Gummi Ship
Back on the Gummi Ship, the crew just teleported back onto it. "Whew, finally made it back." sighed Asuna, flopping into her seat. The ordeals in Halloween Town really tired her out.
"Where to next?" Donald asked as Yui flew to the controls.
"Well, there's one world that is close to us." Sora noticed, looking up at the monitor, "Let's go through the special gate and..."
"Hold on." Kirito stopped him. Everybody turned to Kirito, who sat in his chair. "Yui, set coordinates for Twilight Town." He told her.
"Twilight Town?" echoed Sora.
"Why d'ya wanna go there?" Goofy questioned him.
"I...I'm not truly sure why." Kirito answered steadily, "But think about it; Twilight Town just appears out of the blue, the place where we all started this crazy journey together. I have this feeling that its' calling out to us. Don't you guys have that feeling?" Donald and Goofy shook their heads. Yui looked puzzled. Sora and Asuna, however, felt somewhat the same way.
"I agree." Asuna said, "We should go there first. I believe we need to go there for a reason. Besides, the world close to us isn't gonna disappear anytime soon. Well, Sora?"
"I guess we can double back." Sora assumed, "I am anxious to see Hayner, Pence and Olette."
"Then it's settled." Kirito concluded, "Yui, lets head back to Twilight Town!"
"Coordinates all set...Engage!" she chimed, and the Gummi ship turned around and headed back to Twilight Town.
Twilight Town
At the same time, Recon and Leafa were waking up in the manor of Twilight Town, and were heading down to meet with Namine. She woke them with some urgent news. "What's up?" Leafa yawned as the two entered the computer room to meet Namine, who sat at the computer.
"Well, I have some good news and bad news." Namine told them.
We can't have one without the other, can we? Leafa and Recon thought in unison.
"Tell us the good news first." Leafa told her.
"The good news is that the barrier that separated Twilight Town from most other worlds has lifted. More than likely, your friends will come back here again."
"You mean Kazuto and Asuna can come back here again?!" Leafa asked, now fully awake.
Namine smiled and nodded. "With any luck, they might be coming back soon." she told her. Leafa looked excited at the news. Finally, she was able to reunite with her brother again!
"Ok, what's the bad news." Recon said abruptly.
"It seems like Organization XIII is making their move once again." Namine stated, tapping away at the computer, "This includes sending Nobodies to Twilight Town."
"What?!" the two said in unison. Why would they want do that?" Recon asked hastily.
"I don't know." Namine answered, "Though it is possible they are still looking for me."
Leafa and Recon looked at one another. Namine only shared small details of what she's done in the past, but not the full story, nor her connection to Organization XIII. "In that case..." Leafa declared, whipping out her Keyblade, "We need to clear the town of all the Nobodies we can. We can't let my brother have a poor coming-home party!" She dashed out of the computer room, ready to fight.
"W-wait, Leafa!" Recon stammered, chasing after her, "What about breakfast? We need to eat!" Namine watched them go, and heard their footsteps disappear.
The World That Never Was
Up in the stronghold of Organization XIII, one of the members was looking outward, seeing the large, glowing yellow heart in the sky. He then looked down, and started to chuckle. "Something amusing?" said a voice. He turned to see a man with long, frayed blue hair framing his face and a X-shaped scar on his face. This man was Saïx.
"Oh, I was just thinking that maybe I should make an appearance to a few people I know." the hooded member said, walking past Saïx.
"You do realize that you are needed here, Number XV." Saïx said to the member as he opened up a portal.
"It will only be a moment." he replied amusingly, and turned to walk into the portal, "Besides, I'm sure they'll be pleased to see me. Especially her...I'm sure she will be delighted to see me." he chuckled at his own humor as he walked through the portal and disappeared.
Gummi Ship
It took a few hours, during of which Asuna served them a meal. Finally, they arrived above the world of Twilight Town. Yui set up the transporter, and the group teleported down into the world. They arrived in front of the clocktower, and looked around. No sign of trouble.
"Somehow, it feels good to be back here again." Asuna said happily, taking in the air.
"And you said we wouldn't see this place again." Kirito taunted Sora.
"Hey, I'm glad I was wrong!" Sora said eagerly. Asuna and Kirito smiled at him. Even though they've been through different worlds, Sora was still the same carefree person as he was before. The crew decided to walk through the streets to get the feel of the place again.
They walked down through the streets until they arrived at the marketplace. They were about to progress forward when they heard someone's frantic cries. They turned to see a short girl with a shadowed face and a tall, crooked hat running towards them. "H-Help!" she shouted, "The sandlot! It's Seifer! Somebody please help us!"
They saw her run off, then they looked at one another. "Sounds like we've got trouble!" Sora assumed.
"Then let's head over to the Sandlot, pronto!" declared Asuna, and the group ran off.
Just as they did so, Kirito was still hearing the cries of the girl that passed them, but they were somewhat muffled by the tram that passed close to them. "He... must... Leaf... save... man...!" None of her words made any sense, so he decided to ignore it and follow Sora through the streets to the sandlot.
Meanwhile, Leafa and Recon were back to back in the woods, surrounded by a half a dozen Dusks. "These things just won't stand still!" Recon moaned.
"Then let's make sure they stay still for good!" Leafa told him, and the two leapt into action. They took three a piece, and due to all the training they've done, they handled them quite well. When they saw the coast was clear, they gathered together again.
"L-Leafa! Recon!" someone shouted. Leafa and Recon turned to see Vivi waddle hurriedly at them.
