6H: CHAPTER 50 PARTY EVERYONE! It took alot of hard work, but Jack and I fixed the toaster and made new cheese crackers and got a bunch of other stuff.
Jack: You guys are in for some great stuff tonight, I can promise you!
Anaretsu: (with a party hat on) feh.
6H:First, you get a great new exciting chapter of the story. Then you get another side chapter, and lastly, but the most exciting of all, you get a PREVIEW of the CoM sequal to Shattered Fragments. Oh, and like I said in chapter 48, here are the sheep!
Sheep: BAAH!
Jack: So fluffly! ( jumps on them and misses) oof!
6H:And, as a gift for all my reviewers it's...(exciting music plays as a treasure chest poofs in) (opens treasure) You're not gonna believe this! It's Namine plushies for everyone to celebrate CoM! And...(diggs in deeper) Oh man, this stuff is soo good, I'm gonna have to wait to give it to you! Chapter time!
Kingdom Hearts-Shattered Fragments
Fragment 50-Ore Kingdom-Under a Curse?
The little gummi ship zoomed at high speed across the galaxy. It's three ocupants were squished into their usual postions in the ships only seat, watching space go by. Ryu manuvered the ship expertly, fireing guns at heartless ships that dared to come too close.
"Whoa, Ryu. you're really good at this!" Cedeile remarked.
"Well I don't mean to brag ,but I have been training in piloting for six years already." he replied, boasting. Suddenly, the usual beeping sound came. Cedeile grabbed the fragment radar out of the console. "Hey, give that to me!" Ryu yelled, snatching it from her.
"Let me see it!" Cedeile yelled, trying to grab it back. Ryu held it away from her.
"No way! You broke it last time you tried to handle it!"
"I didn't do it on purpose!"
"So?"
"You can fix it in five seconds!"
"That's not the point!" Aru rolled her eyes and grabbed it out of Ryu's hand. He and Cedeile gaped at her, disapointed.
"I'll look at it." she said. "Fragments are in the world at 11 o'clock to our current postion. The signal is pretty strong too." Ryu brought down the world radar, selected the described world. Cedeile looked out the front window and saw it as a point in the distance.
"I see it!" she exclaimed.
"It's called the Ore Kingdom. Says that it's a prospering mining town that has all kinds of metals. If I recall right, some of the minerals in my blade were gotton here." Ryu said, recalling how his sword was made. "Yeah, this is where ironseig comes from. It's at the heart of my blade! Most of it comes from the Ore Kingdom." He explained to the girls while they soared in the direction of the kingdom.
"So it's pretty important, huh?"
"Back a few years ago, most weapons were made of ironseig because it's organic metal-it grows under the earth, so even if it's mined, there will still be some left. But then the heartless came and it's hard to get anything from other worlds these days."
"Yeah! I remember Cid saying that it was hard to get the stuff to fix your sword. That was a long time ago, wasn't it?"Cedeile asked, thinking back to the earlier parts of their adventure.
"And thanks to Silver Eye, my sword's been one of the finest ever. Maybe I'll go back to McFuzz Town one day and have him sharpen it for me."
"Ryu, pay attension to your driving instead of your damn sword!" Cedeile yelled. Ryu quickly grabbed the controls, stearing it away from a meteor. All three of them panted, recovering from the shock. Cedeile glared at him. "Your reminicing nearly killed us, Ryu."
"Oh shut up."
"Stop arguing guys, we're nearly there!" Aru said, pointing ahead. Nestled atop an unsidedown mountain, the castle of the Ore Kingdom had it's flags flying in the breeze. Green fields streched around the castle, with a few trees, and a quiet village rested beneath it. The castle was a pinkish color, looking like something from a child's fairy tale book.
"These guys obiviously are color blind." Cedeile remarked.
"Shut it, Cedeile." Ryu yelled at her. Aru laughed.
"You guys are just too much."
After landing, they headed across the open field to the town. It was the normal farming town-the roads were dirt and the houses were all made of wood and sat on small lush green yards. Mules pulled carts piled with hay on them. A blacksmith mage used a blizzaga spell to wield a chain link.
