Multiversial Battle Royale

A Multiversial Battle Royale features various characters from the GTACU and RCU universes in a simulated battle to the death. All results of the battle are determined by the simulation, and then written in verbose for dramatization.

## Contestants

In the first Multiversial Battle Royale, the following 24 contestants were included.

## Battle Royale Simulation

##### Background

An unfamiliar voice spoke from a microphone overhead to the 24 individuals gathered around. “You’re all on teams of two and you’re gonna battle to the death! Don’t move until you hear the signal or you’ll explode. Good luck!”

They were all on pedestals. Those that were on a team had pedestals of matching colors. Ahead of them all was a large supply cache. Weapons from across the multiverse were resting inside, along with other necessities. From first glance, the weapons looked medieval - some made of iron, or to some of the contestants, a desirable diamond material.

“Wong?” Stephen Strange looked to his right at his assistant, the Tessierian descendant he had taken to naming as such, even against the assistant’s will. “What is this?” He asked in confusion.

“I told you not to cast that spell.” Wong replied, with some bitterness and annoyance in his tone.
“Fine. I’ll just fix it.” Strange focused and held his fingers forward to begin opening a portal, but the magic fizzled out almost immediately. His eyes wide, he glanced at his assistant, who shared a worried glance at him. “Magic doesn’t work here.”
“We’re fucked.” Wong muttered under his breath.

##### The Teams

1. **Diante Corinth** and **Karen**, Aleppo Incorporated’s assistants, formed together for Team 1. The least likely duo to survive at first glance, they both look nervous in the starting area.
2. **Loganius I** and **Firecracker Jim**. Two villains from different universes, both on a team together. They don’t say much to each other before the battle begins, each with their own agenda, albeit similar - chaos.
3. **Melinda Cain,** also known as **“The Caretaker”**, was paired with **Putt-Putt**, her talking car. With the circumstances of the battle royale, Melinda notices that Putt-Putt has been downgraded to his original shell, and has no weapon systems in place. She realizes it’d be better if she went on foot for combat, most likely.
4. **Tom Bombadil** and **Yuna** hailed from a city and town in Aleppo, where Yuna had constructed her own tower. A nation of architects and inventors, the two make up for their lack of combat skill with knowledge and intellect.
5. **Butch** and **The Viking** also hailed from Yuna and Tom’s city. These two worked more closely on Aleppo’s space program. Although the Viking was a humble farmer in his past, he still was a skilled berserker, while Butch was knowledgable as not only a swindler, but a planner.
6. **Queen Cry-Star** and **President Tessier** are paired together, two Leaders from the ancient days of Aleppo. Their presences are some of the most imposing amongst the contestants, but the RCCU contestants don’t seem intimidated.
7. **Justin Aurum** and **Ryan Gonzalez** stand near one another on separate pedestals. “Where the fuck are we Ryan?” Justin shouts to which Ryan responds, “Something must’ve fucked up in the simulation we were using”,  and points to two adjacent individuals..
8. Which were **Joey Aurum** and **Chipio Gonzalez**, members of Chipio’s gang. Although the two occasionally came at odds in their gang, they now have to stand together here in the battle royale.
9. Paired together here were **Daisy** and **King Kopi**, both owners of the Sacred Daisy from the ancient days of Aleppo, but at different points in time. Although the King remarks to Daisy about his excellent Bee and Barb tavern, Daisy seems unfazed, as the architect behind the sprawling Daisy Dunes.
10. From the iteration known as Aleppo 76, the Crusaders of Aleppo were present, clad in their red and silver armor. **Crusader Jamie** and **Crusader Jacob** stood with watchful eyes at their opponents. They only merely needed to nod at each other in earnest once they realized their situation. After colonizing many forested lands on their own, this would be no different to them.
11. Protectors of the Sanctum Sanctorum, **Dr. Strange** and **Wong** stood beside one another, stripped of their magic. Strange is clever, and Wong is capable of not relying on sorcery, so they like their chances - but their true goal is to find a way to reverse this battle royale and send everyone home.
12. Lastly, the two remaining members of Chipio’s Gang - **Sam** and **Water Flows**. Water Flows points to the supplies in the cache and recommends Sam grab what he can. Water Flows himself is experienced in the wilderness and survivalism, so he likes his chances as well.

