I don't own anything by Square Enix or Disney, but I will be pulling from both for this fanfiction.
XXX
Sora flinched slightly as the birds that swarmed him flew away, leaving him alone on a glass floor of some kind. The glass was mostly green aside from the picture of a beautiful young woman with snow-white skin wearing a dress of yellow, blue, and red. So far this was a very weird dream, but nothing too strange for him to deal with. His movements as he walked across the platform that seemed suspended in the vast darkness were sluggish and slow, almost as if he was still learning to walk. Though this allowed him to see more of the pictures, mainly of bearded men and animals, that surrounded the young woman.
The power sleeps within you…
Sora jumped back at the voice as he looked around, only to notice as stones with intricate designs on them face him.
If you give it form…
Suddenly each of the three stones lights up with an item floating above them, and he's confused by the sight of a wand, a sword, and a shield.
It will give you strength.
Choose well.
With the voice done, Sora approached each of the items, looking them over as he tried to figure out what his dream meant. Thinking it over, he jumped on the pedestal holding the shield.
The power of the guardian.
Kindness to aid friends.
A shield to repel all.
Is this the power you seek?
"Yes," Sora spoke aloud as he strapped the shield to his arm. It felt comfortable, despite being unfamiliar.
Now, what will you-
The voice vanished as the ground begins to shake, cracks appearing across the floor as Sora hopped off the pedestal. Only for a gauntletted fist to grab on the edge and jump into the air. A heavily armored figure slammed onto the pedestal holding the wand, smashing both the stone and magical focus, and causing the sword to fall to the floor. Dark, red eyes stare into Sora's body as the warrior placed his massive mace onto his shoulder.
"I have found you!" the warrior said in a booming voice, though one of seeming familiarity. The monster took one step towards Sora, causing the ground to fracture even more.
Thinking quickly, Sora jumped for the sword, his hand wrapping around the hilt with a sense of familiarity. He spun to face the mysterious man, only for a fist to fly forward, wrapping around his throat and lifting him into the air. The red eyes flashed once more as the ground finally gave way, the warrior dropped him and both fell into the darkness.
Sora then shot up in a cold sweat.
The morning light was peaking through his open window as he groaned, wondering how late he had slept in when he heard a knock at his door. "Sora, honey, are you okay?"
"Yeah, sorry Mom, I just had a nightmare," Sora answered his mother as he got out of bed and got changed, slipping on his necklace after throwing on his jacket. He ran downstairs and made a beeline for the door, only for a hand to suddenly grab his ear. He groaned slightly as he was dragged into the kitchen and sat at the table. "Mom, I'm not hungry, and I have plans today. Me, Kairi, and Riku are going to finally finish the raft!"
"Right, your plan to leave the islands and "broaden your horizons," as you three put it. I'm glad you have such a strong friendship with them, but that is a very dangerous idea. You have no way of knowing where you'll end up." His mother said with a sigh, though she knew she couldn't stop him. "If you're really planning on shipping out, you'll need this."
Sora was surprised as she dropped a large bag of food on the table beside a plate of breakfast. The teenager dug in happily as his mother walked by, tussling his hair along the way. Sora finished off the plate quickly, letting out a happy sigh. He looked over at his mother as she hummed, but he could see the slight sag in her shoulders as she walked past, and he knew why.
"I know you're worried, mom, but I need to do this," Sora said as he walked over and pulled her into a hug. "I need to know where I came from, and this is the best way to do that."
"I knew this would happen after I told you how I found you, but that doesn't make it easier," Ayumi said as she ruffled her son's hair once again. Ever since she found the basket holding her little boy floating in the waves of the Destiny Islands, she worried about the day that he would inevitably leave. He was too curious for his good, and the islands were too small to keep him occupied for long. Luckily he had Kairi and Riku by his side to keep him safe, even if they were just as adventurous as he was. "Promise me that no matter what happens or what you learn, you'll come back to me, okay?"
Sora grinned as he hugged his mother, pulling her into another hug. "Of course, this is my home. I'll always come back, no matter what happens. I promise."
