6H:Welcome to the final part of the Atlantica saga!
Anaretsu: yay.
6H: I have to agree with you. It's been hard to write this one. But I've got the CONCLUSION IN MY HANDS!
Jack: All right! Let the battle begin!
Kingdom Hearts-Shattered Fragments
Fragment 47- Magic Failure! Aru's Abduction
The group followed Cedeile as she sped through the tunnels at breakneck speed, leading them to the spot where Ursula's lair lied. They regarded the lair carefully, hesitating to move foward. Sora went first, and Cedeile right behind him. Soon, the little group entered. Horrible sheirking sounds filled the air as the aweful bottom feeders below them reached up and tried to grab them. One linked itself around Aru's wrist. She pulled fiercely to break free, struggling in it's grip. Finally, she just decided to blast the thing with fira shot. It screamed like a little girl and crumbled back into it's place.
Ursula, unaware she had visitors, was rejoicing in her minor victory. The smoke of her cauldron danced as she weaved her hands through the air. Makota watched in curiosity, staying against a wall.
"At last, my plan comes together!" she cheer for herself. He vile pets, the two eels Flotsam and Jetsam, slinked out of hiding and came down, wrapping around her. "Yes, my little babies, it's a time for celebration..." she said, petting the one's head. Ursula turned to Makota. "And now, our deal is fulfilled." Shaking off her pets, she made her way to the cauldron and summoned the golden contract. Makota looked at it with widened eyes. It unfurled, and the sea witch read it off. "I, the belowed signed party, will offer myself to Ursula the great sea witch for one year's time, in which I will act for her as a willing servant tending to my master's every whim. At the end of my term, Ursula will not only no longer require my service, but will revert my brother, Kirisu, back to his original form." she glared evilly at the girl. "...signed 'Makota.'" She girl dared a smile.
"Master...am I...my brother...?"
"Yes, child. I will begin to potion imdeiatly. Let's begin!" She called the two eels and they fluttered to the huge shell on the wall. Snappihg her fingers, it sprung open. The two demon creatures scooped up certain jars and bottles, bringing them to their master. She grabbed them, looking at them for a moment, and then threw some into her pot, and the others up into the water, where they remained suspended. Different colored smoke burst out of the cauldron-red, then blue, then green. Makota ventured forward, gazing at the magic being worked. A minature tornado came out of the stew and encircled the cauldron and the two former partners in crime. The witch summoned forth the contract, it's gold light shinning on Makota. An elegant fishbone pen appeared next to her. Ursula slunk in behind her.
"What now?" she asked, alarmed.
"Sign right below where you signed ten years ago to confirm the contract. The magic will turn your brother back to normal." Blue smoke leaked out of the cauldron in a sickly way and limply slunk around Makota's hand. Makota looked at the contract that had worked as her shackles for years. But now it was all over...she and her brother were free..."Sign it..." a hiss came. Many over hissing and moaning voices came. It seemed that even the creatures in the hall joined in.
"sign it...sign it..sign it!..." they all becokoned. The sickly blue smoke lifted Makota's hand to grab the pen and bring it to the paper. Ursula sneered, gripping Makota's shoulders with sharp nails. She was about to touch the paper under the ten year old signature above it when the gang entered.
"Makota, wait!" As if snapping out of a trance, Makota turned her head to face them, Ursula doing likewise. The magic died down, on the contract and the blue smoke bond remained. She sneered.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't the two masters...and all their littler friends. I wasn't expecting guests. You should have called."
"Sorry, I didn't have the time!" Cedeile launched a small attack on the golden scroll. Makota snapped back as the paper and the blue smoke disappeared rather quickly. She glared at the girl.
"What do you think you're doing!" she yelled at them.
"Do you think after ten years, this bastard is going to change your brother back to normal?" Cedeile asked. "You've been deceived, Makota!"
"Listen to Cedeile! Ursula is going to go back on her word!" Sora called.
"Shut up, all of you! None of you know what it's like to fight for someone you care about! To sacrifice everything for them!" she screamed.
"That's right, dear." Ursula said with fake compassion. "The deal is almost complete now.Just sign this paper, and your brother will be freed of his prison, and you as well." The two turned back to the cauldron. The magic storm started up again, but they all charged in. Aru brought both hands up behind her head, almost like she was lifting a ball to throw.
