Chapter 16
Olympus Coliseum-Hades Cup
Sora didn't know where to go. They had been sitting in the Gummi Ship circling around Hallow Bastion with no clue where Ansem was.
"Guys!" Phil's voice came over the intercom. "We need your help here! Hades has taken over and is holding his own tournament! If you're not here in half an hour he's going to kill Herc!"
"Step on it!" Sora ordered and Goofy stomped his foot on the gas and they were off.
"Phil! Hercules!" Sora shouted as he tore through the worried crowd of people and ran up to the coliseum with Donald and Goofy. On top of the coliseum stood Hades with a beaten Hercules at his feet and Phil knocked out on the ground.
"Good! You made it!" Hades shouted. "This is it Keybearer! I'm going to prove once and for all who the most powerful warrior is!"
"Hold it right there Hades!" the crowd parted behind Sora and Cloud ran through with Leon and Yuffie close behind him.
"We won't let you take this world!" Leon shouted out to him.
"The Keyhole may be locked but I don't need the Heartless to deal with all of you losers! I'll crush you all!" Hades laughed. "You will all enter my tournament! Not only will you face each other but some of my friends as well!" From behind Hades came two large forms. One was a resurrected Cerberus and one Sora had never seen before. He was probably 150 feet tall and engulfed everything else. His body was made of rock entirely and he had two heads.
"What is that?" Leon asked in concern.
"This is the Rock Titan! He will crush you all!" Hades laughed again. "Now let me announce the match ups for this tournament!" Hades came down and stopped in front of a large board. "First will be Sora, Donald, and Goofy vs. Yuffie!"
Sora summoned the Oathkeeper to his side as he faced Yuffie down with Donald and Goofy readying their weapons as well.
"We don't have to fight," Yuffie said.
"Yes we do," Sora told her. "Only the strongest of us should face the Rock Titan and if you beat us then you deserve to go on and face him."
"I guess," Yuffie said as she pulled out her ninja stars.
"Hades!" Cloud and Leon ran up to the God of the Underworld. "We have a preposition for you!"
"What is that? Hurry, time is death," Hades smirked.
Donald and Goofy stood in front of Sora as the battle was set to begin. Donald turned toward Sora.
"I want you to leave this fight to us Sora," Donald said and Goofy nodded.
"You're stronger than both of us and we want you to save your strength for the battles coming up," Goofy told him. Sora was about to protest the idea but decided to just go along with his friends' wishes.
Donald ran at Yuffie with Goofy behind him. Yuffie jumped away and avoided a Blizarra but Goofy smashed into her with his shield. Yuffie flipped in midair and landed on her feet and tossed a star at Donald. Donald dodged it and used Aerora on himself. Goofy ran at Yuffie but Yuffie was much too quick and leapt away.
Donald fired two Firagas at Yuffie. Yuffie managed to dodge the first but the second slammed into her and she was launched backwards. Goofy was behind her before she hit the ground and slammed his shield into her, sending her forward and crashing through the ground.
Donald used a Blizarra but Yuffie jumped away at the last second. She ran forward with great speed and delivered a powerful uppercut to Donald. Goofy was right behind her and brought his shield down but Yuffie back flipped over him.
"Rocket!" Goofy yelled while Yuffie was in the air and he slammed into her. Yuffie was launched into the air and crashed down hard into the ground. Leon was quick to run out into the arena and help Yuffie up.
"Donald and Goofy win!" Hades shouted. "Now for the next match! It will be Sora, Donald, and Goofy taking on Cloud and Leon!"
"What?" Sora yelled as Cloud and Leon stepped out together. "How are we supposed to take both of them on?"
"This is it Sora!" Leon shouted as he raised the Gunblade. "This will be our last battle! Are you ready?"
"Not really," Sora said but Leon was ahead of him and was already swiping the Gunblade at him. Sora ducked under and slammed the Oathkeeper against it. The two met in a struggle for a second before Goofy came running at them. Sora jumped away only to have to duck a strike from Cloud.
Donald and Goofy both went around Leon and Sora squared off with Cloud. Cloud's black wing emerged from his back and he flew forward at an amazing speed. Cloud brought his sword down to hit Sora but Sora already had the Oathkeeper up. Even though he blocked the strike Sora was still sent to the ground by the force of it.
Leon jumped at Donald first but Donald was ready and dove out of the way. He cast Aerora on himself and Goofy and it paid off just as Leon hit the shield that now surrounded Goofy. Goofy attacked with his shield but Leon blocked it with the Gunblade and went to plunge the blade into Goofy's stomach. But Leon was knocked away by a powerful Firaga from Donald.
