Chapter 15: How About An Adventure?
{Mysterious Tower: October 1st 2013, 8:40am}
Master Yen Sid looked to the two boys in front of him and sighed as he listened to the sound of the train pulling away from the station at the tower as it headed back towards the portal that had been opened up to return Allen to his own world. However, his mind was on more important details at the time being, and that was informing the two Masters before him of a few key details and could only hope that the they would be prepared to take on an additional task.
"There is no need to worry for Allen Walker's safety. That boy has been through some harrowing events in his life as it stands; nonetheless, I would like to inform you of something rather vital that pertains to our friend," Master Yen Sid stated.
"What's that?" the wizard glanced towards the area where Kairi, Roxas, and Namine were presently being seen by the Three Good Fairies.
"In recent months, several other Bearers of the Keyblade, or should I say...potential Bearers, have surfaced, and one of those candidates is Allen Walker, as well as several others of which we have our eye upon," Master Yen Sid explained. The two Masters looked nothing short of shocked.
"Allen's a Keyblade Wielder?" asked Sora with evident concern.
"He has only shown the potential to become one. King Mickey, myself, and Master Oswald have kept our eyes on the candidates and chosen not to intervene nor inform them of their possible abilities as Bearers; however, we have also kept it from the two of you and the only other remaining Keyblade Master alive, in addition, the few Keyblade Bearers that were still present prior to the two of you being chosen also were, until recent days, unaware." Riku glanced to the aged wizard and then looked to Sora.
"Why haven't you said anything? We could have lost who knows how many Keyblade Wielders by this point!" Riku stated sharply.
"Listen, you must understand, we weren't confident enough to divulge this information until recently. That is because there was a lack of sufficient evidence to state that we were indeed dealing with the power of the Keyblade." The two Masters looked to one another.
"Who else has that potential to become a Keyblade Bearer?" Riku glanced to Sora again, taking in the faint edge to his voice making him sound and almost appear older than he was. His sky-blue eyes took on an eerie glow to them in the slightly dim light of the study, and his energy changed to a much older and more predatory one. Cyan eyes looked the boy over slightly and then turned his attention back to Master Yen Sid, who took in a deep breath as he looked to Sora.
"You still remind me of that boy..." the chestnut-haired sixteen-year-old took a tentative step back.
"Please just answer the question, Master Yen Sid," Sora stated calmly as Riku felt the boy's energy prickle and shift.
"I see, very well. As you have been told, Allen Walker is one of the potential Keyblade Bearers, as well as a few others that for the time being we are still uncertain of. The two you need to have potential concern for are Allen Walker, and Yui Amane." Sora and Riku looked to the Master with nothing short of surprise.
"Yui? He's..." the wizard nodded.
"I know it may seem surprising; however, his capabilities and qualities are adequate, thus, the Keyblade seems to be tilting towards him as another Bearer," he clarified.
"He has enough to deal with, as does Allen! The two of them don't need that!" Master Yen Sid looked to Sora, who had an expression he had seen many times before within the eyes of his former student Soren, who had as much compassion for his allies as the boy before him did then; however, another shared emotion was the pain of realizing someone else's life would be taken apart by the Keyblade's will once again, and Master Yen Sid saw it now in Sora as he had once seen within Soren that stated if he could remove them from the equation, if he could severe the tie to the Keyblade and grant them the luxury of avoiding it's hardships at any cost, he would; even though he was well aware that he couldn't.
"Master Sora, I understand your feelings towards the situation; however, I need you to understand that in this instance, we have all but control upon the final choice made for those two, and the others that are presently being watched," Master Yen Sid stated calmly.
"I know...I'm not foolish enough to think that the Keyblade's choices can be stopped, and I would happily have them fight by my side...but...I know this time the Keyblades aren't going to return to nothingness like they did after the Keyblade War a hundred years ago...this time...this time they'll remain with the Bearer, until that person dies...all those Keyblades I possess? They're trapped with me until I die...the same goes for Riku, Kairi...Roxas...Namine...it puts a brand on us that we can't ever escape..."
