Chapter 32: the loot of a thousand worlds
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. Now for the conclusion of treasure planet! I've been told Riku escapes from the empire while Vader and Xemnas duke it out. I wonder those two would team up if the original story and remake respond.
With that out of the way, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!
The pirates immediately restrained Sora, Jim and B.E.N., and with their friends held hostage, nothing could be done to stop them. Silver tossed the map up and down in his hands, chuckling triumphantly. "A fine plan, Jack," he said to the pirate with the prisoners. "Went off without a hitch!"
"Jack!" Sora growled as the pirates held him.
"Oh, please. You didn't see this coming?" Jack slurred. "You're even denser than I gave you credit for! But don't worry. When I'm filthy, stinkin' rich, you'll be in my prayers. Take it away, Silver!"
Silver grinned and examined the map in his hands. The sphere twisted around like a Rubik's cube but, as Silver worked with it, he frowned in annoyance. No matter how many times he worked it, he couldn't get it to open. It came to the point where he was banging on it with his metal arm.
"Having trouble?" Jim asked snidely. Silver stopped to glare at him. He motioned for the pirates to release him and then thrust the map into his hands.
"Open it!" he growled.
Doppler spat out his gag. "Don't do it, Jim! Whatever happens, don't do it!" Silver's arm gun was pointed at his face. "Do it! Do it now! Hurry up!"
"I'd listen to the Doc if you value his life," Silver whispered. Jim scowled, knowing he had no choice. Without even looking, he twisted the map into its correct position. When he was done, the sphere glowed with a green light that brightened the dark house. Holographic images of planets and stars suddenly filled the room and everyone, pirate and hero alike, was awestruck.
"By the powers, would ya look at that," Silver whispered.
"It really is a map of the universe," Sora said, looking at all the worlds. He could pick out a few he knew. Halloween Town, the Pride Lands, he could even see Destiny Islands among all of the others. It was incredible. In the middle of all of them was Treasure Planet which suddenly shot out of the map and out the door, leaving behind a glowing green trail of light. The path to the treasure.
"We have our heading!" Jack laughed.
KHKHKHKH
"All right," Pete sighed. "I'll admit this plan has hit a few snags."
"A FEW!?" Gantu snapped, momentarily stopping his repairs to the ship which was plowed into the earth. A trail of broken trees was evidence of their crash. 625 lounged on the roof with a plethora of sandwich condiments around him. "We've nearly been killed on several separate occasions! We had less pain with Maleficent! And for what!? I don't see any treasure around! Do you!?"
"Nothing around but two losers and their enormous behinds," 625 put in.
Pete pulled on his collar nervously. "Well, I don't really know where the treasure is. The stories just say Flint hid it on this world! Maybe he buried it?"
"Well, then let's just start digging!" Gantu shouted sarcastically. "Too bad I forgot my shovel! Let's just dig with our bare hands then!"
"What the...?" The two henchmen looked to 625 who was staring up to the sky. A green stream of light was glowing above them, splitting the sky in half. "Is that relish? Are my sandwich- induced fantasies coming true?" Suddenly, a solar sailor passed over head, following the green light and taking no notice of them.
Pete started laughing. "I'll tell you what we're gonna do! We're gonna follow the glowing green road! Those losers know something we don't and its gotta be about the treasure! Come on boys!" He took off into the forest, not bothering to wait for the others.
Gantu slapped his forehead. "I'll be lucky to get out of this alive."
"Less talking, more walking, blubber-butt," 625 said, following Pete. Gantu growled and followed after.
The solar sailor carrying the pirates and heroes landed in a clearing some ways from B.E.N.'s house. They would proceed on foot from here. "Leave the prisoners here," Silver ordered. One alien would stay behind with the sailor to guard Amelia, Doppler, Ron and Kim. "You're coming with us," he said to Kairi. "We need extra hands to carry the loot. Come on, boys! The treasure awaits!" The crew eagerly sliced through the trees, still following the trail set out for them.
Morph whimpered beside Kairi. "Don't worry, Morph. It's gonna be okay," she said gently.
"That's right," Sora agreed, eyeing the pirates. "This isn't over yet."
"Well, I don't know about you guys...," B.E.N. said casually. "But I'm beginning to see my life flash before my eyes. At least...I think its my life."
"Don't worry," Jim whispered. "We'll think of something."
Silver chopped through the fungal trees with his arm-sword, the path still glowing above him. "I can smell it! We're gettin' close!" He chopped through another set of trees and saw the path had ended...right at the edge of a cliff. "What!" The glowing path stopped short as the earth they walked on dropped into a grassy valley below.
"There's nothing here!" Jack shouted, more than a little ticked. "One great, big stinking hunk of nothing!" The other pirates angrily expressed similar sentiments.
Jim held the map in his hands, trying to figure out what was going on. "I don't get it. It won't work!" He kept twisting and turning but this time nothing would happen.
"Well, then I suggest you get it to work!" Silver growled.
"We shouldn't have followed this boy!", a pirate snarled.
"Let's rip out his gizzard right now!", said another.
"Throw him off the cliff!" The crew closed in around them with menacing intent. Sora and Kairi drew their Keyblades and backed away to the cliff behind them.
"Jim, anytime you want to try something...," Kairi said as the pirates came close. Jim tried the map again and again with no results. While he tried, something in the ground caught his eye. He bent down and scraped away some moss. Lines and patterns were engraved in the rock, similar to the ones on the map. And there was one hole that looked like something was meant to fit into it. Jim looked at the map, then at the indent before he placed the sphere inside.
There was an immediate reaction. All the lines and carvings in the stone lit up with green light to form the map. The sphere then projected a miniature holographic image of the universe map. The pirates stopped advancing when a loud humming was heard. The air before them was suddenly split, opening before them to reveal a world. And not just any world.
"Port Royal?" Jack gasped. "How did that get there?" Floating in the rift was Jack's home world, just as he had left it. The beautiful waters of the Carribean glowing as it floated peacefully in space.
"But that's so far away...," Kairi whispered. They left it far behind them after they picked Jack up.
"A big door...," Jim said.
"...opening and closing." Sora finished.
"Hey, that's what I said!" B.E.N. exclaimed. "Isn't it?"
"By the powers," Silver breathed, looking at it in astonishment.
Jim approached the small holo map before him. The hologram showed many worlds, tiny in size. He searched around, then tapped the image of a designated world. The door before them then changed. Port Royal disappeared and in its place was the crescent shaped port world they had departed from. "Montressor space port." Jim stated. Sora tapped another world on the map. The door opened and closed again to show Radiant Garden But to his dismay, the whole world was guarded by Star Destroyers. "It's a portal. This is how Flint did it. He used this portal to roam the universe stealing treasure."
"But where'd he stash it all!?" Silver snapped, pushing Jim aside and touching the map many times opening and closing the portal to many worlds rapidly. "Where's that blasted treasure?!"
B.E.N. tapped his metal head. "Treasure, treasure...buried in the centroid..."
"Buried in the centroid mechanism," Kairi finished.
"That's right! You finished my sentence for me!"
"Centroid mechanism," Jim repeated. "What if this whole planet is the mechanism...and the treasure is buried in the center of this planet?" Everyone took in what he just said.
"Start digging, lads!" Jack ordered the crew. The aliens immediately got on their hands and knees and started clawing at the earth frantically.
"And how in the blazes are we supposed to get there!?" Silver growled. Jim smirked, knowing exactly what to do. He searched the map and found what he was looking for.
