Back again with another chapter! This one actually went through some initial changes for the battle scene, but it turned out better in the end as a result. Highly recommend the following music tracks for this chapter; 'Unforgettable - KH3 Version' and 'Kairi's Theme - KH2.5' for the two major scenes.
To respond to the last Guest Review, thank you :). Glad you enjoyed the last chapter :D!
Kairi knew many things. Always be nice toward others, put up a game face when a challenge occurs, helping your friends is important… And leaping into action is a good idea. But she sometimes hated the fact, she took things literally from time to time. Why did I jump out of a window?! She thought in panic as she was freefalling out of the rather large lab room she was just in.
She quickly shot a stream of ice from her Kingdom Key, landing on her rear as she slid down the continuous path of ice. Many heartless started circling her, but she quickly got to her feet and used Flowmotion to keep balance. Channeling her inner light, she carefully made shoots toward the weak shadows in her way.
As she landed near the area's fountains, she took a moment to calm herself, trying to spot the Darkside creature. I didn't feel any darkness when I first got here… Or when I was sleeping. Kairi pondered cautious, having both hands gripped tightly on her keyblade. Maybe it was her waking up that caused the heartless attack? She is one of the New Seven Lights after all…
Kairi quickly shook the thought off, shaking her head as narrowed blue eyes saw people came her way. She relaxed as some of the faces were familiar. "Glad to see you are okay." Riku was the first to speak, hugging Kairi in relief. She hugged him back, glad one of her best friends was with her. They let go of one another, with the other Restoration Comette members standing behind Riku. "Can't believe we got a heartless attack now of all times…"
"Tron's security system hasn't picked up on any darkness readings since Xehanort's defeat," Leon said darkly, grip on his gunblade tight as could be. His scared face turned toward Yuffie, the ninja nodding as she vanished into the shadows and scouted ahead. "You two, come with me and Arieth." Riku and Kairi nodded as they joined the seasoned warrior and the resistant mage.
The four walked carefully up the large stairs, fending off the weaker heartless as they sprung out toward them. Kairi knew Riku and Leon were warriors, the former from experience and later from stories Sora told her. But Arieth using both magic and staff to fight impressed her, giving her a sense of confidence somehow. The two warriors walked on ahead as the group found the waterworks, a stream of water beneath their feet as the tunnel seemed endless, leaving Kairi and Arieth trailing behind.
"You okay, Kairi?" Arieth asked gently, with Kairi nodding though she winced as her body felt stiff. "Here, let me heal you, it's never good to just rush into danger." She used a Curaga spell, soothing Kairi's sore joints and body.
"Saying that from experience?" Kairi asked, curious more than anything else. Arieth giggled, her voice sounding like soft bells. "When I first meet you, I didn't think you could fight like that."
"You should have seen me on Midgar, oh how many adventures I went on with Cloud and Tifa…" She closed her eyes, smiling fondly at a memory seemingly. Arieth sighed though, a frown on her lips as she looked toward the ground. "Hope they are okay, haven't seen them in a long time."
"I'm sure they are fine, they both sound strong," Kairi said with confidence. Arieth smiled at Kairi, grateful at her words. They walked in content silence as they caught up with Riku and Lion, the two standing guard with weapons drawn. Kairi moved past them, eyes wide as could be seeing a familar sight. "Riku, that's…"
"Now now, it's too early to be spilling the beans on my who I am, Princess." The Master of Master's joked, wagging his finger as he walked oh so casually in the frozen-in-place Darkside. "I just wanted to thank you personally for waking me up! And what better gift, then a test!"
"That's… Not how gifts work?" Kairi asked confused, but Riku stood before her, eyes narrowed at the hooded figure. "But you brought that thing here?! You should know how dangerous that heartless is Sora!"
"S-Sora?" Everyone in the group said in shock, but the hooded man. He simply tisked and shook his head. Kairi put a hand on Riku's trembling shoulder, trying to calm him down. Looking toward Aireth and Leon, they simply appeared confused more than anything.
