Fanfiction ► Kingdom Hearts: Keys to the Kingdom Series

[TelaryCri]

Chapter XLVII: Wind In Your Sails, pt. 4
​

In a few hours the Pearl reaches their next destination, and from there Jack, the trio, and Gibbs all pile into a longboat and set off with Pintel and Ragetti operating the oars. They follow a small inlet up into a murky bayou.

It takes only a few minutes for Sora to realize that they’re being watched, and he shudders uncomfortably at the sight of a shadowy figure lurking in the foliage. Then he spots another, and a third, all silently observing the rowboat’s passage.

“You take us to the nicest places, Jack,” Azlyn deadpans, swatting at a mosquito buzzing around her face.

Speaking of buzzed, Telary sits beside his girlfriend, still feeling the effects of Jack’s strong drink. Azlyn had hoped that after the wizard caught a small nap on the Pearl he’d sober up, but it seems that whatever he’d imbibed is even worse (or better, depending on your perspective) than she’d thought.

She can’t get it out of her head, what he’d brought up back on the ship. Marriage, really? It had to be the drink talking, right? Certainly a sober Telary would realize that they were far from ready to take such a drastic leap forward in their relationship.

On the other hand, the thought of being Telary’s wife, like forever, has a definite appeal. And they say that alcohol can bring out your true self, so…

It’s something to think about, anyway.

“I think it’s important for young people to see the world,” the captain declares, standing on the prow like a general. “Experience all the sights, sounds, and smells it has to offer.” He takes a deep sniff and grimaces. “Well, maybe not the smells.”

Azlyn grunts and checks on Telary again. Ragetti seems to be keeping him busy, chatting him up about something or other.

Sora, however, is a bit more curious about their destination. He decides to ask Gibbs about it. “So, uh, who exactly are we supposed to be seeing here again?”

“An old acquaintance of Jack’s,” the first mate replies in a low voice. If the captain can hear him speaking, he gives no sign. “A witch and voodoo priestess with strange powers the likes of which man cannot grasp. Some say she can control men and beasts, commune with the dead, even predict the future.”

“Cool,” the Keybearer replies, leaning back in the boat. They’re now pulling into a small lagoon, surrounded on all sides by trees. Fireflies supply what little light they can, and Sora swears he can make out still more figures watching.

The oarsmen steer toward the base of the tallest tree, an impressively large hut built into its branches. The flickering light of a candle shines through a window like a beacon calling sailors to harbor.

“Is this where we rent the snorkels?” Telary inquires innocently. He grimaces down at the murky black water of the lagoon. “Because this doesn’t look like a great place for diving.”

Azlyn sighs and shakes her head. “No, Tel. We’re here to see, uh, a magic show!”

“A magic show!” the wizard exclaims, giggling with delight. “I love magic!”

“I’m not sure I like this,” Sora murmurs as they pull in to dock. He can see a woman’s shadowy outline step past the window. It seems they’re expected.

Jack gives the Keybearer his best reassuring grin. “Fear not, my spiky haired chum! Tia Dalma and I are old friends, go way back. Thick as thieves we are!” His grin falters a bit “Well, we were. Once.”

“And now?” Azlyn asks, one eyebrow raised skeptically.

The captain shrugs. “I’m sure she’s forgotten about any unpleasantness that may have inadvertently occurred.” That said, he climbs out of the boat and onto the huts balcony porch. The rest of the gang follows after him.

“Mind the boat,” Telary sternly orders the empty air, just before Azlyn pulls him inside.

The hut’s interior is rather larger than Sora had been expecting, but most of it is stuffed with shelves and hanging jars of odds and ends that gleam in the light of dozens of candles. The Keybearer grimaces as he shuffles past a container full of small eyeballs.

They eventually reach what appears to be the central room, where a large round table dominates most of the floor. The dark-skinned woman sitting at it is dressed in a gown that seems far too formal for a backwater swamp, yet she wears it well. Hair black as night falls to her waist, and odd tattoos mark the undersides of her eyes.

“Jack Sparrow!” the witch exclaims in a thick accent, rising from her seat and stepping over to the captain. She moves with an easy sort of sensuality, every movement like a step in a dance.

“My dear Tia!” Jack returns the greeting, flashing her his most charming smile. “It has been a while, has it not?”

“Do you think she knows any card tricks?” Telary whispers to Sora and Azlyn as they watch the old friends exchange pleasantries. Suddenly he raises his hand and erupts into loud shouts of, “Pick me, pick me!”

The redhead’s exclamation draws the eyes of Tia Dalma over to the trio, and when they land on Sora she lets out a gasp. The swamp witch scurries forward and grabs the Keybearer by the arm, pulling him over to her table.

“Aw, man,” Telary pouts. “I never get picked!”

“Uh, excuse me, Miss Dalma,” Sora stutters, jerking his arm out of her grip. “Er, hi. I’m…”

Tia throws her head back and laughs, loud and long. When she looks back down at the boy, she’s smiling broadly. “Oh, I know who you are, Sora. A wielder of the Keyblade like no other before.”

Sora looks at the witch with a puzzled expression. “Before?”

Jack steps up to Sora’s side, rather indignant. “Oh, I’ve heard this one. Next she’ll say you’ve got ‘a touch of destiny’. Told me the same thing, verbatim.”

Tia laughs again, though this time it’s a low chuckle rather than a cackle. She shakes her head. “Oh no, you ain’t just got a touch o’ destiny, young Keybearer.” She lays a finger on the crown pendant of Sora’s necklace. “Child, you been smacked with Destiny’s whole hand. The things in store fer you…”
“
She’s good,” Telary comments offhand to Azlyn. “If I thought of a number, do you think she could guess it?”

“Six,” the witch deadpans, swiveling her gaze over to the couple. Telary gasps and raises his hands to his temples.

“Okay, enough with the floor show,” Azlyn declares, elbowing past Gibbs and sending him stumbling into Pintel and Ragetti. “We’ve got a Keyhole to find.”

“Keyhole,” Tia Dalma repeats thoughtfully, sauntering back to her chair. “Yes, you would be seeking such a thing.”

“Now, I know you don’t normally work pro bono, love,” Jack says, his tone signifying the beginnings of a negotiation. “And I respect that keen business sense of yours, I do. But funds are a bit tight at the moment, so…”

“A wielder of the Keyblade has come to me seeking the Keyhole, to seal our world against the forces that would destroy it once more,” the witch interrupts, her voice steady and serious. “To charge for a service such as that would be the height of arrogance.”

Jack’s worried expression slides easily into a smile. “Well, that’s all well and good then. For a moment I thought I’d have to give up my undead monkey, and I’ve grown quite fond of him. Great for a bit of shooting practice, he is.”

Tia stands once again, muttering noises that barely sound like real words. She moves to a nearby shelf, Pintel and Ragetti darting aside to allow her access. She clicks her tongue as she searches, grabbing several different jars and vials. Two jars contain red and blue powder, a vial of red blood, and another jar packed with what look to be the talons of some large birds.

“What are those for?” Pintel nervously inquires.

The witch turns and gives him a small smile. “Nothin’, actually.” She plunges her arm into the dark recesses of the shelf, up to her elbow. When she draws it out again, she holds a bag full of small bones. “They were just in the way.” She puts most of the stuff back, but as she makes her way back to the table she hands Azlyn one of the powder jars.

“Uh, thanks?” the knight says, miffed.

Tia lets out a small laugh and nods to Telary. “Fer the hangover.”

The witch sits down, beckoning everyone to gather closer. They come, Jack sharply thrusting his elbow into Gibbs’ side when the first mate stops right in front of him.

“Summon the Keyblade,” Tia instructs Sora, her eyes solemn and serious. He does so, holding the blade over the table as directed.

“I didn’t know Sora was a magician’s assistant!” Telary murmurs. “Where’s his sparkly dress?”

Tia Dalma starts her chant up once more. She swirls the bag of bones over the Keyblade, then opens it up and tips it over. The bones spill out, impacting against the Keyblade before landing on the table. At another nod from the witch, Sora dismisses his weapon.

To most eyes present, it appears that the bones, most likely human phalanges, are scattered at random. But Tia apparently sees beyond that, and as she examines the results a mischievous grin spreads across her face.

“So, uh, Miss Dalma,” Sora asks nervously. “What, uh, did you see anything? Do you know where the Keyhole is?”

She looks up at him, sparing a brief glance to Jack. “I do, child. And it happens to be someplace you familiar with.”

“If you say Tortuga…” Azlyn snarls, fists clenching tight at the thought of revisiting the pirate port.

The witch laughs again. “Not so, dear Azlyn. You seek a place of order, no chaos. A place of rules and regulations, both spoken and unspoken.”

“Oh, bugger,” Jack sighs, getting the witch’s gist loud and clear.

“If it be the Keyhole ye seek,” Tia declares, “Port Royal be the place.” She shudders once, as if a chilly wind is blowing over her. “And hurry ye must too, I tink. Or ye could find yerselves arrivin’ too late.”

KH-KH-KH

“No,” Jack states definitively, as he has been for the past half hour or so.

“Jack, you’ve got to!” Sora argues right back, quite weary of this argument that has seemed to go on for ages. Since they left Tia Dalma’s, at least.

“I’m captain of this ship, mate,” the pirate says, his arms crossed over his chest. “I don’t have to do anything that I don’t want to! And that includes sailing to places where I’ll likely be immediately arrested.”

“Tis true,” Gibbs agrees, nodding firmly behind his captain. “And a smart choice too. Most o’ these men got nothin’ but trouble awaiting them in that town.”

“Trouble is what you’re gonna have if that Keyhole isn’t protected,” Azlyn pipes up. “And the Heartless may not be actively seeking it, but eventually one might stumble on it. And from there, you can kiss this world goodbye.”

“I don’t see why I have to take ye,” Jack protests, sounding like a little kid objecting to eating his vegetables. “What about that pop-in-from-the-sky magic you used to avoid Norrington at the end of your last visit.”

Sora winces. “We thought of that but, well…”

“Telary’s the only one who really knows how to use it correctly,” Azlyn finishes. She throws a thumb over her shoulder, to where Telary is playing a game of bingo only he can hear being called.

“I fink it might be a good course of action, captain,” Ragetti, who’s currently acting as helmsmen, chimes in. “Seems to me the destruction of our world would wreak havoc on the piratin’ profession.” Jack gives the one-eyed man a pointed glare. “Just sayin’ so, sir.”

Beside him, Pintel shakes his head. “I told ya a hundred times mate, leave the politics to them as is inclined to it.”

“For once in your life, Jack,” Sora pleads with a deep sigh, “just please think of someone other than yourself. What you do here tonight could ensure the safety of people all over this world, for generations to come. A noble deed that will echo through the ages, change the course of history…”

“Plus, we’ll make it worth your while,” Azlyn chimes in.

That gets Jack’s attention. “Oh, will you now?” the pirate inquires somewhat skeptically. “And what, pray tell, makes you think that you bloody kids possess anything that I want?”

The knight shrugs. “Every man has his price, Jack. Name yours, and we’ll see what we can do.”

Jack leans back on his haunches, losing himself in thought. After a moment, he beckons Mr. Gibbs over to whisper something in the first mate’s ear. Gibbs nod enthusiastically after hearing the words of his captain, and that seems to satisfy Jack.

“Alright, lass, I agree to your terms,” he declares, grinning slyly. “And what I demand in payment is young Sora’s lovely blade.”

The offworlder pair exchange looks, silently going over the deal together. After a moment, Sora shrugs and turns back to Jack. “Sure thing, Captain. Get us into Port Royal, let me seal the Keyhole, and I’ll give you the Keyblade.”
Jack raises a suspicious eyebrow at the by-all-accounts mad acceptance of his deal. When he’d made the offer, he was sure he’d be rejected.

“Well, if you’re willing to pay, I’m willing to play,” the pirate declares, thrusting his hand out for a shake. Sora nods once solemnly and takes his hand. “Very well gents, off to Port Royal then!”

At the word of their captain, the crew of the Black Pearl begins to scurry about and fulfill their necessary duties. And just below the figurehead, a cleverly concealed Dusk shoots through a portal to relay word to its master.

KH-KH-KH

“That can’t be right,” Norrington declares, shaking his head at Luxord’s suggestion. “There’s no logical reason for Jack Sparrow to sail to Port Royal. He’d be arrested on sight, hanged by morning.”

Luxord rolls his eyes. The pair are holed up in the Dauntless’s captain’s cabin, newly refurbished after the recent bout with Barbossa’s crew. They’ve been there the better part of the last few hours, waiting for actionable intelligence on the Pearl’s whereabouts.

“Well, whether it’s logical or not, that is where he is going,” the Nobody argues. “And how fortuitous for us. From our position we can be there not long after he arrives. It shall be quite a simple matter for the Heartless to find and capture him.”

Norrington frowns at the mention of the Heartless. “I am still not assured of those… things usefulness to me. Even after your hours of instructions, I can’t be sure I can maintain control of them. And I won’t have them running amok in town and endangering civilians.”

Luxord shrugs, an annoying habit. “There is always risk involved in any great enterprise, always a gamble. After tonight you could be rid of Jack Sparrow and his disease. Is that not worth a bit of uncertainty?”

