The Various Worlds (Except For Capella's Universe)

In most of the various Keyblade Wielders' homeworlds, a Moogle would arrive bearing a letter, asking them to head to the world of Renovation via a Gummi Ship. This letter, automatically translated into the local language by magic, said:

The Heartless Plague has spread to World after World. To find out the reasons for these beasts' rampage, come to where we are; the key to defeating them lies in the wielders of the Keyblade acting in concert. Free Passage via Gummi Ship has been provided; elude whatever enemies are watching you and come to the version of Konstantinopolis/Constantinople that exists in the World of Renovation.

Once at the Palace of the Blachrenae, meet with us; meet with the War Council.

Palace of the Blachrenae, Renovation

Felix Vulpes would recognize the person who came towards him as Tocsax, one of the most powerful servants of the current Emperor, Michael XIII Sideros. An 18-year old clad in a black cloak, accentuated with black hair and eyes, Tocsax was also a Keyblade wielder and the Empire's main source of knowledge as to what their enemies were doing. Therefore, for the Red Mage to be approached by such a person... It would make less prepared people uncomfortable.

"Captain Vulpes," the Keyblade wielder said in a solemn tone, "Have accommodations been made ready yet for the coming of the off-worlders? We're expecting them to come today, after all."

The Milky Way (Capella's Universe)

A Moogle brought a message to Capella, saying, You must hurry, Child of the Sixth Brightest, for the thousands of Universes in Existence stand on the edge of a knife. Ask the Moogles to bring you to the world of Green Sahara, and thence forward to the Kingdom of Israel, and in Israel, look for a village called Bethlehem and fly above it as a Star. There, a legion of Heartless seek to slay a child named Yeshua, a child born of a Virgin Birth. Do not let them touch him, or all is lost.

As proof that we are right, we are sending, with the Moogle, a symbol; a Keychain that empowers the Keyblade, The Moogle bringing the message then brought a triangle of platinum with three symbols at its corners, one a pure golden circle, and the other two finely engraved pictures of Frankinsence and Myrrh. Attach this Keychain onto Halcyon, and attain great power.

The Moogle waited for her to do so, and should Capella attach the symbol to her Keyblade's chain, it would glow brightly, and the young woman will feel a rush of raw, hot, but not painful energy rushing into her. Her eyes would fill with light, but once the momentary blindness of that had passed, she would feel... Powerful. As powerful as someone born from Sirius.

It seemed that the letter was telling the truth, and she should go. But then came a postscript to said letter, which said in simple terms:

PS: After you've saved Bethlehem, go to the western side of a Peninsula called Arabia, and save a city called Mecca from an invading army calling themselves the Kingdom of Axum. Do not let a single Axumite - Or their own legions of Heartless - get within 50 miles of the city. Another birth of immense importance is to occur there.

@Double@Gentlemanvaultboy@Ryteb Pymeroce@ShadowVentus@Nerevarine@Gentlemanvaultboy@Rex@Tenma Tendo:

Pathe Prison, Alexandria, Egypt
Hirutila awoke to the feeling of hardened bread smacking across his face. He scrambled awake, only to be held back, wincing as the shackles cut deeper into his wrists as he tried to get himself up to grab the bread. He dug his finger into the hardened crust of the bread, barely able to pull off a chunk to eat.

"Good morning captain", one of the guards spoke mockingly. "Today it's been five years since you've come here. The other guards and I have decided to get you a little something special to commemorate the occassion". The two guards let out a hard laugh as they walked away up the staircase. Hirutila sat himself down on the floor and chewed on the hardened bread, which crumbled as his teeth barely managed to cut through it. Had it really been five years already? The time seemed to go by so quickly after he lost track of the days. He pondered over what the guards intended to do with him this time. However, he resolved not to think about it and continue eating.

A few more strained bites were made before the sound of an opening door caught his attention. He expected guards, which left Hirutila surprised when the entrant was rather, a pink creature.

"Special delivery for you, kupo!" the moogle said as it fluttered down to him, tossing a letter of some sort over to the chained Hirutila. He opened the letter, however it only left him with more questions than answers.

"Constantinople...Never heard of it." Hirutila replied.

"That won't be a problem, kupo. Everything will be explained once you meet with the Emperor." the Moogle replied.

Hirutila lifted his arms to show the shackles keeping him chained onto the floor. "The only problem is, they've got me chained up here. Unless you know a way out?"

"Your keyblade, kupo!" The Moogle replied, only for Hirutila to reply with a slient glare.

"My what?"

"Oh?" The moogle responded pensivly, "You haven't manifested your keyblade yet?"

Hirutula shook his head, "I can't say I understand anything you're talking about."

"Well, try it! Try thinking about your freedom and breaking free of your chains again" The Moogle spoke, but Hirutila declined.

"There's no way I'm getting out of here. Sorry, but I think you'll just have to find someone else to help you out."

It was at that moment that Hirutila and the Moogle heard a series of bloodcurrdling screams echo out of the open door, with the clashing of steel, followed by a glow of fire, and then silence. The two looked over at the doorway, hearing footsteps growing closer, before a cloaked figure began to descend down the stairs. The moogle flew off into a corner as the man approached the cell holding Hirutila. He said nothing, but looked on in shock as the cloaked man raised up his sword, which began to glow raident with fire before slashing into the iron bars. The cut glowed hot red, the metal turned molten, as the man grabbed the door and pulled it open.

Hirutila crawled his way as far back as the chains would permit him, but found himself backed into a corner as the figure's sword glowed once again, and swung down towards him.

A flash of light overtook the room, and Hirutila opened his eyes to find a weapon had materialized in his hands, stopping the assailant's sword, and his shackles had fallen beside him. Hirutila immediately kicked the swordsman in the chest and vaulted up running out of the cell and up the stairs, the moogle following behind.

"The letter said you had a ship, where is it?" Hirutila asked.

"Right outside the prison, kupo!"

Hirutila looked with confusion at the moogle, sputtering a bit before conceeding, "Ill ask about it later, lets just get out of here".

The two made it through the prison with little effort, the mysterious swordsman seemingly having slaughtered all the guardsmen with little effort. Outside lay the gummi ship, which the moogle motioned Hirutila to get into. The Two got in, as the moogle prepared the take off, the two found their assailent had jumped into the ship, carrying all three off towards Renovation. Hirutila defended himself from the punches of the swordsman, finally managing to get a hand around his neck as the ship entered into Constantinople.

"Open the door!", shouted Hirutila to the Moogle, who protested until Hirutila demanded it again. The moogle opened up the door of the Gummi Ship, and Hirutila used what little strength he had left to throw the swordsman out, leaving him to tumble 2000 ft directly into the Bosphorus.

Hirutila lay exhaused on the floor as the ship piloted itself towards a magnificent castle.

"There it is, kupo. The Emperor's palace."

Palace of the Blachrenae, Renovation

"Shishishi... everything is ready for the budding lights, milord." Felix replied to the cloaked man, little more than a boy in appearance. It was simultaneously sad that someone became a Nobody that young, and terrifying that he had that level of power. Ah well, chalk it up to the power of the keyblade, giving even the most useless of kids the ability to rival gods.

The rooms had been made up exactly to Felix's specifications, his underlings knew to fear his humiliating punishments if displeased with their efforts. He had left a little surprise for each of them... if they couldn't handle a little prank how would they handle the ones who use darkness as their own. Meh, it was Toscax's fault for assigning a known pranster this task.

"Shishishi... you know you could wear something a bit more colourful. I mean you look like an angsty teen." Note to self, hit Toscax with paint balloons.

Drake lay on his stomach looking through the scoop of his sniper rifle, waiting for his target to show up near the intersection. Floating by him was a Moogle fidgeting with a piece of paper waiting for Drake to finish his business.

“Excuse me Kupo,” the Moogle said but was cut off my Drake lifting a finger to silence it as he looked through the scoop of his sniper rifle.

“I told you once I’m done here I’ll listen to what you have to say,” Drake said as he continued to wait. He saw a black SUV slowly coming down the street and smiled before he added, “Looks like you won’t have to wait long.” Drake reached for a remote next to him and flipped the switch. The light at the intersection changed from green to yellow and finally red causing the SUV to come to a stop. Drake fiddled with the scoop and the view changed to infrared.

He saw the driver tapping his finger on the steering wheel while the passenger in the front seat seemed to be fiddling with his phone. He then saw the large heat signature in the back of the SUV with two much smaller heat signatures on either side of it.

“Bingo,” Drake said to himself before he aimed for larger of the three heat signature in the back of the vehicle. He let out a long breath before the world went quiet. His finger hovered next to the trigger before he finally pulled it. The bullet rocketed out the barrel of the rifle and tore through the air towards SUV. The tip of the bullet spun clockwise while its body turned counter-clockwise. It tore through the windshield of the car with ease. Drake had figured the windshield was bulletproof and that’s why he chose that specific bullet, but it turned out he was wrong.

Drake watched through the scoop as both backdoors of the SUV opened and two scantily clad women ran from the vehicle screaming with blood coating parts of their bodies. The two in the front quickly got out and took out guns looking for where the bullet came from. Not realizing Drake was nearly eight blocks away from the car. Drake stood up and placed the rifle next to his Blaze Blue Sword.

Drake turned to the Moogle and said, “All right, let’s see this note of yours.” the Moogle stared at Drake for a few seconds forgetting why it was even there before it realized Drake had asked to see the letter it was caring.

“Oh, right! The letter Kupo,” the Moogle said before it handed Drake the letter. Drake took the letter and began to read it. Some of the wording puzzled him like Heartless. He was unsure what they were, but if this was a well-paying job. He wasn’t going to question what they were. Once he finished reading he tapped his earpiece three times and waited.

“Thank you for calling Chaos and Order. My name is Jinx. How can I assist you?” Jinx asked in her bubbly voice.

“Jinx, it’s me,” Drake answered bluntly.

