Their Hope
Author's Note: Hey everyone, it's me again with another one-shot. I've started taken a liking to writing one-shots. They help me be creative with my writing and it's easier to finish, instead of waiting to plan out everything for an actual fan-fic. This is a Kingdom Hearts one-shot. There are spoilers for Birth by Sleep and KH: ReCoded. So read at your own risk guys and remember to review.
Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and its compliations belong to Square-Enix
Summary: SPOILERS – Birth By Sleep + KH: ReCoded. The keyblade's chosen wielders may have won a great battle, but a war is about to begin. Finding the answers to bring a new future to the three lives lost in the darkness lies within the past.
"Their hurting will be mended when you return to end it." – Jiminy's Journal
Mickey stared at the two journals which were lying side by side on his desk in the safe havens of his castle. Donald and Goofy were watching their king concerned and curious. One journal was filled with the adventures Sora had been through since the day he left Destiny Island to find his friends Riku and Kairi. The other journal just had one message, the other pages were just blank. Mickey rubbed his head deep in thought.
"Is someone in trouble, your majesty?" Donald spoke finally breaking the silence in his king's study.
"If someone is in trouble we gotta help them!" Goofy said urgently.
Mickey didn't respond to Donald's or Goofy's responses. He just took out a piece of paper and began writing a letter with his quill. Someone was indeed in trouble. Mickey knew all too well who needed help. After all, he was there when it happened. Three close friends were separated and became trapped within the darkness.
"In your hand, take this blade. So long as you have the makings, then through this simple act of taking…its wielder you shall one day be made." – Terra
Those words were said so long ago. His heart had been taken by the darkness many times and was always tempted by the darkness. Even though the darkness led him astray, he wanted to help his friends. It all started during the Mark of Mastery exam. Terra was up against Aqua for the merit of becoming a keyblade master. However, Aqua's skill with wielding a keyblade was too much for Terra to handle. He had to harness the darkness inside him in order to win the match. In his master's eyes, a true keyblade master does not need to rely on the powers of darkness to achieve greatness. Since Terra had brought out the darkness in his heart, Eraquas had deemed Aqua worthy to become the next keyblade master.
Disappointed by this revelation, Terra had left the safety of his world in search for answers. Unfortunately there was someone watching his every move. With every world he visited, with every friend he made, and enemy he defeated, Terra's progress was being watched by Xehanort. Slowly, Xehanort used Terra like a cheap puppet on strings by poisioning the guillible boy's mind with believeable lies. Xehanort wanted nothing, but to see each and every world out there plunged into darkness. In order to do that, he needed to purge Kingdom Hearts - A doorway which led to every world – into darkness. Despite's Xehanort's twisted ambition, he was still considered as one of the greatest keyblade master's out there. He believed that darkness inside a person's heart was nothing to fear. All the darkness was to him was power, and anyone who had power, people would be afraid of them. Xehanort wanted Kingdom Hearts, but he was old. He needed a younger body and someone who craved the powers of darkness as much as he did in order fulfill his twisted dream of plunging all the worlds into darkness. Terra was the perfect candidate for this.
Even though Terra was being observed and watched constantly, there were moments where he felt he was closer to the light than ever. Like the time where he was brought to an island. The island was distant from any other world out there. On the island Terra had met a small boy. The small boy was just like Terra. He was curious about going to the outside world and becoming stronger. When Terra had asked why, the small boy had simply responded by saying, "To protect the things that matter. You know, like my friends." The small boy gave a cheerful serine smile. With that Terra knew that this small boy would one day carry out the mission if he was not able to.
