Weiss could only stare in awe at the interior of the Gummi Ship as soon as she stepped on. It was way bigger on the inside. It had a nice kitchen, dining area, a hallway with various bedrooms and a training area. And this is what she could see right now. She knew there was an upper floor (probably the cockpit) and a lower area (probably storage and engines and other important machinery).
"So, whaddya think, Miss Schnee?" Goofy asked.
"It's…a lot to take in…" Weiss replied. "Um…where will I be staying at?"
"Take the one with the white door on the left." Donald answered as he headed upstairs. "I'm gonna check if everything's in working order first while Goofy checks then engines. Settle down and meet up at the cockpit!"
"Got it, Donald!" Sora called out. "Hey, I wonder if they managed to find all my old stuff." He then muttered before heading to his room, the red door right across from Weiss' new room.
The heiress could only shake her head and went to her new room. It was a pretty nice with its white walls and light-blue flooring. A single bed, a desk, closet, nightstand and even a personal, fully-stocked bathroom (where she almost sobbed at the sight of). A quick check of the closet revealed that Yen Sid had given her multiple sets of her new magical clothes and a chest to keep anything personal. She could only assume that he thought ahead and just knew she would get this room.
Overall, it was nice…but she did miss having a bunk bed.
And that only reminded Weiss of the Petal Report in her Moogle Pouch.
She took it out and winced.
"What do you mean by what's left…?" Weiss whispered to herself before shaking her head and putting the piece of paper in her nightstand. "I guess these will go here for the time being. I'll need to buy a binder." She then muttered before looking at the bathroom.
Well, she probably hasn't cleaned herself since she went to sleep…
So, with that thought, she locked her door and started taking off her clothes.
Oh, this was going to be heaven.
One steamy shower later, Weiss wrapped a fluffy white towel around her body and was now using a hairdryer to…well, dry her hair.
"Oh, I needed that." Weiss breathed out as she set her dryer down. It was nice to simply relax and groom herself for a while. And the showers here were definitely better than the ones back at the dorm.
However, Weiss couldn't help but frown. How long has she been asleep for?
Well, it would be best to ask-
Wait…
What…What was that poking out at the top of her towel?
Was that…a scar…?
Weiss' eyes widened as dropped the towel.
Right on her sternum was a jagged deep scar. It looked more like…a crack in glass than a rough cut made in her skin.
"Ah…" Weiss was next to speechless as she saw it.
Was…Was it caused by that black-cloaked man's machine?
Her hand shook as she stared closer at the scar before, very hesitantly, touching it.
…Huh. It didn't feel that painful-
I̛̳͇͞'̣̯͞v̡̲̼e̢͝҉̴̷͈̟̝̥̣̦̱̞͉̗̖̪̖͙͇͇ͅą͎̱̞̰͖͖̥̰l̶̰̮̳̗̀ẁ̗͕̪a̦̺̗̦͜͠͞y̟͚͇͢s̘͔̪̟̗̫͈̬̼̤̫̘̕͝ͅw̵̪̗̬͍a̶̻͇̟͕̯͚̱͕͟͞n̝̬͕͝t͈̝̦̱̙̰̕e̮͈͡d͚̬̼̳̗͚́͘b̛͉̱̟͖̻͘u̵̢̠̺̮͕̯̣̪̙͢n͍̰͚̻̘̰̻̣̳k҉̡̨̗̲͙̯̖̖̟͚̫̞͕̺̦̀͡ḅ͈͝e̤̝̯d͎͈͇̀͠s̤̜̝͕̹͔͉͎͇͘҉̶͈̯̮̘̞̦̗͖a̳͓̠͉̖͘ͅs̶͔̱͍̞̠̯͔̼̪͚̱̖̞̦̀͜a̵̴̡̧͕̞̩͎͉̰͓̣̦ͅk̮͉̩̤̞̝̯̗͠i҉̶̻̳̰̞̪̺͉͇d̶̢̲̗̟̦̬̠͔͚.̶̛̻̖̣̣̪̲̟̳̩
̵̵̜̬͈͍̰̹̤I̴̶͍̞̠̠̟̮͖̦̼͠ͅh̴̫̺̳a̧̪̙̝̲t̷̶̹̳͇̘̹̲͔ȩ̯͔͙͈̣̝̲̘̮͍́th̙̝̩͘͝i̼̲̠̼̜̣̠ş̷̷̺͈̪̘̩͕͚͙͕̰͈̫͚̼̝g҉̨̰͉͕̬̲̦̰̻am͙̟̤̤̜͚̦̩͜e̡҉̩̺̻̻̲͢͞o̯̪͖̲̝͎̲̫f҉̷̨̼̗͎͖̜̞̯͖̼̪̬͓e̩̞̳̹̖̠͉̜̤̕m̛̦̰͎̻͙̜̫ǫ̴͈̲͎͕͝t̛͙͓̙i̵̗̮̫o̱̮̻̺͔̭̣͕ns̴̛̫̻̜̺͕̲͘̕w̴̩͇ͅḛ̷̘͉͕̘͈͔̟̱͍̗͕p̡̛͖ḽ̛̖͔̫͚̙̥̱a̧͙̣y.̷͈̳͓̬̜̻̥̹͠
