*Chapter 4: Gear Up*

"Hey, it wouldn't hurt if we stay the night here. I mean, we just fought the big boss Heartless and...Amikai here needs suitable clothes for the journey." Moro suggested. Amikai looked down at her school uniform that had some tears. She had to agree. She is tired and needs some clothes. Plus, they all need some supplies for the ship. It will be a long journey.

"I don't know..." Donald muttered.

"Aw, c'mon Donald. We could use a lot of rest for tomorrow. Amikai is new to this kind of stuff. She has a lot to learn." Goofy told his friend.

"Well, our Gummi Ship needs some upgrades every now and then for the journey. We will gather supplies first thing in the morning." Donald said.

After a long night's rest, morning arrived in Traverse Town. Amikai did some shopping with Aerith and Yuffie. She picked out the clothes she would be wearing for the adventure. She is wearing a light gray crop top, blue top with a hoodie, red shorts, tall white socks with black combat boots with red laces. Amikai has her hair in a ponytail with a red bandana scarf, and she has her black leather fingerless gloves. She is also wearing a black choker and a necklace with a broken heart charm. Amikai took one last look in the mirror, admiring herself.

"Much better. Better than being in the skirt." Amikai said with a smile.

"Whenever you're ready, they're outside the hotel waiting. They just finished their shopping for the ship and got some gear." Aerith told her. Amikai turned to Aerith. "Here. I want you to have this." Aerith gave her a pouch of munny.

"But you and Yuffie have already bought me clothes-"

"The journey is important. Don't spend too much all at once. Okay?" Aerith said. Amikai held the pouch and put it in her bag. Pepper stood next to her, making a sound at her. Amikai took a breath.

"All right then. My adventure begins. I'm so nervous."

"Be careful out there." Aerith said.
Moro, Donald, and Goofy were waiting outside the doors of the hotel. They turned to see Amikai coming out with Aerith. Amikai formed a small smile at her new friends.

"How do I look?" Amikai asked them.

"You look...great." Moro said, trying to find the right words.

"But before we go, I have to give you some magic for your Keyblade." Donald said, bringing out his staff. Amikai's Keyblade glow in three different colors as Donald is giving her magic. Firaga, Blizzara, and Thunder. "I could teach you how to use them. Your Keyblade has abilities you can use for fighting."

"Right. Like how I threw that Keyblade at the Heartless." Amikai said.

"Stay with us at all times." Moro said. "Remember, the Keyblade is the only weapon the Heartless feared. You have nothing to worry about when we bump into the Heartless."

"Speaking of Heartless, do we need to find this Ansem guy who studied them? And we need those reports, right?" Amikai asked.

"Right! The reports were scattered to the worlds." Goofy spoke. Moro grew silent. Donald noticed his expression.

"Moro? What's wrong?" He asked.

"Huh? Oh, nothing. Just deep in thought. So...are we ready?" Moro replied, quickly changing the subject. Amikai nodded at to her new friends. She turned to Leon and the others.

"Don't forget to come back from time to time." Cid said. "And collect those reports."

"Be careful out there, Amikai. The Heartless could be tough the further you go." Leon said.

"Thanks." Amikai replied.

"Go right in." Moro spoke as he let Amikai and Pepper inside the Gummi Ship. Amikai looked around in awe as Pepper was sniffing around. Everyone placed their gear down as Donald went to the controls of the ship to be ready. Amikai and Moro went downstairs to see a room with beds, but there are three beds. Amikai placed her bag down and looked around.

"Um, where am I supposed to sleep?" She asked.

"Hey, one of us will be piloting this ship. You can have the one next to you. You didn't think we'd be all sleeping in the galaxy, did you?" Moro asked with a chuckle. Amikai felt stupid.

"Right..."

"It's okay. Donald is the pilot of the Gummi Ship. But if you ask nicely, he'd let you be pilot." Moro told her.

"Yeah. That'd be cool." Amikai says as she sat on her bed as Pepper jumped next to her to rest. "So, do you know which world we'll be going?"

"Who knows? I've never been to any of the worlds. My world disappeared 5 years ago. The king rescued me from the darkness. But I still lost everything." Moro said, crossing his arms as he remembered. Amikai frowned a bit. "Not to brag, but in my world, I was a prince. After the king took me in to his castle, I was still treated like a prince, but...sometimes I don't want to be one."

"So...since then, your world is still gone?" Amikai asked. She was worried that her world is vanished forever by the darkness. She is very worried about her family. "I'm sorry, Moro."

"Don't be. It's not your fault. I blame the darkness. I blame...Ansem for this." Moror clenched his fist. Amikai noticed his anger. But Moro remained calm. "Sorry. I'm gonna check on Donald and Goofy. You make yourself at home. Let me know if you need anything." Moro left the room as Amikai watched in silent. Pepper whined a little. Amikai petted him.

"He must've known Ansem. And...who is Ansem? Is he really the cause of this? The Heartless, the darkness, everything?" She wondered. "Kokoro...where are you?"

