Author's Note: When I first started writing this, I thought I would finish it before the release of the real KH3, but now it won't happen as we're still a long way to go before we reach the ending of this story and the game is really out. Plus with other stories needing to be completed, it's even harder. Not to mention daily life and such keeping me busy...well, you guys know.
Anway, here's another chapter. By the way, this chapter will have more shocking(and even more confusing) spoilers from "Union X" as well as major spoilers from KH3-the real one.
I don't own Kingdom Hearts, or Final Fantasy.
CH50: Secrets Unveiled.
As Arlene teleported into the forest of a random world, still injured from her recent battle against Sora, Kairi and King Mickey, she was beyond furious and frustrated. How can she have been defeated yet again by that irritating Keyblade Master? For the FOURTH time since she's met him. Even worse, Aced would be utterly disappointed in her constant failures, and on top of that, she suspected that Lamuria would've been one step ahead of her by now.
"This is so frustrating...this is all Axel's fault! ALL HIS FAULT! If I ever see that jerk again, he's going to wish he was never born!" The former nymh of the Organization hissed angrily, summoning her knives and blindlessly tossed them all over the place while they sparked electricity as she yelled and screamed in fury. As she did, the trees were being hit while becoming either electrocuted or having knife marks with pieces of bark being shreded off as they went.
Even worse, no matter how hard she tried to forget it, her mind kept on rewinding to what Sora and his friends had told her in that giant world. About that revenge wouldn't make a difference and how Xehanort was the one who ruined everything.
They just don't get it. None of them have any idea what it's like to be in her or her cohort's position. Arlene, as Larxene, had been delighted to see how Sora's memories were mixed up by Namine's powers. It had been so close to over take the Organization, but Axel had suspected as much, and foiled everything because he had been really loyal to Xemnas. Even though he eventually left because of Roxas and that little puppet-turned-human, Arlene had not forgiven him for everything he's done.
Feeling exhausted and her energy spent, Arlene panted before leaning against an unscathed tree, gazing up at the towering leaves above. She then heard the wisps of winds and darkness materialize from her right, but she didn't bother to turn and look as she caught a flash of pink and silver in the corner of her eye as Lamuria emerged.
"I take that Sora has defeated you once more." The man spoke in a tone that wasn't a question but rather a statement.
"That's a understatement." The blonde-haired woman snorted, folding her arms to her chest. "What do you want?"
"...To ensure that you had not perished. Not like the last time." Lamuria replied after a moment. "You have another chance to get back to them, you know."
"They keep getting in the way with everything...! EVERTHING! You know what makes it more frustrating? They get what they wanted and most of them even stay together, no matter how much or how many times Sora ends up being the one needing to be rescued!" Arlene snapped angrily, turning to glare at him.
"And their memories are restored for the most part. Not even twelve years will make a difference compared to what has happened, and Ventus may have originized from Daybreak Town, he was not as close to Skuld or Ephemer as he is with Terra and Aqua." Lamuria nodded in agreement.
Arlene said nothing for a moment, before shrugging, "Yeah, well, neither were you...Laruiam."
"Heh...I've been wondering when you would call me by my true name." He replied, smirking. "Makes me wonder if I should do the same for you...Elrena."
"I've given up that name a long time ago. Besides, there's a female Turk named Elena except she doesn't have an 'R' in her name and I'm starting to think that maybe Xemnas added the R for me on purpose since he couldn't figure out how else to rearrange my name with the X when I become a Nobody." Arlene snorted again, slightly disgusted over the fact that, like her cohort, she had re-named herself to hide the real truth of their origins.
"Many people share certain same names, but fair enough." Lamuria, or rather Laruiam, chuckled softly. "But you're right. I wasn't close to any of them at all. Except for Blaine, but unfortunately like Sora, Ventus and Skuld, my memories are rather...supressed."
"More like mixed up like Namine mixed up Sora's." Arlene rolled her eyes. "All I remember is meeting you for the first time asking a question. But my memories are so messed up, I can't even remember if I had a sister or you were asking me if I'd seen your sister?"
Laruiam frowned as he lowered his gaze to the ground. "Unfortunately, I do not remember either. What I do know is that Strelitzia is connected and may be the key into this. But it does not change the fact that as long as Chaos, and Sora continue to get in the way, we cannot achieve our goal in getting the one that one of us lost back."
"Right now she'll have to wait. All I want is to kill those losers and that jerk so that way they won't be a bother to us. But thanks to that brat, his girlfriend and that short king of theirs, I can't even get back to Aced without him giving me a final warning which again will ruin everything." Arlene grumbled, gritting her teeth as she did.
"Which reminds me, and it may upset you even further or please you. Shelke and Shalua had been defeated and captured by Sora and his friends."
"UGH!" Arlene growled, even more frustrated before sighing as she calmed down a little. "Well, can't say I liked those two sisters. Their presence just irritates me even further. But it looks like Aced just lost three more of his own allies."
"Four, actually." Laruiam corrected. "The time has come for us to forgo him. If he wishes to dispose of us, then he has another thing coming."
"You mean play the betrayal game again, huh?" Arlene questioned, rising an eye-brow. She wasn't against going at Aced's back as she wasn't overly fond of him. She and her cohort had been playing along until this point, hoping that things would go into their favor by getting rid of Sora and his friends. Sadly that didn't turn out as planned.
"Indeed. I have found the location of the actual Book." Laruiam answered, and his companion gazed at him curiously.
"Oh yeah, where?"
The man smirked and gave her his answer.
Back at Disney Castle...
"Okay, you two know about this and had been working with Aced." Sora began, glaring at the two sisters that were tied up. "Why is he saying that we made many mistakes and not fit to save the Realm of Light?"
"And why has he taken Master Yen Sid?" Mickey added. "He hadn't done anything wrong either."
"Because you are all fools for not focusing on protecting the Realm of Light and instead resolved to save those who had no right to fully exist." Shelke responded, unfazed by the expressions of the group.
"Coming from two girls who worked for an old guy who, if I'm guessing correctly, messed up and ended up being part of the problem that caused the Keyblade War in the first place. If we aren't meant to exist, would that mean that we have to just other lives die just to focus on the task without any thoughts of happiness?" Lea questioned, frowning.
"And you believe releasing one of the darkest gods is what you call saving lives? Your very existence is what triggered this mess." Shalua pointed out snappishly.
"Was Master Aced watching everything we did? If so, than it was not our fault!" Strelitzia pointed out. "We were just trying to figure out what is it that Chaos would want and how to stop him from getting it and prevent Bhunivelze from awakening."
Shelke shook her head, "Master Aced has come to strong conclusion that only dominance will prevail to ensure the Realm of Light's future. Even if you fight him, you will only fail. Everything you did was completely wrong; rescusing those who are connected to Sora, when their fates had already been sealed. No matter what decision Sora would make either way, he should have just focused on power."
"That still doesn't make any sense. How was this any of Sora's fault? Xehanort's the one who caused all of this ever since twelve years ago! Back then, most of us were just children." Kairi pointed out, confused and desperate.
