A/N So, uh, been a while... lotsa things happened. Mom came down with Stage 4 cancer, still gettin treated for it... I've been taking care of her an babysitting all 6 of my sis' kids, so it's been difficult to write. but, if you're reading this, then I've probably finished at least the first chapter of this mess on what little free time i have. hit a wall on Rose 10 and I'll eventually go back to Equinox, but I have this, a jojo one and a naruto one in the works... yeah... i know its a lot, but when the inspiration hits it just goes, ya know?
So, the basics of this story. Taylor gets control of the heartless from kingdom hearts. As far as i can see, they are like a force of nature instead of an invading army if they arent being controlled by the baddies if KH. So essentially, after KH3 and Xehanort was defeated, all of the heartless were freed from his control. QA nabbed this control while Taylor was triggering, and since the heartless were used to being used, they agreed... this sounds dumb, but i like the idea of heartless queen fighting endbringers dammit!
Quick edit here, Imma try to fix up this mess soon, I just wanted to get something out that I didn't have to bang my head against the wall for. I know the ending was totally rushed there... but I don't think I really need to get a beta, don't worry, I promise the next one will be a better than this.
Darkness…..
That was what greeted Taylor when she awoke.
A deep inky darkness was all that she could see, and it felt like she was floating in water, but she could breathe just fine.
The last thing she could remember was being in…..
She shook her head, getting rid of that memory as fast as she could. It was not the time to remember that.
Something moved near her in the darkness, making a current that pulled her along for a few moments. Whatever it was, it definitely felt big to her, making the poor girl let out a small yelp in fright.
And with that noise, countless yellow glowing eyes of various sizes opened up all around her, each one staring right at her. One particularly big set of eyes appeared right in front of her after a moment, approaching her slowly but surely. Making no noise, Taylor would've tried to back up or run, if the liquid she was floating in hadn't suddenly turned into tar. The next thing she knew was her being grabbed by a massive hand, and then she found herself on a massive bridge in front of a castle.
The poor girl took a moment to take a few calming breaths and observe her surroundings, confused as to what was going on. The dark sky above her appeared to be a black void, alongside what lied beyond and under the bridge and castle.
It wasn't until she looked over herself did she truly start panicking. Her body had changed! Her skin looked just like the void in the sky, the clothes she was wearing now a set of black and purple robes. Her hair looked even darker than her skin somehow, emitting smoky wisps of something from it, long black horns grew backwards from two spots on her forehead and held some of the hair back from her eyes. There seemed to be something else on her head, but she couldn't take it off or really move it. Even her hands weren't safe from the transformation, turned into sharp claws that would make a tiger jealous.
With almost no noise, something rose out of the abyss below the bridge. It looked like a giant man with long tendril-like hair wrapping around its face, leaving only the yellow eyes uncovered, a hole in the shape of a heart cut seemed to be formed naturally on its chest.
"Uh, h-hello?" Taylor spoke, before touching her neck in surprise, her voice was different, taking on a gentle smoky quality.
The giant just stared down at her, lifting up a massive clawed hand and pointing toward the castle. It didn't seem to want to respond in any other way to Taylor's inquiries, the changed girl throwing up her hands in defeat, something big on her back swinging outwards in her frustration.
"Fine, I'll go to the castle." She told it, walking down the bridge.
The massive front doors of the structure opened on their own once she got near, making her pause in her movements for a moment. She took a deep breath and entered, the main hall being lit by a glowing crystal chandelier. When she got to the center of the room, the front doors slammed shut, making her jump and turn around.
A massive rotund… thing with a tiny head capped with a hat had its stop-sign sized hands on both doors, clearly being the one that shut them. It turned around and looked down at her, nonchalantly scratching at its exposed belly, just as black as the giant outside.
Just as she was going to ask something, a cacophony of noises erupted around her, black orbs materializing and spitting out all sorts of creatures. Strange floating spheres with huge mouths that jerked around in random intervals, a big knight with an even bigger shield with a living face on it, toddler sized bug-people, bigger demon things with a huge greatsword being held in one hand, even some car sized wyverns came out of those portals, all of the various creatures looked like they are made of the same black substance her skin is made of and somehow…. she knew that there were more types of creatures than what showed up.
