Re: Inverted Sky - Kingdom Hearts I

Chapter 3: Ocean Journey

Arriving on the island the next day, Sora, Riku, and Kairi all headed toward the raft. While it was early morning, the sky was still a little dark from the growing cloud cover. Thankfully, the lack of heavy moister in the air spoke of there being no rain approaching. Each of the three were carrying bags of food and other supplies, ready to head out immediately. While they had not informed their parents or guardians about their plans, they all felt it would be easier to ask forgiveness, than request permission. At least in this case.

As they approached the raft, the trio took in a few deep breaths, mentally preparing themselves for what was to come. Though, Sora soon looked in her bag to double check its contents, and paused. She rapidly searched around and under the many sandwiches, snacks, and dried foods she packed, only to realize she had forgotten her bottles of water.

"Oops..." she uttered aloud, a faintly sheepish expression forming on her features.

"Let me guess..." Riku began, turning to face his brown-haired friend; "...you forgot something."

It was a statement, not a question. Something that the girl noticed and pouted at, yet she quickly turned to give a pleading gaze to Kairi. Said girl sighed as a result, seeming to have picked up on what Sora was asking for when watching her search through her bag. "Alright, you can have some of my empty bottles. Just know...we won't have as many to use for collecting water from other sources." she answered firmly, holding a finger up to further her point.

Sora nodded quickly and appreciatively, she could always rely on Kairi. Once she was provided three empty bottles, the teen rushed off to the spring of fresh water on the island. It came up through an underground lake beneath the mountain at the island's center. Or at least, that's what many of them believed. It was hard to say what the truth was, despite having played here almost her whole life. But as Sora filled up each bottle, she took a moment to look around and take in her surroundings.

They all agreed that they would come back to visit every so often, but could they? It was a question the girl often pushed out of her mind, as the thrill and drive to leave was too strong for them. Yet as her gaze shifted to an opening within the side of the mountain, this desire briefly faltered. Sora stood to her feet, glanced to make sure her friends weren't coming to hurry her along, before heading into this cavern.

Though the tunnel of dark stone was rather compact, each of her steps still created a soft echo. The path gradually opened up into a room-sized cavern, not large, but not small either. Along the walls, drawings were carved or traced into the rocks' surfaces. Some were her own, others were not, but they were all very familiar. However, the most familiar part was at the far end of this cave. A large wooden door with no knob, but had glowing lines around the edges. It was so out of place here that it had been the reason for her and Riku's theories of there being other worlds.

Sora's attention had been elsewhere though, focusing entirely on a particular pair of drawings on the wall beside the door. These illustrations were ones that she and Kairi had made eight years ago, not long after they first met. They made a rough estimate of one another, or at least a side profile of their heads. It was simple, but the memory of this event still made her smile. 'I wonder if I'll be able to see this again.' she mused silently with a thoughtful gaze.

She briefly looked over her shoulder toward the cave entrance, once again, checking for any signs of her friends following after her. Satisfied that they hadn't yet, Sora knelt down with a stone in hand, and began drawing a new shape between the two images.

'Well, if we do come back...maybe I can finally ask.' the girl thought as a small smile curled her lips.

It took less than a minute to finish her work, creating the appearance of a hand reaching out from Sora toward Kairi. Within the hand however, looked to be a star of some sort.

Paopu Fruit: a star-shaped fruit native to Destiny Islands and, according to legend; if two people share one, their destinies become intertwined, and remain a part of each other's lives no matter what.

"I wonder if it's actually true." she whispered silently, an almost sheepish expression on her features.

But as Sora nodded in satisfaction to her drawing, she turned toward the exit, only to see a hooded figure in a brown cloak standing in the way. They stood several steps away, but they were completely blocking the girl from getting out. This put her on the defensive as she held the rock in her hand tightly, ready to throw it in case this person was looking for a fight.

"Who are you?!" she demanded quickly, narrowing both eyes.