"Plus, Xehanort and his real Organization hijacked the Mark of Mastery and Genesis did what he could to stop them from getting to Sora and Riku. Not like with Aqua and Terra's Mark of Mastery." Mickey added.
"Not only that, if me and Roxas didn't save Axel, he wouldn't have returned as Lea a lot sooner as he did, or everything that's happened; Right now, Roxas and Xion would've still been inside me, Namine would've still been in Kairi, Aqua would've been trapped in the Realm of Darkness and maybe even taken over, and Xehanort would've still been alive and gotten his wish to start the second Keyblade War. Plus, I would've been one of the newer members of the Organization when I never wanted to and I still don't." Sora added.
"But it was your existance that still allowed Xehanort to move on with his goal." Shelke pointed out to the spiky-haired teen. "Your heart allowed the survival of Ventus the day you were born. Because of that, Xehanort was able to continue with what he intended on doing."
Sora froze in shock when the words hit him like a ton of bricks. He hadn't even thought of that. Suddenly remembering what Ven told him a while back before this new mess started, he realized that he somehow helped the latter give him a second chance and Sora himself had only been a newborn back then. At least, that what Roxas told him.
"H-how was I supposed to know!? And how were my parents to know about this too!? I was just a little kid." Sora pointed out, even though he felt guilt rise inside his heart and doubt creep into his tone. "I'm not a psychic."
"You're only blaming Sora for something that isn't his fault." Aqua said sternly to the Rai sisters. She then gazed to the floor with a look of guilt on her face. "If anything, I'm the one who let things get so bad. I only wanted to save Terra, and didn't think what could've happened."
"Not everything works out the way you want, and sometimes it can go wrong. But eventually things will work out." Serah said, approaching the two as she continued. "Bhunivelze was defeated before, and he can be defeated again. Just have faith in humanity and all other life forms in the Realm of Light. It's not power that makes everything right. It's the power of love that's the key to resolve all of this."
"Not only that, but Garland is a major part of the problem. By the time Serah and I stopped him, we were too late to prevent him from breaking the seal that kept Chaos at bay." Strelitzia added, which had everyone else glance at her and Serah in confusion and shock.
"Who's Garland?" Myde asked.
"A dark being connected to Chaos and the leader of a group of villians we fought and defeated before meeting all of you in Twilight Town." Strelitzia explained. "That included Fuhito in Midgar, like Reno mentioned. They somehow knew who I was and where I came from and how I was brought back to life. Their goal other than unleashing Chaos was to destroy Xehanort and take control of all of you...especially Sora."
"Gawrsh, but it wasn't Sora's fault that things went really bad." Goofy pointed out, shrugging.
"I'm not saying it is. Garland and the other villains are gone, so don't worry about that." The female Keyblade Wielder said.
"Maybe it is my fault." Sora muttered, gazing at the floor with a look of strong guilt. "And not just here but...in other dimensions too, no matter what choice I make."
"What are you talking about?" Riku asked, confused and concerned.
Hesitating and briefly wondering if he should tell them or not, it was only a reminder of what Lea told him back in the Locker that Sora decided it was best to tell them the truth again, and he sighed while bracing himself and then explained the dream he had before he woke up in the Land of Giants with Kairi and Mickey; about meeting the other Foretellers, including Ira whom he saw in the dream before arriving at Olympus Coliseum not long after leaving Midgar, about what they told him and the other realities due to the time-line being split.
By the time he finished, everyone else, including Ienzo and Ansem were shocked to hear this and almost rendered completely speechless and not yet certain what to say about what Sora just told them. To think that what Sora had been told was horrifying enough, but other versions of themselves existing? And only two foretold positive futures of survival?
"The time-line is split...into many?" Terra asked in disbelief.
"So...am I the only one thinking we're all gonna die?" Myde asked, nervously.
"In certain time-lines, perhaps. But there's no guarantee what will become of us in our dimension." Ienzo responded.
The mullet-haired man glared at him, saying aloud which had everyone else gaze at him. "Yeah, well I didn't sign up to be told the whole thing is pointless! Not that I don't have faith in everyone else here, but I'm useless! I'm chicken!(1) The only thing I'm good at is tagging along and getting into heaps of trouble."
"Garwsh, Myde. That's not true." Goofy pointed out ensuringly. "You're a great fighter and you helped us out a lotta times."
"Still..." Myde muttered.
"There's something odd about this, though." Skuld spoke up thoughtfully, getting everyone's attention. "First Master Aced came back, then the Master of Masters, and now the rest of the Foretellers contacting Sora through dreams. It's almost as though...they making direct contact with him."
"And Xehanort's Keyblade being destroyed somehow brought the Master of Master's back because of it...how would anyone would've known about this?" Riku asked.
"Maybe Master Yen Sid would know more, but we still gotta save him, and both Angeal and Genesis." Mickey reminded, turning his attention back to the Rai sisters and said once more, "Please, you gotta tell us where they are."
"What importance are they when you have others with you?" Shelke responded coolly.
The King was fighting back tears of fear and desperation, but his pleas were undeniably unmistakable as he replied, "Because Master Yen Sid's our teacher and...and our friend too. Just like how Zack and Angeal are close to each other and we trust Genesis because he helped to protect Sora and Riku from Xehanort."
By now, Mickey clutched his fists to keep them from shaking. "I-If anything happened to everyone I care about and love...I'll-I'll never forgive myself...!"
"Oh, Mickey." Minnie said softly, approaching her distraught husband and hugged him from behind to give him the much needed comfort he desperately needed. She'd known he'd been struggling, but this was more than enough that actually began to break her heart. The fact they'd been separated for a little over a year, Mickey failed to save Aqua, Terra and Ven twelve years ago, trying to help Sora, Riku and the others, Ansem the Wise thought to have died, then Aced blocking them from coming home, and now Yen Sid taken away from him, it was no wonder Mickey was an emotional wreck.
Everyone else gazed at the King with expressions of concern, shock and sympathy and in both Ansem and Aqua's cases...lingering guilt for having Mickey go through such burdens.
Sora felt it the most and his heart hurt to see King Mickey in such a state. He never knew...but...the teenager then realized that despite their differences, they were both very much alike. If anything happened to everyone around him, Sora knew he wouldn't forgive himself either.
Both Shelke and Shalua shared a glance in muted shock at the King's honesty. To think that whether it was many or a few, it appears their enemies had such a strong bond that it would shatter their resolves if anything happened to everyone the one of them loved so much. The more they absorbed the words from Mickey into their minds, the more they began to realize...they were not much different than the two sisters themselves. Perhaps that is why they kept doing regardless to the situation.
Maybe Aced had it all wrong and he was the one being manipulated.
Finally sighing in defeat, the two Rai sisters turned their attention back to the worldly travellers and everyone else, with Shalua answering Mickey's pleading question, "The ruins of Daybreak Town. That is where you will find Master Aced's stronghold."
