Chapter 14: Long Way Up
The door that Riku had gone through earlier opened with ease this time. What lay beyond it looked incredibly overwhelming at first glance. Lucy, Sora, and the others found themselves staring up a tower that seemed to extend into infinity. A complex assortment of elevators and moving platforms filled up the tower from top to bottom.
"Whoa!" said Donald as his eyes widened.
"Gawrsh, how are we going to get up there?" Goofy asked.
"There must be hundreds of lifts here," said Lucy. "They all probably lead to different locations in the castle."
"We need to find out where Riku is keeping Kairi," said Sora.
"Probably at the top," said the Beast.
"Well, yes, but we need to find out the exact location. I can feel that just taking an elevator up will not get us to where we need to go."
"Especially with Maleficent involved," said Goofy.
"She's probably set up a whole bunch of traps for us!" Donald exclaimed.
"I can feel that she has. Don't you feel it? That light pull on the hairs...or feathers of your body?" Lucy asked.
"Yes. That's definitely magic," said the Beast. He sniffed the air a few times and exhaled. "I can smell the darkness too."
"Heartless. We've been lucky not to come across that many up to this point. But I have a feeling that our luck is about to run out."
"Oh boy," Donald sighed. They began making their way towards the elevators.
"So which one are we supposed to take?" Goofy asked.
"Follow the wires with your eyes," Sora suggested.
"That's nearly impossible. They keep crossing over each other," said Lucy.
"You're right." Sora let out an annoyed groan. Lucy examined the lifts closest to them carefully. There had to be a marking somewhere that said where each lift went. Then she saw it. It was a large, golden elevator with the words Top Exterior written on it.
"How about that one?" Lucy pointed to it.
"It's worth a shot," said Donald. The group made their way over to the lift. Donald was the first to hop on...and that's when everything went wrong.
There were a few flashes of black light and a group of Heartless appeared a few feet away from them.
"Heartless!" Goofy exclaimed.
"Everyone, get on!" Lucy ordered. Lucy, Sora, Goofy, and the Beast hopped onto the elevator after Donald. Sora activated the switch in the center of the lift and they began to climb upwards. However, some of the Heartless that had appeared could fly. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me."
"I got 'em!" Donald said as he pointed his staff at the Heartless. Blasts of fire and electricity shot out of the staff and at the oncoming Heartless. Some Heartless actually managed to get onto the lift but they were quickly taken care of by either Lucy, Sora, or the Beast. Some Heartless grabbed onto the sides of the lift but Goofy shoved them off with his shield. Then...the lift stopped. "Are we there yet?"
"No. We've just stopped," Sora replied. He tried activating the switch but it refused to work. They were stuck. Suddenly, the air began to become extremely cold. The Beast looked over the edge of the lift.
"Look! Down below!" he warned. Sora and Lucy looked over the edge. A cloud of black smoke was rising from the bottom of the tower. It was rising extremely quickly. For a moment, Lucy could swear that she could see a woman's face in the smoke. The smoke began sending out bolts of electricity and flashes of blue could be seen deep within the blackness.
"We're trapped!" said Goofy. Lucy looked up at the wires holding the lift and turned to Sora. From the look on his face, Lucy could tell that he was thinking the same thing that she was.
"Everybody!" cried Sora.
"Climb!" Lucy finished.
"Climb what?" Donald asked.
"The lift rope!" Lucy pointed at the rope holding the lift and Sora was the first to grab on. He held onto the rope tightly and began pulling himself up.
"We're climbing that?! No way! I'm not doing it!"
"Would you prefer the alternative?" Lucy pointed down at the black cloud and Donald gulped.
"On second thought...wait for me, Sora!" Donald then grabbed onto the rope and began climbing. Lucy went after Donald, Goofy went after Lucy, and the Beast was the last to grab on after Goofy. Pretty soon, they were all high above the lift in which they had come from. The smoke was continuing to rise towards them.
"Almost there!" said Sora.
"Hurry up!" Donald ordered.
"I'm climbing as fast as I can!"
"Don't look down!" Goofy warned. Lucy suddenly heard Donald yelp in fear.
