Here it is! The other half of the tournament, with surprising twists, and abrupt halts to the battle. It also will contain more details on what the heroes have to do now to save the dimension. I hope you are interested in this!
By the way, since this is about the halfway point of the story, the theme song has been changed. Since it fits, the new theme is called 'Soul Drive' by Color Bottle (It is also the third intro song to 'Yugioh Zexal'). Go look it up, it will really drive the excitement forward. Read this story and enjoy!
(I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Sword Art Online. All I do is form my imagination from both stories, and share it with the world!)
Prologue
Yui took a big bite of fish, chomping it down. "Delicious!" she told Asuna. "I'm glad you enjoyed it." Asuna replied happily. "I hope you are feeling better now after a good night's rest." Kairi hoped. "After all that sleeping, I feel much better." Yui replied, "In fact, I feel better than before. Traveling around to other worlds can make someone exhausted, and I guess I wasn't getting the right amount of rest like I should." "Just don't push yourself." Riku told her.
It was the second day of the L'cie Cup. Asuna, Donald, Goofy, Kairi and Riku were sitting around Yui's bed after bringing her lunch. "You shouldn't push yourself, Yui." Asuna told her, "You did get pretty worn out after facing all those battles against those Spirits."
"Yeah, and you faced five of them in a row." said a voice. Miu and Lucy of team Fairywing walked up to them. "Fighting five of them in a row would wear anyone down, especially someone at your age." Lucy continued. "I'm more worried about your Spirit friends." Yui replied, "I hope they're okay." "Oh, don't worry about it. Celestial Spirit are immortal, so once they were defeated, they went back to the Celestial Spirit World to recover." "That's good." Yui sighed in relief, "I'd hate to hurt your friends like that." Lucy smiled at Yui's consideration for her Spirits.
"Gawrsh, you were pretty good out there, Yui." Goofy pointed out. "Yeah, especially that 'spinning dodge' trick you pulled out there." Donald added, "That was a neat move." "I was just paying attention to my surroundings." Yui replied, turning to Miu, "I saw how you moved, and I analyzed the technique and tried it myself."
"You did it incredibly well for your first try." Miu complimented her, "I've never seen anybody learn so quickly in using a technique." "Yui may not look it, but she was an AI for a program before." Asuna explained, "She may have been a Mental Health Counseling Program, but she can learn thing right off the bat!" "What's an AI?" Miu asked questionably. "It's an artificial intelligence." Asuna answered, "I guess you come from an age where those aren't made yet."
Asuna turned to the other bed, where Sora, Kirito and Recon were surrounding Leafa's bed. "You feelin' okay, Leafa?" Kirito asked her. "I'll be fine." Leafa responded half-heartedly, "The doctors say that my wounds will heal in the next couple days. It's lucky this dimension has such skilled healers. Back home, burns like these would be healed maybe in a month."
"You sure you're okay? You don't sound like yourself." Recon noticed. "I guess I just feel disappointed that I loss so easily." Leafa replied. She thought back on that time when Natsu fired his Fire Dragon's Roar at Leafa, and as she dodged it, her legs got hit and severely burned. She then recalled the moment she charged at Natsu in Dream Soul to finish him off, but he empowered himself, causing Leafa to falter, then he finished her off with the Fire Dragon's Wing Attack plus a double fire punch.
"That battle was so intense. I wasn't prepared for something like that." Leafa continued, "I mean, I've dealt with plenty of Salamanders in ALO, who also used fire magic. But Natsu was at a whole different level."
"Those guys from that Fairy Tail guild are really powerful." Kirito pointed out, "Gray was an incredible fighter in Ice magic. If I hadn't used NORA Soul, I would've been finished for sure." "And don't forget my battle with Gajeel." Sora added, "That guy used something called 'Iron Dragon Slayer' magic. He was so tough, both in offense and defense. I barely defeated him." "And as for Erza, I feel like she was holding back on both Pete and Vanille." Kirito finished, "Who knows how powerful she is."
"But don't forget those disciples." Recon added, looking up at Miu, who was talking with Kairi and Yui, "Miu was so powerful, able to counter any of my attacks and my magic. She's so light on her feet, yet strikes so powerfully." "And Kenichi had incredible endurance." Kirito added, seeing Kenichi talking to Snow and Ashe on the far side of the room, "To be able to take on Asuna's Finishers, and even her Soul Finale, and still stand back up is an achievement onto itself. If those people were just disciples, I wonder how good their teachers are."
Just then, the door to the medical bay opened, and in came through a short, middle-aged man in green Chinese attire stepped in, carrying a tray with bandages and ointment. "It's time to change your bandages, Mrs. Leafa." he told Leafa as he came close. "Wait, you're not my regular doctor." Leafa noticed. "Course not. I'm Kensei Ma, and I'm…temporarily taking charge of this until you are better." the man replied, "Now if you boys will please move away while Leafa takes off her garments so I can change them."
"Hold on, it's just the legs that need daily changing." Leafa told him, "I don't need to take off my clothes for that." "I'm the new doctor, and I have a different method." Kensei continued, "Now if you would be so kind, Mrs. Leafa." The ones around Yui's bed looked. "Wha- Kensei! What do you think you are doing, you dirty old man?!" Miu demanded, "You're not her doctor!" "I was just helping out." Kensei responded innocently, "I assure you, I have good intentions."
"Excuse me." said a voice. It was Akisame Koetsuji, the orthopedic doctor that helped fix up Recon, who tensed up at the sight of him. He still remembered the pain he had to deal with, although he was fully healed afterwards. He was holding the doctor that was suppose to be Leafa's doctor.
"I found this man lying unconscious on the ground with a needle stuck in his neck, which caused him to be in this state." Akisame explained, holding up a needle "You wouldn't happen to know about this, Kensei?" "I don't…really know what you're talking about." Kensei replied, his hold on innocence starting to wane. "I knew it!" Miu shouted, quickly coming up to Kensei and attacking him as he kept dodging her and moving away, trying to defend for himself, with everyone watched with a sign of awkwardness.
Then three more characters showed up; One was Patina, and she had a floating magic bubble around a large muscular man with faint blue hair and a childish look to his face as he was curled up inside. The third person was also very muscular, and he had black hair and a beer can at hand.
"Hey, do these people belong to any of you?" Patina demanded to the group. "Yes, they are friends of ours." Akisame answered, "Is there a problem?" "Who are they?" Snow asked Kenichi. "That's Shio Sakaki and Apachai Hopachai." Kenichi replied, "They are also my masters at Ryouzanpaku."
"You can blame Apachai." said Shio, pointing to the guy in the magic orb. "Apa!" said the man in the bubble, "Apachai was just curious at jelly-lady's shop, and Apachai wanted to see the stuff." "He almost destroyed my shop by using the merchandise!" Patina shouted, "You are gonna have to pay for it, or else!" "I told ya, we would fix it, you old hag!" Shio told her. "I would rather have my hopeless witch apprentices do it instead of you!" Patina snapped back at him.
While watching the conflict, Kirito heard a silent voice say, "Excuse me." He turned, and got startled. A well-framed woman in a purple kimono and long raven hair was crouched upside-down from a chain she placed onto the ceiling close to Kirito. He was surprised that he was not able to detect her presence. He noticed her light purple eyes concentrated on him.
"Where'd you come from?!" Sora gasped, who also didn't notice her before. The shocked expressions from Leafa and Recon also said the same thing. "Oh, this is Shigure." Miu introduced, "She's also one of the master at Ryouzanpaku. She's the weapon's master." "I see." Kirito understood.
"That weapon of yours." Shigure continued, "The one that I…saw before. May I look…at it?" "You mean the Keyblade?" Kirito asked. He held his hand up and conjured up his 'Infinite Aura' Keyblade. "Would you let me try it…out?" Shigure asked, flipping herself right side up and landing onto the ground. "Sure." Kirito responded, letting Shigure hold it. Sora, Leafa and Recon noticed Miu's uncertainty at this.
Shigure held it up, looking up and down the Keyblade. She took a swipe meters away from one of the walls of the medical station, and in a couple seconds, a large gash formed in the stone wall, shocking the people around Yui and Leafa's beds. "How the heck did you do that?!" Kirito gasped. "It's light…and very sturdy." Shigure analyzed the Keyblade's potential, "Despite not having…a….sharp edge, it's abilities…to cut sharply…are extremely impressive." Does she always talk that way? Asuna thought to herself.
The six heroes looked at all the masters of Ryouzanpaku. From Shio arguing with Patina, to Apachai still showing the same childish expression as he curled up inside the bubble, to Kensei trying to snap perverted photos of Lucy, to Shigure who caught Erza's attention with the damage she had done, to Miu and Akisame apologizing to Fran and a few doctors for the damage Shigure did.
Kirito walked up to Kenichi and said the same thing everyone was thinking. "You have some weird masters, Kenichi." He told him. "Yeah, I know that." he replied, "Yet their training sessions are like hell. You'd be lucky to survive with them." Kirito looked to them, wondering just how strenuous their training was.
