Part 4.1: The Hero's Rite
After a few minutes of deciding who would pilot, Donald reclaimed his position. Throughout the trip, Cyrus was downstairs contemplated on the conversation he had with the young woman in Tarzan's world. "I still don't understand," he thought to himself. "What happened at Hallow Bastion that has something to do with me? And my abilities. I don't understand what she means by them developing. Does this have to do with what happened in the cave?" Cyrus once again took a look at his left arm. "It turned invisible. I know it did! But how? Wait, did I somehow absorb that Stealth Sneak's abilities? How are she and I are connected? She says that her past and mine are intertwined. But why?"
"What are you thinking about, Cyrus?" Maria asked as he walked over toward him.
"Er… Nothin'," he said nonchalantly. "Just thinkin' of our predicament. Whatever this door is that everyone's talking about is intense. This phenomenon has caused a flux in the dimensional barrier of subspace. I'm so psyched about this!"
"Glad you're enjoying this."
"Oh, you know you are, too."
Maria shook her head. "I wonder what's happened to Elicoor II?"
"Good question. When we last left it, those Heartless were just starting to multiply. I have studied the reproduction of Heartless and invasion of regular life-supporting planets yesterday. Every few minutes, around a few hundred Heartless are spawned. In order for them to invade an area the size of a continent, it could take around a few days. We did witness such a thing back in the jungle, remember?"
"That's right. The Heartless were starting to populate. If we weren't there, the world would have been destroyed."
Cyrus nodded. "At a normal rate, if the Heartless continue to wage siege to Elicoor, the world will be their's in a week. From what Sora told us back in Traverse Town, there will be nothing left once it's acquired."
"But you said in a week, didn't you? Sora's vanished in less time."
"Yes, but that's wasn't a regular circumstance. I meant something that would temporarily control the numbers like combat."
"Then what caused Sora's world to collapse so quickly?"
"Perhaps there wasn't much competition. The Heartless feed off of people's hearts, correct? With a plentiful supply and a hardly any interference, the number multiplied. But that's just one theory. Or perhaps it was because of the Keyblade."
"That could be it. Didn't Leon say that the Heartless would attack whoever wielded the Keyblade?"
"Yes. The Heartless do fear it. The question is why?"
"Could it be because of its reaction to the keyholes?"
"That could be it. Every time we come across them, the keyblade 'locks' it. I wonder what purpose that effect has? You know, Donald told me something earlier. He said that the Heartless are targeting certain people. Could this mean somebody is pulling the strings in this puppet show?"
"Then I guess we need to find them and whoever the Heartless are attacking."
"Unfortunately, we don't have that much to go on. But I have a feeling it will come sooner than we expect."
On the speakerphone, Donald sent a message. "Attention all personnel!" he said. "We are now ready to disembark on a new world!"
"Wow," Roger said as he walked up to Maria and Cyrus. "I thought his voice was irritating in person."
"I heard that!" shouted the mage in frustration. The three joined the rest of the party upstairs in the cockpit. Outside the ship, they saw the new world. It was a large building settled on a cloud.
"I wonder what that place is?"
"Well, let's dock this ship and check it out," Cyrus said. The team landed their ship outside the establishment and entered the through the front gates. The group was in awe as they saw how large it was.
"This place is huge…" Sora said.
"Aren't those gladiators?" Sophia asked as she looked at the statues on each side on the gate.
"That's right. A group of warriors that fought in ancient Rome and Greece. They were actually slaves for wealthy aristocrats and were trained at an early age. They were pitted in arenas and would fight to the death in order to achieve victory."
"That's tough," Sora said.
"I wonder what that sign says," Roger said.
The group walked over to the sign that was in front of the building. "Let's see…" Nel read. "'Olympus Coliseum: where heroes from all around compete. Join the games and see if you have what it takes.'"
"So, I see you guys made it," a kind feminine voice said behind them.