The teenage boy fought back his tears as his mother cried into his shoulder. "Hey, I'm not going to leave yet, we're just finishing the boat today. I'll get you before I leave so you can see me off, okay?"
"You better, little one," Ayumi said as she regained her composure. "Now get out of here, it sounds like you've got a long day ahead of you."
"Sure thing, mom!" Sora said with glee as he broke the hug, grabbing the bag of food and running for the door. "Love you!"
"Love you too, little one," Ayumi called back as she cleaned up everything. Her heart was heavy, but she steeled her resolve to know that there wasn't anything that could stand in Sora's way with his friends by his side.
Sora grabbed his wooden sword on his way out the door with a wide grin on his face, ready to seize the day. He ran down the beach, waving at a few of his other friends while doing so, before seeing a familiar head of darker hair. "Kairi, glad to see you're already here!"
"Well, of course, Sora," Kairi said as she pulled him into a tight hug. "Not all of us sleep all day."
"Heh, sorry about that," Sora scratched at the back of his head. "I had a pretty intense dream last night."
"Really? What was it-" Kairi began, only for the third member of their trio to make himself known.
"Hey, aren't you guys forgetting about me?" Riku yelled to his friends from the mostly finished raft. He held a log under an arm as he rolled his eyes. "I guess I'm the only one working on the raft today."
Sora let out a cry as the log was thrown to him, catching it, but falling to the ground with a yelp in the process. Kairi couldn't help but giggle at the sight as she helped her boyfriend up, drawing Riku's attention. "Don't laugh, you're just as lazy as he is."
Kairi couldn't hide her cheeky grin as she scratched the back of her head. "So you noticed."
Riku shot her another look, but Kairi's bright grin never faded. "Okay, then we'll finish it together! We'll race to see who can get what we need first!"
"Well, what else do we need?" Sora asked as he picked up the sack he had brought with him. "My mom packed us a lot of food, so we should be good on that front."
"Then all we'll need is the rest of the building supplies for the raft," Riku said as rubbed his chin in contemplation. "We'll need two logs to finish the main part, a cloth for our sail, and another rope to hold it all together."
"You know, Selphie mentioned that Tidus had been gathering a bunch of materials to build his fort," Kairi added. "Maybe we could ask him to help us out."
"It's Tidus, so he's probably not going to just hand it over if we ask nicely," Riku muttered as he thought over what they should do.
"We could always just fight him for it," Sora offered as his friends looked at him in surprise. "We haven't dueled him in a while, and we'll be gone for a while. So, why not have one last epic duel with him and the others?"
"That's… a really good point," Riku agreed, but he still kept looking at Sora in disbelief. "When did you start making ideas?"
"I had to do something while I was being lazy," Sora stated with a carefree smirk as he placed the bag of food on the raft and grabbed his practice sword. "Are you guys ready?"
Both of his friends give him a thumbs up as they grab their weapons before the Destiny Island Trio rushed off to meet with Tidus. The sandy blond teen had his stick at his side as he stared down at the Trio. Wakka and Selphie were by his side with their training weapons, though only Tidus said anything. "I see you've finally arrived for our final battle, Sora! The final test to see who is the strongest fighter on the Destiny Islands!"
"I'm glad you're already praising me, Tidy," Riku shouted with a grin as he drew his blade alongside Sora and Kairi. Tidus grinned alongside Wakka and Selphie as all three jumped down to begin their epic clash. A minute later, the defeated kids let out a groan as they lay in the sand, while the Destiny Island Trio gathered up the needed supply.
"Good fight, guys," Sora said as he waved goodbye. "We'll be sure to get you some souvenirs when we get back, and we'll have a rematch!"
"Why do you humor them like they have a chance?" Riku asked, only for Kairi to smack him on the arm.
"They're our friends, Riku," She scolded. "Besides, it's not their fault we work so well together. Heck, I'm pretty sure the three of us could take on anything together!"
Eventually, the trio returned to the raft and got to work, focusing all their energy on getting as much of it done as possible. It was almost the end of the day by the time they finished, but the trio was more than happy with the result.
