Hope you guys are ready for this new year!
Enjoy the chapter!
Kingdom Hearts © to Disney and Square Enix!
My OCs © to me!
Chapter 10
The darkness seemed to swallow the group as they made their way further and further down the tunnel.
The solid rock began to change, turning into stone bricks as the ground became less of a straight slope and more of a winding staircase.
Down and down it wound.
And when it finally came to a stop, they found a rotting door in a single entryway.
"Ugh." Hideaki covered his nose. "This place reeks!"
Amira closed her eyes. "You don't know this smell…? It's the smell of death." She pushed open the door, opening up to a cavern, glowing with dim torches.
Someone still roamed this ancient place.
Ruins of buildings filled the room, reaching up the ceiling. Crumbling towers lay with their tops around their base. Any color and paint must have faded long ago, leaving nothing but brown rock behind. Wood, rotten and decayed, hung from ancient hinges along windows and doors. Tatters hung limp from ancient awnings and tapestries.
It looked as dead as it smelled.
When they stepped out of their own room, they found they'd been inside a tower, the top half-buried in the rock of the roof.
The town looked frozen, things still laying on the ground as if dropped in a moment of fear.
"Over there!" Briana pointed.
In the light of a torch, a skinny dog stood, its head buried in a pot, eating something. Maybe a rat.
"A dog?"
"No…" Amira drew out a curved scimitar. "A ghoul(1)."
The dog looked up, black eyes staring through them. It stalked forward, raising up onto two legs as it did so. The black fur changed to a sickly white skin that fell in wrinkles around a fragile skeleton.
The ghoul let out a shriek as it charged forward.
Amira leapt forward, driving her sword into its chest. "You have to kill them in one hit or they come back to life!"
"Lookout!
A disembodied hand smacked Amira back before returning to a floating monster with one eye hanging out of its head.
"A Heartless!" Hideaki pointed.
Drawing her knives, Perdita ran forward, slashing at the Search Ghost. The Heartless disappeared after the first hit, reappearing behind her. A crossbow bolt hit it through the head as Briana fired.
More ghouls and Heartless moved toward the group.
Hideaki jumped behind a pillar as a Wight Knight slashed at him. "Defend!" A shield popped up, the only thing keeping him from being skewered on the ends of that Heartless's fingers.
"Stay behind me!" Amira slashed the Heartless apart. "We have to keep moving! They'll overrun us like this!"
No complaints from anyone.
They dashed through the city, dodging ghouls and Heartless. They only stopped once when a group of Pot Spider Heartless leapt into their way.
"Where are we going?" Cried Vanette as she fired a spinning green disk from her staff(2); the Leaf Cutter attack sliced a ghoul clean in half.
Amira cut down a Bandit Heartless, pointing with her other hand. "Look over there! That temple! It's the center of the city. If anything is here, it's in there. The Qutrub will be there too."
Briana stabbed a Search Ghost in the eye socket. "What is the Qutrub?!"
"A monster… now is not the time to explain!" Amira yelled as she sliced a Wight Knight that tried to slice Iago apart.
More ghouls and Heartless swarmed them as they moved closer and closer to the temple.
"We're going to run out of energy at this rate!" Hideaki slammed his wrench onto a Shadow.
"Step aside!" Vanette turned toward the temple. "EARTH IMPACT(3)!" Pillars of rock jutted out of the ground, knocking their enemies apart, clearing a path to the temple.
The girl wobbled, her face paling. "Go…" She started to fall over, only for Briana and Perdita to catch her.
"Hurry!"
The group hurried down the cleared path, Amira taking down any remaining enemies in their path.
The stone doors of the temple rose before them, Hideaki and Amira slammed into the doors, pushing them open with all their might.
The doors slowly opened, just enough for the three girls to slip through, followed by the other two, who closed the doors back.
"Nettie," the little boy knelt beside her as the other two set her down, "are you ok!?"
"Yeah… just tired. Some of those attacks are really hard and tiring. I'm not good at them yet."
The boy reached into his satchel and pulled out a blue bottle with a blue liquid inside. "Here. Drink this."
Vanette drank the drink, grinning as she felt her magic return. "What is this!?"
"An ether. It restores your magic."
"Gimme all of them!"
Amira turned around, looking at the temple. "Whoa…"
The circular roof above them bore faded painted images of people in a grand city. Flaking paint covered the walls with rotting tapestries dripping from the walls.