"You are rather wise for your age, Master Sora, for you consider the future and the trials that will lie ahead of us all, even when Master Xehanort is destroyed. I respect you for those thoughts, and for your humble consideration of the life of your comrades; however, do not allow such emotions to cloud your judgment. I believe there will come a time when you have no choice but to remain jaded towards the chances that may be taken," Master Yen Sid told the boy, who slowly nodded.
"I understand...I guess it just bothered me a bit..." the wizard shook his head.
"Master Sora and Master Riku, guide Princess Kairi, Roxas, and Namine well and brace for the coming adventures and trials that you will face...we are not far off from the beginning of the true battle," he said. The two nodded, and finally heard the doors beside them creak open.
"It seems our time has ended. I hope the three of you have gotten everything you need?" Roxas nodded, holding up a large canvas bag of sorts that was hunter green, Namine followed with a white one, and Kairi did the same with a pink one.
"Yes, they even made sure we had gloves," Kairi stated with a smile.
"Considering that the pair you have aren't very well made, it's good that you'll have some durable sets now." Sora came over to her and took her hand before looking to the three fairies.
"Oh, the two of you also have some things we've made for you as well, dearies," Merriweather handed Sora a blue canvas bag and Riku a gray one before smiling as she looked back to them.
"Thank you, but don't we have enough gear?" Flora smiled.
"This is just in case you need extra clothing at some point. Also, there's a pouch in each one of those for you that we got from a friend of ours, she said it would carry everything you need and never weigh more than a coin purse. When you travel, put your belongings in there, that way if your clothing tears or wears down, you have something to put them in. Also, Sora, we have some new shoes in there for you – it would seem that yours are starting to wear down in the soles after the Dream Drop," she said. Sora looked at the black rubber soles of his shoes and laughed faintly.
"Yea...you have a point...thank you..." Fauna smiled.
"Oh, no worries, dear. Now, I believe we also gave you two new outfits that should work well for you when needs be. Riku, you have them as well, we gave the others four new outfits to wear if they need them," She explained as Kairi, Roxas, and Namine came to stand beside Sora and Riku.
"Thanks, we would be having to replace our clothing all the time with how many battles we get into..." Merriweather shook her head.
"At least you Keyblade Bearers aren't scraping up your clothing like some of our other customers, those wizards at that one guild in the world Magnolia always have to have their clothing replaced," she said with a shake of her head.
"Well, at least we don't give you as much trouble..." Sora smiled a bit and nodded.
"It's no trouble dear, but you best be on your ways. There's a lot to do before too long, and I believe Master Sora and Master Riku have a few more training sessions planned for the three of you," stated Flora.
"Yep, we sure do. So hop to it!" Roxas hung his head and started for the door with the others when Master Yen Sid spoke up.
"Master Sora? May I speak with you momentarily?" Sora looked to the wizard and nodded.
"That's no problem. Kairi? You and the others go on and wait at the exit of the tower, I'll be there soon," he stated.
"Okay, we'll see you soon..." Flora, Fauna, and Merriweather waved goodbye, and then the door shut, and Sora turned his attention to Master Yen Sid.
"This is about my request to take them world hopping, isn't it?" Sora inquired. Master Yen Sid nodded slowly.
"Yes, and I must ask...do you think it wise after the farce of the prior world tour you took your parents on." The boy flinched.
"With all due respect, I believe this time will be different..." Master Yen Sid frowned.
"I do not believe it is wise...your last attempt could have cost people their lives, Sora," he stated. Sky-blue eyes narrowed.
"Master Yen Sid, I do not want my students first times in another world to be when we're going to war with Xehanort for keeps...that would do nothing but cause them pain...they need to learn to appreciate the worlds for what they are and see them as more than just battle grounds!" Sora said sharply.
