EchoPlast

The group landed in a place different than any other they've ever been to. First off, the entire place was nothing, but canyons or rock and let alone the entire landscape was purple. What was more bizarre, there was no sign of life anywhere at all. It seemed that place there were on was just a dead dessert. Sora said, "Man this place is the life of the party. It makes the Pride Land savannah look like paradise. Jiminy, do you have any idea what this place is called?" Jiminy Cricket responded, "From the data I've been collecting, apparently the people of Radiant Garden calls this place Proteus. The only thing that lives here are the plastid creatures that Leon was talking about."

Riku then said, "I guess that's why they're so eager to leave this place. I would if lived here all my life." Mickey said, "Regardless, something's bringing these creatures into Radiant Garden and we have to figure out what it is." The group nodded and headed deeper into the dark canyon to investigate.

There they saw a huge ship go down while getting lit up in flames. On the horizon they saw a slim teen with brunette hair and he had plastid stuff all over him. It was blue around his back and neck and parts of his knees and winged cape. It was yellow on a majority of his body and he was quite scrawny. He approached Sora and his friends with caution until he was only a few feet away from them. The young teen then said, "Who are you? Plastids or troops of black creatures sent by Paavo?" Sora and the others looked at each other and didn't know what they could say at first.

Then they told him who they were and about the heartless and plastids that Paavo must've been using in his world and Radiant Garden. The young teen then said, "Oh I'm sorry, where are my manners. I'm Nevin." Sora then said, "Cool. I'm Sora, this is Riku, Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Tidus, and Yuffie. Pleased to meet you Nevin." Nevin then ran off. Sora asked, "Where are you going?" Nevin said, "I have to get to the launch site. Our commander Stome as well as his co-pilot Arana said that it might be our only chance of getting off this planet. Who knows? There might be something there you can use to fight off the plastids and these 'heartless' as you call them as well."

The group nodded and went off Nevin across a straight path of endless canyons and bottom less gorges whilst walking on narrow cliffs to boot. This place was anything but inviting and yet that wasn't what everyone was concerned about. They heard Nevin talking to someone, but couldn't hear who he was talking to. They automatically assumed that he was talking to himself. Riku then told Sora, "Looks like this guy is a few tissues short of one Kleenex box, if you catch my drift." Sora then looked at Riku with discontent. "Now that's not very nice Riku. I think that if we give him a chance he might tell us why he talks to himself. He's got to have a reason right?" Riku nodded and then everyone else continued to the launch site.

They finally met up with a tall man in a blue suit at the launch site. He looked to be a man of over forty at least having brunette hair at the top and white hair around his side burns and he had a southern accent. It was Stome. The place looked empty and devoid of any thing that was holding it captive. It was a very strange sight to see because Paavo had the entire planet crawling with heartless and plastid creatures. They saw Stome try to board the ship, as well as Arana in the centre of the circular pad where the controls were for the ship's launch sequence. Arana also wore blue suit like Stome, but it was a much smaller size and mucher scrawnier than his or Nevin's suit. She had luscious blonde hair and sky blue eyes. What's more they also saw a white hooded figure appear and capture Arana. Arana said, "Let me go you creep!!" Victor tightened his grip and said, "I wish I could love, but business is business and I have a lot to do. So don't make this any harder than it has to be."

Nevin then saw this and said, "You'd better let her go punk. Or else we'll tango." Victor shook his head. "Too bad Romeo. As much as I'd like to fight you and your buddies, it looks like you got company." He then disappeared and some purple figures of an old man appeared. Nevin then said, "Paavo. I should've known you wouldn't come in your good glory. Instead you made copies of yourself." Paavo's purple clones then said, "It's quite a shame really. You all couldn't possibly begin to understand what I hold in the palm of my hands. I have the key to ending all natural process of elimination as well as survival of the fittest and here you al stand poised to fight." Sora then said, "Well Nevin, if he's really as bad as you say he is, we'll help you out."

