A/N: So another chapter of Cracks of the Past is here for you to peruse in your free time. On another note, I finally got the chance to see Zootopia (or Zootropolis over here) and oh mah gawd, that was spectacular! It's safe to say that this movie has now cemented itself as one of my favorite Disney movies and I encourage anyone who hasn't to see it too. Also Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde are now two of my favorite protagonists in a Disney movie, I can safely say. I kind of want to watch it again now. Anyway, enough Zootopia and more Keyblade Graveyard. Be sure to spread the word about this and Dual Destinies and, as always, reviews and constructive criticism is greatly appreciated.
Chapter 87
Cave of the Night Sky
"Neuge? Mickey? How did you find us?" Sora asked.
"Tifa told us that she couldn't find Xanatos anywhere. It was Xanatos' assistant that coughed it up, after a little convincing," Neuge said with a sly smile.
"Neuge, really?" Sora asked.
"What? It was mainly Tifa," Neuge said.
"Oh, yeah, I guess 'mainly' is alright then," Sora said sarcastically.
Xanatos slowly stood up and looked at her, wiping the trickle of blood from his lip. "Owen told you? Huh. What do you know? He really does get bored easily."
"You're done for, Xanatos. As much as it breaks my heart to how the Restoration Committee will feel about this, Radiant Garden is more in danger with you than it is without," Mickey said. He had his Starseeker Keyblade pointed straight at Xanatos. "It'll be painful, but the people will learn to adapt. They always have."
"Then I take it I'm leaving my company in good hands. I can't go back after all," Xanatos said.
"Your majesty," Kohle interrupted. "Moira's Crescent will be taking him in. I hope you don't mind."
"Well, I don't…" Mickey said.
"But it's not just him you're after, right? That's where we draw the line," Neuge said.
"So you're proposing I let him get away with what he just did?" Kohle asked. "Your student there just unlocked the seal."
"The seal? No…" Neuge murmured. "Then we're too late."
"The seal? What's the seal?" Mickey enquired.
"Another thing Yen Sid hasn't told you about? Go on, Neuge, tell them," Kohle encouraged.
"The seal, from what my master told me, brings about a disastrous omen on this world. Though I don't know what it does," Neuge said.
"I wouldn't expect you to. It's a well-guarded secret. I'll put it in simple terms—the Keyblade War never ended," Kohle said.
Sora, Neuge and Mickey frowned in confusion. "What?"
"What do you mean it never ended?" Neuge asked.
"You've heard of the Fifth Dimension spell, haven't you? It's similar to that. In order to save the remaining Keyblade Wielders, Kingdom Hearts pulled a trump card. It would place them in another realm where they would succumb to an eternal sleep. That realm has only ever existed inside Kingdom Hearts itself. The door you just unlocked is one that leads inside it," Kohle said.
"No way…" Sora murmured with a shaking head.
"Wait, but what about all the Keyblades around here? Aren't they supposed to be the keys of those owners?" Mickey asked.
"The keys didn't go along with their owners. With no one to wield them, they've pretty much been lifeless. Now that their owners have been released, I'm sure those Keyblades too will soon awaken from their long slumber. We're heading back to the Dark Ages, and you have your little student to thank for that," Kohle said, pointing a finger at Sora.
"How do you even know this stuff? The Keyblade War was a long time ago," Neuge said.
"It doesn't matter. All that matters is that the damage is contained before it can get out of hand," Kohle said.
"Well sorry, but I'm not ready to go yet. I have a friend to help," Sora said before turning to Neuge. "Luna's knocked out cold. Alice is with her right now."
"Not good. Then you need to help her." Neuge took something out of her pocket and placed it in Sora's hand. When he turned his hand, he found himself looking down at a Star Shard. "Take it and get Luna and Alice out of here. Just think about getting to Radiant Garden and the Shard will do all the work."
"But what about you two?"
"We can handle ourselves just fine, or have you forgotten I'm your senior?" Neuge asked.
"So you finally admit that you're old?" Sora asked with a cheeky grin.
"I'm guessing you want a punch too?" challenged Neuge.
"Ha-ha-ha, no I'm fine, thanks. Oh, before I forget…" Sora pulled something of his own and showed it to Neuge. "For luck?"
Neuge shook her head and lowered Sora's hand. "I gave it to Luna as a present. It's hers now, remember?"
