The Iron Arena Games, Part Three Marissa Wainright thought she recognized the young warrior who went up against Pandora in the first round, and when the announcer called her name, Inferno, she was almost certain. Seeing her up close confirmed it: it was her friend from the lab, Hsu Kai Lin! As soon as she could, Marissa put everything on hold and ran over to the younger girl, calling her name out as she dashed. "Kailin! Kailin!!" The sensation of hearing one's name called by a familiar voice—Hsu turned, gasped in surprise, and ran after Marissa, whom she recognized instantly. They crashed and embraced so hard that it was almost painful; they wept and called out each other's names, too happy to do anything else except hold each other and burst with joy. "You're safe! I'm so glad!" "I know, and you finally got out of there!" "Yeah, I did. Wow. It's amazing to see you again. I never thought we'd...oh, Hsu!" They embraced again—Kailin giggled just a little—and sighed as they calmed down at last. Both Rin and Rancor watched the reunion out of the corner of their eye, and decided not to get involved. They had never heard of the other girl, but any friend of their friend was welcome. "So what have you been up to?" asked Marissa happily, taking Kailin to the side. "Lots. Did you hear about that lab exploding?" "Yeah, the reports said it was arson." "The reports were only...slightly off." She smiled mischievously; Marissa wouldn't need her telekinesis to figure out what she meant. "You did that?" she gasped. Kailin grinned. "Well, not all of it. Rin helped me. We went back for you too, but you weren't there. Did you escape?" "Yeah...well, actually, I was taken away by this guy named Mr. White. He took me to this really strange place and let me stay there. I've made a few friends, one of whom just won over that girl, and the others...should...be around here somewhere." She stood on her toes and peeked over the crowd, but there was no luck—said friends were nowhere to be found. "I'm sure you'll catch up soon. Oh, I want to introduce you to my friends. First, Rin—that loud girl over there." Marissa looked and saw a young woman older than Kailin but younger than herself, wearing strange blue samurai armor, her inky hair in a topknot, hakama pants, and for the moment, tinted goggles. She was shouting at the action in the ring, ignorant of everything else; Kailin rolled her eyes. "My next little buddy is a lot cuter. Say hello to Captain Cuddles!" Reaching into her pack, she pulled out whatever was left of BaoBao, to Marissa's delight. The majority of the panda had been wasted on naps, a constantly cramped space, little food, and far too much noise. She growled and yawned, and found cuddling next to Marissa was much better than the little sack Kailin usually stuffed her in. "He's so cu—" "She." "Oh, sorry. Uh, she's cute. Captain Cuddles, right? Unusual, but it fits. So soft!" The two girls shared beautiful laughter as Marissa and the panda made fast friends (apparently she reminded her nothing of Rin). Once BaoBao was given something to chew on, Marissa attended to her old friend again. "I have a few friends with me today as well, as I've said. That woman in the tournament is Rancor. The others are Lurker and Venom, and there are more back where I live. I'll introduce you once I find them—now where the heck are they?" She stood on her toes again, vainly searching for the girls, not knowing whether they were getting into trouble, drawing unwanted attention, or worse. ...... Julie Smith, the Lurker, was not in trouble nor drawing attention nor anything else, just lost. Now in the Iron Arena Games, people of all different physical forms came and went, some stranger than the green-skinned, white-haired, red-eyed "monster" wandering around aimlessly, so it was an unusual sensation to be out of the center of attention for once. Julie liked it so much, she pranced around and completely missed some of the big fights, and now she was exploring to her heart's content. She met a few people who stared, and some men who apparently saw past her looks (they made passes), but was unseen by those she was looking for. "Excuse me, are you lost?" Hearing a kind voice, Julie stepped around and saw a slightly older girl—pretty, with her dark hair parted in the middle, wearing a purple top that left her midriff wide open and black everywhere else. Her skin was light brown except for an area beneath her eyes, which had suddenly turned red. Julie grinned. "Yes, yes! I am the Lost." Of course, her answer didn't exactly fit the question, but the other girl understood. She gaped and stared, perhaps a bit rudely, and stuttered to try and get some words out. "Um...oh my. Uh...hi, uh...were you, uh...were you looking for somebody?" "Friends, friends," sang Julie, "many friends have I here, here, where