Norrington says nothing for a long few minutes, his jaw locked tight as he wrestles with the decision now before him. Finally he unclenches, sighing as his mind is made up.

“Very well,” the commodore relents. “To Port Royal then. And, with any luck, the end of Jack Sparrow.”

 

[KingdomKey]

Tia guessing Telary's number was hilarious. xD Telary is so gullible when he's drunk. lol. On the other hand, I wonder if it would've matter what number she threw out there or not? Anyways, I look forward to Jack's disappointment when he founds out the keyblade will still be Sora's. And Luxord, you just love to gamble, don't you? xD This was an entertaining chapter for me to say the least. <3 Good luck, Commodore, cause Jack Sparrow is a slippery one! Looking forward to the next chapter, TelaryCri.

 

[TelaryCri]

Chapter XLVII: Wind In Your Sails, pt. 5
​

Even under their captain’s orders, the crew of the Black Pearl are reluctant to come too close to the town of Port Royal, where so many of them are wanted for one offense or another. So the Pearl weighs anchor a safe distance away, while Jack and the trio make the rest of the trip in a lifeboat.

“So what, do we just search the whole town?” Azlyn asks, holding on to Telary to keep him from falling overboard.

“Okay, so this is where we’re going snorkeling?” the wizard slurs, unfortunately still quite loony.

“Not sure I have any better ideas,” Sora sighs.

Azlyn notices that the boy becomes suddenly uncomfortable and turns away for some reason. Casting her gaze around, she spots Telary looking curiously at the Keybearer. Why that would cause any awkwardness or discomfort is a mystery to her.

“Well, I’m for sure not showing me handsome face all over the town,” Jack protests. “So you two had better figure something else out, or…”

“Relax guys,” Telary interrupts airily. “Let’s just ask Elizabeth, I’m sure she knows where the scuba shop is!”

A pregnant pause settles over the boat for a moment, and then Sora’s face suddenly lights up.

“Y’know, he might have a point,” he announces, ignoring the looks suggesting that perhaps he has been imbibing some illicit substances himself. “Not about snorkeling, but about Elizabeth. She’s the governor’s daughter. If there were any records that might show the Keyhole, she could maybe find them. Or maybe she’s heard rumors or something.”

“You want us to sneak into the bloody governor’s mansion?” Jack explodes, practically convulsing.

“Keep it together, Sparrow,” Azlyn admonishes him. “Just think, when you’ve got the Keyblade, you can stroll into a hundred governor’s mansions and walk out with whatever you want.”

Jack settles at that thought, smiling to himself.

“On the other hand,” she continues, “it’s best to have a plan about that too. And I know just where we can get one.”

They dock quietly and pile out, then head off for the blacksmith’s shop. Sure enough, when they arrive they find Will Turner inside, along with none other than Elizabeth Swan.

“Well, what do we have here?” Jack chuckles, stepping closer to the illicit couple. “Dear little William Turner, the most forthright man in the Caribbean, cavorting with another man’s fiancée!”

“Jack!” Will exclaims, letting go of Elizabeth’s hand. “What are you doing here? And with Sora, Azlyn, and Telary?”

“Looking for you, actually,” Sora informs the blacksmith, smiling a bit himself. “We needed to see Elizabeth, and we thought you’d know how to get in touch.”

“Obviously we were right,” Azlyn chuckles smugly.

“What’s Legolas doing here?” Telary mutters to himself.

“What did you need to see me for?” Elizabeth inquires, stepping forward.

“We’re looking for something, and we need your help,” Sora explains quickly. “Have you ever heard your father say anything about a Keyhole?”

The young woman thinks on it a moment, then her eye light up. “Come to think of it, there was talk of a strange Keyhole when we first arrived here. Something the original surveyors spotted in the caves beneath the fort.”

Azlyn nods triumphantly. “That’s probably it. Could you lead us to those cliffs?”

Elizabeth opens her mouth to speak, but before she can get a word out there’s a knock on the smithy’s doors.

“Open these doors, by order of the Commodore,” a posh, familiar voice demands.

“Hide!” Will hisses to everyone, who all scatter to conceal themselves as best they can while the blacksmith himself makes his way to the doors. “How may I help you?”

James Norrington himself stands at the doors, flanked on either side by Lance Soldier Heartless. “Good evening, Mr. Turner. Quite interesting to see you awake at such a late hour.”

The young man shrugs. “A blacksmith’s work is never done, Commodore. May I ask to what I owe the pleasure of this visit?”

“Jack Sparrow,” the commodore declares simply. “I’ve reason to believe he and his merry band have arrived in town. Naturally I thought they’d seek you out.”

Will feigns ignorance, shrugging. “I’m afraid I haven’t seen Jack in quite some time, Commodore. Certainly not here tonight. No one here but me.”

“He’s lying,” Luxord states, stepping up alongside Norrington. “The young man has a simply ghastly poker face. Sparrow is here, and the Keybearer as well.”

“I assure you…”

Norrington shoves Will aside, sending the Lance Soldiers in with a nod. “Forgive me if I’m not inclined to believe the man coveting my fiancée.”

The Heartless go to work, quickly and efficiently knocking through any hiding place they can find. They leave no table unturned, even kicking over one of the anvils. But despite their efforts, they find no one hiding out on the smithy’s floor.

Because the entire party is in fact above the floor, looking down from the rafters and holding their breaths.

“Well, are you satisfied Commodore?” Will asks once the inspection is done, not bothering to conceal the haughtiness in his voice.

“This simply can’t be right,” Luxord declares, beside himself. “They have to be hiding in here, there’s no other viable alternative.”

“It appears you were mistaken,” Norrington says, his voice strained by anger. “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised…”

Up in the rafters, Telary perks up at the mention of the word surprise. Of course, that’s why they’re hiding up here! There can only be one logical explanation.

“Surprise!” the wizard shouts, leaping off the rafter and into the soft hay lining the smithy’s floor. “Happy birthday!”

Azlyn smacks her forehead, exasperated.

Luxord and Norrington look up, easily spotting their targets now. Norrington gets even more than he bargained for, unexpectedly finding his fiancée hiding amongst the criminals.

“Elizabeth!” the commodore exclaims, taken aback. “What are you doing here, with…?” He casts his gaze back down to Will. “You!”

“This,” Jack states as he and the other jump down to the floor, weapons drawn, “is why I don’t get involved with engaged women.” He thinks a moment, then amends, “Anymore.”

“James,” Elizabeth stutters desperately. “Please, James, you must let me explain…”

Before she gets the chance, the ground begins to rumble, nearly knocking the party off their feet. When it stops, they have barely a split second to recover before a huge portal of Darkness opens before them.

From the manifested shadows emerges a purple and black Heartless as tall as a ship’s mast, easily bursting through the smithy’s roof. It resembles a well-dressed pirate captain, right down to a purple eyepatch and black tricorner with the symbol of the Heartless emblazoned upon it. In the creature’s right hand it holds a cutlass as tall as a man, and its left appendage ends in a steely black cannon.

“Oh, bugger,” Jack declares, nearly dropping his sword in fright. The others nod their agreement. Even Telary feels himself sobering significantly at the sight.

The Closehanded Captain slams down its massive sword, cleaving cleanly through the smithy’s back wall and scattering the heroes. Will leads Elizabeth away as fast as he can, while Jack and the trio scurry into the street.

The Captain turns to follow them, its sole yellow eye fixated upon Jack. In its primitive mind, the creature has only one goal: Kill Jack Sparrow.

The Heartless’s cannon hand booms, firing forth a swirling ball of purple flame. It misses Jack and his companions but slams into the haberdashery across the street. What parts of the building aren’t knocked down outright burst into flames.

Sora scowls at the sight, and with a nod to Jack he signals an attack. The Keybearer and the pirate charge together against the Captain, but its sword sweeps down to intercept their blades.

Azlyn throws her shield at the creature’s face, but it merely raises its cannon arm to block the disk. Without looking, it fires off a shot at her. The projectile misses, but still more damage is done to the town.

By now the confrontation has drawn the attention of the locals, most of whom creep out of their abodes just long enough to see what’s going on and retreat, screaming in helpless fear.

Norrington sees and hears it all, the color draining from his face.

“No!” the commodore declares, casting his gaze around at the fruits of his actions. “No, this isn’t right.” He turns to Luxord, a manic look in his eyes. “This isn’t what I wanted. I only wanted Sparrow!”

The Nobody shrugs, most definitely not empathetic to the man’s plight. “You cast the die, Norrington. If you weren’t prepared to accept the outcome, you shouldn’t have made the bet.”

Sora, Jack, and Azlyn continue to face off against the Closehanded Captain, but Telary feels as if he can do nothing but sit on the sidelines. The dizzying effects of the alcohol he consumed is mostly gone, but all he can seem to feel now is cold, sober fear.

He cries out in alarm and backs away as Jack flies through the air to land near him, kicked by the monstrous Heartless.

“Jack!” Telary cries in alarm, moving quickly to inspect the pirate. He sits up, bruised but alive. “Jack, what are we gonna do Jack? That thing is a monster, how can we defeat it?”

The captain gives the wizard a thoughtful look. “Scared are ye, me ginger matey?” Telary nods. But Jack just smiles, reaching for the flask at his side. “Looks like you’re in need of a bit of courage.”

 

[KingdomKey]

NO! JACK! NO! NO MORE! Oh dear god, somebody knock the flask out of Jack's hand! Drinking is not the answer. Azlyn, do something! xD Also, the fourth wall breaking with Legolas was freaking hilarious. Oh my gosh, I'm still cracking up over it. And I think Norrington is going to have to face the facts about Elizabeth, darling, is in love with Will Turner. Anyways, I hope Norrington learns his lesson when, SAT save the day with Sparrow. This chapter was awesome hands down. <3

 

[TelaryCri]

Chapter XLVII: Wind In Your Sails, pt. 6
​

Sora and Azlyn, meanwhile, have their hands full containing the Heartless. It blocks their attacks with its cutlass, and the blasts from its cannon keep them well off balance.

“Ugh!” Azlyn frustratedly growls, back flipping away from a cannon blast. “This is just typical, isn’t it? We’re about to die, and my boyfriend is probably still too drunk for me to tell him how much I care about him!”

“You had a pretty good run last world,” Sora points out, struggling momentarily against the creature’s cutlass before pulling back. “Figures you’d have lousy luck in this one.”

Azlyn is about to respond when she’s cut off suddenly, by a loud roar from behind the Heartless. Curious, it turns to find Telary and Jack standing before it, defiant and fearless in a way that only extreme inebriation can seem to bring on.

“This is a great party, guys!” the wizard declares boldly, a sphere of flames held in each palm. “But no party would be complete without a few… fireworks!”

He hurls the flames directly into the Closehanded Captain’s face, blinding and burning it all in one blow. It lets out a hollow Heartless scream stumbling back. Azlyn and Sora press the attack, slamming their weapons into its legs. It roars again, falling backwards as it begins to dissipate into dark particles.

Jack watches the Heartless fall, gasping as he realizes that it’s going to land right atop Norrington far before it can have a chance to disappear. The commodore’s Nobody companion simply teleports in a swirl of Darkness, but Norrington himself remains frozen in fear.

“Oy, Norrington!” Jack calls out, already unconsciously rushing forward. “Get outta the way you bloody fool!”

Norrington turns to look at the oncoming Jack, but his feet refuse to move. That turns out to be unnecessary, however, as the pirate captain barrels straight into his sworn enemy, the dying Heartless mere inches away from crushing them both.

At the very last second the pair manages to clear, rolling along the dirt street together. The impact of the Heartless shakes the ground, and then it disappears, releasing a crystalline heart into the sky.

Sora watches it drift upward, noticing that it sticks around longer than usual. Following the heart’s flight path, he scowls as he notices it float to the Organization member’s hand before vanishing.

“Well done, Sora,” Luxord congratulates the Keybearer mockingly. His gloating finished, he disappears into Darkness.

Even though the day seems saved, the Keybearer’s heart sinks.

Across the street, Norrington and Jack have stopped rolling. They came apart at some point, and now each man rests on all fours, staring warily at the other.

“Sparrow,” Norrington breathes out, sounding like he can barely believe what he’s saying. “You saved me.”

Jack shrugs, fixes the commodore with a look. “I wouldn’t get used to it, mate.”

By then Will and Elizabeth have arrived once more. Norrington looks up at them, sadness and betrayal in his eyes.

“James, I…” the governor’s daughter stammers, at a loss for words. “I’m sorry.”

The commodore says nothing for a moment, then sighs. He stands up, brushing off the front of his coat.

“No Elizabeth,” he replies, struggling almost as much as his fiancée. “I am the one who should apologize.” He looks sadly at Will. “Clearly you deserve a better man than me.”

“James…”

“Commodore…”

Norrington shakes his head, cutting off the protesting couple. “My decision is final. The engagement, Elizabeth, is off.”

Elizabeth nods her acceptance, slotting her hand into Will’s.

That business concluded, Norrington turns to Jack.

“Well then,” the pirate sighs, holding out his wrists obsequiously, “I suppose it’s the slammer for me then? And the noose, to follow?”

Azlyn and Sora stalk forward to back Jack up, only to be stopped by Telary. Even drunk, the wizard has a certain wisdom about him.

