Chaos Hearts - Final Mix
Chapter 1 - Beyond the Door
World - GeneX Prime
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
A dream. Endless falling. Some sort of stained glass structure below. "Don't be afraid!" a voice says. Lucky the cat is terrified. He braces for impact. "HEY! Wake up!!" "MEEE-yow!!" Lucky jumped as Zeke the dragon stood over his bed, looking frustrated with him. "You've been dozing since the war with Eggman ended." he said in his raspy voice. Lucky sat up. "Well, gee, I'm a cat. Isn't napping what cats do?" he said sleepily. Zeke pointed defiantly at him. "I hereby challenge you to a duel! You don't get to keep being useless, kid! If Eggman or GUN comes bangin' at our door, you'd best be ready to fight!" he warned. Lucky laid back down. "Maybe later... I'm drowsy right now..." he sighed. Zeke crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. "Did you have time to be drowsy when Robians were banging down our doors!? Get up!" he snapped. "You'll take care of it. You love that fighting and stuff." Lucky murmured. Zeke yanked his tail and started to drag him. "Yow!! Oww!! Lemme go!! Alright, I'm coming!!" Lucky yelped, jumping out of bed while holding his poor hurt tail. "C'mon. I'll try not to burn you to cinders." Zeke grunted. "You're enjoying this. Admit it!" Lucky whined. "Yes I am. I spent that stint in the Hopebringer Center 'cuz of you and Tails, remember?" he growled. "That was more Zipp's fault, wasn't it?" Lucky wondered. Zeke smacked him in the back of the head. "They only stepped in because you were fool enough to be in my way! I was after the bounty on Sonic, and Tails woulda led me to it... Not that it matters, I heard it was bogus anyway..." Zeke groaned. Lucky rubbed his head. "I think I'd rather Tails was training me..." he muttered.
Outside, somewhere above the Mystic Ruins, a small, blocky-looking ship shakily flew across the sky. "Mayday, mayday! We're goin' down! Ughhh!! Heeelp!!" a voice cried from within the cockpit. The ship was smoking. It swerved, heading for the jungle, and then it dropped, crashing amidst the trees and startling the main resident of the area; Big the cat. "...What's that thing? A ship? ...Think there are people hurt inside, Froggy?" Big mumbled, cautiously approaching. Inside the ship, a tiny creature with wings and a big pom-pom over its head was stumbling about, holding its nose. "Some air bags... Looks like I'll have to make some repairs, kupo." the creature groaned, glancing over at a person wearing a black coat and hood. He glanced at the small creature. "You do that, Winston. I'll take a look around this world we've landed in." he stated. Winston looked up at him. "You sure that's wise? That coat isn't exactly inconspicuous. What about the world order?" he questioned. "If it's the wrong kind of world, this face might be more troublesome." he said, taking off his hood to reveal the face of Miles "Tails" Prower. "Don't you think?" he asked. Winston shrugged. "Dunno, kupo. Just be careful. My world's riding on your success, too." he said. Tails walked out of the ship before putting his hood on, which gave Big cause for confusion. "...Tails? ...Why's he wearin' a disguise? Well...at least he seems to be okay..." he murmured, figuring he'd probably best leave the situation alone.
Lucky was busy dodging Zeke's flame breath in the room used as Shadow Arcangel's entry hall when it was buried in the earth. "You said you wouldn't use fire!!" he cried. During this, Whisk the Divine was walking in. She glanced at them. "Need help, Lucky?" she called. "This is a training exercise!" Zeke insisted. Bucky the rat and Vortex the chameleon were quick to meet Whisk. "I-it'sss great to ssssee you! I feared you lossst during the war..." Vortex stammered awkwardly. Bucky nodded. "Are you alright, Whisk? Can you remember anything?" he asked. Whisk nodded. "Yes... I do remember. I'm here for a place to stay... During the war... I was taken in by these...other divines. They went by Zodiac names, and they wanted to train me to join their ranks; become their 'Virgo.' They figured since I was a divine, their type of power would come easy to me..." she stated. Bucky nodded. "It didn't, because I made you..." he realized. Whisk nodded back. "But they helped me a lot. Their magic fixed my memory... or at least, I don't forget anymore. They also taught me wand magic!" she said, taking a Chaos-Stone Wand from her pocket. It was like Gemini's, but with a yellow gem on the tip. "But since I couldn't learn magic without the wand, they cast me out..." she sighed. Vortex pat her shoulder. "We're happy to have you back, Whisssk..." he smiled. "This is temporary, Vortex. I haven't forgotten why I left!" she said, swatting his hand away. "Blassst..." Vortex sighed. "Do you remember whippin' Zeke's butt!? Care to help me?" Lucky shouted, yelping as his tail was singed by fire. "Umm... I don't remember that, really. But maybe I could tag in to train you instead?" she asked. "Don't go easy on the wimp!" Zeke grunted. "No, please go easy on the wimp!" Lucky chuckled awkwardly.
Bucky had left while they were talking. He was actually in the middle of something when Whisk had arrived. By now he'd combed every inch of Shadow Arcangel, and knew it pretty well. However, something had appeared in the containment cell that everyone would know full well wasn't there before. Bucky walked past the remnants of the makeshift war room that was still left in there and crept into the cell, finding a door placed at the back of the cell, with a large keyhole in the center of it. This door wasn't there before, and more curious, Bucky knew there was no sign of this door on the other side of the containment cell wall. What was the door's purpose? Was it a sort of interdimensional gateway? Such a thing seemed preposterous a few years ago, but the rat had seen much ever since he created his experiments. "No doorknob... No key... Where did you come from, and why are you here?" he whispered, grasping at the edge of the door. He had to see if there was anything beyond it. Something compelled him to find out. Pulling the door open, he immediately felt a sense of dread, like it was a mistake. It seemed to become darker around him. Out of the shadows, small faces with yellow lights for eyes emerged! "Well, that triggered something..." he grunted, spinning around and zapping the creatures with his lightning! "...I have a bad feeling about this..." he murmured.
Zavok had had enough of his self-appointed understudy, Zim the Zeti. The little blue nuisance had gotten it in his head that he could actually join the Deadly Six somehow. It was laughable, as far as Zavok was concerned, but the humor had passed. He lifted Zim up and glared at him. "Hehe, hey boss!" Zim grinned. "While you've followed us, we've been bested time and again. We've been enslaved by Eggman twice. These things didn't happen before you came along." he growled. "Kinda makes you glad I'm here helpin', huh?" Zim chuckled. Zavok wound him up like a ball and threw him into the distance. "Get out of my sight, and don't come back!!" he shouted. Zim tumbled a distance away, finding himself just outside the Mystic Ruins jungle. Dizzily picking himself up, he spotted a cloaked figure sneaking out of the woods, a familiar pair of tails trailing under his coat. "Hm? ...Two tailed mutt... Where do I know a two-tailed... Oh!" Zim gasped, "Master Zavok must've tossed me here as part of a secret mission! The hood, the tails, the mystery... I'm to follow him and find out what he's up to! For the glory of the Zeti!" he shouted before noticing that the hooded fox was getting away from him. "Egad! He's on to me! I must follow in stealth and secret!" he whispered, scampering after the fox while darting from bush to bush, trying to stay out of sight. Tails scratched his head and kept moving. He was sure a little critter like Zim couldn't make too much trouble...
In the meantime, the strange shadow creatures had spread through Shadow Arcangel, forcing those aboard to fight back against them. Vortex teamed up with Zipp the hornet, and were soon making their way to the control room, blasting any shadows in their path with Chaos-based attacks and guns, respectively. "Where'd these critters come from? Are they some new breed of Lost One??" Zipp shouted. "Who caresss, they're not taking thisss ssship!" Vortex hissed. Whisk was back with Lucky and Zeke. Their training session would have to wait, as she turned her new wand on the shadows. "Leave us alone, creatures! Fire!!" she cried, casting a bolt of flame to eliminate a shadow. Zeke watched the twitching masses of darkness curiously. "What's that little guy? You wanna be my minion?" the dragon mumbled. "Hey, Zeke! Help, before they eat me! They look like they wanna eat me!!" Lucky stammered, looking around for anything he could fight back with. Zeke sighed and took to the air, dropping flames on the nearby shadows. However, they slipped into the ground itself and hurried towards Lucky! He stumbled backwards, but crawled back a bit. "Wh-what do these things want??" he yelped. "Maybe a hug?" Zeke chortled, "Well, nice knowin' ya, Luckless!" the dragon snickered while Whisk was too distracted to notice his plight.
Tails had boarded Shadow Arc during the ruckus. "I'm detecting darkness here... Heartless??" he gasped, stepping into the room with Whisk, Zeke and Lucky. His gaze fixed on Lucky, who was nearly surrounded. "I... I'd better help!" he gasped, running after the Heartless. However, as Lucky raised his hands to protect himself, there was a flash of light, and a large key-shaped weapon appeared in his hand! "H-huh?? What's this??" he stammered. The light seemed to startle the Heartless for a moment, and Lucky could swear he heard voices repeating "Keyblade... Keyblade..." However, he didn't seem to understand what to do with a Keyblade, and the Heartless started coming for him again. So, Tails jumped between them, holding a small metal handle that, with a click of a switch, extended pieces of a shield from each side, emitting a bit of energy to power it up. "Stay back, cat! I got this!" Tails said, tossing the shield like a frisbee, which cut down the Heartless before arcing back to be caught by him! As Zeke watched in surprise, Zim stepped next to him. "Well, that's a cool gizmo." the Zeti remarked. "Yeah, I didn't know Tails had a thing like that... Hey, where'd you come from??" Zeke stammered. "Uh oh! Gotta regain my cover!" Zim gasped, dashing into the ship's corridors. "Get back here, runt!" Zeke shouted. Tails pulled the hood over his face and headed for the same corridor. "Come with me, kid! Bring that key! We'll need it!" he said. Lucky nodded. "Uhhh, sure, Tails!" he stammered, following him. Whisk turned to see everyone leaving. "Huh? Hey! Come back!" she cried, teleporting over to them and joining in the rush.
They arrived at the containment room, where Bucky was struggling to pull the door closed again between stopping to zap Heartless. "I don't have to be a genius to realize we don't want those things getting in this door!" he said. Tails had a sort of smart-watch on his wrist, which he examined now. "According to my readings, the Heartless haven't touched the heart of your world yet. Cat! You have to seal the door with that Keyblade!" he said. Lucky looked at Tails funny. "I'm Lucky...You know me, Tails..." he murmured, holding up the Keyblade. "There's no time to explain, but I don't know you. I'm not the Tails you know." the fox stated. Whisk scratched her head. "Are you the Tails I know?" she questioned. Lucky gasped as the Keyblade tugged him towards the door. The tip of the Keyblade glowed, and emitted a beam that struck the door, causing it to shut suddenly as the large keyhole on it sparkled and disappeared! "Gah! ...What in...? Lucky, I'd like to examine that key..." Bucky stammered. "Can I borrow it?" Zeke asked as he and Zim arrived, "I bet it could open as good as it could close, hehe..." the dragon snickered. "No way, it poofed into MY hand!" Lucky stammered, "I'm not gonna let you rob a bank with it!" Tails sighed. "That wouldn't work anyway. Only you can use it." he stated. With the door sealed, the Heartless had apparently fled. Everything seemed okay now. Until the door burst back open!
Bucky was quick to grab the edge of the containment cell as the door started to suck everyone into it like a vaccuum! Lucky was the first to lose his footing. "Meee-yoooow!! Now the DOOR wants to eat meeee!!" he wailed. "Hang on, Lucky!!" Whisk cried, flying in after him only to have Tails smack into her head as he was drawn in, too! Knocked out, Whisk couldn't teleport away! Zim dove into the door after them. "You won't get away from me, foxy! I'll find out your secrets for Zavok!!" he proclaimed. Zeke was desperately trying to fly away, but he heard a voice call to him. "Meet me on the other side... Power and fortune awaits you..." Hearing this, Zeke calmly ceased resisting and let the door pull him in. "Bye bye, Bucky! See ya!" he chuckled before the door shut on his nose! "Ow!!" he could be heard groaning. The door then vanished as Bucky watched in astonishment. "M-my experiments..." he babbled. Winston came scampering into the room the next moment, pursued by Vortex and Zipp. "Hold still ya little stuffed animal!" Zipp warned. "I'm a Moogle, kupo!" Winston protested, "Oh, dear! Where's Tails?" he gasped. Bucky glanced back. "Sucked into a door... Who are you?" he questioned. "Where'sss Whisssk?? I thought I heard her voice on the way here..." Vortex murmured. Winston cleared his throat. "Don't worry... Your companions are okay, as is mine. But I'd best get back to my ship, or they'll be stranded..." he babbled. "Stranded WHERE?" Bucky asked, "What exactly was that door?" Winston looked up at the intense eyes of the rat and shivered. "W-well, that's a long story. But once it was sealed, I surmise it became a portal of sorts..." he muttered. "I'll ask again...to WHERE??" Bucky grunted.
Lucky and Whisk awakened in a strange place. Certainly different from anywhere they'd been. They were in a quaint little town, which seemed maybe a tad old-fashioned at face value. A bell could be heard ringing in the distance. "Well, guys... Welcome to Traverse Town." they heard Tails say. Sitting up, they found him standing near a crooked looking street light. "Traverse Town? What happened to the Mystic Ruins...?" Lucky murmured. "And who hit my head?" Whisk sighed, rubbing it. Tails looked a bit bashful about that. He wasn't wearing a cloak anymore, and it was a bit more clear that he wasn't exactly their Tails. A belt held his shield handle, his shoes and gloves were a tad more colorful, and there was that smart watch on his wrist. "Yeah... That door pulled us into another world. I hope my ride can find us. And I'm sorry you got dragged into this..." he muttered. "Dragged into what exactly?" Whisk asked. "ANOTHER WORLD?!" Lucky yelped. Tails nodded. "There's lots of other worlds. I'm from a different world from yours...and I've been searching the worlds for our Sonic. He's...missing." he explained, looking a bit sad. Lucky and Whisk glanced at each other, and then at Tails. "Well, since we're here, guess we'll help find him for you!" Lucky offered. "Aw, gee...thanks guys." Tails smiled. "No problemo... Except if we're stranded here." Whisk chuckled. Tails offered his hand out. "So, I'm Tails..." he said. "I know...and I'm Lucky!" Lucky added, putting his hand on top. "And I'm Whisk!" Whisk added, putting her hand on top of Lucky's. "Guess we're a team now! ...Anybody hungry?" Whisk chuckled.
Zeke and Zim landed together in a nearby district. Zim was peering through the door at them. "A conspiracy!" he declared. "Aw, shut up! Now, where was that guy? ...I hope I didn't imagine that voice..." Zeke groaned. "Oh, you didn't..." Zim and Zeke both turned and gulped to see a large man in full medieval armor, with a flowing cape trailing behind him. He was an imposing figure. "My name... is Garland. I require some...minions... to help command my forces across various worlds." he stated, raising his hand to summon dozens of soldier Heartless behind him. "You will gain command over dark power beyond your wildest dreams... So, what do you say?" he offered. Zim stepped over beside Zeke, both of them smirking. It appeared a second team had been created at Traverse Town as well...
Chapter 2 - Keyblade Training
World - Traverse Town; Neverland
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
"Trust in me, just in me...
Shut your eyes, and trust in me." - The Jungle Book
Lucky, Whisk and Tails looked around the First District of Traverse Town for a bit, and soon came across a pair of humans. Lucky recognized one of them as Gator, the goofy guy in the alligator costume that occasionally butted in on people's adventures back in his own world. With him was a young man with messy dark blue hair, brown eyes and a tan coat with black pants and a light green cape. "What are...you doing here?" Lucky asked Gator curiously. "Did you get sucked into a weird door, too?" Whisk asked. Gator tilted his head. "Uhh... Not in the last eight minutes..." he babbled. The other man cleared his throat. "Don't mind him. My name his Travis. I was sent here by Master Yen Sid to meet you. He was responsible for your arrival here. He apologizes that he couldn't draw you all the way to him, but the distance to your world was far." he stated. Tails scratched his head. "Yen Sid... Why do I know that name?" he murmured. Travis pointed to Lucky. "It should hold meaning for him, as he has been chosen by a Keyblade. You see, Master Yen Sid was also a Keyblade master long ago, and now he acts as a bit of a mentor for new Keyblade masters." he stated. Lucky materialized his Keyblade and looked at it. "This thing...chose me?" he murmured. Travis nodded. "Lucky... There's a war coming. A Keyblade war..." he stated. Lucky jumped. "Seriously!? But I just finished fighting in a war back home!" he whined. Gator shared his sentiment. "Me too... Except that's not really my home, and YOU locked me in a bunker!" he said, pointing at Tails. "What? No I didn't!" the fox babbled. "Different Tails, I think." Whisk stated. Travis loudly cleared his throat to regain their attention. "No one expects you to fight the Keyblade war. You're too new to the Keyblade, and there's no time to give you a Mark of Mastery exam." he stated. "A what?" Lucky murmured. "Never mind. Despite that...the other Keyblade wielders are going to be busy. Thus, cat... You may be the only one who can defend countless woulds from darkness as it attempts to take advantage of the diversion of the Keyblade war. We need your help." he said gravely. Lucky stared at his Keyblade in disbelief. What was he getting himself into now?
"I knew you would be here...for I have come back from the future, and seen events unfold." Garland said to Zeke the dragon and Zim the zeti. Zeke groaned. "Ugh, time travel? I've been through that. Can I go home?" he grumbled. Garland stabbed his sword into the ground hard, his eyes glaring from under his helmet. "I took great pains to be here, and see that you begin on your destined path ahead of schedule. For my plans to succeed, I need you both to embrace the darkness, and find me in the present day..." he said insistantly. Zim looked up at him with a smirk. "Embrace the darkness? I think I've done that!" he sniggered. Zeke scoffed. "Destined path? What's this rubbish?" he grumbled. Garland's body was starting to fade before their eyes. "I cannot linger in this time much longer. You may not believe me now, but I promise you that your destiny is set. Before I leave you... I grant you power...to summon the heartless." he said, extending his hand and covering Zeke and Zim in a dark energy. As the pair of them gasped and basked in the darkness, Garland's eyes were beaming. "One last thing... Our enemies are here... The feline with the key and his friends. I suggest you try to deal with them..." he said before fading away. Zim jumped and waved as Garland vanished. "Hey, thanks, knight dude! Zim feels mightier already!" he cackled. Zeke stared at him. "You're not gonna refer to yourself in the third person the whole way, are you? Ehh... Well, let's see about these heartless that guy mentioned..." he smirked.
Lucky pushed open the gate leading out of the first district and into an area outside of town. "I don't want to fight a war, or whatever it is you're actually asking of me. C'mon, Tails, I'll still help you find your world's Sonic. He'd probably love to take this Keyblade off my hands and do all the fighting for me!" he stated, glancing back at the group. "You can't simply give the Keyblade away. It chose you, and you alone. It's going to stay with you no matter what." Travis told him. Tails sighed. "Lucky... If we go looking for Sonic, we may get caught up in more heartless trouble anyway. It's best if you're prepared to use that key. Our lives may depend on it." he said seriously. Lucky turned around, letting the gate close behind him. "What...are the heartless going to chase us?" he asked. Travis shrugged. "They seek the heart of Keyblade wielders above all others. They are the only ones that can destroy heartless, truly... Others who destroy heartless simply cause the hearts within to respawn as heartless elsewhere." he said. "So...it was useless for me to destroy some with my magic back home?" Whisk sighed. "Not really... they tend to respawn in another location entirely. It at least gets them off your back." Travis stated, "When you destroy a heartless with a Keyblade, though, the heart inside is freed." Lucky still seemed overwhelmed with all of this. "Quit being mopey! We're gonna train you, kid!" Gator said with a goofy grin. "What do you know about Keyblades, Gator?" Lucky asked. Gator held out his hand, and a green Keyblade appeared in his grip! "I had some training from an old guy... Merlin! He had to use some weird time trick to get my training done this millennium, though..." he stated. Travis chuckled softly. "I'll try to help as well. Why don't we get started straight away?" he asked. Tails nodded. "We might as well... We can't go anywhere until my friend finds us and brings his ship here..." he said. "Friend? Ship? ...I thought we were traveling through warp doors." Lucky babbled. "Focus, kitty! Get out that key and let's practice the basics!" Gator ordered.
Zeke and Zim were now in the second district, across from the fountain that once concealed the world's keyhole. They had been experimenting with summoning heartless now that Garland had given them the ability to do so, but hadn't called forth much beyond some shadows and soldiers. "These little guys aren't that impressive." Zim murmured. "One might say that about you..." Zeke scoffed, "But, yeah, we need more darkness... Maybe we can call something with more oomph!" he smirked. In the meantime, Lucky was practicing his Keyblade swings, while Tails held up a beeping device, a look of alarm on his face. "What's that? Are you late for an important date?" Whisk asked. Tails shook his head. "This is a darkometer. I can detect the presence of the heartless with it... and it's going crazy! There's heartless here in Traverse Town!" he stammered. Travis glanced in his direction. "Where? This could be a chance for some practical training!" he said. "Ulp... Do I have to?" Lucky gulped. The group were led by Lucky into second district, where they found Zeke and Zim surrounded by shadows, soldiers and tornado steps! "Oh no! They were pulled into the door with us, and now they're in trouble!" Whisk cried. Zeke glanced in their direction and flew up above the action. "Oh... The cat with the key is here to mess up my new friends, huh? We'll see who gets messed up, luckless! Get 'em, heartless!" he ordered. "...Hey, half of these heartless are MINE!" Zim protested. Travis produced a spear while Gator clutched his Keyblade. "They're bad guys! Don't worry, kitty cats! I'll tackle 'em!" Gator cried, running in to attack the heartless with Travis behind him. "Was Zeke always able to call the heartless?" Lucky wondered. Whisk pulled out her wand. "Who cares! We should try convincing him it's a bad idea! Fire!!" she shouted, flinging a fireball from her wand to destroy a soldier as it came at them! "...I hope it doesn't pop back up nearby..." she babbled. "Travis said it doesn't work like that! Don't worry, just fight!" Tails said, getting his shield ready.
Zeke growled as his heartless minions were getting destroyed. "You punk! You think you're so big now that you got that key? Well... How's THIS for big!!" he snarled, a dark aura surrounding him before suddenly, a heartless comprised of several parts crashed down from the sky! Its hands, feet and head separated from its body and approached each member of the group separately. It was a guard armor! Travis struck the body with his spear. "Lucky! Gator! Deal with his limbs!" he shouted. Gator blocked with his Keyblade as the heartless' feet kicked at him. "Stupid shoes! I'll give you the boot!" he shouted. Lucky ran in terror as the hands formed a crazy propeller to try and attack him. "Meee-yow!! This is too much, too soon! L-little help, guys!?" he shouted. Tails was busy with the remaining smaller heartless, while Whisk was trying to zap the guard armor's head as it stalked around her. "You creep! What are you staring at!?" she growled. Those hands were closing in on Lucky, looking ready to grab him, so he had no choice. He slashed his Keyblade at them, and they vanished with ease. "Huh...? Hmm... That was easy!" he babbled. Gator was just finishing up with the feet at that moment, too. "Don't get too excited, the hands are the weakest part!" he stated. Lucky frowned, but then joined Gator and Travis in taking on the body as the head joined it, and it started firing large bolts of energy at them! Meanwhile overhead, the Gummi Ship was arriving, piloted by Winston the Moogle. He could see the battle below through his window. "Well, I'm not landing there... Dear me, that's a big heartless..." he babbled. Tails noticed the ship overhead, too. "Great, our ride's here. Let's wrap this up, then. Whisk! Do you know Stop magic?" he asked, glancing at Zeke and Zim. "Hey, what are they up to?" Zim murmured. "Stop!!" Whisk cried, freezing the dragon and Zeti in place! Meanwhile, Lucky and Gator slashed at the guard armor together, causing it to collapse and release its captive heart. "Well done!" Travis sighed, "We'll make a master of you yet... Or at least a hero." he said.
Zeke and Zim were soon tied up aboard Winston's ship, the Galestrom. Travis scratched his head awkwardly. "You sure you wouldn't rather I take them? I'm going to see Master Yen Sid to update him on your progress. He'll know what to do with those two." he said. "No prison can hold ZIM!!" the Zeti howled. Lucky shrugged. "They belong in my world. I should take them home next time I'm there." he said. "Whenever that'll be..." Whisk sighed. Tails nodded. "Apparently we're quite far from your home now. We might as well look for Sonic on the way." he stated. Winston stood at the entrance to his ship. "It's going to be awfully crowded in here if you're all coming. I wonder if this town still has a gummi business so I can expand the ship a bit..." he murmured. "It'll be fine, Winston. Besides, we need Lucky. His key will come in handy." Tails stated. Travis nodded and started to leave, but Gator stuck around. "You kids still need more training! I can't send you out like you are now!" he babbled. Travis glanced back at Gator to see where he was going with this. "No offense, but I think I can practice random swinging all on my own." Lucky said. Gator didn't seem like a really good teacher in all seriousness. "Now, now! It'll be fun! I'll train you like a proper pirate! And I know just the world to do it!" he grinned. Whisk looked intrigued. "You'll take us to another world? Sounds interesting...maybe we should give it a shot!" she said to Lucky. Travis nodded. "Alright, I know where HE wants to go. I'll pick him up with my ship after I've been to see Yen Sid so...do me a favor and leave him there." he said, heading off. "Wait! Where are we going?? You can't just hijack my ship!" Winston babbled as Gator stormed into his ship anyway. "I'm captain now! Hey, you don't have a warp gummi? Well, I was gonna eat mine, but I guess you can have it..." Gator babbled. Tails, Whisk and Lucky squeezed onto the ship, too, Lucky looking somewhat bewildered by everything that was happening. "Don't lose your head, kid... Because then the heartless get your heart!" Zeke grinned. Lucky inched away from him in his seat. "Don't make us regret not sending you to get punished by a wizard." he muttered, "Hey, what's a warp gummi, anyway?" he asked...
The warp gummi sped them to their destination, those unprepared for the speed of the trip letting out screams as they were thrown from their seats! The ship arrived at a beautiful collection of islands surrounded by clear waters. "Neverland ahoy! Drop anchor, poof-head!" Gator said to Winston. "...Anchor?" Winston mumbled. Lucky groaned as he struggled to get out from under Tails and Whisk, who'd fallen on him. "Why doesn't this thing have seat belts?" he groaned, "And, uh... if we can go that fast, what's to stop us from taking Zeke straight home?" he asked. Gator shrugged. "Not a thing! But since we're here, we might as well get some training in!" he grinned. As the ship landed, Tails turned to Winston. "Guard the prisoners, I guess..." he said. Winston had an awkward look. "Seriously? You need to start paying me munny, kupo..." he muttered.
Gator led the group to a grand looking pirate ship. He was quick to bring them aboard, where they found the captain looking rather indignant to find intruders aboard his vessel. "James Hook, old pal! Are you taking good care of my ship??" Gator giggled, shaking the red coated pirate's hook hand. Lucky stared at him awkwardly. Captain hook had both a comical and imposing image all at once, with frilly, fancy clothes, a pointy mustache, and a hook hand along with a sword at his hip. The captain looked pretty miffed at Gator, too. "YOUR ship?! How dare you! Smee!! Help me with these-" Before he could finish speaking, Gator continued. "I've brought these kids here, they're wet behind the ears but I figured some good 'ol pirate training would get them in fighting shape!" he stated, elbowing the captain much to his annoyance. The paunchy Mr. Smee rushed out. He was an even more comical-looking fellow with his striped shirt and bulbous nose. "Capp'n? Should I get the boys an' have this riff-raff walk the plank?" he asked. Hook rubbed his head under his hat with his good hand. "Hold, Smee... Fighting shape, you say?" he asked, the wheels in his head turning. Lucky turned to Whisk. "Does he look like a guy who'd be a good trainer to you?" he asked. Whisk shrugged. "Better than Gator, maybe." she reasoned. Hook got a wide grin as an idea formed. "Right, mates! What say we go ashore and you show me what you can do? Maybe by joining forces we can take care of a little problem I've been having for quite some time..." he said, glancing at Smee with a knowing wink, "Some extra help could be the end of that blasted Peter Pan!" he whispered to his first mate, who nodded in agreement.
However, once they went ashore, it quickly became apparent that Captain Hook wasn't too interested in having anything to do with Lucky and company's training. He instead put that task to Mr. Smee, while he went off to "secure the perimeter," which could be code for any number of other pirate shenanigans. Smee set up some dummy targets for Lucky to train against, all oddly dolled up in green outfits with feathered caps. "Let's practice some swashbuckling basics. Your friends can borrow some of our swords, too. Let's start off with some simple thrusts! Aim for the heart and...begin!" Smee instructed. Tails held a pirate sword awkwardly. "I don't wanna be a pirate..." he muttered. "What kinda attitude is that!? Go on, matey, get stabby!" Gator said, pushing him forward. Lucky bashed the target clumsily with his Keyblade. "No, no, no! That's not right! Like this!" Smee shouted, comically flailing his arms without a sword to properly show anything. During all of this, a red-headed boy was looking down on the action, held up only by happy thoughts. He wore green clothes very similar to the targets Lucky was badly attacking. "Hmm... 'Ol Hook's found some new stooges. Not doing so well against fake Peter Pan, so I guess it'd be a yawn for me to go against them in person!" he muttered. A small fairy girl in a green dress flew up to Peter, glowing with the light of pixie dust. Her speech sounded like a light ringing, but Peter could understand her. "What's that, Tinker Bell? Prisoners? Tied up...? Hmm... Sounds like more of Hook's kinda trouble. Lead the way!"
The fairy soon led him to the Galestrom, and Peter landed near it with a curious look on his face. "This ship... Isn't it the same kinda ship Sora used? Hm, but not quite the same..." he said, checking inside. Winston was asleep at the controls, so Pan brought a finger to his lips, signalling Tinker Bell to be quiet. He whispered to Zeke and Zim upon finding them. "Are you two alright? Who did this to ya?" he asked. Zim was about to no doubt say something stupid when Zeke nudged him quiet. "Brave boy... We were captured by dark beings, seeking to bring evil to your world! But if you release us, we will help you stop them!" he said. "We will?" Zim babbled. Pan rubbed his chin. "Well, alright. Hook's bad enough without other bad guys. Help me out here, Tink!" So, Pan untied Zeke while Tink worked on Zim. Once freed, Zeke promptly tied up and gagged Winston! "Scout ahead, boy... We'll be along!" he told Pan. He nodded and left with Tinker Bell. "You stink, Zeke. I didn't know you were a HERO!" Zim snapped. Zeke rolled his eyes. "We're not heroes, I said that so he'd untie us! C'mon...it's time for some payback!" he grunted. Zim stared as though this were a revelation. "Ohhh... I have much to learn from you!" he said.
Hook had returned after a while, and was notably frustrated with the lack of progress Lucky's group was showing. "Come on, you bilge rats! Can't you do any better than that!? Why, if Peter Pan were here, he'd..." he babbled. "He'd probably do this!" came a voice before Hook leapt up with a yelp, his bottom poked by a small knife. "Yaaaah!! P-p-pan!! You meddling brat!! Boys, get him!!" the pirate shouted. Smee scrambled to the ship, aiming to rally Hook's actual pirate crew, but until then it was up to Lucky. "Wait a minute... This guy's just a kid." Lucky muttered. Just then, pirate heartless came charging into the area from behind Pan, making Hook jump in fright! "H-heartless, too!? I thought I was rid of those disgusting things!" he shivered, rushing toward his ship as well. Tails and Whisk parried the swords of the pirate heartless with their own training swords. "Yikes!! D-do you think that Pan kid summoned them?" Whisk stammered. Peter Pan ignored the heartless for the moment and flew over towards Lucky. "So...training to take me on, huh?" he asked in a taunting voice. Thinking he was going to attack, Lucky struck with his Keyblade, only to be blocked by Pan's knife! "Hah! You gotta do better than that!" he smirked. "Call off the heartless!" Lucky shouted, pushing back against the knife and sending Pan tumbling backward! Tinker Bell flew up behind him and gave him a kick in the head. "Ow!! What the...fairy?" he babbled. More pirate heartless started bearing down on them, and Lucky and Pan stared at each other a moment with tense expressions before both turned and slashed their blades at the heartless, destroying a couple! "...You didn't call the heartless! Then who did?" Lucky wondered. "That's what I'd like to know!" shouted Hook, returning from his ship with Smee in tow. It seemed his crew was too afraid of the heartless to come ashore. "I'll deal with ye later, Pan... Expelling those beasts from Neverland takes precedence!" he declared. Pan crossed his arms. "Huh... Never thought I'd agree with you, Hook!" he chuckled. Tails scratched his head. "You don't think Zeke and Zim could've gotten loose?" he asked. Tinker Bell hid behind Peter with a look of sheepishness on her face. "Uhh... Were they tied up in a... funny-looking ship?" Pan asked. Hook scoffed before walking off. "Blast that Pan. I knew he'd be somehow responsible for this!" he grumbled.
Searching along with Peter Pan, Lucky's group eventually tracked Zeke and Zim to a skull shaped islet, where they were calling forth more pirate and air pirate heartless. "Ugh. You got away from the first wave. Well, we'll get you yet!" Zeke grunted. "Yeah, nobody ties us up!" Zim added. Pan crossed his arms as he floated above them. "Hey, boys, whatever happened to helping me stop the 'dark beings?' Looks to me like you're the ones bringing them here!" he noted. Zeke chuckled. "Bit slow, kiddo. Now we'll take you out, too!" he shouted. "Oh, no you won't!" came the voice of Hook, stepping out between Zeke and Pan. He drew is sword. "Peter Pan is MINE!!" he declared. Shrugging, Zeke began to flap his wings to fly off, Zim jumping on his back. "Catch us if you can, kids!" he chuckled, escaping through the eye of the giant skull. Lucky turned to chase them, but found heartless in his path. Tails brought out his shield and Whisk took out her wand. "Enough of this pirate stuff! Let's stop the heartless AND Hook!" the fox said. Hook was already locked in a sword battle with Pan. "Today's the day!! I feel it! Prepare to face revenge for feeding my hand to that crocodile, Peter Pan!!" he declared. Lucky blocked an air pirate's kick with his Keyblade, and ran over to help Peter Pan with Captain Hook. His rage seemed to be drawing the heartless to their battle specifically, and Pan would need the backup. "No...ganging...up!!" Lucky yelled, swatting the swashbuckling heartless with his key while Pan maneuvered Hook off-balance with his airborne swordplay. "You think you have me cornered! Ha!!" The captain tried to keep Pan's knife blocked with his sword and strike with his hook, but Tinker Bell flew in and knocked off his hat, startling him! "Blighted pixie!! Stay out of this!!" he growled, scrambling for his hat. Pan took the opportunity to poke his bottom again. "Yooooww!! You scurvy cheating codfish!!" he shouted. Lucky's group were taking out the last of the heartless at this point, and as the tide turned against him, Hook's mustache twitched as he swore he heard a ticking. "Tick...tock... Is that...the clock? Aaaaaahhh!! Th-the crocodile!!" he shouted, leaping into a run for the exit to the cavern, where Gator was walking in. "Hey! I'm no croc!! Geez, what a jerk..." he grumbled, holding up a timer once Hook was gone. "Training time is up, guys! You'd better get a move on!" he said. Lucky panted and nodded. "Well, we've survived some fights with heartless... Maybe we'll be okay." he smiled. Pan lowered near him and patted him on the back. "You all did pretty good! For pirate-trained, that is!" he smirked. Lucky chuckled softly. "I think I'm done with pirates!" he grinned. Gator pouted. "Hmph! I see when I'm not wanted!" he snapped, prompting everyone to chuckle.
Zeke and Zim weren't sure how to leave Neverland. They couldn't fly the Galestrom even if they entertained the notion of stealing it. As they roamed the world, it seemed for a bit that they were stuck. However, they soon found Garland, looking over a breathtaking waterfall. "A place where children don't grow. Where men don't wither and die. This is a world where time has stopped. In the grand scheme, what use is there for such a world? Where nothing can ever be changed..." Garland mused. Zim bowed before him. "Dark master! We've found you!" he said. Garland turned to them and stared. "...Who are you?" he asked. Zeke pulled Zim to his feet. "We're a couple of guys that can call the heartless, lookin' for a job." he smirked. Garland stood silent for a moment. "Pledge your service to me. There is much to do. Bow down, like your friend... Now!" he ordered, his piercing glare frightening Zeke enough to obey. Garland looked back out at the waterfall. "I require suitable sources of three powers. One of light... one of darkness... and one of chaos." he said, glancing at them. Zim tilted his head. "Uhhh... I think we only got darkness covered." he stated. Garland clasped his hands behind his back. "Not for what I'm planning. If we find suitable examples of each power... I shall use them to create a new power... one that can reshape all worlds to my will... I will call it... Chaos Hearts!"
Chapter 3 - Power, Wisdom and Courage
World - Hyrule Kingdom
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
The Legend of Zelda is (c) Nintendo.
"Like the sun, I run, into the heat of day!
Like a knight, I'll fight, until the fight is won!
In a rage, I'll save, each and every, each and every, each and everyone,
'till this war is won!" - Knight of the Wind, Sonic & the Black Knight
Garland sat upon a great throne as Zeke and Zim stood before him. "Seems pretty successful... What's he need us for?" Zim murmured. "Quiet, don't tick him off..." Zeke whispered. Garland glared at them from the darkness under his helmet. "You need to be focused for our task. I will send you to scout out worlds and sow chaos, while I seek openings to take what I need..." he told them, holding out his hand and using darkness to project an image. It appeared to be a trio of golden triangles, forming a yet larger triangle. "There is a great source of light in the world I am sending you to. It might be perfect for my designs... I want you to scout out this world. Seek out this 'Triforce...'" he commanded, raising his other hand to open a corridor of darkness nearby for the pair of them to travel through. Zim hurried to the dark pathway with enthusiasm. "A new world for Zim of the Zeti to conquer! Gya ha ha ha!" he cackled. Zeke scoffed and headed over to join him. "Try not to get in my way, kid. But hey, without Lucky and his twerps to bother us, this should be cake." he snickered. Garland sneered at them. "Do not lower your guard. Darkness has a way of drawing in light to oppose it..." he warned as Zeke and Zim entered the portal. Garland then stood up, slowly approaching the portal himself. "The Triforce is likely too powerful... But this is a good test mission for those two fools..." he mused.
Lucky's group had landed in a vast and beautiful kingdom. Winston told them the name of the kingdom was Hyrule. The Moogle joined them as they roamed the vast field connecting the different areas of the kingdom, planning to gather supplies for their coming journeys. "The bushes here are often filled with Rupees, which I can exchange for Munny in certain places..." Winston stated. Tails was busy tweaking the device he used to detect the presence of darkness. "Too bad Gator had to leave us. I feel like we could've used more training... Wait, what am I saying?" he mumbled. Gator's training wasn't great. Whisk looked a bit overwhelmed by the vastness of their surroundings. "So...where do we go?" she asked. As if in response, heartless emerged to surround them! "Uhh, we stay here for now!" Lucky gulped. These heartless were like goblins, carrying great clubs and having a thorny heart symbol on their chests. Lucky gripped his keyblade and struck at one of their clubs, grunting as he pushed against it. "Yaaah! They're strong!" he yelped. Winston ducked into a bush to hide. "Have at it, kupo! I'm, uh... right here if you need me!" he stammered. Tails equipped his mechanical shield and blocked a club attack as it came at him. "Wanna try some impressive magic, Whisk??" he asked. Whisk twirled her wand. "Fire!!" she called, burning a nearby goblin and causing it to leap around in a panic as it tried to put the flame out. Lucky jumped away from the club strikes of the other goblin and gritted his teeth. "You gotta teach me magic, Whisk..." he sighed, "Meee-yow!! If I live!!" he gasped as a couple goblins came at him quickly! Before they could pummel him, someone dashed onto the scene, slicing a sword in a wide arc through both goblins! The blade seemed to glow briefly, and the goblins groaned before their darkness dispersed and the hearts they contained flew into the sky. Lucky glanced at the person who saved him; A human boy with blonde hair, wearing green clothes complete with a floppy hat. The hero then turned to the other goblins, a fairy flying ahead of him to suggest his next target. "Over here, Link!" the fairy called. With a crash of his sword, Link felled the beasts one by one, making Lucky's group look like amateurs in the process. "...I feel so inadequate..." Lucky sighed. "Aw, I'm sure you'll catch up." Whisk said, patting his shoulder. Tails picked the cowering Winston up out of the bush before glancing at Link. "Uhh, thanks... But who are you?" he asked. The fairy seemed eager to do all the talking. "My name is Navi, and the boy who rescued you is Link... Wielder of the Master Sword and hero of Hyrule!" she announced.
