Search Party
By Kikofreako
Summary:
Sora's whereabouts are unknown, Kairi has some strange power, and what's up with this Blonde Haired Kid that's carrying around a set of Keyblades? Everything's spinning out of control as Donald, Goofy, the Destiny Islands crew and the FF crew are jammed together in efforts to find a certain brunette. SoraXKairi Some: Squiffie and SelphieXTidus.
Disclaimer:
I own the riddle here...that and my Moshi pillow.
The Random Quote of d00m:
"Ooh, scary. What are you going to do, make me sniff flowers until I pass out?" -Tidus
XxX
Leon stepped onto the gummi ship and trudged to his room, thinking how good a hot shower would feel after exploring the inside of a giant whale. As he neared the door, a tiny dab of white amidst the bright interior of the ship caught his eye. He carefully took the piece of paper off the door and casually threw the tape on the ground that had attached it to the doorframe. The paper was actually a hand-folded envelope, with messy script adorning the front side. "Squa- Leon" The first four letters of his true name had been hastily scribbled out and replaced with Leon. He smirked. Yuffie.
He turned the letter over in his palm and opened the envelope. A glittering something fell out suddenly- he barely managed to catch it before the item hit the floor to possibly shatter into millions of tiny shards, depending on what it was. He examined it closer, and his eyes widened. "What the..." It was an Omega Arts keychain. Unparalleled in almost every aspect of battle, defense, or spell casting. Slipping it onto his blade unconsciously, Leon unlocked the door and sat on his bed, completely floored.
XxX
Yuffie was pacing in the hallways, like she had been for the last half-hour. If this was a cartoon, there would probably be a perfectly symmetrical small canyon where the floor had worn away from her constant footsteps. This, however, was not a cartoon. Or a reality show, so Leon hadn't magically crumbled all his defenses and allowed a "happily ever after" like in those sappy re-runs. No, all Yuffie had at the moment were sore feet to show for her troubles.
Frustrated with herself, she decided to try and talk to Donald and Goofy, or whoever happened to be at the cockpit at the time. The automated double doors slid open with a hiss. Wakka and Tidus were sprawled out lazily on the co-pilot's chairs, except for Donald, who was lucky enough to get the pilot's seat. Tidus looked up at her. "Greetings, Great Ninja Yuffie. What brings you to our domain of unequaled boredom?"
"Boredom, I guess." She sat down at an open chair, secretly glad that SOMEONE here called her by her preferred title. Although she wasn't sure if that was sarcasm... "There's nothing to DO on this ship."
Wakka unzipped one of his many pockets and pulled out a quarter. "Heads or tails?"
"Um, tails."
He flipped it up into the air, caught it, then turned it over onto the back of his hand. "Heads. Ha. We're going to Atlantica first!"
Tidus sulked in his chair. "You rigged that."
"How is it even possible to rig a coin toss?"
"You, um, make the coin heaver on one side than the other."
"Yeah, except Yuffie picked heads or tails."
"Shut up." He bopped Wakka on the head with the flat of his blade.
"Um, what are you talking about?" Yuffie inquired, confused at the spectacle taking place before her.
"Those two decided that heads was Atlantica and tails was Halloween Town. It was heads. So we're off to Atlantica, I guess."
"Than why did they even have me pick a side?"
"Cause they're idiots."
"Oh." Finally, something that made sense.
XxX
"Gawrsh, it looks bigger than I remember it." Goofy said, his face pressed against the window at the underwater city.
Donald pulled levers and...eh... switched switches. "We're coming in for landing."
"GAH! WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? WE'RE ALL GONNA DROWN! I'M TOO YOUNG TO DROWN!" Tidus flapped his arms out and jumped around the cockpit in a panic. Selphie slapped him. Surprise.
"You big palooka, I have magic you know! We'll be fine." He paid no attention to the moaning boy. "You grew up on an island anyways. Aren't you used to water?"
"NOT WATER THAT'S HUNDREDS OF FEET-" Slap. "WILL YOU QUIT THAT!"
"No, she probably won't, Tidus."
He glared at Naminé, who was giggling at her own joke. "You enjoy violence. Pathetic."
"Will someone shut him up?" Tyson asked, annoyed.
"No, probably not." Tidus did a squeaky imitation of Naminé's voice. And got another slap.
XxX
Kairi opened her eyes slowly and gaped at her companions. Leon, Tidus, Tyson, and Wakka were mermen. Wakka's tail...fin...whatever- was orange, Tidus' was a bright lime green, Tyson's was a navy blue, and Leon's was (of course) a jet black. She looked down at herself and almost laughed. Her tail (And Naminé's, now that she noticed it) went up to about three and a half inches below her collarbone, with a dorsal fin on her lower back. Yuffie and Selphie- perhaps because of their more risque personalities- were like Ariel- shells adorning their upper body. Tidus and Leon didn't seem to mind that a bit. Ha. Goofy was a turtle, his shield riveted on his shell like a plate of armor and Donald was...an octopus? Kairi almost busted a gut laughing at the mage's indignant expression.