̫͎̝̖̭̬̜͉͞M̺̘͎̟̬̺̱̦y̧̡҉̪̤͔̱͖̦͕͕̣̲̩͙̠̝f̬̞̪̩̱̙͉͝ͅa̶͍̼͖͠t̷͇̥h̡̨̬́e̵͏͔̘̙̯̦ŗ̷̳̻͚̼͓̮͚̫͡w̡̫͇͠ͅas̢̧͍̪̠̝̲̗̯̼̮̼̀́͢n̢̲̝̳͘o̷̪̫̦̳͢ͅt̴͖̼̼̮͕̣̙̹́͠t͍̖̙̠h̵̦͉͚̹̫͙̯̤̀ę̢̖̩̤̻̻͘̕s̰̥̺̪͚t̶̩͙̰̀ͅá̱͕̻̖̕͞r̦̯t̳̭̞͏̣͍̪̰͜o̠̪̘͉͓͡f͉̣̤̱̥͇̭̜̥̦̱͠͝o̳̖͉͡u̷̥̭͚r̬̹͉̯̟̫̠̫̻̗̲͟͜͠n̤̹̜̟͠a̡̖͈͡m̴̖è̗͈̪,͏̨͇͙̮͔͎͍̬̳͎͙͎̦͇͕̭̮͟a̴̗n̛͖̠͇͞d̴̵͍̯̜̹̳̭̻͍͘͢͝I̵̴͎̺̜̘̯̫̞̮͓̘͎̭ŕ͝҉͍̬̲e҉̭̯͙̜͘f̶͓̬͉͘u͓̯̫̳s̭̖̩̀e̙͇͔̺̘̬̣ ̣͇̠̣͇̖ͅtó̷͈̹̖̝̯̼̬̖̰͞ͅle̢̨̛̻͕̤̦̭̺͚͙̲t̴̶̛̛͔̘͈͎̬͙̮͢͞h̟͎i̛̜̩̬̫m͕͎̻̗͇͘͏̸͍͓͍b̬̟̭̤̝͡e̢̛̝̼̰̱̟͓̣̯͘͟t͎̥̮̗͎ḩ̵̱̖̰̭̘͚̖͕͠e͘͏̴̜̗͓͔̺̞̰̤̟͔͞͡e̵͇͉͉n̵̡͇̭̮̗̪͉͚̦͠d͙̜͉͙̼͓̘̼̪̦̯͞o҉̠̤͚̰̠͚f̶̺͉̺̞̩̹͍͖i̫͙̼̠͍t.̫̯͉̻̖͍̤̬͢
̧̢̲͇̼̜͙͚̩͉Į͓͖̯͔̤̺̝̟̰͔̯͕͎͜͠͞d͏͉̤̪̟͚ͅo͓̥̰̮͘n̼̱̰̮̬'̵̵̣t҉̧̛̭̰̬̦͉͖̠̀͜wa̡͖̕ͅṇ͙̖̲͘t̢͕̠̜̭̣̙͉͖̘͔̯́͘to̟̖h͏͉̭͍͉͓̕e҉̸͓̖̘̳̬͉̬ͅa̦̰͇͕̭̰̝r̴̵̝̳̞̥̹͉̦̬̤͙̤̳͕̪͚̥͟į̶̛̲̰̟͓̖t̝̠̲̳͝͡.̞͎̻̹̠͠͝Ì̵̹͖͔̖̼̹̲̫̥̼̞͉̕̕͠o̼̰͕̫̖͕̕͠ņ̩͈̘̥̫͔͓ly͙̳̮̣͇̤͇̪̖̥͚͎͖͡w̱̙͈͙̭͓̣͜à̧͙͈͚͎̮͓̝͝n̥͙͓̺̻̟̺̻͞t̡̤͔̗̮͇̝̳͘͜͡ͅt̟̥͕̖̖̜o̞̟̙͞͏̯̟͙̱̺͈͕̪̬͘k͏̭̞̹͠ṇ̼͉͚͟͟͡ͅo̘͕̥̳͝w͎̦͇̟̺͕̣̬͇͝t̘͙͙̩̲he͏̛̫̝́n̹̝̱̘̝̹͓ͅé̤̲͓̣̬̰͘x̛̭̪͈̙̯̲̖t̵͔͚͓͕̤̩͟͠ţ̧̛̯̱i̡̭m͏̸̤͓͜e̬͔͉̟̜̪̗̟̩͙͟t̼̤̖̀͜h̛̺͕̙͓̟͉a̠̻̫̰̺̙ͅt̷̯̮̫̝̰̪͍̙̮̕͠ͅs̵̰͕͍̥̳͝ǫ͚̘̝͓͔͕͕m̮̫̜̙͎̗̝̮e͚̙t̹̯̯͓͞h̲̰̺̱͈̰ͅi̘͍̲̫̲̕͝n̥̪͖̳̪̻̖g̣̱̹̥҉̟̙̩̖t̛҉̠̼͜h̭̱̘͔̤͓ị̜s̷̯̘̣͡ ̬̣ͅbi҉̶̲̣͇̀g̨̣͍̲̩̟̣̪͡ͅç҉̙̲̗̖̠͔o̵̥͢͞m̵̩͈̲̖̫͕̰e̡͎̦͢s͘͏͚̼̻̼͍̼̳͇͈͡ù͔̖̫̤͜p,̞̗̼̭̙̳̜͉̯̦͎̭͘͞ͅy͕̘̠̮̥̥̭͠o̘͓̹u͍̫̠̰̫̪͟c̴͏͍͚͚̺͖̘͠o͏͏̴̗͓͈̦̺ḿ҉̬̥̮ȩ̥̪̬̝̝̳͍͉́͡͠҉͇̗̪̼̠̬͎̤t̯̟͔̮͚̻̠͓ò̬̹̺̩̞͖̻̯̥y̞̮̙o҉͇͈̮̲͘͜ͅu̙̬͍̗͙̠̭͓͢r̵̛͔͕͕̞͘͘͜͞t̷͖̤͈̦̳̻͍͟e̷̠̭a̵̢̲̝̱̠͓͉̠̼̝͟m͜͏͇̳̳̪̩̹̟m̨̼̭͚͘a̭͈̩̭͟t͈͍̫̠̥͇̖͝e̡̝͔̫͝s̵̙̮̼̣̞̀.̧̪͖̯͈͏̵̣͙̰̲ͅÀ̜̮̭̙̞̙͘ͅn̰͈̙̭̥͇͎d̥̺͍̱͕̭̲n̼̙̙͇̦͔̣ͅo͕t̵҉҉͈̼͍̤͏̩͉̗̪̯͕͙s҉̡͇̖̠̯̱̲o̢̮̣̱̱m̜̭͉̜̕͞e҉͓̪̗͚.͉̠̥̕.҉͏̡̥̠̟͚̞̗͎̟̹.̧̢͎̯̫͈͈̻̲̣̩̗͕̪̺̱͞ş̵̬͔̰̫̫̯͎o̴̼̫͈̱̻̣m̪̮͚̤͍̦̞̕ȩ̺̙ò̢̗̼̹̜͇̙n̖̻͖͓͈͍͉̞ę͖̟̰̼͔̙̦́ḙ̢̱̠͕͍͈̜ͅl̨͓̼̩͙̳̀s̼̜̤̥̭̀ę҉̸̞͖̙̼̲̘ͅ.̡̞͖̤͕̦̘͇̼ͅ
̼̻̤̜̭͉̼̀M҉̻͓͉̮͎͈̬͈̫́a̧̰̦̪͞s͚̰̦͍̪̮͈͞t̝͔̲e̮̭̮̝̗̬̕͘r̥̳̙̮̺͎͖͜ͅJ̧̭͓̦̯̥̫͍̘K̦̥̯̀F̢̫̩̘͠N͓̦̺̥̣͇͝S͇̥̣̹͜ͅD̖̹̤͎̪͎͢͞J̞̜̗̝͚̪͚͞B̺̰̟̪ͅ,̧̻̪̝͈̖̬Ì̪̫̰͎͏̛̹̠͍͓͖͎̠̻m̠̺̦e̢̳a̶̜̟͓̥̰̲̪͔n̷̡̢̦̥̲̙̘̜̭̙͉̠̠̗̺͝n̴̙͎̫͈͖̹ơ̷͖̞̖̫̩̮͈̮̭̯͘ͅd̵̴̲̰̹̺͙̹̹̬͞ì̛̛͈͚̜͕s̨̡̭͈͈̼̺̪̖̣r̴̙͍̪̰̠͙̟̪̲e̜̮̦͍͉̝͉s̢̟͖͈̕͜p̫͙͔̻͔̲͇̭ȩ͇͓͡c̵̡͚̣̘͓̦̫͓t̝̪̣̤̣̳̭̀,̶̧̢͙̪̦̗̲̠̯̯̲̹̙͜ͅͅb̷̝͓̙̮̗͘u̶̡͓̠̬͚̮t̲̤̼̲͖͙̘͇͘͞͠ͅt̯̟̠̱́̕͝h͏̸͍̪̙̼̺̱i̷͓̪̭͠s̝̤̟͈̼̻̮͕͢͜ͅͅi҉̻s̡̢̘̻̞̖̘̘̪̙͈͚͎̕͡s̷͚̞͉̰̰͖̣̙̀o͖̬͙͎̘͚̫̤m̵͙̦͍e̴͈̰̗̦͕̖t͚̦̟h͈̖̗ͅị̢̞̳̩͠͞ṇ̢̤̻͕͓̩̯̀ͅg̨҉̧̺̝͍̳̘͈̖͕̙͚̪̫̬̫ͅI̛̼͖͎̳͖̻̘̤͘͜͞m͇̙͙u͓̲̠̮̖̞̙̬̥s̠̤̻̀͡t̺̥̣͕͇̹̞̪́ͅdơ͔̲̠̯͓͍͜͢.̨̻͕͈̰̞̗̬̲\̵̧̥͍̙̳̜̯
̨̰̩͚̰̦ͅM҉̡̦̞̩͔͔a҉̡̠̱y̧̨̺̱̻̫̝̩̬͚̘̙͢͠yo̠̭̹̭ư̴̴̗r̬͖h͕͖̱̰͎͕͚͟e͇͙̟̥͚̼͟a҉̣̟̗͍̝́rt̷̶̥̺̼̣̪͎͎͙͍̦͎͈̜̯̗́ͅb̧̝̣̜̜̪̗͠e̥̩͖̞̲̤͇̺̤̭̺̥̟̻̬̤͜͢͠ỳ̛̭͓̣̻o̞͈̥̘̫̩̖͜u̶͏̷͎̮̺͉̰͎ͅr̴̸͎̦̮̱͖͕̜̜͍͏̥̠̹̪͈̦̗͓ͅg̡̜̹̩̳̻̰ṳ̟̱͝i̡̠͓̳̥̠̳d͔̝̜̲i̴̛̖̤̞̪n̶̵̪̦͎̘̝͎̮̕g͓̩͕͉͖͚̭͟͏̝̝̟̘̯k̡̬͔e͈͈̟̣̤͚y͈͙͎.҉̝͔͚͎̰̟͖̜
̶̘̝̦̲A̹̩͝r̥̗͓̬ę̴͖̬͍͚̩̹͟͡͠͞ͅͅͅỵ̷̗̮͍o̵͕͖͚͙̕u̵̠̙̳̬̗̞.͎͔̳͎̕͜͝ͅ.̼̩͎̙͡.̴̢̳̭̤͕̘̻̙̙̩̦͕̗̕ͅŗ̱͘ơ̭̹̪̼͎͈̺͜b͏̶̭̗̺̟̜͍̗̞ͅb̵̜̩i̛̩̝̮͞n̝͎̙̝̤g̶̴̨͍͈͇̦̪̣͖͇̗̩͘m̖̲̤͙̝̬̗̰̕e͙̣̲͚̠͉̣ͅ?̞͍̥͔͓̗̀
"Ah!" Weiss yelped out as she clutched her head.
What…was that?
"Ugh…I have a headache now…" Weiss soon groaned, getting up from the floor she didn't realise she fell on. "I better get dressed and see how Sora is doing." She then muttered to herself as she went to do so.
"Hey, is this thing on?" Weiss suddenly heard Goofy's voice come from the speakers, which she hadn't noticed until now. "Uh…Sora! Weiss! Head up to the cockpit!"
"Well, so much for that…" Weiss sighed out as she saw Sora's door open.
"Hey, Weiss." Sora yawned out. "We better get going."
"You…Did you take a nap?"
"Yes." Sora said with a peaceful smile on his face.
Weiss wanted to say something about how he could nap in a time like this, especially after sleeping for who know how long…but could sigh and follow him upstairs, where they saw Donald and Goofy pressing various buttons and pushing and pulling various switches.
"Is everything ready guys?" Sora asked as he took the lead chair, pulling himself up to the controls.
"Just about…" Donald slowly got out before…
DING!
"We're good!" Donald announced.
"You know how to pilot this thing, Sora?" Weiss got out in surprise.
