BGM: The Underworld - Kingdom Hearts 2.5 ReMix

"This...It's an entrance to the Underworld!?"

Sora's voice echoed through a vast cavern over a bottomless pit. Wisps floated around the air, barely visible as they passed by. What they were was beyond Loretta's knowledge.

"The...Underworld?" Loretta was confused.

"It's Hades's home," Sora explained. "I went here a few times a while back. Hades had resurrected a guy named Auron from the dead and tried to get him to kill a hero named Hercules. Auron went against Hades at first, but then Hades managed to sort of brainwash Auron into working for him. My friends and I managed to get Auron to snap out of it, and then we took down Hades. And, uh, believe it or not, that was only the second time I had to fight him. The third time...that's a long story."

"Then I won't bother asking."

Loretta followed Sora further into the Underworld.

"Hello? Is someone there?"

Loretta froze in her tracks. The voice had startled her. Sora, however, seemed to recognize it.

"Meg!?" he exclaimed. "You're down here!?"

"Sora, is that you!?" the woman apparently named Meg called back. "Why are you in the Underworld?"

"I could ask you the same thing!"

"Eh...touché, I guess. Where are you?"

"Stay where you are!" Sora shouted into the darkness of the caves ahead. "I've got a friend with me, we'll come find you!"

Loretta followed Sora as Sora followed the sound of Meg's voice.

They eventually came upon a tall, slender woman with a poofy auburn ponytail and a lavender dress.

"Meg!" Sora ran over to the auburn woman and exchanged a high-five with her. "I'm so glad you're okay! How've you been?"

"Pretty good, actually," Meg replied.

"Oh, and how's Herc?" asked Sora.

"Wonderboy?" Meg blushed. "We're...still going strong, as usual."

"Good, good," said Sora. "Oh, hold on." He gestured to Loretta. "This is my friend Loretta. I'm traveling with some friends of hers to find Kairi."

"Oh, yeah, Kairi. Your girlfriend," Meg teased. "She went missing again?"

Sora nodded, a crestfallen look on his face. "Yeah...but we'll find her!"

"You really haven't changed." Meg chuckled. She turned to Loretta. "Hey. I don't think we've met. Name's Megara. My friends call me Meg."

"Loretta," replied Loretta, shaking Megara's hand. "It's nice to meet you."

"So, Meg," said Sora, "what're you doing in the Underworld?"

Megara sighed. "Hades. Again. He's been trying to get me back on his side of the whole 'him versus Olympus' schtick. But it won't be working." Megara looked around for a moment. "Don't think I've ever seen this part of the Underworld, though. Never heard about Hades planning renovations."

"Maybe this has always been here," Loretta suggested.

"Good point."

Sora pumped his fist. "Loretta and I can get you out of here. Come on!"

Sora took off at a jog. Loretta and Megara rushed to catch up.

"The exit to Thebes should be just that way!" Sora pointed to a tunnel ascending upward and out of the ground. Megara rushed towards it.

Suddenly, a low, loud, beastly growl shook the cavern around them.

Megara sighed. "Oh, I guess he's sent the doggie after us."

"The...doggie?" Loretta was even more confused.

"You'll see in a minute," said Megara.

A gargantuan beast of a monster burst from the nearby cave wall. It was a massive, three-headed black dog, foaming at its three unnaturally large mouths.

BGM: Vim and Vigor - Kingdom Hearts 2.5 ReMix

"Yep, that's Cerberus!" Sora summoned his Keyblade. "Meg, get out of here! We'll hold him off!"

Megara left in a hurry. "Be careful!"

"We will! Don't worry!"

Loretta and Sora nodded to each other.

Sora advanced on Cerberus directly for a frontal assault. Meanwhile, Loretta ran around the edge of the room, lighting up Cerberus with blaster beams while Sora kept the canine busy.

"Alright, doggie!" said the Keyblade Wielder. "Ol' Sora's gonna teach you some new tricks! And I'll show you some of mine, too!"

In a flash of light, Sora's Keyblade transfigured. Sora held it by the shaft of the blade now, with the guard rotating a few degrees to resemble the head of a hammer.

Sora jumped over one of Cerberus's incoming heads as it chomped down on the air where he'd been standing. He brought the hammer down onto the head. The sickening crack of bone echoed in the cave. Cerberus's right head had lost several teeth.

Loretta lashed out with both of her Plasma Whips. They coiled around the neck of Cerberus's middle head.

The triple-headed beast roared and writhed, attempting to shake off the unwelcome leash. Loretta resisted with all the propulsion power her jet boots had to offer - which, unfortunately for her, wasn't much.

She was sent flying into a wall, the blow largely cushioned by her jet boots thrusting against her velocity.

"Good thinking!" Sora said to her. "The middle head is his weak point!"

"Then we should focus on it!" Loretta replied. "You already eliminated the rightmost head!"

"Got it!" Sora's Keyblade returned to its usual form.

