Kingdom Hearts Dual Keys

by lyokoMARVELanime

Spin-off/Sequel to Keyblades of Future Past. The legend you know returns, but this time it's not just Sora, Donald, and Goofy racing to save the worlds, but this time, they'll be working alongside the newest Keyblade Master and Sora's new teacher: Ventus. Experience the first KH adventure you know with a new twist as the forces of darkness face two keys in the battle for the worlds

17. Hollow Bastion Part 1

AN: Wow, I am on a roll right now! Barely even a few days later, and already, we're busting out this chapter! Talk about awesome, am I right?

[audience applause]

Yeah, I thought so. Now, I'm not going to spend too much time answering reviews for the previous chapter, partly because most of the questions that were asked involved the events that happen in this chapter, the next one, and the one after it. Yeah, that's right, I'm thinking that the events of Hollow Bastion is going to take three chapters at most! Much like the number of wishes you get from Genie.

Genie: Hey, I haven't that many complaints yet.

[audience laughter]

AN: Haha, True enough. Anyways, you're about to get the first set of answers regarding Hollow Bastion adventures with this chapter everybody, and next chapter will answer a few more of them. You'll find out which you'll get when once we get into things today.

Roxas: I thought you said you weren't going to take too much time with this. I mean, this looks like a really long chapter, and it's filled with a lot more than just a bunch of dialogue moments, so maybe we should get right to it? It's not like there's really much left for us to spoil without giving away a really major detail you've keeping under your hat for this story, or just going right to stuff about the sequel.

Xion: Yeah, like how after the fight against Ansem-Riku, you have everyone...

AN: DAH! SPOILER! YOU HAD TO SOMETHING ROXAS! [hits the control]

Xion: [looks down to see a trap door has opened up beneath her feet] Yep. We're back to this again. For the record, I blame Roxas too. [drops down with a scream before the trap door closes]

AN: [hits intercom control] Sorry, Xion, but yeah, probably a good idea to blame Roxas for this.

Roxas: Hey! Why're you deciding to gang up on me today?

AN: Shush, Mini-Ven. We've still got one or two things we need to address before getting back to the really important stuff, aka the story and today's big moments. Btw, for everyone who caught the little moment last chapter where Kairi showed a dislike for the Twilight Series, happy to see you all caught that. I honestly can't see Kairi liking that series either, and I myself find that series to be...Yeah there's no nice way for me to put this. I hate the Twilight Series. That series was not romantic at all in my opinion. I mean, from what little I have heard, the girl tried to kill herself to get the vampire boyfriend to come back to her. That's not romantic. That's desperate, depression, and a number of other negatives that I could list all day.

Kairi: Preaching to the choir on that one, but I am definitely right there with you on that.

AN: Yeah, we know, and thank you for that. Now, how about I fully address the review left by our old friend, "twilightnite13". He did have some questions that deserve answering after all. First off, yeah Oogie Boogie did have that insult coming, but you forget, Sora has insulted a few other enemies before. Hades and Saix, just to name a couple of examples from right off the top of my head. As for Sora and Ven getting the concept of the worlds they visited being fairy tales after Spidey mentioned it, they were really going more off of the assumption that the worlds were like that in Spidey's world alone, more than anything. Finally, Kairi getting jealous. Sure, she's a Princess of Heart and can't have any darkness in her heart, but that doesn't mean she can't get sad, angry, or jealous. To quote Star Trek The Next Generation, "Emotions are not really positive or negative. They just are."

Sora: Are you sure that's how the quote goes?

AN: I may or may not be paraphrasing a little due to the fact I can't remember the full quote right at the moment, but I do know that it's definitely close, and the point still stands. Now, getting back on point, "twilightnite13", don't you worry a bit about asking those questions. You're not putting me off or anything, and besides, I can fully understand how stress can get someone to act unlike their usual selves, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you're being a bad friend. It just means that you're having a bad day, or just a tough time.

Riku: Wow, that's really insightful. Any chance that can be applied to me in the story, or something.

AN: Uh...Okay, that covers today's opening author's note.

Riku: Wait, you didn't answer my question!

AN: No time now! Gotta get started! Disclaimer!

I do not own anything from Kingdom Hearts or any other franchise mentioned in this story.

---

Chapter XVI

Just like Ventus had said, using the Warp-G allowed the Kingdom to reach Traverse Town again in just under an hour, and the team were all eager to rush into the town so that they could get the new navigation gummis installed on the ship. In fact, they were so eager that Ventus nearly made a small mistake or two when docking the ship in port due to how excited they all were. Thankfully, it was nothing too serious, and they were all soon heading through the main gate into Traverse Town and over to see Cid. When the gummi block expert saw that they had found the other navigation gummi, he was more than happy to get to work on installing it into the Kingdom for them, but he did caution them that it would take a little while longer than the last time. While it was disheartening to hear that they would have to wait even longer to go and rescue their friends, the team did admit that it did give them a chance to run a few errands while they were in Traverse Town, so they did not complain too much. Ventus left the matter of gathering more Elixirs, Potions, and Ethers to Donald and Goofy, while he told Sora to see if there was anything at the equipment shop that he thought might come in handy before practicing his magic control abilities at the café near the shop that Donald's nephews ran. They all quickly questioned Ventus on what he was planning to do during that time, but the blonde only said that he had something he needed to take care of at Merlin's place before he took off towards the Third District.

After Ven's somewhat hasty departure, the other three just shrugged, figuring that they would find out what the blonde was going to Merlin's for later on, and left to carry out their assigned chores. While Donald and Goofy ended up having to take quite a while to get what they needed from Huey, Dewey, and Louie, both because they wanted to spend some time with the three boys and because they needed so many of the necessary items, Sora found his task to be quite easy to complete. As far as he could tell, the equipment shop did not really have anything that would be of much use to him or his friends, be it in the short or long-run, so Sora just ended up spending all of his time sitting at the café. Some people probably would have ordered something while they were seated in such a place, but Sora was more focused on getting his magic control up to a satisfactory level at the moment. He was sure that he and the others were going to have to be at nothing less than their best, and Sora was not about to let his friends down. Thinking of that though quickly reminded him of something important that he had almost forgotten about.

Despite all of their efforts, and how much they had found in regards to his own friends and Ansem's reports, there was absolutely no sign of King Mickey anywhere that they had gone. Yes, Leon and his gang had all said that they had been contacted by said king, and it looked like one of the gummis they found on Deep Jungle might have belonged to him, but aside from those two things, there was no sign of King Mickey anywhere. Sora knew that he had promised Donald and Goofy to help find their king, and while the other two had been a huge help in finding his best friends, he had thus far not been able to return the favor in kind. Not only that, but despite that one conversation that Kairi had with Master Aqua during her Dive to the Heart, there was also no sign of how to save the bluenette either, and Sora had also promised that he would help Ven find a way to help her too. The lack of success in these two missions, as well as the mission to find and save Ven's friend Terra was more than a little disheartening for Sora, and Kairi must have felt it too, because she was soon trying to cheer him up as best as she could. Unfortunately, it did not seem like she was having very much success for once, because Sora was still looking pretty depressed when Donald and Goofy finally came out of the item shop to meet up with him.

"Sora," Donald called out, happily, only to pause when he saw how down the kid looked.

Goofy had quickly noticed as well, and he immediately told the kid, "Now, just remember what Donald said to ya: no frowning, no sad faces."

Apparently, that was not going to help Sora's bad mood, because he immediately threw the two an upset look before he demanded, "How can you be so cheerful? There's still no sign of your king, and we're not exactly any closer to helping Ven get Master Aqua out of the Realm of Darkness, remember? Aren't you worried?"

The two just shared a small look between them before turning back to Sora and giving a simple explanation to show why they were not concerned. "Aw, phooey," Donald started, not sounding the least bit upset at all.

"The king told us to go out and meet up with Ven so we could find the newest Keybearer, and we found you. So as long as we stick together, it'll all work out okay," Goofy reminded him. "Ya just gotta believe in yourself, that's all."

"Hasn't Ven been telling you that right from Day One," Donald teased.

"Just believe…" Sora quietly mused as a small smile started to return to his face, knowing that the two were right.

Kairi had sensed this change in his demeanor as well, and did not hesitate to push forward on it in her own efforts to cheer him up. "I believe in you, too, Sora," the girl said, her voice brimming with kind confidence, earning her a smile from Sora soon after. To finalize her point, Kairi decided that there was one other thing she could do for him. "Sora, remember how I said that I saw a couple of your memories back when we got stuck inside of Monstro?"

"Yeah," Sora questioningly replied, not sure why Kairi was bringing that up now.

"Well…ever since then, I think some memories of my time on my homeworld have been slowly coming back. Not all of them, but just some of the really important ones. And there's one memory in particular that I'd like you to see."

Sora was touched by this gesture. The fact that Kairi wanted to share something that was likely very important to her was flattering on its own, but the fact that she wanted to share it with him was what really made it special. Sure, she had seen a memory or two of his before, but up until now, that had been all that had been exchanged between them. Hearing that she was now going to share one of her own memories with him definitely made his day a little more, and Sora did not hesitate to close his eyes so that he would be able to focus on nothing but that particular memory. A minute later, a small light seemed to flash in his mind's eye, and he was soon feeling like he was being whisked away to another place…

---

She was not entirely sure what was going on right now. One minute, she was running away from some scary monsters, and the next thing she knew, a nice lady with blue hair had come running to her rescue along with someone who looked like a giant mouse. The weirdest part was that they were both fighting with swords that looked like giant keys. Thankfully, she had not been in the middle of the fight when the two had started to get serious, but she was still close enough to watch most of it unfold, and she was left in awe by the sight. While the mouse man was fast and powerful, the blue woman fought with a grace and elegance that almost made it look like she was dancing, and that was coupled with the power that she had sensed that the woman possessed when she had touched her strange sword earlier. Every blow she struck, every spell she cast, even the times when she would flip or cartwheel away from an attack was simply beautiful. When the fight ended, it made sense that the woman would fight in such a way, because when she finally got a look at her rescuer, she saw that the blue haired woman was just as if not more beautiful than her fighting style. It may have started out as a strange day, but it had all ended up being very incredible in her eyes, and Kairi now felt like she knew what she wanted to be when she grew up.

After the fight had ended, Kairi ended up listening in on the conversation that the woman and the mouse had, but understood very little of it, aside from the fact that they thought that she was someone really special. She had already been told that by her grandmother a few times, but hearing two random strangers say that made her wonder if there was more to that than what her grandma had told her. A moment later, the mouse man suddenly disappeared in a bright flash of light, and shot up into the sky while saying, "I'll be okay! See ya real soon!"

Kairi kept staring up at the sky where the mouse and the light he had turned into had disappeared, before she realized that the blue haired woman was still here, and immediately smiled as she approached her, with a bouquet of flowers at the ready. "Here," Kairi said, offering the flowers to the woman before her.

When she heard the small girl's voice, the woman turned her attention away from the sky, smiled down at the little girl, and asked, "Are these for me?"

Kairi immediately nodded with a smile and explained, "I picked you some flowers. Thank you for saving me."

The woman's smile grew much bigger and softer after hearing that and accepting the flowers, and she did not seem able to hold back her appreciation when she next spoke. "Oh, they're lovely. You're so sweet."

