"…Kuzco?"
Pacha stepped forward, confusion etched on his face.
"Are you…okay?"
With rich, tanned skin, black hair and soft brown eyes, he looked to be perfectly healthy, in contrast to his counterpart. That, along with the natural way he wore his unusual crown made 'which is the fake' seem simple.
At least…
"Leave me be!" 'Kuzco' barked. "Lock the doors, whatever it takes! And don't let anyone in until I say so!"
…that's how it looked at first.
"…you're not Kuzco," Pacha accused.
'Kuzco' smiled as his eyes drifted across the group.
"Leave me be!" he cried again. "Lock the doors, whatever it-"
Then he saw Ruby.
"Lock…lock the doors!" 'Kuzco' screamed. "Anyone!"
"I think that's our cue," Jaune piped up, readying his blade. "Stay clear, Pacha."
"Y-yeah. Right."
Realising that he was swiftly being ganged up on, 'Kuzco' backed up to the throne room's rear wall, gibbering yet more repetitions.
"Lock!" he screamed pathetically. "Lock, lock!"
Jaune jumped back as 'Kuzco' dissolved into a pool of black ink, leaving a putrid, garbage-like stench as it oozed across the floor.
"Okay, that's not good."
Weiss was first to react as she enclosed the ink in a block of ice, but just as with Jaune's attack, it simply slid under, continuing at a surprising speed towards the doorway.
"It's untouchable like that!" she yelled, running after the ink. "Unless…Ruby, try the keyblade!"
Hoping that it didn't just get stuck in the ink or something, Ruby nevertheless obeyed, jumping forward and bringing the keyblade down to the ground. Encouragingly, the ink actually dodged this time rather than ploughing through, but dodge it did, and as Ruby recovered, the ink slipped away.
"Oh no you don't!"
With Ruby, Weiss and Jaune all chasing after it, the ink seemed unlikely to get away, but it remained a wily foe. Just as a grand staircase came up, it turned, fleeing down a dusty old corridor…that is, before it reformed on the staircase itself, leaving the group alone.
Weiss made it back first, but there was nothing there, not even guards. She grimaced.
"It got away… #$%."
Ruby and Jaune joined her by the staircase, the latter panting heavily.
"Yeah…I don't think…we're catching it…like this," he managed between breaths.
"We did sorta try everything…" Ruby admitted. "Maybe we should head back to Pacha?"
"Grr…I can't believe we got outsmarted by ink!" Weiss grumbled as they retraced their steps.
"Mm," Jaune agreed. "Heartless usually aren't that clever, especially small ones like that. Something's up."
"That was a Heartless?" Ruby asked.
"Well, I mean, maybe. It seemed to freak out when it saw you, and since you're the keyblade wielder and all, I just put two and two together."
"And it could talk…" Ruby said, folding her arms. "They don't do that either, I'm guessing?"
"No, but I don't think that was real talking."
"It was just parroting," Weiss said. "Disgusting, really. We can only hope the real Kuzco wasn't harmed."
When the group returned to the throne room, said real Kuzco was looking quite a bit livelier than his previous appearance. While the dark bags remained, his skin had resumed a normal pallor, and it was with a wide grin that he greeted his saviours.
"Ruby, Weiss and Jaune, right?"
Realising their manners, Jaune and Weiss bowed in respect, leaving Ruby to simply wave.
"Uh…hi?"
Ruby yelped as she was pulled down rather roughly by Weiss, and she had to force a smile as she looked up to Kuzco, his expression caught in amusement.
"Hey now, no need for all that," Kuzco said, brushing off the pleasantries. "I am the Emperor, and I am awesome, but none of that should matter to you. After all, you're outsiders, hm?"
"Huh? How did you know?"
"What, aside from Pacha?"
Kuzco pointed to Ruby.
"I spotted your keyblade when you went after that…thing, and since we've never had a wielder around here, that means you're off-worlders."
Jaune raised an eyebrow.
"You…know about the keyblade, your majesty?"
"Yes, my father had help from a wielder a few years back," Kuzco replied. "I wasn't old enough to see it for myself, but I've heard the stories. In fact…why don't you just hand it over?"
"I…I'm not sure…?"
Ruby looked over to Jaune for support. He nodded.
"Well, okay. Here?"
Ruby walked up to Kuzco's throne, gingerly handing over her keyblade. For a moment, he simply admired the weapon, running a hand over its edge, but before he could test it, the blade vanished in a flash of light, reappearing in Ruby's hand.
"So the story was right, huh?" Kuzco asked, disappointed. "And I was so looking forward to showing the world how awesome I am…not that it doesn't already know. Still, since you're the protagonist, how about I ask you my favour so we can get on with things?"
