KINGDOM HEARTS - WORLD UNTO DREAMS

DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING EXCEPT ANY OF THE ORIGINAL CHARACTERS I MIGHT CHOOSE ALONG THE WAY!

A/N: If you're still feeling deeply discouraged about the discontinuation of my previous story, then I'll just state it one last time. I'M SORRY!

Fortunately, this story was recovered and will serve as a back-up. In fact, I personally feel as though THIS one will end up being better than my last.

NOTE: THIS story contains various elements from Kingdom Hearts and several Disney Movies. These belong to BOTH Square Enix and Disney alike.

Furthermore, I have also incorporated a crossover with the Television Show, CYBERCHASE. Therefore, I don't own anything except any original characters I choose to put in!

Also (IF I MAY WARN YOU), this story contains more detail than I [would] normally use.

Do you understand? IF you do, then you're doing GREAT!

To start off, let's get underway with CHAPTER ONE!

CHAPTER 1
Hidden Truths

Far, far away in a mystical place appropriately known as the Mysterious Tower, King Mickey Mouse was delivering a newsflash to the retired Keyblade Master, the sorcerer, Yen Sid.

"Yen Sid," he declared in his usual high-pitched voice. "I think we're finally close to discovering where Ven's heart is."

Upon hearing this news, Yen Sid said in his own impassive voice, "Really? Then that leaves only Terra."

"Yup! And we've got to save all three of them."

Yen Sid paused for a moment before adding, "The question is… what does Xehanort intend to do next?"

"Xehanort," Mickey exclaimed upon hearing the former Keyblade Master's name. "How can that be?! His two halves are gone! There was Ansem who commanded the Heartless, and Xemnas who commanded the Nobodies. Didn't Sora and Riku defeat them both?"

"Correct, those two met their ends," Yen Sid agreed. "However, therein lies exactly our problem. Their deconstruction now guarantees the original Xehanort's reconstruction."

"Huh? I don't get it."

"Xehanort's heart, once seized by his Heartless half, is now free. Also, his body, which had become his Nobody, has been vanquished. Both halves will now be returned to the whole. In short, this means Master Xehanort will return."

As his former teacher was explaining, Mickey began to feel more and more concerned. As Yen Sid finished speaking, the king asked, "And you think he'll try something else?"

Yen Sid replied, "A man like Xehanort would have left many roads open. It's almost as though he expected previous defeats."

"Well, it doesn't matter what he plans! Sora and I will be ready for any of his schemes — Riku too!"

Yen Sid began to stroke his beard as though he was thinking very deeply. "Yes, they are indeed strong, but not true Keyblade Masters like you. The three of you might not even be enough."

Confused, Mickey questioned, "Why? Is something about to happen? Will he try to possess Riku again?!"

Yen Sid answered, "Answer this, 'Would a single true Keyblade Master and two possible Keyblade Masters-to-be suffice if what you faced was not a single one of him?"

Mickey nearly jumped from shock upon hearing this. "What?! What do you mean?!"

Yen Sid quickly rose from his desk. "Mickey, please summon Sora here; Riku as well."

Although he was still in shock and wonder, Mickey asked, "Of course, but… why?"

Yen Sid looked out the window and paused. A minute later, he turned his attention back to his former apprentice. He firmly stated, "To show us the Mark of Mastery."

Several lazy, uneventful, and relaxing days had already flown by for Sora, Riku, and Kairi after they had returned to their home world, Destiny Islands. Still, the relaxation was slowly fading out and boredom was starting to seep in to take its place.

Every day started with the same, old dreary routine: getting up early in the morning, going to school, dragging home after eight long hours, completing lengthy homework assignments together, rowing out to the island after dinner, watching the same sunset from the view of the bent palm tree, rowing all the way back home in the dark, and going to sleep until morning came.

With this robotic routine, Sora soon began to miss being able to go out on thrilling adventures. It would be ages before he would be able to completely adapt to his everlasting routine. At the moment, he was walking towards the bent tree as he had done ever since he had returned home. He leaned his body up against the tree's wide trunk. He could feel the usual sea breeze blowing through his hair as he placed his hands behind his head. He started to hear some seagulls as a voice said, "Nothing's changed, huh?"