"Is blacksmith magic really all that different from your magic, Aru?"
"Yes. At first, the art was frowned upon, but now it's a highly accepted pratice all over. People have a certain kind of respect for blacksmith mages. Of course, there are blacksmiths that don't use magic. So there are weapons out there that have no magic within them. Blacksmith magic is extremely difficult to work, and, if not used right, can kill someone."
"Scary..." Cedeile whimpered.
"Come on guys! There's no time for fooling around." He took the radar out of his cloak and studied it. "The radar says they're there!" Ryu pointed up to the castle.
"Cool. We'll just go there and explain to the king and queen and they'll surely let us search the castle for the fragments!" Cedeile thought out happily.
"You're really stupid, you know that right?" Cedeile growled at him.
"I'm afraid that you won't be able to talk with the king and queen." A voice said from behind them. The three turned around. A man in peasant clothes and a pitchfork stood there. He had a greying beard and a full head of greying hair. "Sorry bout that. My name's Rook. I'm just a farmer here in the village. You seem to be travallers from far away. Please, come to my home and have a cup of tea."
"Sure, old man! We'll take you up on your offer!" Cedeile said. Ryu smacked her in the back of the head.
"Don't call him that, Cedeile! It's rude!" Rook laughed.
"It's quite alright, boy. I am old, after all!"
"We would love to go to your house for tea. We are tired from our trip." Aru spoke up. The three followed him to his house. He let them inside his small abode. The first floor consisted of one room that function as a kitchen and living room. A fire roared in the fireplace, and the walls were painted white. A staircase led up to second floor, but they didn't pry up there. Rook boiled up a kettle of water and poured them all a cup each and gave them tea leaves.
"So, why can't we see the king and queen?" Ryu asked. Cedeile tried to figure out how to make her water tea. Ryu and Aru had no problem with it.
"Ahh, a story you need to hear." Rook replied knowingly. Cedeile ending up flipping her spoon across the table, making a clattering sound. She blushed, embarassed. Ryu rolled his eyes, and Aru smiled, giving the girl back her spoon. Ryu showed her how to do it.
"You're so stupid sometimes." he told her.
"And you're so mean sometimes, you know that?" she retorted.
"So, tell us the story. Did something happen?" Aru asked.
"Yes. A few years back, our world was struck by a horrible epidemic. The king and queen caught it and died, much to the sadness of our people. However, their daughter Mindy survived. But she was so depressed after her parents left this earth. So the village decided to throw a party for our princess. However, a stranger in a hood came to the party. The hooded man told her that the power of darkness always offered comfort to those who seek it, and gave her an enchanted doll house. It was beautifully crafted with a yard and furniture and everything, but the strange was it came no dolls." Rook told.
"Pretty cheap gift if you ask me. I bet Mindy threw a fit, huh?" Cedeile commented, leaning back in her chair.
"No, she didn't. Strangely enough, she just held the doll house and watched as the man left. Soon after, we discovered why there were no dolls in the house. It seemed Mindy gained some dark power, and it gives her the ability to take people and turn them into living dolls for her doll house!"
"What?" Ryu demanded, banging a fist on the table and making all the spoons clatter.
"It's the truth. One day, she started taking people from the village and turning them doll sized. And recently she took my own daughter, Risa, along with the town preacher and a few others. Most of the miners were taken, so now there is no one to mine the ironseig and other organic metals in our mines. If this continues they'll grow out of control."
"That is a problem." Aru said. "It must be some sort of dark magic. It's nothing I've ever heard of."
"I'm so distraught over it all. It's awful." Rook said, rubbing his forehead with a hand.
"Hey, that hooded man...when did he come, and what did he look like?" Cedeile asked, curious.
"Ah, let's see...you couldn't make out his face at all-it was completely dark under that hood he wore. His long trench coat was all black, with a long zipper, and the sleeves on that thing covered his hands they were so long! And his voice seemed like darkness itself-so cunning and sharp. He came around here about two months ago. Why do you ask? Do you know him?" Cedeile stayed quiet for a moment, looking at her hands, clenching the red material of her shorts.
"N-nevermind." she said, fists shaking to control her anger. Ryu saw her shaking hands, but said nothing of it.
