Later, we were in a new cell. No nicer or anything, but it had more room. We'd been placed in together with the guys we'd been trying to kill earlier, which made things tense as hell, even with the guards watching. My guys took the right side of the cell, while the other guys took the left.

I broke the tension about a moment after by looking around at everyone.

"Hauzer. Where'd he come from?"

Everyone looked confused, if still pissed at each other.

"Hauzer?" Winggirl asked. Hearing her voice for the first time surprised the hell out of me. I tried not to show that instead looking her in the eyes as she stood between Demi and the male Aerian.

"The orange T-Rex with horns. Any story about him, about where he came from?"

Winggirl looked around. German guy seemed confused, as did the others.

"In the ice of the East," someone said outside. We all spun around.

Yellow Triceratops guy was standing there, Stend on the right side of him and the orange pterodactyl on the left. Oh, and the requisite group of angry-looking guards.

"Hauzer," the triceratops said softly. His voice was deep, almost echoing. "I had no idea of his name. We have been calling him Devil."

Stend began to speak. "My lord-"

The triceratops didn't make a move, but Stend cut himself off anyway. The triceratops continued. "I found him when I went to the icelands on an exploratory expedition. He was encased in ice, completely frozen through. I thought him dead. But those eyes were alive, staring through the chill. He wanted to kill me. And I decided that a beast of such stature and interesting design was worth bringing back."

The triceratops turned and walked out, surprising the hell out of me. "Stend. He knows the Devil by another name. Make of that what you will."

"Yes, my lord," Stend said, bowing.

The big yellow triceratops continued on his way. I thought about making a BJ the dinosaur joke, but I decided against it.

"So you're the Outsider," the orange Pterosaur said. He sounded like how movies portray snake oil salesmen.

"Nah, that's the guy from Dishonored," I could never help my nerd side. "I'm Dial. Who are you?"

"Lord Pter, ruler of all the Ptero-Saur-Lords," he said proudly.

"...Why don't you have wings?" I asked hesitantly.

Behind me, I could hear Winggirl let out a small sound. I winced internally.

Pter chuckled. "I'm afraid that only our lord has been given such a gift," he leaned forward to rest against the bars. "Tell me, Out-... Dial. Who are you, in the world beyond? A warrior? A hunter, like myself?" he smirked at me. "I imagine you'd make better prey than predator."

I walked across the space between us and leaned against the bars as well. "You know, I have a friend I should really introduce you to. It'd be hilarious. But that aside, I'm a superhero."

"And a fool," Stend said, walking forward. Pter stepped aside to let him past. "You should have taken my deal, Outsider."

"Not a chance," I shrugged. "So. What's next?"

"Your punishment," Stend nodded to the guards. As he did, I brought my left hand behind my back. I prayed Gresh, Demi, and the others would notice it when I flashed two symbols with my fingers. Hopefully the fact they didn't move when two guards entered the cell and grabbed me. They pulled me out with no little amount of roughness. Stend watched them pull me out until I stood before him. We eyed each other.

Stend… looking up into those reptilian eyes, I don't think I'd ever personally hated anyone more.

It didn't help when he grabbed me by the neck and lifted me in a smooth motion.

"URK!" I grabbed his left arm with mine, trying to get air, panicking. The pain of his scaled fingers squeezing around my neck was followed by a taloned finger stabbing into the hole in my shoulder left from the arena. Fresh blood poured out as I tried to scream.

"I'm not doing this to get answers from you," Stend said coldly. "While I am pleased that you survived, you have still defied me. This small bit of pain," the talon sliced through flesh, digging out a chunk of me to spill more blood on the floor. "It's what you deserve."

"Fuc-" I tried to say, only to choke.

He held me there, choking and bleeding before tossing me aside.

That first gasp of air hitting my lungs again was like a drug. I got to my knees and filled my lungs with air, gasping and panting.

I knew he'd do something like this. But I still fucking wanted to kill him for it.

"I'll be locking you in a new prison," Stend growled. "Come."

The guards forced me up and dragged me along. That was fine. I was fine.

Deep breaths. Take in oxygen. Focus on the goals.

We walked along, Pter, Stend, the guards, and myself. Soon, we were in one of the more remote sections of the arena, a place that looked like it had been built years before the rest of it.

"You must have done something special," Pter mumbled quietly to me. "I've rarely seen Stend so ready to torture a man."

"I'm a charmer that way," I grumbled in return.

We came to a locked door, which one of the guards opened. Then we entered a massive circular cavern, covered in dust. I could tell at a glance it was made as a prison for something big or very dangerous.

In this case, both. Hauzer was passed out in the corner still covered in darts. Stend stared at Hauzer for a moment before turning to face me.

"I am glad you are alive. It gives you more chances to come to your senses," he smiled slowly. "I'm going to lock you in with the beast," when I tried to speak, he punched me in the face. I fell to my knees, bumping my left hand into the crossbow-wielding guard next to me, my palm brushing against the pouch on the guard's hip.

"What the fuck dude!?" I shouted in pain, my head ringing.