Right as the sky began to darken, the teenagers climbed into a nearby tree to watch the sunset.
"So, Kairi's home is out there somewhere, right?" Sora asked as he watched the setting sun.
"Could be," Riku said from where he was slumped against the trunk. "We'll never know by staying here."
"But how far could the raft take us?" Sora asked as he leaned forward, trying to see his friend's face.
"Who knows," Riku stated with a shrug. "If we have to, we'll think of something else."
"So, suppose you get to another world," Kairi chimed in, turning to Riku as well. "What would you do there?"
"I…I've never really thought about it," Riku said as he looked up. "I've just lived on this island for so long, that I've always wondered why we're here. What other worlds could be out there? What are they like? We know there are a few since you both aren't from here, but why did we all end up here?"
"I guess that's just one of the mysteries we're going to need to solve," Sora answered as he leaned back.
"And we'll be heading out there to find out tomorrow," Kairi said as she threw her fist into the air. Both Sora and Riku smiled in her direction before they continued talking, happily enjoying their last night on the Destiny Islands before they head out tomorrow.
Unbeknownst to them, they were being watched from the nearby forest.
After walking Kairi back to her house and saying goodbye to Riku, Sora strolled along the beach heading to his house. He couldn't help but smile as he imagined what adventures the three would go on tomorrow, though he faltered as he passed a familiar area. Along the cliff face, hidden by some vines, was the cave he and Kairi used to play in. Memories of all their time drawing together, her drawings being much better, and sharing stories they had told one another caused him to enter the cave. Sora found the portraits they drew of each other and smiled as he drew a paopu fruit between the two, only to freeze as he heard a small movement behind him.
"W-who's there?" Sora shouted into the dark as a cloaked figure approached him.
"I've come to see the door to this world," the figure said, his brown hood gesturing to the sealed door in the wall, which Sora had never really registered was there before, for some reason. His confusion was quite evident to the mysterious figure. "This World has been connected. Tied to the Darkness, and soon they will be here to completely eclipse it. Unless they've already arrived…"
"W-what are you talking about? Where did you come from?" Sora asked as he slowly drew his wooden sword. "Stop freaking me out like this, whoever you are!"
"You do not yet know what lies beyond this door, but there is so very much to learn," the figure said, his tone unchanging. "You understand so little. One who knows nothing can understand nothing, even if you were to leave this world, young Sora."
"Oh, just wait and see!" Sora shouted, his eyes briefly shooting to the door as he could have sworn he heard it creak, only for a thought to occur. "W-wait, how do you know my name?"
The figure was already gone, however, leaving Sora alone in the dark cave.
XXX
Across the Worlds of the Lanes Between, a massive castle, the home to a great King and his family, lay empty aside from a few wandering brooms. At least, that had been its condition until today, as a small group of college students was scouting out the area, trying to find someone, anyone that could help. Eventually, they met back up in the courtyard, dishearted by their lack of success in finding help after their World was swallowed up by the Heartless.
"Guys, we can't give up!" Their leader, Max Goof, said with firm resolve. His father's old shield was hanging from his back, it was heavier than the young Goof expected.
"Look, Max, I know you were hoping that your dad would be here, but he isn't," PJ, Peter Pete Junior, said as he placed a hand on his best friend's shoulder. "It's only us and a few others who jumped through the portal when the Heartless attacked. Our families may show up later but until then…"
"Hey, we can't give up, dudes," Bobby Zimmeruski said as he slapped both of his friends on the back, having been drawn away from the book he had picked up and tossed through a hole in the floor. Why would a book on animating brooms be useful? "After everything we've been through, from crazy, cross country adventures, to winning the college X-Games, there's nothing we can't do. Plus, Papa Goof is one of the toughest guys I know, if anyone could survive the Heartless, it would be him! Plus, Pete Senior seems like he'd be too angry to die to those things."