Kairi then remembered that her grandma had always said it was important to tell someone you give a present to what your name was, and immediately said, "My name's Kairi. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too. I'm Aqua," the woman replied in kind. Kairi then saw her new friend get a small look that appeared similar to the one her grandma always got when she was trying to figure out how to say something to her, before Aqua finally said, "Kairi, about that light…"

"Kairi," someone suddenly called out, interrupting Aqua, and getting both girls' attention.

"Oh! Grandma," Kairi exclaimed, realizing who it was, and knowing that must mean it was time to head home. She was about to rush over to the elderly woman when Aqua suddenly called for her attention once more.

"Wait, Kairi, just a minute," Aqua asked, getting the little girl's attention once again. The next thing Kairi knew, Aqua was gently placing two fingers against the necklace she had just received from one of her friends the other day, and a small light then began to glow around it before slipping into her chest. "I just cast a magic spell on you," Aqua explained, having spotted the girl's questioning look. "One day when you're in trouble, the light within you will lead you to the light of another. Someone to keep you safe."

Kairi did not entirely understand what that meant, but she was able to get enough to realize that Aqua had just done something really nice for her, and so she immediately smiled and said thanks before rushing over to her grandma, ready to head home. Before she left though, she turned back to say one last quick goodbye to Aqua, and was pleased to see the woman in question wave back with a smile of her own. Just seconds after she had her hand in her grandma's, Kairi immediately thought of something that she just had to ask. "Hey, Grandma?"

"Hmm? What is it," her grandmother asked.

"Could you tell me that story?"

Kairi's grandma could only laugh in good nature even as she asked, "Again, dear?"

"Please," Kairi pleaded, her eyes quickly turning into an adorable sad puppy face without her even trying.

"Very well, then," Kairi's grandma finally relented, much to the little girl's giggling pleasure. "Long ago, people lived in peace, bathed in the warmth of light. Everyone loved the light. Then people began to fight over it. They wanted to keep it for themselves, and darkness was born in their hearts. The darkness spread, swallowing the light and many people's hearts. It covered everything, and the world disappeared. But small fragments of light survived, in the hearts of children. With these fragments of light, children rebuilt the lost world. It's the world we live in now. But the true light sleeps, deep within the darkness. That's why the worlds are still scattered, divided from each other. But someday, a door to the innermost darkness will open, and the true light will return. So, listen, child. Even in the deepest darkness, there will always be a light to guide you. Believe in the light, and the darkness will never defeat you. Your heart will shine with its power and push the darkness away. Do you understand Kairi?"

Kairi immediately nodded with an affirmative hum in reply, and the two continued on with their trek home, both wearing large smiles on their faces. What she did not expect, was that somehow, she would be able to hear Aqua make one last comment before they had left the area completely. "Kairi…Something tells me I didn't run into her by accident."

---

Sora let out a small, surprised gasp when the memory suddenly faded from view in a flash, and he quickly glanced around just to make sure his surroundings had not changed any in the time he was viewing said memory. Goofy had quickly taken notice of Sora's sudden surprised state, and immediately asked, "What's the matter?"

"Um, nothing. Just a small conversation with Kairi," Sora explained, getting understanding nods from both of his two newest friends. He then lowered his gaze a little with a smile on his face as he thought, "Thanks for sharing that with me, Kairi."

"You're welcome, Sora. Just promise me that you'll remember what my grandma was trying to tell me with that story I loved so much," Kairi requested, and even though she could not really see it, she still felt him nod in reply to show that he was not going to forget any time soon. Still, there was one thing about that particular memory that she had her wondering a little ever since she had first got it back, and she just needed to ask someone about it. Since he was the only one she could ask, Sora did not really have much say in whether or not she opened up to him about it. Not that she thought he would refuse if she did have other options, but the point still stands. "Hey Sora, about that spell that Aqua mentioned. Do you think that's why I ended up on Destiny Islands?"

"Maybe, but then…didn't she say that it would only work if you were in trouble? So, why would it send you to Destiny Islands then," Sora asked.

"I don't know, but…I have a bad feeling that maybe something happened to my home, and I'm not going to like finding out what that was," Kairi admitted.

"Hey, don't worry. I'm sure whatever happened to it, we can fix or undo. Plus, when you think about it, maybe that spell is also the reason why you ended up inside of my heart when the Islands had been swallowed up by darkness," Sora reasoned.

Kairi had to admit that he was probably right about that, and she said so to, but before either of them could really talk about it in more detail, they entire group heard the sounds of approaching footsteps, and turned to see Ventus was quickly approaching them. "I take it this means you guys got everything you needed," Ven questioned with a smile.

"Uh-huh. We're all set and ready for anything now," Goofy confirmed.

"We're just waiting for Cid to come back and tell us that the ship is ready," Donald informed him. He then remembered the blonde master's rather hasty departure, and quickly asked, "Say, what were you doing all this time, anyway?"

"Well I guess I kept you guys waiting long enough," Ventus smiled, and he then reached into his pocket so that he could pull out a summon charm for everyone to see. Everyone instantly knew that this was a new one, because they did not recognize it as any of the ones they knew Ventus already had. It was a shinning blue in color, while a black symbol was embossed on it. The symbol in question had a pair of wings with what looked like a shining star in the middle, while beneath it were a pair of thin, crossed swords, one green and the other yellow. "I found this while we were on Neverland, and just took it to Fairy Godmother so that she could bring it back to life, so now, we'll have even more help when we go after Maleficent. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't still make sure we're ready to handle anything without that help," Ven cautioned them with a smile.

"Don't worry, Ven. We're ready for whatever they can throw at us," Sora promised with a grin, and seeing that confidence had a hint of caution mixed into the boy's gaze quickly put a proud smile on Ven's face.

It was actually right at that moment that Cid finally came back from the gummi ship hangar and over to them, gaining their attention the minute they heard his gruff cough. "I installed that navigation gummi set for ya, so you're good to go at any time," Cid reported. "But, ya know…One of the places it'll let you reach is crawling with Heartless, so I wouldn't want to go back there. Just don't say I didn't warn you."

"Relax, Cid. We were kind of expecting that to be the case. Besides, if I'm right about one of those places, then that means it'll lead us right to Maleficent's doorstep, and it's high time we took the fight right to her," Ventus reassured him. He then looked back to the team with a grin and said, "I doubt that I really need to say that this may be the last chance any of you have to back out, but at this point, I can't help but wonder if I should even bother telling any of you that. After all we've been through, I don't think any of us are going to quit now, right?"

"Yeah! We've already come this far, and we're staying right to the end, or at least until we finally find King Mickey," Donald grinned reassuringly.

"Don't worry, Ven. There's no way you're going to get rid of us that easily, because we're all bestest buddies. Even if we do find the king before the journey's over, I'm still gonna stick with you until the end of the line," Goofy promised.

"Like you even need to ask in my case. After coming this far, there's no way I'm just going to sit back and wait for all of you to save the day for me," Sora declared with a grin.

"What? Like I'm really going to say no at this point, even if I could," Kairi asked. She knew that Ventus could not hear her, but that was not going to stop her from making a promise of her own.

Ventus smiled in thanks and pride to his friends, while Cid gave all four of the adventurers a grin of his own before he decided to throw in a little bit of teasing. "All right, well if you fellas are done with your bonding time, your ship's ready and waiting. So, what're you all waiting for? Get up and go already!"

"Like you even need to ask," Ven and Sora both said simultaneously. The two looked to each other in surprise afterwards, but were soon grinning widely a minute later to show that they were happy to see just how in sync they were with one another. With everything said and done, the four marched away from the café and off to the gummi ship hangar, certain that they were ready for whatever was going to come next, but never knowing for sure what was waiting for them. If he were being honest, it was the latter of those two things that had Cid the most worried, and for the first time in what was probably a long time in his life, he found himself taking a cue from Aerith and praying that those guys would come back safe and in one piece.

---

Getting to where they knew Maleficent hung her cloak was not going to be as easy as jumping there with the Warp-G, the whole team knew that, but they did know that they could shorten the trip by jumping to the world that was closest to their destination. So, after a one hour jump, they were just outside the orbit of Neverland and ready to start on the trip that would no doubt lead to Hollow Bastion. Sure, there were two other worlds in the computer's navigation system, and they were all curious about these worlds, but at the moment, they were too focused on what was promising to be the final destination of their journey, so any curiosity they may have had did not have a chance of winning out on them this time. Still, they were not going to kid themselves into thinking it was going to be a smooth, easy flight, and they were soon proven right.

The minute that they had pulled far enough away from Neverland, they were swarmed by several dozens of Heartless ships, and it took everything that Ven and Sora had to keep the Kingdom in one piece while fighting back against the enemy ships. Thankfully, they did not stop their ship's upgrades with simply the new navigation gummi set. They had also made a note of adding a few new weapons to the ship as well, giving Sora a little more firepower to fight back with, and making it easier to destroy more Heartless ships before they could land a hit on them. In addition to that, the ship's shields had also received a very reasonable and long-overdue upgrade, so it was harder for enemy fire to damage the ship by too much. Between the added protection, and the new addition of extra guns, lasers, and even a few torpedoes in their arsenal, it made sense that the Kingdom would be able to hold up a little better in the flight to Hollow Bastion. Even so, that did not mean that it was an easy flight, and the Heartless definitely made sure that they had to work for whatever the team wanted to gain.

By the time the Kingdom had arrived at Hollow Bastion, the extra boost to the shields had been completely depleted, and the ship had taken some damage to it that would have made it a little difficult for them to really survive any more ship-to-ship battles if they got into one anytime soon. Luckily, any necessary systems had somehow escaped the confrontations unscathed, and Chip and Dale had reassured them that they would be able to get the ship fully functional again by the time they had gotten back from whatever business they would be taking care of on the dark world that was waiting for them. Despite the reassurances of their resident engineers, the team was still a little worried about what would happen when they did return to the ship for their next flight. It would have to wait though, because they had more important matters to deal with, and from the look of Hollow Bastion at their current location, they were going to be in for quite the ordeal.

From what they could see, they were able to understand quite well why Captain Hook had used the word "ruins" when he described the place, because that's certainly what most of the world appeared to be. The main thing to note though, was the rather impressive castle that seemed to have various pieces of advanced technology all throughout it, but was still crumbling and even had several gaping holes in several walls that proved that something had either blasted through the walls, or that no one had lived there in a long time, or at least no one who would bother to try and keep it in a good condition. Several pipes could also be spotted sticking out of the castle in various locations, all emitting some kind of bubbly steam or smoke, and beneath it all seemed to be a large pool of water that did not seem the least bit normal. Looking down at this world, Ventus could not help but suddenly gain a sense of familiarity that put a very ill feeling in the pit of his stomach, and he just knew that he was going to find out why that was the case the minute they teleported down there.

Just as he had parked the ship and was about to order everyone over to the ship's transporter, Donald and Goofy suddenly moved to the ship's armory, saying that there were some things that they needed to get before they left the ship. The two were then gone before Sora or Ventus could ask them to hurry, and so the two Keybearers ended up waiting for them at the gummi ship's teleporter. It felt like they were waiting for hours or so, but it was really only a few minutes before Donald and Goofy had joined them, and the two could see that the pair were now carrying weapons that much different from their usual ones.

Goofy had exchanged his usual shield for one that, while still circular, now had two angular protrusions on its top half, along with a triangular spike on the top and bottom, with the edges being thin and light blue in color. The main shield itself was blue, while its face was dominated by a large, elegant white heart, with six white, curled wings decorating the sides of said heart, three on each side. At the very top of the shield, one could easily spot a yellow crown symbol that was identical to the charm on Sora's necklace. Goofy explained that this was the shield known as Save the King, and it was the most powerful shield in all of Disney Town, forged for him by one of the most powerful wizards that King Mickey ever knew.

