DISCLAIMER: Kingdom Hearts franchise belong under the names of the Walt Disney Company and Square Enix. No copyright infringements are intended.

WHEW! Another chapter posted. Enjoy.


Chapter 7: The Key!

Jumping out of the hotel window, Sora fell down and safely landed on the ground.

He looked at the surrounding area and found himself in a back alley. At the same time, there were about four, knight-like Heartless as they surrounded Sora. Every single pair of menacing eyes was on him, due to the mysterious Keyblade in his right hand.

One by one, the Soldier Heartless charged at Sora, sharp claws at the ready. Sora quickly dodged each attack, sidestepping and acrobatically jumping over the charging Soldier. After the last Soldier missed him, Sora began to charge towards one of the armored creature.

With two hands on the Keyblade, Sora twirled in the air and slammed his Keyblade down into the Soldier, which evaporated into nothingness. He quickly turned around and dashed to the next nearest Soldier. Sora performed a single combo consisting of three quick slashes and then heavily swung the Keyblade sideways, knocking back the Heartless right before it evaporated.

The third Soldier appeared in front of Sora and attempted to charge at him again, pointing its claws at the Keyblader. Sora, however, quickly did the same thing as he pulled back and forcefully thrust the Keyblade to the enemy. In an instant, the Heartless had missed Sora's face only by a hair, while Sora had managed to pierce through the Heartless's chest with the blunt tip of the Keyblade. The Soldier vanished as Sora slid past it.

As he skidded to a halt, Sora made a surprised expression on his face, completely unaware that he could pull something off like that with a weapon. Perhaps it was from the power of the Keyblade? He quickly shook off the thought as he noticed another Soldier behind him.

Sora turned around as he saw the last remaining Soldier running at him with its arms flailing behind like wet noodles. With the Keyblade in his right hand, Sora pulled his arm back before throwing the Keyblade straight at the last Heartless. The Keyblade spun in fast circles as it instantly bashed the Soldier into nothingness.

The Keyblade instantly returned to its Master's right hand in a ray of light. With the coast being clear, Sora looked around as he searched for the presence of a certain missing person.

"Leon?!" Sora shouted. "Where are you?!"

Leon hadn't responded, indicating that he was already far ahead of Sora. Deciding that was the case, Sora ran across the alley and returned to one of the previously visited districts.

At the same time, the masked figure was standing on a rooftop of one of the buildings across the hotel. He had watched the whole thing in action, from Sora destroying a small group of Heartless to him hopelessly calling out a seemingly more experienced fighter for guidance.

"Hmph. Some hero he's supposed to be…" the masked figure muttered bitterly.


"What?! He was just there?!" Donald shouted.

Donald and others had escaped the hotel and resided in a small house that was far away from the previously Heartless-infested area. The house consisted of a small room decorated with a light blue color, along with a set of boxes and a comfy bed.

Goofy looked on in surprise, while Aerith made a concerned expression. Kairi and Yuffie merely watched Donald as he fumed with anger and frustration.

"He went with Leon to fight the Heartless." Yuffie explained.

Donald let his arms droop downward as he let out a frustrated sigh with half-closed eyes.

Kairi looked at Aerith with a worried look on her face.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" Kairi referred to Sora.

Aerith gave a gentle smile.

"I'm sure your friend is going to be fine. We just need to have faith him." Aerith said.

Kairi's eyes pointed at the floor under her feet. She knew that Sora was capable to handle things on his own, but something inside told her that she needed to be there with him. Her Heart was telling her that she needed to look out for him, to protect him from whatever danger that he wasn't ready to face alone.

Back to the situation at hand, Goofy was currently scratching the back of his head.

"Gawrsh, maybe we ought to go and look for him. He is the 'Key' after all!" Goofy said.

Donald raised his head up and crossed his arms in an irritated manner.

"And we need him…" Donald added.

"Ahyuk!" Goofy laughed.

Donald shook his head and lowered his arms before he turned and walked towards the door. He gestured Goofy to follow.

"Come on, Goofy. Let's go." Donald said.

