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.
In Nome, Boris, Muk and Luk stood outside of the worker's shed where Jenna, Doc, Dixie, Sylvie, and the other dogs were, eavesdropping on their meeting as they peeked in from a window on the side of the building. Inside, Jenna was covered up in a blanket, sitting next to Doc. She told the dogs of Devon and Balto's mission to find Steele, his team, and the medicine and guide them back home, though most of them weren't convinced they would succeed.
"I just don't get it. How could Balto and Devon hope to find Steele and his team? They were off the trail!" A male dog asks
"Well, they're... They're tracking them." Jenna says
"That mutt and human? Tracking a championship team in a blizzard?" Another dog says making fun of the two heroes
The dogs all burst into mocking laughter while Jenna held an annoyed and angry expression. Doc remained silent as he looked over at Jenna. Suddenly, the door to the room slammed open, letting in wind and snow. Everyone glanced over and they saw a dog standing at the entrance of the shed. Jenna perked up her head, thinking it was Balto.
"Balto?" Jenna says
Upon closer inspection, it was Steele, who was covered in thick layers of ice.
"Steele!" A dog exclaims
"Steele!" Dixie exclaims
Seeing that it was Steele, Jenna's enthusiasm instantly vanished and she frowned.
"You're alive!" Another dog says
"You're back!" A third dog says
"Where ya been? Are ya okay?" A fourth dog asks
One of the dogs rolled a bone towards Steele and he instantly jumped and chewed on it. Doc was startled by Steele's state and he asked him about what happened out in the storm.
"Steele, w-where are the others?" Doc asks stammering
"What happened to you?" Another dog asks
Steele looks up at the dogs and made up a fake lie, speaking to them in a heartfelt and depressed voice.
"Well... one by one they fell, frozen, barely alive." Steele says
The Alaskan Malamute walks over to the nearby boiler on his left to warm himself and shakes the snow and ice off his body. The dogs duck down as icicles hit the wooden beams in the shed.
"I pulled four onto the sled. (Pants) Three more on my back! And, uh, I walked... And I walked, but i-it was just-It was too late. They were..." Steele says
"What about the medicine?" Doc asks
"Yeah!" A dog says
Steele looks at Doc for a moment, then walks over towards the boiler, continuing his story with a pained expression.
"Well, uh, I-I went on d-dragging the medicine alone... All alone..." Steele says
Then, the Alaskan Malamute turns around towards the dogs.
"And... And then suddenly... (Pants) That wolf-dog appeared. Balto! Along with his human friend, Devon! Th-they demanded I let them take the medicine. You know, they just wanted so much to be a hero in your eyes. And th-they grabbed the crate, but they couldn't handle it. Th-th-they couldn't see the patch of ice, th-the snow, the wind and... And then the log and the cliff... Well, they just didn't have the ch... (Coughs) They just... I'm sorry." Steele says
Steele started crying some fake tears.
"And then..." Steele says
Steele reaches behind his back and holds Jenna's red bandana in his mouth, showing it to the dogs. Jenna gasps in shock when she saw her bandana.
"My bandana." Jenna says
The female husky began to breathe heavily and cry as Steele dropped her bandana infront of her.
"They... made me promise to take care of you, Jenna." Steele says
Jenna's grief didn't last long as she started to suspect something was amiss. She stared at the floor where her bandana laid at her feet, then she glances down at the Kingdom Hearts necklace around her neck that Devon gave to her for safekeeping and she remembered his words to her.
"Remember, Jenna, never give up hope. No matter what."
Jenna raised her head and looks back at Steele with a disappointed scowl. She knew that Devon and Balto would never tell Steele to take care of her. That night in the boiler room when they defended her from Steele when he tried to hit on her was proof enough. She knew that Steele wanted her all for himself. And right away, she picked up on Steele's horrible lie.
"You're lying." Jenna says
The dogs gasped in shock and disbelief while Steele showed a hint of nervousness in his eyes.
"Steele's lying. Balto and Devon are alive. And they're coming home." Jenna says
Not wanting to listen anymore, Jenna picks up her bandana and runs out of the shed.
"What's eatin' her?" A dog asks
Steele watches as Jenna leave, then turns back to the dogs, making up another lie.
"Uh... Well, you know, she needs a little time." Steele says
At this point, the town of Nome had just about given up hope. The telegraph operator steps out of his office and stares up at the burning red lamp. He lets out a sigh and goes to switch the lamp off.
At the hospital, Rosy's parents watch from the window as the red lamp goes out. Rosy's Mother lets out a gasp, covering her mouth. Then, she covers her face with her hands, grieving over the impending loss of her child. The couple turns to Rosy as the doctor checks her temperature with his left-hand. She was now cold as ice and she was having labored breathing. The doctor let out a sigh and he turns out the lamp light.
The houses and buildings across Nome began shutting off their lights one by one as the residents turned in for the night. Jenna comes up onto a hilltop, dragging a lantern in her mouth and some colored shards from broken bottles.
"The sun. Ice caps." Jenna says
The female husky arranges the broken bottles infront of the lantern and steps out of the way. The light from the lantern shines down on the shards and reflects the light out onto the snowy slopes infront of Jenna, creating an enormous, beautiful display of colors, resembling the Northern Lights. Jenna lets out a sigh and turns around, glancing out towards the wilderness on the horizon, holding out hopes for the two people she loved the most.
"Balto. Devon." Jenna says
Back out in the wilderness, Devon and Balto were both buried in a ton of snow after their fall from the cliff. The wolf-dog was the first to awaken as he digs his way out. He rises up and collapses onto the ground with the sun greeting him on a new day as it shined down from the sky. Balto lifts his head up and he saw Devon's right-hand sticking out of the snow a few feet away from him. His eyes widened and he gasps in shock. Grunting and fighting against the pain, Balto pushes himself onto his feet and goes to help the young teen, walking slowly towards him. He grabs the sleeve of Devon's winter jacket with his teeth and pulls him out of the snow. Balto nudges Devon's chest with his right-paw to stir him awake.
"Devon? Devon!" Balto says
No matter how many times he nudged the young teen, Devon showed no signs of moving or breathing. Balto started breathing heavily out of sadness and he lays his head on Devon's chest.
"Rosy. Devon." Balto whispers in shame
Balto covered his head with his paws and he started to sniffle and cry silently in defeat. He had failed. The medicine was gone, possibly destroyed in the fall. Both he and Devon were stranded in the gorge while the other dogs were left stranded up top. And it was probably too late now for Rosy and the children. Balto felt it was time to accept his fate and give in to the cold.
But then, the wolf-dog noticed a pair of white paws infront of him. Lifting his head up, Balto saw a white wolf standing before him, glancing down at him with orange eyes as it blended in with the snow. It was his mother, Aniu. The wolf lifted her head up high and she let out a loud howl before looking back down at her son. Balto showed a slight hint of fear at the wolf's presence and he turns his head away in shame. Aniu started to slowly walk away and vanish into the snow. As he looked away, Balto noticed something he didn't expect. A few feet away from him was the crate of antitoxin, which had miraculously survived the long drop. It was still intact, sitting alone in a snow drift. Then, Balto looked up at the cliff side, which stood several feet up above him. As he stared up at the cliff, Balto remembered Boris' encouraging words as they echoed in his mind.
"Let me tell you something, Balto. A dog cannot make this journey alone. But maybe a wolf can."
Balto put on a determined look on his face and he turned around to where the white wolf vanished into the snow. He stood up and and saw Aniu's paw prints in the snow. He walks over and places his right-paw into the print. He was amazed to see that his paw print and the wolf's track was identical. It was in that moment Balto realized that being part wolf was a strength, not a weakness. Filled with newfound determination, Balto embraces his wolf heritage and raises his head high up, letting out a long, loud howl. He was soon joined by Aniu, who came back and joined her son, letting a howl with him. The howling soon ended and Balto looks upon his mother with a happy smile. Then, he heard a groan coming from behind him.
"Ohh..." A voice groans
Balto turns around and saw Devon stirring awake as he slowly sits up.
"Ahh..." Devon groans rubbing his head with his right-hand
"Devon!" Balto exclaims
The wolf-dog rushes over to the young teen as Aniu disappears into the snow.