Terra too wanted was to protect the things that mattered to him. His friends, Aqua and Ventus, but he became tangled in so much more. Xehanort had even given Terra the right to become a keyblade master after he had defeated Braig, who was only following Xehanort's orders to capture the old master and threaten to take his life. Terra had used the darkness in heart not only to defeat Braig, but to also blind the man in one eye and scar his face. Xehanort was pleased by the display of power Terra held deep within his heart. So he made the boy a keyblade master. Terra was also led astray by Xehanort. He was told by the old man that Eraquas wanted to end Ventus. Terra didn't want to see one of his closest friends get hurt. So he did what any good friend would do. He protected Ven with everything he had, and also weakened Eraqus, which then Xehanort retaliated and took away one of the greatest keyblade master's heart and life.
With Xehanort's true motives revealed Terra, Aqua, and Ven had set forth into the Keyblade Graveyard. A world where a great Keyblade War existed many years ago. All that remains are the many keyblades lying within the crossroads and the battle scars left upon this world. Here Xehanort would've been able to open the door to Kingdom Hearts, if it hadn't been for Terra, Aqua, and Ven. They were able to stop him, but for Terra, the price was steep. Xehanort had fused his heart with Terra's allowing him to control Terra's every move and thought. If it had not been for Aqua, Terra would've been trapped within the darkness forever.
"Darkness rules your heart," Xehanort said as he faced Terra inside the depths of his heart. "It gives me control. Muscle and sinew that once obeyed you now rebels against you. How you can remain here at all confounds the mind?"
"Its still my heart," Terra replied defiantly. "You think you can just come in and take over? I'm not going to sit by and let that happen."
Xehanort smirked. "Don't even entertain any notions of escaping me, boy. In the end, your heart will be engulfed by mine forever."
"Wrong," Terra simply said. "Your going to get shown the door old man."
Xehanort stared down at Terra. He was surprised to see such incredible hope in his eyes. He folded his arms resting his hands on his back calmly contemplating. "As I recall, you couldn't even handle your own darkness. How will you then triumph over mine?"
"You'll find out soon enough." Terra told him with a confident smile.
Xehanort intently stared at Terra, curiously wondering what the boy who's heart seeped in darkness was planning. A gleeful and twisted smirk crept the old man's face realizing what Terra had meant by what he had said. "Oh, so that's how it is, is it?" He asked. "Someone else has set foot within your heart...Is it Eraqus and his life force?"
"I'm not afraid of what the darkness holds now," Terra answered as he placed his hand over his chest. He could still hear a faint beat coming from within his heart. "Even if you do rest control of my heart from me. Even if you cast me into the deepest, darkest abyss, you'll never sway me from the one cause that pushes me to keep on fighting. Whatever the cost, I'm ready to pay it."
Xehanort simpy scoffed at this response. "Brave words to be sure," He said. "But I'm a paitent man, we can take as much time as we need to settle this little property dispute. However, know this... You are just one of many roads that I might choose to take."
Terra glared at the old man with hatred and who now consumed his heart.
Xehanort smirked, "Trust me, I've made certain of that."
"I heard your voice. It cut through the darkness around me. All alone, I followed the sound into a sea of light….and found myself here with you. You gave me something back when I needed it most. A second chance." – Ventus.
All Ventus ever wanted was to leave was to leave the Land of Departure. He wanted to become a keyblade master like Terra and Aqua. Eraquas never deemed Ven worthy enough to take the Mark of Mastery exam. He thought the boy was dangerous. However, that didn't stop Ven from following Terra and Aqua, to help them on their quest to defeat creatures known as Unversed. The Unversed were creatures which fed off of negative emotions. When Master Eraqus heard of this threat by his good friend Yen Sid, he asked Aqua and Terra to aid the worlds that needed help. However, Master Eraqus believed that Ven was too inexperienced and also dangerous to help. Ven didn't realize it then, but he did indeed have a great power inside of him, a keyblade which would plunge all worlds into darkness if used by the wrong hands.
