Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and everything else belongs to Walt Disney and Square-Enix.
The OCs and their alter-ego that appear in this story belong to their respective authors. More information about them are found in the "Original Characters' Intro" chapter.
::KINGDOM HEARTS III Online HD::
-Keyblade Riders-
Part 2
-Midlight City High School-
"This is your National News-anchor reporting live first with breaking news of a massive shoot-out inside this glass-made Tower here behind me, involving the United States Secret Service and you won't believe this… nine young teenagers and all-star celebrity Jean-Michel Elincio."
Trishelle Banks, who was drinking from a carton of chocolate milk, spewed it all out on Skyler Vitani "EW GROSS!" he exclaimed.
The mortal teens were all at Halee Salazar's art class, watching this breaking-news that had the entire city—heck, the entire country—watching. All the students were appalled in response.
"JEAN MICHEL ELINCIO?!" Trish screamed, being the first in the class to express her shock, "What is Jean-Michel Elincio got to do with—!"
She got cut off when the students saw the other teens involved in the shootout. The students roared in shock. They knew those people!
"Taylor?!" Skyler exclaimed.
"MATT?!" Halee screamed.
Suddenly the door busted open and in came Principal Law, "WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS, MS. SALAZAR?!" his scowling eyes fixated on the art teacher, "WAS THIS YOUR IDEA OF ART AGAIN? HOOLIGANISTY?!"
"Principal Law!!" Halee panicked, "I would NEVER—!"
"YOU'RE FIRED!!" he cut her off, before storming out, shouting, "and if those kids ever get out of juvie, or worse, bring them back here for an all-year detention ALL AFTERNOON!"
Law slammed the door and Halee felt tears in her eyes, "I'm… f-fired…?"
Milene watched the news footage and suddenly felt guilt churning in her stomach. She sneaked out of her purse the pictures that she took of the teens in their Keybearer forms fighting the monster, the Dominion, and everything that had happened at the Homecoming Dance; and her face sank even more. Just when she thought she had punished Sierra for insulting her image by exposing her secret to the entire country, did she got Ms. Salazar fired and the entire school—and America—on edge.
The door swung open again. Halee quickly stood up, shouting, "PRINCIPAL LAW! Please! Give me another—!"
It wasn't Principal Law. It was a young girl with hazel shoulder length hair and amethyst eyes, wearing a white short sleeved shirt under a black sweater and a black knee-length skirt.
"No I'm not the principal. My name is Selena. I'm a friend of Denzel. He goes to school here. He was in the shoot-out." The girl said.
"Denzel." Halee remembered him back in detention, "Yes, I know him…" Halee looked worried.
"Please, tell me he's okay!" Selena's voice shook, "Please tell me he's gonna be all right! I can't bear living a second of my life without him!"
Halee didn't know how to respond to that; but the news anchor on the TV screen did.
"We still don't know the nature behind this sudden attack inside that building, but it appears that the US Government was behind this. However a lot of calamities have been reported from the shootout. No identifications have been reported yet. But we will give you more updates soon from the US Government and from the crime site."
Selena lost hope from that latest report and broke down crying. Now Milene felt guiltier. She glanced back at her pictures.
-Flashback begin
Milene approached the three agents. The three agents appeared very serious.
"This better be good, kid." Agent Hawk said to Milene, "Just bear in mind that any false leadings is a federal offense."
"There's nothing federal offensive about these pictures." Milene smiled as she pulled out the pictures she took and revealed them to the agents. "Heck, I would say instead that these pictures are worthy enough to be exposed to the media."
The agents looked at each other. The look on their faces appeared still serious, but Milene knew exactly what they were thinking about.
-Flashback end
"What have I done?" her whispered voice shook at the memory she should have prevented in the first place. She took off from the classroom, looking fully determined.
"Milene! Where're you going?!" Skyler shouted at her, catching the classroom's attention, but Milene was gone.
