Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, the Characters, or any Game, Movie, or TV Show content that are mentioned in this FanFiction story. They belong to their respective owners and I honor & respect their great works.
(Nome)
Nome, Alaska. A small town almost ontop of the world, which was literally in the middle of nowhere. It was a cold winter in 1925 and the snow was hard in this part of the world. Here, civilization was old-fashioned. The fastest, most reliable usage of transportation was dog sleds pulled by teams of dogs. In Nome, races were held annually every year to discover which dog sled team was best. And competition here were very fierce.
There was one race already going on between two sled teams out near the outskirts of the town. One was already up front in the lead with the other team slowly catching up. Leading the second team was a large, muscular black-white Alaskian Malamute named Steele, who was determined to win the race by any means necessary. The two sled teams began approaching a gap in the rocks which would fit only one. Star, a grey-white Siberian Husky who was one of the dogs on Steele's team saw the narrow space in the gap and was nervous that they wouldn't be able to get infront of the other team in time.
"Steele! We're not gonna make it!" Star says
The only response that Star got was a kick in the head by Steele. The Alaskan Malamute was cunning and devious and he was about to prove it. Without warning, Steele snaps his jaws at the second lead dog's feet, causing it to jump and yelp in fright. It's feet gets tangled in the straps of it's harness and it crashes into the snow. And this caused the other dogs and the sled to crash. The musher was thrown off the sled and he falls onto the snow. Glancing up at Steele's team, the musher curses his name, knowing that he was responsible for the accident.
"Steele!" The musher shouts
Once they were on the other side of the valley, Steele stops and glances back at the other dog sled team. He was rather pleased of his dirty trick. Soon, he and his team continue onwards and they head for a small town in the distance. A signal man, who was standing up on a hill as a lookout, saw Steele and the dog sled team and he shoots up his flare gun, sending a bright flare into the air.
Not far from the race, Devon arrives in the sleeping world and walks through snow-covered wasteland. A cold gust of wind hits Devon causing him to fold his arms and rub them together. He had dealt with cold weather before, but it was way colder here than anywhere else he's been in the past.
"Geez. It's colder here than Hogwarts was during Christmas. Makes me wish I brought a warm coat." Devon says
Suddenly, Devon's clothes began to glow with blue light, causing him to look down at himself and gasp in surprise. In a flash of light, his clothes had changed into those more adapted to the freezing winter climate.
Devon now wore a grey winter bomber jacket that had a durable leather finish exterior, a plush cream sheepskin interior to keep him warm, a hood folded in the back, and two button pockets on the sides. On his hands were grey-black nylon fleece-lined down winter gloves. On his lower body, Devon's pants had changed into dark blue snow pants made from polyester and nylon with a hook-and-loop adjustable and snap closure secured by a black belt with a silver buckle. They also had zipper pockets along with Velcro cargo pockets on the thighs and stretchable boot gaiters for keeping snow out of his boots. On his feet, Devon wore black and grey suede leather boots with cushioned Sherpa lining, grey quick-close straps, and a waterproof rubber base to keep his feet dry. The Celestial Ring was out on Devon's right-middle finger and his Kingdom Hearts necklace hung out from his jacket.
Devon looked himself over and was amazed by the overall design of the winter clothes. And it wasn't heavy at all. In fact, they were very lightweight.
"Huh. Must be more of the Inheritor's magic. At least now I'll be able to adapt to the cold." Devon says
Devon glances around at the environment, examining his surroundings. The land was barren and pale with snow as far as the eye could see. In the distance to his left was snow-peaked grey mountains. The sun shined brightly with clear skies on the terrain.
"Where am I anyway?" Devon asks
Suddenly, there was loud bang in the air, which caused Devon to jump with a slight start. He looks up and saw a bright flare in the sky.
"A flare? Where did that come from?" Devon asks
Glancing down and looking in the direction where the flare came from, he saw a small town which was not too far from his location. Wanting to investigate, Devon ran towards the town, curious to see what he would find there.
The townspeople were not the only ones wanting to see the race. Up on one of the buildings, standing on the rails of a balcony was a stray dog. This dog had brown-grey fur on his upper body and lighter brown-grey fur on his chest, around his eyes, and underside areas, and dark brown-grey ears. He also had a yellow sclera and brown eyes. This dog's name was Balto and he was no ordinary dog. In fact, Balto was a wolf-dog hybrid. And because of this, he was mostly disliked and shunned by the people of Nome. Balto saw the flare in the sky and he was excited.
"It's the three-mile marker." Balto says
Balto lowers himself over the side of the balcony and reaches down for something and brings it up to his level. In his mouth was a Russian Snow Goose, who was actually Balto's oldest friend and adoptive father named Boris.
"Balto, get your slobbering mouth off me!" Boris says
Boris pushes his head out of Balto's mouth and wipes himself off from the slobber.
"Let's go, Boris. We can cut around the back and catch the end of the race." Balto says
"Oh, no. No, no, no." Boris says
Boris grabs Balto's tail, forcing him to stop.
"I'm a delicate country bird. I hate going into town." Boris whines
"Aw, come on. What's the worse that could happen?" Balto says
Boris was about to object when Balto takes off, jumping from balcony to balcony, working his way along the side of the building. He comes up to a laundry line which spanned over the streets below and places Boris into an empty pair of pants that were hanging. Then, he grabs hold of the line with his mouth and swings over to the other side. Landing on the roof of the next building, Balto grabs Boris and sets him down next to him.
"Why do I let you talk me into these things?" Boris asks
Not looking where he was going, Boris rolls down the other side of the roof and falls down the side of the building. Luckily for him, there was a moose head in the side of the building and it's antlers caught Boris' feet, leaving him dangling in the air. Boris let out a sigh, but that quickly changed when he looked over to his left and saw three naked bare ducks hanging by their feet on hooks. He lets out a gasp as he realized what building it was. It was a butcher's shop! Boris goes to free himself until a butcher's arm reaches out and grabs him by his feet, bringing him inside. The butcher sets the goose down and cuts off a handful of Boris' tailfeathers. Boris stands up and takes back his feathers, much to the human's confusion.
"What do-" Boris says
The butcher pulls out a cleaver, which really scared Boris. The goose makes a run for the window, but the cleaver drops down infront of him, blocking his path. Then, the butcher grabs Boris by his feet and sets him down, raising his cleaver up. Boris glances down and saw the cleaver's shadow over his neck, making him scream. Just as the butcher brought his cleaver down, Balto leans in from the window and grabs Boris by his head, pulling him out of the butcher's shop and saving his life, leaving behind a feathery outline of Boris' body. The butcher looks out the window and saw Balto with Boris on another rooftop across the way from him.
"Bring that back, you thief!" The butcher yells
Balto heard dogs barking and he looks out in the distance and saw Steele and his team crossing the snowy wasteland. Then, he looks over to his left and saw a crowd of people standing on the sidelines behind lines of rope.
"You are putting me down now, Mr. Golden Retriever?" Boris says
Balto looks down at Boris in his mouth and chuckles.
"Whatever you say, Boris." Balto says
The wolf-dog sets the goose down on the roof.
