How would it feel to fight against a god? It sounds like a stupid question, doesn't it? I'm not sure about anyone else, but I was brought up with there being only one, who is called, well, God. Now I'm not going to try and go into all of those other details, because I'll get a lot of heat, and I'll confuse myself. I've been confused enough in this tournament as it is. It's hard enough to fight Evil Ryu, and then, to deal with my own demon.

So, let me see how many that makes for me. Although he didn't do much, and I didn't actually fight, I had the chance to meet Thor, god of Thunder. Oddly enough, Raiden is also a god of Thunder. I wonder what would happen if they got into a fight. I'll tell you this much; I ain't going to even think about swimming! The only other god I know of is Shinnok. I think he was banished to Hell by Raiden, or something. Now, he is seeking revenge by trying to destroy all of them that opposed him. Gee, he doesn't want much, does he?

However, all of them put together can't seem to match power with this Alpha-Omega character. I can't think of one thing he, or she, or it...whatever! hasn't done. Brought beings from all over creation. Check. Raised the dead. Check. Controlled the powers of other gods. Check. I could go on, but then I'd sound real boring; kinda like certain people that I know.

So, I wonder how this is going to work out. I mean, as we are both going to fight A-O; if we win, then what. Will her and I fight, to see what happens? Will the one that KOs A-O get the prize? Or is it split somehow? I guess we'll find out when it happens.

No matter what happens, I'm going to take off some much needed time for Eliza and I. That is, as soon as Mel's done with school; I know that if I even try anything sooner, she'd kill me. It's kinda strange: I've faced all these monster movie rejects, yet I don't want to anger Eliza. Maybe that old saying about Hell and a woman's fury are true...I think we'll go over to Singapore. I invested in a new international shopping plaza over there; it'll be nice to see if the money's worth it. Say, I wonder how Rose is doing...

I can hardly believe it! I have made it to the final round of this tournament. I honestly thought I wouldn't make it past Chun Li. She is very good, exceptional in fact. It was with the utmost perfection of timing that I even came out of that one. The sudden death, is a different story.

When I latched onto Noob Saibot, I felt so strange. I felt as if I was merely watching what was going on--I had no control! It was very frightening. Imagine, having some strange man, controlling your body, to do whatever he wants with you--and you are completely helpless to stop him. I'm not sure, but I think that may have actually helped me get through the last fight.

Bison may be a power-hungry person, but he is still my older brother. I think that is why he held back so much. I saw how easily he handled Guile. Until now, it didn't occur to me to wonder why he didn't act like that in our match. We are united by blood, and I guess that is why I was so willing to work with him. I have spent much time, meditating, and the future doesn't look good. Unless I can get him to see that this is the wrong path, than he will be consumed by madness. Then, it will be only a matter of time before death comes for him. I just wish I knew how it would come.

Before either can gather any more thoughts, they are brought to The Hall Of Champions, and are confronted by Johnny Cage!

"Hey, man! What's up, JC?"

"These are some things to take note for our match. I will limit myself to only opponents you have fought in this tournament, no others. Whatever abilities they used, I shall use. I shall change freely, and without warning. The scenery will also change, at will. Unless a fighter's technique involves another individual, like Noob Saibot's clone throw, then you will only have to fight one opponent at a time. Questions? Begin!"

Cage slid in, knocking Ken to the ground with a Shadow kick, changed into Sindle, and paralyzed Rose with a yell. Sindle then hit Rose with a series of hits, before nailing her with a sharp kick to the face.

"Kiyah!"

Ken grabbed Sindle, and began to knee her repeatedly. He then kicked her away, and rolled under her fireball. Before Ken could follow up, Sindle became Evil Ryu, and warped past Ken. Ryu then threw Ken into water, from Rose's stage. Rose tried to grab him, but he dashed back, then forward, and caught her with a Dragon Punch. As she fell, she was shot back up, and crashed into the ground, as Noob Saibot materialized before her.

Ken leapt onto some barrels, and nearly nailed Noob Saibot. He was distracted, when he suddenly thought about it. He was just thinking that he would like to be back on his docks, hop the barrel, and nail Noob with a kick to the head. Noob Saibot vanished, and a female ninja clad in purple appeared in the air before him, and kicked him right in his jaw! She then rolled, and knocked him off his feet, finishing by nailing him with her Sais.