Link looked a bit bashful at how Navi played him up, but there was no time for that. "Um, so... Are heartless a common thing around here?" Whisk asked. Navi glanced at her. "Hmm, you mean those shadow creatures? No, they appeared quite recently, along with the revival of the King of Evil... Ganondorf." she said ominously. Winston gulped. "And with that, I'll wait at the ship now..." he said, rushing off. "King of Evil does sound pretty bad..." Tails said. Link nodded, and Navi continued. "Ganondorf seeks the ultimate power of the Triforce, a relic that can grant any wish its holder desires. But it was split in three pieces the last time he tried to use it, and Ganondorf only has the Triforce of Power. He needs all three pieces to complete the Triforce and make his evil wish...and to that end, he is hunting Hyrule's princess, Zelda." she explained. Lucky scratched his head. "Yeahhh... Sounds like a long story behind all of this, but the gist of it is that we gotta protect the princess, right? We'll do our best to help you with that, Link!" he offered. Link looked a bit surprised, and Tails took Lucky aside. "Do we have time for that?" he asked. "Well, this Ganon...dork... is using the heartless, right? Shouldn't we put a stop to that?" Lucky reasoned. Navi seemed to be conferring with Link at the same time, and the verdict was in once Lucky turned back around. "Okay, we'd be glad for your help!" the fairy said, "We were just on our way to Death Mountain. A mysterious ninja named Sheik told us that the key to defeating Ganondorf might be there." she told them. Whisk let out an intrigued whistle. "Mysterious ninjas... This world is exciting!" she said. "Uhh... DEATH Mountain?" Lucky murmured. Link pointed off in the distance. A volcano with a ring of smoke around it could be seen. Tails nudged Lucky. "Still think this is a good idea?" he asked. Lucky watched as Link started in the direction of the volcano, and he steeled his nerves. "If a hero like Link is willing to go there, I should be willing to try too! Let's go!" he said, trying to sound tough as he followed after the hero of Hyrule. Whisk and Tails glanced at each other awkwardly. "Are we biting off more than we can chew?" Whisk asked. "Almost definitely... Hopefully Link can carry us..." Tails said.
The group passed through Kakariko Village on the way, earning stares from some of the villagers as they went. "Are we maybe supposed to be in disguise?" Lucky asked Tails. "Hmm, there is the whole world order thing, but I think we'll be good if we don't stay long." he stated. As they headed for the trail to Death Mountain, Zeke and Zim stood atop a cliff watching them. "Boss was right! Those twerps found us! Ugh!" Zim groaned. Zeke snickered. "Well, we can slow them down pretty easy... RAWR!!" The dragon's roar drew the group's attention and stopped them in their tracks. "Zeke? Oh, just what we need..." Whisk sighed. Goblin heartless appeared beside Zeke and Zim, each of them grabbing bombs that appeared to be growing out of the cliffside like flowers. "Uh oh... Watch out! Bomb flowers!" Navi warned. The group backed up as the bombs were detonated against the cliff, causing a rockslide that blocked their path forward! "Haha! Try to catch us now, losers!" Zeke taunted, flying away with Zim on his back! Lucky laughed. "Ha! We can just have Whisk teleport us across! Right?" he asked with a grin. Whisk's ears drooped. "I, uh... never learned that spell." she sighed. Tails frowned. "Well, now what?" he wondered. Link looked around curiously, and then gasped as he spotted something...or someONE standing atop the rubble! It was a girl in ninja attire, her face covered by bandages. "Hey...that must be Sheik!" Whisk gasped. Sheik was strumming a harp as the group looked at her. "The cruel march of time seems to take more than it gives. Doors close around us, and it becomes hard to uncover new opportunities sometimes..." she said. Link watched her, intently listening. He seemed like he almost knew who was behind those bandages, but couldn't put his finger on it. "The brave and clever do not dwell on these losses, but instead look to what they have." Sheik continued, "Hero... There is a passage to Death Mountain through the aquatic caverns of Zora's Domain. Alter your course and you will still reach your goal." she told them, "May we meet again safely..." With that, Sheik stowed her harp and tossed a deku seed, its blinding light distracting the group for an instant, long enough for her to vanish. "Wow... She is awesome!" Whisk smiled. "I feel MORE inadequate..." Lucky sighed. "Yeah... I don't think you'll ever be that cool." Tails shrugged.
Unfortunately, the heartless were already at Zora's Domain. Goblins and blue rhapsodies were chasing the fishlike Zora people to and fro as they panicked. Amidst the chaos was a dark man with wild red hair and a flowing cape. It was Ganondorf, and he let out a sadistic laugh as he watched the Zoras flee. "Your cowardice is amusing. But enough of that. Who among you desires to live enough to tell me what I wish to know? Where is Zelda!?" he shouted. Garland stood behind him in the shadows, looking unimpressed. "This show of power is pointless. If we try things my way, I can gather the pieces of the Triforce for you by the evening." he said, "...Besides, this show of force isn't working." Indeed, one Zora among the rest had stood up to fight. Using attacks that were like dancing with the water itself, the Zora princess, Ruto, was pushing back the Goblin heartless to the best of her ability. Ganondorf smirked at this. "This is perfect... Someone important to make an example of." he sneered, glancing at Garland, "Leave me, vermin. There's room for only one King of Evil in this land... And I'm not fool enough to expect Hyrule handed to me on a platter for nothing!" he snarled. At that moment, Lucky and the others dashed into the area. "What the... the water is frozen!" Lucky stammered. "Link!!" Navi gasped, looking across to Ganondorf. "That must be them...whoa! The darkness detector is going haywire from those two!" Tails gulped. "Who's the other guy?" Whisk asked. Garland took the opportunity to duck into a corridor of darkness. "See you later, key bearer..." he whispered. Ruto looked to Link and gasped. "The Master Sword! ...Very well...let's work together!" she said. Ganondorf grunted and pointed straight at them. "My dark legions will devour you, boy! And your friends, as well!" he said with a heinous laugh. The heartless started coming at them, and Lucky gulped. "Well, if we stop him here, maybe we won't need to go to Death Mountain..." he muttered. Ganondorf smirked. "Death Mountain, is it? Could that be where your precious Zelda is?" he grinned. Whisk scowled at Lucky. "Uhh... Ooops..." he chuckled softly. Ganondorf started to walk away at this point, his escape covered by his heartless minions! Link began to strike at them with the Master Sword, but he couldn't destroy them fast enough to catch the evil king! Lucky batted his keyblade at the blue rhapsodies, having an easier time defeating them, and Whisk, Tails and Ruto also pitched in to make quick work of the heartless, but Ganondorf was already gone.
Tails sighed. "Next time, don't mention where we're going to the bad guy..." he told Lucky. The cat really felt down now. "Maybe I shoulda waited on the ship with Winston..." he sighed. "Don't despair." Ruto told them, "I can lead you to a shortcut to the Goron City in the heart of Death Mountain." she stated. Whisk smiled. "Great! Good thing we ran into you!" she said. Ruto gave Link a longing gaze. "It has been a long time... You do remember your vow to marry me, don't you?" she asked, making Link gasp and blush. Lucky had a completely stunned look as well. "Guuuh... He what?" the cat babbled. Navi fluttered about nonchalantly. "That, uh... is between the two of them." she stated. Link rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, and Ruto giggled at him. "I understand. Your destiny lies elsewhere. At least permit me to aid you on your quest... Take this, Link." she said, handing him something. It appeared to be a sort of spring-loaded...grappling hook? Link turned and lifted it over his head like in was an amazing, incredible prize, and Navi boldly proclaimed "You got the hookshot! Using this, you can grab onto faraway objects and pull yourself across chasms!" Lucky, Whisk and Tails glanced at each other like the hero and fairy were a little nuts, but Lucky shrugged. "He's the big hero." he said. Ruto then motioned for them to follow, taking them to the secret path that would lead them to Goron City. They had to swim a bit, which left Lucky and Whisk a bit annoyed. "Nobody told me I'd have to get wet..." Lucky groaned. "My wings are waterlogged..." Whisk sighed. Tails dried off his darkness detector once they were on the other side. "Good thing my gadgets are waterproof... Uh oh, I'm picking up a signal..." he gulped, "It seems like the heartless are already loose in the Goron City!" he warned. Link's eyes narrowed, and he ran off ahead. "Aaaand there he goes... Kid doesn't talk much, does he?" Lucky murmured. "Well, come on! He might need our help!" Whisk said, following after him. "...Your help, maybe..." Lucky sighed.
The Goron chief, Darunia, was busy whirling around a giant hammer to smash the Goblin heartless surrounding him. Sheik had joined the fray as well, using various ninja tricks to keep the heartless at bay. Link arrived to find that they were fighting on a high cliff of the multi-leveled Goron City, but the hero was pretty low. He pulled out the hookshot and fired it to pull himself higher while Lucky and co. arrived. "Hey! How are we supposed to follow!?" Lucky shouted. "...Take the stairs..." Tails sighed. "Sorry, the stairs are occupied!" shouted Zim, as he hopped out with an entourage of soldier heartless joining him! Zeke dropped down with a pair of wyvern heartless at his side as well. "This city's ours, chumps! Why don't you run along home?" the dragon smirked. Lucky gripped his keyblade angrily. "I'm not going home without taking you with me!" he shouted. Tails charged at Zim with his shield, smacking aside soldiers on his way! Zim pushed back against the shield easily, demonstrating his deceptive strength. "Think I can't take you, pipsqueak?" the zeti smirked. "Thunder!!" Whisk cried, zapping Zim and enabling Tails to knock him over! "Who are you calling pipsqueak?" Tails muttered. Lucky leapt at the wyverns, trying to strike them with his keyblade only for them to rise out of reach and drop back down to kick him! "Ow!! Coward! Get down here and fight fair!" he yelled. Navi flew over to one of the wyverns at that moment. "Hey!" the fairy called to Link, who shot his hookshot to grab and pull the wyvern to him, slicing it apart easily! "...I wanna do iiiit!!" Lucky whined. The battle above seemed to be going well, with Link and Darunia proving to be real powerhouses together. "Ha! I had this covered, but well met, brother!" Darunia grinned, glancing at Link. Suddenly, everyone heard a shriek come from Skeik! "Okay, up those stairs!" Lucky grunted, running right past Zeke. "But, but... I'm the big, bad dragon... Don't ignore me!" Zeke growled. As Lucky arrived overhead, he saw Sheik entrapped in some sort of crystal, Ganondorf stepping behind her. "You thought you could conceal yourself, but I can smell the Triforce of Wisdom on you... Princess!" he said with a sneer. As Sheik struggled, a glowing triangle appeared on her hand, and in a flash, the ninja was replaced with a delicate-looking princess! Link stared in shock, and Navi responded in kind. "Sh-sheik is actually... Princess Zelda!?" she gasped. "...I knew that." Darunia remarked, though turning to see her trapped, his expression turned appropriately worried.
Link charged at Ganondorf. He couldn't let the evil king get away with this! The dark lord smirked and created a barrier of darkness before him. "Even the Master Sword can't contend with the Triforce of Power. Give it up, boy." he taunted. Link struck at the dark barrier, his blade bouncing off it. Frustrated, he struck again, shouting in desperation. His courage unwavering, a glowing triangle mark soon appeared on the back of his hand, too, empowering him to shatter the dark barrier! Ganondorf gasped, but then started to wear a wide grin. "The Triforce of Courage... right under my nose..." he smirked. The dark lord reached toward Link, but then noticed Darunia, Lucky, Whisk and Tails advancing on them. Fighting all of them in this confined space was not the most favorable odds he could gain. Ganondorf rose up into the air, taking Zelda's crystal with him. "Are you listening, boy? You have something I want, so I'll make you an offer. Make haste to my tower within the day. Do this, and you can prolong your precious Zelda's life!" he declared. With a great flash of dark energy, Ganondorf and Zelda were gone, leaving a worried Link behind. "...We need to hurry to Ganondorf's Tower! Quick, Link!" Navi said. Lucky looked around. "Hey, where'd Zeke go?" he asked. Whisk shrugged. "Maybe that Ganon-dude scared him off." she suggested. Darunia saw Link looking for the nearest exit and stepped after him, setting down his massive hammer. "Hold on, brother. You'll never make it in time like that. Zelda led you here for a reason. She'd entrusted me with something that I think will help you out a great deal now." he told him. Link turned to Darunia curiously, and he smirked. "This is the royal family's secret treasure! Guess Zelda thought only the Gorons were tough enough to keep it safe! Now I'm countin' on you to tough it out from here, brother!" he said, handing something to Link. Once again, the hero lifted it high over his head, so Lucky could see what it was. It...appeared to be some sort of fancy flute. Navi looked quite excited. "You've got the Ocarina of Time! Its melodies have special powers! Perhaps these powers will lead us to Ganondorf?" she asked. "...Everyone keeps giving him presents..." Lucky murmured. "Where does he keep all this stuff?" Whisk added.
Darunia got out some bongos in a moment. "Zelda also taught me a melody. It should get you to Ganondorf's Tower in a flash." he said, starting to teach Link the song. During the music lesson, Lucky and his friends got in a huddle. "We shouldn't let him go. He's playing right into Ganon-donk's hands." Tails stated. Lucky frowned. "But we have to go! He's gonna kill Zelda! ...And without Link, what chance do we have of winning? I'm useless..." he sighed. Whisk patted him on the shoulder. "Cut it out!" she said before socking that same shoulder. "Ow!" Lucky yelped. "You're not useless. You can do things Link can't." she said. Lucky groaned, rubbing his shoulder. "Like get beat up by a girl?" he frowned. Tails sighed. "She's right, Lucky. Have more confidence. We need you, buddy." he said. Finally, Navi flew amidst the trio. "Are you coming? We're ready to go!" she said. Lucky nodded. "...We don't have to sing backup for you, do we?" he asked. Link shook his head and brought the Ocarina to his lips as the others came over. As he played a haunting melody, the group was whisked away by a magical light, carried off to Ganon's Tower, which they soon saw was a tall and foreboding tower on a dark and ominous mountain. They could faintly hear organ music within. "Not too late to turn back..." Tails murmured. Link clutched the Master Sword and approached the massive doors. Lucky raised his hand with a question. "Hey, we magicked ourselves here, how did Ganon-doofus get here so fast?" he asked. "...Uh...magic..." Whisk murmured with a dumbfounded expression. With that "plot hole" sorted, the group opened the doors and crept into Ganon's Tower...
The tower was occupied by Ganondorf's own forces rather than the heartless. Skeletal Stalfos warriors were the primary threat as Link led the others through the tower. Lucky set his focus on downing the easier enemies, the Keese bats that would fly down to get in their way. "Don't just settle, Lucky. You won't improve if you don't take risks." Tails told him. As Link found his path barred by a trio of Stalfos, Lucky considered those words. "Alright, I guess I should try..." he said. However, before they could do anything, a group of Goblin heartless leapt on the Stalfos from behind and began to beat them into a pile of broken bones! "Huh...??" Whisk murmured, turning to find Zeke and Zim walking into the room. "No need to thank us, kids. Run along ahead..." Zeke grinned. Link gave them a confused look, but then turned to continue his trek up the tower. "Wait!" Lucky stammered, "...Why are you helping us, Zeke?" he asked. Zim took issue with that. "We're not helping YOU, you pitiful feline, we are working on a glorious scheme--" Before he could say more, Zeke picked him up and covered his mouth. "He's just hyper, ignore him. I've had a change of heart, buddy... Don't you believe me?" he smirked. Tails stared at him, eyes narrowing. "You guys must be after the Triforce for yourselves for some reason... So you want to make sure all three pieces come together. You're hoping if we beat Ganondorf, you can take the complete Triforce from us!" he reasoned out. Zeke dropped Zim and growled. "Why does every version of you gotta be so smart? Alright, let's smash 'em!" he growled. Whisk turned to Lucky. "...Go catch up to Link! We can handle these two clowns!" she told him. "You sure?" Lucky asked, a bit concerned. Whisk nodded. "Trust me, like I'm trusting you... Also, look out!" she yelped, teleporting aside as a Goblin came at them, whirling its club! Lucky jumped out of the way with a "Meee-yow" and started towards the stairs Link had gone up. Zeke cackled as he fled. "That's it, pipsqueak, run away! That's all you'll ever be good for!" he taunted. Whisk called back to him as he hesitated. "Go, Lucky! Don't listen to Zeke! You can help more at Link's side! Believe in yourself!" she told him. Lucky took a breath and nodded, going after the hero. He wasn't sure how he'd help against the King of Evil, but he knew he had to try.
Ganondorf was the one playing the organ when they arrived at the top of the tower. Zelda was trapped in the crystal near him. Lucky caught up to Link as he approached the Evil King slowly. "All right, you! You're gonna let the princess go!" Lucky shouted, clutching his keyblade. Ganondorf let out a chuckle, slowly getting up from his seat. "I have a counter-offer, kid... The hero will throw down the Master Sword right now, or he will watch me pry the Triforce of Wisdom from Zelda by snuffing out her life! Then, I will do the same to you... So think of your future. Give up the Triforce willingly and live, or put up a fight, and I promise you Zelda will die before you reach me!" he sneered. As Lucky listened to Ganondorf's threats, he looked around the room nervously. What could he do here? His eyes thought he saw an odd flash of light for a moment... a keyhole. It was faint, but it seemed to be on the front of the crystal. Like it was calling out to him. Lucky defiantly pointed his keyblade. "Here's my counter-counter offer!" he said, a beam of light passing from his keyblade to the crystal, unlocking Zelda's prison and causing it to vanish! As Ganondorf looked in shock, Zelda lobbed a deku nut to distract him! In the next instant, she was by Link's side! "You've lost, Ganondorf! Now that we are united, it is two Triforce pieces against one! You can't overcome us!" Zelda warned him. Ganondorf wiped his eyes free of light and started to cackle wildly. "Heh heh heh... Heeeeh heh heh ha ha haaaa!! You foolish children! This changes nothing! I can still pry the Triforce from your cold dead bodies!" he shouted, raising his hand to show the glowing mark of the Triforce of Power! "I have more than just Power! I am fueled by darkness itself! So use all the trinkets you like! In the end, I will bring death and calamity to you all...and Hyrule will be MINE!!" Lucky backed up nervously, seeing darkness overtake Ganondorf's body, only the Triforce of Power glowing as a source of light upon him. From the darkness, Ganondorf began to transform, but also the tower started to rumble! "Th-this place is going to fall apart!" he yelped. "Link! Let's get out of here!" Navi suggested. Link and Zelda both nodded, and they all started to flee. "Whisk, Tails!! Run for your lives!!" Lucky called down. Ganondorf's voice roared after them. "There's no escape!! I will be your demise!!" he declared.
As everyone sped outside, the tower crumbled into a pile of rubble. Looking back, Lucky and Link saw Ganondorf emerge from the rubble, now taking a monstrous form! He was a massive beast, some sort of hulking boar clutching a pair of massive blades! Link and Lucky hurried back towards the beast despite Whisk and Tails' hesitance. "Th-that thing'll pound you into the dirt! Come back!" Tails gasped. Zelda went to join them, holding a great bow. "They'll need my help..." she said. Once they got close, a wall of flame blocked Whisk and Tails from approaching, as well as Zeke and Zim. "Well, guess we should watch the show..." Zeke sighed. Ganon snarled at Link and Lucky, swinging his huge blades at them and forcing them to block with their own blades, straining to hold him back. "Urrrrghhh!! Man, what do they feed you??" Lucky groaned. Zelda stood back and produced a glowing arrow of light, aiming it at Ganon's head. "This will weaken him..." she said, shooting the beast right between the eyes and causing him to double back, roaring in pain! Link took the opportunity to slash at his chest, while Ganon reacted by kicking him back! He then swatted Lucky with the broad side of his sword, knocking him over! "Yaaaahh!! Ughh... He's too big..." he groaned, holding his arm as he stood up. While Ganon and Link traded sword strikes, Lucky glanced over and saw something peculiar about the beast's tail. It seemed to be glowing. A weak spot? Lucky ran at him to try a strike at his tail, but Ganon swung his second sword at him, forcing him to leap backwards over it! Zelda saw what he was doing and nodded, adjusting her position to aim her arrow at his tail. "We'll see if this knocks him off-balance..." she said, letting her arrow fly! Ganon swiftly leapt into the air, kicking Link and swatting away the arrow with his blade! The arrow fell to the floor near Lucky while Link fell onto his back! "Hurry, Link! Get up!" Navi cried as Ganon raised his blades over him. Link positioned his sword to block as Ganon started to bring the blades down... Then, the beast roared in pain, falling to his knees! Lucky had plunged the light arrow into his glowing tail, wounding Ganon! "Now, Link! Strike Ganon with the Master Sword! And once he's weakened... I'll finish this!" Zelda cried. Link stood up and found Ganon struggling to do the same, the beast's eyes glaring with hate. It was now or never!
Moving fast, Link plunged the Master Sword into Ganon's forehead, making Tails and Whisk look away. "Eeew..." they grimaced. However, Ganon was so pulsing with dark power that he would not die. So, Zelda focused the magical power of the Triforce of Wisdom and set to her task. "With all the magic power I can muster... Ganondorf... I seal you away so that you may never threaten Hyrule again!!" With a brilliant flash of light, Ganondorf vanished, appearing somewhere else...somewhere he couldn't harm them... "Curse you, Zelda!! Do not think this seal...will hold me forever!!" he cried. As the wall of flame died down and Zeke realized what had happened, a corridor of darkness appeared nearby to take him and Zim from Hyrule. "Aw, wait! We can fix this!" Zim protested. Zeke lifted him up and sighed. "No we can't. The Triforce is out of our reach now. We'll have to find another light source for Master Garland..." he murmured. Tails and Whisk ran to Lucky's side, looking relieved. "Boy, I thought you were a goner, Lucky!" Tails sighed. "Gee, thanks a lot!" Lucky chuckled. "No, I would've teleported him out if he got in real trouble..." Whisk chuckled. Lucky stared at her. "Why didn't you teleport in to HELP??" he stammered. Link chuckled softly, smiling at them. Zelda smiled as well. "Hyrule is grateful for your aid, travelers. You have proven yourselves heroes... Just like our hero." she said, looking at Link. "They could still use some guidance though!" Navi stated, "Maybe I should go with them now!" Lucky, Whisk and Tails chuckled awkwardly. "Uhh, I don't think that'll be necessary." Lucky said. "But speaking of, I think it's time to go..." Tails noted, "The darkness in this world has been defeated, and we still need to find Sonic." he pointed out. Zelda nodded. "We wish you safe travels. Do not worry for the fate of Hyrule... We can handle it from here." she smiled, as Link smiled next to her. Lucky grinned. "I'm sure the kingdom will tell legends, of its hero Link and its princess Zelda!" he said. "...Legend of Link...? Hmmm... Ehh..." Whisk murmured, unimpressed with how that sounded.
Soon, Lucky and friends were back aboard Winston's Gummi ship, the Galestrom. As they soared away from Hyrule, Lucky looked out the window and sighed. "You guys think I'll ever be a great hero like Link?" he asked. "Nope." Winston blurted as he steered the ship. Lucky frowned. "Tell me what you REALLY think..." he sighed. Whisk placed her arm around him with a smile. "Aww, don't worry about it. I'm sure you'll do great, Lucky." she said. Tails sat back, tinkering with his shield weapon. "And if you never get any good, we can always turn to Sonic... If we ever find him..." he murmured. None of them were sure where their journey would take them next, but they'd do their best to follow Link's example and face their challenges with courage, like true heroes.
Chapter 4 - Game On
World - Game Central Station
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
The Legend of Zelda, Mario, etc are (c) Nintendo
Pac-Man is (c) Bandai-Namco
Other characters & items belong to their respective companies.
"Switch on the sky and the stars glow for you.
Go see the world 'cause it’s all so brand new.
Don't close your eyes 'cause your future's ready to shine.
It's just a matter of time, before we learn how to fly!
Welcome to the rhythm of the night!
There's something in the air you can't deny!" - When Can I See You Again, Owl City
As the Galestrom flew in the realm between worlds, something began to seem strange about the space around the ship. It began to feel darker...almost like a flat blackness. Yet somehow not dark. "We're flying through...something..." Winston murmured, looking around. "Did you get us lost?" Lucky gulped. Everyone looked out the windshield and saw...a triangle? Something triangular, to be sure. It pointed at them, but then slowly turned away, moving aside. "...What the heck was that?" Tails asked. Whisk pointed ahead. "Look out...asteroids!!" she cried. Winston squinted to see them. It appeared to be...the outline of an asteroid? In fact a couple. The triangle suddenly turned to the "asteroids" and fired a tiny laser at them, causing them to break down into smaller asteroids! "Oh, sweet Christmas, they're solid!" the moogle yelped, grabbing the controls and weaving the ship to avoid them! "What kind of crazy asteroid field is this!?" Lucky shouted as the ship tilted desperately to dodge the incoming asteroid fragments. Little did they know that, somehow, they were inside a giant arcade cabinet, and from outside their ship appeared as flat and triangular as the other triangular ship. There were too many asteroids coming at them, and soon the gummi ship was struck, sending them bouncing into another asteroid and spiraling out of control! "Mayday!! Mayday!! D-do we have a distress signal on this thing!?" Lucky shouted. "It's Gummi! We're lucky it flies!!" Whisk retorted as the group all held on tight. The ship tumbled to the edge of the screen, and into what appeared to be a sort of landing station. "Perfect! We're saved... Huh?" Winston murmured. As they looked for a place to land, they were suddenly sucked into a high-speed transport...the power cable of the arcade cabinet. Shrieking as the ship was propelled through it at high speed, the group collapsed in a heap as the ship was ejected, landing in a vast open space with several exit points, all leading to even more arcade cabinets...not that they had any idea about that. Shakily standing back up, they looked outside to see various people gradually entering from these different exit points. There was such diversity, creatures and beings of all shapes, sizes and types. Some cute, some fierce, some heroic and some downright evil-looking, all mingling together as though it were totally normal. "...Where in the worlds are we?" Tails murmured. They could hear a PA announcement overhead. "Welcome to Game Central Station! The arcade is now closed; Feel free to mingle as you wish!"
As they exited the ship to look around, an odd blue fellow in a police uniform appeared nearby and poked Lucky with a baton. "This spaceship yours? You know you can't park that here." he said with a serious tone. Lucky started to babble. "I, err... didn't..." he murmured. "You guys just flew in from Asteroids? Funny, I thought their plug was pulled. What were colorful characters like you doing in there? Not going Turbo, are ya?" he asked, producing a clipboard and looking like he was going to write a ticket or something. Tails ran up with a nervous expression. "Terribly sorry, officer, it was all a big mistake. We'll have our ship out of here just as soon as we fix it up!" he stammered. The officer glanced at Tails with a look of surprise. "Ahh... Well if you vouch for these guys, I guess I'll let you all off with a warning. As a Surge Protector, though, I'll be sure to check back on your progress at regular intervals. You'd better be putting effort into fixing up that ship!" he said before heading on his way. "...Surge Protector? What kind of strange world have we landed in, kupo?" Winston murmured. "I dunno but he seems to respect Tails..." Whisk said with a puzzled look. "Don't look at me, I've never been here." Tails shrugged, "Fix the ship, Winston. We're gonna look around." he added. As the trio headed into the station, Winston sighed. "Wanna come, Winston? No, no, someone has to fix up the ship, kupo..." the moogle babbled in a sarcastic tone. Lucky and Whisk gasped as they looked around them, walking through the area. So many varied creatures, and exits seeming to lead to various worlds. "Look at those destinations... Tapper... Street Fighter... Hero's Duty... Paperboy... Sugar Rush..." Lucky murmured, "They don't sound like places. Are we sure this isn't a big theater?" A boy on a bike suddenly whizzed past them, newspapers in his basket, and pedaled into the Paperboy gate. "I'm getting a sense of what this place is..." Tails murmured. "Yeah? What? ...Is that a T-REX!?" Whisk babbled, glancing behind them. Lucky glanced back. Yeah, T-Rex... but it seemed remarkably calm and uninterested in eating anybody. "It's like... All these guys are just people...even if they look like monsters..." Lucky observed. Some odd white paddles passed them by, knocking a small box back and forth. "...If I didn't know any better, I'd say we just walked by Pong..." Lucky mumbled. "...I think we did." Tails stated. "What are you saying?" Whisk asked, "That this is some kind of...world of video game characters?" she wondered. Tails nodded. "Potentially. Didn't those asteroids seem strange?" he stated. Lucky gasped. "But...but...HOW? How could this even happen? It doesn't make any sense!" he stammered. Just then, he walked smack into a zombie, and witnessed its head fall off as a result! "MEEE-YOOOW!!!" Lucky shrieked as the zombie picked his head back up. "Argh, watch it... Even zombie don't regenerate outside zombie's game you know!" he grunted, shuffling by. Lucky shivered, glancing around slowly. "...We're in a video game world... How'd we get here? How do we get out?" he stammered. Tails chuckled. "Your keyblade can find the pathways between worlds for us. It probably let us in here without us realizing it." he stated.
They were still reeling from these revelations when they spotted a familiar blue spiky form ahead. White gloves. Read sneakers. It was unmistakable. "Sonic! It's Sonic!" Lucky shouted, starting towards him. Sonic's ears twitched at hearing his name called. "It's not my Sonic, Lucky..." Tails babbled, slipping on his black cloak and trying to hide his face. Whisk was also running up to meet Sonic. "We've been looking everywhere for you!" she said. Sonic glanced at Lucky and Whisk curiously. "...Do I know you? ...Hey, Tails, what's with the getup?" he asked, seeing the fox's twin tails poke out of his cloak. "Rats, my disguise has failed me..." he babbled, "I'm, uh... I'm Tails from another...game. Yeah." he said. Sonic scratched his head. "What? Has another Sonic game been plugged into the arcade? Oh, great, I've seen Pac-Man deal with this. Everybody mixed them up, it was a nightmare to be Pac 1 and Pac 2..." he murmured. Tails chuckled softly. "Ah, well... I have it on good authority that this is just a temporary stop for us..." he said. Sonic sighed. "Alright, whatevs. Guess I'll give ya the tour, since you are technically my little buddy...sorta." he smirked, "So, this is our station, nonstop travel to any game in the arcade! You know that jazz. You can visit other games when the arcade is closed but avoid dying outside your game, 'cuz that's a permanent game over! Here in this arcade we call it 'going Turbo' when you try and jump to another game during arcade business hours. There's a little story behind that, but how 'bout the rundown of what game worlds you can visit?" he asked. Lucky was scarcely keeping up with all this, looking around casually until his eyes fixed on something. Something with the unmistakable symbol of the heartless upon it. It looked like some kind of hovering robot, a strafer heartless. It turned and started to head into a game called "Fix-It Felix Jr." Lucky pointed and stammered. "G-guys... Heartless! Going in there!" he said. Whisk and Tails glanced. "Huh? Well, I guess we know now why your keyblade led us here." Whisk said. Sonic looked as well. "What's a heartless?" he asked. Tails frowned. "Let's just say it'll do worse than just going Turbo if we don't stop it." he said as he, Lucky and Whisk headed for Fix-It Felix. Sonic sped ahead of them. "I should give 'ol Felix a heads up, then! C'mon, guys! Hurry up!" he shouted, racing into the game. "What kinda game gets a title like 'Fix-It Felix' anyway?" Whisk asked. "I'm guessing stuff breaks easily in there?" Lucky shrugged. They'd soon find out as they found their way to the train-like vehicle that would carry them from the station, through the power cable and into the arcade cabinet...
Zeke was standing over a diminutive man in a blue uniform, a gold hammer attached to his belt and the letters "FF" upon his hat. Zim was still shorter than him, but doing his best to intimidate the man with a threatening glare. "Uhhh, w-what can I do ya for, fellas?" the man asked nervously. Zeke looked around calmly. "This place looks awfully peaceful. You wouldn't happen to know where we could find some chaos, hm?" he asked. "Yeah! Talk!" Zim snapped. The man flinched a little, glancing as the train-like vehicle was arriving at the small station. "Oh, my land, more of them..." he muttered, "Look there...there's no chaos here! If there was, I would fix it! C-cuz I'm Fix-it Felix Jr...you know..." he babbled. Zeke looked back to see Lucky, Whisk, Sonic and Tails headed their way. "Sonic? ...Oh, now I see..." he muttered. Zim grunted. "Huh? See what? Bah! Sonic!! I'm gonna smash him for Lord Zavok!!" he shouted. Tails sighed as the group closed in on them. "Again, not your Sonic either... What are you two doing in a video game world anyway?" he asked. Zim stomped angrily. "Don't try to confuse us with games! You're goin' down!" he shouted. "You okay, Felix?" Sonic asked. "I can't say I know what's going on..." Felix muttered. While all this was going on, a pile of bricks across the way started to rustle. A hulking man with messy hair, tatty red shirt and overalls, and giant hands rose from under the bricks and stretched. "Bricks are especially bricky today... What's all the yelling?" he mumbled sleepily, looking around. The large man started to clumsily bound his way toward them, and Lucky's mouth went agape when he saw him. "Th-that guy's humongous!" he stammered. "We just saw a T-Rex. Chill, Lucky." Whisk sighed. "Oh, hey, Ralph..." Felix waved. Ralph stood up straight, using his large hands to fix a crick in his back while he glanced down at Felix. "Hey, buddy. What's goin' on here?" he asked. Zeke smirked as he looked over the new arrival. "Hmm, you'll do..." he said while Sonic was calmly holding Zim back by his forehead, the small Zeti trying to tackle the hedgehog but failing to gain any ground. "Are you helping or what, Zeke!?" he grunted. Zeke turned to Ralph and raised his hand. "Let's see what happens when I give you a good dose of darkness..." he chuckled. A dark energy surrounded Ralph's head, and he started to act woozy. "Whoa...gettin' cloudy here... Who...turned out the light?" he babbled, lightly swinging his arms as he stumbled about. "Easy there, Ralph! Are you glitching? I can fix it!" Felix stammered, chasing after him. Lucky watched in puzzlement. "What's happening? Is Zeke doing this?" he mumbled. Suddenly, Ralph stood up again, his eyes glowing yellow. "Rrrraaaaaaaahhh!! I'm gonna WRECK it!!" he shouted in a rage! Zeke then picked up Zim and started to fly away. "Have fun with your little dose of chaos here, I've got bigger chaos to catch!" he cackled, flying to the station! Everyone jumped back as Ralph pounded his fists hard into the ground, leaving imprints in the dirt! Felix gulped. "Well, new guys, let me introduce... Wreck-it Ralph..." he said nervously. Lucky materialized his keyblade and whimpered. "Hi, Ralph. I'm thinking of changing my name to Un-lucky..." he said.
Ralph was snarling, and did not look like he'd listen to reason. "Ohhh, what am I supposed to do? We haven't had a glitch in decades! Remember your debug training, Felix!" the little guy said, wringing his hat in his hands as Ralph decided to stomp towards the nearby skyscraper! "Ahh! Hold up, Ralph! C'mon, Tails, help me hold him back!" Sonic shouted, speeding into Ralph's path. "Uhh... Sure, you can boss me around like I'm your actual sidekick, why not..." Tails grumbled, grabbing his shield and rushing to help Sonic. As Ralph slammed his fists toward them, Tails tried to block with his shield, but it broke and he fell backward! "I know! Deep freeze!" Whisk cried, casting Blizzard Ralph's way. He shivered a bit but powered through, and swatted Sonic away as he tried to homing attack him. "You're gettin' wrecked! Arrrrghh!!" Ralph shouted, pulling back his fist to punch at the building. "Ha! He'll wear himself out punching a brick wall!" Lucky sighed. "Uh, oh..." Felix gulped. With a great slam, Ralph punched a huge hole in the building, earning panicked screams from the residents inside. "Exit the building in an orderly fashion! Ralph's, uhh... havin' a li'l temper tantrum at the moment, hehe..." Felix babbled. Lucky stopped to help Tails up on his way to where Ralph was busy wrecking the building. "C-can we even do anything against this guy?" he asked. Sonic sped over to Felix. "The name of the game is fixing, so hop to it, Fix-it Felix!" he suggested. "Well, alright, but I don't think winning the game will fix a bug in his brain..." he said, holding his hammer and racing to the hole in the wall. It just took a couple taps to fix pieces of the damage Ralph caused. "Grr, stop that fixin'!" Ralph grunted, turning towards Felix. However, Lucky dashed into his path, blocking his huge fist with the keyblade! "Aaaahh!! Urrrgh!!" he grunted, pushing back against Ralph's mighty fist. The keyblade wouldn't break like Tails' shield, but Lucky couldn't hold him back. "Hang in there, kid!" Sonic shouted, leaping up to bonk Ralph on the head! He stumbled back a little, creating another hole in the wall as he fell into it! "Aaaaarrgh!!" he yelled, bursting out and flailing his arms! Lucky frantically backed away, trying to avoid his fists. "E-enough!! Snap out of it!!" he yelled, pointing his keyblade up at Ralph and loosing a beam from it that struck Ralph in the face, knocking him flat on his back! "...Lucky!!" Whisk cried, making him stop hiding his face in fear and gasp. "D-did I do that?" Lucky babbled. Ralph slowly sat up, rubbing his head. "Ugh... What happened? What's this taste in my mouth? Why am I cold?" he shivered, looking around. He saw the damage to the building and gulped. "Hoboy... I feel like somethin' messed with my code just now. Just what I need. As if I'm not hated around here enough..." he sighed. "It's not your fault, Ralph." Sonic told him. "Sure! I'll explain everything!" Felix shouted as he was busily fixing the building. Ralph let out a sigh. "It's just me bein' the bad guy one more time... What else is new? Uhh, thanks for helpin' me get my head on straight, you guys. I dunno what you did, but it beats bein' bugged out." he chuckled. Tails sighed. "Yeah, sure... Hey, I wonder if Felix can fix this?" he asked about his shield. "Probably not. It's not from this world..." Lucky shrugged.
The group couldn't stick around, they had to go after Zeke and Zim. Sonic accompanied them as they left the Fix-it Felix game. "So, uh... What's the story with that shield?" Sonic asked as he watched Tails try to fix it himself. "...Things aren't the same between me and my Sonic. I can't depend on him all the time. I've needed to rely on my tech more, to keep myself safe..." he said. Sonic looked at him sympathetically. "Whoa, is that the future of our series? Sorry, bro..." he murmured. Tails rolled his eyes. "I'm not your bro... Um, err... Think of it as a spin off." he babbled. Sonic patted his head. "Tails is always my bro. No matter what." he smiled. As they walked into Game Central Station, Lucky looked around with a frown. "Where'd Zeke go?" he sighed. A big yellow ball suddenly came toward them, its big mouth flapping open and closed like it was planning to eat them. "Meee-yow!! Don't bite me!!" Lucky gasped, jumping back. "Yo, Pac-Man." Sonic waved. An orange ghost floated beside Pac-Man. "Sonic! We've been looking for you." the ghost said. "Wow, Sonic knows everyone..." Whisk murmured. Pac-Man started to speak in a language that sounded like "Wakka wakka" over and over. "He says that he saw Dr. Eggman get attacked by a couple strangers." the ghost translated. "That sounds like Zeke and Zim all right." Tails said. Pac-Man continued, and the ghost translated. "Naturally Eggman didn't take abuse too well, and it seems like he's gone a little nuts. Last seen, he was headed to the other end of Game Central Station, that way... You might wanna talk him down, Sonic." he suggested. "Talk Eggman down? Yeah, right..." Lucky scoffed. "Thanks, Pac-Man, and you too, Clyde. I'll look into it!" Sonic said with a sigh. Clyde nodded. "Best of luck. Remember, Bad Anon is there if he needs it..." the ghost stated. Lucky watched Pac-Man and Clyde leave with a shrug. "Okaaaay... Let's get moving then!" he said, following after Sonic as they headed for the area Eggman was last seen...
