Chapter 9: the scourge of china
I do not own kingdom hearts or the properties shown in this fanfic. They belong to the respective owners and the original story is based on the works of Darius Almighty. Kingdom hearts and trials of the keyblade is owned by square Enix, Disney, and Tetsuya Nomura. Please support the official release.
Right. This is where we visit the land of dragons! now as a person who watched the 1998 movie and didn't like the live-action 2020 movie because it didn't have mushu be sure you readers and reviewers have szechuan sauce while having lunch! (sorry rick and morty reference)
With that out of the way, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!
While Sora and the group had been making their plans, Radiant Garden had gone through a few changes. Squadrons of Tie fighters now flew through the skies, keeping an aerial watch over the city. In the streets, Stormtroopers marched in military precision. Among them were large, lumbering AT-STs. Riding atop one of them was General Darius, overseeing operations with silent satisfaction. People peeked fearfully out of the windows of their homes as they marched by, none daring to go outside in the wake of the Empire's invasion. Large watch towers were now built throughout, the Stormtroopers keeping lookout with binoculars. In the square, the large statue of Ansem had been torn down and replaced with an even bigger statue depicting the terrible Emperor.
At the citadel, several laser cannons had been stationed on the outside, fortifying the large structure. On the inside, the damage that had been wrought during Sora and the others' escape was currently being repaired. The CCN was being reprogrammed so that the troublesome computer program would no longer have any presence. Radiant Garden's power center would soon be under complete Imperial control.
In the conference room, which was now Darth Vader's personal quarters, the dark lord gazed out of the large window, taking in the new Imperial city. Truth was, he really didn't care about this place. It was just another world for the Empire to rule. There were so many now that he had lost count a long time ago. All that mattered were his Master's wishes.
"Lord Vader!" In the doorway was an Imperial officer, dressed in a green uniform and saluting smartly. Vader turned to regard him. The Officer reported, "His excellency, the Emperor, has made contact."
Vader nodded and the officer left him. He pressed a button on the window frame and the metallic shutters slid down, plunging the room into almost complete darkness. Vader then moved to the hologram terminal that had been set up in the center of the room. He pressed a button and then bent down on one knee before the terminal.
Materializing on the terminal was the head of a sinister hooded figure. Under the hood was a hideous, scarred face, lined with age. His yellow eyes showed his deep, dark knowledge and evil wisdom. They also showed his lust for power. This was Emperor Palpatine. Vader bowed his head, "What is thy bidding, my Master?"
The Emperor turned his aging face to his right-hand man. "Lord Vader," he replied with a hoarse voice. "I take it that Radiant Garden is now under our rule?"
"Yes, my Master," Vader answered.
"Good," The Emperor drawled, "And what of the Keyblader? Where is Sora?"
"I'm afraid," Vader answered, unwavering in the presence of the dark lord of the Sith, "...that Sora has escaped."
The Emperor frowned as he calmly stated, "That is most unfortunate..." Vader knew the Emperor long enough to tell when he was angry, "And the King?"
"The King never arrived," Vader answered. The Emperor's frown deepened. "But I have made a discovery."
"A discovery?"
Vader nodded. "You know of Sora's friend, Riku."
"Yes. The boy who stepped to the dark side. What about him?" The Emperor asked intrigued.
"It seems he also possess a Keyblade." The Emperor raised an eyebrow. "It was not shown in our records, but I saw it with my own eyes. He is a Keyblader who uses the dark side, yet fights for the light. I saw it when I fought with him. The darkness courses through his body. And he is currently in our custody."
Palpatine smiled a cruel smile before chuckling, "Yes. This is perfect. A Keyblader who is already immersed in darkness. We no longer need Sora. This will certainly save us time." His face then turned serious, "But that is for later. I have sensed a great disturbance in the force."
"I've sensed it, too," Darth Vader replied. "Is it... Skywalker?"
"No," Palpatine answered. "It's something else. Something I have not sensed in a long time." He then grew distant, as if going through his memories one by one. "We can discuss this later. Right now, we need a key. Bring the boy to me."
