(The Arena)
Everyone looked down in confusion at who suddenly called out when the Millennium Star asked the latest Superstars what their stage choice was. Said fighter realised that all eyes were on her.
"O-Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt!" Yukiko frowned. "It is just that I thought everyone knows what the next stage will be!"
"Um, I don't. And my show made a lot of references to Scooby Doo over the years." Homer pointed out.
"Well, first off, I think it is obvious that with no disrespect to Velma Dinkley, that it is a shock that SHE appeared in Multiversus before Scooby." Yukiko reminded.
"Oh yeah. No matter how you look at it, that always made me raise an eyebrow." Yoko admitted.
"So I have no doubt Scooby will be jealous of her and Shaggy and want in on the fun. But with it currently being down at the moment, even if he is planned for it, it is going to be a long way away." Yukiko continued. "So naturally, with him being the next Superstar, he will do the next best thing."
Adeleine's eyes widened in realisation. "The Scooby Doo stage from Multiversus!"
"That's right. That is why I thought that there is no way that Scooby would let this chance pass him by!" Yukiko pointed out. "I am not as negative as other people when it comes to Multiversus, but even I could see that it would take a long while before it comes back, let alone have Scooby in it."
Homer, Colette and Kirby all nodded at Yukiko's explanation. The other fighters on the other hand looked unsure before frowning. Scooby, however, rubbed his chin in thought.
"Um, Yukiko, on paper, your explanation makes sense but…" Clairen frowned.
"I'll do it."
Everyone turned towards Scooby.
"I will make the next stage our own from Multiversus." Scooby said with a serious look on his face.
The fighters' eyes bugged out as the crowd cheered.
"Very well." The Millennium Star nodded. "Tumble, if you may."
"Aight!" The die beamed before pushing buttons on his phone.
"Wow, Scooby, I know that there are some versions where you are deceptively brave, but I never thought that you would choose a stage set in a haunted house WILLINGLY." Snoopy admitted.
The Great Dane's serious face faltered before looking down at Snoopy with a look of horror on his face.
"Y-You do remember that the stage for Shaggy and Velma in Multiversus is a haunted house, right?" Snoopy frowned.
Scooby didn't say anything to Snoopy. He merely turned towards the Millennium Star who looked like he got everything he needed from Tumble.
"NO, WAIT!" Scooby pleaded, holding out his hand.
However, it was too late. The Millennium Star then started to spin around the arena while emitting a bright light. When the light cleared, the arena changed. This time, the arena turned into a wooden (which made creaky noises in it). It now had a higher floor that people could get to with two curved staircases. It even had a couple of suits of knight's armour and had a suspicious wall-candlelight at each of the corner posts. Overall, it gave an eerie feel. Scooby blinked twice.
"Well, there you go! How do you like it?" The Millennium Star asked.
Scooby paused. "...It back."
The Millennium Star raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"
Suddenly, Scooby pounced onto the Millennium Star and started to shake him violently.
"CHANGE IT BACK!" Scooby shouted.
Drake narrowed his eyes. "No take-backs!"
"But… But…" Scooby sputtered.
"I am actually with Drake on this one. I mean, come on, like it or not, whenever they think of Scooby Doo, they think of going into scary places." Ashley added, shaking his head. "What do you think was going to happen?"
"Sucks to be suck, huh?" Nine smirked.
Scooby whimpered as the Millennium Star used his powers telekinetically to pull the former off of him before putting on his star platform before descending down. The moment Scooby got off, he immediately crumpled on the ground. Snoopy immediately ran over to his side.
"Aww, he is so happy that he is crying tears of joy" Colette smiled.
"...I want to feel sorry for him, but I just can't." Charizard muttered, shaking his head.
"As you shouldn't be." Garfield said, rolling his eyes.
Most of the fighters just let out exasperated groans at this. Galford then absent-mindedly looked up at the Ready Room. Suddenly, his eyes widened.
"Um, who is that on the Entrance ramp?"
Everyone looked up as well and once they did, their eyes widened. There was someone on the ramp. However, they looked like they were dressed for bed. They wore a shower cap, a long bedrobe and a green facial mask. They looked like they just woke up. Suddenly, music started to play through the speakers, making everyone's eyes bugged out.
Guy slapped his forehead. "Oh, right. I nearly forgot about HIM too…"
The Millennium Star groaned before floating down to the person's level and summoned a mirror and put it in front of the person. They then turned towards the mirror before gasping in horror.
(Girl, we got work to do)
Everyone immediately groaned as the person started singing.
(Pass me the paint and glue)
(Perfect isn't easy…)
(But…)
(It's…)
The person that took off their shower cap, bathrobe and facial mask to reveal who it truly was.
(ME!)
"Ugh… VEGA!" (SFAS)
(When one knows the world is watching)
(One does what one must)
(Some minor adjustments, darling)
(Not for my vanity, but for humanity!)
Nine blinked twice. "I… I got nothing. What you see is all you need to roast him."
The narcissistic Spaniard started to sing into a microphone with his claw hand while holding his iconic mask with the other hand while singing "Perfect Isn't Easy" from Oliver and Company, walking as if he was on a runway. Though due to him still being drunk, it wasn't as graceful as he thought.
(Each little step a pose)
(See how the breeding shows)
Vega then did a dramatic pose. Chun-Li and Guile blinked twice before looking at each other in the Elimination Seating.
"So what's the difference between normal Vega and drunk Vega?" Chun-Li asked.
"I don't have the foggiest idea." Guile shrugged.
(Sometimes it's too much for even me)
(But when all of the world says "Yes")
(Then, who am I to say "No"?)
(Don't ask a mutt to strut like a show girl)
(No, girl, you need a pro)
With that, he stepped into the ring while striking a dramatic pose. By this time, everyone was just mentally tired of these… Performances. Galford and Poppy promptly made their way over.
"Okay, I know that narcissism is kinda your thing, but WOW." Galford muttered.
"What? It is not fair that people who are not me, like Bison and Oume, get a flashy entrance!" Vega scolded. "The only one who should get that is ME!"
Galford paused. "...You know, this would be a part where I will make a speech about how you are evil and justice will win, but right now I am going to get you out of the ring before you drain everyone's intelligence."
Vega merely scoffed. "Justice? Evil? There is no purpose for us concepts. I am justice. Thus everyone else is evil."
Galford's eyebrow twitch before getting into a stance. "You die now."
Guy just watched while groaning. "...If I had a nickel for every time Vega entered an UVR tournament, not as himself, I would have two nickels. Which isn't a lot but it is still exasperating that it still happened."
"DONKEY!" (SSS)
"Ugh… Another one of the many 'comic relief' characters that never know when you shut the fuck up." Nine muttered. "Fortunately, people are talking more about Puss in Boots than him and even Shrek nowadays. No, really, I haven't seen so many people talk about a 'Shrek film since… Ever."