They soon found a commotion outside a particular game's entrance. Several characters were looking to get in, but a Surge Protector was holding them back. The colorful cast was somewhat familiar to Lucky... princesses and turtles and guys in overalls. He glanced up to see the name of the game. "Mario Kart..." he mumbled. Whisk groaned. "Looks more like heartless kart..." she mumbled. Zim was blocking the entrance, and had a number of heartless on wheels at his side. They looked built for ramming, and certainly fit in with the digital gaming world. They were magnum loaders, but to Sonic they just looked like glorified motobugs. "Lemme through officer, I got this!" he grinned. "I wouldn't go in there! Those critters aren't normal game enemies!" the Surge Protector warned. Tails stood back. "My shield's still busted... I hope you guys can handle this without me!" he murmured. Lucky materialized his keyblade and ran ahead with Whisk following. "We've got Sonic with us! What could go wrong?" he chuckled. "Plenty could go wrong for you! Like MORE heartless!" Zim cackled, summoning some soldiers to ride atop the magnum loaders! As the heartless charged at them, Lucky braced for a sudden impact, only to see a familiar yellow ball dive in front of him and give the heartless a good chomp, clearing his immediate path! "Pac-Man? How'd he catch up so fast?" Lucky murmured, looking to see this Pac-Man stand up. "Wait, he's got arms and legs!" Whisk babbled. "Ah, Pac 2! Good timing!" Sonic shouted as he leapt from soldier to soldier, knocking them off their rides swiftly. With Sonic and Pac-Man joining the fight, a frustrated Zim decided to run into Mario Kart and catch up with Zeke. "I think those two have this covered... Let's catch up with Eggman and Zeke." Lucky suggested. They motioned for Tails to follow, and attacked only the heartless in their path as they made their way to the game's entrance. The others waiting behind the Surge Protector were getting into the fighting spirit, too, dashing past him to attack the heartless! "Oh, fine... As if I could keep those Mushroom Kingdom thrill racers from any action..." the Surge Protector mumbled. "Man, I feel like we're missing a good show back there..." Lucky sighed as he hopped into the tram that would take them to the Mario Kart game. "Are we missing the point if Lucky doesn't fight the heartless?" Whisk asked. Tails shook his head. "Better to stop them at their source...Zeke." he pointed out. He was right, Game Central Station was absolutely filled with heroes to beat back the heartless. They were needed where Zeke and Zim were.
They arrived on a fairly simple race track, the Mario Circuit. Just beyond the starting line, they could see Zeke, with Zim rushing to join him. He was holding up a Chaos Emerald while Dr. Eggman hovered in an Egg Mobile in front of him, looking quite flustered. "Yooou!! Give me back that emerald! I was going to use its power to strengthen my weapons and...and conquer the whole arcade!!" he cackled. Sonic ran in behind Lucky's group and heard Eggman's plan. "Oh, great... He's goin' Turbo." he groaned as Pac-Man raced in to catch up. Zeke flapped up out of Lucky's reach and chuckled. "I was looking for a power of Chaos...what better than a Chaos Emerald?" he stated. "Hey, let's stay and watch Eggman smash them!" Zim snickered. Lucky stuck out his tongue. "Why would he smash us? You took his emerald!" he teased. Sonic stepped forward, knowing he had to talk Eggman down. "Hey, doc... About this plan... I know it might be frustrating being programmed to lose to me all the time, but you know you're still important, don't you?" he stated. Eggman growled. "Important for what? Inflating your massive ego?! It's time gamers learned who was always meant to be the real hero! ...True story, look it up. But whatever, I don't need the Chaos Emerald to delete your code!!" he shouted, dark energy surrounding him! It seemed to transform his Egg Mobile a bit, adding a menacing laser to the front! "Farewell, hedgehog!" he cackled, only to have his aim messed up when someone leapt up and kicked the laser aside with both feet! "Yahoo!!" As Eggman spun out a bit, who should land at Sonic's side but Mario himself! Pac-Man also stood at their side, and Tails let out an impressed hum. "Well... Sonic, Mario and Pac-Man teaming up... Are we even needed?" he asked. Whisk shrugged. "Maybe I should look for popcorn." she chuckled. This turn of events seemed to annoy Zeke. "Really? You're gonna hesitate over a plumber!? Fine, I'll help you out, yeesh..." he said, summoning a number of strafers, magnum loaders, soldiers...and a black fungus heartless or two, probably just because it was the Mushroom Kingdom. Lucky frowned. "Now we're needed. Happy, Tails?" he grumbled. "No... I still haven't finished fixing my shield, haven't had time..." the fox gulped. "Well, what would you do before you built that thing?" Whisk asked him, rushing in to help Lucky fight. Tails looked at his busted shield thoughtfully, and looked at Sonic fighting off a soldier. "Yeah... We were a team once, weren't we?" he mumbled, and dashed in Sonic's direction. However, a giant robotic leg crashed into his path! The Egg Mobile was pulsing with dark energy, and had used it to grow into a giant, weaponized spider! "Ho ho ho ho! Say hello to the Arachnoegg!!" he laughed. "It's been done!" Lucky shouted. Eggman scratched his head. "Really? ... How about I add a pincer and make it a Super Crabmeat?" Sonic shrugged and tapped his foot. "Whatever, just pick something. And don't step on my friend!" he said, running to Tails' side to make sure he was okay.
Zim and Zeke backed up, their heartless blocking the path to them. Mario and Pac-Man weren't too bothered by them, though, leaping into action! Whisk decided to join them, leaving Lucky torn between the heartless and Eggman. "Gaaah... Maybe Sonic can stop Eggman without me..." he stammered, heading over to take out some heartless, too. Mario tried to jump onto a black fungus, but bounced off as it formed a protective barrier around itself. "Look out, Mario! That's like a poison mushroom!" Whisk warned as sure enough, poisonous gas started to spew from the evil mushroom. Mario gulped, but then started to spin rapidly in place, using his Mario tornado technique to blow the gas away! "Well... how does that even work?" Lucky babbled. The nervous mushroom tried to wobble away as its shield faded, but Lucky was quick to strike and take it out! Meanwhile, Tails found himself flying Sonic over the thrashing legs and newly added pincer of his transforming machine. "It's been a while since I did this; were you always this heavy, Sonic??" he grunted. Sonic laughed. "If you think this is tough, try lifting Eggman!" he snickered. Eggman growled and added guns to the sides of his Egg Mobile. "This darkness is amazing...it can do anything...even obliterate Sonic the hedgehog!!" he cackled, firing missiles their way! "Look out!" Tails gasped, tossing Sonic out of the way and flying up as the missiles came at him! Sonic then went into a homing attack and smacked the missiles back one by one, only to see Eggman block with the machine's giant pincer! "Ha ha! You can't beat me now, hero!" he taunted. During this, Pac-Man was taking some time to throw fruit at the strafers, knocking them over while Lucky took the opportunity to strike them with his keyblade! "Hey! How'd you get fruit past the surge protectors??" Sonic shouted from where he was battling Eggman. Pac-Man just shrugged. Meanwhile, Whisk was carrying Mario above some magnum loaders. "Bomber 1, we're in position, ready to drop the payload!" she smirked. "Let's-a go!" Mario nodded as she dropped him! He flipped in the air and came down hard, ground-pounding onto the magnum loaders and smashing them to digital bits! "Why did we think we could take Mario and yellow-ball-guy?" Zim groaned. "Patience, let's see how Eggman fares..." Zeke sighed. Tails managed to fly Sonic up and enable him to whack the Egg Mobile with a spin attack, but Eggman was unfazed. "You can't penetrate the darkness with little jump-attacks! It's over, Sonic!" he sneered, grabbing the hedgehog in his pincer as he dropped from his attack on the cockpit! Sonic yelped in pain as Eggman began to squeeze. "Once you die here, you're finished...game over!" he snickered. Tails landed on the cockpit and started to swat Eggman with his twin tails in retaliation. "You let him go! L-leave my best friend alone!!" he cried. Another pincer suddenly emerged and grasped Tails, pulling him away from Eggman! "Best friend? You're not even the same Tails from our game!" he laughed. Lucky saw what was happening and gasped. "Tails... Hang on!!" he cried, rushing over to their aid. Eggman saw him coming and smirked. "What are you gonna do? You need help getting hits on the minions over there!" he taunted. "Pfft, well you're just a big target! Hiyaaaa!!" Eggman moved his pincers to block Lucky's strike, but he was counting on that, and swiftly slashed at the hinges of each pincer! The keyblade smashed the darkness-born attachments with ease, freeing Sonic and Tails! "What!? That doesn't make any sense... Well, I can still create more!" he sneered. "Oh, yeah? Just try to keep up with us!" Sonic grinned. The three of them went on the move in different directions, Sonic dashing around the machine to confuse Eggman, Lucky slashing at its legs to throw it off-balance, and Tails flying back up to the cockpit! "What!? You!!" Eggman gasped. "You know, Eggman... You should really strap in!" Tails chuckled, grabbing the doctor's arms and pulling him right out of the cockpit! "Hey!! Let me go! Unhand me you second-rate sidekick!" he yelled, flailing in Tails' arms as the fox strained to carry him. "Ugh! Sonic wasn't kidding! He's HEAVY!!" he gasped. Lucky then flung his keyblade at the cockpit as Sonic ran back for cover, and the machine exploded in a flash of lights as the darkness was banished, allowing the true Egg Mobile to collapse onto the ground in a heap! All that was left now was Zeke...
Eggman looked around as Tails dropped him on the ground. Sonic offered a hand to help the doctor to his feet. "Feel any better after that vent, doc?" he asked. Eggman could barely look at him. "I... I'm sorry, Sonic... All my jealousy over your popularity... it seemed to fill my code with darkness..." he sighed. The other Mario Kart characters were making their way onto the track now, as well as Felix and Ralph, who hurried over to Sonic and Eggman. "Everything okay?" Felix asked. "Ahh, fell off the wagon, eh, Eggman? What do they say now, one game at a time? Right?" Ralph said, patting his back. Eggman nodded. "Back to Bad Anon for me... Guess I can go with Bowser..." he muttered. Meanwhile, Mario, Pac-Man and Lucky's group were closing in on Zeke. "Whatever. We have the Chaos Emerald!" he declared. Just then, a corridor of darkness opened behind him and Garland stepped out. "Hm... The feline with the key. Seems we are fated to clash." he said, stopping Lucky in his tracks. "You're the one pulling Zeke and Zim's strings! What is it you want?" he asked. Garland ignored him and took the Chaos Emerald from Zeke's hand. He then squeezed and shattered it to pieces, much to everyone's shock! "Our detection of chaos energy was fooled by this pale imitation. It's a falsehood, a lie... Nothing in this so-called world can serve my purposes... Nothing here serves any purpose at all..." Garland sneered. Lucky gritted his teeth. "Don't you dare say that!" he shouted, "This world may be made up of data...or something...but the people here still feel things. They still hurt, they still laugh, they still dream... They all have hearts, so there's no way they can be useless!" he declared. Tails glanced at Sonic, his own hand resting on his heart. "He's right... real or not, I feel it... their hearts aren't fake..." Tails murmured. Zim scoffed. "Heart schmart, still useless..." he grunted. Garland nodded, and started toward the corridor of darkness. "Hearts are weak things. I will cure them of that weakness when I complete Chaos Hearts..." he mused, disappearing into the corridor followed by Zeke and Zim. The villains gone, everyone breathed a light sigh of relief. "Now that was a real method-acting kinda bad guy, eh?" Ralph chuckled. "Where'd they go?" Sonic wondered. Lucky shrugged. "No idea but I think we'll have to deal with him again sometime..." he sighed. "Eh, bring him on! Nice speech by the way, Lucky. Very sappy!" Whisk chuckled. "...What's that supposed to mean?" Lucky stammered, glancing at her with a light blush.
Sonic, Ralph and Felix stopped by the Galestrom to see Lucky and co. off. Sonic gave Tails a little hug to say goodbye. "Don't forget me, little buddy. Maybe when you find your Sonic, things will start feeling normal again." he smiled. Tails nodded. "Thanks for all your help..." he smiled. Ralph was admiring the Gummi ship from a distance, worried he might wreck it again. "That's quite a ship, there. Must be a wild game you're from." he chuckled. Winston shook hands with Felix. "Thanks for the fix assist, kupo..." he said, Felix having briefly lent his hammer to help finish repairs. "Shucks, it's nothin! Just glad to help!" he said, tipping his hat. Ready to leave, Lucky, Whisk, Tails and Winston got aboard the ship. "Now what?" Lucky asked. His keyblade suddenly flashed, and a small wormhole opened up in the pathway to Asteroids. Winston shrugged. "Buckle in!" he stated, sitting at the controls and starting the ship up. As Sonic, Ralph and Felix watched, the ship turned to the wormhole and blasted off through it! Now they found themselves back in the normal space between worlds. Lucky was soon rubbing his chin, pondering things. "Just what is Zeke's boss after? Feels like this whole thing is bigger than us..." he murmured. "I'm sure it'll be fine, especially if we can find Tails' Sonic to help us." Whisk said, "...but where can he be?" No one seemed sure about that, and Tails himself was busy thinking over something else. "That game world was so strange. Heroes and villains living together like fighting one another is just a job... Good guys and bad guys kinda being friends off the clock... There's a weird sort of harmony there, which was only disrupted when Zeke started messing around... Don't you think it's weird?" he asked. "Don't think about it, kupo." Winston shrugged. Lucky glanced at Tails and nodded. "Yeaaah, I'll admit seeing Eggman say he's sorry to Sonic was pretty weird. But who knows...maybe all bad guys are like that deep in their heart. Kind of like Ralph... He's a bad guy, but, he's not a bad...guy." he chuckled. "Do you even know what you're trying to say, Lucky?" Whisk giggled, "What happened to your great speech-giving skills?" she teased. Lucky stuck out his tongue. "Maybe you're just not smart enough to get me!" he teased back. "I don't think that's it." Tails said, laughing along with Whisk.
As the Gummi ship soared through the sky for a few hours, Lucky suddenly jumped. "Gaah!! What day is it, anyway!?" he stammered. Tails looked at them funny. "Why? I didn't know we were on a clock..." he mumbled. Whisk's eyes went wide too. "Ohh, you're right, Lucky! We might be late!" she said, stepping over to Winston at the pilot's seat. "Late for what??" Tails stammered, "What aren't you telling me? I thought we were a team..." he babbled. Whisk muttered something to Winston and the moogle nodded. "Okay, kupo. Setting course back to home...well, your home." he stated. Whisk chuckled softly. "Cool, this is the first time I really remembered something important!" she cheered. Lucky saw the puzzled expression on Tails' face and smiled. "Hey, we have a plus one... You can come with us, Tails, hehe!" he chuckled. Tails scratched his head. "Plus one? Are you going to tell me where we're going??" he asked. Lucky was smiling as he strapped himself in for the upcoming warp. "Our fellow experiment is getting married. He's kinda like my big bro... So, Whisk and I have gotta be there for Punchy!" he said cheerfully. Winston nodded and went to engage the warp gummi. Our heroes were off on a detour back home. Surely it would be a good opportunity for a rest, right?
To be continued in: Sonic GeneX: the Series - Episodes 7-8: Musical Matrimony!
Chapter 5 - True Memories
World - Halloweentown
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
"I am the one hiding under your bed,
teeth ground sharp and eyes glowing red!
I am the one hiding under your stairs,
fingers like snakes and spiders in my hair!" - This is Halloween; The Nightmare Before Christmas
Thinking of you, wherever you are...
Lucky, Whisk and an alternate version of Tails have been traveling from world to world, honing Lucky's keyblade skills while keeping Zeke and Zim from collecting powerful objects for the evil lord Garland.
After an adventure in Game Central Station, Lucky's group set course for home where they were to attend the wedding of Punchy and Rainbow. The excitement was turned to danger when Richard Gunner brought troops to siege the chapel, seeking to arrest Copter the fox due to his recent turn as the villainous Aries. During the conflict, Felicia the wolf's glass eye was damaged, and seeing her damaged face jarred her into remembering her previous self; Fera.
Succumbing to darkness, Fera sent heartless to attack the city, forcing Lucky to combat them with his keyblade while others battled GUN and tried to talk Fera down. After repelling the threats, the wedding was moved to Rainbow's former home, restored to its pristine state with a bit of magic from Timothy the fawn.
Now that the wedding excitement is over, Lucky returns to his world-hopping adventures...
Now, let us journey to a new world...
Zeke wasn't invited to any wedding. He had no reason to return home. He did get a light scolding from Garland for his lack of efficiency, as did Zim. Then, the pair were sent to a new world, this time to seek a source of great darkness. Failure was not an option, it seemed. So, since Lucky didn't seem to be around, Zeke and Zim took to asking around directly. Why would the residents not want them to take their world's darkness away, anyhow? At any rate, the world they found themselves in seemed pretty dark itself, but Zeke and Zim didn't feel too out of place as they walked among monsters; Zeke being a dragon and Zim being a Zeti. "Yo, seen anything real DARK, dude?" Zim asked a rather scary-looking clown on a unicycle. "Hehe, how about this?" he asked, tearing off his own face to show a dark void beneath! Zim stared with wide, shocked eyes before the clown replaced his face and cycled away. "Uh... Not what we're lookin' for..." he babbled. "Hey, seen anything dark?" Zeke asked a small, smiling man with a ribbon that clearly stated he was the mayor. His entire head spun around, revealing a second, more frightening and upset-looking face. "Dark? What do you mean, dark? Isn't scary or creepy enough? We don't need anything like Oogie Boogie's sort of shenanigans around here..." he whimpered. Zeke rubbed his chin as the mayor hobbled off. "I can't talk now, lots to prepare for next Halloween!" he babbled. Zeke glanced at Zim. "C'mere... I think we're lookin' for an 'Oogie Boogie...'" he murmured. "I don't dance." Zim grunted. A young voice spoke up. "Oogie Boogie? What do you wanna know?" Turning around, Zeke and Zim saw a boy in a devil costume. He was followed by a girl in a witch costume and another boy in a skeleton outfit. Their names were Lock, Shock and Barrel, respectively. "We know ALL about Oogie Boogie!" Barrel offered. "Shh! See what they'll give us, first!" Shock insisted. "Oh, it's extortion is it, ya little brats!?" Zim sneered. Zeke yanked Zim aside by the tail. "Please, don't be rude. These children may be entitled to a reward...but it all depends on the value of the information they offer. Tell me, would this Oogie Boogie know anything about sources of darkness?" he mused. Lock nodded. "He's the darkest dude around! Or... he was." he sighed. "Stinky old Jack Skellington and his friends destroyed him..." Shock stated. "We've been so bored without him." Barrel added. Zeke nodded slowly. "Tell me more... Maybe I can do something special for you..." he said with a smirk.
The Galestrom landed at what appeared to be the outskirts of a graveyard. Stepping outside, the group saw a dark and foreboding vista leading to a very spooky town up ahead. "Do we have to land here...?" Lucky murmured with a shiver. "I'm picking up something... Zeke might be using heartless here." Tails said, looking at the darkness detector. Whisk held up her wand. "Right! This world seems like no place for cuddly critters like us! My magic will help protect the world order!" she said, and in a flash of light, their group transformed! Lucky suddenly felt a bit shaggier, and grunted as his teeth seemed to sharpen and grow to stick out of his mouth. He'd become...a Werecat! Whisk took on a black and pink fur scheme, her wings turning black as well and losing a bunch of feathers. Her outfit took on a gloomy grayed color scheme, too. Tails received the most drastic change. His body seemed more reptilian now, his fluffy tails replaced with two large snake-headed tails. His body was still yellowy, but he now had greenish stripes up his arms, and what appeared to be spider legs replacing his bangs. He did not seem amused. "Couldn't I just have worn a cape and gone as a vampire?" he grumbled. Winston stumbled out of the ship as well. "Who wrapped me in toilet paper!?" he grunted, having not escaped the spell and finding himself an over-wrapped mummy. "Sorry, hehe... My magic seems stronger here." Whisk stated. "Yet you barely changed..." Lucky murmured, scratching his furrier body as though it had fleas. Before they could discuss this further, Whisk clasped her head. "Ahhh!!" she gasped. Winston pulled the mummy cloth from his eyes. "What's wrong, kupo?" he stammered. "...My memory only works now due to my magical powers. Before I was taught magic by the Zodiac Council, I had trouble retaining any memories at all... But here, with my magic power strengthened... I just had the weirdest memory flash." she explained, a frightened look in her eye. "Geez, what did you see, everyone dying?" Lucky joked. Whisk stared at him. "...I saw the world in pieces... The sky distorted... Everyone gathered, looking down. They see Sonic's friends... and in the midst of it all, Sonic is lying there. He seems to be dead." she described. Tails raised an eyebrow and Lucky tilted his head. "That uh... That never happened. You can't see the future, can you?" he asked. "I don't think so... That was weird." Whisk stated. Winston shrugged. "Maybe it's not a memory. Maybe it's something more to do with the nature of this world." he suggested. "Maybe..." Whisk said, looking unsure. Lucky smirked. "Well, no sense standing around here! Maybe we'll find the answers while we explore! At any rate, now that Tails is a monster, there's nothing to be scared of; he'll scare everything first!" he chuckled. "Very funny! Have you looked at yourself in the mirror, Lucky?" Tails retorted as they started to walk away. Winston hopped into the Galestrom and activated its computer. "Hmmm... Check records for Lucky and Whisk's world... Has it been destroyed in recent memory, possibly by a temporal anomaly?" he wondered curiously. The records he found astounded him. "This world's been through so much time manipulation it's not funny!" he gasped.
Lucky, Whisk and Tails soon arrived at the town square. It was indeed pretty much as dark and spooky as the graveyard. A sign at the entrance read "Halloweentown" and the decor seemed appropriate for suck, skulls and pumpkins among the imagery. There was a fountain spewing greenish liquid into a well in front of them, but overall the square appeared deserted at the moment. "If a bunch of zombie bust out of the ground, I don't care if they start dancing, I'm bolting." Lucky whispered. Just then, they heard the fountain start to churn, and shivers went down their spines as they thought something was about to leap out. But the churning stopped. "Let's keep moving..." Tails suggested, "My darkness detector's picking up a big reading..." he murmured. "Daaaarkness? There's darkness...eeeeverywheeeere!" an eerie voice called out. The trio jumped, looking around cautiously for the source of the voice. "Who's there? Are you with Zeke??" Whisk stammered. Suddenly, the limited street lights went out, and all they could see was a grinning skull before them. "I'm with the darkness! Rrrraaaaarrrgh!!" it growled, causing Lucky to jump in alarm. "Mee-yow!! Back, heartless! Get back!!" he shouted, his keyblade popping into his hand as he stumbled backwards in terror! "Ow, you stepped on my tail...snake...ugh!" Tails whimpered. The lights came up, revealing a smiling skeleton in a black and white striped suit before them. He extended his bony hand to help Lucky up. "Great reaction. That's exactly what I wanna hear! Hey...that key looks familiar..." he murmured as Lucky nervously stood up. "Y-you're a... um..." he babbled. "Jack Skellington, pleasure to meet you!" he said, shaking his hand. "That's Lucky. I'm Whisk and he's Tails." Whisk said. Tails was distractedly looking at the detector, while Jack looked at the keyblade. "Hmm... I wonder if you know that other boy with a key... Oh! I totally forgot! I was on my way to see Dr. Finkelstein! He's working on an intriguing experiment. Something about true memories or something..." he muttered. Whisk's eyes widened. "True memories?" she asked. She then gasped and held her head again, undergoing another unexpected memory flash. "Vortex is gonna kill her! You have to come with me so we can clear her name!" a familiar voice sounded in her mind. Jack glanced at her. "My, that's a frightened look on your face. What's wrong?" he asked. "I... I need to unlock my true memories. I need to know what's missing..." she said urgently. Lucky nodded. "Alright. Let's see this doctor, then!" he smiled, twisting the keyblade around to scratch his back. "...You don't have fleas, do you?" Jack asked him. Tails let out a sigh. "You all go, then. I'm gonna check out the signal and see if I find Zeke. This spike of dark energy is worrying..." he stated. "Sounds exciting. Maybe we'll catch up with you later!" Jack said with a look of interest. Lucky looked more concerned. "Be careful, Tails. Come find us if you get in trouble." he said. "Let's go before my head explodes..." Whisk murmured. So, they split off to go their separate ways...
Dr. Finkelstein's lab was dark, gloomy and full of creepy books and experimental equipment. It felt oddly like home to Lucky and Whisk. The doctor himself was busy at a chemistry set. Confined to a wheelchair, he was a small fellow with a bit of a large cranium. Beady eyes covered by dark glasses rested above a bit of a large mouth, and under a larger forehead which...seemed to have hinges? Beside him was a tall, living rag doll with reddish hair and a patchwork body. "Doctor, are you sure we should continue with this experiment? The last test subject ran off in such terror..." she warned. The doctor lifted his head by the hinge, revealing his own brain underneath, and gave it a thoughtful scratch before mixing some chemicals and closing the hatch again. "Nonsense, stop my experiment? Any science worth doing ALWAYS comes with wonderful, terrible risk!" he stated. Lucky stared for a bit. "This guy reminds me of Bucky... Except for the whole...brain thing..." he babbled. Jack stepped over to the rag doll with a smile. "You worry too much, Sally... I'm sure that last fellow is fine, wherever he got off to." he murmured. Whisk looked around awkwardly. "Umm... Doctor? Could you maybe tell us about this experiment?" she asked. The doctor spun around his wheelchair to get a look at the visitors. "Hmm... Good to see more young minds taking an interest in science! Well, you see, the mind has its way of remembering things. Over time, our recollections of events tend to change do to how we choose to perceive them. Some memories become uglier, others become more beautiful... And some become fuzzy and difficult to even see. True memories, you could say, are what actually happened. Unfiltered by our nostalgic lenses... And uneroded by time. I'm seeking to create a potion that will show us our true memories. My hypothesis is that one who sees their true memories will at the very least undergo a change in personality...and at the very worst, their heart will become unbalanced when their emotional link to memory is broken..." he explained. Lucky looked nervous as he listened to this. "I, uh... I think I'm with Sally. Kinda sounds like a dangerous and unnecessary experiment." he murmured. Whisk frowned. "Says the cat who never had trouble remembering anything. Can this potion recover lost memories?" she asked. The doctor took another scratch at his brain. "...In theory..." he stated. Whisk nodded. "Then I want to try it! So many of my past memories are still out of reach... I want to know my own life..." she said. "Oh, my... To live in such uncertainty... I can't imagine." Sally said. Jack frowned. "Yes... Sounds uncomfortably frightening. Not the kind of scare I strive for. I hope we can help you." he added. Seeing their reaction, Lucky looked at Whisk and sighed. "They're right... I'm here for you, Whisk! All the way!" he smiled. He then scratched behind his ear. "Thanks Lucky... but stand back, will ya. I don't want fleas." Whisk murmured.
In a dark woods, Zeke took on the ultimate test of his dark powers. Using what darkness he could muster, he managed to do the unthinkable, and once more rebirth the evil bag of bugs known as Oogie Boogie! It was this spike of dark energy that Tails had been detecting, and he hid behind a tree as he found Zeke, Zim and the three kids standing around the reborn Boogie-man. "Ooog... W-where am I? Come to think of it, WHO am I? What even am I?" Oogie Boogie babbled, looking around in utter confusion. "What's wrong with him?" Shock asked. Zeke scratched his head. "You try bringing someone back from oblivion! I probably couldn't get his memories back..." he shrugged. Zim gave Zeke a poke. "Doesn't that mean he's useless to us?" he muttered. Tails peered out from behind the tree. "No way... They brought someone back from the dead??" he gasped. Zim glanced in his direction and growled. "Hey! Get that punk!" he shouted, prompting Lock, Shock and Barrel to jump into action! Tails got up to run but found himself quickly surrounded by the kids! "Trick or treat!" Barrel sneered as Lock and Shock jumped at Tails, pinning him to the ground! Barrel then tried to grab his tails only to get bit by the snakes. "Yow!" he grunted. Oogie Boogie stomped around to get a look at what the kids had caught. "Yah ha ha!! You little guys could be useful... I needed a snack after whatever it is I've just been through!" he cackled, licking his lips with a snake for a tongue. Tails looked up at him in terror. "Y-you're gonna eat me!?" he babbled. Zeke tapped his foot in annoyance. "Eat him if you must but we need to get your memory back. I need to get some info out of your bug brains." he growled. The kids teamed up to lift Tails over their heads. "Eat up, boss! Maybe you'll feel better with a full belly!" Lock suggested. Desperate, Tails blurted what he could think of. "Wait, there's another way to fix your memory!" he stammered. Oogie hesitated. "Wuzzat? Out with it, short stack!" he ordered. "W-well... There's this memory experiment going on in Halloweentown. This doctor that Jack Skellington knows..." he murmured. Oogie stood up straight and narrowed his eyes. "Jack? Jack... Why does that name kill my appetite and make me wanna smash stuff!?" he snarled, "That's it! I'm gonna nab this memory-whatsit from Jack and find out! And then... Then, I'll be back to finish this morsel! Eh heh heh heh!!" he laughed, bounding away from the area. "Oogie! Halloweentown is that way!" Lock shouted, letting go of Tails and giving chase while Shock and Barrel wobbled and dropped him! "Yeowch!! You klutz!" Shock shouted at Barrel. "Sorry..." Barrel sighed. As the kids ran off, Zeke and Zim stood over Tails. "Well, he'll want you here when he comes back, won't he?" Zeke sneered, "Let's tie him up like his friends tied us up on the trip to Neverland..." he snickered.
Dr. Finkelstein soon completed his memory potion, turning to the group with a smirk. "Success! Who's ready to try it out?" he asked. Sally looked nervous, but didn't say anything as Whisk approached. "The answers you seek could be right in this flask... Don't be nervous. Frightened, maybe. Who knows what you'll find out?" the doctor said ominously. Whisk glanced back, seeing Lucky smile softly at her. "I'm right here for you, Whisk." he said. She nodded and took the flask. "Here goes..." she said, nervously taking a small sip. She gagged on it a bit. "Ughhh... what's this taste!?" she stammered. "What? I added worm's wart for flavor..." the doctor said indignantly. Whisk gasped softly. "Wait... I'm remembering something..." she said. "Ohh! A true memory?" Jack asked, "Can you tell us?" he wondered, "I mean, if we're not prying..." he added awkwardly. Whisk nodded. "Well..." Whisk murmured.
"I dunno... I'm holding a Chaos Emerald. I'm surrounded by GUN robots. It looks like they're after me. But then, when they're about to catch me... FERA of all people is there, protecting me. I...don't get it. Why was I holding that emerald? Why did she help me...?"
Whisk looked at the flask. "Maybe if I drink more I'll get the answer..." she murmured. "Well, too bad, girlie! I need a swig of that more than you!" boomed a voice through the lab. Suddenly, the flask was poked out of Whisk's hands from below and caught by Lock, Shock and Barrel dashing out from under her! "H-hey!" she gasped. "Oh, those brats again!!" the doctor growled. "That voice... Could it be?" Jack gasped. They chased the children to the door, only to find thin, mummified heartless appearing in their path; wight knights! Lucky gripped his keyblade and growled like the wolf he looked like. "Outta the way!" he shouted. Whisk zapped the heartless with a bolt of thunder magic before Lucky could do anything. "There, they're outta the way. Let's go!" she shouted. However, opening the door, they found the streets of Halloweentown teeming with heartless. "Jaaaaack! Do something!!" the mayor could be heard shouting. "That's funny. Oogie was never actually able to call the heartless..." Jack said curiously. "This has Zeke written all over it. And where's Tails?" Lucky said with concern. "Never mind, fellas! We've got to help the town! Follow me!" Jack said, marching into town with a look of purpose on his skull.
The Wight Knights had nasty claws, but Lucky's keyblade had no problem striking back at them. Whisk had to manage to fly with her low-feather wings in order to take on some airborne gargoyle heartless. "Boy, you guys don't look like the gargoyles back home..." she murmured as she shot blasts of fire to attack them. Jack took on some warping Search Ghost heartless using a mix of his own bony claws and some magic of his own. The battle wasn't incredibly easy, but Tails soon arrived to lend a hand. "Oh, you guys are dead! Time for my upgraded shield!" he said, pulling out a new shield he'd built after a certain "bad guy" had wrecked his old one. Winding it up, he gave it a whirl, and the shield spun off its handle, spinning rapidly as it flew at the nearest heartless and zapped it with electrical energy! Then, Tails used a magnet in the handle to call the shield back! "Ha! Bullseye!" he smirked. Before long, the heartless swarming the town were dispatched, and Lucky went to hug Tails in relief only for the fox to back away. "Fleas! Fleas!" he groaned. "Well... Splitting up was a disaster. I got caught." Tails told them, looking sheepish. "Well, you're safe now." Jack stated. Tails nodded. "This bag of bugs that Zeke called upon was gonna eat me after getting his memory back... Fortunately these snake tails actually came in handy chewing through the ropes Zeke and Zim tied me up with..." he said with a chuckle, "Sorry, I told Oogie Boogie about the experiment to stop him from eating me..." he frowned. Whisk sighed. "Well, I don't want you eaten so I guess I forgive you..." she said, "Can you track him down with your detector?" she asked him. Tails gulped. "Uhh... Zeke took it from me..." he said nervously. Lucky frowned. "Let's never split up again. Geez, that's like rule one for horror movies and we fell for it in Halloweentown." he groaned. Jack didn't seem discouraged. "We'll find them, don't worry. Oh, Zero!!" he called. From the shadows, a ghostly canine with a glowing pumpkin shaped nose flew over to greet them, barking cheerfully at Jack. "Oogie Boogie is back again! Can you sniff him out, boy?" the skeleton asked. With a cheerful bark, Zero lit up his nose and started to fly off in search of Oogie Boogie. "I'm holding off on saying 'Now I've seen everything.' I see more crazy things every other month it seems." Lucky murmured. "Follow that spirit!" Whisk shouted. With Zero leading them, they'd find Oogie in no time!
Zero led them back to the graveyard, to a place where they could see a large hill ending in a strange spiral ahead. There stood Oogie, holding the potion and staring up at the moon. "Aaah... All that runnin' around's made me thirsty!" he snickered. Lock, Shock and Barrel tried to block the group's way, but Jack simply made a terrifying face at them and they yelped, scrambling out of the path. "So, you're Oogie Boogie..." Lucky murmured as they approached him. "Monster! You robbed the doctor and tried to eat Tails!" Whisk shouted. Oogie glanced at them with a look of mock confusion. "Hmm? Sorry, I can't recall a single thing. Maybe this little brew will jog my memory!" he snickered, fumbling with the cork that he'd stuffed in it to prevent spillage while running. Jack shook his head. "The doctor can brew more potion, I'm sure. But threatening the little guy like that... Seems no matter how many second chances at life you get, you'll always be an utterly deplorable bag of bugs!" he shouted. Oogie chuckled as he unpopped the cork. "I don't know 'bout that. Why don't we see what my memory says, eh? ...Maybe then I'll remember which one of you is Jack..." he babbled before lifting up the flask, "Down the hatch!" The group winced as they watched him sloppily gulp the potion down, licking his lips with his snake-tongue. "Mmmm... worm's wart... Not bad... Wait...what's this!" he gasped, freezing in place. Jack watched him curiously. "Does a resurrected Oogie even have any true memories?" he wondered. Oogie suddenly held his head and wailed, frightening off Zero and making Lock, Shock and Barrel even more nervous in their hiding places. "What's happening to him?" Lock wondered. "I died... and died... and died!? Ohhhh, the pain!! Aaaahh...the horror!! Rrrrrrraaaaauuuuggh.... The ANGER!!" he shouted. His body pulsed with dark energy, and he seemed to be growing in size. "So much darkness... What's happening?" Tails gasped. Oogie's bag turned a shadowy black, his eye holes glowing yellow. "Yeah, I think that potion was past its expiration date..." Lucky stammered. Oogie glared at the group and cackled. "Jaaaaack.... Wanna gamble? This time with your life, hmmm? I don't have any lives left myself... I'm a heartless monster!!" he roared. He had about doubled in size, still not as big as a house but certainly terrifying. Lucky was shaking as he held his keyblade. "So... He's a heartless now? Does that even make sense?" he asked. Whisk nodded. "The doctor was right... the potion unbalanced his heart way too much..." she said. "Talk talk talk! You kids are dull! I know what'll get you on your feet! A slick roll of the dice!" Oogie snickered, holding up some rather large and glowing red dice in his pointed fingerless hand. "Umm... Unless your bones reassemble, I'd suggest you run." Jack told them. They nodded and took off in different directions as Oogie gave the dice a toss!
The large glowing dice rolled around the area, before exploding upon stopping! Fortunately the gang had already moved out of the way, but unfortunately more Halloweentown heartless emerged to keep Tails and Whisk busy, leaving just Jack and Lucky to deal with Oogie Boogie. "Jaaaack! You wrecked my house! You trashed my game room! And you stopped me from... uhhh... Well, even with true memories I got no idea what I was aimin' to do at Christmas Town, but you stopped me again!" Oogie growled, leaping at Jack to try and body slam him, only succeeding in toppling a couple gravestones as Jack slipped out of the way. "Maybe that potion doesn't work after all; I'd think you'd know what you did!" Jack retorted. As Oogie struggled to get back to his feet, Lucky pointed his keyblade at him threateningly. "You did what to Christmas Town??" he growled, his werecat eyes glowing red. Oogie looked at him with a chuckle. "Aren't you scaaaary... Well, boogie to you!" he laughed, spitting several creepy crawly bugs at Lucky from his mouth as a distraction as he leapt to his feet! "Gross, gross, gross!!" Lucky yelped, swinging the keyblade wildly to try and swat the bugs away! Oogie Boogie then produced another set of exploding dice. "Maybe if I blow on 'em for luck, I'll roll a jackpot!" he sniggered, giving them a little blow before hurling them at Lucky! Jack tried to get his attention by hitting him with one of his magic spells, but it didn't seem to do much good on the powerful heartless Oogie. He turned to Jack with a smirk. "That tickles... What's wrong? Can't just yank a string and rip me to pieces now? Ha ha ha! I'm held together by darkness!" he teased. However, the boogie-man gasped as he was struck by an explosion! Lucky laughed as Oogie turned with a growl. "Throw me another pitch! I'm on a hot streak!!" he laughed, holding the keyblade like a bat. Oogie realized that Lucky hit the dice back at him and growled. "You stinkin' cheat! That's not how you play the game!!" he shouted, "I'll squash you flat!!" he growled, his dark energy seeming to grow in power, and making him grow even larger in size! "...Eeep." Lucky gulped. "Look out!" Jack shouted as Oogie moved to flatten him. "Ah! Lucky!!" Whisk gasped, witnessing what was happening. She gritted her teeth and vanished from where she was, appearing next to Lucky and then teleporting them both away as Oogie Boogie crashed down to body slam the ground below! Whisk emerged high in the sky above, her and Lucky's silhouette's blotting against the moon. "I'm gonna drop you now, Lucky." she whispered. Lucky was looking into her eyes in a confused daze. "...Wait, what?" Then, he was falling, but he thought fast and twisted in the air, pointing the keyblade down at Oogie Boogie. The speed of his fall powered up his strike, and Oogie let out a wail as the keyblade penetrated the darkness of his shadowy bag! "No... nooo, not again!! What have you done!!" He howled as creepy crawlies went fleeing from his insides! "My bugs!! My buuuuugs!!" he wailed repeatedly, his voice heightening in pitch until it faded. Tails gave the final bug a stomp as it tried to scurry away. "Eat me, will you?" he scoffed.
