Kai Leng

“

Cerberus thanks you for all of your hard work.

”

“

That assassin should be embarrassed. A terminally-ill Drell managed to stop him from reaching his target.

”

Kai Leng forged paperwork to enlist in the Alliance miltiary at the age of 16. He fought, was reprimanded for stealing, and killed a highly inebriated Krogan and figured he was tough. As proof of his declining mental faculties, the Illusive Man thought Kai Leng would make an acceptable subordinate. He spent his time there as an assassin, killing at the Illusive Man's command and indulging in petty acts of violence.

After trying and failing to capture Jack, he blamed his most competent co-worker for the failure and threatened to backstab her if they operated together again. He then leads a squad of Cerberus operatives to capture a traitor to the organization. After a brief struggle, one of his men happens to have tranquilized the man's lover. Kai gets his only notable kill by slitting the unconscious woman's throat.

Later, while the Reapers attack the galaxy, he decides to follow the Illusive Man in fighting alongside the mechanical monstrosities attacking Earth, the home of humanity, in the madman's quest to utilize the Reapers to elevate humanity. Kai Leng assists Ambassador Udina in his coup attempt, targeting the Salarian councilor. He is prevented from reaching his target by Thane Krios, who he flees from after fighting the assassin who can actually kill a target who fights back.

Leng feels a personal animosity towards Commander Shepard, and runs into them when chasing down a Prothain VI on Thessia, the Asari homeworld. He, now indoctrinated, tries to assassinate Shepard, but is unable to even scratch the elite special forces operative. He calls in help from a gunship, but is still unable to make headway until he tells his backup to level the temple itself. Thinking he won through his own power, he then sends a taunting message to the Commander.

He meets his final end during the assault on Cronos Station, calling in several waves of backup. Despite the help, he is yet again unable to so much as wound Shepard, and is beaten and left for dead.

Battle vs. Jetstream Sam (by BeastMan14)[]

Kai Leng stormed into the command center, satisfied in his victory over Shepard once again. Lawson may have escaped, but she would re-emerge. And when she did, he would be waiting. The Illusive Man turned at the sound of Leng's approach, and stamped out his cigarette. "What is it now? Shepard again?" Kai Leng reflexively put his hand on his sword, ready to do battle with his foe once more. "No, we believe Shepard has gone to ground to prepare his troops for further assault against the Reapers. We have discovered something much more...important to our cause." Kai tilted his head quizzically, thinking to himself, "Something more important than Shepard, or the Reapers? What could it be?"

Meanwhile, in the Colorado deserts...

Sam spun his blade back and forth between his fingers, waiting for Jack or Wolfy to show up, for something to happen. 2 years of planning, and he doubted it all on the last day. Strange, what meeting new people can do to your mind. But Sam had had enough with higher causes for a long time. As for now? He just wanted to cross blades with Jack for a final time, see who was the best once and for all. Suddenly, there was a bright yellow flash and a mysterious man in black armor stepped out, accompanied by two soldiers in white armor. Sam grinned, then walked towards the group. This would be interesting indeed.

5 minutes earlier...

Kai stepped into the ruins alongside his backup of two Centurions. The Illusive Man had given him his orders. Investigate the piece of Prothean technology scientists had discovered, and learn the whereabouts of the troops sent prior. "Kai, are you seeing anything of interest?" The Illusive Man asked through the chip in Kai Leng's ear. "No, but something here is putting me...on edge." Kai's hand slowly drew his sword from his sheath just as a Centurion rested his hand on a glowing blue wall, causing a rupture of light to spread from it. "Look out!" One of the Centurions cried as the light blinded Kai.

When the assassin re-opened his eyes, he saw a desert, a big one at that, with a single road cutting through it. "You're not exactly who I was looking for," a mysterious man in green armor said from 50 feet away, "but, practice makes perfect, no?" Suddenly, the man drew his sword and dashed towards Kai Leng, effortlessly dodging the shots from the Centurions, then killing them both with one strike a second later. Kai quickly raised his sword to block, and was pushed back, staggering over his over feet to balance himself. "Leng, are you still there? If you have to kill him, bring his sword to me." The Illusive Man ordered through his earpiece as Kai blocked three more strikes from the man's sword.

Sam grinned as his foe once again staggered backward to dodge one of his attacks. "Come on now, pretty boy! Hit me!" He shouted, quickly sheathing his sword and raising his hands in an arrogant manner. His enemy jumped forward to strike, a rookie mistake that would be punished shortly. Sam quickly drew his blade, sidestepping his opponent and slicing downward, leaving a massive slash across his back.

Kai stumbled, his teeth gritted in pain. "You'll pay for that!" He shouted, quickly whipping around and lunging forward with his sword. With a clash, Kai and his opponent locked blades. "This is unfortunate. I was really hoping more from you. I wonder why this is." The man chuckled, then pushed Kai Leng backwards, and lunging forward. Acting reflexively, Kai raised his wrist and fired from his palm blaster, hitting him in the hand and knocking the sword a few feet away.

Somewhat surprised, Sam raised his hands and bowed. "Fighting dirty, eh? I was hoping you'd be above that. Oh well, life is full of disappointment." Enraged, his disappointing opponent charged forward, with Sam reaching his left hand out and quickly grabbing the sword as it came down. "Ah! Now I see it. You deny your blade its true potential, by treating it as a tool, a means to an end. If you truly considered yourself a swordsman, you wouldn't use fancy tricks!" His opponent grimaced, and Sam chuckled. His taunt had succeeded.

"SHUT UP!" Kai Leng shouted, pushing backward with all his strength and forcing his foe backward, sending him staggering. Kai grinned, until he realized that the man had been pushed towards his sword. The man wiped the blood off his blade with his fingers and stepped forward. "I'm getting bored. I think its time..." He slid a mask over his mouth... "I finished this up." He dashed forward in the blink of eye, driving the blade straight through Kai's chest.

"It's over!" Sam yelled as he pulled the blade out of the black-armored man's chest, then seeing the man attempt to raise his arm to use his wrist blast, he swiftly sliced off the arm in question. "Well, I'd say better luck next time, but there won't be much of a next time, will there?" He laughed as he shook the blood off his sword, then sheathed it.

Kai Leng collapsed into a puddle of his own blood, mumbling to himself, "No, not like this. I was meant...to do battle with Shepard...to show...the Illusive Man...who was greatest." Closing his eyes for a final time, Cerberus greatest assassin had fallen. "Kai Leng, come in. Kai! KAI!" The Illusive Man shouted, before slamming his fist into his armrest. He knew this would happen eventually, but it would have been better not to happen today. Shaking his head, he pressed a button to initiate plan B.

Sam could see something on the horizon, and grinned in excitement just as a man's voice cleared his throat behind him. "Hm?" Sam turned around to see a hologram of a man sitting in a chair, smoking a cigarette. "Hello. I see you've met Kai Leng, our best assassin. We've grown an interest in-" He was cut off by Sam outburst of laughter. "If he was your best, I'd recommend rehiring." Sam chuckled as he began to turn away. "Wait!" The man raised his hand. "Don't you see that you're missing a chance to take part in the rising of humanity in the eyes of the galaxy? To use your blade for a cause?" Suddenly, Sam's smile disappeared. "I've had enough of higher causes, of heroic sacrifices, of the good of many. Now, I've decided that I shall follow my own ideals once more. Sorry for the inconvenience." Sam said just seconds before he crushed the projector, and the suited man disappeared.

The Illusive Man angrily snuffed out his cigarette and got up to leave. His best agent was dead, a new recruit slipped through his fingers, and Shepard was on his way. Cerberus was on its way out, he realized that now, but it would not simply vanish into the night. He would meet Shepard at the Crucible, and decide the galaxies fate once and for all.

Sam turned his head to see Bladewolf standing a couple feet away. "Hello again, Wolfy." Bladewolf tensed, "Samuel. I was not..." "Expecting me?" Sam looked over at Kai Leng's corpse as it lay in pieces. "Life is full of surprises, isn't it?" Reaching down to pet the cybernetic dog on the head, Sam smiled and said, "Let me tell something, Wolfy. Just between you and me."

WINNER: Jetstream Sam

Experts Opinion[]

Sam was able to easily defeat Kai Leng because he was simply the better swordsman. His experience, speed, swordsmanship, and stronger blade enabled him to put down Kai Leng, who brought the greater training and strength, which were ultimately not important enough factors in a duel of swords.

To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.

Battle vs. Saren Arterius (by So-Pro Warrior)[]

Darkness...that's all that there was. Nothing could be seen or heard, just an eerie silence was all that there was. All of a sudden, from out of nowhere a white light appeared. It began to grow intensely...bigger and brighter until finally it engulfed all the darkness.

The man gasps, out of breath as his eyes fly wide open and he begins taking back air into his lungs breathing heavily and quickly, not knowing what was going on. The man looks from side to side, he is inside a human-sized capsule, the glass window that keeps him in, clouded by the coldness that the man felt from inside the capsule as he can see his breath, that was how cold it was.

"Sir, he's awake." A muffled male voice could be heard from outside.

"Alright, he's stabalizing. It seems to be working. Start opening the capsule." Another voice is heard.

The capsule hisses to life as smoke comes from the inside and flows out through the cracks of the capsules containment window. The window slowly opens upwards as two men dressed in medical garment are seen through the smoke.

"Sir, you okay?"

The man inside the capsule reaches out, his arm grabbing the throat of the doctor's as the rest of the medical team in the room back off in fright.

"What's going on?! Where am I?!" The man from the capsule questions.

"Do not worry...Kai Leng." A familiar voice calls out to the best Assassin of the Cerberus organization as Kai Leng, almost naked had it not been for the patient garb over his body turns around at the main door to the room.

"You are in the hands of friends." The Illusive Man says as he walks forward from the doorway, his cigarette in hand as always as smoke comes from the end of it.

"Sir?" Kai Leng says in shock and confusement.

"What...what happened?" Kai Leng asks.

"You were killed Kai Leng. Killed by Commander Shepard." The Illusive Man says.

Upon hearing that, Kai Leng then does remember...he remembers how he was about to kill Commander Shepard when he quickly got out of his seat and broke his Monomolecular Blade with his fist before than activating his Omni-Blade and driving it into his side.

"That was for Thane...you son of a bitch!"

That was the last thing he heard before...he died.

"I...died? But...if I...then how am I--"

"All will be explained in good time my friend. For now though, you should get dressed. I've already prepared some...familiar armor and weapons for you." The Illusive Man says as he moves aside and a Cerberus Phantom pushes a cart into the room. On top of it, Kai Leng's armor and a new Monomolecular Blade.

Sometime Later...

Kai Leng, in his full, familiar battle gear walks up a walkway into a circular room with a large view of what appears to be a city before the Illusive Man.

"Much has happened since you're death. Even though it wasn't that long ago." The Illusive Man says after taking a breathe of smoke and then exhaling it.

Kai Leng steps beside his leader and upon getting a better view of what is before him and the Illusive Man, stares with a confused look, "Is this..."

"The Citadel. That's correct." The Illusive Man says as he then takes another breathe of smoke.

"But, how?" Kai Leng asks.

"We were able to take control of the Citadel with help from out...newfound allies." The Illusive Man says.

"New allies?"

All of a sudden a Cerberus scientist appeared from behind Kai Leng, walking past him the scientist then turned towards Kai Leng, "That is correct."

Kai Leng took a closer look at the scientist, his eyes were completely devoid of any kind of feeling, he just stood there, a blank look on his face looking towards Kai Leng. Kai Leng could tell what was wrong with the man and knew only one race that could do such a thing.

"The Reapers?" Kai Leng said.

"Correct. The Reapers are our new allies in the war against Shepard. After all, not much is left of our organization. So if we were to continue our fight against the Commander we would need powerful allies to combat him and his friends. That...and the Reapers themselves came to us, asking for help." The Illusive Man says.

"Help? The Reapers came to us for help? What could possibly have them frightened enough to ask for our help?" Kai Leng questioned.

"It seems that the Commander and his friends have come across something. Something that can and will change the tides against the Reapers, especially if it succeeds." The Illusive Man says.

"What? But...I thought the Crucible was the only thing that could defeat the Reapers?" Kai Leng says.

"So did I. But it seems that our Reaper friends have a little secret history. Something that happened 50,000 years ago during their last attack on the galaxy." The Illusive Man says.

"Really? And what would that be? Unless they didn't tell you sir." Kai Leng says.

The Illusive Man takes another breathe of smoke, "Ever heard of the...Multiverse theory Kai Leng?"

"Sir?"

"The Multiverse theory." The Illusive Man says as he turns around towards Kai Leng.

"Never heard of it." Kai Leng replies.

"The theory goes...that our universe is just one of an infinite number of universes. All of them different from each other in one way or another. There could be some, similarities but for the most part, every universe is far different from one another. Different races, different planets...different everything. And all of them, separated from one another." The Illusive Man says.

"So, the Reapers traveled to another universe?" Kai Leng asked.

"Not just one, but across the multiverse itself. It seems that they were able to do so thanks to this human-like race from another universe. They were able to harness their technology and thus begun traversing the multiverse, bringing their destruction to all of the other alternate universes. However, something happened and the Reapers found themselves forced back to this very universe. It seems however, that they were able to retain the ability to travel across the Multiverse, although they weren't able to use it." The Illusive Man says.

"What does any of this have to do with their problem and coming to us for help?" Kai Leng questions.

"It seems, that they picked up a familiar energy signature coming from a planet that was close to where our former base was. They tried to go to the planet, but it seems that there's some form of energy that's keeping them from getting near the planet. However, they were able to send in a pod with some Husks on it to the planet, most of them were somehow killed as soon as they hit the planet, all except for one little swarmer which made its way to a hidden cave system which the Commander and his friends had arrived in. It managed to listen in on their entire conversation with the projection of a woman from this ancient civilization before it also died of unknown causes. Supposedly, this woman told the Commander of her plan, to have the Commander and his friends travel across the Multiverse, gathering together the heroes and armies of good from across the alternate universes." The Illusive Man says.

"So, the Reapers are afraid of these "heroes" and these armies of good?" Kai Leng asks.

"That's correct. Think about it, the Reapers have the races of our galaxy hanging by a thread of survival. If the Commander however, gathers all of these heroes and armies of good, then the Reapers could find themselves outnumbered and outgunned. And it wouldn't be long until the Commander and his newfound allies are able to secure the Crucible and use it to destroy the Reapers. Which is why the Reapers are asking us for for help, and it's because of this new alliance that I have the means of bringing the dead back to life. Like you." The Illusive Man says.

"So...Reaper technology brought be back to the living." Kai Leng says as he looks at his hands as while he finally knows that Reaper technology is behind his reborn he still feels the same as before.