(My girl wants to party all the time)
(Party all the time)
(Party all the time)
(My girl wants to party all the time)
(Party all the time)
(Party all the time)
The aptly-named grey-furred quadruped came out to a loud cheer (and Party All the Time from Eddie Murphy). Despite Nine's roast, he just grinned before looking around the crowd and standing on his hind legs while kicking his front legs.
"Thank you, thank you, you are all pretty!" Donkey smiled. "I hope that I will return the love just like I did in the Tournament of Kikai!"
After nodding his head, he trotted down the ramp with his morale high from the full support from the crowd. Once in, he decided to make his way around the arena.
"Hmm… As much as I hate to admit it, if it wasn't for me double-teaming with Mushu, I probably wouldn't have done so well." Donkey mused. "Maybe I should do the same and give myself an ally."
"Ahem."
Donkey raised an eyebrow before turning his head to see Charizard standing a good distance away while proudly putting his hands on his hips. Donkey blinked twice at this.
Then, he looked bored. "Um, you are NOT a dragon."
Charizard's smirk vanished.
"Sure, you have several dragon traits like the wings and the breathing fire. But so do most Pokemon that aren't even reptilian." Donkey scolded. "Your typing demonstrates this because you just gained the Flying type, showing that all you gained is wings."
Charizard's eyebrow twitched.
"My wife, my kids and Mushu are more of a dragon than you and all of my kids are only half-dragon!" Donkey reminded. "And while I don't deny that your fire breath is more powerful than Mushu, again, even a non-Fire type could use Flamethrower. People have to realise that there is a big difference between winged lizards and drag…"
Suddenly, a stream of fire flew over his head, merely singing the top of his head fur. Donkey paused before looking up at the tiny flame on his head before looking at Charizard who was now completely pissed.
"...Should I start running now?" Donkey asked.
Charizard nodded.
"Alright, then." Donkey said calmly before running off with Charizard giving chase.
"OTANE GOKETSUJI!" (PI)
"Oh god, didn't we already have her enter the arena earlier? Ignoring the fact was that there is little to tell her and Oume, do we REALLY need a FOURTH Pete performance? When are we already one JUST NOW?" Nine asked in disbelief.
The younger Goketsuji twin acted like she didn't hear Nine's roast. Then again, she was too preoccupied with her thoughts to try. Then, Lady Gaga's Paparazzi played through the speakers. Everyone groaned, expecting Otane to sing.
…But the song just played. Otane didn't put on any outlandish outfits, did any eccentric movements or even got out a microphone. She merely made her way down the ramp as the instrumental version played through the speakers. This confused everyone, not that they were complaining but still.
Once she stepped in, Guy made his way over to her with a raised eyebrow. "You were going to sing Paparazzi."
"Yes, I wanted to show Bison and Oume about my determination to win the former's heart." Otane explained before sighing. "But you know why I didn't go through with it. And I went all out with that performance."
Guy winced before shifting his eyes to the side. "I could imagine."
"Oh, before I go." Otane said.
With that, she got out something before throwing it at Guy. While taken off-guard, the red-clad ninja easily caught it with one hand before examining. Once he did, he raised his eyebrow before looking back at Otane.
"A Star Piece." Guy noted.
"Yes, I obviously have no need for the power of the Millennium Star's stardust." Otane admitted. "You, on the other hand, well, I don't know if it will be useful but at least it is in the hands of someone who could use it better."
Guy paused before examining the Star Piece. "...Very well. Do I have to do anything?"
"Not much, really. It collects the stardust based on hype. And considering that you have gotten third place for the race of the latest Superstar, all you have to do is continue doing what you do best." Otane offered.
"Continuing doing what I do best…" Guy mused.
"LINK!" (SSB)
"Despite being the main character of every mainline Zelda game, the games are called just that. ZELDA." Nine pointed out. "Seriously, other than that crossover with Crypt of the Necrokeeper game and that game from the CD-I, I repeat from the FUCKING CD-i game, Zelda was never the main protagonist."
The blonde swordsman came out to an enormous cheer, especially the fangirls. In his Champion's tunic, showing that he was the one from Breath of the Wild, he nervously scratched the back of his head with one hand while sheepishly waving to the crowd with the other hand. He then gave his way down the ramp.
(Down with Zelda from the very start)
Link stopped walking with a blank face.
(I got the heart and smarts to play the part)
(Down with Zelda)
(Peepin through with an overhead view)
(Cause a mans gotta do what a mans gotta do)
By this time, a lot of people were either laughing or groaning at a rap from one of the many early Legend of Zelda songs. Link looked around with a confused look on his face. He then looked up at the Sound Booth where Shadow, Astaroth and Aila were laughing at him. He blinked twice before he continued to make his way down the ramp with a stunned look on his face.
"...One of the earlier games had a rap song in it?" Link asked, genuinely confused. "Who rapped? Tingle?"
"TEAR GRANTS!" (ToAS)
"Oh boy, do I have a lot to complain about Tales of the Abyss. ESPECIALLY the main party. Seriously, they are some of the most uncooperative assholes I've ever met!" Nine scoffed. "And don't even get me started on Tear! Sure, we had a LOT of Lawful Stupid people in the past and hoo boy!"
The brunette white mage ignored Nine's roast as she scanned the arena. In fact, her main focus was solely the arena. With a cool look, she made her way down the ramp while carrying her staff. She then stepped in the arena. Once in, Colette flew over to her.
"Oh, Tear! Wanna double-team?" Colette smiled.
The brunette frowned. "Oh, I am sorry, Colette, but can you wait until the other nodal companion in the Ready Room for this section comes out."
"Oh, why? You already had someone in mind to fight?" The angel asked.
"Indeed. Besides, said nodal companion could use more of your… Skills than I would." Tear offered.
Colette was confused by this. She then shrugged, not pushing it forward and let Tear go. The latter nodded before turning towards her target before narrowing her uncovered eye and walking over.
"Excuse me?" Tear asked.
Yukiko looked up, confused.
"While it is true that it was Scooby's foolishness that is the reason we are fighting in a haunted mansion stage, he wouldn't even think about it if you didn't suggest it." Tear scolded.
"What? You don't think Scooby will want to be in Multiversus?" Yukiko asked.
"No, I am not saying that but…" Tear started.
"Besides, it reminds me of a lot of good ghost stories!" Yukiko offered.
Tear's uncovered eye widened at this.
"Like in a mansion, just like this one, there is this aristocratic couple. However, the woman killed the man for money and now…" Yukiko started.
By this time, Tear's face was caked with sweat and fear.
"S-Shut up!" Tear roared before bouncing forward.
(Elimination Seating)
Solid Snake blinked twice. "Umm… What was THAT all about?"
"Tear doesn't like ghost stories." Jade Curtiss smirked.