"Do not speak brashly, Sora Seiren!" the wizard stood, and the boy gave him a challenging look.
"In all honesty, I didn't need to ask for your permission; however, I was wanting to grant you the respect you deserve...if you are just going to shut me down and refuse me the right to teach my students as I see fit, then tell me what changed your mind?! Once you seemed as if you wanted me to seek out the path I saw fit for myself and to teach those who were granted to me as students. Now you suddenly expect me to just do whatever you tell me? No! I won't just bow to you! You don't own me!" Sora's voice turned sharp and stabbing, causing the aged wizard to nearly flinch as he looked the boy over.
"It has been many years since I have been spoken to in such a manner," Master Yen Sid stated as he regained his composure.
"Let me guess, Soren? Why does everyone want to relate me to someone like him? He's connected to Organization Thirteen, right?" the wizard looked him over.
"No, Soren has no connection to the Organization. He did know Master Eraqus and Master Xehanort when they were younger, and he was quite an excellent student...however, Sora, you shouldn't be ashamed to be compared to someone so noble. Soren was an amazing and talented Keyblade Bearer, and later, a miraculous Master...and I was honored to be his Master..." Sora looked down and took in a deep breath.
"What was he like?" sky-blue eyes looked to him, his body visibly tense.
"Remarkable, talented, kind-natured, strong-willed, quick-witted, and incredibly brave. In many ways, the two of you share common traits...including your knack for trouble, becoming quite mouthy towards others, and your apparent lack of consideration towards authority," Master Yen Sid gave Sora an imploring look, and the boy smirked faintly.
"You think we would have gotten along?" the wizard sighed.
"The two of you would have an innate habit of getting yourselves into as much trouble as you, Riku, Roxas, Namine, and Kairi do today," he said with a shake of his head.
"Master Yen Sid...I..." the wizard smiled.
"No need to apologize. Your courage and your indomitable soul is what has always convinced me that you are the right person for the job of training Roxas and Namine swiftly enough to prepare them for the battlefield...and that is also why I will trust you to do them right when they travel alongside you for their trip between worlds," Master Yen Sid stated.
"You're going to..." Sora looked him over, and the wizard smiled.
"If you are willing to tell me what path you shall take," the Grand Master stated with a kind look.
"The path I took during my first adventure. However, I will be foregoing Monstro, Halloween Town, Christmas Town, Hollow Bastion, and Final Rest....naturally..." The wizard nodded, giving a slightly bemused smile at the evident spite in Sora's tone when discussing his last stop on his first adventure.
"Very well; however, I will make a recommendation. There is a world known as the Pride Lands, it is where your companion Simba hails from...I believe it will be a good example of...transitions in other worlds to match the environment..." Sora nodded.
"Thank you, sir; I will plan that with King Mickey, Donald, and Goofy...and make sure they'll prepare way stations for us," he stated.
"Good, now, be off. The others are waiting for you." Sora smiled, and said his goodbyes before exiting the room.
"My, he has grown quite a bit since we first met him," said Fauna.
"Has quite the mouth on him as well..." Master Yen Sid laughed faintly.
"Master Yen Sid? Is something the matter?" asked Flora.
"Not a thing, I was just recalling a moment from many moons ago..." the three Fairies looked to one another.
"What type of moment was it, Master Yen Sid?" asked Merriweather.
"Oh...just dealing with a troublesome child...that is all..." the three fairies smiled knowingly.
"Well, we must send a note to Miss Poppins to tell her that the carry pouches were greatly appreciated. I think they'll need them when the time comes for the true battle to begin," said Flora.
"I couldn't agree more..." with that, the three fairies left, and Master Yen Sid smiled as he looked out of his window at the top tower to see the Keyblade Wielders boarding the train.
"That day is so close...will we truly be ready? Will Sora be ready?"
