Darkness was all that existed around Gabriel. He couldn't see anything. He couldn't feel his body. Even his voice didn't work. "At least I have my thoughts," the raven mused. Hex did something to him when he ate the Dream Keepers, but what exactly Gabriel didn't know. All he knew was that Fantasia had been stripped from his body, and everyone had been played by Hex from the start.
Attempting to move his body, Gabriel was surprised when a cartoony heart appeared out of the blue. "Okay, I guess this is my… soul? Or it's Kingdom Hearts logic, in which case, I hope I don't have a Nobody to worry about now." The heart floated away, bumping into a streak of blue magic that zoomed by. "Wait, that was part of Fantasia. Come back here!"
The heart followed the blue magic, before coming to a stop in front of a bright spot within the void. The blue magic touched the spot, and soon Gabriel could see his friends on the outside, all of them failing to do anything against Hex. "Everyone… I'm sorry that I couldn't save you…" The raven's voice gained some determination. "But you can't give up now! Iron Man wasn't the only Avenger to save the world, Luke wasn't the last Jedi, and I won't be the only hero of this world! So stand up and fight!"
Soren laid on the ground his ears perking up was Gabriel's voice reached out to him. "Gabriel?"
"Soren! When we first met, you were just a prankster that had a split personality. You trained with boy Elena and Bruce Banner to merge your personalities and learned how to use your pranks for good! Don't let Hex win now! Show him why you shouldn't underestimate the little guy."
The Jaquin stood back up, his infinity-sided dice shining before fading away. The light fell on Soren, transforming him into an adult Jaquin with shining spots. "Is this crystal magic? Woah, and I'm older too! Okay Gabriel, I'll give Hex his what-for, Jaquin style!"
Logan knelt on one knee, his sword in the ground. "I can't go on like this…"
"Logan! Don't give up now! Even in times where you screwed up, you always made sure to try again and make up for your mistakes. So don't beat yourself up over me. Become the hero that's inside you, and fight back against Hex!"
Logan's sword glowed and faded away, transforming into an even larger weapon and giving logan owl-themed armor. "Check it out, it's like I'm a Power Ranger or something. Okay Hex, how about you taste my brand-new Owl Buster!"
Silver was flat on his back, birds swirling around his head. "Ugh, could someone give me the number of what just hit me?"
"Silver! Come on man, you have to stand up and fight. You may be the most hesitant of all of us, but you're the heart of the team. You're not shy about being yourself, and now you have a boyfriend that needs your help! Don't just be a princess like Cinderella, be a warrior like Mulan!"
Silver's remote faded into light, transforming into a scepter that turned Silver's clothes into a fancy battle tunic. "Okay, I can do this. Yeah, I can do this! All of my friends are counting on me!"
Adam's arm was a sparking mess, though he still stood protecting Melanie. "I won't let anyone hurt us…"
"Adam, when we first met, I honestly didn't think to highly of you. But with the more adventures we went on together, the more I got to know who you really were. There's no one better that getting us out of trouble and traps as you are, and now is your greatest test. Show Hex what the spirit of adventure is all about!"
Adam's golden atlas faded away, replaced by a new attachment for Adam's arm. It transformed into a blaster arm, then quickly shifted between multiple forms. "Gabriel, if you can hear us, I'll fight on! One last adventure!"
Rachel fell back, her Keyblade falling to the floor as she took a breath. "For Gabriel, I still fight!"
"Rachel, remember to pace yourself! You're the most dedicated of all of us, and my trusted second in command. You can lead the others to victory, but remember that your allies are there to catch you as well. A leader is only as good as their team, so have each other's backs and win this thing!"
Fatal Crest then transformed, becoming an obsidian sword with streaks of blue, green, and pink running down the blade. Rachel's outfit also was fully repaired. "A new sword… I dub you Maleficent's Bane! Come on guys, let's finish this!"
The blue light around Gabriel's heart then moved away from the bright spot, leaving the raven in darkness once more. A red light appeared, which the heart followed until he reached five cocoons. Each of the Dream Keepers were inside of them, with the red light pulsing around them. "Guys… I consider you my friends as well. By watching your adventures in the real world, I learned so much from all of you…"
"Sisu, your optimism and faith in others is inspiring. The fact that you're a sidekick I find hilarious was a bonus as well. You're a dragon of good character, and friend I only wish I met sooner." Sisu's cocoon shattered into a soft rain.
