UltimaShishigawa: Hey everyone! Sorry it took so long with this chapter, but I've been busy. Anyway, let's get on with the final showdown with Ansem! Hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: UltimaShishigawa doesn't own Kingdom Hearts, or it's characters.
Final Chapter: End of the World! Pt.2: Promise of Return
"Are you ready, Sora?" asked Neo. Sora got a look of determination as he nodded his head.
"I know what's waiting for us beyond that door is stronger than anything we've faced, separately or together, but we can win! We have to so we can find Riku and get back to Destiny Islands." said Sora. Neo looked at the brown haired Keyblade wielder, as if judging if he was certain, before grinning and nodding his head.
"Then let's go show Ansem what happens when he messes with people's worlds." said Neo. Sora nodded his head before looking at Donald and Goofy to see them nod their heads in agreement. Facing the door, Sora grabbed the handle and opened it to reveal a portal of light. The four then marched forward into the portal.
-False Destiny Islands-
When the light faded, the four friends looked around only for their eyes to widen when they saw that they were on Destiny Islands.
"I-is this our island?" asked Sora in astonishment, having thought that the islands had been taken by the Heartless. Neo shook his head sadly as he sensed the overpowering presence of darkness around the island.
"No. This is just a fake like the other Traverse Town and Olympus Coliseum." said Neo. As they looked around, Donald noticed something.
"Hey, there is someone standing on the shore!" said Donald, garnering the other three's attention, as he pointed at the beach. Looking over, the other three saw that there was indeed someone standing on the shore. Quickly making their way to the shore, they stopped when they reached the figure.
"Take a look at this tiny place." said the figure. "To the heart seeking freedom this place is a prison surrounded by water. And so you sought out a way to escape from this prison. You sought out a way to crossover into other worlds and opened your heart to darkness." As the figure turned around, the four's eyes widened when they saw that it was...
"N-Neo?!" said a surprised Sora. However, upon closer inspection, they saw that this Neo had gold eyes and was in his D-Mode. The Dark Neo flashed a crooked grin before being shrouded in darkness. When it faded, Ansem stood in his place. Ansem had waist length silver hair, gold eyes and bronze skin. He wore a white button down shirt that he left unbuttoned showing off his toned chest and abs, black pants, black boots and a black duster coat that reached to his ankles with a Heartless sigil placed where the bottom of his neck met his chest as well as white gloves.
"Not me. Just an imitation!" said the real Neo as he summoned his Heart's Guidance Keyblade. Sora quickly summoned his Kingdom Key Keyblade while Donald and Goofy took out there staff and shield, respectively. Ansem chuckled.
"Don't bother. You can't hope to resist me. You allowed me in and that was the form you took from the power I gave you." said Ansem. "All worlds begin in darkness... and also end. The heart is no different. Darkness sprouts within it, it grows, consumes it. Such is it's nature." Ansem suddenly vanished causing the four to be on alert.
"In the end, every heart returns to the darkness whence it came." said Ansem's voice. Turning around, the four jumped back as they saw Ansem floating right behind them.
"You see, darkness is the heart's true essence." said Ansem as he held a hand out at the four. Sora gritted his teeth as he took a step forward in challenge.
"That's not true!" said Sora. "The heart may be weak. And sometimes it may even give in." Neo nodded his head in agreement.
"But we've learned that deep down, there's a light that never goes out!" said Neo as the four held their weapons up in challenge. Ansem smirked as he floated a little higher with his arms crossed.
"So, you have come this far and still you understand nothing. Every light must fade, every heart return to DARKNESS!" said Ansem as the Guardian manifested behind him. Producing twin orbs of darkness, the Guardian chucked them at the four. Goofy hurled his shield as Donald launched a fireball at the orbs. Upon making contact, the orbs blew up. Neo and Sora looked at each before nodding and rushing at Ansem. As the pair reached him, they swung their Keyblades, but the Guardian suddenly appeared in front of Ansem and blocked their blades. Using it's strength, the Guardian threw them backwards as it spread it's arms out. The two Keyblade wielders were sent flying back. As they landed on their backs, they quickly rolled into standing positions.
