Enter The Arena As Your Avatar -- The Spinoff!

As he's reviving Mew, he hears Axonn's surprise and looks up.

!

He signs the word for 'yeah' at him.

Turning on his heel, Thor bids farewell to the others before flying off to resume his search.

Wanda blows out a relieved sigh.

"Can I see him, Pseudo? I was hoping to surprise him with my new power and outfit," she replies.

Edited by IchigoMontoya on Jan 28th 2022 at 2:58:08 AM

Suddenly, a purple portal appears in front of Doom, and in walks Thanos, looking a little bit less pristine than usual. Or is it because he simply looks a fair bit angrier? His suit looks a bit torn here and there, with green blood that's apparently mere minutes old. His gloves are especially covered in it, as can be seen when he points at him.

Von Doom. I would like to talk to you. I would also like you to see this polite suggestion as an order. He speaks, voice devoid of sarcasm.

Edited by Bolded1 on Jan 28th 2022 at 12:16:14 PM

Narktus looks down thoughtfully after Mara's answer.

Doom turns to Helryx first. "I am certain his defeat is possible. But there are a great many cards we will have to play to ensure it."

Aaaaand cue Thanos. "Such as... unsavory alliances," Doom adds to his previous statement.

"Allow me a moment to finish up here first."

Sonic's eyes flicker open. "Did... we win?"

The moment Sarah says her name, Samus stumbles back like she's been hit by a shockwave. "You're... Sarah?"

Right, as if an organization as large and knowledgeable as hers wouldn't at least know Sarah's name.

She clears her throat. "We're the Defense Federation, an organization operating in the Arena to fight Gravitas."

"I see. Let us hope you get a perfect opening hand."

"He's resting right now, I'm not going to disturb him. But trust me, if I tell him you have something to show him, he'll definitely come looking for you once he's back on his feet.", Pseudo says. Helryx, meanwhile, bids Thor farewell for now too.

"I cannot believe we didn't notice. Are you alright?", Axonn asks Red.

Thanos then appears, and the seriousness he exudes makes Pseudo hesitant to comment on the situation. Axonn and Helryx simply don't react by proxy, as whatever Thanos wants Doom for is none of their business.

Sonic then wakes up and Helryx, turning to him, nods.

"It was a hardfought battle, but yes. He ended up in the water and did not resurface."

"We should probably leave so that everyone here can recover from the battle.", Pseudo suggests. Axonn offer his hand for Sonic to take so that he can help him back on his feet.

"Do you have a place we can bring you to where you can rest?", Pseudo asks Sonic. "If not, you are free to rest up in my base."

How surprising of you to see an alliance as unsavory, Von Doom. Your cosmic rampages are a match for mine. Thanos folds his arms.

I will wait. But Ultron may not. The machine will act as soon as it can, and with the power as its disposal, our schedule may be limited.

He frowns when he notices the battlefield, but otherwise mostly seems to care about Doom. Wanda's power does get him to raise an eyebrow, but it seems to make him frown deeper instead. He's not in a good mood.

...

Sarah smiles, after at first looking briefly shocked at Samus's reaction. The one and o... oh nah, there's a lot of mes. Hey, you met Camille? She's a nice girl.

The Sister glances about, and raise her fist in front of her chin, looking interested. Allow me to fake modesty and ask which of my deeds brought fame to my name? I'm just a curious woman, haha!

Then she nods. Hm... I remember hearing of Gravitas, but I stay out of the hair of all the evil stuff. Well there was Set, but he made it personal.

"Ye."

Mew blinks its eyes open upon ingesting the Max Revive.

"Mew?"

"Mew, can you teleport?"

"Mewmew!"

Mew used Teleport!

*bawoop!*

Wanda nods to Pseudo

"Thank you. And tell him I said that I hope he feels better soon."

Her gaze flickers to the newly-arrived Thanos.

"What did you have in mind, exactly? Taking the Stones from Ultron isn't going to be easy, and not even Strange could so much as scratch him."

Edited by IchigoMontoya on Jan 28th 2022 at 3:58:39 AM

Sonic takes Axonn's hand and is pulled up. "I'm a free spirit, but I'll take your offer."

After one last survey of the field, Doom nods. "I am prepared, Mad Titan." He goes with Thanos.

Narktus warps out.

