Okay, I'm ready to post the next chapter.

Kingdom Hearts and the Dissidia games are created by Squaresoft.

Chapter V: The Lunar Subterrane

Sora and his friends left Baron Castle, accompanied by the two Warriors of Cosmos they recently rescued and the former Chaos Warrior, Golbez. Roxas, Xion, Sora, Serenia and Tyler joined some of their allies on the bottom floor of the Lunar Whale.

The flight was thus far uneventful. Though Cecil was freed from the Mystery Woman's influence, he was mysteriously zombified. Ceodore, Rosa, Kain and Golbez tended to the ailing Paladin.

On board, Serenia and Tyler were listening to Ventus's instructions as they continued their training. The Lunar Whale flew steadily towards the large moon up ahead, until it began to shake.

"What's happening?" gasped Tyler.

The shaking started to become more volatile, Serenia and Tyler were about to go complain to Luca and her teacher about their bad driving when they were thrown across the ship as it seemed to crash.

"Tyler, Serenia, you okay?" said Ven.

Serenia nodded"Yeah, so now what?"

"Let's go upstairs and talk to Sora and the others about it" sighed Ven.

Upstairs, the others had also been thrown by the impact, which they managed to recover from. Sora, who was watching over Cecil with Kain, Ceodore and the others, addressed Rosa"So what's the plan?"

"Not all of us should go, we should decide who will explore this moon and who should stay on board" replied the Baronian White Mage.

Sora shrugged, putting a hand on the Kingdom Key as he spoke confidently"I will go on the active team, we'll do what it takes to save your world from whatever is controlling the moon."

"Cecil, what do you think?" said Ventus. The Paladin stared blankly in response, which triggered a confused response from Ventus about Cecil's current behavior.

Golbez shook his head"He has become an empty shell, we have to form a party quick and find the cause of the moon's unnatural orbit."

Rosa stood by Sora"Take me with you, Rydia can come as well, you'll probably need our magic. Kain, Golbez, Edge, you're with me as well."

As Rosa and Sora's team made ready to leave the Lunar Whale, Serenia sighed as she stood off to the side"I cannot just sit here, I will come on this mission myself."

"It's way dangerous, you're not ready for this. I'm sorry, Serenia, but you have to train and wait until you're older before going on adventures. I'll be back as soon as I can" said Sora, hugging his daughter.

Sora and Rosa's group left the Lunar Whale, while Serenia remained on board to train under Ven's instruction. But as the hours passed, the young Key Bearer began to grow anxious. Roxas and Xion held their vigil downstairs with a group of ninjas who were under King Edge of Eblan's command.

Ceodore, who stood at his father's side, shifted his gaze towards the exit of the ship before addressing Ventus"I'm going to reinforce my mother's group, I've been sitting here in self-pity for too long."

"I don't see any problem with that" said Ventus.

Serenia walked towards the right exit of the Lunar Whale, when Tyler interjected"Are you sure you should be going? We don't want the grown-ups to have to worry about us."

"Well, I'm bored. Besides, isn't this what we're being trained for? Defending the worlds I mean" frowned the young red head.

"I had no idea Sora has such a stubborn kid, you get that from your old man don't you?" said Ven, amused.

Serenia nodded"Forgive me, Master Ventus. But I must go and make sure my father's okay, and please don't try to talk me out of it."

The blue haired quarter-Lunarian approached her"I can protect you, it is my mandate as a member of the Red Wings to protect people. I will find a way to cure my father and save my world."

Cecil, who had listened up to this point, strode up to the three. Serenia turned to address the semi-zombified man"You're coming with us?"

The Paladin nodded, prompting a pink-haired woman, who was watching to remark"Wow, guess Cecil still understands what's going on even under his current state."

A brown haired black mage shrugged"Ah, what the heck? Let's form a secondary team then and join Rosa's group."

"We're with you two" said a voice as two monks approached.

The group introduced each other to one another. Ursula, a blond woman, spoke"So Cecil, my father, Porom, Palom and two rookie warriors are coming along. Well, what are we waiting for? Count me in!"

The Warrior of Light, who stood by the left hand exit, sighed"I can see there's no stopping anyone at this point. Ventus, what do you suggest at this point? I had not planned to involve a couple of children into this."