"Kairi, while you may be left out of the action by your friends, you never gave up on any of them. You're the light they reach to, and in turn keep them safe. Your chance to shine will come, and I want to be at your side when you become the hero I know you have inside of you." Kairi's cocoon shattered into crystalized flower petals.
"Brooklyn, you've been through so much, and sometimes you didn't even get a thank you. But you do what is right, and I'm glad that you got to help me lead as well. You keep on fighting, and there's no one else I'd rather spar with that you." Brooklyn's cocoon shattered into stone and flames.
"Lena, your story is truly inspiring. You defied what you were created for, made real friendships, and found the power that was within you to become a force for good. My only wish is that your story could have continued. But now we can make new memories, and I want to be there on those adventures you've yet to take." Lena's cocoon shattered into pink and blue sparks.
"And Jasiri. Gosh, where to begin? What started as a chance meeting became something more, and I don't know if I'd be here today if it wasn't for that optimistic hyena I met in the boneyard all that time ago. We may have been separated, but fate brought us back together. I'm glad that I've had the opportunity to be your boyfriend." Jasiri's cocoon shattered into purple mist.
With that, the red and blue lights swirled around Gabriel's heart, summoning out a green light to join them. The Dream Keepers all looked at the heart, realizing who it was.
"This must be Gabriel's heart," Kairi said. "But there's no body to put it back in to."
"The magic surrounding it is the fragments of Fantasia," Lena noted. "Looks like Hex didn't do as good of a job absorbing it as he thought."
"Then we must all be inside of Hex. That means we can take him out from in here," Brooklyn suggested.
"Yeah, let's turn his stolen power against him!" Jasiri cheered, nuzzling the heart. "But wait, only Gabriel could properly use Fantasia. How can he use it if he doesn't have a body to channel the magic through."
Everyone thought about it, until Sisu held up her Dragon Gem, the orb glowing in time with the heart. Holding the gem close, the dragon heart a faint echo of a song resonating from the objects. "I think Gabriel's heart has a song inside of it. Maybe, and this is a bit of crazy idea, but what if we sing the song? My gem can then act as a way for Gabriel to use the Fantasia and get his body back! Maybe?"
"It's worth a try," Jasiri nodded.
They all hummed, tuning with the song as Sisu began, singing the lyrics in a somber tone.
Sisu:
Life's like a road that you travel on
There's one day here and the next day gone
Kairi joined in the song.
Kairi:
Sometimes you bend, sometimes you stand
Sometimes you turn your back to the wind
Brooklyn nodded along with the beat as he sang.
Brooklyn:
There's a world outside every darkened door
Where blues won't haunt you anymore
Lena let her magic resonate with the song.
Lena:
Where the brave are free and lovers soar
Come ride with me to the distant shore
Jasiri placed her forehead against the heart as she sang.
Jasiri:
We won't hesitate to break down the garden gate
There's not much time left today, yeah…
Outside of the void, the music seemed to leak out of Hex, reaching the other heroes as well. "It's Gabriel!" Rachel recognized.
"What? But I ended him!" Hex gasped in confusion.
"That's what you get for underestimating the Dream Keeper!" Rachel laughed. "Everyone, I think Gabriel needs our help. So please, sing along!"
Soon enough, everyone raised their voices to the sky, a white glow pulsing from Hex's chest as they did so.
Everyone:
Life is a highway
I wanna ride it all night long
If you're going my way
Well, I wanna drive it all night long…
Hex suddenly spasmed, and his chest was blasted open as a rocking guitar rift was heard by everyone. The Dream Keepers floated out of the void, each of them with an instrument in hand: Brooklyn on lead guitar, Lena on Keyboard, Kairi on bass, Sisu on drums, Jasiri on rhythm guitar, and Gabriel with a microphone powered by pure Fantasia magic.
"Good to be back, everyone!" the Dream Keeper called.
"Wait, did Gabriel change species?" Logan asked.
