Chapter 6: Master Yen Sid
What was up with this itching? My hand was like this since we were in Ansem's study. I had to check what was going on and so I pulled my glove off.
"Huh...?" Were my eyes playing tricks? What was this weird, white sigil on the back of my hand?
"We should be at Master Yen Sid's tower in a few seconds," Sora announced. I quickly put my glove back on.
"So Sora, is there anything I should know about Yen Sid before we get there?"
Sora pondered for a little bit. He must be thinking of something about Yen Sid that he could tell me.
"Hmm... Honestly, there are so many things that're pretty cool about him, I actually don't really know where to start," Sora admitted. Just from those words alone, I could picture this Yen Sid being a very mysterious person in my head almost immediately.
"Yen Sid is a powerful wizard and a Keyblade Master," Donald threw out. "Don't get on his bad side." After my share of magical wizards and voodoo mamas, I could only nod.
"Oh,we're here," Mickey announced. I looked outside and saw an intersting tower on a land above the clouds. Definitely mysterious.
"The Mysterious Tower," Riku informed. The name definitely fit. How ironic.
"Do you think Yen Sid can get me home, Sora? I'm not sure how much time we have."
"Well, it may be possible that he can," Sora said. "Like Donald said, he is pretty powerful. So, I don't have any doubt in my mind that he'll be able to get you back home before the Heartless destroys your world."
Despite Sora's words, I couldn't help but feel rather anxious. Ever since I got to Sora's world, all I've been thinking about is if everyone I know is alright. Bentley, Murray, Penelope, Carmelita... I didn't know if any of them were still holding out while the Heartless were there. I don't even want to think about what would happen to them if we failed to get back in time.
The ship landed near the entrance of the tower. It looked much taller from a downwards angle now. Everyone casualy walked up to the door and King Mickey pushed it open.
"Hope you like stairs," Sora quickly threw out. Figures. Lots of stairs.
"How long does it take to reach the top? I don't want to tire out before we're done climbing."
"To me, it feels like it actually doesn't take that long to get up there," Sora said with a reassuring smile on his face. "It'll probably take a minute or two."
Looking up that staircase as soon as we walked in... "a minute or two", my stripes. I may be fit and have climbed many steps, but this tower took the cake.
Luckily, it didn't really feel like it took too long. We were at the top in maybe two to four minutes tops.
"Is Yen Sid through this door I see, Sora? Maybe he will help me get back to Earth."
"Yep, he's right inside, Sly," Sora said. I guess it was worth the entire walk all the way up here in the end.
Kairi opened the door. Inside was a small room, but just enough space for someone to think. In the middle was a desk and a tall, definitely powerful looking human with quite a fashion stating beard was sitting in a tall chair.
"Yen Sid," Mickey greeted and everyone bowed. I did it too out of respect. When I looked back up, I nearly jumped. He was looking at me.
"... So it was you who came through the disturbance." Even his tone was wise, just like Ansem's.
"Yes, that was me, and now I'm trying to figure out what happened so I can get back home."
"Based on the tone in the your voice, I can see that this is a rather urgent matter," Yen Sid said. "What, may I ask, is your name?"
"My name's Sly. Sly Cooper," I said.
"Hmmmm..." he made in acknowledgement, stroking his beard. "Sly, I believe you are aware that you are not from a world that exists in this section of worlds."
"Yes. Ansem the Wise said I may be from a world outside."
"The only way for a person from a completely different world to come to a world far from their own is if there was a disturbance in time and space, and they had worn down and something of great power is used to open a rift to a far off world."
"Like a tear in space?" Sora asked.
"Or a corridor of darkness," Riku suggested.
"Both are very similar, but the rift causes galactic travel. A Gummi Ship on its own can only travel within the walls of the barrier around all of us. This barrier is similar to ones normally surrounding the worlds, but it's stronger and keeps the worlds from drifting apart."
"So does that mean the barrier around our worlds and the barrier around Sly's world were weakened and then broken through?" Mickey asked.
"Very much. Both of our worlds would be affected. Is there anything that happened in common lately?"
"There was," I replied. "There was a meteor shower on my world."
"We saw one too," Sora added, gesturing to Riku and Kairi. "And that's not all." Sora pulled out the jewel and so I pulled out mine. "These appeared before us."