-Midlight Skyscraper, Seclusion Room-
Donald finally woke up after being unconscious for what felt like a long time and he noticed that he was inside a prison cell guarded by four SWAT Team officers on duty.
"Uh…what?" Donald looked around, "HEY! What's the big idea? Get us outta here, now!"
The SWAT officers briefly turned to stare at Donald through their thick sunglasses, and looked away minding their own business, as if Donald didn't exist.
"HEY! DON'T Y'ALL KNOW WHO I AM?! AUGH!" Donald turned to face still-unconscious Goofy, pulled out his staff and slammed on Goofy's head countless times, "WAKE UP, GOOFY! WAKE UP!"
"oW~ Donald…" Goofy whined.
"This is no time for sleeping!" Donald said, showing him where they were, "This is an emergency!"
Goofy looked around, "Oh… that can't be good."
"Ya think?"
"HEY, QUIET UP THERE!" shouted a SWAT officer at the Disney toons. But Donald chose not to listen and kept talking, "We were having a perfect search for King Mickey and this is what happens!"
"Gawrsh, you think someone just spilled our secret?" Goofy asked.
"HEY! Didn't I tell you to be quiet?!" the SWAT officer shouted again, but the two friends kept talking.
"I wouldn't be surprised if someone did." Donald mumbled, arms crossed, "Terra told us about a betrayer with the Keyblade Riders. So no doubt there is one in Rian's group too!"
"HEY! Don't make me repeat myself again!" the SWAT officer literally grabbed on the bars and started barking at the Disney toons, "When I tell you to be quiet! I mean be—!"
Donald pointed and a stream of fire twice the size of a forest fire shot from his finger, scorching the SWAT Officer to crisp. Alerted, the remaining officers pulled out their weapons, ready to shoot, when suddenly they heard feet landing behind them, and before they knew it, a Keyblade struck them in an arc swipe, knocking them out cold. Donald and Goofy saw who it was.
"TERRA!" Donald shouted with joy.
"You're back!" Goofy exclaimed.
Terra swung his Keyblade down on the prison cell, setting Donald and Goofy free.
"I've received disturbing news from Chip and Dale." Terra reported, "The Keybearers are in trouble. The Secret Service is holding them hostage in this building. We have to free them."
"Terra." Donald said, "Care to venture a guess about a betrayer in Rian's team? Got a feeling our secret got exposed."
"It got exposed all right." Terra said as he, Donald, and Goofy were getting out of the chamber through a long dully white-painted corridor, "The entire country is on edge of another possible attack on terror coming from interdimensional forces, hence: us. They suspect the teens to be helping us to succeed in the plan on terror, failing to understand the truth behind this whole ordeal."
"Kingdom Hearts III Online HD." Donald said, "A game made as a trick done by the Blackheart Dominion."
"Hard to avoid that truth." Terra said, "The media's getting stories everywhere, the city's demanding answers from its major, senate, even the President. Other nations may soon get involved in less than t-hours counting. But that's not the most of our problems."
"What is?" Donald asked.
"These secret agents who captured us." Terra began, "They're physical representations of ourselves, dwelling on this Earth the same way as do our Modern-Day Keybearers."
"Earthy twins?" Goofy asked with a shaky voice.
"Exactly." Terra replied, "Unlike our Keyblade-wielding friends, they don't know the truth about what is going on. They only know what they were told from media and literature that reveal only false visions of interdimensional forces or aliens coming to divide and conquer their world."
Donald and Goofy gave Terra a questionable look.
"They don't know the truth either." Terra clarified, "But we have to tell them either way! And we have to inform them about their twins from the Realm of Light also: Ven, Aqua, and myself."
"I hope that's wise." Goofy thought.
"And about the Keybearers," Terra went on, "I don't know about the teens having a betrayer in the rank. But I do know one thing."
Terra stopped to face Donald and Goofy. Donald and Goofy stopped too, edgily.
"What? What is it?" Goofy asked, edgily.
"It's Rian and Talen…" Terra hesitated, "They've been erased."
