Hi guys! It's my ninth chapter of Guardian Hearts! I really have nothing left to say except those who don't like a lot of fighting and an explosion or two should skip this. You'll miss Olympus Coliseum though…Donald?

Donald- "Finally!"

Why do you always need to be so impatient? Just say your line.

Donald- Fine. Destiny only owns this dumb story, nothing else.

You're one of the characters in this "dumb story".

~ Chapter 9 – Olympus Coliseum ~

"No way," Sora exclaimed, "That really happened?"

Ash nodded. He had just finished telling the others what happened when they disappeared. The same shock from before was still in his eyes, but it dulled down a lot in the past few hours of flying.

"Don't worry," Goofy reassured, "We'll find her."

"Yeah!"

A few Dalmatians from Wonderland hopped on Ash and licked him.

Donald spoke up. "We're now approaching Olympus Coliseum. Get ready, we're almost in position."

~ O ~

The quartet teleported down to the world. The first thing that anyone would notice about this world was the giant gold statues. Donald stared in awe.

They walked through some giant doors to see a goat man, satyr, on a pedestal. Sora tried to say something, but the satyr interrupted, "Good timing. Give me a hand, will ya? Move that pedestal over there for me. I gotta spruce this place up for the games."

Ash whispered, "It's not going to move…"

Sora and the others ignored Ash, and tried to push. Ash smirked at Sora as they walked back. "Shut up."

Sora turned to the goat and said, "It's way too heavy!"

"What," the goat replied, "Too heavy? Since when have you been such a little—" The goat turned and saw the quartet. "Oh. Wrong guy." Ash kept smirking. In his head, he was laughing so hard, it hurt. Sora shot Ash a death glare. The goat man continued, "What're you doing here?"

The satyr thing hopped down and said, while walking to the heavy pedestal, "This here's the world-famous Coliseum—heroes only! And I got my hands full preparing for the games. So run along pip-squeaks."

Sora glared while the goat put his hands on his hips. "Look, it's like this. Heroes are coming from all over to fight ferocious monsters right here in the Coliseum."

Donald complained, as usual, "You got heroes standing right in front of you."

Goofy added, putting a hand on both Sora and Ash's shoulders, "Yup. These two are real heroes chosen by the Keyblade!"

Sora then said, "Ash has saved his world and other things plenty of times!"

Ash then said, "Sora is just about the same."

Donald then said, referring to him and Goofy, "And we're heroes, too."

The goat looked surprised. "Heroes? Those runts?" He had a laughing fit.

"What's so funny," Sora asked, "We've fought a bunch of monsters!"

Ash muttered, "And you wouldn't believe what I've faced."

The satyr kept laughing. "Hey, if you can't move this…" He tried to push the heavy pedestal. "You can't call yourself…" He kept trying to push it. Sora crossed his arms. "…a hero!" The goat man gave up and panted. "Okay, so it takes more than brawn. Well, well, let's see what you can do." He paused to take deep breaths. "The trial is tough. You got what it takes? You ready?"

Sora and Ash nodded.

Okay, spiky. Let's see what you've got."

"It's Sora," he complained.

Ash, Donald, and Goofy were on the sidelines. They watched Sora bust some barrels within a time limit. Donald and Goofy called out, "GO, SORA!"

Sora made it to the next round of barrels and smashed them all.

"Hey, you're better than I thought," the goat man said. Sora smiled. "But not good enough. A Snorlax could do that is less than half of the time!"

Ash perked up. "A Snorlax?"

"Yeah," the satyr said, "This big, blue Pokemon creature. I think that's what it's called."

Ash was dumbfounded. He tossed his Pokedex to Sora. It quietly read:

"Snorlax, the Sleeping Pokémon. Snorlax isn't satisfied unless it eats at least 900 pounds of food per day. Once it is full, it promptly goes to sleep."

Everyone stared wide-eyed. Sora, Donald, and Goofy looked at the satyr, then Ash, then back at the satyr. "In fact, I vacation on that world every so often."

Ash then said, "Um, that's my world."

It was the satyr's turn to look shocked. "No kidding. Probably both the best and worst time I was there," if that's even possible, "was when that world was going loopy. I heard that in deserts, it snowed! I was vacationing on this Shmamauooi Islands. It poured!"

Ash looked down at the ground.

Everyone looked at him in confusion.

He suddenly looked back up, "Um, that day wouldn't happen to be when somebody messed with the three legendary birds? Oh, and it's Shamouti by the way."

Sora looked up the legendary birds and went wide-eyed.

"Yeah! Shamouti! Luckily, for some odd reason, everything just stopped. I was able to vacation with relaxation. I even got the best massage."

"Um…I think I kind of stopped that…"

"WHAT!" The satyr was completely shocked. Ash explained the story. "Okay, kid. Thank you for saving my vacation…Anyways, you're up!"

It was then Ash's turn. He smiled, thinking it would be a barrel test. He was wrong. "So, kid," the satyr shouted from the sidelines, everyone was hiding behind a sturdy bunker, "If you're who you say you are, Mr. Chosen One, let's see if you can last this! The rules are simple: Anything goes! Last in the arena for five minutes, and you pass. In fact, I'll throw in this!" The satyr held up a pass. "And…Begin!"