Despite her firm stance, there was something about this individual that immediately began to unnerve her. Their face might have been shrouded and non-visible, but it barely even mattered of whom they were. There was a sense of dread and ominousness that flowed from their mere presence. It made her feel the same as what she experienced in her dream yesterday, the terror of facing something she couldn't hope to overcome. It was when they spoke however, that Sora felt her muscles unconsciously tightening in fear.

"I've come to see the door to this world." it was a deep and low male voice that didn't echo at all, lending an even more unnatural sense to him.

A few seconds passed before Sora finally managed to speak again; "W-Who are you?" she repeated, her breathing hitching for a moment.

"This world has been connected. Tied to the darkness...soon to be eclipsed." he said as if ignoring the girl entirely.

The cloaked man's eyes weren't visible, but Sora felt them pass over her before they moving on. He wasn't concerned about her in the slightest, he was there for something else entirely. And that something else was revealed as the girl felt his gaze return to her. "You do not yet know, what lies beyond the door."

It was more of a claim, than an inquiry. But more than that, it sounded like a verbal slap to her face. As though the fact that she didn't know, made her not worth speaking to. Realizing this, Sora felt her face flush with annoyance and embarrassment. She always wondered what this door could be, yet had no means of figuring it out on her own. It was aggravating that this man was insulting her for this, especially when it wasn't for a lack of trying.

"I've come up with plenty of theories." she declared, becoming a bit more brave with this flood of emotion.

"My mother always said that a person's heart is like a door...so why would a world be any different?" she stated, placing a free hand over her heart briefly.

It was the cloaked individual's turn to pause for a few seconds, yet his own silence hung over them like a suffocating fog. When he finally did speak his response, there was no shift in his voice. "You understand so little, despite there being so much to learn."

He was disappointed. His pause might have even been an offer for Sora to say something further, but when she didn't, he realized the limit of her knowledge. Recognizing this, the brown-haired girl huffed and even took a brazen step forward. "Oh yeah? Well I'm about to go out there right now, and then I'll learn all there is to know about other worlds." Sora stated with narrowed eyes, sounding as if she were accepting a challenge.

"A meaningless effort." was the figure's immediate retort, turning away from the girl.

"One who knows nothing can understand nothing." he finished in a tone that seemed to indicate he no longer had any interest in speaking to the girl.

"Says you! I'm not going to stop until I've learned all that I can!" Sora declared while briefly glancing toward the door, her almost feeling comfortable seeing the man turn his back to her.

Upon looking back toward the man, he was simply gone. Even any foot prints in the damp ground weren't visible, as though the cloaked figure was never actually there to begin with. This lead for the teen to look at the door once more, her expression hardened.

'I was caught up in the moment, but that guy...he is definitely from another world. I wonder how he got here...where he came from...what he was doing here...and what he was talking about.' she contemplated, lifting a hand out to the door's surface.

It was something she had done many times in the past. Whether she was trying to push it open or to find a crease to pull on, nothing ever worked. This time however, there was a sense of being drawn to the door. It was as though she was falling forward, but without actually moving as her vision tunneled. In the midst of this hyper focusing, a faint noise echoed out. It sounded like something unlocking, but it was quickly followed by a voice in her periphery. It was distant, but it sounded as though it was calling her name.

"Sora..."

"Sora.."

"Sora!"

This last one snapped the girl free of her trance as this time, it was far closer. Turing around quickly, the brown-haired girl could hear Kairi calling for her from outside of the cave. Sora shook her head of all previous thoughts on what just happened, and rushed outside. Never seeing the door crack open ever so slightly.

Rejoining with her friends, the girl offered a quick excuse that she was simply taking one last look around. A sentiment that Kairi had agreed with as they both convinced Riku to join them in doing so. By the end of the hour though, the trio were on the ocean. Their raft making its way roughly across the water as they rowed to escape the tide. When they finally did, the three heard a series of calls from the island. Turning to see their six other friends waving to them on the beach, Sora, Riku, and Kairi felt a surge of triumph as they waved back, hoping they would be seeing all of them again soon.

