Chapter Eight:

When the key was back in my hands, I was speechless. It came back to me like I was connected to it.

"That special weapon is called a keyblade." King Mickey explained.

"Key…blade?"

"A keyblade is a special weapon that destroys and repels the Heartless."

"What is a…Heartless?"

The King had a surprised look on his face. "You don't know what the Heartless are? You just fought them not to long ago."

I processed everything for a while. Then everything was clear. "So that's what those shadow creatures are called: Heartless?"

"That's right." Chip said. "A Heartless is a creature that is formed from the Darkness of a person's heart. The Heartless go around stealing other people's hearts."

"That's terrible! So the keyblade stops them?" I asked, admiring it's beauty and design.

"That's right. When a Heartless is destroyed by the keyblade it releases a captive heart."

All this was way too much to keep up with. "But why do I have the keyblade?"

"Because it chose you to be one of the warriors to defend the world from the Heartless. It's your destiny."

"Destiny? Do you mean there are others that wield a keyblade?"

"Yes. There are others out there that have keyblades and defend the world; including me." King Mickey held out his hand, and his keyblade appeared out of nowhere. His actually looked like a regular key, only super sized with a golden handle. "This is my keyblade. I call it the 'Kingdom Key.'"

I stared at the King's key in amazement, until he made it disappear. I looked at mine and thought hard about how I wanted the keyblade to disappear as well, and sure enough it did. But I knew I had a lot more training to go through before I fully became a keyblade master like King Mickey.

"I have to go now, Misuki." The King said after a while of silence.

"What do you mean, your majesty? Why do you have to leave?"

"I have to make sure the Heartless aren't around this area, and look for Ansem the Wise."

When he mentioned Ansem, I wanted to join him in the search as well. "Please King Mickey...I want to come with you. Ansem the Wise has done so much for me. I want to help you find him."

"It's too dangerous." He told me. "Besides, you still need to master your keyblade. It has a special ability that you need to find and master before you're ready to fully use it in real battle."

"Fighting those Heartless was a real battle. They're not so tough. I can take 100 Heartless on alone."

"The only reason you could defeat those Heartless back there, was because they were only level one. There are other Heartless that are bigger, stronger and more powerful. If you went against those kinds of Heartless, they would destroy you and steal your heart in the blink of an eye." King Mickey's explanation brought a lot of thought to me. "I need you to stay here, and get use to your keyblade. Understand?"

I sighed and said, "I understand."

"I'll have someone come over and check on you as soon as I can. Chip, Dale, take care of Misuki while I'm gone."

"Yes sir!" Chip and Dale said, saluting and standing up straight.

"Good luck, King Mickey. Be careful." I said.

"Thank you, Misuki."

As he left, I said one more thing. "When you find Ansem the Wise, tell him to come home. Also tell him I'm okay."

King Mickey nodded, and went off on his adventure. I stood there, wondering if he was going to be okay, but I knew doubting the King was bad luck, so I said a silent prayer to keep him safe. "Come on guys." I looked down at Chip and Dale. "We have work to do. My keyblade training starts now."

"We're right behind you, Misuki." Chip said as he saluted me.

"Yeah, we'll be with all the way!" Dale said. With their help, I knew I could master my keyblade in no time at all.

I started my training early the next morning with basic work-outs. I figured if I was going to master my keyblade, I'd have to be in good shape, so I could push myself harder and harder. I began with running five miles, then doing sit-ups and push-ups. I did all the basic training my father taught me on my island before I was ready to hunt. So my exercise routine was really easy. I even trained far away from Radiant Garden; somewhere up in the mountains where it was easy for me to concentrate my energy and focus all my senses. I became one with the nature that surrounded me.

The first thing I did once I was up in the mountains was climb a giant mountain all the way to the top. As I climbed to the top, I kept thinking about Ansem the Wise and the King, hoping they were okay. 'I will get stronger, Master Ansem.' I thought to myself over and over again. 'I will find you…and bring you back safely.' When I finally reached the top, I came across a wild bear that began growling the moment he saw me. "Good, I needed another work-out." I stood my ground as it came at me with full speed. Once it was within a foot away from me, I struck it in the chest and knocked him back. I didn't even make contact with it; it was the pressure from my energy that hit it. It got up and ran away growling. "That was too easy." I looked up at the sky and saw it was getting dark. "I'd better find some food before it gets too dark."

