All Hail the Red King

(Kingdom Hearts Maleficent Theme Starts)

"So this castle originally belonged to a tyrant."

After taking this castle as her own, Maleficent had set about to learn all that she could about this world and so for she had learned a great deal.

Such as the fact that the vast majority of the people of this world were gifted with magic.

In fact, the king of this castle was a powerful magic user himself before he had been slain by someone who had come to free his daughter. She had journeyed up to the tower to see the room of his daughter and had found several papers, all of them containing a story of sorts.

"A beautiful maiden, locked away in a tower by her cruel father, longing to see and experience the world and if rescued, the person who did so would inherit the king's castle and land and even have the maiden's hand in marriage. Such an old tale but one that apparently remains effective." Maleficent mused. "She must have set them out and waited for them be found by one brave heart to come and free here."

And evidently it had worked.

Maleficent had to admit, it was devious and cunning to paint yourself in such a light and easily tricking so many into fighting for her. She would give credit where credit is due to people capable of such cunning, even if it had nothing to do with her.

Still, there was something to consider.

"A heart as dark as this Red King would surely have been a worthy ally in this world." Maleficent uttered as she left the girl's room.

She walked down the tower and into the throne room, seeing the battle scars that were behind as the aftermath of a battle.

A battle of magic.

"How interesting." She remarked, sensing the left over magical energies from the battle. "Perhaps there is 2something here that is more useful than knowledge."

With that, black and green flames appeared around her as she lifted her staff up, using the power of Darkness to call back the heart of the king who perished.


The God of Light felt a disturbance. "I feel a surge of darkness, different than of my brother. It has done something…Something wrong."


The God of Light was not the only one to sense such a disturbance.

"What is this feeling?" The God of Darkness wondered as he emerged from his dark pool. "It is a form of darkness, but nothing like I have felt before."


When the flames disappeared, a man stood before Maleficent.

He wore a royal blue outfit with a red cape that had a fur collar and fell down to his knees. He wore brown boots, his skin was pale and he wore a dark blue crown with four blue jewels embedded in it.

"Wha-What-Where…" The man stuttered as he looked around in sheer panic, turning to face Maleficent. "Who are you?"

"Why, I am the one who revived you." Maleficent stated with a smile. "But if you were more specific, I am Maleficent."

"I…I was killed…that man…" The king trailed off as he looked around, seeing his castle now empty and desolate. "What happened here?"

"Just as you said, you were killed. Those that survived fled and leaving this place empty. I decided to make it my temporary home." Maleficent answered. "Your daughter seemed to be the one responsible. She sent out message after message across the land, calling warriors here to come and save her."

"She…She…She did this…" The king's eyes widened but then narrowed and he clenched his fists. "How could she? I wanted to keep her safe and she did this to me…How could she?!"

Maleficent simply raised an eyebrow, watching in interest as a magical aura flared around the man.

"SSSSSSSSSSSSSSAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!" He roared so loudly, any remaining windows shattered immediately.

(Kingdom Hearts Maleficent Theme Ends)


When Aqua agreed to spend time with Ava, she wasn't sure what to expect. Ava had led her to a small area outside of Daybreak Town and into a small forest.

"I come here from time to time when I am not at the fountain in the town." Ava explained, stopping in front of a river. "I find it soothing and quiet."

Aqua sat down next to Ava and stared at the water. "I can see it being very peaceful here."

"I'm glad you agree." Ava smiled. "None of the others will find us out here."

"If I may ask, why would you take such a risk helping me? Won't your Master be angry with you?" Aqua asked.

"Oh, I doubt it. The Master has never been an angry person in all the time I have known him. Strange, yes. Maybe a little…odd but he's always had the best intentions for us." Ava shook her head. "Anyways, I have seen your skills with your magic. You know, with some training you could be as skilled with magic as Invi."

"And I thought I was skilled, considering how I was the only of my Master's students to become a Master." Aqua sighed.

Not that she was arrogant or anything but Aqua's own training and her experience from traveling the worlds had made her feel a little proud. The only ones she could think of who were as skilled in magic as she was were Maleficent, Xehanort, and most recently Invi.

"Well, you have the courage and drive. You can use elemental magic along with time and a slight spatial magic considering you can teleport." Ava pointed out. "Aced's spatial magic allows him to create rifts that he can use to suck in enemies and attacks like he did with your magic. Invi is the most elemental user around her, she can even change the magical spells used against her into something else like water and that includes Aced's rifts."