"Right… okay," Sora said. He turned heel and set off in the direction of Alice and Luna. Kohle tried to move to stop him but a plasma claw came out of Neuge's Keyblade and locked down on his shoulders. She pulled her Keyblade backwards and Kohle was sent flying in the same direction.
Sora soon made it over to the rock formation where Alice and Luna were hiding and knelt down next to Alice.
"Is she doing okay?"
"Her light's fading. I can keep her light burning for a while longer but something is eating away at her heart. I'm not sure what else I can do to help. Maybe if you say something, your voice might reach her," Alice suggested.
Sora placed his left hand on Luna's cheek and stared down into blue pupil-less eyes. "Luna? Luna, it's me, Sora. Please say something. We've finally found Alice and Neuge is here as well. Don't do this to me now. I need you."
He pressed his forehead against hers and lifted it back up. No change. Luna hadn't even slightly responded in any way that was noticeable. He looked up at Alice and showed her the Star Shard in his hand.
Alice stared at it for a moment, not sure what to make of the object. "Sora, what is that?"
"A Star Shard, it's made of the same materials as Gummi Block. Alice, I need you to do something for me. I want you to take Luna to Radiant Garden and find a wizard named Merlin. Yuna, Rikku, Paine!" Sora called. The three Gullwings popped into existence and looked around them.
"Where are we?" Rikku asked.
"No time to explain. Put your hands on this and once you get back to Radiant Garden, take Alice to Merlin," Sora explained.
"But what about you?" Alice asked.
"My fight's not over yet," Sora told her. He placed the star shaped item in Alice's hand and smiled. "Get something to eat when you're back, alright?"
Alice nodded and Sora stood up. He took a few steps and turned back just in time to see a whizzing light fly up into the air. He replaced the Kingdom Key in his hands with both Oblivion and Oathkeeper and sprinted off towards the others.
To his right, he could see Rhea and Mickey fending off attacks from Xanatos, who had summoned the same sword that he had used against Sora back in Atlantis. He looked to his left to see Neuge fighting with Kohle. Their Keyblades slammed against each other over and over again with neither seeming to be entirely at an advantage.
Sora took off into a run again and warped forward. His momentum increased and he slammed into Kohle. Sora watched as the other Keyblade Wielder stumbled backwards from the blow before looking at Neuge. She had an air of surprise about her.
"Didn't I tell you to get out of here?" she asked.
"I'm not about to leave you guys behind. I told Alice and Luna to go on ahead," Sora said.
"Hmph, idiot," Neuge mumbled. She looked down at his Keyblades. "I didn't know you had two. Where'd you get this power from?"
"Thank Namine for that. Anyway, let's take him down together," Sora said. He frowned momentarily when Neuge banished her Keyblade. "Uhm…"
Neuge adopted a fighting stance with two hands. "I'll follow your lead. Let's see if all those techniques I taught you actually stuck."
"Yes, ma'am," Sora replied sardonically. He took off for Kohle and clashed blades before jumping back. The two began swinging at each other, both light and agile on their feet. As beautiful of a dance it was, Sora was more concerned with ending it as quickly as possible.
He ducked to the right as Neuge unleashed a wave of Ice magic with her hands. Kohle jumped out of the way and threw his Keyblade at Neuge. Sora quickly jumped and threw Oblivion, knocking Kohle's Keyblade off course.
Neuge rushed forward and sent forward a hurling kick that connected with his side. She threw an additional punch but he blasted her away with Aeroga before it could connect. With his arm exposed, Sora used his own Plasma Hand and jerked Kohle forward. Neuge's hand ignited in a ball of flame as she ran forward and jumped. Kohle craned his neck as far as he could and Neuge's hand hurtled past him, hitting the ground and creating a mini crater.
As Kohle looked on in surprise at Neuge's impressive strength, Sora saw his chance. He warped forward quickly and plunged both Oathkeeper and Oblivion into Kohle's stomach. Kohle's eyes widened and his lips parted. His eyes flickered over to Sora's and in a rush of anger, moved his left arm and knocked Sora to the ground. Sora watched as Kohle dropped his Keyblade to the ground… and proceeded to pull both Keyblades out of his body.