"Every time there's a race, you run around like you're in it." Boris says
"One day, I will be." Balto says
Balto climbs down the side of the building and stands up on a wooden fence in an alleyway.
"Heel, boy! Boris Goosinoff is no spring chicken!" Boris says
Boris slowly slides down the roof until he falls through a skylight. Then, he falls out from an extended window and the pile of snow falls ontop of him.
"I'm no spring penguin either." Boris says
The russian goose emerges from the snow and he wraps himself up with his wings, shivering from the cold.
"Oy! It's cold!" Boris says
Boris falls through the air, but Balto jumps onto a leaning plank of wood and catches the goose in his mouth, heading into another building through an open window. A second flare shoots up into the air with a bang.
"Look! The two-mile mark!" A man exclaims
Balto comes out of the building into an alleyway with Boris having his right-wing over his back.
"Come on! We don't want to miss the finish." Balto says
"Oh, that would be a tragedy." Boris says
The wolf-dog takes off down the alleyway while Boris spins around and falls into the snow.
"I was being sarcastic." Boris mutters
Balto ran on ahead to catch the race, separating himself from Boris. The wolf-dog looked over towards the flare in the sky, not paying attention to where he was going. Then, he bumps into a figure, knocking him over on his back onto the snow. Both were dazed by the collision. And when he came to, Balto saw that he had bumped into a young teen. It was Devon, who also came to and was soon staring at the wolf-dog.
A few minutes earlier...
It took Devon some minutes to traverse the snowy terrain, but soon he arrives in the outskirts of the town, where he saw a town sign carved from wood. Devon got closer and read the sign.
"Nome, Alaska. At least I know where I am now." Devon says
Continuing onward, Devon proceeds further into the town and takes a look around. The town itself appeared to be old-fashioned. Every house and building was made of wood. Gas lamps were more of a primary light source than electric bulbs. There was no cars or paved roads. And strangely enough, the streets seemed to be deserted.
"It's awfully quiet. Where are all the townspeople?" Devon says
Devon soon heard some excited shouting and cheering coming from further in the town.
"Must be some kind of event going on. I wonder what's up?" Devon says
The Keyblade Wielder began walking in the direction of the cheers when a group of Nightmare Dream Eaters appeared before him, blocking his path. These Nightmares were Iceguin Aces, Kooma Pandas, Yoggy Rams, and Halbirds.
Iceguin Aces were medium-sized penguin-like creatures designed as old-fashioned aviators. They had stubby brown-black bodies, yellow jackets with a blue-green edge, wings with colorful red and orange feathers, and aqua-colored flippers. On their heads were stubby protrusions resembling thick aviator goggles. And around their necks was a ring of dark pink orbs acting like insulated scarves.
"Figures that Dream Eaters would be here." Devon says
Devon summoned his Keyblade: Soul Calibur in a flash of blue light in his right-hand and got into battle stance. His Spirit Dream Eaters: Ryu Dragon and Tyranto Rex appeared next to him and stood alongside the young teen as they faced off against the Nightmares.
Devon rushes forward at the Nightmares and begins slashing away at the dark creatures, targeting the Iceguin Aces first. He swings Soul Calibur left and right at three Iceguin Aces, taking each one out with just one slice. A Yoggy Ram charges at Devon and goes to strike him with it's horns. Devon ducks down and leans over to the right, dodging the horns of the goat-like Dream Eater, and counters the attack with a strong slash at it's left-side. Then, he goes right through the Yoggy Ram with a right spinning strike, defeating it and casting it down. A Kooma Panda charges at Devon and spins it's arms around in an attack to try and hit him. Devon leaps up over the rotund bear-like Nightmare with a cartwheel flip and strikes it in the head with Soul Calibur, causing it to stumble forward and fall flat onto it's belly. With the Nightmare down, Devon jumps into the air and dives down at it with his crystal Keyblade pointed downward and himself wrapped in blue light, finishing off the dark creature. Another Kooma Panda charges at Devon with it's arms stretched out to grab him. Devon slides underneath in-between it's legs just as it goes to grab him with it's claws. Rising up on the other side, he quickly spins around and delivers a strong blow to it's back, causing the Nightmare to stumble forward and strikes it back with a jumping strike, then jumps onto it's rotund body. Using it's large body, he launches himself spinning into the air, strikes the Kooma Panda in the head with right slash from Soul Calibur and kick from his left-leg, then finishes it off with a downward slash, cutting down the dark creature.
Ryu Dragon shoots a fireball at a Iceguin Ace, blasting it into oblivion. Another Iceguin Ace slides toward the Spirit on it's belly, but the dragon swats it away with it's tail. A Yoggy Ram charges at the Ryu Dragon for an attack, but the Spirit breathes a stream of fire in it's face, then kicks it away with it's hindlegs. Three Halbirds fly up to the Ryu Dragon and flap their wings, launching dark spiral blasts at the Spirit. The Ryu Dragon leaps away from left to right, dodging the dark blasts, then fights back by shooting three fireballs up at the Halbirds. Two of them were hit by the fireballs, but one managed to zip away and avoid the fiery projectile. The Ryu Dragon leaps up at the bird-like Nightmare and catches it in it's mouth. It shook the Halbird around in it's jaws for a bit, then tosses it aside. A second Yoggy Ram shoots a fireball at the Ryu Dragon through it's horns, but the Spirit counters the attack with a fireball of it's own, cancelling it out. The Ryu Dragon charges at the Yoggy Ram and tackles it to the ground. Pinning it down with it's front legs, the Spirit dragon bites down into the Yoggy Ram's neck, putting down the Nightmare.
Tyranto Rex breathes it's fiery breath onto three Iceguin Aces, incinerating the Nightmares until they disappear. Four Halbirds fly towards the Spirit dinosaur in formation for an attack. Each of them readied their talons as they got closer. But before they could reach it, the Tyranto Rex turns to the bird-like Nightmares and lets out a loud sonic roar, which utterly blows them away. The Spirit dinosaur then jumps into the air and lands down on a Kooma Panda, flattening it under it's large feet.
Devon leaps back as an ice shard was hurled at him. The ice shard was thrown by an Iceguin Ace, who had two more of it's kind standing behind it. The three penguin-like creatures all threw ice shards at Devon, but he deflects them with Soul Calibur. After deflecting the ice projectiles, Devon swings his crystal Keyblade with a right slash, using a Fire spell and launching three fireballs in their direction. Each of the Nightmares were blasted into oblivion. A Yoggy Ram shoots a fireball at Devon through it's horn, but he jumps up into the air and strikes back with a Blizzard spell, aiming Soul Calibur down at the goat-like creature and launching an icy blast, which freezes it in place in ice. Landing back on the ground, Devon strikes the frozen Nightmare with a reverse roundhouse slash, smashing the dark creature to pieces. Turning to the last of the remaining Nightmares, which were two Iceguin Aces, a Yoggy Ram, and three Halbirds, Devon finishes them off with an Aero spell, raising Soul Calibur into the air and summoning a powerful silver vortex of wind that sucks up the dark creatures, then blows them all away.
With the Nightmares defeated, Devon de-summoned his crystal Keyblade and let out a sigh. Both Ryu Dragon and Tyranto Rex disappeared shortly after. He then continued heading further into the town, following the cheers of the spectators.
