Chapter 1: A Single Spark

Two days had passed since the blind jump in the gummi ship, two days in which Kairi and the chipmunks set about doing their best to better their chances. After a very thorough examination of the ship's stores and an almost ruthless degree of rationalization, they had been able to allocate the remaining food and stretch it out to last two weeks instead of the original week it was meant for. By the end of those two weeks they would probably be near starving, but every extra day could mean the difference between being around to find a safe harbor versus perishing outright before then. In the meantime, Kairi continued exploring the ship to learn more about it, and indeed finding just how much there was to learn.

"It's sort of amazing," she remarked as the three of them walked down a corridor. "How much bigger the ship is on the inside than the outside."

"Yup yup!" Chip said. "The king was the one that figured out how to do it, but we're the ones that helped him pull it all together!"

"So, how does it work then?" Kairi asked.

"Well see, the king figured out that you can put a space inside of a space," Dale answered. "That way, you can get more space to put more things in where you only had space for fewer things before!"

That was borderline gibberish, but it was simple enough that Kairi could mull over it a bit.

"So, are you saying the spaces are overlapping?" she suggested.

"Yup! Gee, you're pretty smart yourself, Kairi," Chip said. "When we get the time I could go over the math for ya!"

"Oh, that's okay," Kairi quickly said. "I'll just take your word for it."

Numbers and her, did not mix well. Hardly a surprise for someone her age.

"Aww, no one ever wants to see the math," Chip sighed.

Giggling slightly, Kairi reached over and gave the chipmunk a scratch on the head. Whereas she was walking on the floor, the two were ambling along on the guardrail so that it was easier for her to look over at them without constantly straining her neck. The trio had already gone through the engine room, the dining area, and the small attached kitchenette. Then there were the bunks, enough for a crew of four Kairi's size while Chip and Dale's hammocks occupied a corner to the side where no one might risk tripping over them. There was plenty of space all-around though, and while Kairi could have picked any of the bunkbeds for her use, she found herself unable to move aside the sheets and items belonging to the gummi ship's previous crew. The things that belonged to Donald, Goofy, and Sora. So instead she had taken the fourth bunk, leaving the others be, just in case.

"So, what's this room?" she asked as they reached another door.

"The armory," Dale answered. "Here, let me teach you the code. "One billion two hundred thirty-four million five hundred sixty-seven thousand eight hundred ninety."

Kairi spent a few seconds thinking through the numbers before blinking. "Wait, isn't that just one two three four-"

"Ooo, see, you are good with numbers," Chip said.

"I, guess," Kairi said with a wry smile. "Umm, is that password okay?"

"Sure!" Chip declared. "It's easy to remember, and since you push ALL the buttons, no one can tell which buttons are used and which aren't!"

"That's, actually pretty clever," Kairi had to admit.

"Give it a try," Dale prompted her.

Kairi did just that, and after punching in the secret? passcode the door opened. Peering in, she could not help but gasp at the sight that was revealed.

"Are these? I mean…"

"These are all the keyblades, shields, and staves Sora, Donald, and Goofy collected on their journey," Dale said, noticeably more subdued than before.

"All these?" Kairi said in some wonderment.

There must have been dozens of keyblades, with a myriad of unique designs on display. And while the numbers of shields and staves were noticeably fewer, they were far from lacking in variation either.

"All these weapons," Kairi said. "Just how many worlds did you guys visit to find so many?"

Chip and Dale said nothing, letting Kairi wander the chamber as she looked at each one. Here, there was a round shield with the emblem of a mouse's head on it. There, a staff that looked more like a broom than a magical instrument. And before her now, a shining silver keyblade with wings for its hilt and a pink wayfinder dangling from the end. Kairi felt her heart quicken a beat. Gingerly, reaching out, her fingers wrapped around the handle. Closing her eyes, she tried to connect with the keyblade, to draw upon any light that lingered within it. Her effort was quickly rewarded as a gentle warm suffused her. Smiling slightly, Kairi opened her eyes and beheld the slight glow of the keyblade.

"I can still feel you," she said. "Within not just this, but all the keyblades you have ever held."