"What…?" Sora whispered in disbelief.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Neuge yelled out loud. This caught the attention of Rhea and Mickey a short distance away, who stopped their advances on Xanatos to look. They all watched with looks of utter consternation as the bloody wounds Sora had inflicted healed up incredibly quickly to the point where there was nothing there, like he hadn't been hurt to begin with.
Surprisingly, it was Xanatos who first showed his frustrations. "How did you do that? Are you a Chimera?"
"No," Kohle replied after throwing Oathkeeper and Oblivion onto the ground.
Rhea left Mickey's side and walked up to him. "Kohle? How…"
He looked her way and gave a pained smile. "I'm sorry, Rhea. I was afraid to tell this to you and the others. I was scared you'd think of me as being a freak. Maybe that is what I am. I've lived longer than you might think."
"Longer? Wait, I don't understand. What do you mean?" Rhea asked.
"Like a thousand years longer," Kohle admitted. Rhea's face sunk and she opened her mouth, but no words came out. "Rhea, I'm still the same person I was before. This doesn't change anything. I'm still me."
"So, let me get this straight. You're basically immortal," Neuge clarified.
"Basically? It's not so basic to me. I've had to live with this curse for a thousand years. You tell me how basic it is," Kohle said. "This is why I created Moira's Crescent. I wanted to stop something like this from happening. When Yeul made her prophecy talking about a boy who would bring the worlds to ruin, I suggested something. I had our bodies put in cryosleep until the time we were needed. Maybe if we had awoken sooner we could have come in contact with you a lot sooner. But I've messed up, and I don't know how to fix it."
"Then we'll fix it together. We don't have to fight," Sora said.
As he knelt down to pick up his Keyblade, Kohle looked at Sora. "You're a good kid, Sora. But you're oh so naïve as well. I wish I could afford to be like that."
Kairi slipped through the doors of Notre Dame Cathedral and began walking down the dark nave. Considering the door had already been slightly ajar in the first place, she concluded that the only person who could have come in at this time of night was Xion. She stopped halfway and looked to her left before turning to the three people behind her.
"Maybe we should split up. I'm not even sure if we'll find Kefka here, but Xion probably is. Lea, Max, you two search the bell tower and see if Quasimodo's there. Elsa and I'll check near the back. Lea? Lea!"
Lea snapped out of his deep thoughts and scratched the back of his neck. "Sorry, I wasn't listening. What were you saying?"
"What's on your mind?" Kairi asked. She had an idea but it was probably for the best that she allow him to voice his frustrations ahead of time.
"Just Xion. Roxas as well but there isn't anything I can do about that now. Why the heck does she have to be so reckless? I've already lost Roxas. I'm not going to lose her either," Lea said. "I have a lot of anger in me, you know? And don't tell me that being angry isn't going to help or some crap like that. It's all I've got to keep me moving forward right now, got it memorized?"
"I won't tell you that. To be honest, I'm angry too—with Kefka, and most of all, myself. We dragged you three into this and because of that, we put you in danger. I'm sorry," Kairi apologized.
"Kairi, keep your head in the game. I know I was hard on you back in Twilight Town, and I bit emotional there. The only one who has a right to be sorry about something is Kefka for messing with us," Axel said. "And I'm not even sure I can grant him mercy even if he does that."
"Wait a second. Who's the one giving the pep talk here?" Kairi asked. At least she could keep walking knowing that a friend didn't hate her guts. Xion was still an air of mystery however and there was no telling what she would do.
Kairi quickly reiterated what she had asked Lea and Max to do and set off with Elsa down the aisle. She kept checking back on the front entrance but she saw no peep or sound so far of Aqua, who she had contacted to help her. She could only hope Aqua would eventually make it on time.
Kairi and Elsa soon reached the statue of the woman with the cup in her hands. Both had long turned back into stone, probably in an effort to keep the secret behind the statue safe from outsiders. Kairi grabbed the cup from the sorrowful woman's hands and tried to think of something sad. The statue easily reminded her of Riku's own state and that allowed a tear to fall from her eye. She sighed and watched as her own regrets became gold in her hands.
"Whoa! How did you do that?" Elsa asked with eyes that looked like they were about to pop out of their sockets.
"There's an alchemist's lab underneath within the catacombs. I imagine Frollo spent a long time searching for it but he could never quite find it," Kairi said.