"It looks like Gabriel is channeling both the power of Fantasia and the Dragon Gem together," Adam noted.
"So now instead of a raven, Gabriel's an awesome music dragon!" Soren cheered.
Indeed, Gabriel was now a dragon, though he kept his black and white color scheme. His magic robes floated with magic, and his smile was warm with power. "Hey Hex, you tried to use Fantasia for yourself, but this magic works only for those that are true to themselves. And after meeting all of my friends, I learned that the truest I can be, is to help others and put them above myself!
Gabriel:
Through all these cities and all these towns
It's in my blood and it's all around
He pulled Jasiri close as all of them landed, the hyena laughing as he sang.
I love you now like I loved you then
This is the road and these are the hands
Images of all the places the Dream Keepers had been appeared around them as Hex tried to attack them. However, the heroes used the music to artfully dodge around his large body.
From the Tree of Life to Hollywood nights
The Grizzly peak to those Epcot lights
The other heroes attacked Hex, and when they fell, Gabriel and the Dream Keepers magically restored them.
They knock me down and back up again
You're in my blood, I'm not a lonely man
Gabriel, in his new dragon form, flapped his wings, taking to the sky as the three lights of Fantasia soared around him.
There's no load I can't hold
A road so rough, this I know
I'll be there when the light comes in
Just tell them we're survivors!
The Dream Keepers sang together, keeping Hex distracted as the others on the ground fought back.
Dream Keepers (and Gabriel):
Life is a highway
Well, I wanna ride it all night long (Whoo!)
If you're going my way
I wanna drive it all night long (All night long)
Gabriel threw a fist in the air and cheered.
(Ah, Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, yeah!)
Fantasia tore away at the dark clouds, bring back the blue skies and sunshine, much to Hex's dismay.
Life is a highway
Well, I wanna ride it all night long (Hmmmmm, yeah!)
If you're going my way (You're goin' my way)
I wanna drive it all night long (All night long)
The song changed it's tune, with Gabriel and Jasiri having a moment together.
Gabriel (and Jasiri):
There was a distance between you and I
(Between you and I)
They sang together, voices resonating as magic built around them.
Both:
A misunderstanding once, but now?
We look it in the eye
At its maximum power, Gabriel cheered on his friends to fight.
Gabriel:
(Oooooooooh! Ohhhh! YEAH!)
Rachel went first, coating Maleficent's Bane in light magic and charging in. Hex created a gun arm to attack her, but the sword mage blocked the attack and sliced the gun off. Logan jumped over her, attacking Hex's other arm and disabling the magic blast he was charging up. Adam then created a mega electric blast to paralyze Hex, followed by Silver creating a magical beam to knock him over. Finally, Soren flew over Hex's chest and pulled out his core, making the giant robot body fade away and returning Hex to his original cube form.
"What, just, HAPPENED!?" Hex shouted in dismay.
"You underestimated what makes the Magical World special," Logan smirked.
"We have the power of friendship!" Soren shouted.
"And all of the dreams we have can come true if we work towards them," Silver added.
"No matter how far the journey is, we can do it," Adam nodded.
"And evil will always fall as long as we're around!" Rachel said.
There ain't no load that I can't hold
A road so rough, this I know
I'll be there when the light comes in
Tell me we're survivors!
"Come everyone, sing along!" Gabriel said. He raised his hands and clapped, the others doing the same as they all sang.
Dream Keepers (and Gabriel):
Life is a highway
Well, I wanna ride it all night long (All night long, yeah!)
If you're goin' my way
Well, I wanna drive it all night long
(Ah, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, yeah!)
The instrumentation came back in full force, with Gabriel flying over everyone, using Fantasia to turn the battleground into an impromptu dance party.
Life is a highway (Life is a highway)
I wanna ride it all night long (Whooooo, yeah!)
If you're going my way (You're going my way)
I wanna drive it all night long (All night long, yeah!)
(C'mon! Ah, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, yeah!)
The magic in the air gathered around Hex, forming a cage to hold him in.