"Just open the right door," he answered. He tapped the location of Treasure Planet. The door changed yet again to what looked like the inside of a cave, with a stone wall overhead. Cautiously, Jim reached his hand through and walked in to the other side. The rest followed suit, stepping through the portal to the awe-inspiring sight on the other side.
They were not just in the planet core but the most valuable planet core in the history of the universe. The entire ball was covered in the treasure of Captain Flint: gold, silver, jewels and gems. Everywhere they looked, there were mountains of it. This place put Isla de Muerta and the Cave of Wonders to shame; for this wasn't the treasure of just one world, this was the loot of a thousand worlds.
"We're gonna need a bigger boat!" Jack exclaimed, acting like a kid in a candy store. He and the other pirates managed to stop drooling and finally dove in. They dug their hands through the coins, the touch of it enough to send them into insane giddiness. And why shouldn't it?
Silver sunk to his knees and dug his hands into the gold. If someone had looked closely, they would have seen tears in his real eye. "A lifetime of searching," he said softly. "At long last..." While he and the others were occupied, Sora, Jim, Kairi and B.E.N. managed to sneak away.
"You know, this is really frustrating," B.E.N. said, bonking himself. "There's something... nagging at me in the back of my head. This is just all very familiar..."
"Shhh," Jim whispered. He looked across the field of treasure and spotted an old ship with red sails laying among the gold. He started towards it.
"Where are you going?" Sora asked. Jim pointed to the ship.
"We're getting out of here," he replied. "And we're not leaving empty handed." He waded through the treasure and the others followed after him.
Back at the portal, three more people entered the planet core. Pete, Gantu and 625 stood on the treasure core, equally as amazed as the pirates were. "I take back everything I said," Gantu breathed. "This is by far the greatest idea you've ever had."
"You're damn right it was!" Pete said, with dollar signs in his eyes. "The legends were true! The loot of a thousand worlds!"
"You mean the loot of a thousand sandwiches!", 625 gushed. "Cause that's exactly what I'm gonna use this stuff for!"
"We're rich! We're wealthy! YAHOO!" The three joined hands and danced around in a circle before all of them dove right in, swimming through the coins like it was water.
Meanwhile, Jim, Sora, Kairi and B.E.N. climbed aboard the old ship. The wood was broken and the red sails were a little torn. The thing must have been out of commission for some time, but the fact that it was filled with gold and jewels lessened the impression of dilapidation.
"So what's the plan?" Sora asked as he hoisted Kairi aboard.
Jim looked at the control panels. They seemed to be in good working order. "If I can get this ship working, we can fly out of here with enough treasure for all of us. Forget Silver. He can have this place."
Kairi looked around a bit. "It could work. But we still have to get Amelia and-EEEKKK!" Kairi's hands shot to her mouth as she stared into the six eye sockets of an alien skeleton. It sat on a throne of gold, dressed in decaying old clothes and large hat.
"Captain Flint...," Jim whispered in awe.
"In the flesh," B.E.N. said. "Well, except for skin, organs or anything that resembles flesh."
Sora walked up to Flint, still an imposing figure even in death. "He stayed with his treasure till the end. No friends or anything. It's kind of sad."
Back with the others, Pete now wore a golden crown encrusted with gems and rings that shined with diamonds. He and his partners, along with the pirates, were gathering up treasure for the road. "I can finally fulfill my dream, to become the captain of my own luxury cruise line! Heck, why stop there? I can buy a whole fleet with this stash!" He dug deeper into a pile of coins, his greed intensifying with every sweep, until his hand gripped something that wasn't gold. Confused, he pulled it out and found himself looking straight into a sleek white face. "Oh, dear." A Samurai Nobody looked back at him, drew both its katanas and held them under Pete's fat chin. The fat cat smiled nervously; screaming like a banshee, he tossed the Nobody into a pile of coins, losing his crown and rings in the process.
Suddenly, treasure flew everywhere in small explosions. Dancer and Samurai Nobodies popped out of the gold core. All around they emerged, much to the surprise and shock of Silver and his crew.
"What the devil!?" Silver hollered as these ghastly apparitions surrounded them.
Jack popped his head out of the treasure as a result of the commotion, and saw all the Nobodies. "Oh dear, this can't be good." Jumping out of a pile, he grabbed the treasure that he had bagged up. With difficulty, he hefted it over his shoulder and headed for the portal opening. But, as he walked through it, he didn't notice the laser sensor that he'd accidently tripped.
Sora and the others looked over the rail of the damaged craft. "Nobodies!? Here!?" Sora exclaimed.
A look of horror passed over Kairi's face. "But that means..."
"Hello, all." Standing behind them all was the final female Chaser. She stared them all down with her arms crossed, Keyblade not yet drawn. "You must be the famous Sora. I don't believe we've been properly introduced. My name is Brisen."
"Woah! Who's the hot babe in metal?", B.E.N. asked slyly. "Sora, you gonna introduce me?"
"Who is she?" Jim whispered to Sora.
"Well, boy," Brisen hissed. "You can call me a hunter, or a collector. But I prefer... executioner!" She summoned her Keyblade and rushed at Sora with blinding speed. He barely had enough time to bring his Keyblade to block before he was knocked through the railing and onto the treasure below. Brisen jumped after him.
"Sora!" Kairi cried, jumping off to help him.
"Come on, boys!" Silver hollered, switching to his arm sword. "This loot be ours! Defend it with your morally corrupt lives!" The pirates and Nobodies fought in earnest. Lasers were fired and swords clashed. Dancer Nobodies kicked with finesse and the Samurai's swords skills were a force to be reckoned with. But the pirates weren't about to let all this gold fall into the hands of some freaks in suits!
KHKHKHKH
"Things that bother never you bother me, I'm as happy as pie," Jack sang as he lugged his bag of treasure through the forest. He hated to leave his mate Silver in such a fix back there but hey - treasure! "Living in the sunlight, loving in the moonlight, having a wonderful time! Now where did we park that ship?" He took the black compass on his Keyblade and watched as the dial swirled all around. "Oh, bugger you, compass! Why don't you work?" He stopped when his finely attuned pirate ears picked up someone coming down the path. Taking no chances, he took his bag and hid behind some trees.
"That green light went this way. I'm sure of it." Walking down the path were sonic, Mulan and Beast. Jack's heart skipped a beat. How did they get loose? "If we keep going this way, we're sure to find Sora," Mulan said.
"We're going in the right direction," sonic said. "Something must have happened."
"If they're in trouble, we'll have to fight," Beast grumbled. "I'm not afraid of taking on a few pirates. You?"
"Not me," sonic said smirking. "There's one pirate in particular I'm looking forward to meeting again." Jack gulped but not loud enough for them to hear.
"When I find that dirty double-crossing Jack," Beast growled. "I'm gonna rip his arms off and then beat him with them!" Jack hugged himself for comfort.
"Get in line," sonic said sadistically. "He won't be talking anytime soon when I rip his tongue out!" Jack slapped a hand over his mouth and whimpered.
"Break all his fingers!"
"Strangle him with his own intestines!"
"Puncture his lungs!"
This went on as they walked, with Mulan quite disgusted at how descriptive their Jack-killing talk went. But that couldn't compare to how scared Jack had become, trembling like a coward. He just prayed they would keep on walking by and not notice him at all.
"Hey, wait a minute," sonic said suddenly. "He's here!" Jack's eyes bulged out of their sockets. The three Keybladers turned to the trees where he was hiding.
"Come out, Jack!" Mulan called. "We know you're in there!"
"We promise not to hurt you," Beast said, sharpening his claws.
The pirate captain was doomed. There was barely any time to think. But luckily Jack was never without a plan to get him out of trouble.