Norrington frowns, seeming almost in physical pain. “I’m afraid not, Mr. Sparrow. Your arrest should be carried out by a man of the law, an honest and forthright officer… And as of today, I fear I am no longer that man.”

Without another word, Norrington turns and walks away.

KH-KH-KH

Elizabeth leads the group down to the shore, the great naval fortress of Port Royal looming atop the cliffs above. The natives are off ahead, while the offworlders bring up the rear.

Sora walks far to the left, occasionally stealing glances over at Telary. The wizard is of course oblivious, back in his own little world due to his second shot of Jack’s special. But Azlyn notices, and surreptitiously sidles up to the Keybearer.

“What’s going on?” she asks. “You got a problem with Telary?”

Sora lets out a small chuckle, shaking his head. They’re entering the caves now, Will holding up a candle for light.

“No, of course not,” the boy answers. “I mean, I realize he’s been off tonight, of course I do. It’s just that, well…” He takes on a sheepish look, leaning in close to whisper, “He asked me to marry him.”

Azlyn’s jaw drops open, barely noticing that Sora is skipping on ahead.

They reach the deepest cavern, a small pool of water collecting at the back. A path of stones offers a dry way to the wall. Hidden in the recesses, Sora can just barely make out a Keyhole.

He steps to the end of the path, Keyblade in hand. Raising it to the wall, he unleashes the familiar beam. It slams into the Keyhole, and with a solid click, it disappears.

“Most impressive, young Sora,” Jack declares as the boy returns to the rest of the group at the cave’s front. He holds out his hand. “And now, as per our deal?”

Sora shrugs, offering the Keyblade’s hilt up to the pirate captain.

“Now wait a minute,” he says, holding up a finger and casting a suspicious look over the boy. “This can’t be that simple. There’s got to be some trick here, I simply wouldn’t accept it otherwise.”

“C’mon,” Sora says, with a grin, shrugging once. “It’s me. The squeaky clean hero. Would I try and fool you, the great and wily Captain Jack Sparrow?”

Jack nods once, then quick as a cobra strikes out with his hand. He snatches the Keyblade by the hilt and pulls it back. He even skips away a few steps, just in case. Once he feels secure, he raises the blade to eye level, examining it proudly.

That lasts for about five seconds, and then it’s gone in a flash of light. An identical light flashes in Sora’s hand, and when it fades the Keyblade once again rests in the hand of its rightful wielder.

Telary bursts out into appreciative applause. “Yay! Do it again Sora, do it again!”

Jack’s bewildered look morphs into a sly smile. “Ah, it seems I was correct. Even a heroic type like you has to have his devious little tricks. Couldn’t survive as long as you have without them.”

Sora grins right back at the captain. “I usually leave that stuff to Azlyn. But yeah, I have a few up my sleeve. And hey, you’ve always got the Pearl.”

Jack nods. “That I do, mate.” His expression grows devious again. “But some day, when my crew is right bloodthirsty and seasoned, we’ll be coming to take that blade. By then I’m sure I’ll have the way to wield it.”

“If anyone could figure it out, I’m sure it would be you,” Elizabeth says with a giggle. The others nod their agreement.

“I don’t think he’d do it,” Telary suddenly interjects, his voice muddled but steady. Everyone turns to look at him. “I mean, c’mon, we’re friends. You saved Norrington, and you two were the worst of enemies. In the end, you’re all heart Jack Sparrow.”

The cave is silent for a long moment.

“I think he’s right,” Will agrees, barely containing the amusement in his voice.

“Now wait a moment, wait a moment!” Jack protests. “I only saved Norrington because… Because I was worried if he got bumped off, I’d acquire myself a nemesis what had some brains in his head! The ol’ commodore was great fun, but no serious threat. Exactly the kind of enemy a man such as myself requires.”

Everyone laughs at the captain’s hasty reasoning.

“You know Jack,” Elizabeth says, grinning, “some say you’re the worst pirate to ever sail the seven seas.”

“But we know better,” Sora chimes in, grinning.

“Yeah,” Telary slurs happily. “You’re the best.”

KH-KH-KH

Telary awakens in a soft bed, snuggled in warmly under the covers. All of which is rendered meaningless, of course, by his terrible hangover.

The sound of the door opening is like the crack of a thunder spell. He opens his eyes, and is instantly reminded of the demise of Ansem… er, Xehanort’s Heartless.

“Hey there.” Azlyn’s voice normally fills up his entire being, making him feel like the greatest, luckiest guy in the universe. Today it grates like the cries of dying cattle. “Oh, here.”

Telary feels hands grab his wrists, open his hands, and place what feels like a glass of cold water there. He grabs it and opens his eyes a crack. They fly open when they see the liquid inside the glass.

“It’s purple, Azlyn,” he grumbles. He swears it doesn’t’ even come out as words.

“Yep,” his girlfriend replies, so apparently she must understand anyway. “I put that hangover stuff Tia Dalma gave me in there. I wasn’t sure it would do anything, but then again she used bones to find a Keyhole, so…”

“We found a Keyhole?” Telary asks, his memory hazy. He begins to sip the water, finding it tastes normal even with its discoloration. “I remember we were running from soldiers, then there were some pigs, and something about a big Heartless…”

Azlyn chuckles, and for whatever reason it doesn’t seem so grating. This stuff must be really working. “I thought you’d wake up like this.”

He feels good enough now to sit up, so he does. Azlyn is sitting beside him, grinning lazily. He looks back at her, slightly worried.

“I was really out of it, eh?”

She nods. “Totally.”

He bites his lip, setting the glass on his bedside table. “I didn’t, uh, didn’t say anything crazy right?”

Azlyn barks out a laugh. Apparently that hangover cure isn’t absolute, because it hurts pretty badly. “Tel, baby, you thought the Black Pearl was a luxury cruise liner.”

He sighs. “No, no, not like that. I mean… I mean did I say anything crazy to, uh, to you?”

“Oh,” Azlyn says, getting it. She doesn’t say anything else, just pushes Telary back down into the bed. She lays beside him, one arm thrown over his stomach. For a moment she’s quiet, gaze oddly fixated on one of her fingers. “Don’t worry about it. You didn’t say anything to me that I didn’t want to hear.”

---

And with that, C, you are completely caught up! That's kinda weird, tbh, knowing I won't have anything ready for you after you comment on this chapter. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this visit to Port Royal, which is probably my favorite world visit I've ever written.

 

[KingdomKey]

Aw, Azlyn, you're such a sweetie to Telary. It actually brings me great joy to see she isn't bothered too much by the marriage remark. And wow, Telary proposing to Sora was eye opening. lol. xD We all know who Telary really wants to marry someday, right? xD On the other hand, I'm still over the moon that Tel and Azlyn are together. <3 I do feel genuinely bad for Norrington because, he's still good at what he does, although I'm glad he broke off the engagement. Jack, maybe that day will come. For now, Sora needs the keyblade to save the worlds. xD In the meantime, I loved this world, and I'm satisfied with everything that happened in it. <3

I know! It's so weird for me to be caught up now after reading chapter after chapter. xD I definitely enjoyed the trip to Port Royal, but I think Telary enjoyed it far more, cause he got to be drunk and light up a heartless with his fireworks. I love everything that happened in port royal, and I'm happy you had fun writing about this world too. As the reader, I can tell you had a good time making all sorts of mischief happen to SAT too. Definitely a entertaining world to say the least. Well, you know I'll be eager as everyone else to see what world you write about next. I'll be waiting!

 

[TelaryCri]

Chapter XLVIII: Sand Trap, pt. 1
​

“I just don’t know,” Telary sighs, looking over the item displayed before him with a critical eye. “It seems nice, and it’s within our budget, but…”

“C’mon, Tel,” Sora says, encouragingly smiling at his friend and giving the rug he’s holding a firm shake. “This would be perfect for Jasmine and Aladdin.”

“I have to agree,” Azlyn chimes in, nodding from where she’s sitting on a wooden crate and watching the scene unfold. “Sure they live in a palace and everything, but from what we know, the only rug they have is always flying away.”

“I suppose,” the wizard relents, his shoulders relaxing perceptibly. “I just don’t know if it seems like a great engagement gift, y’know?”

The trio had been a bit blindsided when, after a surprisingly smooth sealing of Quasimodo’s world’s Keyhole, they’d found a note inviting them to a get together in celebration of Aladdin and Jasmine of Agrabah’s engagement to be married. Even considering that they’re in somewhat of a time crunch, it was decided they could spare a few hours to congratulate their good friends.

But Telary had thrown off the plan somewhat by suggesting they find a gift before making their way to the palace. It’s the polite thing to do, after all.

“Well, you better hurry up and decide whether or not that’s what we’re getting,” Sora announces, pointing down the street. “Because here comes Al now.”

The former street rat barrels down the street at the trio, Iago flapping along just above his shoulder. They skid to a stop in front of the group, looking worn out and very worried.

“There you are!” Aladdin exclaims, wiping sweat off his brow. Abu’s furry head pops up over his shoulder, looking just as concerned as his human friend.

“Hey, Aladdin,” Telary greets him, quickly moving to block the potential engagement gift with his body. “What’s going on?”

“Jafar’s escaped from his lamp!” Iago declares, his entire body shaking as he touches down on Azlyn’s shoulder. “I was there when he got out, saw the whole thing! It was, erm, uh, it was that peddler.”

Azlyn frowns at that. “How the hell could that have happened? Jasmine said she locked the lamp in the dungeon.”

“I only saw what happened afterwards,” Iago answer, looking away sheepishly. “All I know is that Jafar’s out.”

“And he’ll probably be after revenge,” Sora says, wincing at the thought of the power at the evil genie’s disposal. “Still sore about that whole lamp thing, I’d bet.”

“Okay, so you saw him get out,” Telary says, thinking on the parrot’s testimony. “But you had to have seen what he did next. You used to be his lackey, there’s no way he wouldn’t have said something to you.”

“Uh, well,” Iago stammers, looking everywhere but at the trio or Aladdin. “The thing is that I was, well I was…”

“Iago,” Aladdin says, very sternly glaring down at the former minion. “If you know something, tell us. This is the only chance I’m giving you. If I find out you’re holding something back, we’re through.”

By now everyone has joined with Aladdin to glower at Iago. Under the pressure of all their eyes, he finally cracks.

“Okay, okay!” he relents, shaking his head in anguish. “He’s going out to the ancient ruins, okay? That’s where he’s gonna get set up for his grand plan!”

“That doesn’t make much sense,” Telary chimes in. “If this peddler guy freed him, then Jafar would have to grant his three wishes. Why would…”

“He’s a tricky guy, Jafar!” Iago blurts, red feathers falling from his body. “Probably duped that guy into freeing him. Look, all I know is that Jafar’s back, and in the ruins. I swear!”

“Don’t worry Iago, I believe you,” Sora assures the bird, with his usual open smile. “We can’t let Jafar get his plans together. I say we head out to those ruins and get the jump on him!”

“We’ll need Carpet’s help to get out to the ruins,” Aladdin says, making his way quickly down the street. Everyone else scrambles to catch up. “He’ll meet up with us outside the city.”

When they reach Agrabah’s outskirts, it quickly becomes clear that even with Carpet for transportation, getting to the ruins will prove no simple task.

“Yeah, that looks like a bad one,” Aladdin comments, eyeing the distant sandstorm cloud with a frown. “Not like some of the ones we had this past year, but I wouldn’t want to fly through it.”

“Well, I guess that’s just too bad,” Iago declares, shaking his head disappointedly. “Don’t worry guys, we gave it our best shot!”

“There’s gotta be a way to get past it,” Sora says, frowning as he tries to drum up a method.

“Yeah, gee, looks terrible,” Genie suddenly chimes in. Everyone gasps, turning to see the big blue lug leaning nonchalantly against the city’s outer wall. “If only you knew a guy with semi-phenomenal, sorta-cosmicish powers who could help you out with a snap of his beautifully manicured fingers.”

“Uh, hi there Genie,” Aladdin greets his friend, giving him a tiny wave. “Good thing you showed up when you did, huh? Do you mind?”

“Do I mind?” Genie laughs, growing several feet taller with every chuckle. “Kid, this is the kind of thing I live for. After all, what’s the point of having a genie for a best friend if you don’t take advantage every once in a while? I call this little number Sandstorm Sweep!”

Genie takes a deep breath in and out, rising into the air and facing the sandstorm with a determined squint. He pulls his hand back, magical sparks swirling around his extended pointer finger.

After a moment though, he seems to deflate, all of the bright pyrotechnics that usually accompany his power displays gone.

“Uh, are you okay Genie?” Sora asks concernedly.

“Yeah, is there some kinda genie rule about sandstorms that you forgot?” Azlyn quips.

“No, that’s not it,” the big blue lug admits with a heavy sigh. “It’s just not even a challenge, y’know? I never get a chance to really cut loose anymore.”

All earlier verve and pizazz forgotten, Genie imply snaps his fingers. In an instant, all the sand swirling on the distant horizon settles, drifting down to the desert floor like so much confetti.

“Whoa!” Sora exclaims, smiling widely at his azure friend. “Genie, c’mon, that was amazing.”

“Oh yeah, very cool,” Telary agrees, trying hard not to sound patronizing. “Right, Az?”

“Sure,” the knight says nonchalantly, barely looking up from her current activity of picking sand out of her nails. “Real great. Ten out of ten, would wish again.”

