The ship sailed through the ocean, parting waves in its wake as it did so.

In the cabins below deck, Aris and some friends were conversing with the people he'd seen at the village yesterday.

"Name's L'Arc Berg Sickle," said the muscular redhead.

"My name is Therese Alexandrite," added the woman with the blue hair.

"And I am Glass," finished the woman with black hair.

"Name's Sora!" added the Keyblade Wielder.

"And I'm Aris," finished the Swordsman Shield Hero. "Aris Atreides."

"Aris, huh?" L'Arc exchanged a look with Therese and Glass.

Then they all started laughing.

"Hey, what's funny?"

"Kid, if you're gonna use an alias," L'Arc chuckled, "I really wouldn't recommend the Swordsman Shield Hero's name."

"It's not an alias," said Aris. "I'm him."

L'Arc laughed even harder. "You!? You're the guy!?"

Glass sighed. "You know, it's really not that funny, L'Arc."

"He does have a point," Therese mentioned. "Aris, your alias is a little too...conspicuous."

L'Arc's laughter suddenly turned to seriousness. "The Swordsman Shield Hero has...a reputation. And not a good one. Scamming...blackmail...kidnapping...he and his powerful friends will execute anyone he doesn't like. At least, that's what I've heard."

"Well, if you were to ask...certain people..." Aris's mind turned to Bitch, "that isn't entirely inaccurate. But I'm not actually like that. Those are just rumors."

"I mean, I definitely don't know ya all that well," said L'Arc, "but I can still tell you're nothing like those people say you are, kiddo."

"Anyway," said Therese, "you're all going to Cal Mira?"

Sora nodded. "It just activated, and we all just got Class Upgrades, so we're going there to level up."

"Hey, now that I think about it," Raphtalia whispered to Aris, "did Joker, Violet, and Morgana get upgrades?"

"I checked their levels, and they did," Aris whispered back.

"We're going to Cal Mira, too," said Glass.

"And since we've both got the same goal in mind," L'Arc added, "why don't we team up while we're there? Even if it's just temporary."

"I'll consider it," said Aris. "You all seem like strong individuals. But, for now, I'm going to head up on deck to visit the others."

He left the cabins and went up on the deck.

Morgana was leaning against a railing near the middle of the ship. Joker and Violet were at the bow. Violet was standing on a crate with her arms spread out at her sides, with Joker holding her waist.

Aris cleared his throat. "What are you two doing?"

"We saw this in a movie!" Violet said, raising her voice over the sound of the waves.

"A...movie?"

Aris knew what movies were. He had been to several technologically advanced worlds. Movies were like moving pictures, ways to portray a story or something of the sort. Like books one could watch instead of read.

Whatever 'movie' that had inspired Joker and Violet to pose like this, however, was beyond his memory. He decided to leave them to their business.

He noticed Motoyasu, Ren, and Itsuki all sitting near the edge of the ship, groaning. Ren held his stomach. Motoyasu leaned over the edge and retched, depositing his half-digested lunch into the seawater below.

Itsuki looked at Aris. "How come you're not seasick?"

"I'm just not," said Aris. "I guess you three aren't as lucky."

"Please, respectfully go away..." Motoyasu strained. "I can barely think straight right now..."

"Very well." Aris left the three Heroes to their seasickness.

Suddenly, a shadow loomed over him. He quickly jumped out of the way.

A large, silver-ish shark-like monster landed on the deck, almost crushing him flat.

He rushed to the edge of the boat to find Filo in her Filolial form, swimming in the water. "Hiya, Papa!" she waved with her wing. "I'm hunting dinner!"

She can swim? Aris thought. That's...unexpected.

He stepped closer to the dead shark monster.

NEW CREATURE DISCOVERED (HOSTILE)

Silverscale Shark

Species: Aquatic Monster

Habitat: Warm oceans, coral reefs

DESC: The Silverscale Shark is a common, yet surprisingly powerful species of marine monster. They are not as hostile as most monsters, however, and rarely attack people, preferring to hunt their usual prey of fish and sea turtles. In some cultures and in most seaside towns, they are considered a delicacy and are known to be very delicious. This deceased specimen was hunted by a member of your party.