{Train: 11:20am}
Sora yawned a bit, stretching as he leaned back in the seat next to Kairi aboard the train. The others seemed tired already, despite it only being early mid-day, and he was keen to remind them that they were going to begin a new form of training today that included something they had already been asked about in the past, and that it was at the time potentially a hazard; however, with the knowledge that things were indeed stirring, Sora had made a snap decision to add in something else for their preparation to transition to the field for battle.
"What kind of training do we have once we get back?" asked Namine.
"I think that the things Riku and I heard means we have no choice but to start pushing the training to upper level spells and skills. Namine, you haven't drawn another Keyblade, and while the Kingdom Keys are strong, they aren't strong enough for some foes...Kairi, you need to gain control on another one...Roxas, you need more training, and the four of you need more experience with my Drive Forms...after that...we need to begin Summon training and Flowmotion, as well as Limit Breaks..." Roxas groaned.
"Great, death warmed over times twenty," he said.
"Oh, you'll live. Besides, you're going to need the help..." the group looked to Sora, who kept his eyes forward.
"What do you mean by that?" asked Kairi as she placed a hand on his.
"Master Yen Sid told us that there were some people who are showing signs of being potential Keyblade Wielders...Allen Walker, who we met today, and Yui Amane are amongst the numbers..." the group froze, Kairi putting a hand to her mouth in the process.
"Who's Yui Amane?" questioned Roxas.
"He helped us out in the Dream Drop...he's from a world known as Owari. It's been at war with vampires for the last nine years...recently they've joined forces with the Ghouls in their world and have become a fourteen-member unit known as Anteiku. Yui and one other person are the front runners." the two blondes looked down.
"Will we meet them at some point?" inquired Namine.
"I'm sure we will...Yui was partnered with Jack Frost during the events of the Dream Drop..." Sora looked out the window and remained quiet while Riku talked, but it only caused the others to watch him warily.
"Sora? Are you okay?" asked Kairi.
"I'm fine...I'm just worried about the possibility of all these new Keyblade Wielders coming to us...King Mickey is a Master, and Master Yen Sid no longer takes on students...so that falls to me and Riku to take on those students if we must..." Roxas frowned.
"Is that such a bad thing?" he probed.
"Not really, but that means more worlds will be infected with the Heartless, more people will be taken away from their families...their lives will be changed forever by the Keyblade...that's a lot of turmoil to take on, and while I am aware that Yui is almost seventeen, Allen looks to be roughly the same age, and I'm not too worried about them because of their ages...but Master Yen Sid wouldn't tell us about the ages or the identities of the other candidates...that only makes me worried..." Sora bit his lip in thought, clenching his fist in the cloth of his pants leg.
"Didn't he mention that there was one other surviving Master?" Riku stated as he looked to Sora.
"He did, but...he also said that Master was left over from the Keyblade War..." Kairi looked to the others.
"How did he say it, exactly?" questioned Namine.
"He said the only other surviving Master..." the group, including Riku, gave Sora a confused look.
"What did he mean by surviving?" the chestnut-haired Keyblade Master looked down, feeling a bit ashamed for keeping this quiet.
"I'll explain later..." Roxas narrowed his eyes.
"How about you explain now?" Sora shook his head.
"Let's get back to Disney Castle first, and then I promise...I'll explain..." Kairi looked to Roxas and then to Sora as she tightened her grip upon his hand.
"He's genuinely afraid of what's coming...if he's tense about it...then that means this is going to be the worst battle we've ever been in..."
{Disney Castle Training Hall: 12:20pm}
The group of Keyblade Wielders stood in the training hall, Sora seeming to be a bit tense as he waited for them file in front of him as he kept his grip tense, the sensation of a Keyblade wanting to come to him catching his attention as he looked to the others. Explaining the history of the Keyblade Bearers was something Sora never dreamed he would have to do, and because there was so little of it known – at least, to their current knowledge – he could only do what he could, and while Riku knew some of the details because of his own research, there were details that only Sora himself knew because of Squall Leonhart explaining it to him after he was met with animosity in multiple worlds thanks to him wielding the Keyblade. Now, he was having to explain precisely what Master Yen Sid had meant when he said the only other surviving Keyblade Master. He only hoped that they would understand that even he didn't know the full story.
