Last time, while our heroes were busy shopping, Togakuto and his crew were exercising their new powers by slaughtering everyone they found on the high seas. We learned that Ursula 'torpedoed' Konrad and the others because she made a deal with Hades; her life in exchange for Sora's soul. Thanks to Kichot, Rakel's demonic familiar, Konrad devised a plan that would allow him, Rakel, Pete, and Kichot, to come out on top and leave Ursula to go belly up. Now the two ships are sailing towards each other again. Who will survive? 'Nuff said, on with the show!
Chapter 7: Storm in a Flagon
"I've got a feeling that trouble is right around the corner," said Sanji, "and this time it's serious."
The Going Merry was several hours out from Fujiwanton island. Sora and Luffy wanted to get the ship as far away from innocent bystanders as possible, for everyone onboard believed that the next battle would be far more dangerous than before.
"It's been serious all along," said Riku, "more so now that we're here."
"Luffy," said Sora, "I'm really sorry my friends and I got you and your friends involved in this. If we hadn't shown up, chances are you wouldn't have gotten into this mess with The Heartless."
"No, it's cool," said Luffy, "The Heartless showed up right when we showed up. We were just in the right place at the right time."
"How can you call getting involved with creatures of living darkness being in the right place at the right time?" Usopp demanded.
"Well, for one thing," said Luffy, "we wouldn't have met Sora and his friends," he grinned, "and I'm glad we did."
"I'm also glad we met," said Sora, "and I'm glad we're friends."
"Glad enough to join my crew?" Luffy asked as he grinned eagerly.
"Not in this lifetime," said Sora.
"How 'bout the next?" Luffy asked, "or the next one?"
"Ask me then," said Sora.
"Your captain's persistent," said Kairi to Nami, "I'll give him that."
"He may be a real dingbat sometimes," said Nami, "more times than I'd like to count. But there's something about Luffy that makes you want to trust him, that he'll always pull through. I admit I doubted that we'd win against the Fishmen, but if there's one thing Luffy's good at, it's pulling off miracles."
"Sora's like that to," said Kairi, "when you're around him, you just feel that everything's going to be alright."
Just then Aiden, who was taking a turn up in the crows nest, sighted something through his spyglass, "sail on the horizon!"
"Is it them!" Riku asked as everyone rushed to the railing to get a look, "is it Togakuto and Konrad! I just know it!"
"They're too far away!" said Aiden, "I…wait! Yes! It's them! I can see their flag! They're coming back!"
"I'm amazed they got their ship fixed so quickly," said Zoro.
"They probably had Heartless working nonstop," said Riku, "they never tire or complain."
"Perfect slave labor," said Aiden as he slid down the mainmast and joined our heroes at the railing, "it's still wrong, but it works for those who live their lives in darkness."
"And these guys are as dark as can be in these parts," said Kairi.
"Wait, something's not right," said Nami as she looked at the approaching ship through her spyglass, "they're coming way to fast for a ship that big to be moving."
Sora looked and sure enough, The Death Stalker was moving much faster than the last time.
"What's even more wrong," said Nami, "the wind is blowing the opposite way. It shouldn't be pushing them towards us."
"Maybe the current is with them," said Donald.
"I don't think so," said Zoro as he looked, "wait, is it me or is that ship different?"
"Different how?" Sora asked.
"It just looks different," said Zoro, "more than repairs, like the whole ship has changed."
Sora and the others did look, and sure enough, the enemy ship was different than before. Now it looked more than just wood and sails. Now it looked almost as if it were alive, or, rather like…
"A Heartless!" said Riku, "The Death Stalker has become a Heartless!"
True enough, The Death Stalker had become a Heartless, as did Togakuto and his crew. The ship's flag sill bore the red skill and axe crossbones, but the mainsail now bore the emblem of The Heartless. Togakuto and his crew also had Heartless emblems on their chests, while the four pirates now had permanent auras of dark energy about them.
"There they are!" said Jubei as he sighted The Going Merry through a spyglass.
Togakuto glared hatefully at The Going Merry, silently cursing Luffy and his crew for their earlier humiliation.
"This time we will destroy them," he said out loud, "this time, Monkey D. Luffy and his friends will suffer my wrath!"
