-1Sahxyel: Another Searchers chapter. Enough said. I call the city this since I always thought it was a cool name for it.
Disclaimer Guy: Wow, that was it? No own. So bite me.
Deep Drive City
Rain trickled down from the enormous buildings, the water rolling down drainpipes and into an unseen sewer underground. The metal grate in the Alley to Between clanged as a large group of people fell out of a strange, glowing portal only a few feet away. Above, lightning flashed from the dreary black clouds.
"Is THIS it?"
"Get OFF of me!"
"Ow!"
"Who's kicking me?!"
"Sorry, my bad…"
Ruaska pushed her way out of the pile, much too entranced by the city to get into a common squabble with the other Searchers. She really didn't care anymore. Instead, she looked around in pure fascination at the flickering neon lights and brick buildings. "So this is the Dark City."
"Actually, it's 'Deep Drive City' by the look of the sign right here." Reno said flatly, pointing to a bronze sign on the wall of a building, reading the words. Rolling his eyes, Kata shoved the redhead off and shakily stood up, leaning on his cane for support.
Caliber stood from the ground, looking around. He adjusted his spectacles. "Very interesting. A city devoid of people."
"But not of Heartless. We will have to be extremely careful." Kata said, gazing up at the sky. A grim look was on his face, the yellow wolf-like eyes distant for a brief moment.
Reno stood up, picking up the two large bags he had carried with him. "So, onward?"
"Yeah!" Jek pounced up, pulling the hood of his overlarge blue jacket up and over his head. Specks of dark blue shone on his jacket as more rain started to pour down. Frowning, Reno dug into one of the bags and withdrew a few umbrellas. He tossed one to each of the members of the Searchers before reaching in to get his own.
Popping out the umbrella, Ruaska watched as the rain dripped off of the umbrella. She sighed and tenderly walked out from the Alley, gazing around. Water pooled in puddles, dotting the smooth pavement. The street that lead into the city went through a darkened alley by the look of it.
The perfect breeding spot for a Heartless.
Elena walked up next to her, gazing around cautiously. "What kind of Heartless would hang around here?"
"Shadows, Mages, Wyverns, I wouldn't be surprised if a Behemoth was sleeping in that alley over there." Caliber said, quite unhelpfully. Color drained from Jek's face, as well as Reno's surprisingly. Rolling her eyes, Ruaska took a deep breath and stepped out of the Alley.
Black figures slowly rose from the floor, antennae twitching, yellow soulless eyes looking eagerly at the six that stood a few feet away. A scoff came from Reno, his cocky smirk returning quickly. "Shadows?" He whipped out a baton-like weapon from his belt, pressing a button on the side and sending sparks at the tiny Heartless. A few of them exploded into black mist while the others scampered away.
Wait, scampered away?
"That's weird, why did they…?" Ruaska frowned, watching the retreating Shadows scuffle into the dark alley. Reno put on a superior demeanor.
"They're all afraid of my mad skills yo!" He released the EMR's button and rested the end of it on his shoulder. A smirk appeared on his face, "They're all wimps-" He stopped suddenly, his smirk vanishing. While his EMR rested on one shoulder, something had draped a spiky 'arm' over his other shoulder. Kata turned to glare at Reno but suddenly stopped.
"Assassin." Kata growled, gripping his cane tightly. Caliber glanced at Reno and almost yelped at what he saw. Ruaska also turned, staring at what had approached Reno.
Behind the redhead stood a droopy man-like creature, with spiky and long arms that reached the floor from its shoulders. Its deadly sharp arms gently brushed the side of Reno's pale cheek, leaving a minor scratch but drew no blood.
"Uhh…I think we're in trouble." Jek squeaked, looking at the dark alley with fear. Ruaska spun around and saw three pink human-like creatures 'skate' out of the alley. It seemed as if they wore scarves and moved rather elegantly, almost as if they were-
"Dancers." Elena muttered, standing protectively in front of Jek. The young boy's eyes were wide with fascination and fear. He held his umbrella close, like it would have helped him if the need was dire. Ruaska gulped and looked around; more seemed to just appear from the shadows, these different from the two previous.
