Okay, head's up you guys. I'm being dragged off to my grandmothers' for a week come tomorrow evening, so don't expect any updates until I'm back.

Now that that's out of the way, I'd also like to note that there are other stories I'm writing other than this one (believe it or not! XD), so updates will be slower. Probably better that way; I've been spoiling you all with uber fast rapid-fire chapter postage. Plus, all this non-stop writing has worn me out like you'd never believe, and I could use a break anyway. (Whew...) Well, then. On to chapter twenty three!

Chasing The Truth

By FlikFreak

Chapter Twenty-Three: Reunions


You led them on?

Hey, it didn't hurt anyone. If anything, it was actually helping. Why are you looking at me like that?

Nothing. I just never knew you were that interested in Neku.

Hey, he was hand-picked as Joshua's proxy. That alone is huge.

Speaking of which, don't you think you should at least go give him an update?

Who, Joshua? That guy should already know by now.

Fine. I guess it couldn't hurt to check in with him. Will you keep an eye on them in my place?

If you insist. Hurry on back, though. And keep an eye on Rhyme when you do. I'll meet you there.


Larsa's eyes were narrowed in thought. "I see," he muttered. "So the Zoners were after a power source to revive the Organization."

Sora nodded. "Right," he said. "Neku was the first one they had in mind, but when he revived Axel instead of any of the other members, they decided they didn't need him anymore and now they're out for blood."

"I figured as much," Larsa replied. "If your friend had only enough power to revive one member without wearing himself down, then they'll be looking for a far more powerful source. Do you know of anything like that?"

"Not really," Riku said. "Neku's one of a kind in that department. Even after he recovers, using him over again twelve more times won't exactly be a good idea for us or for them."

Neku groaned. "Thanks for the reassurance," he mumbled.

Biting his lip, Sora swallowed and began another question. "By the way, Larsa…"

"Yes, Sora?"

"Did you see a ghost come in here?"

Larsa hesitated, and for a brief moment Sora was worried that he wouldn't receive confirmation, but the boy nodded. "Actually, I did see one."

Sora's eyes lit up in excitement. Yes! I knew it! "Do you know anything about him?"

"No," Larsa replied, shaking his head. "He didn't stay long. He just said that a few of the kings' friends would take care of the nobodies upstairs. Funny…he looked very much like you for some reason."

Or me.

Well, you look like me, too.

Riku chuckled lowly. "Actually, Sora and I are the only ones that know the King personally. Neku is more of a visitor than anything, and Axel…well, we explained that already."

Axel crossed his arms. "I'll help in whatever way I can, but I won't make any promises."

"Right," Larsa agreed. "That just leaves…oh, there they are."

The door nearby began to shudder, and all eyes swept over it. Sora watched warily, ready to whip out the keyblade at a split second's notice, when he heard a few familiar voices emerge.

"Whelp, nothin's wrong with the cornerstone. I can't think of anything that could have messed up the barrier."

"Maybe it's not the cornerstone, your majesty. He could have snuck in through the port."

"Gawrsh, wouldn't we have known by then?"

Sora unconsciously took a step forward, eyes widening. It had been far too long since he had heard those two, although he hadn't ever seen them in their castle attire. "Donald? Goofy?"

It took all of two seconds for the connection to be made and for the duck and dog to practically fling themselves across the room and onto Sora, sending all three of them crashing to the ground. Even as he laughed and pulled his old two pals into a hug, he couldn't help but wonder why he was always at the bottom of the pile whenever there was one.

"Is he okay?" Sora heard Neku wonder in concern.

Riku could be heard laughing. "Oh, he's fine, trust me. This happens all the time."

Smirking, Sora pushed his way out of the mess and sat up. "Hey, guys. Long time no see, huh?"

"You bet," Donald cried.

Goofy just gave an awkward grin. "A-hyuk, it's great to see ya again, Sora!"

Nearby, the familiar face of King Mickey stood, arms crossed and smile wide. "It's nice to see ya again. I only wish it woulda been under better circumstances."

Sora's smile faded as quickly as it had come, and he stood. "Actually, that's what we're here about."

All eyes suddenly turned to a bit of commotion near the entrance, where Neku had grabbed onto Axel's arm and was dragging him back in. "I did not bring you back so you could run away from stuff like this."

"And how am I supposed to explain myself? I'm dead, remember?"

"Dead or not, this is something you need to face up to. And don't even think of trying to burn your way out; Roxas will never forgive you."

"What's Axel doing here?!" Donald demanded, jumping up and down furiously.

"Long story that we can explain later," Riku replied as Neku finally jerked the nobody to a stop. "We saw those dusks upstairs. You know who brought 'em in?"

"Naxeyv did," Larsa said. "But I don't know how."

