A/N: We're finally at the point in the story where Ansem's reports are relevant! I did try to summarize them in the chapter, but I didn't want to go too in-depth out of fear of making the story drag on in an unpleasant way. I do suggest reading up on them before diving into the chapter, especially since the thirteenth report in particular is referenced in the final scene. Enjoy!
Their footsteps echoed through the silent hall as they climbed the last of the stairs, skidding to a halt before the altar. The Princesses had succeeded in keeping the shadows at bay, but the surge of darkness that emanated from the artificial Keyhole filled the air with a poisonous musk. Donald grimaced at the radiating darkness that poured from the Keyhole as Sora took a step forward, drawing his Keyblade. The fated moment had come, and he was ready for it.
"I suppose this is it," Akira murmured.
Sora nodded firmly. "Yeah. No going back now."
"So, I see you guys made it."
Now there was a voice they didn't expect to hear in this desolate castle. The four of them instantly whirled around, their brows furrowing in confusion.
Leon greeted them with a nod as he fastened his gunblade at his side. Aerith gave them a small wave while Yuffie made herself comfortable by seating herself on the railing, smiling brightly at the group. They seemed to not have a care in the world, which only confused the four heroes further, given the situation.
Sora stuttered for a while before blurting out the first rational thing he could think of. "W-what are you guys doing here?" he asked in shock.
"We came in Cid's ship," Yuffie quipped, as if those few, simple words answered all of their questions.
Akira sighed in disbelief. "Okay, but… why?"
"Yeah, this place is dangerous!" Donald quacked.
Aerith gave a light chuckle, amused by their display. "I suppose we never mentioned it, but this is our childhood home. We were certain you'd lock the Keyhole and save it from the darkness so… we thought we'd come see it again."
"It's in worse shape than I feared," Leon said firmly, "It used to be so peaceful here."
"The damage has spread further than we imagined," Yuffie explained with a solemn look in her eyes, "We'll have our work cut out for us once we drive the Heartless away for good…"
"Gawrsh, are you guys going to start rebuilding as soon as we lock the Keyhole?" Goofy inquired.
Yuffie gave them spirited nod. Aerith smiled as well before she spoke. "That, and there's something we wanted to check up on in this castle's library."
Leon crossed his arms. "We've been doing some digging of our own since you mentioned Ansem. We managed to track down a few pages of his report, and we think Maleficent had a few as well. Now that she's gone, we should be able to get our hands on them."
"Also, it seems that Ansem is the catalyst to this entire mess. If we defeat him, all should be restored," Aerith explained, "Including your island."
Sora and Akira exchanged wide-eyed glances. All this time, finding a way to restore their home seemed like a far-off dream. Knowing they could be in reach of what seemed to be an impossible goal brought them nothing but excitement. "Really?" they asked in unison.
"But it does also mean goodbye," Yuffie added, hanging her head.
"Once the worlds are restored, the borders will return as well," Aerith continued, "And they'll all be separate again. Everyone will go back to where they came from."
"Then I'll visit you guys on the Gummi Ship!" Sora yelled quickly, earning himself a glare from Donald. He wasn't certain why Sora just expected him to let him use his Gummi Ship whenever he wanted… but then again, he'd be hard-pressed to admit he wouldn't want to visit them as well.
"It's not that simple," Leon said dismissively.
"Think about it. Before all this, you didn't know about the other worlds, right?" Yuffie asked.
The four of them exchanged glances. Sure, they had thought of other worlds and imagined what secrets they held; but they never had any concrete evidence that anything existed beyond their own borders. Donald and Goofy were more aware of the existence of other worlds than the islanders were, but they hadn't dreamed of leaving the confines of their kingdom either.
Yuffie continued her explanation. "It's because every world was isolated by impassable walls that divided them."
"When the Heartless invaded, they shattered those walls. But, if we defeat Ansem and the influx of Heartless that threaten the worlds, the ones lost to the darkness will return, as will their walls," Aerith added.
"So, Gummi Ships are useless…" Leon finished.
"So, you're saying we'll never…" Sora began, but couldn't find the strength within to finish his sentence.
They slumped their shoulders dejectedly, taking in this new information with great difficulty. They had to defeat Ansem and the Heartless; it was the only way to restore the worlds lost to the darkness, and the only way to save Riku. But all the people they had met on this journey, and all the friends they had made… they weren't quite ready to say farewell to them forever.
Leon sensed their gloom and offered a few words of encouragement. "We may never meet again, but we'll never forget each other."
Aerith smiled softly and nodded. "No matter where we are, our hearts will bring us together again."
"Besides, I couldn't forget you even if I wanted to!" Yuffie quipped.
