"Curse you!" exclaimed the knight who'd attacked Melty. "How dare you try to take our princess hostage!"

"Hostage!?" Aris yelled. "You tried to behead her!"

The knight ignored him, addressing his comrades. "Soldiers, fight for Melty's freedom and defeat this cur! Destroy the Devil of Hyrule once and for all!"

Devil of Hyrule? Aris sighed. Well, that's something, isn't it? I have a new nickname.

The knights charged. Aris and his party readied for battle. Meanwhile, Aris himself secretly cast Memanima Projection to record the entire exchange.

Raphtalia and Sora went into action, cutting down the advancing soldiers. Loretta shot a few with her blasters and managed to land a hit with her new sword. Ness and Filo fought for Melty, keeping her safe while Aris joined the others in battle.

Realizing just how outmatched they were, or at least seeming to, the knights called a retreat.

But the damage had already been done.

Footage recorded by a crystal ball had been shown to nearly everyone in Melromarc. The footage, however, had been altered. It gave the illusion that Aris and his friends had gone rogue, kidnapping Princess Melty and slaughtering the knights in cold blood.

From that day forward, Aris became known to all but his friends as the Devil of Hyrule, a ruthless criminal who wanted nothing more than to wreak havoc and sow destruction across the land.

Raphtalia knew he wasn't like that. The man she loved could never be like that. Which is why she felt a melancholy sort of sorrow as she left a nearby village, having witnessed yet another showing of Aris's false crime.

She reached the party's temporary camp by nightfall, at which point she smelled a delicious meal which Aris was cooking.

"You're back," said Loretta. "How did the reconnaissance go?"

"It went well," replied Raphtalia, "but now everyone and their grandmother thinks Aris is a criminal."

Aris sighed. "I had a feeling it would come to that."

He took something out of a pocket in his Cloak of Shadows. Raphtalia recognized it.

After the altercation, Aris and his party had managed to apprehend one of the attacking knights. Loretta held him at blaster-point.

"Why did you attempt to murder the second princess?" Aris had asked, secretly recording the exchange via Memanima Projection.

The knight had looked away pridefully, refusing to answer.

Loretta had struck him with the butt end of her blaster. "Speak when you are spoken to, charlatan!"

The knight had scoffed. "I have nothing to say to a devil and his posse of worshippers!"

Seething with anger at Melty's attempted murder, Ness had come in and had smacked the captive with his bat. "Answer the question!"

Sora had noticed something fall from the knight's armor. He picked it up. "What's this?"

Raphtalia had answered for him. "That's a rosary from the Three Heroes Church," she said.

"Three Heroes?" Sora had asked. "I thought there were four."

"There are," Raphtalia had explained, "but Melromarc worships every Hero except the Shield."

Aris had pulled a rosary of his own out of his pocket - it had been the one he'd received from the enigmatic noblewoman at the castle. Of course they respect every Hero but the Shield, he had mentally sighed.

"You'll pay the price for disturbing our country's order!" the knight had declared, still hurting from Ness's bat.

That very same bat had struck him again. "Will you just shut up already?" the boy holding it had sighed.

"It's likely another one of King Aultcray's harebrained schemes," Aris reasoned. "All thanks to Melty's father, we're stuck in the middle of nowhere, and every man and his grandmother wants us imprisoned."

Melty stood up. "Father can't be behind this!" she exclaimed.

"Who else do you think it would be?" Loretta pointed out. "I...wouldn't put it past your older sister, then again."

"That's what I think is the case," Melty agreed.

"So...you think she's trying to murder you in order to take your place as crown princess?"

Sora suddenly interjected. "Guys?"

All eyes were on the Keyblade Wielder.

"I have a theory," said Sora. "I don't think Melty's sister is trying to kill her."

"What makes you say that?" asked Raphtalia.

"I've got a hunch, and it may sound crazy," replied Sora, "but...you know Maleficent, right?"

Everyone nodded. They had all at least been acquainted with the name by now.

"I think Malty's working with her," said Sora.

Everyone's eyes widened.

"Hear me out," Sora continued. "You all remember the last Wave, right? Malty wasn't there. And if she was, she'd have to pretend to fight against Oogie, which is something I doubt she'd want to do."

"That's...a really good point," said Melty. "But that begs the question...what does this Maleficent character want me for?"

