KHA: Wow, that took a long time to update... And I have a handful of excuses that go along with it!
Audience: (puts in ear plugs)
KHA: It all started when I bought the seventh Harry Potter book two days after my birthday...
Akyra: (sigh) What do we do now?
Roxas: I have Scene It? Disney version.
Akyra: O.o ...LET'S PLAY!
KHA: ...and then I realized that it looked like a pair of keys...
Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, Harry Potter, Scene It? board games and any other things I may have mentioned that belong to multi-million dollar companies. O.o
The team slowly trudged along the short corridor towards Yen Sid's loft with Akyra still poking at her new outfit. She admired her new gloves, brushing the soft fabric across her cheek.
"Would you give it a rest?" Donald muttered angrily.
"Donald… once you feel this soft cotton…" she sighed. Donald rolled his eyes. What's so great about cotton?
When they entered the circular sorcerer's room, they found Yen Sid not sitting in his usual seat but standing beside the vast circular window on the other side of the room. As they approached him, he waved his hand to the window, causing a tiny colorful airship to slowly float upwards. The airship seemed to be made of various blocks with different shapes and sizes, each block colored with a brilliant, happy hue.
"Hey, it's the Gummi Ship!" Donald exclaimed happily, bouncing on the spot.
"So, you guys ready?" Sora asked.
The team nodded and bounced in a straight line. Breathing in, they stood up straight while twisting their expressions into blank yet angry. They saluted Yen Sid, still holding their breath.
"Now, now, just a moment," said Yen Sid. The team relaxed a bit and breathed out heavily.
"Because of your previous endeavors, the worlds have returned to their original states. That means the pathways between them have disappeared."
The team watched the sorcerer with confused looks. If it was now impossible for them to travel, what's the point of showing them the Gummi Ship and raising their hopes?
"How do we get around?" Donald asked.
Yen Sid smiled. "Do not fear. If what the King suspected proves true, the worlds have prepared new pathways along which you may travel. These pathways may be utilized by unlocking special gates. How these gates are opened, I'm afraid I do not know... However, the Keyblade will serve as your guide. When a beam of light radiates from the Keyblade, return to the Gummi Ship. Though the worlds may seem far apart and out of reach, they nonetheless remain connected by invisible ties. As do our hearts."
Sora slowly put a hand to his heart. "Our hearts are connected."
"That is correct."
He turned that hand into a loose fist and dropped it at his side. "Got it!" he said boldly.
"But be warned. As you proceed... The Heartless and the Nobodies will be using their own paths: Corridors of darkness, to travel from world to world. They may be attempting to link these dark pathways to the gates between the worlds."
"Hey! That's not fair!" Donald fumed, stamping his foot to the ground.
Yen Sid merely nodded, ignoring his comment. "Now then, that is all the information I can give to you. Go forth, Sora, Akyra, Donald, and Goofy. Everyone is waiting."
The team needn't be told what to do next. They just sort of read each other's minds. They once again placed themselves in a straight line, stood up straight and boldly saluted the sorcerer.
"Master Yen Sid!" Donald said firmly.
"We sure do appreciate the help," Goofy added. Yen Sid nodded for the final time before gesturing them to leave. Donald led the way with Akyra and Goofy following closely at his heels. Sora was just about to leave as well until…
"Just a moment, Sora," Yen Sid called before Sora had the chance to leave the room.
"Yes, sir?" he asked softly as he made his way back towards the sorcerer.
"Your journey will be long and difficult. You must always be vigilant, even around your friends."
"M-my friends?" Sora asked, "No, Akyra, Donald and Goofy would never give in to the darkness! I trust them!"
Yen Sid smiled. "Yes, Sora, you are correct. They would never willingly give in to the darkness. They have certainly proved they deserve your trust. But there are some circumstances when a person will not be aware of the darkness sprouting within them."
Sora gave a confused look. Yen Sid continued. "The darkness will eventually consume them without their knowledge. If this is to happen, you must put an end to it immediately! I want you to be alert, Sora, and keep watching over your friends the way they constantly watch over you."
Sora hung his head. True, his friends did always watch over him. He owed so much to them… With a sudden burst of confidence, he firmly raised his head.