Vader bowed his head, "Yes, my Master."
With that, the connection was cut as Vader rose from the ground, and walked off to do his Master's bidding...
"So where are we going first, team?", Yuffie asked the Shera crew. Disney Castle was far behind them and they were now, as Ron had quaintly put it, rushing in blindly. Sora said nothing of the King's words when he returned to the ship. He preferred to do a little more research on his own before he told anyone of these supposed "Chasers" the King had mentioned.
Also, the King had mentioned Xehanort. Why would he do that? Xehanort was gone. His Heartless and his Nobody. He wasn't coming back anytime soon. "Don't know. Where are we Cid?" Sora asked. The engineer was playing his Gameboy, not really paying attention. "Cid?"
"Huh? Oh yeah." Cid went to the computer and checked their course. "Looks like we're heading to The Land of Dragons," he said. Sora perked up.
"Alright! Mulan and Mushu! It'll be great to see them again." Sora ran to the cockpit window and saw the world straight. Kairi, Denzel, and Marlene, pressed against the glass as well.
"Dragons?" Ron stammered. "As in giant fanged lizards?"
"Yup!" Sora answered.
"As in fire breathing beasts of carnage?"
"Uh, yeah?"
"As in guys that could turn us into smouldering piles of ash, just by blowing a kiss?", Ron finally shouted. Everyone stared at the raving boy. "You know, I think I'll just stay here." Rufus nodded in agreement.
"Alright," Leon said. "Away team. Sora, Kairi, Aerith, Kim and I will go down there to find the Keyblader. We don't know who it is, so this may take a while. We'll keep in constant communication."
"Which is why I whipped up these!" Wade said, bounding up to them. In his hands were two small blue devices. They were rectangular with some buttons and a small screen on the front. "Kimunicators. The latest thing in interstellar chatting." He gave one to Sora and one to Leon.
"Thank you, Wade," Aerith praised.
"Good luck you guys," Shalua said from her computer terminal.
"Happy hunting," Adelbert said.
"Thanks," Sora said. He and everyone else headed to the shuttle hanger, to their means of landing. In the small hanger was a normal Gummi ship and the team piled inside. Sora took the pilot seat and the hanger doors opened. Gunning the boosters they flew out of the Shera onto the world waiting below.
"So what's this world like, Sora?" Kairi asked. This was her first time traveling on an adventure. She was really excited. Sora grinned.
"Wait till you see it!" Flying through the clouds, Sora landed in a secluded area, away from any onlookers. They all walked out of the ship and looked at the landscape before them. They were in the bamboo grove which was good as it helped hide the shuttle. They all walked out of the forest and saw a large field stretched out before them, the Imperial city not far in the distance. It was so peaceful and quiet.
Way too quiet.
Sora frowned. Usually there were birds chirping or animals calling. Even the sounds of people talking from the city could reach to their staring point. But there wasn't a sound. "Wow! It's beautiful!" Kairi said in awe. She and Kim marveled at the field of flowers before them. Kairi idly bent down to pick one, placing it in her hair. "How do I look?", she asked Sora. He didn't answer. "Sora?" He snapped out of it.
"Something's wrong," Sora said. Everyone looked at him.
"What do you mean?" Aerith asked. Sora shook his head.
"Let's get to the city. That's were Mulan is." He ran ahead of them through the field toward the palace. Everyone else followed behind.
On the way to the palace, they didn't encounter a single person. They made their way through villages, towns and fields but didn't find anything alive. There was an occasional tumble weed rolling by but nothing else. Needless to say this creeped them out.
Arriving at the palace gates, Sora was surprised to see them open and unguarded, furthering his feeling of unease. They walked into the large palace courtyard and found it completely devoid of life, except for the tumble weed rolling by again. "That thing is really starting to annoy me," Kim growled.
"Where is everyone?", Leon asked aloud.
"Something must have happened," Sora said worriedly. "The Empire?"
"The Empire wouldn't have left the place unguarded and deserted," Aerith said, looking around.