Everyone gazed at them in shock and surprise. But the ones that were most shocked were both Skuld and Strelitzia, while Ven slowly blinked in muted shock and familiarity.
"The ruins of Daybreak Town?" Roxas blinked.
"Where is it?" Aqua asked.
"On the other side of a world where some of you are familiar with; one where War raged and separated the world into what is known today." Shelke answered, "I'm certain you can figure that out."
"The Keyblade Graveyard." Mickey realized correctly, feeling hope and determination rise inside his chest. He should've known! That place was where everything ended and began. It was the last place on his mind to have expected Aced to hide along with Yen Sid, Angeal and Genesis.
"Uh, not to sound like a pessimist here, but isn't that where Xehanort wanted to have his Keyblade War in the first place?" Lea inquired worriedly, scratching the back of his head.
"Yeah...where everything changed." Ven nodded in agreement.
"Are you sure about that?" Donald asked Shelke and Shalua suspiciously, not entirely trusting on what they are saying.
The sisters ignored Donald, and instead Shelke told the group, "But even if you do rescue the captives, you're no match for Aced's power."
"That's what he thinks. I don't care how big and tough Aced is, that guy had his way long enough!" Sora declared boldly. "We beaten Xehanort, we can beat Aced! Right, guys?"
"It won't be easy, but you're right. We can't let Aced have his way any longer. Plus, we still have to be careful around the Master of Masters, Laruiam, Arlene, Ardyn, Caius and Chaos. Hopefully not Bhunivelze, but we have to brace ourselves for him too." Riku agreed.
"And there's Maleficent and Pete too." Goofy added worriedly.
"Not only that, but Even, Aeleus and Dilan need to be saved too." Namine nodded, which both Ansem and Ienzo nodded in agreement.
"However, there is no lead on their whereabouts. So it's best to focus on rescuing Yen Sid and the other two men you speak of." Ansem pointed out.
Sora and his companions shared a glance before nodding in mental agreement.
"Then we'll head over to the Keyblade Graveyard tomorrow. For now, let's rest for the day." Mickey decided, adding to his friends who were not originally from this world. "The Castle's got plenty of guest rooms for all of ya's."
"And you're all welcome here as long as you like the next time you come and visit." Minnie added, with Mickey nodded with a smile and both Donald and Goofy looked equally enthusiastic.
"Wow! Thanks, your majesties!" Sora thanked with a beaming smile, and Kairi, Roxas, Xion, Namine and Ven looked equally excited while Riku, Aqua, Terra, Lea, Isa, Skuld, Ansem, Ienzo and Myde nodded their thanks as well.
"Thank you, but it's perhaps best Ienzo and I return to Radiant Garden to continue the research until we come up with an answer in solving this." Ansem kindly declined, with Ienzo nodding in agreement.
"Plus, don't you think it'd be a good idea to let Cloud and the others know what we found?" Kairi reminded.
"Oh, right." Sora realized, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.
"Oh, that's reminds me." Mickey suddenly remembered, and turned to his wife, asking. "Minnie, are the Gummiphones ready?"
"Of course. They have been ready since before you came back." Minnie replied.
"Gummiphones?" Sora asked, confused. He turned his gaze to Kairi, Riku, Roxas, Xion, Namine, Lea, Isa, Ven, Terra, Aqua, Skuld, Myde, Strelitzia, Mog, Chirithy and Serah who all shrugged, just as confused as he was.
Von Drake, Donald and Goofy on the other hand knew what the King and Queen were talking about and apparently so did Ienzo. So after having Shelke and Shalua follow them, they followed Mickey and Minnie to the wall next to the doors of the Library, a room which again Mickey felt re-familiarized after being away from home and unable to get back until now warmed his heart. While those who didn't know what was going on gazed at the wall in confusion, Mickey approached it and placed his hand on the wall, where his royal symbol suddenly appeared with a glow of light and a huge large square appeared before the wall vanished as it slid down into the floor, revealing a secret room.
"Cooooooool!" Sora, Lea, Roxas, Ven and Myde all exclaimed in awe while everyone else who hadn't seen this room before were stunned in slightly mouth-opened awe.
The room was similar in a mixture of both the Gummiship hold and the Computer room in Radiant Garden and surprisingly held a welcoming feeling to it. There were computers here, gears there and a few other cool things. To Aqua, Terra and Ven, it reminded them of the very clean and gear-liked sewers outside of the castle.
"This is the inventor's room, where we built all kinds of new stuff once and a while." Goofy explained. "And not just doo-hickeys, but with magic too."
"Impressive. This is all fasinating." Ienzo admitted.
"Yup. These fellas always come in handy whenever we need 'em." Mickey nodded, before adding sheepishly. "Though, sometimes they kinda go all haywire when it comes in using too much magic without realizin'."
"And even though my inventions go all kooky-mad, Donald's mainly the one who messes with the magical ones." Von Drake added, giving a disapproaving glare at Donald who, realizing that everyone was now looking at him skeptically, chuckled nervously.
"This place is very cool. No wonder you guys manage to keep up without anyone else realizing this even exists." Lea remarked, gazing around.
"Ha-ha! Welp, now we've got a better way in keeping touch just in case we don't have time to visit each other and it does make keeping in contact a lot easier." Mickey declared, as he and Minnie both approached a table where three familiar figures stood in front of row of items until they heard a familiar voice and turned to see who it was. Instantly everyone who knew the trio recoginized them, especially the Cricket.
"Well, as I live and breathe! Sora, Donald, Goofy, your Majesty and everyone!" The familiar Cricket greeted.
"Jiminy! Hey there!" Sora greeted happily, with Kairi, Riku, Namine, Lea, Roxas, Xion, Donald and Goofy giving their greetings as well.
"Uh, who?" Isa asked, not recognizing Jiminy Cricket. Thankfully he wasn't the only one because Terra, Aqua, Ven, Strelitzia, Skuld, Serah, Mog and Chirithy had no clue either.
Jiminy nodded to his friends and asked, "Where had you all been? I've been worried sick, and the Queen was just as worried!"
"We couldn't get back 'cause a feller named Aced blocked us from gettin' home 'til Sora's Keyblade unlocked the barrier that surrounded it." Goofy replied while shrugging apologetically.
"A lot has happened and um...Aced had kidnapped Master Yen Sid along with two other guys who helped us out; Angeal and Genesis." Sora added.
"That's terrible! Why would this Aced do such a thing?" Jiminy exclaimed on shock.
Mickey forced himself not to break down again, and instead replied, "We'll tell ya later. But the good news is, now we know where they are, so when we get in contact with Cloud and the others, we'll be headin' over to the Keyblade Graveyard to save Master Yen Sid, Angeal and Genesis."
Even though Jiminy could sense the ache in the King's voice, he also heard hope in there as well, and once he put the pieces of the puzzle together, nodded in understanding. "I see. Well, you arrived just in time, because I think we're ready to try them out."
"Try out what?" Roxas asked, curiously.