Devon walked through the streets and down alleyways of the town, the cheers grew louder and louder as he got closer. He soon stopped when he heard noises coming from the rooftops of the nearby buildings. He thought he heard some voices, but he brushed it aside and continued onwards down the alleyway and out into the nearby street. Then, a second flare shoots up into the air with a loud bang and the cheers from the crowd got louder.
"Look! The two-mile mark!" A man exclaims
Devon saw the flare as it appeared in the sky.
"That's two flares now. I must be getting close." Devon says
The Keyblade Wielder looks straight ahead and he saw and he kept on moving down the street. Suddenly, he heard footsteps rapidly approaching and he stops right in his tracks. Devon looks over to his right in the adjacent alleyway and back down the street behind him, but saw nothing. Then, he turns over to his left, tracing the footsteps to the alley next to him and was unexpectedly knocked down onto the snow, falling flat on his back.
"Ohh..." Devon groans
It took Devon a few moments, but he recovers from the fall and slowly sits up to see who or what knocked him down.
"Hey, try to watch where you're..." Devon says
Devon paused when he looked infront of him. Sitting on his haunches was Balto, who was staring right back at Devon.
"Oh..." Devon says
Brown eyes were met with brown eyes as both the young teen and wolf-dog stared at each other for a while. Devon looked over Balto and he saw a look of innocence in his face. While the wolf-dog looked menacing, Devon saw nothing of the sort in him. Balto soon backed away from Devon in a scared manner, almost like had been abused or pushed away.
"Hey, hey. It's alright. I won't hurt you." Devon says in a calming voice
Devon held out his right-hand to Balto as an invitation to pet him. Balto's face turned into one of curiosity. Most other humans would want nothing to do with him. Yet Devon was here offering him his hand. Slowly but surely, Balto came up to Devon and allowed him to pet him. Devon smiled and rubbed his hand on Balto's head, scratching him behind the ears. This was the first time in a while that Balto was shown any sort of affection by a human. Devon looked down and noticed that Balto didn't have a collar on him.
"No collar, huh? You don't have an owner, do you?" Devon asks
Balto shook his head in response.
"I'm sorry." Devon apologizes
Devon introduces himself to the wolf-dog, placing his right-hand on his chest.
"Well, my name's Devon."
Balto smiled and introduced himself to the Keyblade Wielder.
"Balto."
"Nice to meet you, Balto." Devon says
The wolf-dog jumped back a bit, surprised that Devon was able to understand him.
"You can understand me?" Balto asks
Devon shrugs his shoulders.
"Yeah. It's a gift I have." Devon says
The young teen got up on one knee with the wolf-dog's help when the two were soon drawn to the sounds of cheering from the spectators of the race, which were further up the street they were in.
"Are you here to see the race, too?" Balto asks
"A race? Is that what's going on?" Devon says confused
"Yeah. Dogsled racing. You've never seen one?" Balto says
Devon shook his head.
"No. This is actually my first time here in this town. I only just arrived." Devon says
"Oh. Well, I was just going to catch the finish now. If you want, we can go together." Balto says
"You go on ahead, Balto. I'll catch up with you in a bit." Devon says
Balto nods his head.
"Alright. I'm not that hard to find out of a crowd." Balto says
The wolf-dog heads off down the street and disappears into the crowd, leaving Devon behind in the street. Devon rose up onto his feet when he heard the sound of a little girl giggling to his right. It came from the carpenter store that was a not too far from where he was.
In the carpenter store, a young girl named Rosy was with her parents getting a special gift. She wore a black coat with a purple scarf. With her was her loyal Copper Siberian Husky, Jenna, who stood by her side.
Jenna had red and white fur, which is dark red on her ears, back, the upper parts of her legs, and the upside of her tail, and white on her facial, chest, and underside areas. She also had black markings on the tips of her ears and amber eyes.
Rosy had her eyes closed at the request of her parents as they had a surprise for her.
"Okay. You can open your eyes now." Rosy's Father says
Rosy does so and she gasps and laughs excitingly. Infront of her was a small dog sled made just for her size. She looks over her gift with much joy.
"I love these runners! I love this brush bow! I love this sled!" Rosy exclaims happily
Rosy's Father chuckles at seeing his daughter happy.
"Jenna, you're lead dog!" Rosy says
Jenna comes over to her owner and the little girl straps her up to the sled.
"Okay, just a minute. Come on. Mush!" Rosy says
"Then you'll need this." Rosy's Mother says
Rosy's Mother takes a beige musher's hat and places it on Rosy's head.
"A real musher's hat! We're a real sled team now!" Rosy says
Excited to try out her sled, Rosy mounts her sled and both she and Jenna take off out of the store. While Rosy was enjoying her new sled, her parents spoke with the carpenter, pleased with the hard work he put into making it.
"Mr. Johanssen, the sled is beautiful." Rosy's Father says
"We're very grateful." Rosy's Mother says
Out in the street, Devon approached the carpenter's store when Rosy and Jenna zoomed out of the entrance, catching him by surprise.
"Whoa!" Devon exclaims
Rosy and Jenna pull back around up to Devon and stop infront of him.
"Oh, sorry, mister." Rosy says
Devon smiles and waves his right-hand.
"Oh, it's quite alright. No harm, no foul." Devon says
The Keyblade Wielder looks down at the young girl's sled.
"So, this is a dog sled." Devon says
"Yep. My mom and dad just got it for me today." Rosy says
Rosy and Jenna look Devon over and they could tell he was new to Nome. The little girl steps down from her sled and walks up to Devon.
"You're not from around here, are you?" Rosy asks
Devon shook his head.
"Nope. I only just came in today. I'm basically new around these parts." Devon says
"My name's Rosy."
Rosy hugs her dog, Jenna, introducing her to Devon.
"This is Jenna, my best friend." Rosy introduces
Devon kneels down to Rosy's level on his right-knee.
"I'm Devon. Nice to meet you, Rosy." Devon says with a smile
Jenna approaches Devon and sniffs him over.
"Hi, Jenna." Devon greets
Devon holds out his left-hand to Jenna, who nuzzles herself into his touch.
"She likes you." Rosy says smiling
"Hi, Devon. It's nice to meet you." Jenna greets
"Same." Devon says
Like Balto, Jenna was surprised to see that Devon understood her. Devon saw the expression in her face and he expected her reaction.
"I'll explain later." Devon says
Around that time, Rosy's parents came out of the store.
"I don't know, honey, I think we should've gotten her a doll house." Rosy's Father says
Rosy's parents were surprised when they saw Devon with their daughter.
"Oh, hello. We didn't know Rosy already made a new friend." Rosy's Father says
Devon rose up to his feet and turned to couple.
"You must be Rosy's parents?" Devon asks
"Yes we are." Rosy's Father says
Devon smiles and shakes both their hands.
"I'm Devon."
"Pleased to meet you, son." Rosy's Father says
"Devon's new around here." Rosy says
"Yep. I just arrived only a couple minutes ago." Devon says
"It's not so often Nome gets new visitors, but nonetheless welcome." Rosy's Father says
"Hey, Devon. Check me and Jenna out on my new sled!" Rosy says
Rosy mounts back onto her sled.
