Judgement

"Izanagi, I don't think you understand the severity of what you and Erebus have done. Both of you created humanity on Remnant. That means that they naturally possess both light and darkness in their hearts. They will ALWAYS have disagreements that put them at odds, much like their creators before them." Aqua stated. "When you refused to revive Ozma, you never told Salem why. If you truly wanted to preserve the balance between life and death, you would have explained how delicate that balance is to her, even if she refused to accept it. But instead, you thought an endless life would be the perfect teacher for her. Immortality and a grieving mortal don't mix.

I've seen what she has become, and it's not pretty. She's on a warpath to make the two of you feel the same pain she feels. And she WILL use her immortality to its fullest to that end. Salem is still human at her core, and we humans can overcome anything when properly motivated. Keyblade Wielders, like myself, are one example of humans becoming strong enough to challenge gods.

"It's a long and difficult road, but it is possible. There's nothing more dangerous in this world or any that was, is, or will be than an immortal, heartbroken woman with powerful magic and nothing left to lose. Even if you end all life on the first world you made, Salem WILL find a way to leave it and hunt you down out of spite. And it seems that the destruction of life on Remnant IS what she wants.

"You'll only give her what she wants if you do this." Aqua finally finished and waited for the Brother Gods to reply.

Oscar was already watching the confrontation between Aqua and the Brother Gods when Penny returned with Terra who was carrying the unconscious Neo in his arms which Oscar noticed when he turned around. "You're back…What happened?"

"Long story." Penny said quickly, walking past Oscar. "I finally managed to find Aqua…however it's likely the Brothers know we are watching now."

"Maybe so but I think Aqua is scaring them right now." Oscar replied.

He shouldn't have been surprised but watching Aqua take on the God of Darkness and actually hold her own and seemingly win was almost shocking beyond belief. Even if he had now carried Ozma's memories in him along with that of Keyblade Master Odin, it was still shocking to know that the Keyblade was capable of contesting against the power of the Gods.

After all, Gods had the power alter and shape reality as easily as a simple man could mold clay.

The thought of any kind of power resisting the Gods was ludicrous, at least until Oscar discovered the Keyblade. Watching Aqua stand against the God of Darkness, able to block and defend against his magic and even hurt him…

Oscar believed that if Salem had known the Keyblade could wound the Gods at the time of her rebellion, she would have worked to recruit Aqua by any means necessary. However, it's likely from what he had seen that Salem's hatred of Aqua eclipsed any idea she had for recruiting the Keyblade Master to her side but it wouldn't mean that Salem wouldn't be looking for ways to gain a Keyblade or a Wielder of her own.

That's why Oscar had to watch carefully.

Between Salem and the Brothers, Aqua was walking a very thin line as naturally the powers of the Keyblade be sought by many dark minds that had existed across Remnant's history, many of whom Ozma had to deal with.

"How is she?" Terra placed Neo on the ground and looked to the image of Aqua.

"She's holding up better than I ever thought." Oscar answered. "But if the God of Light is going to fight her, it will be two on one."

Two Gods

One Keyblade Wielder

Even if Aqua could fight one, fighting two would be extremely difficult.

They could only watch for the moment but Oscar had a feeling it wouldn't be like that for long.

Xxx

Aqua had made her case to the two Brothers who were staring her down, still in their dragon forms. She wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but she knew the two Gods were very fickle by their very nature.

"You say our solution will make this problem worse but your words only now prove our point." The God of Light finally responded. "Salem can only become a threat if there is no humanity for her to use and manipulate. Eliminating them now will cut her off completely."

"Especially if my Grimm children no longer obey her." The God of Darkness stood up, having seemingly recovered from their earlier battle.

"I am telling you it will still lead to the same outcome." Aqua argued, becoming frustrated now. "She'll find a way, whether by spending billions alone on Remnant or even finding a way to leave Remnant and journey to other worlds. With her immortality, she has all the time in the world."

"Perhaps but we will not remove her curse. She still must learn her lesson in respecting the balance." The God of Light replied.

"So take away her magic." Aqua suggested.

