Authoress’ Note: I once told someone what to expect in this story that one cannot expect in this type of fanfiction. There is a good reason why I’m rating this Teen, and this is a safe rating.

Moving on…as I am being drowned in school and college work, my updating will be MUCH slower this month and possibly the next. I’m trying not to flunk my philosophy class, so patience if I don’t update again for a while.

Disclaimer: Characters, settings, rules of the Universe, and back story are copyrighted by Square-Enix and Disney. The storyline is copyright of mine with major differences. The two theme songs are This is Love – Utada HIkaru and Gravity of Love by Enigma. Greek mythology, though, can be used anywhere.

Theme Song: Gravity of Love by Enigma

X X X

Ћε Grάγί†ψ öf Löγε

«15 – Wielder’s Advent»

Except for the traces of exhaust smoke on the engine pipes, the gummi ship was shockingly new. Goofy actually stopped and stared at the gleaming ship as His Majesty guided them outside of Yen Sid’s tower to it. Donald had been extremely suspicious when His Majesty opened the doors out of the study and they found a set of stairs going straight down to the floor; when they were climbing up, the stairs spiraled endlessly. But Yen Sid’s face was emotionless and Donald dropped the subject before he could pursue it.

The fairies had elected to stay inside rather than follow them out; they said they had some scheming to do, something involving Aurora and her home. They waved farewell and wished them good luck on their journey to stop the Organization XIII.

Sora wasn’t sure if he properly thanked them for his new clothes. In fact, he couldn’t quite remember going down the stairs from the study down to the new ship. His mind was maelstrom of confusion and emotion; he could only remember that His Majesty told him Destiny Islands, his beloved home, was somehow destroyed.

“… The Organization’s taken an interest in that world, although I don’t know why…”

“We’ll keep you updated as we track them, Your Majesty-”

What? We already agreed to go somewhere? But-but what about-

“…do they, er…really have dragons there? Ya know, Land of Dragons…”

“…symbolized by the dragon, which is why it’s called the Land of Dragons. The emperor rules by what they call the ‘Mandate of Heaven’…”

“Wait…” Sora began slowly. “What about…what about…my home? What about my home? Why aren’t we worried about Destiny Islands? Why?”

“I thought you knew,” Yen Sid answered rather stiffly while Donald and Goofy walked rounds around the gummi ship, with the wizard fingering the keys. “We have that under control. I understand your sentiments…but your sentiments would only be hindering us, not helping us. You have to focus at your task at hand, and trust your allies to help your home.”

“But-but what about-”

What was he supposed to say? He couldn’t just tell them exactly why he was so uptight about his inability to do something about Destiny Islands’ demise. It…it did have something to do with his home, but there was something else he worried about, something he couldn’t voice.

What…what am I supposed to say…about Kairi?

“It’s time to trust others with what you hold dearest to your heart,” His Majesty said. Sora blinked, then stared down at the mouse king, who was at his feet and looking up. He felt uncomfortable; he was standing in front of a king and he was taller than the king. Shouldn’t it be the other way around? But no, His Majesty was a mouse and he was a human. And even though His Majesty was a king, they both wielded Keyblades; they were still equal.

“Hold…dearest to my heart?” Sora echoed, then flushed and looked away. Kairi, His Majesty knew about Kairi. “I…it’s so hard. I mean…there’s so many gaps in my memories, so many things that must’ve happened that I don’t know about…and then…Destiny Islands is gone? How? Why? Why aren’t there any answers? Why can’t anyone tell me anything about what happened?”

“Ask that of others who lost their worlds,” Yen Sid said coldly. Anger flared in Sora but he bit his tongue and waited for the sorcerer to continue. “You’re not the only one who’s angry, devastated, and at a loss. But you, Sora, you can do something about it. Don’t you understand the power of the Keyblade?”

“So…I can get back…Destiny Islands? With my Keyblade?”

“Remember, Sora? You lost Destiny Islands once. That it’s destroyed again means that somewhere in the gaps of your memory it was restored. You can do it again.”

Optimism came to him in a racing chill, and he felt his heartbeat quicken. He looked at His Majesty, at Yen Sid, at Donald and Goofy, and felt a smile creep into his face. “It is possible, huh? I’ve done it once before then, and I can do it again. Alright, let’s do it!”

He jogged over to the ship and stared up at it. He looked at Donald, who tossed him the keys while Goofy tapped at the side hatch and jumped back as it opened.

“Sora,” His Majesty called out as Goofy, with Jiminy riding in his hat, climbed aboard. “Sora, find the Organization. You have to stop them. They will kill everyone in order to get what they want; they don’t know that what they’re doing is terrible to the Universe. I told Donald where Land of Dragons is; find out what the Organization is doing there. It’s possible they’re infiltrating all the worlds, but since you can’t be everywhere at once, we’ve sent others to help you. You have friends on your side, Sora. When in doubt, look for them.”

Sora nodded as Donald jumped up to the hatch; Goofy snatched the wizard and pulled him in before he could humiliate himself by missing and falling straight back down. Sora smiled at this, then looked at His Majesty and Yen Sid.

