Typical FFN Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, but I do own a copy of Tears of the Kingdom. It's fun!
A/N: Hey everyone! Once again, I'm sorry that this chapter took so long. Real life is a thing that exists, unfortunately.
I don't really have anything else to say, so let's get started!
Read and review, because comments set off the happy chemicals. I hope you guys enjoy!
Day 39: Training – Day Two
(Play Sacred Moon: Days Ver.)
I awoke from a dreamless sleep and immediately went to the Gray Area. I seemed to be a bit early today, as the only one who was there was Sïax.
"Hello there, sir." I said, getting his attention.
"Number XV." Sïax responded. "Your next training mission will once again be with Number XIV. Depart once the two of you are ready." I glanced around and didn't see Xion.
"Where's Xion?" I asked, a frown on my face. Had she already left?
"Number XIV has not departed yet. You will have to wait." Sïax answered. I nodded, sat on a chair, and waited. A few other members trickled into the Gray Area, and started to mill around. After a moment, one of them approached me. His hair was in the style of a mullet, and he had a smirk on his face.
"Yo!" He said, performing a two-fingered salute. I recognized his voice: he was the one complaining about the food yesterday. "I don't think we've met. I'm Demyx."
"Alxcus." I said in kind.
"So, how're you settling in?" Demyx asked, a large stringed instrument appearing in his hands with a flash of water.
"Well enough." I answered, glancing at the instrument. He summoned it in a similar manner to how I summoned my Keyblade, so could it be his weapon? If so, it seemed pretty impractical. Just how would he fight?
"That's good." Demyx said, before fiddling with a few bits on his instrument. If some of the books I read were correct, he was 'tuning' it. "Say, I've got some time before I have to set out, so do you have any requests?"
'Requests?' I thought to myself.
"For what?" I asked, tilting my head in a lack of knowledge. Demyx looked at me for a moment, a frown on his face.
"I'm… a musician." Demyx said, gesturing to his instrument. "I was asking if you wanted me to play a song, seeing as we don't have anything better to do." He went back to his tuning. "Besides, I gotta make sure my Sitar sounds right, you know?"
"Oh." I muttered, a frown on my face. I really should've been able to figure that one out. "In that case, no." I said.
"What!?" Demyx slumped over dramatically. "Why not?" He asked after a moment.
"I don't know any songs, so I can't give you a suggestion." I told him bluntly.
"Oh." Demyx muttered. "Well, I guess I'll just… go over there then…" He then wandered over to a couch and started to strum on his sitar, every so often re-tuning a part of his instrument that must've sounded off to him.
A few minutes later, I heard footsteps. I glanced over to the entrance to the Grey Room and saw Xion entering it. I waved her over and noticed that her hood was down today. She had black hair and blue eyes, and when I looked at her, a strange thought registered in my mind. I had seen her face before, but where?
"Sorry for taking so long. You ready, Alxcus?" She asked. I nodded, deciding that it didn't really matter where I've seen her before. Xion opened a Dark Corridor, and the two of us entered it.
(Stop Playing Sacred Moon: Days Ver.)
(Play Lazy Afternoons)
We exited the corridor and saw a sunset-bathed town.
Xion pulled out her clipboard and started to read. "Today you will learn about combat. Since you wield a Keyblade, your main target will be Heartless."
I raised an eyebrow. "Why does my weapon decide my target?" I asked.
Xion looked up from the clipboard. "It's for the Organization's mission: to complete Kingdom Hearts."
"Kingdom Hearts…?" I asked. 'That sounds so familiar, but why…?'
"Exactly." Xion said. "Long story short, the members of the Organization are Nobodies-"
"Beings without Hearts and emotions." I finished. "I read up about them in the castle library."
'That's one of my questions answered, at least.' I thought to myself as Xion gave me a look.
"There's a library at the castle…?" Xion muttered before shaking her head. "In any case, the goal of the Organization is to complete Kingdom Hearts. Once Kingdom Hearts is complete, we will be able to get Hearts of our own."
'Hearts of our own…? If we can complete Kingdom Hearts, I'll be… whole…'
"So, how do we complete Kingdom Hearts?" I asked. Xion smiled and continued to explain.
"I was just about to explain that. In order to complete Kingdom Hearts, we need to collect Hearts. To do that, you need to permanently destroy Heartless. And to do that…" Xion then held out her hand, summoning a Keyblade. "You need a Keyblade."
I summoned my Keyblade as well and took a look at it. Hers looked different from mine, strangely enough. The two keys had their similarities (specifically in their basic shape), but both the coloring and the teeth of the weapons were different.
"So the more Keyblades we have, the more Hearts we can collect?" I asked as I dismissed my keyblade.
"Yep!" Xion confirmed as she dismissed her Keyblade as well and looked back at her clipboard. "Now, there are two types of Heartless: Pureblood and Emblem." She turned the clipboard to me and showed me a drawing of some kind. It was a heart shaped object seemingly wrapped in red thorns. "Emblem Heartless always have this emblem on their body somewhere. Upon destruction, they release the Hearts that we need."
I nodded. For the most part, it made sense, but I still had one question.
"So, if I have to choose between an Emblem Heartless and a Pureblood Heartless, I should destroy the Emblem Heartless?" I asked. Xion frowned.
"I mean, I guess?" She said, seemingly unsure. "I think we're supposed to destroy every Heartless we come across, but if we'd have to choose…" She then shook her head. "I'm not sure, honestly."
"But in any case, let's talk about your Mission." Xion said, glancing back at her clipboard. "There is a batch of Heartless that have been sighted by the Dusks. Your job is to go around and defeat them. I'm not supposed to help you take them on, but if you really need some help, I'll jump in. Alright?"