With haste he began to slightly tear his clothes until he was satisfied, then using a handful of dirt, he dirtied his outfit a little. Next, he summoned his Keyblade. With a slightly regretful expression, he whacked himself right in the face.
"Jack! Come out! Or we're coming in after you!" sonic called. Jack took a deep breath and emerged from cover.
"Oh, thank the man top deck, you're alright!" Jack exclaimed, suddenly appearing and staggering over to them. He looked liked he was in some kind of fight with his torn dirtied clothes and black eye. "I knew you guys would make it! I just- acckk!" Beast abruptly grabbed him by his collar and lifted him off his feet.
"I've been waiting to do this ever since I met you," he growled.
"Any last words?" sonic hissed.
Jack waved his hands back and forth frantically. "N-no! Y-y-you don't understand! It was all part of my plan, see? I never betrayed you mates!" He looked back and forth at them all, trying to gain their sympathy.
"Spare me!" Beast spat.
"No, wait!" Mulan suddenly said. sonic and Beast looked to her, shocked, while Jack stared at her hopefully. "Let's hear what he has to say before we do anything else. What are you talking about, Jack?"
"Well, if Beasty would just let me down..." Beast snorted and didn't let go. "Okay, then. You see, if I didn't do what I did, when I did it, back on the ship, those evil, nasty pirates would have killed us! Really! They're tougher than they look! I knocked you blighters out to so they wouldn't cut you to shreds!"
"Really?" sonic asked, sarcastically.
"Yeah! It was my plan to earn their trust and beat them from the inside, so I could save Sora and Kairi from an untimely end! But they were captured and unfortunately, they found me out and I soon found myself in a fight for my life! I was barely able to escape alive. But I knew I had to help my friends somehow! I reckoned that if I freed you all, we might have a chance against those terrible brutes! I was just on my way to help you out. But lo and behold, you're alright!" Beast and sonic scowled. He smiled nervously.
"You expect us to believe that load?" sonic growled.
"You're about to get what's coming to you, Sparrow," Beast snarled. Jack whimpered as the two closed in...
Let him go," Mulan said.
"WHAT!" They both shouted. "You can't be serious!" Beast exclaimed.
"You actually believe him!?" sonic yelled. "Are you insane!? You can't trust him! Didn't you read the last chapter title!?" Mulan walked over to Jack and released him from Beast's grasp.
"If Jack says he had good intentions, then I believe him," she stated, standing in front of Jack. "Did you forget he's a Keyblader too? That means that his heart is pure."
"I didn't forget," Beast grumbled. "Because he used his Keyblade to knock us around!"
"Would you rather be full of holes?" Jack put in. "Cause those blokes would have blasted you to ribbons! I saved your life, mate!" Beast growled low and deep. Mulan turned around to look Jack right in the face.
"Jack," she said, looking straight in his eyes. "Was this all really a plan? Were you actually trying to save us?"
Jack was about to answer, but for some reason something stopped him. As he looked into those dark, foreign eyes, he felt a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach. Like his insides were being churned around in a vat. Could it be that Jack Sparrow, dirty, deceiving pirate captain, was feeling...guilty? Was it possible that his selfish ways were...wrong?
NAH!
"Yup! All part of my super ingenious plan!" Jack declared, smiling wide.
Mulan smiled back. "There you have it," she told the others. Beast and sonic's mouths hung open in disbelief.
"But...but...but," they stammered.
"We could stand here pointing fingers all day, mates!" Jack said, striking a dramatic pose. "Or we could get our rears in gear and save our mates! Onward!" He ran back down the path he came from and Mulan, still smiling, followed after.
sonic and Beast stood rooted to the spot, mouths still agape. Until Beast screamed and punched a nearby tree, cracking it in half and bringing it to the ground. He panted heavily to relieve his boiling anger.
"One of these days...," he snarled. He and sonic followed after the others. If they had looked back they would have seen that the tree Beast broke had fallen on a bag of treasure, spilling its gold onto the earth, all but forgotten by Jack in his scheme to survive.
KHKHKHKH
Sora and Kairi fought the Chaser Brisen two-on-one in the treasure core. Just like Aradan, she was powerful and skilled. Though not as physically strong, she was quick and deadly like a serpent with her Keyblade known as Serpentine. All around them, Silver and his pirates clashed with the Nobodies, not wanting to give up all of this loot. Pete, and Gantu were also present, but no one had seemed to notice them yet. It was probably because they were hiding behind piles of gold while the battle raged on around them.
Jim and B.E.N. watched it all from the old ship they stood on, both confused at what the heck was going on. "As odd as this is," B.E.N. said watching. "There's just something...horrible about this place that Flint didn't want anyone else to know! But...I just can't remember what it is! Oh, a mind is a terrible thing to lose!"
Jim managed to tear his eyes away from the battle to look at Flint's skeleton again. This time, something caught his attention. Something was clutched in Flint's boney hand. Curious, he approached it and opened the hand, wincing as the fingers broke away. He held in his hands a small piece of metal that sprouted broken wires. Jim raised an eyebrow then looked to B.E.N. who was still watching the fight, giving the boy a clear view of the back of the robot's head and the compartment missing his memory.
"B.E.N.," Jim said. "I think I've found your mind!" He rushed to the robot and inserted his mind back in its proper place.
"Whoa! Jimmy! Your hands are cold! You-" His eyes suddenly started blinking rapidly as the part took effect. "Hello! Let's see, Jimmy, I was just thinking...thinking? I can think! It's all flooding back! All my memories! Right up until Flint pulled my memory circuits so I could never tell anyone about his booby trap!" At that exact moment, explosions were heard above. "Speaking of which..."
All the fighting in the core stopped and everyone turned their eyes to the domed rock ceiling. "What's the meaning of this!?" Brisen shouted. Suddenly, fiery explosions went off at the base of a particularly large stalactite hanging above them.
"B.E.N., what's going on!?" Jim asked urgently.
"Flint wanted to make sure no one would ever steal his treasure," B.E.N. stuttered. "So he rigged this whole planet to blow higher than Peter Pan!" The stalactite was blown off its foundation and hurtled down, ready to collide with the core.
"Hit the dirt!" Sora yelled. The huge stone spike fell head on with the core, crushing a few Nobodies and splitting the core wide open. Everyone was rocked as the floor they stood on began cracking opening paths to pools of flowing magma below. More stalactites fell from the roof, creating more danger for everyone.
"B.E.N.!" Jim shouted, running to the ship's control panel. "You go back and help Doc and the Captain! If we're not back in ten minutes, leave without us!"
"Oh, no!" B.E.N. pulling on his shoulders. "I'm not gonna leave my buddy Jimmy behind!" Jim rounded and gave the robot the fiercest glare he could manage. "Unless he looks at me like that. Bye Jim!" He jumped off of the ship and made for the portal.
"This place is coming apart!" Kairi gasped, Sora catching her as she stumbled. "We have to get out of here!" Sora nodded and they both began to run until Brisen the Chaser blocked their path.
"No one is going anywhere!", she hissed. "This changes nothing! I'll bury you with this world and take your Keyblades for my own!" She charged for them head on, the fight beginning once again.
All around was utter chaos. Rocks continued to fall and the core continued to break into many pieces. Nobodies fell into gaps to the magma below as did the some of the pirates as they tried and failed to save the treasure from also falling into the magma.