“Thanks, Yen Sid. Thanks…Your Majesty. I’ll find my memories…find my friends…stop the Nobodies…open the door…”

Perhaps there was some order left in his life after all. Now all he needed to do was pick up the rest of the pieces and rearrange them like a puzzle. Then he’d get a clear picture of everything.

Maybe that’ll take him back to the two friends dearest to his heart.

XXX

“Why is it that all I have are bad thoughts about this?” Mickey asked aloud not long after the gummi ship rose shakily into the air and rocketed off into space. “I don’t feel like we’ll succeed this time. What’s your opinion, Yen Sid?”

“Mine?” the sorcerer asked delicately. “Well…I have nothing good to say about this. We’re playing with fire. You realize what kind of a threat Riku is to both sides? His experiences…they’ve scarred him. They’ve made him susceptible to the darkness-”

“But he’ll resist it,” Mickey interjected quickly, firmly. “I know he will.”

Yen Sid merely continued. “-and he’ll need to learn how not to delve into darkness in order to get what he wants, not as long as he doesn’t know how to control both powers of light and dark. Kairi, on the other hand, she’s a walking target. She’s a Princess of Heart; the Heartless will be following her and its possible the Organization’s very interested in her.”

“What can they do with her?”

“That’s for Sora or Riku to find out.”

Mickey nodded. “And the Nobody?”

“Hard to say. I still don’t know why you trust it to protect Kairi all the way to Radiant Garden but suit yourself.”

“We got Valentine to protect her, too,” Mickey protested. “We’ve got two people guarding her; who’s going to mess with her with that level of protection?”

“A very special kind of enemy.”

Mickey stared at Yen Sid. “You don’t mean…”

“I mean exactly as I do,” the sorcerer returned tartly.

The mouse king groaned. “Our problems just keep multiplying. Why did it have to be now…”

XXX

“…gawrsh, Chip n’ Dale sure outdid themselves this time!” Goofy exclaimed as he poked at a contraption on one of the sides of the gummi ship. He yelped and jumped back as it flung open.

“A microwave,” Donald noted with interest. “And a…stall.”

“The end of pit stops,” Jiminy remarked as he pressed his face against the glass as he stood on the controls.

“Jiminy, you’re stepping on one of the buttons,” Sora said sourly as the cricket’s foot stomped on a black button and a burst of cold wind rushed through his hair. “I think it’s the air conditioner.”

“It’s cold in here!” Goofy called out.

“Yeah, shut off the air!” Donald added as he went to the end of the gummi ship and found bunk beds. “Now this is new!”

“And soft!” Goofy found the bunk beds, too.

Sora just shook his head as he pressed what he thought was the “Off” button. Instead, he killed the lights.

“Sora! Stop messing with the controls!” Donald scolded from where the bunk beds most likely were. “Don’t you remember anything I told you about gummi ships?”

“How could I, when I never got a chance to practice?” Sora said, a bit irritated that he couldn’t find the button that would turn the lights back on. “All you did was tell me what was what while doing all the steering; I’m a hands-on person, I can’t just hear stuff and remember everything perfectly-gotcha!”

The lights flashed back on and he grinned triumphantly. When praise didn’t come, he sighed and turned in his seat. “What did I do now?”

There was Donald, his arms crossed, his right foot tapping on the floor. The look of scrutiny on his face bothered Sora but he waited patiently for his friend to say something.

“I’d like to see you smile the next time you make a technical error and there’s Heartless ships chasing us. You want to control the ship, make sure the rest of us stay alive. And keep your eyes in front, Sora,” the wizard ordered. “Look where you’re taking us.”

Sora slowly turned his head back to the controls and the windows and stared as a world loomed into view, dotted with green, gray, white, and cut jaggedly by a long line.

“Is that the world His Majesty told us to go to?” Goofy asked curiously as he joined them.

“I think so,” Jiminy said; he was jotting notes in his journal.

“The Land of Dragons,” Sora breathed.

Will this world begin his journey home?

XXX

The skies shed cold tears that fell on the head of a young black-haired woman as she rushed down the steps from a small temple built on a hill near a sprawling house. She slipped inside with minimal sound, thankful the sliding doors never made much sound, and tiptoed down the hall to her parents’ room. She entered quietly and stood at the side of their bed. Her eyes welled up as she watched her parents sleeping, and she turned away before she burst into tears and woke them up.

The conscription note brought earlier in the day was on the lacquer table next to the bed. She stared at the scroll, then willed her hand to it and snatched it away. She placed a hair comb on the table, the one her mother gave her, and headed out of the room. She paused at the door and looked over her shoulder at the faces of her parents. She hoped to see her father when she returned. He should be spared from the conscription; there was no other reason why she’d go in his stead.

In the armory she opened the cabinet that held her father’s suit of armor. She grasped her father’s sword and pulled it out of its sheath. Her arm wobbled at the weight but she gripped it tightly in her hand as she bunched her long black hair in her other hand. Carefully she maneuvered the sharp iron blade and sawed through her hair. After a time she lowered her aching arm and then held up the sword with both hands. She peered at her reflection in the smooth body and the jagged edges of her cut hair. She closed her eyes, remembering how beautiful she had looked before she went to the Matchmaker’s. Then she remembered the messenger with the conscript notes and strong resolve flowed through her veins. She grabbed a ribbon in the cabinet and swiftly tied her hair up in a bun like other men did.

