~*.*Disciples of the Keyblade*.*~
Title: Searching
Rating: T to be safe
Warnings: Violence in subsequent chapters
Characters: Terra, Aqua, Ventus, Master Eraqus, Pocahontas, Chief Powhatan, John Smith, Ratcliffe, various others
Summary: Aqua, Terra, and Ven mistakenly arrive in "The New World", and they're faced with principles they've never heard of before.
Special Notes: Sorry for the wait, I was moving from Texas to Missouri. I've finally got my own room! XD Anyway, this idea is courtesy of surxi25, and I hope you enjoy the rest!
For Dani-Chan, as always!
I hurt. Everywhere. In every place. Ever.
Ignoring the redundancy of his own thoughts, Terra rolled onto his side—and got pecked in the nose by some kind of darting green bird. He growled, slapping the offending creature away, but the hummingbird flickered out of reach with a shrill chirp.
Dismissing his armor, the male Keybearer glanced from left to right, brows furrowed, massaging his head and surveying the area. To be rather frank about it, there was nothing but forest all around him. Towering, mighty skyscrapers with broad trunks and wide, leafy branches. He shrugged, getting to his feet in a much steadier manner than Aqua had previously.
"Great…where am I?" A pause. "Where's Aqua and Ven?" He considered calling their names, but drawing attention to himself might not be a smart idea since he didn't know what lived here. There could be dragons for all he knew.
He craned his head up, knocking some clinging moss and dirt from his shirt and pants, seeing a visible hole in the upper canopy from where he had fallen in. Great, then he probably had more bruises than he cared to count. Better not to think about it.
Terra rubbed the back of his skull, heaving a sigh. Right. Let's go take a look at this place. After making sure his mental connection with his Keyblade was still intact, the brawny warrior made his way through the forest with surprisingly quiet steps for one his size.
The air became damper, and when he breathed, his mouth was layered with the fine, delicate taste of water and green growing things. He placed his foot and heard a small splash. Glancing down, Terra saw a little liquid trickle sliding between verdant ferns and algae.
Well, at least I won't dehydrate.
Trees with low hanging branches brushed the surface of the water, and it gradually increased in width and depth until a creek of decent proportions was meandering through the hushed wood. Terra decided to follow it, assuming that where there was something to drink, there'd be people.
Unless something really nasty hides around here...
Not being the most optimistic of fellows, Terra kept a cautious eye on his surroundings. Eventually a small island came into view in the broadest section of the river, and he glimpsed a figure moving through the vines that crisscrossed the ancient willow that grew on it.
Friendly? Hostile? Only one way to know for certain.
Terra was fairly confident that he could handle anything he encountered, but regardless he approached warily. It was impossible to cross the water without creating a sound, so he went ahead and let the splashing announce his arrival. No need to spook anyone…
Pushing aside the hanging curtain of leaf and vine, the male Keybearer looked around. The tree was far taller than he had previously imagined, and there was what appeared to be a stump acting as a seat of sorts directly in front of a slightly bulging, though smooth, indention in the trunk, which was gray with age. Terra inhaled slowly, releasing the air in the form of a sigh. He felt…uneasy. He didn't know why.
Wait, hadn't there been someone here…?
"Hello?" Terra thought he glimpsed a shape moving to his right, but when he whirled around, there was nothing there. He scowled, summoning his Keyblade and resting its reassuring weight on his shoulders. "Is someone here?"
"My, my…I've not seen a Keybearer for a long time."
Gasping, he watched as a face, an elderly woman's face, formed on the willow tree. Eyes carved into the bark itself surveyed him with an undeniably intelligent gaze.
"That tree is talking to me. Oh boy." Shaking his head, Terra remarked, "I must have fallen harder than I had thought."
"So that was you? The forest was complaining that something had disturbed the canopy."
"Uh…sorry." Terra swallowed, licking his lips, trying to think of what to say. "Who are you?"
"I am Grandmother Willow. You, young man, are a Keybearer, aren't you?" She studied him with evident interest, and he tried not to stare too rudely. He supposed talking trees shouldn't be too unusual…after all, he turned into animals…
"Yes, ma'am. Ah…" He crept forward delicately, as if he was frightened of hurting her in some way. Grandmother Willow gestured with a vine for him to sit on the stump, and he did so slowly, without moving his shadowy blue gaze from her own.
"You have a good soul, but I foresee trouble for you down the road…" She murmured, almost sadly.
"Trouble? What do you mean?" His blood ran cold.
"Oh nothing, nothing," commented Grandmother Willow breezily. "Now tell me, young man, what is your name?"
"Terra."