Despite Eraqus wanting to keep Ven home, the boy decided to follow Terra and Aqua. What harm could that possibly do? He just wanted to help his friends out was that so wrong? Little did Ven realize, leaving home was the biggest mistake he had ever made. Ven travelled to the same worlds as Terra and Aqua. He also made friends along the way to each world. Particularly Jaq and Lea. Jaq was a mouse who helped Ven along his journey in the Castle of Dreams world. He returned Jaq's favor by helping make a dress for Cinderella so that she was able to go the ball and meet her prince. He met someone named Lea in Radiant Garden. Lea had challenged Ven to a fight, which Ven won. Lea wasn't sour about it, he was having way too much fun. The last thing Lea said to Ven before he left to go on his own journey was, "I'll see ya when I see ya. After all we're friends now. Get it memorized." Ven couldn't help, but smile as he watched Lea walk off. He felt as though he would meet Lea again, someday.
Even though having some new friends was great, Ven was also being harassed and constantly challenged by someone in a mask and armor. His name was Vanitas. He was the darkness in Ven's heart which was ripped out and made whole by Xehanort during a solo training session. Ven was too afraid to fight back and didn't want to use the darkness inside his heart. Xehanort didn't take no for an answer and extracted the darkness out of Ven's heart in a brutal way resulting in Vanitas. Vanitas was everything, Ven was not. He didn't care about friendship or helping people. He was sick and twisted, powerful and an expert keyblade weilder. All he wanted was to join with Ven to make the ultimate keyblade, the X-blade, the most powerful keyblade in existence.
Ven fought Vanitas many times, but it was in the Keyblade Graveyard where, the final confrontation between the two would begin. Ven gave everything he had against his dark side. Vanitas was going to kill Aqua, but Ven wasn't going to let that happen. His friends meant everything to him.
Vanitas slowly decayed on the ground as he looked at his equal.
"You've done it, Ventus." Vanitas said cruelly despite being defeated. "Now that my body is about to perish...you and I will have to join together! The X-blade will be forged!"
Before Ven was able to reacted, Vanitas had summoned unversed, which then latched onto the small boy. The more Ventus strugged, the tighter the unversed kept their grip on him. "The Unversed...come from you?" He glared at his darker half as he continued struggling.
Vanitas just smirked. "It happened when you and I were split into two," The darker version of Ventus explained. "The negativity took shape as these monsters. They are what I feel - a horde of fledgeling emotions under my control. I realeased them in all the worlds I could, hoping to lure you away from home and isolate you from your Master." He continued as he walked over to the squirming Ven. "We needed to make you stronger. The Unversed were the perfect opponents. And better yet, no matter how many times you defeat them...their negativity flows right back into me." He smirked at Ven. "You never stood a chance against us, Ventus."
Ven could do nothing, but watch with fear in his eyes as Vanitas slowly started to take over. He couldn't let anyone get hurt because of him. He had to keep on fighting, no matter what the cost. He had to protect Terra and Aqua, and all the worlds he visited. Ven could feel his body being pulled into the darkness. He stopped and stared at Vanitas as he hovered above him with a broken sword shaped key. The X-blade.
"Our union was not finished," Vanitas declared. "The X-blade shouldn't stay broken like this." He pointed the mighty weapon at Ven. "Join me now, and we can complete the X-blade!"
Ven stared at Vanitas defiantly. He shook his head at his darker half disagreeing with everything he had said. "I've got a better idea," Ven replied making his keyblade appear out of thin air. "How about I destroy you both!"
Vanitas just laughed at this pathetic heroic act. "The X-blade is made of your heart, too, idiot," He told his weaker half. "If you destroy it, your heart will vanish forever."
"Whatever it takes," Ven spat back as he stared down at Vanitas. "Anything to save Terra and Aqua."
Vanitas rolled his gold eyes annoyed by the idea of friendship. "It's always about your friends, isn't it?"
"At least I have some!" Ven yelled. "I've become a part of their heart, just as they've become a part of mine. My friends are my power...and I'm theirs!"
