"What's that?" Phil barked at Dr. Finkelstein and Sally in absolute disbelief. "Say that again!"
" All the pieces of Ancient Greece are being put back together again," Dr. Finkelstein patiently explained to the stunned satyr.
" In New Universe, that is," Sally added calmly. "He truly can put worlds back together again, no matter the state of the world."
" Who's 'he'?" Tarzan asked. He and Pooh had returned from stationing outposts along the walls of Halloweentown.
" You will know in due time," Sally smiled mysteriously. "But Phil, the people of Ancient Greece will need you amongst them."
" Hercules ain't there," Phil snapped in reply. "If he ain't there, that world's a ghost and I sure has hell am not going there until he does."
" Oh he will, he will," Sally gave an even more mysterious smile.
" What are you talking about?" Riku was confused, completely befuddled. "I thought Coliseum was destroyed."
"Oh no, not really," Dr. Finkelstein explained. "See, a powerful being can keep a world from fully entering ln-Between. One must have great skill and must know what he or she is doing in order to keep a world from being sent there. This being that Sally has connections to, he is also putting Ancient Greece back together again. Coliseum was but a part of Ancient Greece; destroying it actually makes it easier for Sally's connection to put that part of the world back where it belongs. It's extremely difficult to explain, really, but I'm sure it'll all work out."
" Um...may I ask a question?" Pooh suddenly asked nervously, putting his paw up in the air. "I saw bugs gathering near a huge, white bag of some sort not too long ago. The bag looked like something, a thing of some sort, if you know what I mean. What do we do-"
" Bugs? Huge white bag of some sort?" Jack demanded. His eyes narrowed as he put together what little description Pooh was able to offer. "Pooh, are you sure about this?"
Pooh nodded, then shook his head. "Oh bother...I'm not sure, maybe, maybe not..."
" I don't like this," Jack finally stated. "I know of only one connected to bugs and a huge white bag of some sort that looks like a thing. And if my hunch is right, defending Halloweentown has just become a nightmare. Riku, come with me. We've got to know what's going on here."
Riku nodded, thinking all the while. Jack was right. There was only one he knew who was connected to bugs and a white bag. But that was impossible! He was sure Sora had gotten rid of him last year.
" Oogie Boogie had better not be back," Riku murmured as he followed Jack Skellington towards Moonlight Hill.
" I don't understand," Tarzan said as he watched the two walk into the distance. "I don't understand; what is going on here?"
" Long story, "the Mayor answered. " It's a ridiculously long story and I'm not sure we have time for it."
" Oogie Boogie was a monster made of a white sack and bugs," Sally began calmly. "He joined the Heartless maybe two years ago and began to terrorize his part of the universe, Halloweentown, the same way his colleagues terrorized their parts of the universe. Last year, Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Jack got rid of Oogie Boogie and saved Halloweentown. But now...I'm afraid they're all returning."
" What do you mean by returning?" Tarzan said.
" The ones that Sora, Donald, and Goofy stopped? I think they will come back," Sally said calmly. "Those who lead Heartless are very special, very unique indeed."
" Which means," Dr. Finkelstein added, "that I'm afraid some that we don't' want returning will return."
" Clayton returns?" Tarzan was looking very worried.
" No," Sally shook her head. "He did not lead; Sora has killed him for good."
" That's good, at least," Tarzan gave a slight sigh of relief.
" I've once heard," Pooh suddenly said, "of someone Sora had to go against. He had an odd name, I cannot remember it. All I know is that the name starts with an 'a'."
Sally and Dr. Finkelstein looked at each other. They knew of only one person who fit Pooh's description.
" That's not possible," Dr. Finkelstein demanded of Sally. "That's not possible!"
" Leaders of Heartless are special indeed," Sally merely stated. "You chose a wise brain for me, Dr. Finkelstein. A wise brain indeed. Ansem most likely returned, don't you think?"
" What will happen if Oogie Boogie did return?" Riku asked quietly as he followed Jack through the Boneyard to the door in the giant pumpkin tomb.
" We will have to fight him," Jack replied calmly.
" If he is destroyed, this world will fall," Riku stated abruptly. He knew it really wasn't the right thing to say but it was the truth. If Oogie Boogie stands, the Heartless will not destroy Halloweentown; if Oogie Boogie falls, Halloweentown will fall as well.
" I know," Jack agreed. "But what choice do we have? I'd prefer we rid the universe of an unworthy foe instead of letting one stand in a world that does not deserve to be destroyed."
" Why are they all being sent to Traverse Town?" Riku then asked.
