Chapter IX: The Mystery from Traverse Town
Each has his past shut in him like the leaves of a book known to him by soul and his friends can only read the title.
~Virginia Woolf
Upon landing back in Traverse Town, our trio of heroes made their way to Tristan's Shop in the Main District. Aside from saving a few Kuribohs (strange little white creatures with red balloon-like projections on their heads) from some Shadow Soulless, they found no difficulties.
As soon as he entered Tristan's brightly-lit store, Jaden flinched at the sound of something falling that echoed across the room. He noticed that a small doll had fallen off of a shelf on the far side of the Shop. Tristan was nowhere in sight.
Sniffles, who was continually working on what he called his "Journal", a diary of the group's adventures, poked his head out of Jaden's pocket to see what had disturbed him from his work. When the mouse's small eyes fell upon the crumpled doll, he jumped to the ground in excitement and ran over to the fallen item.
"Well, well, as I live and breath! If it isn't Robot Jones!" Snuffles bounced happily.
What followed, much to Jaden, Daffy and Porky's surprise, was that the robot who had appeared immobile suddenly jumped to it's feet. It resembled a young boy, grey head with a see through bulb inside, yellow eyes and red and black shirt, with spike looking boots. Then, surprises of surprises, the boy spoke.
"Oh, uh, Hi Snuffles!" he greeted, seeming slightly nervous, "The man with the cigarette. He wouldn't believe I was a real boy, so he, uh, put me up on the shelf! I was just escaping." Jaden noticed that Robot Jones's bulb seemed to increase a little at this. Probably just a trick of the light.
"What were you doing, Jones?" Snuffles questioned, his tiny mouse brow furrowed.
"I was...uh...playing hide and go seek!" Robot Jones replied proudly. This time it was quite evident to Jaden that the boy's head had gotten bigger. Weird.
"And to think, I was worried about-" Snuffles ceased his rant, noticing the sudden expansion of the boy's bulb "Robot Jones, are you telling me the truth?"
"Um...yes?" Robot Jones replied. His head grew bigger. It was now about the size of the Keyblade's hilt. Jaden found this a slightly creepy and altogether surreal. He briefly wondered why he felt this, considering all the others strange things he had seen in his journey.
"Robot Jones!" Snuffles admonished as he shook his head, "Your lie is as plain as the bulb in your head! Tell me the truth!"
"I was...uhhh...borrowing the man's stuff..." Robot Jones looked at the ground and shuffled his brown wooden shoes.
"Borrowing?" Snuffles' eyes widened in horror, "You mean stealing!"
"Uhhhh..." Robot Jones was about to say something, but Snuffles interrupted him.
"Robot Jones! You know that you promised Prof. Utonium you'd be good so you'd become a real boy!" Jaden had no idea who this Utonium was, Daffy and Porky looking equally lost. They all shrugged and continued to watch the conversation unfold.
"Oh!" Robot Jones took this chance to change the subject. "Do you know where Father is?" So Utonium was the wooden boy's father? Jaden wasn't sure how that worked, but he noted that the boy's elongated head seemed to be slowly returning to it's original size.
Snuffles took the bait, "He's not with you?"
Robot Jones shook his head, "Snuffles! Let's go find Father!"
"Woah now, hold on!" Snuffles waved his hands, "There are all sorts of dangers and temptations out there! I'll go find Utonium, so you just wait here." Snuffles pointed to Jaden, Daffy and Porky, "These fellows here will be helping me."
Daffy balked at this, "We will?"
Jaden put his hands behind his head and looked at the ceiling, grinning knowingly. He knew what was coming.
"Well, shall we go, Jaden?" Snuffles ignored Daffy.
"Wait just a minute here, we can't keep taking on missions!" Daffy shook his fists, "We've got enough to do already!"
"Aw, c'mon Daffy! Snuffles here does so much for us!" Porky pleaded.
"He just writes in a stupid book.." Daffy muttered under his breath before sighing and looking away, still muttering,"He could've at least asked us first..."
"Let's go find Tristan." Jaden rolled his eyes at his friends. Taking on another mission was just fine with him, as long as it didn't take away from looking for Alexis and Zane.
But, even if it did, he would probably be willing to at least try anyway.
At that moment, Tristan kicked open a door on the left wall of the Shop. The building shook and a few potions and weapons fell to the ground. In Tristan's right hand he had balanced a steaming bowl of noodles, which he was in the middle of eating with the pair of chopsticks in his left hand.
"Well, speak of the devil!" he smiled, "Me and Joey was just talkin' 'bout you guys!"
"Hey Tristan!" Jaden greeted, "Speaking of Joey, you know where he is? We need to talk to him."
"Sure do, he should be at the Underground Waterway. He trains there. Easiest way is the Alleyway in the Second District." He slurped up some noodles, "Through the water tunnels at the far end. You might need to swim a bit."
Jaden wondered briefly how that was the "easiest" way, but nodded thanks anyway.
"Oh, by the way Tristan, can you watch that, uh, robot-boy over there? He's needs someone like you to keep track of him!" Jaden smiled and waved before disappearing out into the town with his friends, before Tristan's slackened jaw could voice any objections.
"-and then Tor gave us this gummi and we came back here to ask you about it!" Jaden took a deep breath as he finished his long, run-on-sentence tale. He, Daffy and Porky now sat around a small, warming fire Joey had set up. The trio had found Joey just where Tristan had said he would be: through a shallow stream of water that flowed under the town to a the rock shore cavern where Joey trained. Daffy, Porky and Jaden had found their way in through a grate in the Alleyway and by swimming through yards of deep, dark, underground water. Soon enough, they had fallen out into a large, open area lit by a glowing lantern. There they had found Joey swinging his gunblade against imaginary foes. When he had noticed them, Joey had leaned his sword against his shoulder, panting, and told them that next time, there was a door they could've gone through. Tristan had apparently either forgotten about it, or he had just felt like being a nuisance at that moment. Joey had guessed the latter.