Goofy nodded and followed the duck.

"Right behind ya, Donald." Goofy responded happily.

"I'm coming too."

Donald and Goofy halted and turned around to see Kairi with a determined look on her face. Yuffie and Aerith looked at Kairi as well.

Donald shook his head with an angry look in his eyes. He was already frustrated enough with this wild goose chase for the "Key". The last thing he wanted to add on his to-do list was to look after a little teenager who could barely fend for herself.

"No!" Donald said.

Kairi stiffened a bit from Donald's shout. Goofy looked at the duck worriedly.

"Donald?" Goofy said.

"No! You're staying with them!" Donald pointed at Yuffie and Aerith. "We're here to find the 'Key'! Not to babysit!"

Kairi took a step forward as she glared back at Donald, refusing to back down from this argument.

"I can take care of myself!" Kairi responded. "Let me come with you! He's my friend! I…I want help him."

Aerith, Yuffie, and Goofy looked at Kairi worriedly.

"Kairi…" Aerith said.

"You don't have a Keyblade to defend yourself from the Heartless like Sora does." Yuffie spoke more kindly than Donald did. "You don't have any other way to protect yourself either. I hate to say this, but…I think you'll just get in their way."

Hearing those last words from Yuffie, Kairi's eyes went back down on the ground in defeat. She still wanted to find Sora, but they were right, she had no way of defending herself. She hated how people would see her as this frail little girl that needed to be protected. She wanted to prove everyone that she could take care of herself, but what proof could she show if she had none? What could she do to rightfully express those feelings to everyone around her?

With nothing else to say, Kairi let out a sad sigh as she sat on the bed behind her.

Donald angrily nodded before turning around and heading out the door. Goofy, on the other hand, looked back Kairi with an apologetic look on his face before heading out with Donald.

Yuffie tried to give out a warm smile towards Kairi.

"Cheer up, Kairi. Sora said he'd come back to you, didn't he? Besides, I don't think he would lie to you like that." Yuffie said.

Aerith nodded in agreement.

"Neither do I, but…I just don't want Sora to get hurt." Kairi said.

Yuffie and Aerith shared a concerned look, while Kairi continued to look at the ground. Even thought she was just told to stay put, Kairi still wanted to find and help Sora. But how? She didn't have a weapon. She didn't have a Keyblade. If she went out there defenseless with those Heartless lurking around, she'd be finished in a matter of seconds. She thought back about Sora, how he would always follow his Heart. Kairi closed her eyes shut, as she wanted to follow in Sora's footsteps; she wanted to follow her Heart as well.

What was her Heart going to tell her now?

Kairi suddenly felt something; she felt something inside her Heart. She felt a sense of strength surging inside of herself. She quickly recognized this strength as her desire to protect those she cared about, the desire to protect her friends.

Suddenly, a group of small particles of light had gathered in Kairi's right hand. Assembling into a large line, a ray of light shined brightly in her hand. The three girls were then shocked to see what was in front of them.

"What?!" Yuffie startled.

A Keyblade; Kairi's Keyblade.

At first glance, this Keyblade looked almost completely harmless. The hilt around the handle was shaped like a heart, with one side formed into a shape of a breaking ocean wave. The other side resembled a vine of sand that wrapped around the shaft, which was colored to resemble a sunset. The vine connected to a bouquet of colorful flowers, which formed the teeth of the Keyblade. The keychain connected to the hilt was shaped like a Paopu Fruit.

"A Keyblade?!" Aerith said.

"But…how?" Yuffie wondered.

At the same time, Kairi looked at her Keyblade in awe and shock. She couldn't believe it either. She actually had a real Keyblade in her hand. Kairi raised the Keyblade up in front of herself. She suddenly thought back to Sora, now realizing what she had to do next.

Kairi stood up from the bed and ran to the door with the Keyblade in her hand. Yuffie and Aerith looked at her in surprise and confusion.

"Kairi, where are you going?!" Yuffie asked.

Kairi pulled the door open.

"I gotta go find Sora!" Kairi shouted before running out of the house.