It only took me three minutes to gather different types of fruits, and carry them to a nearby cave I had made my home. Being out in the wild reminded me of being back in my village, surviving off the land and learning to hunt for myself. Memories of my father flashed in my head of him teaching me how to shoot an arrow and skin a dead animal. "All your teachings haven't gone to waste, dad." I whispered to myself. "I just wish you were here with me." As I drifted off to sleep, I sensed danger very close to me. I woke up to find Heartless surrounding me. "So you managed to find me out here? That doesn't mean you'll have the upper hand!" I held out my hand and let the keyblade appear to me. They all came at me at once, but I managed to push them back and destroy them in no time flat. Now I couldn't get to sleep. There was no way I'd be able to sleep, knowing that Heartless would come and attack me out of nowhere.

The next morning I found a spring that was flowing a few miles away from my cave. I stopped there and took a drink from it, letting its crisp taste calm my body and settle my nerves. "You're doing well for yourself." I quickly turned around to see a mysterious figure covered by a dark cloak. "You're quite the survivalist. What is your name?"

Something inside me told that this person was a little off. I hid my suspicion and told him my name. "My name is Misuki. Who are you?"

"I am just a figure that resides in Darkness, unlike you who reside in the realm of Light. Our worlds are very far apart, but at the same time are very close."

"Listen, I don't know what you're talking about, but I have important things to do, so if you'll excuse me."

The next thing he said stopped me cold in my tracks. "You're working to become stronger so you can unlock the powers of your keyblade. Am I right?"

Okay now I know there's something seriously off about this guy. How did he know about my keyblade? Was he one of the keyblade wielders King Mickey talked about? I turned back around to face the figure, keyblade in hand ready to strike. "How do you know about my keyblade? Do you have one?"

He chuckled. "I do not. The keyblade can only be wielded by a pure heart; one that lives in the realm of Light." As he said that, I noticed that he began to fade away. "Wait, come back here!" By the time I got to where he was standing, he was gone. 'What was that all about?' I thought to myself. 'I have a bad feeling that things are not going to get any easier.'

The rest of my training consisted of just hunting and tracking, along with more wrestling with some of the animals that challenged me. I did get attacked several times by Heartless as I headed back to Radiant Garden, but they were easy to get rid of. Some of them where stronger and more evolved like the king said. But I managed to stand my ground and push my way through the ambush.

When I finally came up to the mansion, I took in a deep breath and absorbed everything around me. "It's good to be home." I couldn't wait to see the look on Chip and Dale's faces when they saw me. I bet they've been missing me a whole lot. "Chip, Dale, I'm back!" In a flash, Chip crawled up my leg and onto my shoulder.

"You're finally home!" He exclaimed.

"Oh boy, Misuki's back at last!" Dale cheered.

I forgot how soft their fur was. It was so good to see them again. "I missed you guys too."

"How was your training?" Dale asked me.

"It was great. Being out in the wild again brought back some good memories." Talking about my experience in the wilderness actually made me hungry. I was ready for a nice home cooked meal. "How about in celebration of my return, I make us something extra delicious? I was able to find some super rare ingredients in the forest and decided to bring them back with me."

"That sounds like a good idea." Chip said, rubbing his belly.

"Yeah, we haven't had a decent meal in a while. We had to eat leftovers while you were gone."

I laughed. "Okay, I'll get started." I headed to the kitchen and began cooking. The guys and I spent the rest of the day hanging out and just having a good time. By three in the morning, we all passed out in the living room on the couch.


Author's Note:

Hey people! Sorry for taking so long to update this chapter. I had to get through work and college assignments. Plus I had my head locked in video games to relieve stress. Axel and Riku are awake and fully healed. Right now both are in their trailers preparing for their appearance in the story.

Hope you all enjoy the chapter ^^ Please R&R. Thank you.