"Protagonist?" Ruby repeated. "I don't-"
"No, you don't. That's why I'm here," Kuzco said, winking. "If you've got a keyblade, that means you're a doer, and I could really use one of those to get rid of that thing that was in here earlier. You know, the villain of the story?"
Jaune cleared his throat.
"Excuse me, your highness, but would you mind telling us how it got here?"
"Isn't that your job, blondie?" Kuzco bounced back. "All I know is we've been having these strange reports over the past few weeks, stuff about conflicting orders, random aggressors, yadda yadda. Wouldn't have chalked it up to a monster myself, but hey, life's full of surprises."
Kuzco ran a finger over the edge of his seat.
"Oh, yeah, and there's that big army of monsters coming to siege the city. Is that why you three came here? To get rid of them?"
Ruby shrugged.
"I…guess?"
"You're not going to take on a whole army, though," Kuzco observed. "You aren't me, after all. Still…maybe you'll be good for catching that other monster. Monsters, maybe."
"The ink thing?" Ruby asked.
"Yep, the very same. I say monsters plural 'cause I've heard this weird stuff happens at different times, so there's probably more than one."
Kuzco leaned back into his chair, yawning loudly.
"Anyways, since you saved my life and all, you might as well ask me a favour before you go. One each, because I'm the Emperor and that's just how I roll. Blondie, you first!"
Jaune blinked.
"Um…do you have any more information about the ink monster, your highness?"
"What, still hung up on that? Well, whatever. I don't have information, but I do have advice. See, since those things will be mimicking ordinary folks, you'll want to look out for anyone who's causing a lot of trouble. From what I've heard, whenever something like that breaks out, the person who started it always falls back somehow…follow them. That'll probably take you where you need to go."
Kuzco folded his arms, looking over to Weiss.
"Next?"
Weiss swept her eyes from side to side.
"Your highness…you said a keyblade wielder came here before? Someone who helped your father?"
"That's what they say. What of it?"
"Did they ever give their name?"
Kuzco frowned.
"No, they didn't – or, she didn't. Other than her weapon and gender, she didn't leave much behind. Was that your favour?"
"Yes, your highness."
Kuzco shook his head.
"Here I am expecting jewels and munny and you two want info? You do know I'm the Emperor, right? Well, no skin off my back. Ruby, what about you? More info, or are you going to ask for something good?"
Ruby put a hand to the back of her neck, smiling nervously.
"Uh…I'm not sure what to ask for, Kuz- I mean, your highness."
Kuzco raised an eyebrow.
"No? Jewels and munny not doing much for you?"
"I'm just…looking for some friends of mine."
Kuzco looked over to Pacha, his expression softening.
"I can understand that. What do they look like?"
"Well, Blake's a girl with black hair, gold eyes and cat ears, and Yang's also a girl, but with long blonde hair and big…assets."
"Hm…more off-worlders, huh? Can't say I've heard of them, and it sounds like they'd stand out around here."
Kuzco scratched his chin.
"Tell you what, I'll tell my guards to keep an eye out. If either of them pops up while you're here, I'll be sure to let you know. How's that for a deal, eh?"
"Oh…thank you very much, your majesty!"
"Your thanks are humbly accepted," Kuzco said, grinning once again. "Anyway, now that we've got that sorted out, how about you hunt down that monster? Believe me, I'm going to sleep a lot sounder when that thing's gone."
But just as the group got ready to leave, something heavy thudded against the floor.
"That's for you, Ruby. Take care of it."
Ruby held the miniature crown up to the light, comparing it to Kuzco's own.
"For me?"
"For your keyblade. I think they call it a 'keychain'?"
Kuzco waved his hand.
"Don't worry about it right now, it's not that important…but if you do need to know, you should probably ask your friend in the armour."
Kuzco winked.
"Isn't that right…Jaune Arc?"
"He knew way more than he was letting on."
Their search hadn't been too productive so far. The city was so large, and so packed, that finding one of the monsters was like finding a needle in a stack of more needles. So, for a time, the group rested by a fountain, thinking over what to do next as they stared into the water.
"Yeah, Weiss, I know," Jaune said irritably. "He knew my last name, for starters, and there's no way he'd know about keychains from just a story."
"But why would he lie to us?" Ruby asked. "It just doesn't make sense."
"I'm not so sure. When people like emperors and kings catch wind of keyblades, they start getting wary of their power; after all, meddling or no, they bring change wherever they go."
"You think he's afraid of it?" Weiss asked. "Then why give Ruby a keychain? Didn't you say it makes her stronger or something?"