"So..." Joey stroked his chin thoughtfully, "Ya found the Keyholes..."
"Yeah, the Keyblade locked them automatically." Jaden restated.
Joey nodded,"Hm, aight. Every world in the stars had a Keyhole," he explained, "And each one leads to the soul of that world." he looked off into the distance, "There must be one in this town as well..."
"What do you mean?" Jaden looked at him oddly, "The soul of a world? "
"It was in Solomon's report." came a soft voice from behind.
Jaden turned to find a woman who carried a towel hooked over one arm. In the other was gripped a platter with a glass of water set precariously on it. The woman herself had bright brown eyes and long brown hair. Three tiny little bangs of her brown locks hung together on the middle of her face. She wore a blue shorts and a pink white shirt. On her feet were tennis shoes. Apparently she didn't care for the image when it came to having good and useful footwear. She seemed to exude a calming, peaceful atmosphere that came from a small, warming smile that graced her lips.
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Jaden, my name is Serenity Wheeler." the woman smiled, "I'm sorry that I don't have anything to offer you, but I was only planning on Joey."
"You already know my name, but it's great to meet you, Serenity. This is Daffy and Porky." Jaden pointed to his two friends.
"We already -me-a-me- met her, Jaden!" Porky smiled proudly and waved at Serenity. Forgetting she held a glass of water in one hand, Serenity waved back, nearly spilling it.
"They found the Keyholes, Serenity." Joey broke into the introductions, after Serenity had performed some daring maneuvers to stop the cup from tipping.
"So what was in Solomon's report, again?" Jaden asked, remembering Joey and Téa talking about it when they had first met.
"The Soulless...they enter through the Keyhole and do something to the world's core." Serenity's face fell, "It's terrible...poor people.."
"Oh meh meh my my my, what happens to the worlds?" Porky's eyes widened.
Serenity looked at the ground, unable to speak, and Joey finally grunted, "In the end, they disappear."
"What!" The Keyblade Master and his two friends jumped to their feet and yelled in unison. So that's what had happened to the Islands, and almost to Deep Jungle!
"That's why your Keyblade is so important." Joey looked Jaden in the eye.
Serenity finally looked up at Jaden, as well, "Please, lock the Keyholes...you're the only one who can."
"Find them, Jaden. And then lock them for good." Joey continued to stare down Jaden.
"Besides...Téa told me about your friends...if you go around seeing other worlds and locking them..." a ghost of a smile appeared back on Serenity's face, "Maybe you'll find your friends!"
For Jaden, there was no question. No argument. He had to lock the Keyholes. He couldn't just let the Soulless take worlds into darkness like they had his.
And Serenity was right, he could look for Zane and Alexis at the same time.
"Of course I'll lock them! Right guys?" Jaden turned and to Daffy and Porky.
Porky nodded emphatically, "Yup, 'course we will!" Daffy was a little less eager, but not terribly so, agreeing nonetheless.
"It's what the Rabbit would want." he said.
Serenity smiled happily and Joey sipped the water Serenity had handed to him.
"Anyways, Joey, this Gummi Block is different than the others...do you know what it's for?" Jaden tossed the block over to Joey who caught it with a snap of his hand. He looked at it for a moment and said nothing before throwing it back to Jaden.
"Ask Tristan," Serenity shook her head, "He should know."
Jaden nodded and and stood up to leave, but Joey stopped with a hand.
"Wait, Jaden, take this with you." Joey reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small green sphere, which he dropped into Jaden's outstretched hand. "I found this a little while after you left, I think it might be able to help you."
"With what?" Jaden looked at the small sphere than seemed to emanate with a lime glow of it's own.
Joey was again silent.
Serenity giggled and looked at Jaden, "I guess that means you'll find out."
Upon entering Tristan's accessory shop for the second time, Jaden and friends were met with the odd, and slightly unsettling, sight of Tristan spread out on the floor, open and unopened boxes of noodles surrounding him. The shelves of his shop seemed to have rebelled; odds and ends were hanging off the ones that actual still sat horizontal. The rest had piles of items, potions, weapons, and food, lying in heaps at the slanted end. Cabinet doors were swung open, the items inside strewn about. Tristan himself seemed to be asleep. His white shirt was ripped and stained, his goggles that had once sat on his forehead now hung around his neck. An empty pack of cigarettes was clutched in his left hand.
Daffy waddled over and jumped on the man's chest.
"Wake up, Tristan!" the duck yelled.
Tristan immediately jolted awake, a fear in his eyes that no living man should ever feel. His head flew first left, then right, scanning the area for an invisible tormentor. Immediately, this put Jaden on the guard for an attack of whatever had done this to Tristan and his shop. He quietly crept over to the now-sitting Tristan.
"Tristan, did the Soulless attack? Is that what happened?" Jaden looked around again for any sign of the small shadows.
"N—N—No..." Tristan shuddered and whispered, "But shut the hell up, will ya? Don't wake 'im!" he pointed over to the crackling fireplace. Beside it sat the sleeping form of Robot Jones.
"Jones!" Daffy looked back at Tristan, "Jones did this?"
"Shaddap!" Tristan grunted and looked in fear at the small robot. "Why'd you guys go and leave the little f***er with me anyways?"
"We...uh...didn't know he'd do this..." Jaden said, still shocked at the damages.