"Uh…Not really." Sora said. "Donald and Goofy take care of all the other stuff, I just move and shoot."
"Why are you just standin' there, Weiss? Go on and take a seat." Goofy got out as focused on his task…whatever it was.
Weiss nodded and took her seat. It was quite comfortable actually, despite how it looked.
"Wow…this is definitely an upgrade to the old Gummi Ship…" Sora got out.
"Old?" Weiss repeated with a raised eyebrow.
"Uh…We sort of lost it…"
"You mean you crashed it!" Donald called out.
"One of the engines gave out! I managed to land it safely! Kinda…"
Weiss could only check her seat for seatbelts and quickly buckled herself up.
"Oh! Chip and Dale!" Sora suddenly got out before pressing a few buttons going over to a nearby mic. "Hey guys! It's Sora! Please come in! This is Sora!"
"Hmm…?" A high-pitched voice responded on confusion. "Who…Wait, Sora!? Dale! Come quick! They're back!"
Weiss heard some scuffling and before, all of a sudden, a screen popped up before turning on, although there was only static at first.
"Howdy, Sora! How ya doin'?" A southern-accented voice greeted
"Hold on! Let me just…" The high-pitch voice said before the static began to clear to see…small furry creatures with buck teeth and aprons, one with a red nose and the other with a black nose. "There we go! It's your favourite Gummi engineers here, ready for duty: Chip..." The one with the black nose began.
"...And Dale!" The one with the red nose concluded. "Where have you been guys!? Are you in the Gummi Ship the King ordered?"
"Uh…Sleeping?" Sora answered sheepishly. "We're not sure, really. But we're back!"
"Roger that! As you can see, we've definitely upgraded a ton of stuff while you were gone!" Chip informed.
"It's faster! It's got more lasers! It's easier to fly! And it has cup holders!" Dale added before they two twins noticed the white-haired girl.
"Oh, and you must be Weiss right?" Chip guessed.
"Umm…Hello." Weiss managed to get out, still picking her jaw off the floor from the sight of the two engineers.
Dale quickly saluted the girl. "Well, welcome aboard!"
"Stay safe!" Chip added.
"And happy flying!" Chip 'n' Dale finished in unison before the connection was cut.
"Wh…What were those?" Weiss had to ask.
"…Chipmunks?" Sora answered.
"But…They're your engineers."
"Best ones you could ever ask for." Goofy assured.
Weiss just blinked. You know, if they had a mouse for a king, why didn't she expect anything less?
"Alright, Sora! Bringing up the map!" Goofy called out.
"Thanks Goofy!" Sora replied as the map screen was projected onto the glass. "Only one?" He got out in disbelief.
"I guess Yen Sid was serious 'bout all the world bein' closed off." Goofy got out.
"That's no good!" Donald said.
"Wait! I think it's a world we know!" Goofy got out as her narrowed his eyes.
Weiss raised one of her eyebrows before shrugging. Well, if they know where they're going…
"Aw, what!?" Sora suddenly exclaimed.
"What's wrong?" Goofy asked in concern.
"It's been a year!?"
This Weiss' attention as she scrambled to her feet and looked at Sora's screen.
She…couldn't read the date however…
"It's day, month, year." Goofy quickly informed.
"Thank you." Weiss replied.
A whole year…?
Maybe even more…?
"Didn't you say it was summer vacation on your world, Sora?" Donald reminded.
"Yeah. Summer vacation only started about a week before I got the Keyblade…and I think we fought Ansem by the end of it." Sora muttered out. "Oh man, school's gonna be so bad for me…"
Weiss ignored the boy's complaints as she closed her eyes.
