End To Eternity

Chapter III: Olympus Coliseum

The portal vanished behind the fairy and the Keyblade warrior within a matter of seconds. Ventus had no idea how long he was going to accompany the sinister fairy, but the destination piqued his interest.

Ventus had never been to the Olympus Coliseum. He saw that many unfamiliar faces around behind stanchions with red ropes turned away from their chatter to look at the visitor. Ventus spotted many underworld denizens grinning at the sight of the fairy of death. None of them were in the rank to approach and speak to the great Maleficent though. They simply bowed their heads or raised the wine they had for her. Maleficent ignored their gestures with her cold indifference.

As they walked down the red carpet toward the entrance to the coliseum, Ventus can hear murmurs he couldn't decipher, but he had the feeling it was about the Keyblade warrior accompanying a dark fairy.

Maleficent stopped below the stairs of the entrance, her head simply looking in thin air patiently. The crowd at the sidelines gasped when red light covered the whole place in the blink on an eye, followed by blue smoke and the ruler of the Underworld himself, Hades.

"AHAHA!" The god maniacally laughed out in his entrance. The flames on his head burned wildly that excited many underworld denizens. When Hades regained composure he coolly swiped a hand up his forehead and graciously bowed to Maleficent.

"Fairy of death, how nice to see you."

"I can say…almost the same thing to you, Hades."

Hades had that kind grin on – too sweet and too kind that it sickened Ventus. The god of the Underworld had always been unusual and really vicious. Ventus saw the god's cold blue eyes snap at him.

"Ooh, who's this?" he asked in a sickening sugary voice. Hades disappeared in a puff of blue smoke and reappeared just behind Ventus. Ventus's instincts kicked in that he swung his arm with an armed Keyblade and just threatened the host of the event in front of everyone.

"Woah, woah, kid!" Hades said, raising his arms against the pointed Keyblade.

Ventus quickly de-summoned his Keyblade and was about to bow his head in apology when Maleficent touched him on the shoulder to silence him.

"It is not safe to play tricks on trained instincts," Maleficent said sagely.

"You've got a Keyblade warrior with you?" Hades asked in a disbelievingly act of surprise. Ventus saw the god grin mischievously at him. "…niiiiice….in fact, I think I've seen him before. Where, oh where…" The god tapped his chin, pretending to think. "OH, it's that prodigy from the…oh, I don't know, Keyblade training school…VENTUS!" Hades dramatically conjured red fire from hell into thin air.

Maleficent was clearly unimpressed of the unnecessary acts and pitiful intimidation. She began to turn and walk toward the coliseum. But Hades was persistent – and damn straight confident. He reappeared right in front of Maleficent with a sneaky face.

"You know," he whispered. "I'd like it if I can borrow that Keyblade warrior with you."

"Please say no, please say no, please say no," Ventus chanted in his mind, trying not to look desperate and holding to a poker-face.

He didn't see Maleficent's expression whether an agreement came between the two. She merely turned to him and bore him her haughty eyes.

"Light's Chosen, Ventus, you're dismissed." Then Maleficent walked away, Hades' smile widening every beating second.

As much as Ventus would have taken the chance and disappeared without any word, this was Hades' queue to step in. And he was quick.

"So!" Hades said, reappearing in front of Ventus and clasping his hand together. "I guess you're free now!"

"…this is not good," he thought grimly, hearing the crowd around him snickered and crept closer in his peripheral vision. Ventus smiled at Hades, trying to sneak out with words. "Actually, I was in the middle of eliminating Distortions when Maleficent requested me to escort her here."

"What a hard-working Keyblade warrior! Let's give him a round of applause!" Hades told the crowd, who exploded in laughter and jeeringly clapping.

"Well, sir-"

"Oh, Hades would do!"

"Hades. What event do you have here for today?" Ventus asked casually. Starting a conversation and using his patience to the fullest was the first trick.

Hades was a god full of deception. He could obviously see Ventus's. But of course, he played along. What fun would there be if he just…break it?

"I'm glad you ask. Actually, I did send you a letter of invitation."