Aris plucked a few scales from the monster's body, feeding them to his right arm. His display notified him that a new shield had been unlocked.

Silverscale Shield? he thought. He read its description and equip bonus. Allows wielder and all registered party members to transform into merfolk underwater!?

Some sailors came by and took away the body of the shark.

"Hey, kiddo!" L'Arc and Therese arrived on deck. The former glanced at the other three Cardinal Heroes. "They alright?"

"They're just seasick," said Aris. "Did you need something?"

Therese stepped forward. "Raphtalia was telling me how skilled you are at crafting jewelry," she said. "If it's not too much trouble, would you be willing to craft an accessory for me?"

"A little...random, but I can do that," said Aris. "I'm afraid I don't have many materials on hand, though."

"Oh, I have something here." Therese handed him a leather bag. "You can help yourself to anything in here that you need. And, of course, I'll be sure to pay you for your work."

Aris opened the bag and examined the materials inside. He noticed a particularly beautiful red gemstone.

"Well, it may take some time, since I can't work on the accessory while I'm leveling up," he said. "But I'll have it ready for you as soon as possible."

Beneath his feet, the boat rocked unusually wildly.

L'Arc sighed. "Guess a storm's brewing not far from here."

"Really?" asked Aris.

L'Arc nodded. "Yep. Heard the crew saying we're in for a rough night."

Motoyasu, Ren, and Itsuki all groaned.

After what was definitely a rough night of sailing through a great storm, the ship finally arrived at the central island of Cal Mira.

"This place is beautiful!" Raphtalia gushed.

"And hot," Joker panted. "I'm cooking over here."

"Maybe we shouldn't have worn our Phantom Thief outfits, senpai," Violet chuckled.

Motoyasu was being carried off the boat in a stretcher, moaning about his seasickness.

Loretta chuckled. "He certainly had a rough night."

"Pardon me, everyone."

Everyone turned to see a pale-looking man with black hair and sideburns. He wore a well-cleaned suit and tie. "A pleasure, all of you," he said formally. "I am Count Habenburg, the caretaker of this humble chain of islands. I am here to escort the Heroes to the inn."

"With all due respect, sir," said Sora, "the other three are seasick. It's just Aris and...well, all of us in his party."

"Ah, very well, then," said Count Habenburg. "I suppose the Swordsman Shield Hero alone will do. And his party, of course."

Loretta leaned to Aris and whispered into his ear, "we really need an official group name."

Aris nodded. "I'm considering a few options."

Aris looked through the brochure that he had received from the Count. "We're only allowed to travel from island to island via an established network of transport boats," he said to his party. "And we should try to eliminate as many monsters as possible without interrupting the battles being undergone by other adventurers or stealing their kills."

"Sounds like this sort of thing is standard for whenever the islands activate," Ness remarked.

"Anyway," said Raphtalia, "if what the Count said is true, then this statue here is meant to signify the original inhabitants who developed these islands."

She pointed to a structure resembling a totem pole.

"And according to this brochure," Cloud skimmed one of his own, "there's supposed to be some sort of message left by an ancient Cardinal Hero."

"Could it be this thing?" Morgana pointed to a stone tablet at the base of the statue.

"It looks like it." Aris held out his hand to the tablet's ancient writing. "As source of thy power, I order thee - decipher the meaning of this writing and grant strength unto the target of my choice." He pointed his hand at Filo. "Zweit Aura."

Light engulfed Filo's body for a moment.

"I feel...stronger," she said. "Let me try..."

She bent her legs at the knees and jumped as high as she could, easily reaching higher than the rooftops with ease. "Wahoo!"

Filo landed with a graceful bend of her knees.

"And she sticks the landing!" Morgana cheered.

"Kiddo!" Aris turned to see L'Arc, Glass, and Therese approaching. "Little miss Filo has a serious vertical leap! Led us right to ya!"

Aris chuckled.

"You kinda got off the boat without even sayin' goodbye," L'Arc mused.

"Sorry about that," said Aris. "I didn't know you wanted me to."

"Ha! No worries!" L'Arc clapped him on the shoulder. "But, hey, you never really answered us when we asked if you wanted to team up."

"We've only just arrived," Glass added, "so we still need to get our bearings here. But we could assist each other."