"Ohhh…"
(The Arena)
"RYO SAKAZAKI!" (KoFAS)
"Aka the discount Ken Masters. Seriously, outside of Yuri, King and Kasumi, does ANYONE give a crap about Art of Fighting?" Nine asked. "No matter how you compare it to Fatal Fury, it always pales in comparison in all aspects. Why do you think they are more Fatal Fury characters than Art of Fighting in KoF? Hell, Capcom created Dan Hibiki to SPITE SNK for creating Ryo."
The orange-clad blond man winced at Nine's words before glaring up at the Announcer's Booth. Despite this, he still had a relatively positive attitude. Using his hands to slap his face to get himself focused, he made his way down the ramp. Once in, he made his way over to Guy.
"Um, Guy?" Ryo asked, getting the ninja's attention.
"Oh, greetings, Ryo." Guy nodded. "Long time no see."
"Indeed. I am so relieved to meet you in a normal stage." The Kyokugen fight sighed, shaking his head.
Guy blinked twice. "...THIS is a normal stage?"
"Maybe not normal normal, but still, it feels like a place that I would fight in." Ryo said. "Seriously, some of the Superstars have been spoiled by this stage change gimmick and using various things like powers-up and enemies to win their fights instead of their own abilities or strength."
Guy paused. "...I get what you are saying, but isn't using the surroundings to your benefit also a common thing to do in a fight?"
"I mean, true, but a cake full of Kirby Copy abilities? An ice circus?" Ryo reminded. "You can't tell me that half of the eliminations in those respective sections were gained by luck."
"True…" Guy noted.
"But enough wallowing." Ryo said before getting into a stance. "My Kyokugen versus your Bushinryu. Let's see who wins."
Guy nodded his head. "Very well. Let's begin."
(Dome; Bar)
"And THAT was the straw that broke the backs of me, Sho and Terumi and we decided to ragequit." Infinite said, rolling his unmasked eye.
King, Jan, Sally & Elizabeth and all of the other patrons looked in awe at what they had heard.
"Um, wow, that is just…" Jan said in awe.
"I know, right!?" Infinite groaned. "I knew that my power was wasted on the villain plot and I only went out of curiosity, but to think that we will end with someone copying Junko's methods!"
"Forgive me if we don't feel sorry for you…" Sally muttered.
Infinite glared at Sally. "Excuse me?"
"You heard her! In fact, you should be grateful that this isn't the Illusion or I will automatically kick you out of here! Literally!" King spat. "Do you realise how much pain you idiots put Kasumi and the other champions through!?"
"Normally, I would revel in that information, but tonight, you couldn't pay me enough to care." Infinite muttered.
"Didn't you just say that the Despair Extractor created clones of the villains?" Elizabeth asked. "It is too late to just walk out and act like nothing happened."
"Um, actually, no it isn't. Because I NEVER got a despair clone of me." Infinite reminded. "Mainly because I am way too powerful for the Despair Extractor to use."
"Who knew that having your head up your ass could be seen as a mental shield?" King muttered.
"It is a pity that things worked out the way that I did because I must admit, even I am a little jealous of Oume's plan."
Everyone turned to see six demon-like figures. While all of them had black in their appearance, they also had a bright colour each.
"A machine that extracts the negative energy of people in near-despair?" Zavok asked. "Not even Eggman could hope to create such an invention."
"Of course you would say that." King muttered, rolling her eyes.
"Hmm… I wonder how the despair clones will work." Zik mused. "Are they as strong as the original or their power level is based on how close to despair they are?"
"If so then I wonder what will happen if I get my negative energy extracted." Zomom said before frowning. "Maybe I will actually be a threat for once."
"Getting beat down by the embodiment of my despair. That is actually kinda poetic." Zor said with a creepy smile.
"No!" Zavok piped up. "No! You two are part of the Deadly Six! You are not allowed to let your negative energy be extracted!"
Zomom winced while Zor rolled their eyes. Despite their different reactions, they spoke in unison. "Yes, sir…?"
"Purposefully I don't mind having my negative energy extracted and turned into a clone." Zeena said while filing her nails. "Then, said clone would do most of the work for me."
"And if it IS as strong as me, it will be one hell of a punching bag!" Zazz grinned.
Zavok frowned. "I mean, yes, there are benefits to having your own clone but..."
"Can the despair clones talk? Would they give me advice to improve the depressing nature of my poetry?" Zor asked.
"Do I have to share my food?" Zomom asked.
"Everyone, ENOUGH!" Zavok scolded. "Again, we are the Deadly Six! We do not fall into despair! We make OTHER people fall into despair! Even if our despair clones will do everything we say, we are basically holding up a sign that says 'We are mentally weak'."
"But we ARE mentally weak." Zor said, matter-of-factly.
Zavok slapped his forehead. "You are missing the point!"
"What's the big deal? If we fall into despair, we'll have no hope! And no hope, no restrain! We can go all out!" Zazz grinned.
"I am already in despair. Could it be that there is a level of despair that not even I know of." Zor said in awe.
Zavok's eyebrow twitched. "...You guys."
"Ew, no. I hate effort. I'd rather keep my hope and not end up breaking my nails on purpose." Zeena said in disgust.
"But I don't WANT to be in despair! If I do, yes, I won't be able to eat!" Zomom whined.
Zavok's eyes lit up. "Yes, YES, Zeena and Zomom said it best! If we fall into despair, we won't be able to do the things that we wish to do! No taking breaks! No food! No poetry! No rocking!"
Zazz and Zor actually winced at this before looking at each other.
"No poetry…? That is a level of sadness that not even I would want to endure." Zor said.
"Yeah, I need my music, man!" Zazz said.
"Good! Then, no more talking about having our own despair clones! It would just cause more harm than good!" Zavok snapped, acting like a scolding teacher. "WE cause despair! Not the other way around! Got it?"
Zazz, Zor, Zeena and Zomom all sighed. "Yes, Zavok…"
"Good. As long as you realise that." The leader of the Deadly Six nodded before turning his attention to his drink.
Needless to say, everyone else looked at the entire scene with wide eyes and slack jaws. Zik, who was the only one joining in the madness, merely took a drink from his glass as if he was drinking a cup of tea before putting it down with a deep sigh.
"I should be the one to not only apologise for the chaotic scene you had witnessed just now and even warn for the future scenes." Zik said, matter-of-factly.
Infinite blinked twice. "...These are the people that made it into Team Sonic Racing and the IDW comics before ME?"
Unknown to everyone, a potential patron was about to enter the bar but upon overhearing the conversation the Deadly Six had, he immediately stopped himself.
"...So much for wanting to get a drink in the bar." Gemel muttered. He then paused before walking off. "Wait, why am I even going to get a drink in the first place? I am a ROBOT!"
(Hotel; Oume's Room)
Oume exited her bathroom while wearing a bathrobe. She just took a shower but no matter how good it was, it still didn't make her feel better. Letting out a deep sigh, she sat on her bed before looking at the arena.
Imagine her surprise was that the first thing she saw was her sister on the screen. At first, she was shocked but then she snarled before grabbing the remote and turning off the television. She then got her phone and turned it on. However, when she did, she saw that she had gotten a message from Cortex.
