"Fortunately, His Majesty found you drifting in the Lanes Between and brought you back to me to receive proper care. I am sorry, but there was no sign of him."
-ancient sorcerer, Yen Sid IV
Chapter Twenty: Crossing Over
Riku opened his eyes, seeing a young woman in black and burgundy. She had a cloak over her head and her outfit was of Goth Lolita. Her pale skin shown underneath and she stood in the middle of the darkness. She lifted her head and Riku could see yellow eyes, like the ones that Keyblade-wielding nun had. He was suspect as he spotted a silver and purple hued Keyblade in her hands.
"Oh, you…You can see me? That's kinda good…and bad…" the cloaked one said.
Riku found himself coming closer, asking, "Who are you?"
"I'm a friend. A friend that was lost for a while, but came back when a certain guy tried to open up your reality called the 'Sacred Realm'," she answered.
"Um, what?" Riku asked, not getting it.
The young woman turned around, looking up at the pitch-black sky. She sighed, telling Riku, "You met with that nun, didn't you? And she tried to kill you, right?"
"Yeah, back on Kilika Island. Wait, I'm still there, though," Riku said.
"You are. Just asleep in Kilika Port's inn. And you're looking for the captain Tia Dalma wanted to give that jar of dirt to. It's just like before," the youth told him.
Looking around and not feeling any malice from her, Riku asked, "So, if I'm still there and asleep…is this a dreamscape?"
"Yes and no. But, I can't tell too much or else he'll get really mad at me," the girl said.
"Who?" Riku asked.
"That guy that saved Ventus…All I can say is that you can call me Nio and we'll keep you and your worlds safe. All you have to do is make sure that the Dark One of your world doesn't fully awaken. If he does, then there's no telling what'll happen," Nio told him.
Riku felt that he could trust her, despite just meeting inside his head. If he told the others, he was sure that they'll abandon him in Kilika and send him to a psych ward…or worse. Nio smiled, telling him, "I doubt it. They'll need to be on alert to and already talked with the others."
Just before Riku could ask anything else, Nio told him, "Next time, we'll meet in another place. A safe haven. If you see all blue when you start to go to sleep, then it's okay. You'll head to the safe place. And your friends too."
She faded and a pool of darkness appeared underneath Riku. He tried to fight his way out of it, but he quickly sunk as if it was quicksand.
Menphina 28th, the Black Pearl…
"So…bored…" Tidus whined, laying flat on his back on the ship's deck.
Rikku and Yuna stared out at the ocean, not knowing what to do. Their Animi were close together, chasing each other around. Ven sat on a banister on the starboard side and Riku was near the front. Waking up with a jolt and nearly getting blinded by the sun, the silver-haired nomad looked around and remembered all that happened before getting on the ship.
They found the captain of the ship, Jack Sparrow, in one of the pubs in Kilika Port. Yuna and Rikku tried to convince him to take them with him, but he wasn't having it. When Tidus showed him the jar of dirt, he sighed and allowed them to go, not before muttering about being in debt even more to Tia Dalma.
Sitting up, Riku saw the massive ocean that made of the World of Endless Seas. He had few memories living there with his parents, on the Destiny Islands. They were among the many nomads that lived there, and everything was peaceful until the Yevonites came and attacked. They were all separated and sent to different worlds for their safety. But it wasn't enough as the dark forces found his family and attacked and he became separated from them. He assumed they died as that was what Sora told him when they were reunited after so many years…
"Oy! No sleeping on deck!" a scraggily pirate dressed mostly in leather said.
Riku groaned and said, "Yeah, yeah, Mister Sparrow."
"Uh, it's Cap'n Jack Sparrow," Captain Sparrow told him.
"Yeah, whatever. Where are we headed again?" Riku asked.
The captain pulled out a small compass, opened it and stared at it for a few moments. Kiba leaned over, asking Riku, "So, why is he staring at that thing?"
Riku shrugged, and the captain told him, "This compass'll help us find what needs be findin'. Savvy?"
"Uh, what?" Kiba said.
"CAP'N! We're comin' up on Besaid Island!" the 2nd Mate, Gibbs, yelled from the ship's wheel.