"It is good to see some familiar faces in this strange scene," a younger, refined voice replied. The group turned around and saw two people. One was a blonde woman with a short vest and heavy shorts with stocky boots. The other was a boy of Asian decent no older than Cyrus and Sora. He wore black eyeglasses, a yellow bandanna, a blue blazer, and red baggy pants.
"Yo, my main brother, Lude!" Cyrus said as he approached the two. "What's happenin', son!" The two hit the tops of one another's fists before pounding them into one another. Then they pulled themselves forward and crossing their arms.
"It's good to see you, captain," the blonde woman said to Maria.
"You too, Mirage."
"Um…" was the only thing Sora could say as he stared at the Klausian woman.
Mirage walked over to him leaned down to his level. "Is there something wrong?" she asked. "You don't look so good."
"Er… It's nothing, really, miss…"
Donald cleared his throat. "Could someone please tell me who these two are?"
"Hold your horses!" Roger replied. "The guy over there is Lude. He started his own dojo in Arias and is a good friend of Cyrus."
"I am humbled by your acquaintance," Lude said.
"And the gorgeous woman is Mirage. She is not only Maria's teacher, but she happens to run some of the stuff on the Diplo."
"It is a pleasure to meet you," Mirage said. "I think we'll get along fine."
"Well, I'm Sora. These guys are Goofy and Donald."
"Hello," Goofy said.
"Nice to meet you," Donald said.
"Why don't we go inside," Lude suggested.
"Okay, then," Sora said. "Let's go ahead and sign up." The party went inside the building, eager to enlist in the event. The lobby was small and cooler than outside. On a small pillar was a small being with hoofed feet and a round upper body arranging the sign. "Hi…" Sora said before the figure began.
"Perfect timing," it said. "Since you're here, how about you move that block over there."
The group looked over to the right of the room and saw the large obstacle. "We don't have time for this!" Donald replied.
"Come on. It's only a second." Sora walked over to the object and pushed. "However, the concrete block wouldn't budge. "Man… This is harder… than I thought…" Lude, Nel, Cyrus, and Goofy assisted the Keyblader. However, there efforts were still in vain. The block weighed too much and their attempt to move it failed.
"This is ludicrous!" Lude shouted.
"This thing is pretty heavy," Goofy said.
"This thing is heavier than Crossell," Nel replied.
"Move this?" Cyrus yelped. "The thing ain't even budging!"
"Hey, this thing is too heavy!" Sora replied.
"What?" the small person said. "How is it too heavy? Since when were you-?" He stopped as soon as he turned around and saw Sora. "Oh, wrong guy."
"Amazing," Lude said as he adjusted his sunglasses. "An actual satyr."
"What's that?" Goofy asked.
"What do you think?" the satyr said. "Half man, half goat. What, this is the first time you've seen one?"
The group stood dumbfounded. "That's a trick question, right?" Cyrus quipped.
"Look, what are you guys doin' here? I'm busy getting this place ready for the big games. And it's heroes only! Didn't you ready the sign up front?"
"That's the reason why we're here, Mr…" Mirage said.
"It's Phil. And you, competing in the games? You ain't no heroes!"
"Ha!" Donald retorted. "You have heroes standing right in front of you!"
"That's right," Goofy said. "Sora here was chosen by the Keyblade."
"And we're heroes, ourselves," Roger said.
"You? Heroes?" At that moment, Phil exploded in laughter. "That's a good one."
"I don't think this is going well," Sophia said.
"No kidding," Maria replied.
"Why ain't you believin' us, ungulate?" Cyrus said with folded arms. "We're the real deal, yo."
"Look, it's nothing personal," Phil said. "It's just that this here is the world famous coliseum. People come here to watch heroes prove their strength and fight vicious monsters."
"Forgive me for interjecting, but we have fought our fair share of abominations," Lude said.
"And Mirage is currently our strongest member," Nel said.
"Yeah, sure," Phil replied. The satyr walked over to the block and began pushing. "If you guys… can't even… move this… rock…" Cyrus, Lude, Donald, and Sora were trying to hold straight faces while fighting back the urge to sneer. Roger was already snickering. After using all of his strength, Phil slid down to catch a breath.
