(Fictograph City; Crossover Dome)
Unlike the previous Battle of the Luminaries openings, this story does NOT start with VG Central. But rather, Fictograph City. Granted, this was to be expected as both were two of the biggest cities in the fictional universe.
One of the many things VG Central and Fictograph City had in common was an enormous dome with a giant hotel next to it. For VG Central, it was the Megamix Dome and for Fictograph City, it was the Crossover Dome. It was the latter where the story would unfold.
One particular sandy-brown haired man was staring at the hotel with bright eyes. He was wearing a purple dress shirt with matching dress pants and shoes and a dark red tie and black and white pinstripe vest. The only noticeable thing about him was his sharp fangs and his wings on his back, showing that he was a vampire.
The vampire continued to look around the lobby in awe.
"...Still pinching yourself over what happened, eh, Drake?"
The vampire turned around to see an androgyous man with glasses and purple hair tied in a ponytail. He wore a sapphire blue robe top with a sky blue collar, blue pants and brown hair. He smirked as he crossed his arms.
"Oh, come on, Ashley! How could YOU feel the same way?" Drake challenged with an excited grin.
The purple-haired man just chuckled. "Indeed. It felt like ages until the second Battle of the Luminaries ended."
Drake's grin vanished. "More like ruined. And it nearly took Tinyhammer away from doing UVR tournaments for good.
Ashley nodded solemnly. "Indeed… That is why this has to go well. So I have a couple of questions to ask."
"Sure. Shoot." Drake said, shrugging his shoulders.
"First off, why are WE doing it instead of Tinyhammer?" Ashley asked.
"Isn't it obvious?" Drake asked. "Orange-Ratchet entrusted Xero and Maurice so naturally Tiny entrusted US. Especially since we more or less have second-hand experience from doing the side story for the Tournament of Kikai."
"Not… Wrong." Ashley mused, rubbing his question. "Okay, second question. I know that the Tournament of Kikai took place in Fictograph City, but the first two tournaments took place in VG Central?"
Drake merely shrugged with one hand. "Eh. I have no reason. I just assumed that Fictograph City still needs more representation. Especially Grey and maybe SSBFreak got VG Central."
"I suppose that's hair." Ashley frowned. "I hope that we don't have another incident like we had with the crystals and vines."
"Oh, don't worry." Drake reassured. "I contacted the Soul Calibur VI and they all seemed to keep to their word that they would refuse entering the third Battle of the Luminaries."
"Oh, well, that is nice to hear." Ashley smiled. "So did you get your security team?"
"Yyyyyep!" Drake grinned before looking to the side and cupping his hand to his mouth. "Yo! You can come in now!"
With that, six figures walked in. The one leading them was an anthro brown-orange-furred fox with long, dark blue hair tied in a braid. She wore a light brown leather jacket, yellow gloves and a dark blue top with matching pants and boots. She had a determined look on her face.
"First off, Carmelita Fox from Sly Cooper. Without a doubt one of the most determined people in law enforcement in the universe." Drake explained. "That and she has UVR-spinoff experience so she is a staple for the leader of the group."
"You make the right choice. I was actually in the arena of the third Megamix Tournament when the power shortage happened so I realised how easily criminals could ruin the tournament." Carmelita smirked in her Latina accent.
She then scowled before getting out her shock pistol and shoving it into Ashley's face who yelped before holding up his hands in defence.
"That and I have something to prove to your buddy here!" Carmelita snarled. "Don't think I didn't see your recap show on the Tournament of Kikai!"
"S-Sorry…" Ashley apologised. "Well, you know what they say. Results are everything."
Carmelita nodded her head before getting back in-line. Speaking of said line, the next one was a well-built dark-haired man completely clad in a black sneaking suit. He looked quite sternly.
"Next up is Gabriel Logan from Syphon Filter. I decided to cast a more stealth guy and from what I heard, he is one of the best in terms of that AND firearms!" Drake explained.
Gabriel or Gabe raised an eyebrow at this. "I appreciate the compliment, but what is the point of having stealth when I am arguably on the other side."
"After what happened with the crystals and vines, I am NOT taking any chances." Drake said, sternly.