"Enough," Stend snarled. "I have had enough. You will be locked in with the beast, with this," he took out a bell from his pants pocket. "And be given until the beast wakes to decide if you will surrender the secrets I want," Stend lowered to the ground. "If you ring it, I will save you. If you do not… well. You know the creature's name. You must know of its ferocity. It's rage and hatred towards all life," Stend smirked. "You're a smart boy. I'm sure you'll make the right decision."

He grabbed me off the floor by the back of my neck and tossed me into the cell. Then he followed up by tossing the bell at my feet. "Live or die, Outsider. You have five minutes."

"And if I decide I'd rather be dino-food!?" I yelled at him while rolling to face him.

"Then clearly you were a waste of my time all along," he said dismissively. "Which is fine. That monster hasn't been fed since we found him. You'll make a good meal."

The group left the cavern, Pter laughing all along. Then they closed the door behind them with a loud quaking thud.

Just as planned. Well, sort of as planned.

I slowly rose to my feet and opened my palm. In it was the small crossbow bolt I'd lifted off the guard I'd bumped into. I grinned with blood-soaked teeth.

"Stend. You're gonna want to watch a few movies, one day. Never depend on the death trap to work on the hero."

With that, I rose to my feet and looked at Hauzer. The big guy was asleep, snoring, with the horn on his head raising and lowering as he lay on his stomach. But I doubted that would last.

Okay. My plan had been simple. All of them had been. Plan A, the Omnitrix heals itself.

Plan B, the Avengers show up to break me out. Plan C, open the lock to the cell, take care of the guards, get fellow prisoners out, head out of the city. Plan D, free Devil Dinosaur Hauzer, break out in a torrent of super-dino fury, probably riding his back.

Like I said, all simple. The best plans had to be. You could have a complex one, sure, but be ready to toss all the Rube Goldberg machines out of the window when just throwing a rock would do the job.

The instant I'd gotten wind of the giant super-dino, my plan had changed. I didn't have powers until the Omnitrix healed, but I could borrow them from someone.

Thing was, I had to depend on somehow convincing thousands of pounds of Earth Dragon that I was his friend. And somehow do it without the raw masculine charisma of Zangief.

I walked over to him and leaned down to look him in the face. He was huge. Even without feathers, he was built with layer upon layer of muscles. Even lying down, he was as tall as Thor was.

"Where did you come from, big guy?" I asked softly, patting his nose, feeling the unnaturally warm scales under my palm. "Rio is a long way from here."

Damn Rio. That had to be how he'd gotten to a Marvel universe. At a guess, the Rio Incident had pulled at every dimension, time, and realm close to the one I was now sitting in. And Capcom had been smashed into the Marvel universe more than almost any other franchise. Outside of, ironically, the DC universe.

What a fucking mess Rio had caused. We still had no idea what made that happen, but I was taking that whole thing personally.

I looked Hauzer over, then walked back to a wall, pressing my back to the cool stone. Then I fell to sit my ass on the dirty floor, my loincloth fluttering upwards. I took a moment to adjust myself. I was still wearing the armor I'd had in the arena, with fresh blood on it, though the stab wound in my shoulder was freshly bleeding. I took a handful of the bandages that had been covering it before and roughly treated the wound. Then I sat to wait.

Five minutes. Stend had predicted it would take that long for Hauzer to wake.

He was up in three.

First, he began to growl as best as he could around the tight muzzle that wrapped around his jaws. His eyes fluttered. His breathing sped up and he began to move. It was really something, watching all that dragon-dinosaur lift itself hesitantly off the ground. I stood up as well, slowly, continuing leaning against the wall while cradling my arm.

Hauzer looked around. Eyes the color of caramel gazed at his cell. Then he made a sound that seemed to get choked off by his muzzle before spinning around, anger in his eyes. He stomped the ground, the area around us shaking, the horn on the top of his head twitched upward, and he sniffed the air.

"Hauzer," I said hesitantly.

Immediately he was facing me, head low, eyes blazing.

"That's your name, right?" I said as calmly as possible. Which wasn't much. He was just… big. Big the way everything is when you're a little kid. I remembered being, I don't know, 10? And my class went to a Fire Station in my town on a field trip. We'd been allowed to interact with one of the fire trucks. I remembered looking up at that big red truck and feeling so small in comparison.

In this case, the fire truck was pissed off. He took a step in my direction.

"I'm not with those assholes!" I said quickly, raising my left hand. He seemed undeterred, lowering his head to stare at me and prowl forward. "They threw me in here as punishment!"

He roared, speeding forward. I steeled myself and waited before diving aside.

Hauzer hit the wall I'd been leaning against with incredible power, his horn slicing through the stone with ease. Despite that, the wall was pretty intact.

"They locked you away, but they don't know your true power!" I shouted as I rolled and ran for it before turning to face him. "But I can help you! I can get that muzzle off you!"

He pulled his head away from the wall and turned to look at me. This time I could see what I'd been depending on. Intelligence, resting in the surprised look on his face.

"Hauzer the Earth Dragon," I declared. "You're not just some dinosaur. You're a force of nature. But you haven't eaten in days. I'm willing to bet that the ice you were frozen in ended up weakening you too. Enough that that yellow bastard could capture you."

