Chapter 9: The Battles Begin!

Demyx grinned as the group left the Concert Hall, "This is perfect!" he yelled, "I'll get to play sitar and everything! I'm so gonna win!" He pumped his fist in the air and summoned up his sitar in the intricate way he had used before he fought Sora, surrounding himself with water, and then lowering his instrument with a flourish.

"Yeah, but there's a minimum of four singers or instrument players required. It says so on the poster." Donald pointed out, looking at an ad.

Demyx wasn't deterred. "Not a problem! I'll sing with Sora, and you guys can play… hmmm… Duck-man, you play drums, and Dog-dude, you play bass."

"But I can't play any instrument." Goofy said, scratching his head.

"It's okay, no one listens to bass players anyway!" Demyx yelled. He saw an instrument shop across the street. "Perfect! Be right back." He yelled, running over to the shop.

"What should we do?" Donald asked.

"Nothing. The guy's in his element. Let him have fun." Sora replied, putting his arms behind his head and smiling, "Besides, I haven't been singing since Atlantica, so… this should be interesting."

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Xemnas lead the rest of the Organization through the Labyrinth. "Xemnas! How does this thing lead to the Castle if the Castle floats?" a young cloaked female Nobody asked.

"There's a teleporter in the middle. It takes you to the Proof of Existence room in the Castle. Turn left here." Xemnas said, and then continued to lead.

Eventually they stumbled upon a battalion of Soldiers, "Quick, kill them!" Axel yelled, summoning his chakrams.

"Hold!" Xemnas yelled. "Heartless, obey me!" the Soldiers ran behind the Nobody leader and the group continued.

Eventually they reached the center. A bright blue glass cylinder stood dead center. Power cables pulsed with light as they powered it. The entire Organization, plus a few of the Soldiers, fit in comfortably. The group disappeared as they were teleported upwards…

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The group emerged in the Proof of Existence. The door stood in front of them.

"Let's get our castle back!" Axel yelled.

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Kairi stared at the now-familiar ruins of Disney Castle. She heard Yuffie give a small gasp. "Now entering Disney Castle. You sure you guys want to stay here? It's a little… run-down…" Morgan stated over the intercom. Kairi pressed the response button.

"We just need to grab some cash and a friend, then we'll be on out way back here." She replied.

"Whatd'you mean?" Morgan asked.

"We need your ship to keep traveling with us. We'll be able to pay, if that's what you're concerned about." Kairi answered truthfully.

"I'll have to talk with the rest of the crew. In the meantime, get to the loading bay." Morgan replied after a brief pause.

"Will do!" Yuffie yelled.

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"You girls take care now, savvy?" Morgan said as Kairi and Yuffie walked down the ramp.

"You too, Morgan." Kairi replied, waving at him from the base of the ramp. She and Yuffie walked away.

"She's only going to be gone a few hours." Riz intoned. She leaned against the wall and crossed her arms.

"So? This place is dangerous. Morphun, follow them." A larger version of the four gelatinous figures from before slunk down the ramp and away into the ruins.

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Kairi and Yuffie looked for Sora all over the ruins. Sadly, they could not locate him. They walked into the Library, defeated.

King Mickey stood up, "Kairi? Yuffie? What're you two doin' here?" he asked, shocked.

"We're here to find Sora, Your Majesty." Yuffie said.

"Sora left for Hollow Bastion a little while ago to find you and Riku." Mickey said. He slammed his head on the table and sighed, "Life isn't working out for anyone right now, is it?"

Kairi looked at the small king, "Mickey, er… Your Majesty… could you… find Sora?" Kairi asked.

"Sorry, Kairi, but I can't. You'll have to find him on your own." Suddenly Mickey snapped his fingers, "I've got it! I'll come with you! You'll never find better protection, and I can find the seals! Perfect!"

"We'd be glad to have you with us! By the way, do you have a ship?" Yuffie asked.

"Nope!" Mickey announced, smiling,

Kairi sweatdropped, "Then how are you supposed to come with us?" she asked.

"We'll leave in the ship that brought you here." Mickey concluded.

