A/N: This is pretty much KH3D from my dragons' POVs, but I'll have two stories. This one is Shadow's, the other one will be Kurai's. Enjoy~
Disclaimer: I own nothing but Shadow & Kurai. Credit for the game script goes to DJ Firewolf on gamefaqs.
Kingdom Hearts 3D, Shadow's Story
Chapter 1
Sora, Riku, Kurai, and I stared out at the sea, watching the ocean. As Kurai and I perched on our respective partner's shoulders, Sora spoke up.
"But how far could a raft take us?" he wondered aloud.
"Who knows? If we have to, we'll think of something else," Riku replied. Later on, as we sailed along dark waters on the raft, Sora spoke again.
"Riku, a storm's coming," he warned his friend. The brunette kneeled and looked at the water.
"I know," the silverette nodded. "The waves are getting steep. Furl the sail."
"Right," I said, and was about to when something big shot out of the water, ripping the mast clean off of our raft. Sora and I ducked in time, but when we looked up again, Riku and Kurai were in the water, clinging to the mast for dear life.
"Riku!" Sora cried out.
"Kurai!" I shouted.
"We're fine!" they called back. Suddenly, the waters began to churn violently, and a familiar figure rose from the ocean's depths.
"What's that?" Riku wondered aloud.
"Oh, he was right. Those wretched guppies are here. Well, it's about time we settled the score," Ursula grinned evilly.
"Ursula?" Sora gasped as I growled beside him. "But how—is this the test?"
"Come on! You can work it out later!" the silverette reminded him.
"All right!" I yelled back. Ursula suddenly noticed Riku and Kurai standing on top of the floating mast.
"Sorry, dearies, but I won't fall for that trick!" she said, and slammed a tentacle onto the mast, giving our friends a chance to jump back onto the raft. "You dare toy with me? You insignificant fools! To the depths with you!" She then proceeded to blow large bubbles at us, but we all four swiftly dodged the rapid onslaught.
"Time for my revenge!" Ursula crowed as we dodged. She summoned lightning bolts, but we escaped unscathed. When Sora and I lunged at her to attack, however, she snatched us up in her hand. "There, I have you now!"
Riku and Kurai came to our rescue, attacking Ursula and making her release us with a cry of pain. Once we defeated her, she faded away eerily, and the waves became even rougher. As the raft was tossed about, the four of us were thrown into the water by the choppy waves. The storm raged above, thunder and lightning sounding and flashing above us as we sank into the depths of the ocean.
Suddenly, a keyhole appeared whilst we sank, and Sora's and Riku's Keyblades appeared into their hands, causing Kurai's and my claws to glow in response. As if they had a mind of their own, the Keyblades and our claws pointed at the keyhole and we each fired a beam of light at it, the light engulfing everything.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Master Yen Sid had summoned us to his tower, and behind him stood Mickey, Donald, and Goofy.
"As a Keyblade Master, Xehanort had a gift like few others," Yen Sid began. "But such great minds are often plagued by a single great question. What is the essence of the heart that weakens us, or empowers us? The answer, he believed, would be found in the 'Keyblade War'. What if the challenges of our past were, in fact, a map to the light and darkness that battles within us all? Xehanort had to know, so he renounced his duties as master and chose the seeker's life. Since then, in many a guise, he has clashed with protectors of the light—Keyblade and light wielders like yourselves. And mark my words—he will trouble us yet again. We must be ready. Which is why you, Sora, Shadow, Riku, and Kurai, are to be tested for the marks of true Keyblade and light masters. No doubt you fancy yourselves masters already, but it takes years of training. Only a true master can teach you the proper ways. Both of you, Sora and Riku, are self-taught Keyblade wielders—an impressive feat. However, the time has come for you to let go of preconceived notions, forget what you know about the Keyblade, and begin your training again with a clean slate."
"Huh?!" Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey all said in unison. I watched Yen Sid curiously, wondering what he meant.
"But that's a formality, right?" the brunette asked. "Shadow and I already proved ourselves. Us and the king, and Riku and Kurai—we can take on anything. Right, Riku and Kurai?"
"I don't know," Riku answered honestly, Kurai lowering his head as the silverette summoned his Keyblade. "I think that in our hearts, darkness still has a hold." He dispelled his Keyblade.
"Walking that path changed us," Kurai added. "We're not sure if we're ready to wield the Keyblade and light. Maybe we do need to be tested."
"Riku…" Sora murmured.
"Kurai…" I growled softly. We turned back to Yen Sid.
