FG: Welcome back to CC3! Please welcome this chapter's disclaimer guest, animechick91!
animechick91: Hi! It's great to be here!
FG: So, tell us a little about yourself.
Animechick91: ……...
FG: ………
Everyone else: ………
Animechick91: I didn't give any information about myself in my review.
FG: (sweatdrop) Er…okay. By the way, the following people get a virtual cookie for guessing who the Beetle Charm summons: ShadowShapeshifterAndHerCat, Pyro Wolf, animechick91, and EverD. ShadowShapeshifterAndHerCat gets an extra big one for guessing it first.
SSAHC: Awright! (eats the extra big cookie, then whimpers) It tastes like air…
Animechick91: FG doesn't own anyone except for Emma, Dia, Jake, Robin, Bernie, Hart, Eclipse, Miru, the rest of the Nekoshus, Kaze, the rest of the Nikushimi, Haiiro, Taylor, Lyze, Silke, Karson, Sadym, Alissa, Etoile, Aldwyndain, and Lotrayx.
FG: Here's Chapter 3!
… … … … … … … … …
The Juu and Ino Senshi appeared on the Phoenix. "Hey, Max, we brought a few more friends," Sora announced. "Actually, twelve of them. Including Robin."
Robin raised her hand. "Yo."
Max made his hardest attempt to smile. "Uh…hi. And welcome back, I guess, Robin. I'm not gonna have to shuttle ALL of you around for the rest of the game, am I?"
Angel stared at Max. "What, he's here too?"
"Yeah, get used ta it. Emma's made lotsa changes ta the game, so dun be surprised if somethin's real different," Robin explained. She looked back at Max. "These guys're Roxas an' Kaze."
Roxas nodded. "Nice to meet you, Max."
Kaze bowed his head. "Thanks for driving us, Max-kun."
"Unlike us, they're part of Juu Senshi, so they're permanent."
Max waved a little. "Nice to meet you guys, too. So, where are we going next?"
"Asteroid Sweep," Emma told him. "You have to go through there to get to Land of Dragons." Max nodded and turned around. Emma sat in one of the seats and sighed. I can't believe Dad is alive…does Mom know? I really hope she got the message…
A tinkling sound came from the Kingdom Key. Everyone turned around. "It's Alissa!" Sora announced. "She must have found Emma's Gameboy SP!" He brought up the screen, and made it bigger so everyone else could see.
NEW MESSAGE
LOADING MESSAGE
Alissa: Hi, Sora! What did you need to tell me?
Sora: Hi, Alissa. First of all, there's something wrong with the save points. Emma, Dia, Jake, and Bernie can't go back to the real world.
"That's weird, Robin's save point was fine when we came here," Dragon noted.
"Have you tried leaving since you came, though?" Dia asked. Dragon shook her head. "Well, then."
Alissa: They can't? Oh…but they're okay, right?
Sora: We're all doing great. It's a little crowded now, but we're doing great.
Alissa: Good. Is that all?
"WHOA!" Suddenly, the Phoenix shuddered. Max grinned apologetically at the Senshi. "Sorry. I was trying to read the message."
Sora: No…there's one more thing.
Alissa: What's up?
Sora: I don't really know a better way to say this, but…Emma's dad is alive.
Alissa: I know.
"Huh?" Emma looked confused. "Sora, can I take the Keyblade for a second?" Sora nodded.
Emma: Mom?
Alissa: How are you doing, honey?
Emma: Why didn't you tell me that Dad was alive?
It took a little while for her mother to respond.
Alissa: Do you remember when you were six years old, you came home from school one day, and I was crying?
Emma: Yeah. You said that Dad died, but you wouldn't tell me how.
Alissa: I'm sorry, Emma…I just didn't want to tell you what really happened. Your father just said, "I have to go, Alissa. Please forgive me." And he left with some other woman.
Emma: Another woman?
Dia stood up. "Emma, give me the Keyblade!"
Emma reluctantly handed it over. "What are you going to say?"
Dia: Alissa!
Alissa: Well, it seems like you're all very talkative today…
Dia: Alissa, was the woman's name Bree?
Alissa: Hmm…yes. Yes, that was her name.
Dia: Short, reddish-brown hair?
Alissa: I suppose.
Dia: Did she have a swirly, red tattoo by her right eye?