Ansem smirked as he willed the Guardian to attack Sora. Seeing the danger, Donald and Goofy immediately rushed to help him. Neo attempted to go help them, but was cut off by a wall of black flames.
"Wha-?!" said a surprised Neo before quickly turning around to face Ansem whom was floating a few feet away.
"Heh heh, why do you resist? I gave you power. The power to control the Heartless. The power to find your lost friend. And yet, you refuse to use it anymore." said Ansem. Neo glared at the man as he held his Keyblade tightly in his hands.
"Yeah, you did give me power. I opened my heart to darkness and allowed it to empower me far beyond anything I could've hoped to gain on my own." said Neo causing Ansem's evil smile to widen. "But it also made me into something I'm not. It made me arrogant, self-absorbed and selfish! That's why I'll never let the darkness back in!" Running forward, Neo swung his Keyblade in a wide arc. However, before it could make contact with him, Ansem threw up a dark barrier and blocked the attack.
"Foolish." said Ansem as he shattered the barrier and sent Neo flying back. Quickly righting himself, Neo landed on his feet and stabbed his Keyblade into the sand covered ground to stop himself. Looking back at Ansem, he saw that the man still had that same evil smirk.
"Can't you see it is futile. You can't defeat me on your own and your friends probably need your help right now." said Ansem. "You can't win without the power of darkness. Just open your heart again to darkness and it will grant you all the power you could ever hope to gain. After all, your heart belongs to darkness." Neo's hair concealed his eyes from view as he pulled his Keyblade free.
"You just don't understand." said Neo earning a mild look of questioning from Ansem. "Darkness may give those who open their hearts to it power, but they're doomed to walk a lonely path. And that's if they don't become a Heartless. That's a road I never want to walk again. My heart doesn't belong to darkness." As he said this, Neo looked at Ansem, his eyes shining with determination.
"It belongs with my friends! WITH THE LIGHT!" Neo roared as he charged at Ansem. The man quickly summoned a double-bladed Soul Eater staff and blocked Neo's attack.
"AND I WILL NEVER LET YOU BACK IN!" Neo roared as he reared back and swung his Keyblade again. Ansem held his weapon up to block the attack, but was shocked when Neo's Keyblade cut the double-bladed Soul Eater staff in two. Seeing his opening, the raven haired Keyblade wielder swung his Keyblade in an upward swing and cut Ansem across the chest. The man quickly disappeared before reappearing a few feet away from Neo. Allowing his ruined weapon to disappear, Ansem placed his right hand on his chest where the cut was. Removing it, the man looked at his now red stained glove before clenching his hand into a fist and glaring at Neo. The Guardian appeared behind Ansem as the wall of black fire dissolved and the two disappeared.
"Neo!" said a voice causing the raven haired Keyblade wielder to turn and see a beaten and bruised Sora, Donald, and Goofy running up to him.
"Gawrsh, are you okay?" asked Goofy upon seeing Neo's battered and bruised state which was much different from their own. Neo nodded his head.
"I'm fine. What about you guys?" said Neo. Sora grinned as he rested his Keyblade on his shoulder.
"We're good." said Sora. Donald held his staff in the air.
"CURAGA!" shouted Donald before the four were covered in a green veil. Once it dissipated, their injuries were healed. However, at that moment the island began shaking violently.
"W-WHAT'S GOING ON?!" exclaimed Sora as he and the others nearly lost their balance. Looking toward the trees, Neo's eyes widened.
"LOOK!" shouted Neo as he pointed at the trees. Looking toward where the raven haired Keyblade wielder was pointing, the other three's eyes widened as they saw the island split open to reveal a crater. Once the shaking stopped, the four quickly made their way to the crater. Neo jumped in, but as Sora, Donald and Goofy attempted to follow they struck a barrier. Looking back up at the other three, Neo quickly turned his attention in front of him as Ansem appeared with the Guardian behind him.