Cloud and Sora were engaged in a fierce sword match. Each one blocking their opponents strikes with amazing skill. While Leon was stronger than Sora, Sora was the better swordsman of the two. But Sora was willing to bet Cloud was not only stronger but the better swordsman as well. Sora blocked another strike from Cloud and tried another attack but that was blocked as well.
Donald's Aerora spells had worn off. It was just in time for Leon as Donald felt the full force of a powerful kick to his stomach. He swung his Gunblade in a powerful arc that would have crushed Goofy but Goofy was able to lift his shield in time. Goofy came back with a quick spin of his shield to Leon's stomach. Goofy charged at Leon but Leon was too quick and leaped over him.
Sora hopped into the air and used the extra force to slam the Oathkeeper onto Cloud's Buster Sword and knocking down just a little. It was all Sora needed and with a quick thrust he slammed the Oathkeeper into Cloud's chest.
"Ars Arcanum!" Sora shouted out and was able to land several quick strikes before Cloud regained his senses and started to block them. Sora jumped back and bumped into Goofy. They turned to look at each other for a second then both ducked and the Gunblade crashed into the Buster Sword in a shower of sparks. Sora rammed his shoulder into Cloud's gut and Goofy slammed his shield into Leon's.
Leon stumbled back and was blasted by a Thundara from behind. He spun around and swiped at Donald but Donald ducked and shot a Firaga right into Leon's face but Leon moved his head to the side and it passed by harmlessly.
"Charge!" Goofy shouted and slammed into Leon and while Leon was knocked into the air Donald hit him with a few Blizzara spells. Leon landed hard but got to his feet quickly. He held his sword high into the air and it became larger like he had done in the Pegasus Cup.
Leon charged at Goofy and even though Goofy was able to keep his shield up the force of the impact sent him flying away. Donald ducked under a swing of Leon's sword but as he was coming back up Leon lifted his leg and caught Donald with his knee.
Sora and Cloud were zipping around the ring with amazing speed. Even Leon was having a hard time keeping up with them. The Buster Sword and Oathkeeper crashed into each other once more but Sora did not try to push back. Instead he ducked down and rolled under a horizontal swipe from Cloud and slammed the Oathkeeper into Cloud's side with all he had.
He was not fast enough because before the Oathkeeper hit Cloud the subject of the attack was floating in the air with his black wing flapping slightly behind. Cloud dove back to the ground and swiped down with the Buster Sword but Sora jumped to the side just in time for the attack to miss.
Leon was caught up in the battle until he felt a raging pain in his side and looked down to see Goofy had hit him with the edge of his shield and had created a deep cut in his side. Leon stared in shock at Goofy until a Firaga hit his cut and he roared in pain as Donald stepped up to him.
"I…lose," Leon muttered before his eyes closed. Donald and Goofy shook hands but had to duck as Cloud's form went flying over them with Sora running at him. Sora swiped at Cloud with all he had but Cloud blocked it with his Buster Sword. Cloud broke away and flew into the safety of the air.
"You're not getting away that easily!" Sora shouted. "Ragnarok!" Sora jumped into the air and the great wave of energy launched from his Keyblade and hit Cloud right in his chest and Cloud hit the ground.
"Winners again! What crowd pleasers they are!" Hades laughed.
"Shut up Hades!" Sora yelled. "We need to finish this!"
"Whoa! Everybody's in such a hurry now a days," Hades said. "But if you want to rush then go face your next opponent!" Hades pointed to the far end of the Coliseum and the rejuvenated Cerberus appeared.
"I figure we won't get any breaks so let's try to finish this quickly," Sora nodded to Donald and Goofy and they nodded back. Sora ran forward with the Oathkeeper raised high above his head. He swiped at one of Cerberus's heads but it moved away and Sora had to jump to avoid another one.
Goofy brought his shield up and blocked a strike from a giant paw but he was knocked back still. He was on his feet quickly and running forward. He used Rocket and hit Cerberus on one his jaws and then used Tornado while still in the air. The attack hit the other two. While one head roared in pain Donald shot a Firaga right into it's mouth. Cerberus reared back and slammed his feet into the ground.
The shockwave knocked all three of them back. Sora rolled backwards and was the first to his feet. He ran forward a dodged a paw swipe from Cerberus and started to charge some energy.
"Sonic Blade!" he zoomed past Cerberus and tore into his side. All three of Cerberus's heads let out a terrible roar and he fell to the ground. Sora placed the tip of the Oathkeeper into the cut he made and prepared a powerful attack.
"Thundaga!" he shot off the third level Thunder spell inside of Cerberus and the demon beast was destroyed.
"Okay! That's it!" they heard Hades. "I'm taking you out right now!" Hades began to float into the air and landed in between the Rock Titan's heads. "I order you to destroy all of them!"