In the interest of discretion, there's nothing you need to know, witch. You are not a part of this. Thanos walks back to his portal and it closes with Doom.

...

Hideout, ???

To what seems to be a plain-looking white room. The windows outsides are covered up with metal panels but otherwise, it looks... plain enough. There's a glowing circle on the middle of the room, glowing enticingly.

I've built up countermeasures in case of... unforeseen events, such as my sudden, unavoidable death, but I must admit that Ultron is too much of a problem for myself to handle alone. And the firepower my ship and army bring to the field... is useless against him. I know for experience that nothing that exists in the physical realms can withstand the power of the stones.

Thanos walks off a little, then look back. ... except for that chaotic might you've acquired squaring off against that bothersome little animal.

Edited by Bolded1 on Jan 28th 2022 at 1:10:13 PM

"..."

Do not question the child with the tiny, teleporting pink cat, Axonn. You've seen stranger.

"Will do.", Pseudo says to Wanda. He then looks back at Sonic.

"Then hold on tight, you're about to be warped."

Weber's dark magic envelops Axonn, Helryx and Sonic, after which they'll be warped to the safety of Pseudo's base. The monitor itself just rises back up in the air.

Intrigue

Considering that the seas of the Arena aren't polluted, it is rare that something washes ashore anywhere in this realm.

But in this moment, something, or rather someone does wash up on the shore of the island.

A drenched, seemingly lifeless golden-hued hedgehog lies down on the sand, eyes closed and no breath escaping his body.

... and yet...

His finger twitches.

Seems like her allies have no trouble scaling the mountain. Good, that makes things much easier for her.

Well, not much easier, moreso slightly less inconvenient.

Edelgard's aura flares up and she begins to rise, Hubert trailing behind her with no aura in sight. They scale the entire mountain very quickly, and near the very top, where, in some other world, one could find a wound in time- and a Dragon who talks very slowly, there is Solon.◊

He is not alone. Six nameless members of Those Who Slither in the Dark are with him, channeling dark magic into a fountain of shadow that rises into the sky, slowly blotting out the light.

Upon noting company, Solon turns to face Other!Edelgard.

   "What unexpected company. Have you come to negotiate, or are you here for the obvious reason?"   

Edelgard looks displeased. "There will be no more of this, Solon. This will be the last world you drown."

Solon chuckles.    "Our bloodline is the key to ultimate power. With it, we could utterly destroy the putrid pantheon of angels and gods that governs our world, and replace it with something utterly to our liking. But you seem keen on ignoring that possibility."   

Edelgard shakes her head. "You're talking nonsense. Your bloodline is far removed from any supposed divinity. If I thought for even a second you were speaking the truth, I wouldn't be here right now, speaking to you as an enemy. But I have seen through this ruse of yours- what you seek is not the secrets of your blood, but knowledge for its own sake- at the cost of the lives of uncountable civilizations."

Despite the hefty subject matter, she speaks matter-of-factly.

Solon scowls.    "Is that so wrong? We have grown far with the knowledge I have gained this way. If it were not for my guidance, you would have died alongside the rest of our reaches for divinity- just another failed experiment among thousands of others discarded to time."   

Edelgard sighs. "You are a fool, Solon. All the knowledge in the world cannot replace wisdom- and that is something you sorely lack."

In a burst of speed, Edelgard is upon Solon already, delivering a hefty punch to his jaw followed by a jab that Solon swats away with his cane. He is fast despite his stature, much faster than Edelgard at the moment, and manages to smack her away with a strike of his cane.

   "If I lack wisdom, then you must truly be a fool. Charging in without a plan. You Saiyans are all the same- mindless apes incapable of a thought that does not in some way concern battle. Your dreams of the stars are doomed to die- starting with you!"   

Solon raises his cane, and four of his six allies raise their arms, each charging a powerful attack at the staggered Edelgard.

If there were a time for her new allies to... politely introduce themselves, now would be it!

Rolling her eyes at Thanos' dismissive response, Wanda teleports away in a puff of crimson smoke.

Edited by IchigoMontoya on Jan 28th 2022 at 4:25:37 AM

Sandra is about to charge in, but realizes that it's best to see what's up before doing so. Take the time to assert how many enemies there are, how many there really are, what they want. She happily lets Edelgard talk away, scratching her nose while doing so.