The arena was wider than the normal one. This was because booby traps were set up everywhere. There was even hidden surprises like-

BOOM

Ash flew back to the edge of the arena. He glared at the satyr, who was having the time of his life.

Ash stepped on one tile, and it sprang him up, sending him flying into the air. He came back down.

BOOM

~ O ~

Sora asked the satyr, "Are you sure his not going to, how should I put this, DIE!"

"Relax. The worst that will happen is a few bruises and cuts, maybe a broken leg or arm. This field is a death-free zone. Guaranteed! If he thinks he'll die, he'll push himself to win."

Sora looked uneasily at the field.

~ O ~

An axe fell and swung at Ash. He jumped over it and cast a fire spell on them.

BOOM

~ O ~

"Are you sure he's not going to die," Donald asked.

"Posit—AH!"

"What," Sora asked.

"My remote is out of batteries! It's not on death-free mode!"

Everyone stared at him. They shouted, "ASH! GET OUT OF THERE!"

~ O ~

Ash was busy avoiding the traps to hear. A shot of lightning hit him, but it didn't do anything. He then had an idea. He looked at the clock. It read: 4 minutes left.

"Great," Ash thought, "It's only been a minute of this. Oh well, I survived a minute. I'm sure I can handle this."

Ash stood on a few non-exploding tiles and said, "Fire!"

~ O ~

"Phil," Donald said, having been told the name of the satyr a little earlier, "Can't you just get batteries and TURN IT ON!"

"I'm sorry! I can't! I'm all out and when that arena's own, and even if I did, it can only be switched on and off in between training."

*LARGE EXPLOSION*

Everyone looked at the arena to see smoke. They looked at the clock, time was up. Suddenly, a scratched up Ash walked out of the arena and fainted.

Sora helped Ash up a while later.

Ash walked to a glowing circle in the ground and healed. He turned to Phil and said, "I am never going to do that again!"

"Well anyways," Phil said, "Here you go, kid." He handed Ash a pass.

"Looks like we're headed to the games," Sora said, putting his hands behind his head.

"Afraid not."

"Why not!"

"Three words: You guys aren't heroes!"

Goofy counted the words.

"Ash survived, he gets a pass. For himself!"

"Come on!"

Obtained the spell: Thunder

Ash obtained: Protectega Ring (he's going to need it.)

The trio walked outside while Phil had a talk with Ash.

"Rather a stubborn old goat," a voice said, "Wouldn't you say?"

By then, a blue man with fire for hair and a black robe was the owner of the voice.

"Who are you," Donald asked.

"Whoa, hold on there, fuzz boy. Wait, let me guess. You want to enter the games, right?" He walked up to them and put a hand on Sora's shoulder. "Well, then, hey, get a load of this." He held out a pass.

"A pass," Sora asked.

"It's all yours. Good luck, kid. I'm pulling for you, little shorty." He walked away. Little did they know, Ash saw the whole thing.

FLASHBACK

"Thanks Phil," Ash said, on his way to the others, "I'll tell them that they can enter the games."

Ash walked to the door. When it opened to a crack, he stopped.

Ash saw a blue man talking to Sora and the others. He instantly recognized the man from the group that took Alice. In fact, he was the only one he got a really good look of. The only thing he saw on the skeleton was those red eyes and guts. Besides, who could miss flaming blue hair?

He closed the door behind him when the man gave Sora the pass.

"Hey Phil," Ash asked.

"Yeah kid?"

"Do you know a blue man with flames for hair?"

Phil's face paled. "Why?"

"I saw him when we first arrived here," Ash lied.

Phil sighed and explained what he knew.

"Okay, oh and, Phil."

"Yeah?"

"Sora was able to find a pass."

"What!"

"Act surprised when they come in."

~ O ~

The trio walked through the doors of the lobby.

Ash and Phil acted surprised that Sora found a pass.

"That's great," Ash said with fake excitement. He was actually a pretty good actor. Phil wasn't, but he already was surprised. "Now we can enter the games together."

The quartet made it through the match Shadow Scout. They saw a guy in a cape with spiky-blonde hair and blue eyes walk by.

They then faced the Sinisters, Heat & Freeze, Shadow Platoon, Blue Revenge, and just finished the Big One.

~ O ~

Off a little ways, in the shadows, the blue man called Hades talked to the blonde-haired guy.

"Now, don't blow it. Just take him out."

"The great god of the Underworld is afraid of a kid? Sorry, but my contract says—"

"I know! You think I don't know? I wrote the contract! I know it says you're only required to kill Hercules in this tournament. But you've gotta fight that kid to get to him. Come on. Hey, it's like that old goat says: Rule 11: It's all just a game, so let loose and have fun with it! I mean, a casualty or two along the way is no big deal, right?"

The blonde walked off.

~ O ~

It was time for the final match: Cloud.

When the match first started, Cloud immediately jumped into action. It was ten minutes later, and Donald and Goofy were unconscious, for a third time! Sora, Cloud, and Ash were all breathing heavily. Everyone was out of any magic or healing items they had.