"Are you alright?" Balto asks
"Yeah. Ohh... I've survived dozens of falls, but I'll admit that was a rough one." Devon says
Balto glances back to the white wolf, only to see that she was now gone. He wanted to show Devon his mother, but that was probably best for another time. Now, they still had a mission to complete.
"C'mon. We need to get back up top. The team's waiting for us. So are Jenna and Rosy." Balto says
Devon glances up at the cliff before him, seeing that it was several feet high. Like Balto, he puts on a determined expression and he stands up onto his feet.
"Then, let's not keep them waiting. We've come far to get this medicine. We're not gonna let it end here. Rosy and the children need us. Everyone's waiting for us back at Nome. It's time we deliver some hope." Devon says
Devon walks over to the medicine and wraps a rope around his right-arm, securing it tightly with a knot, and grabs hold of it. Balto joins him and grabs a rope with his mouth. Standing together, the two heroes glance up at the tall cliff side infront of them as it stretched up towards the sky.
"We're gonna climb this cliff and we'll finish what we started. We finish this together!" Devon says
At the top of the cliff, Nikki, Kaltag, Star, and the other dogs sat down in defeat, shivering from the cold. Then, they heard the distant howling of wolves in the air.
"Oh, great! Things aren't bad enough. Now, we got wolves." Nikki says
"Wolves?!" The dogs exclaim huddling together in fear
Kaltag soon notices something down below in the gorge and he calls out to the other dogs.
"Hey! Hey, over here!" Kaltag exclaims
"What is it?" Nikki asks
"What? What?" Star asks
The dogs head over the edge of the cliff and they were surprised by what they saw. Devon and Balto were both scaling the cliff side, climbing their way up as they carried the medicine.
"Balto! Devon!" Star exclaims
"And they got the medicine!" Kaltag exclaims
Devon and Balto look up and they saw Nikki, Kaltag, Star, and the dogs watching them from up top.
"Hey! We're alright! Sit tight! We're coming up!" Devon shouts
"C'mon, guys! Youse can make it!" Nikki cheers
Devon and Balto took turns going up with the medicine as they slowly climbed the cliff. At one point in the climb, Balto nearly slipped and lost his footing, causing the dogs to gasp in shock, but he got back up and continued climbing up with Devon.
"That's the most amazing, the most fantastic..." Kaltag says
"Yeah!" Nikki says
"That is the most incredible..." Kaltag says
"Yeah!" Nikki says
"That's the most phenomenal-I-I never-" Kaltag says
"That's good!" Star says
Kaltag looks over at Star with an annoyed expression and he sits down on Star's head. As he looked down, Nikki notices Balto's prints in the snow.
"Hey, Balto's got the feet of a wolf there." Nikki says
The dogs began giving words of encouragement to Devon and Balto, cheering them on as they kept climbing up.
"Come on, guys. Keep goin'." Nikki cheers
"You got it! Just keep pullin'!" Kaltag cheers
"Alright! That's it!" Star cheers
It was a hard and grueling challenge. Inch-by-inch, step-by-step, Devon and Balto climbed up the cliff, working together as a team. The cheers of the dogs got louder and louder as they got closer and closer to the top.
"Come on, guys! You're almost there!" Nikki cheers
"Come on, let's go!" Kaltag cheers
"That's it! That's it!" Star cheers
Eventually, Devon and Balto make it to the top and they drag the medicine up with them. Two dogs came and relieved them of the medicine, grabbing the ropes with their mouths while Nikki, Kaltag, and Star congratulated the young teen and wolf-dog as they collapsed onto the ground.
"Yeah! You did it!" Nikki cheers
"Congratulations! That was great!" Kaltag cheers
"I couldn't have done that." Star says
Devon and Balto shared happy, heroic smiles with each other for a moment, then went back to the task at hand.
"Alright! Come on! We've gotta make up for lost time! Let's go! Let's go!" Devon says
Devon lifts the crate full of medicine back onto the sled and secures it tightly with the rope. Next, he places the unconscious musher onto the sled and covers him with the large blanket with Balto's help. Then, he hooks Balto and the other dogs back onto the sled. Once everything was set, Devon gets back into the musher's position on the sled and gives out the command.
"Mush!" Devon says
And so, Devon, Balto, and the team were back on the road again, continuing their journey back to Nome.
The team traveled for many miles, crossing as much distance as they could to make up for the time they lost. Inevitably, they ran into more of Steele's markings, which forced them to stop.
"Here we go again." Devon says
Devon and Balto looked around at the marked trees, trying to figure out which path to take while Nikki, Kaltag, Star, and the other dogs waited nervously.
"Okay. We need to keep our cool. Getting nervous is what got us into that mess earlier. We gotta figure out which path leads back to Nome." Devon says
"I think I might know of a way to find out." Balto says
Balto started sniffing the air, using his sense of smell to find the right path. Each mark in the trees had Steele's scent on them. If Balto could isolate his marks from Steele's, he would know which way to go. After sniffing around for a minute, Balto was soon able to find the right path to Nome.
"I got it! I know where to go!" Balto says
"Balto, lead the way." Devon says
With Balto guiding the team, they press on and continue onwards through the forest.
The journey soon brought them to an ice bridge across a deep abyss. Devon stood at the edge of the cliff, gazing down at the abyss with his hands on his waist and Balto on his right.
"This ice bridge doesn't look very sturdy, so we're gonna have to take it nice and slow." Devon says
"Right." Balto says
Devon walks back to the sled and grabs hold of the handle bars.
"Okay, guys. Let's go." Devon says
And so, the team began crossing the ice bridge, being very careful with their steps. Star looks down over the left-side and watches with a nervous expression as some ice falls off and disappears into the deep abyss below.
"Yaaah!" Star gasps nervously
They were nearly halfway across when the ice beneath them started to shift. The bridge couldn't withstand their weight for long and it looked like it could break apart at any moment. Devon felt the ice dropping underneath the sled and gasps in shock. He then tells the dogs to run.
"Go! Mush!" Devon shouts
Following Devon's command, Balto and the dogs make a quick dash across the bridge just as the ice breaks apart. They were able to make it to the other side, but the sled slips backwards, pulling them down towards the abyss. Devon and the dogs scream and yell as they got dangerously close to the edge. Devon was already hanging over the edge as he held on to the handle bars of the sled with both hands.
"Aaaah!" Devon screams
The team kept sliding down the slope until Balto catches a branch, which stops them from falling into the abyss.
"Come on, guys! Pull! Pull!" Devon shouts
Working together, Balto and the dogs climb back up the slope using all their strength. The sled was soon back on solid ground and the team moves up the hill and into a gorge. They all stop for a moment to catch their breath, but soon they continue onwards. As he moves forward, Balto's tail accidentally brushes against Star's nose, which causes him to let out a loud sneeze.
"Eeh... Ahh-choo!" Star sneezes
"Gesundheit." Kaltag says
Star's sneeze echoes through the air, going on for miles around. His voice triggers an avalanche behind the team, causing a massive tidal wave of snow to come rushing down the mountain. Balto stops as he heard a rumbling sound coming from behind them. Devon heard it as well and both the young teen and wolf-dog turn around. Their faces turn to horror as they saw the white, destructive wall of snow approaching them at a very fast speed.
"Avalanche!" Devon exclaims
Devon, Balto, and the team run through the gorge, going as fast as they could to escape the avalanche as it trails behind them. The gigantic tidal wave of snow was only a few feet away from them and it was slowly gaining on them with each passing second. Eventually, Devon noticed, in the corner of his eye, an opening to a cave on their right up ahead of them.
"There! Into that cave! Go! Go! Go!" Devon yells pointing to the cave with his right-hand
The team heads straight for the cave and they rush inside just in the nick of time as the avalanche comes crashing down at the entrance.
The cave was very dark, even more since the cave opening was blocked by a wall of snow, plunging it into near pitch-black darkness. The lamp from the sled was the only available light source in the cave until Devon summoned his Keyblade: Soul Calibur into his right-hand, brightening the cave even more with it's benevolent blue light.