"He was very mysterious. And it was strange he came here just to give Mindy a doll house."
"I bet that he enchanted the doll house, and that's how Mindy changes people in your village to dolls." Aru said.
"But it's so strange." Rook remarked. "Mindy loved all the villagers, and we all just adore our princess and our king and queen. I don't know why she would start releasing this evil onto us!"
"Maybe she's not doing in by choice, or rather, she's being controlled by darkness, or the heartless themselves."Ryu suggested. "Whatever it is, we can be sure that the fragments are linked in with it. And there is a keyhole here. We'll have to stop this mess."
"I never did ask who you there were." Rook said.
"I'm Ryu, one of the fragment hunters."
"I'm Aru, a master magician."
"And I'm Cedeile, the master of the heartblade!"
"The legendary heartblade has come to the Ore Kingdom? My lord, I never thought we'd see the day! It's truly a blessing!" Rook remarked, amazed.
"I know! I'm just a gift from god, aren't I?" Cedeile bragged.
"Shut up." Ryu said, smirking at her.
The trio went outside of Rook's house and sat on his fence, eating rolls of bread baked by one his neighbors, and trying to figure out a plan.
"The castle doesn't look too hard to get into." Ryu said, while chewing. Cedeile bit into her bread.
"Huhmphf guh phsf fu!" she said with her mouth full.
"Huh?" Aru and Ryu asked. She swallowed.
"I said that we should storm the place right now! They wouldn't expect it!"
"That's the dumbest idea ever! We have to plan this out carefully. Mindy may be just a child, but with the power of the heartless and the fragments she's a real danger. And the power to make people her pawns, literally-"
"She doesn't play chess, Ryu." Cedeile interupted.
"Whatever! I'm saying that we should be cautious when dealing with her."
"Yeah. I'm afraid of what might happen if she turns US into dolls." Aru said. "It worries me."
"If that happened, then we'd never be able to get out! Then I'd never make it to the final pruification, and I'll never find the person I'm suppose to save.And we'd never find all the fragments or restore Aru's memory! We can't let that happen!" Cedeile shouted.
"We're right here next to you, Cedeile. We can hear you fine."
"Sorry, Ryu." She laughed nervously.
"Anyway, sitting here on a fence isn't getting us closer to solving this problem, is it? These people need help before Mindy turns them all into dolls!" Aru said, looking out at the town behind them. Cedeile and Ryu turned to look behind them as well. The people that were left were milling about, working and some children, playing.
"Alright, guys! Let's do this!"
They decided to attack at night and break into the castle to take the princess by surprise. They set out from Rook's house and ran up the path to the castle, it's flags flying in the wind.
"Cedeile, I have to ask you about what you said before, about the hooded man?"
"I think it's the same guy who appeared on my island the day before it was destroyed. He talked about my pure heart and about worlds and such. I think he knew I was to weild the heartblade." she said, flying along the path.
"Does that mean that this world doesn't have much time yet?" Aru asked, concerned.
"We'll just have to work quickly. Come on, behind those trees!" Ryu led them into the forest. Peeking out from the bushes and looking into the darkness.
"Reminds me of Nightville. We hid in the bushes there too." Cedeile remarked.
"Enough nostalga, and let's focus here!" Ryu hissed. Two heartless walked outof the main gates of the castle. Their bodies were silver and lumpy, like raw metal, hence their name-Metalbodies. They were larger than most heartless.
"We can take em, right?" Cedeile asked.
"We've never faced them before. We'll need to use the element strong against metal. Aru, it would be great if you came up with an idea right now. Aru?"
"THUNDAGA!" She shouted, running right up to the two Metalbodies. The powerful lightning hit them and was amplified by their metal bodies. They both fell over and disappeared. Aru gave to victory sign. "Piece of cake!" she whispered to them. Cedeile and Ryu ran to catch up to her, and they all proceeded inside.
6H:End of chapter! Hah ha, cliffie!
Jack: Everyone take a break and have some of the toasted chips and fried crackers I made!
Anaretsu: What?
6H: Alright, it's PREVIEW TIME!
Jack: YAY!