##### The Spawn

Sam runs off to the supply cache as soon as possible, and finds his revolver laying in the cache by pure luck. King Kopi was going for it as well, but Sam fires a warning shot at him, and King Kopi backs off, fleeing into the forest. Sam holsters his revolver and runs off in a different direction.

Putt-Putt uses his gripper wire to grab a backpack, which he tosses into his seating area before driving off into the forest.

Yuna, Karen, Firecracker Jim, and Crusader Jamie all decide to abandon the supply cache and flee into the forest.

Chipio, The Caretaker, Loganius, and The Viking grab weapons and supplies from the cache and run off without incident.

Water Flows scurries off into the woods to begin hunting for materials to assemble something from scratch.

Dr. Strange, Queen Cry-Star, and Butch all find weapons as well from the cache before departing the initial area in a rush.

Ryan Gonzales finds only food rations in the crate he searched through, and runs off himself.

Diante loots a backpack from the cache, but finds that it is empty once he runs far off, and wishes he brought his snacks from the facility with him.

Justin Aurum and Tom Bombadil squareoff while trying to fight for a food ration. Tom grabs Justin’s ankles and tackles him to the ground to make up for his height advantage, before moving to try pummeling Justin’s face with his fist. Justin, being a more skilled fighter, manages to fight back and land a punch straight to Tom’s nose before he could land a punch, and breaks Tom’s nose. Reeling from it, Justin runs off with the food ration.

Wong hits the jackpot with a cache and gets a large helping of food rations, which he stashes in his coat before running off.

President Tessier found a bow and arrow that once belonged to him in the cache, complete with its enchantments. Draping the quiver of arrows over himself, he sets off into the woods.

Joey Aurum finds a trusty Crimson Caravan canteen full of water and hooks it to his belt, before jogging off, the last contestant to leave the initial spawn area.

##### Day 1

With the contestants dispersed into the forest and arena, the true battle begins.

A paradrop arrives as Butch takes a breather. A futuristic-looking container, branded with the NASA logo, falls in front of him. Opening it, he finds that it contains a ration of clean water.

Ryan runs into Putt-Putt near a river. “Hot ziggity, Ryan, am I glad to see you!” Putt-Putt shouts at his fellow Aleppo Inc. member. Ryan hops inside Putt-Putt’s driver’s seat and sets off with him to hunt other contestants. “It’s just like when you were in ‘Nam”, Ryan reassures Putt-Putt.

Yuna receives a package from some of the residents of Aleppo 3.5 via a paradrop. It’s one of her staffs, which she gracefully accepts before moving on further into the arena.

When Chipio gets himself established and assesses the supplies he has, he gets into an ambush position in a circular set of bushes, watching for any passing contestants with his revolver drawn.

Water Flows has crafted two tomahawks out of wood and stone, and is now sharpening them using a stone by a river. He’s cut off by the sound of footsteps in the distance. When he turns, he spots the sight of a knight approaching - Crusader Jacob, clad in steel armor with his shield adorned with the coat of arms of the Crusaders of Aleppo. Getting into a fighting stance, Water Flows readies a tomahawk in both of his hands. The Crusader draws his sword and readies himself. They both stare for a prolonged amount of time before Water Flows lunges, his tomahawk delivering a blow to the Crusader’s shield. The tomahawk bounced off almost, the stone tip falling off. His right hand, disarmed, Crusader Jacob swung his blade forward and slashed across the chest of Water Flows, causing him to stagger backwards. Water Flows flings his tomahawk at the Crusader’s head, delivering a hard blow to the side of his head. Despite the pain, the helmet Crusader Jacob wore was enough to cushion the blow. Bashing Water Flows with his shield, he jabs his longsword into the native’s chest. “I’ve colonized plenty of your kind before, heathen.” The Crusader declares as his opponent perishes. Withdrawing his bloody blade, Crusader Jacob sheathes it and moves on after taking a moment to shake off the blow he received.

