Finding Clues
Disclaimer: Same as before.
~ ~ ~ ~
"Miranda?" Halb said, "Art thou alright?"
"I'm fine." Miranda replied as she stood up, "Where are we?"
"Tis the Third District, if this sign behind you is any indication." Halb replied.
Suddenly more Heartless appeared and Halb and Miranda began to defend themselves. They stood back to back, covering each other with overlapping 180 degree arcs for mutual protection. "Halb, wouldn't it be prudent to turn that sword's blade around now? I mean these creatures..."
"Miranda, I am aware of that." Halb replied, "However I have sworn to never again take life as I did during the War. I must hold to that belief."
Halb swung three more swings, each one being powerful enough to behead a Shadow Heartless, were the razor sharp edge facing him to be turned the other way. He knocked down three more creatures with single blows. Miranda was either shooting them with her gun or using the taser against them.
Presently their foes were dispatched, "Halb, this Butcher of Steinchroe we heard about, who is he?" Miranda asked.
"The forces of Steinchroe had raided many border towns in Parmas. They left much destruction and death in their wake in their desire for plunder. They burned what they could not carry off." Halb replied, "The Butcher of Steinchroe was a junior officer who permitted his company to take their full measure of vengeance upon the city of Steinchroe for their misdeed against Parmas."
These Heartless were nothing but persistent. Every time Miranda and Halb moved a few more meters, more of these creatures appeared. No one creature was that hard to take down, between Miranda's skills with her police issue weapons and Halb's strange revered blade sword, they fell rather swiftly.
~ ~ ~ ~
"So let me get this straight," Shirley asked David when they were aboard the Destiny, "You guys' world was destroyed by these Heartless things?"
"Yes." David replied, "If Dr. Joukiba hadn't built this ship we would have been destroyed too."
"And you," Shirley asked Johann, who was busily cleaning his arquebus and sharpening his small sword, "are from a world that's just recovering from seventy years of warfare?"
"That's right." Johann said.
"This is too weird, I mean you guys make toons look normal. No offense Bonkers." Shirley said.
"None taken." Bonkers said, walking out of the ship with Nani to find Miranda and Halb.
~ ~ ~ ~
"They can't have gotten far." Miranda said as they went down a large flight of stairs to a lower level.
As they approached a door with a fire symbol on it, Miranda stood on one side, about to break it in when she heard a man shout. "What are you doing here?"
Both Halb and Miranda turned to see a man with silver hair, holding a wicked looking blade. "Leon, who are these two?" Yuffie asked, as she came running.
"They're not from around here, obviously." Leon said.
"We mean thee no harm." Halb said, "I do not wish to fight you."
"If you mean to harm Merlin, then you'll have to come through me." Leon said.
"I wish not to fight thee, strange swordsman, but if fight thee I must, then fight I shall." Halb replied, slowly extracting his reversed blade sword.
"Wait, Leon." Yuffie said, "He could be the one Aerith was talking to Cobra about last night. The one who was to see Merlin."
"Then where's Cobra?" Leon said.
"We were separated from the rest of our group by Lilith Duprave." Miranda replied.
"Who is Lilith Duprave?" Leon asked.
"She's a villain from my world with a grudge against me." Miranda replied, "I was the only witness at her trial for counterfeiting and got her put in jail. I was the only witness to actually live till the trial."
"Your world, what is it like?" Yuffie asked.
"It was a world where humans and toons coexisted, before the Heartless destroyed it." Miranda replied.
"Toons, you mean like the strange, orange spotted thing?" Yuffie said, "I saw him leave Cobra Bubble's ship."
"You are the one Cobra Bubbles talked of. Halb of Parmas, the swordsman with the reversed blade sword." Leon replied, lowering his weapon.
"I apologize for these two." Aerith said, appearing from the shadows, "I am Aerith. And you must be Halb of Parmas."
"I am he whom you speak, milady." Halb replied.