"Then count us in," Sora and I told him firmly. "Put us through the test! Just watch—us, Riku, and Kurai will pass with flying colors!" Sora folded his hands behind his head, feeling confident. I noticed Donald, Goofy, and Mickey exchange glances, and I felt curious as to what they were thinking.
"Very well, then," Yen Sid nodded. "Sora, Shadow, Riku, and Kurai, let your examination begin."
X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Sora and I awoke later on, feeling a great sense of nostalgia as we looked around. I realized there was a mark to my usually black armor, and it consisted of a large, white "X" on my chest.
"Huh? This is…Traverse Town," Sora remarked as he looked about. He looked down at the same time I did, and I noticed his clothes were different, too. "Hey, what's with my clothes? Must be more of Master Yen Sid's magic."
He checked out his outfit, the red and black fabric, and the white straps crossing his chest. After tapping his foot against the ledge floor, he looked up quickly.
"What happened to Riku?" he wondered aloud.
"And Kurai!" I added with a slight glare. Sora jumped onto the railing of the ledge, and I joined him.
"Riku, Kurai! Hellooo? Rikuuu! Kurai!" we shouted.
"Shut it," a voice said out of nowhere.
"Huh?" Sora said as I looked up where the voice had come from.
"Talk about noise…" the voice grumbled. Suddenly, a boy in purple dropped down, hanging off the roof above us. Startled, Sora dropped to the ground below as I jumped and landed daintily next to him. The brunette picked himself up off the ground as the purple-clad boy with strikingly contrasting orange hair dropped down and landed neatly in front of us. I noted the large purple headphones he wore, and realized he liked to block the world out with music.
"Sora and Shadow, right?" he asked.
"Yeah, but, uh…how do you know that?" I asked, watching him curiously. The ginger grabbed Sora's hand and turned it over, his palm up.
"Looks like you're not Players," he commented.
"A Player?" Sora questioned.
"C'mon, keep up. In the Game," the ginger explained. He showed us his own palm, which had the numbers "43:09" in red-lit numbers on it, slowly ticking down in seconds. "Players get marked with the time limit. And this game, I can't afford to lose. I need my Game partner."
"Okay…I don't know about any 'Game', but can we help?" Sora offered.
"What?" the boy said, surprised. "Time out. Do you trust every total stranger you meet? Look—sorry, you're no good. You're not Players. And my pact's with someone else."
"Okay, so we can't be partners. Why don't we just help you out as your friends?" I suggested, shrugging one shoulder. The boy turned away from us.
"Now we're friends? It's not that easy," he grumbled.
"Not saying it is, but…you could make it easier," Sora pointed out as I nodded.
"Yeah, sounds great. Whatever," the ginger muttered.
"Cool! Lead the way," Sora told him, and we were surprised when the boy jumped to a lamppost, swinging around it. He then leapt from the lamppost to a railing and slid up it, making a huge leap into the air and landing near the back of the accessory shop. Sora gave a small laugh and we followed the boy to the Second District.
"Hey, we didn't catch your name," I told the boy once we caught up to him. Suddenly, several dog-like creatures appeared around us.
"Dream Eaters!" he cried out, dodging as one tried to attack him.
"That's a weird name," Sora said, and I smacked my forehead and groaned.
"Not me. Them," the boy replied, sounding irritated. He pointed at the creatures and the same one that tried to attack him made to attack again.
"Right. I knew that!" the brunette said. The ginger jumped back and a cat-like creature appeared and attacked one of the enemies. It then took off down an alleyway, leading the one it attacked after it.
"Don't let 'em surround us! Let's split up!" the boy yelled.
"Got it!" Sora nodded, and I growled as he whipped out his Keyblade, my claws glowing in response.
"Oh uh, and…it's Neku," the boy suddenly said.
"Huh?" the brunette asked, confused.
"Neku Sakuraba. You asked," Neku said.
"'Neku Sakuraba'. That's a mouthful!" Sora grinned.
"No. It's really not," Neku muttered, rolling his eyes. Sora and I laughed.
"C'mon, Neku. Let's take 'em!" I growled, and we fought the enemies. Sora and I proceeded to take out all of the enemies, and when we finished, the brunette and I took a closer look at Neku's cat-like companion. It gave a small meow and pranced about happily.
"These things with you—they're Dream Eaters, too?" Sora asked the ginger as he watched us.
"Yeah. If I'm gonna survive the Game, I'm gonna need some extra help," Neku told us. "Think you could control them?"
