X wasn't sure why they decided to land in the underworld again. They had to know they were landing in the wrong place, or at least not the usual place. Nevertheless, they disembarked heading into the land of the dead.
"Well?" Sora asked as Donald and Goofy looked back and forth. Taking a quick glance around X saw nothing worth noting. It was still the same old dark place.
"The coast is clear!" Goofy decided.
"No sign of the Nobodies or the Heartless, for now, anyway," Donald agreed.
They walked farther into the underworld, soon reaching the river Styx. Across the river bright lights shined, making some kind of arena visible. As far as X knew that hadn't been there before. He was no expert in the underworld, but he certainly didn't remember that being a thing.
"What's that?" Donald asked.
"Nothing good," X replied with no hesitation.
"The Underdome," X nearly jumped out of his skin, turning to see Auron beside them. "Fiends of the Underworld once clashed there--- battle after battle. But Zeus didn't like the senseless violence, so he locked the place up." X frowned. Was the Coliseum above ground any different?
"How did it get UN-locked?" Sora asked.
"Some fool must have broken the seal," Auron answered calmly. X frowned. Something this big must have had a big seal with few options to open it. Like a key that can unlock anything. X glanced to Sora, remembering the strange tasks Hades had given them before.
"What an idiot," Sora said crossing his arms. X sighed heavily and hid his face in his hand.
"Hmph," Auron said, seeming to know exactly what X had figured out. He turned to walk away from the group.
"Where are you going, Auron? We should catch up!" Sora said.
"If you need something to do, go help your friends," Auron said, rather than giving in to Sora's demand. Looking to the entrance to the Underworld they found Hercules, Phil, and Meg standing together. When they returned their attention to Auron he was gone.
Since Auron managed to disappear they walked over to the group by the entrance. X frowned as he glanced at Hercules, who was still down after last time.
"Hey," Herc greeted quietly.
"Herc! You feeling any better?" Sora asked. Herc only looked away from them. X could feel the turmoil in his heart. Something that strong was impossible to miss. He was surprised more Heartless weren't chasing after him.
"Well, same routine. Wonderboy here thinks his hero days are over. And Phil thinks it's all in his head," Meg explained looking at Hercules with a sad frown.
"Gawrsh, Herc. We know you're a hero!" Goofy said.
"That's right, Blunderboy. How can you mope on a momentous day like today?" X groaned in annoyance as Hades appeared in a puff of smoke. "The Underdome's back, and you are gonna fill the stands. After all, your fans won't settle for anything less than a certified hero. I mean, if you're not up to it, you could always just, I dunno, lose?" Hades said, pacing around Herc. Herc seemed for a moment to get angry, but his face quickly fell as he gave up.
"I bet you'd like that!" Sora snapped angrily.
"Excuse me? Hey, I'm not a selfish guy. I'm not like those high and mighty snobs up on Olympus. I stand for the masses! And have I got a massive idea! The games, ladies and gentlemen... are back! Yours truly, Hades---the one and only Lord of the Dead--- brings you the ultimate games, to celebrate the re-opening of the ultimate coliseum! We'll finally answer the age-old question: Who deserves the title "Ultimate Hero"? These games are gonna settle the debate once and for all! The winner reigns supreme. Of what? You guessed it! The Hades Cup! And I assure you that the "Great" Hercules will be there. Otherwise," Hades paused for a moment in his needlessly long speech, narrowing his eyes at Meg. Herc stepped in front of her, eyes narrowed into a glare that this time managed to stay strong. "You'll never see your girlfriend again."
"Lowlife," Sora said as Hades vanished in the same puff of smoke he arrived in.
"You're too kind, kid," Hades's voice echoed around them.
"He still likes the sound of his own voice," X decided glaring up at the rock above them.
They grouped together to decide their next move. Unfortunately, it was quickly unanimous that there wasn't much else they could do besides play along. Hades was the one in control down here, and that was a fact they couldn't fight. They signed up for the Hades cup at the Underdome, staying in a group with Hercules joining them.
"Who do we face first?" Herc asked as they stood off to the side waiting.
"Let's see," Sora said, leaning forward to look at the roster.