“Oh hey! Just saw the credits added to your account. You scored big!” Jinx praised before she added, “even after taking my cut, you got a pretty good amount of pay.”

“Yeah, yeah. That’s not what I’m calling for,” Drake admitted before adding, “Do we have any more big bounties that still need doing?” Jinx fell silent as Drake could hear her sifting through paperwork, mumbling to herself.

“No, I don’t see anything new that came down the pipeline,” Jinx finally said.

“Thanks,” Drake said before hanging up on her and turning towards the Moogle and said, “looks like my schedule’s free. I’m guessing you’re just the messenger and I will need to speak to your boss about payment.” The Moogle nodded before it took Drake to its ship and the two headed towards their destination.

“The War Council huh,” Drake said to himself before he added, “Seems like I’m about to enter into someone’s war.”

---

“Please let go of me Kupo!” The Moogle pleaded as Rebel squeezed it tighter into a bear hug.

“But you’re so fluffy!” Rebel said. Alex paid the two no mind as he read the letter the Moogle had presented him before Rebel had walked down to see the Moogle. In a flash Rebel had grabbed the Moogle and hugged it while stroking its head and playing with its ball-like antenna like a cat. Alex had grabbed the letter the Moogle had dropped. He stopped pacing and looked at the Moogle who seemed to just give up and let Rebel squeeze it tighter.

“Rebel, can you let go of our little friend so I can ask him a few questions,” Alex asked. Rebel puffed up her cheeks and wined before she obliged and let the Moogle go and it let out a breath of relief. Once the Moogle seemed calm Alex asked, “Has anyone in BTI seen this?”

“I’m not sure Kupo. I was only instructed to bring you this letter. I’m not sure any other Moogle has gone there,” the Moogle said.

“You might want to go Alex. You never know if BTI will be helping the Heartless,” Rebel said.

“Yeah, I was just thinking that,” Alex said before he added, “All right lead the way.”

An ever present daze fell over the young adult as she flipped tiredly through a book she's read probably thousands of times by now. Well, the same could be said about every other book in this library, but that's besides the point. A free hand went up to play with the blonde and bluish strands not covered by the mandatory veil on her head as she let her mind wander to other things.

It's been a few days since Capella caught a glimpse into the future of The Milky Way, and since then she'd been trying to get an appointment with the Big 3 to discuss it, but even with her status, it'd probably take weeks before she so much as gets a reply on the matter. But what else could she do? It wasn't like she was some chosen one that would venture out into the unknown world and make a big enough difference to prevent calamity upon her home.

"Uh, excuse me, kupo? But you're Capella of the Sixth Brightest right?"

She wasn't expecting to hear a voice come up from right behind her, so like any other normal person, Capella jumped and whipped her head around to see the owner of the voice with wide steel eyes. Due to The Milky Way's defiance and pride, Moogles were still a rare creature to be seen flying around, let along talking in general. So Capella reacted accordingly, unsure of how to even break out of her stupor. What business did it have with her?

After dumbly nodding, said Moogle handed over a letter to the girl, who took it quickly as curiosity got the better of her;

You must hurry, Child of the Sixth Brightest, for the thousands of Universes in Existence stand on the edge of a knife. Ask the Moogles to bring you to the world of Green Sahara, and hence forward to the Kingdom of Israel, and in Israel, look for a village called Bethlehem and fly above it as a Star. There, a legion of Heartless seek to slay a child named Yeshua, a child born of a Virgin Birth. Do not let them touch him, or all is lost.

This...this couldn't be real. It had to be some joke. Who sent this? And why to her of all people? The Big 3 would be a much better fit to handle something like this, not someone like her... Steel eyes glanced at the Moogle who was waiting patiently for her to finish, holding out a triangular keychain she's never seen before. Arching an eyebrow at the sight, Capella continued reading:

As proof that we are right, we are sending, with the Moogle, a symbol; a Keychain that empowers the Keyblade, a triangle of platinum with three symbols at its corners, one a pure golden circle, and the other two finely engraved pictures of Frankinsence and Myrrh. Attach this Keychain onto Halcyon, and attain great power.

Halcyon...looks like this was in fact for her. It wouldn't hurt to try and her curiosity was screaming at her to try out the new keychain being handed to her. It could still very well be trap, but it's not like she couldn't be stopped by another Keyblade wielder if that was the case. Taking a quick look around, to see if there was anyone nearby, Capella held out a hand, a starry glow enveloping said hand before her Keyblade replaced the glow. Equipping the keychain, the glow returned, but at a much brighter register. She felt hot, almost to the point of it being uncomfortable, steel eyes shifting to gold as light filled and poured out of them. She has been so surprised that stumbled backwards into her chair.

It only lasted for a moment, but once everything returned to normal, including Capella's eyes, the star child's attention fell to her Keyblade, or at least what she remembered to be Halcyon.

This letter was telling the truth, she'd even seen a bit of it for herself beforehand, but what would saving one boy do anything in the grand scheme of things? Taking a look at the remaining paragraph on the unsigned letter, Capella furrowed her brows. She she was just going to be sent on 'errands'? It wasn't like she had anything else better to do anyways. It'll been tough leaving The Milky Way, but if this task fell only to her, then she had no choice. Putting away Halcyon and informing the Moogle of where she wanted the go, the two left the library as quickly as possible, said Moogle guiding Capella to a Gummi Ship.

Onward to Green Sahara.

"Just file a report and we'll work on it. Our precincts might be busy, but rest assured, your case is important to us."

That was they had told him, the Global Police. Honestly it was like trying to connect to a customer service hotline with them, sometimes. He wondered if it was same for everyone or if maybe they just didn't like his family. Either way, it was enough to convince Noel that he could expect zero help from the Global Police. That was just peachy. As he approached his family's estate, Noel felt himself become a bit frustrated. By the time he opened the gate he found himself slamming his fist into the side of it. Damn it! Why did this have to happen now? He'd finally been free... at least, he was free. But here he was, as if fate was determined to drag him into this life kicking and screaming. Suddenly he heard some kind of whistling noise that made him jerk around, practically jumping.

"Excuse me, kupo! This letter is for you!" it was... a Moogle? Why would a Moogle be talking to him? They only ever dealt with the Global Police, so one showing up here of all places was completely out of the ordinary. Still, Noel took the letter anyway. If his parents had been kidnapped, then maybe this was a ransom letter and it would at least give him something to go on? But it... wasn't a ransom. It was an invitation of all things, to come meet an Emperor in... Constantinople? Surely they meant Istanbul right? It hasn't been called Constantinople in, what, five hundred years? Wait...

"War Council?" asked Noel aloud, "As in... actual war? I think you have the wrong person. I'm no soldier, never have been. And besides, I've never even been to Turkey!" Noel protested, prepared to dismiss this whole thing as a mistake.

"No no no, not your Constantinople, kupo!" the Moogle replied, "The one in Renovation! Didn't you read the letter closely, we're supposed to take you there in our ship, kupo!"

"What do you mean 'my'...?" Noel began to question, but he also read the letter more thoroughly, "Wait wait... I'm sorry but, worlds? As in like... planets? And... Wielders of the Keyblade? As in plural? More than just one?" that honestly took him off guard. According to all sources, there was only ever one Keyblade: the Calling Card. There were more? Were they all Phantom Thieves, or was Lupin just a unique case? "I... look I don't know anything about worlds and War Councils, like I said I'm not a soldier! I can't be the one you're looking for. Besides I have my own problems, I'm sorry." Noel turned away, even dropping the letter on the ground. But then stopped when he heard noises from the manner. Black creatures with knightly helmets and bearing heart emblems on their bodies came bursting out the doors. From behind the Moogle, a few more of them appeared out thin air, joined by pitch black ones that just seemed to emerge from the ground. Noel summoned the Calling Card, holding the Keyblade with his unique backhanded grip.

"Okay, it looks like I'm your only way out of here in one piece! Stay close!" the Moogle seemed to obey, staying close to Noel as he stood his ground. When the first of them lunged, Noel batted it away with the Calling Card, "Geez, what are they? Never seen anything like them before." another lunged and he batted that one away as well.

"Heartless, kupo! They come from the Darkness in everyone's Hearts, be careful, kupo!" just then, several of the Heartless lunged at once. But this only made Noel smile.

"Back at ya!" he taunted, using the Calling Card's power to put barrier between them and the Heartless. They collided with it, whatever attacks they were using seemed to hurt them instead as they bounced back and dissipated, "My turn!" Noel readied the Calling Card and lobbed it while spinning his body around, "Wind!" the Keybalde circled its wielder, a small tornado of wind forming around it as it wiped out the remaining Heartless. The wind died down and Noel caught the Calling Card in his hand before the weapon vanished in it's familiar flash of light, "Guess that takes care of that. You'd better get out of here before anything else can show up." that was about when sirens could heard in the distance, coming closer. The Global Police? What did they want? Noel soon got his answer.

"Surrender, Noel Lupin!" called an angry voice on some kind of megaphone, "You're under arrest!"

"You've got to be... why?" Noel said, now starting to get genuinely irritated by all this.

"No time, kupo!" said the Moogle, still hanging around, "But if you want to avoid jail, you better come with me, kupo!" and unfortunately, Noel was no longer in any position to argue. So the two made their exit, much to frustration of the officer who had just now arrived.

The hanging lamp swung back and forth from the ceiling, flickering one and off. Even if the power to Illuminates Outpost #1 was completely stable it would still be flickering. It was simply the nature of such lights, in rooms such as this, to flicker when not giving off a irritable hum.

The poor moogle was seated on a hard aluminum chair under this flickering spotlight, a few well placed books boosting it up enough so it could rest its head on the wooden table in front of it if it wanted. The poor thing shivered as a face emerged from the gloom across the table. The face of a man with an unnaturally large grin, and as the man loomed over it the moogle heard a voice in its head. Salutations, little friend, it said. Could you tell me what you told the people in the square?