Somewhere inside her, Taylor felt like she could trust these things. She let out a sigh, running a hand through her hair. "So, do any of you know what's going on with me?"
One of the toddler creatures came up to her and tugged on her robe, pointing at a door leading deeper inside the castle. Not really having any better ideas, she thanked the oddly cute thing, patting its head and giving its antennae a little scratch. The crowd parted to let her through and she entered the room, finding it to be a throne room, if the big fancy black chair was any indication.
"I've always wanted to have my own throne." She said with a smile, quickly walking over to the throne and taking a seat. Sitting in the throne felt right, like she was meant to be there.
The creatures seemed to have followed her into the room, all of their eyes on her as she sat on the throne. When she noticed them, they all bowed toward her in their own ways. It was at this point she realized something.
"I triggered, didn't I?" She said with a sad smile, looking over her…. subjects. "In the locker. My power brought me here and made all of you?"
One of the demon things shook its head, floating towards her, flipping its greatsword over and holding it out for her. Getting the idea, she wrapped her hand around it, her head throbbing when the creature released its hold. She had a vision of an older man with a cruel expression, and then he faded away, making her feel lost and without direction…. and then there was a plea for help, and then Taylor's old nontransformed self appeared in the darkness bringing about a feeling of curiosity and hope.
The vision ended as abruptly as it came, making her gasp and clutch her head with one hand, the other hand not dropping the oddly light sword. She sat there for a few moments, stewing on the vague vision while she nursed her headache, then looked over at the creature that tried to explain. "So, your old master is gone?" It nodded. "And I just showed up after he died?" It nodded again. "You want me to be your new master?" It paused, tilting its head and giving her a scrutinizing look, then nodded.
Taylor furrowed her brow, and then looked over at her newfound…. army? Servants? "I'll do it!" She agreed, smiling widely. "This could be fun." Then she turned back. "Two questions…. Can someone bring me a mirror? and how can I go back home?"
One of the toddler things sunk into the ground and zipped off like a shadow, quickly returning with a bigger mirror than she expected it to carry. It got up to her and the demon helped hold it in place as she gave herself a look over.
"Well…" She noted out loud, seeing her eyes are now the same yellow glow as most of her critters. "This'll creep a lot of people out."
Much to her excitement, the things she was feeling on her back were actually two sets of wings that are big enough for her to wrap around herself if she tried. The second thing she noticed was the heart shaped hole in her chest, her robes having a convenient spot cut away for it to be visible, it was just under her modest breasts. It spooked her a little bit, but the hole seemed to not be an issue with her new body. The last thing was what's on her head, aside from the horns and the smoking hair, was a small bright red crown in the shape of a heart with black thorny vines crossing it out.
Taylor dismissed the tiny thing once she finished looking over herself, deciding to name things tomorrow. "So, about going home…." She started only to hear a woosh, her demon friend holding out a hand towards a black portal. "Oh, thanks. Uhhh…. Do you want this back?" She held up the greatsword, earning a shake from its head and a gentle push toward the portal.
She waved goodbye to her new friends and walked into the portal, and ended up back in the hallway of Winslow, shouts of surprise reaching her ears. Taylor jumped at the noise, seeing PRT troopers and a Woman with a glowing shotgun pointed in her direction.
"Put down the weapon!" Miss Militia commanded, cocking the gun.
The girl quickly did so, not wanting to fight the hero. "What's the problem?" She calmly asked, turning her head to see… what was left of her locker and the lockers next to it, a black void had consumed them, looking like a bigger version of the portal she entered to get here. "Oh."
Miss Militia slowly approached the transformed teen, seeing as she was cooperating. "Do you know what happened here? There are four missing students and then there is that stuff." She questioned, waving towards the inky substance with a hand.
"Wait, missing students? How long was I in there?" Taylor blinked, seeing that it was dark outside through a window.
"It was three days ago when we received the call that a parahuman was here. We quickly cordoned off the school and monitored the substance behind you for any changes, even Dragon sent a few drones in, but they were lost the moment they went in." The hero explained, giving the girl a look, reaching into a pocket and pulling out a picture. "Do you have this mark anywhere on your body? Or remember nothing about your life before now?"
"No, I don't think I have that on me, and I do remember my life. I'm Taylor Hebert, most likely one of the missing students." Taylor shook her head. "Why are you asking me this?"