"She would rejuvenate her own magic simply by bathing in the dark waters that spawn my Grimm children." The God of Darkness retorted. "We didn't bother stripping her of her magic when we left because there was little point. Her magic is tied to her curse and she evidently found a loop hole when she plunged into the dark waters."

"There is still a way around this. You left Ozma to shepard humanity. Until the Relics have been gathered together he has not failed in that task." Aqua argued.

"And where would that leave you, Aqua?" The God of Light questioned. "You could upset the balance by just being there."

"Which you claim is against your World Order." The God of Darkness added.

"I am there to make sure Salem doesn't evolve into the threat you saw her become." Aqua answered.

Both dragon deities stared her down and Aqua wondered if she had gotten through to them.

"You speak grandly, Aqua but this is our world and we will decide its fate, not you." The God of Light spoke.

"Unless you can defeat both of us. Your Keyblade against the power of Creation and Destruction." The God of Darkness declared.

Aqua narrowed her eyes. "You two just never learn, do you?"

"On the contrary, we have learned a great deal from you, Aqua." The God of Light replied. "Including the fact that we were strongest together."

"In fact, you inspired us to create new Relics in response to the power of your Keyblade." The God of Darkness continued.

There was a flash of light that blinded Aqua for a moment. When she opened her eyes, she found herself in a brand new chamber. It had the same white marble floor and walls like the room he had awakened in, only it had a large golden bell. A set of stairs on the right led up to an interior balcony, which appeared to be three stories high. The strangest part was the pair of golden platforms separated from the balcony by a strange structure: a giant golden scale.

It was ornamental looking with both sides perfectly balanced and the golden the structure was made from cast a mystical glow while decorated by blue jewels.

Aqua felt the same divine power from it that she felt from the Lamp, Staff and Sword. "Is that…A Relic?"

"Correct." The God of Light appeared in human form on the left platform. "This is the Relic of Judgement."

"It was inspired you when convinced me to only destroy the ones who rebelled against us while sparing the ones who are not involved. It takes and measures the choices of one's life, taking all the good and bad choices into consideration. If found innocent the person is unharmed but if found guilty then the Relic would punish based on the crime." The God of Darkness appeared on the right platform. "This is your test."

Aqua's eyes widened as she heard what the Relic was. "You are judging me?"

"We cannot know for sure if you will be able to prevent Salem from becoming the threat we have seen nor can we ignore you continuing to exist on the Remnant, traveling through time and altering much of its history. This goes against the very rules of your World Order." The God of Light stated. "Before you can be trusted, you must be judged."

"If your reasons are indeed valid enough for you to go this far." The God of Darkness swept a hand out. "Raguel!"

A blue mist emerged from the Relic of Judgment, much like the same blue mist that appeared from the other relics and formed into a spirit. Unlike the other spirits, Jinn, Ambrosius, Nimue, Janus or Heimdallr, this spirit took the form a tall, heavily armored knight. He was dressed in a large, golden set of armor with blue regal designs painted all over it. His face was shrouded by a golden helmet and in his right hand was a giant golden ornate sword, large and polished enough to be a mirror.

"This woman stands before you, breaking the very oath she has sworn to uphold in the name of balance!" The God of Darkness pointed at Aqua who let out a shocked gasp from the sight of the knight and stepped back. "As the Spirit of Judgement, you will look upon this woman and determine her fate!"

The God of Light looked up the ceiling. "As well as judging those who are watching us now."

Aqua stared at the God of Light in shock upon hearing him say that but had no time to comment as Raguel, the Spirit of Judgement grunted out a battle cry and raised his sword over Aqua who could see her own reflection on the surface.

Xxx

"AQUA!" Terra shouted before turning to Penny. "We have to help her! If they know we're watching then it doesn't matter at this point!"

Penny nodded. "Agreed."

The image of Raguel approaching Aqua was replaced by a shining portal, summoned by Penny.

"Go and help her. Prove to the Brothers what you really are." Penny stated.

Terra nodded and stepped into the portal. Oscar stared at his hand before looking up at the branches where Gungir was being kept.

"Not yet, Oscar." He heard Penny say. "If you choose to fight, it's possible the Brothers will decide Ozma is a traitor and remove him and you."

That's right.

