Once again I couldn't stop watching the recent kh 3 trailer? Coz I couldn't stop replaying it! Now the reason I haven't updated this much is one main reason. The god damn lore of the game! Look I do not like changing what basically everyone's familiar with. And with each and every single thing that is added my mind is constantly trying to wrap my head around how I should fit my story to the KH lore. Union X is not helping me right now! Spoiler alert, basically Ven is an immortal keyblade wielder. No I am not joking. If you haven't seen the translated video and just flat out gave up on playing unchained x, go freaking watch it! That is the best advise I can give you! Q^Q Oh and belated happy bday to my best friend! Who's character, Jade, is in this fanfic.
IX ~ Dragon Hearts (First Visit, Part 2)
Mountain Trail...
There was one thing that I learned about myself that I don't even need to ask anyone about. I hate hiking. It's not that I don't like the scenery- which I actually liked when I got a good view on how a portion of this world from above- there was nothing but earth all around us. The farther we travel through the trail, the more I start to actually miss the camp. "Akari! Hurry up!" Donald calls over. I didn't even realize I was staring off that long until I noticed all for of them already about to head further up the mountain. "Coming!" I call out to them and rush over to where they were. As I was running, I couldn't help but notice a bird circling above where they stood.
I slowed down a bit to get a better look at it, only for the bird to disappear over the wall of boulders that blocked our path ahead. As much as I wanted to think on how strange it was, I didn't want to make the others wait any longer so I shook it off and ran up to Sora's side. "This is the perfect place to start! Ready, Mulan?" Sora asks enthusiastically to the woman, who still seemed a little nervous despite how far we've come. "It's alright Mulan," I reassure her. "I'm not that good at fighting either. I may seem like I know what I'm doing... but I don't. As long as I have these guys by my side, I know they'll help me through any obstacles. Like Mushu."
Mushu pops out just as Mulan turns her head to look at her companion. I don't know about him being a guardian, but I can tell that he'll do as much as he can to make sure she becomes a true soldier in the place of her father. On our way up, Mulan told us a few things about herself and why she chose to join the army. I think that's something I'd do as well. "Now that I think about it... Hey Sora?" He glances over at me as I ask, "What are my parents like?" "Hm... your what!?" We all were taken aback at his reaction. I gaze at him, confused, and question, "Is there something wrong?" Snapping out of whatever was wrong with him, Sora shakes his head.
"L-Let's just finish up our training for the day! Wouldn't want to keep the captain waiting!" he stammers and blindly walks straight into the wall. "Uh..." I glance over at the two for help but they seemed just as confused as I was. Was there something I said wrong? "Maybe I'll ask him once we're back at camp..."
Dark Meridian...
Stepping out of a door of light, one of the white hooded figures from before stares off at the 'ocean' as the portal closes behind her back. "So you've arrived..." She turns to face a woman dressed in a plain white robe sitting on rock and facing the direction of the moon. The girl walks to the woman's side and spoke, "The others and I need answers. You said you'd be the one to provide it if we ever start to question our past roles and about the current Purest of all Hearts. She no longer has the light we all thought would end this battle between light and darkness. So why hasn't a new one been reborn?"
With a long deep sigh, the woman takes her hood off and stands up. "You know Ellen... Even I, myself still wonder that as well." Ellen brings her hands up as a sudden wind blows in their direction, causing her hood to fly back in the process. She was the splitting image of Akari except her hair was a dark shade of pink that she kept tied in a braid. "Then why? Why didn't you show her what you showed us!?" Ellen cries out, desperately searching for something in the woman's eyes as she stared down at her. All she saw was pity. "You have seen the signs. You and all the others should be at peace now that you know you've carried out your duties well. Isn't it that the reason why you girls are sent in pairs to watch over the girl's progress in obtaining her lost memories?"
"That's..." The woman turns and walks past Ellen as she tries to figure out the right words to say. A door that appears similar to Kingdom Hearts appears and cracks open, a stream of light pouring out the wider the doors opens up as the woman approaches. Before entering, the woman looks over her shoulder and utters her last words, "Remember, you are only truly forgotten if nobody is left to remember." This was the last time she could ever leave her domain. With what's happening to the current Purest of all Hearts, she doesn't know if she can ever leave again to lend her wisdom to them for a very long time.
With her hands tied in making sure the currents heart stays strong until the Purest of all Hearts herself can keep them together, she doesn't know if she will ever be able leave. After she steps through, Ellen bows her head and makes a fist. "But we are Forgotten... the people each of us new are long gone... Why were we even born in the first place...?"
Mountain Trail...
After clearing out the mountain trail - finally - I plop myself on the floor after defeating one last heartless. "I know that heartless are a big problem... but can someone explain to me how they go to different places that fast?" I was warned by Yen Sid - and many times my three friends - about making sure no one knows about the outside world so I had to choose my words carefully. "It would be nice if there weren't any heartless," Goofy comments once he see's Mulan wasn't within earshot. I notice this and smile, stating, "A world without heartless does sound great."
Sora places a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry. Once we get your memories back and save all the world again, then we can go home! I'm sure Kairi would be excited to see you again." "Kai...ri?" The way that named rolled off my tongue felt... disgusting. I wanted to ask who this Kairi person was, but Sora had already gone over to Mulan before I got the chance to ask. Donald turns only to look at me with horrified eyes. "Akari look out!" Before I could react, Sora suddenly appears in front of me and pulls me into his arms. Everything happened to fast. The heartless that I saw before had slashed its weapon at us.
Thankfully, Sora didn't end up getting hit from protecting me as Donald was quick enough to use a thunder spell to send it into shock. I pulled away from the boy to check him and sighed in relief once I saw that he was fine. "I'm not losing you!" a voice rang in my head. I wince in pain not long after. "You alright?" the boy asks, worried. I shake my head and smile at his late reaction. "I should be asking you that," I joke. Sora smiles at me for a brief moment before pulling me behind his back when the heartless suddenly appears directly in front of us. Despite the lack of eyes, it felt like it was staring right at me as it just stood there. Not moving a single inch.
I watch it with confused eyes. For some odd reason... it felt like it was looking right at me the same way. "Do you really want to remember?" Pain shot through my chest again except it was much more intense than before. I collapse on my knee's, hearing the faint cries of my friends as I struggled to fight through this painful feeling. "Memories are a powerful thing. Not to mention the pain some of them hold." I've never really thought about that. I'm scared on what kind of memories I had and I'm not even sure whether or not I actually want to remember at all, what exactly caused me to lose them in the first place?
Sora helps me up with one arm and holds out his keyblade. "It's her choice not yours!" He can hear her too? I continued to stare at his back as he there, determined to protect me no matter what. I was moved by this and started to regret ever doubting on regaining my memories. 'He promised to help me get them back no matter what... And I... want to remember him and everyone else." I move to stand by his side and held his hand. This time for sure, I know what I want for myself and others. "Whatever kind of memories I made, I'll accept it! They're my memories! Mine alone." It stays quiet for a moment.
"I'll be waiting then." And it just... left? We both look at each other then at the spot where the heartless disappeared as the rest ran up to our side. "It left just like that?" Goofy scratches his head, confused. Donald looks around suspiciously while Mulan asks us, "Are you two alright?" "Somewhat..." Sora sheepishly answers. I just look away, too ashamed to look at any of them from the lack of fighting I put up. Regular heartless are easy to defeat right now... but what if we encounter something as powerful as that one? I know in my heart that I can fight just like all the others.
'So why do I feel like this has happened before?' I thought, clutching my keyblade tightly before I de-summon it. I don't want Sora and the others to protect me all the time when the fighting gets tough. "Let's head back to the camp and report everything to the captain," Mulan spoke up. "We can leave Akari there to rest." It's like something snapped inside me. "I can fight too!" I blurt out, surprising everyone. "I have a keyblade too! I don't need to be-" A static image appears briefly in my head. "-treated like some..." I suddenly found myself unable to finish my sentence.
"You guys on ahead. Akari and I will catch up." I didn't realize the others had left until I notice Sora standing right in front of me. "Do you... really want to remember?" I was surprised to hear his question. He notices my surprise, even though I tried my best to hide it, and sheepishly explains, "It's just- You've only been awake for a three days and this is your first world. Not only that, you've encountered a friend that you have no memory of. I know you said that you want to regain your memories but even I don't know if you really want to. I could only guess that it's probably because you feel bad for not remembering our friends since... that's the type of person you are. You worry about others before yourself. So, do you really want them back?"
Now I'm even more stunned. Why would he ask something like that now? I barely have my memories, so it's normal to have doubts certain things like the fact that he's both my friend and protector. Yes I am scared on the things my memories contained, but from the beginning, I never once had been given a reason to doubt them when they said they'll help me get back my memories. Sure that strange heartless did have a point, but just like Sora said earlier, it's my choice alone. "I want to remember," I said firmly, taking Sora's hand as I stare straight at him in the eye. "It's not just about feel bad for not remembering the friends that we made together. I want to regain my memories because I don't want to ever... make people feel that way ever again."