"Well, you all seem strong, so I guess it wouldn't hurt us to team up," said Aris.

"Alright!" L'Arc gave him a firm handshake. "Glad to be workin' with ya!"

"L'Arc," said Therese, "could we go check out that shop now? I need to buy a new swimming suit."

"Alright, alright." L'Arc turned to leave with Therese and Glass. "We'll catch up with ya later!"

The party was fighting through hordes of weak slime monsters and gaining surprising amounts of experience points.

"This is a cakewalk!" Sora blasted a slime with Firaga. "And they just keep coming!"

A large frog monster appeared, only for Filo to nail it with a powerful uppercut.

Joker whipped out a pistol and shot down a slime with a single bullet.

Several approached Violet, who pulled out a double-barreled shotgun and blasted them all to pieces with a resounding bang.

They're using very modern-looking firearms... Aris pondered. They must be from a world with a lot of technological advancements.

"Guys?" Raphtalia said. "My EXP isn't going up."

"Neither is mine," said Cloud.

An arrow suddenly shot through the air, piercing a slime. "Oh, it's you guys."

Everyone looked to see Itsuki's party.

"Where's my EXP?"

Motoyasu arrived on the scene.

"What are you guys doing here?" said Ren as he approached the other three Heroes. "I can't farm monsters like this. You all are stunting my EXP."

Motoyasu, Ren, and Itsuki all started bickering over who had found the spot first.

Aris sighed. "Let's move, everyone."

They took a boat to a different island with stronger monsters.

Several hours later, their levels had gone up by over forty.

Filo kicked a large beast into a tree. "Joker! Violet!"

Both of them reached for their masks as blue flames engulfed them.

"Come, Arsene!"

"Let's dance, Vanadis!"

From Joker's mask, a being in a red suit with black wings came forth. From Violet's, a being in a dancer dress with black hair.

"Eigaon!" Using Arsene, Joker shot out a bolt of cursed black and red energy, severely hurting the monster.

Violet drew a sword. "Vorpal Blade!" Channeling power from Vanadis, she leaved the monster in two.

Their respective aides disappeared, returning their masks.

"What were those?" asked Aris.

"Their Personas," Morgana explained. "Inner manifestations of their rebellious spirit. I have one myself."

"Whatever that means, check out our EXP gains!" Ness exclaimed excitedly.

Everyone had gained quite a lot, despite the fact that the monster they had just killed was fairly weak.

"Aris?" Raphtalia said worriedly, showing him her sword.

Aris winced. "That's quite a bit of damage."

"I think your levels have outgrown your weapons' durability," Aris pointed out. He glanced at Filo's feet. Her Wyvern Talons - the ones Loretta had stolen from the tent of the slave trader from whom Raphtalia had escaped - were very worn down. "We'll have to buy you two some new weapons before the next Wave."

Aris approached the fallen monster, a Karma Dog, and fed its materials to his arm. He noticed something - two perfectly fitting weapons had dropped for Raphtalia and Filo. He equipped them for them. Raphtalia held a new sword, and Filo's gloves were replaced by a set of claws. "Those should work," he said.

"Perfect!" said Raphtalia. "Thank you so much!"

She ran over and hugged Aris, who returned the embrace.

Joker cleared his throat.

Aris glanced over at him. "What? Am I not allowed to embrace a good friend?"

"Something tells me she's a little more than that," the Phantom Thief mused.

"Guess we did get some better drops after nightfall," said Ness, "but the monsters are way stronger. Even for us."

"We're used to fighting in the dark," Morgana remarked. "Me, Joker, and Violet, at least."

Raphtalia looked worriedly at Aris. "You look really tired, and not from lack of sleep," she said. "Is it..."

Aris sighed. "It's that obvious...well, ever since using my final attack during the battle with Jafar...my body still feels the effects. Only a small amount, though."

Raphtalia looked really concerned for him.

The undergrowth suddenly rustled.

Joker whipped out his pistol. "Who's there?"

The blade of a scythe cleaved through the bushes, revealing L'Arc and Therese. "Oh, thank goodness!" said L'Arc. "We were getting worried!"

"Why are you out here so late?" asked Cloud. "And where's Glass?"

