Nothing prepared them for the flood of Heartless that awaited their arrival in Hollow Bastion. Seas of darkness dotted with yellow orbs swarmed every inch of the castle, making it almost impossible to land the Gummi Ship safely. Cid's gummi had certainly helped circumvent the larger crowds, but small pockets of shadows still occupied the lesser travelled paths, and Donald was at his wits end. He nestled the ship atop a slanted piece of copper tubing and quickly ordered his companions to disembark.
Yet, it wasn't a simple matter. The Heartless had no interest in the ship itself, but its passengers. As soon as they had stepped out of the ship and slid down the tubing towards the ground, groups of Heartless of every shape and size zeroed in on the batch of fresh hearts that had landed in their domain, snapping their teeth at their prey.
There was no use fighting them. They instantly bolted towards the castle doors, ignoring every shadow that threw itself at them as they darted into the Entrance Hall. The castle hadn't changed at all since their last visit, but the stench of darkness had grown tenfold, as had the Heartless population.
As they climbed the stairs towards the lift stop, they skidded to a halt before a horde of massive soldier Heartless barring their way. "Uh, now what?" Akira asked nervously, summoning her staff in her hand. There was no going around them, and there was no other path leading to the top of the castle.
"We'll just have to fight our way through," Sora said apprehensively as he drew his own weapon. He gulped after speaking those words, uncertain if they even stood a chance against them. They could no doubt defeat these Heartless, but their sheer number made his suggestion an impossible task.
"Wait, fellas, what if we go through there?" Goofy suggested, pointing to a nearby door.
"Anything's better than this!" Donald quacked. Without sparing another moment, he waddled towards the door, dragging Goofy by the hand. Sora and Akira reluctantly nodded in agreement before pursuing their companions as well, dodging snapping teeth as they skittered towards the doorway. They had no idea what they'd find beyond those doors but, at this point, it was the only hope they had…
The four of them slammed the door behind them, holding it shut in case any Heartless decided to break it down in pursuit of their prey. Goofy pulled down a wooden board from the wall, locking the door in place before summoning his shield and whirling around, scouring the area. "I'll clear us a way!" he yelled before charging into the room.
But, his shield encountered no foe. In fact, this room was oddly quiet compared to the rest of the castle.
The comrades slowly lowered their weapons and took a quick glance around the room, allowing themselves to breathe a quick sigh of relief. Not a single shadow occupied the chamber, unlike the clamour of Heartless that threatened their very lives just a few steps away.
"Gawrsh, I wonder why they left this place alone," Goofy wondered.
"Let's take a look around," Sora suggested.
The castle's destruction had left its mark on the other chambers, and this one was no different; copper tubes jutted out of the ceilings and broken wires hung from the dilapidated tiles, sparks of electricity still flickering about. But, as the group stepped forward and examined the room with wonder, they found the rest of it seemed to have resisted the devastation.
A grand library sprawled before them with books of every size lining each shelf, packed to the brim. The book covers ranged from every colour they could imagine while the pages covered topics such as politics, philosophy, astronomy, and even fiction. It would take decades to read every book in this room, but the four companions were certain they contained valuable knowledge beyond their understanding.
At the edge of the library stood a golden staircase leading to the second floor, each intricate detail on the railings and marble steps a work of art. Stained-glass windows lined the staircase, illuminating the room with a brilliant light that contrasted the gloom and desolation of the castle. They found themselves drawn to the sheer majesty of the staircase, but a certain spiky-haired boy found himself drawn to another aspect of the room.
Akira heard Sora's quiet gasp as they approached the staircase, glancing over to him in concern. "Is everything okay?"
"This… this table…" he whispered.
She walked over to join him beneath the staircase, where a reading desk was expertly nestled beside the soft rays of light glimmering from the window. A matching chair was pulled away from the desk, with various tomes strewn on the floor. The last person to use this desk must have been a messy individual, or perhaps they had no time to put the books away properly as the Heartless quickly invaded their world… Akira shook her head, banishing the thought from her mind.
"It's where Kairi's grandmother told her that story," he murmured, his brows creasing softly.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"Remember when I passed out in Traverse Town before coming here for the first time? I had this vision of Kairi listening to her grandma tell her a story. It happened here, right at this desk!"
Akira's eyes instantly widened. "You don't mean –"
"Yeah," he replied with a nod, "I think this is where Kairi comes from."
Akira couldn't find the words to respond with. She found herself struggling with this strange feeling of guilt as she glanced back at the desk. They had been so excited when they discovered that she came from Halloween Town, and she oddly expected the same fanfare when they eventually discovered Kairi's home world as well. Yet, knowing this world teetered on the brink of destruction, knowing how far the destruction had spread, and knowing how terrible this world would look even if they were successful in driving the darkness away did nothing more than pain her heart. Still, they had to try to save it. Even if all they saved was a pile of rubble, they had to try. For her sake.
