The next chapter in the story! Yahh! It only took me like a year haha thanks for being so patient I really didn't think that this story would hit off like it did. Apparently you guys and gals like it though so here it is ill work on it more while I make another story.
Thanks for reading and I hope you like this chapter!
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Ed Edd n Eddy characters, or the Kingdom heart characters.
The Runners
Roxas was basically as frozen as the claw inches away from his eye. He had missed his swing completely and thought he'd have to live without seeing from one of his eyes, but here he was, still ok and well. Not entirely well, he was still just standing there in mid swing not moving at all, all of the past events seemed to slowly catch up to him until his brain started working again and he jumped back quickly.
"Ahhh!" He screamed out, jumping into Nazz who must have been as frozen as he was. She caught him without falling and he quickly apologized.
She didn't say anything for a while, looking over his shoulder towards Axel and the other nobodies that hadn't moved even an inch, it was as if all time had stopped except them.
"How did this happen, I don't get it at all?" Roxas was just as confused as ever, this freeze in time wasn't helping his growing headache.
Nazz finally found her voice and spoke. "I don't know either, it just looks like they've completely stopped, they aren't even slowly moving."
A portal opening sounded behind them and Roxas instinctively held his keyblade towards it. There was a man wearing a mask and cloaked completely, not much of him could be seen, but for some reason he looked oddly familiar.
"Quickly!" He was speaking frantically. "Get to the house before it's too late!"
Roxas looked from Axel to Nazz and ran off towards the direction of the house without saying anything, Nazz just followed closely behind; his look said enough, he was just as scared as she was. She knew less than he did though; he needed to tell her something. She was basically following a stranger she just met and all of this random stuff was happening now. Before they got to the gate she grabbed his arm and turned him around.
"What's going on right now!?" Nazz gestured to the direction of the frozen man.
Roxas shook his head quickly and tried not to look at her eyes. "I…I really don't know, if I did I'd tell you, but all this is just happening to me too. I don't get it." He was still avoiding her eyes, was he lying?
"Why aren't you looking at me?" She looked at him straight in the eyes.
He gulped, looking at her for a moment and blushing. "You look a lot like a girl I've seen in my dreams."
She didn't understand that, but the words did make her blush and looking at him was harder than before. She couldn't worry about this; there was way too much going on for her to get flustered. "Where are we going?" She started jogging again and he kept up, leading the way.
"To a mansion that I think could help me understand what's going on." He stopped at the gate, where more of the white ghost like things popped up. Nazz instinctively backed up, while Roxas keyblade appeared.
He charged at them, swinging and hitting, Nazz had to cringe every time he got hit, it looked so painful. He was huffing when he took them all out, but he was still ok. He looked over at the gate and his key started to shake, and move on its own.
"Wha-?" He tried to stop it by gripping it with his other hand, but it moved up and a beam of light shot out, hitting the gate and opening it simultaneously.
It was Nazz's turn to look surprised. "What is that a master key or something?" After pausing for a while she shook her head and pinched her nose. "That shoots lasers?" She couldn't believe she was asking that question.
Even Roxas had to smile a little. "I don't know really, but ill figure it out soon. Oh, by the way it's a keyblade."
He started to walk towards the house; it felt familiar in a way. He looked from one side to the other as he walked in and automatically knew where he had to go. Tentatively, he walked up the stairs and up to the door that lead to the white room. He looked behind him where Nazz was. "Could you wait out here please, I feel like I have to do this alone."
She understood that, but was scared waiting outside when those monsters where around. "Ok, but just hurry."
He nodded, opened the door and like that she was alone. The house was old and worn; it looked a lot like the old haunted house at the cul-de-sac, that memory sent chills down her spine. Where were they?
Double-D must have been scared out of his mind. Her thoughts wandered off to him and how he was. Hopefully he was with Eddy and Ed to keep him safe.
Before she could think about her lover anymore a portal opened at the other side of the hallway and the man with the red hair appeared. He looked angry.
"Sorry, change of plans, you're coming with me."
She screamed, when he grabbed her, hoping that Roxas would spring from the door and save her.
