(The Arena)
"Well, unsurprisingly, you are this section's Superstar, Mario!" Drake smiled.
"Yes, even though I-a have been getting love all of these years, I still want to thank all of my fans for-a supporting me." Mario smiled.
He then waved to the enormous cheering crowd.
"Well, regardless you get the next stage choice. What do you want?" Drake asked.
"Well, I admit-a that being the face of gaming, I had a lot of good ideas." Mario smiled.
"I don't doubt it." Drake smirked.
"I thought-a about it and I decided to go with one where I arguably have the most experience but everyone could still do well." Mario explained. "I decided to go with one of my node's many stages from Super Smash Bros."
"And that is…?" Ashley asked.
"The Battlefield version of Golden Plains! However, WITH the gimmick of the regular stage." Mario grinned.
K. Rool and the Inkling's eyes lit up as the crowd cheered.
"What is Golden Plains again? I don't play video games for… Obviously reasons." Toph smirked.
"Ooh, it is basically from New Super Mario Bros 2." Danny explained.
"It is a stage where there are coins everywhere, not unlike a Mario game." June said. "Though the coins are not for decoration!"
"Dang right, they're not! For every 100 coins you collect, you will become GOLDEN and if you are golden, not only are your attack power and resistance increased but your body is covered with a beautiful, golden armour!" K. Rool grinned.
Loona rolled her eyes. "Of course YOU would find being covered in that tacky stuff unironically awesome!"
K. Rool glared at Loona. "Don't hate me for being royalty!"
"If I remembuh cawhrectly, dere are also mawh than de usual golden coins." Labrys said, rubbing her chin.
"That's fine. There are blue P switches where you press them, blue coins would gather all over the area." Greymon explained. "However, other than adding even MORE coins and only showing up temporarily, there is not much of a difference."
"Except for red coins. If you go through a red ring, they will appear and while they are only around temporarily and only eight of them, each coin costs five coins." Sailor Jupiter added.
Toph paused. "Rightttttt. And let's pretend I actually SEE those colours."
Several people winced.
"S-Sorry…" Sailor Jupiter said sheepishly.
"But yeah. Find and collect coins. Being supercharged and hit and take hits better. Rinse and repeat. Right?" Toph asked.
"Right." Mario said before looking at the Millennium Star. "Oh, and one more-a thing."
"Seeing that Christmas 'is over', may I…" Mario said before gesturing to his Santa outfit.
"Oh, sure!" Drake grinned. "MS, if you may."
"Of course. Just waiting for Tumble to finish inputting the blueprints." The star reassured.
"Don't worry, I am done." Tumble offered, typing into his phone.
The Millennium Star nodded before spinning around and surrounding the arena with a bright light. When the light cleared, the arena changed completely. The arena was now completely grassy. Some people were reminded of the Jellyfish Fields stage because of this but obviously without the flying jellyfish.
Loona sighed. "Finally. Solid fucking ground."
Greymon looked around. "So where are the coins?"
"Forgive me, but if I put all of the coins here now, then you guys would have an unfair advantage over the incoming fighters." Millennium Star reminded. "So I decided to bring in the coins AFTER the final fighter entered the arena."
"Yeah, that sounds fair." Doris nodded.
The Millennium Star returned the nod before turning to Mario who was now in his regular outfit.
"Would this suffice?" The Millennium Star asked.
Mario nodded his head. "Yes, it would."
The Millennium Star chuckled before having the star descend downwards towards the ground. Mario then did a hop off of it before looking around. We were back to a stationary arena with a simple gimmick. But everyone knew that literally getting the gold could turn the tide in their favour.
"CAMMY WHITE!" (SFAS)
The British blonde came out to a loud cheer and her classic theme, especially from the men now clad with her outfit from 6. She paid it no mind as she adjusted her red gauntlets with a stern look on her face.
"It feels weird to finally enter the Battle of the Luminaries." Cammy mused. "I mean it is like the only UVR tournament that I HAVEN'T entered."
Cammy then looked up at the Elimination Seating. Gabumon smiled as he cheered for her, as in the King of Dinosaurs. Until the latter realised what he was doing and looked away with his arms crossed. Cammy gave a rare warm smile before rushing down the ramp. She then leapt up in the air.
"Spiral Arrow!" Cammy shouted, doing her trademark forward drill kick into the air. The crowd went wilder as she gracefully landed on the ground. Giovanna saw her come in and raised an eyebrow.
"For someone so serious, you sure are a bit of a showoff." Giovanna noted, getting Cammy's attention."
The blonde narrowed her eyes at this. "Said the woman who made a big showing about 'having a zit'."
"Perhaps. But the difference is I don't take myself too seriously." Giovanna said while scratching the chin of Rei when the latter laid on her shoulder.
"Ugh, this is why I don't mesh well with dog people." Cammy growled.
Rei immediately growled at this before looking at Giovanna. The latter rolled her eyes.
"She is a grump who, despite finally wearing pants, still hasn't recovered from always having her leotard ride up her ass." Giovanna said, matter-of-factly.
As Cammy's eyes widened in disgust, Rei gave a defiant growl.
"Alright, alright, but you better help me nab the next hot guy we fight." Giovanna said, sighing in defeat. She then looked at Cammy. "Nothing personal, but my friend wants to bite your face off for that comment."
"Fine by me. I am the closest to biting BOTH of your faces." Cammy growled, cracking her knuckles.
"Sorry, I'm flattered but I am straight as an arrow." Giovanna shrugged.
"APRIL O'NEIL!" (NASB)
The yellow-clad news reporter with the male part of the audience going wild again. She just smirked at the warm reception before strutting down the ramp while talking into her microphone. While doing this, the main theme from Space Channel 5 was playing through the speakers.
"April O'Neil here, reporting for Channel 6 News. We are just turning in the twenty-first section of the third Battle of the Luminaries." April said as if she was making a report. "We just came off the heels of the Christmas section. Despite seeming like a section of goodwill, it has proven to be quite a spectacle."
However, she sighed.
"Unfortunately, I think that this is the extent of the hype seeing that things seem to be dying now. Don't you agree, audience?" April frowned.
"No!" The audience shouted.
April jumped at this. "Wait, are you saying that despite being so late in the tournament, everyone still has some steam to burn off?"
"Yes!" The audience shouted.
"Hmm… This requires more investigation. I am going in." April said, putting her free hand on her chin.
With that, she ran down the ramp and leapt in without a second thought. Sailor Jupiter and Doris saw her step in.
"Huh. Even now, it is still weird to see you in a fighting tournament." Sailor Jupiter noted.
"Yeah, there is a reason why Xero went with the 2012 version of you in the Tournament of Kikai." Doris added.
"Hey, I was playable in the Sega Genesis version of Tournament Fighters, wasn't I?" April scolded.