Diante, using a fishing rod he retrieved at the supply cache, comes to the river himself, but further upstream. “Shit, better get snacks somehow.” He says to himself, before casting his line.

Dr. Strange encounters The Viking harvesting berries from a bush. “You’re a warrior, aren’t you? I need your help.” Strange puts his hands up to show he means no harm. Although The Viking ponders the idea briefly, he simply nods. “Used to be. What do you need?” Strange explains the situation and how he believes they are there because of a botched spell. Familiar with magic in his own realm, The Viking agrees to come along with him for the time being.

Tom Bombadil sets up a camp in a small cave, but heads out to go searching for supplies, and for something to help with his broken nose. Although he thought he stashed his supplies well, his camp was raided four separate times by passing contestants - by Loganius, Justin Aurum, Wong, and Firecracker Jim. When he returns, Tom is disheartened to see his supplies gone and has to rest on edge through the night, in fear of someone ambushing him.

Karen and Queen Cry-Star travel with one another briefly. Suspicious of the woman, the Queen declares that they should split up and look for resources, to which Karen agrees. Unbeknownst to her, the Queen headed far off into the arena, away from her.

Daisy spotted The Caretaker cautiously moving through the woods, armed with a pistol. Daisy, still unarmed at the moment, waiting for Melinda to pass by out of earshot and sight before she moved on safely.

King Kopi spotted smoke from a fire in the distance. It came from Sam, who had found a small cave to establish himself for a while. Not wanting to risk the encounter, and despite it growing dark, King Kopi ventured further into the arena.

President Tessier received a paradrop from the people of Tessier, the packaging adorned with the logo of a glass box. Inside were medical supplies, which he stashes away before moving on.

Crusader Jamie of Aleppo found Joey Aurum sipping from his canteen and drew his sword to chase him down. Joey reached for his holster, but realized he didn’t have it with him. With Joey being chased, the two inevitably tumble down a steep hillside together in a rugged part of the woods. Joey slams into a tree and injures his neck in a contorted manner. The armor Jamie wore was able to break his fall with ease. Seeing Joey’s condition, Jamie made a sign of the cross with his longsword before putting Aurum out of his misery and snatching the canteen for himself.

##### Night 1

Two cannon shots ring out in the dark for the deaths of Water Flows and Joey Aurum. Two members of the Gonzalez Gang, gone in just the first day.

When Karen realizes that the Queen isn’t coming back, she tries starting a fire on her own with some firewood she collected. However, with no survivalist knowledge, she fails and is forced to sleep without warmth, as the climate gets colder in the arena for the night.

Sam is awoken in the midst of the night when he hears footsteps out front. Then he sees a light moving around. He pops out of his cave quickly and aims his revolver at the source of the light. “Hey, gringo!” It was Chipio, holding a lantern to guide his way. Sam, although a bit annoyed, is relieved to see a friendly face and invites Chipio inside to shelter. Sam asks if Chipio has seen the others and says he hasn’t, but is confident they can win anyway. They sleep in shifts through the night.

Some of the Aleppo 1.0 leaders sleep restlessly. Premonitions of the fall of their great society flashes in their minds. Queen Cry-Star sees visions of her kingdom burning, more than usual. King Kopi sees his bar burning, along with his port being filled with invading forces.

While searching for somewhere to hunker down for the night, Ryan leaves Putt-Putt behind for a moment near a riverfront. After going upstream on foot for a bit, he encounters President Tessier, who already has an arrow knocked in his bow and aimed at him. Ryan draws a pistol he retrieved from Putt-Putt’s glovebox and the two standoff. After what felt like an eternity, both President Tessier and Ryan go their separate ways, nodding to each other in some form of silent understanding and respect.

Butch Tan Der Linde manages to convince Diante to start a fire with him, where Diante shares some of the fish they caught, which they cook over the fire. “You gotta love yourself a fire…” Butch says in the warmth of it.

