Chapter 36: Train to the Tower
Everyone soon caught up to Valdamar, his head already stuck underneath the train's rear like a mechanic looking under a car. "What the heck are you doing?" Neku said looking at Valdamar.
Valdamar scooted out for a moment. "You guys weren't lying when you said this needed to get fixed. There's about ten major problems with this thing. I've fixed six so far, and the last four shouldn't take too long."
"Just how quick did you get here?" Kairi said.
Vald shrugged, putting back on his fedora which sat next to his sword as he was underneath the train. "I run fast I guess. The rest of the stuff I need to do from the inside. Wait out here for a few minutes."
With that, he entered inside, but he left the door open. "Just who does this guy think he is? Harrison Ford?" Axel said. (1)
"We meet him because Neku found the train was wrecked. Pence had met him once so he was able to find him for us. Then the soulz showed up and you know the rest," Sora said.
"Well, you had better luck then us," Namine said.
The three former nobodies then explained their run in with Xidmun and the scary illusion that Roxas went through. "He's sounds dangerous," Goofy said.
"Ha," Yami said without emotion. "You think that he was dangerous. There are more powerful and dangerous things than him."
"How would you know?!" Donald said.
Yami was quiet for a second. "Let's see, facing Ansem when he tried to kill me, being lost in the darkness, facing enormous amounts of heartless. Pretty much sums it all," Yami said.
The group was quiet for a moment. "So you were stuck in the darkness?" Namine asked.
"For a while, yeah. I don't remember half what happened. But that's how the darkness works, isn't it? Offering you things you seek, only to be fake and strike down at you."
"Yeah, it kind of is," Riku said, remembering when he was first introduced to the darkness.
"But there is hope for me. That is why I search the Royal Scroll."
"Why's that?" Sora asked.
"The Royal Scroll mainly talks about something about some crossroad. That part I could be less concerned with. The part I need to know is a small portion that talks of the Crystal of Darkness."
Riku's eyebrows raised up. "The Crystal of Darkness? Isn't that supposed to bring pain and suffering to any world it is brought to?"
Yami nodded. "Correct. But also if one in the darkness touched the crystal, they will be removed from the darkness, but their powers will not be removed. The Royal Scroll gives an incantation that the person must say while in contact with the Crystal of Darkness. The darkness…still has a hold on me. A hold I don't really care for anymore. I want to rid of it. That is how I ran into your so-called friend named Riku when I stumbled upon part of the Scroll."
"You found a piece!" Kairi said.
Riku took it out of his pocket and gave it to Sora. "I told her she could work with us, considering we're both looking for similar goal. That sound good?" Riku asked.
"Sure, I'm Sora!"
Everyone introduced themselves till Axel was last. "Name's Axel. Got it memorized?"
Yami looked at him with an odd expression. "Uh…yeah?"
"Good, you're a quick learner, now spell it."
Yami looked really annoyed, then put a grin and walked up to Axel. "A-S-S"
"Hey wait a min-"
Before Axel could finish, Yami slapped him across the face and stepped into the train. "Great, it's always the crazy chicks," Axel murmured.
Vald then walked out of the train. "You think all of us can fit in this thing? It's kinda small."
"We don't have time! Yen Sid is in trouble!" King Mickey said as the rest of the croup ran in, knocking Vald to the inside of the train comically.
******
Banirith approached Xidmun. "So, how did it go?" The leader of the soulz asked.
"Nope. None of them are holding the Royal Scroll. If they didn't spread it out among themselves, that means one of them in particular is holding all the pieces they have so far," Xidmun explained.
Banirith scratched his chin. "I just think I know who. Sora. Next time we meet, we'll have to orange to take those. Everyone has been sent to the words I ordered to?"
"Everyone except Vexen. He went to that other world again."
Banirith sighed. "He's gone over his head. Once again, just like his nobody, he goes so far that he's going to get himself killed."
******
The train moved across the tracks over the ocean leaving the town as Neku told a story that happened his old town, Shibuya. "So let me get this straight…you died, then could live a second time by playing this death game?" Valdamar said.
Neku shrugged. "Pretty much in a nutshell."
Roxas shook his head. "It's odd. We've never met but I've always had the feeling that we know each other from before…" (2)
Yami stared out the window than now showed the cosmos, the train traveling across neon tracks in space. "Uh, what just happened?"
"Master Yen Sid's tower is in a place on the edge of this world," Goofy explained.
"So, Valdamar, what's your story?" Sora asked.
"Yeah. How did you know about the Seekers anyway?" Riku asked.
