Kingdom Hearts: Daybreak Academy

Chapter 14: Forest Fire

Light became scarce as Dani zoomed through the forest north of Daybreak Town. Rolling balls of fledgling flames flew ahead of her, hurled forward by the Three Wishes Keyblade in her grasp to light her way. They would fizzle out, designed to do so as she slashed through her own casts of Fire, absorbing the blaze into the bronze metal to recycle the residual magical power.

Traversing the forest at night proved a difficult task, one not normally appointed to students of the academy. However, the situation at the border seemed to warrant their involvement this time around. This worried Dani. How bad could things really be? They must be bleak if she and the other union leaders were called upon. If not even the reinforcements of the Union Masters themselves would be enough. Or perhaps the master in charge of the northern fortress was simply being overly cautious. Dani could only hope.

Dani reached a clearing, allowing her to see the tempest of fire and lightning storming just over the peaks of the northern mountains. She stopped in her tracks to gaze in awe of the wild maelstrom of power visible to her even from her current distance. "Master Invi…" Certainly the other Masters were capable of unimaginable power, but the lady of serpents was rumored to have the most potent of all black magic. Dani wondered to herself if this display of magical might belonged to the Anguis Master.

Stupid girl. Dani shook her head of the distracting thoughts, centering herself upon the only task at hand: reaching the northern border. Three Wishes reignited with a bright orange aura. She swung the Keyblade to hurl another fireball to continue chasing her flying torch through the darkness of the forest.

Just under an hour had passed since Dani reached the base of the nearest mountain. While she had been very conservative with her magic usage, Dani's own physical limitations caught up with her eventually. She started to feel dizzy just looking up at the steep slope before her. As much as it pained her to admit it, she would need to rest, at least for a few minutes. Long enough to crush an Ether, allowing the wisps of blue light to absorb into her fair skin. A blue aura rippled throughout Dani's body, washing over her with a cool and refreshing sensation. Her strength came back to her in an instant, but she needed to drink some water as well. The lightheadedness persisted until the fourth or fifth gulp. Only then did she feel well enough to begin the grueling climb.

The mountain road slithered uphill as Dani made her way toward the summit, her boots beating against the rocky pathway with each step she made toward her destination. The howling wind served as her only company as she climbed, chills running through Dani's skin as a result. Soon after, another effect of the evening wind became clear to the Keyblade wielder. The faint scent of smoke appeared. She thought nothing of it until the winding path led her to face the woods she had just exited not too long ago. Her paces came to a halt as she gazed over the edge of the cliff down at the flickering flames spreading through the trees.

Did she let some embers stray away from her Keyblade as she dashed through the woods? How could she be so careless! Especially at a time like this when the masters requested her support. As she gazed upon the growing forest fire, Dani felt torn between her duty to her masters let alone the greater order of Keyblade wielders and the lives of the creatures that considered the forest to be their home. Without realizing, her teeth caught her bottom lip as she debated with herself the right course of action.

The sting of blood breaking through the cracking membrane recentered her mind to the moment and she realized that this was her fault. In her haste, she had been careless. Dani needed to fix her mistake. Despite her resolution, she proceeded with renewed urgency as she scaled down the slopes of the mountain, now prioritizing the fire over the risk of her misstepping and falling off the rocky cliff face.

As quickly as possible, Dani reentered the forest which was now polluted with ash in the air as the crackling embers and warmth made the crawling flames uncontradictable. Red hot pieces of wood burned on the vulnerable chunks as the fires spread through the branches to the leaves and the leaves of neighboring trees. Dani needed to act quickly to mitigate the damage already dealt to the forest. Three Wishes appeared in her hand as she approached the nearest tree. Its golden shaft glowed brightly when it came into contact with the flames, which flowed into Dani's weapon. She absorbed the flames into her Keyblade, removing them completely from the burnt tree in an attempt to salvage what she could and move onto the next one. She worked diligently to put out the flames, zipping through the treeline like a deranged squirrel.