"THUNDRA SHOT!" she yelled, throwing an orb of electricity.
"Blizzard!" Donald yelled. Both hit Ursula, and the magic died down. She turned to glare at them.
"Fine, we'll do it the hard way!" She rose up above them and grabbed a few potions from her cabient of goodies. She threw them down at the party. One smashed on the ground and released a pink smoke in the lair. Sora swam blindly through it, only to be confronted by Flotsam and Jetsam. They both charged into him and he slamed into a wall. One of them came down and bit into his shoulder. He cried out as blood floated out into the water around him.
"Fira shot!" Aru yelled, shoot several small fireballs at them. They backed off a bit, and Goofy chased after them, pile driving them into the opposite wall. "Are you alright?" she asked Sora. He was about to reply when Aru got hit by an explosion. Falling on the ground, shoulder smouldering, Sora looked up to see a parting in the smoke. Ursula was being assulted by Ryu, but he didn't seem to be having a sucessful time. The witch was loaded with different kinds of glass bottles.
Cedeile was trying to feel her way through the think smoke. She made it out finally, but got hit by what seemed to be fire bombs. These smacked her down to the floor. Regaining herself, she got back up and found Makota there, holding on to the rolled up parchment.
"Makota..."
"Stay out of it." she hissed. A few more of the bombs pumled into her back. She felt like her skin was burning, and the scent of burnt flesh confirmed that. She lifted out her heartblade and just flinged it without caring. A small spark of light flew out of it and cut through Makota. She winced for a second, but then regained her posture. Cedeile breathed heavily-the bombs slamming into her back had really hit hard. She felt cold, thin fingers slide around her throat and then grasp it tightly. She choaked for breath as Makota pressed hard on her. "This is for my ten years of pain...for his ten years of pain!" she cried. Cedeile flipped around and kicked Makota off balance. The hands slipped off her throat and she gasped for breath, letting life flow back into her. Makota came back for another try, but Cedeile retailated with a hard punch. Makota got knocked down on the floor and coughed up some red blood. Instead of landing on the floor, it floated away sickly.
"Sorry, Makota, but I have to defeat Ursula and stop this madness."
"No! She's going to change back my brother for me! It's in this contract!"
"Leave those dreams behind, Makota! If Ursula would've kept her deal right, than she would've stopped this nine years ago when your year of service was up!" Cedeile yelled.
Ryu got smacked aside and into Goofy, who had joined him to help fight. Ursula picked up a spherical jar and popped out the cork. A sharp windstorm of knives flew at them.
"Tch!" Ryu went as a sharp cut made blood leak down his face. He took out his sword and cut through the storm. It sliced in two and poofed away. He went for the witch herself, put she threw a small square bottle against his forehead. As soon as it hit him, his face looked surprised and he fell over, passed out. Blood flowed out of the new injury and filled the water around them.
"See child. Not all off my tricks are potions..." she mocked. Goofy was going to ram into her with his huge iron shield, but she knocked him away like a fly. Sora came out of nowhere and landed a few good hits, but got thrown down on the ground. A little blood leaked from the small puncture wounds in his shoulder. A sharp pain came in the back of his neck. His childish face squinted in pain as he fell forward. Jetsam released his teeth from the back of Sora's neck and the two eels snickered. Just as things were looking bad for the gang, the wall behind Ursula burst open. Kirisu gave a loud roar and charged at Ursula, going through the other wall. The magic chains that were choaking Ariel disapated. Makota got up off the floor and swam to the new hole in the wall, looking at her brother and Ursula fight. Cedeile dashed out, followed by Donald. Aru slowly slunk across the floor, a huge black mark covering half of her back. Sora got up, grabbing the back of his neck. He swam over to Goofy, who was over Ryu. Sora gently slapped the fragment hunter's face to wake him up. The boy responded, slowly opening both eyes, and then got up.
"I'm fine." he grunted.
"You don't like me very much, do you?"
"She talks about you all the time, you know. Do you ever think about her?"
