Hello again,
As this is my second chapter update of the evening, I don't have much to say this time other than to thank Ragnarok Warrior, janus-juan, Linkandzel, and Hercules3000 for reviewing last month.
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, or the characters from Black Cat. I do however own my own plots, ideas and characters.
Enjoy!
EDIT: Dates have officially been added to clear up potential confusion and keep the timeline in order without any discrepancies.
Chapter Seven: The Apostles of the Star
Wednesday, May 26th 4794 P.C.
The streets of Fatum were abnormally crowded for a Wednesday afternoon on Destiny Islands. People from all three islands; Exin, Eve and Illa crowded the streets, chatting with one another loudly over the background noise of other conversations. They walked from shop to shop, eating ice cream or sipping on tea, nearly everyone laden down with numerous shopping bags.
The ferries were out en masse, shuttling the citizens of Destiny Islands around from island to island. Jenos Hazard couldn't help but feel out of place as he stepped off of the ferry Poseidon's Grace. He was dressed in black dress pants and shoes, a purple dress shirt that was had the top tree buttons open, exposing the numeral VII tattooed on the right side of his chest, and a black suit jacket. Most of the citizen's were dressed in shorts or skirts and sleeveless shirts. His caramel eyes darted from person to person behind the amethyst colored lenses of his sunglasses. Everyone around him was noticing him.
Jenos couldn't help but feel slightly uncomfortable. The second rule of being a Number meant staying inconspicuous. The first was to get the job done as swiftly as possible and on the first try. No mistakes allowed. He looked down at the picture in his hand. A teenage boy with spiky caramel colored hair and eyes as blue as the ocean had his arms around an auburn haired girl with violet-blue eyes. Both of them were smiling at the camera warmly. Jenos felt his mind wander as he began to wonder how the higher-ups in Chronos managed to get a hold of things like this. He shook his head and continued to ignore the increasingly curious looks he was receiving from the locals.
"How the hell am I supposed to find two teens in a city full of them?" Jenos mumbled under his breath as he stuffed the photo on the inside of his jacket. He began looking around at the people in the crowd. "Now, who should I ask first?"
He immediately spotted a woman in her early twenties. She was tall, thin, golden hair, sparkling hazel eyes, and wearing a mini-skirt and bikini top. Jenos grinned and moved quickly towards the woman.
"Excuse me, miss!" he called out as he neared her. The woman let out a scream as she turned and saw Jenos moving swiftly towards her. She produced a can of pepper spray seemingly from nowhere and blasted Jenos in the eyes with it. Jenos let out a cry of pain and collapsed to the ground, clutching his hands over his eyes.
"No means no!" the woman shouted. Then she kicked Jenos in his family jewels and watched him crumple over groaning in pain. The woman stormed off. Several people laughed at Jenos and continued on with their daily business.
Several minutes (and eye rinsing sessions at a public restroom sink) later, Jenos walked out of a convenience shop with a bottle of eye drops. He quickly applied the drops and blinked out the excess before looking around for someone else to ask. He spotted a brunette in her mid-thirties wearing short-shorts and a low cut, sleeveless top.
"Excuse me, miss," Jenos called out to her, casually walking up to her as he pulled the photo from his jacket. "I was wondering if you-" he never got to finish. The woman brought her leg up in a swift kick and slammed her toes into the fork of Jenos' legs. Jenos crumpled to the ground whimpering softly. He heard several women laughing and a few men sympathizing with him.
This is going to be a long day… He realized.
LD
Monday, May 31st
Sora, Kairi and Naminé ran up the boarding ramp to Sora's new Gummi ship, laughing hysterically. Sora let Kairi and Naminé pass him before pressing a button next to the ramp, causing it to rise back into place. Sora grinned at the familiar sounds of pistons hissing and the clanking sound of the ramp being secured and the edges surrounding it made air tight once again. He turned around and looked down the long hallway. He sighed contentedly at the sight of the familiar pale blues of the walls and the slightly darker red carpeting.
He followed Kairi and Naminé down the hall as they insisted on peering into every room they passed. Sora chuckled as the two girls started bouncing decorating ideas off of each other. He squeezed past them and walked to the middle of the hall. He turned up the stairs that were situated there, pressing the button to turn on all of the ship's lights. He emerged from the staircase into the domed cockpit. Sora smiled at the sight of the blinking lights and readouts lining the panels on the front end of the cockpit.
He walked over to the pilot's seat and quickly checked the major systems. All lights were green, the energy readout showed that the ship was at full power, all weapons systems were online, the engines were primed and ready for takeoff and the shield generators were at a full charge. Sora grinned and looked at the steering wheel. The word Kingdom was written in gold lettering across the middle of the wheel.
Sora let out a small gasp of surprise. This was the ship he, Donald and Goofy had flown during their adventures. Sora looked around the cockpit, taking in the familiar sights he had overlooked before. There was the comfy-looking tan couch with the scorch marks on one end from when he had accidentally set the stove on fire and he and Goofy ended up using the couch to put out the fire when they couldn't find the fire extinguisher. Sora chuckled at the memory.
On one side of the couch was a mini-fridge that Goofy always kept stocked with orange soda. Why orange soda, Sora doubted he would ever know. There was the different colored floor panel from the time Donald decided to juggle the chairs using magic and dropped them all on the same floor panel, snapping the panel into a dozen pieces.
Kairi and Naminé came up the stairs after a few minutes. Sora gave them a quick tour of the cockpit and shared some of his favorite stories of times he, Donald and Goofy had spent on the ship.
"This is actually pretty awesome," Naminé said as she examined the targeting system for the weapons system. "I've never actually gotten to fly before." She sat down in the chair closest to her. Kairi grinned.
"It's awesome, Naminé," she said as she threw herself onto the couch. "I mean, I've only been one of these things before and that was when Sora rescued me from Hollow Bastion and flew me back to Traverse Town so I'd be safe." Sora smiled warmly at her. Kairi grinned and blew him a kiss. Naminé rolled her eyes. Sora pressed a couple of buttons and a hologram projector rose in the center of the room. He walked over to it and crossed his arms as the words Connecting: Please wait flashed in blue above the projector.
The words vanished and were replaced by an image of Riku walking around the cockpit of his ship, which was nearly identical to the Kingdom's cockpit except Riku's ship didn't have a couch or mini fridge, muttering to himself. Sora cleared his throat. The hologram of Riku spun around.
"Hey, you three," he said cheerily as he sat down in one of the chairs on his ship and spun it to face his hologram projector. "What's up?"
"I'm just double checking the equipment over here to make sure this thing's ready to fly," Sora said with a shrug as he walked over to a computer set into the wall of equipment by the pilot's chair. "That and testing the COMM system to make sure that it works." Sora pressed a button next to the computer and a list of worlds he, Donald and Goofy had been to appeared on the computer monitor along with the estimated travel time. Sora scrolled through the list of worlds and selected Destiny Islands. The travel time was going to be about fourteen and a half hours.
"Well, we know our COMM systems work when we're parked right next to each other," Riku said with mild sarcasm in his voice. Sora glanced behind him at the hologram projection of his silver haired friend.