Cerberus's leftmost head reared back and roared, sending a fireball from its gaping maw.

Sora's Keyblade changed forms again, this time resembling a pair of gauntlets. An uppercut sent the fireball into the ceiling.

That section of the ceiling - the one impacted by the fireball - began to collapse. A large piece of rubble struck the leftmost head, killing it.

"Now for the middle one!" said Sora. "And I've got an idea!"

He shifted his Keyblade back to its usual form. He jumped towards the middle head.

Before it could bite him in half, Sora jammed his Keyblade into Cerberus's splayed jaws, forcing them to remain open. Cerberus tried to shake him off with all its might, but Sora's legs were able to hold fast.

Loretta leaped into action with her jet boots, taking Sora's place and rapidly firing lasers into Cerberus's mouth. "I hope you're hungry!"

She felt Cerberus bend its legs, preparing to jump. She, too, jumped, away from Cerberus to prevent it from crushing her against the ceiling.

In mid-air, Cerberus let off another fireball. Loretta whipped up one of her blasters and shot it, detonating the projectile. Cerberus was sent hurtling through the cave ceiling, exposing it to open daylight and causing the beast to fly into the distance.

End BGM

"...Well, I suppose that explains the random monster corpse that came flying in from the distance after the dragon went down," Aris mused.

"I still don't think that's as crazy as Filo somehow managing to kill the dragon from inside," Sora retorted.

Everyone shared a hearty laugh.

"Oh, actually, guys!" Filo chimed in. "Speaking of me being in the dragon's belly, I found something while I was in there."

"Oh?" Aris was intrigued. "Care to elaborate?"

"Sure!" said Filo. She took something out of her dress pocket. "While I was tearing up the dragon's stomach, I found this big purple crystal. It was glowing a bit green, too. I think that may have been because of that Hades guy."

"I think so, too," Raphtalia agreed. "He seems to have a lot of power over souls."

"He does," Sora confirmed. "He's the god of the dead. At least...in his own world. But now he's meddling in other worlds because he's working with Maleficent."

"But, in any case, the crystal," said Aris. "Something tells me it might have been the source of the dragon's power in life and was refused death by Hades."

"That tracks in my book," said Sora. "Maybe it's connected to the dragon's heart."

"Possibly," Loretta agreed.

Raphtalia started coughing. Her knees buckled and she almost fell.

Aris, quick to take action, scooped her off her feet and held her in a bridal carry.

"Oh no, what happened?" Filo sounded worried.

"We need to get back to the village immediately," said Aris. "Raphtalia's sick and needs medicine. We can come back here to dispose of the dragon's corpse - and probably that of Cerberus, too - once she has adequate treatment."

"No!" Raphtalia strained, pushing her vocal cords to their limit again. "We...We have to get rid of the body first. Both the bodies. Even if Cerberus isn't poisonous like the dragon, it may still cause problems if we just leave its body here."

"We can't! Not with you on the verge of death!" Aris had tears in his eyes again. "Raphtalia, I...I already lost everyone but my sister...I...I can't lose you, too!"

"Wh-What...?"

"N-Nothing," Aris said, brushing it off. "I...Merely a slip of the tongue."

"Aris..." Raphtalia smiled gently at him, reaching up to cup his cheek in her hand. "You don't have to worry...okay? I'll take the medicine after we get rid of the bodies. If we don't, Hades might revive them again, putting us back where we started."

Aris sighed. "You're right...You're always right."

Raphtalia staggered to her feet as Aris gently set her down. The party went to work cleaning away the corpses of Cerberus and the dragon.

"The mountain wind is as good as new now," said the doctor to Aris. "Thank you, sir...Thank you so very much."

He offered him a pouch stuffed with coins.

Aris pushed it back towards the doctor. "No. I don't want your money. Use it to heal Raphtalia...please. I don't care what it costs...just make that girl well again...!"

Tears formed in his eyes. Filo looked crestfallen as she held his hand. "Papa..."

Aris hugged her. Filo hugged back.

"Curing her completely will be difficult," said the doctor. "We can treat her symptoms so that she can function better physically, but we cannot remove the curse completely."

"Curse?" said Loretta.

"Yes, and a powerful one to boot," said the doctor. "It came from the dragon's poisonous breath, I'd wager. We've done all we can already - wrapped her with bandages soaked in holy water, that is. But our holy water isn't pure enough to alleviate a curse such as hers."

"Then where can we find some that is?" asked Aris.

"The church, in the capital," replied the doctor. "They should have the holy water you need. So...please, keep this money for when you do."

Aris reluctantly accepted the coins.

The nurse suddenly opened the nearby door, leaning into the room.

Aris whipped his head in her direction, a hopeful glimmer in his eyes. "Is she..."

The nurse nodded.

Aris rushed into the room past the nurse, seeing Raphtalia with bandages on her arms and forehead. Raphtalia had risen to a seated position in her bed. She smiled at Aris. "Hello."

