Well, after a bit of a hiatus, I am back with a new chapter. I hope you enjoy.

I don't own Kingdom Hearts and/or Disney.

Mortem belongs to YamiChaos27.

Special thanks to Flautist4ever for editing this.


Chapter 7: Into the monstrous

JASON'S POV

Motunui…

"These are boats?" I asked when I saw what Moana planned for us to sail on. "They're little more than rafts." My comment earned me another whack on the head from the stingy old duck.

"Oh, these vessels are seaworthy." Hina told me. "I've spent countless nights watching over the people as they sailed across the sea on these."

After giving me a look, Moana got on one that had a spiral pattern on the sail. The way she touched it made me think of how a soldier would touch a trusted weapon or vehicle. But that did not change the fact that they were incredibly primitive.

Getting up on one of the boats, the elder duck tapped the side with his cane. "Oh, these are excellent crafts for sailing. I've had to make do with less than adequate in my time. Like this one time I was searching for the legendary..."

"Save the story for later." I said. "Let's just go find Hina's squeeze and get this over with."

I then felt a pair of eyes burrowing into me. "Take heed, Jason Norman. It is not wise for a mortal to offend a goddess."

Humphing, I turned to make a retort when something hit me in the head. With a grunt, I looked around to find a conch seashell lying on the beach. Picking it up, I looked at the others. "Who threw this?"

"Don't look at me." Clair said while the others denied any involvement. With a frown, I threw it into the ocean and turned to get on a boat. However, something hard hit me again! Turning with a growl, I found the same seashell lying in the sand. "What in Gri's name is going on?" I asked as I picked it up and threw it back at the water.

That's when the craziest thing happened. A small wave of water reared up out of the still surface and grabbed the seashell like a hand. Before I had time to say or do anything it threw the seashell back at me, hitting me in the face and knocking me on my back on the sand. "What the perdition is going on?"

"Swear." Clair mouthed at me while Scrooge laughed his head off at that. Frowning, I moved to grab the seashell to throw at the old duck. However, the ocean grabbed it first and pulled back, holding it up like it was taunting me. Frowning, I ran over to grab the seashell, but it just kept pulling back, dividing the water like it was creating a path for me.

Oh, for Gri's sake. I ran down the path, trying to get the seashell back so I could throw it at Scrooge. However, there was a swirling sound behind me, and when I turned I saw my path had been cut off and I was standing in the only dry spot with the water surface ten feet above me. "Oh no." I realized too late what was going to happen.

The water came crashing down on me, and I had to hold my breath to keep myself from drowning. The ocean spun around me, threatening to make me lose my lunch and my air. Then, it rushed by me so fast I felt like a torpedo in the water, and thought I was going to crash against some rocks. What happened instead was I was launched out of the water screaming, I'm not ashamed to admit it because that was freaky, and crashed on the deck of one of the boats. The seashell then crashed on my head.

"Oh, come on!" I yelled at the ocean, only to get a squirt of water to my face.
I heard laughter coming from Scrooge, and I saw he was working to support himself on that cane as he did so. "Oh that was the best thing I had seen since I became your chaperone. Bless me bagpipes, I'd have paid good money to see that."

While I got up, Clair turned to Moana. "What just happened?"

"The ocean is a friend of mine." She said with a smirk while giving a wave of water a high five, furthering my agitation.

Rolling my eyes, I said, "The ocean isn't anyone's friend. It's an inanimate object, just a large body of water that—." I was cut off as the ocean raised its wave hand thing up and slammed it down on me. Growling, I turned to the ocean. "Quit it!" Great. Now I was arguing with water like a crazy guy.

"I did warn you." The moon goddess said. "I too am on good terms with the ocean."

After a few more laughs, Scrooge regained his composure. "Now, then. Shall we set sail?"

"Yes." Hina said as we all got off the boats and pushed them into the ocean. Once they were in deep enough we all climbed back on and looked forward.

Clair, who was on the same boat Scrooge and I were on, looked over at Hina. "So how do we find your husband?"
The moon goddess pointed at a cluster of stars in the distance. "See that group of stars? That's how we find him. They always move to show which direction he lies in." Her words made me look, and I saw they formed a constellation unlike any back home. The image that came to my mind was a giant hook.

"All right, everyone. Pull the sheet." Moana told us, though only the elder duck made any movement on our boat. Looking at my cousin and I, she asked, "Do you two know how to sail?"