"Sora!" Cloud shouted and appeared next to him. "Hold on!" Cloud grabbed the back of Sora's shirt and blasted off into the air. "You're the one who needs to take out Hades! We'll handle the Rock Titan!" Cloud dropped Sora right in front of Hades.
"This is it Hades! I've had enough of you!" Sora pointed the Oathkeeper at Hades but all Hades did was laugh.
"You stupid kid! You know why I've lasted this long? Because I'm not a stupid idiot who thinks the Heartless could be controlled!" Hades' fire went from blue to red. "All those other fools were just being controlled! But the biggest difference is that you can't kill me! I am a God!"
"Will you shut up?" Sora shouted. "I'm really getting sick of you talking!" Sora ran forward with Oathkeeper raised.
"You're just another fool!" Hades raised his hand a blast of fire came from it. Sora couldn't move away and the attack sent him flying back and he almost fell off the Rock Titan but just managed to stop himself.
Leon jumped backward as the Rock Titan slammed its foot into the ground and there was a slight earthquake. Hercules had been awakened by Yuffie's Cure and was also joining the battle. Hercules grabbed the Rock Titan's foot and lifted with all of his amazing strength and it started to be lifted into the air.
Cloud flew down and grabbed the other side of the foot and also started to lift it. With a great heave the two tossed the Rock Titan and it fell onto its back.
"What's going on?" Hades yelled after getting off the ground. "Who could possibly make the Rock Titan fall?"
"That's not your matter right now Hades!" Sora shouted to him as he slowly got to his feet. "Your fight is with me!" Sora raised the Oathkeeper and took off the Keychain and placed it in his pocket. He pulled another Keychain out and placed it on.
The Keyblade shifted from a glowing, elegant white to bursting with darkness. Two black demon wings now surrounded the hilt that was once surrounded by angel wings. The blade was now the blackest black Sora had ever seen and had spikes sticking out of the sides. The key part was now some kind of Japanese symbol that also had spikes running along the sides.
"What the heck is that?" Hades asked in astonishment.
"Meet my new Keyblade, the Oblivion! I found the Keychain at Hallow Bastion where the Dark Keyblade once rested," Sora said. His voice was different though; it had an odd edge to it.
"New Keyblade or not you will die!" Hades shouted back and launched a blast of fire. Sora only chuckled and raised the Oblivion and the fire blasted away from it. Sora laughed and ran forward.
"Strike Raid!" Sora tossed the Oblivion and it struck Hades and sent him flying back. The Oblivion returned to his hand. He walked up to the Rock Titan who was just starting to get up. He slammed the Oblivion straight into one of the Rock Titan's head and it exploded as the blade entered inside it.
"What was that?" Cloud flew up to him and Donald and Goofy came running up to him as the body of the Rock Titan crumbled away.
"Amazing," Hercules said as he walked up. "No one has ever been able to destroy a Titan before." Goofy patted Sora on the back but Sora knocked his hand away.
"I've never felt anything like this before," Sora said and he turned around. Everyone there jumped back. Sora's eyes were glowing red. "This is true power."
"Aaaahhh!" came Hades' desperate shout as he burst from the rubble his landing has caused. "You will all pay for this!" Hades shot out some more fire but everyone jumped away. Sora ran up and ducked under another stream of fire before placing his hand in front of Hades' face.
"This is the end of the line for you Hades!" Sora shouted as his hand began to glow a fierce blue color. He spotted a piece of paper sticking from Hades' robes. "The final piece of the report I presume." Sora took the page of Ansem's Report.
"Your puny magic can do nothing against me!" Hades yelled.
"You forget, the Oblivion has given me greater strength than I ever dreamed," Sora laughed as he placed his glowing blue hand in front of Hades' chest. "Blizzaga!" The third level Blizzard spell slammed against Hades' chest and the God of the Underworld shouted out in pain and landed unconscious on the ground.
"Sora!" Leon ran up to him and grabbed his shoulder. "What are you doing?"
"Firaga!" Sora blasted Leon away with a sick sneer on his face. Turning to the others standing around him, Sora raised the Oblivion.
"Enough of this!" Cloud shouted and ran forward with his Buster Sword high. The two blades clashed against each other and Sora almost went into shock when the Buster Sword sent the Oblivion flying away.
"You fool!" Sora ran and dove for the Oblivion and turned it upon Cloud once again with an enraged look. "Thundaga!" Sora blasted the attack against the unsuspecting Hercules and Yuffie and they were blown away. Cloud raised his sword again.
"No," Cloud felt Goofy's hand on his shoulder and Donald and Goofy appeared next to him.
"We'll handle him," Donald said and the two of them walked right up to Sora. Sora chuckled as he saw Donald and Goofy stepping up.
"You two?" Sora laughed. "You two aren't on the same level as I am! You would barely be able to keep up with me!"