"Wow. That was close." Devon says
Devon, Balto, and the team look ahead into the cave, seeing nothing but darkness.
"Well, nowhere but forward. Let's keep moving." Devon says
"Maybe we'll find the other side of this cave." Balto says
"Hope there is another side." Devon mutters
And so, the team pushes on, heading deeper into the cave. They soon turn around the corner and enter a big, wide area of the cave filled with ice-like stalagmites and stalactites. The entire area was made of ice, which sparkled brightly and beautifully due to the sunlight beaming in through small cracks in the ceiling.
"Hey, look at this place." Balto says
As they slowly make their way through the area, Star notices some nearby ice pillars and looks in through them. From another perspective on the other side, his face warped into silly shapes as he looks through the ice, changing from being thin through one and fat in another. Looking through a third ice pillar, which had a weird hourglass shape, Star's face warps into that of an alien.
"Ohhh!" Star says
Devon, Balto, and the team continued walking through the cave until Devon felt a water drop on his head. Still holding onto the sled and Soul Calibur, he feels his head with his left-hand and looks down at it. Then, he glances up to see dozens of sharp ice stalctites hanging above them. Not wanting to have a repeat of the avalanche, Devon quietly calls out to Balto and the dogs.
"Shh!" Devon says putting his left-finger to his lips
Balto and the dogs glance back at Devon, who points up to the stalactites overhead with his left-hand. Cautiously, the team continues onward through the cave, moving as quietly as possible. As they proceed, Balto's tail brushes against Star's nose again.
"Yeh... Ehh... Yaaah!" Star says
Star was about to sneeze again, but fortunately for him, Nikki places his right-paw to his nose, stopping him from sneezing. Star chuckles with an embarrassed smile while Nikki looks at him with an annoyed expression. The team soon moved down a hill and came onto a frozen lake in the middle of the cave. Devon looks on ahead and smiled as he could see a way out of the cave.
"There's our way out. Just ahead." Devon whispers pointing to the exit
Devon, Balto, and the dogs gave a sigh of relief and proceeded to walk over the ice. However, their relief was short-lived as they forgot to take into account that the sled was still atop the hill, which ended up slamming down onto the lake with a loud thud as they walked forward. The team's stomachs churned at the sound. The noise was loud enough that it caused an ice stalactite to fall down towards Devon. The young teen gasped as he saw the large ice falling towards him and he quickly jumps back from the sled, avoiding the stalactite as it hits the ground, smashing through the handles of the sled and barely missing the unconscious musher. Small pieces of ice fell from the ceiling, indicating that more stalactites were about to fall. Realizing the danger, Devon grabbed hold of what was left of the handle bars on the sled and commands the dogs to run.
"Mush!" Devon commands
Devon, Balto, and the team took off as fast as they could, heading for the exit at the other side of the cave. Dozens of stalactites crash down in their path, but they shift left and right on the frozen lake, evading them as they come down. The race for the exit proved to be difficult since they were moving uncontrollably on ice. Swerving around on the ice, the sled slams hard into rock, creating a large crack in the wooden box on it's left-side. Devon saw this and he gasped in horror when he saw a vial fall out and break.
"No!" Devon exclaims
The young teen was about do something about the medicine until the sled hits another rock, knocking him off. Balto looks back and noticed Devon get thrown off the sled.
"Devon!" Balto exclaims
Balto tried to go back for Devon, but the ice was too slick for him to even turn around. Devon slid and rolled along the ice until he came to a stop on his right-side. He got up on his feet, slipping once or twice as he tried to maintain his stance, and looked ahead of him towards Balto, the dogs, and the sled as they kept going. Putting on a determined expression, Devon began skating along the ice to catch up with the team. His entire body began to glow with a blue aura as he traveled along the frozen lake, leaving a trail of sparkling light of the same color behind him. Devon dodged the stalactites as they crashed down in his path, jumping left and right to evade them. He even jumped over a few stalactites performing somersaults and flips.
The Keyblade Wielder started catching up with Balto and the team as he picked up speed. Looking over at the open hole in the medicine box on his right. He had to seal that crack to prevent any more vials from falling out. Devon's gaze turned to an approaching fallen stalactite on his left and he came up with an idea. Moving fast with incredible speed, Devon slides toward the stalactite ahead of the team, swings around and flies towards the sled, kicking the side of the box shut with both his feet. Jumping off the box, he seals off the crack with an ice blast shot from Soul Calibur. Balto smiled with relief, seeing what Devon did to fix the medicine box.
Devon, Balto, and the team continued heading for the exit as more stalactites came down. A few came dangerously close to hitting them, but they manage to avoid the falling ice. A large stalactite fell down from the ceiling and it looked like it would fall right in their path. Devon noticed this and readied his crystal Keyblade. Jumping high up into the air, Devon aimed Soul Calibur at the falling stalactite and shoots a powerful fire blast at it, blasting the large stalactite into oblivion in a huge explosion. They soon reach the exit just as the entire cave collapsed all around them.
Balto and the team were the first to make it out of the cave as they come out the side of the mountain and into a snowy plain. They slow to a stop and look back behind them, watching as the cave collapses on itself. Devon flies out of the cave just as the exit vanishes behind a wall of rock and ice. He flies over the team as they watch him soar overhead and lands infront of them with his body still glowing with the blue aura. Balto and the dogs stare at Devon in amazement as he rises up on his feet. Devon de-summons Soul Calibur and looks himself over as the aura fades away from his body. He had just picked up on a new amazing ability: Flowmotion. Devon turns to Balto and the team and gives them a smile.
"We can't be far from Nome now. Should be a clear run from here." Balto says
"Then, let's get this medicine home." Devon says
Having escaped the cave, Devon walked over towards the sled. But just as he came over to the left-side of the sled, his head was instantly filled with agonizing pain. The Keyblade Wielder clutches his head and cries out in pain.
"Aaaaah!" Devon screams
Just as before in Nome, more intense visions rush through Devon's mind. This time they were visions of the invasion of Destiny Islands when it fell into darkness. The dark storm that engulfed the world. Riku being consumed by the darkness. Kairi vanishing from the Secret Spot. Both him and Sora fighting the Darkside Heartless. And the massive swirling vortex which destroyed their home. Balto and the dogs watched in shock as Devon fought against the mental migraine, falling onto his knees and holding his head.
"Not again! Devon!" Balto says
"W-what's wrong with him?" Star asks
"I don't know." Balto says
Just as suddenly as it appeared, the pain in Devon's head went away and he opened his eyes, panting heavily for air. Before anyone could comprehend what happened, the white sky fell dark, plunging the area into darkness. A wall of black-red flames appeared infront of Devon, Balto, and the dogs and it quickly spread around them, trapping them in a huge ring of dark fire.
Then, a large mass of darkness appears in mid-air, swirling around above Devon, Balto, and the team. Slowly, the black mass begins to take shape in the form of a humanoid being. With a black and red flash of darkness, the Dark Echo makes it's appearance, hovering above the Keyblade Wielder, wolf-dog, and the sled team, staring down at them with it's glowing red eyes and it's spectral cloak flowing in the air. It's ghostly body emitting a black-red aura of darkness.
"W-w-what is t-t-that." Star stutters fearfully
Before anyone could do or say anything, the Dark Echo spreads it's cloak out and a dark shadowy portal opened up infront of the team and it started sucking them towards it. Devon, Balto, and the dogs stood their ground as the dark portal continued sucking them in. Balto and the dogs were able to hold their ground with their claws, but Devon, who was still dazed from the sudden mental pain in his head, ended up getting pulled into the portal. Balto and the dogs watched in horror as Devon got sucked inside the portal, disappearing into the darkness.
"Devon!" Balto screams
The shadowy wraith vanishes in a flash of black and red, leaving behind a huge black sphere of darkness floating in the air above Balto and the dogs, emitting an incredible black-red aura of darkness and an eerie luminescent glow, crackling with dark energy which moves along the round surface. Red flashes appear briefly within the massive sphere and red lightning streaks out from it, illuminating the blackened skies. Balto and the dogs stare up in horror at the evil sphere of darkness as they were left alone in the snow, trapped within the ring of dark flames with no hope of escape.
