AN: Okay, so, if you were expecting to see something familiar here, I'm sorry to say that when I was making some edits and corrections, I kinda goofed up and replaced the wrong chapter's content with another, but luckily, I was able to get the original chapter in there. Just not all the stuff in the original author's notes. So sorry, but you won't be finding any of the original silliness in here. I'll just skip over everything else and let you all get right to it then, because this is where things get really wild as we hit the climax of the adventure.
I do not own anything from the Kingdom Hearts franchise or any other franchise mentioned in this story.
Chapter XVI
When one normally thinks of battles throughout time and space, they usually mean that the battles will be remembered throughout time and space. In this case however, there were battles literally happening in such a way, as while Sora, Kairi, and Mickey were fighting in the past in order to bring Aqua, Ven, and Terra home, the three were fighting many different battles in Sora and Kairi's time along with Roxas, Riku, Axel, and Xion. Admittedly, the three from the past had not fought in that many very serious battles since they had arrived on the World That Never Was so far, but that was mostly due to the four from this time insisting that the three should try to keep from fighting as much as possible so that they would be at full strength when they returned to their own time, and so that they did not run the risk of one of them never making it back to said time. The three understood this of course, but that did not mean that they liked it, because they knew for a fact that they could be of a great help to Roxas and the others if they would just be allowed to help. Still, they were able to swallow their protests and do as Roxas had asked if for no other reason than the fact that the four leading them through the castle knew more about their current surroundings than they did.
Of course, knowledge on the location soon became unimportant, as they soon found themselves facing a figure that the entire group knew in the Hall of Empty Melodies. "Well, look who it is," Vanitas commented in his usual smug tone. "A band of traitors and the three prodigal masters. Never thought that I'd run into you three idiots again, or that you'd betray us Riku and Xion."
"It's not really betrayal if you're there against your will," Riku retorted as he summoned his Keyblade, Way to the Dawn.
"Whatever," Vanitas simply shrugged as he summoned his own Keyblade, Void Gear. "But on the subject of stuff that should be obvious, another thing that's plain as day is that you can't beat me. Just ask those three idiots over there. They know that better than any of you since we've been playing this little game since you were just a little brat, Riku, and yet they're still all pathetic compared to me."
"We'll show you who's pathetic," Terra shouted as he prepared to charge in, only to be stopped when Xion suddenly raised her Keyblade in front of him.
"Let us handle him," Xion told Terra. "You guys just relax. Riku, Roxas, and I have a few choice words that we'd like to have with him before he ends up heading for the next life."
"No way," Aqua protested. "I don't care how long you guys have been around him. You guys have no idea just how much he's really capable of, not like the three of us do. Right Ven?"
Surprisingly, Ven did not say anything, and when everyone looked to see why that was, they saw that he was staring at Vanitas with a very intense look, like he was analyzing every inch of the masked boy. After another minute of looking at him, Ven finally asked, "Who are you?"
Everything was silent at that point until Vanitas finally let out a loud laugh that seemed to echo throughout the hall and asked, "What is that a serious question? I knew you were an idiot, Ven, but come on! I thought for sure you'd recognize your dark half."
"Cut the crap and answer the question," Ven snapped. "Who are you, and why are you trying to sell this little act of yours?"
"Ven, have you lost it," Terra asked. "That's Vanitas. You know, the masked boy who controls the Unversed, is Xehanort's right-hand man, the embodiment of your darkness after Xehanort extracted it from you, and basically a guy that made yours, mine, and Aqua's lives hell for Kingdom Hearts knows how long?"
"I know who Vanitas is, Terra, but there's something about this guy that doesn't seem like Vanitas," Ventus finally revealed. "I can't really explain it, but every time I'm around Vanitas, I'd always get a strange feeling that's hard to put into words. I know it's probably because Vanitas used to be a part of me, but with this guy I can't feel anything but emptiness. It's like it's someone else using Vanitas's body, but it's still enough of the guy himself to make you think he's the real thing."
"If you're done yammering on, I'd like to actually get this party started," Vanitas then cut in. "You can talk all you want to about feelings later, maybe even have Aqua there finally admit her true feelings about one of you two idiots while you're at it, but right now, I'd much rather destroy you first."
"Then you'll have to get through us first," Roxas shouted as he summoned Oathkeeper and Oblivion while standing between Xion and Riku, who were both ready to fight. They did not really pay attention to the fact that Aqua was blushing from Vanitas's last comment, and were also unable to comment on it themselves if they did notice, as Vanitas had just charged in with his Keyblade ready to strike. Riku and Xion both dived to the side while Roxas intercepted Vanitas's Keyblade with both of his own, locking the dark warrior's weapon in place long enough for Riku and Xion to rush at him from either side. The two were about to slash their blades through him, when Vanitas managed to vanish at the last second and then slam a powerful hit into Roxas's back.
Vanitas then fired a barrage of dark, energy orbs at the group, but thankfully, Riku was still able to use some of his less powerful dark powers, and was able to throw up a Dark Shield in front of them just before the orbs hit. Xion then dived out from behind the shield and ran right up to Vanitas, swinging her Keyblade at him as fiercely as she could, and managed to score a few hits before Vanitas eventually managed to jump back and then cartwheel away from Xion, preventing her from getting in close again. That did not prove to be a problem for Riku, as he was quick to fire off a continuous burst of his Dark Cannon that landed a few good hits on Vanitas before driving him directly into Roxas's line of attack. By the time Vanitas seemed to realize what Riku had done, it was already too late, as Roxas had unleashed a powerful, dual-outward strike that sent Vanitas flying across the massive room and onto his back.
"Is that all you got," Riku smirked boastingly. "I thought that the mighty Vanitas was supposed to be tougher than this."
"Riku, sweetie, can you please not encourage the insane masked boy into trying to destroy us anymore than he already is," Xion pleaded with Riku.
"As much as I want to gag at hearing her call you 'sweetie', she does have a point," Roxas agreed, giving a small gag reflex at the word "sweetie" all the same and getting slapped in the arm by Xion in response when he did. "There's no way he's actually going all out."
"Please," Riku scoffed as he flipped some of his hair out of his face. "If he had anymore to give then don't you think he would've given it by now?"
"Considering this is Vanitas we're talking about, no, he wouldn't," Xion immediately denied. "He prefers to play with his targets before giving them real hell."
"Relax babe, he's down and we've won, end of story," Riku just waved off, until he was suddenly blasted back by a sudden surge of dark lightning. When Roxas and Xion looked to the source, they saw Vanitas just landing on the ground and reassuming his usual battle stance, immediately letting them know that it was the masked boy who had fired the blast.
"End of story, huh," Roxas asked as he readied his Keyblades again while Riku managed to get back to his feet and rejoin him and Xion.
"Shut up, Blondie," Riku snapped.
"Make me, asshole," Roxas retorted.
"Hey watch it Roxas, or Aqua's going to get on you for language," Xion said in a slightly teasing tone that was clearly directed at both Roxas and Aqua.
"Am I seriously getting made fun of for that right now," Aqua asked. "I mean I'm not that bad, right?"
Terra and Ven immediately found either the floor or the ceiling very interesting when Aqua asked them that question, while Roxas charged in to strike at Vanitas once again, only for the masked boy to disappear into the ground before reappearing directly under Roxas and sending him flying into the air with a sudden attack. Xion immediately tried to rush in and help Roxas, but Vanitas was quick to use the same trick on her that he had on her blonde friend, and Xion was quickly knocked into Roxas just as the boy had regained his balance in mid-air. Riku just watched the ground for a moment, where he could see the signs of where Vanitas was moving beneath it, and as soon as the dark hole that represented Vanitas's location started to get close to him, unlike his two comrades, Riku immediately dashed back for a few seconds, letting Vanitas hit nothing but air when he jumped out of the ground again, and then raced in with a powerful slash through Vanitas before the masked boy could sink into the ground again.