"No! No! No!" Silver cried, clawing at the gold rushing past him like a landslide and falling into oblivion. Every bit of Flint's gold fell to the boiling hot magma and there was nothing he could do to stop it. The remainder of his crew rushed toward the portal and out of there, the treasure lost and their courage with it. "Get back here you cowards! I'll see you all keelhauled!" His threats just couldn't compare to the raging inferno the pirates faced now. But then Silver realized that Jim wasn't among them. His red eye scanned the area, which was difficult through the debris until it landed on the boy. He was standing on the deck of an old ship.
An old ship filled with treasure.
Silver managed a grin and set off for the ship.
"Come on!" Gantu shouted, pulling on Pete's legs while the fat cat clasped onto the ground. "We're gonna get killed here! We have to go!"
"I can't leave!" Pete whined, tears streaming down his face. "All this gold! All this loot! This is our ticket out of the henchmen business! We can't go! What about my cruise line!?"
"Dreams of a cruise line, or fiery death, blubber butt!" 625 shouted. "Make your choice! It's not a life or death question! Oh, wait, yes it is!" Pete looked at the fiery death around him and snapped out of it.
"What am I thinking!?" He shouted, jumping up and knocking over Gantu. "Let's get out of here, boys! Back to the ship! Back to Maleficent!" All three high tailed it out through the portal.
KHKHKHKH
Meanwhile, Amelia, Doppler, Kim and Ron were still under guard on the solar sailor, oblivious to the goings on in the planet's center. The one pirate guard kept watch over them with a rifle, a little annoyed that he had been chosen to stay behind while the others bathed in treasure.
Rufus bit down ineffectively on the metal cuffs around Ron's wrist, whimpering, and realizing he was useless. "Don't worry, Rufus," Kim whispered. "We'll find a way out of this somehow."
Doppler sighed suddenly. "I'm so sorry everyone. I wish I could be more helpful to you all."
"Don't be daft," Amelia said gently. "You've been very helpful, truly. We'd have been killed by those Imperials if it wasn't for you."
"I just feel like such a useless weakling. I've always dreamed of an adventure like this. And now that it's here..."
"You're not useless." Amelia said firmly. "At least...not to me."
"Awwwwwww!" Kim, Ron, Rufus and the pirate gushed. Everyone looked at the guard when they realized he'd joined in. He cleared his throat, embarrassed, and quickly looked away.
"Ahoy, mate!" Everyone turned to the voice. Emerging from the fungal forest was Jack Sparrow, seemingly alone.
"Sparrow...," Amelia hissed. The alien guarding them turn its attention to Jack when he called to him.
Jack smiled his wry smile. "Say, inept guard! I've got all this treasure down here but I can't carry it all by my lonesome. There's so much coin and jewels, it'd make emperor green with envy! Come help me out, eh?" After drooling a puddle, the guard hopped off the sailor and followed Jack into the forest, leaving the prisoners unattended.
After he was out of sight they heard the sounds of fists landing and grunts of pain and anguish. The captives all looked to each other in alarm as the sounds of struggles ceased. Finally, the trees parted and they held their breath. But as Mulan, Beast and sonic emerged dragging the knocked out guard, they sighed in relief. The Keybladers smiled and Jack came up behind them.
"And who ever said that pirates were bad people, eh?" he slurred, taking a gulp of rum.
KHKHKHKH
Kairi blocked Brisen's Keyblade again, then rolled out of the way before a rock fell on her from above. The Chaser then headed for Sora and traded blows with him. The boy just couldn't keep up with her lightning quick speed and was soon catapulted across the ground, just stopping at a ledge over the magma. Sora looked down and wished he hadn't, crawling away from the edge with haste. But, suddenly, Brisen came down from above ready to cleave him in two; Kairi's Keyblade flew to intercept her, knocking the Chaser off her course.
Back on the ship, Jim continued to work on getting the old vessel working. Connecting two cables together, the engines roared to life after many years. It began to rise off the ground once again, carrying a heck of a lot of treasure with it. "Yes! We did it Morph!" Jim exclaimed. Morph chirped happily.
"Jimbo!" Jim whipped around at Silver's voice. There he stood on the deck, looking at the treasure on board. The very last of Flint's gold, the rest gone over into the depths. "Aren't you a clever boy?" he said, approaching Jim. Jim backed away, spotting a stray sword laying among the gold. He grasped it and pointed it at the cyborg.
"Get...back!" he warned. Silver stared at the boy, then slowly became angry.
"I like you, lad," he whispered, advancing further. "But I've come too far to let you stand between me and my treasure." Jim held the sword but knew he could never hurt Silver. He could do nothing as he came closer.
Still on the core that was coming apart clashed the three Keybearers. Sora and Kairi were tiring fast. The blazing heat all around them was beginning to take its toll. But Brisen was unaffected by it underneath all that armour.
"Getting tired?" she asked smugly. "Well, you know what they say. Can't take the heat, surrender!" She sliced her Keyblade upward, sending a blast of hot air straight at them. They managed to get out of the way but there was nothing to stop it from hitting the ship behind them. The ship was knocked away and Silver and Jim were rocked over board. The cyborg managed to grab hold of the rail and land on solid ground but Jim flew over into a crevice, knocking against the wall before grabbing a handhold, nearly dislocating a shoulder in the process. A flaming abyss lay right below him.
"Oh, no you don't!" Silver growled. He kept the ship he hung onto stationary with the strength of his robot arm before it could get away from him. The last of the treasure was on that ship. If he lost that, he'd lose his entire purpose in life. And he wasn't about to let that happen! With all the effort he could muster, he pulled the ship. But, suddenly, his old friend Morph zipped to his face, spouting gibberish with great alarm and motioning toward Jim, who was hanging for his life.
"Jim!" Sora shouted, dodging the swipe of Brisen's Serpentine.
"Jimbo!" Silver gasped. The boy was too far away for him to reach as long as he held the ship and Sora and Kairi were tied up with the Chaser. Silver could help him, but it would mean letting go of the ship and giving up the treasure. Jim was beginning to slip. Silver clenched his teeth, looking between the gold that he had spent a lifetime searching for and the boy that he had grown so close to.
"Oh, blast me for a fool!"
He released the ship from his grasp and dove to catch Jim just before he lost his grip. "Don't worry, lad!", Silver smiled, hoisting him up. "I got ya!" Behind him, a huge stalactite fell through the ship, igniting the engines in flame, obliterating the last of the loot of a thousand worlds.
Sora and Kairi, meanwhile, barraged Brisen with many attacks from their Keyblades, forcing her back to a crevice. The Chaser only blocked their efforts and didn't notice the gap until she teetered on its edge. With the last bit of their strength, they attacked simultaneously, knocking Brisen off the ledge; she screamed as she descended into the molten magma below.
Both children collapsed to their knees, completely exhausted. But before they could catch a breath they were lifted off their feet by Silver as he and Jim made a break for the portal.
"No time to rest, pups!" Silver panted. "Especially not in a place like this!" Dodging falling debris and hopping over the shifting core plates, they ran through the portal before the small map of the universe, with the planet's centre burning behind them. But as they looked upon the planet's surface, they found it wasn't any better. The entire world was coming apart at the seams. The earth cracked and shifted, large chunks of it rose above the others. Jets of searing hot flame shot out from the magma flow. There was no way they could get to the solar sailor through this.
"Anyone got any ideas?" Kairi asked hopefully.
"This is where my plan ends," Silver said.
"Ahoy, mates!" They all looked to the sky for the source of the voice. Though the embers and fires descended the R.L.S. Legacy crewed by all their friends: the Keybladers; Kim and Ron; Doppler and Amelia; and, of course, B.E.N. "Need a lift?" Jack asked as he piloted. "Hop aboard! Fare starts at twenty dollars!"
