A/N: Again, I'll be writing the chapters world per world. Hope you like this! Enjoy~
Disclaimer: I own nothing but Shadow & Kurai. Refer to the first disclaimer for the script.
Kingdom Hearts 3D, Kurai's Story
Chapter 2
Riku and I arrived in a world with a gigantic bell tower. When we arrived in the square of the cathedral, a tall man in gold armor chased after a dark-haired woman in a violet dress.
"Stop her!" he yelled. Upon reaching some festival tents that she couldn't pass, the woman turned and bowed to the man before disappearing with a puff of pink smoke. Riku and I had walked into the area as she had run past, and had watched her escape. The man ran over to us. "You there! Have you seen a gypsy woman?"
"Nope. Sorry," I shrugged. I could barely hear her faint breathing as she listened in nearby, hiding around the corner.
"All right. Thanks," the man told us. He walked over to an older man with strong features, who was clad in a long black robe with a red sash hanging from his triangular hat. "I'm terribly sorry, sir. We've lost her."
"Slippery vermin!" the older man growled. I immediately had a very bad feeling about him. Turning back to the armor-clad man, he stated coldly, "I'm beginning to question having summoned you back from the wars, Captain Phoebus." The captain sighed heavily and followed the older man as he left. Riku paused as I looked in the direction the woman was hiding, and then she stepped out and came over to us.
"Thank you. You stood up for me," she smiled. "I'm Esmeralda."
"Riku," the silverette greeted.
"Kurai," I nodded with a faint smile. "And it's not like we know what a 'gypsy' is. Why are they chasing you?"
"Judge Frollo has been hunting us for years. We gypsies are guilty of nothing but loving our freedom, yet Frollo hates whatever he can't control. Now he's even brought in fresh blood to torment us," she explained, and sighed. "I'd hate to know what darkness drives that man."
"I think we can imagine…" Riku replied. "Tell us more. Was he always like this?"
"I don't give Frollo much thought," Esmeralda admitted. "But if you'd like, you could try Notre Dame. They say it's a place for answers." Riku and I looked over to the cathedral and then made our way inside. Entering the massive double doors, we made our way across the tiled floor. I realized how quiet it was, and it unnerved me a bit.
"Is anybody here?" Riku called out.
"Who…who are you?" a soft, shy voice asked. Riku and I turned to see a man in green clothing in the corner of the room. Walking a bit closer, we noticed his hunched back and disfigured face.
"We're Riku and Kurai," I told him, smiling warmly as I gestured to us each in turn.
"Oh. M-my name's Quasimodo," the man replied. "I'm very sorry, but the Archdeacon is away." He turned to the stairs.
"Actually, we're looking for a man named Frollo," Riku said. "Do you know where he is?" At the mention of the name, Quasimodo paused and perked up slightly.
"My master? He said he had business on the outskirts of the city," he answered.
"Do you mean you know him?" I asked.
"Oh, yes. He's…he's very kind," Quasimodo told us. "Master Frollo saved my life. He protects me from the outside world."
"He 'protects' you from it?" I questioned doubtfully. Quasimodo looked down at his hands and covered his face sadly.
"The people out there would be cruel to me," he murmured. "I'm a monster, you know."
"Is that what Frollo told you? Trust us, looks can be deceiving. A true friend sees you for who you are, no matter what face you wear," Riku told him with a smile. "You should go out there—find some friends who understand you."
"Oh no…My master forbids it. I'm not to set foot outside," Quasimodo mumbled shyly.
"Are you sure that's what's stopping you?" I said. "Because I think something else is holding you back." Quasimodo started to walk towards the stairs again.
"Ask your heart, Quasimodo," Riku called after him, and he paused again. "We'll check the edge of town. Thanks." And with that, we left, but as we walked down the stairs, I couldn't help the bitter words that left my mouth.
"Wish we could take our own advice…" I muttered. We made our way to the bridge that led out of town, but when we reached it, a large shadow flew over us.
"A Dream Eater," Riku remarked.
"And a big one at that," I added. It flew towards a tower and turned to face us, shooting a large fireball.
"What?" Riku gasped, and I screeched as we ran out of the way, the fireball hitting a pile of crates. We tried to run at the creature to attack it, but it launched more fireballs at us.
"Oh, like this is fair…No use, we gotta run for it," I growled. We raced across the bridge, knocking out the smaller Nightmares and obstacles with help from Komory Bat as we ran. We reached the other side of town, the giant Dream Eater, called Wargoyle, in hot pursuit. We continued to dodge the fireballs as we made our way to Frollo, who was at the windmill. When Riku and I found him, the Wargoyle hovered behind Frollo, who was standing before Captain Phoebus. The captain stood in a defensive stance in front of the door to the windmill.
"What demon is this?" Phoebus gasped when he saw it. The Wargoyle hovered closer to Frollo, a dark aura pulsing from his folded hands.
"Oh, you are mistaken, Captain Phoebus," Frollo said. "This is no demon. This is righteous judgment! I have been granted this power so I may smite all gypsies now and forever!"
"This is all wrong!" the captain yelled.
"He won't listen," I warned. "Once you've fallen that far, there's almost no coming back."
