For Glory! [Zack, Lanying, Raen]

[Nothingness]

July 18, 2010

At long last, they had returned to Olympus Coliseum. "This makes things a bit more even--we've all come home at least once, now." He thought as he set the Gummi Ship down on the dusty earth. Stepping out of the ship, he walked through the large wooden gates and looked skywards to the heads of the warring gladiators that crossed swords over the Coliseum entrance. He couldn't sense it before, but now he noticed an almost palpable air of energy. Conflicts existing just as much between the competitors as within themselves. Inhaling deeply, he practically shouted, "What a rush!"

Turning around, a rather hyped up Raen looked at Zack and asked, "Glad to be back?" Raen was hoping that the three of them would get a chance to fight in the Arena this time--duking it out for glory (and prizes). They'd been fighting separately for so long that Raen had begun to feel something like a rift between them. A nice bit of teamwork would probably do the trick in sealing that. He couldn't wait to get inside.

[Zack]

Zack was much more excited about their next stop then he thought he would be. They were headed back home, back to the Olympus Coliseum. He liked having visited other worlds, but he couldn't wait to return. By now the games should be starting back up and he was excited to enter them. He was also excited to see Phil, hopefully the trainer having something new Zack could practice.

He pretty much rushed out of the ship, about as excited as he would be for visiting any new world. Raen had asked him something but he was already heading for the entrance to the coliseum "C'mon guys! don't want to be late for the games!" he called out as he opened the entrance doors to the lobby.

[Aerith]

Fun Times, For Once?
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Lanying had found it difficult parting from her home again, but in the end, she knew it was something she had to do. And now she, Raen, and Zack had returned to the Coliseum. Perhaps here, she could relax for a while--no stressful tests or battles, just good times with friends. They needed to erase the barriers that she could tell had begun to separate them.

She wondered if that was her fault.

Regardless, they were here, and there was excitement to be had. These Games Zack had mentioned several times sounded intriguing. Friendly competition could be just what they needed. Or she could just sit in the stands and watch for once. It was high time she spent some time on the sidelines.

After exiting the ship, she couldn't help but smile at the eagerness of both Raen and Zack. It was a little infectious. "I am right behind you two." Laughing softly, she trailed after Zack. "I haven't seen you act so much like boys in a good while."

[Nothingness]

What Are We Waiting For?

"Hey, wait up!" Raen called out to Zack, running to catch up with him. He let out a soft, "Woah", when he stepped in to the lobby. It was brightly lit by various torches, and there were trophies adorning the walls. Strangely enough, all of the trophies were given to the same person: some "Sora." Whoever he was, he must be an amazing warrior. The name sounded sort of familiar, but he'd heard a lot of different names while he worked back in Traverse Town.

Looking around a bit more, he walked over to a really large rock of sorts (he hesitated to call it a rock, what with the carvings on it) and hefted himself on top of it. "Man, this place is amazing!" Not wanting to look foolish (though he already kind of did), he waited for Zack to take care of signing up for the Games.

[Zack]

((Hey Aerith if you want to take turns being Phil that's cool with me))

Zack was excited to be in the lobby again. He knew that he would be competing in the games soon and that always excited him. Raen and Lanying weren't too far behind him. Thankfully Phil was there in the same spot he normally was. "Hey Phil-" he began. "Great you're here, Herc. Listen can you move that block again? I decided that it shouldn't go there anymore," Phil told him before Zack could finish. Zack was annoyed but couldn't help but smile. Same old Phil. "Phil, its me! Zack!" he told him excited.

Phil finally turned around and saw that it indeed was Zack. "Hey, kid, good to see you. I didn't expect you back so soon. You here for what I think you're here for?" he asked. Zack nodded his head excitedly. "Yeah, I'm here to compete! And so are my friends here!" he told Phil and motioned to Raen and Lanying. Phil looked behind Zack and noticed the two new people behind him, then looked back at Zack. "Hey, kid you sure they got what it takes to compete?" he asked, obviously skeptical.

[Aerith]

Might Want to Rethink Your Previous Question
--------

Upon entering the area beyond the large doors, Lanying found herself in a small atrium. It lacked the grandiose feel of the area just outside, but it still housed some noteworthy objects, mostly trophies that all bore the name "Sora." This person must have been a greatly skilled fighter to win all of these.

Raen found himself a seat, but she chose to simply lean against one of the walls. Zack was conversing with some odd goat... man... thing. The two of them apparently knew each other already, and it took her a moment to realize that this was the Phil Zack had talked about when she and Raen first met him.

He was questioning her fighting skills? Oh, no.

She pushed off the wall and walked straight up to the little goat-man. Her Keyblade was in her hand in a matter of seconds and was inches from his rotund belly. "Excuse me? What were you saying about me and my friend over there?"

[Nothingness]

Let's All Be Cool

Oh, boy. This "Phil" person certainly did not seem to want to get off on the right foot...hoof. While Raen could understand why the satyr questioned their abilities, he certainly wasn't above challenging the goat's misgivings. Of course, Lanying calling up her Keyblade wasn't exactly the best introduction. "Hey, whoa," Raen hopped off the stone and walked over to Phil, gently pushing the Keyblade aside. "Let's all just chill out here; no reason to get riled up." Hopefully Zack could get a handle on this--Phil didn't seem to be the most patient...mystical creature...there was.

[Zack]

Zack sighed when he heard Phil questioning his friends potential, but it was expected. Phil always questioned every young hopeful coming here. However, he didn't expect Lanying to take it so personally, her summoning her keyblade out already. Raen was trying to smooth things over and Zack started to try too. "Chill Lanying he's always-" he started before Phil interrupted him "Listen Sweetcheeks, I see young hopefuls come in here everyday trying to become heroes. Most of them are all talk. It takes more than just a fancy weapon like yours and some fancy moves to be a hero."