"And there were no Imperial ships orbiting off world. The Empire isn't responsible," Leon assured them. His brows were furrowed in deep thought. "We'll split up, cover more ground and see if we can get to the bottom of this. Aerith, Kim, and I will search one end, Sora and Kairi the other. Call with the Kimunicator if you find anything." Everyone nodded and started off in their assigned directions.
Sora decided that he and Kairi would check out the palace throne room first. Mulan was personal bodyguard to the Emperor of China, so that's most likely where she would be. If she was alright. "This place is so empty," Kairi whispered. "What could have happened?"
Sora didn't answer but merely made his way up the steps to the palace gate. When he and Kairi reached the top, the gate was wide open with, once again, no one on guard. "I really don't like this. It's like a ghost town," Sora whispered. Kairi involuntarily shivered. They walked through the large gate into the elaborate red hallway. At the end of the hallway was another large red gate but this one was closed.
When they reached this door, Sora pulled on its golden ring door handles but it would not budge. He pulled with all his might but nothing happened. "Maybe there's another way in," Kairi suggested. Sora gave up on the door and nodded. He looked around and saw a long red tapestry leading to the rafters. Without a word he ran to it and gripped the fabric tightly. Kairi followed suit and both began to climb.
They reached the rafters and headed in the direction of the throne room. It wasn't that tricky. It was like it was made to be a shortcut. "I feel like a spy," Sora said. "I should have my own theme music!" Kairi sighed and rolled her eyes.
They were soon in the rafters over the throne room. Upon entering they heard the sounds of conservation. "Why did you not let me join in the fighting?", a calm, cruel female voice complained. "I could have taken this pitiful city on my own. And it would have been much faster."
"My, someone thinks highly of themselves," a calm voice intoned. The female growled.
"We didn't join because our lord needed to test his powers," a deep voice explained. "No one questions your skills in battle."
Sora and Kairi peered over the side of the ledge to see the people talking. Standing around the throne were four strange looking people. The one who had just spoken was a large behemoth of a man. He had broad muscled arms and wore a sleeveless, tight charcoal colored shirt. He had strange blue lines running through his face. His hair was long, spiky and blue, and his eyes were a creepy yellow.
There was a woman with short crimson red hair and her outfit was the same color. She wore a tight top and long, metal clawed gloves. At the bottom she wore a bikini bottom with metal patterns coiling around it. She wore shiny black knee high boots. From the back, a long red furry train hung and dragged along the floor.
A young man in a black straight jacket was also present. His hair stuck out at all angles on account of the mask he wore that covered his mouth and forehead. From his back sprouted what looked like two steel wings. He seemed to walk in shadow wherever he went.
The strangest of the four was a little red haired girl. She couldn't have been much older than ten. She wore a jumpsuit the same color as the large blue haired man. In a holster on each of her legs, were strange swords. She spoke for the first time. "Why did you choose this world to meet her?" she asked in a young but emotionless voice.
Her question was directed to the dark figure sitting on the Emperor's throne. He was a red robed man with horns sprouting from his head. His rotted, clawed hands rested on the arms of the seat. He turned his skeletal face to the girl and answered in a low raspy voice. "This is a world of conflict, destruction, and war. I conquered it with merely a wave of my hands. Such a display of power is sure to bring her running. Then we'll deal with her."
Sora and Kairi gasped. "Conquered?", Sora whispered. Just then a hand was clapped over his and Kairi's mouth. He turned to look at the owner of the hand.
"Shhhhh!" Mulan and Mushu hissed. Sora's surprise was turned to joy as he saw that they were alright. Mulan pointed at the strange beings down at the throne.
"That man," she said, pointing to the creature in the throne. " He defeated the entire Imperial army." Sora eyes turned wide as he heard this. He was turned back to the conversation when they started talking again.
"But master," the giant blue haired man began. "Why are you even bothering to meet with her? That witch is not worth your time." The horned man chuckled.
"Well Azul, you're about to find out." No sooner than he finished his sentence, a burst of green and black flame sprouted from the floor before the throne. The flame died away and in its place stood the dark form of Maleficent.
"Maleficent!" Sora and Kairi whispered in shock.
