In this chapter, we will see why Ethan, Benny, Sarah, and Jesse became Heartless. And keep an eye out for a little reference in one of Ethan's visions. Don't forget to review!
Chapter 4
It was 1:00 in the morning as Sora, Riku, Kairi, Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Rory, and Erica arrived back at the Morgan's house with Ethan, Sarah, Benny, and Jesse still out cold from being consumed by the Darkness. Grandma Weir and Jane had put a special kind of curing potion into each of them to heal them.
They were all sitting in the living room with the seer, spellmaster, and vampires still out cold on the floor.
"So what do think Pete wants with the Lucifractor?" asked Kairi.
"Ultimate power?" guessed Rory.
"No, that thing can only destroy vampires. Or at least that's what Ethan told me before he and the others left to stop Stern." said Jane.
"Maybe Maleficent and Xehanort want it." guessed Goofy.
"Who?" asked Erica.
"The two bad guys Pete and a bunch of others work for." replied Donald.
Before anyone could reply, they all heard a groan. They all looked as Ethan and Sarah began to move.
"Oh man..." groaned Ethan, rubbing his head.
"What happened?..." groaned Sarah, rubbing her forehead.
"They're ok!" exclaimed Erica, excited, relieved, and quiet.
Just then, Benny and Jesse slowly got up.
"Oh man... what hit me in the head?..." moaned Benny.
"Benny!" exclaimed Rory, happily.
"Rory, I told you! Only Benny can 'Benny!'" retorted Benny before realizing what he just said. He looked around at each person. "Rory? Erica? Jane? Grandma?" he asked, confused.
"Well, it's about time you woke up Benny." smiled Grandma.
Benny smiled. "Ethan! Dude! We're ok! And our friends are back!" he told his best friends.
"What?" asked Ethan before looking at everyone.
"Glad you all are up." smirked Sora.
"And safe." added Mickey.
"Thanks..." replied Ethan, a little confused at the strangers in his living room.
"And who are you six?" asked Sarah.
Sora and Co. looked at each other before looking back at the four on the floor.
"I guess we have a lot of explaining to do." said Riku.
"In that case, I'll fire up the grill." said Rory.
"NO!" exclaimed Erica before calming down. "No. I'll start it. I learned how to." said Erica. And with that, she went towards the backyard with Jane following with some meat.
"Man, am I up late." Jane commented.
"Good thing our parents are away on business." remarked Ethan.
KH
Later in the kitchen, everyone was talking over steak and chips, with blood substitute drinks for Sarah, Erica, Rory, and Jesse.
"I just can't believe we tried to hurt you." sighed Sarah.
"It wasn't your fault, you never aced anything like that before." said Kairi, patting Sarah's back.
"And I can't believe Anastasia used her mind games on you two." sniffed Benny, angrily.
"Yeah, so not cool." agreed Rory.
"All the same, Sora, guys, thanks for saving us." thanked Ethan.
"So how did you guys become Heartless in the first place?" asked Goofy.
Ethan sighed. "It all started after the Lucifractor exploded." he began.
Flashback to a little while before the Lucifractor exploded:
Ethan, Sarah, Benny, and Jesse had just ran out of the Caller.
"The Lucifractor's gonna blow!" exclaimed Ethan.
"Where do we go to be safe?!" asked Benny, panicking.
"The Look-Out." replied Jesse. "It's the only room here that has special magic in it that can protect vampires. (turns to Ethan and Benny) You two won't be affected."
"Alright let's move!" cried Sarah, grabbing Ethan's arm as Jesse grabbed Benny's and they super sped to the Look-Out."
KH
As soon as they got to the Look-Out, Jesse slammed and locked the door quickly. Then, the explosion happened. Though none of the four got blasted, the vibration knocked them to the ground.
A few minutes later, they got up, completely unharmed.
"Is everyone ok?" Sarah asked, just to make sure.
"Yeah, we're good." replied Ethan.
"Think it's over?" asked Benny.
"Only one way to find out." replied Jesse, unlocking the door.
KH
Ethan, Sarah, Benny, and Jesse eventually made it back to the Caller.
"No sign of Stern." remarked Benny.
Then they noticed a pile of ashes.
"Found him..." muttered Ethan, meekly.
"Yeesh. Wonder what Principal Hicks will say when he finds out his new vice principal is dead." muttered Benny.
"The Lucifractor was too powerful. It killed him." remarked Jesse.
"At least all vampires are safe now." Sarah sighed in relief.
"And Stern is no longer a problem in Whitechapel." added Benny.
"Yeah. Come on, let's find Erica, Rory, and the others and tell them all is safe." suggested Ethan.
Benny, Sarah, and Jesse nodded. But just before they could leave, they saw a weird-looking shadow out the door.
"What's that?" asked Benny.
"A monster?" guessed Ethan, nervous.
"Maybe. Let's hide then see what happens." suggested Sarah.
The others nodded as they hid behind a bookshelf, just as an armored figure came in.
"Think he's friend, or foe?" whispered Benny.
"Don't know. But he looks like he's looking for something." whispered Sarah.
They then noticed the guy in armor hold a magical purple orb.
