The Domain of Light
Aqua and Ozma set off for Sidorak's dwelling with Ozma leading the way. Aqua was content to just follow for the time being, looking around and seeing this so-called island was mostly deserted but as they grew closer to their destination, she could see a stone city with a massive building in the center.
'That looks like the Greek Coliseum!' Aqua thought to herself.
The brief hit of nostalgia made Aqua pause but she shook her head when she caught Ozma glancing at her and continued walking.
"Sidorak will likely be at his coliseum." Ozma said, leading her through town.
It was plain to see that the people here were not the kind of people one would like to socialize with. They were all armed with weapons, some even dragging women in scantily clad clothing and almost all of them were glaring darkly at the two. Ozma ignored them, focused on the coliseum building ahead while Aqua just followed.
They walked up the front of the building and a single guard stepped out to greet them. "Come, your match begins now."
Before the two could've asked him what he meant by that, the huge metal doors opened and the guard gestured for them to follow. The two stepped inside and walking through a long hallway with a light at far end. When they reached the end, they looked around to see that they were in the center of the coliseum. The spectators in the seats were cheering and clapping as they watched the new gladiators walk up on the field.
As the two continued to walk, they were stopped by the guards as they reached the middle of the field. And right in front of the group, around forty feet above the gladiatorial arena was a luxurious spectators spot where King Sidorak himself sat on his massive throne with imperial guards by his sides and beautiful women in little clothing lying down by his feet.
King Sidorak himself had white short hair, several facial scars around his eyes, a massive dark red coat with a ridiculously tall color, his left hand having a black glove on it and the crest of Sidorak's chest had a glowing red stone lodged in it.
"Welcome citizens of Sidorak City! We are THRILLED to have an AMAZING SHOW TODAY! Today, we have some special guests today... The outlaw, legendary warrior, and king of the heathen Emerald kingdom, Ozma has finally been tracked down and captured! And for his attempts to overthrow our beloved king he will DIE an honorable death in the ARENA!" The Announcer said as the crowd went wild and cheered. "But! That's not all... One MORE outlaw who have been caught planning to overthrow our king with the outlaw Ozma will fight and die for your entertainment as well!"
As the announcer announced this, the imperial guards that lead the group to the middle of the field left and Sidorak rose up to speak. "My loyal subjects! Feast your eyes on the savage Ozma and his friend... Enemies to the crown! Enemies to me! And they will pay for their crimes in this MAGNIFICENT coliseum today in front of your very eyes!" King Sidorak announced, all the while still looking at the gladiators in the ring below him.
All the while, Ozma became enraged and furious as he saw the tyrant speak and his subjects mindlessly cheer. "King Sidorak! I will give you one chance and one chance alone!... Free me, my friend, and everyone else who you wrongly imprisoned and forced to die for your sick amusement! Or you will die!" Ozma yelled furiously at the tyrant king.
Sidorak and the audience remained quiet for a second, before Sidorak spoke once more. "Now do you see what I mean when I call the great Ozma a savage? Because that is exactly what he and his miserable people are! SAVAGES! In fact...Their entire kingdom should be exterminated!" King Sidorak shouted and the crowd cheered once more. "But... I am a fair man. These two will face two deadly challenges! And if they managed to succeed... They will battle your king in a fair fight! And if they win I will not only let them go free... But every prisoner scheduled to battle!"
The crowd cheered once more as Sidorak looked around himself with glee. Sidorak sat back down as the announcer started to speak again. But as the announcer was talking, the group started to whisper to one another.
"This is good, right? I mean... If we win he'll let us go along with all the other prisoners, right?" Aqua asked.
"No..." Ozma said and his partner looked at him.
"What? What do you mean?" Aqua asked.
"He will most likely go back on his word or cheat... Even if we beat all the challenges and beat him, assuming he doesn't pull any dirty tricks, he'll probably kill us all." Ozma explained.
The announcer was done rambling and actually started talking about the important topics. "Now... For our first challenge..." The announcer gestured over to the other side of the coliseum as a pair of huge metal doors opened. "This beast has killed over 300 people before he was captured... Not to mention killing even the toughest gladiators in our arena! I present to you... The vicious, terrifying, immoral, and absolute monster the NEMEAN!"
A huge Grimm jumped out from the darkness and roared viciously. "GGRRRRRRRRRAAA! RAAAAAAAAARRRR! GGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
The monster was a Grimm that heavily resembled a hybrid between a male lion and a sabretooth, on all fours it stood twelve feet tall and twenty five feet long with a black mane and burning red eyes. The monster growled as it looked around until it stopped as it saw the two, and slowly started to walk over to them.
(Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep OST Monstrous Monstro Starts)
Aqua summoned her Keyblade. "What is that?"
"It's a Nemean! One of the deadliest Grimm out there... Their skin is so thick that regular weapons can't do a thing against it." Ozma answered.
"Good thing we don't have regular weapons then." Aqua replied, facing the approaching monster.
"The face is the most vulnerable area! Attack its face!" Ozma pointed his scepter at the approaching Grimm and from the gem came a giant blast of green energy.
The beast aimed its head away and blocked the energy blast with one of its large claws. Aqua placed a hand over her pauldron and summoned the copy of her army she had made with Ambrosius. In a flash of light she was wearing her armor and readied herself as the Nemean swiped its claws at her. Aqua quickly jumped out of the way as she readied her Keyblade and managed to successfully slash the monster three times across the face, before the lion tried to bite her in half with its teeth.
A green streak suddenly struck the Nemean in the back, causing it to spin around and spotted a green streak moving around it. The Nemean was on the defensive, but the streak was too fast for the Grimm lion to track as it came back and repeatedly inflicted damage among the beast.
It was in fact Ozma working to break the beast down until it was weak enough to finish with one more blow and he wasn't the only one. Aqua was engulfed in a bright light, thanks to her Ghost Drive and the two streaks attacked the big cat of darkness six more times. The Nemean started to memorize the two warriors patterns as it looked back at one of the green streaks headed towards him. It opened up its mouth and bit down on Aqua's armor as it thrashed her around viciously as the other streak was headed towards the Nemean.
The Nemean quickly thrashed Aqua as Ozma came within striking range and the Grimm lion managed to knock both fighters back as they tumbled several feet until ending up piled on top of each other. The Nemean growled once more as it slowly lingered over to the dizzy Aqua and Ozma as they both slowly started to get back up. The Nemean got closer as the crowd started to grow excited.
"Oh! It seems like the two warriors have met their superior in just the first round! The two warriors are too disoriented and dizzy to properly defend themselves! Who can possibly save them now?" The announcer asked as Sidorak leaned forward with interest, not wanting to miss one second of his enemy's disembowelment.
Aqua was the first to get back up and pointed her Keyblade at the incoming monster. "Thunder!"
A bolt of lightning came down and struck the Nemean, electrocuting it which earned a scream of pain as it fell over.
The Nemean fell to the floor, and appeared to be defeated as Aqua slowly approached it.
"Stay back! It likes to play with its prey!" Ozma yelled.
Its eyes shot open and Aqua jumped back, seeing the massive jaw full of long sharp teeth that was its mouth, but instead of biting her head off, it roared a powerful roar blasting Aqua back. "RRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!"
Aqua was thrown on the ground, the monster growled once more as it leaped at Aqua from the air.
Ozma rushed in, grabbing her and dashed out of the way. "We need to find a way to pin its legs down."
Aqua nodded, pointing her Keyblade at the Nemean. "Gravity!"
An orb of darkness appeared over the Nemean, holding it down as it roared and struggled.
'Gravity magic?!' Ozma looked at the armor clad woman. 'And such mastery! I've only seen a high class mage be capable of such magic.'
Knowing he didn't have to think, Ozma and Aqua ran to the sides ss the Nemean was distracted and they used their staff and Keyblade to nail the Nemean's two back feet to the ground as the monster roared in agony.
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWRRRRRRRRRR!"
As it had enough of their attacks as it swiped both fighters away with one of its massive claws once the gravity spell wore off. Before it could try to attack Ozma and Aqua, the Keyblade Master held up her Keyblade as it emitted a bright glow that extended out like a long sworf as she jumped and fell down on the Nemean's tail, cutting it off with one slash. The pain was so intense, that Nemean let out a kitten-like meow before roaring in pain.
CRACK!
"*Meow* RRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!"
Aqua then slashed at the Nemean's legs, cutting them off and watching as it collapsed on the ground, screeching in agony. Aqua raised her Keyblade and brought it down on the Nemean's head, slicing through it and killing it for good.
(Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep OST Monstrous Monstro Ends)
The crowd remained in stunned shock for a second before the Grimm evaporated into smoke. The crowd then cheered in amazement as the group looked around and Sidorak gained a quick look of dissatisfaction and yet also interest as he looked at the blue armored woman but quickly masked it as he addressed his subjects.
