Fremont Street, Las Vegas…
"Oh, this looks like a good place!" Ender said as he and his allies stood at the entrance to Fremont Street.
"I…have my reservations about going here." Maera said.
"But this is where I'm sensing people! There's gotta be someone here who's seen the prison!" Ender said.
"Yes…and that would be a problem." Fujin said. "According to the reports, this area is under the control of a group known as the Fremont Syndicate. They're made up of certain gangs who prefer not to take orders from those who control the Strip. They have a tendency to shoot first, rather than ask questions. Fools, all of them."
"Well…maybe if we explain the situation, we can-" Ender started, before he heard voices. "Huh? You hear that?"
The three turned to see the approaching figures of Team Aquarius; they hadn't noticed them yet.
"...Oh great." Fujin sighed in aggravation.
"Huh? Something wrong, Fujin?" Ender asked.
"I'd prefer not to have an encounter with that team in particular." Fujin said. "Let's just say that a…previous notion about me from one of them might cause some hostility."
"Sounds tough. Don't worry, I've got it!" Ender said as he grabbed Fujin and Maera and teleported above Fremont Street's entrance, out of sight from the group.
"Fremont Street…this seems to be it." Thorani said.
"Wow…so cool looking." Goodra said.
"It's an indoor shopping mall, of course it's cool." Mermista said.
"Hm?" Mona suddenly felt a strange wind with her hair flowing.
"Is something the matter, Mona?" Thorani asked.
"That's odd… I somehow felt a familiar wind earlier." Mona replied.
"(Please don't look up, please don't look up, please don't look up…)" the trio above pleaded internally.
It was just then that the lights turned out.
"Huh…what's going on?" Mermista said as a single spotlight shined on the center, catching everyone's attention.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we welcome you to a night of extraordinary feats of magic, water, strength and wonder. As tonight, we have an incredible show for you all." a voice said as in the spotlight stepped in Meowscarada.
"Uh…." Mermista said.
"Now…let's introduce our cast of performers!" Meowscarada said as spotlights shined down. "Our wonderful lady High Elf Archer, Legolia as her marksmanship puts gun holders to shame! The all around swordsmonster, Gobta and his fierce Tempest Wolf partner! Gaze upon the strength of the fierce wolfman himself, Valfor. And last, we have the incarnation of wrath and is not afraid to defend the words of his lord, Mark Anarchy!" he said introducing all four of them. "And last but not least, I am your ringmaster, your humble magician, but you can just call me Meowscarada."
"Team Sagittarius." Mona said, staring at the opposing team. "And Mark Anarchy is with them."
"Phew…that cat took all their attention towards them." Fujin breathed a sigh of relief.
"Let's make our escape before they battle." Maera said.
"Good. Let's…" Fujin said seeing Ender gone. "Hey, where'd he go?"
The two looked down to see Ender sneaking by the groups and entering the Circa casino.
"...I'm going to kill him." Fujin declared.
"We'd better make sure he doesn't cause any trouble." Maera said. "Follow me. We'll take another route in."
"I'm seriously going to kill him." Fujin said as the two Dark Garden members snuck away, careful not to be seen.
"So, was this whole big entrance Meowscarada's idea?" Mermista asked.
"Right on the mark. He practically demanded we make our entrance flashy once another team arrived." Legolia sighed.
"Aw, C'mon Legolia! You gotta admit it was pretty cool." Gobta said. "Plus, he announced us so awesomely!"
"Some of us are not liable to theatrics as much as you are, Gobta." Valfor said.
"...Take your pick, guys." Mona spoke to her team. "And don't say I'm sitting in the sidelines. If I'm in this tournament, I have to fight."
"None of us were gonna say that." Mermista assured. "Simon, you're the only one of us who can handle Mark, so would you mind taking care of that problem?"
"But of course, and I'll leave the rest to you ladies." Simon said.
"Well…I think we know where everyone stands." Meowscarada said as Valfor went at Goodra as Gobta went at Mermista.
"Then it looks like I'll try my luck with the Dendro cat." Mona declared, adjusting her mage hat with her sights on Meowscarada.
"Guess that means it's you and me, Thorani." Legolia noted as she steadied her bow and drew an arrow.
"Indeed, please know that I take no pleasure from this." Thorani said.
"Yeah, I know you don't like fighting if you can't help it. Must be hard fighting friends, even if it's a tournament."
"When it comes to events like these, I prefer not to be involved. I much prefer a more friendlier touch like the Olympic Games, not a violent event like this." Thorani said. "But even so, I was selected randomly to be a part of Team Aquarius, so I'll do my part."
"Nice of you to say that. Still, sorry in advance!" Legolia said as she quickly shot her first arrow straight at Thorani, followed by another one that curved to the side to hit her blind spot.
Thorani quickly turned into a pool of water as she avoided the two arrows before reforming and firing several water shots from her hair.
Legolia jumped to avoid the water blasts as they hit a wall as she went to higher ground above the casino signs and started running to avoid more of Thorani's attacks. She then leaped from one of the Casino signs to the other side of the street and fired a trio of arrows.
Thorani erected a solid shield of water as it stopped the arrows in their tracks. But before she could even put it down to retaliate, Legolia quickly drew another arrow and fired it, this one hitting the shield directly. But it then suddenly burst into a jolt of electricity on contact, shocking Thorani and pushing her back.
"Very impressive, Legolia. You timed your attack with the arrow type I'm most susceptible to in a split second." Thorani said. "You give Zebei something to consider using himself."
"Nice to know I can give some of our other archers chances to improve." Legolia said.
"But you should also be aware of the puddles of water around you as well." Thorani said before channeling two levels of Iddhi as she turned into a puddle and activating the puddles she formed from her attacks as they began dealing constant damage.
