Charlie’s Ragnarok

by Paulachu

Summary:

Thirteen Humans. Thirteen gods. When the idea of destroying humanity is proposed, almost all gods are on board. But with the word of the princess of hell, a new plan is offered. A fight to the finish, with everything on the line. Can the humans win? Or will man fall before there makers? Stay tuned and find out.

Notes:

Inspired by ROR, I decided to make my own version in a massive crossover, with Charlie as the head of humanity? Can she lead them to victory and 1000 more years of life? Or will they be condemned to destruction? Feel free to leave comments about your thoughts, what you liked, and what you think can be improved on.

Edit: Replaced Maui with Death

Chapter 1: The Gauntlet Is Thrown

Life.

Death.

All of these terms are not foreing to humanity. But both are privileges granted by the ones beyond. The gods will decide who will live and who will die. And every 1000 years, all gods gathered for one important decision.

The decision of the existence of their creations. The humans.

“Order, order!” a blue-skinned angel the size of a child said. “The issue is the existence of humanity. Please state your cases for or against the case. Please speak clearly so the Omni-King’s can hear.”

Above all the other gods were the most powerful beings themselves. Despite being the size of toddlers, the Omni-Kings held absolute power. They had the power to destroy anything with all the issues of turning a television off. They were destruction and creation themselves.

“Alright,” Zeno One said, “state your cases.”

The first god spoke up. They were a small god in a purple onesie and a face that was half orange and half blue. This was The Collector, a primordial god of chaos. “Yeah. I vote we destroy humanity. They never want to do anything fun anymore. They’re so boring” he said. “And they no longer see the importance of pinky swears.”

There was a murmur among the gods until a new voice spoke up. This one was a gray-skinned god with reptilian features and a fine pressed gray suit with electric-blue pinstripes.

“They’ve done more damage to the planet than even the gods of destruction could. Every day, entire forests are destroyed and species are wiped out just to satisfy their greed and lust for false power” Godzilla, the god of monsters said with a deep, growling voice.

“Indeed” a more sophisticated voice chimed in. The speaker was a skinny, purple, humanoid hairless cat. “With how much they want to wipe out each other, wiping them out might just be an act of mercy” Beerus said.

“Humanity is a cancer!” roared Zeus, the god of storms and king of the Greek pantheon. “Remember my bastard son’s failed rebellion against us?! They no longer believe in us unless it’s convenient! They don’t pray to us unless they need something! So I say we destroy them and be done with them once and for all!”

That set the gods off. Save for a few of them, they all chanted the same thing.

“Destroy humanity!”

“Eliminate the scum!”

“Death to the humans!”

“Order!” Zeno Two said. A wave of silence washed over the room. “So. Cast your votes, and let’s see if they will live.”

After a moment of silence, the two Omni-Kings went over the votes. “And the results are…99.9 percent in favor of destroying humanity.”

A cheer echoed through the building. The Zeno’s lifted their hands. “Well humanity. It was a good run, but now it’s time for you to go…”

“HOLD IT!”

Everyone was cut off as a female voice echoed through the room. Turning their heads, they looked at the speaker. A pale-skinned woman in a red suit with red eyes, blonde hair, and pink cheeks. Standing behind her were three sinners. One was a man in a white suit with pink stripes and fluffy hair, making him look quite effeminate. The second was a woman with gray-ish skin and long hair with an eye patch and red shirt. The final one was a tall man with a red and black suit and hair, his mouth was stuck in a permanent smile, showing his sharp teeth.

“Who’s she?” Zeno-One said, tilting his head in curiosity.

“I am Charlie Morningstar,” the demoness said, “daughter of Lucifer and heir to Hell. And I came up with a proposition.”

“I’m sorry, but I’m afraid you’re too late to cast your vote,” said Zeno-One.

“Not that your vote would have mattered much” the second Zeno.

“I’m not here to vote!” Charlie yelled before gulping. “S…sorry. I didn’t mean to yell. I just…think it’s a little unfair to just wipe out humanity like that. I mean, sure they’re flawed creatures, but you did make the earth for them…”

“And look at what they did to it!” bellowed Zeus.

“...regardless, doesn’t it seem a little unfair to just, you know, wipe them out like that? Shouldn’t we give them a fighting chance?”

“Oh? Like a great flood?” said King Neptune, a bearded merman with red hair and green skin.

“Or a great storm?” said the Collector.

“Or a meteor strike?” suggested Champa, Beerus’s fatter brother.

“All good ideas, but I have a feeling that those would be too extreme and would most likely result in extinction of everything on the planet. My idea is…ragnarok” Charlie said with a huge, sheepish grin.

At first, the area went silent. Then, every god there burst out laughing.

“Ragnarok? Please! You have to be kidding us! That was only included as a joke!” a gold and white man laughed. This was Dio, the god over heaven. “It was never meant to be taken seriously! If you honestly think that the Omni-Kings would even entertain such an asinine idea..!”

“Shut up”

Dio, and the rest of the gods, immediately went quiet as the Zeno’s spoke up. The Omni-Kings then turned to Charlie with curious looks. “Tell us. What is ragnarok?”

Charlie breathed a sigh of relief. The god’s above all were interested. Now to reel them in.

“Well, it’s simple. Thirteen humans and thirteen gods will compete in a tournament of power. Each round will be a one-on-one fight, displaying their power, in a fight to the…well…death. It continues until one side has seven wins. If the humans get seven wins, they get to live for 1000 more years. But if they fail, they…well…you know…”

The two Omni-Kings looked at each other. Then, the two grinned. “Charlie! We love the idea! Humanity’s fate will be decided with…”

“Hold it!” Zeus boomed. “With all due respect, you cannot possibly be on board with such an idea!”

“Why? It sounds fun!”

“Maybe Zeus is afraid of losing?” the second Zeno said.

“N…No! It’s just…”

“Then shut up and be quiet” the first Zeno said.

Zeus gave a “hmmph” before sitting down. “Now,” Zeno-1 resumed, “as we were saying before we were rudely interrupted, humanity’s fate will be decided with ragnarok! Charlie will have one day and one night to assemble thirteen of the humans who she thinks will lead humanity to victory, while the gods will do the same! Then, Ragnarok will commence! See you tomorrow!”

After saying that, the Zenos teleported away, leaving the gods to mummer among themselves while Charlie and her friends left. The demon wiped her brow as she left. “Thank goodness, they accepted it. Alright! Now. To business.”

“Woah there, hot-shot. You honestly think this will work?” said one of the sinners. This was Angel Dust, the effeminate man in white and pink. “I mean, they’re gods. Like, gods. They’re in charge of the universe!”

“Don’t worry. I have a plan” the princess. She pulled out a book the size of a dictionary. “This is the ledger of life and death. It contains every human who ever existed. With this, I can find the humans best suited for the task ahead of them.”

“Still,” said Vaggie, the one-eyed female sinner (and Charlie’s girlfriend), “do you think they can win?”

“Now, now, dear,” said Alastor, the red sinner with a perpetual smile said with a voice that sounded like it was from an old-timey radio, “we all know that our dear Charlie has had some ridiculous, hair-brained plans before. And as her friends, it’s our duty to support her no matter how stupid they are!”

Charlie gave her friends a smile, her red eyes full of hope. Sighing, Angel Dust and Vaggie sat next to her and looked through the book for potential fighters. They might not have been too sure about this plan working, but they had to show their support for her. After all, she was one of the few immortals who genuinely cared for mortals.

Charlie grinned. “Don’t worry, guys. This will be great! I swear!”

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

One day later, Charlie grinned. She had just assembled the perfect team, and just in time, as the gods did the same. Cracking her knuckles, she pulled up the gods and sent hers. Soon, both were displayed for all to see.

HUMANS

-TJ COMBO
-RAOH
-CHUN-LI
-WILLIAM AFTON
-STORM
-GARNET
-SAMURAI JACK
-ALL-MIGHT
-ASH KETCHUM
-ALEXANDER ANDNERSON
-USOPP
-AZULA
-SUNSET SHIMMER

GODS

-MOTHRA
-DEATH
-ZEUS
-BEERUS
-ASRIEL DREEMURR
-SAILOR GALAXIA
-SHAO KHAN
-HEAVEN ASCENSION DIO
-YASHA
-ZAGREUS
-PALUTENA
-ROSALINA
-HIPPOLYTA

“Seems like a group of all-stars on both sides” Alastor said with his trademark grin. Charlie nodded in agreement. “Indeed. But don’t worry. We have this. I know it.” Vaggie gave a nod. “You know what? We might just have a chance” Vaggie said with a hopeful tone. The three then looked to Angel Dust. “What do you think, Angel?” Charlie said.

“...I think hell is going to get very crowded in a bit” he said flatly.

Chapter 2: Lords Of The Ring

Notes:

Here it is for the first part of the first chapter. I hope enjoy it.

Soon, in an elaborate arena, the stands were full of spectators. Gods and humans filled the stands. The air was filled with chatter as audience members watched. In one of the VIP boxes decorated in red velvet walls and two luxurious thrones were a pair of demons. One was a tall, beautiful woman with blonde hair and a pair of goat-like horns wearing a purple dress and black, spikey crown. Sitting next to the regal woman was a much shorter man with paper-white skin, blonde hair, shark-like teeth, and a white suit and top hat decorated with an apple-shaped brooch.

These two were Lilith and Lucifer, the queen and king of hell. While they were watching the stadium below, Lilith couldn’t help but notice that her husband was crying. “Dear,” the horned woman said with concern in her voice, “are you alright?”

“I’m fine dear,” Lucifer replied between sobs, “it’s just that our daughter? Declaring rebellion against heaven? I’m…I’m…I’M SO PROUD OF HER!”

After declaring that, Lucifer began to sob hysterically, tears of joy pouring down his face. He might not have had any love for humanity, but his hatred of heaven was even greater. Even if he had no belief that her plan would even work, the heaven’s wounded pride would be more than enough for him.

Down below, a demon in the yellow and black garbs of a jester was pushing a cart of merchandise through the crowds. “Come one, come all! We have merch of your favorite fighters! Action figures, t-shirts, trading cards, novelty cups, pictures, and much much more! All yours for a price!” Mammon, the lord of greed, declared.

Elsewhere, on the human’s side, Charlie sat with her friends. The demoness was so excited, her legs were bouncing like jackhammers. “Ohhhh! Get ready, guys! We’re about to make history!” she said.

“Yeah. A bunch of idiots getting their shit kicked in'' Angel Dust said. Vaggie immediately smacked him upside the head for that remark, making the effeminate man rub the back of his head in pain.

“Owww…” he said.

Alastor tilted his head in curiosity, his grin now one of curiosity. “So what is the first round of this kerfuffle?” the former serial killer asked.