"You called guys?" Sora's voice spoke, appearing in a static form before the group. Kairi blinked, rubbing her eyes wondering if they were playing tricks on her. "Oh, I'm not the real one, just a data version Cid made. Nice to meet ya!" He waved at the group, before turning toward the Master of Masters. "Oh, come on! Another one of the Organization? Just took down all of the guys…"
"...This is just priceless." The hooded figure chuckled, walking right before the Data-Sora, the latter of which was in a combative stance. "You guys missed the kid so much, you made a data clone of him." The figure stopped laughing, simply flicking the Data-Sora's head and making his form vanish into nothing. "The original is better, but he's gone! So, I dunno."
Riku and Kairi gave one another a knowing look, anger flaring in each other's eyes. "We can handle him, you guys take down the Darkside." Leon and Arieth nodded, leaving Kairi and Riku to contend with the hooded intruder. Riku was the first to strike, charging forward after a darkness-fueled dash and landing a heavy three-hit combo. It was simply blocked, with the Master of Master's grabbing Riku's blade at the tip and shoving him backward. He stumbled for a bit before going into a roll, then leaping in the air and shooting a stream of Dark Firga.
Kairi threw her Keyblade, now back into it's Destiny's Embrace form, into the Master and warped right in front of him. She landed a spinning strike, pushing him back. The Master made faint clapping before holding out his hand, shooting a surge of water at Kairi. She rolled away from the attack, with Riku jumping over the wave and landing with a downward thrust strike. The Master blocked the attack, this time using his Keyblade. It mirrored Sora's Kingdom Key, but it was far more chipped and rusted than Sora's. The Master simply swung the blade, counting the attack and using a gust of wind to push Riku and Kairi back.
The two gripped their blades, giving each other a confident grin. Kairi stood still, pointing her keyblade at the ground. Riku jumped to the spot she pointed at, with Kairi launching him in the air with a pillar of ice. Riku then proceeded to launch a volley of lightning at the Master, causing him to stagger. Following up on the magical strike, Kairi charged ahead and continually warped back and forth, landing blow after blow.
"Now!" Riku shouted, with Kairi jumping into the air as the two made a cross-slash, one of light and one of darkness, right across the Master. The two huffed from the surge of magic they spent but smiled seeing their attacker on a single knee. "Where is Sora?" Riku asked with demand, pointing his blade right at the Master's neck.
"Don't play tough guy with me, know it's all an act, Riku." The hooded man simply chuckled, ignoring the slight wavering of Riku's glare. "You are a guy that got everything in the end, but still upset your friend is gone. How funny!" Kairi wanted to speak, but Riku held up his hand, eyes glaring at the man. The Master got to his feet and dusted off his coat. "You got the Master title, which really means nothing in the end. You got the girl, well, not really but her Nobody is better than nothing am I right?" Riku's fist clenched, slight darkness leaking out of it before he took a deep breath. "And you lived. While he didn't." The Master was right in Riku's face, red eyes glaring daggers at him. "Sounds perfectly fair, huh?"
"What. Do. You. Want." Riku hissed, his voice sounding so unlike himself. Feeling angry herself, she shot a ball of light right at the Master, sending him right on his back. "Kairi…" She jumped on the Master's chest, keyblade pointed right at his head.
"You… You aren't who I thought you were if you are talking to us like this," Kairi started, rage in her voice barely contained. "What are you after?" The Master vanished beneath her feet, nearly making Kairi stumble if Riku didn't catch her. The man was now feet away from the two, holding his hand out and making a Corridor of Darkness.
"I wanted… To test you both. The 'Master' of Darkness and the Princess of Light. And you won!" He snapped his finger, the heartless around them vanishing in an instant. Many hearts were floating in the air, looking almost like falling snow frozen midfall. "I must take my leave, but I hope to see you both again soon." He was going to enter but paused, holding up a single finger. "Right! Almost forgot…" He clapped his hands, two laser blasts from out of nowhere hitting Yuffie, who collapsed as inches away from the Master. "The ninja's in this world are useless…" And like that, the mysterious attacker vanished.
After cleaning up the remaining heartless around Radiant Garden, Riku and Kairi sat near a round table Merlin set up in his home, with the others having various degrees of emotions on their faces. Leon looked simply confused, unsure what to even say. Arieth merely preyed, eyes closed and hands clenched tightly. Yuffie just grumbled, holding an ice pack on her rib and mumbling curses. Cid just was at his computer, typing away to fix Data-Sora's code and printing the information Tron gathered earlier.
