The Keyblade Master sighed as she flew through The Lanes Between.
Aqua wasn't happy with herself, Vanitas appearing right before her…yet she let him slip right through her fingers again. It was a miracle she had run into him twice already, so a third time would be even more unlikely. What if that had been her last chance? What if that masked menace would keep evading her grasp?
No…that couldn't be entirely true. His words after their first encounter cropped up in her mind, how it never hurt to have a backup. A backup for what, exactly? Clearly Vanitas and the elderly man he worked with had some sort of plan for her. Yet nothing else he had said or that she uncovered pointed her in the right direction.
She shook her worries aside, sure that she and Vanitas would meet again at some point. There was no way she'd let him get away a third time! Aqua just hoped she could encounter him somewhere secluded so that she could go all out. Her most powerful spells were too dangerous to have used back near Dr. Tenma and Tobio's home. The chances of collateral damage was just too high!
As Aqua pondered this, a world started to grow closer. It was a rather small world, covered mostly in a dark forest. She saw snow on the treetops and on what parts of the ground she could see. Once more, she felt her heart acting as her guiding key, and she flew straight toward it, wondering if perhaps Vanitas was there…
The Keyblade Master landed in the woods, seeing that night had fallen in the world already. As she dismissed her armor, she turned her glider back into Rainfell, using it to light the forest around her. The cold was a bit biting but compared to Shiver City and the areas that surrounded it, this temperature was more than manageable. Instantly, she felt a sense of unease flowing through her. It was as though she were being watched. Not just by some unseen woodland creatures, but by something with intelligence.
She looked about but saw nothing. No figure lurking in the darkness or some sort of monster waiting to pounce on her. Still, it was a feeling she wasn't able to shake off. Aqua ignored it for the time being and started to walk through the woods. The snow crunching beneath her feet helped soothe her a bit.
While she loved the rain a lot more, she enjoyed snowfall as well. The serene white fields that came in the winter was a sight she loved back in her homeworld. Of course, her parents didn't want her playing in the snow, it wasn't appropriate for someone like her. At least, that's what they told her.
Aqua shook the thoughts of her homeworld away and instead focused on her friends instead. How were they doing? How was the darkness in Terra's heart faring? Was he able to overcome his inner struggles? And Ventus, was he safe? Did he finally heed Aqua's warning and just go home? She prayed that he did, but there was a part of her that felt he was too stubborn to just do that.
Sighing, the Keyblade Master regretted not landing closer to civilization as she kept going through the dark woods. It was actually hard to see much aside from the trees from The Lanes Between. She didn't want to just fly around the world on her glider and risk someone seeing her, of course.
She wondered if Vanitas was even in this world at all. The last two times she encountered him; he was in a heavily civilized area. This world was mostly forest from what she could tell, so was he hanging about it? Were there even any Unversed?
While the young woman pondered, she entered a clearing and froze in her tracks as she saw a figure before her. It was wearing a hooded cloak, and its back was to her. She was able to hear it muttering something to itself, but she couldn't make out the words at all. This figure didn't seem to notice her presence, too distracted with whatever it was murmuring about to realize it was no longer alone.
Aqua felt like she had heard this figure's voice before, realizing it was a man. Frowning, she called out. "Hey! Sir, what are you doing all the way out here?" Just standing around in the middle of some dark woods was pretty odd…
The figure turned around with a flinch, and a very familiar face was staring back at Aqua. Calling it a face was generous, though. It was a skull with glowing red eyes, the orbs seeming to bore into Aqua's very being. The figure was the Mahjarrat she had encountered in Hyrule! "Now, what are the chances…?" He said with a laugh.
The Keyblade Master immediately got into a defensive position, ready for the Mahjarrat to strike out at her. He didn't actually do anything, though, he just stood there and stared her down. "What are you doing here?! Nothing good, I bet!"
"Please! So aggressive! What did I ever do to you?" The Mahjarrat replied, his voice jovial and carefree, clearly not taking the situation seriously at all. "I was out here minding my own business and you came up demanding answers!"
"Don't play dumb with me. We met before, and you were talking about looking for gods…no way that's for anything good." Aqua never really figured out what the creature's plan was, but she could feel in her gut it was something awful.
The Mahjarrat let out a "Tsk!" and shook his head. "Throwing all these accusations at me, and not even a lick of proof I'm up to anything bad!"
Well, he was technically right, but Aqua knew he was just messing with her. She wanted to at least know what he wanted before just attacking him. "You're here looking for some other god, aren't you? Is that why you're here? Or is this your homeworld?"
"Oh, no, my homeworld is much less pleasant than this. A dead world of ash and lava…but at least Gielinor is far larger and much more fun. But yes, I came here to continue my search." The Mahjarrat said, still not seeming bothered by Aqua's animosity towards him.
So, he was from some dead world, and then went somewhere called Gielinor? "What do you want with the gods anyway?" What counted as a 'god' varied greatly from world to world, Master Eraqus had taught her that. Some were simply large and intelligent creatures while others were able to snuff out entire worlds with zero effort. Was this Mahjarrat trying to steal away the power of weaker gods? She wasn't sure what else he could be doing. "Who are you anyway? What's your name?"