Anaretsu: Boo!
6H:Okay, while you guys are reading the preview, Jack, meet me on the roof with the sack of potatos, and Anarestu will stay here.
Jack: What do we need the potatos for?
6H: I'll tell you later.
3...2...1!
She woke up, her head pounding. Lettting her eyes open, she sat up. Sure, she figured she had been through worse, but she couldn't remember. She felt her head, making sure she wasn't bleeding. Nothing.
'Thank god.' she thought. She stood up, looking around. She must've been in some huge room-the darkness seemed endless. She wondered where she was. When she thought about it, she couldn't remember where she was or why she was here, wherever she was. Did she even have a name? What did she look like? She pulled some of her long hair over her shoulder. It was black, and braided. She looked down at what she was wearing. A white shirt, a red vest, and red shorts. Her sneakers were red too. Nothing was coming to her. No matter how hard she thought, it came up a big blank. In one of her hands was a strange looking staff.
"It's called the heartblade." She heard the deep voice echo out of her memory.
"I can't remember anything! I know I have a name and a family and friends, but I don't seem to remember any of them! Wait, have I always been alone? Where am I? Why am I here? What happened to my memory?" She yelled, grabbing her head, trying to force herself to remember. Suddenly, a mirror appeared to her side. The image in it was that of a white marble room with a stairway at one end. She stood up, looking at it. "Is that where I can find my memory?" she asked no one. Taking another look around, she stepped into the mirror, disappearing. After she passed through, the mirror dissovled into the darkness.
Kingdom Hearts-Adventures at Castle Chocobo
Cedeile will learn the price of memory...
Coming 2005
6H:Hoped you liked it! Don't worry, you won't have to wait as long as you did for CoM to come out to read it. I figure Shattered Fragments is nearly to the end. I would really like to finish it this year, but with school and all...oh boy, it's more than I wanna deal with!
Jack: So why are we on the roof with a sack of potatoes?
6H:Watch this. Oh Anaretsu! Could you come out here for a mintue?
Anaretsu: (comes outside) WHAT!
6H: Now, Jack of Spades!
Jack: (pushes sack of potatoes off roof.)
sack: (lands on Anaretsu)
6H: REVENGE! HA HA HA!
Jack: Yay!
Anaretsu: XX
sack: ...
6H:Okay, let's go back inside and enjoy the short story I wrote!
Extra Fragment B-Encounter:Sephiroth
After another long battle, the gang decided to go back to Traverse Town to rest up. Making their way back, Aru slept, and Cedeile was in and out at times. Ryu tried to stay awake, but they were all exhausted. Suddenly, the ship gave a horrible lurch, nearly throwing them all out of the seat. Ryu looked all over the console, trying to figrue out what was wrong.
"Are there fragments Ryu?" Aru asked, sleepy.
"No, Aru. The ship's nearly out of fuel." He replied, showing her the fuel gauge.
"What? Now what the hell do we do? There aren't gas stations in the middle of space!" Cedeile screamed.
"Hold on, there's a world nearby." He brought down the radar. "Uh oh..."
"What is it?" Cedeile asked.
"The closest world...is the Colliseum." Ryu said.
"Hey, we've been there before!" Cedeile said. Aru glared, pounded her fist into her hand.
"Oh yes...I remember the Colliseum." Aru said, gritting her teeth and sounding mean.
"What's up with you Aru? You're acting...really scary!" Cedeile said.
"Don't you remember when we came here?" Ryu asked her.
"Let me think...um..yes..ye-...no, I don't remember. What happened?" Ryu smacked his forehead.
"That jerk Phil called me short and a little kid. He didn't think I could do anything. But I showed him! Ha hah ha!" She laughed triumphantly.
"Okay, let's try to find someplace else." Ryu began to start up the ship.
"But we may not make it to Traverse Town! I'm sure they'll help us there! Hercules was nice to us and helped us out! We don't really have another choice, do we?" Cedeile said. Aru grunted.
"Fine, let's go." she said, crossing her arms.
"Good. We won't tkae long."
They landed smoothly and headed into the gates. The courtyard was as it had been the last time they came. They pushed open the doors that led to the stone room.
