Chapter 6
The Man In The Tower
6 months have passed since Caelus obtained the Keyblade. During that time, he trained non-stop to improve his abilities and master his craft. Through Raina, he learned the ways of swordplay, becoming a very capable fighter. He also bolstered his martial arts through her as well. Through Ember, he learned the mysteries of magic, learning a multitude of spells ranging from different elements. Even Maria helped train Caelus by teaching him how to be more acrobatic and how to perform parkour thanks to her many years as a gymnast. Not only that, Animo helped the Keyblade wielder learn special Keyblade attacks to improve his arsenal. Caelus also trained his body as well, making sure he'd be ready to fight any enemy and overcome every obstacle in his way. As well as training, Caelus got closer with both Mythos sisters, becoming close to best friends with the both of them.
One morning, Caelus woke up like usual. He got up to perform a series of stretches and workouts to keep himself in shape. BD-13 watched him as he did these acts. Over the months, Caelus got to learn more about BD as well. Apparently BD-13 was a droid created to assist in missions to dangerous places, mostly research missions. Well, according to Kori that was. Ever so often, BD would scan various objects to add to his log. Like he was making an encyclopedia of some sort. Caelus always encouraged this behavior and was very curious to read BD's logs in his free time.
He then heard a knock on his door. He jumped to his feet and went to open it up. Behind the door was Ember, holding a muffin.
"Mornin' dude. Glad to see you're up." she said, handing the muffin to Caelus.
"Come on, you know I don't sleep in… Well, not anymore." he said, noting how early he has to be up for training.
Ever since Caelus helped Ember deal with those thugs, their relationship has improved dramatically. They spent days training and talking with each other, learning each other's likes and dislikes, exchanging stories, and being there for each other through the good and bad. As of this moment, they became the best of friends, ready to count on each other.
"That's good. Cuz' we have a big day today. You're gonna meet the big man." Ember said.
BD-13 hovered his way onto Caelus' back as he left his room. "Big man?" Caelus asked.
"Yeah, don't you remember? He's the Overseer of the Worlds. I told you about this before."
"Oh right, I sorta remember. But that was like, what, months ago?"
The trio walked into the dining room to see Raina and Maria. Raina was sitting at the dining room table eating while Maria was sweeping the floors.
"Morning guys. You both ready to head out?" Raina asked.
"The faster we get this done, the better." Ember replied.
"Roger that. Let's get you guys going."
Raina then stood up and walked over to a table in the living room. She took out a small medallion and began to walk outside. Caelus and Ember followed her outside. There, Raina threw the medallion on the ground in front of them. From it, a large golden portal formed.
"Just go through the portal and you'll arrive at your destination." Raina said.
"So you guys just kept a portal to… somewhere in your living room?" Caelus asked.
"Yeah. Why?"
"I don't know, seems kinda… unsafe I guess."
"Unless someone goes snooping through our stuff but that never happened so…"
"Eh, good point I guess."
"Come on, let's get a move on." Ember said, nudging Caelus.
Caelus nodded and began heading towards the portal. "Caelus…" they heard a voice say.
They turned around and saw Maria standing in the doorframe. "Be safe." she emotionlessly said.
"Don't worry, gonna take a lot to take us down." Caelus gloated.
"Okay, hotshot. Time's a wastin'." Ember said as she started pushing Caelus.
"H-Hey! Alright! I'm going, I'm going." he said before getting pushed through.
Caelus' vision was filled with white. As his vision recovered, he noticed he was now outside a new location. It was a large grassy plain with small plants and bushes scattered throughout. All around Caelus was an endless starry sky. In front of Caelus stood a large golden tower that stood tall.
Caelus stood back up and dusted himself off. "Geez, Ember. What was that about?" he said.
"You were dilly dallying. We needed to get this over with." Ember replied.
"Whatever. So this is the place?"
"The Watcher's Tower. That's where Master Lux resides."
"Master Lux?"
"You'll see when we meet him, now come on."
Ember led Caelus up to the large door at the base of the tower. She touched the door as the door opened up on its own. Upon entering, Caelus began looking all around and whistled. A fine golden lobby with a spiral staircase ascending to the top.
"Would you check this place out! This place is gorgeous!" Caelus said in awe.
BD-13 let out a long boop.
"Now, we go to the top! Get ready!" Ember said, pointing to the sky.
Caelus put his hands on his hips and looked up. From the outside, the tower looked not so tall but on the inside, he swore it was taller than the Empire State building. He gulped. Then Ember started laughing.
"Haha! Oh man! You should see your face!" she said.
"Excuse me?" Caelus asked.
"I got you good! You actually thought we'd be climbing the stairs?"
"Y-yeah?"
"Nah. That's to keep intruders out. Like a security measure. I'll show you the way we're taking."
Ember walked up to a wall adjacent to the pair. Suddenly, something began scanning her body.
"Identity confirmed. Welcome, Ember Mythos."
The wall then split open, revealing an elevator. Ember then walked into it.
"You coming or are you gonna take the stairs?" she asked.
"Hmm, the stairs are tempting but I guess I'll join you."