"You're not the only one who's ever pulled that trick," Riku told Vanitas menacingly.
"Maybe, but at least I know just what the powers of darkness can really give me, unlike you, who gave it all up because of some stupid, dopey-eyed girl who isn't even alive," Vanitas retorted. "I honestly can't see why you'd even fall for her at all when she's not even a real person. It's just some puppet that's desperately trying to cut its strings."
Anything more Vanitas would've said on the matter was immediately cut off when he was suddenly blasted across the room by an unknown force, and he then glanced up to see that it had come from a very pissed off Riku. "You say so much as one more insult about her, and not only will I tear you apart from the inside out, but I'll use whatever's left of you as a sweater for a kitten," Riku shouted as he flung his Keyblade forward, releasing a more powerful Dark Cannon blast than all the ones he had fired before.
Riku then became little more than a blur, as he raced around Vanitas and attacked him from all sides, leaving the masked boy with little chance to defend himself as Riku did. When Riku seemed to let up on his attacks for a minute, Vanitas thought he could breathe a sigh of relief before resuming his own strikes, but that was before he saw Riku had only stopped to gear up for a Dark Cannon barrage that seemed to pepper Xehanort's subordinate endlessly. As he watched this go on from where he and Xion were currently sitting, unable to move much due to how caught up they were at the sight of Riku's fight, Roxas had to say, "Okay, I'll admit it. He's not…as much of an asshole as I thought he was."
"Roxas," Xion warned her brother-like friend.
"What? You seriously expect me to say something better or something," Roxas asked as he finally stood up. "Just be glad that he's gotten a little bit on my good side because of how seriously he's defending you. Now are you going to just sit there, or are you going to help me help the jerk you've somehow fallen in love with?"
Xion was about to snap at Roxas again for calling Riku a jerk, but she elected to do it later when she saw that Riku had finally been forced to let up on his Dark Cannon barrage due to the lack of energy necessary and simply stood up and readied Two Become One for action once again. Before either of the two made a move to charge in though, they noticed that Vanitas's mask had cracked a bit, showing some of his face, and a minute later, the rest of the mask faded away, until it left a shockingly familiar visage to greet them. While Vanitas's eyes were the same shade of clear, empty silver that Riku and Xion's had been a few moments ago, the rest of his face and hair style was so very similar to Roxas and Ventus's that it was honestly starting to scare the two a bit. "Okay seriously, just how many people in this time look like me," Ven moaned.
No one seemed to acknowledge Ven's voiced annoyance, as Vanitas just glared at his three opponents, fiercely before he finally charged in and unleashed a ferocity that he had not shown before in the battle. Riku was immediately on the defensive, but it did him little good, as Vanitas's attacks had become far too fast for him to keep up with, and the same was said for his spells as well, as they seemed to just rocket towards their targets the minute Vanitas had cast them. Xion was quick to try and assist Riku, and was able to score a few decent hits on Vanitas before the evil Keyblade Wielder finally managed to slip away from Xion's attacks and then strike her from behind with his usual afterimage-teleport ability. Thankfully, Xion was able to save herself from the same brutal attack that Riku had been dealt by using her Keyblade to summon a series of Nobody Thorns in order to shield her, and that ended up being just the opening that Roxas needed as he moved in to attack. Using the Nobody Thorns that Xion had summoned, Roxas catapulted himself into the air and spun his Keyblades around in his hands before he dived down towards Vanitas, and drove a powerful series of slashes across Vanitas's form until he finally finished with a powerful dual-slash that caused the formerly masked boy to crash into the floor.
When Roxas landed, Xion dismissed the Nobody Thorns, and Riku finally managed to stand, they all looked to where Vanitas had crashed down and saw that he was not moving at all. Aqua cautioned everyone to be careful, as she had made the mistake of thinking Vanitas was beaten once before when she saw that he was not moving, but after watching him lie where he was for a few minutes, it did not seem that Vanitas was going to get back up again. "Well, that's over," Riku finally said as he dismissed his Keyblade after Roxas and Xion had done the same.
A minute later though, everyone was on their guard again when Vanitas's body began to glow for a minute, but a minute after it did, Vanitas's body began to seem like it was breaking apart like glass until it finally shattered and vanished into thin air. Everyone could only look on in confusion as to what just happened, as this was the first time any of them had seen a defeated enemy disappear in such a way, but they decided to put it aside for later when Roxas said, "Let's keep moving. The room that the Time Window's in is just up ahead."
Everyone immediately nodded, and then took off after their blonde guide as he led them into another corridor of the Castle That Never Was. As they were moving, Aqua took a minute to use the D-Link to contact Sora and reported, "Sora, we've just dealt with Vanitas, and it looks like you won't have to worry about him again in your time. How're things on your end?"
"Honestly, it could be worse, all things considered. I mean sure, we're about to fight for our lives against a massive monster, but still could be worse," Sora admitted through the D-Link.
Arendelle (The Past)
The massive monster that Sora had mentioned when Aqua called was actually a huge Unversed that had driven the people of Arendelle to run for safety in the castle while Sora, Mickey, and Kairi dealt with it. Sora and Kairi were quick to admit that they had never seen anything like the hammer wielding beast before them, but Mickey was not hesitant to fill them in, saying that it was an Unversed that was known as the Iron Imprisoner, and that apparently it was in its final and most powerful form. "I just wish I knew why it was here," Mickey then stated. "As far as I know, that monster never leaves Mirage Arena, no matter what form it's in. I'm not sure if the reason is because it can't leave or something else, but I do know for a fact that this is the first time it's ever been outside of that world before."
"Doesn't matter," Sora immediately stated as he readied his Keyblade. "It's still causing trouble and attacking innocent people, so now it's gotta go, and we're the ones who're going to make it go."
Kairi and Mickey both nodded in agreement with Sora, and assumed a ready stance before they all charged forward, ready to strike at the monster of Mirage Arena. The Iron Imprisoner was quick to react to the Keybearers' charge, and immediately swung its massive hammer at the three, creating a large, flaming shockwave when it hit the ground which Sora just barely escaped getting singed by. Sora then rolled backwards a bit before charging in once more, and unleashed a series of attacks on the monster until he was finally able to channel the energy within him and unleash his Destiny Blaze Command Style, which he then used to strike at the Iron Imprisoner with again, this time with a Ghost Keyblade in his free hand. Mickey was slightly shocked to see that Sora was able to use such a powerful Command Style so quickly, but he was quickly brought back to the situation when he saw that Sora had just barely managed to avoid getting hit the Iron Imprisoner's massive fist. The mouse quickly fired off a series of Holy spells that forced the Unversed away from Sora, allowing Kairi to cast a healing spell on her friend while she had the chance as Mickey charged in and slashed at the Iron Imprisoner with fast strikes that only someone of Mickey's size could execute.
Kairi was soon forced to cast a Reflect spell around her and her friends when she saw that Iron Imprisoner had leapt into the air and unleashed a powerful fire blast from its hammer, and while the spell did not completely deflect the damage, it did allow Kairi to enter her Shooting Star Command Style, and she then charged ahead and fired off a barrage of spells and magic darts as she raced around the Iron Imprisoner. It seemed that the three would be able to finish the battle quickly and end the Iron Imprisoner's reign of terror and destruction before anyone got hurt, but sadly, no one is ever that fortunate, as the Unversed was soon able to land a powerful blow on all three of the Keybearers that were fighting it, and Sora soon found that he was the only one that was able to land on his feet, as Mickey and Kairi had taken the full brunt of the attack.