"Hey, I am not knocking it against you." Sailor Jupiter said, raising her hand in defence.
"Yeah, it is always inspiring for someone who is known for being a damsel in distress to become a fighter!" Doris smiled.
"I could see why you would say that." April smirked. "Your subplot with the other princesses was probably one of the only things I liked about Shrek 3."
Doris' smile vanished as she smiled. "Ugh, don't remind me. Like I could see what they were trying to go with that movie but the execution could have been better. Like, I think they only cast Prince Charming as the main villain because someone on the staff simps for them. …Which to be fair, valid, but here."
April and Sailor Jupiter gave her weird looks.
"Sooo… Seeing that you are a subversion of the damsel in distress, wanna join us in a three-way?" Sailor Jupiter asked.
Doris' eyes lit up as she energetically clapped her hands together. "Oh, great idea! You were my main in Shredder's Revenge!"
"Aw, thanks." April smiled before getting into a stance. "I hope I don't disappoint with my report."
"COCO BANDICOOT!" (CB)
The blond she-bandicoot excitedly waved to the cheering crowd with one hand while holding her tablet with the other one. However, while she was enjoying the warm reception, she walked down the ramp with a frown.
"What in the world happened with Dingodile and by extension, Komodo Joe, to get framed for attempting to kill Drake and actually killing Terry Bogard?" Coco mused. "Especially since the former told us that he has never been caught by a hero OR villain out of the ring when playing hooky?"
Shaking her head, she then stepped into the ring. Once in, she made a beeline towards Labrys. The android saw her coming.
"Oh, yuh're like Crash's Echo Fightuh, right?" Labrys asked.
Coco winced before glaring at Labrys. "Hey, I won't deny that it is accurate, but I am distinct from my brother!"
"Yeah, thanks tuh Crash Team Rumble. If it wasn't fawh dat, de only ting yuh could say yuh are different from your brudder is in Wrath of Cawhtex." Labrys frowned. "And considerin' how unfun yuh are tuh play in dat game, dat WASN'T a compliment. Yuh got me so fahr?"
"Shut up!" Coco roared.
Labrys shook her head. "Yuh lookin' fawh a fight, or what?"
"In fact, yes. I have been researching you and your sister, Aigis, ever since your node showed up all of the way in the SECOND Battle of the Luminaries." Coco admitted.
Labrys smirked. "Well, I hope yuh aren't disappointed but when it comes tuh combat, we play fawh keeps."
"I am not. However, I know that just doing research on a keyboard could only get me so strong." Coco said before getting into a stance. "Let's do a little fieldy study."
Labrys then got into a stance as well. "Alright, let's de experiment begin! Okay?"
Then, a song played through the speakers. Immediately, the crowd cheered instantly knowing what this meant.
(Who's the girl next door living in the haunted mansion)
(You better learn my name cause it's)
"And now, Mystery Fighter… Number… FORTY-TWO!"
"ASHLEY!" (WarioWare)
"...AND RED!"
(She knows the darkest spells and she brews the meanest potions)
(You might be the ingredient I seek!)
The dark-haired red-haired witch and her aptly-named imp familiar came out to an enormous cheer. Even though the loud reception was for the former, the latter still got love. Red grinned before waving to the crowd with both hands while Ashley merely looked with a bored look on her face.
"It is a shame that Wario got eliminated." Red frowned. "We could have double-teamed with him."
"Oh, yeah, a real shame." Ashley snarked.
With that, she walked down the ramp while Red was still playing to the crowd. The latter didn't notice that Ashley had left him until he absentmindedly looked to the side five seconds later. He yelped before flying towards Ashley while looking like he was swimming in midair.
(Don't let yourself be fooled by her innocent demeanour)
(You better be afraid of the great Ashley!)
(She doesn't play with dolls and she doesn't comb her hair!)
(Who has time for girly things like that?)
By the time Red finally got up to Ashley, the latter already stepped into the ring.
"S-S-So… What is the plan?" Red asked.
"I don't want to waste any mana unless I can help it." Ashley explained. "So I think we should stay put until I find someone of interest. Or someone is stupid enough to face us."
"Do you think we can do well?" Red asked. "WarioWare Move It IS one of the most recent Switch games so relevance shouldn't be a problem but still."
"Eh. I am not scared." Ashley said, sitting down.
Red let out a sigh before sitting down as well. "You are NEVER scared…"
"GANONDORF!" (SSB)
The red-haired Gerudo king came out to a huge mixed reaction. However, he just looked at the arena with his hand on his chin in deep thought. He then proceeded to make his way down the ramp, still in thought.
"Even now, I am still stunned by how quickly Bison has been taken for a fool. And to think that I was about to agree to work with him again." Ganondorf said, rolling his eyes.
He then stopped walking while his eyes widened in realisation.
"Now that I think about it, when am I always following HIM? Sure, he may be the face of fighting game villains, but I am the KING OF EVIL. He should bow to ME!" Ganondorf said, pointing his thumb to himself. "Hell, he is not even canonically alive in Street Fighter 6!"
He then clenched his fists in determination.
"Right. Now that my mind has made up, I will become the new Big Bad at the NEXT UVR tournament and show that has-been what EXACTLY a real villain plot is." Ganondorf said. He then smirked. "But until then, I am more than content with simply making the arena tremble in fear."
With that, he stepped in the arena. Upon this, Danny narrowed his eyes before looking at June.
"June!" Danny shouted.
The Te Xuan Ze narrowed her eyes. "So I gathered. Think we can take him without Jake?"
"Well, WE'RE still here and not HIM so we may have a chance." Danny shrugged.
"True." June said.
With that, the two then made their way over to Ganondorf. The warlock just smirked.
"So I take it that you wish to form a Battle Couple against me." Ganondorf snarked.
Danny and June winced in disgust.
"I know that you are the self-proclaimed King of Evil, but really?" Danny asked in disbelief.
"Oh, come now. I am far from the only person who thinks that after seeing you two by yourselves." Ganondorf taunted, still smirking. "I am just the first one to actually voice their thoughts."
Danny and June growled before rushing forward. Meanwhile, Toph blinked twice as she stood to the side.
"Um, screw you all too." Toph muttered.
"MUKAI!" (KoFAS)
The white-haired grey-skinned geomancer came out to a mixed reaction. However, he made it no mind as he examined the arena.
"We are not having much luck with finding any spare members of Xuan Dou Zhi Wang so far." Mukai frowned. "For someone that hates the fact that they are cast into the shadows, they are making great use of it to move around the dome."
Letting out a deep sigh, he realised that there was nothing he could do but help the tournament continue in his own way. So he slowly walked down the ramp and stepped in. Once in, he made his way over to Toph. The dark-haired girl raised an eyebrow before turning her head towards Mukai.
"Let me guess. Big, lumbering brute who doesn't like children and sees me as a pest." Toph said, rolling her eyes.
