The Galaxy King was en route to Cross-World, set to land in Las Vegas to participate in the tournament, where the grand prize for the winner was the final item needed to help Alear return to Elyos, The Bracelet of the Brash General.
"I still can't believe Theodore actually sold one of the bracelets to Dark Garden." DJ said.
"I can. Dark Garden has a hook in almost every single facet of the criminal world." Lan said. "Wouldn't be a surprise if they were interested in the Emblem Bracelet the moment he presented it. When we raided his factory, I noticed a large sum paid to him from their account. Meaning he sold it to them so they could figure out how to replicate it."
"That would be pretty scary if it's managed." Sectonia said.
"Knowing them, they've probably already figured it out. But I don't get why they would put it up for grabs in a fighting tournament."
"If they already figure out how to replicate it, they wouldn't need the original anymore and could go off from the copy instead." Lan said.
"So whose bright idea was this? I dunno if I've heard of anyone who'd be interested in a stunt like this in Dark Garden's ranks."
"Some guy named Johan Petrovic, but when I tried cross-referencing his name, nothing came up. Is he some kinda nobody?" Catra asked.
"Actually, I may have something. I was talking with Cooler about something like this before I left." David said. "Have you guys heard about a place called Nayshall?"
"Yeah. It's a small developing nation somewhere in Asia on Ryu's world." Ranma said.
"That's right. And anyone who has watched the news lately would know about a most shocking development." David said.
"You mean the attacks on it and the framing of Ken Masters, right? And you already suspect Johan?" Lan asked.
"I can't say for certain, but it is possible. Of course, we couldn't find anything to tie him to the incident." David said.
"There is one thing to note about this guy. He's the head of a huge NPO which was responsible for developing Nayshall into what it's become today." Catra said.
"Hahahaha. Sometimes, it's funny how some of you squad guys only got half the story. Do you guys wanna know about…the real JP?" Lan asked.
"JP? Those are just his initials, right?" Agito asked.
"And strangely, those same initials were used for different kinds of aliases." David said.
"Lan, are you saying there's more to this guy?"
"Don't forget before now, I used to be part of the Lost Thieves. We acquired info no one else should have even gotten their hands on. Dark Garden is included. JP, better known as the Regal Businessman. There's no doubt his eye for business is genuine. But that's all a facade for his real work. Branch leader for Dark Combat as well as the head of a few hidden organizations, probably even the one that caused the incidents David was spouting out." Lan said.
"And there is also one other detail. This is something Cooler said he got off of Frieza, so I don't know how credible this is, but… Johan is also said to possess some kind of…sickly dark aura." David said.
"You think it could be what I think it is?" Hope said.
"Psycho Power." Vashyron answered.
"Like Bison?" Stahn asked.
"Well its no surprise. JP used to be Shadaloo's manager of financial affairs before it collapsed." Lan said.
"And now that Bison is back after Galeem and Darkhon's defeat, there's no telling what kind of developments would arise." Cheetah said.
"Oh, Chun-Li's not going to catch a break anytime soon, is she?" Luke asked.
"Actually, no one's heard from Bison since the World of Light Incident." Lan said.
"Yeah. I mean, a guy like Bison, off the grid? That is just Grade-A weird." Petra H said.
"Yeah. A lot of bad guys were brought back. Sigma, Bison, but surprisingly…a number of them got intercepted by Dark Garden before they could bring new terrors to the worlds." Lan said.
"So Dark Garden is the only thing keeping some of the universe's worst from coming back to cause trouble again?" Kazuma asked.
"Despite their behavior, they aren't chaotic evil, well most of them aren't. If they wanted to go full evil like Flux, they wouldn't have that Do Not Engage list to keep their craziest and most unhinged back." Lan said.
"It's a little unnerving, but we need that Bracelet, so we'll be going into the eye of the storm, right?" Matthew asked.
"Yeah, and who knows. Despite it being run by one of Bison's former men, maybe it won't be as bad as we think it's going to be." David said.
"Dude, it was already too late when we saw that flyer." Jexi smiled.
"Attention all passengers…prepare for touchdown." Jet said as they looked out to see Las Vegas before their eyes as they touched down.
"I hope we don't have to wear anything too fancy. Beastmen and fancy don't exactly mix." Glacius said.
"Oh, relax. You'll be fine." Zelos said.
They disembarked from the ship as they saw a number of people standing around and a sign in desk ahead.
"Sign in and Hope You Get Picked?" Yang asked as she read the sign.