(Cue 'Soul Drive' opening song)
Chapter 1: Black Swordsman vs. Fire Dragon Slayer
It was about late afternoon when all four teams were asked to gather once more in the medical station. "Alright, folks! The quarter-finals of the L'cie Cup are about to begin!" Balthier shouted out, "There will be two matches involving the four teams that have past the first round. Whoever wins will fight in the semi-finals later on in the day, and the winners of that will fight against one another! The tension grows strong as the four teams are locked and loaded, ready for the battles to come!"
In the stands of the cheering crowd, everyone in the city seemed to have gathered there. Sazh, Penelo, Snow, Fang, Vanille and Ashe were gathered together in one part of the stadium. "I was wondering, where are Light and Hope?" Vanille asked Sazh. "They went back to the hangar for some research." he answered, "Kirito, Asuna and Sora went to ask about the Keys of Darkness and if there were any certain 'Keyholes' that might stop the Heartless from coming about."
"That'll be helpful indeed." Fang responded, "I'm really gettin' tired of those infernal Heartless. If we can find a way to stop them, then maybe we can bring back our homes to normal again." "The sooner, the better." Penelo agreed.
In another part of the stands, Wendy, Gray and Gajeel were sitting together with Happy, Carla and Pantherlily close to the front. "I can't wait for Natsu's battle to start!" pipped up Happy. "It's now down to Erza on one team, and Natsu and Lucy on another team." Gray stated, "If just one of those two teams make it to the finals, they will win for sure." "Lets not get ahead of ourselves." Pantherlily warned him, "There are many skillful combatants in this fight. Specifically, the ones who wield the Keyblades." "I still can't believe that kid was able to take me down." Gajeel noted Sora's achievement, "Even so, there's no way he would defeat Erza, that's for sure."
In another part of the stands, Yui, Kairi, Recon, and Leafa were all sitting with one another, right next to Kenichi and behind the Ryouzanpaku masters. The head of Ryouzanpaku, Hayato, who as they found out was Miu's grandfather, was with them. When he was not with them, he was exploring the entire city.
"You sure it's okay for you to get out of bed?" Kenichi asked Leafa. "I do have the ability to fly, you know." Leafa reminded him, "I was able to get here that way. Besides, the doctors said it was fine as long as I stay off my feet, so I floated off the ground with my Sylph wings." "You take to that challenge way differently than most others." said a bemused Kenichi.
"It's time for the first match to go underway!" shouted Balthier, and on the large monitor showed the tournament graph, with four of the branches, containing the winning teams, were glowing. "The first matchup in this match is…Team Dawn vs. Team Fairywing!" Balthier shouted, displaying the photos of the two teams.
"It's time, guys." Kirito told Riku and Vaan, "You guys all set?" "Yep." Riku replied. "I've trained a little bit more today, so I won't lose!" Vaan followed. "Then lets get moving!" Kirito declared, and the team set out.
"Hey, Kirito!" Natsu called out to him as the two teams made it to the doorway leading out of the station, "Best of luck out there. You better give me a strong match!" "You know I have my sights set on you after what you did to Leafa." Kirito told him, "Better prepared yourself." Natsu grinned at that remark. "Hey, I'm sorry about your sis. I really mean it." Natsu apologized, "That being said, I won't go easy on you." Kirito smirked. "I wouldn't have it any other way."
Within minutes, the two teams found themselves in the middle of the arena, facing each other as the crowd roared around them. All six combatants got set as they prepared to fight. "Guys, leave Natsu to me." Kirito told the other two, "You just handle the two girls." "In that case, I'll handle Miu." Riku decided, "I think I can keep up with her speed." "Then leave Lucy and her Spirits to me." Vaan responded. There was a moment's pause, then the bell rang, and the battle started.
Immediately, Kirito and Natsu dove at each other, clashing fist with Keyblade. There was a major shockwave from the assault, causing rubble and dust clouds to fly. Through those dust clouds, Miu, Riku and Vaan all made their moves. Riku and Miu went into a fast and strong brawl with one another, while Vaan raced at Lucy, who pulled out a Gate Key. "Open! Gate of the Lion: Leo!" she shouted, and in a flash of light, a man with spiky orange hair, glasses and a black suit appeared before him. "You need my help, Lucy, my love?" Loke asked. "Go take down this guy, Loke!" Lucy ordered, pointing at Vaan, who was ready. "Bring it on!" shouted Vaan, and he and Loke engaged combat.
All three battles became extremely intense, Kirito and Natsu's battle especially. Natsu's Fire Dragon Slayer magic was extremely powerful, and Kirito entered his Limit Form first, unleashing his Dual Wielding skill, with his Elucidator as his secondary Keyblade. I can see how much trouble Leafa had with him. Kirito thought as the two struck one attack after another, He's fast, powerful, enduring, and he seems to get stronger as the fight goes on.
"Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!" Natsu shouted, sending wing-like flames whipping out at Kirito, who jumped to dodge. Kirito landed closely to Natsu. "Starburst Stream!" Kirito shouted, and he and Natsu engaged each other as Kirito performed his 16-hit combo. His attack grew strong in this attack, and Natsu was being pushed back, finally being toppled over by Kirito's last attack.
Natsu got up again, wiping his mouth. "You ain't half bad, Kirito." he told him, "But I'll show you the true potential of a member of Fairy Tail." "Is that so." Kirito responded, "Then let me show you why I'm the Black Swordsman of Sword Art Online!" The two roared as they engaged once more.
Meanwhile, Riku and Miu were going strongly at one another. While Riku's skills as a fast one-handed Keyblade user, mixed with his speed, strength magic and knowledge in hand-to-hand combat, Miu was agile, graceful, powerful, and precise with her attacks. They kept jumping, dodging, countering, attacking at each other with incredible speeds and skills.
"How's Riku able to keep up with Miu's moves?" Kenichi asked, startled. "Riku was one of the strongest kids on the Destiny Islands, and he has trained continuously." Kairi explained, "He and Sora have been training with one another, too. And as far as I know, I'm not sure which one of them is the strongest."
"Riku is a powerful fighter." Hayato agreed, licking a lollipop that he got, "Miu might have trouble dealing with this one. Now the question is not who is stronger, but rather who can hold out longer." Kenichi, Yui, Recon and Kairi looked up at him, then down at the fight between the two. Leafa was too focused on Kirito's battle against Natsu.
Meanwhile, Vaan was having great trouble taking out Loke, who possessed powerful skills, like making a bursting light to blinding Vaan, while fighting in close quarters with powerful punches or beams from his hands. Vaan wasn't gonna go down that easily after the last battle, and started going even further, unleashing rapid close-range and long-ranged assaults, with weapons and magic alike. He also started using his other skills in speed and stealing.
Loke attempted a strong punch, but Vaan sidestepped the attack, and with his glowing free-hand, swiped at one side of Loke, grazing him. Loke felt himself growing weaker. He attempted to come around and attack Vaan again, but he ducked and took another swipe at him, again only grazing him. Suddenly, Loke started to feel slower. He turned to punch Vaan, but he raised his hand, and stopped the punch with it.
"Loke, what's wrong?" Lucy called out to him, "Are you doing okay?" "What did…you do to me?" Loke groaned. "I stole some of your power and speed from you." Vaan replied, "I took that potential, and transfer it to myself. I was gonna do this to Lightning in the last battle, but she disarmed before I had a chance. You're not so fortunate."
Vaan took a swipe at Loke with his sword, and he got severely damaged. "Loke!" Lucy called out to him. "Sorry, my sweet Lucy…but I guess he got me." Loke moaned, and with that, he disappeared in a bright light, going back to the Celestial World. Loke's my most powerful Celestial Spirit. Lucy thought to herself, This is bad. I've gotta slow him down.
Lucy pulled out another key. "Open! Gate of the Ram: Aries!" The sheep-like girl from Yui's fight came before Vaan. "Hello. I'll do my best. Just tell me what I need to do." said Aries. "Then do what you can to slow him down!" Lucy responded, pointing at Vaan. "Let's see you try!" Vaan told them, and he charged as Aries used her Wool magic.
Meanwhile, back in Kirito and Natsu's fight, things were heating up even further. It wasn't just Natsu's flames that were getting bigger and hotter, but Kirito's skills were also increasing exponentially. He came out of his Limit Form after using it up, and was now in his Hylian Soul Drive Form. The two engaged in a clashing of steel and fire, fighting full on.
Kirito used his 'Leaping Strike' Finisher, knocking Natsu back and hitting him with a diving slash, to which Natsu struck hard with his Fire Dragon's Iron Fist. The two canceled each other out, and another shockwave appeared, even bigger this time, affecting the other two battles. "Those two are gonna destroy the entire arena!" exclaimed Lucy as she, Vaan, and the Celestial Spirit, Virgo, watched. "These two won't let us finish our battle in peace!" Riku groaned as he and Miu endured the shockwave.
Kirito jumped back then leapt high into the air, raising his Keyblade. Natsu prepared to fire his Fire Dragon's Roar. Leafa saw the attack coming, and started to panic. "Kirito, watch out!" she shouted up to him.