"What is it, Vivi?" Leafa asked, looking concerned at Vivi's panic stated.
"It's Seifer!" she cried, "He's being attacked! Strange monsters! At the sandlot!" Leafa and Recon looked to each other.
"Sounds like more Nobodies!" Leafa assumed.
"We've taken care of the marketplace, the clocktower, and some on the streets." Recon counted off, "I'm sure this will be the last of them."
Leafa nodded in response. "Then let's make..." Leafa started.
"Haste!" they shouted, raising their hands in the air. They glowed the red aura, and took off in a fast dash. Leafa hoped to get there before it was too late.
At the sandlot, Seifer, Rai and Fuu were on the ground, surrounded by several Dusks. Rai and Fuu were down for the count, but Seifer was attempting to get to his feet again. He struggled to raise his head as Sora, Kirito, Asuna and the gang charged in, surrounding the space between the Heartless and the three fallen people.
"We'll take it from here!" Sora declared, raising his Keyblade.
"Here, take these and get out of here!" Kirito told them, dropping three potions near each of their heads.
"Leave these things to us!" Asuna stated, preparing her Keyblade. Seifer looked at the group of people that came to save them, and took the potion and drank it. He forced it down Rai's and Fuu's throats, and brought them to the sidelines.
The five went to work on dealing with the Nobodies, which started out as Dusks. They kept piling in, and the crew were dealing with them all. Kirito got separated from the others, and found himself being cornered by a few Nobodies. He went into a frenzy as he hacked and slashed at them, trying to take them out as quickly as possible.
At the same time, Leafa and Recon, now freed from the Haste magic, rounded the corner to see the battle going on. Leafa and Recon gasped when they saw who was fighting. "Kazuto!" she shouted, and she was about to head in when she saw two Dusks sneak in from behind him. Leafa and Recon nodded to each other, and whipped out their weapons, shouting "Aero!" the balls of wind shot at the two Dusks, destroying them.
This attack drew Kirito's attention, and he turned to see his sister and Recon standing there, their weapons raised. "S-Suguha!" he stammered, shocked to hell by her sudden appearance.
"Who'd you expect? Klein?" Leafa said amusingly.
Asuna took out one of the Dusks, and turned to Kirito, and saw who he was addressing. "Leafa! Recon!" she gasped, also a shocked to see them.
Sora, Donald and Goofy turned at their outcries, and saw who they were addressing. "Who're they?" Sora asked.
"She's got a Keyblade!" Goofy pointed out Leafa's Fairy Harp.
The two dashed into the battle, their weapons raised, and started to fight off the Nobodies. "H-How did you..." Kirito started.
"We can talk later!" Leafa answered, her Keyblade raised, "Let's take out the Nobodies first!" Kirito had no idea how she came to be here with Recon, nor how she knew how to use the Keyblade, not even how she knew the Nobodies. Right now, that didn't matter. All that matters was that they had to deal with the enemies in front of them.
The team resumed the battle, now with two extra fighters. Kirito and Asuna, along with Leafa and Recon, could easily tell that each of them were well developed in the skills of using their weapons and magic. Leafa and Recon were slightly shocked as they saw Sora, Kirito and Asuna undergo their Drive Forms, but they assumed that it was just some extra power they gained.
Dusks weren't the only Nobodies they had to deal with. There were new, more brutal Nobodies called Berserkers, and not only were they powerful, but they carried heavy, claymore-like weapons. As Recon forced one to drop one of the swords, he attempted to pick it up, and suddenly felt an uncontrollable rage. He started floating in the air, carrying the claymore with him. As he got close to a Berserker that was giving Donald and Goofy a hard time, he swung madly at it with his new weapon, sending it flying higher and higher as he kept swinging at it, finally making it disappear. The claymore disappeared, and Recon emotions were calm again. "What was that all about?" he asked, shaking his head. He turned to Donald and Goofy, and nodded to assure them that he was sane.
Asuna, Kirito, Sora and Leafa were banding together, taking out the last of the Nobodies. "Magnet!" Kirito shouted, and he conjured up a ball of energy that drew in the Nobodies easily. He then started swinging wildly at them until there was nothing left. The group looked at the surroundings. The coast was clear. No more Nobodies.
Leafa put away her weapon and leapt at Kirito, hugging him. Kirito, happy to see her again, returned the hug. "I'm so glad you're ok." Kirito sighed, glad to see his sister again.
"You had me worried there, brother!" Leafa sobbed, so glad to see her brother again, that tears started to swell in her eyes. She looked up and saw Asuna standing there, somewhat teary-eyed at their reunion.
"Wait... did she just say brother?!" Sora recalled, he, Donald and Goofy astounded at what they just heard.
"You got it." Asuna replied, "Her real name is Suguha Kirigaya, and she is Kirito's stepsister. In the game, she goes by the name 'Leafa'. The other person is Recon, and he's Leafa's boyfriend." Asuna turned to Recon, who walked up to the crew, wondering, "What I don't know is how you guys got here."
"Yeah." Kirito agreed, letting go of Suguha and holding her out at arms length, "Why are you here, Suguha? How did you get to this dimension?" Yui flew into Leafa's arms and hugged her, for she also missed her.
"You've been missing for quite some time!" Leafa complained, shrugging out of Kirito's grip. "You and Asuna just disappeared without a trace after you two went on that Kingdom Hearts quest. For a long time, I was searching for you guys, with the only lead was that you and Asuna took on that mysterious quest, which I found out was a setup from a guy named DiZ..."
"Wait, you know DiZ?" Kirito asked abruptly.