"Terra. That's a good name. Strong like the earth, aren't you?" She chuckled before growing serious. "Are you looking for something, Terra?"
"I am. Have you seen my friends, Aqua and Ven?" He tried to push his feeling of foreboding away, but it encroached on his senses and dug into his mind with razor-sharp tentacles.
"Aqua and Ven…" She exhaled so heavily that a tendril of moss shot up into the air and away from her face. "I know where Aqua is, but I don't know about Ven."
Terra gripped his leg so tightly that his nails dug into the fabric of his pants. "That's fine. I'll find Ven myself. Where's Aqua…please." He added, remembering that this was probably a wise old nature spirit. Respect was key, unless he wanted the landscape itself trying to kill him.
Grandmother Willow grumbled to herself. "She's with the Powhatan Tribe that lives near the river. Unfortunately, I doubt they'll let you just walk into camp."
"Why's that? Is she captured?" He narrowed his eyes to slits, grasping Earth Shaker's handle with an increased vigor.
"No, no, nothing like that. There are white men—"
Terra glanced down at his own skin.
"—digging near the shore. They've hurt a member of their Tribe and now they are wary of anyone that resembles them."
"Uh oh." I bet Ven is over there! Biting off a curse word in his head, Terra inquired politely, "How is Aqua safe with the Powhatans then?"
Grandmother Willow smiled. "She has a good heart, and impressed them with her ability to communicate with the animals, something the other white men have not done. They believe her to be a…shaman, of sorts."
"Great. That's just like Aqua." Rumpling his hair, he sighed and stood up. "I need to go to her."
The tree apparently disagreed, because she shifted her curtain of vines and scrunched her face up in thought. "Young man," she began gently. "I think you would be better off finding your other friend. Ven, did you say? Aqua is safe with the Tribe for now, but even I don't know where Ven is."
"He's not in the forest?"
When Grandmother Willow indicated he was right, she also stated in a pensive tone, "I've got an idea…climb to the top of my branches, child. From there you can see the camp of the white men, the settlers. Your friend may be there."
"I don't doubt it," Terra growled in annoyance, starting the rigorous task of heaving himself up the branches. Every individual limb creaked underneath his weight, and he paused a moment to utter a quick apology before continuing. As the ground moved farther and farther away from him, he felt his stomach somersault a little. Heights weren't a personal favorite of his…
Once, he almost slipped due to a particularly slippery portion of the tree, and he yelped in a most uncharacteristic fashion, clinging to the trunk and waiting for his pounding heart to slow down. Gradually, the earth disappeared altogether and he ended up situated on the very top of Grandmother Willow, resting uncomfortably in a split. Swiping at a few leaves, the Keybearer brought a hand to his eyes and scanned the horizon.
Forest, rocks, sand, sea, and sky. It spread out before him as if that was all that existed in the world, and he tasted ocean salt on his tongue and scented forest mildew in his nose. It was a beautiful place, even he would freely admit that, but he didn't particularly care at the moment. He had to find his companions, after all.
There, on the shore, was indeed a grand boat and several white tents. The woodland there was brutally scarred by flames and what looked like explosives, with battered and broken trees littering the beach. A fort had been built and fires could be glimpsed burning along the campground.
Figures—small, indistinct shapes—moved along, doing what appeared to be…digging. And it could have been his imagination, but Terra swore he caught the familiar bronze gleam of a certain Keybearer's armor…
"What do you see?" Grandmother Willow called from below.
"Ven's over there all right," he confirmed, taking one more look around. He spotted what must have been the Powhatan Tribe's village, but Aqua wouldn't appreciate him going to look for her first, especially if she was okay. He'd have to go after Ventus, then.
Hang on, he promised. I'll be right there to get you.
After he was back on solid land, Terra bowed to her, the same elaborate gesture he gave to Master Eraqus. "Thank you," he said with genuine gratitude.
She laughed in way of a reply. "Well, aren't you courteous? And handsome, too!"
Heat touched his cheeks and he scowled. Getting hit on by a tree? Now that's just odd. "If you see Aqua, can you tell her where I've gone?"
"Yes, of course. Good luck now, Terra, and here's a bit of advice for you…listen with your heart, and you will understand this world." Grandmother Willow grinned again before her visage melted back into the tree.
Listen with my heart? He folded a fist over his chest, contemplative. Shaking it off, he set off at a jog in the direction of the white men's settlement, leaving the river island and its benevolent guardian behind.
~*X*~
The sun was beginning to set, but at last Terra came to the beach. His metal shoes scuffed and scraped against the rough texture of the sand, and the sea looked like a moving stream of blood.
Not an omen. Nope.