The group then fought six clones at once. They were all relatively easy to follow, but they had a shard of Paavo's power which made them super strong. Eventually they beat the clones, but at a price. Nevin was badly injured. Sora then said, "I'll carry you Nevin." Nevin then said, "No, I couldn't do that Sora. I don't want to be a burden." Sora shook his head. "You got a lot to learn about friendship. I'll do it anyway. Consider it a way of me being a nice guy wanting to help you guys out of free will." Nevin nodded and then got on Sora's back and relaxed as Sora carried him. Stome got out of the launch entrance and noticed something odd about the aircraft. Stome said, "Well that's just fine. The engine just blew its fuse!!" Nevin gasped. Nevin then said with as much strength as he could, "Without that engine we're sitting ducks here."

Stome then came up with an idea. Stome said, "I guess there's only place where we can get a spare engine." Sora then asked, "Where can we go then? We could help you guys." Stome then stared up into the night sky. "It's not that simple though. The only place we can get a spare is at Paavo's Citadel. It's constantly patrolled by his plastid army as well as the heartless. If that's not enough, He also has his number two Kess leading the main core of his troops as well as his top general Gherran leading the bigger plastid creatures. Both of which are more powerful than you can imagine. You folks should better follow my advice and think before you leap." The group knew it would be tough, but if it would get them off this planet and stop Paavo it was worth a little risk or two.

Then they set off. It seemed like an eternity that the group had been traveling along a dangerous Cliffside from the launch site. They had to fight thousands of angry patrol units just to make over bottom of the canyon and up to the top where Paavo's Citadel was located. Yet they finally made it and they gazed upon his behemoth like headquarters in awe and with concern. Stome asked, "Why do I get the feeling that we're being watched?"

How right he was. A couple of feet above them a purple plast clothed woman with pale white skin and brunette hair was sitting on the lower balcony of the place spying on the group. The woman said, "Okay, Gherran. Now is your chance to take these guys on. Make sure that none of them return alive." Gherran responded saying, "Yes Ma'am. I won't let ya down."

The group managed to enter the main entrance when suddenly a big guy in yellow plast clothing had appeared. He looked like he was a giant astronaut and he looked to be about Stome's age or younger by a slim two or three years. He also didn't look too bright because as he came down he tripped over his own two feet. This was Gherran, seven feet of muscle and terror in the making. Gherran said, "Alright youze guys. Put up your dukes. I got orders to take youze all out. I'm not leaving empty handed." Mickey then ran up. "Perhaps you could go home empty headed instead!!" The group chuckled a little when they heard that joke.

Gherran then said, "Oh a wise guy eh? Well we'll see who's funny after I scrape you from the bottom of my foot mouse!!" Sora then ran up, but was blocked by Mickey. Mickey said, "You guys better head for Paavo's head office. I'll take care of Gherran." Sora then said, "I won't leave you behind." Mickey shook his head and said, "Sora, you have to. I'm saying forever, just for now anyway. You and Nevin as well as Riku are our last line of defense." Sora nodded and reluctantly left the king to fight the big brute all on his own.

The group travelled up at least four to six floors before finally making it to his head office. They heard a faint voice say, "Kess. I'm sorry. Things got out of hand down here. Things are getting darker…" With that the voice fainted and they heard something get destroyed. It was a communication's device. On top of it was a long boot belonging to the same woman. Nevin then said, "Kess, I should've known you'd be behind this." Kess then laughed and said, "You got a lot of guts. Even injured you still manage to piss me off a lot. After I cut all of you up I might stay awhile and kick the remains around a little." Nevin then got to his feet.

Stome then asked, "You sure you want to do that son?" Nevin nodded. "I have to Stome. It's the only way we'll get off this planet and it's the only way we'll get Arana back." Stome nodded and watched as a barrier appeared in front of him and Kess. The group couldn't help Nevin now. Kess may have been weak, not being a man and having natural muscle and all, but she was sleek and quicker than Nevin and with his injuries slowing him down, Nevin was getting cut up like a turkey dinner.

The group kept telling Nevin to never give up and when all things looked bleak, Sora then ran into the barrier and pierced it. He then transformed into that golden form he took on before at Olympus Coliseum. Kess held Nevin at his throat and was about to make the finishing blow. She looked at the golden boy that stood to her left then as well. Kess then said, "Well this doesn't change a thing. I'm still gonna cut you up. Yet, now I got a bigger prize to conquer."