"The Gummiphones." Mickey answered as he, Jiminy, Chip and Dale move away slightly to reveal the items on the table, with the King pronouncing, "Ta-da!"
(Cue of the "Ta-da" fanfare*Pokemon anime style*)
On the table were small square like half-flat objects with a black square in the middle. The outside of it was in red and gold and the top of it was designed like a crown. There were at least about twenty of them.
"...Uh...how do they work?" Lea asked the first thing that came into his mind.
"Welp, it'll be a little tricky at first, but the Gummiphone will let us talk to each other from different worlds." Mickey explained.
"All you gotta do is select the names of whoever you wanna call and press the button to ring them, and to answer their phone calls, push the green button right here." Chip added while instructing everyone who it works as he and Dale heaved on and gave it to Mickey who gave his thanks to them.
"The red button is to hang up and the call will be over. There's also other neat stuff too, like a Camera which lets you take photos of anything you want." Dale added.
"The King has provided us one as well, but because of Aced blocking access to this world, we couldn't get in contact with either of you due to the fact that you had not yet aqquired one yourselves." Ienzo spoke up, which surprised the rest of the worldly travellers.
"One more thing about Aced to worry about." Lea grumbled as he slumped low dramatically.
"So you gave one to Cloud and the others too, your majesty?" Strelitzia asked.
Mickey smiled sheepishly, "Yep. Sorry, I was meant to tell ya's, but a lotta things were goin' on and well, gosh, it's a long story. But now that we're here, we can check to see if the gummiphones work."
Without hesitation, the King tapped onto the black square which opened up a screen by the touch of his finger, and after a few scrolls, he phone what he was looking for and tapped it. It made a ringing noise which had Sora approach in curiosity for a better look, fasinated with the new gadget. Finally after a few rings, it stopped and the ringing phone icon was replaced by an image of a strikingly familiar redhead in goggles.
"Hey, this new phone finally works!" Greeted Reno who held a grin, before asking, "You can hear me, right...King Mickey, was it?"
"Hiya, Reno." Mickey greeted with a smile. "Yup, loud and clear."
"Reno!" Sora greeted behind Mickey who was startled a bit, before chuckling at the teenager's excited expression. "This thing is so awesome!"
"Heh, you got that right, kid. This thing is higher tech than the phones we got here in Midgar." Reno laughed.
"Hey, lemme see!" Lea called out, hovering over Sora and Mickey who both stumbled a bit while the latter tried to hold onto the phone. "I thought it was you! Long time no see, Reno."
Reno's grin grew when he saw his 'twin', and laughed, "Looks like you guys finally got the new phones, right? And here I thought you'd forgotten 'bout me."
Lea grinned in return, "You kidding? I never forget anyone. Got it memorized?"
"Guys, I think we should move before things get too crowded." Riku advised as he tugged Sora by the arm while Isa did the same with Lea, the two spiky-haired young men grumbling while everyone else including the King and Queen laughed.
"Sorry about that. We haven't been home for long. Say, are Cloud, Zack and Rufus there? We found out where Master Yen Sid, Angeal and Genesis are." Mickey responded to Reno who, hearing this, had his expression turn to surprise and seriousness.
"Yeah, we were just talkin' about what Cloud and the others told us and the info we figured out. Hold on a sec, I'll get the Prez' for ya." Reno replied, before handing over the gummiphone to the familiar blonde-haired man as Mickey could see.
"Ah, your majesty. Good, I was thinking of having Cloud and his friends locate you once more. Now it seems there is no need." Rufus greeted.
"Yup. We've only been here for a few hours, but I'm sure glad the Gummiphones work." Mickey responded as everyone else gathered but not too close as to end up getting too crowded around the King, but close enough to hear. "Anyway, we found out where Master Yen Sid, Angeal and Genesis are; from what we heard from Shelke and Shalua since we stopped them from causin' trouble, everybody's at the Keyblade Graveyard, and Aqua, Terra, Ven and I know where that is since we've been there before when we first fought against Master Xehanort."
"I see." Rufus muttered thoughtfully. "Then it shouldn't be too much trouble for Cloud and the others to join y-"
"Wait, you mean they found where Angeal is!?" Another familiar voice exclaimed, as suddenly Zack's face appeared behind Rufus despite Tseng and Cloud doing their best to calm him down. "Where's this Keyblade Graveyard!? Are Angeal, Genesis and that Yen Sid guy okay!?"
"Calm down, Zack and let the King explain." Tseng informed him calmly despite trying to restrain the younger man.
"Sorry, your majesty." Cloud apologized over the phone.
"It's okay, Cloud. I know how Zack feels." Mickey replied, before continuing to Rufus, "And I know what you were tryin' to say, Mr. President. But just in case Aced figures out his barrier Spell is broken by Sora, we'll meet Cloud and Zack at Twilight Town and then we'll give out directions over to the Keyblade Graveyard."
Rufus nodded, "Very well. We'll keep in touch now that you have access to the Gummiphones, your majesty."
"Great! See you real soon." Mickey farewelled along with the others on both ends of the two worlds before he and Rufus hung up and the screen on the gummiphone went blank once more.
"I love these things already." Myde remarked with a grin.
"Well at least we're finally getting somewhere. Still, we have to prepare for the dangers that are up ahead." Terra remarked.
"But what about Namine? Won't she be in danger incase Ardyn comes looking for her?" Kairi reminded, which made everyone else realize that she was right. If Ardyn was targeting her as well as Kairi herself and the Princesses of Heart, then leaving Namine in Radiant Garden wasn't an option anymore and Mickey didn't want to run the risk of putting Minnie in danger again either here in Disney Castle.
The group thought a moment, before Roxas remembered something and suggested, "Hey, maybe Hayner, Pence and Olette can help. Twilight Town could be the last place they might be able to find her."
"That's not a bad idea, Rox'. Just hope we don't run into those guys and Caius there again." Lea replied, even though he felt something was bound to happen in that place.
"Plus we haven't seen them when we went back there a little while ago, and it'll be great to see them again." Sora nodded in agreement, and the others nodded in agreement.
With the plan settled and at both Mickey and Minnie's request, everyone stayed for dinner which they all thanked the royals for their hospitality while preparing themselves for the events that would occur the next day.
Meanwhile, at the Keyblade Graveyard itself where thousands of lifeless Keyblade always stood on the four path fork in the road, the Master of Masters stood in the middle with his hands behind his back as he gazed up at the sky. No one was the wiser that he would come here, and that's the way he liked it. He knew that things were starting to run smoothly yet something about this felt a bit...off, he had to admit.
"Never would have guessed the time-line would be split into millions. But I guess the rules of it broke a long time ago." He said to himself with a casual shrug. "Heh, at least Sora and his friends are putting on a great story whatever they're doing. Especially that kid himself; he's the most unique one in all realities."
The Master of Master's then sensed movement behind him and grinned under his hood, speaking once again, "Though if I'm gonna guess, you still think he's a "dud", right? Not half the hero is the others are."