"I did go to his house once, along with Kefka. He struck me as a very odd man. Now that I think about it, he and Kefka are quite alike. Twisted by obsession. I imagine that played a part in Frollo's downfall. That's why I know Kefka will follow," Elsa said.
"Let's hope you're right. Uh, you might want to stand back," Kairi said. She placed the cup upside in the woman's hand, and quickly retreated along with Elsa. The statue turned gold once again and the ground opened up like it had the last time she had come here.
"Alright, let's keep going," Kairi said to her slightly dazed companion. She lit up her Keyblade and, along with Elsa, the two started their descent into the darkness.
Soon enough they arrived in front of the door that led to the alchemist's laboratory. The creature known as Alice was just behind these doors, and having been to Atlantis now and knowing what she did from the book Sora had found, this was very likely an Alice who had been part of experiments to make a person of pure light. The idea that there was possibly a girl by the name of Kairi who looked very much like the Alice here made her shudder violently.
"Kairi, you okay?" Elsa asked, noticing her behavior.
"Not really. I just have a bad feeling about this," Kairi said. Nevertheless, she placed her hand on the door and gave a mighty push. The door soon opened and Kairi was greeted to a strange sight. The room looked entirely different to when she had last been in there. The floor had completely sunken in and instead, stairs led even downward into the unknown.
"More stairs… urgh, enough!" Elsa complained.
"This wasn't here last time. So Kefka must definitely be down here then. Glad I trusted my gut," Kairi said.
"Shouldn't we wait for Riku, Max and your other friend though?" Elsa asked.
"A peek won't hurt," Kairi told her. That said, much like Elsa, she was not very eager to have to go down another bunch of stairs.
"I think I have an idea. I used to do this with my sister all the time," Elsa stated suddenly. She held out her hand and a sheet of ice covered the stairs. At the same time, with her other hand, she crafted a beautiful ice sleigh in front of them.
"I… approve of this!" Kairi remarked in surprise. "I just feel sorry for the other guys. If this ice doesn't melt then they'll be sliding all the way down on their butts and if it does melt in time, they'll have to walk all the way down."
"Sucks to be them, right?" Elsa held out her and Kairi graciously accepted it. Together, the two climbed onto the sleigh and leaned forward. The sleigh tipped over the edge of the stairs and began to move smoothly along the newly created ice.
Sora flew forward and ricocheted off Kohle's Keyblade, landing a few feet away from him. He quickly turned on his heel and rushed forward again. He lowered his Keyblade and swung upwards, unleashing a trail of Ice spikes that rose up from the ground. Kohle continuously jumped backwards, cutting the fine shards in a cool and collected manner. Sora looked past him to see Neuge jumping from a raised rock formation that she had created a while ago. She jumped off the edge and tried once again to hit Kohle with her fist. Kohle ducked and shot out bolts of lightning. Sora warped forward past Neuge and cast reflect, the bolts deflecting off the barrier and into the air.
Neuge rejoined Sora and massaged her arms. "This is a waste of time. We're fighting and getting nowhere which, in my opinion, is the worst kind of fight."
"Well supposedly he's immortal. What exactly are we supposed to do about that?" Sora asked.
"We keep hitting him is what we do. Harder and faster. He may heal wounds but at the end of the day he's still human. At least, I think he is," Neuge said. Sora was about to move when he noticed something. He looked down at his feet to see the small pebbles and rocks vibrating slightly. Surveying the area, it seemed that Rhea and Mickey had stopped fighting with Xanatos as well.
"Looks like the cavalry's here. I've been looking forward to showing you this," Xanatos said. As if on cue, two very familiar looking mechanic weapons tumbled down from the cliff nearby and landed in a deafening crash. Their heads popped out of their bodies and their six tentacle legs also came out, raising their bodies in the process.
"Those weapons… Omnidroids?" Sora managed to identify.
"The latest version designed by Syndrome and received full funding from Xanatos Enterprises. They weren't just built to take out 'Supers', you know. They Omnidroids are designed to annihilate anyone or thing that would oppose the new world we intend to create. In other words, they're pretty good at what they do—eliminating Keyblade Wielders."
