~*.*Disciples of the Keyblade*.*~
Title: Planning
Rating: T to be safe
Warnings: Violence
Characters: Ventus, Aqua, Terra, Master Eraqus, Bambi, Thumper, Flower, various hunters and animals
Summary: The animals understood why Man hunted them—but when the delicate balance begins to tip in the wrong direction, Terra and the others are sent to investigate.
Special Notes: Quite honestly, I have an excuse for the lateness of this update. Not only do I have State Testing, I have separate Finals to take. But here it is, the finale to JimBob86's idea. Hope you enjoy!
I recommend you check out these three stories:
Sunsets and Ice Cream by UnVeRsEd if you like RoxasxXion…
The Diary of Naminé by Kiome-Yasha if you like SoraxNaminéxRoxas…
And Rogue of the Fallen by CrimsonDarkness 0013 if you like in-universe!
For Dani-Chan, as always!
"No!" Terra cried from behind him. Frustration laced his tone and Ventus heard the heavy thump of his great hooves against the forest floor.
Sorry, Ven thought privately as he hared along, paws slamming down hard, lengthening his stride as far as it would go. Thumper scrambled after him, his stockier frame slightly hindering his progress.
The monster dog slithered ahead of the pair, pressing itself flat to the ground, practically gliding along on its twisted, malformed paws. It became scrawnier, skinnier, slipping between a fallen trunk and the earth. Ven sprang clear over the tree, whilst Thumper hauled himself out from underneath it.
The blue-eyed apprentice never moved his gaze from the shadow. He had to see where it came from, that was the whole reason he was following the beast. In his mind, he still saw the horribly mutilated corpse in the woods—so shredded that it was unrecognizable as any living thing. He had been a lion before, the top of the food chain, and now he was a hare, near the bottom…
All life is important. And this thing…just…destroys it! But why? Everything has a reason…
Red orbs glanced back at him before turning forward once more.
And I'm going to find out!
Ven skidded down a slope, shaking his fur and scowling, ears trembling. Thumper prodded his back with his nose. "We've got to keep going!"
The hare drew himself up on his hind legs. "No, wait! Look!"
The dog had charged down a mossy incline, nails shredding the delicate green plants underpaw, heading towards a jagged hill of stones and gray rocks, uneven and seeming as if it would topple down at any moment. The creature then dipped its constantly twitching, even morphing head and vanished inside.
"Shh," Thumper brought a "finger" to his mouth, pressing close to the gritty grass and inching forward. Ven followed, heart rattling within his ribcage, curious to see the monster's lair. It was slow going, but at last they stood outside the entrance of a well hidden cave. The golden hare poked his head in cautiously, sniffing, almost gagging at the scent of rotting flesh.
Torn animal bodies littered the cavern like scattered popcorn, some crushed, and others picked clean, incomparable to any living fauna in the forest. The ceiling was low at first, then swept high, almost half the height of the rugged, mountainous hill. And on the other side of the room…
Something oval. And hissing. And blackish-blue. Waves of icy wind washed out from it, and dark, spiny tendrils swished through the air.
Darkness!
"What is that?" Thumper sounded frightened, making himself as small as he could, eyes huge in his gray and white face.
"I don't know," Ven whispered back. "But where's the monster?"
No matter how hard he strained, the apprentice could not make out any movement besides that of the black oval.
"It's like the dog just…vanished." The rabbit twitched his tail, beginning to retreat. "Let's go back! It must live here, right?"
"We need to look around some more," Ven argued. He left the cave's mouth and circled the perimeter, testing any particularly loose stones with his paws. A cold draft flowed across his pelt, ruffling it as he neared a particular rock in the hill. With Thumper watching out for signs of the monster hound, the young apprentice investigated the craggy knoll, intent on finding the source.
There!
Ventus gently moved some loose scree around, revealing a ragged but small and very real hole in the hillside. Just big enough for a rabbit and a skunk, but far too little for a deer or even a fox, unless the bushy-tailed creature was starving.
A plan began formulating in his head, but just then a ferocious howl sounded from within the cave. Yelping, he just managed to jump away before a pair of jaws closed around his legs. The Keybearer whirled around, glaring, facing the hunting dog. The shadowy specter was stuck halfway within the miniscule opening that Ven had just discovered, its attempt to snag the apprentice failed. It was twisting and thrashing, body fluctuating between several different sizes, frame becoming thicker and skinner. But no matter how it manipulated itself, the hound couldn't escape.