Even amidst the painful realization, they couldn't help but smirk. One of the most important lessons they learned on this journey was that distance never mattered as long as they kept each other in their hearts, and that was enough to lift their spirits just enough to smile once more.
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Sora chuckled, understanding Yuffie's jibe.
The ground suddenly rumbled violently beneath their feet, almost knocking Yuffie out of her seat. Darkness had begun to engulf the Keyhole itself, threatening to expel a massive force. The stone wall the held the Keyhole in place began to crack, debris crumbling from the altar at a rapid rate.
"Hurry up, we've got to seal it!" Donald cried.
Sora nodded, giving Leon one last grateful nod. Leon chuckled in response. "Best of luck, Sora. We'll be in the library, scouting for more information."
"Got it," Sora confirmed. He turned to face the Keyhole and hurried up to the altar where his friends stood in wait as Aerith and Yuffie gave them a final wave before setting off.
The swirl of colours that had once occupied the Heartless symbol shaped depression was now almost completely overtaken by darkness. The encasing shuddered as the power within began to swell, threatening to break free from its shackles. Sora knew he had little time left; with a flick of his wrist, he summoned his Keyblade and raised it towards the Heartless emblem, ready to seal it.
For a moment, the faint glimmer of a Keyhole flashed among the darkness, responding to the Keyblade's call. A familiar beam of light shot forth from his weapon and travelled towards the growing darkness, tearing through the shadows as it darted towards its goal…
The darkness shuddered within, and the beam of light snapped. Sora was knocked back by the force of the recoil, skidding backwards as he struggled to keep his balance. The darkness raging within the Keyhole refused to let the light of the Keyblade pass without a fight and the force it exuded quickly sapped Sora of his strength.
"What's… happening…" He muttered through gritted teeth. It was a struggle just to keep his hands on his Keyblade. At this rate, the enclosure would shatter and release all the darkness within if he didn't do something to seal it. But his body felt weak, and the Keyblade was heavy in his hands. The light of his weapon slowly began to dim as his strength began to wane…
In a sudden motion, Goofy placed both his hands on Sora's back, keeping him from being pushed back by the recoil. Donald followed suit, pushing Sora with all his might. Akira placed both her hands around his, helping him hold his Keyblade in place amidst the force of darkness that threatened to knock the weapon out of his hands.
Sora blinked, shocked by their sudden gestures. "What are you –"
"We're helping you out!" Donald grunted, shoving Sora against the force.
"Yeah! You're not doing this alone!" Goofy hollered amidst the increasing uproar.
Akira winced as she fought against the dark force, keeping his arm as steady as possible. "We can't seal the Keyhole for you," she stated against the biting wind, "But we can at least do this."
Sora glanced at each of them. Even knowing there was nothing they could do to help him banish the darkness and seal the Keyhole, they still tried. Even if all they could do was hold him in place as the force of darkness threatened to carry him away, they did it anyways. And that is all Sora could ever ask from them. With overwhelming resolve, he dug his heels into the ground and pointed his Keyblade at the whirling darkness once more, channeling all his power into his weapon.
The beam of light that emerged from his weapon was triple the size of the last one, piercing though the darkness with utmost speed. It tore through the copper enclosure, driving away the darkness as it encountered the Keyhole. Glimmers of light flickered from the Heartless emblem shaped depression as the familiar locking sound echoed through the halls. The light of the now locked Keyhole sputtered and flashed, filling the room with a brilliant and blinding light as the four of them shielded their eyes with their hands and arms.
And almost as soon as the light engulfed the room, it had vanished. The clamour of shadows and darkness ceased, as did the pull of darkness radiating from the altar. They slowly opened their eyes once more and relaxed their postures, taking in the scene. Where colours once swirled in a muddied mess was now left completely vacant, leaving nothing behind but some crumbling debris in the enclosure. Other than that, the Great Hall looked exactly as it did before, desolate and quiet.
"Um, did it work?" Goofy asked softly.
"I… I think so," Sora replied, withdrawing his Keyblade and stretching his fingers, "Thanks a lot for that, guys. It really helped."
They smiled tenderly at their comrade's expression of gratitude. But Donald placed his hands on his hips, his brows furrowing in confusion. "Do you think the Heartless just disappeared once the Keyhole was locked?" he quacked.
Akira shrugged. "We could always go ask the Princesses. They've been holding the darkness back, so they should know."
"Sounds like a good idea. We have to cross paths with them again anyways if we're going to meet Leon and the gang in the library," Sora stated.
"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Goofy grinned, giving them a thumbs up.