Valdamar was silent. "I missed my entire last year of school traveling with a friend. Halfway through the travel, my friend disappeared, mostly likely somewhere in the darkness. Trying to find my friend, I ran into the soulz and Banirith. He fooled me into thinking that he was good, but you already know what he's after. After realizing he was mad, I ran for it, not nearly making it. I returned to Twilight Town after a few months and thought I could relax. But, Banirith is now looking around for the Royal Scroll himself. If you're against him, count me in."
Sora shook his hand. "Good to have you on the team."
The train then came to a stop and the twelve stepped out of the train to look at Yen Sid's tower. Valdamar gave a low whistle. "Nice place."
"And it'll be all mine!" Sora could then see Pete running up to them. "You? Here? Again?" Sora said annoyed remembering when he first encountered Pete.
"Just what are you up to Pete?" King Mickey asked.
"Me? I came following you pipsqueaks! And I followed you here. And now, if you don't want yourselves to get hurt, you can just give me those weird papers you've got."
"There's no way you're getting the Royal Scroll!" Kairi said.
"This guy is against us?" Yami whispered to Valdamar.
"Don't judge a book by its cover Yami. This guy works for Maleficent," Roxas said standing behind them.
"Not surprising. Some old person who thinks they can order a bunch of lackeys but sits in a chair all day as people do their dirty work for them. Why is it the bad guys are so predictable?" Valdamar said.
"Oh, but that's where you're wrong buster!" Pete said.
"It's Vald, not Buster!"
"Oh, I don't care about your name, except you're wrong. Why, Maleficent is here with me."
"What?!" Riku said.
"That's right. And any minute now she'll have reached Yen Sid and gotten that spell we need."
"Not on our watch!" Sora said summoning the Kingdom Key as the rest brought out their weapons. "Donald; Goofy; you think you can take care of him?" Sora asked.
"No problem Sora!" Goofy said charging towards Pete with his shield, Donald with his staff behind him.
The group ran off to let them fight. "This is gonna be easy!" Pete said.
Pete ran forward and threw his right fist into a punch which Goofy blocked with his shield. Pete brought back his hand and threw another punch at Donald, who ducked (3) and raised his staff. "THUNDER!"
Lightning bolts danced and hit Pete as he stumbled back. Goofy ran forward and smashed his shield into Pete as the large cat fell to the ground. "Ow ow ow ow ow!" Pete yelled standing up, and then cracked his knuckles. "So, you want to play rough, eh?"
Pete than created a small yellow ball of energy and bowled it towards Goofy. Goofy managed to step out of the way a second one headed towards Donald. Donald jumped over it and send a ball of fire back at Pete, who dodged it as well. "Well, take this on for size!" Pete said, and he became surrounded by a spherical shield. "Ha! Pete's invincible!"
Goofy then punched orb Pete was in with his shield, and Pete began to roll away, his screams somewhat muffled by the orb. Donald also used Aero to push Pete even further till he rolled into the train and Pete collapsed in the bottom of the train, birds flying around his head. "All aboard!" Goofy said closing the door.
The train whistled, and then chugged off down the tracks, the destination known of it's passenger. "We'd better catch up with Sora and the others," Goofy said.
"Let's go!" said Donald.
*****
The gang entered the tower and began to ascend the first staircase. "So who's this Maleficent that we're after?" Valdamar said.
"She's a witch that controls the heartless. What she's after this time is most likely Kingdom Hearts again. She also gets a lot of people from other worlds to help her," Sora said reaching the first door of the tower.
"So the lizard we fought back in Radiant Garden worked with her?" Neku said.
"Pretty much," Kairi said as they walked into the first room.
They all gasped as the saw Shadows, Fat Bandits and Bandits crowded in the small room. "Great. A welcoming party," Yami said.
"I'll stay behind and take care of these guys," Riku said. "You all go on ahead and get Maleficent."
"I'll help ya Riku," the King said as he and Riku took out their keyblades.
The group ran past the heartless as Riku and King Mickey began to attack the Fat Bandits seeing as being the harder targets in the room. After distracting one, Riku attacked a normal Bandit so Mickey could attack on of the fat ones. After taking it out, they had more room to move about as Riku and the King became back to back. "Remember that old trick we used back in Castle Oblivion?" Riku asked.
"You betcha!"
"Your majesty!"
"I'll help!"
Riku and the King hovered midair back to back as the King fired Pearl and Riku shot orbs of darkness. They spun around as their attacks hit the heartless. They stopped as the last heartless had been defeated, and they both ran for the door opposite from where they had entered as Donald and Goofy entered from the door they had come from. "Your majesty!" Donald said.
"Come on fellas! We have to catch up with everyone!" The King waved as the two ran forward.
*****
"Great. More," Roxas said as they entered the second room.
