In a dark street, Pluto the dog was walking around sad and lonesome. As he crossed a puddle, he looked up and saw a man in a black robe and red spiky hair walk along a street horizontal to him. He disappeared into an alleyway, and Pluto, thankful to see somebody, rushed toward him. He rounded the corner to see the man open up a black portal, and go right through it. Pluto tried to follow him, but just as he got close, the portal disappeared, and so did the man. Pluto stopped at the spot, and looked down sadly, wishing for somebody to play with.
Suddenly, from behind, someone whistled for him. Pluto's ears raised and he turned. Another dark portal appeared from behind him. He barked as he charged at the portal, leaping into it, and vanishing along with it. When he arrived, he found himself in a dark space, and a man stood before him. A tall man with a hood over his head. He knelt down and petted Pluto on the head. "I may need your help, boy." he said in a deep voice. The dog looked up at him, panting in excitement. The man mouth could only be seen, grinning.
Twilight Town, Sandlot
"Welcome, one and all to the championship round of the Struggle Tournament!" the Announcer shouted through the microphone, "Today's contestants are a sight to be reckoned with. In this corner, Twilight Town's prior winner; Seifer!"
A young man with a black tuque was waving his hand to the cheering crowd. "You got this one, Seifer, y'know?" Rai, one of Seifer's friends called out.
"Win." Fuu, another friend of Seifer's, said simply.
"An in the other corner," the Announcer continued, "A newcomer to the town; a girl with unparalleled speed and strength; Leafa!" The crowd cheered as Leafa waved her hand to everyone around her, particularly at Recon, Hayner, Pence and Olette.
"Go for it, Leafa!" cheered Olette.
"Put Seifer in his place!" Hayner shouted.
"You can do it, Leafa!" cheered Pence.
"Avenge me for my loss, Sugu- I mean Leafa!" Recon called out.
Leafa looked at her new friends, then at the opponent in front of her. How long has it been since I've been in this world. she thought to herself as she and her opponent walked up to one another, along with the referee, giving them their Struggle Bats. It had actually been about a week since she and Recon arrived to this world. A lot of what brought her to this day happened on the first day in Twilight Town.
Twilight Town, Mansion
(Flashback) Namine led Leafa and Recon out of the mansion, and out into the courtyard. This was the first time they saw the outside. She then turned to them. "I know this is going to be hard, but you must stay around in this town until I need you."
"And what?" Leafa asked stubbornly, "Twiddle our thumbs? Do nothing while my brother, Asuna and Yui are out there, risking their lives with that 'Sora' character and his friends?"
"Don't worry about them." Namine reassured them. "I can keep a close watch on your brother. In the meantime, there are plenty of things you can do here. I'm sure you'll find friends here, but you mustn't tell them you are from a different world. Most people don't know about other worlds."
"Got it." Leafa answered.
"Also, I bet you can discover more about the Keyblade and learn more magic." Leafa raised her hand as Namine spoke, producing her Fairy Harp into it, "As for a place to live, you will always have a home in this mansion. For now, just be patient."
She turned and left into the mansion, leaving Recon and Leafa standing there, looking concern. As soon as the door closed, the two turned towards to gates, and started to walk. "What a situation we're in." sighed Leafa, "I mean, I can trust Namine. She hasn't been dishonest towards us. But to leave us like this..."
"Maybe we should go explore the town." Recon recommended, "I'm sure there are plenty of stuff there that will take our mind off of things."
Leafa looked back at the gates to the mansion, then decided to follow Recon's advice. They walked through a small forest, then through a large crack in the wall, and arrived in town. They looked around town, getting the feel of the place.
"It's not a bad place." Leafa stated as they walked throughout the streets.
"It's not as modern like back home, but it is rather nice." Recon noticed, looking around at the shops, "It doesn't look hi-tech at all around here." They continued to walk around, even helping someone with getting a cart into their garage. They were given munny in return, which was the currency in this world.
After a while of exploring, they found themselves at a large space in the town, to which people called the Sandlot. There, they noticed three people there, two boys and a girl. The chubby, black-haired kid and the brown-haired girl were watching the blond-haired boy juggle a ball in the air with a weird blue bat with a yellow handle.
They walked up to them as the blond-haired boy made a dive for the ball, but it grazed off his bat and landed onto the ground along with him. "Oh, so close, Hayner." the black-haired kid shouted.
"That was 58 hits before you dropped it." the girl counted.
Hayner flipped onto his back and sulked. "Aw man, I almost broke my record of 60 hits!" he moaned.
He then turned his head so as to see everything flipped, and saw Leafa and Recon coming their way. He flipped himself up as his friends walked up next to him, seeing the two. "What do you want?" he asked them.
"Nothing." Recon replied. "We're just exploring. We're kind of new to this town, so we don't know our way around."
"Is that so?" Hayner asked. He, Pence and Olette were suddenly getting a case of deja vu.
"So you guys are new here?" the girl asked, "Well, it's nice to meet you. I'm Olette." she held out her hand, and they shook.
"I'm Pence." the black-haired boy, waving at them.
"Hayner." the blond boy said simply.
"I'm Leafa. This is Recon." Leafa introduced to the group.
"Say, how 'bout I test you with something." Hayner told them, picking up his bat.
