Kingdom Hearts: Re: Chain of days

Chapter 7: Castle Oblivion Part Two

Karma's Slave

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts

Warnings: Spoilers for Birth by Sleep, 358/2 Days and Chain of Memories.

Warning: Scene by Scene


They followed Aqua, whom was still running.

Aqua, panted as she ran, "Ven, I'm coming home" she thought. She could hear the others yelling to her, to slow down but she wouldn't. The keyblade master could feel something was wrong and that Ven was potentially in danger.

"Aqua!" Sora screamed to his master, as his chest felt like it was congested from all the running and a lack of breathing wasn't helping. The scenery around them was being to change as they continued further down this path. They sky went from the dark blue-purple starry night, to an all black sky; the ground looked like snow, with hints of light colors.

Moments had passed and soon enough Aqua had made it to her destination, Castle Oblivion, the incarnation of the Land of Departure, her home. Aqua simply stopped. Her muscles in her legs finally being able to be relaxed, Aqua stands overlooking the castle, Sora, Donald, and Goofy then walk toward the castle. Donald and Goofy say something to each other but Sora and Aqua couldn't hear it. Sora looks up at the castle and gasps slightly, wondering what's inside. He continues toward it but Aqua stops him by grabbing his arm.

"Sora, this castle isn't what it seems to be" Aqua began speaking to her student. He looked confused. "It is nothing but lies and illusions, a giant puzzle that only answers to its one true master that can see past the glamour of lies" spoke Aqua. Sora nodded, Goofy and Donald looked worried.

"And more importantly, it's the shell of my home world" added Aqua. Sora's blue eyes widen, "It was beautiful once, before Xehanort killed my master and engineered its destruction" Aqua spoke; the growing sad emotion was heard. Aqua could feel all that old hate, anger and pain, come back to her. Weighing heavy on her heart, "and now an intruder is running around my home" said the keyblade master

"Let's go" she then added as Aqua walked towards the castle, opening the door.


"Huh?" Said Donald. They all continue into the castle. Sora looks inside the castle. They all walk inside "Hey, ya think it's OK to barge in after all this time?" asked Goofy, clearly he and Donald hadn't tuned into Sora's and Aqua's earlier conversation. "But we got to do it, if we're going to find the king..." answered Donald, Aqua didn't bother to correct them. She was in a bad mood, at the thought of this intruder.

"The king?" Goofy is surprised and looks around the room "King Mickey's here?" said the stunned Goofy.

"Something just told me he'd be here, OK?" replied Donald

"Really?'Cause now that ya mention it, I was kind of thinkin' the same thing" responded the human like dog, "Seriously? Me too! One look at this castle, and I just knew Our very best friends-they're here." Exclaimed Sora,

"The castle is already causing its effects on them" thought Aqua

"A-hyuck! Guess great minds think alike." Said Goofy, Jiminy Cricket jumps out of Sora's shirt "Wait, hey, hold on! It can't be just a coincidence!" spoke the cricket.

"Oh no Jiminy, Ya don't mean that-"spoke Donald. "Yep, I had it too, mm-hmm! I had the exact same feeling" replied the speaking bug. "Gawrsh, maybe it's contagious" spoke Goofy, Aqua rolled her eyes. She choose to stay silent, she couldn't believe how quick the castle made Sora forget what she just told him.

"No, no. Something's screwy. We got to go take a look." Spoke Donald.

"All right" Agreed Sora, Aqua starts to walk toward the door at the end of the hall. Donald jumps "Wak! Where are you going?" exclaimed the duck.

"That way, to the door" replied Aqua, Sora had a chuckle at Donald's expense, "Ya scared?"

"Aw, don't be ridiculous! Come on, let's go, Goofy!" Donald covering up his natural set in fear.

"Hey, shouldn't we shut the door behind us before we go? Goofy turns around, "Aqua!" Goofy then cried out. The cloaked, hooded man appears in front of the entrance and the doors close "That's it! Who are you?" demanded Aqua as she summoned her keyblade; Sora grunts and summons his Keyblade. The others prepare for battle. The hooded man walks toward them

"Wak! Heartless! Oh yeah? I'll try some magic!" Donald waves his wand and yells "THUNDER!" No magic comes out. "Come on. THUNDER! THUNDER!" again nothing happens "Come on... Blizzard? FIRE!" and again nothing happens. The hooded man reaches them

Aqua's blue eyes widening, "Oh no, it took away their fighting abilities but Sora could still summon the keyblade so their abilities are defiantly hindered but by how much?"

"Why isn't it working?" panicked Donald.

I should think it's obvious. The moment you set foot in this castle, you forgot every spell and every ability you ever knew. In this place, to find is to lose and to lose is to find. That is the way in Castle Oblivion.

"Castle Oblivion?" asked Sora. Aqua coming up to the trio, the mystery man disappears in an aura of darkness, and reappears behind Sora. "Here you will meet people that you have known in the past. And you will meet people you miss." said the stranger.

"I miss? Riku! You mean Riku's here?" spoke Sora.