Sora then fought Kess blow for blow and attack for attack. Things were evened up now. Yet Sora wasn't even getting warmed up and Kess slowly started to tire. Most likely this was because she fought Nevin with all of her strength and didn't expect Sora to intervene. Sora then slashed her and she fell to her knees. "I…can't believe it…I lost to a bunch of kids!!" Sora then helped Nevin to his feet and asked if he was alright. Nevin said, "I'm alright. But that's not important now. What is important is that we stop Paavo's tyranny right now. He was planning to sent out rockets to every planet in the universe and wiping out mankind in our universe and yours, Sora. He said he would go to any length to do it." Kess then fell to the ground and dissolved into dust in the wind.

With that happening, a smaller figure appeared from the shadows. Mickey had survived. One of his sleeves was cut, but he still felt like a million bucks. Stome then asked Nevin, "How do you know all this?" Nevin then responded, "Let's just say that a friend has been helping us the entire time." He couldn't tell anyone that the very planet they stood on was alive sentient being and was also the very suits that Paavo, Kess, Gherran and Nevin wore as well. His name was Echo.

The group then entered into the head office of Paavo and stood their ground. Paavo was a relatively short man about the size of Nevin, looked to be about sixty having white hair and a couple of wrinkles here and there. Paavo then said with a light British accent, "Oh come now!! There's no reason for us to be quarrelling." Sora then said, "Oh really? Why not tell that to your little friends trying hurt innocent people everywhere you coward!!" Paavo then exclaimed, "Silence!! Now if you all want to challenge me so badly I accept. The boy with white hair, the mouse, the boy with spunk and light brown hair as well as you Nevin are allowed to come challenge me. The rest will have to wait. You'll get your chance to join them were you'll all be going."

Paavo then took Sora, Nevin, Riku, and Mickey to a very dark place and Paavo entered a plast mechanism that was ten feet in length and height. It had two arms and was purple in colour all over. The group then started fighting Paavo with all they had. It proved to do nothing in the end. His machine had all of Nevin's powers as he kept transforming from a small frog creature to a big giant with a blue gun.

Even when Sora transformed he couldn't even scratch Paavo. It looked like the end. Then a white hooded figure appeared and slashed Paavo's machine many times to bring down its power. Sora and the others saw who it was and couldn't believe their eyes. Then Victor said, "Don't think this changes anything. Paavo isn't on my side and besides, he's a pest anyhow. So now is your chance. Destroy him now."

With that Victor disappeared and the others soon fought Paavo again. This time however, Paavo fell and his machine blew away into dust. Paavo began dissolve as well. He then said, "Curse you all…You will meet your end…I guarantee it!!" He then dissolved away and was nothing. Nevin then said, "If anything it won't be by you any time soon." The group reappeared inside Paavo's office and noticed the plastid creatures and heartless stop moving and start to rot and become moldy. Although the group was grossed out, they knew that the deed was done. Sora on the other hand couldn't help but wonder why Victor did what he did. He thought, 'Why would he help us? I knew I wasn't seeing things on Ant Island and he helped us out there with Hopper's henchmen. So why would he do it?' Nevin then said, "Hello Earth to Sora." Sora then snapped out of his daydream while everyone giggled a little at him. Nevin then said, "I want to say thanks for your help. Not only did we beat Paavo, but my friend told me that he's free now. Stome and I can leave this place too while we're at it. Not only that, but you taught me about friendship in the long run. Even when I was injured you carried me all the way here. The only thing I have to repay with is this."

Sora was handed two pages from Anastasia's journal and a shard of ruby. The group said their goodbyes and then left Proteus. Sora and his group then saw Leon and Merlin expecting them in the distance. Leon then said, "Good to see you back. Now then we got some things to talk about." Merlin then said, "We've figured out how to harness the keyblade's energy. Not only that, but we've figured out more info. about Victor too." The group sat down awaiting what tale that they would offer them next.