"Actually quite the opposite." Mukai corrected.
Toph looked at Mukai with a raised eyebrow. "Say what?"
"I acknowledge that you are one of the best geomancers in the multiverse." Mukai admitted. "Regardless, I wish to actually see that power in action."
"Huh. You ARE aware that flattery won't stop me from beating you to a bloody pulp, right?" Toph smirked.
"Wouldn't dream of it. Especially since even for you, it would be very difficult for that to happen to me." Mukai said, giving a dark smirk which clashed with his genuine affable way of speaking.
(Dome; Recovery Room)
Everyone in the Recovery Room all looked in complete shock, awe and disbelief. Penny let out a deep sigh.
"Yeah, that is my reaction when I heard it too." Penny muttered.
"Um, if it is too much to ask, could you do a recap on what you just said?" Shuuichi asked. He then paused. "Man, it feels weird to be on the opposite side of it."
"Yeah, you need to keep the readers in the loop as well." Dot nodded.
"Um, okay?" Penny said.
With that, she stifled a cough.
"A Cartoon's Final Fantasy is a fanfiction created by Tinyhammer, who at the time called Tinyrocket at the time, in 2015. It is a crossover fic that is heavily inspired by Final Fantasy Tactics Advance and the very first Kingdom Hearts game."
She then looked at Snoopy, Garfield and Scooby.
"It starts Tinyrocket's favourite characters at the time, Snoopy, Garfield and Scooby, along with their respective friends being Isekai'd into Ivalice. There, they could wield weapons with Garfield having the Staff of Wits, Scooby having the Shield of Friendship."
Penny then looked at Snoopy with a solemn look.
"And Snoopy has the Sword of Courage. The fanfic ran for twenty chapters and even spawned a sequel taking inspiration from Final Fantasy X and mostly Kingdom Hearts called Sin's Rampage where the characters go to different worlds. Definitely it has gotten a spinoff Slice of Life series but that isn't written by Tinyhammer."
Penny's eyes widened a bit.
"Oh, right. Orange-Ratchet, also known as Orange-Sora, was the one who wrote that. A Cartoon's Final Fantasy is how the two first met. They exchanged ideas for each other and eventually each other's fanfics, leading to their own UVR tournaments. The Tournament of Kikai was even the one that inspired Tinyhammer to restart the third Battle of the Luminaries."
Penny then looked at Garfield.
"Drake was originally going to invite Nickelodeon Super Brawl Universe because he felt sorry for it being left out of the roster to the Tournament of Kikai when Disney and Cartoon Network get to shine. Needless to say though, he jumped ship when he heard the appearance of All-Star Brawl. However, he got really excited when he saw a certain Hero of Heart getting invited."
Penny then looked at Scooby.
"Because of that, he wondered to himself: 'Hmm… Maybe I should enter the other two Heroes of Heart'. Just one problem: Snoopy and Scooby are mostly non-combatants. Hell, the same could be said for Garfield. There is a reason why Xero invited Garzooka and not the actual one. But then, Multiversus came out and if it could give a moveset to VELMA, it could give one to Scooby. If it ever DOES come back."
Scooby whimpered at this. Penny gave him a sympathetic glance before looking at Snoopy.
"Which just leaves Snoopy. Now with Garfield and potentially Scooby locked, all that was left was Snoopy. Drake was going back and forth on whether he should invite a slice-of-life cartoon dog. And while he was mostly leaning towards inviting him anyway. Something tipped him over the edge."
Penny pointed to herself.
"Me. The moment I won the Tournament of Kikai, I have proven that if I could win an UVR tournament, anyone could. So why not test that theory and invite Snoopy as the token 'Slice-of-Life' character."
"Nothing personal, babygirl but that's a little presumptuous. What about Homer, Eduardo and Christopher Robin?" Oscar piped up.
"First off, not only Homer has appeared in more than a few video games that involve combat, Homer HAS canonically been in more than a few fights in the cartoon." Penny explained. "Secondly, Eduardo may not have that much 'experience' in terms of cartoon and game experience, he still has the constitution of a fighter. Think of it as being Unskilled but Strong."
Penny slumped her arms with a look of exasperation on her face.
"And Christopher Robin? Do I even NEED to explain that one?" Penny grumbled.
Oscar winced. "Well, he IS still definitely a Slice-of-Life character."
Suga Mama whacked Oscar in the back of his head with his cane.
"Quit distracting us with your stupidity, boy!" Suga Mama scolded before turning towards Penny. "Continue the story grandbaby."
"Thanks, Suga Mama. Anyway, while the rest is obvious, during the autograph signing session, Drake told me into the VIP room for a private interview where he told me everything I just explained just now. As the reason I was the one reuniting the 'Heroes of Heart', Drake felt it necessary for me to be the first one to be told. Though, you may have already known that seeing that interview got leaked somehow."
Penny then sighed.
"And that is the extent of what I know." Penny said.
"Wow…" Himiko said in awe.
"But that still doesn't explain why you could understand Snoopy as if he is a tiger with a stereotypical Indian accent." Scooby said.
"I do not know either. Though do I know why Snoopy has the memories of the one from A Cartoon's Final Fantasy or the Sword of Courage." Penny said, shaking her head. "Even if it is just a mistake from the fake Psycho Mantis, there is no way they could have given Snoopy his fighting abilities."
With that, everyone looked at Snoopy. The beagle still looked in awe before looking down.
"Wow… To think that my entire life is a story written by someone else." Snoopy said.
"Snoopy…" Dot said, sadly.
"Snoopy, I…"
"We have arrived!"
Everyone's eyes widened before turning their heads towards the direction of the voice and their pupils shrank at who it was. Ragna, Bang and most importantly, the Goketsuji sisters.
"You!" Geese growled, narrowing his eyes.
Immediately, he got up and ran over. However, Ragna walked in front of Oume and spread his arms out.
"Hold up there, Geese." Ragna scolded. "I understand wanting to beat this old lady to a pulp, but in case you forget, you need her right now."
"Indeed… I am here to help make the antidote." Oume offered.
Everyone's eyes widened at this.
"Wait, what?" Geese asked.
"But why? I thought…" Yuri started.
"Look, I understand your scepticism but your loved ones' rescue needs top priority!" Bang exclaimed.
"R-Right…" Geese said before glaring down at Oume. "Get to work!"
"Alright, alright, twist your arm." The older Goketsuji twin muttered before walking over to Nurse Joy. "I will take the lead but I need your help."
"Um, alright." The pinkette said before looking around. "Until further notice, finish what Oume said!"
The rest of the medical cast nodded their heads before directing their attention towards Oume.
"Alright, the first item I need is…" Oume started.
Meanwhile, Penny turned to see several of the loved ones writhing in pain. She winced upon just imagining what would happen if HER family were in that situation. She then walked over to Haohmaru.
