. "The next fight is against the Remnant Ayoth and Terra Garden's Second in Command, Excious." Battle Theater once again erupted into cheers, causing Tiamatt to look up and finally observe her surroundings, her mouth falling open as she looked through the stands. Fishie laughed as Valian gave the woman an amused look before turning once more towards the field. "Let the fight begin!"
Excious immediatly drew his gun, firing off rounds that Ayoth blocked with blades that extended from his forearms. Ayoth appeared to be one of the 'successful' Remnants and had a human form which quickly melted away as He leapt skyward and his own griffin transformation took over. Excious didn't look fazed by the change as he calm reloaded his weapon. Ayoth took the momentary opening to grab the gun from his fellow Remnant's hand in his talons before throwing it to the other side of the Field of Battle.
"Come now Brother, show me your true power." Ayoth taunted, hovering above Excious.
"Hmph, fine then." Excious jumped up at his enemy, revealing a tranformation similiar to Ayoth's but closer to Tiamatt's. The sound of his bones and muscles rearraging themselves could be heard for just a few seconds till Excious flared out all four wings of his dark blue and black dragon form.
"You look almost exactly like Dsanios." Ayoth grinned. "You are a lot like your brother. It's a shame that you did not join our ranks as well."
"I am nothing like my brother!" Excious roared, letting the other Remnant finally get to him.
Opening his jaws, Excious released a stream of flame towards the griffin but Ayoth dodged and dove under the dragon, flipping on his back as he did so and attempting to slash at his stomach with sharp talons. Excious roared in pain before flipping and snapping his fangs round the griffin's tail and swinging his head, pulling Ayoth in the opposite direction that he wanted to go till Excious had snapped his long neck all the way back and released his hold, sending Ayoth flying into the protective barrier above. Ayoth screeched in pain as the impact with the barrier broke several of the fragile bones in the griffin's wings before he began to fall. Excious didn't even give the Remnant a chance to hit the ground as he released yet another stream of fire that incinerated a screaming Ayoth into nothing more then hot ash.
His opponent destroyed, Excious returned to his human form and landed back on the ground, smirking as he looked up at the remaining Remnants and the crowds cheered. "I've won this battle and I doubt the other Remnants are willing to fight. Please return Eria and Terrance to their parents." Excious said, turning back towards the judges.
Fishie and Valian looked at the Remnants who appeared to have lost all confidence after two defeats that resulted in the complete destruction of not only their leader but also of a powerful ally.
"Do you forfeit?" Valian asked.The response was a similtanious "yes" from the remaining Remnants. Valian turned towards Kratos who gave him a questioning look. "You can get them now."
Kratos looked relieved as he stood up. "Thank you." Valian nodded as Kratos was handed his son and daughter and Tiamatt smiled at her family before turning towards the judges.
"What sort of place is this? I recognize people and creatures that existed only in shows, games, and stories in one of my worlds." Tiamatt asked, before she started to point people out. "Ichigo Kurosaki, Sakura Haruno, Ender, Kenpachi, Darth Maul, Kon, Ino Yamunaka. I could go on forever practically. I'm seriously curious as to how this is all possible?"
"Um well..." Fishie trailed off for a moment before turning towards Valian. "How is it possible?"
"Um...dimenisional rifts? I don't know how to explain it." Valian shrugged. "But I'm guessing you want to go home right?"
"Please, I'm worried about Hiro. If you could return us all back to the Research Center on Theth'ella, it would be most appreciated." Tiamatt asked, sounding worried as she took Eria back from Kratos. "I hope Hiro gains control and not Void."
"I'm sure he's fine Tia." Kratos wrapped an arm around her shoulder while holding Terrance in his other arm. The Seraph turned back to the Judges. "Please send us all home."
Fishie nodded, and waved a hand, causing Excious, Nightfire, and Marth to appear in the Judge's box. "You guys are welcome to return to Battle Theater whenever you like. You'll find us listed in your computer system. Bye!"
"Wait? What?" Tiamatt stammered but she was only talking to a strange metal ring. She looked around in confusion till realizing that they were back in their dimension. "Come on, lets get back to Garden. Its not safe here, especially for the twins." Kratos nodded and followed his wife outside back to the Ragnorok with the others close behind. "Please be ok Hiro..."
Ok, i want to thank Valian for helping with the main fight since he is the coauthor of Battle Theater. I'm sorry i didn't use The Scene but I thought that after Tia had gotten the babies back safely, her next concern would be Hiro so...its a bonus! this was written by Valian as an idea and I thank him for it. I hope everyone enjoys it!
Jenova is...nice?!
"Uhm… Excuse me miss, but can you help me?" Tiamatt turned around and looked down upon the little girl that was tugging on her jeans. She had little yellow curls or hair framing what had to be the cutest face Tiamatt had ever seen. However that face was currently wet with tears.
"What's wrong little girl?" Marth asked from Tiamatt's right. Now everyone in the group's attention was on the little girl.
"There's these mean men picking on my big sister. Please come and stop them. I know you're strong cause I watched you in the last battle. Please help my big sister!" Then the girl broke down and started crying. Tiamatt, feeling the new emotions that came with motherhood, picked the girl up and started walking.
"Tiamatt, wait…" But she'd already left the others behind, scrambling to catch up. When she finally came to the scene, she immediately knew what was wrong.
"Jenova!" Tiamatt hissed. The older looking woman with blue hair and pale skin turned to look at Tiamatt as she put down the little girl she was holding.
"Oh, I'm sorry to cause you so much trouble miss," said Jenova. The little girl ran up to her and jumped into her arms gleefully, causing Jenova's long blue dress to ripple wildly. "My little sister can be such a pest at times. Sara, you know you shouldn't run off like that." Tiamatt was about to growl something unprintable out and jump at the other woman when her foot ran into something heavy.
Scattered on the ground were several unconscious men. Several of the security midgets were dragging their bodies off to who knows where. Tiamatt quickly put two and two together and her jaw dropped to the ground. Pointing at Jenova, Tiamatt asked Sara, "That's your big sister?"
Sara nodded. "Yeah, she's so nice and strong. She always protects me from the mean boys at the school. She's my favorite teacher!"
Jenova laughed it off before turning toward Tiamatt. "You fought well in there today. I'm happy you were able to win. That Comi was a rather unsavory sort."
Just as Jenova finished Marth, Nightfire, Kratos, and Excious skidded to a stop behind Tiamatt. She quickly turned around and latched onto Kratos and the twins, mumbling, "This isn't real. This isn't real. I'm just dreaming. This can't be real," over and over again.
Marth and Nightfire drew their swords and pointed them at Jenova, their steel gazes injecting venom if they could. Jenova took a step back from the looks she was getting, unsure what to make of the two men.
"Boy's I'd suggest putting your swords away," said Kratos. "I don't think she's the Jenova you know and hate." Marth and Nightfire looked at each other before really looking at Jenova once more. No, indeed, she wasn't the Jenova they knew.
Tiamatt suddenly broke down and slid to the floor, crying, sobbing really. "I… I can't… can't believe it. She's a nice person! NICE! Why is she NICE! Whyyyyyy!"
Everyone in the area stared at Tiamatt as she had a nervous breakdown and was slowly led off by Kratos and the rest of her group.
I really should have found a way to put that in with the main story...sorry Valian! Read and Review Please!