"Yikes!" Legolia said, registering the pain from the attacks as she stayed on the move. She had to avoid any puddles along the way. From there, it was a battle of arrows vs water magic, as both the High elf and Deva exchanged their projectiles.
"Y'know, this could go on forever between us!" Legolia noted.
"Yes, but you'll run out of ammo, whereas I have a plentiful supply of water." Thorani said.
"I'd better make my shots count then." Legolia said. "Y'know, for someone who doesn't like fighting, you sure don't make things easy."
"I said I'll do my part, didn't I? Well, no matter who wins between our teams, we still get the bracelet. But that doesn't mean I will be defeated easily." Thorani said.
"That makes two of us." Legolia assured as the two continued their battle.
Meanwhile, inside of the Circa…
"Alright, you got us here. Now, what seems to be a problem?" asked the lead man at a table occupied by ten gang leaders, their various henchmen scattered around the room. His appearance was odd; he wore bright, neon-colored clothes and a fedora that made him stand out in any room.
Mr. Neon
Head of the Neo-Neons, Controller of the Circa
"Quirky Syndicate Master"
"I think you know what the damn problem is!" Bill shouted, slamming his hand on the table. The anchor leaned against his chair was a clear indicator of what would happen if things got out of control. "My boys were splattered against an alleyway wall! I know you're the ones behind it!"
"Easy, Bill." The Banker cautioned his fellow leader, before he turned to Mr. Neon. "Listen, I know we don't see eye to eye on a lot of things, but I'm sure you've noticed the Warzone that's happening in our city. The last thing we need right now is infighting."
"Of course you would say that." a woman in a dapper magician's outfit said with a sneer. "That's the problem with you, Big Men: you always end your shows too early if it messes with your bottom line."
Shia-Kazing!
Head of The Freakshow, Controller of the Circus Circus Las Vegas
"Renegade Ringleader"
"Hey, this thing affects all our bottom lines, not just us five." The Banker said. "Look, just fess up; did you kill the Diver Boys or not?"
"Ha. Why would we waste our power on pathetic common soldiers?" a man in a toga scoffed. "If I had been there, your Vice-Admiral friend would be in Pluto's domain now."
Laissez Faire
Head of Imperial Investors, Controller of Caesars Palace
"Emperor of Extravagance"
"You want to prove that claim, Faire?!" Bill snarled, grabbing his anchor with one hand.
"Bill, please!" Tut pleaded to the former Marine.
"H-Hey! Let's not have tempers flare here!" cautioned a man in a gold suit and tie, with blonde hair and yellow eyes. "This is a respectable establishment!"
Midas Malcolm
Head of the Gold Fingers, Controller of the Golden Nugget
"Richest Man in Vegas"
"Ah, c'mon Malcolm. We can afford to live a little." Mr. Neon said, sitting back in his chair. "Hell, it doesn't even matter if the city goes up in smoke. Chance to renovate and expand, I say!"
"Neon, this is serious!" Banker said. "We've been in a cold war for years now. If you're serious about starting an open gang war while the effing Hero Alliance is here, then-"
"Us starting a gang war? Hahaha!" the last leader at the table, a burly man dressed like a biker, with a fire-red mohawk on his head. "That's gackin' rich, Banker! Especially since you're talking about the Diver Boys while mine are missing!"
Maximum
Head of the Roadhogs, Controller of El Cortez
"Born to be Wild"
"What? The Roadhogs are missing?" Slick asked, the five Big Men being caught off guard by this new development.
"Yeah. For a few hours now." Malcolm piped up. "They went joyriding at the Speedway, but got chased off by Esmeralda of Reformed Society. Since then, no calls, no texts, nothing."
"Know what I think?" Maximum said. "I'm thinking you killed my boys, then offed the Divers to cover your gackin' asses! Wouldn't surprise me; you Marines assholes have killed your own boys for less!"
"What?! You dare think I-?!" Bill raged before Banker waved him down.
"It couldn't be us. This is the first we're hearing of the Roadhogs going missing." Banker said. "And our men were all lying low at The Mob Museum once the Warzone started. If they're dead, it wasn't us."
"He speaks the truth." Sir Fred nodded. "My knights were there as well. That's why there were none to stop the Excalibur's destruction."
"Bullcrap! I know you had something to do with it!" Maximum said.
"We're telling you, we had nothing to do with it!" Tut promised.
"Like Hell you-!" Shia-Kazing started before something fell onto the table from above, startling the gang leaders. "What in blazes-?!"
"I am okay!" Ender said, getting up. "Hi there, everyone! Have any of you seen a fleshy looking prison around here?"
His question was answered by a chorus of clicking as all the gangsters drew their guns and pointed them at the Enderman, who looked around. "...So that's a no then?"
"Is that an Enderman? Why would…?" Slick asked.
"Wait…what if he's the one that killed my boys?!" Bill pointed out.
"Eh? I did what to who?" Ender asked.
"We will drag the answers out of him!" Sir Fred declared, drawing his sword. "ATTACK!"
"Uh oh." Ender stated as the gangster began firing, the Color Fighter teleporting out of the line of fire, reappearing up above, hanging on a large chandelier.
"Up there!" one of the mooks pointed, the rest aiming up…
…Before a teal wind blade sliced the chandelier's support off the roof, sending it plummeting down. The gang leaders leaped away from the table as the light fixture landed with a crash, destroying the table and scattering glass and gold fixture bits around the area.
"Reckless creature." Fujin said, floating down from above, a look of annoyance on his face. "Are you incapable of thinking about the consequences of your actions? Did you honestly believe they would simply answer your questions because you asked nicely?"