That guy has to be pretty smart with a forehead like that. is all she takes away from the encounter, though she learns context as well. She guesses the forehead guy is pretty bad for everyone's health and the woman isn't an evil witch in disguise, so this means saving her, so this means stepping between the groups and swinging a chain hanging from each of her fingertips, each being set on supernatural fire as well. The chain sweeps is accompanied by a wall of flames, in case the initial attack doesn't get results.

Sandra then stands in front of her wall, keeping her eyes on the wall.

Are you okay? Just mumble really loudly if you can't speak!

"Then it is as I suspected." Doom strokes his chin.

"I intend to use all the energy I have siphoned at the very beginning of the battle, to inflict a damage from which Ultron cannot regenerate. This should make it harder for him to gain momentum."

"There's no one thing that seals your reputation," Samus replies. "It's just how much you've done, from when you were still called Neuff to now. From helping save Toontown to defeating countless rampant warriors, who most couldn't hope to match, to your actions against the Cabal."

"Something something hate gods? Okay then. Múspell?"

"With pleasure!" The god of flame transforms into his gigantic true draconic form,◊ leaping into the sky and crashing down upon Solon and his allies with a punch that makes the ground explode!

Edited by KiriK on Jan 28th 2022 at 7:33:11 AM

Toontown? Ah! I hope they're doing right! Yes, I've done a few things here and then! I'm pretty tough, I'd like to say. But you... yeah, you also have the face of someone who knows what she's doing and has done something like shoving a bomb into a giant monster's mouth at least once.

... Have you? Sarah asks, seemingly waiting for Samus to give out stories on her own. I haven't done that yet. Erm, I don't need bombs much!

...

Wise. He is... overconfident. Being hurt will unsettle him. He'll be vulnerable to my ploy, and this facilitates matters. Well done, Doom. Thanos press a button, and the spin begins to circle, though it does nothing besides looking cool and Thanos instead reaches across the air, swiping a golden shotgun with a full set of Infinity Stones mounted over it.

He racks the Infinity Shotgun. It glows golden. While close enough to be recognized as a shotgun by human eyes, it has alien features and is accomodated to Thanos's size. First off, this crude device will be used to negate Ultron's usage of the stones. While it can be used to warp the world, its main use is shooting limitless energy in the forms of pellets. By aiming precisely enough, I could stalemate Ultron: the energy of the Stone will negate itself.

And as for his army... Thanos snaps his fingers, and the windows open up.

Below: an hangar full of rabid Hulks, each kept in a static field of pure force, about the only things they can't break through. While some of the Hulks merely have milky white eyes like the rest of them, some are putrefied monstrosities, more skeletons with bits of flesh than actual Hulks, others have rotten bodies, having sloughed off at points, others look to have had taken nasty damage from other causes.

It's an army of Zombie Hulks.

In many alternate realities, even the Hulk has fallen victim to a peculiar illness, and has become a ravenous ghoul. They will tear through the army and prevent it from overrunning us. The Hulks themselves are being conditioned right now: I am running simulations in their brains -indeed, the Hulk has one- of Ultron besting them in battle and erased their abilities to see and hunger for other lifeforms such as us.

Since Ultron could take over any machine set to put an end to the creatures and their tormented existences, I've absconded from using them. Past the battle, an antidote will be delivered in great doses to the battlefield and destroy the abominations. Any damage they'll inflict on the Arena itself is trivial.

But if we defeat that Ultron, an army of undead Hulks... would be easy to deal with.

Edited by Bolded1 on Jan 28th 2022 at 2:44:01 PM

Wash

Flint recoils himself backwards with the gauntlets, away from the bug seeing how the acid would ruin his 30 minute polish on his armor, a random spray of pellets being fired onto the flesh, a vast majority of the pellets missing.

Throat of the World

Emma arrives from afar and in mid-air, but not knowing much of the situation yet, decides to watch with her sniper rifle aimed at the general direction of the group to eavesdrop on the conversation.

"What on- Mages?!... Welllll they don't look like they're related to that Refia fellow... Soooo it should be fine to shoot them without asking."

The moment she sees and partially senses the six mages she immediately places her sights on them and fires a clean energy shot or two to eliminate at least some of them.

Doctor Doom stares blankly at the army of Zombie Hulks.