When he caught just a passing glimpse of how injured Kairi was, Sora had immediately turned a dark glare towards the monster they were fighting and charged in to face the Unversed alone. Thanks to his Destiny Blaze Command Style, Sora's speed was able to keep him ahead of the Iron Imprisoner's attacks, while allowing him to attack the monster at high speeds that seriously injured the monster. Eventually, Sora had to cast a Thundaga spell in order to evade a barrage of debris that the monster had lifted up telekinetically to throw at him, and a minute after the dust cleared, everyone was able to see that the glow around Sora's body had changed from its usual shinning silver to a radiant red, as a ghost version of the Destiny's Embrace Keyblade appeared in his free hand, while a ghost version of the Way to the Dawn Keyblade appeared on his back. When Mickey and Kairi were finally able to stand and look over to where Sora was, Mickey's eyes immediately widened in disbelief as he whispered, "Could it be?"
"It is," Kairi exclaimed happily as her Shooting Star Command Style's glow seemed to shine more brightly along with her smile. "It's Sora's Tier Two Command Style!"
Sora was soon off like a rocket, as he attacked the Iron Imprisoner with all three of the Keyblades he was now wielding in a manner that was similar to how he fought with his Final Form, as he sent one Keyblade flying telekinetically, while the other two remained in his hands until he sent them flying off against his enemy in the same manner. As he attacked, Sora seemed to float through the air, until he finally brought all three Keyblades around him and fired off a blast of bright, white energy that seemed to blast the massive Unversed away until it nearly crashed into a nearby building. Way to the Dawn's ghost image then drifted back to its original position behind Sora's back as the other two Keyblades returned to his hands just in time for Sora to shout, "Command Style: Trinity Blade Finisher!"
The next thing that happened was Sora racing around and throwing the three Keyblades at his opponent telekinetically once again, and forming a faint image of the crown symbol on his necklace. When the image was finally formed completely, the two Ghost Keyblades positioned themselves in striking position of their target, and Sora then fired a beam of energy from the Kingdom Key that tore through the center of both the crown symbol and the Iron Imprisoner, just as the two Ghost Keyblades did the same, releasing a blinding explosion of light. When the energy form his Command Style finally faded, Sora landed on the ground and watched as the Iron Imprisoner stumbled for a minute until it finally vanished in a burst of smoke.
Kairi and Mickey were both quick to race over to Sora, and the minute she was close enough, the auburn haired girl immediately tackled Sora with a tight hug as she shouted, "Sora, you did it! You beat that monster and you learned your Tier Two Command Style! That was amazing!"
"Awe it was nothing," Sora smiled modestly as he returned Kairi's hug with a slight blush reaching his face as he did.
"I wouldn't say that Sora," Mickey said happily. "That was probably the most amazing thing I've ever seen! Defeating the Iron Imprisoner's final form in Mirage Arena alone is no easy feat, but doing so in the way that you did is beyond anything I've ever seen before. You should be proud of what you've accomplished."
Sora smiled brightly in thanks to Mickey before he and Kairi finally released each other from their hug, and the girl quickly moved to contact Aqua and the others. "Aqua, we're all done here and are ready to head out in order to find where the Time Window is looking at," Kairi called out through the D-Link. "Are you guys almost at the Window itself?"
"Not quite," Aqua replied.
"Well, where are you guys," Sora asked as he joined in on the D-Link.
"We're face to face with Xehanort himself," Terra answered, and when she and Sora heard that, Kairi immediately began to worry a great deal for their friends' safety.
The Castle That Never Was (The Future)
They had all been hoping that it would not come to this, praying that it would not happen even, but sadly all their hopes and prayers were in vain as they now saw that they would have to battle Xehanort to reach their goal, for the fallen Keyblade Master was blocking their path to the room that Roxas had confirmed was where the Time Window was. None of them really enjoyed thinking about fighting against Xehanort for various reasons, but unfortunately, there was not likely to be any chance that they could do otherwise, as he had already summoned his Keyblade to his hand and was now holding it at the ready for battle. Each of the five Keybearers had immediately summoned their own Keyblades in response as Axel summoned his chakrams, and the two sides were now in the midst of a silent stand-off, a fact that peaked Terra's curiosity.
"Something's not right here," Terra muttered.
"You mean the fact that Xehanort himself is guarding the very place that we need to get into? Yeah, you'd be right. He never does this sort of thing himself," Roxas whispered in return.
"I'll admit that is a strange fact, but that's not what I mean," Terra told them. "He's not said so much as one word since we got here. Xehanort doesn't normally keep quiet unless he's observing something or someone in the off-chance that it might give him some benefit somewhere down the line, or unless he's really serious about something. He's always talking before a battle that he's sure he can win, and sometimes even during it. Always trying to throw his opponent off by knowing just what to say in order to do so."
"Terra's right," Aqua agreed. "There's no way the Xehanort that we know would stay quiet at the mere sight of this. Either he's going to be fighting seriously right from the start, or there's something else going on here."
"Meaning we should try to be careful and take him together," Xion asked, getting a nod in response from the blunette.
"I've got a better idea; I'm going take him now," Riku then shouted as he charged forward to strike the elder master, despite everyone's cries of protest. When he was finally close enough, Riku made a massive leap towards Xehanort, only to hit an invisible wall and then be sent flying across the room a minute later. Xion was quick to run to over to Riku's side to make sure he was okay, and he immediately gave a small groan in response as he led the way back towards the others. He never made it though, as he soon hit an invisible barrier that knocked him back into Xion's arms.
"He's raised a battlefield barrier," Axel exclaimed, and he then prepared to toss his chakrams at Xehanort, but the old man quickly raised a hand towards the redhead and his fellow Nobody, and caused a sudden burst of powerful wind to send them both flying back to where Riku and Xion were. When they realized what had happened, Axel and Roxas both threw hateful glares in Xehanort's direction, as the madman now had completely isolated them from Aqua, Terra, and Ventus, leaving the three from the past to fight the fallen Keyblade Master on their own.
The three had only glanced back to where their friends were, knowing that the battlefield barrier would prevent them from helping while keeping the three of them from getting out until someone won the current battle that they had been entrapped in, before turning their full attention to Xehanort, who merely smiled his usual small, sinister smile as he finally commented, "I never thought I would encounter so much as one of you three again, let alone all three of you, but then again, this war has been filled with many strange and unexpected surprises. I wonder how those colorful friends of yours are doing at the moment, though. It will be on your heads if any of them die. Of course, one of you does have a way to end this now if he would just give in to darkness. Isn't that right, Terra? Or perhaps, if you somehow managed to create the χ-blade on your own, perhaps you could end it all Ventus, but it more than likely would cause you to sacrifice everything you hold dear."
"Save your breath, Xehanort," Terra shouted. "Nothing you say is going to save you or allow you to tear the three of us apart again."
"And even if there was a chance of that happening, then would you really want to make the same mistake twice," Ventus then asked, gaining a curious glance from Xehanort in response.
"You made a big mistake in causing us to be torn apart, thinking that it would weaken us, but what you didn't know is that you've only made us stronger as comrades, as a team, as friends, and as a family," Aqua stated. "But the greatest mistake you made was destroying a member of that family, and now, you're finally going to pay for that and all your other crimes up until now!"
The minute Aqua had shouted that last word the three friends had immediately summoned forth their armors and charged into battle with Ventus taking the lead, ready to make the first strike. Xehanort was quick to move out of the way of Ven's attack in a flash and then grab Ven by his helmet before throwing the boy into Aqua, leaving Terra to continue charging, and end up being the only one to get close enough to so much as swing his Keyblade on their opponent for an attack. Xehanort was quick to respond to Terra's strike by raising his Keyblade to defend himself, the whole time holding one arm behind his back like he was not even trying to take the fight seriously, but Terra knew full well that the fallen master was, and immediately followed up by swinging a series of powerful strikes at Xehanort with everything he had, until he had finally built up enough energy to release his Critical Impact Command Style. Terra was just about to use the power said Command Style granted him, but Xehanort proved to be too quick for the young man, and immediately blasted Terra away with a sudden burst of dark magic.