"Obviously," Sora retorted. Riku rolled his eyes. Kairi and Naminé both laughed at the two boys. "You ready to go, dude?" Riku nodded.
"You know it," he said, giving Sora the thumbs up. "All systems are green and I'm taking off. See you three back at the Islands." Outside of the cockpit came the roar of engines bursting to life. Riku's Gummi lifted itself about ten or so feet off of the ground before zooming off into the cloud filled sky of the Keyblade Graveyard. Sora looked around at Kairi and Naminé.
"You girls ready?" Sora asked. Kairi nodded and quickly walked over to the seat in front of the computer filled with the world coordinates and buckled herself in. Naminé grinned excitedly. She was practically bursting with excitement as she strapped herself in. Sora and Kairi both laughed as the blonde's grin grew wider and wider as Sora sat down and snapped his seatbelt across his waist. Sora flipped three switches above the steering wheel and the ship shook slightly as the engines came to life. Sora checked the readouts on the monitor next to the steering wheel. They were good to go.
"Blast off in three," he said. Naminé gripped the armrests of her chair excitedly. "Two," Sora pulled a lever on the ground by his feet and the Gummi ship floated into the air, hovering off of the ground. "One. Blast off!" Sora pressed his thumb onto the throttle and the Kingdom rocketed off into the sky.
The three of them were forced into the backs of their seats by the gravity of the world attempting to pull them back down for several minutes before the Kingdom broke free of the Keyblade Graveyard's atmosphere and set out into open space. The moment they were free of the world's gravitational pull, Sora pressed the autopilot button, undid his seatbelt and got up. Kairi and Naminé leaned in to watch as the onboard computer system took over the flying and plotted a course for the Destiny Islands. Sora walked over to the couch and collapsed on it, finally feeling the fatigue of fighting Xanthos during the Mark of Mastery exam. Sora couldn't help grinning.
Master Sora. I can get used to being called that.
Or maybe you'd like to hear Kairi call you Master. Roxas chimed in. Sora got the mental image of Roxas giving him a look that said Give-it-a-shot-dude. Sora's cheeks turned pink at the idea.
Kairi isn't like that. Sora said. She's too-
Pure? Roxas suggested. Dude, you have no idea. Naminé's told me some of what Kairi's thoughts have been from time to time. Trust me dude. She isn't as "pure" as you think. Sora felt slightly nervous at the thought.
Are you trying to tell me that Kairi isn't a virgin? Sora couldn't help but ask. Roxas laughed at him.
Wow, dude. You read a little bit too much into what I said. I didn't mean "pure" as in her virginity. I meant pure as in she has VERY dirty thoughts from time to time. That barely had an impact on the speed Sora's heart was beating. Roxas could feel Sora's anxiety. Look dude, Naminé told me that Kairi's still a virgin. So don't get your panties in a bunch. Secondly, and you're gonna love this, she's saving herself specifically for you.
Sora instantly felt better, and he couldn't help smiling as Kairi undid her seatbelt and came over to sit next to him on the couch. Sora sat up so she'd have more room. Kairi sat down next to him, took his hand and intertwined her fingers with his. Sora smiled and kissed the top of her head as she leaned in to use his shoulder as a pillow.
I think I see what you mean, Roxas.
Well, I should hope so. Otherwise you're just another hopeless case. Sora rolled his eyes. He glanced down at Kairi, who was already asleep. Sora chuckled softly and laid his head back to catch some shut eye himself.
LD
After thirteen hours of uneventful flying, during which only Naminé stayed awake, the Kingdom's World Proximity Alert blared to life, jolting Sora from a blissful dream of sharing a Paopu fruit with Kairi in their Secret Place at sunset. Sora grumbled as he got to his feet and walked over to the pilot's seat. He sat down and looked out of the dome of the cockpit at deep ocean blue orb that was Destiny Islands as it quickly grew larger and larger until it completely filled the space in front of the Kingdom. The COMM system crackled with a bit of static as Riku's voice filled the cockpit.
"Hey Sora, where should we land these ships? We don't want to stir up a mass panic by landing in the middle of town," he said. Sora considered this. He checked the clock on the monitor next to the steering wheel. It was 9:47 P.M. Sora grabbed a headset from a compartment just above the wheel and slipped it on.
"How about we put them in orbit and use the Warp System to reach the surface?" Sora suggested. "And we'll just tell the WS to send us onto the beach so no one will see us appear from nowhere and freak the hell out."
"Sounds good to me," Riku's voice said. "See you three down there." There was a faintly audible click as Riku cut the transmission. Sora pressed the autopilot button again, giving manual control back to him. He brought the Kingdom closer to the world until the monitor began to flash, "In Orbit". Sora pressed another button labeled "Maintain Orbit". He released the steering wheel and felt the ship slowly come to a stop. Satisfied, Sora got to his feet and turned to face Kairi and Naminé.
"Alright," he said, grinning broadly. "Let's go." He led the girls back down the staircase and into the hallway that ran the length of the ship. He turned right and took the first door they reached. They descended down a long, spiral staircase and emerged in a room with three doors. The door directly opposite of them was made of steel, had a small computer set into the wall next to it and was labeled "Airlock". The other two doors, each opposite of the other, were labeled "Engine Room" and "Warp System". Sora led them through the "Warp System" door and into a small dark room. He flicked on the light switch and the room blazed to life.
There was a large holographic screen suspended in midair a few feet from the door. Behind it were five man-sized, stainless steel chambers with glass doors that were open. Each chamber was connected to a series of small tubes that ran behind the chambers and connected with a pulsating red crystal that was at least seven feet tall. Kairi and Naminé stared at the room in mild surprise. Sora laughed at their expressions and walked up to the holographic screen. He began typing in where they wanted to be warped to.
"This is pretty awesome," Naminé said, walking over to the steel chambers. "So do we just climb inside?" Sora nodded.
"Yep," he said as the screen displayed an image of one of the beaches on Exin at night along with the message "Destination Confirmed". "Just climb on in and close the doors when that light turns yellow." Sora gestured at a small red light that was fixed above the door. Kairi and Naminé both nodded and climbed into the chambers. Sora grabbed a small rectangular box with a blue button on it from a small table below the screen and slipped it into one of his pockets.
"What's that for?" Kairi asked as Sora climbed into one of the other chambers. Sora smiled at her.
"So we can get back onto the ship," he said. "All I've gotta do is press the blue button and anyone within four or five feet of me will warp back onto the ship."
"Okay then," Kairi said. She looked away from Sora to the light above the door and saw the light flash from red to yellow.
"Close 'em up!" Sora said. The three of them reached out to the handles of their respective doors and closed them shut. There was a loud hissing noise as the three chambers sealed the doors in place. The three teens waited for a few seconds with baited breath, excited for the warping. Then the light flashed green. The red crystal behind them pulsed blue for a fraction of a second and each chamber was filled with a blinding white light for a moment, then all three teens were gone.
Three beams of light shot from the Kingdom and raced towards the world. They streaked across the night sky before crashing into a beach on the island Exin. Instead of leaving craters, the beams flashed brightly as they touched the beach surface and vanished, leaving behind the three teens in their place.