So…at most, she was asleep for a year…
But…what did that mean in Remnant time…?
"Weiss, you better sit down. We're blasting off soon." Sora said as he cracked his knuckles. It's been a while since he flew the Gummi Ship but he was confident that he could shake off enough rust to fly them to their destination.
Weiss shook her head before nodding and heading back to her seat.
"Alright! Lift off in five!" Sora declared as he hovered his hand over the button. "Four! Three! Two! One! And…GO!"
And with that, Sora slammed his fist onto the blue button, causing the Gummi Ship to…wipe the windows.
"It's the red button, Sora." Goofy pointed out.
"I-I knew that. I just thought the…glass needed cleaning." Sora chuckled out as Weiss tightened her seatbelt. "Alright, lift off in five!"
"Just hit it, Sora!" Donald yelled out.
"FourthreetwooneGO!" Sora quickly said before hitting the button
FWOOOSH!
Now, Weiss had been on airships before but this felt…so much different as the Gummi Ship rumbled before shooting into the stars faster than any ship she's been on, her heart beating against her chest as the mysterious tower disappeared behind them, becoming nothing more than another star in the galaxy.
And that's when it hit her.
She was off-world.
She…She was in space.
"So, you believe in other worlds now?" Donald asked in a teasing tone.
"W-Wow…" Weiss couldn't help but let out as the vastness of the galaxy around them.
"That was my reaction when I first saw all of this." Sora giggled as he blasted away from asteroids.
"It's…a little overwhelming actually…" Weiss admitted as she leaned back in her seat. "I…I may be the first person in Remnant to actually be in space. We've tried for years but Dust would just fail on us as soon as we exit the atmosphere!"
"Really? Huh." Goofy got out.
"I really wanna see your world, Weiss." Sora said as he looked up at the stars.
"Yeah…me too." Weiss muttered out as she continued her star-gazing.
"Autopilot engaged!" Donald declared as the ship shook a little before settling down. "We'll be there in a couple hours, Weiss. You can go and get something to eat and rest. We got things here."
"Thank you." Weiss said as she unbuckled her belt and went downstairs.
Other worlds…
To think only a few days before she went to sleep that humanity and Faunus-kind were alone in the world, but now there was an entire world full of life, possibly never knowing the types of struggles her people had to deal with every day.
So many worlds…
Too many worlds…
Weiss had no illusions.
It was going to be a long time before she can find her way home…
Days. Months. Years.
But when she did…Once she finds her lost friends and drags them all the way back home…she'd make sure to have tons of stories to tell Winter.
"…I should keep a journal." Weiss said to herself as she looked inside the fridge.
Well…maybe some ice-cream would help pass the time while they travelled to their destination
SLASH!
"Whew! Another hard day's work!" a girl with black hair and a fuuma shuriken breathed out, the last of the swarm finally taken out.
"But it hasn't got any easier…" The man with the Gunblade at his side simply pointed out as he put down a rather larger sack made of a green blanket. "If only we could truly make this place peaceful, then we wouldn't need our weapons. No one would ever have to live in fear." He stated as the two looked out at the distance.
"Don't worry, Squall. We'll get to that point someday. Hey, maybe we're closer than you think!"
"AAAAAAHHHHHH!"
"Aw crud, not again…" The girl groaned out before rushing over towards the sounds of the screams.
Leon could only look at the symbol of all the work they still needed to do.
That twisted dark castle, brimming with darkness and Heartless.
"No…We still have a ways to go…" Leon muttered to himself. "No...A long, long way to go."
"GAH!" He then heard Yuffie cry out in pain. "Why can't Cid or Merlin invent some sort of anti-darkness bomb or something!? One or two would be enough, right!?"
FLASH!
"Urgh…" Weiss groaned out as she stumbled around a bit and held her stomach.
"Don't worry. You'll get used to it Weiss." Donald assured as he patted the poor girl's back.
"Hey…Look at that." Sora said as he ran up to the ledge to look at something in the distance.
Meanwhile, Weiss just looked at their surroundings. The town is bustling with activity. Moogles are flying through the air selling items, and people are at work with supplies, probably in an effort to rebuild the town. And out in the distance, towering above all of this was a giant castle in the midst of reconstruction.
"It's Hollow Bastion!" Sora exclaimed in an excited tone. This place had definitely come a long way from the desolate, lifeless world ruled darkness to…well…hope.
"Wow…" Weiss whispered out as she looked around. This place definitely seemed pretty similar to Vale. High walls, ongoing construction and people milling about, ignoring the ongoing threat to their lives. Now, if there was someone wielding a sword that was also a gun, then it would feel just like home.
"Gawrsh, it looks kinda different now." Goofy noted.
"I hope Leon and the gang are doing okay." Donald got out.
"Yeah…" Sora said. "…I wonder if he's still taking care of the Dalmatians."
Weiss raised an eyebrow to that, only to hear metal clanking around. She turned to see some Soldier Heartless running across the rooftops. "Heartless!" She called out.
Goofy noticed them too and nodded. "Yep. Looks like we're gonna have to do some fightin'."
"Yes…" Weiss replied as Donald and Sora nodded as well. "It's like I'm not even on a different world…" She thought before walking off.
The group decided to explore the Marketplace first and to check out the items available. Weiss got to meet Donald's nephews, Huey, Dewy and Louie, who were running the local item shop. Of course, they didn't offer family discounts, something Donald attributed to his uncle.
Speaking of him…
The group soon came across an elderly duck holding some ice cream near a freezer. The ice-cream…looked like frozen liquid garbage.
"Uncle Scrooge!?" Donald exclaimed.
"Er, who?" Sora asked with a confused look on his face.
"He's Donald's uncle—a business typhoon!" Goofy informed.
"Tycoon." Donald corrected without missing a beat.
"Before the Heartless showed up, he travelled the worlds on a Gummi Ship with the King. He was helpin' to set up a traffic system." Goofy continued.
"Transit system!" Donald corrected once more in a little more annoyance.
Weiss couldn't help but think of her father and shook her head. A monopoly on an essential service. Somethings really don't change, even on different worlds.
"What's all the racket?" The elderly duck complained before he turned to see the group. "Why, if it isn't Donald! And Goofy! Hello, lads! Aye, you all look hale and hearty!"
"Oh great, another duck I can barely understand." Weiss thought as her eye twitched.
"So do you, Uncle Scrooge." Donald replied.
"Ah, if only I were..." Scrooge lamented. "I canna seem to recreate my favourite old-time ice cream. I'd make millions if I just got it right..."
"Well…what is that made of?" Weiss had to ask.
"A secret combination of tuna and chocolate with a hint of vanilla, lass." Scrooge happily informed, causing the four to look green as the shrewd duck gave his amalgamation a taste. "Bah! Terrible…!"
"From transit system to…ice cream." Weiss muttered. "…I wish some people did that with their lives." She mentally added as they made their way to the Borough. "So…This Leon…"
"Oh yeah, he's a friend of mine." Sora answered with a nostalgic smile. "He acts cool and stuff but he's really a big softie. I remember seeing him playing with the Dalmatians in Traverse Town. It was so worth finding all 99 of them."
"Excuse me, ninety-nine!?" Weiss exclaimed. Oh, that sounded painful…if the poor dog wasn't dead…
"O-Oh, Leon explained it to me, it's not-" Sora began to explain, only for some sort of weird light pillars appear in front of them, stopping them in their tracks. "WHOA!"
