Kingdom Hearts: System X
By Christine Lennoiore
Beta: None (might have one...)
Summery: "Nobodies that heartless.." and no, I didn't make a grammer error. Hearts are corrupted. Heartless nobodies? Who in the hell is System X? It's from the King... But Ansem... Roxas... Sora... But he's my friend! Kingdom Hearts... Keyblade. They're... smart! They came after me... It's him... They're working together... We have to do something...
a new journey has begun
Note from the Author: Confused? I hope so... that's kinda what I'm going for, you know with the suspense thing and all. Well, I really hope you enjoy this. Olivia and I worked really hard on the ideas for this. Please review... and flames are for roasting marshmellows. They will be used for such. But I can handle constructive criticism. Thanks, and now, on to the story!
Chapter One: Lae
Sora ran. Run Sora. Run.
His friends were hot on his tail, shouting at him. Of course he always said the wrong things at the worst possible time. It was just a small part of who Sora was... the part that drove Roxas insane. Roxas told him not to do it. Roxas always told him not to do it. Did that ever stop him? No. So that's why he was running so fast: to escape the physically fit Riku and the girl who just managed to stay at his heels.
Feeling particularly tricky, he tried jumping up onto the dock a little early... a little too early. Quickly he lost his balance and fell backwards, flailing and screaming. But he couldn't hear his own screams. As he fell, time slowed and he felt darkness creep in around him. "Where am I?" he asked, as he landed softly on the ground. He was in the middle of a city.
'Roxas... I don't think we're in Kansas anymore.' He said, trying to stifle laughter at his own foul joke. Roxas was keeling over inside. You and your terrible jokes. Haha... I'm not amused. This place... looks familiar. Suddenly, Sora felt light-headed. There was a figure walking toward him in a slow and unhurried mannor. 'Who... is that?' For once, Roxas didn't respond. He had seemed to fall 'unconcious' inside Sora's mind.
"So-ra." It was the voice... of a young girl. She pulled back the hood of her cloak and smiled at him. She was short with short, choppy red hair. Her outfit was a simple white dress that came in tight around her waist and belled out, reaching down to her knees. Sora took a few steps closer and reached out. When he came in contact with her soft hair, he gasped.
Awkwardly, she stepped back, flinching noticably. "Sora... the worlds are not at rest. In fact, they are worse than ever! And you are the only one I can trust. Or... more precisely, I've been told to trust you. I can't help much. If I do, things might get even worse. So I'm trying to think of a way to help now but it just... OH!"
"Your enemy is a new group all together. They've been watching you a long time, and using you... in a way. I can't tell you who. They'd find me. Right now I have to hide. Just... waiting. Once you start to piece it together... well, then we can help you. But all I can do is give you one hint. That hint will be very important, Sora. Do not forget it! Are you ready?" she asked.
Weakly, Sora nodded, looking into her beautiful green eyes. "Alright, then. Here it is. Roxas is your nobody. S-O-R-A... R-O-X-A-S... what's the difference? When you figure that out, try figuring out who I am. I'm not sure how long it will take before I can meet you, but the... they are watching me closely because of who I am. Wait for the letter from the King... and then go find your other friends. Soon, your new journey will begin."
Sora had so many questions. He couldn't even logically pick one to ask. "B-but... wha... huh?" She kissed him on the forehead and vanished into thin air just like she had come.
And time resumed just in time for Sora to feel his body smash into the sand. "OOOOOWWWWW!" Roxas finally seemed to stir when he heard Sora scream. What the...? What was that? Riku and Kairi finally caught up to him and both started laughing. "Hey! You could at least TRY to sound concerned!" Sora whined, standing up and rubbing his sore butt.
"Why should we, you jerk! You made fun of our project! Just because you're too lazy to help us work on it and didn't put in any ideas of our own doesn't mean you can condemn ours!" Kairi said, putting her hands on her hips and then shifting her position and crossing them over her chest. "Oh well, are you alright?"
Not even bothering to listen to her ramble, he thought about what just happened. "Guys! I just had the wierdest dream! And this girl told me that the worlds weren't safe. She... told me that we should wait for the King's letter and that it would be coming soon!" he shouted excitedly. Riku and Kairi both stared at him in shock for a second before both bursting with the same excitement he felt.
"Really? Three years late? I wonder what was happening during those three years that no one realized. You know what this means, don't you Sora? We finally get to fight side-by-side... the whole time." Riku laughed, remembering the way he switched sides at the very end of their last adventure. Kairi threw her arms around Riku, startling him and laughed.
