Chapter 7

Kairi gazed around at the group she would soon be traveling with. Five people in the group she knew well, some were acquaintances, and two were total strangers. Riku, Roxas, King Mickey, Donald, and Goofy walked close by, as if escorting her. Leon, Aerith, Cid, Tifa, and Cloud were leading them to the hangar that had been completed around two years ago. Will walked to one side and the two strangers brought up the rear.

One of the strangers was the man who had helped Tifa stop the speeding Gummi Ship in the canyons. He hadn't bothered giving a name during all the commotion, he had seemed content to practice some punches on the side of the room, his red fighting gloves flashing through the air. The other person was a woman dressed in an orange-ish pink, knee length skirt with a matching vest. Long gloves that reached up to her shoulders covered her arms. She had long, blonde hair in the front that fell to either side of her face; the rest was tied back in some sort of bun. The glasses on her face did little to hide her stern personality. Her name was Quistis Trepe, and Kairi could tell she was some kind of instructor from the way she had spoken earlier. She had a whip attached to the lank belt that hung from her waist.

Leon led them all to a set of security doors and led them through. Inside was an enormous room with a large set of doors at either end that could open up completely, leaving no trace of a wall. This allowed for large air ships and space craft to enter and leave freely. This was where Cid had said they could find a ship that would suit their needs. To every one's surprise however, it was Leon who shouted in surprise and ran like a little kid towards something they had almost overlooked.

"It's the Ragnarok!" Leon shouted to them, running up to the enormous craft that oddly resembled some sort of dragon. "I haven't seen this ship in years! I thought it was still in Esthar."

"It was still in Esthar Squall," the strange fighter replied, walking up. "They had been making some improvements to it and thought it would aid us here, so they asked for someone to come pick her up. Me and Irvine went over and brought her back for ya. People over there said it was a gift from Laguna."

Leon turned to the stranger, "Thanks Zell. I appreciate it. Oh, and don't forget, its Leon now. Not Squall."

"Right sorry," Zell replied nodding his understanding. "Come on. Let's get on board already."

A large ramp lowered and they all entered what looked like a small hanger in the back of the ship. Leon gazed at the fresh paint and new lights, having never seen this part of the ship fully illuminated before. There were two smaller ships in this area. One that resembled a fighter caught Will's attention and he went to examine it. The other looked like a transport shuttle and was equipped with blasters for defense reasons.

"This fighter seems to be built along the same lines as mine," Will said, coming back to the group and addressing Cid.

"Well, it should," Cid replied, running his finger along his nose, which seemed to be his call sign. "I went and took a look at the wreckage from your ship and saw it was the same model as that one over there, it's just that yours was an older model. Ye can have it if ya want."

"Thanks Cid, I appreciate it. It'll come in handy for protecting this… Ragnarok… from attack while we're flying."

"That it will son, that it will."

Will and Cid went over to examine the fighter some more. Cid was surprised at how much Will knew about air and space crafts. The others continued on to the bridge. There were many chairs here, and one was occupied. The man in it reminded Kairi of a cowboy. He had the same kind of hat, wore a long tan coat, and his brown hair was tied back in a ponytail.

Leon walked up to him and the man stood up.

"Good to see ya again Leon," the cowboy-like man said.

"Likewise Irvine," Leon replied, shaking Irvine's hand. Then Leon turned to the rest of the group. "Everyone, this is Irvine. He helped out a long time ago in a few matters here on Radiant Garden, and then he went off and did whatever. Irvine, this Kairi, Donald, Goofy, Roxas, Riku, Tifa, Cloud, Aerith, and King Mickey. I'm sure you remember Zell Dincht and Quistis Trepe?"

"Of course I do," Irvine replied, tapping fists with Zell and giving Quistis a wink. Quistis held her head in her hand in annoyance. At that moment, Will and Cid entered the room, but they weren't alone.

"How can you guys think of going on an adventure with out me?" the young woman with short black hair nearly shouted, bounding up to Leon and getting in his face.

"I thought you had a class to teach Yuffie," Leon replied, holding his nose in his signature 'I'm annoyed or thinking' pose.

"Ninja training is on hold right now," Yuffie replied. "Everyone went home to visit their families. Besides, I have enough true ninjas to take over while I'm gone."

Riku smirked. Even though he'd met Yuffie for the first time about two years ago when she and Merlin the wizard had come to Destiny Islands to make sure every thing was safe, he'd always liked her hyper attitude. He'd hate to see what would happen if Yuffie and Selphie ever met. Still, Riku liked Yuffie, probably more than he'd ever dare admit.