A campfire is a large target, though, since it resulted in the demise of both Butch and Diante. Diante was stabbed from behind by the longsword of Crusader Jacob, while Butch was stabbed by Crusader Jamie. Reunited, the Crusaders of Aleppo shake hands. “No Diamonds?” Crusader Jacobs remarks at his compatriot jokingly, pointing to the iron sword he was using.

“Nary an issue to be had.” Jamie waves his hand dismissively, bragging about his previous kill, albeit exaggerating the details. The two drag the bodies aside before taking the campfire for themselves, restocking themselves for the battles ahead from what Butch and Diante had left behind.

Informed of the plan Dr. Strange had to cast a spell for everyone to go home via brewing a proper potion, he set about looking for Wong, who knew how to brew potions that could potentially create a spell from scratch. Unfortunately, he got lost in the arena and had to sleep in the cold for the night.

Also unfortunate, was Wong’s fate. While looking for a cave to sleep in or other form of shelter, he returns to the cave he raided earlier in the day - Tom Bombadil’s cave. Assuming Tom had abandoned it, he entered inside - only to be rushed by Tom, armed with a dagger. Plunging his dagger into Tom’s heart, Wong begs to be spared. Tom realizes he had mortally wounded Wong and puts him out of his misery, reluctantly so.

The day for Strange was spent gathering what little he could from the prop structures around the arena. Bundling them all together in a rucksack, he climbed a tree and tried to fall asleep on the branch. In the middle of the night, he was awoken by the sound of an explosion, almost falling out of the tree. He looked up to see Justin Aurum running from the scene, who had tossed a grenade to detonate Strange’s supplies as a form of sabotaging his opponents.

Loganius arrives at the campfire of Yuna, who welcomes him in. Although Loganius is surprised at her gullible kindness, he accepts it nonetheless, at least for the time being. He tells her about the usage of magic and the Nether, which Yuna seems to be familiar with. Impressed, Loganius decides to forgo any hidden motive to backstab the kind-hearted woman… for now.

Elsewhere and in separate spots around the arena - Firecracker Jim, Daisy, and The Caretaker all sleep through the night without incident.

##### Day 2

King Kopi set up a camp for the day in an area that he thought was secluded, but it was raided throughout the day by other contestants - including Yuna, Crusader Jacob, Queen Cry-Star, and Ryan Gonzalez.

Sam went about fishing near a pond he found. President Tessier attempts to fish as well, but without his enchanted rod, finds little more than fish.

Day 2 goes on without much incident. Tom Bombadil, Firecracker Jim, The Caretaker, Crusader Jamie, The Viking, Karen and Loganius all traverse the arena for other contestants, but fail to find anyone.

Chipio Gonzalez finds a hatchet in one of the prop structures around the arena, and straps it to his belt. What he was hoping to find were medical supplies, as he had suffered a stab wound from a branch after falling from a hill earlier in the day.

Justin Aurum finds a bow while exploring the arena, and straps it on along with a quiver of arrows.

While Putt-Putt and Ryan are driving through the arena, they spot Dr. Strange. Strange holds his hands up to try to explain, but Putt-Putt is insistent on chasing him down. Due to his former experience, he’s able to traverse the trees well enough to get close enough for Ryan to deliver a killing blow with his pistol. “Hot ziggity, did you get ‘em, Ryan?” Putt-Putt asks afterwards.

Ryan jumps out of the car and nudges the body with his foot and nods. “Looks like we did.” He says before getting back behind Putt-Putt’s wheel.

##### Night 2

After the deaths from the previous night and day, 4 cannon shots are fired to denote them overhead - one for Butch, Wong, Diante, and Dr. Strange.

Yuna encounters Sam cooking fish he caught during the day. Yuna puts her hands up and Sam politely offers some fish to her, which she accepts, with the two sitting by the fire for the evening.

Justin Aurum is cooking food at a fire by himself but hears footsteps approaching. He pulls his pistol and aims in the direction before the individual approaching reveals themselves as The Caretaker, who has her hands held up defensively. Justin holsters his pistol and sighs before sitting back at the fire, before offering some food. The Caretaker accepts, and offers to sleep in shifts with him - but also recommends that they put the fire out when they’re done with warming the food, which Justin agrees with.