"Please excuse our paranoia. For there have been attempts on Merlin's life before." Aerith said, "The prophesy says one with a reversed blade sword will seal the Doors of Conflict."
"What are these Doors of Conflict?" Miranda asked.
"And how am I to seal them?" Halb replied.
"I believe I can answer that question, swordsman of Parmas." An elderly man replied. He wore a blue robe and carried a staff. His aura radiated a great power, a beacon of light in the darkness.
"Merlin, this is Halb of Parmas, and Miranda Wright, two of the four new crew members aboard the Destiny." Aerith said.
"Parmas, a noble city state if I've seen one. Known for its courageous footmen and great fighting spirit, its greatest soldiers fought bravely on the fields of the Seventy Years War, with few incidents to tarnish their honor." Merlin began, "Come inside my study and you shall learn what I will tell you."
They did enter Merlin's Study and saw many an old and quaint volume, pieces of furniture, and various odds and ends associated with a magician's lifestyle. Miranda and Halb stepped inside and next to what appeared to be a pumpkin shaped carriage in miniature.
Suddenly a woman, an elderly one, in blue appeared. "Bibbity Bobbity Boo. Miranda Wright, how are you?"
"How'd you know my name?" Miranda asked.
"And Halb of Parmas, I trust that you will serve well the side you choose?" The Fairy Godmother said, "I know both of you for Merlin told me of your arrival. I know of your worries for your nephew, Miranda. Fear not, they will keep the boy alive to entrap you. Halb will not forsake you in helping you find your nephew, for he is loyal to those he considers friends."
Both of them were unsettled by the Fairy Godmother's uncanny knowledge of both of their lives to this point.
"Worry not of her knowledge." Merlin began, "For she has been following your quest since its beginning."
"What are these Five Doors of Conflict?" Halb asked.
"The Five Doors of Conflict, through them the Heartless will gain the Heart of Darkness." Merlin began, "We believe that deep in the bowels of Kingdom Hearts lurks the Heart of Darkness, and should the Heartless find it, they will become more powerful than anyone has dared imagine."
"Where do I, a simple wanderer, factor into this?" Halb asked.
"The Prophesy of the Heart of Darkness says that a swordsman with a reversed blade shall seal the Doors of Conflict. All of them must be closed, for should the Heartless gain access to the Heart of Darkness, all shall be lost forever." Merlin replied.
"The Prophesy also says that should the swordsman align himself with the evil, the Heartless will become all but unstoppable." Aerith said.
'I've too much blood on my hands that I do.' Halb thought, 'The great Butcher of Steinchroe, I am. I hoped to atone for my sins, but it seems that the conflict cannot be escaped. I hope I need not reverse the blade of the sword.'
"If he reverses the blade of his sword, will it be for the right purpose or not, we do not know." Merlin continued, "This is all I can tell you, aside from the clue to the world where you might find more information. The pages of the prophesy have been scattered over many worlds. For if Maleficent were to get her hands on the entire prophesy, the knowledge and the power she gains from it will make her unstoppable."
Merlin swept his hand over a crystal ball, showing Maleficent's face to Miranda and Halb. "This is the face of your foe. Know it well. Maleficent is destroying worlds and sending the universe into chaos. No one knows why." Merlin said, "Return to your ship, for I believe the next page of the prophesy is located in a world of the future."
~ ~ ~ ~
Aboard the Destiny Miranda related her findings to Cobra Bubbles. "EPCOT Center, that's the only world that could possibly be the area of residence for the next page."
"What is this EPCOT Center?" Halb asked.
"It's a world that is an experimental community, devoted to environmentally friendly technology." Cobra Bubbles said, "What better place to hide it then there. We'd best get going now."
~ ~ ~ ~
"You read my mind." Miranda said, as she sat at the pilot's seat on the bridge. She and Halb had been trained to operate the ship, as had Bonkers and Johann. This was the first time she and Halb had been permitted to operate the ship after six days of ten days it would take to reach the world of EPCOT.