Hauzer growled. The sound could be felt in my chest, shaking my heart. His eyes blazed with rage.

"Yeah… I get that," I said softly, my face twisting. "I get that kind of hate now. Having someone catch you at your weakest, imprison you, force you to fight. And all along, you know that if you had even half of your real power you could take them apart with a breath," I was clenching my fist. "It's infuriating. Getting pushed around by someone who would usually not even be worth paying attention to. Isn't it?"

Hauzer glared at me. Then, slowly, he nodded.

"Then let's escape together," I tossed the crossbow bolt I'd stolen at the ground. He stepped back as it skidded across to him, then leaned forward to look at it. "I want revenge, Hauzer. I want to help my fellow prisoners escape, sure. But what I want to do," the words felt harsh in my throat, my eyes felt hot, and my fist was beginning to turn white. "Is to destroy this place. Kill the person who put me here, and show these guys just who the fuck they were messing with… How about you? You wanna light some shit on fire?"

Hauzer's eyes lit up.

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

Stend/Slaving Asshole

Stend stood outside the Devil's prison, standing dozens of feet away from the main entrance. Around him stood dozens of guards. Pter was there as well, jabbering away as always. Stend ignored the smug bastard's speech to focus on the problem at hand.

He didn't like this plan. Putting the Outsider in a cell with the Devil couldn't end in any way that Stend would benefit from. But Lord Styro had told him to do it and his word was law, even more than the other Lords barring their true master.

Stend had his suspicions as to what Styro hoped for. Ever since the Yellow Lord had found the Devil, he'd been obsessed with the beast, studying the creature's battles, inquiring into its condition, drawing sketches of it. And ordering the Outsider locked in with it? There was something there, Stend was sure of it.

Hauzer. That was what he called it. The Outsider knew more than he was telling. Once again. That infuriating little slave, larger, taller, and more muscular than all but the better-trained warriors he'd ever seen among humans. The way his eyes glittered with emotion and intelligence. In fact, that more than anything made Stend notice him. He was insolent, yes, was keeping the secrets of his world behind a veil of humor. But the anger behind his jokes had something more behind it.

Stend had captured dozens of slaves. But never had he felt as though the people he was capturing felt superior to himself. Always, they had been aware of their place.

Not the Outsider. That one seemed to believe that he was equal. It was in his stance, his brash words, even the way he fought was cautious, but not cringing with fear.

Deep inside, Stend was worried about one more thing. That bracelet around the Outsiders wrist. They'd been unable to remove it, finding it was somehow melted into his wrist, joined to his skin and bone. Just another mystery.

Stend was thrown from his thoughts when a loud sound came from the prison. The guards shuffled nervously when it was followed by the familiar sound of the Devil smashing its head into a wall, then the Outsider shouting.

"Ah," Pter said at his side, smirking. "Pity. It looks as though your nemesis is about to be killed by another."

"Nemesis?" Stend couldn't ignore that little jab, glaring at Pter.

"Oh, don't be coy," Pter chuckled, orange scales bouncing in the light of a torch. The sun had begun to fall, making the torches a matter of necessity. "You hate that human. And he hates you. There is something between you both, something so adorable I almost want to squeal," he hissed out a pleased laugh. "The way you clench your jaw when you look at him, the way he eyes you while clenching his fist. I wonder, are you pleased that he is dead now? Or disappointed you never had the chance to commit the deed yourself?"

Stend opened his mouth to speak before snapping it shut when he realized something. He turned from Pter to stare at the door to the Devil's prison.

The door, made of wood reinforced by layers of steel, had begun to smoke.

"What-" Stend began to say.

BOOM!

FWOOOOSH!

The door exploded in a burst of flame that turned into a jet of intense red heat flying forwards, cooking the three guards in front of it alive in an instant.

Stend, in a burst of speed that had kept him alive in the arena long ago, dived backward and ran, Pter squawking right next to him as the guards shouted and followed.

The fire followed them with predatory intent, filling the hallway, setting two more guards alight in a chorus of horrific screams, and heating the stones until they began to melt. Stend screamed wordlessly as he ran, the heat on his back was painful. The flame only stopped about thirty meters from the door, leaving Stend to continue running before turning to face the door.

"What the blazes was that!?" Pter gasped, apparently not noticing his pun.

"The Outsider," Stend spat out, the thought filling him to his core. "He did this!"

"The Outsider can summon fire!?" Pter gaped at Stend. "Why didn't he do that before!?"

Before Stend could answer, a sound came from the prison of the Devil. The fires that had been blazing in front of them, cooking the bodies of the dead and melting the stones, were blown out in an instant. Stend, Pter, and the remaining guards stared at the doors.

Out from the doors, walked the Outsider. Dressed in the armor of the arena, his long hair fallen about his shoulders, he came to stop in front of the destroyed remains of the door. He smirked at them. Then he tossed something towards them, some sort of leather.

Behind him, the head of the Devil slowly came forward until it was on his right side. Stend's eyes widened when he realized something.

The muzzle was gone.

Stend stared at the leather object the Outsider had tossed, then at the man himself. The Outsider's smirk widened.