A stone chest sat in the middle of the room, directly under the ceiling.
"I smell treasure!" Iago squawked!
"And I smell something gross."
Perdita stood up, looking around at the building. In the shadows behind the stone chest, something moved slightly, stepping closer. A bandaged hand reached out, lying on the chest, bits of rotting flesh and fur peaked through the bandages.
Her eyes widened as the creature stepped out into the light of torches. "Guys… I think that's the Qutrub…"
Everyone looked at the figure. The bandage-wrapped creature lumbered around the chest. Tattered clothes hung from it as its dog-like snout dripped red-laced saliva(4).
"Why did we get the scary stuff!? Dad never got this stuff right away!?" Hideaki yelled.
Oh boy…
Perdita pulled out her knives as the Qutrub drew out a chipped scimitar. Her heart pounded, echoing in her head. It charged toward them, a hissing sound escaping its jaws as it did.
"Defend!" A shield appeared around them, courtesy of Hideaki. "Amira! How do we stop this thing?"
"Not sure, but it's undead. If we take its arms off it will have a harder time fighting."
Briana loaded her crossbow. "Do that and I'll keep it busy."
"Same!" Vanette's staff glowed.
The shield fell, Amira immediately slashing with her sword. The Qutrub blocked, it's rotting face inches from the girl's.
One step.
Two.
Perdita's feet carried her closer and closer. Her knives caught the other arm of the monster, slashing through its bandages.
It hissed, turning its haunting gaze on her, only for a fireball to slam into the side of its face.
"Eyes on me!" Vanette ran by, casting another spell.
"No! On me!" Amira flipped back before lunging forward. Driving her sword into the joint of the left shoulder, she popped the frail arm off.
The left arm fell to the ground, vanishing into a cloud of dust before it touched the ground.
"Great jo- AUGH!"
Teeth sank into the treasure-hunter's shoulder as the monster fell upon her.
"Amira!" Perdita leapt upon the creature's back, driving her knives into the back of its head.
As it dropped Amira, the scimitar came up, knocking Perdita back.
"You alright?" Hideaki called as he cast Cure on Amira.
"Fine." She rolled her shoulder.
The Qutrub turned its attention on Perdita, lumbering toward her, sword raised. She held up her hunting knives to block, but as the sword hit them, her own blades shattered, too weak to fight on.
She barely realized this as the sword inched closer and closer to her face.
"Perdie!"
Thunk!
Thunk!
Two crossbow bolts sunk into the creature's arm, knocking off its aim. The sword grazed Perdita's arm, but fell by her side.
The servant girl glanced down at her weapons. The only means she had to fight.
Gone.
"AAHHH!" She grabbed the sword arm of the monster, looking it square in the eye. Whether this was adrenaline or some reckless ploy she did not know, but with one arm wrapped squarely around the Qutrub's she drove the broken knife into the shoulder joint and pulled, pulling the arm clean off.
She fell back, the arm vanishing as the Qutrub hissed. It fell upon her, eyes wide with fury, teeth bared to finish the job.
Reaching for anything, Perdita's fingers wrapped around the monster's own scimitar.
Her eyes closed, waiting for the monster to fall upon her.
Hot, rancid breath beat down on her.
But the blow never came.
Feeling her hands shaking, the girl slowly opened one eye.
She'd lifted the scimitar at some point, and the beast lay nearly upon her, impaled by its own sword.
Not dead though.
The teeth gnashed, but with no arms, it could do very little.
Slash!
Amira's quick blade severed the thrashing beast's head from its body.
The head turned to dust almost immediately, the body slowly vanishing with it.
"That was intense."
"You have no idea!" Perdita's body shook as Amira helped her stand. "I was almost dead."
A warm feeling covered her body, accompanied with a green glow.
She saw the same glow fading from Hideaki. He must have healed her. "You ok?"
"A little freaked out, but I'm fine. But… my weapon."
"Don't worry," Vanette grinned, "we can find you some more knives. Maybe some better fit for combat."
Amira picked up part of Perdita's broken knife. "Yes, these were not made for battle. But we might be able to find some around here. The temple might have an armory."
"Hideaki, why don't we go look?" Briana smiled at the boy.
"Sure!"
With the Qutrub gone, the temple sounded silent. No ghouls or Heartless within. So the two walked down a small corridor and out of sight.