"If you will not listen to reason, then I will make you submit!" said Ansem as he snapped his fingers revealing the barrier around the crater.
"NEO!" shouted Sora earning him said Keyblade wielder's attention. "USE THIS!" As he said this, Sora tossed his Keyblade through the barrier at Neo. Catching it in his left hand, Neo twirled both Keyblades and clashed them together before glaring at Ansem.
"I'm going to make you answer for all the worlds you and the Heartless have destroyed and all the people you've hurt because of it, Ansem!" said Neo as he gripped both Keyblades tightly. Ansem smirked.
"You will sink back into the darkness!" said Ansem as he willed the Guardian to shoot forward at the raven haired Keyblade wielder. Neo ran forward as he held both Keyblades at his sides. Upon reaching the Guardian, Neo swung his left handed Keyblade in a vertical line cleaving the Guardian in two as it disappeared. Continuing forward, the raven haired teen rushed at Ansem as the Guardian rematerialized behind him intact and jumped in the air. Bring down both Keyblades on the man, Neo wasn't surprised when the Guardian appeared in front of Ansem and blocked the attack.
Landing on his feet, Neo swung the Kingdom Key in an upward slash cleaving the Guardian in two as it disappeared once again. He then swung the Heart's Guidance Keyblade in a horizontal slash and caught Ansem on his arm. The man quickly flew back to put some distance between him and the dual-wielding Keyblade wielder.
"What's the matter, Ansem? That all you got?" Neo mockingly asked as he kept a firm grip on both Keyblades. Ansem's smirk widened as a dark aura surrounded him.
"Not even close. You all have had but a small glance of my power." said Ansem as the wind picked up. Neo cocked an eyebrow before his eyes widened as a torrent of darkness shot out of Ansem's body forcing him and the other's to cross their arms in front of their faces.
-Dark Abyss-
When they lowered their arms and opened their eyes, they were shocked to find themselves floating next to each other in an area completely shrouded in darkness. Neo tossed the Kingdom Key back to Sora whom caught.
"Where... are we?" asked Neo with a confused expression.
"Behold the endless abyss!" Ansem's voice rang loud and clear causing the four to be on guard. "Within it lies the heart of all worlds: KINGDOM HEARTS!" As he said this, a large door with stain glassed windows appeared in the distance.
"Look as hard as you are able. You'll not find even the smallest glimmer of light. From those dark depths are all hearts born. Even yours." said Ansem's voice. Suddenly, a large flying demonic looking ship appeared causing the four's eyes to widen in shock. At the top of the ship was the Guardian, but larger and it was attached to the ship with Ansem floating in front of it. Ansem's shirt, coat and gloves were gone leaving him shirtless and bare handed with black tentacles attached to his back connecting him to the Guardian.
"DARKNESS CONQUERS ALL WORLDS!" shouted Ansem. The four stared in shock before they suddenly began free-falling. Sora, Donald and Goofy were swallowed in a dark portal as Neo continued falling.
'I can't... lose here...' thought Neo as fell. Suddenly, his vision was bombarded by images of Sora, Riku and Kairi standing on the shore. They were smiling and waving at him. Neo's eyes glared in determination as a golden aura surrounded him and he began floating.
'I can't, no, WE can't lose here!' thought Neo as he shot up into the air toward the front of the ship. Grasping his Keyblade with both hands, Neo swung as he passed the demonic looking head on the front of the ship cutting through it and causing it to explode. A surprised Ansem watched as Neo floated in the air with his Keyblade firmly gripped in both hands and a dark aura surrounded him clashing with the gold aura.
"You took everything from me. My home, my friends and my free will, but no more." said Neo as the two auras began swirling around him. "I WON'T LET YOU TAKE ANYTHING ELSE FROM ME!" As he screamed this, Neo held out his left hand causing a corridor of darkness to appear. Ansem watched with mild shock as Sora shot out of the corridor. Looking at his best friend, Sora was surprised when he saw the two swirling auras around Neo.