"Just so long as I get Sora's soul," said Ursula, "you can do whatever you want with the others, just so long as I get what I want."
"Yes, mistress," said Togakuto, Jubei, Yukaton and Sojita in slightly distant tones, as if their will was no longer their own, and in a way they really were slaves to Ursula.
"We'll be on them soon, Captain!" said Yukaton in a normal, humanly vicious tone.
"Excellent," said Togakuto. "Soon all our debts will be pain with these children who call themselves pirates!"
"I'll chop Zoro's head off!" said Sojita.
"That girl will begging to die after what I plan to do," said Yukaton.
"And that cook," said Jubei, "I'll break his precious legs one bone at a time, before I cut them off and make him eat them!"
"I'll rip out that rubber boy's heart and feed it to the sharks!" said Togakuto.
"Are we forgetting someone?" Sojita asked, "I feel like we are."
"I don't think so," said Yukaton, "wait…oh, there was that needle-nose kid with the slingshot!"
"He's the one who shot holes in our ship and blew out her insides!" said Jubei, "we'll see how much he likes it when we stuff him into a cannon and blast him over the horizon!"
"You can do whatever you want," said Ursula, "just remember to bring me Sora's soul."
"Yes, mistress," said the four pirates turned Heartless.
"Now's the time," said Rakel to Konrad as they, Pete and Kichot stood and watched in a corner, "do it now. Break Ursula's concentration, before she sets her pets onto The Keyblade Wielders."
"Not yet," said Konrad, "if we try too soon, Ursula will surely sense what we're doing and have her pets attack us."
"But if we wait too long," said Pete, "them Keyblade Brats will be done for, and so will we be when Maleficent finds out."
"I'm still going to wait" said Konrad.
"The time isn't right yet, mistress Rakel," said Kichot, "Master Konrad simply wishes to wait until the fat one is completely occupied. Once the battle commences, and the fat one is focused on her goals, then will master Konrad strike."
"I figured as much," said Rakel in an anxious and annoyed tone.
"Well, at least we won't be waitin' for long," said Pete, "we're almost there."
"Damn! That ship is fast!" said Luffy as The Death Stalker rushed towards them.
"We're dead!" exclaimed Usopp as he ran around the deck like a frantic chicken, "we're dead! We're dead!"
"Can't we go faster?" Sora asked as he helped Donald and Kairi shrink everything they could on the ship; the food stores, Nami's treasure stash in the hold, spare parts and other essentials that couldn't be thrown overboard, or wouldn't be thrown overboard without getting someone upset.
"We're already at full sail," said an annoyed Zoro as he tried to ignore Usopp's panic attack.
"No way are we tossing my treasure!" said Nami.
"And we're not getting rid of my supplies," said Sanji.
"Relax," said Sora, "we've already shrunk everything we could, well, almost," he went forward and shrunk the ships anchor. The Going Merry was now several tones lighter, but sill The Death Stalker gained on them.
"What else can we shrink?" Luffy.
"Wish we could shrink him," said an irritated Aiden as he pointed to the still frantic Usopp.
"I've got the next best thing," said Riku. He stood in front of Usopp with his fist extended outward. Usopp, in his panicked state, ran right into Riku and smacked his face on Riku's fist, knocking him out cold.
"Finally," said a relieved Zoro, "now we can think."
"There's more of those guys," said Aiden as he looked though his spyglass, "more than the pirates and that Konrad guy."
"You're right," said Riku as he looked. He then focused on the others on the enemy ship, "wait a second, isn't that…"
"It is!" said Sora, "that's Pete! And that's Rakel!"
"Boy, does she look pissed," said Kairi.
"Friends of yours?" Zoro asked.
"You wish," said Aiden as he looked again through his spyglass, "who's that with them? That fat and purple one behind Togakuto?"
"Fat and purple!" a frightened Donald exclaimed.
"It can't be!" said a frightened Sora as he looked, "it just can't be!"
"I know that pudgy face anywhere," said Riku as he looked through his spyglass.
"But we killed her!" exclaimed Donald.
"Twice," said Goofy.
"Apparently she's come back for more," said Riku.
"Who is that?" Aiden asked.
"Is that the sea witch, Ursula?" Kairi asked as she looked though a spyglass, "I thought she had tentacles."