"Yes sir, I will watch over them…and everyone else we meet. And if this is to happen, I will stop it."
Yen Sid smiled and motioned to the door. "Go forth, Keyblade Master, your allies await."
Sora nodded in approval and darted towards the exit and down the stairs as the sorcerer vanished in a whisk of light.
"My goodness, what's that?" Merryweather gasped.
The three good fairies have been enjoying a nice cup of tea when the shortest of them all noticed a dark shadow at the window. It moved closer and flew into the light, revealing a large, dark raven holding onto a thick black robe in its beak. The raven slowly descended to the floor and carefully placed the robe onto it, straightening it out. The three good fairies stood up to get a closer look.
"Haven't we seen this somewhere before?" Merryweather asked.
"Yes dear," Fauna agreed, "I wonder whose it was…"
Merryweather gasped. "Oh! Malefi---" She quickly clapped her hands on her mouth, forcing herself not to speak.
Flora gave Merryweather a stern look. "No! We mustn't remember her name! Oh dear…"
"She was a mean ol' witch!" Merryweather spat before realizing the consequence of her speech, "Oh no! The memories are coming back! What'll we do? Oooh---what'll we do?"
"Perhaps we should tell Master Yen Sid!" Fauna exclaimed as the robe slowly rose from the ground.
Flora nodded. "Yes, that's what we must do. Hurry!"
Flora and Fauna swiftly left the room in search for the powerful sorcerer. Merryweather stayed rooted to the spot as a dark and sinister figure appeared inside the rising robe.
"Maleficent!" she exclaimed before following the fairies through the door.
The transformation completed the moment the last fairy fled. Maleficent was as dark and cynical as ever, her long, bony fingers wrapped around her dark scepter and her piercing eyes filled with malice and contempt. She cackled loudly, her sinister laughter echoing for miles and miles. Now everyone would know of her return…
"You guys ready?" Sora asked as the door to the Gummi Ship slowly rolled open. They had decided to enter the ship together, since this was such a joyous moment for them all.
"This is the happiest day of my life…" Akyra mumbled excitedly.
"Three… Two… One… GO!"
The team burst into the ship, dashing into the central. They squinted and gasped in awe as they scanned the surroundings. The Gummi Ship Central highly resembled any stereotypical spaceship interior. The controls were located at the bottom front of the ship and covered the entire, circular window space, leaving a gleaming windshield wide and open for easy viewing. The controls were adorned with shiny buttons and lights, clearly giving the impression that it needed two drivers to be operated correctly. The floor and walls were made of the best white marble around and four, tall, white seats awaited their passengers behind the controls.
"Gawrsh…" Goofy sighed softly as Donald jumped into the driver's seat.
"Um… Donald?" Sora began.
"DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!" Donald roared, causing Sora to fall over in surprise, "There's no way I'm letting you drive this ship ever again!"
"You're gonna have to, Donald," Akyra said as she took the seat beside Goofy, "This ship requires two drivers."
Sora grunted as he lifted himself off the ground and crawled into the seat beside Donald, who looked very disappointed.
"Howdy, Sora! How ya doin'?" asked a bright and chipper voice. The team peered over the two steering devices, the place where the voice seemed to be coming from. There was a medium-sized screen perfect for transmissions and it seemed that it was being used for just that. Two tiny chipmunks hopped on-screen.
"It's your favorite Gummi engineers here, ready for duty: Chip..." said the one with the tiny black nose.
"…and Dale!" said the one with the big red nose.
"Happy flyin'!" they said together before ending the transmission.
Donald and Goofy stood up to take their places but the two teenagers still kept their noses glued to the screen. Their Gummi engineers, the ones that repaired the ship, the experts in Gummi material… were two little chipmunks.
"Snap out of it!" Donald roared as Sora and Akyra fell back in surprise, "Those are our Gummi engineers and they have been doing that job for years!"
"But they're so small!" Sora complained.
"And cute!" Akyra squealed.
Donald rolled his eyes and sat in one of the driver's seats, which was located near the center of the windshield. Sora seated himself beside him as the second driver while Akyra and Goofy took their places on opposite sides of the huge windshield.
"And what are you guys going to do?" Donald asked as he prepared the ship for takeoff.