"Hey Tristan," Porky tiptoed over and whispered, "We got this here Gummi Block...can yah tell us what it does?"
"You're kiddin' me!" Tristan whispered, shocked, and rolled his eyes, "You're flyin' a gummi ship and you don't know nothin' about Navi Gummis?" he scowled, "Bunch of f***ing pinheads. Interspace ain't no playground."
Daffy jaw worked up and down for a moment, before starting to speak, a bit more loudly than Tristan would've liked, "There's a lot we don't know, so what!" Tristan's eyes widened as he looked at Robot Jones. Daffy continued his rant, "We have to use the Gummi Ship-"
"Whoa!" Tristan motioned with his hands for quiet, "Easy! Sorry..." Robot Jones shifted in his sleep and Tristan froze. "Please..." he whispered, "When you're done you gotta take him, kid! Please! He's worse than Téa 10 years ago!" Tristan fell on his face, "And that's saying a hell of a lot!"
Jaden rolled his eyes at Tristan and smiled, "Maybe you could get Téa to come and play with him?"
When Jaden had seen Tristan's eyes earlier, he had thought that those eyes could've shown no more fear. But now, Jaden found himself to be wrong. Tristan looked like his was dying inside.
"Uhhhh..." Jaden hadn't expected that, he quickly grabbed the Gummi from Porky and handed it to Tristan, "So can you tell us what this Gummi is for?"
Talk of the Gummi seemed to snap Tristan from his imaginations of what Téa and Robot Jones would be like, combined. "Basically, with Navi Gummis, you can get to new places..." Tristan began to feel around on his head for his goggles to no avail. Jaden pointed out that they had fallen to his neck. Tristan grunted and pulled them up over his eyes, "Y'see, in interspace, there are walls of energy just hangin' around. You try to go through one and, bang, you're dead." Tristan stopped his examination of the gummi to take a quick look at Robot Jones. "A Navi Gummi let's you go through those walls like they're jello by bendin' the space around your ship and creating a hole to go through." he looked up from the Gummi, "You want one on your ship, amiright?"
Jaden nodded.
"I'll install it for you," Tristan whispered as he pocketed the small block, "But I gotta deliver something first..." Tristan rifled around the shop quietly, attempting to find the item in question. Every now and then he would check on Robot Jones' situation.
"Whadda you need to deliver?" Porky asked quietly, hands cupped around his mouth.
"A Book. Real old book," Tristan stepped silently over the counter to look beneath it, "When the old man brought it in, it was practically fallin' apart. Too beat up to restore it to the way it was. But..." Tristan suddenly reached down and held up a small brown book triumphantly, "Overall, I did a damn well decent job puttin' it back together." he stepped back over the counter, "Anyway, you mind deliverin' it for me? It's the crazy old house in the Third District. Crazy just like the old loon that lives in it." Tristan spun his pointer finger around his head, indicating insanity, and handed the book to Jaden, along with a satchel to carry it in. "Just look for the fire sign."
Abruptly, a sudden tolling of a bell was heard. The deep, ground-shaking ring of a large bell.
"What was that?" Daffy quacked, surprised. Tristan didn't answer at first, he was frozen, looking at Robot Jones. Presently, Robot Jones turned over and continued to sleep.
Zane sighed, "That was the Gizmo Tower Bell...don't know much 'bout it. But I don't think I've ever heard it ring..." Zane stroked his chin, "You go deliver that book, I'm gonna go find the gang...that bell ringing might not be a good thing."
Jaden and Company turned and began to walk through the door, careful to not make much noise.
"While you're there..." Tristan called silently after them, "ask the old coot 'bout the Bell. He might tell ya something..."
The trio nodded and quietly shut the door behind them.
After pushing through the door with the fire sign, found with minimal amount of trouble, Jaden saw that they were inside of a circular, tower-like, stone room. In the center, a raised circle stood out from the floor to about Daffy's height, with steps circling around it. The room reminded Jaden of the stone at the Waterfall Cavern in Deep Jungle. In fact, it actually reminded him of the Abandoned Dorm...wait, Alexis?
Jaden was unable to finish his thought because suddenly stood before him Alexis, staring out a rounded window that looked out over a small, dark lake outside Traverse Town. The world slowed to a crawl for Jaden. Alexis was here? But, then again, he had seen Alexis in Deep Jungle and hadn't found her. Was he going insane? He quickly tore his gaze from Alexis and looked over at Daffy and Porky, seeing if they saw what he saw. They weren't paying attention. Porky was looking out another, identical, window on the other side of the room. Daffy waited impatiently beside him, back turned. Jaden would've called for them, but words seemed to catch in his throat.
"You know...there's something about this musty place..." Jaden turned back, watching Alexis run her hand along the stone wall. "It reminds me of the Abandoned Dorm back home, where we used to scribble on the walls. Remember?" she giggled at an unnamed memory and Jaden nodded, a slight smile coming across his face, finding her laugh somewhat alike to water for a desert traveler, imbuing his soul with new hope. Alexis smiled at him, the kind of smile one shows when they know something the other does not. "I know you can do it. I really do."
Jaden was about to ask her what she meant, and why she kept appearing and disappearing, when Porky called over to him, sounding concerned. Jaden looked to Porky for just one split-second, before looking back to find Alexis gone. The world resumed it's normal pace. Where had she-?
Suddenly, Jaden heard the door creak and slide open,"Well, well, well...you've arrived sooner than expected!" came a elderly voice.
Jaden turned to find an old man, about Porky's height, with a pointy blue hat and a blue cloak swirling around his small body. The man had one of the longest beards Jaden had ever seen, perfectly white with small dabbles of silver that reached down to the man's thighs. In his left hand he held a small traveling case. A pair of spectacles sat on the bridge of his nose.