"As... absurd as this scheme is... it is logically sound and likely to work, given the Hulk's immense strength. And cleaning up the aftermath would most certainly be easier than the battle itself."

"Of course I've done that. Gotten a lot of planets blown up, too."

Samus looks away from Sarah. "But I can't do it with my bare hands like you can. We have only one thing that can do that on command, and... you can't know what it is."

Edited by KiriK on Jan 28th 2022 at 11:24:56 AM

I think it's more impressive for you to have done it on your own. I have... a bit of a cheat code, hm? But you didn't. You have gifts, of course, but I bet you defeated a lot of enemies stronger than yourself through your wits or experience and I find that more commendable than my brand of fighting. She admits.

I'm proud of my power, obviously, but I don't think it makes me better than others purely because of... ? She hears about the hidden asset and starts to look interested for a while... then she stops and laughs.

Kidding! Kidding!

The dirty smoke in the air was far from dissipating, and from within, came two more mini-missiles from the stationary turret.

This was less of an offensive attack, though, and more suppressing fire for the shielded drone that emerged from the smoke, shooting towards the sky. A grappling hook attached itself to the bottom, and so too did the medic come flying out of the smoke, most of her previously life-threatening injuries gone and a faint green tint in her veins as a syringe dropped from her hand.

A sharp pull on the grappling hook as it disattached to the drone sent her flying again, this time with her feet pointing outwards as she hurtled directly towards the power armor, aiming to send Jenna off balance.

As for Flint, his foe was knocked back by the few bullets that had hit the exposed weak point, and with a lack of wings now, it could no longer attain the same level of mobility it once had. And so, it shifted it's sword back into a gun, firing a shot of acid at Flint rather than a bullet as it had before. Though the acid was slower than a bullet, and therefore completely possible to dodge, it was more destructive (and generally more of an overall annoyance).

"Brotherhood lady, you're doing good so far! I'm lookin' through a few files for anything you can use against her," Jenkyov informed, holographic files in his palm being read through by him while he attempted (and mostly failed) to avoid attacks from Karnege. "Just keep on the offensive for a bit longer!"

Jenna has to walk back and turn around further, though she notices the medic's daring attempt at knocking her over. While it'd be hard to do so at normal times, she has her chance at the moment... but Jenna decides to take a gambit of her own against this.

Letting go of the rifle again for now, she waited util her foe was already on her course to spin around and grab her super sledge, skillfully wielding the massive tool and swinging it as she spins back into position, her objective being to bash her enemy out of the air with a poweful sideway swipe of the weapon. She can't heal herself if her limbs are broken, right?

If her gambit fails, then Jenna is knocked over! If not, she bends down to pick up her weapon first, being confident that her foe can't heal in the allocated time.

Call me Paladin Jenna, will you?! She tells the voice in the radio, sounding slightly proud though.

...

Indeed. And besides, I will take any loss I can along the way...

We may also need other sources of help. Logic will have a slew of defenders come forth to help us, but I would rather not deal with loose cannons.

"Who, then?" ponders Doom. "Few allies of my own can be trusted not to act recklessly and become liabilities in a situation as precarious as this."

"Thanks," Samus says, sounding mildly surprised. "But sometimes, situations can't be solved with guile or strength alone - you have to use both. In our fight, the strongest ally we've got can't take hits as hard as she gives them. That's why I admire your power."

Sarah smiles softly. I feel like this is the part where I propose we team up to combine our strength! But I have commitments of my own, unfortunately. As if to demonstrate, she pulls out a long list from her wallet.

I'm curious though! What do you fight? Both as a member of this organization and on your own. You can tell a lot about a fella from the enemies she took down. Sarah folds her arms. I'm often curious to what sort of adventures happen out of the Arena itself. Did it felt weird for you? To know that there's an infinite number of worlds out there? She seems genuinely intrigued.

... I can tell you it was exciting for me! Hell, I married a guy from another world, imagine that.

...

The boy's organization, Pseudo... It would be wise to approach them in the future. They appear to be able to follow orders well and run things smoothly enough that they outlasted foes like the Cabal or Gravitas. Thanos shuts the windows off once again, and a holographic map of the Arena appears.