"Thanks, Bobby, I needed that," Max said as he pulled both of his friends into a hug. "Let's-"
Before Max could continue, he heard the crackle of his radio and the familiar voice of a Gamma.
"Hey guys, Tank here," the new leader of the Gamma Fraternity said from back in Twilight Town. "We've got more people here, but still no Heartless to worry about. Also, those two brothers you brought along fixed the train to the floating tower."
Max sprinted out of the castle with his friends close behind, though Bobby wondered why Disney Castle, despite being abandoned, had such a lush and healthy garden. If he had stayed a bit longer, he might have noticed a bright green sprite giggle as she played through the foliage. Her presence seemingly brought the plants to full health.
The trio of friends ran into town, passing by old, boarded-up buildings that were slowly being reopened by the arriving refugees. They didn't have many tents, so they needed to make room fast. A group of dwarves was setting up a forge and quickly making tools and weapons. Several dogs could be seen playing with the younger children, though a pair of dalmatians looked quite saddened despite this. A teenage girl wearing a weird poncho was jumping from various rooftops, though she looked very lost and out of place.
As they reached the tavern owned by PJ's beret-wearing girlfriend, Mocha Chino, Max felt a familiar presence rush forward and hugged him, catching the young Goof off guard as he wrapped his arms around Roxanne. "Max, I'm so glad you're okay."
Max fought back the tears of relief upon seeing his girlfriend safe and by his side. They had gone to different colleges, but always made time to see each other despite that. She had been at her college when the Heartless attacked, so if she was here…
"I'm glad you're here too, Roxy," Max said into her hair as he continued to hold her close, ignoring the whistles from Tank and his Gammas, since he's heard them before. "We'll talk more later, I promise, but we need to figure things out first. Tank, how's everything-Why do you have a mace?"
"Oh, this?" Tank said as he hefted the mace, though Max noticed the other Gammas also had weapons. "The dwarfs over there gave them to us, said the guards needed weapons to protect everyone. I told them we might need more though…"
The jock trailed off as a hairless dwarf wearing a purple hat and a long, green coat, skipped in front of the three with a large bag. He dropped the bag with a clang and reached in, pulling out a large war hammer, which he handed to PJ. Before the cat could thank him, the dwarf was digging into the bag again and pulled out a pair of short swords, which he handed to Bobby. Once again not waiting for thanks, the dwarf spied Max's shield, his smile growing quite large at the sight as he pulled out a sword, before shoving it into Max's free hand.
"Uh, thanks…" Max began, only for the hairless dwarf to give him a salute before running off to the forge. "Okay, so we've got weapons. Roxanne, did you want one?" After his girlfriend shook her head, he continued. "What's going on with the train?"
"I believe we can answer your question!" A triangular-headed preteen with orange hair said as he entered the cafe with his rectangular-shaped brother wheeling in a whiteboard. Mocha passed them both a glass of milk before she went back to organizing everything. "Ferb and I ended up fixing the train, though the power source was completely drained. We switched it over to a steam engine and added an autoloader for the tracks which should take us right to the floating tower."
"We accomplished something similar with a rollercoaster, this is simpler and slower," Ferb said as he high-fived Phineas.
"Aren't you guys a little young to be fixing magic trains?" PJ asked as Mocha wrapped her arms around him in a hug.
"Yes, yes we are," Phineas said, though he noticed the perplexed looks from the gathered teenagers. "We tend to do a lot of impossible things back home, so we figured it would be good to do something like that here as well. Besides, anything that could help figure out what was destroying Worlds and taking…those we care about."
No one in the room felt comfortable thinking about the Heartless once more and instead started focusing on what they could do to help all the people who were stumbling into Twilight Town. It took a few hours, but Max would eventually board the train and headed to the tower, he needed to talk with Master Yen Sid. If the story his father told were anything to go by, then he was the person they needed right now to lead them with everyone missing. Uncle Mickey, Uncle Donald, and all the others from the old stories were nowhere to be found. When Max entered the tower, he was stunned by the sight of Master Yen Sid, surrounded by a magical shield, with a grievous wound on his side that seemed to ooze purple.
