Chapter 03: The Mastery
Deeper, and deeper he traveled. For days— maybe weeks— he kept his steady pace into the darkest, coldest depths of the dreary darkness. He walked past the ruins of dead worlds, the festering birthing grounds of Heartless, and nameless abysses that seemed to stretch for eternity. To even the most determined heart, it was a seemingly endless, hopeless path into oblivion.
But he knew better. He felt himself growing ever closer.
Or perhaps he was already there?
Either way, with every step he took, he felt the cold pulse of the ultimate darkness. When the pulse grew strong, and the darkness thick, he finally stopped. A smirk of satisfaction slowly formed on his lips, and his golden eyes ascended to peer into the swirling mass of purple and black. He'd finally arrived.
"A beautiful sight indeed." His deep voice rang throaty and deep in the empty darkness. He focused his powers of darkness towards the swirling mass above, and watched a winding staircase formed before him — one step at a time.
Thanking his genius for acquiring a younger body, he ascended the steps towards his final destination. "A world that will exist as long as the Heartless, and the eternal accumulation of every world swallowed up by the darkness." His monologue served as his entertainment, as he grew ever closer to the vast mass of dark energy.
Finally, he stepped onto the glassy surface of a vast vortex with a satisfying click of his boot. He smiled with absolute admiration as the field of blue clouds that swirled into a hungry black-hole below his feet.
He ventured towards the center of the vortex, weaving around floating bits of mountain rock to arrive above the eye of the black-hole. At its center, a short flight of stairs led up to a grand throne big enough to seat a being twice his size. "Soon," he muttered to himself, "I can sense the battle's end."
So, he waited at the End of the World.
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The sharp sound of Keyblade meeting Keyblade filled the dusky badlands that acted as home to the Keyblade Graveyard. Atop the plateau created for their battle, Sora continued to struggle against the renewed Keeper of the Keys.
"Defend!" Sora formed a protective bubble of glass-like magic to shield himself from the relentless strokes of his foe.
The Keeper struck the bubble once and flipped back, avoiding the recoil upon the spell's collapse. "Using a Reflect spell to give yourself some distance." The Keeper smirked and assumed the same Stance of the Heart as before. "At least you're confident in the basics."
"Just who are you?" Sora gasped for air, exhausted from trying to keep up with the knee-jerk speed of the Keeper. His movements before had been calculated, but moderately slow. Now, Sora could barely keep him in his sight.
Keyblade held horizontally with both hands, the Keeper shrugged. "I actually don't remember, but if we keep this up, I think it'll only be a matter of time." He freed one hand of his key and held his weapon low while pointing it towards Sora. His empty hand hovered over the Keyblade, open-palmed. "Haste Stance."
"I hope this works." Sora raised his hand and summoned Oathkeeper. He assumed his Valor Form's stance and readied himself.
"Two Keyblades," the Keeper smirked, "at least you're thinking!" He charged Sora at an inhuman speed. He drove his key forward in a thrust. Sora sidestepped the attack and went to retaliate with a swing of his Kingdom Key. However, the Keeper's empty palm stopped Sora's swing by palm-striking his wrist.
Sora flinched in surprise, and tried to recover by turning to swing his Oathkeeper. The sharp sound of his key hitting another metal object pierced the air, and Sora knew he had been parried. "Fire!" He instinctively summoned wisps of powerful flames to encircle him, hoping to push the Keeper away by damaging him.
The strategy worked, but the Keeper's newfound speed let him escape harm. As if phasing backwards ten paces, the Keeper disappeared and reappeared in the same crouched position he identified as the Haste Stance.
"Kalani." The Keeper stood up, breaking his stance to gaze up in realization.
Having long given up on fully understanding, Sora waited for his enemy to make a move.
The Keeper of the Keys chuckled and looked down to meet Sora's eyes. "I just remembered my name is Kalani." He gave Sora a large grin and sent his Keyblade away with a flash of light.
Suspicious, Sora relaxed, but kept his Keyblades in hand.
The Keeper, now identified as Kalani, raised his empty hands and continued to grin. "No tricks Sora, we're done fighting." He stretched his long limbs to the sky and scratched his hands through his short hair. "Now that I actually remember more, wanna repeat some of those questions you asked me?"
Honestly, Sora didn't know where to start. Between finally putting a face to the voice that helped him in the Dive Into the Heart and fighting who is now the strongest keybearer he'd ever met, he had a hard time picking which to ask first. Through his scrambled mess of thoughts, he managed to ask, "What was all that about?"