The new creature was incredibly bulky, brown in coloration. It shambled forward, relying on a massive weapon it held to support itself. Ruaska had the nasty feeling that it could have the power to smash any one of them into a pulpy mulch.
The other new creature was a dull pink color, with seemingly no head. It juggled back and forth from its non-existent hands what looked like cards. It hovered in the air next to the larger one.
"Berserker and Gambler." Kata backed away slightly, "Lower Class Nobodies."
"The ones that are controlled by the Organization?" Ruaska asked, her voice a little more than a breath. She moved slowly away from the advancing Nobodies. Kata nodded, also slowly backing away from them.
The Nobodies only moved forward, towards them. Reno was close to whimpering now, the Assassin's sharp spikes were only inches away from his neck. Jek was in the middle of the adults, who all were smashed into a tight circle by the oncoming Nobodies.
"Well, this is it. We come all this way, spend years looking for all of them, and what happens?" Caliber's voice was unusually high-pitched. "We get killed by their peons. Wonderful." Jek whimpered at Caliber's words, tears welling in his bright eyes. Elena only tensed when the Nobodies walked a step forward. Ruaska's throat grew dry; the Berserker was so close now it was almost painful. All it had to do was lift up the hammer-like object it held and slam it down.
"Master?"
Five pairs of eyes swiveled to Reno, who was frozen in fear and shock. The Assassin had released him, and kneeled, almost respectfully.
"Master…"
Ruaska looked to the other Nobodies, who all stood silently, before kneeling like the Assassin.
"Thank Kingdom Hearts." Ruaska sighed, feeling shaky. She looked to the others, who all had managed to calm down a little. Kata looked to the Berserker, his eyes narrowed, looking pensive.
"Hmm…" His eyes flashed, "Berserker!"
The Berserker flinched visibly, "Yes Master?"
"Why do you call me Master?"
The Berserker's voice, needless to say, sounded incredibly dim, like it had the brain the size of a peanut. "You have Master's Aura. You are Master." Kata looked surprised, his grip on his cane relaxing slightly.
"We're THEIR masters?!" Caliber said incredulously, eyes wide. His glasses slid down his nose, to which he, annoyed, pushed them back up. The Gambler nodded respectfully to Caliber.
"Yes my Liege." Unlike the Berserker, this one sounded much smarter and oddly enough, had a hint of an accent similar to Caliber's.
Jek's eyes widened, "Cool…So if they think we're their masters…which one of you listen to me?!"
The pink Dancers nodded, "We do Master." They glided effortlessly towards the kid, only to be blocked by Elena, who seemed distrustful of the Nobodies. The feminine Nobodies stopped, but didn't proceed to tell Elena to move, almost visibly frightened of her.
"Huh?" Ruaska frowned, looking around. "Where are your leaders?"
"Right here." The Gambler replied, "Do you wish for an escort?"
Caliber was quick to reply, "No thank you, we're quite-mmf!" Elena covered his mouth, glaring at him. Kata turned to the Gambler.
"We DO need some help reaching the Organization from here…and they can rid the Heartless in our path." He reasoned, glancing at the alley. Five pairs of yellow soulless eyes blinked at him, before quickly retreating. "Yes."
The Gambler and Berserker bowed, before turning to the dark alley and charging in, followed by the other Nobodies. Reno rubbed his neck.
"If they think we control them, then its like they think we're their REAL masters."
"Yes." Kata growled, "All of them are controlled by one of our Searched. And apparently, they listen to ranking."
Ruaska looked confused, frowning slightly. "But why did they listen to me? The notes back at the computer in Twilight Town said that Marluxia didn't control any lower class Nobodies."
Jek scratched his head, thinking hard. "Maybe its because he has as much power as the guy who founded the Organization…what was his name?" Jek snapped his fingers, "Xemnas!"