" All refugees go there," Jack replied as they weaved their way through the gloomy tombs towards a curled hill. "The place is huge, with three districts, meaning three levels. It can fit many people in there, regardless of size."
" I see," Riku nodded, understanding what Jack was saying. Traverse Town was large, after all.
Jack suddenly stopped, then tapped on a prominent tombstone in front of the curled hill. Riku wondered if Jack was losing his mind when the hill suddenly began to uncurl and created a long, thin bridge to what he noticed was the other side. He wondered why Jack had to do that, before realizing that there was a large wall all the way where the hill was reaching for and the area they were headed for was on op of the wall...or something like that.
" Quickly," Jack said, as they heard a rather strange wind blowing in their direction from where they were trying to cross. The Pumpkin King sniffed the air. "Oh my, a tragedy. Oogie Boogie did return."
" Oh no," Riku groaned. "Not that great, puffy white bafoon."
He called the Dark Keyblade to his side, then followed Jack across the bride the Moonlight Hill created. He was not aware of Zero, Jack's faithful ghost dog, who was tailing them.
They crossed the Bridge with no trouble at all, then found themselves facing a huge drop into a wide, open area. There was no way down except to jump. Riku knew jumping down would literally spell out their deaths but what could they do?
Heartless, they noted, were swarming the area, circling a huge white sack of some odd shape in the middle. It was gradually inflating, as a train of bugs continued to march towards it, filling it up.
" Oh no..." Riku moaned, as a pointy-head with gapping eyes and a huge gaping mouth appeared from the white sack.
" Zero!" Jack called and Zero appeared as if from thin air before his beloved master.
" Zero, go to Sally and Dr. Finkelstein," Jack instructed the adorable ghost dog. "Tell them Oogie Boogie is back and ask them if they have any idea on what to do."
Zero barked cheerfully and promptly vanished. That really unnerved Riku; he wasn't used to a rather gothic world with ghosts, walking skeletons, and humans made of pieces put together.
If it was day, the day was getting worse for Riku, Jack, and the others back at Halloweentown by the second. If it was night, well, it was getting worse anyways, as Heartless of the kind Riku had never seen before materialize alongside the older Heartless types. Strange, bat-like heartless with red hooks on their tails joined the gathering of Wight Knights, Soldiers, Shadows, Search Ghosts, Gargoyles, and huge bulky Heartless Riku had never seen before.
"HookWings?" Jack muttered. "This is going to be interesting."
Riku gave some practice swings of the Dark Keyblade in his right hand. Whatever they were called, they were the enemy and that was what Riku was concerned with.
" Arf!" Zero suddenly materialized before Jack, an envelope in his mouth.
Kinda reminds me of Pluto...Riku thought, remembering the yellow dog that ran off with the envelope King Mickey gave him before they parted ways.
" Thanks, Zero!" Jack exclaimed and retrieved the envelope.
I can't believe Dr. Finkelstein and Sally had to time to write something..."...Dr. Finkelstein is going to send everyone to Traverse Town!" Jack exclaimed as he read through the letter inside the envelope. " Riku, we've gotta stop Oogie Boogie!"
" We what?" Riku whirled on the Pumpkin King. "We're going to do what?"
" Stop Oogie Boogie," Jack somehow set the letter on fire and chucked it into the scenario before them. " Let's alert them of us, shall we?"
" Too late to make a decision about it," Riku quipped as he sensed the tiny flare come down and surprise the Heartless." And Oogie Boogie looks ready to fight."
He pointed at the sack of something in the middle of the group of Heartless.
" Ha, ha, ha, what's this? Jack Skellington coming to fight me again? And with a child, no less?" Oogie Boogie mocked the two from his position down on ground zero.
Riku twitched. "As soon as I get there, I'm gonna chop his head off clean-"
" Take it easy," Jack stuck a bony arm out in front of Riku before the teenager could continue to move forward. "First...we have to get down there."
Riku, who was about to curse Jack out of the way, hit himself on the forehead. Mentally, that is. He had forgotten where they were.
" Psst, Zero!" Jack called to his dog. "Find a way down-no wait, never mind about that. Tell the others to get ready; I think Oogie Boogie is starting to gather an army."
" Arf!" Zero replied and promptly vanished.
" Riku, follow me," Jack said, and marched back across the bridge, heading for a certain well of greenish water back in the heart of Halloweentown.
"...Oogie Boogie strikes again! Again!" the Mayor was wailing into his arms.