"Aloha, Jimmy!" B.E.N. called from the wheel deck. "Hurry up! We've got exactly two minutes and thirty-four seconds till planet destruction!" Their eyes widened at the robot's news.
"So get your butts on board!" Ron shouted. Jack brought the ship along the broken earth and Sora, Jim, Kairi and Silver hopped on deck.
"Get us out of here, Mister Sparrow!" Amelia ordered. With her arm still injured she couldn't pilot the ship herself and was forced to rely on Jack. Jack punched the rockets and the Legacy took off along the dying world, avoiding the flying pieces of rock and the streaming flames as best he could.
Sora and Kairi walked over to their friends, tired and sore. "Are you guys okay?" Mulan asked, noticing their bruised and aching bodies.
"What happened to you?" Beast asked.
Sora rubbed his aching head. "Let's just say we have worse things than an exploding planet to worry about right now." A flying rock suddenly crashed into one of their sails, breaking the entire piece off. The Legacy's speed decreased at the loss of one of its sails.
"Thruster capacity down thirty-percent, Captain!" B.E.N. announced, typing away at the control panel. Doppler came up behind him and looked over his shoulder.
"Thirty-percent?" he repeated, running the calculations through his head. "That means we'll never clear the planet's explosion in time!"
"We're going to die!" Ron cried. He Rufus cried together in despair.
Jim wasn't about to give up hope yet. "We gotta go back!" Everyone stared at him like he was crazy. "There's a portal back there! It can get us out of here!" He ran below deck while everyone looked back to the retreating portal that lead to the planet's core, which by now had become a raging inferno of flaming death.
"Lad's lost his mind!" Jack sighed.
"I don't know about you, but I don't feel like flying into that thing!" sonic yelled. Jim reemerged from below. In his hands was a solar surfer.
"We're not going to," he said as he prepped the board. "Cause I'm going to open a different door!" Silver saw where he was going with this idea. He zoomed his eye to the portal where the map that changed the portal's location to anywhere in the universe. It could work.
"Listen to the boy!" Silver shouted. "It's our only ticket off this rock alive!"
"One minute, twenty-nine seconds till planet destruction!" B.E.N. announced. Jim hopped on the rail with his board and Silver helped him along.
"Keep the ship heading for the portal no matter what happens!" he told the cyborg. Silver stared at the boy. Not long ago he had been the one giving the orders to him. He couldn't be more proud. With determination and courage, Jim launched the board.
"Good luck, Jim!" Sora shouted after him.
Jim surfed through the fire and stone in the air, heading back to the portal from which they had come. The R.L.S Legacy sharp turned and followed right after. More pieces of the planet began to rise up, making flying all the more dangerous. Jim zipped through all obstacles in his way, a man on a mission to see his friends through. It was more difficult for the bulky Legacy, scraping against large slabs every now and then.
"Can't you steer any better!?" Amelia snapped at Jack.
"I specialize in water craft, cat-woman!" Jack hollered back. "Is this tub in water!? No! So shut your yap and pray for a miracle!" The largest explosion yet came from a few miles away. Showers of rock and flame rained from its location. This was not caused by Flint's booby traps, but by something much worse.
"AAARRRHHHH!" Brisen screamed, shooting out of the ground like a missile on steroids. Instead of simply using the portal to get out of the core, the Chaser had chosen a less conventional means, drilling all the way through to the surface. "You're not getting away! None of you are! You and this world shall die together!" She jumped off the pieces of flying earth one by one, faster then anything they've ever seen and was heading straight in their direction.
"No freakin' way!" Kim shouted.
"What in the world is that thing?" Doppler gasped as he looked at her. "She's fantastic!"
"She's also trying to kill us!" Sora yelled. He ran down the stairs to the ship's hold, coming back out with a solar surfer of his own. "I'll draw her off! You just follow Jim!"
"But Sora-" Kairi started, but before she could stop him he blasted off on the surfer, ready to take Brisen head on. Summoning the Keyblade and whizzing through the air on his board, the two collided in mid-air. The Chaser pushed off the rocks to reach Sora, and the boy responded by surfing with a hit and run tactic.
Jim, meanwhile, lead the way for the Legacy. The planet was ready to explode any minute now. The giant explosions and raging fire were evidence of that. But Jim, skilled solar surfer that he was, zipped onward to the portal. "Fifty-eight seconds!" B.E.N. cried.
"Come on, lad," Silver whispered. "If anyone can pull this off, it's you."
"Hey Sora!" Kairi called behind them. Sora momentarily looked away from what can only be described as an epic battle. "We got go now! This place is gonna blow!" Sora knocked back Brisen once more then turned his surfer around to follow the R.L.S Legacy.
"Get back here, you worm!" Brisen snarled. She took after Sora on her own two feet, a solo force to be reckoned with.
"Thirty seconds!"
The portal was right in Jim's path, leading to the great flaming void that was the planet core. The directional map was his target. He only had one shot at this. He and the ship were flying full speed for the portal and, if he missed, they'd all fly straight into a fiery end. That's why he wasn't going to miss! He zipped by the green hologram and, knowing the location off by heart, pressed the location of Mentressor space port. The portal closed from a ball of fire and opened back up to the crescent-shaped world from which this whole voyage had started.
"Yes!" Jim cried as he zipped through the door. The Legacy was right behind him, flying through the portal and leaving the exploding Treasure Planet behind them. They were safe, but there was still one more person to go.
"Your friends have left you, Sora!" Brisen called as she chased after Sora on his solar surfer. "After I'm finished with you, they're next!" Sora didn't look back once, keeping his eyes glued to the portal. He had his own task to complete now. Brisen jumped for him and nicked his board with her Keyblade, nearly making him lose his footing. Regaining his balance, he kept for the door but before he went through, he snatched the golden sphere from its compartment.
Without the key, the giant door began to close in on its self. Sora whizzed through to the other side with the map in hand just before it could close. But Brisen was not as fortunate. Flint's portal disappeared before she could follow her prey. She stood there alone on a cliff . "Why that little..." She was interrupted by the explosions around her, suddenly very aware that this world was going to end. Treasure Planet was no longer able to keep together and Brisen was right in the middle of it all.
"I hate kids," she growled.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!
"Yeah!" Sora exclaimed, flying along the R.L.S Legacy which now floated before the port world, safe and sound.
"We did it!" Jim laughed, also flying on a solar surfer. The two high-fived as they zipped past each other, while the crew of the Legacy rejoiced at their success. There were hugs all around the ship.
"Well done, Jimbo!" Silver called happily. Morph transformed into fireworks to make his own festivities. "Didn't I say the lad had greatness in him?" Doppler and Amelia embraced in celebration without even realizing it. When they did, they looked into each other's eyes and smiled, neither pulling away.
As Sora and Jim landed back on deck they were greeted with congratulations and cheers. Kairi ran to Sora and hugged him. "You did it, Sora! You and Jim did it!"
"Hero of the universe, keeping busy!" Ron shouted full of glee while Rufus cheered on his tiny megaphone.
"You were both very commendable," Amelia complimented as she and Doppler approached the two. "I'd be proud to recommend you both to the interstellar space academy. Perhaps you as well, Mister Sparrow." She looked to the wheel where Jack was trying feebly to hide behind. He peeked out and smiled sheepishly.
"Jack?" Kairi growled. "Last time I checked Jack hung us out to dry."
Jack stood up from the wheel. "Oh, didn't you here? I've redeemed myself. Just ask Beasty weasty." He staggered to Beast and put an arm around his shoulders, much to his anger.
