It was like time had stopped. No one said a word. Not even the monsters attacked. Pit wasn't sure if he was panting or had simply stopped breathing, and even his rapid heartbeat seemed like some far off sound. His wide blue gaze was on hyper alertness as he watched Nemo, lying on the ground. It seemed like years before he finally smiled and chuckled.

"Oh, dear," he sighed as he braced himself up with one arm, wiping his lip with the other hand as his red eyes fell on the god of Light. He nonchalantly got to his feet and brushed the dirt off his dark blue robe. "Did I slip up?" He continued gazing at Pit with a dangerous smile on his face. "It seems the cat's out of the bag."

"Wait, wait, wait," Kuro demanded. "Hades?! Like... HADES?!" Nemo laughed and turned to face the red-eyed angel.

"I'm honestly surprised Pitty figured it out before you did, Ptooey!" Kuro clenched his jaw and scowled at him. "I thought you were usually the sharp one."

"What have you done with Nemo?!" Pit yelled. Nemo's red gaze turned on him, but the burning, maniacal humor that watched him disturbed him. "He destroyed you!"
"He THOUGHT he destroyed me," Nemo- rather, Hades- replied. "But Pitty, I AM the god of the Underworld. He thought he could erase me and just steal my power. But he was wrong- that power IS me." He shook his head. "And the little fool didn't realize it until it was too late. I'm only paying him back for what he did to me all those years ago!" He strode forward confidently as Pit took a step back. "I must say, this puny form is much more useful than I would have thought." An aura of darkness erupted around Nemo's outstretched hand. "To be the lord of the Underworld AND the god of Darkness- no one, not even you will be able to stop me!"

"Where is Nemo?" the god of Light growled. It was still unbelievable. This was Nemo he was looking at, not Hades. After over a thousand years, no one would have expected him to still be alive.

"Still desperately clinging to hope, aren't you?" Nemo- no, not Nemo, Hades- chided. But it was Nemo's voice, his gaze, his face. To truly think that Hades was the one inside, the one speaking, commanding his body's every action... "Maybe I crushed him, destroyed every scrap of him and took what was left for myself. There's nothing left- only this shell that I'll get rid of soon enough." Pit panted and grit his teeth, pulling his bow apart into two blades and setting his battle stance. But Nemo held his hand up and clucked his tongue. Or, rather, Hades commanded him to do it. "Not so fast, Pitty Pat. Maybe I'm just crushing your hope. Or maybe that little scrap is still alive somewhere in this head and soul, trapped and crying out for you to save him from the torture I've put him through." The maniacal grin on Nemo's face made Pit's skin crawl. "Oh, but don't worry. I'll stamp out his remains eventually."

"But... he's alive?" Pit shook his head vigorously in an attempt to regain his focus. "That's why you didn't just wipe out the humans! You want to murder them!"

"Bingo!" Hades replied. "That's the plan, Pitty." He turned to face the god of Light with a dark and sinister face. "I'm going to take everything you hold dear and destroy it, starting with the humans. Oh, you've fought tooth and nail to keep them safe, and yet they keep destroying each other. That must hurt, hm?" Pit flinched. "Oh, don't worry. I'll solve that little problem. I'll burn their cities to the ground and slaughter them like cattle!" Pit felt his muscles clench, and he sprinted forward with a wordless shout. But Nemo disappeared into the shadows, leaving him panting. "And it won't end there, Pitty. Your scrap of an angel over there... Ephraim, right? Named for your father?" The emphasis on the word was enough to earn a grunt of confusion from the blue-eyed angel. "Dead." Ephraim shuddered but held his ground. "Those boys- Remiel and Henry, is it? They'll beg for mercy as their own father destroys them. And you..." Pit spun around as Nemo appeared behind him, just out of his melee range. "Lucina and Aegle- your partner and daughter. I'm SO proud of you!" Pit felt his heart jump and sprint at the sight of that dark, maniacal grin. "Nemo thinks what Medusa and I did to Leale was bad enough. But the things I'll do to your family... they'll be begging for something as merciful as pain! And I'll make you listen to their every scream and cry of agony, their begging for you to save them when you can do NOTHING." He spat the last word, and Pit again rushed forward only to trip as Nemo again disappeared.