"Xanatos-"
"Ah-ah-ah, your majesty. It's too late. Allow me to personally demonstrate the power of these mighty behemoths," Xanatos said. As one of the Omnidroids reached them, Xanatos slipped past Rhea and Mickey and entered the Omnidroid's cockpit after it opened its stomach up. The door soon closed and the screen that was its sight sensors turned a light blue.
"What do you say to a temporary truce?" Kohle said, turning back to Sora and Neuge.
"Fine by me," Sora replied. He took off with Kohle and Neuge in tow. Two mounted yet small canons rose out of the Omnidroid's head and fired off several missiles at once. The trio plus Mickey and Rhea dodged each of the shots and ignored the explosions behind them as they continued on their way without faltering.
Neuge was the first to reach Xanatos' Omnidroid and jumped, delivering a flying kick. The robot stumbled backwards from the impact, taking a moment to recover. Rhea sprinted in and slid underneath the Omnidroid before it could attack her. She quickly got back on her feet and continued onto the second Omnidroid.
"Sora!" Mickey yelled for him. Realizing what he was trying to do, Sora ran towards him and grabbed his hand. He used Aeroga to keep them afloat as they performed Holy Burst, shooting out balls of light. Xanatos' Omnidroid retracted its legs and went into a ball position before rolling out of the way. Reaching a few rock formations to their right, it changed back into its offensive form and grabbed at the rocks with its arms, throwing them at the Keyblade wielders.
Sora separated from Mickey quickly and warped out of the way of one of the rocks. Kohle had a different idea. More daring, Kohle jumped onto the first flat surface of rock and proceeded to hop from one to the other. He reached the final rock and flipped as a laser shot out of the Omnidroid's visor. Sora had to dive out of the way as the laser cut into and scorched the ground in his immediate path. Looking behind him, he could see the result of the destruction. Hoodoos that had once been standing had now crumbled under insufficient support. Furthermore, pieces of rock seemed to be falling off the face of the cliffs farther past them like an artistic controlled demolition.
"Definitely don't want to get in the way of that," Sora muttered to himself. He turned his head and looked on in surprise. Kohle was on the ground and next to him was the head of the Omnidroid. Somehow, he had managed to avoid that laser and had taken the head with him to the ground.
Letting his guard down however had proved fatal. One of the Omnidroid's arms moved when he was looking in Rhea's direction and grabbed him by the neck, lifting him up.
"Maybe you should actually finish the job next time, Mr. Immortal. If you really can't die then choking the life out of you shouldn't do much, right?" Xanatos said from in the cockpit.
"Kohle!" Rhea yelled. She tried to run forward but the Omnidroid she was fighting grabbed her ankle and threw her into one of the giant rocks.
"Let's go. They need our help!" Mickey said. Sora nodded and set off for Rhea, using the rocks Xanatos had thrown as cover to avoid being detected. He waited for Neuge and Mickey to come in contact with Xanatos before moving over to the next rock. The body of the Omnidroid Xanatos was in rotated until a head that Sora hadn't noticed at the bottom was now at the top.
"Mickey, let's flank him," Neuge strategized. Mickey ran to the left of the Omnidroid and jumped, spinning forward to attack. The Keyblade bounced off the body's armor and sent him falling to the ground. Neuge used Xanatos' preoccupation with Mickey to sneak in under the Omnidroid's body. Cloaking her fist in rock, she punched upwards, launching the giant robot into the air. The arm's grip loosened, freeing Kohle and sending him falling onto the ground, gasping and coughing for air.
Sora finally reached Rhea and looked down to see that her legs were trapped underneath a massive chunk of rock.
"Don't worry, I'll get you out!" Sora yelled. He stood up and pointed his Keyblade at the rocks. As he tried to lift the piece of debris up, he failed to notice that saw blades had sprung out of the autonomous Omnidroid's arms and were heading straight at Sora.
"Look out!" Rhea quickly summoned her own Keyblade and pointed it while upside down, expertly taking out the flying blades with magic.
"How could you tell where they were?" Sora asked in surprise.
"I may not see but my ears are pretty sensitive," Rhea answered with a smile. Sora returned her smile, not because of her words but because of the emotions associated with them. She seemed to harbor no ill will against Sora for what he had done. Though they knew each other very little, Sora felt that, in a way, she considered him a friend. With that thought in mind, Sora pointed his Keyblade at the rock again and cast Fire. The flat surface debris broke inward, with Rhea starting to move some of the fractured pieces off of her body.