Ven fought his darker half, winning, but the result put Ven's heart to sleep so that Vanitas and the power of the X-blade would never arise again. Before Ven went to sleep, he was able to put what was left of the light in his heart inside a kindered and happy little boy named Sora. Now Ven sleeps in Castle Oblivion, waiting for the day he would be reunited with his heart.
"Somewhere out there, there's this tree with star-shaped fruit…and the fruit represents an unbreakable connection. So as long as you and your friends carry this good luck charms shaped like it, nothing can ever drive you apart. You'll always find your way back to each other." – Aqua
Aqua had said these words to her friends and gave them charms called Wayfinders, the night before the Mark of Mastery exam. She was close to her friends and wanted to keep them safe from the darkness. She fought Terra when he was consumed by Xehanort and she also fought Ven when Vanitas took control of him. This cost her freedom and she became trapped in the Realm of Darkness. She sat in the Realm of Darkness. A dead world where there was nothing, but a beach. She had helped Terra and Ventus fight the darkness inside their hearts, but she was trapped in a dark world with no way out. Each day she would try to find a path, something that would lead her back to her friends, but she found nothing.
She stared out in the dark ocean remembering all the happy times she had with friends and the people she had met. She held onto her wayfinder and smiled remembering Terra's drive for winning and Ven's sweet nature. She also remembered the little girl who she helped in Radiant Garden. She was being attacked by a group of unversed, but was aided by Aqua and Mickey. There was something special about that little girl, Aqua couldn't place what it was though. All she knew was that little girl had a light deep within her which was very precious. She then thought of the two little boys which she had met on the island. The boy named Riku, reminded Aqua of Terra and the boy named Sora, reminded her of Ven. The two boys were best friends, and Aqua wanted to make sure they would be there for each other no matter what dark path the other went on.
While being trapped in the Realm of Darkness, Aqua had come across a figure shrouded in a black coat. His face was hidden from the dark hood, but he didn't seem in the least malicious. He had explained to Aqua that this was his second time being in this world, meaning that there was some way out. The mysterious man had also told her about a boy who would be able to help her, Terra, and Ventus.
The mysterious man had said, "Somewhere in the scraps of memories I have left, you remind me of a boy, I once knew. He is very much like you. True to his friends and kind, this boy travels to many worlds and fights to keep the light safe."
Aqua stared at the mysterious man confused and concerned. How long was she away for? It seemed like an eternity to her. "What's happening out there? Are the worlds in danger?" She asked.
The mysterious man just stared at the emotionless sea continuing on with his words. "Sad to say they nearly fell into darkness more than once, but at every turn that boy arrived with keyblade in hand to save the day."
"Huh?" Aqua asked in surprise. She nearly jolted up curious as to who this boy was. "Wait a sec, is his name Terra or Ven?"
The man shook his head and answered," Neither of those I'm afraid."
Aqua sulked back into the sands praying that her friends were alright. "I should've known…" She sighed.
"How long has it been since I met him?" The mysterious man continued speaking. "At least a year now, perhaps more. Back then my heart was clouded with vengeance. I did terrible things. Both to him and his friends. I brought unhappieness to more lives than one. I felt something must be done. Was that why the means of clearing my conscious or perhaps out of a scholarly instinct? While the boy slept his long sleep, I hid the results of my research inside him, transferring the data to where it may best serve a purpose. In fact I would like to believe, maybe he can set things right. A boy like him who touches many hearts. He can open the right door and save all those lives I've mangaged to ruin. So many are still waiting for their new beginning…Their birth by sleep. Even me," He looked down at Aqua. "…and even you."
Aqua intently listened to the mysterious man's words. "What's this boy's name?"
The mysterious man simply replied back, "His name is…"
Mickey had finished writing the letter. As he was writing this important letter, Donald and Goofy had told him that Yen Side wanted to speak with him. It was something very important and he needed to hurry. Mickey obliged to this request and placed the letter in a tiny bottle setting off into the ocean. He knew Sora and the others would find it. The tiny mouse then hurried towards Yen Sid's Tower urgently curious as to why his old master had called for him.