"We already had this conversation, you're so boring!" The Mahjarrat complained. "Just like this world. All this talk about some omniscient thing the folks here call The Beast, and it's barely anything to fret about, in the end. I doubt it can even be called a god." He gave off a little shrug. "As for my name…I suppose I can tell you. It's Sliske, are you satisfied?"
Aqua had enough. She was tired of this thing dancing around her questions regarding his plans. The Keyblade Master decided she would have to beat some answers out of this Sliske guy. That wasn't her usual style, but she was getting nowhere otherwise! The Keyblade Master kicked off the ground and practically flew at Sliske. With a shout, she readied Rainfell and swung it as she reached the Mahjarrat.
Except…there was no impact.
The young woman hit thin air where Sliske had been standing mere seconds ago. It wasn't that he dodged or ducked or anything, but the cloaked figure was just…gone! Aqua landed in the snow and quickly whipped around, Keyblade at the ready…but Sliske wasn't there. The clearing was empty aside from Aqua herself!
"Where…? Did he leave this this world?" The Keyblade Master murmured to herself, looking all around her, even up in the tree branches, but seeing no one.
"My, someone gives their name, and you attack them? Do you always do that?" Sliske's voice rang out from nowhere in particular. Aqua's eyes widened as she saw the Mahjarrat appear from the darkness of the trees n front of her. The skull-faced creature simply emerged from the shadows as though he were a part of them.
Was it some sort of way of using darkness? It wasn't something Aqua had ever heard of before. "I know you're up to something terrible, so of course I'll attack!"
Sliske let out a jovial laugh, clearly not taking this seriously at all. "It doesn't really matter what you think. It doesn't affect this world or your own. Why are you poking your nose n my business anyway? Who are you?"
"That's my job! I can't just let people like you going around messing with other worlds, especially if gods are concerned." It almost frustrated Aqua the most that she simply had no idea what his plan even was. But if he was meddling with gods, it couldn't possibly be anything remotely good…
The Mahjarrat scoffed. "How boring. Some goody-goody hero or something. I've seen enough of your kind that you're just dull at this point."
"This isn't a game, you know…" Aqua wasn't sure what to do. If she attacked, Sliske would surely just dodge again. She was waiting for him to make some sort of move to retaliate, but he never did.
"I'd love to stay and play, but it's not worth the energy. Maybe after The Ritual of Rejuvenation, we'll run into each other again. In fact, I almost hope we do…" Sliske murmured, his voice sounding annoyed at the end there, as if he was finally taking Aqua seriously.
Desperately, Aqua charged in to attack again, but before she could reach Sliske, he let out a bout of laughter as he once more vanished. Like in Hyrule, he only left behind a whisp of shadow as his cackling faded into the trees.
Cursing her luck, Aqua looked about, just in case Sliske emerged from the shadows again, but he never reappeared. This time she was sure he had left the world. He had gotten away, and she still didn't know what his plan was! Something potentially threatening one, or even multiple, worlds from what she could gather.
At the very least, she knew his name and a world he was familiar with. Gielinor. It wasn't a world she had ever heard of, but maybe knowing its name could help in tracking it down. She recalled how Master Eraqus mentioned Master Yen Sid watching the stars and on the balance of light and darkness. Maybe he could somehow find a way to reach Gielinor without having to blindly search for it.
Of course, this had to wait until the matter of Vanitas and the Unversed was over. One major mission at a time! She had the feeling that this Sliske character would be a massive problem at some point, and she was sure Master Eraqus would see that as well. Aqua also realized she herself would probably be the one responsible for taking him down, which was just fine by her.
Still, Aqua cursed her luck at letting Sliske get away a second time. Between him and Vanitas, she really started feeling bad about tracking dangerous figures down. Sighing, the Keyblade Master marched onward, the crunching of the snow her only companion for a while.
It felt like hours passed, but Aqua knew it couldn't be nearly that long. No Unversed popped out, and she saw no other people or any signs of civilization. Certainly no Beast like Sliske had mentioned. She at least kept her guard up as she went, her mind coming up with horrid images of The Beast and what it could be like with what little information she had on it.
While she went, Aqua stopped in her tracks once more, this time because she heard voices up ahead.
"I know he was around nearby! He has to be!" A girl's voice rang out, clearly distressed. "That figure he was with…I didn't get a good look, but it couldn't be anyone good…"
Her interest caught, Aqua rushed ahead and entered a sort of path through the woods. Before her was a startled young boy in a pointed red cap. In one arm he held a large frog, and on his shoulder was a bluebird. No girl, though. So, who was talking to?
"Huh? Who are you? Why are you out here?" The boy asked, taking a small step away from Aqua. He had dark circles under his eyes, and he sounded absolutely exhausted.
"I could ask the same thing! It's so dark out here and it's freezing! Why aren't you inside somewhere?!" Aqua asked, bewildered at seeing a young boy out in the cold like this. "And…I heard a girl's voice. Is someone with you?"
To Aqua's surprise, the bluebird's beak open as she spoke. "That was me. And we're looking for someone! Have you seen a boy in green overalls? Kinda dumb but really nice? Goes by Greg?"