There was this complete uneasy silence between Terra, Donald, and Goofy. "…what?" Donald whispered.
Terra had his eyes on the floor, "Chip and Dale didn't tell me the entire story, but they told us that the teens were at school when it happened. Talen perished, trying to prevent his rival from being erased, but to no avail."
"…w-why…" Goofy's voice shook, "Why does this have to happen?"
"I'll tell you why this is happening?"
Donald and Goofy heard Terra, but it wasn't really Terra who spoke. Terra was too surprised by his identical voice. It was Agent Hawk who spoke, Terra's Earthy Twin. Hawk removed his sunglasses to reveal his beaming brown eyes.
"This is happening because you've made the decision to invade our peaceful country." He then pointed at the trio menacingly, "And as an official of the United States, I won't let our country get taken over by aliens like you."
Terra slowly approached Hawk, "Look. We don't want any trouble. But if that's what you're looking for," Terra summoned his Keyblade and ready to fight, "then bring it."
Hawk pulled out his gun and aimed at Terra, "Oh, I'll bring it."
Hawk fired as many shots as he fired and Terra countered them all by swinging his Keyblade wildly. Hawk then charged his gun and fired a big blast ball. Terra cast Reflect on himself, and the blast ball bounced off Terra and flew into the ceiling, shattering it. Hawk watched in awe, distracted from Terra's counter attack: Reflect Slam. Terra leapt high and stabbed his Keyblade to the ground, releasing heavy arc of energy at Hawk, striking him backwards. Hawk quickly recovered.
Terra unleashed a flash of light in him, changing to his Style Mode: Fire Blazer. He charged toward Hawk with his Keyblade and took a swing but Hawk blocked the attack. He kept on swinging, delivering combos, and releasing flaming arcs and orbs at the same time, but Hawk managed to block each hit, despite receiving low burning damages. Terra and Hawk went sideways.
"Impressive…" Hawk breathed, exhausted from all that blocking.
"I should say the same to you too!" Terra said before pointing his Keyblade at Hawk, "Burn!" Terra shot a powerful Firaga attack that blinded the entire hall. The light cleared up and Hawk was still intact. He had blocked that attack too.
"What…?" Terra gasped.
"GRAAAWL!" Hawk dashed toward Terra and landed an uppercut on Terra, sending him flying. He jumped into the air to join Terra, unleashed a flurry of martial-arts punches and kicks at him, and delivered a hammer fist for the finish, sending Terra to the ground. Hawk landed and pulled out a piece of used gum from his arsenal belt. He tossed it on Terra and the gum send out waves of electricity, electrocuting Terra. Terra screamed in pain.
"Terra!" Donald and Goofy ran to aid him. Hawk pulled out a marble and threw it on the ground, and invisible barriers enveloped him and Terra blocking Donald and Goofy access. The two Toons slammed their heads on the barrier and got dizzy for a second.
Hawk faced Terra, pushed the button on his Headset and the electricity inflicted more pain on Terra. "YYGGGAA!!" Terra screamed.
"Any enemies of our country are enemies of mine!" Hawk shouted.
"We… are not… ENEMIES!" Terra screamed at that last word and a dark aura emitted around Terra. Terra suddenly—and surprisingly easily—pushed away the electricity that was binding him, much to Hawk, Donald, and Goofy's surprises.
"What?" Hawk gasped.
"Oh, no…" Donald and Goofy shuddered.
Terra dark aura stayed on the warrior for a second. Terra charged the energy into his palms and aimed his palms at Hawk, and before Hawk knew it, he was surprisingly struck by the dark blast and blown to a wall.
Terra then powered-up his aura of darkness, and changed to his Style Mode—Dark Impulse. Terra's eyes glowed golden and the dark aura that had enveloped it was embracing him like a dark shadow. Terra looked evil right there.
"Impossible…" Hawk gasped.