"We have to lock that Keyhole," she whispered firmly.
Sora nodded, without an ounce of apprehension in his eyes. "We do."
"Sora! Akira! Get over here!" Goofy called excitedly from the second floor.
The teens quickly exchanged perplexed glances before dashing up the stairs to meet their comrades. From the sound of it, they had found something quite interesting…
"Beast!" Sora cried with excitement once the familiar purple cape his old friend donned came into view. He scurried up the last remaining steps and closed the distance between them. "I'm so glad to see you're okay! What happened? We climbed the entire castle but didn't find you anywhere."
Beast greeted them with a nod. "After I was lured from the Entrance Hall, I kept hidden while I searched for Belle. But the shadows were watchful and dangerous, and I didn't manage to get very far. I found solace in this library and have been here ever since."
"I wonder why the Heartless haven't taken over this room yet," Goofy wondered aloud.
Beast smirked, lightly stepping to the side. "I think she can explain that."
He took another larger step, revealing the person whom stood behind him. A tall and regal young woman stepped towards the group of heroes, a soft smile radiating from her lips. Her brown tresses were tied in a loose ponytail, and her majestic, yellow ballgown was unlike anything any of them had ever seen. They immediately recognized her as one of the Princesses of Heart that were held captive in the Great Hall. She curtsied before glancing at each of them with her hazel eyes, silently greeting them.
"You must be Belle," Sora stated.
Belle smiled and nodded. "Yes, I am. And you must be the warriors of the Keyblade."
They exchanged excited glances. They had never been called something as regal as 'warriors of the Keyblade', and that title made them sound like mighty heroes.
"I must thank you for defeating Maleficent and driving Ansem away," Belle said with a small bow, "Once the Keyhole had been completed and they had both left this world, the other Princesses and myself began to awaken. However, the darkness continues to rage, so long as the Keyhole remains unsealed."
"That's why we came back," Donald quacked.
"My light is keeping this library safe, while the other Princesses are working hard to keep the darkness away from the chapel and the Great Hall. But, I fear we cannot hold it back for much longer," Belle said with a pained look in her eyes.
Sora nodded firmly. "We'll take care of it."
"Not sure if you guys forgot, but there's a swarm of Heartless outside just waiting to get the jump on us," Akira mentioned, pointing her thumb towards the door they struggled to lock.
Belle clapped her hands together in surprise. "Oh, of course! You can use this passageway to avoid those creatures."
She lightly lifted her dress and scurried towards the bookcase leaning against the wall. Dropping the fabric from her hands, she pulled out an orange book and took a few steps back. The bookcase suddenly shook and began to slide across the wall on its own, revealing a secret passageway behind it. Belle chuckled at their shocked expressions as she walked over to join Beast once more.
"The lift beyond this passageway should take you right to the chapel. You shouldn't run into any shadows either," she confirmed.
"I will stay here with Belle," Beast said in a gruff voice, "I'm sure you can handle yourselves."
"Um, yeah!" Sora exclaimed, his shocked gaze forming into an excited smile, "Come on, guys, let's get going!"
"Thanks, you two!" Goofy called, he and his comrades waving goodbye as they scurried towards the passageway.
Beast and Belle watched as the plucky group disappeared into the passageway they had opened for them. Belle nodded towards the group in thanks, placing a hand on her heart as the warm smile on her face fell. Beast sensed her discomfort and took her free hand in his, lightly squeezing it.
She squeezed his hand in return and sighed, whispering a silent wish. "Please hurry, Keyblade Master. You're our only hope."
The lift Belle had led them to made no stops as it climbed the castle. Although, they were safe within its glass borders, they weren't immune to the unsightly horrors that awaited them below. As they traversed through the air, they watched hordes of Heartless tear at the castle walls with their teeth and claws, climbing and stepping over one another, and even devouring each other as their demonic wails rang through the air. Akira stepped back and looked away, unable to take in any more of the sight. She couldn't begin to imagine what awful horrors awaited them as they loomed ever closer to their goal.
Sensing her apprehension, Sora took her hand in his. She quickly glanced up at him, but his eyes didn't meet hers. Instead, he kept his hard gaze focused towards the castle. The horrors below them were chilling and unsettling, but they had to keep their wits about them. There was so much at stake, so many people counting on them, and many others waiting for the heroes to save them. They couldn't let fear overwhelm them.
Akira raised her eyes towards the castle as well. She had to do her best too. She had to save what remained of this world for Kairi.