"Uh…maybe?" Ender replied.
"Ugh, your naïveté is painful to watch." The Dark Periodic captain scoffed. "At least temper it with common sense…"
"Then it's a good thing we can make up for that, eh?" Maera said, dropping down to join the trio. "Now then, gentlemen…it would be in your best interests to lower your weapons. I assure you." he spoke to the gangsters.
"Wait a minute…they're with Dark Garden!" Tut realized.
"Who cares?! If that thing killed my boys…" Bill growled as he hoisted his anchor over his shoulder. "Then it's not getting away!"
"For once, you and I agree on something!" Maximum cackled. "Let's gackin' waste these fools!"
"...Y'know, I really should've just used the door." Ender said aloud.
"Now you realize that?!" Fujin yelled.
Meanwhile, Mona kept using her Hydro Dash to avoid being hit by Meowscarada's attacks. "You really know how to be this annoying, you cat!" Mona retorted while launching her own Hydro blasts.
"Annoying? No. Dazzling? Yes!" Meowscarada said, skillfully dodging Mona's blasts as he stylishly posed before he snapped his fingers, causing a plethora of Flower Tricks to come down from above onto her.
Mona tried her best to evade, until one of them struck her which caused an explosion. Meowscarada took a closer look once the smoke dispersed…only to see a magic doodle drawing of Mona sticking her tongue out instead.
"Oh… quite the trickster yourself, aren't you?" Meowscarada asked… before the drawing detonated, causing the cat to be trapped inside a hydro sphere, while the real Mona revealed herself via teleport and summoned several hydro swords around the sphere.
"I'll take that as a compliment." Mona smirked and waved her hand, causing the swords to plunge onto Meowscarada relentlessly while she summoned a magic circle in front of her and unleashed a hydro blast with the power of a Hydro Pump, further damaging the Pokémon.
"Wow! Despite the type disadvantage, Mona's really kicking some butt!" Flamberge said.
"I wouldn't count Meowscarada out yet though. He may only just be pretending to be caught in Mona's trap before making a clever escape." Hope said, having rejoined the group in the stands.
"Wait, so you're saying this is another one of his tricks?" Paimon guessed.
"Exactly. He's not the type to just walk into a trap without a plan." Riolu said.
"Plus, Meowscarada is a showman after all." GS Pikachu said.
Meowscarada smiled as he looked at all the cameras focused on him. "Well…seems it's about time to put on a real show." he said as Mona fired another water blast as electricity surged around his paw. "Thunder Punch!" he said punching the sphere as the electricity surged around it and the blast as it shocked Mona and destroyed the sphere. "And that was Meowscarada's incredible water escape!" he said with a bow as the audience outside as well as Ender applauded him.
"What?!" Mona exclaimed. "You can also use Electro?!"
"You thought I would stick with just Grass Type Moves? Grass, Ghost, Fairy and Electric. I can use all four of these types." Meowscarada said. "Part of my act after all. I could have escaped at any time but wanted to build up the tension for the audience, I mean we are being televised."
"Tch…!" Mona muttered before summoning Hydro constructs of animals such as ducks, crabs, birds and boars, and commanded them to attack. "If it's a show you want, then let's give it to them!"
"Oh my…seems I'm not the only master of magic tonight." Meowscarada said as he started maneuvering around the constructs as he was striking each with either Thunder Punch, Shadow Claw or Flower Trick as he moved closer to Mona. As he did, he put a paw on three pictures of himself before tossing them to the wind.
"(Guess I have no choice… and I can't use my Elemental Burst since he might use Electro on the Hydro field, causing me to get caught in the crossfire… Even through my divination, I already know the outcome of this battle…)" Mona thought as she summoned more of her constructs before stopping.
"(Is she surrendering? No…no…that won't make it entertaining.)" Meowscarada thought as he slowed his assault as he let himself be hit by the constructs.
"Huh?!" Mona gasped at the Pokémon's sudden change of tactics and took the hits. "What are you doing?! You're not supposed to get hit by those with your skills!"
"It is because…I am a showman! And…if you give up even knowing the result…then how can it be true entertainment?!" Meowscarada said. "(Yes…I know how it felt…)"
Meowscarada thought back to earlier days as it performed on a number of worlds only to be chased out even though it knew it would happen. Until he was left in an alley where rain came down hard before it was offered a hand by a certain guild of Pokémon.
It was then shown happier times of rescues and entertaining the frightened with simple tricks.
"(Yes…true entertainment…that is all I wish to give. No more, no less!)" he thought. "I don't want a boring battle with a predictable result. We need to give the audience…something that'll excite them so they'll remember it for years to come!" he called out.
"You…" Mona whispered in surprise after hearing the Pokemon's words.
"The future isn't set in stone, so how do you know I will defeat you? What good is a stage like this if you're not willing to show everyone what you are made of?" Meowscarada asked.
"..." Mona was silent as he took the Pokemon's words slowly. Even though her divinations never showed any lies, she never thought of how they would properly end. With that thought in mind, Mona adjusted her mage hat and unleashed her Elemental Burst, covering the whole area in a hydro field complete with a rainstorm. "Very well… if you want me to fight at my best… then so be it." She smiled, unleashing pillars of water from below as they approached Meowscarada.
"That's more like it! Magnificent!" Meowscarada said as he dashed at the pillars with Shadow Claw while still taking damage from them.
"Hm, there's something different about Mona now, isn't there?" Gimlior said.
"Meowscarada must've got her fired up. I bet she was assured she'd lose because of how strong he was, but he didn't want her to throw the fight." Adora said.
Mona responded to the Pokémon in kind by performing her version of Aqua Jet and colliding with Meowscarada.