Terra quickly discarded his now damaged helmet before moving to stand up again, and then looked up just in time to see Xehanort getting blasted away from him by a sudden Blizzaga spell, courtesy of Aqua. Aqua then casted a number of spells afterwards, allowing her to enter her Spellweaver Command Style soon after, which gave Ven enough time to run up and strike at Xehanort with a series of fast paced strikes, allowing him to enter his Fever Pitch Command Style. Ven then proceeded to use the power of Fever Pitch to strike at Xehanort from all sides as fast as he could, before breaking off for a few seconds to allow Terra to unleash some more powerful attacks with Critical Impact. Whenever Xehanort managed to shake one of the two off, he was immediately put on guard again when Aqua fired a number of magic orbs from her Keyblade using Spellweaver and sometimes even from Aqua's Keyblade, which she threw at him telekinetically, giving the two boys enough time to get up and get in close once more.
From where they were standing on the sidelines, it would seem to the average person that the three had the battle well in hand, but Roxas, Axel, Xion, and Riku all knew that was far from the case, as Xehanort had barely even started fighting. This quickly proved true when Xehanort suddenly teleported himself out of the threes combined assault, and to the other side of the battlefield before raising a hand and casting a powerful ice spell that froze Terra in his tracks, while blasting Ven and Aqua with a powerful thunder spell from overhead. Aqua quickly jumped over Ven as she cast a reflect spell to protect them, but she was not expecting the ground to suddenly rise up beneath them and send them hurtling into the air. Ven was quick to cushion their fall with a well-timed wind spell just as Terra broke free of the ice and moved to attack Xehanort once again, but Xehanort quickly teleported away, placing a reasonable amount of distance between him and the three apprentices of Eraqus, and fired off another barrage of powerful spells once more.
Aqua was honestly surprised that they were able to survive the second round without suffering any injury, but she knew it was only a matter of time before they would be too tired to avoid the barrage completely and took the full force of it, and that was the point when she knew she and her friends would have to end it quickly using every trick that they had. A simple glance was all it took to convey these thoughts to both Terra and Ven, and Terra immediately made the first move by using a powerful sword ability that Eraqus had taught him, known as Zantetsuken, to deal some series damage to Xehanort in a flash, and then using the resulting energy to enter Dark Impulse.
Terra was quick to unleash a powerful barrage of dark based attacks on Xehanort, effectively giving the fallen master a taste of his own medicine, while ignoring everything that Xehanort said to try and throw him off, giving Ven and Aqua the chance to each cast a magnet spell to hold Xehanort in place while Aqua fired a thunder spell, allowing them both to enter their own Tier Two Command Styles. Aqua then teleported from where she was standing to deal some damage to Xehanort, but after landing a few powerful hits with her Keyblade, Xehanort teleported away. Unfortunately, Xehanort was not paying attention to where he was teleporting to, so he ended up being right in the path of Ven's attacks, as he used the Wingblade Command Style to unleash multiple strikes using the six energy swords that had formed around him. When Xehanort teleported away again to try and cast another powerful thunder spell, Aqua immediately followed him using Ghost Drive and attacked as well.
Aqua landed a few more hits using her Ghost Drive's high-speed powers before she finally shouted, "Terra, now!"
"Command Style: Dark Impulse Finisher," Terra shouted before disappearing into the ground. Xehanort barely even glimpsed where the dark spot signifying where Terra was before the boy burst up from beneath him and sent him flying into the air with a blow from a massive, clawed hand of dark energy. A cry from Terra signaled Ven to run in, strike at Xehanort while he was in the air without giving the blonde's former master a chance to recover from Terra's attack, and then send the bald man soaring into the ground just as Ven geared up for his own Command Style's finisher.
"Command Style: Wingblade Finisher," Ven shouted as he threw down the energy swords around Xehanort, and then dived down into the center of the circle to release a burst of light that both blinded and severely harmed Xehanort. Seeing this Aqua immediately teleported over and pulled Ven clear of Xehanort while he was disoriented, and then charged in to deal the final blow.
"Command Style: Ghost Drive Finisher," Aqua shouted as she then teleported around Xehanort at high speeds, placing a series of light pillars around him. Once the last pillar was placed Aqua then appeared in the air, and unleashed another powerful burst of magic energy with a wave of her Keyblade. The eyes of the warriors outside the barrier had all widened when they saw that Xehanort was actually struggling to stand and stumbled a little with each step. Xehanort's eyes did not seem completely cleared due to the two bursts of bright light that had assaulted him, but they were clear enough to be able to fall directly onto Aqua's form, and the minute they had, those same eyes narrowed in deadly anger as he slowly raised his Keyblade and ran forward in a desperate attempt to end the young woman's life.
Aqua was a little shocked that Xehanort was even able to move after being hit by the most powerful Command Styles of her and her friends', but the sight of Xehanort charging towards her in an attempt to end her life, even if it was a desperate one, had caught her completely off guard to the point where she was almost completely frozen in place. The others were all shouting for her to move away or hit Xehanort, but Aqua could not do either as she was unable to register that it was actually happening. Thankfully, someone was able to do something, as evidenced when Ven suddenly raced over to Aqua and shoved her aside just as Xehanort's blade was coming down, leading the now weakened, fallen master to miss his target and fall flat on his face, and his Keyblade then vanished due to the lack of energy that its wielder now possessed.
When Xehanort tried to stand up again, he saw that Terra was now standing over him with Ends of the Earth held directly at the dark master. Xehanort looked between Terra's scowling face and the sight of Ven helping Aqua to her feet again before he finally closed his eyes a bit as he slowly sat himself upright and weakly said, "So it would seem…that I had indeed made…a very foolish error…in thinking that…I could defeat the three of you again."
"Don't think that the first time will go the same way as before though," Terra said. "Once we get back, this will just be a matter of history repeating, because we will stop you before any of this can happen."
Xehanort only chuckled a bit in response as he said, "And yet you are all still so foolish. You would rather place blame for terrible events on those who you deem the most dangerous being, believing that he is the most likely, while never once suspecting that the true culprit may be one that you would never suspect."
"What are you talking about," Ven demanded as he looked over in the direction of his friend and former teacher along with Aqua.
Xehanort seemed like he was about to respond when he suddenly cried out in pain. The sudden outburst had caught everyone completely off guard, both due to its suddenness and the sheer volume of the scream, as it seemed loud enough to resonate all across the entire world and perhaps even beyond. A minute later Xehanort's right hand suddenly shattered like glass, bringing a look of pure, true horror to Xehanort's face when he saw this, and a minute later, one of his legs burst apart in the same way, causing him to fall to his face once again. He then looked up to the sky as he propped himself up on the arm that was still fully intact as another piece of his body shattered and shouted, "No please! I beg you, don't do this! Please, I just need another moment! PLEASE DON'T DESTROY ME!" Sadly, his pleas remained unanswered as he continued to shatter apart bit by bit, while the others could only stand and watch. Seeing that he was not going to receive aid from whomever was doing this to him, Xehanort then turned his attention to someone who he thought would. "Terra, my boy! Ventus, my student, please. Help me," Xehanort pleaded.
Terra only stared at Xehanort hatefully before he simply turned away, silently saying no to the man, and prompting Xehanort to turn his surprisingly pleading gaze towards Ven. As he looked on at the weakening man who was falling apart bit by bit, pleading him to save his life, Ven could only return Xehanort's gaze with a very cold one of his own before he finally shook his head and said, "You pushed me till I broke, nearly destroyed me in a crazy attempt to acquire a power that should've been left alone, endangered mine and my friends' lives in your schemes, and killed my real master. I am not your student, I never was, and there will never be anything you could ever teach me except what it really means to be a monster."