"Shut up!" the blue-eyed god cried desperately. "Shut UP!"

"Yes... And once they're all dead, once I've destroyed everything and everyone you love and made you listen and watch, once you've bathed in their blood and choked on your own screams, then maybe, just maybe, I'll be kind enough to kill you!" A blast of darkness hit Pit in the back, and he scrambled to stay on his feet and spun around with his heart hammering in his chest. Nemo readied another strike as a mob of Underworld monsters began their assault on the angels. As he dodged a strike of energy and rolled to the side to catch a quick glimpse of Kuro and Ephraim trying to fight back against the wave. It was obvious that they were quickly being overwhelmed.

"Nemo..." Pit mumbled.

"Come now, Pitty!" Hades teased, and hearing Nemo's voice speak the words made Pit's stomach heave. "Try to make this fun for me, won't you? I've been waiting over a thousand years for this!" Pit clenched his fingers into a tight fist, but he dismissed his bow and summoned his staff in its place. He cast a stream of light to counteract Nemo's darkness before hurrying back to join his angels, aiming a sharp crescent at a soldier ready to hit Ephraim in the back while he was busy with another adversary.

"We're leaving," Pit said quickly, and neither angel said a word. Instead, they fell in on either side of him, and he turned to meet Nemo's gaze with an aching heart as he focused his energy. He lifted his staff and a light enveloped the three of them, and they disappeared a moment later.

"Well, poo," Hades sighed as the Underworld monsters looked around in confusion, still itching to spill blood. "Stand down, minions." He smirked. "We'll get them soon enough. I don't have to play nice anymore." His gaze dropped to Nemo's hand as a dark aura burst forth around it. "Just in time, too. Pretending to be this pompous little weakling is exhausting. He doesn't know how to have fun."

A heartbeat later, the trio arrived back in Skyworld's Gate chamber and all three collapsed into a panting, sweaty, and bloody mess, hearts pounding with adrenaline. Pit dismissed his staff as he sat up, trying to collect his thoughts into one coherent line that he could process with little success.

"Okay," Kuro said once he had caught his breath, though he still sounded incredibly winded. "Well, Pit, are you happy now? Got the answer you were looking for?"
"I need to talk to Remiel," Pit mumbled, paying little heed to his twin's question. "You two go rest and recover. We'll probably be heading out for battle again soon." He heaved himself up as Kuro did the same, and he held out his hand to Ephraim. The blue-eyed angel didn't immediately take it. "Ephy? Are you okay?" Ephraim looked up at him and finally took his hand, and Pit pulled him to his feet.

"It's nothing," he muttered. Pit frowned, but he had bigger things to worry about.

"You can talk to me about anything," he reminded the captain, and Ephraim nodded slowly.

"I will, Lord Pit," he replied. "I promise. I just... need to think."

"I understand." With that, Pit headed off and made his way to the chamber holding the Hot Spring, but when he got there, no one was inside. He sighed and turned around, this time bound for the temple's entrance. On the way there, however, he stopped as he found Lucina coming inside. She looked up and met his gaze, and briefly breathed his name in a sigh of relief before hurrying over and throwing her arms around him.

"Mmrph!" he grunted as she placed a rather fierce kiss to his lips before pulling back. "I missed you too." She said nothing as her fingers brushed over a bruise forming on his cheekbone, a cut on his chin. Her concerned face, the worry in her eyes that never left his, told him everything he needed to know. "I'm okay, Lucina." He sighed. "Look... I'll tell you everything in a little bit. But right now, I need to talk to Remiel. Where is he?"

"I'm not sure," she replied. "Aegle's been with him. I've been talking with Henry about the monsters attacking Ylisse." Her voice strained at the mention of her homeland. "He may have... unusual ways of showing it, but I know he's worried. And he tried talking to Remiel, but Rem would have none of it."
"It's worse than I thought," Pit admitted. "And that's why I need to talk to him." He took her hand in his for a moment. "Kuro and Ephraim are back in the Gate chamber- I think. Can you go make sure they're okay?" She nodded, and he kissed her forehead gently before releasing her hand. "Thank you." With that, they parted ways and he headed outside, opening up his mind to seek out his daughter somewhere in Skyworld.