"Sure, I guess…" Sora answered a little uncertainly. We remembered Master Yen Sid telling us about Spirits, which were the good Dream Eaters, and how they would help us fight the nightmares, the bad Dream Eaters. When we snapped out of it, Neku helped us to create a Spirit called Meow Wow. Once we created the little guy, he pawed the air cutely, emitting a noise that sounded like a cross between a meow and a bark. My normally sharp gaze softened at the sight of the Spirit; it was pretty cute.
Neku took off, going on ahead, while Sora and I looked about this version of Traverse Town, fighting Dream Eaters and gaining items as we adjusted to the new aspect of Flowmotion. It was a cool concept, Sora being able to jump wall-to-wall, swing on columns, and dish out powerful attacks in or from midair. I was already capable of doing such things, but that was cool that Sora could now.
We finished clearing out the Dream Eaters in the Second District, and then moved on to the Third District, where we caught up with Neku. The ginger gazed up as we joined him.
"I brought you Sora and Shadow! We had a bargain!" Neku yelled in the direction he was looking.
"What's the matter, Neku?" Sora questioned curiously. Suddenly, a figure in a black cloak appeared at the ledge where Neku was watching and looked down at the three of us. I bristled furiously and snapped my jaws. "No way!" the brunette gasped. He readied his Keyblade, making my claws glow, and the figure leaped into the air to attack.
"Hey! That wasn't the deal! You said you wouldn't hurt them!" Neku shouted angrily, and leapt into the air as well to try and stop the figure.
"Don't! Neku! They're too dangerous!" I cried out, but out of nowhere, as we were about to move to help, both Sora and I were overcome with a mysterious sleepiness.
"What? Why are we so…sleepy?" we mumbled, and, as our balance faltered, blacked out.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Sora and I woke in Traverse Town again with a jolt.
"Where is he?" Sora wondered, and I automatically knew he meant Neku. The brunette looked about for the ginger, but no one was around but us.
"They're both gone," I muttered.
"Before we fell asleep, Neku said that he and that creep in the coat had a 'deal'," Sora remembered. "But what was the deal? Are the two of them in league? That can't be right…We never even found Neku's partner. I guess we should just take a look around." I nodded in agreement, and we made our way back to the First District.
We fought our way past the Dream Eaters, thanks to some help from Meow Wow, and when we arrived in the First District again, we discovered a hidden entrance to the Post Office under the tall mailbox in the square. Through there, Sora and I travelled to the Fourth District.
"Wow! Never been this way before!" Sora said in awe as we walked along. Spotting a large stadium with balloons, I tilted my head to the side, perplexed, as Sora gasped, "Ooh! What's that?" We noticed a young girl talking with a Moogle, and made our way over to her.
"Hey, um…any chance you're Neku's partner?" I asked as we approached.
"Huh?" she said, turning to look at us. "Umm…I'm not really sure. All I know is that my name is Rhyme."
"You mean…You've lost your memory?" Sora guessed, and I rolled my eyes.
"Yep."
"Oh, sorry…" Sora apologized.
"Aw, it's no big deal," Rhyme shrugged. "You know what they always say—'Sometimes memories just need a little help getting out.'"
"Yeah…that's true," I agreed. "Huh, a 'little help'…I know! Maybe Neku can jog your memory! Come on, Rhyme! Let's go find him!"
"Right!" Rhyme nodded, and followed us into the Fifth District. The place was a multi-level garden, and it was very pleasant. Sora and I looked up to see Neku standing on the roof, so we climbed up to reach his level.
"Hey, Neku! It's you!" Sora greeted as we approached.
"Sora, Shadow…" Neku murmured. "What, you actually still trust me?"
"Of course we do," I smiled.
"But you know that I tricked you guys, right?" he said, lowering his head slightly in shame. "That guy in the black coat, he said he could send me home—me and my partner—but I had to bring you guys to him first. Sorry." His head lowered a bit more.
"No big deal," I shrugged.
"When it really mattered, you stood up for us," Sora agreed. "And besides—we're friends. Right?"
"Friends…" Neku repeated softly, and then looked at us with a smile. Sora and I smiled back.
"Oh, hey, Neku—this here is Rhyme. Is she your game partner?" Sora asked, indicating the small girl next to him.
"No. Sorry. I'm teamed up with somebody else," Neku answered. Suddenly, Rhyme vanished, and I looked about for the small girl, bewildered. "Huh?"
"What? Rhyme!" Sora shouted, and I bristled as the cloaked figure from before appeared in the center of the rooftop. Sora summoned his Keyblade and I flared my wings as Neku charged at the man. Unfortunately, Neku was knocked away with ease.
"Neku!" I cried out. The man raised his arms into the air, summoning a large Dream Eater which floated above us in the air. A corridor of darkness appeared behind the man, and he started to walk into it.
