In an unknown place, deep and dark, illuminated only by the bright, neon green glow from below, sat a white haired man on a large metal throne. He sat shirtless, which revealed his well toned and muscular body, and sand colored khaki pants with black boots.
He sat silently as the three mysterious people approached his throne, temporarily stopping to bow before him.
"So…" the man said softly, "…what was the outcome?"
"We, failed to capture any of the civilians…" the red woman replied in her Russian accent, "…they were well protected by the ones you referred to as the progenitors."
The man didn't even blink or react.
"That is of no consequence Crimson…Silver, did Transparent successfully infiltrate them?" the man asked the silver clad woman.
"Yes sir, the infiltration was successful…we can expect to receive the needed data soon." She replied.
"Excellent…have our forces stand down for now…we need to recover our numbers from the attack on that world…we will strike again soon enough." The man ordered as the silver one bowed and walked away followed closely by the other two.
Meanwhile.
"So you and Roxas sort of adopted each other as brother and sister?" Ven asked as our heroes, sans Hayner, Pence, and Olette, headed for the castle.
"Yes sir…it all happened when Roxas mentioned that we were total opposites yet we got along just fine. In essence…a pair of siblings." Cissnei explained as Lulu smiled.
"Sora has always made friends easily...I guess Roxas inherited that trait from him…along with other traits." Lulu replied as they reached the postern.
"Well…it's funny, the first time we met; he was somewhat hostile towards me." Cissnei said with a smirk as Roxas defended himself.
"Hey I was on my 'rite of passage' mission for the Organization and I had to follow the rules given to me." Roxas said as Cissnei gave him a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry Roxas…I understood when Axel and Demyx explained everything to me." She replied as she put her arm around his shoulder.
"How did they find out about you?" Terra asked the Turk as Roxas explained.
"You have to ask? Axel and I were nigh inseparable…we practically went on every single mission we had together…and Demyx was the only other guy the two of us trusted." Roxas explained as they entered the castle hallways.
"Come to think of it…there were two other people we trusted…but I can't remember who they are for the life of me." Roxas said as Cissnei arched an eyebrow and Namine quickly pulled her back slightly and gave her a hushed, shortened version of the reason behind Roxas's memory loss. Cissnei understood and kept silent.
Finally they reached the study where Demyx and Elena stood guard.
"Oh hey!" the Melodious Nocturne greeted as he saw them approach; "We've been waiting for you."
Elena then opened the door for them as they all trooped inside. Inside Rufus sat at his desk talking with Vincent, Leon, Marluxia, Zexion, and surprisingly…
"Cloud, Buddy!" Zack said as he saw the spiky haired blond in his usual black uniform, only now it was sleeveless and with black arm pauldrons on both shoulders. His uniform essentially resembled Zack's except with his own unique spin on it.
"Zack, long time no see." Cloud said with a slight smirk and a nod.
"So how's Tifa?" Zack asked.
"Good…she sends her best by the way." Cloud replied.
"Yet she sends you anyway huh?" Zack said as he playfully punched the blonds' arm.
"Shut up Zack." Cloud replied with a smirk as Rufus cleared his throat.
"As much as I would hate to break up this happy reunion, we have more pressing matters to attend to." Rufus said as he turned back to Vincent.
"Go on, please." Rufus said as Vincent nodded.
"The warriors we're up against…obviously don't know of our strength. Nor what security measures we have in place to prevent intruders." Vincent said as all those who were there already nodded and all the newcomers, sans Zack, scratched their head.
"Oh allow me to quickly summarize what happened last night for those of us who just arrived." Rufus said as he noticed the confused looks and quickly summarized what happened.
"So this hacker tried to get into the system but failed?" Terra said as Vincent nodded.
"That's where I was when you got up to take over the watch for me uncle Terra." Zack replied as Terra nodded.
"I gathered that." Terra replied as Aqua yawned.
"Anyway the descriptions of these soldiers are very familiar to me." Cloud said as Zack arched his eyebrow.
"Huh? How would you know?" Zack asked as Cloud turned to Aqua who was trying to doze off against the wall.
"Because ten years ago…Aqua was captured by one of Xehanort's henchmen and taken to their secret lair deep below the surface of what I assumed was Midgar…though I can't be certain." Cloud explained, "I stowed away in disguise and was able to infiltrate their ranks long enough to rescue Aqua and Kairi."
"I think I remember that…but I was really young at the time though." Kairi explained as Ven whispered in Demyx's ear. Demyx then splashed Aqua with a small sphere of water, waking the slumbering Knight in the process.
"The Olympus Coliseum!" She blurted as she awoke.
"Aqua we're not in history class…please try and stay awake?" Ven begged as Cloud quickly repeated what he had said for her.
"I wish I could say that I knew what Cloud was talking about but frankly I don't…I was locked up in a holographic facade of the Islands and never knew where I was." She explained.
