Something extraordinary
The people on television kept Vanitas company as he cheerfully assaulted his mentor with demands to increase the difficulty of the missions he was allowed to partake in. Yesterday's long court session revitalized him as much as it tired his twin. Fluffing a pillow and squeezing a plush bear between his legs, he tapped furiously, composing a messa-
A violent scream rattled the glass walls and Vanitas tumbled out of his bed in fright.
His phone landed face down on the carpet. Scrabbling to his feet, he jumped over the sofa, opened the glass door and the terrified sound doubled in volume as Sora sat upright in bed, hair sticking in odd angles and screeched his vocal cords raw.
A shining, yellow hilted keyblade lay across his lap. He trembled uncontrollably, eyes fixed to the mass of oozing heartless congregated around his bed. Drops of transparent, orange water flecked his face.
He continued screaming.
"Did everything go well?" Leon asked and sipped his fifth cup of coffee. Stained mugs grouped on his desk and he wheeled his chair to the edge of the silk screen. Balamb Garden remained immortalized in threads of beige and alabaster; he passed the screen and entered Tifa's office, adjacent to his.
Nearby in Jiminy's booth, King Mickey conferred with the historian in grave tones.
Basement floor 8 always filled around dawn. Belle strode in, dropping a mug of coffee at Leon's desk. Sometimes they exchanged a greeting, more often than not, she navigated around the boss' huge office and sat at her table, decorated with a hand painted, porcelain teapot. The receptionist worked silently, cataloguing events, forming drafts and drafting replies to complaints.
Half an hour later, Ariel floated in, bearing the fragrant smell of the sea. She balanced on a bubble, dropped Squall's second cup of coffee and if the dark circles around his eyes were too prominent, folded her slender arms and lectured him on the importance of health.
Afterwards, she confiscated his coffee; opting for a soothing, sleep inducing drink called moon milk, filled with aromatics and spices. Leon nodded off at once, and the next time Ariel delicately placed a cup of moon milk in his desk, he discreetly swapped it with Tifa's coffee.
"The trial stretched the entire day," Lockhart replied and closed the file on a picture of pureblood heartless. "I requested, like you asked, in case the prosecutor wanted to break the proceedings off for another day." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I would have to kidnap Clavius. Zack wouldn't be happy; he came with me you know." A gust of warm air stirred a row of saplings decorating the edge between her and Squall's chamber. "The lawyer was really adamant to get him a non-guilty verdict." Tifa smiled, wine-red eyes soft.
Leon straightened when Mickey strode into the office, his round, twitchy ears hinted at a distraction. "I need to confirm something," the King announced and Squall bobbed his head over the rim of his mug. "Excuse me."
A dark corridor ripped open and Tifa dropped her pen when compressed air blasted outwards. On the opposite end, Ariel yelped as a bottle of golden yellow liquid spilled across her papers.
"I was working on a new elixir!" she complained and Leon nodded apologetically at her.
The heartless shrunk from the scream, but they could only move so much, behind them lay the sea. Sand swirled underneath their knobby feet and they dove into the ground and resurfaced.
Sora stopped screaming and gulped a lungful of air; the accursed Keyblade in his lap winked back at him while his twin brother broke into a giggle.
"Pfft... ahahaha!" Vanitas chuckled, bent double in mirth. "Look at you," his golden irises narrowed. "We are both keyblade wielders now!" Sora wanted to hurl the Keyblade at the latter's head. "Can you see?" his twin asked and Sora nodded miserably.
The ocean roared in his ears, wind battered the palm trees.
A weird star shaped fruit whirled past like a shooting star. Orange and transparent. A crab clicked its pincers and scuttled sideways across his bed, shadows chittered in low voices and the sea stretched endlessly, tipped with white foam and meeting the sky in an azure embrace. Sky and ocean. Land and sun. Everything tinted into a sickly tangerine, floating like silk over water.
In his excitement to have his brother finally share the painful, yet wonderful second sight, Vanitas forgot to check the top of Sora's head. Grinning madly, he ground to a halt.
A crown...
A golden crown perched on the side of Sora's head. It glimmered.
Crap. Vanitas fought to keep his smile reassuring. Please not him, he inwardly prayed. Please not social anxiety ridden Sora who can't hold a conversation to save his life. Him, the King?
The savior the KBWA searched for so desperately?
If they found out, what will they do to him?