That was mostly aimed at Sora. I never forgot the look on his face when he first found me. The hope in his eyes was shattered so easily when told him I didn't know who he was. Same goes for the others, it was very obvious from the start how the group back in Hollow Bastion were acting around me. I clap my hands together and bow. "I need to be stronger in order to do so! So can I make a small selfish request from you, Sora?" "Uh... Sure?" Sora's voice raises up bit, a little surprised at my sudden action. I earnestly ask him, "Can you help me with that while we're here? A little private training? We might be here for a while with helping Mulan and searching for the next key hole. And searching for my memories... Anyway, you're the only person who can help me with this!"
When I heard him humming, I was so sure he'd say no. He's both my friend, but alsovmy Protector. Asking something like this is- "Sure!" My jaw hangs at his sudden, gleeful response. "That was... not the answer I expected..." I thought Sora would put more thought into it, then again he does seem like the sort of person to give a quick answer on the spot. Sora pats my shoulder, grinning as he tells me in an enthusiastic tone, "Starting tomorrow I'll make sure that you get the training you need! Phil would've been the better choice, but I think I can think of something." 'Phil?' It wouldn't really do any good to start asking questions now since we'll most likely meet our 'old' friends soon.
"Well? You ready to start training?" Sora held out his hand, accompanied with his trademark smile.
Since then, Akari would train behind the scenes with Sora when given the chance, even Donald and Goofy would help teach as well as if Sora had trouble explaining. The only problem was that they also had to keep an eye Mulan with her own training, especially after one incident when Mushu tried to lend a hand by cheating. The captain was relentless in trying to make sure every single soldier was efficient enough to be a true soldier for the army. Akari would peek at their training every now and then to see what it was like. Much to her horror, she has never seen training that required running away from burning balls of fire. Not from what she's personally experienced so far.
Donald nearly fell down a waterfall after furiously chasing after a fish that slapped him in the face. Since she wanted to watch without Shang or Chi-Fu's notice, Akari rushed to save her friend and hid just as a random soldier had ran over to check on Donald. Sometimes, she and Khan would scowl Mushu when he was caught trying to make Mulan cheat during training. That made the other three watch out for Mushu after the first, two times from then on. There were times when Akari practicing by herself at night that she would stop to see Mulan sometimes doing the same thing.
She sighs and lowers her sword, muttering, "It's hopeless... I'll never be able to become a better soldier if this keeps up..." "You're getting better Mulan don't worry about it! Oops! I mean... Ping," Akari instantly corrects herself, remembering that they were still near the camp. She chuckles, "It's fine. And thanks. I'm glad to have someone to talk to that doesn't show off their muscles or talk about women." They both laugh and continue hitting the practice dummies. She suddenly stops and gazes at something, causing Akari to stop and follow her gaze. The wooden pole that still had the arrow stuck at the very top. She never really paid much attention when she first saw it.
"... Wait here. There's something I need to do," Ping instructs as she starts walking away. "Huh?" Before I could give her a proper reply, I had to quickly hide when I saw Shang not to far away. As I hid behind a nearby tent, I watch as Shang talks to Mulan, who just bows her head and nods. I didn't really like the captain at first, but after a few days of being in this world, I can see that he is a good man. In his own way. "Psst! Akari!" I turn my head to see Sora behind a tree, signaling for me to come over. Taking one last glance at Mulan, I silently run to where he was only to be tackled by Donald and Goofy.
"Stay away from him, Akari!" I raise a brow at the two, asking, "Huh? Why? What's going on?" Sora stomps his foot and yells at the two, "Hey! Don't go around giving her any weird ideas!"
"Sure Sora, as if we DON'T know what you're going to say!"
"Donald, should we take this conversation away from you-know-who?"
"Who's side are you on, Goofy? We don't know what kind of memories she has! If we want to keep her from getting a million times more confused, we have to keep Sora in-check."
"Uh..." I was completely lost. I have no idea what exactly is going on and I doubt I'll ever get an answer with where this conversation is going. "Guys? How about we talk about this next time? You told me that we'd be searching for my memories when we get the chance, right?" I remind them, again. "Guys?" And they weren't paying attention to me. Whatever's going on, I'm surprised that they didn't notice the uproar that came from the camp. We're not that far away so I could easily see what caused nearly every single soldier to cheer this early in the morning, it was Mulan that was the cause. She proudly sat at the top of the pole and tosses the arrow down.
She spots me watching and waves. I wave back only to stop when Goofy accidentally bumps into me. They really are engrossed in that argument of there's. I look back at Mulan and shrug, who only laughs in response. Just when I had an idea on how to finally get them to stop, I caught something in white run at the corner of my eye. 'Could it be that strange Heartless I've encountered a few time?' my thought wander as my body suddenly moves by itself to the direction where white figure ran off too. Checking if the three have even noticed I'm gone, I decided to press on with the search when I saw none of them have noticed.
'I'll have to talk to them about that later...' As I wandered in the bamboo forest in the direction I saw the figure run off to. The bamboo thicket was harder to get through than I expected. I don't want to start chopping things down at random that isn't a heartless. "Over here..." My body froze at the voice. "Uh..." That came from the side. In normal circumstances it's best to run away from an eerie voice, but I don't really want to think on what will happen if I turn back and ignore it. Gathering whatever courage I had left, I burst through and let out a cry, summoning my keyblade as I did so. There was no one there.
"Huh... Guess I was just imagining things." I really wish it was. My guard shot up when a voice suddenly began to echo all around me. "Lo and behold our beloved Purest of all Hearts stands before me in one peace!" A person in a white cloak suddenly appears to my right, clapping. She stops and rests her hand on her chin. The way the girl just stayed silent and continued to stare suddenly made me a tad bit self-conscious of my appearance. Finally, she responds in a teasing manner and shrugs, "Well most of you at least." If only I could see what face she's making under her hood, I won't have to feel this aggravated now on how exactly she was looking at me.
'Hold on a second. I overheard the others talking about a bad group called organization XIII. Could this person be one of them!?' I got in a fighting stance, demanding, " Are you a part of that group that's been causing a lot of trouble!?" She zooms past me and steals my keyblade right out of my hands. "Hey!" I tried to get it back only for the stranger to disappear before I could even touch her. "Wow you really suck. Seems like you're not as good at using a keyblade like we thought you would be. Are you seriously thee final Purest of all Hearts?" "You didn't answer my question! Are you, or are you not a member of organization thirteen!?" I yell, frustrated at her continual taunts.
I don't know what's more annoying; easily losing my keyblade to a complete stranger or the way she's continually mocking me. She twirls Starlight around as she casually walks over to me. "Me? A part of THAT group? Oh puh-lease! I'd rather become a heartless rather become a Nobody!" she says in a very exaggerated manner. My frustration was quickly replaced with confusion. "But, aren't you a Nobody?" I ask, unsure at what I just heard. She corrects me, "I am. But at the same time, I'm not. I am a Forgotten." "Huh?" Now I'm even more confused.
Who is she exactly? Does she even WANT to fight me? Or is she just here to test me out? Those were the questions that boggled my mind the whole time.
Without warning, she tosses Starlight at me. Just as I caught it, I suddenly found myself staring straight at two swirling balls of fire that were flying straight at me.
I didn't even stop to think during our fight.
I was able to successfully block it, but I was suddenly knocked down to the ground when the person appeared to my side and gave me a swift kick to the stomach.
Why does she feel so familiar? Back then, I couldn't understand the purpose as to why they only appeared when I'm alone.
Keeping my ground, I performed blitz after successfully countering every single attack she threw at me. I didn't even see her weapon until she lower spin kicks, knocking me backwards and saw her aiming her slingshot. I roll away once I see a ball of lightening appear. She still shoots but I ducked, barely hitting me by an inch if I didn't spot it in time. I continued to swiftly attack her with every chance I got. It'd be risky to use my Memory form now. It nearly failed the last time something took away my other keyblade like that. I don't even want to risk the enemy learning of my other abilities too.
Although my quick movements and dodging skills were surprisingly good, I realized one thing that I haven't used so far. I've seen the others use it. Magic. Mostly Donald even though he's not good at being a healer. 'How come I can't?' I stop for a brief moment then continued fighting. "So you've figured it out!" The stranger finally stops attacking and disappears, only to reappear above and stand on two bamboo stick. She jabs her finger at my direction, gleefully telling me, "Because of your current self, you lack so many things that others have around you! No memories, no magic! All you have is that little fragile light inside you."
'What...?' It finally hit me. No matter how hard I trained, I wasn't getting any better. When I tried to test myself against Sora, my body just couldn't keep up with every thing he throws at me, despite claiming he was holding back. I easily lost my keyblade to this... whatever the heck she is! Her voice suddenly darkens, "You were supposed to be different. You indeed are... by being the weakest one of us all."
Do you want to use your true strength?
Yes... But I'm afraid.
Why? If you keep this up you'll never be able to protect the bonds you desperately held on to for so long in the past. You want to give it all up? Just like that?
No! It's not like that! I want to be strong! I want to protect them! ALL OF THEM!
You have to be strong. Strength of heart will carry you through the hardest of trials.
A tear rolls down my cheek as I got into position. "I understand... I have to be-" I changed into my Guard form in a burst of light. "The 'Vast Earth Protecting Bonds'!" I shot straight up towards her, combining both Starlight and Earthshaker once again. It didn't even take much to defeat her. All it took was once slash to end the fight. I land on the ground with ease and watch as the Forgotten lands on the grounds, hard. When I saw her get back up, I was horrified to see the crack on her chest and the light that was coming out. "Hahaha... Looks like I get the last laugh in this... Told them you weren't weak..." she laughs as she zips up her cloak to conceal the crack.
