nightelf37: Realizing it'd take too much space on the "Back to Traverse Town" chapter, I decided to make another one here. To keep up with the consistencies of chapter count in "Kingdom Hearts Remake 2", I'm naming this as a Special, just like what I did in "Shisno Chronicles: The Last Airbender".

Orie: Just like the Diary entries in the latter?

nightelf37: Something like that. Remember, only the OCs belong to me. So is anything not in the original Kingdom Hearts plot, although there will be a summary of a certain game listed in the title.

Special 1: Final Fantasy VIII

Part I. Heroes of Another Story

-The following events happen while at Room 8 of the Refuge Asylum in Traverse Town last chapter. The cut-off part continues here.-

After I introduced Irvine, Rinoa, Quistis, and Zell to Sora, Donald, and Goofy, the 'storytelling' began. They didn't know where to begin, so they decided to start with the one who brought them all together; a dear friend named Squall Leonhart, who went missing when the Heartless took over their world.

"What about Squall?", Sora asked. "Wait…"

"I remember the day of his SeeD field exam back at Balamb Garden.", Quistis interrupted his thoughts. "I was his instructor." Sora, Donald, and Goofy raised an eyebrow. "The exam was to retrieve the Guardian Force Ifrit."

"Guardian Force?", Donald echoed.

"A creature that enables people to use magic to enhance one's physical capabilities.", Zell explained. "In any case, he succeeded and Ifrit was taken in. Soon, Squall's final exam to become a SeeD was just around the corner. He was to go to the occupied city of Dollet. Accompanying him were me and our rival Seifer."

"Both of you were rivals of one guy?", Gregorio asked. "Doesn't that make the two of you rivals as well?"

"Well, not me exactly, but I didn't like that snob, and he never liked me either. During the mission, Seifer ran off and disobeyed orders and a girl named Selphie joined us in his place." We turned to Selphie. The one who was a native of the late Destiny Islands, of course. "The three of us accomplished our mission and graduated as SeeDs. Later that night, at the SeeD Graduation Ceremony, while I was missing out on hotdogs—"

"Rinoa, although we didn't know her personally at that time, managed to get Squall to dance with her, much to my shock.", Quistis interrupted. "In spite of the mission's success, I was relieved of my position as instructor. I had feelings for him, but at that time, he was a lone wolf."

Zell turned sternly at Quistis for interrupting him, then continued the story, "The next morning, Squall, Selphie, and I received our first assignment: to aid a resistance faction known as the Forest Owls in their quest to reclaim the independence of a small nation called Timber. For some reason, the three of us passed out and had a dream of three strange men. Once we came to, we met up with the Forest Owls, only to find that the girl who danced with Squall is a member."

"Who is that member?", Sora asked. I turned to him for his stupidity.

"Me.", Rinoa stated. "I was at the dance to enlist their help. Our plan was to abduct Vinzer Deling, the tyrannical president of Galbadia, and force him to withdraw his soldiers from Timber. However, while we managed to hijack his train, we confronted his body double."

"While the mission was a failure, we were under contract by our Headmaster Cid to assist the Forest Owls until Timber's liberation, not exactly something we were pleased to follow.", Zell continued. "Our next mission was to intercept the real president, who was going to the Timber TV station to make an announcement."

"We, the Forest Owls, tried to make a new plan, with our SeeD mercenaries watching from a distance. Squall requested to see the contract binding them to us, only to discover they were under my command as long as Timber remained under Galbadian oppression. While on our way to infiltrate the station, we had to ditch our plan. Squall expressed his group's doubt questioned my committment to my goals. We had an argument and I left."

"Anyway, Squall, Selphie, and I continued on our mission. When President Deling announced the Sorceress Edea as the nation's new ambassador, Seifer, who has gone rogue, showed up to assassinate him. Quistis came and called for our assistance. There was a fight, and then Sorceress Edea came and took Seifer away. With Garden's reputation at risk following the incident, we hid from Galbadian forces searching the town. Rinoa helped us lay low."

"On the way out of town, one of Rinoa's companions handed us train tickets for our route out.", Quistis continued. "With Garden's reputation at risk following the incident, we headed for Galbadia Garden." She then muttered, "Receiving that strange dream along the way."

Yoris raised a hand, "Sorry to interrupt, but what are these Gardens?"

"They are educational institutions in our world. Each Garden trains youths into becoming specialized military forces called SeeD."

"That's pretty hardcore, being trained to be soldiers at such a young age."

"Yeah. In any case, they were enlisted in a plot to assassinate the Sorceress, with the help of Galbadia's General Caraway," Irvine then indicated to himself. "And me." Gregorio, Yoris and I widened our eyes in response. "Yes. while I may seem to the the 'de facto' leader of this group, I was actually the last to join the circle back then. In any case, the assassination was planned to take place at Edea's inauguration parade in Deling City. Unfortunately, there was a…spanner in the works."

"The original plan was for me, Selphie, and Zell to trap her under the gateway she would be travelling past while Irvine sniped her from afar, Squall accompanying him.", Quistis said. "In an attempt to prove she was capable and serious about the resistance movement, Rinoa came up with a plan to suppress the Sorceress's power with an 'Odine Bangle', but I berated her as we left her behind. As the ceremony began, I began to feel guilty and headed back to apologize, only to get locked inside the Caraway Mansion. We managed to make it back to our position in time to trap the sorceress."