Behind him was a Corridor of Darkness that opened just before he'd spoken again, and another man in black coat, but one more signified to Organization XIII emerged a bit awkwardly but rather calmly.
"I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that you saw the whole thing?" The other figure replied, and if anyone who knew this man was around, they'd be in complete shock at the sound of his voice since those who had known him would've thought he'd died not that long ago.
"Well, yes and no." The Master of Masters shrugged, as though he was embarrassed by it. "Didn't count on that you'd lose your eye in a more painful way and it wasn't even intentional."
"Yeah well...blame Terra and that old coot Xehanort for that one." The figure replied, pulling off his hood to reveal his face for the first time; he had long black hair with silver streaks tied up in a long tight pony-tail, a single golden eye that once belonged to the colour of Xehanort, an eyepatch that covered the socket of where his right eye used to be, and a large scar on the left side of his cheek.
He is revealed to be Xigbar: Aka-Braig. Apparently back from the dead as well.
The Master of Masters choked back a laugh. "And to think that they were totally oblivious that you were on their case the whole time! If things were different, you could go and do acting in a world where it has movies and stuff like that."
"Heh...As if. That kind of job is dull and boring. Not much of real excitement." Xigbar responded. "There were times I forgot I was really acting and things I really didn't expect. Like Axel-Aka; Flamesilocks, coming in to the rescue and everything that's happened."
"Looks like I finally rubbed it off on you. Makes me feel like a proud parent to the former shy apprentice in history!" The Master of Masters gleed.
Xigbar felt a little uncomfortable, and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "Am I...really that different? 'Cause despite the new body and all that I kept on doing for centuries, I don't think I'm that different."
"Nah, you just gained more confidence." The other man said ensuringly. "Sora on the other hand is beginning to lose his. However,"
He gazed back at the sky and continued with seriousness, "With the realites of other timelines beginning to merge, he's the only one who can fix it. Otherwise it's bye-bye every single Realm of Light."
"Thus Darkness shall prevail and the Light will expire." Xigbar concluded.
"Bingo!" The Master of Masters approved, pointing at Xigbar who jumped a little, caught off-guard. "And to think that temporal paradoxes would even happen, even without the Book of Prophecies. But hey, it's not your fault so, no biggie."
"...It's too bad things didn't work out the way you wanted." The eyepatched man grumbled.
"Just a minor inconvience. At least in this timeline."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"In one timeline, the Guardians of Light lost and everything is destroyed." The Master of Masters explained. "Yet Sora didn't completely lose himself, and so to change the future, he had to restore everyone he lost to before the darkness consumed them while losing himself, except he made it back with the help of his little Princess, thus the timeline where they all perished ceased to exist, trapped in a loop that will forever be in their memories."
"So without helping Axel, things went on the way it should in that time-line that got split and then refixed. On the other hand, there are such things as 'What ifs' and there are many possibilities out there, untouched by a single beginning and all are real. There are a few exceptions and alternate universes too, but hey, that's how it works. One big giant mess, just like Bhunivelze's so called master plan to turn people into his puppets." He continued.
"But then you wouldn't have come back sooner either." Xigbar pointed out.
An awkward pause.
"Good point." The Master of Masters agreed. "So I guess we'd better take what we got in this time-line since things will get more interesting. So, should I call you Xigbar or Braig...or do you wanna be like you were before...Luxu?"
"Whatever name's fine by me, Master." Xigbar, officially known as Luxu, replied.
It looks like things are getting more complicated than anyone ever thought.
Back in Disney Castle...
It was well late into night when after Ansem and Ienzo returned to Radiant Garden with Von Drake to continue the research of the enemies, Sora and everyone else settled in for the night to rest up before the worldly traveller's departure back to Twilight Town the following day. Each formed in groups in each rooms with very cosy beds. Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy had retired to their own bed rooms. Sora, Riku, Kairi and Namine shared one room, Roxas, Lea, Xion and Isa shared another, Terra, Aqua, Ven and Skuld shared one as well, and Strelitzia, Serah, Mog and Chirithy shared the other guest room. Myde had a room to himself which was okay with him.
But it seems that a good night's sleep wouldn't come to the heroes, because one by one, the worldly travellers were seemingly struggling. Especially Sora who groaned while tossing and turning in his sleep, his breathing become breathless and cold sweat began to form on his face.
Sora at first didn't know where he was, but when he did after a moment of confusion, shock came to him. Everywhere he looked were Keyblades left abandoned and rusted. But this part of the area which he'd seen before was a bit different to what he'd seen before but never actually ventured in real life.
"This is...this must be the place I saw Aqua, Ven, Terra and Xehanort in; the Keyblade Graveyard." Sora remarked to himself, remembering that name from King Mickey and had by then realized the dream he had within the Realm of Sleep was what Genesis had been showing him via Ven's memories.
As the teenager looked around, he gasped softly as he saw, right ahead of him were the familiar figures of himself, Riku, Kairi and King Mickey who all wore different outfits compared to what he was wearing now, (and Sora couldn't help but take notice of Kairi's new haircut), as well as Lea who was wearing his Organization XIII coat, Donald, Goofy, Ven and Aqua. But there were no signs of Isa, Roxas, Xion, Myde, Skuld or Terra...
Except that out of the small dust storm, Terra approached but to Sora's shock, in the appearance he was in when Xehanort's heart was still inside him like in the Realm of Sleep.
"This is...!" Sora muttered in horrified shock, finding himself trailing off.
To his dismay, Vanitas materialized next to him and continued for the shocked Keyblade wielder, "The possible future if you and Roxas hadn't saved Axel. Watch more closely, and you'll get a better idea." before vanishing once more.
Sora wanted to move, to try and help his friends and his other self, but like a the grasps of the Heartless or Nobodies, he was unable to do so. Thus all he could do was watch in pure horror as while he couldn't hear what Terra-Xehanort was saying, but judging the look on the man's face, and how everyone else were looking...beginning to lose hope...it wasn't good at all. Which was why no one, not even the real Sora saw it coming, as Terra-Xehanort summoned the dark evil Keyblade and before anyone could stop him...he struck both Ven and Aqua down in an instant.
"Aqua! Ven!" Sora screamed out, and for a split second thought he heard his friends, and even Aqua and Ven for a mysterious reason, exclaim in horror themselves while the said latter two vanished before their eyes.
Then things went from bad to worse, because Sora choked a sob as he watched in pure devastation that one by one his remaining friends were suddenly engulfed by the largest horde of Heartless he'd ever seen and his other self was helpless just like he was...and then when it came to Kairi, Sora let out an agonized scream which seemed to copy the other Sora who fell to his knees and holding his head.
Sora then saw Riku say something to the other Sora, and then calmly approached the Heartless horde which then ultimately claimed him as well and within the next seconds, Sora felt more than heard his other self scream just as the Heartless engulfed him, vanishing as well.
The real Sora, somehow free from his restrains, fell to his knees and hands and sobbed, his tears falling freely. Riku, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, Lea, Aqua, Ven, Mickey...and himself...all gone.