"They… Really in a lot of pain, aren't you?" Penny asked.
"Yeah, they are…" Haohmaru frowned.
Penny gasped. "Haohmaru, your…"
"Yeah, I know… Seeing Shizu like this made me have a coffee crash early on." The ronin sighed.
Penny looked worried. "S-So what the despair clones ARE partially true?"
Haohmaru turned to Penny, confused. "Hm? What despair clones?"
Guy frowned before walking over to Haohmaru and Penny. "Haohmaru, there is something you and the other champions should hear."
(Dome; Security Team Room)
Needless to say, ever since finding out Yan was with the group trying to ruin the Battle of the Luminaries, he was kept in the cage to prevent him from escaping. Sure, it looked comical seeing how huge said cage was, but considering that there was intending to fit ALL of the cast of Xuan Dou Zhi Wang in it, it was inevitable.
However, due to trying to find the Xuan Dou Zhi Wang group was their top priority, they knew that they had to find it seeing that they were holding the lights and Cole MacGrath hostage and they needed all eyes around the dome. Because of that Yan was alone.
But not for long as six certain figures were peeking around the corner.
"Okay, the coast is clear, let's go!" Claire Fox said before rushing forward.
The three of the other figures just frowned before walking behind her while the other two didn't look fazed as they followed.
"Claire, I know how much you love Yan and I know that we should save him eventually, but don't you think we are being too reckless?" Linn frowned.
The cryomancer looked back. "For what if I am? Love IS reckless, Linn."
"Okay, fair enough." The Taiwanese girl sighed.
"This is serious, Claire." Prayuth scolded. "By now, everyone in this dome would have at least looked up what we look like. Even someone, hero, villain or even BYSTANDER would know that we are the main 'villains'."
"What's the big deal? It is not like we want to take over the multiverse or engulf it in despair." CoolB shrugged. "We just want to ruin the tournament who snuffed us!"
"Dude, we killed Terry Bogard, one of the most beloved characters in fighting game history." Prayuth scolded. "Someone that used to be our NODAL COMPANION. If we would do that to him, we could do that to ANYONE?"
CoolB winced at this. "Well, since you put it THAT way."
"But it is not our fault! It is not like we could trust Terry to keep silent forever!" Linn insisted.
"It is not like we killed for the evulz but at the same time, even if we didn't, we still betrayed his trust." Prayuth frowned.
Claire grunted in glaring at the three. "Look, I get it. We did things that the past us would be horrified at. But we HAVE to do it."
"Because Yan is too amazing to leave out." CoolB said, rolling his eyes.
"That too. But he is the ONLY Mystery Fighter that didn't enter the second Battle of the Luminaries to make it into the third one!" Claire spat. "I mean I GET why Killer Instinct got its own node, even though it has been a long while. But tell me, does anyone give a crap about anyone in Shrek Super Slam save for the main quartet of Shrek, Fiona, Donkey and Puss in Boots?"
"Um, no." Linn said. "I don't even KNOW half of those characters."
"And how many eliminations did Wade Hixton and Wolfrun get?" Claire asked.
"Zero." Prayuth answered. "Hell, Wade was the FIRST one eliminated."
"Exactly! Especially since Xuan Dou Zhi Wang has more of a fanbase than Wade Hixton. WE had a collaboration with the people we 'copied'." Claire growled. "Oh, and don't even get me started on Wolfrun. If Tinyhammer wants to simp for wolves, fine, but there are lots to choose!"
"Yeah, around that time, Wolfrun wasn't even relevant around the wolves fans anymore." CoolB nodded. He then grunted in disgust. "Unless you count Glitter Force."
"And besides, when you think about it, we are not villains!" Claire insisted.
"Maybe not in our game but here." Prayuth frowned.
"I mean think about it. Look at who we are with." Claire said.
Linn, Prayuth and CoolB paused before turning towards the side to see the despair clones of Sho Minazuki and the Shredder.
"Despite being so close to the Despair Extractor for God knows how long, WE never had despair clones of us appear!" Claire pointed out.
"Yeah, I WAS wondering about that." Prayuth admitted, raising an eyebrow.
"If we were in despair, hell, NEAR-despair, we would have gotten a whole army of clones by now!" Claire scolded.
"Which means we are not in despair." Linn said with her eyes lighting up. "Which means our anger isn't spawned by despair but hope!"
"Exactly! You saw the Tournament of Kikai! Hope is good so WE are good!" Claire smirked.
"Heh, alright, I am convinced. If the Despair Extractor doesn't work on us, then we have no despair at all." Prayuth said with a small smirk.
"Which means what we've been telling the despair clones IS the truth. The UVR is evil!" CoolB grinned.
"Great, now come on! We have a proper Mystery Fighter to rescue!" Claire smirked.
Her nodal companions nodded, feeling more confident before turning around and walking towards the door.
…Only for their faces to feel when they saw Gabe Logan, Horkeukamui, Lloyd Irving, Kanji Tatsumi, Claude von Reigan and Hibiki Takane glaring at them with their arms crossed.
"...I know that when people think of fighting game rosters, they don't think of a cast full of geniuses, but really?" Gabe asked in disbelief.
Linn shrieked. "How long have you been there?"
"Long enough to know that you actually believe the bullshit you are spouting out." Kanji spat.
"How could you betray Terry and Benimaru's trust?" Hibiki said in disgust.
Claire growled before turning to the group. "Everyone, get ready! We have to beat these guys hard AND fast before someone else comes along and sees us!"
The others, even the despair clones nodded before getting into a stance. The opposite six got into a stance as well. However, despite their determination to stop Xuan Dou Zhi Wang, one thought went through all of their minds.
"If their motive is based on feeling rejected, why didn't the Despair Extractor work on them?"
(The Arena)
"SQUIRTLE!" (SSB)
The light-blue turtle Pokemon came out to a moderate cheer. Seeing this, he smirked before spinning on his tail. Normally, he would be just as upset as Ivysaur for having his evolution reverted from the Tournament of Kikai. However, he has already picked a target and he was willing to face them, regardless of being a Squirtle, Wartortle or Blastoise.
Squirtle then retreated into his shell before launching himself down the ramp with water around it, going at an alarming speed. Once he reached the bottom, he flew straight in before launching a stream of water into Biyomon. The bird didn't see it coming and took it full on, knocking her down.
Biyomon sat up groaning before sitting out a bit of water. She then glared at the guilty party who was grinning at an Aipom.
"Hey! What was THAT for!?" Biyomon demanded.
Squirtle just stuck out his tongue and showed the bottom of his eyelid. Yeah, messing with Pokemon was fun for any Pokemon, regardless of the evolution stage. Biyomon growled before flapping up.
"Alright! I am going to teach you how to teach a lady!" Biyomon demanded.
