Holy t'shi! I have 16 reviews! When the heck did that happen?

kingdomhearts soar: Okay, phew! Glad that I don't have only one reviewer now.

crystalfeathers: Well, I didn't make my own language. I just made up a few words. Making a language is freakin' hard... And it's hard even for me to believe that he's a good guy.

BlackDragonofdarknessflames: No, this is not going to be a Sora/Lilac or Sora/OC story. In fact, Sora's barely mentioned in here at all. Sorry.

P.S. Rike-sama, if you ever read this story again, I found a great site with a guide to all the Heartless. Lemme know if you still want it.

Chapter 9 - Surprise Attack

"As I'm sure you all know," Midnight began, standing before his troops, "we are about to have total war with the Heartless. They have located our stronghold, but do not fear. We are strong because we have the power of light." Cheers erupted from the crowd, especially from me. My heart was beating faster than normal from all the excitement. "We shall strike before they can attack us!" Midnight continued, punching the air. "It's time to end this war once and for all and avenge our deceased family members!"

Everyone was yelling and jumping up and down into the air. I looked around me to see all the friends that I had made during my adventure: Cherry, Coral, Truff, Mauve, and, of course, Midnight. Even if they had not been helping from the beginning, I knew that they would always be there for me, even if it was them who got me into the situation in the first place. Together, I knew that we could win the battle. No, not just the battle. The war.

"Now, we have to plan fast," Midnight announced. "There's not much time. It won't be long before the Heartlessattack.You shall all be divided into teams based on your skills and unique abilities. Now, will all who are able to fly please do so know." All of the Air Pirates, Air Soldiers, Angel Stars, Blue Rhapsodies, Darkballs, and other flying Imperfects (including Mauve) hovered into the air several inches above the audience (unless they were in the air already). "Your job will to wait for theteleporters to come in– I'll explain that part later – and dive in from above. Some of you will have other jobs which will be explained in a few moments. Now, I need all of the Rare Truffles to please step forward."

Truff was the first one to step to the front row. Three others followed him, bouncing slightly with excitement. "You will lead our surprise attack. Mauve, Elkor, Urspadon, and Fright will carry you," he explained, looking at some of the Search Ghosts in the room. "In order for this plan to work, we'll need distractions. I'll need all Bouncywilds and Powerwilds to run out the front door when I give the signal and distract them as well as you can. Give them a false sense of security and don't attack too often. Once you're ready, I'll need Coral to stomp the ground five times with her left foot, and the Rare Truffles will be dropped down to lead our surprise assault. Those who can teleport will come in right after. Once they're in, everyone else is to either dive in or run out from the sides and attack. Any questions?"

My arm shot up instantly. Midnight looked over at me and nodded. "Um, what if you're not sure if you can do teleporting magic yet?" I asked, looking around a bit nervously to make sure that nobody would make fun of me. Apparently, everyone had heard about me and my abilities, because nobody murmured anything about me.

"Once we get to the battlefield, when the time to teleport has come, just try," Midnight replied. "If you can't do it, just wait until its your team's turn to attack." I nodded in affirmation as Midnight looked across the audience. "Any other questions?" Silence. "Great. Now, it is time to act. Those who have been assigned to carry a Rare Truffle, follow me with your comrade."

Truff bounced over to Coral, Cherry, and me with Mauve hovering close behind. "Well, guys, this is it," the Search Ghost uttered. "The battle between the forces of good and evil."

"This isn't just a battle," Cherry stated, standing up as high as she could. "This is the start of a war!" She paused, apparently realizing how dramatic she had been, and laughed nervously. "Anyway, good luck, you two!"

"Thanks!" Truff and Mauve harmonized, running (and flying) over to the small group assembling at the back door.

"Can you believe this?" I sighed. "I never thought I would actually have to fight. And yet, here I am, ready to strike against the enemy force. It's so exciting! My heart's beating faster than ever before!"

I looked over to Coral, who looked less than excited about the battle to come. "Coral?" Cherry inquired, walking up to the monkey Imperfect. "What's wrong?"

Coral sighed and shook her head. "You heard Midnight. Bouncywilds and Powerwilds are to be the distractions."

She didn't need to say anymore. I knew that she had been thinking about her late boyfriend, Cobalt. The whole situation made even me want to cry, but I held back. I had to be strong for my friend. "Coral," I began, taking a deep breath, "I know it's hard, but you have to realize that, even though he's not here, Cobalt will always be with you." I gently poked her chest with my arm. "He'll always be right there, and he'll never leave."