"Not bad at all. Now that is the spirit of a true magician and showman!" Meowscarada said.
"I happen to be an astrologist too, you know! Only the stars above decide the outcome!" Mona replied as she and the Pokemon trade blows with hydro blasts.
"I think Astromagician suits you better." Meowscarada said as he also traded blows using Play Rough.
The attacks soon came to a standstill as both fighters stood on opposite sides.
"And with that…the curtain falls…" Meowscarada said, taking a bow to the cameras before collapsing to the ground.
"...You fought well… Meowscarada…" Mona panted in exhaustion and bowed back after taking off her hat. "If I ever… go to your world… I might… take care of your… kin…" Afterwards, she also collapsed with no strength left.
"Whoa! It's a double knockout! Both Meowscarada and Mona have both fallen in battle!" Magenta called out.
"Wow. What a way to go out." Paimon remarked in surprise.
"Still… that was one amazing show, isn't it?" Lumine smiled and applauded.
"Yeah. They both fought their hardest." Serena agreed.
"You were great out there, Mona!" Outrider Amber cheered.
"I will bring her here for medical attention. Please excuse me." Noelle bowed before using her Zikan Phone Blaster to summon a wormhole and pulled out Mona in a bridal carry before the wormhole vanished.
"Get some rest, Mona. You've earned it." Lumine smiled as Noelle took Mona away for medical attention.
"Well done, Meowscarada." GS Pikachu said.
"Yeah!" most of Ginhana Sky cheered as they applauded their fallen comrade.
"It was really nice of Meowscarada to give Mona that boost in fighting spirit." Mahiru said.
"Yeah…that's what performers do. They make the show more exciting." GS Oshawott said.
"With both teams now at 4 apiece, it's still anyone's guess as to who will get the advantage for their team!" Magenta Voice said.
The main casino of the Circa had turned into a warzone of its own; fire of both bullets and lasers flew around the room, all of them trying to hit the three intruders.
Unfortunately for the gangsters, it wasn't going well. At all.
"Yay! That Meowscarada is a great performer!" Ender cheered, watching a TV screen in the room.
"Are you watching that fight while we're trying to shoot you?!" several gangsters shouted in disbelief.
"Huh? Oh yeah, we're fighting! Thanks for reminding me!" Ender said as he teleported into the group of criminals upside down and, spinning on his head, kicked all of them with one leg and launched them away, teleporting right-side up afterwards. "Whee!"
"So, you're an Enderman, huh?" a voice said as Shia-Kazing stood above him on the railing. "I heard your species was one to be feared. Guess those rumors were unfounded."
"Yeah, we're not so bad once you get to know us!" Ender said. "I really don't wanna fight, though…"
"Shame about that, then." the gang leader remarked as she pulled out a wand. "You're about to learn why you don't mess with the Syndicate." she said as she waved her wand, several slot machines rising up behind her. With a wave of her hand, the machines went flying towards Ender.
"Oh, oh, I know this one!" Ender said as he raised his hands out and caught one of the slot machines. He then used it to bat the rest of them away, then threw his at the magician-styled gang leader. "Catch!"
Eyes widening with mild surprise, Shia-Kazing used her wand to catch the machine, the momentum making it so that it almost reached her. She then flung the machine behind her. "Alright, that's not going to work…" she mused, thinking it over before she got an idea. "Okay then…let's see if this works!" she said, aiming her wand at the rug under Ender's feet and zapping it with a spell.
"Huh?" the Color Fighter said as the ground started rumbling…and then turned into liquid, causing Ender to fall in.
"There. Endermen can't swim, so that should keep him busy for a-" Shia started, before she was interrupted by said Enderman leaping up out of the tiny pool.
"YEEEEE-OOOOWWW!" Ender screamed as he proceeded to run around flailing in the air.
"What the hell…?" Kazing gaped before Ender teleported behind her and ran past, unintentionally knocking her off the railing, causing her to fall to the ground below.
"Ow, ow, ow!" Ender panicked before he then shook himself off like a dog, which (somehow) managed to get all the water off. "Phew…glad that's over. Now, where's the…?" he asked before he saw Shia-Kazing lying on the ground, with a bump on her head and birds circling around her. "Oh…hey, I won!"
"That stupid Enderman took out the boss!" one of the goons of Freakshow called.
"What kind of idiot is that?!" another asked. "There's no way someone so dumb could win against her!"
Maera looked at Ender with interest. "Defying someone with that magic so easily…so that's the power of the Cartoon Style: not simply defying reality, but logic."
"The other masters really helped me out in showing me how to control this style. In order to use the Cartoon Style, I've gotta stop asking how things work! Up is down, left is right, fun is everywhere! That's the life I gotta live!" Ender said.
"The very life of a cartoon character itself. To use the Cartoon Style, you must act and think like one of them." Fujin said. "...Now his actions make more sense. Somehow…I'm even less at ease."
"That makes two of us, Fujin." Maera said. "I'm starting to wonder if we'll be safe around him…"
"Hey, could you guys do me a favor and keep the rest of them busy?" Ender asked. "I'm gonna see if the prison is here!" he said, teleporting away.
"For our sakes, it's better that once we're done with the rabble, we leave him to his own devices." Fujin said. "I'd rather take my chances with the alliance than with him at this point."
"The act leaves a bad taste in my mouth…but your logic is solid." Maera agreed.
"Don't think you two are gonna leave the Circa in one piece!" a Freakshow thug said.
"Do you intend to stop us?" Fujin said, sighing as he formed a wind blade.
"If so, you're sorely mistaken." Maera added, as from his wrists, two silver blades popped out before being set aflame. "Allow us to introduce ourselves properly. I am Maera, from Dark Spell. And this is Fujin, from Dark Periodic."