"Oh, yes," Doppler agreed. "Mister Sparrow was quite helpful in our escape."
"Really?" Sora asked.
"Yes, really," Jack spat. "It was all part of my plan, you see. I betray you, earn their trust...what was it that I said again, Beast? Well, whatever the case, it was all so we could share the trea-" Jack suddenly stopped talking, a look of shock on his features.
"Jack?" Mulan called, waving a hand in front of his frozen face. But Jack wouldn't respond. The treasure. The loot of a thousand worlds. He had left his sack back on the planet. The planet was now thousands of miles away. The planet was blowing to pieces as they spoke.
"We didn't bring back anything!" he wailed, falling to his knees and cursing his misfortune. "All that gold! It was in my hands! My little hands..."
"That's right!" sonic said, realization dawning on him. "That was what the whole point of this stupid trip was! To get munny to fix the ship!"
"Forget that! We could have been rich!" Jack cried waterfalls of tears, Flint's treasure trove forever lost to him. Sora knew that they couldn't fix the Shera without any munny, but he was just happy they were all okay. Looking away from the scene, he noticed Jim was missing. And for that matter so were Silver and Morph. Where did they go?
Below deck was where they were, in the hanger to be precise. "Come on, Morphy!" Silver whispered as he untied the last solar sailor while Morph flew about giggling. "No time for play. We got to make tracks!"
"You never quit, do you?" Silver raised his head to the doorway where Jim was now standing with a smile.
"Oh, Jimbo!" Silver said, chuckling slightly. "I was merely uh...making sure our last longboat was secure."
Jim shook his head and walked to the line tying the sailor down and tightened it. Just like Silver had taught him. "That should hold it."
Silver chuckled and rubbed his head. "I taught ya too well. Listen, Jimbo. If you don't mind, we'd just as soon avoid prison. Not for me but for little Morphy here." Morph zipped over happily. "He's a free spirit. Being in a cage, it'd break his little heart." Morph whimpered pathetically as he spoke.
Jim smiled at the cyborg. Without a word he untied the lines, setting the solar sailor to hover in the air. Silver laughed heartily. "Why don't you ship out with us, lad? You and me, Hawkins and Silver, full of ourselves and no ties to no one!" Morph nodded eagerly to Jim.
Jim bowed his head, considering all that's happened before looking to Silver again. "You, know when I got on this boat...I would've taken up your offer in a second. But I met this old cyborg...and he taught me that I could chart my own course. That's what I'm gonna do."
Silver wiped his eye. "Got some grease in this old cyborg eye of mine." Jim was also choking up but he hid it a lot better. For the second time, he hugged the old cyborg, and this time Silver returned the hug. When it was time to let go, Silver hopped into the sailor. But Morph, poor little Morph began crying, knowing he wouldn't be seeing Jim again for quite some time.
Silver looked at his shape-shifting friend and sighed. "Morphy, I got a job for you." Morph momentarily stopped sniffling. "I need you to keep an eye on this here pup. Will ya do me that little favour?" Morph sucked back his tears and gazed at Silver before he saluted with his blobby arm. He then rubbed against Silver's cheek, possibly for the last time. "Oh, come on now! There, there."
Silver lowered the sailor out of the hanger, Morph and Jim watching him off. "Oh! And before I forget!" Silver reached into his coat pocket and tossed Jim a handful of gold and jewels. The very last of Treasure Planet. "You take care now, lad!"
Jim stared at the treasure in his hand then grinned widely at Silver. "Stay out of trouble...ya old scallywag!" Silver laughed that joyful laugh of his.
"Why, Jimbo, lad!" he chortled, gripping the sailor controls. "When have I ever done otherwise?" The solar sailor then took off into the great beyond, the cyborg's laughter still heard by the boy. Jim didn't know where Silver meant to go, but as his laughter faded away, he knew he would be just fine.
Back up top, Jack had crawled into a fetal position and wept silently, while the other Keybladers leaned against the rail of the ship as they approached the port world. "Well, how do we get the munny now?" asked Beast finally.
"We'll have to get part-time jobs," sonic sighed. "I can be a cook, I guess."
"I can stack shelves," Beast said, dismally.
"I can be a cashier," Mulan said, sadly. All three of them considered their possibilities before sighing in union. Sora smiled at all his friends. It would be tough and time consuming but what other choice did they have? He got his answer when Jim tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and a handful of gold was slapped in his palm. He balked at all the treasure that was being openly given to him.
"Jim, where did...?"
"Don't worry about it," Jim said. Sora didn't know why, but he looked much more mature than when he last looked at him. "Take it. For some reason, I think you need it more than I do. Besides, Munny isn't everything it's cracked up to be." Morph giggled and rubbed against Jim. Sora was amazed. This would be more then enough to fix the ship. Jim had really changed.
"Thanks Jim," Sora grinned. "Oh, yeah!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out the map. Jim shook his head.
"Keep it. I have a feeling you're gonna need that too." Sora grinned again and the two clasped hands.
"You mean your leaving!?" B.E.N. jumped before Sora and swept him into another hug. "Oh, I'll miss you guys! All the memories we had! And I really do have them now! But promised myself I wasn't gonna cry!" He pulled away from Sora and held his face in his hands. "Does anyone have a tissue!?"
KHKHKHKH
"Chief Bast. What an unpleasant surprise, " Vader stated to the nervous Imperial officer on his view screen. He was still on his Super Star Destroyer Executor, flying through the cosmos to deliver his 'present' to the Emperor. He was about to visit the boy again for one of their little sessions when he was alerted of a message from Chief Bast. "This better be worth my while, Bast."
Bast gulped nervously and nodded. "W-well, my lord, our occupation of Radiant Garden is going smoothly. The populace is beginning to wear down. They're starting to accept our rule. If it weren't for this dreadfully annoying resistance movement, we would be in complete control."
"Is that all?" Vader asked, obviously annoyed.
"Well, no, my lord. The reason I've called you is that we discovered something while reprogramming their central computer network. Research files by the old leader of this world, Ansem the Wise. The reports seem to be on something called the Keyblade War."
"The Keyblade War?" Vader gasped. "So Ansem the Wise's thirst for knowledge actually went that far. Bast, those reports are vital to the Empire. Recover them immediately."
"W-w-well, there's a p-problem with that, Lord Vader," Bast stammered, suddenly sweating profusely. "The files are h-hidden from us, you see, under layers and layers of encryption by this meddlesome computer program. It won't let us in. Every time we think we're close, the information is taken away from us!"
"Computer problems do not concern me, Bast. Only results. You're constant incompetence is beginning to-" Vader stopped in mid-sentence, looking away from the screen and into nowhere.
"My Lord?" Bast asked, wondering why his end hadn't come yet. "Is everything alright?"
Vader stared off for a few more seconds before he turned back to the officer. "Get me those files, Bast. Failure is not acceptable." Bast swallowed nervously and nodded. Darth Vader then cut off the transmission, standing in the same spot for some time. He then walked out room.
Other matters needed his attention.
Meanwhile, in the ship's prison block, the two Stormtrooper guards stood on watch before the cell that held the silver-haired Keyblader. Both were bored out of their helmets by this completely unnecessary task. The boy couldn't escape, no one could. So why should they guard him? They just hoped their shift would end before Lord Vader arrived to 'talk' with him.
"Hey," one troopers called to the other. "The kid's been pretty quiet. Maybe we should check on him."
"What are you, nuts?" the other trooper said in a voice identical to the other. "That's no ordinary kid in there. We can't go in."