Kirito's sword then started to glow brightly, gaining power from above. He looked down as he heard Natsu start to shout, "Fire Dragon's…" Skyward… Kirito thought to himself. "…Roar!" Natsu finished, shooting a jet of flames. …Storm! Kirito finished his thought, and with high speeds, he started shooting Skyward Strike beams in a flurry downward. The two attacks collided, and started pushing each other, back and forth. Then after a few seconds, there was a great explosion, and the wind caused from it made the whole crowd get blown over.
"What an intense fight!" shouted Balthier, "Both combatants are so powerful, that it's literally rocking the Slaughterhouse to its' core! I wonder just how far these two will go?!"
Inside the medical station, the other two teams watched with hesitation. "Kirito is fighting on even terms with Natsu!" Asuna gasped, "I hope he doesn't push himself too far." "Natsu is going all out against Kirito." said Erza, "I can't believe someone would pressure him like this."
When the smoke cleared, Kirito and Natsu were still there, panting heavily after that attack. Kirito was reverted back to normal again. Meanwhile, Riku, Miu, Vaan and Lucy were all knocked to the sides of the walls. Virgo managed to protect Lucy from further damage. "You okay, master?" Virgo asked Lucy as she helped her up. "Thank you, Virgo." Lucy sighed in relief, and she looked up at the damage that was caused to the arena, and the two combatants still fighting.
Kirito pulled out a Drive Recovery and used it. "I only have one shot at this." Kirito panted, "Natsu's bound to be having just as much of a hard time as I am. So I'll hit him with my next attack." "Kirito has to be almost beaten up by now." Natsu told himself, "If I can just defeat him here and now, I can win this!"
Kirito entered his Limit Form once more, prepared to strike as Natsu prepared to attack. "I've got a question." Sora started, "Why doesn't Kirito use his NORA Soul? Ice attacks would probably work against fire." "Maybe." Asuna replied, "But I bet Kirito realizes that his ice attacks aren't gonna do as well over Natsu's flames. So he chose powerful close range assaults." "But why is that?" Erza asked, walking next to them. "Because that's just Kirito." Asuna responded, "He prefers getting up close and personal."
Kirito's Infinite Aura Keyblade glowed fiercely as Natsu's flames started to grow bigger. "Something tells me we should get away from those two." Riku told Miu. "Yeah, I agree!" Miu responded. "Whatever those two are gonna do, it's gonna be incredibly powerful!" Vaan noticed. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure we won't live to tell about it." Lucy said in a panicked manner.
Kirito charged at great speeds at Natsu, preparing his powerful 'Vorpal Strike' Sword Skill. "Crimson Lotus: Exploding Flame Blade!" Natsu shouted, and he swiped his hands around, creating a long torrents of flames. He then sent them in a spiraling formation at Kirito, who did his best to go through it at his speed. He kept drawing closer and closer, continuously getting damaged by Natsu's attack, but he didn't falter. He came right on top of Natsu, his Keyblade shining strongly with is attack. Natsu slammed his hands together, causing the flames to enclose around them just as Kirito thrusted his weapon forward.
From outside, the only thing everyone else could see was Kirito and Natsu at close range before the flames engulfed them. That was the last thing they saw in a short second before there was a massive explosion, and a shockwave caused the entire arena to erupt with rubble, flinging the other four combatants into the air. Everyone in the stands held themselves as the shockwave passed over them. The only ones that didn't looked phased from the attack were the masters of Ryouzanpaku. Even the two teams in the medical station had to endure the rumbling of the attack.
When the shockwave passed, and the dust cleared once more, not only did they see Kirito and Natsu on their backs, far too injured to continue, but the other four also injured and unable to continue as well. The entire place was wrecked and torn apart. Even parts of the stands got hit hard by it. There was a long pause as the crowd witnessed the results of the fight. Finally, Balthier's voice broke the silence.
"I-I don't believe it!" Balthier shouted, "In a twist of fate, Natsu and Kirito not only knocked each other out, but the rest of their teammates as well. According to the rulebook, this means that both teams are unable to continue to the next round!" Their was a pause, then the crowd cheered at the sheer intensity of the fight they had just witnessed. They praised for the efforts of all the fighters.
"We…lost?" Riku moaned, getting to one knee. "It looks that way." Miu responded, pushing a large piece of debris off of her. "So no one goes on? That's no fun." Vaan moaned, slid down the rubble on his back. "Ow, it hurts a lot!" shouted Lucy, unable to move from the damage she had taken.
In the middle of the stadium, both Kirito and Natsu were on their backs, panting heavily as they regained consciousness. "Hey, Kirito! You still alive over there?" Natsu called out. "Just barely." Kirito responded, now out of his Limit Form. There was a short pause between the two, then Natsu smiled as he said, "You were pretty good out there. That was a fun fight." Kirito smirked at this. "Yeah. I think I got my fair share of enjoyment out of this battle." he agreed, "I wish we could go on, but I can barely move." "Same here." Natsu seconded.
"So what happens now?" Recon asked as he, Leafa, Kairi, Yui and Kenichi watched the medical team come in to help the combatants to the station. "We're about to find out soon enough." Kairi responded. "I can't believe Kirito and Natsu finished each other off." Leafa muttered, seeing the medic team come to each of them.
"Is Miu gonna be okay?" Kenichi asked, witnessing Miu being placed on a stretcher and carried off. "She'll be fine." Hayato answered him, "All six of them are gonna be okay. They are all strong, young fighters, and have great endurance. Course, if it was me down there, they wouldn't have stood a chance." He started to laugh as the five kids looked up at him with sweat-dropped expressions.
"Now as for the competition, since both teams are unable to continue, the winners of the next match will move straight into the final match." Balthier explained, "Which means that it will be down between the last two teams: Team Flash and Team Hearts!" The arena monitor, which had a couple cracks from the last match, now displayed the six remaining combatants. The crowd cheered, as they witnessed the last two teams ready to take each other on in the next round.
Chapter 2: Final Teams! Flash vs. Hearts!
Due to the extensive damage in the arena, there was an hour delay in the next match for the place to be repaired. While that was happening, Riku and Kirito's friends joined him in the medical station, where he was recovering from the last fight. He was bandaged up and healed with Cure magic, so he was doing a bit better than before. The same went for the rest of the combatants, who's friends and family also visited.
"You sure you're gonna be alright?" Asuna asked him. "I told you, the doctors say that I should be okay after a little rest." Kirito responded. "Same here." Riku added, "But man, Kirito. You sure made the whole place explode." "Don't look at me. It was Natsu who had the explosive powers." Kirito defended, pointing at the boy he was talking about.
Natsu was nearby, along with Lucy, and they were talking to the rest of their guild members. Vaan was greeted by Penelo, Ashe and Snow, and Miu was fending off Kensei from being her doctor, while Kenichi, Akisame and Hayato watched. Natsu turned to see Kirito looking at him, and gave him a thumbs up. Kirito responded the same way.
"I guess this just leaves you four remaining in our group." Leafa told Sora, Asuna, Donald and Goofy, "Along with Erza of Fairy Tail, and Basch." Asuna and Sora looked to one another with determinate smirks. "I guess we're gonna fight for the finals." Sora stated. "If I recall correctly, you and I really didn't finish our Struggle match." Asuna remembered, "I can't wait to find out the results of this fight since that time." "But just remember, no matter what happens, we're friends at the end of it all, right?" Sora asked, raising a hand. "Right." Asuna responded, and she took his hand and shook it. Donald and Goofy joined their handshaking as well. The others smiled at their friendship.
When the repairs to the stadium were done, the people gathered once more, cheering as the final teams of the tournament came out to take their positions. Kirito and the other five combatants from before also joined the stands to watch their fight. "This is it folks!" Balthier announced, "The final team battle is about to begin! But before we get to the battle, lets introduce the people who came so far to get to this point. Lets start with Team Flash!"
The crowd cheered as Balthier continued, "He is the guard under Lord Larsa and Lady Ashe in Dalmasca. With powerful defenses, and strong offenses, it's Basch!" Basch placed his blade tip into the ground as the crowd cheered for him.
"He, too, is the captain of the guard, also to royalty, but he serves for King Mickey. The knight hound of Disney Castle, Goofy!" Goofy raised his shield to the crowd.
"And last, and certainly never the least, a young lady hailing from the world of Sword Art Online. With speed and accuracy that can't be beaten, and with Keyblade at hand, it's Lightning Flash Asuna!" Asuna whipped her Keyblade forwards in her fighting stance, ready to fight her opponents.
"In Team Hearts, we start with the shortest of the bunch, but don't let that fool you. He is a sorcerer with incredible magic skills. The wizard of Disney Castle, it's Donald Duck!" Donald jumped up and down as he waved at the crowd.
"Next is an S-Class Mage of Fairy Tail. She is never without a weapon or without a good suit of armor, its' Erza Scarlet!" Erza used her Requip Magic, shifting into her Black Wing Armor, an armor that was black with silver trimmings and crosses around it, and a pair of large wings in the back of them.
"And finally, a spirited boy with great strength and conviction. The first one to be chosen by the Keyblade in his group, and has saved many worlds in his life. Hailing from the Destiny Islands, it's Sora!" Sora twirled his Keyblade around and shouldered it onto his back.
