KINGDOM HEARTS III: Final Mix
Disclaimer: I do not own the story or characters featured in this story. They are the sole creation of the Walt Disney Co., PIXAR, Tetsuya Nomura, and Square Enix. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy.
WARNING! Contains story spoilers for Kingdom Hearts III, so read with caution if you haven't played the game yet.
Chapter 8: New Yet Familiar
"Well, before we go any further, how about we test this phone out with a photo to remember this by?" Goofy suggested to Sora.
"Yeah, that would be neat," Sora replied as he held the camera out in a 'selfie' mode and posed with Jiminy, Donald and Goofy. "Say cheese!" After the camera light flashed, Sora checked the photo album section of the Gummiphone, proud of the picture they took. Soon after, the team then set out into the vast reaches of space, fighting through enemy ships and searching for treasure until they finally reached Twilight Town.
"Wonder what everybody's up to down there?" Donald mused, as they embarked off the ship, entering the Tram District of the town.
"Hey, do you think we should've mentioned about Maleficent and Xigbar while we were back at the tower?" Goofy asked.
"Nah, everyone's on edge as it is, no need to put more on their plate," Sora told his friends.
"I guess so, but that whole talk about the Box..." Donald replied.
"This is Pete we're talking about; that means it's no big deal." The group then stopped as they saw one of the railway trams drive past. "Cool, the trams are still here!"
"Sora, we haven't been gone that long," Donald told Sora.
"Maybe Sora's just feeling everything that Roxas felt," Goofy proposed.
"Y'know, I actually saw Roxas in the Sleeping Realm," Sora replied.
"And he was in the Datascape! That's where a version of you was tested to see if you could handle the hurt inside ya." Donald added.
"Well, I do know hurt; when I lost my friends and the Keyblade, I realized having nothing and nobody to turn to was the worst kind of hurt. But that just shows how much you all mean to me."
"He sounds like Data Sora did," Donald said to Goofy.
"Well of course, any Sora is still Sora!" Goofy replied.
"So, if I'm feeling what Roxas feels, we must be in the right place. I don't care what it takes, I'll find you, Roxas!" Sora declared, only to have a bizarre thought enter the back of his mind.
"So you wish to seek our liege?"
"Wha-?" Sora gasped, confused about the voice in his head, only to snap his attention towards the horde of Nobodies that spawned in front of the three heroes. "Nobodies! Good thing we're an expert at this!" In no time at all, Sora and the others managed to beat back the Nobodies that kept spawning in the town, leaving them to recollect their thoughts once more.
"What was the voice? I'm sure I heard it before," Sora asked himself.
"Are you sure it wasn't just the wind?" Goofy questioned.
"I'm pretty sure it wasn't," Sora replied.
"Where did they come from?!" a voice called out from the distance.
"I don't know! Just keep running!" another voice answered the first, as the sound of pounding footsteps grew closer.
"See? Wait... I know who that is," Sora said, as he saw Hayner, Pence, and Olette running their way.
"Hey, Sora! Bye, Sora!" Hayner called out as the three ran past Sora and the others, as the heroes saw a swarm of Shadow Heartless were trailing after them.
"Go someplace safe! We'll take care of them!" Sora told the residents of the town as he and his friends got ready to fight. The swarm put up quite a struggle, leaving the heroes admittedly in over their heads, but with some quick thinking, they managed to hold the monsters off long enough as they retreated away to parts unknown. After the fight ended, Hayner and the others walked over to Sora.
"Nice fighting, Sora. Thanks!" Hayner told Sora.
"Guys! It's been ages!" Sora told them.
"Really? It hasn't been that long," Hayner replied.
"So does this mean strange things are happening again?" Pence asked.
"Are you kidding? When do you see shadowy blobs about on a regular basis?"
"I guess you're right. The creatures last time were bright white, so these must be different. Let's get to sleuthing then!" Pence answered.
"But you know we already finished our school project days ago, silly!" Olette told her friend, before talking with Sora again. "But still, you three wouldn't be here unless it was for a good reason."
"Actually, we're here looking for Roxas. Remember when we went off to the other Twilight Town?" Sora asked.
"I don't know any Roxas, but the name sounds familiar," Hayner replied, just as Goofy pulled out a photo from his pocket, that showed the three alongside Roxas in front of the Old Mansion.
"Tell you what, we'll help you find Roxas. You guys check the Old Mansion, and we'll look around town for tips about him," Olette offered.
"Thanks, and before I forget, want to take a picture with this Gummiphone I got?" Sora asked as everyone got together for the photo.
"Hold on, who's gonna take it?" Pence asked. After drawing straws, Goofy decided to be the one to take the picture. After it was done, everyone admired the image when Olette found a mark on the wall that caught her attention.
"Hey, isn't that a Lucky Emblem?" Olette asked.
"A what now?" Sora wondered.
"Those are supposed to be really popular all over town. Find one, and they might bring you good luck."
"Okay, that's something we should look out for," Sora answered, as the group went their separate ways. As the team set off toward the Mansion, they passed two citizens chatting with each other.
"Seifer hasn't been around for a long while. I wonder why?"
"Didn't you hear? Rai and Fuu went with him on some kind of warrior's journey, but their little tagalong friend just hangs around skulking at the Bistro. Guess they thought he wouldn't be strong enough to help."
Overhearing this, Sora and his friends turned around to see a spot where vacant space used to be last time was now home to a giant restaurant, where a boy with his face shrouded in shadows sat at crying.
"Hey, are you okay?" Goofy asked the kid.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine," the kid answered, wiping away tears with his sleeve. "It's just ever since Seifer left, all the other kids have been picking on me, trying to use me so they could pull tricks. It was horrible!"
"Your name is Vivi, right? It looks like you could use a good friend," Donald suggested.
"You really mean that? Well, all I can do is use a couple of magic spells, but I heard you say you wanted to bring back somebody named Roxas. I'll do everything I can to help you." Vivi told the group.
"It's okay, we're not judging your strength. We've already been through that," Sora told Vivi, glaring offhandedly at Donald, who gulped and gave a look as if to say "What did I do?". "We'll help you find a way to prove yourself to everyone here that you're not a pushover."
"T-thank you so much! We'd better get a move then, huh, Mister Sora?" Vivi told his new friend as they set out to enter the Old Mansion.
And that finishes this another chapter. I decided to keep in the reference that Seifer was away on a journey of his own, but I promise that somewhere down the line in the story he'll be back for the Struggle tournament, alongside Setzer and some more surprise characters. I hope you enjoyed this little update, and remember to leave a review!