Alissa: Yes. I remember it.
Dia: THAT'S MY MOM!
The Senshi stared blankly at Dia. "Your mom ran off with Emma's dad?" Riku repeated.
Jake shook his head wildly. "No! Mommy wouldn't have done that!"
"Of course not!" Dia agreed. "I think Mom was from Kingdom Hearts too, and she went back to the game, with Emma's dad!"
Dia: Don't worry, Alissa, your husband didn't cheat on you. He went back into the game.
Alissa: What game? Do you mean Kingdom Hearts?
Dia: Yep. And congratulations on getting the name right. A friend of ours says that Emma's dad was from a place called Hollow Bastion. My mom must have been from Hollow Bastion, too.
"No, she was from Ivalice," Tolea spoke up.
Now, everyone was staring at Tolea. "What?" Dia looked startled, as did Jake.
Before anyone could ask another question, the Phoenix screeched to a stop. "Disembarking at Land of Dragons!" Max announced, and pushed the red button.
… … …
"I've always wondered why this place was called Land of Dragons and not China," Pyro remarked.
Neassa shrugged. "First off, China isn't a world. It's a country. So that would be pretty stupid of Disney and Square Enix to name a world 'China'. Second, China is a place in the real-world. I guess they didn't want a real-world place to even be mentioned in the game."
"Be quiet!" Dark hissed. He gestured to Mushu's shadow and Mulan up ahead. "He doesn't know, us, does he?" he asked quietly, referring to Mushu.
Emma shook her head. "We killed Maleficent before we could get the Fireglow."
Sim strode forward. "We won't get anywhere by crouching behind a boulder," she scoffed. "I'm going to talk to Mulan." The other Senshi looked at each other, then followed her. She raised her hand. "Hey! What's up, Mulan?"
Mulan jumped back, clearly nervous. "What?" Mushu's shadow stared at them.
Angel sighed. "Sorry about her. We know about you trying to join the Imperial Army and all, and we wanna help."
"What?" Mulan asked again. "How did you know that?"
"Oops." Angel slapped himself in the head.
Emma was still partially behind the boulder, peeking out. Oh, boy…without Mushu knowing us, this is going to be hard…wait! She grinned widely, and held onto her necklace.
The Senshi racked their minds to come up with a good reason for them to know about Mulan's predicament. "Well …" Wolf scratched his head. "Y'see, we're…um…" Emma stepped out, in Pyromaniac form. "…we're your special aids! The dragon, uh, Qiónglong wanted us to help you, because she felt sorry for you!" Wolf lied.
Mulan looked at Emma's fangs and claws, and seemed to loosen up. "Thank you!" she exclaimed, in her normal voice. "But…why do you look human?"
"Qiónglong doesn't want to scare anyone who sees her," Roxas volunteered quickly.
Mushu immediately scurried out. "Now, hold on a second! I'M her family guardian, sent by her ancestors THEMSELVES!" Emma narrowed her red eyes, and he stopped talking.
Mulan bowed. "I am truly honored, Qiónglong."
"Yeah, yeah, it's great." Mushu crawled onto Mulan's shoulder. "We'd better get goin'. Remember, girl; act manly!" Mulan nodded, straightened her back, and strutted awkwardly towards the camp.
Robin grinned. "Well, I can tell ya, Emma, I'm pretty impressed wit' ya. But how're us other gals gonna get inta the camp?"
Emma thought for a moment, then snapped. "Donald, remember when you made us into sea creatures for Atlantica?" Donald nodded. "Can you…?" She bent down and whispered into where his ears would be.
"I hope so," Donald mumbled. "I'll see what I can do."
… … …
"Awright, lunch. I'm first," Dia announced as she and the other Senshi entered the camp.
Yao shoved her out of the way. "What are you doing here? Women aren't allowed to join the army!" He surveyed the female Senshi in disgust. "Especially little ones."
Dia pulled up her sleeves. "Yeah, well what if the little women can kick the dookie out of you?" She reared her arm back, and sent the midget flying with a punch.
The other soldiers stared at her. Yao wobbled to his feet, and ran back over. "Maybe I should beat some manners into you!" He threatened.
"Heh! Big talk, little man!" Dia prepared herself to kick Yao, but he side-stepped, and Dia accidentally kicked Ling's shin. "Sorry!"
