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INDIANA JONES
lxix. IAUNA

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PRESENT
UNDERWORLD

"SO HOW EVIL IS your boyfriend?"

Indiana Jones sensed herself rolling her eyes for the umpteenth time that day. The pair of unlikely associates had begun their expedition to the Door hours before this very moment; however, it didn't take them very long to actually locate it, considering the Underworld was a run-down version of Storybrooke. Keeping that in mind, Indiana seemed to already know what general area the second-half of the stone would be.

As mentioned before, Indiana Jones could take shots going off of how many times she'd rolled her eyes that day. Still, it had taken awhile for James to actually aggravate Indiana. Either she was getting better at holding in her temper after her last outburst, or she was actually beginning to warm up to James. Whatever it was, Indiana was hoping that it was the first choice.

"I mean, there are only so many villains that I've essentially heard of. If your boyfriend is so evil, then how come I've never heard of him?"

'Perhaps it's due to the fact that I never told you his name, jackass,' thought Indiana while pushing past a few branches. In her hand was the only weapon she really required, which was a knife that she found within the comfort of her Underworld apartment.

"You ever heard of the Pied Piper?" wondered Indiana. She stopped walking when she didn't hear James' footsteps behind her anymore. Indiana turned to see him, overwrought and frozen like he had seen a ghost. Indiana cracked a smirk at the sight. "What's the matter, Jamesy? Is someone afwaid of the Pied Piper?"

Upon catching her baby voice, James recoiled and scrunched up his nose. "Huh--? Of course I am!" he exclaimed. "There's no way your soulmate is the damned Pied Piper!"

Indiana rolled her eyes, facepalming herself as James, then, ensued to ramble on about her boyfriend and how demonic he was. Of course, this information was going off of the stories he had been told in his former and current life, stories his father had told him in order to ensure that his son would remain reverential.

It didn't take the pair a very long time to discover the other half of the stone. Once James had connected the two stones, a bright light was emitted and a pathway was revealed to the brunette and jackass. The path led into a cave, which was how Indiana was greeted with memories she didn't desire to think about given her current situation.

Still, she tried her best to ignore the memories as they played throughout her head. She could have sworn she felt a presence beside her, but perhaps that was the cave playing tricks on her.

"If you can call me Peter, then I can call you whatever I want," a familiar voice stated while walking alongside Indiana.

The voice made her freeze in her tracks. What the actual hell? Did Indiana really just hear Peter's voice? But how was it possible. Slowly, the brunette turned her head to the side to see him, but surely it was just a hallucination. Otherwise, James would have brought attention to it, right?

"Who are you calling old man?" Peter continued, giving Indiana more flashbacks of their adventure to retrieve the Crystal Skull all those years ago.

"...You...?" Indiana awkwardly responded. Was this how she was supposed to go about her hallucinations? Was Indiana truly being forced to relive past memories?

"And what would that make you? A weak, little kid?" he wondered while smirking at her deviously.

"Are you talking to someone back there?" James called out. "Perhaps I should have warned you before. The Underworld is susceptible of creating hallucinations, so if you see anything, don't think twice about."

So Indiana was right.

It wasn't real.

As James—who surprisingly volunteered to lead the way—strutted throughout the cave, Indiana couldn't help but feel utterly impatient. It was as if every step he took was between 20-30 seconds. If they continued at this rate, Indiana was sure she would disintegrate into bone and nothingness by the time they reached a halfway point.

"James, walk any slower, and I'll kick your ass so hard, that extra 5 pounds you're always whining about will end up in the River of Lost Souls," Indiana retorted.

The cave was like any other, if you considered eerie mirages of people from your past "ordinary." Every few seconds, you could hear droplets of water splashing onto the ground, along with the chilling whispers of the wind that would grow weaker the further Indiana and James got from the entrance/exit of the cave.

It was beginning to get harder and harder to see as darkness blanketed their surroundings. The two could end up at the edge of some kind of cliff or drop and neither of them would notice until their bodies were flying through the air. Out of nowhere, a hallway dimly lit with candles emerged until Indiana and James were standing in some kind of room that was brightened with torches and candles.

"What in hell is this place?" James wondered quietly as the two looked around. "It's almost like someone was... waiting..."

Humming quietly, Indiana quietly queried, "But what were they waiting for?" As Indiana's ocean-colored eyes scanned the room, her eyes landed on something. It was some sort of container... almost like... a treasure box. "Treasure, huh? What do I look like? A pirate?" She paused, realizing she basically came from a family of sailors and pirates. "Actually, don't answer that."

As James and Indiana made their way toward the box, a loud screeching was heard. Footsteps followed, causing the floor beneath James and Indiana to shake. With each steps that was taken by this unknown being, the ground would shake, mimicking miniature earthquakes. What was going on? What exactly was Indiana going to have to face?