"She went to bed early," explained Therese. "But the ferryman was getting worried since all of you have been here for a while."

"So, you came looking for us?" said Morgana.

"I mean, adventurers dying on a quest isn't anything new," Aris pointed out.

"That doesn't mean I'm gonna just ignore you, though!" L'Arc shot back. "Because I'd never be able to live with myself if my colleagues were to turn up missing. Or worse."

"'Colleagues?'"

"I mean, that's what we are, right?" said L'Arc.

Therese spoke before Aris could. "We haven't even been here a full twenty-four hours," she mentioned. "I know you probably want to level up as fast as possible, but maybe you should call it a night."

"Alright," said Aris.

"Nice!" L'Arc put an arm around Aris. "In that case, why not join me and Therese for some drinks? You look like you could loosen up a bit."

"I don't drink," Aris replied. "But...maybe just this once."

"To our safe return and a wonderful day of grinding!" L'Arc announced, raising his mug of ale.

"Here, here." Aris clinked his own mug against L'Arc's before joining him in taking a drink. The ale was rather strong, but Aris found it surprisingly easy to get down.

"Oi, barkeep!" L'Arc called out. "Another, please!"

Aris stood by the bar, perusing some of their lighter products. He decided he might want to bring some back home.

Filo and Sora performed a vocal duet alongside the musicians, who happily accompanied an improvised rhapsody the duo performed.

Aris was reaching for something at the bar when a very much drunken Raphtalia stumbled up to him. "Hey there-hic-sweetheart," she cooed, her voice bearing a drunken slur.

Aris blushed. "U-Um..."

Raphtalia leaned in close, her breath smelling of sweet red wine.

"Are-hic-Are you single?" she said flirtatiously.

"Y-Yes?"

"Awesome!" she said. "You-hic-wanna..."

"Raphtalia...you're drunk."

"I'm not-hic-drunk!"

Violet chuckled back at the table. "Drunken words are sober thoughts, as they say," she quipped. "Something tells me Raphtalia feels more for Aris than she lets on."

"Is it not obvious?" Loretta laughed. "They're both head over heels for each other!"

"Then why are they not together yet?" Cloud sipped a glass of wine, having elected to go for a lighter drink tonight.

"I don't know!" Loretta replied. "That's what I keep telling Aris."

Meanwhile, Aris and L'Arc had a conversation by the bar.

Aris reached into a bowl of small, round, red fruit. "What are these?"

"Cohol fruits," said L'Arc. "They're normally made into wine. And they're so strong, you only have to dilute one of them in a cask of water to get something drinkable."

Aris grabbed one out of the bowl, much to L'Arc's surprise. "Wait!" said L'Arc. "What are you-"

Before he could finish, Aris popped it into his mouth. "Hm..." he said, chewing. "Not bad." He swallowed it.

"How did you-!?"

"I have no idea, but these taste nice." Aris popped another Cohol into his mouth. "I might just have to buy some for myself."

"Ready for another day?" said L'Arc.

Aris nodded. "Is Glass still not with you?"

"She wanted to go off solo today."

"Right," said Aris. He turned to Therese. "I managed to finish the accessory you wanted, by the way."

He reached into his pouch and pulled out a silver bangle. "I'm surprised you managed to get your hands on a Starfire!" he mused. "Those are ridiculously rare!"

Therese excitedly took the bangle from him. "It's...beautiful!" she gushed. "I-I love it!"

Tears flowed down her cheeks. "I...had no idea you were this skilled at crafting," she said.

"But do you really have to cry about it?" said L'Arc. "It's just a piece of jewelry."

"Don't you understand, L'Arc!?" Therese chided. "Just looking at this absolute masterpiece is opening up so many doors for me!"

"Well, I'm glad you like it," said Aris. "Now, I'd hate to bring up money, but..."

Therese shoved a pouch of coins into his hands. Aris looked inside to find it chock-full of gold coins.

"I know it's not nearly enough for something so beautiful, but it's the most I can afford to pay," said Therese

"This...is a lot," he said. "Way more than enough. I can make change, though."

"No!" Therese exclaimed. "If it's more than enough, keep the change! You've earned it!"

"Your party's pretty high-level," L'Arc pointed out.