The armor protested loudly as she pulled it off the rack in the cabinet and put it on. She balanced unsteadily at the weight but remained standing as she tied it up in the front. She grabbed the sword and slammed it into its scabbard on her left hip and left the armory.

She jogged to the stable, puffing at the weight of her father’s armor, and entered. The black stallion in the stable snorted, then reared in fright but she quickly ran to his side, hushing him and stroking him. He settled down under her comforting familiar touch, then snorted as she bridled and saddled him. She led him out of the stable, then quickly mounted him. She checked once to make sure the conscription note was tucked at her waist, then walked the horse out of the gates of the wall surrounding the family home. She reined in the stallion and while he came to a shifting halt she turned in her seat to glance back at where her parents’ bedroom was. Sadness contorted her face as she took one last look at her home, then urged the stallion into a gallop and he splashed through the mud as the two headed for the soldier’s camp.

XXX

She held his hand tightly as she guided him through the twists and turns at the heart of the Underworld. He followed her willingly like a dog on a leash, his eyes downcast as he tried to avoid looking at anything transparent that glowed green. He couldn’t bear to look at these souls; he berated himself constantly but all his harsh words couldn’t force him to keep his head up as they maneuvered through the cold dark landscape. He could hear the heavy sure footfalls of Hercules behind him and wished he could be stronger.

“Persephone!” A skinny green creature leaped out at them from behind a pile of rocks; a rotund pink creature followed, its face a complete grimace as he tumbled down the pile onto the path.

“What do you want?” she asked sourly, coming to a halt.

“Hades wants to see you!” the fat pink one exclaimed. “He says to bring your friends with you!”

“Friends?” Hercules snorted loudly. “Is that what Hades calls us now, Pain?”

“He wasn’t talking about you, Hercules!” both creatures chimed.

“Since when did Hades care about the people I talk to?” Persephone asked. “Sigh…very well. Let’s entertain him. Lead us, Panic and Pain, if you must.”

Riku watched them scamper off down the rocky path and looked at Persephone questioningly. Was Hades in that bad of a mood to suspect his wife of cheating?

“Gods and goddesses cheat all the time, don’t worry about that,” Persephone said as they continued down the path. “My husband has a tendency to overreact to things when he’s in this mood. But for your information, we aren’t all-knowing, Riku; we don’t automatically know what the other’s doing. You should see Hera sometimes when she starts wondering why Zeus doesn’t come home for five days in a row.”

“Hey!”

“Hercules, you know it’s true.”

“But still-”

“Let it go.”

Hercules groaned but complied to Persephone’s orders as they neared a part of the Underworld that glowed eerily green. Then Riku started noticing yellow lights moving at random in the darkness on either side of the path; they looked like candles trying to illuminate the endless darkness.

“Do not do anything should you get a glimpse of them,” Persephone said as Riku started noticing shapes holding these lights. Her voice was cold. “Do not provoke them and do not provoke my husband by provoking them. Zeus has warned him countless times about them and he would not give them up.”

“What are you talking about?”

The Cat, who had been disturbingly silent for some time, called out from Hercules’ head, “Heartless, Riku! Hades hasn’t given up on the Heartless.”

Heartless! Warnings lit up in his head and Riku instantly flexed his muscles, his mind seconds from calling his Soul Eater into his hand. Persephone dug her nails into his hand; Riku yelped. “What was that for?!”

“I warned you, Riku. Remember, I am a goddess,” Persephone said softly. “I know what you were trying to do; your reflexes are strong, but you need to control them. Here, they are not necessary. They will not hurt you as long as Hades and I rule.”

“And if you no longer rule?”

She smiled wryly. “Let’s not think about that. My husband wants to see you, so I shall bring you to him. And if he tries to harm you…I’d like to see him try.”

Apparently she must think she has some power over Hades. Riku shook his head. That was hard to believe. Hades was as bullheaded as they come. Sometimes he does chicken out when the odds play against him but when he wants something, he’ll stop at nothing to get it. Wasn’t that how Hercules ended up the way he was?

“…down, it’s only a few minutes of conversation. All I need to do is negotiate the price of the soul, and we’re done! I’ll wash my hands of him and go on my-oh, you. Long time, no see, eh Hercules?”

The brilliant red glow Hades was giving off switched to the more placid blue as the god of the Underworld strode towards them. Riku could see Pain and Panic hiding on the other side of the throne room. It was apparent that a few minutes ago they had been subject to his wrath.

“Whatever you’re trying to do is not working, Hades, so lay off,” Hercules said stiffly.

“Hmmph! Some way of returning a host’s kindness. I could’ve sent all of you down the river Styx when you forced Charon to ferry you if it weren’t for the goodness of my heart-”

“Stop it, Hades,” Persephone interrupted, walking up to her husband and laying a hand on his arm. “Listen, they will only be here very briefly. Give them what they want, and you’ll never have to see them again.”

“Except for that scumbag over there,” Hades muttered under his breath, jabbing a thumb at Hercules. “I have to live with him for eternity.”

“That’s your own fault. You set it up, you deal with the consequences. Talk to them.”