As Mileena turned, Rose knocked her into the air, leapt with a trail of shadows behind her, and slammed Mileena hard into the ground, shattering the barrels. As Rose touched down, Liu Kang hit her with a fireball to the face, followed up with a fly kick, and then stomped a mud-hole in her and walked it dry with a bike kick.

"Yea! Sho-Ryu-Reppa!"

Ken bashed Liu Kang with a fury he hadn't used since the time he had rescued Eliza from those thugs. Now, this is what he's fighting for. To make sure his wife, and son, have a future, and that scum like Shinnok don't destroy them.

He hesitated for a fraction of a second, to move into a Shin-Ryu-Ken, but it was too much time. Raiden now entered the fight, and easily evaded the next move, meeting Ken with his Electro Shock as he landed. It was almost too much to endure, as Ken felt like he was going to explode from the overload. A-O wouldn't do that, would..?

Suddenly, it ended, and Raiden threw him into Rose's Aura Assault. Ken felt about as bad as the time when Akuma knocked the shit outa him. The only thing that hurt him more was his pride; he suffered that kind of pain, from a woman! No sooner had he finished the thought, than the thought of what happened to him when he went to check on Rose entered his mind. It hurt just thinking about it. Somehow, he was sure 'Raiden' sent him that message. Of course, he was right. If Rose did hear it, she may do it again, without Noob Saibot controlling her.

Raiden unleashed a huge bolt at Rose. While she was able to reflect it back and nail him, the impact sent her into the water of the dock. When she came to land, she was in some park. From what little she knew, it was the one Ken and Ryu had met the X-Men. Why were they going to all of these places, and how could they control it? Could they control it?

As Rose was slowly making her way back to shore, Ken was fighting against Bison. Unlike the last round, Bison was practically kicking Ken's ass! A Hadouken would be countered by a Spark or Shot. Any sort of Hurricane Kick was doused by a Torpedo, except for when he felt like throwing Ken, which came after dazing him with a series of Scissor-Kicks. A Shinku-Hadouken Beam was answered by Bison crashing onto Ken's skull, smashing his fist into Ken's face, and then he went for a huge Knee Press Nightmare!

Even after all of this, Ken was able to stand, but barely. He looked like a bloody pulp, and was shaky as he stood. His entire mind was in a whirl, and he thought he saw at least four Bisons, maybe more! Then, he saw twice as many Roses!

She shoved her 'brother' into a pool...the same one that was on the yacht Ken fought on in his second meeting with Rose, and others.

"I have figured out how the 'stage select' works. We simply must focus on a stage, and we shall be there. I'll assume Ken thought about the docks of his hometown, as I had just thought about the park, and as I have now thought of this ship."

"Very good, Rose. Now, as Ken has had his turn, I shall now battle with you. Ready?"

Bison became Chun Li in mid air, and nailed Rose with a Demon Blade Kick! Rose had never felt such pain in her life. The only power she knew that was close to it was the power Akuma wielded in a Raging Demon. She had not felt the move, and hoped she never would. She had only heard rumors up to the time as to how it felt. Recently, she heard from Chun Li how it felt.

"It's very hard to describe. What I may be describing is the pain I felt in my heart, as I couldn't believe that a man a noble as Ryu could do such a thing. I honestly can't say for sure, but I will tell you what I felt, and I pray I won't have to do it again. Unfortunately, with the blast of light, I couldn't see a thing. All I know is that it's 15 fast and hard hits to every vital spot on a person's body. I think, Ryu said that once you enter it, there's no going back. Your body goes on auto, and you just follow it, whether you want to or not. The only way to stop it is to knock the person out of it. It's not too hard; even a simple sweep will work. But, if they use it, as you are trying to get up--well, you're gone. I still don't know how I survived it."

"But you have a similar technique, Chun Li. Your's is a Demon Blade Kick, as it's been known. How is it that you can use such a devastating, if not chaotic move, without becoming possessed by such power?"

Chun Li smiled at her friend, and giggled lightly. This only puzzled Rose, so she explained it to her.

"You know, Rose, for being a Psychic, there are some things that you just don't see! It's simple. My love for Ryu has been my, shall we say, Anchor to reality. He's far from perfect, but he's good enough for me. His ideas of being an honorable person, not just in kombat, but in life itself, makes him so; cute."