They were finally doing it. They were finally going to make their way to another world.

Or at least, that was the hope.

After an hour of sailing, the island was far behind them, becoming a small speck on the horizon. The three however, were already quite exhausted from all the rowing. Despite there being no rain, the ocean seemed to behave as though there was. The water had continued to push against them with choppy waves, making any and all progression difficult. But the teens were determined, and thankfully had a sail in which they could use. The winds weren't strong, but they were powerful enough to keep them moving forward.

After a few more minutes of fighting through these waters, they seemed to calm suddenly. It was like passed through an invisible wall, with only one side of the ocean trying to keep them away. From that point forward however, it was smooth sailing. Calm, gentle, and even serine.

During this moment of stillness, Riku took in and let out a silent breath. "Looks like we made it though the worst of it." he stated confidently, laying on his side to allow his arms some rest.

"I really wish you wouldn't say that." Sora groaned out, shaking her head.

"Now everything is gonna go wrong." she continued, only half joking.

"Oh come on...don't worry so much." Riku dismissed with a wave of his hand.

Kairi let out a sigh while scooting a little closer to Sora, whispering to her. "Pride cometh before the fall."

Both girls giggled to one another, smiling in their amusement as Riku gave a suspicious gaze. "You know I can hear you right? This isn't a very big raft." he claimed in a huff.

The pair simply laughed openly, yet shrugged and offered expressions of innocence. "What ever do you mean~?" Sora hummed in a sing-song manner, playfully taunting the boy.

Whom rolled his eyes and turned away as he gazed out toward the still grey sky. Though the ocean was calm, the sky showed no signs of clearing. A strange weather phenomenon, as there should have been rain by now if there was going to be any. This fact made the silver-haired teen mildly uneasy, but he was still confident that they would come across land long before something happened.

At the same time, Kairi and Sora continued to whisper to one another. Seemingly oblivious to their friend's worries and musings, as they seemed content with whatever came their way. During their laughter, the former appeared to be staring at the other girl. A soft smile curled her lips as a deep thought came to mind; "Hey Sora..."

"...don't ever change." she spoke, a strangeness in her tone.

It was still filled with the humor and enjoyment from their previous joking words, yet there was a layer of seriousness in it as well. She wasn't simply talking about the girl's sense of fun, it seemed more as though she was referring to everything about Sora herself. This surprised said teen for a few moments before a warm smile formed on her features. "Of course." she answered with a nod.

"Promise?"

"I promise."

Hearing this exchange was nothing new to Riku, but he still just rolled his eyes. They were always like this, though they were usually a little more secretive about it. Or at least, they tried to be. There wasn't a single person on the island who didn't know about their talks.

"Hmm?" the silver-haired boy hummed, his eyes narrowing slightly while gazing ahead.

"What's that?" he questioned, now pointing forward and to what looked to be a dark spot in the clouds.

As the raft continued to push forward, the three teens gazed closely at this area. But the longer they stared, the larger the darkness started to grow. Each of them appeared content believing it had something to do with the weather, until it rapidly consumed the entire sky. Their eyes widened in shock as they watched the clouds simply vanish in front of them.

Without warning, a sudden blast of water burst up from below their raft like a giant geyser. A gasp barely managing to escape the teens' lips as they were thrown violently into the air. The raft and everything on it shattered and scattered in every direction around the three. Each of whom were rapidly getting further away from one another, as well as from the point of impact.

Falling toward the ocean below, Sora finally let out a scream of terror, confusion, and worry. Yet it had instantly been silenced, as a horrifyingly familiar massive form with glowing yellow eyes, rose up from the depths.

'This world had been connected...' the hooded man's words echoed in Sora's mind as she plunged into the cold ocean water.

I hope all of you enjoyed this new take on the scenes. I'm trying to stay true to the original, while still making my own twist on things. Let me know your thoughts, and I'll see you in the next one.