Wings of Icarus
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Author's Note: My newest chaptered fanfic! It's yet another attempt at something non-crack. So R&R, and enjoy! And don't worry, I'll update the rest of my stories soon, once I get my ideas/muse back for the plot! -prods dead muse-
Disclaimer: I don't own KH or any of its characters, blahblahblah.
Full Summary: It had been a year since the end of Kingdom Hearts II. Sora, Riku and Kairi are settling back to the easy life on Destiny Islands. But when they decide to build yet another raft to sail the world, they were getting more than they bargained for. Sucked into a vortex of new worlds, they must find their way out. And when a familiar evil rears its ugly head, their overconfidence and curiousity could lead to their final downfall.
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Chapter I: Disturbed Flight
"Sora, Sora!" Kairi called, her melodious voice emanating in soothing waves, rivaling the crash of the frothy ocean as it lapped upon the shore of Destiny Islands. The spiky-haired boy yawned and got up from his sandy bed, shaking grains of sand out of his hair as blue eyes adjusted to his peaceful surroundings. It had been a year since they'd defeated Xemnas and the Organization. Things had pretty much returned to normal, although Sora couldn't be totally sure. But Kairi and Riku seemed to be. His friends were busy building a new raft, and Riku, who was now seventeen, had scrawled 'Riku Highwind' on it in messy black marker. Trundling over to the scene, sixteen-year-old Sora frowned at the word. "Riku, who said you could name the raft again?" The silver-haired boy shrugged. "You were sleeping, so..." Kairi giggled and pointed at Sora's face. "Oh no." Sora muttered, and ran over to the sea to look at his reflection.
"RIKU! I'LL KILL YOU!"
Apparently, Riku had taken the liberty of childishly scrawling a moustache on Sora's face after naming the ship. Sora swore never to sleep on the beach again. He'd nap in his room. And he'd make sure that the door was locked. Kairi and Riku laughed as they ran from Sora's wrath. "Oh no you don't!" Sora screamed as he pounced on his friends, and the three of them soon ended up in a big sandy pile on the boardwalk, laughing breathlessly. "The raft's finally complete!" Kairi declared, sticking a badly-made flag on the wooden pole that jutted from the friends' little contraption. "Great!" Sora and Riku said, and slapped hands. "This will be the first time we're getting out of here since a year ago. And there will be no Organization phonies to fight, no heartless, no nobodies, no nothing! It'll be our own little adventure! Who knows what worlds await us?" Sora shouted, pumping his fist in the air. "Let's get going, then!" Riku said, pushing Sora away and running over to their raft.
"Come on, help me!"
Riku shouted to his friends as he worked to push the huge wooden raft into the water. Sora and Kairi ran over and together they moved the contraption into the sea, where it bobbed up and down calmly. Stepping onto the raft, Riku held out a hand to help Kairi on. Sora hopped onto the raft himself, and raised the makeshift sail which they had added. "Oars?" Riku asked. "Check." "Food and water supplies?" "Check." Sora said boredly, pointing to a large haversack which he had brought along. "Are you guys sure we'll find new worlds?" Kairi asked nervously. "Sure we will!" Sora exclaimed. "Maybe we'll even see Donald, Goofy or King Mickey on the way there! We'll never know." Kairi nodded, smiling. "Let's go then." She said. "Cast off!" Riku shouted into the horizon as the raft slowly floated out to sea, the waves crashing gently against the side of the raft. Leaning back, Sora closed his eyes lazily as evening descended upon the horizon. The sunset was beautiful, a conflagration of pink, orange and red, the grey clouds rolling across the golden sun. The entire horizon seemed to be glowing faintly. The last rays of the setting sun seemed to make the sea's glassy surface sparkle, and a feeling of calmness hovered in the air.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?"
Sora asked dreamily, watching the tiny islands they called home drift further and further away. "Mmm." Kairi responded, busy enjoying the gentle caress of the ocean breeze. Riku was busy paddling the raft. He gave a light chuckle. "New worlds await, my friends. I just hope we don't run into a storm or something." "Oh, don't worry Riku. My mighty keyblade and I will defend you all." This caused the silver-haired boy to scowl. "You're not the only one who has a keyblade, you know. Besides, mine's cooler than yours." "Nuh-uh." "Is so." "Is not." "Oh will you guys just stop it already?" Kairi said irritably. "I'm trying to get some peace and quiet." Sora and Riku sighed. "Truce for now, Sora." Riku said teasingly. "Oh sure." The keyblader replied, before leaning back again and facing the bleak evening sky. A few gulls soared past. It all seemed so ethereal, beside the fact that they were in the middle of the ocean without any sense of direction.