"What? So you knew we were coming?" Daffy jumped in surprise at the man's sudden appearance.
"But of course!" the man smiled as he placed the traveling bag on the ground.
Jaden's eyes narrowed, a bit suspicious over Alexis' sudden disappearance, "Are you...a Soulless?"
Daffy looked at the old man closely, poking him in the leg. "Doesn't look like one..."
"Goodness, no!" the man swatted Daffy away as he began to unzip his bag,
"Then," Porky snapped his fingers."You're the old loon that Tristan mentioned!"
The man stopped his unzipping and froze, before standing straight and stamping his foot, "Old Loon? The nerve of that man! How dare he!" the blue-garbed individual sighed and shook his head, proceeding to brush his cloak off, "My name is Magoo. As you might have ascertained, I am a sorcerer. A Wizard. I spend much of my time traveling, but it's good to be...home..." he finished rather reluctantly and looked at Daffy and Porky, "Your King has requested my help, you know."
"King Bugs!" Porky said excitedly.
"Do you know where he is?" Daffy asked.
"One and the same, and no. I'm quite sorry." Magoo pointed to the two Castle residents, "Daffy, Porkyy...but who might you be, young man?"
"I'm Jaden."
"Hah! The Keybearer!" Magoo chortled. "A pleasure to meet you, young man!"
Daffy, ever the impatient one, broke in, "So what did the King ask you to do?"
"Just a moment..." Magoo waved his hands about, "Presto!"
At his call, the wizard's bag flopped open of it's own accord and out from it flew first a tiny table. The table gradually grew larger and larger, much to Jaden's surprise. Next came a China Tea Set, followed by a green high-back chair. After that came piles and piles of books, followed by a bed, a fireplace, and a couple of stands to set books on and such things like it. In a few short moments, the room had been transformed from a dark and cold stone building, to a warm and inviting study filled with piles of reading material, and a crackling hearth burning away.
"There now, ahem." Magoo plopped down in chair, "Your King asks that I teach you a few tricks. Magic ones to be precise."
"Well, first..." Jaden took the bag he had slung over his shoulder and pulled out the battered book he had been ordered to deliver, "Tristan asked me to bring you this book..."
"Oh? So he finally finished restoring it?" Magoo reached out his hand and levitated it from Jaden's grasp, causing the boy to jump. "Took his time, didn't he? This book somehow found its way into my bag one day, such a curious thing...I asked Tristan to repair it for me." He opened the book's cover and his eyebrows shot up to meet his pointy hat, "Now, what's this? This can't be right! There are pages missing!" Magoo turned the book so Jaden, Daffy and Porky could see and, sure enough, small stubs of pages hung onto the binding, the first five or so pages missing.
"Tristan did mention something about not being able to restore is back to the way it was..." Jaden thought back to the Accessory Shop.
"I'm sure he did..." Magoo muttered to himself, "The pages were very likely lost somewhere..." the sorcerer closed the book with a small thump and looked up to Jaden, "It may be a long shot, my dear boy, but if you ever run into any pages in your adventures that look like they could belong to this book, please bring them back here."
Jaden nodded. Why not.
"Oh, and about that stone that Joey gave you..." Magoo pointed to Jaden's pocket. Jaden stared at the old man in surprise, "Yes, the one in your pocket. It's called a Summon Charm. You can use it in battle to summon a creature to aid you..." Magoo's face took on a sad look, "The poor thing was turned into a charm when it's world was taken by the Soulless."
"Is there any way to get the world back?" Jaden wondered as he pulled the charm from his pocket, "To get this guy back to his original self?"
Magoo looked away for a second and seemed to be swallowing a painful memory, "Not...not to my knowledge..." he spoke in a soft, faraway voice, "But...I'll try. For now, the best you can do for it is use it."
"Gotcha," Jaden nodded and deposited the green orb back into his pocket, "By the way, did you hear the bell ring?"
Magoo's eyes widened, "The bell? The Gizmo Tower Bell?" Jaden affirmed this with a nod, but Magoo didn't see the gesture. The wizard was too busy rifling through a pile of books that had floated to his table. "Hmmm..." he hummed as he leaned back with one book in particular. "That bell, young man, has not rang in the seven years I have lived here. I'm not sure what it could mean...but, according to this record, it isn't good." Magoo dropped the book into his lap, "The book mentions that it is the harbinger of something to do with a 'key' and a 'dark force'...you might want to check out the Gizmo Tower...I suppose the Magic training will have to wait."
Daffy and Porky looked at Jaden and nodded before running out the door. Jaden was about to follow , but he hung behind for a moment, scuffing his foot on the floor beside Magoo's stone pedestal.
"Hm? Do you need something, my young friend?" Magoo took out a small pipe, lit it with a snap of his bony fingers, and took a deep puff.
"Uh...Magoo...I've been.." Jaden began hesitantly, "Seeing this girl...this girl who used to live with me on my Island before they...were destroyed,"
Magoo sighed with sympathy, "I'm quite sorry about your home, Jaden...I know what it's like to lose one."
Jaden nodded and continued, "Well...this girl...I keep seeing her...I saw her in Deep Jungle, but I never found her...I just saw her here before you came in but-but-" Jaden choked up a bit, but only just a bit, "Then she just disappeared again...and I don't understand why..."
Magoo smiled tiredly and took another puff, "This girl...you are quite fond of her, no?"
"Wha-? I—I-" Jaden stuttered and suddenly found his overly-large, red shoes quite interesting.
"It's perfectly alright," Magoo chuckled, "But as for your predicament...well, I can't say much beyond it being an interesting phenomena and that I'll look into it."