"Tyler and Serenia posess all the qualities of their parents, I can sense it" whispered Porom.

Ventus walked up to the rest of the assembling team"I'll just have to come with you, too. Now let's get going, the sooner the better."

The team of eight disembarked the Lunar Whale and walked a ways away. To the left and right sides of the Lunarian ship, Serenia and Ventus saw the two gummi ships that got stuck in the moon's gravity.

"Hey, what's up?" called a voice, as two more people approached.

Ventus replied"Change of plans, we're going to find Rosa and Sora's group to rendar aid."

One of the two people, a brown haired man, spoke"Okay, count us in. I'm Noel, and this is Serah."

"Nice to meet you" smiled the pink haired woman.

The newly formed team of ten heard a strange sound behind them. They rushed back to the landing area to find a strange portal glowing, Serenia was amazed"Do you think this does anything?"

Ventus squared his shoulders"I'll go first."

The remaining nine watched as the blond Keyblade Master walked towards the portal and vanished into it. Palom and Porom glanced at each other, while Serenia followed the older man. To her surprise, the red head found herself with him in a deep cave with black and white walls and a white floor.

"Monsters are up ahead, I can sense it" murmered Ven, taking a moment to monitor the surrounding area.

The rest of the group caught up, most of them equally surprised to see the strange cavern. Ventus surveyed the area farther before addressing his group"All right, everyone who can fight on the front lines with ease form up alongside me. Serenia, Tyler, you two will follow me. Palom, Porom, you bring up the rear."

As Ventus and his team marched on deeper and deeper into the depths of the moon. On their way all of a sudden, some black shadows and large Darkball Heartless appeared in the room.

"Heartless, I was wondering what was keeping them" said Ven, summoning his Wayward Wind Key.

Even as Ventus engaged the shadows, some Defender Heartless appeared and attacked Ceodore, Serenia and Tyler. Cecil, as his mind urged his body to work itself, drew his sword and slashed one of the Defender Heartless in the back. Ceodore and the two younger Key Bearers fought off their adversaries.

A Darkball Heartless attempted to sneak up on the Paladin, only to be intercepted by Yang and Ursula. Palom ended the Heartless ambush with Thundaga.

"What were those things?" wondered Serenia.

Ven shook his head"The beings we just fought are commonly known as the Heartless. We have to move on, or chances are we'll get attacked again."

The group moved downwards until they came to another portal. Taking a leap of faith, the group jumped into the portal, and emerged onto a crystal like chamber at the bottomost steps.

"Sora dosen't seem to be here yet, do you suppose someone tricked us into coming down here ahead of them?" frowned Porom.

Ceodore reached into his bag and pulled out a tent"We'll stay here, then. If the others had not caught up, we'll have to go back for them. Porom, my senses aren't as attuned, but something tells me you were right. But who could have done this?"

"Let's just set up camp for the night and wait" said Yang.

Two floors above them, Sora and his group fought past many different monsters, including resurrected creatures from crystals which they saw in select areas of the Subterrane. They ventured deeper into the moon's inner sanctums, saving two of Rydia's summoned monster allies from a trance they were caught in in the process.

Upon reaching the bottomost room of the Subterrane, Sora spotted a tent pitched near the entrance. Guarding it was Yang.

"Yang? How did you get here?" inquired Rosa, surprised.

The King of Fabul replied"Cecil, myself, Ursula, Ceodore, Palom, Porom and two more of our allies took it upon ourselves to join you in case something had happened."

"Serenia and Tyler are here?" said Sora, astonished.

Yang nodded"Yes, but so far we have guarded them well. But they managed to hold themselves quite well in a skirmish against dark shadows that I've never seen before."

"The Heartless? What are they doing here?" said Sora, his eyes widening for a second.

"Is that what the monstrosities I say earlier were? I see" sighed Yang.

Rosa glanced at an empty corner of the room"Let's get some rest and talk more about this tomorrow when the others are awake."

"I agree" nodded Kain.

As Sora's group built a cottage for the night, a pair of shadowy figures watched from a distance, one of them a purple haired man. The man addressed his companion, a silver haired man in robes"If Sanhille's hunch is correct, there are many crystals in the depths of this moon."