Crusader Jacob, Daisy, Karen, King Kopi, Firecracker Jim, and Tom Bombadil sleep through the night without incident.

Ryan and Putt-Putt start a campfire for the night when they are approached by Crusader Jamie. Holding his hands up to show he meant no harm, the Crusader sat by the campfire. They exchange stories with one another about their separate worlds - Los Santos, and Aleppo 76. The Crusader finds a talking contraption like Putt-Putt odd, while Ryan finds the mention of a Chichen Itza strange. “Like that one in Mexico?” Ryan asks, to the confusion of the Crusader.

Chipio was unable to find medical supplies to treat his wound, and bleeds out by a river while staring up at the moonlight.

Queen Cry-Star gets a restless sleep with more nightmares featuring premonitions of Aleppo 1.0’s downfall.

Loganius didn’t gather enough supplies during the day and ended up sleeping through the cold of the night.

When The Viking ends up encroaching on President Tessier’s campfire, he draws the two hatchets he was carrying to engage. The President scrambles, making a run for his supplies, with the Viking chasing him down. President Tessier quickly grabs his bow from the supplies and fires an arrow - a lucky shot that pierces the Viking’s neck. He drops his hatchets and falls to his knees. President Tessier finds his sword in his supplies and finishes the Viking off, putting him out of his misery.

##### Day 3

Tom Bombadil bumps into Crusader Jacob. The Crusader unsheathes his sword for battle, but notices Tom is carrying a canteen and offers to trade goods. As the two discuss a trade, they are being listened to by Karen, who is hiding behind a nearby bush. She had hid behind it once she heard the two coming. The trade commences peacefully, and all three depart separate ways.

Putt-Putt and Ryan split up briefly to hunt for other contestants. Putt-Putt encounters Queen Cry-Star, and catches her off guard, ramming her into a tree. The Queen barely had time to react, and found herself pinned from the waist down against the tree in pain. Putt-Putt calls out for Ryan to finish the job, but with her hands free, the Queen grabs an explosive she kept stashed away and tosses it into Putt-Putt’s seating, detonating them both in a fiery explosion.

Ryan arrives too late, witnessing the aftermath. Taking a deep breath after collecting his thoughts, Ryan moves on.

Later, The Caretaker finds President Tessier fishing by the river. After finding the body of the Viking nearby, she withdraws a combat knife and steadily sneaks up to him, before executing him with a swift stab to the neck from behind. She looks up after the kill and sees something burning in the distance. Her eyes go wide at the sight of Putt-Putt’s burning wreckage. Instinctively, her hand goes to her pocket, intending to grab her phone and call Mors Mutual. Realizing she doesn’t have her phone, she gives a small salute to the wreckage before moving off.

Sam has an uneventful day and finds a cave to sleep in to pass through the events.

Justin Aurum receives a paradrop care package from the Crimson Caravan, featuring a Sticky Bomb. He pockets it for the time being, to use later.

Firecracker Jim has a rough day. Not only does he lose some of his supplies after accidentally blowing them up, he wounds himself from some thorny bushes while trying to pick berries.

Crusader Jamie sits by a waterfront, and regret sets in about those he’s killed thus far, along with the colonizing he went upon at home with the Crusaders of Aleppo. He spends the day contemplating.

Ryan finds Daisy while hunting for other contestants and follows her in secret, attempting to find the right opening to attack if need be.

Yuna finds a peninsula atop a cliff that seems safe. With a pond nearby, she fishes on her own to see what she can find.