JJaden looked a little relieved, sighed, and turned to leave, "Thanks, Magoo."
"But..." Magoo began as he lifted himself from his chair, "I can promise you this, Jaden...If she means that much to you in here." Magoo walked up to Jaden and put his hand on the young boy's chest, "Then you'll find her out there. With the power you wield, I can promise you that."
Jaden blushed and grinned, "Thanks, Magoo."
Magoo ruffled his hair. "Now go on after your friends. The Town might be needing you right now!" Jaden nodded and ran out the door after his friends, slamming it loudly behind him.
Magoo stared at the closed door for moment, slowly puffing on his pipe. Interesting indeed. The old wizard turned, picked up a book, and wandered back to his chair. Quite interesting. That boy was special, no doubt about it. He would find his lady-friend, and perhaps save the Worlds while he's at it. The power he held in that Keyblade...Magoo hadn't sensed that much power in one so young since the old days. Since the young man that had lived in the Castle, under the household of the Lord Protector.
This Jaden was something special indeed.
Magoo had been right, Jaden thought, he would find Alexis. But, the elderly sorcerer had made him think...what did Alexis mean to him? She was his best friend, along with Zane...she was a confidant of his when Zane was too busy with himself to speak to. She was...his friend, and that meant the world to him. Was she something more? —oh, look, Soulless.
Jaden, Daffy and Porky had just exited the alleyway that led to Magoo's house when two or three shadow soulless materialized before them in a swell of dark energy. Jaden called the Jungle Keyblade to hand, prepared for an easy fight, when the couple soulless disappeared in a puff of darkness, no sooner than they had appeared.
"There you are! Finally! What's going on?" announced a confident voice.
Jaden turned and found none other than Zane standing before him. Talking to him. Zane? The real Zane! Or, at least, Jaden thought it was the real Zane.
Just to be sure, the Keyblade Master ran up and poked Zane a few times in the chest, and pinched his arm.
Zane rose an eyebrow to this, before swatting his friend away.
"I'm not—I'm not dreaming this time? Right?" Jaden stood back and asked Zane anxiously.
"I hope not." Zane rolled his mint eyes and pushed some of his silver hair to the side, "Took forever to find you."
Jaden gave a victory jump in the air, "Hah! Zane!" Jaden took a breath and smiled. They had found Zane. Finally. Finally, finally, finally! One best friend down, one to go. "So do you know where Alexis is?" Jaden asked, still smiling infectiously.
Zane's left cheek twitched at Jaden's question, but no one took note. "I thought...isn't she with you?"
Jaden's grin became downcast.
"Well, don't worry. I'm sure she made it off the island, too." Zane cheered and looked up into the eternally night sky of Traverse Town, "We're finally free. Hey, she might even be looking for us now-"
All of the sudden, Jaden noticed a small soulless appear behind Zane. The older boy didn't seem to notice.
"-Don't worry. Just leave everything to me. I know this-" Zane stopped speaking when he heard the sound of dissipating smoke, and looked to see Jaden no longer standing in front of him, but behind him instead. The mist of a destroyed Soulless floated up, diluting into the air.
Jaden smiled and leaned the Jungle Keyblade on his shoulder, "Leave it to who...?"
"Jaden! What did you-" Zane appeared taken aback.
"I've been looking for you and Alexis, too." Jaen pointed the Keyblade in Daffy and Porky's direction, "with their help."
Zane, apparently noticing Daffy and Porky for the first time, looked at them oddly, before pulling Jaden aside. "Okay, Jaden, I'm going to be completely level with you...what the heck are those guys? They look like, well, a duck and a pig. Walking normally." Jaden nodded. "And they probably talk, too?" Again, Jaden nodded. "And you see nothing strange with this picture?"
"Nope."
Zane snorted. "You wouldn't."
"They're my friends, Zane, they've helped me a lot"
Zane looked over Jaden's shoulder at the two beings.. "Uhuh. So do you guys have names?"
Daffy a hemmed and puffed out his chest, "My name is-"
"It's Daffy, the taller-"
"Height challenged!" Daffy interrupted with a wave of his feathered finger.
"-one. The other one is Porky. Guys, this is Zane!" Jaden finished the introductions.
"Oh my, Zane, it's nice to finally meetcha!" Porky smiled. Daffy mumbled a hello.
Jaden looked back at Zane, "We've visited so many places and worlds, looking for you."
"Really?" Zane leaned back and smirked at Jaden with the slightest pride evident on his face, "Hm, I never would've guessed."
Before Jaden could ask what that might've meant, Porky walked behind him and clapped him hard on the shoulder, "And guess what! Jaden here's the Keyblade Master!"
Daffy rolled his eyes and coughed.
"So this is called a Keyblade?" Zane remarked as he studied the blade in his hand.
"Wait...what?" Jaden looked at his hand and saw that Zane had somehow taken the Keyblade. How had he done that? "Give it back!" Jaden jumped at Zane with hands outstretched.
Zane paid him no head, stepping to his left and out of the way of Jaden's leap, continuing to glance over the Jungle Keyblade.
"Urgh..." Jaden rubbed his head as he sat up from his fall.
Zane shrugged and tossed the Keyblade back to Jaden's sitting form, "Catch."
"Okay," Jaden stood to his feet, not missing a beat, he was used to this. Just like old times. "Okay, so you're coming with us, right? We have this awesome space ship!" Jaden waved his hands around, "Wait till you see it!"
Daffy stamped his foot. "No! He can't come!"
"What?" Jaden whipped around to face the duck. "Why not?"
Daffy shook his head, "Forget it!"