If Ozma was removed at the point in time he was at now, Salem would not have no one to stop her from getting her hands on the Relics. It was a bitter pill to swallow but Oscar managed to do it as he watched the portal that Terra entered fade and be replaced by the image of him and Aqua facing Raguel.

He glanced at Neo who was still lying unconscious on the ground.

'Of all the times for this to happen…'

Xxx

Just as Raguel raised his sword there was a flash of light-

CLANG!

And something blocked his axe.

The light faded, revealing a bronze armored figure holding back Raguel's sword with its own Keyblade.

Aqua gasped upon seeing who it was. "Terra!"

Terra grunted as he gave a mighty shove that actually pushed Raguel back, forcing the spirit to take two steps back. Terra settled into a fighting stance just as Aqua stood next to him, readying herself for combat as well.

"So this must be the other one." The God of Darkness remarked upon seeing Terra.

"Yes. Raguel can carry out his judgement now." The God of Light replied.

Raguel held his sword above his head as it began to glow and spoke for the first time. "Keyblade Wielders, you stand accused of breaking the very rules you have sworn to uphold in none interfering with the affairs of other worlds. You have made it your intention to alter the very history of the Remnant despite such interference being against your rules."

"It is not as simple as you make it. We are saving it from the darkness, the very force we have been trained to fight against." Terra argued.

"Irrelevant! I, Raguel the Spirit of Judgement will now judge you!" Raguel declared.

The Relic of Judgement began to glow and suddenly the chamber around them began to shift and change. Aqua and Terra watched as the entire chamber turned pitch black, darkness in every direction and nothing else could be seen aside from Raguel, the Relic and the two Gods on the platforms.

"Your souls will now be judged!" Raguel spoke. "Should they be good, filled with light than you will live but your crimes will still be measured. The scales of Relic of Judgement are perfectly balanced as all things should be. If your innocent then Light will be your path, lifted out of the darkness."

Raguel gestured to the scale on which the God of Light stood.

"But if you are judged to be evil," Raguel then gestured to the scale on which stood the God of Darkness. "Then you are sentenced to be destroyed here and now!"

Aqua narrowed her eyes at Raguel. "We are Keyblade Wielders! We face darkness and evil! We do not fear your judgement!"

"Do you?"

Suddenly an image appeared before the pair, causing them to freeze.

It was Terra…or rather the form he took while he was possessed by Xehanort: Terranort.

"Darkness took this one's body because he failed to heed the wisdom of his master and friends. You helped by not being the friend he needed at the time." Raguel accused, pointing at Terra and then at Aqua. "Your mistakes are brought great suffering to the worlds and why you stand here, facing my judgement!"

The left scale on which the God of Darkness stood began to lower itself down to the ground. As this happened, Terra and Aqua found themselves sinking in the ground.

"It seems you both belong in darkness." The image of Terranort taunted.

THUNK!

The left scale touched the dark ground and let out a loud 'thunk' sound.

"You have judged guilty and this are not worthy of existence!" Raguel shouted as his sword began to glow. "Your judgement has come! Face oblivion!"

"NO!" Terra reached out and grabbed Aqua, pulling her to him as held his Keyblade up. "I am not letting it end here! Not like this!"

His Keyblade shined bright, pushing away the darkness and transformed into its glider form with Terra in the pilot seat and Aqua behind him. The glider shot up from the ground and hovered above the Relic of Judgement.

"Aqua has nothing to do with my mistakes, before and after I was possessed!" Terra called down with finality in his voice. "My mistakes are mine alone and I will set things right!"

"It seems the Keyblade can resist even the power of Judgement." The God of Darkness mused. "No matter. Raguel, the powers of Creation and Destruction are in your hands! Use our gifts to bring forth judgement!"

"And so I shall!" Raguel aimed his sword down and plunged it into the ground. "I summon the Devourer of the Wicked: Ammit!"

Along the ground, dark water like what would be seen in the Land of Darkness began rise up and take form. Terra and Aqua watched as a new monster, a new kind of Grimm was created right before their very eyes. First came the enormous pitch black liquid body, followed by the signature white bone armor covering it. Its face and snout resembled that of a crocodile's but when its mouth opened they could see the fangs being what you would see from a crocodile and a lion.