"MECHANICA!" (A)
The teenage brunette frowned as she stood outside of her large yellow suit. Not because she was getting a poor reception from the crowd, quite the opposite. Her cheer was about as loud as Ribbon Girl's. Regardless, she couldn't help being worried.
"We are not doing too hot. Well, some like Ribbon and Byte & Bark have done well for us, we are still trailing behind… Nearly every other node." Mechanica frowned.
She then slapped her cheeks together before looking up with a look of determination on her face.
"No! I can't think like that! I literally created this mecha just so I could compete in my favourite sport despite being the only one lacking ARMS!" Mechanica said in determination. "And THEY would never give up so why should I!?"
With that, she climbed into her mecha and directed her way down the ramp. However, once she got in, K. Rool saw her and narrowed his good eye.
"Time out." K. Rool said, making a T with his hands.
With that, he stomped over to Mechanica which made Greymon look in worry.
"Uh-oh." Greymon frowned before running after them.
By this time, K. Rool reached Mechanica. "There you are, you fake heavyweight!"
The mecha-rider looked at K. Rool with a confused look. "Fake… Whatnow?"
"You heard me! You cheated your way into becoming a heavyweight!" K. Rool roared. "Your actual weight is not only lightweight but I think other than the blobby thing, you are the LIGHTEST character in your roster!"
Mechanica blinked twice before turning towards Greymon who just shook his head and shrugged in exasperation.
"Um, sorry you feel that way." Mechanica frowned. "However, Mr. Brass doesn't mind me getting in."
"Well, I don't! HE may allow it but I NEVER will!" K. Rool roared before cracking his knuckles together. "I should tear apart that hunk of junk showing everyone just how much of a lightweight you really are!"
Mechanica paused. "No offence, sir but I think Donkey Kong may have beaten you up too many times."
Greymon rolled his eyes before he was about to agree with Mechanica. Suddenly, he saw something come out of the Ready Room.
"Hey, what is that?" Greymon asked, pointing up at the Entrance Ramp.
K. Rool and Mechanica looked up to see a bunch of giant cards flying out of the Ready Room. At first, they looked like they were about to scatter all over the ramp. Suddenly, the cards then fall perfectly making a card castle. Then, two of the cards spawned hands and legs before getting out an old-fashioned horn and started to make it. By this time, everyone was looking up in confusion.
"And now, Mystery Fighter… Number… FORTY-THREE!"
Then, the card in front opened to the side as if it was a door.
"KING DICE!" (Cuphead)
(I'm Mr. King Dice)
(I'm the Gamest in the land)
As the purple-clad die-headed casino owner came out to an enormous cheer, he smirked before he started to sing into a 1930s microphone. He was also wearing a royal crown and royal cape that matched the rest of his suit.
(I never play nice)
(I'm the Devil's right hand man)
Then, his smirk vanished as he held up his free hand in the form of a pale, signalling to stop.
(I can't let you past)
(Cause you ain't done everything)
(Bring me those contracts)
(Come on, bring em to the king)
King Dice then proceeded to dance suavely all over the place, making a lot of moves that could be possible in rubber hose cartoons.
(If you haven't finished your task)
(Haven't worked assiduously)
(No, I cannot let your past)
King Dice then gave a dark grin.
(Dome; Recovery Room)
Oume glared up at the screen. "Oh, sure, HE gets to do a musical number without being criticised!"
"Um, maybe no one wants to be an wrinkly old lady thrusting as if she was Lady Gaga herself." Mickey said in disgust.
"I literally spent a good while after seeing Bison perform HIS act and…" Oume roared.
"GET BACK TO WORK!" Geese shouted.
(The Arena)
King Dice then walked back and forth with the cards pumping his arms in the air.
(Don't you mess with me!)
(Don't mess with King Dice!)
(Don't mess with King Dice!)
(Don't mess with me!)
(Don't mess with him!)
(Don't mess with King Dice!)
(Don't mess with King Dice!)
(Don't mess with…)
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
Everyone winced as they covered their ears in pain as a loud shrieking could be heard throughout the arena. Suddenly, a blur zoomed towards King Dice and wrapped their arms around his chest.
"MARRY ME, KING DICE!" Tumble shouted.
"W-What?" King Dice asked.
"I can't believe it! I can't believe that you are actually in the same place as me!" Tumble cheered, sounding like a fanboy.
King Dice winced before shifting his eyes from left to right. "Um, you and many other people!"
Suddenly, sparkles surrounded Tumble as the Millennium Star used his powers to get Tumble away from King Dice.
"Tumble, may I remind you that we are co-hosts? We have to keep an air of professionalism!" The Millennium Star scolded.
The little die winced before looking down. King Dice paused.
"I'll tell you what, little guy." King Dice said, taking off his hat and cape. "How about you take these and put them in safe keeping for me?"
Tumble's eyes widened as King Dice put the clothes into the smaller die's hands. He paused for shaking in place.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
With that, Tumble zoomed off through one of the crowd entrances with everyone watching him leave.
"...You're never going to get that crown and cape back." The Millennium Star muttered, looking at King Dice.
"Don't worry. I don't believe in charity but I gotta reward the little guy for having good taste!" King Dice smirked.
With that, he snapped his fingers. This made the cards fly up before turning into normal-sized ones and going straight into his suit jacket. Once he was satisfied, he strutted down the ramp before stepping in. Once in, he made his way over to Loona.
"Ah, the receptionist of I.M.P." King Dice noted.
"Yeah, so what?" Loona asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I was thinking of hiring you guys. There is… A couple of annoying cups we have to deal with." King Dice noted.
"Yeah, no, you may want to talk to Blitzo about that. I am OFF the clock!" Loona spat.
"Oh, come on! I'll pay you someone's life savings." King Dice offered. "No, really, I could do that!"
"Meh. If I wanted that, I would just rob someone's house." Loona said. "I am not like you rich assholes who over-complicate with your casino schemes."
"My, my, such a lack of imagination." King Dice said, shaking his finger.
While King Dice and Loona were talking, Ashley and Red looked at the two with varying expressions. Ashley's eyes lit up while Red didn't look confident about being in the arena anymore with those two, Ganondorf and Mukai. Red then saw Ashley's eyes and looked even more worried.
"H-H-Hey! How about we go after an easy opponent? You know, to preserve your mana!" Red said.
The light vanished from Ashley's eyes as she scoffed. "Tch. Fine. Which one though?"
"Good question. They all look scary to a certain extent." Red said, looking around.
"ALICE GARNET NAKATA!" (KoFAS)
The young blond fangirl of Terry Bogard eagerly used her hand as a visor as she examined the arena.
"Oof, there are a lot of tough fighters both from the last section AND this one. I have to give it my all by doing my part of making the tournament continue and avenging Terry." Alice noted.
She then slapped her face together, trying to psyche herself up. She then ran down the ramp with a look of determination on her face before curling her into a ball and launching herself into her arena.