"She did," said Sora, "but now she's more like a human, but she's sill fat."
"And still evil," said Riku, "looks like getting a third life hasn't done anything for Ursula to cure her of her megalomania."
"Just how dangerous is this sea witch?" Sanji asked.
"Very dangerous," said Sora.
"Then we should avoid this fight," said Zoro.
"Can't you guys use magic to make the ship go faster?" Nami asked.
"I think we can," said Donald, "Sora!"
"On it!" said Sora. He aimed his Keyblade at the sails, while Donald aimed his staff as well. They both cast Aero spells, creating a massive gust of wind that greatly accelerated the ship.
"Awesome!" said Luffy as he jumped up to his perch atop the figurehead, "we're really moving now!"
"I think we're finally starting to lose them!" said Nami as she looked behind, "yes! They'll falling back!"
Just then Usopp woke up with a black eye, "what happened?"
"You ran into the mainmast," said Riku, "you really ought to look where you're going, especially when you get scared like that."
"What? Me! Scared?" said Usopp, "I think not! I've braved the seas and faced a hundred-million dangers, and lived to tell them all. Why, this one time…"
"Yeah yeah, whatever," said Riku.
"They're pulling ahead, Captain!" said Jubei.
"They fools actually think they can outrun us," said Togakuto, "let's give them an education. Load and fire the cannons!"
Just when Sora, Luffy and the others thought they had a moment to catch their breath, they head the enemy cannons go off. Several cannonballs enhanced by Ursula's dark magic splashed nearby, missing the ship by yards.
"How'd they get their guns to shoot so far?" Usopp asked as he and Riku began loading the rear cannons of The Going Merry.
"I'll bet it has to do with their ship being a Heartless now," said Riku.
The Going Merry's guns were still out of range, but the enemy's were improving their accuracy. The second barrage from The Death Stalker missed our heroes by barely two yards this time.
"Can't we use magic to make our guns shoot longer?" Sora asked.
"I don't see why not," said Donald.
"But bullets don't work against Heartless," said Aiden, "I should know, so I doubt cannonballs will work either."
"But Usopp's slingshot worked," said Kairi, "he puts his heart into his marksmanship."
"So if we were to improve the cannons," said Sora, "and if Usopp were to fire them…"
"It might just work!" said Donald. He ran to the rear cannons and used a spell that increased distance and accuracy.
"What's he doing?" Luffy asked.
"Something cool," said Sora.
"Oh, okay," said Luffy.
"Try now!" shouted Donald when he finished his spell work.
"Uh…" said a confused Usopp.
"Trust me when I say to trust Donald," said Riku, "now put your heart into it and return fire!"
"You heard him!" said Luffy, "do it, Usopp! Fire!"
Gritting his teeth in concentration, Usopp grasped the lanyards for the cannons and pulled, firing the guns. The cannonballs streaked back to The Death Stalker and hit the enemy ship square on the bow.
"Direct hit!" Usopp exclaimed joyfully.
"Awesome!" said Luffy.
"We may get out of this yet!" said Riku.
"How dare they!" exclaimed Togakuto as he and Jubei examined the damage to the ship from the enemy cannon fire, "how dare they fire on my ship!"
"They actually hit us from that distance," said an impressed Konrad.
"This has Wizard magic all over it," said Rakel, "most likely that feathered fool Donald."
"They won't get away with this, Captain!" said Sojita, "just you wait! They'll pay!"
Konrad, Rakel, Pete and Kichot watched in disturbed amazement as all the cannons of The Death Stalker moved to the bow of the ship, as if the Heartless ship had rearranged herself to serve her masters needs.
"FIRE!" shouted Togakuto, and every gun of The Death Stalker opened up at The Going Merry.
"Oh crap!" shouted Sanji as he and everyone saw the massive barrage coming towards them.
"Take cover!" shouted both Sora and Luffy. Everyone ducked as the dozens of cannonballs reached them. Most of the enemy barrage missed the ship, but three tore into the sails, while one smashed into the lower decks, shaking the ship harshly.
"They wounded us," said Zoro as everyone got back up and began reloading their cannons, "but we're still alright."
Nami rushed to the rear deck to check on her tangerine trees and sighed in relief that the trees from her home village were still intact.
