"Man I'm stuffed." Ven said with a relaxed sigh as he, Riku, and Terra walked the East Wing halls of Beast's Castle. They had finished dinner and left Sora, Aqua, Kairi, Belle, and Vanitas in the parlor. The rest of the castle's servants had disappeared into the castle.
"I know what you mean. Whatever that escargot stuff is, I'd like more of it." Terra said as Riku glanced at him, concerned.
"You don't know what escargot is?" Riku asked.
"No but I imagine it has something to do with chicken. It sure tastes like it." Terra replied as Riku walked ahead, a blank stare on his face.
"You might prefer to hold onto that assumption. Probably for the best that you not know what it really is." Riku said, causing Terra and Ven to look at each other.
"What is it really?" Ven asked.
"You don't wanna know." Riku replied.
"So putting food aside, what do we do about Vanitas?" Ven asked.
"Yeah and what's Kairi's problem?" Terra added.
"Kairi's a Princess of Heart. She takes a forgive-first-ask-questions-later approach to everyone, and I mean everyone. She believes in infinite chances for people who have done wrong. And to be fair, you guys have been acting like total jerks to Vanitas since he arrived." Riku said.
"But he's Vanitas, as in the guy who masterminded the whole Keyblade Rebellion just so he could possess Sora and create the X-Blade." Ven said as Riku stopped and turned towards the two.
"No, that was the Vanitas we killed, this isn't. This Vanitas may look and sound like the original but he's not." Riku corrected.
"All we have is his say so and Namine's testimony. He could easily be lying and have found a way to hide his memories from Namine." Terra said, crossing his arms.
"I worked closely with Namine for almost a year. I know how powerful she is and I know that, if she says she can't find something in regards to someone's memory, it doesn't exist. Plus there's Kairi's own testimony that she can't sense any light or darkness from within him. I've learned to trust Kairi on these things and so, I'm going to trust her. Believe me I share your distrust of Vanitas, but I'm not going to make it obvious and annoy my friend in doing so." Riku said as Ven and Terra both looked at each other.
"I'd like to know what that number is on his helmet. N13. What does it mean?" Ven asked.
"That's a good question." Terra said, Riku looking thoughtful.
"It seems to me like it's some kind of designation. I know I've seen a similar designation somewhere before but I can't, for the life of me, remember where I saw it." Riku said, rubbing his chin.
"Then what do we do about Vanitas?" Terra asked.
"If I were Vanitas, I'd be relishing the distrust and animosity I'm getting from my captors." Ven said as Riku smirked.
"So then instead of treating him harshly, kill him with kindness. If he's truly the Vanitas we remember, he'd lose it from all the undeserved kindness and reveal his true colors." Riku said as Terra and Ven exchanged glances again.
"I dunno Riku. This is Vanitas we're talking about." Ven said.
"Yeah. He was a pawn…no, a creation of Xehanort. I don't trust anything about him." Terra said as Riku sighed.
"Look we can discuss this later. For now let's get back to our…patrol?" Riku said as he spotted something. It was a figure in the black coat of the Organization XIII members but with a small X shaped zipper chain that looked to be made of several squares, the inscription "N8" on the chain. The figure stood frozen staring at them for a moment before it spun around and started running away down the halls.
"Quick! After him!" Terra exclaimed as they ran after the fleeting figure.
"Did you see that symbol on his zipper? N8! Just like Vanitas's N13!" Ven exclaimed.
"I saw it! There has to be a connection!" Riku exclaimed as they continued chasing him towards the main hall.
Meanwhile in the Parlor…
Belle sat in an armchair near the fireplace while Kairi sat on the couch across from her with Vanitas, still chained, sitting on the floor in front of her (by his own choice), while Aqua sat in a chair nearby, reading from the "Book of Eraqus" as she and the others had dubbed it while occasionally glancing towards Vanitas. Sora was merely standing and resting his hands behind his head in his usual relaxed posture.
"So you're a Keyblade Master?" Belle asked Sora who nodded.
"Yes ma'am. Kairi's my apprentice." Sora said as Kairi raised a hand.
"And his girlfriend." Kairi added.
"Oh how wonderful. If you don't mind me saying so, you two make a fine couple." Belle said as Sora and Kairi blushed slightly.
