The greatest in the Multiverse

Intermission: 1 restless hour

After 4 raging battles between the greatest fighters from across the multiverse, the subspace arena was finally somewhat quiet. Most of the audience were in or around the building - some were down in the lobby, some were forming immense lines towards the bathroom and some were trying to catch a glimpse of the contestants. Which of course was prevented by the security staff. Couldn't risk the prized warriors being distracted or bothered, after all. And when the security staff consists of several well-trained guards of all kinds of species wearing powered armour, then you'd do best to go along with what they said. Thus the 16 contestants were allowed a brief moment of peace and tranquillity. Which, as it turned out, wouldn't last very long.

Inferno was sitting down alone in the courtyard behind the contestants' lodge. They had noted how strange it was that nobody else was out here; at least 4 of the others had an over 52% chance of choosing to come here and train before their upcoming match. But the molten automaton didn't complain. That just meant they had a golden opportunity to run some calculations on their upcoming opponent. Inferno's artificial brain began to gather all the information they had about Universe 7's Ashes.

"Eponym: Ashes. Age: Between 20 and 25 years. Species: Tiefling. Approximate height: 209 cm. Estimated weight: 127 kg. Unique traits: Ridged horns, long tail and red skin. Appears to speak a bizarre alternate version of the Common language. Background: Unknown. Proficien-"

"Excuse me, my good sir, but I wish to take a closer look upon your bodily structure."

The bulky robot abruptly stopped their mumbling calculations and turned their head downward to the sophisticated deep voice addressing them. Staring up at them was a small, scrawny reddish Kobold wearing a brown suit and glasses. Professor Suss of Universe 8 walked right up to the reclusive construct, and without warning he leaned in right next to them. Inferno, with a hint of annoyance in their otherwise monotone voice, tried to tell him off.

"Permission denied, Kobold. I request that you leave me alone, for I do not have the time or desire to converse with you. Additionally, I request you to not address me with the word "sir". The humanoid concept of gender and dedicated pronouns are unrequired for me."

"Oh pish-posh, I simply desire to see how a mass of metal like you can move and act like a person. It is strictly in the name of science, I assure you."

The professor didn't seem to have listened to a word of what Inferno had said. To him, personal space and empathy was not a top priority. It hadn't really given him much in the way of friends before, but one look into his mindset would tell you that he didn't really care. Said mindset was too full of self-importance and thirst for knowledge to make room for any type of friendship. It was just who he was, and he had no plans to change that.

Professor Suss was now right next to the steadily more and more annoyed Inferno, and without warning he put his hands on their metallic side. Inferno reactively raised a hand as if to stop him, but didn't. They were too baffled by this Kobold's sheer intrusiveness and apparent lack of manners at the moment. Professor Suss was now stroking his hands against the robot's armoured thigh and side, occasionally knocking on it with his tiny hand.

"Very intriguing… there seems to be no traces of organic matter anywhere, yet this thing can react and move like a person. Plus its bodily temperature is notably very high… what exactly does it use as a power source? Hmmm…"

By now the small lizard man was standing on top of his much bigger "subject", his snout merely inches away from their featureless face. But Inferno had reached their breaking point. Their bulky iron hand grabbed Professor Suss' tail with surprising speed, hoisting him up in the air as they clunkily stood up. The professor barely had time to react other than with a loud gasp, although when he had realised he was hanging upside down like a bat he made his displeasure clear.

"Put me down, you brutish ruffian! Are you aware of who I am?!"

But Inferno wasn't in the mood to guess. Hatches and outlets began to open on their chest, head and extremities, revealing red-hot lava all over the inside of their body. The molten rock was contained behind a sheet of glass, presumably magically altered to resist the immense temperatures. But Professor Suss could still feel himself getting warmer by the second, especially as the fuming automaton pulled him right next to their face.

"Condemnation: I do not know what your background is, neither do I want to obtain that information. All I have gathered about this specimen is that it is small, red and very annoying. It would be in your best interest to cease your pestering, otherwise self-defence protocols will need to be engaged. And it would NOT be in your best interest to learn what this entails."

By now Professor Suss' pupils had narrowed and his entire body was shaking, and since he was right next to a tank full of lava it sure wasn't because he was cold. He had also, to Inferno's contentment, fallen silent barring a few muffled whimpers. Inferno's outlets closed up to fully conceal their lava tanks again; it was clear that the Kobold had gotten the message. The blistering construct let go of their tormentor, causing him to drop to the ground from more than twice his height. The landing was mostly painless, although not what one would call dignified. And as Inferno turned around to try and find another spot where they could be left alone, they stared down at the professor one more time.

