Author's Note: I had just taken a shower when somehow I realized that Time is a pain in the butt. Mainly this: most of these chapters, if not all, are prewritten. I like staying ahead of you readers laughs maniacally so if you ever wonder why some stuff seem just soooo outdated, there's my explanation. Most chapters involving the Society came before CoM debuted and told us that not only is it called the Organization, Axel, Sora, and Riku managed to wipe out everyone in Castle Oblivion with the exception of Donald, Goofy, Jiminy Cricket, King Mickey, and Naminé. Well, here's the next chapter. You guys have no idea what's coming up next, har har har……on a last note, it seems that Quick Edit does not know the meaning of TAB. and my page break symbols, for that matter. srry. also, is there anyone out there who's willing to beta my last 20 chapters for me? i'm still plugging away at the damn chapters and all but the offer still stands...

Secrets of Memories Chapter 51: The Gates of Sea and Heaven

Smoke billowed from the pistol, obscuring everyone's view. Captain Hook smiled with malicious triumph, having finally brought down the one he hated most. Years around the Heartless did that to you, made you nearly as heartless as the real thing.
Yet, as the smoke cleared, Smee was still there, beating at the air, but now with a wild light in his eyes.
" What!" Captain Hook cried out in shock, for Peter Pan was still holding onto the poor man, also shaken by Captain Hook's attempt. They were both still standing…and Captain Hook had shot Peter Pan point-blank. And the bullet should've hit Peter Pan in the chest and he would've released Smee and Captain Hook would've lost his first mate as well. Instead…
" I expected as much," Riku said unemotionally. He seemed to lack the expressive context that made up a human being. " However, most people lack the reflexes one of Twilight has."
He twisted his right wrist and a faint purple-black barrier came up between Peter Pan, Smee, and Captain Hook. Another flick of the wrist and the faint barrier was gone. He grinned grimly at a stupefied Captain Hook.
" Well, we've got what we came for," Tarzan ventured to say. " Tinker Bell and all."
" That is not enough," Sally said, her large eyes looking to the distance, into the night. " I think there is more to this than meets the eye."
" We must seal Neverland," Peter Pan said, gently returning Smee to some solid ground. " Seal Neverland and get Captain Poop out of here."
Captain Hook turned visibly red and Riku knew he had not digested any rum. " No, not only that. Captain Hook, you will leave Neverland and you will not come back, ever. I don't give a shit where you go as long as you never take a step onto Neverland or even breathe the air of Neverland. You will also not bring Heartless, Nobodies, or direct them to Neverland. You will most certainly not direct anyone from the Society to Neverland nor will you met with Peg-leg Pete. In short, you will exile yourself and if you were to return, it will be under either pain of death or eternal pursuit by people like us."
Through his blindfold he leered at Captain Hook, who was now more furious than ever. " And," he added, " those are the kindest terms I can think of at this moment. You most certainly know what I can do, don't you?"
A snap of his finger on his left hand and a ball of purple-black energy materialized in the palm of his hand. He closed his fingers around the ball of energy and the energy quickly sank back into his hand.
Captain Hook paled.
" Smee," Riku now turned to the poor man. " What will you do?"
" W-w-what will I d-d-do?" The poor man quaked so much he could barely speak. " I-I-I stay h-h-here with C-c-captain, of c-c-c-course!"
" With a man like him?" Riku snapped in contempt. " He tried to sacrifice your life trying to kill Peter Pan. I'm quite sure he treats you like dirt; surely there's more you can do besides crawling around at the man's feet."
Smee shook his head vigorously. " I only kn-n-n-now one life. I in-in-in-intend to st-st-st-stick to it."
The silver-haired teenager understood what the poor man was saying. He shook his head sadly, but his heart was cold, cold and furious at the poor man's decision.
Stupid fool, who does he think he is? Riku thought angrily. A saint of Nottingham! The next time I meet them, I shall spare neither of them.
He turned around, intent on heading back to the gummi ship. " You make me sad. C'mon, let's do something about the Keyhole. You, Captain Hook, will find the way out of this world but you will not find a way in, not without much hardship."