But Riku and Kairi looked the most torn up, the former having a downcast look at the table. The latter, however, just had a fire in her eyes. Sora… Anger and Sora weren't things usually linked together in her mind, but for this moment in time, she was pissed, to say the least. Her mind pondered as to why Sora, any Sora for that matter, would go that far to trigger someone.
She wasn't stupid, so when the man uttered those harsh words to Riku… She felt his pain. Looking over to her other best friend, she just felt old guilt eat up at her. She deeply cared about both boys, but her heart always belonged to Sora. Did… Does he still feel hurt by that? Kairi pondered seriously, before shaking her head. No, he would have told me. They did keep in touch during her training with Yen Sid as Sora went on his world tour to learn the Power of Waking; it would have been a good time to mention to her any unsaid feelings.
What upset her the most through, was the man flaunting Riku's master title like it was nothing. Does he not realize how much guilt Riku feels over the Mark of Mastery? Kairi could read a room pretty well, but the short visit back home the three had tension, to say the least. Sora didn't care in the slightest, he was just happy to be with his friends. But Riku knew that Sora was robbed of something he rightfully earned after saving the world twice at the time.
"...He's trying to make us hate Sora and each other." Kairi mumbled, but Riku's head bolted toward her hearing that. Kairi blinked at the intensity of the emotion in his green eyes but continued speaking. "Why bring up… That stuff to us specifically? He could have mentioned anything, but those things? It was to rile us both up."
"And it worked…" Riku looked at his right hand, sighing at himself. "Sorry, for letting the darkness come out." Kairi patted his shoulder, giving it a firm squeeze as she gave him a gentle smile.
"If I wasn't one of the Seven Hearts or new Lights, likely would've shot some dark fire at him myself." Kairi jokes, earning a small laugh from Riku. "So… We gotta visit the Sleeping worlds?" Kairi asked the table, with Leon nodding, picking up the map Kairi gave the group after things calmed down.
"I don't think any of our ships can read this…" Leon started, hand lightly hitting the paper. "Don't even think Cid's computer can translate this."
"Yep, it can't, not with Tron out of commission and Data-Sora busted up. Yesh, that hooded fella did some work." Cid sighed, continuing typing into the computer. "But found somethin' that's interesting." He walked to the table and slammed the paper he printed out earlier. "Tron and the Data Kid found a new world."
"Is it the world that jerk came from?" Yuffie huffed, with Arieth giving her a knowing look, making the ninja sit back down. "He insulted me! ME! I helped that kid when he had clown shoes. Even called him cute!" Yuffie mumbled curses to herself once more, but the air went cold. "...What? You guys called him Sora. What else am I supposed to think here?"
"That's not Sora," Riku said harshly, glaring at Yuffie. The ninja gulped at the intensity of his glare. "He doesn't talk like that. He doesn't belittle his friends. That is NOT our Sora. End of story." He sat back down and clenched his head, taking a shaky breath before pinching his forehead.
"You guys did fight four versions of the same man at one point, right?" Leon asked, with Kairi nodding. She pondered the thought, that being a good point. While they came from the same man, Ansem wasn't Master Xehanort. Neither was Young Xehanort or Xemnas. Kairi, in particular, remembers Xemmas, having this air of respect for Riku and Sora. While Master Xehanort was just a ruthless old man wanting power when she clashed against him with Sora at her side.
"...That is a good point." Riku answered Leon, breaking Kairi from her thoughts. "Ansem… As much as I hated him, he… He helped me understand the darkness we both shared." He covered his heart, eyes closed. He said nothing as he opened them once more and leaned forward, eyes drifting to Kairi.
"So that was another Sora then? It makes no sense though, his heart didn't make another Nobody and Heartless. I would have felt that." Kairi felt the new connections being made when Sora used Ansem's Keyblade on himself, feeling the first sparks of Namine and Roxas' hearts being forged. She shivered at remembering the moment, knowing now how they are both very different than her and Sora.
Riku picked up the paper Cid put down, eyes going wide upon seeing the image. "Wait… I saw this place, in my dreams." Everyone turned toward Riku, the Keyblade Master standing up as he spoke. "Sora is here but I don't think we…"
"No, we can't see him yet, we need to find the rest of his heart," Kairi finished, Riku giving a confused look. "He is a jerk, but the hooded guy talked to me before I woke up." Kairi held up the Sleeping Worlds map. "He told me, Sora's heart is fractured, like… What happened after Xehanort killed me…" Kairi felt her hands tremble before shaking it off, patting her cheeks and puffing them out. "We need to visit these worlds and find Sora's heart."