Oh, so that was it. These two were out looking for a friend of theirs in the forest! "I'm sorry, but I haven't. I can help you look, you said he was with a figure, right?" Aqua was worried that it was Sliske, though she had no idea what he'd want with a child. The Keyblade Master wasn't all too surprised at the talking bird, especially since she encountered the Bumpties in the past.
"I didn't get a good look, but I think it was The Beast." The bluebird bemoaned.
So, The Beast was real? Or at least the bluebird thought so. "Okay, well, I'll help you guys out as much as I can."
"We really appreciate it…it's all my fault he's out here in the first place!" The boy said, sounding rather frustrated with himself.
Nodding, Aqua would walk alongside the pair as they went further into the woods. "Can you tell me more about what happened? My name is Aqua, by the way…"
"I'm Wirt, and this is Beatrice." The boy replied, glancing at the bluebird. "I went to sleep earlier, and when I woke up, Greg was just…gone." He let out a heavy sigh, his breath highly visible in the cold. "If I had just been watching him closer…"
"You can't blame yourself, Wirt." Beatrice lightly scolded. "Beating yourself won't get Greg back. The Unknown can be dangerous…especially for two kids wandering around alone."
So, the place was called The Unknown. Aqua was getting increasingly worried about Greg, the young woman having a soft spot for helping children. "How dangerous is this Beast?" She had to know more about this creature if she was going to fight it.
"No one really knows." Beatrice replied, sighing. "Everyone knows its dangerous, but not a lot of people actually cross it and live to tell about it. At least that's how the stories go…"
Well, that wasn't exactly helpful. Either way, Aqua would just have to be prepared for anything. She had fought an invincible turtle monster, a galactic invader with unspeakable powers, and a creature with seemingly infinite hands. That was on top of all the Unversed she had face. Surely she would be able to tackle this Beast…
Just as Aqua was about to reply, a voice rang out from the darkness ahead. It was a loud, male voice, deep and haunting as it sang into the night air.
Come wayward Souls
That wander through the darkness
There is a light for the lost and the meek
Sorrow and fear
Are easily forgotten
When you submit to the soil of the earth
"That has to be The Beast! He's nearby! He has Greg!" Wirt shouted, starting to march towards the voice.
Aqua placed a firm hand on the teen's shoulder and shook her head. "No, it's dangerous! You two need to stay here...I'll confront The Beast. I'll save Greg if it's the last thing I do. Okay?" She couldn't risk anyone else getting hurt, especially if they were under her watch.
"What are you going to do? You can't just fight The Beast!" Beatrice warned, gesturing into the darkness ahead with her wing.
"What would you two do?" Aqua argued with a shake of the head. "I can fight, I can handle this. You two need to stay back, okay?"
Wirt looked like he wanted to argue but didn't say anything for a few seconds. "She's right. What would we even do that she couldn't?" He relented with a sigh, his breath visible in the cold. "Please, you have to help Greg…"
"I will, I'll get him back no matter what!" Aqua promised, quickly rushing ahead towards The Beast's voice, the entity still singing out into the air. As she went, the voice grew louder, and the darkness around the Keyblade Master seemed to grow more solid. Despite her using Rainfell to light her way, it barely seemed to help as she went through the trees.
Aqua wanted to get this as done as fast as possible. Not only for Greg's sake, but for Wirt and Beatrice. It was so cold outside, and all three of them needed to get to shelter. Well, Beatrice was a bird, so she'd probably be okay for a while longer.
Before too long, The Beast's song stopped, just as Aqua stepped into a clearing. Standing before her, in the middle of the space, was a figure. It was barely illuminated by Rainfell's light. The Keyblade Master could barely make it out, just a figure of shadow with two twisting horns and bright, glowing white eyes.
"Not who I was expecting." The figure said, speaking in the same voice that had sang out.
Knowing it had to be The Beast, Aqua got into a defensive position, eyes darting around the clearing. Where was Greg? "You're The Beast, aren't you?" She asked, feeling she had to at least make sure first.
"Something tells me you already know." The Beast replied, speaking calmly.
"Who were you expecting, then? Where s Greg? I know he's here!" The Keyblade Master demanded, ready to attack the figure at any moment. She found it odd that it didn't seem intimidated by her presence at all. Was it stronger than it looked? She certainly felt a deep darkness coming from the entity…
"Just The Woodsman. But what about you? Why are you here? Another visitor from outside The Unknown." The Beast tilted its head in what seemed to be curiosity. "Those two boys, that masked creature and the one with a skull's face."
That certainly got Aqua's attention. "Ven? Terra? They were here?" She supposed it wasn't too much of a shock. The young woman had found herself in worlds the other two had been in on multiple occasions, sometimes at the same time as at least one of them. "And Vanitas? Was he here? Is he still here?" She of course remembered Sliske, apparently the Mahjarrat had actually spoken to The Beast at some point.
"The masked thing? I saw it depart." The Beast informed, continuing to conveniently ignore some of the things Aqua asked of it. "But why are you here in the dark and the cold?"
Aqua was disappointed to hear Vanitas was gone and grit her teeth. "I'm here for Greg. What did you do to him? I know you have him here somewhere!"
"What makes you think that? You should calm down. Fretting will get you nowhere. Sit down and rest in the cold…" The Beast lightly urged, still not seeming to mind Aqua's open hostility.