As if to prove true those words, all of the keyblades began glowing. Dimly perhaps, but there was indeed still light within them.

"You fought by Sora's side," Kairi continued. "Will you fight by mine?"

She lifted the keyblade, and its form held. The light did not go away. Indeed, it felt as if the light was echoing the one within her as well, echoing and growing into a bright cascade. The key acknowledged her. Acknowledged her as its master, in place of the one it had lost.

"Thank you," Kairi whispered, even as tears once more streaked down her cheeks.

She had forced herself to stop crying these past two days, to deal with the immediate need that they faced. But right now, it was okay for her to cry again, right? Just for a little while.

Kairi stared out into the black void in silent contemplation. They were nearing the end of the first week of rationing, and while all of them were trying to keep their spirits up, the short meals were not helping. Still, she pressed forward, as that was the only thing she could do. And it was not as if the past few days had not been productive. By now she was becoming a deft hand at the gummi ship's controls, able to perform any of the myriad of maneuvers the ship was capable of. Of course it was just a bit hard to see how well she was performing those maneuvers when there were no points of reference outside, but it at least felt like she was doing them correctly from the inside.

She had also learned how to operate the gummi ship's weapons, though the first time she fired them they had been stunned to see a massive beam of light erupt from the cannons. That was apparently not what they were supposed to do. Or rather, it was supposed to shoot beam of lights, but the strength of the shot was beyond Chip and Dale's expectations. Whatever Kairi had done to send the engine into overdrive seem to have extended to the ship's weapons as well. That was probably a good thing, since it meant if they did run into anything dangerous, they should be able to handle it. Of course they still needed to run into something first.

Since that discovery however, it had been decided to fire off low powered shots, still extremely luminous, at regular intervals to act as a sort of beacon in case there was something out there. Even if that attracted something hostile, finding anything at all was still better than being left with the impression that they really were the only things left. It was about time for another shot, and Kairi reached for the controls to do just that when the console began beeping.

"Huh?"

Even if Kairi now knew, mostly, what all of the various buttons and switches did on the bridge, that was not quite the same as being an experienced practitioner. As such it took her a few seconds to register just which system was calling for her attention. When she did, her eyes widened.

"Chip!" Kairi called over the ship intercom. "Dale! The gummi radio is receiving something!"

"What!?"

"We'll be right up!"

"Okay, I'm going to try to figure out what we're getting," Kairi said, working the console.

Radio was again not exactly some new magical thing for Kairi, there were plenty of radios back at Destiny Islands. The one aboard the gummi ship was far more complicated of course, and using it required her to actually understand concepts like frequency and phases. Back home they had just been words that the adults threw around. Now she could not help but wonder whether even they understood the actual principles the words described. Probably not.

As it was, Kairi's own efforts to manipulate the radio were quite amateurish. She however had learned enough to try and tune in on the signal's frequency while waiting for Chip and Dale. At first her efforts were rewarded only with the hiss and pop of static. Slowly but surely, sounds started filtering through. And from those sounds, words.

"….darkness…hear this…sanctuary…find…the beacon….I repeat…trapped in this darkness, if you can…this, know that we offer sanctuary. Find the light we shine, and use it as a beacon. We await you. I repeat, to those trapped in this darkness, if you can hear this, know that we offer sanctuary. Find the light we shine, and use it as a beacon. We await you."

The signal was a message, one that looped over and over again. As Kairi listened, her eyes widened at the revelation. Someone, somewhere out there, was still alive. Not just that, they were calling out to other survivors. Why had she not thought of that? Because deep down, she had feared of the silence that might be the only answer? Kairi shook her head. No, she needed to stop constantly second guessing herself.

"Kairi!"

"Chip, Dale," Kairi looked over at the two chipmunks as they scampered in. "Can you track that message? Figure out where it came from?"

"We sure can try," Dale said, hopping up and flicking some switches.

"Differential range finding initiated," Chip announced. "Dale, give me the readings from the antennas."

"Got first at 15, second at 16, and a third at 12."