As if to answer his question, a large being appeared in a puff of smoke. The being resembled a twelve-foot tall rooster with a black suit with white stripes, black pants, black high-heeled boots, red heart-shaped cufflinks, a belt with a red heart-shaped buckle, and a tall top hat. He had a huge mass of green hair with two spectral heads floating in it, one of a goat and one of a bull. Trailing out of the top of his head was one red feather and one cream one, and trailing from his rear were three long tail feathers, red, black, and white. The humongous being pulled out a microphone and spoke into it with a deep, flamboyant voice.

“Ladies and gentlemen! Gods and goddesses! Welcome to the first ever Ragnarok! I am your commentator, the lord of lust, Asmodeus! Brace yourselves for the ultimate smack-down between god and man! Will over 300’000 years of human history be erased like that?! Or will man rise up and take down their makers?!”

A round of applause erupted from the arena at those words as divine and mortal cheered for their respective sides.

“Destroy the humans!”

“Down with the gods!”

“Wow” Zeno-One said with child-like glee dancing in his eyes as he and his counterpart watched from a luxury skybox.

“So much energy” Zeno-Two said.

“Now! Let’s get to the battlefield!” Asmodeus roared. As he yelled that, the battle ground changed into a boxing ring half the size of a football field, with red ropes and a black mat with a red corner and a blue corner.

“As per request of both combatants, the arena has taken the form of a champion’s ring. But what’s a champion’s ring without champions!? Let’s get them in here! First up, the champion of the gods!”

At once, a group of hideous humanoids with sharp teeth and spiked arms carried a slate-gray throne decorated with a giant skull. Sitting on the throne was a large man, wearing a leather loincloth, allowing the audience to see his well-developed muscles and tanned skin. On his head was a kabuto made out of a skull. The god could pass as a normal, if tall, human if it wasn’t for his claw-like nails and orange, snake-like eyes. His gaze didn’t leave the arena in front of him once as the humanoids struggled under the weight of the throne.

“From the darkest wastes of Outworld,” Asmodeus introduced, “one being rose up with one goal. To conquer all he saw and beyond! Entirely ruthless in his goals, without a shred of mercy towards his enemies, he will slaughter any and all who stand in his way. He lives for conquest and exists for mortal kombat! Ladies and gentlemen, SHAO KHAN!”

The conqueror leapt off his throne and landed in the red corner. Another pair of spikey humanoids marched in with a giant hammer, struggling under its weight. Without as much as a grunt, Shao Khan grabbed his maul and ripped it out of their grips with enough force that one of the tarkatan’s hands came out of the wrists, leaving it screaming in pain.

“And who else will challenge him, then the human’s champion?!”

A set of spotlights flashed on the other side as a man in a red training robe and hood stepped in as hard-hitting rap music about rising to the top played in the background.

“Victory! This man wanted nothing more than the sweet taste of victory! Ever since he tasted it once, he found himself high on it, to the point he was willing to cheat to get it, with dirty deals and cybernetic implants. How ironic that his desire to be on the top is what led to him falling to the very bottom. But on the bottom, he decided to claw his way back on top with nothing but grit and determination. From heel to hero, chump to champion, if you give him a second, then he wins! Ladies and gentlemen, TJ COMBO!”

After climbing into the blue corner of the ring, the man ripped off his robe, showing an African-American man with a flat-top haircut and a goatee. His attire consisted of a blue and white undershirt with his name on it, red and blue boxing trunks, red sneakers, and red boxing gloves. His arms and shoulders were covered in scars, as if something was ripped out of them. He looked like he’d seen more than his fair-share of scraps. The emperor and the out-boxer then stared into each other’s eyes, as the music stopped.

“So,” TJ said, “you think you have what it takes to beat the champ?”

Shao Khan scoffed. “I am Shao Khan! Conqueror of worlds! You will taste no victory.”

“Let round one of Ragnarok…begin!” Asmodeus yelled as he leapt up on a floating platform.

Shao Khan started the match by swinging his maul vertically. TJ ducked and threw a straight, just to have the punch blocked with another swing of the wrath hammer. The emperor then threw a punch, which the former champion blocked, sending him into the ropes. Shao Khan then followed up with a shoulder charge, which the boxer dodged with the use of some fancy footwork.

“Shao Khan and TJ Combo are both giving it their all, but neither can find an opening!” Asmodeus declared, the excitement is his voice unwavering. Both sides began cheering at the spectacle. In one corner of the stands, Champa, The Collector, and a woman with black and white hair and a purple leotard.

“I must admit, Queen Sindel. Your husband sure is putting on a good show” Champa said while scratching his chin. Sindel gave a slight smile. “Indeed” was all she said.

“Of course, my Khan’s win is all but guaranteed. After all, the arms of man can’t harm a god” Sindel said before breaking into a haughty laugh. “Awww…that’s boring” The Collector said in a disappointed tone.

In the other corner of the arena, several other boxers were watching. A young Japanese man, an American with olive skin and green gloves, and a humongous African-American man with a crazed look in his eyes.

“Heh,” Balrog, the African-American man said with a smirk, “how could this pipsqueak be? He hasn’t landed a single successful punch so far. If it was me in there, I’d knock the skull-head out in one punch.”

“Not his style” Little Mac, the American said.

“He’s an out-boxer,” the Japanese boxer, Ippo Mankunouchi, said. “He studies his opponent down to the last detail, then sees how he can exploit it in battle.”

True to Ippo’s words, TJ was busy studying his opponent. Everything from the way Khan stood and threw blows, the way he blocked, the way he held his hammer, even to the way he breathed and blinked were taken into consideration. He then dodged a blow and leapt back before rushing forwards with a powerful punch. “Power Line!” he shouted as he closed the distance.

Sindel smirked cruelly. “Watch as he breaks his hand on his chest” she said in sadistic glee.

Shao Khan also laughed, putting his hands on his hips and gloating. “You weak pathetic fool! You can’t hurt…”

POW!

Everyone on both sides fell quiet. TJ’s fist made contact with Shao Khan’s chest, leaving a huge bruise on it. The god’s jaws dropped collectively as Shao Khan fell on his back. Champa rubbed his eyes in disbelief. Was he not seeing things correctly? A few more punches from the boxer as he forced the emperor to his feet proved that he was, in fact, seeing things correctly. TJ finished his combo up with an uppercut so hard, it sent the god flying fifteen feet in the air. When he came back down, he felt a hard hit to his back, sending him into a turnbuckle.

“Look at that! Without any warning, Shao Khan is the first to get thrown into the corner!” Asmodeus bellowed in glee at the fight unfolding.

Champa stared wide-eyed in disbelief before looking across from him. There, in Charlie’s box, was the princess of hell with a huge smile on her face.

“H…how is this possible?” he finally managed to say.

Back in the ring, the conqueror was slowly standing up, just to feel a right-hook to the jaw, knocking him to the ground.

“Haven’t you heard?” the boxer said, pounding one of his fists into the other. “You can’t give me a second. Because if you do…”

He jumped up and slammed his fist into Khan’s stomach, making him cough up a mixture of blood and spit.

“I WIN!”

Charlie then looked at her friends happily. Things were looking good for them. Maybe they could pull this off. Maybe the odds could be overcome. Maybe, just maybe, they could win this.

Notes:

And like that, TJ Combo takes an early lead. Stay tuned for more of round one.

Chapter 3: Powers Revealed

Summary:

After a baffling impossibility is shown, the gods are left speechless at the display. How can a human harm a god? Is he just that good? Or is it something else?

A man cannot harm a god.

That was a known fact by all deities. Even the strongest mortal weapon or technique would be completely ineffective on them, breaking like a toy.

And yet, against all odds, there was a human landing damaging blows on a god.

“H…how…how is this possible!?” Champa finally managed to yell, his eyes as wide as tennis balls. “Maybe he’s just that good?” The Collector said. Champa shook his head. “No. Even if that man trained for one million years straight, he’d never be able to harm a god. It’s a complete impossibility. And yet…and yet…it’s happening.”

“Perhaps that man is actually one of the gods who were sympathetic to humanity’s plight in disguise” Sindel said while rubbing her chin, just as confused as Champa.

“I’m afraid that is not the case.”

Turning their heads, the three saw a new god. An Asian woman with blue eyes and brown hair that reached her shoulders with a large white patch in the front part of her bangs. She was clad in an orange and yellow kimono and sprouting from her head were a pair of moth-like antennas.

“That man is a mortal through and through” Mothra said as she sat next to the four.

Champa then scowled. He was frustrated. Perhaps he wasn’t seeing the whole picture. But what was he and his friends missing?

“Wait. I think I know what it is!” Collector said.
-
Shao Khan growled in a mix of pain and annoyance. While he was in pain and facing an impossibility, he knew questioning it was pointless. He had to win, and that was it.

Having said that, the onslaught of punches he was facing was making it hard. TJ came on him like a raging current, hitting him all over with powerful punches. Gritting his teeth, he launched a powerful shoulder charge into a punch. The heavy blows collide, knocking each other back. Shao Khan then ran forwards and landed a kick into TJ’s chest. He then tried to continue with his advantage with an elbow to the chest, but Combo rolled under the blow and threw another power line to the back of Khan’s head, knocking him to the ground.This time though, the emperor rolled out of the way of a follow-up jumping hammer punch from Combo, leaving his fist to only hit the mat with enough force to crack the supports underneath.

“So,” Shao Khan said, “you’re a bit more skilled than I thought. But it doesn't matter. You will fall like the others before you. Mighty warriors just like you have failed at killing me”

TJ pounded his fists together to pump himself up. “If you beat them,” he said, “then they were nothing like me.”

Combo and Khan then threw a punch at each other. The fists collided, creating a shockwave that reached the stands, knocking several spectators out of their seats. The ring then split in half, Knocking the two into the air as debris flew up.

“The two fighters have leveled the ring! It’s now airborne!” Asmodeus yelled in glee.

“So cool!” Zeno One yelled.

Leaping from rubble to rubble, the boxer tried to close the distance while the conqueror’s mouth glowed green. Just as Combo was about to land a powerful punch, Shao Khan spat a ball of green fire at him, forcing the disgraced champion to swiftly change to a defensive stance. The ball exploded sending him into a huge chunk of wood and mat, shattering it like glass. Shao Khan then summoned his hammer and threw it. The maul smashed into the pugilist, sending him into the destroyed remains of the ring. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he jumped back up, tensing his muscles for a powerful uppercut.

Shao Khan’s head snapped back like a whip as his helmet was knocked clean off. The two then landed, the helmet shattering when it touched the ground. Khan stood back up, just to feel a hard right to the jaw. This time though, he managed to stay sturdy and used his momentum from the blow to throw a punch of his own into TJ’s chest. Combo skidded back as Khan formed several spears of green energy and threw them at the pugilist like darts, forcing him to bob and weave through the spears.

“TJ is facing a hail of spears head on! What grit! What hustle!” the lord of lust declared.