But this does mean getting those bothersome variants in the way, and I would rather not justify the more eccentric intricacies of my goal to them. Still, perhaps they should be accounted for. From what I've gathered, they'd certainly be willing to use the Stones in some grand manner to remove "evil", and I would rather not have them discover why great power such as this... is ultimately supremely self-destructing.

Sandra's arrival comes as a surprise to the mages ready to attack. In a single, swift motion, they all raise a barrier in unison, one large enough to cover them entirely from the flaming chains. The barrier remains, clashing with the wall of fire but not breaking, even as they cease their magic- this is powerful stuff, clearly.

"I'm alright, just dazed. Solon is strong, almost unbelievably strong, so watch yourself!"

Solon smirks ever so slightly, holding himself up with his cane- he does kind of sort of actually need it- when he's not fighting, he is pretty old, but right now it is obvious that this is a gesture of dismissal and not a necessity.

   "I see you've brought more than just the rat. These are beings from the arena itself, not our world. What have you been doing, exactly?"   

Edelgard hasn't the chance to respond- not that she was going to- as Múspell comes crashing down upon him and the six mages accompanying him. One breaks away, a white aura sparking around them- and the mage meets Múspell's punch with one of their own, the clash just about breaking even with perhaps slight advantage to the attacking god, as the mage is sent hurtling to the ground, landing on their feet with a mighty thud.

Meanwhile, Emma fires a shot at one of the mages in the back, one that is only observing. In a single hit they are dropped to the floor, grievously injured from a shot to the back. One of the mages in the back changes their target, erecting a shield of dark magic that causes the rest of Emma's shots to bounce away harmlessly. The sneak attack was certainly a success.

Solon doesn't attack- not yet. He doesn't seem to be concerned with the danger his allies are in at all.

Edelgard will not complain.

Dashing in with her aura ablaze, she delivers a double-kick to the mage Múspell knocked to the floor, a powerful attack that would certainly decide almost any other battle. The mage, however, is still kicking despite it, and engages in a brief clash with Edelgard that they begin to lose.

Until, at least, another two of the mages fly up to help them, putting Edelgard firmly at disadvantage. Hubert is in the background- yet, for whatever reason, he isn't helping at all, just watching with a smug look on his face.

Solon takes notice of this.

   "So, are you just going to float around up there, or are you going to help her? Surely you, her most dedicated servant, would have more to do than just watch like a fool?"   

Hubert laughs evilly.

"Lady Edelgard has specifically requested I not intervene until she has had a chance to test the waters. So far, nothing I have seen has warranted my intervention."

Solon looks at Edelgard. She is still losing ground- trying her best, but failing. In what way could that possibly not be worth his intervention.

As if answering his question directly, Edelgard shouts out as she swats away a dark spell with ease.

"KAIOKEN!"

One of the mages can only say "Kaio-what?" before being elbow-dropped to the floor with gratuitous force. A once unfair fight has turned even- with advantage to Edelgard!

Summary - One mage defeated and dying, one mage heavily injured, another moderately injured, another lightly injured, two currently unoccupied.

"Ah, yes. Cosmic imbalance and all that."

Doom looks at the Infinity Shotgun. "There are ways to destroy the stones. That may be necessary."

Samus sighs. "By the time I learned about the multiverse, it didn't faze me anymore. Not much did. I've fought aliens, monsters, robots, magical beings, and people just like me. In and outside my own world."

"But now that I'm in charge of the Federation, I'm not going on many adventures anymore. Not without a team of my best to back me up."

Múspell skids back from the collision, roaring to the sky. The mechanical Gullinbursti piloted by Ótr comes flying in next, attacking the same mage with a barrage of bullets and missiles. With his Brutal Shell special, it will deal damage based on half the mage's defensive level instead of their full defense!

Grand Resurrection

Business is booming as usual.

Outside the bar, a certain mousy (literally) thief approaches.

Julius' Castle

Thotticus Maximus over here◊ poofs into existence inside the castle's dungeon, startling Fallen Julia◊ in the cell right next to her.

"You are... Loki. The trickster god..."

"Myes, that's me. But don't worry your pretty little head about it."

"You are... an intruder," growls Julia. "An enemy."

Her voice projects through the castle. "Lord Manfroy... there is an intruder... in the dungeon."

Edited by KiriK on Jan 29th 2022 at 5:03:10 AM