"Are you okay, Neo?" asked Sora as the corridor of darkness closed. Neo nodded his head as he opened another corridor of darkness.
"I'm fine, Sora." said Neo as he kept his eyes on Ansem. "Go find Donald and Goofy while I keep him busy." Sora, reluctantly, nodded his head as he flew into the corridor of darkness. The two auras faded as Neo watched Ansem sink into the Guardian's ribcage. A Heartless sigil appeared over the ribcage shielding Ansem from any outside attacks.
"That won't keep you safe forever, Ansem!" said Neo before zipping around the ship and cutting his Keyblade into it as he did. The Guardian attempted to swipe at Neo as he flew around the ship destroying these strange bulbs that fired lasers, which it had summoned as defenses, but the raven haired Keyblade wielder was too fast. Coming to a stop a good distance away from the ship, Neo watched as a barrier fell from the center of the ship revealing a pulsing purple heart.
"I bet if we took out that heart, then Ansem would be forced to come out." said Neo.
"Then leave it to us, ahyuck!" said a familiar voice before Donald and Goofy shot past Neo and toward the ship's heart. Neo smirked as he looked over his right shoulder to see Sora floating behind him with a grin.
"About time." said Neo. Sora chuckled as he rubbed the back of his sheepishly.
"Sorry, but there were tons of Heartless in there." said Sora. Neo opened his mouth to reply before the two were interrupted by a loud bang. Looking over toward the ship, the two Keyblade wielders saw Donald and Goofy flying back toward them as the heart of the ship imploded. Looking up to the Guardian, they watched as the Heartless sigil disappeared and Ansem came out.
"I will admit that you are stronger than I anticipated," said Ansem as he glared at the four friends. "but you all will still return to the darkness whence you came!" As he said this, Ansem held out both hands as a large sphere of dark energy formed. Donald and Goofy looked at each other and nodded before looking at Neo and Sora.
"Donald and I will hold off that there big ball of glowing, uh, energy." said Goofy surprising the two Keyblade wielders.
"So you two get in there and show that big palooka what he gets for messing with people's worlds. And no buts!" said Donald causing the two to close their mouths. Nodding their heads in agreement, the two watched as Donald and Goofy flew toward the dark sphere.
"Ready Sora?" asked Neo as he looked at the brown haired Keyblade wielder. Sora looked at Neo and grinned.
"You bet!" said Sora. The two nodded before flying past the dark sphere. As they passed, they noticed Goofy pushing back the sphere with his shield while Donald aided him with aeroga spells.
"THIS IS WHERE IT ENDS, ANSEM!" shouted Neo as he and Sora flew at the man. Ansem snarled as he summoned several orbs of darkness that began firing lasers at the two Keyblade wielders. Neo and Sora twisted and turned as they dodged the laser.
"DISAPPEAR!" screamed Ansem.
"No, Ansem..." said Sora.
"You'll be the one..." said Neo. As the two shot past Ansem, they swung their Keyblades causing his gold eyes to widen.
"TO DISAPPEAR!" shouted the two in unison as blood sprayed out of the large gash that appeared on Ansem's chest. The large sphere of dark energy dissipated allowing Donald and Goofy to breath a sigh of relief, but that relief was short lived when the four noticed explosions erupting all along the ship.
"FLY AWAY!" shouted Neo as he flew away with Sora, Donald and Goofy following close behind. The explosions continued to fire off and got more violent as they continued to erupt until the entire ship itself blew up. The shockwave of the explosion slammed into the four causing them to be launched forward. Flying through the air, the four crashed onto the small piece of land that was floating in the dark abyss. The same one that the door of Kingdom Hearts rested on.
Neo groaned as he pushed himself into a seated position.
"Anyone whose still in one piece sound off." said Neo. Immediately, the other three groaned as they pushed themselves into seated positions. Standing up as he allowed his Keyblade to disappear, Neo walked over and helped Sora up as the Keyblade wielder's own Keyblade disappeared. The two then walked over and helped Donald and Goofy stand up.