They nodded to each other in understanding before setting off, scurrying down the steps as they made their way across the Great Hall. As happy as they were to meet with the Princesses once more and confirm their suspicions, the proof was almost undeniable; the stench of darkness that dripped from every corner of the castle since the moment they set foot in Hollow Bastion had all but vanished, as did any evil presence that threatened it.
"You've returned!" Alice cried as she dashed excitedly towards the group. They barely had a chance to enter the chapel before the Princesses of Heart crowded around them, singing their praises. "Thank you, Sora. The darkness has already begun to weaken considerably," she continued, curtsying gratefully.
"And thank you for keeping the Heartless away while we locked the Keyhole," Goofy said with a cheerful grin.
Alice gave them a warm smile. "It's the least we could do. You helped me during that silly trial. Now it's my turn to help you."
"I still can't believe we played a part in opening the Keyhole. To think we had such a power... Simply unimaginable!" Cinderella chirped, clapping her hands together.
Snow White shook her head. "But I fear it's not over yet. I can feel a powerful darkness growing somewhere far away."
"It's the heart of the darkness," Aurora confirmed, "It must be where Ansem went."
"Then we'll take the Gummi Ship and deal with both Ansem and the Heartless," Sora said firmly, bringing his fist to his hand in resolve.
Cinderella smiled tenderly. "A worthy answer, Keyblade Master."
"But what will you do now?" Donald asked.
"Many of us have lost our homes to the darkness," Snow White replied somberly, "We have no choice but to stay here and wait until they're restored. But even so, we'll continue doing whatever we can to ensure we keep this world safe."
"But once the darkness is gone, all should return to its original state," Aurora explained.
"So, Kairi will be back on the island?" Sora asked.
"Most certainly. And you should be too."
Sora's smile dropped as he exchanged a downcast glance with Akira. "We can't go home until we find Riku and the King."
"Then we wish for your success," Snow White stated.
"Remember: even in the deepest darkness, there will always be a light to guide your way," Cinderella said with a smile, "We pray you'll have a safe journey."
"Thank you. We appreciate it," Akira said with a small bow.
"Oh! Before you go…" Jasmine interrupted, "Please don't tell Aladdin about all this. He will worry himself to death! I'll tell him once I return to Agrabah."
"Aw, you don't have to worry about a thing. We'll take care of it," Goofy chuckled, pressing his thumb to his chest.
Jasmine smiled, nodding to each of them. "Thank you, everyone. Now, please, don't let us hold you back. We understand you have some friends waiting for you in the library."
"Took your sweet, sweet time, didn't ya?" Cid grunted as the four of them descended the stairs onto the main floor of the grand library.
"We were kinda occupied with saving this world," Sora scoffed.
Cid sighed loudly, but their fuss was interrupted by the sound of Leon loudly clearing his throat, watching them both through narrowed eyes. "Take a look at this," he said firmly, raising a wad of papers in his hand.
He shoved the pile in Sora's hands, whom raised it for his comrades to see. Scribbles of ink and graphite filled the pages with mathematical equations and chemical formulas far beyond their understanding, along with words scrawled in lazy handwriting at every corner of the sheets. They gazed at the pile, perplexed at its contents. "What is it supposed to be?" Sora asked, echoing their sentiments.
"Ansem's report on the Heartless."
They gasped, exchanging nervous glances with each other.
Leon expected their shock, acknowledging them with a nod. "It's exactly what you think it is. That Ansem you encountered here… is most likely the same man who wrote that report."
"B-but how?" Akira stammered, "I thought he wrote that report to help us understand the darkness, but when we saw him, he was all but overtaken by it – oh! Wait!"
She suddenly understood, and Aerith confirmed her theory. "Exactly. In his pursuit of knowledge, he fell to the darkness himself." She pointed to the report in Sora's hands. "We've found all the missing pages. As expected, Maleficent had most of them. While you were locking the Keyhole, we put them all together in order. The four of you should take a look at it; it should help you understand his intentions."
Sora nodded and straightened the wad of papers, holding it out far enough for the four of them to see. He carefully removed the pages holding only complex equations and strange notations, doing his best to keep the pages of the actual report intact. Although, once the papers were sorted and their eyes danced across its contents, they found the report read more like a diary than a scientific journal. They had a first-hand look into Ansem's thought process, which only helped them understand what was going through his mind before the events that almost brought about Hollow Bastion's demise.
Each of them gasped in shock at different intervals of the report, taking in all the new information while piecing together the mystery that haunted them since the moment they set foot on this land. There were mentions of the darkness within a person's heart, Heartless that were born both naturally and artificially, even a strange visit from a certain king from another world… Donald almost fell over in shock at the latter while Goofy clapped his hand over his mouth.