"Indrid!" Came a female voice and the flip of light switches. The light, though still flickering, was now coming from many lights hanging above a drab looking circular netting room. Georgia stood by the door, hands on the switches, looking cross while Snopes sniffed around for dropped food at her feet. The man sitting across from the moogle, an uncomfortably tall sort, sat up and turned his smile toward her. She crossed her arms and walked forward. "You know all that does is make people uncomfortable."

The man tilted his head, confused. Mios suggested I speak intimately with it.

Georgia turned and looked at the rooms only other inhabitant, a three foot tall alien with a rounded grey head and big black eyes currently snickering at the moogles predicament. He stopped when he saw her look. "C'mon, it's funny. Besides, that little guy ruined my whole model." He said' swinging his hand to a bulletin board that had once been festooned with lengths of string and thumbtacks linking various pictures. Now everything lay piled on the floor, as though ripped down in rage. The grey threw his hands up in the air and jumped off the table to pace. "Heartless. Heartless! It doesn't fit. There are no logical connections. It's like they jumped right out of the blue to ruin eveything!"

"That's what they do, Kupo." The poor thing squeaked, earning it a dark look from the grey. "They must be stooooooowww."

"Oh, sorry." Georgia hadn't been listening to his short rant though. She advanced on the moogle with single minded purpose as soon as she'd seen him and pinched him right where she thought his cheek would be. "Spongy, like one of those old stress balls. Tell me, how do you breath?" She said, whipping out a pad and pen and taking a knee so she was at his level.

"Listen..."

"Is it through your skin?"

"Please..."

"Because you don't have a mouth. Follow up question, do you have a mouth and where is it?"

"This concerns the end of your world, Kupo!"

All three of them looked at one another. Then Georgia turned back and said. "Sorry to break this to you, but you're seven years too late for that party."

"Look." The moogle said, shoving the letter in their faces. As they did Georgia narrowed her. "I thought that if anyone would know where to find this worlds keybearer it would be this organization, Kupo."

"Keyblade?" Georgia said, picturing what that would look like in her head. "It look like this?" She held out her hand, and in an instant the thing appeared.

---

She really didn't think it looked all that much like a key. The handle sort of did, being silver and surrounded by rounded edges that, when she thought about it, sort of reminded her of a flying saucer. Where the...blade part...met the handle it was engraved with the illuminates crest, the inverted pyramid with the all seeing eye. The actual blade, if you could call it that, was just a pair of big spoons twisted together with the bits at the end bend backwards.

She supposed it did sort of look like a key, if you turned your head and squinted. What it definitely didn't look like a a blade. It didn't look like you could cut butter with the thing.

Looks could be deceiving, though. She at least knew that. Her family was a bunch of shape shifters, after all. Even if they hadn't been, she'd seen what this thing could do when she'd been assaulted by those "heartless" cryptids out in the wild.

When she'd found her way back to what passed for civilization these days she'd found she wasn't alone in the experience. Merchants and other Illuminates had been reporting sightings of these strange, new, incredibly hostile creatures. For now they mostly seemed to be confined to the surface continent of my, in the center of the great reptillain empire that resided there. There had been theories, of course. Tulpa was a popular frontrunner, an alien plot, a new undiscoverd variety of shadow people, but after a time the word Heartless had started being applied to them.

The source of that word, it had tuned out, had been the small creature currently piloting this deceptively comfy little ship though, well, another dimension. Once the little guy had laid eyes on that key he'd insisted she accompany him to Constantinople, which Indrid had informed her was old Istanbul. When she asked why it wasn't called that any more, he'd just told her that was nobodies business but the Turks. Then he'd chuckled cryptically and vanished when she'd looked away, as he did.

She didn't know what she was suppose to do about this Heartless business, but that didn't matter. These were new, strange, totally unknown creature they were dealing with. It was her job to shed light on the things that lurked in the dark, he duty as an Illuminates agent. If there was any information to be had on these things on some far off world, that was worth checking out.

More than that, though, there was that line about enemies. Watching her. The thought of something invisible watching her and her people, spying on them without their knowledge, turned her stomach. Maybe it was just paranoia, but then again it had all been dismissed as paranoid before and look at where they'd ended up after doing that.

She leaned back and tried not to stare out into the void too hard as the ship made its way to Rnnovation.

Global Police Paris Headquarters ~ Several Weeks Ago

The sun's brightness increased as morning dragged onward. It was just before 8 AM, and a squad car unit pulled into the lot of the Headquarters. A man got out of the car once the engine was killed. His silvery white hair blew in the chilly morning breeze as he slammed the door shut and locked it. He walked toward the entrance, nothing in hand except his morning coffee. It was the start of his shift, he'd need to go clock himself in but after that he'd officially be on duty for the day. The man was one of the officers, promoted not too long ago to Special Operations. Global Police Special Operations, or GPSO, were the elite officers of the Global Police. To qualify one needed a minimum of five years on the job, plus an impressive arrest record if they really wanted to get someone's attention. GPSO were the units issued the Arms Changers and Pursuit Arms equipment.

As Ace DeLeon walked through the door, his arrival turned the heads of a few from the lower ranks. GSPO Officers tended to turn heads wherever they went, mostly due to their more advanced gear making them stand out much more than the lower ranked beat cops. But Ace was silent, choosing not to bask in the attention so that it would remain brief. After a moment the precinct continued with business as usual, the novelty of seeing one of the GPSO up close had apparently worn off. And so Ace made his way to the Special Operations division, but as he did so someone else was making their way out of the headquarters. Whoever they were, they were not part of the Global Police... and yet they seemed to turn a few heads just as Ace had done a second earlier. He had to have been around Ace's age, perhaps a couple years younger. He dressed nicely, with a fashionable red scarf and fedora hat to tie it all together. The two brushed by each other, shoulders bumping unintentionally, "Excuse me." Ace said, somewhat bluntly but also politely.

"So sorry about that." the guy replied, then removing his hat to take a quick bow, "Adieu!" and with that, he was out the door and gone. Ace didn't pay it much mind, but he couldn't help but stare a moment until the stranger was out of sight. Just who was he, anyway? He clearly didn't seem to belong in a place like this so what business did he have here? Oh well, he was gone now so worrying about it was pointless.

Outside the Lupin Estate ~ Present

The squad car's siren blared as the vehicle screeched to a halt. Ace quickly jumped out of the car and - following standard procedure - announced his presence, "Surrender yourself, Noel Lupin!" he shouted, having gotten a megaphone out of the car, "You're under arrest!" then he tossed it back into the car and approached the front gate with caution. Normally he would have to call for backup, but unfortunately that wasn't possible at the moment. Ever since those black anomalies started showing up, the Global Police had been spreading the manpower pretty thin to try and keep the attacks in check, and that included Special Operations. That was actually the main reason why Ace was the only one currently assigned to the Lupin Case, everyone else was tied up dealing with black anomalies.

As he neared, Ace started to suspect that his target was no longer here. Reports placed him arriving home just a few short minutes ago, so Ace had no idea how there could be no sign of him anymore. He sighed, making a frustrated clicking sound with his tongue, "Damn it! How could I have missed him? He was supposed to be right here!" still, it didn't hurt to look around, and that was what Ace did. After a few moments, he stumbled across something. It looked like some crumpled up... letter? Well, it was address to his target so Ace wasted no time and unfurled it so he could read.

"Is he planning to flee the country?" Ace wondered, thinking that was what the reference to Constantinople meant. But there was more to the letter that didn't add up, "What's this about Keyblades? There's more of them? Is he forming a whole gang of Thieves, now? And what's this about a War Council?" that sounded almost like some kind of revolutionary manifesto, and that just made this whole mess make even less sense. War? Violence like that was never Arsene Lupin's style during his day, so it stood to reason his family line followed a similar self-imposed code of conduct. And yet... a War Council? Unfortunately Ace didn't get any further time to mull it over. A group of those black anomalies emerged from the ground. Something about their pitch blackness and beady yellow eyes just made Ace want to wipe them all out, "Well, these things were officially put in the "Neutralize on Sight" category, so I guess I'd better deal with these now before someone gets hurt!" he reached up his left hand, the gauntlet it wore emitted a digital flash that Ace reached into with his right hand. From that flash he pulled out the Hyperion and opened fire immediately, destroying a couple of the anomalies. He didn't keep the weapon's form for long though, he had to quickly unfold it into sword mode just as the rest of the anomalies made to lung at him.

"Begone!" shouted Ace in a gruff voice as he hacked at the attacking creatures. A few more vanished, but something new made its presence known. They were black, floated about and seemed to be partially made of water. One of them spun around and seemed to fling a strong splash of water that nearly knocked Ace off his balance, "What the?" they seemed similar to the pitch black ones, but clearly seemed stronger and more dangerous. Suddenly they each formed a protective bubble of water around them, "Trying to hide behind defenses, are you? Let's see how it handles this!" he folded the Hyperion back into its gun mode and then loaded the chamber with Firaga Bullets so that the next few shots would be elementally charged with powerful explosive flame. He fired and the explosive shots seemed to bust through their water shields, allowing him to quickly run up and finish them off with a few quick strokes of the Hyperion in sword mode. No more seemed to be appearing, "Well, that takes care of that. Now... to figure out where Lupin's trail begins." he stopped, however, when he heard what sounded like applause.

Ace looked up to see a person, shrouded in a black coat with a hood that seemed to hide their face. The coat made it virtually impossible to tell if the stranger was male or female. This had suspicious written all over it, and Ace was quick to fold the Hyperion back into gun mode and level it at the stranger, "Who are you? Identify yourself!"