This one contained Neoshadows, Darkballs, and Wizards. "We got this one, no sweat," Axel said, referring to Roxas and Namine.
The rest of the group continued leaving the three Soulz against the Heartless. "Hey Roxas, you think I might be able to do that one with Namine here?" Axel asked.
Roxas looked at Axel wide eyed. "That? Here?"
"What?" Namine said.
"Here, let me explain…"Axel explained as the heartless approached them.
******
The five entered the third room and found more heartless. However, this one had five Brutes and Six Guards. Apparently Maleficent had left nothing to chance, leaving the more powerful Heartless in the last room. "Any bright ideas?" Neku asked.
"I'm going after Maleficent! You guys stay here!" Sora jumping to the side of a Guard as it tried to swing its sword at the Keyblader's head.
"Sora!" Kairi called out after Sora, but he already gotten through the last door, and heartless began to surround the four, leaving one option: to stand and fight.
Kairi and Yami summoned their keyblades as Valdamar cracked his neck and took out his sword in his left hand, whip in his right. Neku raised a few inches above the ground levitating, his hands raised in front of him. Two Guards swung their axe arms Yami, but she brought up her keyblade holding back their weapons with one hand as she held out her other hand, a powerful gust of wind knocking them back. Kairi then quickly advanced upon the heartless Yami knocked down and stabbed her keyblade through both of them, returning them to the darkness. Valdamar sparred with another Guard and quickly finished it off by slicing through it. Only then he noticed there were two Brutes , one on either side of him. One swung its claw arms at him as he let his feet drop underneath him so he fell on his back on the floor, the claws missing him. He quickly then rolled to the side to dodge the other Brutes as it slammed its clawed fists into the ground where Valdamar was previously. "That was too close," he said to himself as he got back up and attacked.
Vald swung his sword knocking back one of the Brute's claws as he swung his whip out catching the other Brute around its neck. Grimacing from the weight of the Brute, Vald tugged quickly and brought the Brute off the ground as it flew briefly knocking itself into the other Brute. The two heartless had stabbed each other with their claws by accident. "Bad side of having weapons for hands," Valdamar commented.
He then quickly ducked as he saw a Guard fly over his head. "HEY! Watch it! I'm fighting over here!"
"Sorry! Geez," Neku said as he pulled the heartless back through the air into the other wall with his psych abilities.
He dropped it to the ground as he dodged the swing from another Guard's sword. He held his palm out as small balls of light began to come from his hand and knock the heartless back several feet, the last blast sending the Guard ablaze to its end. Feeling worn down one of the remaining Brutes come towards him, Neku levitated a few more inches above the ground, a current of water flowing around him as healing magic slowly healed his wounds. The Brute raised its claws up and swiped them at Neku, but the claws bounced off the current flowing around Neku. Neku gave a small grin, but still concentrated on the psych ability that healed him and protected him at the same time.
He then saw a black keyblade stick through the Brute's midsection and pulled out. The Brute disappeared, leaving Yami standing there, looking at Neku. "Hurry up and help water boy," she said and turned to face another Brute.
Neku shook his head and dropped to the ground ending the healing. This girl hardly had any manners. He could already tell he wasn't going to like her. Kairi on the other side of the room shot light magic through the last Guard as the two remaining Brutes stood back to back. However, before anyone could attack, a pillar of flame broke from the floor beneath them, burned up the heartless, and continued to rise above them going through the ceiling of the room. The pillar of flames soon died out a circular hole was left in the floor and ceiling. Cautiously, Neku looked over the edge. "You have got to be kidding me."
Valdamar looked over and gave a low whistle. They could see the room below them a floor down, and from what they could tell, most of it was charred. "AXEL YOU IDIOT!" Roxas yelled from below.
"Look, I didn't expect it to blow up nearly the entire room!"
Namine then walked stumbled into the room where the four where, panting. "They…were going to blow them all up…I ran as fast as I could…"
"What kind of an idiot are you?" came the voice of Donald on the floor below.
"A stupid one," Yami said.
Axel murmured something under his breath that was not audible from a floor above, but Kairi didn't have to guess along what the lines he was thinking of. "Come on, we better catch up to Sora."
(1) Axel thinks of this because of Vald's fedora and whip. The whip was not originally part of Valdamar's character, but I thought it fit him after a bit of thought.
(2) The Japanese voice actor for Roxas also did the voice of Neku in the Japanese game It's A Wonderful Life
(3) Ha, a duck ducking, what a pun
King Mickey's Inverse Burst Note: This is a limit from Re: Chain of Memories, Reverse/Rebirth
Sorry about not updating, I've been so busy it's nothing to laugh about. Next chapter in a few days to end this world.
Dezblade