Humanity watched in amazement as Combo made his way towards the emperor while dodging the spears. They all held their breath as one grazed his cheek, leaving a bleeding mark. But aside from the gash, TJ took no serious damage. He then tensed up his arm and landed a devastating turn-punch to Shao Khan’s ribs. The emperor spat out a wad of blood as he felt his ribs crack. He never saw that coming.

Neither did the boxers watching.

“Hey,” Balrog said in amazement, “that was my turn-punch! How did he do it so well?”

“It seems his opponent was the only individual Combo studied,” Little Mac said, “he must have studied all of us at some point, along with skills from other boxers, learning all there was to boxing.”

Ippo nodded in agreement. “He is in a league of his own now” he said.

Meanwhile, with Charlie’s group, Charlie was smiling. “See guys. We have this. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“Quite a spectacle, I must admit. Shame about the ring though” Alastor said, his trademark grin never fading. “Who cares about the ring?” Charlie exclaimed, “we’re making history!”

Angel Dust leaned back. “Yeah. Maybe we are.”

In the arena, Shao Khan smashed his hammer on his opponent’s fist, creating a loud crack. He then followed up with a backhanded slap to TJ’s jaw. He then head-butted him between the eyes. Before he could do anything else, Combo began weaving his body in an infinity pattern in a technique Ippo recognized as his famous Dempsey roll. The boxer began to move so fast it seemed that he was in two places at once. He then threw a heavy punch to Kahn’s jaw, sending teeth flying. TJ then continued his roll. After two seconds, he threw ten punches.

Four seconds, fifty punches.

Ten seconds, one hundred punches.

With Khan stunned, TJ then went in for an uppercut. Charlie beamed. This was it. Humanity was going to win…

“HOLD IT!”

Everything seemed to freeze. Combo’s punch was halted inches away from Shao Kahn’s jaw. Zeus stepped off his stand and into the arena. “Stop everything now!” the king of Olympus shouted.

The Omni-Kings looked at Zeus in disappointment. “What is it, Zeus? We were having fun. Why would you interrupt us?”

“I have reason to believe that humanity is cheating!” Zeus bellowed.

Charlie’s smile quickly turned into a look of fear. Combo glared with fury at the bearded god. “I ain’t cheating!” he insisted with disgust in his voice. Zeus glared down at the man. “Don’t lie! I know your gloves are a deal with a devil!”

The gods gasped in shock. A deal with a devil was a dangerous proposition. The fact that a human would be desperate enough to do something like that was not only inconceivable to them, but further proof that humanity had to be erased at once.

“What’s more, Charlie not only allowed this, but encouraged her humans to do so!”

The arena went deadly silent as the gods all glared in her direction. “Welp. Nice knowing you, Chuck” Angel Dust said flatly.

The Omni-Kings looked at each other and then looked at Zeus. “So?” Zeno One said.

“We already knew about that” Zeno Two said.

“Wh-What!?” Zeus shouted in disbelief. “You knew about this all along!?”

The two nodded

“Th-then you should end this now! This is grounds for automatic disqualification! Humanity and Charlie should be erased from existence right now!” the King exclaimed.

“Well, Lucifer came to us with a good argument…”
-

Flashback, in Zeno's room, yesterday.

“Wow! Look at all the gods and humans on the list!”

The Zenos grinned with glee at the rosters. They were greatly interested in each side, each one wanting tomorrow to come right now.

“I hope to see the funny man with the long nose fight Death. It sounds like a funny fight” Omni Two said.

“I hope we see Mothra fight sooner rather than later. She’s really cool.”

“Who do you think Yasha will fight?”

“Maybe the superhero. What was his name again?”

“Excuse me, but may I intervene?”

The two blue gods turned around to see Lucifer standing before them. “I hope I’m not interrupting, Omni-kings, but I wish to speak with you.”

The Zeno’s looked at Lucifer quietly. “Sure, I guess” Zeno-Two said.

“Well, it’s come to my attention that humans cannot harm gods on all there own” the lord of hell said casually.

“Yes. We know” they said.

“Well. Doesn’t it seem boring if humanity has no chance of victory?”

The two head gods looked at each other. They had to admit, Lucifer had a point. Why have a tournament if you knew the outcome already?

“Does this mean we should cancel the tournament?” Zeno-One said.

“Not at all. My daughter actually has a solution to this.”

He then opened a scrying portal to Charlie’s section. She was talking with TJ and a short imp with long black-and white horns wearing a black long coat, fingerless gloves with inverted crosses on them, and a white patch on one half of his face.

“I’m not to sure about this. Feels like a chapter of my life that I’m not to proud of” Combo said. Charlie gently took his wrists in her hands. “Please TJ. It’s the only way you can hurt the gods. It doesn’t matter how skilled you are. Unless you can fight back, we’re sunk. Besides. It won’t change your skill. You won’t be any better because of it. Anything you do is because of you” she reassured. TJ looked at her before sighing. “Alright. As long as it’s all my skill.”

Charlie smiled before turning to the imp. “So Blitz. Do you agree to make a deal with a devil to TJ?”

Blitz-O (the “O” is silent) shrugged. “Eh. Normally I don’t give a shit about humans. But I have to admit, working with a guy who wants to stand on top sounds like a good deal, not to mention shoving it up those assholes in heaven sounds like a sweet gig. I’m in”

Blitz-O then produced a flaming piece of paper from nowhere, along with two pens. “Sign here, and let’s get this effing party started.”

Combo and Blitz-O signed there names on the paper. After they did, the imp began to change shape as his body turned into yellow light. When the light died down, Blitz-O had turned into a pair of red boxing gloves. TJ then put them on.

“Hmmm. They fit perfectly” he remarked.

-

“So we agreed that it will be ok if humans have deals with the devil” Zeno-One said when they got to the end of their story. Zeno-Two nodded in agreement. Zeus was speechless. The ones above all were ok with this? They were just going to let this happen?

“Uh, budy. Can you please get out? You’re ruining the pacing here” Asmodeus said, his voice now lacking the usual dramatic flare it usually has. Zeus frowned, but flew back to his stand without an argument. He knew that the Omni-Kings wouldn’t change their minds.

Meanwhile, Charlie practically fainted with relief. “Vaggie. Pinch me to make sure I’m not dreaming” she said. Vaggie compiled to her girlfriend’s request, pinching the princess’s waist. Charlie shot back up in her chair in attention, the pain proving that yes, this was really happening. “Oh, thank you dad. I know you only did that because you hate heaven more than humanity, but thank you.”

“Uh, princess. I don’t mean to pop your bubble, but don’t you think you’re still not out of the fire just yet?” Angel Dust remarked.

“What do you mean?” Vaggie said for Charlie.

“I mean that they now know that humans are fighting with a handicap, they aren’t going to take them seriously. I mean less so than usual” the effeminate man explained.

Charlie shrugged. “It doesn’t matter if they don’t take them seriously,” she said, her eyes going back to the ring, the joy now seemed to have faded away to fear.

“They just have to win this.”

-

“Sorry for the interruption, gods and mortals,” Asmodeus said with his usual flare back up again, “we’re now returning to the senseless violence you came here for!”

Shao Khan then looked at TJ Combo before laughing. “So the champion is just a worm fighting with fake power. What a joke.”

Combo clenched his fists even tighter than before. “I’m not faking anything. My gloves might hurt you, but it’s my own skills that allow them to do so, asshole!” the pugilist replied

Shao Khan scoffed. “Bah. You’re a true fool to the end of you honestly think that. But if you still insist on throwing your life away like this, then I’ll be happy to oblige. In fact…”

Suddenly, the conqueror’s body began to glow orange as his teeth sharpened, his muscles swelled up, his body grew taller, and his claws became wreathed in flames.

“I’ll show you just how hopeless your situation truly is.”

Notes:

Looks like Shao Khan has a trick up his own non-existent sleeve. What could this ruthless warlord be planning? And can Combo find a way to counter it? Stay tuned to find out.

Chapter 4: Flaming Fist

Summary:

Shao Khan has a secret trick up his sleeves. Could this be the end?

TJ looked as his opponent changed. His muscles tensed up as the hair on his arms stood on end. He felt like he was standing next to an erupting volcano. The heat grew more and more intense as a bright white light filled the area. TJ and the spectators covered their eyes until the light finally died down.

But when it did, they wished they still had their eyes covered.

Shao Khan was still standing, but his appearance changed. He had grown taller, his skin now resembling molten lava. He had sharper teeth and claws as well, and flames began radiating off his body. On his head was a new kabuto, one made of fire this time. Even TJ began to feel nervous now. All his senses screamed that Khan was now more dangerous than ever.

“Looks like Shao Khan got a new look! But what could this power be? Could it perhaps be the power of Armageddon?!

Shao Khan let out a dark chuckle. Charlie’s eyes widened in fear. She knew what was in store. A last resort that the conqueror only used when he absolutely had to.

-

Thousands of years ago.

Blood splattered on the ground. Another powerful warrior had fallen, his neck twisted to 180 degrees. Another charged at Shao Khan, who merely punched into his body with both hands. With a single motion, he ripped the man in half. A third was kicked to the ground and had his head crushed under Khan’s foot.

Shao Khan looked back at the piles of bodies behind him. All tried to stop him from claiming his true prize. Only one opponent remained. A giant fire elemental who held the power of the complete destruction of the realms.

The giant man made of fire and rocks looked down at the emperor. He was twice the size of the invader, with huge arms and legs. Wordlessly, the being rose to his feet. This was Blaze, the final obstacle.

The two warriors got into a combat stance. Shao Khan started the brawl with a shoulder charge, just to get his body knocked away with a back-hand. Blaze then breathed fire at the warlord, forcing him to create a barrier of energy. The shield absorbed the majority of the fire but began to crack under the heat. Gritting his teeth the emperor began to push through slowly but surely closing the distance between them. When Blaze was finally in striking range, the emperor lashed out with an axe-like chop at an angle, his fist ripping through the elemental’s body like paper.

Blaze roared in agony. Shao Khan stared at the elemental with cold eyes as green light glowed from his hands. Blaze tried to stand as beams of energy hit him. His strength was sapped away as he made one last lunge at Shoa Khan, desperate to stop him.

But it was too late.

Blaze’s soul left him before he was even half-way there to Khan. The warlord swatted the lifeless corpse aside like a fly, his body splattering on impact like a fly on a windshield. Orange flames danced on his hands as he grinned evilly. No one could ever stand up to him now. No one could stop him.

The realms would tremble at his every move.

-

“Nice campfire. But I’m still going to kick your ass” TJ Combo said with his typical swagger hiding his fear.

Shao Khan laughed in amusement. “As amusing as you are,” he said in a much deeper voice, “I’m afraid I will end you here.”