"Cedeile?" Ryu looked at the keyblade master with a great seriousness. "Of course I do. I'm always concerned-I wonder if she's okay, or sad, or alone...she used to be alone alot as a kid." Sora placed a trusting hand on Ryu's shoulder. "You'll promise she'll never be alone for me, right? You won't let her end up alone?" Ryu nodded with a great intensity in his eyes.
"I promise, Sora...I'll always be there with her."
"Ungrateful fool! I took care of your sister for ten years and this is my thank you?" Kirisu growled.
"You did NOT take care of her! You didn't hold up your deal!" he roared.
"I was just making the potion for your transformation, before these fools burst in on me..." The monster stayed still, not speaking, the currents lifting his feathers. "It's almost complete. All Makota has left to do is to resign the contract and it will be complete.
"HOLY PURIFICATION!"
"Thunder!" Ariel's and Cedeile's attacks intertwined and hit the sea witch at the same time. Makota floated down, watching the fight. Ursula recovered from the attack quickly, and turned to the victimized girl.
"Go on! Sign the contract and it will be complete!" The paper appeared before her again. Cedeile and Ariel watched in suspense, but it was short lived, for Makota grabbed the pen in a death grip and and furiously signed her name. As soon as she finished, the parchment rolled back up and flew into the caludron up above in the lair. Ryu, Sora, Aru, and Goofy watched as the potion cooked for a breif moment in the enclosed cauldron and then exploded open, a magic storm flying back out of the hole in the wall. The four dashed down, following it, and getting caught within it. The storm settled around the group. Makota watched in wonder and joy as the gold and green swirls flew around them in a fury.
"This is not good, is it?" Cedeile asked Donald.
"We could be crushed by the intensity of the magic forces in here! And we can't break through either for the same reason!" he replied, frantic.
"What can we do?" Ariel asked. Suddenly, a burst of energy like lightning danced by and nearly struck them. Ariel and Donald swam away. Cedeile remained.
"I won't run!" she cried. Tifa, Kana...Nabuki, Kai, Benida, Silver Eye, everyone...! "Too many people are counting on me!" Ryu swam away from Sora and the others and shielded Cedeile from the deadly bursts. "Ryu!"
"You won't have to fight alone!" he yelled.
"Thank you." Kirisu tore his gaze off of the two back to Ursula.
"Stop this now! Everyone will get killed!" he demanded.
"That is the idea..." she sneered. Makota and Kirisu gasped.
"I knew it! You never had any intensions of keeping your deal!" Aru shouted. Rage boiling, Kirisu charged forward and bit into Ursula's shoulder with his fangs. She yelled out in pain. Flotsam and Jetsam went to help her, but got zapped by a magic burst and died.
"Kirisu, no!" Makota screamed. A burst of magic came down and hit him, swirling around him and making him shrink. Yet he still held tight, blood leaking out of his mouth. Makota reached out for her brother, begging him to release the witch. Makota turned to Cedeile. "Stop him! Use your light from your weapon!" she demanded.
"No, Cedeile! Don't purify him!" Ryu shook her, making her look directly at him. "He wants this! He wants to protect Makota to make up for ten years ago."
"Do it!" Makota shierked.
"No! Do not use your power!" A bright flash of light came as Kirisu, back to his orginal self, let go of Ursula, falling backwards and floating down, out of the storm.
"KIRISU!" Makota screamed. She swam to exit the area. Cedeile went to stop her.
"No, Makota! you'll be crushed if you-!" she ignored her and broke through, falling down into the small pit where her brother lay on a rock. She fell on top of him, hugging him tightly, blood leaking out of her mouth and gushing out of her back and side. Kirisu slowly brought his arms around her, his sandy colored hair floating in the constant currents.
"Ma..ko...ta..." he breathed.
"S-see, brother...I knew that she would keep her end of the bargan...I did this all for you..." Tears leaked out of his closed eyes.
"It's all over now...we'll be able to live a good life from this point onward. We'll go somewhere else and start over. And we'll have a beautiful home and have lots of friends to depend on when things get less than perfect. It'll be great, won't it Makota?" he squeezed harder on her bloody body, sobbing, feeling nothing but an empty shell. Soon, the echos off the rocks ceased and there was nothing but silence.