King Kopi and Loganius encounter one another in a forest clearing of the arena. Loganius draws a greatsword and wields it with both hands, while King Kopi draws his standard iron sword, along with a shield he had looted along the way. Knowing that Loganius is dangerous, he plays it defensively, despite the strength Loganius possesses. It becomes too overwhelming for the King. Loganius swings effortlessly, clanging against King Kopi’s shield repeatedly, and knocking the smaller sword the King wielded out of his hands when the swords clashed. Once King Kopi was on the ground, Loganius bashed the shield repeatedly, the only line of defense preventing the King from death. King Kopi frantically reaches into his belt for a throwing knife, which he flings at Loganius, lodging it in the villain’s skull. Loganius falls to the ground, defeated, and King Kopi looks upon him, out of breath and satisfied with executing Aleppo 1.0’s tyrant.

##### Night 3

Six cannon shots rang out for Chipio Gonzalez, The Viking, Putt-Putt, Queen Cry-Star, President Tessier, and Loganius I.

Justin Aurum starts a fire on his lonesome for the night.

Firecracker Jim encounters Yuna on her peninsula and has a breakdown, where he confesses to the things he’s done. He asks Yuna to kill him, but she refuses and forgives him for his crimes. Grateful, they share the campfire for the night.

Daisy, Karen, Tom Bombadil, Crusader Jamie, The Caretaker, Crusader Jacob, King Kopi, and Ryan Gonzalez sleep through the night without incident.

As Sam is sitting at a fire for the evening, he receives a paradrop containing a canteen of water, which he sips from, thankful for the gift, despite not knowing where it came from.

##### Day 4

In the morning, Yuna wakes up and finds that Firecracker Jim has crossed her, as he left an explosive at her camp. As soon as she wakes up, it detonates. Although it didn’t kill her, she succumbed to the wounds from it soon after without any proper medical attention available.

Firecracker Jim encounters Sam later that morning. Although Sam suggests they “settle it like men” with a duel, Firecracker Jim lies about accepting it, and tosses an explosive at Sam’s feet when he begins to get into position, killing him instantly.

Crusader Jacob arms himself further by constructing a sturdier bow, along with several arrows to use with it.

Ryan Gonzalez and The Caretaker find each other once again. “It’s about time I found you.” Ryan says. “Where’s Justin?”

“I thought he was with you.” The Caretaker responded. “We have to fight our way out of this place.”

Agreeing, they decide to keep it stealthy and ambush the next contestant they see together. They find Karen, who’s trying to fiddle with some sticks to start a fire. They both look at each other, as if they should actually go through with it. “We don’t tell Justin.” Ryan says quietly, before firing a bullet at Karen’s head, executing her.

Later the two find Tom Bombadil alone scrounging for supplies, and chase him down, with The Caretaker being the one to gun him down this time. The two Aleppo Inc. members head off to hunt for other contestants for the rest of the day.

Crusader Jamie isn’t an expert fisherman by any means, but decides to fish enough just to catch some food for the day.

Justin Aurum wants a higher vantage point, and heads off to higher ground to do so.

King Kopi, in need of food, lucks out and finds a fruit tree, which he picks from.

Daisy isn’t as lucky, and finds a berry bush full of thorns. Although she’s able to pick it, she pricks her hands while doing so.

##### Night 4

4 cannon shots ring out for Yuna, Sam, Karen, and Tom Bombadil.

After splitting up for supplies to make a campfire, The Caretaker is almost knocked out cold in the head by Daisy, who hits her with the butt of a makeshift spear she crafted. Although The Caretaker reaches for her knife, Daisy bumps her again in the stomach, knocking her to the ground, before stabbing The Caretaker in the stomach. Daisy pulls the spear out and aims it at The Caretaker, as if contemplating killing her. “Do it.” The Caretaker says, glaring up at Daisy. Daisy hesitates and runs off, leaving The Caretaker to die. She doesn’t however, and manages to get up and stumble back to camp.

At camp, The Caretaker finds Ryan again… but with a new guest, Justin Aurum. With Aleppo Incorporated's main trio reunited, Justin sets about helping The Caretaker with her wound, before she bleeds out further. When asked how she got it, an embarrassed Caretaker says she fell on a sharp branch, despite the other two not buying it.

Once she’s patched up, the three agree that the only way out is by killing the rest of the contestants in their way, while blowing a hole in one of the arena walls so they can escape. For the rest of the night, they share food and water as they reminisce on Los Santos.