"Right, so carry the two and, there!"

An arrow started blinking on the gyro, pointing slightly to the right and up a bit.

"That fast!?" Kairi said in mild astonishment.

"It was easy!" Chip declared. "All we needed to do was see how long it took our antennas to pick up the signal, then compare the different times for each one! The one that picked it up sooner is the one that's closer to the signal's source!"

"Oh, that, makes sense," Kairi said.

It was probably one of the more understandable of the explanations Chip and Dale had given her the past few days. Taking the controls, Kairi maneuvered the ship until the gyro's arrow was pointed straight ahead.

"Full speed ahead!" Chip pronounced.

Kairi allowed a smile at that. "Roger."

The ship's engines ignited and a streak of light began cutting through the darkness. As they flew, Kairi continued listening to the message being broadcast. It was a boy's voice speaking the words, or perhaps a young man. It certainly sounded youthful at least, but it was not a voice she recognized. The person was promising sanctuary, suggesting that wherever he was remained untouched by the creeping darkness. No, untouched was perhaps too strong a claim, especially if they knew enough about what was going on to be sending this message.

"Kairi, should we try answering?" Dale suggested, hoping onto the armrest.

"Oh! Good idea. Umm, what should I say?"

"How about just letting them know we're on the way?" Chip offered.

"Umm, okay, I'll give it a shot." Reaching over, Kairi flicked on the pickup. "Umm, this is the Kingdom gummi ship. We have heard your message, and are following your signal. Please, keep transmitting to let us find you."

And turned it off.

"There, was that good enough?"

"Yuyup," Chip said. "Now we just gotta wait and see if they heard it!"

Kairi's lips thinned. The waiting, that was going to be heard. She so wanted to hear more from the voice, to hear words that were more than a recording. That would be the surest sign yet that others were still out there, that there was indeed hope. Just as surely as her response would bring hope to them.

"Hello?"

Kairi inhaled sharply.

"Kingdom ship, can you hear me?"

"Yes! Yes I can!" Kairi cried out. "Can you hear me!?"

No response came, not immediately at least. Wherever the other side was, it must have been far, far away. Far away enough that it took time for their messages to reach each other. With bated breath Kairi waited for the next one to arrive. When it did, she let out a sigh she had not even realized she was holding.

"Kingdom ship," the voice sounded again. "We read you loud and clear. And, allow me to say, it fills me with great joy to hear your voice."

"Same here," Kairi said, her face split by the wide smile she now bore. "I-I hoped so much, that I'd be able to find someone else. I-*hic*-I'm so glad. *hic*. So glad, to hear someone else."

Looking up, Chip and Dale gave Kairi comforting looks as tears once more streaked down her cheeks. This time though, it was not in sorrow that they were shed. This time it was in pure relief, even happiness. Of having her hopes vindicated, and her fears quashed. The weight upon her shoulders felt just a little bit lighter now.

"Are you in need of any assistance?" the voice asked next. "Or anyone else on your ship?"

"Oh! No, no, we're, well, we should be, okay?" Kairi said, looking quizzically at Chip.

"Let's see, it takes three minutes between each message, and with how fast radio goes, that means they're, not that far away!" the chipmunk declared. "We should get to them with plenty of time to spare!"

"Umm, it seems we're close enough that we can safely get to you," Kairi said. "There's three of us, me, and two ship engineers."

"Understood," the answer came after the requisite time. "I look forward to meeting all of you when the time comes."

"Me too," Kairi said. "Me too."

As the hours passed, Kairi was starting to wonder just what Chip's definition of 'not that far' actually was. Perhaps on an absolute scale the distance between them and this sanctuary might not be that long, but every minute that passed still felt like an eternity. That was not to say she was completely bereft of any sign of progress. She continued speaking with the person on the other side, and the time for his responses noticeably decreased. And in the process, she was given more hope that there was indeed a sanctuary waiting for her upon her arrival.

"Yes, we've got plenty of food and water. In fact, this entire place is designed to be self-sustaining even in the case of a planetary extinction event."