"That brings me into my second theory," said Sora. "The Princesses of Heart."

"Princesses of Heart?" Raphtalia questioned.

"Seven ladies with hearts of pure light," Sora explained. "My friend Kairi is one of them. And...if Maleficent is after Melty, then I think Melty might be one, too."

"Sora," said Aris, "your theory about Malty working with Maleficent. I...have proof of it."

Sora gasped. "You do?"

Aris nodded, playing his Memanima Projection recording of Malty's exchange with Maleficent - the night before he'd been framed for rape and attempted murder.

"So, since Malty really is working with Maleficent," said Raphtalia, "then that means Maleficent wants Melty for some reason."

"And that reason may be that Melty is one of these...Princesses of Heart," Loretta finished.

"Right," Sora affirmed, "which means we need to keep her safe at all costs."

"The knights we fought earlier today were under the direct control of either the king of Malty," Aris reasoned. "Either way, though...the best course of action would be for us to leave the country. It will be harder for them to get to us that way."

"I agree with that," said Raphtalia, "and we're not far from the border, either."

"Then we have an arrangement," Aris announced. "At the crack of dawn tomorrow, we set off and find our way to the border."

Melty interjected, "I...I want to return to the capital and speak with my father."

Ness gripped her shoulders. "You can't. You go back there and..." He trailed off, hoping Melty would understand.

Luckily, she did.

"If you stay with us, Melty," said Aris, "we will keep you safe."

Melty nodded. "R-Right. I'll stay here."

"Then go to sleep, everyone," said Aris. "We leave not long before dawn tomorrow."

"Why are we leaving the wagon behind?" Filo complained sadly.

"As much as I would love to bring it," said Aris, "we can't. It won't be safe to cross these mountains with it. The wagon can't make it here."

"But we'll go back for it, right?" asked Filo.

Aris nodded. "We will...We'll return to it as soon as we can."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

The party spent the rest of the day on the move, hiking up and down mountain after mountain. Their legs were soon very sore, feeling like they would give out beneath their bodies any second.

"We can rest here," Aris said, motioning to a small nearby cave. "I will light a fire."

Filo, Melty, Sora, Ness, and Loretta all entered the cave.

Raphtalia stopped outside the entrance and turned to Aris. "So...why Siltvelt?"

"I would wager we'll have better security there," he replied. "I recently did some research on Melromarc-Siltvelt relations, and...simply put, the two nations don't like each other very much. Which is why Melromarc's military would likely not bother to check Siltvelt when searching for us."

That night, after dinner, most of the party had fallen asleep. The only exceptions were Loretta, who was outside keeping watch; Aris, who was tending to the fire to make sure it didn't get out of control; and Melty, who was looking at a locket in her hands.

Sora slept soundly on the other side of the cave, while Raphtalia had curled up next to Aris. Filo snored peacefully in her Filolial form. Ness, meanwhile, had rested his head in Melty's lap.

Melty looked at Aris. "Tell me something, Swordsman Shield Hero," she said. "What...happened between you and my father?"

Aris sighed. "I suppose you ought to know." He poked the fire with a stick. "Not long after I was first summoned here, not long at all in fact...your older sister framed me for sexual assault and attempted murder - both on her, and neither true. Your father believed her and...ever since that moment, he has hated my very being. He recently also threatened to hurt my friends, which...to put it simply, I really didn't like."

Melty gasped. "Wh-What? But...B-But Mother always said the Shield Hero ought to be shown the same respect as the other Heroes."

"Well, your Father mustn't have cared." Aris realized something. "Speaking of your mother...I don't believe I know much about her. In fact, I don't think I know anything at all."

"Well, she's the queen of Melromarc," said Melty.

"And?"

"That means she's higher on the proverbial pecking order," Melty explained. "Melromarc is a matriarchy, meaning that the royal bloodline - as well as most noble bloodlines - are passed down from mother to daughter as opposed to being from father to son."

Aris snickered. "So, what you're saying is...your father married into your family?"

"Yes, what's so funny about that?"

Aris laughed out loud now. "He acts like he owns the entire world, and yet the only reason he has any political power is because his wife is the queen!"

"So what if he married into the royal family? He's still important!"

"But only because he married into the royal family!" Aris hooted.

Suddenly, he fell silent. He'd heard something.