Hauzer's jaws opened, revealing his lethal teeth and the sound that left them hit Stend with physical force.

"SKREEEEEROOOOONK!"

It was insane. Loud, echoing, and haunting, a screeching noise that made the primal instincts within all life want to hide. Then, deep in the Devil's throat, something flickered red.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

"Oh shit," Pter whispered.

"RUN!" Stend shouted, spinning.

"Go ahead!" the Outsider was laughing, a gleeful insane laugh, one that echoed off the walls. "Run! But I'll find you! I'll have my vengeance, in this life or the next!"

Then fire erupted from the Devil, a great plume that tore the world in front of it apart as it passed. Stend looked back for a moment.

The Outsider stared at him, the red light of the Devil's fire flickering across him, his brown eyes glowing in the flame. The Devil roared alongside him, flame exploding from his jaw. But Stend only saw the Outsider, standing there. Waiting.

Stend ran. Though it galled him, though it burned in his soul more than the scarlet flames coming to kill him, he ran from the Outsider.

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

Mahmoud Schahed/Dial

Stend, Pter, and the guards ran for it. Hauzer stopped breathing flame and panted next to me. I took in the warmth that followed Hauzer's attack, letting it soak into my bones.

Even with the crossbow bolt I'd pickpocketed helping, it had been a job and a half to cut through Hauzer's muzzle. Not just because leather is tough as hell and I only had one hand to use, but because he didn't trust me, glaring at me as I used a sharp bolt near his face to cut at the leather. Honestly, I didn't trust him either.

Hauzer may not have been evil, but he had no real good intentions towards me either. He was a bad guy in his first game appearance after all.

Still, I'd gotten it done. A couple of cuts in the right place, a few tugs on the knots and ties, and he was loose. In truth, I think half the reason I was able to do it was that none of the people who had muzzled him had ever expected anyone to want to help Hauzer. Only human-ish hands could have untied him, and the big guy wasn't exactly cuddly.

Then there was our prison. The doors had been covered in steel layers around wood and had been heavily dented from Hauzer smashing into them over and over. But the second he was able to breathe fire without it getting stuck in his mouth and turning his tongue into charcoal, he was able to pour on the heat. Even weakened, that had been enough to get business started.

Now we'd been unleashed. And it was time for revenge.

"I know my way out," I told Hauzer. "We can free the others and get out of the city, get you fed. Then we come back. Deal?"

Hauzer growled, giving me a look.

"Yellow Bastard will be waiting for you, I promise," I grinned. "Mind breaking a wall?"

Hauzer crawled through the door until he was in the hallway entirely. I backed away to let him pass. With a roar, he spun and rose, kicking outward.

The hallway turned into rubble, opening up to the night sky. Hauzer lifted his head into the air and looked up at the night sky. I did the same.

"SKREEEEEROOOOONK!"

The sound that left him reminded me of Godzilla mixed with a lion. Another plume of fire left him, rising into the air and turning night to day for just an instant. Then he turned to look at me. And I began to worry that I'd made a mistake.

He didn't need me anymore. I could see the look in his eyes. That calculating expression. He could leave now. Head off on his own. That wouldn't have been so bad. But he could also kill me. Just being in the vicinity of his flame was scorching. If he tried to attack me with it, even a miss would still superheat the air around me enough to kill me.

We stared at each other.

"I made you a promise," I said softly. "I'll get you food. I'll get you revenge. But if you want to leave? That's up to you."

His large eyes blinked and narrowed. Then he scoffed before lowering his head.

I grinned before climbing onto his back, straddling him just behind his shoulders, my knees clenching to him tightly. "All right Hauzer. Let's do this!"

He roared in agreement, charging forward as the alarms of the city rang about us. We went down a street straight out of a medieval city, his taloned feet crushing the cobblestones, the wind rushing past us, people screaming as they leaped aside to dodge us.

"YAAAAA!" I shouted joyfully, head down low as I felt the rush of escape.

"GRAAGHH!" Hauzer roared as well, his tail whipping behind us, a wide grin on his saurian features.

I rode on the dinosaurs back through a city built out of time and felt… good. Great, even. I felt at peace.

Ever since I'd come to this world, this Marvel universe, I'd felt unworthy. Given immense power out of nowhere, for no reason I could understand, I'd tried everything to make myself worthy of it. Of every good thing. The Omnitrix when I first got here, the friendships I made with people I'd admired from across dimensions all my life, the money I'd gained from robbing HYDRA, my relationship with Jen. All of it was something I'd worked to be worthy of. But it had always been tarnished by a voice in the back of my head, that self-doubt that whispered it was undeserved.

I was a fake hero. If I didn't have the easy power of the Omnitrix, my friends, my armor, I'd fail.

But now? I'd gotten lucky a few times. But that didn't account for my survival. I'd made it through the jungle and chased off a pack of velociraptors. I'd been given the choice between an easy survival and risking my life for others at my weakest point, and chose to try and save someone. I'd been shoved into a gladiator match and survived. And now, I'd turned my enemies' death trap against them.

