Chapter two is here! We'll get a little bit of Fullmetal Alchemist in this as well as the next chapter (anprobably the one after) and then we'll move on to Naruto. I'll warn you, if you haven't seen the end of Fullmetal Alchemist this fic will contain spoilers. Thanks for the review...the one lonely review. -laughs- If you read this fic, please leave a review. Be it good, bad or somewhere in between. Constructive criticism is appreciated and flame if you must. You'll find flames don't phase me...I'm flame retadardent:D
DISCLAIMER:I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything related to it. Accusations warrant a swift kick in the pants...on the front end. -grins evilly-
Chapter II: Recedentia Off Somnium
Alright...this was odd. Sora, Donald an Goofy existed only in the realm of Kingdom Hearts and the space it occupied in her vastly wild imagination. Was this still part of her dream? It seemed so incredibly real, though. Deciding someone had slipped something into her drink and this was all some strange, drug induced hallucination, she figured she'd go with it until she woke up. If she ever did.
"You know us...?" Sora asked, sitting Indian Style.
"Yes. You see, in my world, you exist only as characters in a game." Artemis explained, sitting up.
"A game?" Donald said, glaring at her.
"Yes. A game. One that I'm particularly fond of."
"Well, we still need to seal the Keyhole to your world. Mind going along with us?" Sora asked, grinning widely.
"I guess--wait. Where's Apollo?" Artemis said, jumping up suddenly and looking wildly about her.
"Who's Apollo?" Goofy asked, leaning over in a curious way.
"My brother. My younger brother, he...we were attacked by the Heartless and I blacked out. Now you're here and he...isn't." she said hopelessly, stooping low to retrieve something.
One of the medallions he wore had been left behind. It was a copper medal with alchemic runes inscribed on it. The other one he still wore was silver...he had intended to give the copper one to Artemis as a present that day, but there had been no opportunity to do so. Gazing forlornly at the medal, she looped the chain around her neck, letting the medal hang at her chest level. The girl turned back to her new companions.
"They must have taken him." she murmured.
"Aw, that might not be true! You never know...he might just be hidin' somewhere!" Goofy said encouragingly.
"Maybe..." Artemis said with a rueful smile. She turned to Sora. "But...I'm sure they've taken him. If he were here, he would be looking for me. Sora...I beg you...please let me come with you on your journey."
"Uh, well..." Sora said bashfully, shuffling his feet.
"Absolutely not!" Donald quacked irritably. "We don't need any dead weight. And we can't interfere with the natural structure of a world!"
"Aw, c'mon, Donald. It's her brother!" Sora said.
"No!" Donald countered, crossing his arms huffily.
"No, I understand. I probably would be a bother anyway...But, if you see my brother, could you tell him to come home? He's about five foot eleven with dark brown hair, gold eyes and a big, dopey smile. You can't miss him." Artemis said with a bright smile.
"I...yeah. We'll do that." Sora said with a sigh and an apologetic look.
"Well then, I promised to help you look around this world, but...it's a wee bit bigger than you might think. You'll have a hard time finding the keyhole. So, let's go to my house for a bit and we can discuss the matter further over tea." she said pleasantly, beckoning them to follow her.
Thankfully, she knew the woods well enough to not need to pay full attention when walking through them. Her mind was off somewhere else. Her brother...her little brother was gone. What if they hurt him? She needed to get him back somehow. Warm, salty tears slid down pale cheeks and she hurried to wipe them away. She hated crying. She had become a master of reading others emotions and keeping hers concealed over the years, and cracking was unacceptable. The tears did not escape Sora's notice, however, and he frowned at the other girl's lament as he, Donald and Goofy followed her silently.
In that sense, they were alike. They both were looking for someone that had been lost; someone precious to them. That unbelievable heartache of missing a friend, could only be half of what must be felt when one misses part of their family. He looked to Donald.
"I don't understand why we can't make an exception just this once." he whispered.
"Because there are NO exceptions." Donald countered.
"Not even once?" Goofy asked.
"Not even once." Donald confirmed.
"Hey, how come we always have to do what YOU say, huh?" Sora asked, quirking an eyebrow.
"Because I'm responsible and if we did what you said, we'd be dead by now." Donald said with a smirk.