Jaune looked over to Ruby as she admired the crown.
"Stronger is...simplifying it."
"Then why say it?!"
"Because we needed to focus on the search, okay! Keyblades are complicated! I can't just spout off a bunch of lore all at once! It'd just be confusing and boring! And, uh…uh…"
Weiss was giving him one of those looks again. Yeah, one of those…and Jaune being Jaune, it didn't take long for him to give in.
"Okay, okay, fine! It's like…wearing different clothes, I guess? You put it on, and different things happen depending on what it is. Like, maybe you feel colder if you put on a t-shirt, or warmer if you wear a jacket. In other words, it doesn't make the keyblade better, it just makes it different."
"Then…how do I use it?"
Jaune gave Ruby a guilty look.
"I'm not sure, to be honest. Maybe it's something you'll figure out on your own? Oh, crap!"
Cursing under his breath, Jaune searched his pockets, eventually picking out the blue compass from Traverse Town.
"We forgot to check, didn't we? I guess I'll go first…"
A pale yellow glow, just like Yang's had been.
"Damn, worth a shot. Ruby?"
The same result as Traverse Town, one yellow, one blinking yellow.
"Could I borrow it, please?"
Surprised at her politeness, Ruby handed the compass to Weiss without a second thought, wondering what she might use it for.
"Do I need to hold an object of theirs when I do it, or can I just think of them?"
"Thinking works, it's just easier the old-fashioned way."
Closing her eyes, Weiss' brow furrowed in concentration.
"…Jaune?" Ruby began. "What does it mean when it's blank like that?"
Jaune looked to the floor, gulping.
"W-well, uh…it could mean that you weren't thinking about them hard enough, but usually it means…"
He gave Weiss an apologetic look.
"Sorry, Weiss. Whoever you're thinking of is dead."
Shaking her head, Weiss tried again. This time, the compass shone a definite red, and even seemed to shake in her grip.
"She's…here?"
Jaune blinked.
"If it goes like that, it usually means that the person you're thinking of is really close by. It wasn't me or Ruby, was it?"
Weiss shook her head.
"No, it was someone else. Are you sure this isn't broken?"
"Of course it's not! Uh, at least, not in the way you mean. Obviously the needle doesn't work, but…"
Weiss' eyes slowly drifted over to Ruby.
"Hm…does that mean…?"
Ruby gave her a quizzical look in return.
"Something wrong?"
"No, it's fine, I just have a lot to think about, that's all."
SHLNK. Jaune's sword inched from his scabbard.
"Jaune, what are you-?"
"Shh," he said, cutting Ruby off. "Look, by that house over there."
Ruby followed his gaze.
"You think that's…?"
"Could be. What do you think?"
There were three of them, hugging to a wall as they…waited for something? If Ruby was honest, there was nothing particularly odd about them at all, especially in appearance. Although…
Wait, are they…identical?
"Wow, even their clothes are the same!"
"Mm, that's what I noticed first. Should we follow them?"
"Huh? Why are you asking me?"
Jaune shrugged.
"Keyblade wielders are leaders. That's just how it works."
"Hey! I could make for an excellent leader too, thank you very much!"
"Uh, I'm with Weiss on this one, actually. How does carrying a giant key around make you leadership material?"
"Look, I've said it once already, I'm not going on a keyblade rant! I mean, definitely not right now. Some of this stuff is classified."
Jaune flicked his eyes back to the identical trio, grimacing in annoyance.
"Besides, they're gonna get away if we keep talking like this. What're we doing, Ruby?"
Ruby looked over to Weiss, hoping for some kind of assistance, but her expression was just screaming disapproval. If Ruby ever wanted genuine respect from her, at least if she was going along with Jaune, she would have to be a bit more decisive.
…of course, in the time Ruby spent thinking about this, the identical trio had made their move. Maybe the decisiveness could use a bit more work.
"Well I'm going after them," Weiss asserted, already stepping forward. "And if our glorious leader and the dolt knight would come along, we might actually get somewhere today!"
Team RWJ didn't end up following their marks for all that long, perhaps ten minutes at most, but what they saw seemed to confirm their suspicions. Every so often, along the city's winding streets, one of the trio would depart into a pub or bar, and then only a minute later, the sound of raucous brawling would spill out into the streets. If not for a slight flicker of white as they resumed their 'normal' disguises, it would be the perfect crime.
So they're just messing with people? No, not messing, stirring them up…but for what?
The afternoon sun bobbed lazily in the sky as the trio came to a stop outside a sandy-walled temple. RWJ watched patiently from the shadows as, for once, all three of the figures headed inside, hunching over as they went through the doorway. Strange…it seemed more than high enough. Why duck?