"Yes, it was recorded that Marluxia was leader of an outpost called 'Castle Oblivion'," Elena confirmed, nodding, "Larxene and Axel were also there…but…" She frowned, "They're never mentioned after the whole Castle Oblivion project. All it talks about is some kid called 'Sora'."
Kata snorted, "There may be another Searcher looking for Number Thirteen too; that Roxas kid. But we can worry about them later. First, we should get to that castle!" He limped into the alley.
Reno released a long breath, "That old guy is going to kill me someday." He hauled the bags up, holding the umbrella awkwardly and headed after him. Elena followed with Ruaska and Jek trailing behind.
True to their word, the Nobodies had done the job of clearing out all the Heartless. In fact, the Berserker had just smashed down its claymore into the last Shadow when Kata had limped into the alley. The Nobodies all left the alley, going on ahead and presumably to destroy more of the Heartless.
"Very nice service." Reno said, smirking, "I could get used to this."
"Somehow, the thought of you with something that will willingly do your bidding frightens me Reno." Ruaska said dryly, tugging the man's ponytail ever so slightly. A scowl immediately showed up on Reno's face, "Why you-!"
"YOU TWO STOP FIGHTING!" Both Reno and Ruaska jumped. Kata was glaring at them with his patented 'I-will-eat-you-if-you-don't-do-what-I-say' look. Both Jek and Elena looked away from the two, trying not to make eye contact. Caliber, on the other hand, was watching interestedly. "Both of you, always arguing and fighting, ever since we first found YOU Ruaska!" Reno almost smiled, but stopped upon seeing Kata's furious face. "And YOU Reno…" His voice was dangerously soft. "Do you want a repeat of what happened in the White Room?"
Reno shook his head dumbly. Kata growled something under his breath and limped away. Jek blinked.
"That file on Saix said that he has anger problems. Do you think that he got it from Kata?"
"It'd make sense." Reno muttered, "That or the old guy's getting anxious."
"Anxious?" Elena asked, glancing at Reno curiously, "Why do you say that?"
"Think about it. He's going to meet the vestige of his son. That 'son' of his might not even recognize him. The guy's mental…like Kata." Reno frowned, "There's a chance that Ais will be long gone, replaced by Saix's personality."
That seemed to strike a chord in everyone. "Wow." Jek said sadly, looking at where Kata had left to. "So that's why he's so touchy?"
"I guess." Ruaska murmured. She looked up at the sky, thinking deeply. Closing her emerald eyes, she thought about it. What would she do if 'Marluxia' didn't recognize her? Just leave? After all the years for Searching for him, was it going to be in vain?
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She clearly remembered the day when it happened; when the Heartless had invaded her home. It had originally been a wonderfully calm day. The sun was shining into the enclosed garden where she always went to meet him. The flowers were just blooming, the cold winter days long gone in place of the pleasant spring. And she had just returned from a long trip too…
They were sitting under his favorite tree, both enjoying each other's company and having a light wit contest. She had conceded, calling him a 'stinker' for winning so easily.
Now with new knowledge of the Heartless, Ruaska remembered what specie of Heartless attacked them. One was a Crimson Jazz, flaming every precious plant in the garden, along with the nasty Neoshadows.
Before he was Marluxia, the pink-haired Nobody was a Somebody by the name of Aluimar. Ruaska's heart ached whenever she thought of him, and how he had sacrificed his entire being to save her. He fought to the very second they pulled his heart from him, keeping her shielded from the black creatures until the moment he vanished completely in white and yellow sparkles of light.
Afterwards, she had no complete memory of what happened. The Heartless never seemed to get her, for she was engulfed with a bright light a moment after Aluimar had vanished. When she had awoken, it was in a peculiar flat located on the world of Traverse Town, owned by a man named Kata.
That was when she learned all about the Searchers. The Searchers were a group of people, dedicated to finding their lost saviors who had all, in coincidence, sacrificed themselves to protect the people who were in the Searchers. Eagerly, she joined, hoping to find Aluimar again.