"We are both captains in our respective Dark Garden branches." Fujin added. "And you all…well, we can get your names from your graves later." he said with a wicked smirk as the gangsters pointed their weapons at the two.
Back on the street…
Valfor and Goodra continued their tussle, with Valfor landing decent hits on Goodra, but not really doing much to deter him.
"This isn't getting either of us anywhere. Wouldn't you ratther hug it out instead?" Goodra asked.
"After the fight. I'm not really looking to get covered in slime right now." Valfor said as he kept going with his attacks. "So after our adventures in Solistia, Rayleigh and I are the only ones without any special powers or weapons, huh? Honestly, makes me feel a bit small."
"You're still doing great. I mean, I'm not really suited to physical attackers anyway." Goodra said.
"Yes, you are more suited for more magic based defense, are you not?" Valfor asked. "I envy you, you know. Those in our group that have Pokemon talk about how you're a…psuedo-Legendary, I believe they said. So I knew you had to be strong."
"Yeah. Too bad it only rains here like…three times a year. That would've really helped." Goodra said. "I may seem goofy, but I am not an idiot. I know I'm going to lose to someone like you. But I would make a poor representation to my guild if I just stood here and let you have the win. So, I'm going to give this everything I have!"
"That's what I like to hear, otherwise what would be the point, right? No matter who your opponent is, even if you think you're fighting a losing battle, as long as you give it everything you've got, you can walk away from it with no regrets." Valfor said.
"Then like Meowscarada, I'll do my best!" Goodra said. "Take this! Dragon Pulse!" Goodra said, blasting a beam of dragon energy right at Valfor.
Valfor was able to avoid it just as his leg was about to get singed. "Yes, that's the spirit!" he said as he charged on all fours.
"You can't go as fast as you can if you're hindered by something! Muddy Water!" Goodra said as he summoned a flood of muddy water that flooded Valfor's path to the Dragon-type.
"Hindering my charge with mud? Not bad. Actually quite clever." Valfor said as the mud started to slow him down a bit. He even almost ended up slipping a couple of times during his pursuit.
"And now since you're like that, there's nothing you can do to avoid this! Hydro Pump!" Goodra said, nailing Valfor dead on with an intense blast of water.
"Gah-aah!" Valfor cried out as he landed on the sidewalk, mud washed off, but all wet. "Gah… Now my fur is all soggy…"
"Sorry! That's probably gonna be a bit of a problem later…" Goodra said.
"Nah… At least it washed the mud off." Valfor said as he shook off the water, causing his fur to puff up. "Damn it… Knew that was going to happen." he said as he took a moment to straighten up his fur. "Phew… Now that that's out of the way…" He said as he charged again. "(I have to be very careful against this one. Despite his disposition, he is clearly no pushover.)"
"(If i can land one or two more special attacks, i can win! I'll make these shots count.)" Goodra thought. "I'm going to try and end this right now, Valfor! If you think you can do the same, come at me!"
"I wasn't exactly waiting for an invitation!" Valfor said as he kept going, even weaving between the lanes to throw off projectile attacks.
"Moving like that won't help you. Not against this!" Goodra said. "Draco… Meteor!" he called, summoning a rain of meteors down from the sky.
"Goodra's putting it all on the line, aiming to take out Valfor in one shot with one of the most powerful Dragon type attacks in history!" Magenta called.
"(This is going to be really close…)" Valfor said as he eyed the meteors. "(It's going to come down to the wire!)"
As he concentrated, Goodra moved in close before sending the werewolf flying with his tail as he took all the meteors in midair before coming crashing down.
"Oof… Yeah, I'm beat. There's no way I'm getting up from that." Valfor said. "Guess I pumped you up a little too well with my little speech, did I?"
"Nah. I just knew I could trip you up if you focused on the meteors." Goodra said.
"Ha… Well played, dear Psuedo-Legendary. Well played." Valfor said.
"Aw…don't worry. I'll make it better." Goodra said as he hugged the fallen werewolf, despite his protests.
"Oh well… I did promise him after the fight." Valfor sighed.
"And Valfor of Team Sagittarius has been knocked off the board! Will this be the end for…wait…I'm getting new info…Whoa! Seems Team Sagittarius has taken out another of Team Aquarius!" Magenta said, showing footage of Gobta landing a kick to Mermista as she fell unconscious to the ground. "Gobta of Team Sagittarius has overtaken the mermaid princess Mermista!"
"Holy crap, I can't believe I beat Mermista!" Gobta said, not entirely believing it himself. "(I mean, I really can't. I didn't think that move would even hit. I just got lucky, but better not let everyone else know that.)" he thought.
"With both Team Sagittarius and Aquarius now down to just three members each, things are looking even… for now at least!" Magenta said. "The match that may just decide this battle will definitely be the one raging between Simon Neptune and Mark Anarchy!"
"Simon and Mark are an even match. It's a reincarnated Vice Angel versus a Nephilim enhanced with the magic of an Umbra Witch and the power of an Intoner. Heaven and Hell on both sides." Hope said.
"Yeah…and then there's the small fact that he knows Simon can take a lot of damage." Eddy remarked. "For those not in the know, when he knows how far he can go when fighting he…well…"
"He goes as far as he can." Bardock said.
A group of Roulette Knights were forced to shields to block a wind blade from Fujin; this, however, did them no good, the blade simply slicing the shields in half.
"If this is what passes for power in this city, it's a wonder they haven't been dealt with already." the Dark Periodic captain scoffed. "The Treasure Hoarders employ better fighters than this trash."