"Kairi, wait!" Yuffie shouted.

"Just let her go." Aerith said calmly.

Yuffie quickly looked back at Aerith, who had formed a small smile on her face.

"Aerith?" Yuffie gave a quizzical look.

"She's just following her Heart."


Meanwhile, Sora had made his way to the Second District. He stood in the center of the lower area as he looked for a path that would lead him to Leon. Suddenly, he heard a voice.

"Having fun playing Hero again?"

Sora quickly turned around to see the masked figure standing in front of the fountain near the entrance. He firmly gripped the Keyblade with his right hand as he glared at the figure.

"You!" Sora said.

The masked figure casually looked at his surroundings.

"This place sure brings back memories, doesn't it? Except that your other friends aren't here anymore, since they went back to their own world." The masked figure said. "It's impressive how the connections between your Heart and the Hearts of others can quickly influence a person's behavior. I don't think anyone else could pull that off. No one, but you, Sora. Amazing, don't you think?"

Sora suddenly received more painful flashbacks, showing a red-haired girl with a teddy bear and a long blonde-haired boy. He saw them, along with the orange-haired kid and the beanie girl, happily interacting with someone. He saw them laugh and smile in various images. The final image had shown the stranger with three of the kids standing in a circle, putting their hands together as a means of bonding.

Sora quickly shook off the vague images in his head and looked back at the figure. However, the figure was absent in in his line of sight, much to Sora's surprise. He quickly turned his head side to side, only to sense the masked figure's presence right behind him. Sora turned around and quickly jumped back from the masked figure, who just stood there like nothing happened.

"What do you want?!" Sora demanded.

Sora heard the masked figure letting out a dark chuckle.

"It's not what I want." He pointed at Sora. "It's what you want that matters. Do you know what that is? Do you know what you want?"

Sora gave a quizzical look. "What I want?" He looked down and thought to himself. "I…I want…"

After a brief moment of silence, the masked figure scoffed.

"Hmph. I guess not. Looks like you've forgotten everything after all. Talk about being worthless." The masked figure said.

Sora shot an angry look at the figure.

"What are you talking about?!" Sora shouted.

The masked figure scoffed at him again.

"As if I'd ever tell you, idiot. Why don't you go find the truth for yourself?" A dark portal had appeared and slowly engulfed the masked figure from behind. "I've heard it's more efficient that way."

Sora ran to the masked figure. "Wait!"

It was already too late. The masked figure disappeared before Sora could reach him. As he stopped in his footsteps, he suddenly thought to himself; he thought about that masked figure. What did he actually know about Sora? How much could he really know? There were many questions that entered Sora's head, but none of them could be answered yet. He couldn't grasp what was happening right now.

Suddenly, a voice called out.

"Sora!"

Hearing his name from behind, Sora turned around to see Kairi running up to him with a strange-looking object in her hand.

"Kairi?" Sora said.

As Kairi got closer to Sora, he got a better look at the object, which largely startled and surprised him.

"Is that…a Keyblade?!" Sora jumped a bit.

Kairi looked at her Keyblade as she raised it up in front of herself. Looking back at Sora, she quickly nodded.

"Yeah!" Kairi answered.

Sora was still surprised, but now confused by this sudden revelation. Guess he was right after all, about not being the "Chosen One".

"But…how did you even get a Keyblade?" Sora asked.

Widening her eyes, Kairi looked at her Keyblade, which she still had up in front of them.

"You know, I'm not sure." Kairi said innocently.

After a brief moment of Sora making a surprised and confused expression, Kairi and he started to chuckle and smiled at each other. Sora scratched the back of his head.

"Nothing's gonna make sense anymore, will it?" Sora asked.

Kairi shook her head.

"Probably not." She said. "So, now what?"

Sora placed his left hand on his hip as he thought for a moment.

"Hmm…well, I'm stilly trying to find Leon. I thought that he could tell me what I had to do next." Sora said.

Kairi smiled at him.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go find him!" Kairi said.

Looking back at Kairi, Sora smiled back and nodded.

"Yeah!" Sora said.