They took a moment to look for the three kids, but they'd fled by now. Jack reasoned that they wouldn't cause any more trouble now anyway. "We could head back to the lab. I'm sure the doctor could whip up more potion." he said to Whisk. She shook her head. "I saw what it did to Oogie. Maybe it's best I let the answers come to me naturally...if they ever do." she sighed. Jack nodded. "Very well. After all, a bit of uncertainty can keep your life full of surprise and excitement!" he grinned. Tails heard footsteps and turned around. "Huh... is that...?" he muttered. "There you are!!" Of all people, Gator was heading their way...and accompanied by a reindeer no less. "What is Gator doing here??" Lucky babbled. The reindeer hovered up to the group really quickly, shaking everyone's hands with his feet gliding just off the ground. "Hey, fellas! Name's Booster! Good to see ya! I brought Gator along with me from Christmas Town!" he chuckled before stopping at Jack, "I needed to see you anyway on behalf of Santa." he smirked. Jack looked up sheepishly. "Ah, how is Sandy? I was thinking of visiting him after Halloween, maybe..." he murmured. "Just so long as you're not thinking of 'making Christmas' again..." Booster smirked. Lucky looked at Gator jealously. "...You know Santa? As in... Claus?" he babbled. Gator nodded. "Silly, everyone knows that guy. But I was looking for you! Important message... Uhhh... what was it again?" he babbled. Tails frowned. "Maybe he needs the memory potion..." he murmured. "Speaking of remembering things, should we try to track down Zeke?" Lucky murmured. Gator shook his head. "We gotta go! Let's find your ship and I'll captain us where we need to be!" he declared. The group turned to Jack and Booster briefly. "It's alright. The doctor will be disappointed I'm sure but there are other experiments!" Jack told them. "You kids keep being good! Christmas isn't too far away!" Booster chuckled. Lucky smiled and nodded. "Neither is Halloween. Happy Holidays you guys!" he said, waving to them. "You're welcome back anytime!" Jack waved back. The group then started slowly on their way back to the ship, and as they went, Whisk stopped to scratch herself briefly. "Oh shoot... You did have fleas, Lucky!" she groaned. "Your dumb magic gave them to me. Your magic should fix it!" he growled, scratching himself. "I kinda appreciate that your spell took away my fur to make me less appetizing to the buggers." Tails chuckled softly, "But change us back soon, please." Gator glanced at them in confusion. "Change you back into what? Isn't this how you normally look?" he babbled. The others groaned a little in response...
Zeke had made good use of the darkness detector during all the drama with Oogie Boogie. It led him and Zim to a place outside Halloweentown proper, secluded and foreboding. The rubble of Oogie's old manor still cluttered the landscape here and there after a time when the power of darkness had fused the torn bag with his own manor, and a brave keyblade master defeated him with Jack's help. The detector was going bonkers in this area. Zim sat in an odd crawling bathtub while Zeke searched around the rubble for the source of the signal. "We're probably wasting our time again. I wanna go home before master Zavok forgets all about me..." the Zeti complained. "You are absolutely no help. We'd be out of this cobweb infested nut house if I could just find whatever this glorified metal detector was pointing us to..." he grunted before tripping over something. "Ick! What did I almost step on!?" he grunted. The detector was going haywire, so Zeke moved some rubble. What he found was...a sort of heart-shaped container with a big lock on it. "What the holy heck is this? Is this it...?" he babbled. Zim jumped out of the tub to get a look at it. "Hmm... A heart of darkness?" he asked. "You might say that..." came the voice of Garland, stepping through a corridor of darkness. Zeke turned and handed the heart to the knight, bowing to show his respect. "I found it, boss, all by myself!" he proclaimed. "Lies! It was Zim's brilliant idea to steal the device from the usually-a-fox-but-not-today boy!" Zim protested. Garland accepted the heart, holding it up to examine it. He ignored their petty competitiveness. "The denizens of this town thought that giving the heartless a heart would enable them to control them. But they had no understanding of what the heart is. The heart is glorious chaos... All they could forge is darkness... Especially once their creation was consumed by the darkest denizen of this world." he stated, glancing at Zeke and Zim briefly. "This trinket is steeped in deepest darkness, even years of neglect could not strip it away. It will serve my purpose well. You two are finally showing some promise...but we have two power sources still to claim." he told them, turning to the corridor of darkness, "Come...while I begin preparing this trinket for its final purpose, we can determine which world you two will search next..." he stated. Zim smirked. "Promise. He says Zim has promise!" he bragged. "Shut up, Zim..." Zeke groaned as they followed their master through the dark corridor...
Changed back to normal and taking off aboard the Galestrom, Winston fought over the ship's controls with Gator for a bit while the others wondered what their next destination was. "Gator! Stop it! Deep breath... Where are we going?" Lucky asked. "He can't even reach the pedals!" Gator shouted. "It's still my ship, kupo." Winston retorted. "How does he reach the pedals?" Whisk asked Tails. He just shrugged in response. Gator then stood up suddenly. "I remember! I had a message from Master Yen Sid!" he shouted. "Mee-yow!! Don't shout like that, we're all right here!" Lucky yelped. "Who's Master Yen Sid...?" Winston asked. Gator shrugged. "Well, his name spelled backwards is Disney. And he's an old guy. He used to train keyblade masters." he stated. Lucky tilted his head. "You should have led with the last thing." he muttered, "But I do seem to remember Travis mentioning him..." he added. Gator nodded. "Master Yen Sid wants to meet with whichever one of you guys has the key, to check your progress with it! Or something! So, we gotta go see him at Twilight Town!" he explained. Everyone took to their seats as Winston turned to the controls. "Twilight Town it is, kupo... Hang on..." he muttered. Lucky looked a bit nervous. "No one said I'd be graded on my keyblade skills..." he sighed. "Maybe you can learn a thing or two from him Lucky. Keep an open mind." Whisk said. Tails nodded. "Besides, without my darkness detector we'll have to rethink how we track Zeke and Zim." he stated. Lucky sighed again. "All right... At least I got you guys with me." he smiled. "And me!" Gator butted in, grinning. "Uh... Yeah..." Lucky replied awkwardly. And so our team was on their way to Twilight Town... the place where another keyblade wielder had also met with Master Yen Sid quite recently, to be set on his fateful path that would determine the fates of all worlds...and Kingdom Hearts itself. But that's a story largely separate from this one...
Chapter 6 - Trio No More?
World - Twilight Town
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
"I want you for a lifetime, but if you're gonna think twice, baby,
I don't wanna know, I don't wanna know.
Everything is just right, but if you're gonna think twice, baby,
I don't wanna know, I don't wanna know." - Don't Think Twice, Utada
A town that seemed perpetually at the sunset hour, Twilight Town was a very lazy and peaceful looking place. A streetcar tram slowly rolled along a track in the area Gator led Lucky, Whisk and Tails through after they'd left the Galestrom. Winston was with them for the moment, too. "I think my cousin Winslow has a shop set up around here. I should pop in for a visit while we're here..." the moogle murmured. The group halted at the tracks and waited for the tram to pass by, and once it did, they saw Travis waiting there for them, smiling. "I've been expecting you, guys." he said. "Hey! Don't sneak up on a Gator!" Gator shouted while the others crossed the tracks to greet him. "Uh, why was Gator sent to get us?" Lucky asked. Travis chuckled. "Honestly he was supposed to bring you right here from the wedding. It must've slipped his mind. Obviously I wasn't invited because I don't know anyone there." he said. "They took Tails as their plus one. I felt so sleighted, kupo..." Winston grumbled. "Ahh... Honestly, you should be glad you missed it. Like everywhere we go, there were heartless..." Tails sighed. Travis nodded. "We should hurry to Yen Sid so he can evaluate your progress, Lucky. Also, Whisk, I'm here to inform you that the wizard Merlin has managed to clear a teeny bit of time in his schedule to school you a bit in magic. Any little improvements can help, yes?" he said. Whisk gave a nod. "Yeah... I haven't used any big spells like Stop since we left because I'm worried about using up too much magic power and losing my memories...my memory is tied to my magic, you know." she stated. "Man, that's why? That Stop spell could've solved, like, every problem ever..." Lucky sighed. "Sillies! Alright, let's get on the train!" Gator chuckled. Winston waved goodbye to them as they went on their way, soon boarding a train that would take them to Yen Sid's Mysterious Tower. Lucky had a nervous look throughout the ride. "He's gonna evaluate my progress? No one said there'd be a test or anything!" he groaned. "No, no test. I told you, there's no time to give you the Mark of Mastery exam." Travis chuckled. Lucky groaned. "Why don't I feel better?"
They climbed up the winding stairways of the tall tower. There was a mystical feel to the building, and an ominous feel to it as well. Lucky was tense as he stepped into the sorcerer's room. There was a desk before the door, with some books and a candle melted onto a skull upon it. Several more books were upon shelves throughout the room. Seated in front of the desk was an elderly man wearing long, blue robes and a pointed blue hat with stars and a crescent moon upon it. He had a long, gray beard and wide, piercing eyes that seemed to stare right through Lucky. "Master Yen Sid! I present the new keyblade wielder, Lucky!" Travis said with a bow. Gator, Whisk and Tails also bowed, and as Lucky noticed, he yelped and hastily bowed as well. Yen Sid nodded as they rose. "Lucky... I have been tracking your progress from afar. That a keyblade has come to you at all is quite remarkable, as there are no records of keyblades or keyblade masters being seen on your world before..." he began. "Except me, right? Eh? Eh?" Gator grinned. Yen Sid ignored him. It didn't appear he acknowledged Gator as a master. Silence followed, and Yen Sid continued. "You have managed to survive dark threats in several worlds, but not without a heavy dose of aid from heroes from those worlds. You have made progress with your keyblade, but regrettably it leaves much to be desired. At the moment, I'd have to say that allowing you to continue exploring the worlds would be most dangerous. The Organization orchestrating the Keyblade War could exploit your weakness and turn your keyblade to their dark purposes..." he warned. Lucky hung his head a little, and Gator frowned. "Why not have Merlin train him?" he asked. Yen Sid shook his head. "Merlin has his hands full at the present. Merely asking him to aid your magical friend is a lot to put upon him. We can offer you sanctuary here, Lucky, but to send you back out seems folly at the moment." he stated. Lucky looked around worriedly. "But, what about Zeke and Zim? They're going around messing up worlds and we're the only ones fighting them off!" he babbled. Yen Sid folded his hands. "There are always threats amongst the worlds. A keyblade master must weigh which are more pressing to deal with at times. Trust me when I say, if the enemies you have been facing get out of hand, they will be dealt with. There are other keyblade masters with more skill than your own." he assured Lucky. The cat nodded dejectedly. "Yeah, that much is clear..." he said. Travis patted him on the back. "Hey, you didn't want to wade into battle anyway. Now you get to take it easy, right?" he stated. "I guess..." Lucky murmured unconvincingly.
Lucky, Whisk and Tails headed back outside the tower, and sat on the front steps. "I don't want to stay here until this keyblade war is over... I mean geez, what if we lose?" Lucky sighed. "Well, that's negative..." Whisk muttered. Tails nodded. "I can't stay with you either, Lucky. I have to find Sonic..." he pointed out. Lucky looked at the ground. "I know..." he groaned. Whisk stood up as Travis and Gator were coming out of the tower. "I'll come back and keep you company, Lucky... but I gotta go see this Merlin guy, first." she stated with a small smile. Tails stood up as well. "I should start getting ready to look for Sonic on my own..." he sighed, "I'll need to resupply in town, try to find parts to build a new darkness tracker..." he muttered. Whisk glanced at Tails. "We can meet up when my training is done. I'll help you." she offered. Tails glanced at her a little shyly. "Uhh... Well, I can't really wait too long. My world needs Sonic..." he said. Lucky stood up next, a sad look on his face. "I'm sorry that it seems like I'm not gonna be able to help either of you out anymore..." he frowned. "You can help me carry water for Master Yen Sid!" Gator said, "Dunno why he can't just magic some indoor plumbing but whatever..." Travis groaned. "Let them have their moment, Gator!" he muttered. Lucky shook hands with Tails. "Good luck, buddy..." he said. Then, Whisk gave Lucky a hug. "We won't forget about you here, Lucky... Stay safe!" she said. Travis and Gator then headed down the steps past the trio. "When you're ready, Whisk, we'll leave on my ship." Travis said. "You mean MY ship!" Gator commented. "Every ship isn't yours, Gator." Travis grumbled. Exchanging some final glances, the trio began to part ways, Tails heading for the train while Whisk headed off with Travis and Gator... "Wait, where are we going? The train is the only way to leave this tower!" Travis stammered, making Whisk fall over in an anime-style pratfall.
It was a bit of a trip, but soon they were almost to Travis' ship. It had broad wings and a sleek design. "My ship, the Starglider. We'll just get it ready for takeoff, hold on..." Travis stated. "It's MY ship!!" Gator insisted as he followed Travis aboard. Whisk stood back to take it in, breathing a sigh. Suddenly, a burst of smoke nearby caught her off guard! "Yikes! Heartless!!" she stammered, grasping her wand. "What? Heartless?! I am NOT a heartless, young lady! Why do people think I'm a heartless??" As the smoke cleared, an old man stepped out of it. He looked rather similar to Yen Sid; Long blue robes, big blue pointed hat, long beard. His hat was a bit floppier and his beard was whiter, though. He also carried a magic wand of his own. "It is I, Merlin! I know you're on your way to me but since I had a spare moment I thought I'd pop in and check you out... see if your trip will be worth it." he said, adjusting his glasses briefly as he looked Whisk over. She looked at him nervously. "Oh, great... Now I get to be evaluated like Lucky..." she sighed. Merlin tapped her nose with his wand, little sparkles emanating from it, and then he licked his finger and held it up as though testing the wind. "Hmmm... Yes, I'm done. I have sampled your powers." he stated. "ALREADY?!" Whisk babbled, her feathers ruffling. Merlin nodded. "I see your issue. Using too much magic at once could put your very mind at risk... Not to worry, I can unlock your power a bit, enabling you to use...slightly stronger magic. Come see me, posthaste! It may take some weeks of training, real time, but we'll get you prepared to face the dangers out there!" he told her before vanishing in another burst of smoke! "Uhhh... Th-thanks...I think..." Whisk babbled, bewildered.
Another burst of smoke made Whisk practically jump out of her skin as Gator appeared where Merlin had just stood. "Cut it out!! I'm the designated teleporter around here!!" she snapped. Gator tilted his head. "Uhhh, okay! I just wanted to know if you're coming aboard or what? See ya!" he said, vanishing again. As Gator and Travis sat inside the ship waiting for her, Whisk suddenly teleported between them! "Gah! Whisk, it's reckless to teleport without seeing where you're going!!" Travis scolded her. Whisk sighed and plopped down in a seat, glancing out the window. "...couldn't we bring Lucky along? I feel funny leaving him alone like this..." she sighed. Travis took the controls of the Starglider, starting the ship up. "Yen Sid will watch over him, don't worry. And I'm sure your fox friend will check in, too." he pointed out. Gator sat back in a relaxed pose. "Besides, what could happen in a sleepy town like that? Guys in white coats coming to steal your very words? ...hmm, maybe I should check back every so often, too..." he murmured. Whisk smiled lightly, his silly babbling actually putting her at ease a little. Twilight Town did seem like an unlikely place for anything dangerous to happen. "I guess... I'll see him in a couple weeks!" she nodded. The Starglider started to lift off the ground, and Travis set the travel coordinates for the world Merlin was waiting on. "I hope that wizard doesn't pop onto the ship while we're flying... he's known to show up unexpectedly like that..." Travis said. Whisk giggled softly. He had that right...
Tails was having a look through the shops that the tram was lazily traveling between near where they'd started in Twilight Town. He wore his black coat, preferring to be thought of as a child than as a creature from another world. He'd stocked up on food, and picked up some paints as well. "My new shield is kinda drab... it could use some fancying up..." he'd thought. Aside from being a tad outraged at the price of food in this town, the fox was also disheartened by the lack of parts he could use for building things. "I won't be building a new detector of any sort with anything I find in these stores..." he groaned as he carried his bags. He passed by Winston as he walked, and handed the bags to the moogle, who was busy talking to another moogle with glasses. "Kupo? Can't you see I'm busy?!" Winston scoffed. "I've got some things to do, too. C'mon, some of the food will spoil without the ship's little fridge." Tails insisted. Winston groaned, flapping his wings frantically as he lifted the bags. "C'mon, Winslow, kupo... You should see my ship, anyway!" he grunted, flying off. Tails sighed as he casually walked away, eyes glancing around as though looking for something. His tails poked out from under his black coat...it was very uncomfortable trying to keep them hidden. No one was looking anyway. "If Lucky can't use the keyblade... he's basically been a distraction. I hate to say that... But I can't waste any more time. My world's counting on me." he murmured, lifting his shield and brushing his hand over its polished front. "Maybe Sonic found a keyblade. By now he might even have come back home... And I've been unwittingly chasing a dragon around. Well, I'll show Sonic... I'll prove myself..." he said, standing tall as he walked, "I'll do it all myself if I have to..."
Tails found a crack in a wall surrounding the town, actually a bit of a hole, leading out into a wooded area. Curious, he took a walk through those woods, and soon came upon an isolated mansion, a large gate barring entry. There was an ominous feel to this place, and very somber. He spun his tails and took a peek over the gate. White curtains hid any view inside the windows. Broken pillars dotted the path leading to the front door. "What's a place like this doing hidden out here like this?" he murmured, landing back down in front of the gate. "Hmm... Well, there doesn't appear to be anyone home. It's very quiet, and feels rather deserted. This spot could work as a meeting place..." he murmured, glancing around thoughtfully. He then crossed his arms and frowned. "I suppose I'll go check on Lucky... He's probably feeling pretty low. I should at least say goodbye properly before I leave him..." he murmured, heaving a sigh. He reached into his pocket and grabbed a small, beeping device, which he adhered to the wall by the gate. "This'll make this spot easy to find again later..." he murmured, heading back into the woods. There was a lot on the fox's mind as he made his way back to town. "Maybe we shouldn't have come here. Lucky might have been helpful in the end if that wizard didn't tell him it isn't safe..." he murmured, "...guess there's no sense worrying about it now. Gotta work on plan B... What the heck even is plan B?" he asked himself. He couldn't deny, a keyblade was pretty useful in the grand scheme of things...
Lucky was standing outside the train station, looking out over the nearby balcony at the town below. He let out a sigh, lost in thought. Was his journey really to end here? As he wondered about it, he heard a voice... a very friendly, optimistic sounding voice. "Wow, that's a long face! What's wrong?" Lucky turned to see a boy in mostly-black clothing. He had bright blue eyes, spiky brown hair, and a very infectious smile that almost lifted Lucky's spirits instantly. "Uhm... I probably shouldn't talk about it..." the cat murmured. The boy scratched his head. "Why not? ...Oh, I get it. You're not from this world either, are you!" he chuckled softly, gving a wink and a nod, "It's fine, I've been to dozens of worlds!" he whispered. Lucky gasped softly. He could practically feel it...the light coming from this boy. He held up his hand. "So, wait... Are you...?" he asked, materializing his keyblade to illustrate his point. The boy gasped softly, and held up his own hand like Lucky, calling his own keyblade as well! His key looked pretty basic, but Lucky could feel something was special about it. "Hehe, cool! I'm Sora!" the boy smiled, introducing himself. "Lucky... although I don't feel all that lucky... Master Yen Sid says I'm not strong enough. That I should stay here for my own safety..." he sighed. Sora lowered his keyblade and rested his free hand on his hip. "He said that? Hm... Well, I've certainly been there..." he murmured, "People have told me before... that I'm not good enough to be a hero. But you can't give up!" he declared. Lucky looked at him, hands at his side. Sora stepped back and held a hand over his chest. "Even now, the journey I'm embarking on... It'll be really dangerous. I know times will be tough. But my heart has grown strong, connected to all the friends I've made. Together, we'll beat Xehenort and save everyone threatened by his schemes! ...My friends are my power..." he said, lifting his hand up in a fist as he smirked confidently. Lucky looked at him admiringly. "Sora... I wish I were strong like you..." he said. Sora chuckled. "Well, first rule... No more frowning. No sad faces!" he said with a wink.
At that moment, Zeke landed in front of the train station with a thud, Zim hopping off his back. "There you are, kid... You've been a real pain in the tail. Now Garland wants me to get you out of the picture!" Zeke snorted. Sora looked at them in confusion. "Uhhh, have we met?" he stammered. "Not you! The kitty kid!" Zim grunted. Lucky gripped his keyblade, ready for a fight. "Garland, huh? That's the guy from the video game world?" he asked. Sora held his keyblade at the ready, too. "I'll even the odds here! Think you can take two keyblade masters? Uh... Masters...in the making!" he said sheepishly. Zim scoffed. "A human shrimp? Zim will swarm you with heartless!!" he cackled, summoning forth several shadows and soldiers to surround Sora! "That's all?" Sora chuckled softly. Zim growled in annoyance and charged towards him. "Zim will fight you, too!!" he shouted, only to be swatted over Zeke's head by Sora's keyblade! "Zim will be right back!!" he yelled. Zeke rolled his eyes. "Well, point is, it's you and me, Luckless! RAWR!!" Zeke lept into the air and flapped his wings, flying right into Lucky and grabbing him, lifting him up into the sky with him! "Meeeee-YOW!! Put me down, you psycho!!" he yelled, flailing his keyblade uselessly. "Whatever ya say!" Zeke said, hurling Lucky forcefully at the ground, only to see him land upright shakily! "H-ha!! Cats always land on their feet! ...oww..." he grunted. He then ducked as Zim was knocked over his head this time. "This isn't funny!" Zim yelled. When Lucky looked up, he saw Zeke blowing fire at him, so he quickly started to run out of the way! "Deep freeze!" called Sora, shooting blizzard magic from his keyblade and managing to briefly freeze Zeke's mouth shut! "Ragck!! RAWWWR!!" Zeke burned through the ice and glared at him. "You're a real wise guy, aren't ya?!" he snarled. "And you're pretty shrimpy for a dragon... Though, I can't lie, I've seen even shrimpier, hehe!" Sora smirked. Zim tried to sneak up behind Sora, but he spun around and knocked him aside without missing a beat. "Wow... He's good..." Lucky murmured. Zeke turned back to the cat and lunged at him, hoping to catch him by surprise! Lucky swiped his keyblade at him, but Zeke caught it! "Just not good enough! Now all I have to do is burn your face!!" Zeke smirked, heat rising on his breath! However, Sora leapt up from behind Zeke, spinning in midair and swinging his keyblade as he passed, striking the dragon across the face and causing his fire breath to shoot out in the wrong direction! Then, landing beside Lucky, Sora gave him a nod, and the pair of them gave Zeke a good smack with their keyblades, sending him flying away and on top of the already dazed Zim! "...You took care of the heartless already??" Lucky stammered. "It's kinda routine by now..." Sora said with a grin.
A corridor of darkness appeared, and Garland emerged, stepping on top of Zeke and Zim together as he passed them and approached Lucky and Sora. "It appears those two fools have picked entirely the wrong time to tangle with you... We've run afoul of the boy who battles the Organization..." he said, arms crossed as he glared at both of them. "Garland... What do you want? Why are you messing with so many worlds?" Lucky asked. The black knight backed up a step and kicked Zeke to roll him off of Zim. "Thanks, boss..." Zim groaned. Garland scoffed softly. "I only want what is best... The true nature of the worlds, the true nature of the heart... is glorious chaos. You try to deceive yourself. Say that you follow paths of light. Or paths of darkness. But all of us are a tangle of contradictions. Chaos. You yourselves weild blades of terrible power, all while claiming to serve the light. This is chaos in itself. My goal is to give the worlds back to their essence... When Chaos Hearts reigns over all worlds... True balance will be acheived." he stated. Sora scratched his head. "Chaos Hearts?? Is your helmet on too tight?" he asked. Garland chuckled softly. "Sora... you are key to my plans, as well. I need you to stop Xehenort. Prevent him from getting in my way. Do this for me. Not that you have a choice..." he stated before fixing his gaze on Lucky. "But you... You are in my way, child. I warn you... remain here. If you continue to place yourself in the path of my destiny...destiny will not favor you. And I am destined to succeed... I have willed it so, taken every precaution. My goals cannot be halted. If you make me your foe...you are on the wrong side of history. And you will be buried in the graveyard of keyblades..." he warned. By now, Zeke and Zim had risen to their feet, and as Garland turned to the corridor of darkness, they followed him, looking rather dejected at their defeat. Once Garland was gone, Sora turned to Lucky. "Well, he seems like a jerk..." he said in a lighthearted tone, "If he comes after you, I don't care, give me a call. I'm always happy to help...my friends." he added with a warm smile. Lucky glanced at him and smiled back. "Thank you, Sora... I think I'm going to ask Yen Sid for another shot... Someone's gotta stand in Garland's way, right?" he said. Sora nodded. "Good luck! ...Heh, any help I can get with this whole Xehenort thing going on is more than welcome!" he said, taking Lucky's hand in his and giving a shake. They were allies now...even if this might be the only time they ever meet...
Lucky was quickly joined by Tails as he entered the train station, and together they returned to the Mysterious Tower to see Master Yen Sid again. "You think he'll train you just because you go back and ask?" Tails murmured. "Well, I've got nothing better to do but keep asking until he says yes!" Lucky snickered as they climbed the stairs to the sorcerer's chamber. They found Yen Sid inside, seated as though he'd never moved since the last time they were there. Tails and Lucky politely bowed as they entered. "Master Yen Sid! Sorry to intrude again! I wanted to ask a really big favor!" Lucky announced. Yen Sid leaned forward, staring at Lucky as his head was bowed down. "Look at me..." the sorcerer asked. Lucky stood up straight, looking anxiously back into those big round eyes. Yen Sid had a very serious expression. "Hmmm... Yes, I see it. There's resolve in your gaze. Resolve that was not there when I saw you last." he sat back in his chair, a light smile crossing his lips, "I do believe you've met Sora." he said knowingly. "Who?" Tails asked, while Lucky chuckled softly. "I want to help, Master. Someone has to stand in Garland's way, or the worlds are in danger." he stated. Yen Sid nodded, and then let out a light sigh. "I have not trained a new keyblade wielder for some time. That impetuous king..." he murmured, an uncertain look on his face. "I must be vigilant with Xehenort on the loose. I cannot commit to training you as a master should. However, I see it in your eyes. I cannot stop you from following your heart... So, I will grant you what wisdom I can, along with a safe space, to hone your abilities with the keyblade, so that when you next venture forth, you can be better armed to defend yourself and others from danger!" he declared. Lucky jumped for joy at this. "Aw, yeah! Sweet!" he cheered, while Tails glanced at him awkwardly. Lucky then chuckled softly and bowed again. "I m-mean, thank you, Master Yen Sid, sir!" he said sheepishly. The team would set out into the worlds again, and when they did, they'd be ready for whatever Garland threw at them next!
To be continued..... BZZZZT!! ZZZT!! RRRRRZZZ! Wait! There's more!
With Lucky starting on his training straight away, Tails set out on his own so as to stay out of the way, a light smirk on his face. He wandered back to the mansion he'd found earlier, only to notice that the tracker he placed on the wall by the gate was gone. "....Sonic? Are you here?" he murmured. Sonic's voice came from the shadows, behind the trees. "Been waitin' on ya. About time you reached out. Actually, I've seen you on a couple worlds. Don't tell me you've gotten all buddy-buddy with these kitty cats, Tails!" he sniggered. Tails turned towards the voice, a scowl forming across his face. "I found a keyblade. Everything's going according to plan. And my name is NOT Tails, Sonic!" he snapped. Sonic chuckled lightly from the shadows. "Coulda fooled me. That's what everybody's callin' you now. Well, you keep that plan goin'. It wasn't a bad plan. I got a new plan, though. Yours can be a backup, you're always the backup anyway. Just ask Fiona..." he snickered. Tails' face went livid. "You leave her out of this, Sonic! Now what's this new plan you're going on about! Step out here and face me, you blue worm!!" he growled, only to gasp as Sonic stepped into the light. "What happened to you??" This Sonic had turned green, his eyes blue. He had red shades upon his head and an open black leather jacket, letting two scars across his chest show. He grabbed Tails by the neck and lifted him up, smirking widely. "Call me a worm again, I dare you... And my name is Scourge now, Miles... Scourge the Hedgehog!" he said before tossing Tails back on the ground, followed by his tracker. "Your little toys are pathetic, just like you, foxy. I'm batting for team darkness now, and I suggest you get with the program... Keep that keyblade close, 'little buddy'... I'll be watching..." he said darkly before speeding off, flame trails left behind him! Tails stared after him, fidgeting with his bangs as he tried to process this. "But... what about Moebius?" he stammered.
Chapter 7 - Team Reunion
World - Game Corner
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
Pokemon is (c) Nintendo & Game Freak
"I wanna take the ultimate step, find the courage to be bold.
To risk it all, and not forget the lessons that I hold.
I wanna go where no one's been, far beyond the crowd.
To learn the ways to take command; Use the power that's in my hand!" - Pokemon World
Lucky was met by a big, excited hug as he stepped into Master Yen Sid's chamber. "Aaah! Huh? ...Whisk!!" he smiled, blushing lightly before hugging back. "It's been weeks! How have you been, Lucky!? Are you eating well? You feel skinnier..." she babbled, poking his belly and making him laugh ticklishly. "Stop it! If I'm lighter it's from all the training I've been doing! Hehe! Right, Tails?" he said, turning to the fox as he entered the room behind him. "Ah... Hi, Whisk. I want your opinion. How does my shield look?" he asked, showing the new paint job he gave it. The front looked a lot like a bumper from Casino Night Zone, with a big star in the center and bright colors surrounding it. Whisk chuckled softly. "Cute..." she smiled. Tails frowned. "Gahh... That's not what I was going for..." he mumbled. Lucky smirked and gave his keyblade a swift swing, getting it parried by the shield! "Hah! Look, Whisk! See how strong we've gotten!?" he grinned. Whisk smirked as well. "Break it up you two! Blizzara!!" she cast, freezing the ground beneath their feet and making them slip! "Whoa!! Ooof!!" they cried, stumbling. "Haha! My magic's been upgraded, too!" Whisk grinned. Master Yen Sid cleared his throat loudly, giving them a piercing stare from his seat. Their faces all went bright red as they scrambled to stand up straight in a row in a respectful manner. "Uhhh... S-sorry, Master Yen Sid! We'll mop up that ice later!" Lucky babbled. The sorcerer chuckled softly. "No, you have been kept from your journeys long enough. Now that your trio is reunited, the time has come to venture forth once more. I am trusting you with this mission: stop the knight known as Garland from achieving his dark goals. The three of you are stronger together, so help one another." he stated. Lucky gave a salute. "Of course, master, sir! You can count on us!" he said. "What's a Garland?" Whisk asked. "We'll fill ya in later..." Tails murmured. Yen Sid nodded slowly and gave a small smile. "Best of luck. May your hearts be your guiding key." he said as his words of parting. With that, the trio finally set out for a new adventure!
The trio finally returned to the Galestrom, finding Winston outside the ship, bidding farewell to Winslow. "Hopefully I survive to see you again, kupo..." Winston murmured. Gator and Travis were also standing nearby. "So, you three are setting out again? Well, take care, all of you! I hope I see you again, safe and sound!" Travis said with a warm smile. "Don't get 'norted! I got 'norted once... How did I get outta that? Gaaah, am I still Xehenort!?" Gator babbled. Travis sighed. "That...never happened. Calm down. You're fine..." he mumbled. Lucky chuckled softly, and he waved good bye to them as did Whisk and Tails. "Maybe find us yourself next time, Travis..." he said wryly. "Not that we don't love seeing ya, Gator..." Whisk smiled. With that, the trio climbed aboard the Galestrom along with Winston, and got to their familiar seats. "...So... Where to, kupo?" Winston asked. Tails scratched his head. "Good question... I couldn't get the parts to build a new detector, so we can't track Garland by the heartless..." he murmured. They all slumped back in their chairs with dumb looks on their faces. "Maybe we should've asked Yen Sid to draw us a map before heading to the ship..." Whisk grumbled. A moment of silence followed, and Lucky sat up thoughtfully. "...May your heart be your guiding key..." he murmured. He held a hand over his heart, and after a moment, he materialized the keyblade in his other hand. "The keyblade... Yes..." he murmured, stepping to the front of the ship. "Where are you going, kupo?" Winston mumbled. Pointing the keyblade, Lucky found a light emanating from it, which left the ship, and burst upward, creating a wormhole outside the atmosphere of Twilight Town! Everyone jumped to the windshield to get a look. "Whoa!!" they gasped. "Ooof! You're squashing me, guys!" Lucky grunted against the glass. "The keyblade is guiding the way?" Tails wondered. Everyone quickly returned to their seats. "Guess we won't know until we follow the path, kupo... Buckle up... This could be a bumpy ride..." Winston said nervously. With that, the Galestrom started to lift off the ground, and then made a sharp turn upward, into the wormhole, as Travis and Gator waved farewell below.
Upon landing in the world the Keyblade had pointed the way to, and stepping out of the ship, the trio were startled as Whisk's wand started to glow. "Ahh!! Already?! M-merlin prepped my wand to transform us, if...aaah!" she gasped as light automatically covered them and transformed their bodies! They were all still technically cats and a fox, but they seemed a bit smaller. Lucky had taken on a greyish-blue hue, and had a gold coin stuck on his head. Tails had turned into a sort of black fox, with some red fur highlights. He still had his two tails, but his shield felt a bit heavier. Whisk was also a grayish feline, with kind of a twirly spiraled tail. Her wings were gone, and she dropped her wand. "Ahh... N-no... I wasn't ready...for... my magic... ahhh!! Wh-where am I??" she stammered. Lucky looked at her with alarm. "Mee-yow! What's wrong, Whisk?" he asked. "Her magic is tied to her wings, as is her memory. No wings, no magic, no reliable memory!" Tails stammered. Lucky picked up Whisk's wand and pocketed it. "Are we stuck like this without her magic? Wait, forget that! Whisk, stay with us! We're right here!" he said, stepping next to her. "I-I'm gonna forget you... No, I don't wanna forget...!" she said, welling up with tears. At that moment, a boy dressed in a red coat and cap stepped through the nearby tall grass. "Whoa... A Glameow, Zorua...and is that Meowth a different color?! Maybe it's a shiny!" he murmured. "Keep your eyes on me, Whisk! We'll figure this out!" Lucky insisted, astonishing the boy further. "He can talk! ...He might be worth using the Master Ball..." he murmured, pulling a purple and white ball with red spots from his pocket. He threw the ball right at Lucky, and before he could react, it had opened up and pulled him inside! "MEEE-YOOOOW!!" Trapped inside the ball, Lucky panicked for a moment, but then his keyblade emerged. "I'm not staying in here!" he grunted, pointing the blade in the direction he'd entered and unlocking the ball from inside... In a moment, he was beside Whisk again, and the ball was on the floor! "That wasn't funny!" he snapped at the boy.
The boy picked up the ball, looking at it awkwardly. "Why didn't the Master Ball work? I guess a Meowth would be dumb to waste it on, anyway, but..." he murmured. "You would trap a kitty cat in a little ball!? Seriously, kid??" Lucky snapped. A small, yellow rodent with red circles on his cheeks and a lightning bolt shaped tail stepped out from behind the boy, looking a tad irate. "Pika! Pikachu!!" it snapped, as though yelling at Lucky. "Huh?" he mumbled. The boy rubbed his head. "Yeah, I guess some Pokemon don't like Poke Balls... That's why I let Pikachu wander free of his." he said. "Pokemon? What's a Pokemon? Who are you?" Whisk asked dizzily. The boy looked at her with concern. "Well... Pokemon are...Pokemon! They're what you are! Trainers like me catch Pokemon and battle them to make them stronger! Pikachu and I are aiming to become champions one day!" he said, which Pikachu gave a pumped-up cheer for. Tails crossed his arms. "I see... So you treat animals in this world like tools for your sport. Your own amusement..." he murmured. The boy gasped. "What? No, that's not it at all! My Pokemon and I are friends! I think we got off on the wrong foot... Ahem... My name's Red!" he said with a small smile. "Hey there, Red. My name's Zeke! RAWR!!" Looking around, Lucky saw a dragon flying above, but it looked different from how Zeke normally looks. Different shades of green, with big red bug eyes and green wings outlined with red as well. "A Flygon??" Red stammered. Zim jumped off Zeke's back, and Red gasped to see him. "What's up with that Elekid??" Zim resembled a small Pokemon that normally was yellow with a plug-shaped pair of horns on its head. However, Zim retained his usual blue color, and his horns were crooked. "Zim is here to take the Master of Balls! Give up, or face our dark wrath!" he sneered. As Lucky clutched his keyblade, heartless started to emerge around them. They resembled green dinosaur-looking dolls, with the heartless emblem on their bellies and sinister glowing eyes! "Aaah! Th-this is the freakiest substitute attack I've ever seen!" Red stammered. "They're heartless... Stay behind us, kid, and whatever you do, don't let them take that ball!" Lucky warned.
The Substitute heartless were not very mobile, and certainly not prepared for Lucky and Tails after the training they had done together over the past couple weeks! With a clash of keyblade and shield, an escape route was cleared, and the group fled past Zim as Zeke landed beside him, looking frustrated. The group fled fast, arriving at the gate to a city before they stopped to rest. "Alright... it doesn't look like Zeke is chasing us. He probably wants to catch us off guard, I guess..." Lucky sighed. "Hey... where's your Glameow friend?" Red asked. Lucky and Tails both went wide-eyed and looked around. "Whisk?? Whiiiiisk!?" they called, to no avail. Red looked worried, too. "That's not good. Aside from those monsters, your friend could get caught by Team Rocket if she goes wandering around by herself..." he warned. "Chaaa..." Pikachu sighed. Tails sat on all fours, as it was more natural for his Zorua form to do so, and looked up at red intently. "Hmm... If Zeke is after that ball, kid, you'd better give it to us." he suggested. Red shook his head. "No way! Do you know how hard it was to get ahold of this?!" he stammered. Lucky nodded. "Right. Besides, it's better we chase Zeke out of this world altogether! So... we should stick by this kid and use him as bait to lure Zeke out?" he suggested. "I don't like it... We don't know what they want that ball for..." Tails said. "Do I get any say in this...?" Red asked. "Pikaaa..." Pikachu mumbled, tilting his head and staring at Lucky in annoyance. "Well, ahh... Why don't we look for Whisk together, and we'll figure the rest out afterwards, deal?" Lucky suggested. Red nodded. "Yeah, deal. I am worried about your friend. Let's head back and search for her!" he said. Tails looked at the city gate. "If we get lost, let's meet up back here... Celadon City...home of the...Rocket Game Corner?" he murmured, reading the sign.
The group walked back close together, calling out to Whisk as they went, hoping to catch her attention. They headed off in different directions, wondering if she took a wrong turn while fleeing from Zeke. Eventually, they felt the ground beneath their feet shift. "Huh? You feel that, Tails?" Lucky asked. Suddenly, the floor collapsed under them, and they fell into a hole! "Meee-yooow!!" Lucky shouted as Tails and Red landed on top of him, followed by Pikachu last! "Ughh... Darn, I can't fly with these goofy Pokemon tails..." Tails groaned as they all slowly rose to their feet. "This looks like a trap..." he added, looking annoyed. Laughing was heard above them. "Prepare for trouble!" a female voice called. "Make it double!" a male added. The female and male alternated as they recited a sort of poem. "To protect the world from devastation! To unite all peoples within our nation! To denounce the evils of truth and love! To extend our reach to the stars above!" A brief pause as the female peered down the hole, revealing her long red hair and slightly skimpy white uniform with a big letter R emblazoned on her shirt. "Jessie!" she announced her name. The male then peered down from beside her, purple hair and his own white uniform with the same red R. "James!" he announced his name. "Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light! Surrender now or prepare to fight!" they finished. "Meowth! That's riiiiight!" a Meowth with whiter fur peered down from between Jessie and James, smirking at the group, before giving a sudden frown. "Hey! Alolan Meowth in pants! Think you look all stylish! Rrr, show off!" he shouted. "...He calls ME a show off?" Lucky murmured. "Oooh, a Pikachu! Let's grab it!" James suggested. Jessie slapped him in response. "We're not here for that! We're here for the Master Ball!" she said, pointing down at Red. "How does everyone know I have it!?" Red stammered. "Team Rocket has spies all over kid! Now caugh it up!" James ordered. "Or, we could just swipe it!" Meowth grinned, holding an odd sort of device that extended a hand down and reached right into Red's pocket as he gasped in alarm! The Master Ball was pulled up, and Jessie gave a cackle. "Thank you very much! Enjoy your stay in the hole, kid!" she taunted as the Team Rocket trio began to run off. "Hey! Get back here!" Lucky shouted as he and Tails both started trying to climb up the hole. "Ow! You're stomping my fingers!" Lucky gasped, grabbing the fox's tail as he started to fall. "Yikes!! Luckyyyy!!" Tails cried as he stumbled back on top of him. Red scratched his head. "You guys...might wanna practice teamwork. Like me and my Pokemon. Pidgeotto, I choose you!" he said, tossing a ball to let out a brown bird with reddish plumage on its head. "Fly us out of this hole!" he asked. Taking hold of Pidgeotto's talons, Red was lifted up. "What about us??" Tails stammered. "I'll send Pidgeotto back down. Don't worry. I'm sure I know where Team Rocket's going..." he stated.