"Relax. Those cuffs the tech boys whipped up prevents him from using his weapon. Besides, I'm tired of just standing here." Without the other's approval, the Stormtrooper typed on the control panel to open the doors. They swished open and he strode inside. The other trooper reluctantly followed seeing that, once inside, the cell was empty.
"What!?" the first Stormtrooper exclaimed, looking around the cell frantically. It was bare of anything, including the prisoner. "That's impossible! He couldn't have escaped!"
"Ahem." Both soldiers turned eyes upward. Hanging from the ceiling on his back was Riku, still cuffed but smirking none the less. "What's up? Me!" He fell down upon them, planting both feet into a Stormtrooper's face, cracking his helmet and knocking him out cold. Before the other trooper could react, Riku bicycle-kicked him in the chin, catapulting him out the open prison door. He didn't get back up.
Riku landed back on his feet, not a hair out of place, releasing his pent up breath. "I'd like to say it's been fun," he said to the unconscious Stormtrooper at his feet. "But lying wouldn't make me much of a good guy, would it?" He ran out the cell and past the other trooper, then out of the prison block, with no plans on returning.
The door lead out into a stainless steel hallway. Riku was careful to stay hidden, as Stormtroopers and officers were everywhere on the ship. With any luck, he could sneak his way around the ship without being detected. It would be difficult, especially when he was still cuffed, but he had to get out of here. He had to warn Sora about that hunter Vader had sent after him. And personally, he'd had enough of the dark lord.
Dodging Imperials by hiding behind doorways and pillars, Riku made steady progress through the Super Star Destroyer. He thought he could pull this off, until a loud alarm began blaring through the halls.
"Attention all personnel! Prisoner escape from cell-block B!" the speakers rang out. Riku growled. They must have discovered the Stormtroopers in the prison block.
"So much for stealth," Riku sighed. "Oh, well. I always did like a challenge!" He ran up to a large blast door. It slid open at his presence...right before a large squad of Stormtroopers. Almost instantly, they pointed their rifles at him. He smiled sheepishly. "Hey guys. Funny story..." Lasers started going off and Riku ran behind a pillar before he was full of holes. Blasts of energy whizzed past him, pinning him down to the spot.
Riku hardened his features. If he was going to out of this in one piece, he was going to need the Keyblade. But the special handcuffs on his wrist prevented him from doing that. Nonetheless, Riku suddenly had an idea. "Come on," he growled, concentrating his energy. "Come on. Almost. Rrrggghhh!" In a flash of light his Keyblade appeared. Not in his hands, but in his mouth.
"Yssh!" the boy exclaimed with his weapon between his lips. If his hands were out, then his mouth was the only other solution. Craning his neck, he tapped the cuffs with his Keyblade, unlocking the restraints from his wrists. They fell to the ground and Riku took the Keyblade in his hands. "Man, I missed you!" Riku gushed. Behind his pillar, the laser fire stopped, the Imperials apparently giving him a chance to surrender. Like he was going to do that now.
Riku stepped out from his cover, Way to the Dawn in his hand, facing the troopers fearlessly. "Alright boys," he said, craning his neck. "Riku's back and ready for anything!" He rushed right in to the fray, deflecting lasers as he did and ripping right into them.
In another part of the ship, something else was about to happen. Out of thin air formed a dark swirling portal, darkness spilling from its very centre. Out of it strode the black cloaked Xemnas, long spiky hair and all. The portal disappeared and Xemnas looked at his surroundings. There was no one else in the hallway. It was completely empty save for him. Xemnas thought that the Empire should beef up its security a bit.
"All too easy," the Nobody said smugly. He started walking down the hall, still no one there to stop him. That is until he turned a corner into another hallway, and stopped in his tracks.
Darth Vader stood at the end of the hall, his glowing red lightsabre in his grasp and face unreadable beneath his dark helmet. Xemnas' surprised face slowly changed to a light chuckle.
"Darth Vader," he drawled.
"Xemnas," Vader acknowledged.
"It seems our reputations precede us, Lord Vader," Xemnas said, still smirking. "I didn't think I'd be discovered so quickly."
"I'll admit it's not easy locating a being without a heart," Vader said. "But you also reek of the dark side. That would never get past me."
"Truly, the Force is a magnificent power."
"Indeed," Vader said deeply. "But I'm rather confused as to why you're here. According to our records, you were defeated and destroyed by Sora. And yet here you stand before me."
Xemnas chuckled again. "I have a guardian angel it would seem. Three, to be precise."
"And why have they brought you on board my ship?" Vader asked, his patience growing thin.
"I think we both know the answer to that."
Vader raised his head slightly. "The boy? What use is he to you?"
"Let's just say he harbours a dark secret."
"Your riddles are starting to bore me." The Sith pointed his lightsabre at the Nobody. "But the boy is now the property of the Emperor."
Xemnas scowled. He held both his arms out at his sides and two red sabres appeared on his palms. Vader was unimpressed. Xemnas waved his weapons about, getting a feel for them once again. "Then we have a problem," he whispered. Vader readied his red lightsabre, gripping it firmly in his black gloved hands. Xemnas concentrated his beams, keeping them steady and on his hands. Both kept their eyes on each other across the long hallway. Then they both moved at the same time, covering the distance between them in an instant and colliding in middle of the hall, creating a shockwave that shook everything around them.
KHKHKHKH
"Set weapons for stun! Bring him down!" Such was the cry from the Stormtrooper as soldier upon soldier fell before Riku. The boy ran and fought through the large Imperial ship, looking for a means of escape. But all he could find were more and more Stormtroopers. The entire ship must be after him now, hundreds of soldiers all intent on returning him to his comfy little cell. He was currently running down yet another hallway, with about fifty Stormtroopers on his tail. Imperials emerged from separate rooms and hallways to stop him, but he made short work of those guys. At the end of the hall were a pair of open, thick blast doors which Riku dove through, closing them on his pursuers.
"Good thing those guys are such lousy shots," Riku panted. As he spoke, a came from behind him and hit the door, missing his head by millimeters. He turned around to find General Darius standing before a squad of Stormtroopers, laser pistol pointed at him. The room they stood in was filled with large humming machines that rose up to a high ceiling. Riku slapped forehead. "I can't catch a break today."
"Going somewhere?" Darius asked, still holding his gun. "You certainly got far on your own. Not many people can say they've escaped an Imperial prison. But the jailbreak stops here."
Riku readied his fighting stance. "Sorry. I got places to go that don't include this place." Darius grunted and raised his hand, signaling all his troopers to take aim with their rifles. Riku rushed for them and the General dropped his hand, beginning a bombardments of blasts at the boy. He deflected the blasts and headed straight for Darius. The general ignited his lightsabres and blocked Riku's attack but the boy was somehow able to launch himself over him and the squad. As he flew over top, he aimed his palm and bombarded the squad with Dark Aura spheres, covering them in smoke.
But out of the smoke shot Darius on his jet pack, sabres hot and ready. They clashed in midair, and fell back to the ground, exchanging attacks as they did. The smoke had cleared to reveal the Stormtrooper squad, unconscious after Riku's attack. The General was alone now. Just how he liked it.
The two fought like a pair of uncaged tigers, Riku's Keyblade and heroic attitude to Darius' sabres and cold skill. Sparks flew as their weapons struck , hacking at each other from one end of the room to the other. Riku jumped back from Darius and shot several Dark Auras; Darius countered by putting away his sabres and drawing his pistols, blasting every ball that came his way.