Aris had tears in his eyes as he made for Raphtalia's bedside and threw his arms around her.

"W-Whoa..." Raphtalia blushed a little, lurching back at the sudden hug.

She was far from against it, however, and wrapped her arms gently around the worried Hylian.

Filo, Loretta, and Sora entered the room. "Hi!" said Filo. "How're you feeling?"

"Better," said Raphtalia, continuing to hold Aris in her arms like it was nothing. "Not quite as good as before, but at least I'm not bedridden. I'll be out in no time."

"I never knew zombified monsters could be so powerful," the nurse remarked. "And I can't believe you all made it out alive!"

"That...almost wasn't the case," Raphtalia pointed out. "I got careless and ended up hit with a lot of the dragon's poison breath...and its rotten flesh."

Aris's grip on Raphtalia tightened. "No...it was my fault. I couldn't keep you safe enough."

"Don't you blame yourself," Raphtalia chided. "It's in the past now. We all made it out in one piece, didn't we?"

Aris sighed. "You're right."

"And besides..." Raphtalia gently ran her fingers through his hair, "I wouldn't have been mad at you even if it was your fault."

"But I would be angry with myself, even more so than I am right now," Aris refuted. "I...I always feel that it's my fault whenever something bad happens to you."

Raphtalia blushed.

The nurse leaned to her ear and whispered, "He really cares about you, doesn't he?"

"Yeah..." said Raphtalia. "I...I guess he does."

Raphtalia felt her heart flutter. Seeing Aris so concerned - so worried - for her safety made her feel fuzzy inside. She was falling even deeper in love with him now.

The nurse left the room, wishing Raphtalia a speedy recovery.

Aris sighed again. He softly held Raphtalia's hand. "I'm...I'm really sorry."

"I told you, it's not your fault," Raphtalia reminded him.

"It is," Aris refuted. "I...When I witnessed Filo getting eaten by the dragon - or rather, what I thought was Filo getting eaten by the dragon - I...I lost control of myself. I let my anger...my desire for revenge...I let it take over my mind and my judgement. I could have easily hurt you in that form..."

"That may be so," said Raphtalia, "but I was able to calm you down, wasn't I? I'm willing to deal with something like this measly curse if it means you're safe."

Loretta and Sora started whispering to each other and chuckling.

Aris eyed them. "And just what are you two laughing about?"

Sora averted his gaze playfully. "Nothing," he said, dragging out the "o".

BGM: Friends in my Heart - Kingdom Hearts 2.5 ReMix

Aris changed the subject. "But, in all seriousness..." He held Raphtalia's hand, using the other to hold Filo's. Sora and Loretta drew closer. "I...I don't want to let you down. Any of you. I may wield a sword, but I'm still the Shield Hero. That means my job is not just to attack, but to protect. And that is what I intend to do...to the bitter end."

"We'll protect you, too!" Sora assured him. "We've got your back!"

"Aris, we're family. You're my brother." Loretta placed her hand on his shoulder. "We may have separated after we discovered the gateways to other worlds...but that doesn't mean I ever stopped caring about you. Not even for a single moment. Every day when we were separated, I would worry that you were dead...or worse, subjected to unending suffering and torment in a place where I couldn't be there to save you. So I'm not going to go anywhere, brother."

"Right! Neither am I!" Filo chimed in. "I'll be here for you, papa! You, Raphtalia, Aunt Lorie, and Uncle Sora!"

"Wait, wait, wait," Aris interrupted, stopping her. "I know we're having a serious conversation here, but this needs to be addressed. Since when did Sora and Loretta become your uncle and aunt?"

"Well, you're my papa, right? That means you're my father," said Filo. "And Loretta's your sister. That means she's my aunt!"

"That makes sense," said Aris, "but what about Sora?"

"He felt left out," Loretta explained. "So she started calling him her uncle."

Sora chuckled bashfully.

"I see," said Aris. "And...what about Raphtalia?"

Sora smirked. "I think you know the answer."

Aris's face turned beet red. "I told you, i-it's not like that!"

Everyone shared a laugh, sans Aris and Raphtalia, who were both fire engine red.

After a hearty laugh, everyone prepared to head to bed for the night, letting Raphtalia stay in the hospital.

"A-Aris?" Raphtalia beckoned.

Aris stopped, turning over his shoulder.

Raphtalia's cheeks were still a little flushed. "Would you...Would you be...W-Would...I...um...I-I want you to...stay with me...tonight. I-If you don't mind, that is."

Aris smiled at her. "I won't go anywhere tonight, Raphtalia."

That's right gamers, we've got more Aris/Raphtalia moments, get 'em while they're hot! ...Sort of. They're not together yet, of course. I'm not rushing their romance too much...right?

Also, when I had the idea to have Lorie and Sora follow Hades into a cave leading to the Underworld from Hercules, I just knew I had to feature Megara. She's my second favorite Hercules character behind Hades.