Hoping that Edd would come out of nowhere and save her.
He never came, and she was taken.
The person she was thinking about was currently in another world, wondering whether or not it was a talking dragon or lizard he was speaking to.
"My name is Mushu!" The dragon spoke, moving his tongue out like a lizard, which confused Edd even more.
"I've seen some pretty amazing things in my life, just yesterday I was with a wizard and a man with a gun sword, but a dragon, seems a little extravagant." He looked him over up and down. "Especially seeing how small you are."
The dragon looked offended. "Hey! Size doesn't matter; I'm a guardian for Mulan!" He put his hand over his mouth like he was telling a secret. "And between you and me, her problems will always be bigger than me."
Mushu looked around. "Speaking of which, do you know where Mulan is?"
"Aren't you her guardian?"
"Well she was with me just before you came teleporting out of nowhere!"
He thought about how much of a shock that would be on him. "Well, she was justified to run, I apologize for frightening you, I'll assist your search for her if that will help."
Mushu scurried up his body until he was on his shoulder, like he was meant to be there. "Coo' cause my feet where killing me!"
Edd felt like he was being used, he rolled his eyes. "So where do you think Mulan is?" His tone was a little condecending but he felt as if he was allowed to be.
He opened his mouth to speak and before he could, he was kicked by a little cricket. It chirped and moved its feelers as if it where talking, something that Edd would have loved to study for his bug collection.
"Mhm, ya i know but he needed to know! Oh he seems like the kinda' guy that wont mind too much!" Mushu was talking to the cricket, slowly shaking his head. He turned back to Edd when the cricket stopped. "I forgot! You cant call her Mulan when you see her, call her Ping!" He rolled his finger in-front of Double-D's face. "Oh! and also, Pings a guy, so treat him like one." He added that part in non-chalantly, but Edd quickly noticed it.
"Wait, you want me to treat Mulan."
"Ping." Mushu corrected him.
Another eye roll. "Ping, like a man, even though she's a woman?"
Mushu turned to the cricket without answering him. "See, i told you he would get it." He smiled at Edd but didnt get one in return.
Edd started walking towards the only opening he could find. "I'm guessing that Mulan is over in this direction."
"You would be right! Now march!" Mushu ordered, Even if Edd didnt want to listen, he was forced to. While he walked down the path he thought it would be a good time to ask questions.
"So, is there a reason i should treat Ping as if he is a man?" He didnt want to be rude and ask why she was acting as if she were a man, he wanted to lead into it, just in case it hit any soft spots.
Mushu looked at the cricket as if asking for guidence, but it just shrugged. "It's for her family, more importantly, her father. He was gonna get drafted in the war, but she is pretending to be a guy so he doenst have to fight."
Edd nodded, He hadnt met Mulan but he respected her bravery. "She seems like a very strong willed woman, I'm glad that i get to meet her."
They walked in silence for a while, that actually wasnt true. Edd walked while Mushu and the Cricket argued. After using the teleportation magic his body was tired and his magic was completely drained. If there were any heartless that came he would be in trouble, close quarter combat was something he needed work on. He couldn't control where his magic teleported him to, just that he needed to be in this world. It made him wonder what could be here that would make his magic guide him to this location.
He heard the shadows appear before he saw them.
He turned around with his wand out, even if he couldn't use any magic. He took a couple steps back and gulped.
There were new heartless among them, ones he had never seen before. Some of them were flying; they had wings and the same insignia on their chest, that's how he knew they were heartless.
"Hey c'mon!" He heard Mushu yell. "You should be able to destroy every one of those little things!"
A cold sweat was breaking out. Then he noticed something different, there were white ghost looking heartless among them, with crossbow like weapons. No, they couldn't have been heartless. The insignia that he usually saw wasn't there. Mushu must have noticed how scared he looked because he braced himself against Edd's shoulder.
One of the heartless moved forward and was instantly hit by a small fireball. It immediately evaporated into a smoke cloud; Edd looked astounded at Mushu, who was smiling cockily.