The two stood across from each other, panting slightly and grudgingly admitting that the other was skilled. No words were passed between them. Then they both charged again, fast and deadly, weapons at the ready. One last attack that would end this confrontation. As they drew closer, Riku made his move. If it were a motion picture, it might have happened in slow motion. Riku spun around the general and, with Keyblade flashing, slashed through his jetpack.
"What!" Darius exclaimed as his pack short-circuited. Suddenly it activated and Darius took off with no control over his speed or direction. He flew wildly around the room, no way to stop and Riku took this opportunity to get out of there.
"Later, Darius! I've got a ship to catch!" He ran out a door opposite to the one he entered. Darius, meanwhile, still zipped around but managed to grab the straps on his malfunctioning jetback. He undid the clasps, releasing him and sending him rolling on the floor while his pack crashed into one of the large machines. The Stormtroopers that had been pursuing Riku finally came through the door. Darius picked himself up, angered by his humiliating defeat.
"After him!" he snapped.
KHKHKHKH
The walls shook as Vader and Xemnas clashed in the halls of the Executor. Both red sabres sang in wide patterns with their own styles of fighting. They struck each other again and again, neither one succeeding or failing, giving or taking, rising or falling. Two of the greatest villains in history, Nobody and Sith, dueling to the end, all for the possession of one seventeen year-old boy. They locked again, Vader's mask to Xemnas' orange eyes. As they glared at each other, the Nobody smirked suddenly. Vader momentarily averted his gaze to see them both surrounded by glowing red beams of energy. Xemnas broke the lock and jumped out of the way, leaving Vader in the centre and directed the beams to fire.
The lasers came at Vader from all directions. He swiftly deflected them all with his sabre, reflexes attuned and sharp to knock them all away, but one managed to graze his shoulder and burn his suit. Switching off his weapon and raising both his arms, the lasers all stopped around him, the Force holding them in place. As his fists clenched, they fizzled out of existence completely. Xemnas frowned in annoyance.
It was Vader's turn to counterattack, using his powers to rip out wall panels, light fixtures, stray debris, anything that was susceptible to the dark lord's will he kept floating before him, then sent hurtling at Xemnas. But the Nobody was prepared, forming a reflective wall out of thin air that blocked all the flying objects, making them explode on impact.
KHKHKHKH
"Fire! Fire! Take him down!" Darius ordered, chasing after Riku with his Stormtroopers. Riku tore through the halls, untiring, unyielding, determined to get off this ship. He wasn't even sure where he was any more. But as long as he wasn't with those guys he knew he was doing alright.
"It's a good thing these guys have such lousy aim!" Riku said to himself as lasers careened by his head. He went through another door and skidded to a halt. A large drop was before him, falling into an abyss that looked bottomless. This large room was full of huge generators, blinking and whirling. Nowhere for him to go. "Oh, perfect!" The numerous footfalls of the Stormtroopers could be heard right behind him. "Okay. Thinking time. No rope, no bridge. Nothing!" As he shook his head, he noticed a long pipe that led downward and got an idea.
"Oh yeah. Only one way to go!" He jumped off the ledge and slipped his Keyblade under his feet and landed on the pipe, grinding his way down the metal. Darius and the Stormtroopers reached the ledge and stopped before they all toppled over, just in time to see their target grind away from their grasp. The general growled.
"YEEEHHHAAAA!" Riku laughed, pulling off tricks on his Keyblade. He slid down on Way to the Dawn, jumping onto other pipes, and having the time of his life, zipping by the huge powerful generators quickly. Those generators sparked a plan in Riku's brain. "Those look important. It would be a shame if someone were to break them." Without another word he fired off Dark Auras at the machines as he passed by them. The powerful dark attacks blew up the generators in large hot explosions. Riku slid away before he was caught in the inferno.
KHKHKHKH
Meanwhile, Xemnas and Vader continued their battle of evil in a confined part of the ship. Their duel had torn apart the hall in which they fought but neither had been able to get the better of the other. No quarter asked, none given. Vader blocked another of Xemnas' strikes, then the Force pushed the Nobody away from him. But Xemnas raised his arms and lighting erupted from his finger tips aimed straight at the Sith lord. Vader put his sabre away again and raised his hands to absorb the lightning in his palms.
Xemnas kept his attack flowing, clenching his teeth tightly in anger and stubbornness. Vader continued to absorb the lightning. It flowed between the two, sparking wildly out of control, striking the walls and lights around them and putting tremendous strain on their bodies, but neither would give in. At least not yet.
The ship suddenly lurched and both stumbled, snuffing out the chaotic force. "Attention! Attention!" the speakers announced. "Turbines have been severely damaged by the prisoner. Main engines are offline. He's heading for the hanger! Security, move to intercept!"
Xemnas smirked at the news. "It looks like you're having a bit of trouble containing your prize," he said to Vader across the room.
"He won't escape," Vader hissed. Xemnas chuckled.
"Don't underestimate him. I made that mistake. Well, you seem to have your hands full right now. Another time then, Vader." Another portal appeared and Xemnas stepped inside, and arrogant smirk still on his face. Vader was left alone in the destroyed corridor with Xemnas' words. He then made off for the bridge to quell this jailbreak.
KHKHKHKH
Riku rushed into the massive hanger, tired and out of breath. It was filled with Tie Fighters and other Imperial ships. With for reasoned selection, he ran to the first one he spotted. It was the same type of shuttle that Riku had seen Vader arrive at Radiant Garden in, just sitting in the middle of the hanger as if it were meant for him. He just hoped the thing was fast.
Rushing up the ramp and into the cockpit, he jumped into the pilot's seat and started the takeoff. "I sure miss using those corridors of darkness," he grumbled. "I hate flying! Worst form of transportation." He pulled a lever and the ship rose to the air, just before hundreds of Stormtroopers entered the hanger.
Darius led them all and saw the ship was about to fly out of the hanger. "Fire! Fire!" he commanded. Riku's ship was bombarded by Stormtrooper rifles, ricocheting of the hull but still causing damage. With no more time to waste, Riku punched the booster rockets and shot out of the hanger, finally leaving the Super Star Destroyer.
Riku sighed. "It's over." But his troubles weren't over yet as a blast suddenly rocked the ship. Like a swarm of bees came the Tie Fighters, lasers blasting hot and hard. "I hate these guys! Can't they just give up!?" Apparently not, since they kept firing. "Alright, where's the warp...the warp? Where's the warp!?" He slammed his fist and hit a button. Suddenly the controls reacted, blinking and humming around him. "Uh, did I do that?" And then the ship rocketed into warp, leaving behind the Empire and sending Riku on his way to freedom.
Vader watched it all from the bridge. The ship was no longer visible and Riku's presence was growing fainter and fainter. He was gone. Onto the bridge walked Darius, coming up behind Vader and bowing slightly.
"Well?" Vader asked, turning his head slightly to look at his general.
"All according to plan," Darius said, approval in his voice. "I can be an actor if I wanted to.
Vader turned back to the window. "You're sure the tracking device is secure aboard?"
"Sure as I'll ever be. That boy will lead us straight to Disney Castle. He has nowhere else to go." Vader nodded, staring silently into space.
"I'm taking an awful risk, Darius. That boy is the future of the Emperor. While finding Disney Castle is an important task, he is our top priority. If he escapes, the Emperor will not be pleased. Not only that..." He looked at his grazed shoulder. "...things have taken an unforeseen turn."
And that concludes another chapter. Be sure to write nice reviews, adapt the original story (Darius Almighty's work) on DeviantArt, turn it into a webcomic or post the story on TV tropes or follow and favorite it. And remember may your heart be your guiding key!