"Calm down," Vanitas soothed. "Once you calm down you can de-materialize it." His brother regarded him with a pained, confused frown. "Try it," Vanitas urged and drawing Void Gear, blasted a blizzaga at the annoyingly pathetic heartless; Sora bounced in fright. "I got rid of them. The heartless steal hearts to make themselves whole, never mind," he irritably waved at Kingdom Key, "try letting the keyblade go."
It flashed with a bright, pure light and disappeared. Vanitas let out a breath he didn't know he held. He yelped faintly when Sora threw himself on him.
"What was that?" he hysterically mumbled. "Why do I have it?" Sora irritably rubbed his eyes. "Those orange things aren't going away," he whined. "Maybe it mistook me for you?" he mused, involuntarily crushing Vanitas' windpipe under a palm.
"I'd like to live," his brother wheezed. "And perhaps if I cooped myself up in a room for a year, dyed my hair and got blue contact lenses, then someone could mistake me for you."
An advertisement for soda played on the flatscreen and the bubbly ditty spilled in the bedroom. Vanitas stiffened, the air smelled different, not salt and sea but...
He clenched his teeth as a dark corridor ripped open in the bedroom; instinctively, he glanced at Sora.
Yes, his brother was not taking it well.
Mickey stepped through the portal, clad head to toe in black. Furious, Vanitas grabbed the nearest thing to his hand, a pillow, and chucked it at the mouse king who neatly sidestepped. Rage mounting, he drew the heavy comforter, bunched it and threw it.
"Get out!" he roared, masking his fear with rage. His fingers closed around the bedside lamp and he yanked the cord free from the wall socket. Sora whimpered, maybe, but Vanitas raised the glass and bronze fixture above his head. White light flashed in the room, like the flare of a dying star and again, the keyblade materialized, along with the golden crown. "Don't come into my house without permission!" Vanitas defeatedly flung the lamp on the bed.
The lamp's glass petal cracked. He glowered at the King who cautiously approached Sora, eyes locked on the golden, semi-transparent crown resting on top of brown, bed hair.
And like magic, the keyblade vanished in a shower of sparks.
"It's an honor to meet the wielder of the Kingdom Key," Mickey said and politely led down his hood, he stretched out a gloved hand. "Mickey Mouse, King of Disney Castle," he introduced himself, warmly shook Sora's hand and pretended not to notice when the human wiped his palm on pajama pants. "Congratulations-" Mickey began.
"Congratulations?" Vanitas mocked and the King raised his finger.
Silence.
"Congratulations," he repeated while Vanitas mutely thrashed his hands.
If the situation was any less bizarre, Sora would laugh.
"I understand this is a shock," Mickey continued and the young man slowly crashed on his bed, breaking the lamp further. "But it is important you visit the KBWA." At this, Vanitas stilled like a corpse. "They will explain everything to you." The King gestured to the tangerine outlines. "This will need getting used to," he smiled sheepishly, "and of course, the KBWA will explain the origins of the Kingdom Key." He bowed and flustered, Sora returned it with a languid nod. "The KBWA won't know of a new Keyblade wielder unless you register with them." The space behind the mouse king contorted and ripped open, like the gaping maw of some interstellar beast. "If you want help, I suggest you go."
He fearlessly stepped back into the dark, dark space and the fabric of reality stitched together.
Everything returned to normal.
As if.
"You don't have to go to the KBWA," Vanitas breathlessly informed as soon as he could talk. "It's a mistake." His irises darted to the pillow and comforter lying on the floor. "A proper Keyblade wielder needs to summon their weapon and it only comes when it is called," he nervously fluffed Sora's hair. "I'll explain it to Leon, I mean, that's probably not the Kingdom Key, of course it's not." Vanitas carefully opened the door. "I'm making breakfast." His brother was not capable of handling a pan right now. "What do you want?"
Dusting fragments of glass off his bed, Sora replied, "Antacids, I think I'm gonna be sick."
10:00 a.m.
Wright and Co. Law offices
Lounge
A cup of tea steamed; fancy cakes, lathered in pastel pink and blue icing crowded a porcelain plate. The tea cart groaned under the weight of a bowl of salty noodles, a flask and a platter of hamburgers.
Seated on the couch, Phoenix filled in the details of the latest case; he listed evidence and slotted them in a thick box file with Sora Clavius written on the side. His daughter held a watering can and talked to Charley, photosynthesizing by the window overlooking the Gatewater Hotel and he smiled, the sun on green leaves evoked a memory.