Song Playing: Struggle Away

“Eep! Someone help, kupo!”
A lone voice pierces through the silent night. A small Moogle, cowering in fear, is ambushed by a small group of five Soldiers, the fiends enclosing around it. As one of the Heartless begins to leap forward and strike, its body dissolves as a flash of light hits it. Sensing a strong source of light behind them, the remaining creatures turn around only to be greeted by a volley of light arrows. These arrows, one for each of the four remaining Heartless, pierce their bodies, the initial impact destroying another three on the spot. The last of these creatures, surprisingly, withstands the blow. Its whole body shakes as if it were throwing fit in anger. It attempts to lash out at the Moogle, but fails just like its predecessor. A cloaked figure hailing from the same direction the arrows were launched from leaps from a nearby rooftop, performs an aerial spin, cutting down the sole surviving soldier from behind with a dagger. The released hearts decorate the night sky as they rise from their captivity. The Moogle, sensing that the danger has passed, looks up and faces its saving grace.
“Y-You saved me, kupo...thank you so much!” It bows its head in gratitude only to let out a cry of surprise as it’s suddenly scooped up.
“Sorry, little one, but I’m certain there’s plenty more where that came from. We’ll save introductions for once I get you someplace safe. How’s that sound?” As the figure inquires this, a loud howl can be heard, its echo sending chills down the Moogle’s spine.
“Yes please, kupo!” It answers, burying its face into the crook of the man’s arm.
Upon hearing this, the figure utilizes Warp to relocate unto a nearby rooftop. To ensure a smooth getaway from the approaching threat, the figure Hastes himself, practically soaring from rooftop to rooftop.

Now Playing: Exceed Tachi

The individual’s Haste wears off just as he lands in front of a tavern. The sign above their heads states that name of the establishment is the “Raven’s Nook”. Upon opening the door with his free hand, he clears his throat as if to signal to the Moogle that it’s safe.
“Welcome to my humble abode!” He exclaims, setting the Moogle down on top of a nearby table, closing the door behind him.
The Moogle looks around in awe at how well-furnished this place is. This main hall is lit up by a nearby hearth, the warmth radiating throughout the space. Its warmth puts the Moogle’s nerves at ease.
“Well, well, back from the hunt, I see. What have you brought me this time, my dear?” Another cloaked individual approaches the pair, removing their hood to reveal a woman with jet-black hair and golden amber eyes. The Moogle yelps, and begins shaking in fear.
The woman chuckles, eyeing the Moogle curiously. “Fear not, child. Unlike those creatures out there, I don’t bite without a good reason.”
“U-Um, I-I’m looking for a person named Asher Rain...I have a letter for him…” The Moogle stammers out.
“Oh? Well, it seems Fortuna has smiled upon you after all. I’m simply surprised her agent hasn’t introduced himself yet.”
The man lets out a hearty laugh as he too removes his hood, revealing long locks of red hair, matching red eyes, and a cocky grin.
“I believe I’m the one you’re looking for then.” He remarks.
“Woah! How lucky can a Moogle be, kupo? In that case, here you go!” The Moogle materializes the aforementioned letter and hands it over to Asher. He opens the letter and begins reading. When he’s through, he hands it over to the woman so that she can be filled in.
“What do you think, Mary? Will these streets be alright without me?” He inquires.
She laughs. “It sounds like you’ve made up your mind already. How about you humor me and flip that coin of yours?” She responds.
He grins, pulling out a golden coin. “Alright then. Heads, I go. Tails, you order me to go.” He flips the coin, pressing it flat against the back of his left hand upon catching it with his right. He removes his hand to reveal the wheel of fortune.
“Lady Luck has spoken. This order is active immediately. Let’s shove off, young Moogle!” He exclaims, already fully prepared to head back out.
“Hold on now, hotshot. If you’re traveling abroad, you better take these with you.” She hands Asher a small box. He opens it to find two sets of black earrings, one representing each suit from a deck of cards. “Custom made. They’ll let you keep in contact from any distance. Just touch place a finger on it, and whomever else is wearing one of these can receive or send a message to you.” Mary explains.
Asher equips himself with the Spade Earring, and gives a nod to her explanation. “Thank you, milady. I’ll be sure to return in one piece. Now then, shall we?” The Moogle nods in response, and guides him to where the Gummi Ship is. They board unto the ship, and immediately take off, beginning their voyage to the World of Renovation.

Trying not to strain your eyes against the voice was all well and good, but once the small ship crossed into a new world you just had to sit up and pay attention.

She hadn't seen a modern city, like a real modern city, since she was ten years old and even then it had already been wrecked by violence as every doomsday prophecy ever dreamed up all came alive and started smashing into one another. Every city she's ever seen since had been gutted, either in the turmoil or long ago back in the doom and gloom days of whatever strange races had come before men took what they thought was dominance over the earth. Even the biggest towns in the underground had a ramshackle, thrown together look to them, piling together whatever building materials you could get a hold of and bolting them onto the ancient cities nestled in the hollow of the earth to create some semblance of normalcy.

What she saw when they broke though into this world line was a city alive, one that worked without you having to give it a couple of knocks to get going in the morning. As the ship slipped through the high towers of the city she could she people, humans, maybe more humans than even existed back on her earth.

She had seen pictures, but she hasn't really been able to conceptualize it. This...it was like the works before it ended. The calm before the storm, a cynical part of her mind suggested.

She didn't realize she had her nose pressed eighth up to the glass until Snopes, who had been sleeping like a good boy under her seat the whole trip, suddenly plopped up beside her in responds to her nervous energy and started making the slight hissing sound he made at anyone he thought was bothering his master in Constantinople's general direction.

She reached over, threw her arm around his neck, and pulled him in close where he calmed down, stopped his hissing, and started nuzzling her armpit like an annoying cat. She wondered if it was all right for her to bring him, but figured these people would just deal with it. If there was an adventure to go on she was taking her best friend, no exceptions.

She turned to her pilot, and saw they were flying in low to an incredibly opulent palace. "We're getting the VIP treatment, huh? Right to the big house, express. I should have worn my good jacket, now that I think about it." She said as the ship descended.

Axum, Kingdom of Axum, Green Sahara
1248 AD, 2 years ago

The doors opened with a thunderous roar as Zakaraya entered into the throne room. The swordsman kept his head down, avoiding eye contact with the figure reclining lazily upon his throne, a man garbed in a blue tunic over white robes, holding a scepter in his hand and a white turban over his head, with long hair pulled back, keeping eyes focused on the warrior walking up to the Emperor. Zakaraya dropped to his knees, falling completely forward to the seated monarch, prostrating entirely before the man.
"Rise, oh Lion of Judah," spoke the Emperor in a deep, booming voice, as Zakaraya rose to his feet, bowing to him and speaking.
"My lord, Emmanuel, I have come before you to discuss the taking of Israel. I ask of you that we begin the invasion of Arabia immediately. I believe it is in our best interests to take cities like Mecca to sustain our armies. These Arab cities have no allies except each other, taking them will allow our armies to march through the desert with minimal exhaustion before we invade the Levant. I believe we are ready to attack, but I require the approval of the Messiah before I may make such a decision."

Zakaraya dropped to his knee once again, with Emmanuel simply standing up, stroking his beard, and letting out a chuckle.
"Have you forgotten the revelation, Zakaraya?" Emmanual probed, prompting Zakaraya to groan under his breath. "I have been informed of the time to take action against the false king who resides in Jerusalem. I have been made aware that the barriers that Alexander rose will fall and of the coming of the hordes of Gog in Europe and Magog in Asia. They will swarm upon the land, and when they enter into Persia and Vandalia and those lands fall, I will be given dominion over them to turn against the false king." Zakaraya said nothing, simply nodding.

"I remember, Lord, however, I believe that taking Arabia up to Mecca will be of strategic advantage to our soldiers. We can prevent any needless exhaustion the ma-"

The robed figure beside Emmanuel raised his hand, cutting off Zakaraya's speech. "The Messiah has spoken, the invasion will be carried out when the divine hordes have taken down Persia and Vandalia. We need not to invest precious resources in preemptive invasions."

Zakaraya eyed the figure, "In all respect, Malachi, our direct route of assault will be through Arabia. Unless you intend a direct invasion of Egypt, oh High Priest."

Malachi eyed Zakaraya. "Lion of Judah, you may have command over our armies, but remember that I have command over the food and the pay that keeps your men loyal to you. You'd do best to keep my words in your head when you make your decisions."

Emmanuel turned to face his subjects, "Enough banter, men. You are my right and my left hands, so you would both do well to remember it, that you are extensions of myself. I will not have my hands clawing at themselves."

Zakaraya and Malachi stared at each other, before conceding and returning to their more docile states. However, Emmanuel pointed at Zakaraya, "Zakaraya, before you depart, I will inform you of a final task for which I have need for you."

"Yes, my lord," Zakaraya spoke, dropping to his knee once more.

"In Egypt, there is a man, one of great power, who poses a threat to us all. He is the spawn of my enemies, a dark sorcerer who threatens our entry into the Temple of Jerusalem. He wields a sword like a key, which gives him power not unlike our own. The establishment of my Kingdom and your Judgeship over this world is threatened to be thwarted by his presence. And so, oh Lion of Judah, I am tasking you to travel to Egypt to slay him before he becomes a threat to us."

"And how Will I know he is there?" Zakaraya asked.