"Hey, Oume, I know you are really mad at us but we really need you to come back. Someone stole our Despair Extractor and despair clones."
Oume just growled before posting her response.
"So? What does a little puppet for you guys do, anyway? You are the master puppeteers. YOU figure it out!"
With that, she sent the message before blocking Cortex. She then proceeded to block every person on her team that she made contact with. Once she was done, she plopped herself on her back and stared at the ceiling.
"How did this happen? How did I go from competing for the Big Bad to being cucked by… Everyone?" Oume asked in disbelief. "The only one who DIDN'T do so is Otane but I know that all of the time so who gives a crap about her, anyway…?"
(The Arena)
"SORA!" (SSB)
"Also known as the gateway between Disney and Final Fantasy. …Except nowadays, you don't see that many Disney characters take centre stage outside of Mickey, Donald and Goofy. And don't even get me started on how underrepresented Final Fantasy has become over the years! Hell, Sora doesn't even wear those goofy Mickey Mouse shoes in the trailer for Kingdom Hearts 4! Have Square forgotten that this was supposed to be a Disney/Final Fantasy crossover!?"
(Let me face, let me face, let me face my fears)
(Oh, let me face, let me face, let me face my fears)
(Won't be long, won't be long, I'm almost here)
(Watch me cry all my tears)
The brown-haired young man came out to another enormous cheer. He grinned while excitedly waving to the crowd, looking just as ecstatic as him as Face My Fear played through the speakers. In a flash of light, he summoned his Keyblade and leapt up into the air before gliding while yellow dust from his body.
(Ice Ice Mickey!)
(Now sing it!)
Sora's eyes bugged out when his song was changed for something else.
(Ice Ice Mickey!)
(Get down!)
(Ice Ice Mickey!)
(Now get back up!)
(Ice Ice Mickey!)
Sora turned his head to see Shadow, Astaroth and Aila once again laughing at him. He continued to look in awe as the crowd gave a huge mixed reaction to this.
"Hey, Sora, look out!"
The Keyblade wielder turned his head, only to find out at the last moment that when he turned his head, he inadvertently glided towards the ground. He promptly crashed to the ground and sprawled towards the ground. Link's eyes widened before running over to Sora and crouching down.
"Are you alright, Sora?" Link asked, helping his fellow swordsman up.
"Y-Yeah, I am just taken off-guard by the song change." The brown-haired young man admitted.
"Yeah, they did it to me too. I didn't know that Mickey rapped." Link admitted.
"Though the older Legend of Zelda games had a rap song." Sora added.
"But Sora, didn't the first Kingdom Hearts come out much earlier than Breath of the Wild?" Link asked.
"Maybe in comparison. But it came out in 2002." Sora shrugged. "I may have spent enough time with Mickey, Donald and Goofy but they didn't tell me everything."
"Well, at least you could ask them when you next meet them." Link smiled.
Sora returned the smile. "Yeah, I am sure that they will love to tell me!"
(House of Mouse)
Needless to say, all of the Disney characters in their seats winced before looking at each other. Backstage, Mickey Mouse was slamming his head against the wall while Minnie and Pluto looked at him in concern.
"Why. Did. They. Have. To. Let. Sora. Know. About. Mickey. Un. Wrapped?" Mickey asked between head-slams.
(The Arena)
"YASHIRO NANAKASE!" (KoFAS)
"Okay, I get Team Orochi are a fan-favourite team, but in my opinion, they aren't THAT hot. Especially Yashiro. Compared to Chris and especially Shermie, he looks like the most uninteresting person in the group." Nine pointed out. "Hell, even his Orochi form is boring. All he does is slam people around. Why do we need someone like that when we got Goro Daimon!"
The white-haired young man (and one of the Four Heavenly Kings) growled as he glared at the Announcer's Booth for this. Slapping his cheeks to try to psyche himself up, he got up to the spirit before crouching down and doing an one-hand handstand pushup playing to the mixed reaction. After three pushups, he flipped back into a standing position while playing his way down the ramp while playing to the crowd.
Once in, he jogged over to Homer with an excited grin on his face.
"Hey, tons-of-fun! You and me! Right here! Right now!" Yashiro smirked.
Homer blinked twice before groaning. "ANOTHER King of Fighters fighter. I already established a long time ago that I didn't need to copy Iori's moveset to fight!"
"Yeah, about Iori. You see, he and I have been rivals ever since his band took OUR spot in at a gig." Yashiro explained while growling.
"Wait… Iori is in a band. You mean there are people OUTSIDE of KoF that are willing to work with him!?" Homer asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, I don't get it either." Yashiro shrugged. "Point is, he and I are rivals and seeing that you eliminated him, if I eliminate YOU, that makes me better than him."
Homer paused in disbelief. "Um, I know that logic is not my strong suit but I don't think that makes any sense."
"You mean you wouldn't try to beat someone who beat Flanders just to show everyone that you are better than him?" Yashiro asked.
Homer opened his mouth to answer. Only to realise that he didn't have an answer. He then groaned before slumping his arms.
"Alright… Let's get this over with." Homer said in defeat.
"And now, Mystery Fighter… Number… THIRTY-TWO!"
"DECKER!" (Go! Go! Hypergrind)
Everyone looked on in confusion as the vertically-challenged dark-red skateboarder wolf stood outside of the Ready Ramp. Despite the lack of reception, he smirked before getting out an electric guitar.
"Let's jam this place!" Decker shouted.
(Go!)
(Get your shoes you're going out)
(I've no time to lose)
(It's your chance to be)
The Sound Booth then started to play a song alongside Decker's guitar playing which was the theme song for his game.
(Shout it out)
(We all make mistakes)
(No doubt about it)
(That's the way it goes)
Once he was done, he put away his guitar and got out a skateboard. He then ran to the side of the ramp and started to grind on it with his board. However, instead of riding on top of it, Decker was biting on the skateboard as he grinded down the ramp. The crowd cheered at this. Garfield saw this and looked disgusted.
"Oh heck no! Not only do we already have enough dogs in this arena but enough 'EXTREME' nineties references in this section already!" Garfield growled. "I am nipping this in the bud!"
With that, he ran towards Decker just as the wolf was doing an ollie into the ring. Before Decker could react, Garfield then slammed his chicken leg on top of his head.
Imagine Garfield's surprise when he saw that his attack turned Decker into a living accordion. The wolf groaned before glaring at Garfield.
"Oi, what's the matter you!?" Decker roared. "I know that this is a free-for-all tournament but I wasn't even ready!"
While still as an accordion, Decker gave Garfield an uppercut, knocking him away. He then put his thumb in his mouth and blew it like a balloon, turning his back to normal.
"Alright, kitty, allow me to remind you of certain cartoon animal stereotypes!" Decker said, cracking his knuckles. "Dogs fear cats!"