Stalking past a horde of chattering seabirds, the male Keyblader came up behind the structure of the settlers' fortress. He took a deep breath before stepping out into plain view, and like he had thought, it wasn't long until someone noticed and an alarm was sounded
The walls were made out of trees with sharpened points, and he watched with a disinterested gaze as a bunch of burly men came at him carefully, as if he was a wild beast. Some had muskets; others had swords on their waists. A few had both. Comically, one frightened boy that looked younger than the rest had a shovel raised as if to strike him with it.
The notion was idiotic, and made Terra smirk.
I come in peace, he thought sarcastically before raising his hands to show he was unarmed and saying, "Don't shoot."
One man with ruffled black hair stroked his chin. "Who are you, and what are you doin' here?"
"He isn't one of those savages, is he?"
"Of course not, Thomas! He's got white skin, for cryin' out loud!"
"I'm looking for my friend," Terra interrupted, feeling a little more reassured upon noticing that he was taller than several of those present, or at least at their height. He crossed his arms and drew himself up to his full stature to show he wasn't intimidated by their mob of five. "Have you seen him?"
"Blimey, you must be one of those guys that Ventus chap is lookin' for! Terra, I presume?" The same black-haired settler asked, his heavily accented voice making it clear that he didn't belong in this land of green nature.
"Ven's here? Where is he?"
"Back in the base," said a redhead, jerking his thumb towards their fortress. "If you're not with those savages, you can come on in. Tell us about yourself, 'cause we thought we were the only civilized folks 'round these parts."
Savages? What savages? They don't mean the Powhatans?
Terra cautiously followed the pack inside the high walls, and he was quick to note the layout of the system that raised and lowered the gateway should he ever need to make a break for it. He curled his fingers into fists and fought back the urge to gag. Didn't these guys ever bathe?
They were clad in old style tunics, and the state of their weapons made it clear that this world wasn't very advanced technologically. Good, then. They'd probably be frightened by magic if that was the case, and he wouldn't hesitate to burn the place down to the ground if they got him angry. No one would like it if he became angry, to say the very least.
Some men were shuffling pans, probably looking for gold. That must be what they're digging for.
"Say," announced one of the men to his right. "You haven't happened to see someone named John Smith around, have you? John is always off in the forest and no one knows where the blasted guy goes off to!"
"Haven't a clue." Silence. "Have you seen a girl dressed like me?" If Aqua was already known to be allied with the natives, she might be in trouble…
Luckily, the response was no, and Terra let out a sigh of relief.
At that moment, he was tackled and he barely managed to keep his footing as he stumbled.
"Terra!" shouted a familiar voice, his tone warm. "There you are!"
"Ven," he grunted, prying the boy's fingers from his neck and shoulder. "It's good to see you, but I need air."
"Oh. Sorry." Springing back the boy grinned, brushing his nose absently and leaving a smudge of dirt on his face. "Have you seen Aqua?" His gaze became serious and concerned.
He shook his head to indicate that no, he hadn't. "What are you doing here?" Terra looked the boy up and down. "And why are you covered in dirt?"
Ven gestured around him. "I landed right in the middle of their camp! The Governor here, Ratcliffe, promised to help me find you guys if I used some of my magic to help their digging."
"He was a right help too," put in one of the men.
"Livened the place up, he did," added another.
Great, he's popular with the settlers.
"We have to go find Aqua," Terra interrupted. "It's important."
"Sun's going down, why don't you stay for the night and search for your friend tomorrow?" The black-haired man grinned widely, elbowing Terra with a surprising amount of force. "Who's this Aqua, eh? Is she your girl?"
"Um…no." Terra tried and failed to hide his blush. "A f-friend."
"Yeah, Aqua's just a friend!" stammered Ventus, averting his sky-blue eyes.
"One of your two need to make an honest woman outta her," guffawed another settler. "C'mon then, we'll get you two somethin' to eat."
"Nothin' but bloody hardtack and fish," griped someone behind them.
Terra and Ven found themselves being ushered towards some kind of mess hall, and the pair of Keybearers just shrugged at one another and went with the flow.
…I guess Aqua can take care of herself until morning. We can get some answers this way.
~*X*~
Author's Note: Pocahontas and John will finally appear in the next chapter, talking to Aqua. Anyway, expect the next update soon! Sorry none of the settlers have names right now, I haven't seen the movie in like forever and I don't remember anyone at all…except for Thomas.
I really want to finish DoTK so I fear that the Pocahontas arc may be the last. The reason for this is I want to finish Impossible As It Seems, my canon AU story. But who knows?
Review, if you want! Thanks for reading!