Kalani's grin grew to reach his pierced ears. "This was the final test of your own, personal Mark of Mastery." He flicked his wrist and sent a small spray of sparks into the air above his index finger. "Congratulations, you pass!"
Sora's jaw fell open and his shoulders sagged. His Keyblades vanished, leaving him to gape at the man who had been aiming to take his head off moments ago. "Huuuuuuh?"
"You are now officially a Keyblade Master, certified and proven."
"So," Sora glanced around, "is that it?"
Kalani scratched his cheek and laughed awkwardly. "Well, no. As a master, you are now privileged to certain secrets and stuff, but I'll leave that to whoever set up the test for you in the first place." He clapped his hands and walked around Sora, "What I'm going to tell you, is that you, my friend, are not just any old Keyblade Master."
"There are different kinds?" Sora yelled in disbelief and groaned. "Why do people always wait to tell me all the details?" He shook his head and looked back at Kalani, "So what kind am I?"
"You're the Keyblade Master to inherit my Mark." Before Sora could react, Kalani poked him in the chest, injecting a brief flash of golden light into Sora's heart.
The young keybearer stumbled about, suddenly feeling his body go weak. He muttered incoherently, as he began to lose consciousness while still on his feet.
"And remember Sora," Kalani's voice cut through the haze of his consciousness, "you are the one who will open the door." With those words echoing in his head, Sora's vision was covered with black.
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"I see I have an uninvited guest before me." A deep voice boomed with aggravation, like the low growl of a frustrated tiger.
Golden eyes opened, as their owner awakened from his deep well of thought. He met the steady gaze of the being seated on the throne and smirked. "Ah, I see you have returned Chaos."
The demon deity named Chaos snarled. He sat slumped in the grand seat of power. His horned head was propped against his large fist, lips curled around curled tusks. His eyes, red as blood, glared down upon the human who dared stand before him with such confidence. "And who are you to address me so? Human." He spat.
"Of course, I forgot that I no longer bear the same appearance since last we met." He bowed before Chaos and answered, "I am your old friend, Xehanort."
Chaos snorted, but his shoulders relaxed to show he was less on the verge of lashing out. "Yes, the old Keyblade Master who consulted with me many years ago." He paused to examine Xehanort's younger body and clearly different face. "I see you used your Keyblade's abilities expertly."
"Indeed," Xehanort clenched his fist in front of his face, "this body was a fine choice. Compatible with the darkness, and capable of holding great power."
"Right." Chaos agreed, though with far less interest than Xehanort. "To what do I owe your ill-timed visit, Xehanort?" His large, demonic wings flinched before settling in behind his broad shoulders.
"I came to call upon your gracious aid in my plans." The renewed keybearer of darkness examined his fingers absently. He hardly noticed the low growl from the deity of destruction.
"Your timing is deplorable."
Xehanort chuckled. "Oh, I am fully aware that you just suffered another defeat at the hands of Cosmos's wisely chosen warriors." His voice danced through the dark End of the World like silk. "What I offer, is a way to take advantage of her weakened state, instead of waiting for the next contest to occur."
Chaos lifted his head from leaning against his fist. He said nothing, but he was clearly interested.
"Kingdom Hearts." Xehanort proposed to Chaos. "By forging the x-blade, we can use Kingdom Hearts to forever exalt the darkness above the light." His smirk coiled and grew when he saw Chaos considering it.
"And," the giant deity spoke low, "what would you have me do in this... scheme?" His red eyes narrowed in suspicion.
Xehanort chuckled and looked up. "I seem to recall trying to use the residents of various worlds to further my goals. However," his smirk grew bitter, "that ended in failure." Xehanort's golden eyes flicked down to meet Chaos's piercing gaze. "I simply seek a more... capable pool of allies from your reserve."
"And what makes you think that my warriors, who just proved incapable of being victorious over Cosmos's forces, will serve you any better?" Chaos leaned back in his throne.
"Please." Xehanort had to suppress a laugh. "Narrow-minded sorceresses hellbent on foolishly controlling the Heartless may be well within the boy-keybearer's means." He ran a hand through his white spikes, "But even the weakest of your numbers will prove too much for him and his poor excuse for allies."
Chaos mulled this proposal over carefully. He could not deny Xehanort's evaluation. "Very well, I shall lend you aid from among my numbers." The deity waved his hand. "It is done."
"Very good." Xehanort smirked.
"But be warned," Chaos interrupted Xehanort's internal satisfaction, "not many of my warriors are easily controlled." He spotted a look of annoyance pass over Xehanort's face. "Instead, I will tell of where to find more... loyal aid."