Emmanuel smiled. "You will be able to sense his energy. It will radiate like ours.
------------------------------
Constantinople, Byzantine Empire, Renovation
The woman clung to her hat as the child at her side tugged at her skirt with increasing intensity. She struggled a bit to keep her balance, a large loaf of old bread in one arm as she shuffled her feet down the worn old steps that made their way to the muddy banks. The little boy pointed excitedly at a collection of ducks, some sleeping on the muddy shore while another group had taken to the water, preening and floating gently on the surface. When the two had reached the water, the small boy held out his hands, to which his mother obliged, breaking off a piece of bread, that the small boy quickly tore into pieces and threw into the water, watching with joy as the birds swam over, biting and gobbling down the bread greedily. The boy motioned for his mother to hand him another chunk of bread, and repeating the same process, let out a small noise of happiness as the birds continued to eat the provisions he had provided for them. The woman was watching her son intently, however, she took note of something out of the ordinary going on in the distance. At first, it seemed to be nothing that unusual, a slight change in the water's patterning, a shimmer but nothing too out of the ordinary. She smiled and called for the boy, pointing in the direction of the anomaly, believing it to be fish.
"Fish! Can we feed the fish? They're hungry too!"
The woman thought for a second, "I don't know if they'll eat bread, but there will be plenty left for the ducks to try."
The small boy cheered, running over to the shimmering spot, and quickly tossing a piece of bread into the water, which proceeded to bob untouched at the surface. The child stared at it intently for a bit, before turning to his mother in distress.
"The fish won't eat it, mama."
The woman sat at the side of her child, "They might not be sure if it's safe to eat yet. Give them some time."
The boy fixated on the bobbing bread, becoming soggy and discolored as the water of the canal seeped into it. The boy's hands twitched and shook with impatience as he turned again to cry to his mother. "They won't take it, mama. Maybe they don't like it."
The woman soothed her son, shooshing his cries as she tousled his hair. It was at that moment that she took notice of the water becoming more violent and displaced. She pointed this out, with the boy cheering at the sight. However, the cheers turned to screams of fear as a figure emerged from the water, a human hand grabbing at the muddy banks, pulling itself out of the water, pushing against the waterlogged ground, the ducks and sea birds taking flight as the man stood himself on two legs, scanning the area, as the woman held her child against her and kept her eyes on this strange figure. The man placed the sword he held in the scabbard at his side, locking eyes with the woman at the bank. They kept their eyes locked on each other for some time, before the woman spoke up, questioning who he was.
That language, the swordsman thought, Greek, the language of the Egyptians.
The man pointed at her, uttering a phrase in broken Greek. "Aigyptos..."
The woman stared in confusion at the man. The way he said it was so archaic, she barely comprehended the word he spoke. "E...Egypt?" she stammered out. "What about Egypt?"
"We are...Egypt?" The swordsman spoke, eying her interrogatively.
The woman shook her head, "No, no. This is Greece. You're in Constantinople."
The swordsman's eyes stayed in their questioning state, the woman's face beginning to furrow as she watched him some more.
"Not Nile...Not Egypt?"
"No, that's the Bosphorus. Why would you think we're in Egypt?" The woman asked aggressively, though the expression on the Swordsman's face never changed, his eyes only glazed over more as the names were processed in his head.
"Thank you," The swordsman spoke out, walking past the mother and child, the woman still grasping tightly to her crying child, as she watched the strange figure step off into the distance.

-------

The Swordsman walked up the hill, away from the park, until he made his way to some sort of road. He eyed the structure. It was like a river of stone, dark, darker than the stone used to pave the walkways he saw the others making use of. None seemed to walk upon it, though he supposed there was no trouble in trying. As he stepped upon the dark surface, his shoe made contact with solid ground. So it was possible to walk upon this after all. He continued to move forward until he heard a voice shout something out at him in Greek. He looked to the side, only to feel a hand grab him by the back of the neck, and pull back hard. As he was pulled out of the way, his eyes barely caught sight of some sort of metal vehicle, that went by faster than any horse, creating a crack of thunder as it passed by. The swordsman fell back, sitting in the shade against a building, as a man looked at him.
"Lucky that I caught you there, mister. One second later and you'd have been flattened on the pavement there."
The swordsman said nothing, simply looking at the other man, who looked back at him with a questioning stare. "Ey, you speak Greek there, bud?"
"I speak some," The swordsman replied, with the other man giving a thumbs up in approval.
"All right, that makes things a little easier. You're a traveler too, ain't ya? Name's Ioannes. I'm from Smyrna, but I like to come here once in a while. So what, about you? What brings you to the heart of the Roman Empire?"
"Name...my name is Zakaraya. From Ethiopia."
Ioannes let out a whistle as he heard Zakaraya's origin. "Wow, all the way from Africa. So, you here for business or just to have fun?"
"Business, just business."
Ioannes nodded sagely, "So, is this your first time here? If you need someone to show you around, I can help you."
"Yes, help is necessary." Zakaraya was stopped abruptly by a sudden feeling, like a sudden attack of pain in the head, he felt a great surge of power coming from the distance. He forced his eyes open, the power all radiating out from a massive building in the distance. He pointed at it, turning his face over to Ioannes. "Where is that?"
Ioannes looked over where Zakaraya pointed, furrowing his brow as he looked back. "The Palace? You need to get there? Well sure, I can show you how to get there, it's easy."
"Then let us go quickly."
-------------------------

Jerusalem, Israel, Green Sahara
@Tenma Tendo

A first-time traveler to the Holy City of Jerusalem would be stricken with awe to gaze upon the sight of the mighty Second Temple that dominated the skyline of the whole area, even from the ground. Anyone arriving by foot would be struck the image of the immaculate structure, clad in the brilliant white limestone, polished to reflect the light of the stars and moon, with gold shimmering in the light paving the crevices of its towering walls, with smoke gracefully wafting out from the center of the temple, floating over the city walls of Jerusalem. Though the protective walls themselves hid the less beautiful side of the city. For Jerusalem was far from a paradise. Beyond the open agora where hawkers shoved their wares in the face of any passerby, the labyrinth-like alleyways of the Israelite capital hid the seedy underside of the city, with traders in lest reputable goods, prostitutes, and gangsters hiding their activities away from the eyes of the common person took refuge in its crooked and disorienting structure. Jerusalem was only a short distance away from Bethlehem, however, any foreigner would do good to spend some time in Jerusalem to purchase the necessary garments to look like a local before traveling to a rural village like Bethlehem. Anti-Greek sentiment and general Xenophobia still haunted Israel like a poltergeist, and though it may not extend in a metropolis like Jerusalem, where the last vestiges of Hellenistic influence showed up in out of place Grecian architecture, anyone who didn't look sufficiently Hebrew could expect to face a lynch mob in a rural village not keen to outsiders. Capella would do well to take note of the distinctly medieval attitudes of the locals, for she was indeed in the real Middle Ages, though not any Middle Ages she would recognize. A full moon was out that night, the stars all shining brightly, the star of Sirius pointing to the southwest, on the road to Bethlehem. Anyone with a vehicle could take her out there for a small fee, though it may be uncomfortable, it would certainly attract less ire from the local farmers than to ride in on a Gummi Ship. But the road out of Jerusalem was by no means totally safe. Bandits roamed across the highways, but that was the least of her worries.
Guided by the light of Sirius, a hoard of Heartless, numbering 100, commanded by three superiors, three heartless who seemed to be nothing more than disembodied suits of armor, made their way to the small village, under the desire to say the child to be born there. A baby to be born to a mother under strange circumstances. Now, Heartless came to slay him and his bloodline. And seemingly no one would be able to stop them from razing the entire village, burning it to the ground without a trace. Capella would do well to make her way to the village quickly, lest the Heartless army approaches it before her.
-----------------

Axum, Kingdom of Axum, Green Sahara
1250 AD, Present Day

"I have lost track of his presence on this world, My Messiah," Malachi spoke, turning to Emmanuel. "Perhaps, he was not the true Lion of Judah, after all."
Emmanuel closed his eyes, shaking his head. "Do not speak such baseless judgments, Malachi. You know not what I know."
Malachi gritted his teeth at this, face twisting in disgust, though it quickly passed, as he began speaking once more. "Shall I offer a sacrifice for his safe return?"
Emmanuel nodded, "That will be good"
"Though, I must ask," Malachi inquired, "While Zakaraya is missing in action, who shall take command over the army?"
Emmanuel looked to the ground, agitated at the question. "While the Lion of Judah is unable to complete his duties, you shall take reign of the army. And, oh High Priest, I feel as though we are required to begin our assault. I have received the notification that Persia has become swarmed with the hordes of Magog, and the forces of Gog have entered into the lands of the Vandals."
Malachi nodded sagely, "Shall I begin the assault on the Arab Cities?"
"Yes, High Priest. Show no mercy if you must, the taking of Israel will be complete soon. I will summon a force of Gog and Magog's warriors to aid your assult, find them in Sana'a, and then take them to Mecca. Once it falls, all of Arabia will go with it."

Palace of the Blachrenae, Renovation



The Palace of the Blachernae, now equipped with an airfield for the small Gummi Ships, was a beacon of architectural beauty, surrounded by gardens filled with butterflies and exotic birds. But despite this, the two dozen guards in green special forces gear who awaited them at the bottom of the airfield showed that the inhabitants of the area were not soft in any way. Said guards in green were led by two eighteen-year-olds, one wearing green and brown custom special forces gear and carrying a round shield as his only weapon, and the other wearing a blue silk robe and carrying a Wizard's staff and wand.

"My name is Giorgios Kyros, Sergeant of the Imperial Guard," said the first eighteen-year-old; one further noticed that his round shield was engraved with a double-headed eagle. "And my friend here is Damianos Sardis; he's a Wizard. We're here to escort you to the Emperor and Empress."

It was Damianos' turn to interrupt as he saw that Hirutilla was still in prison garb. With a wave of his hand, the Sardinian was once again in chainmail and padded cloth, a resplendent warrior much like he was in his prime. He was clean, too. The Wizard then said, "All right, now we can go."

And the group then walked off to the interior of the Palace.

------

Felix Vulpes was in the interior, accompanying a line of men in black special forces armor who were guarding the throne room. As Giorgios and Damianos led the various Keybladers into the chamber and its gold and silk tapestries, fine vases and mosaics, Tocsax would tap Felix's shoulder, saying, "I know you get easily bored at long speeches, so I'll summarize things for you once the Emperor and Empress had said their piece."