"Will you be mad if we say we don't?" Clair asked.

With a chuckle, the old duck looked over. "Oh, there's nothing to it once you've mastered the basics. Consider this your lessons in Sailing 101."

"Wayfinding 101." The chief corrected him. "First thing to remember is it's about knowing where you're going by knowing where you've been."


MORTEM'S POV

Traveling across the ocean took less time thanks to the craft I was now riding. I had been pondering my problem when my Keyblade activated, and turned into some sort of flying vehicle. A Keyblade Glider, the name had come to my mind. How I knew that was beyond me. All I knew was I was making great time in getting to my destination.

I had flown all day and all night, and my skin was really burnt from the sun. That guy better have something to cure it or I was going to kill him for letting me get like this. It had been a clear night, but I didn't care for the sights. I wanted to get to this anomaly in the Hearts of Light, and figure out what it was.

I could see the sky getting lighter in the distance. Dawn must be approaching, which would mean another day of flying in the hot blistering sun. I was not enjoying this world in the slightest. Why was there so little land? I hadn't seen any islands since I left the one I had started out on, and unless the inhabitants were aquatic I didn't see how anyone could be living here.

Whoa. What was that? I could see something coming up in the distance, hidden in the night although the light of the sun was starting to make it out. It appeared to be a mountain of some sort jutting out from the water like a broken bone. Using my powers, I saw the light I was seeking… underneath it? Maybe it was a dormant volcano or something that I could get down to claim my prize.

Flying up to the top of the mountain, I frowned as I saw it was not a volcano, but a regular mountain with a top… no, not a top. Some sort of face carved into the top, which felt like it was supposed to warn people to stay away. Well, I knew what I needed was under that mountain, so I needed to figure out a way to get down. Landing, I dismissed my glider while I knelt down to observe the markings. Maybe there was a clue as to how I would get past this obstacle and to the light.

"You know, most mortals wouldn't dare to come here." A voice said behind me. Turning, I saw a huge man standing there. This guy had muscles on his muscles, so there was no way he could be human. Tattoos ran across his body like a personal art gallery, as black as his long curly hair. This newcomer was dressed in a skirt made of leaves and had… was that a giant hook? That was supposed to be his weapon?

As silly as this guy looked, I doubted he was someone to take lightly. "I seek something. Something that is under this island, and I'm going to get it no matter what."

"Kid, I don't know what you want, but if you go to Lalotai, you're going to die." The figure said. "As a hero to all, I can't let some mortal go and get themself killed just so they can boast about it to their friends."

"I'm not doing this to boast to my friends. I don't have friends, and I don't want friends. What I want is to get to this Locotie place."

"Lalotai." The figure corrected me. "Last warning. Go home."

Summoning Chaos Ripper, I held it up as I prepared to attack. "If you insist on stopping me, I'll gladly destroy you."
With a haughty laugh, the figure lifted up his hook. "You got guts, I'll give you that. Most people wouldn't dare to challenge Maui, changeling, shapeshifter, demigod of the wind and sea, hero to all."

Wait. Shapeshifter? He can change forms, and control the wind and sea? If he was a demigod, he must be strong. I smirked at the challenge. "Enough talk."

"Don't say I didn't warn you, kid." The demigod said as he lifted up his giant hook, which glowed while markings of some sort appeared all over it. "Cheeehooo!" Letting out what sounded like a battle cry, he swung his hook at me with more speed than I thought possible for someone his size. Catching me in the side, he managed to knock me to the ground, and I felt myself roll to the edge. Grasping the rock wall, I managed to keep myself from falling off the side.

Pulling myself back up, I conjured some Dark Fireballs and threw them at the shapeshifter. Maui, however, leapt up and brought his weapon down, and I had to roll out of the way to avoid getting hit. I felt the entire mountain island shake from the impact, and a part of me thought the island might collapse from the attack.

Pressing the offensive, I threw more dark fireballs at my opponent, who grunted when they hit them, but he didn't seem to back down. Flipping his weapon around, I thought he was going to come forward with another attack. What he ended up doing was turn himself into a giant hawk. With a screech he flew at me, grabbing my shoulders with those sharp talons and flying me over the ocean where he released me.

As I fell towards the water, I held my Keyblade out and threw it forward so it could change into its Glider mode. As I did, I got tackled from behind by Maui, and as I turned to face him I saw he had turned into some sort of shark. With a growl, I summoned what dark energy I could and blasted him with it, knocking him off me and changing him back into his heavily tattooed form.