"I see," Kairi said, smiling wryly to herself. It certainly sounded like the person on the other end was more technically inclined than her. "And you helped design it all?"

"Well, I might have conceived the original idea, but this ark is the product of hundreds of people, thousands even, coming together and sharing my dream."

"That sounds wonderful," Kairi said, then realization hit her. "Hey! You're answering right away now!"

"That's right, you must be close enough to allow for real-time radio contact. You're almost here."

Almost there, just a little longer, then they'd almost be there.

"I'll see you soon then," Kairi said.

"I look forward to it."

Close though they may be, the view outside the ship was still pitch black. Or was it? Squinting, Kairi tried to pick out any divergences from the uniform darkness. There, right there, a single dot peeked out. Kairi raised her hand and pointed a finger at it.

"That," she declared. "That's where they are."

"Wow Kairi, I'm amazed you could pick that out!" Chip said.

"Golly, it's sure nice to finally see something out there," Dale added.

"Yes it is," Kairi agreed. "Umm, let's see, navigation is set, the ship is properly oriented." She sighed. "There really is a lot to piloting a gummi ship."

"Well normally you'd have a navigator and a gunner helping," Chip said. "There's three chairs up here for a reason after all!"

"Oh, right," Kairi said, then giggled slightly. "I suppose that makes sense. Keeping track of all the details would have been kinda hard for him."

A touch of melancholy accompanied that last bit, but it was still an improvement that she could refer to the youth, even if in passing.

"Sorry we can't help do all that for ya," Dale said. "Always meant to add some more consoles up here that we could use, but there was always something more important to see to. And the king never needed any help when he was flying, sos it just never got done."

"That's alright," Kairi assured him. "If all I'm doing is trying to keep the ship straight on its path, I think I can handle it."

"You sure picked all this up quick though," Chip complimented her. "I remember when Donald and Goofy were trying to teach So-me other guy how to work the ship. Half the time we were walking around on the ceiling!"

Kairi giggled, giving Chip an appreciative scratch. "Sora, he was never one for using his head for thinking. He tended to follow his heart, for better or worse."

Chip smiled back at her, letting Kairi know he understood the other subtext of her response.

"He also missed quite a few years of school," Kairi said. "Not that he was very attentive even back when he was attending. Always with his head in the sky, wanting to go on some grand adventure." She sighed. "Always looking forward instead of back."

"Kairi," Dale said softly.

With a reassuring smile, Kairi gave the chipmunk a pat. "But even as he was looking ahead, he also had an eye out for those next to him. His friends, his family, even when he went charging off ahead, he would always hold us in his heart." Her hand came to a rest over her chest. "And that's why I hold him in mine."

"Kairi," Chip echoed Dale.

Before the girl could respond however, a very loud beep intruded upon them.

"Huh? What?"

"It's the radar!" Chip said, hopping over to the console in question. "We're picking up something! Lots of somethings!"

Despite the controls being clearly oversized for him, Chip was still able to push buttons and flick switches with practiced rapidity. When he was done, a projection appeared before Kairi with the gummi ship at the center, and countless dots between them and their destination.

"What are those?" Kairi wondered.

"Heartless!" Dale immediately cried out in response. "We've got Heartless!"

Kairi's eyes widened. "Here!? How'd they find us!?"

Before anyone could venture a guess the radio crackled again.

"Kingdom ship, you need to divert," the voice returned, sounding much more frantic this time. "There's a massive swarm of Cie'th approaching us. We'll try to fight them off, and we'll let you know when it's safe to approach."

"Cie'th? What are Cie'th?"

"Could they be talking about the Heartless?" Chip suggested.

"Maybe," Kairi said, then keyed the radio. "Umm, we can help! My ship is armed, and we can't just stand here and watch you take on the Heartless, I mean the Cie'th, by yourself!"

There was a definite pause before an answer came, and this time not due to any great stretch of distance.

"I can't ask you to endanger yourself for us."

Kairi's jaw tightened. "You don't need to ask. You've already offered to help us in our time of need, to grant us sanctuary, without asking for anything in return. Well I can't just stand by and do nothing when you are the ones with a need, a need that I can help fulfill!"