Halb handed her a cup of coffee, "I noticed that you and others drink this substance when you work late."
"It's called coffee Halb." Miranda began, "It's good for keeping you awake for awhile."
Halb put a reassuring hand on Miranda's shoulder, "We will find Timothy, and know this, you have my help. I will aid your quest, Miranda."
Miranda smiled tiredly at Halb, "Thank you. Why are you doing this, though? Just curiously?"
"Milady, during the war I saw enough violence done unto children by soldiers of both sides." Halb replied, "The deeds of this Duprave are inexcusable."
"I'm just worried about Timothy." Miranda said, "He's out there, in the hands of someone like Lilith Duprave and I'm here."
"Searching for him." Halb said, "Our first queen of Parmas, Jorinda, did the same thing when her nephew was kidnapped by the forces of the bandit Almakara."
"It's a long story?" Miranda asked.
"Tis a ballad the minstrels of Parmas have sang for thousands of years." Halb replied, proudly, "The great swordsman of Parmas, the great Prince Joringal the First hacked his way through the forces of Almakara."
"Sounds gruesome." Miranda remarked.
"My point is, I will be at your side to help you rescue Timothy." Halb said, "My only reason for doing so is my loyalty to you as a friend and crewmate. For I know that were our roles reversed you would do the same."
"I just want to see him right now, to know that he's OK." Miranda said, tears starting to form.
"And you shall." Halb replied, inwardly he wondered why he had built a near instant rapport with Miranda after only knowing her a few days. They had been spending an awful lot of time together since the ship got underway. Shirley elected to stay in Traverse Town to compile a report on the Heartless, so other than Bonkers she only knew Halb.
'I must understand what I feel about Miranda.' Halb began, 'For if I am falling for her, she may not be wanting to accept me, once knowing that the simple Halb of Parmas is truly the infamous Butcher of Steinchroe.'
~ ~ ~ ~
TBC (Up next: More adventure and perhaps a Halb/Miranda pairing.)
Disclaimer: Same as before.
~ ~ ~ ~
"Miranda?" Halb said, "Art thou alright?"
"I'm fine." Miranda replied as she stood up, "Where are we?"
"Tis the Third District, if this sign behind you is any indication." Halb replied.
Suddenly more Heartless appeared and Halb and Miranda began to defend themselves. They stood back to back, covering each other with overlapping 180 degree arcs for mutual protection. "Halb, wouldn't it be prudent to turn that sword's blade around now? I mean these creatures..."
"Miranda, I am aware of that." Halb replied, "However I have sworn to never again take life as I did during the War. I must hold to that belief."
Halb swung three more swings, each one being powerful enough to behead a Shadow Heartless, were the razor sharp edge facing him to be turned the other way. He knocked down three more creatures with single blows. Miranda was either shooting them with her gun or using the taser against them.
Presently their foes were dispatched, "Halb, this Butcher of Steinchroe we heard about, who is he?" Miranda asked.
"The forces of Steinchroe had raided many border towns in Parmas. They left much destruction and death in their wake in their desire for plunder. They burned what they could not carry off." Halb replied, "The Butcher of Steinchroe was a junior officer who permitted his company to take their full measure of vengeance upon the city of Steinchroe for their misdeed against Parmas."
These Heartless were nothing but persistent. Every time Miranda and Halb moved a few more meters, more of these creatures appeared. No one creature was that hard to take down, between Miranda's skills with her police issue weapons and Halb's strange revered blade sword, they fell rather swiftly.
~ ~ ~ ~
"So let me get this straight," Shirley asked David when they were aboard the Destiny, "You guys' world was destroyed by these Heartless things?"
"Yes." David replied, "If Dr. Joukiba hadn't built this ship we would have been destroyed too."
"And you," Shirley asked Johann, who was busily cleaning his arquebus and sharpening his small sword, "are from a world that's just recovering from seventy years of warfare?"
"That's right." Johann said.
