Sora had been to some dark, foreboding, and downright nightmarish worlds in his journeys…But Death City was…different…to say the least. The dull purple night sky, gnarled trees, and grinning, blood-dripping moon made the world look like some demented artist's painting, yet the climate felt warm, serene, and alive, almost like a mixture of Traverse Town and Twilight Town. He strolled nice and easy through the neighborhood, closer to the capital itself, which was built over a small mountain and packed together like a fortress, with what he assumed was the DWMA as the crowning jewel. He remembered Death the Kid telling him about it after they'd escaped from Demon World; its purpose was to train people to maintain order and balance in this world by slaying witches, monsters, and humans with tainted souls.
As he got closer to the Academy, he met his first wave of Heartless; five Shadows and two Wight Knights. Not wanting to alert anyone with loud noises or a lightshow, he summoned the Oathkeeper, dashed toward the Shadows and sliced them all apart with a single spinning-strike. The force sent the two Wight Knights tumbling and he ran them both through while they were down. He took a moment to remember the time he let that Soldier Heartless take him by surprise in Tomoeda and realized what an amateur he must have looked like to Syaoran. For just a moment Sora wished that Afro, Inuyasha, or any of the great swordsmen he'd fought with could see how much he'd improved. A scream coming from the Academy building snapped him out of it, though.
He leapt up the many steps leading to the Academy building and saw a dark-haired girl in a mostly black uniform running toward him with a flock of Gargoyle Heartless not far behind. The Gargoyles opened their jagged maws and spewed a volley of blue fireballs at the helpless girl, so Sora darted toward her, threw one arm tightly around her torso, and cast Reflega. The fireballs all bounced off the barrier and hit the Heartless right in their faces. Each Gargoyle burst into harmless black vapor and Sora released the girl as his barrier vanished.
"It's okay." said Sora as the girl wiped the tears from her eyes. "They're gone."
"Thanks so much…um…"
"Sora. So, you're a student at the Academy, right? Don't you have a partner?"
"Yeah, I do…but when those things appeared, she and I got separated and—"
"Tsugumi!"
They both turned left to see a girl about Tsugumi's age running toward them. She had jaw-length golden-brown hair with a single pigtail on her right and wore a plain yellow sweater over a white collared shirt with a red bow-tie. Tsugumi ran toward her friend and Sora headed for the front doors. He was about to reach for the handle when his whole body froze. His muscles contracted painfully when he tried to move and darkness began obscuring his vision, it was like seeing the world through a black tunnel.
"Sora…" said a sensuous, yet venomous voice. "Don't go in…come to the cemetery…and don't talk to anyone on the way or I'll know."
He recognized the voice almost instantly; it was the witch who attacked Fire mountain Castle and Radiant Garden…Medusa was her name. Whatever she was doing to him, he was sure she could do much worse if he didn't do as she demanded, so he turned away from the Academy.
Lord Death stood before his mirror watching the young Keyblade Master with Stein and Spirit waiting patiently behind him. Where was Sora going? King Kai had assured Lord Death that Sora would come straight to the Academy.
"He looked kinda freaked out, don't ya think?" Spirit remarked.
"Mmm, yes." Lord Death replied. "If I had to guess, I'd say someone or something is luring him away."
"You want us to stop him?" Stein offered.
"No." Lord Death replied. "Follow him and be ready to jump in if he gets into trouble."
Sora followed Medusa's instructions through the city, trying his hardest not to look like he was in a hurry. Once he reached the gates of Hook Cemetery, he took a deep breath and marched in. He couldn't sense Medusa anywhere. Wondering if she was baiting him into an ambush, he summoned the Oblivion, shut his eyes, and tried sensing for any kind of dark presence. Four such presences blossomed around him and his eyes flew open; he was surrounded by Search Ghosts. He flipped forward and cast Thundaga, nuking two of them and beheaded the other two in one cleave. A drove of Neoshadows burst out of the mud in front of him; he was about to let them all have it when a bunch of black arrow-tipped tendrils shout out from the shadows and skewered them. The arrows all withdrew and Medusa stepped into the light, clad in dark green.
"What's going on, Medusa?" Sora asked.
"Xehanort betrayed me…" Medusa replied, dropping her usual impertinence for a more no-nonsense tone. "He gave control of the Heartless to my sister, Arachne and one of his followers taught her to build a machine that produces more of them."