Caelus then boarded the elevator with Ember. The doors closed and began to rise. It wasn't long before it stopped at its destination. The doors slid open, revealing a nice office. Filled bookcases lined the walls. A large wooden desk sat in the middle of the room with a chair cushioned by velvet. Behind the desk were wide windows looking out into the starry sky. Standing in front of the windows was an older man.
"Ember, I see you've finally visited." the old man said.
Ember stepped forward and knelt down, putting her head down.
"Master Lux." she said.
Caelus walked up, hands rested behind his head. "Hey there."
Ember hit Caelus in the back of his knees, causing him to fall.
"Oww! Ember! What the hell?" Caelus exclaimed.
"You idiot! That's the God of Light! Show some respect!" she shouted.
"God of Light?"
The man turned around, revealing his face. He was an old man. He had long white hair matched with a long white beard. He had scars on his face as well as an eyepatch over his right eye. He walked over to his desk and sat down.
"You may stand." he said.
The duo stood back up, Caelus rubbing the back of his knees.
"You. Boy. Introduce yourself." the man said.
"C-Caelus. Caelus Lumen, sir." Caelus said.
"Caelus, huh? Summon your Keyblade."
"Keyblade? Yeah, sure."
Caelus held his hand out, summoning his Keyblade.
"Good. Give it to me." the man asked.
"Give you my Keyblade? Okay, but I want it back." Caelus said sarcastically.
He handed over his Keyblade as the man took it. He began to examine it.
"Dawn Till Dusk." he said.
"Excuse me?" Caelus asked.
"Your Keyblade. The form it took is called Dawn Till Dusk. Basic look with infinite potential. Much like yourself."
"Th-Thank you?"
"It wasn't a compliment. You still have a long way to go. A long way."
'What an ass.' Caelus thought.
The man gave the Keyblade back to Caelus, who made it dematerialize.
"So, your name is Lux?" Caelus asked.
Ember elbowed her friend in the ribs. "Be respectful, you dolt." she said.
"Ahem. I guess I should introduce myself. I am Lux, the God of Light as well as the Overseer for the Worlds." the man said.
"Overseer?" Caelus asked.
"Yes. I watch over all the worlds in the Realm of Light."
"I see. And I assume you also train Keyblade wielders?"
"Yes. But a majority of your training will be in the field."
Lux got up and began looking outside his window.
"You understand the mission ahead of you, right Caelus?" he asked.
"To destroy the darkness." Caelus responded.
"No. To repel the darkness. There's a difference. You see, the 3 realms must remain at balance. Currently, the Realm of Darkness is disturbing that balance. My sister, Tenebris, is trying to upset that balance. Overtake all the Realms in the name of Darkness."
"Your sister rules over the Realm of Darkness? Talk about family drama." Caelus joked.
"Ember. Can you please deal with your friend?" Lux asked.
"Oh, of course Master Lux." Ember responded.
Ember then smacked Caelus on the back of the head. Caelus rubbed his head afterwards.
"There are three of us. Me, Tenebris, and my brother Nullus. We're the children of the mighty creator, Dea. She then gave us each a realm to control. I got Light, Tenebris got Darkness, and Nullus got Twilight." Lux explained.
"I see. So when did Tenebris start attacking the Realm of Light?" Caelus asked.
"Not long after my mother created humanity. My mother not long before created the Heart, using her children as inspiration. She told me the heart can be filled with light, darkness, equal amounts, unequal, etc. She decided to keep humanity in the Realm of Light, as it thrived the most here. As people began passing away, hearts began to take free space, so my mother created a safe space to keep the hearts. A place known as Kingdom Hearts."
"Kingdom Hearts…"
"Yes. Everything was going fine. That was until Tenebris became… hungry for power. During her time as God of the Realm of Darkness, she created creatures you know now as Heartless. Using them, she began attacking the residents of the Realm of Light. This inadvertently created not only the Emblem Heartless but also creatures known as Nobodies. You know of them?"
"Slightly."
"A person is composed of 3 parts. A body, a mind, and a heart. Some people refer to the heart as a soul but it just depends on the person. Anyway, once a heart is removed from the person, all that is left is the mind and body. Forever feeling empty. Lacking emotion. Feelings. Those Nobodies ended up being drawn to the Realm of Twilight as they felt they had no other home. Are you keeping up boy?"
"Every word, sir."
"Good. Where was I? Oh yes, Tenebris. Soon she set her eyes on a place of major power. Kingdom Hearts. My mother was strong but she couldn't destroy her own child. So she decided to place a spell on Kingdom Hearts only allowing hearts safe passage into it. Not only that, she locked herself inside, ready to defend it if the time comes. After that, I decided to step up. I enlisted a warrior with a heart full of light and bequeathed him a weapon to combat my sister's army of darkness. The very first Keyblade. A weapon made of light that could destroy the Heartless. It could also return all captured hearts back to Kingdom Hearts… And open doors, but that's a given."
Lux turned back around and sat down. "You get all that, kid?"
"The name's not kid, it's Caelus. And I got it. It's quite a lot to drop on me all in one sitting but I got it." Caelus responded.
"...Ember…" Lux said.