"Don't you two DARE think about leaving me behind! I'm going with you. I want to see all those other worlds that you tell me about. I wanna have stories that I can tell when we get back. Pleeeaseeee?" She grinned, hugging Riku tighter. Both boys laughed and Riku wrenched himself free of Kairi's deathgrip and smiled.
He and Sora were going to have fun with this.
"I dunno..." Riku said. "She could get in the way." he said to Sora, who nodded in agreement. Kairi's eyes widened and neither could tell if she was going to cry or beat them both senseless.
"Yeah, and I don't know if I can save the world AND protect her at the same time, even if you are coming along to help, Riku. Let's see..." Kairi looked back and forth between them and began wailing.
"HEY!" But Riku stopped her from Tackling them both by wrapping his arms around her as tightly as he could, without hurting her and laughed. She strugged, but it was obvious which of them was the stronger of the two.
"Don't be silly. Of course we'll take you with us." he smiled. "We'd never leave you behind again... besides! You'd probably be in greater danger if you stayed here, and I don't think we need to get seperated again. You have the keyblade I gave you." he said, grinning. As if it just dawned on her, she remembered the keyblade she had been given to help fend of the heartless.
She smiled. "That's right! So, we'll go together?" The other two nodded in agreement and Riku finally let her go. Kairi took that as her signal to initiate a group hug and hugged them both very tight. This time, let's all stay on the light side. I don't care if the dark side has cookies or whatever! I think I can restrain myself this once!" They all laughed, knowing Kairi's love for cookies.
"Even if they were peanut butter and chocolate chip?" Sora asked, knowing just how much Kairi loved peanut butter and chocolate. She twitched a little, but nodded and they all laughed.
Together they walked up the beach, hand in hand - talking about all the adventures they would have together. Sora and Riku started telling Kairi more stories and telling her about all the places they could go once they got into the gummi ship. Kairi couldn't wait. It was even better than their plan to build the raft and sail away. At least this time, they could all go together...
Walking towards their boats, Sora could have sworn he saw the girl standing by the entrance to the Secret Place, but looking closer, he only saw the leaves of the trees. Would you tell me what happened? Roxas asked in a rather annoyed tone. Sora wasn't sure why Roxas went unconcious, but he had a feeling that maybe there was a reason... the girl herself might have done it.
'Nothing. Don't worry about it. Once the King's letter arrives, we'll know exactly what's going on.' he responded, untieing the boat from the dock and starting the long paddle back to the main island. Riku and Kairi were talking about something, but Sora withdrew from the conversation. Something was bothering him. It was the girl's clue:
Roxas is your nobody. S-O-R-A... R-O-X-A-S... what's the difference? When you figure that out, try figuring out who I am. I'm not sure how long it will take before I can meet you, but the... they are watching me closely because of who I am. Wait for the letter from the King... and then go find your other friends. Soon, your new journey will begin.
What was the difference? At first glance, it didn't seem like they had anything in common. Yet, the more he thought about it, the closer he got. Finally, he had an idea. Once he tied his boat back down, he ran to his house, barely remembering to shout a 'see ya tomorrow!' to his friends before he took off. Kairi and Riku watched him leave, curious.
"He really is acting so weird. I'm worried, Riku... really, I am!" she said, resting a hand on his shoulder. Riku sighed. She was right, Sora wasn't telling them everything. But he was determined that everything would be fine this time and they would stick together.
Riku nodded. "Yeah, but... I have a good feeling like i haven't had in a long time. So... I'm just gonna trust him. He wouldn't do anything that would sacrifice our friendship, and in the end, we're all gonna go on this adventure together, and nothing will change that." he said, smiling at her. Kairi grinned and nodded.
"I never believed that this day would come. I was always so jealous when you told your stories. I wanted to be there. Now I can." She said, smiling. "It's like a dream come true." Kairi hugged him again and took off running towards her house. "Hey! Let's meet at the beach tomorrow morning!" she shouted as she ran.
"Sure!" he shouted back as he started walking home. "Later, Kairi!"
"Night!" she shouted, entering her house, which was closest. He continued walking. Oddly, though, he felt like someone was watching him from the darkness. Needless to say, after he got that feeling, he ran the rest of the way home...
When Sora reached his house, he immediately ran to his room and pulled out a piece of black paper.
S...S
O...O
R...R
A...A
...X
"It's the X! We have all the same letters in our names except Roxas has the X!" He shouted triumphantly. "But how does that help me?" Then he remembered what Lae told him...
When you figure that out, try figuring out who I am. I'm not sure how long it will take before I can meet you, but the... they are watching me closely because of who I am. Wait for the letter from the King... and then go find your other friends. Soon, your new journey will begin.