I never had to prove anything to anyone but me, and now I had. I was more than just a guy who had the strongest weapon in existence on his wrist, I was able to fight without that tool. Hell, I was able to fight and survive even with a broken arm against superhumans!

All the training I'd done, all the work, had been in an attempt to silence that voice. And now, under the stars, with tons of Earth Dragon under me as we ran together? The voice was faded. Still there, like it was for every human being that wasn't a sociopath. But no longer as insidious as it once was.

The Omnitrix beeped as I thought that. I looked down at it.

White shone from its lens. Then, as I watched, it switched over to green. It was still half-melted and beaten, but it was glowing a bright and oh so wonderful green once again.

"...Now? Really?" I mumbled. "Right when I don't need you for an escape?"

Yeah, this thing had a sense of humor, that was for sure. I tapped the faceplate experimentally with my nose.

The Omnitrix blinked green at me and I couldn't help the warm smile that lit up my face when the dial rose up and the hologram came to life.

So when a giant fireball began to fall from the sky to arc down towards Hauzer and I as we ran through the streets, I didn't dodge it. I didn't leap, I didn't panic. As the big ball of flame approached, I just pressed the Omnitrix against my chest.

"IT'S HERO TIME!"

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

Malia/Raptor Mom

Malia ran with her daughter in her arms through the streets of the City of Saur-Lords, her, legs pumping beneath her as her little girl bounced in her arms. Behind her, the Devil was prowling through the streets, leaving people to run or hide.

"Mommy, mommy, he's coming!" her baby screamed in terror, her adorable scaly features set in childish fear that made Malia's heart ache.

"It's okay baby, we'll be okay!" Malia cried out, ignoring her fear. "Close your eyes, Ami!"

Obediently, her daughter screwed her eyes shut. Malia looked back. The form of the Devil, his three horns high, came after them, a familiar gladiator sitting on his back.

How had this happened? They had been shopping before, having a good day. Then, without warning, someone started shouting about the great Devil of the Arena coming towards them. She hadn't believed it at first. Then it came running towards them, an insane human whooping and hollering on his back as the Devil roared.

Malia had been running since, heading in the same direction as the crowd around them. She'd instinctively headed for the nearest guard tower, which she could see in the distance. Others were running towards the same tower, with guards guiding them in. She knew that the tower was the closest one to the Arena cells, but didn't see any significance to that thought.

Then, a familiar screech drew her gaze to the sky.

It was him. The Lord of Lords! King of the Sky, Cloud, and Sun!

"It'll be okay, Ami," Malia whispered, rushing into the tower. She and the rest of the civilians watched as he spiraled down from the clouds.

His skin was a dusky green, his scales stretched over a taut muscular form. His eyes were deep and wise, set into a pterodactyl's skull. His wings spread wide as he began his attack. His mouth opened wide and he breathed the night air in. When he breathed out, the holy flame came from his eminence. Malia watched in awe as he released a ball of fire the size of a large man, dropping it onto the Devil and gladiator.

It came in an arc, landing on top of the pair and exploding in a plume of red-hot flames. Ami cooed in her arms at the sight.

The Lord of Lords dropped down to land before them. He was even more impressive up close, towering over them all, literally in most cases, metaphorically in all cases. When he spoke, it was in a deep booming voice that echoed. With the flames behind him as he spoke, he cut an intimidating figure, his shadow falling upon them all.

"Guards! I believe you have a job to do!" the Lord said, bringing his hands behind his back to stand proudly, his wings spread behind him, a single loincloth wrapped around his waist.

"Yes, Lord Sauron!" one of the guards shouted. "Get the civilians moving! I want them safe in the tower."

"Most excellent choice, commander!" Lord Sauron smiled, his red eyes glowing. He noticed Malia, then Ami. "Ah, young one! Are you and your mother okay?"

Ami nodded quickly, her eyes wide in wonder, her tail wagging happily. "Y-Yes, Lord Sauron!"

"Lord!?" Sauron barked out, before throwing his head to laugh extravagantly. "My dear, you are but a child! There is no need to worry about such titles as a child! Only the joy of play and learning! Until you have come of age, I am only Sauron!"

Malia's heart swelled at the kindness of her Lord, who walked forward to rub the top of her daughter's head. Ami giggled happily.

A growling sound came from behind Lord Sauron, freezing everyone in their tracks. They stared at the fire, which was still raging.

Then, before anyone could move, a green ball of some sort of goo came rolling out of the fire. Everyone stared uncomprehending, as it spun it's way towards the right, heading towards the arena. As it passed over pieces of stone and debris left in the wake of Lord Sauron's fireball exploding, it gathered the pieces and became larger and larger. The guards who were in front of it had a moment to comprehend this before the now child-size ball came to a stop.

And exploded in a burst of green that sent shockwaves outward, sending the guards flying about. They landed in a heap of broken arms and legs.

"You know," an almost minuscule voice said somewhere. "This alien? In a medieval world? Kinda broken."

More and more green balls were suddenly flung from the fire, rolling towards the arena.

"Get inside, my children," Lord Sauron growled. "I must deal with this threat, and protect our world!"