"The Lucifractor!" exclaimed Benny.
"Benny shh!" scolded Sarah and Ethan at the same time.
"Too late." muttered Jesse as the guy in armor turned around and saw them.
He began to walk towards them, until a Corridor of Darkness opened up, revealing a familiar being in a body suit and helmet.
"Uh, who're you?" asked Benny.
"Name's Vanitas." replied the masked man. "But that's none of your concern." he turned towards the guy in armor. "Hand over the Lucifractor."
The armored being then summoned a keyblade, and slowly backed away with the Lucifractor in hand.
Vanitas scoffed. "Very well then. If you won't hand it over to the Darkness, then I'll make you."
"Ok. Armor guy: friend. Guy with round helmet and bodysuit: foe." remarked Benny.
"Why do you even want the Lucifractor?" asked Sarah.
"Yeah, you have no idea what kind of power you're dealing with." added Jesse.
Vanitas smirked under his mask. "The Lucifractor has such a dark power. One that should be expanded to destroy those with light in their hearts. Turning them over to the Darkness." he replied, sinisterly. He then summoned Void Gear.
Ethan, Sarah, Benny, and Jesse glared as they stood beside the armored man.
"Well that won't happen, 'cause we're gonna stop you." said Ethan.
Benny pulled out his spell book. "Eat magic, Helmet-Head!" he taunted before saying a spell in Latin. "'Annihilare tenebrositas creatura!'" he shouted as red magic flew from his hand towards Vanitas, who unfortunately dodged it easily.
"Looks like a battle is about to commence." said Benny.
Ethan pulled out a dagger and Sarah & Jesse brought out their fangs.
Vanitas smirked as Unversed appeared. "Let's dance losers." he taunted.
The battle began with Ethan slicing Unversed with his daggers, Benny and the armored keyblade wielder destroying them with spells, and Jesse & Sarah took the fight to Vanitas.
But in the end, although the Unversed were destroyed, Ethan, Sarah, Benny, and Jesse found themselves defeated on the floor by Vanitas, and the armored being flung against the wall, Lucifractor in hand. The four Whitechapel residents tried to get up, but to no avail.
Vanitas smirked. "Time for some new followers. Then I take the Lucifractor and leave." he said to himself as he used Void Gear on Ethan, Benny, Sarah, and Jesse, sending their hearts to Kingdom Hearts, and making their bodies disappear to the Darkness.
Moments, later, Heartless versions of the four appeared in front of Vanitas. Just then, another corridor opened, revealing Young Xehanort.
"Good work Vanitas. Now we can get the Lucifractor, and bring it back to Maleficent, and my older self." mused Young Xehanort.
But as the two turned around, the noticed the armored being gone.
"Great." groaned Vanitas.
"No matter. I was sent to retrieve you anyways. We are needed for another meeting once again. Maleficent says she will be sending another one of our allies to get the Lucifrator as soon as Sora and his companions enter this world, so they can be disposed of." said Young Xehanort.
"Very well." sighed Vanitas. He turned to the new Heartless. "Let's go."
And with that, the six disappeared through a Corridor of Darkness.
Back to present day (or night):
"Since then, we were used as regular Heartless in Pete's scheme to find the Lucifractor." finished Ethan.
Sora, Riku, Kairi, Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Rory, Erica, Jane, and Grandma stared at the four in shock.
"Whoa..." remarked Sora.
"Gosh..." agreed Mickey.
"So that explains why Pete was looking for the Lucifractor." remarked Goofy.
"To increase it's power so it can destroy more than just vampires." finished Riku.
"Did they ever tell you anything else before you attacked us?" asked Kairi.
The four thought for a bit. "Well..." began Ethan. "They did say something about world-travelers coming to Whitechapel to protect it from Darkness."
"Wait. World-travelers?" asked Erica.
The Whitechapel residents all turned to Sora, Riku, Kairi Mickey, Donald, and Goofy who all softly gasped.
"Cool! No wonder they kind of have powers like us, they're form other worlds!" exclaimed Rory.
"What?! No, w-we're not!" lied Sora, panicking.
"Nice try, we know the bad guys were talking about you guys." smirked Sarah.
"Yeah, even I figured out the travelers were you guys, even as a Heartless." chimed in Benny.
Sora and his friends all looked at each other nervously.
"Aww, busted again." sighed Goofy.
"Should we tell them the truth?" asked Kairi.
Mickey sighed. "I guess."
"If they keep figuring it out, we might as well get rid of the order." remarked Sora.
Riku sniffed in amusement before looking back at the Whitechapel residents. "It's true we're from other worlds. Me, Sora, and Kairi grew up on one called, Destiny Islands, and Mickey Donald and Goofy are from another called, Disney Castle." he told them.
Erica huffed. "I knew you guys were form somewhere, why didn't you tell us?! We trusted you!" she shouted, indicating herself and Rory in that sentence.
"To protect the order." replied Goofy.
"What order?" asked Jane.
"The order that prevents people knowing the existence of other worlds I assume." replied Grandma.
Everyone stared at her in shock.
"That's-That's right!" exclaimed Mickey.
"How do you know about the order?" asked Riku.