He then flew into a shoulder-charge, his body bursting into flames like a meteor entering the atmosphere with incredible speed and power. TJ tried to sidestep, but was hit before he could get his body out of the way. The heat left burn-marks on his shoulder as he was sent flying into a wall. Shao Khan then shot a ball of fire out of his mouth, this time, the fire was blue and moved even faster than before. The fireball exploded like a nuke, enveloping TJ in a giant cloud of blue flames.

“OH! TJ’s out of the fireplace and into the fire! Could this be the end?” Asmodeus declared.

“Come on, TJ. Come on” Charlie said desperately.

Suddenly, a blur of blue and red shot out of the inferno, smashing a fist into the Khan’s chest. Combo was covered in burns, but still alive. And his gloves were now imbued in fire. His fists moved like bullets from a machine gun, cracking against his opponent like fireworks, creating a series of small explosions.

“And Combo strikes back! Battered but not beaten, he keeps pushing forwards! What a show! What a spectacle!”

Combo grit his teeth as he threw more and more punches. Shao’s flaming body would have made the heat unbearable for a normal man, but TJ’s grit and determination allowed him to mentally dull the pain as he wailed on his foe.

“Was that all you got?! Huh!? HUH!?”

Combo threw an uppercut, but the fist was caught by the hand of the emperor. This was a feint, however, as the real punch smashed into the side of his jaw, knocking his teeth out. He then threw an uppercut for real, knocking his foe off his feet. Khan tried to retaliate with a shoulder charge, but TJ caught him in a clench. Gritting his teeth in pain from the intense heat burning his skin, he tossed Khan into the air and followed up with several uppercuts.

“Look at that! Combo is comboing Shao Khan yet again! This time, he’s keeping him airborne, trying to make sure he never regains his footing!”

Against a normal opponent, they would have been helpless. But Khan was not a normal opponent. He shot a fire ball at Combo, forcing him to dodge as he landed. Khan then used his magic to immobilize the pugilist, and pulled him in as he summoned his hammer, this time on fire.

*WHAM!*

Combo felt a hammer slam to his ribs. As he was knocked back, Shao Khan used his telekinesis to pull him in again.

*WHAM!*

This time, it hit him square in the chest.

*WHAM!*

And now, he took a hammer to his head, knocking out several teeth and an eyeball, straight out of the socket.

“OOOOH! That’s going to hurt! And now SK is using the strategy against TJC! What will he do now?!” Asmodeus declared while Charlie watched in horror.

“Combo! Come on!” she yelled desperately

As Shao Khan tried his strategy again, Combo performed a power-line as he was pulled forwards, his fist meeting the hammer head-on. There was a gruesome squelching, crunching sound as TJ roared in pain. His glove became a darker shade of red as it began to drip with blood. No one needed to take the glove off to know what had happened.

His hand had been crushed into a paste.

Combo fell to his knees, the pain finally getting to him. As he did, Shao Khan knocked him to the ground, his foot smashing into his spine. He then pulled him up by the arm and smashed his skull with a headbutt, cracking his opponent’s skull. He then threw the heavily injured pugilist over his shoulder, making him bounce and roll away, the glove on the smashed hand fell off. Combo hit a wall and got to one knee, breathing heavily. Shao Khan smirked and walked to him, picking up the fallen glove and burning it to ash, to the horror of Charlie and a four-eyed humanoid owl in the stands. “A valiant effort. But don’t worry. You never stood a chance to begin with” he cruelly mocked.

TJ closed his one remaining eye. The shame. The mockery. He knew this feeling.

He felt them before.
-

COMBO CAUGHT CHEATING!

“TJ Combo has been exposed as keeping his title through illegitimate means through cybernetic implants. As such, Combo has been stripped of all his titles and banned from boxing for life.”

Combo’s hands shook as a lump formed in his throat. He read the words in the newspaper, hoping that the words would change by some miracle. But no. They were there for him and the world to see. He was once a champion. But now, he was a no-one yet again. Sold out by the ones who claimed they wanted to help him, used and thrown away. His mind flashed back to the last things they said.

“All you had to do was take a dive when we told you too. A small price for our generous deal. But you made us look like fools just to satisfy your pride. Now we will take everything away from you!”

The words said by the Ultratech executives rang in his head. He looked at the scars from the implants. He cried. They cost him everything. He was at the top. Now it was over.

No.

NO!

Gritting his teeth, he dug his fingers straight into his arms, punching through the skin to the implants. With a roar, he ripped them out with a roar of pain, and then did the same to the other arm. Blood poured out, but to his amazement, the wounds began to close up before his eyes. They then began to glow blue as he stood up.

The papers said he was over. Ultratech said he was over. But he wasn’t over. It was never over. He just needed to show it. And three words rang in his head as he set off to prove himself once again.
-

“I AIN’T DONE!”

TJ slammed his fist into the ground, creating an earthquake. Khan fell on his rear as Combo stood up, his arms now glowing blue. He then leapt through the air and smashed his one good fist into his opponent’s stomach, smashing a few organs. He then grabbed and threw Khan to the side and faced him for a final fight.

“Come on, buddy! I still have some fight in me!” TJ roared.

Shao Khan growled in annoyance. “Very well then” he hissed.

Charlie’s jaw dropped. She was in awe at this. Perhaps humanity could still pull this off.

Standing up, she yelled at the top of her lungs.

“GO, TJ, GO!”

Notes:

Now both opponents are giving it all they got. But will the first win go to the humans? Or the gods?

Chapter 5: Disarmed

Summary:

Round one is coming to an end and both fighters are at their limit. Who will win?

The two warriors charged at each other, each determined to take the other out for the sake of their pride as champions. While Combo was short of a functioning hand, he made up for it with a tighter defense. Sweeping his arm without the hand, he batted away Khan’s blows while throwing punches with his gloved fist. While his hits were more powerful now with his berserker state, the fact that he only had one good hand made his hits predictable now.

Soon, both were spitting blood and teeth as they tried to weave through each other’s hits. The sound of punches echoed like cannon fire.

“Now the two are reduced to going back and forth like two kids on a see-saw” Asmodeus declared. “Neither are giving an inch, but there’s no clear winner at this point! It could be anyone’s game!”

Charlie was on the edge of her seat. The pressure was becoming unbearable. From an early lead to this? It was enough to give a person a heart-attack.

Combo landed a good one-two on the face of the emperor, and then followed it up with an old-fashioned uppercut to the jaw. Khan felt the hair-line fractures form in his mouth, but muscled through with a headbutt, breaking the pugilist’s nose. He then summoned two flaming javelins and threw them.

TJ grit his teeth as the spears pierced his shoulders. Khan then opened into Combo with a powerful flurry of punches and kicks. He tried to stay sturdy, but eventually, the pugilist’s defense was broken, covering his body in welts and burn marks.

“Fall, damn you, FALL” Khan ordered.

But TJ wouldn’t fall. Instead, he performed a slip-counter, feigning being hit, then landing a hard right to the jaw, nearly breaking the emperor of Outworld’s jaw.

He then unleashed a flurry of one-handed punches like a machine gun. He then followed it up with an uppercut that had so much power, speed, and force that the air around it ignited, creating an explosion.

In humanity’s side, a fat African American man grabbed Little Mac by the shoulder in awe. This was the legendary boxing champion and coach, Doc Lewis.

“See that, Mac? That was the best star punch I’ve ever seen!” he exclaimed.

Mac nodded in agreement. While he and Doc used the punch before, he never expected to see someone to pull it off so perfectly. Especially when the individual never used it before.

However, the good feelings began to wear off as they noticed something off with Combo. His breathing was growing heavier. His one remaining eye was flooded with blood and tears. He seemed to have trouble holding up his fists. He looked like a mess. Even the blue glow on his body even seemed to be fading.

Charlie gripped the armrests of her chair so hard, they actually snapped. “W…what’s wrong?” she said in a mix of confusion and anxiety.

Angel Dust chuckled. “Do ya get it? With his injuries and that flashy finale he pulled, he’s running on fumes. Even that adrenaline-fueled berserker mode he got is running out. At this point, I’m not sure if he’s trying to kill Shao Khum or himself now.”

Charlie’s heart sank. What was once a guaranteed win for humanity was now crumbling to dust. TJ needed to win now.

Combo ran to the emperor with a mighty power-line punch as Khan performed a shoulder charge. The two collided in an epic clash of power. However, this time, it was TJ who was knocked aside. He tried to counter, but Khan swatted his arm aside and smashed his fist into his face. He then pulled off three more shoulder charges, each one staggering TJ more and more. Combo then finally side-stepped his opponent and landed a right hook into Khan’s shoulder, breaking it like glass.

He then began hammering away at his foe. But each punch seemed to be getting slower. He was breaking down. Even recalling his punches took a lot of effort for him. But through it all, he never stopped punching. Over, under, in and out, he gave it all he had. It was going pretty well.

Until…

SHHHRRRRK!

Combo screamed in pain as he fell back. Charlie’s jaw dropped in horror. With a moment that TJ was too slow to pull his arm back, Khan had reached out and grabbed it. And with a mighty tug, he ripped it off like a rag doll’s.

TJ writhed in pain as he tried to pull himself up. But Khan kicked him back down. Before Khan could do anything else though, something latched onto his back and sunk its teeth into his neck, emitting a pained roar from him.

“OH! Looks like the demon Combo made a deal with has gone back to normal to buy his partner some time!”

Enraged at the fact such a lowly creature would attack him like that, Shao Khan grabbed Blitz-O by the horns and ripped him off before choke-slamming him into the ground. “Worthless creature! How dare you!?” he roared in outrage.

Blitz-O spat in the flaming god’s face. “Eat shit, you burning asshole” he said in defiance.

Enraged, the emperor put him in a fireman’s carry and performed a back-breaker on the imp. He then grabbed him by the tail and began slamming him around like a ragdoll, at one point breaking off one of his horns. In the spectator’s stand, a humanoid owl with four eyes stood up, but was held down by a smaller owl wearing a beanie.

“Dad,” Ocatvia said to Stolas in a sad, yet reassuring tone, “there’s nothing we can do.”

Soon, Blitz-O was thrown to the dirt. He began to crawl towards TJ, just to feel two giant hands clamp around him. One around his waist, and one around his mouth. And with a mighty twist and a sickening snap, Blitz-O’s world went dark.

“And just like that, Combo’s partner is now incapable of fighting back! It’s all over for TJ!”

Discarding the lifeless imp, Shao Khan then turned his attention to the boxer, who now pulled himself back to his feet. “And like I said. You never stood a chance” the emperor said as he summoned his maul. “But of course, it couldn’t end any other way. After all, I am a god, a conqueror of worlds, an emperor of an endless empire! And you? You are but a mortal, a fragile creature relying on a borrowed power to just have a chance to stand to me. You’re a weak, pathetic fool!”

Combo went silent for a minute. And then he glared back. “Me? Weak? That’s a laugh. You say I needed borrowed power to stand up to you. But what about yours?”