"It is futile." said a familar voice causing the four's eyes to widen as they turned toward the door to see Ansem floating there with a hand on his still bleeding chest. "The Keyblade alone can not seal the door to darkness. Only two Keyblades, one of light and one of darkness, can hope to lock the door." Turning toward the door, Ansem held his free hand out to it.
"KINGDOM HEARTS! FILL ME... WITH THE POWER OF... DARKNESS!" shouted Ansem. Kingdom Hearts' door began opening leaking out wisps of darkness causing a smirk to form on the man's face.
"SUPREME DARKNESS!" shouted Ansem as the door opened wider. Neo and Sora glared as they took a step forward.
"You're wrong, Ansem!" said Sora. Neo nodded his head in agreement.
"We know now, without a doubt," said Neo.
"KINGDOM HEARTS IS LIGHT!" shouted the two in unison. Suddenly, the dark wisps faded only to be replaced by bright rays of light. Ansem's eyes widened in shock as the rays struck him.
"Kingdom Hearts... light... b-but why?" asked Ansem before his body faded and an orb of light floated into the sky only to disappear. As the rays of light dimmed, the four ran toward the door.
"We need to close it before whatever is in there gets out!" said Neo as he and the other three braced themselves against the doors. Donald and Neo on one side with Sora and Goofy on the other. The four pushed against the double doors with all their might and were managing to slowly push the doors closed. As they were doing so, Goofy looked through the crack and gasped. Donald, seeing this, glared at the royal knight.
"Stop staring and keep pushing!" said Donald only to peek through the crack and gasp as well.
"THE HEARTLESS!" shouted the two. Neo and Sora looked in the door and were shocked to see thousands of Heartless inside the door.
"HURRY!" shouted Donald as he and the others hastened their efforts to close the double doors.
"I... can't..." panted Sora as he was quickly running out of steam. Suddenly, a gloved hand shot out of the door and grabbed the edge.
"Come on, you two. Together we can do it!" said a familiar voice causing Sora and Neo's eyes to widen. Looking in the door, they were shocked to see Riku standing on the other side of the door.
"RIKU!" shouted the surprised Keyblade wielders. Riku offered the two a grin.
"Stop gawking and start pushing!" said Riku as he pulled on the door from the inside. Nodding their heads, Neo and Sora resumed their efforts and pushed. Slowly, the doors began to close, however, two Heartless (Darkside) appeared.
"Darn it." said Riku upon noticing the two Heartless and, using his free right hand, summoned his Way to the Dawn Keyblade. However, the Heartless suddenly vanished. Looking in the door, Donald and Goofy's jaws fell open as they saw a black furred mouse with big round ears, black eyes and wore red shorts with two white buttons on the front and back, white gloves and yellow shoes standing on a rock formation inside the door.
"YOUR MAJESTY!" shouted the court magician and the knight in unison. King Mickey, or Mickey for short, held up his right hand and summoned a Keyblade that looked nearly identical to the Kingdom Key except that the hand guard was silver with a red band where the blade met the guard, a gold blade with crown shaped teeth at the end and a gold chain with three gold circles attached to the guard (AN: In other words, a gold Mickey head).
"C'mon fellas! Let's close this door for good!" said Mickey. Sora, however, looked at Riku with worry.
"But what about Riku?" asked Sora. Neo looked at Sora with a confident smile.
"Don't worry about him. If I know him, he'll be perfectly okay when we find him again." said Neo. Sora looked at Neo for a moment before nodding his head. Giving one final push, the doors began closing on their own. Riku looked at Neo and Sora with a smile.
"See ya later." said Riku as the doors shut. Backing away from Kingdom Hearts, Neo and Sora summoned their Keyblades and held them up in the air. An orb of light gathered at the tips of their Keyblades. On the other side of the door, Riku and Mickey copied their actions with their own Keyblades before four beams of light fired into the sky from the four's Keyblades. A locking sound rang out before the door vanished.
