On Today's Episode: The trinity finds a young sheep girl being held prisoner by a crazed dark wizard inside an ominous floating castle, so they decide to crash the party and help out a boy who's trying to find his own captured family. But this wizard has quite a few tricks up his sleeve, and the Heartless aren't making things any easier. Can the trinity assist Anon and Watame in defeating a dark lord?

For Today's World: All right-y, then, here comes one I'm sure none of you have seen coming. We're actually adapting another fanfic today, that being "HoloJourneys" by vanderblast, a story where, essentially, a bunch of Virtual YouTubers from Hololive and other V-Tuber companies are plopped into a medieval fantasy setting. I've been reading it over the past couple months, and holy crapbaskets this guy is talented. And before anybody asks so it's not shoved down my throat, yes, I do have permission from vanderblast to do this. There, now you can't bite my head off. This first visit will cover roughly the events of chapter one and the start of chapter two, and I recommend in this case that you read at least the first two chapters of HoloJourneys before you read this chapter. Good? Good. All right, here we go!

Episode 10: The Sheep Who Did Nothing Wrong

"Okay, tell me that doesn't look ominous," Nick quipped as the trinity disembarked near a local village, only to get a good look at an intimidating floating castle made of pitch black stone, stretching about eight or nine stories tall.

"It's mocking Clow Castle," Maylin growled softly.

"Um, Maylin, I don't think whoever owns this castle even knows we exist," Haruka chuckled.

"Does anybody else sense that?" Sophia wondered, glancing upwards towards the castle. "...I sense dark intent somewhere in that castle."

"Probably due to whatever whackjob owns this floating rock," Maylin quipped. "And wherever there's dark intent, there's usually Heartless."

"But now the question becomes, how do we get up there?" Nick wondered. "Considering I don't think we can fly..."

Just then, Nick noticed a glimmer of light coming from somewhere in the castle's third story. Starlight flashed into his hands, and he now had a good idea of what to do.

Nick walked up to the edge of the large lake that the castle was floating above and raised Starlight towards the castle. Light shined in a circle around Starlight's teeth before it fired a beam of light towards the castle, the beam itself actually creating a gleaming pathway towards the underside of the castle.

"Okay, whatever I did, I'm glad that worked," Nick quipped. "Now let's get up there, and fast."

The trinity all summoned their keyblades and made their way up the pathway and into the castle. And if it looked ominous on the outside, that feeling was essentially tripled once they were actually inside it.

"Yikes, absolutely no points for interior decorating in the slightest," Maylin noted.

"But where do we go from here?" Haruka asked. "I can sense that darkness all around us now."

"Guess we'll have to play it by ear, and see what..." Nick started, only to be cut off by a loud voice from nearby.

"INTRUDER."

The trinity all spun around to see a pair of shadow creatures slinking down the hallway just ahead, but as they prepared for a fight, the creatures slank past them.

"...they didn't see us?" Haruka wondered.

"Maybe they spotted someone else," Sophia stated.

"Let's go and render our assistance, then," Nick responded as they all charged down the hallway to meet the shadow creatures as well as the young man that they were actually marching towards.

The shadow creatures began to shapeshift, their arms becoming narrow and pointed like a dagger and their legs sprouting clawed toes.

"I-I'm warning you, I've been trained on how to use a sword!" the young man stammered as he drew his own blade. "D-Don't you dare come any closer!"

"Oh, jeez, he looks like he's out of his depth," Maylin quipped.

"Hey, shadow boys!" Nick called out, causing the shadow creatures to turn their attention towards them. "Yeah, we're looking at whatever constitutes your face. You want a fight, then try us!"

The shadow creatures started slithering forward, their arms elongating before lashing out to strike at Nick, though he parried the blow with Starlight before retaliating with a diagonal slash across the creature's body.

While the trinity fought the creatures, the young man saw his own opportunity and ran forward, even if it was on shaky legs, to attack the shadow creatures while their backs were turned.

Sophia swung Super Yo-Yo out to hit one shadow creature in the chest and cause it to reel back just in time for the young man to run it through with his own sword, the creature shrieking in pain before dissolving into nothingness.

Haruka rolled around to avoid the spinning arms of the remaining creature before lunging back in to stab the creature in its chest as the young man did the same from behind, both attacks vaporizing the creature.

Now that everything was calm again, the young man leaned against a nearby wall to catch his breath. That encounter had clearly freaked him out.

"You okay over there?" Maylin asked.

"Just... just gotta calm down," the young man admitted. "What the hell were those things? I was about ready to have to deal with evil knights or a dark wizard, but I never would have dreamed things like that actually existed..."

Despite his hesitation, the young man shook his head to clear his mind. "Come on, get a hold of yourself," the young man proclaimed to himself. "If we've got things like that crawling around, then I've gotta find Uncle Gunther and fast!"

"Is that what you're doing here?" Haruka wondered.

"Uncle Gunther went out to deliver a shipment, but he never came back," the young man explained. "So I came out here and I found this place instead."

The young man quickly composed himself. "Oh, sorry, where are my manners? My name's Anon."

"Nice to meet ya, buddy," Maylin giggled.

"If you're looking for your family, then how about you let us tag along?" Nick offered. "We have our own reasons for being here, too, and considering you probably haven't had to fight before today..."

"Hehehe, you got me there," Anon chuckled.

With their party set, the group all continued to make their way through the castle, occasionally stopping to deal with more of those odd shadow creatures. Anon's confidence seemed to grow with each encounter as he learned how to fight better.

When they made it to the next floor, they discovered that this floor had a long rug covering most of the ground, and candles shimmering with dark orange flames along the walls.

"And I think we have found the hideout of whatever nut loaf is running this show," Nick quipped as they walked towards the large double doors just ahead, pulling them open just enough to peer inside and glance at a large dining room where a single hooded figure was sitting at the far end.

"Wait, you don't think they're with the Organization, do you?" Maylin asked.

"I don't think so," Sophia answered. "That hood looks different than theirs."

"Maybe we can sneak around them," Anon admitted.

The group all slipped inside as stealthily as they possibly could, one careful step at a time. Despite the anxiety building up in him, Anon decided to make his move, dashing forward and drawing his sword. Though this caught the hooded figure's attention, Anon had already crossed the distance and aimed his sword for the figure's neck.

"Don't move, buddy," Anon proclaimed. "What is this place?"

"Hmph. You barge into my home, threaten me, and then you start asking me inane questions?" the figure groaned.

"Well, pardon us if it looks like this 'home' of yours doesn't belong here," Haruka retorted.

"What's you game, robe boy? What have you done to the people who lived down there?" Nick proclaimed.