He flicked his hand and the two men found themselves within a huge black and purple ball of black energy. Furious, the displaced captain banged at the walls but to no avail; the ball of energy began to float away, drifting into the London night.
" C'mon," Riku entered the gummi ship and snapped his finger. The gummi ship then roared to life. Tarzan, Sally, Pooh, Peter Pan, and Tinker Bell stared at the tall young man with consternation, worried by his change of attitude. Sally felt it, though. Time was short. Time was getting shorter. And Riku knew to hurry.
" We must not waste his time," she told the others. " Come on."
Peter Pan and Tinker Bell stared at the fading Keyhole, troubled by its status. Its power was vanishing. Something was definitely wrong.
" What do we do?" Pooh asked Sally nervously. She was strangely silent, silent with a stern, contemplating demeanor.
" There is nothing we can do," Riku said slowly, swinging a small vial with his fingers. Pale golden light shimmered within it; it had taken Riku and Peter Pan quite some time trying to convince Tinker Bell to give some of her fairy dust. " This world isn't done for but it's light is weakening. Its defenses are failing. I've…done some to make it stronger but we need Sora's power to protect Neverland. We should go, to Hollow Bastion. There is nothing more we can do."
" Are you sure?" Tarzan demanded, sharpening the head of his spear. Riku had taken full control of the gummi ship and no longer needed Riku or Pooh at the helm.
" Peter Pan!" Riku shouted at the boy. " We have to go to Hollow Bastion! I know you will do what is best for Neverland. You are the one in charge of this world, even at your age. You may not want to grow up but…too late; you already have."
"What!" Peter Pan shouted in outrage and flew at the gummi ship, banging on the glass.
" Good luck." Riku grinned, turned his right hand, and the gummi ship turned about-face and soared into the night sky, with Peter Pan yelling and shaking his fist at them, and Tinker Bell blowing indignant raspberries. " What can we expect at Hollow Bastion?" Tarzan asked slowly as he tightly wound dried animal sinew that he carried in a pouch around the end of his spear, reattaching the sharpened head.
" What is Hollow Bastion?" Pooh asked; he had never heard of it.
" We've only had a couple of rumors about Hollow Bastion," Sally admitted. " At one time, it was a kingdom. Another time, it was the domain of an evil witch. Now it is probably the newest source of the Heartless surge. At least that was what Sora informed us…when he went there with Donald and Goofy a few months back."
" What did they find there?" Riku demanded. They needed to know so that they could prepare to face whatever it was Sora faced earlier.
" Heartless." One word, spoken softly, with deathly coldness. Riku felt the threat behind the word. " Heartless of the like no one in living memory had ever encountered before. Sora, Donald, and Goofy could not reach Hollow Bastion; they were overwhelmed. They were lucky, I'd say."
" That serous?" Tarzan demanded, looking worried. " Tell me again: why are we going to Hollow Bastion, especially since the Heartless…seem more difficult than before?"
" There is a library in Hollow Bastion." Sally began patiently once again. " The library is vast, as impressive as another library I've been to, with bookshelves that nearly reach the ceiling, great rose-tinted windows, everything beautiful that you could nearly imagine. It has many books; the Hollow Bastion library is, or was, renown for its collection of books. We of the Order believe that there is a text in there written by the former king Ansem. That is why we are going there."
" What's in it?" Tarzan asked curiously.
" That we don't know." Sally had to admit, she did not know herself. " Ansem wrote three texts, of which there is one we all know of. Ansem's Report has been quite publicized but there are two other texts, ones that are less known but very important. They both involve the past of this Universe and they are probably the only reliable sources to trust. Our problem is that we don't know what is what; we don't know what it looks like and we have no references."
" Just look through the whole library," Riku suggested rather harshly. " Isn't there any list of books or something?"
Sally shook her head. " All we have are stacks of books to sift through and many of the books are ancient tomes. To destroy them is unthinkable!"