Sora looked behind him to see the Omnidroid had begun rolling towards them. Quickly he pointed Oblivion at the ground and rose the ground up slightly to form a slope. The Omnidroid rolled up the slope and bounced over his and Rhea's heads, crashing just ahead of them as they quickly worked together to remove the remaining pieces of rock.
"You okay?" Sora checked after helping her up. Rhea nodded and turned her head in the direction of the Omnidroid. Its visor glowed brightly before firing off another laser at them. Sora grabbed Rhea's hand and was about to move but stopped. He didn't have to do anything.
"Sora, what's happening?" Rhea asked. Sora looked on in awe as the laser's energy smacked and crackled against the shield wall that the arriving newcomer had conjured up.
"It's Yen Sid…" Sora answered, finding his voice after a while.
The sleigh soon reached the bottom and Kairi let out a moan of dissatisfaction when she realized it was all over.
"We had to get off eventually, Kairi," Elsa told her, taking pleasure in her companion's saddened expression.
"It's like a metaphor for life or something, except not at all," Kairi mused. She stood up and stretched before turning her attention to the tunnel up ahead. "This is… different."
What she and Elsa were looking at now was simply breathtaking. The entire cave was covered in selenite crystals sprouting off in different directions and lengths like unruly weed. Their shimmer and radiance were like twinkling stars in the night. Kairi also noted that the temperature in the cave was rather warm compared to above ground. The moisture in the air made it slightly difficult to breathe, and she could already feel the first beads of sweat forming on her forehead.
"Elsa, do you think you could do something about this humidity? I think I might melt if I stay here any longer," Kairi said, fanning her face with her hand.
"I might have something. I just hope I don't freeze you into an ice pop instead," Elsa said.
She lifted up her hands but Kairi quickly stopped her. "Wait, what are the chances of that happening, exactly?"
"Around… forty percent?" Elsa answered with a cringe.
"That confident, huh?" Kairi replied sarcastically. "Well, if you do fail, at least be sure to make me look pretty."
Elsa chuckled and lifted her hands up again. Her clawed hands opened up and breath of ice dust shot out of her hands. Kairi felt a chilly breeze sweeping through the air that calmed her once more. It was akin to taking a cold shower after an extremely hot day—surprising at first but relaxing the more she got used to it. Her eyes gazed upon fluffs of white as they travelled down the tunnel path.
Kairi and Elsa followed the mini blizzard, stepping over and inching their way through the large crystals in their path. At the end of the tunnel, they encountered a split in the path with an additional tunnel going on for who knew how long to their left. They chose instead to continue straight. If they had to, they would explore that path later but for now, what was in front of them was more interesting.
They arrived in a wide open room with a wall of stone veneer at the end and a door in the middle of ancient make. It looked similar to doors used for tomb entrances. What Kairi was more worried about however, was the person standing in front of the door.
"Kefka!" Kairi summoned Destiny's Embrace and pointed it at the red cape. He slowly turned, greeting them with a wide grin. He stepped aside to reveal Esmeralda, bound in chains. She tried to scream for help but only muffled sounds came out of her duct taped mouth. "Kefka. You've gone too far!"
"Oh, distance is all relative, dear. In my mind's eye, I haven't gone far enough," Kefka said.
"I know you're not the leader of KRONOS. You've just gone around pulling the veil over everyone's eyes. David Xanatos is the actual leader, isn't he?" Kairi continued to relay what Elsa had told her about their operation. By the time she was finished, Kefka did not look amused. The grin on his face had slowly faded over time as she talked.
"Oh, I can't believe how boring it was listening to that. This is why no one likes exposition," Kefka complained, his eyes wandering to the ceiling.
"Are you going to take this seriously?" Kairi asked.
"Ooh, seriously… what a disgusting word. Keep it away! In all seriousness though, heh, see what I did there? If you're going to get frustrated over this then I'd like to point out that I'm doing my job quite well," Kefka said. "And speaking of well, how are you doing, Elsa?"
"Good," Elsa replied.
"Just good. Is there a reason why I'm seeing you standing behind the enemy?" Kefka asked.
"The only enemy I see in front of me is the one holding an innocent woman captive," Elsa replied, aiming her hand at Kefka.