“Yeah, great,” Iago mutters lowly. “Real helpful, G. Thanks a million pal.”

“Nice to be appreciated, I suppose,” Genie says, shrugging. “Maybe next time you can give me a bit of a challenge, eh Al?”

With one last huff, the genie disappears in a puff of blue smoke. Though taken aback by his uncharacteristic snit fit, the group knows that they’ve got no time to lose. Hopping on Carpet’s back, they take off for the ruins, and a confrontation with their old enemy.

 

[KingdomKey]

OH MY GOSH THERE'S A NEW CHAPTER OUT! I'm so excited! <333 Jasmine and Al are getting married! FINALLY! XD Anyways, I suspect Iago is still hiding something because, he certainly can't contain his excitement having the path cleared up for SAT to make their way out there in the ruins to stop Jafar's grand plan. I do wonder what exactly SAT were trying to pick out to give Jasmine and Al for a wedding present. lol. And Genie, he's such a nice guy. It can't be helped that Al doesn't get into much trouble these days! I'm sure you'll have something much harder to do, Genie! Just you wait! xD <3 This was so worth the wait. <3 Love this new chapter, TelaryCri! <3

 

[TelaryCri]

Chapter XLVIII: Sand Trap, pt. 2
​

The trek out to the dilapidated wreck of the old desert city isn’t long, but everyone seems on edge. None moreso than Iago, however. The little parrot can’t seem to stop fidgeting, and not even threats from Azlyn seem to be able to inspire him to keep his cool.

“So,” Sora conversationally asks Aladdin to pass the time, “what exactly are these old ruins?” He can see them on the horizon now, just some tall stone towers rising into the air.

“A long time ago, like a thousand years, the desert used to be ruled by a nasty demon named Amuk Munrah,” the street rat explains. “That’s what the legends say, at least. The ruins used to be his capital city, but the people rebelled and sealed him away somehow, I’m not sure. Then they moved out and founded Agrabah where it is today, which just left the city to crumble. When I was on the streets I heard some legends about it, but there never was any way for me to get over there and check it out.”

“You’re sure this demon lord was sealed tight?’ Telary nervously inquires. “Not sure I’d like dealing with him any more than I would Jafar.”

Aladdin laughs. “Tel, don’t worry man. This was a long time ago, and the story might not even be true. All that’s out here is a bunch of wrecked old buildings, and sand. Lots of sand.”

“Wrecked buildings, hm?” Azlyn chimes in, sounding a bit smug. “Well Al, that building there don’t look too wrecked to me.”

The knight points, the boys all following her finger to a large, ziggurat-type construction. It stands out in stark contrast to the towers surrounding it, looking as gleaming and polished as if it were freshly built.

“Well, I think we know where Jafar is hiding out,” Sora announces.

Carpet takes them in, trying to be as stealthy as it can. It stops to a hover above the impressively large area at the buildings peak, and the heroes embark.

“Okay, Iago,” Aladdin declares, giving the parrot a stern look. “If you know anything else, now’s the time to speak up. If not…”

“I’ve told you everything, I swear!” the parrot declares, raising his wings defensively.

“Have you though, bird?”

Heartless begin appearing around the group like crazy, at least a dozen Luna Bandits surrounding them. Weapons come out immediately, everyone backing together to deny the enemies an angle. Iago flaps in the middle of them, hyperventilating nervously.

“Sora, that wasn’t Jafar,” Aladdin points out.

A dark portal opens a few feet outside the Heartless cordon, and the Organization XIII Nobody known as Luxord steps out from it, hands clasped behind his back.

“Organization!” Telary declares, a tad unnecessarily.

“Good afternoon, Sora and friends,” Luxord says with a devilish smirk. “So delighted you decided to play along with my little game.”

“You set us up!” the Keybearer angrily deduces. He turns to Iago, his glare becoming even more intense when directed at the traitor. “And you helped!”

“I had no choice, ya gotta believe me!” the parrot declares, hopeless and hysterical. “He’s got Jafar’s lamp!”

This elicits surprised gasps from everyone, and they turn back to face the Nobody. As if to prove Iago’s point, he holds up the black lamp serving as Jafar’s prison in front of him.

“Indeed I do,” he declares, shaking the vessel menacingly.

“He said that if I didn’t lure you guys out here, he was gonna release Jafar,” Iago continues. “So ya see, really all I was doing was protecting Agrabah!”

“You could have told us the truth,” Sora points out, still obviously upset by the betrayal. “But you were afraid of what he’d do to you, weren’t you?”

“Some friend you are, only looking out for yourself,” Azlyn chimes in, even more venomous than Sora.

“It matters not how, I suppose,” Luxord muses, holding up the lamp and looking it over thoughtfully. “In truth, I’m curious as to whether I could even make use of a genie’s power. After all, is not a heart prerequisite for wishing?”

“A head definitely is,” Azlyn threatens the man. “Which you’ll also be missing if you don’t hand over that lamp.”

“These Heartless won’t stop us from getting it back!” Sora adds. “One way or another…”

“Perhaps if you’d still your mouth for a moment, I could inform you of my way,” the Nobody interrupts. “Which, I should note, is the only way you’ll be retrieving this lamp and the powerful being locked inside it.”

“Okay, tell us,” Aladdin demands. He’s honestly quite confused by everything that’s going on, but he knows that getting Jafar’s lamp is the number one priority of the day.

“Deep inside this structure is a room that used to serve as the demon lord Amuk Munrah’s throne room,” Luxord explains. “I shall go there and await your arrival. You have twenty minutes to make your way through the foes placed throughout the ziggurat. If you arrive before the time limit expires, you may have the lamp. If not, I shall put to the test whether or not a Nobody may summon a genie.”

“That’s it?” Azlyn demands. “Sounds like you Organization jerks are seriously running out of ideas!”

“I await your arrival,” is all Luxord has to say in reply. With another smirk, he steps back into his portal, leaving the heroes and Heartless behind.

The denizens of Darkness converge, weapons swinging. Sora blocks an initial attack and pushes back, separating the group into individual battles. He pushes the attack on his opponent, mindful of the time limit. He breaks off for another swing, but it is parried by the creature’s sword. The Luna Bandit counterattacks, forcing the Keybearer back a step. A high slash invites a parry, then a low follow-up makes Sora step back again.

Now the Keyblade wielder swings downward. The Heartless raises one blade to deflect, but his strike pushes it down. Presented with a free opening, Sora swings downward and ends the monster’s threat.

Turning, he sees that his friends are all engaged, and another pair of Luna Bandits are sneaking up on Aladdin. He quickly leaps forward, demolishing one in his opening gambit but missing the other.

It turns and attacks, but Sora easily blocks both swords. Turning to the side, he drives a stab directly into the creature’s side. The clang of Azlyn’s shield startles him, and looking to his left he sees another Luna Bandit fall.

Luckily that seems to clear the field.

“Alright, we haven’t got a lot of time,” Sora announces. “So let’s just head down, taking what Heartless we can out.”

“Wait a second!” Iago chimes in desperately. “I just gotta apologize to you guys, alright? I had no choice, I swear. If Jafar was loose, I just knew he’d find a way to mess with the city. Sure, I was worried about me, but I also didn’t want him to hurt you guys. ‘Cause you’re my friends!”

Everyone is silent for a long moment, each person mulling over the parrot’s speech.

Naturally, it’s Sora who’s the first to speak up.

“Y’know, I guess you’re right Iago,” he relents. “I mean, you were just looking out for us, and all of Agrabah to boot. If you’d warned us, that Nobody might’ve decided to just release Jafar anyway.”

“That’s what I’m saying!” Iago agrees, not that he’d attempt anything less than full subservience at this point.

“Maybe Sora’s right,” Aladdin admits. “You had good intentions, it seems. Besides, friends forgive friend when they make mistakes.”

“Wow,” Iago declares, shaking his head. “If I’d screwed thing sup for Jafar like this, he’d have roasted me alive! I guess there really is a difference between being a friend and being a minion.”

“I forgive you too, by the way,” Telary adds. “If that makes a difference.”

“You kidding, Tel?” Iago laughs, landing lightly on the wizard’s shoulder. “You’re my favorite guy! Nobody else lets me rest my wings and still see things from way high up.”

Everyone laughs at the statement, and even more at the sudden reddening of the wizard’s cheeks.

 

[KingdomKey]

Nice to see Luxord again. Maybe they're right and the organization is running out of ideas to torment SAT. lol. Anyways, it's good to see Iago apologize and come out clean to his friends. This still feels so much like the actual game because, SAT fighting the Luna Bandits gives me nostalgia feelings. Can easily picture it in my head. <3 Well, it's nice that Iago has taken a liking to Telary the most. xD Poor Telary getting so much spot light. Anyways it was a good chapter! I look forward to seeing what's next!

 

[TelaryCri]

Chapter XLVIII: Sand Trap, pt. 3
​

The journey down through the ziggurat is fraught with danger, but the group is conscientious of making sure they’re effectively utilizing their time. As they go, they pass some seriously disturbing statues of Amuk Moonrah. In one hall a few levels down the pyramid, Azlyn stops to closely examine one after an Air Soldier attack.

The demon lord was huge and muscled, towering over everyone even in his smallest stature. Black horns sprouted from his forehead, and he wore a goatee rather similar to Genie and Jafar’s.

“No wonder the people rebelled,” the knight notes caustically. “Probably the sculptors lead the charge when they got tired of copying that ugly mug.”

Sora is just about to remind the knight that they shouldn’t be wasting precious time when the ceiling collapses. Not all of it, but several chunks of grey stone fall from above. Luckily, everyone manages to avoid it.

“I guess Heartless weren’t enough,” Sora says with a frown. “He had to set some traps along the way.”

“Let’s go show him what happens when you mess with us!” Aladdin declares, and the trio follow him down.

They finally arrive in what has to be the appointed chamber. It’s at least as big as the Agrabah palace garden, though much emptier. In a lot of ways, it reminds Telary of an eerie version of the Disney Castle audience chamber. At the far end is a smaller scale version of the ziggurat itself, a throne perched atop it.

Luxord sits in that throne, the lamp gripped loosely in his hand. Upon seeing the arrived heroes, he smirks.

“Ah, it seems you’ve made it,” he says, standing up. “Good show, Sora. Not that I made it terribly difficult for you.”

“Yeah, that was nothing!” the Keybearer boasts. “Now hand over the lamp, or…”

“But you’ve not yet completed my challenge,” the Nobody interrupts. “I said you had to face the foes inside this structure.” He takes several slow steps down the throne platform, leaving Jafar’s lamp in the seat. “And there’s still one more.”

Luxord raises his fingers and snaps. Sora hears his companions shout, turning just in time to see a huge playing cards appear, separating them from Sora. The cards vanish, and so too the Keybearer’s allies.

“Do let’s finish this quickly,” Luxord says, reaching the ground floor. “My mastery over the element of Time is limited.”

He thrusts his hand upwards, and the sound of stone crumbling directs Sora’s attention upwards. The ceiling quickly grows old and brittle, incapably of sustaining the weight above it. The boy just barely manages to roll away before he’s crushed.

“I’m mostly limited to controlling the effects of time on inanimate materials,” the Nobody continues to explain, collapsing still more sections of the ceiling. “Stone to dust, metal to rust and so on.”

Sora charges forward, but a giant playing card blocks his way. He strikes it in anger, flipping it over to reveal a flaming orb on its face. Without any other warning, the card explodes. The Keybearer gasps and backpedals, stumbling when the explosion’s force hits him.

“I manage to compensate with my card tricks, however,” Luxord says. “And occasionally the use of certain artifacts. Like, say, the Cornerstone of Light.”

“Cornerstone!” Sora blurts, dodging a diving swarm of razor-edged cards. “So, you mean…?”

“I provided the means for that oaf Pete to return to his glory days,” Luxord says, sending out another wave of cards. “More Heartless for the plan, you know. The Cornerstone is unique, connected to every second of its existence as if it were happening simultaneously. Do try not to think too hard on it, you may hurt yourself.”

Sora dodges a card, then turns to block another, only to face another explosion.

“Of course, I fear you’re about to find yourself hurting either way,”

Sora’s had enough dodging, instead opting for a sprinting charge. By the time he gets near Luxord, however, the Nobody is gone, leaving only six cards in his place. Confused, Sora swipes at one, only for it to flip and reveal an explosion.

“Bad luck there, Keybearer.”

The voice comes from behind, and Sora turns just in time to see Luxord swing a card the size of his forearm. It knocks into the boy’s middle, and he cries out and stumbles back. The Nobody goes for a follow-up swing, but by then he’s recovered enough to block it.

Sora ducks under a third swipe, knocking the Keyblade into his opponent’s side. Luxord cries out and steps back several paces, giving the boy a perfect opening to press. He attacks, but another explosion card intercepts. The burst of flame nearly singes Luxord as well, but he’s better able to prepare for it and back out of range.

Sora doesn’t allow himself to stumble nearly as much, pressing forward as soon as the fire fades. Luxord isn’t ready quite that quickly, taking another glancing blow as he attempts to sidestep.

Sora is about to move forward when another ceiling section falls, this one apparently more load-bearing than the rest. The entire chamber is shaking now, chunks of stone beginning to fall regardless of age. The crunch of stone on stone startles him, but he quickly recovers, leaping at Luxord.