The day Mia introduced him to her plant.
On the couch, Athena sipped tea, a book open on her lap and another one propped on a pillow, next to her, Maya devoured burgers, her robes pristine despite the grease coating her fingers. A strand of hair stuck to her lips and her dreamy, slate irises sparkled animatedly when the Steel Samurai came on television. Trucy hopped over, bumped her hip on the corner of the tea cart and Wright clenched his teeth in sympathy when she gasped sharply in pain.
Pain forgotten, Trucy snuggled next to Maya, the watering can abandoned on the olive carpet. Unable to concentrate, Athena joined them, fingers laced together as the trio gaped at the television. Phoenix grinned, in another building; Edgeworth probably watched the same show, gravely sipping a cup of premium tea.
Speaking of prosecutors...
Franziska surprised him. Near the end of the trial, when Sora presented decisive evidence, she kept quiet. No arguing, no lashing of whip to assert her supremacy. Watching the trial tide to the attorney's favor raised Phoenix's heartbeat, he waited for the inevitable argument.
Which never came.
He caught von Karma as she left, a leather purse slung over her shoulder and turquoise teardrops glittering on her earlobes. "I want the truth," she stated, when Phoenix questioned her. "Nothing but the perfect truth." Her lips lifted into a barely perceptible smile. "He showed me how to accept the truth, there is no winning or losing." She brushed past Wright and the aroma of sandalwood and citrus drifted in the air.
"I was wondering if I could treat you to dinner?" Phoenix offered, if he talked with her more, he might understand why she gave up so easily. This new facet of her personality both fascinated and unnerved him. "I'll ask the new attorney to join-"
"I am having tea with Miles," she brusquely tossed over her shoulder and walked out. The lobby doors closed after her, muting the sudden noise of traffic.
Wright placed the folder on the glass coffee table and reached for a slice of cake, blinking when the plate disappeared. He smiled fondly at Sora, crushing the cakes in his mouth. It seemed as if a ghost visited Sora the previous night, crumbs and icing stuck to his cheeks and after finishing the entire plate and searching for meaning in the floral designs on the porcelain, he slumped.
No one noticed him.
"How is your brother?" Phoenix gently asked. None of the females tore their gaze from the riveting Steel Samurai who spouted cheesy one liners and defeated yet another costumed villain. "You look tired; did you sleep well last night?" Wright passed the dazed attorney a cup of tea.
Sora again searched for the answer to life's mysteries in the swirling brown liquid and raised it to his lips.
He scalded his tongue and refused to put the cup down as it burned his hands.
"I'm okay," he said unconvincingly. "Does anyone else..." he rubbed his eyes, "can anyone else see those shadows in the corner?" he questioned, voice raising a notch.
Phoenix squinted and shrugged, a beanie covered his spiky hair.
"They are multiplying," Sora whispered. Where they always there?
More importantly, why did these orange-outlines persist in following me everywhere?
The heartless convulsed and he ignored the hissing, spitting mass as he sipped tea. Phoenix napped, head tilted back on a scatter cushion. Sora wondered where Apollo went and peeked at Trucy for an answer.
She disappointed him by pumping her fist when the Steel Samurai saved a helpless lass at the last minute.
"Where is senior Apollo?" he mumbled. In the corner, the heartless assumed another definite shape, it grew a helmet of sorts and its body tinted to a navy blue with long, wicked claws. The thing lurched into the open and alarmed, he put the cup down, jerking when Phoenix snored. "Where is senior Apollo?" he asked over the blare of music and the spirit medium raised her head.
Her eyes narrowed to the corner and Sora held his breath, did she see the same thing he did?
"My burger needs more salt," Maya announced.
Seriously? Sora drew his legs together. The heartless bumped against a magic box and fell, helmet clattering loudly. There is a monster in the room and she's worried about her burger?
Returning from the kitchen with a salt and pepper shaker, Athena set them on the table along with a handful of napkins. Maya emptied the salt and smiled mysteriously while Sora averted his gaze to his hands.
The spirit medium cupped the salt in her palm and ambled to the spazzing heartless. It lunged at her as she neared and she kicked the plastic spaghetti model at it. The thing tripped and she poured salt over it, lips moving in a soundless incantation.
Liquid light fell on the dark shape, it screeched, like nails on chalk board, and melted into a puff of black smoke.