"By that time, I was gone and have infiltrated the Presidential Residence, offering the bangle as a gift.", Rinoa continued. "However, she seemed to know what it could do as I was then rendered under her control by a spell. I had placidly followed Edea out onto the pedestal where I was designated as a sacrifice for the ceremony. Edea summoned two Iguion statues to attack me."

"Erstwhile, during the ceremony, Edea killed President Deling and claimed Galbadia as her own.", Irvine told us. "Even as she did the deed in front of the people, for some reason, they didn't react negatively and even cheered. We rushed to our positions, saving Rinoa along the way, and waited as Edea got trapped under the Galbadian Gateway. However, as I aimed to fire at the Sorceress, I remembered who she was and has a small panic attack. After some encouragement from Squall, I took the shot, but Edea's magical barrier blocked it. Because of that, Squall decided to rush in and Rinoa and I followed. However, we also encountered Seifer, who had become her Knight. I can't remember what happened next, but I know that the mission was a failure, and everyone was sent to Galbadia's D-District Prison. But because of my affiliation with Galbadia Garden, I was allowed to go free."

"While we were imprisoned there, I had dreams of a certain person, who once worked at the prison we were now in.", Zell continued. "Using these memories, we tried to escape. Since I was the only one capable of fighting bare-handed, I retrieved their weapons from the guards. On the way, I was under attack by them, but Squall came to my rescue, who had been separated from us for interrogation."

"Meanwhile, while I managed not to go to prison, I received orders from General Caraway to pick up his daughter Rinoa from the prison. However, she then forced me to assist in the escape of the rest. We found them under a hail of fire from the guards. I took them down and bought them some time to escape. Shortly after, we all got out and we learned that because of the failed assassination on Edea, she has ordered Galbdia to target Trabia Garden in a missile attack. We inferred that Balamb would be next, and we split into two teams. Selphie's team was to go the the missile base in an attempt to stop the missiles, while Squall's was to warn Balamb Garden."

"Irvine and Rinoa accompanied Selphie while Zell and I followed Squall.", Quistis continued. "By the time we made it to the Garden, it was in an uproar; students fighting each other, some siding with the Headmaster Cid and some with the Garden Master NORG. After meeting up with Cid, he revealed that NORG funded the Garden's foundation and saw them as a profit venture. We eventually stopped the fight by defeating NORG. We also learned that the Garden is mobile and we moved it just in time before the Galbadian missiles hit."

"Obviously, our team failed in our mission.", Rinoa stated. "While in the base, Selphie activated the base's self-destruct mechanism in an attempt to stop the missiles. However, it was too late as the missiles were already fired. As we tried to escape, our path was blocked by the Iron Clad security robot. We managed to defeat it and its pilots and, seconds before the base's destruction, hijacked it to survive the blow."

"Meanwhile, because of long-term disuse of the steering mechanism, Balamb Garden was crashed into Fisherman's Horizon, a pacifist town built around a defunct train station in the middle of the sea. The local technicians worked on fixing the Garden's controls so we could leave as the Mayor didn't want us here. However, Galbadian soldiers entered the town in search of a woman named Ellone. The Mayor tried to reason with them but failed. We had to fight off the Galbadians, who deployed a (badly battered) machine called the Iron Clad to deal with us. After we defeated it, it fell to the water and out came Selphie's team."

"That Iron Clad was the very robot we hijacked when escaping the base.", Irvine said. "After repelling the Galbadians, Headmaster Cid placed the Garden under Squall's command. We held a concert just to lighten the load on his shoulders. I was in charge of the festival with Selphie as we prepared for the Garden Festival. While that was going on, I took the time to explore Fisherman's Horizon, tangling with a Galbadian soldier left behind on the raid along the way. I also found a warning bulletin issued on a suspicious man in a brown coat carrying a gun."

I think that warning was about you., I guessed to myself.

"In any case, the festival was a success.", Rinoa said. "When the Garden returned to Balamb, where it was once situated close to, we found the town was under siege by the Galbadians under the search of Ellone. We encountered Seifer's cronies Raijin and Fujin. Affter sending them out of the town, we headed for Trabia Garden."

"During our time there, I slowly led them to remember our past.", Irvine continued. "All of us, except Rinoa, but including Seifer, once lived in an orphanage together, cared for by a woman named Edea. They had forgotten about it and their childhood there because of the long-term use of Guardian Forces. I retained my memories because while I have ended up using GFs myself upon joining them, Galbadia Garden focuses on military technology and thus doesn't rely on Guardian Forces and I haven't been using them for years like the rest."

"Wait.", Donald said. "Is this Edea the same as the Sorceress you guys once attempted to assassinate?"

"Yes. I didn't have a nervous breakdown during the assassination plan; I remembered her and was afraid to kill her. In spite of that, I knew, and so did the others, that we had to take her down."

"There, I realized my feelings for Squall were actually not that of love but of 'sisterly caring'.", Quistis interrupted. Irvine turned his eyes to her for a second, then continued.

"After paying our respects to Selphie's friends in Trabia Garden, we decided to head for the Centra continent to where our orphanage was, but we encountered my former Garden, which was now mobile like Balamb's, and was under Edea's command. Our Gardens clashed and a battle ensued."

"During the fight, Galbadia Garden rammed into Balamb Garden, sending Rinoa falling down the edge and clinging to it for dear life.", Zell continued. "Unable to help her, I informed Squall about this, telling him the only way to get to her was by flying or going over the roof. He was about to give up on her when we forced him to go save her. Before leaving for her, he gave a final announcement over the P.A system. At this point, Squall was a changed man, going from lone wolf to born leader."