"It's Spin Strike," Goofy said.
"Sounds like a Heartless," X said calmly, crossing his arms.
"Look! Auron's in the tournament, too!" Donald said pointing at the bracket. Sure enough, Auron was listed on the opposite bracket.
"Uh-oh! We might have to fight him in the finals!" Goofy said.
"I bet he's a real hero, huh?" Herc asked. Sora crossed his arms and frowned turning to Herc.
"Well, I don't think he's a bad guy. But you're the only hero around here, Hercules. You know that," Sora said. X doubted that. Sora had to be worthy of that title by now.
"Maybe before," Herc said. "Now I'm just a washout."
"Stop that!" Sora said. X sighed.
"Maybe we need that other guy back. He managed to get you thinking like a hero," he said crossing his arms. Sora looked at him in confusion, while Herc gave a weak smile.
Luckily there were only a few rounds to go through, and if the first round was any indication of the difficulty level of the tournament, there was nothing to fear about these matches.
"How'd it go out there, champ?" Sora asked as they finished out the first match.
"I'm just not what I used to be. Sorry to drag you down, guys," Herc said.
"Don't throw in the towel yet, Herc! We need you in the semifinals!" Sora said. Herc didn't reply, and they were soon thrown into the next match. Just as before it was an easy enough win. Though Herc seemed to be holding back for some reason.
"We made it to the finals!" Sora cheered.
"If we win, we'll all be heroes!" Donald said.
"Oh, that's why you're so happy," Goofy said with a chuckle.
"We can't stay junior heroes forever, you know," Sora said, putting his hands on his hips.
"Who made this system and said you guys weren't heroes?" X asked. Sora shrugged, bursting into a grin as he looked around in excitement. X held back a chuckle at the childish action. He never changed.
"I'll try not to mess things up," Herc said.
"Enough already," Donald said.
"Look. Over there," Herc said, nodding towards a door. Auron was standing in the door calmly looking over the arena. "He's our final opponent, right?"
"Auron!" Sora called running up to him. Auron turned to him, a red glow covering him for a brief moment.
"And you are?" Auron asked.
"Huh?" Sora asked in confusion. X frowned, crossing his arms.
"Auron?" Donald asked.
"I must defeat you and atone for my crimes," Auron said simply. He turned on them and walked away leaving the group behind stunned. X's frowned, his chest feeling heavy. What had made Auron think like that all of a sudden? Who was trying to control him with such underhanded means?
"Hey! What was that all about?" Sora asked.
"Something's up," X decided.
They followed him deeper into the Underworld, finding him talking to Hades in a secluded area. They hid around the corner, listening carefully as they peaked around the corner.
"Ok, let's review. State your crime, prisoner," Hades said.
"I exist. That is my crime. It is inexcusable," Auron answered.
"Ooh, good, very good," Hades said.
"What's wrong with Auron? He's never acted that way before," Sora asked looking at the three with him. X only nodded back towards the room.
"Just watch. I think we'll get our answer," X said. Hades was likely to explain his entire plan, since he so loved listening to himself talk.
"Ok, so you made one lousy mistake: you exist. But hey, I'm a forgiving guy. You keep your end of our little deal, and I'm willing to overlook a transgression or two," Hades said. X could feel himself filling with anger at the god of the dead. He had no rights to say such things about anyone. In the underworld or not.
"I understand. Defeat Hercules," Auron said.
"And his meddling friends," Hades added.
"What? No, only Hercules," Auron said. Hades leaned on his shoulder.
"Oh, don't tell me you've forgotten who's in charge?" Hades asked, placing a hand on Auron's shoulder. Red swirled off Auron, going into a doll in Hades's other hand. The doll looked like Auron in a way, and X felt his stomach drop. This couldn't be good. "Hercules and the other four. Are we clear?"
"We're clear, Hades," Auron agreed.
"Lord Hades," Hades corrected. Auron hesitated for a moment.
"Lord Hades," he echoed.
"Good. Now go," Hades ordered. The group ducked back around the wall turning to each other.
"So that's how he's controlling Auron!" Sora snapped.
"What a jerk!" Donald said.