"Wait, why are we going there?" Ven asked, approaching.
"Tia Dalma left a note in that jar of dirt, tellin' me to take ya to Besaid Island," Captain Sparrow told them.
"Bu-But, that's not crossing into…" Ven said.
"Oh, but there's a door in the temple that can help with that. But…" Yuna said, the three friends coming to his side.
Rikku added, "The place is seriously Yevonite. Like they got really mad when I said that I was Yunie's guardian because I'm Al Bhed."
"And they weren't too happy with me either, mainly because the World of Dream got different rules for summoners and guardians," Tidus told them.
A nearby sailor yelled, "Wait, what's that?"
The water around the ship had turned black and the shadow suddenly shot off towards Besaid Island. Running for the wheel, Captain Jack said, "Well, that's maddeningly unhelpful. Ready the sails! We're goin' after that thing!"
"Whoa! But, Cap'n. The Yevonites…" Gibbs told him.
"What? It's not like they haven't chased us before," Cap'n Sparrow said.
The Black Pearl started sailing faster as the wind pushed it towards the island.
"The darkness that invaded Kilika Island…what was that?"
"More like a 'who' than 'what'."
"What do you mean? Jones what do you mean?"
"I meant what I said. We must act before his power reaches its peak."
"How? What can we do? What can any of us do?"
"Remember how the Dark One was sealed in Zanarkand over 1,500 years ago?"
"Um, yeah. I think."
"We do the same to him. Bind him in his bones and seal him away."
"But, where can we?"
"We have to convince the Yevonites…to seal him away in their temple. That's the only place that could hold him."
"Calypso? Calypso? What do you think?"
"….You don't care what I think."
"Yes, we do. It's just you must let go. Caiden's gone. He's not coming back."
"But what if he does? And we-we seal him anyway? He'll hate us forever."
"Woman, are you out of it? He already hates you, for 'holding him back'."
"It wasn't him talking. It was the darkness!"
"Calypso, we must. If not, then we risk this world ending."
Besaid Island, beach…
The dark waters that appeared around the Black Pearl coalesced around the port. Luckily for it, the island's sailors and the Yevon-ran ferry weren't present and it rose out of the water, taking human shape. It took the form of a tall human, with silver and brown hair. The water on his pale skin turned into pants and a sleeveless shirt, colored dark purple with blue stripes on the sides. Barefoot, he kept walking on the white, sandy beaches and didn't care that his footsteps created black scars.
"Leave."
The man ignored the feminine voice and continued walking, finding a dirt path that led into the jungle. The voice spoke again, "I will not tell you again. Leave, foul beast."
"'Foul beast'…?" the man asked.
A barrier appeared, blocking entrance farther into the island. The man looked around, his yellow eyes turning orange and the voice said, "I warned you, monster. Leave! Now!"
"No…" the man growled.
Darkness seeped from his body, distorting the air around him. A summoning sigil appeared and a wyvern appeared. It was the summon spirit of the island, a Valefor. The wyvern glared and said, "Why do you not leave?"
"Because I want to be here," the man said, his figure cloaked in darkness.
The shadows distorted his form and dark clouds appeared over the island. The skies were black as night and the wyvern glanced around as her vision became poor. With a single breath, and remembering where the shadow was, the wyvern fired off a beam of light from her maw, striking the beach and causing a massive explosion.
Thinking that she got her target, the wyvern looked to return to her abode. But it was a mistake as she heard, "Stupid…Valefor…"
Black chains and lightning struck the wyvern, a Valefor, and she fell from the skies. When she struck the ground, the darkness appeared in front of her. A humanoid figure wielding a black and red Keyblade appeared and, with one swoop, stabbed the Valefor in the heart. Shadows went into her, causing her to fade.
Once gone, the shadowy figure returned to his previous state, dismissing the Keyblade and the dark clouds. He continued his trek, muttering, "I-I must cross, Lissa…Y-You…You understand now, right?"
Yuna held her chest, feeling a sharp pain. Riku and Ven noticed, and the blonde asked, "Are you okay?"
"Y-Yes…but something's wrong…" Yuna told them.
"H-Hey! Yuna! Something's wrong with the Valefor in Besaid…Lissa…!"