"So, you want me to help you get back at your sister?" Sora sneered. Nothing disgusted him more than when people expected him to do their dirty work.
"That's right." said Medusa. "I want her dead and I refuse to let the Academy have the pleasure."
"And what if I don't want to?"
Medusa bared her pearly teeth in a tight, reptilian grin and said "Then my snake will rip you apart from the inside out."
"S-snake?"
"That's right. I put it in your body while you were protecting that girl. Once your barrier—or whatever it was—wore off, it was easy. Help me punish Arachne, and I'll remove it…deal?"
"Damn." Stein hissed as he watched Medusa wrap herself and Sora in a sphere of darkness, which quickly dissipated.
None of them had a clue where Arachne's base of operations was and their only lead was gone.
"What now, Stein?" Spirit grumbled.
"We report back to Lord Death. Nothing more we can do here." said Stein. "Hopefully, Maka's team is closer to finding them than we are."
Thousands of miles away from Death City, Maka Albarn and her teammates, Kid and Black Star were pursuing a trio of Arachnophobia grunts through the rainforest. As they scurried into the weeds, Maka signaled Kid and Black Star to get to the trees while she continued the chase. The three grunts just made it into a clearing when the boys dropped down, weapons at the ready.
"That's enough!" Maka panted as she leapt into the clearing. "Just tell us where your boss is and—"
Before she could finish, the grunts thrust their own spears into their hearts.
"Damn!" she growled.
"Hey, Maka." said Kid. "Over there…"
A few feet to the left, Maka could see some light; it looked like they had reached the edge of the forest. The three Meisters pushed their way through the trees and stared down into an enormous ravine.
"Shit…that place has 'death' written all over it." Liz (still in pistol-form) remarked.
"Just the kind of place a witch would be right at home." Maka concluded.
They began leaping from rock to rock, steadily making their way down the ravine. As they neared the bottom, Maka could make out a simple gray castle attached to what looked like a colossal red and gray mechanical spider and two figures were approaching it. Four of the black humanoid Heartless rose from the ground behind them and Kid raised his pistols to fire.
"Wait, Kid." Maka hissed, clapping a hand on his upper arm. "Black Star, quietly."
"You got it." Black Star whispered, followed by a whispered "Yahooo."
He flipped over the Heartless and sliced off their heads with one swish of Tsubaki's blade. With the threat eliminated, they began darting between rocks and stalagmites closer to the two figures standing before the castle. Maka peeked behind a stone column and got a good look at them; the boy dressed in silver, she didn't recognize, but the woman in green, she knew immediately.
"So…" said Sora as Medusa scanned Baba Yaga Castle. "Think she knows we're here?"
"Oh, she knows." Medusa affirmed. "But the less noise we make, the longer it'll take her lackeys to pinpoint us. Let's try…"
A powerful light presence alerted Sora and he summoned the Fenrir and shoved Medusa away. He whirled around in time to parry an overhand slash from a girl wielding an oversized red and black scythe. She had blond pigtails, blazing green eyes, and a look of pure, unbridled rage on her face. Beneath the radiant light in her heart, he could sense something dark and volatile…as though she had been tainted somehow.
"Out of my way!" she growled.
Sora blocked every thrust, cleave, and whirling slash the girl made without too much stress and flexed backward as she attempted a hook-kick. She was good, but definitely not on his level. He cast Aeroga and sent her tumbling back a few feet.
"Stop, Maka!" a familiar voice shouted.
Death the Kid ran in front of the girl as she got to her feet, followed by a boy with spiky blue hair dressed in white.
"Kid?!" Sora called out.
"What's going on, Sora?" asked Kid. "Why are you protecting Medusa?"
"She threatened me."
Medusa got in front of Sora and Kid gripped the girl called "Maka's" shoulder as she tensed up.
"Sora and I have everything under control here. So, you kids can go home now."
Before any of them could retort, a dark portal opened beneath them. Sora was just about to sprint over and try to grab one of them before they fell in, but Medusa wrapped one of her tendrils around him and threw him back. He was back on his feet in an instant but it was too late; Kid and his companions were out of sight and the portal was gone, leaving only a few little wisps of black mist.
"Don't worry, I only sent them back to Death City." said Medusa. "Now, as I was saying earlier: we should cut a hole in the side of the castle and work our way up. And remember, set one foot out of line…and you're dead."