It was an offer made in good faith, knowing Felix's tendency to prefer mischief and pranks over long exposition. Either way, Tocsax then directed the Guardsman-Mage to look at where the Emperor and Empress were getting up to introduce themselves.

"Greetings," the Emperor spoke first, his Imperial Crown glittering in the sunlight. "This is the World of Renovation, and I am the ruler of one of its Kingdoms, Basileus ton Basileon - Emperor of Emperors - Michael XIII Sideros."

His silver hair glinted in the sun as his wife, the Empress, rose up to introduce herself.

"Keybladers, future saviors of the Multiverse, my name is Maria d' Italia, daughter of the King of Italy, which was formed by Naples in this timeline, and this is the War Council, where you will all learn the true history not just of your individual worlds..." A glance at Georgia, "But of this entire collection of Universes."

Damianos went to stand at Maria's left, then took out his wand, before projecting a holographic projection of multiple spheres, each showing scenes from the group's worlds, as well as universes/timelines that had not yet been explored. He then followed up with more exposition, "Basically, we all live in the Multiverse, a collection of parallel worlds sprang off from the One Earth. There used to be One Earth, One Timeline, One Humanity and One History, but something happened to split it all up. Now, however, someone wants to reshape the Multiverse to his own image, and has unleashed the Heartless on most worlds as part of said plan for reshaping."

"And as the Basilissa said," the Wizard/Scholar continued, "The Keyblade is a special weapon that can destroy Heartless permanently instead of temporarily. And it is central for our plans to end the Heartless threat and the threat beyond said threat, the threat of Leo, the Second Mathematician."

@Double@Gentlemanvaultboy@Ryteb Pymeroce@ShadowVentus@Nerevarine@Gentlemanvaultboy@Rex@Tenma Tendo@Jareth:

"Hold still, buddy." Georgia said, slipping the big leather harness over her velociraptors neck, working his arms though the little loops they fit inside, and buckled the thing together just under his stomach. Snopes's harness wasn't just a way yom control the excitable animal in the midst of what were undauntedly a bunch of exiting new smells and keep those jarheads waiting on the runway from shooting her beloved partner, he was also carrying all her supplies. Food, water, changes of clothes, soup, the normal stuff she'd carry into unknown territory.

She slipped her through the loop on the harness, tying it with practiced automation. She barely even had to touch it to tie her boys leash on. It was a good thing too, because the second the cockpit opened and all the new scents hit his nose Shops tried his best to leap out of the cockpit with an excited, ear piercing shriek. Snopes was not a light animal. He may have been only half her height but he more than made up for that in poundage. Age he leaped up on the side, his claws digging into the body of the ship, Georgia jumped up beside him and jumped out just a second before he could.

She hit the ground and threw up her arms as he came down matter her, catching him with a soft "oof" and holding him there while he wiggled in her arms. His head swung this way and that as he cast had a look at the strange new world he'd bee thrust into, letting out happy screeches and kicking his legs where he thought the ground would be.

She held this giant lizard as it struggled to get away and run off to who knows where, probably the nearest source of food, with casual ease. She worked her hand up under his chin to give him a good scratch, and slowly but surely the shrieks became quieter and the struggle became half hearted. Only when he was all tuckered out did she finally set him on the ground, to breath a little heavier and move around at the end of his leash to explore his surroundings in a less manic way.

Georgia took this time to take a look around too. For one thing, she was surrounded. Moat of these folks were definitely military, but she was surprised to see two boys, not much older than her, standing in command of these men. That wasn't such an odd thing in her world line, mostly because much of the adult population of mankind had perished in the reordering. There were others, though, that seemed like they were in the same position as her. A sharp dressed young man, an old guy dressed much less lavishly who looked like he'd seen his fair share of hardship, another guy slightly younger than the last with sharp eyes, and a cocky looking red haired dude.

She started forward, being lead by the small dinosaur as it clicked across the floor toward the two boy as they introduced themselves. Snopes powers his head and sniffed at Giorgios's boots as the Wizard waved his hand and suddenly the shabby looking man was decked out in the splended regalia of a soldier. She looked down at herself to see if she'd been dressed up in some kind of bal gown or something for this meeting, but to her disappointment there was no change. She sighed, "Come on, no fancy clothes for the rest of the class?" She said wistfully as they were led inside.

As she walked she let her path take her into the middle of the group. Better to be with the people in her position. "Hey all." She whispered. "I'm Georgia. Y'all got ahold of those keyblades too?" She asked, before letting her focus shift to the old guy." The armor suits you. You know, I've met actual knights in shining armor that didn't pull off this look half as well as you do. Have you been here before?"

---

The military guys only got more intimidation the more lavish the palace became, until finally they we're standing in the fanciest looking room with the most intimidating men. Men in black set her teeth on edge, and Snope's caught a new scent in the room, lifted his head, and started methodically sniffing the air. Then he caught something, and painted his head toward a particular pair of those guards. Georgia raised an eyebrow. It was a reaction he had to the scent of an undiscovered species.

There were cryptids in this room.

She didn't have time to contemplate this before the emperor launched into an explanation of why they had all been gathered here. An explanation of the true history peaked her interest. It wasn't that out there at first. It was regular thought where she was from that there was more than one timeline, world line, going on right beside their own. It had all been explained by a time traveller that had come back for an IBM 5100 before the end, but like most truths back then he had been dismissed as a hoax.

That bit about all timeline being originally one was new, though, and alarming. That meant that the many worlds model was, intrinsically, a falsehood if it were true. That would drive Mios up a wall, he had been trying to compile the worlds metaphysics for ages. More alarming than that, though, was the hologram the mage conjured. One where she could see, on one of the small screens, the image of the actual Mios and...of, that was her brother. All nine scaly feet of him with his claw planted right on top of the greys large head and squeezing just hard enough to pinch his loose skin together. She shrank back a little with a regretful grin. Maybe she should have at least gone back home before running off on her next adventure, no matter how urgent the moogle had insisted it was. Mios wasn't the type that could explain why she'd left in such a hurry at all tactfully.

Beyond all that though, she didn't like that these people had been watching them. She thought back to that letter, the line about the enemies that were watching them in particular. "So," she started, pulling out a spiral notepad from the pocket of the stock still Snopes (who had not stopped pointing himself in Felix's direction) and flipping it open to take notes. She'd need to find a way to verify everything she was taking down independently. "What is a heartless, then? I know they're a lot like ghosts, but are much more physical than that. They have more weight than other spectral entities, and not as many restrictions on where they can manifest. Are they intelligent? How do you tame them?"

Alex sat in the gummie ship waiting for them to land to where ever they were being taken to. While he sat he looked at all the other passengers on the gummie ship. Once the ship landed, one of the passenger’s creatures, a velociraptor seemed to go nuts as soon as they landed. He chuckled and looked to the empty space next to him and said, “I guess you’ll get to meet your counterpart”

As Alex walked out he watched in amazement as the woman handled the Raptor like it was a small child before it finally calmed down. While all this was going on he started taking notes and mumbling to himself. He noticed the group leaving without him and quickly followed them to two young boys who seemed to be leaders of the army around them. The knight introduced himself as Giorgios Kyros, Sergeant of the Imperial Guard and the other one was introduced as Damianos Sardis. He wasn’t too interested in them until Damianos was mentioned to be a wizard.

“Really? A wizard,” Alex said to himself before they were led towards the interior of the palace. The interior in question had a line of men in black special forces armor that made Alex smile as he said, “All this security and yet no one notices.” Alex watched as the emperor introduced himself and his wife before explaining why they were here.

“The Multiverse theory, I’ve heard of that one. However, the whole one earth part is new to me. That would explain the whole Multiverse theory. It’s kind of like cells dividing: cut one cell into multiple and they become their own cell,” Alex said before he added, “As for the keyblade: I’ve never seen one anywhere in my universe. However, I’ve been able to kill these heartless with my Zoo. Although if it is true the keyblade permanently kills the heartless then I haven’t been killing them.” Alex, however, was more occupied with the Raptor and took out a measuring tape. He didn’t want to get too close to the raptor so he simply placed the tape at eye level and measured various parts of the creature.

“Welp Charlie, Looks like I wasn't close on the measurements, but then again I never had a real life specimen. Just fossils and books on how large velociraptors are,” Alex seemed to say to himself. However, the space next to Alex seemed to morph and twist before a robotic velociraptor seemed to just walk into existence. It shook as it's metal frame scraped against each other before it let out a shriek that had a metal twang mixed in to announce its presence. Alex sighed, “I’m going to need to work on that voice box as well. You sound nothing like the real thing.” Alex said before he placed his hand under the robotic raptors chin. It lifted its head to allow Alex to open a small hatch door on its neck.

---

Drake had his hat over his face as he slept on the gummie ship. A small sphere sat on his lap, its large green eye twitched back and forth as it scanned the room they were in. Once the ship landed, a ringing came out of the sphere. Drake’s hand came up and smacked the sphere causing it to fly off his lap. See-through wired wings buzzed to life as it hovered and headed back towards Drake who stretched and yawned. He lifted his hat up onto his head and grumbled, “I’m awake, I’m awake.” Drake got to his feet and stretched again as a commotion came from the open hatch of the ship. When he walked out he saw a woman holding a damn dinosaur like it was a child.

“Note to self: don’t piss her off,” Drake said to himself before the group met two young kids. One was Sergeant of the Imperial Guard and the other, to Drakes surprise was a wizard. The wizard in question created clothing for one person before they led them into the interior of the palace. While they walked through the halls with men in black armor Drake said to himself, “Is that Wizard real or could they be trying to fake it? Those clothes could have been made with Nanobots, but they were made too fast. I wonder.”

The group then stopped in front of two people who were introduced as the Emperor and his wife. When they began to speak Drake took off his hat and bowed in respect. Once they finished, Drake had several questions for them. The woman with the Raptor seemed to beat him too it as she fired off a few rounds of questions.