However, the moment she landed, she immediately broke out of it before holding her head while looking dizzy. Ashley and Red paused.
"...That one." Ashley said, pointing at Alice.
"Yeah. Who gets dizzy doing a basic rolling attack?" Red agreed.
With that, the two made their way to Alice, who just recovered and saw her coming.
"Um, hey." Alice greeted.
"Hey." Ashley said with a deadpan look.
"So you are a combat medic." Red noted.
"Oh, not this time around." Alice said.
Red blinked twice. "Wait, what?"
"Yeah, for some reason, Drake didn't invite me to be part of the Recovery Room team just like in the Okron Tournament AND the Tournament of Kikai." Alice shrugged.
Ashley raised an eyebrow. "Why did you get invited in the first place? I played King of Fighters XIV, there is nothing about you being a nurse at any time."
"Oh, I was one in Days of Memories." Alice answered.
"Oh, what is that?" Red asked.
"A dating sim spinoff." Alice elaborated.
Ashley and Red paused before looking at each other.
"Something tells me that the other Ashley is more in charge of the Recovery Room team than Drake." Red frowned.
"Of course. He looks like he has half a brain." Ashley snarked.
"SHADOW JAGO!" (KI)
The evil clone of the main protagonist of Killer Instinct came out to a mixed reaction. However, he made it no mind as he stood outside the Ready Room with his arms crossed. He then dashed down the ramp but when he was halfway down the ramp, he vanished in a dark blue light before reappearing in the arena in the same light.
The Inkling saw him come in and grunted in disgust at his dark and edgy colour palette. She then aimed her Splattershot at Shadow Jago and fired orange ink onto his pants. Shadow Jago paused before glaring at the Inkling.
Suddenly, he vanished before reappearing behind the Inkling before kicking her away. He then pulled his sword out of his back.
"So you thought that was cute, huh?" Shadow Jago asked in his deep voice. "Well, let's see how cute you are when I smear your orange blood or ink all over the grass."
The Inkling gulped feeling like she had made a big mistake.
(Announcer's Booth)
Ashley blinked twice. "Umm… Why did you invite Shadow Jago? Isn't there a reason why you never invite Dr. Mario, Young Link and Toon Link?"
"Apparently, in some parts of Killer Instinct's story, Shadow Jago became his own character apart from Jago." Drake said, scratching the back of his head.
"Oh, because that worked SO well for Kage." Ashley said, rolling his eyes. "Seriously, even now I never found the point of Evil Ryu, let alone Kage when Akuma was and always has been RIGHT THERE!"
"I know, right?" Drake sighed. "But alas, Shadow Jago got the Kage treatment so he deserves to be here as much as everyone else."
"But yeah, we are finally in the last quarter of the tournament." Ashley said.
"Yeah, we are finally back to having three Big Guys per section, even if Shadow Jago was actually the last Big Guy of the THIRD quarter." Drake noted.
"And even now, there are still a lot more fighters to go through! I think this would somehow be longer than the first Tournament of Kikai!" Ashley exclaimed
"I know, right? Our hard work is finally going all of the way!" Drake grinned.
As the two talked, they failed to notice that the floor underneath them was turning pitch black. It was only until Drake's vampiric hearing heard something underneath them before looking down. Raising an eyebrow, he looked down and once he did, his pupils shrank.
"Um, Ash?" Drake asked.
"Yeah, Drake?" The purple-haired man asked.
The vampire then pointed at the ground. Ashley looked down and his eyes widened.
"What… What is going on!?" Ashley shouted.
Before the two could say anything else, they felt themselves being sucked into the floor.
"H-Help!" Ashley cried out.
"MS! Ple…" Drake shouted.
Unfortunately, their cries were downed out as they were engulfed in darkness of the floor without no one noticing them slinking into the floor.
Only for a single dot of light to shine through the literal darkness. It then emitted a light that engulfed the entire room. When it cleared, Ashley was on his knees while holding his head, preparing for the worst. When he realised that nothing was happening, he looked up before looking around.
"What… Happened?" Ashley asked. He then looked around. "Drake? Drake!"
"Ashley!"
The androgynous man turned to see the Millennium Star floating over with a worried look.
"What happened?" The Millennium Star asked. "I sensed star power."
"Star power?" Ashley asked.
He then took out his star piece to see that it was shining. Ashley couldn't help but look in awe.
"Where… Drake?" The Millennium Star asked, worried.
Ashley looked up at him with a worried face.
"I… Don't know…"
(Shadow Moses; Commander's Room)
Unknown to everyone at the dome, this was all being watched by one particular person. However, they weren't watching through a screen or an orb. They didn't need to. If anything, they could actually go to ANYONE in the dome and see things through their eyes.
"Well, even though I am still mixed with Xuan Dou Zhi Wang, I admit that they know how to make things interesting." They noted.
Suddenly, they heard a knocking on the door. They turned their head towards the direction of the noise before throwing their arms out in frustration.
"Finally!" They groaned. "Come in!"
The door then opened up.
"Sorry for intruding in your room. But…" Celica frowned.
Then, the group went wide-eyed at who was in the room. Linkle narrowed her eyes.
"Psycho Mantis."
"Greetings, everyone." The psychic, sounding like he was smirking through his gas mask. "How goes the node-hopping?"
"Don't toy with us! How dare you try to ruin the Battle of the Luminaries!?" Leon roared.
"Mind hijacking people at the Tournament of Kikai is bad enough but now you are helping a vengeful group torture so many people just for not entering a tournament." Azusa frowned.
"Yeah, we won't let you get away from it!" Linkle roared, aiming one of her crossbows at Psycho Mantis.
Azusa's eyes widened before turning to Linkle. "What!? Linkle, no, he could easily read your mind and predict your every move!
"Read my mind and predict my every move, huh? Interesting."
Everyone turned to see the green-haired man stepping forward. He then looked back at the others.
"I still don't know what is going on but from what I gathered, if this guy is defeated, Xuan Dou Zhi Wang's plan is ruined, right?" Roronoa Zoro asked.
"Well, I don't know if that would be the case, but I DO know that they would use most of their resources." Leon said, rubbing his chin.
Zoro nodded before turning towards Psycho Mantis before getting one of his swords out of their sheath.
"Again, I have NO idea what is going on but I watched a bit of the third Megamix Tournament." Zoro said, narrowing his good eye. "So you like interrupt recap shows and ruining tournaments, huh? Well, let's see how you mind-hijack someone with Haki!"
Psycho Mantis paused as he watched Zoro while the others stepped back while looking in concern, though Leon and Linkle glared at Psycho Mantis. The gas mask-wearing man then floated up into the air.