"No...! NO!" Sora screamed loudly, punching the ground with a furious and heart-breaking fist, only for the Heartless began to then spread through out the entire area and he forced himself to look up. The Heartless were now forming into a cyclone of pure darkness. Sora felt his heart stop as it seems they sensed he was here, because another wave of Heartless went straight for him.
Sora's eyes widened before he let out a terrified scream before shielding himself with his arms and all he could do was brace himself for his ultimate end. But he didn't feel a thing. Not a single Heartless hitting him or clawing him or anything like that. He didn't even feel the darkness pull out his own heart. Hesitating, Sora opened his eyes and lowered his arms and saw the area, not swallowed up in darkness, but just blanketed in a dark sky like night. On top of that, he realized he was in a different and much more familiar part of the Keyblade Graveyard.
And it was much more heart-breaking and horrifying than what he just witnessed. Sora let out a shakening gasp, as all around him were lifeless bodies of all of his friends he just witnessed in getting killed by the Heartless; that now included the normal Terra, Isa, Myde and Skuld.
However, as Sora stood up and made to run towards them, they all vanished in golden light which ripped his heart even more...until only one remained and Sora was shocked when the body of Kairi disappeared, replaced by a more alive Kairi who looked around in devastation and horror, until she saw Sora stand there when he came to a stop. Immediately, both their expressions turned to relief and yet sorrow.
"Sora!" Kairi cried out, tears in both her eyes and her voice as she raced up to him.
"Kairi!" Sora replied, meeting her in the middle and immediately held her in his arms, the mixed waves of relief and sorrow filling his heart and he felt her arms around his lower back as she sobbed on his shoulder. "I-it's okay...I'm here."
He couldn't hold back the urge to cry himself as he felt more tears burn his eyes, but at the moment he didn't care. He didn't want to let go of her, afraid that she would just disappear.
Kairi continued to cry, holding her friend tighter in her arms as she could, afraid to lose him as well. She and Sora then heard manical laughter that made them both seize up before looking from behind Kairi. The two teenagers gasped in complete horror as a bright light of a silhouttee of a being Sora had never seen before appeared before him and Kairi, along with a monsterous form of Chaos and...a giant ghostly black form of the evil man they never thought they'd see again.
Kairi let out a terrified gasp, clinging onto Sora who held her more tightly in his arms while doing his best to shield her from the evil in front of them, as she whispered, "No...please not this again! Not this nightmare!"
Sora gasped softly when he heard her say this. Nightmare? Wait, was he having the same dream as she was?
"What's going on?" Sora asked, both in confusion, anger and fear. "Why are Xehanort and Chaos here!?"
Sora and Kairi both shrank back in defense and fear as Xehanort's massive shadow loomed over them menacingly, then vanished as his grasp went right through them and for a split second they heard a familiar high-pitched scream and looked behind them, before gasping in horror that a ghostly form of King Mickey was clasped in giant hand of the Shadow Xehanort who was holding him around the lower part of the King's body while continuing to laugh.
"Your Majesty!" Sora and Kairi both exclaimed in horror, and for another split second, saw everyone else in the same position before fading which left only them, Mickey, Xehanort, Chaos and the mysterious thing in light.
"Lemme go! Lemme go!" Mickey yelled, futilessly trying to pull himself free and pound on the hand he was trapped in while Xehanort continued to laugh, resting his other hand around the one that held the King. "Lemme go!"
Then both the King and Xehanort vanished as the light of the monster behind Xehanort emerged and reached out it's hand to grab Kairi. But Sora brought her and himself to the ground as he tried his best to shield her underneath him as they both squeezed their eyes shut just as they were both clasped within the massive hand which began to draw the struggling teenagers towards it's face.
"If you wish to die along with the light that shines your way, then so be it." The huge being of light spoke darkly and in distoration that made Sora's ears hurt.
"Sora!" Kairi screamed, burying her face into his chest.
"Kairi, I won't leave you!" Sora yelled back, holding onto her in his arms before he and Kairi screamed as they were drawn right towards the mouth of the thing the last thing Sora saw was darkness as he and Kairi were both engulfed...
"AHHH!" Sora screamed as he jolted upright in bed and shockingly, both Kairi and Riku did the same, the three islanders panting in panic before the spiky haired teen looked around and cried out in worry and slowly growning relief, "Kairi! Riku!"
His best friends did the same with each other and Sora himself, before the three of them, without thinking, joined together over Kairi's bed and held each other in their embrace in an attempts to calm each other and themselves down. The one who was crying the most was Kairi, but Sora was close in doing so himself and even Riku wasn't immune to the emotion of what was going on.
Soon the trio calmed down, but were still more than a little shaken.
"I-it was...that dream again...e-except...it was...it was different." Kairi said between sniffles. "We were all there, first differently and then the Heartless swallowed up everyone...you and Riku...where the last...to be taken away...and then...I saw what I've been seeing lately."
Sora's heart ached in horror and sorrow. So he and Kairi were sharing that dream, which made things even worse.
"I won't let anything happen to any of you, or the others." Was all Sora could say.
"Neither will I." Riku added, yet unaware to his friends, he had that very same dream from his point of view and he tried to reach out to Namine and Mickey in his nightmare before being taken over by Xehanort's Heartless all over again which made his nightmare even worse.
The three of them stayed like this until Kairi fell asleep in Sora's arms which the latter noticed. He and Riku then gently layed her back in bed and tucked her in. Sora wanted to gently move a stray of hair from her face, but he held that desire back. Even though she needed comfort, Sora felt out of place with Riku here and even though they all grew up together, deep down Sora didn't want to make his best friend jealous that he...that he and Kairi had shared their first kiss in the Kingdom of Corona.
In truth, he knew that Riku liked Kairi more than a friend, and Maleficent used that jealously and rivally against Sora for her own schemes, but the more everyone made it obvious that he and Kairi were more than friends, the more the Keyblade wielder felt his heart sink in the growing deepening fear that this could ruin his friendship with Riku whom he knew much longer. They met when they were infants, or maybe it was preschool, Sora couldn't remember.
"Sora."
Blinking at Riku gently saying his name, Sora looked up and saw, to his surprise, remose and firmness but also the ensuring gesture in his eyes.
"You have to tell Kairi how you feel." Riku told him, and that's when Sora knew with a doubt at those words, that even Riku knew and...had come to accept that.
"Riku...I..." Sora began, struggling with his words or what to say to that. Gulping, he then asked nervously, "You're...not mad?"
"Well, I was a little jealous at first that Kairi prefered you." Riku admitted with a slightly embarrassed smile, before it faded as he continued, "But then I realized I cared for Kairi more of a sister and that...you both were always very close even when she first arrived on the island eleven years ago. It just took me a while to finally realize it."
Sora still didn't know what to say about that, or even ask how long Riku had noticed. Still, he then realized that everyone was right about him and Kairi, or at least about Sora himself. He couldn't deny his feelings anymore and the kiss the two of them shared confirmed it.