"Call it an initiation to be part of our town." He tossed the bat to Leafa, who grabbed it at both ends. "I want to see how many time you can hit this ball in the air before it hits the ground." Hayner said, picking up the ball and holding it aloft. "Let's say 30 hits for a passing grade."
"That won't be a problem." Leafa said smugly, "I heard you were trying to hit your record. What is it?"
"60 hits." Hayner replied.
"Then I'll go for that." Leafa concluded, raising the bat up like a kendo stick.
The three looked at each other before Hayner smirked as he said, "Ok. 60 hits. Can't do that, you get out of town."
"Leafa, are you sure?" Recon asked quietly in a worried tone, "Remember what Namine said; we have to stay in town."
"Are you doubting me?" she asked, turning to Recon, her eyes sternly looking at him, "This is nothing compared to kendo. I got this." Recon recoiled at her glare, then decided to trust her.
"Ready?" Hayner asked, prepared to toss the ball.
"Just do it." Leafa replied.
"Go!" he shouted, throwing the ball. Leafa dashed at the falling ball, and made a hit at it with her bat, keeping it in the air. She did this repeatedly, even jumping into the air to hit it even higher. Ten...twenty...thirty, she kept going with the hits, not feeling worn out from it. The other four watched her go to work, their eyes following her as she dashed and leapt all around, keeping the ball up.
"She's doin' pretty good." Pence said after her 45th hit.
"Wait until 60." Hayner said, though he did looked impressed.
Leafa kept it up. 54...55...56...57. She had three more hits to go. She hit it hard, but it was going far off to the right. She dashed to the spot where it was gonna land, and made a dashing slash at it with her bat. It made contact, and reversed course. Leafa skidded and dashed the other direction. She wasn't gonna make it like this. She needed to get faster, or she wouldn't make it.
Everybody gasped as they saw the ball nearing the ground in slow motion. Leafa made a leap, sticking her bat out in front of her. She flew in the air, then skidded to the ground. She saw the ball fall down...onto her bat, then bounced to the ground.
"60!" Pence, Olette and Recon shouted in joy. Hayner stared opened mouthed at Leafa, who got to her feat, panting and brushing her clothes down, and adjusting her top.
She looked up and saw Hayner walked up to her. They stared at each other for a while, then Hayner smirked. "Nice job there." he said, raising his hand out, "You have some great skills. Welcome to Twilight Town." Leafa smiled back, and shook his hand.
"Hey, why don't we celebrate?" Pence asked, "Let's get some ice cream and go to the train station."
"Sounds great." Olette answered.
"You get the ice cream, Pence." Hayner told him, "I'll lead these two to the train station."
"Alright!" Pence answered as he ran off, and Hayner and Olette led Leafa and Recon to the train station, which happened to be a tall clock tower.
They maneuvered throughout the interior, and finally got to the top of the tower. Leafa and Recon finally got to see the town from such a high point, along with a great view of the setting sun. Leafa couldn't help but grin. It almost felt like days since she left ALO, and lost her wings, even though it hasn't been that long. They sat themselves in front of the clock head, and dangled their feet over the edge.
"Pretty awesome view, huh?" Hayner asked.
"It's fantastic." Leafa replied.
"It feels as if were standing in the sky." Recon added.
After a few minutes, Pence came back, holding a handful of light-blue ice cream on a stick. He handed each one to the others, then sat down next to them. "What's the flavor?" Recon asked.
"Sea-salt ice cream." Olette answered. The two looked at their treat. They had never tried that kind of ice cream flavor. They simultaneously bit into their ice cream.
"Salty..." Recon described.
"...But sweet." ended Leafa, liking the combination.
"Pretty good, huh?" he asked them. They nodded in response.
"So where are you guys from?" Pence asked them. Leafa and Recon looked at each other nervously, remembering Namine's words. Finally, Recon answered, "Were from a place far away called Alfheim."
"Alfheim?" Hayner repeated, "Never heard of that place before."
"Well...like we said, it's pretty far off." Recon said to them, trying to act normal.
"And why have you come to Twilight Town?" Olette asked.
"To search for my brother." Leafa answered, which was in most cases true.
"I think he might have come to this town. I don't know if you had seen him, but his name is Kazuto. Though most of the time he calls himself Kirito."
At the name, the trio of kids looked at each other, surprised. Then they turned back to Leafa and Recon.
"We know a person by that name." Pence told them.
"You do?!" Leafa asked surprisingly, "Where? When?"
"A few days ago, at our usual spot." Olette explained, "He was with a few others. There names were Sora, Donald, Goofy and Asuna."
"Asuna was with them, too?" Leafa questioned them, standing up on the edge and looking at them, "Where are they now?"
"We don't know." Olette replied, "They boarded a train, but the train they got on hasn't come back since."
"Still, those guys did say they would come back." Hayner said. "I'm sure they'll return if you wait."
Leafa looked down, sort of relieved. If they promised they would come back, then she was sure that her brother would keep that promise. She just hoped her brother would come back soon.
"Hey, don't worry about it." assured Recon, standing up as well, "If they come back, we'll be ready to help them, right?" Leafa looked at Recon, looking worried a bit, but then changed to serious and nodded in response. "For now, let's practice with our weapons." Recon said, pulling out his new dagger, which he decided to call Pixie Sting, "I'm sure that we can get stronger in the time being, maybe even find new spells to work with." Leafa made her usual 'unsheathing' her blade, even though she didn't have to, producing her Keyblade.