Before Aqua could answer, a man's voice rang out from behind her. "Beast!" It shouted. Aqua turned to see a man approaching the clearing. He wore heavy clothing and had an axe in one hand and a lit lantern in the other. "Trying to tempt another lost soul? Leave her be, you wicked thing!"
"Woodsman, I knew you would come." The Beast said, voice still calm as the older man walked into the clearing. "Here, I have something for you…" It spoke, seeming to almost ignore Aqua's existence as it moved aside.
Behind where The Beast was standing was a young boy in green overalls and an upside-down tea kettle on his head. His eyes were closed, and his skin was pale. The most horrific thing, however, was that red branches and roots were growing around him, some parts of them dripping a dark black oil.
"What have you done to that boy?!" The Woodsman demanded, gaping in horror at the sight of the child.
"Greg!" Aqua exclaimed, also horrified. It had to be him! "He was here the whole time, and you were just…hiding him from me!"
The Beast looked between Aqua and The Woodsman, standing behind Greg as though using the boy as a shield. "He will burn nicely in the lantern, Woodsman…"
"N…No! I-I can't do that! You don't mean…" The Woodsman choked out, his frame shaking violently.
"You've been grinding up lost souls for years!" The Beast declared, pointing an accusatory finger at the man. "Where did you think Edelwood trees came from?"
"I-I didn't know! I didn't know this is how they came to be!" The Woodsman looked partly to Aqua as he spoke, as if trying to convince her he was innocent.
Aqua wanted to just lunge at The Beast, but she was scared of harming Greg. The entity was standing so close to him! What if she charged and the creature hurt the boy? What if she stopped to help Greg, and The Beast did something to the both of them? The fact that she knew so little about the figure made it hard for her to decide on what to do…
"Would that have mattered?" The Beast demanded, head tilting curiously once more. "Would that stop you from saving your daughter's soul?" Its eyes widened, blue, red, and yellow rings appearing in the orbs as its voice echoed ominously. "Feed the lantern, Woodsman…"
The Woodsman looked to the lantern, and then to Aqua as if silently asking for help. She of course had no idea what was going on. "Is…her soul in the lantern? Is keeping it lit allowing her to live?" The Keyblade Master asked, never hearing of such a strange magic. Master Eraqus, naturally, emphasized the importance of hearts, but he did mention the souls of those throughout the Universe and how important those were too. Heart, body, soul…all three were crucial to the average person…
Nodding, the man lowered the lantern. "Yes…as long as I feed the lantern oil, my daughter's soul can live on. But at the cost of others…I-I can't…"
The Beast shrugged. "Well, I suppose it makes sense. After all these years, I guess you just don't care about her anymore."
Instantly, The Woodsman became enraged, pointing his axe at the figure. "Hold your tongue or I'll cut it out, Beast! Do not speak of her!" He approached Greg, The Beast retreating to the darkness of the trees. "Come, let's get you out of there…" He whispered, starting to break apart the branches entangling the boy, placing the axe and lantern down as he did so.
Aqua approached too, keeping an eye out for The Beast as she kept watch over Greg and The Woodsman. She didn't want to go after it, afraid it'd lose her in the forest and come back to Greg and do…who even knew what? Somehow him being wrapped up in wood was The Beast's doing, apparently. As she grew near, something caught her eye.
There was an object lying next to Greg, Aqua having been too focused on the boy himself to even notice it. It was a Keyblade! As she looked closer, she realized it wasn't a real Keyblade, but one carved from wood. Her eyes widened, recognizing it quickly as Ventus'! Why did Greg have it? Did Ventus give it to him for some reason…? "He'd have to have a very good reason…" She murmured to herself.
While she was distracted, the shadowy hand of The Beast stretched towards the lantern, The Woodsman seeing it first and swinging his axe at it, barely missing his mark. The creature stood away, apparently not wanting direct confrontation. "I only wish to help you, Woodsman!" It bellowed. "Without that oil, your daughter-"
"I told you not to speak of her!" The man cried as he brandished his axe and charged The Beast. He swung at the creature, but it laughed as it dodged his attacks, the two slowly going deeper into the forest.
Aqua decided to stay behind, prying Greg free slowly from his entrapment. She was afraid to use magic or her Keyblade, not wanting to accidentally hurt the boy, so she had to use her bare hands. It was surprisingly difficult to break the branches apart, but she slowly made progress.
"Greg!" Wirt's voce rang from behind Aqua. She turned to see the older boy and Beatrice quickly approaching his brother. "What happened?"
"I don't know, I think The Beast did it…but why are you here? You were supposed to stay behind!" Aqua lightly scolded, though she supposed she could hardly blame Wirt for his actions.
"I couldn't just stay behind…" Was all Wirt said as an explanation, starting to pry at the branches himself.
At the sound of Wirt's voice, Greg let out a small noise as his eyes cracked open. "Wirt…?" He murmured, barely able to keep his eyes open as he looked to his brother.
"Greg, we're going to get you out of there…!" Wirt promised, Beatrice even flying to one of the smaller branches and trying to pry it away with her beak to little avail.
The boy started coughing, red leaves coming out and falling to the floor. "I did it…I beat The Beast…" He murmured.