"Easier said than done lass," Cid commented, turning toward the group from his desk chair. "None of my ships can read that fancy map of yours." Kairi tapped her chin, eyes narrowing as she went into thought. Maybe… Our Keyblades? She looked at her right hand, summoning Destiny's Embrace. "Yeah… That might work kiddo, but won't you and Riku get lost?"
"That's a fair point, Sora and I were separated when we took the Mark of Mastery. And who is to say that man doesn't intend that for us too?" Riku waved his hand, emphasizing his point. "I would say 'I can go alone', but… Don't think that's a good idea."
"Y-You want me to join you?" Kairi asked dumbfounded, with Riku grinning. "I mean, I was going to come regardless, but usually you and Sora do that adventure thing without me." Riku's grin faltered before it came back and formed a genuine smile.
"While he's not with us right now, his spirit is. The three of us are finally seeing the worlds together, isn't that great?" Riku said with a bright simile, with Kairi giggling. "What?"
"You… You do a bad Sora, you know that?" Kairi fought hard not to laugh. Riku simply sighed and shook his head, leaning back in his chair as the group around him shared similar smiles or giggles.
As everyone was talking in Merlin's House, a somber figure of Master Sora just sat on a nearby roof, sea salt ice cream in hand. Letting his hood lose, he enjoyed letting his face breathe the scents of the town. I can remember how my first adventure started… Boy, did this place change. He took another lick from his ice cream, his face wincing. Guess Scrouge never found a good formula. Rather than throwing the treat out, he just let it lay limp in his right hand, it's blue liquid beginning to melt.
"You know, even though I like messing with the kids, that was pretty harsh," Luxu commented, sitting next to Master Sora with his arms folded, a smirk almost painted on his face. Master Sora's face formed a weak smile, before letting out a tired sigh. While he knew what the man looked like in this worldline, which was a black coat and little else, seeing Luxu donning his old black and grey uniform from the Radiant Garden days made Master Sora smirk inwardly. The red scarf works, surprisingly.
"Well, they need motivation and better I make them hate me than feel hesitation when we fight again, later on, you know?" Master Sora commented, with Luxu nodding in agreement. "But the fire the Princess's eyes when I insulted Riku… Good to see she has that spunk."
Luxu rolled his eye and looked toward the warm sunrise over them. "Gotta say though boss, didn't expect you to control heartless like that. Remember the lessons but… It's more impressive than the old coot." Master Sora made a bitter smile, looking at his right hand and letting his eyes shine a dark red.
"Vanitas has power over the Unversed but they really are just another form of Heartless, so…" He clenched his hand, faint darkness emitting from it. "Use a little magic, a little darkness, and boom! Heartless at your command." He wiggled his fingers all mystic like, causing Luxu to scoff in response. "Come on, you got a kick out of seeing level-ten heartless running around. Good target practice for later, champ."
"That Ninja was good practice." Luxu grinned, making a single finger gun and shooting Merlin's House. "Bet she's pissed off at us." Master Sora let out a hearty laugh, slapping his knee.
"Yeah, Yuffie was like that in my Worldline too," He wiped a single tear off and flicked it away. "Anyway, best we head to the first world on our 'friends' exciting quest, huh?" Luxu was going to say something but his eye caught something, causing Master Sora to look in his direction. It was of a black-cloaked figure, walking back toward the lab slowly, hunched over and almost looking as if they were in pain. "...You didn't give a black coat to anyone else, did you boss?"
"No… I didn't." Master Sora frowned, not liking where his mind was going. "You move on ahead, will catch up. How much do you want to bet that's Ava?" Luxu's eye went wide before it narrowed. "Just asking is all."
"...Better meet up soon, Sora." Luxu said darkly, opening a Corridor of Darkness and leaving without his master. Master Sora threw up his hood and hopped down, following the cloaked figure. He kept his distance, thankful that his own cloak masked footsteps. He leaned behind a nearby wall, seeing the figure stop and fall to their knees. Their hood flung back and… She, considering the figure had long red hair. Master Sora couldn't make out any other features, but he knew only one person had that hair color and style.