Deep inside the dark sphere, Devon found himself standing an area surrounded by an impenetrable wall of mist and pitch black darkness. The young teen looks around his surroundings, but saw nothing. It was like looking into an empty void. Then, he heard an evil demonic voice speak all around him.
"ThE lIgHt YoU bRiNg WiLl DiE. AlL tHaT yOu KnOw. AlL tHaT yOu ChErIsH cLoSe To YoUr HeArT wIlL dIe."
"Who said that?" Devon says
Devon searches the black darkness for the source of the voice, looking left and right as he scanned the seemingly endless void. The Keyblade Wielder soon heard the evil voice again as it echoed through the darkness.
"To YoU, cHiLd Of LiGhT wHo SeEkS tO sAvE tHe LiGhT, yOu HaVe No ChAnCe. ThErE wIlL bE nO sAlVaTiOn. No FrEeDoM. No PeAcE. No HoPe. AlL tHaT iS kNoWn ShAlL bE lOsT. YoUr PaTh WiLl lEaD yOu AsTrAy AnD gUiDe YoU tO yOuR dOoM."
"Show yourself!" Devon shouts in a demanding voice
The Keyblade Wielder soon felt a sinister presence behind him. He quickly turned around and saw the Dark Echo hovering before him a good feet away. Devon could feel the cold stare of the shadowy wraith as it gazed down at him. It felt like it's eyes were daggers piercing through his soul. Devon stared back at the Dark Echo with a serious expression and demanded to know who it was.
"Who are you?" Devon asks in a serious tone
The Dark Echo hovered in silence for a moment before it answered Devon's question.
"DaRkNeSs InCaRnAtE..." The Dark Echo says
The Dark Echo stretches both it's hands towards Devon and unleashes a powerful barrage of dark lightning, hurling arcing bolts of blue electricity from it's skeletal fingers. Devon quickly summons Soul Calibur into his hands and holds it up in defense, deflecting the lightning bolts away. The electricity bounces off the crystal Keyblade, flying everywhere in multiple directions. The attack hits him with incredible force, sending the young teen sliding back a bit. Devon stood firm as he fought back against the dark lightning. Soon, he shoves the lightning blast away, breaking the power struggle, and fights back by swinging Soul Calibur with a right slash, launching a blue crescent blade of light at the Dark Echo, who shields itself from the attack using it's spectral cloak. Unfurling it's cloak, the shadowy wraith gives Devon a murderous stare and a deep growl.
Using the power of darkness, the Dark Echo spreads it's hands out, which are enveloped in black-red flames, and raises them up, summoning a horde of evil dead creatures to it's call. These were creatures were Undead Stalkers.
Undead Stalkers were essentially skeletal decayed humanoid zombie-like creatures born through the power of darkness. They had bald heads, pale skin tissue, thin build, and glowing red eyes.
Devon stood his ground unafraid as the Undead Stalkers emerged infront of him. His grip on Soul Calibur tightened in his hands as he readied himself. Each of the zombies growled, hissed, and snarled at the Keyblade Wielder, staring at him with their glowing red eyes until one lets out a demonic roar.
"Euaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!" The zombie roars
Soon, all of the Undead Stalkers charged at Devon, running all together as they screamed and yelled in their distorted, demonic voices. Devon swings Soul Calibur over to his right-side and he sprints forward to meet the zombies head on.
Devon cuts the first Undead Stalker down with a left-downward slash from Soul Calibur, then dispatches three more zombies with three quick slashes, chopping their heads off from their shoulders. Targeting the next Undead Stalker in his view, Devon aims his crystal Keyblade and launches a fireball, blasting the zombie to bloody pieces with a large explosion and burning it's body parts up in flames. Next, he turns to his left and shoots an icy blast at two Undead Stalkers, freezing them in ice. From there, he rushes forward with a right spinning slash, smashing the frozen zombies to bits and pieces. Turning to a group of five zombies infront of him, Devon raises Soul Calibur high above his head, summoning dozens of blue lightning bolts, which strikes down on the unholy monsters with devastating force. Each of the zombies were violently electrocuted as their decayed bodies jerked around with bolts of electricity surging throughout their entire being. Soon, they were reduced to charred, smoldering corpses and they fall onto the ground defeated.
One Undead Stalkers manages to get in close and grabs hold off Devon with it's decomposed hands. Devon pushes the zombie away from him as it tried to bite him with it's rotten teeth, snarling and growling at the Keyblade Wielder. Eventually, Devon shoves the evil walking corpse away and bisects it vertically in half from the head down with a clean swipe. Another Undead Stalker attacks Devon with a blood-encrusted axe in it's right-hand, swinging it down at the young teen. Devon blocks the axe, swing it away, and cuts off the zombie's arm with an uppercut slash. He then finishes the monstrous creature with a right slash at it's waist, slicing the Undead Stalker in half. A third zombie charges at Devon from behind with it's hands stretched out to grab him, letting out a demonic roar, announcing it's presence. Reacting quickly, Devon whirls around and cuts through the Undead Stalker with a left slash.
Five Undead Stalkers charge toward Devon, moaning and screaming in their voices with their hands stretched out. Devon stands his ground as the zombies continue their approach. Taking aim at the monstrous creatures, he pulls his Keyblade back and throws it with a left-diagonal toss. With the wind guiding it's flight path, Soul Calibur spins through the air like a buzz saw, cutting clean through the Undead Stalkers, slicing them in half from across the waist. Devon catches his crystal Keyblade as it flies back into his right-hand. Looking around, he saw the last remaining six zombies surround him, growling and snarling at him as they quickly closed in. Just as they reach him, Devon performs several fast spinning slashes, striking the Undead Stalkers and slicing them up into pieces.
All of the unholy creatures laid scattered around Devon, bisected, decapitated, burned, and in pieces. Defeated, they all disintegrate in puffs of black mist, which swirls around the Dark Echo and is absorbed back into it's spectral body.
The Dark Echo stretches it's left-hand out toward Devon and fires multiple dark blasts from it's open palm. Swinging Soul Calibur left and right, Devon deflects the dark projectiles away from him. Fighting back, Devon leaps up into the air and aims his crystal Keyblade at the shadowy wraith. Soul Calibur charges up with pure light and a blue sphere of light appears at the tip of the Keyblade. launching six light projectiles at the Dark Echo, who uses it's dark cloak to shield itself. The attack inflicted a good deal of damage as the Dark Echo growled with each blast that hit it. Seeing that it was hurt by the light-based attack, Devon leaps to the evil phantom and delivers a strong overhead slash. The Dark Echo lets out a screeching howl as it felt Soul Calibur cut through it's spectral body. In retaliation, the shadowy wraith shoots a dark electric blast through it's left-hand at the young teen, but he jumps back a good feet away, dodging the lightning blast as it strikes the ground where he once stood.
Now, it was Devon's turn to fight back. Pressing on the assault, he jumps back up to the Dark Echo, unleashing more strikes with Soul Calibur. He hits the evil phantom with a right spinning slash that hits three times, a left-backhand slash, a backflip slash, and a right-downward slash. The Dark Echo soon thrusts it's right-hand forward, sending Devon back with a strong telekinetic blast. Devon slides back across the ground, catching himself using his left-hand. He looks up and saw that the Dark Echo was no longer infront of him. The shadowy wraith soon appears above him with a black and red orb of darkness in it's hands raised overhead. Devon quickly jumps away just as the evil entity drops down and slams the ground, generating dozens black and red dark spikes on impact. Devon rushes forward to strike the Dark Echo, but it quickly teleports away and reappears in the air, hovering above the Keyblade Wielder.