"Now with the introductions done, it's time for this great battle to get underway!" The bell rang, and the teams moved in. Asuna and Sora immediately shot a Blizzara spell at one another before moving in to clash with each other. Donald and Goofy prepared to face each other with their skills, and Erza flew at Basch using her Black Wing Armor, and the two begun clashing.
Asuna's quick speed jabbing made Sora back off, allowing him to perform Aerora at her, but she quickly jumped into the air and shot her Watera spell at him. He dodged, and shot two more Aerora spells at her. Asuna dodged and performed her 'Shooting Star' Rapier Skill, but Sora dodge-rolled her attack. Sora and Asuna ended up on the opposite sides of where they started. They turned to one another, then both of them unleashed their Limit Forms before going at one another once more, striking Rapier Skills with Limit Commands.
Meanwhile, Erza and Basch were going at it strongly, striking blades with precise and definite blows. While Erza had the upper hand in her armor in both flight and attack strength, Basch had an incredible defense along with his great offense, and he had a regenerative skill, Inner Peace, that helped restore his stamina.
"You're really impressive." Erza told Basch, "I admit, when I first saw you, I didn't expect you to be such an opponent." "Same goes for me." Basch agreed, "You're skills as a swordwoman are beyond impressive, and you are by far the strongest woman I have ever fought against." "Thanks for the compliments." Erza thanked him, using her Requip to turn into her Flame Empress Armor, "I promise not to bore you too much." "Engarde!" Basch called out, and the two ensued.
While Goofy and Donald's fight wasn't as active as everyone else's, they still made an attempt to fight against one another. Since most of Goofy's attacks were close range and Donald's magic could work at any range, the favor was in Donald's side more. However, the two stopped as they started to watch Sora and Asuna's fight continue on.
Sora jumped back as Asuna attempted to stab him. Asuna jumped after him, and Sora used an aerial combo at her, to which she blocked, followed by his Ragnarok, shooting a cluster of laser bursts at Asuna. The attack exploded on impact, and as Sora landed onto the ground, Asuna was flung back from the attack. Fortunately, she flipped herself in midair, and landed onto her feet again.
Sora charged in quickly, performing his 'Sonic Blade' at Asuna, who prepared herself. Sora's dashed up to her in the first attack, but Asuna dodged. He did it again, but Asuna dodged just the same. The next five slashes were just the same, and none of Sora's attacks made contact with Asuna, who used her speed and eyes to avoid his attacks. Sora came to a halt, turning around to see Asuna come at him, then performed her 'Star Splash' Rapier Skill, striking Sora eight times and knocking him back.
Sora got back on his feet again, and both he and Asuna's Limit Forms ran out, and they reverted to normal. "I gotta say, you're really fast, Asuna." Sora pointed out. "You have some clever tricks of your own, Sora." Asuna responded, "However, I won't go down so easily. You know that, right?" Sora and Asuna smirked at one another.
The two turned to Donald and Goofy. "Donald, let's go!" Sora shouted. "Goofy, let us do it!" Asuna called out in response. The two nodded in response, and joined their teammates. Sora and Donald joint forces, and started to perform 'Duck Flare'. At the same time, Asuna and Goofy combined their strengths in order to perform 'Knocksmash'.
The two started to unleash their Limit Breaks at each other, Sora and Donald's rockets and Asuna and Goofy's shield and Strike Raid combo. The two kept going at it, drawing the attention of Erza and Basch, who stopped to watch. Finally, Asuna prepared Goofy for the final attack, holding him to one side while Sora and Donald prepared their last volley of rockets. "Fire!" Sora shouted, sending forth the rockets. "Launch!" Asuna cried, shooting Goofy forward like a rocket, his shield in front of him.
The two attacks collided, and Goofy was being peppered by the assault as he was shot at Sora and Donald. He lost control while trying to aim at them, but he ended up slamming Donald square on with his shield, causing him to be thrown off of Sora. The two Keyblade wielders watched as their comrades started tumbling together, spinning like a wheel as they crashed into the side of the arena. "Donald!" Sora shouted. "Goofy!" Asuna followed. When the dust cloud cleared, the two saw Donald and Goofy in awkward positions, dazed from the spinning and damage they were dealt with.
"Looks like those two won't be able to go on for a while." Asuna noticed as she and Sora turned back to one another, "I guess it's just you and me again." "Donald and Goofy fought well in this fight, so I won't let them down!" Sora responded, and the two took fighting positions as well before diving in and clashing Keyblades.
Erza and Basch were done watching their battle, and got back to their own fight. Erza was realizing how much of a struggle Basch was with his defenses. She launched Fire Magic with her blade, but Basch countered with his Flash of Steel. "I've got no choice." Basch stated, "I'll finish you off right now!" Erza watched as Basch converged a dark orb of energy between his hands, then divided them into both hands and blasted the energy in a dark beam at Erza, who couldn't avoid it in time, and was struck by it. This was Basch's 'Fulminating Darkness'.
When the attack was done, he noticed Erza flat against the wall of the arena, her armor cracked and broken in parts. She landed onto the ground, stumbling a bit, but still hanging on. "I take it you've been saving that attack." Erza panted as she looked up at Basch, who started walking towards her. "It's a Quickening technique I had hoped not to use until the final matchup." Basch responded, "However, you pushed me to my limit there, so I had no choice."
"If that was your best, just wait until you see mine." Erza responded, and her body glowed as she used Requip again. This time, she was wearing pink armor, with many wing-shaped decorations all across the armor, a pink skirt, a tiara with feather-shaped protrusions, and a lavender cape. She now carried two identical swords as well, and her hair was styled into a pair of braids.
"This is my Armadura Fairy Armor." Erza proclaimed, "It's the strongest armor I have, and it symbolizes my pride as a member of Fairy Tail." "I see." Basch understood, preparing himself, "In that case, lets see what you got!"
Basch brought his sword down upon her, but Erza blocked it with both swords, and shoved him back. She then charged up her magic energy into both sword, until they were giving off a green-lightning energy. Then with one blade, she thrusted her blade forward at Basch, who immediately used Protectga on himself. Basch endured the attack just fine, but his armor wasn't so lucky. The thick armor shattered after a few seconds struggle, and Basch was shoved backwards by the attack, leaving a huge hole within his armor.
"Impossible!" he gasped, looking down at the hole, "You broke my armor, even with my Protect up?" Before he could think of a countermeasure, Erza immediately charged in with her second blade of energy, and swiped at him as they crossed. She came to a halt on the other side of Basch. There was a pause, then Basch keeled over, unable to continue to the fight.
Erza stood up straight again, and turned to see Sora and Asuna pause in their fight, witnessing their battle. "She can destroy thick steel armor so easily?" Asuna asked, "And now I'm the only one remaining in the team!" Sora was thinking back on the words that Gajeel said about her. She's an S-class wizard back in our world… It means she an elite-level guild member, you moron. "So this is the power of an S-class wizard?" Sora asked, "She's really strong!"
Asuna and Sora looked to one another, then realize that their battle hasn't finished yet. "It's just you and me, Asuna." Sora called to her, "Lets see who's better!" "Right back at ya." Asuna responded. Both of them started to glow once more. "Savior Soul!" Asuna shouted. "Sky Pirate Soul!" Sora shouted. Both of their bodies bursted with energy, and they entered their Soul Drives. Once they were done, they prepared themselves. "Our first Soul Drives we've gained in this dimension." Asuna reminded Sora, "We got them at the same time. Let us see how well we've trained these powers since the day we gained them."
Sora and Asuna immediately charged at one another, clashing blades ferociously. Asuna's speed and strength was certainly overpowering Sora's skills. Sora jumped back and performed 'Cataclysm', but Asuna quickly avoided it. She used 'Razor Gale' in response, but Sora jumped over the swirling disc of energy she threw. Sora unleashed his 'Windburst' Finisher, and Asuna was flung into it, causing great amount of damage from the attack before she was tossed away once more.
Asuna quickly got to her feet again, and got in close. "I am…an army of one!" Asuna shouted, and she performed her new ground Finisher 'Tetrastrike'. Asuna split herself up into four silhouettes of herself, each in a different hue of aura; deep blue, light blue, yellow, and red. Each of them dispersed as Sora swung at them, and each of them struck strongly with Flamestrike, Froststrike, Aquastrike, and Sparkstrike, coming back together to unleash a final sword spin, knocking Sora backwards, causing him to skid to a halt on his back.
Sora got back to his feet again, breathing heavily. Asuna was also breathing heavily. They were almost out of stamina. "It looks…like we're on our…last legs." Asuna panted. "Which means…this last attack…will decide it all." Sora followed. The two stood up straight and concentrated. Their bodies begun to glow once more. I'm feeling a powerful magic emanating off of those two. Erza thought to herself, I shouldn't get too close. I don't know what might happen. Then simultaneously, the two Keyblade wielders unleashed their Soul Finales.
Asuna called upon the Gagnrad, while Sora surrounded himself around with powerful weapons. The two came at each other at lightning-fast speeds, and started clashing with one another at a rapid rate, Asuna slashing and leaving flower petals behind, and Sora and his assortment of weaponry. Everyone in the stadium watched with baited breath as the two continuously clashed.