" Well what else are we supposed to do?" Riku snapped back, bristling as he jerked his arm violently and the gummi ship narrowly missed a great purple meteor. " Burn the whole library and doom ourselves or what?"
" There…is an old story, an old prophecy of sorts," Sally offered. She looked extremely troubled. " I don't know how to explain it."
" No honey?" Pooh asked hopefully. He had been asking about honey on and off for some time now. Riku looked at him, subtly shaking his head. I swear he's addicted to the stuff!
" Maybe later, Pooh," Tarzan promised. " I know a place back home, where there's…well, we'll find some later, Pooh, when we find the time."
The yellow bear nodded wistfully.
" As I was saying," Sally said slowly and with great difficulty," there's an old wives' tale that the son of King Ansem would find and read it. We only hope he is careless and leaves the writings somewhere conspicuous."
" Who's the son?" Riku demanded. He was met with silence.
" She shrugged," Tarzan offered an answer after a long five-minute silence. Riku bit his tongue, remembering quite well that he was very much blind, thank you very much.
" They say he has his father's hair, to the very least." She tried to recall some rather scattered facts. " Ansem apparently wanted to have a body that looked at least remotely like him, yet another reason why he chose you. Yes Riku, I'm talking about your silver hair. Therefore, the son of Ansem has silver hair. But I can attest for you that you are not Ansem's son. No, you are not. I have seen his son once, only once, and that was when he was very little. He looked nothing like you and I know he'll never look anything like you."
" How do you know," Riku scowled, not liking this at all, " since you saw him when he was little? People change a hell lot from when they were little to, say, my age."
" Your nose is not his nose," Sally offered a point.
The teenager stopped and scratched his head. " Good point. Damn it. Thank goodness it's not me. I'd die if it was me."
" I feel sorry for this son of Ansem," Tarzan commented. " He is the son of a man of evil."
He disappeared to who-knows-where in the back of the ship for a reason that nobody needed to know. Really, it's not something we'd want to know.
Pooh stared at a point in the midst of the Universe. He stared as the point became a tiny circle which became a bigger circle which became a circle filled with smoke and strange colors which became a circle with a strange-looking castle which became…
" Hollow Bastion," Riku said coldly. Ever did darkness radiate.

" Surprise, surprise, he's come at least," a cold voice spoke in the dim room. " Hide the Heartless. The army is not ready yet."
" Why, we can't take him out?" another voice, darkly noble, snapped back, as its owner paced the room. " He's alone, or at least with a jungle man, a teddy bear, and a woman made of parts and straws. We…can wipe them out."
He slammed his fist on the oak desk that dominated the room.
" That is not my interest," the first man spoke slowly and lazily. " Nor is it my goal. I do not waste my time and energy on petty things. Let him pass. He may benefit us."
" What, with stories of this damn world?" the second man asked. " What will that do for us?"
" The Keyblade Master has already been here before." His yellow eye stared into the other man's fiery pupils. " He knows, or knew, of this world's situation. You were foolish to let him catch a glimpse of your army."
" We did not expect any visitors! I had in mind the belief that even the mere mention of the world's name would keep everyone out! Even the Keyblade Master for that matter. After all he'd gone through thanks to your -"
" Nonetheless, he saw your army. If the other child, the child of 'dawn', sees that your army has vanished, he can relay that message to the Keyblade Master, in effect bringing him here. We can easily dispose of him then."
" By the time we do, he may be too powerful for us!" the man with the eyes of fire snarled. " How long will it be before he unlocks more secrets of his powers? We will find it harder to complete those plans of your 'general' if the Keyblade Master begins to fuse. We must keep him away from Hollow Bastion...indefinitely."
" No. I'd prefer he comes here. That way he'll bring along that bastard, too, and then…I'll have my revenge."
Axel strode into the dank room, staring down each of the two men with his cat-like emerald eyes. His Fire and Wind Wheels happened to be sitting on the oak table and he had come to fetch them.
" Right as usual," the man with the yellow eye sighed. " We need to stop that child as well. See, we cannot stop Riku now. He must see the 'peace' on this world of yours. That peace will lure the Keyblade Master here; he knows this world is the source of the Heartless and in the lull, he will want to explore."