Xehanort looked on in horror, hardly believing that the two boys were not going to help him, and then pleaded even more, hoping that they would save him, or that one of the seven people before him would take pity on him, but it only served to show that Xehanort had now become nothing more than a pathetic shell of the man he once was. Eventually though, someone did finally seem to answer the old man's pleas and finally approach him, though it was not someone that Xehanort expected. It was so beyond surprising in fact, that Xehanort's pleas had gone completely silent when he saw that Aqua had begun walking towards him. She had since removed her helmet, and Xehanort could see the unreadable expression on Aqua's face clear as day, but while her expression betrayed no intentions, her actions seemed to indicate that she was going to help him. It was natural to understand why he started to smile a little at this, just as it was expected that his smile was quickly replaced with a look of horror that was shared by everyone else when she finally reached him.
Instead of reaching out to help Xehanort, Aqua had instead raised her Keyblade and then driven it right through Xehanort with an angry cry, much to everyone's astonishment. Xehanort struggled to speak, but found that all he could do was listen as Aqua said, "My name is Master Aqua, and Xehanort you nearly killed one of my best friends, tried to destroy my bond with both of my best friends, and killed my master and father. You will never hurt anyone in anyway, or rob anyone of anything ever again."
Xehanort tried to reach up and grasp something, as if he were desperate to find some way to save himself from his now inevitable fate, but in the end, it was not long before he seemed to completely break apart, shattering like glass, and leaving nothing but a few sparks of light and darkness in his place, which eventually just faded away into nothing after floating through the air for a few seconds. A minute after the last few sparks started to vanish, Aqua's armor had vanished and she dropped to her knees, and then immediately started to openly sob at what she had just done. Everyone could only stare in shock and sympathy for the poor, sobbing girl, who was now muttering something beneath her sobs that none of them could understand, until Ven finally walked over to stand in front of Aqua, and placed his hands on her shoulders, drawing her gaze up to him. Aqua looked at Ven for another minute or so, and then flung herself forward into his arms and then started sobbing into Ven's shoulder as he hugged her and rubbed her back soothingly.
"It's okay," Ven whispered into Aqua's ear. "He would've done far worse to others if you didn't do what you did. He didn't leave us any other choice, and if you hadn't done it, one of us would've had to. You made the right call Aqua, and the fact that you're this broken up about it proves that you're better than him. Just let it all out now, okay? I hate to see you cry."
Aqua only whimpered a little as she nodded into Ven's shoulder, and then continued to cry even as Terra walked over and placed a hand on his friend and sister's shoulder, feeling just as terrible about seeing her cry like this as Ven did. The poor girl had always been the best of them in terms of her moral compass, always knowing what the right thing was and what should not be done to deal with something, and given what had happened to the three of them since their journey had first started that day when they first heard of the Unversed, Terra was honestly shocked that Aqua had not fallen apart like this sooner. He truly hated seeing her foundation collapse like this, and he could only wish that he could go back to the beginning and stop himself from playing such a large part in shaking it so much.
When Aqua's sobs had finally died down enough, Xion stepped up and then whispered something that shocked them all. "That wasn't the real Xehanort."
"What," Axel gasped. "Come on Xion. Of course it was the real Xehanort. That was the exact same guy that we've always seen before whenever he appeared in the Round Room to meet with all of us and the rest of the guys that work for him."
"I know, and I'm telling you he wasn't Xehanort," Xion insisted. "Yes, he is the same person that we've always seen every time before, but there was something about him that I could sense which no one else could."
"Oh yeah," Roxas mused. "I remember you telling me and Axel about that. I didn't really think much of it because I just got an uneasy feeling from him that made me want to avoid him as much as I could, while Axel and Riku both thought you were being silly or getting jitters whenever he was around since you were the newest of the group."
"Right," Xion nodded. "And after a while I was starting to believe that too, but after what just happened I don't, because I finally know what that feeling I got from him was. It was a sense of familiarity. Not like from a person or place you've met before, but from something that's similar to you in a way."
"That's crazy! You're nothing like that psycho," Riku protested.
"I know that, but I didn't mean in the way that you think," Xion stated. "I meant in the sense of what we are."
"Wait, are you saying that you think he was…," Axel started to ask, having reached the conclusion that Xion had.
Xion just nodded as she explained. "I once read a few things from Vexen's notes about what would happen if I was to end, including what would be seen while it happened, and if what we just saw happen to Xehanort was any indication, then Vexen's notes were very accurate, and Xehanort has been nothing more than a figurehead, and if I had to guess from what we saw earlier, Vanitas was the same as Xehanort."
"What're you getting at," Terra finally asked.
"It doesn't matter right now," Roxas said before Xion could reply. "Right now, we need to secure the Time Window so you guys can get back. Axel, Xion, and I will go and take a look at things while you guys wait here with Riku."
Riku nodded in acceptance of this as the three friends quickly went in to do as the Dual-Keyblade Wielder said they would, as the others all either sat on the floor or against the wall, each of the three from the past all wondering just what it was that Xion was implying earlier, with only Terra voicing the question. "Just what the hell were they talking about?!"
"Isn't it obvious? They were saying that Xehanort is a clone, and that he has been as such for many years now," a new, deep, cold voice that none of the group left outside the Time Window room recognized, and they were all instantly on their feet and turning to face the person who spoke as soon as they heard his voice. When they did, they saw the very man that was truly in control of the forces of darkness, decked out in his extravagant version of the Organization XIII coat with his hood up, stepping forward from the shadows.
"Who are you," Ven demanded.
"I am the true master of the forces of darkness," the hooded man replied. "I thought that much was obvious."
"What did you mean earlier when you said that Xehanort had been a clone for years," Aqua then asked.
"Ah, now we have a question that hasn't been fully answered yet," the figure then remarked, making a grand gesture of the situation as he did, yet still keeping his calm, cool voice. "You see, what no one knows is that Xehanort has actually been dead for years. Perished at the hands of none other than our dear Master Aqua of the Keyblade, and his creation Vanitas had perished a short time before that because he could not keep Ventus at bay or the power of the χ-blade under control, leaving his body to be destroyed by the same master who ended Xehanort. Sadly, Aqua was lost to the Realm of Darkness soon after because she was foolish enough to try and save a friend alone, and so she had no idea that someone was able to take some of the DNA of Xehanort and the remaining energy in his Keyblade to create another of him that was completely under that person's control. My control and it was also because of me that all of this is possible. The artificial Nobodies, the fall of Radiant Garden into Hollow Bastion, Riku's turning to darkness, it's all thanks to me."
"But why create a clone of Xehanort and Vanitas? Why create Xion and the artificial Nobodies," Terra asked. "What's the point of you doing all this, especially if you're going to let someone else take the fall?"
"They say that the most dangerous being is the one that you never see, and that when evil is given a face not only is it less feared, but no one thinks to look for its real face," the figure replied. "By letting the worlds believe that it was Xehanort who was behind it all, I was free to do as I desired and proceed with the true goals of this war."
"And that would be," Aqua then asked.
"Not something you should concern yourself with just yet if at all my old friends."
"Old friends," Riku then repeated in confusion. "Let me guess, this is the part where you make the big reveal and then we say something like 'Holy cow! Braig, or Maleficent's devil mother, or Pete!' Come on, please be Pete."
"Oh don't insult me. None of those who you've encountered before could even come close to matching the power or the plans that I possess. If anything, you all know that better than anyone. After all, three of you taught me some of my most powerful abilities while you taught me how to handle a sword, Riku," the figure then said as he finally lifted his hands up and pulled back his hood to reveal his face to them, and the minute he did, the four had immediately wished that he had not, for it was the face of someone that they wished they did not recognize.
"You…you're…" Terra whispered as his arm dropped due to his Keyblade suddenly feeling much heavier.
"But that's…this is impossible," Ven protested.
"Tell me that this is a bad dream. This just…it can't be," Riku silently begged as he and Ven both did the same as Terra.
"Ah the timeless clichés. Why is it that people always go right to those in these situations," the figure then remarked, his tone indicating that he did not actually care all that much and only said it to make fun of them.