Of all the things and images that were flashing about in Indiana's mind, nothing could have prepared her for what she was staring at before her very eyes. It was a 20-foot tall, scaly monster with 5 heads. The 5 pairs of piercing yellow eyes stared directly through Indiana's soul, making her regret even coming out here. Still, she was looking for an adventure, so an adventure was what she got.

Then, James shouted, "Run!" This little action seemed to fire up the monsters before them, for it screeched loudly and emitted fire from the several mouths it had.

As Indiana and James turned on their heel to make a beeline toward the the exit of the cave, the creature jumped over their heads and landed right before it. The monster, then, shot more fire at them, causing them to run back and hide behind large pieces of rock.

"Fan-fucking-tastic!" Indiana exclaimed to James. That thing was something that could give children nightmares for years. "What is that thing!?"

The monster let out a roar as James quickly explained, "That, my friend, is a creation of Hades'. It's called the Lernaean Hydra. This must be one of the last of its kind! According to greek mythology, a demigod killed one for one of his 12 labors!"

"Terrific history lesson, mate, but I don't see how that helps us defeat it!" Indiana shouted back as the being now known as the Hydra continued to roar and screech, throwing a huge hissy fit for now being able to squeeze in where James and Indiana were hiding out.

"I was getting to that!" exclaimed James. "It has 5 heads, so maybe if we cut each one off, it'll die?" Then, James slid her his sword and got up from his crouching position.

"What the hell are you doing!? You need that!" Indiana mentioned. James merely smirked at her before running out. It was then when Indiana realized something. James was going to be the distraction.

While James shouted out unintelligible words to the Hydra, Indiana slowly stood up and carefully made her way around the rock. It seemed to be working, for James was bolting around like an absolute lunatic. Inhaling the deepest breath of air she could, Indiana gripped the handle of the sword and made her way toward the Hydra.

James' little idea actually worked, for Indiana skillfully hopped onto a set of rocks and leaped outward, slicing one of the Hydra's heads clean off. The head landed alongside Indiana, who was breathing heavily. It... worked! Indiana couldn't believe her eyes as she stared down at the Hydra head. It really--oh, dear.

Eyes widening, Indiana observed as the Hydra grew back another head in place of the one she had cut off. "James," Indiana called out, now a bit worried. "I believe you forgot to mention one tiny detail..."

"Shut up and get out of there!" James exclaimed as the Hydra turned back to look down at Indiana. Gulping harshly, she reached down to pick up the head that was shed. When she pulled on it, the head would open its jaw and spit out fire. However, that was the least of Indiana's current issues. Instead of addressing it, she sprinted off to a different corner of the cavern.

And so, the fight against the Hydra continued. After one failed attempt at assassinating the Hydra, Indiana was beginning to feel hopeless. If anything, she and James were mice and the Hydra was one, giant cat.

While the two continued to run around, an idea appeared in Indiana's head. She stared down at the head in her hand, then back at the Hydra, and then back at James. A light bulb went off in her head. "James! Catch!" Indiana barked out, tossing the head at James, who just barely reacted in time to catch it. "Now, when I say so, run up and pull on the head. Got it?"

"Indiana, what the hell are you doing!?" he shouted in question, but Indiana ignored him.

Instead of listening to him, she ran forward and let out a horrible battle cry before slicing the head off of the Hydra once again. "Now!" she yelled. Then, James--still oblivious to Indiana's little idea--made his way forward and opened the Hydra head's mouth. The fire that was emitted burned and sealed the spot. It was now impossible for the Hydra to grow back another head in that area.

"You're a genius!"

"I know!"

And so, Indiana Jones and Prince James continued to repeat this action. She would slice off the head and he would seal the deal. They were a perfect pair, understanding each other's motives now that they had bonded through the whole Hydra incident. Once the Hydra's heads were sliced off, Indiana chucked her sword at the area where she assumed his heart was. Once it lodged itself in the Hydra's stomach area, a bright light emerged from the body as the Hydra disintegrated into nothingness.

Indiana felt as though she were a character in a video game. She'd defeated the boss and now was able to retrieve treasure in return. As Indiana walked toward the chest, James followed behind her. Indiana wondered what was inside it. The real Holy Grail? Riches upon riches? She was anxious to know, which was why she was so willing to open up the chest and look inside.

Then, her stomach dropped.

"You have got to be joking," Indiana muttered through gritted teeth.

"What is it?" James questioned from behind her, now joining her side. "Is it as marvelous as the rumors say?" He looked down at the chest. "Is... Is that--?"

Indiana let out a sigh, interrupting his statement. "Unfortunately, yes," she confirmed.

"As in... the one from the stories?" James wondered as the two stared down at the untold treasure located within the treasure chest.

Indiana reached down to grab it. "It must have appeared in the Underworld when I died, its only purpose being to serve me. Hades must have known we were going to fight the Hydra, somehow," Indiana explained, pulling out the object. "This was one wild goose chase... all so that Indiana Jones could be reunited with her whip."