Hooves beat the ground behind him, and Ventus turned to see Bambi skidding to a halt on the top of the mossy slope that led out of the monster's clearing—and its cave.
"Thumper, Ven! C'mon, we've got to get out of here!"
Ven hastily backpedaled as the dog heaved itself out of its trap, shooting clumsily into its den with a comical crash that promised it slammed into the wall in the process. Whilst it was dazed, the rabbit and hare followed the deer out of the blood-soaked meadow.
The dark thing…it must be important to the monster. But what is it?
Troubled, he barely noticed the speed of which they flew across the forest, feet just barely skimming the ground. Bambi ran furiously, intent to put as much distance between them and the monstrous shadow as possible. The sun's light was only a faint orange smudge on the horizon. Night was descending, and as it spread its ebony wings, spots of ivory popped into existence one by one. The dusk completed its arrival by opening its one white eye and offering some dim radiance to the world in replacement of the sun's.
Bambi slowed down at last, sides heaving, head nearly to his knees as he began to relax. Clearly, the hound was not interested in giving pursuit just yet. With the absence of solar luminescence, however, Ven knew it would be much harder to spot it now.
Dark cobalt eyes were suddenly in the hare's entire field of sight.
"What. Were. You. Thinking?" Terra growled, snorting, causing hot air to flatten Ven's fur.
He forced himself to stand on all fours, staring defiantly up into his role model's angry face. Nighttime shades danced across the stag's features, making him look sinister. A firefly sailed across Terra's right eye briefly, momentarily giving the illusion of his gaze turning yellow.
"I had to know where the hunting dog went," Ven protested.
"And now we know! It lives in this creepy, bone-strewn field." Thumper waved his paws dramatically. "In a crumbling, rocky hillside. The weirdest thing though, is this cave—"
"It has a black portal in it," the Keybearer apprentice finished. "But get this." Ventus looked straight at Aqua, and the skunk twirled her furry tail curiously. "When I was investigating, the hound tried to grab me. It ended up getting stuck in this really small hole in the hill I found. You and I could fit in there…"
"But the dog couldn't? Can't it change size?" Terra's fury had subsided, and now he paced the length of the small clearing, shaking his antlers occasionally.
"That's what we've seen," Flower said quietly, fiddling with some wild daisies growing near her.
"Yeah, Ven's right!" Thumper exclaimed, his ears shooting up. "It was trying to change like crazy—"
"But it must have a limit to how much it can alter itself," Aqua finished. "This is great news! I think—"
"This is pointless," Terra interrupted, stomping over to them and kneeling down so he was close to their level. Bambi cocked his head to the side curiously. The stag remarked with conviction, "We know where the dog is. Let's go kill it."
Death. No more death, I don't…
After seeing the battered corpse in the forest—(still so vivid behind closed lids, where the shadows and colors took ethereal forms)—Ventus's entire being balked at the prospect of killing another thing. "This world is called Tranquil Forest," he declared without thinking.
Flower blinked and Aqua nodded.
"I…no more violence! This place is…covered with death." Ven sighed and tried to force his pelt to lie flat as he worked himself up. He still wasn't used to how animal fur reacted to emotions, rising and falling all the time. "It's seen enough violence already."
"It'll have to see a bit more. We can go destroy the thing causing this, and then it can all go back to normal. Obviously this monster is affecting the hunters. Once we've dealt with—"
"No!" Ventus leaped up and placed his front paws on Terra's snout, leaning close and narrowing his eyes. "There has to be another way! I don't even know if we're in a position to fight without our Keyblades!"
At the mention of "Keyblades", all of the resident woodlanders seemed confused.
"He's right, Terra. We can try, but my magic is limited in this form and you…" Aqua's tone was soothing but her expression was uncomfortable. Ven wasn't sure if she was on his side or not.
"I can't kill," Bambi flattened his ears to his skull. "E-Even to get rid of the thing that killed my mother. Deer just don't kill. Not even stags."
"Violence is not the answer," Flower murmured shyly, as if unsure that anyone cared to hear her opinion. Thumper looked guiltily at Terra, but he nodded also, agreeing with the skunk.