"That's…scary." Aqua admitted, realizing how strong these Foretellers are compared to herself. "And what can you do?"

"Me?" Ava held up a hand and conjured a miniature image of herself. "My specialty is illusions. I create an illusion powerful enough to fool Aced to get you away in time."

"Thanks again for that." Aqua said gratefully before looking at the small image of the Foreteller. "Can't say I'm an expert at illusions. I mean, I'm good at the kinds of magic you listed. I can even put my enemies to sleep or shrink them."

"You can do that too?" Ava asked, sounding surprised. "Wow, you must be really adept at magic then."

Aqua chuckled awkwardly. "Well, I am not one to brag. I was better at magic than my friends and my journeys across the worlds helped improve my skills."

"Maybe you can learn something new here." Ava suggested. "Have you even tried conjuring illusions before?"

"I hadn't really thought of trying before." Aqua admitted. "I guess I'm just a straightforward kind of person."

"Well, it's not as hard as you might. Come, give it a try." Ava dispelled the small image of her. "Hold up your hand."

Seeing no reason to refuse, Aqua held up her hand.

"Now, try and focus your magic. Not as a form of attack but make an image of yourself or even someone you know." Ava instructed. "You know how to draw on magic, right?"

"Right. It's like summoning my Keyblade which gives us the energy we need while we shape it into whatever we want." Aqua nodded. "We reach out with our heart-"

"And try pulling that power into ourselves." Ava finished, taking a deep breath. "Start with that."

Though no one could see it because of her mask, Ava closed her eyes and began focusing. A pink light surrounded her and slowly expanded out, touching Aqua who could feel the magical presence. It was clear that Ava was extremely skilled in not only summoning the mana for her magic but was an expert in controlling it. Aqua closed her eyes and did the same, summoning a blue light around herself that slightly pushed against Ava's aura.

The auras pushed against each other for a few minutes before slowly coming together, not pushing but embracing each other in a flow of harmony. Ava was impressed to see that Aqua's mana control was as great as it appeared. Both auras reached out, touching each other and slowly receded as both Ava and Aqua practiced the basics of mana control, falling back into years of habits that they had been touched and to simply keep their skills sharp.

"Now, try and think of something in your mind. Let it take shape as if you are attempting to cast a spell. The difference is spells are instantaneous but illusions can last longer, depending on the situation." Ava instructed, slowly reaching up and taking hold of Aqua's hand, keeping it open. "Don't rush it and focus on an easy image, something familiar where the details come naturally to you."

Aqua closed her eyes and focused on only one image:

Her friends.

Terra, Ven and her Master Eraqus.

Alive and well.

"Now, project it in the palm of your hand." Ava then said.

She watched as light danced in Aqua's hand, conjuring the image of a boy, a young man around Aqua's age and an elderly man, all of them being Keyblade Wielders.

Aqua slowly opened her eyes, watching as the images faded with a saddened face.

"Those people…They were close to you." Ava stated.

Aqua nodded. "Yes."

Ava took Aqua's hand, making a comforting gesture. It was obvious that she was feeling pain from looking on the images she had conjured.

"I'm sorry." She said soothingly.

Aqua looked Ava gratefully. "It's all right…They were the first image to pop in my mind."

"I see."

Ava heard the bell of the Great Clock Tower bang and knew what it meant. "I have to go."

Aqua watched as Ava stood up. "Something up?"

"You could say that." Ava sighed. "You should be fine but maybe get some rest."

Ava then summoned a Door of Light and entered it, leaving Aqua in the small forest who looked back down at her hand. Once the door vanished, Aqua considered returning to the inn she had been staying in.

Still, she stayed a little while and focused on her magic, managing to conjure the image of her friends and family one more time.

She stayed there until midnight.


Salem had thought it all out.

She had tricked the Brothers into fighting each other, meaning they could be tricked. And if they could be tricked, they could also be killed. They killed her beloved Ozma over and over again and then cursed her to be immortal so she could never be with him in death. So now she was going to turn their creations against them and destroy them for what they have done to her and Ozma.

She had already gone to see one of the top rulers of the land, who happened to that Fat King who had attacked her and Aqua, and convinced them to join her.