Sora stretched his arms behind his head and yawned loudly. Kairi and Naminé stumbled slightly, neither having warped before in their lives. Sora couldn't help but laugh as Naminé fell backwards into the surf, thoroughly soaking her new cloak. He laughed even harder when Roxas appeared in a flash of blue light and tried to help her up, only for his hand to pass right through hers, causing him to lose his balance and fall into the water himself and emerge soaking wet, despite being a spectral projection. Roxas crossed his arms in disappointment.
Naminé did her best to comfort Roxas, but it was hard since she couldn't touch him without passing through him. Kairi felt couldn't help but feel sorry for Naminé and Roxas.
I wish I could do something to help you two, Naminé. She thought to herself, unable to say them out loud for some reason. Naminé looked up and gave Kairi a quizzical look.
I guess I can still talk to you like this, huh? Naminé said in Kairi's mind. Kairi almost gasped in surprise. But it looks like when can only hear each other like this if we're talking to each other. For example… And suddenly Kairi couldn't hear Naminé anymore, but the blonde was smiling widely. After a few moments of mental silence, Kairi heard Naminé again. Did you catch any of that? Naminé asked.
No, Kairi said. I couldn't hear you at all. What were you saying?
That I pull off the blonde haired female in a long black cloak look better than that bitch Larxene ever did. Kairi and Naminé both broke out in laughter at that. Sora and Roxas watched them in confusion.
"What the-" Sora began, but Kairi cut him off by shaking her head.
"Don't worry about it," she said through her laughter. Sora continued to give her a confused look, so Kairi ignored him and looked around the beach. "Hey, where's Riku?" The others all started looking around for their silver-haired friend.
"That's odd," Roxas said as he glanced up at the night sky. "He should've been here before us." Sora shrugged. Naminé also glanced up at the sky and pointed.
"Incoming," she said. The others all looked up to the sky and saw a ball of light streaking towards them. The ball grew closer and closer before coming to a complete stop over the water, several yards from the shore. Sora and Kairi glanced at each other in confusion. Then the light exploded brightly for a brief moment before disappearing, leaving Riku suspended briefly in midair.
"Well, fuck," Riku said before he plummeted into the water. Sora and the others broke out laughing as the Riku splashed around, practically coughing up his lungs as he swam to shore. As he slowly walked from the surf, he spat out a large amount of seawater. "That fucking sucked!" he spat. "I think my ship hates me."
"Do you have an AI onboard?" Roxas asked. Riku raised his eyebrows.
"A what now?" he asked. Roxas and Sora laughed at him.
"AI," Sora explained. "Artificial Intelligence? Ring any bells?
"Oh, okay," Riku said as realization hit him. "Not that I'm aware of."
"Then your ship can't possibly hate you," Naminé said, rolling her eyes at Riku. Riku stuck his tongue out at her.
"Bite me, blondie," he retorted. Naminé smiled nastily at him.
"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"
"I don't know. Give it a try and we'll find out."
"As much fun as it would be to watch you talk about getting kinky with my girlfriend, Riku," Roxas interjected sarcastically, "I'm sure that your parents are going to want to hear all about the Exam. So don't you guys think that we should go find them and tell them all about it?" Everyone stared at Roxas. "What?"
"What'd you think we were going to do when we got back?" Riku asked the Nobody. "Go swimming?" Sora and Kairi smirked.
"I think you and Roxas have done enough swimming for today, don't you?" Kairi asked Riku. Roxas crossed his arms and stared at the auburn haired teen while Riku twisted his shirt and wringed a stream of water from it. Sora and Kairi laughed at them. Naminé attempted to pat Roxas on the back but her hand kept passing through him. Naminé stared sadly at Roxas for a moment before leaning into him and whispering something into his ear. Roxas smiled softly back at the blonde and whispered something back to her. Naminé continued to watch Roxas sadly.
"Let's go," Kairi said as she grabbed Sora's hand and began to lead him from the beach to Fatum with the others following suit.
LD
After spending an hour and a half going to each of their houses without being able to find any of their parents, the teens finally found the adults gathered at Destiny's. The five parents were busy sharing a drink when their children walked in. Allison was the first to notice the teens walk in and quickly got to her feet and rushed over to embrace her son in a hug. Jonathan and Melissa quickly followed her lead and rushed over to Kairi as David and Sharon got to their feet to greet Riku only for him to come to them instead. After the brief hug session, the parents immediately began bombarding the teens with questions about the exam and why Naminé now had a body of her own while they could still see through Roxas.
Sora and Riku had barely been able to start telling the parents about the Exam when Selphie, Tidus, Wakka and Kim all burst into the restaurant excitedly and began asking the teens the same questions their parents had been, mostly about how Naminé managed to get her own body while Roxas was shit out of luck. Roxas glared at Tidus and Wakka as they asked that. So Sora and Riku started over from the beginning and told their parents and friends all about the Exam in excruciating detail. After they were finished, a slightly awed silence hung on the air.
Riku's parents stared at their son while said teen kept his eyes determinedly fixated on the wood paneling of the floor. Sora and Kairi exchanged a glance.
"So, you're going off on your own adventure?" Sharon asked Riku, her voice shaking slightly. David kept his expression straight and neutral. Riku nodded slowly.
"I've always wanted to go to other worlds," he said. "You both know that. This is the opportunity I've been waiting for. Now I can go to other worlds and make new friends." Riku raised his head and looked his parents in the eyes. Sharon had tears forming in their eyes. David looked like he didn't want Riku to go but respected his decision to do so. "But it's not like I'll be gone forever. I'll come back to visit every chance I can. I promise." Sharon and David looked at each other for a moment. David nodded to his wife and Sharon let out a sob, pulling her son into a tight hug as tears began to stream down her face.
Jonathan got to his feet and gestured for Sora to follow him. Sora felt his heart pound nervously. He slowly got to his feet. Kairi and Melissa both looked from Jonathan to Sora with a mix of confusion and concern. Jonathan smiled down at them.
"Don't you two worry," he said. "I just want to have a private talk with Sora here." Sora swallowed hard. The father of the girl he was dating wanted to have a "private" talk with him? Sora doubted this would end well. He followed Jonathan out of the restaurant to the patio in the back. Jonathan walked up to one of the tables and pulled out a chair.
"Sit," he told Sora, gesturing at the chair. Sora didn't blink twice. He sat down as quickly as his body could and looked up at Jonathan as the man stared up at the night sky. Both of them were quiet for a couple of minutes. Sora's heart was pounding fast and hard. His mind kept saying the same thing over and over again; I'm screwed. I'm screwed. I'm screwed. Jonathan finally looked down at Sora.
"I think it's time for us to have a father to boyfriend-of-my-daughter talk," Jonathan said, giving Sora a stern look. Sora's heart began to beat faster and he could've sworn he was beginning to break out into a sweat. Jonathan smirked. "The only problem is the clichés of 'What are your intentions with my daughter?' or the whole 'Prove to me that you can keep my daughter safe' don't exactly apply to this particular situation, do they?" Sora looked up at Jonathan in confusion.
What is he getting at? Sora asked himself (and Roxas technically).
Pay attention. I'm sure he'll tell you. The Nobody replied.