"Enough of this." I growled as I reclaimed my Keyblade and it transformed into a Glider. It reminded me of a motorcycle, at least that's what my mind called the vehicle, with a giant cannon at the front. His eyes widened while I open fired at him, blasting the cliff wall with so many shots it created a dust cloud. Smirking at my handiwork, I thought I had defeated the demigod, until some pebbles came crashing down. Looking up, I saw a green lizard of some sort scampering up the rock wall.

"Oh no you don't." Turning my glider upwards, I fired another blast at the escaping Maui. My aim was dead on, as the rock wall exploded, sending him flying up into the sky and forcing him back to human form. Pushing the handles on my Glider forward, I flew up after him, ramming him with my mode of transportation and pushing him further into the sky. Before I could stall, I turned downwards and fired again, blasting the demigod off and back to the top of the mountain where he ended up crashing against the nose of the carving.

Before I could do anything else, I heard something rumble like something was breaking apart. As I watched, I saw the mouth of the carving open, sending the demigod falling down into the darkness. The whole thing was unsettling, like he had fallen into the mouth of some ravenous beast. Still, I didn't come this far to turn back, and I could sense the light I was seeking was through that mouth. Pushing the handles forward, I sped into the mouth and into the darkness of whatever this Lalotai was.


CLAIR'S POV

We had been on the ocean for a few days, and the two of us have had our share of misery and fun. I say misery because we've both had long exposure to the sun, and have gotten our share of burns as a result. My cousin was getting the worst of it to the point where he was as red as a boghudin fruit, but prolonged exposure was taking its toll on me too. I wish I had some sap that Grandpa would use on me from my childhood.

Thankfully, Hina was with us, and the goddess kept using the light of the moon to heal us once the sun went down. Moana was also helpful, as she showed us how to operate the boats we sailed on so we weren't a couple of incompetent fools. I could now tell the stay from the sheet, and she also applied coconut oil to us to try and help keep the burns down. The sky was beginning to brighten, so Hina's powers were going to start waning soon, and I was not looking forward to that.

As the chief of her people checked the ocean's currents with her hand, she said, "We're getting close. I remember the stars and currents from the last time I was here. It makes sense that he'd be there."

"So, lass, where are you taking us?" Scrooge asked.

"It seems that Maui has gone back to Lalotai."

"Maui?" Looking at Hina, I asked, "Is that your husband's name?"

"It is."

"But what is Lolly-time?" Jason asked.

"Lalotai." Moana corrected him. "Just the realm of monsters."

My blood froze at that. "Did you say, 'Realm of monsters'?"

"Yes."

Before we could say anything else, we heard a series of booms, like explosions. The chief rose her eyebrow. "What is that noise? There aren't any volcanoes this way."

"Explosions." As he answered, Jason looked in the direction they came from, determination replacing any other expression.

Standing on the boat she was on, Hina shut her eyes as if she was concentrating. To our surprise, the ocean swelled slightly around us, and surged forward carrying the boats with them. "Hina, what are you doing?" I asked her.

"Pushing the tide to carry us forward." The goddess answered. "Maui is involved with those explosions, and I'm not waiting any longer to get to him." From the strained look on her face, it seemed like she was forcing herself to be able to have this kind of power during the day. I hope she didn't hurt herself.

It didn't take long for us to see a large mountain loom out of the ocean like a massive fin of some sea monster. This talk of this Lalotai place was making me nervous because I had no idea what to expect. The monsters my Grandpa told me about had always sounded like the stuff of nightmares, and I was afraid the monsters in this world might be the same.

"Is that Laura-till?" Jason asked, pointing to the mountain.

"Lalotai." Scrooge corrected him.

"Whatever. Is that the monster realm?"
"No. That's the entrance." The chief smirked.

"That's an entrance?" I asked.

The old duck laughed. "Oh, I haven't seen an entrance this challenging since that time I searched for cursed treasure in the lost city of-."
"Not interested." Jason growled. Before Scrooge could retort, the boats ended up crashing against the shore of the island, throwing us off into the sand. Spitting out some sand that got into my mouth, I looked around for this entrance that would take us to Lalotai, but I didn't see it. And what was that strange sense of foreboding I felt? It felt… ancient, and powerful. And although it made me nervous, I couldn't help but feel something inside of me was being pulled towards it, like it was calling me. I swear by Gri that it's true.