Another pause. When the response came however, the relief was equally audible. More than it, as another projection popped up, this one showing a silver haired young man wearing a white jacket with yellow sleeves and a teal tie. He was older than Kairi certainly, but still younger than might be expected for someone whom was apparently of some standing and authority.

"Then, allow me to ask. On behalf of the Academia Ark, any aid that you might lend, we would be eternally grateful for."

Kairi's eyes widened before she looked over at Chip. "Can, can we send video too?"

"You betcha!" Chip responded, jumping over to turn on the camera feed without further prompting.

"Wai-umm."

Too late now. Kairi took a deep breath. She could at least try to muster a dignified sounding, and looking, answer.

"This is the Kingdom gummi ship," Kairi began. "Though we are but a single ship, any help that is within our means, we will give with all our hearts."

The young man smiled, and nodded. "Thank you."

The projection disappeared, marking the end of the connection.

"Umm, we should probably get ready for a fight," Kairi said.

"Beginning battle preparations!" Chip shouted. "Bringing weapons online!"

The two chipmunks began hopping about, moving around the controls so quickly Kairi had trouble trying to follow all their actions with her eyes.

"Diverting power to shields, engines, and weapons," Dale said.

"Systems all A-Okay! We're ready when you are, Kairi!"

They might have been, but it still took a beat before Kairi's thoughts could catch up with the flurry of activity. Not exactly a good thing when she was about to go into battle.

"A-alright, let's go!"

Too late now. Pushing the throttle, Kairi urged the gummy ship to charge forth. At first Kairi could not see anything at all in the black backdrop around them. Indeed even as the beeps on the radar drew ever closer, she still could not see anything.

"Umm, Chip? Dale? How do I shoot something I can't even seen!?" Kairi asked.

Not even the gummi ship's powerful lights could reach far enough to reveal the countless Heartless that were out there.

"Just use the light from the cannon's shots!" Chip suggested.

"Oh, right!"

Pulling the trigger, a pair of bright lances erupted. As they streaked through the void, the light they shone finally brought the swarm of Heartless into view.

"That's…a lot…of Heartless," Kairi remarked. "And…they're…coming this way!"

The first shot was deliberate, to let her see what lay ahead. The next barrage was purely reflexive as beams of light sliced through the surging waves of Heartless. Each shot sliced through dozens of the creatures with seemingly no effort, spilling their forms into blackened mist. In the process, ripples of light flickered off the particulate remnants and the dim glow provided further illumination upon their surroundings. Granted all that seemed to do was show just how many Heartless were out there, as well as how big some of them were.

"What is THAT!?" Kairi exclaimed.

"I've never seen a Heartless like that before!" Chip declared.

Multiple pairs of gilded silvery wings filled the window, with countless smaller Heartless circling around. The thing was so large that Kairi would not have been able to make out the full shape even without all of the Heartless orbiting it.

"Keep firing Kairi!" Dale shouted.

"Got it!"

The gummi ship was now cutting a swathe through the swarm of Heartless, leaving a trail of luminescent dust in its wake. Even so there did not seem to be any end to them in sight.

"How many Heartless are out there!?" Kairi exclaimed.

"Maybe we need to take out the big one!" Chip suggested.

"Erm, can we even!?"

A fair enough question, seeming as the giant silver Heartless must have been several orders of magnitude larger than the gummi ship.

"We won't know until we try!"

True enough, and there was nothing to do but press onward. The ship shook. Of course no one said it would be easy.

"We've got Heartless to the aft!" Dale said. "Shields holding!"

Kairi clenched her teeth as another hit caused the ship to shudder.

"Do a barrel roll!"

"A what!?" Kairi called back.

"Spin the ship!"

Despite not knowing what good that would do, Kairi obliged and sent the gummi ship into a rapid spin. While her seatbelt kept her from being thrown out of the chair outright, Chip and Dale were left grabbing onto whatever they could and were left dangling as they went up and down. Not that Kairi had any attention to spare as she tried to keep pace with the spinning view outside the ship. Somehow the maneuver got them clear of the Heartless chasing them, and lined the ship up for a shot at the big one some distance away.

