Chapter One Destiny Calls
The sun was shining. The sea breeze swept through the golden sands and lush palms that lay scattered around the lonely isles. In the horizon was the endless sea that surrounded it. The door of a small shack opened and made a noise as it hit against the wall.
"Ugh…why does the sun have to be so bright?" said a sleepy teenage boy as he rubbed his eyes. He took a step outside onto the sand, closing the door. Everything was familiar to him. Often times he got a little bored with the island. This is where he lived his whole life until everything changed one night. He sighed.
"Hey Sora!" shouted a voice. Sora turned to a lone elevation of land that rose a couple feet from the ground. The figure of someone sitting on a curved palm could be seen in the sunlight. Sora covered his eyes with his arm before running towards that direction. His footsteps left imprints in the sand that were going to be washed away by the tides. He reached the area, leapt up high, but not high enough. He nearly slipped and fell, but managed to grab a hold of the ledge.
"Whoa!" he cried. A moment later, he felt a hand grab onto his and pulled him up with ease. He stood with Riku, his dear friend. He looked serious.
"What's the matter with you?" asked Sora. Riku's face remained the same. Sora let go of his friend's hand and for a couple seconds, all they did was stare. Then Riku's mouth twisted into a smile before he began to laugh. Sora could not help but do the same thing.
"What was that about?" asked Sora as he hopped on the palm he and his friends had sat on casually. It was a sort of hangout place for them. Riku went to join him.
"I don't know. It was weird," he said, trying to find a comfortable position.
"So what did you want?" asked Sora. Riku turned to him.
"Well, it was about time you woke up. You're sleeping in almost everyday."
Sora scratched the back of his head and laughed nervously.
"Well, I…"
Riku looked at him and gave him a gentle kick. Sora almost fell off of his spot and grabbed a hold of the palm's trunk as quickly as possible.
"Hey!" he yelled, looking angrily at Riku.
"I just had to make sure if you were still awake," he replied with a chuckle. As he laughed he could see a shade of pink in the distance. It seemed to be coming closer. It was Kairi. She seemed eager to get to the two of them.
"Hey! You guys!" she yelled as she waved her hand in the air. She seemed to be holding something. Both of them turned towards her and jumped off the palm. Then they both leapt onto the sandy beach, making a splash in the low tide. Kairi stopped in front of them and paused to catch her breath. Riku crossed his arms and Sora eyed the slip of paper in her hand.
"You'll never believe what I just got!" she said excitedly. She held up the piece of paper so the two could see. It was an envelope with a very familiar green seal holding the flap down; the seal of King Mickey himself.
"Whoa! The King sent us a letter?!" exclaimed Sora. He too began to become excited. Riku sighed and shook his head at Sora.
"Let's not jump to conclusions before we even read it," he said looking to Kairi. She nodded and broke the seal, opening the envelope. She pulled out a folded sheet of paper flipped it open. Sora and Riku looked over her shoulder to read it. It said:
"Dear Sora and friends,
I have terrible news. I know we haven't spoken in quite a while, but I need your help one more. Worlds have begun to disappear again. The Heartless that prowl around are very few, but the Nobodies seem to have become stronger. I just can't understand it and you probably won't either. We witnessed you defeat Xemnas and the Organization, so I just can't believe the Nobodies are more organized and powerful. I need you to come to Hollow Bastion to meet with me and to discuss it with Leon and the others.
Sincerely,
King Mickey
P.S. Old friends are on the way!"
Sora was speechless, Riku looked serious, and Kairi stared at the letter. It was indeed something to ponder about. The Organization was defeated by Sora and his friends. They saw it happen; they even saw Xemnas disappear into the darkness. How could this be?
"This can't be real," said Kairi. Riku looked at her sternly.
"The King wouldn't lie. Something's up," he replied.
"It's not possible," said Sora. He looked down at the sand. The other two looked at him.
"Riku and I saw it happen. The Nobodies should've disappeared, right?" he asked.
"I don't know…remember, the Organization members weren't the source of Nobodies since they were Nobodies themselves," said Riku aloud.
"Oh…right," said Sora. He took the letter from Kairi and began to read it again.
"I think the question would what our mode of transportation would be," said Riku. He shrugged.