“I too have questions: for starters, what are these Heartless. Our universe has only seen dark creatures that seemed to appear from nowhere with others of silver skin. Also this keyblade you speak of. This wouldn’t happen to be it?” Drake asked as he flicked his writs, but nothing happened. He did this several times before his Clockwork keyblade appeared in his hand.

“It just appeared one day and I’ve rarely ever used it since it’s so hard to get it to appear and because I can’t kill my targets with this key. I’ve hit a target over the head with it, but it seemed to just piss them off,” Drake explained. His Keyblade disappeared as he lifted his right hand that had a watch on its wrist. The clock face glowed as images appeared above it. He shifted through each image before he tapped on one and it appeared above his watch. He looked at the emperor and added, “Also, since you’ve been spying on us you should know I’m a bounty hunter and therefore my services don’t come for free. This piece of paper is my contract. I’ll just need your signatures for it before I agree to help. The cost of my services, by the sound of it, will be three hundred thousand credits. I won’t charge you any more or any less.”

Felix sat in lotus position, using Aero to keep himself aloft. The focus required to keep himself at a stable height was immense, but a good distraction from boredom. The shrinks said he might have Attention Deficit Disorder, he personally thought it was because his brain was hardwired for combat... and pranking. Pranks were great, and generally brought combat which was always a great plus.

Letting the part of his mind not focusing on psuedo-levitation pan across the room, his senses immediately pinged danger. Crap, the girl had a damn raptor. Inwardly he cursed that bitch Artemis for creating such a skilled creature of the hunt, he would be forced to reveal part of his hand early. Ah well, c'est la vie.

The girl herself seemed to be a minor threat... though magic screwed with perceptions of things. Wait... did he just hear that right, she wanted to try and tame Heartless? He almost fell down laughing at the girl's naivety. Eh, if she wants to be consumed by the darkness he was sure Leo had some spots open in his club.

"Shishishi... see Boss? Keyblade weilders can have colour to them, stop being such an emo and wear something other than black." he laughed, poking fun again at Toscax's attire, "To answer your question little girl, the Heartless are what happens when a person gives in to darkness and their heart is torn from their body. They are driven by their instinct to collect more hearts by forcing their darkness upon others. Only magic and the legendary keyblade can harm them. Shishishi... they go boom real good."

Harris Dione made his way through the grand halls of Essex College, passing a few fellow students as he exited the library. He shivered a little bit as he passed by an open door, it was winter here in northern Atlantis, all the trees outside were covered in ice. In fact it was the winter break, a time when students generally returned home. However Harris had no intention of going back to his hometown to see his family. He was still in a phase of despising his father and indifference to his mother. Instead he chose to remain on campus and try to be productive with his studies in the time before classes resumed.

As Harris was already up to date with all of his assigned studies, he had begun to branch out in what he borrowed from the college’s library. Currently he was making through classic pieces of literature, this time picking up a worn copy of Journey to the West. Harris had become quite fond of Chinese culture since seeing an exhibit at the World’s Fair. The idea that such different societies could exist together, a myriad of differences between them, was fascinating to Harris. He wished to one day see these different lands.

Harris made his way back to his dorm room. As he opened the door he immediately noticed that the window was open, snow blowing onto the floor. Harris sighed as he closed the window, figuring that the locking mechanism most of been damaged. He made a mental note to ask the college’s custodian to look into fixing it as he placed his books on his desk and sat down.

“You really made me wait a long time, kupo!” a high pitched voice spoke.

Harris leaped out of his chair, “Who’s there?”

A small pink animal jumped up onto Harris’s bed, “Just me, kupo.”

Harris face shifted from a look of fear to a more curious glare, “And what are you? You’re clearly not one of those shadow creatures.”

“Goodness no, kupo,” the creature laughed, “I’m a Moogle.”

“And what does a Moogle do?” Harris was intrigued.

“We do lots of things, kupo! But I’m here to give you this.” The Moogle pulled an envelope out of his satchel and handed it to Harris.

Harris quickly opened it and read the note sealed within. So the shadows were called Heartless? And he was a keyblade wielder? It was not what he thought he would call the weapon that appeared before him. Without thinking he summoned the weapon into his hand, the Moogle messenger giving a little squeak of joy when he saw the blade. As Harris finished reading the note he only had more questions. What made a ship gummi? And as far as he knew Constantinople had been abandoned hundreds of years ago, there was no council of any kind there. And what did it mean by world?

The Moogle laughed, “I can see you are confused, kupo. But just follow me and everything will make sense.”

Harris nodded as he sent his keyblade away, “I do suppose that if I am needed for something it won’t affect my studies as we are on break.”

“That’s great, kupo!” the Moogle jumped into the air, “But we better hurry as we’re kind of running late.”

Harris quickly threw some books into a bag and departed with the Moogle. As they hurriedly made their way through the campus, Harris hoped no one spotted the Moogle as he didn’t feel like coming up with an explanation. Luckily, as most students were away, no one spotted the pair as they exited into the snowfall of outside. The Moogle led Harris through the snow into the woods that surrounded a part of the school. After walking through the woods for a few moments they came upon a clearing. Sitting in the centre of the clearing, covered in a light dusting of snow, was a large orange and yellow aircraft of some kind.

“I take it that this airship is indeed gummi?” Harris questioned as he marvelled at the ship.

“Yep. Now jump in, kupo!” the Moogle opened the side of the vessel.

Harris quickly got into the gummi ship as the Moogle activated the systems. Harris strapped himself into the passenger seat.

The Moogle turned to him, “Do you get seasick?”

“Well, I once-” Harris was cut off as the gummi ship blasted off from the ground, leaving his world behind.

Within a few seconds the gummi ship had entered the dark void that separated realities. Harris wanted to ask so much, but he was awestruck by the magnitude of it all. Travel between worlds had just been a hypothetical while studying at college. Yet here he was, to his knowledge the first person to ever leave his world. Harris sat in silence as the Moogle put in the coordinates for Renovation, then engaged the warp, leaving Atlantis Ascendant far behind.

***

As the gummi ship landed on the runway of Constantinople, Harris did indeed feel a little seasick. But he shook off whatever feelings of ill that he felt as his Moogle pilot led him toward a group of other people getting out of gummi ships. The group was greeted by two people that seemed to be around Harris’s age, one wielding a shield, the other a staff. As they introduced themselves Harris was immediately interested in the wizard. Before receiving the keyblade Harris had thought that magic was just legend and hearsay. Yet he himself had used it while fighting those shadows, Heartless he reminded himself that they were called. He made a note to speak to Damianos about it if he had the time.

The guard and the wizard led the motley gathering off-worlders into a lavish castle. It was then that a woman whispered to the group, the same woman that had brought along some kind of large reptile, that Harris assumed was domesticated, with her.

“My knowledge of the keyblade is limited,” Harris summoned his keyblade, “But I wish to know more. My name is Harris Dione.”

Harris and the others were led into a large throne room, two regents waiting for them. Harris knew that in the world he was from monarchs were becoming increasingly rare, but Sideros introduced himself as Emperor of Emperors. Harris thought that was quite a smug title for someone to give them self, but he still wished to hear what he had to say.

At the mention of a multiverse, Harris recalled an article a fellow student had recommended to him but he had yet to read. The idea that everything that has, can, or couldn’t happen did happen somewhere was a fresh idea back in Atlantis. Harris noted his lack of knowledge in the field of speculative physics, a point he would rectify as soon as possible.

Two separate wielders of the keyblade enquired about the heartless. The woman with the overgrown lizard wondered about the nature of the shadow beings, something that Harris would want to know as well. The man on the other hand mentioned silver beings. Harris had never encountered such creatures, but he was beginning to realize how little his knowledge was of all of existence.

When the same man demanded to be paid, Harris laughed, “Are you serious? When presented with a chance to do good you squabble for a few pennies more?”

Harris immediately regretted his barb as it probably wouldn’t be very conducive to working together. But sometimes one must release some of the venom that lies within.

The whole trip there was something out of a surreal dream. The moogle had taken him to some kind of spaceship that looked like it belonged in a cartoon. But apparently that was the only method to travel to this other world. Once there, Noel took in the scenery, and just for a moment he wished he could go sightseeing. But it was only for a moment, after all there were a thousand other things on the young Phantom Thief's mind, and unfortunately this War Council was not exactly high on his list of priorities.

But once he was in attendance to the War Council, Noel actively kept his distance. He remained further back, fairly close to the big door everyone had entered through, for two reasons. One, he wanted to keep far away from the man-eating dinosaur that could probably tear any one of the people here to shreds. And two, he wasn't planning to stay very long. Even as the Emperor introduced himself, Noel turned to face the door with the intent of quietly slipping out. He'd only gotten on the ship to dodge the Global Police, and now that that was accomplished he was far more interested in returning home so he sort out the mess that had developing there.

But then the Emperor explained the multiverse, about all worlds actually being a divergence from what used to be a single true world. That... somehow rubbed Noel the wrong way. He wasn't stupid, and could fairly easily guess the implications. Well, this Emperor had another thing coming if he honestly thought that all of Noel's world and his entire life was somehow false or not truly real. But that wasn't all, spheres appeared that began showing things from everyone's world including Noel's. In fact, the scene from Noel's was of himself, though not as he was now. In the scene, Noel was not wearing his tie, vest, or scarf. Instead all three of them had been forgone in favor of a more functional longcoat and gloves, black in color. His hat was also missing, having been given up in favor of a red ballroom mask. He was in fact dressed like a Phantom Thief, because the scene was one of Noel's recent break ins. Not that he was stealing anything in that scene, instead Noel was only conducting an investigation. He wasn't like his ancestor, Noel had no interest in stealing, he just wanted to find the truth about what happened to the Masks and his parents. But this, this was what convinced Noel to step closer to the group, and even daring to get closer to the Emperor as well.