"What's the big idea, eh? What's so funny?" he asked, is temper fraying.
"You look like a giant spider with feathers!"
Naminé looked at Tidus coolly. "At least he can swim." Tidus was currently upside-down in the water, pumping his tail in a form that gave new meaning to the phrase "getting nowhere fast." Wakka, however, seemed to have a gift and was already swimming laps around the group.
"Show-off." Yuffie mumbled as she flicked her tailfin.
"So, where to now?"
Tyson summoned his dual Keyblades, readying himself for any Heartless that might appear. "Triton's palace- if anyone knows about everything in this sea, it's him." He paused. "Let's fan out and search the area. Kairi, with me. The rest of you can split up however you want."
Kairi looked at him strangely, then joined him with a final bemused look at Selphie. The brunette shrugged, then grabbed onto Tidus in a clear indication of who she wanted her partner to be.
XxX
"Why'd you want me to come with you?" Kairi inquired as soon as they were out of earshot from the group.
"Triton's a smart guy- he might be able to help you with your...powers."
"How would he know about me? He doesn't even know about YOU."
"King Triton is familiar with the myths of the ocean- you have to know your people to rule well. These included stories of the legendary Keyblade master, and hopefully you too."
Kairi nodded and swum on, wondering if this mysterious king would be able to shed some light on the situation.
XxX
"It's so pretty here..." Selphie murmured, slowly swimming past a giant scallop and ran her hand over a large section of coral reef reverently, as through it might shatter at her feather-light graze.
"Reminds me of Destiny Islands." Tidus commented. He swam over to Selphie and touched her arm. "We better be going; we still have some territory to check before we meet back up at the grotto."
She smirked. "So now we're all responsible and such, eh?"
Tidus reddened. "I'm just trying to be helpful."
"Mm-hmm."
"What?"
"Oh, nothing." She swam on with an air of nonchalance, smiling to herself. He was so cute when he was trying to be the 'protector'. "I mean, it's just kind of-"
She was cut off by Tidus' arms wrapping swiftly around her waist and pulling her towards the ground, catching them in a very... awkward position. "What the-"
He pulled her up swiftly and pressed against the rock. "Sssshhh. We're being attacked."
She was completely silent, frustrated with herself for even thinking...THAT...about Tidus. Carefully, Selphie got out her fans. Tidus peered over the overhang hiding them. "I think that they're gone."
"I wouldn't say that."
They whirled around almost comically together and found themselves facing a man in a back coat, with wild pink hair spiking out in every direction. He had a devilish smirk on his face, a classic cliche for any bad guy. "You're quite quick to jump to conclusions. Still though, good reflexes on his part." he said, pointing to Tidus. "You, however," now he motioned to Selphie, "are about as alert as a bear in hibernation."
"Back off, creep!" Tidus yelled, drawing his sword.
"Ooh, temper. We can fix that." His hands sliced though the air, preparing magic. "And it's Marluxia." A vast array of pink flower petals appeared behind him, with three beautiful flowers in full bloom. Petals drifted around in the water, bobbing up and down with the current.
Tidus smirked contemptuously. "Ooh, scary. What are you going to do, make me sniff flowers until I pass out?"
You could see the veins in Marluxia's skin bulge at the comment. He closed his eyes, trying to restrain himself. When he finally opened them again, he started speaking in a dangerously soft voice.
"Tell me, boy. Have you ever been cut on the finger by a blade of grass?" He paused, not waiting for Tidus to answer. "Imagine thousands of blades of grass, longer and razor-sharp, hurtling at you at a hundred miles per hour. Imagine them piercing your pale flesh. I can assure you that it is painful. Let me show you what I mean."
With that, he sent them flying toward the two paralyzed teens.
XxX
"You WHAT?"
"Look, I just wanted to...I don't know, I mean..." Yuffie trailed off, trying to explain to Naminé why she decided to spend 2,000 munny on an anonymous gift. Which was difficult when she had absolutely no idea why she did it anyways. "It was taunting me." she said resolutely. "It's like 'You can't buy me, you coward.' So I HAD to buy it."
By now Naminé was doubled over in laughter. "The keychain was talking to you."
The Great Ninja Yuffie was wishing she could crawl into a manhole right about now.
"Sorry." the blonde mumbled, wiping away a tear. "It's just kind of funny."
"Yeah, yeah." Yuffie would have kicked at a pebble if she had feet. "My problems are hilarious."