Within moments, Ling and Yao were attacking Dia. "All right, now it's a party!" Sona cheered, and did a frontflip, kicking both men.
Pyro jumped back and forth like a boxer. "I pity the foo'!" she declared, and swung crazily at Ling.
The other Senshi just watched. "This scene is even funnier than it is in the game," Bernie decided.
"Soldiers!" a voice thundered. "Get back in line!"
Ling turned around. "The Captain!" He, the soldiers, and the Senshi hurriedly got into a line.
Shang walked up and down the line. He stopped in front of the female Senshi. "Girls?" he asked incredulously. "GIRLS? The punishment for women joining the army is death, do you know that?"
"Now," Emma whispered. Donald held the Mage's Staff behind his back and closed his eyes. Suddenly, Emma was engulfed in flames. When they died down, a long, thin, red Eastern-style dragon was floating near a very shocked Shang. "I am the dragon Qiónglong!" she declared majestically. "It is my wish that these girls, Dia, Kairi, Bernie, Robin, Dragon, Sona, Neassa, Sim, Pyro, and Tolea are allowed to join the Imperial Army!"
Shang bowed. "I will honor your wish, Qiónglong!"
Emma returned back to her human form, but she was still in Pyromaniac form. "Thank you, Captain Shang. Please continue."
"Your first training activity, men…and girls…is to-" Shang was interrupted by the appearance of at least a dozen Shadow Heartless. "What are those?"
Pyro held her hand out. "Hoshi Blade!" A large sword appeared, and she grasped it. "They're Heartless, Captain, sir! But don't worry; we'll exterminate them!"
The Senshi all took out their swords, shields, staffs, and other weapons. Tolea took out her handgun, and shot a Heartless that was barreling straight at her. "Boom!"
I'm going to use up SO many ethers to make sure I stay in this form, Emma mentally groaned. She flexed her claws. "Feel the wrath of the dragon Qiónglong!" she roared, clawing several Shadows, and setting several more on fire.
Jake giggled. "Emma's really getting into her role, huh, Sis?"
Dia laughed and spun the Shihaii Wand around. "Yeah, but I don't blame her." She possessed a few Shadows, and made them crawl into the area of Emma's attack radius.
Mulan raised her sword, and batted at a Heartless. "Whoa!" Another one that was passing tripped her. "Ugh, these creatures are really irritating me!"
Soon, all of the Heartless were gone. "You, newcomers!" Shang called. "What are your names?"
"Sora."
"Donald."
"Goofy!"
"Dia."
"Jake!"
"Riku."
"Kairi."
"Bernie."
"Robin."
"Roxas."
"Kaze."
"Tolea."
"Angel."
"Dark."
"Wolf."
"Pyro!"
"Sim."
"Neassa."
"Dragon."
"Sona. You know, introducing ourselves is gonna get really annoying by the time we're halfway through this game," she muttered to her allies.
Shang nodded. "And of course, the dragon Qiónglong. You are all welcome in my troupe. Your battle skills are encouraging." He turned to Mulan. "You, Fa Ping, should return home."
Mulan's eyes widened. "B-but…that would dishonor my family!"
"Would you rather dishonor my troops?" Shang asked in response. Mulan lowered her head.
Sora walked forward. "Captain, please give Ping another chance! I'm sure that he'll get better in no time, if he trains hard and does his best. Just give us an assignment!"
Shang put one hand on his chin. "A test? All right. This is a tough one, but you should do at least decently with fighters like these helping you. Your mission is to secure the path over the summit so our company can pass. I'll authorize you to be let through the summit."
… … …
"I think you're doing a lot better, Mulan!" Sora announced as the Senshi and Mulan fought their way through the Mountain Trail.
Mulan swung her sword around, and killed two Heartless simultaneously. "Thanks!"
The Senshi entered a small village, and looked around. "Do you think there's anyone here?" Goofy wondered. The real-worlders shook their heads.
After a few minutes of looking around the village, Shang walked in with two foot soldiers. "Well?"
"Ping did excellently, Captain," Emma assured him.
"Fine. You can join my troops," Shang told Mulan. "But I'm still not convinced that you have what it takes to be a worthy soldier."
Sora clenched his fists. "But, Captain-"
Mulan shook her head. "It's all right, Sora. I'll find a way to show him what I'm made of. Just give me a chance."