"If what you want...is to find him..." responded the stranger.

The man holds out his hand and gusts of wind and flower petals appear and are blasted at Sora, Aqua and the others are blindsided by the pink petals. Sora tries to block them with his Keyblade. The man then becomes transparent and flies through Sora. Sora then runs towards the man and jumps and slashes him, but the man disappeared leaving flower petals behind

"Huh?" was Sora's reaction.

The man reappears at the doorway at the end of the hall. Sora's group runs toward him

"What'd you do to him?" Aqua demanded.

"I merely sampled your memories. And from them, I made this." Spoke the man. The man now holds out a card in this hand. It depicts Traverse Town on it, "To reunite with those you hold dear." as he tosses the card to Sora, "What's this, a card?" asked Sora

"It is a promise for the reunion you seek. Hold the card to open the door and beyond it, a new world. Preceded Sora, to lose and claim anew, or to claim anew only to lose..."

The man disappears and Sora, Donald, and Goofy gasp. Donald, Goofy and Jiminy watch Sora, who's staring at the card

"C'mon, let's go." Said Aqua. Heading straight for that door, Sora walks to the door and holds up the card to open it. He then walks through,

"This can't be right... We're in Traverse Town!" shouted Sora.


"A door to the truth, huh" said a skeptic looking Riku, staring at the card in his semi gloved hand. The design on the card it's self was of hollow bastion. Taking his blue-green eyes off the card, he took in the lack of sights around and headed to the door, using the card in his hand to open it.

Stepping into the white light of the door, Riku found himself stepping out into Hollow bastion.

"What the?" Riku thought to himself, "This is Hollow Bastion" he said aloud, crossing his arms and putting on if his hands under his chin, thinking.

"What you are seeing isn't real; it is the world of your memory." Spoke a voice, "My memory?" Riku was confused.

"The things you remember from Malficent's castle became a card. And the card became this word. You've seen everything here before, haven't you?" said the speaking voice.

"Yeah" responded Riku, "So what now? Am I supposed to learn something from this? Maybe meet someone?" Riku asked the voice. "You would meet the people in your memories, ordinarily." Answered the voice, "what's that supposed to mean?" Riku shouted no answer. "Hey! I'm asking you a question!" he screamed looking at the pink-purple sky of Hollow Bastion.

"Fine… but it had better be you I run across next, Voice" declared Riku.

Riku was walking into one of the bedrooms in Hollow Bastion, "Wow, everything is just like how I remember it. Even this room" Riku speaking to himself.

"It must be nice being back in your old bedroom, think of all the memories." Spoke that strange voice, "You again, huh. Well let me tell you this, these memories I can do without." Riku said to the voice, "Maleficent gave me this room" the silver haired boy added.

"So she did, and you lived here tempted by the darkness. She offered you." Riku didn't say anything, "You casted away your home, your friends, and everything else…but at least they gave you a nice room. " Mocked the voice, "Shut up!" screamed Riku as he ran from the room.


Riku then found himself in another chamber of the castle that he came to know well as he was on an open balcony of the room where he tried to kill Sora for Kairi's heart.

"No one, here either. There's only heartless in this castle". Riku jumped down from the balcony landing on his feet. "Voice!" he shouted, "I know you're watching, so explain this!" shouted Riku. "Where are the people from my memories?" demanded Riku.

"So you want to see them?" asked the voice,

"Yes"

"But you casted them aside"

"What?"

"You dreamt of an outside world, you stepped through the door to darkness. Behind you, you left Family, friends, home and everything all in the pursuit of darkness."

"But I casted that aside too?" argued Riku.

"And what do you have to show for it? First you're home and then the darkness. Your heart only knows how to cast away, your heart is empty like that room and like your memories, that is why you don't meet anyone."

Riku did not speak, "Your heart is hollow expect for the residual darkness."

"You're wrong! I rejected the darkness." Screamed Riku

"Ha-ha-ha, did you really?"

"I knew you would return Riku" spoke the familiar villainess voice.

"You're alive!" yelled Riku

"You haven't been paying attention; I am but a figment of your memory." Spoke the fake Maleficent

"Of all the people I could have run it to, it had to be you" said Riku, clearly not thrilled at the sight of his former manipulator.

"But of course, after all your heart is steeped in darkness. You can only see those who exist in that same darkness. " Spoke the vile woman.

"No…"

"Boy, be grateful to you have someone to keep you company in your empty heart; where it not for the darkness you contain, you'd be completely alone." retorted the witch.

"Yeah, well that's sounding pretty good, right now!" Riku countered, "Come, now. You once turned to me to state your hunger for the darkness. You want me here, who but I can grant you the darkness you long for" said the witch.

"Alright, I admit there was a time, I did want you around. I surrendered my heart to the dark and that will never happen again, you and your darkness have nothing to offer me." Riku walking closer to Maleficent, "All I did was lose myself. Empty myself…I'm finished with that, if I'm stuck seeing people like you, people of the dark. I'll take you out one by one" vowed Riku

Maleficent taking a few steps forward, "well then you mustn't forget to destroy yourself last. For like, me, you are a part of the darkness." the witch spoke.