"I resent that." Sora snorted.
They followed Artemis as she approached the door to a small bungalow. Her parents were divorced, and she lived with her mother and two younger brothers. Using her key to open the door, she motioned for them to follow her inside. They sat on the couch in the den and waited as she disappeared into the modest kitchen. She returned carrying a plate full of cookies and tea and set it down. They each took a cup and she wrapped her hands around hers appreciatively. The chill had yet to leave her bones, making her feel vastly empty inside.
Silver-blue eyes scanned the faces of the rag-tag group of heroes. They looked even more impressionable in person. Quietly sipping her tea, she was surprised to hear Sora speak first.
"Is this your brother?"
He was standing over the fireplace mantle, holding a picture.
"Yes. Both the boys in that picture are my brothers. That's my mother next to them."
"Hmm..."
He set the picture frame back down gently, making sure not to disturb the other ones or break anything. He sat back down on the couch and stared into her eyes, as though her were examining her soul.
"There's something...different about you." he said.
"Different?" the other three chorused.
"Yeah, but...I'm not sure what it is." he said, running a hand through his spiky brown hair.
"Oh, well...I'm not sure either." Artemis replied, blinking.
Suddenly, loud banging noises could be heard outside. Looking to each other, the four of them jumped up from the couch and ran to the window. As they looked outside, they spotted large round beings and more of the smaller Heartless. Sora gritted his teeth, his Keyblade appearing in his right hand. He looked to his partners.
"You ready?" he asked.
They both nodded before flinging the door open and charging out. Artemis stood alone for a moment before rushing to the broom closet. Detaching the pole from the bottom half of a broom, she held it ready and raced out to join the. She began swinging the broom pole around, knocking the smaller Heartless left and right. Sora blanched as he saw her on the battlefield.
"Artemis, go back! It's too dangerous!" he called.
"No! I need to do this!" she countered.
Just as she hammered a Soldier Heartless, a shadow loomed over her. Feeling anxiety well up in her chest, she slowly turned around and nearly yelped at the sight. A Large Body stood in front of her, looking ill tempered. She began to back away slowly, dropping the pole as she did so.
"Run, now!" Donald yelled, as he and the others rushed over.
Suddenly...she stopped. Standing straight, she glared down the Large Body as it headed towards her. Sighing heavily, she closed her eyes and held her hands out in front of her.
"No. I won't let the Darkness overcome me." she said aloud.
Sora raced forward to make sure she didn't get hurt. But with him at such a distance, he didn't think he would make it as the Large body reared to strike. Artemis closed her eyes tighter and gritted her teeth.
Don't be afraid...You hold the mightiest weapon of all.
Just as the Large Body was about to strike, a miraculous thing happened. Even with her eyes closed, she abruptly felt a weight in her hands and heard the unmistakable sound of a the Heartless being deflected. Figuring Sora must have done the job, she opened her eyes.
The Heartless were gone -- all of them had been defeated. But shimmering with light in her hands...was the Kingdom Key: a Keyblade. Blinking, she looked down at her apparel. It was almost identical to what Sora wore now, with the exception that she had pants instead of shorts. Sora, Donald and Goofy were just as, if not more, stunned than she was. Heart fluttering, she got a better grip on it and slowly began to examine it, turning it all different angles. A Keyblade...and she had summoned it. Sora strode forward, standing next to her as he held up his next to it to compare. There were the same.
"That's why you're different..." he said suddenly.
"I...guess so." she said with a half laugh.
"So can she come NOW?" Sora asked Donald with an energetic grin.
"I don't think we have any other choice." Donald said.
"A-hyuk! Welcome to the team, Artemis!" Goofy said happily.
"I...wow. Thank you so much." she said, bowing slightly.
When she straightened up, a most peculiar thing happened. The medallion around her neck began to glow, then lifted up and off her neck. Floating in midair, a straight beam of light shot out and into the sky, a Keyhole appearing. She gazed up at it in awe, then looked to Sora. He was going to seal the Keyhole! He grinned widely, clasping his hands behind his head and shaking his head in a knowing way.
"No, I think...you should. It's your world. You should be the one to seal it."
"Really? Me?" she asked.