"Can you see them?" Maya asked and Trucy raised her head.
"See what Aunt Maya?" She quizzically frowned. Chocolate brown hair curled over her head. "Oh Sora, I didn't see you!" she chirped.
I've been here for the last half an hour.
"Did you like the cakes?" she indicated the empty plate, "Kairi brought some over last night and they were so good I tried re-creating them, the blue ones are mine." Blue and pink crumbs covered the edges. "I guess you can't tell the difference now..."
Wright stirred into a more comfortable position. "They were really delicious," he sleepily said and she beamed like the sun. "I could tell from the way Sora ate them," Sora's tan cheeks colored, "he didn't leave me a single piece, he gobbled them all like no-one ever bothered him to buy cake." Phoenix laughed, his shoulders shaking.
It was a kind, fatherly laugh.
"What are you searching for Maya?" he pulled the beanie off his head and contributed it to the mess in the lounge. The spirit medium shifted a pile of parcels, a paper fan open in her hand. "There's only a bunch of Trucy's magic things there," he explained.
Maya snapped the fan shut, no other heartless prowled the area. "This spaghetti looks delicious," she offhandedly commented, irises sliding to Trucy who grabbed one of Athena's books, the two attempted to read a foreign passage together, making liberal use of the dictionary. "I thought I saw a mouse," she perched on the sofa, her third burger forgotten, "It's nothing," she assured.
"Nothing," Wright echoed, fingers closed over the glowing magatama.
The library remained eerily quiet without anyone puttering through its columned hallways. Magic lanterns flickered to life when Vanitas entered, he sat at his ink stained table and waited approximately five minutes before growing jittery and wandering through the hall.
An entire row of musty books were chained to their shelves. The varnished wood gleamed. Niches in the corners held relics and he stopped before one of them.
A suit of burnished, bronze armor with a satin cape. The armor towered over him, he touched the cape, it reeked of dust, blood and warped magic. This belonged to the Earth Titan; however, the armor contained a hollow quality to it.
A copy, he mused.
A grandfather clock ticked loudly in the room. Vanitas discovered busts of King Mickey and Queen Minnie in a glass display. Around another corner, a model of a town sprawled over a giant table, tiny inhabitants moved in the town, but did not shriek murder when Vanitas bent close to investigate, his golden eye larger than the moon.
Ten minutes later, he grabbed his backpack and slogged to the teleportation moogle, clearly Zack would not make an appearance any time soon. Where was he? Vanitas' stomach flipped; did Mickey tell the KBWA about Sora and the Keyblade? He hoped not.
The moogle teleported him to Basement Floor 4 and the research laboratory opened to an urgent, hushed conversation taking place on the lower floor. Professing nonchalance, Vanitas joined everyone in ogling a giant galaxy map cranking on its gears.
A technician hooked a monitor to it and Vanitas swallowed when the map of Los Angeles flashed. A reticle zoomed across the screen where patches of heartless cropped up, it showed basic details of the area.
"What's going on?" he demanded and several people spun. He immediately noticed one of his lecturers, the smirking teen with a headful of grey hair and an air of god-like superiority. "What's this?" he pointed to the screen acutely aware of his apartment street showing on the map.
Missing nights of sleep and still impeccable in his fur lined jacket, Leon straightened from a monitor. "It is a map indicating the flare of light and darkness," he droned. "Hours ago, the laboratory detected a surge of light around this area," he tapped the screen, mere millimeters from the apartment. "The King went to investigate," Leon stated, "and has yet to return." He crossed his arms. "Whatever, this isn't the first time his majesty went home and forgot to send a goodbye message."
More people spilled in the laboratory, a hulking guy who God probably sculpted out of marble and a woman with alabaster skin and bird riding her shoulder; they crowded around the screen and talked, luminous potions in their hands. Vanitas searched for Zack, found the Buster sword hilt sticking up from the sea of heads and aggressively marched to his mentor.
Someone needed to explain all this to him.
"Puppy," Zack greeted, sapphire eyes twinkling and Vanitas snarled. "There is an increase in heartless levels today," he indicated a graph which meant little to the bristling pupil. "Squall mentioned a surge of light; do you know anything about it?" Fair asked. "The surge is the cause of the heartless; it is drawing them out."