Finally, Asuna jumped up a few meters off the ground, connected the two blades once more, and raised it above her head, spinning it. At the same time, Sora jumped to one side of Asuna, trapping her between two light, circular seals. "The storm is here!" she chanted as a swirl of wind and rose petals stirred around her. Before Sora could follow along with his attack, he was starting to get pulled in by Asuna's attack. He was pulled upwards into Asuna's range, but Sora wasn't gonna give up. "This is the end!" Sora shouted, whipping his hand in a straight line. Just as Asuna unleashed her final slash, a blast of holy light came through one of the seals, going into the other. The entire stadium was consumed in a bright light, blinding everyone.
The light shined for a few seconds, though it felt a lot longer. The light died down, and everyone turned to see Asuna and Sora standing there, reverted back to normal. They were covered with injuries, yet they stood there, looking at one another. Finally, one of them smiled as the person's legs gave way, stumbling and falling to the ground, out of energy. That person was Asuna.
There was a moment's pause, then the crowd cheered as Sora sighed in relief, falling backwards onto his butt from exhaustion. "What an exciting finale to this battle!" Balthier shouted, "With back to back strikes, powerful Finishers, and amazing struggles right up to the end, the winner of this match by a close margin is none other than Sora!" The crowd cheered even louder for them. Erza was happy for Sora's victory as well. Donald and Goofy were back on their feet again, and Donald was cheering for Sora's victory. Basch was still conscious, and he looked disappointed that he failed.
Sora got back to his feet again, and looked to Asuna. He walked over until he was right next to her. "Heal!" said Sora, raising his Keyblade and performing Cura on both of them. Asuna started to move a bit, and she got onto her hands and knees, looking up at Sora.
"You okay?" he asked, reaching down to her. "Yeah, I guess." Asuna responded, taking his hand as he pulled her up to her feet again, "Looks like you got me, Sora. Congratulations." "It was too close to call it a victory for me." Sora responded honestly, "If I hadn't got you first, then I would be the one on the ground, and not you." "Don't act so modest." Asuna giggled, "You beat me fair and square. I'll just have to do better next time." Asuna and Sora shook hands with one another, symbolizing their friendship even after the fight.
Everyone applauded for the two's fight. "That seemed way too close!" Leafa sighed in relief. "I can't believe just how strong those last attacks were!" Recon exclaimed, "It was so intense and exciting!" "I really hope mama is doing okay." Yui hoped. "She looks okay to me." Kairi responded, seeing Asuna shaking Sora's hand, "But I'm just excited that Sora won!" "You disappointed, Kirito?" Riku asked. "That battle could've gone either way. I wouldn't be disappointed one way or another…though I did wish for Asuna to win." Riku smirked at Kirito's sly comment.
"And that's it for the final team battle!" Balthier shouted, "The winning team of this match is none other than Team Heart! There will be a three hour break before the finals, in which Sora, Erza and Donald will fight against one another, to see who is the best of the group, and the champion of the L'cie Cup!" "…This final battle will be exciting indeed." said Vanitas, hiding in the shadows of the arena.
Chapter 3: Arena Invasion
Sora was ready and willing as he was quickly discharged from the medical station. His injuries weren't severe, so he was good to go. Basch's injuries were the worst, so he had to stay in bed for a while. While Donald was training with Goofy, Yui, Asuna and Recon, Sora was with Kirito, Leafa, Kairi and Riku.
"I'm in the finals now!" cheered Sora, eager to fight, "I can't wait to win it all!" "Easy, Sora." Riku stopped him, "Don't forget that Donald and Erza are there, and although Donald is a pushover, Erza is not." "Don't say stuff like that about Donald." Kairi told him. "I dunno. Donald isn't much of a problem." Kirito bluntly stated, "I'm just saying he's not strong enough to handle Sora or Erza, that's all."
"But what about Erza?" Leafa asked, "She is definitely a powerful fighter." "Lets list down the things we do know about her." Kirito started to deduce, "We know she has incredible strength, speed and swordsmanship. She uses that 'Requip' magic to change her armor and weapon, which also changes how she handles different opponents. So far, excluding her normal armor, she has displayed five sets of armor, though that Flame Empress Armor has already been damaged by Basch, so it shouldn't be a problem."
"All I gotta do is adapt with all the different sets of armor she uses." Sora stated, "She says she has a whole bunch of them, so we shouldn't say that's all the armor she has." "You just gotta learn how to adapt to each armor she uses." Leafa told Sora, "That's gonna be really tough." "Don't worry." Sora responded, smirking confidently, "I'm sure that I'll be able to beat her in the end." Kirito, Riku, Leafa and Kairi expressed their disbelief and amusement at Sora's cockiness.
In another part of the Slaughterhouse, Goofy and Yui were helping out Donald with preparations for the next battle. Asuna and Recon watched from a distance. "That's good, Donald. But try to watch out for those surprise attacks!" Asuna called out. "Right!" Donald responded, taking a swing at Goofy, who bounced him away. "Watch your reactions!" Asuna called out, "Wait for an opening, then you strike!"
"Giving him a few lessons?" Erza walked up from behind Asuna and Recon. "Oh, it's you!" Recon said hesitantly. "I'm sorry I had to take out Basch like that." Erza apologized, "It looks like he might be resting for a while." "Don't worry. He's not fatally wounded." Asuna responded, "And besides, he was pressuring you. And only one of our teams had to win." "That's true." Erza smiled.
"By the way, I heard from someone that back in your guild, Fairy Tail, you were sometimes referred to as 'Titania'. Is that true?" "It wasn't something I chose. It's a stupid nickname people gave me." Erza responded.
"Titania. The queen of the fairies." Asuna said, looking up, smiling to avoid her inner feelings, "Since your guild is called Fairy Tail, it works for you. You deserve it better than me." Erza looked questionably at her. Donald, Goofy and Yui stopped their training to look at her. "There was a time I was called that." Asuna told Erza, "But it was forced upon me by a man I loathed so much. I was locked inside of a cage, and was forced to be his 'wife'. I had so many painful memories during that time, and that name was also painful." She was talking about the time she was trapped in ALO.
The team looked sympathetically at her, including Erza. "But then, Kirito, Yui, Leafa and Recon saved me from that, and now I'm free again. The man never did stop trying to make me and many others miserable. But we also gained more friends. Donald, Goofy, Riku, Kairi, and of course Sora. We all kicked his evil butt to the curb."
Asuna looked straight at Erza as she continued, "I guess I'm trying to say is that you should be glad to have people who care a lot about you to give you such a good nickname. Don't ever deny that, okay?" "Since you put it in that way, I guess I should be grateful for being nicknamed 'Titania' from my friends instead of my enemies." Erza responded, closing her eyes, then opening them as she looked to Asuna, "And you should be grateful for being called 'Lightning Flash' by others as well." Asuna and Erza smirked at one another, while the others happily looked at the two.
It almost felt a lot shorter before the three hours were up, and everyone was back in the Slaughterhouse once more. The crowd roared with pleasure as the last three combatants now stood in the middle of the arena. Sora, Erza and Donald were aways from one another, ready to fight against one another.
"I'm definitely gonna beat both of you!" Donald squawked out loud. "Good luck on that." Sora responded, turning to Erza, "Best of luck to you, Erza." "The same to you both." Erza responded, "After studying your physical prowess, I believe this armor should suffice…"
Erza used her Requip magic, and her armor changed. It made her almost cheetah-like with the patterns on parts of the armor, with very few armored pieces. It she wore a revealing armored top and black revealing shorts, with purple stockings and arm guards, armored boots, and was accessorized with a neck collar, a tail on her shorts, and cheetah ears on her head. Although she was very pretty in the outfit, this didn't stop the others from noticing the two swords she carried.
"What's that armor?" Sora asked. "My Flight Armor." Erza answered, "It grants me incredible speeds while in this form." "So you wanna fight me in speed, huh?" Sora asked confidently, "In that case…Shinobi Soul!" Sora's body bursted with energy, and he was now in his Shinobi Soul Drive Form. "You better believe it!" Sora cheered, punching the air. "This also makes me faster as well." Sora told Erza, "Better get ready!"
The crowd cheered as all three combatants were set for combat. "It has come down to this!" Balthier's voice boomed out, "The members of Team Heart have climbed their way to the top, and are now about to face each other. Who will win this battle, and claim the title of 'Champion in the L'cie Cup'? Will it be the wizard of Disney Castle, Donald? The beautiful 'Titania' of Fairy Tail, Erza? Or will it be the chosen wielder of the Keyblade, Sora? Lets find out right now who is the best! The battle starts in 3…2…1…"
Before Balthier could say zero, there was a great explosion that landed straight in the center of the competitors. Everyone in the crowd was stunned. "Where did that come from?!" Kirito gasped as the team leaned forward in their seats. "What's going on?!" squawked Donald, raising a hand to block the sand. "Who did this?!" Erza demanded.
Sora shielded his eyes, squinting. He saw figure in the middle of the explosion. He raised his weapon, directing it at Erza. "Erza, look out!" Sora shouted. Erza could see a bright light start to shine, and she quickly dodged as a familiar beam shot at the spot she was at before. She crouched in a fighting position, seeing the dust clear, revealing the figure within. "It's Vanitas!" Asuna gasped, realizing who it was.