Donald made the same claim about his new staff that Goofy did, and the two Keybearers could see why that was the case, because it looked just as impressive as the shield his tall, often clumsy friend now carried. The staff had a long, sky blue handle with an orange pommel, and its head consisted of an ornate, orange base with a tall, faded blue diamond that was surrounded by an intricate, yellow frame. Donald claimed that since his staff was meant to serve as a parallel to Goofy's new shield, he had decided to name it Save the Queen, and Ven and Sora could both see why. It definitely seemed like the type of thing that would match up with Goofy's shield in just the way that Donald claimed it did.

After looking over the two's new weapons, Sora contemplated switching out the Keychain on Kingdom Key for one of his other ones, but ultimately decided that he was better off using its default for the moment. Ventus had decided to leave Guardian Wind as it was as well, but still, the younger Keybearer still had to ask a very important question. "If you guys have had those things in here the whole time, then why didn't you ever use them before?"

"If we went around using these all the time, then we wouldn't be able to rely on any of our other staffs or shields as easily, in case we ever lost these," Donald explained. "It's better to keep your best equipment ready for the most serious situations, too."

"Yep, otherwise, the other guys might end up making something that can beat your best stuff, and then you'd be really big trouble," Goofy added.

"They're right. It's really not that different from how different Keychains can power up your Keyblade, but you still need to be able to rely on your actual Keyblade's power if you ever lose one of your Keychains," Ventus simplified for Sora. He was not entirely sure why he was doing so, but he felt like the kid needed to learn that lesson as quickly as possible, just in case.

Sora nodded in understanding, and they all left it at that as they quickly stepped onto the teleporter and prepared to transport down to the surface of Hollow Bastion. One flash of light later, and they soon found themselves dropping to the ground of the world below them, but the location in which they did land had caught them all by surprise. They found themselves surrounded by a huge wall of water, while the surface they landed on turned out to be a large slap of rock that rested before several, floating platforms of rock and ice, all of which lead up to the remains of an old archway that was halfway up to another one in the distance. What came as even more of a surprise was that the water in the falls around them were actually moving upwards instead of down like they should have been, further showcasing just how much damage that the Heartless had likely done to this world when it fell. Even just standing where they were, they could feel a great deal of darkness like it was almost all around them, and they probably would have just stood there taking in the strangeness of this one small corner of the world had Goofy not pointed out something to everyone that turned their gazes upwards and passed the archways.

When they turned to see what Goofy had spotted, Sora and Donald were both left in awe at the sight of castle they saw before from the Kingdom's cockpit, while Ventus on the other had quickly paled in horror at the sight. The castle definitely looked very run down and was clearly falling into a state of ruin, but what really got their attention was that the symbol of the Heartless was resting right where they assumed that the door into the castle most likely was waiting for them. As he looked on, Sora could feel an odd sense of familiarity building up inside of him, which he had to assume was coming from Kairi, since he knew he had never been here before, and he was about to ask her why that was, until he heard the astonished gasp that finally fell past Ven's lips and turned to see the look on his now very pale face.

"What's the matter, Ven," Donald asked, feeling more than a little concerned for their friend.

Ventus did not say anything in response, and it almost looked like he had been completely frozen in place while his breath had gotten caught in his throat. It was not until Goofy gave him a small shake that the blonde finally came out of it, but his horrorstruck look did not fade at all. Seeing that, Goofy immediately asked, "Are you okay, Ven?"

"I wish I could say that I was," Ventus quietly admitted, earning more concerned looks from his friends. "I think…No, I know that I've been here before."

"You have," all three of the others gasped in shock, with Jiminy repeating the question once he had jumped up onto Sora's shoulder a second later.

"Unfortunately, yes, and I can say with utmost confidence that this world was nothing like it is now when I was last here," Ventus explained, having now figured out at least one mystery that had plagued him for many years now. "Hook was right to say that this place was the ruins of something, because Hollow Bastion…Is actually the ruins of Radiant Garden."

"WHAT," was the simultaneous cry of horror that followed soon after the blonde's revelation.

"But how can that be? I mean, are you absolutely sure that this place is Radiant Garden, or at the very least, what's left of it," Jiminy asked.

"I'm positive. That castle up there is way too similar to the one that Ansem the Wise ruled his world from to be a coincidence," Ventus insisted, but despite how sure he sounded, everyone could tell from the look on his face that he was wishing that he was wrong in this case.

After hearing that from his master, Sora immediately turned his attention to Kairi and asked, "Is that why I'm feeling a sense of sad familiarity from your heart, Kairi? Because you recognize this place as what's left of your home, too?"

"I wish I could say otherwise, but yeah. I think…I think this is…Or was the world I originally came from," Kairi revealed, and from the sound of her voice, Sora could tell that if she were able to right now, she would likely be near tears right now. In fact, after she had said all of that, Sora could feel her sadness starting to affect him a little more heavily, because he could feel his own eyes beginning to water with tears, too, but that still left a few things unanswered. Or at least one thing, anyway.

"Hang on. Didn't Leon and the others say that they came from Hollow Bastion," Donald pointed out, turning everyone's attention to him when he mentioned that. "If that is the case, and this place is Radiant Garden, then why don't they remember that it used to be called that?"

"I don't know, Donald. Maybe something had happened that made them forget after a long time. After all, it has been nine years since they had to leave their world to take shelter on Traverse Town, but no matter what anyone else says, I'm sure that this place is definitely Radiant Garden. Or at least what's left of it," Ventus sadly replied, his mind already going back to all the memories he had of this place, from the friends he had made here, to the adventures that had taken place on his many visits over the time that had passed since the first time he had come to the world.

Any further musings on the matter were quickly dropped or forgotten when a loud roar suddenly scared all four of the friends, nearly out of their skins. Their first thought was that it was some kind of monster Heartless, but Ven could not sense any such darkness coming from the direction that the sound had originated from, and after a moment, Sora found that he could not either. None of them were sure what to make of that, but one thing that they did know for certain was that whatever it was, it might mean that whatever had made the sound was either dangerous or needed help. They just had to hope it was the latter, because it definitely came from the archway that was halfway up to the one before the castle, and it was the only way forward for them at the moment. Who would not be concerned knowing that as they were going forward.

---

Riku had never felt more alive than he did right now. Ever since Maleficent had revealed that little bit of truth to him, and helped him to unlock the power he needed to claim what was rightfully his, he had felt nearly invincible. Sure, the evil fairy had a little help from a mutual friend that claimed Maleficent was unaware of their acquaintanceship, but Riku could not really be bothered to care. He was now closer than ever to helping Kairi get her heart back, and all he needed now was the thing that should have been his right from the start. Still, he wanted to make sure he could handle his newly acquired powers, and he could think of no better way to break them in than this little test run he was currently in the middle of. Though he had to admit, he never really expected an opponent like this one.

His opponent in question was a beast in every sense of the word, from his brown fur, to the horns on his head, and razor sharp fangs. Not only that, but he also had massive paws and killer claws that were perfect for tearing through any prey that he may wish to feast upon, and a long, somewhat bushy-looking tail. Though from his torn up, dark blue pants and the torn purple cape the monster wore, and the oddly gentle if not furious blue eyes he possessed, Riku had to figure that this was not the beast's normal appearance. Not that it mattered now, because all Riku really knew that whatever this thing was before, or now, this creature was a mystery all on its own, and Riku needed some questions answered about it before anything else happened. He just had to hope that the human aspects of this creature meant that it was capable of speaking.

"No vessel, no help from the Heartless, so tell me, how'd you get here," Riku demanded, testing to see if this thing was intelligent enough to speak.

As it turned out, the beast was indeed just that, because it soon growled out an answer that came through in plain English, with the slight hint of an accent to it that Riku almost could not identify. "I simply believed. Nothing more to it," the beast answered with a glare. "When our world fell into darkness, Belle was taken from me. I vowed I would find her again no matter what the cost. I believed I would find her. So, here I am. She must be here. I will have her back!"

Riku was not entirely sure who this Belle person was, but he had a hunch it was one of the six girls that Maleficent was currently holding up in the castle, and knowing that they would be necessary to open the path that he believed would help him recover Kairi's heart, it made sense that he would draw his sword once again, and stand in defiance of this beast's wishes. "Take her if you can," Riku challenged, and it was well met very soon.

The beast let out a monstrous roar and then lunged forward from the platform he was currently standing on, reaching the one where Riku had been standing in one, powerful leap. Riku was not quite prepared for such a show of strength, but that that did not mean he was completely caught off guard, as evidenced by how he managed to spin away from the rather savage swing that the beast had thrown at him. A moment later, everything seemed to move in slow motion for Riku's opponent, because when Riku had landed on his feet again, he immediately charged the creature with an incredible speed that the beast could not hope to keep up with, and landed a powerful slash on his person in one fell swoop. After backing away again, Riku could only smirk with pride as he watched the beast fall to the ground, and would have moved in to finish the creature off had someone not interfered once again.

"STOP," Sora shouted as he and the others raced to stand between Riku and the beast, all of them ready for a fight if it came down to that. Instead, they found themselves surprised to see that Riku was not the least bit annoyed from seeing them, but instead, had a smug smile on his face like he was in on some sort of joke that they did not yet know or understand.

"So, you finally made it. About time. I've been waiting for you," Riku mocked with a chuckle.

"Somehow I don't think it's for the reason that Sora's hoping it might be," Ventus remarked, earning him a scowl from Riku.

"Hey Master Phony, keep your trap shut and stay out of this. I was talking to Sora, not you," Riku nearly snapped, and the fact his voice did not change in volume at all made it a little more worrisome for everyone.

Ventus was half tempted to march over to the kid and put him in his place right there and then for all of his insults, but he quickly took a calming breath, knowing that acting out in such a way would only be proving Riku right, even if not entirely, and instead retorted, "Well then by all means, let's hear what you have to say this time. I'm sure we'd all love to hear your latest tirade on how you want to justify using the power of darkness and the Heartless to help your friends."

Riku simply ignored the blonde before turning his attention back to Sora, and continuing on from where he had left off. "We've always been rivals, haven't we, Sora," he asked, though he did not wait for an answer. "You've always pushed me as I've always pushed you. But it all ends here. There can't be two Keyblade masters."

"Actually, there can be, considering that there's actually two in existence right now, not counting Master Aqua," Ventus argued, though somehow, he had a feeling that Riku did not mean that in the way he was thinking.

"Let me clarify then. What I meant is that there can't be two wielders of the same Keyblade," Riku corrected himself.

"What are you talking about," Sora demanded, now completely lost on what Riku was trying to imply this time.

Riku just smirked before he raised a hand up, and declared, "Let the Keyblade choose…it's true master!"

The next thing Sora knew, Kingdom Key had flashed into his hand and then started moving forward on its own, trembling in his grasp as it did. Sora nearly tripped over his own two feet in his attempts to keep it from going, but he could still feel it trembling in his hands as it continued to try and move away from him. As it continued to shake, Sora could swear that he felt an odd sensation coming from Kingdom Key, making him wonder if the Keyblade was actually frightened by what was happening to it, but before he could ponder it any further, the Keyblade finally slid out of his grasp and vanished completely, much to his shock, and that of his friends. The only thing that proved more surprising, if not horrifying was when Kingdom Key reappeared, not in Sora's hand, but Riku's, while the taller boy just smirked at the rather simple Keyblade with glee.