"Let's go, Jenna! Mush!" Rosy says
Jenna lets out a playful bark and she pulls on the sled, giving Rosy a ride around the street. Devon watches with a smile as Rosy rides around on her sled. Watching Rosy almost reminded him of Kairi. Her cheerful personality. Her joy and energy. In that moment, Devon remembered his days back on Destiny Islands when he, Sora, Riku, and Kairi would play together on the beach. Whether they were running along the shore, building their rafts, or swimming out into the water of the ocean. Remembering those good times brought warm feelings into Devon's heart.
"Your daughter's certaintly full of energy." Devon says
"She gets it from my side." Rosy's Mother smiles
Rosy's Father chuckles.
"That she does." Rosy's Father says
A third and final flare shoots up into the sky, drawing the attention of everyone in town.
"It's the one-mile marker. Mush, Jenna! Mush! Let's win this race!" Rosy says
Rosy and Jenna take off down the street, heading for the crowd while Devon and Rosy's Parents watched.
"Devon, would you mind doing us a favor, son? Could you look after Rosy for us? She loves watching the sled races. We've only got to do a few small errands in town and we'll catch up with you." Rosy's Father asks
Devon gave the couple a thumbs up with his right-hand.
"Absolutely. I'll keep watch over her." Devon says
Devon heads off down the street and catches up with Rosy and Jenna as they walk out into the next street.
"Whoa, Jenna. Easy girl. Whoa." Rosy says
Devon, Rosy, and Jenna walked down the side of the street, making their way through the crowd of people. As they went along the street, two dogs joined Jenna's side and followed her. These two dogs were Jenna's friends: Dixie and Sylvie.
Dixie was a female Pomeranian who had white and purple fluffy fur and black eyes. She was a complete fangirl for Steele and would do anything to get his attention.
Sylvie was a female Afghan Hound who had beige fur, a brown face, brown paws, and long ears with brown tips. She was slightly taller than Jenna. Sylvie wasn't as much a fangirl for Steele as Dixie, but she was more of a slow talker.
"Good morning, Jenna. Oughta be a close race, don't you think? Maybe even neck and... neck." Dixie says
"Say something about her new collar before she gets whiplash." Sylvie says
"Um, Dixie, what a pretty collar. Is it new?" Jenna asks
Dixie looks down at her red collar.
"What, this old thing? Yeah. Do you think, um, Steele will notice?" Dixie asks
Jenna and Sylvie roll their eyes.
"I'm afraid the only way Steele notices anyone is if they're wearing a mirror." Jenna says
Devon, Rosy, and Jenna made it to the finish line and they looked down the street as they waited for the dog sled team to come around the corner. The crowd of spectators were crammed in the sidelines.
"They're coming!" A man exclaims
Soon, Steele and his team come from around the corner and they speed down the street. Steele was panting from the race when he looks over to his right and saw three female dogs swooning over him. He straightens himself up to make him appear more presentable and majestic, putting on a confident smile. Mostly everyone in Nome talked about Steele as he was a popular dog and was viewed as the town hero. And if there was anything that Steele liked above all else, it was fame and glory.
Devon watched the crowd, seeing how excited they were.
"Wow. Dogsled races must be quite popular here." Devon says
The Keyblade Wielder scans the crowd, hoping to find Balto somewhere in the mix of people.
"Hmm... Where's Balto? I know he said it'd be easy to spot him, but there's a lot of people here. I'm sure he's here somewhere." Devon says
Further down the street, Balto comes out from an alley and pokes his head through the crowd to get a better view of the race. Then, he looks down toward the finish line and saw Devon and Jenna. Although he was glad to see Devon, he was more happy to see Jenna. She was the dog of his dreams. Seeing her always made Balto's heart soar as he stared amazed at her lovely body, yet he barely had the courage to talk to her.
"Jenna!" Rosy calls
Jenna lets out two barks as her girl approached. Rosy runs over to Jenna and laughs while hugging her. Balto smiled as he saw Rosy and Jenna together.
"The team's closing in on the finish." Devon says
"Come on, Steele!" Rosy cheers waving her musher hat up in the air
Suddenly, a gust of wind whips through the air, tearing Rosy's hat out of her grip.
"Oh no!" Rosy exclaims
The musher hat flies through the air and lands right in the middle of the racetrack, only inches away from the finish line. Rosy and Jenna gasped and looked on in shock. Devon glanced further down the track and saw that Steele and his team were quickly closing in on the finish line, where they would trample Rosy's hat. Balto saw this as well as he glanced over at the hat on his left, then looked down the other way of the track towards Steele and his team.
"My hat!" Rosy exclaims
Rosy scrambled toward the track to try and reclaim her hat, but Jenna bit into the left-sleeve of her coat to keep her out of harm's way. Even Devon held Rosy back with his right-hand pressed against her chest, pushing her back.
"No! Rosy, stay back! It's too dangerous!" Devon exclaims
As much as he wanted to get Rosy's hat back, Devon couldn't risk heading out into the middle of the track and risk getting run over by Steele and his dog sled team. But if nothing was done, Rosy's hat would get trampled and shredded.
Steele and his team sped down the track, passing Balto and closing in on the finish line. It was in that moment Balto saw the chance he was hoping for. The wolf-dog jumps out onto the racetrack and immediately took off after the hat. He was a little bit behind, but he soon caught up with the sled team with fast speed, even going faster than they were. As he glanced down the track, Devon saw a brown-grey dog running past the dog sled team to the front. Upon closer inspection, he realized who it was.
"Balto!" Devon exclaims
Even the spectators in the crowd took notice in Balto's appearance.
"It's that stray dog!" A man exclaims
"He's gonna ruin the race!" Another man exclaims
Boris, having managed to catch up with the race, squeezes his way through the crowd of people. He looks down towards the finish line and was shocked to see Balto on the track. Eventually, Balto came up alongside Steele's left-side, who noticed him trying to outrun him.
"Hey! Out of my way, lobo!" Steele says
Balto ignored Steele and kept his focus on Rosy's hat. Both dogs were neck and neck as they got closer to the finish line. Steele tries to bite Balto's legs just as he did for the opposing sled team earlier in the race. With incredibly fast reflexes, Balto leaps up away from Steele's jaws and manages to get up infront of the team. Then, in less than an second, Balto grabs Rosy's hat and darts out of the way of the sled team just as they cross the finish line. Devon, Rosy, and Jenna were amazed by what they just saw. While everyone else cheered for Steele and his team, Devon cheered Balto for his impressive, heroic deed.
"Alright, Balto!" Devon cheers
Boris watched the whole thing and was flabbergasted. He then shouts out to Balto.
"When will you learn to stay on the sidelines?!" Boris yells
The dog sled team soon sped past Boris, covering him in snow. Once they came to a stop, Steele and his team were unstrapped from the sled and they walked along the street, taking in the cheers from the crowd. Steele walked proudly as he reveled in his glory with three dogs, Nikki, Kaltag, and Star following him.
Nikki was a brown Chow-Chow, who had brown eyes, a stout build, and a large head in proportion to the rest of his body, and tiny ears.