Terra charged toward Hawk again, striking him with fury. He finished with a diagonal swing that sent Hawk flying to a wall. Hawk watched Terra descending with his dark-enveloped blade above his head with a battle cry. Hawk pulled out another device from his arsenal belt: a small coin. He threw the coin and the coin released an invisible shield. Terra swung his blade on the shield and both the blade and shield got locked in a struggle, releasing sparks and fireworks everywhere, overwhelming the hall.
The light faded away and Terra found himself on the ground with his Keyblade on the ground, at the mercy of Hawk's gunpoint, to Donald and Goofy's surprises.
"It's over!" Hawk said.
Terra without hesitation thrust his palm at Hawk and a dark blast sent Hawk backwards. Terra grabbed his Keyblade. Hawk quickly recovered and started shooting at Terra. Terra who kept dashing, knocked out all the bullets flying at him with ease.
"Not over yet!" Terra shouted as he jumped and stabbed his Keyblade to the ground and rays of energy pulled out from the force, striking Hawk again toward a wall. But Hawk recovered his fall and clutched on the wall like a stealth spider. He bounced off the wall, charging toward Terra. As he was charging, he pulled out another device: a green clickable pen. He pushed its tip down and a green power overwhelmed his punch, then Hawk suddenly surrounded himself in green energy, Psycho-Crusher style. Terra raised his Keyblade in a defensive stance, trying to block the attack, but Hawk kept hammering on him like he was breaking through his defense. Hawk finally broke through Terra's defense and kept hammering on him at high-speed until the last blow, sending Terra flying to a distance.
Terra recovered midair and unleashed his Focus Mode: Ultima Cannon, transforming his Keyblade into a massive cannon and fired at Hawk. The stunned Hawk merely dodged the blast, pulled out his gun again and tried to target Terra but was gone.
"KYAAA!" Terra's cry was heard from right below Hawk. Hawk saw a large pool of darkness like he was right below a hole to Hell. Hawk rolled out of the way but the dark hole gave chase. Terra came out of the hole, completely covered in darkness.
"GRRAAAAWL!!" He yelled out, as the darkness around Terra constricted Hawk like a cobra, and unleashed dark blows on him till he delivered the final blow that sent Hawk's body slamming violently through the ceiling.
"T-too power… ful…"
xXx
-Land of Heroes-
"King Mickey." Rian spoke to the tiny king, "Talen gave his life to save me from getting erased. With Thunder jumping into the throat of danger like this, I can't bear having someone die for me again!"
"Relax, Rian." Mickey reassured him, "Life at high risk has always been Thunder's motto. I remember when I received reports that he went into Fort Tenebris alone to uncover the Keychain of Despair."
"Fort Tenebris…" Rian said, reminiscing playing this sidequest in the game. Boy was that stage horribly hard, he thought.
"I know that fort," he said, "Once a tortured prison for all Keyblade wielders during the Keyblade War and now abandoned for three thousand years, it's a fort still enchanted by Keyblade Magic, powerful enough to lock all Keyblade powers, and now because of its terrible histories is now a forbidden access to all Keyblade heroes."
"Wow, Rian!" Mickey sounded impressed, "You've learned quite a lot! I'm impressed!"
"Well, I've learned from the game." Rian said, "Phew! And I thought the Labyrinth of Time from Final Fantasy PSP was tough."
Mickey gave Rian a puzzled look.
"That's not important." Rian said to him, "But… if he's able to clear this up, which I can imagine wasn't easy, what about the other challenges?"
Suddenly an image came to Rian and Mickey from out of thin air. The image showed the teens held hostage at the skyscraper building, facing Aros.
"Like this challenge!" Rian pointed at the picture, "Aw man! They're in trouble! In trouble with the law!"
Mickey saw Aros and appeared surprised, "Is that Aros?"
"Blackheart member Aros, the Mysterious. Possesses the power of the Twilight." Rian introduced him before facing Mickey, "What about him?"
"I've seen him."
"Of course you've seen him. Everybody's seen him." Rian said, "It's not like a family reunion, King Mickey. I mean, I wouldn't say a family reunion since he's practically an enemy of the light—!"