With their own Keyblades in their own hands, Sora and Kairi ran toward an alleyway that would lead them out of the Second District.

Sora and Kairi ran through the Third District, which consisted of a small plaza. This District was the smallest of the four main districts revealed to the two teens in Traverse Town. It was a small plaza with two small houses nearby. There was a flight of stairs that would lead to a lower area, where a distinct, golden fountain was sitting in the corner. The fountain depicted an image of two dogs together.

As Sora and Kairi were heading downstairs to the lower area, Goofy was suddenly looking over from a much higher balcony, still not noticing the two teens running underneath him. Donald and Goofy were still searching for the "Key", but they were unaware that the "Key" was right under their noses.

"Huh?" Goofy turned around to face the other end of the balcony.

A small group of Soldiers suddenly appeared behind Donald and Goofy. Goofy frightfully pulled out his circular shield and held it up in front of himself, while Donald hefted his magic hat-wearing staff over his shoulder.

"Gawrsh, are these the Heartless guys?" Goofy said with a scared tone.

Donald simply glared at the marching Heartless before swinging his staff to his side.

"Let's go get 'em, Goofy!" Donald shouted.

Once Sora and Kairi reached to the center of the lower area, they heard a loud bashing noise behind them.

"WAAAKKK!"

"WAHAHAOHHH!"

They quickly turned around and looked up at the higher balcony, only to see a screaming pair of a duck and a dog being launched upward and falling to their location. Surprised by this, Sora quickly grabbed Kairi's empty right hand with his empty left hand and tried to sprint their way out of their direction. Unfortunately, they were too late as Donald and Goofy already landed on top of the two teens.

The four were lying on the ground, with Donald and Goofy on top of Sora and Kairi. After a moment of dizziness, they all shook their heads as Donald and Goofy's eyes landed on Sora's Keyblade.

"A Key!" Goofy shouted.

"Oh, a Key!" Donald shouted at the same time.

Sora grunted.

"Ugh…Kairi, you okay?" Sora looked at Kairi.

"…Yeah." Kairi said uncomfortably.

"Huh?" Donald and Goofy said.

Donald and Goofy looked over to Kairi, only to find another Keyblade held in her left hand. They shook their heads and widened their eyes as they gawked in shock.

"Another Key?!" Donald and Goofy said together.

Donald and Goofy quickly got off of Sora and Kairi, who then stood up with the royal assistants. Donald and Goofy gave them their own quizzical looks. Before they could say anything, the four felt a sudden vibration around them. Stone pillars rose up from the ground, completely blocking all entrances and trapping the four characters in the square room.

Donald quickly held his staff to his side, turning his head side to side.

"It's the Heartless!" Donald shouted.

Sora, Kairi, and Goofy got into positions. Sora got into a fighting stance where he held his Keyblade with two hands and to the side, while pointing the weapon away from him. Kairi held her Keyblade with two hands as well, but had it in front of her rather than to the side. Goofy simply held up a shield in front of himself, almost looking like he was cowering behind it.

As they stood in front of the golden fountain, a line of six Soldiers appeared in their sights. They landed on the ground and pranced around as they faced their targets.

Sora charged at two of the Soldiers, while Kairi did the same with two other Heartless. Goofy charged at the last two Soldier Heartless with his shield in front of him and with Donald following behind.

The first of the two Soldiers attempted a dropkick on Sora, but he quickly sidestepped the attack and knocked back the armored Heartless with a quick side swing of the Keyblade. He continued to sprint ahead as he charged towards the second Soldier. Sora quickly threw in three quick slashes and a powerful twirling finisher, bashing away the Heartless right before it evaporated.

Kairi defended herself against the two other Soldiers, which were swinging their claws against her Keyblade. As soon as one of them bounced back from the deflection, Kairi quickly went in and heavily swung the Keyblade at it, knocking it back before evaporating. Unfortunately, as soon as she attacked one of the Soldiers, the other one had a chance to attack her as it dashed straight at her.

"THUNDER!"