My body just acted on it's own. I dropped both keyblades once they split and ran to her side when she loses the strength to stand, catching her before she hit the ground. She continues to laugh, "What's with that look? A moment ago you wanted me to shut up. Now you give me THAT kind of look? Don't worry. I can't die. Nobody would want to see a fan favorite die that easily." "What are you talking about?" None of what she said makes sense. And yet... "Why? Why are you alright with this?" I ask, trying my best to hold back my tears. A light starts to surround her body. "Look at you getting all teary eyed. The only time someone truly dies is if there's no one left to remember them..." That last line... it's different but it sounds oddly familiar.
"Just ask yourself this... do your friends really want you to recover what you've lost...?"
"What? Of course they do! They say they're my friends. And I believe them!"
I helplessly watch as the person fades into the light, still smiling despite what's happening to her. When she was completely gone I was surprised to see Sora when he suddenly bursts from the bamboo thicket from the side. "AKARI!" he cries and dashes over to me, grabbing me into a tight hug as I continued to sit in place, dazed at what just happened. He pulls away and looks me in the eye, asking, "Why'd you wander off like that? We almost asked the captain to send out a search party when I noticed you disappeared!" "I-I'm sorry Sora... I just..." A few more tears came as I tried my best to figure out what to say.
What can I say to him? That I just killed someone? They may not be exactly a real person, but I know that with or without a heart that they can still feel. And what they must've felt before fading away was both sadness and pain. Not wanting to see me struggle, Sora hesitantly moves to hugs me, which I quickly accepted and cried for god knows how long.
Watching not too far from where the two were, the Forgotten continues to watch as a corridor of light appears behind her turned back. The newcomer was the Forgotten that had fought with Akari and seemingly disappeared before her eyes. She wipes her brow and triumphantly smiles at her accomplishment. "Whew! That was a close one! For a second there I thought I'd end up rejoining the others in Lala land sooner than the rest of you guys," The other shushes with a finger over her lips, "Quiet Ciana! If we don't keep this up, the others won't hesitate to let you sleep again."
Ciana sticks her tongue out for a short moment then proceeds to mock her partner, "What are you going to do about it, huh Alena? Still not over your precious protector, Abednego, by the looks of it." Alena snaps and summons her spear, aiming it at the other as she threatens, "Say his name again, and I SWEAR I'll be the one to put to sleep." Glaring, Ciana bluntly points out, "It sounds like it's more than just a short nap with the way you said that." They stood there for a moment, waiting for someone to make the first move. "Enough of this!" a voice boomed out as another corridor opens up.
A large metal-like boomerang flies out and knocks Alena's weapon out of her hand then smacks the side of Ciana's head. "Ow!" She grinds her teeth as she clutches her head in pain. Another Forgotten steps out while pinching the bridge of her nose, taking in a deep breathe to control the anger that's boiling up inside her. "Can you two NOT act like spoiled little brats? You're both too exposed out here by shouting your names and revealing your faces. If any one of the Current's friends spot you while they were out searching for her, we'd be unable to-" Alena abruptly interrupts with a snarky comment, "Follow her like a hawk just like all the others. That sure doesn't get old."
Noticing the light gathering in the latter's hand, Ciana raises her hands up in defense, "She said it not me!" Alena waits for their 'superior' to take action. Instead of letting her anger get to her and waste any further energy on their pointless argument, the Forgotten shakes her head and creates a corridor right below their feet. Both look down, then at each other, then down again before screaming their lungs out. Her arm drops to her side as she lets out an exhausted sigh. "Looks like I'm the next one to be out of time..." Not too far away from the scene, Jade and Choco were hidden carefully behind a bush and had been watching the entire time.
From the moment Akari first clashed with Ciana up until this point of witnessing the two white leather cloaked strangers carelessly reveal their identities for the world to see. Thankfully for them, they were only ones to see them before another Forgotten had appeared and intervened. "We should go Jade... Whoever these guys are-" Jade casts a stop spell on the poor bird the moment his mouth was wide open. She puts a finger to her lips then points up. Choco began to sweat all over and looks up to see that the Forgotten hadn't left. Jade bites her lip to keep herself from letting out a single sound as she got closer.
Choco didn't have anything to worry about, that is until a fly decided to make a home inside his beak. He wanted to gag in disgust, but only came out in small distinguishable sounds as he struggles getting the bug out of his mouth. The Forgotten was just about to reach over to the bush they were hiding behind only to disappear at the sudden sound of a broken twig. Jade sighs in relief and removes the spell off of Choco, who lets out a high pitched scream and runs around in circles. Rolling her eyes, secretly digs underneath her shirt to take out her necklace and smiles at the old Fenrir pendant.
"Seems like you don't actually attract death, huh Cloud?"
I don't know how I ever agreed to it from the start. But after all that hard work we've been doing? I think a bath is well deserved. If it didn't involved skinny dipping in the lake! "Uh... Mulan? No offense... but considering that we're the only two girls in an all-male camp," I voice out my concerns as I stared at the large pool of water, "I don't think having a bath out in the open like this is a very good idea! Even Mushu agreed about how bad this idea is!" "Don't worry! Mushu and the others promised to give us a signal if anyone's coming. And like I said, just because I look like a man doesn't mean I have to smell like one."
Her strange way of reassurance only made me even more insecure about this whole bath thing. She can be fine that her guardian is out there watching her back and I can understand that very well. Though I don't exactly feel comfortable with the 'others' part. "So... what's going on with you two?" Mulan asks me as she swims over to my side. I raise a brow and question her, "Who are you talking about?" Why do I feel like this conversation is going to get weird? "You and Sora of course." "Oh..." Took me a moment to process what she just said. "What? Where'd did that come from!?" I covered my mouth after raising that louder than I wanted to.
"It's just... you two seemed closer than friends should be. He even kept a close eye one some of the soldiers if they were near the tent you guys are sleeping in whenever you're in there. I can't ever recall a time where you two weren't together except during training." I have no idea where'd she and the others came to that conclusion, but there's no way I'd stay silent. I blurt out without thinking straight, "We're just friends! And besides, you already know it's sort of his duty to protect me! "
"Hehe. Sora must be lucky that you haven't noticed a single thing yet..."
"Why? What should I be noticing?"
If I'm going to end up having constant conversations like this about Sora and I, then I'd rather be oblivious for the rest of my life to spare myself from this large amount of confusion these people are giving me. "Just relax Akari... we've been around those guys for a while now. I don't think anyone would want to go in any form of water for a while after what the captain put us through." I have to give her that. It was one of those moments where I am glad to be a girl and not part of an army mostly full of muscle heads. I don't know how Sora, Donald, and Goofy ended dragged into that mess since they didn't even sign up, but it was still enjoyable to watch.
Finally letting go of all the stress, I was about to float on my back until- "YAHOO!" Mulan quickly sinks herself in the water while I dive straight in to avoid being spotted. I came up from behind a rock and motioned Mulan to come over. She uses a water lily to hide her face then slowly moves over to where I hid, only to put it down when her 'name' was called out. I dove back behind the rock as Mulan greets whoever's there in her deep voice, "Oh hi guys! I didn't know you were here!" She signals me to leave while keeping eye contact to the only three guys I'm very familiar with; Chien-Po, Ling, and Yao.
As I swam away, I look back and cringed when two of them swam over and acted friendly towards her. And it got worse when I saw Yao... naked on top of a much taller rock. I covered my eyes and swam even faster. Mushu swam right past me in the other direction, most likely to save Mulan's butt. When I reached the shore, the others were there just like Mulan said. Funny thing was, all three were blind folded. I kept myself from laughing as Khan hands me a towel. "Some look outs you guys were," I joke after securing the towel around my body.
Sora unties his first and answers, "We didn't want you guys to think we'd peep on you so Mushu offered us these while he keeps an eye out." A scream was heard not long after, then came two more as the sound of splashing began to mix in. We all turn to see Mulan already covered up by Khan and a towel, behind them was a very disgusted Mushu following, who began excessively brushing his teeth. Wait, where'd he get the tooth brush and tooth paste? "Boy that was a close call..." Mulan sighs, relieved. He spits then yells as he hold up his tooth brush at us, "No. That was vile! You two owe me big!"
"I wonder what Daisy think of me if she knew..." I hear Donald say as he slumps his shoulder. Goofy just pats his friends' shoulder, "Don't worry Donald. We're just helping Sora do his job." I glance over at Sora who just shrugs in return. "I just never want to see another naked man again," I comment, which Mulan quickly agrees. Just as we were walking, all of us were caught off-guard by a large horde of naked men run past us. Sora was, thankfully, quick enough to cover my eyes to spare my eyes from the rest. "Too soon Ping," he comments as he peels his hands off. Mushu was the first to walk, saying, "Hey don't look at me. I ain't biting no more butts!"
Checkpoint...
Due to some miraculous turn of events, Chi-Fu had a sudden 'change of heart' that allowed Captain Shang's army to go to the war front. Which the four of us didn't by at all when Mushu personally ran to tell us the good news in person. "Mushu, what did you do?" Donald eyes the dragon suspiciously. Mushu clearly didn't like the sudden accusation, "Me? ME!? What makes you think I'd allow crickey to make a forged letter?" The cricket jump on his snout, pokes his eyes then hops back to Mulan and into her pocket. Making a short nod before slipping inside. I covered my mouth to stifle my giggle while Sora and Donald just give out a long sigh, probably a little disappointed at Mushu's action.