"Whoa! That was crazy!" Iago sighed as he landed on Vanette's shoulder.
"And where were you?"
"Hiding with Akame!"
Vanette gaped as the Flood slunk toward her, averting its gaze. "You sissies! We were all out here fighting!"
The bird hid behind Carpet, who seemed to have also been hiding. "Sorry, we didn't really sign up for undead."
"But you signed up for treasure and monsters come with the territory." Amira huffed, turning toward the stone chest. "Give me a hand." She pushed against the lid, Perdita and Vanette joining her.
With a shove, the lid flew off.
"Oh wow!"
Amira grabbed a strange tube made entirely of bronze, opening it to reveal a piece of paper.
"What's this!? Where's the gold!?" Iago screeched. "I was promised treasure!"
"But this is treasure!" Amira gently unrolled the scroll. "Ancient texts full of untold history, mysterious legends, and enchanting poetry."
"Amira! I signed up for treasure not for papers!"
The girl didn't seem to hear him as she replaced the scroll in its container and put it in her bag. More scrolls filled the chest, and she put them into her satchel.
"Perdie!" Briana cried as she came into the room carrying something wrapped in cloth. "Look what we found!"
Hideaki came behind her, carrying what appeared to be some kind of scroll. He'd found something for himself too.
"What is it?"
Setting the bundle down, Briana undid the cloth bindings.
A set of daggers lay before them. The curved silver blade, split in two, shone in the torchlight. Perdita could make out small swirling detailing on the silver blade and tip of the hilt. Intricately woven leather covered the hilt, tied off with a red ornament.
"Whoa…"
"No way!" Amira knelt by the daggers. "These… these are Ala Mhigan Daggers(5)!"
"What?"
"Long ago, there was a legendary blacksmith named Ala Mhigan. He forged a set of daggers for seven sultans. The sultan of Ubar must have been one. We have a version of these daggers in Agrabah that are passed between the sultans there. Since there is no one here any longer, I think you can have these. Just be careful, they're very special."
Picking one up, a layer of dust fluttered off the knife, revealing more of a shine on its surface, making Perdita smile. They were beautiful.
Stepping back, she swung it around for a moment.
"Oh no," Amira stood up, "that's also your problem. These knives are to be wielded like this." She turned the knife around, with the dull side of the knife pointed toward Perdita's arm. It looked kind of backwards to be honest.
With her positioning fixed, Perdita swung it again. She felt the dull side touch her arm.
This would take some getting used to.
But she liked them.
"Thanks!"
Amira smiled. "Now, home. Carpet, would you be a dear and lead my horse back to Agrabah for me?" The rug saluted and flew under the temple door and away.
"But don't you need the horse to get home?"
"No." The girl pulled out a vial of glowing white sand from her bag. "Genie gave this to me. It's only for getting back to Agrabah, so I couldn't use it to get here.
Uncapping the vial, she walked in a circle, pouring the sand on the ground. When the circle closed a light flashed, revealing a swirling image of a lovely bedroom.
"Shall we?" With a laugh, the girl dove into the image, vanishing in a ripple.
"Whoa!"
"Yippee!" Vanette and Akame dove in after Amira, followed by Iago.
Hideaki laughed. "Come on!" In he jumped.
Briana and Perdita laughed as they too, jumped into the strange pool of light.
The world seemed to vanish, a wave of color washing over them as the image began to sharpen.
Whoosh!
A moment later, they found themselves standing in the very bedroom they saw. Behind them swirled the image of the temple.
"Alright." As Amira capped the bottle, the portal disappeared. The door now closed.
"This is lovely. Where are we?" Briana asked as she touched a delicate curtain.
Amira shook some sand from her hair. "My bedroom, back at the palace."
Wait…
"Palace!?"
"Oh yeah, I'm the princess. My father is the sultan, didn't I tell you that?"
"No!"
"Oh, well, he is. Come on, I'll introduce you."
She stepped away, cloak billowing behind her. The group followed, their shoes clicking on the marble floor. Guards stiffened as Amira passed but eyed the strangers cautiously.
One guard, a large one with a grumpy look on his face, stepped into their path. "Princess, who are these intruders?"
"Razoul, they are no intruders. They're friends of mine. We've just returned from the city of Ubar."
The guard eyed them carefully, but he merely stepped aside, glaring at the others as they passed him by.
"Don't worry about him," Amira assured, "he means well. He's just grumpy."