"We've been spending a lot of time in battle," said Aris. "We didn't get Class Upgrades until recently, though."

"Surprising," Therese remarked. "I'm at level 52, and L'Arc is at 56. Glass recently reached level 60."

So, they have Class Upgrades as well, Aris thought. They certainly are seasoned adventurers, then.

The group arrived on an island filled with dense woodlands.

"So," said Raphtalia, "maybe we should-"

She was cut off by a spawning group of Neoshadows.

L'Arc cut some down with his scythe, sending a blade of energy into the Heartless.

Therese's hair turned deep red as she channeled a spell. "Bejeweled Ruby Blaze!"

A blast of blue fire - ironic, considering the name of the spell - shot forth from her hands, incinerating the remaining Neoshadows.

"The EXP curve slowed down a lot when we hit level 70," Aris pointed out to the others.

"Then let's try our hand at the bigger ones," said L'Arc, pointing ahead at a horde of Neoshadows led by a massive quadrupedal Heartless known as a Dark Hide.

Morgana reached for his headband. "Zorro, show your might!"

A large, armored warrior appeared in a burst of blue flames behind him, wielding a sword.

"Magarudyne!" With a command from Morgana, Zorro summoned a massive green tornado.

Sora pointed his Keyblade. "Triple Firaga!"

Therese's hair turned red. "Bejeweled Ruby Blaze!"

Fire imbued Magarudyne, incinerating the Neoshadows.

"All that's left is the big one!" said L'Arc.

Everyone rushed into battle against the Dark Hide.

"Man, what a day!" L'Arc mused. "Those Heartless things really are strange."

"With your help, we gained quite a lot of levels," said Raphtalia.

"And we had a blast!" Ness cheered.

Therese smiled. "I couldn't agree more."

"A shame Glass wasn't here," Aris remarked. "She would've had fun too, I imagine."

"She probably had her own fun," L'Arc pointed out. "Either way, we'll see you around later."

He and Therese returned to the inn.

"Since we worked so hard today," said Aris, "I propose a day off tomorrow. All in favor of a day at the beach?"

Everyone nodded.

Aris and his party frolicked on the beach that day.

Loretta was helping Joker and Morgana - who wore more casual wear instead of their usual outfits - build a sand castle. Cloud was tanning his back on a towel. Ness and Filo splashed each other in the shallow water. Aris sat on a beach chair, staring out at the waves.

"A-Aris?"

Raphtalia approached, clad in a...very revealing swimsuit. "Wh-What do you think...?"

Aris turned bright red. "U-Um...I think it's perfect!"

She lit up with a smile.

Meanwhile, Sora stood in the sand, looking a little glum.

"Sora?" Violet approached, also wearing more casual clothing. "Are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine," replied Sora. "Just...homesick."

"Homesick?" asked Violet. "Why?"

"I'm an islander," said Sora. "Beaches...always remind me of home."

"Oh...I'm...I'm very sorry to hear that."

"No worries." Sora smiled at her. "Besides, I know I'll be able to go home eventually."

"Hey, everyone! Gather 'round!" said Aris. "I have an idea!"

Everyone stood around him. "So," said Aris. "While we were on the ship, Filo hunted a shark."

"We ate it for dinner, didn't we?" said Raphtalia. "What about it?"

"Well," said Aris, "before the sailors took it away, I managed to absorb some of its scales and got this."

He equipped the Silverscale Shield.

"What's it do?" asked Sora.

"You'll all find out," replied Aris. "Once we go underwater, that is."

"Then, we're going underwater?" asked Cloud.

Aris nodded. "This beach trip is turning into an underwater endeavor!"

The party went to a nearby dock.

"On three," said Aris.

Everyone counted in unison. "One...two..."

"...three!"

They all jumped in together.

BGM: Under the Sea - Kingdom Hearts

As the bubbles cleared below the surface, everyone collectively gasped - not only because they could breathe underwater, but because of the transformations they and the others had undergone.

Most of them now had the lower halves of various species of fish or marine mammal, with Loretta being a bit of an outlier with the tentacles of an octopus.

"This is amazing!" she said. "Now I have ten arms!"