"Told'ya I was a dragon." Another fireball just to prove his point and another heartless taken out.
One of the white and grey soldiers slithered towards him and he instinctively tried to whack it. It somehow moved away, contorting its body in a perfect way to dodge. He had never seen a heartless do this before, he knew what it was though he had read about it, he was just too tired to remember!
The thing was behind him now and he heard three shots, instinctively he ducked, but the bullets were just hovering in midair. He looked at them, astounded; it was the wrong move because they came at him, striking him in the back. He fell on his knee, usually that wouldn't hurt as much but his body was just too tired, he heard it teleport to his left and he lept at it, hitting it before it could shoot.
That didn't stop the other heartless that used his airtime as an advantage, it flew at him and he was hit in the abdomen, flying backwards and gripping his stomach. The heartless were getting closer, Mushu was able to take out three but there were still more coming. He saw the flying heartless circling above him.
He grit his teeth and stared up at the monsters, this couldn't be the end, he wouldn't let it be over now his adventure just started.
His body was exhausted and there was no more magic for him to draw off of, he didn't care. He raised his wand in the air and screamed out. "Thunder!" He saw the electricity crackle and pierce through all of the heatless and also the other monster. They all disappeared and he fell to one knee, he could hear his heart pounding.
"Hey you ok?!" Mushu's words could barely be heard by the young boy.
He crawled over and leaned against a tree. "…Fine, need to rest." He could only barely speak, he used more magic than he had and he didn't know what that would do to him. He took off his backpack and laid it next to him. "…Mushu…elixir…..please."
Mushu was able to get it out quickly and Edd drank it as if it where the sweetest of juices. It tasted very weird but it was welcomed as the warmth spread over his body and he practically felt his magic steadily grow. His body was still tired and he didn't want to use any more of his supplies so he steadily closed his eyes. "Just let me rest…for a bit."
Mushu smiled and rubbed his foot. "You've earned it little guy." He turned to the cricket. "I'm guessing you're gonna take all the credit for this when Mulan shows up huh?"
Ed was going in all the wrong ways; he was currently talking to Phil on a speaker that they had hooked up. "Where are you going?!"
He turned left just in time to dodge a shot from another ship, he was freaking out, no one had told him this would happen!
"Why are there so many people trying to kill me!" He screamed, firing towards a ship and blowing it up.
"I swear I told you this before you took off!"
"No you didn't, that's why I'm so scared, they're trying to get on the ship!"
"Calm down! It's not the end of the world; just destroy all the ships and land!"
"You didn't show me how to land either!"
"….What I can't here you, we're breaking up! Crrrkkshhhhh!"
He thought about what Phil said for a second, he never remembered being in a relationship for them to break up. A bullet hit his hull and he quickly turned left to avoid another ship trying to sink its pincers into his ship. "Die you alien scum!" He knew they weren't aliens but he wanted to shout something cool out. He shot down the rest of the ships successfully and his hull was full of new items he had received.
He saw the world before anything else, it was giant! Also really, really creepy. The planet itself looked as if it where some kind of giant pumpkin. His curiosity was peaked and he had to land on it. He looked around at the controls and scratched his head, this would be difficult, but not impossible and that was good enough odds for him.
He was actually able to land; the gumi ship practically did it by itself. He was cautious when he walked out, it was snowing, and pretty cold at that. He zipped up his jacket to as far as it would go and put his hands in his pocket.
"Wrong move, put your hands in your pockets and you'll probably get stabbed."
He turned around the second he heard the voice and his shield was out. His breathing got quicker, that sounded really scary. Instead of a heartless he saw a little boy in a devil costume. Ed was still scanning the area, making sure there weren't heartless, instead he heard another voice.
"Can't let anyone get behind you either, you'll get stabbed for sure." It was a shrill voice that made him turn around again. It was a little girl in a witch costume.
This was starting to get even scarier, he wiped around a couple of times to make sure no one else was there, but when he looked again at the two kids there were three. One in a skeleton costume.
"Oh lookey here." He learned how to not get stabbed. "A little too late though."