Ember nodded and smacked Caelus on the back of the head. "Don't be rude, Caelus!"
"O-Ow! Em!" Caelus exclaimed.
"I know it's a lot, but a Keyblade wielder must know this history to fully feel the responsibility of their job." Lux said.
"Which is to defeat Tenebris?" Caelus asked.
"That's the endgame, yes. Your main goal is to seal the Keyholes of the worlds you will visit."
"Keyholes?"
"Every world has a Keyhole leading to the world's heart. When the world's heart is taken, the world disappears as well as its population."
"So that's what happened to my world…"
"Exactly. Your job is to find the Keyholes before the Heartless do. And one day, you may even be strong enough to defeat my sister. Are we clear, Caelus Lumen?"
Caelus smiled and rubbed his finger under his nose. "You can count on us, Lux!" he said full of confidence.
"Master Lux." Lux corrected.
"R-Right, Master Lux." Caelus said.
Lux then stood up, looking out the window again. "So you know…"
Suddenly, a white, thin, sinuous creature appeared in front of the pair. It had a weird symbol on its head and was moving like it was dancing. Caelus was so surprised that he jumped back and summoned his Keyblade to his hand.
"Calm down, kid. It's just a magical hologram. It's not real." Lux clarified.
"O-oh." Caelus said, dematerializing his sword.
"That's a Dusk, a common form of Nobody. I'm sure you've already seen a Heartless but I doubt you've already seen a Nobody."
"Huh, is that what they look like? I kind of thought they'd look normal, like Maria."
"Maria?"
"My friend from home. She had her heart taken by a Heartless but she looks normal. Just emotionless."
"Is that right? Ember, is this Maria currently at your home?"
"Yes sir. Raina is looking after her." Ember said.
"Good. I'll be sure to pay them a visit. I'm curious about that situation." Lux said.
He shook his head and began walking towards the pair. "Anyway, your mission as of right now. You two are going to a new world. Like I said, your goal is to find the Keyhole and seal it. Simple."
"How are we supposed to find the Keyhole? You kinda didn't explain that part." Caelus said.
"Let your heart guide you." Lux said.
'Informative.' Caelus thought.
Lux then extended his hand. In front of him, a glowing golden portal opened up. "The world you're going to is Concordia. Ember, let Caelus know more about it when you get there." he said.
"Understood, Master Lux." Ember responded.
He nodded and then walked up to Caelus and placed his hand on his heart.
"Umm… Whatcha doing there, Lux?" Caelus asked.
Suddenly, Caelus felt a pulse run through his body as he collapsed to the floor. He was gasping for air.
"C-Caelus!" Ember said, running up to Caelus. She grabbed him and helped him off the floor as BD-13 jumped down and began to worry about his friend. At this point, Lux was turned away from the pair.
"W-What the hell?" Caelus mustered out.
"I unlocked your new ability. Each Keyblade wielder has a special ability only they can use. It is different than the magic spells you can cast." Lux explained.
"C-Cool I guess. A little heads up next time?" Caelus asked.
"Quit being disrespectful." Lux said.
"How am I being the disrespectful one? Only one here is obviously you." Caelus responded.
Lux grabbed a coin from his pocket and flung it at Caelus. It was fast but close to hitting the boy. Before it got close, a shiver went up Caelus' spine. Something in his brain was shooting off signals and before he could even register it, he instinctively dodged out the way, watching as the coin bounced off the wall and onto the floor.
"Danger Sense. Impressive." Lux said.
"Huh?" Caelus asked.
"Your ability. It's Danger Sense. Your body will tell you about any danger in the area or any danger you might be in. A very useful one. Rare too." Lux explained.
"Awesome! Feels weird but awesome." Caelus said.
"Now you are ready. Go forth, Caelus Lumen and Ember Mythos." Lux said.
"Right!" the duo said.
Caelus knelt down, allowing BD to climb up on him.
"Let's go BD! No time to waste." Caelus said.
BD-13 let out a few beeps.
Master Lux then stopped in his tracks and immediately turned his head towards Caelus and BD-13.
"What is that?" he asked.
"Who? BD? He's my droid. I bought him a few months ago and he's been a good friend ever since." Caelus said, patting the droid on his head.
"Bought him from who?"
"This woman in a weird suit and helmet. Kori… something or other. I don't remember. Haven't seen her since I bought BD from her. Why?"
"...It's nothing. Don't worry about it."
Caelus and BD gave each other a weird look.
"Get a move on. All 3 of you. I don't have time to babysit you. And that Keyhole isn't going to seal itself." Lux said.
"R-Right! We're leaving!" Caelus said.
Caelus, Ember, and BD-13 ran into the portal, having it close behind them. Lux crossed his arms.
"Dawn Till Dusk, Danger Sense, an untransformed Nobody, and a droid from the Skyriver Galaxy. Caelus Lumen, you are possibly the most interesting Keyblade wielder I've met in a long while." he said to himself.
Another chapter down. I know this one isn't that exciting but I needed a chapter to fully explore the lore of the realms as well as the Gods. Plus I needed to explain how Kingdom Hearts plays a role in this story. Anyway, the next chapter should be more exciting so stay tuned!
-C