"Maleficent was right," Riku grinned before he threw a mocking look down at Sora. "You don't have what it takes to save Kairi. It's up to me. Only the chosen Keyblade master can open the secret door and change the world."

"But that's impossible. How did this happen," Sora whispered, hardly believing that this was happening after all that they had been through. "I'm the one who fought my way here with Kingdom Key, and who's trained in all of the different fighting styles and abilities of a Keyblade wielder!"

Riku merely scoffed in dry humor as he waved Sora's Keyblade around like he was showing off a prize, and replied, "You were just the delivery boy. Just because you were taught a few little tricks, doesn't mean that you were ever going to truly be its real wielder." Admittedly, he was a little bewildered as to why Sora would refer to his Keyblade by a ridiculous name like Kingdom Key, but now that it was his, it did not matter. To add further insult to injury, Riku then pulled out an old, wooden sword like the ones he and Sora had used back on the Islands, and tossed it over to his friend as he declared, "Sorry, your part's over now. Here, go play hero with this."

As the toy sword clattered along the ground to his feet, Sora finally felt his legs give out, and he immediately dropped to his knees with his head down. He did not want to believe what Riku was saying, but he had to admit, there might have been some truth to it. Was he really not meant to be the wielder of the Kingdom Key? Was the reason why he had still not discovered his personal Tier One Command Style because he was never meant to be a Keyblade wielder in the first place? If that was the case, then why would he have gained so many incredible abilities while training under Ventus, like his personal Shotlocks, or his magical abilities? Was Kingdom Key just doing whatever it could to keep him alive until he was able to deliver it to its true wielder? Sora just did not know, and worst yet, he was afraid of what Ventus would so much as think, let alone do after all that had just happened here.

Donald and Goofy were also confused on what they should do now. On the one hand, they had been through so much with Sora, and had promised to help him and Ventus on this journey, but on the other hand, they still had their mission for King Mickey. After all, the king had said that the two of them were supposed to find the key and stick with it, no matter what. Sure, he had also said to trust whatever Ventus had decided to do, but if what Riku had said was true, then could they really trust the blonde's judgment? After all, it did seem like he had made a mistake in taking Sora on as his apprentice, so what else could Ven have been wrong about. The two just did not know.

Finally, Donald found he could not keep it in any longer, and just had to voice his concerns out loud, if not to everyone, then at least to the one person that those orders affected the most. "Goofy, what do we do now? How should we carry on with our mission from here?"

"Oh! Well, I know the king told us to follow the key and all, and to trust Ven to know what to do, but…" Goofy said, glancing between where Riku had gone off to and the distraught Sora who was still down on the ground and looking like he was about to cry a little. He then let out a sad, aggravated moan, showing that he was just as lost on this matter as Donald seemed to be, and he honestly wished he did know what they should do. What neither of the two expected was for someone else to give voice on what they should do, let alone who that person would end up being.

"If you guys think you need to go and follow Riku in order to fulfill your mission, then by all means, go on ahead. After all, it's not like he's on the verge of drowning in darkness if not bringing about the end of all the worlds," Ventus told the two. He may not have been shouting or snapping at them, but his otherwise calm tone did make Donald and Goofy feel like he had done just that and more, and he was not done. "I won't stop either of you from going, but I'm staying right here with my apprentice. If you do decide that you want to stick with Sora though, all I ask is this: try and slow Riku down a little if you can. At the very least, long enough for us to catch up with you all later."

Donald and Goofy may have felt like they were abandoning Sora at first, but when they heard Ventus make that request, they had a feeling that following Riku might actually be of help to them and Sora later on. So, they simply nodded to the blonde and gave Sora a quick, heartfelt apology before they slowly started making their way after Riku, leaving Ventus alone with the boy. Well, almost alone with him, because they were quickly reminded that one other person was here as well. Then again, when a massive, bestial being like the one that Riku had just been fighting suddenly started trying to limp past you, despite being hurt, you would have been hard pressed to not be reminded that he was there with you. A minute later though, their reminder had soon collapsed between them, and they were both quickly more concerned for his wellbeing.

"Hey, don't move. You're hurt," Sora cautioned, finding he was unable to stay down on the ground, feeling sorry for himself after seeing the beast collapse.

Ventus was instantly producing Guardian Wind in order to cast Cura, thinking it would be of more help here than the standard healing spell, Cure, but letting Sora see his Keyblade ended up being a bad move, because Sora was instantly looking down in despair once again, despite his best efforts at helping the strange beast to stand up again. It was rather comical how someone Sora's size was helping a creature that was much bigger than him like this beast was to stand, but the sad mood easily squashed out any humor from the situation. Ventus was about to say something in order to help uplift his apprentice's spirits, but their newest acquaintance ended up beating him to the punch.

"Why…Why did you…you come here," the beast questioned Sora, making the kid turn to him with a confused look on his face, clearly wondering where the beast was going with that, and giving the creature all the cue he needed to elaborate on what he was getting at. "I came to fight for Belle. And though I am on my own, I will fight. I won't leave without her. That's why I'm here."

Sora just stared after the beast for a minute, thinking over what this massive being had just said. Despite being all on his own, and having nothing more than his belief and strength to push him forwards, he was not going to give up now that he was so close to finding the one he wanted to save, and he was going to keep fighting even if he was hurt. Realizing this, Sora began to look back at everything that had happened to him since this journey had started. The only downside was that doing so made him think about all the amazing things he had managed to do with the Keyblade in hand, and he had to wonder if he could really keep being of any help without it. Kairi could quickly sense the doubt forming in Sora's heart from within, and wanted to try and say something to him, but no matter what she tried, nothing came to her mind on what she could say to help her friend.

Thankfully, someone else was able to think of something to say to Sora, and he did not hesitate to do so when he saw the doubt forming on his apprentice's face. "Sora, if this guy, someone who doesn't have nothing more than his own impressive strength and beliefs can get this far without a Keyblade, then surely you can do the same," Ventus started out, making sure that the kid's eyes were locked on him before he continued on. "There's more to being a Keyblade wielder than just simply being chosen by a Keyblade. You were right before when you said that you were the one who had fought your way here and trained with the Kingdom Key, but what else did you do along the way?" When Sora said nothing in reply, Ventus immediately filled in the blanks for him. "You made in difference in the lives of others, you helped save other worlds from the Heartless, and you made several new friends who all now have a place in your heart. That's the ultimate difference here that will help you to reclaim what is truly yours: the strength of your heart, and the bonds that connect you to so many people throughout all of the worlds. That's what Riku has either forgotten or just doesn't understand."

Sora had to admit, Ventus did have a point. He had made a lot of friends who he had formed a bond with in his heart, and with every new friend he had made, his heart had grown all the stronger. Still, against Riku's power and strength, he had doubts that it would make that much of a difference, but Kairi was not about to let him start thinking that way. "Sora, don't you remember that memory I just showed you before? The one of my grandma's story? What Ven is talking about is just one example of the light deep inside that never goes out, and even if I wasn't inside of your heart, I'd be able to tell you with the utmost confidence that yours is stronger than any other in all of the worlds."

Sora instantly perked up when he heard that, then turned to pick up the toy sword that Riku had thrown at him as a way of mocking him, and turned his gaze towards the castle as he declared, "You guys are right. I can't give up now after coming all this way. I came here to help save someone very important to me, and after all that's happened, there's no way I'm going to quit." He then lost a bit of that confidence when he said, "But…what about what Riku said? Was I really just a delivery boy?"

"Not a chance in hell," Ventus immediately disputed, pulling Sora's attention back on to him. "I could sense that someone had indeed passed the power of the Keyblade to Riku, but I'm absolutely positive that the Kingdom Key was never meant for him. Surely you must have sensed something that would prove that to you better than anybody before it jumped to his hand, right?" He immediately took Sora's silence as a yes, and pressed on by saying, "Then it's up to you to get it back. In that moment, Riku managed to overpower your claim on the Kingdom Key, yes, but as its true wielder, you can still reclaim it by showing that you do possess the strength of heart to be the master of Kingdom Key."

"Are you sure," Sora asked. "What if I do try and it turns out that I'm not worthy of it after all?"

"Trust me, Sora. You have no idea how sure I am that you're worthy of Kingdom Key, and even if I didn't know, I'd still be telling you all of this, because I believe it to be true, just like I believe in you," Ventus promised with a smile. It took a few seconds or so, but eventually, Sora did return Ven's smile with a very grateful one of his own, and the blonde then decided it was time to address one final detail that would make absolutely sure that Sora could get his Keyblade back. "Now, if you're really that worried, I think I may know of a way to help make sure that you can get Kingdom Key back."

"What's that," Sora asked, earning a curious look from the beast as well.

"You see, Sora, being chosen to be a wielder is only half of what's necessary to be a true Keybearer. The other half, more often than not, is that someone does indeed need to pass the power to you through a Keyblade Inheritance Ceremony. From the moment we first met, I could tell that no one had done that for you, at least not officially, but somehow, someone had managed to pass the ability to wield a Keyblade onto you," Ventus explained. He then summoned Guardian Wind to his hand, and finished, "I think I might know a way to cement that power into your being, if you're willing to try it."

Sora did not even hesitate for a second to nod, because despite whatever misgivings he may or may not still have, he was willing to take on whatever responsibilities that came with being a Keybearer. After all, he had already been following those responsibilities, so what would be the point in stopping now? Ventus smiled and then knelt down before Sora, extending the hilt of his Keyblade towards the boy, as he began to recite an old, familiar chant. "In your hand take this key. So long as you still have the makings, then through this simple act of taking, its wielder you shall once again be. And you will find me again, friend, no ocean shall contain you once again. No more borders around, below, or above, so long as you still champion the ones you love."

Sora looked up at Ventus in awe for a minute, completely mystified by what he had just heard, and then reached out and grasped the handle of Guardian Wind. After holding the handle of the blade for a minute or two, Sora could feel something inside of him growing stronger, like it was beginning to fully solidify into whatever place it held inside of him, and when he finally let go, he could feel a sudden rush of energy washing over him like he had suddenly been reenergized in a way that he had never felt before. When he grinned up at Ventus, the blonde knew that it had worked, and immediately dismissed his Keyblade before standing upright once again. He then prepared to head out when Sora made him stop for a second so he could question the blonde about what had just happened.

"What was that you just did," Sora asked.

"Well, it's known as a Keyblade Re-Inheritance Ceremony, and it's often used to help Keyblade wielders who have lost their way in a way similar to how you just did regain what they had lost," Ventus explained with an odd smile on his face that seemed a little suspicious to the younger boy.

"Really," Sora asked, his skepticism very apparent as he spoke.

"Well…kind of. Let's just say that it's really something that a very special friend of mine once did for another friend when they were facing a difficult trial a while back. It may be an altered version of the Keyblade Inheritance Ceremony, but you can't tell me that it didn't work, now can you," Ventus revealed. It may not have been the full details, but it was still enough for now.

Sora just continued staring at Ven until he finally shrugged and said, "I guess we'll find out when we catch up to Riku."

Ventus nodded in slight agreement with the kid, and then thought of something else that could prove helpful to showing Sora that he was going to be able to get his Keyblade back. "Sora, take a look at the Keychains you've collected since this journey started."

Sora quirked an eyebrow at his master, but complied all the same, and produced each of his hard earned Keychains. When Ventus saw them, he immediately grinned a little more, and said, "Yep. Just as I thought. That right there is proof that you're meant to be the Keybearer for Kingdom Key."