Jaden was ready to point the Keyblade at the mage and demand Zane come with them. Why did Daffy always have to be like this? "Oh, come on! He's my friend!"
"I don't care." Daffy crossed his arms and looked away.
"Huh? He's gone!" Porky noted.
Finding Porky correctly, Jaden immediately forgot his argument with Daffy and frantically began searching the area. Zane was nowhere to be seen. Impossible! He had just been there! "Zane?" Jaden timidly questioned the emptiness of the Third District. Zane was simply gone. Why did this seem to happen to all his friends?
Jaden wandered back to where Daffy and Porky were waiting and sighed, "Oh well, at least he's okay..." Jaden leaned his arms behind his head, "And who knows...Maybe we'll run into Alexis soon too!"
For real this time.
Zane reappeared in tendrils of darkness atop a building above the Third District. He watched as Jaden and his new friends wandered away. Hmmm...she hadn't told him Jaden had gotten the Keyblade...she had mentioned these new friends of his, however, and as much as he didn't want to admit it, she seemed to be right.
Had Jaden simply replaced him? Simply moved on from the Island?
Zane's eyes narrowed, if there was one thing he could not stand, it was being put to the side. Ignored.
But somewhere deep inside, he still held out hope that he was wrong.
When the group reached the Second District, they found that Tristan had made good on his word and gathered everyone. Joey, with his gunblade leaning over on his shoulder; Téa, absent-mindlessly spinning her four-pointed shuriken rapidly in her hands; Serenity, standing, hands clasped behind her, looking up to the top of the Gizmo Tower, and Tristan himself standing beside Joey, leaning on his large javelin.
"Hoh! Hey, kid, you just in time!" Tristan yelled from across the plaza.
Jaden nodded and jogged over to the group.
"We miss anything?" he questioned as he slid to a stop beside Joey.
Téa sighed, showing her impatience, "Yup. A whole lotta nothing."
Serenity blinked and seemed to notice Jaden for the first time, "Nice to see you, Ja-" suddenly, Serenity pitched forward and began to fall. Luckily, Téa was naturally fast and caught her before she hit the ground.
"You okay, Serenity?" Porky asked, concerned.
"I-I'm okay...I just have a small headache...lost my balance there." she giggled slightly and stood back up, "Thanks, Téa"
Téa smiled and nodded, "Anytime!"
"Serenity has always been able to sense impending danger," Joey leaned down and spoke to Jaden grimly, "It was a gift of her heritage. Side-effects are headaches and fainting spells when she senses those things."
Tristan leaned in as well,"There's the reason why Monkey-"
"It's Joey."
"Whatevah. Why Monkey even came. Serenity sensed danger."
Joey nodded, "She's never been wrong."
Jaden was about to ask more, when the bell chimed again and the texture of the Gizmo Tower began to change.
The tall building, originally being seamless white marble, seemed to melt and reform. It spun together into a swirling whirlpool of vertical white until it suddenly stopped, forming into the shape of a huge Keyhole. The utter black of the hole contrasted greatly with the pure white surrounding it on the Tower.
Before anyone could speak, or Jaden summon the Jungle Key, the huge body of the mechanical Guard Armor that Jaden, Daffy and Porky had fought before, crashed into the ground, falling from who knows how far. The stone where it's heavy feet landed bent inward, creating two huge potholes in the ground.
"Oh yeah! Here we go!" Téa said excitedly and ran toward the Armor and, before anyone could speak, had jumped in the air and thrown her large shuriken into the Armor's small head. It stabbed straight through the metal armor of the beast with a loud thunk. The soulless shook for a moment and collapsed to the ground in a heap of arms, legs and a torso. Téa rebounded off the Gizmo Tower wall and landed on her feet in front of the Armor.
"The Great Ninja Téa Gardner strikes again!" she fist-pumped and turned to the collapsed pile, pointing an accusing finger. "Hah! You've been officially owned!"
Everyone stared in shock at Téa's accomplishment for a moment. But, before Téa could even enjoy fifteen seconds of fame, the Armored Soulless seemed to magnetize itself back together. Except, its legs clicked, whirred and bent from feet-like devices, to hand like devices. Then, it's hands spun down and switched with the feet. The whole body clacked again and it's helmet crashed down, revealing a pair of glowing yellow eyes, pitted in a face of dark nothing.
"Oh...snap." Téa gasped as the dented head, with shuriken still attached, bent outward and ricocheted her shuriken into a nearby wall, lodging it firmly in place. No mark was left on the helmet.
"Porky!" Joey yelled as he lifted his gunblade from his shoulder, "Get Téa away from here!"
Porky nodded and ran to Téa. She was about to protest, but Téa's body flying past her, clutching her shuriken, silenced her. The young Ninja landed hard halfway across the plaza.
"It's alright! I'm alright!" Téa yelled, "I was just getting my shuriken back! See?" she held it up to prove that she had just been retrieving her precious weapon.
Joey rolled his eyes and turned back to the purple soulless which was slowly walking forward, becoming used to it's reversal. The huge claws, now on it's feet, gripped the ground firmly, ripping up stones as it clanked forward.
Jaden quickly summoned up the Jungle Key, as Daffy shot off a blast of thunder at the Soulless. The lighting crackled through it's body, but seemed to be grounded by it's feet. Or hands. Whatever.
Jaden ran forward and gave two quick slashes at the monster's left foot-hand. A few metallic fingers fell off onto the ground. The young Keyblade Master quickly rolled out of the way as the hand-feet spun rapidly around, hoping to catch it's attacker. During the action, Tristan had sneaked up behind the Soulless and had been able to stab it in the back with his long spear. The monster made a sound akin to a roar and shook violently, causing Tristan to release his grip on his spear and be sent careening into a wall.