"Blizzaga!" Donald shot off quickly but Sora spun around quickly and used the Oblivion to knock it away. Goofy was upon Sora incredibly fast and attacked with his shield, hitting Sora in the stomach. Sora growled and lashed out with the Oblivion but Goofy blocked the strike and Sora was blown away from Donald's Thundaga.
Sora was clearly angry as he stood. He rushed forward with great speed and attacked Donald but he dodged and moved back out of Sora's reach. With a great surge of power Sora produced an incredibly large Firaga and Donald was hit hard. Goofy came back in with a Tornado but Sora rolled under his attack.
The Oblivion crashed against Goofy's shield. Sora began to push against Goofy but it turned out Goofy was physically the stronger of the two and knocked the Oblivion away before plunging the shield into Sora's stomach. Sora held tightly onto his stomach as Donald launched three Firaga spells at the wound and Sora was sent to the ground.
"How?" Sora asked as he felt the blood flow from him.
"We're your friends Sora," Goofy walked up to him. "We know everything about you, even how to beat you."
"Friends?" Sora looked with a confused face. "No! No friends! Only darkness!"
"Sora!" Donald shouted. "Stop doing this! Our journey isn't over yet! We have to defeat Ansem to save everyone! For Riku and Kairi!"
"Riku? Kairi?" Sora said weakly as blood continued to pour from him. "Donald and Goofy." Sora said with a smile on his face. "Thanks for beating the crap out me, only true friends could do that."
"No problem Sora!" Goofy laughed.
"Now let's heal you," Donald said. "That will need more than Cura. Curaga!" Donald used the third level cure spell and Sora sprang back to his feet.
"Now I really now what friends do for you," Sora said when the smirk suddenly returned to his face. "They make you weak!" Sora blasted a powerful burst of magic right into Donald and Goofy's faces. He laughed and raised the Oblivion above them. "Now I will eliminate you!"
"No," came a calm and cold voice. Sora was hit hard in the back of the head and his eyes drifted close as he fell to the ground, unconscious. Sephiroth stood above Sora with his blade out.
"Get away from him!" Cloud shouted and readied his Buster Sword.
"If you wish for me to purge the boy of his darkness, let me be," Sephiroth said as he reached his hand out and placed his hand over Sora's chest. There was a small shockwave and a beam of darkness flew from Sora and up Sephiroth's arm.
"Why would you do this?" Cloud asked.
"I wish to fight the Keybearer when he has complete control over his actions," Sephiroth turned and began walking away. "I will return soon." Sephiroth was gone again but Cloud made no move to follow him and instead ran over to Sora.
"Is he okay?" Donald asked as he and Goofy stood shakily on their feet.
"He'll be fine," Hercules walked up and picked Sora off the ground. "I'm sure he just needs a bit of rest."
"Hey guys!" Yuffie shouted. "Hades is gone! He must have gotten away while we were distracted."
"That's not a problem right now," Leon said as he helped Goofy maintain his balance and Cloud did the same for Donald. "We better get these three inside."
"I did all of that?" Sora asked after they had explained everything to him. "I'm really sorry you guys."
"Everyone's alive, nothing to worry about," Leon said and Cloud nodded. Hercules was caring for Phil in the next room over. Donald and Goofy sat on Sora's bed with Leon, Cloud, and Yuffie standing around them.
"You might want that," Cloud pointed to the Oblivion resting against the wall.
"No way! What if it transfers darkness into me again?" Sora shouted.
"It won't, Sephiroth took care of that," Cloud said, saying the name Sephiroth as if it was the worst kind of poison in the world.
"Well, okay," Sora walked over and grabbed the Oblivion and to his relief nothing happened.
"I'm going to get a head start home Squall," Yuffie said as she walked out the door.
"That's Leon!" he shouted back to her.
"We better get going Sora," Goofy patted him on the back.
"You guys go, I'll be right there," Sora said and the nodded and left. Sora realized he was now alone with Leon. "Where'd Cloud go?"
"Who knows?" Leon sighed and started to leave.
"Wait," Sora grabbed his arm. "Yuffie has called you Squall before, why?" Leon turned back and sighed again.
"My real name is Squall Leonhart," he started. "The world I come from, originally, was at a time of peace thanks to me and a bunch of my friends. I was the strongest warrior in the world.
"Then the Heartless came. My friends and I fought them but there were too many. My friends counted on me but I let them down and now they're all dead. Squall Leonhart was a man who let his friends down and I swore never to do that again. So when I arrived at Hallow Bastion I changed my name to Leon."
"Wow," was all Sora could say.
"Being a hero is a burden Sora. Being the strongest there is means you are the one everyone will look to when it really counts. Try not to let them down Sora," Leon turned away and walked out the door. Sora was stunned silent for a moment but soon went out to join Donald and Goofy.