Vanitas turned to Erza, now prepared for his attacks. "And here I thought I could get what I came for without too much trouble." Vanitas said, "However, it seems you were saved by that pathetic excuse of a Keyblade wielder." Sora jumped over Vanitas as he and Donald joined Erza's side, their weapons at the ready. "Vanitas." Sora growled, "You just had to appear here in the tournament!" "You know this person?" Erza asked. "Yeah! He's a bad guy!" Donald answered.
"You two, step out of the way." Vanitas told Sora and Donald. "No!" Donald shouted in response. "If you're attacking Erza, then that means that she…" "That's right." Vanitas answered, raising his free hand, "Now if you would be so kind." "What does he want with me?" Erza asked. "He wants to take your Key of Darkness." Sora answered. "My what?" Erza asked. "I don't know much about it, but I do know that each world has a person who has one." Sora explained. "Precisely." Vanitas confirmed, "And you, Erza, are the Fairy Tail world's guardian of the Key of Darkness."
Suddenly, green flames erupted next to Vanitas, and out came Maleficent. "Enough of this foolishness!" Maleficent barked, "Let us destroy these fools and take this one's key!" "Maleficent!" shouted Sora and Donald. "Patients, mistress Maleficent." Vanitas stopped her, "We shouldn't rush things too much. Lets let our pets have some fun."
Vanitas raised his arms, and a black energy surged from him, bringing out an abundance of Unversed. Maleficent summoned a bunch of Heartless to her side as well. The entire arena got surrounded by hundreds of their monsters. Sora, Donald and Erza stood back to back, surrounded as well.
While most of the crowd panicked, those who fought in the tournament went into the battle. Kirito led Sora and his friends into action. Snow and Vaan's crew, Fairy Tail, and the members of Ryouzanpaku also joined the fray. However, the amount of enemies were so massive, that no one saw Maleficent and Vanitas disappear. "We gotta take these things out!" Sora told Donald and Erza. With everyone in agreement, the team worked together.
The onslaught was massive, yet Sora and Erza were already in powerful forms, taking them out left and right. Their friends and comrades were attacking from the outside in. However, this didn't stop the Heartless and Unversed from leaving the arena, spreading out into the city.
When they cleared the arena of those who remained, everyone gathered together. "There are a bunch of Heartless and Unversed pouring out into the streets!" Kirito told everyone, "We're gonna have to divide up into group to take them out!" "Right!" Sora agreed. "We'll go on ahead!" Snow told the group, indicating himself, Vaan and the rest of their group, "I am this town's hero, so I have to save it!" "We'll also go get Lightning and Hope." Vaan added, "And some of us have to protect Basch, too." "You go do that." Kirito responded. With that objective set, their team set off out of the arena.
"Our group should stay with Erza." Asuna ordered, indicating herself, Kirito, Sora, Donald, Goofy and Yui, "I bet Vanitas plans to attack her through the chaos." "In that case, let us help out!" Natsu proclaimed, indicating himself and the rest of Fairy Tail, "Us, Fairy Tail guild members, have to look out for each other." "No, the town is much more important." Asuna stopped them, "We'll protect Erza with our lives, so don't worry about it."
Natsu looked to the six of them, then said, "Alright. I know Erza can win any battle, but don't let her be beaten by those monsters." Kirito nodded in approval. "Lets go, guys!" Natsu shouted, and he, Gray, Lucy, Wendy, Gajeel and the cats, with Pantherlily miraculously growing bigger and muscular in the process, set out to help the town.
"We should also go and aid the town from further danger." Hayato suggested. "Sounds like a good plan." Shio answered, "How about you, Kenichi?" "Our home world was destroyed by those monsters. I can't let it happen to this one." Kenichi said determinately. Miu smiled at Kenichi's resolve. "Get going then!" Kirito told them, "Meanwhile, we'll go through the streets as well, taking out as much as we can!" "Okay, lets move out!" Asuna declared, and the rest of the people in the stadium set out into Yusnaan, ready to defend it with everything they got.
Chapter 4: Vs. Trinity & Guard Armor
Sora, Kirito, Erza and the crew all ran out of the Slaughterhouse and into the streets, where they found an abundance of Heartless and Unversed swarming the city, making the townsfolk panic. "Quick! We gotta save everyone!" Sora shouted, and the team ran into the swarm.
Inside the medical bay of the Slaughterhouse, Ashe, Sazh and Penelo had their weapons at the ready as they were protecting Basch from a few Unversed that stayed behind. Outside the Slaughterhouse, Balthier and Fran were taming the horde that were surrounding the place there.
In one part of the city, Vanille and Fang were teaming up together to take down a swarm of Heartless that were attacking the city. Snow was making his way up towards Augur's Quarter, after noticing Pete went that direction. In another part of town, Vaan, Recon, Riku, Kairi, and a flying Leafa were protecting the people as best as they could. Natsu, Gray and Gajeel were damaging both the enemies and the town, while Wendy, Lucy and the cats were helping people escape their destruction. Near the Doremi Magic shop, Patina and the Witch Apprentices were defending the shop with everything they got. Serah and Mog were doing the same for their shop as well. In the industrial area, the members of Ryouzanpaku were dealing with the Heartless and Unversed there.
Outside of Sazh's hangar, Lightning and Hope were joining together to stop the Heartless and Unversed that were surrounding the place. "Where did so many of these things come from?" Hope asked, holding his boomerang as he looked at the crowd. "I don't know, but we have to clear them out." Lightning answered, "Since we found out what those Keys of Darkness are, along with how to stop the Heartless from continuously swarming the place." The two started slashing and attacking their way through the horde that surrounded them.
Back with the heroes, they got word about where Pete was, and decided to catch up with Snow as they moved towards Augur's Quarter. However, the Heartless and Unversed were continuously getting in their way, so they had to take them out. Although Erza was targeted by Maleficent and Vanitas, she was nowhere near helpless. Her Requip magic allowed her to change from one set of armor to the next, depending on the situation. The one she was using the most at the moment was here Heaven's Wheel Armor.
"Just how many of these things are there?!" Asuna exclaimed. "I dunno, but I do know how to clear them quickly." Kirito answered, turning to her, "Lets perform a Cross Burst!" Asuna nodded in agreement, and they concentrated. Kirito's Elucidator pendant and Asuna's Wayfinder started to glow brightly, and they were set to perform their attack.
The two raised their Keyblades, and drew two Xs in front of them; one blue, one yellow. "Cross Burst!" Kirito and Asuna shouted in unison, and their Xs melded together, making a half-yellow, half-blue X. The X settled itself onto the ground beneath their feet, and the two stood in between the X, enveloped by a blue and yellow aura. They floated into the air in unison, and focused themselves on their target: The Heartless and Unversed swarm.
"Starlight…" Asuna started. "…Shower!" Kirito finished. Asuna rose high into the air as Kirito rocketed forward in a bright yellow aura, his Keyblade out in front. Asuna raised her Keyblade high, and numerous stars started to shine around her. She then waved her Keyblade forward, and the stars started to rain down, rocketing forward alongside Kirito. The stars got in front, and started taking down the Heartless and Unversed all around, ending with Kirito rocketing down the middle of them before coming at a standstill behind it. Asuna floated back to the ground, the Keyblade to her side. The two cleared the swarm.
"That was incredible!" Erza gasped, "It's just as powerful as a Unison Raid back home." "C'mon! We gotta keep moving forward!" Goofy proclaimed. "Yeah. The sooner we get to Pete and Snow, the better!" Sora agreed. The team continued to race forward towards their destination.
Up in Augur's Quarter, Snow had finally cornered Pete, his fists at the ready. "Alright, pal. Start talking!" Snow demanded, cracking his knuckles, "Unless you want to change your name from Pete to Pita." Pete was ready to fight, then he looked up and started to chuckle. "What's so funny?" Snow asked, raising a fist.
Suddenly, Snow was struck from behind by green flames, knocking him to the ground. Maleficent was there, her staff directed at Snow. Pete continued to laugh as he came forward and pressed his foot onto Snow's head. "Aw, what's wrong? Can't the 'hero' of this town be able to stop little ol' us?"
As Sora, Kirito, Erza and the others made it up the steps to witness what was happening. "And now, I shall take what is rightfully mine!" Maleficent proclaimed, and she directed her staff at Snow just as Pete took his foot off of him. Maleficent shot dark green energy from her staff, which enveloped Snow in it. He was floating into the air, writhing in agony as everyone watched, horrified. Suddenly, A black orb appeared from Snow's chest, and it came out of him. The orb floated into Maleficent's hand as Snow dropped to the ground once more.
"A Key of Darkness!" Donald squawked. "You mean Snow had one and not Erza?" Sora asked. "No. Remember that Vanitas said that Erza has her world's Key of Darkness." Asuna reminded them. Maleficent and Pete turned to the group that watched them, holding the orb in her hand, which had a jagged wing in three zig-zagged strips. "The Key of Sloth." Maleficent understood, "How ironic that this fool would hide such a symbol within him."