Suddenly, a lightning bolt struck down on the dashing Heartless, electrocuting it as the shocking force of the bolt knocked it back. Kairi looked behind her to see Donald giving a quick thumbs-up…

"ACK!"

…until another of the Soldiers harshly kicked him back near to Goofy, who managed to bash away one of the Heartless foes. Kairi looked back to her own enemy and continued their battle.

The previous Soldier ran at Sora and thrust its claws at him. Sora quickly flipped over the charging Heartless and flung the Keyblade at it in midair. As the Soldier vanished, Sora landed and slid across the ground with the Keyblade reappearing in his right hand.

Looking back at the others, Kairi had managed to quickly step away from one of the Soldiers' attacks before throwing back a heavy strike, causing the Heartless to evaporate. Donald and Goofy were still dealing with their own foes, which seemed to be weakening from the two's attacks. Sora immediately dashed into their battle.

As soon as Goofy knocked back one of the Soldiers, Sora quickly stepped on top of the flying Heartless before launching himself into the air. While in midair, Sora forced himself down onto the other last Heartless with the Keyblade held over his head. He slammed down the Keyblade into the ground, slicing the Soldiers into nothingness.

Lifting the Keyblade up to his side, Sora stood in the center of the enclosed area as Kairi, Donald, and Goofy walked up to him.

Suddenly, they all looked up to see five large pieces of purple armor falling down from the sky. The large pieces bounced up in the air once hitting the ground.

While in the air, the armor pieces assembled itself as the large body pulled the arms and legs onto it. The torso armor was shaped like an hourglass with a strange heart-shaped emblem in the center. The arms were gauntlets with wide wrists and three segmented fingers. The legs were short and had large hammer-like feet colored black. As the armor landed on the ground, the head immediately fell down on top of the body, finishing the entire set. The head was spherical helmet sporting three silver spikes and a silver faceplate with several holes in it.

Goofy hid behind his shield.

"Gawrsh, is that the leader of the Heartless?" Goofy said frightfully.

"It probably is!" Donald answered.

The Guard Armor Heartless had its limbs twirling around as it faced Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy altogether. The Guard Armor made its first move, as it threw one of its fists into the ground where the four characters were standing on. They all jumped back from the fist, which pulled itself back to the Heartless.

Donald stepped back and started casting offensive spells onto the Heartless, while Sora charged ahead with the Keyblade in his hands. The Guard Armor threw both of its fists at Sora, but he quickly stepped on each flying fist as he headed straight toward the main body. Sora leaped into the air and struck the armored head, causing it to spin in fast circles.

As Sora landed and slid past the stunned Heartless, Kairi and Goofy went for its feet. However, Goofy jumped in front of Kairi with his shield in front of them, as the Guard Armor suddenly kicked each of its feet upward and slammed them onto the ground. The shockwaves from its stomps caused the two to be sent back to Donald's location.

Donald quickly summoned several lightning bolts to strike down on the Heartless, which quickly became stunned again by the electrocution.

Getting up and trying again, Kairi and Goofy went for the feet. They each swung their weapons against the lower limbs, bashing at the metal in small simple combos, which consisted of heavy strikes.

Meanwhile, Sora jumped in the air and quickly slashed the Guard Armor's right arm in quick combos. He quickly finished off the combo with a powerful downswing, obliterating one of its arms.

The Guard Armor's remaining left arm flew in and grabbed Sora in the air. Donald quickly casted a fireball onto the Heartless and damaged its armor. It pulled its arm back and tossed Sora straight at the duck, sending them down to the ground.

Kairi threw another heavy swing at its left leg, finally destroying another of the Guard Armor's floating limbs. With a left arm and a right leg remaining, the Heartless instantly launched itself into the air, armor pieces scrambling around. The four quickly scattered as the Heartless plummeted down. The Guard Armor impacted the ground and created a large shockwave around itself. Luckily, the four characters were safely out of its radius.

Sora quickly hopped onto one of the walls nearby, as he was about to utilize his Flowmotion abilities. He pushed himself off the wall and launched himself toward the armored body. Pointing the Keyblade forward, Sora quickly spun into a drill as he dove into the armor's torso.