The sudden appearance of the weapon surprised Hayner and the others. "Hey, that's a cool weapon." Pence said, looking at Leafa's Keyblade.
"Hmm..." hummed Hayner, eyeing the weapon.
"What is it?" Leafa asked, seeing Hayner's expression.
"I don't know." he said, "I just...have this feeling that I've seen a sword like that before."
"I bet either Kirito and Asuna had one." Leafa replied, "They have weapons like these as well."
"Really? They never showed them." Olette told them, "Though Hayner is right though. It does seem familiar." The three were lost in thought, but then they decided to forget about it.
"Say, if you're sticking around, how about entering the Struggle tournament?" Pence suggested.
"Struggle tournament?" echoed Leafa.
"Yeah." Pence replied, "Though, you look like a person who doesn't know how to play Struggle. The rules are easy; you are given a certain number of balls, and you have your Struggle Bat." Hayner waved the bat Leafa was using. "To win, you must either take all of the opponents balls, have more balls than the other opponent, or you beat the opponent so much, that they are unable to continue."
"Sounds simple enough." Leafa replied, "Kind of like a kendo duel, only different."
"Can anyone join?" Recon asked, "Cause I would like to take part in this tournament."
"Sure, you just have to register on the day before." Hayner answered, "They go through preliminaries before going to the top four, then they have to challenge the champion, who's a guy I'm aiming to beat; Seifer."
"I guess this will take my mind off of things for the time being." Leafa decided, "Let's get started!" They polished off their ice cream, and the group walked down to the entrance again. "Remember, if we have to fight each other that day, were rivals, got it?" Leafa looked to him, smirked, and nodded in response. (Flashback ends)
Leafa couldn't believe that she was where she was now, in the championship round of the Struggle match against the town's self-proclaimed disciplinarian, Seifer. That week passed by so quickly.
Hayner, Pence and Olette did have school, so they couldn't help them out half the time. During those times, Leafa and Recon spent their time sparring against one another. Leafa found the Keyblade a very strong weapon, despite how light it felt. The swiftness and strength of her attacks seemed to improve slightly from using it. Recon's dagger didn't improve him as much, so she had to go easy on him at times so that he could get the feel of his weapon.
They had also learned how to use magic, though they had the one for a while, Aero. They had first experience on each other what the attack felt like, and it did more than knock the wind from them.
On the 5th day since their arrival, they met Seifer and his gang, Rai, Fuu and Vivi. When he heard they were gonna enter the Struggle tournament, Seifer kept pestering them, making sure they were 'in line', although he did initially seem interested in Leafa, and not for her skills. Recon saw what caught his attention, and he stopped him from making any moves on Leafa, getting him aggravated. He almost started to abuse Recon before Leafa stopped him. After that, he lost interest in her...at least, she hoped he was.
Of the group, Vivi was the one they seem to have less problems with. In fact, when they helped her from being attacked by a swarm of bees, she offered them each a magic orb each, which she didn't need. They contained the spell 'Haste', which sped up their attacks. Vivi maybe one of Seifer's followers, but she did have a soft spot.
On the day before the tournament, everyone signed up for the tournament. They went through the preliminaries until there were four remaining. The orbs that Pence explained were quite odd. She was given twenty balls, and instead of holding them, they went into her body. I mean, she absorbed the balls a lot like the magic orbs. If she was hit, one or two of them would fly out of her body. She can absorb both her opponents and her own again. Finally, the four have been decided; Hayner, Leafa, Recon and a guy named Setzer, who was quite popular around the girls.
Finally, on the day of the Tournament, they were paired up for the semifinals; Hayner vs. Leafa, Recon vs. Setzer. Leafa was able to beat Hayner quite well, where as Recon was having a hard time with Setzer, who was well skilled, and he got beat. Finally, it was down between Leafa and Setzer. Even though Setzer was good against Recon, he was no match for Leafa's skills, and she kept knocking him back until she grabbed all of his orbs, and won the battle.
Now here she was, about to face Seifer, and her friends were cheering for her. She and Seifer walked up to the referee, who handed them their bats. "Now I want a clean fight, ok?" he warned them, then he walked off. The two combatants looked at one another.
"Time I show you why I'm the chief disciplinarian around here." Seifer said, sticking his Struggle Bat out in front of her.
"Yeah, I've faced worse enemies." Leafa replied, holding her bat like a kendo stick.
"And now, the final battle: Seifer vs. Leafa." the Announcer said, "Already, sparks of rivalry are flying, and we haven't even started. Let's not waste a moment then. Let's..." "STRUGGLE!" shouted the crowd, and the bell signaled the start of the fight.
Both of them simultaneously moved. They crossed bats, and the two start to attack and defend at the same time. Seifer was being pushed back, but with one swing of his bat, he sent Leafa jumping backwards. She landed and rushed at him again. She was about to make a downward slash, and Seifer decided to go into a diagonal slash. This was what Leafa was planning, for she was faking her attack.
She swerved to the opposite side of Seifer's swing, and placed a side slash across him. He dropped a couple of orbs, and Leafa grabbed them. Yes! she thought, Now I should try defending until the timer is up. She saw Seifer coming at her in a rage to get what he lost, and started to go on the defense. every strike he made, Leafa kept blocking every attack, leaving herself unscathed.
"What's wrong? Trying to wimp out on another chance to hit me?" Seifer asked.