The body was lithe like a lion but strong like a crocodile but also possessed the girth and size of a hippopotamus. Its four legs resembled a crocodile's legs but were long and muscular like a hippo's which having very sharp claws like a lion.

And like all Grimm, it possessed glowing red eyes.

Aqua and Terra were stunned by this new creation. They could tell this Grimm was much stronger than any other Grimm they had seen up to this point.

"Devour them, Ammit!" Raguel shouted, pointing his sword at the Keyblade duo.

Ammit let out a demonic howl and leapt up at the pair.

Terra dismissed his glider, allowing both him and Aqua to fall back to the ground while Ammit flew over the pair.

(Kingdom Hearts III – Dark Dominion (Overture To The Decisive Battle) MIX – (2002) Starts)

(Information: Defeat Ammit and Raguel)

Both Aqua and Terra landed perfectly on the ground and noticed they were not sinking this time. Ammit landed a few yards away, spinning to face them and letting out another roar before charging. Raguel flew over the pair and landed on Ammit's head as the beast charged, pointing his sword right at the pair. Aqua cart-wheeled to one side while Terra jumped to the other, watching as the beast charged past them.

The Grimm spun around and charged again, this time at Terra who had no time to react as the beast slammed right into him.

"Terra!" Aqua called out as Terra was thrown back by the force of the hit, slamming into the pitch black wall that couldn't be seen.

Terra fell to the ground, kicking up some dust as he hit the ground.

"Merely a suit of armor animated by your own soul." Raguel scoffed. "You believe you can make anything right the way you are."

A voice came from the dust cloud. "Zantetsuken."

Something shot out of the cloud, scattering the dust as the bolt of light hit Ammit, causing it to screech and take a few steps back as Terra appeared behind it. Raguel grunted as Armmit stumbled a bit, having nearly been knocked off balance by the attack. Armmit slowly turned around and snarled at Terra.

The God of Darkness was seemingly glaring at Terra. "Armmit was created with both of our blessings and still the Keyblade can makes them strong enough to fight it."

The God of Light remained silent, simply watching the fight.

Raguel seemingly glared down at Terra who simply 'stared' back. "You dare challenge my judgement?"

Terra said nothing as he prepared to attack again.

Just as it was about to though…

"Mega-Flare!"

A blast of fire slammed into both Armmit's head and Raguel, creating a blinding explosion.

BOOM!

Raguel grunted as he was thrown off Armit's head and hit the ground. The light from the explosion faded, heaving revealed Aqua to be the one who cast the spell.

"You…" Raguel slowly stood up.

"This has gone on long enough." Aqua then glared at the Brother Deities. "Are you two really so scared of us that you're going to send monster after monster to destroy us?"

The Brothers said nothing as Raguel raised his sword and charged at Aqua who spun out of the way, dodging the slashed aimed at her head. Raguel tried slashing at Aqua a few more times, missing until the fifth one finally hit her in the chest. Aqua grunted as her Aura took the hit and sent her flying back.

"You will not forestall my judgement!" Raguel shouted as he charged again.

A golden glyph appeared under Aqua's feet and a golden aura surrounded her as Raguel swung again.

CLANG!

"Huh?" Raguel was stunned to see his sword bounce off of Aqua.

The Brother Gods froze as they felt something from the aura surrounding her.

An aura of…

Divine power?

Aqua let out a battle cry as she charged at Raguel, swinging her Keyblade and slashing Raguel several times, forcing him back.

With each hit came a surge of power through her, filling her and soon enough it was ready to burst.

"Command Style: Ghost Drive!" Aqua shouted as the golden aura around her faded and a shining blue one replaced it.

Moving at high speed, Aqua appeared and disappeared around Raguel, slashing her Keyblade from every possible angle and leaving deep scratch marks on the spirit's golden armor.

Then she appeared above him and brought her Keyblade down on his head.

BOOM!

With one final slash, Raguel was slammed into the ground, kicking up dust everwhere.

At the very same moment…

"METEOR!"