"Huh? What do you mean by that," Sora questioned, not quite getting it.

"I too can't help but wonder about that," the beast questioned, wanting to make sure that they had not forgotten that he was still there.

Ventus nodded down at the Keychains as he explained, "If you really weren't meant to be a Keybearer, be it for Kingdom Key or otherwise, then those Keychains would have either vanished or taken on a rather rusty-looking appearance, and yet they're still shining brightly and giving off a great deal of power just as they have been ever since you got them. That means, it is possible for you get Kingdom Key back." Sora grinned happily upon hearing this, and Ven knew that the kid's fighting spirit was now back in full, but he was still not done just yet. "That being said, there's one other way that we can make getting Kingdom Key back from Riku a little easier, and it involves those very Keychains. Give me whichever one you think is the most powerful of the bunch, and I'll show you."

The kid was once again giving Ventus a confused look, but still started thumbing through his Keychains all the same. He eventually found one that made him pause before he picked it out from the bunch and offered it to Ventus. When he got the Keychain in his hand, it immediately became Ven's turn to be confused, because he did not remember ever seeing Sora getting this Keychain before. It was a standard Keychain, at least as far as the links in the chain went, but the token in question was that of the infamous yellow bird known as a Chocobo, and that alone made Ventus question where Sora had gotten this from, a fact he made quite clear to the kid just from his questioning look.

"I found it at the café while I was waiting for you and the others in Traverse Town," Sora admitted. "I had taken a break after meditating on my magic control for a bit and started glancing around to see if you guys were coming, until I noticed a small chest had suddenly appeared on the table I was sitting at. When I opened it up, I found that Keychain inside along with a note."

"What did it say," Ventus asked, wanting to make sure that it did not say anything that might indicate that this came from someone who meant them, or at the very least Sora harm.

Sora immediately pulled out the note in question, and began reading it off for the blonde. "I see you've gotten a lot better since we last met. Maybe I won't pass up on that offer for a rematch with you sometime after all. Remember, don't lose sight of the light you're searching for, and hope to see you soon—C." Sora then looked up to Ven seeing that the blonde had a knowing smile, telling him that Ventus had figured out the same thing that he had when he first got the note and the Keychain inside. Going by what was said in this letter, there was only one person they knew of that this could have come from, and they were glad to hear from him, even if it was indirectly. Sora then turned their attention back to the matter at hand, and asked, "So what're you going to do with that Keychain, anyway?"

Ventus just smiled and said for Sora to watch, before he closed his fist around the Keychain and closed his eyes in concentration. A minute later, the Keychain started to glow in Ven's hand, and when he opened his fist again, it floated up into the air, and full-fledged Keyblade suddenly sprung forth from the Keychain, much to Sora and the beast's surprise. This new Keyblade, while just as simple as Kingdom Key in overall design, looked a lot like the sword that Cloud had used against them in their fight back at Olympus Coliseum, with its large, black blade, and the dark brown guard and red handle, while two holes rested at the base of the blade, with another three that were adjacent to the teeth. When the Keyblade floated down to rest in Ven's waiting hand, Sora could no longer contain himself, and immediately asked the two questions that were most dominant in his mind. "What just happened? How'd you do that?"

"It's a simple spell that many masters learn upon completing the Mark of Mastery Exam," Ventus explained as he studied the Keyblade. "As I've told you before, Keychains hold the power and essence of a Keyblade inside of them, which is what allows them to augment and change your own Keyblade when they're attached. But there's more to it than that. A true Keyblade Master is able to awaken the Keyblade resting inside of a Keychain, be it for the purpose of passing it on to a new wielder that they believe would be worthy of that Keyblade's power, or even for the reason that we currently face: to act as a temporary substitute until a wielder can reclaim their own, true Keyblade." As soon as he had said all of this, he held out the Keyblade to Sora and said, "Here, take it, and trust Metal Chocobo to help you in reclaiming your Keyblade."

Sora grinned a little bit as he took the Keyblade in question by the handle, and then got a feel for its weight with a few practice swings. It was definitely heavier than what he was used to, but Sora was sure that he could handle it for now, at least until he got Kingdom Key back. Still, there was a small concern that needed to be addressed, and it looked like their new friend was going to be the one to ask about it. "Just how long will this Keyblade last," the massive beast asked.

"Hopefully long enough for us to catch up to Riku and until Sora can get Kingdom Key back from the little brat," Ventus replied, not bothering to hide his disdain for Riku this time, even though Sora was right there. "If necessary though, I should be able to reanimate a Keyblade from one of Sora's other Keychains, but after that, I won't have enough energy to do it again for a good long while."

"Then I'll just have to make sure that this lasts as long as we need it too," Sora declared.

The other two immediately nodded, and with all of that now settled, they quickly set out, hoping that Donald and Goofy were in fact able to stall Riku long enough for them. As they were going, Ventus turned to their new teammate and decided to finally ask, "By the way, what do we call you?"

The massive creature just growled for a minute, making the two Keybearers think that Ventus had unintentionally insulted the big guy, until he finally said, "You can simply call me Beast."

While it was rather simple, the two Keybearers were not going to argue with it, and instead just shrugged in acceptance as they all marched onwards after the three who had already gone on ahead of them. They had a lot of ground to cover if they wanted to catch up, and they had already spent more than enough time standing around here. They just had to hope they were not too late by now.

---

Not a single one of the three had kidded themselves into thinking that getting into the castle was going to be as simple as going through the front door, but they were still disappointed to see that the gates were locked shut regardless. Still, no one doubted that Riku had gone in there, and that meant that they had to find a way through the locked gates. Luckily, Ventus knew that there were a few secret passages into the lower levels that they could use to reach a control panel or two that would get the gates unlocked for them, and he did not hesitate to lead the other two towards the closest one. When Sora asked how the blonde knew about this, Ventus just shrugged and said he knew a couple of guys who used to sneak into the castle all the time, and that said friends had showed him a few of the ways that they did it. The only problem was that they had to deal with several different Heartless as they made their way forward, most of them being Shadows, Large Bodies, and their various cone-shaped elemental friends, but there were some new ones too that got in their path, and they were not easy to deal with.

There were mostly three new varieties that they had not dealt with until now, and the two Keybearers were both happy to hear that Jiminy had information on each one in his journal. The first of which the official conscience said was called a Wizard, and between the fact it could cast powerful magic spells easily, and how it looked so much like a small wizard with its conical hat and the wand it waved around for all of its spells, they could definitely see why. The second new one reminded the two a lot of the Large Bodies, but with much more bite, and not just because the large shield that they carried had a dog-faced head on the front that actually chomped at them when it was not blasting fireballs or ice breathes from its mouth. Add in the rather large arms and torso, along with how it would spin around to knock them away if they got too close, and it was not hard to see why these things were called Defenders. The last one was what Jiminy described as a Heartless very similar to a Shadow in how it originated, whatever that meant, but given that it did not have the Heartless emblem anywhere on it, they had to assume that had something to do with it. Aside from that, the more distinguishing features of this third Heartless was that it had a spherical body, with two thick tentacles sprouting out of the top of its head, and a third one protruding from the underside of its body. What really worried Ventus was that they could constantly see inside of its jagged mouth, and the fact that it would usually attack by rapidly chomping its jaws at them did not help at all. Jiminy had said they were called Darkballs, but Sora felt it would be more appropriate to call them irritating disturbances, since they could teleport around them, and condense down into purple clouds before popping up into full form again to cause damage.

In his own opinion, Ventus felt like Hollow Bastion had more Heartless than any other world that they had been to so far, and Sora had to agree with that, especially with how many of the new, more powerful Heartless that they had encountered. Granted, Leon had said that this world had been under the control of Maleficent and the Heartless for nine years now, but still, he was not quite expecting the Heartless to be swarming over every nock and cranny to this extent. Luckily, it seemed that Beast was able to make their lives a little easier, because his brute strength was able to get them through several walls when it seemed like they had no other way forward, and he was able to tear many of their enemies apart as easily as though he was cutting a knife through butter. It was definitely a huge help for them, and made things go much more quickly than they probably would have if Sora and Ventus were on their own.

That bonus of extra muscle was especially beneficial for them since Sora's current Keyblade was only temporary, and Ven knew that the minute Metal Chocobo vanished back into its Keychain, Sora would either need to rely on the toy sword that Riku had thrown him, or he would have to animate another one of the kid's Keychains, and right now, he could not afford to do that. The magic necessary for that kind of spell was very special in comparison to his regular magic, and if he tried to use the spell a second time too soon, there was a good chance that he would end up draining his regular reserves a little bit. Best case scenario, Ventus would be reduced to half of his regular reserves of magic, and the worst case scenario was that they would be pushed down to where they were when he first started training as a Keybearer all those years ago. Neither option was very favorable, because he would be at a huge disadvantage for several hours, if not a couple of days at most, so he had to hope that Sora's temporary substitute for Kingdom Key would last long enough.

Sora had very few complaints about Metal Chocobo at the moment, and he was able to handle it relatively well, almost like it was his own Keyblade the whole time. There was just one problem: it was definitely a lot heavier than Kingdom Key, and sometimes, that proved to be a little problematic for him. Many of his usual moves had to be reworked at a moment's notice, due to the blade's extra weight, because often times, his swings would end up losing some of the power they would normally have when he swung, or he would just end up getting slightly off balance because he put too much into the swing, making the blade's extra weight throw him in a direction that he did not want to go. Using this Keyblade honestly made Sora wonder if this was anything like what Cloud went through when he was swinging around that Buster Sword of his. It definitely made him gain a new respect for Cloud, because that likely meant that the guy was exceptionally strong or had gone through a great deal of training to be able to handle his massive weapon as well as he did. Still, it was not a problem he had to worry about too much. He just had to be especially careful when using certain moves, as he quickly learned when he tried using Strike Raid once to take out a fourth new Heartless that held a draconian appearance, and which Jiminy called a Wyvern, only to end up getting bashed in the head with it on its return trip. If that was not a sign that the thing was much different from Kingdom Key, Sora was not sure what could be, and it made him want to get his Keyblade back soon even more than ever. At the same time though, part of him had to wonder if he would end up dealing with similar results if he were to apply Metal Chocobo's Keychain onto Kingdom Key, but he figured that was a problem for another day. They still had to get into the castle and continue chasing after Riku for now.

Finally, after navigating the maze that was the lower levels of the castle, they managed to locate the switch necessary for opening up the main gates, and the three immediately made a break for said entrance, smashing, slashing, and bashing through any Heartless that dared to get in their way. Beast was especially impressed by the ferocity that his new friends were showing in battle, and he made sure that he was not bested by them as he fought his way forward as well. After all, he was the one who was an actual beast, so he could not let a pair of normal humans show him up too easily, Keybearers or not. When they finally reached the door, they all quickly took the time to down an Ether or two, along with a couple of Potions just to make sure that they would be ready for whatever lied in waiting inside the castle and quickly made their way forward.

The minute they stepped into the entrance hall, Beast let out a low growl to show that he had picked up on something that the other two had not. At least not right away, because Ventus was soon sensing something as well, and it was not anything that would be considered good in any of their books, or that of anyone else who was on their side. "Be on your guard," Beast growled in warning, having not yet noticed Ven's distressed visage. "They're close, I can feel it."