Sora threw her a look of contempt, switched to the Sleeping Lion, and thrust it into the hull of the spider mech. He wished he could thrust it into whatever passed for Medusa's heart, but he had to go along with her until she decided to remove the snake.
Arachne lounged in her web, sipping wine, waiting for her sister and the Keybearer to find her. Giriko had left with one of Xehanort's followers, Mosquito was searching for Asura, and she knew her soldiers wouldn't be able to stop Medusa. But her darling Heartless pets and dark powers gave her the advantage. She didn't have the limitless supply that Xehanort did (not yet, at least) but she had produced some exceptional ones. Xehanort's first disciple, an imp by the name of "Garlic Junior" had assembled an unfathomable army, from what she'd been told. He'd conquered many worlds and plunged them into darkness as Xehanort had hoped, but failed to properly utilize his dark powers when it mattered most. Xehanort took Medusa under his wing around the same time he met Garlic Junior; he was only with her for a few days, but she impressed him enough that he decided she would inherit the Heartless should anything happen to Garlic Junior. Medusa however, ignored his instructions once he disappeared and used the Heartless for her own pursuits, so shortly after returning, he commanded them all to leave her and come to Arachne. Of all his disciples, he'd called her "the most promising, so far." It wasn't saying much, but Arachne loved being the best at anything and she would ensure it stayed that way.
Sora and Medusa spent over an hour crawling through ductwork and maintenance shafts, avoiding Arachne's forces and dispatching the occasional Shadow. The moment they emerged in the castle's library however, they were met with a cadre of men in black robes and white masks, who Medusa skewered with her arrow-tendrils before Sora could even lift his Keyblade. A bookcase next to Sora slid open and five more of Arachne's grunts darted out with a drove of Neoshadows and Sora sliced his way through all of them in a flash, not really wanting to kill the men, but far more concerned with keeping himself alive.
"You certainly know how to make a girl feel welcome, dear sister." said Medusa.
A curvaceous, dark-haired woman clad in black stepped into the light. She looked nothing like Medusa but Sora could sense the dark and volatile magic emanating from her…it rivaled Medusa's.
"You're never welcome here, Medusa." Arachne sneered. "But you just couldn't resist, could you?"
Arachne's voice was a bit deeper than Medusa's and had none of her provocative, playful energy. She was like an angry mother talking to child she hated.
"Have you two always been this loving of a family?" Sora chimed in, stifling a small snicker.
"That doesn't matter." Medusa hissed. "It never has."
"You've always been a selfish, spiteful little brat, but if I'd known you'd go this far, I'd have killed you centuries ago." said Arachne.
"Hey!" said Sora, stepping forward. "Sorry to interrupt your little family moment, but it's time to die now."
"What he said." Medusa added.
Arachne lifted a dainty hand and Sora could barely see a tangle of clear silk stretching toward him and Medusa. He flipped to the left and hurled the Sleeping Lion at Arachne, but a Defender Heartless appeared and took the hit for her. She sent a flurry of dark projectiles at Medusa, who shielded herself with her arrows, allowing Sora to cast Thundaga. Arachne was brought to her knees and skewered by one of Medusa's arrows. A small spout of blood flew from her mouth as her sister threw her back.
"Now, Sora!" Medusa commanded.
Sora flipped toward Arachne, ready to run her through, but something hurled him backward. He sprung to his feet in an instant and saw a ghoulish white heartless with long spindly fingers, a ghostly tail instead of legs, and a skull-like face. It was armed with what appeared to be an oversized pendulum, which it held with both hands as though it were about to thrust it into the ground. A ball of black and azure flame appeared at the tip of the pendulum's blade and fell to the ground, spreading over Arachne's dead soldiers. The soldiers slowly picked themselves up of the ground and began dragging themselves toward Medusa, who lashed and whirled her arrows about, slicing them apart. The Heartless pointed its pendulum at Medusa and a ring of dark energy appeared around her but before it could finish whatever curse it was placing, Sora switched to the True Light's Flight and flung it into the creature's chest.
"Spark!" he shouted and a dozen rays of light burst out of the Heartless body.
It mere moments, the Heartless burst into a rain of golden sparks and black mist. Arachne rose to her feet and began emitting waves of energy so volatile that Sora began feeling nauseous. He cast Reflega on Medusa as Arachne hurled a ball of pulsating black and magenta energy at her. The moment the deadly ball touched the barrier, it flew back to Arachne and hit her square in the face, sending her tumbling back.