Life is a highway
I wanna ride it all night long (Yeah, I wanna drive it all night long, baby)
If you're goin' my way (You're going my way)
I wanna drive it all night long
(All night long)
The Dream Keepers played the song out, with the crowd cheering as Gabriel landed, giving a bow.
"So, you're a dragon now?" Jasiri said, smiling up at him. "I think I liked the feathers more, but I could get used to this."
Gabriel reached for his necklace, touching the Dragon Gem and returning him to his raven form. "Well, that was just a power up from you guys connecting with the song in my heart. I don't think I'll be doing that again without some more training." He looked at the others as they returned to their regular forms as well.
"Hey, why did you keep your cool new sword," Logan asked Rachel.
"Because I'm a master of magic," Rachel said. "Gabriel boosted all of our potentials to their max with his song. For me, I was already at the level to gain Maleficent's Bane, so I get to keep it. Besides, aren't you going to get Keyblade training soon?"
"Well yeah, but having a Buster Sword is awesome too," Logan shrugged.
"So, what should we do with Hex?" Adam said, holding up the cage.
"You haven't seen the last of me!" Hex shouted. "I will be back!"
"Give it a rest," Soren said, shaking the cage. "If you come back, we'll just beat you again, and this time you won't take our magic from us!"
"Still, he should be put somewhere that he can have an eye kept on him," Silver said.
"Leave that to me!" Oswald said, walking up to the gang with Mickey. "I need to get Hex back to the Wasteland anyway. Plus, there's a certain someone back there that can easily keep an eye on our hacker friend here."
"Wait, you don't mean Vic, do you?" Hex groaned. "I can't stand that guy!"
"Because he actually follows the rules?" Gabriel said, which made the others giggle.
"Ugh, I've had enough of all of you losers," Hex grumbled as he was taken away.
The Dream Keepers waved goodbye to Oswald, then to everyone else as the rest of the characters made their ways home. Soon it was just the main heroes remaining in front of the castle. "So, we saved the world… Now what?" Soren asked.
"Well, I think I'll be continuing my quest to find the Dreamfinder," Adam stated. Melanie gave a polite cough by his side. "Oh, after Melanie and I tie the knot, of course."
"And I'll be training with Sora, Riku, and Kairi to hopefully get a Keyblade," Logan said.
"Staghart and I are going to have a nice date together, I think," Silver smiled.
"It'll be back to magic training for me," Rachel replied.
"And I'll be with you every step of the way," Poe said, taking her hand.
"I won't have to start calling Rachel "Mom," will I?" Lena asked, getting a laugh out of the others.
Soren looked a little down. "So, you guys are all going to leave?"
Gabriel sat down at the feet of the Partners statue next to Soren, with the others joining him. "Soren, no matter where we go, or how far apart we get from each other, we will always be with each other in our hearts. So, if you ever feel alone, just look up at the sky and remember all the good times we had."
"And don't forget to give us a call from time-to-time!" Jasiri said.
Gabriel looked ahead down Main Street, a smile on his face forming as he silently gestured for the others to look. Standing behind Mickey and his friends was a golden light, which if you looked hard enough, formed the shape of a man in a suit with a mustache.
"Is that…?" Soren whispered.
Gabriel just nodded. "I think this is the start of a brand new day."
Author's Note
Wow there was a lot here! Of course the power of friendship saved the day, along with the obligatory final battle super powerup for all of the team members.
Now then, allow me to get a bit personal here. You might have wondere to yourself, "Why is the song that defeats Hex "Life is a Highway?" Didn't we already use a song from Cars?" To answer this, I need to go back, way back, to my childhood. The year is 2006, and seven-year-old me first heard this song on the radio after seeing the movie. "Life is a Highway" is the first song I ever fully learned the lyrics to, and I consider it the moment that truly understood the magic of Disney. Whenever I feel down, this is the song that listen to that gets my spirits up again. So why is this song the song of Gabriel's heart? Because it's the song of my heart. Life is a journey that everyone takes, and through the ups and downs, the places you go, the people you meet, and the love you find, everyone deserves to tell that story. That's why Disney means to me, and I'm glad that shared it all with you.
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But wait, this isn't the end yet! I've got two epilogue chapters for you all, so stick around for the next two weeks as we truly wrap up this story!