"I think they do too." Vanitas said.
"And Miss Aqua?" Belle asked, looking towards the Keyblade Master who looked up.
"I'm with Ven." Aqua replied.
"No-no, I meant are you a Keyblade wielder too?" Belle asked.
"Oh, yes ma'am. I'm a Keyblade Master, actually." Aqua said, closing the book and tucking it under her arm as she stood up.
"She was my Master to be exact. She taught me everything I knew." Sora added.
"Sora that's not fair. You learned most of it on your own before you even met me. I only helped at the end." Aqua said with a polite smile.
"I know but I'm trying to make you look good." Sora said with one of his friendly smiles.
"I don't think you need to. She already does look good." Vanitas said, innocently.
"And then, there's you." Aqua mumbled as she sat back down.
"I've been meaning to ask. Why is he your prisoner? You mentioned that you killed him once?" Belle asked.
"It's a long and complicated story." Sora replied.
"I happen to enjoy a good story." Belle said with a smile, sitting upright in her chair and eager to hear the story.
"Well-…" Sora said, but as he was about to begin, they heard a commotion coming from out in the main hall.
"What in the-?" Aqua asked as she opened the door to see Riku, Terra, and Ven chasing a hooded figure down the stairs from the east wing.
"STOP HIM!" Riku shouted as he saw Aqua standing in the doorway. Aqua and Sora wasted no time and leapt into the figure's path, Keyblades summoned. The figure slid to a halt, surrounded by the five Keyblade wielders.
"Belle! Friend of yours?" Aqua asked.
"Xaldin!" Belle gasped as she, Kairi, and Vanitas stuck their heads out of the Parlor.
"Xaldin? Impossible. This guy's too short." Terra said as the figure looked around at all of them.
"Besides, Xaldin's dead." Sora replied.
"So is Vanitas…oops, spoke too soon." Ven said, glancing at the confused Vanitas in the Parlor.
"But if this isn't Xaldin who is it?" Riku asked. The figure then began to chuckle to itself.
"Oh if only you knew how close you really were to the truth, Riku." The figure said.
"How do you know my name?" Riku asked.
"I know all your names." The figure replied as it turned and pointed to Aqua and started naming each of the Keyblade wielders on sight.
"Aqua, Sora, Ventus, Terra, and Riku. Over there is Kairi, Belle the Princess of Heart and…you I don't recognize." The figure said pointing at Vanitas.
"You obviously know who we are then, so who are you?" Aqua asked as they maintained their stances.
"Oh just someone who wants to be like you." The figure said, startling Sora whose eyes widened in surprise before narrowing them suspiciously.
"What did you say?" Sora asked curiously. He'd heard that line before somewhere. The figure chuckled before it put a gloved hand to its hidden lips and made a long and loud shrill whistle that echoed throughout the castle.
"What was that about?" Ven asked, suspiciously.
"Good question." A feminine voice said before a large four pointed shuriken, similar to Yuffie's, flew in and landed right in front of Sora, sticking up out of the ground.
"What the-!" Sora yelped as the shuriken vanished and a black blur flew in, landed next to the other figure and suddenly disappeared in a thick black cloud of smoke.
"Who are these people?!" Terra exclaimed as Sora quickly cast an Aeroga, dispelling the cloud of smoke.
"Ah that move looks familiar." A third voice said as they all turned towards the top of the stairs. Standing in front of the doors to the ball room stood three figures, all hooded, and each bearing a different number: N1, N8, and N9.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Sora asked as the five gathered together, Kairi, Vanitas, and Belle emerging from the Parlor to join them. N1 started laughing at the comment.
"Now where have I heard that before? Ah yes. It was back when I fought you back on the Islands a few days ago." N1 said as he summoned a broadsword that had a guard shaped almost identically to the guard on the Kingdom Key Keyblade only more evenly sized and even bearing a keychain similar to Kingdom Key's only shaped like it was made out of squares.
"We fought? When did we fight?" Sora asked, confused. The others were equally confused.
"Oh right, I left a little something in your mind to make you forget. Well, not much sense in leaving that there anymore is there?" N1 asked as he snapped his fingers, causing Sora to yelp and grasp his forehead in pain.