Riku raised an eyebrow at the goddess’s sharp command. Apparently Hades married well, or unwell for Hades, depending on who was sympathizing with whom; Persephone had him on a leash, even though the two obviously were only cordial with each other.

“Sigh…so, what brings you to the Underworld?” Hades asked, looking over Persephone’s shoulder. “I hear you’re in for trading a soul? Got anything in exchange?”

“There’s nothing to exchange when you don’t have the soul,” the Cat replied, jumping off of Hercules’ head and landing on the ground. He stood up on two legs and looked at Hades smartly. “The soul is half in your realm, half above the Underworld. Let go of your half and we’ll go.”

“After we ask you some questions,” Riku quickly added. Hades would be looking for loopholes any and everywhere. “We need to ask you-”

“About why your mother’s down here, boy?”

He shuddered. There was a cold glint in Hades’ eyes as Riku stared at the god of the Underworld, then looked away. The teenager took a deep breath, then said, his voice shaking, “Do you even know why my mother’s down here, Hades?”

“I…ah…actually…no…”

“I thought you were a god,” Hercules snorted.

“You were a god,” Hades said savagely. “No more words from you, Golden Boy. It’s this one I want to deal with. So, what exactly are you here for? Just state your business and we’ll fix up an agreement.”

“Let go of Tarzan’s soul, Hades. That’s first on our list,” Riku said. “After you let him go, you answer some of our questions.”

“Then we leave, quick as you please,” the Cat chimed in.

“And what do I get? I’m god of the Underworld here; I can easily keep you right here. Give me one good reason to do all those things and get nothing in return, eh?”

“Well, Persephone said you won’t have to see us again,” Hercules suggested, looking at his cousin. She smiled, quite flattered.

“I already heard that, Golden Boy!” Hades snapped. “I also will be seeing you again and again. No, that won’t do at all!”

“Well, is there anything you want?”

“Well, yes, of course,” Hades said slowly, looking at Riku. “Of course I want something. I would love to hire Hercules for, hm, a few months to help my dog guard the Underworld. I’ve been visited by plenty of unpleasant guests lately.”

“Like Orpheus,” Persephone added.

“Theseus!”

“Odysseus!”

“Hercules!”

“Shut up!” Hades roared, whirling around on Panic and Pain. “Shoo! Get out of my face!”

He threatened with a gesture and the two little demons scampered off. Riku watched them disappear with a raised eyebrow, then looked at the god; his flaming top was tinged orange.

“Woooh, sorry about that!” Hades chuckled, running his hand through the fire as it changed back to blue. “Those two never shut up when they need to…right, back to business. If Golden Boy here is so kind as to sign this contract which gives me control over him for a few months until those idiots back up there realize they can’t just waltz into my Underworld to do as they please, I’ll do anything and everything for you, simple as that. What do you say?”

As he spoke his conditions he whipped out a parchment and feathered pen. Words appeared in dark ink on the wrinkled paper as he spoke; the contract was exactly as he spoke it, minus the informal words plus more formal vocabulary. Hades twisted his wrist to look at the paper, nodded, hemmed and hawed, then shoved the contract in Hercules’ face.

“Well? Deal or no deal?”

If anything, Riku wanted to leave the Underworld alive; he willed Hercules not to jump the god. Hercules took a step forward; Riku felt himself give way to panic.

If Hercules cracks and those two start fighting, I’ll never get off this fucking world! Damn Hades-

A sudden surge in his mind shut off his thoughts. A pressure began to build and Riku winced, turned his head away from Hercules and Hades. His head hurt badly; Riku rubbed at his temple to try and make the sudden headache go away. Slowly his hand stopped pressing at his temple; he knew where this was coming from.

This can’t be…I thought I got rid of it; I thought this was over. It can’t come back now! No, I can’t touch it, I can’t hurt myself, or anyone around here, no-

“Hades, stop it.” Persephone’s voice broke through his mind and the pressure subsided. Riku took a deep breath and turned back to the showdown to see the goddess shoving the two men aside. “You two, stop it with your arguing. These two have a friend to save and business to attend to, so stop wasting their time. I’m warning you, Hades-”

“I’ll do what I want and what I want is him!” Hades snapped, jabbing a finger at Hercules. “If I can’t kill you, I might as well-”

“This bickering and arguing is most unbecoming,” the Cat interrupted, though he didn’t seem bothered by it at all. “A waste of time, I agree, but see, it’s traveling swiftly and surely, and we’re standing here doing nothing.”

“What, exactly, is traveling?” Hades demanded. The Cat smiled at him; it was a most devilish grin and Riku shuddered.

“You’ve been picking up a lot of souls lately, Hades. Yet, you don’t seem to wonder why. Your ways are blinding you to the real dangers lurking outside. Riku needs to be sent on his way to negate those dangers, so give us Tarzan and we’ll leave you be. How’s that?”

“You might as well explain to me exactly what’s dangerous. I’m a god; nothing’s dangerous to me.”

Riku snorted. “Sora is.”

“You stop talking about that stinking brat and his overgrown Key!” Hades roared; the room exploded in colors of fire.

“Don’t you start talking about my best friend like that!” Riku snapped back, feeling his own anger rising. “Stop using your ‘godness’ as an excuse for everything! There is something out there we’re trying to fight, and if you answer some questions, you’ll help us defeat it!”