Everyone awoke. They had heard something, too.

"We should get going," said Sora.

No one spoke to disagree with him.

"They can't have gone far," said a gruff voice. "Find them!"

Aris and company dipped behind some rocks, shimmying along a thin bluff beneath the cliff on which the knights were searching for them.

The thought of being mere feet away from being caught and having Melty captured and taken to Maleficent for some unknown evil purpose sickened Aris to his very core. So much so that he almost vomited over the edge of the bluff.

Aris stopped, locking up and ahead. The knights had crowded on the cliff above nearby. "They'll no doubt see us if we travel that way," he said. "We should retrace our steps."

Everyone nodded, turning around.

Melty suddenly yelped.

Her foot gave out under her as the piece of rock she was stepping on collapsed beneath her, causing her to nearly fall to her death.

Ness caught her moments before she was out of reach. Aris helped the lad pull her to safety.

It was too late, however. "Over there! The princess's voice!"

Aris cursed under his breath. "They know we're here."

"I have an idea," said Sora, pointing ahead. "We'll make a break for it past that big rock over there."

Aris nodded. "Good plan."

The party all broke into a sprint, bolting past the rock.

They were not, however, so lucky as to escape. Aris nearly fell off the edge of another cliff, leaving the group surrounded by Melromarc's knights.

A cloud passed overhead in the sky, revealing the light of the full moon.

Itsuki Kawasumi, the Bow Hero himself, stepped into the moonlight. "You have nowhere left to run," he said firmly, his voice surprisingly lacking any sort of animosity. "Cease your resistance and release Princess Melty at once."

"And leave her with a group of people who want to use her for Kingdom Hearts knows what!?" Sora screamed, summoning his Keyblade. "As if!"

"Stop lying, will you?" Motoyasu said flippantly. "We have all the proof we need."

"I'm afraid you do not." Melty stepped forward. "As you can see, Heroes, I am perfectly fine. Aris does not want to capture me, he is merely keeping me safe. Like a real Hero would."

"But he abducted you, didn't he?" said Ren.

"He did not," Melty said firmly. "There is clearly a dastardly plot behind this...laid into action by someone I know very well. Because of that, I asked the Swordsman Shield Hero to take me in and protect me with the help of his friends. Besides, what would they possibly have to gain by kidnapping me? This is a time when those of vastly different views - in this case, those against the Swordsman Shield Hero and those for him - must work together to combat the Waves of Calamity. We cannot allow such meaningless conflict to continue! Please, put away your weapons."

"As Princess Melty so eloquently worded it," said Aris, "this is clearly a setup. We know what is truly going on here...or at least, we have a good idea of what is. We will tell you everything we know."

"You mustn't listen to this charlatan!" a sickeningly familiar voice proclaimed. Malty S. Melromarc stepped out of the crowd, pointing an accusing finger at Aris. "The Devil of Hyrule possesses a magic spell capable of brainwashing any who hear his false words!"

"Are you insane, you redheaded wench!?" Loretta roared. "I'd never be brainwashed by my own brother!"

Malty ignored her. "The magnificent Three Heroes Church has found that heretics who worship the Swordsman Shield Hero have been popping up over the past month. This bastard called himself the 'Savior of the Heavenly Fowl' and went around brainwashing our good people!"

"Are you insane, sister!?" Melty exclaimed. "No one would believe such a lie!"

"Melty, my dear sister," Malty crooned, "it's quite clear that you too have fallen victim to the Devil of Hyrule's brainwashing."

"Then that means everyone else in his party was brainwashed, too!" Motoyasu reasoned. "And I'd wager his sister is an exception, because...well, she's his sister! Of course she'd want to help him carry out his evil deeds!"

"Hold your tongue, you spear-wielding man-whore!" Loretta shouted at Motoyasu. "I would never let my brother do such a thing...no matter how much it would pain me to be against him. Besides, even if he did have a brainwashing spell, none of us would be in this situation to begin with! He would have just used it to brainwash all of you into letting him go!"

"There's no guarantee that you're not just hiding it from us for some reason, though," Ren pointed out. "Do you have any proof to convince us?"

Aris fell silent.

"Aris," said Ren. "For your own good...just hand over the second princess. We don't have to do this the hard way. I promise you she will not be harmed."