"Sora!" Kairi exclaimed as Sora recovered and glared up at the figures in surprise.
"We did fight! Three days ago you attacked me on the Islands! I don't remember how it ended but one of us won!" Sora yelled.
"To be fair, it was technically a draw. I knocked you out but I was unable to do what I intended to." N1 said.
"And what were you there to do?" Aqua asked.
"Why, to relieve him of his Keyblades, of course." N1 replied.
"What? You tried to take my Keyblades?" Sora asked in shock.
"Tried, but failed. You see, the three of us, we are known as Neo-Beings. Our sole purpose of existence on these worlds is to identify the process of acquiring the Keyblade and to ultimately acquire one for ourselves." N1 explained.
"Are you responsible for all of the abductions lately?" Riku asked.
"Yeah that's us." N9 said casually as she leaned her shuriken against her shoulder.
"Well you've reached the end of the line. You're going to return everyone to their rightful worlds and answer for this!" Terra said threateningly.
"You have our assurances that we will return everyone we've taken from every world once we have our Keyblades, but for now, you're impeding our collection of this world's inhabitants. You have two options." N1 said as he raised its sword.
"Either stand aside." N9 added.
"Or we'll go through you." N8 finished as it reached into both sleeves of its robe and pulled a pair of twin short swords from its sleeves.
"Six against three, I think you're outnumbered." Ven said with a grin. N8 and N9 both looked towards N1 who raised his left hand with his thumb and middle fingers pressed together.
"Are we?" N1 asked as he snapped his fingers. (Battle Music Cue: Dance to the Death – KH2 OST) Suddenly strange glowing pillars of blue light and filled with glowing blue cubes started appearing all around them, depositing strange humanoid creatures made of a strange glowing crystalline substance, each one of them a different individual color and carrying large blades of sharpened glass in their "hands" of varying sizes. Soon the Main Hall was filled with the creatures
"Say hello to our failed predecessors. The Manikins!" N1 exclaimed. Sora, Aqua, Terra, Ven, and Riku quickly formed a circle around Kairi, Vanitas, and Belle.
"Seize only the targets, incapacitate the rest." N9 commanded as the Manikins dropped into attack stances. Instantly they charged towards the circle of heroes who quickly raised their weapons and either blocked their attacks or dodged and came back around, smashing into them. It only took one hit to the body with most of the Manikins to cause them to break into pieces like glass, the pieces vanishing in small wisps of smoke in whatever color the Manikin was.
"These guys aren't so tough!" Terra grinned as he smashed through two with one swing.
"Hence the reason they were our failed predecessors!" N9 chortled.
"What they lack in quality, they make up for in quantity!" N8 added amidst the fighting. Riku suddenly realized what they meant. At the back of the swarm of Manikins, he could see more teleporting in to replace the ones that fell. Riku quickly established a D-Link with the others.
"Every time we cut one down, two more take its place!" Riku said as he continued fighting.
"Sora! Aqua! Kairi! Protect Belle! We'll handle these guys!" Ven exclaimed as they continued smashing through Manikins.
"Better idea, Sora and I will take care of those three! Kairi, take Belle and find the Beast!" Aqua said, glancing at the three "Neo-Beings" occasionally as she cut down Manikins.
"Right!" Kairi replied as she summoned her Keyblade and armor. The others quickly summoned their armor as well.
"NOW!" Sora exclaimed as his Keyblade glowed with a white light. He then stabbed the Keyblade into the ground, conjuring five tall pillars of light beneath him and the others, obliterating any Manikins within the light or knocking a good number of them back. It was his Trinity Drive Shot Lock. As soon as the pillars vanished, Sora and Aqua charged up the stairs towards the three Neo-Beings who turned and ran into the Ballroom behind them. As soon as Aqua and Sora were in the Ballroom, the doors slammed shut. Kairi grabbed Belle by the wrist with her right hand while letting go of Vanitas's leash in the other, the leash chain vanishing like magic.
"Follow me!" Kairi exclaimed as she ran up the stairs, Belle and Vanitas following close behind, towards the West Wing.
"So what about us?" Riku asked as he, Terra, and Ven continued cutting down Manikins.