L
A
E
And an X
Laex
Exal
Xela
Alex... no, that's a guy's name...
"Oh, I give up! I still don't know who she is!" Finally he laid down to rest, but he was very anxious. He just couldn't wait. Soon, the King's letter would arrive and he and his friends would be rushed off on a new adventure. He hated to admit it, but he had been starting to get bored with just everyday life until today.
'You're unusually quiet, Roxas... what's up with that?' Sora asked 'himself'. Roxas didn't seem to respond. When Roxas remained silent, Sora became worried and opened his eyes... and came face to face with two very large green eyes.
"Took you long enough." She looked at the paper he had scribbled all the names on. As she scaned all the names, she laughed. "I take it you haven't figured it out yet?" Sora shook his head. And then he fell unconcious - into a deep, deep sleep. And he wouldn't wake up until early the next morning...
When he did, the girl was gone, and so was the paper. Sora searched high and low, but it was gone. And when he couldn't think of anywhere else to look, he decided he should go look for Kairi and Riku at the island. It was a good decision, because when he got there, they were already there, waiting. Kairi waved at him enthusiastically, pointing at something in her hand and grinning.
Getting closer, he recognized the emblem of the King on a letter inside a bottle: much like the one Kairi had sent him when they were lost in the darkness. Happily, he ran over to them. "We had to wait for you to get your lazy butt down here." Riku grinned, pushing Sora around a little and grinning. "Kairi wouldn't let me open it until you got here."
"Dang right!" Sora grinned. "WHO'S the Keyblade Master?" he laughed. "That's right... ME!" Kairi sighed and opened the bottle. Before she could even open it, Sora snatched it right out of her hands.
Sora... Riku... Kairi...
Sora, no doubt you have a vauge idea of what's going on. I'm sorry we couldn't tell you more. And by now you must have figured out the first clue. But unfortunately the rest will have to wait. Our enemies are watching us too closely and right now they have the upper hand. We must be cautious. Donald and Goofy left to get you. However, travel has become more difficult than ever, so I'm not sure when they'll get there, but keep your eyes open. The three of you must leave as soon as possible. I can tell you more as soon as you get here. Now, keep in mind, you are not alone. You have Riku and Kairi, and many new friends as well. I'll give you one more hint - Lae will help you. But don't be decieved by apperances and you'll find out who she is soon enough. Her friends may be of some assistance to you too... but I can say no more... Good luck my friends and I hope we can meet soon, in the safety of Disney Castle.
King Mickey
Sora grinned. "Oh, I can't wait!"
For a few hours, they just sat on the beach, talking and laughing until the Gummi Ship finally came into view. It was flying a bit... crooked, and for a while, the three friends were scared it would crash right into them. Luckily, it swerved and crashed into the beach at their feet. Sora ran to the door to check on his friends. "Donald! Goofy!" he shouted.
The doors opened and a happy reunion ensued. But it didn't last long.
"We have to hurry! The King said we have to bring you back right away and not to dally dilly!" Goofy said, smiling and ushering them all into the new and improved Gummi Ship. It was now more complex and an even greater fighter ship! Sora and Riku were entranced.
"You mean dilly dally." Donald corrected Goofy before, entering and shutting the door behind them. "Alrighty then... to Disney Castle, Chip... Dale... and, let's work on that landing this time, okay?" Chip and Dale scurried to their 'ready' positions.
"We'll try our best, but the gates are so difficult to navigate..." Dale said.
"Well, just try not to get us killed." Sora said, grinning at the two navigators. They saluted him and turned around to start up the Gummi ship. The take off was a little iffy, but after that, sailing was pretty smooth. The three of them were plastered to the windows, watching everything go by with extreme interest. Kairi was the most excited of all. It was her first time flying in the Gummi ship. And this would be her first time in a new world... This was going to be interesting.
Roxas woke up for the second time after he had been 'put to sleep', unable to remember anything that had happened in the last couple hours. Sora noticed him stirring and laughed. 'Mornin' Sleepin' beauty!'
Awww, shut up. Where are we going?
'To see the King.' Sora said happily, looking out the window, into the distance: towards the castle. But there was a vauge bad feeling growing in his stomach that he didn't like...
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Oh, I'm really on it this time! Another chapter, another day. I hope you like it. Thank you Laila Miller and AnimeDutchess for you wonderful reviews, and i hope to get a lot more in the future. PLEASE REVIEW! Cause I just love my fans and constructive criticism is okay, as long as there are no flames goin' on. Because when flames are used, Axel gets jealous, cause he is the Flaming Fury, so let's leave the flaming up to him, kay? So, REVIEW!
Christine Lennoire