Vanitas scratched his head, debating whether to keep quiet or speak; Leon joined them at a table strewn with beakers of colorful gems in tints of fire-orange and wind-green. "This morning my brother..." Vanitas swallowed, he will convince his boss that the keyblade was a mistake; "woke up with a Keyblade in his hand." The words softened to a scandalous whisper. "A bunch of heartless popped in our apartment, I got rid of them," he talked faster, his words guttural, "and the blade vanished. Sora's pretty traumatized now," Vanitas added. "It's a mistake of course, there is no way my brother is a wielder, the thing disappeared and never came again."
"Was there a motif on his head?" Leon scowled thoughtfully, the scar on his face deepening.
Trust the boss to ask difficult questions.
"No." Vanitas lied. "Actually," he elaborated when his mentor and boss exchanged glances, "he had this golden cloud thingy on top of his head... I thought it'd turn into a shape but it went poof," Vanitas continued, fleshing out details which never existed. "He went to work," he interjected when Fair opened his mouth. "It's probably nothing; he doesn't have second sight anyway."
The last statement convinced the two, they nodded, expressions screwed in puzzled frowns and dropped the subject much to Vanitas' relief. Squall joined the cluster of people fixated on the galaxy map, he doled instructions and the members nodded somberly.
A white coat, goggle wearing researcher strode past, trailing a length of paper inked with squiggly lines. Another table held beakers with gems colored blizzard-blue and thunder-yellow. Machines beeped, spat paper and the glow of the map illuminated grave faces and areas of escalating heartless. A whirlwind of activity broke in the laboratory as more people came in or struggled to get out.
Ancient flip-phone in hand and punching keys, Zack sidestepped the stream of activity and reached for the door. With nothing, to do, Vanitas tailed him.
"We've been assigned to eliminate heartless," Fair informed, "the area in question is in Los Angeles near..." he peered at the screen, "a place called Vitamin Park."
A chill ran through Vanitas' spine and he whipped back; the grey haired teen observed him like an interesting specimen. He mouthed a curse and gritted his teeth when the flippant boy simply grinned, the corner of his mouth lifting sardonically.
"I'm not about to tear through a bunch of weak heartless," Vanitas growled. "I want to fight the stronger ones, the pure-blood ones," he angrily asserted.
Zack snorted. "Come with me."
They teleported to the dining hall. People collected around round tables, the usual calm atmosphere replaced with one of urgency. The chatter swelled, low and ominous and Tifa, normally present in the bar at this time, missed her usual spot. The dining hall smelled of wood and fire, not the customary cinnamon and spices.
"You are going to accept a mission from the work board." Fair climbed the stairs to the reception, where pools of electric light shone circles on booths and waistcoat clad personnel smiled and offered bottles of potion and water.
The duo navigated to the board; Vanitas selected a high level mission taking place around Vitamin Square. Mug shots of colorful heartless detailed the assignment and without thinking too much, he pounded his gloved hand on the button.
Mission Accepted. The screen beeped. Eliminate Heartless in Vitamin Square.
Monsters with jagged claws and gleaming scimitars roamed the square. The very same square where Sora liked to spend his evenings watching people, two bright blue eyes poking from the humid gloom of the Strawberry plastic house. An old man tossed bird seed, his nose red and flaking; when Zack and Vanitas arrived on the bike, the man tossed birdseed at them as well.
"Please clear out the park," Zack politely requested while Vanitas launched into a fit of curses. "There will be a maintenance crew coming shortly," he indicated the open road, "and visitors are not allowed." A spark jumped from his fingers and incinerated a curious heartless languidly lurching closer to the stubborn old man. "Sleep." Fair commanded and the man slumped, cut off mid-argument, the container of birdseed clattering loudly to the piping hot asphalt.
A group of brightly colored heartless advanced on Vanitas, some of them fluttering on delicate, white wings. He hurled Void Gear; the keyblade tore through the flying monsters and bouncing off a plant, it spun to the ground, encased in ice.
Snatching his weapon and shattering the ice on the blizzard plant, he ignited a fireball and it blew in Vitamin Square, leaving orange-red, transparent scorch marks on the sandstone bricks. The plant imploded.
A magenta heart spun to the sky.
Following the crystal, spinning heart, Vanitas sunk his blade into another heartless; its teeth met the edge of the blade. The monster swiped, cut a thin line on his jeans and crumpled under the onslaught of thunder. Irked, Vanitas whirled, about to give Zack a piece of his mind, he faltered when a duck raised its staff and glared questioningly at him.