"We are to steal them, are we not?" frowned the silver haired man.

"No, at least not yet. Subtle maneuvers are not my forte, but taking the inhabitants of this world by surprise is the best thing to accomplish at the moment" whispered the purple haired man.

The following day, both Sora and Ventus's groups met outside to meet with one another about the previous days events. Sora was surprised"So basically, you came here knowing you're still inexperienced, Serenia?"

Serenia nodded"Yes, I want to do my part to protect the worlds. Isn't that what we're trained for?"

"It is kind of the family business, but Kairi will let me have it if something happens to you" replied Sora.

Kain glanced ahead, then addressed Sora"The longer we bicker here, the less time we have until the moon has hit the blue planet below. I suggest we hurry."

Sora sighed"What choice do I have? All right, we should form a balanced group and proceed onward."

"I was a bit indecisive earlier, but now I am ready to join this mission" spoke Ceodore.

Sora addressed spoke up"Take Tyler with you back to the Lunar Whale. Sereina, stay close to me, I don't want anything to happen to you. Rosa, Cecil, Kain, Ceodore, Rydia, Golbez, will you come with me?"

"You need not ask, we'll come with you" spoke the man in black.

Tyler was surprised at Sora's decision"W-what about me? I want to help, too you know."

"Don't throw a tantrum, okay Tyler?" said Ven.

Serenia smiled at the blue haired pupil"I'll be back."

"Okay" said Tyler, relenting.

While Ventus took most of the group back, Noel and Serah remained to join Sora's team. As the new group of ten marched straight down the passageway, they came to what looked like a dead end with a dark knight guarding the area.

"Huh? Cecil?" gasped Sora.

"Something isn't quite right, it's like some kind of paradox" frowned Noel.

The Dark Knight stood before the group, brandished his shadowy blade and launched dark shockwaves at the heroes. Sora jumped over the blast and slashed downward, only for the knight to dodge and counter with an upward slash.

"TSUNAMI!" cried Rydia, calling forth the watery might of Leviathan. The Dark Knight withstood the tidal wave, and launched another Dark Blast. Kain knocked back the enemy with a jump attack, while Sora cast Fira on the Dark Knight.

The Dark Knight growled"Enough, I have no use for these useless shells." As the knight channeled dark energy into a fatal deadly cloud of energy to unleash at Cecil, Golbez interposed and took the blow for his brother.

Sora tossed his keyblade at his allies' adversary with Strike Raid, while Rosa healed Golbez. Ceodore, Cecil and Rydia pitched in with weapons and magic alike. Cecil's movements were still sluggish from his near zombie-like state however, and were promptly dodged.

The Dark Knight channeled his energy into another vicious Black Fang spell and attempted to cast it on Ceodore. Cecil intercepted the blast, just as something inside him seemed to snap and vitality shone through his eyes once more.

"Holy Burst!" Rydia and Rosa cast a powerful dual spell on the Dark Knight, bringing the Cecil look-at-like to his knees.

The Dark Knight gasped"How did this happen? Y-you're the true Cecil?"

"Indeed, you're the part of me that left long ago" replied the Paladin. With that, Cecil took the apparition's hand and the dark knight seemed to dissolve into Cecil's spirit.

Sora smiled"Great to have you back to normal, Cecil."

Cecil nodded"My friends, I am grateful for your aid. Ceodore, you have grown strong. Now, we must stop this moon in whatever way we can."

"The Master of this moon dwells within it's depths. I shall transport you part of the way" spoke a voice as Cosmos appeared in the area.

Sora smiled"Thanks, now we can neutralize this threat quickly."

Cosmos nodded"Yes, but you will find more then your targets and the crystals of this Blue Planet's universe. The immortal guardian of time, Caius has made his move here, he and the Chaos Warrior Kuja have some kind of trap waiting for you."

"Who's Caius?" inquired Serenia.

Noel shook his head"Bad news, as far as I can tell you. I thought I knew the guy as he helped me learn to survive in our broken time period, but he is way more then I thought he was."

"Good luck" Cosmos teleported the heroes deep into the depths of the moon.