Iago landed on the princess's shoulder. "Yeah, and he's not the biggest fan of her dad either."
"But isn't your father the sultan?"
"Yes, but he wasn't born into royalty like my mother. My father was a thief before he met Mother, so Razoul is still bitter. But Father is the sultan now, so Razoul treats him respectfully."
Two guards pushed open marble doors to reveal a grand hall. At the end stood a golden throne.
But no one sat upon it.
A man, dressed in white, instead sat in a plain chair to the side, talking with a beautiful woman.
"Amira!" The man stood up, his face lighting up with a bright smile. "You're back!"
"And in one piece!" She ran forward, hugging the man. "Were you worried, Father?"
"Not one bit!"
The woman stood up and hugged Amira. "But we're glad you came back safely."
A screech filled the air, followed by a growl as a tiger bounded forward, a monkey on his back.
"Raja! Wai-"
Slam!
The tiger reared up, knocking the girl down as he purred and nuzzled against her. The monkey wrapped his arms around her neck, chattering happily.
"Amira!"
Poof!
A blue man appeared in a cloud of pink smoke. "Did you find it!?"
"Of course I did!" Standing up, the princess pulled a scroll out of her satchel. "And I found a lot of ancient texts there! The amount of knowledge we could learn may help us understand more about our own history, as well as the history of Ubar!"
The blue man squealed like a little girl before his gaze rested on the rest of the group. "And you made friends!"
The group yelped as chairs suddenly appeared behind them, knocking them off their feet as magic pulled them closer.
"Genie!" Amira laughed. "Don't scare them!" Setting her bag down, the princess walked over to her friends. "Everyone, this is Perdita, Briana, Hideaki, and Vanette. They helped me in Ubar."
All eyes rested on Perdita.
"What?"
Amira's father walked closer to her. "You look just like…"
"Sora!" Iago piped up. "I said the same thing earlier! She's the spitting image of him!"
"You're right." Amira's mother walked closer. "My name is Jasmine. This is my husband, Aladdin. And this is Genie, Raja, and Abu."
Hideaki grinned. "You're just how Dad described you, Queen Jasmine!"
"Just Jasmine, please. And… who is your father?"
"Riku!"
Genie gasped. "Riku!? Really?"
"Yep!" The boy grinned.
Jasmine smiled. "Well, it is a pleasure to meet you."
Aladdin looked at the other two girls. "I don't recognize you two, sorry."
"It's fine."
"Yeah, probably for the best, actually."
Again, all eyes turned to Perdita. "But you are the spitting image of Sora. Is he your fa-"
"Don't say it!" The girl stepped back. "I hardly know him! What is everyone's deal with Sora anyway!?"
Jasmine raised an eyebrow. Her mind seemed to race before she gasped. "Aladdin, remember when Aqua visited us a few years ago?"
"Yeah. But wh- OH!" The sultan turned to her. "Aqua came here looking for Sora and Kairi's daughter who'd been kidnapped."
Genie floated around in front of Perdita. "So, you're her…"
"Stop saying that! I don't know him! Even if he is my father, why should I care!? And as far as I know, he isn't!"
Aladdin walked over to her. "Do… you know your parents."
Perdita crossed her arms. "All I was told was that my parents abandoned me. If this Sora guy is my father, then maybe I want nothing to do with him."
"But you were kidnapped, not abandoned!" Briana cried.
"We don't know for sure!"
"Perdita, was it?" Aladdin walked around in front of her, kneeling down. "I understand. I thought my father abandoned me too. But I found him years later… and I didn't trust him either. But he became a dear person to me. He wasn't perfect, but he was a good man. He taught Amira everything she knows, and that cloak she wears was his gift to her when he passed."
"Good for you."
Jasmine laid a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Listen. If there is any person you can trust, it's Sora. He's saved Agrabah multiple times. Both Aladdin and I trust him with our lives. I can see that you're confused, but I think you should go and try to see if he is your father. And if it's true, then you have a kind and gentle mother too. Neither of them would ever abandon their child."
"So I've heard…"
The queen smiled. "Your mother is like me. We are both Princesses of Heart, which means we have hearts of pure light. Not a speck of darkness exists within us. The other princesses and I have all been saved by your father before. If you want to learn what kind of people Sora and Kairi are, I think you should visit the other princesses. They would love to help you too."
"What if I don't care what kind of people they are? I don't need them… I don't need parents!"