Whisk sat by the side of the road, looking quite confused. She perked up her head as Team Rocket was running by. "Keep runnin'! The boss'll give us all promotions for snaggin' this!" Meowth sniggered. Whisk squinted at Meowth, but shook her head. Then, Zeke and Zim ran by. "Darn it. Now those three have the Master Ball. Hurry up, Zim!" Zeke grunted. Whisk stared at them, and then rubbed her head. "Aaaahh... C'mon, think! I'm forgetting some real important stuff, I know it!" she whined, pacing back and forth. Something was flying overhead, and hesitated, glancing downward. Whisk stopped pacing as its shadow was cast over her. She heard a deep voice in her head, "Your mind is in turmoil... I sense it." Looking up, she saw a feline creature with whitish fur. He had a long purple tail, three fingered hands, and a sort of tube connecting his head to his back behind his neck. He was an imposing figure, but his expression was oddly gentle. "Wh-who are you? Never mind, I'll forget..." Whisk sighed. The creature spoke in her mind using telepathy. "I am Mewtwo... My psychic powers are incredibly strong. I may be able to help you. But I need you to be calm and at peace..." he said, landing near her and placing his fingers to her head gently. "Ahhh... Calm? Uhm... O-okay... I can't remember anything except I'm sure I'm in the wrong body, but I'll try, sure..." she babbled, drooping her tail to the ground and taking deep breaths, closing her eyes. Mewtwo's eyes started to glow purple, and he started to use his powers on her. "Focus your thoughts... You want to remember something... Reach out and take the memory..." his deep voice whispered. Whisk groaned softly, straining. Suddenly, her eyes shot open wide. "Lucky! I-I need to find Lucky!" she gasped. Mewtwo removed his hand from her head and nodded. "Hold on to this memory and find your friend. I am sure he will help you..." he stated, lifting his eyes skyward. "You're not coming with me?" Whisk asked sadly. "I hear a call... I must go. I hope I was able to help you..." Mewtwo stated before taking to the sky again. Whisk nodded as she watched him go. "Me too... Good bye..." she sighed.
Red led Lucky and Tails back to Celadon City, heading for the Rocket Game Corner. As they approached, they found customers fleeing the building, being chased by heartless resembling black ghosts with evil looking eyes and the heartless emblem contained in their dark bodies. "Looks like we're on the right track! Let's check inside!" Lucky said, the group hurrying past the fleeing people and distracted heartless. Whisk saw them as she was running over, and nodded. "Wait up, Lucky!" she huffed. Entering the building, Lucky looked around. "Okay, Zeke, this isn't funny! Call off those heartless!" he shouted. He didn't see Zeke, though. Scourge the hedgehog was at the back of the building, lifting a poster and pressing a button to cause a door to open, which revealed a hidden staircase! He glanced back at Lucky with a smirk. "No Zeke in here. Guess that means you're outta luck, dweeb!" he laughed before dashing down the stairs! Lucky stared, stammering. "Th-that was Sonic! But green! T-tails?" he babbled, glancing at his friend. Tails crossed his arms and shrugged. "You know as well as I that there's dozens of alternate Sonics out there." he scoffed. Whisk came in behind them at that moment. "Hey, Lucky!" she shouted, making him jump. "Mee-yow!! Oh, Whisk! Y-you're okay! Thank goodness..." he sighed. Whisk nodded, but looked worried. "I followed someone this way... Argh... D-dragon? He was chasing somebody... Can't remember..." she groaned. "Zeke? Wow, can't believe you recognized him as a Pokemon in your state..." Tails said. Whisk nodded. "H-he'd run off in this general direction. I went this way after...someone helped me... Huh... Can't remember that guy either..." she sighed. Lucky took her hand. "Well, you're with us now. Stay close and you'll be safe." he said. Red was looking outside at the Spirit heartless. "The ghosts have stopped chasing people and are watching the door... We're trapped!" he stammered. They glanced at the stairs. "Well, we were planning to go after Team Rocket anyway..." Lucky said.
Heading down the stairs, a few problems quickly presented themselves. The Substitute and Spirit heartless were fighting with Pokemon sent out by Team Rocket members in black uniforms. Down the halls appeared to be sealed doors that would ordinarily require a key card to open. Making matters worse, Whisk was still looking quite distractable in her current state. "Alright... Teamwork, like you said, right Red?" Lucky suggested. Red nodded, and grabbed one of his Poke Balls. "Go, Raticate!" he cried, sending out a brown rat Pokemon with big sharp teeth. "Huh... Bucky?" Lucky stammered, squinting at the Pokemon. He shrugged as the group headed down the hall. "I'll unlock the doors!" Lucky said, gripping his keyblade. Whisk was looking at the filthy Pokemon a Rocket Grunt was using, Grimer. "This place is a mess! I should find a mop..." she muttered. Tails took her arm, holding his shield with the other hand to defend them from incoming attacks. "Whisk, stay by me! Guess I'm helping the team by babysitting..." he sighed. "Pikaaaa!!" Pikachu scampered ahead, using thunderbolt attacks on the heartless while Raticate took to attacking Grimers and winged Zubat used by the Rockets. Lucky pointed his keyblade at a key card slot, and light shot from it, unlocking the door! As it slid open, he saw Scourge holding the key card. "I'll save ya some time; This was the wrong door. Hey! Quit zapping my heartless!" he growled, speeding past Lucky. The cat blinked a couple times and shrugged. "Oookay... I'll try the next door..." he mumbled. Whisk was ducked under a table as Tails flung his shield at several incoming heartless, the shield becoming electrified as it soared to cause extra damage before he pulled it back to him with the magnetic base. "Interesting gizmo..." said Scourge as he stopped next to him. "What are you doing? We can't be seen together!" Tails whispered. "I'm gettin' bored here. I want you to grab that Master Ball for me. It can catch basically anything, and that might come in handy." he stated. Tails growled softly. "I'm working on it! I'm not dumb!" he spat. "I hope not, Miles..." Scourge scoffed, speeding off as Whisk climbed out from under the table. "Tails, what... Are you?" she babbled. Tails looked at her with alarm, but noticed a look of strain on her face. "...Hey, where's Lucky?" she asked, "And why do you look like Copter?" she added. Tails rubbed his head and sighed. Whisk wouldn't remember, it seemed. That was a close one, though...
"Arbok, poison sting!" Jessie called to her cobra Pokemon. "Weezing, smog attack!" James called to his gaseous balloon Pokemon. The two were facing down Zeke and Zim within an office chamber. Zeke tried to blow fire, but it came out as dragonbreath. "Ugh, you smell, Zeke!" Zim grunted before poison stingers pelted him! "Ah! Oof! You dare harm Zim!?" he shouted. As Lucky, Whisk, Tails and Red entered, the trainer knew just what to do. "Pikachu! Thunder!!" The electric mouse gave a cry, and sent a crash of electricity to zap all of them, and Meowth too. For some odd reason, an explosion followed, and Jessie, James, their Pokemon, as well as Zeke and Zim all rocketed through a hole in the roof and off into the distance. "Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off agaaaaaain!!" Jessie, James and Meowth cried in unison. "What the heck was that?!" Zeke yelled, "I mean, the jolt didn't even hurt, I just got flung by an explosion!" he groaned, disappearing into the distance with Team Rocket. A light clapping was heard, and the group looked to see a man in a black suit with impeccably groomed hair and a darkly serious face stand up from the desk. "Quite a display of power, boy. You've done well to make it this far. But you didn't honestly think I'd let you keep the Master Ball you kept from us at Silph Co, did you?" the man said with a sneer. "Giovanni!" Red gasped, clenching his fists as Pikachu sparked threateningly, "The head of Team Rocket!" he explained for Lucky and company's benefit. Lucky stepped forward with keyblade in hand. "We've got ya outnumbered! Turn over the ball!" he smirked. Giovanni looked at him with a chuckle. "How quaint. A talking Meowth. I like to keep felines myself, but mine must have power... Power to serve my goals! You're all too late to stop me, I'm afraid. I have lured back my prize, and the Master Ball has made it mine!" he declared, holding up the purple ball and opening it to release its captive, which Whisk gasped to see. "Behold, the ultimate Pokemon... Mewtwo!!" Giovanni sneered, giving a sinister laugh!
Whisk stared in shock. "M-mewtwo... Guys, it's him! Mewtwo helped me earlier! We can't hurt him!" she stammered, some memories coming back. However, looking at Mewtwo's face, there was a clear darkness in his eyes. "Bad news... I think he's no longer here to help, Whisk." Tails grunted. Giovanni smirked. "It was smart of you to bring dark types, but it will do you no good against Mewtwo. Psychic and Aura Sphere attacks! Bring them to their knees!" he commanded. Mewtwo could not resist his orders, and started by lifting Pikachu and Whisk into the air with Psychic! "Whoa! Hold on!" Lucky gasped, grabbing Whisk's tail and trying to pull her back down! "Ow! S-stop helping!" Whisk yelped. Mewtwo then hurled spheres of Aura energy at Lucky and Tails, striking at their Pokemon weaknesses with fighting-type moves! "Mee-yooow!!" Lucky wailed, tossed like a rag doll from the attack! Red watched this with panic, and reached for another Poke Ball. "It matters not what Pokemon you send, boy... It would be best to just surrender and save yourself some pain!" Giovanni sneered. Lucky struggled to his feet. "N-no! Teamwork, guys, remember? I know what to do... Cover me!" he said, rushing into action. Giovanni snickered and pointed at the Meowth, so Mewtwo prepared another Aura Sphere. Before it could strike Lucky, though, Tails leapt in and blocked it with his shield! "Haaa!! Nice try! You won't break this shield!" he grinned. Red saw this and nodded. "Pikachu! Thundershock!" he called. Pikachu cried out and started to shoot sparks at Mewtwo while he was being held by Psychic. "Fool! Such a weak attack won't stop Mewtwo... What?!" Giovanni gasped. The sparks were going into Mewtwo's eyes, and he couldn't see, enabling Lucky to pass by and evade his Aura Spheres! He also dropped Whisk in his distraction, who grabbed onto Mewtwo's tail to distract him further. At this point, Lucky reached Giovanni. "Your control over Mewtwo is done! Hiyaaa!!" he shouted, flicking his keyblade at Giovanni's hand to knock the Master Ball into the air! He then pointed his keyblade, firing a light beam that, oddly enough, made the Master Ball explode! When the dust of the explosion settled, Giovanni was nowhere to be seen. "Huh? He escaped!" Lucky stammered. Mewtwo shook his head and gently placed Pikachu on the ground. "...Thank you..." he murmured, his tail lowering Whisk to the ground as well. "Ah, hehe... You're welcome!" Whisk giggled. Mewtwo then took off through the hole in the roof without another word.
With that crisis averted, Lucky and the others returned to the Galestrom, ready to set out for another world. Red was there to see them off. "Bye, guys... Wherever you're going. Hopefully I'll get to see Mewtwo again...when I'm Pokemon League Champion!" the trainer said. Pikachu smiled and cheered in agreement. Tails was holding on to Whisk's hand to keep her from wandering. "Well, good luck... We'll do our best in our own quest, too." he said. Heading aboard the ship, they got a chuckle out of Winston. "You guys leavin' like that, kupo? How do I know it's really you, kupo?" he smirked. Lucky produced his keyblade, and Winston chuckled again. "Guess you guys are stuck like that. Maybe we should go back to see Yen Sid again!" he murmured. As the ship took off and returned to space, though, Lucky, Whisk and Tails returned to their normal forms. "Ahh, what a relief! I feel like me again!" Tails sighed. "Who, what, where?! What happened?" Whisk babbled. "...You don't remember anything?" Lucky asked. Whisk blinked a couple times. "Uhmm... I feel like I'm missing time. Are we there yet?" she asked. Tails sighed, a little relieved. She didn't recall seeing him with Scourge. "We'll fill you in on the way..." he muttered. Lucky nodded. "The important thing is, we're a team again! ...Although, I wonder what Zeke wanted with the Master Ball?" he said curiously, "And who was that green hedgehog?" Tails started to sweat a little at that. "Ahh... Who knows anything. Zeke's crazy. C'mon, get your keyblade out so we can figure out where we're going next!" he suggested. Lucky nodded. New adventures awaited them... What world would they find themselves at next?
Chapter 8 - Timeless
World - Timeless Journeys
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
Pokemon is (c) Nintendo & Game Freak
"A whole new world!
A new fantastic point of view!
No one to tell us no, or where to go,
or say we're only dreaming!" - A Whole New World; Aladdin
Tails awkwardly watched Whisk as the Galestrom flew through the space between worlds. Was it possible she could remember Scourge? Would it ruin his plans if she did? It made him anxious. "Hey, Tails..." Lucky said, startling him out of his thoughts. "Whaa, what??" he babbled. Lucky glanced at him curiously but shrugged off his strange reaction. "Any idea where we should go next?" he asked. "I thought we were following the Keyblade now, not me." Tails huffed. Lucky nodded. "Yeah...but the Keyblade's not looking for your Sonic...I think." he chuckled softly. Tails scratched his head. "Err... Don't worry about it. I'm err... Sure he'll turn up." he mumbled. Whisk patted him on the back. "That's the spirit! Don't give up!" she smiled. Tails looked at his shield glumly. "Why are they so kind to me? I've been in this journey for myself the whole time. They should be annoyed by now..." he thought. "Err, uhm... Kupo-po? What do we make of this?" Winston asked, the Galestrom slowing to a stop as they neared something floating in space. Lucky, Whisk and Tails took a look, and saw a large, white door. It was floating before them, as though calling out to them. There were images of clocks emblazoned on the front of the door. "Well, there's something you don't see every day..." Lucky murmured. It looked big enough for the Galestrom to fly through, if they could open it. The Keyblade suddenly yanked Lucky's arm, acting with a mind of its own! A beam shot from it to the door, and it creaked open, bright light spilling out and obscuring their view of what was beyond! "Whoaaa..." Whisk murmured, "What do you think is in there?" she asked. Tails rubbed his head nervously. This felt like some kind of trap. "Well, we ARE following the Keyblade, right?" Lucky smiled. Tails gulped. "Wait, we're gonna fly in without thinking??" he babbled. "Yes, sir, captain!" Winston saluted, taking the ship forward. "Gaaah!! Wait, that wasn't an order!!" Tails gasped. The ship soard into the doorway, and ticking clocks could be heard around them. They were passing into a new world...
Lucky awoke in a deep forest. He wasn't sure how he got there, but he saw no sign of Tails or Whisk near him. He rubbed his head. "That landing must not have gone so well..." he mumbled, "Tails? Whisk? Where are ya?!" he shouted. "Shhh! We're sleeping..." Lucky heard voices call back to him. "Oh, uh... sorry..." he mumbled, looking around but seeing no one...only some rather massive flowers growing over his head. "...Gosh, it must rain here a lot..." he mumbled. "Shh!" the voice repeated angrier. Moving on, Lucky heard voices singing up ahead. "Sounds friendly... Maybe they've seen the others..." he thought. Coming to a clearing in the forest, he found a long table set up in front of a small house. None of the chairs around the table matched, and an eclectic set of dishes were messily set around the table as a wild haired man in a large green top hat was singing with a brown hare in a red coat. "A veeeery merry unbirthday to me! ... A verrrry merry unbirthday to you! ... Let's all congratulate us with another cup of tea! A very merry unbirthday to you!" the pair were singing. Lucky approached the table with a curious tilt of the head. A tasty looking cake was at the middle of the table with "Unbirthday" written in frosting. The two singing friends were happily sipping tea between verses of their song. "Uh... Excuse me?" he asked. "What? What? How rude! Can't you see we're in the middle of a celebration?!" the man in the hat babbled with a glare. "Would YOU like someone to burst in during the middle of YOUR unbirthday song?" the hare said, waving his teacup at Lucky. "Ahh... I suppose...not? Uhm... Happy birthday?" he babbled. "No, not birthday, unbirthday! There's just one birthday every year..." the hare stated. "But you have three sixty four unbirthdays to celebrate!" the hatted man giggled. Lucky scratched his head. That didn't sound so special. "Well, gee... Guess it's my unbirthday, too..." he shrugged. "It IS?!" the duo gasped. Before Lucky knew it, they had him seated at the table and were dancing around him singing and spilling tea. It was an embarrassing scene for Tails and Whisk to walk in on. "There you are!" Whisk sighed. "...Help me...they're mad..." Lucky whimpered. "Oh, we're all mad here!" came a new voice. A striped, pink Cheshire Cat appeared on the awning of the small house nearby. He was...standing on top of his own head! He then picked his head up and placed it casually onto his neck. "Not as mad as you three, though... Diving into mysterious doors. Not know which way or when you might arrive... On the other paw, perhaps it's best that you're here. Who else will chase the shadows?" the cat said with a grin before disappearing. Tails blinked a couple times. "This place is very...odd." he muttered.
Peering out from behind a tree at them was Zim. "They don't see me... Now to spring my trap... FALL TO THE POWER OF ZIM!!" he shouted, causing the nearby flowers to open up and reveal angry faces in their blooms. "Be... quiet!!" they yelled. Lucky leapt out of his chair and joined Tails and Whisk in checking out the commotion. "Oh, wait!! We were boiling another pot of tea!" the Mad Hatter cried, unhappy to see Lucky go. Lucky gripped his keyblade as Zim summoned creeper plant heartless to attack them before dashing through a nearby door very similar to the one they'd arrived through. "Another door? I guess Zeke and Zim were behind this!" Lucky reasoned, blocking with his keyblade as the heartless spat some kind of seeds at him. Tails tossed his shield and sliced through one of the plant's stems with it. "I get the feeling if we don't follow them, these worlds will be in trouble!" Tails reasoned. "Fira!" Whisk cast, burning up the next creeper plant while Lucky moved in to strike at the attacking roots the other was sending out. "Guess we'd better hope Winston sticks by the ship here!" she said. "And that these doors will take us back the way we came..." Tails added with concern. As the heartless were defeated, the Cheshire Cat reappeared. "The shadows have left, left this place, left this time... Off to stalk other wheres and whens. If you follow down the rabbit hole, where oh where will you go? Only the march of time will tell..." he said with a giggle. Lucky crossed his arms. "C'mon, can't you be more clear? We're all cats here..." he said before glancing at Tails, "...mostly." The Cheshire Cat grinned widely. "I can be most very clear indeed..." he said, slowly fading away before their eyes. "Poor choice of words, Lucky!" Tails sighed. "Hey, wait! Come back!" Lucky stammered, but it was no use. The cat was chuckling and singing to himself as he faded away into the darkness. Whisk sighed. "I think he was just teasing us anyway. How would he know what Zeke and Zim are planning?" she asked. Lucky scratched his head. "I dunno... Something about him... Seems like he's got ways of knowing things... Well, let's go before Zim gets away!" he suggested. The trio rushed through the door, where they soon heard waves crashing against a beach... They were out of the woods, and arriving on an island!
Stepping a distance away from the door, the trio found themselves on a beautiful beach. They weren't the only ones there, either. Lots of people were around, enjoying the sun and surf. Lucky glanced back towards the door, nestled under the shade of a palm tree. "Is it... safe to leave the door unguarded?" he wondered, "We are going between worlds." he stated. "Not our problem." Tails shrugged. "But... Master Yen Sid taught me to maintain the world order." Lucky murmured. "Merlin mentioned that, too." Whisk added. "Within reason." Tails said, "We can't take care of everything." he sighed. They each shrugged and headed for the beach, looking for Zim or Zeke. Instead, they saw an odd creature building up a sandcastle, only to tear it down. He was furry and blue...but he sure wasn't Sonic. There was a little girl in a flower print dress near him. "Ah, ah! Stitch! We build sandcastles as works of art for others to enjoy! Don't tear it down!" the girl sighed. The creature, Stitch, grumbled something inaudible. "There, there. You're being very well behaved on this trip..." the girl said, patting him on the head. She then turned away to set up a towel and a picnic basket for snack time. Lucky had raised his keyblade while observing the creature, but decided now that he wasn't a heartless. "That critter doesn't look like he belongs in this world either..." he murmured. "Don't judge, Lucky. You never know." Whisk pointed out. Stitch looked over, and saw Lucky holding the keyblade. "Ni? ...Hmm... Ter-ra? Ven? Aa-koo-wah?" he babbled, shaking his head as though struggling with an old memory. He then growled and leapt at Lucky, grabbing the keyblade in his jaws! "Mee-yow!! Hey! Leggo!" Lucky shouted. The little girl looked up and gasped. "Stich! Stop it! That doesn't belong to you!" she cried, rushing over. His ears twitched, and Stitch released the keyblade, standing back with a sheepish expression. The girl took him into her arms, an awkward task as he was about as big as she was. "I'm sorry... I'm Lilo. I'm trying to train my dog into a model citizen like Mr. Bubbles said, but he backslides now and then..." she explained, carrying him back to the towel and setting him by the wrecked sandcastle. "...Mr. Bubbles?" Lucky snickered. "He doesn't look like a dog. Honestly... He looks more experimental than you two..." Tails observed. Whisk nodded. "Yeahhh... He is a bit funny-lookin..." she stated. "You guys!? Argh, Zim didn't get you off our trail good enough!" Looking up, the trio saw Zeke growling at them, flapping his wings. "Well... your beach vacation's over! These heartless will be much nastier!" he sneered.
Aquatic-looking heartless emerged behind Lucky and company, but they started rushing towards the tasty hearts scattered throughout the shoreline. No one had noticed them yet, except Lucky's group. "Oh no! Those monsters are gonna get the people!" Lucky gasped, summoning his keyblade and chasing a jellyfish-like Sea Neon heartless! Some green-finned Screwdivers sped out of range of Whisk's magic, taunting her. "Slow down, you pests!" However, Stitch had seen them, and growled, memories of dangers in his past coming to his mind. He glanced back to ensure Lilo wasn't watching, and then let an extra pair of arms pop out of his sides, each one clutching a laser pistol! "Yaaaahh!" he shouted before spouting something in an alien language and zapping the Screwdivers! Whisk looked at him in surprise. "More than funny lookin'... Uhhh, thanks!" she waved. Stich nodded, leaping into action and grabbing on as another Screwdiver tried to whizz past him! Tails was busy bashing a Sea Neon with his shield. "Anyone see where Zeke went?! This is just a distraction, you know!" he said, deducing that from what Zeke had said before. Lucky clobbered another Sea Neon with his keyblade and looked around. "Uhhh... Uhmm... Shoot, he's gone." he sighed. Soon enough, the only heartless left was the one Stitch was clinging to. He clawed and beat at it until it vanished, but then he tumbled down, crashing right into the picnic Lilo was setting up, finding himself trapped under the towel! "Ahh! What?! Stiiiitch!!" Lilo cried. Stitch was babbling incoherently as he popped out from under the towel, shadow-boxing with his fists. Fortunately, he had the foresight to hide his extra arms again. He saw Lilo looking at him sternly, and he stopped and looked at the ground sheepishly. "What am I gonna do with you?" she sighed. Stitch trailed his finger in the sand with a dejected look. Watching him, Lilo smiled sympathetically. "Hey, it's okay. I won't give up on you!" she said, leaning down to hug him. "You're my Ohana now, Stitch. Ohana means family! And family means nobody gets left behind, or forgotten. We'll show Mr. Bubbles that you're a good dog, you'll see!" she said. Whisk watched them with a smile. "That's sweet... Makes it a shame he's hiding what he really is from her..." she said, to which Tails looked at the ground awkwardly. Lucky slung his keyblade over his shoulder and smiled. "No worries. They're family. When she finds out, it'll be okay!" he said. "You really think so?" Tails mumbled. Lucky nodded. "Sure! Look how she cares about him..." he pointed out. Tails shrugged. "Well... Let's go. Zeke must have slipped through another door..." he suggested.
Sure enough, they found yet another door, which Zeke had likely escaped through. Passing through it, the trio quickly found themselves underwater! Whisk's wand reacted, and quickly they were transformed from the waist-down...into mer-folk! Fortunately, the transformation maintained Whisk's wings, so there was no repeat of the last time. "MEE-YOW!! My legs! I can't feel my legs!!" Lucky panicked. "My Tails have turned into fancy fins...huh..." Tails murmured. "How can we talk underwater?!" Whisk stammered. While they were babbling in confusion, a red-haired mermaid in a seashell bikini top was watching them from behind some rocks. A lobster and a yellow fish floated beside her. "Where did they come from?" the fish wondered nervously. "I don't know, Flounder. They seem lost, don't you think, Sebastian?" she asked her lobster friend. "Ariel, don't even think about it! You don't know if you can trust them!" Sebastian warned. Ariel frowned at the lobster. "...If it were up to you, I'd just stay in my room and never come out." she huffed. "...That does sound safe... Ariel! Where are you going!?" Sebastian gasped as he saw Ariel approach Lucky and his friends. "Hello! What kinds of fish are you?" she asked. Lucky looked himself over. "Ahh... A catfish, I think..." he chuckled awkwardly. Tails decided to get straight to the point. "We're looking for a troublemaker. He came through this door." he said, pointing to the door they'd arrived through. Ariel glanced at it curiously. "Hmm... I've never noticed that door before..." she murmured. "Don't touch it!" Sebastian warned, "I'm afraid we haven't seen this troublemaker you're talking about, so swim on back where ye came from!" Flounder looked scared at the very idea of a troublemaker on the loose, and Ariel thought it over. "You know, since Daddy is the king, I'm sure he'd want to do everything in his power to stop any troublemakers in our kingdom." she stated. "Your dad's a king?! You're a princess!?" Whisk gasped. Sebastian held his head in frustration. "You're not supposed to just tell strangers that outta the blue! What if they were dangerous!?" he groaned. Lucky chuckled awkwardly. "W-well, this might be asking a lot, but can we see the king? Maybe he'd have some advice about these doors and our uh, troublemakers..." he asked. Ariel nodded. "Certainly! Swim this way! You can tell me all about where you came from along the way!" she chuckled. "Uhhh... Really there's not much to tell..." Whisk muttered, concerned about the world order. "Why me?" Sebastian groaned, hating this idea.
As they followed Ariel, Lucky glanced at Tails and Whisk uncertainly. "What do you think Zeke's game is here? Lure us so far from the ship that we end up stranded?" he asked. Tails shrugged. "I don't think he's smart enough for that." he mumbled. "I kinda get the feeling those heartless he sent to Stitch's world came from here." Whisk mumbled. That might be true, but it wasn't helpful. Soon, they'd arrived in a sort of undersea throne room, and Sebastion swam up to the throne's side. "You swim before the ruler of the seas! His majesty, King Triton!" he announced. A large merman with a great beard and a pointy crown sat upon the throne, looking down upon them. "Who are these? Ariel, where have you been swimming?" he asked in an aggrieved tone. "Nowhere, Daddy..." Ariel grumbled. Lucky looked around nervously. "Uhh, well, you see, sire... We came through this door, and we're wondering if maybe you might..." he was interrupted before he finished. "A door?? A white door, was it?!" he said, raising his voice. "What's wrong, Daddy?" Ariel asked. "Out, Ariel! You've done enough... I'll take this from here!" he insisted. Ariel crossed her arms. "You'll never stop treating me like a child, will you?" she pouted, swimming off with Sebastian nervously following her. Triton sighed. "She'll understand one day... Now, you three... I know what those doors are, and I know what you are. And I'll have none of your meddling in my kingdom! So I suggest you go back to that door and return whence you came!" he shouted. "S-someone else might have come through the door, though!" Whisk stammered. "It's my issue to deal with! Go back to your world!" Triton said sternly. Lucky gave a whimper and nodded, swimming out of the throne room with the others following. "That was a bust..." Tails sighed. "He knows about other worlds... But I suppose he is a king. Maybe that's natural." Lucky murmured. "We're not turning back, are we?" Whisk asked. Tails shook his head. "Zeke's around somewhere. Maybe there's another door, maybe he's here. But let's catch him and end this nonsense..." he suggested. Lucky nodded with a sigh. "Where do we look?" he asked. "You're looking for another of those doors?" They looked to see Flounder eavesdropping on them. "Uhh, yeah?" Lucky nodded. "I saw one earlier... Just, let's not tell Ariel. I don't want to get her in trouble for helping you. I kinda heard the king yelling..." he murmured. "Why are you helping us, then?" Tails asked. "...To stop the troublemaker..." Flounder murmured. That was all they needed to know. Flounder would lead the way...
Swimming through yet another door, Whisk's magic turned them back, or so they thought. This time, Lucky, Tails and Whisk found their bodies in squat black and white forms. A bit silly, almost cartoonish looking...but then, the world they'd stepped into looked the same. The whistle of a steamboat as it drifted across a river could be heard as the trio stepped onto a grassy hill. A large glass ball containing light was positioned at the top of the hill, and Zeke and Zim were standing before it, looking like they intended to steal it! "Well, finally found 'em!" Lucky grunted, holding his throat briefly as he noticed he sounded oddly muffled. "This is one strange world..." Tails said, his voice also muffled. "Look! Someone's standing up to Zeke and Zim!" Whisk pointed. Between Zeke, Zim and the ball of light was a large-eared fellow. A mouse in shorts, it appeared. He wasn't speaking, but he had a serious look as though he had every intent of keeping the dragon and zeti from their goal. "Guy of few words, huh? Well, the heartless will silence you forever!" Zeke smirked. Some strange hammer-shaped heartless appeared around the mouse, and he held his head in defense! "That's enough of that! Aerora!!" Whisk shouted, casting wind magic that hurled the heartless as well as Zeke and Zim into the air! Zeke started flying, but Zim fell flat on his face. "Ughhh!! Zim will have vengeance!!" he groaned. "Stop talking about yourself in the third person. It's annoying." Zeke growled. Tails tossed his shield out to knock the winded heartless around a bit more before Lucky ran in to finish them with his keyblade! "We'll take it from here, little guy!" he said to the round-eared mouse, who was hiding behind the ball of light and looking a bit nervously at him, now. "Huh? ...What, are you nervous around me because I'm a cat? Dude, my dad's a rat..." Lucky mumbled, rubbing his head sheepishly. Zim stood up and sneered at the trio. "You may have tracked us through the doors, but you won't stop us from taking this Cornerstone of Light! It is the perfect source of light to aid Mr. Garland's brilliant plan that I am surely not planning to steal and use to impress Zavok!" he shouted. Zeke palmed his own face slowly and with a great sense of irritation. "You talk way too much you little dolt..." he growled. "Wait, we wanna hear more! Tell us all about this brilliant plan!" Lucky grinned. "Well, it's..." Zeke grabbed up Zim and held his mouth. "Better idea. Let's summon a great big heartless to CRUSH them! RAWR!!" he roared.
Out of a corridor of darkness, a monstrous construction vehicle emerged, emblazoned with the heartless emblem! It that three cranes, ending in a claw, a shovel, and a small platform where a heartless in a hard hat was carrying dangerous-looking tools. "We need something to lift that dumb Cornerstone, so say hello to the Construct-O-Matic!" Zeke grinned. Tails gulped. "H-hullo..." he waved. The trio then scrambled out of the way as the shovel crashed down on the spot they'd been standing! "Meeeee-yow!! Where's Stitch when we need him, huh?" Lucky yelped. Whisk flew up to the heartless on the platform, weaving to dodge as it fired nails from a nail gun at her! "Yaaah!! This is nuts! Uhhh... Thundara!!" she cast, zapping the hard hat and shocking the heartless! Tails took cover with the mouse and revealed a compartment on the back of his shield, where sensors were taking readings. "This thing's gotta have a weakness... The driver's seat!" he murmured. The mouse jumped as he saw that the Construct-O-Matic had grabbed the Cornerstone with its claw! Steeling his courage, the mouse leapt up and started pulling at the pincers of the claw, trying to loosen them as the Cornerstone was slowly lifted up! "Lucky! Attack the driver's seat!" Tails shouted, blocking with his shield as the shovel crashed atop him! "T-tails!! Hold on!" Lucky gasped, running for the driver's seat while Whisk was getting swatted by the very platform the hard-hatted heartless was sitting on! Lucky found more of those hard hat heartless guarding the driver's seat of the Construct-O-Matic, pointing nail guns at him! "Guys, pointing those things around is dangerous! Someone could lose an eye!" Lucky gulped, using his keyblade to shield his eyes. A thud was heard on the roof of the vehicle, and glancing up, Lucky saw the mouse, who leapt down and kicked two of the hard hatted heartless! "Alright! Chaaaarge!!" Lucky cried, rushing forward and dodging nails as he thrusted his keyblade into one heartless, then slashed another. Finally, he leapt inside the driver's seat! "What do you think you're doing!? You're not liscensed to drive that!!" Zeke snarled. Lucky looked around at the levers and switches moving on their own. "Drop...the...ball!!" he grunted, pulling at the switches until the claw opened and dropped the Cornerstone! Then, Lucky lifted his keyblade and plunged it into the control panel! The machine tilted and convulsed before evaporating into fading darkness, a heart floating away from it. Zeke growled, still holding Zim's mouth. "You twerps will pay for this! C'mon, Zim! I miss color!" he shouted, rushing for the door to escape!
Lucky, Tails and Whisk helped the mouse steady the Cornerstone of Light back into its proper place. Then, the mouse gratefully shook Lucky's hand. "Hehe, sure. Anytime!" he smiled. The mouse waved and started to run off as Merlin stepped through the door. "This had better be the last of the doors. Confound whoever summoned these!" he grumbled. Whisk turned at the familiar voice. "Merlin?? What are you doing here?!" she gasped. Lucky and Tails joined her in greeting the wizard. "I sensed a disturbance in the time-space continuum. These doors you've traveled through appear to be responsible. Special time travel doors, they are." he explained. Tails' eyes widened. "Ahh, now I get what the Cheshire Cat was driving at..." he said. "At least someone does..." Lucky mumbled. Merlin sighed. "This was a real pain in the neck, but it's fortunate you're here. Lucky, you can use your keyblade to seal these doors and prevent their further use. Be sure to seal each one on your way back to your ship." he stated. Lucky nodded. "Guess we'd better... Can't believe we've been time-traveling..." he sighed. Whisk nodded. "Hey, Merlin, the enchantment you placed on my wand took my wings away in a world we visited recently. Sorry about the world order and all, but I need my wings or my magic and memory are done for..." she told the wizard. Merlin looked at her with concern. "Oh my, that sounds dreadful, I wish you'd mentioned that. Let me have a look at your wand and I'll take care of it for the future..." he said, accepting her wand. He made small talk as his magic altered the enchantment. "So, I wonder if you saw the king while you were here? Small mousy fellow? Hehe..." he chuckled. The trio each looked surprised. "No way... He's nothing like King Triton." Lucky chuckled. Merlin nodded. "I'm concerned, though. Usually in order to time travel, a version of oneself must exist at the destination. That's true to create these doors, too. But you've been chasing around Garland and his followers...and they were never detected traveling the worlds before... How could they summon these doors?" he wondered as he handed the wand back to Whisk. The trio glanced at one another with concern. "I don't know..." Tails murmured. Merlin shrugged and headed back to the door. "Well, best not to linger on it. Or linger here. Fooling around with time is never the best idea." he stated. "I'm pretty sure you don't have to be at the destination to time travel..." Lucky said, remembering Gemini back in his own world. "Your world may have its own rules." Tails pointed out. The purpose of the doors was solved, but the mystery still lingered. Perhaps Lucky and his friends would uncover the answers later. For now, it was time to seal these doors, return to the Gummi ship, and set off for the next adventure...
Chapter 9 - Upendi
World - Pride Land
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
"Can you feel the love tonight?
The peace the evening brings.
The world, for once, in perfect harmony
with all its living things." - Can You Feel The Love Tonight? - The Lion King
The latest world Lucky's group arrived at was a beautiful savannah. Whisk's wand kicked in when they arrived, and they each took on new, more feral-looking forms. Lucky became a small lion cub, keyblade clumsily clenched in his teeth, his scruffy young mane black in color. Whisk became a lioness, but fortunately Merlin's fix for her wand was working, and her wings remained on her back, making her look more like a little sphinx. Tails had shrunk down into a scrawny two-tailed meerkat form...fortunately his shield shrunk with him so he could carry it. "I feel very vulnerable in this world..." he murmured, ears drooping. Lucky stumbled over his paws, and Whisk fell onto him. "Ooof!! This'll take some getting used to..." she groaned. "You're telling me! Why are we like this?" Lucky grunted as she climbed off him. "World order. Some worlds don't have humanoids in them at all." Whisk explained. "Tails still has two legs!" Lucky protested. "I don't really control it..." Whisk said bashfully, "Let's just practice." she suggested. The practiced walking for a bit, then Tails held his shield while Lucky practiced swinging his keyblade in his teeth. Before long, they felt ready to get moving, but they heard a rather snooty voice shout in their direction. "There, sire! Strangers in the Pride Lands!" They looked up to see some sort of blue bird flapping overhead. On the ground behind him, a proud lion approached, and behind him, another meerkat riding on a warthog. The lion gave a stern roar as he approached. "Thank you, Zazu, I'll handle this. You two! You're outsiders, aren't you? Do you know the penalty for entering the Pride Lands?" he asked. Lucky and Whisk glanced at each other. "Outsiders? How did he know?" Lucky whispered. "Order! Don't admit anything!" Whisk whispered back. The other meerkat hopped off the warthog and stepped over. "I dunno, Simba, they're just kids! And look at the company they keep! Can't be all bad! Run away from home too, buddy? Can't stand all the diggin? I mean, all we do is dig so we can hide and hide so we can dig!" the meerkat ranted. Tails scratched his head. "Uhh, yup. Sounds about right." he agreed, just to blend in. "They must be lost!" the warthog said with concern. Simba glared at the black mane of Lucky. "The Outsiders sided with Scar when he took control of the Pride Lands. I banished them for the safety of those loyal to my father and me. You may be too young to understand this, but you have to go back where you came from. This is my decree as king. Come Timon, Pumbaa." he said, leading the meerkat, warthog and bird away. Lucky looked a bit awkward. "They seem to have mistaken us for someone else. We should probably leave, but let's make sure Zeke isn't around first." he suggested.
While they walked in search of Zeke, Tails noticed something different about his two companions. Lucky and Whisk were walking awfully close, and seemed to be having an unusually good time despite being stuck in weird four-legged bodies. Maybe something about these forms was messing with their minds? Tails observed Whisk's wing gently drape over Lucky's body, almost like a hug. Lucky seemed to think she was resting it, but to Tails, this looked very intentional. "...Oh my... Are they? No..." he muttered to himself, rubbing his meerkat head as they continued ahead. "I didn't plan for this! Such a bond could make them feel so strong...they think they don't need me anymore..." he thought, "And then what? I'm up the river without a... um... well, I don't think I should even go in the river in this form!" He groaned a bit as unpleasant thoughts filled his mind. "Hey, Tails! What's the holdup?" Lucky called back. He hurried after them so he wouldn't be missed, but as he caught them, they heard a zooming sound, and saw a trail of flames headed their way! When it stopped, Scourge the hedgehog was standing before them with a smirk. He didn't bother worrying about the world order, he was upright as a proud Moebian. "How cute, a couple of kittens! Or are ya all stuffed animals? Heh... You dweebs must be lookin' for Zeke!" he said, winking at Tails. Lucky crouched down, his keyblade appearing in his teeth. "You're not gonna talk with your mouth full, are ya?" Scourge smirked, "Zeke's not here, I'm runnin' the show today. Thought I'd see how you're doing with that keyblade. Quite a joke... I'm sure your key will be much happier when it's with its rightful owner...me!" he taunted. Whisk scoffed. "Good luck with that! Keyblades can't be stolen, dummy!" she pointed out. "Can't they?" Scourge smirked. Lucky started to run at him, when Scourge snapped his fingers and called forth some native heartless: Masked monkeys known as shamans as well as fliers with boxing gloves known as aerial knockers. "Uhhh... Who are you!?" Tails asked, trying to maintain his cover. Scourge smirked. "I'm Scourge the hedgehog. And when Garland's through with the worlds, I'm gonna rule over what's left of them!" he snickered, speeding off and leaving more flame trails behind! Lucky tried to talk with the keyblade in his mouth. "Vhat aa hreepth!" he said. "Yeah, he is a creep..." Whisk sighed, her wings glowing in preparation for a fight.