"You…you're the ruler of darkness? Tell me this is a lie. How could you possibly be the one to do all this," Aqua quietly begged as she continued to look on in horror. Though he was now taller than all of them, his hair was now a dark grey, his features were changed with age, and his eyes now the same shade of clear silver that Xion and Riku's had been when they were being controlled moments ago, they could still see just enough of the familiar shade of blue mixed in with the silver to know that they were his eyes, and there was most certainly no mistaking that particular spiky hairstyle. Even as she uttered his name, ultimately confirming who he was, Aqua knew that she and the others did not want to believe it. "Sora?"
Indeed, the man in the extravagant coat was in fact a very much older version of the wielder of the Kingdom Key, who they all believed would never turn to darkness no matter what had happened, and who was now fighting in the past, willing to give his life if necessary to save the very future they were now in. "Now don't be so dramatic Aqua," Sora scoffed in reply to Aqua's pleas. "Darkness is but one piece of a much more magnificent power, and once it is yours to command, you can become a force that none can stand against. Proof of that comes from the existence of the χ-blade, which is forged from a strong heart of light and an equally strong heart of darkness. Unlike others who would consider this the power of the In-Between or twilight, like Xemnas, I know that it is a power that only the most truly worthy could ever hope to possess. It's the power of ultimate balance and control."
"How…how could you betray us all like this," Ven finally asked.
"Betray you," Sora repeated. He then laughed for a moment as he stated, "I thought you knew me better than that. 'My friends are my power', remember? It turns out that when those friends are lost forever, that becomes especially true. Their being in danger can bring something close to what I have achieved, but when they are gone forever, truly gone, that is when the real power that your friends give you truly awakens."
"I can't believe this," Riku snarled as he raised his Keyblade once more. "There's no way that you're the real Sora! He would never do something as horrible as all that you've said you've done! How do you think Kairi would feel if she…"
Riku's rant was quickly cut off when he was suddenly thrown clear across the room by a power that was a mixture of light and darkness, and everyone turned to see that Sora's expression, while mostly the same, had gained a slight edge to it. Even more shockingly was that he never even seemed to have so much as raised a finger when he caused Riku to be thrown across the room. "Never. Mention her name. Again," Sora ordered. "But thank you for the pick me up, Riku. Now let me return the favor by showing you a real Dark Cannon."
A minute later, a much more powerful version of Riku's own Dark Cannon was suddenly thrown from Sora's hand directly at Riku. Thankfully, Terra was able to pull Riku out of the way, but the sight of where Riku was once standing terrified them, as a massive hole the size of a Gummi Ship at least was now in the wall, and a large section of the floor was now nothing more than rumble and empty space. The sight of such massive destruction was beyond anything like any of them had ever seen, even in terms of what Xehanort had been capable of. The mere sight of what could likely only be a sample of this evil Sora's power was terrifying enough, but the thought that some of them may have to fight him was even more terrifying than anything else.
"Don't you see," Sora then asked. "I have more power than anyone could have ever dreamed, and soon, I will have the ultimate power that surpasses light and darkness. The one power that can rival or even exceed that of the great Kingdom Hearts. The power that has been instrumental in this entire escapade that threw you three to the future, Aqua, Terra, and Ventus. The power…of time itself."
That declaration was just as shocking as the display of power that the heroes had just witnessed, and none of them were certain as to whether or not they believed this, or if the evil monster that was once their friend had gone insane. "Haven't you already done enough," Aqua asked. "This war that you've let happen has already destroyed so much, and caused so much harm. Why would you want a power that could let you destroy everything completely?"
"Oh Aqua, don't you realize that all this is nothing more than a necessary evil," Sora asked rhetorically. "This entire war, the creation of this Organization XIII, it's all necessary to bring about something much better, which can only be done by harnessing time itself. Aqua, do you really think that the way things happened originally is any better than this? Sure some things were better, the worlds were safe, and it was peaceful, but what do you think the cost was? Who do you think had to suffer in order for it to happen? I have seen that future, and I doubt you would be so open about restoring the original timeline if you knew what I know. Aqua, you wander aimlessly in the Realm of Darkness after you had given up your power to save a friend that may be lost; Ventus, you lie in an eternal sleep, your heart severely damaged after your final battle with Vanitas; Terra, the only true remainder of your existence is an empty shell who only acts out on instincts, and you three are the ones who got lucky. So many good lives were lost so that so called peace could be achieved, people that you have now met and who are willing to give their lives even now when they don't realize that their victory would mean the end of their existence."
"What do you mean by that," Terra asked, already fearing the answer.
"Do you really have to ask? Roxas, gone because a man out for revenge believed in his anger that Nobodies should never exist as anything more than tools, and only ever having a mere few moments with his dear, sweet Naminé before his existence ended along with hers. Although, I think you'll find that Xion's fate was much worse than that."
"What," Riku gasped in shock. "What happened to her?" When Sora did not answer, Riku was quick to get angry and shout, "Damn it Sora, if there really is any part of you left that is my friend then tell me what the hell happened to Xion!"
Sora only looked at Riku for a minute before he finally said, "Xion ceased to exist before she was even able to live for a year, all because I could not wake up while she existed. The worst part was that after she met her end, all memory of her faded away, until no one could so much as remember her name, and the two people responsible for it were both people she trusted and considered friends. Riku, you destroyed her. You and Roxas."
"No…no you're…you're lying," Riku protested. "I would never…I would never hurt Xion! That can't be true!"
"I may have caused you to turn to darkness Riku, but it was not just so I could have a warrior. I honestly wanted my best friend back after being forced to fight him for so long. Do you really think I could lie to you if I wanted something like that," Sora asked, and from the tone of his voice, he meant exactly what he said, which was more than enough to drive Riku to his knees. Sora then went on to add, "I know it may seem like I'm doing more harm than good, but trust me, you'll all thank me when this is over, because I will have created a perfect existence where no one will have suffered in the way that they had before, no one will have to suffer period, and I will never have lost everything that mattered to me."
"What do you mean everything," Terra asked.
"You and my younger self will find out soon enough, or maybe you won't seeing as I'm about to fix all the mistakes that history ever made. Like I said, I'm doing you guys a favor, and don't kid yourselves in thinking you can stop this from happening. Everything has already been set in motion. What happened to me in the past, it's happened before, it will happen again," Sora replied.
None of them were sure what to make of the situation. Sora was the leader of the forces of darkness and possessed powers that far exceeded anything any of them had ever seen, he had caused the war to happen to fulfill some insane plan to gain control of time itself, and he was talking as though something terrible would happen some point after Terra, Aqua, and Ven returned to their time. Was this madman really the Sora they once knew, and if so, were they supposed to believe what he was telling them? These questions and more were running rampant through all of their minds until a new voice suddenly cut through Terra, Aqua, and Ven's thoughts.
"You guys, we really need to get you back into this time, and fast," Kairi's voice called out. "Are you still dealing with Xehanort?"
"No, Xehanort's down, but…we've found something worse," Aqua finally replied after a minute.
"What do you mean? Where are you guys?"
"I think we're in Hell. Sora…the real leader of the forces of darkness…it's you," Ven revealed. "You're the one who was controlling Riku and Xion."
"What? But that's impossible, how could that…I would never," Sora tried to protest, clearly as unsettled by the news as they were. His protests were quickly replaced by a state of urgency when he suddenly shouted, "Holy Paopu Fruit! Guys, we need you here now!"
None of them needed anymore reason to take off towards the room Roxas, Axel, and Xion had disappeared into as Riku said, "I don't care what you think your reasons for doing this are. I will stop you no matter what it takes, because there is no way in hell that you're Sora!"
The evil Sora just watched them go, not making even the slightest move to stop them, and once they were gone, he had to chuckle a little at Riku's declaration. "Poor fools," the evil Sora sighed. "They are more than welcome to their dreams and ideas, but in the end it won't matter. Nothing can stop what's set in stone." The evil Sora then pulled something out of his pocket and gazed at it longingly before he added, "At least, not until I achieve what I seek, and then we will be reunited again, just as I promised we would be so long ago."