"I'm a fish, Papa! Look!" Filo darted through the water, her undulating fish tail having sail-like fins on either side.

Everyone took some time getting used to their new forms, except for Sora.

"You seem like you've done this before," Raphtalia remarked.

"I have!" said the Keyblade Wielder. "I went to a world where merfolk live. They taught me how to swim like they do."

"Well, can you teach us?" asked Cloud.

"I could..." said Sora, "but I think it's better if a real mermaid teaches you."

"I don't see any mermaids around here," Ness pointed out.

"How about now?" Sora pulled out a small blue pendant and held it forward. "Ariel!"

In a flash of blue light and bubbles, an ethereal mermaid appeared. She had flowing red hair and an aquamarine fish tail.

"Sora!" she said. "It's been so long!"

"Yeah, nice to see ya again." Sora high-fived the mermaid.

Ariel looked around. "Oh, you have friends with you?"

"Yep!" said Sora. "Everyone, care to introduce yourselves?"

Everyone did so.

"Well, I'm Ariel," she said. "A mermaid from...Sora, this is another world, right?"

Sora nodded. "Yep!"

Ariel cheered. "I'm really glad! Since I'm bound to the sea and all, I'm always happy to be in other worlds. Even so, you summoned me on land a lot on your last journey. And...well, I can survive on land as one of your Summons, but it's nice to be back underwater again."

"Summons?" asked Violet.

"Sora carries these pendants with him - they're called Heartbinders," said Ariel. "With them, he can summon a number of friends he's made in the past - and when they're summoned, they can aid him in battle. I did this a lot, with my hydromancy. And the best part is that I finally got my wish: to see other worlds!"

"That's amazing!" said Raphtalia.

"Isn't it?" Ariel agreed. "So, Sora, why did you want to see me?"

"Well," said Sora, "Aris has this ability to let us transform into merfolk like you whenever we enter the water. It's a shield he carries."

Aris showed Ariel the Silverscale Shield.

"Oh, how fascinating!" said Ariel. "And...let me guess, none of you have been able to swim like this before?"

Filo shook her head. "I think I'm getting the hang of it, but I don't think anyone else has yet."

"Well, that won't do!" said Ariel. "How about I teach you?"

Everyone agreed.

"Wonderful!" Ariel gushed. "Just move your tails like this, everyone!" Ariel demonstrated by moving her tail. "Loretta, you move your tentacles like this..." She demonstrated with her fingers, "and all of you will be swimming like mermen and mermaids in no time!"

Everyone replicated Ariel's movements. "Whoa!" said Cloud. "We're swimming!"

"Haha, yeah!" Morgana cheered. "This is where it's at!"

Everyone swam about in the water together.

"You see?" said Ariel. "It's as simple as that."

"Thank you, Miss Ariel!" said Filo.

"I'm happy to help, little Filo." Ariel gave Filo a pat on the head. "Now, I'm afraid I'll have to return to my world. It was nice to meet all of you!"

"Nice to meet you too, Ariel!" said Ness. "See ya!"

In a flash of light, Ariel returned to her Heartbinder.

End BGM

"Guys, check out that building down there!" Ness pointed to something down on the bottom of the ocean.

Sure enough, there was a strange, temple-like building with a roof of red shingles.

"Should we examine it?" Aris asked his party. "There could be monsters for us to hunt."

Everyone agreed.

Moving their fish tails and tentacles, everyone swam toward the temple.

"Look, there's a door!" Loretta pointed with one of her tentacles.

"Everyone, push," said Aris.

The party swam up to the door and pushed it open together, the water providing a fair amount of resistance. The door, however, still opened, allowing the party to swim inside.

"I think we can surface in here," said Joker, pointing upward.

Everyone swam to the surface of the water and got out onto what felt like a flight of stairs, carefully ascending them so as not to stub their toes.

"It's too dark to see much of anything..." Morgana remarked.

Raphtalia held out her hands. "Light."

A sphere of light shot from her hands and into the ceiling, greatly illuminating the area.

Everyone gasped.

"A Dragon Hourglass!?" Aris shouted. "That means this place can be hit by a Wave!"

Everyone gasped again.

"And...if my math is correct," Loretta examined the sands within the hourglass, "the Wave is coming in just two days!"