He had started moving looking over at one side where trophies sat. "I got three words for you three," he said before turning around to face them "You guys....ain't heroes!" Zack knew that that was coming but it still bummed it out a bit. However becoming a hero wasn't easy and he knew that he hadn't reached that point yet. "We know, Phil. Which is why we need to compete in the games. C'mon we can prove to you that we have the makings to be real heroes!" he exclaimed. Phil sighed as he looked at Zack. He had the same determined look as that other kid that had come through and proven him wrong. "Okay, kid, games start in a little bit. But if you all aren't up for it, don't say I didn't warn ya,"

Zack jumped up with excitement. "Alright! I'll be outside warming up in the meantime!" he exclaimed as he rushed back out of the lobby. Phil sighed, but also couldn't help but be amused. "Nothing can keep that guy down for long,"

[Aerith]

You Were Lucky This Time, Goat-Man
--------

Sweetcheeks? Sweetcheeks? How dare he refer to her that way? This goat-man was obviously lacking in manners. She would have to teach him a thing or two.

Just before she could whack him silly with her Keyblade, she felt a tugging at her spirit. Of course. Calm. Serene. She was nothing but calm and serene. Being the bearer of a Keyblade and the spirit of a dragon, she would need to exercise much more self-control than usual. Even when faced with rude goat-men things.

Her weapon vanished, and rather than address Phil, she glanced at Raen. "I'll be outside, too." She did not much care for all of this hero talk, and to be honest, she was thinking more and more that she might let the guys compete in the Games while she watched. A weariness of the soul still dogged her.

[Nothingness]

So...uh, yeah...

Well, that could have gone better. It might not have been worse case scenario, but it certainly wasn't all that good. Still, Zack seemed to get things under control. After Phil more or less reprimanded Lanying on her assumptions and told them that they weren't heroes, ("I'm not disagreeing with that," Raen thought) Zack ran back out to warm up, and Lanying followed with an obvious chip on her shoulder. That left Raen in a fairly awkward position. He opened his mouth to say something, but, unable to find the words, promptly shut his mouth. After another awkward pause, he simply said, pointing to the door, "I'll, uh, go outside, too."

Walking outside, he found a nice, open spot to swing his rapier around a little bit. He'd become so reliant on using the darkness that just fighting with his blade was really nice. It was sort of like going through your old toys long after you stopped using them--the mind wanders and you remember what it was like. That's how he felt as he went through the motions. Slash, slash, thrust, parry, backstep, thrust. Parry, spin, slash, lunge, slash, stab. It was all coming back to him...

[Zack]

Zack soon saw Lanying and then Raen exit the lobby. He had picked a spot outside to do squats. He felt fired up! He was so excited to be competing, it had been awhile since the last time he had done so. Hopefully, he had a chance of winning this time. After a few moments Phil came back outside. It looked like it was time to compete. Zack rushed over to hear what Phil had to say.

"Okay, you three. You all going to compete together or separately?" Phil asked them. Zack wasn't sure himself, he was fine either way. "What do you guys think?" he asked the two as he turned to face them.

[Aerith]

Sitting This One Out
--------

She was the only one not doing much of anything. Zack was off doing his usual squats (Was there not some other exercise that guy could do?), and Raen was practicing with his sword. She didn't have the desire to do any sort of warming up, so she leaned against the platform next to the stairs and watched the guys.

When Phil came out and asked how they'd be competing, Zack turned to her and Raen and asked their opinion. She already knew what she was going to say, but she tried to word it as positively as possible. "I don't think I will be competing. I would like a break from fighting."

[Nothingness]

My Two Cents

Well, that was a bit of a downer--Lanying sitting this one out. Still, it wouldn't be so bad. "Well, I've got no problem teaming up with you, Zack." A daring smirk broke along his face, "As long as you can keep up with me!"

[Zack]

Well that was disappointing that Lanying wanted to sit this one out. However, Zack wasn't entirely surprised she deserved a break. He couldn't help but grin at Raen's response though. "You heard the man, Phil! We're ready and raring to go!" Phil motioned for them to follow him. "Alright follow me over to the coliseum then,"

Zack eagerly followed after Phil. Phil led them to the arena where they would be fighting. Man, it sure had been awhile since he was here. It felt good to be here again. Hopefully, him and Raen would end up winning. "Alright same rules as always. Beat your opponents before they beat you. You can't leave the arena. That's about it really. Then the satyr remembered something. "Oh yeah. Some weirdos signed up for the games, so be careful out there. Zack grinned. "We'll be fine Phill, don't worry about us!" he exclaimed before stepping onto the arena and taking out his sword.

[Aerith]

Relaxation
--------

Lanying trailed behind and sat down in the stands. It was nice to sit. No worrying about staying alive in a fight this time. She would sit back and enjoy the show, cheering on her friends from outside the arena proper.

Something didn't quite feel right, but she couldn't put her finger on it.
__________________________

I see live people.
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Finally. Those two idiots had managed to do something right. When Pain and Panic had brought him news of Zack and company's return to the Coliseum, Hades had decided to scope out the three, see what kind of material he'd be working with here. He was already familiar with Zack, goody-two-shoes-hero-wannabe that he was. There was still lingering bitterness over that whole fiasco.

Tucked away in the shadows of a corner, he eyed Zack and the other guy standing in the area. The woman with them was sitting in the stands. Interesting. Maybe she couldn't fight. You know, maybe she was one of those delicate types. Didn't want to break a nail or something. Well, if she couldn't fight, she was of no use to him at the moment, so he focused on Zack and his friend. There was something different about that other guy. Something delightful.

Time for a test. With a flick of his wrist, four Large Bodies and eight Soldiers swarmed the arena. How the two handled these would determine what happened next.