Sora glanced to his right and spotted Riku sitting on the trunk. With his recent haircut, Riku looked like he was fifteen. The truth was he was already seventeen; Sora and Kairi were now sixteen themselves. That haircut had been insisted by the mother of Sora's best friend. She had been complaining about how her own son's hair was so long that it was always getting in his eyes. Finally, she had demanded that it get cut. Unfortunately, it made Riku look a little feminine. Sora and Kairi didn't say anything when the rest of their class laughed in mockery. A minute later, Riku had verbally threatened their lives, which only resulted in a three-day suspension. Upon finding this out, Sora had reminded Riku to be careful not to let the Darkness in his heart acquire complete control over his actions. The latter had simply responded with, "It isn't easy walking the Road to Dawn."

Despite all of this replaying within his memory, Sora continued to watch the distant sunset. He replied to Riku's question a few moments before, "Nope, nothing will."

Riku continued to stare at the sunset as he spoke softly, "What a small world… "

"But part of one that's much bigger," Sora added as he remembered that their world was only a small fraction of the vast universe beyond. As the sun continued to set further below the horizon, Sora turned his head toward Riku and questioned, "Hey Riku, what do you think it was — the Door to the Light?"

Riku hopped forwards off the trunk as Sora sat up straight. Riku pointed at the left side of Sora's chest. "That."

Sora was so amazed that he exclaimed, "My heart?!"

Riku smiled. "Yeah, it's always closer than you think."

Now knowing that the power of the Light was always with him, Sora gave a smile that revealed his clean, white teeth.

"Sora! Riku!" The voice caused the two to turn their attention toward the bridge leading over to the rest of the island. Sprinting across it was their friend, Kairi. Sora's gaze continually followed her every step as he thought back to when he had been so desperate to save this very girl from the clutches of the Nobodies within the hated Organization XIII. At one point, a man named Saïx had insisted that Sora "show" how precious Kairi was to him. The result was one action Sora was still attempting to dispose from his memory. It was just too painful to have to kneel down upon his hands and knees in front of the enemy, only to discover it was a ruse; Saïx would have denied Sora access to Kairi even if he hadn't pleaded. All this gave the Keyblader was sorrow, anger, and depression. The only reason why he had kept the memory was to ponder over why the witch, Maleficent, had tried to defend him from the Nobodies. Even that was unusual! What was her purpose in aiding him? Did she despise the Organization, too?

His thoughts were interrupted when Kairi stopped in front of both Riku and him. When she knelt to catch her breath, Sora curiously asked, "Hey, what's up?"

After a few gasps for air, Kairi looked up and said, "Look!"

She held up her right hand to reveal a glass bottle that was sealed by a cork. Within the transparent bottle was a sheet of paper with a logo that resembled a typical Hidden Mickey. Seeing it, Sora exclaimed, "From the King?!"

Sora rapidly snatched the bottle from Kairi's hand and pulled out the cork. He tipped the bottle upside-down, and the letter slid directly into his hands. He unfurled the rolled up paper and read it aloud as Riku and Kairi listened.

I wanted to tell you right away,

About memories from the past that sleep within you,

And about the pieces that will tie you to your future.

Sora, Riku, Kairi,

The truth behind the Keyblade,

Has found its way through so many people,

And now I know that it rests in your hearts.

Sora,

You are who you are because of those people, but they're hurting,

And you're the only one who can end their sadness. They need you.

It's possible that all your journeys so far, have been preparing you for this great new task that's waiting for you.

I should have known there were no coincidences, only links in a much larger chain of events.

And now the door to your next journey is ready to be opened.

- Mickey

After reading the letter, Sora, looked into the sky above with a blank face. Riku turned to him and questioned, "Are you sure that you want to go on another quest?"

Sora climbed onto the palm tree — the letter and bottle still in his hands. Kairi added, "Sora, what's wrong?"

Sora showed no indication of acknowledgement. Riku turned to Kairi and said, "His heart must be thinking… "

Kairi paused, still unsure what Riku meant by "thinking". She simply shrugged, not wishing for a dull, lengthy speech in reply. Instead, she said, "Let's check in with him at sunrise."