Malia and the others were pulled into the wooden doors of the tower. The last thing she saw before the doors closed was Lord Sauron taking flight as the world around him exploded apart into fire and green.

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

Mahmoud Schahed/Dial

When the fire came down and I transformed for the first time in days, I had a moment where I'd felt a bit hot. Then Hauzer huffed, and the heat lessened significantly. Didn't surprise me. Fire cannot kill a dragon after all.

(Huh. Wonder how Game of Thrones ended.)

While the fire blazed around us, I began to change. Well, the change was beyond light-speed as always, but I could still kinda comprehend what was happening through it.

First, my body began to shrink, something that surprised me. Smaller and smaller, until I was about the size of a football. My skin became a smoky yellow, then hardened into a carapace of armor. My hands became legs, and two more came from my mid-section. My mouth went vertical instead of horizontal, and a pair of antenna replaced my hair.

"Ball Weevil!"

I stared down at my front left leg in surprise. "Huh. I did expect Humoungosaur," I said in a squeaky voice. Hauzer lifted his head around to his back in confusion, eyes widening at the sight of me. Then he moved to sniff at my new form, snorting a bit. "Still me, big guy."

He didn't seem to know how to take that.

Then again, an insect did kind of make sense in a dinosaur world, considering how big bugs were in this place.

Ball Weevil though… that was broken. I was a living grenade launcher in a place that had just discovered iron was a thing.

If it wasn't for my new insectoid features, a wicked grin would have come to my face. Well. I had promised to carpet bomb this city. Still not gonna kill civilians, but the guys who'd been stabbing me were fair game. "Okay boy. Let's go blow the shit out of this place."

I opened my mouth and a green ball of plasma came out, solidifying into a slimy orb. I tossed in the direction of the arena and watched as it quickly rolled out of the flames surrounding us, absorbing debris to become bigger and bigger. When it hit the guards, the ball just… it was like C4 going off. I could see them sent flying, the shockwave of the explosion breaking arms, ribs, legs, and spines. It was horrific.

"You know," I said in my minuscule voice, raising it for the peanut gallery. "This alien? In a medieval world? Kinda broken."

Good lord, I had severely underestimated how powerful these green balls of explosive were. I needed to dial down the boom on these things if I wanted to avoid killing these guys.

Hauzer growled. I opened my mouth and spat out another ball, then tossed it, before following it over and over. Over a dozen green balls launched out, rolling to become as big as three or four feet before exploding in cascades of green.

Even though I was trying to limit the size of the explosions, they still tossed the guards aside. No one died, but the streets around us started to get covered in broken guard bodies. "Come on, Hauzer! Let's get moving!"

"SKREEEEEEEONK!" Hauzer roared in agreement. He unleashed a plume of flame outwards, turning a group of guards to charcoal. I tried to keep the thought of that from my mind, focusing on my goal instead.

In front of us, something rose up, flying into the air. I stopped throwing explosives to stare at him as he lifted into the air.

Sauron. An enemy of the X-#*!$.

I hissed, my head suddenly feeling like it had been about to burst in half. Damn. The Omnitrix must have still been acting up.

I looked back at Sauron, who had fought Spider-Man alongside Stegron once. He'd also taken on the Avengers a couple of times. He was currently circling for another pass at us. Right, he'd once flame breathed a Black Widow. Not Natasha, the other one.

"Hauzer, let's move!" then I hesitantly added. "And can you stop killing people? I kind of want to keep that a minimum if I can?"

He replied to that by burning someone else alive. This person had thrown a spear at us, but I got the feeling Hauzer would have done it anyway.

"Good talk," I grumbled. Still, it felt good to be on the attack again. No more broken arm, no more broken Omnitrix. Just me, a powerful ally, and my body filled with strength and power once more!

We rushed for the arena, tossing people aside. The pair of us must have made a hell of an image, an orange dinosaur breathing flame while a giant yellow bug on his backfired exploding balls of green plasma that sent Ankylo, T-Rex, and Bronto-Saur-Lords flying about with ease.

We reached the arena in record time.

"Okay, big guy!" I hopped off of Hauzer and spun to look up at him as he leaned down to look at me. "You wanted food, right? There's gonna be tons if you go this way," I scratched out a quick map on the dirt with one of my claws, marking out the kitchens based on my observations of the place. "Should be enough to feed you for decades. I'll meet you there."

He gave me a hesitant look.

"I made you a promise," I said as fiercely as my adorable form could, spitting out a green ball and hopping on top of it. "I intend to keep it. That Yellow Bastard is all yours."

He still looked a little hesitant, but he nodded and spun to head the direction I'd indicated. As he did, I looked at the arena.

Six guards opened the doors that led to the prison cells my allies were in and rushed towards me.

I narrowed my eyes into a smile and ran backward, the ball under me moving forward in a simple display of physics. I quickly reached my top speed, picking up dirt and debris until the tennis ball-sized plasma goo under me became as big as a car. The Saur-Lords in front of me skidded to halt.

"Oh gods!" one shouted, the entire group spinning to run.

"Someone play the Katamari Damacy theme!" I shouted in glee as the ball hit the first guard.

Schloop!