Khan went silent as TJ continued his speech.

“Just as I thought. That power wasn’t yours originally. And I was thrashing your sorry ass until you called on your own borrowed power just to stand a chance. I know I will die here. But if the other gods fight like you, then I won’t be fancying your chances. So hit us with your best shots. Because if you don’t, humanity will steam roll all you punks into the ground!”

Shao Khan growled in rage. “That’s a wishful image in your head. Shame you’ll never see it”

With that, he let out a mighty warcry as he swung his hammer as hard as he could. The moment it made contact with his head, Combo’s skull exploded like a stick of dynamite, splattering the wall behind it with fragments of skull, brain, and blood. The body then fell over like a domino with a soft thud as Shao Khan turned his back to his fallen foe and made his way to the exit.

“And it’s all over! Round one of Ragnarok ends, and the winner is Shao Khan!” Asmodeus declared. “So cool!” the Omni-Kings said in wide-eyed awe.

 

ROUND 1
SHAO KHAN VS TJ COMBO
MATCH LENGTH: 15 MINUTES
DECIDING MOVE: HEAD-SPLITTER
WINNER: SHAO KHAN
GODS: 1 - HUMANITY: 0

Charlie fell back in shock. Tears formed in her eyes.

How? How could this have happened?

Notes:

And like that, round one ends. Looks like humanity is off to a rough start.

Chapter 6: A Symbol Of Peace

Summary:

Well. With one loss, Charlie is now shaken up. Can she turn things around? She hopes so with her next representative.

Charlie was miserable. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Right now, she felt like crawling in a hole. The gods' jeers towards her and humanity as Shao Khan left the arena made her feel even worse. All she needed was one more thing and she would break down completely.

“Welp! It was a nice effort, but we all saw it coming” Angel Dust said with a smirk.

There it was. At those words from the flamboyant man, Charlie ran off crying. Vaggie glared hard at Angel Dust. If looks could kill, Angel Dust probably would have shared the same fate as Combo. “What?” he asked.

“If all of humanity was like you,” the one-eyed woman said, her voice filled with venom, “they would have been erased after 24 hours!”

After saying that, she stormed off to comfort her girlfriend. Angel then turned to Alastor. “Don’t look at me. I was going to say the same thing.”

With that, the smiling redhead left Angel behind. Looking down at the arena, he saw lifeless bodies of TJ Combo and Blitz-O turn green before crumbling to dust. Realizing just what he said, he ran to Charlie, still crying into her girlfriend’s embrace.

“Charlie. I’m sorry. I know this is another one of your passion projects and you really care about it. And that it went south. But I’m sure TJ will forgive you when we see him again.”

Charlie looked at him. “No. I’ll never see him again.”

“Come on. I’m sure he won’t hold a grudge even in hell…”

“He’s not going to hell. Or heaven.”

Angel Dust went silent. Taking a deep breath, Charlie went on. “In ragnarok, challenging a god to a fight to the death is seen as the ultimate sin, completely inexcusable in every way, shape, and form. Anyone who does so, be it human, demon, or otherwise will be erased from existence if they fail. TJ Combo. Blitz-O. They’re both…both…gone for good…”

After saying that, she broke down into tears again. Angel’s face fell. He didn’t know what to say now.

-

“Hurry up and mend me, you worthless cretins!”

Shao Khan roared in pain. All the gods of healing were working tirelessly, trying to patch him up. He was suffering from several ruptured organs, thirteen broken ribs, a shattered jaw, and a ruptured eye. Despite all the injuries, he still had enough energy to yell.

“Good to see your mouth still works despite everything” said a sarcastic voice. Turning his head, Shao Khan saw Champa, Collector, and Mothra had entered the room. The hospitalized god scoffed. “That human only got lucky. Nothing more” he insisted.

“I wish I could say I believe you,” Mothra said solemnly as she sat on a nearby couch, “but luck had nothing to do with your condition. The point of the matter is that you underestimated the human, and paid the price for it.”

“Yeah. If anyone got lucky, it was you” teased Collector.

Shao Khan growled as his eyes boiled in fury. “Insolent child! You should show me respect!” he bellowed.

Ignoring the ramblings of the Khan, The Collector floated over to Champa, who was helping himself to the contents of a fruit bowl, sloppily eating an apple. “So when’s the next fight? It’s boring just waiting for it to happen” the child of the stars asked the fat cat. Champa had just finished the apple and tossed the core over his shoulder, nearly hitting Mothra in the head and landing three feet away from the trash can. “As soon as we choose the next fighter. And knowing that humans can fight back, we need to choose them carefully.”

He then grabbed an orange and began to peel it in a hurried fashion. “Mothra,” he said with his mouth full of orange and orange juice running down his left cheek, “what do you say? You up for round two?”

Mothra shook her head. “I’m sorry. But I don’t see myself fighting my ideal opponent in round two.”

“Hmmm? Oh right. That grudge with that former follower of yours” Champa discarded the orange peel as he pondered. “Hmmmm…problem is most of the roster are full of guys who are closers rather than opening acts or have special requests. I know Hippo refuses to fight a man, and Paultena is busy doing something to compete in the next round.”

Collector and Champa put a hand to their chins and pondered. Soon, all the sounds left in the room were Khan’s pained moans and Champa’s loud chewing. Then, the blue and orange boy’s face lit up.

“I got it! Yasha! He could be all like ‘I am a god’ and could be all like ‘hyah! Wusha! Haaaaa!’” the starchild said as he did karate chops and roundhouse kicks in the air. Champa gave a smirk at Collector’s antics. “I have to admit. Sending in that mopey martial artist does sound like a novel idea” he said as he grabbed a banana.

“So it’s settled then? Yasha will fight in round two of Ragnarok?” Mothra said as she poured a glass of tea.

“Sounds like a plan. Alright. One of you find where he is and tell him that he’s up next. I’ll send the announcement”

-

“Are you feeling better?”

Charlie looked up to the speaker. It was a young-looking man with a slender build, tanned skin, curly black hair, puffy yellow pants, prominent lips, and a floppy hat. The most noticeable feature about this person, however, was his slender 13 centimeter nose. This was Usopp,a future fighter for the tournament.

“Yes. I am. I just…needed some time. I just feel responsible for what happened to TJ and Blitz-O.”

“Aww…don’t feel bad,” the long-nosed man said, “it wasn’t your fault.”

“Indeed. If anything, it was that boxer’s fault for not using his deal to the fullest.”

The demoness and the man turned to the speaker. It was another future fighter, a young woman in gold and red robes with fingerless gloves and soft-looking shoes. Her hair was tied up in a bun and pinned with a hair ornament shaped like a flame. The most prominent thing about her, however, were her eyes. They were gold-colored with a dangerous look to them. She looked intelligent, composed, and very deadly.

“Oh. Hello, Azula” Charlie said, upset with Azula speaking ill of the dead. “Wow. Have a heart” Usopp said, equally offended. Azula scoffed. “Hmm. It’s not my fault he only used his deal just so he could simply punch his opponent. All deals can be made to bring out the fullest potential of any human. And then some.”

Before anything else could be said, the screen of Charlie’s computer flashed. Answering it, Charlie saw that it was an announcement that the gods had chosen their next champion.

“Hmmmm…Yasha, huh?”

Charlie looked over the god on the screen. He was a handsome man with raven-colored hair, navy blue clothes, white tattoos on his face and arms, gold ornaments all over his body, a goatee, and shiny eyes.

“Hmmm…the dragon of melancholy, Yasha” she said.

Azula turned to Usopp with a cruel smile. “What do you say, sniper. Want to fight him?” she said with a cruel smile. Usopp turned as pale as a sheet. “What!? Me?!”

Buckets of sweat poured from his head as his pupils shrunk to pin-pricks. “S-s-sorry! I just remembered that I have a very severe case of if-I-fight-that-guy-I-will-die-horribly disease!” he stammered lamely. Azula smirked, seemingly drinking his cowardice and enjoying watching him squirm.

“Don’t worry, Usopp,” Charlie said as she turned to the two humans with a gentle smile, “I already have the ideal combo and counter for Yasha. After the last round, I feel like humanity needs some hope. And I know a symbol of hope to reignite that flame.”

“And here he is!”

Kicking down the door to the room, a huge man strode in. He had blonde hair with two cowlicks in the front forming a “V”, muscles all over his body, and a tight-fitting red, white, blue, and yellow suit. His most prominent feature, however, was his smile. Unlike Alastor or Azula, his smile wasn’t one of malice or dominance. It was a smile that said “don’t worry! I am here!”, reassuring and confident.

“All-Might! Thank you for agreeing to this” Charlie said. All-Might threw his head back and let out a triumphant laugh. “Please, Charlie dear! The pleasure is all mine! And please don’t worry! As a hero, I am ready for anything!” he said in a proud, booming, confident voice. He then looked at the screen and examined his opponent. “So. This is who I’m fighting? Don’t worry. I’ll handle him!”

Not once did his smile fade. Charlie began to feel his confidence for her own. “I hoped you would say that. Now. Ready to meet your partner?” she said. All-Might gave a hearty thumbs up. “Alright. Vortex! Please come in!”

After asking for him, Vortex came inside. He was a tall and well-built hellhound, perhaps as tall and strong-looking as the human he was supposed to be paired with. He had gray fur, torn pants and an equally torn top. His left eye had a scar over it, and his left ear had a notable notch in it. “You called, princess?” he asked in a deep voice. He then looked at All-Might and gave a smirk. “This the guy you want me to work with? He looks like a show off” the hellhound said. All-Might simply let out a hearty laugh. “Guilty as charged. Are you willing to make a deal?” he replied. Vortex nodded and formed the flaming contract. “Sign here please” he said.

Wasting no time, the number one hero signed with his full name, Toshinori Yagi. This made Vortex chuckle again. “You didn’t have to sign your full name” he said as he signed on his side. After doing so, he turned into a ball of light and flew towards All-Might. Once the light dissipated, All-Might’s outfit had changed. It was now a red and gray suit with a pentagram on the chest and small spikes dotting the knuckles of his fingerless gloves.

“Did he have to make it look so evil?” the hero said in a joking tone.

Charlie gave a chuckle. “Ok, All-Might. This is called Plus-One. It allows you to mirror your opponent’s power, and then add one to it. I hope it suits you well.”

“Why only one? Why not one hundred?” Usopp asked. “Because it’s the safest number a mortal can use” Charlie said.

“Don’t worry! One is more than enough!” All-Might declared while pumping his fist into the air. Charlie now began to feel her confidence refilling. “Alright! Let’s reignite the flames of hope! Hy-YAH!”

However, unaware to any of them, on the other side of the door, Zeus was listening. “So. You want to reignite hope for humanity? Then I’ll make sure the flames are snuffed out completely. Then humanity will see just how helpless it truly is to defy us.”