"Squall came to my rescue on a paratrooper's armored hover-suit, and I grabbed onto its emergency cable as we landed on Galbadia Garden.", Rinoa continued. "We soon rejoined the rest of our team along the way and encountered Raijin and Fujin once more, but they let us pass without incident as they were too tired to fight."

"Probably from fighting in the battle themselves.", Gregorio muttered.

"We made it to the Headmaster's office where we faced off against Seifer. After we defeated him, Edea, who was in the room at that time, shifted through the floor to the Auditorium."

"We followed her and faced off against our former Matron.", Quistis continued. "Upon her defeat, ending the battle, it turns out that she was possessed by a Sorceress from the future named Ultimecia. After the battle, Rinoa was rendered comatose as Ultimecia then possessed her, although we didn't know that at the time. We returned to the orphanage to speak with Edea about Ultimecia where we learned of her plans for Time Compression."

"Time Compression?", Sora asked.

"Time Compression is the concept of condensing all of time and space into a single moment. It's very hard to explain. After finding out that the woman Ellone was the cause behind our dreams, Squall wanted to seek out Ellone to help him revive Rinoa. At first, after we found the White SeeD, who told us she was at Esthar, Squall docked Balamb Garden against Horizon Bridge, where Fisherman's Horizon was built close to, and ventured alone with Rinoa on his back. I think you can tell that by this point, Squall has strong feelings for Rinoa, right?" We all nodded in response.

"We, accompanied by Edea, beat him to the Esthar continent on Balamb Garden and berated him for not trusting his friends. That is, of course, us.", Irvine stated. "We then managed to locate Esthar, which was hidden by a cloaking device to protect its city from invaders. We entered the city and met with Dr. Odine, who told us that Ellone was in the Estharian space station, Lunar Base, which orbited our world in the same scope as our moon."

"Squall and Quistis went to the Lunar Gate, Rinoa in tow, to get to the space station while the rest of us stayed behind to protect Edea, who joined us, believing herself to be a threat so long as she can be controlled by Ultimecia.", Zell continued. "We headed back to Dr. Odine in his lab, where we learned that the Lunatic Pandora, a monstrous, hovering black monolith, was looming close to the city controlled by the Galbadian army. Dr. Odine and I got into an argument about time constraints before I decided to lead the team in an attempt to board the structure. We were repelled by an invisible force as the colossal structure continued to proceed over a location known as Tears' Point, and triggered the Lunar Cry, sending monsters from the moon to here, which then attacked the city."

"Erstwhile, up in space, we met up with the base's leader, Piet, who explained Adel's suspension seal. Adel is a Sorceress who ruled over Esthar before being sealed away. We talked to Ellone, and Squall tried to use her gift to go back into Rinoa's past to find out what happened to her. As they talked, Rinoa woke up, although she wasn't herself. We saw her put on a space suit, go out into Adel's Tomb and release the Sorceress inside. Ultimecia then possessed Adel, who was then brought down via the Lunar Cry, leaving Rinoa for dead. The Lunar Base was drawn near the moon and we evacuated it. I was reunited with Zell and the others."

"Some time later, a spaceship called the Ragnarok landed, and from it came Squall and Rinoa, finally conscious once more.", Irvine continued. "However, upon landing, Rinoa was taken by Esthar officials to contain her new Sorceress powers in a new tomb on Sorceress Memorial. While Rinoa, scared of her new powers, allowed herself to be sealed, we didn't want it to happen, especially Squall, and we came to her rescue on the Ragnarok. We then returned Edea to the orphanage, then prepared to head for the Lunatic Pandora, where Seifer had kidnapped Ellone to further Ultimecia's plan."

"We discussed Ultimecia's plan with Dr. Odine.", Rinoa continued. "Ellone's ability to send the consciousnesses of others into different eras of time had been used by him at some point in the future to create the Junction Machine Ellone." We were all getting confused because of 'time travel tense' issues and they saw us struggling to understand. "Ultimecia was using the Junction Machine to reach back in time to connect and take over the bodies of Sorceresses so that she could exist in all eras of time. However, the machine had its limits, and Ultimecia decided to find the real Ellone, so that her consciousness would simultaneously exist in the past, present and future. With her mind present in all eras of time, Ultimecia would finally be able to achieve Time Compression and become an omnipotent deity able to fully control all time, space and existence."

Donald groaned, pausing the storytelling. "All this talk of crossing time, even if just through the mind is making my head spin. In fact, it's making my head spin even more."

"Sorry.", Quistis apologized. "We had such problems too. With these revelations, we formed a plan with Dr. Odine, and Laguna, somebody we had 'seen' in dreams thanks to Ellone, who was now President of Esthar, to stop Ultimecia. The plan was to wait for Ultimecia to possess Adel. We would then defeat her, so she would pass her powers onto Rinoa, making her the only Sorceress left in our present who Ultimecia could exist within. With Ultimecia inside Rinoa, Ellone would send both of their minds into the past, allowing Ultimecia to cast Time Compression. Ellone would then bring back both of their consciousnesses and send them back to their respective eras, temporarily stopping the spell."

"Oww.", Sora groaned. "I'm getting lost from all this talk of mental time travel."

"After discussing the plan, Laguna then told us that the only way to survive in a universe of compressed time, we would have to keep our bonds strong by remembering each other and thinking of a place we were all connected to and wanted to travel to.", Zell continued. "We would then be able to survive through Time Compression, and with our love and faith in each other make it to Ultimecia's future and defeat her. Our plan prepared, we made our way to Lunatic Pandora on the Ragnarok, piercing its defenses and making our way inside, where we confronted Seifer. Raijin and Fujin were there as well, trying to convince him to stop. He ignored their pleas and did battle with us."