Kaltag was light red and white Siberian Husky with a fast-talking, quick-witted attitude.
"Congratulations there, boss, there. It was a pleasure runnin' behind youse. Of course, the view got monotonous." Nikki says
"You are the most amazing, the most exalted, the most preeminent, the most top-drawer-" Kaltag says
"You won!" Star says
Star laughs until he got bonked in the head by Kaltag's left-paw, making him fall onto the snow. Steele walked away from the three dogs and came over to his musher and a photographer, who grabbed his camera on a tripod.
"I don't know. You think maybe Steele's losing his edge?" The musher asks
"Yeah, looks like just about any dog can outrun him." The photographer says
Steele was smiling to look nice infront of the two humans. But as soon as they were gone, Steele growled angrily. His reputation of being the fastest dog had been shattered. He had been humiliated by Balto and he was going to make him pay.
"Balto!" Rosy calls
Steele glances over and saw Balto with Devon, Rosy, and Jenna. Balto walks over to Rosy and gives her back her hat.
"What a crazy thing to do just to show off to a pretty girl." Rosy says
Balto glances over at Jenna with a smile. Jenna blushed and looked away slightly. Devon kneels down to Balto and gives him a pat and a few rubs on the back.
"Hey, Balto. That was really impressive. Nice work grabbing that hat." Devon says
"You know Balto?" Rosy asks
"Yeah. We met not too long ago." Devon says
"I'm sure Jenna would love to have you on her team." Rosy says
Rosy was about to strap Balto onto her sled, but then her parents came and rushed over to her and Devon.
"Hey! Hey, Rosy! Devon! Get away from him!" Rosy's Father exclaims
Rosy's Father grabbed hold of his daughter and pulled her away from Balto, kicking snow at the wolf-dog using his right-foot, making him back away. Devon quickly got up and backed up, moving out of the way of Rosy's Father.
"Whoa! Whoa!" Devon exclaims
"Dad!" Rosy whines
"He might bite you, honey. He's part wolf." Rosy's Father says
Devon looks over at Balto in shock. He had no idea that Balto was part wolf.
"What?" Devon gasps quietly
Balto backs off and walks away sadly down the street.
"Oh, now you've hurt his feelings." Rosy says
Devon stared at Balto as he kept walking down the street when heard Rosy's Father speak to him.
"Devon, if you need a place to stay, you're more than welcome to our home." Rosy's Father says
Devon turns and looks over towards Rosy and her parents.
"I appreciate it, sir, but I actually have to go meet up with a friend." Devon says
"Alright then. I'm sure we'll meet up again." Rosy's Father says
"Oh yeah. Absolutely. Take care." Devon says
Devon heads off down the street and follows Balto while Rosy and her parents went the other way. Steele began making his approach towards Jenna until he was cut off by Dixie and Sylvie
"Congratulations and felicitations, Steele." Dixie says
"Ladies." Steele says
Dixie shivers and pants uncontrollably. She then falls flat on her stomach with her arms and legs spread out with a lovestruck expression. Steele walks past the two female dogs and approaches Jenna. There was only one female he had an eye for. And that female was Jenna.
"Hi there, Jenna. Enjoyed the race?" Steele says
"Yeah. Almost as much as you did." Jenna says
"Thanks. Jenna, let's go celebrate. I know where all the bones are buried." Steele says
Steele leans closer to Jenna, which made her slightly uncomfortable.
"I don't know, Steele. Suddenly, I've lost my appetite." Jenna says
Jenna continues walking while Steele stops and watches her off.
"Ohh..." Steele says
Steele rolls back his shoulders.
"Well, maybe your taste runs more toward... Wolf." Steele says
Jenna turns back toward Steele with an annoyed, frustrated expression and was about to say something when Rosy calls out to her.
"Jenna! Come on, girl! We're going back home." Rosy calls
"Sorry, Steele. My girl is calling me." Jenna says
Having said that, Jenna walks off, following her owners. Dixie comes up to Steele and rubs herself against his front legs and paws at his collar.
"On the other hand, my girl is away at boarding school." Dixie says
Steele just growls and walks over Dixie, causing her to fall over on her back.
Balto and Boris were both walking down an alleyway, heading for the outskirts of town. Balto looked depressed, hanging his head low to the ground. Boris tried to help cheer him up, but didn't know what to say. Then, they heard Balto's name being called out.
"Balto!" A voice calls out
The wolf-dog and goose look back and saw Devon running over to them.
"Hey. You alright? I mean what happened back there..." Devon says
"Yeah. I'm alright." Balto sighs
Boris looks up at Devon.
"And who is this?" Boris asks raising an eyebrow
"Boris, this is Devon. He's new around here. We met not so long ago. He's a friend of mine. Devon, this is Boris." Balto says
Devon kneels down to Boris and greets him with a kind smile.
"Nice to meet you, Boris." Devon says
Boris stares at Devon with a slightly suspicious expression, then looks over at Balto, who nods at him. The goose turns back to Devon and smiles.
"Any friend of Balto is friend of Boris." Boris says
Boris extends his right-wing out to Devon, who takes it gladly and the two shake hands.
"Jenna!" A small voice calls
Devon and Balto look up the alleyway as they heard the voice, recognizing it as Rosy's voice.
"Jenna!" Rosy calls
Balto becomes excited at the thought of seeing Rosy again and he races out of the alleyway to meet her. He runs through a hole in a fence and comes out into the street, bumping into Jenna as she walks out infront of him. Balto slides into Jenna with both their noses touching each other. Balto backs off a bit and chuckles nervously.
"Jenna, I, uh..." Balto says
Balto wanted to say something, but he was too shy to even speak.
"Jenna?" Rosy's Father calls
"Jen! Come on!" Rosy calls
Jenna looks back at Rosy and her parents as they come up along the street. But when she glances back towards Balto, she notices that he was gone. Looking down at the ground, she saw Balto's pawprints in the snow, leading back the way he came through the fence. She walks over to the fence and sniffs the ground to try and pick up his scent. But before she could investigate any further, Rosy's Father calls out to her.
"Jenna! Come here, girl!" Rosy's Father calls
The red-white husky answers the call of her owner and walks off out of view. Balto had hidden from Jenna under a broken cart and he lets out a disappointed sigh. Devon and Boris catch up with Balto and they head on through the alleyways of the town.
"You like Jenna, don't you?" Devon asks
"She is something. I only wish I knew what to say to her." Balto says
"Balto, there are some things I cannot do." Boris says
"Yeah, yeah." Balto sighs
"I'm goose, not cupid." Boris says
The trio kept on walking until Steele, Nikki, Kaltag, and Star appeared in the alleyway behind them.
"Didn't make the team, Bingo?" Steele says
"Don't listen to him. Don't look at him. Live a long life." Boris says
Balto turns around and talks back to Steele.
"My name's Balto."
The wolf-dog turns around and confronts the muscular Alaskan Malamute while Devon and Boris watch him.
"But you can call him 'idiot'." Boris mutters to himself
"I'm sorry, Balto. Balto, the half-breed." Steele teases with an evil smile
Steele walks past Balto and approaches Boris.