With that, Zeus left, a vile plan forming in his head.
-
“Ah! There you are darling! We were afraid you’d never show up!”

Alastor stood up and patted the seat next to him. The princess smiled sweetly and sat down. “Sorry for getting upset. But I feel much more confident about this one.”

“I’m glad you feel confident about this” Vaggie said, sitting on her right and putting a warm hand on her girlfriend’s shoulder.

Angel Dust said nothing and avoided eye contact with Charlie. While he did feel horrible for making her feel so upset at a moment where she probably needed a kind word instead, his belief that they were fighting a losing battle was greater. So he decided the best thing to do was to say nothing right now.

“Ladies and gentlemen! Gods and goddesses! I hope that last fight whet your appetites for bloodshed, because we’re only getting started! And what a bad break for humanity, dropping the ball so early! Can they turn things around for round two?! Let’s find out!”

Asmodeus let out a flourish of his arms. When he did so, the arena changed. It became a city the size of New York with several planetoids floating around it. Suddenly, a massive pillar covered in stairs rose out of center. The moment Asmodeus was about to speak, All-Might began to charge down the stairs at speeds almost too fast for the eye to track.

“When it comes to heroism, one man stands out above all! Born with no power but a desire to do right, he was chosen to carry the torch of the legendary One-For-All! Now, with hard work and grit, he rose above all heroes to become the number one hero! His desire to do right is unmatched! His will to save anyone is unlike anybody else! When he hears someone call his name, he’ll arrive there in a flash with a smile on his face! For humanity, the symbol of peace…ALL-MIGHT!”

The moment his name was announced, All-Might slid to the bottom of the stairs. When he came to a stop, he struck a pose and pumped his fist in the air. “NO WORRIES! I AM HERE!” he declared to the cheers of humanity.

“Hmmm…quite an entrance he pulled off” Alastor said.

“So cool!” the Omni-Kings said, eyes sparkling like stars.

“And representing his opponent…huh?”

Before he could say anything, his cellphone rang. “Opps! Pardon me, everyone. Gotta take this.”

He then put his phone to his non-existent ear in annoyance. The goat and bull head in his hair moved closer to it, trying to hear what was being said.

“What is this? I’m in the middle of something…what?...A last minute change?...to who?...WHAT!?...ALREADY!?...who authorized this!?...alright, alright…ok…love you to…bye.”

Everyone went silent in confusion. What was going on? What was this about a last minute change?

“*ahem!* sorry about that! A little last minute change to the matchup! No need to get upset.”

As he spoke, one of the planetoids drifted down until it was hovering right above All-Might. Suddenly, eleven figures floated around the planetoid.

There was Champa.

A ball of fur with arms and legs.

A woman resembling an Egyptian queen

A mouse.

A robot.

A reptile-like thing.

A multi-tailed fox.

A pink elephant.

A green-skinned dwarf with a red beard.

A clown.

And a fish-like monster.

Suddenly, Charlie turned pale. “Oh no. Nononononononono! NO! Please tell me this isn’t going where I think it’s going.”

“Depends. Where do you think it’s going” Alastor said.

“Creation and destruction! Two sides of the same coin! For without one, the other cannot exist! But when it comes to destroying, no one does it better than the gods of destruction! If something is deemed too weak to exist, they get rid of it to make room for something stronger! And one of these destroyers is beyond that of his peers! His judgment is swift, and his word is law! So great is his power that one can be excused for underestimating him due to his laziness and gluttony! But make no mistake! He’s a G.O.D among G.O.Ds! Introducing the new divine representative of the gods…BEERUS!”

With that, the other gods fired blasts of energy at the planetoid, causing it to explode into a series of colors like a series of fireworks. When the light show died down, Beerus calmly floated down with a smug grin on his face and not even a single scratch on his slender body.

“So. Is this the worthy opponent I was promised?” he said in a tone that sounded somewhat mockingly.

Charlie’s scream shattered several glass objects that were closeby. This wasn’t part of the plan at all.

This was a disaster.

Notes:

Ah-Ha! You thought it would be Zeus fighting All-Might! But it was him, BEERUS! Can All-Might fell Beerus? Or will Beerus extinguish the symbol of peace?

Chapter 7: Peace And Destruction

-Some-time earlier, before the start of the match-

Beerus was doing what he did best. Napping.

“My lord Beerus. Aren’t you going to watch the upcoming fight?”

Beerus opened his eyes half-heartedly. The speaker was a man with blue skin, a unique white hairdo, red robes, and a halo around his neck and shoulders.

“Whis. The opening fights are always the most boring. Wake me when we get to, oh, let’s say, round six or seven. Good stuff always happens around then. But until then, unless you have something delicious to eat, leave me be” Beerus said in a tone that indicated he had no interest in continuing this conversation.

Shrugging, Whis turned and started to leave. He had been with Beerus long enough to know that arguing with him would have been pointless. But before he could open the door, it swung open, allowing Zeus to stride in. Whis dodged the door and gave Zeus a friendly smile. “Lord Zeus. To what do we owe you the plea-”

 

“Leave us, angel. This is a matter of the gods, not you” Zeus rudely interrupted. Shrugging, Whis left him to be alone as he strode to the G.O.D. Beerus looked up at Zeus, as if the eleven-foot tall, muscular, bearded old man was a spoiled child about to ask him for candy. “What do you want?” he asked in an annoyed voice, getting more frustrated that no one would let him take his nap.

“I demand you to fight in round two.”

Beerus gave him an offended look. “I’m sorry. I must have misheard you. What did you say?”

“I will not tolerate your insolence,” the king of Olympus said, “now get to the arena now.”

Beerus said nothing for a few seconds before frowning. “And why, pray tell me, should I do that?” he said in a voice dripping in sarcasm and disgust.

“That foolish princess is trying to reinstall hope by sending a well-known hero to fight. And I want you to fight him instead of Yasha. If the hero dies, humanity’s hope will die with him, and they will surrender, allowing us to end this nonsense once and for all.”

“Hmmmm…No”

Zeus growled as his white, pupiless eyes sparked with electricity. “That wasn’t a question” he growled. “But I don’t want to” Beerus said.

“Beerus. If the humans surrender, we can establish order here and now!”

“But. I. Don’t. Want. To.”

Zeus growled in annoyance. Beerus’s stubbornness was getting on his nerves. “Would you rather sit here and do nothing then?” he asked. “Yes” Beerus replied without hesitation.

“You do realize that the sooner humanity is wiped, the sooner you can get back to whatever you want to do.”

That finally got Beerus’s attention. He slowly rose from his seat. “Fine. If only because I just want to move on to doing nothing sooner rather than later. But. This better be a good fight for me. Or else.”

With that, the god of destruction left. Zeus gave a slight grin. Soon, humanity’s hope would be vanquished. And Charlie would be severely punished for this insult.

-

Beerus raised his hand and pointed it at All-Might. All-Might clenched his fists and got into a combat stance. For a few seconds, neither moved. Then, Beerus started the battle by firing a series of quick energy blasts at the hero. All-Might nimbly weaved through each blast as he closed the distance, pulling back a fist. He then threw a powerful punch at Beerus, just for the deity of destruction to kick his hand away at the last second. He then followed it up with a powerful spin-kick to the hero’s jaw. All-Might was sent flying backwards into several buildings, making them crumble on top of him. Beerus then pointed at the rubble and charged up a purple energy ball.

“Hakai”

He then launched it, causing everything to disintegrate. He smirked. That was too easy.

“California Smash!”

Suddenly, before Beerus could even react, All-Might summersalted towards him and landed a punch straight into the cat’s face. A loud crunch was heard as Beerus’s head snapped back. The hero then landed several more punches on his opponent before grabbing him by the neck.

“Oklahoma SMASH!”

 

He then spun like a top, making Beerus disoriented. The next thing he knew, Beerus found himself being thrown through several planetoids, each one breaking like an egg. Growling, Beerus flew towards his opponent like a missile. All-Might turned and aimed a punch at the ground.

“New Hampshire Smash!”

The moment he threw the punch, All-Might shot through the air like a bullet. The moment the two met, they broke into a flurry of punches and kicks. The shockwaves reduced any nearby structures to rubble, be it planet or building. Beerus tried to break through with a hammer-fist, but All-Might countered with a solid karate chop, knocking the purple cat’s hand away. All-Might then wrapped his arms around the G.O.D and threw him for a pile-driver, creating a giant crater when they hit the terra-firma.

“Wow. Your brother is getting his butt kicked” Collector said.

Champa groaned and rolled his eyes. “Of course he is. That idiot never takes anything seriously unless he has to.” He leaned back and smirked. “Of course, that doesn’t mean I enjoy seeing this. Lazy shit had this coming for a while.”

Beerus rose to his feet and quickly dodged a follow-up punch. He fired several blasts of energy at his foe, forcing him to block them by crossing his arms in front of his face. Each hit pushed the hero back slightly, but that wasn’t the true intention. While All-Might was distracted with the blasts, Beerus quickly flew behind him and wrapped his tail around his neck. He then slammed him into the ground repeatedly, before grabbing him by the head and dragged him through the rubble.

“Oh! The fight has just begun and both fighters are wasting no time getting violent! What a show! What a show!” Asmodeus said with glee.

In the stands, Charlie watched with fear. Even with the boost in power making them almost equal, All-Might was on the ropes. She prayed that he would pull through.

“All-Might. Tex. Please. Win this” she cried.

“Hey. What’s with the frown, Chuck?”

A friendly voice emitted from behind her. Turning, she saw a new demon. This one was a ten-foot creature resembling a combination of a bee and a fox, with yellow fur, feelers on her large ears, and a mane and tail that seemed to be made of a shimmering rainbow-colored substance. This was Beelzebub, the queen of gluttony.

“I heard my boo was fighting with the human you chose so I had to like, watch this” she said as she sat next to the princess.

“So how’s it going?”

“Not good” Charlie said flatly.

“Oh…I see. Well. Don’t worry. Like, the fight is just starting~”

Meanwhile, in another section of the booths, three boys were watching. One had blonde hair that resembled a spikey explosion and a permanent scowl on his face, one had green hair and a hopeful face, and the third had white and red hair with a huge scar on his left eye.

“KILL HIM, ALL-MIGHT! RIP HIS UGLY HEAD OFF AND SHOVE IT UP HIS ASS! TEAR HIM IN HALF LIKE A PIECE OF PAPER! SHOW HIM WHY YOU’RE THE NUMBER ONE HERO!” Bakugo, the blonde, yelled at the top of his voice. “Bakugo. I think you’re going a little to far,” said Izuku, the green haired kid, “and besides, the fight is just…”

“SHUT UP, DEKU YOU DUMBASS! ALL-MIGHT NEEDS ALL OUR SUPPORT!”

Shoto, the white and red-haired boy, rolled his eyes.