are the friends? And thee, thistle, where is my whistle, you, who, art thou oh who?" "I...wow. What language" The girl grinned, plainly flustered, and bowed several times. She had never seen anything so...utterly beautiful in all her life. Simple and...clean. Like a soft green towel, warm from a day in the sun... "Lang which? Which lang? I am not a lang. I'm Julie. Julie-Lurker-Smith." "Julie...Lurkersmith?" "Yes-yes. And you?" The girl smiled. "Uh...Kris...uh...I mean, BK Power." "Beekay. Long, long, sounds like beaker, long nice name, sounds good to the ear. Beekay!" Julie giggled and waved; BK Power blushed, unable to look away. The girl was just so...gorgeous to her eyes. So utterly gorgeous. And she...could not...do...anything. "Julie...Lurkersmith. It's a pleasure...to meet you." "Pleasures everywhere when Beekay is here." Masterson stifled a grin. "Uh, yeah." "There you are!" Julie grunted as she was grabbed by someone older, taller, more distinguishable—apparently a caretaker. She howled and scratched her silky white hair, laughed, and pointed to her friend. "Namie! Sounds that make when you touch, too much! Meet Beekay, Lurker's new friend. Julie, Lurkersmith, I like this one. Pretty and she says my name in a nice way." "Sorry," said the one called Namie, clutching onto Julie's wrists. "She makes such mischief everywhere she goes, but the girl's completely harmless. I'm so sorry if she bothered you." "Um...no," managed "Beekay", "not at all, it was...a pleasure." "Pleasure!!" howled Julie merrily. "Pleasure for all! Good to meet you, good to meet me. Good for all." "Yes-yes," sighed Namie wearily, "and soon we'll all make no sense if we hang around you, dear. Come—God knows what we've missed already. Sorry once again." "No problem." BK Power waved farewell—Julie was the only one who waved back—and when they were gone, she sighed and composed herself. Whew! Was that really love at first sight? Such a strange girl, too! Strange, and innocent, and incomparably beautiful. Kristen, in truth, had a secret love of the color green; she kept her walls that color and had once dyed her hair like emeralds. And that hair...the white hair that must've been so smooth and fuzzy... "Get a hold, girl," she whispered to herself. "It's just a stranger. It's not like you'll meet her again." ...... Marissa had no idea why, but she was being drawn towards that strange combatant that her friend had defeated—that "Sanaa" girl. She didn't know why. Was it because, in that crowded coliseum, she was off by herself, leaning up against a wall, silently reading? Was it because she had spoken to Marissa, and Merry accused them of flirting? Was it because she had a good body, a standoffish demeanor, or a mind that couldn't be easily read by the standard psychic evaluation? Maybe it was dumb curiosity, but whatever the case, Miss Wainright found herself right next to the loner. "...Hi," she said with a meek smile. Sanaa quickly marked her place and waved. "Um, Sanaa, right? Is that your full name?" "Do you always begin conversations this way?" "Sorry," Marissa grinned bashfully, "I'm not used to...um...never mind, sorry. So what're you reading?" "Just something I brought from home. A second-rate story I never finished." "Oh. I like to read." "A lot of people do." She returned to the book, sensing the conversation was over. Poor Marissa floundered. "So what are you doing here? I heard you work with the sponsor of the games, Dr. Kamaguchi." "Not with, just for. She's helping me regain my lost identity in exchange for favors such as this. I didn't expect to get far, but I didn't expect to lose in the first match either. But not much I can do against a girl who can turn her skin into armor." "Yeah...my friend." "I picked that up." She pointed to her ears, then returned to the book again. Marissa once more found herself speechless. "You said something about your lost identity?" "That's private territory." "Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to. It's just...I don't quite know who I am either." "Welcome to the world of the living." She closed her book and looked like she was ready to move on. "If you'll excuse me. I'd like to see if I can finish my book, and I can't read unless I have silence." "Oh. Uh...sorry. Oh! My name's Marissa." "Not that I'll really need it, but okay." She waved lamely, and was gone, moving with exceptional speed. Marissa grimaced, feeling glum over what she believed to be a lost cause. Well, perhaps she couldn't make friends with everyone she met. She still had Kailin and the so-called Lost Girls, after all. Still. Sanaa lingered in her mind like a song stuck in her head. She would have to ask Shalis for some favors once she came back home. ......... "Welcome back, one and all! I, William the Cat, am so excited to see everyone here, ready