"That's the spirit." Shang and the foot soldiers left for the summit.
As soon as the men left, Mushu popped out of Mulan's armor. "Okay, girl! I just saw this real shady guy higher up on the mountain, and I know it's Shan-Yu!"
Mulan gasped. "Shan-Yu? The leader of the Hun army?" Mushu nodded excitedly. "We've got to tell Captain Shang!"
"Waaaaaiiiiit, wait, wait, wait, wait, WAIT!" Mushu exclaimed. "Think about it! We're here to bring honor to your family, right? If we can track down that Shan-Yu guy, we can fry him up good! Captain Muscle-head will HAVE to notice my girl!" he announced proudly.
Mulan turned to look at Emma. "Qiónglong?"
Emma seemed to be pleased with all of the attention she was getting with her fake identity. "I say we go after Shan-Yu."
"Okay, let's go."
… … …
"There's nothing here," Dark grumbled.
Mushu looked around wildly. "I…I coulda sworn I saw Shan-Yu come in here!"
The Senshi, Mulan, and Mushu were standing in the Village Cave. Sora sighed. "It's a dead end."
Sim tapped her foot impatiently. "Let's just go."
The majority of the Senshi left, mumbling about how annoying and relatively pointless the next battle was, especially because they couldn't participate in it. "Come on." Emma headed out of the cave.
"Wait!" Sora called. "Em…er, Qiónglong…didn't you say there was going to be a fight here?"
Emma turned around. "I didn't feel like leaving it in." She laughed and left the cave, followed by Sora and Mulan, and they rejoined with the others.
The village that they had just left had been reduced to ashes and rubble. "Cool, a burnt village!" Pyro exclaimed. Everyone else glared at her. "Uh…I mean, oh, no! A burnt village!" She scurried off to go play in the ashes.
"Captain!" Shang was leaning against a blackened wall, clutching his side. Mulan ran over. "Captain, what happened?"
Shang winced. "It's just a scratch," he assured her, although he was obviously lying.
Mulan bit her lip. "Which way did the Huns go?"
"Toward…toward the summit…"
Pyro stopped rolling gleefully in the ashes. "We've gotta go stop them!"
Robin gave Shang a thumbs-up. "Don't worry, Cap'n Shang! We'll thrash those Huns fer ya!"
… … …
"I hate these things." Angel ruefully swiped at some Rapid Thruster Heartless with a pitch-black sword. "They're almost peskier than Shadows."
Fireworks flew out of Neassa's staff, and destroyed a few more Rapid Thrusters. "Almost," she agreed.
Tolea shot five Heartless in a row. "At least we're almost done with them."
Yao, Ling, and Chien-Po entered the summit, carrying a fire cannon. "Stand back!" Yao ordered.
"We'll handle this!" Ling announced.
Mulan ran over to him and grabbed the fire cannon. "Thank you!" she said in her manly-ish voice. She ran a little higher up the mountain and dug the cannon into the snow, aimed at the peak. "Oh, a flint!" She looked around for something to use as a flint; Mushu caught her eye, and she picked him up. "Gotcha!"
Emma chuckled and snapped. The wick of the cannon was set aflame. "There, now everyone's happy." Mushu wiped his forehead, and Mulan giggled a little. Suddenly, the missile launched, with Mushu still on it. "Oops."
An immense avalanche occurred, and snow tumbled down the mountain. At that moment, Shang entered. "Captain!" Mulan exclaimed. She ran over and grabbed Shang's hand, pulling him behind a rock, and shielding him from the avalanche.
Mushu popped out of the snow, grumbling, "First she tries to use me as a lighter, then she turns me into a cannon ball! The head ancestor's gonna hear about this. You know, that's it! I give up! I can't take this no more. C'mon, Mulan. Let's quit this charade and go home, girl." He glanced up, and covered his mouth; Shang was watching.
Shang glared at him, then at Mulan. "You? A woman? It can't be!" Next, he glared at the Senshi. "You all knew that Ping was a woman in disguise, didn't you? The punishment for high treason and dishonoring the army…is death." He sighed. "Get out of my sight. You're all dismissed. Emma opened her mouth to protest, but Shang raised his hand to silence her. "It is too late for intervention, Qiónglong." He and his troops left the summit.
