The Black Flame
(This next Chapter is based off of the t.v. series for this book series. So without further or due, I hope you enjoy this next installment of KH: The Eternal Beyond.)
Hours had passed. Sora and the others, Riku, Kairi, Torahne, Mickey, Donald, Goofy and Henry, travelled into a portal Torahne created and from there travelled to an unknown world that they had never seen before. As they arrived, they noticed they were surrounded in a thicket of woods and they decided to keep trudging through figuring there would be a way out of the woods and back on track to their quest. Yet as they kept going, Kairi and Henry got caught in a thicket of branches of an evergreen tree and Henry said as Donald and Goofy pried him from the tree, "Man these trees sure can poke you good. I got a nasty cut on my wrist just from one of those branches." Riku took a look at the ripping flesh cut along his right wrist and said, "I got just the thing." Riku took out some bandages and wrapped a couple on his hand to keep the cut clean and protected from infection just as they neared the clearing into a calm valley. Henry then holding his hands together in a kind gentle way said, "Thanks Riku. My cut feels all better." Riku smiled as the boy said this and replied kneeling, "Think nothing of it. You and Sora here aren't that different." Sora then asked, "Now what's that supposed to mean?" Kairi then smiled as he asked this and said, "Oh Sora. He just means that you and Henry are really nice and kind is all." Mickey then said, "shh…Torahne sees something."
Torahne took a look down into the valley where there was a giant red brick castle. It was designed in a European fashion, there was a Mess Hall at the castle's center and along the edges of it were roses red and plum like the sunsets of Destiny Island. Torahne noticed a bonfire inside and said noticing a rat at the center with his other crew along with a few tied up rabbits, shrews, hedgehogs, and all other sort of woodland creatures. The rat at the center had one mouse in particular that was tied up. He was tall, wore a red and green cloak covering the top half of his body, his eyes brown and deep filled with hatred for the rat and his teeth were gritting as this rat sneered in a triumphant way. This rat being rather a tiny bit shorter than Matthias, had dark brown eyes like that of hell itself, a hook on the end of his tail, a patch over his right eye and a scar over that eye covered with a black patch. He wore a dark purple cape over his purple cloth covering his chest with a skull of a small creature holding the cape to his shirt and showing off his stamina. The group kept going down the valley towards the castle slowly, but noticed rat guards holding their posts and walked back and forth left to right keeping watch. They slowly crept over the walls of the castle only to be caught sneaking inside. The rat along with a few other rats of his own, some heartless and nobodies to boot tied them up and he then said, "Well, well, well. What do you suppose we have here Cheesethief?" "I reckon some trespassers. They're like that one boy we saw all those years ago, you know the one that…", Cheesethief said, but was interrupted by Cluny's tail gripping his neck as he Cluny said, "I realize that. Now then enough of that…" then his tail threw him to the ground with scars around Cheesethief's neck.
Kairi hid behind Sora as she said, "Oh no!!!" As she did, Cluny stared at the dame in utter delight as he gripped Kairi's neck with his tail and he said, "Such a fine maiden. The witch told us of you and your powers. However these are in pale comparison to that of the seven Princesses of Life." Sora bit Cluny's tail and yelled out, "Leave her alone you creep!!" and as Cluny yelped backward, a few of the other rats gripped Sora's head as Cluny knelt down to eye level with Sora and sneered in his face. "You incorrigible little child!! You will be the first to die. I have already made plans to that mouse warrior there. The legendary Matthias couldn't even protect his precious Cornflower!!", he said. "You coward!! Mark my words Cluny, I will get her back from you.", Matthias yelled out in anger all tied up. Cluny then yelled to the top of his lungs, "Execute them all. I have no need for these fools any longer!!" (I would listen to the Encounter from KH since it does glamorize this part quite well) Yet before he could, a portal opened and a youthful chest brown haired kid walked through in a black shirt and a nice blue 7's jeans with his Sword of Light in hand, along with Roxas who rejoined into Sora once more, along with Inuyasha and his friends. Sora and the others smiled as Henry did so too and Henry yelled out, "Victor!! You're okay!!" Cluny then yelled out, "What?!? Seize them!!" Pretty soon the whole lot of the rats charged towards them and a battle ensued.