Leafa knew he was trying to aggravate her, but she smiled. It was a sign of his weakness. She ducked under Seifer's swing, and dealt a double jab on his chest, knocking a few more orbs loose from him. Leafa gathered them up. "No, I just wait until you are vulnerable." she replied in a sassy tone.
This got Seifer angrier, and he started to swing his Struggle Bat at Leafa wildly. She barely dodged it, and decided to go on the defense again. This was proving difficult, as he started to strike faster and harder than before. Leafa struggled to hold her own in blocking, and she was being pushed into a corner of the stage. She leapt to one side, and Seifer's bat met her face, smacking her off balance, and losing some of the balls she gained. Seifer, however, ignored them. He was too fixated on attacking Leafa to care.
Leafa rolled away and leapt back onto her feet again as Seifer charged headlong at her. He attempted a downward strike, but Leafa placed both hands on her bat to withstand his strike. The block caused him to recoil, and Leafa struck him a few more times, knocking off more balls and gathering them up.
"Don't give in, Seifer, y'know?" Rai shouted.
"Focus." Fuu muttered.
"Come on, Seifer!" shouted Vivi.
His follower's calls snapped Seifer out of the blind rage he was in. He looked back at them, then he gave a thumbs up, and turned back to Leafa, ready to fight some more. The battle continued to go on. Seifer was now much calmer and thinking better, so now he was holding his own against Leafa again. She, in returned, couldn't help but feel glad that he returned to normal. He could've been like Kirito, and started going on a frenzy in the battle.
Moments later, the bell rang once more, signaling the end of the fight. "It's over!" shouted the announcer, "The winner of this match goes too...Leafa!"
Leafa waved her bat in the air in victory. The crowd cheered with joy. Apparently, Hayner and the others weren't the only ones who didn't like Seifer's attitude. Leafa's friends were shouting in happiness. Hayner, Pence, Olette and Recon joined her on stage, hugging her and congratulating her while the crowd chanted her name. In a way, Leafa felt good about this.
She turned to Seifer, who looked defeated and was walking offstage. "Hey, Seifer!" Leafa called out, shrugging off her friends and walking up to him.
"What? Gonna rub it in?" he scoffed.
"No, of course not." Leafa replied, raising her hand up, "I just wanna say... that was a great match. You almost had me there. Let's battle some other time, kay?"
Seifer looked at Leafa's hand, then smacked it away. "I don't need your sympathy." he replied, "Next time we meet, you're history." He walked off the stage, and his colleagues joined him as they walked away.
"I guess I'll call that a thanks." Leafa assumed as her friends walked right next to her.
Later on, Leafa was given the championship belt and the trophy, which had four special gems on them. Her friends were back in the crowd again as everyone chanted her name once again.
As she was waving at the crowd in victory, Recon was behind the three when he felt a tapping on his shoulder. He turned and was surprised to see Namine behind him. "Namine." He gasped, then she signaled him to quiet down, and he whispered, "What are you doing here?"
"I need you and Leafa to come to the mansion soon." she responded, "The time to make our move is now." Recon nodded in response, and she turned and ran off.
Leafa was walking off the stage, fastening the belt around her waist so as to have her hands free in carrying the trophy. She looked around, and saw Hayner, Pence and Olette coming at her, but Recon on the other hand was making gestures with his hand, signaling that she had to come with him.
"Hey guys, I'll be right back." Leafa told the trio, pointing at the trophy, "I gotta put this in a safe place."
"Sure, but come back soon." Pence replied, "We gotta celebrate your victory."
"Meet us at the usual spot!" Hayner told her as she walked to Recon.
"Sure thing." she responded, and she ran to Recon, who led her towards the mansion.
Recon told Leafa that Namine needed them ASAP. She didn't have to hear that twice, cause she wanted to see if this might lead her to Kirito and Asuna. They ran through the streets, through the crack that led to the forest, and towards the mansion. The let themselves in, and they dashed to the basement.
As soon as they entered the room, they saw that Namine wasn't the only one there. A man in a black coat stood there, with his face covered by a hood. Namine sat right at the computer. "Who's this guy?" Leafa questioned, looking suspiciously at the man.
"Do not worry." Namine assured them, "This is a friend of mine and Sora's. His name is Riku." Both Leafa and Recon looked at the man that stood in front of them. He wasn't giving off the warm and friendly kind of personality.
Suddenly, a yellow dog that looked part blood hound bounded out of nowhere and jumped right around them, barking happily. "And where did he come from?" Leafa asked, seeing the dog in front of them.
"This is Pluto." Namine introduced, "He is another ally, so there is no need to worry."
"Never mind that." Leafa said, ignoring the new characters in the room, "What do you need us for?"
"Organization XIII is making their move. Or at least, one of their members is making one." Namine stated, "We just caught word that this Nobody plans to capture Kairi. We need to stop him at any cost."
"How do you know this?" asked Recon.
"I've been spying on the Organization." Riku replied, "I listen in carefully on what their saying, and one of them is planning to move in."
"It's up to you two to stop this member from taking Kairi away." Namine informed them, standing up and walking to them, "Are you up to the challenge?"
Leafa and Recon looked at one another before Leafa responded, "If it means finding my brother again, count me in."
"Where ever Leafa goes, I'll go!" Recon declared.
"Good." Namine confirmed, then she turned to Riku, "You lead them to where they need to be." Riku nodded, then he turned to one wall and waved his hand. A black portal opened in front of him.