"Yes. You see…while many competitors are joining us…we only have 60 available spots. So a lot of these people will be leaving empty handed." the receptionist said.
"Well, this is Las Vegas. Everything in this place is a gamble." David said.
"Well, you know the old saying. What happens in Vegas, stays there, am I right?" Zephyr said.
"I'm very sure that was before streaming services were a thing." Sachiko said.
"Well…it's no big deal…all we gotta do…is sign up a bunch of our members and odds are at least one or two of them will make it in." Jexi said.
"Yeah. It's all luck of the draw at this point. An easy two-step process. Sign in, and pray to whatever god can hear you." David said.
With that, each team in the hero alliance signed up as many members as they could into the event so they could get better odds. The more members were registered for the tournament, the greater the chances were one of them would be slated to enter, and possibly win, so that the bracelet could be claimed.
"All right…that should do it." Theo said. "Now we just gotta wait for the drawing."
"Yeah…but…." Alear said noticing a number of the competitors were looking right at them, and not with admiration. "These people…seem to have it out for us."
"Oh yeah, did we mention that we've got a reputation for making lots of enemies?" Glimmer said.
"I kind of figured that out." Alear said.
Some loud music was soon heard as a certain voice was heard.
"Coming to you live from Las Vegas in the Cross World of the Standard Universe, this is everyone's favorite MC, Magenta Voice, coming at ya live!" she said as all the audience cheered.
"Of course she'd be the first pick for a live commentator." Hope said.
"It's almost like she can't get enough of MCing this stuff." Ultra said.
"You know I can hear you guys, right?" Magenta called out.
"We didn't mean anything bad by it!" Ultra responded.
"Just making sure. Cause I know some people in your groups tend to speak their minds, and I don't mean in a good way." Magenta said. "Now then, on with the show! Welcome to a very special tournament, created and sponsored by the very generous Mr. Johan! Now…let's skip the boring filler stuff…and get right down to the nitty gritty. Your fighting arena…is there!" she said, pointing to the entirety of Las Vegas.
"All of Sin City is the arena?!" Kazuma asked.
"Yes indeed. All civilians have already been evacuated from the city so there's no worries about harming any of them. With that, we can begin the 12 team game of war!" Magenta said. "As the name says, this will be a team event. 12 teams of 5 will be put together. It'll be survival with no traditional brackets. Meaning…last one standing wins the whole shebang!"
"So that's how they'll be playing it." Jexi said.
"Oh right…we still need to determine teams! With extreme fairness, random signers have been picked. When I say your name, come to the stage: Zi-O, Sanji, Deku, Phoenix, and Spade!
The four heroes walked up along with a person disguised in a cloak.
"Congrats! You are officially…Team Aries!" Magenta said.
"I'm so glad I'm still in my suit. I'm not ready to reveal my identity yet." Zi-O remarked. "Deku, I hope you can control One-4-All well."
"Don't worry. I can handle it." Izuku said.
"Good, because I don't want you to lose to Asta like in Death Battle." Zi-O mentioned.
"Wait, what?" Izuku said, sweating a bit.
"Relax, you all can just rely on me." the figure known as Phoenix said.
"...I'll be the judge of that." Zi-O replied. "(Hmm… I'd better be careful. You'll never know if that person is an ally or a backstabber.)
"Now we will assemble the next team! Geld, Craniamon, Jimbei, Naofumi and Goku!" Magenta said. "You all…are Team Taurus!"
"Whoa, talk about heavy hitters on only the second team!" Scorpia said. "Good luck to the rest of us…"
"Scorpia!" Catra said.
"What, I'm just saying! They've got Goku on their team." Scorpia said.
"Don't assume the tournament is finished just because one of our alliances strongest has been assigned a team position." Cheetah said.
"Yeah. Popular memes aside, there are some people that can beat Goku." Mark said.
"I can't wait to see what kind of tournament this'll be, especially with a combination like ours." Goku said. "Looking forward to it, guys!"
"Yes. This should be quite a match." Jimbei said.
"You guys just don't do anything to slow us down." Naofumi said.
"Please, I wouldn't dream of it. Would you, Geld?" Craniamon asked.
"Certainly not. Doing so would mean dishonoring Lord Rimuru." Geld said.
"Alright! Now it's time to announce the 3rd team. Ethox, Theo, Glacius, Esmeralda, and Aether. You five are Team Gemini!" Magenta said.
"Yes! We get to work on the same team again!" Theo said to Glacius and Esmeralda.
"Well, this is a surprise." Aether remarked. "Never thought I'd fight with you guys."