"There's definitely something going on, here," Jaune commented, scratching his chin. "A group op, maybe?"
"Or a home base," Weiss suggested. "And if that's the case, we might have the opportunity to get rid of them in one fell swoop."
"We're swooping down on them? Cool!"
"Er, no, Ruby, it's an expression. I was more thinking that we should just burn the place down if it's their base."
"What? But what about the other buildings?"
"What about the other buildings? They're made of stone!"
"So's the main one!"
"Yes, but this is magic fire we're talking about!"
"And that doesn't spread?"
"It's magic, Ruby; I'll only burn the city down if I want to."
"Unless you lose your grip," Jaune said, prompting a sharp look from Weiss.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I wasn't aware I was talking to Master Magician Jaune Arc! Please forgive me, O Wise One!"
"What, and you are? All you can use is fire, ice and cure!"
"Uh, guys?"
"What?!" Jaune and Weiss both shouted.
"Are we actually going in, or are you just gonna keep shouting at each other?"
"We are not shouting!" Weiss rebutted, crossing her arms. "We were just…raising our voices!"
"Then why don't you guys raise your voices a little later?" Ruby asked, annoyance creeping into her voice. "I mean, aren't those inky things gonna get away if we just sit here?"
For a moment, Weiss and Ruby shared a look, each pitting their will against the other. Pride and anger shimmered in Weiss' expression; Ruby wasn't sure what she saw in her own. Finally, Weiss lowered her gaze.
"You're a far cry from a real leader," she said, turning to face the house. "But I suppose you deserve a chance to prove yourself."
Ruby blinked.
Was…that an insult? Or maybe a Weiss compliment?...god, I don't know.
"Well?" Weiss asked expectantly. "If you're the leader, then lead."
Ruby glanced over to Jaune. He nodded.
"R-right! Everyone, follow me! And, uh, keep a hand on your weapons, since we don't know what's inside."
Ruby wondered what they must have looked like, striding down a busy street in strange attire, all holding some manner of weapon. In fact, she briefly wondered why they hadn't been stopped by the guards, but she supposed Kuzco might have told them to keep away. Still, that didn't stop the ordinary people giving them weird looks, with a little girl hanging onto her mother being particularly mesmerised, her mouth wide open.
Finally, after a short walk, they reached the temple. Giving it a quick once-over, Ruby found the outside completely innocuous, if extremely clean, although the shuttered windows were a bit odd for a temple. Had it been closed for a while?
"They probably locked the door," Jaune said. "Good job we have a key, huh?"
Nodding, Ruby lifted her keyblade up to the plain wooden door, perfectly prepared for the usual light display…which, of course, meant it never came. Instead, the door simply swung open, and since she couldn't see any openers, Ruby supposed it did that on its own.
"This feels like a trap," Weiss noted, peering into the building. "And a pretty poor trap, at that. Why alert us so soon?"
"It could not be a trap," Jaune suggested.
"I rather doubt that, somehow," Weiss retorted haughtily. "So, Ruby? How will we proceed?"
Ruby shrugged.
"Considering that last one we saw, the ink things don't fight too well. Even if it's a trap, if we're ready to fight, they'd just have to run away again."
"There could be other Heartless in there," Jaune warned. "They like to band together that way."
"We could take them," Ruby said confidently. "And even if we can't, we could always just run away. You know, cut a wall open, something like that?"
Slinging the keyblade over her shoulder, Ruby set off into the house, keeping her eyes peeled in the dark environment. Still, while the room was dark, and sort of humid, actually, it was also completely empty, save for a fancy spiral staircase in the centre.
No sign of those ink things...though they might just be hiding in the dark. Hm…
FWOOSH. Ruby summoned up a tiny flame, moving it along the walls as she combed the room. Unfortunately, everything remained fairly plain even in light, save for several odd bumps along the walls. Were they once hook, maybe?
"Seems clear," she whispered, dousing the flame. "I guess we check upstairs?"
"I should go first," Jaune suggested, tugging uncomfortably at the straps of his breastplate. "Since, y'know, I can probably take the most hits."
"I suppose you had to be good for something," Weiss snarked, but Jaune seemed to ignore it. Despite his armour, he actually walked fairly quietly as he went up the staircase, keeping a firm grip on his sword as he ascended. Once he reached the top, however, his grip loosened as his eyes widened in surprise.
"Uh, guys?"
Suddenly, the room became even hotter and more humid than before.
"Is…something wrong, Jaune?" Ruby replied, cautiously readying her keyblade.