The man's trash talking came to an end when he was slammed in the back by an anchor, sending him careening forwards before he used his Elemental Skill to go airborne and steady himself. He then caught sight of the one who hit him: Admiral Bill, laying his anchor on one shoulder.
"That's enough out of you, son!" Bill called. "You think just because you've got power that it makes you better than us? I've been fighting pirates with Devil Fruit powers since before you were born!"
"I highly doubt that." Fujin replied.
"I'll silence that mockery of yours for good!" Bill declared as he leaped into the air, before rapidly jumping off of it.
"(Moonwalk…so he uses the Six Powers…)" Fujin noted as he followed the former Marine's movements, charging up a wind blade before launching it into their path.
However, without looking, Bill brought his anchor to bear, blocking the blade from hitting him. Fujin griminced when he made the connection. "(Observation Haki as well…)"
The gang leader managed to reach Fujin, swinging his anchor as it glowed black. The former wanderer managed to catch the anchor with both his hands, but could feel the strength behind the blow. Enough so that he was forced to back off, lest he be overwhelmed.
"(Armament Haki too?)" Fujin thought. "(Hm…it seems this one will require some effort…)"
For his part, Maera was busy slicing down whoever came at him with his blades. After taking down a Shinto Seven grunt, he looked up to see Fujin playing keep away from Admiral Bill.
"Hold on for just a moment, Fujin. I'll-" Maera tried to call to his fellow captain, only to be cut off by him having to dodge a punch to his face. Turning to face his attacker, he saw Maximum standing tall, cracking his knuckles.
"We haven't had a good scrap since my boys spiked everybody's eggnog at the last Christmas party…" the Roadhog's leader smiled in excited battle lust. "This is gonna be gackin' good!"
Maximum then charged the mechanical puppet, throwing a punch towards his face. Maera managed to sidestep the punch and slashed at his opponent with his on fire swords. To his mild shock, however, the punk just took the attack and kept going, hitting the Dark Spell captain with a dropkick.
"Damn…a tough one…" Maera groaned as he recovered from the kick just in time to roll out of the way of a curbstomp by Maximum.
"You're gackin' dead, you overgrown toy!" Maximum cackled as he then jumped and attempted to hit the robot with an elbow drop. Maera, however, managed to stab both of his blades into the gang leader's torso before flinging him away. And still, even with two holes and a long gash in his chest, Maximum still got up again.
"By the gods, what empowers this man?!" Maera exclaimed as his opponent came at him again.
"Doo-doo-doo…doo-doo-doo-doo…" Ender hummed as he was looking under tables, chairs, slot machines, and…everything else, looking for the prison. "Nope, not here… Not here either…gee, I wonder where it could be…?"
He was interrupted in the middle of his search by a curious sound; it sounded like a frog, but it felt…wrong.
"Hm? Hello, can I help…?" Ender said as he turned towards the sound, only to stop dead quiet at what he saw. His purple eyes shrunk as the only sound he could make was a low, ragged gasp of pure terror.
Fujin had come to the conclusion that, after this assignment, he would NEVER step foot into this city again. Getting batted around by an anchor would do that.
"I'm not one for pointless chatter, but…what the hell are you doing in Vegas?!" Fujin yelled at Bill as he fired wind blade after wind blade at the admiral, each one getting dissipated by that damn anchor!
"Heh. Served on the Grand Line for thirty years. Managed to make it to Vice-Admiral." Bill said as he used Moonwalk and Shave together to close the gap between him and the former Harbinger. "Could've made Admiral if that Aramaki brat hadn't found himself a Devil Fruit."
He then swung his anchor straight into Fujin's head, knocking him out of the air. The DP captain landed hard on the ground as Bill landed in front of him, then raised his anchor to crush his head.
"This is for my boys, little man!" Bill said, as he swung the anchor down…
…only for Fujin to catch it with one hand, holding it in place.
"And so, you step away from your position, and end up here…" Fujin remarked. "Heh. It seems you've forgotten the lesson that brought you here. Allow me to remind you."
Fujin then used a charged wind blade to knock the anchor away, Bill's arm rearing back to keep it from flying away. This gave the Anemo user a chance to fly up above the former Marine and compress a ball of Anemo energy, which he stomped on with a sadistic grin and a single declaration:
"Know your place!"
The ball then exploded, overpowering both the Admiral's anchor and his quickly thrown together Iron Body (which didn't do anything against the elemental attack), getting cut repeatedly by the air. He was then launched back until he landed into the bar, shattering it to pieces.
"Aw man! That was $5,000 in alcohol you just smashed!" One of the Neo-Neon mooks complained, earning him a wind blade for his troubles.
Meanwhile, Maera was finding himself on the defensive against his unnaturally durable opponent, having to backpedal away from an attempted grapple from Maximum.
"(At this point, I might even have to use that…)" the robot thought to himself. "(I have to wonder if JP knew the gang leaders were this capable. Does he intend to have them act like tests for the heroes?)"
"Gackin' metal freak! Get back here and take your pounding like a man!" Maximum declared as he charged his foe.
"Gods know you can…" Maera muttered as he considered his options. However, the option was chosen for him.
"When I'm done with you, you'll be a gackin' heater-!" Maximum yelled, before he was abruptly stopped by an anvil landing on his head. He stood in place for a moment as birds circled around his head before he collapsed.
"What in…?" the Dark Spell robot wondered before Ender appeared before him. "Oh, Ender. So glad you could-"
"We have to go." Ender interrupted him, sounding unusually frightened.
"What? But if the heroes outside see us, then-"
"We have to go, NOW!" Ender repeated, grabbing Maera and holding him over his shoulder. "Fujin! We're leaving now!"