"We can sew up the sails," said Nami as she looked up, then looked down, "but what about below?"
"I'll check," said Luffy. He stretched his neck out so that his head went below decks.
"That is the most disturbing thing I've seen yet," said a shocked Riku.
"I don't care how cool Luffy's power is," said Aiden, "that's just wrong in my book."
Luffy's head and neck then returned to normal, "we're not leaking, but somebody's bunk got smashed."
"Whose bunk was it?" Sanji asked.
"Oh man!" exclaimed Usopp, "it was mine! I know it!"
"Nope," said Luffy, "it wasn't any of ours, but…"
"But what?' Nami asked. Her face then became very angry, "oh it had better not be mine! My bunk had better still be there!" she ran below decks.
"It's hers, right?" Sora asked.
"Yep," said Luffy.
"Hey! Damn it!" shouted a very irate Nami, "my bunk did get smashed!" she ran back to the deck, her face twisted with rage, "Usopp! Return fire! NOW!"
"Do it!" said Sanji, "give and take!"
"Right!" said Usopp. The guns were already reloaded, so all he had to do was aim and pull the lanyards, "Fire!"
"Incoming!" shouted Yukaton.
All of the cannonballs of The Going Merry hit their targets, but so far did no serious damage. But this time the flag of the ship got knocked off of the mainmast and into the ocean where it quickly sunk out of sight.
"Oh now that's just wrong!" snapped Yukaton.
"Nobody disrespects my flag and gets away with it!" raged Togakuto, "Time to reel in the catch!"
"We got their flag!" said a grinning Luffy.
"But they're still chasing us!" Nami.
"Wait…" said Zoro as he looked with his spyglass, "now what are they doing?"
Sora looked to see several devices like harpoon guns being fixed to the front of The Death Stalker, and those harpoons in those guns looked really sharp, and big.
"We've got trouble!" shouted Kairi as she also saw the harpoons.
"More than normal?" Nami asked.
"Do harpoons twice as long as a man count as normal?" Riku asked.
Before anyone could answer, the enemy harpoon guns fired, each harpoon trailing a heavy length of chain.
Most of the harpoons missed, but at least half a dozen embedded themselves in the rear of the ship.
"Don't you go sticking my ship like that!" shouted Usopp.
Just then the chains went taught as the harpoon guns aboard The Death Stalker began retracting them, pulling The Going Merry back towards the enemy ship.
"They're gonna drag us right to them!" shouted Aiden.
"Oh crap!" said Usopp, "now we're dead!"
Kairi then abruptly slapped Usopp, "get a hold of yourself!"
"We're not going to die!" said Sora.
"We're not?" a stunned Usopp asked.
"We will if we don't do anything about these chains!" said Riku. He ran to the rear railing and threw a Strike Raid at one of the harpoons, cutting it in half and dropping the chain into the water. But there were still five more dragging the ship towards the enemy.
Sora and Kairi succeeded in cutting off another harpoon and were about to cut a third, when Luffy jumped down to the harpoons, grabbed one and pulled against the ship.
"Get out of my ship!" shouted Luffy as he pulled and yanked the harpoon out. But then he fell towards the water, the weight of the harpoon and chain pulling him down, plus the fact that Luffy forgot about a simple thing called gravity.
"Luffy!" shouted everyone.
"Crap!" shouted Luffy as he fell and sank below the waves with a large splash.
"He can't swim!" shouted Nami.
"But I can!" shouted Sora. He jumped over the railing and dove in.
"Sora!" shouted Donald as he and Goofy dove in as well.
They quickly caught up with Sora as all three of them swam to reach Luffy, who was still sinking with the harpoon. For some reason he was holding onto it, and the weight of the harpoon, combined with the Devil Fruit curse, was dragging Luffy towards the ocean bottom.
Ursula cackled madly at the sight of Sora, Donald and Goofy diving in after Luffy, "oh, this is too easy! Almost impossibly easy!" she cackled again.
"What are you talking about, witch?" Konrad asked.
"Sora thinks he can save his friend," said Ursula as she smiled wickedly, "but I have other plans," she then cast a spell, "even if they manage to get their stretchy friend up to the surface, they'll still die anyway, and Sora's soul will be sent straight to the Underworld, straight Hades himself, and I will be my own gorgeous self again."