for the semifinals! And after that, the match that will determine this year's champion! WHO WILL IT BE?!" "It's so hard to tell!" exclaimed Bonnie. "We've seen lots of great fighters today! First, we have Siren, an awesome young woman who, I'm told, can manipulate spiritual energy itself! Next there's Pandora the Gambler, a mysterious character who uses chance to gain the upper hand over her opponents! On the other side is Rancor, a woman whose rock-hard skin has dominated the competition, and Snowblood, the savage and beautiful psychic girl. I can't decide who I like more, Willy!" "Then let's not wait anymore! First up is Siren versus Pandora! Let the match begin!" The crowd roared, and the two semifinalists climbed into the ring, neither of them basking shamelessly in the adoration. They were fixed solely on each other: Pandora studying her doomed opponent, Siren staring the older woman down. Cobra had mentioned earlier that her ex-lover had let her eyes wander far too much over the Gambler, but Siren couldn't help it. There was just something about that woman that allured her... "So what're you looking at?" she demanded. Siren blinked and shook her head, unaware that she had been staring still. "Um, nothing. May the best woman win." "You gotta be kidding me!" Pandora scoffed and shook her head; Alyssa didn't know why. As it turned out, when she shook her head, the eyeball-sized Magic 8-Ball lodged in her socket rattled around a small fortune, and like its larger counterpart, relayed that fortune to its user. Pandora's large roulette wheel strapped to her back would then light up and spin; where it landed was largely due to the 8-Ball's decision, although the Ball itself had more of an influence over Pandora's performance in battle. That it had foreseen victory the past two times was no small miracle, for it was as fickle as fate itself. The Gambler grinned. "Absolution," she declared, knowing exactly what her prophesying prosthetic had told her. The roulette wheel came to life, as it always did, and Siren found herself temporarily unable to move, perhaps stricken with amazement. The light finally stopped spinning and landed on one of the large options: hand-to-hand combat. Pandora grinned, pleased with the fates' answer, and unfolded the staff attached to her wrist. It was really more like a spear, with a blade at the end; she twirled it around with the dexterity of a pro. Alyssa met the challenge with her sword. Okay, so I kind of have a crush on this woman, she admitted to herself. That doesn't mean I'm giving her this victory. ...She does have really sexy hair, though—GAH! What am I thinking?! They circled each other carefully, like lionesses fighting over a downed zebra, studying and seeking out weaknesses. Alyssa felt somehow unable to concentrate—her powers were much less responsive than before—and Pandora seemed to grow stronger. She grinned and lunged, catching Siren off guard, and the spear-staff plunged right into arm. Not one to take a blow without retribution, Siren absorbed the attack, refusing to scream, and slashed with her sword, cutting Pandora's arm. The older woman jumped back, and now both damsels were bleeding, nearly in the same place. They clutched their arms and stared at their opponents with new feelings, and new handicaps. "No matter," Pandora murmured, switching the staff to her other arm. "I'm ambidextrous." "That makes two of us," Siren countered. They went after each other in earnest this time, swiping and slashing madly, neither having much grace or style. It was somewhat reminiscent of the Rin-Snowblood match, only these two didn't seem to have the finesse nor the noticeable dominating strengths. They just fought, and fought madly. Blood spewed out with every blow that went undefended. Bruises came when bone and flesh collided. Bodies tumbled as they were tossed or pushed. Pandora always seemed to take longer than Siren to stand. Their match went on and on, fascinating viewers and judges alike, who had not seen a full-on battle drag for so long, at least not without the two opposing sides agreeing to a rest. The audience ate it up; Siren's friends chewed their lips and clenched their fists with hope; Dr. Kamaguchi stood in her skybox, a crafty smile decorating her face. She had faith in her warrior-friend; she knew what the outcome would have to be. Of course, since she was the only one... "I don't know what the outcome will be!" shouted Bonnie. "Will it be Siren? No, Pandora! No wait—Siren! Pandora! Ack, they seem to be evenly-matched, and who knows how far they can take this! They're really going the distance here, folks!" "Siren is giving it all she's got!" continued William. "But Pandora refuses to back down! How can these two beautiful warriors keep on going after each other after all they've been through?! It boggles