"This way." he said to Leafa and Recon, then he stepped into the portal. Pluto bounded after him without hesitation, with Leafa and Recon not too far behind.
The two were walking through the Corridor of Darkness, which was what Namine called them, following Riku and Pluto. Riku stopped and turned to them. "Let's get something straight." he warned them, "I know that one of you is a Keyblade wielder, and the other is a fragment of one." Recon winced at what he was called. "Kairi is someone I care for, so you two need to save her and stop the Organization member at all cost. Got it?"
"We'll give it 110%." Leafa replied, feeling the sternness in Riku's voice.
"You can count on us." Recon assured him. Riku nodded in response, and they proceeded onward through the darkness.
On Destiny Islands, Kairi was staring out at the sea. She looked worried and impatient. She had sent the message in a bottle a long time ago, and she hoped he get it soon. However, her patience was growing weary. "Maybe...waiting isn't good enough." she muttered.
"My thoughts exactly!" replied a echoing voice, surprising Kairi and causing her to look around, "If you have a dream, don't wait. Act. One of life's little rules. Got it memorized?" All of a sudden, a black portal appeared in front of her, and out stepped a man with spiky red hair and a black coat.
"Who are you?" Kairi asked suspiciously.
"Axel." the man answered, "I happen to be an acquaintance of Sora's. Why don't we go see him?" He held his hand out so as to beckon in Kairi.
"...Sora?" echoed Kairi. She looked hesitant on trusting the man in front of her, but still...
Suddenly, Kairi heard a dog's bark, and she turned to see Pluto bounding up to her happily, and spinning around in greeting her. Just as the two met, six Dusks appeared all around Kairi and Pluto. Pluto growled as he saw all of them, whereas Kairi looked scared.
"Don't listen to him!" shouted a girl's voice, which was followed by a whistle. Kairi turned and saw another black portal opening up from behind her. Then out of the portal leapt Leafa and Recon, their weapons at hand, slashing down two of the Dusks. They both ran together until they were between Kairi and Axel.
"Who are..." Kairi started, then she saw the Fairy Harp in Leafa's hand, and gasped, "A Keyblade... does this mean you guys know Sora?"
"Well, we've never actually met him." Leafa replied, turning her eyes to her as Pluto bounded for the portal, "But we know about him. We also know a friend of your's, Riku."
"Riku?!" Kairi repeated, startled.
"Hurry, get into the portal, now!" she yelled at her, "It'll lead you to safety."
"We've got something in common, Kairi." Axel said to her, sort of surprised at the two newcomers and the portal behind them, "You and I both miss someone we care about. Hey...I feel like we're friends already." The Dusks were drawing in closer on them.
"Kairi, who are you gonna trust; this shady guy, or people who are protecting you?"
Kairi looked at Leafa, then Recon, and finally the portal. She then decided, and made a run to the portal as Pluto jumped in, only to turn to Axel and say, "You're not acting very friendly!" She then turned around and dashed into the black portal which disappeared behind her.
"That takes care of that." Recon stated as he and Leafa backed away from the Dusks, "Now to deal with this guy." He nodded his head to Axel.
Axel frowned at the both of them. "I was afraid something like this would happen." he sighed, rubbing the back of his head, "When I heard that there were two new Keyblade wielders, I knew they were gonna be trouble. Still..." He eyed the two as he continued, "You don't seem to fit the description that new guy was saying."
"New guy?" Recon repeated silently.
"Well too bad." Leafa spat, "Your information has been miscalculated. There are three new Keyblade wielders now... well, three and a half." She looked at Recon, who felt a little ashamed that he had to be half.
"Is that so?" Axel replied, before realizing, "Oh, then I take it you must be Leafa, right?" The former Sylph was startled to hear that he knew her name. "I made sure to get your name memorized...if you can last that long." He waved his hand to the Dusk, who started to swerve and leap around as they neared the two.
"I can take care of these." Recon said, stepping forward, and surprising Leafa on his determination. "Haste!" shouted Recon, and he was surrounded by a red aura. He took one step, and he dashed at the Dusks at blinding speeds. With slashes unrecognizable to the naked eye, he passed right through the line of Nobodies, and with one flick of his dagger, all of them vanished.
"Way to go, Recon!" Leafa cheered. Recon turned his head to her, and he looked somewhat embarrassed at the praise he was given.
This was short lived, for a spinning, flaming disc came at him. He barely had time to react, and was flung backwards, soaring past Leafa and onto the ground. "Recon!" shouted Leafa, seeing her friend land on the ground, groaning as he tried to get back up again. She turned back to Axel, who had the weapon in his hand, which happened to be a chakram.
"You don't know who you're dealing with!" he growled, whipping out his other hand, producing flames, followed by another chakram.
"Then mind telling us who you are, since you know me so well?" Leafa asked as Recon steadily got to his feet again.
Axel's body started to emanate flame a bit as he said, "I'm number VIII, Axel. Got it memorized? A-X-E-L." "Then I hope you get our names memorized." Leafa retorted. "No need to remind you again, but yes, my name is Leafa."
"And my name is Recon!" the young boy added, walking up next to Leafa, preparing his dagger.
"Better be prepared, cause were gonna show you how powerful we really are!" Leafa declared, the two taking their fighting stances against Axel, prepared to fight him.