Akyra took a look at the buttons and devices before her. "Looks like I'm in charge of the lasers and every other weapon equipped on this ship."
"Gawrsh and it looks like I'm in charge of the navigating and maps!" Goofy added.
"Hey, Goofy, maybe you can display the map for us," Sora suggested.
Goofy scratched his noggin and pushed a few brightly colored buttons. The large windshield protector suddenly began rotating backwards, revealing a starry sky as the map was displayed on the transmission screen. Sora took a glimpse at the map. It showed the location of their ship right beside Twilight Town and one solitary world not too far off.
"Only one?" Sora asked sadly.
"That's no good!" Donald quacked.
Goofy analyzed the map. "Wait! I think it's a world we know!"
"What are we waiting for, then?" Akyra asked cheerfully, "Off to the next destination!"
Donald and Sora simultaneously jerked onto the controls, sending the Gummi Ship soaring into the night sky for the first time in a very long time.
Pete had just entered a particularly darker room and shivered as he gazed around. He was exploring the now ruined castle which once used to be Maleficent's home and recruiting place for all her devious followers. Yet, the castle wasn't how he remembered it. Several rooms and chambers were destroyed beyond repair and the entire castle gave off the feeling of an abandoned, haunted mansion.
"Maleficent! Maleficent!" he called. The echo rang through the room, bouncing its way through the castle but nobody responded. Pete shrugged as he came to the sad realization.
"Maybe they really did finish her off… And this castle sure ain't what I expected. No shine, no nothin'."
He walked over to a crooked ledge sticking out of the wall. "Now what's gonna happen to our plan?"
Then suddenly, out of nowhere, Pete was knocked back in surprise as a large, black raven swooped in on him and perched itself on the ledge. Pete recognized it at once as Maleficent's faithful pet.
The team hopped out of the Gummi Ship, which was conveniently parked in a place where no person would dream of going. They quickly dashed towards a small, stone staircase, held onto the railings and gazed at the town. They were in the town square, which was a large opening surrounded by shops and filled with benches. Countless Moogles floated through the bustling city, selling items and synthesizing materials into brand new things. Trucks, cranks and other machines were scattered all over town while a vast number of people were hard at work rebuilding the town. The group took a good look at the run-down castle in the middle of the town. That castle and its inhabitants sure gave them a hard time the last time they had visited it. They had actually seen Maleficent's demise in that very place.
"It's Hollow Bastion!" Sora exclaimed.
"Gawrsh, it looks kinda different now," Goofy sighed.
"Leon and the gang must be hard at work repairing the town," Akyra remarked.
"I hope they're doing okay…" Donald added.
Goofy took another good look at the town. He spotted something oddly peculiar on a nearby roof. Squinting, he attempted to identify the strange mass.
"Oh no! Heartless!" he cried, causing the others to whirl around. Two Soldier Heartless were playing around on a nearby roof but vanished the moment Goofy noticed their presence.
"Looks like we're gonna have to do some fightin'."
The team strolled around the marketplace for a few moments, asking around about the Heartless and saying hello to Donald's nephews, who ran shops in the area. They were just about to descend another pair of stone staircases on the other side of the market place when Donald and Goofy spotted an elderly duck standing beside a large freezer.
"Uncle Scrooge!" Donald yelled.
Sora and Akyra exchanged confused looks. "Er, who?"
"He's Donald's uncle---a business typhoon!" Goofy explained, "Before the Heartless showed up, he traveled the worlds on a Gummi Ship with the King. He was helpin' to set up a traffic system."
"A transit system!" Donald corrected him.
"What's all that racket?" asked the one known as Uncle Scrooge, who had his head buried in the freezer. He retreated and dusted himself off before picking up his cane and turning around. At the sight of him, he jumped up in surprise.
"Why, if it isn't Donald! And Goofy! Aye, you all look hale and hearty!"
"So do you, Uncle Scrooge," Donald replied.
"Ah, if only I were…" Scrooge continued, "I cannot seem to recreate my favorite old-time ice cream. I'd make millions if I just got it right…"
Scrooge picked up what seemed to be a murky green ice cream from the freezer. He looked at it in disgust and licked it. He quickly puckered his lips and shook his head. "Terrible!" he said.