"Huh? Hey, wait!" Sora yelled, but as we started to run after him, the Dream Eater landed in front of us, pounding its chest furiously. We watched helplessly as the corridor closed.
"Out of our way!" I snarled at the Dream Eater, and we began to fight against the Nightmare. We used the Flowmotion attacks to our advantage, as well as the Reality Shift called Slingshot for this world. We even managed to shoot off some fireballs and blizzard magic to help us defeat it. When we finished it off, the giant Dream Eater disappeared into nothing.
Sora, Neku, and I were on the ground level again when we spotted an image of Riku, Kurai, and a girl walking past.
"Riku!" Sora gasped, and started to run towards him.
"Kurai!" I yelped happily, and made to move as well, but then an unfamiliar voice stopped us.
"Hold on, Sora and Shadow," the voice said. A Portal appeared behind Sora and me as we watched the image of Riku run after the girl towards the staircase. A slighter, silver-haired boy appeared before Sora, Neku, and me.
"Joshua," Neku greeted as he joined us.
"Hello, Neku. How long the days without you have felt," the boy, obviously Joshua, replied as Rhyme reappeared beside him.
"Rhyme! I'm glad you're okay," Sora said in relief, and she smiled in return.
"Neku, do you know this guy?" I asked the ginger.
"Yeah. Joshua. He's my…friend," Neku answered.
"Okay…Are you the one who took Rhyme away?" Sora asked.
"And…why do you know our names?" I added.
"If you'd like to settle down for a sec, I'll field your questions one at a time," Joshua answered. "Let's start with Rhyme. I'm hanging on to her dreams for her. They're my Portal." Sora crossed his arms, looking puzzled, while I sighed and rolled my eyes. I understood perfectly. "Let's just say, her dreams are a gateway between worlds. Next question—how could I possibly know your names—right? This town has a little secret. It only appears when someone out there has need of shelter. I'll spare you both the details, but right now it's made up of my dreams. So of course I know you—I dreamed you both up. I know your best friends Riku and Kurai, too."
"Really? You know Riku and Kurai?" Sora and I yelped.
"Well, yeah. I'm kind of omniscient," Joshua shrugged.
"Then, where are they?" I demanded eagerly. Joshua turned towards the staircase, where we saw Riku's and Kurai's images.
"He's right inside this projection, in another imagining of this world," the silver-haired boy answered.
"You mean…another Traverse Town?" Sora guessed. "Can we get there with your Portal thing?"
"Sade to say, it won't work for you," he replied. "My 'Portal thing' only opens for the ones with Rhyme's dreams. In this projection, you're seeing another chain of events, in another world trapped by the Dream Eaters. As for how the world got split in two…I have a feeling you'll need to ask this guy."
Sora and I watched the cloaked figure walk down the stairs in pursuit of Riku and Kurai.
"Him again," I muttered, displeased. Neku and Rhyme sensed something behind them, and, looking, saw the images of a blonde boy with a skull hat and a pink-haired girl with a cat doll in her arms. The blonde boy was shouting something that I couldn't quite decipher.
"Who's…that?" Sora wondered aloud. As he spoke, however, the image's form flickered and vanished. When the images rejoined us, though, we watched them curiously.
"Beat…" Rhyme murmured.
"Shiki…" Neku sighed.
"Riku…" Sora mumbled.
"Kurai…" I whimpered quietly. With a flash, Joshua stood in front of us, Riku and Kurai in their version of Traverse Town, and Sora and me in ours.
"In their world, something happened that brought their existence to an end," Joshua began. "To keep them from fading altogether, I gathered up the very last remnant of their dreams and looked for a place to give them refuge. It was then this world appeared to answer my call, and Rhyme's dreams allowed us to reach it. Here, I thought they might have a chance—that the pieces of their dreams could make them whole again. Imagine my surprise when I realized dreams take bodily form in this world. It struck me—by linking their dream pieces back together, maybe I could make them exist again. Maybe I could give them another chance."
"It can't be that simple," Riku said.
"Well, why can't it?" Joshua replied smoothly. "By ourselves, we're no one. It's when other people look at us and see someone—that's the moment we each start to exist. All they needed was for someone to see them, connect with them. And the four of you were a big part of making it happen."
"Joshua, just…who are you?" the four of us questioned at once.
"Let's say…a friend," the slighter boy smiled, and suddenly, angel wings sprouted from his back, making Kurai and me jump, startled. Joshua took off into the air, leaving us behind, and a Keyhole appeared in the air before us. Nodding to each other, we all sealed the Keyhole together.
A/N: Awesome, first chapter is up! R&R, peeps!