"Keep shooting Kairi!"

"Got it!"

More beams lanced out, on seeming course for the giant Heartless at the center of all this. They fell short however, intercepted by new swarms of Heartless that billowed forth.

"There's too many!" she said. "I can't, every time I fire at the big one, more of the little ones show up to block it!"

"Are they protecting the boss!?"

"Maybe," Kairi said. "We have to get closer!"

The gummi ship veered hard to the right, breaking away from hordes of Heartless swirling around. Zigging and zagging and even rolling about, Kairi weaved and cleaved a path through the Heartless until she was almost right atop her target.

"Firing!"

A single salvo thundered from the gummi ship, the guns set at their maximum power. The eruption of light was like a miniature sun igniting, bright enough to wash out Kairi's own sight. The girl quickly yanked the controls aside, to avoid crashing into the very thing she had shot. That meant going straight back into the swarm of Heartless, and Kairi could the impact of each one as they slammed into the shields. Somehow they held and the ship emerged on the other side.

"Did we get it!?" Chip asked.

Bringing the ship about, Kairi could see the outlines of the massive Heartless still floating there, its wings slowly wavering back and forth. No, that was not all. One of the wings was moving out of sync with the others, and it soon became apparent it had snapped off the back of the beast.

"Not yet," Kairi said. "We didn't get it yet, but we hurt it."

As if to affirm that, a rumble reverberated through the ship.

"What was that!?"

"I think we made it angry," Kairi said. Her lips thinned. "Here they come!"

Another swarm of Heartless was now barreling down upon her. Even as Kairi fired again and again, burning holes in their ranks, more seemed to emerge to immediately fill those holes in. The ship was now shaking even more as the Heartless pummeled it mercilessly. Alarms began blaring as the shield strained under the unrelenting attacks.

"We gotta get out of here Kairi!" Chip cried.

"Not yet," Kairi responded. "If we run, this Heartless is going to attack the ark. And if we let it, how knows how many people will get hurt? How many will die? We can't go, not yet!"

She could not go, but did she stand any chance of victory? No matter how many Heartless she shot down, more always seemed to appear. The alarms were now reaching a terrible crescendo as they began collapsing outright and the attacks from the Heartless impacted the gummi ship's hull. Chip and Dale screamed in panic, hanging onto whatever they could. Kairi was not deaf to their fears, but she could only focus on keeping the ship together, and them alive, for a little bit longer. As another blast hit the gummi ship, a flicker of doubt touched her heart. Could she even manage this for much longer, much less actually defeat the giant Heartless?

More explosions rumbled outside the ship, but these felt far more subdued compared to the impacts the Heartless were peppering upon them. Looking about, Kairi's eyes widened as countless Heartless disappeared under the withering fire of, something.

"Kingdom ship," a stern, strong voice sounded over the radio. "This is the Guardian Corps. We will cover your approach."

As the gummi ship broke through the cloud of Heartless, Kairi found she was now flanked by a dozen other ships. Unlike the boxy design her own ship, these were more angled and possessed of graceful curves.

"Umm, thank you very much!" Kairi said reflexively.

"It is you whom we owe thanks to," the voice responded. "Your attack upon Bhunivelze drew away the swarms of Cie'th attacking the ark. And yours was the first to ever wound the fallen god."

At a loss for words, Kairi's mouth opened and closed without making a response.

"Is your ship still able to fight?"

Looking about, Kairi saw plenty of indicator lights trying to tell her something. Unable to make sense of all the information, or at least not quickly enough, she instead looked over to Chip and Dale.

"We're banged up something awful, but it'll take more than that to bring down the gummi ship!" Chip declared.

"Umm, yes, it can," Kairi offered a more compact answer.

"We will handle the Cie'th then. If you could clip off another of Bhunivelze's wings, perhaps that will force him to withdraw, and spare the ark further attacks."

Kairi gave a firm nod, not that the other person could see it. "I'll do my best."

"Good luck."