They pulled knifes out, it was so uncharacteristic for children to just do that. "Where are your big brothers?!" He shouted out, his little sister would never do such a thing.
The two boys moved off to the side, he put his shield up and watched as the girl jumped in the air and clashed her knife against his shield. This was so much different than the sparring matches he had with Hercules and Phil, he could feel the intent to do more than just hurt him.
The other kids came from his left and right, slashing at his abdomen but he jumped back just in time to dodge it. These kids where good, they were definitely more experienced than he was when it came to fighting. The girl flipped forward, slashing down on his shield, he pushed her back on her bum.
The other two came running again, this time both from his left. He raised his hand forward at them and held his shield back, giving them a false sense of triumph. When they jumped up to strike him he spun around, knocking them over with his shield. They were launched back, but where still able to get up. It would take more to finish them off.
The Devil boy and Witch girl stood in-front of him, while the skeleton Boy slowly got up.
"Ready to use it?" The girl spoke to the Devil boy, he nodded. They both stepped back and charged at Ed. Quicker than he imagined they could. They slashed and clashed with Ed's shield in timely unison. Using their numbers to get him to back up, he swept his leg low so the Devil boy would jump up. Then slammed into him with his shield, the girl slashed and cut his leg and back, they weren't cuts that would make him bleed, it was almost as if they were slashes that cut deep into his heart, and weakened it. He spun around to hit her; she was already too far away to get though.
That was when he sensed a presence behind him and he clenched his teeth. Something had stabbed deep inside his back.
"Can't let me get behind you either, you'll get stabbed."
The pain was explosive, and since the blade was still inside his lower back, it didn't end. He clenched his jaw and swung his shield with blind strength. The kid was hit, tumbling back into his other friends. Ed watched them carefully, this wasnt a battle he could win, these guys where good. There was nowhere he could go though, he was trapped. How was he supposed to save his sister and his friends if he couldnt win this battle!
He gripped his shield in frustration. He needed this win, needed to stay alive and in the fight. The Devil child ran towards him and he charged at him with his shield in-front of him, blocking himself while at the same time, staring his enemies down. He sidestepped the skeleton child, knocked the Devil one in the face and got slashed by the girl again.
He stumbled forwards; she had gotten him right in the calf. He gulped; he wasn't going to make it at this rate. That's when someone called from behind.
"Hey! Leave him alone!" Another skeleton was running at him, except it was an actually skeleton, like one he would see out of his comic books.
Whoever it was they were saving his life because the kids ran off in the other direction when they saw him. He noticed though that the kids looked a little tired, he had gotten some pretty nice hits in.
He watched as the Skeleton man got closer and closer to him. He was wearing a Santa costume, which made him a whole lot less scary. "Are you ok?" He looked past Ed. "Those little rascals are always causing trouble!"
Ed looked at the man for a while longer, without speaking. He really had nothing to say.
"Sorry, my names Jack, nice to meet you." He stuck out his hand for a shake; Ed accepted it and shook it. He felt comfortable around him; Jack smiled at him, even that looked creepy. Something Ed could accept about him. He handed him a potion and Ed drank it thankfully.
"I'm Ed." He smiled back; while he shook his hand he noticed something different. His coat wasn't the same green color it usually was; it was black, with red stripes kind of like a candy cane. He checked over himself, he looked a lot different. His shirt was blood red; he was somehow wearing an elf hat too!
It was almost like his attire matched the location he was in. This was so cool!
Jack watched as he checked himself over. "I don't think I've seen you around here before. Are you from another world like Sora?"
He looked over at him with a questioned stare. "I don't know who Sora is." He had maybe heard that name before, but it didn't ring any of his jolly bells. Jack seemed a little disappointed but nodded.
"You should come with me over to my house if you have nowhere to go. Everyone's welcome, it's Christmas you know!?"
The C word, the only holiday that would make Ed go crazy. "It's Christmas!" He didn't care how it was, or that it was the wrong month, as long as it was snowing and people thought it was Christmas, then he was allowed to celebrate like it was.
He was absolutely ecstatic, running around the snow and smiling. Jack seemed just as excited.