Yen Sid looked a bit stunned when he saw the jewels.
"At what time?"
"Two nights ago," I answered, then realized Sora said it too. We looked at each other in surprise.
"The same time?" Kairi gasped. "Is that coincidence?"
"No, Kairi. This is not coincidence," Yen Sid said, more serious than earlier. "This may be an omen that darkness is spreading even further. What with the appearance of the Chaos Emeralds, the worlds are in danger once more."
"Chaos Emeralds?" I couldn't help but ask.
"Mythical gemstones said to be created by God and with infinite power. In the wrong hands, even one Chaos Emerald can bring dire destruction. One even has the power to let someone transcend space and time for a short moment."
I said, "I had a friend of mine do some tests on the white one before I got sent to Sora, and he couldn't find much, but he did notice the amount of power inside."
"Then it appears that this friend of yours may have a vague idea of his own of how powerful that even one Chaos Emerald can be," Yen Sid said.
"He did have a look of shock on his face the moment he saw how much power it contained," I said. "But I'm pretty sure he would end up fainting if he finds out about what it can really do."
"As long as your friend has good intentions, there is no worry about the Emerald. However, it seems the gem's power had indeed activated at some points. This is called Chaos Control and not just any being can use Chaos energy naturally."
"Its power activated... do you think...?"
"Yes. You are very correct. You somehow managed to use Chaos Control when you were in a life-threatening situation and you were sent here through a rift. Something in your heart must've guided the Emerald to take you here. After all, you can't just suddenly appear in a random place when using Chaos Control."
"A guide?" I thought about it. What was I focused on when the darkness was pulling me in? A name came to my head for some reason at that time.
"... It took me to Sora," I said in realiztion. I had thought of Sora before I had blacked out.
I asked Yen Sid, "Is it possible to use this power to get home?"
"Considering the fact that you've managed to use the power of Chaos Control to come all the way here, solely by thinking of Sora, the possibility of using it to return back to your world is rather likely," Yen Sid said.
Despite the lingering feeling of worry I felt in my body, I couldn't help but feel a bit relieved when I heard that the possibility of using Chaos Control to return back to my own world does exist.
"However, it seems that since you had no former awareness or presence of Chaos energy, the Chaos Control was instinctive when you were in danger. So I do not believe it can be repeated."
"It can't?" My heart sank at that. If I can't use Chaos Control properly by will, what did that mean for Earth?
"There may be one way with the current inexperience." My ears perked at that.
"Anything!"
"Tell me, Sly." Yen Sid stood up. "Have you wielded a Keyblade?"
"Y-yes. One time on my world to defend my friends."
What is Yen Sid suggesting? That I try to summon it again?
"So you have been able to summon a Keyblade of your own. And how exactly did you manage to make that possible?" Yen Sid asked.
"Honestly, I'm not sure myself. I was just so focused on trying to protect my friends from harm at the time. I didn't even realized I summonded it until one of them pointed it out," I said.
"A beginning Keyblade wielder needs to find what makes their Keyblade appear for them and make it disappear when not threatened. Overtime, it will appear at will with experience. But for now, use that same desire to protect what's important to you to summon your Keyblade once more."
I stared down at my cane, thinking of that moment before that Keyblade appeared. When the Heartless attacked my friends, just wanting to save them no matter the cost was all I thought about. And right now, I want to be sure they're alright. Nothing else matters most to me than their safety.
Did I see a spark on my cane? Was it just me? Suddenly, my cane was glittering with light. Everyone in the room, except the surprisingly calm Yen Sid, was looking very surprised. Then in a flash, there it was. That very Keyblade that saved my friends.
"Whoa!" Sora jumped in surprise.
"What?!" Donald shouted.
I couldn't help but stare at my cane- No, the Keyblade in surprise as I gripped onto its handle tightly in my hand. I honestly wasn't expecting it to actually work, but it did.
"I... I actually managed to summon it again..." I said with a hint of surprise in my voice.
"How is that possible?" Riku asked. "A Keyblade needs to be passed down from a previous Keyblade wielder to a successor. And Keyblades can't exist anywhere else but here."
"This is very mysterious, but we must move on for now. Sora, your assistance will be needed."