"Yes, and its by this means that we're going to begin rebuilding our numbers so that we can help the Reapers. You see, what they plan on doing is that now they have the means of traveling across the Multiverse again, they plan on going to these other universes, and then they will begin destroying these universes as well as their armies thus making them unable to give much aid to Shepard and his allies here. Meanwhile for us, we're to deal with the heroes of these universes." The Illusive Man says.

"And since the Commander and his friends are going to be somehow traveling to these other universes. We will have the chance to take them out as well." Kai Leng says.

"Correct. Though, I have a feeling that these other heroes won't be as easy to take down as the Commander and his friends. Which is why...I'm going to be bringing back to life...certain people." The Illusive Man says.

This gains Kai Leng's curiosity upon hearing this, "What do you mean by...certain people? Sir?" Kai Leng asks.

"I'm going to be bringing back to life two people that can be of great help to us on our mission. Not only to destroy the heroes and Shepard, but when we turn against the Reapers in the end and take control of them." The Illusive Man says.

"Hm, that's good to hear sir. Who are these two?" Kai Leng asks.

"One of them is really close to being brought back to life. Though, we are still unsure if the Reapers technology works 100%. Which is why we need you and our soon to be new ally to...fight against each other, to see if you and him both retain your strengths and abilities." The Illusive man says.

"Of course sir. Who is this man?" Kai Leng asks.

In a different room...

"It can't be...sir...are you really--"

"Yes, Kai Leng. I am. Don't worry the Reapers also gave us the means of controlling people who we deem untrustworthy. Besides, he gave the Commander a run for his money when he fought against him. While in normal circumstances I would never want to be seen alongside this...alien. If we're to defeat the Commander and all these heroes, we will need his skills." The Illusive man says as he and Kai Leng stare before them at a pod which contains inside of it...the former Turian Spectre Saren Arterius.

"Sir, we're getting vitals from the Turian. He will awaken soon." A Cerberus scientist says to the Illusive Man.

"Good, we need to get this pod to the simulation room. Kai Leng, prepare yourself for combat. After all...this was the best Spectre the Citadel had before Shepard." The Illusive Man says.

Darkness...that's all that there was. Nothing could be seen or heard, just an eerie silence was all that there was. All of a sudden, from out of nowhere a white light appeared. It began to grow intensely...bigger and brighter until finally it engulfed all the darkness.

Saren opened his eyes, his face was covered in cold sweat as his eyes darted all around trying to find out what was going on and where he was. He was inside some kind of capsule from what he could tell, one that was really cold. Just then the capsule let out a hiss as it began slowly opening up, confusing Saren as he hadn't moved at all to have hit some kind of motion sensor. Saren raises himself from the capsule and looked around, he was in some kind of large and open metallic room. He noticed a console to his left but saw no one manning it, Saren carefully lifted his feet from out of the console and onto the ground. The feeling in his feet came back as he pushed himself up, having to hold himself up as his legs struggled for a bit to keep him up, still not back up to full strength. Saren let go of the capsule, now able to stand without struggle as he took a step forward and for a moment almost lost his feelings again but recovered. It wasn't long until Saren regained fully the strength in his legs, the Turian looked around the room not recognizing the place. He looked towards the only doorway that led in and most likely out of the room, he noticed a table next to the door and on it were his pistol and assault rifle. Saren walked over to the table and picked up his weapons, double checking them to make sure they were in perfect condition.

Saren walked out the door and found himself in the middle of a forest. It was night time, there seemed to be torches however that hanged on many trees, lighting the forest up through the night. Saren turned around to find that the room he was in was just a really small hut.

"What's going on? Last thing I remember was..." however before he could finish his thinking he had the strange sense that he was being watched as he turned his head slightly and looked out of the corner of his left eye to see if he could see anyone behind him. Not a single living soul was seen, but Saren knew that not all things could be seen with the naked eye...his senses weren't off, he was being watched by someone. But who it was, he did not know. Saren began walking off into the forest, keeping his weapons holstered as to not give whoever or whatever was watching him a hint that he was on to them. From behind a darkened tree, Kai Leng de-cloaked himself as he looked at the Turian Spectre who had awakened.

"How exactly are you controlling him sir?" Kai Leng asks.

"I'm not controlling him Kai Leng. Merely, I was able to rewrite some of his memory. In a way, I am controlling him, but not to the extent where he's a mindless drone. I changed the part of his memory with his final battle with Shepard. Instead of breaking free from Sovereigns control, what he will remember is not believing Shepard's words and fighting against the Commander to stop him from ruining "his" plans. The Illusive Man says.

Kai Leng could tell from Saren's movements that he was thinking about the last thing he remembered. Just like him. Kai Leng needed to make sure that Saren's mind had been changed to what the Illusive Man said he changed it too, if it worked then he was to keep him alive. If not...then they would need to put Saren back down, which might not be such an easy task considering who he was formerly. Kai Leng re-activated his cloak and began to move after Saren. Kai Leng quietly moved through the forest, trying to re-locate Saren as he appeared to have walked a bit farther then Kai Leng expected.

"Where'd he go?" Kai Leng wonders.

As Kai Leng walked past a tree, a mass effect field surrounded his invisible body and began damaging him, he had been hit by a Biotic Warp as the Warp tore through his kinetic barriers and caused his tactical cloak to malfunction as he soon found himself de-cloaking. Kai Leng backed up against the tree due to the pain that the warp was causing him, the warp ended soon after as he began catching his breath and grinded his teeth together in anger and pain.

"So, I was being followed. The only kind of people I know who would have tactical cloaks are either petty thieves...or...well trained and well equipped assassins." Saren says as he emerged from the brush to Kai Leng's left.

"Now, if you were just a thief, perhaps I would've spared your life. Though...that armor of yours, as well as the insignia of the Human Terrorist Organization Cerberus...means that I need to end your life." Saren says to Kai Leng.

Kai Leng acts quickly as he aims his Palm Blaster and fires at Saren, Saren ducks to his left dodging the shot as the shot hits the trunk of the tree that was behind Saren sending wooden shrapnel flying. Saren pulls out his pistol and taking aim at Kai Leng returns fire at Kai Leng who quickly gets off from the tree and rolls behind a fallen thick tree trunk for cover, the high-velocity rounds of the pistol impacting into the tree but not having enough power to go through it entirely. Kai Leng attempts to activate his tactical cloak, but finds it still damaged from the Biotic warp and unable to activate it. With his primary means of getting the jump of Saren gone, Kai Leng knows that he will have to face the former Spectre face to face. Kai Leng pops up from behind the tree trunk and fires at Saren, the shots impacting around him with only three actually hitting the Turian as his barriers flash from the damage. Saren spots a large boulder to his right and rushes behind it as he then fires his pistol blindly at Kai Leng the shots flying all around him.

Firing off another round Saren then finds his pistol overheated as he pulls his arm back down, Kai Leng noticing it takes this as an opportunity as he vaults over the tree trunk and rushes towards Saren's position, Saren however pops up from behind the boulder with his Biotics powered up and casts a Throw on Kai Leng who is engulfed in a mass effect field and sent flying back into the downed tree trunk. Saren puts away his pistol and pulls out his assault rifle as he takes aim at Kai Leng, Kai Leng sees the assault rifle and acting quickly puts up a spherical barrier around himself just as Saren starts firing. The rounds bounce harmlessly off the barrier as Saren continues firing stopping just before it completely overheats like his pistol. Kai Leng gets rid of the barrier and quickly pulls himself over the tree trunk to the other side as he then gets back up to his feet and runs off towards the forest, Saren attempts to hit him with another warp but misses Kai Leng as the warp hits and destroys the trunk of a tree sending the tree crashing to the ground which obscures Kai Leng from Saren's view.

Saren powers down his Biotics as he finds both of his guns cooled down, Saren then begins giving chase after Kai Leng as he runs in the same direction as Kai Leng, maneuvering himself through the forest as he dodges trees and jumps over large boulders and slides over downed tree trunks.

...

For the next few minutes...Saren cautiously walks through the forest, scanning through the trees, keeping his eyes out for the Cerberus assassin also from time to time looking up at the branches to see if he might try an assault from above. Coming out into a clearing, Saren stopped in his tracks as he found himself looking at a village of stone-built buildings, most of them two stories tall, three small huts and then one temple-looking and sized building in the middle. Saren had a feeling that Kai Leng was most likely inside one of these buildings as he then made his way towards the temple. Walking into the temple, Saren found the inside to be very largely open, large chunks of the ceiling seemed to have broken off and fell to the ground, tall pillars stood on either side of the middle walkway.

As he continued walking through the temple, he heard something off to his left and turned towards the pillar from where the noise came from. Just then an arc of electrical energy flies through the pillar at hits Saren sending him flying back into another pillar as it causes heavy damage to his barriers, Saren falls to the ground as he looks up to see Kai Leng come charging at him from behind the pillar, his monomolecular blade covered in the same electrical energy that hit Saren as Kai Leng then tries to hit the Spectre with another Electric slash. Saren acts quickly however and dives far to his right to avoid the electrical energy that is fired at him from Kai Leng's blade. Saren stands back up and aiming his assault rifle fires at Kai Leng managing to hit him with most of the shots he fires as Kai Leng's barriers flash from the damage they're taking, Kai Leng however continues charging at Saren as he then jumps at Saren and delivers a jumping spin hook kick, kicking the assault rifle out of Saren's hands

Kai Leng aims his Palm Blaster straight at Saren's head who grabs the arm with his right hand. The two both stand completely still as a small wind blows through the temple, Kai Leng grins, assured of his victory as there's no possible way for Saren to dodge his Palm Blaster at point blank. However, Kai Leng soon finds himself confused as he notices Saren give off a small smirk himself. Before he can even think about why he's smirking, pain surges through his arm as he notices his palm blaster arm shooting out electricity and sparks as it then let's out a small explosion, one that's not big enough to blow off his entire arm but still hurt like hell as Saren let's go and Kai Leng staggers backwards holding his arm as he yells out in pain. Kai Leng looks down at his arm as he then notices the light on his palm blaster die down, Saren had cast Sabotage on his Palm Blaster thus rendering it useless just like his tactical cloak.

Kai Leng looks back at Saren, anger clearly showing on his face "Alright...I've just about had enough of you. It's time to put an end to this." Kai Leng says as he then activates his shield boost.

"I couldn't agree more." Saren says as he also activates his own shield boost.

Kai Leng charges at Saren, Saren pulls out his pistol and fires at Kai Leng, the shots hitting him but are shrugged off by the increased shield. Kai Leng jump kicks Saren in his chest sending him stumbling back. Saren recovers and tries to aim his pistol at Kai Leng again, but Kai Leng swings his Monomolecular Blade and hits the pistol out of Saren's hand as the pistol slides across the ground a few feet away from the two. Kai Leng swings his blade back towards Saren who ducks under it and charges into Kai Leng grabbing him around the waist, lifting him off the ground and ramming him into a pillar. Kai Leng knees Saren in the stomach several times to get him off of him as Saren finally releases his grip only for Kai Leng to then reverse roundhouse kick Saren in the face sending him twirling around back a few feet as Kai Leng attempts to stab Saren in the back while he's dazed.

Saren however recovers much more quickly then Kai Leng anticipated as he twists to his left to avoid the blade, lifts up his left leg and then throws his foot at the blade slamming it against a large boulder, pinning it against the rock as Kai Leng attempts to pull it free. Saren then jumps off his other foot and swings it into the face of Kai Leng sending him stumbling back as well as causing him to release the grip on his blade. Saren fast walks towards Kai Leng who throws a punch at him, Saren moves aside and grabs his arm as he then attempts to flip him over, Kai Leng however lands perfectly on his feet and throws a back kick into Saren making him let go of his arm. Saren looks back up as Kai Leng jumps up and throws a flying scissors kick at Saren catching his neck in between his legs, Saren however grabs a hold of his legs and then twists around and manages to force Kai Leng's legs to release sending Kai Leng flying to the ground.

Kai Leng looks up at Saren as he then notices Saren activate his Biotics and then throw a kick into his stomach sending him flying up into the air once again as Saren then throws a fist down on Kai Leng hitting him right back into the ground, the Biotics adding more power to his punch as Kai Leng spurts out blood from his mouth. On the ground, Kai Leng spins himself around and sweep kicks Saren off his feet sending him to the ground on his back as Kai Leng then quickly jumps back up to his feet as Saren also manages to recover as he pushes himself back up as well. Kai Leng quickly charges at Saren in an attempt to take him down before he can fully recover. Saren however quickly powers up his Biotics once agan and swings his arm casting a push as he sends Kai Leng flying back once again into a pillar. Kai Leng falls to the ground face forward, pain coruses throughout his body as he attempts to stand back up. Kai Leng pushes up as he looks up, only to find a pistol pointed right at his forehead and Saren the one holding it.

"Cerberus should've sent someone better then you to kill me." Saren says as he pulls the trigger and puts a high-velocity slug in his head as Kai Leng falls back to the ground, his body lifeless.

Saren raises his pistol and looks down on the dead Cerberus assassin. As he is about to turn around, Saren all of a sudden receives a very powerful electric shock as his entire body is engulfed in electricty, Saren screaming out in pain as after a few seconds he then falls to the ground unconscious. From the shadows of the building, a Cerberus Centurion and a squad of troopers and two Guardians appear, all of them with their weapons trained on Saren just in case he's still conscious.

The Centurion walks over and nudges the body with his foot...no movement. The Centurion reaches for the comm on the side of his helmet "Sir, he's unconscious."

From the Observation Room...

The Illusive Man watches as he breathes out another puff of smoke "Good. Lock him up." The Illusive Man says as then the two Cerberus scientists in front of him, operating the controls to the holographic room de-activate the simulation, everything returning to normal as the room is now nothing but a massive white cubed shaped room as in the room two troopers pick up Saren and begin to carry him out of the room.

Thirty-Minutes Later...

The Illusive Man stands in another observation room, this one being the other side of a one-way seeing window as on the other side of it is the still unconscious Saren who has been locked up in a small room that is Biotic-proof. The door behind the Illusive Man opens up "Well, I'm a little dissapointed Kai Leng. But, then again when you lasted much longer then what I originally thought." The Illusive Man says as Kai Leng walks in behind him, all bruised up still from the fight.

"It's a good thing that those guns were set to simulation mode. Otherwise, you would've been dead." The Illusive Man says.

"My apologies sir, for failing," Kai Leng says.

"No need to worry. It looks like both yours and Saren's skills are still intact, that's good. You should probably go see the Doctor and get fixed up. Should also have the engineers repair your armor." The Illusive Man says.

"Are you sure you'll be safe sir?" Kai Leng asks.

"I'll be fine." The Illusive Man says calmly as he breathes in smoke from his cigarette and then blows it out.