A ball of fire appeared and Rikku said, "Huh? Ohalland?"
It bobbled, as if saying yes, and changed to a bestial child with horns. His fur was fire red and his skin dark brown and marred with red tattoos. He looked to Ven and said, "Heya, I see that you're here in one piece."
"Um, are you…?" Ven asked.
"Yup! Ohalland, the guy that saved you in that dreamscape!" the little Ifirit, Ohalland, told him.
Riku rolled his eyes and said, "Okay. What's with a Valefor in Besaid Island?"
Ohalland quickly got back on subject, telling the group, "There was this guy, right, who just came onto the beach. Lissa tried to stop him because Besaid Island's really important to this world. But he turned into darkness and struck her down with chains and then stabbed her in the heart with a Keyblade! A Keyblade!"
Ven covered his ears and said, "Okay, you don't have to yell!"
"You don't understand! It was a dark Keyblade and he stabbed her with it and she disappeared! And if an aeon gets corrupted, then they'll turn dark and turn on people! It happened before when the Dark One corrupted a whole bunch of summons in the Old World!" Ohalland shouted.
"And the Feymarch vowed to never have that happen again," Yuna told Ven.
Ven and Riku knew something bad was going to happen if they didn't intervene and that feeling was right. A lookout called and yelled "Land ho! But, I dunno if we want to make port!"
Dark clouds loomed over the horizon, hovering over a small island off in the distance. The lookout called again and Captain Sparrow said, "Weigh anchor. We're usin' the lifeboats!"
"But, Cap'n! The Yevonites…!" Gibbs retorted.
"Who cares? If that monster gets to the door, we're doomed!" Cap'n Sparrow told him.
Besaid Island, village…
After looking at the village on the cliff that overlooked it, the mysterious newcomer walked towards it, taking the dirt path to it. He didn't see the dark clouds that rolled in due to his presence, nor the cracks in the ground and the scars that appeared. He was determined to head for Besaid Temple, a place where he could meet with the fayth and cross over into the next world. He had to find the Princess, the one that hailed from the World of Light.
He had to find her. He just had to. She needed protection and he was the one who could, compared to the others. Especially her guardian, Yozora. He wasn't as strong as he needed to be to protect her.
And, he could prove to his father that he wasn't a screw up. The man didn't see that he was useful, to the point where he knew that he tried to convince his mother to seal him away. When those kids came to the temple, they discovered a "crack" in the barrier wall. That allowed for the seal to break and he took his chance, jumping out, but those kids…They fell into a dark fissure.
But there was no time to worry about them. He had to find a way out of that world and if a few got in the way, then their loss. They were blocking his path and if anything happened, he wasn't responsible, or so he thought.
The villagers were hiding in the many yellow huts, with a few peeking to see the newcomer. He barely paid attention, only looking to his destination, the Besaid Temple. Outside were priests, armed with machina such as guns and flamethrowers. He remembered that they were Yevonites, hypocrites that said no one was to use machina, especially ones that causes war. But they were the ones using such devices.
"Heartless! Return from whence you came," the elderly high priest told him.
The man looked around, seeing the terror in their eyes. He didn't get why. He wasn't a Heartless. If anything, Heartless were terrified of him.
"Leave this place or else we'll make you," a warrior monk holding a flamethrower shouted.
Shadows surrounded the figure and wrapped around him like a blanket. Moments later, an Ifrit-like dark beast replaced him and it said, "Get outta my way!"
It went in for an attack and the monks stood no chance.
With Riku, Ven and the others…
"Whoa…What…What happened her?" Rikku asked, green eyes wide in disbelief.
The entire beach was covered in dark scars and rocky spikes that dangerously jutted out of the ground. The skies were dark, as if it was stuck in perpetual night and the waters crashed onto the beach as if a storm was coming. Ven and Riku looked to Yuna and Tidus, who were also in shock. Yuna trembled and said, "Something…something's very wrong."
"Ya think?" her cousin shouted.
"Ohalland, where's that Valefor? And what's going on?" Tidus asked.