"During the battle, one of our Guardian Forces, Odin, arrived.", Quistis said. "Unlike most of our GFs, who come at our calling, he sometimes arrives at random in times of trouble to instantly vanquish any monsters we encounter. In this battle, he rushed at Seifer to do just that. However, Seifer managed to somehow slice him in half, and Odin's sword was sent flying. We were almost frightened by what he just did, as it took us twenty minutes to beat him and be our Guardian Force and Squall's rival just cut him in one blow. A long while later, a mysterious man named Gilgamesh came into the scene. He was almost as big as Odin, wore red, seemed to have multiple arms, and possessed Odin's sword. He then took down Seifer with it, and then mysteriously left, although he did come at random later in future battles."

"After the battle with Seifer, Rinoa was then kidnapped. Ultimecia, in Adel's body, then 'junctioned' Rinoa to herself, and we had to fight the Sorceress while healing Rinoa the whole time.", Irvine explained. "After vanquishing Adel, she transferred her Sorceress Power to Rinoa, just like with Edea back at Galbadia Garden. Just as planned, Ellone sent Ultimecia's and Rinoa's minds into the past. With her mind in all eras, Ultimecia cast Time Compression, though it was temporarily halted when Ellone sent her mind back to the future."

"However, the partially compressed time allowed us to travel to the future and finally reach Ultimecia Castle.", Rinoa continued. "For some reason, all our abilities have been sealed while inside the castle. We had to go through a lot of battles with Ultimecia's minions to get them back. Only could we then confront Ultimecia herself. She attacked with an array of abilities, even reaching into Squall's mind and created Griever, his idea of the ultimate Guardian Force. After we managed to triumph over Griever, Ultimecia 'junctioned' herself to Griever to increase her power. After she was again bested, Ultimecia transformed into her ultimate form to complete Time Compression. In the midst of the battle, some of us fell in battle and were 'absorbed into time'."

"The battle was epic and insane all at the same time. Ultimecia began absorbing all time, space and existence into herself, merging with it in order to become an omnipotent 'living god.' She even seemed to reach into her own mind to create Apocalypse, the ultimate Black Magic spell. I think Rinoa, Squall, and I were the last ones standing near the battle's end. Eventually, her fated destiny, as well as the links that bound us together (not to mention a final blow from Gilgamesh using Odin's sword) proved to be too much for Ultimecia to overcome, and she collapsed in a massive explosion that emanated across space, leaving us stranded in time."

"We managed to get back to our own time by remembering who we were and where we wanted to be. I emerged in the flower field near the orphanage, where Squall and I had made our promise, but he was nowhere to be found. Using my Sorceress powers, I managed to locate Squall at the end of time. He was near death but because of my arrival and my belief that he would survive, he was saved. I also discovered that he went too far back in time, where he traveled to Edea's Orphanage, to a time where he was still a kid and Garden hasn't been conceived of yet."

"Let me guess.", Yoris interrupted. "A dying Ultimecia passed her powers onto Edea before vanishing, and Squall mentioned Garden and the SeeD, creating a time paradox?"

Everybody widened their eyes in surprise. "That's right! How did you know?", Rinoa asked.

"I guess I'm an expert at deductions and 'reading between the lines'."

"Well, after the entire ordeal, we reunited for a—"

"I think we can skip the aftermath.", Gregorio interrupted. "I don't think we're that interested in what you did after defeating Ultimecia. However, I think what can be worth talking about is how you managed to escape to Traverse Town when the Heartless attacked your world. We understand if you don't want to though."

Irvine and the others turned to one another, then nodded to one another.

Part II. Escape From The Heartless: Case of SeeD

"Some time after stopping the threat that was Ultimecia…was it a year or two?…the Heartless came.", Zell told us. "Before, we just treated it like we would any other monster thinking it was an unnoticed species that came down from the last Lunar Cry at Esthar. Then, as time went on, more of its kind came. They came in all variations, but they were all black, had beady yellow eyes, looked cute, and most had an emblem somewhere on their bodies. We didn't let our guard down as we already had at least two monsters who looked cute yet were deadly."

"Once the monsters started to seem to wear clothes though, we started getting suspicious.", Quistis continued. "Thanks to no longer needing to imprison Adel, we were able to communicate wirelessly around the world. Our nations confirmed that none of them had been formulating any invasion army and that they were all fighting the same enemy. Soon, their leader came, hijacking the TV Station at Timber and delivering a message. From the screens, we saw what looked like a dark Sorceress with sickly green skin, dark robes, and a scepter with a green orb on it. With her was a man in green clothing. His mouth was covered, his clothing was strange and almost foreign, and he wielded a halberd with a gun attachment. The man in green was named Xin and his companion was—"

"Maleficent.", Sora, Donald, and Goofy uttered at the same time, having been given description of her by Leon and company.

"How do you know about her?"

"We heard of her through our friend Leon, whose world was also destroyed by the Heartless thanks to her.", Sora replied. "Please continue."

"Xin was the one who led the Heartless in attacking the station.", Rinoa continued. "Their message was simple; our doom is inevitable. Regardless, we all prepared for war, and all three Gardens were rendered mobile. By this time, Trabia Garden was completely fixed. I reunited with Squall and everyone else at Balamb Garden. Seifer and his friends were there too, and I had brought my dog Angelo with me, who had been a great help to us in our journey."