"My home is wherever I will it to be, you little brats," the figure laughed. "After all, this castle is mine, and let's just say that intruders... do not last very long."

"If you're talking about those weird creepy shadow things, then we've already dispatched a good few of them," Maylin shot back.

"If so, then that is quite annoying," the figure sighed. "Do you know how much mana it takes to conjure them?"

"Why don't you just stop stalling and tell us what you did with the villagers?" Nick challenged, ready to summon his keyblade again.

"Quite the pushy little brats, aren't you?" the figure chuckled. "At the very least, you all promise to be somewhat entertaining. It's been a while since anyone's legitimately tried to surprise me.

"Oh, don't think I'm playing around here," Anon growled. "If you don't start talking, I'm gonna..."

"...what, you'll kill me? I bet it was easy to rationalize destroying my creations since they don't have a familiar form," the figure quipped. "Do you really have what it takes to kill another human?"

"And who says you're human anymore?" Maylin retorted. "I've seen what happens to people who give themselves up to the darkness, and it is not pretty."

"Okay, so... even if you are human, so what?" Anon taunted. "I can still cut you open if you refuse to be helpful, or I could just go find the villagers and be done with it."

"Oh, really?" the figure laughed. "Here's a hypothetical for you: what if your plan doesn't go according to your well-laid wishes? If the villagers you're trying to save can only be done so by me?"

"How about we just skip to the point, robe boy?" Nick proclaimed, summoning Starlight to his hands and aiming it for the figure. "Who in the hell are you?!"

The figure's body suddenly turned into a black mist, flew away from the throne, then reformed itself a few feet away.

"My name is Hector Darkcrest, and I'm sorry to say, but that is the last answer you have earned from me," Hector cackled. "In case it wasn't obvious, I am well versed in the magic arts, especially the darker kind. And you'll be able to find out what I'm doing very soon. Normally, I would give my soon-to-be prisoners a chance to surrender, but how about you make it entertaining for me first?"

"Oh, buddy, you think you can coast by with just dark magic alone?" Maylin laughed. "You might need to get your head checked, especially given you're looking at a real mage right here!"

Anon simply prepared himself as Hector threw a ball of dark energy towards him, swinging his sword to deflect it with a lot of effort, sending it flying into the nearby wall.

Before Anon could take his opportunity to strike back, he found himself trapped by a pool of darkness around his legs, and this time, he couldn't defend himself against the next one, and it sent him flying backwards through the nearby table.

"Well, as fun as this was to dispel the boredom, I think that's all the time I'm willing to spend on the lot of you right now," Hector chuckled. "I must commend you, though, for taking three spells and living to brag about it. But you can just get out of my sight now."

Before the trinity could move in to start attacking, Hector raised his hand and clenched his fist, causing a burst of darkness to materialize in front of him into a large Heartless. This creature was a large and seemingly mechanical Heartless colored predominantly shades of grey, black and silver, had a large egg-shaped head with a jagged gaping maw and glowing triangular eyes, with a crack between them that appeared to have been stapled together, along with a long twisted antenna wrapped in bandages sprouting out of the top of its head, with long arms connected to the bottom of it covered by metal "sleeves", and a large metal cage hanging from its underside.

"You bastard, you really were using the Heartless, weren't you?!" Maylin shouted.

"These things are quite useful to us practitioners of dark power," Hector laughed. "Now, my minion, take this boy to the dungeon. I'll deal with you lot some other time."

With that, Hector vanished in a flash of dark mist as the Prison Keeper scooped up Anon into its cage before spinning around and vanishing from sight.

"Okay, so, that was a thing that just happened," Haruka admitted.

"I should have figured Hector was using the Heartless in his big master plan," Maylin groaned. "But first things first, we've gotta go find Anon and get him out of whatever jam he got himself into."

With that, the trinity dashed out of the dining room and followed the trail that the Prison Keeper had left behind, occasionally stopping to battle more Neoshadows along the way.

Down in the dungeon he'd been dropped into by the Prison Keeper, Anon couldn't help but shake his head as he woke up. Okay, well, at least I'm not dead, Anon thought. It's not much, but it's something.

"Oh, hey, you're awake," a cheery voice came from the other cage nearby. "You doing all right? I saw mister wizard guy and that monster bring you here. Honestly, that thing's a lot creepier than the shadow blobs. What's your name?"

"My name's Anon, and I've definitely had better days," Anon admitted.

"Hey, are you from the village over here? Were you trying to escape?" the voice asked.

"Honestly, I'm still trying to figure things out here," Anon replied. "My dad and I actually live further north, since he makes a lot of stuff for them. I came to make a delivery at one of the trading posts, but when I came to return the horse I'd borrowed, I saw this place."

"Yeah, the wizard guy does that," the voice answered. "He moves this castle around with his magic and takes it to smaller villages so he can put all the people in his dungeon."

"I guess that at least means my uncle's not dead," Anon sighed. "That's something good, considering he's the whole reason I'm here. Oh, by the way, what's your name?"

"Oh, it's Tsunomaki Watame," the voice answered. "It's actually been quite a while since I got to hear a friendly voice."

"This... isn't your home, is it?" Anon asked. "How long have you been stuck here?"

"A few years, I think," Watame admitted. "I've kinda lost track, really. I guess I live here, but it's not really my home. I actually have no idea where that is, since I've been around humans since I was a little sheep."

Anon couldn't believe his ears. Why was someone so innocent and fluffy locked up here? What was that punk Hector using her for?

"...wait, a sheep?" Anon quipped, moving closer to the edge of his cage to try and get a better look at Watame. She had long, flowing blonde hair, and now that he could see better, she definitely had large curled horns sprouting from the sides of her head. "That's... actually really cool, Watame. Even if this whole situation isn't really cool, I've never actually met anyone like you before."

"People say I'm what's called a 'demi-human," Watame replied. "I'm probably different from other kinds of sheep, but I like to think that just makes me special! ...and, well, I don't know anything about my own family. The earliest thing I can remember is finding a farm that some humans owned. They didn't really like me at first, but I was able to earn my keep by helping them lead the other sheep."

"Looks like we're kinda kindred spirits, then," Anon admitted. "I don't really know anything about my family, either. I just washed up on the beach when I was a baby, and considering they all thought I was a bad omen because of that, the locals don't really like me. And just when I finally thought I could prove them wrong, all of this happens. Maybe they were right..."

"Hey, don't say that! You're not responsible for what some big bully of a wizard does with his free time," Watame proclaimed. "All that noise I heard earlier... that was you, wasn't it? You were trying to fight the wizard?"

"Well, 'fight' might be stretching it a lot," Anon chuckled. "Today was my first real battle, but no way in hell was I prepared for everything that was in here, things I didn't even know existed. I think I was lucky to beat the ones I did, even with some help I didn't expect..."