"Just had to know if you're a Case 53, always gotta ask if there is a new cape that looks…. like you, no offense."
She shrugged. "Fair enough."
Miss Militia gave Taylor a nod, then pointed at the substance. "I assume that you might know where the other students went?"
"Maybe? I didn't see them when I was there." Taylor shrugged, then sighed. "Let me guess, the other missing students are Madison, Sophia, and Emma?"
The hero blinked, then nodded. "Yes. How did you know that?"
"They locked me in my own locker filled with old feminine products." Taylor deadpanned, then sighed again. "Everything gets fuzzy around the third time they came back to mock me and pound on the door." She shook her head. "Probably around the time I woke up like... this in there."
Miss Militia was quiet for a moment, then put a hand on the teen's shoulder. "I'm sorry for what you went through."
Taylor let out a weak chuckle, her wings drooping to touch the floor. "It's fine. Should I go in and see if I can find them?" She offered, giving the woman a fragile smile. "It's like a pocket dimension in there. Got my own castle and everything!" She informed with false enthusiasm, letting out a sniffle as she felt the bugs burrowing in her skin from the memories of the locker.
Miss Militia gave Taylor's shoulder a pat and touched her ear. "Console, this is Miss Militia, I have an update on the Winslow situation." She took a few steps away, talking with someone.
The transformed teen scratched her arm, trying to get rid of the invisible bugs, shaking her head at her weakness and forcing down the memory. "Now is not the time to break down." She mumbled to herself, sitting down on the cold tiled floor, placing her sword on her lap and tracing its design with a clawed finger.
Miss Militia came back a few moments later, pausing when she saw the big sword. "Did you find it in there?" She curiously asked, pointing at the weapon.
"Sorta? I don't want to sound like the next Nilbog, but I have subjects in the castle." Taylor informed with a shudder for even mentioning the monster. "One of them wanted me to have this."
The hero paused after hearing that. "How many…. subjects are we talking about here?"
Taylor thought over whether or not to be truthful, then shook her head and turned to the hero with a nervous smile. "I haven't seen everything in my pocket dimension, but I get the feeling that there is quite a lot more than either of us expect." She let out a weak smile at the hero's wide eyes. "All I've ever wanted is to be a hero. I might look scary and have even scarier friends in there, but I just want to be there for my dad and help people." She spoke truthfully, looking the woman in the eyes.
"... Well, thanks for being honest." Miss Militia said with a nod, somehow smiling with her eyes.
"I get that it's not that common for capes to be honest about the spookier aspects of their powers?" Taylor joked, chuckling.
"That happens very rarely, if at all." Miss Militia chuckled alongside the teen.
Tayor then gave the big portal a look. "So, what's the plan?"
"Console wants us both to go in and find the students. It took some arguing, but since you've been cooperating the whole time, I've used some of my pull to get this decision." The hero nodded, then sighed. "And then I'm to report to M/S testing immediately afterwards."
"Can't take any chances." Taylor sagely nodded, grabbing the hero's hand and pulling the both of them into the black goop.
A blink later and Taylor found herself back in the throne room, with a shivering Miss Militia on the floor next to her. The heroine got up after a few seconds, giving Taylor a small glare. "That was very cold."
"Feels fine to me. Sorry?"
"It's fine, I suppose. With your body how it is, I shouldn't be surprised."
After that exchange, they both left the throne room, going back into the entrance hall. "Hello? Anyone here still?" Taylor called out, hoping to find any of her subjects.
"Maybe they need to be called mentally? Or by your power?" The hero suggested. "I haven't dealt with many Masters, so I can't say much."
The teen gave her a look, then shrugged. "I'll give it a shot." She closed her eyes, focusing on calling for the demon that gave her the sword. There was a slight tug on something within her and a woosh sound echoed through the quiet room.
Opening her eyes, floating right in front of her was the demon, the thing giving her a curious look. "Okay, here's the deal. There are three girls missing and Miss Militia and I were wondering if you know where they are?"
The creature nodded and turned its curious gaze to Taylor's guest, gave her a few sniffs, curiously looking at the glowing shotgun in her hands. It nodded again after finding out what it wanted and turned to its queen, gesturing for them to follow.
"So, spooky subjects, eh?" The hero drawled, raising a brow.