He carefully walked toward her, the woman still hunched over and out of breath. He knelt down beside her, holding out his hand. "Hey, you alright?" Master Sora asked, but he got no response, just odd sobbing. "...I'm not here to hurt you." He assured her, the figure turning around and wiping her face. Master Sora's eyes went wide, shocked how on the money he was with Luxu. He owes me some Elixir's later. "You know what your name is?" He asked, taking off his hood to show her his scarred face and caring blue eyes.
Cautious green eyes looked up toward him, wide as could be. "M-Master… You…" She threw herself on to him, hugging Master Sora tight. He awkwardly hugged her back, feeling something was wrong. As if she realized something, Ava harshly jumped back, summoning her keyblade and pointing it as Master Sora. It's colorful almost cloud-like colors contrasted with the killing intent present in her harsh green eyes. "You… You lied to us all! Made us… Fight one another! How could you!?"
"Okay, this isn't exactly the best place to explain myself, but I had a reason for my actions," Master Sora started, Ava still standing guard and never moving from her spot. "I needed to come into this worldline and sadly, that ended up causing a lot of… Uh, challenges, for you and the others."
"Challenges?" She spat out, her soft voice betraying the utter rage barely contained within it. It was like a kitten roaring at a lion. "Luxu and I nearly killed each other over the lies you taught us! My friends… No, my family turned against each other because of you. And you want me to listen to your lies again?" She has a point. Master Sora figured, sighing at himself and rubbing his neck in slight shame.
"...Are you done pointing your key at me?" Master Sora asked gently, thin line on his face. Ava stood guard before lowering her blade. "Okay, good." He started pacing, tapping his chin in thought. "Look, we are in a new Worldline and you…"
"I… I know where I am, I lived here for… I don't know how long." Ava admitted, rubbing her throbbing head. "They… Experimented on me, I think." Master Sora felt the world pause, protective rage coming over him.
"They did what to you?" Master Sora nearly roared, his voice turning into a strange blend of his own and Vanitas. Ava backed up, eyes in fear recalling this side of her teacher coming out that one time. Realizing her fear, he patted his cheeks and took a breath. "S-Sorry, but what do you mean 'experiments', Ava?"
"So, you are the ones that summoned those heartless." Master Sora and Ava turned toward the voice, that being of a pink-haired warrior with her gunblade pointed square at Master Sora. He threw up his hood and carefully marched forward. "Come with me and face judgment."
"Ooooor, you could let us go and we won't bother your world anymore?" Master Sora pleaded, his voice innocent as could be. The warrior just fired a magic blast inches away from his face. "...I take that as a no, huh…"
"Lightning, that's my name criminal." Lightning spoke, holding her blade like a melee weapon and entering battle stance. "You, did he hurt you?" She spoke to Ava, the woman looking between Master Sora and Lightning. She's going to side with her, huh? Master Sora completely expected his student to turn on him, as why shouldn't she? But his shock was evident when Ava shot a powerful Stopza at Lightning, pinning the warrior in place. She then jumped in the air, transformed her keyblade into a whip, wrapping Lightning up before using her strength to send the warrior flying into a nearby wall. Master Sora simply blinked as Ava retracted her weapon into its keyblade form, flower petals wrapping around it.
"Don't… Make me regret joining you, my teacher." Ava said cautiously, walking toward him and gesturing him to make a path.
"Noted, oh student of mine." He ruffled her hair, causing her to pout annoyedly. "But I gotta get you some new clothes, the black get-up is my thing."
"Yeah, kinda hate these clothes myself," Ava admitted, feeling a lot of added weight from them. Master Sora simply opened a corridor, alarming Ava. "Wait, I thought you taught us darkness was…"
"You and the others need new lessons, darkness and light are needed," Master Sora ensured, making a mock bow for Ava. "After you, milady." She bit her lip, fighting the urge to frown as Ava walked on ahead. Master Sora himself felt happy, thanking Kingdom Hearts itself for having all his students getting him… For now at least.
Ah, the pieces are coming together. We are going to depart to our first world soon! I'm sure you will all be surprised at what world I pick as our first stop ;). But yeah, introducing Ava a lot earlier than in my other fic. There is a reason for this, which you will find out sooner than later. And no, I didn't forget about the other cast (the recompiled Organization members, Dandelions, etc), but keep an eye out for them as the narrative continues.