"Ahh... A very good fight indeed, a very IMPRESSIVE battle. They managed to kill the dreaded Nemean. Most impressive... But, their challenges are not over yet. They will soon meet their second challenge RIGHT NOW!" Said Sidorak as he passed the job of announcement off to the real announcer as another huge metal door started to open up. "This mob of misfits have survived the first round against ALL ODDS! Will they survive the second match as well? Against my top warriors?"
Aqua narrowed her eyes under her helmet. "Warriors?"
"As in more than one?" Ozma was of the same mindset.
"Let us find out!" The announcer said as the new opponents stepped out of the shadows.
A group of three, two men and one woman, all of them wearing armor that clearly came from different cultures.
(Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep OST Black Garden Begins)
"My Generals, Guan Yu." Sidorak spoke of the man dressed in robes with a Qiang spear.
"Cu Chulainn." The next man who wore no top and dark pants with armored pieces covering his legs and knees carried two short axes.
"And Tsukuy Mikoto." The woman dressed in white robes with shoulder and chest armor was holding two katana swords.
"Let the match begin!" Sidorak yelled and the crowd cheered again.
The woman, Tsukuy Mikoto held up her swords as they glowed with white energy and swung them, releasing an energy wave at the Keyblade Master and hero.
"Defend!" Aqua created a barrier that blocked the incoming hits.
The barrier vanished and Aqua quickly blocked a slash from Mikoto, jumping back to avoid another energy wave from her swords. In the meantime, Ozma was facing down both Guan and Cu as they tried to gang up on him. Channeling his magic through his scepter he created a shield that helped block most of the incoming attack.
"So this is the great Ozma?" Cu Chulainn asked as his axes clashed with Ozma's scepter. "I was expecting a little more from the great hero himself."
He shoved Ozma back with the hero somersaulting through the air and landing on his feet. Guan Yu rushed forward to stab Ozma through the chest but Ozma slammed his scepter into the ground, creating a barrier that repelled the spear and knocked Guan back. Ozma then lifted his scepter up and fired an energy blast that knocked Guan back but he managed to remain standing. Cu and Guan both charged Ozma at the same time as he settled into a fighting stance. And right as Cu and Guan got close enough to him, Ozma swiped his weapon as the two hopped over him and both began unleashing an unrelenting series of attacks on the warrior.
Ozma would dodge and counter both of his opponents' attacks, in a way that shows that he has fought like this many times before. As he countered his opponents, he kicked the two back but Cu dashed back in with Guan following, trying to double team Ozma. However their combo attacks were doing little damage as Ozma's scepter would seem to glow brighter with each passing second. He then exploded with a blast of light all around him that sent the two flying back.
KAPEWWWWWWWWW!
The crowd was blinded by a blast that sent Cu and Guan gashing into the wall of the arena, seemingly knocking them both out as they fell to the ground. In the meantime, Aqua was still contending with Mikoto as her swords clashed with Aqua's Keyblade. Aqua could see that Mikoto channeled her magic through her swords which was impressive but Aqua could do the same with her Keyblade.
In fact, Aqua could do it better.
She reinforced her Keyblade with a barrier at the right second, causing Mikoto's magic to rebound and shatter her swords. The woman gasped in shock and let her vulnerable as Aqua pointed and fired a thunder bolt at point blank range, sending her crashing into the wall.
Aqua looked up and glared at Sidorak. "Why don't you come down here next and prove you are as powerful as you would have your subjects believe?"
The crowd started to cheer again as Sidorak leaned forward in his throne, eyes narrowing at the woman who dared to insult him.
"Hahahaha... VERY interesting... Very interesting indeed... You managed to best my top three generals. I must commend you for that that means you only have ONE MORE challenge to overcome. And that challenge is ME." Sidorak announced as his citizens started to cheer with excitement.
King Sidorak got off his throne and stood on the edge of his balcony with his arms held out as assistants then came in and took off Sidorak's over coat and then started manually putting on pieces of red and black armor all over his body, before putting on a red cape with the symbol of a white ram's head on it. Finally, the assistants put a red gauntlet on his left arm with a blade hidden away in there. As the assistants were finally finished, King Sidorak walked forward before jumping off his balcony and landing right in front of the group with a massive shockwave along with it. Aqua and Ozma looked up to see the heavily armored King Sidorak standing over them with the red gem implanted in his chest piece still glowing.
(Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep OST Fight and Away Starts)
"Hahaha... This battle, I GUARANTEE you will not walk away from ALIVE." He held out his hands and released a red energy shockwave that sent his opponents flying.
However they were prepared as they both landed on their feet to face their final opponent. King Sidorak then jumped several dozen feet in the air before coming back down on top of Aqua's head. But despite Aqua's magical barrier, the red king slammed down upon her with enough force to shake the coliseum as she was holding him back. The two were a match in strength that was until Sidorak's gem glowed bright as Sidorak quickly overpowered the wielder's barrier.