Getting off her boat, Moana grabbed a rope and tied it to one of the rocks jutting out of the ground all around. Following her example, Scrooge seized the rope from our boat and tethered it to a rock as well. Hina joined them, though I noticed she had a hand pressed against her head, and she had to lean against one of the rocks for support. That stunt must've taken more out of her than she thought it would. "Hina, are you okay?" I asked.

"I'll be fine once we get up there." With that the goddess began to climb up the mountain, undeterred by the height. Moana began to follow her, with the rest of us following. After what felt like hours climbing up the mountain, I noticed I hadn't gotten tired. All logic says I should have, but I wasn't. That kind of freaked me out. It felt like I was still reenergized with one of the workout supplements back home, only on a more… spiritual level. Wait. This was magic I was feeling. I remember from my first time.

Radiant Garden. Two months, two weeks ago…

I was adjusting well to Radiant Garden. The clothes here were a little looser than what I was used to, but that strangely made them more comfortable. My cousin and I had to do things differently here, like opening doors manually and not having appliances be activated by voice command. All these things were irritating my cousin while, for some odd reason, I found myself enjoying them. Maybe it had something to do with this world having something I struggled with finding back home: Books. Not digital books to be read on a holo-screen, but actual real books, with covers and pages.

I was looking through a book I had gotten even though I was still learning the language of this world. It was strange to be able to understand what everyone was saying but be unable to read said language. This universal tongue thing had its shortcomings, and major inconveniences. Still, it was proving to be a fun challenge. Much better than learning every stupid element in existence for the umpteenth time.

While I kept trying to learn the language of this world, I paused in front of an old church building. It had gone through perdition like the rest of this world had, and yet it still seemed welcoming. Today, though, something was different. I could feel something calling me from within. I can't describe it, but it was like it was something I was missing, a part of me that I needed but did not have.

Following the part of me that said to go inside the building, I found empty pews that were still in good condition despite the gaping hole in the ceiling and the pillar on the far side that was lying on its side. A warm feeling filled my heart and soul, something I could only describe as light and peace. Tears came to my eyes because I felt like I had found a part of me that I didn't even know had been missing. Going to the flowers growing in the middle of the room, I just stood there, taking a breath as I soaked in the wonderful feelings I now had. It was like I was finally whole, that I had stepped into the presence of Gri, and had rejoined my ancestors in the plans of-.

"Clair?" A voice asked from behind me, jolting me out of my thoughts. Turning, I saw Aerith standing there with a basket of flowers.

Clearing my thoughts, I said, "Oh, Aerith. I'm sorry. I didn't mean-."
"How did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Make the flowers grow."
"I didn't… Gri's beak!" I gasped because the flowers were now halfway up my waist, and appeared to be brighter than they were before. "What happened?"

"When I walked in, I saw you glowing, and the flowers grew." Walking up to me, the woman added, "Clair, you have magic."

"Magic? But how?"
"There's no way to explain the mystical in terms of science. Sometimes, the only way to understand something is to believe in it. Do you trust me, Clair?"
I had to think about my answer. "Aerith, you've been good to me and my cousin ever since we've arrived here in Radiant Garden. There's a lot I don't understand about this world, but if you say magic is real, then… I trust you."

Those words made her smile. "You've taken a step in understanding. Let's go see Merlin now."

Present day...

"So, what exactly can we expect to face down in the realm of the monsters?" Scrooge was asking as he kept showing how fit he was for his age.

"Giant bats, monster fish, carnivorous plants." Moana began to list off. "And other creatures that would haunt your dreams for years."

Shaking his head, my cousin continued to climb up. "Let me be clear about something. The only monsters that exist are people who get on my nerves, and kaiju. I have not seen any kaiju since coming here and I do not expect to see any."

"What's a kaiju?" Moana asked.

"Giant monsters from where we're from." I explained. "Some are so big they can demolish mountains and cross islands in a few steps." My words must've spooked her because she let out a gasp. Looking up, I lost my words as I saw a crater in the side of the mountain, like something heavy had been thrown into the side of it. There were also scorch marks around the impact, like someone had thrown firecrackers at the mountain. "What happened here?"