Ventus frowned. "I never received one."

"That's a pity. I call this event…SPACE HEROES…versus UNDERWORLD MONSTERS. So there are a few Keyblade warriors participating…and tons of Underworld pets. I think I forgot to feed them again." Hades pretended to gasp. "Fighting in an empty stomach! This is not good."

A wild cheer from the coliseum erupted, along with the roar of a giant Cerberus and the flicker of lights undeniably from a Keyblade.

"Oh, poor Cerberus. Three heads to feed but only one snack…er, opponent to satisfy his needs…"

"Who's fighting right now?"

"Hmm…I think it's that baldy guy with…white mustache and spooky yellow eyes…his apprentice. Whatever." Hades's temper suddenly flared as red fire burned from his head. "So how about you and I see something in the Under—"

Hades's was lost for words when Ventus leapt over him and ran toward the coliseum. The crowd "ooooh-ed" and quickly scattered at the sign the god of the Underworld was about to explode at the disrespect.

"VEEEENTUU—"

"Van!" Ventus shouted, arriving by the coliseum without a single problem (guards tend to enjoy the show than secure). He saw his friend dodging a black flame from Cerberus while unprotected without his armor. "Van!"

Ventus jumped into the ring, summoning his Keyblade in a flash. "VAN, BACK!"

Vanitas landed on the ground weakly, his pants loud and evident. Cerberus's foot came crashing to where he is, until he rolled out of the way and retreated far to regain his strength. He saw the renowned prodigy spinning and casting his blazing Keyblade like a boomerang at the demon dog, hitting each head and aggravating them.

Cerberus roared angrily, spouting black flame with all three heads. Ventus bent his knees and jumped an incredible ten feet above the ground.

"Aeroga!" Ventus cried out, protecting him from the black flames. Even though he was successful at dodging the direct hit, the black flames were like smog too dangerous to get near. Aside from that intelligent point though, he had the tendency to go all out carelessly and with tremendous speed.

The said spell had became his trademark ever since. It did match well, as he was 'as quick as the wind'.

The flames of Cerberus rebounded to the three-headed demon like a form of sound refraction. Cerberus took no damage from the flames though, but the mutt was so numb with its own flames that it did not imagine the spectacle of Aeroga.

The exhaust stopped when Ventus whacked his Keyblade at Cerberus's chins with multiple spins in the air to increase the damage output. The underworld dog's knees ever slightly weakened, strong and powerful as it attempted to stomp the Keyblade Warrior once he reached the ground. Ventus never stayed his feet on the ground anyway. He simply catches force to get back in the air and dance with his Keyblade, furiously letting out golden sparks every hit, and Aeroga vigorously shielding him constantly.

After a few minutes, Ventus decided he had enough adrenaline and feel to blast a real finishing blow. His usual tactics don't exactly work well on big creatures with big stamina. His strength and magic were above average and were on par with each other, while his reflexes were excellent. He was flexible and adept, not a real powerhouse.

"LIGHT!" Ventus cried out, raising his Keyblade to the sky and a beam shot through the clouds as if reaching for something. The watching audience 'oh-ed', with two Keyblade Warriors quite impressed as well and one man with a very satisfied smirk in his face.

The act wasn't just for show. He felt warmth throughout his body and a focused, peaceful mind that thought of his brother at home. It was the source of his Light, his fondest memories. Kingdom Hearts can hear him, granting him strength through his Keyblade.

The audience waited in baited breath as Cerberus resumed its impatient attack. Ventus stayed put, his Aeroga disappearing as he pointed the bright tip end of his weapon to Cerberus. He twisted his wrist, causing the Keyblade to point horizontally. The Light locked onto Cerberus and instantly, the beast had collapsed to his knees before it could get its teeth on the boy.

Dusts have dispersed and the crowd had stood up to gather what happened. Immediately, they burst into disagreement and angry yells.

"What the Tartarus? That witch didn't kill it!" cried an angry audience.

Ventus frowned, aware of the cause for the uproar. He busied himself helping Vanitas, who thanked him for his intervention.