"Hey, what's going on?" The duck demanded.
"That's the town's defence mechanism." A voice answered, causing the group to look up to see a woman dressed up like a ninja on top of a building.
"Yuffie!" Sora called out with a smile.
The ninja waved back, only to notice something approaching the group from behind. "Look out!"
SLASH!
Sora had already sliced through the Dusk as everyone else summoned their weapons. "Won't these things leave us alone for once!?" Weiss complained as several more Nobodies surrounded them as she noticed that Yuffie was dealing with her own set of enemies.
"Nope!" Sora simply replied as he gripped his Keyblade. "Let's go!" He then shouted out as they dived out of the way of the oncoming Dusks.
"Thrusts against enemies like this won't work, cuts and slashes will make quick work of them." Weiss thought as she cartwheeled out of the way of one Dusk before slicing apart another, just as the town's defence mechanism launched the first Dusk in the air, which Donald fried with some lightning. "Sora! On your right!"
Sora didn't have to see as he slid behind the Dusk in an instant, confusing it for just long enough to be destroyed. "Thanks!" He called out before helping Goofy deal with a few more Dusks as the next wave of Nobodies spawned. They seem to resemble samurai.
Suddenly, one of these Samurai Nobodies locked eyes with the white-haired girl before settling into a stance.
"What the-"
SLASH!
Next thing Weiss knew, she felt like she was almost cut in half as the Nobody appeared behind her, swiftly putting away its blades.
Weiss almost lost consciousness right then and there, if it wasn't for Donald healing her before she hit the ground as Sora destroyed the Samurai when it was launched into the air. "Weiss! Are you okay!?" Goofy asked in concern.
"I'll…" Weiss groaned before quickly dashing forward and stabbing a Samurai through the head. "I'll live."
Yen Sid was right. She had to discard her old ways if she wished to survive against these monsters.
"…BURST!"
SHATTER!
In a flash, Weiss went into her Burst Form and created a red glyph behind herself before shattering it as she leapt off it, dashing head-first at the enemy.
Well, at least her glyphs worked now.
With one swing of her scythe tore through the Nobodies like it was nothing, but the heiress didn't have time to admire the power of her form as she used Petal Burst to appear behind a Samurai and sliced in half before swinging her weapon around to tear through more.
However, her wild attacks were forcing her allies to dodge due to the small area they were fighting in. "Whoa! Watch where you're swinging that thing!" Donald yelled out after ducking under a decapitating slice.
"Sorry!" Weiss quickly apologized before guarding against several Nobodies just as the defence mechanism launched her foes into the air. "Sora!"
"I got it!" Sora called out as he jumped up, did a quick combo before finishing the last of the Nobodies with a final big swing and landing on the ground. "Whew! I hope that's the last of them…"
"Yeah…" Weiss panted out as she reverted back to her normal form. Whatever those fairies did to her clothes, it stabilised her glyphs. She didn't know how or why, but she wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth.
"Well, that was fancy." Yuffie got out as she leapt off the building. "A new friend of Sora, I presume?"
"It's Weiss. A pleasure to meet you." Weiss breathed out as her Keyblade flashed out of her hands.
"Nice to meet you Weiss." Yuffie giggled out before turning to the boys. "And I see you're still in top form."
"What'd you expect?" Sora said in a smug tone as he hit his chest. "Looks like you're doing okay."
"Well, what did you expect?" Yuffie countered.
"How are the others?" The mage questioned.
"Great!"
"Hey, Yuffie! Have you seen the King and Riku?" Sora had to ask in a hopeful tone.
"Nope." Yuffie simply answered.
"O-Oh! Have you also seen a girl with a red cloak? Maybe a girl with long blonde hair? Or a cat Faunus?" Weiss also asked.
"What's a Faunus?" Yuffie got out in confusion before shaking her head. "I don't think I've anyone like that too."
Sora and Weiss slumped to the answers as Goofy patted their backs. "Don't worry, we'll find ya friends soon."
Yuffie began to skip down the path, presumably towards their Merlin's house, before turning to Sora. "But you know…I had a feeling I'd see you guys again."
Sora couldn't help but snap back from his sad expression before putting a hand over his face. "We may never meet again, but we'll never forget each other." He quoted, his voice sounding like brooding was his hobby.
"Is that supposed to be Leon?" Yuffie however pointed out, causing Sora to blush and Donald and Goofy to laugh. If Weiss didn't feel left out now, she definitely felt it now.
Yuffie giggled at that. "Everybody's working on stuff over at Merlin's house. C'mon! We gotta introduce your new friend to them." She then said before dashing around a corner.
"H-Hey, wait up!" Sora called out as he began to chase after the ninja, only for several Heartless to spawn. "Oh, come on! Not even five feet?" He then groaned out before slashing through the darkness while the town's defence mechanism did its thing.
"A defence mechanism…" Weiss whispered to herself as watched it do its thing before shaking her head and started fighting the Heartless as well.
This was going to be an eventful walk to Merlin's house.
Sora and company eventually made it to the house, which took a lot longer than the distance they had to travel promised. Weiss couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. These Heartless were really giving her a workout.
After catching her breath, she looked up to see Yuffie letting them in, allowing them to see the rather cluttered place as well several people gathered around a computer, an older-looking man typing on it as various windows and letters Weiss couldn't hope to understand flashed on screen.
However, once she saw the Gunblade on the man with the black jacket's back, she just sighed.
Exactly. Like. Remnant.
However, Yuffie smiled as she showed the group. "Meet the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee!" The ninja happily introduced, causing everyone to turn and see Sora, Weiss, Donald and Goofy walk in and shut the door behind them.
"Hey guys!" Sora greeted.
"We missed you!" Aerith said in a pleased tone.
"Well, if you ain't in top shape." Cid got out as he flicked his nose. "Who's yer new friend?"
"It's Weiss. A pleasure to meet friends of Sora." Weiss replied with a bow.
"Yeah, and she can wield a Keyblade just like Sora!" Yuffie added.
"Really? I thought there was only one." Cid muttered to himself.
Leon however smirked. "I knew it."
"Knew what?" Sora repeated in confusion.
"A while back, everyone suddenly remembered you guys, all at the same time." Leon explained.
"What?" Weiss got out with a raised eyebrow. That…seemed a little strange…
However, the more experienced Keyblade wielder had other concerns. "You...remembered? Wait! Does that mean you forgot about us!? What happened to never forgetting each other!?" He then exclaimed.
"I also said that we may never meet again, but look where you are now." Leon shot back.
"Do you have any idea what made you all remember?" Weiss had to ask.
"No, not really." Aerith answered with a shake of her head.
"Yeah, we were in the middle of a meeting and then suddenly we all just called out your name." Yuffie said. "So where've you guys been all this time?"
"We were sleepin'." Goofy replied.
"Where? In cold storage?" Cid sarcastically guessed. However, the sheepish looks from the group told everyone everything.
"You could…say that." Weiss mumbled out.
"Yeah, we found Weiss sleeping with Sora!" Donald then got out before shutting his mouth. However, it was too late as the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee began to cough while Sora and Weiss blushed.
"A-Aren't you a little young to do that!?" Cid exclaimed.
"W-We were just in the same…Look, don't misconstrue this!" Weiss called out as she flailed her arms around.