"I guess we have another member gang," Tifa said, breaking Riku's train of thought. Cid had walked over to Irvine and they were going over something on the computer Irvine had been sitting at. Will was leaning against the wall and smirking at the reunion that was going on.

"I think we've talked enough everyone," King Mickey suddenly said, drawing their attention. "Remember, we have a friend we need to find."

Everyone grew serious, as they knew Mickey was talking about Sora. He was their main objective. They had to find him, no matter what. But they also needed help. That was why they were taking the Ragnarok instead of a Gummi Ship. They hoped to recruit some help from any world they visited. Maybe not every world, but they did not deny that the Anti-Sora was a force to be reckoned with.

The four chairs in the bridge were occupied by Cid, Irvine, Quistis, and Zell. Cid and Quistis were pilot and co-pilot, Zell checked the weapon and defense systems, and Irvine remained in the position of navigator. Will went back to the hanger and climbed into his new fighter, ready to take off at the slightest hint of enemy ships. Donald hung near Irvine in case he had to help identify a world, and the others left for a lounge that had been placed in one of the unused parts of the ship. Leon had stayed behind to serve as ship captain.

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Several hours passed with no sign of any worlds or enemies. Kairi had left the lounge and was now standing with Namine in the observation deck at the front of the ship, inside the nose shaped like a dragon's head. Countless stars were strewn across the night sky. Kairi saw one distinctive star she had engraved in her mind when she'd left it. They were passing Destiny Islands. Namine saw the sad look on her other's face and wrapped an arm around her.

"Don't worry Kairi," the Nobody said. "You'll see it again."

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Back in the hanger Will was going over the controls to his ship, again. He was waiting for an attack to test it out. He decided it was time for the waiting to end. He activated the communicator.

"Eagle One to bridge," he said, using his old call sign. "I'd like to take the fighter for a test flight around the ship. Over."

"Hold on a moment Will," came Cid's voice. "I'll check with Leon."

The was a pause and the communicator crackled to life again, but it wasn't Cid.

"What is it you want to do Will?" It was Leon.

"I just want to take the fighter out for a spin, get a feel for her. It'll also be easier to set up a defense if I'm outside already, instead of sitting in this hangar."

"I guess that's okay. Just stay near the ship. The enemy could attack at any time."

"Roger that!" Will said, starting to feel excited. He started the engines and the fighter rose off its landing gear. "Opening hangar doors. And we're away!"

The fighter sped out of the hangar and instantly banked around to the port side of the Ragnarok. As he passed the bridge, he saw six figures waving to him. He gave them a thumbs up sign and proceeded to the nose of the ship. Will was surprised to see Kairi standing in the observation deck with Namine.

Deciding to test the fighter's maneuverability, Will performed a series of complex functions and brought the craft to a rest in front of the Ragnarok, keeping the reverse thrusters on to keep the Ragnarok from plowing into him. At this position he could clearly see Kairi's stunned expression and Namine's uncontrollable giggling. Kairi composed herself and waved. Will responded by dipping the nose of the fighter in a crude version of a nod.

Using the crafts sudden downward momentum, Will shot back to the rear of the Ragnarok, just in time to see a Nobody ship appear.

"Cid, enemy in sight!" Will shouted through the communicator. He engaged the weapons and powered up the shield.

"Copy that," came Cid's voice. "Shields are on and weapon systems are engaging. Keep as many off of us as you can."

"Roger."

Time to see what this thing can do, Will thought as he came up behind the Nobody ship. A quick squeeze of the trigger annihilated the craft, but not before several Heartless Gummi Ships appeared.

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Will had been fighting for over an hour now and the fighter had been hit several times. The Ragnarok had also received damage a few times, meaning they needed to land… now.

"Will, we have a new world coming up," came Irvine's voice.

"Anyone recognize it?" Will replied, firing a laser at a Nobody drone.

"It's not one I visited while traveling with Sora," came Donald's quack-like voice. "I believe it's called Megakat City."

"Mega…kat?"

"That's right. That's what the computer shows."

"Whatever. The name doesn't matter. We need to land and repair, now!"

Three Heartless Shivas met their end as the Ragnarok banked toward the new world. Will was hoping beyond hope that they could shake of the enemy when they reached the world. His moments hesitation cost him dearly as an enemy laser struck the rudder.

"I'm hit! The rudder is malfunctioning. I'm going down!"

All the crew of the Ragnarok could do was watch as Will's ship slowly spiraled toward the surface of an unknown world.