"You looked down, didn't you?" she asked.
"Maybe," Donald whimpered.
"Keep going! The smoke is not too far beneath us!" the Beast warned.
"I made it!" Lucy heard Sora say from up above. Lucy looked up just in time to see Sora help pull Donald to safety. He then extended his hand down to her. "Come on! Just a few more feet!"
Lucy pulled herself up and up until she finally managed to grab a hold of Sora's hand. She couldn't help but sigh with relief as she was pulled onto solid ground. Goofy and the Beast arrived not too long after her.
"We need to keep going!" said Goofy. "It's still coming after us!"
Lucy looked down to see that the smoke had already passed up the lift they had previously been riding. She then turned around and noticed a set of double doors.
"Through there!" she said. Thankfully, these doors were unlocked.
On the other side of the doors was a pathway that ran along the upper exterior of the castle. It was incredibly windy and chilly.
"It's cold!" Donald exclaimed.
"Then let's try to get back inside as soon as possible!" the Beast replied. They began making their way along the pathway. Lucy remained on guard and had her sword unsheathed for good measure. Heartless could appear at any moment. Then...she felt it. A sickening feeling rolled over her. Something was wrong, even more so that how it previously had been. For some reason, Lucy felt that there was something else hunting them than just Maleficent the witch and the Heartless. Something else was here in Hollow Bastion. Something...incredibly and purely dark. Lucy turned to Sora and he looked back at her. She could tell that he felt the same thing.
"You feel it too...don't you?" he asked.
"Yes," she replied. "What do you think it is?"
"It's definitely not good."
"I was able to work that much out for myself, thank you very much." Then the castle shook.
"What's that?!" Donald asked.
"Something's awakening," said the Beast. "I can feel it. Something dark is awakening...and we're incredibly close to it."
"We'll stop it! Whatever it is!" Sora exclaimed. He then broke into a run, Lucy, Donald, Goofy, and the Beast ran after him.
They eventually found a door that led back into the castle. A small group of Heartless was waiting for them on the other side but they made short work of them. They were getting close now. Lucy could feel it. She could practically smell the magic in the air. It wasn't good magic, though. It was incredibly powerful dark magic. It was a type of magic that Lucy hadn't come across since the reign of the White Witch during her first trip to Narnia.
I wonder if she's here, Lucy thought to herself. Why am I thinking of her? I shouldn't be thinking of her! This feeling I have, this magic that I and the others feel, it's too similar to how Jadis made me feel when I saw her. Could this Maleficent character have any relations to the White Witch?! Well, they are witches so that's one connection. Dark magic is dark magic, I suppose. No matter what world it comes from, it gives off the same feelings of despair and fear.
The castle shook again. The Beast was right. Something was indeed awakening. Was it a creature, an energy source, a doorway, or what? They would find out soon enough. More Heartless greeted them as they continued their trek through the castle. They eventually came across a spiral staircase. A sign that read Chapel and Sanctuary was situated by the staircase.
"They must be up there," said Lucy.
"They are. I can feel it," said Sora. "I...I can hear her."
Lucy looked at Sora oddly and then looked up the staircase. She was shocked to find that she could hear something too. It sounded like a mix between a melody and a plea for help. Something was calling them up there.
"Let's go already!" said Donald as he took off. Lucy, Sora, Goofy, and the Beast ran up the staircase after Donald. They reached the top quickly, after fending off a fair number of Heartless along the way. A large, black door welcomed them. Sora was the one to open it.
A long, blue-gray hallway greeted them. It was made of old stone and its walls and floor were covered in ruins. Oddly-colored fires burned on torches all around them. The hallway ended in a medium-sized, circular room. Two doors could be seen. One had the word Chapel on it and the other had the word Sanctuary on it. Somebody was standing in between the two doors. It was a woman with gray skin, red lips, and green eyes. She wore a purple/black cloak over her body as well as horns on her head. Her fingernails were long and in one of her hands she held a staff with a green tip. Lucy didn't need to be told who this was, for she was able to figure it out for herself. This was her. This was Maleficent.