Neo, Sora, Donald and Goofy stared at the spot that the door occupied moments ago before letting out a heavy sigh in unison.
"Looks like it's finally-" said Neo as he looked around before he cut off his sentence. Looking at him, the other three noticed his eyes were wide. Looking in the direction he was staring, their eyes widened as well upon seeing a familiar redhead.
"Kairi...?" asked Neo before running over to the redhead. As Donald and Goofy attempted to follow him, Sora held his hands in front of them and shook his head.
"What are you doing here, Kairi?" asked Neo upon reaching the redhead. "Or rather, how did you even get here?" Kairi smiled a sheepish smile as she twirled a lock of her red hair.
"I... may have stowed away on the Gummi Ship." answered Kairi causing Neo to sweat drop. Shaking his head, Neo glared at his best friend and crush.
"And do you have any idea how dangerous that was? You could've gotten hurt!" said Neo. Kairi glared right back at the raven haired Keyblade wielder, but also had her lower lip stuck out in a pout.
"I wasn't just gonna sit around while you guys were in danger and searching for Riku. He's my best friend, too." argued Kairi causing Neo to sigh. However, before he could retort the piece of the ground Kairi was standing on broke off and turned to sand. Kairi stumbled a bit, but Neo quickly grabbed her hand to help her steady herself.
"W-what's happening, Neo?" asked a startled Kairi as she noticed the piece of land she was standing on was slowly drifting away and taking her with it. Neo sighed as he looked at Kairi with a mixture of happiness and sadness.
"Since we beat Ansem the worlds that were taken by the Heartless are being restored." said Neo. "Including our island." Kairi's eyes widened slightly as she leaned forward to keep a hold of Neo's hand.
"Then hurry and get on! You, Sora, Donald and Goofy!" said Kairi. Neo shook his head as he gave her a sad grin.
"We can't. Riku and the King are still out there so we need to find them." said Neo as he tightened his grip in reassurance. "But when we do Riku, Sora and I WILL come back to you. I promise!" Kairi nodded her head as a few tears slid down her cheeks and smiled.
"I know you will!" said Kairi before releasing her hold on Neo's hand as the piece of land drifted further away carrying her away from her best friends. As she floated away, she looked around as palm trees began springing up, sand appeared all over and an ocean materialized in front of her. As she watched the island be restored, Kairi looked forward to see a portal in the distance that allowed her to see Neo looking at her. She watched as he cupped his hands around his mouth and said something, but due to the distance Kairi couldn't hear him.
Looking up, she watched as thousands of stars shot into the night sky, a sign that the worlds were being restored. Looking back at the portal, Kairi watched as it closed with Neo still trying to tell her something.
'Come back home safe. Sora, Riku, Neo.' thought Kairi.
-A few days later-
Kairi made her way into the secret place where she, Sora, Riku and Neo played and drew pictures together when they were little. As she walked through their secret place she looked at all the pictures and placed her hand on the wall of the cave as memories of when they were little played across her vision. She soon came upon a picture of herself, Neo, Sora and Riku holding hands as they stood on the shore. Kairi smiled as she gently caressed the picture.
However, as she did so, she noticed something on the wall underneath a few roots. Moving over to it, she moved the roots aside and looked only for her eyes to widen. There, on the wall, was a drawing of herself and Neo sitting on the beach with the latter offering the former a star that she quickly deduced as being a paopu fruit.
Tears slid down her cheeks as Kairi smiled at the picture, almost able to picture Neo sitting there drawing it himself. Picking up a rock, the redhead quickly drew herself offering the raven haired boy a star.
-The End-
UltimaShishigawa: Oh, finally! Hope you enjoyed the story! In the Remix version I promise to correct any errors and try to add a little more to the chapters. Anyway, don't think the story of Sora, Riku, Kairi and Neo is over just yet. After all, can't leave things half finished. Right? Please read, review, comment, but don't flame! Peace, I'm out!