The Dark Echo conjures up two black-red dark energy discs in it's hands and hurls them at Devon. The dark discs fly toward Devon in a V-shape at extremely fast speed. Everything moved in slo-motion as Devon narrowly dodged the dark disks, jumping up and spinning in-between them with an forward flip. Landing back on his feet, Devon swings Soul Calibur left and right, launching four blue discs of light back at the Dark Echo, who shields itself with it's spectral cloak. Unfurling it's cloak, the Dark Echo cups it's spectral hands together and conjures up a black orb of darkness in it's hands, which was dark blue at it's core and sparks with blue electricity. Channeling more darkness into the orb, it grew larger in size until it was a huge sparking ball of darkness and electricity. The Dark Echo raises the dark ball over it's head with just it's right-hand and glares down at the young teen with it's flaming red eyes. With a deep growl, the shadowy wraith sends dark ball down towards Devon at a slow, but dangerous speed. Devon immediately jumps out of the way of the massive ball as it crashes down into the ground, detonating in a large explosion and a loud thundering boom which unleashes wave of darkness and electricity. Devon quickly holds up Soul Calibur, generating a spherical barrier of blue light which shields him from the explosion.
Once the explosion had passed, Devon leaps toward the Dark Echo with a somersault slash, striking it three times with a forward somersault and another three times with backward somersault. He follows up with a spinning slash angled to the right, a left slash, a right-uppercut slash, and a downward slash. The Dark Echo growls and takes a swipe at Devon with it's right-claw, but the heroic Keyblade Wielder falls back to the ground away from the evil phantom, dodging it's large hand as it misses him by inches.
The Dark Echo stretches it's skeletal hands out infront of it, which were enveloped in a dark aura, conjuring two shadowy portals down on the ground. From these portals, two large black shadow hands are summoned, emerging from the darkness. The Dark Echo sends the right-hand to slam down on Devon, but he quickly jumps back, moving out of the way. The left-hand blocks the attacks and swats the young teen away. Devon slides across the misty ground using his left-hand to stabilize himself as he slows to a stop. A shadow hand emerges infront of the Keyblade Wielder and it reaches to grab him. Unable to get away in time, Devon found himself caught in the grip of the shadow hand. He struggled to break himself free, but it's grip on him got tighter as the Dark Echo closed it's right-hand tighter.
"Gnh! Aaaaah!" Devon cries out in pain
"ThE rAvEnOuS sHaDoWs WaIl. YoU cAnNoT hOpE tO sUrViVe, ChIlD oF lIgHt. ThE dArKnEsS wIlL cOmE aNd YoUr SoUl ShAlL bE cOnSuMeD. AlL pAtHs LeAd To DeAtH. AlL pAtHs LeAd To DaRkNeSs." The Dark Echo says
Eventually, Devon stopped struggling and he looks at the Dark Echo with a serious, determined expression.
"The darkness may be powerful, but the light is stronger! I've seen it happen many times throughout my journey! My heart is strong! And there's no way I'll fall to darkness! If you say that you're darkness, then I got news for you. I'm your worst nightmare!" Devon says
In that moment, Devon crosses his arms and began to glow with blue light as he charges up with pure energy. Soon, he thrusts his arms and body outward and unleashes a large spherical telekinetic explosion of blue light, which outright disintegrates the shadow hand that was holding him, creating a loud thundering sound and blue ripples in space which echoed far and wide into the dark void. The attack was so strong that it sent the Dark Echo staggering back a bit. Devon levitates in mid-air with his arms spread out. He lands in a crouched position, summons Soul Calibur back into his right-hand, and rises up to face the Dark Echo once more.
With courage in his heart, Devon dashes forward and runs toward the shadowy wraith. The Dark Echo stretches it's skeletal hands infront of it and lifts them up, summoning multiple black-red pillars of darkness, which shoot up from the misty ground. Devon jumps from left to right, dodging the dark pillars. Once he got within distance of the Dark Echo, Devon jumps up and hits the evil phantom with a diving kick, leaving a sparkling trail of blue light as he flies through the air. The attack lands a direct hit to the Dark Echo, dishing out a ton of damage. Attacking with Soul Calibur, Devon strikes the shadowy wraith with three left and right slashes, an upward and downward slash, a somersault slash, and a left spinning slash.
The Dark Echo teleports a couple feet away from Devon and it thrusts it's right-hand forward, launching dark electric blasts at the young teen. Devon jumps left to right, performing cartwheels and flips as he dodges the dark lightning, then dashes toward the evil wraith. Devon leaps into the air and flies forward at the Dark Echo with Soul Calibur shining brightly with it's benevolent light. With his entire body cloaked in light, Devon hits the shadowy wraith with twelve charging strikes, rushing at the Dark Echo from multiple directions, warping in and out between blinks of an eye. He then reappears infront of the Dark Echo and finishes it off with a right-downward slash, slicing through it's shadowy body.
The Dark Echo lets out a loud wail in agony and it vanishes in a puff of darkness. Devon was now left alone in the darkness. Then, he looked around and saw many bright lights surround him until his vision was blinded.
Back outside, Balto and the dogs were still trapped in the ring of dark flames. They stared up at the dark sphere, wondering if Devon was inside it.
"Is Devon inside that thing?" Kaltag asks
"I don't know. Last I checked, that creepy ghost came out of nowhere and sucked him into a shadowy portal." Nikki says
"We gotta help him." Balto says
"How-how are we gonna do that?" Star asks
Suddenly, bright blue cracks of light began to appear on the massive dark sphere and they spread along it's entire surface. The sphere of darkness soon explodes with a loud boom in a blinding flash of light, causing Balto the dogs to shield their eyes and look away. Devon falls to the ground and lands flat on his stomach. When the light dims and fades away, Balto and the dogs look ahead and they saw Devon lying in the snow.
"Devon!" Balto exclaims
The wolf-dog slips out of his harness and goes over to check on the Keyblade Wielder.
"Are you okay?" Balto asks
Devon rises up from the snow and stands up on his right-knee.
"Ohh. Yeah. I'm fine." Devon groans
With the Dark Echo defeated, the dark flames surrounding Devon, Balto, and the team disappears.
"What was that creature?" Balto asks
"I don't know. I never saw anything like that in my life. Whatever it was, it definitely didn't want us to reach Nome with the medicine." Devon says
Devon stands back up on his feet and he looks out on the path before him, which led back out into the open wilderness.
"There's no time to dwell on it now. We've got to get going." Devon says
"Right." Balto says
Not wanting to waste any more time, Devon and Balto rush back to the sled. Balto slips back into his harness and Devon takes up the musher position on the sled.
"Alright let's move! Mush!" Devon says
And so, Devon, Balto, and the team take off into the open snowy plains, continuing their final journey back to Nome where the ill-stricken town anxiously awaited their return. As they took off, Devon glances back at where he fought the Dark Echo. Although he had never seen the shadowy wraith before in his life, he felt that there was something familiar about it. Putting it aside for now, he focuses back on the task at hand as he and the team head out into the wilderness.
At Nome, the town was now quiet as Rosy and the children were now on their last breath. If the medicine did not reach them now, they would all die within the next night. All the residents had lost all hope. Many families of the children sat by their kid's beds as they slowly waited for the inevitable to happen. The same could be said for Rosie's parents as they sat by her bed. Jenna was also in the room as she laid her head somberly on the hospital bed, remaining by her girl's side.
In the outskirts of the town at the shipwreck, Boris, Muk and Luk were in mourning. They had more or less believed in Steele's story about Devon and Balto dying out in the wilderness and each of them were gripped in sadness. Luk whimpered and Muk was sobbing while Boris remained silent. The large polar bear grabbed a nearby blanket and covered himself, his twin, and the goose up. Boris laid his head up on top of Luk and he started to keel over and succumb to sleep.
But then, something unexpected happened. A wolf's howl sounds through the air. It was faint, but Boris heard it crystal clear. Boris perked up at the sound and he quietly questioned it.
"Balto?" Boris says
Boris turns around and his expression quickly changed into that of happiness when he saw Devon, Balto, and the team appear over the snowy hills in the distance.
"Balto and Devon are back!" Boris exclaims happily
After overcoming many challenges on their journey, Devon, Balto, and the team had finally made it back to Nome. They were rapidly approaching the town when Devon noticed something ahead of them.
"Hey, Balto! Check it out!" Devon says
Devon and Balto look out into the distance and they saw the beautiful display of colors on the snowy hills behind Nome that Jenna made. The wolf-dog smiled when he saw it.
"Jenna." Balto says
Balto lets out a loud and proud, which echoed for miles on end. Jenna heard his howl all the way from the hospital and she perked up and barked happily, alerting Rosy's parents, who glance over toward the window.