Finding her didn't prove to be difficult, and he took to the skies for a short time before he landed on an islet bearing a shelter supported by marble pillars. Aegle sat cross-legged in front of it, her elbows braced against her legs and her chin against her palms. She looked up as he approached her and sprung to her feet.

"Father," she smiled briefly, but it faded as her eyes scanned over him. "What happened?"
"I'll tell you in a little bit," he told her. "Where's Remiel?" She pointed down, confusing him.

"He's sitting on the little place under here," she explained. "Hasn't said a word as far as I can tell. He's worried about Master Nemo and Levica. The Hot Spring healed his injuries well enough, but I think he's still hurting in other ways."

"Understandably," he agreed. "Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on him. Now, can you do me a favor?" She tipped her head to the side in wonder. "In my chamber, underneath my bed, there's a little box. Can you get it for me and bring it to the Gate chamber? I'll meet you there and explain everything then."

"I can do that," she agreed. "...Father, are we at war?" He didn't answer for a while.

"Yes." It was several moments before she spoke again.

"All right." With that, she headed for the edge of the islet and leapt up, gliding to the next one in the direction of the temple. He sighed and took back to the air, circling around until he could land on the small piece of land floating below the one he'd been on a moment earlier. It rarely saw sunlight and was rather bare as a result, though there was a small pool of water there. Remiel sat next to it, his legs drawn up against his chest and his forehead braced against his knees. He didn't stir even as Pit stepped toward him.

"What are you doing down here?" the god wondered casually. Remiel looked up weakly, his eyes stained redder than usual.

"When I feel down, I like dark places," he replied. "I guess it's something I got from my father." His voice broke as he said the last word, and Pit sat down next to him. Neither said anything for a while. "Did you find anything?" Remiel finally asked, and Pit found himself struck with hesitation.

"I did. And... Well, I might as well tell you that the Underworld has basically declared war on both the Overworld and Skyworld. But this isn't about the Celestial Balance or my deal with your father." He could see the dumbfounded anxiety in Remiel's eyes. "Rem... your father isn't the one that attacked you and me. Or, at least it wasn't his doing." He took a deep breath. "It was Hades." Remiel inhaled a sharp gasp and stared at him.

"H-Hades?!" he stammered. "That's impossible! Father destroyed him!"
"That's what we all thought," Pit agreed. "But apparently he couldn't completely wipe him out and still retain his power as the lord of the Underworld. So whatever was left sort of leeched off of Nemo and he's been waiting all this time for the chance to take over."

"N-No..." Remiel choked. "But... what about Father? What happened to him?!"

"I wish I knew," Pit sighed. "How much do you know about Hades?"
"Not much," Remiel admitted. "Only what Father told me- that he was the previous lord of the Underworld and killed for the fun of it, and that he was going to destroy the Balance. That's about it." Pit nodded.

"Does Henry know anything about him?" Remiel shook his head.

"No. I don't think he even knows who Hades is, let alone any details."

"Ephraim and Lucina don't know anything about him either..." Pit took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I think it's time Kuro and I brought you all up to speed on what happened before Nemo and I became gods." Remiel nodded and got to his feet as Pit did the same. "I'm going to call everyone to the Gate chamber. I'll tell you more then, okay?"

"All right. I'll see you there then." He paused. "And... Lord Pit, thank you for taking care of me." Pit smiled a bit and rested his hand on the prince's shoulder.

"Of course, Rem." He pointed to the pendant around Remiel's neck, the insignia of Light on one side and Darkness on the other. "I gave that to you when you were only a few hours old and vowed I'd do everything I could to keep you safe. And I intend to keep that vow no matter what happens." To his surprise, Remiel's tears shed anew and he quickly stepped forward, wrapping his arms tight around Pit's back and sobbing into his chest. Pit returned the embrace and stroked his hair gently.

"Thank you, Lord Pit..." he blubbered.

"I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, Rem," Pit replied. "And I'll do everything I can to get your parents back. I promise."