"I'll take it from here, Sora." said Medusa. "You find that Heartless machine and destroy it. Go!"
Sora nodded and dashed down a corridor toward the castle's higher levels. After stumbling blindly through a maze of corridors, he got impatient and started blasting holes in the walls with Firaga. Forty or so more of Arachne's soldiers came pouring out of passageways in the walls and he cloaked himself in fire. The ones he didn't burn to a crisp or slice in half dropped their weapons and ran for it. He leapt up a winding staircase and came to a chamber with a cylindrical machine about the size of his beach shack in it. He knew from the glass pods on each side and the network of gears in the shape of the Heartless emblem that it was his target. Four Defenders appeared and surrounded him, so he back-flipped away and made a glacier burst from the ground, and crash through the ceiling, crushing them. Then he pointed his blade at the base of the machine and cast Graviga. It began cracking, sparking, and spewing black goo until the whole thing just imploded. Sora dismissed the Sleeping Lion and breathed a sigh of relief. All of a sudden, he felt a sharp and overwhelming pain in his chest. He staggered and fell to his knees as his flesh began tearing. He doubled over and something black burst out of his chest and slunk through the air. He placed a hand over the gaping wound in his chest as Medusa loomed over him. He could barely see her viper-like eyes beneath her hood.
"I knew you wouldn't disappoint me, Sora." she gloated. "Taking on Arachne and her forces all by my lonesome would have been a nightmare. I was afraid I'd have to let the Academy get Arachne for me. I was actually looking for someone to persuade when you arrived, but the moment I saw you…I knew everything was going to go my way and you have to admit, we made a pretty good team."
Sora reached into his pouch for the one potion he brought with him and Medusa kicked it out of his hand. The bottle crashed into a wall and the potion dripped down into a deep crack.
"However, you're just as much a threat to me as she was. I'd love to have you as a subordinate...but I'll find someone else."
Medusa turned her back on Sora and began to make her way toward the exit.
Big mistake!
Sora summoned the Oblivion and cast Stopza. Having learned from his fight with Erza, he immediately cast Curaga and then began whaling on the helpless Medusa. Stopza wore off and Medusa felt the brunt of Sora's attacks and flew into the wall. Half of her face was lost in a mess of blood…it was an improvement, but Sora decided he could do better…how about no face at all? He pointed the tip at Medusa's face and prepared to launch a Dark Firaga when some unseen force sent him flying back. He recovered with a quick aerial flip and saw a black arrow on the ground where he had been standing. It faded away as Medusa struggled to stand. Her left knee was broken, so four of her arrows stretched out of her back and she used them to support herself. Sora had enough magic left for probably one more spell and Medusa was more-or-less on her last legs. Both were at a disadvantage, both were as good as dead if they messed this up, and only one was going to walk away alive.
Maka and her team along with Ox, Kilik, Kim, and their partners tore off their parachutes as soon as they were within a safe landing distance and raced toward Arachne's castle as fast as they could. She hoped Kid's friend was alright, but she was more concerned with putting a stop to whatever Medusa was planning. Each Meister paired up with his or her weapon as they reached the front doors and Kilik blasted them down with his Aphex Twin technique. The six of them rushed inside expecting a welcoming party and were surprised to see none. They made a quick trip up the stairs and found their way into what appeared to be a library with more dead goons and a bloody, broken-bodied Arachne.
"Whaddya think, Kid?" Maka asked.
"Sora was never this brutal when I met him. Gotta be Medusa." Kid decided.
Ox pointed out an open passage in a nearby wall and suggested that they follow it. They did just that and came to a small maze littered with dead Arachnophobia goons and a hole blasted into each wall. They followed the devastation to an isolated room and Maka gasped at the sight of what she had a feeling was once Medusa slumped against a wall. At the opposite end was Sora…completely out of it…but breathing. Kid tried to wake him up to ask if he was alright, but got only an exhausted groan out of him.
"No injuries, I guess he's just tired."
"You really think HE did all this?" Ox inquired.
"It's hard to say. Let's just get him back to the base."
Kid carried Sora on his back while Maka got her mirror and contacted Lord Death. She told him about the bodies and how Sora was the only one alive.
"I see. Well, once he's feeling better, bring him back here. I'd like to have a few words with him."