"You're not alone in that regard, and I can feel something else too," Ventus finally said, holding one hand his forehead as he tried to block out the sudden upsurge of both light and darkness washing over the place. "I could feel several powerful lights suddenly surging before they just…vanished into darkness. Maleficent must be using the Princesses of Light to reveal the pathway to the final Keyhole."

"But I thought that she needed all seven of them in order to do that," Sora pointed out.

"I wish that was the case, but if she just wanted to reveal the Keyhole, she could do so without the full set. Maybe five, or at most four of them. She must have gotten tired of waiting for number seven to show up after realizing that we were here, and decided to speed up her plans a little," Ventus said.

"I'm guessing that means that getting my heart out of you and back into my body is not going to be a very good idea at the moment," Kairi remarked to Sora, and the boy found himself unable to really answer her in a way that would have eased either one of their concerns.

"Well whatever happens, I won't let it stop me from saving Belle. Are you both ready," Beast growled.

"You bet," Sora replied, brandishing his temporary Keyblade as he did. He just wished that he was as confident as he sounded, because he could feel the power of Metal Chocobo weakening, which likely meant it was going to disappear at any second now.

Sora's show of confidence must have been enough to convince Beast that they could press on, because he was ready to charge through the next door forward until he sensed something from behind them and turned to face it, getting Ventus to do the same a minute later. What they saw was what looked like a beautiful young woman in an amazing, yellow ball gown that left her shoulders bare, but a minute later, she melted away into shadows, and was soon replaced by a Heartless. When he saw this, Ven knew that had to mean that it was just an illusion that was placed there to try and throw them off, because he had a hunch that this Belle that the Beast was after was a Princess of Heart, meaning she could not become a Heartless if she ever lost her heart, but Beast did not know that, and instantly became enraged at the sight of the girl turning into the vile creature. Before either of the other two could do anything to stop him, Beast had already bounded after the dark creature in anger, and they were soon only able to watch as the door they just came through slammed shut behind Beast, cutting them off from him, and leaving them on their own.

"Well, so much for the extra muscle," Ventus muttered to Sora, now feeling a nervous as well.

"Quit while you can. Both of you," Riku's voice suddenly ordered, making the two turn to see the boy in question standing on the opposite end of the entrance hall with Donald and Goofy not too far behind him. From the exhausted looks on the two's faces, Ventus had to assume that they had done quite a bit to make sure Riku did not get much farther than this, and he made a mental note to show just how much he appreciated that later on.

Turning his attention back to Riku, Ventus immediately retorted, "Are you sure you've met a Keyblade Master before, because if you did, you would know that a real master would never quit, especially not when they're so close to their goal like Sora and I are now."

"Besides, I'm not going anywhere without Kairi, even if that means I have to go through you, Riku," Sora added, brandishing Metal Chocobo as he did. His confidence faltered a little when the temporary Keyblade suddenly flashed with a dark shadow that Sora just knew was sign that it was going to vanish back into the Keychain at any minute, and that was not something that he needed to happen just yet.

The young Keybearer's worries only grew even more when Riku suddenly transformed, his normal clothes melting away to be replaced by a very dark body suit that Ventus could not help but note to be very similar to the one that his old late foe, Vanitas once wore. Maybe it was the rather organic appearance it had, what with its resemblance to muscle tissue, or the tattered cloth he wore around his waist, opening at the front and secured by his belt, but aside from the colors being mainly black and dark purple, the main difference that Ventus had to note between Riku's dark suit and Vanitas' was the large, black heart-shaped emblem that he wore on the center of his chest. "Bold words for a phony," Riku commented to Ventus. "But the darkness will destroy you both soon enough, and I get the feeling that it will tear through that poor substitute that your using rather easily, Sora."

"Think again. Maybe the darkness can tear through Sora's current weapon easily, and maybe it can't, but before it can touch him, it will have to go through me," Ventus declared, standing ready and at the defensive in front of his apprentice.

"Like that's going to be hard. After all, you're nothing compared to the two real masters I've met," Riku scoffed in dry humor.

Now it was Ven's turn to let out a mocking laugh, earning a bewildered look from Riku, and the blonde soon explained, "Hate to break it to you, kid, but you're only half right when you say you've met two masters. The problem is, I'm the second one you met. Out of the two people you met when you were a kid, only one of them was an actual master. I'm guessing that Terra was the one who passed the power of the Keyblade to you, and while he may have thought he was making the right call at the time, he clearly forgot that he had to be a master to do that officially. He was struggling to control his darkness when you met him, and had only just started to gain something of a handle on it when he met you. Trust me when I say this, if you keep using the power of darkness this way, you'll end up being consumed like Terra eventually was when someone with a more powerful darkness overwhelmed him, and you'll be disgracing the legacy that he had entrusted to you."

If Ventus was hoping that he would get Riku to see sense with that speech, he failed in a very great way, because with nearly every word that he said after his second sentence, Riku just got angrier and angrier. When the blonde finally finished speaking, Riku just exploded, and drew his hand back, already forming a very powerful Dark Firaga in it, as he shouted, "Enough of your lies! I command the darkness, and not the other way around! I'll show you that I've bested it by using it destroy you both in one blast!"

"Give it your best shot then, Riku, because it won't work out the way you think," Sora retorted, surprising everyone a little bit. "The darkness may destroy our bodies, but it can't touch our hearts. Our hearts will stay with our friends. They'll never die!"

When he heard Sora say that, Ventus had to smile a little more proudly at the kid, while one thought went through his head. "I think he's starting to really get it now."

Kairi was also beaming happily at Sora from inside of his heart, and Sora was instantly able to tell by the warm feeling that suddenly started to grow inside of his chest, bringing a smile to his own face. Sadly, those smiles were immediately washed away when Riku finally finished charging up his attack and shouted, "Well, we'll just see about that!"

The minute that Riku started thrusting his hand forward to unleash his dark spell, Ventus had raised Guardian Wind up so that he could attempt to block the blast, but somehow, he had a feeling that it was not going to be that easy to deflect it without a proper shield, be it magical in nature or otherwise, so he could not help but follow Sora's lead in closing his eyes as he braced for the impact of the blast. An impact that ended up never coming, and when the two opened their eyes again, they both grinned with sighs of relief to see that Goofy had intercepted Riku's attack with his own shield, which proved to be more than enough to handle the attack that the silver haired boy had just thrown, even in his exhausted state.

"Sora and Ven ain't gonna go anywhere," Goofy shouted, glaring at Riku when he did, despite how tired he was.

"You'd betray your king," Riku questioned, thinking that would get Goofy to step aside and let him finish what he started.

Goofy did no such thing, but instead, just replied, "Not on your life, but I'm not gonna betray Sora either, 'cause he's become one of my best buddies after all we've been through together! And not only is Ven one of my best buddies too, he's also the king's former apprentice and one of his best buddies, so I figure that betraying Ven might as well be just as bad as betraying the king. Besides, the king just said to find Ven and help him to find the key. He never specifically said Keyblade, and after all me, Sora, and Ven have been through, I figure that maybe, he meant the person who would be wielding it is the key, not the Keyblade itself." When he saw Sora smile in appreciation for Goofy's words, knowing what Goofy meant when he said that, and how Ventus' grin almost matched that smile, Goofy immediately looked to Donald, feeling that it was better safe than sorry to assume that Donald did not feel entirely the same way and shouted, "See ya later, Donald. Could ya tell the king I'm really sorry?"

"Hold on, Goofy! We'll tell him together, assuming we are going against his orders," Donald immediately denied, and he quickly joined the rest of his three friends on their side of the room. He then provided further proof that he believed what Goofy had said by telling them, "Well, you know…All for one and one for all. Besides, if Goofy is right, then maybe Sora is the real key to this whole thing after all, as hard as that may be to believe."

No one bothered to get on Donald for that last remark, because they all know it was just a little more playful teasing to show just how loyal he had become to Sora after everything that had happened. Goofy then decided to join in on the teasing too, and said, "Well, I guess you and Ven are stuck with us, Sora. Hope you don't mind too much."

Sora did not have the heart to reply with a teasing remark or a playful snap at the two, because right now, he was just too touched by their choices and actions to really do anything of that nature. In the end, he could only say, "Thanks a lot Donald, Goofy, and you too, Ven."

"Hey, I'd be a really lousy master if I let anyone bail out on you after all this time, Sora, and that includes myself and these two knuckleheads," Ventus said with a smile, taking his turn at teasing his friends, which Donald and Goofy just laughed off.

The moment was quickly brought to a close though, interrupted by none other than Riku, who had immediately reminded them of their situation when he asked, "How will you fight without a weapon, Sora? Don't think I can't tell that Keyblade your using is going to disappear on you at any minute like mine did, so you won't be able to do anything at all in just a matter of moments."

Instead of hitting back with an angry retort, Sora just smiled at his best friend and revealed, "I know now I don't need a Keyblade. I've got a better weapon, and it's one that I've had all along: my heart."

"Humph. Your heart? What good will that weak little thing do for you," Riku asked in disbelief.

"You're still not getting it even after what just happened, huh," Ventus asked, and was ready to dive into an explanation when Sora beat him to the punch.

"Although my heart may be weak, it's not alone. It's grown with each new experience, and it's found a home with all the friends I've made. I've become a part of their heart just as they've become a part of mine. And if they think of me now and then, if they don't forget me, then our hearts will be one," Sora said as simply as you pleased, and with every word he spoke, Ventus could tell that Sora truly had learned all of this on his own without even realizing it. Sure, Ven might have been giving him a little nudge towards this realization every now and then, but this kind of lesson was always better when it was truly learned by someone's own power. Sora then dropped into his battle stance, the continually weakening Metal Chocobo Keyblade at the ready, and he said a specific phrase that Ventus knew very well and would never forget any time soon. "I don't need a weapon. My friends are my power!"

"And that goes for all of us, too," Ventus punctuated, Guardian Wind at the ready as well.

What happened next was clearly not something that Riku was expecting, but it came as no surprise at all for Ventus. Riku had just brought forth Kingdom Key, ready to use it against Sora in the ensuing fight, when suddenly the Keyblade glowed brightly with a brilliant light, much to Riku's shock, and then vanished from his hand without him meaning it too. When Kingdom Key reappeared this again, it was firmly in the hands of its true, rightful owner, and Sora was more than happy to have his Keyblade back where it belonged with him. That happiness was shared by all of Sora's friends, except for Riku, who immediately summoned forth the dark sword he had been using ever since they had met him in Traverse Town, and charged at them with a roar of anger. Clearly the kid intended to take back Kingdom Key by force if he had to, but before any of the other three could react, Sora jumped in and parried Riku's blade with Kingdom Key, and then batted him back across the room, giving him room to make his own charge.

Donald and Goofy were both preparing to join in on the fight as well, with the former preparing to cue up a bit of magic while the latter was getting ready to make his own charge, when Ventus suddenly held his arms up to stop them. Both Disney Town residents were confused as to why Ventus was doing that, but the blonde was already answering their unasked question before they could voice it. "You two have already done enough by stalling Riku for as long as you did. Don't think I didn't notice how tired you both were. Besides, it's best if we stay out of the way this time around. This one is Sora's battle. It's only right that we let him fight it on his own."