Terra summoned a Meteor that appeared above Armmit and slammed right on top of it, causing the Grimm to let out a terrible, painful cry before it toppled over and slowly began to fade. The darkness that had enveloped the room began to recede as Armmit's body dissolved into a black mist.

(Kingdom Hearts III – Dark Dominion (Overture To The Decisive Battle) MIX – (2002) Ends)

Meanwhile, the dust cloud surrounding Raguel cleared away, showing the Spirit of Judgement on his knees as the golden helmet surrounding his head split apart.

Underneath was a face with blue skin and darker blue hair with the same eyes as all the other spirits. His hair was shorter than any of the other spirits with white and golden ornate decorations flowing through it.

He looked up at Aqua…and smiled softly. "Well…done."

Aqua looked surprised at hearing that from the spirit that had sought to kill her and Terra.

"As we fought, I sensed the light in you. A powerful light, one that grew stronger with each second, as you stood side by side with your ally." Raguel slowly said while his body began to dissolve into a blue mist. "Though still young, you possess great power and great wisdom. The makings of a great hero even."

Aqua was stunned to hear that. What was happening?

A sound from above caught her attention and she looked up to see the scales on the Relic of Judgement. Previously, the scale the God of Darkness stood had lowered until it was touching the ground. Now it was rising while the scale the God of Light stood on was reaching down to the ground and let out a soft chime.

"The test has been passed...My judgement has been rendered." By now, Raguel's torso had fully dissolved with only his head remaining. "Good luck, hero."

With that, Raguel the Spirit of Judgement faded back into the Relic he had born from. Both the Brother Gods removed themselves from the Relic, landing softly on the ground.

"It seems we have reached a final conclusion." The God of Light remarked, his hands brought together in front of him.

Aqua glared at the two Brothers. "And that is?"

"You are still driven to protect the Remnant, even now?" The God of Light asked.

"….Yes." Aqua nodded slowly. "I have friends that are relying on me to help them save their world. I can't turn my back and leave, not yet. If I forsake this world for my own, I'll be turning my back on all that I was taught. I can't do that."

Terra walked up to Aqua and placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's true, we made mistakes but we're stronger than them. We are more than our mistakes and we are more when we are standing together."

Both Brothers were silent for a moment before one spoke.

"Very well, but know this Aqua. You wish that we no longer interfere, that you wish to travel the Remnant while disguised as one of its denizens to protect it than you must know I can no longer permit my Grimm to ignore you." The God of Darkness stated.

Aqua raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"To ensure no one truly and quickly realizes how special you are. If you wish to remain, you will have to fight and struggle as every member of humanity does." The God of Darkness answered.

"There will no longer be any interference from us but take heed that we will be watching from this." The God of Light spoke next. "Just as we decided to learn from when we departed from the Remnant, we will learn from this. Ozma's original task shall remain the same and Salem's curse will only be lifted when she understands she was wrong to tamper with the balance of life and death."

Aqua and Terra shared a glance, relieved that this meant that the Gods would not be destroying Remnant.

"You have given us much to consider, Aqua." The God of Light made a gesture. "However…"

The Relics that Aqua brought with her glowed and suddenly disappeared. "What-"

"We cannot allow the four Relics to be removed from the Remnant." The God of Light lowered his hand. "I have split them and sent them to different corners of the Remnant again."

Aqua sighed and shook her head. "All right, fine. But you are still going to bring Poppy back."

"The balance-"

"You broke the balance when you summoned us here!" Aqua sharply cut the light deity off. "You killed her because you could. You're going to bring her back because it's fixing the balance you tampered just because you had a problem with me."

The Brothers shared a look with each other before the God of Light nodded. "Very well, we will return her to the Remnant."

Aqua kept her glare but nodded.

"But remember this, Aqua that we will be watching." The God of Light summoned a portal in front of the pair. "This leads back to the Remnant."

Aqua stared at the portal and then looked at Terra. "Thank you for coming."

Terra nodded. "I'll do it again, no matter how long it takes."

"You can't follow me." Aqua reminded. "I can shorten the journey but if you live a thousand years alone…"

Terra didn't need to hear what she was about to say and just nodded. "Remember, you aren't doing this alone."

Aqua nodded with a small smile.