Hey there, folks! How have you been? Desperate, I take it, if you're reading this... ^_^ As usual, I'll now bore you with my introduction / lowdown / explanation / whatever you wanna call it...

This story sticks to the one of Kingdom Hearts, however, there will be many different things. For starters, this is a MAJOR crossover between KH, Ranma ½, Final Fantasy VII, The Legend of Zelda, Darkstalkers, and Street Fighter, and the two main characters will be none other than Ukyo and Wilheim (If you don't know who this guy is, read my bio, read the story 'The Wish of an Immortal', or keep on reading to find out! ^_^). But don't you worry: Sora will obviously be here, as well as Riku and Kairi and all the Disney cast...

So, if there's anyone out there that likes any of this games (or anime, in Ranma's case) and has a death wish, you may begin to read my story. ^_^ Oh! Also, once again, I advice against going any further to any Ranma - Ukyo fan or Ryoga - Ukyo fan... You'll hate me if you do.

Last but not least, most of the characters in this story (exceptions are Wilheim himself, Demean, and Tish... I'll keep you posted) don't belong to me. They are property of: Nintendo, Capcom, Rumiko Takahashi, Squaresoft, Tim Burton and Disney. Now (finally), on to the story!! Enjoy!!

THE QUEST: IN THE NAME OF FRIENDSHIP

The nocturne sky extended its glow to every corner in the small town of Nerima. Even though there wasn't a single cloud in the sky, and though the moon and the stars shone fiercely, the shadows crawled over the pavement and scaled the walls of the houses. For seconds, it appeared as if they were moving, like a hungry tiger that stalks its prey as it moves, unnoticed, with the cover of the high grass, and then it freezes, and becomes one with the light and the shadows, and one with the breeze...

The stars in the sky slowly faded away, as if they were fireflies that were being devoured by an invisible foe. The shadows that adorned the moon began to peer at the town with malice, and suddenly, they seemed to climb down the white rock and into the town... Slowly, every light was engulfed by darkness: every tinkling candlelight was blown away, and every lamp was broken by an unknown force...

"How much time do you give it, Ucchan? A week? Two weeks?" asked Ranma Saotome to her good friend, Ukyo Kuonji, who was sitting behind her grill and was staring at it without saying a word. She, Ranma, and another girl named Akane, were staying at her restaurant, 'Ucchan's', a little, yet great locale... She was completely lost in her own thoughts, and every word that Ranma or Akane spoke, seemed to echo in her mind as one of Wilheim's, her beloved, sighs...

Ranma, Akane, and Ukyo were all seventeen years old. The boy was a tall, athletic young man, with a deep, gray stare, and short, dark hair. Akane was a beautiful girl with a breathtaking, brown, glance; a glance that seemed to be made with the fairest trunk of the fairest tree. She had black hair, a beautiful body, and an innocent face...

Ukyo was a tall, gorgeous girl with the body of a goddess. Her sculptural curves and lines were simply perfect: not even the greatest of artists could capture such magnificence in one of his works. Her long hair fell down her back like a brown waterfall, and her white skin was even softer than silk. Her eyes were as blue as the deepest of oceans: their waters were calm and friendly when she was happy, but when she was angry, a terrible storm broke loose and surrounded her pupils with rage... She was truly a spectacle to behold.

Wilheim, the being that loved Ukyo, was a sixty - eight year old vampire who had the body, heart, and spirit of a seventeen year old boy. Time had passed by him mercilessly, yet he always remained a teenager, for he had vowed to himself that he would not ever grow up, until he had regained his humanity... That moment had now come, for Wilheim had been freed from his destroyer: a malevolent vampire named Magnus. Along with Ukyo and her friends, the boy had fought a deadly battle in which he and his companions had emerged victorious... And now, the young man with the strong, tall body, the long, clear - brown hair, and the mysterious, yet captivating and magical violet glance, was about to become human again... He had parted from Ukyo's side, and had promised to return to her as soon as he could see the light of day once more. And the girl could do nothing but to think of that happy day...

Yet, that night, she had something else on her mind... The last letter that Wilheim had sent had confused and troubled her deeply... Seeing that Ukyo gave no answer at all, Ranma slammed the grill with his fist. The girl trembled as if she had just waked up from a long sleep and said:

"What is it, Ran - Chan? Quit banging my grill, will you?"

"Ukyo, this is the third time this night that I've had to get your attention by hitting your stupid grill." Ranma complained. "My hands aren't made out of rubber, you know. Eventually, I'll end up with a nasty burn."