Garfield sat up, looking exasperated. "It is one of those sections…"
"EIZEN!" (ToAS)
"Um, according to the notes that Drake and Ashley wrote for Eizen, they invited him because they already invited his sister, Edna AND they were a dual boss in Arise." Nine said, reading the notes. "Um, that is cute, I guess. But you DO know that you would be inviting his Reaper's Curse as well, right?"
"That is what I said." The blond Malak pirate muttered, rolling his eyes. Despite this, he cracked his knuckles before eyeing the arena. He then looked up at the Elimination Seating.
"Edna is not in the Elimination Seating." Eizen frowned. "She is a grown girl so she should take care of herself but still."
He then made his way down the ramp, focusing on the arena. Once in, Colette flew over to him.
"Oh hey, Eizen, wanna double-team?" Colette smiled.
The pirate raised an eyebrow. "You sure you want to risk that? You DO know that I have the Reaper's Curse, right?"
"Oh, don't worry, everyone told me that I should be the one exception immune to it!" Colette beamed.
"Trust me, I am pretty sure that being an angel does not make an…" Eizen started.
Suddenly, he saw Vega swerved his body in a drunken fashion to avoid a pair of Galford's electric kunai and they were heading towards Colette from behind.
"Colette, look…" Eizen started.
Suddenly, the angel slipped and fell onto her rear. Just in time to duck underneath the kunai.
"Oof, I could see what you mean, Eizen. I just tripped right out of the blue." Colette said.
The Malak blinked twice.
"Regardless, I trip all of the time so doing so more often shouldn't be THAT bad." Colette offered, getting up.
Eizen paused. "...Alright, I'll give it the benefit of the doubt."
"NAGORIYUKI!" (ToAS)
"And we have the final boss of the Arcade mode for Strive: Nagoriyuki. A large, imposing, no-nonsense vampire samurai!" Nine introduced. "Only he is actually nothing more than a glorified puppet for Happy Chaos and I-No, the ACTUAL Big Bad."
(Everything in this world)
(Leads to soul enlightenment)
(There is nothing wasted about our lives)
The bulky, dark-skinned samurai vampire came out to a loud cheer. However, he paid it no mind (not that anyone could tell because he was wearing his mask). He coolly made his way down the ramp while carrying his enormous odachi.
(The snow falling in spring)
(Moon hangs during the day)
(One with self and time)
Colette saw him coming in. "Ooh, Nine said that he is a vampire, right? Let's fight him first. He should be susceptible to my angel spells."
"Careful, Colette." Eizen said, narrowing his eyes. "Even if they do more damage, it will take much more than that to take him down."
Soon, Nagoriyuki stepped into the ring. Once in, he turned towards the two Tales blonds.
"Your nodal companion is correct. It is foolish to assume that mere holy attacks are enough to take me down." Nagoriyuki said.
Colette jumped. "You heard us."
"Indeed. I AM a vampire." Nagoriyuki said, pointing to his ear with his free hand. "I have enhanced hearing."
Eizen merely scoffed. "Even still, I have taken down tons of foes. Holy AND unholy."
"I should hope so. While I don't go out of my way to hunt innocent people, I still need blood to quench my thirst." Nagoriyuki said, pointing with his odachi. "If I overdo it, I apologise in advance but at the same time, it is YOUR arrogance that got you in this mess."
"Okay, got it. I will remember to send the same words back at ya." Eizen said, getting into a boxing stance.
(Unknown Location)
"And that is basically the gist of it."
"Ooh, boy did you hit the jackpot!"
"I know, right? It was as if their plan was tailor-made for US!"
With that, he turned to Cortex, setting up the Despair Extractor with the other despair clones standing still close by. The culprits looked on with smirks.
"Okay, so the ball is in our court? Now what?"
"What do you mean now what?"
"Well, think about it. Sure, it is a smart idea to steal the Despair Extractor and the clones, but how will we use them to get revenge on Drake?"
"I admit that is the only piece of the puzzle. Hey, Cortex, how strong is the radius of that?"
"Unfortunately, the range is quite limited. It could still extract from multiple people a single room but still, we won't be able to get our revenge on Drake this way." Cortex's clone explained.
"Damn it!
"We were so close…"
"We ARE so close! We got all of the tools! We just have to find a way to get to Drake!"
"But how? Nine is still in the Announcer's Booth so it is too risky to go near it!"
"And even then, I don't think carrying the Despair Extractor near it is a smart idea."
The culprits frowned before looking at each other. They were so close and no one wanted to give up after coming so far. But still…
"Oof, I don't know what the hell is going on but I DO know that you guys are pulling all of the stops!"
Everyone jumped before turning to the direction of the voice. Their pupils shrank when they saw it was FK.
They immediately recognised his burned skin, black and red-striped long-sleeved shirt, fedora and his sole claw.
"F-F-Freddy Krueger!"
Freddy smirked before doing a dramatic pose.
"That's my name, don't wear it out!"
Immediately, everyone got into fighting stances.
"Re-Lax! I know that this is a first for me but I am not here to kill!" Freddy laughed, putting his hands on his hips. "I was actually banned from doing so."
"Forgive us for trusting you."
Freddy let out a laugh. "Ha! Fair! I don't blame you! Look, here is the thing! I want to help you!"
"Excuse me?"
"Why would you, Freddy Krueger, one of the most infamous serial killers of all-time, wanna help US?"
"Well, it is actually quite simple. You are using despair to further your plans and I want in on it!" The nightmare weaver smirked, pointing with his clawed hand.
"H-Huh?"
"Tell me. What is the most popular song in Undertale?" Freddy asked.
Everyone paused before looking at each other in confusion.
"BESIDES Megalovania." Freddy muttered.
"Ohhhhhhhhhh…"
Freddy just rolled his eyes.
"Hopes and Dreams."
"Bingo! While they are different in certain ways, they are two sides of the same coins." Freddy pointed out. "And the same could be said for the opposite."
"Despair and Nightmares…"
"Exactly! Because of the despair emitting from that machine and those clones, I could sense it from all of the way in the Entity's Realm!" Freddy grinned.
"Wait? Really? From THAT far away!?"
"Of course! Like I said, despair and nightmares are two sides of the same coin! If I sensed an intense amount of despair, I HAVE to go there!" Freddy explained.
"If THAT is the case, where were you during the Tournament of Kikai?"
Freddy's grin vanished. "I do not sense artificial despair."
"A-Artificial despair."
"Don't get me wrong, I heart Junko Enoshima but MAN did her character turn a nosedive in the anime!" Freddy said, rolling his eyes. "Like instead of using her skills to send people into despair, she just takes the lazy way out and brainwashes them! Like I could see her side of the story and to be fair, her plans beyond that are good enough for me to forgive her but still."
Needless to say, everyone was looking in disgust.
"...Get out."
"Aw, come on! Do you know how hard it is to convince the Entity to leave the Realm?" Freddy whined.
"Not our problem."
"Now hold on."
Everyone turned towards their leader.