"Sorry, we're not open right now!" Phil called, carving a message on the wall.
"Hey, it's the goat man!" Cedeile said. Phil turned.
"Oh, it's you three kids, and shorty." Aru flared up.
"I AM NOT SHORT!" She yelled. Ryu and Cedeile tried to hold her back from beating up the guy.
"Hold it there Aru! After he helps us, then you can blow him to bits." Ryu said. "Hey Phil, my ship needs refueling. Can you help us? We don't have enough to make it to Traverse Town."
"Look, I don't know..."
"Come on, goat man!" Cedeile begged, getting on her knees. "We really need you!" Phil thought it over.
"I really don't know, guys. Why should I? And even if I wanted to...look, now's just really not a good time for this."
"Why? What's up?" Ryu asked.
"It's been aweful. Herc went away on a little trip, nothing major, and then this really bad guy came. He's BIG trouble. You'd best get out of here while you can!" Phil said, paleing.
"Oh, how bad could he be?" Cedeile asked.
"Who's causing the trouble? A heartless?" Ryu asked.
"Worse! It's this guy...a real demon! He's got this HUGE sword, no kidding. And his name...is Sephiroth."
"Sephiroth! He doesn't sound so scary to me! I bet I could take him!" Cedeile boasted.
"No way! You don't know what you're saying, kid! Not even Nabuki the demon queen could stand up to him!" Phil stated.
"I defeated Nabuki, so this Sephiroth should be a piece of cake!" Cedeile decalred, swinging her heartblade over her shoulder.
"Cedeile, he said Sephiroth was STRONGER than Nabuki." Ryu whispered to her.
"So? Is there a difference? Besides, you gotta face a strong enemy sooner or later. It's the only way to get more powerful!" She insisted. "Phil, I'll get rid of this guy for you! Just lead to way!"
"He's in the arena. I'm not going in, not matter what you say!" He said, trembling. He pointed down the dark hallway.
"Very well, then. You guys wait here. I'll be back in a mintue!" she sang, going into the darkness. Ryu and Aru watched, worried.
She walked out in the arena, her sneakers hitting the sand. Strangely, it was an erie silent and there was coldness in the air. She shivered as she looked around. It was a dark night. Torches were lit all around the walls. The stands were empty, but it felt like she was being watched.
"Hello? Sephiroth, ya pansy! You here?" she called, trying to keep her confidence. "Hey! Are you here?" She walked forward, stepping on the rink. Suddenly, the magic barrier went up. She looked around, in a panic. "Wha-?" Before her, up in the sky appeared a strange symbol. Lightning burst forth, and black feathers began to rain down on her. A figure materilized in front of her, back turned. He was tall and had long, silver hair. She heard a sword being slipped out of it's scabbard-a very long sword. The figure extended his arm, and a single, black wing came out of his back at the same time. He turned, blue eyes blazing, cold and emotionless. Cedeile looked at him in horror. "Are you...Sephiroth...?" 'Crud. Now I regret calling him a pansy...' She staggered back, bumping into the magic barrier. He walked at her, slowly.
He swung his huge, twenty foot sword at her. She jumped up in the air as it struck the magic barrier. She turned around, facing his back, heartblade drawn. He turned quickly.
"Holy Purifi-AHHH!" He struck her and she flew up and back, hitting the ground. He succeeded in hitting her again. She screamed in agony. She blocked his third hit with the heartblade. He jumped back, getting ready for another assault. Cedeile slowly stood up, grabbing her side. Warm, sticky blood came out of a huge gash. She winced as she tried to stand on her left leg. Sephiroth struck her again, sending her flying out of the arena. He followed, breaking the barrier. She layed on the ground, and pushed herself up. She watched, scared out of her mind as he came forward, sword raised. The heartblade was no where to be found and she couldn't move anyway, so it would've done no good. She couldn't recall a time when she had been more frightened in her life. He began to bring his sword down on her when she clenched her eyes shut. She was sure she going to die.
