"Sire, there is an emergency!" All eyes turned towards Marluxia, who came charging through the dissipating castle wall from the gardens. Ansem stood from his throne, holding a hand up to quiet his guests.
"What is it Marluxia?" Ansem asked, beckoning him forward.
"The princess!" Marluxia panted, "She has gone missing!"
The room exploded. Royals jumped out of their seats, shouting accusations and expressing their fears of the worst.
"She ran away!" One shouted.
"Will we all go to war?" Someone questioned.
"Kidnapped! Kidnapped I tell you!" Another cried. Sora, who had been eating, dropped his plate to the ground in shock. He instantly ran to question the pink haired man, Vanitas slinked behind him, a smug expression playing on his face.
Ansem rushed to Marluxia, worry and fear prominent in his features, while the crowd was rioting. He turned towards the crowd and shouted, "SILENCE!"
The crowd hushed immediately.
"Marluxia," Ansem said, grabbing the man by his shoulders, "What happened? Where is my daughter!" Marluxia glared angrily over his shoulder.
"She can explain."
A quaking figure cowered behind the pink haired man. Ansem released Marluxia and stomped angrily towards the pile of dirty brown rags. Grabbing he shaking figure by the shoulder, he hoisted them up to his eye level, glaring furiously into the face of the poor old woman who lead Namine and Aqua into the gardens.
"Where. Is. Namine." Ansem asked, fury lacing his words. The old woman gulped.
"I-I was searching for my grands-son. In the maze. Her highness and her knight offered t-to search with me, and we c-came upon this clearing. It was a strange clearing, I didn't like it, but I-I needed to find my grandson. There was this w-well in the clearing, a-and I heard him, my grandson, from inside of it. The Princess went over to look, and she just... slipped." The old woman explained. Ansem tightened his grip on the old woman's cloak.
"The knight. The woman with the blue hair. Where is she. She would never leave Namine's side, so she must know what happened. I wish to hear her confirm what you've said. Tell me where she is. Now." Ansem commanded. The old hag quivered in fear.
"She jumped in after the girl!" the hag cried, "She jumped in, and I went to go down and look in after them, I was going to call for help, I swear! But when I looked into the well, there was no sight of them, or my grandson! Not even a sound!"
Ansem dropped the woman with a growl. She cowered and covered her head with her hands.
"Marluxia!" Ansem barked.
"Yes sire?"
"Is what she says true?"
"I can't say sire," Marluxia replied with a sigh, "I didn't go with them to search for the boy, but I was brought to the clearing where this woman claims the Princess disappeared,"
"Search for them!" Ansem commanded, summoning a group of golden-armored knights.
"Marluxia, lead them to the clearing. If they are not there, then search the whole damned garden. Leave no leaf unturned. We will not rest until the Princess is found." Marluxia nodded, and lead the knights into the garden.
"We must send another group of knights into the well, bring the elite guard here!" Ansem called. "Everyone else is to return to their rooms! No one is to leave until the princess is found!" The royals were ushered out of the room by a group of armored knights.
"Sire," Sora said, "Please, let me go with the knights to find Namine! I can help!"
"Fine," Ansem said sternly. "But remember this, if you go with my knights, you will be treated not as a Royal, but as a knight, the lowest in their rank. You are to listen to their every word. Do you understand?" Sora gulped, but nodded.
"Your highness! The elite forces have arrived!" a golden-clad knight called.
A group of odd-looking men rushed in. There was a tall, thin man with spiky, red hair that resembled a hedgehog, a short boy with grey hair that covered one eye, a tall, muscular man with short, dark orange hair, a light haired man with an ear pierced, a woman with two antennae like protrusions in her short blonde hair, and a thin man with a light brown mullet. There were two more men, both tall with long, black hair pulled back in ponytails, only one man was larger with dreadlocks, and the other had two prominent scars on his face and an eye patch. It was the last one that really caught Sora's attention.
"Riku!" He cried, practically tackling his old friend in a bone-crushing hug. The taller, silver-haired boy looked startled for a moment, but smiled nostalgically before patting Sora on the shoulder and gently pushing him away, promising more explanation another time. Riku stood in a long line with the men, while Ansem addressed each of them.