They were, a bit ironically for Tails, battling near a river. While Lucky and Whisk were busy keeping the shamans at bay, the aerial knockers were battering Tails' shield, and had knocked him to the water's edge. "Gaaah! I'm too small in this form! Someone do something!!" he stammered, tossing his shield at one heartless' head to take it out. But as he caught his shield on the rebound, the next punch knocked him over the edge and into the raging river! "Tails!!" Whisk cried. In her panic, she extended her wings and cried out, "Thundara!!" Bolts of lightning crashed around them, exterminating the heartless swiftly! However, Tails had been washed away from them and out of sight already! "Oh no..." Lucky whimpered, looking downstream, "D-did we just lose him?" he asked in fear. As the pair looked in worry, unsure what to do, a loud, sharp laugh startled the birds in the brush around them, and they looked to see a baboon with a hairy mane and a long stick with some sort of fruits on the end. He was leaning against this stick and looking at Lucky and Whisk with a big grin. "Couple of worrywarts, you are! But that was some impressive light show, little girl! You ain't from the Pride Lands, are you?" he said, more telling than asking. Lucky and Whisk looked at him awkwardly before turning back in the direction the river was flowing. "We gotta look for him!" Lucky said, ignoring the baboon. "He is quite fine, I assure you! I saw the whole thing!" the baboon called to them. They glanced back at him again, unsure if he was serious or a lunatic. The baboon motioned for them to follow and started athletically leaping along a path only he knew. "You both! Follow old Rafiki! He knows the way! Ha ha ha!" the baboon called to them. Lucky turned to Whisk. "Uhhh... Is he gonna take us to Tails?" he asked. "I haven't the faintest idea. He almost seems to find us funny." she shrugged. "Hey!! You better hurry up if you don't wanna be left behind! Hee hee hee!" Rafiki laughed, stopping to playfully shake his stick in their direction. Lucky and Whisk glanced at each other and nodded. "Follow old Rafiki, right? Least he's not calling more heartless..." Lucky chuckled. And so, the pair took off chasing the surprisingly spry old baboon, who had quite the mischievous look in his eye as he led them...
Rafiki led them to what appeared to be a huge leaf almost resembling a raft, which was floating at the edge of the river. He motioned for them to climb aboard. "If you wanna get to the end of the river, best way is to ride it!" he said. Whisk chuckled softly and hopped in, finding this huge leaf to be rather sturdy. Lucky joined her, stumbling and brushing rather close to her. Whisk blushed as they braced against one another. There wasn't much room. Rafiki hopped on the back of the leaf, which stuck up a bit like a seat, and used his stick to paddle it like a gondola. "You two are quite a pair. I saw how you watched each other's backs against those creatures." he said as the leaf drifted downstream. "...We could've watched Tails' back better..." Lucky sighed. Rafiki chuckled softly. "I think you were distracted. Distracted in a place...called Upendi." he said. Whisk raised an eyebrow. "What's... Upendi?" she asked. Rafiki paddled faster and smirked. "...I'm glad you asked..."
"...In Upendiii! Where the passion fruit grow sweet!
It's so divine that you lose your mind
as it sweeps you off your feet!
In Upendiii! Without a worry or a care!
It just takes two, to make it true!
Your heart will take you there!" (Upendi; song from The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride)
Rafiki's singing helped pass the time as they drifted downstream, the river carrying them faster as the water picked up speed. As the baboon stopped singing, though, Lucky tilted his head and looked around. "So, wait? Fruit? What were we even talking about?" he murmured, "What's this have to do with finding Tails, anyway?" Whisk's wing draped over him again, and she sat there silently with a blush, turning the words of the song over in her head. It was clear for a stranger to see, and now she was realizing. "Gosh... How could I not have realized it? I... I've fallen for him... I'm in love with Lucky..." she thought, edging closer to him in their little raft, purring softly. Rafiki smirked to observe this. At least one of them knew the meaning of Upendi now...
The leafy boat soon stopped at shore, and there they found Tails drying out his shield and looking a bit worried that the tech inside it might be shorted out. "You're alive!" Lucky cried, pouncing at him in a desire to hug his friend. Tails yelped as the lion cub pinned him. "Lucky!! I'm not dinner! Lemme go!" he yelped. Lucky chuckled softly. "I know, silly!" he smiled. Whisk smiled lightly, too, but then frowned as she looked around. They found themselves in a dark, dismal-looking place on the borders of the Pride Lands. "Rafiki, where are we? ...Rafiki?" she asked, but noticed he was gone. The trio heard voices, so they jumped into some nearby bushes. Two young lion cubs approached, laughing. One male and one female. "Did you see that! The one was like rrrraaawr!! And the other was like, rrraaarr-raaarr!! And... you were really brave!" the girl said excitedly. "Yeah? ...Well, you were pretty brave yourself." the boy replied smiling. Whisk watched them with a blush. "Awww, they're cute." she said. "Why are we still hiding?" Lucky asked. "Shh!" Whisk shushed him. "I'm Kovu." they heard the male say, while the female strode by cutely. "I'm Kiara..." she said with a catty smile. She then decided she wanted to play with him. "Tag, you're it!" she giggled, jumping away, but Kovu just stared. She looked a bit confused, but tried again. "Tag! You're it, you're it!" she chuckled, but Kovu still looked confused. "What's the matter? Don't you know how to play?" she asked. Then, she got an idea, and got into a pouncing position. Kovu smirked and looked ready to fight as well. However, before they could try this "game," Kiara was startled by something and leapt back! "L-look out!" she cried. Heartless had appeared, these ones being monstrous living bone heartless, which had shamans riding on their backs! There were a pair of them, and they frightened the cubs into running! Before the heartless could give chase, though, Lucky, Whisk and Tails jumped out of the bushes to stop them! "Think the heartless mistook them for us?" Lucky asked. "No, I think they're just monsters!" Whisk growled. "Just think how monstrous they look from my height level!" Tails gulped, his meerkat size making everything look scarier. The massive jaws of the living bones snapped in their direction, and Lucky snapped his keyblade into one of those maws, pushing it back! "Whisk! This time, let's protect Tails, too!" he grunted. She nodded. "Right!" Their resolve surprised Tails, and he looked at his shield. "Don't worry... I can take care of myself!" he said bravely.
The cubs had fled to the border between the Pride Lands and the Outlands. They were a bit into Pride Land territory, and Simba soon found them, giving Kovu an angry roar as he approached! Before he could get to close, however, a lioness came to Kovu's defense and roared back! Simba looked at her with fury. "Zira!" he gasped. "Simba..." Zira smirked, a wicked, scheming grin on her face. Lucky's group had managed to fend off the heartless, and approached in time to find Simba and his friends facing down Zira. "I banished you from the Pride Lands. You know the penalty for returning!" Simba warned. "But the child does not!" Zira retorted, "However, if you require your pound of flesh, here..." she said callously, nudging Kovu towards him with her paw. Simba looked at the frightened cub, his eyes softening. "...Take him and get out." he sighed. Kiara watched all of this with sadness. "Daddy, I..." she stammered. "We'll talk later, Kiara... Let's go home." he said, leading his daughter away. Timon and Pumbaa stuck their tongues out at Zira as they headed off with Simba. "You're so merciful, Simba. Too good for em." Timon scoffed. "We need better security. Maybe build a wall?" Pumbaa asked. "Are we animals or architects? Let's just get outta here, Pumbaa..." Timon sighed. Lucky watched the scene with tension. "Simba's running a tight ship, but maybe it's not without reason. Did you see that Zira? You can feel the darkness from her..." he shuddered. Tails crossed his arms. "But was that darkness there before getting banished, I wonder?" he murmured. Whisk looked in the direction Zira was taking Kovu. "It's not fair... Those cubs were getting along so well, but their families are so full of hate... and Zira was even ready to sacrifice him..." she noted. Ploy or not, that didn't look promising. "...We should rescue Kovu. No one should have to grow up with such a hateful caretaker..." he said. "This sounds like meddling." Tails murmured. However, Lucky started to take off, and Whisk was quick to follow, so Lucky sighed deeply and started to head after them. "Where are we gonna put him after we rescue him? He's not welcome in the Pride Lands..." he murmured. "We'll think of something! A child shouldn't pay for the sins of the parents!" Lucky insisted. And so, they started to follow the direction Zira had gone, heading deeper into the Outlands.
They hadn't pursued Zira too far before Lucky was suddenly kicked back a ways by a speeding object! When Lucky climbed to his paws, he saw Scourge standing there with a scowl on his face. "You idiot! I had the heirs of Simba and Scar both in one place! If my heartless had destroyed them, each side would blame the other, and war would erupt, which would have surely produced the chaos that Garland needs to complete his plan!" he ranted, stomping towards Lucky only to find Whisk standing in his way. "Meow, feisty... Try something with me, babe, I dare ya..." Scourge smirked. Lucky bared his lion teeth. "Out of our way! Kovu still isn't safe with Zira, and we need to follow her if we're gonna help him!" he shouted. Scourge rolled his eyes. "Such a boy scout. What are ya gonna do, kill Zira? Hmm... Well, now... Actually, I'd like to see you do that. Let's see if the noble keyblade master will get his paws dirty, heh..." he smirked, glancing at Tails with a nod, as if telling him something. Tails stood beside Whisk, clutching his shield. "Are you just trying to trick us so you'll attack again while our back's turned?" he asked. Scourge scoffed. "Nah, I'm sick of this place. All this nature, ugh. I'm goin' home for a bit. So have your fun playin' hero..." he chuckled, opening a corridor of darkness behind himself. "Just know this, kitten... I'm takin' that keyblade when I want it. It's mine, and you're just holding it for me... Got that?" he taunted before leaving. Lucky held his keyblade in his mouth, dropping it into his paws. "...You chose me, right? Scourge is just blowing hot air..." he murmured. "Don't talk to your keyblade, Lucky, it's weird." Whisk sighed. He then grabbed it in his teeth again and nodded. They had to resume the chase!
What an idea! Zira was berating Kovu for wandering off towards the Pride Lands on his own, while her elder son Nuka was whining to Vitani, a young lioness of the Outland pack. As she was scolding him, the idea occurred to her... Kovu could get close to Kiara in order to be welcomed into the Pride Lands, giving him an opening... She snuggled her cub and brought him into their cave, which was under several spire-like termite mounds, and tucked him into the gnarled remains of a tree stump. She began to sing him a lullaby...while dreaming of revenge.
"Sleep, my little Kovu, let your dreams take wing.
One day when you're big and strong...you will be a king!"
Kovu: "Good night..."
Zira: "Good night, my little prince. Tomorrow your training intensifies..."
"I've been exiled, persecuted, left alone with no defense.
When I think of what that brute did, I get a little tense!
But I dream a dream so pretty, that I don't feel so depressed.
'Cause it soothes my inner kitty; And it helps me get some rest!
The sound of Simba's dying gasp!
His daughter squealing in my grasp!
His lioness' mournful cry!
That's my lullaby!
Now, the past I've tried forgetting, and my foes I could forgive.
Trouble is, I know it's petty, but I hate to let them live!"
Nuka: "So you found yourself somebody, who'd chase Simba up a tree!"
Zira: "Oh, the battle may be bloody, but that kind of works for me!"
"The melody of angry growls!
A counterpoint of painful howls!
A symphony of death, of my!
That's my lullaby!
Scar is gone, but Zira's still around, to love this little lad...
Till he learns to be a killer! With a lust for being bad!"
Nuka: "Sleep, ya little termite! Oh, I mean precious little thing...
Vitani: "One day when you're big and strong..."
Zira: "...You will be a king!"
"The pounding of the drums of war!
The thrill of Kovu's mighty roar!"
Nuka: "The joy of vengeance!"
Vitani: "Testify!"
Zira: "I can hear the cheering!"
Nuka & Vitani: "Kovu, what a guy..."
"Payback time is nearing...
And then our flag will fly!
Against a blood-red sky!
That's my lullabyyyyyy!!" (My Lullaby; song from The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride)
As termites scattered into the sky and Zira cried out in rage from the highest of the spires, Lucky, Whisk and Tails looked on. It was clear her heart was filled with darkness, however, Whisk hesitated from going further. "This is wrong. Lucky, Zira is Kovu's mother. Whatever else she is, she's that. Is it really our place to take him from her?" she asked. Lucky tilted his head. "She's singing about the joys of war..." he stated. "Banishment filled her with hate. But Kovu doesn't have to choose her path, even in her care... But, if we take him from her...what are we but the people who took him from his mother? Won't that create a darkness in his heart, too? The same kind of darkness that drives Zira... Vengeance..." Whisk explained. Lucky sighed. "I didn't think of it that way..." he murmured. Tails stepped away from them. He knew what Scourge wanted. Zira's demise would drive the outlanders to seek vengeance, for sure, and this could lead to the chaotic war he was going for. But Lucky and Whisk needed incentive. He glanced at Zira, and extended a hand, calling upon the darkness in himself, and reaching out to the darkness within her. "I can't believe I'm doing this... But I have no choice..." he thought.
Calling to the darkness within Zira, Tails summoned a massive heartless. To Lucky and Whisk, it seemed to emerge from nowhere to block their way to the caves ahead. It resembled a bony elephant, with a shadowy trunk carrying a pulsing orb of dark energy. The heartless emblem was emblazoned on its forehead. "Meee-yow!! I-is that from Zira?!" Lucky yelped, jumping back and summoning his keyblade. The Grave Elephant stomped towards them, spouting dark blasts from the orb on its trunk, which Whisk flew up into the air to avoid. "Its hide looks impervious... I think that orb is the source of its power!" she shouted. Tails was scanning it with his shield. "Yeah, that'd be a safe bet... I'm gonna hang back here and not get stepped on, if that's alright..." he gulped. When the dark blasts the elephant shot hit the ground, shadow heartless emerged in their place, so Tails had something else to focus on while Lucky and Whisk approached the lumbering beast! Whisk shot fire at the orb, but the Grave Elephant twisted its trunk to block the attack. Lucky tried to leap up, but the beast lunged its tusks at him, knocking him back! "Yaaah! This would be much easier if I was mobian again!" he yelped. Whisk landed behind him and crouched down. "Hop on my back! I'll get you in close!" she said. Nodding, Lucky hopped onto her back and she took to the air, flying around the beast as it flailed its trunk, shooting dark blasts around in an attempt to shoot them out of the sky! "Can't let them hit the ground! Tails is having a hard enough time! Blizzara!!" Whisk shouted, trying to freeze and destroy the blasts to prevent them from becoming shadows! Having circled the Grave Elephant, Whisk started to make her approach to the trunk. The beast suddenly detached its skull, its body stomping the earth and trying to crush Tails while the head tried to bash Lucky and Whisk with its tusks! "Yaaaah!! Hurry up, guys!!" Tails cried, scrambling for cover. Lucky stood up on Whisk's back and leapt at the trunk! "Lucky, wait!!" Whisk gasped, seeing his paws grip the trunk with their claws and cling for dear life! He was close to the orb, and he started to swing his neck, bashing it with his keyblade! Whisk tried to fly in to help, but got struck by a tusk charge and tumbled towards the ground! Shouting angrily with his keyblade in his mouth, Lucky jumped up and came crashing down, slicing the orb hard! The Grave Elephant started to fade, and Lucky landed on his feet by Whisk's side, rushing to see if she was okay. "...Does your neck hurt from swinging that key?" she asked, sitting up. Lucky chuckled softly. "A little..." he replied.
Zira had noticed the ruckus, and called Nuka and Vitani to investigate. To avoid being caught, Lucky, Whisk and Tails raced back towards the Pride Lands as quickly as they could. There, they found Rafiki waiting. "And just what are YOU doing in the Outlands?" he asked. "W-we were going to rescue Kovu..." Lucky said, out of breath. Rafiki chuckled. "Very funny. Take him from his home, and where will he go? Now, don't you young ones fret about Kovu. Rafiki will be watching over him. The great circle of life has important plans for the boy...and for you three as well." he said with a smirk. Lucky, Tails and Whisk glanced at each other with awkward smiles. Then Rafiki jumped up and pointed away with his stick. "Now, go on, go! Get out of here! Your destiny awaits beyond the Pride Lands! Good luck, travelers! Ha ha!" he laughed before leaping off on his way. Lucky and Whisk started to leave first, heading for the Galestrom's landing area. "Who is that strange monkey, anyway?" Lucky asked. Tails walked at the back, arms crossed and looking at the ground. "I could have really hurt all of us, and in the end I accomplished nothing... Argh, Scourge would kick me for thinking like this... And they'd probably kick me if they knew I was working with Scourge..." he thought, and shook his head, "It doesn't matter... I do what I do for the good of Moebius..." Meanwhile, Whisk was walking close to Lucky again. "You really lost it when you thought I was hurt. Recklessly jumped up and took down that heartless..." she said. Lucky blushed lightly. "I, uh... I didn't want him to hurt you anymore..." he said. Whisk leaned in close and licked his cheek. "You reacted so strong because you're in Upendi with me..." she cooed, and casually walked ahead of him. Lucky stopped short, rubbing his cheek with his paw and blushing even deeper. "Upendi, what? ... Wait, Upendi means...?" he babbled, his eyes widening as he watched Whisk walk away from him. Tails stopped next to him. "Well, all this time travelling together on that small ship, odds are one of us would fall... you know." he sighed. Lucky felt his heart thump in the lion cub chest he was inhabiting. "T-tails... I love her..." he whispered, excitement in his voice. He then ran off to walk beside her again, leaving Tails alone. He sighed and started to sing to himself. "...and if he falls in love tonight, it can be assumed... his carefree days, with me are history, in short my pal, is doomed..."
Chapter 10 - Suppression Squad
World - Moebius
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
"The king and his men stole the queen from her bed,
And bound her in her bones.
The seas be ours and by the powers,
Where we will, we'll roam.
Yo ho, all hands, hoist the colors high.
Heave ho, thieves and beggars, never shall we die!" - Song from Pirates of the Carribbean: At World's End
The Galestrom, guided by Lucky's keyblade, flew out of a wormhole and was nearing a new world. "I wonder what sort of world we're headed for now..." Lucky wondered. Tails peered out the windshield and turned a bit pale. What he saw was a world he hadn't expected to see anytime soon...his own homeworld, Moebius. "Winston, turn the ship around." he muttered. "Huh? Why would we do that?" Whisk asked him. Winston kept heading forward. "We've got to land, kupo. Radar is picking up heartless ships on our tail!" he warned. Tails groaned. "Well, of course there are! But don't land here!" he insisted. "Why not?" Lucky asked. "Better make up your minds quick, kupo! Aaah!!" Winston gasped as heartless ships started to fire on their engines! "Meee-yow! Don't just sit here! Return fire!" Lucky shouted. "There's too many... And I'm not a fighter pilot! Aggh!!" Winston gasped as they took a direct hit! The ship started to spiral out of control towards the world ahead! "P-prepare for crash landing!!" Winston groaned. "Meeee-YOOOOW!!" Lucky wailed.
Lucky awoke in a pile of bushes. He rubbed his head as he sat up, and glanced around. He heard voices. "Don't try to resist us! You're going to our dungeon, missy!" The voice sounded angry, but familiar. "Sally? What?" Lucky murmured, peering cautiously out of the bushes. Someone who looked quite a bit like Sally Acorn was there, looking at Whisk, who was caught in some fancy looking handcuffs with her wings tied together! "No... Why would Sally do this??" Lucky murmured. She glanced nearby with a smirk. "Good work, Miles. It's good to see you alive. Buns owes me twenty Moebiums now!" she chuckled. Tails stood beside her with a serious look. "Keep an eye out for the other cat. Whisk here can't get free of my magic-suppressing cuffs, but the keyblade could make quick work of them. And...glad I could 'help,' Sal." he shrugged. Lucky fell back into the bushes and took a deep breath, a look of utter shock on his face. "Tails... He helped them catch Whisk? No, I don't believe it!" he panted. The guards escorting Miles, Sal and the imprisoned Whisk looked rather like Covenant of Despair agents. As crazy as this seemed, Lucky had to believe his eyes. "Well... seems I was thrown from the ship, and they didn't find me... Ah! Winston!" he gasped, scrambling to return to the ship.
Hurrying back aboard the ship, he found Winston sprawled under the control panel. "Ahh! Oh no!" he gasped. Then, he saw the moogle reach out from under and grab a funny-looking sort of tool. "...Oh... You're already fixing the ship." he sighed. "Are Tails and Whisk alright, kupo?" Winston asked without looking at him. Lucky looked at the ground. "It looked like... Tails showed the military here how to capture her. I don't get it. Why capture Whisk? I don't believe what I saw... Tails wouldn't do this!" he said. Winston sighed. "I don't really know him that well. We met at Traverse Town. Both of our worlds were in trouble. Tails needed a ride, I had a Gummi ship. We needed each other... He always was a bit secretive, though." he explained. Lucky held his head. "Ugh... That landing... But no, I refuse to believe that all the time Tails has been helping us was just a lie. He... he's our friend!" he stammered. Winston climbed out from under the control panel and looked Lucky in the eye. "You never really know about people, kupo. We may think we can feel what's in each other's hearts, but we can't really see it. I've heard about this Xehenort. He's deceived many a heart into believing his intentions were good. I had some time to chat with Master Yen Sid while you were in training..." he said. Lucky frowned. "You really think Tails could be like that? Ughh, I don't wanna think about it..." he sighed, "I've gotta save Whisk first before I think about what Tails is thinking. He does deserve a chance to explain himself..." he murmured. Winston nodded, and then glanced around the ship. "I can repair the damage to the Galestrom, but we've lost power. If Tails has betrayed us, it won't be easy to get moving..." he murmured. Lucky tilted his head. "Why? My keyblade can unlock any door blocking our way." he said. Winston shook his head. "It's not about stealing a battery. The Gummi ship is powered by smiles and laughter. Positive emotions. Happy thoughts...like Tink's pixie dust." he explained. Lucky threw his head back and groaned. "So, Sora wasn't just hitting me with a platitude when he said 'no frowning,' huh? Well, there's no way I'm gonna think of any happy thoughts while Whisk is in trouble! I've gotta move to save her! Be careful here, Winston! This world doesn't seem very friendly!" Lucky said before rushing out of the ship. "...You be careful too, kupo. Don't get reckless..." Winston sighed.
Meanwhile, Zeke and Zim were carefully walking along the dark and dirty streets of Moebius' capital city. There were heartless roaming freely everywhere, and no people dared wander out of their homes. "Well, if that fake heart fails, this place should have a source of darkness... Why are we here again?" Zim asked. Zeke kicked aside a shadow heartless and stomped forward. "We're actually looking for a source of Chaos here. An offshoot of our home world is bound to have some version of the Chaos Emeralds... Plus, this is Scourge's world. We're gonna vet him for Garland while we're here." he grunted. "He needs a vet?" Zim mumbled. Before Zeke could correct him, a spotlight was shone in their faces, and two hover vehicles landed nearby! Uniformed animals rushed out and surrounded them, led by what looked like Bunnie Rabbot and Antoine D'coolette. However, they both had a nastier look about them than back home. "Freeze! This here's Agent Buns of the Suppression Squad! We were warned about you two yokels! Now you're goin' to our hoosegow!" she said, aiming her robotic arm at them. "Oui! No one gets by General Ant! Away you will be going!" Ant threatened, pointing a sword at Zeke. "How about I just barbeque the sorry lot of you!?" Zeke growled. However, a familiar shield bonked him in the head, distracting him long enough for the owner to fire paralyzing beams at both him and Zim! As they fell over, they saw Miles step between Buns and Ant, his bangs dyed black and wearing an official looking uniform. "Hello there, Zeke. I figured it was you that caused the keyblade to lead us here... I don't know what Garland sees in you. Maybe it's that you're so stupid he can easily manipulate you..." Miles scoffed. Zeke glanced up in surprise, able to move little else but his eyes. "Gah... Tails?? This is impossible..." he grunted. Miles smirked at him. "Remember Halloweentown? You knuckleheads tied me up and left me for a monster's lunch? Well, you're in my world now... And there won't be a corridor of darkness to pull your butts out of the fire this time. So get comfy...and hope I don't find something that likes the taste of dragon...or zeti." he said, nodding to Ant as he turned to the hover cars. Ant crossed his arms. "Zat runt thinks he can boss me around? I'm not lifting them into the cars! You do it, Buns!" he snapped. Buns scowled at him before grabbing a soldier by the collar. "Don't just stand around gawkin! Get these bumpkins into the ships fer transport!" she shouted. Zim shuddered nervously. "Wait, weren't we the bad guys? I thought we were the bad guys!" he babbled. "Shut up, Zim... I'll get us out of this..." Zeke growled.
In search of Tails and Whisk, Lucky came across an odd sight. It appeared to be Dr. Eggman and some Egg Pawns, backed against the wall and shivering like cowards as Amy of all people approached them. "Am I seeing things?" he wondered, rubbing his eyes. Amy was dressed in a green shirt and frilly skirt, and brandishing a hammer, but she stopped with a smirk as heartless appeared around her! There were High Soldiers and Pole Cannons, closing in on Eggman! Lucky couldn't ignore the heartless, so he jumped in with his keyblade and smashed a Pole Cannon before it could fire! "Amy! Don't you see the heartless?? Get outta here!" he shouted. Amy looked at him. "Who the heck is Amy? I'm Rosy the Rascal...and you just smashed my cannon, you bad little kitty!" she said with a crazed look in her eye. Freaked, Lucky backed away, right into a red-furred vixen. "Where do ya think you're going? You know, I hear the Suppression Squad is looking for a kid with a key..." she grinned as batlike Fluttering heartless appeared around her. Lucky backed to the wall with Eggman and gulped. "Ack! I'm surrounded!" he yelped. "If we work together, we can get past Fiona and Rosy!" Eggman suggested, "My name's Dr. Kintobor, by the way." he added. Lucky rubbed his head. "Up is down, black is white. Aaaaagh, I gotta hit something!!" he cried, charging in and slashing his keyblade at the nearest High Soldier! The Egg Pawns ran out and used their fists to pummel any heartless they could reach as well! Rosy tried to charge in with her hammer, but Fiona held her back. "Lemme kill him!! He's murdering my beautiful heartless!!" she screamed. "I'm not sure if we want the cat alive or not. I'd better drag you back until I've gotten that clarified... Wouldn't wanna piss off Scourge like when you killed that gargoyle guy..." she muttered, dragging Rosy away by her collar. With the help of Kintobor's robots, Lucky easily made quick work of the heartless. "Alright! Good job, Tails and Whisk! ...Oh, right..." Lucky sighed, shrugging and fist-bumping a robot. Kintobor ran to him excitedly. "You're just the kind of help we need! You simply must come with me and meet the Freedom Force!" he suggested. Lucky scratched his head. "That like Sally's Freedom Fighters back home? ...Never mind. I guess if I want to help Whisk, I'll need whatever help I can get, even if it is from Eggman..." he mumbled. "Splendid...uh, what's an Eggman?" Kintobor muttered.
Kintobor led Lucky to a forest on the outskirts of the city. He pressed his hand to a tree stump, which scanned it, and then a large tree opened up, revealing a tunnel leading to the secret base of the Freedom Force! "Whoa... We should check if our Eggman is hiding under tree stumps back home..." Lucky murmured. Heading inside, Lucky soon met with the Freedom Force's top members; Snively Kintobor, Mammoth Mogul, a rather pleasant looking Fera the wolf, Iron Nicole and... "Mee-yow!! What's Colonel Gunner doing here!?" Lucky jumped, seeing the familiar large-nosed old man standing among the Freedom Force! "Colonel??" he babbled. "That's my good friend, Richie Gunner. Biggest advocate for peace between humans and Moebians that you'll ever meet!" Kintobor stated. Lucky's ear and nose twitched a little. "Cats are dogs. Fire is ice. Left is right..." he murmured, processing how weird this world was. "Sir, why did you bring another stray into the base? We're crowded full as is..." Snively frowned. "Now, now, everyone needs shelter from those creatures." Richie told him. Lucky calmed himself a bit and took a breath. "I'll be out of your hair soon enough. I just need to find my friends... The uh... Suppression Squad, was it? Those guys took them." he explained. Mammoth Mogul, a rather large and well dressed fellow, leaned against a staff and looked down at Lucky seriously. "There's only one way to save your friends... Do you have the strength to battle hordes of monsters and fiends?" he said ominously. Lucky held up his keyblade. "I have this..." he said. Iron Nicole stepped past the others and examined his keyblade. "Hmm... Yes, that'll do. Welcome aboard. I'm Nicole." she said. "Oh, I know. We, uh... Let's say we've met..." Lucky chuckled softly. Nicole nodded. "I used to work for Sally as her servant, but my programming was freed by a bright young mind who took pity on me... And now I help the Freedom Force by hacking the Suppression Squad's systems to uncover information. It's pretty easy, since I'm an AI..." she smirked. Lucky scratched his head. "Um... Okay? Can you find a prisoner named Whisk? She's a winged cat with magic powers..." he asked. Nicole turned to a computer console at the back of the room. "We'll know in a few minutes..." she said, becoming pure energy as she dove into the screen! Lucky glanced around and chuckled softly, turning to Fera. "So... Is it Fera, or Felicia?" he asked. The wolf crossed her arms, but then smirked at him. "I like you..." she said.
When Zeke and Zim were able to move again, they found themselves in a dark dungeon cell, surrounded by stone walls and a steel door. There was tech in the building that somehow prevented corridors of darkness from being opened, as Zeke quickly found out. Zim peered through a small, barred window looking into the adjoining cell, and saw Whisk in the corner. "Hah! Check this out, Zeke! We're not alone!" he snickered. Zeke took a look and chortled. "Well, well, look who severely misjudged her so-called friend! This is so priceless, it's almost work gettin' locked up to see it!" he cackled. Whisk glanced at them for only a second. "Great. I gotta have a cell next to you idiots. Well, enjoy this while you can. I'm sure Lucky will get me out of this." she said. "If he doesn't ditch you! Ha ha!" Zim teased. Whisk rolled her eyes. "Tails obviously knows this place. It might be his home world. I think he didn't want to land because he knew we wouldn't be welcome. Maybe I'm here because he didn't have any choice." she sighed. Zeke grinned wide. "He coulda warned you this would happen. No, I think he planned this. You ain't ever gettin' outta here, hehehe!" he taunted. Suddenly, the sound of something sliding under Whisk's door could be heard. She looked, and saw her wand! Hurrying to her feet, she ran to the door and peered out of the small, barred window on it. No one there. Whoever slid her the wand had to have high-tailed it out of there fast. "Looks like I'm getting out now..." Whisk said, taking her wand and pointing it at her wings' bindings. "Blizzard!" she cast, wincing as her wings and their bindings froze. She then bashed her back against the wall, smashing the ice and the bindings as well! She shook the ice out of her wings, and then with her divine power freed up, teleported out of the cell in a flash of light! Zeke and Zim rushed to the door of their cell, banging on it as Whisk passed by. "Hey! Wait!" Zeke cried. "Don't leave us! He's going to feed Zim to a monster!!" Zim wailed. Whisk put her hands on her hips. "You really expect me to help you?" she scoffed, "I've gotta hurry. I can't waste this chance Tails is giving me..." she said. "How do you know it's Tails? He turned on you, remember. And whoever this is doesn't think enough of you to stay and see you safely out... You haven't got a friend in this world..." Zeke said. "Lucky's in this world..." Whisk sighed, "...And somehow, I'm going to find my way back to him..." she said, glancing at Zeke and Zim's cell thoughtfully.
With Nicole's help, Lucky was able to find his way to the prison complex where Whisk was being held. There was a large stone bridge leading to the prison, and as Lucky was crossing it, he found Scourge standing in his way with a smug smirk on his face and a kinda gaudy crown on his head. "You're a real idiot coming to my own world! Don't you know I'm KING Scourge, dude?" he sneered. Fiona, Rosy, Ant, Buns, Sal and the rest of the Suppression Squad came out of the front gate of the prison and aimed weapons at Lucky. Miles was there, too, and stood between Scourge and Fiona. "Listen up, Lucky! It was necessary for me to befriend you. You see, our world has fallen to darkness once before, leaving the people homeless. The only way we're standing here now is because a boy with a keyblade defeated a man calling himself Ansem, and in doing so freed the worlds his heartless armies had devoured. But heartless still run rampant across our world. We need a keyblade to protect us from losing our home again." Miles explained. Lucky looked at him sympathetically. "You could have just told me... I'd have been willing to help..." he said. Scourge laughed at him. "I'm sure you would, but I'm afraid that's just not good enough, hero! I don't want the heartless destroyed, I want to control the dark and the light...and be the most powerful hedgehog in all the worlds! So, I'm takin' back my keyblade by force!!" he shouted, speeding towards Lucky with a Soul Eater blade in his hand! However, a bazooka was fired in his path, the explosion knocking Scourge backward! Sal and Ant sidestepped Scouge, letting him crash to the ground in a heap. "Dammit! It's the Freedom Dorks! Attack them, idiots!" Scourge yelled. Lucky turned to see Richie Gunner holding the bazooka with a smirk. "We're here to back you up, kid!" he said. The others were there with their own assortment of weapons, too. "Uhh, I really didn't come to start a war..." Lucky gulped. "The war was already here!" Fera said, holding orbs of light in her hands as she prepared for a battle, "But together, maybe we can end the cycle of despair!" she said. Sal and Fiona drew some laser guns from some ankle holsters they were wearing. "Oh, we'll end it, alright..." Sal, grunted. "Miles, stop standing like a wuss and help us pry the keyblade away from your so-called friend!" Fiona snarled. Miles sighed and reached behind his back, unhooking his shield from his uniform. "Guess we do this the hard way..." he said.
A battle broke out atop the bridge, with the Freedom Force struggling against the Suppression Squad! Lucky looked around in a panic as he saw heartless emerge throughout the bridge. He decided to focus on them, while his allies took the fight to the squad. Iron Nicole started to battle with Sal, each of them matching blow for blow using martial arts punches & kicks! "You won't keep Moebius enslaved like I was!" Nicole shouted. "Hah... I'm just gonna delete you, defective program!" Sal smirked. Buns was tearing through Kintobor's robots with her robotic arm as Snively hid behind him. "S-sir! What do we do??" he gasped. Kintobor was wearing a high-tech robotic armor. "Steady, Snively... I invented those robotic limbs to replace lost ones...and they weaponized it! I won't let it go on any longer!" he said, stopping Buns' fist with his armor's metal palm! "Ungh! Nice speech, but I'll find the chinc in that armor, sugar..." she smirked. Ant was striking his sword against Mogul's staff, Fiona was ordering her uniformed soldiers to surround Gunner despite his bazooka, and Scourge was zipping around Fera, smirking as he dodged her light-based attacks. During all this, Miles was slowly making his way to Lucky. However, Zeke and Zim suddenly landed in his path! "Hey, squirt! Miss us?!" Zeke smirked. "Let's tie his tails together!" Zim shouted. Miles raised his hand and called a couple of High Soldiers to block their path. Zeke smirked. "That all?" Then, a hammer smacked him hard in the back! "Ughhh!! Oh, shoot!! Not her!!" he groaned, turning to see Rosy the Rascal! "Who let them out!? I knew prison wouldn't work!! I'll hammer 'em into the pavement!!" she said, her eyes twitching manically. Zim helped Zeke up, and the two of them started backing away from the crazed Amy look-alike nervously. Miles then began to return to his search for Lucky, only to find Whisk blocking his way next. "Should have known. It had to be you that let Zeke and Zim out..." he said. Whisk looked around. "Tails... This madness isn't you. It's not too late. Come back to us... We'll help you fix things here in your world!" she offered. Miles crossed his arms, and Scourge stomped over, dragging an unconscious Fera by the tail. "What are ya waiting for? She's not bothering to attack ya, take advantage!!" he said, dropping Fera and grabbing Miles by the collar. "You're not goin' soft are ya? 'Tailsy?'" he said in a threatening tone. Miles grunted, and tossed his shield at Whisk as Scourge held his collar! Whisk jumped back, watching the shield bounce and return to its handle! Scourge laughed and placed Miles back on the ground. "Good pup... You know your place!" he smirked.
Scourge seemed to get a twisted pleasure as he watched Miles chase after Whisk, tossing his shield at her while she backed away, still trying to process that her friend was attacking her. Lucky saw this was happening and headed their way, swatting aside any heartless in his path quickly as he ran with urgency. "Tails! Whisk! Stop!! No more fighting!! Just stop it!!" he yelled, running between the two. Miles hesitated, and Scourge ran up to him. "Good pup... The kitten's mine." he sneered, looking at Lucky and reaching a hand toward him. "Now that you know my secret agent's secret, we have no more use for you, cat! You were an amusing pawn, keeping Garland's pets occupied while I honed my dark powers... but now, I'm really going to need my keyblade back!" he snickered. Lucky felt something pull at his keyblade, and tried to pull back, but before he knew what was going on, the keyblade vanished from his hand and appeared in Scourge's! "What!? How!?" he gasped. Miles held his hands behind his back and shrugged. "You never questioned why the keychain was of a hedgehog? You really are stupid, Lucky. That keyblade was Scourge's before it was yours. I was sent out to find ANY keyblade, but boy was I surprised to find you with the very key that Scourge had callously thrown away!" he stated. Scourge nodded, looking over the keyblade in his hand. "Ya see, I tried the whole keyblade hero shtick for a while. Thankless job. The power of light seemed bogus. So, I tossed the keyblade and started using darkness... But Garland found me, and taught me some things you can do with a keyblade that I hadn't considered. The catch was...I needed a keyblade again. Now that I have the power of both light AND darkness on my side... I don't need you, or this world anymore! Have fun fading into darkness, Moebians! I'm off to conquer less fragile worlds!" Scourge cackled, pointing the keyblade to his side and using it to open a portal that would lead out of Moebius! Lucky's eyes widened, and he started after him. "Scourge!! You can't do this!!" he shouted, only to have a wooden sword tossed at his head. "Mee-yow!" he yelped. "There ya go. I've seen kids play with that. Fair trade. Oh, I'm taking this one with me, too..." he said, grabbing one of Miles' tails and pulling him through the portal with him! "Yow! Ow!! S-scourge!! Wait!! What about our- ow... Our wooooorld!!?" Miles shouted before the portal closed behind them both! The fighting had stopped as both sides watched Scourge abandon his world. "How...how could he ditch me??" Fiona huffed. At the gate to the prison, swarms of heartless were gathering. "...RUN!! Scourge left those heartless to consume us all!!" Sal gasped. As everyone started fleeing back across the bridge, Zeke and Zim found they could open a corridor of darkness again. "Should we report this to the boss?" Zim asked. Zeke picked him up and ran through the portal. "Let's pick our words carefully... Who knows whose side anyone's on anymore!" Zeke grunted.
Having escaped into the city, the Suppression Squad looked truly lost. "If our king has abandoned us, what are we to be doing now?" Ant sighed. "Kill each other, and the survivor is the new king?" Rosy smirked. Dr. Kintobor cleared his throat. "There is another option... You could abandon the ways of suppression, and work together with us to bring peace and light to our world." he offered. Sal glanced tensely at Nicole, but then both smiled a little. "It's what he would want..." Nicole sighed. "Maybe..." Sal nodded. Lucky and Whisk watched as the leaders of Moebius were making steps toward peace, but somehow it didn't lift their spirits. They made their way back to the Galestrom in defeat. "Tails is gone... The keyblade is gone... and in order to get off this world, we need a happy thought..." Lucky sighed as they climbed back into the ship and sat down. Winston looked at them with concern. "Oh, boy... Even if we could get in the air... Without the keyblade, how will we find our next destination, kupo?" he asked, making Lucky and Whisk feel worse. Whisk twirled her wand in her hand, lost in thought. "I'm sure of it... Tails is the one who freed me. I know it's crazy, but... It wasn't you, right Lucky? Who else would free me?" she asked. Lucky glanced at her. "Yeah... and, then there's this person who reprogrammed Nicole so she'd be free and stop working for the Supression Squad. She doesn't actually know who it was, but... who else but Tails is clever enough to pull it off? We know him...everything we know about him can't all be lies. And if that's so... Maybe deep down, he doesn't want to help Scourge." Lucky and Whisk looked at each other, and began to smile. "Remember when we met him?" she asked. "Hehe, remember how we got sucked into Traverse Town? That was weird... It's always been the three of us since then..." he said. Whisk nodded. "Hey, that's pretty much ALL I remember!" she chuckled. As they smiled and reminisced, the lights flickered on, and the ship started gaining power! "Kupo! You found it! Your happy thought!" Winston gasped. Lucky and Whisk chuckled together. "It's the three of us together!" Lucky said. "We're not complete without him... We've gotta find him!" Whisk added. Winston got into the pilot's seat and nodded. "So... where to?" he asked. Lucky placed a hand on his heart and looked thoughtful. "...Let's head home for now. Back to GeneX Prime!" he said, "This world's Tails... Miles... won't be there. But maybe our world's Tails can tell us something useful!" he suggested. Winston nodded. "Okay, back there again. I'm really getting the location memorized..." And with that, the Galestrom lifted into the air, and took off... They didn't know if Miles could be won over, but they knew they had to try...because friends don't give up on friends.