"Give it here!" Sora shouted as the team got into fighting positions. "That ain't gonna happen!" Pete responded, "Since you delivered us that there second Key, we'll just take it away from you, too!" Pete slammed his fist into the ground, and from the sky fell a familiar set of large armor pieces. The pieces were mostly different shades of pink, with silver claws, lining, and black boots. "Is that armor?" Erza asked, amazed. "Not the kind of armor you should have." Kirito responded as the pieces started to move, taking the form of a familiar Heartless. "It's the Guard Armor!" Asuna shouted. "We've defeated it before, we can do it again easily!" Kirito answered.
Just then, three objects flew overhead, and the team looked up to see three black objects float over them. They noticed each of them had the Unversed symbol on each of them. Just then, they started to reconfigure in front of them. One part became a pair of shoulders and arms, the second being the waist and a pair of legs, and the final piece being the torso and head. They merged together, forming a large armored monster like the Guard Armor. The head also transformed into a pair of red Unversed eyes.
"Another one?!" Asuna exclaimed. "It's called the Trinity Armor." Yui analyzed with her scanner, "It's composed of those three components we saw before." "Great, so we have two armors to deal with." Kirito sighed. "Still, there is only one thing we have to do." Erza told the others, using Requip to enter her Black Wing Armor. "I agree." Kirito concurred, "Lets take them both out!"
(Cue KHII Soundtrack 'Vim and Vigor')
The team ran towards different sets of armor. Kirito, Asuna, and Yui decided to have a rematch with the Guard Armor, while Sora, Erza, Donald and Goofy took on the Trinity Armor. Just before they dispersed, Yui told Sora that its' like the Guard Armor; they should defeat the arms and legs first before attacking the body. Sora conveyed these objectives to the others, and the four started to attack the armored Unversed.
Kirito and Asuna were experiencing deja vu as they fought against the Guard Armor, the very first Heartless they had ever faced. However, there were three major differences between then and now. One, they had magic on their side. Two, Yui was fighting alongside them. And three, the Heartless was nowhere near this strong and enduring before. Their attacks were strong, but the Heartless retaliating with its' spinning claws, slashing at them and keeping them at bay.
"I get the feeling it won't be easy to get rid of this thing like it was before." Kirito stated. "Like it was EASY to get rid of it before." Asuna recalled. "If we can just take out its' arms and legs, we can knock out its' best moves." Yui deduced. "Lets keep hammering away at it!" Kirito declared, and they charged once more into the fight.
Meanwhile, Sora, Donald, Goofy and Erza were dealing with the Trinity Armor, which they discovered that it had a lot more tricks than the Guard Armor. Unlike the Guard Armor, this one was more long-ranged fighting, unleashing fireballs that scattered everywhere, randomly firing lasers all over the place from the air, or firing a larger laser from its' torso, spinning around back and forth. Sora and the others were having trouble getting in close, but that didn't stop them from trying.
A few times, the two battles would sometimes conflict with one another, mainly the Trinity Armor interfering with the other battle. A few stray fireballs, and even the torso laser would interfere with their fighting. Kirito, Asuna and Yui avoid it as best as they could, and sometimes would get hit by the laser, but the Guard Armor also got hit by it, too, benefiting the SAO trio.
At this time, Erza switched over to her Flame Empress Armor, which had been restored to normal again. Using its' fire resisting powers, she managed to overcome the fireballs that the Trinity Armor delivered, slashing it heavily at the legs before jumping back to avoid its' one-two punch. Sora and Goofy tag-teamed together, slamming the legs hard, and they disappeared in a sparkling of lights. One piece down, two to go.
Meanwhile, Asuna and Kirito literally disarmed the Guard Armor, destroying its' gauntlets. Now its legs and torso remained as well. "We can do this!" Kirito shouted to the two. The Guard Armor then started to stomp around, sending shockwaves going along the ground. At the same time, The arms and torso separated away from each other, and formed an electrical arc between them. It then started to rotate around the arena, angling the arc all across the area. All team members jumped high to avoid it.
"We gotta change things up!" Sora shouted. "Then lets switch!" Kirito shouted, "Sora, take Yui. Donald, go with Asuna. Goofy, you're with me!" The team exchanged partners, so now the Guard Armor had Kirito, Asuna, Donald and Goofy to deal with while the Trinity Armor had Sora, Yui and Erza. Erza used her Requip magic, now using a new armor that was ice blue with golden trimming, white cloth hanging down around her waist, and her hair was styled into long braids, and adorned by a band with two ribbons. She also carried a spear instead of a sword.
Erza landed in the center of the electrical arc, putting up an electrical shield while she was at it. It nullified the attack while she was protected, and when it was finished, Erza blasted the arms with lightning beam from her spear, electrifying the arms, and causing them to disappear.
"Woah!" gasped Sora as he and Yui came right next to her, "So I guess this armor gives you Thunder magic and resistance?" "It's my Lightning Empress Armor." Erza responded, "I told you that I was prepared for any situation." "That's for sure." Sora agreed, "Do you have an armor for all elements or just those two?" "We can talk about this later!" Yui shouted, "The torso is all that is left!" The trio got their focus together, and they charged into the fight.
Meanwhile, the Guard Armor was getting more aggressive with its' attacks, striking at them strongly with its feet and body. The four kept avoiding the attacks, and could barely find a moment to get an opening. "There's gotta be a way to get to its' legs!" Donald squawked. Asuna had already fired magic at it, but the armor seemed to be resistant to magic attacks. She couldn't see an opening to get in close either. She then looked to Goofy and Kirito, wondering.
"Hey guys!" she called to them, "I think I have a crazy idea that might stop its' legs!" She ushered Goofy and Kirito over to her, and whispered her idea. "Gawrsh, do ya think it might work?" Goofy asked. "I dunno." Kirito retorted, "For one is sounds like a plan Sora might make and two, we'll have to angle it just right, or else it won't work." "Trust me." Asuna stated, "It's gonna work."
They backed off from the shockwaves the Heartless was producing, then they got into formation; Goofy far in front of Kirito, with Asuna right behind him. They waited for the opportunity, then Kirito and Asuna charged straight at Goofy, who held his shield above his head. Kirito got onto his shield first, and leapt up, followed quickly by Asuna. The two were high above the Heartless, who was too stupid to look up at them.
"Alright, Kirito!" Asuna called out, raising her free hand. "Just to be sure, you do know what you're doing, right?" Kirito asked, taking her arm. Asuna nodded in response. Kirito held onto Asuna's arm as he started spinning her around. Then when he felt the timing was right, he tossed her towards the Guard Armor, who finally decide to notice them. Asuna could feel a different power other than her Rapier Skills. Her Keyblade turned into two scythe-like swords, and suddenly, she was performing her Savior Soul's 'Crushing Blow' Finisher, slashing straight through the Guard Armor's head, coming out the other side as her swords reverted back to a Keyblade.
The Heartless was stock still when Asuna landed onto her feet. Then she whipped her Keyblade to one side, and the Heartless crumbled, disappearing in a sparkling of lights, leaving a crystalized heart that floated upwards and disappeared. "She did it!" cheered Donald and Goofy in unison. "But how did she use the Finisher without going into her Soul Drive?" Kirito asked, watching her turn to him, just as surprised.
Sora, Yui and Erza looked back to see the Heartless was defeated. "They got it!" Sora cheered, smirking triumphantly as he turned back to the Unversed. "Now all that is left is this Unversed." Erza stated, "We almost got it down, so lets end this!"
The Unversed started firing a plethora of aerial lasers down at the group, who quickly got in for the close up. "I'll get at it first!" Yui told the two, "Then while its' attention is on me, you finish it off!" "Right!" Sora responded. Erza used her Requip magic to go into another new armor, which had no armor, but bandages wrapped around her chest, and long, red baggy pants with yellow flames on the bottom. She had no shoes on, but her hair was now in a long ponytail. She also carried a pair of katanas.
Yui got in close and unleashed her Whirlwind at it, damaging it as she passed underneath, it turned to her just as Sora and Erza jumped in unison, their swords raised. Then in one final strike, they cross-slashed it on both sides, landing in front of it once again. The Trinity Armor paused, then it started to shake and collapse from the attack, broken and done with. It disappeared into a black vapor. Erza and Sora looked to one another, smiling happily. Yui joined the group, just as happy at their victory
Just as they thought it was over, a beam of dark energy pierced Erza's back, stunning her in pain. Sora and Yui were horrified to see that, then saw who was responsible. Vanitas was far behind Erza, his Void Gear Keyblade shooting the beam at her. Just as Vanitas retracted the Key of Darkness from her, Sora raced at him, his Keyblade at the ready.
"Vanitas!" he yelled out, addressing the guy who saw him coming. Vanitas made the beam he was conjuring flick the Key of Darkness high into the air. He and Sora clashed Keyblades, and kept striking a few more times. Sora ducked under one of his slashed, then made a strong side-swipe, smacking his visor.
Vanitas backed off just as Kirito, Asuna, Donald and Goofy joined Yui and the damaged Erza, who was somehow to stay conscious. Kirito held Snow up by the arm, and he had just started to regain conscious. Everyone watched as Vanitas' helmet started to crack, then after several cracks, it shattered. What was under the helmet shocked everyone, Sora specifically.