"That's besides the point!" Leafa argued, "Recon was telling me where the last place you guys disappeared too, so we were about to go there. But somehow, a girl we now know sent us through a black portal to this dimension, and lots of crazy things happened after that. I'm talking about getting new clothes, new weapons, new magic, all that stuff! I also learned that you were flying around to different worlds with this guy!" she pointed a finger at Sora, who backed away a bit, somewhat fearful of her. "Do you realize how worried I was?!" she asked him. "I spent the next couple weeks here wondering about you! Oh sure, I had to deal with a few things here and there, but I was seriously worried about you!" she finished her speech, and she was breathing heavily, glaring at Kirito. It was as if she was holding in all these emotions until now.
Kirito stared at her blankly at her for a short while, then he looked to one side, looking somewhat sad. "I was worried, too." he muttered softly, causing Leafa to be somewhat surprised, "I kept worrying about you. I kept worrying about ever returning back home. I-I'm really sorry, Suguha." Leafa saw the sad expression on his face as he continued, "I wanted so badly to go back home. I wanted to see if all my family and friends were doing ok. The same goes for Asuna." Asuna and Recon came to the two's side, "It's funny. Although I'm not home yet, now that I got to see you, I feel...very happy."
He grabbed his sister and hugged her tightly. Leafa didn't repulse. "I'm so glad." Kirito finished, his body vibrating as he was trying to fight back tears, "I-I'm so glad you are here. And I'm sorry you had to be brought into this. I'm so..." The rest of his sentence was drowned by sudden sobs. Asuna and Recon looked at the two with consoling expressions.
Leafa's eyes looked at the back of Kirito head, and she smiled. "I'm glad, too." she replied, her arms embracing her brother, "I got to see my brother again. And I don't regret coming after you." The two stood there, hugging, while everyone was watching them. Sora, Donald and Goofy looked at one another, and smiled as well. The two were finally reunited.
"Hey!" shouted a voice. The group turned to see Seifer, Rai and Fuu walking to them. "How 'bout you get out my town now?" he snarled, "You've caused enough trouble."
Leafa let go of Kirito, and glared at Seifer. "Excuse me?" she asked, walking right up to Seifer, poking her finger at his forehead, "If I recalled correctly, this wasn't your town! I have the rights to be here as well, and so do my brother and his friends." Seifer looked down at Leafa, ticked off at her bossing him around, but blushing a bit at the position he was looking from. All, but Recon, looked startled at her attitude towards him. "Why don't you go back and do your disciplinary job somewhere else?" Leafa asked him, "Or would you rather be humiliated right here in the middle of town?"
Seifer got even more ticked off, but after the last Struggle tournament, he didn't want to mess with her. Finally, he whipped around, saying to his colleagues, "Come on. Were outta here." He walked off, with Rai and Fuu following him at his wake. The rounded the corner of the street and disappeared. Leafa stood there, her hands on her hips, sighing in relief.
Kirito walked up to her. "Tell me, what have you been doing here exactly?" he asked her.
Leafa turned to him, smiling a bit. "Just taking my place here." she answered simply. She then saw everybody else walk up to her, and stared at Sora. "We haven't been formally introduced." she said, raising her hand, "I'm Leafa. This is Recon."
"Nice to meet you guys." Sora responded, taking each of their hands and shaking them, "I'm Sora. This is Donald and Goofy." Donald and Goofy both waved at them.
"So, you're using Leafa?" Asuna asked her.
"Of course." Leafa responded, "I did just come from ALO, so I should use my name from there." Asuna, Kirito and Yui looked at each other, and chuckled. Why should they argue, since they too were using their SAO names?
"Say, why don't I bring you guys to the mansion?" Leafa asked, "I have to introduce you to the person who brought us here!" She led the group out of the sandlot, and through the town. She begun explaining to them in better detail on how they got there. She told them about how she gained the Keyblade, how Recon's weapon evolved, and she told them of her new friend Hayner, Pence and Olette.
"We met them here before we left this world." Sora responded, "They seemed to be really nice guys."
"They are." Recon agreed, "They hang out with us when they don't have school, and we get to sit at the top of the clocktower, and eat really delicious ice cream. Ever tried sea-salt? It's delicious!"
"Sea-salt ice cream?" questioned Kirito, turning to Asuna and Sora. Both of them shook their heads.
Leafa continued to explain about some of the other residence they've met when they came here, and she talked about the Struggle Tournament she took place in. "...The game is really fun." she said to them, "And it just so happens, I won that tournament."
"Wow, congrats!" Asuna commended her.
"Yeah, and she has a trophy for it." Recon told them.
"We should show them the trophy, Leafa!"
"After meeting up with 'you-know-who'." she winked as she led the group through the hole in the wall to the forest.
"So, was there anything else?" Kirito asked her.
"Yeah, actually!" Leafa responded, her tone getting serious a bit, "We actually got to test our skills against a tough enemy who is part of a group called Organization XIII."
"Organization XIII?!" everyone shouted, stunned by the news.
"You mean you fought against one of them?" Sora asked her, "What happen? Did you win?"
"Well, somewhat." Leafa replied hazardously, "Recon and I had to deal with a guy named Axel. Really skilled guy. Able to control fire."
"Fire, huh?" Kirito responded, "And you said you somewhat beat him?"
"Well, we knocked him back a bunch." Recon answered, "We were trying to protect this one girl from being taken by him, and we tried stopping him, but he got away." Recon looked somewhat ashamed at the failure of the mission.