The Nobody reacts quickly, raising a card shield all around himself. It hardly matters though, the Keyblade slashing straight through them all. There’s a motionless second, then the two halves fall away and disappear.

Luxord kneels on the floor, a stricken look on his face. He looks into Sora’s eyes, and suddenly the boy feels an odd sympathy.

“You played well, I suppose,” the Nobody acknowledges. “But then, you always did.” He sighs, a regretful sound. “Why, Roxas?”

Those are his last words before his body fades into Darkness.

Sora stands still amidst the crumbling room, lost so deep in tough he hardly notices the deterioration all around him. Why does he suddenly, inexplicably feel so bad?

“Sora!” comes Aladdin’s voice from the entrance to the throne room. Looking up, Sora spots the former street rat, riding the carpet towards him. Iago flies by his side. “C’mon, the others are already outside.”

Sora nods and rushes towards the safety of Carpet. He leaps on quickly, and Carpet turns on a dime and shoots upward. The ziggurat is crumbling, but Carpet expertly dodges around debris until they manage to escape.

KH-KH-KH

Jasmine and the sultan are ecstatic when Carpet touches down in the royal audience camber of Agrabah’s palace. It’s lined with royal columns, and the sultan’s throne resembles a golden elephant head.

“Things were a little different than expected,” Aladdin admits. “But we’re all okay.”

“And best of all, no more lamp,” Azlyn adds. “Unless somebody wants to go digging around in the crumbling remains of that demon lord palace.”

“Well,” Iago speaks up, drawing all eyes to him. When they see that the parrot has Jafar’s lamp clutched in his talons, they all gasp in shock.

“Iago, why didn’t you leave that thing in there?” Aladdin yells. “You can’t expect to be our friend if you keep…”

“Jafar told me to!” Iago blurts, nearly in tears. “As soon as I saw it, I heard him whispering, telling me to grab the lamp and free him. I tried to fight it, but…”

“You can fight it, Iago!” Sora declares, his tone steady and strong. “Put the lamp down, and we’ll get rid of it. You’ll never have to do what Jafar says again.”

Iago’s face is a rictus of pain, fighting against his former master’s mental commands clearly taking a toll on him. The others watch him closely, all of them hoping that he can do it.

Finally, after a long minute, he does. The black lamp falls from his talons to the floor.

“Everybody step back!” Genie declares, striding through the room in full hazmat suit. Using a pair of tongs, he slowly lifts the lamp. “Time to say goodbye to you for good!”

He poofs out, and then before the smoke can fade he’s back, sans suit. “It’s taken care of, guys.”

“What did you do with it?” Azlyn asks.

“Dropped it in the ocean,” Genie replies. “Good luck getting that sucker now. Anyway, aren’t we supposed to be having a party?”

The entire room is consumed by light, and when it fades, decorations abound in the large room. Streamers hang from column to column, tables full of snacks are all across the floor, and everyone wears little party hats. Anachronistic rock music pumps into the room from seemingly nowhere.

“You did well, Iago,” Telary says after everyone’s over the shock of the sudden party appearance.

“Like a real champ,” Azlyn adds, grinning a rare grin at the parrot.

“Oh, well,” Iago replies, shrugging from his seat on Telary’s shoulder. “I couldn’t let Jafar ever hurt my friends again, could I?”

“And congratulations are due to you two too,” Sora says to Aladdin and Jasmine, giving both of them a smile. “Taking the big next step, huh?”

“Yep,” Aladdin agrees, putting his arm around his fiancée. “It took a long time to build up the nerve.”

“I thought he was going to pass out when he asked me,” Jasmine chimes in, smiling gently. “I’m so glad we’re finally moving forward.”

“I was glad when Tel and I did too,” Azlyn interjects. The Agrabah pair look between the two, a little shocked.

“You two are engaged too?” Jasmine blurts.

“What!” Azlyn begins coughing and spluttering. Beside her, Telary does the same.

“No, that’s no…” the wizard attempts to clarify. “We aren’t... I mean, we’re nowhere near ready to…”

“I dunno,” Aladdin says. “When you think about it, whether you were a couple the entire time or not, haven’t you guys really had all your lives to get to know each other.”

“I’d do almost anything for that kind of connection to Aladdin,” Jasmine agrees. “Of course, now we have the chance for just that.”

Azlyn and Telary are both silent, each trying to come up with a counterargument and failing. Luckily, they’re saved by the sudden arrival of Genie.

“So, I’m your Best Man, right?” the big blue lug asks, leaning in close to his former master with a hopeful look. Aladdin doesn’t even get the chance to speak before he continues. “I swear to you, Al, I’ll be the greatest Best Man ever seen in this or any world. In fact, how about a little preview?”

Genie zips out of the room and into the open Agrabah air, everyone following him out onto the balcony. Fireworks suddenly ignite over the city, their bright colors awe-inducing.

 

[KingdomKey]

Genie always pops up in the nick of time when they need him. Iago letting the lamp go was really brave of him. (I still feel like that was too easy? Idk, I feel suspicious.) And I love, absolutely love how Telary and Azlyn answered that question of being engaged or not. <3 Someday, you guys might be. XD Or at least, I'll always imagine that way after rooting for you two to get together after so, so long. <3 Anyways, Luxord was like the third hardest nobody I ever had to face in KHII. I know your pain with facing against those cards, Sora! Lucky you! You didn't get turn into dice tho! On the other hand, I hope Sora connects the dots, cause I kind of feel bad for him feeling sorry for Luxord. xD Overall, I greatly enjoyed this chapter. <3

 

[TelaryCri]

Chapter XLIX: Digital Domination, pt. 1
​

“Nothing, nothing, and nothing!” Azlyn grumbles, slumping down in her seat. The vastness of Gummi space rests outside the cockpit window, and as far as the trio knows, Organization XIII’s stronghold could be anywhere out there.

“Things do seem kind of bleak,” Telary admits. “We’ve taken down two more Organization members, but neither of them gave up their base’s location.”

“Well, I would’ve asked them,” Sora states sulkily, “but I was kind of a little busy fighting for my life.”

“I know that, Sora, of course I do,” the wizard says, hands out in a placating gesture. “But the long and short of it is, we’re out of leads. Might as well pick a random direction and start flying.”

Azlyn reaches underneath her chair and releases its position lock with a snap. The noise draws the attention of the boys, who look at her with puzzled expressions. The knight doesn’t seem to notice, drawing one leg up to her chest and resting the other on the floor. Her chair twitches left, then right. The necessary momentum achieved, she pushes off against the floor as hard as she can.

Her chair spins round and round. About two revolutions in she sticks out her arm, pointer finger extended. The boys watch as her madcap spin continues for a long minute.

When she finally slows down, the girl opens her eyes, intensely scrutinizing the empty space outside the window.

“That way,” she declares with woozy confidence.

Silence.

“What?” she explodes in protest glaring at her companions. “You said to pick a random direction, so I just…”

“Oh, very funny Azlyn,” Sora deadpans, arms crossed sternly over his chest. “Seriously, have you ever thought about a career in comedy, because…”

“Well, I don’t see you offering any…”

“That’s because I would rather do something actually, y’know, helpful, instead of just messing around and…”

“Enough!” Telary yelps, raising his hands for quiet. His younger companions cease bickering, but their icy glares remain. “Clearly, we’re kind of on edge here. Mostly it’s because we think we’re getting nowhere…”

“Think?” Sora scoffs. “I hate to break it to you Tel, but we are nowhere.”

“Literally,” Azlyn adds with a gesture at the vastness of space. She and Sora exchange quick glances and small smiles, their standard nonverbal apology.

“Yeah, fine, we are getting nowhere,” Telary admits tersely. Great, now he’s the exasperated one. “But I also think we’ve been all go-go-go since we took off from Hollow Bastion. Maybe we just need a little time to settle, get our heads on straight.”

“I actually think that’s a pretty good idea,” Sora admits, nodding as he thinks it all over. “And I’d be lying if I said I’m not still kinda worried about Leon and Aerith and the others. We kinda left them in a hurry last time.”

“Going to Hollow Bastion for a vacation?” Azlyn says, leaning back in her chair as Telary powers up for the flight. “Yeah, that really sounds like something that’s gonna work out good.”

KH-KH-KH

If there’s one thing Azlyn loves (other than Telary, munny, and violence), it’s saying “I told you so”. And yet, somehow, the knight manages to refrain when the trio teleport into the borough in the midst of a Heartless attack.

The little buggers seem to be everywhere, several men and women in guard uniforms doing their best to fight them off. And oddly enough, they seem to be the variety present in the world of Ansem's computer.

“What is going on here?” Telary asks, obviously not expecting an answer from either of his equally clueless companions. Still, some things you just have to say in a situation like this.

“The usual,” Sora sighs, Keyblade already in hand. He immediately charges into the nearest fray, getting the drop on a pair of Strafers. A Magnum Loader zooms by and he makes a cursory swipe at it, but the creature leans left to dodge. Seconds later, a fireball from Telary scorches it out of existence.

Azlyn kicks away a pair of glowing Soldiers, leaping forward afterwards to slice through a Strafer with her shield’s edge. That taken care of, she spins to finish off the Soldiers, a move interrupted when a claymore laser bursts out of the ground at her feet.

“Aaaaargh!” the knight cries out as she flies several feet into the air, a sharp pain exploding across her back. The magic of her clothes manages to diffuse most of the heat, but it still feels like being poked with a twenty-foot long pool cue.

“Azlyn!” Telary yelps, frying three Strafers with lightning as he rushes to catch his girlfriend. He barely makes it, getting his arm under her just in time to lessen her impact against the ground. But it still throws him off balance, and the pair hit the street together.

Three Magnum Loaders take advantage of the golden opportunity, zooming toward the fallen heroes. Sora, occupied with a group of Strafers and Surveillance Robots about twelve feet away, can only watch from the corner of his eye. He quickly surges against his opponents, but he knows the chances of him making it in time to help his friends are terrible.

He needn’t worry, a small round object slipping past his occupied gaze. It hurtles through the air for another few seconds before making a dive, knocking directly into the spinning wheel of the leftmost Magnum Loader. The creature isn’t ready for the friction the impact creates, swerving sharply to the right and hitting the Heartless next to it, which lurches to the side as well, knocking down the third.

Its job done, the little orb (a baseball with an antenna protruding from it) reverses course, landing neatly into a baseball glove attached at the end of an odd-looking launcher resting comfortably in the hands of Phineas Flynn-Fletcher.

“Nice one, Phin!” Yuffie congratulates the young boy, leaping down from her position atop a nearby roof. As the ninja drops, she reaches into her pockets and draws out three shuriken. She flings them as soon as her feet hit stone, cutting into Sora’s opponents and giving the Keybearer an easy opportunity to finish them off.

“Yuffie, what is happening?” he asks, looking over to see Azlyn and Telary rising into standing positions.

“Bad stuff, man,” Yuffie replies, backflipping out of the way of a claymore’s upward burst. “Cid’s at Merlin’s, he can explain it better than I can. You better get over there right away, I got things taken care of here.”

Sora wants to argue, but has realized by now that, for whatever reason, these Heartless won’t just stop coming like they usually do. This is a problem that needs to be cut off at the source. So with a heavy heart, he gestures for Azlyn and Telary to join him.

They meet Phineas and Ferb at the end of the street, the boys using their remote-controlled baseballs to keep Heartless off balance. It strikes Sora as an odd choice of weaponry, but nevertheless seems effective.

The trio rush through the streets, passing conflict everywhere they go. They stop and help where they can, ending up on Merlin’s street in minutes.

Quistis stands outside the wizard’s house, her whip cracking through the air and driving off any Strafer or Magnum Loader that gets too close.

“Thank goodness!” the guard captain exclaims upon seeing the trio beginning to help mop up the Heartless. “I knew it was only a matter of time before you guys showed up!” A claymore attempts to explode beneath her, but she manages to dart to the side. “Get inside, Cid’ll explain everything!”

“But these Heartless!” Telary protests, frying two Strafers with one fireball. It does little, however, to even the odds.

Especially once the Devastator arrives. Azlyn rushes it, but with one nigh-negligent swipe of its huge leg it knocks her aside.

Which is actually more beneficial than might be though, as it’s at that moment LeBlanc emerges from Merlin’s house with a Gummi ship cannon.

“Fire in the hole!” the wealthy woman declares, firing off a rocket. Everyone gasps and dives away as it impacts against the huge Heartless, reducing it to bits and bytes. “Come along now, everyone inside.”

They all follow her commands, rushing inside to the relative safety of Merlin’s home. Cid sits in front of the computer terminal at the back wall, furiously typing something on the keyboard. Merlin stands a ways off, eyeing the blond engineer’s efforts with blatant distrust. When he sees that Sora and companions have arrived, he grins.

“Oh, marvelous!” the wizard exclaims, practically leaping into the air. “What fortuitous timing you three lads have!”

“I’m a girl,” Azlyn interjects. “How have you not gotten this by now?”

“Knew ya’d show up eventually,” Cid declares, turning to regard the trio. “Always do, when there’s trouble afoot. Like clockwork.”

“Speaking of work, you might want to keep going on yours,” Quistis reminds the older man. “That program is kind of important.”