Across the stadium, King Kopi’s nightmares have returned. Despite the fight with Loganius earlier, he becomes paranoid that Loganius isn’t really dead, and has a restless slumber through the night.

Crusader Jacob and Jamie reunite. Although Jamie is apprehensive about their goals, they both agree on the reality before them - they must fight their way out of the arena, no matter who they run into. The two share stories and reflect on Aleppo 76 through the night.

Firecracker Jim is awoken by his nightmares and guilt through a restless night.

##### Supply Battle

An announcement rings out over the stadium: “The supply cache has been refilled! Go grab what you need… if you dare.”

Ryan deems the cache restock to be too dangerous. Justin thinks they should get all the supplies they need. Ryan says he’ll hold down the campsite if Justin wants to go, but refuses to go himself. Not wanting him to go alone, The Caretaker agrees to go along with Justin, saying she’s fine despite her wound.

Crusader Jacob says they should go to the supply restock, but Crusader Jamie disagrees. Crusader Jamie says he’ll hold down the campsite they made while Crusader Jacob heads off to grab supplies quickly, to which he agrees.

At the supply restock, six contestants arrive. Crusader Jacob, Firecracker Jim, King Kopi, The Caretaker, Justin Aurum, and Daisy.

Crusader Jacob encounters Justin Aurum when they both seek out the same cache of food. The Crusader bashes Justin with his shield, knocking Justin to the ground. Before he can be stabbed by the Crusader’s sword, Justin rolls out of the way and draws his pistol. Although he fires a few shots, the bullets clang off the shield due to the weapon’s small caliber as Justin stumbles to his feet. Approaching him for another swing, Justin hurriedly grabs the Sticky Bomb he had stored away earlier and sticks it to the Crusader’s shield, detonating it and the Crusader with it. Wiping some sweat off his brow, Justin goes back to looting quickly as the sounds of battle go on around him…

Daisy and King Kopi meet each other again for the first time since the spawn, and they wave at each other as they begin to loot supplies. Separated on opposite sides of the cache though, King Kopi is unable to have any defense when The Caretaker sneaks up behind him. She puts a pistol to his head and fires, splattering blood against the cache.

Daisy, shaken by the sight, is ambushed by Firecracker Jim. Before he can do anything, however, she knocks the explosive out of his hands and lands a fatal blow with the sharp end of the spear to his neck. Once she pulls the spear out and sees Firecracker Jim drop dead, a surprised Daisy grabs what she can from the cache before dashing into the forest. The Caretaker notices her and fires a few shots, but Daisy’s too far gone to hit.

The Caretaker and Justin Aurum return to camp with their supplies and recover from the fighting, sorting out what they had gathered. Rations and ammo for the most part, including a bolt-action rifle.

Daisy runs into the forest until she finds Crusader Jamie at his campfire. Recognizing the armor from the other Crusader at the cache, she explains that Crusader Jacob was killed. Motioning with a sign of the cross, he plants his sword into the ground and kneels for his fallen comrade. He invites Daisy to stay at his fire, and offers to work with her after she explains what had happened, realizing that they had both lost their spawn partners. Daisy describes the individuals responsible and says she knows the area they are in. Crusader Jamie decides he’ll get vengeance that evening...

##### Night 5

3 shots ring out through the night - for Crusader Jacob, Firecracker Jim, and King Kopi.

As the night begins, both Ryan and Justin set out to look for more firewood. The Caretaker is left alone to watch over the camp, and falls asleep. Trekking through the forest, Crusader Jamie unsheathes his sword and stands over the sleeping Caretaker, jabbing it into her chest. Stealing some supplies as well, he then treks off.

While looking for firewood, Justin receives another Sticky Bomb from the Crimson Caravan via paradrop. A note included in the package says that they’ll ramp up their sponsorship now that the last leg of the battle royale has commenced.

Ryan and Justin return to camp and find The Caretaker in a pool of blood. Mourning her death briefly, they decide they need to attempt to escape in the morning.