Goofy just let out his normal 'hyuck' as he reasons with the two, "Ah don't be like that guys. Mushu was just looking out for Mulan." I nod, adding, "Even if he's her family guardian, he's also her friend. I'd do the same thing if I were in his shoes." "Well if you put it like that..." Sora abruptly puts his arm over my shoulder and grins, "I guess we can give this a shot. We have been staying in one place for a bit too long and getting rid of a few heartless." That is true. There have only been a few heartless appearing every now and then, which is a bit strange considering how common they are in various worlds according to Sora.
That and the fact that I was practically chased by a horde of them just when I woke up. Still not a pretty thing to first see and remember after waking up in Hollow Bastion. "C'mon," Sora pulls his arm away and grabs my hand. "Let's go now so that we can get a head start!" Before I could say something, I was suddenly dragged by him, again, and ran as fast as I could to keep up with the boy as his enthusiasm increases. He must really be eager to go to another part of this world that isn't the camp. I squeeze his hand and found myself running right next to him as we ran to the path that want straight to the mountain trails.
Village...
When we arrive, I instantly wanted to run back down the mountain. It's freezing cold! Sora and I were the only one shivering while the others just casually stride their way into the new location. Shivering, I clutched onto Sora's arm for dear life as my teeth began to chatter and stutter, "C-Can w-we pl-please get so-some hot cho-choco or something?" This cold was really unbearable. Despite his appearance, Sora obviously wasn't enjoying this winter wonderland either. "Oh no..." We stop to see some of the soldiers run to other side of the village and stare at whatever it is that's caught their attention. Something was wrong.
Letting Sora go, I ran past every soldier that got ib my way and skid to a complete stop once I reached the edge of the village. What I saw was horrifying. "Captain..." Chien Po approaches the captain with a helmet and hands it over to him. I then look back at the battlefield. "Akari...?" Sora places a hand on my shoulder as Donald and Goofy stand by my right side. This looked all for familiar to me. Struck by another piercing pain to my chest, I took a deep breath and buried my face in Sora's chest as I grimace at the pain that continues to build up. I don't want the soldiers to get the wrong idea that I was disgusted at what I was seeing. Honestly, I actually am.
But this disgusting nostalgic feeling I was getting just from one short glance at the battlefield affected my body greatly. There was an image of rocky badlands that appeared in my minds, part of it just barren wasteland, then there were large craters that couldn't have been naturally made. Finally, a field of abandoned keyblades appears but only for a brief moment. "We'll station here for now. Wait until further orders," Shang orders as he coldly walks past the soldiers, hurriedly followed by a clearly distraught Chi Fu. "Why don't we go somewhere else," Goofy suggests, which all of us quickly agree.
I never thought that a world that seemed so peaceful could have a sight like that. And judging by the captain's reaction when he was handed that helmet, he must have lost someone that was among the fallen. As I sat on the haystack to clear my head, I was taken by surprise as a blanket was placed over my shoulders. I look up to see Sora. "Thanks..." I smile as I wrap the blanket closer around my body. Mushu decides to say something in order to brighten up our spirits, "Listen, I got juicy news that I'm sure the two of you will definitely like! Think of it as a way to have something like THAT from ever happening again!"
Apparently, Mushu spotted Shan Yu enter the cave that's exactly next to the village we're in. "We've got to tell the captain!" Sora declares. We all nod in agreement. Ping agrees and said, "Right. We should just go to him and tell him what we know." "Waaaait wait-wait-wait WAIT! Everybody use their heads a sec," Mush starts. "Now, why are we here?" That's a weird thing to ask. "To make the Captain see Mulan's- I mean, Ping's talents and bring honor to her family." The three nod but I was still skeptical. Why would the leader of an army that's bent on taking over this world just stroll around near our camp? It made no sense!
"It's the perfect opportunity for you to show Shang what you're made of!" That doesn't sound like a good plan at all. Mushu has good intentions to make sure Mulan get's the respect she deserves, but this is insane. "I still think we should report this to the captain," I spoke up, catching everyone's attention. "Who knows who could be waiting for us? I don't think it's a good idea to risk it just for someone's approval. I think Ping has done enough to prove herself." He already allowed her to stay in the army, so there's no reason why she should risk everything after how much she's gone through just to still be here.
"Oh c'mon Akari, we can take him! Besides you've got nothing to worry as long as your protector is here!" Sora jabs his thumb to his chest as he grins. I didn't even notice he and the others left until I heard the sound of numerous footsteps. I ran after them and called out, "Wait! What if it's a trap?" He merely continued on. For a moment, I was honestly scared on what would happen if it really was a trap, or worse, if a Forgotten there and just waiting to personally ambush us.
Village Cave...
When we got inside, I could feel that something was very wrong. Sora looks around once he steps into the middle of the cave. "Dead end," I hear him say. There was nothing except lit candles and, what appears to be, shrines. Donald practically sighs in relief when he said, "There's nobody here..." "You're crazy. Check again!" Mushu orders. "Mushu, there's nothing here!" I snap. I didn't want to lose my temper, but if it meant getting into that dragon's thick skull that we have to get out of here soon, then apologies with have to wait. "Oh, well..." Donald was the first to leave.
"Donald, wait for me!" Goofy followed suit not long after, leaving Sora, Mulan, Mushu and I by ourselves. "I think we should-" Sora wasn't able to finish when the area around us started to shake. It wasn't long. When brief earthquake stopped, we were all caught off guard when a sudden barrier appears, blocking Donald and Goofy. Sora automatically pulls me back just in time when a heartless suddenly appears from the side and jumps towards me. When he lets me go, I summoned my keyblade and got into position. "Remind me to tell you 'I told you' so later!" He grins, asking me, "Is that a bet I hear coming up?"
I wanted to say something only for my chest to ache. Thankfully for only a second so it wouldn't render me useless. We both had to jump away from each other when a bigger heartless comes charging with its spear aimed at us. The fight didn't take as long as expected. But while we were fighting, I tried to test myself to see if what that Forgotten had said was true one last time. And sadly it was true. Sora easily used Fire on the smaller heartless while I struggled to even summon a single flame. Mulan was even doing better than me and she can't even use magic. I jump to the right when the large heartless came charging at me again.
Give me your heart... Give me you heart! I could hear the heartless cry out. "Ah! Why won't you just leave me alone!" On instinct, I pointed my keyblade at the heartless. What happened next I did not expect. Starlight began to glow and once it was bright enough, all of the light suddenly gathers itself to the tip of the blade. Light... light... light... Oh I get it now. "What's wrong? Afraid of a little light!?" I jump in the air and aimed straight at the heartless. Two balls of light spiral around me and flies straight towards it, sending the heartless and others around it straight to the wall.
"Go Akari!" Sora cheers. I can't used magic. I can see that now. 'So there's something I CAN do.' Once all of the heartless were gone, I found myself tackled to the ground and staring up at Sora, Donald, and Goofy with a bewildered look. I couldn't even comprehend what they were even saying to me with the amount of confusion that was circulating my head. "C'mon guys! Give her some space!" Mulan was able to pull Donald and Goofy off. Sora continues to laugh even after helping me back up.
"I can't believe you can still use it!"
"Use what?"
"Your ability to control light! I thought I'd have to wait forever to see you use it again!"
I've been able to use something like that all this time? "Why didn't you tell me!?" I yell, surprising not only Sora but also the others. I cover my mouth after unexpectedly raising my voice higher than I wanted to. I didn't mean to yell at him, but I guess I was that frustrated that they kept something from me. Especially Sora. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to-" "I know. I just-" Sora reaches for my hand but drops his hand to his side when I took a cautious step back. He turns his head to look away in shame. "Do you... even what to help me get my memories back?" I hesitantly ask him. This doubt... I don't want it.
And I don't want that person manipulate me into doubting the only friends I have right now. The only thing I want to make sure is that there are no secrets and that they trust me. Just like I trust them. Just before Sora could answer me, a sudden gust of wind bursts from behind me and sends everyone a few feet away. They all got back up only for some sort of barrier to rise up, preventing anyone from getting in. "Guys!" I call out and move to run to them only for Starlight to appear across my face, completely stopping me in my tracks. "You think your mere strength is all you need?" I was knocked down to the ground at the strong force. "Let's see how strong that heart of yours is."
As I got up, I found myself paralyzed at the sight of the heartless. I don't even know if that's what it even is from it's appearance and actions. The entire body was white and it had no face, only short dark blue hair on top of its head. As the heartless raises Starlight and points it at the ceiling, I shield my eyes from the sudden blinding light that enveloped the entire cave, which soon died down. The heartless gets into a stance and fashioned a samurai-like armor. Escape is impossible with that barrier up, no one can get in or out even if they wanted to, and I doubt that this heartless would let me get away either way.
Knowing this wasn't going to be an easy fight by myself, I attempted to change into my memory form. Which is then I realized that I can't. All I could do was summon Earthshaker. "Are you kidding!?" With wide eyes, I look at my clothes than at Earthshaker. Do I need to have that keyblade with me just so I can change into my Guard form? How am I even going to get it back?