Leafa looked ashamed too, but she shook it off. "It doesn't matter." she said, "After we fought him, we decided to train hard until we would meet him again, so we can kick his fiery head from here to the other dimension!" Kirito was glad she was taking that loss well.
"But who was the girl you were trying to protect?" Sora asked.
Leafa turned to him, somewhat nervous to answer, since she knew how important Kairi was to him. "Well, her name is..." she started, but Kirito placed a hand on her arm to stop her, and the group turned to see why. At the front gates of the mansion was a man dressed in a black coat and a black hood. An Organization cloak. "Well, speaking of the devil himself." Leafa said, as the group pulled their weapons out.
"I presume you must be a member of Organization XIII?" Kirito asked him, glaring at the opponent, who didn't bother turning around to them.
"What are you doing here?!" Asuna demanded, raising her Keyblade at him.
For a while, the member didn't speak. Then suddenly, he started to laugh. "Oh, how I've waited to hear those two voices." he said, spinning around to meet them, "I wish I was able to speak to you at Hollow Bastion, but unfortunately, I had some preparations to take care of. I'm so glad we are reunited like this, Kirito. Asuna." Kirito and Asuna were shocked to hear him know their names.
"He must be the newcomer to the Organization!" squeaked Yui, popping out of Kirito's pocket.
"That explains how the Organization knows us." snarled Kirito, preparing to attack the man before him.
"Kirito," the member said, his voice becoming somewhat more threatening, "Before, the sight of you would infuriate me, but it doesn't. For you see, I am a Nobody now. I don't have the heart to get angry at you."
Kirito was puzzled at what he meant. Before he could contemplate, Leafa rushed in, her Fairy Harp raised. She attempted to slash him, but he leapt back into a quick produced black portal, which vanished the moment he entered in. Sora, Donald, Goofy and Recon all were following her, but they stopped as she did. Everyone looked around, wondering where he went. Finally, a portal opened up again, this time right behind Asuna. He wrapped his arm around her body, repressing her sword arm as she held her.
Kirito and the other whipped to see him have ahold of Asuna. "Asuna!" He shouted, "Let go of her, you bastard!"
The man lifted a piece of Asuna's long hair with his free hand, and took a deep sniff of it, and sighed. "Your hair smells just as sweet as the day I left you." he whispered in a tone that could be heard to Kirito, "If only I got you when I had the chance, my sweet Titania."
Asuna stopped struggling and froze, panicked stricken. Kirito also displayed an expression of shock. The tone of his voice, the way he treated Asuna. And the name that was only used by one person. That one person they knew would act in such a sickening manner. "No way..." Asuna gasped.
"Of all people..." Kirito said in a angry tone.
Asuna's face went from fear to anger as she yelled, "Fire!" she unleashed a fiery circle around her, causing the man to leap back and stand to the far side of the two.
"Of all the people, it just had to be you!" Kirito growled, raising his Keyblade, trying his best not to leap at the man that stood before them. Sora and the others were surprised at their anger.
The man raised his hands, and lifted his hood, revealing a face for which Asuna had nightmares about. A man with shoulder-length blond hair, coming down either side of his face and his back. He still wore the crown on his head. He no longer had his pointy ears, but the face was too familiar.
"Sugou!" Asuna and Kirito shouted in unison. Sure enough, it was him. The man that kidnapped and taunted Asuna. The one who attempted to control the minds of 300 people. The one who created ALO for such a reason. He was even in his ALO avatar form, that of the king of fairies, Oberon. Leafa and Recon both gasped, for they heard from the two about him, and what he had done.
"Who?" Sora asked, confused.
"He was the one who tried to control the minds of all those people in that fairy game." Goofy remembered.
"Don't you remember Kirito telling us on the train?" Donald asked him. Suddenly, Sora remembered, and he got into battle position, angrily looking at him.
"What the hell are you doing here, Sugou?!" Kirito demanded.
"Last time I remembered, you were rotting away in prison, like you should." Asuna snarled, running to Kirito's side, "Then I remember hearing your name over the radio shortly before arriving here, saying you vanished! I was hoping you were gone for good..."
Sugou snickered at this remark. "Yes, that's what you would think." he said to them, "But thanks to the Organization, I escaped!" He started to laugh wildly at the expressions on their faces, his face twisted up as he laughed. "Finally!" he shouted, raising his head and hands into the air, "I shall be able to fulfill my dream again. With the power that the Organization had bestowed upon me, and with the power of Kingdom Hearts, I shall rule like a god again! I will have the power to control all the hearts of this dimension!" He continued to laugh maniacally, unable to contain his pleasure.
"You're still trying to do that?!" Asuna gasped, shocked at what he was attempting to accomplish.
"You're just as twisted as ever, Sugou!" snapped Kirito.
Sugou stopped laughing and looked at the two. "Oh, you shouldn't call me Sugou anymore." he said to them, "Remember, I am now an Organization member now. I am a Nobody. Therefore..." He waved his hand in front of him, and suddenly, glowing letters appeared in front of him, forming the name 'Sugou'. He then snapped his fingers, and an X appeared above his name. The letters started to swirl around, rearranging themselves, until finally they stopped. The letters, along with the X, created a new name in front of him.
'Gouxus'
"Number XV, Gouxus." Sugou said to them, "From now on, that shall be my new name. The Fairy King of Thieves." Kirito and Asuna looked surprised at him. He had truly become a Nobody, just like he said.
Gouxus waved his hand in the air, and suddenly Nobodies appeared all around the group. Kirito, Asuna, Yui, Leafa and Recon were shocked. They looked exactly like the Guardian Knights at the World Tree, except their heads have been crested with the Nobody emblem.