the mind, I tell you folks! And here comes a—OOOH!! Ouch! Ladies and gentlemen, I don't care how tough you are, that has got to hurt! Pandora just smashed her weapon on Siren's forehead, sending the woman tumbling to the ground like a logged redwood! She's down for the count! I repeat, it's a total knockout! The woman is unconscious! Pandora wins! Pandora wins!" ...... Alyssa's wounds were fixed by Naoma, but her stasis would take longer to recover. Her friends took her in and nursed her, each one battling the emotions of relief and disappointment: relief that she was okay, disappointed that none of the Divas would be in the finals. Siren came to after the second semifinal fight concluded, and turned ill as she contemplated over what kind of horrors the last match would bring. Pandora had looked so wicked when she glared at her and struck her down, like she was enjoying it, or worse—like she was trying to kill her. But why? Siren had never done anything bad to her. She had worn that same jackal's smile when she fought Inferno and Bloodbane, almost as if she had something against every single one of them. But what? Lady Snowblood didn't think she stood much of a chance against Rancor—not because she doubted her skills, but because she was so confident of her opponent's. Merry Weathers could toughen her hide at will, rendering even the strongest blows useless. Snowblood wasn't exactly a powerhouse warrior either—all she had was the unusual ability to predict her opponent's next move, but what good would that do against a woman who could just sit there and take it? And even if she did win, there was Pandora to consider. All of her matches had been won because of that roulette machine and (though nobody knew it at the time) the prosthetic 8-Ball in her right eye. "Hey, Snowblood!" Blind as she was, she could tell it was Rin. "What is it?" Rin ran up as close as she could come and shouted to her. "If you lose, you can forget about killing me! I could kick that Rancor's ass any day of the month! So what kind of an opponent would you be if you lost?" Snowblood cracked a smile, at long last, and even chuckled. "May you never lose that fighting spirit of yours." "Just kick her ass, okay?" Rin gave her a thumbs-up that would never be seen, but her encouraging words were enough. Snowblood faced her opponent with a new resolve, and determined that she would be the victor no matter the cost. But how to beat her? Surely she had a weakness—every armor has its chink, her old grandmother had told her. She just had to find it... Two places? One at the right thigh, the other underneath her left arm... She would have to rely on her clairvoyance to be her guide. No problem. She felt the aura of defenses being raised around her opponent. She sensed, though they were small, the two weak spots in Merry's armor. She felt the ground tremble as the armored woman slowly lumbered towards her. Snowblood was glad she had sacrificed power for speed, for what good was strength when one's enemy could outrun it? She followed the two tiny beacons like a bat, and before Merry could raise her heavy arms, she struck twice, once on each of the weak spots—and for good measure, she stabbed the one in her thigh. Merry cried out in pain and lowered her defenses so she could attend to her bleeding leg. Snowblood honorably backed off. "What the hell did you do to me?!" demanded the tall, pink-haired one. "I thought I was invincible!" "Such thoughts alone will lead to your downfall. I determined you had weaknesses, and exploited them." Merry fumed so much that Snowblood could almost feel her rage with her fingertips. She stood again, making a few members in the audience gasp and whisper: Uh-oh. Miss Weathers was about ready to demonstrate why she bore that violent nickname of hers. She donned her armor again, making it thin enough so she could move around comfortably, but something else was added that nobody knew about: rows and rows of small, sharp spikes poked out from the hard skin, making it all the more difficult to strike her. Snowblood did not know about this, of course, but she could sense the danger. Rancor charged after her like a raging bull; Snowblood dove to the side, but a simple slap raked numerous scars across her body. She rolled along the ground, spreading streaks of blood, and got up only to assess the damage. Avoid touching her, her premonition spoke. No, really? But Snowblood had a plan. Merry was fast now, which meant her defenses were only so-so. If she were well-protected, she would barely move at all. This too was a weakness of hers, and Snowblood once again decided to exploit it. She waited for the enraged woman to come around and chase after her again, and just as she was within touching distance, Snowblood jumped—scraping herself against the spikes—twisted in the air, and