Kai Leng bows his head in respect and walks out of the room. As the door closes, Saren's body twitches a bit as he begins waking out. Dazed once again due to the static shock he received. Saren stands up and notices the room he's in, he looks at the window but for him he sees only his reflection, however he is no fool to what it is.

"I can tell that's a one way-window. Who are you?" Saren questions.

"You may have heard of me. I'm the leader of Cerberus."

"The Illusive Man. That's what everyone calls you." Saren says.

"Yes, that is correct." The Illusive Man says from the room as he has the interrogation rooms speakers on.

"I can see you didn't kill me. In fact...it seems that you had already planted some kind of electrical chip on me that went off as soon as I killed your assassin. Or...did I kill him?" Saren says.

"Luckily, you did not. I had your guns set to simulation mode. My assassin is just fine." The Illusive Man says.

"So...you brought me back to life. Why is that?" Saren asks.

"Because, you're someone that could help me...and in the end...I can help you." The Illusive Man says.

"Is that so? How can you help me? And why would I want to help you?" Saren questions.

"I can help you get back at those who caused your death in the first place. Especially, Commander Shepard. A common enemy of ours. Don't you remember? The Commander ruined your plan, he killed you before you could complete your mission." The Illusive Man says.

Saren then tries to think back to the last battle with Shepard...however...everything seemed fuzzy, the only things he could recollect was Shepard and his team arriving, the two speaking to each other and then Shepard pulling out his pistol and shooting as his eyes shoot back open.

"As for why you can help me. It's because of who you used to be. The best Spectre, that the Citadel Council USED to have. Before Shepard took it for himself." The Illusive Man says.

"But last time I checked. Cerberus was pro-human, all of the other races you could care less about. You want to have control over all of the other races while Humanity becomes the dominate race." Saren says.

"True...however. Circumstances have...persuaded me to include you at the most as our ONLY alien ally." The Illusive Man says.

"And what are these circumstances?" Saren asks.

The Illusive Man then goes on to explain to him all about how the Reapers have returned, how Cerberus wants to take control of them and how Shepard and his friends have gathered the armies of the galaxy together...and how they have begun traversing the Multiverse all in an effort to gather together all of the heroes and armies of good so that they stand a better chance against the Reapers and can reclaim the Crucible and use it to destroy them.

"I see. So, where do I come in on this?" Saren asks.

"You've met my top assassin. Kai Leng. I want you, him and...one other friend of ours who should be brought back to life soon. To travel across the Multiverse and to work on taking out ALL of the heroes. That way, Shepard and his friends won't have any heroes to recruit. And if possible, take out the Commander himself. Completing either one...or both will allow us to be victorious in this war." The Illusive Man says.

"And why would I want to help you control the Reapers?" Saren asks.

"Because, not only will you get revenge on the Council and Shepard. You will also be allowed to live, and I give you whatever you want. An entire universe? Riches and slaves? Whatever you want." The Illusive Man says.

"And if I refuse?" Saren asks.

"Then...I will activate that chip's secondary function...and blow your entire head off." The Illusive Man says.

...

The door to a room opens up as the Illusive Man, Kai Leng AND Saren Arterius walk in.

"Sir, why are you bringing me back to this place?" Kai Leng asks remembering this as being the room where he first awoke.

"Because, it's time for the two of you to meet the final member of your group." The Illusive Man says.

"Final member?" Saren asks.

The three walk to a capsule in the middle of the room, Kai Leng wipes away the fog on the capsule revealing the face of...Shepard? Seeing this takes both the assassin and former Spectre back.

"What trickery is this! Why is he here!?" Saren questions.

"Do not worry, both of you. This is not the real Commander Shepard. Rather, this here...is a clone of him. One that is very...very evil. He tried to take everything the Commander had very recently, almost succeeded too. He will be a very, very good ally in our fight." The Illusive Man says.

Winner: Saren Arterius

Expert's Opinion[]

Saren Arterius swept through this battle with no problem at all. Saren had the better weapons, skills and abilities that easily outmatched anything Kai Leng had to offer. Before Shepard came into the picture, Saren was the best Citadel Spectre the Council had ever had and nothing and no one could stop him, to become a Citadel Spectre means you needed to be really REALLY good in anything and everything. He was intelligent, he was cunning and he was capable. And what made him even more dangerous was his ruthlessness in combat, he was someone you did not want to mess with and in the end with his skills that's why he was able to best Cerberus' best assassin.

To see the original battle, weapons and votes, click here.

Battle vs. Genji (by Appelmonkey)[]

TBW

Expert's Opinion[]

TBW

To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.

Tarot Battle Royale (by Leolab)[]

Prologue[]

A siren resounded through DFederal, drawing the notice of the several of the newer residents. The announcement that followed, however, drew the attention of everyone. A battle was to take place within the city itself, a full twenty-two people fighting for the chance to live in luxury. Darth Bane, one of those potentially lucky souls, slams Palpatine’s head into a wall one last time before striding out of the alleyway he had been calling home. He finds himself in a grey, featureless room instead of the streets, surrounded by a slate of colorful characters. He takes stock of his foes, some faces familiar and others seemingly far too young.

Taking similar stock is Kai Leng, the arrogant ninja holding back a sneer. If his foes were of this caliber, he should have no problem taking the top. The organizer this time must be insane, including not only a schoolgirl but the fool sleeping against the corner. Or they might just be allowing him to finally get his due. He smiles as the door opens, letting in a man in an orange mask with blue detailing.

“I’m Leo, your host this time,” the man says without preamble, “And most of you should have had the rules this time directly implanted in your minds. Try not to get too distracted you don’t hear the district change announcements. Let’s start.” And at that, the man snaps, teleporting all of them to random points in the sewers.

Kai Leng appears next to the cookfire of a man in a leather cap and a maille shirt under a cloth tunic, damp and dirty. The other man jumps, startled at the sudden appearance, but smiles at his visitor.

“Hail, Kai,” Diarmuid says with a smile, “I wish you good luck in your fight.” The Irishman toasts to his unexpected guest, general good nature unaffected by his surroundings. Kai returns his politeness with discourtesy, and kicks his fire out.

“I have no need for encouragement from someone so low,” he sneers, and draws his sword, intending to cut down the man as practice. Diarmuid, however, dodges the blow while picking up a small spear next to him. A series of slashes from the ninja are dodged with relative ease, while a pair of swipes from Diarmuid’s spear find their mark, leaving long, gashes on the arrogant man.

Kai Leng lashes out with his palm blaster, firing at the floor to create an escape route. The spearman had gotten a few lucky hits in, no more. He simply had larger fish to fry; he wasn’t fleeing a losing fight. Like everything else he has done, however, Kai Leng made a grave miscalculation. The floor crumbles under his feet, sending him plummeting into an abyss.

He eventually slams into the ground, the impact knocking the wind out of him and sending more blood through his wounds. He gets up and looks around, seeing the rows upon rows of people in illuminated tubes. One behind him starts to shake, and he turns to watch as a man with an owl mask slams his head into the glass repeatedly, eventually breaking it open. The fluid within pours out as the man leaps out of his tank, knocking Kai Leng back to the ground.

Stunned and weakened from the wounds Diarmuid gave him, he can only watch in horror as the Owlman, crazed from repeated confinement and deaths, scratches at his cybernetics. The insane man’s fingers get under Kai Leng’s mask and pry it off, opening his face to the continued scratching by the screeching warrior. As he convulses from the pain of having his skull worn away by human fingers, Leng remembers one of the many rumors he had heard on the DFederal streets. A place known as “OCity” under the sewers, a place of madness and death. Those who entered were killed and returned aboveground, their memories erased save for the terror.

His last thoughts as the fingers finally scoop out his brain were a curse towards Leo, for sending him so close to such a deadly place.

Chapter 1[]

As soon as he appeared in the sewers, Tal fell back on his usual plan when things go wrong. He simply ran like mad, ignoring the disgruntled grumbles of his Spiritshadow. He vaults and sprints through the pipes, barely missing the denizens of DFederal’s underground. He stops short just before an intersection spews a gout of sewage, narrowly avoiding being swept away like the large, blue-skinned person who was running ahead of him.

Another pipe takes him to a large, circular junction, which has two other entrances aside from his own. Footsteps in both of them come to a halt, as a red-haired teenager with blood trickling out of her mouth appears in one and a man with an eyepatch stumbles into the other.

“Blood and ashes,” Mat mutters, “Of course the dice stop now.” He throws a knife at each of his opponents as he finishes, the first cut down by a ray of light from the child and the other simply stopping in midair in front of the girl before plopping into the murky water. Tal immediately retaliates with a Red Ray of Destruction, but his attack fizzles out before hitting the older man. He then yelps and ducks, barely dodging Miu’s punch, and tries to sweep her legs out from under her.

The vampire leaps back and thrusts her hand out towards Mat, who feels his medallion grow cold has her attempt to pull him off balance fails. He lets another knife fall from his sleeve into his hand, and catches the boy with the other, halting the youth’s attempt to charge him. He throws him at the girl, but to his surprise the youth cocoons himself in light.

Miu dodges him, unsure of what such a massive blast of light would do, and Tal slams into the wall, nearly knocking himself out. Miu, seeing the opportunity to incapacitate the youth, throws another punch with one hand while using her telekinesis with the other to pull the knife out of Mat’s hands. Splitting her attention allows Tal to attack, however, and in his panic lashes out with a Violet Unraveling. Miu disintegrates without a sound, and the knife she had intended to catch flies through the space where she was and into Tal’s throat.

Mat, horrified, runs towards the boy, but arrives too late. The child, barely fourteen, had already bled out in the filth and grime of the sewers. Mat grimaces and closes the boy’s eyes, trying not to liken him to Olver and failing. He sets the boy’s body down on one of the ledges above the water and runs off, hoping that no one had noticed the brief but deadly fight.

As Mat’s footsteps fade from the junction, Haar steps out from behind a corner with a sigh. He walks through the battlefield, yawning, and takes a different pipe to the other man, hoping to avoid combat. In the dim light, he notices iron rungs leading up to a small round metal plate. He lifts his axe up and pokes it, revealing the light of the slums above him. Yawning again, he settles into a nook across from the cover and falls asleep, intending to nap and let the district change be his alarm.

A few junctions away, Yukie also sprints through the pipes. Unlike the dead Tal, however, she was looking for an opponent instead of fleeing. She feels a presence behind her, and swiftly draws her katana to shatter the icicles raining down on her. A flurry of slashes deflects those about to hit her, and the rest crater the steel floor around her. A woman in a heavily modified nun habit, almost a cosplay piece, crystalizes out of the shadows, confident smile on her face.

“Patterns in the ice / melt away beautifully / and fade with cruelty,” she says, and a runic circle appears over her hand. Yukie coats her sword in her fighting aura and bats away the long, spear-like icicles that threaten to gouge her flesh and chill her blood. As she defends, however, she notices her foe running towards her, whispering another poem.

“In a silver world / act with ice-cold precision. / Leave nothing to chance.”

The assassin materializes a katana blade of ice and launches into a series of attacks, fast enough that she seemed to be wielding three swords instead of one. Yukie moves faster, however, and is finally able to strike back. Her foe freezes the air in a makeshift shield, dampening the blow enough that she can catch it with her ice and retreat. Yukie pursues, realizing only as she brings her sword down that this was Fiona’s plan.

The nun manipulates the ice in her blade skillfully, softening it just enough to capture the swordswoman’s katana. Freezing it back to solidity, she wrenches it from Yukie’s grasp and throws it at the wall. Unperturbed by the loss of her weapon Yukie punches, almost faster than the eye can see. Fiona deflects it with similar speed, and strikes back. The pair trade blows, each one thrown with enough force to kill, and destroy the pipes around them while looking for an advantage.

They leap back to a neutral position, a fierce joy in their eyes at being able to fight to their fullest, a pleasure Yukie was denied upon her entrance to the city. Fiona breaks the stillness first, with another of her senryu incantations.

“With my wish fulfilled / I prostrate as it plummets/ That shower of stakes,” she says, sending another rain of icicles down around Yukie. The youth dodges and deflects the scattering spikes, sending one down a connecting pipe. It misses a man in an eyepatch by a hairsbreath, nearly throwing his newly-reclaimed hat off with the force of its passing.

Mat curses his luck, annoyed at being nearly killed yet again. First the battle against two children, and now a random icicle from nowhere. Even in this place, the world seemed to simply want to make his life miserable. As if laughing at his recollection, Mat once again stumbles on a pair of his opponents, one a man in a blue uniform and the other a young girl in a black one and a plaid skirt, of all things.

“Oh not again,” Mat groans, again throwing a pair of knives. Just like the last time, one is incinerated by the man in the blue uniform and the girl simply dodges it.

“Do you always greet people by throwing knives?” Queen asks, fixing her skirt.

“Only if I know they’re trying to kill me,” Mat says, hoping his light smile was charming enough to get her to back off without using one of the other knives in his sleeve. She wasn’t his type, but he didn’t want to kill another woman if he could help it.

“Well, we’re not,” Roy interjects, “at least I’m not.”

“I also do not wish to fight,” Queen says primly, “And I believe that we should, at this stage, ally with each other.”

“I agree with the girl,” Roy says, and the two look at Mat.

“All right, all right. You’ve twisted my arm,” he says, throwing his hands in the air. It might not be bad to have some friends. And if they have to kill each other later, well… they’d get to that when it happened.

“First thing’s first,” Roy says, sounding more relaxed than he looks, “Information.”

“At least two of them are dead,” Mat says with a frown, “We fought.”

“Three,” Queen says, causing the two to look at her before she continues, “If I only remember nineteen people from that room, that means three are dead.”

“Look, lass, I don’t think a bad memory is proof of anything.”

“I forget the dead. Part of the Crystal’s blessing.”

“Burn me, girl, that’s no blessing,” Mat says with a scowl.

“It can be, at times,” Roy mutters, before realizing they had all forgotten something fairly important when making allies. “I’m Roy Mustang,” he says, nodding towards his new companions.

“Matrim Cauthon,” Mat says while tipping his hat.

“Queen,” Queen says while adjusting her glasses.

“And I’m Aoi Kamishiro, and it’s hunting time!” a teenager wearing a nun costume shouts as she charges at the dumbfounded trio, a dagger in each hand. Queen materializes her blade and utilizes Justice Guard, parrying the strike and hitting her point-blank with her repost. Aoi leaps back, only for Roy to snap his fingers and explode the air behind her.

She falls to the ground, dead, the Killsight having done its work.

“Guess that makes four,” Roy says, looking incredulously at the dead woman.

“Oh. Was she one of them?” Queen asks, dismissing her sword into thin air while fixing her skirt.