"I don't think a raft would get us very far."
"Hmm…maybe someone's picking us up?" asked Kairi.
"And who said you were coming along?" joked Riku.
"Hey! I want to come!"
"I was kidding."
The two bickered and Sora fell silent at the letter's words. He honestly had no idea how this was possible. He hoped it wasn't as bad as when the Heartless invaded. His own home disappeared. The sun was about the touch the water at the horizon as its sunlight became a smooth, orange color with hints of pink and red in the sky. The water was calm and the seagulls were quiet. That afternoon, they headed home. Sora couldn't sleep when the night came. He couldn't stop thinking about going to meet with King Mickey, Leon, and other unforgettable friends. He had changed into his pajamas and laid on his bed at a gentle breeze blew in from the open window. It was a bit chilly, but he did not react.
"I wonder when we'll leave?" he asked himself. He turned on the bed and covered himself with his blanket. He began to fall asleep after nearly an hour of anxiety. Two days passed by and everything seemed normal. In the middle of the third day, the three were sitting together on the bridge that held their boats. They were waiting for the "old friends" to arrive as they did the other days.
"Man, it's taking forever," said Riku. Kairi looked to the sky, shielding her eyes from sunlight trying to spot anything that looked like a ship. There was a motor-like sound in the distance.
"Hey…hey, you guys! I think I see something!" she cried. Sora and Riku stood up almost immediately and looked in her direction. The sound was getting closer.
"There!" said Kairi as she pointed towards the large vehicle coming their way. It seemed to make a beeline towards the open water right next to the bridge. Riku suddenly looked alarmed.
"Uh-oh, I think we'd better run!" he said, beginning to sprint towards the beach. Kairi gasped and followed and so did Sora. The ship was red with yellow stripes and looked as if it was just going to crash into the shore. It seemed to zigzag in all directions before suddenly halting, just above the water, then dropping with a small splash.
"…BAH!" screamed a nasally voice. The cockpit of the gummi ship burst open with a blast of lightning. Sora and the others were startled. A moment later, out jumped a familiar duck dressed in blue. His clothes were a little messy and dirty and he was panting angrily.
"GOOFY!" he shouted.
"Gwarsh…did you have to zap me with yer magic, Donald?" said a carefree voice. Out came Goofy, rubbing the back of his head. His hair was sticking up on end.
"YOU-!" pointed Donald. He suddenly felt eyes on him. He turned to see the three speechless teens. Sora stifled a laugh. Goofy was the first to speak.
"Sora!" he said, jumping out of the gummi ship and landing in the water. Donald recovered from his embarrassment and also called out to him with excitement.
"Donald! Goofy!" yelled Sora as he ran to meet them. When the three met each other they shared a hug. It's been a while since they had seen each other and they were glad to be working with each other again.
"So they were the 'old friends'," said Kairi, giggling. Riku nodded and couldn't help but smile as Donald began to bicker with Goofy again. Donald shook his head as if remembering something.
"Oh! That's right! We have to get you three to Hollow Bastion on the double!" he said, gesturing towards the ship. Sora looked to Riku and Kairi.
"Well? Come on! Let's hurry!" he said, running towards it. Donald jumped after him and Goofy stumbled behind. Riku and Kairi ran after the threesome and they all got themselves into the gummi ship. It was a bit crowded, but they could manage.
"Um…what happened a couple seconds ago?" asked Sora. Donald looked down and sighed.
"Don't ask me. The controls got a little bit messy and Goofy tried to take control of it and made it worse!" he said bitterly. Goofy laughed nervously and shrugged.
"Can we go now?" asked Kairi, looking anxious to get into the air.
"Sure! Let me just-"said Donald before seeing Sora's hand on the controls.
"HEY!" he cried.
"Don't worry, I've driven this loads of times, I won't crash," he said gleefully. Donald began to bicker again and Goofy joined in. Kairi urged them to get a move on and Riku was enjoying the little bit of chaos in the ship. Sora smiled before looking up into the sky, the gummi ship lifting itself off the water. A sense of adventure slithered into his mind and the gummi ship took off into the air. It was…nostalgia he felt and he was glad all of his friends were with him this time.
End of Chapter One