"...Sure, this guy is one of the most irredeemable people of all time but maybe we should go give her the benefit of the doubt." The leader offered.
"What!?"
"Have you lost your mind!?"
"Look, if what he says is true and despair and nightmares are two sides of the same coin, then maybe we could help us with the Despair Extractor!" The leader pleaded.
"Yeah, exactly!" Freddy grinned.
"But… But…"
"Look, we need all of the help we could get. And not even the villains will dare kill the hosts!" The leader pointed out.
"But… It's Freddy Krueger!"
"It is BECAUSE it is Freddy Krueger why I am willing to take the risk!" The leader scolded.
Everyone, even Freddy himself, looked stunned by this.
"H-Huh?"
"Look, I will explain later but first things first, we have to set-up some ground rules!" The leader said before glaring at Freddy. "I am willing to work with you but that doesn't mean I am willing to let you go do whatever you are!"
"Alright, alright, I promise to behave. At least with you guys." The serial killer sneered.
"Good. Now I have three rules for you to follow." The leader said, sternly. "First rule, our main goal is to cause despair to Drake. And only Drake. Sure, we are willing to let other people become collateral damage. But our own goal should always be him."
Freddy pouted a bit. "And I actually hope for more people but as long as you are still willing to not care if other people get hurt in the process."
The leader rolled their eyes. "Second rule: You will NOT go near the younger members in our groups. Not even the despair clones!"
Freddy's eyes bugged out before looking to the side with a snarl. "ONE mention, man! ONE mention and you pay for it for the rest of your life!"
"Did I sputter!?" The leader spat.
"Alright, alright, I won't!" Freddy groaned, rolling his eyes. "Sheesh!"
"Okay, third and final rule." The leader said. "Actually, it is more of a test to see if we could trust you with our goal."
Freddy raised an eyebrow. "Um, okay?"
"We are going to tell you EVERYTHING about us. Who we are, what node we are from and why we are doing this?" The leader asked. "Next, we will have to relay the information back to us to see how much you are paying attention.
Freddy blinked twice while slumping his arms. "...Huh?"
"I admit that it is a weird request. But I could assure you that it will all make sense in the end." The leader said.
Freddy scratched the back of his head (with his non-claw hand of course). "I mean, I guess I could do that. Truth be told, while I admit that I am not a people's person…"
"THAT'S an understatement."
"...I WAS curious who the hell you weirdos are." Freddy admitted.
"Very well. Let's begin the history lesson." The leader said. "First off, our node's name."
He then took a deep breath.
"Xuan Dou Zhi Wang."
(Neopia; Meridell Outskirts)
"I don't think we are in Hyrule anymore." Celica frowned.
"Really? Are you sure?" Azusa asked, raising an eyebrow. "We are still a grassy plain."
"I don't know." Leon mused, looking around. "I am a Nintendo character so I should know my Zelda locale and this feels off?"
"Oh. What do YOU think?" Azusa asked, looking at another person.
Linkle merely frowned.
"I don't know… Furthermore, I don't see ANYONE familiar. Ally OR enemy." Linkle confessed.
Leon let out a deep sigh. "Then, there is no way around it. We are not only in our next elimination node but we brought around someone new. Again."
"So NOW what?" Celica groaned.
"Well, there aren't that many people so we should have someone find them for us." Leon offered before getting out his Pokeball.
In a flash of light, Leon's Charizard went out before giving a loud roar.
"Charizard, go fly around and see if you could anyone that is from a different node from this one." Leon offered.
The Pokemon nodded his head before flapping his wings to fly up into the air.
"Of all of the dastardly deeds!"
Everyone jumped before looking in the direction of the shout to see someone stepping forward. He was a yellow dog-like anthro dressed like a Medieval knight complete with a sword and a shield.
Azusa smiled. "Aw, look at the cute puppy!"
"Don't try to feign innocence!" The dog roared. "I was going to give you the benefit of the doubt despite clearly not looking like anything native to Neopia but when I saw you do that heinous act!"
Celica blinked twice. "Um, what heinous act? We literally just got here!"
"Oh, so you aren't trapping people into tiny balls and using them as slaves?" The dog challenged, pointing with his sword.
Leon paused before slapping his forehead. "Ugh, THIS again?"
"You gotta admit, Leon, when you break down the core of Pokemon, it's… Not really accepting in other nodes." Linkle frowned.
"I'll still defeat and arrest you and then free that poor creature!" The dog roared. "You didn't even bother giving him some pants!"
Leon's Charizard blinked twice before looking down at himself. Leon just groaned while rubbing his temples.
"Ugh, I don't think we will be able to explain this peacefully. We have no choice but to fight." Leon sighed. "Charizard…"
"NO!" Celica shouted, making everyone jump. "The last time that we let you and your Pokemon fight, you made a complete mess of that poor gecko's home and he was most likely forced to clean it up himself!"
Leon sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "Yeah… I admit that we got a little overboard."
"In any case, let ME fight him." Linkle offered, stepping forward. "Even though this is not my node, I gave my word that I will protect you guys. Even if it is against misunderstood fellow heroes."
"You? A hero?" The dog asked before scoffing. "Heroes don't promote slavery!"
Linkle just frowned before getting out a crossbow with a hand each.
"This is a huge misunderstanding and I don't want to fight you but it is clear that you wish to inflict harm on this." Linkle said, getting into a stance. "So THIS is the trials of being a Hero of Time."
"Interesting fighting style you have there." The dog, or rather Lupe, called Tormund complimented. "But it won't be enough to stop ME!"
With that, the two people got into stances. Celica and Azusa watched in worry and cornern for both Linkle AND Tormund. Leon, on the other hand, blinked twice.
"...How does one dual-wield CROSSBOWS?" Leon asked, looking at Charizard.
The Ace Pokemon just shrugged.
(The Arena)
"IKE!" (SSB)
"Do my eyes deceive me? A Fire Emblem protagonist that ISN'T a basic royal twink? Sure, he was one in his debut game and had to grow into it. But still, he is a breath of fresh air, even though his 'swordsmanship' is just him flailing his sword around." Nine shrugged.
The bulky blue-haired mercenary tapped his large sword, Ragnell, against his shoulder with a stern look on his face. Ignoring the warm reception he was getting from the crowd, he made his way down the ramp before stepping in without a second thought.
Clairen raised an eyebrow before her visor before making her way. "You are a Fire Emblem protagonist, correct?"
"I mean my sub-node logo is a Falchion, just like other Fire Emblem fighters so yes." Ike said, bluntly.
"May I ask that I fight you? Seeing that I am based on Marth, I always wanted to fight a Fire Emblem protagonist!" Clairen smiled.
"Are you sure?" Ike asked, raising an eyebrow. "As Nine bluntly put it, I am not as refined as the rest of my nodal companions, let alone, Marth."
"Even still, you are a swordsman in a platform fighter. I don't get to test my swordplay against other people outside of mirror matches." Clairen explained.