"He'd probably think that was a compliment," Goofy said.
"I can't stand seeing Auron do that lowlife's bidding. We've got to help him!" Sora decided. They fell silent as Auron left the area, watching him with determined gazes. "C'mon, let's go after him!"
They followed Auron until he went to the underdome. At the shores of the river, they met with Herc.
"What's wrong, Sora?" Herc asked.
"Auron's in trouble! It's like Hades brainwashed him!" Sora explained.
"He's using some kind of a statue," Goofy explained. Herc frowned as he crossed his arms and tapped his chin.
"You know something? That sounds kinda familiar," Herc said. He looked up at them with a determined gaze, similar to before he started doubting himself. "Hades may be using the statue to hold Auron's free will hostage."
"What do we do?" Donald asked.
"See if you can find that statue. It's gotta be somewhere in the Underworld," Herc said.
"Right. I'm on it!" Sora said with a nod.
"Tell me you're not thinking of leaving. You've got a match coming up," Hades said, suddenly appearing by the group. X glared at the god, already annoyed with his presence. Herc turned to Hades quickly.
"I'll fight Auron in the final. One on one," Herc said.
"Oh, you will?" Hades asked. He turned around quickly, and X could feel the unease roll off him. It was messing with his plan, but it would make Auron's job easier. At least easier than fighting all five at once.
"I'll draw things out to buy you time," Herc whispered to them while Hades was distracted.
"But--" Sora began. Herc cut him off quickly.
"Just hurry back. I know you can do it!"
"Congratulations! You've got a deal," Hades said turning around to face them again.
"Thanks," Herc said.
"On one condition! The Keyblader, here, and his trusty friends have to meet the winner in one final clash, whaddya say?" Hades asked.
"That'll drive the crowd wild," Herc said trailing off and looking to the side. Hades was banking on Auron winning. It would be the only way for all of them to be taken care of.
"It'd better. I promised the crowd the event of their afterlives," Hades said turning away.
He left them afterward, giving Sora, Donald, Goofy, and X time to slip away deeper into the underworld. They quickly found the statue, sitting on a table without much protection. Before X could try to advise caution Sora ran into the room.
"Got it!" Sora yelled. As he grabbed onto the statue shocks rippled through his body. Goofy reached out to Sora and was soon shocked himself.
"Huh?" Donald asked stepping closer to them.
"You probably shouldn't-" X began, but before he could finish Donald placed a hand on Goofy and was also shocked by the mysterious power. "-do that," X finished with a sigh.
"What's going on!?" Donald asked.
X sighed taking out one his daggers and carefully sliding it under the doll to separate it from the table. Luckily the shock didn't extend to him through his dagger. Once the doll was free, the shocks stopped and the trio sat on the ground looking to the doll in Sora's hand in shock.
"I get it. This is what belongs in Auron's heart," Sora said. X frowned looking at the doll in interest.
"Gawrsh, he musta had a pretty rough life," Goofy said.
"Yeah, but in the end, that's really what made him stronger," Sora said nodding to himself.
"Let's give it back!" Donald said as the group got their feet. Before they could move a group of Dusks appeared, surrounding them and hissing as they swayed.
"Nobodies? Where did they come from?" Sora asked, drawing his keyblade.
"Hey, go away!" Donald yelled. The Nobodies grew closer to them, still swaying.
X sighed and snapped his fingers, summoning a small group of Heartless that quickly attacked the Nobodies. Sora, Donald, and Goofy all turned to look at X. He shrugged picking his way past the fighting Nobodies and Heartless out of the room.
"Not what I had in mind, but I'll take it!" Sora decided.
"We'd better skedaddle!" Goofy said before they followed after X. He held back a smile. They weren't treating him like some kind of freak. Even when he controlled their enemies.
They managed to reach the Underdome in the nick of time. Hercules was fighting Auron and looked to be losing. His feet were sliding underneath him, as he fought against Auron's sword that was pushing down on him.
"Now! Finish him!" Hades yelled from the side.
"Auron, no!" Sora yelled.