"Oh. Okay." Sora summoned his Keyblade.
"Now both of you, raise your Keyblades to the Chaos Emeralds you've been entrusted with." Although neither of us could guess what would happen, Sora and I held out the gems and they levitated.
Levitated. I'm a bit intimidated.
Sora confidently pointed the tip of his Keyblade at the cyan Emerald. I followed his demonstration and pointed towards the white Emerald. I could feel it again, that sudden rush of power.
Small beams of light shot from the points of our Keyblades and were absorbed into the Chaos Emeralds. The jewels glowed even brighter than I've ever seen them glow. After a few seconds, the light dimmed.
"What just happened?" I couldn't help but ask.
"ACK!" Donald quacked in shock. He was looking out the window and we went to look. What we saw really surprised me. It looked like... a vortex into space.
"A duo-Chaos Control," Yen Sid explained. "In which two users, both inexperienced or one or none, use two Chaos Emeralds to transcend time and space. The portals aren't open for long, but they allow travel to other worlds and periods of time."
I asked, "Like my world, Yen Sid?"
The nod that Yen Sid gave me was the only answer I needed in order to help get my hopes up.
"With the portal you and Sora have created, Sly, you and everyone else should be able to use it return to your world to reunite with your friends," Yen Sid said.
I couldn't help but give a small sigh of relief when I heard those words. Slowly, the thoughts of me returning to my world to protect everyone I knew from the Heartless started to flood my mind.
I stared down at the Keyblade in my hand as I thought that. With this, I can definitely protect them.
"Thank you so much," I said to the wizard with a respectful bow.
I asked, "Are you ready to head out? Let's not keep my friends waiting."
"We're ready to go to your world when you are, Sly!" Sora said with an enthusiastic smile on his face.
In response, I gave Sora a smile of my own.
"Trust me, Sora," I started. "I'm definitely ready to get back home to help my friends."
All of you," Yen Sid called, gaining our attention. "This may be the greatest threat we've ever seen. The arrival of the Chaos Emeralds means that something dark beyond any past threat has come."
I responded, "We'll be careful, Yen Sid."
"Very well then," Yen Sid said simply. "I wish all of you good luck on your journey."
"We thank you for your assistance, Yen Sid", Mickey said before turning to face the rest of us. "Now then, everyone, let's head back to the Gummi Ship and start making our way to Sly's world."
I didn't need to be told twice and I just went out the door and Rail Slide down the railing of the stairs in joy. I was getting home, and I can save my gang.
"I'm going to need help when we get to my home, Sora. I can't save my friends on my own."
"You can definitely bet that I'm gonna help out, Sly! No exceptions!" Sora said with a bright smile spreading across his face.
"Kairi and I will also have the honors of helping out alongside you two," Riku said. "If the Heartless are actually roaming around your world, Sly, then we'll need to use our combined strengths to stop them before they cause too much havoc."
"Of course. Plus, I'm honestly really interested to see what your world looks like for myself! You know, minus the Heartless, after all," Kairi said.
"It's beautiful in its own right." We all started stepping back into the Gummi Ship to head into the rift. Something struck me first.
"Sora."
"Yeah?"
"Why did Yen Sid suggest you, as if he knew something?"
"What do you mean?"
"He said 'entrusted with'. Doesn't that strike you as strange?"
"Yes it does. Maybe there's something going on here that we don't know."
"Maybe's a bit of an understatement. I think 'definitely' may be a better term for that sentence."
"I guess I can't argue with that. Sheesh, now that we're having this conversation, it's starting to make me even more curious as to what Yen Sid meant in his words."
"Not even you know?"
"He talks cryptically sometimes." Sounded a lot like Bentley and Penelope's big words.
"Maybe we should just figure it out ourselves."
"That's how we usually figure things out."
"Next stop, Earth!" Mickey announced as the ship got off the ground.
Hopefully my gang hasn't been hurt too bad during the time I've been gone, but the time has come for me to return home and see how they've been doing.
At top speed, the Gummi Ship almost immediately had flown into space and eventually made its way into the vortex that Sora and I had created. This was it. This was our perfect chance to go to Earth to protect not only my friends, but our entire world from the Heartless before they could have the opportunity to completely obliterate it.
End Chapter