##### Day 6

Bright and early in the morning, Justin Aurum is awoken by paradrop hitting him on the head. A canteen full of water, courtesy of the Crimson Caravan. When Ryan awakes, they agree to part ways and hunt for an exit together, agreeing to be back at the camp by the night.

In the morning, Crusader Jamie and Daisy agree that they’ll hunt for the remaining tributes together. With Daisy setting off east, she encounters Ryan in the forest and unsheathes her spear, twirling it a few times to ready herself. Ryan seems unfazed and raises a pistol, firing at Daisy’s chest. Although the shot lands and Daisy staggers, Ryan keeps on firing, making sure she’s dead.. But doesn’t notice that he’s being snuck up upon. From behind him, Crusader Jamie delivers a killing blow, stabbing his sword all the way through Ryan’s abdomen. He leaves Ryan to bleed out to check on Daisy, who he realizes is already dead. Sighing, the Crusader leaves the scene and returns to camp to collect himself.

##### Night 6

3 shots ring out - for The Caretaker, Daisy, and Ryan Gonzalez. “Two contestants left!” The announcer shouted out.

At night, Justin returns to his camp. Searching for an exit had proved fruitless, and he didn’t find any contestants either. When he returns, he finds the campfire still burning. Standing and waiting for him is Crusader Jamie, standing rigidly with his sword stuck in the ground. “The man in the leather jacket… I shall slay thee, in the name of Aleppo.” The Crusader confidently said, withdrawing his sword from the ground.

“Aleppo? Like Aleppo Incorporated?” Justin asked. He made sure the bolt was in place in the rifle he had taken from the supply cache, and checked that it was loaded.

“Ha! Aleppo is no mere company… It is a land with sprawling greenery. A castle, a sanctuary in the mountains, the Itza we serve…” The Crusader thought back to it.  “And so it is down to just the two of us.”

“I’m gonna make sure you pay for the death of my allies.” Justin narrowed his eyes and aimed for the Crusader’s head, deepening his voice as he spoke, akin to his days at the Crimson Wolf.

The standoff was silent until the Crusader lunged, with Justin immediately pulling the trigger. The Crusader expected this, and swiftly raised his glowing shield. The shield took the bullet, reinforced with enough enchantments to withstand the caliber. Stepping forward slowly with his shield held high, it forced Justin to drop the rifle and decide to change plans. He backed up and grabbed a sword and pistol he had collected and wielded one in each hand. The shield of the Crusader blocked any pistol shots Justin fired.

Once the Crusader came close, Justin dropped the pistol and parried the Crusader’s swing of his sword. The blades clashed repeatedly, with both men trying to get the upper hand. Crusader Jamie was a more experienced swordsman, however, and soon sent Justin stumbling backwards with a slash to his shoulder, cutting his leather jacket.

Gritting his teeth, Justin began reaching for a combat knife on his belt, but was sent stumbling a few feet backwards by a shield bash from the Crusader. Out of options, Justin tossed the Sticky Bomb he had been saving and looked away before detonating it blindly. Justin shielded himself from the explosion and then looked up.

The Crusader’s armor was scorched. His shield and sword had clattered to the ground, and now he was crawling his way towards them, attempting to grab them. The Crusader got his hand on the hilt of his sword, only to be interrupted by the boot of Justin, who stamped the Crusader’s hand down. Although wobbly and weak himself from being at the edge of the explosion, Justin watched the Crusader roll over before delivering the killing blow, driving his knife into the Crusader’s neck with two hands. Upon watching the Crusader’s life slowly drain away, Justin shouted a war cry out loud, declaring his victory.

A cannon shot fired out, grabbing Justin’s attention. “Winner! Congratulations, Justin Aurum! You are the Champion of the First Multiversial Royale!” The announcer called out. A preset audio file of fake applause played afterwards.

“...What?” Justin, holding his left shoulder from the slash, looked around. To his right, a portal opened. And through it… he saw Los Santos, his home. Taking one last look at the Crusader he had killed, he limped his way through the portal, and back to where he came from…

**Justin Aurum is the winner**!