"Besides, you have a lot of weapons, right?" Ashley asked. "Having that type of range could do us wonders."
Gabe continued to look suspicious, but merely shrugged. The next person was a large, muscular grey-and-white furred wolf. He wore nothing but a headband, a black jacket on his shoulder, a loincloth and a sheathed sword around his waist. Like Gabe, he is also stern.
"Next is Horkeukamui from Tokyo Afterschool Summoners. Along with being a big bare-fisted fighter, along with being a cryomancer, but if he puts about 90% the devotion to the job than he does for his hero, he will be a great asset." Drake grinned.
Horkeukamui frowned at this. "Well, I admit that it is true that my first and most prominent priority is my hero, I find it insulting to assume that would not be 100%."
Drake winced at this. "S-Sorry, man."
"It is quite alright. Despite what I said, I am still honoured by your decision." Horkeukamui reassured with a small smile.
"Um, wait, bare-fisted fighter?" Ashley asked, raising an eyebrow before pointing at Horkeukamui's weapon. "Then what is the sword for?"
The wolf just chuckled nervously. "Um, it is not like I do not wish to answer, but I think you should pay attention to the rest of the security team for now."
Ashley raised an eyebrow, but shrugged it off and obliged his words. The next person was a man clad-completely in black and had dark blue hair tied in a ponytail. The most noticeable thing about him was his black, feathery wings. He had a small smirk.
"Next is Naesala from Fire Emblem Tellius. I think his wings speak for themselves, but not only is he the team's flyer, but he is the fastest person on the team along with great hearing and decent wind magic to boot!" Drake grinned.
"Heh. Flatterer, Must be blinded by my skill set that you overlooked my lack of a better word 'reputation'." Naesala sneered with a shrug.
"That is exactly what I was thinking!" Carmelita roared before pointing at Naesala. "Did you not play the games fully? He may be a playable unit, but he is also one with the biggest backstabbing count!"
"Eh. If one who inspired Tinyhammer to do the Battle of the Luminaries invited two psychos, I think the bar is pretty low, don't you think?" Naesala said.
Carmelita's eyes bugged out. "And THAT'S the part where I'll accept this!"
"Carmelita, that is enough!" Ashley scolded. "If you played the Tellius games, he willingly abdicated his place as king and became a diplomat! And it is not the first time you worked with criminals!"
Carmelita looked insulted by this. "How dare you compare the Cooper Gang to… Him!?"
"Regardless, you are going to work with him so you better behave!" Drake said, sternly.
Carmelita growled before crossing her arms and glaring to the side. Naesala just smirked and winked, angering the Interpol agent further. The rest of the security looked at each other, not liking where this was going.
Next up was a small vulpine-line creature with… Arguably the loudest appearance. She had purple hair, blue hair and bright shades and dressed scantily with a pink tie-front crop top, black bra, Daisy Dukes, dark striped stocking and light blue and pink shoes. She also carried some kind of sea-green gun. Said gun along with some of her clothes have bright lights on it. She looked the most animated.
"Next is Pepper from Paladins. The alternate world version of Pip, she is a skilled alchemist and with her gun, she will act as the medic of the group! Don't think she can't fight for herself!" Drake smirked.
"Ooh, you know it! My count is quite high!" Pepper smirked, having a similar Latina accent like Carmelita.
"Wait, ALTERNATE world version of Pip?" Ashley asked. "In THAT case, why not get the original one?"
"That is actually easy." Drake said before grinning. "I just like Pepper's aesthetic more!"
Everyone in disbelief while Pepper blinked twice.
"Wow, for a host, you are really shallow." Pepper mused.
Drake winced before hanging his head.
"...Shallow in the BEST way possible!" Pepper grinned. "Give me some fur!
Drake returned the grin, raising his head. Pepper then bounced over to the vampire before jumping up to Drake's level so they could high-five each other.
"...So much for being an improvement of that bunny." Carmelita muttered.
The final member of the security team was a young redhead with her hair tied to the side in a ponytail. She wore a yellow suit jacket, a matching skirt, a white dress shirt, a blue tie and white boots. She also had a blue electronic necklace around her neck. Ashley blinked twice in disbelief. She had a big grin on her face.