"This is too weird, I mean you guys make toons look normal. No offense Bonkers." Shirley said.
"None taken." Bonkers said, walking out of the ship with Nani to find Miranda and Halb.
~ ~ ~ ~
"They can't have gotten far." Miranda said as they went down a large flight of stairs to a lower level.
As they approached a door with a fire symbol on it, Miranda stood on one side, about to break it in when she heard a man shout. "What are you doing here?"
Both Halb and Miranda turned to see a man with silver hair, holding a wicked looking blade. "Leon, who are these two?" Yuffie asked, as she came running.
"They're not from around here, obviously." Leon said.
"We mean thee no harm." Halb said, "I do not wish to fight you."
"If you mean to harm Merlin, then you'll have to come through me." Leon said.
"I wish not to fight thee, strange swordsman, but if fight thee I must, then fight I shall." Halb replied, slowly extracting his reversed blade sword.
"Wait, Leon." Yuffie said, "He could be the one Aerith was talking to Cobra about last night. The one who was to see Merlin."
"Then where's Cobra?" Leon said.
"We were separated from the rest of our group by Lilith Duprave." Miranda replied.
"Who is Lilith Duprave?" Leon asked.
"She's a villain from my world with a grudge against me." Miranda replied, "I was the only witness at her trial for counterfeiting and got her put in jail. I was the only witness to actually live till the trial."
"Your world, what is it like?" Yuffie asked.
"It was a world where humans and toons coexisted, before the Heartless destroyed it." Miranda replied.
"Toons, you mean like the strange, orange spotted thing?" Yuffie said, "I saw him leave Cobra Bubble's ship."
"You are the one Cobra Bubbles talked of. Halb of Parmas, the swordsman with the reversed blade sword." Leon replied, lowering his weapon.
"I apologize for these two." Aerith said, appearing from the shadows, "I am Aerith. And you must be Halb of Parmas."
"I am he whom you speak, milady." Halb replied.
"Please excuse our paranoia. For there have been attempts on Merlin's life before." Aerith said, "The prophesy says one with a reversed blade sword will seal the Doors of Conflict."
"What are these Doors of Conflict?" Miranda asked.
"And how am I to seal them?" Halb replied.
"I believe I can answer that question, swordsman of Parmas." An elderly man replied. He wore a blue robe and carried a staff. His aura radiated a great power, a beacon of light in the darkness.
"Merlin, this is Halb of Parmas, and Miranda Wright, two of the four new crew members aboard the Destiny." Aerith said.
"Parmas, a noble city state if I've seen one. Known for its courageous footmen and great fighting spirit, its greatest soldiers fought bravely on the fields of the Seventy Years War, with few incidents to tarnish their honor." Merlin began, "Come inside my study and you shall learn what I will tell you."
They did enter Merlin's Study and saw many an old and quaint volume, pieces of furniture, and various odds and ends associated with a magician's lifestyle. Miranda and Halb stepped inside and next to what appeared to be a pumpkin shaped carriage in miniature.
Suddenly a woman, an elderly one, in blue appeared. "Bibbity Bobbity Boo. Miranda Wright, how are you?"
"How'd you know my name?" Miranda asked.
"And Halb of Parmas, I trust that you will serve well the side you choose?" The Fairy Godmother said, "I know both of you for Merlin told me of your arrival. I know of your worries for your nephew, Miranda. Fear not, they will keep the boy alive to entrap you. Halb will not forsake you in helping you find your nephew, for he is loyal to those he considers friends."
Both of them were unsettled by the Fairy Godmother's uncanny knowledge of both of their lives to this point.
"Worry not of her knowledge." Merlin began, "For she has been following your quest since its beginning."
"What are these Five Doors of Conflict?" Halb asked.
"The Five Doors of Conflict, through them the Heartless will gain the Heart of Darkness." Merlin began, "We believe that deep in the bowels of Kingdom Hearts lurks the Heart of Darkness, and should the Heartless find it, they will become more powerful than anyone has dared imagine."