Coral wiped a tear away and sniffed. "Thanks, Lilac." She embraced me, and I gently stroked the back of her head. I heard Midnight call out for the other flying Heartless to assemble outside, and several others left the room. It was only a few moments later that he called for everyone else but the Bouncywilds and Powerwilds to follow him to the battlegrounds.

"Well, I guess we've gotta head off," Cherry muttered, looking a bit nervous.

"Good luck, you two." The Bouncywild released me and patted my back. I smiled and nodded at her before turning to follow the large group outside.

The time to fight was now. Today would mark the beginning of yet another war against the Heartless. It would be a recreation of what our parents had faced, but we would have more victory. We had more plans. We had the element of surprise on our side. Most importantly, we had the greatest leader any army could ask for: Midnight, the Ex-Imperfect Hunter.


It was time.

I had been instructed to stay up front with the Wizards and Search Ghosts behind a large bush, since I was possibly to teleport in with them. Several Heartless were crowded around the entrance to the headquarters, ready to attack. My heart was pounding. The whole thing had seemed exciting at first, but now I was having second thoughts. What if something happened to me or, worse, to my friends? What if one of them got killed or captured during the battle? I was scared, yes, but I wouldn't let that hold me down.

Suddenly, the doors to our stronghold swung open, and the monkey-like Imperfects stampeded out and began jumping around. (Maleficent must have made the most of those.) It was almost time... Only a few more moments, and I would enter the fray with my arsenal of magic powers with me.

My eyes were on Coral the whole time. Not only did I need to watch her for the Rare Truffle's signal, but I also wanted to make sure that she didn't get hurt. I think Midnight had said to distract them for just a few minutes and make sure that they stayed away from our temporary hideout. I counted the seconds in my head, my heart rate increasing with each passing second. 3... 2... 1...

Stomp. Stomp. Stomp. Stomp. Stomp.

Suddenly, four blue figures fell from the sky and bounced on top of some Wyvern's heads. They roared with anger and tried to shake them off, but they, especially Truff, clung tight, bashing them with every ounce of their strength. The Wizards around me rose their rods while the Search Ghosts, including the ones in the troop in the sky, began to teleport. I closed my eyes and concentrated all of my magic power, imagining a place in the middle of a cluster of Bandits. I felt energy rush through me. When I opened my eyes again, I saw several Heartless dressed in desert attire surrounding me, swords aimed in my direction. It had worked!

"Take this, you good for nothing morons!" I growled, hanging my head and letting a light appear above me. I suddenly threw my arms into the air, casting Thundaga on the surrounding enemies. I turned around and did the same to a group of Shadows. They all easily went down in a puff of smoke.

The Soldiers behind me were suddenly on their backs on the ground with a banana peel under them. I spun to the left to see Coral winking at me, slingshot in hand. I winked back and ran toward a group of Wizards who were gesturing to me.

"Lilac," Litra (Darkness for Book) rasped in a familiar voice. I recognized her as one of the Wizards who had helped me learn magic that day. "Think like a normal White Mushroom. Do the motion where Thunder is to be cast."

"O-Okay," I replied, hanging my head and letting a blank lightbulb appear above me again.The Wizards around me started filling it with Thunder energy until I felt like bursting. When I was at my maximum, I held out my arms and cast the most immense Thundaga spell ever seen. Nearly half of the enemy Heartless were wiped out. Several shining hearts were seen rising into the night.

"I don't think I can do that again," I sighed, falling over. Luckily, someone had caught me before I banged my head on the ground. I turned around to thank them, only to see a pair of menacing yellow eyes. I gasped and tried to get up, but the Wyvern's toes wrapped around me. I shrieked in fear as my captor began pumping its wings and carrying me higher and higher...

"Lilac!" Coral shouted, jumping up and grabbing me. She attempted to pull me free but only succeeded in getting herself thrown into the wall and passing out.

"Coral!" I yelled, trying to wiggle free. "Let me go, you dumb dragon!"

The last thing I heard was Midnight and my other friends calling my name. Mauve, along with several other Search Ghosts, flew after the Wyvern and try to rescue me, but they were driven back by several Heartless Wizards. One of the Wyvern's toes lifted up and hit me on the noggin, causing me to black out.

To be continued...

Short, cliffy chapter! Mwahahahaha! -looks around- I'm okay.

Ooh, almost forgot the Darkness word origin for this chapter.

Litra, or Book, comes from the English word Literature. The character Litra was originally intended to be a boy, but the name sounded more femaleish. She was called that because magic is oftenassociated with books.