"Well, you still tried," Watame answered. "Everywhere this castle goes, the people just give up because they think they're unable to defend themselves. I think wizard guy's just scared that someone like you is gonna be the one who trashes his dumb plans once and for all."

"No way in hell was I just going to let him do whatever he wants," Anon quipped, smiling at the contagiousness of Watame's optimism. "But... what does he want with you and all of these other people?"

"He uses some strange magic to slowly drain mana from all of us so he can use it on his own spells, and even the castle," Watame answered.

"And he just... keeps them imprisoned forever? Just to take something he should be working for himself to get?" Anon gasped.

"He would let them go whenever he had to move the castle, but he put me here so I'd stop talking to the prisoners and keeping them hopeful," Watame admitted.

"...I have a question, Watame. What would you do if you could leave this place for good?" Anon wondered. "If absolutely nothing could stop you from doing whatever you want to do... what would that be?"

"I... haven't thought about that in a long time, but..." Watame stated. "If nothing could stop me... I'd go and look for the place I came from. I'd sing for the people every night and make them happy with my songs."

Anon could only imagine how long Watame must have yearned for a real home of her own, and how much it connected with his own desires to see the world and find his own origins.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea, Watame, and it's why I'm going to help you out," Anon proclaimed. "I'm gonna break out of this place, and bust you and everyone else here out. I still don't think I can take that wizard all by myself, but if we all work together, I think we can do it! And when we're done with that, I'm going to help you find your home. Who knows, it may help me find my own, too."

"...you mean it, Anon? You really want to help me leave this place?" Watame gasped.

"Of course," Anon responded. "You've been here long enough, and you don't deserve to be trapped because someone's too lazy to work for their own strength. We just... need to figure out how to get out of here first..."

"We might be able to help with that."

Anon and Watame looked up as the trinity all skidded to a stop inside the prison area.

But just as Nick was about to raise Starlight to unlock the cages, a flash of magic materialized near them, and the Prison Keeper barged its way out of the flash to confront them.

"Oh, look what the cat dragged in," Maylin taunted.

"You're not getting the drop on us this time, you freak!" Haruka shouted.

The Prison Keeper roared in defiance and floated forward, swinging its lower cage around like a flail to attack the trinity.

Nick lashed out with an Upper Slash to parry the swing before leaping upwards and slashing it in the face a few times, eventually driving it back with an overhead swing.

Maylin hung back and started rapidly casting spells to deal damage until the Prison Keeper barged towards her and slashed at her with both of its oversized claws.

Nick charged forward with a Flash Step, breaking through the Prison Keeper's claws and stunning it long enough for Sophia to slip behind it and blast it with Kougaon.

"Hope that hurt, cage boy!" Watame shouted. "That's what you get for locking Anon up!"

After recovering from that, the Prison Keeper pried open its mouth with both claws before lunging forward with a vicious bite. When the Prison Keeper tried that again, Maylin instead fired a Thunder spell into its mouth, stunning the Heartless long enough for Haruka to land three heavy hits on its backside.

Seeing that the bite wasn't working, the Prison Keeper floated upwards and conjured a fireball between its claws before throwing it towards the trinity, leaving a small pool of magma where it struck the floor.

Hmmm, I wonder... Nick thought as he waited for the Prison Keeper to try its fireball attack again. When it did so, Nick readied himself before swinging Starlight to deflect the fireball right back into the Prison Keeper's face.

"Oh, so we can do that!" Nick laughed.

The Prison Keeper floated upwards again and started spinning its arms around its head, dropping a barrage of fireballs down onto the ground.

Maylin ducked and weaved through the fireballs until she got close enough to the Prison Keeper. Haruka jumped in and wrenched its mouth open with Divewing so that Maylin could aim Counterpoint and fire a Thunder spell point-blank into the Prison Keeper's mouth, finally doing enough damage to finish it off.

The cage disconnected and clattered to the ground, and the Prison Keeper spun around in disbelief before collapsing and falling to pieces, a large energy heart floating away as its body disintegrated.

"Okay, that was awesome," Anon admitted.

"It's just what we do," Nick answered. "Now allow us to get you out of those cages, why don't we?"

Nick and Sophia both aimed their keyblades towards Anon and Watame's cages, firing a beam of light into the locks to dispel them and allow the prisoners to walk out.

Anon ran over and grabbed a large key ring hanging on a hook at the opposite end of the room, while Watame stepped out of her cage slowly, still unsure if this was really happening.

Now that he could see her, Anon beheld his new friend in all her glory. Messy golden blonde hair, curled sheep horns, a 'dress' that was really just a tattered cloth, and purple eyes that hadn't lost their spark despite everything she'd been through.

"You think we oughta keep looking for the other prisoners that Hector mentioned?" Maylin asked.

"That's probably where Anon's uncle is being held," Sophia noted.

"Then let's go and find them," Anon proclaimed. "I promise you, Watame, this will be your last day in this castle."

Watame appeared to be trying her best to hold back tears at Anon's proclamation.

"Hey, I think there's something still in that cell," Haruka quipped.

Nick jogged back into the open cell and saw a glowing piece of paper that he recognized as another missing page from the Pipo Storybook.

"That's two now," Nick quipped. "You ladies wanna make a stop in Lost Jerusalem when we're done here?"

"Naturally," Sophia giggled.

The group all headed out of the dungeon and began to search for another dungeon that was hopefully holding all of the other captives.

After crossing down another stairway, a flock of bird-like Heartless flew towards them. This Heartless was a parrot-like creature with predominantly violet plumage, including its round head and beak, though the tips of its tail feathers and its neck were orange. It had eyes shaped like large black and yellow spirals, and it had large yellow and orange wings that sprouted from its head, it wore red boxing gloves on each of its legs, and its Heartless emblem was on its abdomen.

"That's a weird bird," Watame admitted.

"That's an Aerial Knocker," Haruka explained. "It likes to punch and punch a lot, but that makes it deceptively easy to counter since that's really all it does."

Anon stepped up first, waiting for one of the Aerial Knockers to come closer before slashing overhead with his dagger to cut it down, as he had lost his sword during his first encounter with Hector.

One of the Aerial Knockers flew towards Watame and magically enlarged its fist to punch her, but Nick jumped towards it and cut it down with a diagonal upwards spinning attack that he repeated to take care of the remaining Aerial Knockers.

With that obstacle clear, the group continued their way down the nearest staircase and into the depths of yet another dungeon.

"A-Anon, my boy, is that you?" a gruff voice asked from a nearby cell.