"Well, now we are!" Ethox smiled. "Can't wait to see how this goes!"
"Depends if we survive the first round, that is." Aether replied.
"You've got this, Aether! Paimon will be cheering you on!" Paimon cheered.
"The last time Glacius and I were on the same team as you Theo, we had ulterior motives." Esmerelda said. "But this time, we share the same goals."
"Yeah. No hard feelings or anything, right?" Glacius asked.
"None whatsoever!" Theo said happily.
"Well…since that's out of the way…we will now form the 4th team: Ace, Tsukuyomi, Dust, Shadow Bringer and Ragna. You are all now Team Cancer!" Magenta said.
The five walked up, along with another figure in a cloak and a magical girl.
"Hmm..so it's her." Lan said. "Dark Nightmare's 3rd Subleader."
"Let's make sure we end this quickly. I don't wanna be away from the princess for too long." Dust said.
"Calm down…this tournament will end well before you can miss whoever your princess is." said the cloaked Shadow Bringer.
"Someone who has my last name?" Shirabe blinked.
"I was not expecting that, dess." Kirika remarked.
"Well…those two are definitely not what we're used to." Tokoyami said, looking at his teammates.
"Definitely." Ace said. "But why did you use your hero name in the sign up?"
"Jexi said it might sound interesting." Tokoyami said.
"I see. Though I feel in and out of place on this team." Ace said. "But there's nothing wrong with that."
"You'll do fine, Ace-san." Shirabe smiled. "And Tokoyami, best of luck."
"Thank you." Tokoyami said.
"All right…now…let's announce the 5th team: Cure Starlight, Lucy, Adora, Milo, and Tsareena!" Magenta said. "Team Virgo!"
"Quite the fitting name for a team of ladies like ourselves." Milo said.
Cure Starlight took a deep breath. "Gotta relax. It's your first tournament, after all." She spoke to herself.
"It'll be fine. You have us by your side." Adora said.
"Yeah, you're right." Cure Starlight replied. "By the way Lucy, your Star Dress abilities are kinda like my forms, though you use the powers of your Celestial Spirits."
"Yeah. It helps me to fight alongside my spirits instead of sitting on the sidelines." Lucy said.
"That's what I'm counting on." Cure Starlight smiled. "Better than Star Twinkle Pretty Cure, I bet."
"Yeah." Lucy said. "(Just gonna assume it's another Precure team she knows.)" she thought.
"Alright…team 6: Yang Xiao Long, Zeraora, Vegeta, Hope, and Ajna. You are Team Leo!" Magenta said.
"Hey, you're in too, Vegeta! Nice!" Goku said. "I really hope we get to face off out there. It'll be exciting!"
"And also with more collateral damage that's on par with Natsu." Geiz sweatdropped.
"At least we'll be able to keep an eye on him." Hope said.
"Just to be clear, if I was stuck randomly with anyone other than you four, I'd prefer to do this on my own." Vegeta remarked. "But I'll tolerate the handicap for now, if only because of how strong you, Ajna and Xiao Long are, Ginova."
"Seems you forgot someone in that list, rutabaga top." Zeraora said.
"And what are you supposed to be?" Vegeata asked bluntly.
"The legend of the badlands with the claws that can tear armor to shreds. Ginhana Sky speedster. Zeraora." he said.
"Don't disgrace us, then." Vegeta said.
"Same to you." Zeraora said.
"Normally I'd be worried that we have two big personalities on the same team… but between the five of us, I'd say we're fine." Hope said.
"Don't worry, Hope. If Vegeta acts up, I'll just bring him into my inner realm." Ajna said.
"Wow, nice of you to volunteer to be the one he destroys if he goes nuts." Hope said, sweating.
"Dude, I fought a literal goddess." Ajna said.
"And Vegeta trained under a guy who trained a God of Destruction." Yang pointed out.
"I'll still try anyway."
"Okay, let's move on to team 7: Geiz, Zoro, Shoto, DJ and Garfiel. You guys are Team Libra!" Magenta said.
"So I'm paired up with the Straw Hat's greatest swordsman." Geiz remarked. "Just do us all a favor and stick together, Zoro."
"Huh? You guys are the ones who get lost all the time." Zoro said.
"No, it's definitely you." DJ said.
"Even if I gave you a Zikan Phone, you'll still get lost, even with the GPS on." Geiz deadpanned.
"Yes. So don't separate from us." Todoroki said.