In Twilight Town, Kairi was unconscious for only a short while. The she heard someone ask, "You okay?" Kairi groaned slightly as she raised herself up. She looked around, and noticed she was in a room of some kind, and three kids (Hayner, Pence and Olette), along with Pluto, were staring at her.
"What..." she said, seeing the change in scenery.
"You and that dog came flying out of a hole on the wall." Pence explained, "You nearly gave us heart attacks!"
Kairi got to her feet and looked around more thoroughly. Then she remembered. "Wait, was there anyone else here with me?" she asked them, "A girl with a Keyblade, or maybe a man in a black coat?"
The trio looked at each other, then Olette said, "Well, we don't know of anybody with a black coat..."
"...But we do know of a few people with Keyblades." Hayner explained.
"Yeah," agreed Pence, listing off the people on his fingers, "There's Leafa, Kirito, Asuna, and Sora."
"Sora?!" Kari gasped, "You know Sora?"
Back at the islands, Leafa and Recon were prepared to face off against Axel. Leafa charged in first, and attempted to slash him. He blocked her attack with his chakrams, and undergone a furious battle against her, blocking and slashing at one another. Leafa did a spin slash, causing Axel to jump back. He skidded to a halt, and produced flames around his chakrams, then tossed them at Leafa. She staggered a bit at the first hit, but was sent falling backwards after the second one.
"Burn, baby!" he shouted, producing two fireballs, and sent them flying at her. She looked horrified as she saw them coming, but then she heard Recon shout "Aero!" and a ball of wind blasted out in front of her, blocking the two fireballs.
"Thanks, Recon!" Leafa told him as she stood up.
Recon got to her side, his dagger raised as he replied, "I told ya, I'm here to protect you!"
Leafa smiled at him, then turned sternly at Axel. "Let's take him on together." she stated. Recon nodded, and the two charged in.
The backed each other up as they were attacking Axel, who was fighting evenly with the both of them. He threw his chakrams at them, but Recon blocked both of them as Leafa charged in, finally landing a hit on him with her Keyblade. "Aero!" she shouted, not wasting any time as she sent a ball of wind at Axel, knocking him back even further. Recon charged in, the red aura of the Haste spell surrounding him. He attempted to attack Axel, but he spun his flaming chakrams around him like a barrier, sending a singed Recon backwards. He then used the flames he produced two produce a bigger fireball at Leafa. She attempted to block it with her Keyblade, but she was sent flying instead, scorched from the attack.
The two were lying on the ground, injured. Axel laughed at the sight of both of them on the ground. "I told ya; if you can't take the heat, stay out of my way!" he quoted, prepared to attack them once more. He tossed his chakrams at them, but Leafa reacted by grabbing Recon and leaping to one side, narrowly dodging the attack.
As Axel got his chakrams unstuck from the ground, Leafa and Recon got to their feet again, panting slightly. "We...have to take him out somehow." Recon mumbled, trying his best to stay up.
"Yeah, but we need to think this through carefully." Leafa replied, seeing Axel ready to attack them again. If only I could learn the full potential of my Keyblade. She thought, I just wish there was an instruction book on this thing or something... She saw Axel's chakrams fire up again.
Suddenly, her Keyblade started to glow slightly, and it seem to attract itself with Recon's dagger. The two looked at what was happening, then looked at one another. Not sure of what they were gonna do, they firmly nodded to each other, and they clashed their weapons to one another. This triggered them to share their powers as one, and for their strength to get stronger. Primarily relying on instincts, these two had just started to perform a Limit Break.
The first thing that happened was that they suddenly produced their fairy wings. Then as one, they flew at Axel, who flung his chakrams at them once again. They dodged both of them effortlessly, then they went to work. As they flew around him, Recon was delivering a barrage of Aeros at him while Leafa was cutting him with razor-wind slashes. Recon was using 'Wind Barrage', while Leafa delivered 'Sylvian Slash'. Finally, as one they stood in front of him, and started to use Alfheim magical incantation in unison, forming the words around them, then producing a green gale of energy, surrounding them, and blowing Axel way with the powerful burst, damaging him greatly. Afterwards, their wings disappeared, the wind died down, and they returned to normal. The Limit Break was called 'Alfheim Break' and the final move was called 'Sylph Storm'.
"What did we just do?" Recon asked, bewildered.
"I don't know." Leafa asked, seeing that she no longer had the wings, "But it was very cool! I gotta memorize that."
"Hey...that's my line." gasped Axel. The two turned to see Axel get to his feet again, weakened by the attack. He magically brought back his chakrams into his hands again. "You two...ain't half bad." he told the pair.
"You ready for more?" Leafa warned him, lifting her weapon at him as Recon raised his.
"Heh." Axel chuckled, "Think I'll pass on that." From behind him, a dark portal opened, and he started to walk backwards towards it. Leafa realized what he was attempting to do, and made a dash for him. She was just about to reach him, but Axel tossed a chakram at her, stopping her for just a moment until he entered the portal and disappeared along with it. The chakram disappeared in a burst of flames.
Leafa and Recon stood there, bewildered at what just happened. Leafa stood frozen in her place for a while, then she shouted to above, "Namine! Riku! Help us! We need to get back to Twilight Town to see Kairi!"
There was silence for a while, then a dark portal opened up to one side. Leafa and Recon looked relieved that they heard them, and they charged in. As soon as they got through, Riku was waiting for them on the other side.