Riku nodded, knowing that Kairi was assuming the same thing he was. They casually left the islet, allowing Sora to continue sitting on the palm tree in solitude. In the distance, the sun continued to set below the horizon. The shadows slowly lengthened and the air steadily grew cooler until the sun finally vanished from plain sight. As the stars came out and the moon rose into the sky, Sora stuttered, "I wonder who's hurting… "

As the sun rose the next morning, Sora was still staring out at the horizon from his place upon the palm tree. He had been relentlessly deep in thought overnight. His head was starting to hurt when a voice called out, "Sora?"

In less than an instant, Sora turned around and saw Riku walking towards him. Riku stopped at the end of the bridge and looked out at the horizon. He asked, "Your mind's made up?"

Sora quickly nodded. "Yeah."

A few moments later, another voice said, "Sora?"

Sora looked down from his position and spotted Kairi looking back, a smile on her face. He jumped off the tree for the first time in hours before turning to her. He stammered, "Kairi, I… I really need to do this. I have to go; I am who I am because of them. When they're safe and secure, I'll be back."

Riku smiled at Sora's shyness towards Kairi. Kairi smiled brightly as the light from the rising sun made her auburn hair blend in with the few clouds in the sky above. Her blue eyes still gave the same sparkle of the sunlight reflecting off the surface of the ocean that had always captured Sora's eyes. She reached into his hand and said, "See you soon. Don't ever forget, wherever you go, I'm always with you."

She removed her hand to reveal her pink, star-shaped, thalassic-shell, lucky charm. Sora gave a deep smile in response.

The clouds were getting darker as the wind picked up over the deep, blue ocean several miles off the coast of a nearby tropical archipelago. In the middle of the gradually steeping waves, a little, wooden raft with a single sail was beginning to slow down. The raft's two occupants, Sora and Riku, had just taken notice of what was coming upon them. Sora said, "Riku, a storm is coming."

"I know. The waves are getting steeper by the minute." Riku agreed. He turned towards the raft's mast. "I'll furl the sail."

"Right," Sora acknowledged. "Better to be safe than sorry."

Sora knelt down onto the edge of the deck to check how tall the waves were becoming. He stared into the murky water for a moment as he began to wonder if this was what would've happened had the two set off with Kairi. It was thanks to her arrival on the island that they had been encouraged to seek a practical method to venture forth into the unknown for the opportunity to explore the outside world, right? Then again, maybe there was more to their desire of adventure than even he understood. The only question was… what?

All at once, there was a loud CRACK from behind him followed by the sound of Riku yelling. Sora instantly clambered onto his feet only to see that the mast had snapped off the raft. To make matters worse, Riku was nowhere to be seen. Despite being in a state of terror, Sora had to raise his voice enough to be heard above the howling gales as he called out, "Riku! Where are you?!"

A nearby voice shouted back, "I'm fine!"

Sora spun around and spotted Riku clinging to what was left of the mast about twenty yards away. The latter was struggling to keep his head above the swift-moving waves. Sora continued to watch him until a large pool of dark matter rapidly formed nearby. Riku managed to get his balance as he stood up on the mast. He gasped from shock when he saw the murky water grow darker. "What's that?!"

"Whatever it is, it can't be good." Sora answered.

Moments later, a half-human half-octopus creature emerged with a deep, evil laugh. The figure sat up before looking straight down at Sora. She smirked, "He was right; those wretched guppies are here. Well, it's about time we settled the score!"

"Ursula?!" Sora exclaimed, unable to believe his eyes. Last he recalled, Ursula had been eliminated — twice. Originally, she had allied herself with the Heartless while trying to conquer the kingdom of Atlantica. Her plans fell through when she had searched for the world's keyhole, but was stopped before she could find it. About a year later, Ursula was revived by Maleficent. That time, Sora had carefully timed his attack to knock the Trident out of her hands, which allowed Prince Eric to throw the weapon straight into her. Thus, she had vanished into the Darkness yet again. Why the sea witch was back, he couldn't understand. All he could say was, "Why are you here?"

"You know her?" a bewildered Riku exclaimed.

Sora nodded. "I took her down two times before with Donald and Goofy. I don't know how she came back. Could it be… the test?"

Riku shrugged in response. "Who knows? Now's not the time to think about it."

"Right! Let's do this!"

Riku nodded back. Hearing all this, Ursula snapped, "Sorry dearies, but I won't fall for that trick!"