Several of the other ships broke off, engaging other parts of the Heartless swarm to distract them. The rest continued following Kairi, keeping Heartless off her ship as she began another run on the one they called Bhunivelze. Their weapons were nowhere as effective as the gummi ship's, but they proved adept enough at destroying all that crossed their paths. Kairi's own contributions didn't hurt, and they were quickly through the outer layers.

"I've got a shot," Kairi announced over the radio. "Firing!"

The moment the gummi ship opened up, a torrent of Heartless converged to try to block the blast. They were only partially successful, with one of the lances disappearing into a black pocket before turning it into another glowing cloud of dust. The second beam however flew true, cleaving through the wing's joint. It was not a clean cut however, enough bone remained that the wing simply tilted over, broken but still part of the whole. A much deeper rumble echoed through the gummi ship, a rumble that Kairi now recognized to be a cry of pain by the massive Heartless. Despite it all, Kairi could not but help feel a little sorry for the creature.

"It's veering away!" the radio crackled again. "The Cie'th are also pulling back!"

Out the window, the light shone far enough to allow Kairi to witness the retreat. The radar gave an even more complete picture as more and more of it cleared up. Slumping back into her seat, Kairi let out a sigh of relief.

"We did it," she murmured.

"We did it!" Chip cried out with just a bit more enthusiasm.

"We sure did," Dale agreed.

Beaming as smile at the two, Kairi reached over and pulled them into an embrace.

"Thank you, I couldn't have done this without you."

"Aww, shucks Kairi," Dale said. "You were there as much for us."

"Yeah!"

Giggling slightly, Kairi gave them another squeeze before setting them down again, and just in time for the radio to sound again.

"Kingdom ship, do you read?"

"Loud and clear," Kairi responded.

"Are you still able to maneuver?"

A pair of thumps up answered Kairi when she glanced over at the two chipmunks.

"Yes, we can."

"Then please, allow us the honor of escorting you to the ark."

Around the gummi ship the other survivors of the battle fell in line, forming a vee shape flanking it. The other ships were flying close enough that Kairi could actually make out some of the pilots in their cockpits, as surely as some of them could probably make her out. She gave a friendly wave.

"I am in your hands then," Kairi answered.

The squadron veered right and Kairi made sure to match their course and speed as best she could. As they drew closer to what Kairi presumed to be the ark, more and more lights turned on to give a proper visage of the construct. Kairi's eyes widened as they continued their approach, the immensity of the ark finally becoming clear.

"How-how big is that thing!?" she exclaimed.

"Woowee," Chip gave an admiring whistle. "That's a mighty big ball!"

The outline from the lights was indeed spherical, making the entire thing look like a small moon. Kairi continued to gape in wonderment even as her hands guided the gummi ship after her escorts. Soon enough they were close enough that the ark took up most of the view, with a distant dim horizon the only break in the sight. The ships headed for a large, cavernous opening, big enough for all of them to fit through comfortably without fear of collision. Down on the ground, Kairi could see countless people waving, jumping, and cheering in greeting.

"So many people," Kairi murmured.

Having grown up in the Destiny Islands, Kairi was used to smaller environs where one could be expected to know all your neighbors. The biggest, most populated places she had visited since were Traverse Town and Twilight Town, but as those names suggested, even those places were a far cry from the masses she could see just here. With how big the ark was, how many more people might call this place home? As the gummi ship set down, she prepared to find out.

"Ship systems locked down," Chip declared.

"Can never be too careful," Dale added.

"Right," Kairi agreed.

These people seemed kind enough, but they were still strangers and the gummi ship was the only thing she had to her name. Better safe than sorry and all that. Once done with their precautions, the two chipmunks jumped over and dove into Kairi's hood. Taking a deep breath, Kairi left the cockpit and walked down to the boarding ramp. She took another breath, but still the jitters in her stomach remained.

"Well, here goes nothing."

The door opened and Kairi emerged onto the ramp. The massive crowd gathered to greet her quickly fell silent as they caught sight of her, surprise evident on many faces. Nervously, Kairi gave a wave.

"Umm, hello?"