"And last, but not least, Athena Cykes from Ace Attorney. She…" Drake started.
"...You're kidding me." Ashley piped up.
"H-Huh?" Drake asked with his grin vanishing.
"You told me that you were taking this security team seriously!" Ashley scolded, glaring at Drake. "So why did you invite someone WITHOUT combat experience?"
"Um, actually, Athena is canonically a martial artist." The vampire said, fiddling with his collar with his finger.
"And did she ever use that in a fight?" Ashley challenged.
"Umm…" Drake started.
"Drakeeeeee!" Ashley groaned.
"Um, excuse me?"
Everyone looked at Athena who had a blank look on her face.
"Part of the reason why you are so insistent against being here is because of what happened to Dick Gumshoe and Maggey Bryde, right?" She asked.
"Um, yes." Ashley said, wondering where this was going.
"Oh, don't worry, then!" Athena grinned. "The moment that they found out that I was invited, they immediately came over to tell me in person and told me EVERYTHING that happened."
Ashley looked stunned. "And you STILL want to go."
"I'll be lying if I said that they didn't scare me off." Athena admitted, looking to the side. She then looked back at Ashley. "However, it also helped me know what to do and what NOT to do. Please give me a chance. I promise I won't disappoint."
Ashley paused for a moment. "Um, alright, if you are THAT adamant about it?"
Athena grinned before giving a peace sign. "La Victoire!"
Despite agreeing, Ashley didn't look so sure. He wasn't the only one. The rest of the security team looked at each other, silently asking what would Athena do.
"Well, that is everyone!" Drake grinned. He then looked surprisingly stern. "Now, considering what happened at the third Megamix Tournament and the second Battle of the Luminaries, I can't promise that things will go swimmingly. HOWEVER, all I ask at the end of the day is that whatever happens, it won't ruin the tournament."
The security team nodded their heads. Carmelita, Gabe and Horkeukamui looked determined while Naesala and Pepper looked eager. And Athena… Had a blank look on her face.
"Now…" Drake started.
"Yo, Drake!"
Everyone looked to the side to see a black-furred hedgehog heading over on rocket skates.
"Sorry to bother you right now, but Mel says that she wouldn't create the Shadow Rifle unless you gave the go-ahead." Shadow said.
"Hmm… Good point. It IS the most broken weapon in your game." Drake mused, rubbing his chin. He then snapped his fingers. "Tell her to only give you five shots."
Shadow's eyes bugged out at this. "FIVE shots? But the max ammo cap is thirteen."
"Dude, like I said, it is the most broken weapon in the game!" Drake scolded. "I don't blame Mel for almost not wanting to give you that thing period!"
"Alright, alright, tch! Not like I need any more shots to make them work." Shadow muttered.
With that, he skated off with the security team watching with concerned faces.
"Umm, why is Shadow the Hedgehog here early?" Horkeukamui asked, not liking where this was going.
"Because it didn't feel right to have him come later when his buddies are already here!" Drake beamed.
In the complete opposite, Ashley's face was full of exasperation. "He, Astaroth from Soul Calibur and Aila from Suikoden III are coming back to reprise their roles as the Sound Booth team from the Megamix Tournament."
The security team's eyes widened at this, remembering the mischief those three got into.
"...Am I the only one who is afraid that Drake will not be that much better than Xero?" Gabe said.
"No." The rest of the security team said.
"Oi…" Drake muttered while Ashley just snickered.
(Japan; Saikyo Dojo)
Dan Hibiki sat in the middle of his dojo holding a letter in his hand with a big grin on his face. For the first time in a long while, he was invited back to a UVR-styled tournament. He could understand being snubbed of the first two Battle of the Luminaries as he wasn't invited to the EX Tournaments and both the Okron Tournament AND the Tournament of Kikai because he wasn't revealed at the time of the tournament.
"I swear… It is almost like there is a conspiracy going against me entering the tournament." Dan mused. He then smirked. "Well, if there was, it is clearly busted now."
Then, he heard the door slide open.
"Master Hibiki! I brought her like you asked!"