"Now we get to cut loose!" Terra exclaimed as he leapt into the air, his Keyblade vanishing only to reappear as his Ultima Cannon Shot Lock. He fired the massive ball of energy straight into the center of the sea of Manikins, sending them flying in all directions as the shot exploded. Terra landed in the center of the large opening he had made, Terra and Ven leaping in with him, deliberately letting themselves get surrounded by Manikins.
"Quick! Diamond Dust!" Riku exclaimed, the other two catching his meaning and quickly casting Blizzaga spells in quick succession until, finally, a cold white mist started emanating from their Keyblades as the Diamond Dust Command Style kicked in, large shards of ice smashing through the Manikins in piles but the Manikins merely continued to teleport in. They didn't notice but one Manikin stopped, its blade retracting into its hand like magic. It then started to walk backwards against the flow of forward charging Manikins. The Manikin then raised both hands, holding them parallel, the palms facing towards each other, as a white rectangular cube with eight rapidly changing numbers, like one would find on a digital clock, appeared floating in the air between the Manikin's hands.
"Stopza." The Manikin spoke with a distorted and garbled voice as it smashed the cube between its hands, causing a shockwave of white energy to pass throughout the Main Hall, causing time to stop, but only for Riku, Terra, and Ven. (End Music). Magic spells hung in the air and the three Keyblade wielders were frozen in time. They were at the Manikins mercy but the Manikins stopped attacking, lowering their weapons before they proceeded to turn and start charging up the stairs, headed for both the East and West wings, leaving Riku, Terra, and Ven alone and untouched. As soon as the Manikins had fully exited the Main Hall a tall figure clad in the black coat, gloves, and boots of Organization XIII appeared in a Corridor of Darkness and approached the time-frozen Terra.
"Well-well, so the old man was telling the truth. When he said that you were back, I thought he was joking…but now that I see you, here and now…" the figure said with a laugh.
"Man wait until the others hear about you. And look, you even found your friend, ol' what's his name?" the figure said as it approached Ven.
"This is quite the reunion, Terra. I'll tell the gang you're back. They may not be as thrilled as I am, but that's because, since you ditched Xehanort, I'm number one, instead of…well you know." The figure said as it started walking away from the time-frozen trio. It then paused and glanced slightly over its shoulder towards Terra again.
"Oh, and don't think I've forgotten about our last encounter. I think I still owe you one in exchange, now that I think about it. But that can wait…" the figure said as a Corridor of Darkness opened in front of it, the figure turning around to face the three, "…at least until I get my Keyblade."
At that the figure backed into the Corridor, leaving the three time-frozen Keyblade wielders as they were, as the Corridor closed.
End Chapter 7.
These Manikins are similar to the ones used in the Dissidia Final Fantasy games but not necessarily the same. The origins of these Manikins will be explained in a future chapter.
I also got to thinking recently about who I would cast as the voice actors for the Keyblade Rebels from The Second Darkness. Here are my recommendations, should you ever decide to reread that story.
Light - Grant George (Izuru Kira - Bleach, Warrior of Light - Dissidia Final Fantasy)
Dark - Christopher Sabot (Garland - Dissidia Final Fantasy)
Wind - Brittney Karbowski (Black Star - Soul Eater)
Kai - Richard Epcar (Xehanort - Kingdom Hearts)
Blade - Hayden Panettiere (Kairi - Kingdom Hearts)
Des - Laura Bailey (Maka Albarn - Soul Eater, Serah Farron - FFXIII, Cloud of Darkness - DFF)
Beco - Laura Bailey
Sha - David Lodge (Kenpachi Zaraki - Bleach)
Ion - Liam O'Brien (Jushiro Ukitake - Bleach, Kain Highwind - DFF, Caius - FFXIII-2)
Keep - Stevie Bloch (Yachiru Kusajishi - Bleach)
Rain - Michelle Ruff (Rukia Kuchiki - Bleach, Katherine McBride - Catherine)
Seeker - Vic Mignogna (Ikkaku Madarame - Bleach, Spirit Albarn - Soul Eater)
Gear - Vic Mignogna
Dawn - Todd Haberkorn (Death the Kid - Soul Eater)
Mark - Chuck Huber (Franken Stein - Soul Eater)