He was absorbed into the ball of plasma goo, spinning inside it like a hamster in its ball. For a funny moment, he stared up at me through the sea of green.

I hit the next guard, then the next, before I leapt off the ball, letting the massive explosive slam into the doors as the last three closed them.

The ball didn't explode all that hard. I'd formed it as more of a bubble than a ball anyways, more to restrain, not kill. It still tore through the doors and sent all six guards flying. The Saur-Lords didn't look like they'd broken anything, but the three I'd rolled around in a demented hamster ball were going to be fighting their lunch for a while.

I landed in the chaos and spat out streams of plasma, wrapping each in restraining webs of the stuff.

"Would you look at that!" I chirped once I was done. "I'm multi-purpose!"

"You're an asshole," one of the guards rumbled, before losing composure to throw up on the floor while stuck to the wall.

"You help enslave people, you have no moral high ground," I scoffed, before running deeper into the prison.

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

Gresh/Saurian, which is different from Saur-Lord.

Gresh watched as the guards ran out of the room, leaving the prisoners behind. A while ago, the guards, along with Stend, had pulled out the Outsider and taken him somewhere.

But not before the Outsider had brought his unbroken arm behind his back and signaled to them.

The Outsider, in the time they had known him, had been odd. When Gresh had first seen him, he'd dismissed him. With a broken arm, what good was he? Gresh had already worked on establishing his rank. As a slave, the only thing worse than simply being a slave was being the weakest one. He had known this, and thus had taken steps to ensure he would not be the one on the bottom of the pecking order.

So, he had continued to do it with the Outsider. For all the Outsider's impressive build, his broken arm had slowed him down. He had not responded to any of Gresh's displays, only taking them. Still, something in his eyes had been defiant. Unbroken.

So Gresh had kept pushing until he tried to push the Outsider aside to steal his food.

Then the Outsider had smashed his head into the floor with a single arm and told him in no uncertain terms to stop.

Gresh was not a man of deep thought and introspection, but he did understand violence. So when the Outsider had offered his food afterward, he knew the gesture for what it was.

Dominance. The Outsider had a broken arm and yet would fight. He took food but did not need to hoard it. He was strong in the way Gresh's mother had been, the matriarch of his family, standing above their petty squabbling, but coming down with a strong blow when her intervention was needed.

So Gresh had watched him. And when the Outsider demanded all listen to him, he had seen all his fellow slaves follow.

Even the Neu-Deustchlander, who hated the Outsider, bowed to him. The Rock Woman, the strongest being in the room, even stronger than the guards, had listened to the Outsider.

The Outsider was a tyrant of some kind. He took the people around him and forced them to become his army. And when they fought on the battlefield, he had stolen the first kill with the sort of eager greed only a tyrant would show. He was a fierce warrior, killing without mercy (Gresh had not seen the look of anguish when the Outsider killed his opponents, only the blood that sprayed.)

Gresh had tried, one last time, to demand something from the Outsider in battle. To stop stealing his kills. And what had the Outsider said?

"Then go get some more!"

Inspiring! If one steals from you, then why despair!? You had already gained that which was stolen! You know you are capable of obtaining it. If it is stolen, then a man of the Outsider's caliber would simply gain it once more! Gain and gain, until any slight against you, was a bump in the road!

To be so uncaring of any other, to dominate so easily, to fight like a demon and yet impart such wisdom!

And then, while he was pulled out, he had flashed those signals. Among the ones he taught them in case of their necessity, had been 'attack, retreat, wait, defend, flank'.

When he had been pulled out, he had flashed two signals. First, 'wait' the symbol a simple hand clenched in a fist. Then, 'attack', the middle finger extended like the blade of a deity, followed by wait again.

Wait to attack. That was what that sequence meant. Even as he was dragged away, the Outsider had a plan to attack.

Gresh knew the Outsider now, saw his eyes as Stend had tortured him. The Outsider had most likely even planned for the torture, had planned for the pain to follow!

So Gresh waited. And when the first explosions began, he was gratified.

"You think it's him," the stone person, Demi the Outsider had named her, asked Gresh.

"Of course it is!" Gresh said to the larger being. "He told us his plan."

"Wait, attack, wait?" the Neu-Deutschlander asked skeptically in an accented version of the common language of the Savage Land. "I'm pretty sure that's not the same as 'I'm about to start blowing things up.'"

"Will he be okay?" the Aerian with a single wing asked softly.

"He's dead," one of the gladiators they'd fought, the Raptor who the Outsider had stabbed, said snidely. "Probably killed in style, the prick."

"You're a prick!" Gresh said, quite proud of the incredible turn around he had made with the insult. "And the Outsider is alive. After all, he helped us defeat you."

"It was a tie," the Anklyo they had also fought said, quirking a scaled eyebrow. "And honestly, it wasn't like there was anything personal. You all fought well," he gave a nod to the Aerian with the single wing, who nodded back with a sad smile on her blue face. "But do you think he's alive, coming back to us, and somehow causing explosions? I know of no weapon that can do such a thing."

The Anklyo's calm assessment pierced through where simple stubbornness had not. For a moment, Gresh's faith faltered.