"Clarification: Do not presume me to not be sentient. Despite what impressions my artificial speech patterns would give, my cognitive functions are very much at the same level as an organic being. So I would recommend that you approach me with the same actions and thoughts as you would any other person. Although, upon further calculations, I do not believe anyone would want you to approach them at all."

With these words Inferno wandered off, leaving Professor Suss on the ground. He quickly brushed himself off and stood up before readjusting his glasses, and as soon as Inferno was out of sight he simply scoffed.

"Hmph, you would think a brute like that would treat a superior intellect with respect! What has this multiverse come to? I swear, if that walking hunk of iron comes back I'll make sure to give them a piece of my mind!"

[CRASH!]

His foolhardy attempts at keeping his pride intact was interrupted by a loud noise coming from the lodge. Upon hearing this, the professor jumped back as his head instantly darted towards the source of the noise. He simply stood still for a couple seconds, before calmly turning around and walking in the opposing direction.

"Hrmm, this does look like a perfect opportunity to make sure my spellbook is in order..."

A few minutes before the confrontation outside, 4 of the 16 contestants had seated themselves in their temporary residence's lounge. They didn't have anyone else they wanted to catch up with and were too restless to just sit in their rooms for an hour, and thus they had come here. Only to find out there wasn't much more to do downstairs. So all of them had found themselves looking for ways to kill time, some with more success than others.

The dark-skinned dwarf let out a long muffled groan. Her clawed fingers found themselves twirling around her stark red hair, with the rest of her muscular frame slouching over so much that she was closer to lying down on the couch than she was to sitting on it. Molly Mineshaper of Universe 8 was, to put it mildly, bored out of her mind. She had agreed to join this tournament so she could get into a decent scrap or two, but ever since learning she was in the third last bracket her patience had been steadily draining. There was no way in hell she was gonna be able to sit still for another 50 minutes, she needed something to do. So as her gaze went across the room and eventually landed on the biggest thing there, she picked herself up and walked over to it. The lean dwarf had gotten an idea.

The ginormous Half-Orc known as Alva Morrison was seated in a corner of the room. The lounge's chairs had creaked an alarming amount underneath her weight and the couches were already taken, so this cramped little zone would have to do. Her huge hands caressed a sharp knife that was just over the length of her fist, so wielding it was not the easiest thing ever. That didn't prevent her from using it to bluntly carve into something. Huge sturdy chunks of organic material scattered to the floor, until she stopped and raised her head towards the red-clad dwarf that approached her. Alva's eyebrow was raised, before lowering into a scowl.

"The fuck do you want? You better not be here to bother me, unless you want your face caved in."

But unlike almost everyone else that had approached Alva before, Molly did not back away. Instead she simply pulled up a chair and plumped herself down on it.

"Nah, just checking on ya. Got nothin' to do so I thought I might as well get to know someone. Say, is that a duck you got there?"

Alva's scowl quickly turned into a look of bewilderment. Not only had this dwarf not scampered away in terror, she had not even shown a speck of unease. To the Half-Orc, this reaction was very rare. To the point that she had no idea how to answer.

"Oh, uh… y-yeah. I mean, it's not very good but…"

Molly snickered at the sight of the suddenly very flustered giant. Not the reaction she had expected, but in a positive way. The red-headed dwarf leaned in a bit to get a closer look.

"I think it's a ballin' duck, if you ask me. Woodcarving is pretty fucking difficult, so I'm impressed that you're even trying. Hobby of yours?" Molly replied. And for a brief moment, Alva's intimidating front dropped and was replaced with a bubbling excitement.

"Thanks! Yeah, you could say that. Figured I needed something to do whenever I got time to kill, y'know."

She put her knife back into its sheath before holding the unfinished wooden duck up towards Molly. Looking at it you could see it was the work of a beginner; the overall shape was unrefined and blocky, not to mention all the cuts and gashes left from slips of the hand. But it was also clear that a lot of time and effort had gone into it.

"It ain't much, but it's the best I can do."

Over the next half hour, the two women got more and more comfortable around each other. Their conversation included everything from their thoughts on the tournament to their respective favourite foods, and by the end the beginning of a friendship was starting to bud. And as this was going on, another person minded her own business on the other side of the room.