I nodded again. "Let's get started." We wandered around until a few Heartless appeared. I turned to them, and did a quick count. There were no more than five. Three of them were Shadow Heartless, and the other two were small, yellow, and floated in the air. Yellow Operas, if I remember correctly? They ambled about, turned away from us
In any case, I summoned Starlight, ready to fight. Xion stepped back and gave me a thumbs up.
(Stop playing Lazy Afternoons)
(Play Sinister Sundown)
I ran forward and slashed at one of the Shadows before the Heartless could react. It flew backwards from my hit, and I stabbed it when it hit the ground. The Shadow disappeared in a puff of darkness, which seemed to alert the other Heartless and set them into action.
One Shadow tried to claw at my legs, while the other leapt at me. I jumped back, dodging both attacks. One of the Yellow Operas floated around me, while the other one floated a small distance away. The Shadow that leapt at me stumbled as it landed, before falling over at my feet. I twisted my Keyblade into a backhand grip before stabbing it into the ground, piercing the Heartless as I did. It faded as the third Shadow melded into the ground. The Yellow Opera nearest to me summoned a few bolts of Thunder Magic that crashed down around in my general vicinity, with me having to dodge a few of them. When the lightning bolts finished crashing around me, I turned to the Heartless and leaped up to slam it down to the ground with my Keyblade. It landed on the ground, dazed, and I slashed at it before it could get up.
Before I could reorient myself, however, the second Yellow Opera charged at me, covered in electricity. It rammed into my back, knocking me off balance.
"Gah…!" I muttered as electricity arced over my body from the point of impact. I quickly rolled out of the way in order to regain my bearings, before turning around and launching myself at the Heartless. I slammed it down to the ground with my Keyblade before hitting it away, making it disappear upon hitting the final Shadow. I then sprinted toward the stunned Heartless and quickly destroyed it with another swing of my Keyblade. A few seconds passed before I dispelled my Keyblade, my job finished.
(Stop playing Sinister Sundown)
(Play Lazy Afternoons)
"And… time!" I turned back to Xion, who was glancing down at her clipboard, writing something down. She looked up with a smile on her face.
"You did good, especially for your first time fighting Heartless." She said, before looking down at the clipboard and writing a few more things on it.
I nodded. "Mission Complete, right?"
Xion looked up. "Pretty much, yeah. However..." She paused, before turning around. "Wait right here, alright?" She then ran off, leaving me in the dust. I frowned as she did so. Why'd she want me to stay here? It's not like we have anything else to do here, right? In any case, Xion returned a few minutes later with a couple of blue things in her hands. She gave one to me.
"What's this?" I asked, giving it a look over. It seemed… pretty cold, actually.
"It's ice cream. You eat it. I figured you did good enough to earn a little extra." Xion replied, a small smirk on her face. I took a look at the light blue bar in my hand and took a bite. To say that it was delicious would be an understatement.
"Wow. I guess that you really liked it, huh?" Xion remarked, a smirk on her face. How'd she know?
I smiled and said, "It's delicious! It's salty… but also sweet, somehow. You'd never find this in the Castle.." Xion chuckled as I wolfed down the rest of the ice cream.
After I finished the ice cream, I put the stick in my pocket. "Well, now that the Mission's over, I better RTC. Are you gonna get a seashell for Roxas today as well?"
"That's the plan." Xion answered.
"Alright, then." I said as I opened a Dark Corridor. "I'll see you later, Xion." I waved to her as I walked through the Corridor and RTC'd.
(Stop playing Lazy Afternoons)
(Play Sacred Moon: Days Ver.)
After RTC'ing, I decided to relax in the Gray Room. My mission had been completed somewhat quickly, so I figured that I could space out without being interrupted by anyone else. Unfortunately, I was wrong.
"Hey Champ. You back from your training already?" I looked up, with my eyes at half-mast. The member who spoke to me wasn't one whose face I recognized, although I vaguely recognized his voice. He had black-and-gray hair slicked back in a ponytail, and one yellow eye met my own. His other eye was hidden behind an eyepatch.
"Uh… Yeah?" I muttered. "If I may ask, who's 'Champ?'" I asked the eyepatch guy. "I'm Alxcus. Shouldn't you know that?" I continued, tilting my head to the side. He chuckled.
"Yeah, I know." The eyepatch guy said. "You see, 'Champ' is a nickname." I paused as I thought that over.
"Just call me Alxcus. The Superior gave me that name for a reason, I'd assume." I got up from the couch I was laying on. "See you around... sir."
"Xigbar." I turned around and cocked an eyebrow. "My name is Xigbar. I don't want you going around and calling me something like 'Eyepatch Guy'." Xigbar opened a Dark Corridor. "Anyway, I've got things to deal with. See ya, Champ." As soon as he entered it, I turned around, walked to my room, and fell flat on my bed.
'I'm not sure if I care for the idea of these 'nicknames'…' I thought as I went to sleep.
(Stop Playing Sacred Moon: Days Ver.)
Comment Response Time!
KH Fan: It's alright dude. I understand being impatient: I'd probably be in a similar position, to be honest.
sailorsenshi13: You know, I've never actually read the manga. Should probably get on that someday... To answer your question, I read a fanfiction where it was mentioned that Lexaeus was some kind of caretaker for the rest of the Organization, so I imagine it'd be him. Plus, it's kinda funny to imagine this giant silent warrior making scrambled eggs or something while wearing a "Kiss the Cook" apron.
Well, I think that'll be about it for this chapter. May your Heart be your guiding key, everyone, and I'll see you next time!