"...I'm not sure how to do it." Sora finally admitted defeat, adding, "And everyone keeps teasing us about it. But...my journey began the day I lost her, and everytime I find her, she's taken away from me. I don't want to lose her again...Though maybe...we're not meant to be together."
"You think it's because what those Foretellers told you earlier?" Riku asked, concerned with a frown. "Don't listen to them, Sora. Just because they said doesn't mean they know the future."
"But what if they're right? And..." Sora trailed off again, unable to meet his friend's gaze. In defeat, he stood up and glumy excused himself, "I'm gonna go get some fresh air."
He stood and began to walk away, half expecting Riku to stop him. But as Sora neared the door and opened it, he knew that his best friend wouldn't, because Riku knew him all too well. Head hung low, the younger teenage boy silently closed the door behind, leaving Riku behind to sigh. Riku went silent as he closed his eyes in guilt. Sora was scared, and that scared Riku more than anything.
Sora passed the corridors of Disney Castle, hearing soft talking of familiar voices that came from his friends but ignored them even though he had a feeling they weren't having a good night's sleep either. It was when he began to pass the main royal bedroom that belonged to the King and Queen that Sora heard Mickey screaming which startled the Keyblade wielder. Sora stopped in his tracks just outside of the bedroom doors and made to open it but stopped himself, realizing it was a wrong idea to intrude.
Plus when he heard Minnie's voice, Sora just began to listen.
"Mickey! Are you alright?" Minnie cried out worriedly from the other side, and it was a moment or two before Mickey, somewhat shaken as far as Sora could hear, spoke.
"Minnie...I'm sorry. I didn't meant to wake ya'." Mickey replied apologetically, realizing that his scream as he awoke from the nightmare woke his wife up as well and he felt bad about it.
"Oh, it's alright Mickey. I know you didn't mean it." Minnie said gently, then asked worriedly, "Is everything okay?"
Sora and Minnie both waited for Mickey to reply, but the King fell silent for what felt like five minutes before the Queen gently spoke his name again and this time Mickey spoke once more.
Realizing there was no point in hiding it, Mickey sniffled as the ache in his heart over the loss of his friends in the nightmare lingered and he didn't want that to become a reality, but he had a terrible feeling that it will be.
"I just had the most horrible nightmare. E-Everyone including me...we were all...we were all killed by a large army of Heartless...and Xehanort was still alive." Mickey admitted, and when Minnie gasped in horror at this, he couldn't hold it back anymore as he began to cry, tears falling freely. "I don't want that happenin' for real...but I don't know if it's the future telling me it'll happen or not...! I don't wanna lose everyone!"
"Oh, Mickey. It'll be alright." Minnie tried to soothe him, pulling her husband into an embrace as Mickey, needing comfort, hugged her back and cried on her shoulder. In truth, Minnie didn't want to lose Mickey either. She almost lost him more times than she can count, but she knew at this moment she couldn't cry herself. Mickey was in despair, and he needed her. Now more than ever.
"I-I love you, Minnie." Mickey sobbed, not wanting to let go of his true love, his stronger light.
Sora's eyes widened when he heard what Mickey had said. So even the King had the same nightmare he, Riku and Kairi had? The spiky haired Keyblade Wielder felt a horrified feeling within his own heart, before lowering his gaze to the floor and somberly walked away, his heart heavy and the hope he held in saving the Realm of Light now fading faster than the Heartless killing his friends and himself in the nightmare he just had.
Sora entered the hallway that overlooked the Garden of the Castle, and stopped to lean against the railing as he gazed up at the starry night sky. Possibly for the last time in whatever peace he and his friends had before the next step of their quest started in the morning. It hurt...very much. He thought he understood hurt, but now it was clear that he didn't. He never did understand how much it hurt to lose people close to him. The nightmare he, Kairi, Riku and Mickey had just proved it.
Even though Sora knew that Xehanort is gone, the fact that Chaos and very possibly Bhunivelze-and Sora suddenly felt and realized it was Bhunivelze-appeared didn't help matters. The battle against the two evil gods could very well play out like how Xehanort would want; then everyone including himself were doomed to face death for all eternity...
Riku, Donald, Goofy, Mickey, Roxas, Lea, Xion, Namine, Isa, Myde, Skuld, Ven, Terra, Aqua...and Kairi.
Sora could clearly remember the kiss he and Kairi shared, and while he wouldn't admit it to anyone else except to Riku like he did a short time ago, it was the most wonderful experience he ever had.
Sora blushed heavily as Kairi leaned up while closing her eyes and kissed him on the lips. Surprised at first, Sora soon found himself returning it while closing his eyes and the two wrapped each other in their arms as they kissed.
Though when it did, both of them sighed before Kairi snuggled up in Sora's chest, and he held her close.
To think that such a wonderful moment would never happen again made Sora tear up before he began to cry softly as the cold realization hit him almost like how the Heartless took away his friends before killing him in that nightmare...a nightmare that looked and felt all too real, like he was seeing an alternate universe right before his eyes. His tears trailed down his face and onto the cold stone of the railing.
"I didn't sign up to be told the whole thing is pointless! Not that I don't have faith in everyone else here, but I'm useless! I'm chicken!" Myde's words echoed in Sora's mind from earlier today, or yesterday by now.
'...I'm more useless than he is. I can't do this by myself...I can't do anything on my own without everyone else helping me.' Sora thought to himself, which made him cry harder.
"The others are what make us stronger. Especially Kairi."
"H-huh?" Sora blinked. That voice. It was his own...but he didn't say that, even though it did sound like him. Groaning in half-realization, Sora lowered his head and grumbled to what he thought was Vanitas talking to him again. "I'm not in the mood for you, Vanitas. If you're trying to make me feel better with a mocking joke, it's not working."
"What are you talking about, idiot? That wasn't me." Vanitas spoke in his mind in confusion and annoyance.
"Wait. Vanitas? You got Vanitas inside you?" The second voice asked in shock and disbelief.
This time it was Sora's turn to be very confused as he realized he was hearing two voices now and not just one and he wasn't even speaking other than what he just said to Ven's dark embodiment in his mind. If that wasn't Vanitas, then who...? Sora turned around to see who was talking to him in his voice...and found himself staring at himself, but a bit of a hair cut, and while Sora still wore the clothes he retrieved from the three Good Faries when he, Donald and Goofy first arrived at Yen Sid's Tower, the other Sora was wearing what he'd seen in his nightmare;
This other Sora not only looked a bit see-through like a ghost, but he was wearing a black jacket having grey pockets and a stripe of red on each sleeve. The hood, sleeves and jacket had red lining and six buttons on the front. Underneath was a grey t-shirt with a V-style collor and a white lining. He also wore gaunlets that matched his jacket except they had grey circles on the backs, with the palms of his hands exposed. His shorts were roughly the same length as the ones the real Sora was wearing with armored sides that were attached to red straps and black that wrapped around his legs. His shoes looked the same except they didn't have the blue stripes or zippers.
The same clothes Sora within his dream wore. To say that he was shocked beyond belief would've been an understatement.