"So, what did Master Yen Sid mean by the whole only other surviving Keyblade Master thing?" asked Riku. Sora sighed and relaxed his tense grip, causing Oblivion to slide into his grasp. The others jolted, but he merely shook his head and kept it at his side.
"Sorry, this Keyblade does this sometimes...but anyways, let me explain from the beginning..." Sora sat upon the floor, and the others soon joined him as he took in a deep breath.
"Okay, what do you mean by that?" sky-blue eyes glanced them over.
"When I was first starting out, I had been met with some severe animosity in other worlds because of the Keyblade. After that last time in a world called Atlantica, I went back to Traverse Town and Squall Leonhart told me about the history of the Keyblade..." Riku nodded.
"Alright, but what happened?" Sora took in a steady breath.
"Squall told me that what happened to cause that wasn't anything to do with me personally...it was because of the events of the Keyblade War a century prior. During the War, there was so much chaos, destruction, and death that Keyblade Wielders became a stigma. A Keyblade used to mean you were a honored solider for a world and you were risking your life for their sake...after the thousands of lives lost in the Keyblade War that were both Bearers and civilians...anyone who had a Keyblade was the outcast...they were exiled, treated as if they were traitors, and...there were some who never returned to their families because of that..." Namine looked down.
"So, families were further split up because people began to hate Keyblade Wielders?" she asked.
"Unfortunately, but there was greater complication...and that dealt with something far worse...it's the reason that Master Yen Sid said what he did about the only other surviving Keyblade Master..." the boy paled faintly, and Kairi felt her stomach twist into an uncomfortable knot.
"Sora, do you mean that..." he nodded, looking down.
"The Keyblade Bearers, they were exiled, hated, treated as traitors, but...the Masters, and many others, weren't merely cast out..." the boy gritted his teeth, bracing for something that clearly made him feel ill at the notion.
"Weren't merely cast out? What are you talking about? The Keyblade has done a lot of good, right? It saved countless lives! It's stopped the darkness, it stopped the war from taking over and destroying everything, right?" asked Roxas. Sora shook his head.
"Not quite...it did save countless lives, it did stop the darkness...to a point...it didn't entirely stop the war from taking over. A Kingdom that connected the worlds was destroyed, its people taken away from their home world, the gateways that the Kingdom had forged with other worlds deteriorated, and the darkness began pouring out of its blood-soaked soil and into other worlds...someone, I wasn't told who, sacrificed themselves to break the remaining strands of the gateways...and left only a single change point for any future Keyblade Wielders for when the time came..." Namine looked down in thought before looking to Sora.
"What happened to the Masters? Judging from the way it's stated, there was a lot of them," she said calmly as the boy before her nodded.
"According to what I was told, there were roughly four hundred Masters across all worlds, but...out of the ten thousand Keyblade Wielders that entered the war, only around two thousand made it out, and within a year's time, only a hundred of them were left, fifty of them were Masters..." Roxas, Namine, Kairi, and Riku glanced to one another.
"H-How could that many Keyblade Wielders just die?" Sora shook his head.
"I wish I knew, but I do know there were other enemies compared to what we have now. Squall did tell me that there was something called a Screamer and these people known as Chasers, but we weren't told details about them...he theorized that they killed them off...and ultimately, only a handful of Keyblade Wielders in general survived..."
"So, you're saying that the Keyblade Wielders were..." sky-blue eyes looked to them.
"They were exterminated, but it wasn't only the Darkness...it was the people in other worlds, as well..." Kairi put her hand to her mouth once again, shock filling her system as she took in what was said.