"Mulan, I blew it," Mushu apologized.
Mulan took off her armor. "It's all right. I'm sorry I got all of you into trouble. I guess I should go back home now."
Emma shook her head. "We have to go to the Imperial City. Shan-Yu is still alive."
Mulan didn't bother questioning the 'dragon' on her announcement. "We've got to warn Shang!"
… … …
"Shang!" Mulan called. The Imperial Army had just entered the palace walls. "Shan-Yu is alive! He's heading this way!"
Shang narrowed his eyes. "And why should I believe you this time?"
"She's telling you the truth!" Sora insisted.
A cawing noise echoed around the area, and Hayabusa, Shan-Yu's hawk, flew in circles above the palace. Shan-Yu was standing on one of its towers. "Guard the palace!" Shang called to his troops. "Do not let the enemy get anywhere near the emperor!" Only Yao, Ling, and Chien-Po ran through the doors. The other soldiers stayed put. "That's an order!"
The soldiers morphed into Heartless, leaving Shang speechless. "Captain!" Shang turned around. "We'll secure the courtyard! Save the emperor!" Sora yelled.
"That's an order!" Donald added. Shang nodded and ran into the palace.
Shan-Yu grinned evilly at the Senshi and Mulan as Hayabusa landed on his shoulder. "You think you can defeat me?"
Emma smirked, and the Fire Stone stopped glowing; she returned to normal. Mulan looked confused, but Emma ignored her. "Yeah! We're gonna kick your hunny butt!" She took the Beetle Charm out of her pocket. "BEETLEJUICE, BEETLEJUICE, BEETLEJUICE!"
A corpse-like man in a pinstripe suit appeared in front of Emma, floating in midair. "Hey! What's going on?"
"I summoned you," Emma responded simply. "And whenever someone summons you, you've got to help them, right?"
Beetlejuice scowled. "Not if I don't want to. What do I get out of the deal?"
"For starters, you get to kill someone."
"I'm listening."
"And I'll throw in a couple of porn magazines."
The ghost immediately shook Emma's hand, causing her to cringe. "You've got yourself a deal, babes. So, who do I get to kill?"
Emma gestured to Shan-Yu. "That guy. I don't care how you do it, but get rid of him, okay?"
Beetlejuice cracked his knuckles. "Let's turn on the juice and see what shakes loose!" He transformed into a giant snake with a humanoid head. "I'm gonna like this job!"
Dia put her hand over Jake's eyes as Beetlejuice made short work of the Huns' leader. Emma grinned. "Thank you very much, Beetle-"
Beetlejuice made a screeching noise. "Don't say my name!"
"Yeah, sorry. Thanks, um…you. How about BJ? It's sort of your initials."
"Whatever floats your boat, kid, as long as you don't say my name when you shouldn't be sayin' it. And I expect those magazines next time you summon me," Beetlejuice reminded her.
Emma nodded. "Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice!" The ghost promptly disappeared.
Mulan shook Emma's shoulder. "Qiónglong? You're not really a dragon, are you?"
"Huh? Oh, nope." Emma laughed. "I'm a human, just like you and everyone else here. Well, except for those guys," she amended, pointing out Donald, Goofy, Kaze, and Mushu. "And my name's not Qiónglong. It's Emma. But don't tell anyone else here, okay?"
"Okay," Mulan agreed.
A crowd gathered in the square as the emperor came out with Shang. "I've heard a great deal about you, Fa Mulan," the emperor announced. Emma hurriedly changed back into Pyromaniac form while nobody was looking. "You stole your father's armor, ran away from home, impersonated an Imperial soldier. You deceived you commanding officer, shamed the entire Chinese army, and dishonored your family name. You're a young woman. And in the end…" The Senshi and Mulan exchanged nervous glances, excluding the real-worlders. "…you have saved us all." The emperor bowed to Mulan, and the crowd cheered wildly. "Captain Li?" Shang picked up Shan-Yu's sword, and gave it to Mulan. "Take this, so the world will know what it is you have done for China."
"Actually, BJ did it," Sim whispered.
"Shut up!" Tolea whispered back.
Shang stepped forward. "Mulan? Sora? Donald? Goofy? Qiónglong? Dia? Jake? Riku? Kairi? Bernie? Robin? Er…all of you people? Thank you." Shang also bowed.