"Xigbar," He called out. The man with the eyepatch stepped forward, smirking. Sora frowned. Something about this man made Sora uneasy.
"Xaldin," The big man with the dreadlocks stepped forward and bowed respectfully.
"Lexaeus," The other large man with the short, orange hair. He nodded silently.
"Zexion," The smallest boy, with the grey hair stepped forward.
"Axel," The man with the flaming red hair stepped forward. He gave Sora a wink before turning his attention to the king.
"Demyx," The guy with the mullet stepped forward, but looked distracted. Axel punched his arm, to which Demyx replied with, "Ow! What was that for Axel!"
"Luxord," The last man, with the earring stepped forward. Sora hadn't noticed it before, but he was expertly shuffling a deck of playing cards in one hand, like it was second nature to do so.
"Larxene," The lone female of the group stepped forward, an impish grin on her face. She too winked at Sora, only her wink didn't feel as friendly as Axel's did. Sora made a mental note to stay on this woman's good side.
"Riku," Riku stepped forward, looking as brooding and serious as Sora had remembered. The two boys had grown up together on Destiny Islands and were the very best of friends. When Riku turned sixteen, he had headed out for the capitol to get stronger and make more connections so that he could protect Destiny Islands, no matter what. Sora had missed him terribly.
"I have a very important mission for you all. We have just received word that my daughter has gone missing. According to a witness, she fell into a well deep inside the gardens. She and her knight disappeared inside of them, and have not been seen since. I task you with going into the well and searching for them. But be warned, we know not of the dangers that may lurk inside of the well, so be on your guard. Am I understood?"
"Yes sir!" The knights chorused.
"The young Royal, Sora, has asked to accompany you to find the princess, and I shall not deny him. You are to protect him and make sure he comes back alive and unharmed, am I clear?"
"Yes sir!" They repeated. Ansem nodded. "Marluxia will be your guide to the well, and he will accompany you in finding the princess-"
"What!" Marluxia shrieked. The blonde, Larxene echoed his complaint, and the two glared at each other. Axel and Xigbar snickered.
"As a former knight and caretaker of the gardens, you should have immediately escorted any intruders into the palace to be questioned, and under no circumstances should you have allowed my daughter to wander off with strangers inside of the castle walls!" Ansem shouted. Marluxia shrank backwards in a mixture of fear and guilt.
"As punishment, you are to search for her and act as a guide for your former brothers in arms, and I expect you all to be on your best behavior! Do I make myself perfectly clear!" Marluxia grumbled in agreement, and the knights stood straight as arrows. Sora shuffled awkwardly in his spot.
"Go now," Ansem commended, taking a deep breath to lower his tone, "We must find my daughter immediately. Go!"
With that, Marluxia led the group into the gardens, past the king and the elderly old woman. Sora spared her one last glance, a sudden, unexpected streak of fear running through his veins, as if ice coated his blood.
The old woman was smiling.
Sora blinked, and the woman's smile was replaced with sorrow, and remorse. Sora shook it off as a trick of the light, believing he was only seeing things yet... he couldn't shake that horrible feeling in his gut.
Dread.
"Well, here it is," Marluxia said as they neared the clearing. Axel peered over the edge of the well and whistled.
"Looks pretty deep. And...sparkly," Demyx and Larxene quickly shuffled over to examine it. Larxene cleared her throat and spit into the well.
Axel rolled his eyes, "Classy."
Larxene shushed him by punching him in the arm. After about a minute of silence, Larxene sighed.
"Real deep, I didn't even hear a splash," She grumbled.
"Maybe there's no water down there?" Demyx offered meekly. Larxene responded with a mocking laugh.
"Idiot, even if there wasn't any water, we'd hear it hit the ground," Demyx shrunk back, embarrassed. Larxene scared the shit out of him.
"Well, now what?" Zexion asked, walking over to examine the well.
"I guess we could send someone in first, to make sure it's safe," Axel suggested. Everyone looked at Demyx. It took him a moment to realized what their stares meant.