"So…" Yuffie said gently after a few moments, "What do you guys think?"
"This is a lot to take in," Sora sighed, creasing his brows.
"We figured it might be a lot for you kids," Cid stated sympathetically, "But it's important you know this; it might come in handy if you're thinking of confronting Ansem."
"We don't exactly have much of a choice…" Akira's voice trailed off.
"Ansem… wasn't always the bad guy you met here," Leon explained, crossing his arms, "People used to laud him as the ruler of this world. He was a wise and kind man who devoted his life to research for the sole purpose of making our lives better."
"But one day, his curiosity got the best of him, and he started studying the heart, as well as the the effect the darkness had on it," Aerith continued, "However, he wasn't satisfied with just studying it. He started experimenting with it and began introducing massive amounts of darkness into his test subjects' hearts. And the result he observed… was the creation of the Heartless."
Cid flicked his nose. "And the old coot didn't stop there. He built a machine to artificially create Heartless of his own. I'm sure you've noticed that weird symbol some Heartless have stamped on them? Those are the ones Ansem created. Old guy went crazy; most of the Heartless we see now are the kind he designed."
"Gawrsh, does that mean Ansem was the one who brought the Heartless to Hollow Bastion?" Goofy asked.
Yuffie nodded. "He is, and he most certainly helped with spreading them to other worlds too. From the sound of it in his report, it seems the Heartless always existed; but they were never as ravenous as they were before he got involved and started experimenting with the darkness."
"His curiosity got the best of him one day when he discovered the door leading to the very heart of this world," Aerith said, "When he opened it, he also opened a travel path to reach Hollow Bastion, removing the barrier walls that surrounded this world. Unfortunately, he also made it much easier for the Heartless to access the heart of this world."
"Well, it wasn't all bad. We started getting meteor showers when he did, and the debris left behind allowed us to study gummi blocks and gummi engineering!" Yuffie added.
"Hah. That's when I started studying the craft," Cid reminisced, crossing his arms.
"Not only that, but he got to meet with the King that visited us from another world," Leon stated, "It was probably the only good thing that came out of this mess…"
"Oh boy, I betcha that was our King!" Goofy cheered.
"Most likely. He talked with Ansem about the Keyblade and the growing threat of darkness, but it seems like Ansem didn't care for much other than harnessing the power of darkness itself. Still, our knowledge of the Keyblade and its power to seal the heart of a world did help us out." Leon eyed Sora, giving him a small smirk.
"And I suppose you know what happened next…" Aerith said with saddened eyes.
"All this time we thought Maleficent was behind it… to think Ansem got us wrapped up in this mess as well," Yuffie thought.
"Ansem learned of the Princesses of Heart, and of the Door to Darkness that would lead him to the heart of all worlds. Rather than just write it down, he went off and tried to do it for himself. He just used Maleficent as a means to an end. It's strange, now that I think about it; the Ansem we knew would never do something like that. Maybe he really did fall to the darkness during his experiments…" Leon said in a low whisper as his thoughts trailed off.
Sora balled his hand into a fist, bringing it to his chest. This information dump was already difficult enough to process, but they simply didn't have the luxury to wait around and let it sink in. Ansem was well on his way to taking over the heart of all worlds, and he had taken Riku with him. Sora didn't have any other choice. "We have to go find him and defeat him," he stated, "You know that, right?"
Yuffie exchanged a nod of understanding with her world's former residents. "We know. It's alright, Sora. Whoever it was you met here is nothing but a shell of the man he once was. The Ansem we knew is long gone; you have to stop him before he wreaks more havoc."
"And who knows? Going after him is probably the best clue you have to finding your King," Leon added.
"And to getting your islands back," Cid called from further back as he leafed through a book.
No matter which way they put it, all paths lead to Ansem. Donald knew it. Goofy knew it. Akira knew it. And as they watched their last comrade with curiosity, they understood that deep in his heart, Sora knew the same. "I suppose our path is set," he said firmly, punching his fist into his palm, "What will you guys do?"
Aerith scratched her cheek. "Well, the Heartless are gone now… all that's left to do is rebuild."
"I bet Squall's really looking forward to that!" Yuffie quipped, poking Leon in the arm, whom scoffed in response.
Akira chuckled. "Why do you keep calling him that?"
"He didn't tell you?" she blinked, "Squall's his real name."
"Then why do you go by Leon?" Donald quacked.
Leon sighed heavily before answering. "I won't use my real name until this world is restored."