"How dare you," Frollo snapped. "I am a virtuous man. Good and evil shall be made plain…once the gypsies face the fire of judgment." He walked away, laughing quietly to himself, and the Wargoyle following him. The captain quickly ran ahead of the Nightmare.
"No you don't!" he shouted, but the Wargoyle spun and tackled him, knocking him to the ground, and then flew away. Riku and I ran over to him as he grasped at his arm painfully.
"You all right?" Riku asked.
"Well, I can't say you didn't warn me," Phoebus chuckled.
"You should take it easy," I advised. "We'll deal with Frollo."
"Thanks," he said gratefully. "I gotta tell you, this is embarrassing—having to rely on a kid and a lizard." I bristled and growled at the insult.
"Not a lizard," I huffed, and flared my wings a bit.
"You wouldn't be the first. Sorry," Riku apologized.
"I'll admit, you look more capable than me right now," the captain muttered. "All right, be careful. It looks like that creature…is heading for the cathedral." We watched it fly towards the city before straightening up.
"Okay. Got it," I nodded, and we began to swiftly make our way back to the city. Riku and I ran into the square, where we saw the bonfire still burning as Quasimodo held Esmeralda, who was out of breath.
"Is she going to be all right?" Riku asked.
"I'm fine, thanks to Quasimodo," she assured us.
"Quasimodo, where did the creature go?" I demanded.
"It's…it's up there," he answered, and Riku and I looked at each with a nod.
"Right," we said, and started to leave, both of them watching us.
"W-wait. Wait, I'll go with you!" Quasimodo called after us.
"Thanks, but stay with her," Riku said. Again, we started to leave, but the silverette paused before asking, "Quasimodo. Did your heart have the answer?" The man nodded and we resumed our run into the cathedral. A Dream Eater that was about to attack vanished as three gargoyles appeared.
"Well! I guess…you three got this covered," I shrugged.
"It was a walk in the park!" the first one, Hugo, boasted.
"How would you know? You don't have any legs!" the second one, Victor, retorted.
"Yeah, but—aw, gimme a break! It's just a figure of speech!" Hugo grumbled.
"Both of you, pipe down. And get ready! 'Cause here come some more!" the third one, Laverne, snapped. They turned around and charged as more Dream Eaters appeared.
"Yee-haw!" Hugo crowed.
"It's up there," I commented as we looked up. We ran up the stairs, where we spotted Frollo. The smoke and fire from the square billowed upwards as Frollo cackled evilly from atop the parapet of Notre Dame.
"Yes! Let it burn. The flames will consume everything!" Frollo cried out. Riku and I ran over to him. "You see? This is the power that has been granted to me!"
"I see a sad old man with a dark heart," I commented drily. Frollo turned to face us as his darkness raged.
"Again, you are wrong! Now you will be judged, just like the rest!" he declared, and the Wargoyle flew up the side of the tower, knocking Frollo from the parapet. As he fell into the roaring flames to his death, his sword fell from his hand onto the parapet. "Judgment is mine!" he screamed as he plummeted. Riku and I stared in horror and shock as an all-too-familiar man walked over to the sword. A man with white hair, tan skin, and yellow eyes.
"You're Ansem!" Riku gasped. "Why are you here?" I noticed the young man from Traverse Town was accompanying him.
"Your best friends are never far," the young man said as Ansem bent down and picked up the discarded sword.
"So sad. The cost of yielding to the darkness," Ansem remarked blandly.
"You could write a book about that," I growled.
"But I embraced the darkness—and unless you hurry up and learn to do the same, your story will end just like his," Ansem said, pointing the sword at us.
"We walk the road to dawn!" Riku and I declared, and Riku summoned his Keyblade, making my claws glow in response.
"Still afraid of the dark, I see," the young man commented. A dark corridor appeared behind them, and the young man entered it first. Right before Ansem vanished in it, however, he smirked at us.
"Wait!" Riku shouted, but it was too late.
"He thinks we're afraid of the dark?" I scoffed. "No, not while we have the Keyblade and light." Riku readied his Keyblade and pointed it at the Wargoyle. "It will guide us to the light!" We fought and defeated the Wargoyle, thanks to help from Komory Bat, and it plummeted to the square below, losing its wings as it fell.
Later on, while the city was peaceful again, Riku and I stood with Esmeralda, Phoebus, and Quasimodo in the square.
"Master Frollo—he made me live inside the bell tower, but the real walls were the ones I built around my heart," Quasimodo said. "You helped me see that, Riku and Kurai." Riku and I slowly clenched our fists.
"We were…speaking from…personal experience," Riku murmured.
"I'd say you still keep a lot locked up inside," Phoebus remarked.
"We all do that sometimes," Esmeralda pointed out. "There are just some things we need to keep separate from the world at large, at least until we have time to figure them out." She smiled at us, and we nodded in response. Later, while alone, Riku and I thought to ourselves about Ansem.
"I know the road my heart walks," we murmured in unison. A Keyhole appeared in the stained glass window of the cathedral, and Riku and I sealed it.
A/N: And finished! Four updates in one day? That's amazing! Especially considering how busy I've been! Anyhoo, R&R, peeps!