"How was he able to help you guys?", Goofy asked.

"Angelo's a she and she sometimes comes out of nowhere whenever we are in a bind when encountering monsters."

"Is this one of those 'Limit Break' phenomena?", Donald asked. Sora turned to him and he explained. "Sometimes, fighters reach a state where they are close to losing. When that happens, they might be able to unleash a tremendous amount of power as an attack that they wouldn't normally be able to perform. They may also perform some other special ability to defeat their opponents, or even revitalize themselves and any allies."

"That's right, Donald."

"Is there any way for us to learn them?", Sora asked, eager to know.

"Sorry, but no.", Quistis apologized. "It just comes naturally for us. Not everybody has the gift."

"Oh." Sora looked crestfallen.

"Anyway, the Heartless gathered and attacked and the sky went dark. One by one, our towns and cities fell to the Heartless, attacking anybody who wasn't one of them, including the monsters. Eventually, only the Gardens were left standing, but we lost contact with each other. Balamb Garden was then attacked by the Heartless, who appeared out of portals of darkness. It was here where we made what we realized was our last stand."

"Balamb Garden was over the ocean at that time.", Zell explained. "Some time during the attack, Balamb suddenly stopped and crashed into the ocean. Fortunately, Balamb seemed to float thanks to its mobility system. We assumed Nida and Xu, the ones at the controls, have fallen. Everywhere, SeeDs were struck down by the Heartless and, to our horror, were turned into Heartless themselves."

"During our stand, the six of us were together, watching each other's backs.", Irvine continued. "In the midst of the battle, after Angelo was launched to some of the Heartless by way of a Limit Break of Rinoa's, as she made her way back to us, she was attacked by a Heartless. Selphie ran off to rescue Angelo and I covered her as she ran. Just as she reached her however, a pool of darkness appeared below them and they sank into it." I remembered this happening to me back in the dream. "As she called out for me, I immediately ran to help her but just before I could reach them, they disappeared into it and the pool vanished." Irvine closed his eyes in sadness, and didn't seem to wish to continue.

"I was watching him do all that and I was able to tell he was utterly devastated.", Rinoa said. "I then turned to Squall, who never left my side as we fought. Suddenly however, a large, rotund Heartless came from above and separated Squall from the rest of us. Seconds later, we saw a dark pool manifest undreneath him and it sucked him in, just like it did with Selphie and Angelo. By this time, we realized we were the only ones left standing and that everything was dark."

"Suddenly, as we fought, Rinoa then entered her other Limit Break; the Angel Wing.", Zell continued. "She gained a pair of white wings, floated mid-air, and started to cast all sorts of spells, devastating both the Heartless and the terrain around us, although by then, said terrain that was left was Balamb Garden. No more land, no more ocean, no more anything."

Just like Destiny Islands!, I thought. I heard Sora mouth the same thing.

"We then noticed a glowing dark orb in the sky that seemed to suck in whatever was left of the world." Sora and I raised our eyebrows in surprise. That's also exactly what happened at Destiny Islands. "Then, while Rinoa was busy devastating Heartless, Xin and Maleficent appeared through a dark portal and confronted us personally."

"They seemed impressed that we were holding out so far and complimented us for our 'futile' efforts, and the second Rinoa ended her Limit Break, they dismissed all the Heartless and then summoned one that was as big as a Guardian Force.", Quistis continued. "It was completely black, and it had a heart-shaped hole in its chest." Once again, Sora and I reacted, remembering this monstrosity. "We fought it with all our might, but then the wind suddenly intensified and we were sucked in. We held onto each other for dear life, thinking of each other, just like when we went across time to Ultimecia. We then woke up…I think you know what happened next."

"You guys ended up in Traverse Town.", I concluded.

"Uhh…mister?", Selphie asked Irvine. "About this Selphie you were friends with, is it because of what happened to her that you're protecting me so much?"

"Yes.", the sniper replied with a sigh. "You remind us so much of her, me especially. I've sworn not to let anybody fall into the darkness again. We all did."

Part III. Miscellaneous Items

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Gregorio went to the door to open it. When he opened the door, we were greeted by a white figure. His head was completely round, lacking any features save for a few thin lnes where his closed mouth and eyes were. His body was slim, and his arms ended in round ends, lacking any fingers. His legs ended in the same way, although he seemed to be completely balanced.

I couldn't tell if he was completely covered in some sort of whte garb or if this was his bodily appearance, but if I didn't know any better, I'd say he was a 'stick figure'. He seemed to have a bag similar in design to my own, only it was white like the rest of him.

"Welcome back!", Tidus and Zell said at the same time. The two then turned to each other and laughed.

"How're you guys doing?", the white figure asked. We saw his mouth move, showing a mouth as regular as ours, but his eyes remained closed.

"We're fine.", Selphie said. "We were just listening to a story."

"Okay. I think I'll stop paying the rent to your room. After all, you're staying here with them, right?"

"I'm afraid our room is too small for four adults and three kids.", Rinoa said.

"Oh, all right. I noticed you guys have been running low on magic, so I brought something to replenish that."

"Huh? Won't Ethers replenish their magic?", Donald asked, being a magic user himself.

"We don't exactly use magic the same way you guys do.", Zell said.

"How then?", Goofy asked.