*Information*
- Depending on the type of Fragment, they can switch between the two keyblades that are linked to one of your Memory Forms. Once taken, the Memory form is temporarily disabled until the end of the fight. Defeat the Fragment and re-obtain both your keyblade and your memories.
The heartless suddenly disappears. All of the candles dim and caused the entire cave to darken. When I heard a weird sound from above, the heartless dives down and I end up sliding backwards as I struggle to block and push against its strength. I was able to kick it back and got to strike it a few times before it quickly recovers. I could barely land a single hit with how much faster it gets. Out of nowhere, it disappears. Hearing that strange sound again, I turn just to see it already in a stance and dashes straight towards me, slashing only to get knocked back when I created a ball of light in my free hand and used it to deflect the attack.
Earthshaker suddenly disappears from my hands and was replaced with Starlight. Although I was relieved to have my much lighter weapon back, just another blow from the Fragment made me want the heavy keyblade back. As the fighting continued, I could feel my body start to feel sluggish. And every time I used the light to attack from a long distance or slightly deflect an attack, it's like I was being drained of whatever energy I had earlier. I tiredly got on one knee and stabbed my keyblade to the ground to keep myself up. The Heartless were nothing compared to how exhausting this fight is. I tiredly glance over at the others to see them desperately trying to call out to me.
The barrier prevented any sound to be heard from the outside, and it was most likely the same for them by the looks of it. "Your heart is weak... That will never change." "No... If my heart really was weak, theb I wouldn't be here!" I quickly lift up my keyblade and slashed across the Fragment's abdomen. It slowly drops Earthshaker behind its back then collapses on its knees. As Earthshaker reappears in my free hand and disappears, I took a step back in surprise when I see the white all over the Fragment's bodyshed off in the form of petals and disintegrates on groubd. Looking up, the white on it's face breaks like a mask and splits in half. It was... me. I gap as the Fragment warmly smiles at me, forming into a ball of light not long after and I gasp as to flies straight to where my heart should be.
*Guard Memory Form Lv. Up*
-Counter Strike obtained
-Combo Plus obtained
-Increase Defense
-Increase Memory Gauge
*Flash* "Hahaha! I win again boys!" I smile triumphly as all four of them peel themselves off the sandy floor. I winced a bit when I saw a black circle around Tidus' left eyes and Wakka with his blown up beach ball stuck to his weird spiky hair. Surprisingly, Sora and Riku just seemed tired. "I hope I didn't go to far," I said as I flash them an apologetic smile. Sora smiles brightly and shakes his head, "Are you kidding me!? You were awesome! You even knocked Riku off his feet with just three hits!" "Atleast I made it past one," Riku jokes, earning a few laughs from the others while Sora seemed distraught at everyone's reaction.
I tried my best to make him feel better, "Don't worry about it Sora. I mean you did teach me to fight first after all. I just picked up a few tricks of my own." "Thanks," came a meek reply from Sora. I think I should have just left that part out. I really did mean it though. If it was Riku that taught me, I'd be worse than Yuna.
*Flash* At first all I could see was darkness, then out of nowhere, I felt a large wet tongue slobbering my face. "Ack! I'm awa-Who are you?" My anger quickly subsides when I see a cute little, yellow (?) dog sitting in front of me, wagging his tail in delight to see that I was awake. "Um... hi?" I greet the strange looking mutt. Yeah he's cute but I have never seen a yellow dog, only small yellow birds.
*Flash* "I'm sick and tired of being treated like some damsel in distress! If you think I'll just sit around and let my friends do all the fighting, then you don't know me at all as you claim!" I yell as charged straight at the hooded man. He takes a step to the side with ease and grabs me by my neck. "Having a keyblade only makes you an easier target. With you fighting out in the open amongst your allies, taking your heart will no longer be a problem." I grab his arm and tried to pry myself out of his hold. "This brings back so many memories..." The man tightens his hold on my neck. "How long ago was it when we confronted each other like this."
I couldn't answer. As my vision starts to darken, the man was struck on his head by Kingdom Key. I felt his hold on me loosen and I found myself dropped into the arms of my best friend. "Heya... took you long enough..." I tease, accompanied with a few short coughs.
*Flash* Kairi and I watch side by side as Riku beats Sora for the nth time in a row in their usual daily match against each other. "So, what's the bet this time?" I ask, grinning at how frustrated Sora looked. She giggles, "Loser has to break all nine coconut with a stick." I burst out laughing and ended up rolling to my sides, clutching my stomach as I continued to laugh hard. "Not funny Akari!'" I heard Sora shout from the other side. This only prompted me to laugh even more.
"Akari!" Sora catches me just as I was about to collapse. "Ow..." I groans as he tries to help me stand. I stare at him for a moment then decided to pop the question, "Sora... Was your losing streak that bad? Even against me?" He pauses for a moment. "You remember? And THAT of all things?!" I laugh and add, "Well that was one of them." I kept the rest a secret to spare him from any more embarrassment on what else I remember. Judging by the looks Donald was giving Sora, I can tell the boy never told them anything about his sad history in losing against (I guess my other friend) Riku. Especially me.
At least there's one thing that hasn't changed, Sora is still as willing to teach me how to fight just like back then on the Islands where we probably grew up on together. Even if I was also good at defeating him too.
The Village...
The group arrived back at the Village and they couldn't believe what they saw. The village was burnt down, what remains were just pieces of burnt wood of what used to be the houses. Only a few stood but looked ready to collapse at any moment. Ping spots Khan and rushes over to her companion, who was also relieved to see that his rider was safe. "No way... We weren't even gone for that long..." Akari mutters in disbelief as they all wandered closer to the village. "Captain!" they hear Ping cry out.
I was relieved to see he was still alive, but he didn't seemed all that please to us for a second there. Especially me. We struggles to stand back up while we rush over to where he was. "Don't over do it Captain," Sora advises him. "It's just a scratch," the man said before letting out a cry of pain and dropping to one knee. Ping quickly questions him, "Captain, the enemy! Where did they go?" Struggling through the pain, he was barely able to answer us, "They went toward the summit..." "We'll stop them!" Ping declares. Goofy scratches his head. "it kinda is our fault..." I looked down when I heard small footsteps walking away from us to see Mushu
"You mean MY fault," he bows his head, depressed and guilty for what happen. "Nuh uh!" Donald feverishly shakes his head. "It's not you're fault Mushu! If ever, it's that Shan-Yu guy and the heartless that caused all of this, not us," I reassure him. "She's right! What we can do not is make sure none of this happens ever again," Sora proclaims before he kneels down and talks to the captain. While they were discussing what to do with him, there was something that was bugging me since we left the cave. That look in that Fragment's eyes - it looked so content and yet once it rejoined with me, I felt sad.
I did feel happy at first to finally remember something about Sora and our other friends from our world, then there was something else. This sadness that it brought, how can happy memories make me feel like this? "Akari?" I turn to see everyone about to head out, except for the injured Captain Shang of course. "Do you want to stay with the captain while he searches for the villagers and the other soldiers?" Ping asks. It may be best if I do since the Captain can barely stand up. "I'll just help him find the other soldiers. I'll catch up with you guys in no time!" I said confidently as I did a fist pump.
Right before they were about to leave, Sora suddenly grabs and places something on the palm of hand. He scratches the back of his head and grins as he explains, "I was supposed to give this to you a bit earlier, but thanks to Donald and Goofy getting the wrong idea, which ended up YOU thinking the same thing, I had to delay my special delivery to you from the fairies." I open my hands to see a Star-Shaped fruit charm. "If you need help, you have this to summon a copy of me!" He grins as I look up at him with wide eyes. Donald starts to call out for him, prompting Sora to leave. "I'll see you later Akari!" I wave as he runs after the others.
*Item Obtained*
- Paopu Fruit Charm
*Information*
- You are now able to summon a comrade - based from your memories - into battle when the entirety of the party leaves. Various empty charms can be found across different worlds and can be filled depending on who you select from your current memories of your friends.
Looking back down on the charm, the first question that popped into my head was something that Sora completely left out, how in the world do I summon Sora? Do I throw it in the air? Do I break it? "Ergh!" My head snaps in the direction of the Captain, who was forcing himself to stand up. I rush to his side and helped him balance before he could fall back down. I decided to make a light joke to ease the tension, "C'mon captain! We wouldn't want your soldiers to think you're slacking off. And don't worry, once we'll find someone I will let you stand on your own so the other soldiers wouldn't think you're relying on a girl for help."
He shakes his head, "Don't worry. You helping this soldier here without being ordered to has earned you some more respect." I briefly blink for a second, sinking in what I just heard him say. "More respect?" I repeat with a raised brow. The Captain was about to answer me until we heard a cry for help not too far away. 'There's no way we can make it in time!' Before I could ask the captain what we should do, he suddenly lets me go and drops to the floor, clutching his wound as I go down on one knee to inspect it. He swipes my hand away, ordering me, "Go! I'll only slow you down! Find them and bring them back in one piece!"