"Oh? Have you had your fill of foolishness for one-?" Fujin started before Ender grabbed him and held him with his other arm. "What the-?! Put me down, you-!"
"Shut up! We have to get out of here!" Ender said as he took off running for the door.
"Don't let them get away!" one of the Crypto Company said as most of the mooks all took off after them.
"Damn…" Banker growled. "Neon…"
"I know, I know." Mr. Neon said. "Looks like we've found our murderers. Boys!" he said to the remaining mooks and gang leaders. "Grab Shia, Max, and Bill. We're heading out."
Simon found himself being launched into a wall, the stone cratering behind him, while Mark stood on the opposite side of the street, cracking his knuckles.
"I know that's not the best you got." Mark said. "C'mon Simon, you know I can handle what you've got!"
"Oh, but with the new weapon I got on hand, that would be hard to say." Simon said. "And you know… I've always wondered how a battle between us would go if we went no holds barred."
"So what're you waiting for? You gonna show me your new toy or not?" Mark asked.
"Just one question for you." Simon said as two golden halos appeared around his ankles. "What do you fancy?" he asked as red metallic bracers appeared on his wrists.
"Never seen that kind of weapon before. What is it?" Ethox asked.
"Oh, you don't know? It's a special, one of a kind item, that's only gifted to those who can beat a certain fallen angel in single combat." Nine said.
"Rodin." Emiya said.
"Rodin? Isn't he the owner of the Gates of Hell?" Hilda asked. "I mean, I know he's a weaponsmith too, but… no one said he was a Fallen Angel or anything."
"Actually, I did feel something was unusual about him when we first encountered him, but I didn't say anything because I didn't want us being too curious." Lysithea said.
"He was once an angel in charge of creation and ruled a portion of Paradiso, but was exiled after fighting in an insurgency against them." Rime explained. "The weapon Simon is wielding, as Nine explained, is only gifted by him to those who best him in combat. It isn't easy to defeat him, but if you are able to… the power of the Rodin is yours to command."
"What does it do that makes it so special?" Hilda asked.
"Watch and see."
Mark put his guard up, sensing that there was power in the bracers, definitely something even he would be wary of.
(Cue- The incarnation of devil- Star Ocean 3: Till the End of Time)
Simon charged forward and masqueraded with Rodin, while his appearance remained unchanged, he had large red feathered wings glowing in a red hue. Once he got in close, the bracers on his wrists glowed as appearing in his hands was a pair of twin chainsaw swords as he began slashing at Mark.
Mark evaded the slashes as much as he could, feeling a few of the attacks get through.
"Ow, dammit! What are those weapons made of, they actually hurt!" Mark said.
"Just some weapons used by lesser known Infernals." Simon said before the swords were switched out with a shotgun. "Sorry in advance." he said with a wink before firing off a powerful blast that sent Mark flying.
Regaining his senses, Mark curled into a ball and spun, landing on a wall, feet planted on it, before launching himself straight towards Simon.
The halos on Simon's ankles glowed as a shield materialized in front of him as it stopped the attack upon contact before bouncing Mark back. The half-angel responded by Instant Transmissioning behind Simon, then hitting him with a Ki Blast that knocked him away.
"Y'know, we might end up breaking the whole street…but screw it! Let's go!" Mark said, shifting into his Six-Armed Vajra Form.
Simon got up as blood stains covered his body. "Bring it." he said, activating Intoner Mode as he raised his hands into the air and screamed as the blood burst off him into flower petals and his body glowed a neon pink-red as he was heard singing.
What followed after that was nothing but pure destruction. The minute Mark and Simon's fists collided, a sonic boom went off from their clash.
"The Power of Song, to think it now resides in the young Umbran." Rime said.
"Oh, you didn't know about that part? Yeah, Simon has the power of this being called an Intoner. Apparently, he's linked to one called Rose, also known as Intoner Zero." Adora said.
"I have heard of her. She was the eldest and most powerful of the Intoners long ago." Rime said. "So like Mark, Simon also has a link to a being of unimaginable power."
"Yeah, but I don't think Simon is able to manifest Rose within his body like Mark can with Ira. Still, it makes him incredibly powerful." Adora said.
It did indeed, as they saw on the screen, Mark and Simon were exchanging powerful blows that rocked every inch of Fremont street. Gobta, Legolia, Goodra and Thorani all felt the shockwaves.
"Geez! What're Mark and Simon doing over there?!" Legolia asked.
"It's as if two powerful beings are locked in combat." Thorani said.
"Really wish Mark would finish up with that guy." Gobta said.
"I dunno. Simon has a sort of edge." Goodra said.
"They're evenly matched because of how divine their powers both are. This could go on forever." Legolia said. "It'll probably all come down to who's able to outmaneuver the other and get that one big blow in."
The two continued to duke it out all across the street, before Mark got into a position as if he was preparing to launch a Kamehameha.
"That won't do you any good!" Simon said, as he raced to catch the half-angel.
Mark continued to charge, before thrusting his hands out and…
…blew confetti at the Warlock?
"...Uh…" Simon uttered, taken aback. "What was the purpose of that?"
"Oh, that?" Mark asked. "That was to buy me…five seconds, and I win!"
Simon felt two charging attacks, as he looked up to see the other four arms, both pairs charging red-colored Kamehamehas…just in time to get blasted in the face with both of them.
"Okay…that hurt." Simon said as he stood there just as Intoner Mode ended. "You actually almost had me there."
"Right…" Mark said as he IT-ed right in front of Simon. "...Now I have you." he smiled as he grabbed Simon by the face and slammed him into the pavement. "Good fight, Simon. Let's do it again sometime."