Doing the best the search party could, they carried the wizard back down into Twilight Town, to the newly opened clinic run by Doc the Dwarf.
XXX
Maleficent sat down at the head of a large table, her various allies seated around the table, shadows hiding their features, aside from one. A heavily armored figure with a large mace in his grasp stared at the others with his dark, red eye, unnerving them slightly, until the Dark Sorceress placed a hand against his arm, causing him to lean back.
"Now then," she began, taking in the various forces she had gathered. "Our initial attacks have been somewhat successful, but we cannot take any risks now. We've successfully acquired two of the Princesses of Hearts already, though the Dwarfs seem to have escaped, so they may be an issue later on."
"Oh come on, Maleficent, what are a couple of short stacks going to accomplish besides kicking our shins? Most of the monsters I have back home could devour them and then send their souls straight to me."
"Bah, those miners are nothing to worry about aside from getting gold. I'm more worried about the bilge rat and his runts attacking my crew!"
"Not to mention how we'll deal with the remaining authority figures. That little princess won't be an issue with a few kind words, but her father knows what a threat we'd pose."
"It's the opposite of my World, the Sultan is a fat fool, but his daughter doesn't trust me, and she has her father's ear, for now. Though I believe she'd have her uses once we're done with her."
"Hah, the skeleton is too busy planning for his big party to realize what's going on! He even thinks he can control the Heartless to make things more lively!"
"Enough," the Draconic Sorceress said as the tower began to shake with a deep rumble, echoing from far below. "We all know what needs to be done, so we shall see it through. We're all equals, and that shall not change even after we succeed. Until then, however, we continue our plan. Agreed?"
The members of her council nodded or spoke their agreements before Maleficent sent them away with a wave of her hand and a bout of green flame. The tower shook once more with a rumble that Maleficent ignored as she left the room, her various minions scattering about to perform their various duties. "I know what you wish to say, and you needn't worry about the boy. Mal will succeed in capturing him, we raised her to be the best she could be. Besides, she needs the field experience, even for something as simple as this, if she could ever hope to survive our plans."
The armored figure continued to say nothing as he followed close behind, though his hand clenched audibly. Once they had arrived in the Sorceress' quarters, it unclenched and his deep voice came forth. "My daughter shouldn't be put at risk like this, especially with things becoming more chaotic. She should be training here, with me."
"I understand your fears and I share them. I helped raise her, after all," Maleficent said as she exited onto her balcony. "But that's why I trust her to do her job. She's one of our most gifted magic users, and keeping her locked up would do our cause a disservice. You understand that, yes?"
The armored figure said nothing as she placed her hand against his arm, though the sound of laughter prevented any more discussion. Green energy flared across Maleficent's body as her eyes shot to one of the beams running through her room, noting a familiar being with bright yellow eyes staring down at them both with a massive, creepy grin. He looked like a preteen boy wearing an older style of clothing with a black overcoat as if he were wearing a costume from a badly written play. "Man, I wish I had some popcorn because that was a riot. Seeing the so-called "Mistress of Evil" having to go deep into her cold, black heart to appeal to a father would probably earn a lot of money in theatres-WOAH!"
A burst of green flame shot towards the trickster, who jumped away in time as the wooden beam burst into flames and then crumbled into ash. Maleficent's face remained cold, but the dragon head that appeared over her shoulder growled at the trickster with unbridled fury before dissipating.
"I did not call for you, wretch, so speak quickly of your purpose here. Otherwise, I'll imprison you in the dungeon next to HIS cell," Maleficent sold coldly, though a grin came onto her face as the trickster paled. "And I think I'll tell him as well, so all of those road songs he sings would be right there for you to enjoy. Or perhaps he can go into the marriage jokes-"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, oh Dark One! Please do not put me back with him!" The trickster begged as he dropped to his knees. "I've just gotten those ridiculous, awful jokes out of my head from the last time I was in his, don't subject me to that again!"
"Perhaps, or I may just do so to see you suffer," Maleficent grinned at the terror she instilled in her minion. "Now then, what do you have to report, Bill?"