"The team!" Rosy's Father exclaims
"They made it!" Rosy's Mother exclaims
The couple rush over to the window and they look out through the glass. All the other residents in the town heard Balto's howl and they too glance out the windows of their homes to get a look. Pretty soon, the whole town was awoken as lights in the buildings began to turn on. Morse, the telegraph operator's dog, tries to wiggle his way through the doggy door, but winds up getting stuck. He barks out into the town before his owner opens the door, slamming him into the side of the building. The signal fire was lit back up again and it's red light shined brightly. Hope was rekindled and restored to the town.
Meanwhile, in the worker's shed, Steele was busy telling the group of dogs about his continuous lies about how he survived the wilderness and returned home. Unfortunately, the dogs were still eating it up as Dixie and Sylvie fawned over their so-called 'hero' dog.
"Of course, as you know, I just... I swam and I swam. It was freezing cold. And then..." Steele says as he chewed on a bone
Steele spits the bone up in the air and catches it back in his mouth.
"Then finally, I just said, 'Steele, you're just gonna ave to gnaw your way to the surface.' So I-" Steele says
Steele was soon interrupted by the sound of Balto's howl and all the dogs were drawn towards the door of the shed as Doc opens it up to get a look outside.
"What?" Steele asks
"It's Balto and Devon! With the medicine!" Doc exclaims in surprise
All of the dogs gasped at the revelation. Steele's lie had finally exposed and he was revealed for the manipulative, selfish monster he was. Jenna had turned out to be right all along. It was now at this point the dogs realized their horrible mistake in trusting Steele. The Alaskan Malamute felt his stomach churn as the tables had turned on him. He looks over at Dixie, trying to at least win her over with a smile acting like a genuine nice guy. The female Pomeranian looks at Steele appearing as though she was still in love with him.
"Steele, you are positively..." Dixie says
Then, Dixie's expression quickly turned into one of pure hatred and disgust.
"Disposable!" Dixie yells
Dixie gives Steele a hard slap on the face with her right-paw, knocking the bone out of his mouth and onto the floor where the other dogs growled and glared at him with angry expressions. It was now a complete reversal of roles. Balto was now the town's most popular dog and Steele was now the hated outcast.
"Okay, okay. I can explain." Steele says
Not wanting to listen to any more of his lies, the dogs turned away from Steele and ignored his pleas, murmuring to themselves as they headed for the exit of the large shed.
"Tell me about it." A dog murmurs
"Hmph!" Dixie says
"You guys weren't there, so you don't... Wait a minute, guys. Wait just a second. Please?" Steele begs
"Get lost." A dog says
Steele watched as the door shut on him, leaving him alone in the building. His fears was finally realized. Steele was speechless and utterly confused at the sudden turn of events. How could Balto and Devon have found their way back home. He had marked all those trees in the wilderness to keep them lost for days. His plan was fool-proof. He just didn't understand. As he continued to stare at the shut door, his confusion started to melt away into anger and he growled and gritted his teeth until he finally screamed.
"No!" Steele screams
Steele yanked the bone from the floor and threw it into the nearby boiler where it burnt up and turned to ash. Then, he went into a full temper tantrum, destroying whatever he could find in the room. He scratched up the walls of the room, shredded nearby haystacks, and knocked over buckets and tools, turning the worker's shed into a complete mess. The Alaskan Malamute stood in the middle of the mess, panting heavily as he slowly started to calm down. All the glory he had of being the 'hero' dog was now gone thanks to Balto and Devon.
"Balto... Devon... They've stolen everything from me." Steele snarls
Darkness began to radiate from Steele's body as his hatred for the wolf-dog and the young teen boiled. Because of them, his life had fallen to pieces. And now, he was going to make them pay dearly.
"I'll kill those two for this if it's the last thing I do!" Steele snarls
The residents of Nome anxiously made their way out of their homes and into the streets, gathering in large crowds as Devon, Balto, and the team ran into the town, giving them a hero's welcome. They ran through the streets and stop infront of the hospital where the doctors, nurses, and several men, including Rosy's Father, came out and gathered around the sled. Devon steps off the sled and walks around to the left-side of the sled. Rosy's Father noticed the young teen and was surprised to see him.
"Devon? You went out to get the medicine?" Rosy's Father says
"Yep. But I didn't do it alone." Devon says
Devon looks down at Balto on his right and gives him a smile while he smiles back at him. The young teen kneels down to the wolf-dog and rubbed his right-hand on his back.
"Balto helped out too. He's the one who led the team back to Nome." Devon says
Devon stands back up and walks back to the medicine box with Balto, Rosy's Father, and the doctors and nurses.
"The medicine's all in here." Devon says patting the box of antitoxin
Devon unties the rope binding the crate, grabs the lantern in his left-hand, and flips over the cover, revealing the vials of antitoxin.
"Steady, there. Steady. Easy now. That's had a long journey." The doctor says
The group of men quickly notice the unconscious musher lying on the sled.
"How is he?" A man asks
"He's okay. Just banged up. The team had a bit of a nasty accident out in the storm. They've been stranded out there for days. Lucky for us me and Balto found the team before they froze to death." Devon says
"Let's bring him inside." A man says
Two men pick up the unconscious musher by his arms and legs and lift him off the sled while the doctors brought the antitoxin into the hospital.
Once the medicine was inside, the doctors began administering the cure to Rosy and the ill-stricken children, much to the great relief of many families and friends. Injecting the cure to each child took couple of minutes for each individual doctor and nurse, but in the span of two hours all the children in the hospital recieved the antitoxin.
Back outside, Devon and Balto recieved many thanks and praise from the townspeople. Devon was receiving handshakes and pats on the shoulder and back while Balto was being petted. The wolf-dog was surprised by the sudden affection he was getting. All his life he had been seen as nothing but an outcast and a nuisance, yet now he was seen as a hero. Devon kneels down to Balto and slips off the harness to the sled from his body. Balto looks at Devon and gives him a heartfelt smile. Then, the young teen and wolf-dog look up and saw Boris flying down fast from the sky towards them with an overjoyed expression. Boris grabs hold of Balto and embraces him in a big hug.
"Not dog! Not wolf! You're a hero!" Boris exclaims happily
The goose gave the wolf-dog a kiss on the head before another voice was heard.
"Balto! Devon!" A voice exclaims happily
The voice belonged to Muk, who came running down the street while Boris yelled out in fear. Muk tackles into Devon and Balto and gives them a hug, knocking them into Luk, who gave an even bigger bear hug. Eventually, the young teen and wolf-dog managed to squeeze their way out of the two bear's grasp while the residents of the town laughed, surprisingly not bothered whatsoever by the sight of the two polar bears. The townspeople figured that they must've been friends of Devon and Balto. The two heroes were then approached by Rosy's Father, who came up from behind them and gave Devon a pat on his right-shoulder.
"C'mon, son. There's someone who wants to see you." Rosy's Father says
Devon looks down at Balto, sharing a glance with him before looking back at Rosy's Father.
"And Balto?" Devon says
The man nods his head with a kind smile.
"And Balto." Rosy's Father says
Devon and Balto both smile and proceed to follow the man into the hospital. They come up to the entrance and stop at the door when Balto looks back at Boris, who urges him to go ahead. Balto smiles and he heads into the medical building with Devon right by his side.
In her bed, Rosy slowly began to wake up as she let out a yawn and rubbed the sleepiness out of her eyes. Upon opening her eyes, the young girl was greeted by the happy faces of her parents.
"Momma?" Rosy says
"Rosy! Darling!" Rosy's Mother exclaims
"Oh, Rosy." Rosy's Father says
The couple hugged their daughter with much love, relieved that Rosy was now recovering. Devon and Balto stood nearby, watching the happy moment together with smiles on their faces. Looking around at the rest of the hospital, the two heroes saw the other children recovering as well. They also saw Rosy's hat sitting on a nearby chair. Balto walks over and grabs the hat with his teeth and brings it over to Devon, giving it to him. With a smile, Devon gives Rosy her hat, presenting it to her.