"Uncle Gunther?!" Anon gasped as he ran over to the cell. "You're actually okay! Oh, man, you have no idea what I've been through in this place. What exactly happened?"

"I'll tell you what happened," another person growled. "Exactly what we all said would happen. We're paying the price for your curse."

"Yeah, I knew you would bring nothing but misfortune to all of us," another person shouted.

"...excuse me?" Maylin gasped, her anger rising when she noticed the sad look on Anon's face. "Are you people even for real right now?!"

"Anon's been prying his way through this castle, risking his neck for all of you," Haruka retorted. "He probably wasn't even anywhere near the castle when you all got captured, and you've got the stones to blame him for this?!"

"That's right, how could all of you be so mean to Anon?" Watame exclaimed. "Isn't he a human like you? How could you just say such awful things about him when he's trying to help you?"

"And what would some sheep... thing know about any of this?" the village elder snarled venomously. "You're just as much of an outsider as he is. Who knows, you could be in league with that madman who destroyed our homes and..."

"SHUT UP!" Anon bellowed, stunning everybody into silence. "That sheep's name is Watame, and she's my friend. She's much more of a victim of that lunatic than anybody else here. She's been kept here to be that bastard's mana supply, and you have the gall to talk to her like that?! Listen, you can hate me all you want, say I'm the cause of everything bad in your life just because I came from the sea, but if you ever, ever talk to Watame like that again, I swear, I'm going to mess up your face so bad that even kittens won't want to look at you. Got it?"

Dead silence for a few moments.

"Yeah, if he hadn't said it, I would have," Nick quipped.

Anon began using the keys they'd pilfered from the dungeon to unlock the cage and allow all the captured villagers to walk free.

"Hey, Anon?" Watame asked. "Did you... really mean everything you said? That we're friends?"

"Well, of course I did," Anon chuckled. "I can tell just by looking at you that you have a really big heart, and I was just so happy to meet someone who's a bit like me, someone who understands how I feel. So, yes, Watame, you are definitely my friend."

Watame couldn't help herself any longer and jumped forward to hug Anon tightly, and if he could describe the sensation, he would say it was like hugging a big and fluffy cloud.

"Okay, then, if everyone's present and accounted for, let's all get the hell out of this place!" Maylin proclaimed.

"If we run into anything that Anon and Watame probably can't handle, that's what we'll handle," Haruka stated.

Anon and Watame began leading the captives out of the dungeon, and the trinity followed behind them. Occasionally, they would run into a few more shadow creatures, but Anon dispatched them easily, his confidence having been bolstered by meeting Watame and making her a promise.

Eventually, Anon told Gunther to lead the hostages away while he went after Hector, though Watame quickly came running back.

"W-Watame, what are you doing back here?" Anon wondered. "You should be with Uncle Gunther, and..."

"I'm not leaving you behind, Anon," Watame answered. "We're friends now, after all, and this sheep always sticks by her friends! And besides, I might just know a way out of here. Follow me!"

The group followed Watame's directions that seemingly led them back to the dungeon, but this time, Watame ran over to the far end of the room and pointed down to a circular shaft sticking out of the floor.

"When the wizard got rid of some prisoners, he'd always throw them down here and they'd fall out of the castle," Watame explained. "I think we can use that to escape!"

"I just hope we're still over the ocean," Anon admitted.

Before they could pursue that option, a well of dark magic erupted from the floor nearby, and out of it stepped Hector, now sporting a look of pure disdain.

"Ooh, boy, we've got company," Nick proclaimed, summoning Spartan Rage to his hands.

"Boy, choose your next moves very carefully," Hector growled. "I promise you, if that sheep goes down that hole, you will experience pain like nothing else in this world."

"You can threaten me all you want, Hector, but Watame won't be staying in this wretched place a second longer," Anon yelled.

"If you want to be some all-powerful wizard, fine and dandy, but you should at least have the guts to work for that power, not just siphoning other peoples' mana for your own selfish amusement," Maylin proclaimed.

"I would love to put you in your place, you little brats, but I am a man who values my time, and I've already wasted enough of that cleaning up your messes," Hector retorted. "So this is my deal. The boy goes down that shaft, and the sheep stays here."

"Do you honestly think Anon would respect that garbage deal?!" Sophia shouted.

"Oh, I'm afraid I wasn't asking," Hector sneered. "I would rather not waste even more mana wiping you pretend heroes from the walls, so the sheep will stay here as per the original arrangement."

"And what the hell does that mean?" Anon shot back. "Who in their right mind would ever agree to stay here with a monster like you?!"

"Why, the one from the village where I found this demi-human," Hector chuckled. "Imagine my surprise when I caught sight of an actual demi-human in such a backwater kingdom. I decided to be generous and offer to trade the sheep for their freedom, and they happily accepted. Now do you get it, boy? Humans sold away this girl's freedom. Whatever you think you would have out there is nothing but an illusion. Humankind would never accept the likes of you, but at least by my side, you can serve a purpose and be the fuel for my new order. Now, simply discard the boy and get back in your cell."

"Look, we know for a fact that some people can be huge jerks to each other," Maylin admitted. "I've seen more than my fair share of it on our own travels. They can be selfish and hurtful even when you haven't done anything wrong."

"But we've also seen a bunch of good people, too, the kind that don't give a rat's tail what you look like or where you're from," Haruka stated. "The good far outshines the bad."

"And furthermore, Watame gave me the courage I needed to finally stand up to everybody who's made me feel small and unwanted," Anon proclaimed, readying himself for the fight ahead. "She's my friend now, and as long as I'm here, she will never be alone again. We're going to travel the world, find her family and her home, and she'll be free again, and there's nothing that you can do to stop that!"

Much to Anon's surprise, though, Watame grabbed his hands and led him to the escape hatch.

"You gotta go, Anon," Watame stated.

"Hold on, what do you mean?" Anon wondered. "We're both going together, right?"

"I know this will hurt, but... I have to take his deal," Watame admitted. "If we don't, he'll just keep hunting us down, maybe even actually kill you. I don't want that to happen, especially not to my new friend. You've gotta keep living, Anon, and if I can be the reason you get to do that... then it'll be worth it."

Before Anon could protest, however, Watame shoved Anon down the hatch and sent him falling away from the castle.

"Well, well, it's nice to see you had more sense than he did," Hector chuckled, before turning to the trinity. "And what of you, little brats?"

"...do you really need our answer to that?" Nick retorted as all four of them summoned their keyblades for battle.

"You're not touching Watame with those dirty excuses for hands ever again," Maylin growled.

"You want to see true power at work?" Haruka taunted. "Then how about we show it to you?"

"Watame is our friend, too, and I will always fight for my friends!" Sophia proclaimed.