He grabbed her by her arm as he repeatedly smashed her into the ground over and over.
But it was ended as Ozma dashed up to Sidroak and slashed him in the back. "LET GO OF HER!"
The sneak attack managed to knock Sidorak back several feet but that's when Sidorak picked himself back up and glared at Ozma. Both dash at each other and as Ozma was about to strike again, Sidorak grabbed Leo by the face before then tossing him into the air, and extracting his flaming blade from his gauntlet as he slashed Ozma, sending him back. Sidorak was about to attack again but Aqua jumped back in, her form flowing as she clashed with Sidorak's flaming blade.
"So powerful…Perhaps you could join me as my new general…Or even become my queen when I take the surrounding lands." Sidorak grinned as he grappled against the master.
Aqua said nothing as a misty aura surrounded her and Sidorak watched as his flaming sword was frozen. "Wha-"
Aqua then went on the attack, slashing at Sidorak as the gem on his chest glowed and projected an energy barrier around him. Sidorak let out a fake yawn as Aqua slashed at the barrier several times, following up with an energy blast that sent him skidding back. Sidorak grinned and held out his hand, firing a red beam that Aqua dodged by cartwheeling to the side. Sidorak flew at Aqua, swinging his flaming blade at her again but Aqua teleported just as he swung his blade, surprising him.
"Where-"
Sidorak had no time to react as he was frozen in time, much to the shock of the crowd and Ozma who had just recovered. Aqua then went on the attack, teleporting around Sidorak and delivering a series of blows that he could not block because he was not aware of them and thus could not erect a barrier to protect himself. The spell lasted about twenty five seconds before it wore off and Sidorak was sent crashing onto the far side of the arena. Sidorak let out a pained howl from the all damage he had suffered but his wounds started healing immediately, thanks to the red glowing gem on his chest.
He looked up and glared at Aqua. "I don't know how you did that but now it will be pleasure…I will not kill you…I'll keep you and break you just so I-"
But Sidorak couldn't finish as a green streak charged into him, being strong enough to knock the heavily shielded warrior back. Sidorak tumbled away as the crowd started to slightly boo as Ozma faced the tyrant.
"Well, well, well, Ozma... Such a shame you and your kingdom had to be so stubborn. I could've provided food, medicine, and shelter. But instead, you spit in my face." Sidorak said as he and Ozma collided in battle.
Ozma would dodge a high majority of Sidorak's attacks and he would land a good considerable amount of his own. It would be good if Sidorak's magical shield wasn't a thousand percent stronger than it should naturally be. Sidorak laughed as he aimed his hand at Ozma and blasted a red bolt of energy at him, sending him skidding back.
"You may have an unbreakable barrier! But you forget that my magic is strong too!" Ozma yelled as the two went back to fighting.
"Yes, true. But what good is your aura if I can still break through it after a few good hits?" Sidorak said as he slashed his flaming blade.
Ozma caught the blade with his staff and he struggled against the king's strength, trying to keep the burning blade away from his face.
"Besides, me and my people would rather DIE than to EVER live under your ruthless subjugation!" Ozric yelled as Sidorak's burning blade almost cut through his staff.
"Blackout!"
But before it could, Aqua jumped in and released a wave of black and blue energy that hit Sidorak, who stumbled back.
"Wh-What?! I can't see!" The tyrant frantically yelled.
As Ozma picked himself back up, he saw Sidorak was completely vulnerable with his red gem fully exposed.
"NOW! DO IT NOW!" Aqua yelled.
Ozma realized what Aqua meant as he charged forward and stabbed his staff into the edge of the stone and used it to pry it off. Sidorak screamed as the red gem was finally popped out of its original place and it plopped to the ground as Sidorak stumbled back, grasping at his chest. The Blackout spell wore off as Sidorak fell to his knees and collapsed on the ground.
(Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep OST Fight and Away Ends)
The crowd looked on in complete shock and surprise as they saw their king defeated. Only a few seconds later, the citizens started to cheer for the gladiators. Ozma and Aqua glanced at each other as the crowd continued to cheer. Sidorak slowly got back on his knees and stood back up to face the gladiators who've beaten him, looking at all of them with fury.
"We beat you. Now release everyone you've imprisoned!" Ozma ordered as King Sidorak's hateful glare intensified.
But it then changed as Sidorak started to lightly chuckle under his breath, staring at the group in front of him.
"What's so funny?" Aqua asked warily.