"You know her?" Mulan asked.
"Sure do," Sora whispered back angrily.
Maleficent looked about at her surroundings before she turned toward the usurped throne. Her face turned to a quick scowl. "Horned King. I thought I felt your foul presence," she spat. Behind her cowered the plump Pete, who took a peek over her shoulder while sweating something fierce.
The red robed creature, the Horned King, smiled cruelly. "Maleficent. How long has it been? Far to long for my tastes. Beautiful as always I see." Maleficent frowned at his words, while Pete gagged behind her back. "But tell me Maleficent, what have you been up to as of late. I mean, besides trying futilely to gain Kingdom Hearts." Maleficent then growled.
"Now see here," Pete said bravely from behind Maleficent. "Maleficent may fail continuously, even constantly to get what she wants, but that doesn't crush her failing spirit! No one's a better failure than her!" The Horned King and his servants stared at them amusingly, while Maleficent fumed.
"My, Maleficent, you sure know how to pick a lackey," the Horned King chuckled. "Allow me to introduce mine." He turned his hand to the blue haired man. "Azul the Cerulean." Then to the woman. "Rosso the Crimson." The steel winged man. "Nero the Sable." He then turned his hand to the little girl. "And Shelke the Transparent."
"I don't care about your servants! What do you want?", she demanded angrily, flames rolling off of her. Pete backed away in fear. "You called me here! You flaunted your power to gain my attention and now you have it! What is it?"
"I hear that you have the Heartless," the Horned King said, ignoring her question. "Show me." Maleficent seemed to grow even angrier, if that was possible.
"Very well!" She raised her staff to the air and a wave of Shadows emerged before her. "Attack!", she screamed. The Shadows obeyed and swarmed toward the throne. The Horned King's servants stood in front of their master protectively, but at a gesture from him they backed away. The horned man stood up from his seat and faced the oncoming hoard without fear. The Heartless pounced and the man was enveloped in a tide of black.
Maleficent sneered at seeing her rival being consumed. But then the Heartless began to back away. They slid off the Horned King like he was covered in oil. Maleficent and Pete balked. "Well," the Horned King said. "Guess the Heartless can't have what's not there." He tapped his chest where his heart was...or should be.
"No heart?" Pete said. "What are you, a Nobody?"
"There are other means," Nero said.
The Heartless scurried about the Horned King, sensing that there was indeed no heart in this vessel. "The Heartless will follow whomever is strongest," the King said. "And that would be me." He raised his hand and more Heartless appeared, now under his control. They turned their yellow eyes to Maleficent and Pete. "I must thank you for bringing the Heartless here. Without your help, I would have never got them under my control. Now then, I grow tired of this world. Perhaps my new friends can do something about that." The Heartless then melted into the floor, off to do their new master's bidding. Maleficent gripped her staff in righteous anger. She had been used. Used to bring the Heartless here so he could take them under his control. "Are you still here?" The Horned king asked mockingly. "You've done your part. You're excused."
Beep-beep-beeeep. Sora froze. Everyone in the room turned their eyes upward to the rafters, to see the secret eavesdroppers. Sora desperately tried to turn off the Kimunicator that was now beeping a catchy tune, but it was too late. "Well, it seems we have some spies," Rosso cooed. With a slash of her hand, a wave of energy was sent flying towards them. It sliced through the support beams and Sora, Kairi, and Mulan fell from the ceiling.
"Hey! It's the key-punk!" Pete exclaimed.
In a mass of tangled limbs, Sora emerged. "Well, well, well," Azul said. "This is the famous Keyblader that we have heard so much about."
"He's a lot shorter in person," Nero said.
Sora summoned his Keyblade, as did Kairi. Mulan pulled her Sword of the Ancestor. They faced the Horned King and Maleficent, their minions close to their respective masters. "This was unforseen," the King said. "I didn't think I would meet you so soon, Sora. It truly is an honour."
"Save it," Sora spat, gripping his Keyblade. "Who are you guys?"
"We are the Tsviets," the little girl, Shelke, said. "And you are Sora. Chosen wielder of the legendary Keyblade."