"Y-Yeah…" Sora mumbled out as he looked away.
He was kinda thankful that Kairi wasn't here or in his heart. She would give him so much-
"It doesn't matter." Aerith interrupted, trying to change the subject. "This is great. Everyone's together again!"
Sora just nodded to that, thankful for the save. "So, um...we're trying to find Riku and the King. Have you seen 'em?" He had to ask.
Leon, Aerith, and Cid could only shake their heads. "Right." Sora sighed out.
"Um…At the very least, have you seen a girl with a red cloak? Or cat ears? Long blonde hair?"
"Oh, cat ears… do you mean a Miqo'te?" Yuffie guessed.
"Yeah!" Weiss got out in an excited tone. It must be their name for Faunus. "Her name is Blake! Do you know her?"
"Oh, that's her name? Then she's probably not a Miqo'te." Yuffie then stated, causing Weiss to slump.
"Sorry. But let us know if there's anything we can do to help. Okay?" Aerith offered.
"Okay. Thanks." Sora got out, only for Cid to get uncomfortably close to the two Keyblade wielders.
"Don't go thankin' us just yet." Cid said.
"Hollow Bastion's got a problem. A big problem." Leon stated in a serious tone.
"You mean, like Nobodies?" Sora guessed as he leaned to Cid's left.
"And the Heartless?" Weiss added as she leaned to Cid's right.
"That's right!" Yuffie got out.
"Sounds like you could use our help." Sora said as he rubbed his nose. Anything to help his friends take back their world.
Leon couldn't help but smile at that. He hadn't changed one bit. "Then let's cut to the chase. Sora, Weiss, Donald, Goofy. We were hoping the four of you might give us a hand around here."
"Like we're gonna say, no?" Sora pointed out as he thumped his chest proudly.
"Well…It is our duty…" Weiss said as she twitched her hand, almost feeling her Keyblade in it. "Don't worry, we'll help you Leon."
"Hm. You seem to have a knack for that, huh." Leon noted as he looked directly at Sora.
"Hey...what do you mean by that?" Donald asked in a suspicious tone.
"Just think of it as a sort of…Leon compliment." Aerith suggested, causing Cid and Yuffie to chuckle quietly as Leon opened the door.
"Follow me to the bailey—there's something you need to see." The man ordered before leaving.
However, before the group could follow him, a poof of colourful smoke stopped them in their tracks as an old man dressed his blue pyjamas appeared. "I thought it was you. Right on time!"
"It's Merlin!" Donald happily got out…right before coughing as the smoke entered their lung. "Ack!"
"W-What the…" Weiss thought as she waved the smoke away. She definitely not used to magic being a thing that everyone apparently had.
"You always gotta do that?" Cid coughed out his complaint.
After the smoke cleared out, Yuffie pushed Weiss forward. "Sora and the gang made a new friend and they said they're gonna help out!" She introduced as the wizard looked at the white haired girl.
"Hmm…So you're friends with Arthur's descendant. Do you know or am I off a few decades…?"
"Excuse me?"
"Splendid!" Merlin called out, ignoring Weiss' bewildered expression. "What's your name, miss?"
"W-Weiss Schnee?" The heiress answered, a little weirded out by the old man.
"Splendid! We'll have your card ready in a jiffy!"
"No magic!" Cid quickly called out. "Remember last time!?"
"Aw…"
This caused Aerith to remember something as she pulled out three cards from her dress. "Here... they're presents for you. Leon thought you might like to have them. She explained as she handed Sora, Donald and Goofy a card.
Sora raised one of his eyebrows before flipping the card. "Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee Honorary Member!"
"Membership cards!" Donald realised.
"Kinda cool, huh?" Goofy got out as Donald and Sora nodded.
"You get 5% off on anything in the Marketplace." Aerith informed before looking at Weiss, who looked a little left out. "Don't worry, we'll get one soon. I promise, or else Squall has to hear from me."
"…Who's Squall?" Weiss asked in a confused tone.
"Oh, that's just Leahhh...huh?" Sora began as he turned around to the door and sees that Leon is gone. "Oh no! We're supposed to be at the bailey!"
"It's not too far from here, Sora." Yuffie said. "I bet he's brooding to pass the time."
"Well, we gotta go." Sora said as he was just about to go, only for Merlin to stop the group again. "What now?"
"Just a moment, Sora. What about your magic?" Merlin asked.
"Huh? Oh, that's right..." Sora got out as he crossed his arms and frowned. "Uh…How do I do Gravity again…"
"Maybe you forgot it while you were asleep!" Yuffie guessed. "And what about you, Weiss?"
"Well…I never learned any…" Weiss informed as she summoned her Keyblade, staring at the cylinder. The "Dust" in there was most likely decorative and she didn't have any spare vials on her. If she were to fight the Organisation, she would need some sort of substitute…
"Now, what am I to do with you? Spells are a necessity for any wielder of the Keyblade." Merlin sighed out. "I suppose I'll have to lend you a few spells. But be careful with them!" He soon warned before waving his wand around, causing Sora and Weiss to glow.
"Whoa…!" Sora got out as he giggled at the feeling. "I can never get used to that…"
"What the…" Weiss breathed out as she felt this…energy suddenly flow through her body, as if a dam had just broken open and let out all its water. "What did you do?"
"Unlocked your magical potential, my dear." Merlin answered. "Now, from what I can tell, your clothes will absorb the mana in the atmosphere when you've depleted your reserves. Much more reliable than using your adrenaline to generate it." He then noted. "I also slipped in a spell into your mind, so just think of it, focus it into your Keyblades, aim and cast. As simple as that."
Weiss stared at her hands before summoning her Keyblade and focusing on a nearby candle. "…Blizzard!" She called out before shooting a spreading burst of ice crystals ice at a nearby lit candle, causing the flame to be put out…and freeze the candle solid…as well as other things around the candle. "Ah…!" She gasped out.
Was magic supposed to be that easy!?
"Nice! My turn!" Sora called out as he summoned his own Keyblade. "Fire!" He then commanded, two fireballs circling around him and melting the ice. "Ha ha! That's new! Thanks, Merlin!"
"You could've tested that stuff on the Heartless outside!" Cid yelled out, causing the two wielders to blush as he went to get a mop.
"U-Uh…Well, we gotta go! Leon's waiting for us!" Sora quickly got out before running out the door.
"Hold on, SORA!" Donald yelled out as he and Goofy chased after the boy.
However, Weiss stayed behind as she walked up the computer. "Hey, don't touch that." Yuffie warned.
"I won't, just…" Weiss got out before looking at the complicated screen. "This runs the entire defence system?"
"Well…we are drawing the computing power from somewhere else but yes." Aerith answered as Cid came back with a mop.
Weiss nodded to that as she approached the gruff-looking man. "Um…excuse me, do you mind if you let me have a copy of the plans to this defence mechanism?" She soon asked.
"Whaddya need it for?" Cid had to ask as he narrowed his eyes.
"Well…My world has its own problems." Weiss explained. "This system could revolutionise security all around my world. With enough tweaking, this system could save a lot of lives."
"Well…I might have a copy of it somewhere…" Cid began. "But only if ya clean up your mess. Keyblade wieldin' or not, ya ain't above mopping." He then got out before shoving the mop into Weiss' hands.
