Sorry for being away for so long. I hope SlashBandicoot43 likes what I did with Mario at the end.

Sonic and co owned by SEGA

Strike, Aqua, Axel and Sally are owned by me

Other OCs owned by respective authors

Sonic the Hedgehog:

Tournament of the Stars

Chapter 22

Last time, Shadow and Rouge had a huge falling out while Silver was attacked by Nazo. He was helped by the losers of the first round but Strike was badly injured defending Axel.

It was the next day. After getting Strike to the medical ward, they were told he would be fine, easing their worries. Axel was acting strangely, though. He seemed distracted and upset.

Everyone had woken up bright and early and after having breakfast, they reported to the arena.

While everyone filed in, the woman from the airport handed out leaflets showing who was fighting who. Sonic opened his and looked for his number. It was opposite the number 3.

The woman also said "Could numbers 18 and 24 please report to the waiting areas."

Sonic looked about for who was leaving and saw Big making his way through the crowd. He secretly wished him the best of luck.

Soon, everyone was seated, chattering excitedly until the commentator's voice was heard.

"Welcome ladies and gents, it's time for the beginning of Round 2!"

The crowd let out a huge cheer. They knew who would be fighting but the matches were still a mystery.

"OK, let's move on to fight 1. It's Big the Cat VS Jet the Hawk!"

Both the purple cat and the emerald hawk walked on, both waving to the crowd. Cream began to get worried for her friend. She had taken a sound beating from Jet and Big could end up in the same position.

The two fighters met in the centre and Big put his hand out, which Jet shook.

"Uh, good luck?" Jet said, not entirely sure what to say to the cat. He knew he was strong after seeing how he beat Fang and knew he shouldn't let his guard down.

Jet jumped back, indicating he was ready to fight but Big still stared at him stupidly. The hawk sweat dropped and decided to let Big catch on. He threw his fan at the cat, metal bit aimed at him but it bounced off of his flab. It seemed to make Big understand though.

He pulled out his fishing rod and cast it around Jet, before spinning the bird around the arena, making him very dizzy. The reel eventually snapped, sending Jet crashing into the wall. He picked himself up and charged at the cat. Big immediately stood his ground but Jet flipped over him and grabbed the fan that he threw. Pulling out the second one, he swiped them outwards, creating a gust that only ruffled Big's fur. Getting slightly infuriated, Jet began to strike his opponent with his fans but Big didn't seem to feel a thing.

Jet tired himself out, allowing Big to punch him, sending him across the ground. After spitting the dirt out of his beak, Jet decided to use his secret weapon. He pulled out a green ring that he fitted onto his wrist. Sonic recognised it. It was an Ark of the Cosmos.

"OK, kitty. This time, I'm knocking you out for good!" Jet yelled as he began to float in the air.

"GRAVITY DIVE!"

Jet shot forward with amazing speed, striking Big on his way. This time, he dealt damage and Big winced in pan. Smirking, Jet began to repeat the attack, knowing Big was too slow to protect himself. For the last attack, Jet pulled one of his fans out and used the metal part to club Big round the head as he zoomed past. Big was quickly knocked out.

"Jet has won!"

The crowd cheered for the hawk's win but Wave and Storm were the loudest. Jet saw Cesare staring at him and he gave the crow the filthiest look he could give. His trance was broken when he saw medics, accompanied by Amy and Cream, arrive for Big. Knowing that Amy would probably club him to death with her hammer, Jet turned tail and left the arena.

"Will Mr. Big be alright?" asked a very worried Cream.

"He'll be fine. He's just taken some bruises. He'll be back up in no time" one of the medics assured her.

Both Amy and Cream gave sighs of relief and returned to their seats.

"Our next fight is Armand VS Mario!"

Cheers went up for both fighters. Armand waved and bowed to the crowd, blowing a kiss to Emily. Mario on the other hand gave it the cold shoulder. This would seem normal if it wasn't for the fact that he was colder than normal. His eyes seemed to have some sort of determination in them.

Armand and Mario met in the middle and Armand extended his hand.

"Good luck" he said but Mario didn't take his hand. Instead, he stared at him coldly and said "You're the one who'll need the luck. I don't intend to lose!"

Armand was slightly taken aback but before he could reply, Mario vanished and reappeared behind Armand, striking out with his foot. The tiger was knocked across the ground and before he could get the chance to get up, Mario was upon him with a kunai. The hedgehog tried stabbing Armand with it but he squirmed to avoid it. He managed to activate his laser sword and blocked the kunai. He shoved Mario away, giving him some time to get back up.

Armand charged at the hedgehog, sword stretched out, but Mario held his hand out and suddenly, time stopped. Mario moved behind Armand and threw several kunai at him. As they hit, time started again and the kunai exploded. Armand was hurtled forward, several bruises and a small number of cuts all over his body. Mario drew another one, prepared to finish the tiger off but Armand had used his remaining strength to activate his Acro Laser. He disappeared and, in the space of three seconds, reappeared and vanished again 10 times, each time shooting a laser and slashing with his sword. It was too fast for Mario to keep up and he was swiftly taken down. He forced himself back up but Armand had prepared his Mega Laser and fired. It hit its target and Mario was last seen lying on the ground, covered with burns and bruises.

"It appears Mario has been taken down, making Armand the winner!"

Before the crowd could cheer, Mario cried "NO!"

Suddenly, he shot back up and punched Armand in the gut. He began to repeatedly punch and kick the tiger, despite his wounds and showed no signs of backing down. Seeing his friend act like this, Damien jumped into the arena and grabbed hold of the hedgehog, who was still trying to lash out.

"Mario, calm down!" Damien yelled, trying to get Mario's attention.

"NO! I won't lose now! I'll kill him if I have too!" Mario screamed.

Damien was taken aback. Mario never let his emotions out. But right now, he was screaming in anger and, by the looks of it, small tears were beginning to well up.

"Dude, I thought you didn't care about this whole thing. You only came coz I dragged you along" said Damien, trying to reason with the out of control hedgehog.

"It's not the tournament!" Mario yelled, freeing himself and turning to face his friend. "It's her!"

Damien raised his eyebrows. "You want to get back at that crystal freak don't you?" Damien asked but he already knew the answer. Mario nodded in response.

"But, what's so special about that Sally girl anyway? I know she's your friend but one of the others could…" Damien was interrupted.

"It's not just that! I… I… You wouldn't understand!"

Mario immediately ran out of the arena, ignoring his wounds. Damien stared at where his friend ran while Armand let medics come for him.

"Mario," Damien whispered to himself. "What happened to you?"