"You'll always wonder." Aladdin muttered softly. "That hole in your heart will be there forever, gnawing at you. Take this chance while you can. Find out the truth. And if you still want to go off on your own, without a family. Then do it. But don't let that hole remain."
Perdita looked down at the floor.
Silent.
Thinking.
"Where can I find these other princesses?"
Hideaki glanced over his shoulder as Perdita got out of her chair and went to her room, which happened to be Sora's old room.
She hadn't said a word since they left Agrabah.
Did she regret asking about the princesses?
Briana and Vanette hurried off to a small storage room to practice. Apparently Vanette was going to teach her some magic.
Ring!
Ring!
The boy jumped as his phone rang.
Vanette had finally returned it after she took it from him.
"Hey Dad." The boy said as his father's face appeared on the screen.
"Hey. You ok? I kept calling but you didn't answer."
"Vanette took my phone and hid it."
Riku sighed, shaking his head. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." The boy put the ship in autopilot. "Is Mom angry?"
"She's livid, but she'll be happy to hear that you're safe. Where are you headed?"
The boy looked up at the window. "Not sure yet. But, we just left Agrabah." His face broke into a smile. "It was so much fun! Some of it was scary, but I was able to use my defensive and healing magic to help." He looked at the phone. "Dad… I want to stay with them."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Perdita seems really confused, but I want to help her. We're going around trying to help her learn about Uncle Sora. And not to mention, I seem to be the only one who knows anything at times. They didn't know about the Heartless or the world order… so I better stay here to make sure they stay out of trouble." He tapped his chin. "If you want to keep up with us, Gadget should be able to track the ship from the hanger."
A soft laugh escaped his father's lips. "Why am I not surprised. You always were very responsible. Keep those girls safe, alright?"
"I will! And they'll keep me safe!"
"Let me know if you want me to come get you."
"I will."
"Love you, Hideaki."
"Love you too! And tell mom that I'm sorry."
"I will."
The call ended. A soft smile covered the boy's face.
He'd made his choice.
To help his friends.
"So, we can track them now?" Alya asked, her voice soft as she stood behind her husband.
Sora glanced over at Ienzo and his daughter, Amelia. The girl nodded. "Riku shared the location with us, so we can track their ship. It looks like they're not really moving at all."
"Hideaki did tell Riku that they're looking for information on you, Sora." Ienzo mused. "They'll probably be going to worlds that know you well. Hideaki can point them in the right direction."
From the other side of the room, Even wheeled Ansem the Wise's wheelchair over. The old man mused on the information for but a moment. "We should share this information with our allies. They can watch over them as they travel, and perhaps Kyo can call his twin and speak with her. She might be receptive to him."
"Maybe." Sora sighed.
His body felt tense. Every fiber just wanted to go out and bring Koharu… Perdita home. His daughter.
But that would do nothing but push her further away.
He knew it… but he didn't have to like it.
"Maybe Kingdom Hearts can help us… or Oukoku(6)."
"Sora," Ansem said gently, "we shouldn't overwhelm her. Having Kyo call her is probably enough. But, warn him, not to push the possibility of them being siblings too much."
Ienzo nodded. "I agree. Her heart and mind are in a conflicted state. If Kyo contacts her, he should do so from a perspective of wanting to assist her in her own journey. She needs to be the one to understand and discover the truth for herself, or she'll most likely resist it further."
"Alright. I'll let Kyo know."
As Sora contacted his son, a figure watched from the shadows. Watching. Listening.
Where would the ship go?
Where would it carry the four inside?
Where would it carry her?
Where would it carry Briana?
His single eye glinted, fixed on the map.
He would find her.
He had to.
Footnotes:
(1) Ghouls are shape shifting undead creatures from Arabian myth that feast on corpses or living flesh.
(2) The attack the Mandrake Unversed use.
(3) This is the earth attack used by a Wild Bruiser Unversed.
(4) This is a combination of the mythological version of the Qutrub, which was a werewolf creature, and the FFXI monster, that was a zombie wrapped in bandages.
(5) Ala Mhigan Daggers are a rogue's arm in FF14. In the game you have to be a level 70 to use them, but I liked the look of them, so they won't be that powerful
(6) In this fic universe, Kingdom Hearts can manifest as a person and speak to others. And Oukoku is an ancient Keyblade wielder that Sora is descended from.