Cid gave a booming laugh as he tossed the book he was reading aside, walking over to join Leon's side. "Then we've got our work cut out for us, huh?" he chuckled, lightly slapping his arm.
"Well, I like Leon as a name," Akira said with a smile as Sora nodded in agreement beside her.
Leon merely smirked in response. He released his arms, placing them on his hips. "Best of luck, you guys. The battle ahead may be long and difficult but, as long as you work together, you can overcome it."
"We're all cheering for you," Aerith added, clapping her hands together with a smile.
"I suppose you'll want Cid to tell you how to actually find Ansem, right?" Yuffie quipped.
"You read our minds," Sora chuckled, scratching the back of his head.
Cid flicked his nose, beaming proudly. "Luckily for you, when Ansem passed through the Keyhole in his pursuit of the Door to Darkness, he opened a pathway leading to another world. I brought it up on the gummi radar but couldn't see much apart from some broken pieces and a ton of darkness. Can't really tell you what kind of place it is but… it kinda feels like a bunch of fragments were just stuck together. In any case, your Gummi Ship should be able to make it there but be careful when you do; that place isn't stable."
"Unstable?" Donald shuddered.
"Maybe it's that darkness the Princesses were talking about?" Goofy surmised.
Sora nodded. "Yeah, the great darkness Aurora mentioned. That's gotta be it."
"Sounds like it," Cid shrugged.
"That's the plan then," Sora concluded, "Thanks, you guys. You've helped the four of us in more ways than one, and we're grateful."
Akira, Donald, and Goofy smiled brightly in agreement. Leon and his gang had been with them almost every step of the way; and here and now, before their most important battle yet, they took the time to help them once more, and words couldn't express the appreciation they felt.
Leon's smirk grew into a legitimate grin, keeping his eyes on the group as he addressed them one last time. "Go get 'em."
Though they travelled through skies that swirled and pulsed with ominous dark energy to reach a world on the brink of destruction, the Gummi Ship's passengers had been livelier than usual. Perhaps they were looking forward to their journey's end. Perhaps they were excited to see Riku and the King once more… or perhaps they bantered to keep their spirits up as the threat of darkness loomed overhead. Whatever the reason may have been, Akira was grateful. With so much energy radiating around her, they had less of a chance to notice the soft murmurs that escaped her lips.
Something troubles you.
"There's a lot happening right now…" she mumbled.
Are you afraid of what lies ahead?
"I suppose."
There is more to it than that.
She sighed, exasperated. It insisted on not being a mind reader, but she had a hard time believing it. "That report really put things into perspective…"
How so?
"It was a lot to take in. And I think you were right; there really is a lot I don't know."
Does it frighten you?
"The unknown?"
Yes.
She pursed her lips in thought. "I think… I'm worried that the truth may scare me more."
The truth can be painful. But it is necessary.
She bumped her head on the soft headrest, raising her eyes to the ceiling as Sora and Donald bickered about something unnecessary in the background. She harboured this strange, sinking feeling that their job wouldn't suddenly end with stopping Ansem. There was too much in that report that alluded to mysteries beyond their understanding, mysteries she wasn't sure she wanted to uncover…
After all, she may not like what she'd find.
Do not fear what fate awaits you after you defeat Ansem; your journey will continue just as it had before. Rest assured, your friends will remain by your side… as will I.
Hah. Maybe it wasn't a mind reader after all.
"I believe you," she whispered.
Her weapon grew warm in her palm, a habit it adopted when it wanted to express comfort and reassurance. She wanted to laugh; whatever this damn thing was, it was oddly endearing.
Surprisingly, Ansem's report had no mention of this staff at all, nor did it cover an ethereal entity that conversed with an otherworldly voice in one's head. For someone so infatuated with knowledge, she would've assumed Ansem would have investigated this sort of thing, unless he had no idea of its existence…
Of course not. That last page in his report mentioned a new discovery, one that would certainly grab his attention more than a chattering weapon.
"Hey."
What is it?
Her gaze shifted towards the window. The stardust had faded from the sky, leaving behind nothing more than a swirling light beckoning across the vast and brooding darkness. They must be close. "Is my heart still silent to you?"
Quiet.
She hoped to be subtle with her question. She didn't want to have to explain what put the idea in her head. Besides, they left Ansem's report with Leon in Hollow Bastion; it's not like she could simply hop over and see them whenever she wanted. Her unease grew with each passing moment of silence, and she wondered why she ever thought she could be subtle with this damn thing. It's not like she ever successfully kept any secrets from it before.
It is.
That's all she needed to know. With a soft nod, she shifted her gaze to the windshield, keeping her eyes fixated on the swirling abyss of light approaching in the distance.
Their final destination.