“Then tell me, exactly ‘what’ is out there, Riku?” Hades asked, his voice low and dangerous. “What is out there that is so dangerous I should tremble and quake in fear?”

“A demon older than you are,” Persephone declared coldly.

All movement stopped. Riku whirled on the goddess and stared at the smirk playing on her lips. He felt pressure on his lungs and started breathing again, while Hades opened his mouth and closed it several times.

“W-wha-wha-wha-”

“Unlike you I actually consult the Fates on all matters above the Underworld,” the goddess explained. “They told me Riku and his allies were coming to ask for help, and that you would refuse. They need your help, Hades, because you were alive long enough to know what the demon is. Care to share, my dear?”

Her voice grew more and more benevolent as she talked; Hades relaxed just enough to chuckle and say, “There are too many demons for me to remember-”

“The oldest evil, Hades!” Persephone snapped and Hades jumped back, startled. “It was there when my grandparents ruled the Universe and it’s still there. You know about it, so do tell them what you know about it!”

“You’re talking about that thing of white fire, aren’t you?” Hades asked. His eyes narrowed dangerously. “We never talk about it, not us gods. Never. Not here, not up in blasted Olympus, not anywhere. That monstrous freak is non-existent-”

“You gods are frightened,” Riku declared. This must be the source of Hades’ rage. He turned to Persephone, who was noticeably calmer than her husband. “Why?”

“I wasn’t born when it was physically around,” she said with a sniff. “You’ll have to ask him; he, his brothers, his sisters, and my mother were around much longer. They know about it.”

“They’re all frightened,” the Cat input.

“I never heard about this,” Hercules said slowly. “Why didn’t Father say-”

“I told you, Golden Boy; we don’t talk about it, ever. It did enough damage and we did enough rebuilding this world. We gave it all we had – we’re gods – and we barely scared it off. No, not scared, pushed it off. It wanted our world and we wouldn’t let it have it. You know why the giants came at us? It spurred them on. It needed us out of the way. With us gone, it can take this world and the giants would never know what hit them! We are the reasons why Olympus and the Underworld are still here. Without the Underworld, the rest of the Universe would collapse; we had to defend my realm at all costs.”

“Why does it want to destroy Olympus? And the Underworld?” Riku wondered. “What would it get out of that?”

“It’s been destroying lately,” the Cat said. “Other worlds. Not this one. If we dig deeper, we’ll find out why it tried this world, sat and did nothing for several thousand years, then reappeared to attack other worlds.”

“Well, we did give it one heck of a beating,” Hades acknowledged. “I’ll be honest with you here; that thing, when we fought it, it wasn’t as strong as it could be. All of us could feel it. That was our lucky break; that’s how we beat it. At full strength, this Universe would be gone. You got that, Golden Boy? You better be nice to me; I saved this damn Universe, not you.”

“Oh shut it,” Persephone muttered.

“You got anything besides that? Where it came from? How long it’s been around? What it’s done?” the Cat asked. Riku looked at the Cat, then inward. He had no questions to ask of Hades, simply because he didn’t quite get it at all. The demon simply seemed completely removed from him, except that it destroyed Destiny Islands.

“Is it after anyone in particular?” he demanded through tightly clenched teeth. He balled his left hand into a fist as he thought about Sora and Kairi.

“Sorry but I was too busy fighting it to ask these stupid questions,” Hades said with a shrug. “And we only met once, mind you. Hey, I’ve got a bright idea: stop asking me these stupid questions and go find the Fates yourself. They’ll tell you anything as long as you tell them they’re beautiful.”

“The Fates?”

“You’ll still let go of their friend’s soul, won’t you, Hades?” Hercules asked, apparently feeling the conversation drawing slowly to a close.

“You’ll still consider that contract? I’ll offer you something in return, something other than their friend,” Hades countered quickly.

“You two be quiet. Hades, you will let go of their soul. Herc, no more words. Cheshire Cat, I think you should go with Hercules and escort Tarzan’s soul back up. Riku, I will take you to the Fates. Come.”

Persephone looked around the room at everyone briefly, then strode out of the throne room, taking care to bump Riku with her left shoulder as she breezed past him. Riku stared around at her, startled, then went after her quickly, leaving the others to sort out exactly what she ordered of them.

“Wait!” Riku called out; Persephone was hurrying away somewhere into the heart of the Underworld, away from both the throne room and the River Styx. “Where are you leading me?”

“The Fates have much to tell you, or perhaps the little they tell carries heavy weight,” the goddess said with a secretive smile. She skirted a candle-holding Heartless while Riku recoiled reflexively. She actually giggled as he caught up to her, tripping over his own feet in his haste to avoid the Heartless before he does something horrific to it. “I told you not to worry, Riku! The Heartless won’t attack as long as we rule. Remember, the Heartless follows the ones with the strongest hearts and the strongest wills. And the two aren’t necessarily connected. You don’t need a heart to have a will.”

“Right,” Riku muttered.

Now the humor of the seconds-old moment sank into the gloom of the Underworld and they walked in silence along a little-used rocky path weaving deep into the canyons inside the world. It was a barren landscape, devoid of even the green tinge of souls. A stale air made Riku blanch but that didn’t chase it away; he forced himself to accept the atmosphere but he was starting to feel nauseous.