He brought his glance away from the star-shaped object, which was partially covered in dried blood, and then held his hand out as he once did to summon his old Keyblade, only to bring forth a much different Keyblade, one that looked to be made up of two crossing Kingdom Keys, the teeth facing outwards, a filigree that looked like that of the Ultima Weapon Keyblade, and a blade that resembled that of a normal sword. He only looked over the extraordinary weapon for a minute before he said, "What I do, I do for your sake and so that everyone will get exactly what they deserve. This will ensure that. The most powerful of all weapons…the χ-blade."
Arendelle (The Past)
Sora was of course completely stunned by what Ven had said about their enemy in the future, but the problem that had caused his distress when he last spoke was much more important at the moment. After he and Kairi had spoken with Aqua before she said that the three in the future were about to take on Xehanort, they had elected to wait a while until they heard back, but they soon began to grow anxious, which led them to call Aqua and again and find out what they did. Before they could process the information though, they received a pair of guests that they did not want right then.
Now Sora, Kairi, and Mickey were standing across the way from none other than Xehanort and Vanitas, the latter gazing at the three through his black, helmet-like mask, and the former just smiling at them in sinister amusement. The three Keyblade Masters of the light were all standing ready for battle, with Kairi still emitting the glow of her Shooting Star Command Style, but the strange thing was that neither Xehanort nor Vanitas seemed like they were going to prepare to fight them, as they continued to just stand where they were and gaze at them, as if analyzing everything about them with a simple look. Eventually, the silence was broken as Xehanort said, "So you are the mighty Keyblade Wielders from the future. It is a pleasure to finally see you face to face. As you are likely no doubt aware by now I am Master Xehanort."
"Well we're real flattered that the great, fallen master decided to come out and greet us," Sora replied with heavy sarcasm.
Xehanort only shrugged off the sarcastic remark with a chuckle before continuing, "I have heard much about you, young man, from Xemnas and Ansem. Sora, the Keyblade Hero, a defender of the worlds and the light and one who is not afraid to give up his own existence to save a friend. From what I have heard and seen of you, while you may not be the same as the Sora that Ansem and Xemnas know, you certainly seem to be just as powerful as that Sora was if not more so."
"You are getting to a point in all this right," Kairi asked. "We don't have time to listen to you go on some long-winded monologue at the moment. We've got friends who need our help."
Xehanort then looked at the still glowing, auburn haired girl as he then said, "Ah and the Princess of Heart that is also a Keyblade Wielder, Kairi. To be both a Keyblade Wielder and a Princess of Heart is truly amazing to say the least, and the fact that you are so concerned about people you have only just recently met and still consider to be friends shows that you are more than worthy of your title."
"Hey, quick question," Vanitas then cut in. "If she's a Princess of Heart, then maybe it would be better if we used her to help make the χ-blade instead of that idiot, Ventus."
Even though he knew that Kairi would probably get mad at him for it later, Sora did not hesitate for a second to immediately rush in front of the girl protectively after he heard what Vanitas said and then warn the masked boy, "If you even think about so much as coming near her, I will beat you into the next century and back with your stupid mask!"
Vanitas was about to say something in retort when Xehanort raised his hand to silence him as he stated, "Even if I were to consider the course of action you suggested, Vanitas, it would not work. Her light is far too great for you to handle, and it would destroy you long before the χ-blade could so much as be partially completed. That is why it is still planned for you to join with Ventus." Vanitas just shrugged at that as Xehanort then turned his attention back to the three Keybearers and then said, "As for any worry you may have over our being here, I assure you that it is unnecessary. We are not here to fight, merely to ask you to deliver a message for us."
"Not a chance! We're not your messengers, and we have no interest in anything you have to say to anyone," Kairi shouted, and she then immediately charged out from behind Sora towards the two evil Keyblade Wielders, much to Sora and Mickey's protest. When Kairi brought down her Keyblade, Vanitas was quick to meet it with his own so that he could push her back, effectively starting a battle between him and the Princess of Heart.
Kairi quickly retaliated by using the abilities her Command Style granted her to fire off a barrage of magic spells and homing darts, and while he was able to evade some of the attacks, Vanitas was not entirely able to save himself from suffering any damage before he finally teleported away from the where the attacks were heading. Vanitas then reappeared behind Kairi and attempted to strike at her from above as he usual would with this tactic, but Kairi was able to race away before the attack struck her, and then used a zero gravity spell to slow Vanitas down a little so that she could hit him with a quick series of fire spells. Vanitas was quick to recover from the blazing assault and then leapt into the air before unleashing a blast of dark lightning from his Keyblade on top of Kairi, causing a massive explosion to consume her form.
When the smoke finally cleared though, Kairi was completely unharmed, and the glow of her Command Style had now changed from white and red to a bluish-silver as what appeared to be stars shimmered around her, indicating that she had now unleashed her own Tier Two Command Style. Vanitas was not worried by this sight though, and just dived into the ground so that he could hit Kairi with a surprise attack from bellow, but when he tried to do so, he found himself hitting nothing but air every time, and when he finally came out from underground completely to look around for the girl, he saw that she was nowhere in sight at all. "Where'd she go," Vanitas demanded angrily.
"Why don't you try looking up, creep," Kairi's voice quipped, and when Vanitas did look up, his eyes widened behind his mask as he saw Kairi hovering in mid-air before rocketing towards him and then knocking him into the air with her Keyblade. Kairi then dashed into the air again, confirming that her new Command Style allowed her to fly, and began attacking Vanitas with several fast strikes which were infused with light magic, thus increasing its effectiveness against the being of pure darkness, until she paused to form a series of light spheres similar to the ones Aqua created with her Spellweaver Command Style and then fired them all at Vanitas. The masked boy could do nothing to avoid taking the full brunt of the attack, but as he started to stand up, he saw Kairi was now glowing even brighter than before, indicating that she was not done with him yet.
"Command Style: Eternal Illuminator Finisher," Kairi shouted, proving what Vanitas had already deduced, and she then flew directly towards Vanitas, slashing at him multiple times in a way that formed a five-point star, and once said star had been formed, she immediately cast another group of magic spheres that took a position at each point on the star before spinning her Keyblade around in one hand and then swinging once to unleash an explosion of light magic that quickly consumed Vanitas.
Seeing that she had now effectively beaten Vanitas, Kairi slowly lowered herself to the ground as her Command Style's energy faded away right next to Sora, but unfortunately, Vanitas was not finished by the powerful attack that Kairi had hit him with. Thankfully, the masked boy did not get a chance to retaliate, as Xehanort had quickly stopped him by placing a hand on Vanitas's shoulder, apparently quelling the boy's need to keep fighting for the moment, and the fallen master then looked to the heroes of the light as he said, "Most impressive. It seems that you grow stronger with every passing moment. It is actually a shame that you are not likely to consider joining me even if I were to offer the option."
Sora and Kairi were both ready to try and take him on again until they heard Aqua say, "No don't! He's just trying to rile you up. Xehanort may be evil, but if he says he doesn't want to fight, then he means it. Nice work learning that new Command Style by the way Kairi."
Kairi was about to thank Aqua for the compliment when she realized why she was receiving the compliment. "Aqua, can you see us right now?"
"Yeah, we're at the Time Window, and we can see you and Sora facing Xehanort and Vanitas right now. Looks like you won't have to go very far to find where you need to be after all," Terra replied, instantly bringing a slight amount of relief to the two, which they were careful not to show to Xehanort.
"More importantly, I know that you intend to retrieve Eraqus's pupils from whatever hell that Ansem and Xemnas had sent them to, and I know that once you have you will wish to end this," Xehanort then said, apparently never even registering that Sora and Kairi had not been paying attention to him while they talked with Aqua. "That is why I have approached you, because this message is for both the two of you and my late friend's former apprentices. If you truly wish to end this once and for all, then come and meet us at the place where powers of light and darkness clashed in battle for a power far beyond anything we have ever known, and whose land is now scarred by the destruction and the lifeless Keyblades of the warriors who had fallen in battle. We will be waiting."