"The Short Lord proved to be an enemy despite being steeped in Darkness. His hatred of magic is too strong to approach for an alliance," Bill said, his eyes still glued to the floor. "I've also found a powerful wizard from back home and brought him to a world with no magic or defenders to stop the spread of chaos. Plus, I'll probably need his help dealing with Sixer and his family!"
"Keep your grudges contained for now, child," Maleficent smirked at the trickster's frown, even as he continued to do nothing. "As I promised when I brought you back, you'll get your chance at revenge. You just need to be patient. Until then, continue your duties and check in on the other agents. We have slowed down Master Yen Sid, but he'll return, eventually. Which means he'll need to acquire a new champion."
"As you wish, Queen Maleficent," Bill muttered as he opened a portal and jumped through it, leaving the two alone once again.
"Of all our allies, he's the most likely to betray us at the first opportunity," the armored figure said as he crossed his arm, his bright blue skin appearing through some openings in his armor.
"Quite right, hence why I gave him the weak body of a child over a teen. The fool said he wanted to wear a familiar face while he reaped his vengeance, but he should have realized how much it limited his potential," Maleficent stated as she strolled completely onto the balcony. The vast darkness of her realm stared back at her as the very ground seemed to shake once again. She glanced at the chains attached to her tower that lead into the pure darkness below, keeping something very powerful locked away. "Soon we will be able to complete our plan, especially with our newest ally."
"How much use do you expect him to be?"
"Given his strong tie to the Darkness and his ability to travel worlds to spread fear? I suspect our Council will grow quite large soon enough."
The armored figure said nothing as he joined her, his eyes drifting into the darkness as well, though he could vaguely make out a massive hand grabbing at the chains.
XXX
Sora opened his eyes with a yawn as thunder cracked nearby, stirring him from his restful sleep. He didn't have that freaky dream again, thankfully, but his eyes drifted to the model ship that he set up, thinking back to his promise with Kairi and Riku. Helping Kairi find her home and all the adventures the three of them would go on were all he could think about. Then he shot up as a crack of thunder further down the beach shook him to his core. He rubbed the spots from his eyes and saw the heavy rain that was coming down.
"The raft!" Sora yelled as he threw on some clothes and bolted from the house, passing his startled mother who was locking down everything as the winds picked up.
"Sora, it isn't safe!" Ayumi shouted, but her son was already gone, the front door slammed shut by the wind.
Sora sprinted down the beach, ignoring the wind and rain clouding his vision as he tried to get to the raft. He wasn't far off by the time the rain seemed to lessen, and then Sora noticed a dark ball of energy hanging from the sky.
"What is that?" Sora muttered to himself as he stopped in his tracks. He then heard the sound of something rushing him from behind. Acting quickly, he rolled forward as something slammed into the dirt and squealed, seemingly in anger. Sora pulled out his wooden sword as he spun around, only to be stumped by the sight of some kind of man-boar. It wore basic armor, but the purple-black body that seemed to have cracks all across it stunned him more. What was this thing?
That thing roared in Sora's face as it pulled out a thick, curved blade and rushed him, forcing Sora to block the incoming attacks. These weren't the practice fights between him and Riku which could see him getting a splinter with a hit on the head, this thing was trying to kill him. He had to block a few more strikes as the creature forced him back, only for it to swing its fist into the side of Sora's face as it swung its blade once again.
"AHH!" Sora fell back as he cried out in pain, his hand reaching up to his face to cover the wound. It felt like it burned, but was quite cold, even as a warm liquid began to pool in his hand. When Sora pulled his hand back, he saw it was bloody, his blood, and the man-boar just laughed as it dropped its sword and grabbed both of Sora's legs to begin dragging him off. The wounded teen let out a groan as he grabbed at the sand, trying to stop this monster from taking him away.