After listening to what the blonde had to say, the two best friends immediately turned to look at the fight between Sora and Riku once again, and they quickly saw that Ventus was right. This was indeed a battle that they could not interfere in, and it showed in the way that the two were fighting each other. Every lunge that Sora made, Riku was quick to parry, and for every retaliation on Riku's part was met with an equally strong counter from Sora. This was not just a simple spar like the two had often done before; this was a duel. Maybe not to the death, but a very serious duel nonetheless, and one that only the two of them could settle with their own individual power. If any of them were to try and jump in right now, they would doubtlessly only end up getting in Sora's way, and since Riku was putting his all into the fight, Sora needed to be at his best for it as well. Even if Ventus were to try and lend his Keyblade to the battle, Sora would likely end up with a small handicap, because he would be splitting his focus between fighting Riku and worrying about his master. Realizing this, Donald and Goofy both stood down, and decided that their time would be better spent by trying to find a way further into the castle. They were going to need that soon enough after all, so why wait until after Sora had won this fight to start searching.

Sora only took notice of his two friends' departure from the corner of his eye, but he had just as quickly returned his attention to Riku, and just in time to lock Kingdom Key with Riku's evil-looking sword. The two held the lock for a few seconds before they both finally pushed off of each other, and then started a rapid rush that was coupled with several clashes and swings of their individual blades. Riku proved to have an advantage in power and speed, partially due to the fact that he was taller than Sora and had more practice as a swordsman even before now, but unlike before when they sparred on the Islands, Sora had changed a lot since those days too, and when you added up everything he had learned since this journey had started, you could see why Sora would be able to now match Riku better than ever. That did not mean Riku was making the fight easy, because unlike their previous matches, he was no longer holding anything back, and Sora knew it too.

That did not stop Riku from rubbing the fact in Sora's face the next time they locked blades. "I'll admit, you're not bad, Sora, but you're still not good enough. You couldn't even beat me back on the islands, and I wasn't really trying too hard then," Riku mocked him. He then shoved at Kingdom Key, sending Sora tumbling backwards across the floor, and brandished his sword as he finished, "This time though, I'm not showing you any mercy, and my Soul Eater will ensure that you won't be able to steal my Keyblade ever again!"

Riku then leapt up into the air to give his final strike some more power, but if he was expecting Sora to fall that easily, then he was quickly disappointed. The minute had he gotten close enough to Sora, he was shocked to find his strike had been blocked by a wall of wind that had quickly surrounded Sora, showing that he had activated Aero Shield just in the nick of time, and Sora was standing strong when Riku's last attack should have thrown the young Keybearer off balance for much longer. It always had when they sparred back on the islands, but Riku had clearly not accounted for any new tricks that Sora may or may not have learned in the time that had passed. Sora emphasized that point when he stood again and pointed his Keyblade at Riku and said, "I'm not the same as I was back then, Riku. I'm a lot stronger now, and I've got a few new tricks up my sleeve. Something you seem to have forgotten about even after seeing me in action both in Traverse Town and in Monstro. How about Kingdom Key and I show you a few more!"

A second later, Riku found himself unable to keep up with Sora's movements, because the kid had immediately charged forward a mere second after his Keyblade had become enshrouded by a large energy sword. Riku attempted to raise Soul Eater in an attempt to block the attacks, but it did little good, as Sora still managed to land some hard strikes against him, until finally, he came to a stop in front of Riku, Keyblade ready for a final strike, and then flashed forward in the blink of an eye, thrusting Kingdom Key towards Riku as he went. When Sora reappeared behind Riku, he merely swung his Keyblade down, sending a silent signal for a massive burst of light to suddenly erupt from Riku's body in a brilliant explosion. That acted as the final sign for the fact that Sora had just given his friend a taste of Radiant Blade, but he somehow knew that the light-based attack was not going to be quite enough to stop Riku.

Sora was soon proven right when Riku leapt out of the smoke that had followed the explosion, and threw a powerful blast of Dark Firaga at Sora, which would have likely dealt serious harm to him even with Aero Shield still up if Sora had not rolled to the side just before it could even reach his shield. That ended up being just what Riku wanted though, because when he came down again, he was in the perfect position to strike at Sora with a downwards slash, and said slash easily struck home. Riku did not let up there, but instead, continued with a brutal barrage of sword attacks that left Sora with very little breathing room, right to the point where it was all that Sora could do to strengthen Aero Shield in retaliation. Looking on at this, anyone would be able to tell that Riku was doing everything he could to make sure that Sora was not able to focus long enough to use another Shotlock, and since those were some of his best moves, Sora could not help but think that he might be in trouble soon enough.

Regardless of Riku's determination to keep him from using any Shotlocks, Sora was not about to admit defeat just yet. He had been facing off against others without Shotlocks long before now, and there quite a few victories under his belt that he had achieved without said abilities as well. There was not a single doubt in Sora's mind that he could do this even if he did have to change things up and forego the use of some of his best abilities, and he proved it by unleashing the power of Sonic Blade against Riku. Using this ability made it much easier for Sora to not only deal some damage to his opponent, but also allowed him to gain some distance from Riku so that he could start throwing out a few spells as well. He did not stick with just one spell though, but instead, mixed it up with the use of every spell he had in his arsenal, so Riku was left dodging fireballs, ice shards, and lightning showers while also trying to avoid getting caught in the grasp of Stop at any moment. It proved to be very trying for Riku's nerves, especially if the scowl that was now on his face was any indication, but any attempt he made at stopping Sora's magic barrage was quickly thwarted by said barrage. Even when Riku tried to throw out his own spells in retaliation, Sora had managed to get the best of him, mostly because Riku needed some time to charge up most of his dark magic, and that gave Sora quite the advantage.

Still, Sora could not keep using spells against Riku forever, and when a small pause finally came, Riku thought that the spiky haired wielder had finally reached his limit. He was soon proven wrong when he suddenly had to duck down in order to avoid being hit by a spinning Kingdom Key, but he was unable to avoid it a second time when it hit him right in his gut. Looking up, Riku just managed to see Sora summoning his Keyblade again, only to throw it right at Riku for a third time, indicating that Sora was using Strike Raid against him, and judging by the rather chilling feel that accompanied the hit this time, Riku had to figure that Sora had used Freeze Raid there at the end. The last hit did slow Riku down a little, but not for too long, because he quickly shook off any freezing effects from the attack and immediately charged at Sora, intending to run Soul Eater through the kid.

Riku's charge quickly came to a halt when a faint glow suddenly began to shine around Kingdom Key and then began spreading out to encompass Sora's entire body. At first, Riku thought that Sora had somehow managed to activate another Shotlock, but when no attacks followed after the glow had started to settle, Riku ended up becoming very confused. Ventus on the other hand knew exactly what was going on, just from the nature of the shinning silver glow that was now radiating around his apprentice's body, but he was still working on believing that it was actually happening. "He's done it," Ventus whispered while a small smile started to cross his features. "He's actually done it at last!"

"Is this what I think it is," Sora asked as he started focusing the energy around him and his Keyblade on instinct.

"It is! It has to be," Kairi cheered, having figured it out as well. "Sora, this has to be…"

"Yeah," Sora mentally agreed, and he finished his thought by shouting it out loud for everyone to hear. "This is my Unique Tier One Command Style!"

The aura of said ability finally settled fully into place around Sora, just in time for Riku to finally shake off his surprise and make another attempt at attacking Sora. His attempt never quite made it through, as Sora made a charge of his own that was much faster and had ended up causing much more damage to Riku than any of Sora's previous attacks had. A minute later, Sora had spun around to unleash another strike, but this time when he swung, a faint, ghost-like image of another Keyblade suddenly appeared in his off-hand just in time for him to strike with that same weapon, effectively allowing Sora to begin fighting with two Keyblades instead of just one, much to Riku's continually growing shock. When Sora leapt back and into the air, Riku thought that he finally had a chance to counterattack, but before he could begin charging up another blast of Dark Firaga, Sora came diving down from above with both Kingdom Key and his Ghost-Keyblade swinging in quick succession, slashing through Riku as he passed by him on his descent. Sora then spun around on one foot, his Ghost-Keyblade vanishing as he did, and then shouted, "Command Style: Destiny Blaze Finisher!"

Just a minute afterwards, Sora charged towards Riku at a speed so fast that if you had blinked, you would have missed him. He then unleashed a furious barrage of strikes with Kingdom Key, and as those strikes continued, the Ghost-Keyblade appeared in his off-hand once more before joining in on the battle. A minute later, the faint image of another Keyblade appeared around the Kingdom Key while the Ghost-Keyblade was replaced by another, and this continued to do so, cycling through all of the various Keyblades that Sora had in his arsenal of Keychains, until Sora finally back flipped away from Riku and dashed forward with one, final cross slash on his darkness-infected best friend. When Sora stood up again and the glow of his Command Style finally faded away, Riku dropped to one knee and his dark form faded away into his regular appearance.

Seeing as Sora appeared to be too exhausted from all of the fighting to do much more at this point, Ventus immediately approached Riku and held the boy at the end of his Keyblade, fixing him with a glare as he did. "It's over, Riku. Time to wake up and realize that what you're doing is wrong," Ventus declared. After a moment or two, he lowered his Keyblade and then held out his hand to the kid as he said, "Trust me, it's not too late to make this right and pull away from the darkness. Take the chance to get out of its hold while you're still able too, otherwise, you'll lose yourself to darkness forever."

Riku just glared up at Ven, turning from the blonde to Sora, his eyes clearly showing how great his disbelief over everything that had just happened was, until finally, he gave his answer to Ventus. "NO," Riku snapped, batting Ven's hand away before pushing himself up onto his feet. "I can't stop. Not yet. And I refuse to accept any help from you!"

"Riku, wait," Sora pleaded, trying to hurry after his friend, only to stop before he could take a single step, and drop down to the floor in exhaustion when he did.

"Easy there, kiddo. That fight clearly took a lot out of you," Ventus cautioned, prompting Sora to turn and see that the blonde had immediately rushed to his side after seeing him fall to the floor. Now, Ventus was doing his best to help keep Sora upright while he reached into his pocket for an Elixir, as he said, "You did really well back there, Sora. And more importantly, it looks like you've finally found your Unique Tier One Command Style."

Sora just grinned excitedly upon hearing that, along with the mental cheering that Kairi was giving him from inside his heart, and after chugging down the Elixir that Ven just handed to him, he had to ask, "Does this mean I can start learning about Tier Two Command Styles now?"

"Don't push your luck, kid," Ventus replied with a smile. "You may have activated your Unique Tier One at last, but you're still going to need to get a more exact handle on activating it at will without accidentally activating one of the common ones instead before you can move on to that part of your training."

Sora just shrugged good-naturedly, happy to know that he had at least gotten through that part of his training at last, and then exchanged a quick fist-bump with Ventus to help punctuate the victory he had just achieved. "So, your heart won this battle," a rough, growling voice observed from behind the two.

Turning to the speaker, Ven and Sora were both glad to see that Beast had finally managed to get back to them, and the latter was quickly giving him a nod in confirmation. The former on the other hand was a bit more concerned about something else. "Are you okay, though? You took off pretty hastily back there, and we were worried you had gotten caught in that Heartless' trap," Ventus questioned.

"I'm fine. Once I managed to regain control of my anger, I managed to fight my way out of the trap and get back here," Beast explained. His expression then turned apologetic as he added, "Sorry I couldn't get here sooner to help."

"Don't worry. We managed to handle it well enough. Besides, there's still time for us to help save Riku, Kairi, and all the others that Maleficent has taken prisoner," Sora reassured him, and Ventus could not help but smile at seeing that Sora was still optimistic about their chances to pull Riku out of the dark pit he was falling into. It definitely showed that a lot of the things he had been trying to teach Sora were beginning to sink in, or maybe, it showed that Sora was beginning to gain a real understanding for those things all on his own. Either way, Ventus did not really care, because it just made him happy to see it all the same.