"Well?" Donald quacked. "You were supposed to meet up before embarking on the mission." Vanitas lobbed Void Gear, it clonked a heartless creeping behind the incensed mage. "We had an agreement with Squall and King Mickey." Donald raised his wing and the staff blurred, replaced by one of metal and gem. "We are to work together." His enraged quack echoed for miles.
"Donald..." Goofy placated his fuming friend.
Too late.
They sky split, thunder growled and lashed like an electric yellow serpent, shearing through the heartless. They screeched in agony; Vanitas did not know heartless could scream. Only the yellow operas remained behind and glowed with health.
Vitamin Square smoked. The smell of burning ash drifted under Vanitas' nose. A thousand fuchsia hearts spun to the sky, glinting, glimmering and breaking into dust.
What the hell?
"You...you..." Rage rendered him inarticulate. "This was my mission you stupid duck!" He flung his keyblade and it bounced off Donald's staff. "How dare you show up here and steal what's mine!" A yellow opera zapped him and he lashed, Void Gear sawing through its body.
"You can clean up," Donald dismissively stated and stalked off, the zipper on his blue beret swinging. "This will teach you about teamwork."
Hands squeezed around Void Gear's handle, Vanitas demolished the rest of the operas as they jingled across the park and rained paralyzing dust. A neutral observer, Zack typed a report on his phone, shoulders tensed when the final yellow opera vanished and released a heart. His pupil fixated on the crystalized emblems and golden eyes simmering, calmly prowled back to the fence.
"What are those?" he pointed to the hearts, "I've never seen any shadows release them before. Do pureblood heartless release hearts? They are hearts aren't they?" Vanitas touched the cuts in his jeans and leaned against the pole, irises sliding to Donald Duck and Goofy as they sat on a park bench. "Are they going to babysit me from now on?" the heat in his voice returned. "I don't need babysitting, from you or anyone else."
The phone flipped shut. "Pureblood heartless do no release hearts," Fair stated, waiting for his statement to sink in.
"What?" Vanitas snapped. "They are not pureblood heartless? Some... someone is making them? How can you make heartless? Is there a sort of factory producing them, this entire square was chock-full."
"Who knows," Zack replied in a manner of a person who knew more than he let on. "The pureblood heartless found in Los Angeles are mostly the weak variety, the ones hanging around your home and in other obscure places, they go poof in a cloud of smoke when you kill them."
Goofy and Donald's voices rose in an argument and Vanitas relished their discomfort, a wide smile on his face.
"Do you want to tell me what really happened with Sora? There are no prying ears here." Fair prompted. "What kind of keyblade appeared in his hands?"
Grin melting, Vanitas slid to the ground and unbuttoned his leather jacket. It peeled off his arms. Zack joined him; the Buster sword balanced carefully across his thighs.
"It had a yellow hilt." The words choked Vanitas. "The Kingdom Key the KBWA is searching for," he said and Zack nodded. "Mickey knows." He puffed angrily when the dog and duck joined him and relaxed when Goofy offered a potion. "I suspect he didn't tell Leon. The King advised Sora to go to the KBWA, but he... my brother isn't good with people. He tries, but with all this magic and killing heartless and working with strangers, it's a disaster.
"Back at high school, he could never hold down a vacation or part-time job," Vanitas blurted. "I once found him unconscious underneath a bench after he failed an interview and got chewed out. He's not equipped for these things, heck, just standing in a courtroom full of people forces him to sleep the entire day." He recalled his twin immediately crashing to bed on returning home from a trial. "I have to wake him for dinner."
The oppressing weight lodged in Vanitas' chest eased a little; he sipped the potion, it tasted like lemonade and in a silver of good mood, thanked Goofy.
The anthropomorphic dog smiled warmly and Vanitas returned it with a timid one of his own.
"And you are sure Sora does not have second sight?" Zack asked.
"No," Vanitas lowered his head. "I already said so."
His mentor's eyes twinkled.
Liar.
"I understand," he added after a heartbeat. "Guess we have to return to headquarters, it's late, how time flies when you are wallowing in misery." Fair cheerfully clapped Vanitas on his back. "What about you two? All of us won't fit on the bike," he indicated the motorcycle.
Goofy waved. "Ahyuck, we have our own means of getting back to the KBWA." The evening sun elongated the shadows in Vitamin square, but the otherworldly creatures did not possess any shadows. "Don't worry about us," he said and a circular rune spread from under their feet, glowing acid green.