" What of the other intruders?" Axel asked hungrily. He had an itching to spill blood. Not his blood, mind you. " The ones from our little group?"
" They're no use for us now," the man with the eyes of fire said. " Just dispose them."
" No, they will bring word as well," the other man countered again. " Just…just focus on your army. We'll handle the other details."
The other man sighed in mock defeat. " The next time around, I will be the one handling the situations on my world. And you will be staying on the sidelines."
He began to walk towards the double doors.
" One of the intruders," Axel began, " has silver hair."
The man froze, his hand about to push the door open.
" Surely you're interested in meeting this intruder," Axel continued, his eyes grinning on their own. " So very interested. After all, if he has silver hair, is he not kin to you?"
" Neither of them are kin to me!" the man snapped. " They're dead, they're all dead!"
" That's what the Advocate says," the other man noted. " I, for one, do not believe him. Therefore, I do not believe you. But I do not doubt the fact that it is not Riku. Oh no, Riku is someone different, someone very different."
" I think we all know that," the man said angrily. " I'll leave you two to your 'business', and tend to my army. I'll just leave a surprise or two for Riku and his pals."
" What kind of surprises?" Axel asked with interest.
" Just the ones that would test his resolve," the man replied and the doors opened and slammed shut.
Axel looked to the other man. " Master, perhaps I should go and burn that text before he finds it…"
" No," the man shook his head, seemingly suddenly a bit tired. " No, let them be. That text is a magnet and it will bring others. Oh yes, it will bring others."
" And what of Aozora?" Axel asked.
" He will be dealt with later," the man replied. " I want you to focus on finding the one who opened those two doors Domitan saw. Only one of us could have opened the doors. Find the traitor and brand him!"
" You know," Axel began slowly, " I have a hunch it's our youngest member."
" Oh really?"
" Yes, Zexion, I noticed, was very close to Aozora during his stay with us. And he seemed very close to that old double agent of ours as well."
" I don't want speculations, Axel. You know what I want!"
" Yes, yes, of course, of course," Axel replied in a very rude manner but the man ignored his insubordination. " Marucia wants to see you. Something about Neverland and Australia. Are you busy at the moment?"
" No, let him come," the man stood up from an intricately carved wooden chair and went to the window, looking out at the dark world that Hollow Bastion had become. " I have matters do discuss with him as well."

" This is Hollow Bastion?" Tarzan demanded as he tucked the vial of fairy dust in his leather pouch.
" Nothing like the honey tree, I see," Pooh Bear said in a depressed mannerism as he lugged out the Crystal Trident.
" Nor is it like it once was in its former glory," Sally added as she walked down the ramp and left her arm behind in the process.
" Former glory?" Riku asked as he picked up her arm and handed it to her. " What do you mean by 'glory'? Oh right, this was a former kingdom, eh? Is that it?"
" It was a very beautiful kingdom, I must admit," Sally answered as she bent done and scooped up a handful of dry soil. " The earth was black and very rich, and the hills were covered in green. The people were a very happy lot and the palace, my, it is a palace that rivals the one King Mickey resided in."
" For your information, I don't know what King Mickey's palace looks like."
" But this world fell into decay," Sally continued sadly, ignoring Riku's comment. " Very few know if this really was Ansem's kingdom. See, there were reports several years ago of the world's destruction. The refugees landed everywhere and for a while they were living in despair. They were leaderless and the king's son had disappeared. Then rumors came that the world had not been destroyed but simply vanished. It had reappeared again and all the refugees packed up to go back to their homes. Only…they never made it. Some chose to stay at whatever world they happened upon and the others…were looted and killed by bandits, who had used the rumors to their advantage. Now, almost nobody knows what Hollow Bastion used to be, they no longer know of its former legacy."
" That answers some things," Tarzan said slowly, scratching the surface with his spear. " My real parents came out of nowhere, they say. And some said they came to…England, by sea, like castaways."