"There's no door here. It's a dead end."
THUMP. Along the walls, every 'bump' opened simultaneously, revealing row upon row of greedy red eyes.
"Oookay, that's not normal."
"Gee, Ruby, you think?!"
That wasn't the worst part, either.
The walls were closing in.
"Jaune! Get down here, now!" Ruby yelled, hugging the stairs for dear life.
"I can't! I'm stuck to the wall!"
"Idiot," Weiss snarked, her rapier glowing with magic. "Looks like it's down to us, Ruby. You know what to do."
"Right. Keyblade to scythe, transform!"
BZZT. The keyblade remained inert.
"Uh…keyblade to scythe transform!"
BZZT. The walls continued their inevitable march.
"Ruby, this isn't the time to be messing around!"
"I'm not! It just doesn't want to transform for some reason!"
"Then just use it as is!"
Still very rusty with sword-like weapons, Ruby was certainly glad that missing her enemy wasn't really a possibility. Unfortunately, even as the keyblade set a course for one of the eyes, the wall simply parted in a mix of black ink.
"It's not working!" Ruby yelled, watching in horror as the wall perfectly reformed. "What about magic?!"
Ruby had to cover her ears as a horrific scream boomed from every eyeball.
"Fire seems effective," Weiss noted clinically, preparing her rapier for another shot. "With enough of it, we should be able to blast through. Try it on your side."
Ruby whined like a puppy as she summoned up her tiny flame, still unsure what to do with it.
"Weiss, I…I can't. I don't know how to throw it!"
Weiss whipped her head back, brow furrowed.
"For $% #'s sake, Ruby, it's not that complicated! Just stop channelling it through your hand and use your keyblade!"
"I can do that?!" Ruby yelled, covering her ears after another bout of screaming.
"Yes, of course you can! Did Leon teach you nothing?! Just charge a fire spell in your occupied hand and pour it into your keyblade!"
"Then what?!"
"What do you mean 'then what'?! It'll fire out of the weapon, you dunce! Just get on with it!"
Having had quite enough of all the yelling, Ruby did as she was instructed and prayed that she wasn't just burning her keyblade.
DUNK DUNK DUNK. The bullet-like shots were far-flung from Weiss' graceful jets, but given the reaction of the eyes, they worked just the same.
"Yeah, that's more like it!" Ruby exclaimed, shooting more fire shots. "Through the fire and the flames, we'll carry on!"
Just as Weiss had said, the wall was slowing its advance, but it was technically still moving, and they only had so much mana. On top of that, her plan to blast through was seeming a little impractical, since after enough force, the wall would simply use the ink to generate another eye.
"Weiss, this isn't working!" Ruby cried, holding her fire for the moment. "We need to try something else! What about the door?"
"What door? It disappeared the second this thing woke up!"
"Darn it! Okay, new idea; how about we hit all the eyes instead of focusing on one spot?"
"And how will that help?!"
"I don't know, maybe it'll have to use something else when it can't see anything!"
Forcing herself through more blood-curling screams, Ruby returned to the task at hand, this time spreading her fire between the eyes.
"It's…it's backing up! I think it's working!"
"Then keep firing!"
There had to be at least twenty eyes on each wall, but Ruby was determined not to let up, even as her mind went alarmingly blank.
Damn it, I must be running out of mana. Come on, just hold on for a little while longer!
Three walls done, one to go. Weiss and Ruby faced it together, each shaking from the strain.
"R-ready to give up, Ruby?"
"Not…yet!" Ruby returned, crossing her keyblade with Weiss' rapier. "Not when we're…so close!"
Ruby looked once more into Weiss' gaze, but this time, she didn't find pride, nor anger...only acceptance, and a desperate will to live.
"Together?" Ruby asked.
"Together."
Noticing that its attackers had let up on their assault, the walls suddenly moved, this time faster than before. But just as they began to near, a faint white light surrounded Ruby and Weiss.
"Limit Break!" they cried out in unison. "Fire of Prometheus!"
There was no aiming this attack; there was no need to aim. Only screams could be heard as the fiery laser slammed into the wall, smashing straight through it and even dissolving the godforsaken ink. Behind them, the stairs also dissipated, flinging Jaune away and revealing a final eye, this one bearing the Heartless emblem in its pupil.
"Ruby, finish it!"
"Right!"
There was no scream this time. Perhaps it had run out, or simply accepted its fate. Either way, the eye remained inert as Ruby brought the keyblade down, splitting it perfectly down the middle.
The house faded. The ink dried up. Someone was…was…
Jaune...?
"Ruby?" Jaune called out. "Ruby!"
...
...
...