Then, an explosion came from nearby. Some guards shouted. Another explosion. A scream of pain, and someone joking about babies whining.

The next explosion came from the doorway, followed by a guard tossed into the room wrapped up in a ball of green goo. Everyone stared at the Saur-Lord guard. The T-Rex Saur-Lord stared back at them helplessly.

"I… I don't understand what's happening," he said in wide-eyed confusion.

"You got your ass kicked by cuteness," someone quipped.

They all looked at the door. Then they looked down.

A yellow insect stood there, balanced on a green ball. It waved at them. "Sup guys. Told you I'd come back."

"...Outsider?" Gresh asked, the insane idea popping into his head.

"No way that's-" the Neu-Deutschlander said.

"Oh good, we all speak the same language," the bug said. "First, German Guy? You're an asshole."

"W-What!?" the Neu-Deuschlander said before something registered. "German guy!? My name is Dietrich!"

"Sorry, had to get that off my chest," the insect said apologetically. "I'm sure you're a nice guy, man. I'll help you escape this place, don't worry."

German guy opened and closed his mouth, as if unable to understand what was happening.

"Gresh, Demi, everyone who wants to escape and get free?" the Outsider said in this impossible new form. "I can turn into superpower beings, but that power was gone for a bit. It's back. Now let's kick some ass."

Then it kicked the ball it was standing on at the cage door. The ball exploded, shattering the lock and hinges, letting the door fall to the ground.

"Follow me!" the Outsider spun and rushed out. Gresh immediately moved to follow.

But not before giving the Anklyo a smug look. "I told you!"

The Anklyo gave him a befuddled look. "Told m- You can't take credit for this! No one in their right mind would accept bugs with exploding goo as a possibility!"

Gresh, clearly the wiser of the two, simply followed the Outsider. Demi and the others followed quickly, not wishing to be left behind.

As they left, the Aerian with one wing asked Demi, "So he can just become a bug now?"

"It is the Savage Land, sweetie," Demi said kindly. "A Chicken God is running around out there."

"...At least he is cute, I suppose."

Through the hallways, they saw evidence of the Outsiders passing. Strands of green hung about the walls, guards were wrapped up in balls or attached to the walls, and doors had been torn apart. Oddly enough, the disgusting smell and debris that had once filled the place were entirely gone. Now everything smelled almost like the tea that Gresh's grandfather had enjoyed, a hint of spice and warmth to it, but still fresh, and the floors were almost sparkling.

"This way!" the Outsider said in front of them, scuttling his way through the halls on a ball of green goo (later the Outsider would inform Gresh they were highly concentrated plasma). "We should be almost there!"

"Where are we headed?" Demi asked.

"The kitchens!" the Outsider squeaked.

"Is this the time to eat?" the Raptor Saur-Lord grumbled.

"It is for my partner-in-crime," the Outsider said.

Down the hall, a pair of Saur-Lords came running towards them, swords raised. Without missing a beat, the Outsider hopped off the ball he'd been rolling and tossed it forward, the ball exploding and sending the pair flying.

"Down here," the Outsider made another ball and sped forward atop it, somehow outpacing all of them. He led them for a few moments more before a loud sound came from down the hallway. The group came running around the corner, only for all of them to stop in shock at the sight before them.

First, was the human, a man tall, well-built, with some sort of animal fur about his shoulders so that it appeared he was wearing its face as a vest. The man smiled at them, panning his eyes across the group before stopping on Gresh. For just a moment, Gresh felt as though a blade had been pressed to his throat before the man looked at the Outsider and grinned just a bit. He raised the knife in his hand, then stabbed down into the Bronto he'd been holding down with a single hand, an impossible feat of strength for a human. The blade slid into the struggling Saur-Lords eye, slicing deep into the brain and ending its fight.

"Dial! You are alive!"

The other man was even stranger. Made entirely of metal, it towered over them all, it's body built with a very stout strength. The man was holding a pair of Anklyo's by their throats, the two Saur-Lords trying to stab him, only for their blades to bounce off his metal skin without a scratch.

"Mahmoud…" the metal man said softly, tossing the Anklyo's aside to step forward.

"X, Kraven!" the Outsider said with glee. "Where the hell did you guys come from!?"

"Shiny," Demi blurted out, staring at the metal man, X, with avid interest.

"I came the instant you were pronounced missing," X said. "Are you well?"

"Weirdly, I think I made a psychological breakthrough," the Outsider said. "But that doesn't matter now. I want to share all the fuzzy feeling man, but we have business."

"Understood, sir," X kneeled to the Outsider, further proving to Gresh that the Outsider was clearly the leader of whatever nation he came from. "What are your orders?"

"Take the arena," the Outsider's eyes narrowed. "This place is the slavers' center of power. We make it ours, we force them to come on our turf. Lock it down, make them show up."

"A sound plan," Kraven said with a smile. "But they will know this place well."

"They will," the Outsider looked around. "But they don't know my allies, my powers, or how fucking pissed I am. Call in the boys, X. I made two promises. One to a dragon, and one to myself," Gresh reveled in the look of anger in those insectoid eyes. "I intend to keep them both."