"You were saying?" Maria replied.
"Okay, maybe it takes a more than just brawn."
"Straight diggy," Cyrus replied as he made quick punching and blocking motions. "It also takes the quickness and slick moves."
"There's that. You know, I have an idea. If you guys think you're so good, let's see what you got."
The group was silent. "What do you mean?" Mirage asked.
"Simple. I'll put you guys on a trial!"
"Huh?" was the only reply Sora could make.
"A trial, huh?" Lude said.
"This should be entertaining," Cyrus replied with a smile.
"Fine," Nel said. "Lead the way."
"Step right up," Phil said. Philocetes lead to team outside to the stadium. The group could not believe how huge it was. Even Cyrus and Lude were taken aback. The arena was larger than it was seen in the game, looking more like a Roman stadium. On the floor where battles were normally held, there were barrels throughout the area. In the center, the battlefield was elevated with large stone pillars and more barrels. "I gotta learn that everythin's not what it seems like in the game," Cyrus thought to himself.
"Welcome to the training field. The rules are simple, you two will go around and break all twenty-nine of these barrels in ninety seconds. But there's a catch. You gotta rely not only on speed and brawn, but brains too. Think you're ready?" he said pointing to Cyrus and Sora.
"Why us?" Sora asked.
"Yeah." Cyrus added.
"Two words: Because You Think You're Heroes."
"Two words?" Goofy questioned as he scratched his head. "That was… five!" the guard said holding up all four fingers and a thumb.
"If you guys can finish this course, than I might consider to let you guys compete."
"Great, tested by a sheep," Cyrus said under his breath. "So, you ready, homes?"
"You bet! Let's go!"
"Good, perhaps you could learn a few tricks from me."
"Right," Sora whirred. "I'm sure, I will."
"On your marks…" Phil said. "Get set… GO!"
With the Keyblade and lightsaber ready, the two raced to the obstacle course. Cyrus listened to "Lethal Highway" from Shadow the Hedgehog. The duo managed to break through the first three barrels in no time. The took a left and went around the corner, while going through a crowd of wooden planks painted to look like people that moved left and right on tracks. They did this, breaking thirteen targets, before jumping up on the right side of the platform. "You're making good time," Mirage replied. "Keep it up!"
There was a small body of water with mechanical snapping jars in it. Sora leapt through the jaws just before they closed which Cyrus jumped on top of and smashed two barrels. "All right, you two!" Donald cheered.
"I gotta admit, they ain't too bad," Phil complimented. They went up another level and were surrounded by six targets. With the powers of Blizzard and Blazing Sword, the two were able to destroy the wooden objects and proceed up to the next level where eliminated the other three. "You guys got five seconds." The two turned to two the six towering pillars. Cyrus took the three on the left as Sora took the other side. They reached the last pillars and hacked at the remaining barrels. Before Phil could count to one, both barrels were shattered simultaneously. The challenge was over.
"That wasn't too hard," Sora replied as he spun the Keyblade.
"It would've been harder if the barrels could fight back," Cyrus sneered as he turned off his lightsaber and did a flare. The two went back to the satyr and their team. "I believe we aced yo' test, Philly."
"Okay, not bad, you two," Phil said.
"I guess this means we're goin' to the games," Roger said.
"Think again."
"What do you mean?" Sora asked.
"Two words: You guys ain't heroes!"
"Do we have to go through with this again?" Nel asked. "We are heroes. And besides, Cyrus and Sora passed your test."
"I don't understand why you won't let us enter," Mirage said.
"Really?" Phil said. "Well where's your pass?"
"Uh-oh…" Lude replied silently. "I believe our hoofed friend got us."
"Damn…" Cyrus replied.
"As you say, 'this is not cool'," Nel said with a nod from Cyrus.
"Here," Phil said as he tossed a small scroll to Sora with the essence of Thunder. "In the mean time, why don't you practice with that spell for awhile." The group left the arena and walked out of the lobby.
Part 4.2: Coliseum Chaos
"I told you it was pointless to come here," Donald said as they walked to the gate.