"I know full well that you are more than capable of protecting Kairi," Jonathan continued. "Then again, we both know she's definitely able to take care of herself." Sora nodded in agreement. "And I can see in your eyes that you have no bad intentions when it comes to my little girl." Jonathan's stern demeanor was slowly beginning to melt away. "I see the way you look at her, Sora. I see only love in your eyes when you look at her.
"You groveled to your enemy for her. You sacrificed your heart and body for her. You were willing to do anything you could to save her. The reason I wanted to have this talk with you, was to tell you that I can't imagine anyone better for Kairi than you." Sora was taken aback. Whatever he had been expecting, it hadn't been this. Jonathan looked up at the moon.
"But I will tell you this," the elder man said, his voice becoming stern again. Sora felt his heart rate begin to rise again. "Since you are now Kairi's Master, she is bound as an Apprentice to listen to any order you give her." Jonathan lowered himself so his face was less than three inches from Sora's and he was staring the teen in the eye. "So I warn you now; if you ever use your status as Master to force Kairi to do something against her will, I will make you regret it for the rest of your life." Sora stared determinedly at Jonathan.
"Kairi is the most important person in my life, I have nothing but respect for her and I'm madly in love with her," Sora said seriously, Jonathan looked slightly surprised at Sora's tone. "I would sooner cut out my own throat and light myself on fire than hurt her; physically or emotionally." Jonathan smiled.
"Good answer," he said, straightening up. He extended a hand towards Sora and helped him out of the chair. "You make Kairi very happy, Sora. She loves you more than I ever knew." He patted Sora on the back. "And I know she'll always be happy with you by her side. Thank you, Sora." Jonathan smiled warmly at him. Sora was almost too dumbstruck to speak. He could only smile.
LD
Everyone was watching as Sora and Jonathan walked back into the restaurant. Kairi and Melissa both looked anxious until they saw the slight smiles on the two guys' faces as they each looked at the love of their life. Sora sat down next to Kairi and put his arm around her. Kairi smiled at him and shifted herself closer to him.
"What'd Dad want to talk to you about?" she asked him. Sora shrugged slightly.
"Oh you know, the typical father to guy-dating-his-daughter speech of treat my daughter with absolute respect or he would chop off my balls, roast them and force feed them to me." Sora smiled at that, proud of the fact that he had come up with it on the spot. Kairi looked up at him worriedly.
"But," she said under her breath, leaning in toward Sora to whisper in his ear. "You'll need your balls if you ever want kids with me." Sora looked at Kairi in surprise at how sexual she had made that sound just by whispering. Kairi raised her head slightly to lightly kiss Sora.
Told you so, Roxas said. Her thoughts are definitely not as pure as her heart.
Okay, so you were right. Sora said to the Nobody as he kissed Kairi back for a brief moment before she sat up straight again And as a reward for being right I'll buy you a steak dinner tomorrow night.
You fucking suck, asshole. Sora laughed and tuned Roxas out as the Nobody began ranting about how he wished he could eat again and about how he was slightly jealous of Naminé because she could eat and he couldn't.
The night passed fairly quickly after that. Almost too quickly, in Sora's opinion. They all talked and laughed for hours. Tears were shed and plans were made. Naminé thoroughly enjoyed devouring the sea-salt ice cream Melissa brought out and teased Roxas by describing every bite. Melissa and Jonathan made the decision to fill out the necessary paperwork to make Naminé their adopted daughter since the former Nobody didn't have a family and was, by all technicalities, Kairi's sister. This news made Kairi and Naminé both excited and they almost immediately began discussing rearranging Kairi's room at her house to accommodate a second bed.
Selphie and Kim both produced fashion catalogs from nowhere and talked about getting Naminé more clothes so she wouldn't have to wear the black cloak day in and day out because they were both convinced that wearing something that dark daily was depressing. This seemed to hit a nerve with Roxas, who appeared in a flash of blue light to argue with the two females for half an hour about wearing the cloak daily before he finally conceded and returned to the confines of Sora's mind to sulk for the remainder of the night.
LD
Tuesday, June 1st 4794 P.C.
When dawn rolled around, everyone gathered in front of Riku's house to wish their friend a safe journey. Sora and Kairi stood a little ways away from the others, looking up at the sky as gold, scarlet and pink danced across the few clouds that dotted the sky from the rising sun. Naminé had produced a sketchpad from somewhere and was sketching the couple without them realizing it. Riku and his parents exited his house, bearing a few bags of Riku's clothes and a few boxes of food. They set them down in a pile on the sidewalk leading up to the front door. Sharon and David both hugged Riku tightly. Sharon stepped back and wiped tears from her face. Riku walked over to the others.
Tidus and Wakka both gave him high fives and challenged him to a duel when he next came back to visit. Riku laughed and accepted their challenge. Selphie and Kim each gave Riku a tight hug with tears streaming down their faces. Naminé and Riku merely nodded to each other. Roxas flipped him off and vanished in a flash of blue light. Riku just laughed at him. Riku and Kairi gave each other a quick hug.
"See you around, buddy," Sora said, grasping Riku's hand in a tight handshake. Riku grinned widely.
"You know it," he and Sora broke the hand shake and Riku headed back over to his parents to give them each one last hug. After he hugged them, Riku pulled out a small silver orb with a sky blue button situated on top. He turned back to look at his friends, grinned widely and gave them all a thumbs up.
Sora gave his silver-haired friend a half smile. He looked over at Kairi who was looking over at their other friends. Tidus and Wakka both looked disappointed that Riku was leaving. In the back of his mind, Sora remembered that Tidus and Wakka had never been able to beat Riku in anything, even when they teamed up with each other to take him down.
Selphie didn't seem too beaten up over the news. Kim refused to look over at Riku. Tears were shining on her face and she had adjusted how she was sitting so no one would see her tears. Riku didn't seem to notice. He pressed his thumb down hard on the button. There was a bright flash of light as Riku and his bags warped back to his Gummi ship. Out of the corner of his eye, Sora saw Kim wipe the tears from her eyes and regain her composure. A slightly awkward silence hung on the air. None of them were really sure what to say.
"Well," Jonathan said, finally breaking the awkwardness of the situation. "I guess that's enough excitement for one night." A woman's scream shattered the early morning calm that rested on the Island. Everyone's head whipped around. A girl dressed in a purple suit jacket over a white dress shirt and matching blue plaid mini-skirt and tie with shoulder length black hair and lavender eyes ran around a corner and towards the group gathered in front of Riku's house.
"Isn't that one of my waitresses?" Melissa said as she and the others watched the girl run towards them. "Kyoko? What is she-" Before Melissa could finish, a group of more than fifteen Shadow Heartless came darting around the corner after Kyoko. Sora and Kairi exchanged a glance before summoning their Keyblades to their hands. Their friends and families all let out gasps as they saw the Heartless.
"Are those black things the Heartless?" Selphie asked.
"Yeah," Naminé said as she began ushering the others towards the house. "Sora and Kairi can handle them so let's get inside and out of their way. " The others did as she said and rushed into the house. Naminé was the last one in, giving Sora and Kairi a thumbs up before closing the door. Sora looked over at Kairi. She smiled back at him.