Chapter 2[]

Darth Bane stalks through the pipes, the narrow confines unpleasantly similar to hit time on Apatros as Dessel. The area he wanders through is pitch dark, the only available illumination his red lightsaber. His rage boils, hatred of the system that kept him down first as an illegal resident and then as a homeless Sith rising to form a sweep of power, rippling the sewage away from his feet as he walked. His Force-enhanced senses picked up the sound of another stepping delicately through the pipe ahead, moving in his direction.

Bane glares as he sees a flame flicker, and a young girl peers incautiously through the darkness, wearing a long, blue gown and a pair of gloves. As she moves her flaming hand across her face, Bane recognizes the girl: Azaka Kokutou, one of the other homeless residents who wandered the alleyways of the blue collar district. And one of his opponents in the current fight.

The girl stops, evidently noticing his lightsaber, and the man shoots his hand forward, fingers twisted into a claw. A half-dozen bolts of blue lightning arc out and strike the girl, and she barely has time to scream before the Dark Side fries her from the inside out. As she falls, the crashing of a gong roll through the sewers, followed by an announcement.

“All right, Tarot competitors. Five of you are dead, so now it’s time to get to the Slums. You have ten minutes to leave the sewers and get to the slums. Everyone else… try not to get in their way.”

Bane meets the eyes of one of the sewer’s residents, who appeared to be drawing the vestiges of his lightning into himself, and the man takes a step back through the broken hole that counted as an entryway in this section of the city.

Bane himself growls and thrusts his palm upward, straining as the steel and concrete above him buckles and cracks.

Elsewhere in the sewers, Fiona and Yukie pause their battle upon hearing the announcement and look at each other. An unspoken understanding sparked between the two swordswomen, and Fiona taps the ceiling with her sword, adjusting its shape to send it through each and every minor flaw in the pipe and the surrounding earth. An entire stretch of ground slowly but surely freezes and warps, before the nun draws her blade back, nodding at the younger girl.

Yukie returns the nod, and closes her eyes for a second, concentrating her fighting spirit into her blade before opening them and striking upward, a movement so efficient and swift even Fiona could barely follow it. The ground above them shatters and launches miles into the sky, and Yukie wastes no time in executing a series of leaps up the broken steel, earth, concrete, and asphalt.

“The nameless deceased / have but a single purpose / as a stepping stool,” Fiona says, and the incantation creates her own footholds to leap up herself. She lands to see Yukie staring at her with a cramped attempt at a smile on her face.

“I am Yukie Mayuzumi, of the Mayuzumi sword style,” she announces, “Would you do me the honor of continuing this bout?”

“Fiona Annabel Kousaki,” she replies, “Self-taught. I suppose I can play with you for a while longer.”

She flips forward, and makes an ice platform at her feet to launch a strike from above. Yukie parries it, and barely leaps out of the way of the razor-sharp pillar of ice that would have cut her hands off. She bats away a sweep intended to hit her legs, and strikes back. Fiona leaps back while parrying one of the seeming five blades coming at her, narrowly avoiding decapitation. The soft tapping of steel on ice lost itself in the cacophony around them, other warriors either replicating their stunt or simply leaving through actual manholes.

Fiona snatches one of the many pieces of rubble now coating the DFederal slums and slings it at Yukie, who shatters it in midair with a swing and hits it with the flat of her blade on the return, sending the pebbles back fast as bullets. Fiona makes a swift wall of packed snow, the pebbled that would have hit her sinking harmlessly into the moisture while letting the ones that wouldn’t slice through the cardboard shanties behind her.

Yukie, sprinting behind the makeshift projectiles, brings her sword around in an arc, scattering the snow in a burst of wind. She freezes, honed senses momentarily overwhelmed, but her reflexes allow her to parry Fiona’s flurry of thrusts at her face. She leaps back, with the nun hot on her heels. A split second later, and the two have their swords at each other’s’ throats. Fiona disengages first, sliding back on a sheet of ice. She readies her blade, now stained with a speck of red, as Yukie brings her own spotless steel to bear.

The sounds of their continued clash even reach the sewers, as well as the desperately running Hitomi Hitoyoshi. The red-haired girl she was chasing pauses her flight, swinging the broken blade extending from her shield. Hitomi ducks and sweeps out with her foot, her perfect Savate strike only throwing the girl farther back and breaking her momentum. Len flips through the air, and extends her fist to touch the ground before extending her sword, sending her sailing aboveground as the gong reverberates through the sewers once more.

Mere moments later, a blue-skinned man in similar-colored armor appears before her, seemingly out of thin air. He sighs before drawing his curved, red sword and pointing it at the diminutive woman.

“I’m no longer his representative, but I can’t even retire,” he grumbles as he squares off, before simply extending his arm and incinerating his target in a gout of fire.

On the surface, Haar and Siegfried swing themselves into their saddles, the latter riding off to find a fight while the former lifts off, flying above the war-torn slums in the center of DFederal. As the city shudders below, the gaping wounds in its streets bleeding raw sewage, Haar – and his dragon – yawn and close their eyes.

Nothing’s better than the sky for a nap.

His shadow passes over the trio of Mat, Roy, and Queen, picking their way over the rubble and chaos. Even those not in the competition were being swept up in the violence, as the now-charred Irishman shrieking about God had decided now was the best time to attack three strangers with a flamethrower.

They hear maniacal laughter in what was left of the alleyway next to them, and peek in to see a white-haired man, naked save for a loincloth, hitting a giant spiked turtle with his throne, while some creepy blue-furred elf lay collapsed in its own blood, twitching with pink froth gushing out of its lips. The man teleports his throne over Bowser’s head and sits in it, finally crushing the Koopa King’s head and putting him out of his misery.

“He dared call himself a king in my presence,” he snorts, reveling in the slaughter, “And who’s this? Three more sacrifices before the mighty Algol?”

He gets up from his throne, facing the trio with a snarling smile on his face. He wastes no time getting into combat, shifting his hand into a cannon and launching magic at the group. Queen and Roy, acting as one, shove Mat forward while rolling out of the way.

“Oi!” the general yells as the magic fizzles before hitting him, “Just because it doesn’t hurt me doesn’t mean I like it!” Mat unsheathes his ashandarei in indignation, taking a couple swipes at Algol to keep the maniac at bay.

“Better you than us,” Roy says, snapping his fingers and exploding the air in front of Algol’s face. The Hero-King simply manifests the crystalline hilt of Soul Calibur, absorbing the impact before rematerializing his throne and throwing it at the alchemist with one hand. His other shifts into the red blade of Soul Edge, turning aside Mat’s thrust. He then casually manifests Soul Calibur’s blade, warding off Queen’s flurry of sword strikes before the young girl disengages, landing and launching magic at him.

While Algol cancels it out with his own magic cannon, Queen swiftly manifests and slashes a Mana Sphere, sending it at Algol from three directions. He cuts them all down by sprouting silver spikes from his back and arms. An explosion from Roy blinds him before he can strike back, however, sending him reeling for the first time in ages. He hears a sound in front of him, and shoots his ribcage out of his chest to impale the cretin bold enough to attack him while stunned.

His efforts are met with a squelching thud and piercing pain, and his vision returns to see Matrim impaling him on his spear. He twists the shaft and yanks it out, leaving the Hero-King on his knees. Algol opens his mouth in a snarl, intending to praise his opponent, but a snap and a spark from Roy explodes the air within his lungs.

Without those organs, as vital to kings as they are to Hamon users, Algol slumps on the ground, dead.

Chapter 3[]

Akechi Goro laughs, Loki manifesting prominently above him. A group of homeless monks with laser swords gathers around him, having initially mistaken his own beam sword for their own. Now, driven mad by his power, they set about tearing down and ripping up the slums. The low hum of lightsabers flashing is almost drowned out by the screams of the dying, which fall deaf on the manic Jedi’s ears.

Another lightsaber ignites, the crimson color standing out amongst a sea of other hues. Strikes rain out from its wielder, quick as the lightning that sparks from his free hand, swiftly cutting a path through the crowd. The enormous man, emaciated and pale but still solid with muscle, casually slices through the ranks of his most hated enemy until Akechi spots him. The detective makes an exaggerated attempt to attack him, but is unceremoniously cut down by Bane’s superior skill.

A girl in a kimono peeks out from behind a wall after the man passes, the only intact thing left in the street. A red-haired girl peeks out from the other side, and the pair catches each other’s eyes.

“Hey, do you think we can maybe… not?” Len says, giving the other girl a friendly smile.

“I saw what you did with Hitoyoshi,” Susushiro replies, “Do you really think I’d let such dishonor stand?”

“Ah, I guess not,” Len says, grimacing, and places her weapon against the wall behind her. She then extends the broken blade of her sword, launching her at her enemy. She cartwheels in midair, going for an overhand blow, but the girl simply punches the Divine Sword aside. Falling back on her instincts, Len brings her shield up in time to block another punch from Suzushiro, sending her flying backwards. She lands on the wall and springs off, aiming to get close before Suzushiro can react.

A sudden, sharp increase in gravity slams her out of the air, nearly knocking her out.

“You’re not the only one who remembered the other loss conditions,” Suzushiro says coldly, “I merely have to wait here for a minute, and you’ll have lost.” She smiles, confident in her victory, and does as she said. After a minute, she simply returns gravity to normal and walks off. Len rolls on her back, gasping for air.

“Well, I’m at least alive,” she says, groaning as she struggles to her feet, only to see a British male in a beret looking at her sadly, revolver drawn.

“I’m sorry, girl, but El Alamein demands blood,” he says, and fires. His shaking hand did not throw his aim off, and Len falls back, dead.

As she hits the ground, a gong rings out in the slums, followed by an announcement of a district change.

Yukie runs towards the blue collar district, sending a strike at Fiona as she does so. The nun casually deflects it and calls down yet another rain of icicles, which Yukie, too pressed for finesse, simply obliterates with a single sword slash that breaks the sound barrier. Fiona is nearly blown away by the air pressure, but catches her balance at the last minute before hurriedly parrying another strike from her foe. That does knock her off balance, but even that was within her expectations.

“Pushing through the ground / seeking the bright light of day / mete silvery death,” she says, touching the ground as she regains her poise. A forest of spikes erupts from the ground, chilling the air to stillness. Yukie is able to react, jumping over the spikes and using her speed to bounce between them too fast for them to give her frostbite. Siegfried is not so lucky, as the spikes impale him and his horse both, their blood running through the forest of icicles.

Yukie skids to a stop in the blue collar district, looking around for Fiona in vain as the spikes grow ever taller, piercing through even buildings. She hears the sound of ice hitting ice, and barely manages to deflect the frozen spear before it pierces her flesh.

As if that were a cue, she hears the sound start again, this time repeated several hundredfold. Yukie takes a defensive stance, hoping to survive the oncoming storm.

Chapter 4[]

The shards of ice bear down on Yukie, pushing her concentration to the limit. Simply deflecting them could send them back at her after a bad ricochet, so each razor-sharp chunk found itself winding outside the forest of pillars. As she finds a rhythm, Yukie broadens her senses, trying to find the nun trying to kill her. The effort makes her sweat, despite the surrounding ice.

She finally notices a speck of life, and immediately calculates how to send the ice back at her assailant. The speck flares up in surprise as her own missiles find their way back to her, and that’s all Yukie needs. The icicles stop for a split second, and a swing of her katana shears through the ice. For the first time, Fiona’s usual composed face drops in shock as Yukie pins her with a glare before leaping towards her, moving almost too fast for her to react.

Barely in time, she manages to snap her magi in place and generate a new blade. It shatters under the force of the blow, but allows her to leap back. The wind from the passing slash picks her up, however, and blows her through the door of the house across the street. Yukie shakes the thin drop of blood off her sword and dashes forward, intending to impale her foe on her blade. She sees a glint of ice ahead of her and plows through the attack, splitting the shard in half and impaling the figure behind it.

Her moment of victory quickly turns into surprise, as she sees she’s impaled an ice sculpture instead of Fiona. A sound of rushing wind behind her causes her to let go of her blade and turn, catching Fiona’s hand in her own as the nun assassin tries to slash her from behind.

As the superhuman struggle continues, a young girl in a poofy dress makes her way past, exuding an aura of harmlessness. Hanakamakiri places her hands together under the sleeves, trying to betray no hint of her actual skill. She barely dodges out of the way of a grey man in grey clothes, the only defining feature the massive red lenses on his mask, as he approaches a heavily-muscled man in black robes.

“Lord Bane!” the Sith calls out, causing the man to look towards him. And towards her. Hanakamakiri immediately suppresses any hint of bloodlust, needing to remain entirely harmless if she were to get her target.

“What?” he growls, overlooking the frilly, weak-seeming woman in favor of the one trying to get his attention.

“The slums were nearly leveled, my lord. If that devastation were to come here…” he starts, clearly nervous about the battles to come

“Then what? You are Sith. You grow strong, feed off the weak, and make your way to the top. That is the way of the Dark Side.”

“We might not be strong enough to survive…”

“Then perish,” he snarls, not even moving as he grabs the lesser man in a force choke, “A Sith does not cry for help. He takes what he wants!”

His tirade is cut off, however, as he feels a blade sink into his shoulder. Hanakamakiri, having failed her one chance, kicks off of Bane’s back, pulling her claw-blade out and trying to flee. Bane, however, simply holds her fast in the air with the Force. He sends Force Lightning into his own wounds, using the heat to cauterize them, before turning to her.

“This is it,” he says, exulting, “Trickery, deception, making a foe drop their guard… You know power, girl. But you missed.” He ignites his lightsaber, holding it before his helpless foe. “Come find me after this fight. I will train you. Shape you, give you the strength to not miss next time. You will be a warrior like no other. But you are not yet there.”

Bane caps his soliloquy with a flick of his wrist, throwing his saber and impaling the girl, before yanking it back with the Force. He catches it and turns, striking the Sith Assassin down.

Overhead, Haar naps peacefully in the sky, his black dragon sharing in the simple pleasure of ignoring everyone else. That, like much else in the city, was broken in short order, this one by a blonde twat riding a blue dragon, shouting something incomprehensible and holding a sword.

“Up and at ‘em, partner,” he says, patting his dragon on the neck, “No shortage of idiots with swords.”

His wyvern roars in response, and he draws his axe as he flies over the rube, unaware his friendly greeting was taken for a threat. The wyvern then pulls into a dive, plummeting down towards the boy, who holds his sword up to block. The axe rends through the magic steel, Nihil disabling the magic holding it together, and digs deep into the youth’s shoulder.

Momentum pulls the idiot out of his saddle, sending him plummeting to the earth as Haar’s wyvern spins into a roll, its talons and teeth opening the blue dragon from belly to neck in an instant. After another couple rolls to shake the blood off, the pair climbs a little higher, hoping to continue their nap.

Yukie narrowly dodges a boy falling from the sky, not able to spare a thought for the new red stain on the ground. Her duel with Fiona continues yet on, seemingly without end. She tenses as Fiona draws a breath, intuition telling her what came next would be bad.