"That's fair. Sora, we should-" Weiss said as she turned only to 1) see that the group was gone and 2) hear the sounds of battle and Sora testing out his new spell on more lively targets.
There were many things Sora was willing to do for his friends.
Chores weren't one of them.
Sora (sporting a bump to the head and icicles sticking to his clothes) and company managed to reach the bailey, where they saw Leon looking over the edge at a dark castle far in the distance.
"Look at that." Leon soon got out, pointing towards the castle.
Weiss' eyes widened at the sight of the castle. Even from here she could feel this…this dark presence surrounding it. Was that…a Heartless stronghold?
Was there something like this in Remnant?
She was snapped out of her thoughts when her eyes drifted down towards the chasm as she and Sora gasped.
In was nothing but pure darkness, where no light could ever escape. Only the specks of moving yellow eyes made her realise that it wasn't just pure darkness…but the monsters she's been fighting ever since she woke up.
Was that…Was that all Heartless…?
There had to be easily…millions swarming around at the bottom of that canyon.
"We want to restore Hollow Bastion to what it used to be." Leon began. "Who knows—maybe even something better. There's still a lot to do, but I'm sure we can handle everything—Except...for that..." He continued before looking down. "...And that." He finished as they watch two Dusks making their way towards the castle.
"We'll handle 'em!" Sora assured.
"Sora!" Weiss exclaimed as she stepped back from the balcony, feeling a little lightheaded. "You…You can't be serious!? We can't handle all of them!"
"M-Maybe you should listen to Weiss." Goofy suggested, his teeth chattering.
"We're talking millions Sora! Not even the King can handle that many!" Donald shouted out.
"Come one guys! Donald, Goofy! We saved the worlds together, we defeated Ansem together! And we're gonna fix Hollow Bastion together!" Sora stated with a goofy smile. "Come on, Weiss! Are you with me?"
Weiss gulped. That optimism…That careless smile…
If he had darker hair with red tips, she would be looking at Ruby's brother…or a male version of her.
And that made Weiss smile.
Remnant needed people like him and Ruby…a guiding light to shine in the darkest moments…with the strength and skill to protect it all the way…
"…Okay." Weiss answered as she put on a brave face. "Let's go eliminate this threat."
"WHAT!?" Donald and Goofy exclaimed in shock. They had at least expected Weiss to remain sane right now.
Still…they'd never abandon their friends…
Leon, however, couldn't help but chuckle. Sora's influence hadn't lost its touch. "Well, that's good to hear. So Sora—do you know what's going on, then?"
Sora nodded in response. "There's this guy, Pete, who's been going around plotting with the Heartless. But he's not smart enough to tie his own shoes. The ones we need to worry about are the Nobodies."
"And those Organization XIII guys in charge, too!" Goofy added.
"You called?"
Weiss' heart stopped for a second. "What the…?" She whispered out as they all looked around as Sora ran into the open. Weiss followed after him, her instincts telling her to get ready.
"You're doing well."
"Who's that!?" Sora called out as he and Weiss summoned their Keyblades.
"Show yourselves!" Weiss demanded as she looked around. How were they doing this!?
"This calls for a celebration..."
SNAP!
The snap echoed throughout the bailey, it source unknown. It was almost deafening to them.
Suddenly, several Dusk appeared around the group, each and every person taking out their weapons before they began fighting the enemies.
"Damn! The gate!" Leon suddenly cursed as a few Nobodies shot past them.
"Don't worry! We got it from here!" Sora assured as he slid around a Dusk and took it out in a quick combo. "Worry about the rest of the town!"
Leon looked like he wanted to argue, but he knew that Sora was right. With a shake of his head, he ran back towards the gate while slicing through Nobodies.
Sora rolled to the side before casting Fire around him, burning several Dusks before slashing through them. "Donald!"
"Right here!" The duck called out as he rained Thunder upon the stragglers. "How many are they gonna send at us!?" He then complained.
"I don't know, just keep fighting! Blizzard!" Weiss called out, her Keyblade recoiling from the blast of ice she casted upon the Nobodies, even managing to freeze a few of them.
Goofy followed it up by smashing through them before launching one of the frozen Dusks up. "Weiss!"
"Got it!" The heiress responded as she casted a glyph underneath herself, launching her into the air and allowing her to smash the frozen enemy back to the floor, damaging several more.
That was...oddly smooth…
Well, she didn't have time to think about it as she landed on the ground and thrust her Keyblade forward, taking out several Nobodies.
It didn't take much longer for the group to take out all the Nobodies.
"That's the last of them…" Weiss panted out as she allowed herself to relax.
"Alright! Who's next!?" Sora called out before gasping as several more Dusks appeared and tried to slice him up. He rolled out of the way and sliced through them.
"Our heroes grow arrogant. We will have to teach them a little lesson."
SNAP!
Weiss bit back a curse as more Nobodies appeared to attack them.
"Wak! There's more!" Donald exclaimed before frying the Creepers with Thunder.
"I can see that! Keep going!" Weiss called out before cartwheeling out of the way of an attack before countering with a quick thrust.
Sora panted as he destroyed another Nobody. "We can't lose here…" He whispered to himself before tapping into his new power. "GIVE ME STRENGTH! VALOR!"
With that, holding his Kingdom Key in one hand and Oathkeeper in another, be became a blur of red lightning and light as he furious tore through the wave of Nobodies.
Meanwhile, Donald and Goofy were beginning to tire out as they bashed away the Dusks, just as a wave of Creepers and Samurai spawned.
"WAK!" Donald cried out as Samurai rushed towards him. However, Goofy guarded against the attack before knocking the Samurai away. "Goofy!"
"Gotcha, Donald!" Goofy got out with a smile, only for both of them to scream as several Creepers proceeded to dogpile them.
"Donald! Goofy!" Sora called out upon seeing his friends get taken out, already ignoring his enemies to focus on saving the knight and mage, but it left him open to attack.
Weiss saw this, as well as a Samurai getting ready to slice him in half. So she eliminated the Dusk she was dealing with before leaping into the way of the Samurai's path, instinctively guarding against the Samurai, who quickly put away its sword.
So Weiss did the same, putting Edelweiss by her hip.
[Duel Stance]
The world faded around Weiss as she slowed her breathing.
It was only her and the Samurai.
All other fights and enemies didn't matter.
This was just between her and them.
…
…
…
…
Suddenly, Weiss' eyes snapped open.
[The End]
SLASH!
And with that, the Samurai as well as several Dusks were destroyed.
"Way to go, Weiss!" Sora cheered out as he threw a Potion over to the two knocked-out allies. "Don't give up just yet!"
"Wasn't planning on it!" Weiss called back as several more Dusks spawned around her. "And I don't think these guys are either." She thought before the Dusks charged in at the same time.
SLASH! SLASH! BASH! CRACK! SLASH! SLASH! BASH! FWOOSH! SLASH! SLASH! BASH! CRACK! SLASH! SLASH! BASH! FWOOSH!
By the time Sora finished off the last Nobody, Weiss desperately wanted to just go home and sleep.
Sora and Weiss panted in exhaustion, dirty, sweaty but still holding onto their Keyblades with their limp arms, out Drive and magic. Donald and Goofy were picking themselves up but only after spending several minutes unconscious.
They'd won. Barely.
"Are…Are you okay?" Weiss breathlessly asked.