It wasn't long before Sora's fresh air ran out. But before he panicked, he and Donald nodded at each other, and the two magic users cast a transforming spell. Sora then found himself in his merman form, complete with the blue tail, while Donald had the lower half of an octopus, and Goofy became a sea turtle.
"That's better," said Sora as he and the others could now breathe underwater, "now let's go save Luffy!"
"Right!" said both Donald and Goofy. The three of them dove down rapidly, no longer concerned with rapid pressure changes. They caught up with Luffy, who had finally let go of the harpoon and was using both hands to cover his mouth and nose so as not to let go of his air. But the curse was still dragging him down like a rock.
Luffy then saw Sora, Donald and Goofy in their underwater forms. Luffy, in a startled state, opened his mouth in an attempt to say "Sora?" but wound up releasing all his air. He panicked and flailed his limbs about as water began filling his lungs.
"He'll drown!" shouted Goofy.
But Sora wouldn't have any of that, "Wind!" shouted Sora as he cast Aero at Luffy, surrounding his head in a bubble of summoned air.
Luffy thrashed about for a few more seconds before he realized he was breathing again, "oh, I'm alright." He then saw Sora, Donald and Goofy again, "whoa! What happened to you guys! You look so cool!"
"I'll explain later," said Sora as he grabbed Luffy's hand. The curse had made Luffy seem to weight a lot more than he normally was, but Sora was able to stop him from sinking any further, "let's just get you back up to the ship."
"Sounds good to me," said Luffy. Sora then pulled Luffy towards the surface, but as they were less than ten meters from oxygen, they found themselves surrounded by water-based Heartless; Sea Neons, Sheltering Zones, Screwdrivers and Aquatanks. The dozens of water-based Heartless began closing in
"I really don't like these things!" said Sora as he summoned his Keyblade, while Donald and Goofy pulled out their weapons as well. "Luffy! Can you fight at all?"
"Hang on a second," said Luffy. He tried to use a Gum-Gum Pistol on the closest Sea Neon, but his arm went limp before his fist made contact. "Nope," he said as his arm retracted to normal, "sorry, can't do a thing underwater."
"That's okay," said Sora. He then handed Luffy to Donald and Goofy, "hold on to him, guys!" He then rushed and destroyed the first three Sea Neons, then threw a Strike Raid at a Screwdriver.
Donald held onto Luffy with one hand while casting Thunder at an approaching Sheltering Zone, destroying it before it could spawn any Sea Neons. Goofy then smashed his shield into a charging Screwdriver, then blocked the attack of another.
Sora swam and got behind an Aquatank and cast Gravia, crushing the lantern fish-like Heartless and the three Screwdrivers attached to its belly.
Sora then realized that some of the Heartless were leaving. He destroyed a Sea Neon and looked to see several more Sea Neons and several Screwdrivers swimming towards what appeared to be someone from The Going Merry who had also fallen overboard.
Sora then cast Thunder twice, stunning several nearby Heartless. He swam forward and saw to his shock that it was Kairi who had fallen overboard. By now all of the remaining Heartless were focused on Kairi. She was holding her breath and swinging her Keyblade about, but the water slowed her down. A Sea Neon struck Kairi in the back, forcing her to release her air.
"Kairi!" shouted Sora as he sent out more Thunder spells to stun the attacking Heartless. He then instinctively used his magic to transform her. The next thing Sora and Kairi knew, Kairi was a mermaid, complete with a blue seashell top and a tail the same color as her hair.
"What the…" said a surprised Kairi. She then looked down and saw her tail, "oh my god!" She then smiled, "I…I have a tail!" She then swam around, clearly getting used to the idea of having a tail, and gills, faster than Sora did when he first transformed.
"You're a real natural at this," said Sora.
Kairi then swam up to Sora, "you did this?"
"I…uh…yeah, I did," said a slightly embarrassed Sora.
Kairi then flung her arms around Sora, "you are the best!" and kissed him right on the lips passionately.
"Whoa," said Luffy as he was dragged by Donald and Goofy towards Sora and Kairi, "that was cool."
"Which part?" Kairi asked after breaking contact from Sora, "my becoming a mermaid? Or me kissing Sora."