"Wake up, Rose! Maybe this'll help you!"

Chun Li kicked Rose, and altered legs, spinning around after each hit, before she pelted Rose with a series, ending her Thousand Burst Kick!

Now, Rose was next to Ken, and was in about as bad a shape as him. Each were in a daze, while it was hard to tell if they had really hurt their powerful opponent or not. If so, she was doing a good job of hiding it under the Li guise. Probably the rest of them weren't too bad, either.

"Man, this bites! I don't know about you, Rose, but I haven't been through all these matches, been possessed, and save my wife from a bunch of rapists, just to get my ass kicked now! I've put too much into this, and I ain't gonna give up! Please, tell me you have an idea!"

"With your little pep talk, I had hoped you had something. I haven't had to fight a god before, other than Raiden. You've fought with Thor, right? You should have some idea of what to do."

"Great! Our making it through this match rides on just a brief encounter I had with some god who talks funny. I've only one thought, and that's for us to handle him like Ryu and I did Bison. We both go at him, at the same time. We've been beaten like bums one-on-one. We've both been allowed to go at him; let's do it! A-O said he's only using the powers of the individuals; and nothing more. So, he can only take on the two of us for so long, right?"

"That sounds right. As you would say, 'Let's kick some god-ass!'"

"Don't quit your day job; you'll need it...never mind. Let's go!"

Ken rolled in, and attempted his triple low kick kombo, only for Noob Saibot to slam him out of it. As he threw Ken, Rose had time to make her doubles, and smacked Noob Saibot across the face with several kicks, before she drilled into him with a Soul Spiral. As she slid in, he blocked it, and threw her into the foot of a cliff; the very cliff they had fought on a short while back! For Rose, it didn't really matter, as she was tossed into it, and didn't really pay much attention to anything other than her pain as her face smashed into it. All she knew was that she had to get up and continue. She knew that neither of them could fight this opponent alone.

Ken was able to capitalize on Noob Saibot's redirecting his focus on Rose, even if for but a moment. First, Ken threw him over his shoulders, and slammed the dark ninja to the ground. As Noob Saibot stood up, Ken crouched, and launched him with an uppercut. As he came within range, Ken uppercutted him again. He repeated it twice, with Noob Saibot blocking the second hit, sending him bouncing back, right into a Soul Throw.

Noob Saibot leapt over a Shinku-Hadouken, and brought Ken to the ground with a sharp kick to the face. Rose drilled into him with a Soul Illusion, followed by an Aura Assault. The move knocked the fighter into a Sho-Ryu-Reppa. Without even taking a moment to change his momentum, Ken went right into a Shippi-Jinrai-Kyaku! Finally, just before the last kick to send them skyward hit, he entered his Shin-Ryu-Ken!

The flames flew like never before, as both fighters were engulfed in a super human effort to win, and survive. It was bright, and could possibly have been a mini-nova. Finally, as the last hit came, Noob Saibot was thrown from the move. However, instead of being able to land on his feet, Rose caught him in her Super Soul Throw, driving him perhaps a foot into the ground. She touched down, with Ken beside her. Each waited, as the ninja remained motionless.

"CONGRADULATIONS! You've won!"

Each jumped at the sudden outburst. They then saw the light envelope 'Noob Saibot,' and it was gone. Then, they were back amidst the rest of the warriors.

"Now, in order to see the reward these two have earned, I shall once again cross the voids of existence, and bring all contestants here. Those that 'died,' were spared the exact moment before the death-strike. Going through time, they will be 'revived' and shall be here to witness this event. Those that have lost; this will give them each something to think about, to know that even the best can be defeated. For those that died, they shall only have the memory of their defeat. For those that may die in the future--it shall come when the time is ready for them. The prize is about to be given to the winners."

Ken and Rose, by your votes, are the winners of this fic! Pretty good fights, eh? So, tune in next round, as I close shop, tell what our winning contestants get, and decide how to close this. If all you wanted was to see matches...this is the last one! 37 will just be to finish it all off.

If you want to see how it all ends, as well as some ideas for future projects, then come and read it. If not, don't. Man, 37 chapters! That's a lota stuff! ;]

©2001

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