"Consider these as a present." Gouxus told them as a black portal opened up behind him, "I will see you again soon!" He backed off, and entered the portal.
"Hold it!" shouted Kirito as the portal closed, but he narrowly avoided a slash of one of the Guardians.
"Guys, let's take out these Nobodies." Sora declared raising his Keyblade.
"Careful." Leafa warned them, "These things were originally from our world, only they weren't Nobodies to begin with." The group of Guardians went in swiftly at the group, who charged in just as well.
The Guardians were definitely difficult foes. Their sword strikes were powerful, and they were able to throw their swords at them like throwing knives, and were able to reproduce them again. Fortunately, there were no Archer Guardians, but they were having trouble just as well. Kirito and Sora undergone their Limit Break just to stop a few of them. Leafa kept activating her Haste just to avoid getting hit by them. After fifteen minutes of fighting the swarm of Nobodies, they finally stopped.
The group gathered together again, slightly worn from the attack. "That was a close one." sighed Kirito.
"Impressive." said a voice. The group looked around to see where the voice came from. Finally, Sora spotted another Organization member from their right side, applauding them.
"By the way," the man said, "have you seen a man named Axel?"
"If I did, I would give him a beating of a lifetime!" Leafa snarled, ready to fight this new person.
"Well, I expect he's here somewhere." the man sighed.
"Like I care." Sora responded, following Leafa as he readied his Keyblade.
"You see, Axel's no longer acting in our best interest." the man explained.
"Is he with the Organization, too?" Goofy asked.
"Yes." responded the man.
"You havin' a fight?" Donald asked.
"Not a very organized Organization..." sassed Recon.
"Don't let your guard down." the man warned him, pointing a finger at Sora, "Axel will stop at nothing to turn you into a Heartless."
"Gee, thanks for looking out for us, mister." Sora said in a sarcastic tone, "But I'm sure we can take care of ourselves just fine."
"Glad to hear it." the man responded.
"One more thing!" snapped Kirito, "Why is Sugou in your Organization?! How did he come to this dimension, and become a Nobody?"
"Let's just say that we were looking for...prominent minds." the man responded, "His strong will and understanding is proving to be useful to our Organization."
"So, is he really trying to control the hearts of people in this dimension?" Asuna asked fearfully.
"That's for you to decide." the man responded, "Gouxus aside, it would break our hearts to hear something happened to the four of you." He was referring to Sora, Kirito, Asuna and Leafa.
"Hearts? You don't have any hearts!" Donald squawked.
"True, we don't have hearts." the man responded, lifting his hood to reveal a man's face with blue hair and a X marked scar on his face, "But we remember what it was like. That's what makes us special."
"What do you mean?" Asuna asked as a portal opened up from behind the man before them.
"We know very well how to injure a heart. Sora, Kirito, Asuna and Leafa, you just keep on fighting those Heartless." Kirito and Leafa looked at each other, confused by why he would tell them that.
"Let's jump in after him!" Sora whispered to the crew.
"How come?" Donald asked.
"I'm not sure," Sora answered, "but maybe he'll lead us to the Organization's world."
"Good idea." Recon agreed, "We might even get a chance to bring back the person Axel had taken from us."
"Don't be reckless." warned the man, "Do you want to end up like Riku?"
"What?!" gasped a startled Sora. The man walked backwards into the portal bowing to them. Recon made an attempt to rush in after him. "Hey, wait!" Sora shouted to the man, but it was too late. The man disappeared, and Recon was too late to stop him. The group just stood there, looking at the spot the man disappeared to. "What did he mean, end up like Riku?" Sora asked out loud.
"Yeah, I mean Riku was just fine the last time I..." Leafa started, but she stopped herself. Sora was too busy thinking about what the man said to listen.
Asuna, however, knelt down, shivering. Everyone looked to her, and saw the fear in her eyes. "Why..." she said fearfully, "Why did it have to be Sugou? That man... He was a complete and utter monster. Why did he have to return to into my life again?" She hugged herself, scared of what they just found out, and scared of what was to come. That man stole her, played with her body, attempted to marry her, even tried to rape her. There was no reason she wasn't gonna be afraid of him. All of the group looked worried at Asuna's state. Yui flew down and hugged her to console her.
Kirito paused as he looked down at her, then he turned away from her, looking at the point the man she feared disappeared to. "It's Gouxus." he said firmly. Asuna looked up at him, along with Yui and everyone else. "That man's name is Gouxus now." Kirito repeated, "He allowed himself to lose his heart, and that's the man we just now have seen. I know of all the cruelty he had done in the past, yet I decided to let him go on that parking lot that night. I hoped that maybe he had learned his lesson, but I guess that was a false assumption. Now that he had come to this dimension, attempting to repeat the actions he tried to do before, I can see he is a loss cause. He must be killed."
He turned back to Asuna, looking seriously at her as he finished, "There's a fine difference between now and then, Asuna. And that is you have the power to fight back, as you so well demonstrated. You have the power to retaliate against the man who attempted to take away your freedom. And I'll make sure you have that chance."
Asuna looked up at Kirito, realizing that he was right, and wiped away the tears on her face, only to express an angry face as she spoke, "You're right. That man is no longer controlling me anymore. If he thinks he could try to take me over again, he has another thing coming. He's gonna regret ever meeting me!" Kirito smiled at Asuna's words, finally seeing the woman he loved ready to fight against the man she feared.