Ike paused before shrugging. "Alright, I am done. Granted, I never asked for it but I AM curious to how a Sci-Fi Marth will fight."
"BLAIR DAME!" (FEXL)
"Well, Fighting Ex Layer wouldn't be a proper fighting game if they didn't have a character that makes people go 'Umm, she is sexy' and nothing else." Nine muttered. "I can't tell you a single thing about Blair besides being a rich Kick Chick. That is probably why she and Allen didn't show up in the Street Fighter EX sequels and had to sneak in Fighting Layer! …Wait a minute. Furthermore, despite calling the reboot FIGHTING Ex LAYER, not a single Fighting Layer character appeared in it!"
The Monacon blue-haired heiress came out to a loud cheer from the men. However, she merely gave a coy smirk and a wave to them before doing a series of flips and cartwheels down the ramp, showing her athleticism. Once at the bottom of the ramp, she did a triple backflip into the ring resulting in an enormous cheer.
Yoko raised an eyebrow before stepping over. "Someone loves to show off."
"Hey, when you are known for one thing, you might as well make the best of it!" Blair smirked with a shrug. "Speaking of which, I noticed that along with your yoyo, you did a lot of kicks and flips."
"But of course, I am a practitioner of Kishibojin-ryu Jyujutsu!" Yoko said, proudly.
"Can't say that I am familiar with that fighting style." Blair mused before getting into a stance. "But I strongly doubt that it would face MY kicks and flips."
Yoko smirked. "Ooh, that sounds like a challenge!"
Suddenly, the two heard gasping. Turning their heads, they saw someone lying face-first outside of the Ready Room, looking like they were unconscious. Suddenly, rainbow sparkles started to encircle, levitating their body into the air. The person then looked like he gained consciousness before looking determined.
"And now, Mystery Fighter… Number… THIRTY-THREE!"
"I am…"
"TUROK!" (Turok: Dinosaur Hunter)
"Tal'Set!" Drake piped up. "He is Tal'Set!"
Nine blinked twice. "They are MULTIPLE Turoks?"
"Apparently." Drake shrugged. "One is even a girl!"
The Native-American dinosaur hunter came out to a decent cheer. While not everyone in the crowd remembered, the people that do went wild. Despite the somewhat warm reception, Turok, or Tal'Set, didn't look happy.
"I sense something is amiss in the multiverse." Turok frowned while walking down the ramp. "Not even Junko's plan to put the entire multiverse into despair triggered something in me. What is going on in this tournament?"
Realising that this was the worst time and place to think about it, he shook his head before stepping in. Once in, he got out a metallic bow, deciding on his first target. He then fired an arrow at Charizard as he was still chasing Donkey. The Pokemon roared in pain before glaring at the guilty party. Donkey saw this and immediately ran to his side.
"Hey, thanks, man!" Donkey grinned.
"It is no problem. I AM listed as a dinosaur hunter and while dinosaurs and dragons are different AND this Pokemon is not a Dragon-type, he still qualifies." Turok nodded.
Charizard threw up his arms. "Thank you! I am so over those elite Dragon-types ass-holes sticking their nose at me! Like, what IS even a Dragon-type? Even to this day, there is no way I could accept an Alolan Exeggutor as one!"
Of course, this fell on deaf ears for Turok and Donkey.
"Anyway, I could take over from here so you could go and find a less dangerous opponent to fight." Turok offered.
"I appreciate the offer and I admit that he definitely had me on the ropes for a while but now that you are here, I feel more comfortable to fight him!" Donkey grinned.
Turok raised an eyebrow. "And what makes you so confident that you will be able to face a pseudo-dragon?"
Donkey blinked twice.
"...I had six kids with a 100-foot dragon." Donkey said, matter-of-factly.
Turok and Charizard paused with blank looks on their faces. They then looked at each other with Charizard shrugging. Turok finally looked back at Donkey.
"...Very well. You may stay." Turok said.
"DUSKMON!" (DRA)
"Man, I knew that Frontier from the black sheep of the early Digimon anime line-up but talk about getting the short end of the stick! First, we have Flamemon who only showed up in ONE episode and it wasn't even the Digital World. Next, we have Neemon." Nine said before gritting her teeth. "And if I am still here by the time he comes in, I WILL talk about Neemon. LATER. Lastly, while Duskmon may be the biggest threat by far, maybe I remind you that he is just a brainwashed and corrupted version of the actual Warrior of Darkness? He is just a glorified puppet!"
The dark-clad armoured Digimon came out to a mixed reaction. However, he paid no mind as he watched down the ramp with eyes all over his armour before stepping in.
Once in, he had his sights on Snoopy and Scooby with the former still trying to cheer the latter up.
"Death Gaze!" Duskmon shouted. Then, every eye on his armour fired a red laser each at the two dogs.
However, Sora ran between the dogs and the lasers.
"Reflect!" Sora shouted, summoning a beehive dome barrier around him. This sent the lasers right back at Duskmon, striking him multiple times. While he did step back, he quickly recovered.
"Someone's gutsy enough to interrupt me." Duskmon said.
"More gutsy than YOU attacking two Slice-of-life dogs with a cheap shot." Sora shot back, looking more serious.
Link then walked towards Sora's side, sharing the same expression. "Let's see how confident you are when you fight not one, but two people with holy weapons."
With that, Link and Sora readied their Master Sword and Keyblade respectively. Duskmon just crossed his arms.
"Ghost Move."
Suddenly, Duskmon disappeared in a flash of red light. Before Link and Sora could realise what happened, Duskmon reappeared behind them in the same red light with it striking Link and Sora in the back and knocking them down.
"Hmm…" Duskmon said, rubbing his armoured chin as Link and Sora slowly got up. "I am going to say that I am pretty confident."
"SHO MINAZUKI!" (P4A)
"Okay, it is like a second Halloween section, what with Nagoriyuki, Duskmon, arguably Yashiro and now, this kid. And while I saw a lot of blatant edgelord brats in my…" Nine shouted.
"SHUT THE FUCK UP, YOU BITCH! YOU ARE JUST A WATERED DOWN VERSION OF JUNKO!"
Everyone jumped as the red-haired twin swordsman glared up at the Announcer's Booth with a pissed off look on his face.
"THE ONLY REASON WHY YOU ARE HERE IS BECAUSE BLOOD-BREATH AND JELLY-HAIR FUCKED UP AND LOST YOUR BITCH-ASS SISTER!" Sho roared.
Everyone gasped at this.
Nine's pupils shrank. "WHAT did you say about my sister!?"
"I'LL SAY WHATEVER THE HELL I WANT AND ANYONE WHO MESSES WITH ME IS A BITCH! IF YOUR SISTER ISN'T SUCH A DUMBASS THEN…" Sho shouted.
Suddenly, a giant pillar of fire appeared next to Sho, immediately making him shut up and freeze in his spot. Nine growled after lowering the hand she used to cast the spell.
"GET. IN. THE. RING." Nine growled.