"Not now, Donald," Sora said.
"Well, I guess we have no choice but to take our ride to the next world," Cyrus said.
"Leaving so soon?" a male voice said. The team turned around and saw a strange man wearing a long robe with a skull on the right strap. His face long with a rather large chin. He almost looked like a tired Jay Leno, but skinnier with blue skin and a blue flame for hair. "Hey, rather a stubborn old goat, wouldn't you say?"
"You're telling us," Roger said.
"Who are you?" Donald asked.
"Whoa! Hold up there, fuzz boy," the man said.
"Hey, you're the-" before Lude could continue, Cyrus covered his mouth and hushed him. "But he's-"
"A guy with the blue flame," Cyrus replied. "That's pimp, man."
"Thanks, I think," the blue flamed man said as he walked behind Sora and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Anyway, you want to get into the games, right?"
"Yeah…" Sora said.
"Well, I can see that you have the eyes of a true hero. Well then get a load of this…" Spawning from a small flame, a pass appeared in the man's hand.
"A pass?"
"That's right."
"Are you sure we can take this?" Mirage asked. "We can pay if you like."
"No, go ahead and take it." Taking his advise, Sora took the pass and put it in his pocket.
"Thank you, sir," Goofy said.
"Hey, good luck you guys. I'm pullin' for ya."
The group walked back to the building where Sora flashed the pass at Phil. "Hey, look what I got!" he said.
"No way!" Phil snatched the pass and inspected it. "This really is a pass. How did you get this?"
"So, are we in?" Cyrus asked. "Or are you goin' to try another futile attempt?"
Phil sighed, knowing that there was nothing more he can do. "Alright… You're in. We'll start with the preliminaries. Are you guys ready?"
"You bet we are!" Sora said eagerly.
"Okay. Just so you know, some weirdos have also entered the games. Be careful out there."
"Hey, you're talkin' to the OGC and his crew," Cyrus said. "We can take whatever they dish out."
"Correct," Lude nodded. The group headed outside and fought in the preliminaries. To make sure everyone participated, the battling team was a five person party. With every match, they switched their positions with another member. Their opponents that the group faced were Heartless that they faced before from previous worlds. However, the dark enemies were no match for their combined power. In one of the battles, Mirage lifted a Large Body and tossed the enemy across the ring like it was nothing. Sora, Donald, and Goofy were speechless.
After the third match, the team stood at the lobby door. "Wow…" Goofy said.
"How were you able to do that?" Sora asked Mirage.
"You picked that Heartless up like it was nothing," Donald said.
"You mean that thing from the last match?" Mirage asked innocently. "It was nothing, really."
"But how?" Sora asked.
"Because Mirage is a Klausian," Maria explained. "Her race is quite powerful and known for their athletic abilities. Their strength and speed outmatch ordinary people with ease."
"That's amazing," Sora said.
"Well, I have to say, you guys aren't heroes yet, but you ain't doing bad," Phil said. "It's a good thing you came to me for some training."
"Yeah," Roger sneered. "We couldn't have done it without you."
"What does that mean?" Phil said with a serious tone.
"N-Nothin', sir." the Menodix said as he shook his hands submissively.
"Hey, I just thought of something," Sophia said, earning the attention of the team.
"What is it, Soph?" Cyrus asked.
"Doesn't it seem odd that the Heartless are here in this tournament?"
"Yeah, that's right," Donald said.
"I wonder why they're here?" Sora said.
"Hey you guys!" Phil interrupted. "We need to get ready for the next fight!"
The group became quiet as a tall figure walked past them. His upper arms was wrapped in a guard. He wore large boots and dark clothes. Bristling in the breeze was his cape from behind. His mouth was covered by his clothing and his hair was spiked. On his back was a sword with a large, wrapped blade. He set his glare mainly to Sora and Cyrus. "Whoa, never knew how similar Cloud is compared to Sora," Cyrus thought. "Then again, I'm the same person that sees some resemblance in Yuffie and Nel."