Eventually, the handle of Dani's Keyblade began to feel much hotter than it already did. Her weapon glowed with a bright aura of flames almost as if the shaft had transformed into a roaring fire itself. Heat flowed through the entirety of the mystical weapon and into the palm of Dani's hand, soon to the point of discomfort. She realized the source of the irritation and realized she needed to release the thermal energy from her weapon. Looking left and right, she was surrounded by burning trees as far as the eye could see. Her gaze floated up with the embers to the thick black clouds of ash and smoke overhead. Firing a blast of flames with such restricted vision could have devastating consequences. Dani could not take that gamble.

Dani's mind raced to find another more favorable solution than to carelessly hurl clouds of fire. She looked down, hoping to be able to release the flames into the dirt, but the ground had a dense layer of highly flammable leaves that had fallen off and dried up.

As time ticked by while Dani remained in the hellish inferno, smoke entered her lungs, forcing a couple coughs out of her. It was the first sound she heard other than the crackling flames. The second sound came shortly after in the form of bird cries echoing through the trees. Dani scanned the area carefully, but saw nothing but the fire dancing along the bark and leaves. The crying continued, giving Dani something to follow until she came across a sight that made her spring straight into action. A large yellow bird had been trapped underneath a collapsed tree. The chocobo's talons scraped pointlessly against the dirt as it tried to escape. It could not lift the trunk off of itself.

Dani went to its side and grasped the underside of the trunk. She pulled up with all her strength, but the wooden column refused to move. The tree itself burned and the fire crawled toward the feathered beast, threatening to consume its yellow plume. Dani refused to let that happen to the defenseless creature, so she continued to do everything she could in an attempt to remove the tree. She tried to lift it and push it off. She thought of cutting the trunk with her Keyblade, but with all of the stored up heat energy, she would only ignite the bark.

There was not much Dani could do except continue trying to force the tree off from crushing the flightless bird, but her strength sapped away from her as time ticked. She hunched forward as her lungs tried to evacuate the fiery smog. Her head began to spin. Her vision blurred along with the stinging sensation irritating her eyes. More smoke entered her eyes and her lungs as she scrambled to find a way out of the raging blaze just for a momentary reprieve. Her breathing strained, forcing her to a knee as she went into a coughing fit. Three Wishes disappeared from her grasp as she held herself up with her open hand. Even on the verge of collapse, Dani persisted in her attempts to free the chocobo, pushing against the fallen oak with all her might. Her eyes fixated on the creeping flames as they approached the yellow plumes.

"No! Come…on!" Dani's muscles burnt from the strain. "Move!" Her grip weakened as she coughed four more times. "Damn!" Cough. "It!"

A sudden chill passed by Dani's cheek. She opened her eyes to find a bright flash of blue consuming the branches of the fallen tree. Giant crystals of ice exploded from that spot. The coolness faded quickly due to the intense heat melting the solid ice away. Steam quickly appeared as opposite elements came into contact. The chocobo's feathers had been spared from merciless lick of flames.

Dani looked around for another Keyblade wielder, but she saw no one. Another Blizzard cast flew in her direction, this time striking a spot on the tree right next to her. At first she did not understand why, but she soon suspected that the caster intended for her to cool Three Wishes off. She summoned her weapon and thrust it into the solid water, allowing the weapon to release its pent up thermal energy. The handle burned her only for a short while until it cooled thanks to the small pocket of ice that quickly dissolved into water.

The next few casts of Blizzard were aimed higher, leading Dani up into the tree branches. The chocobo would need to wait until the fires could be extinguished. Whoever was helping Dani put out the fires seemed to have that as their priority. Consecutive blooms of ice appeared all along the tree tops. Dani leapt from tree to tree, absorbing the flames into her blade only to release the heat into the gracefully sculpted chunks of ice. The moisture rained down onto the flames, helping to put them out at least enough to dampen the trees and prevent them from reigniting. Dani still found herself absorbing more fire than what she could release, but she persevered through the stinging of her palm.

When the last tree was extinguished, Dani returned to the trapped bird. She had a bit of trouble finding it through the thick wall of steam, but she followed the cries all the way back. Her glowing weapon illuminated her path and signaled her approach to the Blizzard caster.

"Hey you." The voice was juvenile and gravely. The young man's tone sounded a bit impatient. "Hurry up and help me get this chocobo out. It's like a freaking sauna with all this steam."

"Well where the hell are you?" She spat back.