"Then count me in, too." Leafa added, leading Recon over to the other two, "We have a few complaints on how much trouble his game was before, and how poorly he treated certain gamers within it." Recon looked a bit hesitant, but he looked like he was willing to join in with the battle. Kirito and Asuna both nodded in agreement. Those two can have their fair share of fighting him.
Kirito turned to Sora, Donald and Goofy, who were walking up to the group. "If you see Gouxus, don't attempt to fight him." Kirito warned them, "Instead, leave him to us. We want to finish a long awaited battle with him."
"You got it." Sora answered, smiling seriously at Kirito, "That guy does seem to be targeting you guys most of all." Donald and Goofy nodded in agreement.
The group looked at each other, then Leafa remembered that she was bringing the team over to the mansion. She waved the others to follow her, and she led the group into the mansion. Inside, the team decided to split up; Recon would lead Sora, Donald and Goofy over to their room, where he was gonna show them the trophy. Leafa said that they should have the trophy instead, since it cluttered up her room. Meanwhile, Leafa led Kirito and Asuna down to the basement again. She believed that it should be just the three of them to talk to Namine for the time being.
She led them down into the computer room, where Namine stood, waiting for them. "Guys, I like to introduce you to the person who brought me here, Namine." Leafa introduced them.
"Namine?" Kirito asked, "Why is that name so familiar?"
"Wait, didn't Jiminy's journal say something about thanking her?" Asuna asked.
"Your right." Kirito remembered, "We should get Sora and the others so they can tell her that."
"No, wait." Namine stopped him, "It's still too soon for us to meet. Now's not the time." Asuna and Kirito looked questionably at Namine, but decided not to argue. "In any case, it's very nice to meet the both of you." Namine said to them. Asuna and Kirito looked to one another, and bowed in response.
"Namine, why is there a person in our world a Nobody in this world?" Leafa asked her seriously, "And how long has he been here?"
Namine looked down, thinking about how to phrase her next words, then she answered, "Since a week before Kirito and Asuna's arrival." Everyone looked startled at this. "You see, DiZ learned that the Organization discovered the world as well, and not just the online world, but the real one, too. They decided to find someone who would help the Organization. You see, that's one of the Organizations' other missions; to find new people who would benefit their cause. That's when they found the man you speak of."
Namine walked over to the computer and started typing away, pulling up a profile on Sugou. "DiZ did some research on him, and discovered that he was the one who trapped three hundred minds, including Asuna's, and was attempting to control the minds of people. The Organization's scientist had already been defeated, so they needed to find a replacement, and after seeing the brilliance of that man, they decided to take him away from that world, and transform him into a Nobody."
"But his face looks like his avatar in ALO." Kirito described, "How come he is like that if he was taken from the real world?"
"That's probably the work of the Organization." Namine answered, "Either that, or that his strong conviction to his avatar form made his Nobody what he is."
"He did consider himself a god when he was ruling that world." Asuna said through gritted teeth.
"DiZ found it dangerous to have a man like that in the Organization." Namine continued, "However, he was already planning to bring those with strong hearts from your world to this dimension, being the three of you." Kirito, Asuna and Leafa looked at one another. "Due to your former conflict with that man, he believed that you might be able to fight him again. It was that convenience that he decided to take action, and set up a way to bring you over, with the assumption that you would wield Keyblades, as well." Namine turned to them as she continued, "He knew of the programing of your world, as he had visited it once before. It took him well over a year before he perfected the program, allowing your hearts and minds to travel to this world, without causing damage to your real life bodies. He believed your digital forms were better suited for this world than your real world forms."
"Well over a year?" Asuna repeated, thinking on the timeline, "But...could that mean that he was around during SAO?"
"I get it." Kirito understood, not hearing her words, "So in order to stop Gouxus, he brought us here, starting with me, Asuna and Yui, then Leafa and Recon. I bet he wasn't expecting Recon or Yui, but they are beneficial to our team." Yui popped out of Kirito's pocket and flew onto his shoulder, smiling at his consideration.
"So, if we defeat Gouxus, along the Organization, what will happen to us?" Asuna asked Namine.
"DiZ will return you back to your dimension." Namine responded, "He has the ability to bring you guys back, I can be sure of that. He never wanted to separate you from the people who care about you, but due to the movements of the Organization, he chose to counteract with aggression."
Asuna, Leafa and Kirito looked to each other, wondering. If that was DiZ's plan, then he should've told them the full story. Regardless, at least they found out why they were brought here. It was an absolute relief to them, and DiZ did say that they would bring them back. They thought about their families, and their friends, and what they're probably going through. They knew they were probably worried about them, and their bodies had probably already been transferred to hospitals right now, just like before. All three Keyblade wielders had only one thing to say to that; hold on for a little while longer. They had a duty to fulfill.
The trio nodded to one another, then turned to Namine, who waited for their response. "Thanks for telling us this." Kirito told her, "At least we now have a bigger goal to accomplish."
"And now we know for sure that the Organization can enter our world." Asuna added, "I bet anything Gouxus won't leave that world alone either." Leafa nodded in agreement.
Namine smiled at their conviction. "Thank you, all of you." she said to them, "I hope you bring the worlds to light again, and to make sure that the Organization is stopped for good." She then turned to Leafa as she continued, "I still might need your help again, Leafa, as well as Recon. However, Twilight Town is safe for the time being, so I think you should go to another world and help there."
"Are you sure?" Kirito asked, "Surely Leafa and Recon can come with us. She'll be great in our crew."