"Very well, then," Hector bellowed, his body beginning to glow with dark magic. "This inane game has gone on long enough. Now you will taste oblivion!"

("Good Morning Song" by Tsunomaki Watame plays)

Hector launched a large sphere of dark energy towards Nick, but he leaped over it and swung Spartan Rage downwards, sending it crashing to the ground.

Hector glided around the room, his feet not even touching the ground as his body was carried by swells of darkness. After picking his target, Hector swung his hand as if he was swinging a sword, which materialized a blade of darkness to slash through the air towards Sophia.

"You honestly think I'm scared of the darkness?" Sophia chuckled as she summoned Pandora and cast Makougaon to both dispel the dark sword and drive Hector back with the blast.

"You will learn to fear it," Hector taunted as wells of dark energy erupted from random spots on the floor, forcing the trinity to stay on the move.

Nick dodged through the swells of darkness, only to find himself trapped by his feet via a pool of darkness, much like Anon had been earlier today.

"You fell for it, you little fool!" Hector cackled as he threw two dark spheres towards Nick.

"Um, did you forget that I can still use my arms?" Nick taunted as he swung Spartan Rage twice to bat the dark spheres right back into Hector's face. This stunned him and dispelled the dark pool, allowing Nick to start running towards him again.

Not waiting for Hector to recover his poise, Nick hopped off of one of the raised stones near the cell and started whacking Hector in the face, ending with an Aerial Finish that sent the dark wizard reeling.

"How dare you," Hector snarled. "You little punks will know your place!"

"Oh, shut up already!" Maylin countered as she hit Hector with a Graviga spell that forced him to his knees. "That spiel was old the first fifty times I heard it!"

Maylin ducked and weaved through more dark swells from the floor so she could get in close.

"And if you really think I'm going to be scared of some inept two-bit dark wizard who can only use magic through stolen power, then you're clearly out of your gourd!" Maylin shouted, casting Aeroga to send Hector careening into the ceiling.

Watame couldn't believe that the trinity was fighting so hard for her, despite everything that had just happened.

...was this what it meant to have actual friends?

"Can you fight me while still protecting your precious sheep?!" Hector cackled as he landed back on his feet and raised his hand to cast multiple dark lightning bolts towards Watame.

Just as Watame flinched back from the attack, Maylin raised Counterpoint to cast Reflect on Watame. The dark lightning bounced harmlessly off the barrier and redirected itself back into Hector, shocking him briefly.

"Does that answer your question?" Maylin taunted.

All of a sudden, what appeared to be a great deluge of water busted down the doors to the dungeon, and Anon came flying through them, though he looked different, his body surrounded by a bright blue glow.

"...is that you, Anon?" Watame gasped.

"How did you get back here, boy?!" Hector gasped. "There's no way in hell you survived that fall!"

"He had a little help," Anon responded, though now everyone could hear someone else speaking alongside him. "My summoner has asked me to put a stop to your evil deeds for good, and I shall do exactly that. If you surrender, I will make your end painless."

"And who are you to make demands of me?!" Hector growled. "You may have learned a little something, but you are no match for the powers I command."

"That statement doesn't really hold much weight, does it, considering how badly we were kicking your butt?!" Maylin taunted.

"If you will not lay down your arms, then I will come at you with all I have," Anon proclaimed, his body glowing brighter. "For I am the ruler of the waters, Undine. Now, feel the wrath of the ocean!"

Hector laughed triumphantly, but was cut short when a disc of water zoomed past his head.

"Still think I'm insane?" Undine chuckled.

"Um... is that still Anon in there with you?" Watame wondered.

"That is correct, little sheep," Undine answered. "His soul is still very much here. He asked me to help free you and stop this evil wizard once and for all."

Hector threw a spear of dark magic towards Anon while he was talking to Watame, but Nick jumped off of Watame's shoulders and batted it into the opposite wall with a swing from Spartan Rage.

"No interrupting a conversation, buddy," Nick taunted.

"There is no escape for you now!" Undine shouted, swiping their hands to send blades of razor-sharp water towards Hector.

"Fools!" Hector bellowed, teleporting around the room to dodge the attack, only for Haruka to jump towards him and swing Divewing at his legs to trip him up, leaving him open to getting blasted by a sphere of water from Anon.

"Just admit that you stand no chance against me," Undine proclaimed. "You may wield powerful dark magic, but without your own mana and passion to give it strength, it will always fail you."

"...you want to experience the might of my own magic?" Hector growled. "Fine. You have tried my patience for the absolute last time, boy. I may have to push my plans back a few years, but killing you will more than make up for it!"

"All right, now we're getting somewhere," Nick quipped.

Hector swung his arm downward, a claw made of pure shadows slashing downwards as well. Maylin cast a Firaga spell to intercept it so that Sophia could cast Kougaon and dissipate it.

"How about you eat some of this?!" Nick shouted as he cast a Thunder spell right on top of Hector, driving him back to his knees so that Nick could run forward and send him reeling back with an Upper Slash, then a Flash Step that sent him crashing back into the steel bars of the cell.

"That is it!" Hector screamed, his eyes flickering with rage and insanity. "I have officially had all that I can stand of you little brats! I don't care if I have to reduce this entire castle to ashes in order to be rid of you, I can just build a new one, and I'll make your precious villagers build it for me!"

Hector raised his hands, and a large ball of dark energy materialized above him, growing larger and larger by the second.

"Oh, who thinks this is any sort of good?" Haruka quipped.

Nick glanced upwards towards the sphere, then noticed a large chandelier hanging from the ceiling. And that gave him a wicked idea.

"Maylin, I could use a boost!" Nick shouted.

"All over it, buddy!" Maylin giggled as she ran towards Nick so he could leapfrog off of her shoulders, jump high into the air, and throw Spartan Rage at the chain holding the chandelier to the ceiling.

The keyblade flew true and sliced through the chain, the chandelier then crashing down on top of Hector, instantly dazing him and dispelling the dark sphere.

"Whew, that was close," Nick sighed in relief as he moved in to start attacking the stunned Hector.

"That guy's lost it this time," Maylin quipped. "He was seriously willing to destroy all of us like that?!"

"Are you doing all right there, Undine?" Watame asked. "Is Anon doing okay?"

"We are both fine," Undine answered. "But I do not know how much longer I can hold onto the possession, so we will have to end this quickly."

"Then let me fight while you get some rest," Watame offered. "You just need time to gather more mana, right? I can distract him while you take care of that. I don't want to lose my friend again."

What a brave little sheep she is, Undine thought. I can now understand why you would risk so much to help her, Anon. Your conviction is clear to me now. If both of you, as mortals, are willing to give everything you can for what is important to you, then I can surely do the same.