The Keyblade Master of Darkness raised his eyebrow at Chaos's words. "I am listening."
Chaos waved his hand again, forming a Corridor of Darkness. "Travel deeper into the Dark Realm. Linger long enough, and they will find you. They have long haunted the deepest corner of this realm. You'll need to do much to coax them into stepping into the light once more."
"Oh? And what makes these hermits of the darkness of any use to me?" Xehanort raised an eyebrow, voice dripping with curiosity.
The deity of destruction laughed thunderously. "All I need to say is that the Heartless do not dare go near them." He returned into a more relaxed position on his throne, as Xehanort neared the corridor, "Be careful my friend."
Xehanort paused.
"The ones you now seek are very... fond of hearts." Chaos laughed once more. His booming laughter followed Xehanort through the corridor, and echoed as he found himself back in the lifeless shadow of the dark realm.
Or at least... he assumed it was lifeless.
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"Hey look, he's waking up!"
"It's about time, geez can Kairi call it."
"Gwarsh, I thought he was gonna be out for another few days."
"Not after three shots of potions."
Sora slowly awakened from the darkness of unconsciousness, his head throbbing at the voices that hovered over him. He rolled his eyes from one side the other, trying to wipe away their sting with the back of his eyelids. "Ugh," he groaned.
"Hey, wake up already you bum." A voice that could only belong to his best friend, Riku, teased from above.
"Stop yelling." Sora whined and sat up into a sitting position. Head throbbing, he looked around drowsily to find out where he was now. To his relief and confusion, he was sitting in the middle of Yen Sid's study in the Mysterious Tower.
A bellflower filled with a healing light dumped its power over Sora, courtesy of his feathered friend standing at his side. "Thea, how doesh that feel?" His lisp made his question difficult to decipher, but Sora was long used to translating "Donald-speak" into some form of english.
Offering his friend an appreciative grin, Sora hopped to his feet and stretched. "Lots better." He swung his arm around the duck's neck and started rubbing his knuckles into his head. "Thanks Donald."
Said royal mage wrestled out of Sora's hold and quacked in indignation. He started chasing the newly awakened islander, threatening him with Thunder spells.
All the while, Riku, Goofy, and King Mickey laughed at the scene. Yen Sid, ever the calm sorcerer, allowed a ghost of an amused smile. With a wave of his bony hand, a magical force separated Sora from Donald and called for the attention of his guests.
"Riku," Yen Sid called, "please step forward." The silver-haired keybearer obediently stepped forward. It was the moment of truth. "Your trial is complete." He saw Riku's posture grow stiff with anxiety. "You have shown great power while wielding the Keyblade, wit and attentiveness when dealing with the denizens of the dark, and displayed control over the darkness that sleeps in your heart."
Mickey smiled towards the young man, agreeing with every word.
"Congratulations Riku," Yen Sid smiled, "you have proven yourself worthy to bear the Mark of Mastery."
A look of relief passed over Riku's expression. His shoulders fell, liberated of the tension that had paralyzed his body. "Nice." He chuckled when he felt Mickey hug him in excitement. "It was no big deal."
Sora rolled his eyes. "Uhuh, always trying to be the cool guy." Everyone took the opportunity to congratulate Riku, with Sora being the last to knock fists with his island buddy.
After the laughter subsided, silence hung in the air of the Mysterious Tower. Yen Sid nodded his head and leaned back in his seat. Minutes ticked by, and nothing happened.
"Um... Master?" Mickey finally questioned.
"Yes?" Yen Sid looked down at the mouse, oblivious to whatever could be wrong.
Goofy scratched the back of his head. "Gwarsh, aren't you forgettin' somethin' Master Yen Sid?" He tried to subtly point to Sora... who was pointing to himself with an expectant grin.
The aged sorcerer looked at Sora... and stared. Like a puppy waiting to be fed, Sora just stared back with big eyes and an equally large smile. "I'm afraid I do not follow." Yen Sid looked to Mickey for clarification.
"Master, did Sora pass his trial?" Mickey nudged his head towards Sora, insisting his old teacher to give Sora what he wants.
Yen Sid looked at Sora and squinted his normally bugged-out eyes. "But you already received your answer." He stroked his gray beard, "If anything, you should tell us, Sora."
Sora stared at the sorcerer, jaw slack and eyes gleaming with disbelief. "Wait." His hands shot up to bury themselves in his spiky, brown hair. "All that was for real!"
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