Pulse had decided to give all of her gear a quick spotcheck before her turn to fight came up. She wasn't that strong and had little to no combat training, so it was crucial that her inventions worked as intended. Otherwise she could kiss that victory goodbye, and that was not an option. She needed to win, she needed to prove a point. If only those two at the other end of the room could just keep the volume down. But when it came to either tell off the abnormally huge Half-Orc, trying to work in her cramped room or sit down here with all that racket in the background, Pulse had picked the racket. So she tried her best to shut it out as she kept tinkering with the two ornate metal rods laid on the table before her.

"Hey… do you think we could talk for a moment?"

The slender Drow jolted as her head turned towards the older Drow that had just addressed her. Vuzrak of Universe 1, from the same universe as Pulse, had approached her while she was busy with her work. However, the connection between these two ran a lot deeper than just originating from the same cosmos. And that was exactly why Vuzrak was here. They had a kinship, after all. The white-haired Drow waited for Pulse to answer, but that answer took its time. Until finally she responded.

"So that's the… hm?"

On the other side of the room Alva's and Molly's conversation halted as they both saw Pulse scurry towards the stairs, practically jogging up to her own quarters. And while neither of them had paid much attention to the Drows before, both of them noticed that she seemed distressed. Vuzrak, on the other hand, looked to be more dejected than anything. His face was aimed towards the ground as he headed out the main door with a deep sigh. Molly and Alva looked back towards each other, both with a lot of questions.

"What was THAT all about?" Molly wondered. Alva simply shrugged as she answered her much shorter friend.

"Beats me. Maybe there's bad blood between 'em or something. Anyway, that was the history of my family" the Half-Orc replied. She had no idea what had occurred between the two Drows, and she didn't really care either. Instead, she went right back to where she'd left off: her family history.

Molly was a bit taken aback, not to mention feeling quite a lot of pity for Alva. The first one due to the latter's open-mindedness in regards to her own background, the second due to the circumstances behind it. Her previously bewildered expression dropped into one of melancholy.

"Damn, sorry about your dad…" the dwarf responded. Alva merely shook her head.

"Oh, don't even get me started again. If I ever meet that piece of shit, I will… I'll…"

The giant's clenched fist was shaking. She had gotten carried away explaining her life's story, and had gotten to the part she'd rather forget; The part about her good-for-nothing orc dad leaving her mom alone with a baby before running away like a selfish coward. He was the reason her mom had been so overworked trying to raise a Half-Orc daughter. He was the reason Alva had to sacrifice the freedom of her teenage years to become an underground arena fighter, just so her mother wouldn't end up breaking herself down completely. He was the reason she fought.

It was clear that Alva's temper was rising dangerously fast, so Molly quickly tried to change the subject.

"Hrmm… anyway, not to point out the obvious, but you're like… REALLY fucking big. What's your secret?"

The fuming Half-Orc stopped shaking as she turned her head down towards the tense Dwarf. She really was an expert in alternating between emotions, almost like flipping a switch. Either that or she was just extremely narrow-minded. Right now, Molly didn't care which.

"Two words, buddy: Giant runes. First you spend your teen years researching giants and etch some magic runes from their language into your essence, then boom. You end up a 2-and-a-half metre tall bruiser who can fuck up anyone who even looks at you funny!" Alva proudly stated. The confidence in her voice showed that she thought she'd made the right decision, despite all the obvious issues that came with being a hulking goliath. Molly simply grinned; she liked Alva more and more every second. Damn, this lady was a riot.

"Fuck, that's awesome! Is that why you're so beefy too?" Molly asked. Alva simply laughed.

"Nah, nothing but hard work there. Well, maybe some good genes too. SOMETHING from my da… that fucker had to be worthwhile, I guess. But mostly lots of training, simple as that."

The talkfest was once again interrupted, this time by two figures coming through the front door. Owen and Morgan had been out talking about their respective matches, and judging by their hearty laughs and loud chatter they still did. Upon the two reptilian buddies walking in, a smirk started to appear on Molly's face. She clearly had an idea on her mind. The stubby redhead smugly looked up towards her oversized green-skinned buddy.

"Hey, we still got about 20 minutes left. Think you can outmuscle that knucklehead?" Molly asked while pointing her thumb towards the unaware Owen. Alva didn't answer, but she did form a very confident smug grin.