"After you, Master," she said, putting extra emphasis on the word 'Master'. Sora felt a shiver of excitement run up his spine. He grinned over at his girlfriend and charged towards the Shadows with Kairi closely following suit. Kyoko ran between them as they charged.
"What are those creepy things?" she shouted to Sora and Kairi as the pair rushed the Heartless.
"Heartless!" Sora cried back. "They're dangerous so find somewhere safe to hide!" Kairi fought the urge to roll her eyes. She lashed out at the first Shadow with the Destiny's Embrace, slicing clean between its spherical yellow eyes and reducing to a cloud of black mist. Sora darted past her and swung his Oblivion viciously, swiftly destroying four Shadows in a single slash. Kairi stabbed downwards, impaling a Shadow as it emerged from the ground. She raised her hand and thrust her palm out towards a pair of Shadows as they leapt at her.
"Fire!" she cried. A flaming orb burst from her hand and shot between the two Heartless before exploding, incinerating both in an instant. Kairi grinned and kicked another Shadow out of the way. Sora saw her kick the Heartless out of the corner of her eye and laughed. He brought his Keyblade down, decapitating a Shadow as it attempted to slash his shin. He smiled grimly and sliced his way through another Shadow as it leapt at him.
Kairi spun past the remaining four slashing through one of them as she passed. Sora struck down two others and lunged at the last. Kairi also sliced at the Heartless. Destiny's Embrace and Oblivion clashed together in the Shadow's midsection as the Heartless vanished in a puff of black mist. Kairi looked up at Sora's grinning face and gave him a quick kiss.
"Well," Sora said, dismissing the Oblivion and walking down towards Riku's house where the others were. "Now that that's over, let's go tell everyone that it's safe."
"Look out!" Kyoko shouted from behind a low garden wall. Sora spun around and was met by the black claws of a Neoshadow Heartless as it slashed at his face. The Oblivion appeared in Sora's hand again and he barely managed to raise it in time to deflect the attack. The Neoshadow lost its balance and fell past Sora. Sora spun and stabbed the Neoshadow through its back. As it faded away in black mist, Sora spun around and struck down another Neoshadow.
Kairi was several yards from him, squaring off against three Neoshadows at once. The three Neoshadows circled her like birds of prey readying themselves for the kill. Kairi remained motionless, Destiny's Embrace poised and ready to strike. The Neoshadow behind her lunged for the first strike. Kairi swung her blade over and behind her head, knocking away the ebony clawed hands of the Neoshadow. The other two took advantage of Kairi's exposed front.
Kairi rolled out of the way of the pair as they rushed her. She exited her roll and swung her Keyblade like a bat, knocking the nearest Neoshadow's legs out from underneath it. The Heartless fell flat on its back, staring up at Kairi as she aimed the tip of Destiny's Embrace at the Neoshadow's chest. As Kairi stabbed down, the Neoshadow sank into the ground. Kairi's Keyblade buried itself a good foot into the ground. Kairi stared at the ground in shock as a black shadow darted across it, moving several feet away from her. Kairi wrenched Destiny's embrace from the ground and lashed out at another nearby Neoshadow.
The Neoshadow ducked under her attack and slashed at her arm. Kairi let out a cry of pain as the Heartless' four claws broke the skin on her forearm, leaving four long lacerations. Sora heard Kairi's cry of pain and quickly dispatched the Neoshadow he had been grappling with. Kairi left arm was drenched in blood, but she continued fighting. She severed the arm of the Heartless that had cut her before jamming Destiny's Embrace between its yellow eyes. Kairi lowered her Keyblade and looked at her wounds. Green lights began to dance around the cuts, and slowly the bleeding stopped but the wounds didn't close much.
"Kairi! Behind you!" Sora shouted as he watched a pair of dark shadows dart across the ground towards Kairi. Sora broke into a sprint in an attempt to reach the Heartless before they got to Kairi. Kairi looked behind her in time to see the two dark shadows burst from the ground and become Neoshadow Heartless. Kairi didn't have time to raise her Keyblade before both Neoshadows struck her. Kairi let out a cry of pain as she was sent rolling across the ground. Sora let out a roar of anger, drawing the attention of the Heartless to himself.
"Firaga!" Sora shouted as he neared the two Neoshadows that had just attacked Kairi. Flames flared into life along the length of the Oblivion, cloaking it in fire. Sora slashed through the first Neoshadow with two rapid swings of his flaming Keyblade, quartering it as he charged onto the next one. He swung the Oblivion above his head and sliced the next Neoshadow in half from top to bottom. The remains of the two Neoshadows exploded into black mist, obscuring Sora from the view of the remaining seven Neoshadows. The Heartless all glanced at each other.
Sora burst from the fading mist with an orb of crackling lightning in his left hand. He slammed the lightning into the abdomen of the nearest Neoshadow and it burst. Sora stopped and hurled his Keyblade at another Neoshadow, slicing it in half as the Oblivion went spinning through the air. The Oblivion reappeared in his hand with a flash of light.
"Freeze!" Sora shouted as he aimed the Oblivion at a charging Neoshadow. A bluish white orb flew from Oblivion's tip and struck the Heartless, freezing it as it leapt into the air. The frozen Neoshadow crashed to the ground and shattered into a thousand little pieces as Sora sliced through another Heartless. The remaining three Neoshadows paused for a moment, before vanishing into tiny black portals of Darkness.
Sora dismissed the Oblivion and ran to Kairi's side, sliding along the ground as he reached her. Kairi was groaning in pain. Her eyes were squeezed tightly shut as she let out a cough. Her face had a nasty gash along her right cheek running from her jaw line up along her cheek and barely missing her eye. There was a nasty green bruise forming on her upper left shoulder alongside a deep cut that seemed to run all the way to the bone. Sora gently took hold of her head and laid it in his lap. Kairi forcibly opened her violet-blue eyes to look up at Sora.
"Sorry," she whispered. Sora's heartstrings tugged at the sound of pain in her voice. He gently ran a hand through her auburn hair, moving it away from her shoulder and cheeks so he could have better access to them.
"Shhh," Sora whispered softly. "Don't be sorry. All that matters is that you're alive, right?" He softly placed a hand on her injured cheek and bright green tendrils of light flowed from Sora's finger tips and into Kairi's cut. The bleeding quickly stopped and in a matter of seconds, there was no sign of a cut on Kairi's face at all. Kairi sighed in relief that a small portion of her pain was gone.
Sora next placed his hand on Kairi's left shoulder. The girl let out a small whimper as pain shot up and down her left arm. Sora ran his free hand soothingly through Kairi's hair. The green tendrils of light flowed brightly into Kairi's shoulder and down her arm, sealing up the lacerations on her forearm and sealing the one on her shoulder. Kairi sighed as the pain slowly ebbed away.
Sora collapsed backwards onto the ground, exhausted. He was surprised at how much energy he had had to use just to heal Kairi. Kairi pulled herself off of Sora and moved closer to him, laying herself down next to him.
"Thank you," she said as she kissed him softly on the cheek. Sora grinned.