Two years passed, along with plenty of heart-lifting or crushing information gathered from all sorts of sources. Although the people they Searched for were not the same, they were remnants of their existence. Kata believed that they were left as wandering spirits, ones that needed to be sought out for, so continued on, ignoring the more ominous signs. Ruaska followed, her heart still set on finding whatever shred of Aluimar that could still be existing.
Another year past, bringing her to Twilight Town, by then, everyone in the Searchers was present. Elena had been the last to join, and also the most helpful to find information. Soon, they discovered the ones sought for were in a group called Organization XIII, and were all classified as 'Nobodies'.
Now, here they were, in the middle of Deep Drive City, close to the Organization's hideout. And nothing but doubt in their minds. The Searchers and the protecting Nobodies had stopped in front of a large skyscraper, with mismatched television monitors on the very top. A plaza was in front of it, puddles dotting the dull ground this and there.
"What is this place?" Caliber wondered, stepping forward, looking up. The Gambler was quick to respond.
"It is Memory's Skyscraper, my liege."
"Memory's Skyscraper, eh?" Kata said in his growl of a voice, looking at the skyscraper interestedly. "Why is it called that?"
Almost as if it was answering his question, the screens on the skyscraper flickered, before all going dark. Even the neon dimmed in the plaza.
"We do not know."
On the screen, a number flickered on. It started on the roman numeral 'XIII', a circle around it, Like a hand of a clock, a line circled from the twelve o'clock mark until hitting it again, the number changing to a 'XII'. The Nobodies stood there, not even looking at the countdown. Ruaska noticed it was probably because the Nobodies did not have any visible eyes to watch it with.
Jek squealed, "It's coming on!" Indeed, the number flashed to 'I' before a white flash engulfed the screens. The six Searchers watched the monitors, ignoring the rain that was pouring down from the sky.
The screen flashed again, showing a pure white room. On the floor of the room was the massive symbol of the Organization, in an intricate design by the look of it. The camera shot spun down, before blacking out again.
"Number Seven, what is your report?" A voice came, booming over the plaza. A shiver ran through Ruaska's spine, the voice was deep and powerful, with a minor hint of malice. Another voice, much more quiet and reserved, responded to the first one.
"Superior-" Ruaska heard Kata suddenly gasp, "The child is making his way into the castle, it won't be long now until he will arrive."
"Good."
The screen flashed with brilliant light, revealing a blue haired man stare out of a wide and intricate window, outside of it contained a heart-shaped moon.
"Is that Saix?" Elena muttered under her breath to Ruaska. She only shrugged, staring at the screen.
"I suppose so…"
The screen kept on the Luna Diviner, before it faded out again. Kata waited, but instead heard a new voice, and immediately scowled.
"Oh, you mean to use Sora and take over the Organization?" The screen showed a scarily identical man to Reno pace in a white room, glaring at a figure who seemed to be too far away. Unlike Reno however, the man had shorter, spikier, hair with teardrop style tattoos underneath his eyes instead of slashes. "Because that would make YOU the traitor, Marluxia, not me."
Ruaska gasped, but the screen faded out. "Traitor?"
"That doesn't sound good." Jek said, frowning. "I think-" He stopped, another voice rippled through the air.
"Let's see, if the subject fails to respond, use aggression to liberate his true disposition….did they choose the wrong guy for THIS one…" Ruaska saw Jek's eyes widen as the screen showed a man, who appeared similar to Jek, but had a mullet hairdo and somewhat jumpy disposition. He stood in a darkened cave, holding…an index card?
Reno snorted, but yelped when Jek kicked him in the shin. The redhead frowned at him, "What? He's a loser!"
"Jerk!" Jek kicked Reno's shin again, rearing back for another. Caliber tugged Jek away, before freezing to another sound.