Dani heard the ching of a Keyblade appearing. Soon after, a light blue glow broke through the thick fog of vapor. She followed it to find another Keyblade wielder, or at least his glowing weapon. The steam continued to obscure her vision.

Dani asked bluntly, "So what's the plan? Are we just going to push it off, or do you have any magic that would help get the tree off?"

"Both actually. I'm going to shoot a couple casts of Blizzard into the spaces below the tree. That should prop the tree up and we can use roll it off of the chocobo."

"What if we injure it by rolling the tree? Wouldn't it be a better idea to prop it up and pull the chocobo out?"

"We can try that. First let's clear up our vision." A green whirlwind appeared, blowing some of the vapor away. It provided enough visibility for Dani to illuminate the tree. The ally's Keyblade began to transform, making quite a ruckus of blasting noises, flying machines, and whirring machinery before resembling what looks like a rifle. The marksman took aim and fired an exploding cast of Blizzard. From it came a giant block of ice, which lifted and cradled the tree above the chocobo. The bird's cries increased, indicating that its lungs had less pressure on them now. Dani crouched down and slowly pulled the large bird out, struggling to do so while her ally made sure to keep the ice from buckling by adding more frosted structures for support. Dani's efforts paid off once the bird was clear of the tree. It had a limp, but at least they managed to free it.

"Now what?" the young man asked directly.

"Are you proficient in healing magic?" Dani asked.

"Not really. I have a potion on hand, though."

Dani explained, "That would probably be our best bet. A spell fizzle could hurt it. I'll check for any open wounds and patch it up with some bandages."

Dani waved her Keyblade around the Chocobo's body slowly in search of any flesh wounds. She found a patch of feathers coated in the bird's own blood.

"Its thigh is wounded. Go ahead and give it the potion and I'll wrap up the injury." The sound of liquid splattering accompanied by the chocobo's squeals, informed Dani that the marksman had started applying the potion directly to the wound. She spoke to it calmly. "Shhh. It's okay. I know it hurts, but I promise it'll get better." She rubbed its feathers softly while holding the large bird down as best as she could. The chocobo soon eased its struggle as the healing liquid worked fast on repairing the damage.

After wiping off the wound with some gauze, Dani quickly applied the bandages and allowed the majestic avian to get back on its feet. Its legs still bucked with each step, but it could at least walk—even if it did so uncomfortably.

Grateful for the treatment, the chocobo nuzzled both Dani and the young gleeful coos. Dani giggled as she rubbed his beak. "It looks like this big guy belongs to someone. Probably a farmer."

"How can you tell?"

Dani explained, "I can feel a bridle on its head. The reins were ripped. The chocobo most likely ripped them trying to free itself."

He paused. "The question now is why."

"We need to find where it came from. There's probably a farm somewhere around here. I figure you stayed a good distance away from the fire and somewhere fairly high up. Did you see anything from where you were?"

"There was a clearing about a click away from here. I imagine that's probably our best bet."

Dani nodded, forgetting that the other Keyblade wielder could still not see her. She waited for a reply. It came with more of a delay than she expected.

"So…are we going?" He asked.

Dani realized her foolishness, now shaking her head fully aware that he could not see it. "Oh! Yeah, sorry. Let's get going. Which direction?"

"Southwest."

The two Keyblade wielders began walking, moving at the chocobo's limping pace. The thick cloud of smoke and steam continued to obscure their vision, but they had no better option but to just walk in the best direction they figured to take.

Not long into their walk did Dani begin to interview her temporary ally. "You're a student aren't you?"

"Yup."

"I appreciate the help back there, but what are you doing so far from academy?"

"I'm a hunter."

"At this hour? You can't even see anything without a torch out here."

"I'm looking for a…special kill."

Dani thought carefully about her next question. She walked in silence until the obvious question dawned on her. "What's your name?"

"Rigel. If I'm not mistaken, you're the one they call "Mother Tigress," right? The leader of the Leopardus Union."