While he flailed about trying to find purchase, he let out another hiss in pain as his hand hit the discarded sword. It bit into his flesh as he pulled it close to him and grabbed the hilt before staring at the back of the monster that attacked him. Then, after taking a breath to help ignore the pain, he swung at one of the arms holding his leg. He struck true, slicing off the hand at the wrist and causing it to scream in pain as it dropped him and grabbed at the stump. No blood came forth aside from odd wisps of dark energy which Sora just noticed were coming from the creature, but he didn't care about that. He sprung to his feet, held the blade in both hands, and began to hack away at the creature, not pausing as it was forced back into the surf before he finally finished it by driving his borrowed blade into the thing's chest.
The creature stumbled back in shock, but it never stopped looking at Sora. It was then that a cracking sound could be heard, and the monster pulsed, bits of its body falling away before it finally exploded. Sora threw his arms in front of his face as he was peppered with the shards, though they only stung as his enemy was finally gone. He took a few steps, feeling quite nauseous as the realization came that he had just killed something, even if it tried to kill him, but he forced it down once he saw a familiar face standing by some trees, looking at the sky. Still bleeding from his hand and the side of his face, he stumbled over to Riku, though he forced himself to run as small, dark creatures with yellow eyes began to come out of the ground and chased him.
"Riku, what are you doing out here?" He stopped at the edge of the dock, batting away at a monster with his wooden sword, but it passed through with no effect. "We need to find Kairi and get somewhere safe, there are monsters all over the place!"
Riku didn't turn around as he continued to stare out at the darkened ocean, though his voice sounded off as he spoke. "The door has opened, Sora. Now we can go to the outside world!"
"What are you talking about, Riku?" Sora shouted as he looked back at the small, black monsters, but they were keeping their distance. "We need to find Kairi and get somewhere safe!"
"Kairi's coming with us!" Riku shouted as he turned to face Sora. "When we step through the door, we might not be able to come back. We may never see our parents again, but there's no turning back. I'm not afraid of the darkness!"
"Riku…" Sora began to say as his friend outstretched his hand, only to then see the mass of shadow pooling around the silver-haired teen. Then it burst, a wave of darkness springing from the ground and swallowing up Riku. Sora rushed forward to save his friend, only for dark tentacles to start wrapping around him as well. He froze at the cold emptiness that went through his body as the shadows began to cover him as well.
Then he was hit with a bright light that shot through him, driving back the darkness and freeing him. When Sora opened his eyes, Riku and the shadow tentacles were gone, and there was a…Keyblade in his hand.
How did he know that word?
He wasn't given the chance to think about this as more of those monsters from earlier came clawing out of the ground. Their bright, yellow eyes fell on his weapon before they jumped at him, their claws ready to tear him apart. On pure instinct honed from years of getting his butt kicked by Riku, Sora swung the Keyblade into the nearest monster, slicing it in half. The rest jumped back as the bisected one dissipated into green orbs, which were promptly absorbed into Sora's Keyblade, and a rush of energy filled his body as his pain seemed to fade.
"Okay, who's next?" Sora asked the monsters that circled him. He seemed to be at almost a hundred percent, aside from some damage to his clothes, and he wasn't going to let these things hurt him. He needed to find Kairi, and save Riku from whatever had taken him. Then a wall of green flame slammed into the sand around him, annihilating the monsters and buffering Sora on all sides with their blistering heat.
"I don't know why these things showed up now but it doesn't matter," a woman's voice said as the flames parted, allowing her to step forward. Her outfit was dark purple, which contrasted with her bright blue hair. "Sora of the Destiny Islands, you will be coming with-"
"Mal, why the heck does he have a Keyblade!?" A pale boy wearing an aviator jacket who was around Sora's age asked in surprise as he landed next to Mal.
"Shit!" Mal muttered under her breath as she opened her spell book. "Nico, get ready, he's not going to come quietly. Fractured, with me!"
A dark pulse of energy emanate from her as more of those boar men appeared behind her with weapons raised. Sora felt his heart quicken as he gripped his new weapon.
He's not going down without a fight.
XXX
And the prologue is done, thanks to my co-writer Damian for giving it a read-through, as always.
Please share your thoughts, because I'd love to hear them.