The Key to Heroics

Chapter 1

Case of Strelitzia

Having the fate of the World on your shoulders wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

The more she thought about it, the more Strelitzia was filled with both nervousness and excitement. On the one hand, she felt both relieved and excited that a Foreteller would put so much trust in her as to be a leader of the Dandelions. To lead and teach other Bearers.

On the other hand… Why would Master Ava choose her of all people? She hadn't thought of herself as anything exceptional when it came to Key-Bearers. She wielded Starlight, a Keyblade mass produced for the legions of new Key-Bearers being trained. She and her brother Lauriam did as the Fortellers bid and went out into the world to battle the Heartless and gather the power of light in the form of Lux. And there wasn't really that much else to it.

She didn't think herself anywhere near the power and skill of a Forteller. she didn't top any of the leaderboards for Lux gathering. She hadn't manifested any sort of unique Keychain. She didn't even have the courage to talk to that one person…

And even worse, was the reason for all this. Strelitzia didn't socialize much (she wasn't very good at it) outside her brother and Elrena but she wasn't blind. Tensions between the Unions were rising.

The Fortellers had been seen together less and less, and arguments between lay members of their unions were more and more common, some having even broken out into fights.

Even the various others she formed a party with had more and more been slipping into disparaging members of other unions. Which lead her back to her own anxieties.

She lay back in her bed, setting down the book Ava had given her. "Me… a Union leader…"

"What a great honor!" Her Chirithy said, resting in a chair near her bed.

"Yes… but it's also a great responsibility." She said nervously.

"I have faith in Master Ava."

"Me too. But what she said about the world… could that be true?"

"It's a scary thought, isn't it?" Chirithy asked.

She hadn't even had any sort of real conversation with Lady Ava personally since she and Lauriam had first become Key-Bearers and been recruited into Vulpes two years ago. They had spoken, but it was brief, and mainly in the form of the Keyblade Master issuing her missions. And yet according to Master Ava a Keyblade War was coming, and in the face of that, Ava had chosen her to help preserve the light.

"Only the Dandelions will survive. That means everyone else will die..."

"I suppose your right." Chirithy hopped on to the bed. "But your friends are all Dandelions. Why are you so worried?"

"They are… but what about everyone else?"

Chirithy stepped closer, resting on Strelitzia. "Yeah, I know you care, but what do you think would happen if you told everyone the truth? The world is nearing its end, and the Foretellers will disappear. Noone would believe you."

"No, they wouldn't." She said, with a heavy sigh. It just wasn't fair. She and the other Dandelions were assured safe passage, but they had to let the others perish in the war, including… "Oh!"

Chirithy jumped off her in shock as she sat up. "What is it?"

"She's not a Dandelion!"

"Wh-who?" He asked.

"Diana!"

"Oh, that Wielder your always watching."

"I have to tell her!" Strelitzia jumped out of bed, and made to get dressed. However, a thought entered her mind. "But how will I find her?"

She dithered, steppimh back towards her bed, and then away again, pacing back and forth, before stopping, fretting.

"It's so dark out, and I don't even know where she lives." She started pacing again. "What can I do?"

"Hello? Are you okay?" Chirithy asked.

Strelitzia didn't answer, instead returning to bed.

"What? I thought-"

"I'm going to wake up early and wait for her at Fountain Square."

"But Master Ava told you not to say a word to anyone!" Chirithy reminded.

"I'm gonna recruit her to the Dandelions. I won't say a word about anything else."

"I'm not sure I like this." Chirithy said, but by then, Strelitzia was already asleep.

Waiting at the plaza was proving fruitless. Diana wasn't showing up. Strelitzia sighed, though her disappointment was mixed with worry. Things were getting worse, even more so than yesterday. In the brief trip from her and her brother's home to here, she had seen two more fights breaking out. It was looking more and more like the Foreteller's prediction was correct.

She was running out of time.

"What do I do? What do I do?" She fretted. She got up from her seat by the fountain.

"Maybe I should go out myself." Strelitzia pondered. Her Chirithy was already out looking but two sets of eyes were better than one. She made to leave, but then paused, turning back to the fountain. "But then… what if she comes by here while I'm gone? But what if she's actually really close by. But then again I could go in the wrong direction. But... Oh, what do I do?!"

She was pacing again, struggling to come to a decision, when she heard a familiar voice that came as a relief.

"Good news! I saw her over here!" Chirithy called.

"Thanks!" With out another word, Strelitzia took off in the direction Chirithy was pointing.