The pink-clad fighter's eyes lit up before turning around while getting up to see two young women. The first one was his best student, Sakura Kasugano. The second one was.. Chairperson from Rival Schools.
"Ah, as expected from my top pupil!" Dan grinned. He then walked to the two women and extended a hand out towards Chairperson. "Well, Miss… Miss… Um…"
Sakura looked on in disbelief. "Don't tell me that you forget!"
"H-Hey! Cut me her slack! Her name was blurred!" Dan insisted with his face caked in sweat, still in his handshake position.
"It's alright, Sakura. For some reason, my handwriting is always atrocious when trying to write my name." Chairperson reassured, accepting Dan's handshake. "My name is…"
Then, a giant, loud lorry could be heard passing the dojo.
"...But everyone just calls me Chairperson." Chairperson ended.
"...Weird nickname, but if that is what you go up." Dan mused as he and Chairperson broke away from the handshake. He then stifled a cough. "Now Chairperson, even though you are not a proper student of mine, you still take my correspondence course so I consider you as one!"
The dark-haired young woman sheepishly held her arm. "Um, thanks, that is a little overwhelming."
"I could imagine. Now the reason I asked Sakura to take you here is because I have a daunting task to do!" Dan said, sternly. "Though she may or may not have told you."
"Yes, despite showing up at the previous Battles of the Luminaries, Blanka is not absent at this tournament." Chairperson said, stunned.
"I could somewhat imagine why seeing how iconic the cast of our second game is, but cutting him out seems… Wrong." Sakura frowned.
"I couldn't agree more. But even though Jimmy will not be replaced, Saikyo still needs the exposure." Dan said, sternly. "If I was invited to the EX tournaments, I would have talked to you at the first Battle of the Luminaries."
"Um, I can't say that I will be able to live up to his level." Chairperson nodded. "But I will try."
"That is all I ask for! Because at the end of the day, it is not about winning and losing!" Dan grinned before dramatically turning around and walking forward. "It is so that the Saikyo Arts is the Strongest Style! I do not blame Tinyhammer, GreyRaine or Orange-Ratchet for not inviting me. I blame Arika and Capcom for snuffing me for so long! REGARDLESS, that is no excuse for not inviting me as a Mystery Fighter! After all, Xero DID invite Guy to the Tournament of Kikai and he is just as much a Street Fighter than a Final Fight character nowadays so…"
With that, he started to drone on with Chairperson looking on in disbelief and Sakura looking exasperated.
"Umm… Master Hibiki?" Chairperson asked.
"Forget it. Give him at least five minutes." Sakura said with a weak smile.
(King of Fighters Nodal Train Station)
The Meira twins, Alba and Soiree, made their way through the large crowd at the train station to find a spot to sit. Unknown to them, the group of Vanessa, Seth, Ramon and Blue Mary were watching them in awe.
"...Never thought I would live to be in the timeline where I would be representing the King of Fighters along with the infamous Meira brothers." Vanessa noted.
"That is what I said because it is clear that they aren't going to make a third Maximum Impact game." Mary mused.
Ramon looked up at Seth with a concerned look on his face. "Are you going to be okay, man? I heard that there is a lot of bad blood between you guys."
"And then some." The dark-skinned man sighed, shaking his head. "But it is fine. Especially since they are most likely trying to focus on doing well to focus on me."
"Still, this All-Stars theme for our node is a great idea!" Ramon said, looking around. "Even if you leave the Maximum Impact cast, we have so many people that you could only hope would interact with each other."
With that, he points to Clark, Maxima and Oswald making cards with each other. Though, to no one's surprise, Oswald seems to be winning.
"Yeah, I just realised how nobody other than Ash and Oswald made it from the Ash saga to the current one." Seth mused, putting his hand on his chin.
Mary then smirked. "Aren't you forgetting a certain dinosaur?"
"Better not let him hear that. It took me, Antonov and Yakov half an hour to calm him down." Ramon warned, despite returning the smirk.
"Speaking of which, Krohnen is taking being a part of the NESTS saga surprisingly well." Vanessa mused, looking at the blue-haired man as he spoke with Angel.