"You'll see.", the white figure said as he took off his bag and set it on the table after it was cleared of items. He then took out from the bag a machine as big as a typewriter. He set it down on the bag and then put his bag down on the floor. The contraption the white figure took out was metallic, and seemed to be a closed case with a keyhole. The case was then opened and it showed what looked like very advanced technology. On one side of the case was half of a large spherical crystal, which was currently of a clear shade. Around it and on the other side of the contraption were buttons, lights, and labels of all kinds.

"What's that?", Gregorio asked.

"It's a P&RDP (1).", the white figure answered. he then offered what was probably an instruction manual. "Here are the instructions on how to use them." He then pushed a few buttons and lights began to flicker. The crystal then turned green and started to spew streams of energy.

"Is this…", Rinoa uttered as she held out a hand. Just then, as she approached the machine, the energy streamers flowed right into her hands. "It is!"

"What is i—Oh!", Zell gasped in realization.

"Is this like an artificial Draw Point?", Irvine asked.

"Why, yes.", the white figure replied.

"Draw Point?", Sora asked.

"This is how we use magic.", Quistis explained. "We used to Draw magic from Draw Points and our enemies back in our world. As such, we run on a set stock."

"That must be pretty hard now that your world is no more.", Yoris said.

"Why not Draw magic from the Heartless?", Sora asked. This earned him a smack to the head from Donald's staff. "What?"

"You know what?", Zell said. "Why didn't we think of that?"

"Because we might get infected by the darkness and turn into Heartless ourselves, perhaps?", Quistis replied in a deadpan manner.

"No need to worry about that.", the white figure assured. "While you don't obtain much from them, it is safe to Draw magic from Heartless."

Irvine, Zell, and Quistis went to the P&RDP and stretched out their hands, Drawing magic from it. The white figure then handed a key to Quistis. She then closed the P&RDP and then locked it with the key. She then walked to a cabinet I somehow failed to notice, which was close to the bed I once lay. She opened it and we saw a safety deposit box. After placing the P&RDP on top of the box, she went to the safe, and turned its combination lock. After opening it, she placed the key inside, then closed the safe, spinning the lock.

"May I trust you not to unlock the case?", Irvine asked Sora.

"What makes you think—"

"Your Keyblade, remember?"

"Oh. Don't worry, I won't. It's not like I have a use for it anyway."

"Uhh…Quistis?", Goofy asked. "What were those red feathers inside?" While Quistis was storing the P&RDP, he saw two red feathers inside the safe.

"Wait…red feathers?", Donald asked his fellow knight.

"Uhh…", Zell was about to make an excuse of some kind.

"Phoenix Downs!", the court wizard realized. "Wow! Those are rare nowadays. I read that they can revive anybody!"

"Uhh…that's not exactly true.", Quistis said as she closed the closet. "Contrary to popular belief, Phoenix Downs cannot revive anybody who is dead. Only those who are on the verge of it."

"Oh."

"Well, I shall be going, then.", the white figure said as he took his bag and started to leave.

"Wait a second!", Gregorio said. "Where exactly do you go? I mean, we're using your Gummi Ship, right?"

"I have another vessel for myself only."

"Just what is it you're doing?"

"That's my business. Also, I loaned it to you guys until you finish finding the parts I've asked you to look for."

"Just why do we need to get them?"

"That's my business too. Also, aren't you traveling with the Keyblade master?"

"How do you—"

"I saw you guys traveling with him. Well, gotta go!" Quickly, the white figure left. We stayed quiet for a few seconds.

"Wait a minute…", Sora then said. "We didn't even find out his name."

"We don't know his true name, but he goes by the moniker 'Chosen One'.", Rinoa explained.

"'Chosen One'?", Donald asked.

"Apparently, he's was a 'hero of a different story'.", Zell said with a shrug.

"…Well, we better get going.", Sora said.

"Oh yeah.", Yoris realized. "The gizmo shop."

"Well, see you guys later."

"Bye!", waved Tidus.

"Good luck, Sora!", said Wakka.

Part IV. Alternate Scenario: 'Me' vs. Irvine

"You can't be serious!", I gasped in fear as I shielded myself.

"Sorry, but I am." He then fired his weapon and I realized the battle has begun. For some reason, his gun wasn't that loud, and most are deafening.

As he begun to reload, I aimed my gun and fired at my opponent relentlessly. However, he seemed to dodge the attacks by swerving his body. It didn't help that my attacks were 'slow lasers' compared to his fast bullets. He then fired again and I hid behind my shield. When he stopped firing, I turned my shield away to fire when the man suddenly fired again. I was hit at the left shoulder, but for some reason, I didn't register a load of pain on that spot, but a little of it all over my body.

We started to strafe around the area, trading shots as we went. Just then, the man put his shotgun aside and aimed his free hand at me. I then saw blue energy and snowflakes gather around it. I then realized he was about to cast a Blizzard attack. However, I couldn't do anything as ice quickly formed around me. I felt cold for a moment, then it shattered and I was hurt from the attack.

Just then, I had a crazy notion. I found myself running right at the man and started to bash him with my shield. Unfortunately for me, he seemed to be expecting it and as he received the blows, even as I also shot, he evaded my next attacks, and started to swing his shotgun at me like a bludgeon. I was hit a few times before I managed to land a shot at his leg. As he flinched for a moment, I quickly increased my distance from him. The man then raised his hand into the air. A second later, I was hit by a lightning bolt. For some reason thankfully, I wasn't instantly killed or seriously injured, but it hurt as much as the Blizzard.

"Oww…", I groaned. "The Thunder spell."