"So, you're telling me that people from other worlds willingly killed off Keyblade Wielders?" asked Riku.
"Yes, from what I know, the Keyblade Masters that survived were the one they called the Traitorous Hero, the person who struck the killing blow to the first incarnation of Xehanort, Master Xehanort Erebus himself survived, obviously...The Hidden Master, the one who took something valuable to the Kingdom and ran away with it to protect it...the Master of Winds, who I suppose was Ventus Alveria, the Stalwart Wolf was the title of another Keyblade Master, then there was King Mickey, and Master Yen Sid. Ventus is sleeping still, the Traitorous Hero is dead, the Hidden Master is still missing, and then there's the Stalwart Wolf...I don't know who that could be..."
"So, the Hidden Master, The Traitorous Hero, The Master of Winds, the Stalwart Wolf, King Mickey, and Master Yen Sid? That's only six...so that means the seventh..." Sora nodded.
"Master Xehanort Erebus," he said calmly.
"How many of those Masters are still living?" Sora huffed, feeling a faint twinge in his chest that caused him to clutch the front of his shirt as a pained hiss left him.
"Sora?" asked Kairi.
"I'm fine...it's Ventus again...he's probably thinking about the past..." Roxas looked him over.
"Ventus? Who's..." Riku looked to Roxas.
"Right now isn't the right time to ask about that," he said as Sora hissed again before shaking his head.
"No, don't worry. I'm okay, promise...anyways, the only thing I know about them is that there are literally only about eight of us in existence right now, that we know of..." Riku sighed.
"So our numbers used to be in an amount for an army, and now we're just about extinct...dammit...how...what are we going to do?" he asked. Sora looked to the others.
"We'll train harder and form alliances, we'll become stronger, and when the time comes for Xehanort to make his final move, we'll be there, ready and waiting...we won't let the changing of hands for us be undeserved...we'll prove these worlds wrong, and we'll stand against all the odds in our ways..." Roxas smiled.
"That means we'll be blistered and barely capable of coherent conversation," he said as he stretched, but all Sora did was smirk just a bit.
"That's what they did even if they were drawing their final breaths...we owe the Keyblade Bearers of the past that much."
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's get to work!" Sora stood and summoned Oathkeeper to his other hand before smiling as Way to the Dawn came to Riku, the White Kingdom Key appeared in the grasp of Namine, Destiny's Embrace formed to Kairi's hand, and Two Across settled into Roxas's.
"Let's begin..."
{…...}
I'll be right here.
{…...}
Song Used: Right Here by Ashes Remain
Author's Note: This is the end of Kingdom Hearts: Revive. Thank you for reading this installment of The World Tree Series. Now, pay close attention, this is the set-up for the updates and when new stories will be coming out, due to me and my beta-reader's work schedules because the busking (street performing) season is starting.
Kingdom Hearts: Genesis, will have Arc Updates. This will mean that the updates will not be as frequent; however, you will be getting between 5–9 chapters each time, so I hope that will make up for it.
Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Dreams – Final Mix will be completed; however, it will be the last story to receive a Final Mix until the following stories are up and completed:
Kingdom Hearts: Genesis - #1 in Series
Kingdom Hearts: Re-Verse - #2 in Series
Kingdom Hearts: Fragments - #3 in Series
Kingdom Hearts: Trance Step - #9 in Series
Kingdom Hearts: Off The Grid - #10 in Series
Kingdom Hearts: Yule - # 11 in Series
Once these stories are up and completed, we will begin on the 12th installment of the series: Kingdom Hearts: The Lost Two – Part 1. In addition, there will be randomized posts of one-shots pertaining to the series, and full-length stories. More information will be disclosed on 12/21/2016; but know that if you get a release date for a full-length story, then that means the story is completed and we are just polishing it up.
Thank you for reading, and we look forward to reading your thoughts on Kingdom Hearts: Genesis and Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Dreams – Final Mix.
Sincerely,
ShadowDragon94.