"Oh no, no way! I am not going down there first! You got the wrong guy for the job!" He cried, waving his hands and shaking his head frantically.
"Huh, wuss," Larxene laughed.
"Well, someone has to go first," Zexion said, crossing his arms.
"Well, why don't you go first then?" Demyx retorted. Zexion glared.
"Because some people are more valuable to this kingdom than others!" Zexion huffed in return.
"Hey!" Demyx cried indignantly.
"Hey, cut it out you guys," Axel said, holding the two boys apart, "If we're gonna go by importance, well just send flower boy down first and-"
"Excuse me!" Marluxia gasped, "Did you just suggest that I was the least important person here on this mission?"
"Why yes, I think he did," Larxene jeered, a snarky smile gracing her lips. Marluxia huffed angrily.
"Well, I'd say ladies first, but clearly, there are no suitable ones present!" He taunted. Larxene inhaled sharply.
"Oh boy," Luxord said, smacking his face with his hand.
"WHAT!" Larxene shrieked, glaring daggers at Marluxia, who returned the look with a smug grin. If looks could kill, Marluxia and the next twenty generations of his family would be six feet under.
Sora stood baffled as he watched the 'elite' forces, the strongest knights in the entire kingdom, fight like two year olds over a toy. They were pulling each other's hair for light's sake!
"Sora," Riku called, pulling him off to the side, "Are you sure you want to do this? We have no idea how dangerous this could be, and you're too important to Destiny Islands and this world for anything to happen to you."
"Riku, I'll be fine," Sora assured his friend, patting him on the shoulder, "I've trained a lot since you left! I even trained with the strongest knight and mage in Disney Town!" Sora exclaimed happily. Riku couldn't help but smile a little. Disney Town was known for it's strong knights and mages, despite their...oddities. In fact, Mickey, the presiding Royal of Disney Town, was an old friend of his.
"Are you sure you can do this Sora?" Riku asked, planting a firm and on Sora's shoulder. Sora nodded.
"For Namine, anything."
"You like her a lot then?"
"Yeah," Sora said, smiling bashfully and scratching the back of his head. Riku grinned.
"Try not to talk to much then. You might scare her off."
"Hey!"
Riku laughed at Sora, and Sora pushed him playfully. Riku just laughed and caught Sora in a headlock, giving him a noogie. Sora yelled and wriggled in protest, but laughed nonetheless. It was good to have his old friend back.
Their good-natured roughhousing was abruptly put to an end as a terrified scream silenced all of the fighting. Riku immediately released Sora and both boys raced to join the rest of the group, who were standing around the edge of the well. Riku noticed that Demyx was no longer standing among his comrades. As the scream died out, Larxene glared at Maruxia angrily.
"Look what you did!" She yelled, shoving her index finger in Marluxia's face.
"Me? YOU were the one that pushed him!" Marluxia yelled back, smacking Larxene's hand away from his face.
"But he tripped over YOUR foot!"
"He did not!"
"He did! I saw it!"
"Did not!"
"Did too!"
"Did NOT!"
"Did TOO!"
"Enough!" Zexoin shouted, attempting to break the two apart. Unfortunately for him, he was much smaller than both Marluxia and Larxene, who were both far to angry to be reasoned with.
"Stay out of this!" Larxene and Marluxia shouted in unison, pushing Zexion out of the way. Zexion stumbled backward from the force and tumbled backward, into the well. His scream did little to distract Larxene and Marluxia from fighting. Rather, it did the opposite.
"Now look what you did!" Larxene shrieked.
"What I did? That was all your fault!" Marluxia retorted.
"Was not!"
"Was too!"
"Was not!"
"Was TOO!"
As their fight grew louder and more intense, they began to get physical. Larxene was the first to throw a punch. Marluxia dodged in the nick of time and Larxene hit Luxord instead. Stumbling backwards from the power of the hit, he tripped on the edge of his robe and into the well after Zexion and Demyx.