Chapter 11 - My Friends are My Power
World - Zootopia
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
"Let it go, let it go!
I am one with the wind and sky!
Let it go, let it go!
You'll never see me cry!
Here I stand and here I stay!
Let the storm rage on..." - Let it Go; Frozen
"Fear...treachery...bloodlust. Thousands of years ago, these were the forces that ruled our world!" As a voice narrated, a cuddly bunny hopped through a dark forest. It hopped past a leopard, hiding in the bushes... "A world where prey were scared of predators...and predators had an uncontrollable biological urge to maime, and maul, and..." The leopard pounced, and the rabbit, our narrator, screamed! She threw up red streamers, shouting, "Aaaah! Blood, blood, blood!" Then she fell onto her back and threw out the rest of the streamers before squirting ketchup on herself in front of a somewhat perturbed audiance. "...and death!" she concluded, rolling her tongue out. It was a school play. A brief drumroll preceeded the next scene as the rabbit stood back up beside the leopard. "Back then, the world was divided in two! Vicious predator!" The leopard hissed as she narrated, "And meek prey." she added as a pair of cardboard boxes lowered over them, allowing them to quickly change out of their costumes. A black lamb wearing a white sheet and wearing a sort of rainbow prop on her head skipped onstage as they changed, but the bunny continued to narrate. "But over time, we've evolved, and moved beyond our primitive savage ways, and now..." she announced as the boxes lifted up, showing the leopard and bunny in white sheets as well. "Predator and prey live in harmony!" the rabbit continued, holding the leopard's hands, "And every young mammal has multitudinous opportunities!" she smiled, glancing at the lamb. "Yeah, I don't have to cower in a herd anymore. Instead, I can be an astronaut!" the lamb said, removing her sheet to reveal a "space suit," lifting a cardboard helmet onto her head to complete the outfit. "I don't have to be a lonely hunter anymore!" the leopard added, "Today, I can hunt for tax exemptions! I'm gonna be an actuary!" he said, removing his sheet to reveal a rather smart-looking suit. Lastly was the bunny. "And, I can make the world a better place. I am going to be..." The sound effects mammal quickly turned on a radio to play some dramatic music for her reveal as she threw off her sheet. "A police officer!" she announced, wearing a cute little uniform. A fox in the audiance laughed at her. "Bunny cop! That is the most stupedist thing I ever heard!" he guffawed. The bunny put on the hat to complete her outfit. "It may seem impossible to small minds; I'm lookin' at you, Gideon Gray." she said straight to the fox, "But! Just 211 miles away stands the great city of Zootopia!" she announced as the scene behind her was changed to a colorful backdrop depicting the city...as the kids had drawn it. "...Where our ancestors first joined together in peace and declared that anyone can be anything!"
Outside the schoolhouse was Miles, wearing his hood over his head. Two bunny ears poked out from under it. "That's what you get for bein' concerned with the world order. I think it's a good look for you though, cuddle chump." Scourge smirked, looking around, "Such a quaint world... Should be pretty easy to bring chaos to it..." he continued with an evil chuckle.
Approximately 210 miles away, the Galestrom landed. As usual, Winston planned to stay behind with the ship. "This is about where that search spell led us, kupo. Be careful, you don't have your key..." the moogle warned. Nodding, Lucky and Whisk stepped out, and Whisk's wand reacted, transforming them to protect the world order! Whisk dropped her wand and struggled to lift it, as she found her arms had become her wings, and she was much smaller. "Yaaah! I'm tiny! Is this how Tails felt to be a meerkat?" she murmured. "You're a parakeet!" Lucky chuckled. She was a tiny blue parakeet. Whisk looked up at him and laughed. "Well, you're Tails!" she teased. Lucky looked himself over and saw his big, fluffy tail. He'd become a gray fox! "Mee-yow!! Wait, how will we recognize Tails? He might be different, too!" he realized. Whisk lifted her wand in her talons and flew up. "He'll be with Scourge... Now, where are we?" she murmured, looking at a sign. "Zootopia, one mile..." she murmured. Lucky shrugged. "Might as well start there. This world feels a lot like ours, why did we need to transform?" he asked. "Maybe they don't have divines here. Sorry my form got you changed..." Whisk sighed. "No biggie, I feel a little taller...oh, sorry..." Lucky chuckled awkwardly. The city of Zootopia was certainly unique. It was split into several districts designed to comfortably house all the animals of the world. Then, there was the central city area where everything converged. The buildings, transit systems, BATHROOMS, everything had to be made to accomodate various types of animals, and the body shapes had much more range than the mobians Lucky and Whisk were used to, from teeny hamsters to long-necked giraffes to everything in between. "Wow... I wish Bucky could see this place." Lucky murmured. "Let's not give him any more crazy ideas..." Whisk sighed, landing on his shoulder, "Hoo! Flapping your arms to move everywhere is tiring..." she panted. Just then, they heard sirens and shouts, accompanied by a familiar "RAWR!" Zeke was nearby! "Not who we were looking for..." Lucky sighed. "Zeke might be extra trouble for us now... We need Tails back! Lucky, hold him off, and I'll go look for Tails!" Whisk said, flying off in another direction! "B-but Whisk! What about...and you're gone. Alright, I'll deal with Zeke quickly..." he said, holding up the Artificial Chaos Sword that his world's Tails had given him before they headed out here. "If you think I can't fight, Zeke, you're in for a surprise!" he said.
Zeke and Zim were surrounded by the ZPD, various large animals that formed the police department. They might have drawn attention due to the fact that they hadn't bothered to take on a Zootopian form, instead remaining a dragon and Zeti. "Officers, I think you're coming after us out of specieism! And you call yourselves enlightened!" Zeke sneered. "Let's give 'em something to be mad at! Heartless time!!" Zim cackled. Bouncywilds, Rabid Dogs, Hook Bats and other animalistic heartless emerged, rushing the ZPD, who found their bullets and tasers having little effect on the heartless! Lucky rushed in and fired some beams from his AC Sword, which were similar to Chaos Spears but not quite the same. It drew the attention of a Bouncywild, who shot back with its slingshot! "Yaah! Alright, then I'll just get closer!" Lucky huffed, running over and slashing at it! The Bouncywild vanished, but its heart would simply fall back down and respawn as a heartless somewhere else. Zeke noticed the fox with the sword and grunted. "Oh ho! It's you, isn't it! Yeah, I recognize that kinda sword... Heartless! Enough foolin' around! Go find Scourge!" he ordered. With that, the heartless started to head off into the city, while some of the officers took off in pursuit. Lucky lowered his blade, but looked at Zeke cautiously. "What are you playing at?" he asked. "We're here lookin' for that traitor. He's gonna pay for our jailtime in his world!" Zeke growled. "In his world! Where compromise does not exist..." Zim hummed, earning him a slap from Zeke. "Don't start..." he grumbled, raising his wings in preparation to fly away. "Wait! I'm looking for Tails... Err, Miles! He's probably with Scourge. We should work together to find them!" Lucky suggested. Zim hopped on Zeke's back and laughed. "He's got no more powers so he wants our help!" he taunted. "Yeah, that'll be a hard pass, kid! When I find Scourge, he's goin' down...and if your friend is on his side, he's going down, too! Makes no difference to me. The enemy of my enemy is still my enemy if he was my enemy in the first place!!" Zeke grunted before starting to fly away. "Wait, stop!! Freeze!!" an officer shouted. "RAWR!! Later, officers!!" Zeke shouted. The officers grunted in frustration. "Alright, fox, you're comin' to the precinct for questioning!" they said, only to look and find that Lucky had run off. "Huh... hey!! Darn it... Never take your eyes off a fox..." one of the officers grumbled.
"Two...hundred...eleven...miles..." Whisk huffed, collapsing onto a stall that was selling carrots at some sort of county fair she'd arrived at. "That search spell needs fine tuning. Like, maybe a DISTANCE INDICATOR!!" she wheezed. Not too far away was Miles. He'd wandered off under the premise of running recon, but now found himself munching a carrot as he hung around behind one of the stalls...next to a "Whack a Carrot" game. His new form was somewhat craving carrots, so he was in the right place. He noticed some kids pass by, including the bunny in the police getup. "Gimmie yer tickets right now, or I'm gonna kick yer meek little sheep butt!" Gideon Gray was picking on the lamb and some of her friends with the help of a weasal. "Cut it out, Gideon!" the lamb protested. "Baaaa, baaaa! Whaddaya gonna do, cry?" the fox taunted, swiping the tickets. "Hey! You heard her! Cut it out!" shouted the bunny in the uniform as she marched right over to the scene. Miles lifted his hood, watching intently. Gideon stifled a laugh. "Nice costume, loser! What crazy world are you livin' in where you think a bunny can be a cop!?" he asked, stomping towards her. "Kindly return my friend's tickets." the bunny said sternly. "Come and get 'em! But watch out, cuz I'm a fox! And like you said in your dumb little stage play, us predators used to eat pray! And that killer instinct's still in our 'dnna!'" he smirked. "Ehh, I'm pretty much sure it's pronounced DNA." the weasal corrected. "Don't tell me what I know, Travis!" Gideon snapped. "You don't scare me, Gideon!" the bunny insisted. Miles winced as the fox promptly shoved her down, baring his claws at her! "Scared now?" he grunted. "Look at her nose twitch! She is scared!" Travis teased. Gideon kneeled over her with a superior grin. "Cry little baby bunny, cry..." However, the bunny kicked him with her strong foot while he was distracted. Bad move. He rubbed his jaw before glaring at her. "Aww, you don't know when to quit, do you?" he growled, using his claws to scratch her across the face! He then held the injured bunny down, glaring at her. "I want you to remember this moment the next time you think you will EVER be anything more than just a stupid carrot farming dumb bunny!" he shouted, shoving her against the ground and hi-fiving Travis as he walked off. The lamb and her friends rushed to the bunny's side. "That looks bad..." one of them said, looking at her scratches. "Are you okay, Judy?" the black lamb asked. "Yeah, yeah, I'm okay." Judy said, sitting up, "Here you go." she added, handing her friend the tickets. Miles looked with surprise as there was a brief celebration. "That Gideon Gray doesn't know what he's talking about!" the lamb said. "Well, he's right about one thing." Judy said, picking up her hat, "I don't know when to quit!"
Miles couldn't take it. He'd stomped over to have a word with Gideon. "Hey, you! You bully! Pick on someone your own size!" he said, removing his hood and revealing his yellowy bunny face! He stood at about Gideon's height, but it didn't faze him. "Gah ha ha!! What, did I hurt your widdle sis? You're a bunny, you got like twenty more, aincha?" he laughed. Miles clutched his shield, thinking about giving him a sound thumping. However, Whisk flew between them. "That's enough, Miles!" she shouted. Gideon stifled another laugh. "Miles! Guess you drew the short straw fer names!" he chuckled, walking off with Travis. "Whisk, you shouldn't have followed me..." Miles groaned, pulling his hood back over his head. "And miss my evidence that you are in fact a good person? You wanted to stand up to that bully for those kids..." Whisk said, "But, you don't have to stoop to the level of someone like that. I've seen it when you were with us... You can be better, Miles." she said. Miles shook his head. "No. You're either predator or you're prey. The only way to avoid getting preyed on is to be the predator... Scourge taught me that... Right, Scourge!?" he said, making Whisk gulp as she turned to see the green hedgehog smirking at her. "Well, well. Little bird, tell me, are you alone...?" he asked, pointing the keyblade at her threateningly!
Lucky found himself wandering the streets of Zootopia, a bit lost. He had no idea where to look for Whisk, Miles, Scourge or Zeke. He decided to ask around. "Excuse me, sir? Err, ma'am? Have you seen a blue parakeet carrying a stick with a gem on it?" he asked a pig lady. She gave him an unpleasant look and scurried past him. "Dunno what kinda scam you're runnin, but I gotta go..." she murmured. "Scam...? Uh, pardon me, sir. Up there!! Can you hear me!!" he called out to a giraffe, whose long neck was high above him, "Have you seen a dragon??" he asked. No response. Lucky sighed and kept moving, asking questions, but nobody seemed very trustworthy towards a fox. "Gosh... Is this a Zootopia thing, or does Tails always put up with this kind of abuse?" he wondered, rubbing his head. He noticed a rabbit waiting by a bus stop. "E-excuse me..." he started to say, only to hear her yell and spray him with something! "Aaaa!! What is that?? It smells... FOX REPELLANT?! They make that?!" he stammered, staggering backward. He ended up looking for a public restroom to wash the stuff off. "This is not home... No sir..." he sighed as he splashed water on his face. It was getting late now, and he let out a dejected sigh as he searched around for any sign of Whisk, starting to consider heading back to the Galestrom. He heard a cheerful voice, and looked to see another fox skip past him. It was a youngster, wearing a sort of green uniform. Some sort of scout? Lucky tilted his head, watching him. "Well, he's a fox. And a scout. Maybe he'll help me. Hey, you there! Scout!" he called. The small fox waved to him. "Nick Wilde! Off to my Junior Ranger initiation! Can't be late!" he said excitedly. Lucky smiled, watching him scurry off. "Aww, I remember when I was that cute... Wait, I was never little! Darn it, Bucky, you stole my childhood!" he realized as he talked to himself. Then he realized that the kid was getting away. "Hey, wait! Uhhh, Nick! Quick question!!" he stammered, chasing after him.
Nick scurried inside a building before Lucky could catch him. The cat-turned-fox milled around outside for a moment, considering what to do. "What am I, afraid of a bunch of kids? ...What if one has fox repellant? Enough! Nick isn't scared, and they're Rangers!" he said, marching up to the door. "Sorry to intrude, but..." he started to say as he began to open the door, but he hesitated, noting that it was dark. "Okay, Nick. Ready for initiation?" an animal said as Nick scurried back down some stairs. "Yeah, pretty much born ready!" he said with a grin. The rest of the lights went out, and a chubby kid held a flashlight to Nick's face. "Okay, now raise your right paw and deliver the oath." he said. Lucky watched from the door, chuckling softly. "Kids..." he murmured. Nick raised his paw with a cheerful smile. "I, Nicholas Wilde, promise to be brave, loyal, helpful and trustworthy!" he stated proudly. The other kids glanced at one another, smirking. "Even though you're a fox?" the leader asked. Lucky's eyes widened. Nick was the only fox there. The only predator, in fact. His smile quickly faded at the harsh tone of the other kid. "What?" he mouthed, too innocent to realize what was happening until it was too late. He was shoved to the floor, and two of the animals held him down as he cried out. "No! No! What did I do wrong, you guys? No!!" Lucky's knees felt weak as he watched, too shocked to act. "Please, tell me what did I do wrong?!" Nick cried as the leader of the bullies strapped a muzzle onto his face. Nick shook his head, trying to get it off, but it was no use. "If you thought we would ever trust a fox without a muzzle, you're even dumber than you look!" the chubby kid taunted as his friends laughed. "Aww, is he gonna cry?" they teased. At this point, Lucky started to march in there, but Nick pushed past him and ran out into the street, tears streaming from his face! "W-wait, kid!!" Lucky stammered, turning to the bullies briefly. "Well, you twerps sure failed that oath! That was the most cowardly thing I've ever seen... So-called rangers!" he huffed, heading out to look for Nick. He quickly spotted the muzzle discarded on the floor, and then saw Nick sitting against the steps leading up into the building. He was sobbing. Lucky wanted to comfort him, but he wasn't sure what he could say or do. "...You should go home, kid... It's not safe out here at night..." he murmured, unsure it was safe for foxes here at all.
Lucky stayed until Nick left, and found himself staring down at the muzzle, wondering if he could have done more for him. Soon, Miles walked up to him. "What's with the muzzle? Huh... Ironic that you're a fox here." he said. Lucky glanced at him. He knew from the black hood that it had to be Miles. "A bunch of larger animals forced this muzzle on a small fox... It seems like there's a lot of prejudice in this world. When I think about it, my world's not so different..." he sighed. Miles stood with a hand on his hip, shaking his head. "So, you're learning what it's like to get picked on, finally. I've got news, I've been a fox all my life. With two freakish tails. That's all anyone saw. 'Ohh, look at the freak.' Scourge saw my potential beyond that..." he said. Lucky stood up. "He wasn't the only one. I've never judged you, Ta... Miles..." he stammered. Miles scoffed. "Yeah, right. You're either lying or stupid, then. How could you not want revenge after I betrayed you?" he said with a sigh, looking away, "...Scourge has Whisk. He's going to have the heartless take out a bunch of prey, and pin the attack on predators. The fear will drive a deeper wedge between them, and result in chaos energy. We can draw that energy into a vessel, and use it to help create Chaos Hearts for Garland." he explained. Lucky blinked a couple times. "Wait, so... You and Scourge are with Garland? Then, what's Zeke doing...?" he murmured, "And what about you! Is this really what you want? Do you even know what'll happen if Garland creates Chaos Hearts?" he asked. Miles shrugged. "I'm not in charge of my destiny. Never have been. You know Miles Prower across the multivers... he's ALWAYS just a sidekick, never anything more. But, it's still better than being thrown on the ground and muzzled..." he stated. There was an awkward silence for a bit before Miles started to walk away. "Why did you tell me this, Miles?" Lucky asked. He glanced back. "Scourge doesn't want you to miss the show. Come to Little Rodentia. The heartless will make mincemeat out of those tiny, helpless creatures there. You can try to stop it, but Scourge has Whisk. He has me. He has the keyblade. What do you have? If I were you, I'd go back to the ship and go home...save yourself while you can." he said before vanishing into a corridor of darkness. Lucky rubbed his chin. "I think I passed Little Rodentia today... Sorry, Miles, but it's more important I save Whisk. And you!" he murmured, running on his way!
Ultimately, Lucky needed to return to the ship to rest. He arrived at Little Rodentia in the morning, fortunately before Scourge. He wasn't waiting long before Scourge arrived, though, along with Miles carrying Whisk in a birdcage. "Lucky! Be careful! They took my wand and I can't teleport in this form!" Whisk shouted. Scourge smirked, pointing the keyblade at Lucky. "How hilarious... You took the form of your betrayal... Do you honestly think you can beat darkness, light and chaos with nothing, chump?" he taunted. Lucky held up his AC Sword and bared his teeth. "Still got more light on my side than you'll ever have, keyblade or no! Bring it on!" he challenged. Scourge chuckled and raised his free hand, summoning heartless to the area! "I'd rather watch that tiny town get stomped!" he smirked. Lucky glanced back at the gate to Little Rodentia. Beyond the wall were tiny houses and miniature cars, a whole city to the scale of mice, hamsters and other rodents. It's be a feast for the heartless if he didn't stop it. As Rabid Dogs charged at him with their giant teeth, Lucky shot beams from his sword to slow them down before slashing them! Then, he leapt up to take out some Hook Bats before they could get far, and shot beams at some Bouncywilds as they attacked with their slingshots! He'd come a long way since he'd began, but without the keyblade, the heartless just reformed around him, surrounding him! Scourge cackled as he watched. "Oh, no, boys, don't eat him! I'm enjoying the show too much!" he said, speeding out and using the keyblade to strike down his own heartless swiftly! He then returned to Miles' side and glanced at him. "Put down the cage. I wanna see you fight him. Finish him off, and then you can do whatever you want with the bird, I don't care." Scourge smirked. Miles set down the cage holding Whisk, barely looking at her. "Don't do this, Miles... Please!" Whisk pleaded. Scourge smirked. "C'mon, I wanna see who wins! Fox or BUNNY! Ha ha ha! Let's see which of you wimps survives!" he said, slapping Miles roughly on the back to nudge him towards Lucky! He growled and removed his hood, revealing his bunny ears, and then took out his shield. "I told you to go home!" he grunted. Lucky's grip on the AC Sword faltered. "You... you know I can't leave without Whisk." he said. His hesitation worked to Miles' advantage, and the shield flew out and smacked his hand, causing him to drop the sword! "Your attachment to us is holding you back!" Miles shouted. "...Finish it, twerp! Don't lecture him!" Scourge growled.
Lucky leaned down to pick up his sword, but still hesitated. "You're wrong, Miles. And I won't fight you." he said, leaving the sword. "What the... Cut it out!!" Miles snapped, "Scourge has the keyblade! If you don't fight me, he'll crush us both!" he stammered. "He can't beat us with the keyblade. Our hearts are stronger!" Lucky declared. Scourge shook his head. "Delusional..." he sighed. Lucky raised his fists confidently. "No, it's true! And I know you feel it, Miles! Our hearts have only grown stronger through our journeys... Making connections... Meeting people like Peter Pan... Link... Ralph and Felix... Jack Skellington... Mewtwo... Stitch... Rafiki... the King... Gator and Travis... Sora... People from your world, people from my world. They've become a part of my heart, just as I've become a part of theirs..." Lucky said, holding his hand over his heart, "And you too, Miles! You're still here, in my heart! And I know I'm there in yours! And as long as our friends keep us in their hearts, the darkness can't destroy us! I don't need the keyblade... My friends are my power! Miles... you are my power!!" he shouted dramatically. Miles took a step back, and Scourge scoffed at him. "That form really is you, Tails. You really are nothin' but a meek, pathetic bunny inside! As if you actually have friends! Don't forget who made you, twerp! Now get out there and snuff out his so-called power!" the green hedgehog shouted. Miles slowly turned towards Scourge, studying him. "...World after world... Lucky and Whisk never talk to me like that... Even after I turned my back on them... But you, Scourge... You...ARE A BULLY!!" As he spoke, Miles wound up his shield and hurled it at Scourge! The hedgehog smirked and moved to block with the keyblade, but it vanished from his hands in that moment! "What?!" he gasped, taking the shield in the face! He rubbed his face as the shield bounced back to Miles, and saw a bright light erupt in Lucky's hand! The keyblade had chosen to return to him on its own! "Mee-YOW!! Oh, hey! You're back, keysey!" Lucky babbled. Taking advantage, he quickly pointed the keyblade at Whisk's cage and unlocked it, setting her free! "Great speech, Lucky! Glad to have us all back!" she cheered. "I feel like it may have been said before, actually..." Lucky chuckled. Scourge raised his hands, holding up a Soul Eater blade. "Enough!! You three are tickin' me off big time!!" he shouted.
"Scuse me... I'll take this!" Zeke stepped behind Scourge, reaching into his jacket pocket to swipe Whisk's wand. "Hey, what??" Scourge babbled, only to have his feet kicked out by Zim! "Ooof!!" he gasped, falling on his behind! "RAWR!!" roared Zeke as he stood over him, "Five on one, let's go! I may not like those three, but anything to crush you, traitor!!" he growled. Scourge zoomed out from under him, standing at the gate to Little Rodentia as the five others chased him. "Ohhh, we'll see who Garland counts as traitor when I get through. First, though, that pest just took my keyblade AGAIN... So, I've decided on a detour. I'm gonna take your world as payment for this sleight! And MILES... I hope you realize you won't have a home to go back to either! So long!" he said before dashing into a corridor of darkness to escape! "I'd be more welcome back home than you, Scourge, after what you pulled!" Miles shouted. Zeke handed Whisk her wand and grunted. "There, I don't owe you squat for freein' us from that prison anymore." he grumbled. "Well, thanks..." Whisk said. Lucky turned to the others with a look of concern. "Why are we standing around here?? Scourge is gonna attack our world!" he stammered. Zim gasped. "Master Zavok!! I have to go back and warn him!" he shouted. Zeke rolled his eyes. "Please, what can Scourge do on his own?" he scoffed. "He can unleash the heartless on a world unprepared for them." Miles pointed out. Zeke's eyes widened. "Hey, that's my thing! He can't do it to my world! Alright, let's go! I hope you got room on your ship, kid!" he grunted. "Shouldn't you use the corridors of darkness? Wouldn't that be faster?" Whisk asked. Miles shook his head. "Scourge might be expecting that. It may be safer to use the warp gummi." With that decided, they started towards the Galestrom. They moved faster when they heard police sirens. "Yaaah! Let's move! Not only are we with Zeke, but I maaay have freaked out a few people with my fox-ness yesterday!" Lucky stammered. "This city's got a ways to go before it's a real utopia..." Whisk murmured. That might be true, but as long as there were kids like Judy who wouldn't let prejudice get them down, the future was in good hands in Zootopia. The more pressing matters now were Scourge and Garland, but as Lucky rushed back to the ship, he felt more ready to face what lay ahead than ever before. Whatever darkness they may face, they had the mightiest weapon of all... the power of their friendship!
Chapter 12 - Darkness, Light and Chaos
World - Keyblade Graveyard
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
"Hold me.
Whatever lies beyond this morning,
Is a little later on.
Regardless of warnings, the future doesn't scare me at all.
Nothing's like before!" - Simple and Clean; Utada
The Galestrom once again landed in GeneX Prime after a quick nav input and launch of the warp gummi. They landed a few miles out from Central City, and rushed out of the ship hastily. "You're welcome for the ride, kupo!!" Winston sighed, hanging back with the ship as usual. "Where do you think Scourge will have gone?" Lucky asked. Miles took off his hood and looked around. "I don't know. I've really not spent all that much time in this world." he said. Whisk slowed down her run. "Well, there's no sign of him or the heartless yet. Let's stop and think." she suggested. They all stopped and held their heads thoughtfully. Zim then jumped suddenly. "Ahh! Zavok! I've been gone so long, and I should check in with Master Zavok! I wonder if he went with that crazy idea of changing the pronounciation of his name to Zav-ock after all?" he said before hastily scurrying away. "Ock? Is he an octopus now?" Lucky murmured. "Let's stay focused, Lucky. We don't need him." Miles murmured. Zeke grunted grouchily. "That little twerp. I knew he'd ditch me at the first sign of trouble..." he said. Whisk put her hand on her hip sassily. "If that were true, you guys would never have been a team at all!" she teased. Zeke rolled his eyes. "Like it or not, we're in this together. And I have insight on where Scourge might go!" he smirked, getting all three of them to look his way, "Well, well, look who's suddenly big and important! Give me a moment, I wanna savor this!" he chuckled. Miles frowned. "He's got nothing. He's just messing with us..." he murmured. "Yeah, like always." Lucky added. Zeke grit his teeth in frustration. "For your information, it's pretty obvious! Scourge will want the place with the highest concentration of darkness through which he can summon the most heartless! And what place played host to the Lost Ones for the longest time? What place is just always naturally dark? Where lots of evil apparently happened...and where we were born?" he said quickly. Lucky and Whisk looked surprised. "He'd go to Shadow Arcangel?" Lucky asked. "Bingo. That place is bursting with darkness. I've felt it..." Zeke said. "Waaaah!! Then we've gotta find that ship!! Discovereva!" Whisk shouted, casting the search spell Gemini taught her in order to find Miles before. A light took off from her wand in the direction Shadow Arcangel was located. "Hurry! Let's go!" she shouted. "My detector was easier... I miss it..." Miles sighed.
It was a bit of a trip and required Whisk and Zeke flying Lucky and Miles aboard, but they soon arrived at Shadow Arcangel. Vortex and Zipp met them at the entrance, but Whisk pushed past them. "No time for your awkward crush on me, Vortex!" Whisk scoffed as Lucky nervously shrugged. They headed straight for Bucky's laboratory, where a female squirrel was wrapped in a towel. "Ah, hello everyone. Say hello to Experiment 19. Her name is Emily..." Bucky said, turning to look at his visitors. "Uh, yo there, Emily." Lucky murmured. Bucky nodded. "She is my third...maybe fourth time bringing life back from death. I did this to try and secure the rest of the Chaos Relics... Zipp's spy work informs me that Conan the raccoon's efforts have all been to restore her to life." he said. "...Conan? Who... is that?" Emily murmured. Whisk frowned. "Memory problems? I've been there..." she sighed. "So, there's been no sign of Scourge here..." Miles concluded. Bucky turned to Emily. "I'll get you some clothes and try to fill in some of those memory gaps in a moment. This may be extremely important and can't wait..." he said, turning back and looking Zeke square in the face. "Uhhh... Hey, dad!" the dragon waved awkwardly. "Don't 'Dad' me! What is this heinous contraption you and that Zeti set up in the engine room last time you were here? Why are there creatures in suspended animation down there?!" he growled, fingers sparking. The others glanced at Zeke nervously, and Crash the rhino suddenly burst into the lab. "Boss! Lucky and Whisk and Zeke are here!! ...Oh." he said awkwardly, "...Hey, nineteen. Happy birthday." he murmured. Vortex and Zipp could be heard chuckling behind him. "Grow up, you two! You sent me in there on purpose!" he grunted. "Is it weird that I miss those goons?" Lucky asked. "A little bit." Miles shrugged. Zeke cleared his throat. "Well, I think I'll be going now..." he murmured, only to find Whisk blocking his path. "I used to have memory problems, Zeke. Answer Bucky's question!" she said sternly. "Uhhhh what question was that?" he asked with a wide, nervous grin. Bucky grabbed him by the wing and started to drag him away. "You're coming with me. Lucky, why don't your friends join me. Vortex, Zipp, since you have an abundance of time, keep an eye on Emily here. Crash, take the helm from Spiny. We've kept him cooped up in there too much..." he said to everyone. Lucky shrugged and followed, unsure what they'd find.
It was as Bucky said. There was some sort of unsettling device in the engine room, and hooked up to it were four stasis pods. Within were beings from other worlds. There was a playing card soldier who was clearly from Wonderland. There was a female cow, Claribelle, who hailed from Disney Town. Flounder from Atlantica was floating in a water-filled pod, and lastly, Stitch was encased in a pod, too. Miles looked over the setup and quickly came to a realization. "These people are all from the worlds behind those doors... This machine must have been involved in creating those doors. This... this is a time machine!" he gasped. "Well, Merlin said that someone who exists in the target location had to be involved in creating the doors..." Whisk murmured. Lucky looked at Flounder and Stitch trapped in those pods and growled. "How could you do this, Zeke?!" he shouted, glaring at him. Zeke crossed his arms and looked away. "Garland gave us everything. He was the one who wanted it built here. Actually, he even came here and did most of the technical stuff..." he said. "You let an offworlder onto my ship?!" Bucky snapped, making Miles slightly uncomfortable for a moment, but then he thought of something. "Garland's been to this world, and has access to a time machine... Guys, what if he can access this world's past?" he suggested. Lucky and Whisk looked at him nervously. "Well, heck, if he can access his past at all, doesn't that give him an advantage?" Lucky murmured. "He might already know everything that happens..." Whisk gasped. The five of them then heard clapping at the entrance to the room. "Bravo, kids. You've figured it out. Congratulations, I didn't think you'd be smart enough, but it seems Garland really does know the future..." Scourge stepped into the room with a smirk on his face, "Y'see, he intercepted me before I could get here. Told me things. Ah, but where are my manners. I've got friends to introduce! You've got your stooges, Miles... Say hello to mine!" he grinned as two dark figures stepped out of the shadows. They resembled both Whisk and Zeke, but blacker, darker forms. Whisk gasped. "My dark form! We were flying in the Galestrom, and Lospecter appeared out of nowhere and separated her from me somehow!" she gasped. Zeke blinked. "Somethin' like that happened to me, too. I thought I was hallucinatin'." he grunted. "No you ain't, brother... My name is Xezek!" the black dragon sneered. "And you can call me...Raven!" Dark Whisk winked.
Lucky's trinity looked at Scourge's trinity and prepared their weapons. "So, Lospecter's on your side, too?" Whisk asked. Scourge shrugged. "Who, the ghost? Said he liked Garland's moxie or somethin..." he murmured. That sounded like Lospecter. It seemed Raven and Xezek would be all the Lost Ones would send. Scourge gripped his Soul Eater as he stepped closer to Lucky's group, sizing them up. "But yeah, Garland's been time traveling. Over and over, he's cast his body into the past and watched events unfold. He's kept himself in a time loop, enabling himself to learn every detail of your journey. It's how he knew where I'd be, how he knew about Raven and Xezek... And he knows how you'll lose!" Scourge smirked. Bucky looked a tad bewildered by all this. "Wait, the dark forms are separate now? And this Garland fellow's got a time loop going? Why do I feel I'm walking in on two different stories that I've been failing to pay attention to..." Zeke shrugged. "That's okay, I want someone to explain this newspaper..." he said, holding up a headline that read "President Gunner attacks Troblusk City." Everyone really had quite a bit of catching up to do, but now wasn't the time for it. As Whisk clutched her wand, Raven extended her black wings, which emanated dark energy. "Try it, doll. I'm your strong side...the one strong enough to hold all your memories. Oh, yeah... I have all the answers, Whisk. Like that memory that triggered in Halloweentown... I know the meaning of it." she smirked. Xezek stomped towards Miles. He looked like a heartless, his body was so blackened. "If it isn't the twerp who locked my weak half in a cage. That's a cage within a cage for me. And Zeke's so soft, he's lettin' you get away with it. Why, when we're a dragon...we can break you in two!" he snarled, holding dark energy in his claws. "Sure you can. That's why Zeke's been using the heartless all this time instead of fighting himself!" Miles scoffed. Lucky wouldn't be distracted by them. "Wait, what are you doing here, Scourge? You didn't come just to explain about this machine..." he murmured. Scourge nodded. "That's right. I came to tear it apart. Garland's done with it...and he can't have you punks going to the past and using his own trick against him!" he smirked. "Yeah, 'cuz it's not like there aren't half a dozen other methods of time travel in this world..." Zeke said, rolling his eyes. "But they'll only work in THIS world. I gather this machine was designed for otherworldly time travel..." Bucky explained. "Sharp as a tack..." Scourge smirked, "Now, trashing time!"
The two trios leapt into action, a fight breaking out! "We can't let Scourge wreck the stasis pods or the engines!" Lucky shouted. That was the primary concern, ahead of the time travel component. Bucky stepped back to block anyone from the engines, shooting off lightning if ANYONE got too close. "This ship is not crashing today!" he growled. "Blizara!!" Whisk cast, trying to freeze Raven in place! Her evil twin flapped her wings and sent out a wave of dark power, shattering the ice before it could touch her! Miles tossed his shield at Xezek, which he caught. "Idiot! A shield is not a weapon!!" he snarled, spouting purple flames from his maw at the fox, who scrambled out of the way! "It is if you do this...!" Miles said, pressing a switch on the shield's handle which caused it to electrify itself, stunning the black dragon into dropping it! Lucky and Scourge were exchanging blows, keyblade against Soul Eater, but Scourge smirked. He was toying with him. "Looks like your friends are busy...and Zeke's too much of a coward to do anything. You're done!" he laughed, speeding away from Lucky as he stumbled forward with nothing for his keyblade to strike. "Meee-yow!! What!?" he gasped, looking back to see Scourge zoom past the time machine, sparks flying from it before it crumbled into a broken heap! The stasis pods then turned off, and the occupants banged against the glass to get out, with Stitch being the only one to break free! He shouted something in an alien language, clearly angry and a tad confused. Then, he looked around, his ears standing up. "Sora!!" he shouted, scurrying out of the engine room quickly. "Stitch, wait!!" Whisk shouted, only to be knocked down by a swift kick to the belly from Raven! "Have a seat, girl!" Raven smirked. Zeke gulped. "Sorry, guys... I was kinda on their side on this one. Probably best the time machine is toast..." he murmured. Scourge and his new sidekicks stood at the exit in triumph. "Oh, kitten, Garland had one more thing for me to tell ya. Your presence is requested by the creepy old knight. He wants you to meet him at the fated place..." Scourge said, holding out his claws in a menacing manner, "...the Keyblade Graveyard... Oh yeah, the place where keyblade masters fought and perished long ago during the great struggle for Kingdom Hearts... I knew about that when I owned that keyblade. I look forward to you giving us a dramatic reenactment! Ha ha ha ha!!" he laughed, escaping into a corridor of darkness with Raven and Xezek!
Meanwhile, Zim had found Zavok back at Lost Hex. He could barely get through his report before Zavok glared at him and grabbed his head in his massive palm. "Enough! All this talk of other worlds, beings of shadows, keyblades... Not only have you wasted my time here and now, but you've wasted the last two years of your pathetic waste of a life! My only consolation is that I haven't had to put up with you for two years!" he shouted, winding up to throw him off Lost Hex. "Wa-wait, my lord!! So... is it Zavok or Zav-ock??" he asked. The huge Zeti let out an irritated growl. "It has always been Zav-ock!! My name is not the word havok with a Z! That would be silly! Kind of like YOU!!" he roared, hurling Zim back down to earth! "It's silly either way and Zav-ock is pretentious soundiiiiiiing!!" Zim yelled as he soared away from his home. Zavok dusted his hands and pouted. "I am NOT pretentious! I am mighty, and serious, and... and...... totally not thinking of crawling back to Eggman!" he said, eyes darting back and forth.
With Flounder in a fishbowl, Lucky, Whisk, Miles and Zeke brought the people from the stasis pods to the Galestrom. They had to be returned home. It wasn't easy catching up with Stitch and getting him to come along, considering they first met him in the future. "Should we even go to the Keyblade Graveyard? It's a trap, Lucky..." Miles pointed out. Zeke shook his head. "No, trap implies you don't know danger is lurking. This is more of a showdown." he said. "I'm not going to a sh-showdown, am I?" Flounder asked nervously. "No, you're going home. You can get everyone home, right, Winston?" Lucky asked as they were all crammed aboard the ship. Stitch hopped into the driver's seat and chuckled mischieviously. "Hey! Don't mess with anything, kupo! I thought you said he was being trained as a model citizen?" Winston sighed, "Well, I can try to get them home... I don't know about Stitch..." he murmured. "Don't ignore my question..." Miles sighed. Whisk sighed, too. "We can't just ignore Garland. If we try to, he might let Scourge loose on our worlds after all. The only reason Scourge didn't attack the whole world was because Garland stopped him." she stated. Lucky nodded. "Besides, this is what my journey's been about...stopping him. And he never found his source of chaos or light. We've still got the advantage here!" he smiled. "I wouldn't count on that..." Miles murmured. "Alright! Buckle up!" Winston said as he wrested the controls from Stitch, "First stop, the Keyblade Graveyard!" he announced as the Galestrom started to take off! "...Hey!! Wait for me!! Wait for Zim!!" Zim shouted from outside, but he was too late. The ship took off without him. "YOU CANNOT DITCH ZIM!!" he shouted in frustration.
The Keyblade Graveyard was a desolate place far off from any other world. Lucky, Whisk and Miles had uneasy looks on their faces as they took their first steps on the soil where keyblade masters once fought terrible battles. Their keys stood plunged in the ground, lifeless, like tombstones marking where they fell. Zeke hummed softly behind them as the Galestrom took off to return Stitch and the others to where they belonged. "No turning back... You up for this, kid? 'Cuz if you're not, your key will be stuck in the ground same as all these others..." the dragon said. Lucky gulped, but kept moving. "We've come too far to get cold feet!" he said. Miles nodded. "Keep your guards up, though. Scourge could be watching us right now..." he said. Whisk looked around nervously. "Raven, too..." she murmured. However, Garland and his allies weren't exactly hiding. After a brief walk, they came to a bit of a crossroads formed among the buried keys, and within that crossroad stood the black knight, Garland, with Scourge, Raven and Xezek standing around him. Garland was looking over a machine he'd built. The dark heart from Halloweentown was inserted in a slot at the top, and seven glowing lights encircled it. "...Th-the Chaos Emeralds!?" Lucky gasped, "...How!?" he babbled. Garland turned and glared at them. "You know how... I have lived the past few years again and again, an endless cycle. Through this time loop, I perfected my plan, and determined how to defeat the ones who would stop me. The Chaos Emeralds...the perfect source of Chaos power...I collected them over the course of my many cycles through time. They won't be missed." he said. Zeke scratched his head. "Why have Zim and me look for a source of chaos if you had this worked out?" he asked. Garland let out a chuckle. "Never hurts to have a spare... But in truth, the reason I used you fools was two-fold. First, you supplied the dark heart..." he stated, motioning to it, "But second, and more important, you provide the power of light I need... by training that keyblade user and his friends." he said, pointing straight to Lucky. "Huh?! Wait, didn't you try to warn me against opposing you?!" Lucky babbled. "Silly boy. I knew you would pursue me anyway. I counted on it! The light you provide will mingle with this darkness and chaos... and with hearts you've freed from the heartless, collected by this machine, I will use the power to create my masterpiece... CHAOS HEARTS!!" Garland roared.