"How dare you?!" he said, suddenly, "Who do you think are spying on me and my private business?" He gestured to the sphere that had contained his image, "Or do you not care about respecting people's privacy?" it was definitely brave of him to speak to an Emperor like that in his own throne room, surrounded by people who could probably kill him if they tried hard enough. In the end, Noel didn't wait for a response. He'd had enough of this nonsense, "I don't know anything about your worlds or multiverses, and honestly I don't care. I have my own problems at home to deal with, so the multiverse is just going to have to look after itself. I bid you adieu, Your Majesty." he offered a quick bow, still being surprisingly polite in spite of his outburst and began making his way for the door.

Palace of the Blachrenae, Renovation

Empress Maria then said to both Georgia and Drake, "As Captain Felix - The Redhead - said, the Heartless are the black creatures that you people have mentioned, with beady yellow eyes. Despite their name, they are actualy disembodied Hearts - The metaphysical kind, not the bodily one, just in case there is any confusion. The silvery-skinned... Lifeforms are Nobodies, made up of the body and soul left behind when the metaphysical Heart is torn out. Some Nobodies are just that, silver creatures, while others," She looked at Tocsax, "Have a human form and the potential to grow a new Heart."

A final pause for effect, "And yes, three hundred thousand credits in gold, silver, and gemstones have already been prepared for your arrival; let it not be said that we are miserly."

Then as Noel made his outburst and turned to leave, Emperor Michael said, "We know about your family's collection of masks, by the way, and your need to retrieve them."

A smile on his face as he knew it'd stop Noel in his tracks.

Empress Maria then paused to say, "Now, back to the Original History."

At that, Damianos altered the mystic hologram he was projecting to show a single Earth, a blue-green globe spinning silently in the cosmos, while the Empress began to narrate, "In the Original Earth, in the years 2019 to 2020 Christian Era, there was once a boy named Ascot, who believed that the world was heading headlong into destruction."

The hologram then zoomed into the North American Continent, where a young man with black hair and eyes - Just like Tocsax - was reading a book on a desk already stacked with them.



Empress Maria then continued, "Ascot was a genius, smart and inquisitive beyond his years. But due to his belief that the people of the world were destroying themselves, he searched and searched for a way to prevent such a calamity. And he found it in old texts and new physics, ones that spoke of a mysterious force that we know today as The Light, or Lux. All Light flowed from a mysterious place called Kingdom Hearts, the Heart of existence."

The hologram shifted to a giant 'heart', one that looked like a sterotypical Valentines' Day Heart, only it glowed blue-and-white, while its left side was marked with darker spots that made it look like the Moon's surface. Maria continued, "Kingdom Hearts was protected by its counterpart, the X-blade; pronounced 'Key-blade'. And Ascot managed to summon said X-blade to himself, becoming its legitimate owner and giving him the power to save his world... Just as the nations of the world were launching weapons of imaginable power - Nuclear Weapons."

Damianos added, "Nuclear Weapons, to those who do not know, are instruments of war that can cause conflagrations which could destroy entire cities."

((To be continued in Part 2.))

@Double@Gentlemanvaultboy@Ryteb Pymeroce@ShadowVentus@Nerevarine@Rex@Tenma Tendo@Jareth

Palace of the Blachrenae, Renovation

((Part 2.))

An image then showed of Ascot raising the X-blade at a wave of large rockets/missiles flying towards the city where he lived, and all of those vanishing. Another wave of said X-Blade, and another spell was cast, making it physically impossible to use nuclear material for anything but power generation; people can still use nuclear energy to make electricity, but any attempt to use uranium, plutonium, or any similar material to make weapons atuomatically caused those materials to turn to lead. The group can see Ascot smiling in mingled happiness and exhaustion...before his X-blade glowed brightly, releasing an uncontrolled blast of light.

"Ascot lost control of his powers in saving his world, causing the Multiverse to split into its component parts. What was one, became more, what was absurd, became possible. The X-blade broke apart into several shards, because its legitimate owner had tried too much without training or experience. And Ascot, weary beyond all reason, vanished into a Tomb, even though he was still alive." A white-and-gold masoleum appeared then, flying above some skyscrapers. "But that did not mean the end of all conflict.

Scenes were then shown of people wielding lesser Keyblades that resembled the X-blade, and making war with each other. "The people of the worlds fashioned weapons of their own, Keyblades that manifested from their own Hearts, and warred with each other to dominate Kingdom Hearts. They mostly killed each other, but a few repentant survivors foreswore any attempt to conquer the Multiverse, forming the Old Keyblade Order.

"The Old Keyblade Order prospered, taking new recruits from people with strong hearts. One of those recruits was someone from this world, Leo the Second Mathemathician. Leo was a bright soul, but one who chafed under the strict restrictions of the Old Keyblade Order, as well as doubted their beliefs in cosmology; that Light was always good. To him, Light and Darkness were merely two sides of the same coin; neither can exist without the other.

"In fact, in his view, Light was tyrannizing over Darkness, and so the worlds had to be remade, so that Light and Darkness had to be in equal balance. So, he moved to do just that, summoning and binding the 'Pantheons' of the Greek, Egyptian, and Norse to his will, promising them revenge against those who worshipped only One God as a sweetener for their enslavement," the hologram shifted to a young man with tan skin, gold eyes, and silver hair much like Emperor Michael's, rallying an army of replesendent glowing figures that Hirutila would recognize from statues and descriptions he had seen or heard from his pirate days.

"And in a great battle," Empress Maria continued as the hologram shifted to a great battlefield, where an army of people who wielded Keyblades were fighting several 'Gods and Goddesses', a scene that ended with an old Keyblade Master stabbing Zeus himself through the heart before falling to the ground, dead as well, "He largely succeeded in destroying the Old Keyblade Order. There were survivors and retired members, but there was no more structure, no more organization. Leo was now free to accomplish the next set of his agenda.

"Under the guise of a student, Leo went to the world of Shining Field, a world where Genghis Khan was never born, and his son Hulegu never destroyed Baghdad, allowing the latter to remain a centre of knowledge and wisdom. There, he convinced Hakim the Wise, the Grand Vizier, to conduct experiments on Light and Darkness, experiments that caused the world to be consumed in the latter, and the Heartless to spread and become organized.

"And that is when worlds began falling and falling in quick succession." Maria then paused for breath.

"Empress, let me continue," said Tocsax, his face turning towards the group.

((To be continued in Part 3.))

@Double@Gentlemanvaultboy@Ryteb Pymeroce@ShadowVentus@Nerevarine@Rex@Tenma Tendo@Jareth

Palace of the Blachrenae, Renovation

((Part 3.))

"Empress, let me continue," said Tocsax, his face turning towards the group.

~~~~~

((Take a moment to pause and rest to that you guys don't lose track of the details.))

"I used to be a part of a group created by Leo, the Circle, which in turn was the precursor to the Thirteen - actually Twelve - Seekers of Darkness. From there, I discovered many of his secrets before defecting to Emperor Michael. The tales of my exploits would keep you standing for far longer than comfortable, so I'll make this brief."

"As certain peope here can see, I am a Nobody, and my name denotes that I am the Nobody of Ascot, the maker of the Multiverse for good or for ill." He then looked at Drake and Georgia, before saying:

"And...as anyone who knows how Nobodies are born, that means that Ascot has a Heartless as well." Tocsax would pause, then continue, "That is relevant because there is a way to restore Ascot. Two ways, in fact. One is to kill his Heartless, then me, restoring the Original Person. The other is to use a sufficiently strong source of Light to restore Ascot's Heartless back into a human. We are to either look for those sources of light, or kill me, then Ascot's Heartless when he is found. This will deny Leo the ability to make his own X-blade, by restoring the legitimate holder of the weapon."

Empress Maria then turned to her husband, "Dear; it's time for you to say your piece; can you finally explain what the Princesses of Heart are?"

A nod from the Basileus, as he said, "There are seven women, not necessarily actual princesses, who have hearts of pure Light that cannot be corrupted by the Darkness. This is because these - non-literal - Princesses of Heart are actually the Light Half of the X-Blade, scattered across worlds and timelines. These seven women cannot be turned into Heartless, although they can create Nobodies, and more importantly, they can transform Heartless back into Humans with a touch. Your job is to go to these seven worlds, the seventh of which is a mystery, and find the Princesses of Heart, and then after those seven worlds, go to the Tomb of Ascot and turn Ascot back into a human."

"All potential help will be given you, including a Gummi Ship of your own, and a guard detail of elite Imperial Guard to aid you if your party encounters Non-Heartless enemies, which Leo and the Thirteen Seekers of Darkness can throw at us -"

"Dear," said Maria, "you haven't explained what exactly the Thirteen Seekers of Darkness are..."

"Oh, right," Michael XIII Sideros said. "Well, the Thirteen Seekers of Darkness, which I think Tocsax mentioned before, are Leo's organization. They're an attempt to artificially create the 'dark half' of the X-Blade and have them attack or fuse with the Seven Princesses of Heart to create the X-Blade anew. They're also all incarnations of Leo, either his past self from another timeline, himself from the present, his Nobody and his Heartless, and people from The Circle that he has possessed. And of course, they're Keyblade Wielders, too; the reason they have not won yet is because they are incomplete."

Maria interrupted once again, "And by that, they are actually twelve in number; they have not captured their ideal candidate for the thirteenth Seeker." She looked at Tocsax and the other Keyblade wielders as they discreetly stood in the throne room, then made a closing statement. "If they capture said ideal candidate for the thirteenth Seeker, all might be lost."

------

Tocsax then whispered to Felix Vulpes: "If you want a summary, here goes: Find Seven Princesses of Heart and use the Pure Light within them to restore Ascot, the maker of the Multiverse. This will defeat the Big Bad, Leo the Second Mathematician."

((Finished.))

@Double@Gentlemanvaultboy@Ryteb Pymeroce@ShadowVentus@Nerevarine@Rex@Tenma Tendo@Jareth