"AH!" Sora yelped, nearly falling off the railing but stopped himself as he leaned back in fright. His outburst startled his other self who reacted the same way as he did. "Y-you're-!"
"Oh wonderful. Now I can torment two of you instead of just one. Wonder who I'll pick on first today?" Vanitas remarked sarcastically. Like many times before, Sora just ignored him.
"Yeah, I guess this is totally weird, huh? Me meeting my alternate self after changing the future for as best as I could. On the other hand, Time really is messed up." The other Sora admitted, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.
"Huh? Change the future? But, I somehow already did that; Me and Roxas saved Axel." Sora pointed to his...alternate-self as he could call the other Sora. He then realized something else and gasped, becoming horrified again. "Wait! You're wearing the same clothes I saw in the nightmare! So...that means...everyone in your time-line is gone?"
"For a while, yeah. But Chirithy helped me figure out how to save everyone's hearts and bring them all back. I even managed to stay whole even after I died, because Kairi guided me; the Kairi I know. She's the light in the darkness that helps guide the way back. We both brought everyone back to just before we were all killed by the Heartless." The Other Sora explained.
"Uh..." Sora held a puzzled look, tilting his head to the side slightly. What was his other self talking about? What did Chirithy had to do with it?
"The power of waking. First I had to find myself and put myself back together in the Final World; where everyone who perished go to. Then I had to traverse to each world to find the hearts of the others and guide them back to just before we faced Terra when he was still possessed by Xehanort. His armor, thanks to Namine reaching him, saved Aqua and Ven, and when I charged towards the Heartless Horde, I had help from the Keyblade Wielders of the past and their Keyblades. They helped me and the others to stop the Heartless and we all survived."
"The other Time-line the Foretellers told me; the one that has the other promising future." Sora realized, hope that he felt fade suddenly return to him slowly. Though the chances of that happening to him may be unlikely, but Sora couldn't give up now. Not when they still had a lot to do. Especially if the same thing could potentially happen in reality.
"Huh?" The other Sora blinked, confused this time.
"Uh, n-never mind." Sora stuttered sheepishly, before he gasped in confusion and realization. "Wait, the power of waking? It can do that? I thought it was to only to wake up sleeping worlds and sleeping hearts."
"Not really. But...the downside to that is...if the power of waking is used too much and not properly...you'd have to...well, this is the result of what's happened to me. I had to fade away in order to save Kairi after we all closed up Kingdom Hearts." The other Sora admitted.
"You mean...fade away?" Sora stuttered, his own hope now plummeting right back to where it started just moments ago. So if he used the power of waking if everyone else died, the result would him be dying too after they were brought back to life?
Then...did Xehanort kill Kairi in the other dimension? Given what Sora's other self had said, it made sense and Sora himself felt fear linger in his heart. The very thought of Kairi being killed by the hands of that horrible man...it was devastating and Sora knew he would never be able to live without her. Which meant, given the choice, the only way for her to live is for him to sacrifice himself which, while it wasn't fair that he wouldn't be with her at all, as long as she and everyone else were safe, alive and happy, that was enough for him.
"It was a choice I made, and I am sad I can't be with everyone anymore, I don't regret it. On the other hand, I've seen two other futures of what would happen to me." Alternate-Sora replied.
"Like what?" Sora asked.
"In one, I stay dead forever which is okay. In another...well, Riku is trying to figure out how to bring me back without doing the same thing I did. Though whichever way works, I'm pretty okay with being like this. What I didn't expect was that I end up in an alternate universe to see that Xehanort is defeated another way."
"Yeah, well, it's not any better. Now we got Chaos and Bhunivelze and one of the Foretellers to worry about. Not to mention Caius and Ardyn, and Maleficent and Pete looking for the Book of Prophecies and a black box." Sora sighed.
The other Sora suddenly groaned, because he grumbled. "Ugh! I forgot about Maleficent and Pete looking for the black box! Great, now the others have to stop them without me."
"Heh. Looks like every other version of you is the same." Vanitas retorted, with a hint of a smugged look in his voice.
'Will you please be quiet?' Sora groaned mentally. Why couldn't Vanitas just shut up and leave him alone?
"Well, anyway. Even though Xehanort's gone in both dimensions, you gotta try really hard in not making the same mistake I did and being forced to change history a little. Our hearts are the real keys into this. Do me a favor and don't let anything happen to your Kairi, okay? I don't want any other versions of us go through what I went through." Alternate-Sora advised.
While Sora had no idea how to respond to that, he knew that his other self was right; what had happened in the nightmare had happened in the original-time line that had his alternate self to change history to stop the deaths of everyone else and then Sora realized he was now beginning to see other dimensions, just as Caius had warned.
All dimensions of every reality were beginning to merge, and Sora in this dimension had to do everything he could to fix that without losing everyone.
"...I'll do my best. I'll protect Kairi, and everyone else." Sora finally replied. No, he will do harder than that; he had to do everything he could to prevent this and do everything he can to stop Chaos and the other villains out there. He just had to make sure how to master the power of waking without losing himself the same way his alternate self did.
"Thank you. Oh, and another thing; go easy on the other Organization members who aren't Xehanort."
"Uh...okay? The only ones I can't figure out are Marluxia and Larxene. Everyone else is cool, and-oh, right! Even, Aeleus and Dilan need to be saved." Sora remembered.
"Okay. Be careful out there. If we're lucky, maybe I can help you in spirit since I'm a ghost now. Gotta stop you and our other selves from ending up like me." Alternate-Sora held out his hand to Sora who smiled a little in saddness.
The two Sora's shook hands and Sora was surprised that the grip was somehow solid even though it was light and somewhat cold but warm at the same time. Soon as they did, Sora's other self then vanished like a wisp in the wind and Sora's grip on his other self's hand was gone.
It was...so weird to be talking to himself from another dimension. But at the same time, Sora knew now that he had to try more than his best to ensure that what had happened in that dimension would not happen here.
"I'll protect Kairi...and everyone else. I won't let anyone of my friends die." Sora vowed to himself, turning to face the night sky once more.
He had to do this...without the power of waking. With his resolve somewhat restored, after gazing at the sky for a while, Sora sighed before making his way back to the guest room he, Kairi and Riku shared.
Yet what they were about to discover was going to be more than what Sora was expecting.
A/N: Sorry this chapter took long to do. Writer's block and all. But now with the real KH3 out, it's given me new ideas to continue this story and to finish it. As some of you noticed, some parts of this chapter are from the "Second Chance Universe(Series): Behind the Scenes" side-story.
(1)The part where Myde admits he's chicken is one the lines he...well, you guys know if you already played KH3.
So the next chapter will see the heroes return to Twilight Town and more reunions will be made. Oh and sorry for the lack of battles. I'll try and make it up in the next chapter. And I originally intended on leaving Xigbar out, but...well, for those you who already played the real KH3, you get the idea.
See you then and hopefully I'll be posting it sooner than this one...Hopefully. ^_^;