The conversation between Donald and his uncle lasted a few more minutes before the team was able to continue. They said their goodbyes to Scrooge and descended the staircase, eager to find Leon and the gang once again.
They paced across an opening covered with shining stones and surrounded by many tall buildings and machines. The machines were obviously used for rebuilding the city and the buildings must have been homes. The walls and staircases that adorned the square were built with the same type of stones that covered the ground. They scanned the area, looking for anything peculiar or out of place. Until…
"WAK!" Donald had hopped at least five feet off the ground and landed in Akyra's arms, holding on for dear life.
"What is it, Donald?" Akyra asked in a concerned tone.
"The thing tried to EAT ME!" he cried, shielding his eyes and pointing to the ground. The team looked confused. The ground was perfectly normal….
Suddenly, an odd light resembling an open pedestal appeared into view. It broke in half and sent its lower part crashing to the ground before vanishing into thin air.
"What is that?" Sora asked, bewildered.
"That's the town defense mechanism."
The team whirled around excitedly. They recognized the voice that had answered them. It was the voice of a well-known, spunky ninja who had greatly helped them in their previous journey. They fixed their gazes atop a red crank machine, where a tall girl with short black hair, tall boots and clad in a ninja's outfit waved at them merrily.
"Yuffie!" Sora cried in happiness. Yuffie chuckled and waved. But, even in the midst of this happy meeting, her smile quickly turned into a frown as she pointed at them.
"Look out!" she warned. The team backed into each other, summoning their weapons as they stood alert. A handful of Dusks materialized around them hopping from one side to the other as if they were dancing gracefully. Sora nodded to his friends. They dispersed, knocking at every Dusk that stood in their way. Akyra was struggling to hold off two of them as they slashed at her with their long, rubbery arms when a third one jumped in the scene.
"What's goin' on?" she panicked as two of them pounced on her. Suddenly, the same glowing pedestal that had frightened Donald appeared beside her. It summoned a tiny metallic ball in its core and shot it at the nearest Dusk, knocking it away. Akyra chuckled. Who knew the defense mechanism could be so useful?
Overall, the battle was quite easy thanks to the presence of the defense system. With a couple of well-placed hits and Sora's ability to shift behind the Dusks to confuse them, the battle was quickly won.
"You know, Sora, you don't have to show off…" Donald grumbled.
"Hey, it helped us defeat them more easily," Sora answered, proud of his new battle move.
"Hey, you guys!" Yuffie cried. She hoped down from the machine to join them. "I see you're still in top form."
"What'd you expect?" Sora said, patting his chest and trying his best to look heroic, "Looks like you're doing okay."
"What'd YOU expect," Yuffie rebutted.
Akyra sniggered. Boy, this could take a while…
"How are the others?" Donald asked politely.
"Great!"
"Hey, Yuffie! Have you seen the King and Riku?" Sora asked eagerly.
"Nope."
Their faces fell as she trotted off down the road. They had the feeling they would have to go a long way before they found Riku or the King.
Yuffie stopped and turned to face them. "But I had a feeling I'd see you guys again!"
Sora straightened his face into a serious yet blank expression. He put a hand to his forehead and spoke in a low voice. "'We may never meet again, but we'll never forget each other.'"
The team sniggered in unison. Sora wasn't the best choice as a Leon impersonator.
"Is that supposed to be Leon?" Yuffie asked slyly as the laughter slowly faded. Yuffie herself joined in on the fading laughter before adding: "Everybody's working on stuff over at Merlin's house. C'mon!"
She darted around the corner with the others following closely at her heels. They were finally going to see the old gang again! But something was indeed strange. If it hadn't been that long since they last met, why did it feel like an eternity had passed?
Roxas: The answer is DONALD DUCK!
Akyra: You're wrong! It's Huey Dewey and Louie!
Roxas: NEVER!
KHA: ...and it all ended with me watching an old episode of Digimon and suddenly remembering how much I used to love that show.
Audience: (checks watch): Wow, that took forty minutes... O.O
TV: And the answer is... Robin Hood!
Roxas/Akyra: WHAT? (whacks TV)
KHA: I don't own Digimon or TV... O.O hang on... MY TV! (faints)