As Sora and Riku summoned their Keyblades, Ursula snapped aloud, "You dare toy with me?!"

Sora retorted, "If I've beaten you once, I'm beaten you a thousand times!"

"I always help my friends — no matter what!" Riku added.

"You insignificant fools!" Ursula hollered. She raised one of her tentacles and slammed it down upon the raft. Fortunately, Sora had jumped off and landed onto one of her other tentacles. Riku quickly hopped to another one nearby. Looking back, they realized that the impact had destroyed their raft. All that was left were several floating logs. Although shocked, the two resolved to attack Ursula.

Ursula snarled at them, "Time to teach you some respect!"

She reached out her giant hand and plucked Sora right off his feet. She began to laugh until Riku jumped into the air. With a grunt of his voice, Riku slammed his Keyblade onto the sea witch's fist, forcing her to release Sora.

Next, Sora jumped up and slapped his weapon against Ursula's face. She groaned from the sudden impact before turning back to the two with a reddish glow coming from her eyes. She shouted at the duo, "Now I'm angry! You will pay for this!"

Realizing that there was only one thing left to do, Sora pointed his Keyblade at the villainess. Riku saw what his friend was doing and did the same. Two beams of light shone out from the tips of their weapons. The beams merged together before aiming at Ursula directly. The villainess gasped as the light grew ever closer. A yell of agony echoed from her mouth as she was struck by the beams. A bright glare engulfed the entire area for a moment. When it disappeared, Ursula started to fade out of existence.

As the sea witch vanished without a trace, Sora and Riku lost their footing on her tentacles, causing them to fall into the quick-moving water below. As Sora and Riku landed into the ocean, the force of the storm sucked them down headfirst.

As the two best friends began to lose consciousness, a bright glow from below appeared. Several feet below them, the light of a keyhole-shape glistened. As if by instinct, their Keyblades automatically pointed straight for it. Two more beams of light shone out and struck the keyhole simultaneously. A bright flash of light shone out from it and consumed the two. They disappeared into the light as quickly as a flickering candle goes out.

Up on the ocean's surface above the keyhole, a figure whose body was concealed entirely by a brown-hooded robe, was carefully observing the entire event. As the light disappeared below, it spoke out to no one in particular,

"THIS WORLD… HAS BEEN CONNECTED."

Yen Sid pressed onward, "Therefore, it has come time for you two, Sora and Riku, to show the Mark of Mastery. No doubt you think of yourselves as masters already, but it takes years of training and a proper master to show you the way. Although you two are self-taught Keyblade wielders — a very impressive feat, the time has come for both of you to let go of any preconceived notions you may have, forget what you know about the Keyblade, and begin your training anew with a clean slate."

Everyone nearly jumped out of their skin when they heard this. Sora blurted, "But that's a formality, right?! I've already proved myself! Riku and I can handle anything together! Right?"

Despite Sora's energized attitude, Riku was looking downwards. He said, "I don't know. I believe, in my heart, Darkness still has a hold. Walking down that path changed me. Am I ready to wield a Keyblade? Perhaps I should be tested."

Sora was astonished and befuddled. All the same, he turned his attention back to Yen Sid. "In that case, put me through the test, too! Just watch us; Riku and I will pass with flying colors!"

As the words registered in his mind, Yen Sid nodded. He then declared, "Very well then. Sora and Riku, let your examinations commence."

A/N: There you are! THE FIRST CHAPTER!

I know it may give the sensation of Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream, Drop, Distance. However, it is imperative that I inform you that I started making this story to create my OWN perspective of how I saw Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream, Drop, Distance could have turned out had they added more depth to its storyline. The reason why I added a crossover is because I never had heard of The World Ends With You before Kingdom Hearts 3Dwas released.

You might even have noticed the letter from King Mickey. According to the ending of Kingdom Hearts: Re Coded, those are the EXACT words of the letter shown at the end of Kingdom Hearts 2!

Okay! I know I've just been yakking away for who knows how long!

Just recall this [important] reminder, PLEASE DON'T LEAVE WITHOUT REVIEWING! THE FATE OF THIS STORY DEPENDS ON IT!

This is SoraLego278 saying, "See Ya Later, Keybladers!"