"Where do I, a simple wanderer, factor into this?" Halb asked.
"The Prophesy of the Heart of Darkness says that a swordsman with a reversed blade shall seal the Doors of Conflict. All of them must be closed, for should the Heartless gain access to the Heart of Darkness, all shall be lost forever." Merlin replied.
"The Prophesy also says that should the swordsman align himself with the evil, the Heartless will become all but unstoppable." Aerith said.
'I've too much blood on my hands that I do.' Halb thought, 'The great Butcher of Steinchroe, I am. I hoped to atone for my sins, but it seems that the conflict cannot be escaped. I hope I need not reverse the blade of the sword.'
"If he reverses the blade of his sword, will it be for the right purpose or not, we do not know." Merlin continued, "This is all I can tell you, aside from the clue to the world where you might find more information. The pages of the prophesy have been scattered over many worlds. For if Maleficent were to get her hands on the entire prophesy, the knowledge and the power she gains from it will make her unstoppable."
Merlin swept his hand over a crystal ball, showing Maleficent's face to Miranda and Halb. "This is the face of your foe. Know it well. Maleficent is destroying worlds and sending the universe into chaos. No one knows why." Merlin said, "Return to your ship, for I believe the next page of the prophesy is located in a world of the future."
~ ~ ~ ~
Aboard the Destiny Miranda related her findings to Cobra Bubbles. "EPCOT Center, that's the only world that could possibly be the area of residence for the next page."
"What is this EPCOT Center?" Halb asked.
"It's a world that is an experimental community, devoted to environmentally friendly technology." Cobra Bubbles said, "What better place to hide it then there. We'd best get going now."
~ ~ ~ ~
"You read my mind." Miranda said, as she sat at the pilot's seat on the bridge. She and Halb had been trained to operate the ship, as had Bonkers and Johann. This was the first time she and Halb had been permitted to operate the ship after six days of ten days it would take to reach the world of EPCOT.
Halb handed her a cup of coffee, "I noticed that you and others drink this substance when you work late."
"It's called coffee Halb." Miranda began, "It's good for keeping you awake for awhile."
Halb put a reassuring hand on Miranda's shoulder, "We will find Timothy, and know this, you have my help. I will aid your quest, Miranda."
Miranda smiled tiredly at Halb, "Thank you. Why are you doing this, though? Just curiously?"
"Milady, during the war I saw enough violence done unto children by soldiers of both sides." Halb replied, "The deeds of this Duprave are inexcusable."
"I'm just worried about Timothy." Miranda said, "He's out there, in the hands of someone like Lilith Duprave and I'm here."
"Searching for him." Halb said, "Our first queen of Parmas, Jorinda, did the same thing when her nephew was kidnapped by the forces of the bandit Almakara."
"It's a long story?" Miranda asked.
"Tis a ballad the minstrels of Parmas have sang for thousands of years." Halb replied, proudly, "The great swordsman of Parmas, the great Prince Joringal the First hacked his way through the forces of Almakara."
"Sounds gruesome." Miranda remarked.
"My point is, I will be at your side to help you rescue Timothy." Halb said, "My only reason for doing so is my loyalty to you as a friend and crewmate. For I know that were our roles reversed you would do the same."
"I just want to see him right now, to know that he's OK." Miranda said, tears starting to form.
"And you shall." Halb replied, inwardly he wondered why he had built a near instant rapport with Miranda after only knowing her a few days. They had been spending an awful lot of time together since the ship got underway. Shirley elected to stay in Traverse Town to compile a report on the Heartless, so other than Bonkers she only knew Halb.
'I must understand what I feel about Miranda.' Halb began, 'For if I am falling for her, she may not be wanting to accept me, once knowing that the simple Halb of Parmas is truly the infamous Butcher of Steinchroe.'
~ ~ ~ ~
TBC (Up next: More adventure and perhaps a Halb/Miranda pairing.)