"Erm, is your Master here?" Ventus asked, remembering what Maleficent said.

Vanitas nodded. "But don't worry about it. He's not very strict."

"Cool, that's good," Ventus said, breathing a sigh of relief. But for a moment, Vanitas muttered something darkly, but Hades popping in broke his suspicion.

"Hey, hey, hey...what do we have here? Cerberus down, angry crowd...and TWO KEYHEAD VIRGINS UP AND ALIVE?" Hades shouted, overwhelming all noise and all color but red.

"Pardon me but we're just modest young men-"

"It was fair and square, Hades," Vanitas interrupted, shoving Ventus and clearing his throat.

"-and girls and boys are separated in the academy, you know. Because of distraction or something..."

"Studies say females learn better in a male-free environment," Vanitas said.

Ventus was about to say something smart when Hades hissed dangerously. The two of them backed off, but all was too late. Playtime was over.

"Well, I think it's just fair to help Cerberus a bit...HELP HIM WITH REVENGE!"

The two warriors stepped a foot back in a familiar stance, Keyblades at their hands.

"Weren't we eating ice cream just now?" Ventus asked, annoyed.

"Everyone's a whacko," Vanitas said, shaking his head.

"You know what?" Ventus said, dropping his stance. "I'm just going to run and ditch you."

"What?"

Ventus made his was speedily outside the arena but Hades wasn't going to let him get away again. The ruler of the Underworld summoned angry flames to encircle them trapped.

"I'm going to kill you, Ventus," Vanitas snarled.

Ventus pointed at Hades. "Uh, put a lock-on on the right target, Van."

Hades screamed in rage and the two Keyblade Warriors engaged against the madman.

"Aren't you going to do anything after graduation, Ven?"

Ventus plopped to the couch lazily. He winced from the muscle pain he got in the battle a few days ago against Hades. "I dunno. Give me a break, I got top marks in the academy."

Ventus had been staying at home since he didn't have any assignment yet. He wanted to see if they're mysterious attacker that night several days ago would show up. So far he sensed nothing strange in Destiny Islands.

His mother flipped through the pages of a book. "Doesn't real training start after school?"

Ventus stared at the ceiling. "Well, I should get a Master…"

"And who do you have in mind?"

He pretended to sleep on a pillow to hide his blush and muttered something.

"What was that?"

Ventus sighed, raising his head. "I don't have one in mind. I kind of thought…they'dinviteme…I don't know."

"Are you saying you can't approach one because you're too shy?" his mother asked.

Ventus scowled. "How'd you know?"

"You didn't break from your shell until second year in the academy," she answered. "How about Van's master?"

"No way," Ventus said. "We can't have the same Master. That'd be…awkward."

His mother began reading lazily. "You mean you don't want to endanger your friendship by student rivalry?"

Ventus stared at his mother's dull face intensely. "I don't know why we're even having this talk."

"VEEEENNNYYYY LETTER!" Sora's high-pitched cry interrupted. The kid came running into the room with an envelope in hand. Ventus went wide-eyed, snatching it. "What ish it, whatishit?"

Ventus checked the seal and read the contents. His face relaxed. "Nothing," he said. He thought he actually got an invite from a Master. "Just my first official World. I think I've gone to this place already."

"Finally, something to keep you out of the house," his mother said with a smile.

"Where are you going, Venny?" Sora asked, tilting his head to look up at his brother.

"Going out to patrol. I'll probably just sit and slack though." Ventus returned the paper inside the envelope, giving the name of the World one last look.

"Twilight Town, huh?"

Author's Notes: By the kind-of-popular demand, I finished Chapter 3 and updated this fanfic. Do NOT expect an update for a very long while. I think I might manage to write something for Chapter 4. Maybe by a popular demand again I might. After all if people want to read it, I don't see why I shouldn't write more of it. It's a good thing I still remember the ideas I had for this fanfic and I think I might like the next one. Besides, I do miss the action of Kingdom Hearts. I enjoyed rereading this fic xD