"Interesting…"
(The Arena)
"C-C-CHERIA BARNES!" (ToAS)
The pink-haired white mage (and one of the doctors of this tournament's Recovery Room team) raised an eyebrow, along with many people in the audience AND arena as they looked up at the Announcer's Booth. Ashley was the only one there and he was looking quite worried. So the Millennium Star was also worried.
"Oh no! Did Drake have ANOTHER cardiac arrest?" Cheria gasped. She then paused. "Wait, aren't vampires technically already dead? How could he have a heart to have a heart attack with?"
Realising this was the worst time and place to have a discussion like this, she ran down the ramp in a dainty fashion before stepping in, knowing who her target was. Casting a spell, she clasped her arms together.
"Seraphic Bolt!" Cheria shouted.
Then, a bolt of lightning shot down and struck Shadow Jago from above. The evil clone cried out in pain as steam came from his body, showing how much the spell affected him. While the Inkling was surprised by this, she immediately took advantage of this and ran up to smack Shadow Jago in the face with her Inkbrush, sending him staggering back.
Shadow Jago recovered before glaring up at Cheria who had joined the Inkling's side. "You have a lot of gall hitting him with a cheap shot."
"Says the grown man going after a little girl!" Cheria scolded.
"...A little girl has won the Tournament of Kikai." Shadow Jago shot back. "Is going after children really that found when all of the experience in this tournament has more experience than her?"
Cheria winced, realising that Shadow Jago was right to an extent but she did not back down. "You… You are just saying that you justify going after any child that mildly annoys you."
"Yeah, so?" Shadow Jago said, matter-of-factly.
"NATSU AYUHARA!" (RS)
The dark blue-haired red-clad volleyball player dribbled a volleyball as if it was a basketball with a slight frown.
"Sakura has been returning Hinata and my texts recently." Natsu frowned. "Poor Sakura. I couldn't imagine seeing one of her closest friends go through a horrible limbo of painful death and revival."
Realising that this wasn't the best place to think about it, Natsu grabbed the volleyball before making her way down the ramp. She took a deep breath.
"Okay, I may be over my head for doing this. But at the same time, a chance like this wouldn't come nowadays." Natsu said to herself.
With that, she made her way over to one particular person.
"Pardon me, Mr. Mario?" Natsu asked.
The mascot of gaming looked up. "Yes?"
"As THE Mario character, you have been in a few sports games that include volleyball." Natsu noted.
"Indeed. I had experience with-a it with not only Mario Sports Mix but also a couple of the Party games." Mario nodded.
"AND you should have SOME experience before Sports Mix training for Super Mario Spikers." Natsu noted before frowning. "Before it got cancelled of course."
Mario's eyes widened at this. "You know about that?"
Natsu just smirked. "Well, don't underestimate a volleyball player."
"Well, if you are-a THAT passionate about the sport to know about that cancelled game then how could I say no?" Mario smiled.
"KAGE-MARU!" (VF)
The blue-clad ninja stood outside of the Ready Room with his arms crossed while looking at the arena with a stoic look. He then dashed down the ramp before leaping in without a second thought.
However, instead of going to find an opponent, he sat down on the grass cross-legged, most likely waiting for one of the three remaining fighters to enter this section.
"KAZUKI KAZAMA!" (SS)
In contrast to Kage-Maru's more subdued appearance, the red-haired pyromancer ninja leapt out of the Ready Room with a loud shout. Suddenly, he exploded in a burst of fire. Everyone cried out in surprise as all that was left was his pants.
Kazuki then reappeared in the arena with another fiery explosion. Giving a smirk, he looked around to see what to do first, unaware that Kage-Maru was shaking his head in disgust. He then walked over before kicking Kage-Maru in the back, causing him to stagger forward.
Kazuki recovered before glaring at the guilty party. "Hey! What was THAT for!?"
"Look, there is no polite way of putting it. I do not consider you a true ninja." Kage-Maru said, matter-of-factly.
"Excuse me!?" Kazuki roared.
"You wear bright red, you are almost ALWAYS screaming." Kage-Maru said, counting off his hand. "Hell, your teleportation is a freaking EXPLOSION."
"Oh yeah! Then, what about YOU? Ninjas wear black not blue!" Kazuki shot back.
Kage-Maru blinked twice before slapping his forehead. "You ARE aware that real ninjas wear blue, right?"
Kazuki was taken back by this. "Wait, what?"
"Yes. Navy blue blends better against an unpolluted sky than black." Kage-Maru explained.
"Then… What about Hanzo Hattori?"Kazuki asked, blinking twice. "Umm, I mean MY Hanzo Hattori."
"Do not misunderstand. I DO respect him quite a lot. But there are a lot of issues I have with him." Kage-Maru said, shaking his head. "Like have you seen his scarf? Not only is it bright red but if he somehow goes around running on rooftops WITHOUT snagging it like an idiot, then perhaps he truly is a ninja."
(Dome; Samurai Shodown Locker Room)
All of the remaining Samurai Shodown fighters all turned to Hanzo who was calmly sitting with his arms crossed.
He then promptly flipped off the screen.
(The Arena)
"Alright, I got your game!" Kazuki said, narrowing his eyes. "Fine! I will beat you and show you that I am an authentic ninja!"
Kage-Maru frowned through his mask. "Being a good fighter and being an authentic ninja are two completely…"
"Come on, let's fight!" Kazuki shouted.
Kage-Maru just let out a deep sigh before getting into a stance.
"HIBIKI KOHAKU!" (BB)
The dark blue-haired androgynous butler of Kagura Mutsuki stood outside of the Ready Room while wielding his dual blades. He then dashed down the ramp before leaping in without a second thought.
"Very well. I should eliminate all potential threats to Lord Kagura." Hibiki said.
With that, he dashed over to King Dice and Loona and slashed the former in the back. The purple-clad man cried out in pain before turning around with a glare.
"Hey, hey, hey! Watch the suit!" King Dice scolded.
"Consider this a compliment. I consider you the biggest threat in the arena besides Ganondorf." Hibiki said, pointing one blade at King Dice. "You are too dangerous to keep around."
"Aww, for a violent little guy, you are quite the flatterer!" King Dice laughed, scratching the back of his head.
He then gave a dark grin.
"But you ARE able that this is a no-killing tournament, right?" King Dice asked.
"Don't misunderstand. As much as you need to be slain, I am more than willing to follow the rules of the tournament." Hibiki said.
"Yeah, no, even I know that you are full of shit." Loona piped up. "Do you know how many people come to I.M.P. bitching about getting killed by you?"
Hibiki paused for a moment. He then dashed forward towards the two. But they both saw it coming and they dashed out of it. Hibiki just kept heading towards the Lakitu filming it.
SLASH!
King Dice and Loona raised an eyebrow each as Hibiki slashed the Lakitu's camera in half, startling him.
"Nuuu! My camera!" The poor Lakitu shouted, dramatically.
