I don't own Sonic, Sega, or the Terminator series.
8. Battle Royal, Laoch and Ryko.
They embraced.
"What are you doing here?"
"Me and Shade were invited… better question. What are you doing here?"
Ryko filled him in on everything, excluding the whole Hades thing.
"I could really use some help."
"You got it. And who's this?"
"This is my date, Sadie."
Sadie blushed fiercely.
"Hi, Sadie. I'm Laoch, Ryko's best friend."
"The one caught up in that whole 'Echidna' business?"
"Yep, that's me. Where's Shade? I haven't seen her since we got here."
Shade approached and Ryko reintroduced everybody and told the story again.
"Alright. Sadie, shall we search the palace? This is like that scene from Ghost Protocol." The both left.
"So, somebody finally landed a date." They both started laughing.
"I don't really know what she thinks of me, but…"
"No more said, brother. We should search the palace."
They started looking around when time stopped, literally. Laoch froze, and Ryko was left wondering what just happened when a familiar voice spoke behind him.
"He isn't doing well, Ryko."
"Anubis. You can freeze time?" Anubis rolled his eyes.
"I can kill with the point of a finger. This is one of the first times I've communicated with a mortal. Hades may like meddling in your affairs, but I have business to take care of in the afterlife. Ryko, it isn't looking very good for Hades, at all. He's still my brother, however foolish he may be, and I care about him. Ryko sighed.
"Tomorrow."
"You're a good person. So is Laoch."
"Thank you, Anubis. By the way, what is it like to be a host for you guys?"
"Here"
Ryko felt a searing pain in his body. His vision doubled. He went down to one knee until the pain stopped. He opened his eyes, which were now pure black, Anubis' cuffs on his wrist.
"This is what it feels like." Said a combined voice of Ryko and Anubis.
They were sharing each other's thoughts. Anubis then appeared back where he was and Ryko went back to normal.
"That was… weird."
"That was what it will feel like. I must go now. Happy hunting."
He disappeared and time resumed.
"What just happened?"
"Oh… nothing. Let's keep looking."
They searched more but couldn't find Ares in any of the rooms.
"Weird. This guy sure is efficient."
"Yea, I guess so."
"So… we go back to Sadie."
"No, we don't."
"Oh, come on. I'm your brother, buddy."
"I already told you what I felt back there."
"That was a mere hint."
"And the only one you'll get. We need to keep looking before he scares the crap outta everybody."
"Hey, you gonna compete in the stakes tomorrow?"
"As Hades?"
"What?"
"Never mind."
"There's something you aren't telling me."
"There's always something I'm not telling you." They laughed again.
"Where could that dude be?" Anubis jumped out of his portal, literally.
"Now!"
"What? No, I said-"
"Now, he's going to die, Ryko!" He looked worried.
Ryko didn't know what to say, but he finally found it.
"Alright." Anubis began chanting and incantation. He felt the same feelings he did when he hosted Anubis. He opened his eyes, and had all the knowledge in the world.
"Ryko? You're eyes…" It was Hades who smiled.
"I know where our friend is."
Mobian Palace Balcony, 8:00
Ares smiled. Ryko had to be here, and his annoying girlfriend too. The stakes were tomorrow, of course; Right across the street at Acorn Stadium. He heard someone approach and whipped around, throwing a playing card in the process. Hades incinerated it in a column of fire.
"Ryko?"
His eyes were a bright orange, a combination of Hades' Red and Ryko's Silver. The Sunglasses beneath his eyes were tainted a dark red. His fur went from dark purple to a darker purple.
"I am Hades, guardian of mankind." Said Hades.
"I am Ryko, Slayer of the wicked." Said Ryko.
"And together…" They said in combined voices.
"We will slay you, bane of mankind." Laoch couldn't believe it.
"Either I'm in a really bad terminator sequel, or you just became the most badass thing on the planet." Ryko smiled.
"Sadie should get a kick outta this."
"Forget about her. Let's focus on Ares." Said Hades.
"On contraire, my friends. While I may be so scared I could run to my mother, I won't be sticking around." He then jumped of the building.
"We should follow him." Said Ryko.
"Okay, are you my best friend or a divine being?"
"Both." They said in unison.
"How long do you need me?" Asked Ryko.
"A week." Ryko nodded.
"Fine by me. Laoch, let's go." Laoch shook his head.
"I don't like it."
"Deal with it." Said Hades.
"We need to go, Ryko."
"Right."
They jumped from the building.
"Ares went this way. I wonder what Aelia's daughter is doing right now."
"Her name is Sadie."
"I don't care. Ares is our priority."
"Oh come on, I didn't agree-"
"Stop arguing with yourself!"
Ryko, or Hades, sighed. Probably Ryko.
"Let's go."
Hades grabbed Laoch's arm and opened a portal, jumping through it.
They landed in a room where Sadie and Shade were battling robots.
"I'm really starting to think I'm in a bad terminator sequel." Sadie took out the last one by hitting him with a vicious spinning kick.
"How'd you guys get-" She immediately noticed Ryko's differences.
"I thought you said three days!"
"I was dying, daughter of Aelia."
"Her name is Sadie!"
"I don't give a crap!"
Ryko clutched his head in pain.
"We're out of synch. Everything we think and say must be in harmony, or else we could end up killing each other."
"Splendid."
"Ryko? Hades? Rykadies? Hyko? Ugh!"
"I feel ya, sweetheart."
That gave Sadie a sense of hope. He could control himself?
"So what happened to you guys?"
"Well, this Anubis dude came and said the fire guy was dying so Ryko served as his host and then we met Ares and he jumped off a building and we landed here." Laoch inhaled.
"What happened down here?" Asked the combined voices of Ryko and Hades.
"Funniest thing, we…"