"Now this is the dream team. The Heroes greatest sword…and Mythos Heart's greatest shield on the same team. No way we can lose." Garfiel said.
"You're rollin' with a few vets here, Garfiel. Nervous at all since you're still the rookie?" DJ asked.
"Nah. I survived Elsa after all. I can handle anything." Garfiel said.
"NIce confidence. We'll be sure to keep up with the big boys." DJ said.
"Okay…time for Team 8! Jexi, Marek, Bolt Junior, Umbreon and CP!" Magenta said. "Team Scorpio!"
"Hahah! What a fantastic opportunity!" Captain Parkour said. "A chance to be on the same team as Jexi the Hunter himself!"
"Though…these two seem…" Umbreon said, looking to Marek and Bolt Junior. "Out of the ordinary."
"Hey…are they…"
"Members of Dark Garden. Sub leaders from Dark Forest and Dark Smog respectively." Lan said.
"So, we're working with Jexi the Hunter." said a young dryad boy, with white short luscious hair and war, that had several white blooming lily flowers among the locks of hair, pale skin, and warm, glimmering yellow eyes. He was dressed in nothing but a silky toga that stretched from his chest to his legs, with markings of green leaves around the edges. In his hands, he held a wooden Staff of Asceplus. "I hope we can be of some use here."
"Y-Yeah…what're the odds we get saddled on the same team as him, huh?" said Bolt Junior, who was dressed in steampunk clothing, with large goggles making his blue eyes look larger than they were, alongside a brown cap that covered his short, brown hair.
"I'm surprised your Father let you compete in JPs tournament, Bolt." Marek said.
"W-Well, y'know…We've been getting a lot of orders from the Combat Revues from the Sakura Wars world, so we've been busy." Bolt Junior explained. "Papa said that I needed a break, so he said I could take part in this if I wanted to." he finished, looking in any direction besides the dryad's.
"(Is that really Marek…? How long has it been since we last saw each other?)" Esmeralda thought.
"All right. Let's get on with Team 9! Natsu, Dan, Catra, Mimikyu and High Roller! Team Capricorn!" Magenta said.
The four heroes were joined on the stage by a young man with long red hair, his face hidden behind a white fedora, which matched his white suit to make a rather snazzy look. He nonchalantly flipped a coin in his left hand.
"Uh… are you sure you're in the right place? The strip is a couple miles down if you were looking to gamble." Catra said to him.
"I'm not looking to gamble with money, sweetheart." the man replied coolly as he caught the coin in his hand. "First place or not, I plan to win big tonight. You all just stick with me. I know this town like the back of my hand."
"Think we can trust him? Guy's not with Dark Garden, and he seems pretty okay, but… something tells me he's a lot more than he looks." Catra said to her three allies.
Mimikyu looked at High Roller as it shook creepily before lifting up a shadowy hand to the guy.
"Mimikyu, no! Uh, sorry. We…don't normally work with him, her, it." Catra said.
"Heh. No worries. I don't think it was aiming to hurt me." High Roller said as he shook the hand. "Pleasure to be working with you."
Mimikyu just retrieved its hand as it turned around.
"Is…is it embarrassed?" Pit said.
"All right. Team 10: Mark, Legolia, Meowscarada, Gobta, and Valfor! Team Sagittarius!" Magenta said.
"Alright! This is going to be great." Valfor said. "Looking forward to working with all of you."
"You're pretty pumped for this, huh Valfor?" Legolia asked. "Uncharacteristic. You've always been pretty collected."
"Why shouldn't he be? We're about to take a walk on this grand stage. One where trillions will remember us til the end of time itself." Meowscarada said.
"You got this, buddy! Show 'em what you got!" Rayleigh said.
"Oh believe me, dear friend. I intend to." Valfor said.
"Can't blame you for getting excited." Mark smiled. "After all, I'm pretty pumped myself. Can't wait to duke it out with the others!"
"And now…Team 11: David, Luffy, Dynamight, Battle Fist and Gunvolt! Team Pisces!" Magenta said.
"Heck yeah! That's what I'm talking about. Looks like we're on the same team, Luffy." David said.
"And we get to be fish!" Luffy said.
"Not what that means, moron." Bakugo said.
"Never thought I'd compete in a fighting tournament." Gunvolt remarked. "Though call me crazy, but this isn't the first time. I competed in a tournament called… Blade Strangers, I think?"
"Yeah. I remember it too. It was weird." Joule spoke from Gunvolt's relic pendant. "At least you got to fight some interesting fighters."