"Hey, as long as it continues to fool Katsuhiro Otomo, who cares if who doesn't he doesn't pull the wool over their eyes?" Seth said, rolling her eyes.
Mary chuckled before looking around again. Her face then fell when her eyes laid on one particular fighter. She looks quite unhappy, even with their friends trying to cheer them up with little success.
"...Should have known that she would be upset." Mary frowned.
"Hm?" Ramon asked, raising an eyebrow.
Mary looked at her fellow agents to see Vanessa and Seth just as confused.
"Oh, right, you three didn't make your debut in KoF at the time." Mary remembered. She then let out a deep sigh before looking at said person.
"...Let's just say that not everyone is happy about this roster."
(Feudal Japan; Portal)
Because not all franchises have trains for obvious reasons, some nodes actually have more creative ways to travel from world to world. In the case of the 18th century world of Samurai Shodown, they use a portal.
Darli Dagger gave a descending whistle while holding her saw-sword over her shoulder. "So THIS is how you travel to places like Fictograph City?"
"Oh, right! I have forgotten that you are still new to stuff like this!"
Darli's eyes turned around to see Haohmaru, Nakoruru, Galford and Rimururu (along with the latter three's pets, consisting of Mamahaha, Poppy and depending on how you see them, Konru).
"Ah, perfect timing! I am no stranger to going to new places, but even I have to admit that this is a bit much." Darli grinned.
"Eh, you get used to it." Haohmaru offered, giving a thumbs-up.
"Yeah, overtime it stops being scary and starts being fun!" Rimururu beamed.
Darli grinned at this. "Now that's what I like to hear!"
"Regardless, there ARE a few pointers that we can share with you." Nakoruru offered.
"Indeed. Heaven knows that I could learn them when I went to the very first Ultimate Video Rumble." Galford muttered.
"Yeah, what a mess…" Haohmaru said, rolling his eyes.
Unknown to everyone, someone was up in a tree, eyeing them. This was Hanzo Hattori. The resident ninja of Samurai Shodown. Or in the case of the others, the resident 'traditional' ninja.
Although the Samurai Shodown node was no stranger to the UVR tournaments, this marks their first time that a Samurai Shodown character entered the Battle of the Luminaries. Except for Hanzo who was the sole representative as he appeared in the Maximum Impact series. However, he has failed both times, even becoming the first elimination. He felt like he let his node down and gave a bad name to the node for those who only watched the Battle of the Luminaries. Thankfully, he could count on the others to redeem themselves.
CLUMP.
Hanzo raised an eyebrow before looking down at the group to see… Darli picking up a box and Haohmaru looking quite sweaty.
"Huh. Is this coffee?" Darli asked, raising an eyebrow. "Huh. I heard of this stuff. Pretty strong stuff. Too much of this and you could go crazy. Don't tell me you are going soft on me, my drinking bu…"
That was when everyone, including the pets, surrounded Haohmaru and Darli, startling the latter. However, everyone was glaring at Haohmaru, not her. Before she had a chance to ask what was wrong, Haohmaru swiped the box of coffee out of her hands and attempted to run off.
"Aw, come on, Haohmaru!" Galford said before giving chase.
"No! Aw, come on, YOU guys!" Haohmaru retorted, immaturely. "I need it!"
"There is no need for that stuff!" Nakoruru scolded. "You could represent being the very first Ultimate Video Rumble winner WITHOUT acting like a lunatic!"
"Bruh! I got so popular BECAUSE I was acting like a lunatic!" Haohmaru countered. "Besides, the aftermath wasn't that bad!"
"Sis had to give you decaf for THREE days straight before you finally calmed down!" Rimururu yelled.
Darli blinked twice before shrugging. "Eh, don't know what is going on, but I am no wallflower. Hey, Haohmaru, get your ass over here before I kick it to Fictograph City myself."
Hanzo blinked twice as he watched everyone try to chase Haohmaru down. He then slapped his hand into his face. Maybe he should focus on acting like he was the sole representative of Samurai Shodown.
(Far, Far Away; Castle)
"And Farkle likes bugs, but he is still struggling to eat the crunchy ones so if you find any, please try to break them apart before giving them to him." Fiona instructed while holding Farkle.