" Wait a minute!" Riku exclaimed, his mind already putting the two and two together. " The time, the time doesn't match at all -"
" Deep Jungle's time is much faster than ours, even faster than the time on Spira," Sally said. " So we can safely conclude that Tarzan's original parents originated from Ansem's kingdom, because the time here is fast enough for them to age and have Tarzan and have him grow up must faster than in general. Many worlds often have times that vary, either faster or slower. Deep Jungle and Spira are but two of these worlds. But if you travel the Universe often, your body would conform to a general time, which Disney sets for the rest of us to follow…mostly."
Riku's jaw was gaping at her in a stupor and Tarzan blinked.
" Explains a great deal to me," Pooh quipped.

" Civilization?" Tarzan gestured to the column of smoke rising in the distance.
They had been walking for some time and in the end, Tarzan was forced to carry both the fairy dust and the Crystal Trident, and Riku was burdened with the task of carrying around a very weary Pooh Bear. Sally was continuously stopping and reattaching her left arm, while observing the scenario with her huge eyes.
" The castle?" Pooh asked of Sally, who was in the middle of threading her arm back on.
" Perhaps," she agreed, but with a hint of worry. " I do not recall smoke."
" Well, you say this place is completely different," Riku replied, striding forward. " I take that literally. C'mon, let's see that castle!"
Beyond the high canyon walls, he a strange smell, a smell of smoke and flame and steel.
" What the…?" Tarzan stared at the great castle. " Just like in Jane's slides…"
" I'm sorry?" Riku asked. He had not seen the castle.
" It's a castle, a castle with a smoking top and its shiny, like steel and copper," Tarzan described. " A very big castle at that, too."
" That…is not a good thing," Sally agreed. She then looked down, as they happened to be standing on a hill. " There is a transport there, a landing of some sort. Come. Perhaps it will take us to the castle."
" What, we can't just walk there?" Riku demanded as he dropped Pooh to the ground, with no harm being done. " What's wrong with walking, may I ask?"
" We've a huge ravine to cross." Sally was quick walking downhill and her arm did not fall off. She was met by a smooth walkway of stone and a massive mosaic. " Well, this is interesting…"
" What's interesting and what's wrong with a ravine?" Riku demanded as he stood on the hill, not realizing Tarzan and Pooh had gone down to follow her. " Tarzan, what is she talking about -"
He realized he was alone and talking to himself like a loony. " Goddamn it!"
He ran downhill after them.

Sally, Tarzan, and Pooh were standing in front of a mosaic, studying it carefully as Riku came to a screeching stop next to them. " Okay, what is going on here?"
" We've some very peculiar images," Sally responded calmly, her fingers on her right hand tracing something in the air. " We have an image of some golden gates, a massive wave, and a starlit sky. The gate….stands between them."
" Okay, and your point is?" Riku demanded impatiently.
Tarzan was muttering, straining to read what was set in stone underneath the mosaic.
" B-b-be-bewa-wa-ware-beware o-o-of the ga-ga-gat-gaté o-of -"
Riku stared in the general direction of Tarzan. " What!"
" He means " Beware of the gates of sea and heaven." Sally was obviously well learned in letters.
" You forgot the 's', Tarzan," Pooh added.
The poor jungle man scratched his head. " I was trying."
" What the hell's that supposed to mean?" Riku scowled and paced. " Stupid riddles, I should just…"
He clenched his fist but did not explode in wild rage. " Can't we just simply get on the damn thing and get going!"
" This is a warning." Pooh stared at the image, his paw covering his mouth.
" Indeed," Sally agreed. " There are powers of the sea and the heavens that guard the gates to Hollow Bastion. If we go, we risk running into them."
" So?" Riku demanded, folding his arms across his chest and looking very intimidating.
" We have the Crystal Trident and fairy dust," Tarzan reminded them. " Crystal Trident equals sea and fairy dust equals….um…"
" Heavens," Riku grinned. " There's our solution. Now come on, let's get going."
He walked right across the warning and onto the marble platform. Sighing, Sally joined him as well, followed by Tarzan and Pooh.