Fiona strikes at Yukie without pause, the usual rhythm broken in an unending hail of slashes and thrusts. Yukie blocks and defends, knowing that when Fiona did need to pause and take a breath, it would leave her vulnerable. She just had to be patient and wait for her chance. Surely, after the next flurry the woman would disengage to breathe.

Fiona just keeps attacking, the breathless rush abandoning subtlety and tricks to overwhelm with pure, unrelenting violence. Her continual strikes, coming fast enough that not even her opponent could react, were finally interrupted not by her need to breathe but by a pair of fiery slashes coming from her right.

Artorius continues the attack by slicing at Yukie, before intercepting Fiona’s next strike with a kick. The nun kicks back again, sending yet another a rain of icicles at her foe. Yukie, now needing to defend against two foes, also falls back slightly, taking stock of the situation. She and Fiona throw a glance at each other, and wordlessly commence their joint assault.

Artorius, unable to utilize his dominant hand, struggles valiantly for a few seconds before being impaled on a blade of steel and one of ice. The swords, moment of harmony over, once again aim at the throats of their foes.

Chapter 5[]

Two men and a schoolgirl pick their way through the broken buildings and broken people, Roy and Mat looking around in horror while Queen has a detached expression on her face. She steps around a pair of corpses, who had gotten on the wrong side of one of the intermittent icicle showers. One man in Greek armor lies bloody on the ground, seemingly about to gasp his last breath. Queen kneels in front of him and casts Cura on him. The man gasps in air and faints in relief as she gets up and continues on.

“You’re too used to war, Queen,” Roy says, “What kind of life have you lead to know this devastation at such a young age?”

“This isn’t devastation. The city’s still here,” Queen says, leaving Mat and Roy speechless.

“That’s not a very normal standard of war damage,” Mat says, tossing a knife as he rests his ashandarei on his shoulder, “Though I can’t say you’re wrong. If balefire was used here…”

“It’s also getting less ruined as we get farther from the slums,” Queen points out, “As the field thins, I think it’ll probably return to the usual style of urban warfare.”

“Quick ambushes and retreats,” Mat nods, understanding perfectly as they continue their stroll.

“Fighting in a city is never good,” Roy says, grimacing, “Even if you win, you’ll never live there peacefully.”

“Peace would be nice,” Queen says absently, “Would be a change from either losing a war and forgetting everyone I knew or winning and accidentally starting the end of the world.”

As the two men try to figure out how to respond to their companion, none of them notice a parasol dashing back around the corner. Suzushiro holds her breath as she creeps off in the other direction; she knew when she was at a disadvantage. After feeling she’s finally far enough, she leaps back from a flash of light, as a heavily-wounded man stabs a glowing spear through the heart of an older one.

Kaladin collapses as Joseph falls, his soul killed. The older man was cunning, and guileful foes put Kaladin at a disadvantage. The strange power he wielded had forced Kaladin to use up almost all of his spheres, leaving him with almost no Stormlight. As its glow left him, a gong rings out, announcing the district change.

He fumbles towards his sphere pouch before Syl, shifted back into a Spren, stops him.

“Let’s ask her for help,” she says, pointing at the still frightened Suzushiro, “I like her.” He nods and pulls his bruised and bloody body to rest against the wall as Syl flits over to the girl, requesting aid. Suzushiro walks over and closes her parasol, holding it out to Kaladin with the tip facing the ground.

“I have taken an oath not to touch a male other than my fiancée,” she says, “but you can at least use my parasol as a cane.”

Kaladin grabs hold of the wood and pulls himself to a standing position, too injured to do more than nod in thanks.

As they step into safety, however, the pair spot the three that Suzushiro had tried so hard to avoid. Kaladin inhales Stormlight from his last two spheres, healing his wounds and Lashing himself and Suzushiro in opposite directions, soaring over the massive explosion that nearly killed them both. He lands on the side of a building, while Suzushiro kicks off of the lamppost she had been Lashed to and throws a punch at Queen, who blocks with her sword and fires off Thunder ROK with her free hand. The ball of lightning hits Suzushiro sqare in the stomach, dropping her to the ground where a swift sword stroke finishes her off.

Kaladin, meanwhile, struggles to make headway against Mat, the Sylspear not damaging the power-wrought ashandarei. Mat the slams the butt of his spear into Kaladin’s chest, causing him to gasp in pain and let a little Stormlight leak out. A well-timed explosion from Roy sucks out the rest, leaving him ripe for a stab from Mat. The bridgeman dies, lamenting that he hadn’t more Stormlight.

Across the district, Haar swoops down alongside his dragon, touching ground for the first time in hours. He lands outside a café and enters, ordering food for both him and his wyvern. He then steps outside, looking for a place to sit, before approaching a blonde teenage girl and an elementary-schooler in a mouse-eared hoodie, and motions to the empty seat at their table. They nod, and he takes a seat as his wyvern lumbers up next to them.

“Hi,” he says, breaking the ice, “I’m Haar. New here.”

“Ayaka,” the blonde says, “and the short one’s Parcel.”

“Your part-time job doesn’t let you afford this,” Parcel points out tonelessly, and Ayaka simply pats her head in response.

“And I still don’t get how yours does.”

“Our pay is based on our wins, remember?”

“So if I do well now I can just sleep and be fine?” Harr interjects, hoping for a ticket to luxury.

“No. You don’t work, you don’t get paid. And have to pay more for school, if you’re a student,” Ayaka replies, grimacing, “I just wish any of the schools had dorms. “

“I keep telling you to sleep at my place. The mansion’s too damn big, and after his fight finishes it’ll just get bigger. Got to be better than your hole in the sewers,” Parcel says, trying once again to get the stubborn girl to sleep somewhere proper.

“Ah… If you live in the sewers you might not have a house,” Haar says, “The others kind of destroyed most of the system.”

Ayaka gasps in horror, turning pale, while Parcel gives a triumphant smile.

“Now you have to find somewhere else to sleep,” she says, “And I have a spare bedroom. Or more like ten.”

“All right, you win,” Ayaka says, grinning at the younger girl through a mouthful of burger, “Still wish they’d kept the dorms from Operation Zodiac.”

“Operation Zodiac?” Haar chimes in as he tosses another cut of his steak to his wyvern, “Sounds like a pain.”

“Ah, right, you’re new,” Ayaka says, “So here’s how things work…”

Chapter 6[]

Queen hangs back as her allies walk ahead of her, and looks around. She could no longer remember most of the other competitors, and as she had predicted the wanton property damage and general chaos that had defined the early stages of the competition died down considerably. With that in mind, an alliance was now a liability. With no way of knowing when she would be betrayed, the logical option was to betray first.

That in mind, she summons her sword as Mat turns to ask her why she had stopped. Queen uses Speedrush, appearing directly before the man and slicing him open from hip to shoulder before he could so much as shout in alarm. Another Speedrush took her to Roy’s side, where she repeats the maneuver. She fixes her skirt and dismisses her sword as the gong signaling a district change rang out once again, her former companions already forgotten.

Elsewhere, Yukie parries yet another series of strikes from Fiona, grimacing at the effort. She immediately pivots her sword to block a razor-sharp pillar of ice that threatened to gouge her side, and lets go of the handle to punch Fiona back, the nun vulnerable from her leap to strike overhead. Fiona flips in midair, launching horizontally off of one of her ice platforms aiming a slash towards Yukie’s neck with one hand while using her other to call down an icicle from above.

Yukie, however, was simply no longer there. The younger girl sprints towards the boundary to the wealthy district, aiming for safety before continuing the fight. Fiona indulges her, also sprinting to safety, and parries another strike as she crosses the line. A follow-up punch catches her unaware, and she ends up flying through the air again. She rights herself, and sends a flurry of ice spears behind her to destroy the house wall before it hits her.

A path of ice underneath allows her to slow her momentum, skidding to a stop below the large chandelier, shaped like an A without the middle bar. Yukie pursues, not letting her foe catch her breath with a furious series of slashes and stabs. As she keeps up her assault, however, she sees the blue circles indicating Fiona’s magic appear and disappear. She draws back, not sure what her foe was planning, and evades the pair of icicles that would have split her head in two. Fiona sides in under them, preventing Yukie from continuing her attacks by launching a rush of her own.

As before, she strikes without even pausing for breath. Yukie, however, has formed a countermeasure. Instead of wasting her energy seeking an opening, she instead stores it, compressing her muscles and fighting aura into as small movements as she possibly can. After the gong finally sounds again, signaling ten minutes since Queen had killed her comrades, Fiona finally makes a low dash back, gasping for breath.

Taking her chance, Yukie unleashes all her stored energy in one swift strike, moving so fast that not even Fiona can track her movements. Her simple forward charge leaves a wake behind her, only halting when Fiona’s length of ice wire slices through her neck and arms. Momentum sends the pieces of her body slamming into the wall in front of her, and her katana clear through the rest of the mansion and impaling its owner as he entered through the back door.

“A valiant life / shining brightly like the sun / cut by silver strings,” Fiona says, eulogizing her opponent before breathing a sigh of relief. She lets her sword melt, stretching after nearly two hours of continuous combat. She is about to close her eyes when she looks up, spotting Haar and his dragon circling the area. She grimaces as she mutters the incantation to form her ice platforms, the words matching her profession but not her current mood.

“The nameless deceased / have but a single purpose / as a stepping stool”

The shock of an impact on his armor shakes Haar awake, and he sleepily swipes at Fiona, who simply lets her blade break as she falls, using another platform to leap over the dragon and re-forms her sword to strike the beast’s neck. Haar’s axe intercepts the blow, shaking the pair fully awake. Again she flips and bounces off of a sheet of magic ice, and aims another strike at Haar. Barely making it past his guard, it rings off his armor.

A sharp pain runs through Fiona as Counter activates, nearly throwing her out of the sky entirely. She freezes the cloud below her, getting her bearings back as Haar wheels around for a counterattack. Fiona parries the blow, once again flipping through the sky and leaping off another platform to strike back. Her blade meets his axe, and her eyes widen in surprise as her ice spears fail to materialize before momentum brings her past the pair. She creates a wall in midair, which she uses to change course to the side as Haar, flying upside down, slams his axe through it. He wheels around for a follow-up and strikes again, the force behind it throwing Fiona away despite blocking it.

Another series of ricochets brings Fiona in range once again, and she brings her blade once again into a slash. Haar leans back in the saddle, avoiding the blow, and slams his axe into her unprotected back. The gong rings out as her lifeless body falls, signaling the final district change.

Chapter 7[]

Haar follows into a dive, knowing that he could no longer avoid combat. He pulls up before hitting the ground, flaring his wings before the enormous, muscled man staring down a petite schoolgirl. The three pause, each taking stock of their final foes. The wind blows dramatically between them, as their stare-off continues, until the second gong rings out. Taking that as their cue, they all move at once, a whirlwind of light, steel, and fangs.

Queen opens with a Speedrush, hoping to kill Bane before he could pull out any of his tricks. As she appears in front of him, however, the larger man is already bringing his lightsaber down. Queen immediately rolls to the side while charging up Thundaga SHG, and lets loos a barrage of lightning at Bane once she lands. The Sith Lord catches it on his lightsaber, and redirects it to blast at Haar while he returns fire with his own barrage of lightning.

Queen swiftly casts Wall, and the torrent of Dark Side energy breaks the magical barrier but goes no further. Haar dodges, directing his wyvern to stall Bane while he slashes at Queen, but Bane lets loose a powerful Force Push that sends him careening towards the teenager. Queen leaps back, letting loose a point-blank gust of wind that Haar’s wyvern uses to right himself. Bane takes the opportunity to stab forward with his lightsaber, aiming directly at Haar’s heart.

Luckily for the wyvern knight, both Miracle and Counter activate, forcing the deadly blade off-course and causing a spurt of blood to erupt from Bane’s side. Haar’s wyvern flaps his wings, sending Bane off-balance while gaining distance. Bane, noting the retreating Haar, instead grabs Queen in a Force Grip. He squeezes the life out of his more dangerous foe as he sends his lightsaber towards her to finish her off. Before it hits, the girl falls limp, red mist leaving her body.

Bane sneers and lets her fall, noticing the glyph on the ground too late. As Queen touches it, she vanishes. Instead, a massive, armored knight on a six-legged steed appears in her place, kicking the ground and sending the other two reeling with its mere presence. Odin immediately fires off Moonring Blade, which Bane dodges. Haar takes a glancing blow, but with Killstrike that’s all that’s needed.

Haar drops out of the sky, dead, until Bane catches the corpses with the Force and throws them at the rampaging knight. A single strike from his sword sends them sailing through the air, shattering the windows of a mansion. Bane rips pieces out of another mansion, throwing them at Odin, who either dodges the rubble or smashes them with his sword. Bane keeps the assault up, hoping his foe tires first.

Odin takes an opening, however, and fires off a volley of Moonring Blades. Bane deflects the strikes that would have hit him with the Force, and lets the rest slam into the mansion behind him, reducing it to rubble. Rather than letting it fall, however, he redirects the avalanche of stone and brick towards his enemy, hoping to get at least one hit in.

Odin, defying all his expectations, instead rides along the stream of rubble, an orb pf magic glowing at the tip of his sword. He disrupts the path with a single gesture, sending the knight into the air. As Odin falls, however, he lands on a piece of rubble and lets loose his ultimate attack, Zantetsuken.

Before Bane can so much as blink, Odin has crossed the several meters of air between them, swinging his sword. The Sith barely has time to feel surprise before the massive chunk of metal shears through his body, tearing him in half. A second later, Odin also vanishes, leaving both Queen and Bane dead on the ground.

Epilogue[]

A few minutes later, Queen, now alive again, stands outside the grounds of her new 92,000 square-foot mansion, next to the man in an orange mask who had sponsored her entry into the city.

“Congratulations on your victory,” Leo says, gesturing at the home, “It’s yours. On the opposite side of the district from where you wrecked things as Odin, and about ten minutes’ walk from DFederal North, which has facilities for students your age.”

“Thank you, though I’d also have thought you’d be able to fix the damage with how easily you made this home,” she says, adjusting her glasses in disapproval.

“That was the original plan, but well… one of the bureaus requested it. I may have stepped down from their number, but it’s still helpful to have him owe me a favor. Especially if I don’t need it for a bit and can watch him worry about what it’ll be.”

“So even here there’s politics,” she sighs.

“Yes, but you’ll likely find it won’t touch you much. In fact, with this you’re now the wealthiest warrior in the city. You likely won’t need to worry about more combat, either.”

“Peace, huh,” Queen says, looking again at her new home.

“Ah, I almost forgot,” Leo says, his deadpan manner making the statement seem a lie, “I’ve got a bit of a tradition in these. The victor gets a wish granted.”

“In that case… I’d like for my classmates to join me.”