"So you know what Christmas is too?!" He watched as Ed threw a couple of snow balls, then looked at him intrigued. "What's that?"
Ed looked at him like he was an alien instead of a skeleton. "They are snowballs! They are so we can throw them at people!" He picked up a snowball and threw it at Jack, it hit his arm and he smiled. "See, they are super fun!"
Jack tried to make a snowball, failing several times before he made a decent one, then threw it towards Ed. They laughed and played around in the snow like two kids without a care in the world. That's what Ed was, a kid that could travel between worlds and have fun, just like he wanted to be.
Being lost between these worlds wasn't bad at all.
Eddy looked down at his sword, it had changed, it no longer was shining brilliantly. It was darker, almost a black blade. He didn't understand why it was like that, but then again he could take a guess. He had been in the darkness for about a solid two days. Doing nothing but learning about it, fighting the heartless that came from it, and getting ready to travel with Saix. He was basically like a mentor to him about the ways of the darkness, and the light. Saix taught him about the Nobodies as well, the hollowed shells of people who had been turned into heartless.
Saix was one of them, someone who would pretend to feel emotion, an act, a scam.
As of now Eddy was trying to get some vital information from him. "So my brother, where's his heart in all this darkness?" He had been walking through portals for a long time now, he was kind of sick of it.
Saix didn't even look back at him while they walked. Whenever he mentioned his brother Saix didn't answer, like he was hiding a fact about it all. This wasn't the first time Eddy had asked; he was tired of waiting for an answer.
He stopped and plunged his sword into the ground. "I'm sick of you not answering me!" He was making a stand.
Saix calmly turned around, his angry eyes not leaving Eddy's. "You're acting like a child, come, we have to meet an associate of mine."
Eddy didn't move, instead he drew his sword. "Where is my brother!?" He was done waiting, he would fight for answers.
Saix didn't sigh; he didn't even shake his head. Simply let his weapon appear in his hand. Eddy had never seen it so even he was intimidated by the hulking weapon.
It looked like a sword without a hilt. The difference was that the tip of the sword was a sharp cross, with a circle around it that had seven prongs. Getting hit with that thing would be painful, then the game plan was simple, don't get hit.
He swiftly moved forward, taking him on without even having to be cautious, he swung quickly and efficiently. Making sure that Saix had to block his advances and not swing himself. Eddy spun and swung at his head; Saix ducked out of the way and took a couple steps back.
Eddy smiled, pointing his sword at him. "Gonna tell me, or do you actually want to get cut?"
Anyone else probably would have been angry to have heard that, but this was a nobody he was dealing with, he didn't even bat an eyelash. Instead he lifted his weapon in the air and pointed it towards Eddy. Somehow that ticked him off.
He ran straight at Saix again, there's no way he'd let him get away with doing that. It was the wrong move, Saix slashed down as if the weapon was only two pounds, it was effortless. Eddy barely had time to block it, and was left on his back when he scrambled up. Saix hadn't moved from his spot, his weapon was still pointing at him!
Eddy got up and charged at him again and again, getting knocked back every time, not even getting a hit in. By the seventh time, Eddy was taking deep breaths and had some scratches around him. Eddy jumped forward and slashed downward; Saix moved to his left and swung down as well, knocking Eddy on his back and sending him flying towards the other side of the portal.
It hurt, the pain from the blow, but also the pain that he wasn't any better than when he had left with Saix. He needed to get stronger if he wanted to save his brother.
If he wanted to save his friends.
He heard Saix walking towards him, each step made him clench his jaw even harder until he was right above him.
"Your brother, he was turned into a heartless."
The words stunned Eddy; his brother was one of them.
"I'm guessing that he's a powerful heartless at that, seeing as how he was able to keep them out for such a long time." Saix said it with no sadness, just a fact.
Eddy lied down for a while, heard his heart pound, felt the darkness starting to encase him. He hit his fist against the ground. "How can I get him back?" His voice was horse.