"Hey, old goose, you half-breed too, huh? Part turkey?" Steele teases
Steele pushes Boris with his snout, making the goose stumble and fall backwards into a discarded grill.
"Waa-hah-hah!" Boris screams
The lid cover of the grill falls down over Boris, making him look like dinner bird.
"Good wordplay there, boss." Nikki says
"You are the quickest, the wittiest, the drollest, the sharpest, the most hilarious-" Kaltag says
"You crack me up!" Star laughs
Star laughs uncontrollably before Kaltag bops him in the head again. Steele looks over at Devon, watching him as he picks up the grill cover and helps Boris out, and gives him a sinister grin.
"And who's your friend? Another lowlife human?" Steele asks
"For your information, Steele, I happen to be Balto's friend." Devon says
The four bully dogs jumped in surprise when they realized that Devon could understand them. Steele
"Great. Another freak. I don't know how exactly you can understand us, human, but let's get one thing straight: This is my town, which means I call the shots around these parts. You stay out of my way and all's well. But if you hang around with the wolf-dog, you'll be in for a heap of trouble." Steele says
"The name's Devon, and that's some big talk coming from a bully like you! Just bring it!" Devon says pointing to Steele before spreading his arms out
Balto moves infront of Devon, defending him and Boris from Steele.
"Steele, leave my friends out of this." Balto says
"Oh, Balto." Steele says
Steele brushes Balto's face with his tail.
"I got a message for your mother." Steele says
Steele walks back to the other dogs and began howling like a wolf. Nikki, Kaltag, and Star laughed and they started howling as well, making a mockery of Balto.
"Hi, mom!" Nikki teases
"Hey, Balto, translate this for me will you..." Kaltag teases
Devon just rolled his eyes and looks over at Balto on his right.
"Balto, come on. We don't need to take this." Devon says
Devon turns around and began walking away. But then he stopped when he heard Balto growling.
"Balto?" Devon says
Balto growls and grits his teeth together as he began walking angrily towards the four dogs.
"Balto, don't!" Devon says
"What's wolf for 'Go chase your tail'?!" Star teases
Boris grabs Balto's tail and pulls him back to try and stop him, but he ended up getting dragged along the ground.
"Balto, stop!" Boris says
The four dogs soon stopped howling when they noticed Balto advancing towards them.
"Get him." Steele says
Nikki, Kaltag, and Star began barking at Balto, acting like guard dogs for Steele.
"Get out of here, wolf-dog. You better get back to your pack!" Steele says
Steele spat on Balto's snout on the last part, which caused him to stop growling and shake his head. Devon heads over to Balto and both he and Boris push him away from Steele and the three dogs.
"Maybe it's the unrelenting fear talking, but I'm seeing wisdom in this advice. Maybe we go now, huh? Now!" Boris says
"Don't listen to these guys, Balto. They're just jerk-offs. Let's get out of here." Devon says
Devon, Balto, and Boris turned away from the bully dogs and started walking down the alleyway. Steele, Nikki, Kaltag, and Star turned around and they kicked lots of snow onto them.
"I think Balto's friend got his feathers a bit ruffled." Kaltag says
"Goose! Ha! I get it!" Star laughs
One of the dogs kicks a rock into the air and it hits Balto in the back of his head, causing him to fall over on his right-side, but he quickly got back up and ran out of the alleyway with Devon and Boris following close behind.
"Half-wolf in the side pocket there." Nikki laughs
"That was the most dead-center, the most on-target, the most down-the-middle-" Kaltag says
"Ya hit him!" Star says
Kaltag looks over at Star and growls at him. Star covers his head with his paws, expecting Kaltag to hit him in the head, but the light red and white husky backs off. Kaltag catches Star off guard and hits him under the chin with his right-paw, which made Star fall over. Steele chuckles in a sinister tone and walks off into another alleyway, leaving the three dogs by themselves. Once Steele was gone, their true opinions about him came out.
"That son of a..." Nikki says
"He is the most malicious, the most disgusting, the most obnoxious, the most revolting, the most repulsive-" Kaltag says
"He's no lap dog." Star says
Kaltag growls at Star with his right-paw clenched into a fist, getting ready to pummel Star again for interrupting him. Star chuckles nervously and does the job for him, bonking himself in the head while Nikki and Kaltag share confused glances with each other.
It was now nearing sunset as Devon, Balto, and Boris passed the outskirts of Nome and were coming out near towards the shore.
"Balto, don't let those dogs push you around. You're better than them. I know you are." Devon says
Balto's nose soon perked up when he caught a scent. He glances over towards the hills on his left and saw a pack of wolves in the distance not too far from him. There were four of them. Three grey ones and one brown one. Three adults and one small grey pup. The brown wolf let out a howl in greeting. Balto doesn't howl back as he looked uncertain with his ears drooping. Devon gave a long glance at the wolves while they shared curious glances with each other as they stared down at the human, wolf-dog, and goose. Balto soon walks off while Devon and Boris watch the pack of wolves as they went on their way.
"Not a dog. Not a wolf. All he knows is what he is not. If only he could see what he is." Boris says
Devon and Boris follow Balto to an abandoned shipwrecked boat, which was washed up along the shore.
"This where you guys live?" Devon asks
"It may not look like much, but it is home." Boris says
"I can't imagine how long it's been here."
The Keyblade Wielder and goose watch Balto as he walks up on a wooden plank onto the boat. Boris lets out a sigh and rubs the back of his head with his left-wing.
"I wish there was a way to help cheer him up." Devon says
Boris soon snaps his left-feathered-finger as he came up with an idea.
"I got it!" Boris exclaims
Boris runs into a hole on the ship while Devon watches him go. Devon climbs onto the ship and follows Balto as he goes across the deck. Boris jumps out of a hole in the deck, grabs a bone on the floor, and chews on it like a dog. Balto just keeps on walking, paying no attention to Boris. Then, Boris grabs a metal bowl and drinks from it like a dog. Still, Balto paid no attention. The wolf-dog walks over to a brown blanket in the main cabin, slips in underneath, and lies down on the floor. As he laid there, an orange toy shaped like a cat rolls on by, passing infront of Balto and squeaking until it fall off the deck with a thud. Balto looks up and saw Boris at the doorway smiling and waving his left-wing at him. The wolf-dog just turns his head and looks away. Devon comes up alongside Boris and stood behind him as they both look towards Balto in his depression.
"Boris, you're gonna need something more than bones, water, or dog toys to cheer Balto up." Devon says
"I'm not done yet. I still have one more trick up my wing. This used to get Balto back when he was young pup. Watch this." Boris says
Boris walks up to Balto and started doing his Russian dance for him, crossing his arms and kicking his flipper feet while jumping. Even after that, there was no reaction from Balto. Boris slumped over and hung his head low in defeat, letting out a sigh.
"Well, I tried." Boris says
The goose walks over to the wolf-dog and lays down beside him on his right. Both of them let out a sigh. Devon sat up on the wooden railing of the ship and made himself comfortable. He glances over at Balto and Boris and looks down, feeling bad for them. The trio soon heard the sound of honking in the air. Glancing up, they saw flocks of geese flying overhead.