"I thought we already got rid of Organization XIII," Goofy mused, rubbing his head. "How come there're more of 'em?"

"They're called the Zoners," Sora explained. "There are four of them…well, three now. We've already managed to defeat one. They found one of Ansem's computers and they're trying to use it to revive the Organization. For that, they kept going after Neku here."

"Who's Neku?" Donald asked.

Neku awkwardly stepped forward, rubbing the back of his neck. "That would be me."

The king tilted his head curiously. "Neku Sakuraba, right? Why would they go after you?"

"They wanted to use him as an energy source," Riku replied. "What they didn't expect was that Neku only had enough energy to revive one data replica, and he chose Axel."

"After that we managed to take down Zarxilt," Axel added, "But now the Zoners don't want Neku in their way anymore. I dunno why they'd go after this castle, though…or how."

"What makes you say that?" Sora asked.

Axel shrugged. "No one from Organization XIII could use a corridor of darkness to get here because of the cornerstone's power. Besides, this place wasn't exactly a landmark of interest to anyone. No heartless or anything."

"But he came after here anyway," Riku pointed out. "If anything, I'd guess he was trying to bait us here so he could wipe us out."

"But how'd he even get in?" Goofy asked. "The cornerstone stops all that, doesn't it?"

"He used a stone called nethecite to get in," Larsa explained. "It was able to absorb enough of the Cornerstone's power for him to break through the barriers and dispatch his nobodies."

So that's what he took from the ruins, Sora concluded.

Larsa's expression became stony. "With that nethecite, he will be a major threat to this castle and many other places. That's why I came to stop him myself, but he seemed content with leaving his minions and he fled to somewhere nearby."

"Where do you think that would be?" Neku asked.

"Probably Port Royal," The King suggested. "It's the closest world to here other than Radiant Garden and Atlantica."

"Good point," Riku stated. "We just came from Radiant Garden, and no one bothers invading Atlantica. Port Royal is pretty much the only place they'd go."

"What about the others?" Larsa said. "Judging from what you said, there are at least two more."

"Yeah," Neku replied. "We'll have to keep an eye out for them too, I guess."

Goofy's expression took on an all-too-familiar frown of concern. "Gawrsh, you'd better be careful out there, you guys."

"We will," Sora said, smiling and nodding, "But we're not headed out yet. There's something else I wanted to ask about."

"There was?" The King asked.

"There was?" Riku wondered.

Sora nodded. "Yeah. Do you happen to know anything about a guy named Ventus?"

Mickey apparently recognized the name, as he started a bit when it left Sora's mouth. "I know him!"

"You do?!" Sora asked, excited.

"You bet!" Mickey replied, and immediately the vigor was lost when he crossed his eyes and stared at the ground in thought. "It's been over ten years since I last saw him. He was always talking about his friends Aqua and Terra. Other than that, I don't remember much about him…I'm sorry."

Sora's shoulders slumped. "Oh…"

"I did know him once," Mickey hastily added, hoping to lift Sora's spirits. "It's just been a while. Why do ya ask?"

"We ran into a ghost named that," Neku explained. "Well, he didn't seem to want us to know who he was. He said his name was Kite at first, but one of the Zoners told us who he really was."

"He led us in here too," Sora added. "He's bound to show up again, but I just thought we'd ask."

"Does this mean you're still on the job?" Goofy asked, scratching his head worriedly.

Sora nodded. "For a little while longer, yeah. Don't worry, I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" Donald said.

It was then that Riku stepped forward. "You two should stay here in case Naxeyv decides to attack the castle again," he stated. "We'll handle the rest."

"He's right," Larsa stated. "And even if you don't run into him, there's no telling if he'll have handed the nethecite to someone else."

"No kidding," Axel commented. "Not even Xemnas could get past the barrier here. If that guy could, we're in for a rough ride."

"But we beat Zarxilt," Sora pointed out. "I'm sure we'll make it."

Mickey nodded in approval. "I'm sure you will, Sora. We'll hold the fort here, so don't worry about us. I'll send a message if anything happens."

Sora bowed politely. "Thank you, your majesty."

Aren't you going to ask about Neku's…?

Not this time, Sora replied mentally. I get the feeling that the King isn't the one we're looking for when it comes to that.

Oooh...I see where you're going with this.

"Off to Port Royal then, I guess," Riku said. "We'd better head over there before anything gets worse."

Larsa bowed respectfully. "Be careful, all of you."

Sora gave them his usual salute. "Take care, guys."


Zoners:

The Deceptive Evoker, Meyxours (Chasing The Truth/???)
The Elegant Reaper, Jaxuk (Chasing The Truth/???)
The Fallen Prince, Zarxilt (Chasing The Truth/Final Fantasy XI)
The Ruthless Emperor, Naxeyv (Chasing The Truth/Final Fantasy XII)