“That’s doable. Should take a little over a year for the whole class. Ace and Deuce might be coming in a little earlier than the others,” Leo says, scribbling a note on a pad.

In the depths of the sewers, Kai Leng lies in his new hole, the 25-by-25 square placed strategically by one of those running the city near an intake pipe. A wave of raw waste surges through, passing through his home. The water rises over him, causing him to cry out in pain as it sweeps over the gangrenous, bleeding wounds he had received from Diarmuid. His cries echo through the tunnels even once the waste stops flowing, interrupted by the harsh sound of stone scraping as someone outside opens the ineffective door.

“Well, aren’t you unfortunate,” a soothing voice floats into his ears, “I think we can help you out.”

Kai, grasping onto any form of salvation, cracks his eyes open and sees a man in a wolf mask staring down at him as others in similar garb prepare what appears to be a stretcher.

“My name is Alpha,” his savior says, “I think we can work together to get you what you deserve.”

Report[]

22^nd: Kai Leng, 8 points: Woefully arrogant and less than competent, Kai Leng did horribly. He simply did not live up to his ego. Eat shit, Kai.
21^st: Miu Yarai, 17 points: Miu fell second because of her general naiveté and lack of proper combat experience. Further, her general mindset of de-escalation simply does not help during a BR when opponents can be far stronger than she is.
20^th: Tal Graile-Rerem, 19 points: Tal suffers from similar pitfalls as Miu, and only really places higher because his light-based magic fucks with her vampire shit.
19^th: Aoi Kamishiro, 31 points: Aoi, while significantly more capable than Tal and Miu, is also kind of an idiot. Not even the most unexpected Monty Python reference could save her from her own recklessness.
18^th: Azaka Kokutou, 35 points: Azaka simply didn’t have enough power to muscle through all the competitors in the sewers, and not enough room to use those powers to their fullest. Also fucking fire in a tunnel is a terrible idea.
17^th: Hitomi Hitoyoshi, 50 points: Hitomi was unlucky, as the scenario tests not only pure combat ability but also mobility. Her heelies fucked her up there, and she never made it out of the sewers.
16^th: Algol, 53 points: Much like Kai, his ego was far greater than his power. Unlike Kai, this is actually saying something. Regardless, he makes more reckless decisions than his power can handle, and ultimately got shanked for it.
14^th: Akechi Goro and Len Ese, 54 points: Akechi likes to showboat and feed his own ego, which is a fatal flaw against stronger opponents. Len simply doesn’t have enough combat experience to make it much farther, and is only able to get this far based on her inherited knowledge and quick wit.
13^th: Siegfried of the Netherlands, 71 points: Despite his large arsenal, superhuman strength, and nigh-invulnerability, Siegfried is ultimately just not strong enough to survive his good nature. He does make it this far due to still being a crafty bugger, but from here up there’s mostly schemers and people who can get around his invulnerability.
12^th: Hanakamakiri, 82 points: Hanakamakiri is highly skilled at disguise, misdirection, and stealth. While she would have done very well in Operation Zodiac, where keeping hidden is key, this match also has open combat. That is her biggest weakness, and ultimately what places her in twelfth.
11^th: Artorius Collbrande, 86 points: Artorius bows out at this point due to his unusable dominant hand limiting his options. He has ample skill and magic abilities, but one glaring weakness does him in.
10^th: Joseph Joestar, 87 points: Similar to Hanakamakiri, Joseph’s wits and quick thinking get him far in this match. While he is fairly capable in open combat, he’s ultimately at a disadvantage with his powerset.
9^th: Suzushiro Shikikagura, 95 points: Suzushiro’s main failing is that she specializes in one type of attack and one type only. She makes it this far because her abilities allow her to force two of the loss conditions on her opponent – incapacitation or outright murder. She’s reaching the point where others can counter her, though.
8^th: Kaladin Stormblessed, 103 points: Kaladin’s powers are practically tailor-made for this match, granting him superior fighting ability, healing, and unmatched mobility. He falls because those powers are restricted by his behavior.
6^th: Matrim Cauthon and Roy Mustang, 116 points: Both Mat and Roy have abilities that are simple, but very powerful. They’re both fairly good at gaining allies. All the remaining combatants are also able to counter their special gimmicks.
5^th: Mayuzumi Yukie, 127 points: Yukie’s simply too good with her sword. She misses the top four because her skill is fairly narrowly focused on sword combat and speed, while the rest are either good at everything or can metagame.
4^th: Fiona Annabel Kousaki, 133 points: Fiona’s gotten this far on her versatility, skills, and inventiveness. She’s smart enough to plan carefully and skilled enough to put those plans into action. She misses the top three because she’s missing a way to metagame.
3^rd: Haar, 142 points: Haar gets this far because he can just sleep on his dragon and surprise foes with Nihil. His actual abilities are very straightforward and nothing really special, especially when compared to others below him. He can force a fight on his terms, however, and can throw an opponent’s plans off by just enough to give him a kill shot.
2^nd: Darth Bane (Legends), 145 points: Bane has everything necessary to do well in this match: raw power, mobility, intelligence, and the ability to cheat the loss conditions. He misses first due not to any major flaw of his own, but rather a bad match-up.
1^st: Queen, 154 points: Queen is an excellent all-rounder, which is exactly what this scenario favors. What propels her to first, however, is her ability to cheat death while making it easier to kill those who would have been victorious.

Expert's Opinion[]

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Se7en Royale (by Battlefan237)[]

Prelude : The Doomsday Upheaval[]

The Long Corridor, Office of the High Inquisitor, A Timeline long Forgotten[]

"Not gonna lie, mate. Your overall performance certainly exceeds my expectation. At the start I didn't even expect you to last longer than that self-acclaimed chosen one, but look at you now - determined and powerful, coming close to ending my career. " Says the general, as he struggles to reach for the revolver, coughing out blood. Despite having more than a few bones broken and bloody wounds all over his body, the brave man still faces the Incan chief in front of him with professional aplomb.

"Thanks for the compliment, my old friend '.' Although I personally would give more credits to that lady, since basically all of my current powers come from her....Anyway that's not important for you to know, cuz you're going to meet your doom real soon at the hands of the most powerful reality manipulator in the multiverse ! HA !" The chief laughs maniacally, as he draws out his truncheon and points it towards the general. Ghastly hair of Kayako instantly emerges from the weapon and entangles E.A. , detaching both legs from his body. Expecting to see despair on the general's face, the chief is soon shocked to find that the man lying on the ground doesn't even display the slightest sign of anxiety, regardless of the amount of blood that is gushing out of his wounds.

"Still trying to be tough, eh ? Guess the Flamer's right about you - you ain't afraid of death ! "

"No, chief, you're getting it all wrong. As a matter of fact, I do fear death. The very idea of it is enough to make me quiver. The reason why I'm still as calm as I've always been now is that, I'm not going to die. "

"What's the hell are you talking about ? You've got your legs removed, and soon I'll do the same to your arms !"

"Fool. When you and your little friends were busy releasing the prisoners and sending out invitations to the sinned ones for that death match in your brand new timeline, I made some small adjustments to this place - run-of-the-mill adjustments that we used to make on a daily basis for fun when you're still locked in Bandom Zone. " As soon as the general finishes this, the chief freezes in bewilderment immediately. Scanning through his memory for clues and hints about the true meaning of Montgomery's words, it takes a few seconds for him to eventually find out the terrible truth.

"You motherf**ker, I'll kill you - " The chief's speech is truncated, for a few seconds is enough for the general to snatch the Webley and opens fire, blasting the Incan leader's skull.

"We're in Headshot-only Mode, loser !" The high inquisitor lets out a victorious shout, as he watches the chief's body crumbling down and Kayako's soul leaving its host. However, the man's joy of victory is short-lived, for a quick glance at the computer screen shows that the forces of justice and order aren't faring good against Craven's army of villains and abominations. The mounted god who wields the ban hammer has already perished under the combined assault of countless Yetis commanded by a faceless one, while the one that holds the key to this timeline is nowhere to be found. Trotsky and the Hippoman are still fighting fiercely, but they soon meet their ends at the Omega Beam fired from the eyes of the mighty Darkseid.

"This timeline can't be saved now. " The general sighs, as he presses two buttons on the control desk, the first one of which initiates the self-destruction protocol of DFU, while the second one signals an agent of the corridor to do what he always does and does best -

"Barry, run as fast as you can, so that we can get a rebirth. Make it snappy. "

Chapter I : A Priest meets A Prick[]

DFU Federal (Post-Rebirth DFU )

Where am I ? What time is it ? Why am I here ? What am I supposed to do ?

Father Gascoigne wanders aimlessly down the forest lane, as questions keep on popping up in the saner parts of his brain. Every time he is about to recall the answer to one of those quesitions, the insanity starts kicking in, once again overwhelming his brain with images and fractured memories of beasts and human abnormalities of central Yharnam. From time to time he alertly turns back, catching sight of nothing but empty forests. "Looks can be deceiving. There are definitely beasts in those cursed woods. " He tells himself repeatedly, as he continues his blind crusade.

Actually, only minutes have passed since the gamemaster imparted all contestants about their objects and the rules, yet the father, unsurprisingly, has forgotten them all except the fact that he is in some sort of contest against six different fighters. He doesn't give a damn about winning. Neither does he worry about being eliminated early. For all of them - his rivals, the gamemaster and all the beings of this alien realm, will sooner or later, devolve into beasts, which means, they are all equally vile beings beyond redemption, and he will kill each and everyone of them. And that alone is the only goal he has and cares.

Meanwhile, up on the hill, Sergei Kravinoff has finished sharpening his tools and readied himself for the hunt. Deep down inside his heart, the desire of winning constantly urges him to strike out and march into the urban area, tracking down all six opponents and eliminating them with brutal efficiency, so that he can finally receive the esteem he craves. However, experience has taught him again and again the he could only found dignity, not in the cities, but in the jungle. His honor and mindset are all deeply inveterated in the green. So he ultimately decides to remain in the woods. Scanning the area below for any potential targets, he notices nothing out of ordinary except a small suitcase on which the word "supply" has been written in bold. Immediately associating it with the supply box mentioned by the host, he quickly makes his way downward and slashes it open with his hunting knife, revealing two grenades, three can of ham and a few magazines. Although delighted, he carefully puts them back and turn the case over while meticulously wiping out his trace to make it seem like nobody has ever come here. Then he shelters himself behind a large rock nearby, dart gun in hands, as he waits for someone to bite the hook. Seldom

Back to the Father, who, after finding no luck in the forest, has reached the edge of the city in search for fresh blood. Being the most populated area of the Federal, the sewer section of Battlefan's section certainly doesn't let him down, for Gascoigne soon spots four figures laughing maniacally while beating down another figure with their canes.

"So, you're the one that wrote the Art of War, eh ? You're certainly incompatible with your words !" Says Alex , as he repetitiously lands blows on the elderly illegal emmigrant lying below him. Sun Tzu has no choice but to groan helplessly and take the beatings, for the poor condition of the prison has worn him down dramatically, and now he is merely a walking husk.

"Beasts....finally." Gascoigne thinks, as he instantly hops forward and draws out his axe, cutting Dim and Geogre in two at their waists in seconds . Pete soon bites the dust too, as the axe hacks right into his skull. Alex, totally dumbfounded, raises his cane in a pathetic attempt at defense. Right before Father could snuff him, an energy blast sent from behind devastates his back, forcing him to collapse down. Taking it as a chance, the old man rolls into the ditch by the road, narrowly escaping an impending doom. Looking toward the source of the blast, Gascoigne discovers a masked figure who has appeared out of seemingly nowhere.

"Now it's fun. " Says Kai Leng, snobbishly, as he unveils the tactical cloak, fully and foolishly exposing himself to the priest. Still pissed about being tricked by that Russian asshole , Kai Leng is in dire need for a punching bag.Assuming Gascoigne as someone inferior merely through judging his costume and signature weapon,Kai Leng cannot wait to tear apart the middle-aged man in front of him and achieve the first blood of this battle royale. "Your rampage ends here -" Hardly has Kai finished his entrance speech when a pistol slips out of Gascoigne's cloak. Hastily generating his energy shield, Kai Leng is able to block the damage, but the impact still sends him crashing back into the pipe mouth from which he popped out.

"You're too slow, old man !" Despite his poor performance, Kai still somehow shamelessly shouts out an insult. Drawing out his sword, he leans it forward, attempting to finish off his opponent. Hardly has he steadied his pose when Father Gascoigne opens fire once again. This time, the bullet tears through his sword-wielding arm, violently detaching it from his body, forcing Kai to let out a painful scream as he slumps backward into the pipe.

"So this is where all the beasts like you come from ? " Mutters the Father, as he fords into the entrance, closing his distance with Kai Leng. " Beasts ? I don't know what you are talking about. I'm not a beast !" Yells Kai Leng, defiantly, as he struggles to fire off more rounds of energy blast with his remaining arm.

" If I don't kill you today, tomorrow you'll be one of them. " Gascoigne remarks coldly, as he shrugs off the damage like nothing and elevates his axe, violently swinging it toward Kai Leng and crashing the assassin's skull, leading to the number in the sky instantly decreasing to six. Unsatisfied with a single strike, the priest persists in hacking at Kai, until his body becomes a mass of unrecognizable flesh.

.........

DFederal, Canon

Interlude : A Poor Man's Hope[]

"So, that's how you end up in the sewer once again ? And this is your new home ? Damn, it is even more terrible than your previous one, where you can steal catch some rats. Now you can only roast cockroaches for dinner. " The gloating words from Thane echoes in Kai Leng's mind, as he sits in his new home, focusing on future plans to temporarily escape from the horrible smell. He must find someone to fight, or else he will be stuck in this literal shithole forever. But with challenging Captain Stingaree to a sword duel ruled out due to the crazy pirate somehow retains a bottle of venom, he now has to look into the obscurity for a foe. Paging a ragtag notebook stolen from the sealed parts of S119's sandbox, Kai Leng searches desperately.

"How come all of them are so overpowered ?" He bemoans constantly. Just as he is about to toss it into the cockroach pit, it suddenly dawns on him that he has been too narrow in scope. There are still many suitable opponents for him outside the federal, and in fact, he just happens to know one - a being whose reputation is just as unpleasant as his and whose powers are roughly on par with his arsenal. Snapping a bug with his hands, Kai Leng beams out a hyped smile.After all these years of humiliation, suffering and defeats, he finally sees the light of victory around the corner. Picking up his equipment, he stands up and kicks aside the insects feasting on his mask on the floor, letting out a roar of joy :

Jar Jar Binks, you lucky bastard, HERE I COME !