"Wha?!" exclaimed Donald and Goofy. "No way!" gasped Asuna, shocked at the sight. "This can't be!" Kirito followed. "You." Sora stammered, "You…look just like…" "You?" Vanitas asked. Vanitas' face looked almost exactly like Sora's face, including the hairstyle. The only differences were that Vanitas' eyes were golden-yellow, his hair was black, and he was paler. And the evil glow to it was also a given.
"How come you look just like me?!" Sora asked. "Coincidence." Vanitas answered, "You just have a connection with Ventus' heart. That's why I look this way." "I have a connection with Ventus?" Sora asked, "I don't understand."
The Key of Darkness fell into Vanitas' palm as Pete and Maleficent appeared on either side of him. "The Key of Vanity." Vanitas noticed the symbol, which was a jagged form of one eye, "How appropriate for me to have it." "That…was inside of me?" Erza muttered, squinting with one eye as she saw the Key of Darkness. "What do you want with the Keys?!" Kirito demanded as he and Asuna stepped to either side of Sora. "Wouldn't you like to know?" Vanitas answered smugly.
"They aren't called 'keys' for nothing." said a voice. It was Lightning, followed by Hope, rushing up the steps to join everyone. "Those keys have the ability to open a long-lost place." Lightning continued, "One that was claimed to have disappeared some time ago after a large war. To this day, it still remains a mystery." "Wait a minute." Kirito started, putting the pieces together, "You don't mean that those Keys lead to…" "Kingdom Hearts?" Asuna finished.
"Aw, and I was so hoping we would surprise you with it later on." Pete said cheekily. "Silence, you fool!" Maleficent disrupted him. "It doesn't matter." Vanitas replied, "Once enough keys have been gathered, there is no stopping us from claiming Kingdom Hearts. And once it is within our grasp, both dimensions will bow down to our power!"
"Not if I have to say anything about it!" Sora shouted, racing at Vanitas, who opened a portal behind him, and disappeared. Pete launched a sneaky punch at Sora, knocking him back and toppling to the ground, with Kirito and Asuna kneeling down to help him. "Smack ya later, kiddies!" Pete called out as he and Maleficent disappeared into their individual portals, leaving the crew still, defeated.
Chapter 5: The Answer: Keyholes of Bonds!
The team was brought back to Sazh's hangar, where Vaan, Leafa, Riku, Kairi and Recon were waiting for them. Erza left to check up on Natsu and the others. They got the rundown on what just happened, from all about what Vanitas really looked like, to what the Key of Darkness was really. Kirito was so frustrated at their defeat, he punched the wall of the hangar, which rang throughout the room.
"How can I be so damn blind?!" Kirito growled, "Our dimensions were connected, so why shouldn't both of our dimensions have a connection to Kingdom Hearts? And now those bastards have two more Keys of Darkness! If I had just not lost focus by entering the tournament…"
"It's not your fault." Asuna told him, "We all should've seen it as well. We just didn't figure it out in time." "Yeah, and besides, Vanitas, Maleficent and Pete all played us for fools." Sora stated, "We didn't expect there to be two Keys of Darkness." "That doesn't help the fact that we failed." Kirito sighed.
"C'mon, Kirito!" Leafa snapped at him, "What happened to that spirit of yours? You wouldn't let something like this get you down, so why are you letting it get to you?! Now that we found out about what the Keys are for, we now have an even bigger purpose to find it." "She's right, you know." Riku agreed.
"Speaking of which, how did you find out about the purpose for the Keys of Darkness?" Yui asked. "It wasn't us that figured it out." Hope responded, "This woman came up to us before the invasion. She didn't say her name, but she explained to us about the Keys of Darkness, along with a solution on how to stop the flow of Heartless from consuming the place."
Everybody looked at him, startled. "Wait, you know how to stop the Heartless?!" Donald asked. "Yes, but it isn't easy to find." Lightning answered, "Follow me." She brought everyone outside with her, and beckoned Snow to his side. "Snow, try to think about what our purpose here is." Lightning told him. "What?" Snow asked, confused. "Think about what our duties are to this town and to this world." Lightning repeated, "Think about that, and nothing else."
"Why think it when you can say it out loud?" Snow asked, turning to the sky, "It's our duty as heroes to protect this town with everything we got!" "And it's our duty to bring the innocent people who's worlds were lost by the darkness." Lightning followed. "And though we may stumble here and there, kinda like how I did today, we should never give up!" Snow proclaimed, "We must continue on with everything we have!" "To protect friends, families and loved ones." Lightning finished, "That is our purpose, and we will never go away from that path!"
Just then, both Lightning and Snow started to glow brightly, startling everyone. Two beams of light shined out up into the sky, and suddenly, a large Keyhole appeared. "Hey, is that what I think it is?" Goofy asked. "A Keyhole!" Leafa answered eagerly. Sora, Kirito and Asuna gathered together, looking up at the Keyhole in the sky. Their Keyblades appeared in their hands, glowing brightly. They looked to one another, and realized what must be done.
Two bright circles appeared on the ground around Snow and Lightning. They grew bigger as they moved towards the three Keyblade wielders. One at a time, they twirled their Keyblades around, directing them at the Keyhole. Three separate beams shot out of them, hitting the Keyhole, locked it, and made a sparkling of light appear as it disappeared. Then everything went back to normal.
The sparkling lights showered upon the three Keyblade wielders, and they raised their hands to feel it. "I feel something." Kirito stated. "It feels so warm." Asuna felt, placing her hand onto her heart. "I feel…a sense of purpose in me." Sora stated, turning to Lightning, "What just happened?" "The woman called it the 'Keyhole of Bonds'." Lightning answered. "Keyhole…of Bonds?" Sora asked.
"The woman had little time to explain it to us in detail before she left." Hope intruded, "But she told us to tell you this; you must forge the bonds between people within each world in order to forge the Keyholes. She also said not to rush it, but that the Keyholes will reveal themselves in due time." "So I guess this means we're on another search for keyholes." Kirito sighed, experiencing deja vu, "Still, it will mean that we can stop the Heartless from invading other worlds. Lets go for it!"
(Cue KHII OST 'Sora's Theme')
The six heroes gathered together once more, now eager for to discover the Keyholes of Bonds. "I guess this means that we should revisit the worlds we've been to before." Sora stated, "I can't wait for it!" Kirito turned to Leafa and Riku. "In that case, how about you two go back to our world and tell King Mickey about this." Kirito told them, "And while you're at it, discover where the Keyhole of Bond is at." "Right!" Leafa responded. "We'll go look for it." Riku followed.
"Sora, there is something I should give you." Lightning told Sora, holding out something to him. It was a Keyblade keychain. It was silver, with a silver symbol that looked like the tattoo on Snow's forearm. "That's the Blazefire Keyblade." Yui explained, "It grants powerful physical strength, and your Thunder spells will increase in strength."
"It was the prize for the L'cie Cup tournament." Lightning explained, "We decided that you are better off with it. Plus, there are these as well." She held out three magic orbs. "Those are Magnet Elements." Yui explained, "Your Magnet will turn into Magnera." Sora, Asuna and Kirito took the orbs respectively.
"Hey, I gotta question." Asuna started, "Just who was this woman that told all about this?" "We don't know." Hope replied, "But she did tell us her name was Gretinal." "Gretinal, huh?" Asuna repeated, "I wonder how she knows of the Keyholes?" "We can wonder about that later." Kirito responded, "Right now, we need to lock the Keyholes of Bonds so that no more worlds can disappear!"
Yui called upon the Gummi ship while Recon called upon his. The six heroes departed to their ship while Riku, Kairi, Leafa and Recon went to theirs. Once they were on boards, the six heroes got into their seats. "Yui, set coordinates to the next world!" Sora declared. "Roger!" Yui responded, tapping in the coordinates before the Gummi ship took off.
As they flew, they saw the other Gummi ship taking a different route, going towards Kirito and Asuna's world. They watched them leave, then Kirito looked forward. We'll save them all! Kirito thought determinately, looking onward as they took off towards the next world.
There you have it: The Keyholes of Bonds are the things that'll stop the Heartless flow. Will it also lead the team to the way in stopping Vanitas, Maleficent, Pete and the mysterious cloaked man get his way? Only time will tell. And who is this 'Gretinal' character? Well, I'll give you a hint: the name Gretinal is an anagram for 'triangle'. I wonder where in Kingdom Hearts that sounds familiar?
The Blazefire Keyblade will be added to my 'things to draw' list, along with the last Keyblade to which I haven't gotten to yet. Don't worry, they'll get posted sooner or later. For the time being, leave a review, tell your friends, and wait for the next episode!
Next time on SAKII:
Asuna: While Sora, Kirito and Goofy take care of one world, we'll handle the Pretty Cure one!
Yui: I wonder if Hummy has found her friend Siren?
Asuna: She might have some trouble trusting anyone right now.
Donald: Look! That girl might know. Excuse me!
Helen: Eh?! It's you three!
Asuna: Wait a minute...Siren?
Author: On the next Sword Art Kingdom II: Dimensional Bonds: Helen's Trust! Cure Beat is Born!
Sora, Asuna & Kirito: Lets unlock the path to our bonded hearts!