"Nah, I think I'll pass." Leafa responded, surprising Kirito, "I'm glad to see my brother, Yui, and Asuna again, but I think you guys already have it covered with going to other worlds and helping them out. And besides, you know the old saying; Divide and conquer." Kirito looked a bit worried at Leafa, but then decided to have faith in her.
"I believe you will see more of each other, anyway." Namine cut in, "Based on information gathered, the next destination I will send you to is Hollow Bastion. She'll be needed there."
"Hey, that's a really good place to go to!" Asuna said, "We have some friends there, like Leon and the other Restoration Committee. And there's a wizard named Merlin, and I bet if you ask nicely, he'll give you a few spells to work with."
"Sounds great! I can't wait!" Leafa answered, eager to go to this world.
"I will send you and Recon to that world very soon." Namine said to them, standing up and walking toward the doors on the other end of the room, "For right now, you should go to Sora and his friends. Don't tell them I'm here, ok?" The trio nodded, and Namine went through the doors and disappeared.
The trio walked up from the basement into the main room of the mansion, where they were reunited with Sora, Recon and the others. Goofy was carrying the trophy, which looked somewhat plant like, with four jewels on it, all different colors. They greeted them, and when Sora asked about meeting Namine, Asuna responded by saying that she left after their conversation.
"So what did you guys talk about?" Sora asked.
"Let's just say it was enough for us to keep on fighting against the Organization." Kirito responded, grinning. Sora, Donald and Goofy all looked to each other, but decided not to question them any further. They were just glad that they were still continuing to fight along side them.
The group left the mansion, closed the gate behind them, and walked through the woods to town. When they got there, they saw Pence running towards them. "Oh! Sora!" Pence stammered, seeing all the familiar faces with them.
"Um...Pence, right?" Sora reminded.
"Hey, Pence." Kirito greeted them.
"Hey, guys." Pence replied, "Say Sora, do you know a girl named Kairi?" Leafa and Recon looked a little nervous.
"K-Kairi? I sure do!" Sora replied excitedly.
"Then you better come to the station!" Pence told him.
"I probably should add some things, too." Leafa added.
"You met her, too?" Kirito asked. She nodded, but didn't look to happy about it. Sora was too excited, and dashed up the streets ahead of the group, with the others following suit.
After a while, they arrived at the station plaza again. The gang got together in the center of the plaza when they heard someone shout, "He-ey!" They turned to see Hayner and Olette rushing from the other street up to them. Yui flew out of Kirito's pocket again and flew right next to him.
"Hey, guys." Asuna greeted them.
"Hey, so how do you guys know Kairi?" Sora asked them, turning to them, then to Pence, and finally to Leafa and Recon. The five of them grouped together, looking a bit nervous to answer.
"Kairi was the girl that I was trying to protect." Leafa answered, surprising the group. "Recon and I were told about her, and when Axel tried to take her, we were sent to protect her. We used the power of some of our friends to send her here."
"Kairi was really here?!" Sora asked.
"Yeah." Hayner responded, "And...she said she was looking for you."
"Tell me where she is!" Sora demanded.
"Well..." Leafa started hesitantly, then they went into the full story, about how Axel came to this world and took her again, and how Leafa tried to stop him, but he tricked her, and Leafa lost Kairi.
Sora, who listened to them to the very end, pulled something out of his pocket. It looked a lot like the star-shaped ornament on Asuna's Oathkeeper. "Kairi..." he muttered, looking at the star.
"I'm sorry." she said to Sora apologetically, bowing deeply to him, "I did all I could. We all did, but...it wasn't enough."
"Hey, it's not your fault." Sora responded strongly, "C'mon, cheer up! Like I can even say that..." The group looked closely at Sora as he bowed his head in shame, then he raised his head suddenly, declaring, "I gotta help Kairi!" His sudden change of attitude startled Goofy, causing him to drop the statue, and the four jewels popped out of their sockets and rolled all around. Hayner, Pence and Olette made a quick grab for the green, yellow and red jewels, while Kirito made a grab for the blue one.
"That was close!" Pence gasped in relief. Sora looked at the blue jewel Kirito grabbed, then pulled out the wallet he got in this exact plaza from the king, and pulled out the blue jewel from inside it, and raised it towards the sun, looking right through it. Kirito saw him do it, and mimicked his movement. Asuna and Yui got to Kirito's side, and looked through the jewel as well. Hayner, Pence and Olette also raised their jewels towards the sun. They all seemed transfixed as they peered through the jewels, while the others watched. Leafa turned to look at Sora, wondering. He did seem just as head strong and kind as Kirito, though a bit more childish than him. He would tell others to cheer up, and not to be worried about things, and still take in the pain they had been dealt with. She could understand just how Kirito, Asuna and Yui were able to get along so well with him.
Kirito, Hayner, Pence and Olette all lowered their jewels, but Sora just stood there, frozen. The group looked at him, looking a bit worried. It almost felt like, for a short moment, he was someone else, somebody that seemed to be like him.
"Sora?" Donald called out. No movement.
"Sora! Are you okay?" Goofy shouted. Kirito reached over and shook his shoulder, bringing him back to reality.
"Huh? What...?" Sora asked, somewhat confused as he looked around. Olette looked at the wallet that Sora was holding in his other hand.
Suddenly, the jewel in Kirito's hand started to glow brightly, and start to float. Without hesitation, Sora, Kirito and Asuna grouped together, pulling their Keyblades out. They pointed their Keyblades downward together as they and the jewel glowed brighter. Suddenly a crown mark appeared around them, and a strange energy surged around them as the surrounding changed into a bright sky with black clouds. The light from the jewel suddenly bursted into the sky, and a large keyhole appeared. The trio jumped back, flipping their Keyblades around and pointing them at the keyhole. Three beams came from their Keyblades and shot themselves at the keyhole, and a sound of a lock unlocking was produced, along with a blinding light. Suddenly everything was back to normal.