"Okay. Then let's go!"

"There's only one problem." The King added, stroking his chin.

"What?" Kairi asked.

"A virus was inserted into my personal computer. It lets ships in… But not out. If we want to find Sora and the Seals, we'll need to get rid of that first."

"How? Can't we just put in an antivirus program or something? There really isn't much we can do." Kairi asked.

"Here, let me show you." Mickey said. He pushed a bookcase out of the wall to reveal a large computer terminal. The screen was flashing red. Mickey pointed to a glass lens above the computer, "This will take you inside the computer. I had it copied from an identical machine in Radiant Garden." Mickey explained.

"So… we're going to get sucked inside a computer?" Kairi asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes. Unfortunately, it can only take two people. Please hurry." With that, Mickey punched in a stream of commands, and Kairi and Yuffie were sucked into the computer.

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Ven burst out of the metal tube. He was inside a stone room. A woman in black armor similar to what he was wearing was holding the door. The name Aqua flitted into his head.

"You're up!" She exclaimed. The slight distraction was all the force acting on the other side of the door needed to break in. Ven and Aqua summoned up their Keyblades as dark-armored figures ran in, surrounding them. One muscled his way to the front. His helmet retracted to reveal a man with grey eyes and bright orange hair. He grinned, revealing pointed teeth.

"Hello again, you two." He said in a guttural, rasping voice.

"Shut it, Pyre." Aqua yelled, brandishing her blades.

"Who are you people?" Ven wondered.

"You don't know? Wow, Xehanort really did a number on you. You lost your memory, huh? Well, in that case, I'll tell you the truth." Pyre said. He pointed towards Aqua, "She's the enemy. You were kidnapped. We're here to free you."

Ven looked at him blankly. "Don't listen to him, Ven!" Aqua yelled, "He's with the Chasers!"

"And so are you, Ven. She betrayed us! We're the good guys!" Pyre pleaded.

"Leave me alone. All of you. I will not take a side in this until I have proof." Ven stated.

"Classic Ven." Pyre said, laughing. "But you made the wrong choice." With that, Pyre grabbed Aqua by the wrist and the armored figures disappeared in a flash of light.

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"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Battle of the Bands here at Roc's House of Rock! Our competitors tonight are…" The announcer trailed off as spotlights lit up each band, "The Oppressors!" he announced.

The Oppressors were a group of punk rockers. They were covered in piercings and hair dye. "Not a problem." Demyx muttered.

"Next, the Velvet Pincusions!"

"The Velvet Pincushions were simply a female version of The Oppressors. "A perfect match." Demyx muttered.

"Next is the Goff Duo!"

What looked like childish versions of Goofy and Pete stood on the stage.

Goofy's eyes boggled, "Max? P.J?" he exclaimed.

The two looked over, "Dad?" The miniature Goofy asked.

"And finally we have the Organization of Rock!"

The spotlight fell on Sora, Donald, Goofy and Demyx. "Here we go…" Muttered Sora.

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A man in black armor with a breathing mask on stared at Radiant Garden from his command ship. Raspy breathing sounds left a grating on his mask. A small metal cylinder hung at his hip.

"Lord Vader, what shall we have the fleet do?" A man in a green outfit asked.

"Ready my shuttle. I wish to punish the remaining troopers myself. After I return, we shall continue our search for this so-called Rebel Alliance. Is that clear, Admiral?" Vader asked, turning towards the nervous-looking man.

"Yes, Lord." The man replied, hanging his head and marching off to give the orders.

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Riku blasted the Dusks with Dark energy, and then kept moving towards where the Organization had left. He blasted a group of Soldiers apart, and then ran towards the teleporter in the middle of the room.

A/N: Plot twists galore! Thank you, Shire Folk, for reviewing. (Hands Shire Folk a cookie) And you too, ri2 (Hands Ri2 a cookie) anyone else want one?

Next chapter will focus on Kairi and Yuffie, but I might stick in the fist round of the Battle of the Bands. Sorry it's taking so long to update, but I get out of school on Wednesday, so I should be fine then.

See you later, and may your swords stay sharp!