Chapter II : The Halloween that Ends in A Hunt[]

Getting bored over hacking at Kai Leng's corpse, Father Gascoigne leaves the sewer entrance and ventures further into the slump so that he can find more beasts to slaughter. However, before he can make his way into the new area, a tender voice from behind draws his attention. Turning back, the priest sees a woman in purple sweater standing in the close distance, with a top hat staying on her head at odd angles that seemingly defy gravity. A more careful observation soon tells Gascoigne that the woman is different from any Yharnam women who will soon turn into "beasts", for her impressive height, high cheek bones and wide set eyes aren't really common for native residents of that accursed city. Staring into the woman's gleaming eyes, Gascoigne, feels calm for the first time in years. All in a sudden, the mad priest finds that the reddish color that have been keeping his vision blurred in crimson gone, and the urge to kill seems to quite distant as well. Memories from those old days, especially those good memories, soon emerge from his mind, as the outside world becomes iridescent once again.It doesn't take very long for him to recall his wife and daughter.He remembers having dinner with them in their shanty but cozy cottage,chatting and laughing together like any normal family.

"Gascoigne, my dear," The woman begins talking in a tender voice,"As someone who has also at one point headed a family, I can understand your feeling. Follow me and help me with some tasks,then I will reunite you with Viola and the girls." Utilizing information she has gathered by projecting her soul around the arena to locate and read the minds of each and every contestant, Rose the Hat grins, as she uses her power to successfully recruit the strongest contestant. With the first phase of her plan of winning completed, Rose leads the priest into the city."Four more rubes to take down." She whispers to herself, as they head towards the position of the first name on Rose's hit list.

Meanwhile, in another section of the arena, Michael Myers barges into an apartment through its open window. The female inhabitant , who has buried her head in a pile of books written by her favorite author, isn't fast enough to notice this uninvited guest. Quickly thrusting the kitchen knife into the woman's back, Michael relishes over the agonizing scream of his victim, as blood colors all Paul Sheldon books around in red. Heading out of the apartment, the slasher bumps into a girl . Not even sparing time for hesitation, Michael swings his oversized knife across the girl's neck, removing her head instantly. Eager for more easy blood, Michael decides to explore the rooms inside this flat house for more living beings, totally ignoring his main objective like Gascoigne.

Bursting out of the door to seek for more victims, Michael Myers is greeted by Rose the Hat with a heinous smile. "As I have expected, you are quite easy to find." Rose smirks. Underestimating Rose as yet another helpless but arrogant prey, Michael raises his blade.Laughing,the cult leader simply moves her slim body aside to make way for the hunched but muscular husk of her temporary assistance.

Identifying Myers as yet another annoying beast,Gascoigne opens fire. The bullet hits Michael right on the chest, only ending up creating a small hole whose size is moderate at best. Under the order of Rose, the father charges forward, swinging his axe towards the emotionless killer, only to have Michael resist it by grabbing at the handle. Enraged, Gascoigne glares at his opponent,attempting to intimidate him into letting go of the axe,only to find a pair of hollow, souless eyes behind the white mask.

Finding it harder and harder to hold on as the beastly priest increases his pressure, Myers decides to take the initiative via a swift stab to the father's stomach.This decision, however, ended up backfiring, as the father, stirred by the pain, suddenly doubles his strength, pressing the axe into Michael's skull.

Feeling no pain, Michael remains still, but he drops the knife on the floor, for the axe has destroyed his nerve system, preventing him from properly controlling his body. Gladly taking this valuable chance, the father proceeds to deal with Michael by giving him the same treatment as Kai Leng.

"Don't forget to give my regard to Laurie ! It's a shame that such a shining girl has a piece of wood like you as brother. Even though I've only seen her through your mind, it's enough for me to tell that her steam is beyond precious. " Rose remarks, as she orders her stooge to leave the devastated body of Michael Myers so that they can go for her next planned target - a psychic named Roman Sionis, whom in Rose's opinion, is her greatest enemy.

......

Back to the forested area, Kraven is ravished, for after a long period of tiresome waiting, he has finally spotted something - the creature is moving stead-fastly towards the supply box from the edge of the forest. From the way it travels, Kraven can tell that it is intelligent, for the thing somehow manages to hide its entire body in the grass, only making small movements. However, these movements are not in sync with the wind, which is why it has caught the hunter's attention. Slowly and steadily, the hunter aims his dart gun at the area around the box.

The moment the invisible creature reaches the box, a humanoid figure suddenly materializes next to it. Simultaneously, Kraven pulls the trigger and the dart thrusts into the Homunculus's neck.

" Arrrrrrrh !" Shocked, the stand shouts in discomfort, as it pulls the thing out of its body and breaks it apart, discarding it on the floor.Upon realizing that it is just a simple dart, the stand sighs in relief and chuckles, feeling sure that this mortal weapon won't do any harm to him.

Just as he is about to turn to the hill so that he can pick out the ambusher, he is interrupted by sharp pain on his neck and the sound of small objects colliding with the ground. Looking around to seek the source of the noise, his confusion soon morphs into horror, as he shudders to understand that his body is falling apart from the wound on the neck. "Mel...Melone ! What's the f**k is this ?" The powerful but simple-minded creature roars in desperation, as his body crumbles into cubes and his consciousness succumbs to the deadly poison inside the dart that strike fear even in symbiotes and metahumans of all kinds.

Several kilometers away, in the most remote section of the arena, Melone sighs, as the signal on his computer disappears. Packing it up, the Squadra member hops onto his motorcycle, setting out to hunt down another female host for the creation of a brand new Babyface.

Chapter III : Mind Games[]

"My friends, as your leader and the proxy of the mask, I'm obliged to tell you that all of you do not serve me, instead, you serve the mask on my face. Know that this mask destroys one identity while creating another ! Know that this mask recreates the wearer! Know that through the sublimation of personality, inhibitions die -- and deeper drives, more primitive instincts, are brought to the surface! " The Black Mask shouts enthusiastically towards the small crowd of people clustering around him, as he infiltrates their minds and turns them into his slaves."Under the leadership of the mask, we are going to start a movement in this town, a movement that will hopefully satisfy those deeper drives and desires of the mask and of myself, for at this very moment I am the mask and the mask is me. " Once finshed, the crowd burst out cheering for his speech under orders from himself. "Good, good ! As the members of our new movement, you are not only uniform in ideas, even your reaction to the same thing is almost homogeneous !" Roman comments unabashedly.

When Roman rejoices over his success in gathering a small army which will hopefully help him become the champion, Melone is busy educating his second Homunculus.Two rivals have already been taken down,which is a piece of good news, however, the fact that his stand hasn't even directly confronted an enemy is troublesome, to say the least, especially when he takes into account the mysterious figure that brought down the first babyface. "Remember, travel around this town stealthily, take down everyone that attacks you or attacks others, and bring back those boxes." Typing the aforementioned sentence repeatedly into the computer, Melone continue to wait anxiously, for this is the only thing he can and he needs to do.

Back to Black Mask, who has, with the help of his mind-controlled thugs, taken over a small building as his base of operation. "The most important thing Gotham has taught me is that people are always on the move, so if you don't take something in the first place, others will take it, which puts you at a disadvantage." Roman contemplates, as he rests in his office, guarded by the controlled Johnson brothers and thinking about the next phase of his plan.Being as cunning as he always is, Roman decides to play defensively - one contestant perished very early in the match, indicating the existence of very powerful contestants whose overall capability might exceed the mask.Therefore, Roman deems it sensible to hide in a highly-guarded place right now before he can collect useful information about his potential enemies from town folks captured by his slaves.

So far his men have already brought back several citizens, but, to the mask's dismay, none has spoken about anything useful.However, Roman isn't entirely unsatisfied, for his men have also taken back some supply boxes filled with firearms and bullets.

......

Projecting her soul around the arena to seek for Roman,Rose easily locates her target.Marching to his headquarter with Father Gascoigne,the duo quickly massacres the guards at the gate, either by cutting them apart or telling them to kill themselves. Hearing the screams from below, Roman and his remaining slaves reacts quickly, retaliating by firing at their enemies with literally every firearm in their hands.

Having already seen it coming through reading Roman's mind, Rose orders the father to shelter her and Gascoigne obeys immediately, standing in front of the knot leader with the axe in hands.Rounds from pistols and SMGs soon riddle the father with bloody holes. In stark contrast to the amount of blood he has lost, the father still acts vigorously, as his axe suddenly transforms into one with two blades. Steadily marching forward to the guards, Gascoinge beheads Ryder as the poor man reloads his shotgun.

"Bunch of useless fools !" The Mask shouts in rage, as he orders Sweet, who has also ran out of ammo as well,to discard his pistol and hit the father with the baseball bat around him. Putting all of his focus on the bulky man, Black Mask forces the leader of GSF to press every fraction of his strength into the strike onto the father's skull, only to have the bat itself destroyed. Not even giving a damn about the brain damage, Gascoigne, still under Rose's mind control, lifts up Sweet Johnson and tosses him backwards into the street. He then turns his attention to Big Smoke, who, despite Gascoigne aka the target standing few inches in front of him and he himself being placed under mind control, still somehow manages to miss it every single shot.Deeming him as unthreatening, the father marches upstairs, casually taking down two remaining thugs by the way.

The second Gascoigne reaches the second floor, he is offered a warm welcome by a hand grenade and Roman's tommy gun. Both fails to put an end to the beast man's rampage, but the grenade is able to send the physical body of Gascoigne a few steps backward.

"Well,you're one tough bastard, I gotta admit. You remind me of a certain associate of mine back in Arkham. Speaking of associate, why don't you join my movement and work for the mask instead ?" Says Roman, as he activates his mental attack, trying to hypnotize Gascoigne into working for him, only to sense that some vital parts of the priest's brain seems to be protected by some sort of thick mental shields. According to his experience, similar barriers also exist in the minds of the bat and some other lunatics, but the barriers between him and the mind of this murderous beast is diffierent, for it doesn't seem natural, as if someone other than the man has forcibly established them preemptively.

His suspicion is soon confirmed, as the sound of another figure climbing up the stairs is heard, and with the sound getting louder, the mental shields seem stronger. When Rose eventually reveals herself to Black Mask, those barriers become seemingly impregnable.Picking up another grenade,Black Mask doesn't get a chance to use it, as Gascoigne delivers a kick onto his chest, sending him crashing into the office desk. Ascending his axe for a fatal strike on his head, the father is forced to pause, as Rose barks out an order - "Stop ! Stop ! You will destroy the mask !"

"Such an enjoyable fight your men have put up." Says Rose, mordantly."Although it's a shame that they die for someone as pathetic as you - a rube who somehow manages to shine with the help of a magical mask. If I had got this mask, I would have already be ruling my world with my followers. Only a useless, powerless and senseless rube like you will use it for petty things like organized crime.Obviously, you are not suitable for it. So why don't you take it off, give it to me, and let us see your handsome face before my friend Gascoigne does his job ?"Rose orders proudly.

"Hey bitch, this mask is a gift from my father, what makes you think that I will just simply give it to you after you people killed all of my ‘friends' here ? So the way I see it, the only method with which you can get this mask is that you control me to do so like how you controled your big friend to murder my men. But I highly doubt if you can do it, since the mask and I are two souls fused into one, we are inseparable." Says Roman defiantly, as he spits onto Rose the Hat's face.

"YOU WORTHLESS RUBE ! " Angered and disgusted by Sionis's behavior, Rose finally peels off her calm facade. Taking a big sip of steam from her botte, the telepathic serial killer puts all of her mind power into Roman's brain. "I will make you suffer ! " She shouts furiously, as she digs through the memory of Roman Sionis, picking out the worst bits for the psychopath to relive. Almost instantly, Roman's brain is overwhelmed with images and figures from his past - a few of them are full of maniacal laughter, some are filled with sirens, but most teem with ultra-violent and betrayal. In many of them, Roman finds himself back in old confrontations with the bat or Catwoman, during which he is punched, stomped, kicked, and thrown down from rooftops. A lot of them also brings him back to one of the nights in the Asylum, where Joker, Scarecrow and many others torment him with mockery about his failure. At the end of this long string of agonizing memories, Roman finds himself lying helplessly on the floor, with Richard Sionis standing right next to him, leather belt in hands. "Son, you are of great disappointment. " His father shouts, as he beats him like a dog, and the only thing Roman can do is begging for forgiveness endlessly. Rpman has no choice but to groan in purified pain.

"Useless rube fathers raise useless rube sons. " Rose laughs, as she watches it from nearby. "You know, although you rubes don't emit steam when screaming, it's still kind of fun to watch you people suff- " Before Rose can finish her comment, an odd feeling suddenly creeps up her back, and before she can source it out, the axe has already reached her neck. In sheer second her head is removed and tossed out of the window. Blood spurts out of neck like a fountain, as her body collapses down and the steam bottle drops onto the floor, breaking into pieces swiftly. A few steps away, the blood-stained top hat lands onto the floor silently. With its owner gone, it is now nothing more than a fancy joke, and Gascoigne deals with it by stomping it flat.

"Guess my deduction is right as always, you f**king bitch. Your mind isn't enough for more than one puppet. Hell, when you are downstairs, you even struggle to completely control one. With the bitch dead, I think it's time for us to sort out our business. " Black Mask says in relief, as he regains his composure and turns to Father Gascoigne, who, as expected, is readying his axe for the mask.

Chapter IV : The Hunt for Gascoigne[]

Trying to concentrate on the Father so that he can gain control over his mind like Rose, Black Mask isn't fast enough to match the sheer speed of the priest, whose punch sends him flying out of the window.

Landing on the ground, the hardwood mask is able to protect his brain from any injuries, however, the impact leaves several cracks on it, rendering it no longer capable of mind manipulation. Refusing to give up, the mobster grabs up his remaining firearm and is just in time to hit Gascoigne with a string of bullets, forcing the beast to back off. In order to make sure the Father is dead, Black Mask tosses his last grenade towards his enemy.

As the smoke from the explosion elapses, the former king of Gotham is shocked to witness the Father, despite bleeding terribly, continues standing still.

Dropping his axe, Gascoigne roars in fury, as his body initiates mutation into the final form. It only takes seconds for him to completely morphs into a literal beast, but Black Mask is nowhere to be seen.

Picking up the scent of his enemy, the werewolf immediately gets a lead and heads toward the direction to which his enemy has fled.

However, little does the Father realize that a man who specializes in dealing with creatures like him has been notified about his arrival through listening to the faint but ominous noise from the ground, and this man is bringing the correct set of equipment and skills to accomplish his hunt.

Just as Kraven the Hunter, thrilled by the presence of such a beast, packs up his tools for the hunt, Melone the pervert is also on the move. Using the blood he collected from the carnage left by others, he has already succeeded in creating a second Babyface. This time, the job of tracking is a lot easier, for both Black Mask and Father Gascoigne have left a more than visible trail of blood.