"Something tells me he's going to be hard to beat. There's a chance you'll face him before you know it."
"Great," Cyrus said with a smile. "I can't wait."
"Man, I wish he was here to see it."
"Who do you mean?" Sophia asked.
"Hercules, a hero if there ever was a hero. Too bad he's off visiting his father, Zeus, king of the gods."
"Now those are royalties," Donald said.
The team went back into the ring, ready to fight in the next match. With the combined attacks of Goofy, Maria, Roger, Sophia, and Lude, the five defeated the opponents. "The last match!" Phil replied. "It's Cloud vs. Sora's team!"
Cloud stepped walked to the ring, but stopped in front of the team. "If you're thinking about leaving, now is your chance. But if you're thinking of fighting, then don't waste my time." With that warning, the swordsman walked to the center.
"He's as annoying as Albel," Nel said.
"Look alive, everybody," Mirage said.
"This guy think he's skilled," Cyrus said. "It's time to bring on the pain."
"There's no way he can beat us," Sora replied.
"Go get him!" Donald replied.
Cyrus, Nel, and Sora stepped into the ring and got into their fighting positions. "Yo, chump, got some news for ya!" Cyrus replied. "You're the one who should've forfeited. Now we's gonna be disturbin' the peace, bee-yotch!"
"Great," Cloud said as he ran a hand through his hair. "Another pointless, slang user. This will be quick."
"That's 'Mack Daddy Slang User OGC', ya heard!" Cyrus yelled as he pulled out his Abysmal Offender.
Cloud had a bored look on his face and slowly drew out his Buster Sword whose blade must have been six feet long. "You have got to be kidding me…" Sora said with a nervous face.
"Okay…" Cyrus said. "So it's larger in real life. But still…"
"We won't give up," Nel finished. Cyrus turned his MP3 Player to "The Divine Spirit of Language" from Star Ocean: Till the End of Time. The battle started and Cyrus was the first to attack when he went for a side slash to the torso. However, the cursed sword of the shizznit was blocked by Cloud's larger blade. Cyrus was shoving his foe as Nel and Sora came from the sides. The foe pushed Cyrus back and began slashing at the trio. Each strike was swift and strong. Nel and Sora countered the attack with Lightning Blast and Thunder. Cloud was able to dodge Nel's electric current, but was hit by the rain of lightning bolts from Sora. Cyrus also fired a strong Fire Bolt attack straight at Cloud. The attacks were able to weaken him, but not enough. Cloud thrust himself forward with his sword held in front. He hit Nel and Cyrus, but Sora was able to dodge the attack.
"Is that the best you can do?" the spike-haired swordsman taunted.
"No," Cyrus said. "We're just gettin' warmed up." With a mischievious grin on his face, Cyrus activated his Blazing Sword. With the scorching blade, Cyrus charged at Cloud, but the attack was blocked once more.
"Still using the same tactic? Just give up."
"Oh no," Cyrus said in a joking voice. "You're so powerful. what do I do?" Cloud pushed Cyrus out of the way and was ready to land a powerful blow. However Cyrus countered the attack by bouncing his blade off of Cloud's sword, causing both swordsman to stagger back. "Now, Sora!" Sora rushed to the scene and delivered a string of hits which threw Cloud back.
"Didn't see that one coming," Sora gloated. Cloud rose up to his feet and thrusting again, knocking the two off their feet. Before he could attack Cyrus, Nel slashed at Cloud with her daggers. The enemy swordsman's focus was now on the Aquarian spy. As he slashed, Nel dodged and leapt over the massive blade. After a few dodges, Nel jumped into the air and launched herself at Cloud. However, the blow was blocked by the blade before it could make impact. Cloud leapt in the air and stabbed his blade in the ground. Nel barely dodged the attack, but was hit by a dark aura that splashed on impact. Sora and Cyrus went to their weakened comrade's aid, but were thrown back to the ground by Cloud's aerial attack. The strike caused Cyrus' Abysmal Offender to fall out of his hands.