"What the heck just happened?" Leafa asked Yui.
"Another road has opened up for us." Yui answered.
"...And Kairi and Riku are waiting somewhere along it." Sora finished as Hayner, Pence and Olette gathered with the group once more.
Suddenly, the star in Sora's pocket started to glow, and Sora pulled it out to reveal it glowing a bit, then it stopped. "The star had changed itself into a Keyblade chain." Yui explained, "It has now become your 'Oathkeeper'." Sora looked down at it, and smiled a bit.
"You'd better hurry, then!" Olette told him.
"You comin' back?" Hayner asked.
"Promise!" Sora responded. Kirito, Asuna, Yui, Donald and Goofy all nodded in response.
"Sora..." Leafa said, bringing Sora's attention to her. She looked hesitant, then she said, "Make sure you take care of Kazu... I mean Kirito. He's a bit head strong, and he rushes into battles far too much. I can count on Asuna, but just in case..."
"Oh, like your one to talk." Kirito retaliated, nudging her a bit.
"You're not coming with us?" Sora asked.
Leafa shook her head, then she smiled. "Don't worry," she assured him, "I just got word that me and Recon are gonna be movin' over to Hollow Bastion, so I'll wait for you guys there." Recon, Hayner, Pence and Olette all looked surprised at this sudden bit of news.
"Really? Cool!" Sora responded.
"You really leaving us, Leafa?" Hayner asked her. Both Pence and Olette looked at her sadly.
"For a while." Leafa responded, "But we'll be back. That's a promise!" She gave them the thumbs up. The three friends looked at each other, smiled, and gave her a thumbs up in return. Recon looked to her, then to the three friends they've made, and also made a thumbs up at them.
Leafa turned to the other three Keyblade wielders. "You guys better come back in one piece!" she told them in a motherly way.
"We will." Kirito responded, "You just do the same." He reached his hand out in the middle of them, and Sora, Asuna and Leafa all placed their hands on top of them. The four Keyblade wielders were united together by an unbreakable bond.
Suddenly, a light shone from their hands, and shot into the sky above them. It glowed brightly, and four Drive Orbs appeared, with a crown symbol on each of them. "What are those?" Recon asked, seeing the orbs.
"More Drive Forms for them!" Yui answered excitedly. They floated down to the four Keyblade wielders.
"Are these...for us?" Leafa asked, looking at the orb. Asuna nodded eagerly.
"Touch it, Leafa." Kirito told her, "It's a new power given to you." She looked a bit hesitant, but she joined in with everyone as they simultaneously touched the orbs. Their garments started to glow, and they bursted brightly with energy.
When the light died down, they found themselves in new garments, or rather old new garments. Sora's clothes looked like his old uniform before the fairy's from Yen Sid's tower transformed them, now suited for his age. Kirito and Asuna's garments were the exact same as they were back in SAO. Leafa's garments were reverted back to her ALO attire.
"Wha-what are these?" Leafa asked, seeing her clothes like normal.
"I think I know." Yui answered, "These are your Limit Forms. They basically bring back some old skills you had before. You can improve those powers as you use attacks from this form."
"Cool!" Sora said excitedly, checking out his new clothes, and feeling the powers from it.
Kirito looked at his Keyblade, then started to focus a bit, and his Keyblade started to glow before releasing it into a slash, causing the wind to gust around him. "Hey, that move felt like one of my sword techniques back at SAO." Kirito said, astonished, "I wonder what moves I'm able to do again?"
"Me, too." agreed Asuna, whipping her Keyblade to one side as if she was controlling her rapier.
Leafa looked at her garments, then she thought of something. She concentrated hard, and suddenly her fairy wings appeared on her back. "Leafa! You got wings!" Recon said excitedly as she started fly a bit. Then out of excitement, Leafa soared straight up the top of the clock tower and circled around it, laughing in enjoyment. The speedaholic had gained her flight powers again.
"Careful, Leafa!" Kirito shouted, "The Drive Forms only last for a while, so you better not soar too high." She flew down to them, and landed neatly on her feat.
"Hey, at least I got the feeling of flying again!" she told him off. Kirito sighed in disbelief.
"Aaw, I wanna fly again, too!" Recon moaned, feeling jealous of Leafa's powers.
"I'm sure you'll get yours eventually." Asuna assured him.
The gang reverted back to their normal forms, and looked at one another. "Well, we best get moving!" Sora told them, and he led Kirito, Asuna, Yui, Donald and Goofy to one side. They activated the teleport system on the Gummi Ship, and they disappeared from sight.
Leafa and Recon looked to Hayner, Pence and Olette, and smiled at them. "We better get a move on as well." She said to them.
"You take care, Leafa." Pence stated.
"Good luck!" Olette cheered.
"You better come back." Hayner told them.
"We will." Recon assured them, "And when we do, lets bring Sora, Kirito and the others with us so we can have some sea-salt ice cream."
"It's a deal." agreed Hayner.
Leafa and Recon looked to one another, and nodded their heads in unison. Together, they dashed towards the mansion, where Namine was waiting for them, ready to take them to Hallow Bastion. Leafa didn't regret not going with his brother. He and Asuna had their duty, and she and Recon had theirs. Together, they had the power to defeat Gouxus and Organization XIII once and for all.