Aris seriously considered it. There was no way the other three Heroes knew that Malty was working with Maleficent. If they found out that Malty was, in fact, trying to capture her younger sister, they would likely aid in the defense of the second princess. But...then again, he thought, Malty could just as easily use her social status to make it easier for her to keep her machinations secret.

He gritted his teeth. There was no way he was risking it.

Melty gripped Aris's Cloak of Shadows, looking up at him pleadingly.

Malty held out her hand to Melty. "Come, sister."

"If we can avoid fighting," said Ren, "that might be for the best."

Malty's lips curled into a wicked smile. That smile gave way into one of false praise. "You're absolutely right, Sir Ren!" she cooed, embracing him for a moment. "The safety of my dear little sister comes first!"

Melty looked up to the top of a nearby hill. She saw a shadowy figure looming over the scene in the distance.

Is that...Maleficent? she thought. She recognized the long, crooked horns on her hood.

I can't go back, Melty thought. I can't let them put me into Maleficent's hands.

"Please..." Melty whispered to Aris, desperate to be safe, "...help me..."

Aris gently held her hand. Ness squeezed the other.

"Ren," said Aris, "I appreciate your offer, and I can tell you too care for the safety of the second princess. But her..." Aris eyed Malty, "I wouldn't trust her with Melty's safety. Not even for a second."

Ren looked confused. "What do you mean?"

Malty interjected, "Aris, what are you talking about? Melty is my sweet little sister, I'd never want to hurt her."

"As if any sane individual would believe that," Aris called out. "We know you're working with Maleficent. We know you want to hand Melty over to her so that Maleficent can use her pure heart for Hylia knows what. And then you will be able to claim the title of crown princess for yourself. Tell me, Malty, is that how badly you want to be queen? That you would willingly hand your sister over to an evil witch to be used for potentially world-ending schemes?"

What is he cooking? Ren thought.

"Right!" Sora agreed with Aris. "You'll just have Maleficent tell Melty that she's 'undoing the brainwashing' or whatever, and then Maleficent will just kidnap Melty behind closed doors!"

Aris nodded to Filo. "Now!"

Filo transformed into her Filolial form. Aris summoned and mounted Epona. Sora boarded his Keyblade Glider. Everyone else hopped onto Filo's back.

Aris took a strange glowing plant - called a Dazzlefruit - from his pouch and hurled it at the knights and Heroes. They were temporarily blinded by a flash of bright light, giving Aris and the others time to make a break for it.

"Not so fast!" Motoyasu, having escaped his temporary blindness, hurled something at Filo. It turned out to be a magic shackle, which clamped around Filo's ankle and forced her out of her Filolial form.

Everyone on Filo's back fell to the ground. Aris dismounted Epona and Sora turned his Keyblade Glider back into a Keyblade.

Malty raised her arm and shot a ball of purple magic into the sky, like a flare. "I've called for backup," she said. "There's no way you're escaping now."

Motoyasu, meanwhile, grabbed Filo, who was still recovering from having the wind knocked from her lungs.

The Spear Hero grabbed the young Filolial girl, who screamed for Aris to help her.

"Filo!" Melty cried.

Then, something strange happened.

Water began to coalesce in Melty's outstretched hand. But this was not her usual water magic.

This was something much more powerful.

A Keyblade, beautiful and blue, appeared in her grasp.

BGM: Villains of a Sort - Kingdom Hearts

"Ah, greetings, sir," said Biscas T. Balmus, the Pope of the Three Heroes Church. "Now, what can I do for you?"

"Oh, this certainly is about what you can do for me," said Jafar. "I want you to find the Swordsman Shield Hero, execute him and his friends, and bring the second princess to my mistress, the all-powerful Lady Maleficent."

"But...what has the Swordsman Shield Hero done wrong?" asked the Pope. "He has not committed any crime against God. A learned man such as myself can clearly see the charges initially labeled against him - those for the attempted rape and murder of Princess Malty - were clearly false."

"Hm...allow me to rephrase," said Jafar. He held his golden cobra staff, pointing the eyes of the cobra directly into those of the Pope. "You will send the church's guards after the second princess, slay all those who protect her - those being Aris and his friends - and bring her to me."

The Pope stood, hypnotized. The cobra's eyes were so...captivating. Voices entered his head, speaking thoughts into his mind.

"I...will...do...as you say...sir..."