On the bike, Vanitas stared at the Buster sword, strapped into a special holster; his throat burned as he looped his arms across Zack's midsection. Sora didn't have the second sight.
He doesn't have it.
He doesn't have it.
Sora can't see the glowing orange part-worlds superimposed in Los Angeles; Vanitas mentally chanted over and over again.
Cake making is an art of itself, Sora concluded, wearing an apron one size too small, its front covered in a mixture of flour, powdered sugar, vanilla essence and egg white. Mr. Wright and Trucy crowded in front of the toaster oven, checking the fruit of their labor and despite himself, Sora smiled.
This happened thirty minutes ago, when he was safe in the offices, surrounded by familiar people and surroundings.
05:15 p.m.
Los Angeles
Commercial District
A long queue snaked from the ticket booth and fanned to the impromptu food stands on the opposite side of the road. People gathered for the Steel Samurai premier and Sora wondered why Fey dragged him in a mob of rabid fans. She waited in line for a ticket, chatting amiably with Trucy while he sweated on the sidewalk and half listened to whatever Athena told him. He didn't mind Athena; however, his stomach turned each time Trucy's top hat disappeared behind the ocean of people.
He nibbled on a hotdog slathered with mustard; the setting sun streaked vermillion across the sky, dampening the orange outlines.
The cinema loomed, stage lights highlighting the entertainment for the evening. Anticipation cackled in the air. Smoke from the nearby food stands mingled with conversation. An ice-cream truck joined the procession; Sora wouldn't be surprised if a couple of clowns also tumbled in.
Festivity colored the streets.
A flash of light ignited in his palm. Startled, he let the hotdog go when a giant key shaft sprang from nothing. Sora petrified as a dozen people turned to gawk at him. Athena gasped, her wide blue eyes reflected in the silver of his weapon.
Another wave of people noticed and Sora panicked, drawing his scarf around his face and trying to hide the Keyblade.
Why now?
His senior protectively screened him from the stabbing eyes and he attempted to lower his aching arm. She smiled at the crowd and waved them away, citing she spilled her hotdog on the pavement.
It worked, people's interest faded and Sora exhaled gratefully.
"Hmm...interesting thing you are carrying," a voice piped and Sora jumped. A grey headed teen smirked at the keyblade. "Mind if I touch it?"
"Joshua." Another ginger haired man with sculpted muscles joined them. "We were supposed to observe," he apologized and introduced himself while Sora gaped at his figure. Wow. "But since the Keyblade made its appearance," Hercules' eyes drifted to the skew crown on Sora's head, "our boss asked us to bring you in."
"We won't hurt you." Sora flushed when a woman materialized from nowhere, her voice fell like sweet honey from ruby red lips and he reminded himself to breath. "Leon was right," she mused, "you are the King."
King?
The three strangers herded a skittish Sora along. He tried protesting, but the woman with the snow white skin smiled and reduced him to a stammering mess. They assumed a triangular formation, the teen behind them and urged a baffled, skulking Sora to hurry
Athena tried calling Maya, but the spirit medium nodded offhandedly told her everything would be fine.
Nervously fidgeting with Widget, she watched her junior melting into a speck against the darkening sky.
Scrolling through his phone in the lobby, Vanitas worried when Sora did not reply to his messages.
What was he doing?
The dining hall remained subdued as Vanitas crossed it. A blindfolded figure with long silver hair exited the quiet lounge. Hesitating before the Grey Knight, Vanitas mentally grappled while Riku passed him.
Gritting teeth, Vanitas entered the lounge; the silken whispers of water instantaneously calmed him. He sunk into an armchair, dimmed the lights overhead and contemplated the coffee table bolted atop granite tiles. It missed a bust.
The replica of the Kingdom Key he stole all those weeks ago.
"Puppy, get to the research laboratory immediately!" Vanitas started when a command blared into his ear. What the hell? How did Zack clip a speaker on is lobe without him noticing? "Now!" His mentor barked.
Driven by the urgency, Vanitas leapt from his comfort zone and located the nearest moogle. The furry creature spouted nonsense about the infirmary's new elixir and as it continued chanting, Vanitas barreled through the laboratory doors and came to a rigid standstill.
"You two definitely look alike," Joshua drawled as the twins came face to face.