smashed her walking stick against the back of Merry's neck so hard that it shattered. And apparently, so did Merry's chances of making it to the finals. She was floored, and she did not get back up, not even after the referee counted to ten. "Merry!" G-Force pushed aside friends and security alike to check up on her new girlfriend, and felt her pulse before anyone else. Thankfully, it was still there—the blow had not killed her. She was gently ushered away by the resident healer, who assured her that there was no wound, fatal or otherwise, she could not heal. Naoma bent down over the fallen warrior and touched her neck, mending it with her glowing hands. It took one minute for Rancor to recover and sit up; a sigh of relief came out of more than one person's mouth. So, it was going to be Pandora versus Snowblood in the finals. ...... "This is the moment you've been waiting for, folks! Two fighters who require no introduction, who have both waded through countless forces of opposition, now together to determine who is the greatest!" "Let's not torture them anymore, William! Let's go right to the main event! Ladies and gentlemen! Are YOU READY TO RUMBLE?!" The crowd went wild, the gong sounded, and the two warriors leaped into the ring, prepared to battle it out in what promised to be a glorious spectacle. Snowblood had been given a new weapon for the final fight; she stood poised with it, determined to be the one to debilitate Pandora at last. After all, a woman who gambled constantly surely had an equally strong weakness. Pandora shook her head and grinned, at least until the 8-Ball gave her a fortune. "Outlook terrible?" she blurted. The roulette wheel spun around, as it always did—Snowblood waited patiently, wanting to fight this woman at her best—but she never got the chance. The light stopped, of all places, on Retreat. "What?! NO!!!" Before Pandora could stop herself, the bandoliers tied around her shot out a gush of steam and air so powerful, it blew her backwards, out of the ring and straight into the wall. Which meant, of course, that Lady Snowblood had won. Just like that. Needless to say, everybody was surprised. "...Oh my," said Bonnie, plainly stunned. "It seems as if our would-be champion had a run of bad luck at the last second. I hate to say this, but it looks as if the fight's over before it began! Lady Snowblood wins by default!" The crowd naturally went ballistic with rage, booing and hissing madly. They didn't care about the winner—for all they knew, if Snowblood had genuinely beaten Pandora, it was just as good—they just wanted to see blood. Shocked, and speechless, Snowblood shakily walked out of the arena (knowing that Rin would be aggravated), and stood numb as she was given a laurel wreath, a trophy, and...and... "Wait a minute!" exclaimed William. "Where the hell's the prize money?! Bonnie, what did you do with it!?" "Why are you asking me? I'm not the one in charge of it!" "Something's wrong! Search for it! Find it! Don't give up until it's found!" Meanwhile, a young, feminine person was grinning ear to ear as they presented Dr. Kamaguchi with the prize money. "Well done, Ferret," she said, giving them an embrace. "You see? I told you you'd have a use. Naturally, I was hoping to win this legally, but no matter. You have proved your worth by far today. Who knows, I may trade in those others for you." "You flatter me, doctor," said Ferret with a grin. "It was no big deal. I've swiped bigger things than this. So what's my cut?" "As much as you can carry in one hand." Ferret seemed satisfied, and since large masses of money would look suspicious in those pockets anyway, a sizeable wad was stuffed inside, and once the rest of Kamaguchi's team came around, the money was divided just as evenly. Yohko sighed as they left the arena, undetected and undisturbed. "Well," she reasoned, "this should certainly compensate for what I put into this thing. Sayonada should be pleased too. After all, without him, none of us would be here." The case of the missing prize money was never solved. But those who parted ways with friends, adversaries, and enemies would soon be brought together again. Very soon. ---------- To be continued. Mora: ...I can honestly say I didn't see that coming. Alyssa: Uh...yeah... Mora: Well, with that over with, our team goes back to its temple, but there's no R&R for this group! The Battle Divas are attacked by a hoard of enemies on their own turf before they even have time to unpack! Alyssa: WHAT? No way! I gotta get a shower first! Mora: We'll have to put the pleasantries on hold, Siren. There's some enemies to whack! Please stay tuned for the next part of our story, "Battle Diva Rumble". Alyssa: It's so exciting, we're required to give you time to brace yourselves!
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