I knew that there was nowhere to run, so this had to end quickly. As the man approached me slowly, his shotgun aimed at me, I frantically fired away at him. He flinched from the attacks but kept his aim true. I then brought up my shield to defend myself and then the shotgun was fired. I raised my shield higher in reflex and it hit where my head would've been. In a desperte attempt, I then frantically shot at the man and he was pushed back a few steps. I then saw him kneel to the floor. He was weakening.

However, it was happening to me too. My heart was beating very fast. It was getting harder for me to concentrate. My vision was getting blurry. My legs were shaking. I couldn't even grasp my weapons. Eventually, I gave in to my exhaustion and lost consciousness before hitting the ground.

KHKHKHKHKH

Again, I was hearing voices in my subconscious.

"Irvine, are you all right?", a female voice asked.

"Yeah. I'm fine.", replied the man I fought against. "I just went easy on him." He then sighed. "Poor kid. Looks like things are a lot worse than we thought."

"Let's take him back."

"Way ahead of you."

Part V. The Phil Cup

-This takes place after the end of Chapter 8-

I woke up with a start as we arrived at…Olympus Coliseum.

"Hey? What are we doing here?", I asked.

"There's a tournament being held at the Coliseum.", Chip said through the comms system.

"I hear there's a great reward for the winner.", Dale added. Both of them were at the controls in front of Donald, who had his arms folded and his face in a stern manner.

"How do you know all that?", Gregorio asked.

"We have our ways.", both of them answered.

"Oh well. Sora did promise we'd return, right?"

KHKHKHKHKH

We entered the Coliseum, passing by Hercules as he waved at us. We made it to the lobby, where Phil was standing.

"Welcome back, junior heroes!", he called. Donald just groaned. "You came for the tournament?"

"Uhh…yeah.", Sora answered.

"It's called the Phil Cup. You wanna enter?" Sora nodded. "How do you wanna go about it?"

"What does that mean?"

"Well, you could enter on your own and him." He gestured to me. "Or with your companions." He gestured to the rest.

"We're entering together."

"Well okay. Let's get started."

KHKHKHKHKH

As we entered the arena, the bleachers were filled with spectators. They all cheered as we entered. I felt a little embarrassed, as never before was I (granted, with others, but still…) cheered on by this many. Sora put a hand on my shoulder and I immediately felt assured. We prepared for battle as the barrier formed around us.

The 9th seed featured us up against four Powerwilds and three Soldiers, all Heartless. The tournament consisted of nine battles. I didn't know how tournaments here go, but I didn't care as we started fighting. Donald started off with a Blizzard spell, which quickly eliminated the Soldiers at front. We then charged at the Powerwilds and they were goners in seconds. Like usual, we felt we had to perform what I decided to call 'victory poses', as they usually occur once we win a battle.

The 8th seed consisted of one Powerwild, and nine "Musical Wizards", two each of the Cure and Fire kind, and five of the Thunder kind. The second the fight began, we all scattered, attacking at the spellcasting Heartless, with Sora handling the Powerwild. We handled them quickly too, in spite of the Green Requiems.

The 7th seed consisted of four Powerwilds and…a pair of legs from the Guard Armor. Unlike the last ones however, these were colored magenta.

"Now that's just wrong!", Yoris complained.

"I guess there's more than one Guard Armor Heartless in existence.", Gregorio said. "I'm counting on seeing the other parts soon."

We dealt with the Poweriwlds with ease, but the Hammerlegs (as the Diary called them after the battle) were just as problematic as they were when we fought against them along with the rest of the Guard Armor. However, as we didn't have to actually fight any Guard Armor, the fight was much easier. After all, not only were we stronger than last time, but four Powerwilds can't substitute the power of the rest of the Guard Armor.

The 6th seed was composed of Red Nocturnes and Yellow Operas, five each. They were a real doozy compared to the last one. However, the 5th seed posed as a wake-up call from our brief complacency that followed. It consisted of five Powerwilds and one Large Body. In spite of our improvement in battle, these still proved a problem, if not for the fact that Large Bodies are immune to frontal attacks, and have greater vitality than most regular Heartless, not counting 'bosses' of course.

The Large Body seemed to be snoozing, not even noticing the fight started as the Powerwilds charged us. It woke up with a start as soon as we got close. Things then got crazy. I don't know how, but we managed to finish the fight in one minute.

"Man, that was tiring.", I said as I tucked my gun into my pocket and took a swig from my water bottle. I then wiped my forehead as we returned to the benches for a time-out.

KHKHKHKHKH

The 4th seed consisted of four Shadows, three Blue Rhapsodies…and a pair of hands from the Guard Armor that the Diary named Gauntlets. The fight was easy as while the Gauntlets still did their dangerous attacks, they were surprisingly as weak as a Shadow. We didn't let our guard down like last time, and good thing too since the 3rd seed composed of two Large Bodies, and six Green Requiems. Even when we managed to defeat the healing Heartless, the big ones still proved difficult. Still, we made it through.

The 2nd seed consisted of four Powerwilds, and a red Guard Armor…minus the head and torso. As we fought them, I noticed that the Hammerlegs and Gauntlets moved as if they were connected to a torso. Eventually, as they performed new maneuvers, they split from each other, dealing with my comrades separately. We managed to take them down with only minor injuries.

The 1st seed—the last one—was composed of eight "Musical Wizards", four each of the Blizzard and the Thunder kind…and the Armored Torso (and head) of the Guard Armor.

"Now who didn't see this one coming?", Yoris said to no one in particular.