Kokoro was pacing back and forth in his room. He had tried to get out of it, but the door was locked tight. There's only a bed and a bookshelf in the room. Kokoro groaned and sat on his bed.

"Amikai..." He whispered. "I hope you're okay." A click was heard from the other side of the door. Kokoro's head perk up and saw the door slowly open. There is Maleficent, smiling at the teen. Kokoro gave her a look. "What're you gonna do to me?"

"My boy, you are not here to be harmed or as our prisoner." Maleficent replied. "Be grateful you are here. There is something you need to do for me."

"I'm not interested." Kokoro replied.

"Oh? Then you wish not to see your sister again?" Maleficent asked in a fake pity tone. Kokoro raised his brow at her. "Are you aware that she is now a Keyblade master?"

"Keyblade...what?" Kokoro asked, standing up. Maleficent smirked. "What're you talking about?"

"Oh dear. Forgive me no one told you. You were so reckless earlier and the only way to calm you is to bring you here. You see, your sister is chosen by the Keyblade. She defeated the Heartless in Traverse Town. And now, she is going on a journey with new allies. To different worlds." Maleficent explained.

"Then she will come here and rescue me, and we can go home." Kokoro said. Maleficent chuckled.

"Your world was swallowed by the darkness, Kokoro. The Heartless are taking over to take the hearts from different worlds. And there is a door that needs to be open... That is why we need your assistance."

"What door?" Kokoro asked.

"The Door to Darkness." Maleficent replied with an evil smile. "We need 7 princesses of heart. You find us the princesses, then you will see Amikai again." Kokoro was hesitant at first. He wanted more details of the Keyblade, the Door to Darkness, everything. He wants to see Amikai again. Like Maleficent promised, Kokoro isn't here to be harmed in any way.

"If I do this, you tell me more about this Door to Darkness." Kokoro said.

"But of course. You have my word." Maleficent said, moving aside to let him leave the room. Kokoro calmly walked out of the room and see the Defenders outside. "This way." Maleficent spoke as she walked past him. Kokoro followed her to begin his task.

The Gummi Ship took off into the galaxy as Donald and Goofy are at the pit to find the world to location to explore in. Amikai wandered into the kitchen and see Moro taking something out of the freezer. Sea Salt Ice Cream. Amikai smiled a bit.

"Hey. Those are my favorite!" She exclaimed. Moro smiled back and hand her one. Amikai took it. "You bought these from Traverse Town?"

"Actually...I made them myself. I copied a recipe." Moro told her as he took a bite out of his ice cream. Amikai licked it and blinked. It tastes exactly how she bought it from the shop. "Well?" Moro asked.

"This...is...perfect!" Amikai replied. "Moro, this is better than the ones I buy!" Moro chuckled.

"Thanks. You know, I've been learning how to cook from the castle. The queen taught me how to make desserts. I surprise her when I add something new in the recipe. One time I made an apple pie for her, and I added the cinnamon. She went over the moon!" Moro giggled as he remembered the look on Minnie's face after she took the bite from the pie.

"Maybe you can teach me sometime." Amikai said. "I have to take care of myself too sometime. Especially on a journey like this."

"Sure. Just say the word, and I will help you." Moro said with a smile. They playfully clinked their ice cream.

"A-hyuck! I see you two are going to be best buddies!" Goofy giggled as he came down. Moro and Amikai grinned at him.

"Ahem! I don't believe we've introduced!" A voice spoke. Amikai looked around in confusion. "Over here!" A voice called. Amikai turned to the counter to see Jiminy hopping up and down. "You must be the key bearer. Cricket's the name. Jiminy Cricket." The cricket took off his hat and bowed to Amikai.

"Oh...uh, hello. I'm Amikai." The girl replied, unsure how to respond.

"Oh, sorry! Amikai, Jiminy is with us to record our travels." Moro said. Jiminy got his journal out.

"I will have everything right here. Now, to start off, why don't you tell me a bit about yourself and how you arrived in Traverse Town?" He asked. Amikai told him her story of how her world was taken away by the darkness. She and her pet ended up in Traverse Town, met Leon and the others, and fought the Heartless. "I'm sorry about what happened, Amikai. My world disappeared too. It was terrible." Jiminy said with a sad expression.

"Do you think we could get our worlds back?" Amikai asked.

"Well gee, I really hope so." Goofy replied, scratching his head. "Moro lost his world years ago. The darkness has been around for a long time. We gotta find those reports from the worlds while looking for the king and Amikai's brother."

"My Keyblade will solve the problem. Won't be so hard, right?" Amikai asked, taking out her Keyblade.

"It won't be easy. The Heartless we've fought before was pretty tough but be prepared to face the ones that are stronger." Moro said, remembering what Leon told her before.

"Goofy! Moro! Amikai! Come up here quick!" Donald called. The three rushed out of the kitchen.
At the pit, Donald squinted his eyes at something ahead. Amikai, Moro, and Goofy arrived to look out the window. A new world.

"What is that place?" Amikai asked. Donald typed on the monitor and a name popped up.

"It is called...Wonderland!" Donald replied. "Buckle up! We are landing soon!"