"Where is she?" was the first thing Leafa asked.
"She is with those three friends in Twilight Town." Riku responded, producing another gateway, "This will lead you close to them. Hurry!"
"Thanks!" Recon replied, and the two dashed into the gate, arriving at the sandlot again, where they were finishing putting away the stage.
"Now where are they?" Recon asked, looking around.
Leafa thought for a while, the she remembered, "We were gonna meet them at the usual spot. This way!" she dashed ahead, with Recon in tow, towards the spot.
Meanwhile, Kairi had just finished telling Hayner, Pence and Olette about her relationship to Sora, and how she was trying to search for him. "Such a romantic story!" sighed Olette.
"If you stick around, Sora's bound to show up." Pence assured her.
"Yeah, he said he's coming back." Hayner told her.
"Okay." Kairi replied, smiling. She was gonna reunite with Sora again, and soon.
"What took you so long, Kairi?" asked Axel's echoing voice. A black portal opened up in front of the group, and Axel popped out of it, surprising everyone. "Somehow I just knew you'd be here." he said as the others stood up, ready to defend themselves, "I tell ya, Kairi, you've got a lot of guts, jumping right into the darkness like that."
He started to walk forward towards Kairi. Hayner and Pence both charged at him, but he merely shrugged to one side so as to avoid each of them. He walked up to Kairi and grabbed her arm, and started to drag her back to the black portal.
"Let go of me!" Kairi grunted, struggling to break free of his grip, "Let go!"
"Kairi!" Leafa shouted. She and Recon dashed through the curtain door, and saw Axel carrying Kairi away. "Oh, no you don't!" Leafa yelled, "Haste!" she started to glow red, and made a blinding dash at Axel as he and Kairi entered the portal. She entered in full pelt, with Pluto came shortly behind them.
Recon ran to it, but the portal disappeared, leaving him standing there with everyone else, petrified. "Leafa!" he shouted.
Inside the Corridor of Darkness, Leafa stood there, her Keyblade raised at Axel, who had Kairi in front of him like a shield. Pluto stood next to Leafa. "You just don't know when to quit, do you?" he asked her amusingly.
"Let go of Kairi right now!" Leafa commanded, ready to strike at him.
"Love to, but I can't." Axel replied, "See, Kairi here is the key to finding a friend of mine." Kairi turned her head to Axel, confused.
"Are you talking about Sora?" she asked him.
"Well, yes and no." Axel replied, "Though I am looking for someone related to Sora."
"Yeah, and who would that be?" Leafa asked, shuffling forward a bit.
"Roxas." Axel answered. The name wasn't familiar to Leafa, though it was to Kairi. She had only heard his voice once, but that was it.
"Listen," Leafa growled, "I don't know how Kairi is gonna find this Roxas character, but if you want to find him, go look for him yourself!" She took a charge at Axel, ready to circle around him and to hit him from behind, so as not to hurt Kairi. Axel, however, had other idea. He waved his hand in front of him, and a black portal opened up in front of him, blocking Leafa's path. Leafa gasped, and tried to stop, but she stumbled and fell through the portal. The portal closed up, leaving Axel, Kairi and Pluto left in the Corridor of Darkness.
"Now, come Kairi." Axel said, yanking her hand as he opened up another portal, "Time you help me find Roxas again." Kairi struggled as she was dragged in, Pluto bounding from behind.
Back in the usual spot of Twilight Town, Recon was on his knees, absolutely terrified about Leafa's safety. Hayner, Pence and Olette stood around him, also worried about Leafa and Kairi's safety. Then out of nowhere, a black portal opened up. The group looked at it, hoping for a miracle. Then out of it came Leafa, who was still in mid-stumble, and fell onto her hands and knees, dropping her Keyblade. The portal closed up behind her, and the four got over to Leafa's side.
"Leafa!" cried Recon, reaching out for her, "Thank goodness you're ok!" However, instead of looking happy, Leafa slammed her fist onto the ground, causing Recon to recoil.
"I can't believe it." she muttered silently, "I almost had her, then that fiery asshole had to trick me like that." She lifted her head, and the group saw tears in her eyes. "Dammit!" she shouted, "I couldn't save her! Why? WHYYYYY?!" She bursted into tears as the others gathered around her, trying to console her.
After a while, Recon brought Leafa back to the mansion, where she sat, almost in a trance, with Namine and Riku around her in Namine's room. Recon had just finished explaining what happened from his point of view, then Leafa struggled to tell them what happened in the Corridor before she was kicked out.
"It's all my fault." she sobbed, "I'm sorry, everyone. I let you all down."
"It's not your fault." Recon told her, even though he had been saying it over a dozen times.
"I was so close." Leafa said, looking at her hands, "If I could've just gotten around that portal, I would've..." She then placed her hands over her face, and continued to sob.
For a while, the only sound that could be heard was Leafa's sobs. Finally, Riku huffed, "Fine then. Get defeated." Recon and Namine looked startled at him. "If this is enough to take you out, then maybe DiZ was wrong about the three of you. You and those two with Sora."
"Riku..." Namine said.
"Hey, that's out of line!" Recon snapped, "Leafa is way more powerful than that. It's just that...you were the one pushing us to get Kairi back no matter what. Surely you are to blame of this!"