"Lets see if this Heartless is truly great enough to join our ranks." The screen showed a clean-cut man now, who appeared to be standing on the deck of a very large ship. Like Caliber, he had the curious accent too. Behind him was a terrifying Heartless, who bore a slight resemblance to the Grim Reaper. Caliber shivered at the sight.
"Ludro would never…"
Reno looked at Caliber, "He isn't Ludro, yo." He said flatly. Caliber let his head hang, sighing deeply and sadly. The glasses were barely hanging on his nose.
Ruaska waited, staring at the black screen. Her eyes wide and hopeful, waiting.
"The heart is a mysterious thing, Axel…but unlocking its secrets is the whole reason why we, the Organization, exist."
She knew his voice was slightly different than Aluimar's, but she really didn't care. It was him! A small gasp escaped from her as the screen illuminated again, revealing the pink-haired Nobody, who was examining a rose in his hand rather than looking at the people he was addressing. The other two figures were very blurry, like they weren't even there in the first place.
Reno coughed something that suspiciously sounded like 'fruit'. Narrowing her eyes, Ruaska leaned down and whispered into Jek's ear. Jek nodded, turned, and kicked Reno again in the shin.
"OW-You little-!"
"SHUT UP!" Elena roared at Reno, looking very annoyed and angry at him. Above in the air, another voice sifted through the air.
"But why were you treating him so courteously, Axel? I would have kicked him around some more…" The screen lit up, showing a blonde-haired Nobody, the only female in the Organization, lounging on a couch in some sort of white room. Ruaska couldn't help but wonder why the white rooms were featured so often.
"Marquis De Sade." Elena murmured, looking up at the screen. "She did have a knack for being sadistic…" Ruaska noticed that on the screen, Larxene was holding a book entitled 'Marquis De Sade'.
The screen blacked out completely again. Kata raised an eyebrow. "Why would the skyscraper show us such things?" He frowned, "We already know what we are Searching for."
"Keep watching Master." The dim Berserker said, head bowed now. Ruaska felt an icy feeling hit her stomach. That did not bode well…
"Kingdom Hearts…" Saix's voice fluttered through the air, prompting everyone to look at the screen. Kata gasped loudly. Saix's voice was pained, hoarse, like he was hurt. His image didn't help much either. He was clutching his ribs with one hand, holding another out towards the heart-shaped moon outside the wide window.
"Where is my heart?"
In horror, the six Searchers watched the screen, which showed black particles rise for the seventh of the Organization, the Nobody fading from sight, until at last…
He was gone.
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Me: The Searchers arrived…a bit too late to see any of the Organization at the World That Never Was. This time period is about six months after the final events in KH2. I feel bad for all of them, really.
Danny: Sure you do. Anyway, here is Random Moogle for replies.
Replies to Reviews:
NanoMecka: Glad you did! I enjoyed writing it too. I've seen so many car chases, that it was virtually easy of me to write.
Zyler: Yo Zyler! What's up?! Hehehe…anyway, thank you for the review! At least I know you're still reading, so that's okay. And yes, Marluxia's adventure is a bit interesting, no? What with everything that's happened so far, Luxord and Axel would never survive without the homicidal leadership of a certain Graceful Assassin…
Moonshine's Guide: I forgive! I forgive! And yes, they will go to Chicago…after Hawaii and Seattle and Texas (don't ask). That will be one of my apex chapters where the leader of the Neophytes meet the leader of the Original Six. Hence, the Xemnas and Marluxia meeting. Oh heck yeah!
mayaXa: Okay then, I hope I can satisfy…
fire spirit: Yeah, I'll have fun writing all of the reactions to the beginning sequence. Marluxia's featured in THAT too! (That scene is so awesome for his coolness factor…)
Aldalena: Yep, that's the Organization for you! Not very organized…and yes he did. First was stab, second was slash. I should know, I played that game a bazillion times and read the manga too. 'Tis awesome. Just hope I can play the remake…
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Random Moogle: Done! And the Pondering Writer will be gone on a two week hiatus due to a LONG family trip! Review people!