He nodded, along with Goofy and Donald. The brunette was grateful. As he'd said, it was her world, and who knew when she'd see it again? She wanted to make sure it would be protected while she was gone...and she wanted -- needed -- to be the one to do it. Taking a deep breath, she stood straight, slowly lifting her Keyblade and pointing it at the Keyhole. The girl stood strong as a beam of light began to form at the tip. It shot out and into the Keyhole, locking it; sealing the world from all who would do it harm. The Keyhole disappeared and the medallion returned to her neck. She turned back to the others.
"Not bad for a first time?" she asked.
"Not bad at all." Sora said with a grin.
"We should go now." Donald said. "Another path has opened up."
"Shouldn't she wait for her mom and brother so she can say goodbye?" Goofy inquired.
Artemis smiled lightly and shook her head.
"No. It's best of we just leave. I can explain everything...after I've gotten Apollo back. And saying goodbye is like saying we'll never see each other again. It's too final...I'll wait until our journey is over." she said.
Sora smiled, finding wisdom in her words. They went back into the house momentarily so Artemis could retrieve some of her things. She left a small note to her mother, saying she'd gone to find Apollo, not to worry and that shed explain everything when she returned. Finding they were ready to go, the four boarded the Gummi Ship and set off for yet another world.
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"Hey, hey! We're coming up on the next world!" Sora shouted excitedly.
"Oh yeah? Wonder what it is?" Artemis said excitedly.
She'd been with the group for a few days now, having just finished sealing the Keyhole to Belle and the Beast's world. She was adapting nicely, fitting right in with them. Their companionship kept her spirits high, even though she still worried for her brother Apollo. She was becoming quite skilled with the Keyblade as well. Her skill level wasn't quite up to par with Sora's, but she was learning quickly.
"We'll just have to land and find out." Donald said.
"Yup. Just like we always do!" Goofy said cheerfully.
Pulling the Gummi Ship in, they landed in a dense forest. Clambering out, they began walking, hoping to run across someone who might be able to give them a clue as to where they were. Artemis laughed as Donald and Sora began arguing over some minuscule detail of one of the worlds they'd visited, as Goofy tried to get them both to cool down. After what seemed like ages of walking, they emerged from the woodlands and headed down a road. They could see a city in the distance and knew it would only be a matter of time until they reached it.
"Hmm...this world looks quiet enough." Sora noted.
"So far." Donald said.
"Yeah, odds are there's something going on here. What that might be...I have no idea." Artemis concluded.
Reaching the city, they began looking around, wondering just what kind of world they were in this time. Artemis suddenly broke away from the group, as though she knew where she were going. Looking at each other oddly, Sora, Donald and Goofy decided to follow her instead. At last she stopped and stood in front of a large building with banners hanging from either side. Her mouth hung open.
"We're in Central!" she said excitedly.
"Central?" Goofy said, questioningly.
"Yes, it's a military capitol in the world of Hagane no Renkinjutsushi, otherwise known as Fullmetal Alchemist. It's a really popular anime and manga back in my world." she explained, looking to them.
"Oh! Central!" Sora said happily.
They nodded their understanding. She had brought some of these "manga" with her and Sora had actually begun to enjoy them quite a bit. He'd particularly enjoyed Naruto and Fullmetal Alchemist, taking interest in Rurouni Kenshin and a few others as well. Neither of them had expected them to turn up as an actual world. They'd stopped wondering why things that were fictitional in her world turned up to be real...it was just another mystery that would have to wait to be solved.
"Look! Over there!" Donald said suddenly.
There was a swarm of Heartless crowding around a group of people. Artemis noted how some of them looked oddly like Chimera she'd seen before. Summoning their Keyblades, they took off towards the swarm...only to be thrown back by the shock of an explosion.
"Hey! What's the big idea? We're on your side!" Donald quacked angrily.
A man looked over at them briefly, his gloved hands poised to snap. He wore a blue military uniform. His raven hair shifted slightly in the wind caused by the explosion, and a black eye patch covered one of his deep ebony eyes. Sora and Artemis gaped from their sitting position on the ground.
"Colonel Roy Mustang!"
Well, there it is. I'll get the next chapter up as soon as possible. We'll see just what happens to the gang!