The Heartless started to spin its left arm around its body to try and hit Sora. Quickly noticing this, Sora instantly twirled upward just as the arm had missed him. Sora pulled back his Keyblade right before slamming it back down into the ground, creating a powerful shockwave that destroyed the last leg of the Heartless.

The Guard Armor suddenly grew desperate, as it blindly threw its fist at Sora. However, its arm was quickly knocked back by a spinning shield, which returned to Goofy's hand. With the arm now dangling in the air, Donald quickly casted another fireball, which then destroyed the arm.

Before the Heartless torso could move any further, Sora quickly hopped back. He twirled his Keyblade in a circle before thrusting it forward, piercing through the last part of the Heartless. The Guard Armor Heartless spun around before it vibrated in an unstable manner, until its armored head fell off and crashed into the ground.

As the torso continued to float in midair, the four characters saw a bright light shining from inside the armor. Coming out from the top was a large glowing Heart, which twirled up to the air before vanishing from existence. Afterwards, a bright aura swirled around the remains of the Heartless, causing it to silently fade away into absolute nothingness.

Sora lowered his Keyblade as he looked back at Kairi, Donald, and Goofy. He quickly smiled at them just as they smiled back at him. As he walked up to them, Sora and Kairi suddenly noticed their Keyblades starting to vanish into thin air, indicating that the Heartless threat is finally gone.

The pillars that once trapped the four finally sunk back into the ground, letting in Leon, Yuffie, and Aerith. A smirk formed on Leon's face.

"Hmph. Not bad for a kid." Leon muttered, referring to Sora.

Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy had looked at each other curiously. Suddenly, Donald and Goofy let out a sigh of relief.

"Finally, we found the 'Key'!" Donald shouted.

"Huh?" Sora pointed at himself confusedly. "Wait, you two were looking for me?"

"Uh-huh!" Donald and Goofy nodded excitedly.

Leon crossed his arms.

"They, too, have been searching for the Wielder of the Keyblade." Leon explained.

Goofy looked at Kairi with a surprised expression on his face.

"But gawrsh, we didn't expect you to be one too!" Goofy admitted.

Kairi smiled nervously.

"Well, actually, I got mine a while after Sora did." Kairi admitted.

Donald and Goofy widened their eyes in surprise, as they did not expect that kind of response. Goofy placed a hand under his chin as he took a moment to think.

"Hmm…" Goofy hummed curiously.

Donald simply dismissed this with a wave.

"Ah, we can just add you onto the list!" Donald suggested.

Goofy looked back at Donald with a happy face.

"Gee, that's a good point there, Donald!" Goofy agreed.

Sora and Kairi shared a curious glance after listening to the words of Donald Duck and Goofy. Goofy looked back at the two youngsters.

"Hey, why don't you two come with us? We can go to other worlds on our vessel." Goofy suggested.

Kairi looked down as she thought deeply about this. Of course, she wanted to explore many more worlds other than her own, but at the same time, she was still concerned about the status of her home. If the Heartless were currently in other worlds, then that might mean that they're still at Destiny Islands. But then again, she could be wrong…

"I wonder if everyone back at the Islands is still safe…?" Kairi said aloud.

Sora looked at Kairi worriedly.

"Of course they are!" Donald said confidently.

Sora and Kairi quickly looked at Donald both surprised and hopefully.

Suddenly, Donald and Goofy turned around and started whispering to each other.

"Are you sure?" Goofy asked silently.

"Who knows?" Donald whispered with an uncaring tone. "But we don't have time to check. We need them to come with us to help us find the King."

Just as Donald and Goofy finished conversing with each other, Leon started to speak out to Sora and Kairi.

"Sora. Kairi. Go with them. Especially if you want to keep everyone back your home safe." Leon advised.

Kairi looked at the ground again with a hesitant expression.

"Yeah, maybe." Kairi said.

Donald pointed his finger at Kairi while making a serious expression on his face.

"But you can't come along looking like that. Understand?" Donald referred to Kairi's downed expression. "No frowning. No sad face. Okay?"