"No problem, Kairi," he said, kissing her back on her forehead. "Can I get you to do me a small favor?" Kairi looked at him confusedly for a moment before nodding.
"Sure thing, what can I do for you?"
"I need you to reach into my pocket and-" Kairi let out a gasp of indignation and slapped Sora lightly on his chest as her mind jumped into the gutter.
"Sora! Our parents are just down the street, probably about to come out since there's no more fighting, and you want me to do that?" Sora stared at her in complete shock, trying to comprehend what she was getting at. In the back of his mind, Roxas was laughing at him.
"And besides," Kairi continued, her face now a deep shade of red, "We're both not even seventeen yet, and I don't want to do any of that stuff until I'm at least eighteen." Then it hit Sora. He started laughing. Kairi glared at him.
"What is so funny?" She demanded. Sora wiped away a small tear of mirth.
"I was going to ask you to help me get an Ether out of my pocket," Sora laughed. "I used up most of my energy healing you and I can barely move." Kairi blushed and immediately felt like an idiot.
"Oh," she said in embarrassment. "Sorry about that, I just thought you were trying to make a move." She reached inside Sora's pocket and produced a small blue cube about the size of a pill.
"Thanks," Sora said, still laughing as Kairi handed him the Ether. He popped it into his mouth and began chewing it up. Immediately, Sora felt ten times better. "And for the record, I know that you want to wait until you're eighteen to do anything sexual. That's another reason why I love you." Kairi raised an eyebrow at him.
"One of the reasons you love me is because I remain abstinent for the time being?" She asked him incredulously. Sora nodded.
"Yes and no," he replied. Kairi's eyebrows raised higher, encouraging him to go on. "Its because I also want to wait until I'm eighteen." Kairi stared at him in surprise.
"Really?" She asked incredulously. Sora nodded. "Why?"
"Because I'm so madly in love with you that I want to take our time working up to the physical part of our relationship." Kairi felt genuinely surprised. She had thought that always hanging around with Riku, the most popular kid in school (and three time winner of the middle-school's 'most likely to be a man-whore' award) would've made Sora want to have sex right of the bat in a relationship. Kairi felt her love and respect for Sora grow slightly. She leaned in to give him a kiss.
"Oh my god! That was so awesome!" Kyoko bounded out of nowhere and tackled Sora away from Kairi. Kairi stared blankly at the space where Sora had been for a moment before looking over to where Kyoko was now straddling her boyfriend. Kairi felt her anger swell up greatly and she summoned Destiny's Embrace to her hand. She could see Sora trying to push the girl off of him.
"Those scary monster things would've eaten me for sure if you hadn't destroyed them all!" Kyoko said excitedly, continuing to pin Sora to the ground. She quickly described the fight Sora and Kairi had gone through like a small child would when they saw something that got them excited. She even did her own sound effects. Kairi paused her advance on the girl.
Is this chick an idiot? She asked herself as she watched Kyoko attempt to mimic a Neoshadow's face and fail.
"So as thanks for saving me," Kyoko said with a wink towards Kairi, "Here's a fiery kiss from me!" Sora and Kairi both seized up in shock for a split moment. Then Sora struggled harder against Kyoko's grip, desperate to escape. Kairi found that she was unable to move her legs for some reason as Kyoko's lips drew closer to those of the man she loved above all others. She squeezed her eyes shut, refusing to watch it happen since she was unable to move to stop it.
"Meow." Kairi forced her eyes open. Sora had somehow produced a small white cat and was holing it in front of his face so Kyoko ended up kissing the cat. Kyoko slowly opened her eyes and let out a cry of surprise. Sora pushed her off of him and scrambled away.
"Gross!" Kyoko gagged, "Why'd you do that?" Sora glared at her.
"I was about to ask the same thing," he said. Kairi moved so she was standing next to Sora, who gave her a sorry-that-I-was-almost-forced-to-kiss-another-woman look. Kairi gave him a half smile and turned to glare at Kyoko.
"What is your problem?" Kairi demanded. "You can't go around kissing other girls boy-"
"Impressive, Keyblade Master."
Sora and Kairi turned to look down the street. A man dressed in a long black overcoat with matching boots and two foot tall top hat was walking towards them, clapping with his gloved hands.
"Charden! There you are!" Kyoko said excitedly. "Where've you been? I've been looking everywhere for you." The man, Charden, stopped several yards from Sora and Kairi. "You just have to meet my new man, Charden. Oh, I can't believe I'm calling him mine already."
"Your who now?" Sora said, his head whipping back to look at Kyoko in complete shock. Kairi's nostrils flared in anger and sparks flashed at her finger tips.
"YOUR man?" Kairi shouted. "Listen up, slut. He's MINE!" Kairi grabbed Sora's arm tightly as if anchoring herself to him. Sora winced a little as her grip tightened uncomfortably. Kyoko glared at Kairi and opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by Charden.
"Allow me to introduce myself," he said, bowing to Sora and Kairi while removing his top hat, revealing his long blonde hair that fell around his shoulders and eyes hidden by dark sunglasses. "It comes as a great pleasure to meet you, Master Sora, Princess Kairi. I am a member of the Apostles of the Star. My name is Charden." Kyoko ran over to Charden's side and flashed a "victory" sign at Sora and Kairi.
"I am too!" she said proudly. Sora and Kairi glanced at each other.
"The Apostles of the Star?" Kairi asked. Kyoko nodded, a huge grin spreading across her face.
"Yes," Charden said, placing his top hat back on his head. "We are revolutionaries led by the great Creed Diskenth, and as such we are now allied with the Queen of Darkness, Maleficent." Shivers ran down Sora's and Kairi's spines. They looked at each other in stunned silence. They thought Maleficent and Pete had been killed in the Castle That Never Was.
"She's… still alive?" Kairi asked nervously. Charden nodded. Sora glared at him.
"So, Maleficent's alive?" he demanded. He wasn't sure why, but he didn't want to believe that evil witch could still possibly be alive.
"She's alive," Charden said simply, "And let me tell you, Master Sora, she can't wait to see you again."
"Tell me, what does she have planned this time?" Sora demanded.
"If you wish to meet with Maleficent, she will be in Radiant Garden in six months time; waiting for you."
"I'll be there too!" Kyoko added excitedly.
"What's going on?" Kairi asked, placing a hand on Sora's shoulder to calm him down.
"A wonderful celebration will begin," Charden replied as a gray, oval-shaped portal appeared behind him and Kyoko. "Please, both of you, join us." He and Kyoko both walked backwards towards the portal. "Until then."
"Bye-bye!" Kyoko said, as she stepped into the portal, pausing long enough to blow Sora a kiss. Sora stared. Was it his imagination, or did she just breathe a tiny bit of fire?
"Stop!" Sora and Kairi shouted, both rushing towards the portal. The portal distorted a little in the center as a woman's hand emerged, wielding a pistol.
"Get down!" Naminé shouted from somewhere behind them. Charden stepped to the side of the portal as the pistol began firing in Sora and Kairi's direction.
"Reflect!" Sora cried out, forming a protective bubble of light around him and Kairi. The woman's hand retreated into the portal and Charden smiled at Sora and Kairi.