I was about to protest but held it back. From what I have learned in this world is that a soldier should never disobey an order, no matter what happens nor what the reason is. Summoning my keyblade, I took one last look at the man then ran straight in the direction in where the voices came from. The moment I got there, I was greeted by a ginormous arrow that nearly stabbed my foot if I hadn't stopped in my tracks. "AH!" A few soldiers rant past me while others cowered in fear at the sight of the giant heartless. At the top part of the canyon, I could see Yao, Ling, Chien Po and a few others having a difficult time trying to push a giant bolder off the cliff, probably planning to squish the heartless rather than fight it head on.
This heartless was definitely bigger than the other few Assault Rider heartless we've encountered outside of camp, this one was like a larger version of it but with a bow and arrow as its weapon. Once it spots me, it didn't take it long to create another arrow and aim right at me. "Looks like they need a better distraction!" Without a second to waste, I charged straight for the heartless. 'There's no way I can jump that high to hit the upper part of it's body, so I have no choice but to hit it's legs.' I barely dodged away in time when the heartless raises one of its hooves and stomps, creating a large shock wave. 'If it doesn't end up squishing me into a pancake!'
Distracting the Charge Heartless wasn't as easy as I thought it was going to be. Each time I was able to strike a couple of time one of it's legs, it quickly retaliates and sends me flying back if I didn't jump in time. And when I was too far away so I could recover, even if just the slightest bit, it would have an arrow already charged and aimed at my direction. This is nearly impossible! "Hey! Would you mind picking up the pace?" I barely blocked on one the incoming arrows and sent it straight back at the heartless. "I don't think I can keep this up!" "We're trying!" I threw my keyblade and caught it after it hits and flies back to me. "Try harder!" I demand.
I shouldn't be asking too much from them since they're also trying their best. But I seriously can't keep this up any longer! Finally, much to my relief, the soldiers were able to push the boulder off the cliff and straight at the heartless. I jump back far enough as the boulder crashes on top of it's head, shattering on impact with pieces scattered every where. I brought my arm up to shield my head at the raining pieces of rock that fell down. When it all cleared up, I smiled triumphantly while every soldier that witnessed the scene cheered. That feeling of accomplishment went away fast and was replaced with apprehension.
"Wait!" I warn the soldiers as I get back into my stance, "Something isn't right! Its body should have disappeared by now!" As if on cue, the Charge Heartless springs back to life and was even more enraged than before. "Go back to the village!" I ordered the men. None of them wasted a second and left as the heartless regains it's ground. A ball of sweat rolls down my cheek as I thought to myself, 'This isn't good... I'm not strong enough to defeat it! I doubt even my Memory Form is capable of destroying that colossal monster!' If the boulder wasn't good enough, then what else can I do? Run?
"No." I tightened my grip on Starlight voice out my resolve, "I have to do this. I can't rely on others forever to fight my battles." "Couldn't have said it better myself!" I look up to see a girl diving straight at the heartless, summoning a large hammer and smashing the top of its head. I gap in awe as she flips backwards and lands on the ground beside me with ease. "Who are you?" I ask. She shakes her head and points at the heartless, "No time for chit chat! We gotta team up and defeat that heartless before it causes anymore damage! That thing is attracted to the light of a nearby Fragment! We have to kill it before it finds it!"
I cringe at the word 'kill'. 'Hold on, Fragment? Didn't I already defeat it?' Just before she could charge, I informed her, "But I already obtained my memories from it." She skids to a complete stop, nearly falling flat on her face. "You already got it!?" The girl slumps her shoulders and lowers her hammer in defeat. "Great! That means I have to hop to the next world..." I blink and repeat what she just said, "Hop to the next world?" She stammers, "What?! ... Uh... Never mind! J-Just focus on defeating the heartless! Use your summon or whatever!" As she resumes her charge for the heartless, I stare at her with wide eyes then at the summon charm.
"I don't know how to use it!" I cry out. It was too late, she was already up in the air and trying to keep the heartless from shooting at me again. 'No instructions what so ever. Why am I not surprised?' I shook off the sarcastic thought and focused on the charm. Sora said that the fairies wanted me to have it and also mentioned that I could summon a copy of him. But how? 'Hold it close to your heart and remember...' A voice rang in my head. My eyes look around for the source then shift back to the charm. "Remember..." I close my eyes and tried to focus on my memories.
The ones I regained were still a bit of a blur, but as I kept searching through them, I could easily see a picture of one certain person. "Sora!" I exclaim and smile at the memory of how he used to look like. The charm flies out of my hand and drops to the ground in front of me, emitting a light that was so bright that I had to cover my eyes. When the light dies down, lower my hand and stared at the young boy with wide eyes. He suddenly turns around. "What are you standing around for? Let's have some fun!" This younger Sora seemed a lot more eager to fight unlike the Sora I know, and it's a little funny to see this version of him in person.
"Right!" We both charge at the heartless and split in opposite directions at the exact moment it shoots another one of it's arrows. The girl notices us and backs away from the heartless. I watch Sora as he performs strike raid, which I do as well after observing how he does it in a better fashion. The heartless lets out a cry and collapses as all of its legs were simultaneously struck by the keyblades that circled around one another. I ended up catching the Memory Sora's keyblade and he caught mine. Seeing him smile again, I instinctively do so as well and turn back to the heartless as it starts to get back up.
"Give my a boost!" I order, earning a short nod from Sora and watched as he gets into position. I change into my Guard Memory form and dash to Sora's direction, gripping onto the kingdom key with one hand and summon earth shaker with my other. As I jump in the air, Sora hold Starlight in a guard position and prepares himself as I start to descend, stepping onto the keyblade and felt myself being pushed up a second later. The girl assists me by jumping back up and uses her hammer to send me up even faster. Just as the Charge Heartless was about to create another arrow, I combine the two keyblades and swing down with as much force as my arms could swing at the sudden heavy weight.
Now split in half, gravity pushes me back down to earth, but not before I get to watch as the heart inside the heartless is freed and slowly floats up towards the sky. Preparing for the incoming pain, I close my eyes and wait only to find myself waiting too long for it to come. I open my eyes to find Sora smiling down at me, holding my body before placing me back on my feet. I was about to thank him until his body disappears and the charm to come flying back into my hands. "You sure have one hell of a protector this time." Before I get the chance to even say anything to the girl as well, I found myself alone in the canyon with traces of her anywhere.
Whoever she was the next time I see her, I have to thank her for helping me.
After checking one last time if all of the soldiers were accounted for, Akari runs straight in the direction her heart was telling her to go. That fight with the heartless made her fear for what other kind of heartless her friends were facing at the moment. From what she understood that strange girl said earlier, Akari figured that even though her heart fragment is inside her its light was surely enough to attract a lot of attention. "Hopefully not the bad kind..." Akari mutters under her breath as she continues to race to where he friends were. When she got there, she nearly falls over at the sudden intense earthquake below her feet.
She looks up to see an army of Heartless and - what appears to be - the Huns getting buried in snow by the sudden avalanche from behind. Akari desperately searches for her friends and finally spots them running to her direction. All except for Sora. "Where's Sora!?" she asks the four. All of them immediately turn around. Goofy squints his eyes then points out, "Over there!" Sora was surrounded by numerous Rapid Thruster heartless. Without a second thought, Akari pushes past the group and runs to Sora's aid. "Akari it's too dangerous! Get back here!" Donald cries out and fails to grab her.
She turns around while still running, calling out, "Don't worry! I just fought a gigantic heartless earlier! I can handle a couple of tiny ones!" Turning back around, Akari summons Starlight and dives straight in. "Ask the soldiers!" Just as Sora destroys one of the heartless, he is caught by surprise when Akari suddenly jumps down and slashes a heartless that was approaching him from behind. "What are you doing here!?" He was both happy and upset to see her risking her life to help him. She merely grins and continues to fight as she presses her back against his. "I did promise to catch up with you guys, right? Even if you're my protector, it won't stop me from fighting with you guys!"
With a short sigh, Sora smiles back and prepares to continue fighting. The fight was faster to get through with Akari there to help him. With the surrounding heartless now in smaller numbers, Sora and Akari take this chance to make their hasty retreat before they also get buried. It just so happens Ping had also saved Captain Shang during that time when he and a few other soldiers appear at the battlefield. Things seemed to look up for them after Shang gave his gratitude and trust to Ping. Akari smiles and crosses her arms as she and the others watch the two. "Looks like he's finally come around." All three of them nod.
Donald peers over at the other soldiers, whispering over to the girl, "If only those guys would do the same with you..." Akari merely laughs and leans down to whisper something back to him, this time only for the duck to hear. He nods a bit while still keeping his scowl on, then his eyes widen and immediately jaw drops. "Hehe. I wasn't joking when I said to ask the soldiers." "What did you say to him?" Sora asks as he suspiciously eyes the girl, holding back a laugh at Donald's stunned reaction. Even Goofy couldn't snap him out of it.
I playfully poke at his chest and tease, "Maybe later. Gotta focus on saving the world first, right?" "Aw c'mon no fair!" he whines while still wearing a smile. Googy nudges Sora and points out with a grin, "You did the exact same thing to her before, remember? Don't expect that she won't be getting her revenge after gettin' all her memories back." Now THAT'S something I look forward to now. Whatever Sora did, I'll be sure to get back at all the things he did to tease me. Our problems seemingly went away until I spot Mushu walking over to Mulan and quickly covers his mouth after he says something.