"Glad you did your homework," Kairi said sarcastically.
The Horned King regarded them, then turned his back. "Kill them," he ordered. He then stalked off and disappeared in a portal of darkness. The Tsviets then rushed toward the heroes.
Rosso pulled out a strange weapon that was slung on her slender back. It was a two-barreled gun with two long scythes sprouting from each side. "Do you know why they call me the Crimson, darling?" With a sadistic smile she charged toward Sora. "Let me show you!" Sora blocked the slash that was aimed at his head, but the force of it sent him flying back, with Rosso following close behind.
Azul smashed both his fists down where Mulan was. She barely had time to jump out of the way before he left a huge crater in the ground. Mushu jumped on Mulan's head. "Oh, it's on!", he shouted. He took a deep breath and shot many rapid fire balls. They bounced harmlessly off Azul's massive body.
Kairi blocked a strike from Shelke's electric sabre swords. Sparks flew at the contact. Shelke kept up a steady but accurate barrage strikes, her face still showing no emotion. Kairi blocked each one. Considering her youth, she was very deadly. After blocking another attack, Kairi brought her Keyblade down on Shelke's head, but before it could hit a barrier rose to block it. Kairi ground her teeth as Shelke kept the shield up.
Sora was able to hold his own against both Nero and Rosso. Nero's wings sprouted machine guns and opened fired. Sora spun his Keyblade like a propeller, deflecting each one. He didn't notice Rosso come up from behind. Sora turned around just in time to be punched upward in the jaw, sending him flying through the air. While he was still airborne, Nero fired his machine guns, and Sora brought up a reflega spell to deflect them. Landing on the ground, he shot two blizzaga spells at each of his opponents. Rosso dodged hers while Nero disappeared in a portal of darkness.
Sora got back into fighting position, but then noticed that the Kimunicator was still beeping. He pulled it out and pressed the answer button. "Leon?", he called. The screen on the Kimunicator distorted, then Leon appeared looking very strained.
"Sora!", Leon answered. The sounds of battle could be heard in the background. "The Heartless, Sora! They're here! They're going to destroy this world!" On the screen, a Shadow jumped for Leon, who quickly rounded and sliced it in half with his Gunblade. The two pieces dissolved into nothingness. "We have to get out of here!", he shouted. Sora clenched his teeth.
"Well Sora," Maleficent said. Sora turned to face her. "It seems this world has fallen. How could you have allowed this to happen?"
"Yeah, some Keyblader you are!" Pete agreed.
Meanwhile, Mulan was having troubles of her own. With each swipe of her golden hilted sword, Azul dodged with ease. Considering his massive size, the blue man was surprisingly agile. Azul smiled as he avoided yet another attack. "Give him a left!", Mushu coached from the sidelines. "And a right! Left, right! Left! Right! Left! Right!"
"Mushu!", Mulan shouted. The guardian dragon grinned sheepishly. After much effort, Mulan was finally able to land a blow on the mighty Azul. She brought her sword down on his chest and Azul made no effort to stop her.
CLANG
Her sword hit his chest but no damage was done. It stopped as if it had hit a solid wall. Mulan stared at her sword in shock. It rested on his skin but there were no signs of harm. She then turned her fearful eyes upward to look at Azul's arrogant face. He smirked smugly and brought up his massive arm. He swatted her away as if she were a fly and she was sent skidding across the floor.
"Mulan!", Mushu shouted. He rushed over to her as she struggled to get back up.
Azul looked at her trying so hard just to stand. "Why do you continue to fight?", he asked her. "Your world is doomed. Everyone you know is gone. What is there left to fight for?"
Mulan glared hatefully at the man. "China isn't doomed," she stated. She rose to her feet and raised her sword. "As long as there is at least one person to carry on the fight, China will always thrive!" She rushed towards Azul, sword clutched tightly in her hand, screaming defiantly.
Azul stood in his spot, smiling smugly. Her attack would have no effect, just like last time. He awaited her pathetic blade. But then her sword began to shimmer. Azul's smile was replaced with a look of confusion. Mulan's sword became engulfed in a flash of bright light and Azul's confused face turned to one of surprise. Mulan did not notice the light, too focused on bringing down the Cerulean man. With a mighty swing, she brought her light covered sword to slash his chest.