"One more thing," he said as he stepped into the portal. "I don't think the Heartless I sent after you are completely done." The portal closed behind him.
"So he sent the Heartless to attack us?" Sora said, dismissing the Oblivion from his hand.
"The next time I see that little slut I'm going to tear her heart out," Kairi growled under her breath, but audibly enough that Sora heard. He looked over at her in concern.
"Kairi?" he asked nervously. Kairi's head whipped around to look up at him. Sora could see anger and jealousy burning in her eyes. Sora placed a hand soothingly on her cheek. "You have nothing to worry about, Kairi," He said softly, taking up one of her hands in his free one.
"I love you and only you. No girl will ever be able to steal me from you." He removed his hand from her face and closed his fingers, leaving only his pinky finger extended towards her. "I promise." The fire in Kairi's eyes died in an instant. She slowly began to laugh at the childish gesture her boyfriend was making. Kairi raised her hand and intertwined her pinky finger with his. Sora grinned widely, causing Kairi to laugh harder.
"You're a dork, you know?" she said. She leaned up on her toes and kissed him lightly on his lips. They remained like this for a moment before pulling apart.
"I know," Sora replied, still grinning. Then something occurred to him. "Hey, didn't that Charden guy say something about the Heartless not being done with us?" As if on cue, dozens of Shadows and several Neoshadows rose from the ground. Sora and Kairi summoned their Keyblades to their hands. They each grinned at each other.
"This'll be a piece of cake," Sora said, grinning confidently. The ground beneath them shook violently. Behind the other Heartless, two Darksides rose slowly from the ground, their long dark arms reaching for the Keyblade Wielders. Kairi groaned.
"You just had to go and open your mouth didn't you?" she said. Sora stared up at the Darksides in mild surprise.
"It's just one of my many talents," Sora said in response. A Neoshadow leapt at the couple. The pair slashed the Heartless, reducing it to black mist effortlessly. Kairi grinned at Sora before rushing the Shadows, leaving the Neoshadows to Sora. Sora watched Kairi cut her way through at least seven Shadows before any of them could get close to her.
She's a natural all right. Roxas said as Sora turned to cut down the nearest Neoshadow.
Tell me about it, said Sora as he ducked under a pair of Neoshadows. He spun around them and struck at their backs. Both Heartless vanished in a cloud of black mist. So what do you think Maleficent and those Apostles of the Star are up to?
Knowing Maleficent, I'd have to say she's going after Kingdom Hearts again. And from what that Charden guy said, she's also probably wants revenge against you for killing her the first time. Sora stabbed another Neoshadow as it attempted to attack Sora from the front, to no avail. Sora wrenched the Oblivion from the fading Heartless and rolled away as a Darkside struck the ground where he had been standing. Sora lit another Neoshadow on fire. The Neoshadow seemed to panic and ran around, attempting to extinguish the flames only to spread the fire to several other Neoshadows.
Nice. Roxas laughed as at least eleven Neoshadows burned until there was nothing left. Sora struck another one in the back of the head and sliced it in half as it fell.
So what do you think Maleficent's going to do to get to Kingdom Hearts this time? Sora asked his Nobody. A Neoshadow managed to land a lucky strike against Sora's back, leaving four long scratches and shredding his clothes. Sora let out a cry of pain.
"Sora!" Kairi cried out, striking down the last of the Shadows and running towards him. "I'll be right there!" Both Darksides turned their attention onto Kairi and brought their clenched fists down onto the ground dangerously close to her. Kairi let out a cry of shock as she was knocked off her feet.
"Kairi!" Sora shouted. He struck down the remaining Neoshadows and hurled his Keyblade through one of the eyes of the nearest Darkside. The Darkside reared back and turned towards Sora. The Oblivion flashed back to Sora's hand. The Darkside raised both of its fists and slammed them down towards Sora.
Sora leapt into the air to avoid the attack but the Darksides knuckles grazed him. Sora gasped in pain as he was knocked backwards. He hit the ground hard and rolled back into a fighting stance, wincing slightly as the wounds on his back screamed at him. Sora ran towards the Darkside. He ducked under its massive arms and stuck at its tiny legs.
The Darkside collapsed to its knees, staring down at Sora with its yellow orb like eyes. Sora leapt onto the Heartless' chest, using it as a springboard to propel himself several yards into the air above the Darkside.
"Thundaga!" Sora roared. Lightning descended from the sky and burst through the Darkside. In a matter of seconds, the Heartless collapsed to the ground, causing the ground to shake again as it faded into black mist. Sora landed on the ground and spun to look for Kairi.
"Kairi?" he called. He looked past the other Darkside and spotted the auburn haired teen. She was standing behind the Darkside with her back to it. Both she and the Heartless seemed frozen in place. Sora stared at them confusedly. "Uh, Kairi?"
"Zantetsuken," Kairi said slowly opening her eyes. Behind her, the Darkside split in half, both halves exploding into black mist. Kairi straightened up and smiled excitedly. "Did you see that?" Kairi shouted, running up to Sora. "That was awesome!" Sora stared in amazement at where the Darkside Kairi had been fighting had collapsed.
"Did you seriously take it out in one blow?" Sora said, feeling a little awed. Kairi's smile grew bigger.
"Hell yeah I did!" she exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around Sora enthusiastically.
"I have to say Kairi, I'm very impressed," Sora said as he hugged her back. "I've never been able to take down a Darkside in a single blow." Kairi beamed up at him.
"Really?" she asked. "Hot damn, I'm good." Sora laughed.
"Think you could do it more than once?" He asked. Kairi raised an eyebrow at him.
"Possibly," she said slowly as she looked down at her Keyblade. "Why do you ask?" In response, Sora pointed directly behind her. Kairi turned her head to look at where he was pointing. At least half a dozen Darksides were rising from the ground, each one staring directly at the couple.
Kairi's face fell. How many more of these things were going to show up? She was already exhausted and her arms felt like lead. The Heartless began to reach for the couple. Kairi looked up at Sora who had a grim, half smile plastered on his face. He glanced down at Kairi and squeezed her in a brief, tight hug before releasing her and summoning the Oblivion Keyblade to his hands. Kairi sighed and summoned Destiny's Embrace. The couple raised their Keyblades, ready to defend themselves as the first of the Darksides loomed nearer.
Then all of the Heartless froze in place. They slowly began to turn around before they collapsed into hundreds of tiny pieces. The pieces exploded into a thick cloud of black mist that obscured most of the street from view. Sora and Kairi glanced at each other in concern. Who, or what, had the kind of power to take down half a dozen Darksides in a single instant? Footsteps echoed towards them in the calm stillness of the morning. Sora and Kairi raised their Keyblades, prepared to defend themselves.
From the fading black mist emerged a man dressed in black dress pants and shoes, a purple dress shirt that was had the top tree buttons open, exposing the numeral VII tattooed on the right side of his chest, and a black suit jacket. Sora and Kairi found their eyes drawn to the man's right hand, which was covered by a black gloved with silver claw-like decorations on the finger tips. On the back of the glove was a blue gem surrounded by a gold decoration. The numeral VII was etched into the gem.