Needless to say, Sho immediately ran down the ramp and got into the ring. Once in, he saw Guy stepping forward with a stern look on his face.
"You. I want you to tell me…" Guy started.
Suddenly, Sho threw a crumpled up piece of paper at Guy's forehead before storming off.
"H-Hey!" Guy said.
"Read them and weep, jackass! Literally!" Sho spat.
Guy looked confused before crouching down and pulling up the crumpled up piece of paper. After opening it up and reading it, his eyes widened in shock. Ryo walked forward with a confused look on his face.
"Um, what was that?" Ryo asked.
"Um, it is a long story." Guy said before reading the piece of paper with a frown. "And assuming he is telling the truth, it is about to get even longer."
Meanwhile, Sho stomped over to Kirby, Adeleine & Ribbon.
"Alright, I need punching bags to take out my frustration and you guys are it so put up your… Whatever you call dukes." Sho spat.
Adeleine narrowed her eyes. "And why should we listen to someone rude like you?"
"Do you think I give a crap about manners, right now?" Sho roared. "Listen, you pampered princess, there are more painful things in the world than poor manners!"
Ribbon grunted in disgust. "Someone got their phone taken away before entering the arena!"
"SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP!" Sho roared before storming forward.
Yukiko looked with wide eyes. "This… Is really troubling."
Tear looked at Yukiko with a raised eyebrow. "He isn't always like long-haired Luke?"
"Actually, he is, technically. He is always this aggressive and foul-mouthed." The pyromancer frowned before looking down. "But seriously, he has to be pushed to the brink. He wouldn't say stuff like that. At least THAT early."
(Are you ready, kids?)
(Aye-aye, captain!)
While most were obviously disturbed by Sho's outburst, they immediately brightened up when they heard a certain pirate's voice through the speakers.
(I can't hear you!)
Most of the crowd and even some of the fighters played along.
(AYE-AYE, CAPTAIN!)
(Ohhhhhhh)
"And now… The final fighter for this section…"
(Who lives in a pineapple under the sea)
"SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS!" (NASB)
"Ah, yes, there is a lot to roast about Spongebob. Especially during the 'dark era' of Spongebob. But even I think that the later seasons, along with the games, redeemed him a bit. And in the end, he was able to stand, not on the highest pedestal but a platform where he could rest…" Nine started. Suddenly, she growled. "Goddamnit he is STILL going on television!?"
(Absorbent and yellow and porous is he?)
(Spongebob Squarepants)
(If nautical nonsense is something you wish)
(Spongebob Squarepants)
(Then, drop on the deck and flop like a fish!)
(Spongebob Squarepants)
The yellow fry cook sponge came out to an enormous cheer. Of course, he was actually just as excited, if not more so, then the crowd. He eagerly waved to the crowd. He then pumped his fists into the air.
"I'mmmmmm ready!"
The crowd cheered further as Spongebob jogged down the ramp while singing "I'm ready!" to himself.
(Ready?)
(Spongebob Squarepants!)
(Spongebob Squarepants!)
(Spongebob Squarepants!)
(Spongebob Squarepants!)
Finally, Spongebob entered the arena while using his hand as a visor.
"I could go double-team with Garfield but he seems to be having fun with his new friend." Spongebob mused.
As if on cue, Garfield ran past him with a frightening look on his face with Decker chasing after him on his skateboard while holding a cartoon hammer.
"What's the matter!?" Decker sneered. "Don't you like hitting people with blunt objects?"
"Not unless I am the one doing it!" Garfield shouted back.
Spongebob merely shrugged before he was about to go triple-team with Snoopy and Scooby seeing that they were Garfield's friends (at least in his eyes). However, he then noticed Otane standing to the side. Raising an eyebrow, he decided to make his way over.
"Um, excuse me, Miss?" Spongebob asked.
Otane looked up. "Oh, you are the final fighter?"
"Yeah, I don't get why I am that instead of Link or Sora." Spongebob admitted, scratching the back of his head.
"To be fair, while the Legend of Zelda is one of the biggest franchises of Nintendo, it can't compete with Mario and Sora isn't even a Disney character." Otane shrugged. "You, for better or for worse, have pretty much become the face of Nickelodeon."
"True…" Spongebob said before frowning. "So what's the matter? Despite entering such a huge tournament, you don't seem excited."
"Um, well, a lot of things happened to me outside of the arena and…" Otane sighed.
"Oh, that's a shame!" Spongebob said, sadly. He then looked determined. "Alright, that confirms it!"
Otane looked up. "Hm?"
"I will be your opponent!" Spongebob beamed.
Otane jumped. "H-Huh?"
"Well, Helga and Toph told me when they get stressed, they usually take it out in All-Star Brawl matches." Spongebob paused. "And we ARE in a fighting tournament so this is the perfect time to get rid out of all of that stress."
Otane paused for a moment. She then gave a weak smile.
"Yes… Let's go."
Meanwhile, Scooby finally calmed down.
"Feeling better?" Snoopy asked.
"Kinda. Except that I still feel like an idiot." Scooby groaned.
"There, there, at least nobody is coming after you for what happened." Snoopy offered. "Come on. Let's wait in the wings and see for a potential opening."
"I guess…" Scooby sighed.
So we have our second spooky stage. Despite this, everyone seems to be fighting bravely as well. However, as always, there was always one surprise waiting in the wings, not just from the stage but also the fighters themselves.
(Dome; Security Team Room)
Carmelita and Gabe carried Athena and Joe in handcuffs as she, Pepper, the Babylon Rogues and Kyo turned to the security team room with Storm carrying the unconscious Yan.
"Well, we are here." Carmelita said, calmly. "Let's see what you have to say."
Athena sternly nodded her head. Joe just stayed quiet. Pepper just sighed before going to open the door for them.
"Joe!"
Everyone's eyes bugged out before turning to see Moe and the others. Needless to say, he looked worried.
"Moe…" Joe said, softly.
"So the rest of Otane's group actually came to us." Carmelita said, narrowing her eyes.
"Look, I know that we were involved with helping Bison, but we are here to try to see if we could clear up Joe's name." Krizalid agreed.
"Oh really? And why should we believe YOU?" Wave asked, putting her hands on her hips.
Then, Whip's group came forward.
"Because we are with them, acting as credible witnesses." Whip offered.
Kula blinked twice. "Wait, why is Athena Cykes in handcuffs?"
"Because we have reason to believe that she is a mole." Wave said, matter-of-factly.
Everyone jumped at this.
"Wait… What!?" Ralf gasped.
"Look, it is a long story and if you want to tell it, tell it, tell it inside!" Carmelita scolded. "Is there anyone ELSE who is coming?"
"Well, seeing that you ask." Kyo piped up.
Everyone looked at the face of King of Fighters confused as he got out his phone and dialled a number. After a few seconds, someone answered his call.
"Um, Benimaru? Listen, I know that this is sudden but how free are you, right now?"