"A battle." Jason said before looking up. "Let's go."
Once we got to the top, I noticed my cousin was looking at something on the ground, and it made me gasp when I saw it. A stone face carved into the top that made me feel like it was trying to warn us away from this place. I got goosebumps just being around that thing. As soon as Hina got up with us, she did a little chant before jumping onto the nose. As the mouth opened, I found myself disliking the entrance even more. But there was still that pull within me.

"Let me go first." The goddess told as before leaping into the hole. Jason then followed her, as did Moana. I tried to get myself to follow, but that was a deep hole, and the mystical purple glow was…

"Gah!" I gasped as I was pushed forward. "Scrooge!"
I swear the elder duck was smiling before he jumped in after me. He let out a cry as he did so, though I couldn't tell what. It sounded a lot like "Geranium!" As soon as he was in, the entrance closed, sealing us into darkness except for the purple glow below us.

As we fell, Hina held her hands up, and I felt gravity's effect lessen on me. When I hit the water, it felt the same as if I had jumped into an air-pool. All around were rings of purple lights intertwining with each other and making it seem like we were falling through a portal of some sort. It was quite beautiful to see, and I could feel magical energy flowing all around me as I fell through the water.

We exited out through another pool serving as the sky, but a quick glance upwards made me see the ocean from underneath. We were under the sea?! No time to worry about that now. I tried to grab a vine but I missed and thought I was going to crash against the ground. However, someone grabbed me from behind and kept me from falling flat against the ground. I saw Scrooge grab a vine with his cane, and after spinning three times did an impressive flip and nailed a perfect landing.

"It's okay. I've got you." Moana said as she helped me down. "You don't want to fall into a monster's mouth down here."
"Did you?" I asked.

"Almost." She said after a moment, in a tone that told me not to ask anymore about it.

"Maui!" Hina gasped, dropping Jason on top of Scrooge. Turning, I saw her run towards a massive person covered with tattoos dressed in a skirt made of leaves.

My jaw dropped at the sight. "That's Maui? He's huge!"

"What are those markings on him?" Jason asked.

"Tattoos, lad." The old duck told him.

"What? Those things were outlawed two centuries ago."

"This isn't your world." That last part Scrooge spoke while using his hat to cover it up. Good thinking.

A groan from the big guy drew our attention back to him. "Maui?" Hina asked while he opened his eyes. Upon seeing her, he let out a scream that I didn't think someone of his build was capable of. "Don't move so much, you big baby."

"Maui. What happened? What did this to you?" Moana asked him.

"What are you doing here?" The demigod asked her before looking at us. "And who are they?"

"I brought them here, Maui. To look for you." The moon goddess told her husband.

Looking at her, he said, "Hina, I don't need help protecting mortals."

"Yet a monster defeated you. Again."

"It wasn… it was a big monster. Huge. Teeth made of obsidian, and eyes like lava."

"Hold up." Jason said. "You changed your response. It wasn't a monster that beat you, was it?"

"Look, kid-."
"Jason."

"Whatever. I'm a shapeshifting demigod hero. I don't get beaten by anything other than monsters. Which is why I'm here in Lalotai. I'm going to hunt that monster down, and show him why I'm-."
"Him?" The chief folded her arms at that.

"Yeah, there are male monsters. It's not like I can be beaten by a mortal."

"You were beaten by a mortal?" Hina asked her husband.

I looked at Moana. "Is that even possible?"

"No. At least, not until now." Was her answer.

Approaching him, Scrooge asked, "This not-mortal. Did he have a Keyblade perchance?"

"What?"

"Show him, Jason." Scrooge said.

Folding his arms, my cousin shook his head in agitation before holding his hand out. As soon as the Born Fighter came to his hand, the demigod let out a gasp and tried to back off until he was near his giant hook. Grabbing it, he pointed the weapon at my cousin.

"You're with him! That non-mortal who attacked me and forced his way down to Lalotai."

Dread filled me as I looked at him. "This non-mortal. Did he have red hair? Dark clothes?"

"That's him." Maui said before he realized what he admitted.

Jason frowned at that. "Mortem." Before anyone could stop him, he ran off into the dark foreboding realm of Lalotai.


This chapter was a lot of fun to write. I wanted to keep going until they encountered Tamatoa, but I decided to save it for the next chapter. Next one might be a little tricky to write as I'm trying to make sure the characters get some development in for everyone. I also need to figure out what goes on next for Braxton, Eini, Grace, and Johri.

I also wanted to work on giving Clair some development because I feel so far Jason's been getting all the development, but I want them both to grow and become better.