"Man, what a pain," the man said as he approached Sora and Kairi. "I must've wiped out at least fourteen of those things this morning." He stopped a few feet from the couple, carefully examining them from behind his amethyst colored sunglasses. Then he looked a piece of paper in his left hand and back up at Sora and Kairi. "Finally!" he exclaimed, suddenly excited. Sora and Kairi took a step back, surprised at the man's sudden enthusiasm. "I have been looking all over this Island for you two!" Sora's eyes narrowed and he raised his Keyblade again.
"So you've been looking for us?" he asked the man.
"You have no idea how difficult it was for me just to find a hint that you two might be out here in the suburbs," the man said, excitedly. "Talk about a pain in the ass."
"Are you one of the Apostles of the Star?" Kairi asked him, raising her Keyblade as the thought occurred to her. The man looked dumbfounded.
"The Apostles of the Star?" he asked incredulously. "Hell no! I'm one of the Chronos Numbers!" He pulled the glove off of his hand placed it in a pocked of his suit jacket. "I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Jenos Hazard, Number VII of the Chronos Numbers." He held out his hand towards the couple. Sora and Kairi continued to watch him warily.
"And do the Chronos Numbers work with Maleficent and the Apostles of the Star?" Kairi asked, watching Jenos' face carefully. Jenos looked offended.
"Work with the Apostles of the Star?" he said, sounding legitimately shocked at the idea. "Not even. The Apostles solely exist to destroy Chronos and take over any and all worlds. They're my enemies as much as they are yours." Kairi lowered her Keyblade hesitantly.
"If they're your enemies and we're not your enemies, then why are you looking for me and Sora?" she asked. Jenos continued to hold his hand out towards them.
"I'm simply following orders," he replied. "Number One wanted to let the boy who saved the worlds more than once that he has Chronos on his side since Maleficent has the Apostles. We're here to help." Sora lowered his Keyblade.
"So you were ordered to come all the way here just to tell us that?" he asked, suspiciously. Jenos nodded.
"For the most part at least," he said. "I was sent here because I was asked by your friend Leon in over in Radiant Garden to bring you this." Jenos held out a folded piece of paper towards Sora. Sora's name was scrawled across the front. Sora dismissed the Oblivion and walked up to Jenos, taking the paper. He walked back over to Kairi who looked over his shoulder as he opened it.
Sora,
If you're reading this letter, then I'm assuming that you managed to take down Xemnas and eradicated the Organization. It's been a couple of months since you were last here in Radiant Garden and things have certainly gotten busier. I don't have much time to spend writing anymore these days so I'm going to ask you to do me a favor; when you first get a chance to, I need you to come back to Radiant Garden. There's something here I think you need to see. I think Maleficent is planning to take over here again.
I'm going to give this letter to a man named Jenos Hazard. He works with a group called Chronos that turned up here in Radiant Garden about a week or so ago. You can trust them Sora. Please hurry. I think the worlds might need your help again already.
-Leon
Sora looked up from the letter and over at Kairi. She looked up at him sadly and nodded.
"I guess that means we're leaving too," she said quitely. Sora nodded.
"Looks that way," He looked over at Jenos, who was casually examining his fingernails. "Does that mean you're going to be coming with as we go from world to world as well?" Sora asked him. Jenos shrugged in response.
"That depends on what my orders are," He said simply. "Once you two are in Radiant Garden, I have to go report to Chronos and get my new orders, so it's possible I might have to, but you never know." Behind them, Sora could her the sounds of their friends and parents leaving Riku's house now that it had been quiet for several minutes. Sora, Kairi and Jenos remained silent as the others approached them.
"What's going on?" Naminé asked as she walked up. She looked from Jenos to the slightly disappointed looks on Sora's and Kairi's faces. "Guys?"
"Sora," Allison said, as she walked up and placed a hand on Sora's shoulder. "What's wrong?" Sora took a deep breath and explained all about Maleficent surviving and allying herself with the Apostles of the Star, about Charden's words about a celebration in Radiant Garden, and about Leon's note.
"So you're both leaving as well?" Jonathan asked after Sora had finished. Both Kairi and Sora nodded.
"Yeah, we kind of have to," Kairi said. "It sounds like the worlds are in trouble again and need Sora's help."
"But does that mean you both have to go?" Selphie asked, sadness obvious in her voice. Kairi nodded.
"Yeah, aside fromt the fact that he's my boyfriend and there's no way in hell I'm letting him leave me behind while he goes off on another adventure; he's also my Master so I'm obligated to go him." Tidus and Wakka both covered their mouths to prevent themselves from rattling off a stream of jokes at Kairi's expense for calling Sora her Master. Kim glared at both of them until they calmed down. Allison pulled her son into a tight embrace.
"You two do what you've gotta do," she said, tears of pride forming in the corners of her eyes. "Go show Maleficent who's boss." Sora grinned up at his mother and hugged her back.
"Thanks, Mom," he said. Kairi was joined in a similar embrace with both of her adoptive parents. When both hugging groups broke apart the parents went to go stand over by Sora and Kairi's friends as the pair prepared to warp back to the Kingdom.
"Hold on a second!" Naminé said, rushing over to stand by Kairi's side. "You didn't think I'd let you two go off and have all of the adventuring fun without me, did you?" she asked beaming widely at the couple. Kairi and Sora both laughed.
"Of course not!" Kairi said, throwing an arm around her former Nobody and another arm around her boyfriend. "Now how about we get this show on the road?"
"Not without me," Jenos said stepping over to stand by the teens. "I took a one way warp trip here so I need a ride back to Radiant Garden." Sora, Kairi and Naminé all rolled their eyes.
"Okay," Sora said as he pulled out a small rectangular box with blue button in the center of it from his pocket. "See you guys later!" He and the others all waved at their family, friends and (in Jenos' case) complete strangers as Sora slammed his thumb down on the button. The four of them were quickly bathed in a bright white light for a moment before they warped from Destiny Islands. Less than a minute later, a bright flash of red light filled the Warp Room on the Kingdom as the four of them appeared in midair and fell on top of each other in a tangle of limbs and appendages.
After they separated themselves from one another, they headed up to the cockpit, where Sora plotted a course for Radiant Garden, estimated at three days travel from Destiny Islands. Around him, everyone was buckling in except for Jenos, who couldn't find a seat with a buckles and instead chose to strap himself to the hand rail on the stairs with his belt for support. Sora looked at him in confusion. Jenos gave him a thumbs up. Sora shrugged and activated the Kingdom's engines.
"Blast off in three. Two. One. Go!" Sora said excitedly, slamming his foot on the throttle.
"You know what I just thought of?'' Kairi said as the ship began to move forward.
"What?" Sora, Naminé and Jenos all asked at once.
"We forgot to pick up food and clothes before we left," Kairi replied. The Kingdom's engines kicked in full and the ship hurtled deep into space, causing Sora's, Naminé's and Jenos' cries of "Fuck!" to be lost in the cosmos as they left Destiny Islands behind.
LD
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Chapter Eight will be posted either tonight or tomorrow night, depending on if my internet will stay on long enough for me to upload it. It's seriously driving me nuts. Oh well. As always, reviews are greatly appreciated, but not required.
-Shadow Horizons