Sora was supporting himself on his Keyblade as he tried to stand. Cloud walked over to Sora, ready to finish him off. "I can't believe that Hades wanted me to get rid of some kid," Cloud said to himself as he tightened his grip. "What a waste of time." As Cloud raised his weapon, the swordsman was struck in his chest. Sora was wide-eyed as he could see where the hit landed, taking the shape of a print left by a punch. Next few seconds, Cloud seemed to be getting hit numerous times. Everyone was shocked as they witnessed the foe being attacked by the invisible entity. Cloud leapt back and slashed in front of him hitting the unseen fighter who landed on the ground.
In a few seconds, the body of an injured Cyrus unstably appeared. "Whoa," Cyrus said to himself. "I wonder how I can do that." As Cyrus looked up, he saw Cloud in the air, ready to make a hard impact on the ground. "Ah, screw it." Cyrus rolled to the left where his sword laid seconds before Cloud landed. He grabbed his weapon and took his battle stance. The two were in a stalemate, obviously weakened from the battle. The two sized each other up, knowing that the next move would decide the victor. Cyrus' body was engulfed in a dark aura, ready to use his infamous Shadow Slash. The two raced toward one another, ready to give the other the final blow. As soon as they were in range, Cloud thrust himself at the dark shizznit, as Cyrus rushed past him like a streaking comet. In a few seconds, Cyrus' dark aura dissipated as he grabbed his left arm. Cloud, on the other hand, collapsed on one knee and dropped his sword. The battle was over.
"And the winners are Team Sora!" Phil replied. The team ran to the aid of their comrades. Cloud stood back up. Suddenly, a large black monster appear at the stadium and had its giant paw on Cloud's sword. It appeared to be a giant dog with three head. Each head had small ears and blood red eyes. The giant mouths of each head was filled with colossal teeth. With every breath the beast made, thick black smoke blew out of its mouth.
"Hades!" Cloud said with rage. "What are you doing?"
"I forgot to mention one more rule: Accidents happen," the blue-skinned man said before he walked back to the dark passage. With its middle head, the enemy grabbed Cloud by the cape and slammed him down to the ground. The monster rose its massive heads and was ready to consume him. That was before a man in lightweight armor and a cape pushed the creature back.
"Herc!" Phil yelped in concern.
"Phil, get them out of here!" the man ordered.
"You heard him, let's go!" Without any hesitation, the team and Phil evacuated the scene and went back to the lobby.
"I can't help but to think what that enemy would've done to us, if Hercules didn't arrive," Lude said.
"Gwarsh!" Goofy began. "What was that thing?"
"That was Cerberus, the guardian of the Underworld," Phil explained. "He's tough, but Hercules defeated him before and he could do it again." However, an unpromising yell from outside returned Phil's fears. "Then again, maybe not… This isn't good."
"I wish there was something we can do," Sophia said.
With Keyblade in hand, Sora started to walk to the arena. However, he was stopped by Phil. "Are you nuts! Where do you think you're going?"
"I'm going to help Hercules," Sora said.
"Are you kidding? This isn't a game, this is for real!"
"I know that. Look, you could decide if I'm hero material or not, but I'm still going."
"I'm with you, Sora," Mirage said.
"It's time for us to put that pup to sleep," Cyrus replied. The team raced outside where Hercules, who was carrying Cloud on his shoulder, was trapped in a corner. The tri-headed beast walked over to the group and sized them up.
Hercules used this distraction and ran inside. "I only got two words of advice: Attack!" Phil said.