The Kilikan Ifrit reappeared, floating at Yuna's left and said, "The darkness probably took her, so she's probably a Heartless now. And…"
He disappeared as terrified villagers ran towards them. Behind them were gaggles of Shadow and Possessor Heartless. Some of the Possessors entered the villagers, forcing them to violently mutate into more Heartless, while others made to the docks. There, they were rescued by Captain Sparrow's crew via lifeboats.
As the Heartless horde closed in on the docks, Riku and the others blocked the passage and the Keybearers summoned their Keyblades. Yuna readied her staff and Rikku and Tidus readied their weapons, a targe and a broadsword.
The Heartless formed into a Demon Tide and Yuna slammed her staff into the ground, summoning a large pillar of fire. Ohalland the Ifrit appeared, older and much more powerful. He yelled, "Alright! Time to save this island! Hellfire!"
He tossed massive fireballs from his clawed hands, throwing them at the horde. It was captured and locked in a fiery vortex. Ohalland fired of another fireball from his mouth, trapping the horde in a fiery sphere. Finishing off the horde, the Ifrit dug his hands into the earth, tossing a large chunk of rock at the sphere and breaking it.
The horde disappeared, but another round was coming from the road ahead. The second consisted of Air Soldiers, Sapphire Elegies, Storm Bombs and Emerald Serenades. Ohalland looked to Yuna and said, "Well, it's probably best that we get everyone off the island. This place is done for."
"Hey!"
A ball, a blitzball went sailing through the air and struck five Air Soldiers. Lightning bolts came from the heavens and took out a few Storm Bombs. When they exploded with water, most of the horde was taken and Ohalland took the last of them out. When there was a moment's peace, Tidus turned around and shouted, "Wakka? Lulu?!"
A tan-skinned, auburn haired young man in yellow and a pale-skinned, dark haired youth in black came running from the docks. Behind them were a seagull and a black cat Animi. They joined Yuna and the woman, Lulu, said, "I'm not about to lose another home to the Heartless."
"Yeah and we promised Lord Braska to keep this place safe," Wakka said.
"That's great and all, but another horde's coming!" Rikku told them.
The third wave had Bubble Beats, Marine Rumbas, Emerald Sonatas and Mega Shadows. Lulu and Yuna kept their distance, striking with various elemental Artes and healing ones. Wakka was in front of them, striking aerial Heartless with his blitzball. Rikku quickly combined whatever items she had, creating grenades and other incendiaries to toss at the Heartless. Ven, Riku and Tidus went in with the Ifrit, striking and slashing at many of the Heartless. Tidus would use Time Artes to slow down time, allowing for the group and summon spirit to strike at their nearly endless foes faster.
Riku knew that it was futile to keep fighting like that. They needed to find the source and stop it. Just as he thought of finding it, cannon fire came from the Black Pearl, striking the island's Heartless and the beach.
"Hey!" Wakka shouted.
Rikku, Tidus and Yuna retreated and Lulu grabbed Wakka, taking him to the docks. The cannon fire flustered the Heartless and Riku and Ven took their chance to head farther into the island. They dodged the explosions, deftly avoided Heartless attacks and managed to make it to the road leading farther in. But the cannon fire and presence of Heartless forced the two to head for the right path, where an underwater valley was.
With Heartless and cannon fire behind them, Riku and Ventus ran. Riku's Animus was the first to jump while Paolo dove, flying over the water. The Keybearers leapt into the air, landing with loud splashes in the waters below and they utterly underestimated the water's current. They were swept away and the dark waters latched onto Paolo, dragging him under.
Besaid Temple, Great Hall…
The mysterious figure, after wiping out the Yevonite monks and exploring the temple, saw nothing that looked like a door. He remembered his mother's books stating that there was a door to the World of Light. But there was nothing. He even went through the tedious Cloister of Trials, but nothing.
With a yell, he sent a fist flying into one of the statues of the High Summoners, Ohalland. The statue crumbled to dust and his hand trembled violently. He stared at it and asked, "W-Why…Why am I so angry? I…I just want to find her…I have to fix this."
A growl and he felt a presence in the room. Without turning from the dust of the high summoner's statue, he said, "I thought I wiped the floor with you."
Riku and Ventus, with their Animi, sputtered and coughed as they suddenly appeared in the Great Hall. They were soaking wet from being underwater and neither got what the man was saying.