"Both," said Luffy.
"Can we finish up down here already?" Donald asked as he and Goofy strained to hold Luffy up, "he's getting heavy!"
"That must be the curse," said Sora. He looked at Kairi, "you up to some underwater fighting?"
"I'm all over this," said Kairi as she smiled. Sora nodded and the two of them began destroying the rest of the attacking Heartless. Most of the Sea Neons and Screwdrivers were still stunned, so it went fairly quickly. They even were able to talk to each other.
"How'd you get down here in the first place?" Sora asked Kairi.
"After you dove in after Luffy," said Kairi, "the rest of us kept trying to break off the harpoons, but the enemy kept shooting more. They finally pulled The Going Merry alongside of The Death Stalker. Those pirates, Togakuto and his crew, they're really strong, a lot stronger than before."
"I'll bet Ursula's responsible for that," said Sora.
"That's what Riku said," remarked Kairi, "but then that guy with all those small axes threw me overboard, and here I am."
By then they had finished destroying all the attacking Heartless. "Let's get Luffy back up."
Kairi was hesitant to ask. Sora knew that Kairi, having just experienced being a mermaid for the first time, wasn't ready to end it just yet. But then Kairi nodded in acknowledgement. The two of them grabbed Luffy from Donald and Goofy and pulled him to the surface.
The Aero spell wore off the moment Luffy's head broke the surface. "That was so cool!" said Luffy as Sora and Kairi pulled him back towards the ship.
"Let's hope we don't have to save you again any time soon," said Sora. They reached The Going Merry, which had been tie up to The Death Stalker. Miraculously, The Going Merry was unharmed. But from what Sora could tell, none of his friends were aboard.
They reached the side of the ship, and with a little help from Donald and Goofy, threw Luffy onto the deck of The Going Merry, which was indeed deserted.
Sora, Kairi, Donald and Goofy, reverted back to their biped forms and climbed aboard the ship. Luffy was grinning and laughing heartily as he stretched to wring the water out of his body, "I feel great! My strengths is back!"
"Glad you're happy," said Donald as he shook the water from his feathers.
"But what happened to our friends?" Goofy asked.
…a few minutes ago…
"I'm going in after them!" shouted Kairi.
"Me to!" shouted Nami as the two of them prepared to dive in after Sora, Donald, Goofy and Luffy
"Sora, Donald and Goofy can save Luffy," said Riku.
"We've got bigger problems!" said Zoro as he pointed at The Death Stalker, which was rapidly pulling The Going Merry in.
"We've got to get rid of those harpoons and chains!" shouted Usopp. He pulled out his slingshot and fitted a red bullet, aimed and shot at one of the chains, "Exploding Star!"
The bullet had a gunpowder charge that detonated on contact, blasting the chain apart.
Riku and Aiden then destroyed the last two harpoons, but then the enemy ship fired more harpoons, now sticking ten into the ship and pulled them in faster.
"There's no helping it then," said Zoro as he drew his sword, "prepare to repel boarders!"
"We have them now!" shouted Togakuto, "prepare to board! Slay them all!"
"I have a better idea," said Ursula, "capture them. I want them all brought here, alive."
"Yes, mistress," said Togakuto and his crew. Several Pirate-type and Air Pirates were then summoned.
"What gives?" Pete asked.
"I'd like to know that myself," said Konrad. He then looked at Ursula, "why the change of plans?"
"Well you and Rakel wanted to destroy The Keyblade Wielders," said Ursula, "and I wanted to destroy Sora. By now his soul is on its way to the underworld, so Hades is satisfied. Now that I am satisfied, you Hakonians can satisfy Maleficent by destroying the other Keyblade Wielders, Riku and that other one."
"I suppose she would be satisfied with just Kairi, Riku and Aiden," said Rakel, "especially with the traitor Riku. And if you explain, yes, you will explain, Ursula, that you absolutely had to destroy Sora yourself, then everyone will go home happy. Very well, let's catch them alive."
"What are you doing?" Konrad demanded quietly.
"Relax," said Rakel, "Sora and Kairi aren't dead. I have my sources underwater; not only did Sora save that rubber freak, he is also destroying the Heartless that Ursula sent against them." she looked at Ursula, "she really shouldn't underestimate her enemies."