"Thank you?" the emperor repeated. "Is that all there is to say, Captain? If you wish to win the heart of Fa Mulan, China's bravest woman, you'll have to be a bit more eloquent than that!" Shang turned slightly red.
Shan-Yu's sword started glowing. Sora took out the Kingdom Key, and opened the gate. "Is it okay if we visit you guys sometime?" he asked when he was finished.
Mulan nodded. "Of course!"
Shang handed Sora a keychain. "I know it's not much, but you deserve some thanks too. I have something for you, too, Qiónglong." He gave Emma a rolled-up piece of paper. "I was told that if a girl came by, I was to give her this."
Emma bowed. "Thank you, Captain Shang."
Mulan waved at the Senshi. "Goodbye, guys!"
… … …
"What's the paper say, Emma?" Robin asked. "Anythin' worth havin'? If not, we could always sue Cap'n Crunch back there."
Emma unrolled the paper, and stared at it. "It says 'Tokumei' at the top. And there are holes on the left side…it looks like this is a page from someone's journal."
Sora looked up from his new Hidden Dragon Keyblade. "Like Ansem's Report?"
"It's probably something like that," Emma agreed.
Jake jumped up and down. "Read it! Read it!"
You know, I always thought that diaries were for girls. And I assure you, I'm definitely not a girl. But…I want people to know about what I'm going to do. Just in case people forget me, and there's nobody else to tell my story…I want to tell it myself.
There was talk of a prophecy…a prophecy that darkness will swallow up the worlds. It's something about some kids coming into the game and…oh, yeah! Get this! We all live in a game that hasn't even been invented yet! I don't entirely get it, and I don't particularly care. Anyway, some kids are going to come into the game so they can stop the darkness, along with some other kids from this universe. Whoo-hoo.
Have you ever heard of King Mickey and King Ansem? They're kind of strange, but I like them. King Mickey is a mouse. Yeah, a mouse. The way the guy sounds, you'd think he was weaned on helium. King Ansem is obsessed with sea-salt ice cream. It's scary how much he loves it. It's like oxygen to him. They've heard about the prophecy, and they want to make sure it comes true, so the worlds stay safe. Ansem's got a back-up plan; he and his assistants are studying the darkness, to see if it can be used to their advantage. Good luck with that, old man.
Mickey is considerably smarter, and decided to send three people from the game universe to the real world. Those poor saps have to make sure everything goes right, and keep an eye on the kids. Guess what?
I'm one of those poor saps.
Who are the two other people? One of them is a kitsune. A fox demon. The darkness chewed up her world and spat it back out, like, ten years ago. I hear she's sixty years old, but she looks sixteen. She lived in Traverse Town at the time. The other person was an Ivalician, from the town of Cyril, and an infamous thief. Getting sent to the real world is her punishment. She doesn't want to leave Ivalice; she likes the attention, the dumb broad.
Who am I, you might ask? I'd rather keep that classified. However, I don't want to be called "that crazy guy who's got a diary", so you, my dear reader, can call me Tokumei, "the anonymous one". It's got a nice ring to it, huh? Heh-heh. Well, I'm going to the real world tomorrow. Wish me luck.
Emma kept her eyes glued to the paper. "His writing style…and the fact that he had to go to the real world…" She looked up. "Guys…I think Tokumei is my dad."
… … … … … … … … …
FG: That was Chapter 3! In my opinion, that was the best chapter so far in CC3. The whole Qiónglong thing was really fun to write…and I've been waiting since the period between Chapter 27 of CC2 and Chapter 1 of CC3 to bring Beetlejuice in.
Emma: He's even creepier in person, though…
Beetlejuice: You flatter me, babes. And you still owe me those porno mags!
Everyone else: (sweatdrop)
Emma: Hopefully they have some at one of those shops in the Hollow Bastion marketplace.
FG: Yeah, but you're gonna look pretty weird buying porn magazines. 'Cause you're a girl.
Emma: (sighs) Yeah…
FG: Yeah. By the way, I finally finished rewriting the original CC! I fixed all of the typos and information mistakes…but wait, there's more! I also added some new scenes, and made the writing better! You don't have to, but I recommend that you read the new and improved "The Cheat Code". It's teh spiff! FG out, yo.