The three most likely didn't notice this. 'He must have said something that got Mulan in deep trouble...' My fears came true as the moment we run towards them, Shang was quick to interrogate us, "You an knew didn't you? You knew Ping was really a woman in disguise?" We were all at a lost for words. "A woman!?" Chi-Fu sure knows to jump in at the worse moment. "I knew there was something wrong with you! Treacherous wench!" We all protectively stepped in front of you when he marches over and tries to grab Mulan. "You four! You know all along!" None of us could deny his accusations.
Sora spoke up, "Mulan has done nothing but served this army like any other soldier!" I step in as well, grabbing Sora's hand as I firmly state, "She only wanted to save her father. I'm sure any one of you would have done the same thing." "High trea-" Donald freezes the man's mouth before he could blurt out another word. "Oh quiet. Your voice is more annoying than mine." Goofy and I look at each other than Donald. Did he just admit his own voice was annoying? I decided to push back the thought and focus more on the situation at hand.
Shang walks past us but then stops, keeping his back turned as he declares, "The punishment for high treason and dishonoring the Army... Is death." I bit my lip and averted my eyes away from him when Shang moves his head to look over his shoulder. Instead going through with the punishment as all of us expected, he does the one thing that Chi Fu and the rest of the army did not except for the commanding officer to order.
"Get out of my sight... now. You're all dismissed."
"But Captain..."
"My depth is repaid."
As he walks off, the soldiers and our friends follow as commanded. Chi Fu, now with a frozen free mouth, frowns deeply in our directly and begrudgingly follows after the army. Mushu pops up from behind Mulan's back and apologizes, "Mulan... I blew it. I'm sorry." She just shakes her head. Later, after some quiet time to recover from what just happened, we watch as Mulan takes off her armor and undoes her hair, allowing her short hair to be freed. She expresses her gratitude to us but with a sad smile, "Thank you, everyone. Sorry I got you in trouble." "It's no big deal," Sora shrugs.
I lightly punch her shoulder and said, "It's not like we did it coz we were forced to. Friends help each other and since we're both girls, I am proud to say we showed those guys what we're made of." "Even if you ended up getting kicked out in the end..." Goofy adds only to be shut his mouth when he is silently scowled by Donald. "So Ping..." Sora quickly correctly himself, "I mean, uh, Mulan... what're you gonna do now?" That's a good question. What is she going to do now? "Go back home." As much as I don't like the idea, with not much left to do now that we've been booted out of the army, all she can do is go back to her family.
"You know your daddy is gonna be steamed as a chicken dumpling," Mushu lightly jokes as the two walk to leave. Mulan pauses for a moment then nods in acceptance on what's to come. I yelp in surprise when Sora suddenly grabs me, Donald, and Goofy to bring us in a tight hug. "Don't worry! We'll take our share of the blame!" "Thanks! You're all such wonderful friends." After Sora lets us go so we could follow after Mulan and Mushu, I was about to follow them only to suddenly feel light headed. "Akari?" The moment Sora turns to face me, I found the world darkening all around me.
'There are pieces you have regained still need to be awakened... The longer you remain awake, the more it'll become harder for them to reveal your story. Let them flow back into your heart in the form of a dream.'
Dive to the Heart...
At first there was only darkness, then I found myself being forced to open my eyes at the sudden beam of light that flashed above me. I was standing on a very large, white circular platform. Why do I feel like I've been here before? There was something about this place that felt eerily familiar. "Enjoying your little sleep?" I jump around and summon Starlight on instinct. Before me was another cloaked stranger, but this time their cloak was black instead of white. "Calm down! I'm not here to heart you. Well," the stranger suddenly appears at my side and grabs my wrist. "Physically I can't since this in only a dream. But diving into people's dreams does have it's perks."
I was about to demand for answers until my keyblade suddenly transforms into a bouquet, which I immediately drop out of fear of what else the man could do. "You're probably wondering who I am." He appears at a different spot, this time a few feet behind my back. When I turn to face him, he was gone again and had decided to reappear at my side, this time a little bit too close for comfort. "But where's the fun in that if I make the BIG reveal? Mystery is the best way to keep anyone interested! Am I right?" Despite his eccentric nature, I still felt uneasy around the man and moved a few inches away each time he attempted to get closer.
He finally notices my discomfort and decides to be a little less handsy and decided to focus more on talking.
"How many fragments do you have now? Four?"
"And why would I answer you? I don't even know who you are!"
"Guess I shouldn't expect much of an answer from you. Your protector probably told you never to speak to strangers without him around."
"The last time I met a person that had an eccentric personality, I had to use my memory form to protect myself."
"Now don't be like that! I just wanted to say congratulate you in person before you forget me again."
"Again? I've never even met you!"
I hope I haven't, because if I have then I never want to meet this guy again. "I have to be honest... I really enjoyed seeing you again." Things even got weirder when he starts to get a bit too close for comfort. I step back and tried to summon my keyblade, but nothing came out. He just kept walking closer until he just suddenly phases himself into me. "What? Huh...?" Once again, I embraced by darkness.
Palace...
"You keep her safe, alright?" Sora was about to leave Akari with Khan until he felt a hand grab his wrist. "Don't think I'm not coming with you," she said as Sora stares at her with wide eyes. "Akari!" He immediately moves to help her stand as she tries to push herself off the ground. "You feeling alright now?" Sora asks, concerned after seeing Akari suddenly collapse. She nods, "I'm fine Sora. Just had to dream up the rest of my memories." Akari felt it was best to leave out the rest about meeting that strange man in her dreams until they leave for the next world. She's worried him enough as it is.
"Hey! Hurry up! We're gonna leave without you!" Both turn and Akari covers her mouth to stifle her laughter at what she was seeing. Mulan finally had women's clothes on, but three of the men however... "Why are they wearing face paint and bath robes?" I think I demolished what's left of their pride because all of three suddenly hid behind the pillars. Sora lets out a nervous laugh, "I'll tell you later when everything was over." Donald and Goofy were very relieved to see that I was awake when we went over to the group. From what I could understand, while I was passed out, everyone saw Shan Yu and then some heartless and other Huns resurface from the snow and went straight to the palace to warn Shang.
(A/N: Yes this chapter is getting WAY too long. I wanted to incorporate some parts of the movie to the game but... at this point it's a bit too much. O_O Don't know if I'll do this for the other chapters. One thing's for sure... I will never do something like this ever again!"
Apparently they were too late and now Shan Yu has the emperor captured. Sneaking in wasn't easy. While Mulan and the other's went to retrieve the emperor, we had to handle the heartless since we were the only ones with weapons that work on them. "Watch out!" I jolt a bit when a sudden lightening bolt strikes the ground to my right. If I didn't see the black cloud and the flying heart, I would have thought Donald was trying to kill me! I was about to say something but Sora beat me to it, "Donald! Aim for the heartless, not Akari! You can hit us but not her!" All I could do is blink is surprise at his words.
Donald fumes as he sends a ball of fire at several heartless, "Don't go around complaining about my aim! Yours was so bad before that you nearly hit Akari with blizzard several times! She'd be frozen forever if Goofy hadn't used his indestructible body!" "Don't you mean shield?" Goofy and I simultaneously add. "That too!" he vehemently adds before electrocuting the charging Assault rider. I raise a brow as I glance over at Goofy, who just shrugs and charges while letting out a battle cry. Or at least his version. After getting rid of the heartless, we went straight to the others only to find Mulan facing off against Shan Yu.
Goofy's entrance - which was headbutting hard against the giant wooden doors - was a good enough distraction to allow Sora and I to run straight to Mulan's aid. The distraction also allowed Chien-Po and the others to escape with the emperor by sliding down the rope that held the lanterns up. "Guys!" She smiles brightly when she see's us. "Don't worry Mulan! We've got you back!" Sora looks at her then at me, earning a nod as we both turn back to the man who's been causing all this trouble. Shan Yu suddenly raises his sword at me.
"So you're the girl I've been hearing about. I was wondering why the heartless were so rattled when they saw you at the mountains, now I see why. That light of yours is annoying to look at. Not as bright as told in legend, but definitely something I'd put out on the spot."
Without saying a word; Sora summons another keyblade and suddenly changes outfits, Goofy disappearing from my side at the same time. "Goofy!?" I gasp. Donald tries to explain and calm me down, "Don't worry. It's the power he gained from the fairies! He calls it Valor, one of his Drive forms!" Drive form, huh? Almost sounds similar to my Memory forms. I watch as he jumps at Shan Yu at full strength with Mulan doing the same. I grip my keyblade and brought my hand to my chest. There was no way I'm just going to let what happened get to me. Not now!
Summoning up the courage, I took a step forward and changed into my Guard form, taking everyone by surprise as the light fades around my body. I charge forward with Earthshaker in my other hand. A voice echoed in my head, but instead of ignoring it, I just chose to listen to it while I fight.
When a protector senses danger, they lose their sense of reason and fight based on pure instinct to protect their Light. It's like an instinct that's been embedded into them the moment they were chosen to become the Purest of all Hearts' protector.
"An instinct...?" I mutter out loud. No that I think about it, Sora is acting a little different than usual. It's like he's... possessed.
That has always been the fault of a protector. They become very emotional. They allow their anger to take over their actions. In your protector's case... when the connection was nearly severed, it caused him to become emotionally vulnerable which has caused his hurt to be increased ten fold compared to what a person would normally feel. The fear of losing you again only adds fuel to his instincts as a protector.