"Come on, I didn't mean it like that."
She sighed. "I know, it's just so frustrating! We live with the world's biggest ice cube." She did an impression of Leon, her arms akimbo, face serious. "Not now, Yuffie. I'm practicing this ultra-hard sword technique that I'll be down in this god-forsaken underground cavern practicing for three weeks." It really was a horrible imitation; Yuffie's attempt at a 'masculine' voice failed miserably. It sounded more like a tape being played in slow motion, with a few scratches here and there in the film.
"Well, just tell him."
"Yeah, RIGHT!"
Suddenly, there was a scream and a small rockslide about twenty feet below them. Naminé and Yuffie rushed down, powerful kicks swirling the dust around in corkscrewing spirals. When it cleared, they saw Selphie slumped over the rocks, various cuts and bruises adorning her frail figure. She moaned and sat up, rubbing the back of her neck.
"Selphie!" Naminé shrieked. "What happened!"
"There's some nutcase in there...with this really ugly pink hair...Tidus is still in there..."
"Hold on," Yuffie said, digging around in her pockets for an Elixir. Coming up with one, she threw it over the brunette's head and watched the healing magic work, green leaves swirling around her cuts and bruises. Incisions in the skin were closed up, not a drop of blood being spilled. Selphie shook herself slightly and moved upright, mumbling her thanks.
"Come on, we've gotta go help him out!"
XxX
Kairi swam slowly through the long hallway, her eyes traveling over the beautiful carvings adorning the coral pillars and stone path. If this was a medieval kingdom, you would hear a row of trumpet players blasting out a magnificent fanfare. She was so engrossed in the beauty of it al, she almost bumped into Tyson, who had stopped in front of the king himself. Triton was old, but sure as heck didn't show it. Not exactly someone you'd want to meet in a dark ally. He held in his hand a glittering golden trident, with pronged tips and a barbed hook. Next to him, a small red crab cleared his throat and began to speak.
"Behold, for you swim before the ruler of the seas, King Triton! Bow low, and-"
Triton waved his arm dismissively. "Please, Sebastian." He turned to Tyson and gripped his hand in a firm shake. "A Keyblade master, I presume?"
He nodded, looking a bit nonplused at his recognition. "King Triton. Charmed."
He nodded and turned to Kairi. "And who would you be?"
"Kairi Jacobs, sir." Or did he prefer Your Highness? Ah well, he didn't really seem like the formal type to her. If not for the muscles, he would remind her very much of her own grandfather.
"She's the Queen Of Hearts, I think." Tyson said. He thinks?
"So you wanted to know if I had any information." Triton finished. Tyson nodded.
"Well," the king said, swimming over to a clam shell and tapping it with his trident, "I got this, about fifteen or twenty years ago." The shell opened in a mass of bubbles, revealing a thin piece of slate with rows of curly script etched onto it. Gingerly, Kairi took it from his hands, turning it over and running her fingertips over the cool slate. It seemed to radiate light. "I hope you're good at riddles." Triton added cryptically.
"Riddles? What do you-" Tyson looked at Kairi, who had suddenly gone rigid. She opened her eyes, pupils dilated, breathing heavily.
"Tyson, there's darkness here."
"What?"
She hurried along in her speech, trying to make sense of her thoughts. "I can...feel it. Our friends are in danger. We've gotta go help them."
Tyson nodded his head without further inquiry. "Okay." He turned to Triton. "We can take care of this. I don't want to interfere with this world's balance."
The little red crab piped up. "I'll follow them, just in case. If there's trouble, Ariel is sure to be there."
XxX
Sebastian swam breathlessly, tiny red pincers clawing the water vigorously. "Will...you slow...down?"
Kairi held out her hand to him. "Come on; I'll carry you."
He considered this, and eventually decided swallowing his pride was for the best in this particular situation. Climbing into Kairi's delicate hand, Sebastian attempted to change the subject deftly. "Do you by any chance know where they'd be?"
"Uh, not really..."
"Fantastic." Tyson groaned.
The group whirled around as a yell resounded through the water, its sound somewhat distorted from the medium it passed through. Wasting no time on words, the three sped toward the voice.
Selphie's scream sounded across the basin. "Tyson! Kairi!" Another scream. The brunette sped past them, carried on by her own momentum. A fan whizzed by their heads, its master's hands not there to catch it. Tyson grabbed Selphie before she was drilled into the stone wall by her own momentum. The fan landed with a spray of pebbles on the rocky bottom. Selphie picked it up quickly and motioned for the two to follow her.
"We were ambushed! This guy with pink hair, and this mermaid girl..."
Sebastian interrupted, trying not to get crushed in Kairi's palm, which was tense and shaking. "Ariel?"