“Ah, we’re almost there,” Persephone suddenly exclaimed. She looked up at Riku and twirled a lock of her dark hair around her gem-laden finger; her bracelets jangled and the metallic noise echoed all around them. “There is something you might want to see.”

“Will it help me?” Riku asked quickly, feeling heat creep up his face. Goddess or no, Persephone was a very beautiful woman. Too beautiful.

“That depends on what kind of help you seek,” she returned and suddenly turned off the path. He stopped and watched as she maneuvered her way down the side of a particularly steep canyon; he marveled at how carefully she avoided the various boulders jutting out of the side. Shaking his head, he ran down after her and nearly fell.

The ground leveled out underneath his boots and he started hearing something remarkably like water. Drawn to the natural sound – he was born next to the water and grew up with it – he headed straight for it, not knowing if Persephone was also headed that way or not.

She stood next to a fast-flowing river; the light was dark but illuminated enough for him to see how strange this secluded place was. For one thing, there was grass growing next to the river. A handful of scraggly trees stood here and there; their leaves gleamed unnaturally, like gemstones. Riku felt drawn to them and took several steps closer to one particularly ugly tree; the leaves seemed sprinkled with tiny emerald gems, and it bore fruit in the form of rubies. Real red gems.

“You’re kidding me,” Riku demanded, looking at Persephone.

His jaw slowly dropped open, his eyes wide and staring helplessly as Persephone shrugged at her clothes and let the shimmering thin robes slide off her shoulders. The robes settled at her elbows but the folds of sparkling fabric did nothing to distract him from her very blatant nakedness. She was supernaturally beautiful, with the gemstone flowers tangled in her hair and her long necklaces that gathered between her breasts. Her eyes glimmered in the dim white light as she stepped forward. Riku swallowed and stepped back, but his back immediately pressed up against the tree.

“Do I look like I’m kidding you?” she asked, her voice whisper-soft as she stood in front of him. She touched his face and he twitched – visibly, he hoped.

“What do you want from me?” His voice was shaking madly.

“That depends,” was her reply as she ran a finger from her forehead down the side of his face to his jaw. “I admit that you’re a very handsome young man, and although I am married, I am not bound to mortal marriage laws. None of us are.”

“So you gods cheat on each other?” Riku demanded, pressing his back hard up against the tree trunk as she stepped even closer. Her other hand was on his chest as she leaned against him.

“Cheating, incest, cruel methods of unveiling infidelity, we are cruel gods, Riku. I can force you, you know that,” she said. She brought her face close to his and whispered into his ear, “You should never take a god’s kindness for granted. We can love you one day, and hate you the next. Very rarely is help given freely; most of us want something in return, including me.”

“That’s great. You could’ve told me that before you started helping me deal with Hades,” Riku snapped, a bit angry about his very bad situation.

Persephone was silent for a moment but she did not move away from him. She looked rather thoughtful. Riku watched her, apprehensive but at the same time very aware of the feeling of attraction to her. Instantly his mind wrestled down that sensation and shoved back into darkness.

“I can show you your true form, if you give me what I want,” she finally declared. Her sharp eyes sought his and she held that gaze steadily. “You must wonder how you look now, ever since you trapped yourself in this wretched body by opening yourself to darkness.”

“I do wonder,” Riku admitted, “but that doesn’t mean I’ll…”

She smiled as he finally confronted the problem at hand. “You’re still such an immature child. Older than your friends, yet much younger than the world. I can show you, Riku. I can take you beyond, and teach you about the world we all live in. Innocence is long dead; you simply have some catching up to do.”

“You’re trying to seduce me, aren’t you?” Riku asked, scowling. He understood where Persephone was going, but didn’t even like how she approached him.

“I can force the seduction on you. I can make you compliant to my every advance. I’m a goddess and here I am queen.”

“Why? Why are you doing this to me?”

She smiled, but there was nothing positive about it. “Do you really think I’m happy down here? Just think for a minute-no, think for a second. This god is my husband only because I was promised to him. There is no love lost between us; you know that. We also aren’t perfect bedmates; we’re less than average and both of us know it. He’s also very unpleasant to look at. I simply tolerate him. Every time a mortal comes down here, I look at him and I wonder about him, why his lover was so lucky and I wasn’t. Looking at you…you’re different, you’re not a part of this world…and I would love to show you the divine, the surreal, what mortals like you will never experience as long as you sleep with mortals. You are not bound to this world and therefore…I’d love you to stay with me, this one time…”

He felt her lips, soft but chillingly cold, press against his cheek. Riku shuddered, mostly disgusted by this. “I-I can’t. No, I won’t. I’m sorry, Persephone, but I won’t sleep with you.”

He made to push her off but she did that for him. She stepped back quickly and stared at him. Her eyes were dark; he hoped he didn’t turn her against him. She did warn him about the fickle nature of the gods.

“No…of course not,” she finally said, but he wasn’t convinced of her acknowledgement of her rejection. She sighed, then pulled the robes back up her shoulders. “Still, you desire to see your true face?”