The happy moment was soon interrupted when Donald came scrambling down the stairs at the back of the entrance hall, shouting, "Hey, we found a door that leads further into the castle, but it's locked with some weird mechanism!"

"Why am I not surprised," Ventus muttered, just as both the duck and Goofy had rejoined them in the middle of the entrance hall. "Come on. One of the castle's libraries is through this door over here. There might be something in there that we can use to figure out the mechanism."

"One of the libraries," Goofy repeated in surprise, which was reflected by the others.

"Ansem the Wise was a scientist as much as a ruler, and a very thorough one at that. He always did his best to make sure all of the research he did and knowledge he had gained over the years was preserved in as many ways as possible, and with as many backups as he could afford. Keeping something written down on paper and in several different books was just one of those ways."

Everyone just nodded in acceptance of that and joined Ventus in heading towards the library after that. After seeing Sora's recent victory over Riku, and his finally learning his Unique Command Style, they were all eager to keep going, because at this point, they felt that there was very little that could stop them now.

---

Riku's head was spinning the entire time he was running away from the entrance hall and back into the deeper parts of the castle, trying to make sense of all that had just happened. How had Sora gained so much strength, including that last ability at the end? Even with training from Ventus, Riku refused to believe that Sora could ever have gotten that powerful. More than that, Riku refused to believe that that the kid could have taken what was rightfully his away, and yet, Sora had done just that. "Why," Riku questioned aloud as he finally came into the castle chapel. "It was mine. Why did it suddenly go back to him?"

"Know this. The heart that is strong and true shall win the Keyblade," a familiar voice suddenly said to Riku, making him pause and look around until he finally laid eyes on a familiar figure in a brown cloak. The same man who had spoken to Sora the day when the islands fell to darkness, and unknown to Sora, the same person who had told Riku about how he could use the darkness to reach other worlds if he opened that one door. Riku had known for some time now that this person was the one who had really been calling the shots around here, even if Maleficent believed otherwise, and it was mainly because of this guy that he believed what Maleficent said about being able to use the Princesses of Heart to help recover Kairi's heart, but he just could not understand why the guy was acting as though he was following Maleficent's lead in this whole escapade.

At the moment though, Riku was a little too upset by his recent defeat to really care about that, and something about that last comment definitely did not help calm him down. "What? You're saying my heart's weaker than his," Riku demanded, not willing to believe it.

"For that instant, it was," the cloaked man clarified, calming Riku's rage while replacing it with sorrow. Knowing this and that the boy believed he would need the Keyblade to reach his goal, the figure did not hesitate to reveal something else to Riku. Something that would ensure that the boy would remain on his side without fail. "However, you can become stronger. You showed no fear in stepping through the door to darkness. It held no terror for you. Plunge deeper into the darkness, and your heart will grow even stronger."

At this point, Riku was too upset and desperate to really care about any risks that may or may not have been involved with the stranger's suggested action, and considering that this guy had yet to steer him wrong, Riku did not really see any reason to question him. That was why Riku did not hesitate at all before he asked, "What should I do?"

If he could see the cloaked man's face beneath his hood, Riku would have seen the sinister smirk that had just crossed his feature, knowing that he had the boy now. "It's really quite simple," the figure said. "Open yourself to the darkness. That is all. Let your heart, your being, become darkness itself."

Riku just nodded in reply, letting the dark energies inside of him grown more and more, until he finally realized a little too late, that it was becoming a little too much for him. By that time, the stranger had come to stand right in front of him, and immediately placed a hand on Riku's chest so that he could focus a great deal of more powerful darkness into Riku's heart, body, and soul. A single cry of pain was all that could escape from Riku after that as both he and the stranger were enshrouded in darkness. When the sudden explosion of shadows faded, Riku now stood in his dark form once again, with a sinister smirk on his face, and when he spoke, his voice was mixed with that of the stranger's.

"And so the time has finally come," the stranger said through Riku. "The final Keyhole will soon be completed, and darkness shall flood both this world and all others, while the path to everlasting darkness will be unleashed at last. I wonder, can you and your apprentice truly hope to stop it, Ventus, or will you fall just as you and your friends had so long ago? Either way, I'm eager to see what will happen in the coming hours."

With that piece said, the being let out a dark, sinister laugh through Riku that seemed to echo all throughout the castle, and if she knew just what this individual had in store for her and all the worlds, she likely would have been trembling in fear, even if only by the smallest amount. No matter who won or lost in the battles that were still to come on Hollow Bastion, it would not matter, because this Seeker of Darkness would be the only one who stood victorious in this particular war for the worlds, and there would be nothing anyone could do to stop it.

---

Ventus' Journal Entry 6

It's been a while since I last made an entry in here. A few years, actually. I guess the bad news that I had mentioned in the last entry was a little harder for me to deal with than I originally thought. I've thrown myself into my training since then, and lately, that same training has actually been going pretty smoothly lately. I can feel myself getting stronger and stronger with each passing day now. Sometimes, Mickey would occasionally take our training to worlds like Mirage Arena or even Olympus Coliseum to better test my growing abilities, but in the case of any place like the latter, it's always in secret. I wish that wasn't the case, because I would definitely like to see how some of my old friends from other worlds are doing, but Mickey says that for now, it's for the best if I don't really talk to anyone from other worlds, even if they are friends. I can kind of understand why he would say that. After all, I didn't really do too much training whenever we went to Radiant Garden, but instead, just spent time hanging out with all of my friends there, so I guess he's worried that the same could happen on some of the other worlds that I've previously visited as well, or at least, the ones that are still around.

Speaking of which, I'm not sure how it could have happened, but I've noticed that a couple other stars have gone out as time has gone by, meaning that those worlds have fallen to darkness as well. It was not a very rapid pace, probably just one world every other month or so, but the fact that its happened at all is still worrying me. I guess after what happened to Radiant Garden's star, I've started to get a little more concerned about the status of other worlds than I was before, but I need to focus and make sure that I can be ready, both for when we finally get Terra and Aqua back, and for the day when an old friend finally gains the power he's destined for.

On the subject of power, just the other day, I saw Donald and Goofy gain a little extra power of their own, in terms of weapons that is. Mickey had taken the two with him to see Master Yen Sid about giving them more powerful weapons to use in case the need ever came up, and I have to say, when I saw them come back with the items in question, I was definitely impressed. It almost reminded me of a pair of very powerful Keyblades that I had saw near the end of my first journey, and it's now making me wish that the final evolution of my own Keyblade would hurry up and come already. Mickey says that the minute it does happen, I'll finally be truly ready to take the Mark of Mastery Exam, in his eyes if no one else's, so I think you can understand why I'm eager for that day to come. Well, here's hoping that it's soon, and that waiting for that day does not make all the lessons Mickey's tried to teach me about patience go to waste.

---

AN: Now how's that for a Hollow Bastion re-spin? If I were to name the big points here, they would be on how the team discovers that said world is Radiant Garden much sooner than in canon, and instead of using that useless toy sword that Sora got after Riku swiped the Keyblade from him like a bratty little thief, Ventus managed to help Sora get a substitute Keyblade to fight with until he got it back. I went with Metal Chocobo mainly because of how often we see Sora get made into Cloud's son or relative in general in various different fanfictions, and as for Ventus possessing the ability to animate a Keyblade from the Keychains, that's going to be something we see again very soon, I can promise you that. I'm sure you can all figure out just what it will be used for just from that alone though, right?

Xion: [trudges into the room completely soaked] Pah! And you punish us for giving out spoilers? You might as well have given one with that last comment just now!

AN: I never said the full exact details though. I merely made a small implication. Oh yeah, and we also finally saw Sora gain his Tier One Unique Command Style at last! Yeah, I know I said that Shotlocks would be a major focus here, and they technically have been, but after careful consideration, and a suggestion that someone had previously made to me in regards to that idea for this story, I thought that this would be the perfect time for Sora to unlock that ability.

Sora: Glad I've finally got that back again! I haven't been able to see that in action since Keyblades of Future Past, and it was so cool getting to use Destiny Blaze too!

AN: Hey, don't go getting too excited now. After all, like Ven said, you've only just discovered it. You still got to master activating it whenever you want as opposed to going for it and accidentally ending up with one of the three common styles.

Riku: I didn't really like how you stuck me with Donald and Goofy after Sora lost the Keyblade again. Not because I have something against those guys, I really don't, but I kinda figure they wouldn't do that this time around.

AN: Well to be fair, Ventus did give them a good reason to go with you. If you'll all notice, I made it a little hard for them to really decide on how to proceed from then on when the moment came, and having Ventus suggest that they go with Riku just so they can slow him down long enough for him and Sora to catch up does seem like a good reason for the two to do so. Plus, it gave Ven a little one-on-one time with his apprentice that proved to be very necessary for Sora's sake.

And finally, there was the memory of Kairi's grandma and her story. Yeah, I made it so that the memory would allow us to see a scene from BBS, partially so that Aqua could make another appearance here before the present-day Aqua makes her next comeback, but also because it also helps the two solve a couple of other mysteries in regards to a question or two that they have had since the start of the story. The most important one being how did Kairi's heart end up inside of Sora. Let's face it, that spell of Aqua's obviously had a lot to do with that, and we all know it, just like we all know that same spell is what helped Kairi get to Destiny Islands when Radiant Garden fell to the Heartless.

Kairi: While I do admit, I like that version of the memory a bit more than the original, can I just say that the last scene at the end there with Riku has me a little concerned for his well-being?

AN: You can, and you would be right. Hey, since when is getting possessed by an evil dude like Ansem, Seeker of Darkness ever a simple, and easy process. Plus, I had to figure that Riku at least started getting a clue about why doing as the guy was suggesting was a bad idea at the last minute or something. I mean, there's no way he was really enjoying what he was doing that much after it had first happened, you know. After all, if he really was in control after the fact, he would have found out that Kairi's heart was inside of Sora, and there was no way he would have actually attacked him like he did in the original canon if Riku was still able to call all the shots.

Ah well, live and let live, right? Oh yeah, and here's another entry in Ven's Journal. Been a while since we saw that, huh? And apparently it was with good reason. I don't really know too many people who can keep up with the type of thing too constantly, so it makes sense that a few years or so would have passed between this entry and the last one. Besides, if that were the case, I would have to figure out how to make the story a little longer, and that doesn't really feel like much of a good idea, to be quite frank. There does come a point where a story like this gets to be too long without starting up sequels and such.

Well, next time, the team continues on through the castle of Hollow Bastion, and it'll finally be time for the big face-off with Maleficent, with another long-awaited show down soon after. Oh, I bet you're all just itching to see what will happen this time, right? Well, take a look at your first hints by moving Onto the Preview!...

The team continues on through Hollow Bastion, as the evil forces prepare to make their final move in this grand chess game. When they finally come face-to-face with Maleficent, everyone goes in knowing they'll be able to handle whatever the evil fairy can dish out now. At least until Riku suddenly appears with a new Keyblade unlike anything that any of them have seen before, including Ventus. Just what sort of power will this new Keyblade unleash upon them? Who is it that is now using Riku's body like his own personal puppet? And just what will it take for them to finally defeat Maleficent in the end before Sora and Ventus find themselves in a final face-off with whoever it is that now commands Riku's being? Perhaps a certain summon charm that was recently acquired? Find out all this and more, next time.

Please read and review, and see ya real soon!