"What... what..." Vanitas' mouth became dry, "what are you doing here?" he whispered and clasped Sora's shoulders, his brother grew ashen, muffler damp with nervous sweat. "The keyblade materialized again?"
Sora nodded miserably.
Void Gear materialized in a cocoon of dark shadows and Vanitas whipped around, weapon pointed forward. "I don't care what the Kingdom Key means to the KBWA, but he isn't going to join," he forcefully voiced. At the other end of the laboratory, Leon raised an eyebrow. "Sora has a job already, he can't juggle two at the same time. In the meantime, I'm avail-"
"Put your weapon away, pointing it at the leader of the KBWA is tantamount to treason," Zack hissed and drew his Buster sword. "Put your Keyblade away, or you will be out of a job very soon," he warned and Vanitas reluctantly let Void Gear go. "…In any case, the Kingdom Key is crucial in the upcoming war, it's the lynchpin, the weapon which will save the worlds from crashing into each other." Fair returned the Buster sword to its harness. "Your brother never had a choice once the weapon chose him."
"You can give him one!" Vanitas screeched, knuckles tight. "He has no battle experience, he can barely look someone in the eye-" Sora traced an interesting pattern on the tile, "-how could you force someone to do this?" Vanitas shrieked. "This is insane, I'm taking him home, don't you dare kidnap him or I'll send this Association up in flames!" he threatened venomously.
Darkness leaked from Vanitas and coiled around table legs. The beakers rattled and light dimmed. A researcher yelped as a container of magic spontaneously burst into flames.
"Sora Clavius," Leon leaned against the edge of a desk. "I'm sure you noticed peculiarities since you've gained second sight?" The timid twin nodded while Vanitas spat. "The worlds are converging…for the last hundred years. One day all of us will wake up with a collapsed world, everything we care about will be gone."
Sora glanced at Vanitas who shook his head vehemently.
"We contacted a mentor for you," Squall continued, ignoring Vanitas' heated curses. "He is a respected member of the KBWA and is currently on Special Assignment, as soon as he finishes, he will teach you everything you need to know."
The globe Map of the Universe cranked on its gears and a new area glowed with red light.
"The Kingdom Key is a special weapon, along with its counterpart; it will restore the rest of the micro-planets in their proper orbit." Leon's light blue eyes softened at the confusion in Sora's face. "I understand this is a lot to take in, but your Keyblade is legendary, it was last wielded by a founder of the KBWA."
Vanitas opened his mouth for a counter argument.
"You are known as The King, the wielder of the Kingdom Key, the KBWA has been searching for this weapon for the last fifty years." Squall broke into a half-smile and to Vanitas' dismay, his brother loosened. "Welcome to the KBWA, Mr. Clavius," Leon tilted his head, "we will make a High-tier wielder out of you."
Waking
Morning
Chamber of Waking
Stars melted in the light of dawn. An eerie silence blanketed the ghost town at the foot of the mountain and intensified as it reached the castle at its peak. Bone white runes and sigils surrounded a lonely alabaster throne, in a chamber of deafening quietness.
A figure shifted as the last petal of the windflower fell.
Ventus opened his eyes from a century long slumber.
He stretched and nimbly hopped to the floor. A suit of burnished bronze armor, clutching a giant keyblade, stood vigil in a corner. Patting the suit on its knuckles, he exited the chamber for the castle vestibule. Aqua gazed out an arched window, arms cradling the bell jar and now dead windflower.
"Ven." She smiled, her hair, more silver than blue, framed her face neatly. "You are awake." She placed the jar on a nearby round table and squeezed him to her chest.
He yawned and with some difficulty, detangled himself.
"I'm going to explore," Ventus said and laced his hands behind his head. "You're still the same," he noted. "Do you want to come with me?"
Aqua shook her head.
"Okay," he waved, "I'll be back soon." He dashed to the entrance before Aqua's parental instincts kicked in and she imposed a curfew. "I won't make any trouble," Ventus promised.
She smiled again and leaned on her elbows. "Blink," she told him. "Your irises are gold."
A/N: Okay, I suppose it wasn't a surprise to anyone when the Kingdom Key came to Sora. Ventus was asleep for a hundred years and now Aqua watches over him.
At CallofRanger13: Thank you so much for the reviews; I was honestly thinking of not updating this story but after seeing the review, I decided to continue it. Yes, the short trial was better for Sora's stress but what happened afterwards? Not so much :D
As usual, please read and review, constructive criticism is always appreciated.