They were at the Graveyard, looking at a rather ancient map of Halloweentown. Tarzan and Dr. Finkelstein discussed the placement of the ones who could fight while Sally and the Mayor input ideas of their own and Pooh wandered off a little way to watch some harmless White Mushrooms.
Then Zero appeared onto the scene with an envelope in his mouth. Tarzan took it, opened it, skimmed through what he considered gibberish, and handed it over to Dr. Finkelstein. Dr. Finkelstein read it, grew extremely grim, and passed it on to Sally and the Mayor. Sally turned extremely quiet upon reading it and the Mayor...well, he was throwing a fit.
" Pooh, help me gather up the people," Dr. Finkelstein shifted his wheelchair towards the town center. " We're taking them to Traverse Town. Now!"
Pooh scampered after Dr. Finkelstein, nearly tripped over his own feet, regained his balance, and kept going.
" We can't have all those dispersed to concentrate on defeating Oogie Boogie; that'll leave us totally defenseless in other areas," Sally explained to Mayor.
" I must go," Tarzan said. "Must help Riku and Jack Skellington."
Sally nodded. "Yes, those two will need help. Despite all their abilities, they cannot defeat Oogie Boogie alone. I know about gummi ships. I will look to yours."
Tarzan nodded, then swiftly climbed over the fencing of the Graveyard and promptly vanished.
" Mayor?" Sally turned to the nervous man. "You must go with the people to Traverse Town. Leon and Cloud cannot handle everyone alone, in addition to the other refuges that are starting to poor from Neverland."
The Mayor nodded, mumbling all the while like he was going mad, and scampered off. Sally sighed and looked down gloomily at the map, tracing her fingers along the pitiful defense lines they had managed to pull up.
" What can we do?" Sally sighed. " Eldest pulled a surprise on us; what can we do now?"
" This is the best way to get somewhere ever," Riku told Jack as soon as they materialized in the green river at ground zero, out of sight of the masses of Heartless and Oogie Boogie. "But how do we jump them and not get overwhelmed?"
Jack started to think. "Hm...you know, I actually don't know."
Riku groaned. Then he grew alert, as the sound of silent splashing reached his ultra-sensitive ears.
How did Tarzan find his way here?" Tarzan, what about the others?" Riku hissed as Tarzan slunk into view.
" Dr. Finkelstein, Sally, the Mayor, and Pooh are getting people to Traverse Town," Tarzan explained. "I come to help fight."
" We need all the help we're gonna get," Riku agreed as Jack turned to them and began to tell them what they needed to do.
Hercules froze. Because he was walking behind Kairi and Selphie, they did not notice until they heard him call out, "Wait! I can feel something!"
" What?" they turned to him, utterly confused. "Feel what?"
" I can feel something," Hercules repeated. "Something strange, something not quite right..."
Selphie looked around them warily, trying to see through the gray mist, while Kairi clutched the box with the piece of the Other Report tightly in her arms.
A shadow of a tall, thin figure glided slowly towards them from the mist. They all froze and Hercules slowly moved his hand toward his sword, which was sheathed at that moment in time.
"...Hercules, I have some strange news for you," a very familiar voice whispered as the shadows drew near.
It was Oracle Kenaii. Kairi, Selphie, and Hercules sighed in relief.
" Hercules, I have some strange news for you," he repeated solemnly, looking to all three of them with grave eyes. "Your destiny has taken a different path. It may make it more difficult for them-" he gestured to Kairi and Selphie "-to find all the pieces of the Other Report but it will most certainly help the Keyblade Master in his quest to find the door of light."
" Sora?" Kairi perked up and was suddenly alert. "What about Sora?"
" Your world has been resurrected, Hercules," Oracle Kenaii seemed to ignore Kairi. "It was a most unexpected move, I might. Most unexpected; caught us all by surprise-"
" All?" Selphie interrupted. "What do you mean by 'us all'? Don't tell me there's more of you!"
" We Oracles are all dead but all wise," Oracle Kenaii flashed a ghost of a grin, then turned serious again. " Hercules, Ancient Greece has been restored. Thebes and Underworld are already in place, much to the chagrin of Hades. And Coliseum...well, that's a long story. The Heartless intended to destroy it and nearly did, if it weren't for the fact that he stepped in and send all 'particles' to where Ancient Greece was forming."
" So now Coliseum is there near Mount Olympus?" Hercules demanded. "Amazing!"
Kairi and Selphie stared at them, confused. "What are you talking about? What's Ancient Greece?"