"My summoner asked me that I both keep you safe and defeat this wizard, and I will not disappoint him," Undine proclaimed.

"Maybe don't have a conversation while I'm still here, boy!" Hector cackled as he started waving his hand to conjure dark spears all around him.

"And maybe you need to focus on your opponents!" Maylin taunted as she blasted Hector in the back with a Thunder spell, jolting his attention onto her so that Anon and Watame could make their way back to the exit of the castle, riding a surging wave of water to move much faster.

Hector saw this and roared in pure unhinged rage, blasting forward to literally crash through the walls to go after them.

"At least he's leaving a path for us," Haruka chuckled.

"Then let's keep after him," Nick answered. "I have a feeling that wizard boy's just about done for."

With that in mind, the trinity followed the path of destruction that Hector was leaving so they could catch up and finish this fight.

Once Anon and Watame made it to the exit of the castle, Hector smashed through the doors in a burst of dark magic, his expression contorted in unyielding rage.

"You're finished now, boy," Hector shouted. "It looks to me like your little display is just about concluded. You don't have the strength to defeat me any longer."

"Maybe not alone," Undine retorted. "But together, we will do whatever it takes to finish you off. Now fall before the splendor of water!"

The blue aura surrounding Anon intensified rapidly as he swung his sword to unleashed a gigantic whirlpool and casually fling it towards Hector. Though he made a valiant effort to dodge it, Undine had been expecting that. Anon then thrust his sword forward again, and twin water dragons burst forth and bit down on Hector's hands, pinning him down to the floor.

"You are finished," Undine proclaimed. "You call yourself a master of magic, but you are nothing but a fool. You can only conjure magic through your hands, is that correct? A mage who can only use stolen mana is no mage at all. True magic requires passion, drive, and understanding of the elements you wish to command. When somebody with a real reason to fight challenged you, your fate was sealed. Your selfishness and disrespect for real magic is why you will lose."

"Words after my own heart, Undine!" Maylin laughed as the trinity caught up with the fight.

"...you would dare lecture me again?!" Hector snarled as he tried in vain to escape the water dragons' painful grasp on him. "I don't need to understand what is mine to command! ...and you may have overlooked something, boy. Yes, I need my hands to cast most of my spells..."

A sinister-looking shadow began to expand outwards from Hector's body. "...but there is one trick I have that doesn't!"

Another shadow creature, this one much more demonic-looking than the others, loomed over Hector before lunging towards Anon, fully intent on maiming him.

Maylin quickly cast a Reflect spell in front of Anon so that the shadow creature's razor-bladed arms only struck the barrier, which swiftly exploded and reflected the damage back into Hector, stunning him long enough for Nick to charge in and end the fight.

As Nick got close enough, time seemed to slow down for him, and the teeth of Spartan Rage began to sparkle, indicating he'd learned something.

Relishing the terrified look on Hector's face, Nick raised Spartan Rage high above his head before snapping it down, unleashing a ring of silver energy orbs that spiraled around his body rapidly for about a second and a half, dealing impressive damage to Hector and sending him flying off of the staircase.

Anon barreled forward as well, the water dragons from earlier separating from him and surge into Hector's whole body, dragging him further and further downward towards the land below. Anon watched with a grim sense of satisfaction as Hector's body eventually dissolved into little particles of darkness that evaporated not long after.

"...did we finally get him?" Maylin gasped.

"I think we did," Sophia stated.

No sooner had Maylin said that then the entirety of the castle started rumbling and quaking.

"Oh, you've gotta be kidding me!" Nick exclaimed when he realized the castle was falling apart.

"All right, everyone, time to bail!" Haruka shouted as the entire group jumped off of the staircase and started diving towards the ocean below them. While this was happening, they watched as the castle began to collapse into pieces.

Nick couldn't help but be concerned when he saw the blue glow that had been surrounding Anon during the entire fight with Hector start flickering.

"Should we be worried about that?" Nick wondered. "It doesn't look like Undine can maintain her body-sharing thing any longer, and that's a long fall!"

"You just leave that to a real mage," Maylin chuckled as she re-summoned Counterpoint and aimed it downwards to cast a powerful Aeroga spell, creating a vortex of wind around all of them that slowed their descent enough so that they wouldn't crash into the ocean, merely splash down into it.

"Anon, are you and Undine okay?" Watame asked.

"I... I believe so, little sheep," Undine answered. "I am surprised that the possession is still holding. Thank you all for protecting my summoner."

"Hey, that's just what we do," Haruka quipped. "Well, that and sticking it to blowhards like Hector."

"I guess that means that my task is finished," Undine stated. "If I could ask one last thing of you, Watame? I have been inspired by the resolve of both yourself, my summoner, and all of you to protect what is dear to you, even at the cost of your lives. I... had forgotten what that passion felt like, so it was only right that I lay down my own life as well. During that final blow, I used up some of the mana that makes up my own spiritual form so I would not take the last of my summoner's life force, which means he will still live once the possession ends."

"Oh, that's a relief," Nick admitted. "Wait, then what's going to happen to you once that possession runs out of mana?"

"There is no need to worry," Undine answered. "Please give this message to my summoner once he reawakens, as I do not know how much he can hear or see while I am possessing him. Because my summoner did not have the mana to physically summon me into this world, he chose to allow me to possess him in order to carry out his wishes. I used my own spiritual energy to power my spells, so I will go dormant again, but please tell him not to worry, for we still share a connection thanks to our pact. My wish to him is to make his own mana stronger, as with stronger mana and more understanding of the spirits, I am confident that he can summon me back into the world."

"We'll relay the message," Sophia answered. "That's a promise."

"Thank you, everyone. I have to go now, but I hope to see you all again someday," Undine proclaimed.

With those words spoken, the blue glow around Anon faded completely as he finally woke up.

"...hey there, Watame," Anon chuckled.

"Is that... is that really you, Anon?" Watame gasped.

"About as me as I can be, I guess," Anon quipped. "I'm just glad you're safe."

Watame couldn't resist hugging Anon again, and the trinity all grinned knowingly at the sparkle in Watame's eyes.

"And before you ask, Watame, I heard everything that was going on the whole time, and I already promised myself I'd do whatever it takes to see Undine again so I can thank her properly for all of her help," Anon responded. "And if I need to become a real summoner to make that happen, then that's just what I'm gonna do."

Anon looked up at the crumbling remains of Hector's castle. "So, it's finally over, huh?" Anon chuckled. "So, how's the view from here, Watame? What does freedom look like to you?"

"It's beautiful," Watame gasped. "I never knew that the sunrise could be so breathtaking by the ocean."