Victor then engaged himself into untying Matthias, and as he did, Matthias grabbed his sword quickly and clashed with Cluny before he could lay a claw on Victor. Cluny then began fighting both Victor and Cluny at the same time as he held them off move for move. "You scurvy little imbeciles. Even while you fight me now, with this new power I have been granted, you are falling for the Squadron's plans as well as Maleficent's." Victor then said, "Maleficent? What does she have to do with this?" "She's been giving them a clue as to the whereabouts to all Seven of Princesses of Life. Even now they have four of the seven princesses." Inuyasha untied Riku and they began taking on three to ten rats at a time, while Miroku untied Sora and Henry and fought many other rats with Sango and Kagome. Victor and Matthias held off Cluny as he made a move from his left with his tail, then a right with his pirate like sword and Cluny clashed with Victor's Sword of Light as he said, "After all these years, I have a chance at vengeance on both you the mouse warrior Matthias and that same boy who defeated me with you all those years ago." Cluny then used the power of darkness itself to create a sword of darkness of his own to clash with Victor and pushed Matthias aside. Yet the mouse warrior never gave up and both Victor and Matthias teamed up together to finally destroy Cluny in a single slash as he said falling to his death, "Defeated again…by a bunch of children and mice!!" Then as the war ended, all sorts of animals from far and wide cheered as they celebrated, with Sora, Henry, Donald, Goofy and Kairi racing towards Victor and collapsing while hugging him and whatnot.
Henry most of all smothered Victor in hugs as he said, "I thought I'd never see you again Victor!! We were all so worried." Victor then rubbed Henry's green hair with a nice smile as he said, "You can't get rid of me that easily my boy. I got too much to tell you all. Let alone about the seven Princesses of Life." Time passed as Sora and the others listened to Victor's story about Naraku, the fact Roxas was temporarily separated from Sora once more, to which Victor explained that his somebody was nearby and like metal to a magnet was automatically drawn back to Sora with ease. Then Matthias and his friends, Constance, Basil Staghare and many others explained that Cluny and his rats were resurrected and attacked Redwall Abbey, as they did nine years ago. Victor then said, "That was shortly after my brothers and I left for Calgary too that I became a better person and first started travelling to other worlds like you did, but give or take at least five or six years before you." Matthias nodded as he said, "It was thanks to Victor during that time and today that Redwall is saved. I thank you old friend, but I wish Cornflower was alright though." Victor held his old friend's right shoulder as he said, "We'll get her back. I promise." Even as he said this, Torahne then asked Victor, "So what happened then Victor? You just disappeared under that rubble and we never saw you again. Except that blue box present you gave Henry." Henry pulled it out and showed the yellow scarf inside it and wrapped it around his neck as Victor said, "It's very complicated Torahne. It all has to with the duties I have as a member of the MVC and even long before that." Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Kairi and the others waited as they stared at Victor in anticipation of hearing all of this and he added, "You guys wouldn't want to hear it though right?" They nodded saying they did want to and then Victor replied before starting, "I shall begin then. But just be warned though, a lot of the events in this story are somewhat sad at the beginning and the middle of the story, but get better as it progresses towards the end." So then Victor told his brother's story (the Perfect Trio essentially).
By the time he ended it over three and a half hours later, the entire group of Constance, Matthias, Inuyasha and his friends, or even Sora and the regular group were all crying, smiling and whatnot as Victor concluded, "…up to the point to when I found Destiny Island and saw Kairi standing there all alone, thus when I met you and Riku face to face." Sora then said, "I had no idea." Mickey fell silent as did Kagome for a temporary bit of time and then she gave Victor a brief hug, Inuyasha not minding since Victor and him went way back in his story to facing off against the Band of Seven!!! Victor then said, "I did tell you guys. That's why my brothers and I have to do what we have to do. We are all connected in this little chain of events. It started out as the Squadron trying to resurrect the Burning Legion, but now they want to resurrect their souls. Essentially to save time, they did similar things to Xehanort…er Torahne here when he was Xehanort except with the souls of beings creating the 'Ghastlies'. Eight of them were there and we just took out one of those guys. The silver hooded man was Oliea before he changed his name, like Organization XIII. They of course have conflicts with my brothers and I because in order to complete their deeds, they need our souls as well as the souls of the Princesses of Life, the destiny crests and our good man Henry here." Riku then said, "Seems like a pretty big list." "Acquiring a soul is harder than getting your heart back that's for sure." Then as the group headed out to leave Matthias then asked Victor, "Is there anything we can do to help? I'd love to repay you for your gratitude." Victor thought and said, "Search many lands and many worlds for survivors. We'll need all the help we can get at this point. These guys want a war and we'll give it to them. No doubt we will." Then Victor summoned his portal and the entire group, with Inuyasha and co. went along with them.
(What a chapter. As you can see I referenced this to my story the Perfect Trio since it has a lot to do with why the MVC is the way it is. It is kind of paralleling Sora's life with his friends and that of the world's history as I have compared my family's lives. It also is key to why this story is as big as it is. More to come yet.)
(Next Time: Victor vs. Darkness.)
(If you can at all, please review.)