"Then don't slam my grill." Replied Ukyo. "It's that simple."

"That's the only way I can get you to listen to me..."

"Try to stop thinking about whatever it is you're thinking for just a couple of seconds, Ukyo." Intervened Akane. "Come on, tell us. When do you think Wilheim's coming back?"

"I don't know." Said Ukyo, and for a moment, her grim thoughts were driven off her mind. "But I don't think that he'll take more than three weeks. In his letters, he says that he feels he's getting close..."

"Feels?" asked the boy.

"Yeah... You know, a gut feeling." She paused for a moment and then added, with a silly smile on her face and a sigh: "I trust my Wilheim - honey. He'll be back soon enough. I can't wait to see his new eyes..."

"I get it. By the way, what about the letter that you got from him this morning? What does it say?" asked Akane, and then added with a smirk: "Can you read it to us? Or is it a little too personal?"

"It's rated G, so I guess I can read it to you." Laughed Ukyo, but then, her expression turned serious, as she remembered her beloved's last words...

The girl loved to read her friends the letters that Wilheim sent her, and they loved to hear her as well, for Wilheim's words were powerful and magical, and always submerged them in vast, beautiful, and mysterious lands. Before he had known Ukyo, he had been a wanderer, a vagabond, that had seen many of the wonders and secrets the world has to offer. His speech was quite unusual, yet it was captivating and never ceased to fascinate all around him...

However, Ukyo did not read every letter that came from Wilheim to her friends. Sometimes, her jealousy made her keep all of her beloved's words to herself. And sometimes, Wilheim's words were so powerful, so filled with love and eroticism, that Ukyo could do nothing but to think of his tough body and his soft lips...

The girl reached to her pocked and took out the letter. As Akane looked at her friend's face, she noticed that all happiness had suddenly left her, and this worried her.

"What's wrong, Ukyo?" she asked.

"You'll see..." replied Ukyo.

"Is it Wilheim? Is he alright?"

"Sure, he's OK. I just told you that he'll come back one of this days, didn't I?" said the girl, with a giggle. "Just hear what he wrote... It's probably nothing, but it did feel a little puzzled when I read it..."

Ranma leaned forward and let out a sigh.

"So he's OK." He said.

"Yeah, don't worry about it." Said Ukyo. "OK, here it goes..." and so, she began to read the letter out loud. It said:

"Dearest Ukyo:

"I look up at the sky as I write this, and hope that our merry encounter will come soon. As I glance at the stars, I begin to feel that their twinkling, once fair and mesmerizing, is slowly fading. I have seen the nocturne sky too many times: now all that satisfies my hungry eyes is the thought of your angel face. Not even the taste of blood can now ease my thirst... I need to taste your lips once more, my love.

"I sense that my quest is almost over. I now stand in the middle of an empty Scottish field, with no more company that the soft blowing of the wind and the sweet smell of the grass. I have learned that the oracle Gabrielle dwells in these fields... Even though I have crossed them before, I do not remember them. It is as if I have never been here before... And I think I know why... Because the night that I ran through them, my eyes were filled with bloody tears, and all that I could see was a deep, black abyss in front of me, and all that I longed for was death. Yet, your face has become my moon, and your eyes are the lights that illuminate my way..."

"What does he mean by that?" interrupted Ranma.

"Oh, I'll... tell you later." Murmured Ukyo. She glanced at the letter and said: "This is the part that concerns me..." and so she kept on reading.

"There is something that I want to share with you, Ukyo... I mentioned that I have seen that the lights of the stars are slowly fading, like an agonizing candlelight. This is not due to the fact that nothing that the world offers amuses me or captivates me as much as your breath. What I mean, is that the stars are truly disappearing in the sky. I have seen the same black sheet for over sixty years and now I notice that some of its decorations are missing. It is as if some mischievous imp were stealing the diamonds of the black cape... Where have they gone, I wonder?

"I ask myself if I am not hallucinating all this. Who can tell? Maybe it is because of you, Ukyo. When I am not by your side, I cannot sleep and dream of the beautiful places that I have visited. That is why I need to make haste and find Gabrielle, so I can return to you and sleep once more... Only that, when we are together again, I will rest while the darkness takes over the sky. I will soon be human again. And when that happens, I will never be sad again, for you will be holding my hand once more...

"I long for you, Ukyo. I desire to touch your soft skin more than ever... But we have to be patient. It will all happen soon enough, my dearest... Wait for me, my love, for I come to you.

"Forever your humble slave... Wilheim."