Joey shot off a fireball at the dark face of the Armor, before jumping at it while the magic attack distracted it. He got off three fast cuts on the torso before having to use his feet to rebound off the purple-shell of the Soulless and out of it's reach. Jaden soon followed Joey's lead and did the same, after Daffy fired off a couple blizzards at the Armor's right hand-foot.
It was at this moment that Téa returned to the fight and threw her shuriken at the frozen right hand-foot, cutting it off at the shoulder. It fell to the ground with an empty clang.
Jaden took a small moment to look over at Tristan, who seemed to be recovering. Jaden concentrated on thoughts of home, of Zane, of the beach, of Alexis, and was able to conjure up a small cure spell on the rough mechanic. Tristan was able to stand again, and Jaden saw him reach into a pocket of his belt, before dizziness overtook the Keyblade Master. Jacen stumbled a little before Joey caught him around the shoulder.
"Jaden?" He questioned.
Jaden blinked and breathed hard, "Dizzy...from...using cure..."
Joey nodded and leapt, still gripping Jaden, out of the way of the Soulless' still remaining left hand-foot.
Suddenly, Jaden saw Joey's eyes widen and heard him yell for Tristan not do something.
Next thing he knew, a gulf of heat enveloped him as he heard a loud explosion. When Jaden was able to look at the mechanical Soulless, it's left hand-foot was gone, along with a large chunk of it's torso and it's left foot-hand. Tristan was smiling proudly.
"That was a new invention of mine! Special grenade!"
"Dammit, Tristan, my clothes are scorched now!" Téa grumbled as she looked down at her black jacket.
Tristan laughed, "Sorry, Téa, but I guess it's 'bout time for payback for the time you wrecked my motorcycle!"
"That wasn't my fault! You were the one who left the ignition on!"
The Soulless, unmoved till now, clanked forward on it's remaining leg.
"You've gotta be f***ing kidding me!" Tristan stepped back in surprise, "How the hell did it survive my grenade?"
"Maybe 'cause it don't work!" Téa stuck her tongue out at him. Tristan grumbled and quickly lit another cigarette.
"Is...it always like this?" Jaden groaned to Joey, his head still spinning.
Joey nodded before dropping Jaden to the ground, "Most of the time." the gunblade-wielding man quickly ran at the Soulless, and, not having much trouble dodging what was left of it, got behind the it and grabbed onto Tristan's spear. Using that, Joey swung himself upwards with a single hand. In one smooth slice, Joey severed the energy field between the head and the torso, causing the helmeted head to plummet to the ground with a smash. Joey completed the swing and landed on his feet, one hand supporting his landing.
The torso shook for a moment, before a blinding light grew from where it's head had connected, leading to the whole thing exploding in a large show of fireworks.
Jaden sighed in relief and pushed himself to his feet using the Jungle Key as support.
Téa ran over and offered a high-five to Joey.
"Nice going, Monkey Boy!"
"It's Joey." he unemotionally stated, keeping his hands by his side.
Téa rolled her eyes and grabbed his hand, bringing it up to a high-five.
Porky and Serenity, who looked a lot better than the others did, soon emerged from beyond the far edge of plaza.
"Wonderful job everyone!" the blue shorted girl clapped her hands together before waving them about, casting a Cure spell over Jaden, immediately dissolving his dizziness.
"Serenity's also a master of Healing Magic." Joey explained.
With that, Jaden turned to the large, dark Keyhole in the tower. He lifted the Jungle Key and a large blue beam grew at the tip, shooting directly into the depths of the Keyhole. A click that shook the ground resulted, followed by the the dark hole dissolving in white light, leaving nothing but the clean marble tower again.
"Whoo-ee." Tristan admired, "That sure was something."
No one disagreed.
At that moment, Tristan stopped admiring the Tower, and his face changed to one of anger mixed with nervousness.
"Uh...did you guys see anything up there?" Tristan pointed to the top of the tower, "Like, a shadow or something?"
"Tristan..." Téa cocked her head, "How'd you see all the way up there?"
"I-I-I don't know. But I saw somethin' up there! Plain as day!" Tristan said, "And I think it was Yubel!"
Immediately, silence fell on the whole group like a blanket. Serenity seemed to be holding back tears, while Joey looked on stoically, although, if one looked close enough, one might have noticed his eyes betray some form of pain. Téa's lower lip quivered slightly and Tristan showed anger.
"Uh, who's Yubel?" Jaden looked at his friends, wondering what could have affected them so, "Guys? What's going on?"
"Hmmm...the King mentioned her once..." Daffy mused.
Porky nodded, "He sure did!"
Tristan looked Jaden in the eyes, "Yubel's a witch, kid, a witch! She got this big f***ing staff with a green tip and wears these big dark robes and has pointy black wings like the devil on her wings!" Tristan quickly lit another cigarette as his current one went out.
Joey looked off into the distance, "She's the reason this Town is so full of Soulless. Don't take her lightly."
Serenity spoke up,"She's...been using the Soulless for years...probably 10 years ago when we were teenagers."
"We lost our world, partly in thanks to her." Joey remarked, still unemotional.
Tristan leaned back against a wall, breathing in deeply. "One day, a swarm of Soulless took over our world! I tell ya, we shoulda seen that sh*t coming...what with Duke Dev-"
"Don't. Just please, don't." Serenity pleaded, "Don't mention him. Please."
Joey looked at Serenity with what might've been sympathy, had one known where to look for emotions in Joey Wheeler. "That was ten years ago."
Serenity swallowed, "Seven of us got off together, along with Magoo. Myself, Joey, Téa, and Tristan."