"Pardon me, young lady. I believe this hat belongs to you." Devon says
When she noticed their presence, Rosy broke free of her mother's hug and greeted Devon and Balto happily.
"Devon, Balto..." Rosy says
Rosy takes her hat from Devon and hugs both him and Balto lovingly.
"I'd be lost without you." Rosy says
Devon and Balto broke away from the hug when they noticed Jenna standing outside the doorway to the hospital
"Jenna!" Balto says
Balto smiled and ran out to greet the female husky. They barked and pranced around happily for a few moments until the tips of their noses touched like their first meeting startling them. Then, Jenna nuzzled Balto's head in a hug. Jenna looks at Balto with a loving smile while the wolf-dog smiles back at her. Devon himself smiled when he realized what was going on. Balto and Jenna were finally a mated pair.
"It's about time." Devon says
Devon walks over to Balto and Jenna, gaining their attention. The female husky held a happy expression when she saw the young teen approach them.
"Devon!" Jenna exclaims happily
Jenna runs up to Devon as he kneels down to her and nuzzles her head against his body. Devon wraps his arms around Jenna's body, embracing her in a hug.
"Oh, Devon! I never gave up hope! Thank you so much for everything!" Jenna says
Devon gently pat's Jenna's back with his right-hand and strokes the back of her head with his other hand.
"Don't mention it. I'm just glad we made it back in time." Devon says
Jenna gasped as she remembered something. Glancing down, she still had Devon's Kingdom Hearts necklace around her neck. She smiled as she looked down at it and felt that it was time to give it back. Lowering her head down, the chain necklace slips over Jenna's head and falls into Devon's right-hand.
"Here, Devon. This is yours. It really helped get through this. Thanks." Jenna says
Devon stared down at his necklace that his mother had given him and smiled before slipping it over his head and back around his neck. The Kingdom Hearts sigil emitted a brief flash of light, reacting to the presence of it's owner. Glancing up at Jenna, Devon gives the female husky a nod and a smile. Balto walks over and joins them as they share happy expressions with each other. Devon wraps his arms around both dogs with his left-arm around Balto and his right-arm around Jenna, embracing them both in a big hug. Their attention was soon diverted to the crowd of people and animals outside as they all cheered for Devon and Balto, the two heroes that saved their town from disaster. Devon, Balto, and Jenna walked outside and were greeted by the cheers of the townspeople and the dogs.
"Way to go, Balto! And Devon too!" Star cheers
"They have the most endurance, the most fidelity, the most intelligence!" Kaltag says
"They should build a statue of them!" Star says
Kaltag bumped into Star while he winced his eyes, expecting the gold-colored husky to hit him, but it never happened. Instead, Kaltag said something which surprised Star.
"You said it!" Kaltag says
Star opened his eyes and glanced up at Kaltag on his left.
"I did?" Star asks with a smile
A few hours later, the whole town of Nome celebrated Devon and Balto's grand return with a party. The children were finally released from the hospital and one by one they were able to return home with their families. Each of the kids passed Devon and Balto, thanking them for saving their lives as they left the hospital. There was still a bit of a crowd around the hospital to see the kids off. Rosy was the last to leave the medical building.
"Devon, this town is forever indebted to you and Balto. You both gave hope to us when we had none. If ever you need anything, Nome will always be here for you." Rosy's Father says
"Thanks, but I feel like I've stayed here for long enough. I have my own journey to complete." Devon says
"Does this mean you have to go?" Rosy asks feeling slightly sad
Devon kneels down to Rosy and places his right-hand on her left-arm.
"Yes. I have to go. There are other places where I'm needed. Other people that need my help. But don't worry. I'll be sure to stop by and visit you, Balto, Jenna, and everyone else." Devon says
"Promise?" Rosy asks
Devon nods his head in affirmation.
"Promise." Devon says
Devon looks up at Rosy's parents, then leans closer to Rosy and whispers in her ear.
"Hopefully the next time I visit, maybe Balto and Jenna will have puppies." Devon whispers
Rosy chuckled for a moment, then she immediately wraps her arms around Devon's body, embracing her hero in another loving hug.
"I'll miss you, Devon." Rosy says
The young teen wraps his arms around the young girl and returns the hug.
"Same here." Devon says
After saying farewell to Rosy and her parents, Devon heads down the street to make his way to the outskirts while they watch him go. Several minutes into his walk as he traveled along the street, Devon heard a voice call out to him.
"Wait, Devon!" A male voice calls
The Keyblade Wielder stopped dead in his tracks when he heard the voice. He immediately recognized it as Balto's voice. Turning around, Devon saw Balto, Jenna, Boris, Muk and Luk standing behind him. He was surprised to see them all together in the street with him. Jenna took a step forward and speaks to Devon.
"Would it be alright if we see you off?" Jenna asks
Devon stares at the animals for a moment, but he soon smiles and nods his head.
"Sure." Devon says
Accepting the company of the animals, Devon continues on with his walk as his friends followed him to the outskirts of the town. Their happy stroll together would soon be cut short when they saw a figure standing in their path ahead of them. It was Steele. The Alaskan Malamute had an aura of darkness around his body and the sclera in his eyes were now a glowing fiery red instead of his usual green. His fur had become a much darker shade of black and his claws and teeth had grown razor sharp. Devon, Balto, Jenna, Boris, Muk and Luk stared in shock at Steele's monstrous appearance.
"Going somewhere, Devon?" Steele asks in a menacing voice
"Steele? What happened to you?" Devon says
"I hope you weren't planning on leaving. There's a score that needs to be settled." Steele says
"What are you talking about?" Devon asks
"Don't play dumb! You stole everything from me! You ruined me! It should've been me! I'm the one who should've delivered the medicine! I'm the one who should be the hero! And I intend to make sure it stays that way. After all that you have done to me, I don't intend on letting you walk away... alive." Steele yells
Devon stared at Steele as he realized what was going on with him.
"Oh, I see now. You succumbed to the darkness in your heart. Your jealousy, selfishness, pride, and arrogance got the better of you. We gave you a chance to help, Steele! You blew it! You only have yourself to blame!" Devon says
"I don't need help from anybody! I told you I'm the lead dog! I make the rules! Once you and Balto are gone..." Steele says
Steele chuckles maniacally.
"...then I'll be number one again." Steele says
"Geez, Steele. You really have lost your mind." Devon says
Balto steps infront of Devon, ready to defend him.
"Leave Devon alone, Steele! If you got something against someone, then take it up with me!" Balto says
"Oh, I intend to deal with you next, wolf-dog! But first, I'm getting me some vengeance!" Steele says
Balto growls and was about to face Steele, but Devon held out his left-hand, stopping the wolf-dog.
"No, Balto. Let me handle Steele. You watch over Jenna and the others. I'll knock some sense into him." Devon says
Devon takes a few steps forward and stretches his right-hand out infront of him, summoning Soul Calibur in a flash of blue light. He spins the crystal Keyblade infront of him, then brings it over to his right-side as he got into battle stance, preparing himself to face the psychotic dog.
"Oh, I'm going to enjoy tearing out your throat, Devon. And your worthless friends will have front row seats to watch." Steele says with an evil smile
Devon and Steele slowly started to circle each other as Balto and his friends watched. Both human and dog stared each other down. Devon with a serious expression and Steele with a murderous, hateful expression.
Within moments, Steele made the first move dashing straight for Devon with every intention of killing him. He leaps forward and lunges at the young teen with his sharp teeth aiming for his neck, but Devon jumps back and dodges the attack. Steele moved with incredible speed, closing the distance between him and the Keyblade Wielder in no less than three seconds. The Alaskan Malamute lunges at Devon again, swiping both his claws at him. And again, Devon evades the attack. For a third time, Steele attacks Devon with his jaws, but this time the young teen counters the attack with a right slash, landing a direct hit across Steele's face. He follows up with a downward slash, a reverse roundhouse slash, a left-uppercut slash, a right spinning slash, then he swings his Keyblade down, generating three powerful orbs of light around himself which hits Steele multiple times before blasting him back.