She decided not to mention that right below the big bold letters was a smaller engraving with the little fact that nobody had passed into Hollow Bastion's walls since its resurface.
Even Sora.

" There, you see, nothing. Nothing!" Riku snapped at them as he got off the hovering platform and onto the balcony landing that awaited them. " Now are you happy, Sally? Let's just get in and get this over with!"
He stomped up the two flights of stairs, followed quickly by the others, with Pooh nervously looking behind them.
The walls of Hollow Bastion loomed to their right, clad in sinister metals and puffing out smoke at a continuous rate. Balconies jutted out, most without fences, and crackling gold wire crisscrossed among them, connecting them in an intricate network of 'live' wire. Then there were sets of golden arches and two massive doors of varnished oak in the distance, welcoming all visitors that dared to enter Hollow Bastion.
" See?" Riku said, gesturing around them. " No problem at all. I'm sure Sora handled the mess when he came here."
" I'm not so sure…" Sally said rather quietly.
" Sora can beat anything!" Riku said, puffing his chest out with brotherly pride. " I forced him to learn real early."
" I should imagine," Tarzan quipped, with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
" Fine, fine, have it your way!" Riku threw his arms up in the air. " You want to see him as a natural hero, be my guest. As for me, I -"
Under the first golden arches, the balcony shook violently. Riku fought to stay on his feet, succeeded, and immediately called the Dark Keyblade to his hand. " What the?"
" Is a huge shadow," Tarzan commented, setting aside the Crystal Trident and moving his spear up front in a defensive position.
" A Shadow?" How can a Shadow Heartless cause such a racket?
Then he realized that his senses were telling him something different. There was a massive bundle of dark energy before him, weaving in and out, circling them in a threatening manner.
" It is a shadow of a beast, a winged beast," Sally alerted the blindfolded teenager. " It is only a shadow, however. But that doesn't make sense!"
" Look!" Pooh exclaimed, pointing in the general direction of the great double doors of the castle of Hollow Bastion.
Behind this 'shadow' were three great golden arches. Beyond the arches was something that flamed darkly, in dark blue hot blazes. More darkness. It was winged flame.
" It doesn't know we're here," Tarzan said," but the shadow does."
" And why not?"
Riku twitched at the voice. He knew that voice! Something close to blood red seeped into his mind, replacing his reasoning with a wild rage.
" What do you want!"
" To observe. I want to see my pet projects tested against the likes of you. Guardians of the gates of hell. Oh but perhaps not. I've other, more important things to do. Pity I won't be able to see just how well you'll fare against my own creations. Have fun, Riku."
Riku shook in near-blind anger at the voice, knowing quite well who owned that voice.
" Come back here, you coward!" he screamed at where the voice was. " Come back here and fight! Get down here and let me kill you for what you've taken from me! Ansem!"
There was no reply.
" Riku, the shadow!" Tarzan exclaimed, holding his spear up in front. " It looks like it's going to attack!"
" I don't know how scary it is," Pooh said, " but it looks it."
" Then we'll meet it head-on," Riku declared, pulling the Dark Keyblade up in front of him. Then he shouted and dropped the Keyblade. The handle had turned white-hot and burned him.
" The Keyblade's gone!" Tarzan exclaimed in astonishment,
" What? Where?" Riku was floored. He tried to call for the Keyblade but got no reply. In fact, all traces of the blade were gone from his heart, his mind, his soul. " What happened?"
" Riku, your powers!" Sally pulled him back into the reality facing them. " The shadow!"
Its head rose from the ground, a draconic head with jagged teeth and rows of what appeared to be massive, bony spikes. It had a rather long forked tongue but preferred a hideous screech to a sinister hiss.
" Oh gods, make it stop, make it stop!" Riku covered his ears and winced at its horrendous cry.
But Sally did not notice. For she had seen an unexpected spectator from the top of Hollow Bastion. A rather unwelcomed spectator who happened to be walking away with Riku's Keyblade.
" Advocate, Advocate, what game do you play?"