Riku was silent. Leafa's sobs stopped. "While it is true that I wanted Kairi to be safe from being kidnapped, that doesn't mean she is lost forever." Riku said in defense, "The Organization will keep her alive in order to anger Sora, and to find Roxas."
"Though it is obvious she is in the Organization's stronghold, we don't know the layout of the place." Namine added, "It will take much more time, but we will find her again."
"Yeah, and speaking of Roxas, just who is he?" Recon asked. Leafa was frozen, her hands still over her face as she waited for the answer.
"Roxas is a very special Nobody." Namine answered.
"You said that Nobodies don't have hearts, right?" Recon recalled, "But there are special Nobodies that have human forms. You said yourself that you are a Nobody, right?" Namine nodded. "And that Nobodies are just shells to people. If that's the case, whose body does Roxas belong to?"
There was a pause, then Namine answered, "Sora's." Recon looked startled Leafa didn't make any sudden movements.
"Wait, so Roxas is Sora's Nobody?" Recon repeated, "Does that mean that Sora is..."
"Sora and Roxas are whole again." Namine explained, "After I collected the memories of Sora, Roxas was the last piece to go back. He and Sora are now whole again. The Organization wants to destroy that connection so they can control Roxas, for he, too, can wield the Keyblade, being Sora's Nobody."
"There is one thing that doesn't make sense." Recon said, "What's so special that they need someone with a Keyblade working for them?"
"The Keyblade can collect hearts." Namine answered, "Every time a Heartless is defeated, their heart goes to building a greater deity; Kingdom Hearts. What the Organization plans to use that for, I don't know."
"That is why they've taken Kairi." Riku added, "The outcome of that will draw Sora's anger to the point where he will continuously destroy Heartless, releasing their hearts to build Kingdom Hearts. This applies also to Kirito, Asuna, and you Leafa." Leafa didn't move an inch. She was frozen like a statue. "Furthermore, if that fails to work," Riku continued, "They plan to sever Roxas from Sora again so as to control his Nobody, and he would collect hearts for them." Riku looked at Leafa as he said, "If you truly want to make up for this mistake, you must keep moving forward. If there's the slightest chance of saving Kairi, would you take it? I'm pretty sure Sora would, though I don't know enough about Kirito and Asuna. What do you think they would do?"
For a while, everyone looked at Leafa, who didn't move. She was thinking about the question. Finally, she lowered her hands, then she answered, "My brother, thick-headed and stubborn as can be, wouldn't give up on something like that. Asuna wouldn't do that either." She stood up and started at the group. Even though tear marks were still on her face, her expression was set; she was determined. "Riku." she started, turning to him, "I ask that you would give me a second chance. I know I failed you before, but I'll make sure Kairi is safe and sound in the end of this. Namine, I'll do what ever I can to stop Organization XIII once and for all. After all, who's to say they won't find a way into my world? If they discovered a way, then it would put both of our dimensions in jeopardy. After Axel said something about that 'new guy', I'm pretty sure there is somebody in my world that joined their ranks. Who? I don't know. At this point, I am not doing this for my benefit, but for everyones benefits; yours, Sora's, Kairi's, brother's, Asuna's, everyone! I'll help you guys out, and defeat the bad guys!"
For a while, everyone was silent from Leafa's speech. Finally, Namine smiled. "I'm so happy that you finally accept this duty." She said to her.
"I knew you had it in you." Riku stated, "I just had to push it a bit."
"Leafa..." muttered Recon, grabbing both of her hands into his, "I may not be much, but I'll still help you out with defeating Organization XIII. I'll stand by your side until the very end."
"Recon, you got to stop doubting yourself." Leafa scolded him, "You have way more potential than what you think. Heck, if it hadn't been for you, I wouldn't have held my own against Axel. Plus, that combination technique we did was incredible. I couldn't have asked for a better person to work with, especially if he is my... my... my boyfriend."
At this, Recon's face went totally red. This was the first time that Leafa called him her boyfriend. He beamed in happiness. "In that case, I better start training harder than ever!" he boomed, "Leafa, could you help me with my training? Let's get stronger together, and find more magic to use in battle, ok?" Leafa smiled and nodded.
"I'll keep you in touch if I find any news about the Organization or Kairi." Namine assured them.
"I'll keep watch here and there." Riku said, turning his back to them, "Take care, Leafa. Recon." He then produced a portal and stepped into it, vanishing.
"Well, what are we waiting for?!" Leafa asked excitedly, "Let's go find Hayner and the others. I'm sure they'll help us out!" Recon nodded, and the two ran out of the room and down the stairs.
Namine stepped to the windows, and watched as the two charged through the gate, and out back into town again. "Those two have such strong hearts." she said, "I can see why you are so interested in them, along with Kirito's and Asuna's hearts. Is this what you wanted, DiZ?"
She turned around and there, sitting in a chair was the man whose heads were wrapped in bandages. "Indeed." DiZ responded, "I believe these people have far exceeded what I had guessed. Kirito, Asuna, Yui, Leafa and Recon. All of them will benefit the downfall of Organization XIII, and even more things to be sure. All we can do is watch and hope that they are capable of facing the dangers ahead."
"But what about the Organization's newest accomplice?" Namine asked.
"That accomplice is a different story." DiZ replied, "I'm afraid that he might be a more dangerous foe to deal with. From what I have read, I believe I know who's blackened heart became a Nobody for the Organization. Let's just hope the Keyblade wielders are ready to face him once again."