Ukyo then fell silent and sighed. She put the letter back in her right pocket, and reached for her left one, and pulled out Wilheim's bandanna. She held it close to her face and caressed it with her hands, as if it where her darling's face. However, her trance was interrupted by Ranma, who said:

"I don't know what it means... But I think Wilheim is right."

"What do you mean?" asked Akane.

"There are not many stars in the sky, nowadays..." explained Ranma. "He wasn't hallucinating. There are many stars missing."

"See?" intervened Ukyo. "I knew it! I've seen it too! It's not just my Wilheim - honey that has noticed this. What is going on?" she made a small pause and then said, with a worried breath: "That's why I'm concerned. At first, I thought it all was because of the torturing hours that I spend waiting for him to show up. But now I know it's really happening."

"I've noticed that too..." said Akane, and her face was filled with fear. "Now I'm really scared. This isn't good..."

"Hey, come on. Calm down, girls!" exclaimed Ranma, as he jumped from his seat. "It's probably because the stars have been going out naturally... I mean, have you ever heard of the super novas?" he said, with a triumphant and calm smile on his face. Nevertheless, he was very scared, and he was actually trying to convince himself with his own vain explanation that there was nothing wrong.

"Sure, I've heard of them." Replied Ukyo. "But don't you think it's a little odd that there are so many ones taking place?"

"She's right, Ranma." Added Akane.

But Ranma shook his head and tried to find a reasonable, scientific explanation for this strange phenomenon. Yet, everything that he said was questioned by Ukyo and Akane. They kept on discussing for a long while, and reached no conclusion.

Suddenly, the front door was opened by a fierce raft of air. The boys stopped arguing and turned to face the night... Nobody spoke or moved for a few moments. The sudden gale had frozen them all; as if it had been a spell that came from the hands of the greatest and most terrifying warlock. It was Ranma that finally broke the curse and slowly walked to the door and closed it.

"What the hell's going on?" he muttered to himself.

He was interrupted by a shriek that came from Akane's throat. When he turned around to see what was the matter, he found himself face to face with a shadow... His own. The dark figure stood high and proud and with an evil grin on its somber face. Even though Ranma could not see it smirking, he could feel its malevolent smile, mocking him and intimidating him... The shadow had ceased to be a picture that crawls in the ground to stay close to its master. It was now a black body with two red eyes: a red glance that petrified Ranma and chilled him to the bone.

Slowly, the shadow raised its arm. The boy could not believe it. It was moving on its own! It was no longer condemned to imitate his own movements. It was free to attack. It was ready to slaughter him. The dark creature lost no more time and attempted to swing its arm at Ranma's neck. However, he suddenly let out a horrifying scream, and his eyes became as dark as the rest of its body... A moment passed in which time froze all, and then the shadow was split in two. Ranma and Akane stared at it with horror, while its shattered body hit the ground and then vanished like smoke in air. When all was clear, they saw Ukyo, who was breathing rapidly and letting her giant spatula rest on the ground. While the creature had cast its curse on her friends, she had taken advantage of its carelessness and had slain it.

Ranma let out a relieved sigh and fell on his knees.

"Thank you, Ucchan..." he muttered.

"Don't thank me yet." Replied Ukyo, in a terrified whisper. Her eyes were filled with fear and her hands began to tremble, as she looked at the night... "This doesn't look good at all."

When she finished saying this words, Akane and Ranma turned their heads to the sky, and their faces turned into an expression of terror. A dark circle was swirling under the dim light of the stars and, like a devilish black hole, was absorbing all of Nerima... The roofs of the houses suddenly began to fly in the air and disappeared in the darkness of the black circle. The air was filled by high - pitched screams and loud cries of help. No call was ever answered; they all vanished in the shadowy hole. The wind was no longer a mere, harmless wanderer; it had turned into a fierce enemy which only wished to carry all its helpless victims to its vicious master.

Soon, Ucchan's Okonomiyaki disappeared completely. The three boys began to scream for help, but no caring soul came to them. The devilish gale captured them in its hungry arms, and carried them to the ravaging hole. They tried hard to get a hold on to something, but all was being carried to the dark mouth of the invisible beast. As they got closer to the hole, they could hear a low rumbling which grew and grew, like the purr of a panther that turns into a chilling roar... Ukyo closed her eyes hard, as she grasped both Ranma and Akane's hands and let out a wail filled with fear and desperation.

"WILHEIM!!" she yelled... and then, all went dark. All of Nerima was consumed by the ferocious, dark hole.