Now she had to pay a visit the top ruler of the eastern lands.

She had a smile on her face as she walked down the path, knowing that with her army she could have her revenge.

Only for that smile to fade when someone stepped in front of her, wearing a cloak at first before they threw the hood off. "Salem!"

Salem's eyes widened in absolute shock and horror as she stepped back. "Fa-Father?!"


"Hey there, Ava. I heard you made a new friend this evening."

Ava kept her head down, wondering if the Master was angry with her.

"So, how'd it go? You two become good friends? I know I'm not an expert in what young ladies such as yourself might talk about but I hope it was good." The Master said, leaning back in his chair.

"Master?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry."

The Master looked at her. "For what?"

"I interfered in Aced's battle with Aqua. I know you wanted us to test her but it looked like Aced taking things too far." Ava tried to explain herself.

The Master held up her hand, silencing her. "Ava, Ava, Ava. Relax, I'm not that kind of guy to get mad over something like this."

"You aren't?"

"Nope. You saw things were getting rough and you made a call. That's what you trained for." The Master said, pressing a hand to his chest. "Take a deep breath. Stress like that is bad for your health. Now then, what'd want you talk about?"

"I…I showed her a bit of my illusion magic. She seemed pretty skilled in the other forms." Ava answered.

"Oooooh. Bonding over shared skills in magic. That's a good topic." The Master praised. "Was she any good?"

"She...She is a fast learner. She conjured the image of people close to her on her first try." Ava answered. "She looked sad when she saw them."

"Oh, so she lost some good friends." The Master mused. "Well, I guess it can't be helped. Good thing you were there then."

"Master, will Aced be allowed to test her again since I interfered?" Ava decided to change the subject.

"Nah, you were right when you said Aced went too far. I said test her, not trash her." The Master shrugged. "So now it's just down to you and Ira. You want to hang out with her for a little bit, go ahead. Sounds like its good for you."

"Thank you, Master."


"You betrayed me!" The Red King roared. "I gave you everything and you betrayed me!"

Salem glared back, unsure how he was alive but she didn't care. "You gave me nothing! You locked me up like an animal in a cage!"

"It was to protect you!" The king argued.

"Liar! You never loved me! Not as a daughter at least! You only loved me as one of your possessions, not a person." Salem argued.

"I am your father, I decided on your safety!" The Red King scolded. "You have no idea of the world out here!"

"I chose this world over you! You are nothing but a wretched old man who locked me away just so you wouldn't lose me like you lost my mother!" Salem shouted and then grinned. "Ironically, she died in your bed. What does that say about your 'protection'?"

SLAP!

"HOW DARE YOU?!" The Red King shouted and slapped Salem across the face. "YOU ARE MINE AND I ALONE DECIDE YOU EXISTENCE! I WILL DRAG YOU BACK TO MY CASTLE AND MAKE SURE YOU NEVER ESCAPE AGAIN!"

Salem's head shot up and she raised her hand, firing a red magical blast that knocked the Red King off his feet. "NO!"

He hit the ground and he let out a loud grunt.

"I WILL NEVER GO BACK!" Salem shouted as electricity surrounded her much it did in the Land of Darkness. "I WILL DIE LONG BEFORE I EVER GO BACK!"

The Red King growled as he got up. "You wretched, ungrateful-"

Salem cut him off as she fired another magical blast but he raised his staff, blocking the blast. He fired a purple blast back at Salem which she blocked with her own barrier. Soon enough, father and daughter engaged in a battle of magic.

They were so engrossed in their battle; they did not noticed a certain dark witch watching from several yards away.

"I wish it was you who died instead of your mother!" The king roared over the sound of their magic clashing. "I let you live when you killed her and this is how you repay me?!"

Salem snarled, her magical energy flowing through her eyes. "I wish I had seen Ozma kill you the first time! You are absolutely pathetic! My mother must have been blind not to see the parasite that you are!"

"SILENCE!" The Red King roared, pouring all of his magic into his attack which then overpowered Salem's…

And blasted her apart.

The Red King's eyes went wide in shock for a brief moment at the fact that he had actually killed his daughter before they narrowed.

Why should he feel remorse?

She betrayed him.

Destroyed his kingdom.

Rejected everything he had done for her.

She deserved to die.