Cid grumbles something surly and unintelligible, turning back to the computer screen.

“Well, I guess that confirms my suspicions,” Telary says, approaching Cid and looking over his shoulder. “The MCP is somehow transferring Heartless from the digital world into the real one, right?”

“Oh, it’s more than that I’m afraid,” Quistis explains, frowning sourly. “The MCP somehow managed to hack pretty much all of the town’s systems.”

Telary matches the woman’s grimace with one of his own. “Must have found that I/O Tower we moved.” Sora and Azlyn nod behind the wizard, although neither really understand what he’s saying.

“But thanks to Ciddy’s brilliant idea, we’ve managed to keep this terminal free of MCP influence,” LeBlanc brags, running a hand along Cid’s back. The man shudders at the touch, momentarily halting his work. “He’s working on a program to eradicate that nasty thing too. Oh, he’s so smart I could just…”

“Woman!” Cid exclaims, shooting his admirer a perturbed glare. LeBlanc backs off slightly, rolling her eyes as if the engineer had just called her by an affectionate nickname.

“I told you all that this newfangled technology would be our downfall!” Merlin announces. “But did anyone listen?”

They did not, and to all appearances they still aren’t now.

“Where are Leon and Aerith?” Azlyn asks, glancing around the safehouse.

“They went over to check out Ansem's computer,” Quistis answers. “Leon was the one who found out about the Heartless being materialized.”

“Then they might have heard something from Tron,” Sora hopefully suggests.

“Actually, according to their last message, they ain’t been able to communicate with Tron at all,” Cid says.

“Probably the MCP put him in the Game Grid,” Telary suggests, worry and sadness heavy in his voice.

“Game Grid?” Phineas asks.

“Trust me, they aren’t fun games.”

“We’ve gotta get to the digitizer,” Sora declares, slamming his fist into his open palm. “I don’t like the idea of Tron being all alone in there. Especially if we can’t communicate with him.”

“Won’t be long before the eradication program’s finished,” Cid assures the Keybearer. “Once you get Tron all sorted out, head for the main I/O Tower. We’ll have to upload the program at the source, so make sure you’re there to receive it instead of the MCP’s goons.”

“And you’re sure this building is secure?” Telary asks.

“As anywhere is in this town,” Quistis answers, one hand on her whip. Behind her, LeBlanc raises her rocket launcher to emphasize the point.

“Okay,” Sora says, giving everyone one last look. “We’ll head up to the castle now then. Good luck everybody!”

“You too kid,” Cid says as the trio make their way to the door. “You too.”

 

[KingdomKey]

Azlyn makes things fun all the time when she chooses to take things into her own hands. I give her kudos for trying. xD LeBlanc having the hots for Cid never gets old for me at all. And so much for that so called vacation for SAT. Well, I hope they're ready for a show down for what waits for them in the Grid. In the meantime, it just warms my heart up so much when I see Phineas and Ferb helping out. And LeBlanc actually using a rocket launcher was pretty hilarious to me. xD I await the next chapters to come as always. <3

 

[TelaryCri]

Chapter XLIV: Digital Domination, pt. 2
​

The path to the castle is naturally long, grueling, and fraught with danger. The Hollow Bastion Guard Corps lends them as much help as possible, but they mostly have their hands full guarding the citizenry.

Eventually the trio make it through to the castle, cutting through the library to the secret elevator to Ansem's study. All three heroes are rather nervous, the attack and Tron’s current status weighing heavily on their minds.

Which is how the Gullwings manage to startle them so badly.

“Watch it!” Rikku yelps, half fright and half anger. It’s quite justified, considering the fireball Telary just hurled at her and her friends. “Geeze, we’re not gonna hurt you.”

“Even though you’re all a bunch of liars,” Yuna interjects. She looks mad, but on her tiny face it just seems cute. “Leon doesn’t have any treasure, and Merlin hasn’t done a thing to change us back!”

“We thought you three were some kind of heroes,” Paine adds. “But seems to us like your words really don’t mean anything.”

“Hey now,” Sora protests, hands raised in surrender, “we never actually promised you guys anything. I just said that Leon needed help.”

“And I…” Azlyn chimes in, thinking for a moment. Finally she sighs. “Okay, I actually did lie to you about the treasure.”

“At some point saying ‘I told you so’ just becomes tacky,” Telary mutters to himself, recalling his earlier warnings about this exact situation.

“This is, obviously, quite unforgivable,” Yuna says, shaking her head like a disappointed mother. “I don’t see how we’re going to work this out.”

“Well, we can’t right now!” Sora protests. “I don’t know if you three have noticed, but the town is kind of under attack at the moment!”

“Oh, this place is always under attack!” Rikku points out, shrugging. “It’s like ya can’t sneeze around here without thirty Heartless showing up to say ‘bless you’.”

“Doesn’t make me very confident in our leaders,” Paine deadpans.

“And, if I recall, you three were perfectly content to swindle us during a rather major event,” Yuna declares, shrugging as if this is all so very sensible and the trio are somehow being unreasonable. “Now, if you’ll excuse us.”

The tiny ladies huddle together, whispering animatedly and occasionally glancing back at the trio. They certainly look pleased with themselves once they finally break away from their conference.

“We’ve just decided that we’re going to take all of your treasure!” Yuna cheerily announces.

“Over my dead body!” Azlyn roars, drawing her shield. The boys express disapproval as well, though their protests are quite obviously drowned out.

“We really don’t have much in the way of treasure, I’m afraid,” Telary speaks up, nudging aside his nigh-incoherent girlfriend. “And we just didn’t have time to talk to Merlin about changing you three back.”

“And the town is in really deep danger,” Sora adds. “Plus, one of our friends is missing, and that means he’s probably in trouble. Please, just let us get to the computer room.”

The Gullwings look the trio over once more, then dive right back into a huddle. The discussion is much more heated this time, and it seems like Paine and Rikku are trying to team up against Yuna.

Azlyn looks around all the while, shamefully hoping that perhaps a Heartless will show up and emphasize their current urgency. Unfortunately, none oblige.

It takes little over a minute for the Gullwings to reach consensus, but to Sora, Azlyn, and Telary it seems a lifetime.

“Alright,” Yuna sighs. Behind her, Rikku and Paine are giving the trio dirty looks. “We’ve agreed to let you pass without incident. When the current crisis is over, however…”

“We’ll work something out,” Sora promises, ignoring Azlyn affronted look. “I really am sorry about tricking you guys.”

“I am too,” Telary agrees.

Azlyn rolls her eyes. “Yeah, so sorry. Can we go now?”

“Go on ahead,” Paine says, waving vaguely at the entrance to the castle’s secret tunnels.

“Don’t die!” Rikku cheerfully offers. “Otherwise we’ll never get paid back!”

With that odd bit of encouragement, Sora, Azlyn, and Telary take off for Ansem's study. Unlike the castle above, there are a few Strafers and Cannon Guns wandering around the underground corridors, but nothing too challenging.

“There’s the study,” Sora declares, huffing out a breath after cleaving a Strafer in two. “I hope Leon and Aerith are in there.”

“Guys!” Leon’s familiar voice calls. The trio turn to see him standing in the door to the study, gunblade in hand. A Surveillance Robot appears from nowhere and dives at him, but he casually slashes it in two pieces. “Thank goodness you’re here.”

Sora leads the way into the study. Aerith is in there as well, smiling at them from her position by the door to the computer room.

“I told Leon you’d show up eventually,” she declares, playfully poking her more serious friend. “You always do. We figured that you’d need access to this room if you wanted to talk to Tron.”

“I assume you checked in with Cid?” Leon asks, immediately getting to the point as the group makes their sojourn into the computer room. “Everyone is still safe?”

“He thinks the Eradicator should be finished any time now,” Telary reports.

“And I’m pretty sure that between Merlin’s magic and LeBlanc’s rocket launcher, they’re gonna be A-OK,” Azlyn jokingly adds.

“You’re sure you can’t get through to Tron?” Sora asks, eyeing the huge red digitizer staring down at them like some massive beast’s eye.

Leon shrugs. “Truth be told, without Cid or Phineas and Ferb, I’m not too sure how exactly we would do that.”

“It’s probably best if we just go in and talk to him ourselves,” Sora offers.

“Going in makes the most sense anyway,” Telary points out as he heads for the main console. It reads ‘IGNORANT USERS, OBEY THE MCP’ in a window, but the wizard just rolls his eyes and drags it to the side. “When it comes to the MCP, I think a direct approach is the surest bet.”

“Right on!” Azlyn agrees, affectionately thumping her counterpart on the back. He winces at the unexpected force of it.
“Being with Azlyn is really influencing you, isn’t it Telary?” Aerith giggles. She gives Azlyn a quick, indecipherable look. “Just make sure it doesn’t happen too much.”

“Anyway,” Leon interjects pointedly, “when you find Tron…”

“Take him to the I/O Tower,” Sora finishes, gesturing for Telary to start booting up the digitizing process. “Cid gave us the whole story.”

“Alright then,” Leon says with a nod, stepping back to avoid being digitized himself. “Good luck guys.”

“We’re rooting for you!” Aerith adds.

The trio have just enough time for a grateful nod before the bright light of digitization sweeps over them.

KH-KH-KH

“What’s the status on that program, Cid?” Quistis asks as she and Yuffie work together to slam the door to Merlin’s home shut. The Strafers outside pound on it for a few seconds, before the magical flame-trap Merlin set up explodes and takes them both with it.

“He’s doing the best he can!” LeBlanc declares defensively.

“Well, it’d be a lot further along if I didn’t have to stop and answer questions about it every damn minute!” the engineer shoots back. “And I think the old loon’s magic is messing with the operatin’ system!”

“Don’t go whining just because you can’t type as fast as you used to!” Yuffie admonishes him.

“I offered to help,” Phineas sighs, looking uncharacteristically annoyed. Ferb says nothing, only blinks with his usual nonchalance. Perry rests on the floor beside them, looking lazy and contented.

“Yes,” LeBlanc snarls at Yuffie, “if only his fingers worked as quickly as your mouth.”

“Old loon you say?” Merlin huffs indignantly, reaching into the sleeve of his robe to grab his wand. Some insults just cannot be ignored.

“Okay, okay…” Cid mutters, putting on the finishing touches. He just needs another few seconds to add in something Tron will certainly find useful…

“Seriously, people, we are in crisis mode,” Quistis continues, unaware that she’s being thoroughly ignored.

“I’ll show you who’s old!” Merlin draws his wand back, magic gathering at its tip.

“Finished!” Cid triumphantly exclaims, halting all the arguments around the room. The terminal’s disc drive whirs, depositing a purple and yellow CD-ROM. Cid reaches for it, very much pleased with himself.

Before he can grab it, however, Merlin’s magical insult retaliation crashes into the computer console, throwing up a shower of sparks. Cid yelps and leaps away from his smoking terminal, and the CD goes flying through the air as well.

Quistis and Yuffie both gasp and leap for the flying disc, but they only succeed in smashing into each other. With twin grunts of pain and surprise, the young women collapse on the floor. LeBlanc heads for Cid instead of the disc, cradling the cranky engineer in her arms. Merlin, of course, merely takes the whole thing in with a satisfied smirk.

Phineas goes for the disk, jumping with his arm outstretched, but it’s still too high in the air. He stumbles and falls to the floor, inadvertently getting mixed into the Quistis-Yuffie pile. Ferb was pushed back by Phineas’s jump, running into the wall just enough to mildly daze him. The Eradicator disc continues its fall, heading for the floor and possible oblivion.

Until Perry takes action, darting forward and leaping mightily with all four legs. Once in the air, he opens his beak and neatly clamps his jaws around Hollow Bastion’s last best hope. Small blue sparks, nearly invisible to the naked eye, play along its surface for a brief moment.

“Wow,” Yuffie remarks, staring along with everyone else at Perry and the Eradicator disc. “I thought you said platypuses don’t do much, Phin.”

“Most don’t,” the boy replies, reaching over and ruffling his good friend’s head-fur. “I guess we just got lucky when we picked you, huh Perry?”

“Well, if that’s all,” Quistis says, rising from the floor and brushing off her skirt, “I’ve gotta get this to Leon.”

The guard captain leans down and grabs the CD from Perry’s mouth, who obligingly unclenches his jaws from around it. She wipes it off once on her jacket, then takes off out the door without another word. Yuffie quickly rises and follows her, just in case.

“This had better work,” Merlin remarks, swinging his house’s door closed.

Cid opens his mouth for a retort, but LeBlanc beats him to it. “Well, if it doesn’t, it’s only because of your magic, you daft old man!”

Merlin’s mustache curls with anger, and he waves his wand in the air once again. “Well, it seems my lesson on respect didn’t take!”

The wizard prepares another spell, but before he can cast it LeBlanc reaches out and snatches his wand right out of his hand. The magic in it dies in a fizzle of blue sparks, leaving only a thick wooden stick.

“Oh, there’s a lesson to be learned here, alright!” With a fire in her eyes that nicely compliments the flames now bursting out of Cid’s blasted terminal, LeBlanc hauls off and knocks Merlin in the head with his own wand.

“Ow!” The wizard raises his arms to shield his face, just in time for another conk. “I say, Miss… Yeowch!”