"And the fight has ended with Mark Anarchy triumphant over Simon Neptune leaving Team Aquarius down to just Thorani and Goodra!" Magenta said.
"It's three to two now. Think we should surrender?" Goodra asked the deva. "Legolia and Gobta are one thing, and I'm sure Mark's used up a lot of power, but so have we."
"I doubt the both of us can win against Mark, even if Simon only did wear him down a little." Thorani said. "Perhaps it's best we should."
Goodra nodded as both raised their hands.
"And that is the signal. Team Aquarius has surrendered and are declared defeated! Winners are Team Sagittarius!" Magenta said.
"Glad we won but we lost two of our guys in the process too." Gobta said.
"And they were our heaviest hitters." Legolia said. "We've gotten a big chunk taken out of us in this fight."
"So…what's the gameplan now?" Gobta asked Mark.
"Hm…well, since there's only three of us left, I say we take the time to lick our wounds and recover our energy. After all, as good of a fight it was, Team Aquarius wasn't the strongest team in this. The fights are only going to get harder from here."
Both teammates agreed as they decided to hole up until the time was right.
"Only 9 teams are left now." Hope said.
"Yeah and only 5 of them still have a full roster." Aelita said.
"That's not all…seems all the gangs left in the city are mobilizing." Rimuru said. "Guess they aren't too happy about us messing with their turf."
"It's to be expected in a big city like this." Bassam said. "Although… There seems to be something else going on in there as well… I hope it's just my imagination."
"Yeah…and…shouldn't Theo, Ethox, Esmeralda, Glacius and Aether have been back by now?" Lucy asked.
"Uh oh… I hope they didn't get caught up in the chaos while they were being medevaced." Connor said.
"I think we'd better find them. I'm getting a bad feeling about this…" Lumine said.
"Hey. What's the big idea?" Theo said as he, Ethox and Aether were in a private room.
"I'm sorry but our orders were to keep you all here until the procedure involving the women are done." said a man in all black.
"What procedure?" Ethox asked.
"We are not under any obligation to discuss that with you at this time." he said.
"Hmm…you know what? I just remembered, I left my camera on Glacius and need it back." Theo said.
"Your what? Wait, we frisked those two before sending them to the desert lab, there was no camera." he said.
"So they're in a lab in the desert, huh?" Theo said.
"Uh no…I mean yes….ah! It's so confusing!" he said before taking a gun and shooting himself as he fell to the ground.
"Geez, it's not that confusing." Theo said.
"D-Did he just kill himself?!" Aether gasped.
"Guess he said too much. What should we do?" Ethox asked.
"Well, he said the girls were in a lab in the desert…so I guess we're going to the desert." Theo said.
"Yes! Rescue operation, let's do it!" Ethox said.
"Wait a minute, shouldn't we call for backup first?" Aether asked.
"If we wait, it might already be too late. Besides, everyone else is probably busy keeping the gangs in check in the city." Theo said.
"Theo is right. It's too risky. We have to go in alone." Ethox said. "Besides…I can't explain it, but…I feel like everyone else…"
"...has much bigger problems to deal with."
"Hmm…" Aether pondered. "(Sorry sis, Paimon, but it looks like I'm going to be busy for a while.)"
Ender ran right through the door and out into the street, panting in a way that the two Dark Garden captains could tell: Ender was terrified.
The mooks made it to the door. "C'mon, c'mon, get it open!"
"I'm trying! It's not budging!" the grunt in front said.
"What? It's a glass door, just shoot it and-!" another said before the sounding of croaking caught everyone's attention. They all turned around, noticing that the room was growing darker.
"Huh? What was that?" one mook said as the room went totally dark, all of them pointing their weapons into the void. They heard the croaking noise again, louder this time, as they all began to feel a pit of dread forming in their guts.
Then…they appeared.
Before their eyes, the mooks saw bodies dressed in religious looking clothes (Crypto Company mooks would recognize them as the Humarise group from earlier.) They're hands were pressed against each other, as if in prayer, as they stood in line, forming a column.
Or rather…other their upper torsos did. The other half of their bodies were across from them.
"Wh-What in God's name…?" one mook stuttered.
NOT GOD
It appeared from the darkness, flanked by the bodies; it was made up of many emaciated human bodies, with two bodies acting as its legs and four other human bodies acting as its torso, each having a unique face: the one immediately below the neck has no eyes, nose and a vertical mouth, the second head has open eyes and a stitched mouth, the third one has no nose, an open mouth and stitched eyes, and the fourth one has no eyes and a somber expression. Its head was akin to that of a pterodactyl with curved horns. The first human body has its arms stretching outwards holding what seems to be a cape of darkness.
DEVIL
"...OPEN FIRE!" one mook yelled in terror as they fired on it. Their shots did nothing as it approached them without taking a step.
The mook closest to the door banged against it, the glass not even cracking. "HELP US! SOMEBODY, HELP US!"
His pleas would go unanswered. Nothing could save them from it.
As blood pooled out from under the door, it would move through them. It would then move to find the rest of its targets.
The contract had yet to be fulfilled, and The Darkness Devil would see it through.
Meanwhile in the stands, Miriam's eyes widened a bit as she sensed something.
"Eh? Miriam, is something wrong?" Gohan asked.
"I...sense something…very evil." Miriam said.
"You're not the only one who felt it, Miriam." Fu Hua frowned. "Something dark is happening in Las Vegas."
Denji felt a twinge in his heart. "The hell is…don't tell me…is there a Primal in the city?!" he said to himself.
"Denji?" Connor asked in concern.
"Don't worry, it's fine. Though…it's probably good no one from our team got picked." Denji said. "Cause there's gonna be a whole lotta death before the day is done."