The effect was astonishing. Azul's stomach was engulfed in a large, white-hot flame. The broad shouldered man screamed in shock and surprise as he was sent flying back. He collided with the far wall and slumped to the ground.
The fighting around the room all stopped. Sora stared at Mulan in wonder. How did she do that?
Mulan, who was now standing stock still and staring down at her glowing sword, looked just as surprised. The light surrounding the sword then began to dissipate. Now in her hands was the Hidden Dragon Keyblade, its orange color depicting flames danced around the hilt and blade, its dragon head keychain dangling from the steel.
Mushu crawled up onto Mulan's shoulder. "Uh, where'd you get that?", he asked, pointing at Mulan's new weapon. Mulan didn't answer, staring dumbly at the Keyblade.
"She's a Keyblader," Kairi said.
Just then the roof of the palace was torn off. Everyone looked up to the open roof to see the clear blue sky now replaced with a swirling black vortex. It sucked off the roof like a vacuum; along with trees and houses, even the ground was being pulled in. Sora felt a cold feeling go through him. He knew what this was. This was what destroyed Destiny Islands over three years ago, what set his whole life on this crazy adventure. This world was going to collapse.
Azul stood back up, a large scorch mark evident on his chest. "It seems we're out of time," he stated. He walked to the center of the room as did the other Tsviets.
"We should get out of here," Shelke said.
"Nero," Rosso said turning to the strapped man. "If you would be so kind."
"With pleasure," the winged man said. Before them all a portal of darkness appeared. They stepped through it one by one leaving the dying world behind.
Before Azul stepped through he faced the heroes. "We shall meet again. You can count on it." He then stepped through the portal and vanished, the portal closing instantly.
"Uh, Maleficent?", Pete quaked. "Don't you think we should be moseying our way out of here, too. Please?" Maleficent scowled at his cowardice.
"Very well then," she said, raising her staff to the air. From the unseen part of the sky, the large floating jet black Castle That Never Was emerged. Sora looked up, shocked. He didn't think he would ever see that thing again. "Until next time, Keybearer," Maleficent sneered. In a burst of green flame, she and Pete were gone. Up above, the castle shimmered then completely vanished from the darkened sky, as if it were never there.
As soon as they left, Heartless began to pop up from the floor around the heroes. They stared hungrily at them with their yellow eyes, sensing fresh hearts beating within. Sora, Kairi, and Mulan stood back to back, each holding their Keyblades defensively. The tide of Shadows was as thick as the night sky. Sora gulped nervously. "Don't know how we're going to get out of this one," he said.
"I say we sacrifice someone for the betterment of the rest. Ladies first!" Mushu exclaimed. Everyone glowered at him. "Anyone got a better idea?"
No sooner than he asked, a rope ladder lowered down from the sky. "Grab on!" Kim shouted from the hovering shuttle. They hastily obliged and all climbed up the ladder, the Heartless swarming toward them. "Go!", Kim shouted to Leon, who was piloting the ship. He nodded and pulled the ship up, bringing the rope ladder with him.
Sora, Kairi, and Mulan were carried out of the tide just before it swarmed over the ground they were just standing on. One Heartless jumped up from the rest and latched onto Mulan's shoe. She kicked it off and it was sent plummeting back to the other Heartless. They all climbed up the ladder, reached the Gummi ship, and climbed aboard. "Alright, lets go!" Leon announced. He gunned the engines and the ship blasted away from the planet. Leaving the atmosphere, the Land of Dragons crumpled behind them as it was sucked inside the black vortex. Everything that was part of that world was destroyed in a maelstrom of darkness. Soon there was nothing left of Mulan's world, just another empty part of space.
And that conclude this evening's chapter with another grim ending. Be sure to write nice reviews adapt the original story (Darius Almighty's work) on DeviantArt or post the story on TV tropes or follow and favorite it. And remember may your heart be your guiding key!