"Find his heartless, defeat it, beat his Nobody and then his heart needs to find the shell you defeated." Eddy would think that saying that would hurt him. Seeing as he was a nobody, but no, he had the same tone.
Saix dropped a potion right next to Eddy's face, if it weren't for the fact that he was so hurt after that hit he wouldn't have taken it, but he finally did.
He slowly got back up, letting his sword disappear and walking forward. "Where are we going?"
A portal opened and Eddy was pushed into it by Saix. "Become stronger, you need to find Sora and defeat him, his anger is releasing hearts. We are the ones trying to piece them together but at the rate he's going we cant."
Eddy looked around; he was on a wooden port by the water. "That's fine with me." As long as you look for my brother, when you find him ill deal with it."
Saix nodded and the portal started to close.
And Eddy was alone again.
Eddy looked around the port. He was completely lost as he walked around towards the city. Only following the lights. While he walked he noticed that his clothes where different, he was wearing a headband, his pants where loose but long, and he was wearing a yellow shirt with no sleeves, he looked scraggly. That wasn't so bad.
Before he got there he saw a man, leaning against a wall like he was hiding. Eddy didn't like the look of the guy, but needed to know where he was in this new world.
"Hey!" He called but the man shushed him.
"Whoa whoa there kid, trying to hide, the people here aren't exactly the nicest." That's when a bomb was thrown in-front of them and they both jumped out just in time.
Eddy landed on his butt while the other man landed next to him. "Might wanna get up quick kid, these gentleman play for keeps, and they bet lives usually."
Eddy got up quickly, looking as three men walked through the smoke. "Those are pirates!" His sword flashed in-front of him.
He looked over at him for a second; the man looked like a pirate too.
"Let's make a deal, I'll forget you said that if you help me rid the harbor of these ruffians." He drew his sword and held it out for Eddy to hit. "Do we have an accord?"
Eddy lightly hit his sword against the pirates. "Umm, deal?" The men finally spotted them and drew their swords as well. "My names Eddy by the way."
"Captain Jack Sparrow."
Jack moved first, hitting one of them while the other two went for Eddy. He kicked one of them back and ran behind the other before he could even swing. A move he had learned from Aladdin. He slashed the pirates back, causing him to go forward into the moonlight, where he turned into a skeleton. Just like that, he looked towards Eddy and smiled.
Eddy backed up until he was back to back with Jack.
"Oh, you noticed." He stated, as if it were an everyday thing.
Eddy looked at him unconvincingly, then turned his attention on the pirate skeleton. "How do I beat it?" He asked as Jack ran forward to stab the other man, who was in the shade, it looked like it actually hurt him.
"Hit'em while they're in the shade, stings a lot worse."
Eddy took a couple step backs while the man swung at him, he waited until he was in the shade then let loose. Giving the man a barrage of slashes and fakes until he disappeared in a cloud of smoke. The same happened to Jack's enemy.
"Well, that doesn't happen all too often." Jack looked over the cloud as Eddy continued to fight the other man. He licked up some of the dust that was falling, then spit it out. "Doesn't taste like anything I've ever had."
Eddy fell on his back, holding his sword while the man leaned down on him, trying to cut his torso. "Urgh! A little help here!" He looked over to see that Jack was walking in the opposite direction towards the town.
"You were a very big help to me, thank you very much and until we see each other again in Davy Jones locker. I'll be off."
"You're leaving, you two timing pirate!" Eddy called as he left.
Jack stopped, threw his sword at the other pirate that was over Eddy and he disappeared. Jack retrieved his sword and looked over Eddy.
"It's captain Jack to you landlubber." He heaved Eddy up and started walking towards the city again. "You are in my debt now. Follow me to Sir William; we have an arrangement that I need him to assist me with."
Eddy moved behind the man and scratched his head. "Where are we going?"
Jack turned around and looked down at Eddy. "Why to the black pearl of course!"
Ill end it on that note, the adventures are starting up though! The only problem I had was putting two characters that were named Jack in the same chapter x.x it had to happen though you'll all see how these people shape them and why I chose for them to meet the people they did!
Review for me! It helps me a lot!