"Hehehe... You all cheated! You tore my precious gem out from my chest! You were supposed to beat me fairly! And now for that... You will all die!" Sidorak said as he looked over at the imperial guards who walked over and aimed their spears, firing beams of energy.
Aqua stepped in front of Ozma and conjured a barrier. "Reflega!"
That's when the crowd started to see the falseness and insincerity in their king's words as they started booing at him. But Sidorak didn't care as he was determined to kill them all for humiliating him like that in the ring. Only the beams were not breaking through the barrier and instead were reflected back at Sidorak himself. The humiliated king had no time to react as the magic from his own guards hit him, causing him to scream in pain.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The magic scorched his armor, being a combination of elemental magic such as fire and lightning and it burned his entire body from head to toe with his right arm being burned off in the process. The guards ceased their attack, watching in shock and horror as their king staggered back, howling in agony from his wounds.
Aqua lowered the barrier and dismissed her armor, staring solemnly at the disfigured king. "Your heart has been corrupted and this was the result."
Ozma picked up the red gem before Sidorak could grab it, leaving the mad king to stagger and fall back. "You might want to find a healer and quick."
That was when Sidorak's three generals, having regained consciousness, appeared around him and grabbed him before they shot off into the air.
Aqua looked over to Ozma as she asked. "Aren't you going to go after him?"
"No, not yet at least. With what happened to his empire today and his public support hitting a major low... He won't be that much of a problem for me of any of the other kingdoms, tribes or villages." Ozma answered with a small smile. "I owe you a great debt for your assistance today, Aqua. If there is anything I can do to repay you, just ask."
Aqua had a thoughtful look on her face. "…There might be something you can do."
Xxx
"You are looking for the Gods?"
Later on, in the middle of the stadium where the spectator seat were all empty and the slaves had been liberated, all of them thanking Ozma and Aqua for freeing them. The two were now standing in the empty coliseum with Ozma listening to Aqua explain her quest.
Aqua nodded. "I am having trouble, returning to my home and I think I might need help from the Gods themselves."
"There are other ways to get home." Ozma pointed out.
"…Not for me." Aqua looked away.
Ozma raised an eyebrow but chose not to prod. "Very well. I will help regardless. I know where you can find the God of Light. He would be the best for you to consult. The God of Darkness is wrathful and dangerous, not one you would wish to see."
Aqua shrugged at that, having no desire to meet the God of Darkness due to her late encounters with beings from the Darkness. "All right. Can you show me?"
"Better. I'll take you there." Ozma floated off the ground. "It's a long journey but I believe we can make it. Can you fly?"
Aqua activated her armor and summoned her glider that hovered off the ground, giving a nod to Ozma who looked on in fascination. The hero then held his scepter above his head and took off into the air, followed by Aqua, leaving behind the coliseum and the ruined empire that would soon be swallowed by the passage of time. The hero led Aqua through the clouds and down below she could see the island she had previously been on disappear and they approached a rather large landmass.
"The God of Light lives on the far side of the eastern lands." Ozma spoke as they flew over the land. "I have visited it once before…To plead to the God of Light to revive my parents."
Aqua looked at Ozma. "You parents?"
"They passed when I was young and I had hoped the God of Light would revive them when I plead to him. He refused and told me about the balance between life and death." Ozma explained forlornly. "I eventually understood and accepted it once I understood they would be waiting for me when my time came."
Aqua was silent as she considered this, wondering if her master Eraqus along with her friends would be waiting for her when her time came. The trip was mostly silent as they came upon a dragon shaped land and Ozma flew down, landing in a grassy field, followed by Aqua who dismissed her armor and glider.
"He's up ahead. I can go no further." Ozma said, turning away. "I wish you luck, Aqua and I thank you again."
Aqua watched as Ozma walked away before turning in the direction Ozma had pointed and followed the path that lead to a beautiful scenery with golden flowers and stairs leading down to a pure and clean looking spring and in the center was an immense tree with dark gold leaves. Aqua was stunned by the sheer beauty of it before focusing on her task and walked down the stairs to the spring, stopping as the golden leaves began to stir. From the water emerged a tall, muscular golden being with antlers, whose presence conveyed warmth and wisdom. Aqua watched as he approached her, standing tall and still and letting the being observe her.
After her encounter with Hades, who himself was a god, Aqua had learned to stay on guard around such beings. She had been friends with Hercules who was demi-god who told her about his father and how he was a benevolent deity who also happened to the brother of Hades and Ozma mentioned that that God of Light was the older brother of the God of Darkness.
She would need to be careful here.
"Who are you?" The God of Light asked, approaching her.