When I see Sora strike Shan Yu down, there was this strange look that flashed in my eyes that caused me to instinctively run straight towards him. Before he could do anything else that I know he'll regret, I hugged Sora from behind and try to pull him back. "Sora calm down! You can't let his words get to you!" He wasn't listening. What can I say that'll get him to listen? "As long as you're my protector then I'm going to be fine!" That other voice... it wasn't the one from earlier. It almost sounds like mine. 'What if I-?' I gaze at the back of Sora's head. 'Please work!'
I close my eyes and cry out the exact words, "As long as you're my protector then I'm going to be fine!" That somehow got him to snap out. Pretty quickly if you ask me. "Sorry, Akari. I-" Sora was interrupted when Mushi jumps out and starts dancing around. "Now that's what I call burning some hunny-bun! Aw, yeah! Mulan's the best! Mulan's the best!" he gloats, earning a few eye rolls from some of us. Mushu instantly changes his words, "No, wait a minute - I'm the best! Mushu's the best! Mushu's the best!" He didn't really do much except support us during the fight, but I'll let him have his moment.
After everything calmed down, we had to meet with the emperor himself face to face since he wanted to talk to us personally on what happened. I peer over at the two - Shang and Chi-Fu - that stood in place as the emperor walks by. I could see the amusement dancing in Chi-Fu's eyes, most likely thinking we're going to be punished. The emperor stops in front of us and spoke, "I've heard a great deal about you, Fa Mulan." She responds with a deep bow. This wasn't going to be good. "You stole your father's amor, ran away from home, impersonate an imperial soldier."
I thought that would be all, but he just kept going! "You deceived your commanding officer, shamed the entire Chinese army, and dishonored your family name." Sora shakes his head and frowns, "We get the picture." "You're a young woman. And in the end..." A sigh escapes my lips. What exactly can I say? Just pointing out that she did it for the sake of her father won't be enough to defend her against all of the things she did that's considered a crime in this world. Right when we all thought she'd be punished, what happened next caught all of us off guard. "... you have saved us all."
To see the emperor himself bow in front of Mulan, Sora and I almost wanted to laugh when Chi-Fu immediately dropped him precious clipboard and paint brush and go down on his knees. We all turn when we hear the people in front of the palace start cheering. "Your excellency!" While watching Shang bring out Shan-Yu's sword as ordered by the emperor, I suddenly felt a hand grab mine. Sora apologizes without looking at me, "I'm sorry about earlier. What he said... brought back a lot of bad memories. It also reminded me that someday, you'll have to remember them as well. I hope that someday doesn't happen soon because some of those things were moments that you told me yourself before you wish you'd forget."
So he was afraid for me just like how I was too. Squeezing his hand, I reassure him as best as I could, "It's fine. I was afraid too if I really wanted to regain my memories, but then I think back to some of the memories I had recently regained. I may have sad memories that you and I know I'll have to remember, and that other's have their own as well. Still, I'm sure I have lots of other good ones that are waiting for me out there!" I look up at with and try to make a grin that's as wide as his. "Besides you promised me you'd help me make new memories! And so far, you're doing a pretty good job. P-R-O-T-E-C-T-O-R~" I said, teasingly poking at his chest.
"Mulan," Shang calls out. "Sora. Akari. Donald. Goofy." I was a little afraid of what the Captain was going to say. He puts his hands together and gives us a short bow. "Thank you." "Thank you? Is that all there is to say, Captain?" The emperor suddenly spoke up. "If you wish to win the heart of Fa Mulan, China's bravest woman, you'll have to be a bit more eloquent than that." Mulan and I giggle as Shang tries to figure out how to respond to the emperor's sudden - and hilarious - suggestion. "Looks like you're going to pretty busy from now on," I tease. She nods, "Yeah. Thanks for help guys. Especially you Akari."
Gummi Ship...
After Sora accidentally discovered that the world's keyhole was connected to Shan Yu's sword, we said our farewells and made promises to return. Although I should have questioned what that keyhole was, I somehow knew what it was despite it being my first time to see it. Donald and Goofy were the ones to explain to me about the keyhole and told me that there will be more to lock when we visit the other worlds. "Are ya sure you're alright Akari?" Goofy asks me, gazing at me with worried eyes. I wave my hand a bit and told him, "I'm fine Goofy. My body's still trying to adjust to fighting so much."
He let's out his usual chuckle, "Hyuck. You were pretty good at fighting back there. I was surprised ya knew how to do all of those cool moves since you only training for a few days!" It had completely slipped my mind. I forgot to tell Sora about my Memory Form after my abilities were changed during out time at Land of Dragons. "Welp! Here's your room!" I snap out of my thoughts as Goofy immediately opens the door for me. This is the first time I'll get ever to sleep in the Gummi ship. I was told they rarely sleep in the ship since they have to smile for the duration of the ride until we arrive at our next destination.
We were lucky that the first was close by. This time none of them are even sure when we'll get there, so Donald suggested I get some rest. I would have argued that I'm fine, but I did faint a few times so I submitted and got escorted to my room. Just seeing the small quarters... felt so familiar. "We kept all your ol' things as they were..." Goofy trails once he notices my silence. I was in a complete trance. Being just a foot inside made me feel at peace, as if I've been here before more times than one. "Hey Goofy-" I was about to ask my friend something only to find that he had mysteriously vanished.
"Hm... Guess I was so deep in thought that I didn't even hear a single thing before he left..."
Turning back to the room, I felt a strange this strange ache in my chest. The bed felt so familiar just like the rest of this room. At first I thought this was the same feeling I got back in the mysterious tower, but the longer I stared at the bed the more I realize that it was different this time. This time it felt more like that feeling I got the first time I met Sora. I was confused, happy, then sad. All of these emotions were swirling inside me and I don't know why. Although I have pieces of my memories back, those alone still don't entirely answer all the questions I've constantly asked myself and the others. "Akari?" I hear Sora's voice, accompanied with a few short knocks.
When I turn to face the boy, I wasn't expecting to see a slightly younger version of him to appear before he changes back to normal. "Is something wrong?" I only shake my head. There's so much I have to remember.
'There are pieces you have regained still need to be awakened... The longer you remain awake, the more it'll become harder for them to reveal your story. Let them flow back into your heart in the form of a dream.'
Will I actually remember things properly if I sleep? "Sora?" I spoke up. Sora looks at me with confused eyes. Feeling my cheeks heat up at what I was about to say, I hug myself and took a deep breath. "Can you... stay here with me till I fall asleep?" I hesitantly ask, avoiding his gaze by staring down at the ground. At first I thought he was going to politely refuse my request. We're both too old to do something like that. "Alright." I nearly feel over at his quick answer. Next thing I knew, I was lying in bed with Sora - by my side as I requested - sitting on the mattress.
"Hehehe..." he laughs a little much to my confusion. "What?" I asked, grinning. "Nothing! It's just been a while since we last did this," Sora confesses, giving me a bashful smile as he nervously scratches the back of his head. Now this is something I need to stay awake for. I moved a bit closer and look up at him with my best puppy dog eyes I can pull off, silently begging him to tell me more. Rolling his eyes, Sora holds my hand and gives in, "Alright I'll tell you! But you have to stop asking those two first before me! I don't want them teaching you your old tricks."
I laugh and decided to feign ignorance, "What old tricks? I don't know what you're talking about." He just flicks my forehead in response. "I'm sorry mommy," I playfully pout. Sora places a hand over his face as he mutters to himself, "Just what have they been saying to her behind my back...?" "I'm only kidding Sora! They never said anything to me at all about how I was like," I told him. "They only told me about a few things on how I used to fight is all. They probably thought it's best for you to tell me instead of them." Just this once, I want to hear things about me from the person I can tell I was the closest to.
If there's anyone I trust with my memories, it's my protector, my friend.
The Lanes Between...
Jade lets out another long disappointed sigh before starting up her gummi bike. "So much for killing two birds with one stone... I couldn't get to the Fragment in time and find Cloud," she mutters out loud. Choco pops his head out after hearing another sigh from the girl. He's known about Jade's secret plan to search for Cloud for a long time now. As much as he wants to reassure his friend that he'll find that person eventually, Choco knows better than to make Jade talk about her past prior to Yensid taking the sisters under his wing. With the engine started again, Jade rides off the the next world that she hopes has both a fragment and Cloud in it.
To Be Continued
~After Story~
Not wanting to back down, Jade attempts to stand back up only to be sent flying back a few feet away. "Ow! You didn't have to hit so hard!?" the girl complains as she sits up to rub the sore areas on her body. The older boy before her aims his wooden sword at her neck. "You'd be dead in the streets by now if I didn't go easy on you from the first day of training," he points out after pulling his weapon away. Jade's frown deepens. As much as she hated to admit it, if Cloud hadn't found her the she got separated from Aura, she'd be a heartless. Or worse. Actually dead.
Cloud walks to the other end of the field then turns back to Jade after distancing himself from where she sat. Getting into his usual stance, Cloud instructs the girl, "This time use that slow speed of yours to your advantage. Catch your foe off guard. Charging straight in will always lead you open for other various attacks." Jade immediately grabs her own wooden sword and gets back up. "Go Jade!" she hear Yuffie and Aerith cheer from the distance. With a deep breath, Jade takes a few short steps forward before breaking into a full run.