"What's wrong with you?" The eldest apprentice demanded. He dislodged Ven from his muzzle and exchanged looks with everyone present. "This is the—"
"You're outvoted. Leader or not, you're outvoted. We're not in a position to fight the shadow hound without some serious injuries." Aqua, the only one that could stand up to Terra without quailing at receiving his displeasure, fixed him with the full power of her azure eyes. "There's a black oval in the cave. I bet that's where the monster is from. If we can send it back into there and make sure it doesn't come back out, we'll solve this problem without harming this delicate forest even more. These creatures aren't killers, they're not predators and we're not in forms that are. This isn't the Pride Lands."
Terra huffed crossly. "Why can't we magic ourselves back to normal?"
"Some worlds have a special magic that'll change you no matter what, remember?" Aqua rose to her paws, and this time she faced Ventus instead. "Do you have any idea what you want to do, to get the monster out of this place?"
The hare was pleased to have everyone's support. Even Terra was grudgingly waiting for his response.
"Alright, here's the plan…"
"If we want to get it out, we need to take it back to its cave…and lay an ambush. Right? That'll be us!"
Ventus had never run faster in his life. The creature had gone out hunting in the morning hours, and after setting their scheme up, they finally initiated it somewhere before early afternoon. Bravely, before the apprentice could stop him, Thumper actually bit the hound and then raced off towards its den. The hare was right beside him, once even grabbing the rabbit's scruff when he stumbled and almost got caught by the infuriated dog chasing them. The twitchy creature was surfing across the woodland floor, and it was hard to say what it looked like thanks to its constantly moving appearance.
All in all, Ven guessed its shape was roughly lupine. Four footed, long snouted, pointy ears and a tail. The red eyes that glowed in its angular face were particularly noticeable, no matter where it tried to conceal itself.
Cold breath glided across the back of their paws as the companions fled, taking every twist and turn they could think of in an effort to escape those fearsome teeth for a few seconds more. Ven had not wanted to involve Thumper, but he would not be left out of the plan to save the forest.
I don't blame him.
"We're almost there!" Ven panted, earning a bedraggled nod from his friend. They zoomed side by side, almost moving in unison, their eyes locked onto the shape looming before them. Sunlight flared out from behind the stony hill, causing its silhouette to almost appear blindingly bright.
Phase two of the plan was almost upon them.
Just then:
Ventus tripped. He sprawled out on his side, gasping as he just managed to haul his back paw out of reach of a set of massive canines that snapped closed with an ominous snick. Even though his blood was roaring in his floppy ears, he gathered all of his strength and put on a huge burst of speed, escaping the agitated hound as it howled in a bloodthirsty rage.
"Whenever it leaves, Aqua and Flower can get inside the cavern…and do what skunks do, I guess."
After making sure Ven was all right, Thumper disappeared into the cave of corpses. His pale fur stood out in the darkness just a little bit, but not nearly as much as the blue-eyed Keybearer's golden pelt.
The hound made a wheezing noise that sounded very much like, "Heh…heh…heh…" It expanded itself so that it took up a good deal of the entrance, stepping towards them slowly, a forked gray tongue licking its massive teeth.
Ven made a "Nyah!" face before bounding away into a slightly elevated corner of the grotto. He pushed Thumper through—(the fatter rabbit wasn't as skinny as the hare)—and whisked out of the fissure just as Aqua and Flower emerged from their various hiding places amongst the bone debris that layered the room.
The shadowy specter's face went laughably slack as it beheld the striped tails of the animals. It wailed and endeavored to escape, for not even it was eager to face a skunk (thanks to its sensitive nose). Fortunately enough, Terra and Bambi were ready.
Spotting them from the ground, Ventus gave a grin as the deer heaved vigorously, their combined power causing a particularly large stone to untangle itself from the already unstable mound. A veritable mini rockslide crashed down onto the only exit that the dog could fit through.
"Terra and Bambi can block the entrance, and then…"
Passing dangerously near the Dark portal, Aqua and Flower sprayed the air before hastily making their getaway. As the monster shrieked and ran around wildly, once the skunks were safely out, Ventus and the others blocked the tiny hole with some loose rocks that were close at hand.
"…Aqua and Flower can leave the same way Thumper and I did. Then we seal any small openings and hope the dog leaves. Easy, right?"
They didn't have to wait long.
After only three heartbeats, the whimpering ceased. Terra chanced a quick look inside, revealing a small gap in the hillside after a few seconds of pithy labor.