"Two words?" Goofy replied. Cyrus turned his MP3 Player to "Ancient Weapon 1" from Panzer Dragoon Orta. Cerberus roared at the party and began shooting large balls of fire throughout the arena. Cyrus, Sophia, and Donald hid under the beast during the raid. Once Cerberus stopped, the guardian hunched down and roared. The group began using melee attacks. Mirage and Lude attacked with powerful martial arts kicks and punches as Nel launched herself at the beast's heads. Cyrus, Roger and Sora began hacking and slashing at the large heads. However, the fighters were hit hard by Cerberus' massive jaws. Goofy was an exception thanks to his shield and he attacked with Rocket, shooting straight at the head on the right. Sophia and Donald used their spells to recover their comrade's health before the situation became critical. The head in the center was about to strike at Mirage. However, thanks to her strength, the Klausian grabbed the teeth just before they close. She threw the head back and used Sphere of Might. A ball of energy formed, which delivered damage to the beast. From afar, Maria shot at each head with her Aiming Device, adding to the damage. After biting the party, the enemy rose on its back legs and slammed back to the ground, generating a powerful quake that injured the group. As some of the team began healing themselves, Cerberus rose back on its four legs and shot fireballs once more. However, it's attack was cut short when the monster stepped on one of Roger's Land Mines, which dealt some nice damage and triggered a chain of explosions. The team saw their chance and were ready to attack with full force. That was until a dark substance was released from the Cerberus' heads. The group were forced to contend with the fireballs that shot from the mouths and the black pillars that shot up from the substance. Unfortunately, the combination of both moves dealt a great deal of damage to the party. The party were critically weakened after being hit by another of Cerberus' shockwaves.
Cyrus tried to support himself on the wall, but he was slipping. "Man, this thing is straight-up trife," he thought to himself. He scanned the area and saw that everyone was in very bad shape. He stopped in fear when he saw Nel laying in the stands motionless. He tried to make his way to the bleachers. However, Cerberus spotted the shizznit and headed to him. Quickening his pace, Cyrus continued to his destination while keeping an eye on the dog. At the last minute, Cyrus climbed up to the stands before the enemy's fangs caught him. "Nel…" Cyrus said. "Nel, wake up…"
Nel's eyes opened, looking directly at the nervous face of Cyrus. "Don't worry… I'm fine…"
"Watch out!" the voice of Sora yelled. They looked behind them and saw Cerberus' upper body on the stands. The two were frozen as the foe raised its heads and roared. Cyrus tightened his grip on Nel, shielding her from the jaws. Suddenly, the monster backed away as a strong light began to glow. Everyone watched in awe as they saw a large orb. When it broke, the party was amazed. It appeared to be Cyrus, but he was different. The trench coat he wore was tinted red on the tails and at the top. The top of his shoes were also colored red, along with his gloves, his hat and the knees of his pants. He pulled out his lightsaber and turned it on. After Cerberus regained its accuracy from the glare, its middle head lunged at the shizznit. However, its attack missed as Cyrus jumped back, missing it jaws and stabbed the enemy with his lightsaber. The head quickly pulled away and all three heads snarled. Cyrus jumped from the stands and into the center of the arena with the dog not far behind. He jumped into the air and launched himself at the enemy with both weapons in front. Like a spinning disk with the blades as the edges, the shizznit approached the creature at incredible speed and collided with each of the heads. He rapidly bounced hard on each of the targets, weakening Cerberus with every impact. The group watched in amazement at how quickly the tide of battle shifted. Roger tried to keep up with the attacks, but was dazed at the speed. However, before Cyrus could land on Cerberus' left head, its jaws opened wide and shut as soon as the shizznit entered.
"Nooooooo!" Sophia yelled before an unsettling silence took the team. Only the satisfied growls of the guardian of the Underworld were heard. Suddenly, the jaws that supposedly consumed Cyrus were opening slowly, showing the red and black shizznit lifting the mouth and swiftly escaping. He landed on the ground and brushed off his shoulders. The furious Cerberus roared with all its might, but Cyrus only taunted it by signaling it to come and get him. The canine rushed toward the swordsman with jaws wide open. As soon as it was in range, Cyrus jumped toward the dog and began slashing with swift swipes from both blades. He then leapt on top of the middle head and jumped over its body before landing behind it. The foe turned around was ready to attack Cyrus, but collapsed before it can attack. The battle was over and the group walked over to Cyrus. "Are you okay, Cyrus?" Sophia asked.
"That was amazing!" Roger said. "The way you put that dog down and all!"
"What was that?" Sora asked. "And why do you look so different?"