Regardless, we charged as always. It proved to be a mistake however, as the Armored Torso began to spin like a top, knocking us out of its way as it passed.

"Man! This defiinitely isn't like the Guard Armor at all.", I complained. "It has a different battle plan!"

The battle was very hard, but we made it through, with Sora dealing the finishing blow on the Torso, which began to explode in places before disappearing. Before we knew it, the Cup was over, and we were the victors.

"You know what I noticed?", I said as, for some reason, confetti started to fall out of nowhere. "These Heartless do not drop any spheres to restore health or magic, or any munny like the ones we fought across the worlds." (2)

"You only noticed it now?", Gregorio sked me incredulously.

"No. I only mentioned it now."

KHKHKHKHKH

Back at the lobby, Phil and Hercules were congratulating us for our victory.

"I never thought you'd do it.", the hero trainer said. "Not bad."

"Phil, you're just as stubborn as ever.", said Hercules. "Don't pretend you're not happy for them."

"Ahem! Now, kid, you still got a long way to go. The next round's startin' soon. Next time, it'll be the real thing."

"Here. You guys earned it." Hercules handed Sora a tiny purple scroll. When the Key Bearer took it, it disappeared and he seemed to feel heavy for a second. The hero then handed me a green Power Orb. It took it, examined it, and saw what looked like a purple dome inside.

"You got the power of the stars, kid.", Phil said.

"It's the Gravity spell.", Donald explained.

"Well, we better get going.", Yoris said. "We'll be back for the next cup."

"Oh wait.", I said. "I wanted to ask you guys something."

"Yeah, kid?", Phil said.

"You know, each time we win a seed, except for the last one and a few others, we always seem to get the feeling to have to pose or something. We never get that feeling anywhere else. Do you know anything about it?"

"Sorry, kid. I haven't a clue."

"Now that you mention it, I always have that feeling.", Hercules noted. "Never thought it might be a phenomenon of some kind. I kinda liked doing it. Well, shouldn't you guys be off?"

"Oh. Right."

Gummi Ship Time: Realization

As we sailed the stars en route to who knows where, I decided to read the Diary and its recently updated entries. As Gregorio talked with Donald, I looked over Leon's entry, which matched the one in Jiminy's Journal. Suddenly, I widened my eyes in realization.

"What?", I gasped.

"Huh?", Gregorio and Donald said.

"What is it?", Yoris asked.

"It's about Leon's entry!", I said.

"What about it?"

I read the entry aloud, "Leon. A swordsman who wields the Gunblade. His real name: Squall Leonhart."

"Squall Leonhart?", Donald gasped. This caught Sora's attention.

"Didn't Irvine and the others mention him when they told us their story?", the Key Bearer asked.

"Yes, they did.", I said.

"But Cid said he escaped his world with Leon, Aerith, and Yuffie when the three were kids.", Donald argued.

"Now how is that possible?"

"Perhaps it's a different person.", Goofy guessed.

"Let's see. Same name, both first and last, both wield the gunblade, which I think is not really common…I seriously doubt that."

"Well, they can't both be right!", Sora said.

"Maybe one side's mistaken in the details."

"But which?"

"What about we bring the two groups together?", Gregorio suggested.

"Good idea.", Donald agreed. "But let's do that when we get back to Traverse Town for supplies. For now, let's look for whatever it is we need to look for."

"Don't you know what you need to look for?"

"We're not looking for the same thing, remember?"

"Oh, right."

"Well, I'll be snoozing off now.", I said to no one in particular as I closed my eyes and let the Gummi Ship's Refreshment system do its work on me.

Irvine -updated-

A resident of Traverse Town who lost his world to the Heartless. He wields a shotgun and is an expert marksman. He also knows a little close combat, magic, and knowledge about the Gun of Light.

His homeworld was lost to the Heartless and so was a girl precious to him named Selphie. Ever since losing her (as well as a friend named Squall), he and his friends have sworn not to let anybody fall to the darkness.

"Final Fantasy VIII"

Rinoa -updated-

A resident of Traverse Town whose world was lost to the Heartless. She is a kindly person who works with Irvine, Quistis, and Zell to ensure the safety of their new home. She may not look the part, but she is also a powerful Sorceress.

"Final Fantasy VIII"

Quistis -updated-

A resident of Traverse Town who lost her world when the Heartless attacked. She is a calm, gifted, and friendly woman who cares for her friends. Along with Irvine, Rinoa, and Zell, she protects the town from the Heartless.

"Final Fantasy VIII"

Zell -updated-

A resident of Traverse Town who lost his world from the Heartless. He possesses unsurpassed martial arts skills and runs errands for the group. Along with, Irvine, Rinoa, and Quistis, he protects the town from the Heartless.

"Final Fantasy VIII"

Xin

A mysterious man who works with Maleficent. It is not known if he controls the Heartless alongside her, if he is under her command, or if she is under his. Either way, they have destroyed countless worlds and it is not known what their true intentions are.

'Chosen One'

A white 'stick figure' who rescued Selphie, Wakka, and Tidus from Destiny Islands when it fell to the darkness. He provided this Gummi Ship, the Destiny, for Gregorio and Yoris to use in finding 'parts' for him. He also seems to know about the Gun of Light, having told Irvine and his company about it.

-Well, I'll just say the Story Crew Has a hand on the Victory Pose thing in Olympus Coliseum. And that's all for now. See ya on Third.-

(1) Portable and Reusable Draw Point.

(2) I almost forgot about these and now that I thought of it, I think it's be better if I didn't mention it and nobody question it.