A barrier of darkness encircled the area, cutting through the stuck keys somewhat. Xezek quickly flew over to Zeke, tackling him into the barrier! "Ooof!! Hey, man, I'm you!!" Zeke grunted. "No, you're my old cage! I'm looking forward to this!! GRAAAAH!!" Xezek roared! Zeke kicked the black dragon off and flew up, quickly pursued. Meanwhile, Raven flew at Miles, casting dark beams down into his shield, which he struggled to hold up! "Hey! I wanna take Scourge! Back off!" he grunted. "Sorry, I'm not as ready to forgive you as my weaker half is!" Raven smirked, flying down and kicking his shield, only to feel a jolt through her body! "Fine, I'll go through you first!" Miles grunted. This left Lucky and Whisk to take on Garland and Scourge...or just Scourge. The hedgehog was fast enough to occupy both of them. He'd parry a blow from Lucky's key and swiftly dash away from Whisk's magic attacks, then easily block another strike from Lucky! "Gyaaa!! This is literally like fighting Sonic! Whisk, can't you use time magic?" he asked. "What if I miss!? And hit you!? Who do you think I am, Gemini!?" she stammered. Scourge smirked and performed a homing attack with his Soul Eater spinning with him, knocking both Lucky and Whisk down and leaving them scratched up! "Heh... Pathetic. Listen, dweebs. I don't care about Garland or Chaos Hearts. I'm here to destroy you losers... And I'll wipe you out with power that you can't even begin to contain! Let's call this your test for the Mark of Mastery!!" he sneered. Then, his body was enveloped in darkness, and erupting from that darkness was a writing mass of crazed shadow heartless, acting as a unit and forming a mighty Demon Tower! Lucky and Whisk backed up as they got to their feet, staring in shock at the nightmarish whirlwind of pure darkness before them! "What even IS this!?" Lucky gasped. "Ha ha ha ha ha!! It's leftovers from Xehenort's Keyblade War! It's all over now, but this little beauty is still here to end you!" Scourge cackled. Miles looked with wide eyes for a moment as Raven stood, savoring his reaction. "You're toast, you know. Shoulda realized... Darkness can achieve far greater power than light ever can..." she taunted. Garland just stood by his machine, watching intently. "Everything goes as it always is fated to unfold. Now... use your light... complete Chaos Hearts for me..." he sneered. Lucky clutched his keyblade and looked to Whisk. "C'mon... Don't give up!!" he cried.
The Demon Tower swirled towards them like a tornado. Whisk gulped. "Maybe now is the time for time magic..." she murmured. "Don't bother." Garland said to her, "You are too weak to hold multiple enemies..." She knew he was probably right. They really weren't prepared for this. She backed up and shot some fira and blizara spells at the tower of shadows, but it did little good. Lucky charged at the tower, figuring his keyblade should do something; He'd trounced countless shadows by now, after all. However, Scourge rushed out of the darkness and clashed with his keyblade before kicking him in the gut, making him stumble backward! Zeke and Miles were hurled to the ground by Xezek and Raven around this time, too, and as the dark forces started to surround Lucky and Whisk, the cat clutched his keyblade tighter. "Hang on, everyone!! I'll s-save you!!" he stammered, a flicker of fear in his eyes. Who would save him? He lunged his keyblade at Scourge, but the hedgehog leapt clean over him and bounced off his back with a spin attack, sending Lucky careening towards the Demon Tower! Whisk gasped and pointed her wand at Scourge. "Stopra!!" she cried, freezing him still for the moment and giving Lucky some breathing room. Unfortunately, that was all she could do in the moment as Xezek and Raven grabbed her arms! "Hold still, dearie...you don't wanna miss this part..." Raven smirked. "L-lucky!!" Whisk cried as the black cat slashed his keyblade into the Demon Tower, only to feel it tug at the key, pulling him closer... It was trying to suck him into the vortex of darkness! "MEEE-YOWWW!! It... it's no good! These shadows are souped up beyond all reason! It...it's hopeless!!" he gasped, tears welling in his eyes as he looked back and saw his friends, Zeke and Miles knocked out, Whisk held back, Scourge starting to move again. "Wh-whisk..." he grunted, letting go of the keyblade and jumping back as it was pulled into the Demon Tower! He held out his hand and summoned his keyblade back. "I have...to save...Whisk..." he huffed, clearly tired. The top of the Demon Tower wound up, about to swing at Lucky! Whisk's eyes widened. "NOOOOO!!" she wailed, and teleported out of her enemies' clutches, standing between Lucky and the Demon Tower! "Wha- Whisk?!" he gasped. She pointed her wand and cried out a spell. "HOLY!!!" A powerful light was cast from her wand, repelling the Demon Tower, making it recoil. Light also emanated from her heart, and Garland held up a heart-shaped vessel, not unlike what Scourge was going to use in Zootopia. "Finally... True love... Just the light I need for Chaos Hearts!!" he declared, using the vessel to draw out the light emanating from Whisk's heart! She gasped and clutched her heart, falling back into Lucky's arms! "Whisk!!" he gasped. Making matters worse, Scourge emerged in front of them, and the Demon Tower rose up again, too...
"You have held on remarkably, my boy... Now, stay strong a moment longer!" Lucky's ears perked up as he heard a familiar voice. "...M-master... Yen Sid!?" he gasped. A tremendous power erupted just outside the barrier. With a wave of his hands, Yen Sid cast a stronger spell that shattered the barrier! Scourge looked around in disbelief. "Who could possibly...?" he babbled. "Gosh, I've been waitin' a long time to repay ya, Lucky! Hang on!" Lucky didn't recognize this voice, and looked around. A blue keyblade with starry patterns on it came spinning down from the sky and crashed into Scourge, its owner landing in front of him and catching it! It was the King! He hopped up and did a midair kick, knocking Scourge into the Demon Tower and causing the tower to collapse into a rain of shadow heartless! The King then held up his keyblade. "Heal!!" he shouted, which caused Zeke and Miles to stir. "Ehhh? Hey, it's that steamboat mouse..." Zeke babbled. Xezek and Raven were about to make a move, but Gator teleported over to them and swiftly stomped on Xezek's tail! "Yooooww!! That's fighting dirty!" he growled before Gator started whacking him with his own keyblade! "Stinky heartless!! Shoo!! Shoo!!" he shouted. Travis soon joined them, pointing a javelin at Raven. "Don't underestimate me... I will not hesitate to harm a woman..." he warned. Raven backed up and glanced at Garland to see what his play would be. He inserted the vessel filled with light into a final slot on his machine, and then used dark power to levitate it. "You're too late, King! I have all that I need now... The only thing left I require is time... And a trip to my own world will grant me that..." A rather large corridor of darkness opened up, which Garland sent his machine through quickly. "Chaos Hearts will be complete there, and all worlds will plunge into glorious chaos! I will then rule over it all, my endless cycle through time at last over! This outcome was fated, foregone...inevitable! Farewell!!" he said, laughing as he escaped through the corridor! Scourge, Raven and Xezek were quick to follow as the scattered shadows covered their escape, the King, Lucky and the others forced to fight them off. "Whew... That was close... I was not ready..." Lucky sighed once the heartless were gone, "Thanks for the save, Master Yen Sid... And, you, your magesty!" he said, bowing. The mouse rubbed his head bashfully. "Aw, cut it out. You can call me Mickey!" he said, extending his hand. Lucky smiled and shook the royal mouse's hand. "Heh, okay! Nice to meet ya properly, Mickey!" he smiled. There wouldn't be too much time to relax, though. With Chaos Hearts on the verge of completion, something had to be done about Garland, fast!
Chapter 13 - Final Chapter - Chaos Hearts
World - Final Fracture
Note: Sonic the Hedgehog and related characters are (c) SEGA and
Sonic Team. You knew that, right?
GeneX and related fanchars are (c) 2BIT (TheGreatGator), the author.
Kingdom Hearts is (c) Disney & Square Enix. Related elements belong to their respective companies.
"Breath, should I take a deep?
Faith, should I take the leap?
Taste, what a bittersweet...
All my, all my life...
Let me face, let me face, let me face my fears...
Oh, let me face, let me face, let me face my fears...
Won't be long, won't be long, I'm almost here.
Watch me cry all my tears." - Face My Fears; Utada, Skrillex
Now, they needed to find Garland's home world, wherever it was. Lucky's group was pretty badly battered and beaten, but they knew he couldn't be allowed to summon Chaos Hearts. "What do we do now?" Lucky panted, helping Whisk back to her feet, "And are you okay??" he asked her. Whisk rubbed her head. "I'll be fine... It's like he sucked out some energy, but I'll be okay..." she murmured. Yen Sid nodded. "He can't fully tear the love from your heart. If it's truly strong enough for his purpose, it can't be broken so easily." he stated. "Come on, guys!" Gator said hastily, "We can't just stand around here looking at the pretty keys! We gotta catch that knight! ...Why am I always chasing knights?" he muttered, a line that probably only makes sense to the author. Travis looked to Lucky's group. "We didn't see your ship..." he stated. "Our pilot's running an errand. We should probably wait here for him..." Miles said. Yen Sid turned and started to follow Gator and Travis, but hesitated. "Your defeat here is a setback, but it is not the end. Never give up on what you believe is right... That line of thought brought your friend back to your side, didn't it?" he said with a knowing smile as Lucky and Whisk glanced at Miles with a chuckle. "Guess it did!" Lucky smiled. The sorcerer nodded. "May your heart be your guiding key..." he whispered before taking his leave. Mickey was still there, though. "Guess I should go with them. Too bad ya can't come with us!" the mouse sighed, "But don't worry! We'll try to find Garland just as fast as we can!" he said. Lucky nodded and glanced around. "I'm surprised Master Yen Sid brought you and not Sora..." he murmured. Mickey's ears drooped at the mention of the boy's name. "Aw, gosh... If Sora knew about Garland I'm sure he'd wanna help, and maybe that woulda been better... Where he's gone now, I'm not sure if we'll ever see him again." he said sadly. Lucky looked at his sad expression and gave a sympathetic smile, placing his hand on Mickey's shoulder. "Hey... He's not gone. Not by a long shot." he said, pointing at the mouse's chest. "He's here..." Then, he placed his hand over his own chest, "And he's here, too." he said cheerfully. Mickey looked up and gave a cheerful chuckle. "Gosh, you're right, pal! And ya know what... You kinda remind me of him. And that reminds me... That he always finds his way back, no matter how dark things get!" he smiled. "Heh, glad I could help, Mickey!" Lucky grinned.
Mickey and the others were gone by the time the Galestrom landed. Lucky, Whisk, Miles and Zeke rushed to the ship urgently. "You're alive! Does that mean we won, kupo?" Winston asked. Their expressions quickly told him they did not. "Oh... It's that bad, is it?" he asked. "Garland's on the verge of making Chaos Hearts! We still don't know what it does, but it can't be good!" Lucky told him. "He escaped to his own world... Wherever that is..." Whisk sighed. Winston folded his arms and sighed. "I know where that is, kupo... You see, I'm from the same world as Garland." he told them. Lucky and Whisk looked at him with wide eyes. "Wait, did you ever tell us that??" Lucky babbled. "I sure didn't know..." Zeke grumbled. "I knew. It just didn't seem to matter too much until now..." Miles said. Lucky held his head for a moment. "Meeeeee-yow!! What are we sitting here for, then!? Warp speed, Winston! Take us home! Uhh, your home! We gotta catch Garland!" he shouted. Winston nodded and sat down. "There isn't much left of my world anymore. You see, the first world Garland invaded was his own, and he was merciless... It's why I wander the worlds on this Gummi ship." he stated. Lucky and the others sat down, strapped in, and held on as Winston took off, the Warp Gummi prepared to take the Moogle home at a moment's notice. "Plotting a course for the world we now know as... Final Fracture..." Winston announced.
The reason for that name was that Winston's world was in pieces, broken apart by Garland's evil deeds. They landed the ship on the largest remaining chunk of the world, where they could see surviving remnants of its former beauty. Crystals jutted from the ground and floated in the air, once full of power but now dormant. What looked like flying sea crafts were anchored over broken piers, the airships themselves in pretty poor shape. Villages seemed to be crumbled, broken messes, and there was no sign of any people. "And I thought the Keyblade Graveyard was depressing..." Miles murmured. Lucky nodded. "Garland's here somewhere... And so are Scourge and those dark versions of Whisk and Zeke. Everybody watch each others' backs..." he warned. Winston gulped. "I'll, uh, I'll keep the ship running, kupo. I'm no good at this fighting stuff..." he said. "Don't worry, Winston!" Whisk said, placing a hand on her heart, "You're always with us in here, helping us just by cheering us on!" she told him. The Moogle smiled a little. "It's been an honor driving you... Come back in one piece!"
It became easy to find Garland after a moment. The clouds above parted to reveal a glimmering, heart-shaped moon in the sky. It was a Kingdom Hearts! With no time to lose, Lucky and his friends hurried in the direction the moon had emerged from, finding Garland standing over his machine by the edge of a cliff. "You are too late... Welcome, Chaos Hearts!!" he cried as three beams shot up from his machine, a white one, a black one, and a golden one. The heart shaped moon above began to glow golden in reaction. Then, suddenly, it fractured, the cracks in the moon's surface forming the image of a broken heart! Lucky gasped as he watched this. "This... is Chaos Hearts?!" he cried. "No! What's going to happen now?!" Whisk asked. Garland chuckled. "Now the power of chaos will spread throughout the worlds... Can your hearts feel it? It's happening now..."
Indeed, each world was finding itself beginning to be influenced by the power of Chaos Hearts. In Neverland, everyone and everything started to fly due to an excess of pixie dust being sprinkled everywhere. "Tink? Tink!! What's wrong?! Why are you acting crazy!?" Peter Pan gasped, actually trying to hold on to a tree and stay grounded. Captain Hook was panicking as his ship floated up to the sky. "Smeeeee!! Drop anchor!! Get this ship back to shore!!" he cried. Smee leapt up, trying to catch the anchor as it floated above the ship. And this was just Neverland. Hyrule field became a battlefield as Gorons and Zoras began battling one another. The reason? Neither Link nor Zelda could figure it out. "Is this Ganondorf's work? Has he escaped?" Navi wondered. Zelda shook her head. "Whatever the cause, we must prepare to defend Kakariko..." she said. Link nodded, clutching his sword. Elsewhere, Wreck-It Ralph was chasing Fix-It Felix around, bashing anything in his path with his massive fists. "Rrrrraaaagh!! I'm gonna wreck everything! Gimmie one of those medals you glory-hogging good guy!" Ralph shouted. Felix yelped and ducked as one of those huge fists swung over his head. "Raaaaalph? Are you all reprogrammed again? Remember last time ya went bananas?" he asked nervously. It didn't seem to do any good calming him down. In Halloweentown, the citizens were getting carried away frightening one another. Even Jack Skellington was in on the act. "Rrrrraaaaahhhh!! Ha ha! Who needs trick or treaters? We can create terror right here!!" he laughed as he sent Lock, Shock and Barrel fleeing in terror! Sally watched in concern. "Jack... You're not yourself. Nobody's themselves. What should I do?" she wondered, holding her head in concern. On his own journey, Red was forced to take cover with Pikachu as Pokemon in the area began to rampage for no apparent reason! Fearows were whipping terrible whirlwinds and Primeapes were thrashing all over, and that was just going on in front of him. "Where's Nurse Joy when we need her? I think these Pokemon are all confused at once..." Red gulped. "Pikaaaa..." Pikachu sighed. Simba and Zira were leading lions to the border of the Pride Lands to do battle as Rafiki watched from afar, worried. "Kings of the past, protect us..." he said softly. Zootopia seemed to descend into complete savagery, forcing young Nick to hide himself in a dark alley with a number of other frightened kids. "What's wrong with everyone?" a lion cub asked. "No idea... But we should just look out for ourselves!" Nick suggested. And in Miles' world, the Freedom Force was struggling to keep the peace as citizens began to riot! "Way to go, Scourge... Great time to ditch us..." Sal grunted. "If only... Miles were here..." Nicole murmured. No matter the world, it seemed Garland had won!
Their hearts could feel the chaos spreading. But certain strong hearts were resisting, including Lucky and his friends. "...It's not too late. We can't give up!" Lucky said, his keyblade materializing as he pointed it at Chaos Hearts, "I feel it... I can seal Chaos Hearts away, and that will stop this!" he said. "Lovely sentiment... But how will you do it with us here?" shouted Scourge as he, Raven and Xezek stepped between Lucky and Garland. Zeke punched a fist into his palm and stomped ahead. "Easy, I'll take on all three of ya! RAAAAWR!!" he cried as Miles and Whisk took a half step to stop him. Instead, they watched as Zeke got royally and swiftly clobbered by the three of them, scarcely given a chance before he fell face first to the ground. "Th-that all ya got??" Zeke groaned. Scourge chuckled, holding up his Soul Eater. "We've done this dance. You're much too slow to beat me...plus, I cheat." he said. Suddenly, a corridor of darkness opened up behind Scourge and his allies. "...Make way for ZIIIIM!!" Everyone looked with a bit of surprise, and their eyes widened further as an enormous hand reached out of the corridor and grabbed Scourge! "Yaaaahh!! Put me down!! What the frak!?" Scourge yelled as a Darkside heartless emerged from the corridor, with Zim riding on its back! "Zim is here to save his best friend, Zeke!! Just point me at the enemies! No one escapes the wrath of ZIM!!" the Zeti cackled as Darkside kicked Raven aside, still flailing Scourge around in its giant hand! "I w-will destroy you, y-you twerp!!" Scourge yelled. Lucky turned to Miles and Whisk while this was happening. "Not what we had in mind, but let's get Garland!" he suggested. The others nodded, and they hurried past the raging Darkside, which grabbed up Zeke in its other hand! "Agh!! Zim! Not me!! The other dragon is Dark Zeke! I'm the real one!!" he yelled. "That is exactly what Dark Zeke would say! Answer this! What is Zim's favorite color!?" the Zeti shouted. "You never told me that, you idiot!!" Zeke growled. Xezek laughed. "Your favorite color is darkness..." he said. Zim crossed his arms and looked at Zeke. "That's not even a color! I want a do-over question!!" he cried. "Don't just stand there, Xezek, get me down!!" Scourge yelled. Xezek shrugged and helped Raven up, the two of them sitting down to watch. "We'll let you guys work it out." Raven smirked. Zeke and Scourge glared at each other. "This is all YOUR fault!!" both yelled at once.
While Zim kept Scourge occupied, Lucky, Miles and Whisk had begun fighting with Garland. However, they couldn't seem to land a hit on him. Every move they made, Garland would either calmly step or lean aside, or he'd block it with his broadsword. "Mee-yow!! He's tough..." Lucky murmured. Miles tossed his shield at Garland while Whisk cast Fira. He stepped back and let the two attacks collide, causing the shield to clatter to the ground. "I have fought this battle again and again. Cycle upon cycle, in my endless loop of time. It took great trial and error to get this far. But each time I would be defeated, I sent my body back to the past, and repeat the cycle. And now, I know every move you could possibly think of." All three of them came at Garland from different directions, and Garland went to work. His blade swatted aside the keyblade, hooking its teeth and twisting it to block Whisk's incoming thundara spell. His free hand then grabbed Miles' head without looking, and pushed him to the ground! The keyblade deflected thundara and zapped Whisk, making her fall over, too! Growling, Lucky started to swing his keyblade at Garland angrily, but the knight simply turned and twisted, avoiding every strike as though he had them memorized by heart! Miles grabbed his shield and looked to Whisk. "You okay? How can we beat this guy if he knows all our moves already?" he asked. Whisk watched Lucky desperately clash with Garland, missing every strike. "What if I don't even know what I'm gonna do?" she said, and clutched her wand, pointing it at herself. "...Whisk?? Whisk!! Don't!!" Miles gasped. "Morphicadabra!!" Whisk cried, casting a spell Gemini taught her to transform things. She used it to remove her wings, the feathery limbs simply vanishing, along with her magical powers! With them, her memories also would fade. "Whisk!! No!!" Lucky gasped, kicked to the floor during his distraction. "Silly girl. With her out of the way, defeating you two is a simple matter..." Garland sneered. He then charged at Lucky, who barely blocked the knight's sword with his keyblade! Miles charged at Garland with his shield, blocked by the knight's free hand! "I'm about to kill you both... Then the girl... And my triumph will be complete! I am inevitable! Let's break the cycle now!!" Garland growled. Meanwhile, Whisk looked up and saw Chaos Hearts, gasping. She held her head, trying to remember what was going on. "No, no, no, no!! Who am I, where am I... Why!?" she cried, stumbling around in her confusion. She stumbled right into Garland from the side, knocking him off balance! "What...are you doing!?" he gasped. "Didn't see that coming, huh?" Lucky smirked, kicking the stunned knight off him! Miles then tossed his shield at Garland's helmet, and Lucky slashed the keyblade across his chest before both of them lunged at the knight, pushing him over the nearby ledge! "NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Garland wailed, plummeting over the cliff!
Lucky and Miles looked on as Garland's heart floated up from below, one more heart to join Chaos Hearts. "I guess the loop is broken..." Lucky murmured. Suddenly, a massive clawed hand reached up from below and grabbed the heart! "MEEE-YOOOWW!!" Lucky cried as he witnessed a demonic creature rise up, with an orange body, four powerful arms, and broad wings. The creature seemed to absorb Garland's heart! "That pawn has served his purpose... I am Garland's master, his god! I am Chaos!!" the demonic entity bellowed. Lucky gulped. "Funny, you don't look like a watery Chao god..." he said nervously. "I am a true god! And with the power of Chaos Hearts flowing through me, I will rule all worlds forever, all of them reforged in my own image! And what can petty mortal beings like you do about it? Stay here and watch... As I claim Chaos Hearts as my own!" he sneered, his broad wings flapping to carry him towards the broken heart moon! Lucky glanced at Whisk, who was sitting on the ground sobbing at the loss of her memory. Miles decided to take charge, spinning his tails to give chase. "How about a taste of electric-charged shield, ugly!?" he yelled, holding up his shield as he flew at Chaos! Lucky looked in shock as Chaos whipped a powerful tail of his own at Miles, slamming it against the shield and sending him plummeting back to the fractured world! Lucky leapt to catch him, but even so, Miles was pretty badly hurt, and his shield was broken in half! "A-are you okay!?" Lucky gasped. "N-never mind me... You have...to stop Chaos..." Miles panted. Lucky placed Miles carefully on the ground and looked up. Chaos was disappearing into a portal that emerged in front of Chaos Hearts. The cat looked around, and saw chunks of landscape and floating crystals that led up to Chaos hearts. He clutched his keyblade. "For everyone... May my heart be my guiding key..." he said, and ran, leaping to the first chunk of land, then to a crystal, and from land to crystal to land on his way to Chaos Hearts. He'd never done anything quite like this before, but he had to steel his nerves and do the impossible. He couldn't let his friends down! He leapt into the portal, and found himself inside Chaos Hearts itself... face to face with the god, Chaos...the true mastermind behind Garland's schemes.
The world within Chaos Hearts was one of pure chaos itself. No walls, no floor, but crashing lightning here and there, as well as other projectiles bouncing into each other in the orangey light. Those projectiles looked like Gummi blocks from afar, but they could in fact be anything, from any world. Within all of this was Chaos himself, crossing his four arms across his chest as he glared at Lucky floating before him. "You would have been wise to remain with your friends. Here, I will scatter your heart to the winds! Farewell!" Chaos then charged at him, forcing Lucky to attempt to strike back with his keyblade! "Aaaaah!! N-no!! Y-you're...too strong!" he gasped, his keyblade caught in two of Chaos' hands as the other two pummeled his small feline body! Lucky cried out, trying to bear the pain. Then, Chaos threw him into a rather large Gummi block, breaking it! "Aaaaaaugh!! Nyaaa... C-can't... give up... Wh-whisk...Miles... Give me strength..." Lucky panted, leaning up to face Chaos. "You are alone. They cannot aid you." the god's voice boomed. "You're wrong! I'd be dead now... If they weren't in my heart, helping me. The bonds I share with my friends make my heart stronger than your chaos! So go on, destroy my body...but you won't touch my heart!!" he shouted, swinging his keyblade. Chaos smirked, but his smirk turned to a frown as light blinded him. "What's this!?" he gasped. Lucky looked to see a gray Chaos Emerald. Garland had used the negative energy of the emeralds to summon Chaos Hearts. But where did this emerald come from? "Can't go two seconds without needing our help, Lucky? Haha, just kidding! We'll lend a hand!" That was Miles' voice, coming from the emerald! Lucky's eyes widened, and six more lights surrounded him! "We're here for you, Kupo! Always!" Winston's voice spoke. "Don't let me or the worlds down, squirt!" Lucky heard Zeke say. "Your heart will not forget ZIM!!" the fourth familiar voice called. "Heya, pal! Your heart called out to me! Hang in there, I'll be with ya soon!" King Mickey chimed in. "Whatever happens...I'll find a way to remember you..." Whisk whispered. "Our friends...are our power!" said the seventh voice...Sora! The emeralds then glowed in seven colors and spun around Lucky, giving him strength! His body glowed with a brilliant light as he clutched his keyblade and attained his Super form! Chaos' eyes adjusted to the light, and he chuckled. "You think your Chaos Emeralds are a match for Chaos himself!?" he roared. Lucky pointed his keyblade at him. "Chaos is power, enriched by the heart... And my heart is stronger than yours!" he declared.
Chaos spread his wings and held out his upper arms, tremendous energy blades appearing in them. "I'll knock the power of the emeralds from you... You will feel the true force of my chaotic might... And you will die!" he roared, flying towards Lucky! The super-charged feline charged right back at him, his keyblade clashing against those energy blades, sparks flying as they clashed. "I can't... let you... wreck the worlds!" Super Lucky grunted. Chaos smirked, and grabbed Lucky's wrists with one of his lower hands, punching him hard with the other, wresting his keyblade from him before doing a flip and kicking Lucky across the vast realm of chaos, causing him to crash into several bits of debris before colliding with a large Gummi block! Lucky's keyblade vanished from Chaos' grip and reappeared in his hand as he kicked off the block, flying at the god again. The feline was sweating, but his super form was protecting him from serious damage. "Meeeee-yoooow!! Chaos!!" he shouted as he charged at the god. Chaos clapped his empty hands together, energy forming around them. His eyes glowed a menacing red. "Face my chaotic meteors!!" he bellowed, massive meteors of energy suddenly being cast from his hands, batted towards Lucky by his energy blades! Lucky gasped, and swiftly moved, trying to avoid them. However, it seemed there were too many large projectiles coming to dodge, and Chaos smirked, thinking Lucky would be crushed and obliterated. There was a flash of light and a clanging, slicing sound, followed by the meteor in front of Lucky breaking in half! Super Lucky floated with keyblade in hand, glaring back at Chaos. "You made a big mistake before you came in here, Chaos... You hurt my friend!!" he said, pointing his keyblade straight at him, "Gravity!!" he shouted, casting magic that altered the trajectory of the shattered meteor, sending it hurtling back at Chaos! The god furiously swung his blades, smacking the meteor chunks aside, but it was the diversion Lucky needed to get close! "Hiiiiyaaaa!!" he cried, slashing at one of those lower arms, leaving a gash of light in it and rending it disabled. Chaos snarled and clashed his blades against the keyblade, eyes burning with hatred. "I am a god, you fool! And what are you? You were created in a lab! You are nothing!! An abomination, a puppet with no heart!!" he roared. Lucky kicked at Chaos' other free arm, preventing it from grabbing him as he kept those blades pinned against his key. "Hearts... Are all around us... They're made up of our connections with others... And with the world. All you care about is yourself, Chaos... You're the one who has no heart!!" Lucky's body glowed brighter as the powers of light and chaos flowed through him at once! "My heart has grown stronger with each new connection... And now... You can't hold that power back!!" he shouted. Chaos' eyes widened as his energy blades cracked. "Y-you are mortal... It's not possible!!" he shouted. The energy blades shattered, and Lucky quickly slashed Chaos' arms before pointing his keyblade at his chest. "Chaos... Face the light!!" A massive beam of light then shot from the keyblade, enveloping Chaos! "Aaaaaaaaahhh!!! I kn-know your fate!! Ha ha ha!! Tremble in fear!! Even as I perish, I go knowing your world will soon perish, too!! GYAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!" With those ominous words, Chaos vanished in the light, and Lucky looked back to see a door...an exit.
Super Lucky emerged from Chaos Hearts, which was glowing red in the sky as Miles and Whisk huddled together below, worried. Super Lucky turned, spun the keyblade, and pointed it at the crumbling artificial Kingdom Hearts. A small beam of light shot out from the tip of his keyblade, and Chaos Hearts was then engulfed in light, shimmering for a few moments before vanishing from sight, sealed away. Lucky then landed safely on the ground, reverting to his normal form, the Chaos Emeralds scattering back to the world they belonged. Raven and Xezek were escaping through a corridor of darkness when Scourge slowly stood up, having managed to fend off the Darkside. He was standing a bit shakily. "I can still... Get you punks back..." he growled. However, two keyblades suddenly lowered in front of him. "You're the king who's been messing around with the world order!" said Mickey, holding one of the keyblades. "You done goofed, Sanic!" added Gator, holding the other. Scourge went to turn the other way, but Travis was behind him, along with Zeke and Zim. "Whatever, but my name ain't Sanic..." Scourge grunted. Lucky helped Miles and Whisk to their feet. "Man, I wish I coulda seen you, Lucky. Seems like this was your finest hour!" Miles said. "Hehe, I couldn't have done it without you guys. Really." Lucky smiled. Whisk stood with a confused look. "I... know you?" she murmured. Lucky and Miles frowned. Was her memory gone forever? Winston and Master Yen Sid approached them at this point. "Oh, dear... Her wings... Sorry, kupo." Winston sighed. Yen Sid patted her shoulder. "You all have shown tremendous growth and bravery today. Each of you, willing to sacrifice everything for the World, and for each other. Remember these bonds you share as you go forth to new journeys." he said. Their hearts sank when he said the word "remember," something Whisk couldn't do. Stepping back, Yen Sid chuckled softly. "No frowning. No sad faces... You happen to know a sorcerer!" With a wave of his hands, Yen Sid cast some magic upon Whisk, her body glowing faintly. A shining light formed the shape of her wings, and then her wings appeared, good as new! "L-lucky...!" she gasped before leaping at him and hugging him tightly! "Mee-yow!! H-hi, Whisk!!" Lucky stammered. "I thought I'd never remember you again! But I'm okay, and you're okay!! Lucky... I love you!" she said quickly. Lucky blushed. "Aaaaahh... Aww, Whisk..." he said bashfully. Miles held his broken shield, looking it over. "You want me to fix that, too?" Yen Sid asked. Miles shook his head. "I've gotta fix it myself... And my world, too." he stated. Whisk looked at him. "So, this means goodbye? ...Aw, buttercups..." she sighed. "Buttercups?" Lucky asked. "I think it's a type of flower..." Whisk chuckled. "You've never said that before." Lucky laughed. "Feels like something I would say!" Whisk giggled. Mickey smiled, watching them. "Aww... Hey, I gotta get home, too! Minnie's been waitin' for me!" he said, looking a bit bashful himself. "And who's Minnie?" Miles asked coyly, making everyone chuckle softly...except Scourge.
With Chaos Hearts gone, the worlds were returning to normal. In Neverland, Captain Hook's pirate ship was back on the water, and Hook was looking through a telescope, searching for something. Above, sitting on the mast, Peter Pan was mimicking him as Tinker Bell pointed and laughed. Hook looked up from his telescope, a black ring around his eye, which Mr. Smee held his mouth to avoid chuckling at. In Hyrule, the Gorons and Zoras had resumed peace, and Link and Zelda met at the Temple of Time, where the princess was apologizing for past mistakes. She played a familiar song on the Ocarina of Time as Link returned the Master Sword to its rightful place...and in a moment, he was alone, a young boy, regaining the years stolen by Ganondorf. Things were back to normal for Ralph and Felix back at Game Central Station, too, the pair shaking hands after a hard day of work and heading away from their game. Ralph passed the entrance to Pac-Man, where Dr. Eggman was entering. Scratching his head, he looked to see a sign by the entrance. "Bad Anon Meeting Tonight" it read. Ralph crossed his arms insecurely, looking like he was thinking it over. In Halloweentown, things had calmed down, and Lock, Shock and Barrel were peacefully practicing their trick or treating, going door to door. Outside town, Jack Skellington and Sally sat atop the curly hill, gazing up at the stars. Finally, they had a moment's peace together. In the Pokemon world, Red and Pikachu entered a Pokemon GYM, where the leader stood in darkness. A Persian emerged from its Poke Ball, and the GYM Leader smirked as Pikachu stepped up, sparks flying from its cheeks. Outside, Mewtwo sat upon the roof, observing the battle from a safe distance. It was a very merry unbirthday for the Card Soldier that Winston had returned to Wonderland, as he joined the Tea Party, along with the Cheshire Cat. Stitch, however, had escaped while Winston was flying them around. He managed to steal a ship somewhere, and eventually crashed in a tropical climate. Flounder was safely back in Atlantica, swimming near the surface with Sebastian as Ariel visited the shore with her true love, Prince Eric. Claribelle had been returned to Disney Town, too, where Disney Castle stood proud, and would be graced by the return of the king shortly. War was barely averted in the Pride Lands, and Simba now sat with his daughter, Kiara, discussing the great Circle of Life with her as they took in the beauty of their kingdom. Zootopia returned to normal as well...eventually, a certain bunny would go on to begin her training as a police officer, difficult though it may be.
Back at Moebius, Scourge was in chains, securely held behind bars, where he would remain as long as he posed a threat to the worlds. "You're lucky we don't execute you..." Sal told him from outside his cell. "Don't mention that cat..." Scourge growled. At the royal palace of Moebius, Miles was meeting with Dr. Kintobor and Nicole. "I can't believe Sal wants ME to take over as king... I mean, I ran off too..." Miles admitted. "You caught the war criminal, Scourge, and you helped save the worlds from a greater threat." Kintobor told him. Nicole took the fox's hand. "I don't think we could ask for a better king... But, have you given thought to a queen?" she asked with a blush. Miles blushed back. "Things are moving pretty fast. I know the kingdom needs stability, but, ah..." he murmured. Nicole nodded. "Have you given thought to a girlfriend?" she rephrased. The fox smiled. "I might have an idea..." he winked.
Lucky and Whisk had returned home, too. Some time had passed by now, and they'd gotten a chance to catch up with everyone. This evening, they found themselves sitting on the roof of Shadow Arcangel as the ship flew across the night sky. They looked up at the twinkling stars, each resting a hand on the others' shoulder as they embraced closely. "To think... Each star up there is another world..." Whisk said softly. "Well, some actually are stars..." Lucky smirked. Whisk giggled at that, her tail brushing against Lucky's. He blushed softly. "...I love you, Whisk..." he whispered. The moment was interrupted as a light shone brightly above them, and from the distance, the Galestrom flew towards them, hovering just above the roof of the Arcangel! Winston met them at the entrance to the ship. "Your carriage awaits, Kupo! Next stop, Moebius!" he said. Lucky and Whisk held each others' hands as they stepped towards the ship. "Feels like forever since we saw Miles!" Lucky said. "Can't wait to tell him everything we've been doing, hehe!" Whisk giggled. As they boarded the ship, they were unaware of another cat watching from the shadows, behind one of the odd metallic structures on the roof. This cat looked a lot like Lucky, even wearing an identical collar. His hair was a bit messier, and he had a lock of blue fur on his head, the same shade as Whisk's fur... "Mom... Dad... Safe trip. See ya soon..." said Lucky Junior as he watched the Galestrom take flight into the stars...
The End...
"How did I live in a kingdom of thieves,
And people who say things they don't really mean, really mean, oh.
You're only everything I ever dreamed, ever dreamed of, ever dreamed of.
You must be kidding me did you really think, I could say no?
I want you for a lifetime, so if you're gonna think twice, baby,
I don't wanna know, baby, I don't wanna know.
Everything is just right, but if you're gonna think twice, baby,
I don't wanna know, baby, I don't wanna know.
I really don't get what everyone else believes,
So why do I say things I don't really mean, really mean, oh?
I'm only crying 'cause I never dreamed it'd take this long, it'd take this long!
I want you for a lifetime, so if you're gonna think twice, baby,
I don't wanna know, baby, I don't wanna know.
Everything is just right, but if you're gonna think twice, baby,
I don't wanna know, baby, I don't wanna know.
Don't think twice, don't think twice..
Don't think twice, baby, don't think twice!
If you want to take it to an even higher level,
All you gotta do is say the word, you know I'll follow!
If you wanna take it to an even higher level; I don't, I don't bite!
If you want to make it happen, nothing's impossible.
All you gotta do is say the word, the walls will crumble.
If you want to make it happen, nothing's impossible.
I want you for a lifetime, so if you're gonna think twice, baby,
I don't wanna know, baby, I don't wanna know.
Everything is just right, but if you're gonna think twice, baby,
I don't wanna know, baby, I don't wanna know.
Kiss me once, kiss me twice, kiss me three times,
Cross the line...
Don't think twice, don't think twice..
Don't think twice, baby, don't think twice!
Kiss me once, kiss me twice, kiss me three times,
Cross the line...
Kiss me once, kiss me twice, kiss me three times,
Be mine!
Don't think twice, don't think twice..
Don't think twice, baby, don't think twice..." Don't Think Twice; Utada Hikaru
Secret Ending - End of the World
"I've been through so much... I've fought to save so many worlds... But is the fight for my own world...all for nothing?"
Streets, cracked and crumbled. Buildings leaning with gaping holes. Trees uprooted. Cars upside down. Don't panic. Everyone else is panicking. You've gotta be the one. The one to stand up, and do what needs to be done.
"Tails!! Knuckles!! Shadow!! Anyone!!" Blue streak speeds by. He's alone. He's not used to being alone. Not like this. Not worried about the safety of everyone like this. You know how he feels. But you hold the mightiest weapon...
No, you don't.
"Th-the keyblade... No!" You can't summon it. Darkness is closing in. Look around. Slime. Slimy creatures. They devoured the humans in the street. They're coming for you now. The heartless were never this heartless...this monstrous. Where is she...is she alright?
"Whisk!! Whisk, where are you!?" Lucky, are you listening? She's not here. You think you'd listen to me... I am your son.
"Meee-yow!? Wh-what!? SON?!"
All paths lead to the same end. Every journey, linked to one climax. There are many worlds, but they share the same sky.
One sky, one destiny...
Reconnect: Sonic GeneX
Final Mix Secret Ending - Destiny is Never Left to Chance
"Nice to meet you. Or see you again. My memory hasn't always been good, hehe..." Whisk said as she passed the Doomsayer by, heading for the roof of the Security Tower along with Lucky and Sonic. The hooded one looked up the stairs and sighed. "Yes... This is happenin'. And I can't stop it." he said, clenching his fist.
"Still think destiny is out of your control?" A corridor of darkness had appeared near the Doomsayer, and out of it stepped another hooded figure. He seemed quite a bit relaxed compared to the grim Doomsayer. "You know I've tried. I have seen the truth of destiny...unstoppable, inescapable..." the Doomsayer stated as the newcomer took off his hood, revealing a grinning red fox. "So you're here to, what, accept your fate?" the fox asked, leaning casually against the wall. "You should understand better than I. There's no point fighting against it..." the Doomsayer said, slowly walking up the stairs behind Sonic and the others. "No doubts at all? Ah, yes, but of course, you're all about gloom and doom. Well, today is your big moment. And it might be the last moments for this world... but I'm not worried. Of course, that's 'cuz I won't be around to witness it. Even if the Lost Ones consume the multiverse, there are still places they can't reach." The Doomsayer ignored the fox's words, and set out to see the fulfillment of his prophecy. The fox lingered for a bit, giving a stretch, and as he relaxed, he began to form a heart shape with his hands, looking through it with a grin. "Ah, there it is. I see you...the next step on Destiny's path..." he said, only seeming to grin wider as the tower was rocked by events outside, and the corridor of darkness re-emerged behind him as the tower began to be torn apart. "See ya 'round, kitty cat... At Kingdom Hearts!"
An Oath to Return: Chaos Hearts