Facing them and giving a terrifying glare, he said, "Wait. You're the kids that got in the way at Kilika Temple. Why are you here? To stop me from crossing? You pathetic Yevonites…"
"Fi-First off…We're not Yevonites. I don't even know what one is," Ven said, getting to his feet.
He staggered and Riku added, "And if we did and were, what's it to you?"
The brown-silver-haired man gave a smirk and Ven was sure his eyes had turned red. With a growl, he told them, "Then you'll just have to die."
He waved a hand and a Valefor, a wyvern-like summon spirit, appeared, but it was completely discolored. Instead of the vibrant purple, yellow and red hue typical of their kind, the Valefor's scales were grey, blood red and white with a glowing red gem in its chest.
"L-Leave this place…LEAVE!" the Dark Valefor said.
"Whoa!" Ven screamed as the summon spirit dove at him.
He narrowly dodged the attack by leaping out of the way and Riku spotted the demented man entering a chamber, blocked off by a golden door that rose up when he gotten close. His attention turned back to the Dark Valefor, who flapped her wings and unleashed her Sonic Wings attack.
Kiba warned for Riku to jump, and he did, seeing a crater where he stood as the attack was powerful. Kiba leapt, clamping his teeth on the Dark Valefor's tail. She violently thrashed about, trying to get the wolf Animus off her tail. Paolo joined, diving down and clawing the Dark Valefor in the face.
Ven aimed Wayward Wind at the corrupted summon spirit and fired off a beam of light. Riku threw his like a shuriken and both attacks struck the Dark Valefor's sides. Annoyed, as the Animi continued their attacks, Dark Valefor spun around, hitting Paolo with her wings and flicking Kiba off her tail.
The two Animi struck the walls and Riku and Ven suddenly felt great pain. Riku nearly doubled over as it was as if the wind was knocked out of him. Ven fell to his knees, clutching his head as the pain was unbearable.
Seeing their weakness, the Dark Valefor rose near the ceiling and flicked her long mane, summoning a sigil. She concentrated as the Keybearers were trying to gather their bearings. They weren't fast enough and the Dark Valefor unleashed many salvos of light beams, striking them and ending the attack with a massive explosion.
Smoke and dust filled the chamber as the Dark Valefor roared in triumph. It was short lived as a beam of dark energy struck the summon spirit, sending her reeling. She looked around in the smoke for it and flapped her wings to get it to disperse. She growled, seeing three hooded figures in the dust.
One wore a black and white, stripped hood and was tall and masculine in appearance. The second was female and she wore black with red trimmings. The third, also male, was in black, grey and green. They summoned Keyblades and glared at the Dark Valefor with golden eyes.
"So, we're really doing this?" the female asked.
"Yup. Just try to keep up," the man in black and white said.
"And not let them die," the one in grey, black and green told his partners.
They jumped into the air, quickly subduing the summon spirit with vicious strikes. Riku and Ven, barely conscious, saw the hooded warriors fight for them. Dizzy and wanting to get away, Riku began crawling towards Kiba, who was crumpled and lying near a statue of a female warrior-summoner. Ven couldn't move and looked to Paolo, who was laying near the exit, where a lift was.
He could see particles of light floating from his Animus and he was feeling quite tired. But he didn't want to go to sleep. If he did, then he probably wouldn't wake up.
Footsteps and he saw a figure in light blue, hooded like the warriors. Ven found himself being carried by her and she went for his Animus, carrying him with her right arm. He then heard, "Don't worry. You're safe. He was right. You are among our friends."
As she spoke, his mind went hazy and he could scarcely see another figure carrying an unconscious Riku and Kiba. Moments later, Ven fell asleep, lulled by the woman's words.
Oh. Um…well, I guess Riku and Ven were rescued. But by who? And what's the deal with that other guy trying to cross into other worlds? Is he like Xehanort, who may or may not appear in this fic? Stay tuned.
And thanks again to WilyGryphon for their reviews. Also, thanks to Foreteller Ava for theirs as well as a guest reviewer. But to that person, I'm not really a fan of writing fanfics for anyone else. If you have an idea for one, just make an account and post.
-miano53