"You there, Dragonborn! Bet you can't last 20 seconds against me in an arm wrestle!" she shouted across the room. Her booming, somewhat mocking voice caught Owen's attention, causing him to turn and address the huge Half-Orc.

"Hm? Arm wrestle? I don't know, I'm not sure if now is a good time…" he answered. Usually he would be all in for something like this, but right now there was less than half an hour left until the second half of the first round would start. And while this lady was obviously extremely strong, so was he. The paladin didn't want to risk causing her an injury right before her match.

"What, the big bad war paladin is nothing but a big sissy? Shame" Alva continued.

Then again, Owen thought, maybe he did want to risk it. He motioned towards the increasingly intrigued Morgan to come with him as he made his way over to the table closest to Alva, where he sat down and put his elbow on it. Alva snickered as she did the same, the sturdy couch creaking beneath her weight. As the two giants clutched each other's hands, Morgan spoke up with his usual gusto.

"All right, I'll be the judge! The first one to push the other's hand onto the table is the winner, simple as that. I don't want to see any cheating, distractions or anything along those lines. Just good ol' muscle strength! Are the rules clear?" You could tell from Morgan's tone that he was just as into this as either of the actual arm wrestlers.

"The rules are clear, my friend. I'm ready when you are, miss!" Owen said, a hint of competitiveness clearly being heard in his voice.

"Yeah yeah, the usual stuff, got it. Let's go already!" Alva responded, itching to begin.

"Very well then, on 3: 1, 2, 3, GO!" Morgan shouted. And with that, the contest was on.

Two massive biceps bulged and strained as both contestants tried to best the other. Alva broke the stalemate and started to push Owen back, but with a low grunt the Dragonborn pushed back even harder. Alva let out a rumbling growl as she stopped Owen's advance, once again locking the two in a stalemate. Both parties had underestimated the other; this looked to be dead even.

"Come on Alva, give him hell!" Molly cheered from the sidelines, both fists pumping. Not to be outdone, Morgan encouraged his own buddy to give it his all.

"Show her all you've got, Owen! Go go go!"

This contest went on for almost two minutes. Occasionally one side began to falter, but they always pushed back to continue the stalemate. But eventually, Owen started to get tired. His arm was aching more and more, and his usually bright white facial scales had turned a pinkish red. But while Alva also showed clear signs of fatigue, she didn't seem nearly as strained as he did. And as the paladin of Tempus gave all he had, Alva suddenly grinned. It was time to stop holding back.

[CRASH!]

The entire table practically exploded as Alva slammed Owen's fist down onto it. Wooden fragments and splinters were launched in every direction, causing Morgan to instinctively jump about a metre backwards and Molly to throw up a fiery magical ward in front of her. The very much startled Owen ended up crashing onto the floor right into the sharp remains of the shattered piece of furniture. They didn't draw any blood or cause him any pain, his hide was tougher than that. But his entire right arm was aching, and the sudden tumble to the ground did certainly shock him.

Alva on the other hand was nothing but triumphant. The sudden destruction of the table coupled with her own continued momentum had sent her off the couch too, but unlike Owen she hadn't plunged any further than to her knee. As soon as she had regained her composure, she stood up and crossed arms. Laughing all the while to prove her superiority.

"Uh… the winner of this contest is Alva!" Morgan announced before running over to the floored Owen, helping him get back up from where he laid.

"Damn, you okay there old chum?"

"Uurgh… yeah, I'm fine. Only thing wounded is my pride" Owen muttered. He shook his head as he stood up to clear his head, before turning to address the winner.

"Well then, looks like you win. Very impressive, young lady. I've never seen strength quite like yours!"

"Well duh, there's only one me after all! I advise all of you to just sit back and watch, 'cause I'm gonna demolish everyone set before me! Starting with that little red-headed twig!" Alva practically bellowed. She had always been very confident in herself, and even this inconsequential victory was enough to kick her pride into high gear. Watching this, her dwarven buddy felt all fuzzy inside. To Molly, Alva was getting cooler by the second. This sentiment was not shared by Owen or Morgan however, both of them looking rather vexed by the green-skinned braggart. But before things could begin to settle down, the group was once again briefly interrupted. By a purple flash running by them as John was hightailing it out of the building.

"Huh, wonder what that was all about," Molly wondered.