"Homesick, Boris? You ever think about going back?" Balto asks
Boris rubs Balto's head with his left-wing.
"Don't fret, Fido. I'm sticking here until I'm sure you can stand on own four feet." Boris says
The goose picks up a mop, dips it into a bucket of water, and starts swabbing the deck.
"You're taking care of me?" Balto says
"Don't thank me." Boris says
Balto chuckles a bit, then sniffs the air, picking up a scent.
"I smell... Herring." Balto says
"The herring are flying south too?" Boris asks
"Say, must be Muk and Luk." Balto says
"Who?" Devon asks
"Ohh. Good news." Boris mutters
Suddenly, the trio heard a loud voice in the air, which caused Boris to jump in fear.
"Uncle Boris!" A voice calls
"Oh, no." Boris says
"How sweet. 'Uncle Boris'." Balto says smiling
Boris grabs the water bucket and holds it up like a shield in his right-wing and the mop like a sword in his left-wing.
"No hugging, no licking!" Boris says
In that moment, a polar bear named Muk comes running up onto the ship and heads straight for Boris.
"Uncle Boris!" Muk calls
Boris closes his eyes and held up his mop and bucket in defense, expecting the polar bear to tackle and hug him. He soon opened his eyes and saw Muk standing infront of him with the mop poking his stomach.
"Whew." Boris sighs with relief
The goose takes a step back and falls backwards onto something large and fluffy. It was another polar bear named Luk, who was much larger and fatter than Muk and had a red nose while his sibling had a black nose. Muk was the more intelligent bear while Luk only communicated through muffled hums, which Muk translated. Luk grabs Boris and embraces him in a big bear hug.
"He says he's glad to see you." Muk says
Luk gives Boris a big lick with his tongue.
"We love you, Uncle Boris!" Muk says
Devon crosses his arms and watches Boris and the two polar bears in amusement.
"Well, they certaintly are an interesting pair." Devon says
Devon looks down at Balto and noticed that their arrival had managed to cheer him up slightly.
"And it looks like you're feeling better, Balto." Devon says
Balto glances back to his left at Devon and smiles.
Boris soon squeezes his way out of Luk's grip and falls to the floor, causing his feathers to fly everywhere. The goose shakes himself off and grabs his feathers, putting them back onto his body. But when he looks over at his left-wing, he notices that he's missing a feather. Then, he heard Luk humming and saw his feather in the polar bear's claws. Boris walks over and takes his feather back from Luk. The large polar bear turns to Muk and whimpers.
"What are you talking about? Of course, he's happy to see us. He loves us." Muk says
The two polar bears glance over at Boris.
"Don't you?" Muk asks
Boris was twisting his feather back onto his wing when he heard this, which made him stop. He places his left-wing on his head and rubs his temple.
"Oy. Okay, okay." Boris sighs
Boris turns to the bears.
"Hey, boychiks, uh, let's play a game." Boris says
"Yes, please, Uncle Boris!" Muk says
"Race you to the beach! One, two, three, go!" Boris says
Muk and Luk both race across the deck and they jump off the ship and onto the beach.
"They win." Boris says
Before the trio could relax, they heard splashing and Muk screaming.
"Help! Help! We can't swim!" Muk screams
Devon, Balto, and Boris climb down from the boat and they ran off onto the shore. They soon stopped when they saw the two polar bears flailing around in a puddle.
"Help! We're drowning! Please save us!" Muk screams
Devon stares at the hilarious scene with a raised right-eyebrow, a smirk on his face, and his hands at his waist. Boris had an annoyed expression and he calls out to Muk and Luk.
"Bears! Fellas! Idiot balls of fluff!" Boris calls
"Easy, Boris. You know how the are." Balto says
"They really can't swim? Wow." Devon says flabbergasted
"Muk! Luk! Relax! Hey, come on, you're okay. You're not drowning." Balto says
The two polar bears soon stop their flailing and glance up at Boris, who was now standing infront of them.
"He has point, bears. You're not drowning because if you will pause for a moment you will observe, perhaps..." Boris says
Boris gestures to the shore with both his wings.
"...tide is out!" Boris says
The goose walks out of the puddle, shaking his feet. Luk lets out a whimper, which causes Boris to stop and turn around towards the two bears.
"He said what?" Boris asks
"Oh, the shame of the polar bear who fears the water. No wonder we are shunned by our fellow bear. Woe is us." Muk translates
Muk points back at Luk with his right-claw.
"It's what he said. Kind of pathetic, really." Muk says
Devon and Balto turn around and head back for the ship with Boris, Muk, and Luk following them.
"What, more whimpering? Between you and Balto, is like Dostoyevsky novel around here. Lighten up." Boris says
Later that night, Balto sits up at the front of the ship, staring out at the town. Devon sat not to far from the wolf-dog on the right on the wooden railing. They were soon joined by Boris, who walks up to them, talking to Balto specifically.
"And what is so interesting?" Boris asks
Balto lets out a sigh.
"Jenna." Balto says
"Is love. So go make move. When the angels' balalaikas strum the sweet song of love... Mambo!" Boris says
Boris started doing a small dance.
"Nah. She's not my type." Balto says
"And why not? This wolf business again? What's wrong with being half and half, I'd like to know? Sometimes, I wish like crazy I was half eagle." Boris says
"Why?" Balto asks
"Better profile, for one thing. Hmm. And no one eats you for another." Boris says
"I think you should go talk to her, Balto. She seems perfect for you." Devon says
Balto and Boris glance back at Devon.
"You think so?" Balto asks
"I know so. You saw the way she was looking at you. I'm sure she likes you." Devon says
Devon jumps down onto his feet and walks over to Balto.
"Here's what I'd do. Try and show her something amazing. Something that will take her breath away." Devon says
"Hmm. Okay. I think I'll try." Balto says
"Devon, there's something I not understand. How exactly can you speak dog, goose, and bear?" Boris asks
Balto looks over at Boris and he had to agree with the goose. Devon was the only human who can understand animals like him, Boris, Muk and Luk, Jenna, and Steele, which made him curious to know more about him.
"I've been wondering that too." Balto says
The wolf-dog turns and faces the Keyblade Wielder.
"How is it you can understand us?" Balto asks
Devon looks down, thinking on where he should begin. He figured he might as well explain about the Keyblade and where he came from.
"Well, as you may have figured, I'm not just your average ordinary human. I'm actually a Keyblade Wielder." Devon says
Balto and Boris stare at Devon with blank looks on their faces.
"A Keyblade Wielder?" Balto asks
"Legendary warriors of strength and power. Guardians of peace and justice. And wielders of Light and Darkness." Devon says
"What exactly is a Keyblade?" Boris asks
Devon stretches his right-hand out infront of him and his Keyblade: Soul Calibur appears in a flash of blue light, much to Balto and Boris' surprise, which made them jump slightly. The wolf-dog and goose stare at the Keyblade, amazed by it's pure translucent crystalline design.