"There's a giant one outside." Taylor deadpanned, raising her own, wings fluttering. "There's even a lot of cute ones and a few dragon-ey things."
The creature led them down into what appeared to be the dungeons of the castle, eventually coming to a stop in front of a barred cell with the three girls and a new creature. Sophia seemed to be trying, and failing, to fight this new critter, while the other two huddled fearfully in the corner.
The new creature appeared to be one of the floating ball things Taylor saw earlier, except this one is covered in chains and bigger. "HEY!" At her shout, both of them stopped fighting, the ball-thing phasing through the bars of the cell and stopping before her with a sad growl.
Sophia glared at it and the newcomers through the bars. "So the big boss of these things finally came? Come to gloat?" Then she noticed the hero in the room. "And you mastered a protectorate member. That's just asking to be birdcaged."
"Going to assume I mastered Miss Militia? Really?" Taylor said in disbelief, rubbing the head of the ball thing. "I'm letting all of you go." She shook her head, and pushed the creature, the thing moving over to the bars and merging with them and bending them into an exit.
Sophia took this chance to go on the offensive, running at Taylor with a yell, turning into a shadow and punching her in the chest and phasing back. The transformed teen blinked, looking down at the arm that went all the way through her right breast and out her back. "Huh?" Sophia pulled her arm back with a wet pop, it soaked in black liquid.
The demon grabbed Sophia by the throat and threw her back in the cell, the bars slamming shut as Miss Militia quickly looked over the wound. Taylor blinked again, in shock of what just happened, not feeling the newest hole in her body. There was another wooshing sound and a small, lilac clothed being with a book bigger than it is zipped over and waved its cloth covered arms over the page it turned to, a green glow surrounding both Taylor and the being, the wound closing shut in an instant.
Taylor kept looking down at where the wound was, her mouth wide open in shock.
"Now, Taylor….."
The girl looked back into the cell, seeing an angry Sophia trying to phase out of the cell, but failing because of the critter possessing the bars. Taylor pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a shuddering sigh, noting she's done this way too much today. "Now her getting away with everything makes sense….. She's a ward, isn't she? Shadowstalker, right?"
Miss Militia winced. "Yes…. I swear, none of us knew."
"You know what? I don't care. I just want to go home, give my dad a hug, eat some dinner, and go to bed." Taylor grumbled, turning to the tiny sorcerer floating on his book. "Can you do anything to make her stop trying to kill me? Aside from killing her." She deadpanned once a fireball appeared, the thing dispelling it with a wince and flipping through some pages before finding something.
A clock appeared above Sophia's head, the arms on it stopping abruptly and making the girl stop in place. The bars opened up again and the demon picked up the frozen ward, Emma and Madison hesitantly following along. Emma went to speak, but Taylor threw up a hand.
"I don't wanna hear it. If you're trying to apologize, you just blew any chances of getting any forgiveness from me when you helped throw me into the locker." She informed her with a glare. "And if you're trying to mock or threaten me, I simply cannot find any fucks to give you, so shut the fuck up and follow us."
She then turned to the sorcerer. "Since you can heal, please stay with me." She asked it, the being giving a little bow.
With another command, a portal back was opened up and the group minus the demon and ball-thing left, exiting it back into the hallway of Winslow. This time more heroes were there, Assault and Battery were guarding the hall on the left and Armsmaster was at the hall on the right.
Miss Militia told Taylor to stay still while she explained the situation, and the girl did, sitting down on the floor and chatting with her sorcerer friend. The girls were released to the PRT, and the frozen Sophia was handed over to Armsmaster by an angry Miss Militia.
One hour later…..
Taylor was dropped off in front of her home by the PRT after a long talk with the other heroes and cleaning up the portal goop. They tried to sell the idea of joining the wards, well, Armsmaster did and She just told him that she just wanted to go home. He didn't seem to like her answer much, but told her that she'll be transferred to Arcadia even if she doesn't join, since she can't really hide her appearance and she'll be safer going there. Miss Militia promised that there would be an investigation into Sophia's actions, even if she had to do it herself.
The transformed teen entered her home with her sorcerer following close behind, the girl intent on giving her dad the biggest hug she could when she saw him. She may have had the worst day of her life, but it must get better than this…… Right?