Mickey curiously stood in front of Master Yen Sid's desk. He saw that his former master looked nervous about something, but he didn't know what was ailing him.
"Yen Sid," Mickey finally spoke. "I think we're really close into figuring out where Ven's hear is." He realized where the piece of Ven's heart was when he had fixed one of the journals with the aid of Sora's and Riku's help.
"Is that so?" Yen Sid asked curiously. "That leaves only Terra."
"Right, and we've gotta save all three of them!" Mickey replied determinedly.
Yen Sid stroked his long gray beard deep in thought. "Hmmm," The strong magician pondered. "The question is: what does Xehanort intend to do next?"
Hearing Xehanort's name, Mickey leaped in surprise. "Xehanort?" The mouse repeated. "But his two halves are gone. There is Ansem who commanded the Heartless and Xemnas who commanded the Nobodies. Didn't Sora defeat them both?"
"Correct. Those two definately met their end," Yen Sid agreed with Mickey's speculation. "However, there in lies exactly our problem. Their destruction now guarentees the original Xehanort's reconstruction."
"Huh?" Mickey exclaimed.
Yen Sid went on with his theory. "Xehanort's heart once sealed by his Heartless half is now free and his body which has become his Nobody has been vanquished. Both halves will now be returned to the whole. In short this means that Master Xehanort will return."
Mickey now had a serious expression on his face. "And you think, you think that maybe he's going to try something?"
"A man like Xehanort will have left many roads open." Yen Sid answered.
"Well it doesn't matter what he cooks up," Mickey replied with determination. "Me and Sora, we'll be ready and Riku too!"
Yen Sid continued stroking his beard. "Yes they are indeed strong," He began. "But not true keyblade Masters like you. Tell me would a single one of you suffice if what you faced was not a single one of him?"
"What!" Mickey jumped up in the air hearing this. "What do you mean?" He yelled.
Yen Sid simply stated, "Mickey, please summon Sora here. Riku as well." He stood up gazing out the window near his desk.
"Of course, but why…?" Mickey asked confused by his former master's request.
"To show us the Mark of Mastery." Yen Sid answered.
On Destiny's Island, Sora stared at the letter in his hands. He continued to read it over and over. There were people who needed his help and he didn't want them to suffer anymore. He sat on a large palm tree and stared out into horizon as the sun was about to set. He had just got back home with Riku after defeating Xemnas and now there was another reason for him to leave.
"Sora…" Riku called out to his best friend.
Sora turned around breaking away from his thoughts seeing Riku walk over to him.
"Your mind's made up?" Riku asked obviously knowing the answer to his question.
Sora nodded. "Yeah," He answered.
Kairi walked over to the two boys smiling at them. She was happy to see them home again, but she knew it wouldn't be for long. She looked up at Sora and called out to him. "Sora," She said sweetly.
Sora leaped off the tree and walked over to her. "Kairi…I..," He began as he walked over to her.
Kairi just smiled and gave him a wishful nod. She knew he would have to go away again, but he would be back.
"…It's just, they really need me." Sora finished what he was going to say. "I have to go. I am who I am because of them."
Kairi and Riku smiled at Sora. This was certainly true. If it hadn't been for Terra, Aqua, and Ventus, Sora wouldn't be the keyblade's chosen one he was today.
"See you soon." Kairi told him as she handed him her lucky charm.
The three friends stared out into the horizon. The battle between Xehanort's heartless and nobody was over. There was only one more thing left to bring back the light inside the lives lost in the darkness.
Reconnect - Kingdom Hearts.
Author's Note (again): Well guys, what do you think? Spoiler worthy enough for you? I hope you guys liked my first KH one-shot. I was just inspired to write this because of KH - ReCoded, which comes out on Tuesday, yay! I don't know what else to say except for...review? :D