Devon flies forward propelled by a flurry of wind and quickly closes in on Steele, striking him under the chin with a left-uppercut slash. Steele swipes his right-claw at Devon, but he leans over to the left and counters the attack with a leaping reverse roundhouse kick using his right-foot, landing another hit to the psycho dog's face. Devon strikes Steele with a downward slash, delivering a strong blow to his head, then he strikes the ground with a blast of pure energy from Soul Calibur, launching himself and Steele into the air with a right-uppercut slash. From there, Devon hits Steele with an aerial sweep, striking him with a spiraling attack that lands four times, followed by five circular slashes, two vertical, two horizontal, and a downward spinning slash.
Steele falls to the ground flat on his stomach while Devon lands in a crouched position using his left-hand to catch himself. Devon and his friends thought it was over, but that quickly changed when they saw the dark aura enveloping Steele's body. They were even more shocked when they saw him rise back up.
"You think it'd be that easy? I won't stop until I see you dead!" Steele snarls
Catching Devon off guard, Steele runs fast towards the young teen and lunges at him with his teeth. Devon was able to quickly catch Steele's teeth with Soul Calibur, but he knocked down onto the snow and was pinned down by the Alaskan Malamute. Steele forces himself down on Devon while he struggled to push the large dog off him. Balto and his friends watched helplessly as Devon fought off the crazed dog. As he watched him, Balto looked back on everything that had happened so far in his life. His first meeting with Devon, the friendship they shared, the challenges they faced and overcame together. It was thanks to Devon that his life had turned out for the better. He was now a hero like him. He had helped him every step of the way and now it was time to repay him. Growling in determination, Balto rushes forward to help Devon while Jenna, Boris, Muk and Luk watch in surprise.
"Balto!" Jenna exclaims
Balto jumps onto Steele's back, bites down on him, and throws him off of Devon. The young teen sat up and was surprised to see Balto standing infront of him.
"Balto..." Devon says surprised
Balto looks back at Devon over his left-shoulder.
"I've had enough. I can't stand by and watch you risk yourself for us, Devon. From now on, I fight by your side!" Balto says
Devon stared at Balto, but he smiled at his willingness to fight alongside him.
"Balto, thanks." Devon says
The Keyblade Wielder rose back up onto his feet and stood next to the wolf-dog as they glanced back at Steele, who got back up on his feet with his body seething with darkness.
"You know, I've had everything handed to me on a silver platter. But nothing will please me more than to watch the two of you suffer. You can both die together!" Steele says
Darkness began to cover Steele's body and six dark energy spheres surround his body. In no less than a second, Steele dashes toward Devon and Balto with very fast speed. The young teen and wolf-dog jump away and narrowly dodge the charging dog as he zips past them. Steele comes back around and charges at them again, but the two heroes continuously evade his attacks. In his third run, Steele heads straight for Devon, dashing toward him at fast speed. Devon quickly generates a spherical barrier of light around himself, which protects him from Steele's charge and sends him back.
Balto tackles into Steele's right-side and swipes him across the face with his left-paw. Steele lunges at Balto to bite him with his jaws, but the wolf-dog jumps over to the right and kicks him away at his side using both his hind legs. Devon moves in and assists Balto with a sliding dash, delivering a flying left-kick to Steele's left-side, knocking him away and down into the snow. Steele gets back up on his feet and turns to Devon and Balto, growling and snarling at them. Dark black flames envelope Steele's body as he faces the two heroes. With a mighty leap, Steele flies through the air with his claws stretched out to attack. Devon and Balto both jump out the way just as Steele reaches their position, sending out dark fireballs from the ground. After missing them, Steele goes for Devon first, then Balto to attack them again, but they jump away and dodge his attacks.
Devon and Balto jump back and regroup as they look over at Steele as the dark aura and flames raged on his body. The two heroes share determined glances and they nod at each other.
"Let's do this!" Devon says
"Together!" Balto says
The young teen and wolf-dog leap forward and colorful lights resembling the Northern Lights surround them, blinding Steele and stunning him for a moment. Seizing this chance, Devon and Balto go on the offensive. Devon strikes Steele with a flurry of slashes swinging Soul Calibur left and right while Balto slashes Steele furiously with his claws.
"This is it!" Devon says
"You're through!" Balto says
Standing together, Devon takes hold of Soul Calibur with both hands and raises it up above his head while Balto lets out a loud and proud howl, creating beams of light that surround them, finishing Steele off once and for all. Steele was blown back by the force of the light-based attack and he falls on his left-side. The darkness that enveloped his body fades away and Steele slowly regains consciousness as he rises up.
"Wha? What happened?" Steele asks in a confused voice
Steele's attention was soon drawn to Soul Calibur as it was pointed at him with Devon and Balto standing before him.
"It's over, Steele. You've lost. Now, take a hike!" Devon says
Steele growls at Devon, but he turns and runs off across the snow-covered land, heading off into the wilderness, never to be seen again. Devon, Balto, Jenna, Boris, Muk and Luk watch as Steele disappears into the distance.
"And don't show your face around town again." Boris says with a laugh
"I doubt that will ever happen now that Steele's reputation is shattered." Devon says
Devon de-summons his Keyblade and turns around to look upon his animal friends.
"Well, guys, it's been fun. But it's time for me to get going." Devon says
"We'll we ever see you again?" Jenna asks
Devon kneels down to Jenna's level and places his right-hand on her head.
"Of course. You can count on it." Devon says
"Devon, I just want to say... Thanks... for everything. Before you came along, I was nothing but an outcast. Nobody in Nome wanted anything to do with me. But now, after the amazing adventure we ad, I actually feel wanted." Balto says
"Well, you finally got your wish, Balto. You're a hero now. One who's far more better than Steele ever was." Devon says
Balto smiles.
"Don't be stranger." Devon says
"Good-bye, Devon!" Muk says
"We'll always remember you." Jenna says
"Take care of yourself, Devon. And good luck on becoming a Keyblade Master." Balto says
Devon smiles and gave Balto a thumbs-up with his right-hand.
"Thanks. And good luck to you two. " Devon says
Balto and Jenna look toward each other and smile. And so, having saved Nome from a terrible pandemic, Devon headed out of town, waving good-bye to Balto and his friends with his right-hand as he looked back at them while they waved back.
Several minutes of walking into the outskirts, Devon turns and looks back at the town of Nome down below. Then, he looks over at the snowy hills behind Nome and saw the Northern Lights that Jenna made by herself. What he saw next caught him completely by surprise. The lights took on the form of a wolf, which lets out a loud howl to the night sky. Devon smiled as he gazed at the light show. Then, a large, circular section of the sky disappears and shatters like glass, revealing the sleeping keyhole. Soul Calibur appears in Devon's right-hand in a flash of blue light, reacting to the presence of the keyhole. A pure aura envelopes Devon's body and his crystal Keyblade begins to shine brightly with its benevolent light. Devon aims his Keyblade up at the keyhole and a beam of light shoots out, striking the keyhole. The keyhole shines brightly and engulfs Devon with its light as he leaves Nome, Alaska.
Author's Note: Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Sorry for the long wait, but Devon's adventure with Balto is finally done! After overcoming many challenges, the Keyblade Wielder and wolf-dog have successfully delivered hope and brought forth the antitoxin for the ill-stricken children of Nome. Devon meets the darkest shadow as he squares off against the Dark Echo. It was tough laying out this fight, but in the end Devon's light triumphs against the darkness. Then, he and Balto goes up against Steele as he succumbs to the darkness in his heart. And now, Devon discovers the ability of Flowmotion! All in all a fine way to end this chapter in Devon's journey. Sometimes when I look at this, I imagine Devon delivering the COVID-19 vaccine to help save the world from the global pandemic. I know, sounds crazy right? So, which world will Devon visit next? I know that some of you are begging for Jurassic Park to be included in this story and just to let you all know I am making plans for that. I'll admit it is a very sound idea and I do intend to include Devon in the Jurassic Park story in my Kingdom Hearts Saga, but first things first. I plan to do Devon's visit in Jurassic Park in a separate story along with the other two films in their own separate stories. So please bear with me. Anyone notice the E.T. cameo in this chapter? Anyway, let me know what you guys think. No flames please. Hope you guys like and don't forget to review!