" Ancient Greece is-or was- my home," Hercules explained. "Three years ago, Heartless invaded Ancient Greece, intending to destroy my world. Phil, my trainer, and I were separated from Pegasus, my flying horse, and this really beautiful girl named Meg..."
" Stop daydreaming, lover boy," Oracle Kenaii snapped rather good-naturedly. "Well, one of the pieces, Coliseum, hurtled into Old Universe along with Phil and Hercules. That's where they remained for some time, until now."
" Wait a minute..." Hercules said. " Are you telling me...are you telling me I have to go back there?"
Oracle Kenaii nodded ever so slowly. "We thought it was impossible but he knows more than we expect. We can get you out of In-Between, although it will be only you who can get out."
" What? Why?" Selphie yelped.
" Without me, my world is dead, a ghost," Hercules explained sadly. "I don't know how to explain it but for some reason, some worlds can't survive without some important person existing there. For instance, Halloweentown can't exactly survive without Jack Skellington being there nor than Neverland survive without Peter Pan being there. If I'm not there, Ancient Greece won't be complete; somehow I carry something that completes the heart and soul of that world. It really doesn't make sense to me but that's how it turned out."
" And if Ancient Greece is coming back..." Kairi drifted off. She knew.
" I have to go," Hercules nodded. " But I have absolutely no idea how to get out of here."
" That is our secret," Oracle Kenaii replied calmly. "What I don't understand, though, is that only Hercules can be brought back. I believe that the laws of the universe twist in such ways that those who are needed to complete the hearts and souls of worlds can be taken anywhere but those who aren't needed...well, aren't needed."
" So we're stuck here?" Selphie asked, in a pitiful voice. "Alone?"
" Hey, I'm here!" Kairi shot back. " Don't worry, Selphie, we can do this."
Besides, this time I will fight...however I do it...I promised Sora I would...Oracle Kenaii nodded thankfully. "Thank you. Thank you for understanding the importance of this. No doubt the fact you are able to accept changes over time would help you in the future. The far future."
His emphasis on the last sentence put shivers in Kairi. Was he predicting the future or something?
" Things are as they are," Oracle Kenaii was saying as he gradually drifted away, with Hercules following him. "You will meet another on your quest who will help you. Immensely or merely be there, he will help you. You two know him- or of him, I do not know- but he is of incredible importance. That is what is important. The Other Report, Kairi, must be found at all costs. There are many things in the Other Report that can be shocking to us all, though I do not know. I prefer it to be surprising, for I just hate being a know-it-all sometimes."
Selphie could not resist a giggle.
" Laugh all you want, child, I won't stop you," Oracle Kenaii's voice seemed to fade. "In the future, laughter would be rare, so laugh as you wish now. They have told you of the two Other Reports, yes?"
Kairi, Selphie, and Hercules assumed he was talking about the Doorknob and the Cheshire Cat and nodded.
" Good to know," Oracle Kenaii said cheerfully. "That Other Report is so well hidden, its almost impossible for a normal being to find it. Even I can't find it. Only someone very close to its writer can find it."
Ansem was the writer of all three Reports.
" We shall see who will find it, shall we?" Oracle Kenaii beckoned Hercules even deeper into the mist. " Kairi and Selphie, you must go to Deep Jungle and Agrabah. From there, take Monstro to the next world. A surprise lies in wait for you two; don't miss it."
" Bye"! Hercules waved to them. "If I see Sora, I'll tell him you guys said hi!"
" Oh!" Kairi almost forgot about that. "Hercules, tell him not to give up, okay? Please don't forget!"
" But Sora never gives up!" Hercules was startled by her urgent request.
" He mustn't," Kairi answered. " He can't! Just tell him never to give up. That's all I ask."
" Tell him I said hi and ask him if he's seen a paupu fruit!" Selphie said cheerfully.
Kairi rolled her eyes. Hercules smiled, nodded to them, and disappeared into the mists of In-Between after Oracle Kenaii.
" Oh, and before I forget!" the oracle's voice whispered back to them. "Just follow the road you're on. There is nothing to fear; you are guarded, well protected, and there's nothing to worry about. Except...find the Other Report and do as it says before the feathers fall...oh no-"
" Feathers? Fall?" Selphie echoed. " What the-?"
Kairi was confused. Why did Oracle Kenaii stop talking abruptly?
Selphie looked nervously down the faint road they were on. Kairi followed her face and saw...gray mist. That was all they saw. Gray mist everywhere.
Selphie heaved a sigh. "Suddenly I miss Hercules. Even though he acted like some sort of a Superman sometimes, I miss him."
Kairi nodded. His sunny disposition cheered them up. But now he was gone, back to his home, back to await and help Sora in any way possible.