Donald said this with a warm, comforting smile. Sora actually liked what Donald was saying, since he was the type of person who would be willing to smile whenever it's possible.

Goofy's head reached down to Donald's height, showing his own smiling face.

"Yeah, ya gotta look funny, like us!" Goofy explained.

An agitated Donald pushed Goofy's face away from his own. He looked back at Sora and Kairi happily.

"This boat runs on happy faces!" Donald finished.

Sora crossed his arms with interest.

"Happy, huh?" Sora repeated the word.

Donald and Goofy nodded excitedly.

Sora gently nudged his elbow at Kairi's side, signaling her to smile like before. To help her do so, Sora showed Kairi his own warm smile. Comforted by Sora's happy face, Kairi looked back at Donald and Goofy right before giving a big smile to the royal assistants.

Donald and Goofy hummed curiously.

"Hmm…not a funny face," Donald admitted, "but it's still a happy one!"

Donald and Goofy looked at Sora.

"Your turn!" Goofy said.

Sora looked at Kairi before nodding his head to the royal assistants, signaling her to stand beside them to watch the master at work. As Kairi stood near Donald and Goofy, Sora bent his head downward. The three others quietly waited and watched Sora reveal his own happy face.

Sora pulled his head back up to reveal a large grin on his face. "EEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Kairi, Donald, and Goofy silently looked at Sora with wide eyes. Sora continued to grin like an idiot while sounding like one. A sense of awkwardness had entered the atmosphere, as Sora was about to give in.

"…EEEEEEEEEE…eh?" Sora's grin dropped down to a quizzical look. Did he fail to meet their requirements?

Suddenly, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy started to laugh their butts off just as Sora stopped grinning.

"That's one funny face!" Goofy shouted.

Kairi and Donald nodded in agreement while laughing at Sora due to his silly grin. Despite them laughing at his expense, Sora smiled at them. He truly was the master of happiness.

After the three finished the rest of their laughter, Sora and Kairi looked at Donald and Goofy happily.

"Okay, why not? We'll go with you guys." Sora said.

Donald extended his hand.

"Donald Duck."

Goofy placed his hand over Donald's.

"Name's Goofy."

Kairi placed her hand over Goofy's.

"I'm Kairi."

Sora smiled at them.

"I'm Sora."

Sora placed his hand on top of everyone else's.

"All for one, one for all!" Goofy shouted.


Meanwhile, in a dark, ominous room, a table sat in the center. There, it showed a green magical glyph, which displayed Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy conversing with one another. Several dark figures surrounded the table as they watched the four displayed characters interacting with each other.

"Those little squirts took down that Heartless…who'd have thought it?!" One figure shouted.

"Such is the power of the Keyblade. Their strengths are not their own." Another stated.

"Why don't we turn them into a couple of Heartless? HAHA HAH! That'll settle things quick enough." A female figure said with a low voice.

"And those brats' friends are the King's lackeys! Swoggle me eyes, they're all bilge rats by the looks of them!" Another figure said with a strange accent.

"You're no prize yourself! HAHAHAHA!" Another figure loudly remarked.

The sound of a blade being pulled out was heard.

"Shut up!" The previous figure shouted immaturely.

"ENOUGH."

The figures turned their attention to their leader, who appeared to be draped with a sinister-looking cloak. She appeared to be holding a staff with a green orb in her left hand.

"The Keyblade has chosen them. Will it be they who conquer the darkness? Or will the darkness swallow them?"

The leader had fully revealed herself in a dim light. Her skin was fair and green. She had shining yellow eyes and red lips. She had a black-horned headdress and her cloak turned out to be a long, tattered black robe with a purple trim and maroon flare edges. Her nails were long just like those of a nasty witch.

"Either way, they could be quite useful." She had dark smile as her eyes were pointed directly at Kairi. "Especially her."


Traverse Town is done. Next world is Wonderland. And the one after that is probably Olympus Coliseum since I might need to make an opportunity where Kairi needs to learn more about fighting.

Welp, I'll see you next time.