"Hey, Auron! This belongs to you!" Donald called. They threw the doll into the arena at Auron's feet where it shattered. The red swirls flowed back into Auron. He set his sword down, looking at the sidelines while Herc caught his breath.
"Sora. Donald. Goofy. X," Auron said.
"Why those little---" Hades complained from his place. He turned red as he clenched his fist. "Ugh, prisoner! What happened to our mutual agreement? I can give you a clean slate, but you gotta work with me."
"Maybe you didn't hear me. This is my story, and you're not a part of it," Auron said calmly turning to face Hades. X held back a snicker, looking away.
Hades disappeared in a pillar of flames, reappearing on the platform where the group was.
"That's it! This game is over. I've played by the rules so far. Ok, I confess! I was hoping Wonderboy would lose, but it was still a fair fight. C'mon, is that really so wrong? Huh?" Hades yelled, anger clear as he looked between the group almost desperately.
"Really? A fair fight?" Sora asked. Donald, Goofy, and X all laughed. X could hardly believe any of this. None of this fight was fair, any more than Zack's fight with Terra was fair. Hades didn't know what fair even meant.
"Laugh, laugh, laugh all you want!" Hades said, letting out his own weak chuckle. "Because that laughing is about to stop. Wanna know why? Because now we're gonna play by my rules." He snapped his fingers and opened a gate. Everyone froze when they saw Meg hovering over the river Styx on a few clouds.
"Meg!" Herc yelled.
"Hercules!" Meg called back.
"Hey, I warned you right at the get-go. You don't compete, you lose the girl," Hades said calmly. He snapped and the clouds supporting her disappeared and she fell into the river.
"No!" Herc yelled as he pushed past Hades to get to the river. He paused at the edge for just a moment. "Meg! Hang on!" He jumped into the river, not looking back. Hades looked down, checking to be sure Hercules was actually gone before turning his back on the river.
"Looks like Wonderboy has dropped out of the standings," Hades said as he turned. He snapped his fingers closing the gate behind him. He was met with the glares of everyone still standing.
"Well, you've still got us to deal with!" Sora said. Hades teleported behind him in an instant.
"Oh, yeah. This is gonna be good," Hades said as he once again turned red. "Hmph. That's it!"
They began to fight Hades but quickly realized it was a futile fight. Nothing seemed to cause Hades any harm.
"We can't win," Sora said as he pulled back.
"How come?" Donald asked.
"Because it's his Underworld," Auron answered.
"Gee, then how do we beat him?" Goofy asked. X was about to answer, but he stopped as the gates by the river flew open.
"I think a true hero should be able to help," Herc's voice said. He appeared moments later holding Meg. He was quite literally glowing.
"But...you..." Hades said stepping back in horror.
"I owe you one, Hades. I didn't hesitate to give my life for Meg's. And then I remembered: A true hero is measured by the strength of his heart," Herc said as he put Meg down. "I'll never forget that again."
"Just no more crazy stunts," Sora said.
"People always do crazy things when they're in love," Hercules said. X felt a pang in his chest as he watched Meg fly away on the Pegasus. Crazy things for love. Yeah, he could remember that. Those two were always up to crazy shenanigans.
"What's so funny, you imbeciles! How dare you get a happy ending! How dare you!" Hades yelled.
They found themselves in another, and this time with the help of Herc they managed to do damage. X spent as much time as he could knocking Hades off balance for the others to take advantage of. They managed to push him back to the gate, his arms trembling. They had won.
"This...isn't....happening!" Hades said. "It's...not over...yet."
"Shame to think," X said calmly stepping in front of the group. "Your Underworld, your game, your rules, and you still lost." He summoned a small orb of darkness to his hand, then shot it at Hades's feet, pushing him back into the river.
No one made comment about what X had done. Instead, they found themselves facing Auron outside of the arena. With the battle done everyone had left.
"What'cha gonna do now?" Donald asked.
"I lived my life defending others. But now, there's no one left to protect. Maybe it's time I shaped my own story," Auron decided looking down.
"Yeah," Sora said. "You deserve it, Auron-- after everything you've been through."
"I suppose I should thank you," Auron said. Sora puffed up his chest proudly.
"Not at all," he said.