Grandma smiled. "As an Earth Priest, we helped protect the World Order. I was always making sure no one tried to damage it." she answered.
"Wait... Grandma Weir... You're Evelyn Weir? One of those Earth Priests?" asked Mickey, surprised.
"That's right." she smiled.
"Grandma, why didn't you tell us?" asked Benny, a little hurt.
"It was our responsibility to protect it and keep it a secret, except from out loved ones." she replied. "I was going to tell you after I told you you were a spellmaster, but things kept popping up. As well as to the fact, I retired early when I was about to have a baby. Your father." she added.
"Wow! We actually know a famous Earth Priest!" exclaimed Goofy.
"Anyway, the idea of the existence of other worlds has to be kept a secret." continued Sora, before smirking. "Even though no one really cares. After all, it's not like they'll actually find the worlds." he added.
"He's right." Mickey chimed in.
"Plus, you can't really blame them for keeping it from you guys." said Ethan, taking their side. "After all, we all have our own secrets to hide too." he added.
"How so?" asked Donald.
"None of our parents or normal fellow residents know about our supernatural powers." replied Sarah. "The only ones that know are the eight of us supernatural folk, fellow vampires, the now deceased Stern, and any other monsters we defeated."
"I guess you have a good point." sighed Erica. "Sorry." she told them, feeling a little weird saying that.
"It's ok. We understand." replied Sora.
"Anyways, what do think the armored person wants with the Lucifractor since he has it know?" asked Goofy.
"Maybe to hide it so the Darkness can't find it?" guessed Benny.
"That's most likely. But it's also more likely that Pete will return to claim it since he said he'd be back." theorized Mickey.
"And no doubt he'll bring Heartless too." added Riku.
"So what do we do?" asked Rory.
"We find the Lucifractor, destroy it, and take the fight to Pete if he shows up." said Ethan.
"Good plan. I like your style Ethan." complimented Sora.
"Thanks." chuckled Ethan.
"And maybe even find out who the man in armor is." suggested Jesse.
"If we ever find and/or catch him." said Sarah.
"It looks like we're gonna need some extra potions for this." remarked Kairi.
Benny snapped his fingers. "I can get started on them by using my spell book."
"I can help." volunteered Sora.
"Me too." volunteered Ethan.
"Then I suggest some of you spend the night here and some of you at Benny's." suggested Grandma. "This world is counting on you all to protect it from the Darkness."
"Alright then. Sarah, Rory, Erica, and Jesse, you guys sleep out in the living room. Riku, Kairi, Mickey, Donald, and Goofy, you sleep in the basement. Jane, your usual room. I'll spend the night with Sora, Benny, and Grandma at Benny's making extra potions before bed." said Ethan.
"We leave at dark tomorrow. That's most likely when they'll strike." said Mickey.
"And I'll man the house." said Jane, confidently.
"With my supervision." added Grandma.
"And you all can tell us your stories about your adventures tomorrow!" suggested Rory, excitedly.
"We'll see how things happen." said Sarah.
And with that, everyone left the kitchen.
KH
Outside, Sora, Ethan, Benny, and Grandma walked to Benny's house, next door. Benny and his grandma went inside while Sora asked Ethan to wait behind with him for a second.
"Say Ethan, I was told you get visions. Think you can get one through me?" he asked.
Ethan shrugged. "Wouldn't hurt to try." he replied.
He toughed Sora's shoulder, just as his eyes went white.
Ethan's vision:
A five-year-old version of Sora is seen. A small, shiny orb flies towards him.
"Hello? Can you hear me?" he asked.
"I heard your voice. It cut through the darkness around me. All alone, I followed the sound, into a sea of light... and found myself here, with you." said the orb.
Sora reached out to the orb.
"You gave me something back when I needed it most. A second chance" said the orb.
"I did?" asked Sora as the orb floated above his hands.
"But... now I have to go back asleep again." said the orb, sadly.
"Are you sad?" asked Sora.
"Would you mind if I stayed here with you?" asked the orb.
Sora smiled. "Sure, if it'll make you feel better." he replied.
"Thank you." said the orb.
And with that, Sora guided the orb into his heart.
Back to the present...
Ethan flinched as his eyes returned to normal.
"What did you see?" asked Sora.
"I had a vision of the past." replied Ethan. "It was a younger version of you, guiding a talking orb into your heart."
"Weird." remarked Sora. "Now that I think about it, that memory's starting to come back. That orb sounded a bit like Roxas."
"Who's Roxas?" asked Ethan.
"I'll explain tomorrow. Lets get to work on those potions and get plenty of sleep." suggested Sora.
Ethan smiled and nodded as he went inside Benny's house.
Sora followed as he then heard a voice in his head.
"You think it's Roxas. But it isn't."
"Who's there?!" he asked.
No reply.
Shrugging it off, Sora entered the house. He knew before he and the others got ready to sleep, they'd have to prepare themselves. The search for the Lucifractor and protecting this world would start tomorrow.
To be continued...
One more chapter to go! And here are the Latin words in Benny's spell translated:
Annihilare - Destroy
Tenebrositas - Dark
Creatur - Creature
Don't forget to review!