Back to Blask Mask, who has, miraculously, found himself around a supply box in the midst of a hasty escape. Quickly digging through its contents, the psycho picks up a flamethrower. Holding it againt the incoming Gascoigne, Black Mask pulls the switch. As the readers might have expected, Gascoigne, though engulfed by flames, simply shrugs off the pain, for he feels only the urge to kill and nothing else.

Fueled by blind rage, Gascoigne ferociously launches his retaliation, knocking the weapon off Black Mask's hands and ripping off one of his arm in the process. What both warrios don't realize is that the Hunter has also made his way here, and he has been watching carefully but silently, looking out for any chance to attack.

Yelling in pain, Black Mask swiftly retreats backwards to avoid further damage and pull off his final trick - snatching the pistol from his pocket with his remaining arm, the mobster, in a seemingly vain attempt to delay his doom, aims for the eye of the beast. Before he can pull the trigger, however, the beast itself collapses down in flames.

Pulling out the dart from his back, Gascoigne turns back to see Kraven the Hunter standing in the distance with his iconic spear in hands.

"Interesting. I have fought and killed many beasts throughout my career as a hunter, however, you aren't like anything I have seen. That dart is more than capable of taking down a symbiote, and from the look I can tell it indeed pains you a lot. Nevertheless, you are still standing after being stabbed by it on the spine. " Says Kraven, to whom Gascoigne responds with a disgruntled roar.

Identifying Kraven as a new threat, Gascoigne temporarily ignores Black Mask and goes for the hunter. Launching himself towards the man, the beast hopes to rips him apart limb by limb. Kraven, however, thanks to the skills which he takes great pride in, is fast enough to block the Father with his spear, thrusting it right into his chest. The poison from the tip almost instantly reaches Gascoigne's heart. Letting out a short but intensely painful scream, the insane priest finally finds peace in his death.

"Guess this is what tells us apart, beast. Humans, especially hunters like me, can excel in both physicality and intellect. However, for beasts like you, no matter how human you might look and how many humans you have slaughtered, still fail to reach the same level as us when it comes to brain complexity. " Kraven comments, as he draws out a cleaver from his belt, chopping off the head of Gascoigne as an addition to his trophy collection.

Chapter V : A Man of God[]

Having just witnessed the doom of the priest, Black Mask immediately reaches for a firearm nearby. However just as he is about to initiate his assault he senses something odd, and it doesn't take long for his feeling of odd to transform into sheer desperation, as he shudders to come to the realization that, due to unknown reasons, a small chunk of flesh on his neck has gone missing, effectively cutting off his throat and preventing him from breathing.

Bloods gush out of the wound, as Black Mask's consciousness fades out. In the last few seconds of his life, Black Mask sees the firearm which he originally planned to grab up steadily break into little cubes and reforming into some sort of humanoid entity. As a native Gothamite who has seen things such as human crocodile and literal mud man , such an incident barely confuses him. And Black Mask doesn't really care much about it until later in the New Iceberg Lounge of the federal, where he is informed by Scarecrow that the aforementioned entity caused his death. And from then on, the greedy man seeks apprentice at Atrocitus to unleash his rage and regret.

Identifying the Homunculus as the creature he has taken down at the supply box, Kraven immediately pulls the trigger. However, this time, the Babyface dodges the dart thanks to better education from his master. Quickly reforming into a piece of hardwood, the stand plummets into the remains of Black Mask's mask, effectively blending into them.

With great precaution Kraven approaches the mask, picking it up for further inspection, and it is at this very moment, the stand itself manifests, turning Craven's hands into small cubes. Thrilled by the small success the stand proceeds to materialize one of its arms, launching it towards Kraven's head.

As a man who has traded blows with Spider-Man, the Hunter remains unfazed by the assault and swiftly dodges the incoming punch, retaliating by cutting off the arm with his machete.

Enraged by the pain the stand once again makes a rash decision - it fully manifests itself infront of Kraven in an attempt to rip him apart with all it has got, only to be met with a quick stab to its chest, and it doesn't take long for the stand to be terminated by the effect of poison for a second time.

On the other side of the arena, Melone is forced into searching. The self-styled hunter, whom he has woefully underestimated, has already taken down two of his creations. Now fully aware of Kraven's speed, skills and tenacity, Melone quickly locates a female nearby as a potential host. Pinning the woman down with the computer stand, Melone hasn't even began the more disturbing part of the process when the woman's friends, a group of bikers in their mid-thirties , return. Naturally, they aren't very happy with seeing a man in such a costume trying to pull off something funny towards their boss's girlfriend, and Melone himself is quickly killed by a barrage of bullets.

So, despite the fact that he hasn't even met his final opponent in person, Kraven, the least evil person in the contest, becomes the champion of evil.

Outro : New Home, New Hope, New Frontier[]

Staring down at the slums from his newly-acquired villa on the hill, Kraven is happy but understandably bored. The victory indeed palacates the rage and sorrow caused by his envy, however, it has also killed the thrill of the hunt. Afterall, in such a wealthy neighbourhood, he has nothing to hunt. Therefore, recently he has been focusing on the sewers, where, according to information from his friends, abnormalities and monsters can be found in abundance. Honing his blades, the hunter is preparing for an expedition to that area of the federal, hoping to recapture the thrill.

Expert's Opinion[]

7th - Kai Leng : Despite being a somewhat passable fighter, Kai Leng's personality once again places him at the bottom and pushes him further down the sewers.
6th - Michael Myers : Michael is a tank who takes a lot of damage but does little harm to others. He does excel in stealth, but his urge to kill and low intelligence hinder him, preventing him from venturing any further.
5th - Rose : Despite being one of the smarter warriors, Rose's over-reliance on her followers in the past, arrogance and overall lack of combat experience make it impossible for her to reach the middle tier.
4th - Gascoigne : Gascoigne is the least intelligent but the strongest warrior. His decent weapons and physicality allow him to reach the middle tier, but his lack of restrain in the final stage makes him particularly susceptible to tricks and easy to avoid while drawing a lot of attention and damage to himself.
3rd - Black Mask : Black Mask is capable and well-armed, but his arrogance and lack of means to counter Babyface forestall him from reaching top 2.
2nd - Melone : Melone's stand Babyface is the sole reason why he reaches top 2. With the help of it, Melone can chill somewhere far from the heat and methodically take down opponents when they are at their weakest. However, at this point, his stand has already become weak due to the damage it has taken, forcing him to recreate one, which leaves Melone unprotected and weak.
1st - Kraven : Kraven is extremely suitable for this kind of battle royale due to his expertise in stealth and hunting gadgets, which allow him to outmaneuver others in this scenario and take down those with higher amount of health.

To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.

Battle vs Robin (Injustice) (by BattleGames1)[]

Inside Superman's Fortress of Solitude

Dick seemed unhappy despite his focused walking. He wanted to join Supes, Victor and Adam in quashing another rebellion but apparently this one was led by the Green Lanterns trying to defend the Martians. But Superman did say that the Fortress needed some additional protection in case one of the Society or Insurgency got out of their imprisonment in spite of Batman's conversion.

Damian traipsed across the icy floor carefully, scanning around to see if there were any signs of impending threat. Nothing seemed unusual at first - it was all the natural hum of the ice walls and the blowing of the chilly air that filled the space. Damian sighed and was about to call for Clark when all of a sudden...

THUD! pitter patter pitter patter

Sounded like someone was outside the Fortress ready to break in. But that would almost be impossible given the geometry especially of the Fortress's roof. Whoever it was, it sounded to Damian that the person or thing coming in from above is very cunning and dangerous. Damian turned his back for a second thinking it's a trick but then, a part of the roof shattered. Medium-sized ice shards fell to the icy floors followed by a cracking noise. Damian could easily see that some of the ice on the floor was discoloured in the shape of a foot. Taking out his long eskrima staff, he held himself in a battle ready condition.

"Forget the invisible cloak nonsense. You know I can see you" he exclaimed as the invisible man uncloaked himself. He was facing the opposite direction from him but that didn't matter to the opponent.

Kai stood up from his ninja pose and flexed his futuristic armour... that to Damian looked almost like his own except it ain't blue or red but simple black and white. Then Kai turned to face his opponent with a leer.

Damian asked Kai "Are you another one of my grandfather's lackeys? I thought I told him I didn't want in on the Assassins"

Kai simply took a step forward and aimed his palm blaster at Damian, charging it up and lining the shot. Damian however could see the charge. He was not dealing with a LoA lackey sent by Ra's, after all. Just some wannabe armoured vigilante who probably has beef with the Regime.

By the time Kai fired his blaster, Damien already leapt out of the way. Straight up into the air and swinging his staff down towards the assassin. Kai raised his hand and just like that, his biotic shield activated and stopped Damian's swing. Not wanting to waste his momentum, Damian flipped over Kai and landed on his knee on the space in front of Kai.

"Arrogant kid..." Kai smirked before raising his sword and charging at the boy. Damian sensed the charge coming and at the right moment, swung around and swatted at Kai's side, sending him flying towards the icy wall. Kai hit it with a thud and dropped his sword. He struggled to get back up as Damian readied himself to finish the job. Acting on his instinct, Kai raised his palm blaster and fired it at Damian, hitting him in the leg and causing Damian to drop to the floor on his back.

Kai got back up onto his feet before Damian did, and by the time Damian rose, Kai was charging at him with the sword and closing the distance fast. Thinking quickly, Damian planted his staff on the floor and twirled around it, kicking Kai in the chest. Soon it was Kai's turn to land on his back but he quickly recovered with another back flip.

"Where the hell did you learn to do all this?" Damian shouted as Kai once again primed his sword into the combat position. Kai responded "Cerberus perfected me kid. And your people made it no longer exist!" before yelling and rushing straight towards Damian.

The youngster had no time to process the information he heard as he once again twirled his staff to parry the ninja's sword strike. The two weapons clashed hard but they held together... until Damian once again swung his staff and stomped on Kai's foot. Kai stumbled backwards but still stood on his feet, sword still in hand. Still enraged by the youth's perseverance, Kai rain for one of the crates in order to get the higher ground. Damian thought about rushing to tackle the ninja but he thought of something better.

Kai had one foot on the box but couldn't get the other one up in time before he felt a surge of electricity jolt him and make him stumble into the other boxes. He could barely make out the shape of Damian planting his staff firmly on the ground with electricity and blue light emanating from it before another box fell on top of him. Lucky he shielded himself in time or he would have been unconscious.

He pushed one of the boxes out of the way only to find see Damian drop one of his batarangs and seemingly vanish in a puff of smoke. Kai figured that the little brat is hiding in the shadows, so after gracefully sliding out of the mess he was in, Kai activated his own disappearing trick with the cloak. For a while, it appeared to Kai this worked. "Little brat. Thawne told me that you wouldn't make this easy. Now you and your friends will all die!" he exclaimed in rage.

In amongst the echoing of the Fortress's walls, Kai noticed too late the sound of something whirring towards him... actually 3 things flying towards him. On instinct, Kai leapt backwards to avoid them connecting and lucky for him they didn't... they happened to land by his feet. He smirked and leapt over them, failing to notice that the batarangs were all beeping. By the time he got in front of them, he was rocked forward by an explosive force, followed by another slam of feet onto his back.

Damian jumped over the ninja and landed on bended knee, the staff he held onto to keep steady. As he got up, Damian retorted "What makes you think you can take down Superman if you can't get past me?" Kai got onto his feet too and instead of replying, he charged forward and planted his hand on the ground with mighty force. Activating his own electrical attack, Kai was able to crack the floor of the Fortress wide open sending sparks flying towards Damian.

Damian however was quicker on the take and leapt into the air to avoid the shock. Kai looked up and saw Damian ready to slam the staff onto him... so he held up his sword and hoped to parry the stick strike. At that moment when the sticks collided with the blade, the sword shattered into pieces. Simultaneously, the staff appeared to snap in half. Kai staggered back and was stunned at the sword being broken. He looked over at Damian and expected him to be as shocked as he is about his broken weapon. Alas, he was mistaken; for Damien intentionally split his weapon into two.

Despite his shaking, Kai still tried to aim for a shot with his palm blaster. Alas, Damian was able to get to him quicker and bashed his sticks against the biotic shield holding him. Damian tried to fire his palm blaster but Damian was able to dodge the shots.

Eventually Damian was able to break down the biotic shielding... but he wasn't done yet showing off to the poser ninja. Kai bent over a bit to clutch at his sore torso before he saw Damian charge at him and strike at his upper torso as if his weapon was a sword. Then, at lightning speed, Damian swished and bashed at Kai's torso before uppercutting his neck and standing back for the grand finale.

When Kai was not looking, Damian threw some of his remote batarangs off to the distance... and now they came back... striking Kai's chest and legs, digging deep into the now fragile armor plating. These batarangs too beeped; and before Kai knew it, he was blinded by light...

Damian smirked as he turned around and saw what was left of Kai. His now shredded armour, the hilt of his sword... and some giblets here and there. Wiping his face, Damian at first gave thought to Kai's words about the broken future that Thawne complained about. But he shrugged his shoulders and decided to forget about it. After all, the Regime really made a comeback and to his mind, made the world a whole lot better than the damned future that this Cerberus organisation came from.

Winner: Damian Wayne

Expert's Opinion[]

It was no surprise that Kai was to be given yet another loss to his record. Voters for Damian simply put that the former Robin was just very well versed with his weapons and skills than his arrogant and cocky opponent. They also noted that despite the emotional volatility that he inherited from his father, he was actually the more cool-headed individual since he was able to think tactically compared to Kai who proved to be tactically unsound with the tools he is given.

If you think this battle is unfair in any way, shape or form, please feel free to ask me for permission to rematch this.

To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.

Kai Leng

Contents

Battle vs. Jetstream Sam (by BeastMan14)[]

Experts Opinion[]

Battle vs. Saren Arterius (by So-Pro Warrior)[]

Expert's Opinion[]

Battle vs. Genji (by Appelmonkey)[]

Expert's Opinion[]

Tarot Battle Royale (by Leolab)[]

Prologue[]

Chapter 1[]

Chapter 2[]

Chapter 3[]

Chapter 4[]

Chapter 5[]

Chapter 6[]

Chapter 7[]

Epilogue[]

Report[]

Expert's Opinion[]

Se7en Royale (by Battlefan237)[]

Prelude : The Doomsday Upheaval[]

The Long Corridor, Office of the High Inquisitor, A Timeline long Forgotten[]

Chapter I : A Priest meets A Prick[]

Interlude : A Poor Man's Hope[]

Chapter II : The Halloween that Ends in A Hunt[]

Chapter III : Mind Games[]

Chapter IV : The Hunt for Gascoigne[]

Chapter V : A Man of God[]

Outro : New Home, New Hope, New Frontier[]

Expert's Opinion[]

Battle vs Robin (Injustice) (by BattleGames1)[]

Expert's Opinion[]

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