Was she trying to sneak in some tradeoff with this tempting offer? Riku watched her carefully as he said, “I want to see my face but-”

“I won’t deny my attraction to you nor what I tried to do, but this is offered freely. You’ll need it, for dark times are coming, and you need to remember yourself, if only to keep trying.”

“Dark times? You can see the future?”

“I am far more friendly with the Fates than Hades is. Of course I’d know of the future. Come here, Riku, to this pool.”

There was a place the river could not reach, a clear still pool fed gently by it. Persephone walked to the edge of the pool and peered in. Riku followed her slowly, unsure of what she was intending to do.

“This is no ordinary river. It feeds into the River Styx but untainted, you can see yourself as you truly are. When I look here, I see a half-wilted flower inside my outline. That is who I truly am, torn between the endless spring above and the endless winter below. What will you see, Riku?”

He didn’t quite believe her – she could be hallucinating and not know it – but decided to take the risk anyways and went to the edge. He looked at Persephone quickly, then looked down at the pool of water.

For the briefest of seconds, he saw Ansem’s face; there was a disturbance in the water, perhaps from the river that fed it, and suddenly he saw a much younger face, with shoulder-length silver hair and blue-green eyes. Riku stared at the reflection, then his vision blurred, his eyes watering, as he quite suddenly realized that it was him.

Oh god, it’s…it’s me

He knelt down at the edge of the pool and stared at his reflection. The memories were faint, lost in the ages he spent in darkness and Ansem’s face, but they were there.

“If you are willing,” Persephone said softly, standing next to him, “you can find your true face again. Are you willing?”

Did he have to answer? Riku nodded slowly, felt a hot tear slide down his face. This was him, this was his face, this was what he looked like under this mask of darkness.

“However,” she murmured, her voice drawing near, “if you do not tread carefully, the darkness will leave its taint on you, forever.”

Still stunned by his reflection, Riku barely registered the hand pressed against the small of his back, and didn’t have time to resist as Persephone shoved him face-first into the pool.

xxx

The Fates had put off their spinning, weaving, and snipping for the day. It was their first real break in weeks, when the drive to start snipping every available string lessened and they could take a step back and observe their work. Well, it depended on who had the eye.

“Too much,” one remarked. She had a tooth in her mouth.

“Yes, much too much,” another agreed; she snatched the eyeball from the last.

“The damage is irreversible,” the eyeless Fate said. “But we must do as we will.”

“We can’t spin as fast as we snip,” the toothed one complained as the eyeless Fate snatched her tooth out of her mouth. “What are we to do?”

“Let’s figure that later. The Queen of the Underworld’s done her job; let’s greet him. Maybe he’s handsome!”

“He could be-”

“He’ll be wearing another person’s face.”

“I bet that person’s handsome-”

“I saw the face. What an ugly man!”

“YOU saw the face. I didn’t; you wouldn’t give me the eye while we were watching him!”

“Tough luck-”

Riku stared at the three dumpy shapes as they started squabbling over a white round object. He slowly pushed himself to his feet and staggered against the crystal wall; his head still spun from the dizzy drop into nowhere.

How stupid am I? I should’ve been careful around that witch of a goddess!

He rubbed his shoulder and slowly approached the women standing around what looked like a pit in the center of the mostly circular room; it radiated a sickly green light that cast long shadows on the walls and made the crystals embedded in the gray slate glitter. He watched with some amusement at the white round object bouncing in the air between their gray wrinkled hands; it finally eluded all six hands and thirty fingers, hit the ground, and rolled towards Riku.

“What the fuck?!” The profanity slipped his mouth as he stared at the red-veined eyeball. It stared up at him in turn, emotionless and stony in its gaze.

“Ah, he’s here!”

“Gimme the eye!”

“I don’t have the eye!”

“You, gimme the eye!”

“Get off, I don’t have the eye!”

“You’re lying! Gimme the eye!”

“No, I don’t have it, she has it!”

“I don’t have it! She-”

He picked up the eyeball and grimaced at its slippery, slightly sticky texture. He stared at it from several different angles, then watched the three old women shoving hands in each others’ faces. He caught a glimpse of a small shiny white object flying in the air, then the three women took up a screech over a tooth.

You’ve got to be kidding me.

He headed over to the tooth and picked it up as well. It was dripping spit; he wiped it against his coat.

“I believe you’re missing something,” he said slowly, looking up at the three hags. All three stiffened with his first word and turned their heads to him as he kept talking.

“You have the eye. Gimme the eye; let me see your face!”

“No, let me have the eye!”

“The tooth! I want to smile!”

“No, you already had the tooth, it’s my turn!”

“No, I never had the tooth!”

“I want the eye! Young man, gimme the eye!”

“No, I want the eye!”

“No, he doesn’t have the eye; he’d have given it already! One of you two has it!”

“Gimme the eye, then, you’re hiding it!”

“I’m not hiding it! And I bet you have the tooth! You want both!”

“I’m not lying! I don’t have them!”

“You have them! Give them back!”

“I don’t have both! I never got either one for-”

“Oh my god, will you three just shut UP!”

The Fates froze, hands all over each other’s faces; their heads turned slowly on their necks in his direction. Riku cleared his throat nervously; he suddenly found that staring at empty eye sockets and toothless mouths was not a very pleasant thing to do. He looked down at the squishy eyeball and single tooth in his hands and grimaced until he felt the wrinkles become almost permanent on his face.