The lift made its only stop at the foot of the doors leading to the chapel. Without wasting a single breath, the four friends burst through the doors, quickly shutting it behind them lest any Heartless decide to pursue them.
Just as Belle had explained, the remaining five Princesses of Heart were gathered in the chapel, conversing with one another beneath the window radiating the only source of light in the room. One of them, a regal young woman with a sparkling periwinkle gown and blonde hair tied neatly in a bun, was startled by the sudden clamour at the entrance. But, once she lay eyes on the group that had walked in, all uneasiness melted from her blue eyes. She nodded to the young maiden beside her and they both scurried towards the group, whom had already begun to close the distance between them.
"We've been waiting for you, Keyblade Master," the young woman said with a curtsy, "I am Cinderella, and this is Aurora."
The Princess beside her greeted them with a nod of her own. Unlike Cinderella, Aurora wore her blonde hair down, and her dress was of a deeper blue than the light periwinkle gown at her side. "It's a pleasure to meet you," she said with an enchanting voice.
"We're glad you're safe," Akira said softly.
"Do either of you know where Ansem is?" Sora asked.
Cinderella shook her head. "He's gone."
They gasped in unison. Donald almost fell over from the shock. They didn't expect Ansem to sit idly by in the Great Hall, but they didn't expect him to actually leave Hollow Bastion either.
"G-gone?" Donald quacked.
Aurora solemnly nodded her head. "When the Keyhole appeared, darkness poured out of it. It swallowed Ansem entirely, and he disappeared." She cleared her throat as she watched them with a dejected gaze. "I cannot forget the look on his face. As the darkness engulfed him, he was… smiling."
She shuddered at the thought. Cinderella put a comforting hand on her shoulder as she spoke once more. "Though Ansem is gone, the flood of darkness hasn't ceased. We have been here since we woke up, doing everything we can to hold it back."
"Gawrsh, we really appreciate it," Goofy said softly.
Cinderella shook her head as the corners of her lips tugged into a smile. "It's the least we could do. You should speak with the other Princesses as well; you've met some of them before, and they're eager to see you again." She gestured towards the other three Princesses, whom conversed near the altar.
Sora nodded in thanks on behalf of the group before they set off. They instantly recognized both Alice and Jasmine, and were relieved to see they were safe. The third Princess of Heart seemed rather young, looking to be close in age with Sora and Akira. Her ebony hair was tied with a red ribbon, and she donned a yellow dress with puffy, blue sleeves. The Princesses quieted their chatter the moment the group approached them, and Alice simply could not contain her excitement.
"You've come back!" she exclaimed.
"We're glad to see you're alright!" Goofy said with a cheery smile.
"Likewise," Jasmine said with a small nod, "And Snow White here has been eager to meet you as well."
The young Princess named Snow White gave them a soft bow. "How do you do?" she asked in a chirpy voice.
"The last time we met didn't end in the happiest of ways," Alice stated, "But we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for defeating Maleficent. Once she and Ansem disappeared, her sleeping spell was broken, and we were freed."
"How are you holding up?" Sora asked with concern.
The Princesses exchanged concerned glances before Jasmine spoke up. "When the Keyhole was completed, an immense flood of darkness began pouring from it. We haven't returned to our worlds because we're doing everything we can to hold it back."
"Even so, I don't know how long we can manage even that," Alice added, "The darkness has only grown stronger, while our power has waned."
Sora nodded firmly. "All right. I'm on my way."
"We're grateful for all that you've done for us," Akira expressed as she cupped her hands to her chest.
Snow White gave her a small, grateful bow. "As are we, and we'll continue to do what we can in the meantime." She turned to face Sora. "We're counting on you, Keyblade Master."
The three Princesses gave them a final curtsy before the group set off towards the Great Hall once more, waving goodbye to them as they entered the lift stop.
It was the strangest sight they had witnessed since they arrived. Throngs of Heartless threatened their very lives on the lower floors, but the walk from the chapel to the Great Hall was simply silent and peaceful. The Princesses were truly doing all they could to keep the Heartless from crossing their path, and their efforts showed.
"Gawrsh, there really aren't any Heartless here…" Goofy murmured once they entered the Great Hall. He looked every which way but not a trace of them could be seen even amidst the great pull of darkness that radiated from the Keyhole on the mezzanine.
"I suppose the Princesses are doing the best they can," Donald surmised.
"Which means, we should do our best too," Akira said with a smile, crossing her arms.
Sora nodded firmly in response. "Right. Let's go."
He boldly led the group towards the staircase and towards their next goal. The scene had drastically changed since the last time they were here; there was no threat of Heartless overwhelming them, no fear for Kairi's safety. Nothing stood between Sora and the Keyhole he would lock, and this was all the better for him; this simply brought him one step closer to finding Riku once more.