Beatrice let out a noise of distress. "Oh, trees are even growing inside of him!"
"No, I was just eating leaves…" Greg clarified, coughing up a few more. "I…need you to return the rock…" He took a rock from his pouch, one with a silly painted face on it. "I stole it from Mrs. Daniel's garden…I'm a stealer…"
"You'll return it yourself! Come on, Greg, you have to come back with me and Jason Funderburker!" Wirt said, holding up the frog.
Greg smiled weakly. "Jason Funderburker…the perfect frog name…" After that, he suddenly closed his eyes, going limp.
"Oh, no…" Aqua murmured, panicking as she, Wirt, and Beatrice tried tearing at the wooden prison around Greg, the branches only seeming to grow in strength with each passing moment.
"Don't worry Wirt, we'll get him out of there!" Beatrice tried consoling as he and Aqua tried to break Greg free.
A groan from behind the group caught their attention, The Woodsman collapsing from exhaustion onto the ground, The Beast standing over him. The entity stared right at Wirt, or rather at the lantern by his feet. "Give me my lantern." It coldly demanded, white orbs seeming to glow just a bit brighter than usual.
"What? Your lantern?" Wirt picked it up, confused. "Look, I'm keeping this, I need to get by brother home!"
"I wouldn't trust that thing, Wirt…" Aqua said, once more finding herself unable to charge The Beast. After all, The Woodsman was right there, and she was afraid of hurting him by accident.
The Beast shook its head, pointing towards Greg. "Your brother is too weak to go home. It can't be done. He will soon become part of my forest."
"I won't let that happen! I won't leave him here!" Wirt said, holding the lantern eye and standing between The Beast and Greg.
That didn't seem to deter The Beast at all, who only paused for a moment before replying. "Well, I suppose we'll have to make a deal." It said as it shifted away from The Woodsman, slowly edging closer to Wirt.
Aqua took this chance.
Springing forward, she readied her Keyblade to strike The Beast down. To her shock, the figure seemed to wave its hand, and when that happened, five Bruisers appeared in Aqua's way! Did it just summon Unversed?!
At this point, even a group of Bruisers wasn't a match for Aqua. She had grown too much since leaving The Land of Departure for them to be a problem for her. Rainfell was encased in a glowing magic, Aqua throwing it at the Unversed. The Keyblade spun around rapidly and sliced through the Bruisers, destroying them in the blink of an eye.
By the time Rainfell returned to Aqua's hand, Wirt had approached The Beast, lantern in hand. Once more, the Keyblade Master found that the figure was too close to someone for her to attack it. She swore it had to be doing it on purpose, using innocents as a shield because it knew she could fight it. It made her wonder if The Beast could even fight at all. After all, it managed to summon Unversed to do its dirty work.
She hadn't seen anyone else purposefully summon an Unversed, so the notion surprised her. Obviously Vanitas was their source, and Dr. Tenma seemed to have conjured one totally by accident, but The Beast very explicitly did it on purpose!
Wirt's eyes were fixated on The Beast, holding the lantern's handle tight enough that his knuckles went white. "What did you just do? You summoned those…things…and what kind of deal do you even mean? Just let my brother go!"
"She was attacking me. I had to defend myself." The Beast explained simply, as if it had done nothing wrong. "As for the deal, well...I can place Gregory's soul within the lantern. As long as it stays lit, he will live on."
"Don't do that, Wirt! It's tricking you! It has to be!" Aqua didn't understand what it was that The Beast wanted, but there was no doubt in her mind that it wasn't trying to help Wirt out of the goodness of its hard. Besides, what about The Woodsman's daughter? If The Beast was telling the truth, that means her soul would surely be placed outside of the lantern and vanish!
"Do not heed her words." The dark figure calmly ordered. "You have a choice to make. Become the lantern bearer or lose your brother. What shall it be, Wirt?"
Wirt stood there, panting heavily as he thought things over, the pressure clearly weighing heavily on him. He didn't look at Aqua, Beatrice, or even Greg. He stared only at the lantern before taking a few steps forward…but then he stopped. "No. That's…That's dumb."
"What?!" The Beast demanded, letting its anger out as it recoiled as though Wirt had physically lashed out at it.
"That's dumb." Wirt repeated, looking up at The Beast. "I'm not…just gonna wander the woods, chopping down trees forever." He glanced over at The Woodsman, who groaned out as he started to regain consciousness. "I'm not living that sort of life."
The Beast seemed to bristle at those words, leering heavily at Wirt. "I'm trying to help you!" It growled, its voice echoing lightly and taking on a far more menacing tone.
Despite this, Wirt stood his ground. "You're not trying to help me! You're just obsessed with keeping this lantern lit for some reason. It's like…your soul is in here."
Aqua's eyes widened, things starting to click for her. Why else would The Beast want to help The Woodsman so badly? It wasn't to help his daughter; it was so the entity could help itself stay alive! "Wirt! Blow the lantern out!"
The Beast let out a guttural grow as its form spasmed, its eyes taking on those blue, yellow, and red rings once more. In an instant, nearly all the light in the area was gone, even the lantern barely illuminating Wirt as he stared fearfully at The Beast.