"I will inform our chefs about this." Queen Lillian, or rather FORMER Queen Lillian reassured with a chuckle while folding Felicia.
"Also, Felicia thinks black hair is licorice." Fiona said before rolling her eyes. "Don't ask. Point is, warn any and all dark-haired people."
"Goodness, good thing I am a blonde going grey." Lillian smiled.
"Again, I couldn't thank you enough for looking after the triplets." Fiona smiled.
"It is MY pleasure! After all, all of the other possible babysitters are entering the tournament as well!" Lillian offered. "And what kind of grandmother I would be if I didn't look after my own grandchildren!"
Fiona smiled and nodded.
"Lady Fiona?"
The green-clad ogre and Lillian turned to see a couple of knights allowing a butch woman in a purple dress enter the castle.
"Doris!" Fiona squealed.
"Hey, girl!" The stepsister grinned. "Are you ready to teach me!?"
"Oh, yes, I wouldn't miss this for the world!" Fiona smiled. She then paused before looking at Lillian. "But…"
"Oh, is there anything you forget?" The older woman asked.
"N-No." Fiona said.
Lillian then gently took Farkle from Fiona's grasp. "Then, go. I will take care of everything!"
Fiona gave a small smile. "Thanks, Mom."
With that, she ran off towards Doris and the two linked hands together happily
"I couldn't thank you enough for doing this!" Doris grinned. "I am the only one who didn't appear in the console version of SuperSlam!"
"Well, no friend of MINE is going to get left behind!" Fiona reassured. "Come on!"
With that, they ran off while holding hands. While they were doing this, Shrek, Donkey, Puss in Boots and King Artie (while holding Fergus) watched the whole thing with smiles.
"She has been grinning from ear to ear ever since she got her invitation." Shrek noted.
Artie looked up at Shrek with a smirk. "Oh, and YOU didn't?"
"Yeah, but at least I didn't get my chance ruined by a bunch of crystals and vines." The ogre countered.
Artie's smirk vanished. "Wait, what?"
Shrek looked down at Artie. "Oh, wait, we never told you?"
"Fiona was one of the Mystery Fighters from the second Battle of the Luminaries!" Puss added.
"What? If THAT'S the case…" Artie said before frowning. "Oh. Ohhhhh."
"Yeah, Fiona was so disappointed." Shrek said, solemnly. "That is why she is so excited to get a second chance."
"And she gets to bring all of us!" Donkey grinned. "I am SO pumped to come back! I had SO much fun at the Tournament of Kikai!"
"...I still can't believe that there is another version of you, albeit as a tiny, Eastern dragon." Puss muttered.
Donkey glared at Puss. "Oh, you're just jealous because you don't haven't found your own version!"
"Oi!" Puss snapped.
With that, Donkey and Puss started to argue with each other. Shrek groaned while Fergus actually laughed at this. Artie just blinked twice.
"...Well, worst case scenario, you have the element of surprise on your side." Artie said.
(Fictograph City; Crossover Dome)
"Are you SURE you want THESE many nodes?" Ashley asked.
"Well, I thought that I would stop at around sixteen, but kept adding nodes." Drake admitted, scratching the back of his head.
"Oy vey." Ashley said, rolling his eyes.
"Hey, aside from the usual suspects, there are some nodes that I can NOT ignore!" Drake snapped. "Guilty Gear, Virtua Fighter, Killer Instinct. Even Rival Schools is more or less somewhat relevant again thanks to Akira's appearance in Street Fighter V!"
Ashley sighed. "Alright. Alright. Regardless, the number of fighters is 588, excluding Mystery Fighters. We are literally having over SIX HUNDRED fighters to work with!"
"I know, I know, I am being more than a little ambitious, but I promise. I will put a lot of work into this." Drake insisted.
"Oh, I know that you will." Ashley reassured. "I am just worried that you will try to work TOO hard."
"Yeah, that is why I am happy that you are with me." Drake offered.
Ashley paused before smiling and nodding.
"Well, shall we continue?" He asked.
Drake grinned and nodded.