And I hope he gives Sora my message...Sora, never give up, never!"Who do you think we're gonna meet later on?" Selphie asked as they started again down the road.
Kairi shrugged. "I don't know. But do you think we'd know that person? Oracle Kenaii said 'him'. You think it's a guy we know?"
" Maybe," Selphie mused.
For the next twenty minutes, they were in silence, each musing over nothing, taking care to keep to the path. Kairi's thoughts went to the piece of the Report in the box.
Nobodies...why are the Nobodies here at all, like the Heartless? What really is their purpose in life? Is it that all they do is take souls, nothing more, nothing less?
Kairi sighed and kept walking, until she became aware of the fact that they were headed for what seemed to be a jungle of some sort. Deep Jungle...
The trees soared before them suddenly, as though some invisible barrier kept them from spreading out further. The ground seemed almost natural, a mixture of dirt, grass-like plants, and decaying leaves. If there were a sun, no doubt the jungle would look wonderful. But everything was shrouded in a cold, misty gray that made the world seem dead, completely devoid of life.
" Is this Deep Jungle?" Selphie whispered to Kairi as they cautiously entered the jungle, prone to jump at any sudden sound. The jungle, with its dense canopy and its ability to hinder people from seeing deep into the heart of the jungle, closed in on the two, gripping them in long dark claws and driving fear into them.
" This is creepy," Selphie whispered to Kairi, who nodded in earnest agreement. "What can we find from here, anyways?"
Kairi shrugged, unsure herself.
Deep into the heart of the wild...they await to help the ones who are brave...puzzle box be found...in clever shade of jade...
" 'Deep into the heart of the wild'..." Kairi whispered as she looked at their surroundings. The place looked very wild indeed. Very wild.
" That second line went 'they await to help the ones who are brave', right?" Selphie concentrated on remembering a bit from the prophecy. "Who'd be waiting for us here, Kairi? Who'd actually stay in this creepy place?"
" Are we brave?" Kairi countered. " After all, that's what the line says, right?"
Selphie's face fell. "Are you saying we're chicken-"
" No, no, no!" Kairi replied hastily. "I meant-"
During the conversation, Kairi walked backwards in order to face Selphie properly. That was obviously not the smartest thing in the world but what can you say? And what do you expect?
Her foot got caught in a snag and Kairi, with a yelp, tumbled. The Queen of Heart's box went flying, Selphie yelled and made a grab for both Kairi and the box, and Kairi suddenly found herself...falling. She found herself falling amidst canopies, long vines, and twisting tree trunks, down to what was known as the Hippo's Lagoon.
Kairi considered screaming.
"Well, Terk..." Jane sighed as she sat dejectedly in front of one of the Camp tents, "what can I say? Its just us, its just us..."
The young Englishwoman was talking to a gloomy young dark gorilla, who sat before her and played with her toes.
" I'm just glad no Heartless are here," Terk answered truthfully. "The one good thing out of the whole mess of disaster."
" Everyone is gone, Terk, everyone," Jane said. "What can we do?"
" Besides guarding that green box nobody can open?" Terk added. "I don't know."
" The jade box," Jane pulled out the small, intricately carved jade box from her side and set it on her lap. She thought it was a jade box carved in China, except the designs had nothing to do with China. The designs were merely of stars, wings, feathers, crowns, and on the cover was a design of three circles, all touching each other in an odd way. Terk thought it looked like the head of a mouse.
" What's in it anyways?" Terk grumbled as Jane lifted the box and gently shook it next to her ear.
All she heard was a strange rustling, like paper rubbing against paper.
" Why did that old man ask us to guard that box until we knew when the time was right to hand it over anyways?" Terk continued to grumble. "It doesn't make sense. What's so special about it?"
Jane shrugged. "I don't know, Terk. I don't think anybody else is here, except the two of us."
She surveyed the misty gray Camp grounds. All she saw was a mess of crates, tarp, poles, and supplies, all seemingly made worse by the gray shroud.
The sudden, brief scream jolted the two to their feet. They looked around each other fearfully, their hearts beating quickly, completely taken by surprise.
" What was that?" Jane asked breathlessly.
" Um...somebody screaming?" Terk offered a simple explanation.
Then they heard someone screaming as well. The scream was faint but it was yelling a word, a word that they could not distinguish.
" It's coming from the Hippo's Lagoon," Terk immediately said.
Jane grabbed a loaded rifle from her side and set the jade box down on the crate she was sitting on.
" Let's go check it out."