The Keyblade Master felt her legs freeze in place, actually terrified of what she felt. The darkness was practically suffocating, and she became increasingly aware that The Beast wasn't just some dark horned figure in the woods. It was so much more than that, and its darkness made her feel hopeless and alone, as though giving up was the only option for her. Was that was it was? The personification of hopelessness? Maybe Sliske was right, and it really was a minor god of sorts…
"Are you ready to see true darkness?" The Beast growled, its voice echoing heavily as it stared at Wirt, its glowing eyes managing to pierce the inky darkness that seemed to swallow up just about everything else.
Wirt stood still as a statue for a moment, staring right back at The Beast. "Are…Are you?" He asked, tripping over his words, opening the lantern, and inhaling heavily.
In an instant, the darkness went away, The Beast's eyes returning to white orbs as it stuck a desperate arm out at the boy. "No! Stop!" It said, not so much ordering as it was pleading, and its voice back to normal. The suffocating feeling and the hopelessness in the air vanished along with the darkness, The Beast's power truly stripped away in its panic.
Closing the lantern's hatch, Wirt scoffed, openly disgusted towards The Beast. He walked over to The Woodsman, who watched the entire thing with wide eyes and a pale face. "Here, Woodsman. This is your problem, not mine." Wirt said, handing the lantern over to the man, who took it silently. "We're going home."
The Woodsman took the lantern, staring at it like it was a dangerous object. "She…was never in here, was she?" He said, turning to The Beast, who lingered by the tree line.
"I know I just got here, and it's not my place…but I think Wirt was right." Aqua answered the question, approaching The Woodsman. While this happened, Wirt grabbed the man's axe and worked on freeing Greg. "Whatever is in that lantern, it isn't your daughter."
"She doesn't know what she speaks." The Beast murmured, edging closer to the man he had tormented for years. "Listen to me, Woodsman, I can help you…"
Aqua almost attacked The Beast, but even after that display earlier, she started to question just how physically dangerous the entity was. Could it even fight, or did it just have to rely on its words and underlings like The Unversed to do its dirty work? "I'll let you handle this. It's your choice." The Keyblade Master said, turning her back on the pair as she went over to Wirt, Greg, and Beatrice.
By this point, Greg was freed, his chest rising and falling softly to show he was still alive as Wirt started to carry him on his back. "Wirt, I can't believe you stood up to The Beast like that…" Beatrice said, seeming genuinely impressed.
"I'm sorry I wasn't able to help more. I was afraid you'd get hurt if I attacked The Beast when you were so close to it…" Aqua said with a sigh. "You kept your heart strong, though, and confronted it all on your own, though."
Wirt shook his head. "It's not your job to protect me or anything, so it's fine." He turned to Beatrice. "Hey, you should come with us."
The bluebird let out a sigh. "No…I should get home…We both have families to get back to. I have to tell them it's my fault we were turned to birds…" Beatrice gasped as Wirt produced a pair of scissors from his pocket, ones that looked a bit like a bird. "Where did you…?!"
"I swiped these when Adelaide started turning to smoke." Wirt said, almost casually. "You need these, right?"
"Oh, you wonderful mistake of nature!" The bluebird said, blinking back tears as she wrapped her wings on Wirt's face like a hug.
Wirt smiled a bit, turning to Aqua. "We'll be fine on our own. Don't worry about us, okay?"
He said it with such confidence that Aqua felt little choice but to believe him. "If you're really sure…" With The Beast scared, she doubted much would stand in their way. The young woman picked up the Wooden Keyblade. "Here. My friend, Ven, he gave this to you, right?"
"He was your friend too?" Wirt asked. "Yeah…he gave it to Greg and had him keep it. We ran into another guy named Terra also. But anyway…you keep it. I don't think we'll need it. Thank your friends for us, okay?"
Smiling a bit, Aqua nodded. "Alright, I will. Good luck, all of you." She was actually pretty surprised to learn that Beatrice was cursed in some way. So, talking animals weren't natural in this world, it'd seem. The Keyblade Master watched as Wirt carried Greg and Jason Funderburker into the darkness of The Unknown, Beatrice flying beside them with the scissors in her talons.
"Go! Now!" The Beast demanded, he and the Woodsman in the middle of a conversation that Aqua had missed. She turned around to see the man shine the lantern on the figure and she felt her stomach drop at the sight. It lasted for only a split second, but she saw that The Beast seemed to be made of screaming, wooden faces. This flash was all she got before it retreated into the shadows once more.
"I…I won't…not anymore…" The Woodsman murmured, tired yet defiant. He opened the lantern's hatch, looking up at The Beast.
The entity flinched, yet only stood away from The Woodsman as it's eyes widened. "Stop! You'll never see your daughter again! Is that what you want, Woodsman?!" It pleaded, blatantly desperate. "Are you really ready to go back to that empty house?! Will you let your heart carry that burden for the rest of your days?!"
Aqua turned away from the confrontation as the lantern's light was extinguished behind her, a monstrous roar of agony ringing out from behind her as she walked into the tree line. She let Rainfell light her way, confident that The Beast was no more. Wirt, Greg, and Beatrice would get back to their homes while The Woodsman would be free from the shadow of The Beast.
It was a nice feeling…but Aqua still accomplished nothing.