"Sora, look there!"
Kairi suddenly screamed.
Sora quickly got up and turned towards the direction in which Kairi was pointing. A badly-burnt boat was bobbing silently on the waves, a terrible charred smell emanating from whatever the boat witheld. Kairi dreaded to think of what that was. "Should we take it in?" Riku asked, preparing to throw a hook he had made himself to snag the boat. "I think so. Someone might be injured." Sora responded. Riku threw the hook and started to drag the burnt boat towards their raft. There was a pained cough. "Did you hear that?" Kairi asked. "Yeah." Sora and Riku said together. As they pulled the boat in, Sora quickly looked over the edge of the raft to see who was in the boat. To his horror, it was King Mickey himself. Tears started to brim in Sora's eyes as he wiped them away quickly.
"King Mickey! What happened?"
Sora said urgently. King Mickey gave another strained cough. "T-they have r-returned, m-more powerful than e-ever." Fear gripped Sora's heart immediately. He could feel the sense of peace shatter around them. Kairi and Riku looked shocked as well. "Who are...they?" Riku asked uneasily. "T-they s-sent the e-eighth after m-me." Another terrible cough racked the King's form. A piece of wood fell from the burnt boat and into the sea with a soft splash. "Who ARE they?!" Sora demanded. Kairi was trembling in fear as King Mickey took a deep breath. "T-the..." Then he collapsed. "Your majesty! Your majesty!" Riku shouted, panicking. Kairi bit her lip. But the King did not move. "I think we lost him." Sora said quietly. "NO!" Kairi screamed, clutching Riku's arm and sobbing. "We should go back." Riku said. "We don't want to get ourselves in more trouble than we already are." "No." Sora replied. "I'm curious...something we once defeated has returned. We must find it again. I'm confident that we can remove it once and for all." "But King Mickey..." Kairi whispered. "I know. But we cannot let this deter us. It appears that the King's boat has come from the east. That is the direction for which we must head." Riku solemnly let the boat Mickey was in float away. "Rest in peace." he said. "Sora's right. Let's sail for the east."
"What do you think we'll find then?"
Kairi asked fearfully. Sora's expression remained stony. "I don't know. But whatever it is, we must prepare ourselves. Whatever this evil is, whether it is new or something we have faced before, it was powerful enough to defeat the King permanently. We must consider ourselves weaker than he. Without teamwork, I doubt we can survive." Riku frowned. "What about Donald and Goofy? I'm sure they could help us somehow." "I guess. But we can't find them now. We're too far out." Sora responded. "Let's just go." The raft bobbed into the distance, leaving the burnt boat behind. They couldn't help but shed a few tears as they watched water seep into the boat, and the boat itself slowly sink with its cargo. "The eighth...what could the King have been speaking about?" Sora asked himself. It was too early for an answer. But somehow, things started to piece together in his mind. There was a vague sense of familiarity...
A brilliant flash of lightning illuminated the now pitch dark sky, followed by an ominous roll of thunder. "A storm!" Riku shouted as violent winds started to blow, causing the calm sea to rear up in murky wrath and disapproval. The raft's sail started to billow outwards with tremendous force, and a few ripping sounds could be heard as the white cloth started to tear away. "We'll never make it like this!" Kairi screamed through the commotion. The winds had escalated, howling in fury as they concentrated their power upon this small raft in the middle of the ocean. Droves of rain started to fall from the gloomy sky, pattering against the three as they held on to the raft's flagpole for their lives. "We shouldn't have left the islands..." Riku whispered quietly to himself. "It's too late now!" Sora screamed as the flagpole creaked under the wind's force. Drops of transparent water dripped off their hair and clothes, leaving them shivering in the midst of the torrential rain. "To the east..." Kairi repeated, as Riku managed to shift the raft towards that direction, hoping the wind would at least help to carry them further. The storm raged through the night as their eyelids became heavy. Another clap of thunder soared across the sky, intricate webs of lightning spreading through the darkness above them. "I hope we survive." Sora said, as darkness overcame them.
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