"Whoa..." Balto says
"This is a Keyblade. It's a weapon of incredible magic that can only be wielded by those who have a strong heart. It imbues the wielder with powerful magic, granting them all sorts of amazing abilities like telekinesis or elemental powers. And I'm sure it's what allows me to communicate with you." Devon says
Devon turns around and faces the town of Nome. Soul Calibur begins to glow brightly with it's benevolent light, which Balto and Boris definitely noticed. As a demonstration for his magical prowess, Devon swings Soul Calibur with a right slash, creating a wide streak of blue light, which leaves a trail of colorful sparkles in the air. Boris stood in stunned amazement with his mouth hanging open. Balto stood in wonder as he watched the magic sparkles shimmer with their magnificent colors. It was the most incredible thing he had ever seen.
"That's absolutely amazing. They're just like the Northern Lights." Balto says in awe
The trio watched the colorful sparkles for a minute before they faded away and disappeared.
"So, Devon, how is it you came to Nome? Where are you from?" Balto asks
"I'm from a world called the Celestial Realm." Devon says
Again, Balto and Boris stare at Devon with blank expressions.
"The Celestial Realm? Where's that?" Balto asks
Devon points up to the night sky with his right-hand, causing Balto and Boris to glance up at the stars. Then, the wolf-dog and goose look down at Devon with astonished expressions.
"You mean to say that you come from space?" Balto asks
Devon shrugs his shoulders.
"Something like that." Devon says
"How is that possible?" Boris asks
Devon gestures his right-hand to the stars.
"Well, imagine that every one of those stars in the sky is another world. Each one different in their own way. With the Keyblade's power, travel in-between worlds is possible. So, imagine having to visit every world in existence. To encounter different civilizations, meet it's inhabitants, and explore different lands." Devon says
"I can hardly imagine." Balto says
"I've been to a lot of worlds so far, but I'm sure there's plenty more to discover. New people to meet, new experiences to be had." Devon says
"So, the Celestial Realm. What's it like?" Balto asks
"Beautiful. In every sense of the word. The Celestial Realm was a paradise. It was my home. It was the brightest out of all those stars combined." Devon says
The Keyblade Wielder looks down with a sorrowful look.
"That was until..." Devon says
Balto and Boris glances over at Devon and they noticed the change in his expression.
"Until what?" Balto asks
Devon held his hands and clenched them tight as he thought about the night that changed his life forever. It was the night that the Celestial Realm was invaded and consumed by the darkness.
"Until it was destroyed." Devon says
The wolf-dog and goose stared at the human boy in shock.
"Your home was destroyed? How?" Balto asks
"It was invaded by creatures of darkness called Heartless." Devon says
"Heartless?" Balto says
"They're the darkness born within people's hearts. Their only instinct is to steal the hearts and create more of their numbers until there is nothing but darkness. The Heartless exist everywhere, which makes it difficult to eliminate them. In every world, the Heartless seek the heart of that world above all else. If they find it, that world is consumed by darkness, never to be seen or heard from again." Devon says
"So, these Heartless invaded your homeworld and destroyed it?" Balto asks
"I don't really remember much of how it happened. But one thing I do know is... both my parents were killed in the attack. I alone survived." Devon says
Balto and Boris stared at Devon in shock. They had no idea Devon's parents were dead. Balto really felt bad for Devon. He thought he had a harsh life being shunned by the people of Nome, but Devon had no family, no parents to look after him, except for his aunt and uncle back on Destiny Islands.
"Devon... I'm so sorry. How did you survive?" Balto says
"My parents sacrificed themselves to save me. Then, an ancient being called The Inheritor rescued me. He helped me escape before my world got destroyed and brought me to another world called Destiny Islands. That's where I met my friends, Sora, Riku, and Kairi. And it's where my aunt and uncle took me in after my parents died." Devon says
"You must've had it pretty rough." Balto says
"I had my friends to help look out for me. Back then, I didn't have the Keyblade and I knew nothing of magic or the existence of other worlds." Devon says
"So, how did you get the Keyblade?" Balto asks
"Ten years after the Celestial Realm was destroyed, Destiny Islands got invaded by the Heartless and me and my friends became scattered across Universe. That was when the Keyblade first came to me and my adventure as a Keyblade Wielder truly began. I traveled to many worlds, fought the Heartless, made new friends. During my journey, I learned about my parents. It turned out they were Keyblade Wielders too. And they weren't the only ones. My friends, Sora and Riku, also became Keyblade Wielders on their own adventures. One year later, I reunited with my friends and we returned to Destiny Islands, which had been restored thanks to Sora. Since then, my life as a Keyblade Wielder has been one big adventure." Devon says
Balto stared at Devon, awe-inspired by his story. He felt like he had actually found someone that he could relate to.
"Wow, Devon. Your life sure sounds interesting." Balto says
"There's more. I also learned on my journey that I am part of an ancient prophecy. The Inheritor revealed it to me. My destiny is to become the Legendary Keyblade Master, defeat the Dark Lord of the Shadows, and restore balance to Light and Darkness across the Universe." Devon says
"The Dark Lord of the Shadows?" Balto says
"Who's that?" Boris asks
"The worst sort of villain imaginable. He's an evil tyrant hellbent on conquering the entire Universe and enslaving all the worlds and it's inhabitants. It turns out he was the one responsible for destroying the Celestial Realm and Destiny Islands and murdering my parents. He's responsible for all the darkness that's in the Universe and all the Heartless that invade the worlds." Devon says
"And I thought Steele was bad." Balto says
Devon let out a slight chuckle.
"You know, Balto, I don't know how Steele claims he's the town hero. He practically acts like he runs the town. I've done things far better than what he's probably accomplished. I saved worlds, defended innocent people, fought evil monsters. If you ask me, Steele's got himself a big mouth." Devon says
Balto chuckles at hearing that.
"You got that right." Balto says
"Steele, huh? More like rusted iron." Boris says
The Keyblade Wielder, wolf-dog, and goose laugh together on the ship, enjoying the moment they were having.
Unbeknownst to Devon, Balto, and the townspeople, a dark figure was watching them from the snowy hilltops. A shadowy wraith-like entity of pure darkness. It was the Dark Echo, the evil being who was thought to have been defeated a while back by Devon's Nobody, Draxon.
The Dark Echo hovers above the ground, staring down at the small town with it's glowing red eyes. A malevolent black-red aura of darkness envelopes the Dark Echo as it's entire body began exerting dark energy. Then, it conjures up black flames in it's open palms and spreads it's arms out. An immense amount of darkness flowed out from it's body and into the town, passing over every building that was down below.
In her home, Rosie was sleeping peacefully inside her room with her loyal dog, Jenna, sleeping at the foot of her bed when the darkness passed through the house. She suddenly began coughing in her sleep. The same thing happened across the whole town as the darkness infected every child that lived within the area, each suffering from the same affliction.
"DaRkNeSs ShAlL cOnSuMe YoU aLl..." The Dark Echo says
After saying that, the Dark Echo fades away and disappears into the darkness.
Author's Note: Now here's a world I've been wanting to do for a long time. Devon enters the world of Nome and meets the wolf-dog Balto and his friends: Boris, Muk and Luk. He also meets Jenna and Rosy, then runs into Steele, the glory-seeking dog. And uh oh... The Dark Echo's back! Things won't look good for Nome and it's people. Let me know what you guys think. No flames please. Hope you guys like and don't forget to review!