"I knew it. You could never quite assimilate into KRONOS well. What Maleficent saw in you, I'll never know. Then again, she never made the best of jobs. Her demise is all the proof you need of her indecisiveness," Kefka said.
"Like you can talk. You'll be joining her soon," Kairi said. She took a step forward to attack but Kefka wiggled his finger at them.
"Ah, ah, ah! You might want to think about your next move carefully. You wouldn't want anything to happen to dear sweet Esmeralda, would you?" Kefka asked. He reached out and delicately stroked Esmeralda's chin. "What do you think, Esmeralda? Should Kairi move?"
"That's enough, Kefka. I get it," Kairi said. She held her Keyblade out and dropped it to the ground. She gave Elsa a quickly look, who slowly lowered her hand. "How did you even find this place anyway?"
"There are supposedly six other tombs just like this, all of them based on the Princess of Hearts. Who knows, there might even be one for you. Wouldn't you like to know what's behind it?" Kefka asked.
"Not with you around," Kairi replied. Hearing something behind her, she quickly ducked as a familiar Keyblade Glider soared past her and slammed straight into Kefka. The jester flipped on his side and landed away from Esmeralda, who ran towards Kairi. Kairi picked up her Keyblade and cut through the chains binding the dancer together, allowing her to peel the duct tape off her mouth.
"Looks like we made it on time," Aqua said. She moved her hand up to her shoulder and pressed against it, freeing herself of her armor. Following behind her was Lea, Max and also Quasimodo.
"That was a pretty shaky ride though. I thought I was gonna fall off for a second there," Max said.
"You did. I had to save you, remember?" Lea reminded him.
Max gave a nervous laugh. "Heh, oh right…"
"Just in time. Nice going, Aqua!" Kairi said to the Keyblade Master.
"I'm sorry about what happened with Roxas. It must have been difficult for you. You can let me take it from here if you need some time off," Aqua suggested.
"Oh, don't worry about me. I'm just worried for Xion. Speaking of which, where is she?" Kairi asked. A sudden violent shake brought their conversation to an end. Kairi fell forward and hit the ground. She quickly curled up into a ball and waited. Was it an earthquake? No, it was something else. Kairi could feel her eardrums pounding. When she focused, she could hear, or at least imagine, the shifting of the earth underneath her. It was a tremor, both physical and emotional, that struck at her core. Was this the light crying out in fear?
The unique sensation soon ebbed away and Kairi found that she could stand on her feet. Looking around, it looked as if everyone else in the room had also been taken aback by the massive earthquake. Kairi then looked downwards to see her hands trembling. She backed up and placed her hands on the wall to stop them.
"I've never felt anything like that before," Esmeralda said. She was visibly shaken from the experience, her eyes wandering about nervously.
"Earthquakes aren't very common in this city, and certainly not at that scale," Quasimodo added. "Maybe it was something else?"
Aqua turned to Kefka who just starting to get back up. "Well, Kefka? Is he right?"
"It's always my fault, isn't it? Something happens and the first thing you place the blame on is the thing you're currently opposing because it's easier for you to wrap your little minds around," Kefka said.
"That's enough, Kefka. You can either come quietly or-"
A second surprise yet awaited them, this time in the form of a shot that flew out past Kairi and hit Kefka square in the chest. She turned around just in time to see Xion walking past her, her Keyblade trained on Kefka. She flicked her Keyblade again and a Blizzard projectile shot out, hitting Kefka again.
"Xion-"
"Don't stop me, Kairi!" Xion yelled while facing Kefka. "I'm doing what you should have done a long time ago."
"But-" Kairi reached out for Xion again only to find Lea gripping hold of her arm instead. He simply shook his head and left it at that. Kairi didn't think it was all that simple. Maybe Xion was right. Maybe Kairi should have acted sooner, but the way Xion was going about it wasn't too rational either. In the end, it probably didn't matter what Kairi thought. She had failed Xion, and now she was witnessing the hatred that had followed in its wake.
It was as if Sora was watching a live symphony unfold. Magic moved along to the rhythm of Yen Sid's fingers as basalt columns rose up from the ground and, like organ pipes, began rising and falling, pummelling the Omnidroid as it did so.
Yen Sid backed away slowly and glanced over at Sora and Rhea. "Sora, you need to leave. You've done all you can here."