At the same time as the commotion downstairs, John was keeping himself busy. He peeked out of his room where he had quickly hid upon hearing the rapidly approaching footsteps, surveying the corridor. The coast was clear. That… admittedly very pretty Drow had shut the door behind her after bolting to her room, and it didn't look like she'd be coming out in the next few minutes. The Tiefling breathed a sigh of relief as he once again kneeled before the door across his own, before taking out his lockpicking tools again. Goh'ji might have earned his respect during their fight, but everyone else? They were prime targets for the Devilman of Vocrorth, the most infamous thief in his solar system.

"Come on, almost there…" John muttered. This lock was tricky, certainly not as straightforward as he was used to. But the burglar was determined. Behind this door was the belongings of a wizard; not only that, but a full-on professor. Surely that little Kobold wouldn't need all his magic crystals or spell scrolls or whatever wizards carried around? If he could bring some magical trinkets back home with him, he could make a fortune out of them. John smiled to himself as he put all of his focus on the lock. An action whose consequences he would soon regret as he failed to notice the presence standing behind him.

"Sorry hun, am I interrupting something?"

John froze as the low, powerful voice reached his ears. He didn't even have time to turn around and face whoever stood there, because they had already grabbed him by his jacket and hoisted him up with just one arm. As he was turned around, he let out a small gulp. Holding him about a foot above the ground was Ashes, the second, much more imposing Tiefling among the contestants. And judging by her stern expression, she wasn't very happy.

"Whatcha doing there, nose parker? Because it sure looks like breaking and entering to me" Ashes said. John was growing pale and sweaty as he knew he'd been caught with egg on his face. His mind was rapidly trying to form a plan, something to get him out of this situation. He cleared his throat as he forced his nerves to calm down.

"Oh no no no, you misunderstand me! See, the Kobold dropped his wand back at the arena, and since it looked important and I don't know where he went I thought I'd leave it in his room! I must have gotten a bit carried away trying to get in though, seems I almost broke the lock. Surely a lovely lady like you can understand what I mean?" the Tiefling said, his voice smoothing out during the last sentence. The old charming trick was a certified ace up his sleeve, and had gotten him both in and out of many previous situations. And since the bigger Tiefling's grip slightly loosened and a warm smile appeared on her face, it seemed to be working.

"Aaw, thanks lil' guy! Appreciate the compliment!" Ashes replied. She even lowered John back towards solid ground. Which she followed up with by grabbing his throat and slamming him into the wall. John let out a pained gag as his composure quickly dropped, his yellow eyes unable to shift away from the now scowling Ashes.

"However, I don't appreciate you spitting taradiddles out your yap. You're as much a kind-hearted delivery guy as I am a magician. You think I'm a spoony? Of course you're planning to rob this fella, and you're lying about it to my face too!" Ashes practically spit out. She had planned to just give John a little scare and prevent him from doing anything he might regret, but that obvious lie was too much. She pressed harder against his throat, causing him to gasp for air. The brawny Tiefling leaned in as close as she could towards the terrified John.

"Hun, I'm a bounty hunter back home. I've caught murderers, swindlers and all sorts of outlaws. Slinks like you I've dealt with more times than I care to keep track of. Usually, I would've just thrown you to whatever law there is on this side of the multiverse. But I'm gonna try to let you off with a warning this time."

The bounty hunter let go of her captive, who dropped down to his knees gasping for air. But she had one more word of wisdom to give out.

"However, if I see you try a stunt like this again? Then I can't guarantee you'll go home in one piece."

Ashes punctuated her promise by slamming her fist against her palm. Coincidentally perfectly timed to the climax of the arm wrestling match going on downstairs.

[CRASH!]

The panicking John didn't pick up that the loud crash wasn't the result of this overgrown lady's fists slamming together. By now his instincts had taken over, and said instincts told him to hotfoot it away from there. Without a word the pale thief darted away from Ashes down the stairs, not even noticing the wrecked table and the bragging Half-Orc. He had learned his lesson: keep his nose clean while he was here, or he would most likely be beaten to death by Ashes.

Ashes herself was left chuckling at the perfect timing of that loud noise. Not what she had intended, but she wasn't complaining. Hopefully he wouldn't cause any more trouble now. She turned around to do what she'd originally come for, and went over to knock on the closest door.

"Are y'all coming? It's gonna start up again in maybe 10 minutes."

Movements could be heard behind several of the closed doors. Ashes smiled to herself as she too headed downstairs, hands in her pockets and thoughts on her upcoming fight. This was gonna be one hell of a hog-killing time.

The multiversal tournament was flaring back up again. And the action would only continue to amp up.