With no other recourse, Merlin turns and runs away, only for LeBlanc to follow right on his heels, still wildly swinging his wand at him. Cid rises to his feet as he watches the chase, pulling a cigar out of his pants’ pocket and lighting it on the flames of his computer.

“Man,” he softly declares, half to Phineas and Ferb but mostly to himself. He places the cigar in his mouth and takes a puff, holding the smoke in a moment before blowing it out. “I never really noticed it before but… What a woman!”

 

[KingdomKey]

This chapter was hilarious. Oh my god, the joke about sneezing and heartless brought tears to my eyes. And Cid, you sure do know how to pick em. LeBlanc beating Merlin over the head with his own wand is awesome. And Perry! You saved the day from all these dummies messing around! Good boy! xD This was a great chapter. <3 SAT sure do got their hands full with YRP and Tron to look after. I do wonder if YRP will be restored to their human forms sometime after all the worlds are saved? <3 I shall wait to find out if that's the case!

 

[TelaryCri]

Chapter L: A Free System, pt. 1
​

Sora immediately summons the Keyblade once the digitization’s light fades, recalling quite clearly their rude and unwelcome appearance in the game grid last visit.

But there’s nothing there to react to. Looking around, the trio instantly recognize the barren halls of the prison they’d been thrown into during their first trip. The place they’d met Tron. All of the pit cells are open, save one directly underneath the control/monitoring booth at the far end.

“Is this where we wanted to go?” Azlyn asks, looking around cautiously.

“It’s the most reliable entry port,” Telary explains, his uneasiness apparent as always. “Of course, I’m not exactly sure how we’re supposed to get anywhere from here. Maybe a hangar with some more of those Recognizers…”

“Whatever,” Sora huffs impatiently. “Just as long as we find Tron as soon as possible. I’m still worried that…”

“OH, YOU NEEDN’T.”

“Sark!” the Keybearer exclaims, swinging his weapon for emphasis as he casts his gaze around the corridor. The voice is amplified, seemingly coming from everywhere at once.

“TRON IS PERFECTLY WELL, USER,” Sark continues. Up above the trio, the “glass” of the control booth flicks into a viewscreen. Sark stands before an orange wall, smirking as he looks down upon his User enemies.

“What did you do with him?” Sora demands.

“WHY DON’T YOU GO ON AND SEE FOR YOURSELF?”

With a whoosh, the closed cell door at the end of the hallway slides open. Worry for their friend overtakes the trios’ caution, and they all rush forward to see what exactly Sark is talking about.

The cell is larger than the one they’d previously stayed in, with a wide window overlooking the vast field containing hundreds upon hundreds of similar blocks. But no one spares a second to glance outside the window, too focused on what’s in front of them.

Tron, strapped to the cell wall in the traditional crucifixion pose. His body is limp and lifeless, his head bowed.

“Tron!” Sora cries, rushing to his friend. He lifts up the security program’s head, but what he sees only further horrifies him. “No. No, this can’t…”

“Oh, no,” Telary whispers in utter shock.

“Shit…” Azlyn breathes.

Tron’s face is gone, replaced by smooth, light blue blankness.

“Warning: System Threat Detected,” a hollow, inflectionless voice buzzes from the void. It’s Tron’s voice, but lifeless, devoid of anything that makes up Tron. “Anomaly Has Entered System. Pursue Anomaly Correction, Y/N?”

“The MCP, naturally, wanted to de-rezz him immediately,” Sark cuts in, his image blinking into existence upon the window pane. Sora turns from the horror of Tron’s emptiness, right into the rigidly cruel eyes of his enemy. “He concealed the DTD password right up until the end, but once we had him it was a simple matter of sifting through the data. He managed to erase several functions that would have been quite useful: the castle self-destruct, the town floodgates.

“But, luckily for us he wasn’t even aware of the Heartless machine. User Ansem never deigned to share its existence with either of us, but the MCP knew all about it. Once we had a way to activate it, the process was simple, as was hacking the claymore defense system. Not surprising, considering it was devised by actual children.”

“So, what did you do to him after you got what you wanted?” Azlyn demands. “Why is he…?”

“A hard reset of his memory and functions,” the evil program explains, smirking. “I realized that I was too lenient with my last attempt. His backup has been expunged as well, erased from all existence. There is no way to restore him. Though not de-rezzed, for all intents and purposes, Tron is, as Users would say, dead. Such is the fate of all who oppose the MCP. End of line.”

Sark’s image disappears, returning the peaceful, faraway image of the cell blocks. The silence that rushes in to fill the small cell is deafening, the trio all too overwhelmed to speak.

“What are we supposed to do now?” Sora asks, holding back a tidal wave of emotion.

“We’ve gotta delete that MCP once and for all!” Azlyn declares, slamming her fist against the window. Despite the tough digital material, cracks spiderweb around the point of impact.

“Yeah!” Sora agrees with an aggressive nod. “We just need to find a way out of here, get to the I/O Tower, and pick up Cid’s program.”

Telary grimaces, raising a hand. “I’m actually not sure how exactly that would work. I took a quick look at the Eradicator program while we were at Merlin’s, and Cid’s got it tailored specifically to Tron. And, to be honest, I’m not sure if we could access its functions at all since we’re not programs.”

Sora sighs, sinking to the floor with his head bowed. All the emotion he’d been holding back is let loose. He tips his head back to rest against the wall, turning slightly to face the still-horrifying tableau of Tron’s limp body.

“Aw, Tron,” the Keybearer sighs, a few slightly glowing tears spilling over onto his cheeks. “Why did we just leave you in here, all alone? You had to know Sark would find you eventually.”

“There was nothing we could have done, Sora,” Telary tries, patting his young friend’s shoulder sympathetically. Azlyn clings to his other arm, her gaze locked on Tron. “Tron did what he knew was right, staying behind to keep the MCP too busy to threaten the town.”

“He was a good guy,” Azlyn speaks up, brushing her hand against the security program’s chest. “Even when all he did was rattle off percentages.”

“He was our friend,” Sora concurs, standing shakily. He places both hands on Tron’s shoulders, looking into the smooth plane were his eyes once were. “He was our friend.”

The others nod, also placing their hands on their fallen comrade. Slowly, all three come together to rest where, were he a human being of flesh and blood, Tron’s heart would be. They step closer, nearly embracing the program.

“We’re gonna figure this out, Tron,” Sora promises, setting his face into its most resolute expression. “We’ll stop the MCP somehow, for you. I know we will.”

“It’s just like we told you,” Telary finishes. “You have to have hope.”

And then, something happens.

Light, pure white brightness, glows beneath the trio’s hands. Startled, they back away, eyes fixed upon the ever growing luminescence. The light extends throughout Tron’s body, sending pulsing waves through his circuit lines.

“What’s going on?” Sora asks, looking to Telary for some sort of proper technobabble explanation or speculation.

“I… I don’t know,” the wizard admits, tilting his head to regard the ever-brighter Tron.

Finally the light is too bright to look at, and the heroes turn their faces away to avoid blindness. Hands rise to cover their eyes, but ringing in their ears they all hear a clear sound, like a choir softly singing…

“S-Sora?” a weak voice calls out. It’s rough and crackly, like a man who’s been lost in the desert without water for days. “Sora, Azlyn, Telary?”

The light fades, and the trio lower their hands to gaze upon the sight before them: Tron, face and all.

“Tron!” Sora cries out happily. He rushes forward, flinging his arms around his restored friend. Azlyn and Telary follow suit, all three happily exclaiming their joy. “You’re okay.”

“Uh, I feel fine,” Tron replies. His voice has regained strength and clarity, though confusion spikes through it as well. “Is there a reason you three have your arms around me? Am I leaking data?”

The trio laugh as they back away, laughter that grows louder and more boisterous as they notice the perplexed look on Tron’s returned face.

“You’re okay, Tron,” Sora reassures his digital friend. “We just thought we lost you and, well…”

“We were hugging you,” Telary explains, making sure to be clear and concise. “It’s something Users do when they feel powerful emotions towards one another. Sometimes we hug because we’re happy, or-” he has to pause here swallow the hitch in his throat, “-because we’re sad to say goodbye.”

“We thought we lost you, Tron!” Azlyn exclaims happily. “You, you had no face and…”

The security program nods. “Yes, it’s coming back to me now. Sark and the MCP wanted the new password to access the DTD. I resisted giving it to them, but then Sark suggested they take it… Take it the hard way.” Tron blinks, his lips pursed in thought. “But they’d have to comb my data to do that, and there’s only a point zero-zero-zero-three chance that wouldn’t corrupt my memory.”

“Sark said something about resetting you,” Sora chimes in. “It was… It was horrible Tron, seeing you like that.”

“But you’re back now!” Azlyn declares.

“But how?” Tron wonders, shaking his head. “This just isn’t logical. A hard reset would have purged my memory completely.”

“I don’t think there’s an explanation, Tron,” Telary chimes in sagely. “At least none that you would understand, frankly.”

“This didn’t have anything to do with codes or bytes, Tron,” Sora picks up, smiling brilliantly at his friend. “This was all about you and us. Being friends.”

“Alright,” Tron agrees, nodding once resolutely. He turns his head to regard the fact that his wrists are still magnetized to the wall. “Would you three mind, uh, getting me down from here?”

It takes only a simple tap on each wrist with the Keyblade to release Tron, Azlyn and Telary working together to make sure he doesn’t fall to the floor once he’s free.

“Okay,” the security program says, rubbing the armor of his wrists slightly. “I assume you three are here because you have a way to defeat the MCP?”

Sora nods. “Yeah, Cid made this program that he says can de-rezz the MCP. They’re gonna upload it to the I/O Tower, so we need to get there and make sure Sark’s Heartless don’t intercept it.”

“I saw the Recognizer hangar coming in,” Tron announces. “We can take one of those and be at the I/O Tower in no time at all.” He thrusts his fists in the air, smiling widely. “Let’s do this!”

“Man, Tron,” Azlyn giggles, the boys also tittering behind her, “you sure bounce back fast, dontcha?”

The group exits the cell, headed for the Recognizer hangar. In his heart, Telary hopes they can find one with weapons this time.

“One question,” Tron speaks up as they enter the hangar. There are only two Recognizers inside, one obviously an older model and the other more upgraded. Naturally the quartet make for the newer. “Who exactly is this Cid?”

“He’s a friend of ours in the outside world,” Telary explains. “He’s really very smart, if kinda grumpy.”

“We’ve got a lotta friends out there,” Sora chimes in as they step up on the Recognizer’s cockpit platform. “Leon, Aerith, LeBlanc, Quistis, Phineas and Ferb… They’re all out there counting on us. And they were worried about you too, Tron, when they couldn’t contact you.”

“Worried about me?” Tron blurts, obviously quite stunned by the revelation. “I never knew I had so many User friends.”

“They’re counting on us,” Azlyn says, holding onto the nearest wall as Telary takes their ship into the air. “And we’re not gonna let them down.”

 

[KingdomKey]

It's quite touching to see how much Tron matters to SAT. I think it hit Sora the hardest to see Tron being reset like that. Sora sure does put on a brave face a lot. It's kind of amazing that he can keep going without blowing up from holding it all in all the time. Anyways, I'm glad Tron came back through a miracle! Although, I imagine it's because of the power of friendship that Tron still kept his memories of SAT. And SAT telling Tron what a hug is made me wanna cry. Or how he has other friends out there that worry about him. You really put me through a roller coaster of feelings, TelaryCri. And what a beautiful chapter it was. <3

 

[TelaryCri]

Chapter L: A Free System, pt. 2
​

Quistis and Yuffie quickly make their way through the Hollow Bastion library, unknowingly encountering a very different situation than Sora, Azlyn, and Telary did.

A Magnum Loader zooms straight ahead of Quistis, but she hears it in time to dodge. Lashing out with the heavy chains of her whip, she knocks the Heartless off-balance and sends it plummeting to the ground. Yuffie leaps over it, her giant shuriken held in one hand. At the top of her arc, she slashes the dark creature in half.

Two Strafers pop up near her landing spot, but she simply slashes her weapon left and right to dispose of them.

Surveillance Robots, red program lines running through them, hover before the elevator entrance. Quistis grunts and whips three out of the air at once, but more rise to take their place. The loud whine of lasers charging revs up, only dying out when a barrage of small shuriken tear them to shreds.

The elevator quickly moves down to the platform, where a battle is already taking place. The Gullwings face off against a huge purple Devastator. Rikku flits and zips through the air, making faces and shouting catcalls to keep the digital demon’s attention. Yuna has both her guns out and blazing, beating an annoying tattoo into its chassis. Paine dives in and out, her curved sword slashing.

“Well,” Yuffie says just before the elevator touches down, “I guess now I’ve really seen everything.”

“Here, here,” Quistis concurs, leaping away as the Devastator, alerted by the elevator’s noise, turns its nose-mounted cannon and fires out a shot of blue plasma.

It’s a nice distraction for Yuffie, who leaps up against the blue rock wall of the surrounding canyon, hurling her huge shuriken with mighty force. It pierces the creature’s armored shell, sticking into the air.

Quistis reaches out her right hand and concentrates. The guard captain is no wizard, but her during her training she’d made sure to have at least a spell or two handy. She’d insisted Leon did as well, but while the gunblade wielder had chosen fire, thunder was her element of choice.