"But I can help!" Sora insisted.
"I don't deny that, but there's someone else who needs you more," Yen Sid paused as the Omnidroid managed to get into its defensive stance and roll out of the quake attack.
As Rhea stretched out her hand, Sora began to feel a slight chill in the air. A breezy blizzard flowed in from behind him and attacked the Omnidroid at full force. Ice formed on its body as it rolled towards them and its speed seemed to diminish as a result of the rough shards on its body hampering its performance. This was soon followed by a torrent of fire from Yen Sid. The towering flames rose up from the ground and engulfed the Omnidroid in a dazzling display of amber. Rhea abandoned her Ice magic and instead threw out an Aeroga, controlling and confining the flames in a sphere along with the Omnidroid.
As Sora stood there watching Rhea and Yen Sid, he couldn't help but feel overwhelmed, perhaps even out of his league. This was the world he had jumped back in to and he could only dream of one day performing the feats these two, especially Yen Sid, were accomplishing right now.
The flames and wind sphere soon dissipated into nothing, leaving only a malfunctioning Omnidroid. From where he was standing, Sora could smell the burnt residue of fried components and motors.
"Severe damage detected. Activating cooling function," an automatic voice came out of the Omnidroid. Its body lowered before exposing its pilot seat to them, steam pouring out of it. Yen Sid aimed a hand at the Omnidroid before releasing a bolt of electricity. The robot exploded from the overcharge, its pieces flying everywhere, including landing at Sora's feet.
"That was fun," Yen Sid stated.
Rhea gave a jovial laugh and a small nod. "Indeed."
Yen Sid looked towards the other Omnidroid controlled by Xanatos. Neuge, Mickey and Kohle were doing their best to fend off Xanatos while being unaware of Yen Sid's arrival.
"Can I trust you to do something for me?" he asked Rhea.
"You want me to take Sora back, don't you?" Rhea guessed.
"Would that be a problem?"
"No, it would be for the best, I think. I'm sure Kohle will try to go after him once we beat Xanatos. Keeping Sora at a distance will give him some time to calm down," Rhea said. Sora wanted to let them know that he was still there and that his own opinion mattered too, but he just couldn't bring himself to care at the moment. If he didn't know that Luna was suffering at the moment, he might have tried to fight back, but in the face of several discouraging factors, he could no longer fool himself. Right now, he just wanted to leave this place.
"Sora, are you okay with this?" Rhea asked. Sora and Yen Sid's eyes met for a brief moment, only for Sora to look away. As much as he didn't like the sorcerer, he harbored no hatred towards him at this moment. If anything, he was confused, thrust on a border between retaining his dislike and yet there was also a slight admiration.
"Yeah, let's go," Sora submitted. Rhea raised her eyebrows for a moment in surprise. She probably hadn't expected him to say it so quickly nor in the tone of resignation he had used.
"Okay. I'll see him back to Radiant Garden. I promise," Rhea told Yen Sid. He nodded without looking at her and walked off towards the other three Keyblade wielders.
Rhea cut her Keyblade diagonally through the air, creating a corridor of light in the process. There probably could have been a better time, but Sora felt he had to speak out at this point.
"I'm sorry. Maybe you guys were right. I thought I could prove you wrong, but I just ended up proving you right instead," Sora said. "Maybe I can't be trusted with protecting the world. But there's still someone I need to protect."
"You didn't know. None of us did. To be honest, even I didn't want to believe Yeul's prophecy was real. But this is on KRONOS, not you. I hope Kohle realizes that," Rhea said.
"But I'm the one who opened that door. Xanatos couldn't have done that without me. Ugh, I can't believe I trusted him," Sora said.
"If you have frustrations, then use them to get rid of your insecurities and move forward. As long as you keep moving, no matter what obstacles life throws at you, you'll never truly be impeded by them," Rhea said with a warm smile. She was right, of course. Beating himself down wouldn't help at all. More importantly, there was a girl back in Radiant Garden struggling to believe in herself. If he could muster the strength to get through even his darkest day, then maybe he could show that to her. Maybe that would be enough to wake her up.
"Alright, let's go help a friend," Sora said. He crunched his hand into a fist and looked down at it. This time, he would not let go. With that conviction in mind, he disappeared into the bright light along with Rhea.