Instead, there was a horrible pain in her shoulder. She thought her arm had been chopped clean off. When she opened her eyes again, she found her arm very much intact. She layed on the ground in a pool of her own blood while he used some kind of black magic on her, pelting her with dark orbs of power. She cried out as each one hit her. She was in so much pain, and the battle had barely begun. He was right above her again, the sound of his boots splashing in her blood made her feel sick. He was about to attack again, but there was a sudden breeze, and it never came. She heard metal clash against metal and a famillar grunting. She opened her one eye.
"...R..ry..ryu..."she choaked out. He didn't even look at her, only focusing on the enemy. He managed to push him back slightly, but was starting to lose his footing on the slippery ground. He tried to force Sephiroth away with his own blade, but the demon had other plans. He lept back onto the rink, and the symbol from which his apperance had been born appeared under his feet. Without a word he left. Ryu stood there, sword still raised just in case, but after a few minutes he but it back in his scabbard on his back and turned to Cedeile. Swiftly, he knelt down beside her and carefully lifted her off the ground.
"Cedeile...god, please be alright..."
"R-ryu...it's hurts so much. I feel like I'm gonna throw up..."
"Shh...shh...it's okay now. You're gonna be fine..." he told her, holding her close to him in a tight hug. "Just take it easy..." he let her go, afraid he was hurting her, and cradled her in his arms.
"Are you angry with me?" she asked him sadly. Ryu shook his head.
"No...no, of course not. Why would I be angry?" he asked, trying to smile, but his eyes betrayed him by letting the sadness show through.
"Cause...I did something stupid..." she replied. Ryu shook his head.
"I'm not mad. I'm just glad you're still alive. I was gettin' worried about you...you know? So I just ran in here and saw you, and him...I just did what my instinct told me is all..."
"You're getting covered in blood...I'm sorry..."
"No, I don't mind...just shut up for awhile and rest...okay?" Cedeile nodded and let her eyes sag closed. When he was sure she was asleep, and not dead or something, he lifted her and stood up. Turning around, he came face to face with another man. He had spiky blond hair and blue eyes. Ryu glared at him. The man wore a dark red cape and had a rather large sword of his own. "Who are you?" Ryu demanded, holding the girl tighter.
"I'm Cloud." he anwsered. He looked at Cedeile. Ryu, seeing this, held her closer. Cloud's eyes softened and he came forward, gently touching the heartblade master's face. "Sephiroth?" he asked, sadly.
"What's it to you?"
"She's really a beautiful girl." Cloud told him. Ryu let his face warm for a mintue before pushing it down and continuing his glare.
"Are you looking for a fight? Cause I don't have to time. I need to take care of her." he explained fiercely.
"I'm on your side. This girl is the heartblade master, isn't she?"
"Who told you?"
"The keyblade master. He told me about his friend here. I wanted to meet her, because I wanted to be purified, but now I don't need it. " He paused, stepping away from Ryu and Cedeile. "All I need to do is find him." He brushed pass them and moved on. Ryu didn't wait for anything else, so he left. Cloud glared at the ring as he stood in the center of it. Suddenly, footsteps sounded behind him. He turned, blue eyes glaring. "So, we meet again...?" he asked the figure.
6H:How'd you all like that! WHOOT! This has been a great party! I wanted to list all the names of all the reviewers, but I don't have the list now. Well, thank you all for sticking with me for so long. I really look forward to what you guys have to say. It really makes me happy that you all like the story. Truthfully, this how concept started out as a 'Choose Your Own Adenveutre' thing, then evolved into a first person account, and now has become this. Reading eariler chapters, I see that Cedeile, Ryu, and Aru have changed alot since I first started out. Well, they are growing up from experience!
Jack: It's over?
6H:Of course, I'm not finished yet! It's time for more gifts. Back to the treasure chest!
Treasure chest: blah
6H: (diggs inside) Your next gift is Yuffie's ninja stars!
Yuffie: HEY!
6H: And...Riku's evil keyblade!
Riku and Ansem: HEY!
6H:Shut up! The both of your wear dresses! And lastly, I made you all cake! Enjoy!
Jack: YAY! Is this the end of the party?
6H:I'm afraid so, my young patriot. But fear not, a new chapter of Shattered Fragments will be on the way! See you all next time!
Jack: YEAH!