Beerus then smashed All-Might into the ground, and flipped kicked him away. Luckily for the number 1 hero, he landed perfectly on his feet. All-Might gave a hearty laugh at the turn of events.

“Incredible! I can see why you’re regarded so highly as a god!” All-Might proclaimed. Beerus grinned. “Well, I am a god of destruction after all” the cat said with false modesty.

“However. If you don’t go all-out, you will never defeat me”

Beerus’s grin faded. “Bah. Why do I have to give more than what I need? Besides, if I go all out, your body will most likely disintegrate trying to mirror it”

Charlie gasped in horror as the realization hit her like a wrecking ball. Zeus didn’t just put Beerus up against All-Might because of his strength. It was also because he could turn his deal’s greatest strength into a weakness, and that the only reason All-Might’s body wasn’t failing was because Beerus was toying with his opponent, like a cat toying with a mouse.

All-Might’s smile also faded for a split second. But then, a new one came back on, along with a hearty laugh. “Ahahaha! Then don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

All-Might then began throwing punches like a machine gun, sending bullets of air at the feline. Beerus stuck a hand out and fired ki blasts in return, lighting the air around them up like fireworks. This was all a ruse, however, as All-Might promptly disappeared from Beerus’s line of sight. Beerus scanned the area for his foe, wondering where he went.

“Pennsylvania SMASH!”

All-Might ambushed Beerus with a powerful spin-kick to his opponent’s jaw. Beerus stumbled back and spat out a bloody tooth. Before he could do anything else, All-Might leapt over his opponent and wrapped both his hands around his face.

“Rhode Island Smash!”

With an epic flip, Beerus bounced off the ground into a footstool stomp to the chest. Beerus threw his foe off and fired a crescent-shaped beam of haki, making the hero dodge before it touched him, making the beam disintegrate the buildings and planetoids behind him.

“Beerus is wiping out everything in hopes All-Might is one of them! But All-Might keeps on his toes and dodges! But the champion of peace can’t win by dodging alone! What will he do next?” Asmodeus exclaimed.

Beerus then flew like an arrow at All-Might, teeth clenched like a vice. “You have fought valiantly, mortal. But I know all your tricks! Prepare for destruction!”

However, before he could lay a hand on the hero, a massive cloud of white smoke appeared, cutting off Beerus’s sight.

“What’s this!? A smokescreen!? Where did that come from!?” Asmodeus yelled.

As Beerus rubbed his eyes, trying to see, he felt a sharp punch to his stomach, making him double forwards. Then came a flip kick to the jaw, knocking his jaw and body to the air. All-Might finished his combo with a two-handed hammer-fist to Beerus’s chest and stomach, knocking him to the ground with enough force to disperse the smokescreen.

In the stands, Shoto eyed Izuku. “Izuku. Wasn’t that one of your techniques?”

Izuku shrugged. “Sort of. I wasn’t the first to use it. I just learned how to used it. But he always had it deep within him, I guess.”

With Charlie’s group, the princess let out a sigh of relief. “Thank goodness. He’s holding his own” she said.

“See? And you were so scared. Like, relax! We got this” said Bee.

Angel Dust was still unsure about that though. “Uh, Charlie? How did he literally blow a bunch of smoke out of his ass?” he asked. Charlie put a finger to her chin in thought before snapping her fingers in realization.

“I got it! Thanks to him being both in his prime AND mirroring Beerus’s power, he’s able to access powers of the other carriers of his power, the One-For-All.”

Beerus sputtered a bit before getting back. A smile grew on his face in excitement.

“Hmmm…I should thank Zeus for talking me into this. You are a worthy opponent. For that, I’ll give you a little more of my power” the cat said.

All-Might got into a combat stance. “Bring it!” he bellowed.

Beerus then let out a roar as a purple aura flared around him. This was going to be a fun experience for the god. But he didn’t power up too much.

After all, where’s the fun in that?

Notes:

Beerus and All-Might are pulling out some big tricks early. But who will have the last laugh?

Chapter 8: Hopeless

Beerus’s roars calmed down as his aura rose above him into the shape of an atom. With a gesture, the projectile flew towards All-Might, destroying everything in its path. All-Might stood tall though and summoned two black tendrils from his hands and lashed them at the energy ball. He grit his teeth as he spun the haki ball around until it was thrown back into the direction of the attacker. Beerus flicked the ball away and then flew towards the hero. The hero had the black whips around his hands as makeshift boxing gloves.

“Kentucky Smash!”

The blackwhip shot off like a harpoon. Beerus winced in pain as he felt it pierce his shoulder but launched into a mad dash at his opponent. The two clashed with a punch, creating a shockwave that destroyed all the planetoids and buildings. All that was left of the battle ground was a wasteland.

Beerus then slipped through the destruction and began landing powerful punches on All-Might at speeds greater than light. All-Might crossed his arms in front of him to defend himself, taking each blow head on.

“Punch after punch after punch! Beerus’s barrage fires away, but All-Might stands firm like a stone on a shore!” Asmodeus declared.

Zeus let out a low growl. “That idiot. Why is he still playing with him? Our reputation is on the line” he snarled to himself.

The feelings in Charlie’s booth wasn’t much better. The princess of hell was frantically chewing on her nails, unable to look away. Bee noticed this and put a gentle hand on Charlie’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. He’s holding his own, Chuck.”

“That’s not the problem. All-Might’s going to be worn out at this rate. Beerus just has to much power for All-Might and Tex to copy safely.”

Bee frowned before giving a half-smile. “Charlie. Do you think he can win?”

Charlie looked up at the queen of gluttony. After thinking it over for a second, she gave a shaky nod. “Then don’t think otherwise. Because that’s what the gods want. And you, like, shouldn’t give them that satisfaction.”

Looking down at the arena, she saw the two warriors exchanging blows. Her look of fear turned into determination. Bee was right. Even if things looked hopeless, she wouldn’t give the gods the satisfaction of her despair.

Angel Dust looked at Beelzebub then looked back to the arena. He said nothing as he sank deeper into his chair.

Beerus fired a barrage of hakai blasts, which All-Might knocked away with more sweeps of the blackwhip. The superhero then wrapped the whips around his body, forming a black, writhing suit of armor on him, as if he was wearing a suit made of leeches. He shot punches out like pistons, shooting out hundreds of black whips like stingers in a jellyfish’s tentacle. Beerus frantically flew backwards, firing ki blasts by the thousands, trying to keep them away from him. Soon, the cat found himself with his back against the wall as black tendrils lashed him all over, leaving blood-red marks. The blackwhips then wrapped around Beerus and pulled him towards All-Might’s fist, embedding the shape of his fist in Beerus’s cheek.

Beerus felt the blow shatter his jaw and some of his skull. Fortunately for him, he managed to survive the blow. With some maneuvering, he performed a flip-kick to All-Might, knocking him away. He then used his haki to burn off the whips and pointed his hand at the hero. “BEGONE!” he shouted, letting out a burst of pure force and haki.

All-Might put up his arms to defend himself as the wave hit him, his teeth gritted to the point of chipping. Bits of his costume began to burn away as his eyes screwed shut.

“Had enough, mortal?” Beerus said with a sly grin.

“This…Is nothing…for a hero…like me!”

-

Years ago.

Yagi looked around. Crime and helplessness ran rampant in the city. The original defender of the city had passed the torch to him.

Sitting down, he thought back to his last conversation he had with Nana as she was on her deathbed.

“Nana! Why!? Why do you have to go!? Why do you have to take the spark of hope with you!? We need you!”

The black-haired heroine gave a weak laugh. “Yagi. Have you learned nothing from my teachings? I may die, but hope can never die with me. Not as long as someone carries it and spreads it to others.”

“But..how can I…?”

Before he could say anything else, she put two fingers on either side of his mouth and gently pushed up, making Yugi smile. “Can you hold that face when I let go?” she asked gently. Yagi nodded.

“Then keep that smile up. When they see that smile, they’ll know that hope will burn bright.”

Yagi then stood up. Putting two fingers to his mouth, he pushed up into a smile. Nana might have been gone, but her smile would continue forever.

“No worries. I AM HERE!”
-
All-Might’s eyes popped open as he shot forwards, pushing through the wave. Beerus’s eyes bulged out of his head as the hero slowly made him. The next thing he felt was a hard right hook to the jaw. All-Might then performed a back-breaker on the god of destruction. His scream of pain made god and mortal alike flinch.

“Oooh! Beerus is going to feel that in the morning! Of course, he’s going to have to survive in order to feel it in the morning” Asmodeus commented

Beerus then burst out of the bearhug with a burst of godly ki and began to throw an onslaught of punches of his own, while All-Might dodged and weaved through every attack. Both seemed to be getting faster and faster with each step, until the two were mere blurs on the battlefield. Beerus began to glow white as his movements became more precise, dodging and counter-attacking at the same time. But even then, All-Might either dodged or took every hit in stride while throwing powerful blows of his own.

The audience was stunned by the incredible display before them. But out of all of the spectators, Champa seemed the most shocked. “Incredible! He’s even keeping up with ultra instinct! Even if he could match his power with that suit, he couldn’t possibly do that if he had no skill!”

“I know. It’s amazing” Collector said.

“My. Poor Beerus is really taking a beating there” Whis said, his face mildly concerned. “I hope he turns this around, or else I’ll die as well.”

Champa put his chin in his hand. “Well, he has one option, but there’s two problems with that. One is that he’s too lazy to keep it up for long. The other is that he’s afraid of using it.”

“Why? Will it destroy him?” The Collector asked.

“No. He’s afraid that his opponent will automatically disintegrate under the strain. After all, this is the most fun he’s had in a long while. And he doesn’t want it to end too soon.”

Suddenly, as All-Might was about to throw a punch, his body froze. He gave a grunt of pain, despite this time, nothing hit him. He put a hand on his chest as he fell to his knees, coughing up blood. Beerus stopped as he saw this, his head tilted in confusion. What was his opponent doing?

 

“What the heck!? All-Might is gravely injured, but Beerus didn’t even land a hit! How could this be?”

Then, All-Might’s body began to shrink. His muscular frame became thin, frail, and decrepit. His facial features became sunken in. His hair lost its luster and hung limply. Soon, the man who was the picture of a typical superhero was now a withered, scrawny scarecrow of a man.

Charlie’s jaw went agape as her eyes began to tear up. “This is it. He’s done for” she finally managed to squeak out.

“What?” Bee said.

“He copied too much power when Beerus went ultra instinct. Now his body has given up on him. He’s doomed.”

Beerus’s shocked expression soon began to morph. Anger was etched on him as he began to growl. “YOU BASTARD!” he roared as he punched his foe square in the face.

“How dare you quit on me!? I was having fun! I was finally meeting my match! And you give up on me like that!?”

He followed his rant with an even stronger punch to the chest. The sound of breaking bones filled the air as the cat continued to voice his outrage.

