The Nord sang a little prayer to Mara as he splashed water on his face. I must look my finest, he thought, smiling, because that mer is stubborn. But what a gift from the Divines! A woman of integrity and honor, and ravishing as well!

His room was fairly large, consisting of not only a bed and a closet for clothes, but also a mannequin for storing his armor and several small shrines. He moved away from the basin of fresh water in the corner and to a shrine shaped vaguely like a sword planted in the ground.

"Great and mighty Talos," he prayed earnestly, "let my Thu'um be strong, my feet swift, and my sword sharp."

He sat on the bed and waited for the call. It didn't take long.

"Dovahkiin," stated the characterless voice. "You may now exit through your door. It will lead to the prep room with your team."

The Dragonborn rose, and, taking his helmet, he walked through the door. The prep room was incredibly wide, and down its length were various piles and racks of equipment that belonged to the other members of his team, who were also emerging. He put on his horned helm, iron bracers, boots, and tunic. He noticed that there were no weapons, but realized that those must be at the cache that the Master of Games mentioned. It didn't matter, for the Dovahkiin was as well-armed with his voice as he was with any sword. He walked down the wide room toward the mage who requested that he join.

"Aah, yes. The Dragon-Born, if I'm not mistaken," The old man said and puffed on a pipe.

"It is as you say, great mage. You said that you would explain the true purpose of this Grand Combat."

Another of the team members approached. The thin man wore an elaborate white robe with a hood pointed like the mouth of a dragon.

"Sí, Signore Gandalf. You had better make this worth our time and allegiances."

The wizard surveyed the other warriors. The Spartan king Leonidas heeded his call, and the magical and mouse-like Pikachu had found Gandalf trustworthy.

"Now that you're all here, I can explain. It doesn't take much to realize that our presence here is no technological occurrence. Such transport across dimensions and planes of existence is only capable through the highest kind of supernatural power."

The hooded man caught on.

"So, this is all the work… of a god?"

"Correct, Ezio. And not a particularly benevolent one either. Most of our universes have pantheons of some sort. There are all of your basic representative deities; the sky, the sea, the earth, and so on. But a consistency through all of these are taboo and bizarre deities. Corrupt, unearthly, and ancient, these elder gods are not found in most pantheons. They are worshipped by outsiders. Cults, the insane, and the like. Their feuds for power are particularly bitter. We are in the midst of one."

The warriors nodded, and Gandalf continued.

"The Great Old One Cthulhu and his brother, Hastur, have been fighting each other since the day their tendrils sensed the other's presence. Cthulhu, the smarter and weaker of the two managed to just about kill his brother off. Hastur is a being of pure malevolence, so logically the very presence of strife makes him stronger. It is my belief that, with whatever strength he had left, Hastur summoned us here to battle so that we will heal him."

"And how should we respond to this? We cannot avoid combat," the Dovahkiin questioned.

"My best answer is to feel as little hate toward your opponent as possible. It may not help much, but it may be the least we can do." Gandalf said with an air of despair.

The Dovahkiin's thoughts turned at once toward the lovely Miss Short. Surely, that would be one opponent he couldn't bring himself to hate. The doors of the prep room unlocked, and the team filed through onto the most bizarre skyline the Nord had ever seen. The sun was setting behind a mess of massive buildings.

"Is this… a city of the Divines?"

"Perhaps," the wise mage figured.

"What is our plan of battle? We should have made some decision before the sun sets," queried Leonidas, the resident tactician.

Ezio stared at the long road in front of them that led into the heart of the city.

"For now, we walk."