She leaped up onto the rooftops, only barely hearing in the distance Chirithy's frustreated shouted. "H-hey! Wait up!"

It all happened so fast…

The warehouse she had tried to find Diana in proved to be a bust. She had turned around to leave, when she had heard movement. There was a blur of motion, and then pain.

She came too to Chirithy shaking her.

"Strelitzia..." He said weakly.

She opened her eyes, realizing she was on the floor, and in so much pain. She clenched her hands, they were wet and sticky. Was that blood? Her blood?

She managed to roll onto her back, but even this was difficult and painful. And it didn't do her prospects any favors. Her favorite white dress was now soaked in red... Despite this Chirithy climbed onto her chest.

She embraced him. "I'm sorry. This is all my fault."

Her voice barely managed to come out as a whisper.

"Don't apologize, it's okay." Chirithy replied.

Saying nothing more, with a herculean effort, Strelitzia forced herself to her feet. Her legs were wobbling however, and she could barely stand.

She had been injured on the job before, but it was never this bad. Still, she couldn't let it end here. She didn't want to die. Not yet.

Holding Chirithy in one hand, she summoned Starlight in the other. Yet she could barely keep the Keyblade in her grip.

"C-cure..." She chanted, trying to cast the spell to heal her injuries. However, she couldn't find the strength any more, the energy within her was gone.

Maybe she could get help then. Yes, that's what she needed to do. She held Chirithy tightly and began limping towards the light of the entrance.

As she walked, she became colder and colder, and her vision became darker and blurrier. Despite this, her thoughts turned to Diana. Strelitzia had been watching the Unicornis Key-Bearer from afar. Diana was brave, confident, eager, energetic, all the things she couldn't see in herself.

She was closer now, her vision had almost faded entirely, and the wound barely even hurt anymore. All around her was darkness, save for that light, that always welcoming light. Yet she knew this was bad. She wasn't going to make it. As she staggered forwards, she left out a final sigh. "I wish... I'd had the courage..."

Streletzia fell.

Strelitzia was sinking. It felt like she was sinking into a deep ocean, hearing the muffled sounds of water all around her.

She managed opened her eyes a crack. She was indeed sinking into water, at least, that's what it looked like. There was light at the surface, though that light grew further and dimmer the deeper she sunk, until it was barely noticible in the nigh omnipresent dark.

Is this what dying feels like? Strelitzia wondered. She didn't feel all that bad. Despite the seeming depth and darkness she wasn't cold, she felt warm. And so tired. She wanted to sleep. And yet, despite that, she couldn't fully commit. There were still more worries.

She had failed.

She had promised to be there for Lauriam just like he had promised to be there for her. After all, it had been just the two of them for the longest time, supporting each other. And now she was going to be leaving him all alone. He would be so devastated once he found out what happened to her.

Then there was Master Ava. Whatever Ava had seen in her she didn't seem to have lived up to it. Which felt like such a massive insult to the Foreteller. Not to mention the other new Union leaders and the rest of the Dandelions. They were supposed to rely on her, but she was letting them down.

And finally, there was Diana. The Wielder who had consumed her thoughts in recent times. She had tried to save her, but despite her best efforts, she couldn't find her, and had gotten killed for her trouble, leaving Diana to perish with the rest in the coming war.

I'm sorry everyone... Even though I don't deserve it, please forgive me. Strelitzia said as she sank, completely surrounded by darkness.

And yet, just as she was about to drift off, her eyes fluttering closed, there was a change. A new light from beneath her. She managed to twist her body, and look down. There, beneath her was a light, no, not a mere light, more like a shining wall of radiance that she was headed straight for. The closer she got, the brighter it got until it was so blinding that she couldn't help but shield her gaze.

As she touched it, she felt a strange tingling sensation, and then an impact on what appeared to be hard ground. And with that, again, pain.

This time, however, she heard a voice before she lost consciousness.

"Oh no, kupo!"

So it's a new year, and thus I figure it's time for a new story! I had been getting back into MHA with the viewing of season 6 and I had been wanting to do something with it for a while. I had a lot of ideas kicking around in my head, and this was the one I decided to first commit to words. And, to answer some questions that will probably be asked, yes, this does take place in the same 'verse as Keys to the Contract and The Light in the Void (of which can be found in my signature). I do intend to actually return to working on Keys to the Contract as well. Anyways, I'm just so damn excited to be writing for Kingdom Hearts again! I hope you enjoy!

~Dragonexx