The doors of the ship opened and revealed a small puppet on the other side. Waving. "Hello!" The puppet called. Kairi screamed.

"The puppet talked!" She screamed. "It's like the twilight zone or something."

"Kairi, we're sharing a spaceship with a talking duck and a dog. You aren't used to it?" Riku asked.

Kairi shrugged. Sora laughed. "This is."

"Pinocchio!" The puppet finished his sentence. "Does anyone know how to get outta here?"

"By way of the heartless!" Maleficent cackled from across the mouth. She raised her staff into the air and heartless appeared everywhere.

"Why are heartless here?" Sora screamed.

"To get the puppet. He has a true heart!" Riku said. "His heart can beat others. Except ours Sora. Ours are powerful enough for the Keyblade."

"Then what do they need him for?" Donald asked.

"Bait." Replied Riku.

Sora looked worried. "For-?"

"Us." Kairi finished.

"Let's kick some heartless fanny!" Goofy screamed. Everyone darted out of the ship and began destroying the shadows.

"Stay in the ship!" Yelled Donald to Pinocchio.

(Picture "Simple and Clean" -the theme song, when Sora falls underwater at the beginning of the game- playing during this battle sequence.)

Maleficent calmly said. "I see you have accelerated your skill. You need more of a challenge." Shadow Balls appeared out of thin air.

"Help me please!" Yelled Kairi. Riku's shield sliced right through the Dark Ball in front of her. She smiled at Riku. Riku smiled back and was thrown into a wall by an attacking Dark Ball.

"FORCE!" Yelled Donald. A dark ball was smashed to the ground by a black bubble.

"BLIZZAGA!" Yelled Kairi. A dark ball froze in the air in as a living ice sculpture. The weight crashed the ball to the ground and pieces of ice shot everywhere.

One fell straight at Goofy, who deflected with his shield. The piece ricocheted off and hit a dark ball, making it explode like a balloon. Kairi did a back hand-spring and landed on a dark ball, popping it.

Soon, all of the dark balls were gone. Goofy opened the hatch to the ship. Instead of Pinocchio, a note was placed on the ground.

Dear friends,
I hav gone to find papa. If u wan tu help, heez probable in hiz ship. Tank u!
Pinocchio.

"We've gotta find him!" Kairi yelled.

"Let's head to the stomach. Let's probably where he'll be if his ship was swallowed." Sora said. Everyone ran after him

....................................

"Pinocchio?" Sora yelled, his hands cupped over his mouth. Riku was carrying Kairi. She refused to walk through the "Absolutely disgusting bodily juices." As soon as they got to a dry strip of land, Riku put Kairi down.

Donald was a little bit behind the rest of the team. He clomped through the digestive juices. Some splashed Kairi's leg. She leaped into Riku's arms again. He rolled his eyes and gritted his teeth.

"Getitoff! Getitoff! Getitoff!' She screamed. Riku propped her up on one knee and stood on one foot. He took his unused hand and wiped the juice off of her ankle.

Sora trudged on. Everyone followed. Kairi had her eyes closed. "Riku, please don't go all evil, 'cause then you'll drop me and I'll touch that icky, icky juicy stuff." She pleaded.

"I'll try to restrain myself." He said in an annoyed way. "Hey, by the way, you slapped me once-"

"Twice." She corrected him.

"Twice." He said. "Now I'm carrying you through digestive juices and I think I deserve a kiss on the cheek."

"I do too." She gave him a little kiss on the cheek. "All better?"

"All better." He replied.

"Sora!" Yelled Gepetto. "Sora! How good to see you! I've done it again, I'm inside this whale again."

Riku lifted one eyebrow and tried to cover his laughs.

"Gepetto, has Pinocchio come by here?" Kairi asked.

"Why, yes he has. He was with a friend. He looked like you!" he pointed at Riku.

"What?" Everyone asked at the same time.

"Yes, about your height, your hair, your outfit." Gepetto continued.

Everyone stared at Riku. He opened is eyes wide. "Guys, I've been with you the whole time. I. . . I've learned to fight the darkness. You saw me in Halloween Town, I. . ." everyone glared at him. "You don't believe me." He said.

"He told me he had met you at a spaceship on Monstro's tongue. I must admit, you didn't say much, though. Come to think of it, you didn't say anything." Gepetto thought. " I thought it would be a good idea for him t go with you, though, because many black creatures appeared you closed your eyes and they disappeared. You two walked off holding hands."

"Whoa, guys, I don't hold hands. And second of all, I can't control heartless anymore."

"Summon at heartless to save you." Sora said, as he made a running charge for Riku. Riku held out his shield, but was still hit, knocking him unconscious. Sora stared.

"Whoopsie." Sora said. "Well, then who was it?"

As if they had heard them, the Heartless clones surrounded the team. The Riku heartless was missing. Suddenly, the Riku clone walked in, holding an unconscious Pinocchio in his hands.

"Guys, take someone else's clone so they can't counter!" Kairi yelled.

Kairi took the Sora clone and started to beat him up with Blizzaga.

Donald took Goofy, and Goofy took Donald. Sora stepped in front of the Riku clone. "No, you don't!" Sora announced. The Riku clone hit hin and smashed him into the wall.

"Riku, make with the dark powers, my clone is unguarded!" Kairi yelled. Riku moaned and fell over onto the ground. "What a time for a nap!" Kairi whispered.

The "Anti-Riku" walked right to Sora, who had stood up, and disappeared.

"NO!" Shouted Gepetto. But it was to late. Pinocchio was gone. All of the other clones disappeared into puffs of smoke.

Everyone sadly climbed the ship and hung their heads in front of Gepetto. "I'm sorry." Sora mumbled.

"Now, now." Gepetto remarked. "Take this. It's a good luck emblem in my family. It will help you find Pinocchio." Sora looked up.

"THE WOOD ORB!" Sora yelled. He placed it in the Keyblade and admired the new Wishing Star.

The rest of the group was upgraded, too.

"Powers back!" Yelled Donald, hearing a beep from his watch that signaled the Gummi clock had to be reset.

Gepetto, Sora, Riku, Kairi, Goofy and Donald, all boarded the Gummi ship.

After Gepetto was returned to his shop in Traverse Town, the group decided, they might as well lock it! They all walked up to Leon to discover some urgent news: Traverse Town was disappearing . . .