“Of course, he does have the eye.”

“And the tooth.”

“That’s because you lost it.”

“I didn’t lose it! You lost it; you fumbled with the eye! Now that poor child has to look at it-”

“You’re the one who-”

“Look, I’m not standing here all day listening to you three old grandmas haggle over these…things. If you don’t tell me what you want with me, I’m walking out. With these two precious objects of yours.”

He waved the eyeball and the tooth at them, but doubted they could see. He did have the eyeball after all.

“He does have a point.”

“I told you this one’s smart!”

“You never said anything about being smart!”

“He is smart! And clever.”

“No, he’s just lucky because you lost hold of the eyeball!”

“And the tooth!”

“She’s the one who lost the tooth!”

“Ooh, I did no such-”

Riku groaned aloud, and turned to leave, with eyeball and tooth in hand. He’d half a mind to chuck them both into the River Styx on his way back above to sunlight, fresh air, and a lack of insane immortal women.

“Get back here, young man! We’re not through with you yet!”

He sensed them before the whips wrapped around his ankles and yanked backwards, but the suddenness of the attack by the blind toothless crazy hags shocked him anyways. He landed on his chest, forcing the air out of his lungs, and was left stunned. Shuffling feet neared him, and he slowly, carefully turned his head to the side to see sandaled feet approaching his head. Bile rose in his throat; the feet were gray, the skin motley, the toenails yellow and chipping.

“Give us the eye and the tooth, young man, and we’ll let you go.”

They spoke in unison, in a voice so powerful, sonorous, that it echoed all around the domed room. Riku knew now there was no room for error, and he dropped the eyeball and tooth into an outstretched, wrinkled gray hand.

“Good. Now get up; we have no time to waste.”

Ha, that’s a funny thing to say, you ugly hag-

“Manners, young man! Don’t think you can get away with even that!”

What the fuck? They read minds?

“Don’t even bother; we are the Fates, older than the oldest, all-powerful and all-knowing. Not even the gods of this world mess with us, young man.”

“My name is Riku,” he retorted stiffly.

“Names are names,” the tall skinny hag snapped back. “But we know who you are, so there is no identity lost. Now get up; the Queen of the Underworld did not send you here for no mean reason.”

“You told her to bring me down here?”

“Naturally; Hades and we are no friends. And we need to show you something before you leave.”

“Like what?” Riku slowly rose to his feet and winced as the muscles in his chest tightened. He rubbed at the pain as he waited for the lightheaded feeling to subside.

“It is something we will explain as we reach it.”

A place. They’re taking me somewhere-

“It is a secret place,” the dumpy Fate remarked; she smiled, the one white tooth gleaming in the green light. “Only the oldest of the gods know, and Zeus has them locked in the deepest darkest pits of the Underworld. After a little fiasco years ago, only Zeus can open the prisons.”

“This is a place of true power, a source of the most ancient magic. It is as old as this Universe, and knows everything, including the enemy you pursue.”

“That demon creature,” Riku said, suddenly realizing what the Fates were doing.

“Yes. You are one of the chosen to destroy it; no doubt, the ancient magic will willingly show you what it will of the primordial evil,” the average-sized Fate said.

“What it will?” Riku echoed.

“It’ll decide what to hide and what to show and tell,” the tall Fate explained as she gestured in a direction. The ground suddenly shook and crystals fell from above as a raw passage opened like a crack on the ground. A cold stale wind hissed as Riku felt something brush against his face; chilly nothings whispered in his ear, promising of the dark deep unknown lying beyond the maw into the center of the Underworld.

“Within you will find the screen behind the mirror, and it will give you what you need to continue your search.”

“Will it tell me how to destroy the demon creature?” Riku demanded of the Fates.

“No.”

“That’s-”

“It must play a subtle game, a careful dance, with the demon creature, because this demon creature is an enemy like nothing you’ve ever faced before. If it gives too much, the demon creature will take no chances and crush the Universe before you can stop it. Play the dance, Riku, and dance the demon creature to death.”

XXX

He was gone. It was incredible. He was gone.

“Now where would he have gone? Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, but he can’t just poof into nowhere! That denies the laws of physics, and if I can’t do that, nobody can.”

He had gone and searched all the streets, as far as the encoding can take him. The beach was blocked off by an invisible wall, as were most usual means of actually leaving Twilight Town. But he wasn’t looking to leave Twilight Town, not until he’s rescued his friend.

And his friend was gone. Poof! Zip! Nada!

“They’ve taken him!” he hissed, realization dawning on him. “They finally did it! Well, they’re not going to get away with that without Axel having his say!”

With that, the branded Organization member stormed off, ignoring the curious looks of the people in the streets. He didn’t quite care; they weren’t even real.

He was planning on a secret road trip around the Universe, and nobody was going to stop him, not even the Nobodies.

Oh how he loved the play on words.

X X X

Authoress’ Endnote: I bet you didn’t expect that.

Please review. All thoughts, comments, suggestions, etc. are welcome. Flamers flame at your own risk. You have been warned.

Arigatou gozaimas’!