Cloud darted with his sword and attacked Ash. Ash jumped to avoid it, and both their blades met. They pushed into each other, neither one giving up. Ash suddenly spun around, Cloud's blade was stuck in his Keyblade's teeth. Both swords slammed into Cloud. Clown flew back with his sword then ran at Ash, only to get hit by Sora.

Cloud slashed at them before he fell to his knees, both doing the same. He then struggled to get up, he walked over to Ash. He then turned and went to Sora. He raised his sword high while everyone else watched in horror. Ash struggled too, but quickly got up to block the attack that would take Sora's life. It never came.

Suddenly, a black, three-headed dog appeared in the Coliseum. It howled. A dark mist came out of its mouth. It was either darkness itself, or it's been eating too many dead people. In this case, both!

"Oh, right, there was one other rule I forgot: Accidents happen," Hades said, disappearing into the shadows.

The dog lunged at the three, but was pushed away by none other than Hercules!

"Herc," Phil shouted.

"Phil," he said holding the dog, Cerberus, back, "Get them out of here!"

They all ran.

Ash stopped halfway through the tunnel and looked back.

~ O ~

"Whew! That was close," Phil said to the others in the lobby. "That was Cerberus, guardian of the Underworld. Herc should be able to handle him. But then again, maybe not… This doesn't look good."

Sora then looked around in realization. "Where's Ash?"

Both Donald and Goofy shrugged, then went wide-eyed. In unison they shouted, "You don't think he—"

BANG

The trio ran towards the arena door, when Phil stopped them and said, "Kid, you're not entering the arena, are ya?"

"Ash is in there," Sora replied, "We can't just sit there."

"Herc's in there with him. Everything will be fine."

*PILLARS CRUMBLE*

The trio glares at Phil. é

"Then again, maybe not!"

They all ran to the arena.

Backed in a corner was Hercules carrying an unconscious Cloud. Ash was holding on for dear life while on the back of the dog, riding in like a malfunctioning mechanical bull.

"Hi." Cerberus bucked. "Guys." Cerberus flipped. Ash looked sick and slashed at the dog. It howled in pain and glared evilly at Ash. He dizzily said, "You gonna help, or what?" Suddenly, the dog heads grabbed Ash and swung him into the stands. Ash flipped mid-air, using his feet to jump of the wall, and land on the ground. His dizziness was gone.

Phil shouted, "Hey kiddies! This ain't no carnival! Attack!"

As always, Donald and Goofy got knocked out.

Ash was already hurt enough from the battle with Cloud. The one with Cerberus only added to the stress.

Sora was exhausted.

Cerberus only had minimal damage. It was bad enough that he was big and strong, but his breath, unimaginable. He poured the black mist out of his mouth. Sora was able to dodge it, but Ash wasn't as lucky. He disappeared in the mist. *cough* *cough* *cough* "So-" *cough* "-ra…" *cough* *cough* *cough* The mist cleared, and Ash was gagging. In truth, Cerberus had a total of ten dead people, twenty dead animals, thirty total of what was living people and animals, and rotten meat. And that was only today! Plus, his teeth were never brushed and it's been a year or two since his last bath.

Ash was seeing black spots. He shook his head, trying to stay awake. *cough* *cough* *cough* He swiped his Keyblade at the dog, then stumbled over to Sora.

"You alright," he asked.

*cough* *cough* "I've been through worse." *cough* *cough*

Ash and Sora then looked at each other and nodded.

Sora shot a powerful Thunder spell at the heads.

He suddenly jumped out of the way, and Ash came running up.

"Here doggy, doggies," he taunted, fire forming around him. "Bad dogs!"

He blasted three fire balls into each of the mouths, which were wide open. Here's a hint on what happened next… Gas + Fire =

BOOM

Cerberus collapsed to the ground. Sora and Ash gave each other high fives.

~ O ~

A few minutes later, everyone was back in the lobby. The quartet was healed, but Ash

couldn't stop coughing every once in a while.

Phil read of a scroll, "Thus, I do hereby dub thee junior heroes, and confer upon thee full rights and privileges to participate in the games. Further—"

"Hey! What do you mean 'junior heroes,'" Donald exclaimed.

"You rookies still don't understand what it takes to be a true hero."

"So, what does it take," Goofy asked.

Hercules replied, "Well, that's something you'll have to find out yourselves. Just the way that I did."

*cough* Ash smiled. He already knew the answer. *cough*

"No problem," Sora said, "We'll start by proving ourselves in the games." Ash face-palmed, but nodded in agreement. He also coughed again.

Phil shook his head and said, "There ain't gonna be any games for a while. Gotta clean up that mess from the last battle first."

"Okay, we'll be back." With that, they left.

Phil turned to Hercules and said, "I still can't believe that squirt actually beat Cerberus."

Hercules said to him, "Just between you, me, and Ash, we already worn it down by the time the little guy jumped in."

"My lips are sealed. I must admit though, Ash has potential."

"Yeah, I guess with hard work, the little guy could too…"

Okay, and that's the end. Before any of you guys ask, in this chapter, I wanted to display Ash's determination, also his recklessness and a few other things. How'd you like it? Please review!