Cyrus silently looked at the group. "So, uh, where's Nel?" Goofy asked.
Smiling, Cyrus' body glowed and separated into two. When they dimmed, the forms of the original Cyrus and Nel appeared. "That was quite a battle," Nel said with her arms folded.
"You're back!" Donald replied.
"Invigorating," Lude stated. "But you know what they say, 'all good things must come to an end'."
"You call that good?" Sora replied.
"Let's go inside," Maria said. "There's no point in staying here."
The group agreed with Maria's idea and left the stadium. "First invisibility, and now this?" Cyrus thought to himself. "This is just getting better and better." Before Cyrus could continue, he knelt down and held his forehead with his left hand. From deep within his subconscious, a lost memory that he didn't know had, surfaced.
In his mind's eye, he saw a large lab and people in lab coats. Though the sounds weren't apparent, he did hear a voice say, "The tests from the subject seems to be adapting to the dark energy..."
He also saw chambers and, the emblem of the Heartless. Unfortunately, the visions were too fast for him to entirely understand what they meant. He rose up panting slightly and sweating. "What was that?" he asked himself. He looked around the coliseum and saw nobody, not even his party. "Whatever it was, I'll figure it out later."
They arrived at the lobby where they were congratulated by Phil and Hercules. "For your exploits in the field of heroics, I present to you your Hero's License," Phil read from a scroll. Hercules gave Sora a small card, who put the item in his pocket. "Thus, I do hereby dub thee junior heroes, and confer upon thee full rights and privileges to participate in the games," Phil read from his scroll. "Further-"
"Wait a minute!" Donald interrupted. "What do you mean by 'junior' heroes?"
"You rookies still don't understand what it takes to be a real hero."
"So, what does it take?" Goofy asked.
"That's a lesson you'll need to learn by yourselves," Hercules said. "Just like I did."
"Alright then," Sora said. "And we'll proves ourselves in the games."
"There won't be any games for a while," Phil said. "That last battle made a serious mess that's going to take a while to clean up."
"Alright then," Cyrus said. "I guess we'll come back later." The group left the lobby and were back at the front of the building.
Near the front of the gate, the team saw a figure sitting on the steps. "Hey, isn't that Cloud?" Maria asked. The team walked over to the spiked-hair swordsman who was healed from the injuries.
"Are you okay?" Lude asked.
"Yes," Cloud answered.
"Cloud, why did you go along with him?" Mirage asked.
Cloud was silent. "I was looking for someone. Hades promised to help. I tried to use darkness to my advantage, but it failed." He got up and brushed his shoulder. "I fell into darkness, and couldn't find my light."
"You'll find it," Sora said. "I'm searching, too."
"For your light?" Sora nodded. Cloud walked over to the young Keyblade wielder and gave him a small scroll. "Don't loose it." The rolled up piece of paper contained instructions for Sonic Blade, a powerful rushing attack.
"Yo, Cloud," Cyrus said. "How 'bout we have us a rematch. No holds, and no terminal contracts?"
"Cyrus!" Lude replied.
"What?"
Cloud turned his head and said, "I'll think about it." With that said, Cloud left the scene.
"You know, I still would like to know what happened back there?" Nel said.
"I don't know," Cyrus said. "It's like we merged somehow."
"Whatever it was, it sure helped us out," Mirage said.
"I wonder if I can to do that?" Sora asked.
"I have a feeling that with enough time, it's a possibility." With nothing else to do, the group left the coliseum and entered the gummi ship. The only thing on their minds were what the next world has to offer. And with Cyrus, what happened in the past he has no clue about.
Author's Note 1: As you can see, this story is beginning to get interesting. For a few of you who are confused of what happened during the fight with Cerberus, Cyrus merged with Nel to create his own version of Brave Form, a fusion seen in KH II. In this form, he is able to attack more efficiently with both of his swords. So how did Cyrus learn such a move that would be seen in the future by Sora? Is there some kind of link? Perhaps those memories from Cyrus' past might shed some light on the dark shizznit?