"Fine," Auron said turning his back on the group. Sora slumped and X snorted.
"I mean, sure, you could thank us a little," Sora said.
"You should say what you mean," Auron said. He turned back around and looked down at Sora with a smirk. "I guess I could spare a few words. Thanks for meddling." The group slumped once again.
"Hey, what's that mean?" Sora asked. Auron didn't answer only walking away from them. X smirked slightly glancing to the others. Sora was looking at him with curiosity. X frowned.
"What?" X asked.
"You liked Auron," Sora said.
"Yeah, I guess he was interesting," X said shrugging.
"Why?" Sora asked.
"I remember thinking like that," X said softly. He still did many times. There were things that couldn't be undone. And should never be. "But, every crime can be if not forgiven, forgotten with time. No one's existence is a crime."
"No ones?" Sora echoed. X looked at him with his head tilted to the side. Did Sora think someone didn't deserve to exist? He gasped as he realized. The Nobodies.
"Sora, even Nobodies were once people. They exist, and they have that right to. All things can't be good. The world, the world needs balance. Light creates darkness, and with darkness light shines brighter. And that makes the shadows grow darker. It's a never-ending cycle," X explained calmly. Sora looked at him with wide eyes. X was reminded of Ventus very suddenly. But he didn't think he had ever seen Vetus like that. Had he? Only with anger.
"Which are you?" Sora asked.
"I'm the darkness that makes sure the light keeps shining," X said, smiling softly as he led the way back to the Coliseum.
"Thanks again, guys! You're the best," Herc said as they all gathered in front of the Coliseum under the starlit sky. X was hardly listening, searching the stars for anyone that stood out.
"Excuse us for meddling," Donald said dejectedly.
"Aw, sounds like somebody's feathers are a little ruffled," Meg said. Donald puffed up, his feathers actually ruffling. "I'm kidding. Thank you, Sora, Donald, Goofy, X."
"So where you guys headed next?" Herc asked.
"Aw, you know," Sora said with a shrug. He smiled as he looked at the two again. "You two lovebirds seem to be getting along just fine without us hanging around."
Herc and Meg looked at each other then looked away blushing. They stepped apart, but all X needed to see to know Sora was right was their smiles. Not that it wasn't obvious before.
"Yeah, we gotta go," Donald agreed.
"Uh-huh, before we start meddlin'. A-hyuck!" Goofy said.
"I think it's much too late for that," X said with a chuckle.
"Right," Sora agreed.
"Are you turkeys trying to put me out of a job? If you keep acing every challenge, Champ, who am I gonna train?" Phil asked, joining the group.
"Aw, you can't abandon me now, Phil! I gotta be at the top of my game in case Hades shows up again," Herc said.
"Hey, are we true heroes yet?" Donald asked.
"Yeah! C'mon Phil, how 'bout it?" Sora asked. Phil looked the group up and down for a moment. His gaze pausing particularly long on both Sora and X.
"Not quite seasoned enough," Phil said after a moment, his gaze still hovering.
"Ok, ok, we get the hint!" Sora complained crossing his arms.
"Look, kid, it's not my call!" Phil said.
"Aw, phooey," Donald said looking away.
"Course if it was, you'd have no problem. I'd make you all heroes in a heartbeat!" Phil went on. Sora and Donald exchanged a look before looking back at Phil with excitement.
"Really?" Sora asked.
"Say it again!" Donald demanded.
"On second thought, if those are your true 'hero' faces, you still got a lotta work to do," Phil said. He started to walk away, Donald walking beside him.
"Hey, what do you mean?" Donald asked.
"Go away!" Phil snapped going toward the Coliseum. Donald staid on his tail and Sora just behind him.
"Phil!" Sora called.
"Leave me alone!" Phil yelled back.
X sighed heavily, putting his hand on his hip. Those two would never run out of energy, would they?
"See that?" Meg asked suddenly. X glanced at her, seeing her looking to the sky he followed her gaze.
"Well, whaddya know," Herc said.
X chuckled looking at the stars arrangement. It seemed whoever was in charge saw them as heroes after all. And in his humble opinion, they were certainly right.