Sighing, she looked down at her other hand, the Wooden Keyblade in her grip. Ventus and Terra had both been to this world like her along with both Vanitas and Sliske. Yet she wasn't able to help her friends or stop her foes. She wondered if she should head back to The Land of Departure, to seek guidance from Master Eraqus.
Aqua figured he would be disappointed, but she had to swallow her pride and ask for help. Vanitas and that old man Bowser had mentioned were up to something more than just unleashing Unversed into various worlds, so if she kept blindly looking on her own, the consequences could be extremely dire.
As she pondered this, Aqua entered another clearing, dropping the Wooden Keyblade to the ground as she looked to the leafless trees before her. She flinched as she heard a twig snap to the left of her. Looking, she saw nothing, but approached cautiously. As she reached the tree line, a cold and familiar voice rang out from behind her.
"You'll stop at any world you come across, won't you?"
Aqua turned around, Rainfell at the ready as she faced the speaker. She knew she had recognized the voice, tensing up as she saw Vanitas standing before her. The masked figure was holding the Wooden Keyblade in his hand. "Why did you pick that up! Put it down!" She ordered, gritting her teeth. "Why are you even here? The Beast said you left!"
"Doesn't mean I can't come back. Almost a shame what befell that creature." Vanitas replied, ignoring her demand. "It was actually interesting, the personification of hopelessness and surrender. It made a very effective conduit for the Unversed, almost as good as me, actually. Then that Woodsman had to ruin it all…"
So, Vanitas was trying to use The Beast? All the better that it was stopped. "Just put that Keyblade down! I'm not letting you get away this time!"
Once more, the masked boy ignored Aqua's demand. "I think that weakling's outgrown toys like these. Wouldn't you say?" Gripping near the top of it with his free hand, Vanitas almost effortlessly snapped the Wooden Keyblade in half, carelessly tossing its remnants to the side.
"No!" Aqua couldn't help but cry out, remember how important that was to Ventus. It wasn't a toy, not to him. It was a symbol of his and Terra's friendship! He'd be so upset when he learned it got destroyed like that!
Vanitas summoned Void Gear, preparing himself for battle. "As it happens, I've outgrown my need for you as well."
Gritting her teeth, Aqua glared at the figure before her. "You freak! What are you planning?! Who are you working with?!" He had mentioned she was backup before, but backup for what, and why was she no longer needed?!
Her opponent didn't even bother to reply. He dashed forward, crossing the gap between them in moments. As he swung his Keyblade down, Aqua only had enough to block as the attack slammed into Rainfell. Grunting, she felt her legs buckle as snow was kicked up from the force of the impact.
Aqua wasn't nervous, though, she had grown stronger! And unlike last time, she didn't have to worry about collateral damage. It was just her and Vanitas in the middle of the woods. Surely everyone from the clearing before was long gone by now!
With a cry, Aqua forced a barrier around herself, knocking Vanitas back. Though he landed on his feet, Vanitas was open for a brief moment, and Aqua took her chance. Raising her Keyblade, she unleashed a powerful Magnet spell, an orb appearing in the air that started to draw Vanitas in.
Grunting heavily, the masked boy tried to resist the force acting upon him. His feet remained planted, but he was getting slowly dragged towards the spell. Within a few moments, he was lifted off the ground, flying helplessly towards the orb.
Aqua met Vanitas halfway, slamming her Keyblade into his chest and knocking the wind out of him. As the Magnet spell dispersed, the masked boy was sent flying. He skidded along the snowy ground before his back slammed into the trunk of one of the trees.
Not relenting, Aqua quickly closed the distance as Vanitas stood up. With a cry, she swung Rainfell in a horizonal slash, her opponent just barely able to dodge out of the way in time. The tree behind Vanitas was slashed right through, the attack's power even affected some of the trees around it.
Their barks were sliced clean through, the towering trees falling over into each other and onto the snowy ground as Aqua turned to where Vanitas ran to. He had quickly made his way to the other side of the clearing. "Looks like you finally got serious, huh?" Vanitas commented, standing still, and keeping Void Gear at the ready.
It was Aqua's turn to ignore her opponent's words and giving no reply. Silently, she dashed forward, snow crunching beneath her footfalls as the gap was closed in a few short seconds. She tried another horizontal swing, but Vanitas leapt over and behind her. He didn't get a chance to counterattack before Aqua spun around and gave another horizontal slash.
The attack grazed Vanitas' chest; the masked boy having jumped back to avoid a more serious blow. Aqua didn't give hm any room to breath at all. The very instant his feet touched the ground, the Keyblade Master was at him again, slashing wildly with Rainfell. He had to keep jumping back over and over, not having any time to even counterattack as Aqua's relentless barrage continued.
As the two neared the center of the clearing, Aqua struck Vanitas with a vertical slash coming right down onto his mask. Or at least it seemed that way. The attack went right through him, or rather the afterimage he left behind. Knowing exactly what was coming, Aqua turned around as Vanitas came from above and behind her, ready to slam Void Gear onto her.
Aqua blocked the blow as Vanitas landed on the ground, the masked boy trying to force her back with Void Gear. The Keyblade Master knew that her opponent was a being of darkness, so she decided to try the most effective type of magic she knew. The way she would go about it was new and she wasn't sure how well it'd work, but she felt she had grown enough to try.