"No." Mickey interrupted, "I didn't mean that I've seen him." He paused uncomfortably, "I've seen him. I've battled him before. Aros is more than just an enemy."
Rian looked puzzled, and worried at the same time.
"He's not Aros!" Mickey declared.
-Midlight City Skyscraper-
"Seems we meet again…" Aros smiled, his eyes were on Matt. He then said in a ticked-off tone, "…friend."
All eyes turned to Matt as Aros started chuckling. Matt stared back at Aros; with anger in his eyes, and the expression that something big was going to be revealed.
"Friend? Why is he calling you friend?" Violet asked Matt.
"Because he's stoned." Matt quietly answered.
"Oh, I get it!" Pierre gasped, already guessing the answer, "that guy looks like Sora! And we're all friends of Sora! So it's so obvious that he calls us friends!"
"He's an enemy of the light, Pierre!" Axel, who usually appeared cheerful, said to him in a serious tone, "He's no friend of ours."
"OH!" Aros shouted, pulling the teens' attentions back on him, "So you never told them, huh?" Aros asked Matt in a provoked tone.
"I tell them everything." Matt quietly replied.
"Buuut—!" Aros said again, provoking Matt into saying what he should say.
"Okay! What is this Sora wannabe talking about?" Trayne asked impatiently.
"Oh, I'll tell you what I'm talking about." Aros said.
"He has nothing to tell!" Matt shouted over the talking Aros, who didn't mind the interruption. But then Agent Eagle came into the room, rudely interrupting him.
Eagle turned to face her unwelcomed visitor, "Impostor…" she pulled out her gun and pointed at Aros, "Who are you?"
"OH! Well, if it isn't my dear Eagle, bird of freedom." Aros chuckled.
"How do you know my name?" she asked.
"How do I know your name? Well you shoulda asked how do I know your President?" Aros disclosed.
Agent Eagle slowly lowered her weapon, "Mr. President?"
"In the flesh." He said, "He gently—and quietly—handed over the Secret Service and the entire city of Midlight to an organization of justice known as the Blackheart Dominion. And I just so happen to be their proudest member. So now you're looking at your very own Commander-in-Chief."
"Preposterous." Eagle said, "I need to speak with Mr. President for confirmation at once!" She turned around to leave, but then saw Aros right in front of her, like he had teleported. She gasped.
"I would advise against that if I were you." Aros spoke in a low tone that made Eagle uncomfortable. She immediately knew something was terribly wrong and this guy was no ally. She threw the first punch but Aros blocked it with his palm. He twisted her wrist, and then grabbed her by the neck in a chokehold and she was sent flying to a wall.
"I told you I would advise against that if I were you… but nooo, you wouldn't listen." Aros said, approaching the wounded Eagle, and waved his hands toward the exit. The exit got blocked by his Blackheart barrier. "By the way… is it just me, or do I get the feeling that… we've met before?"
Eagle slowly sat up, "…you've been stalking me?" she grunted in pain.
Aros shook his head, "Oh no, not stalking." He said as his hands got enveloped in purplish aura. He raised a palm in the air and Eagle flew up at will, and he then threw his arm over to a corner where Eagle slammed her head hard on it and was left unconscious.
"Call it a reunion." He said.
The alerted Keybearers tried to break free from the cords binding them on their chairs to help Eagle out. They were almost freed when Aros turned and raised his palm at the loose ropes, transforming them into dark magicked bracelets. The bracelets shocked the Keybearers moments before they were free. Now they were really trapped.
"Now, that I have dealt with the annoyance we like to call powerless," Aros said quietly, "time to deal with you."
"Damn it! We were this close!" Pierre shouted.
"What have you done to Rian and Talen?" asked Axel.
"And Donald, Goofy and Terra?" Taylor asked also.
Aros sighed frustratingly, "I dunno! Okay?! Ask the person responsible for making them vanish! We were talking about Cross here and his living lies!" On cue he glared back at Cross.