"Mm." Gunvolt nodded. "Including a rogue AI at the end. She was difficult, but we pulled through a win regardless."
"So, it looks like we're on separate teams again. The last time we fought was in the KOF XV Quarterfinals. I hope you have improved since then." Esmeralda said.
"Guess we're both about to find out pretty soon, aren't we?" David asked.
"Yeah. Cause he's gonna get you with tail slaps before we end up as sushi." Luffy said.
"He's…not serious, is he?" Glacius asked.
"It's Monkey D. Luffy. What do you think?" Craniamon asked.
"Wait, that's the guy who beat Kaido? Weird, I thought his hair was white now." Bolt Junior said.
"Nah. That's only when I'm totally free." Luffy said.
"Anyway, this looks like a pretty solid team. These guys are gonna be tough to keep down." Valfor said.
"Okay…time for the final Team: Simon, Thorani, Mona, Mermista and Goodra! Team Aquarius!" Magenta said.
"Okay, can someone explain why I have to join the tournament?!" Mona questioned. "I'm not much of a fighter compared to the rest of the Alliance and the Rebellion! I'm just a Hydro Mage for Archon's sake!"
"Well we all entered a lot of names so of course yours went in too." Mermista said. "Guess you got lucky."
Mona sighed. "More like unlucky."
"Aw…there there." Goodra said as they hugged her.
"Gh?! Y-You don't have to do that!" Mona stuttered.
"Tough break… Guess that means we're out." Zamazenta said.
"It's quite alright. A lot of us can use the break, anyway." Cheetah said.
"Would be nice if I competed in that tournament." Houki muttered. "But I guess not."
"There's always next time, Houki." Hibiki assured.
"Still sucks that the three of us didn't make the cut." Kiana pouted.
"Least some of your guys got in! I got the raw end of the deal!" Connor said.
"Don't worry, Connor. It's not as bad as you think." Bassam said.
"Still, stinks that out of all of the groups that entered this thing, no one on my end made it." Connor said. "Do they hate me or something?"
"Considering your unnamed act scrambled their servers too, probably." Lan said.
"Yeah…that'd probably do it." Connor said.
"Still, this team over there is quite versatile. Not sure how well they'd work together, but I can definitely see a few highlights from them." Kareem said.
The remainder of the group went to the stands as they noticed some of the unpicked fighters departing into the desert.
"Guess they weren't interested in watching how the fights would play out." Ruby said.
"Hope you are ready, moss head, because when the dust settles, you'll be the one on the ground." Sanji said.
"Let's see that after I cut you up into sashimi, curly brows." Zoro said.
"Oh boy… David and Esmeralda, Zoro and Sanji… Rivalries are already starting to respark, and the tournament hasn't even started yet." Aoesia said.
"Sis, Geiz, GV, Mona, Aether, no matter what happens in this tourney, no hard feelings." Zi-O spoke to his teammates.
"Same to you too, Zi-O." Geiz replied as he and the others noted.
Cure Starlight noticed the slime on Mona. "Uh… Mona? You got slime on your clothes."
"B-Blame the gooey dragon!" Mona retorted.
"Yes…Goodra is quite a hugger. But has a good heart." Tsareena said.
"Also, remember his Hisuian Form? Steel/Dragon is one heck of a type combo." Geiz mentioned. "Luckily the Goodra on your team is not Steel/Dragon."
"Ugh…" Mona groaned. "Despite his… actions, I'm not letting either of you going after him. He's my teammate, after all."
"Anyway, best of luck, guys." Aether smiled, as he and the others shared a fist-bump.
"Oh, one more thing, brother." Cure Starlight spoke to Zi-O. "This will be a chance to see who is stronger. A Kamen Rider, or a Pretty Cure."
"Heh, we'll see." Zi-O smirked. "Just don't get eliminated first."
"And now…with all 12 teams assembled, let's get the fights underway!" Magenta said.
As the audience cheered, JP watched from his private seat.
"Sir…I take it you're okay with how the fighters were…selected." a servant asked.
"Yes. You did well." JP said. "Tell me…is the arena set?"
"All citizens have evacuated. But you should know that the criminal element is still hanging around and some of the rejected fighters are starting to mix with them."
"It's fine." JP said. "It's part of the reason why I left that rule in there. Should make things…interesting. Besides…seeing how they handle unexpected factors will help us get a better grasp on how they operate. Help me understand them better."
"Of course." they said. "(Of course, with a rule like that, it wouldn't just be rejected fighters who could take advantage. Let's see…how they handle the situation)" they thought.