With a loud cry, Aqua gathered her magic and unleashed it in an uncomposed and wild force that surrounded her. It was Holy, the white light illuminating the clearing for a brief second. The spell wasn't concentrated, not even as much as when she used it against Trinity Armor, yet it was such an up close attack on someone like Vanitas that it was still very effective.
Crying out in pain, Vanitas was sent flying back, landing faceup on the snowy ground, his Keyblade knocked out of his hand. Panting, Aqua stared at her opponent, the figure limp as he lied there. She wasn't even sure f he was breathing; it was too dark to tell. "Did I…?" She murmured, unsure if she should keep attacking or not.
After a few tense seconds, Void Gear vanished, and Vanitas spoke up. "Not bad…" Was all he said before a portal of darkness enveloped him.
"No! Don't you dare run away!" Aqua screamed, running at her downed opponent. Yet before she could reach him, the portal and Vanitas both were gone. She stopped dead in her tracks, staring at where the masked boy was, teeth grit as her free hand clutched into a fist. Her fingernails dug so hard into her palm that she almost started to bleed. "Again…He got away again!"
How could she let this happen?! Yet again she let Vanitas get away! She had sworn that she wouldn't let hm slip through her fingers again…and yet he did just that. Luck had allowed Aqua to confront the masked boy for a third time, but it was all for nothing!
What was she supposed to do…?
Her angered ebbed away and quickly her heart was filled with disappointment in herself. Sighing, she went over to Ventus' Wooden Keyblade and picked up the pieces, storing them away with the same spell she had shown Ventus. He would be so upset to see what happened to such a precious item of his. They could fix it, sure, but she knew it'd still make him sad…and she really hated to see him unhappy. She'd make it up to him somehow, but she wasn't sure what she'd do. A hug, maybe or…well, it didn't matter.
Feeling her cheeks tinge red for a second, Aqua shook her thoughts away. She donned her armor and summoned her glider. Vanitas had to be in a world nearby! He seemed weakened, so maybe he wouldn't travel very far. Aqua refused to waste any time. Within a few seconds, she was already above the trees, flying off to wherever her heart guided her, hoping with all her strength she'd be able to catch up to Vanitas…
As was to be expected, Ventus lacked the constitution for such an ordeal. I was able to remove the darkness inside him and create Vanitas, a heart of pure darkness, but Ventus drifted into the clutches of sleep.
Ventus' heart of pure light and Vanitas's heart of pure darkness... If both could be made strong enough to one day clash, I knew the χ-blade would be forged.
But Vanitas took too much of Ventus' heart, and from that fracture, I could see the last of Ventus' light was slipping away. The boy deserved a place to spend his final moments peacefully. And what should come to mind but my own boyhood home.
My legs took me there unbidden, and as I stood there on the same beach where I had made my choice so many years ago, I thought: not a single thing has changed. Here, in this quiet world, time marches in place. Content that Ventus would find peace here, I started to walk away. But just then, the boy held up his Keyblade. The light within him had not died.
Ventus and Vanitas were not matched in power; I could not train them together, or Vanitas's darkness would gnaw away what little Ventus had left.
Of course, since I needed a place where the boy's light might flourish, the answer was obvious: Eraqus, and his absolutes.
Considering how we had parted ways, I expected friction—but if anything, Eraqus seemed delighted to see me again. He readily agreed to take care of Ventus. Now I need only wait for the boy's heart to get stronger.
I had not visited this second home of mine for some time, and discovered Eraqus had already found two pupils of his own. Within one of them, Terra, I sensed something. The boy, though well-intentioned, seeks power single-mindedly. And that kind of hunger is a seedbed for darkness.
I had found my vessel.
The time has come. I have received word from Eraqus that his pupils are to become true Keyblade Masters. Terra and Aqua... They will be easy now to lure into the outside world. But Ventus! I will get nowhere without him.
Vanitas can feel some of what Ventus feels, and he says Terra is the key. Ventus has loved Terra like a real brother ever since he let him keep his old wooden Keyblade. It seems we have found a loose thread at which we can tug to unravel Ventus' heart.
The first step is to get Terra alone; then we need to plant the seeds of doubt in Ventus. Let him carry his faint light as he chases his brother into the darkness.
Let the darkness make his light stronger, then let the light deepen the darkness. And where the two finally meet is where the stuff of legends will become real.
A/N: Now the endgame can really, truly begin.
I didn't want to make The Beast into a combatant for this story. The whole deal with him was that he used promises and manipulation to get what he wanted, and it's not really clear if he can even fight at all. So I gave him a mastery of the Unversed instead, and all the ones that appeared in The Unknown were summoned by him personally, even if he wasn't visible in the scene. He could sure hide easily given how well he blended into the darkness, after all...
As for Vanitas and his fight, I keep making his fights on the shorter side on purpose. After all, he's confronted so many times in the game, having about half a dozen confrontations between Terra, Ventus, and Aqua that having each of those being a bit more bite-sized in my story makes more sense in my opinion. It'd be a real bother if he had some kind of five page fight each time he showed up, and it'd get redundant and old quickly.