"I don't know who the heck Ariel is!" Selphie screeched desperately. Yuffie flew past them, skidding on the sandy floor on her back until she came to a stop- painfully. She shook her head, trying to shake off the buzzing in her brain.
Tyson was way ahead of them, powerful thrusts of his tailfin propelling him to the battle. Keyblades out and shining, he let out a yell as Marluxia charged an attack. Tidus was pinned up against a rock, along with a trembling redhead mermaid.
"Still think I'm gonna make you sniff flowers?" Marluxia asked, contempt lacing his voice. "Die."
"KIIIII-YA!" His attack was stopped in mid-stroke, a savage kick to the head making multicolored lights explode in his field of vison. Marluxia went sprawling into a bed of coral reef. He struggled up, wiping blood from a gash in his forehead and wearing a vicious snarl. Tyson smirked arrogantly, trying frantically to buy ample time for the escape of Tidus and the mysterious redhead. "See, that's what happens when you pick fights. You destroy harmless coral."
Marluxia didn't even acknowledge the sarcastic remark, but chose to draw a sickle. Its long blade glinted in the rays of sunlight that found their way through the water. I wonder how many people have been killed with that, Tyson thought off-handedly. Strange what thoughts ran through one's mind when confronted with death.
The Keyblade Master glanced over his shoulder. Leon had his sword out, and Wakka looked mad as heck. Plus a more-than-annoyed Selphie, Tidus, Yuffie, Donald, and Goofy. Marluxia dismissed the sickle with a simper. "I am no fool. I know when I'm outgunned." With that, he disappeared into a void of black.
"That's getting really annoying," Tidus mumbled. Teleportation wasn't exactly on his "favorite enemy strategies" list. Not good when you're trying to corner someone.
"At least we got something out of this." Kairi mumbled, carefully picking up the thin piece of slate from its hiding place in a shrub of seaweed. Everyone leaned in, almost comically synchronized, to read the words scripted on the stone. They were silent for a moment, before Tidus spoke.
"Aw, great."
(Memento est potestas
Search for the treasure buried within.
Intangible and able to be felt
Vulnerable and invincible.)
(Cascade up to the forest
Forest of polished oak and maple
Transport to worlds unknown
Let the ink be your guide.)
(Once you've filled your pen with ink
Ascent while halted
To the place where the evils of darkness spread her wings
The time has come for better things.)
(Start your journey with these words:
Alpha squared.)
XxX
Gah! -hides under a chair- I'm sorry it took me forever to update, but I am barely ahead of what I'm posting, as in chapters. Now I'm finished with Chapter 10 and starting into 11, so it's OK. But you guys are going to have to tell me: do you want more frequent updates and shorter chapters, or less frequent updates and longer chapters? With the holiday season approaching, it's harder to find time to write. I am trying to get this story finished by the time the second game is released (February 6th in America) and so far it looks like I will make it; this story will have around fifteen or sixteen chapters I believe. Anyone who is willing to take a stab at the riddle, you can e-mail me what you think. It has four parts; the parentheses divide them up, They can be solved individually. And...
HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE! Here's some festive review replies. What makes them festive? I have no idea.
Therazerbladekisses- Well, it's Thanksgiving so how about some pumpkin pie? Go pie!
Kingdom219- Yes, sticky fingers stink. Heck yes, I will keep going! Lol.
Perhelediel- Well, since the last chapter was so depressing and serious I figured I had better lighten things up a bit. And there is actually going to be more Squiffie in this story than KairiXSora, since Sora is chained up and all. But no fear, there WILL be SoraXKairi goodness. And I really don't see how anyone could NOT like Namine. Hahahaha.
IceBlueWings- Never fear, more Squiffie is on the way, especially a climax of Squiffe around chapters 10-12, somewhere along there. Most of it until the end is implied, though. And Sora will make a big appearance at the end of the story- I wanted it to have some suspense on where Sora should be. You'll have more updates on him now.
Windystal- Thanks, I'm flattered. -makes a happy face-
SorasTrueLoveKairi78- Never...eaten...a... -falls down with KO'd eyes- Gah! You gotta eat a s'more! And they will find Sora, of course!
Horsie890- Sure, I like cookies! -munches on a cookie- Yummeh... -goes into Cookie Zone and is inept for about five minutes until she finishes the cookie- And don't you find that animals are often much better company than people? Some people, that is.
That's it for reviews; woo hoo tons of new reviewers! And for any of you that are reading this story without revewing... that's like buying an All-You-Can-Eat buffet but not taking any dessert! And for any of you whose story I am reading, my computer is being stupid and won't let me open pop-up windows, and that includes review windows. So I'll be e-mailing you my review if you put up a new chapter. Just so you won't freak when you see my e-mail in the box. Hahahahaha.
Akiko