Just then the two ships were close enough for several Pirate-type heartless to throw grappling hooks, securing The Going Merry to The Death Stalker. Togakuto, his crew and a large host of Heartless, jumped aboard the other ship.
"Once we have the other Keyblade brats secured," said Rakel, "then we will make our move and sever Togakuto and the others from Ursula's control. But, instead of having them self destruct, I believe I can take control of them myself. Then, not only will we have removed our enemies from the equation, we would also have gained several powerful Heartless, and humiliated Ursula in front of Maleficent, and Hades"
"I still don't get it," said Pete.
"I'm not surprised," said Rakel, "allow me to explain. Sora will survive Ursula's underwater trap. He'll bring Luffy back up and they will try and rescue their friends. Once we have Togakuto under our control, we'll use him and his crew to destroy Sora, then the rest of the Keyblade Wielders. I will have fulfilled my obligation to Maleficent, while Ursula will be exposed as the incompetent lummox she is."
"Why my dear Rakel," said Konrad, "I do believe you are a genius. And that genius is rather appealing to me at this time."
"Don't push it," said Rakel sternly.
"I would never dream of such," said Konrad, "but I wish to say that you can tickle my fancy any time you wish."
"I'll keep that in mind," said Rakel. She then whispered to Kichot, "remind me later to slap him into next week."
"I'll pencil it into your schedule, mistress," said Kichot.
Just then Sojita knocked Kairi overboard. "oh this is too much!" said an overjoyed Ursula, "not only will Hades get Sora, he'll also get a former Princess of Heart. Now that flamboyant flame head will be in my debt for a change!" she cackled madly again.
"Kairi will survive," said Rakel as she used her dark magic to see the underwater fight, "Sora will save her…no…wait…now this is interesting. Apparently Kairi has been transformed into a mermaid as well."
"That is interesting," said Konrad, "and I can guess that she will fight with Sora and Luffy to save their friends."
"Exactly," said Rakel, "we'll destroy them all in the end."
By now Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Sanji, Riku and Aiden had been overwhelmed and tied up by Togakuto and his crew.
"Bring them aboard and throw them in the dungeon," said Ursula.
"Pirate ships don't have dungeons," said Konrad, "they have brigs."
"Then take them there," Ursula ordered Togakuto.
"Yes, mistress," said Togakuto and his crew. They threw Zoro, Riku and the others onto the deck of The Death Stalker, then kicked them down the hold towards the brig below.
"I'm going to enjoy this," said Ursula as she to went below decks.
"When?" Konrad asked Rakel as they, Pete and Kichot also went below.
"Soon," said Rakel, "just as soon as Sora and Kairi make their move."
"They must have taken our friends prisoner," said Sora as he, Kairi, Donald, Goofy and Luffy searched The Going Merry from top to bottom, only to find no trace of Riku, Aiden, Zoro, Nami, Usopp or Sanji.
"Then there's only one place to look," said Luffy as he pointed at The Death Stalker.
Donald gulped nervously, while Goofy asked, "do we have to go in there?" in an unsteady tone.
"That's we're our friends are," said Kairi.
"Then let's go!" said Luffy. He grabbed Sora, Kairi, Donald and Goofy in one stretched arm and used the other arm to grab onto the enemy mainmast, "Gum-Gum Rocket!" he zoomed onto the deck of the other ship and let go of our heroes.
"Don't ever do that again!" said Kairi, still shocked at the sudden transportation.
"At least he's back to full power," said Sora as he summoned his Keyblade again, while Kairi did the same with hers.
Luffy then kicked in the hatch leading below decks, "Hey! Axe Pirates! We're here!"
The end of chapter 7
Usopp: Oh man! Oh man! Oh man! We're really gonna die this time!
Aiden: I'm getting really tired of you saying that! We're not going to die!
Nami: How can you say that? We're chained to the wall!
Sanji: I think that sea witch wants to eat us. I hope she chokes on me.
Riku: We're not dead yet.
Usopp: But those Hakonians are gonna mess our minds up! We're done for!
Aiden: Will you shut up already!
Sora: Just hold on, guys, we're coming!
Luffy: Next chapter; 'Below decks of the Death Stalker.' I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!