With his piece now said, Xehanort departed through a Corridor of Darkness along with Vanitas, leaving Sora, Kairi, and Mickey to stare at where the two dark warriors once stood before finally releasing the breathes that they did not know they were holding. The group then started glancing around for a minute, looking for the point where the Time Window would be positioned at as it viewed their time with assistance from their friends in the future, until they finally spotted what looked like a faint, pink aurora in the sky, which Aqua confirmed was where the Time Window currently was. The three then summoned their Keyblades and held them towards one specific point as they focused their energy to the tips of their blades, building it up to the point that they needed it to be at, until Sora called out via the D-Link, "You guys ready?"
"We're good to go on this end," Aqua replied.
"Okay, on three," Sora then said both out loud and through the D-Link. "One…two…THREE!"
On the last word, both trios of Keyblade Wielders fired off a blast of energy at the center of their respective sides of the Time Window, and a minute later, the window released a burst of blinding energy until the light calmed down to reveal that the window had been successfully converted into a portal. Jubilant cheers immediately sounded from both groups as they celebrated their success at creating a way back for Terra, Aqua, and Ven, and now all Sora, Kairi, and Mickey could do was wait.
Castle That Never Was (The Future)
Terra and Aqua were quick to take the lead on heading for the portal that would bring them home, but they soon paused when they noticed how Ven had not moved towards the portal, but was instead was looking towards their new friends worriedly. "Are you guys sure you'll be okay," Ven finally asked. "I mean, do you really think that evil Sora's going to let you just leave, or that you'll even stand a little bit of a chance against him?"
"Hey, you let us worry about that," Riku told the blonde. "It's not your problem anymore. Just get back to the past and help make sure this whole nightmare doesn't happen. That includes making sure my best friend doesn't go insane for whatever reason."
Ven still seemed a bit unsure about this until Roxas walked up to him and smiled as he held out his hand to him and said, "We'll be fine, Ven, just like I know you and you're friends will be. So get back there and do what you have to do to save the future, because I really believe that you will."
Ven stared at Roxas in shock for a minute before he finally smiled and accepted the handshake, saying, "Thanks Roxas, and best of luck."
Roxas nodded in reply as he and Ven released their handshake, letting Ventus start walking towards the Time Portal as he added, "You know, you're a lot more like Sora than you realize. You're both terrible when it comes to telling the girl you love how you feel, you're seriously too optimistic, but most importantly…you both make a great other."
Ven was not sure what Roxas meant by that, but he did not waste much time thinking about it, as the portal soon began to start becoming unstable, and simply nodded to his look-a-like before racing through the Time Portal back to his time along with Terra and Aqua. The minute they had passed through, the portal completely collapsed, and Roxas immediately turned towards the exit as he said, "Come on. Let's get back to the Avengers and get out of here. I've had more than enough of this nightmare of a world to last two lifetimes."
Everyone silently agreed with the blonde and immediately raced after him as they ran to the exit of the Castle That Never Was, hoping that the Avengers were still okay, and that they would be ready for the storm that was coming.
Arendelle (The Past)
Sora, Kairi, and Mickey all watched the sky intently until they heard the sound of three people screaming and then saw Aqua, Ven, and Terra falling from the sky after they came out of the portal, and they all quickly winced when they crashed onto the ground. "Uh…welcome back," Sora said as the three started to get their bearings again.
Ven and Terra were both groaning a bit until Aqua suddenly stuttered, "Uh, V-Ven? Could you please get up now?"
Ven was confused by Aqua's sudden nervousness at first, but he quickly figured out why and immediately turned crimson when he did. Not only had he landed on top of Aqua when he landed, but also, his hands were currently right on Aqua's breast, much to the girl's embarrassment, and that was all the reason Ven needed to jump off Aqua and rapidly say, "I'm sorry! I swear I did not mean for that to happen! I just…and the falling…and…"
"No, i-it's alright. D-don't worry about it," Aqua stuttered as she avoided Ven's gaze, her face just as crimson as Ven's was.
The awkward mood was quickly killed when Terra suddenly said, "Wait a minute, that's it?! I make one little comment about you guys snuggling and you threaten to utterly destroy me, but when he actually cops a feel you just let him off with a 'don't worry about it'? What the hell gives?"
Aqua did not hesitate to throw a glare at Terra that promised pain if he did not keep his mouth shut, to which the taller boy responded by raising his hands in surrender before gaining a serious look as he turned to Sora and Kairi. "What did Xehanort want?"
"He said that if we want to end this, we should meet him at some place where a war between light and darkness happened, and that it was full of destruction and lifeless Keyblades," Kairi informed them
"The Keyblade Graveyard," Aqua mused softly, immediately figuring out where Xehanort meant before she turned to the two from the future. "Sora, maybe you should go back to your time."
"What? No way," Sora immediately argued. "We've been with you guys since this started, and we're seeing it through to the end."
"No Sora," Aqua snapped. "Don't you get it? If you stay here then that evil Sora we met in the future will come into existence, and we can't let that happen."
"But how do we know that my going back isn't part of what caused him to happen," Sora then asked. "For all we know, I might've gone back and then let things play out like they originally did before Kairi and I came to this time, and that led me to come back and become that person. Besides, there's no way you guys can take on Xehanort, Vanitas, Xemnas, and Ansem without us. We're staying put no matter what."
"Sora's right," Kairi agreed. "Until we know exactly what caused Sora to turn evil, all we can really do is keep going like we have been, and that means that we stay and help you guys set history right."
One look in the twos eyes told Aqua, Terra, and Ven that Sora and Kairi were serious about this, and they could do nothing more than smile a little in thanks for that. Even though the two now knew what was really responsible for the future being what it was, they were still determined to see their mission through to the end, a fact that the three could not help but admire their young friends for. They then looked to see Mickey trying to hide behind Sora and Kairi, almost as if he was afraid of how they would react to seeing him, but they quickly proved that he had no reason to be as they immediately greeted Mickey in the same way that they had his future self, much to his astonishment and joy. With their reunion now done and their path forward now clear, the five Keybearers immediately summoned their armor and Keyblade Gliders and departed for the place that their final battle would take place, now more determined than ever to save the future, and ensure that history was changed.
AN: Didn't see that coming, did we? A little face-to-face meeting with Xehanort and Vanitas on Sora and Kairi's end, with the former issuing his big invite to the Keyblade Graveyard, and we all know what happened there in the original timeline. And then there's what happened in the dark future. Surprise surprise! Xehanort was just a figure-head, a puppet, a fake-out to hide the real mastermind, and the mastermind in question was someone you probably never expected. Or at least, not someone we would have expected before all this stuff about the Master of Masters' true identity started coming up, namely a certain rumor in particular. Yeah, we are dealing with an older, more sinister, and darker Sora. Who'd have seen that coming, huh?
Sora: Uh, lyoko, what're you doing? Didn't we already record the closing notes for this chapter?
AN: Oh, hey Sora. Yeah, I was doing some edits on this story and kind of messed up with the corrections, so I'm basically having to rerecord some stuff for this note so that people don't just have a chapter preview to read over.
Sora: Maybe just let them deal with that. I don't think any of us want you to stress yourself out too much.
AN: Okay, fine. Sorry again that I accidentally erased the original version of this chapter's author's notes, but hopefully not too many people are upset about that. Anyways, Onto the Preview!...
Next time, the final battle for all of time itself begins, and everyone's on edge wondering just what could have possibly driven the Dark Sora of the future over the edge. Clashes throughout time unlike any other are about to unfold, as some last minute heart-to-heart moments are held between our heroes, but one must wonder if everyone will be able to survive what's coming. Find out next time.
Please read and review, and see ya real soon!