"That's fine with me, I turned to the darkness because my heart was weak; I hate that weakness, it's like I'm my own enemy. And seeing people like you embrace the darkness just makes it worse!" Riku summoned his dark keyblade, "enough talk, Maleficent" the boy screamed.

"So, you hate the darkness, enough to fight it!" said the fake Maleficent. "Oh. The agony you must feel, and then let me end your pain Riku…End it forever with the wondrous power of the darkness" she added, with a burst of her dark magic and green flames Maleficent transformed into her dragon from.

Riku knew how to fight her, he'd watch Sora and Master Aqua do it, and he knew how to handle her.


The Hooded man is behind Sora, "What you see isn't real." Sora turns around but the man disappears and reappears behind Aqua "This town is an illusion created by your memories ingrained in that card." the man moving again before Aqua could make a move.

"My memories?" said Sora still confused, as Aqua was calculating in her head on how to fight this hooded man. Jiminy hops down from Sora's shirt onto the ground and jumps up and down. "Forget about that, Sora! We lost Donald and Goofy!"

Sora turns around and looks around "Donald? Goofy? Guys, where are you?"

Aqua turned to the man "What did you do with them?" Aqua asked with keyblade in hand.

"They are at the mercy of the cards now. Master the cards, and their strength will be yours again. A Donald card appears on the field, "The laws of this castle require that your friends be transformed into cards. If you value your friends, you won't fail to pick them up." Sora picks up the Donald card

"Cards you pick up are added to the top of your stack. Use them, and your friends will come to your aid." Explained the hooded man; Sora uses the Donald card. Donald appears and casts two random spells

"The cards you use vanish, but they will reappear to aid you time and again. Cards are the hearts of your friends. Everything in this castle is ruled by cards. Whether an enemy or a door confronts you, cards are the only way to proceed. But you mustn't forget your own strength."

Aqua stayed put, she wanted to see how Sora was going to handle this, and as much as she wanted to help she couldn't. He would have re-learn everything on his own.

"First think for yourself. Move, and then use the cards. Sora uses his attack on the man, who is guarded from the attack, "You now know how to use your strength. But it would be of no use if you lose sight of your opponent. I wonder if you can catch me."

The man flies around Sora. Sora locks on to him

"Good. Every move you make causes a card to disappear. If you use up all your cards, you will be unable to act. But there is a solution. Keep using cards until you run out, and I will show you."

Sora uses up all of his cards, "You have no more cards, and without them, no power. If you want that power back, you must focus. Bid the cards return to you, and they will."

Sora reloads his cards, "The strength of your heart brought back the lost cards. You can recall spent cards at any time. You need only wish it. But each time you do, the cards will take longer to return. The cards are by no means unlimited. Use them wisely. Anticipate the flow of battle, and choose the most effective cards. You may use any card in your deck.

Aqua watched, "What is this intruder really up to?" thought the keyblade master.

Sora cycles through his cards "The four card types you use in battle are grouped into two wider categories. The first category includes attack cards, magic cards, and item cards. The second category consists entirely of enemy cards. To use cards from a different category "

Sora switches between card categories "Cards will empower you whether you are attacking or defending. But it is up to you to decide when to attack and when to defend. Do not forget that."

Donald and Goofy appear and run to Sora, "Are you two all right? Where have you been?" asked Aqua

"You tell us! When you opened the door, we saw a strange light the rest is just...blank." spoke Donald.

"Gee, that doesn't help. Try to remember what happened. I have to keep my journal up to date." Said Jiminy.

Goofy looks at his clothes and feels them "Hey, Donald, where'd I get the new clothes?"

"What?" Donald looks to his own outfit. "Me too, Goofy somebody's been messing with our clothes!"

Sora turned to the man "could it be the cards again?" "That is for you to ponder. Master the cards and make your way through the castle. But from here, you walk alone."

"Alone! We can't let Sora go alone!" said the concerned Goofy.

"Yeah! Sora can't do anything without our help!" chimed in Donald.

Aqua raised an eyebrow, "Excuse me, who stuck by him at Hollow Bastion when he lost the keyblade." Aqua said in her mind.

"Thanks a lot, Donald" Sora said sarcastically

"Sora needs do this, it's the only way" Aqua pitched in.

"You want me to go alone?" Sora asked his teacher with a bit of surprise,

"Sora, with the way this castle works, it really isn't much of a choice for us" responded Aqua.

"You sure you'll be okay?" asked Goofy.

"Of course!" Sora said before turning to the man, "Fine I can take care of myself."

"Hmph, the hero speaks boldly. Go, then. The rest of Castle Oblivion waits. Walk the avenues of latent memory, and you shall meet someone dear to you." The hooded man spoke before he disappears

"I've got a bad feeling about this..." said the Jiminy,

"Relax, Jiminy. I'm ready for any tricks he's got up his sleeve. How hard can it be to figure out these cards? All I have to do is use one in front of that door over there" spoke Sora as he headed towards the door.


End Chapter