"You said seven." Daffy noted, "Who were the other three?"
Serenity nodded, "A girl named Vivian, a man named Duke, and one other: Kaiba"
Jaden started at the last name, "Kaiba? I met a Kaiba! I fought a Kaiba! He beat me!"
Serenity was surprised, "What did he look like?"
"Well..." Jaden through back to Lympics, "He had bow-cutted brown hair-"
"That's our Kaiba!" Téa smiled.
"Hm." Joey said, "So Kaiba was the one you fought in the Lympics."
Jaden nodded.
Serenity looked over at Joey, "Vivan will want to know."
Joey nodded, "We'll tell her."
"Thanks Jaden." Serenity looked back at the young Keyblade Master, "I think you'll made Vivian very happy, knowing Kaiba's okay."
"Big relief." Joey said.
Jaden grinned, "No problem!"
"But... there's one more person missing." Joey looked down in shame.
"Don't worry... we'll find him, Joey." Téa threw a big smile on her face.
Serenity smiled and continued her story, "The leader of our world was a great man named Solomon."
"The same Solomon who wrote them reports?" Porky asked.
"The same" Serenity nodded, "He was a great man, studying the world, leading his people for the King and Queen..." Serenity smiled, looking back on memories, "He always had time for the commoners...until, that is, he abruptly became a recluse. We never understood why." she frowned.
"What happened to him?" Jaden asked.
"We can only assume he died in the Soulless attack..." Serenity said sadly.
Téa rocked back and forth on her feet, "His report should tell us how to get rid of the Soulless."
"Uh, what happened to it, again?" Jaden wondered sheepishly, ashamed at having forgotten.
Serenity shrugged, "We don't know...it must have been scattered when our world was destroyed."
"I betcha Yubel's got most of the pages." Tristan grumbled and puffed heavily on his cigarette. "So you delivered that book?"
"What book?" Téa asked.
"Magoo's crazy old book." Tristan rolled his eyes.
Téa brushed a lock of hair from in front of her eyes, "The one he wanted you to fix?"
"That's the one!" Tristan replied.
"Yeah, he got it." Jaden nodded, "He was a nice guy."
Tristan laughed, "He's crazy! All his hocus-pocus. He's more than once messed up my shop and ship."
"Tristan!" Serenity admonished, "We all know Magoo's a great man! He's been like a father to all of us!"
"Except to you, Tristan. You're way too old!" Téa smiled and darted off before Tristan could reply.
"Damn Téa..." he grumbled. "Anyways, Your Navi Gummi's installed and ready to rock and roll."
Joey again watched as Jaden and his friends left Traverse Town. They'd already done so much. Maybe they could do what he had failed to do: Save the world.
His mind drifted to his and Jaden's earlier conversation in the cavern. Jaden had talked about this girl nonstop. A girl named Alexis. Joey had found this odd...he had known a Alexis once. They all had.
But she couldn't be the same one. Not in a million years.
Joey hoisted his gunblade onto his back and walked off with the rest of his, and he was hesitant to say it, his friends. He didn't deserve them.
Hm. Couldn't be the same Alexis.
But, then again, crazier things had happened
If Kaiba ever actually came back, Joey would have to ask him what exactly hadhappened that fateful night in the Castle. Only he still knew.
Tristan whistled jovially to himself as he entered his shop. Weird how all this turned out. Real strange stuff. They had all returned to their homes after visiting Vivian and Mokuba, giving them the news on Kaiba.
He took out another cigarette and lit it quickly.
Now, he would have to make another javelin...his has been destroyed in the explosion.
Shame really, it was a good one, too.
Well, at least he now knew that the grenade needed working on. Maybe if he tweaked the-
Oh. No Way.
"Sh*t!" Tristan muttered, cigarette tumbling out of his mouth as he noticed two important facts:
First, one of his Motorcycles, one of his babies, were gone. Just gone. Vanished. Poof. Goodbye.
Second, robot Jones was nowhere to be seen, nor found. Tristan was shocked.
"No f***in' way..."
Little did Tristan know, he had been right in what he saw at the Second District Plaza. Standing far, far above the ground, on the top-most point of the Gizmo Tower, was a woman dressed in dark robes with black wings jutting out of her head. Beside stood a tall boy with long dark green hair and mint-blue eyes.
"You see?" Yubel spoke slowly, "You saw it all yourself, and it is just as I told you is it not?" the witch held her staff out over the Town, "While you toiled away trying to find your dear friend, he quite simply replaced you with some new companions." she placed her black-draped arm around the boy's shoulders, "Evidently, he now values them far more than he does you." she shook her head, "You're far better off without that wretched boy. Now, think no more of him and come with me...I'll help you find what you're searching for."
With a wave of the black, green-tipped staff, a small hologram of a young girl materialized. The girl seemed to be asleep. Her head was covered in honey, honey hair. She wore a white shirt, blue skorts, and a pair of blue shoes.
The boy looked at the girl, at the Witch beside him, and then out over the Town; betraying just a slightly perceptible nod.
Who was that man that Tristan was about to reference? Why did Serenity not want to hear about it? What do you think the pasts of these heroes might entail?
Who knows?
In addition, now would be the perfect time to reiterate that in this "Epic of Kingdom Souls" I still need to find ideas for Birth By Sleep.
And trust me, ladies and gentlemen, that particular story will be quite the trip. :D
Btw, Magoo is from the old cartoon, Mr. Magoo. I couldn't find ideas for a magician. So I decided to use him instead.
Now that I've finished all the re-writing, I return you to your regularly scheduled story while I go to write the Halloween Town chapter. Wewt.
Latersss!