"Wasn't there someone else who would come and visit you…much to your chagrin?" Cloud prodded as Aqua grabbed his arm and whispered in his ear…
"Kairi doesn't know…I want her to remember him in a good light." Aqua whispered as Cloud sighed and nodded.
"So what do you know about these new enemies of ours Cloud?" Terra asked.
"Well…they call themselves Deepground. They were led by two former members of SOLDIER…though that was when I had infiltrated them, and they said that they were, and I quote 'breeding' three new SOLDIERS from birth so that they will be strong and without hesitation…it's possible that the warrior Zack saw was one of them." Cloud explained.
"So…" Sora said as he broke his silence, "…what do we do in the meantime? Just sit around and wait for them to strike?"
"No. We fight!" Zack said as Marluxia sighed.
"With what army?" The Graceful Assassin asked.
"Simple." Cissnei said as they all turned to her with an arched eyebrow, "The World Regenesis Organization."
"The what?" A few people asked as Cloud nodded.
"She's right…The WRO is an Organization based out of the world of Edge…my new homeworld since the destruction of Midgar. If there's an army to be found, it's there." Cloud explained.
"It's also where the new SOLDIER headquarters is located." Zack added as Riku tapped his cousin's shoulder.
"You still have yet to explain what that is Zack." Riku said as Zack sighed and nodded.
"Like I said…Later." Zack replied as Rufus leaned back in his chair in deep thought.
"We're going to need as much help as we can get…" Rufus said as he looked at the Knights and their kin.
"I hate to ask this of you all; after all you've been through…" Rufus said as Ven held up his hand, silencing the man.
"No need to ask…that's what we're here for." Ven said as Aqua nodded.
"Yep…just tell us where to go and we'll go there." She added.
"No matter what danger or peril lay before us." Terra finished as Riku arched an eyebrow.
"Dad I think you're overdoing this whole heroic bit." Riku said as Fuu whispered into his ear…
"Ham." This caused the two to snicker.
"What about our family?" Aqua said as Sora nodded to the others and they summoned their respective weapons.
"I think we can handle ourselves." Sora said with a smile causing Ven to look at Lulu and shrug with a smile as she nodded in approval.
"While there is safety in numbers…I believe Sora and his friends have proven that there is no such thing as an age limit to heroes." Rufus said with a smile as a knock was heard at the door.
"Come in." Rufus said as the door opened and in walked a man with gray hair, beard, glasses, and wearing a lab coat.
"Ah Mr. Bradley glad you could make it." Rufus said as the man entered.
"How could I pass up the opportunity to work with my old Tron program again?" The man said as Sora gaped at the man.
"You created Tron?!" Sora said as the man nodded with a smile.
"My name is Alan Bradley. I created Tron ten years ago for Ansem the Wise with the intention that it would serve as his computer's main operating system. But one of my fellow programmers, the late Ed Dillinger, created a slightly more advanced program to do the job called…" "The Master Control Program?" Sora interrupted
"Exactly…how do you know?" Alan asked.
"Cause I helped Tron destroy the MCP six months ago." Sora said proudly as Alan blinked.
"How exactly did you help?" Alan asked.
"Some machine in the computer room is capable of pulling people into the computer and work on the inside." Sora explained as Alan face palmed with a smile on his face.
"Oh, I see the old Digitizing ray still works then." Alan said as Sora scratched his head.
"Is that what you call it?" Sora asked as Alan nodded and turned back to Rufus.
"I have a new program I would like to install on the system…It's designed to serve the same purpose as Tron but this time it's meant to work with Tron instead of police him." Alan explained as Rufus nodded.
"What do you call this program?" Rufus asked as he motioned for Tseng to lead the scientist to the computer room.
"It's called Mercury." Alan replied as he headed for the computer room but not before saying, "Nice to meet you all by the way," and moving on.
"Anyway…what do we do if we get the WRO to help us?" Roxas asked.
"Simple…" Ven said, "We do what we were chosen to do."
"And what would that be exactly?" Aqua asked in her typically playful manner.
"Go around to every world that isn't consumed by darkness and seal their keyholes." Sora said with a smile as Ven nodded.
"Perhaps we should split into groups..." Terra suggested, "…Ven, Aqua, Lulu, Aerith, and myself go in one group, while Sora, Riku, Kairi, Roxas, Fuu, and Namine go in another."
"And we all go around and seal the keyholes of the worlds?" Riku deduced as Terra nodded.
"Sir!" Cissnei said as she stood at attention, "...request permission to join Roxas's group sir."
"Request denied, we need you here Cissnei." Tseng replied as Rufus's eyes burned holes in Tseng's head…figuratively speaking of course.
"Tseng…I admire your sense of duty…but with both the new Turks and the old Turks present, I think we can afford to spare Cissnei for a while…besides we could use a pair of eyes and ears out there to give us some idea of what's going on." Rufus said as he smiled at the young woman, who smiled back.