Hibiki was hardly fazed by the Lakitu's distress. He then turned around and walked back to King Dice and Loona with a full of pure emptiness in his eyes.
"Look, I am going to be the ultimate killing machine and I am going to accomplish that by killing Kagura Mutsuki." Hibiki said with a dark shadow going over his eyes. "But to do that, I have to kill any threats to him."
King Dice and Loona paused before looking at each other.
"Meh. I heard weirder." King Dice said, waving it off.
"This is literally Tuesday for us." Loona shrugged.
"And now… The final fighter for this section…"
"DR. EGGMAN!" (StH)
(I am the Eggman!)
(That's what I am)
(I am the Eggman!)
(I got the master plan)
(I am the Eggman!)
(That's what I am)
(I am the Eggman!)
(That's what I am!)
The egg-shaped mad scientist came out to a mixed reaction, even though the cheers were louder. Despite this, he smirked while playing to both the positive AND negative reaction. Pushing a few buttons on his Egg Walker, he made his way down the ramp while his theme from Sonic Adventure 2 played through the speakers.
(I am the Eggman!)
Eggman then froze in his spot. Sure, the words were the same but the song was NOT.
(They are the Eggman!)
(I am the walrus!)
(Goo goo g'joob)
Eggman paused before looking up at the Announcer's Booth. Astaroth and Aila were both laughing with Shadow looking at Eggman down with a smirk as he waved. Eggman rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses as "I Am The Weasel" by the Beatles played through the speakers.
"You know, Shadow and the others were also pranking people." Eggman muttered. "But I don't remember them being THIS immature."
Deciding to try to ignore the song change, he directed his way over into the ring. Once he was in, he made his way over to the fight between K. Rool against Greymon and Mechanica.
"Ah, K. Rool!" Eggman said, getting the three's attention. "Do you wish to double-team?"
The king raised a non-existent eyebrow. "You're in a generous mood."
"Meh. I just wanted a chance to challenge that ARMS fighter." Eggman shrugged. "I was always interested in her ability to turn literally trash into a fighting mecha suit."
"Um, I WANT to say that I am flattered considering how proud you are of your IQ but knowing you, you probably have some dubious ideas for it." Mechanica frowned.
"What? Who, me?" Eggman smirked, putting his hand on his head.
"Oh, please…" Greymon snarked with a look of exasperation.
K. Rool let out a hearty laugh before putting a hand on the side of Eggman's Egg Walker.
"Hey, that's fine! I want to rip that stupid suit apart anyway!" K. Rool grinned. "And besides…"
He then looked at Eggman with a sad look in his good eye.
"I seriously need someone to talk to right now…" K. Rool said.
Eggman frowned at this. "...Gone THAT south, huh?"
"You have NO idea…" K. Rool sighed.
Greymon and Mechanica raised suspicious eyebrows before looking at each other. However, neither of them could question what was going on, they all heard static. They then looked up at the screen that has Ell Blue.
"Anddddd that is everyone!" Ell Blue grinned. "Now it is time for our next attempt!"
Everyone groaned at this.
"When are you losers going to get it?" Toph muttered.
"No matter what you do for us, you won't stop us OR this tournament!" Greymon taunted.
"True… I admit that you are more persistent than I thought." Ell Blue confessed.
He then gave a dark smirk.
"So we went ahead and kicked it up a notch."
With that, he grabbed the screen and moved the camera to the side. Once he did, EVERYONE'S eyes widened in horror.
There were most of the cast of Xuan Dou Zhi Wang along with Psycho Mantis, Ace and…"
"DRAKE!" Ashley cried out in horror.
The vampire just frowned as he shifted his eyes between the cast. He then slapped his hands together.
"Well, as much as I want to say that they are bullshitting, unfortunately it is true." Drake lamented. "I am officially a prisoner of Xuan Dou Zhi Wang. Don't believe me? Ask Ashley. Umm… The host, I mean."
Ashley shook his head, looking like HE was about to have a panic attack as Drake put his hands together.
"Sooo, this is an UVR first. Until further notice, the tournament will go on with a main host." Drake sighed. "As such, all announcements, calls and other things will be handled by Ashley the host, the Millennium Star and Tumble."
Suddenly, he… Smiled
"But don't worry. Remember when the Final Twelve nearly got killed by that bomb set up by Junko Enoshima. Sure, they were understandably frightened but they still fought on!" Drake said. "As far as I know, the only consequence is me dying… Again."
Drake's eyes lit up.
"Oh, and don't worry about Cole MacGrath. He is just unconscious. I think he is in a coma though. But otherwise, he is alive." Drake offered.
He then put his hands on his hips with a big grin.
"So yeah, this sucks but so does having the entire world be engulfed in despair by Junko Enoshima. The tournament hasn't lost hope there and it won't lose hope now!" Drake paused.
"Psycho Mantis" paused, putting his hand on his chin. "Hmm… It seems that being here isn't enough to break your spirit."
Then, he walked behind Drake and put his hands on his shoulders, making the mayor shudder.
"I DO have it when they act tough." "Psycho Mantis" said, sneering through his mask.
"So yeah… We are not going to stop trying to ruin the tournament. But for now, you should have at least one section free." Ell Blue said before giving a dark smirk. "We would be too busy."
With that, the screen went black with everyone looking at each other, taking what they know.
"Is… Is he going to be alright?" Cheria asked.
"I don't know…" Biyomon frowned.
Ashley the host looked in pure horror. He then narrowed his eyes.
"Well?"
Everyone turned towards him as he glared at the Millennium Star.
"Drake specifically asked us to continue the tournament. But how can we do so when you don't complete Mario's stage choice?" Ashley the host scolded.
Mario frowned. "You don't have-a to…"
"But it is what you wanted, right? A stage similar to Golden Plains, right?" Ashley asked. "Well, you should give it to him, Millennium Star?"
The silver star paused before nodding. "Very well."
With that, he wiggled his moustache and in an instant the arena was filled with floating, golden coins. Everyone paused before looking at each other.
"Well? You have your coins. Now fight!" Ashley scolded.
Everyone looked uncertain.
"He DOES have a point." Mukai said. "Just standing around being worried is exactly what Xuan Dou Zhi Wang."
"Yeah, but…" Red frowned.
(Announcer's Booth)
Ashley sat in his seat, glaring at the fighters as if silently urging them to fight. Suddenly, he heard a knocking at the door.
"Come in…" Ashley muttered.
A worried Tumble then opened the door and poked his head out.
"Hey, are you okay?"
Ashley paused for a moment. He then turned towards Tumble with teary eyes.
"No…"
(Dome; Electrician Office)
Drake glared at the evil smirks of the group that had kidnapped me.
"Well, you got me. So what are you going to do?" Drake taunted, crossing his arms.
A glint appeared in Ell Blue's eye.
"Make your literal worst nightmare come to life."