Back at the Lunar Whale, Ventus had used the portal to send him and his group back and boarded the ship. Palom sighed"Hey, how come we couldn't just help?"

"The bigger our number, the more we'd have to slow down" sighed Porom.

"That would be true" said Tyler.

Ventus addressed his son"We'll continue training until Sora returns. Everyone else can just do what they want."

Tyler flushed"Um, sure I'm not grounded, dad?"

Ventus shrugged"Let's not talk about that, you're still all right."

Sora, Cecil and their group soon found themselves transported by Cosmos's magic to a large chamber at the bottom. Noel inspected his blade as he spoke"Time to trounce the joker responsible for the world's problem."

"Ah, you've made it" said another voice as a familiar bluish haired figure appeared. The Mystery Woman had anticipated the heroes' intentions.

Sora drew his keyblade"We won't let you do this to Cecil's world."

The Mystery Girl didn't even flinch"You shall not be permitted to venture farther then here. You'll all be destroyed by a force you know all too well." As she spoke, a huge black wyrm appeared.

"Just as I expected" said a new voice as two more men appeared. One of them had purple hair and wielded a powerful sword. The other was a silver haired warlock.

As the man spoke, a horde of white monsters appeared, Sora recognized the Dusks and Samurais as Nobodies. The Mysterious Girl shrugged off the numbers and set the black wyrm on the Nobodies.

Rydia called out to the wyrm"Bahamut, please come to your senses."

Some of the Dusks surrounded Sora and the rest of the group. Neol and Serah rushed at the purple haired man, brandishing their weapons. Caius drew his own blade and clashed with the brunette hunter.

Kuja cast Ultima and Flare on Rosa and Rydia, while Cecil, Ceodore, Kain and Serenia tackled the Mysterious Girl and Bahamut. The battle seemed to get worse however, as the heroes were slowly being worn down by superior numbers.

"I'd personally expected more potency from the so-called Keyblade Master. But alas, you have lost" said Caius.

Bahamut shot at Caius with Megaflare, only for the man to dodge and stab the mysterious girl in the back. The trance holding Bahamut seemed to break as he did, as the wyrm attacked Caius with another Megaflare, before turning his attention to the Nobodies.

Caius swiftly recovered from the blast and attacked Bahamut. The injured wrym swung it's claw at the purple haired man, which he dodged. Cecil, Kain and Ceodore backed up the Eidolon and attacked Caius themselves. Rydia, Sora and Rosa tackled the remaining Nobodies, which attacked relentlessly.

Suddenly, a thunderfall blasted the Nobodies and tore through Caius. The surprised man glanced at the entrance to the room to see a pink haired warrior clad in white armor and a cape. Accompanying her was a brunette with a Keyblade that Sora never saw before.

"Sis!" breathed Serah, glimpsing the pink haired warrior, as she turned her attention on Caius. The purple haired warrior blocked as the Cosmos warrior thrust and slashed at her adversary. The brunette man wiped out the remaining Nobodies.

"Oh? Looks like the curtain has closed here" remarked Kuja, transporting out of the room.

Caius nearly cursed at the sight and teleported away himself"This is just the beginning."

The pink haired warrior and her companion turned to address the rest of the group. Serah hugged the woman"Glad to see you back, Claire."

The woman nodded"Yes, Serah, it is I."

"Lightning? I hardly recognize you" whispered Kain.

"I can say the same to you" said Light.

"You've unlocked the secret of Mount Ordeals as well?" inquired Cecil, recognizing the Paladin-like garments on the pink haired Cosmos Warrior.

Lightning nodded"Yes, Terra and I managed to recieve the power of light, but I see Kain had a harder time of it then we did."

"Not to cut short this little reunion, but we have a job to do" spoke Golbez.

"Right, let's go."

Terra nodded"The enemy behind this mess is waiting for us down at the bottom of these depths, I can sense it."

"This moon has to be stopped somehow, so let's get to it" said Rydia.

The heroes and their two recent recruits ventured to a set of staircases leading them even farther into the depths.

Excuse the cliffhanger, but this seems like a good place to end this chapter. That, and I didn't want to rush through it.

Sorry I took so long to upload this chapter, but now it is ready. Please feel free to review.