A yellow lightning bolt crashes out of the sky, striking the shuriken and from there coursing down into the Devastator’s body. Everyone watches the process, but the results aren’t exactly what they might have predicted.

The glowing energy of the dispersed lightning bolt gathers into the Heartless’s laser cannon, lighting up its tip with bright white energy. Quistis’s eyes go wide, but that’s all she has time to do before the energy bolt fires off.

“Meega nala queesta!”

In a blur of motion, a small blue form leaps into the air in front of Quistis. The Devastator’s bolt slams into it, throwing up sparks and unleashing the terribly unpleasant smell of burnt hair.

For a moment it seems everything is paused, but it quickly passes and lets chaos unleash. Yuffie hurls more small shuriken at the Devastator, Yuna does a midair twist and starts firing off shots directly into is eyes, and Paine starts stabbing her blade in and out.

The attacks, small and annoying on their own but quite potent when unleashed all at once, stagger the Devastator, its large purple legs stumbling left and right. Quistis’s battle-honed reflexes take over, sending her charging forward. With a grunt of exertion, she slams the end of her whip down as hard as she can into the creature’s back.

The attack rends a huge tear in its shell, all attacks suddenly converging on the one spot. Whether it’s Yuna’s bullets, Paine’s sword, or Yuffie’s throwing stars, the Heartless falls in an explosion of bright particles.

The enemy felled, Quistis turns her attention in the direction of her savior. Upon getting a good look, she gasps: it’s the little blue creature, the one that had been plaguing the corridors beneath Hollow Bastion’s castle for weeks.

The koala-like creature groans, the light blue fur on its belly stained black. Looking up at Quistis, he lets out a small
whimper.

“You saved me,” Quistis declares, picking the weird thing up and hugging him close to her chest. “I spend all my time chasing you around, and then you… Wait, you’re shaking! And, and making some kind of noise? Are you hurt?”

“I don’t think that’s quite it, Quis,” Yuffie points out, giggling into her hand.

“He looks pretty happy where he is,” Rikku chimes in, also barely suppressing her laughter.

Looking down at the fuzzy creature in her arms, Quistis notices the lecherous little smirk he’s wearing on his face. The creature snuggles in a little closer, eyebrows wiggling.

“Oh, gross,” the guard captain sighs, dropping her admirer unceremoniously to the ground. She turns to the other women on the platform, painfully aware of their amused laughter. “Really funny. Now c’mon, we’ve still got to get this program to Leon!”

She and Yuffie take off, racing through the corridors and into Ansem's computer room. Leon momentarily raises his gunblade at their arrival, but backs down once he recognizes who it is.

“You got it?” he asks eagerly.

“No,” Yuffie sarcastically replies, holding up the Eradicator disc. Quistis, who is sure she was the one who was carrying it, pats down her belt quickly. She doesn’t find anything else missing, but still spares a glare for the ninja.

Leon nods and hunches over the computer, quickly typing in a series of commands. Cid had given him a rundown on basic computer procedure before, and he hopes it’s enough.

“Warning,” the familiar emotionless voice of the MCP announces through the computer’s speakers. “User control is terminated indefinitely.”

“Damn it!” the gunblade wielder grunts, slamming his gloved fist into the unresponsive machine. “It’s no good, I can’t access anything!”

“Well what do we do now?” Yuffie demands, grimacing. “C’mon Squall, think of something!”

“This really isn’t my area of expertise, Yuffie,” Leon shoots back. “Maybe we should call Cid or one of the kids, get them down here to…”

“Leon,” Aerith says, the one word spoken softly but still seeming to fill up the room. Everyone looks over to the young woman, her mouth set in a determined line. “Let me try.”

Leon opens his mouth to protest, but quickly realizes that he might as well let the healer try her hand at uploading the program. He trusts her with his life, why not this?

Aerith takes the disc in hand, turning it over as she saunters up to the computer. Specifically the raised slot for CD insertion.

“This is your final warning,” the MCP speaks up again, this time actually sounding a bit panicked. “Desist at once!”

“Hey, Mr. MCP,” Aerith retorts, placing a hand on her hip and raising the disc over the CD slot. “Bon apetit!” Without further ado or ceremony, she slots the Eradicator disc into the terminal.

“What are you loading?” the MCP demands, the panicky edge in its synthesized voice increasing. “What is this program?”

“Hey now,” Aerith responds, smirking triumphantly, “didn’t your motherboard ever tell you not to talk with your mouth full?”
KH-KH-KH

“To the left, to the left!” Sora cries out, basically directly into Azlyn’s ear, pointing in the indicated direction.

“Really?” the knight snarls back, adjusting the position of her gun with the console’s joysticks. “Because I thought all those blips appearing on the left side of the radar meant I should shoot to the right!”

It’s been a hectic few minutes for the trio and Tron, zipping through Space Paranoid’s airspace on their way to the I/O Tower. They hadn’t gotten far before more Recognizers had spotted them, and ever since it had been a chase. Luckily the newer Recognizer model they’d grabbed came equipped with its own defense cannon.

“It’s down there,” Tron informs Telary. It seems fairly obvious, since without Tron’s disguise protocols it simply looks like a long trapezoidal building with a tower sticking out of it. Telary, ever more gracious than his counterpart, merely nods in acknowledgement.

“Are you sure we’ll be able to land with these guys on our tail?” Sora asks Tron, momentarily turning away from his self-appointed role as Azlyn’s guidance software.

Tron shakes his head, moving toward a small console in the side of the cockpit. “Not a chance. Telary, bring us in as low as you can, then we’re going to have to jump for it.”

“Because this adventure just hasn’t been fun enough,” the pilot mutters as he dips in closer to the I/O Tower’s entrance.
Azlyn’s still determinately pounding away at the enemy vessels with her turret, and Sora basically has to wrench her away from the sticks.

“Wait, I can get one more!” she declares, holding on with all she’s got.

“Come on,” Sora orders with an accompanying pull. “It’s not an arcade game!”

With a grunt of annoyance, Azlyn relinquishes the control and vacates her chair. Telary’s out of his now as well, so the quartet had better jump soon if they don’t want to end up going down with their ship. Tron presses a button on his console, and the Recognizer’s cockpit lowers just enough to leave a gap they can jump through.

Peering through the open space, Sora guesses they’re still about twenty feet up. He opens his mouth to ask if this is safe or not, but Tron gives the signal before he can. The heroes jump, Users letting out cries of fear while their program fried remains stoic.

Telary raises his hand to cast Feather Fall, but by the time he’s got the spell in his mind they’re already touching down. The group tumbles to digital earth with grunts of shock, quickly diving into rolls to lessen the impact.

“Ow,” Sora groans, slowly rising to his feet. He turns to see if anyone else needs help, only to nearly collide with the already on-the-move Tron.

“Come on!” the program urges his User compatriots. He points to the sky, where a suddenly appearing column of light shine down directly on the I/O Tower’s highest point. “That should be User Cid’s Eradicator program.”

That in mind, the trio manage to rise and get in gear. They rush into the tower, finding its layout identical to before. A few Strafers appear and attack, but the group rushes on through the thicket. Sora and Azlyn take point, slashing through Heartless as they charge towards the communications room.

Once inside, Tron rushes to the room’s terminal and taps in a command. Light plays over the room’s entrance, and the next Heartless to rush it is zapped into oblivion.

“Well,” Azlyn notes, staring up at the hole in the high ceiling, “I think we’re in business.”

Light shines down on the circular platform in the middle of the room, casting it in a nigh-holy glow. Tron nods and steps towards it, slowly and reverently despite the urgent circumstances.

Once in the light, the security program reaches behind and pulls the Identity Disc off his back. Looking up, he takes the disc in both hands and holds it skyward. The light from above pulses gently, and the disc quickly rises up, vanishing into the hole in the ceiling.

“Uh, that’s gonna come back down again, right?” Sora asks in a soft whisper.

It does indeed, glowing with a new brightness. The disc drifts into Tron’s still raised hands as softly as a leaf on the breeze. The light from the sky fades, and the security program examines his weapon curiously.

“So, did it work?” Sora cautiously inquires.

Tron nods, reattaching the disc to his back. “It’s really quite something. There’s an upgrade in here for me, and flight routines for the Solar Sailer. Plus, something else I can’t quite define.”

Telary’s eyes go wide as he notices sparks playing across the Identity Disc. “Oh, wow. I think somehow Merlin put some of his magic in it!”

“That’s great!” Azlyn declares with a triumphant fist pump. Then she turns to her boyfriend, “That is great, right?”

The wizard nods and presses a kiss to her cheek. “Sure is!”

“What was that you just did?” Tron asks, hopping down off the platform with a puzzled look. “Touching her face with yours?”

“Well,” Azlyn says slowly, making sure she can be heard over Telary’s awkward throat clearing. “To put it how you would understand, just think of it as, sort of advanced hugging.”

“So, are we all set?” Sora asks, casting a semi-nervous glance to the still barricaded hallway.

“Like you Users say,” Tron replies, inputting some commands in the terminal, “we won’t know until we give it a try.”

“Pretty sure I’ve never said that in my life,” Azlyn muses. “But anyway, let’s go!”

The barrier drops and they rush into the hallway, Tron in the lead and saying something about a simulation hangar. Sora stops paying attention about halfway up the hall, when he happens to glance inside the tower’s foyer.

And the horde of Strafers within.

The quartet skid to a stop, eyeing up at least three dozen Heartless.

“The Solar Sailer hangar is at the other end of this hall,” Tron declares, pointing to a glowing red archway just past the tower entrance.

“Not the ideal position,” Azlyn notes as she unlimbers her shield.

“But, for us, also not an unusual position,” Sora adds.

“Wait a moment,” Tron says, holding out his arm to keep the trio from charging. The Identity Disc glows brightly on his back, the rest of his body momentarily thrumming as well. “Sora, stand close to me.”

The Keybearer complies, as Tron leans back until he’s somehow sitting on thin air. Light glows in front of the security program, coalescing into the shape of two circular keyboards. He and Sora rise into the air, a circular platform beneath them.

“Running executable,” the program declares, his fingers moving quickly and confidently across his control panels. He and Sora rush forward, while around them the white light coalesces into thorny bits and bytes.

They spread around the duo, reaching out to cut into Strafers like hot knives through butter. Sora, sensation tingling through his arms, points the Keyblade and summon yet more bytes, shooting out like balls from the Black Pearl’s cannons.

Azlyn and Telary watch in awe as Sora and Tron use their bytes to clear the room. By now they’ve drifted into the center of the Heartless horde, surrounded on all sides.

“Alright, Sora,” Tron shouts over his shoulder, fingers somehow moving even faster than before. Red lines spread out from them, drifting back to form a large circle in front of Sora. “Access approved!”

Understanding instinctively, the Keybearer slams his hand down on the button before him.

Bits and bytes of light explode outward, chewing through Heartless like an industrial saw. Like hundreds of saws.

Sora and Tron’s platform fades out, the pair gently dropping to the now-cleared floor. Azlyn and Telary approach them, looks of shock and awe on their faces.

“How’d you do that?” Azlyn inquires.

Tron grins and taps his Identity Disc. “I said I got a power booster. I suppose that was it.”

“I’m gonna need to really thank Cid,” Sora announces, shaking his head.

“Alright, to the hangar,” Tron declares, leading the way.

“Wow,” Azlyn comments to Sora as the trio rush to catch up with their program friend. “Tron sure is excited about this, huh?”

Sora grins back at his companion. “Yeah he is!”

The simulation hangar is a large open area, with only a long walkway stretching out over the miles to the ground below. The Sailer itself is docked beside the walkway, a large rectangular platform connected to a thick yellow line that runs out of the hangar.

“We’re taking this thing to take out the MCP?” Azlyn asks, haughtily looking the vehicle over. “There aren’t any weapons and it’s stuck on this rail.”

Tron shakes his head. “Exactly. The MCP will be expecting us to arrive in a Recognizer, and he’ll have his defenses set accordingly. With this Sailer, we should be able to sneak in under his radar.”

“Go under the bad guy’s nose, avoid confrontation,” Sora muses, nodding approvingly as he and Tron head to the control panel at the vessel’s bow. “Not how we usually do things.”

“No,” Telary agrees, leaning against the side next to a rather irate Azlyn. “Much smarter.”

“Yeah, smarter,” Azlyn mutters to herself. “Sitting here like a bunch of idiots without any weapons, much more smarter.”

Tron inputs a few commands in the control panel, and with a loud noise the Solar Sailer activates, the yellow rail glowing brightly for a brief moment. Light gathers on either side of the vessel, coalescing into the luminous forms of two sails. With a lurch that nearly throws Azlyn and Telary off their feet, the ship gets a move on, sliding along the light rail like a Twilight Town train.

Except slower. Much slower.

 

[KingdomKey]

That was my favorite scene in KHII. Aerith feeding the MCP the disc. lol. xD And wow, Stitch saved Quistis from harm. I guess all the chasing from Quistis has made Stitch an admirer of her. That's so sweet an adorable. <3 In the meantime, I was highly amused and entertained by Azlyn's sarcasm about hitting things on her right, when she really means her left. I couldn't help but to laugh at that. And you're on fire tonight with these chapters, TelaryCri! <3 This was a really awesome chapter. The battle scenes were terrific! <3