Sora shook with anger, his fists clenched.
"How...could...you...?" he got out as the magic died away. "They never did anything to you! You destroyed their lives without a reason and then, when you promised to bring them back together, you deceived and killed them! WHY!"
"It's not about doing the right thing or being nice, boy. It's about me getting what I want! And right now, I want to crush all of you in one blow!" From one of her clenched hands she revealed a pile of glass shards.
"The fragments!" Ryu exclaimed.
"She had them the whole time! And so many!" Aru cried. Ursula brought them to her mouth and engulfed all of them. Suddenly, she began to grow bigger and bigger until she was a giant monster. Ryu drew his sword at ready and Cedeile called out the heartblade. The two prepared for a tough battle. Sora, still filled with rage, got out the keyblade in a flash and charged recklessly, being thrown back by a blast of darkness. Goofy and Donald moved in, dodgeing lightning and other random attacks.
"Holy purification!" Cedeile screamed, but the attack bounced off harmlessly. Ryu went to pierce through her heart, but got flung down by a giant arm. Ariel cast one of her thunder spells, but the sea witch grabbed her and began to squeeze her tightly. Aru watched afraid as they all took a thrashing.
'They're all...getting hurt.' she thought. Sora made a few more blind attacks, none doing much of any good. 'But what can I do? My magic...is just as useless...' Suddenly, she felt somthing rise up within her and grabbed her shoulders tightly. 'This feeling...what is it? A great power is coming to the surface!' A great blast of light burst out of her, engulfing everything.
"Lightra..." the gentle whisper came. When it cleared, Aru began to fall, weakened. Cedeile and Ryu felt their bodies almost revert back to normal. A gush of unbreathable water filled their lungs briefly. Aru's form broke and she was back to normal.
"Aru, no!" a voice whispered despretly from the darkness.
A shadow suddenly appeared down below Aru. Cedeile and Ryu tried to swim for it, but Aru sank into it before they could reach her.
"ARU!" Cedeile yelled. Ursula began to fade out as she let out one final yell of pain and defeat. When she entirly faded away, the pile of fragments hit the ocean floor, but Ryu and Cedeile had bigger problems. There forms, too, broke off in blue flecks of light. Cedeile made the mistake of breathing in and began to suffocate, and then passed out. Ryu, holding his breath, reached out for her and grabbed her, holding her closer to him. He turned to Sora and his group.
"Go! I'll give you your form for this world back, but you have to swim to the surface and save her! I only have enough magic for you!" Ryu nodded, and Donald gave Ryu the form of the shark. He darted off as quick as he could. "Uh oh..."
"What is is, Donald? A-yuk!" Goofy asked.
"I forgot to make it so he could breathe..." Donald admitted.
"What!" everyone else exclaimed.
Ryu took a deep breath in, but only got a mouth full of water. Realizing Donald's mistake, he pushed himself to go father. The surface seemed to be miles away, but he kept going, flying past fish and floating algae, his lungs screaming, his heart feeling like it would tear out of his chest. All he could think about was losing Cedeile and desprately begging her to stay alive in his head. Finally, he burst through to the surface and took a breath of fresh air, gasping. Holding Cedeile above the water, he watched her, trying to get her to breathe again.
"Come on, Cedeile! Wake up!" he cried, shaking her. She coughed violently, spitting up the nasty sea water. Her dark emerald eyes came open, seeing Ryu above her. She smiled, trying to regain her breath.
"Ryu...are we alive? It seemed like we wouldn't make it..." she panted. He set her down, her arms resting around his neck, and his arms drapped gently around her waist as they floated in the ocean, their parked gummi ship bobing up and down on the waves.
"Yeah...we're alright now." Exhausted from his trip, he rest his forehead aganst hers and began to breath heavily, still trying to catch some wind. She smiled, clsoing her eyes and letting the sun warm them.
6H: What happened to Aru? How many more fragments will they get? Will Cedeile add them right?
Jack: TELL ME!
6H:You'll have to wait. Only two more chapters till the chapter 50 party! YAY!
Anaretsu: Hello, travel agent. Yes, I'd like a flight from as far away from my current location as possible...
6H: Leave a review!