"I'm going with Aqua's group…" Vincent said, but before Tseng could argue Vincent continued, "Need I remind you of the fact that I'm no longer one of you…not to mention the fact that I still possess the spirit of Chaos within me."
"He has a point." Aerith said with a nod, "He can practically smell the darkness where it lies…sort of like a hunting dog…and we could really use that right now."
"Who am I to argue with that?" Rufus said as a voice with a southern drawl spoke up from the hall leading to the computer room.
"And they ain't goin' nowhere without me." Cid said as he emerged with a smile on his face and a cigar in his mouth.
"I was wondering when you'd show up Cid." Aqua said with a smirk.
"Well I must confess that I'm not goin' solely for the sake of savin' the other worlds…but more like for vengeance against those SOBs for gettin' my homeworld!" Cid growled.
"Easy Cid, you'll get your chance." Ven said as the pilot calmed down.
"What about you Cous?" Riku asked as he nudged Zack.
"I don't want to make any promises that I can't keep…but if my superiors say that I can go with you, I won't even hesitate." Zack replied as a deep and familiar voice spoke up.
"And I shall lend my sword to the cause as well!" Auron said as he entered the room.
"Auron?! You're in on this?!" Aqua asked perplexed.
"Consider it my patriotic duty…and my opportunity to continue the only occupation that I have known…the role of the Guardian." Auron replied as Lulu smiled.
"It's the least we can do for him after all." Lulu said as Ven nodded.
"So-ra?" Wall-e said as he made his presence known.
"Sure you can come with us Wall-e…it wouldn't be any fun without you." Sora said as Wall-e made a happy wriggling noise.
"Well unless there's someone else who wants' to join us…I guess we should be going then." Ven said as Roxas looked over at the silent Zexion.
"What about you Zex…you were a great help to us last time." Roxas said as Zexion smiled but shook his head.
"As tempting as it sounds Roxas…I'm afraid my place is here…but I wish you well on your quest." Zexion replied.
"Well I tried." Roxas said with a shrug.
"Then let's get going…we'll rendezvous at Edge, and go our separate ways from there." Ven said as they started heading towards the landing pads.
"Ok who calls dibs on the Fahrenheit?" Ven asked as Cid smirked.
"Hey I've got myself a new gummy ship for us to use…she's fast and sleek…she can put the Fahrenheit to shame…and she's named after my one true love." Cid said with a smile as a mischievous look crossed Aqua's face.
"You named it the 'Earl Grey?" Aqua asked with a snicker as Cid's eye twitched and they entered the balcony area where the gummy ships sat prepped and ready for launch.
"Nope…" Cid replied as he pointed to a sleek new gummy ship landed on the pad adjacent to the Fahrenheit.
"She's a beaut', that's my Shera. The latest model!" Cid said as the group stood stunned as they saw the large craft.
"Whoa! You designed that thing?!" Sora said as Namine nearly started drooling.
"Yep sure did." Cid replied as they spotted the gummy ship's auburn haired namesake approaching.
"Shera. How've ya been." Ven said as she approached.
"Pretty good Ven…" Shera replied as she turned to her husband, "…the Shera is prepped for launch captain."
"She still calls you that Cid?" Terra asked surprised as Cid shrugged.
"Eh…you get used to it." He replied as they split off into their respective groups.
"Come with us Cloud, we can give Namine the directions to Edge." Zack said as the blond SOLDIER nodded.
"No need…" Namine said as they approached the Fahrenheit, "…Larxene had a copy of the latest star maps transferred to the ship's navicomputer…so we're good to go."
As Roxas and Cissnei approached the gummy ship, Cissnei looked over at Roxas and smiled.
"You know, I think this is the first time that we've ever been on a mission together." Cissnei said as Roxas looked at her.
"Yeah…but as I recall, I easily beat you the second time we met." Roxas said as Cissnei nodded.
"True, but considering that you can wield two Keyblades and use the element of light, I'd say I was outmatched as it is…however I have been working on my skills and I think I can handle myself pretty good now." Cissnei replied.
"Just don't get too overconfident Cissnei." Riku said as he overheard the conversation, "Like Zack's told me in the past…pride comes before a fall."
Cissnei nodded in understanding as they boarded the gummy ship to find M-O scrubbing along endlessly.
"Oh man we brought the Microbe Obliterator…YES!!" Zack cheered as said robot blinked for a moment then continued his cleaning.
"Mo"
On the bridge, Namine sat down at the controls as Cid's voice rang through loud and clear.
"Ok Namine we'll meet you at the rendezvous coordinates. Ya copy?" Cid said as Namine donned the headset.
"Ten four, Cid." She said as the two gummy ships roared to life and soared off over the canyon.
In said canyons, the people looked up to see the two gummy ships roar overhead. The people instantly knew what it meant. The heroes were on the move.
The people below all cheered as the gummy ships flew overhead and vanished in two streaks of light.
End Chapter 7.
Getting exciting isn't it?