Dani's eyes narrowed. He couldn't see it, but he most certainly could feel the solemn aura emanating from the union leader. Between the awkward silence that followed and the chocobo's strained paces, the rest of the walk had an air of discomfort. The stops to rest were even more severe as the two academy students had nothing more to talk about. Dani could sense the deception in Rigel's previous responses whether they be complete lies or merely half-truths. She felt obligated to find out answers, but struggled to find an appropriate series of questions to do so. He played his cards close to his chest, making her speculate about his true intentions. Is the chocobo his "special kill?" Would he harm the fragile bird as soon as she left them? Was she overthinking this? How could she protect the bird, learn Rigel's true intentions, and continue her journey back to the northern fortress? What would she be willing to sacrifice in this situation?

"Hello?"

Dani turned her head toward the sound of Rigel's voice through the fading cloak of vapor. She could make out a few of his features like his drowsy cyan eyes and the frosted tips of his black hair. This was the oddly dressed young man that she saw earlier in the marketplace while going to get dumplings for herself and Gula. It was a strange coincidence that she would encounter him yet again. Could he be so far away from town for her?

"Something wrong?" He followed up.

Dani eyes him cautiously. "No, nothing. What did you say before?"

"I said, 'I think we're here'."

Before them stood the remains of a house—if it could even be called a house. It resembled more of a shack than it did a house, though most of the houses and apartments even in town had similar dimensions.

Dani gazed upon in horror at the remains of someone's home. How could she have been so careless with her magic? Her body tensed with guilt as she tried to fight back tears. The glowing Keyblade slowly lowered within Dani's grip. Reaching down to her side, Three Wishes' light still licked her jawline, but the rest of her face remained obscured by darkness.

"I have to go," she said sternly and then rushed off, leaving Rigel and the Chocobo without another word.

Author's Notes

Special thanks to Eternal Rain Spirit for Rigel Glacier.

Hello everybody! Spring Break is officially over and I promised myself I would have this chapter done by the end. I was shooting for having the next chapter at least somewhat finished, but unfortunately I couldn't get started. At least I have the outline drafted out so that's a plus! Anywho, I truly hope you all enjoyed this chapter. It was a scenario I originally did not plan writing but the more I thought about how to characterize Rigel, the more I found myself wanting to put him and Dani in a tough situation together. The mystery of who Rigel is and why he's so far away from the academy will continue next time!

Before we go onto the QOTC, I wanted to preface it by letting you all know that I just watched Wish yesterday, so the movie is still on my mind as I write this.

Question of the Chapter (QOTC): Would you want Wish to be a world in a future Kingdom Hearts game? Why or why not? How would you see it playing out? Feel free to be as vague or as specific as you'd like.

Responses to Reviews:

Silver Kitsune Lunaria: I made the decision to have Elrena behave like her Nobody simply because her somebody in Ux was just boring. I'm sorry, but there's nothing interesting about Elrena in Ux other than being the previous life of Larxene. Larxene has become one of my favorite Nobodies especially after Kingdom Hearts 3, so I felt it only appropriate to make her Somebody more in line with that character. While Lea and Axel might have different personalities, you can at least see some similarities such as their sarcasm or their "big brother-ness" in the case of Roxas, Xion, and Kairi. Elrena won't be a 1-1 of Larxene, but I do want there to be a cleaner transition. As for Astrid feeling out of character. I was hoping that the conversation with Ava would show why Astrid changes her mind in regards to working with Galeo, but I might not have made it that clear. Macy is not ShadowWolf's OC. I apologize to FallenFeather92 for not giving credit in the last chapter. I have updated Chapter 13 to provide credit. Thanks again FallenFeather92!

Antex-The Legendary Zoroark: I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter! My biggest take away from the trailer was that the combat seems like a nice mix between the medal system in Ux and standard 3D KH combat, so I'm excited about the gameplay.

Xil Mystica: Hey, after exchanging a few messages in pms, I wanted to make sure that I address some of the points in your review directly. Previously, I wanted to keep details of my work vague since I'd rather you experience them through the updates, but I'll be sending you another message, one that'll address your concerns in the last review with more fidelity.

WolfieRed23: I'm glad you enjoyed the interactions between Dani and Macy. I hope you enjoyed the interactions between her, Rigel, and the chocobo in this chapter as well. I'm also excited to hear Brain's voice in Missing Link. I'm curious if they'll use the same voice actor from the Luxu voice actor at the end of Back Cover. If they do, that would imply that Luxu and Brain are connected even before Brain became Luxu's successor.