"And that's just the start, Watame," Maylin quipped. "You two are going to be able to see even more beautiful things now."

Just then, Anon's father and uncle both made their way over the nearby hill.

"...maybe after some rest," Anon quipped. "Because I am bushed."

"Yeah, I would be too after everything that happened up there," Nick chuckled. "Let's get you back home."

With that, everybody headed back to Anon's village, and much to his surprise, quite a few of the villagers were appropriately worried about what had happened in the castle. It seemed like Anon's point had gotten across to a good majority of the villagers. The trinity stayed guard outside the village while Anon slept his exhaustion away, just to make sure that no Heartless or Nobodies would get inside.

A couple hours later, Anon woke up to see that Watame had come to greet him, and she looked almost completely different, thanks to the new outfit that she was wearing, a white sleeveless dress with an underlying black skirt that hung just above her knees, black arm warmers underneath white wooly vambraces, from her elbows to her shoulders covered by a frilly over-sleeve, a fluffy collar with a bright red bow tied in front of it leading to a cloak lined with pink that ran past her knees and black boots that now covered her feet past her calves. Just about the entire outfit was trimmed with fluffy cotton.

"Wow, look at you," Anon gasped.

"You like it?" Watame giggled. "Your dad and a nice lady from your village made it for me while you were sleeping."

Watame took a few steps closer and hugged Anon once again, this hug feeling much more fluffy than the last.

"H-Hey, Anon?" Watame asked. "I just wanted to thank you again for everything you did for me. I never thought I'd ever be free again, and I don't know if I could ever repay you, but if there's anything I can do..."

"You said you were setting out to find your homeland, right? That wonderful place where you can sing to your heart's content?" Anon asked, to which Watame nodded. "I'd like to come with you, then."

"H-Hey, I know you said you'd help me find my home, but I don't want to take you away from your family," Watame admitted. "You don't have to leave them just for little ol' me..."

"Honestly, I've thought about leaving for a while now," Anon responded. "I want to see everything this world has to offer, but I haven't until now because I didn't want to be alone. I always thought that people wouldn't accept me, or they'd think I'm a bad omen. But that doesn't bother me anymore, and it's all because of you, Watame. You inspired me to just be proud that I exist. So, I want to travel the world with my friend and find out who I truly am and where I came from, especially considering I have another promise to fulfill, too. What do you say, Watame? You want to go see the world together?"

"Of course!" Watame cried, jumping forward to hug Anon again. "I promise I'll do whatever I can to help you. After all, I want to thank Undine just as much as you do."

"All right, then, let me just get a few more things packed and we can head out," Anon quipped.

"W-Wait, already?" Watame gasped. "You just woke up, after all. Don't you think you need a little more time to rest?"

"A little sore, sure, but I'm already rarin' to go," Anon laughed. "After all, we've been waiting our whole lives for this, and I don't want to waste one more day."

After one last conversation with Anon's uncle and father, and getting some supplies and encouragement for the journey ahead, Anon and Watame headed out, passing by the trinity on their way.

"Oh, you guys are heading out?" Maylin quipped.

"Why did I feel like you already knew what we were doing?" Anon chuckled.

"They could tell, I'm sure," Watame giggled. "I kinda wish you all could come with us, but... you've probably got your own adventure to go on, right?"

"That's pretty much what we do," Haruka answered. "We're just waiting for the next gate to open so we can get a move on."

"Wait, there's a door that you're waiting for?" Watame wondered.

"It's... a little complicated, I'm sure," Sophia noted.

Suddenly, Anon's spellbook started glowing brightly, and it floated off of his belt and into the air.

"That's the second strange thing it's done today," Anon quipped. "I mean, I didn't intend to blast down my dad's door..."

"Looks like that's my cue," Nick quipped as he brought out his keyblade.

Nick held Starlight aloft as light energy began to swirl around the keyblade's teeth before projecting the image of a crown symbol, same as his pendant, underneath him.

Wind began to swirl around Nick until he found himself in the middle of a rusty-orange starry sky. The spellbook shined brightly before firing a burst of light into the sky that eventually formed into a large keyhole.

Nick jumped back and twirled Starlight around a couple times before firing a beam of light from the keyblade into the keyhole. Reality seemed to shatter around the keyhole for a brief moment before light began to shine from it, and after a loud "CLICK" resounded, Nick found himself back in the forest trail.

"Well, looks like we're gonna be hitting the road ourselves," Nick quipped. "You two have your own journeys to get to, so we won't keep you any longer."

"Ooh, I'm already getting super happy," Watame giggled. "Now we can go wherever we want. It's still kinda hard to believe, to be real..."

"Hey, I made you a promise, right?" Anon answered. "And when I make a promise, I do my absolute best to see it through. And honestly, I'm really glad you're gonna be coming with me on this journey of ours. I've never had a real friend to travel with before, and I'm looking forward to every new step we take together."

"Well, then, we won't keep ya," Maylin stated.

"Wait, wait, just a second," Watame stated. "I've gotta give you guys something to thank you for helping us out."

Watame brought out a harp in response.

"Hey, where'd you get that harp, Watame?" Anon wondered.

"I've had this since I was a little sheep, but it was taken away by the wizard when he captured me," Watame answered. "I never thought I'd see it again, but the villagers found it in the rubble of the castle!"

Watame gave the strings a tentative pluck to see if they still worked, before strumming a few simple chords while humming along. A bright glow came from the harp as Watame played and sang, her voice almost feeling like bright and fluffy clouds, before floating over to Nick's keyblade and transforming it.

This new keyblade had a handleguard shaped like Watame's sheep ears, a hilt shaped like Anon's spellbook, a blade shaped like an elongated version of Watame's harp with twin water dragons coiling around the blade and one of them acting as the teeth, and the keychain token, a fluffy cloud, was attached to the weapon by a long strand of purple cloth. The words Uber Sheep came to Nick's mind as he studied the weapon.

"Okay, that was cool, Watame," Maylin gasped. "Was that all you?"

"Yup, my magic is music," Watame explained. "I can play a variety of songs to help you overcome anything, and I can even use my mana to make the sounds I play actually fly out and hit things! I'm going to be Anon's combat sheep, so he doesn't ever have to fight alone again!"

"Well, what are you two waiting for?" Nick quipped. "Head out and start adventuring already. You've got so much waiting for you, don't you?"

"Please come by and visit anytime, okay?" Watame stated. "We'd love to see you all again!"

The trinity waved goodbye to Anon and Watame as they set off for their journey, taking the first steps towards what would undoubtedly be a grand adventure in the making. Watame looked completely enamored by everything around them, and the sight warmed Anon's heart just to see her happy and able to embrace the freedom she no doubt deserved.