Let what was left her rot away while he rebuilt his kingdom with the help of that dark witch, Maleficent.

Just as he was about to turn away a strange glow caught his attention. He looked and gasped as the light surrounded where Salem had been…

And just like that, she grew back, completely restored.

"Wha-What?!" The King gasped as he stepped back. "How did you-?!"

"Surprised, Father?" Salem asked, looking down at herself before glaring back at him. "I honestly never went this far myself."

"H-How?!" The King shouted, confused and actually…afraid.

"You got your greatest wish, Father. You wished for nothing to ever happen to me. Well, the Gods have made me immortal." Salem said, grinning at the shell-shocked look on her father's face. "I can never die. I cannot be hurt. I will just instantly recover and I can never grow old. You greatest wish has been fulfilled, Father!"

The Red King was beyond stunned.

Immortal?

His daughter?

Impossible!

Whatever he felt, it left him vulnerable enough that Salem blasted him in the chest, blasting him and leaving a deep scorched mark on his chest.

"Ironic, isn't it, Father?" Salem asked, standing over her wounded father. "You wanted nothing to happen to me and now nothing will ever happen to me again."

"I-I-"

Whatever he had to say was cut off as Salem released a blast of fire, burning him alive. Salem grinned in satisfaction as she watched her father burn, dying once again.

It felt so good.

The man who ruined her life on the very day she was born, burning to death.

She hadn't had the chance to see him die the first time.

It would have felt as good as he did this time.

"How intriguing."

(Kingdom Hearts Maleficent Theme Starts)

She spun around, seeing a strange woman standing just a few feet from her.

She was a tall, slender, pale green-skinned woman with a narrow face and a prominent chin. She was also darkly beautiful and icily elegant. Her tall demeanor was such that she easily dwarfed Salem with only her father being able to match this woman in height. She also had yellow eyes and black horns, likely some sort of headdress.

She was clad in a black-and-purple robe with bat wing-like edges; underneath her robe, she wore a dress with the same color pallet but with some red instead of purple and wears a gold ring with a large mysterious circular black stone in it. Both the horned headdress and bat wing-like robe gave this woman a rather dragon like appearance. She carried a staff with a glowing green orb at the top.

"To be granted such immortality." The woman continued, her voice soft and elegant as her appearance, smiling at Salem. "I have never seen such a phenomenon before."

"Who are you?" Salem asked.

"Why," The woman brought a hand to her chest. "I am Maleficent. And you are apparently the daughter of that man I went through the trouble of bringing back."

"You?" Salem glanced at the black scorch mark where her father had been burned alive. "You brought him back from the dead?"

"Indeed I did." Maleficent answered as she looked down the remains of the Red King. "Such a foolish man. I revived him to tell me as much as he could about this world but as soon as he remembered he dashed off to find you."

That name…

Maleficent.

Salem had heard that name before.

"Such a pity but perhaps a fitting end for such a fool." Maleficent continued, barely paying attention to Salem now as she walked past her. "It seems it was a wasted effort."

"Do you know someone named Aqua?" Salem immediately asked.

Maleficent stopped and glanced over her shoulder. "What did you say?"

"A woman named Aqua who wields a key shaped weapon." Salem clarified, turning around and looking at the strange but dark woman. "She mentioned you before."

"Aqua…Now that is a name I have not heard in a long time. I honestly thought she had perished." Maleficent turned around, facing Salem with an intrigued smile. "You are saying she is here?"

Salem nodded. "Yes. Do you seek revenge on her?"

"Hmm…Revenge you say." Maleficent mused as she approached Salem. "And what if I did?"

"I can help you. But can you use your powers to revive someone for me?" Salem questioned, staring at the dark woman who stood before her.

"And what would I gain from doing so?" Maleficent questioned, leaning forward. "What would you be willing to offer me?"

"Revenge on Aqua. She has hurt me too. She let my beloved die." Salem answered, her face taking on an angered look from remembering the woman. "She promised me she would save him but broke that promise."

"Really?" Maleficent's lips curled into a smile. "And now you want to exact revenge on her as well. Interesting but not enough to convince me. Why would I lend you my strength?"

"…Do you wish to be immortal? I know of a way." Salem offered. "All you have to do is take it from the Gods."

(Kingdom Hearts Maleficent Theme Ends)