"What are you talking about?" Taylor exclaimed, "Why are you dissing on my boyfriend? We want to know what you have done to our friends?!"
"YEEAH!!" collective agreement came from the teens.
"Really? Don't you want to know the horrible crimes Cross has done while he was working for the Dominion?"
Aros' revelation felt like he had sent shockwaves in the group. All eyes turned on the guilty Matt. Matt had his eyes on his floor, "That's a lie…" he whispered, despite knowing that it wasn't a lie.
"Admit it, Cross!" Aros shouted, "You, and I, and Sage, and many more of our Dominion friends were loyal to you. You were willing—and you did practically everything—for the Dominion! And I mean everything."
Matt noticed his friends' looks on their faces like they were seeing a ghost. They just couldn't believe this… well, all except Violet, who looked like she was expecting this.
"I knew it…" she muttered, shaking her head.
But that didn't stop Aros from revealing more, "Boy was it the simpler time, when your heart was brave enough to take on darkness at its fullest, you would use your talents to create us these special heart-ripping heartless… you know, the ones with the glowing arms…"
The teens were stunned at that too.
"…the amount of hearts we've captured, the number of people we've tortured, the number of worlds we claimed…"
"SHUT UP, AROS!" Matt shouted, "Just shut your frigging trap!! I'm warning you, one more word out of you or else—!"
"Or else what? You're going to break away from your dark chains and attack me?" Aros chuckled, "Please. These chains are tightly bound by dark magic. No handcuffs, or cords can beat its resistance. Heck, let's make this interesting…"
A snap of his fingers brought in a floating dark cloud carrying a large device with red digits reading:
1:59… 1:58… 1:57…
The teens' eyes went wide. They already knew what they were in for.
"…with Thunder and Blazen out of the picture, I believe it is now time for the Dominion to claim your precious Hearts, no?" Aros said, "This Dark bomb I have just materialized, will release a void of darkness in a mass of colossal explosive damage, enough to instant-kill a cockroach. Y'know cockroaches don't die fast, right? And it is from at that moment, that you will face your erasure!! And we shall claim what is rightfully ours!!"
At these phrases he started laughing: first quietly, then like he was half-crazy, and finally like a maniac with a high-pitched tone.
The teens helplessly watched the Dark Bomb implanting itself to the ceiling as it kept ticking…
1:33… 1:32… 1:31…
"Oh my god, we're all gonna die…" Sierra's voice quivered.
The teens struggled to break free to no avail, and Aros kept laughing hysterically.
"WE CAN'T DIE HERE!"
"HEEELP!"
"GRRRRAAAAAH! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!"
"HEEEELP!!"
"SOMEBODY HELP US!!"
"GRRRRAAAAAH! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!"
"YOU'RE GONNA PAY FOR THIS, MAN!"
"GET US OUTTA HERE MAN!!"
"WE CAN'T—!"
"GRRRRAAAAAH! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!"
"HEEEEHEEEELP!!!!"
1:08… 1:07… 1:06…
Hey guys! This is Rian Rivers! Giving you an update on what's gonna happen next time on KHIII Online HD - Keyblade Riders
Aros has gone too far! Imprisoning my friends in that building with a Dark Bomb ticking? This is bad… this is really bad! Where is Thunder!? I know he was on his way to help them, but he's gotta reach that Skyscraper in time to save everyone! Come on, man! Hurry!
On the Next upcoming Chapters of KH3 Online HD
(scenes subject to change in the episodes)
"We've identified another presence in Midlight City, sir Noah." Said an executive of the PKK Secret Service to Noah Tsubasa
"Whoa…" Noah breathed in awe
xXx
Thunder was on his Keyblade Motorbike, riding as fast as he can through the city's highways to reach his destination.
xXx
"There's something different about you, alien clone." Hawk called Terra, "Something…" he paused uncomfortably, "…evil…"
xXx
0:02…
0:01…
0:00
Next Chapter:: Keyblade Riders (pt.3)-