Sora, trying to break the two apart, was also hit and pushed backwards. Before he fell, he clung to the nearest thing to him, in an attempt to stay grounded. That just so happened to be Riku, who was dragged into the well by his falling friend. The two screamed as they fell into the dark depths.
"This is ridiculous," Xaldin said, crossing his arms.
"I dunno, I think it's kinda funny," Xigbar laughed, watching the fight in amusement.
"Ok, I think I've had enough," Axel sighed. He dropped into a fighting stance and charged forward with a battlecry. Larxene and Marluxia, startled by the sudden noise, looked in Axel's direction, on the to have the fiery redhead tackle them both before leaping into the well, the two of them in tow.
"Woooohooooo!" Axel shouted, as Larxene and Marluxia struggled at his sides, shouting his name and several profanities.
On the surface, Xigbar cackled like a madman.
"That was great!" He hollered, clutching his stomach. Lexaeus and Xaldin just stared at him.
"Geez, tough crowd," Xigbar said, "I'm gonna head down too. Don't want to miss out on the action."
Xigbar casually waved to the two larger men and then jumped into the well. Xaldin looked at Laxaeus, who shrugged, and they both leaped into the well after their comrades.
After they had gone, a dark figure emerged from the brush where they were hidden.
The old woman appeared out of the shadows, looking around as if a monster were about to pounce on her from any direction. Sinister cackles rang through the clearing, and the elderly woman jumped inf fright.
"Bravo," they laughing voice called. A man stepped out from where he was leaning against a nearby tree, clapping.
"A touching performance, I nearly cried," He said. The old woman stood up straight, as if she had never had a hunchback in her life.
And she didn't.
"Vanitas," She called in a voice much darker and more sinister than it was before. The Royal in question stepped into the open clearing, his face illuminated by the moonlight.
"Maleficent," The woman's eyebrow twitched. Throwing up her hands, green flames erupted from the ground. Vanitas rolled his eyes. She was always one for theatrics.
As the flames died down, the woman's old, dirty, wrinkly exterior was replaced by a much taller, more sinister appearance. Her dirty brown rags were exchanged for regal black and purple robes, like silken bat wings draped around a skeleton. Her wrinkly, mole-filled face melted away to reveal a much younger, smooth face with a clear complexion, albeit slightly green. Her crusty, lumpy fingers and chipped nails were replaced with long slender fingers with razor sharp, claw-like nails.
"Oh come now, is that really how you should be addressing your mother?" Maleficent asked in a sickly-sweet voice.
"Why, do you prefer 'Mother Dearest'?" Vanitas scoffed. Maleficent frowned.
"After all of these years, our plan is finally about to come to fruition, so you had better not screw it up boy," Maleficent warned, dropping all fake niceties.
Vanitas laughed, "I won't if you won't, Mother Dearest."
Vanitas' smirk grew as Maleficent's frown deepened.
"If you do as your told, not only this world, but his world too, will be in the palms of our hands!" Maleficent cackled, barely acknowledging Vanitas' existence. She raised her hands high again, and the green flames erupted from the earth, completely obscuring her from the Vanitas' view. As the flames died, Vanitas was left standing alone in the clearing with only the echo of Maleficent's laughter and a smoking heap of burnt grass.
"Dramatic bitch," Vanitas cursed under his breath. A crow cawed loudly from a nearby tree branch. Vanitas laughed, then flipped his middle finger in the general direction of the crow before jumping into the well without a sound.
A/N: If you think about it though, Maleficent is like, the biggest Primadonna ever. She cursed a baby cause she wasn't invited to her birthday party for light's sake.
So Vanitas is a bad guy, surprise surprise. But I wonder who his dad-who-is-going-to-be-really-important-to-this-st ory is.
It's Ventus.
Just Kidding.
Hell of a plot twist if it was though.
Thanks to everyone who faved, alerted, and Reviewed, I really appreciate it and I'm sorry this chapter fell short of the 4000 word mark that I promised, but I felt right to end it here. But at least now everyone is in the same place right? Next chapter, there will be Terqua, VenNami fluffiness and awkward sexual encounters galore. There will also be a new character introduced, so look forward to it.
Kmouxe out.