That seemed to do it, as smiles quickly swept across the expressions facing her. Then, one by one, their hands came together in rapturous applause.

"Oh umm, that's really not necessary," Kairi said as she stepped forward.

As she did so, the crowd similarly came forth to meet her, and soon those hands that weren't clapping were reaching out to take hers. Soon both of Kairi's were busy accepting handshakes as she accepted thanks after thanks, the girl bashfully trying to insist she deserved none of this adulation. From the way the steady stream of people continued to flow, the ark's people disagreed wholeheartedly.

Just as Kairi was wondering if this would go on forever, the crowd began parting to give way. The person they were stepping aside for was quickly recognized by Kairi as the young man that had spoke to her over the radio. Accompanying him were quite a few other people cradling helmets under their arms, though the youth in question was emptyhanded. With clear respect and deference, the crowd made sure to give space for them to approach Kairi. The girl simply stood there, hands clasped together as she nervously waited. When they were before her, all of them bowed.

"Young miss," the youth said. "On behalf of all Academy Ark, I thank you for coming at our time of great need."

Not only the young man, everyone around her all bent over in respectful bows. Kairi's eyes went wide and she frantically waved her hand before her.

"You-you don't have to do that!" she said. "I mean, you don't have to thank me for helping, I was just doing the right thing!"

If that was meant to somehow decrease the degree of magnanimity the gathered felt she possessed, it achieved the complete opposite. Not a single soul rose, as all remained bowed before her.

"To not show gratitude, regardless of your motives, would make us utterly undeserving of having received your aid," the young man said instead. "Please, accept our thanks. For our sake, and yours."

Kairi grimaced ever so slightly, but sighing and allowing a gentle smile to grace her lips once more.

"Very well. You are welcome, all of you."

Finally the crowd rose and Kairi was face to face once more with the young man.

"Might I ask the name of our savior?" he asked.

"Kairi," she answered.

"Kairi," the youth repeated, then bowed slightly once more. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you. I am Hope Estheim, leader of the Academy. Please, know that you are welcome here, as a friend, and more."

"Thank you," Kairi said with a nod. "I'm glad to have-*hic*-"

Hope blinked, cocking his head aside quizzically.

"I'm," Kairi tried again, "glad-*hic*-"

Again however her voice cracked, as if the words were caught in her throat and could not escape. What did escape however left a warm trail across her cheeks. Reaching up, Kairi felt the tears trickle forth once more. She thought she had cried enough already. As the pain and fear bundled with her finally began to unwind from the presence of all these welcoming smiles, Kairi found out just how wrong she was. And yet, these were still her words.

"I'm glad."

End of Chapter 1

One more chapter before I go work on my other fics, to provide more context as to what sort of story this will be. A shortish one compared to the standard length I like to aim for, but this felt like a good place to end it.

Kairi's crying quite a bit, but she's been on something of an emotional roller-coaster for a while now. She's lost Sora and the others, the darkness has consumed everything she knows, as far as Kairi knows she has no home to go back to and no family to save. Now that she's finally in a relatively safe place, she can finally relax and take the time to deal with that torrent of emotions.

So, Disney Promotion 3, I mean Kingdom Hearts III, had the unfortunate problem of basically shoving aside all of the Square Enix worlds and characters for more Disney content. This is understandable from a practical perspective, since the developers only had so much time to get the game out, and there is an upper limit to how many worlds we can visit before sheer fatigue sets in. But since there already exists a story wherein the KH characters travel to various Disney worlds, I've elected to go the other direction and only use Square Enix worlds, even if some of their characters might show up.

That all being said, the Square worlds we're visiting will obviously see some recontextualization so that they make sense in the KH setting. So while the various characters will remain who they are, what they are will change as necessary to accommodate the plot.

Keep the questions coming if you have them. They provide useful feedback that lets me gauge ho well I'm embedding information into the story proper. While it is unlikely I'd ever be able to preemptively answer all questions in the story itself, ideally I should not be leaving all sorts of plotholes that I'd have to fill via author notes, and questions that raise those points help me gauge how successful (or not) I am.