“I should have expected this from a human! Behind all your bravado, you’re weak! Pathetic! A fraud posing as a fighter! A fake hero!”

Beerus continued his merciless assault, tears of frustration welded up in his eyes. Charlie began to sob heavily. She didn’t care about victory anymore. She just wanted it to be over. “Beerus!” she shouted, “don’t drag this out! End this now and put him out of his misery!” she cried as she fell to her knees. Zeus saw Charlie break down and smirked. He had done it. He had broken her spirit. And with Charlie succumbing to despair, the other humans would soon follow.

Sure enough, he saw the other humans begin to fall into hopelessness. They were all pleading Beerus to just end the fight. He looked down to see Beerus aim one final punch at the hero’s head with the intent to smash it like an egg. All had given up hope.

All of them except…

“DON’T GIVE UP! I BELIEVE IN YOU, ALL-MIGHT!” Izuku yelled louder than he ever yelled before.

The fist cut through the air…and was stopped by his opponent’s hand.

All watching suddenly went silent. All-Might began to rise slowly while breathing heavily. “I’m afraid I must stop you there,” he said between breaths, “for I am not a fake hero. I still have one person who believes in me. And as long as one person believes that I can still save the day, then that’s more than enough for me. And I still have a job to complete.”

Beerus tried to pull away, but despite his foe’s slimmer frame, his grip was still like iron. Suddenly, blackwhips began to enter All-Might’s body, making it swell to tremendous proportions. Unknown to anyone, he was using them to repair his body, reattaching bones and muscles. It wasn’t a pretty job, but it would definitely hold. Soon, he began to look like a crude replica of himself, a pile of muscles with his face sunken in. He then brought a massive arm back.

“ALASKA…SMASH!”

Faster than anyone could react, faster than even time could track, the hero struck his opponent with a punch stronger than any punch he ever threw. Beerus felt himself fly into the walls with an epic smash, one of his ears being torn off from the force and debris. Charlie and Zeus were beyond shocked. How could this have happened?

Beerus slowly pulled himself out. He felt a pain in his wrist. He looked down, thinking it was broken, but saw that it was ripped off. He stared at his missing hand for a few seconds before finally looking at his opponent. “H…how? How are you doing this?” he finally managed to squeak out.

All-Might laughed. “Have you not been listening? This is nothing for a hero like me!”

Chapter 9: I Am Here

Beerus and All-Might looked at each other, no words said. Beerus felt the blood drip from his severed hand and growled. “You insist on this nonsense? You can barely stand” Beerus pointed out.

“Barely doesn’t mean I can’t. And if I can still stand…”

All-Might pulled his hands back as he spoke.

“…then I can still fight!”

All-Might clapped his hands together, creating a massive shockwave. Beerus crossed his arms in front of him, blocking the shockwave, just to have All-Might hammer away at his opponents defenses, each blow hitting like bombs. Beerus felt his knees buckle as All-Might landed a powerful overhead smash. He then followed up with an even more powerful uppercut, sending several of Beerus’s teeth flying. Beerus flew up and fired as many haki balls as he could, just for the black whips to shoot out all over All-Might’s body and knocked them away like the tentacles of an anemone.

“What grit! What hustle! Where did this well of power come from!?” Asmodeus commentated.

“Lust boy is right. Where did it come from?” Angel Dust questioned.

Charlie thought it over. She then had a eureka moment.

“I got it! Beerus took too long with the fight. As a result, All-Might’s body got more time to get used to the increases in power. So while his body gave out temporarily, his power allowed him to keep fighting.”

“I…guess that makes sense.”

“So he can still win this, right?” Vaggie asked her girlfriend.

“...I mean, it’s slightly higher than pigs spontaneously growing wings and flying” the princess said with a sheepish grin.

Bee frowned. “Why are you still doubtful about this?” she asked.

“Because Beerus still isn’t going all out”

Back in the arena, All-Might retracted his blackwhips and started to rapidly jump around his foe, each step making him go faster and faster with each step. “Gear-Shift…SMASH!”

Beerus was hit with a volley of punches, each one hit harder and faster then the last. He then threw a kick at Beerus’s chest, sending him into a wall and letting him bounce into a clothes-line. Beerus slowly rose up, just to get clipped in the cheek. Beerus dug in his heels and swatted the arm away as a white glow enveloped him. When All-Might threw another punch, Beerus automatically dodged the blow. All-Might threw more and more blows, but the god of destruction dodged and weaved through the hurricane of punches.

“Incredible! It’s a clash of All-For-One and ultra instinct! All-Might throws everything he can, but Beerus dodges each attack! But at the same time, Beerus can’t land a counter through the assault!”

True to Asmodeus’s words, the two were in a stalemate, neither side able to land a blow. Beerus sprung off a black whip and flew high above the arena. Pointing his hand down, he fired a hail-storm of hakai blasts at All-Might. Thinking quickly, All-Might sent as many black whips as he could in a frenzy of lashes. The air erupted in explosions, causing spectators to shield their eyes from the light.

Beerus then rushed down, speeding like a missile, dodging all the tendrils lashing at him, even sliding down them like a skateboarder on a rail. The purple god then leapt from tendril to tendril, bringing his leg back to land a kick on the hero. With ultra instinct, he should have been faster than anything. Faster than his opponent.

So imagine his surprise when All-Might not only dodged the kick, but broke his left leg like a tree branch with a counter blow that not even ultra instinct could dodge.

The G.O.D wailed in pain as the white glow dissipated. He shambled back as All-Might threw a punch that sent him to the dirt.

Whis and Champa were shocked. They never expected someone like Beerus to not only take damage like that, but also to lose Ultra Instinct?

“Impossible” said Champa.

“Inconceivable” said Whis.

“So, cat! Are you convinced now that I’m not some fake hero?”

Beerus panted as he rose up. His left leg felt like it was crushed in a vice. Blood was pouring from his nose like a fountain. He felt like every atom in his body was bathed in acid and salt. He looked up to see Zeus’s furious expression glaring down at him. He then turned his face to his opponent with a stoic expression and took a deep breath.

“Yes. I apologize for my words. You are as every bit a hero as I heard. And I now realize something that I should have from the start.”

Zeus gripped the arm rails of his seat so hard that they shattered. “He better not…” he growled.

“That if I am to ever stand a chance of beating you…”

“Here it comes” Charlie said fearfully.

“I need to use…ALL MY POWER!”

Suddenly, a red and white aura enveloped him, making the cat shine like a star. The aura combined, turning into a dark purple with white specks, making it look like he was draped in a galaxy’s sky.

“Behold! By combining the skill of ultra instinct and the power of ultra ego, I have achieved…ULTRA BEING!”

All-Might laughed. “So. You’ve gone ultra? Then I must warn you. I always go BEYOND ULTRA!”

The two rushed each other, their limbs locking like traps as they tried to push the other back. Beerus exerted his energy into All-Might, making his veins burst, just for All-Might to increase the power in his grip, shattering the bones in his opponent ‘s remaining hand. The two then pulled their heads back and slammed them forwards, creating a sound similar to cannon fire. The two then broke away from each other and began to chase each other around the arena, haki balls and shock waves hit and burst.

Asmodeus leapt into the stands to avoid getting killed in the crossfire. “Ahem,” he said “looking at the fight, it seems that neither side is holding anything back! It could be anyone’s win at this point!”

“Go, All-Might!” yelled Izuku.

“Finish him off!” yelled Zeus.

But neither could overpower the other. It was a stalemate. Each blow echoed like cannon fire, their limbs moving faster than the eye can see. Occasionally, they would break through to land a blow, but all in all, neither could overwhelm or out muscle the other.

The two landed a blow on each other’s cheeks, smashing off a portion of the other’s face. They vomited blood and fell to their knees. They were running on fumes now.

“What happened? Are they both out?” asked Alastor.

“No. They’re just overexerting themselves. And judging from the looks of things, what’s coming next could be their final attack.”

Soon, the two pulled themselves back to their feet. All-Might balled up a fist, every bit of remaining energy was poured into it. At the same time, Beerus rose up, focusing his haki into the mangled remains of his hand.

“Make your move count, hero,” he whispered dangerously, “because if you don’t, I will kill you.”

All-Might chuckled. “Well then. Go beyond…”

The blonde hero lunged forwards, about to land the strongest blow ever recorded in history.

“PLUS INFINITY!”

The punch was thrown. Any debris that was left in the arena disintegrated. Charlie’s jaw dropped in horror.

While All-Might’s blow had landed, it wasn’t a killing one. Beerus’s face was half-ripped off with only the muscle underneath visible, but he was still alive. Beerus’s last minute punch, however, was one. It had punched clean through his chest, allowing him to pump hakai into his body like a syringe. Even if All-Might pulled away, it would have been to late. Charlie fell out of her seat, tears in her eyes while Zeus smiled smuggly. It was over.

Beerus looked up at All-Might. The hero’s smile was still visible on his face. “…Toshinori Yagi. No. All-Might. I apologize.”

Charlie lifted her head while Zeus stopped smiling. What was he doing?

“I’m sorry for calling you a false hero. You are a true hero and warrior. Truth is, I only won this through sheer dumb luck.”

Beerus then smiled. “Thank you for the best fight I ever had in my entire life.”

All-Might let out a hearty laugh as cracks formed on his body. “Trust me. This is nothing. For a hero. Like me.”

The two let out a laugh. All-Might then turned his head to where Charlie was sitting. “Charlie. Don’t worry. Even if I’m gone…”

His body began to fall apart. Before he vanished, both and Vortex gave a thumbs up.

“JUST KNOW THAT I’M ALWAYS HERE!”

After that, there was nothing left of the symbol of peace and the hellhound. He had faded into nothingness. A moment of silence fell. Then, Izuku stood up. “I AM HERE! I AM HERE!” he shouted. Bakugo and Shoto stood and shouted “I am here” as well. Soon, all of humanity began chanting. Even Beelzebub joined in. Charlie looked to her. “Bee?” she said quietly.

“That human and my boyfriend gave everything for us! Get on your feet, Charlie! We can’t let it go to waste!”

Charlie looked at the fox/bee hybrid. She then wiped her tears away and nodded.

ROUND 2

BEERUS VS ALL-MIGHT

MATCH LENGTH: 16 MINUTES, 42 SECONDS

DECIDING MOVE: HAKAI INJECTION

WINNER: BEERUS

GODS: 2 - HUMANITY: 0

-

As all this was going on, a lone Ussop was digging through a trunk. “Come on. Where is it? I know it was here. Ah! Found it!”

The long-nosed man leaned out of the trunk before taking a deep breath and closing his eyes. “Charlie. I’m sorry. I’m nowhere near strong enough for this. I have to drop out. But don’t worry.”

He smiled at the item he drew out.

“I know someone who can help.”

Notes:

Thanks for being so patient with me. I was sidetracked with a lot of IRL stuff. Mostly work. And sorry if this was to short.