"Better…than…ever…" Sora panted out his response.
"The Keyblade...a truly marvellous weapon. Were it only in more...capable hands..."
The group suddenly heard several voices laugh, causing them to tighten their grip on their weapons.
"Show yourselves!" Sora called out went into his battle stance and looked around.
Weiss couldn't help but feel somewhat impressed that he had that much energy after such a long fight. Actually, she was impressed she still had energy to fight. She thought she'd do way worse after a year of sleep.
Suddenly, they looked up and saw eight cloaked figures appear, their hoods hiding their faces in shadows. However, Sora and Weiss could tell they had watched that fight and were smiling at them.
"Organization XIII!" Goofy called out.
"Good! Now we can settle this!" Sora got out, looking ready to leap up there and fight each and every one of them by himself. However, the heiress put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.
"Sora! Calm down!" Weiss called out as she glared at the people in black coats. "Why are you here!?"
The Organisation didn't respond as the central one shook his head. "What a shame... And here I thought we could be friends." He said, his deep voice sending shivers down Sora and Weiss' spines before nearly all the members began to laugh before disappearing.
However, Weiss noticed two members remaining behind, staring at her before they disappeared as well.
Why were they…
"Stop!" Donald called out, snapping Weiss out of her thought as he began to run towards the stairs only for a single cloaked man to appear as stop him in his tracks. "What's the big idea!?"
"Oopsy-daisy!" The cloaked man got out in a sarcastic tone.
"Move!" Sora called out, glaring at the man and that concerned the white haired girl. Where was this anger coming from?
They were the enemy, no doubt about that, but Sora seemed to look at the Organisation like they wronged him in some way, like kill his puppy.
"Now, do you think that's polite, shutting me down like that?"
"I said get outta the way!" Sora ordered as he aimed his Keyblade at the man, ready to blast him at any moment.
"As if! You can talk all you want, but that won't change a thing." The man stated.
"Then we're gonna make you move!" Donald threatened as the four went into their battle stances. He was out of magic right now but as soon as he recharged…
"See, that would work-if I were just any old dude. 'Cept I'm not. I'm with the Organization. Nothing any old about me." The man pointed out, Weiss knowing he had a smug smirk underneath his hood.
"Ha! Tough talk for someone who stood on the sidelines while his Nobody flunkeys did the fighting!" Sora taunted.
"Sora, don't antagonise them." Weiss got out
"You should listen to her. I think you got the wrong impression."
"Oh, as if!" Weiss snapped as she pointed Edelweiss at the Nobody. "You and your group tried to kidnap me!"
"Listen, Princess, we just wanted to show you the worlds. So why don't you come with us and we'll put all that under the bridge and start over?" The Organisation member asked as he reached out for the girl, only for her to slash the palm of his hand. It didn't even rip his glove. "What a shame…"
"You gonna cry?" Sora taunted.
"As if! Why don't I remind you how tough the crowd you're dealing with really is?" The man got out, confusing the group.
"Remind me?" Sora repeated with a before snapping out of it at the last second and glare at the man.
However, the man couldn't help but laugh at his face. "That's right, he used to give me that same exact look, like I drowned their goldfish."
"Who are you talking about?" Weiss demanded.
"I guess you think you can psych us out by saying really random stuff!" Sora assumed.
"Gee... I just don't know." The man then spread his arms open, challenging them to strike him down. The group was tempted to do so, but they knew he was just baiting them.
The man soon gave up before waving as a Corridor of Darkness appeared behind him. "Be good kids now!" He got out as he stepped back.
"Wait!" Donald shouted out as he leapt at the man, however he only ended up crashing to the ground. "Nuts! He got away!"
"That was weird. Who gave him the same look?" Sora questioned as he searched through his memories. Did he know what that guy was talking about?
"Y'know, I think he was just tryin' to confuse ya." Goofy guessed.
"Yeah, you're right. Only one me!" Sora stated in a confident tone.
Weiss however narrowed her eyes at the empty space where the Organisation member was. "Did Sora…?" She muttered out before shaking her head.
There was no way, right?
Well, whatever that man said, it surely wasn't random stuff.
"I really need to get Cid to put claymores along the city walls…" Leon muttered to himself as he returned to the group.
"Oh, Leon! How's the town?" Sora asked.
"Safe." Leon answered with a nod. "The others are doing a sweep of the area but from what I can tell, whoever summoned the Nobodies focused all their efforts on you."
"That's a relief…" Sora breathed out.
"At least the civilians are safe…" Weiss sighed out, only to see Leon hold something in front of her. "Hm?"
"For you." Leon simply replied before handing the heiress the card.
"Hey, you got your own membership card!" Sora said in a happy tone.
"Yeah…" Weiss got out with a nod as she flipped the card to see her name. Since she didn't have any access to the SDC funds, she was quite thankful that she got a 5% dis-
SHINE!
Weiss gasped as she instinctively let go of the membership card. However instead of obeying the laws of gravity, it began to float into the air.
"What in the…" Weiss got out in awe before seeing Edelweiss and the Kingdom Key glow.
"Urgh…I told Merlin to stop using magic to make our cards…" Leon groaned out.
"Gawrsh, ya think...?" Goofy assumed as Sora and Weiss stood back-to-back, pointing their Keyblades at the ground.
From there, light flashed from the Keyblades and the card, wind blowing through Weiss and Sora's clothes and hair as a crown and heart symbol appeared on the ground beneath them. The card then let out a beam of light revealing a Keyhole.
Weiss and Sora looked at each other before twirling around their Keyblades before aiming at the Keyhole, shooting beams of light at it and hearing a distinctive…
Click!
"…What was that?" Weiss got out in confusion. Did they just go into another dimension just now!?
However, Sora knew what had happened as he glanced at his Keyblade. "Ohh...now I get it. That must've been the gate Yen Sid talked about."
"Oh boy!" Donald cheered out as Weiss picked up her membership card from the ground.
"Sorry to run, Leon, but other worlds are calling." Sora declared.
Leon nodded at that. "Organization XIII... They look tough. Be careful out there."
"…We will." Weiss responded as she put the card in her Moogle pouch. "And we promise to help Hollow Bastion when all of this is over."
Organisation XIII…she had so many questions about them, especially now. If they were named Organisation XIII, where are the other five? And what did that man from before mean?
Maybe finding her other teammates might become the least of her worries
"…Thanks." The Gunblade wielder replied with a nod.
"See ya soon." Sora got out as he saluted the man.
"Ah, before you go…" Leon began before pulling something out from behind his back…to reveal a very large sack. "You need any rice balls?"
Chapter 5: Organisation
The Petal Report
No. 5
Remnant continues to intrigue me, to make me question what we determine as true.
I have made an observation of what happens when one dies within this world.
I have seen many Huntsmen and Huntresses fall in battle, defending what is left of their homes, and I began to see something odd.
These Hunters... a rather important occupation in this world. One would need a strong heart in order to defend the light, so it is assumed all Hunters have strong hearts - hearts worthy to wield Keyblades. As you know, if one strong of heart becomes a Heartless, they will leave an empty shell behind that will begin to act and move on its own.
They have produced neither.
No heart. No body. They do not fade into light or return to darkness. They simply... return to dust from whence they came. It holds credence to my hypothesis. But how can that be? There is no possible explanation as of now that can answer this puzzling question.
Further study is needed.