I promise you, you will never be alone again, Watame.

After using the TV Station to warp to where Yumi had already gone to, Nick found himself in what appeared to be a Wild West town. A slightly melancholy music box tune was ringing out throughout the town.

"How much do you wanna bet..." Nick sighed.

"Heads up!" Yumi shouted.

Nick quickly turned around to see Monkey Blue dashing towards him on what appeared to be the same motorized unicycle he'd rode the last time, only now it was outfitted with handlebars.

Nick quickly summoned Uber Sheep and swung it to knock Monkey Blue away.

"That wasn't entirely nice, you know," Nick quipped as he and Yumi prepared for a fight.

"I take it you two were lookin' fer me?" Monkey Blue taunted as he slowed to a stop near them. "I'd say that your sherrifin' days are done. There ain't nobody faster than me when it comes to slappin' iron, you little kiddies."

"Wow, you're pretty confident, aren't ya?" Yumi quipped.

"And we usually know how where that kind of overconfidence gets you," Nick stated.

"You two really wanna try me?" Monkey Blue retorted before glancing at a pocket watch. "I'll be legendary once I put you down, and then... I'll ask Pink out on a date!"

"...is this guy for real?" Nick wondered.

"Shall we, then?" Monkey Blue proclaimed. "As soon as my music box stops, we draw."

Nick and Yumi kept their weapons ready as the music box continued to play.

Once it stopped, Monkey Blue revved his bike and charged towards Nick and Yumi.

"I'll learn ya the rules of a gunman!" Monkey Blue proclaimed. Here we go!"

Nick lunged forward to try and strike at Monkey Blue, but he easily dodged it before cycling all over the town.

"Dang, this guy's fast," Nick quipped. "I kinda wish I still had my old Stop spell..."

As Nick watched Monkey Blue roll around town while Yumi chased him with a hula hoop around her waist that sped her up significantly when she spun it around, Nick realized that he could still improvise.

When Monkey Blue came around the nearby corner, Nick fired a Thunder spell into the ground right in front of Monkey Blue to disorient him, and while he was trying to turn around and escape in the other direction, Nick moved in to attack, whacking Monkey Blue three times before finishing with an overhead strike from Uber Sheep that caused the light on Monkey Blue's Pipo Helmet to turn from blue to yellow.

"Wanna play catch, kiddies?" Monkey Blue laughed as he started tossing bombs while wheeling around the town.

"No thank you," Yumi quipped as she batted some of the bombs back with her Stun Club before switching back over to her Super Hoop to chase Monkey Blue around the town.

Eventually, Yumi doubled back around to surprise Monkey Blue from the opposite direction, crashing into him with the Super Hoop before he could turn around. Yumi whacked him a couple times with her Stun Club before Monkey Blue sped off to another part of town, his helmet light changing from yellow to red.

"All right, that's it, we're gonna fight now," Monkey Blue proclaimed, dashing over to a gatling gun setup at the opposite end of this town street. "On the count of three, come at me!"

"I got this one," Yumi quipped as she held up her Morph Gear, ready to transform again. "Morph Gear Transform: Wild West Kid!"

Yumi was enveloped in a flash of green light, and when it cleared, she was wearing a white tank top with a blue heart in the center, pants with an American flag color scheme, and blue boots with a light blue heart on the front of each boot, along with big loose gloves, a blue bandana and a light pink cowboy hat worn on her back. Two yellow pistols were also holstered on her waist.

"DRAW!" Monkey Blue shouted as he started firing his gatling gun, while Yumi ran forward, firing her own pistols as intervals to counter the bullet spray and allow Nick to get closer as well.

When they both reached Monkey Blue, Nick lunged forward with a Flash Step, then and Explosion that knocked Monkey Blue away from his gatling gun. This allowed Yumi to fire an energy net from her pistols that finally captured Monkey Blue.

The instant Monkey Blue was captured, the Specter TV satellite on top of the tallest building in town exploded and collapsed into pieces.

"That's two down and three to go," Yumi stated after reverting out of her transformation.

"And that means you should probably head back and keep catching more of the monkeys," Nick responded. "I'll be back with the next missing page as soon as I can."

Both Nick and Yumi jumped into the air before warping away in a flash of blue light. Meanwhile, both Specter and Doctor Tomoki were once again observing the fight from their control center, and Specter was now starting to show some concern.

"Ugh, they've captured Blue as well, Tomoki," Specter groaned. "This isn't going well, is it?"

'I don't think there's any need to worry, Mister Specter," Tomoki answered. "We've still got dozens of broadcasting stations all over the world, after all."

"That's true, and there's still three more of the Freaky Monkey Five," Specter laughed. "I'm sure that Yellow can take them down no problem."

"Um, pardon me if I'm a little blind right now, but I don't see any new worlds out there right now," Maylin noted once the trinity had returned to the Gummi Ship. "Nick did open a gate, right? We were all there."

"Actually, I think we just re-opened an older world," Haruka answered after checking their map of the Ocean Between. "Look over there!"

Sure enough, to the north of the structure representing Lost Jerusalem was the structure representing Alola Town, which had been unavailable since they'd started this journey.

"Hey, Alola Town's back," Sophia gasped.

"You think something's going down over there?" Nick wondered.

"If it's showing up like that, then yeah, I have a feeling that's our next destination," Maylin admitted. "Well, Haruka, let's head back to Alola Town and see what the hub-bub's all about!"

"Roger that," Haruka stated as she began to pilot the Gummi Ship towards Alola Town.

Nick couldn't help but wonder what that feeling he had was. Something in his mind was telling him that something big was going to go down when they started this leg of their journey.

He wasn't sure what, exactly, that was, but at least now he found himself more ready for whatever it was.

To be continued...

Keyblade acquired!

Uber Sheep
Strength: 4
Magic: 7
Length: 152
Ability: Drive Boost (Allows greater restoration of the Drive Gauge during MP Charge. Equip more to increase the effect.)
Description: A keyblade representing a fluffy sheep who hasn't done anything wrong, off on a quest to find her home.

On the next episode...

Maylin: It seems like everything is normal here.

Nick: I wouldn't be too sure, ladies. What are Nobodies doing here?

Haruka: That can only mean the Organization is out and about.

Sophia: I don't think it's just the Organization, though. I can sense an extremely foul dark energy coming from somewhere in the town.

Nick: That can't be good. What the heck could be exuding darkness that twisted? ...and why does it feel so familiar?

Sophia: I guess we'll find out sooner or later, next time on Kingdom Hearts: Key to Her Heart re:Verse II, "In Order to Change My Fate"!

Nick, Maylin, Haruka and Sophia: May your hearts be your guiding key!