"It's gone," he reported. "There's nothing moving in there."
"The Darkness…is it still there?" Aqua asked.
"Yeah. But like I said…" The stag re-covered the cavity. "The hound is gone. It won't be getting out."
Just to be extra careful, the friends circled the knoll, reinforcing every aspect of the mound with more heavy objects that were basically boulders.
"We did it!" Bambi exclaimed, bouncing excitedly. "The hunters will stop now!"
"We're lucky they didn't come during Ven's crazy plan," Terra huffed.
"But they didn't. I bet this world will be fine now." Aqua seemed pleased. She smiled at their woodland friends, and Ven decided to do the honors.
He nodded at their allies in turn. "Bambi, Flower, Thumper…thanks for the help! But we've got to go home."
"Oh…that's too bad. But I hope you'll be back soon." Flower practically beamed at them, her little face alight with joy.
"Wait 'till I tell my dad! But she's right. I hope we see you again." Bambi lowered his head in a courteous gesture that surprised the apprentices.
"Yeah! You haven't even seen the forest yet!" Thumper waved good bye energetically as Terra, Aqua, and Ventus bid them farewell and headed away.
There were, of course, certain spots in the Tranquil Forest that cancelled the world's special shapeshifting magic (if one knew the spell). It was to these locations that they headed, making use of Aqua's sensitivity to all things arcane to find them.
And along the way, Ven's sharp ears overheard a hunter's dog complaining about headaches and wondering how long he had been asleep.
Three shapes twinkled out of existence, taking their riders home.
Unbeknownst to them, unaffected by the skunk's spray floating over from the other side of the Dark Corridor thanks to his helmet, a figure extended his hand and dismissed the shadowy dog from existence with a contemptuous twitch of his covered fingers.
He wasn't even sure himself what kind of emotion he had used to make that creature. Bloodlust, perhaps?
Whatever the cause…He smiled. It was amusing to watch.
"You see, Master," Terra said as he neared the ending of his explanation concerning their exploits in the Tranquil Forest. "The hound seemed to have originated from this black oval inside a cave. It was Ven's idea to chase it back where it came from, to prevent even more violence from occurring."
No mention of the fact that he was all for violence at the time.
"And it worked?" Eraqus inquired, stroking his chin thoughtfully and flicking his eyes from Ventus to Terra to Aqua and back again.
"That's right. The hunters and dogs went back to normal, and we left."
"But what do we do about the Darkness?" Aqua clasped her hands in front of her, probably feeling just as disoriented as Ventus was after being an animal for so long.
"You won't do anything, Aqua. I'll seal the Corridor when I get the opportunity, but with your Master Qualification Exams so near, I have my hands full at the moment. I shall shut off the Darkness soon after you both pass. All three of you, extraordinary work. And Ventus?"
"Yes, Master?" The blonde apprentice stood straight and formally at attention, hands at his side. This posture was actually one of his least favorites, but he put up with it out of respect for his teacher.
Eraqus clapped a hand on Ven's shoulder, smiling. "You are advanced in your thinking, to be so young. It was wise to avoid violence while it was still possible. Fantastic work."
Aqua grinned, happy for him, and Terra's eyes briefly displayed something like jealousy before he, too, grinned.
Their teacher informed them they had the entire day off and a good portion of tomorrow, as a reward for their hard work. With that, he went to his room to "look into a pressing matter".
"Terra? Sorry…for not listening to you." Ven stared at the stained glass dappled floor of the Training Room within the Land of Departure's gorgeous castle.
Terra laughed slightly, ruffling the youngest disciple's hair, the motion fond. "You've got nothing to apologize for. I'm proud of you."
Aqua smiled kindly, tapping Ventus's chest. "You've certainly got the heart of a Keyblade Master."
Ven felt like he could fly.
I'm considering ending Disciples of the Keyblade soon and starting a new Birth by Sleep story (also for Dani-Chan, because she's awesome like that) that is actually connected, instead of a one-shot collection. But we'll see. Don't worry, this story isn't done yet.
Evidently, it was because of that Dark Corridor in Bambi's world that caused it to be lost to Darkness in Kingdom Hearts. Eraqus never did get to close it. A monster created to entertain a certain person is one thing, an army of Heartless is another.
Thanks to all of my reviewers/favoriters/story alerters/read-and-runners! I hope you drop another review; I love to hear your thoughts!