Levi put the finishing touches of the new rucksack, and lifted it to examine his work. The frame was simple, consisting of the metal rods to keep the pack’s shape, with the whole pack held together by 550 cord, which also made up the shoulder straps. Additionally, he made a small loop for the bat to hang from low on the bag, close to his hip, and a couple of smaller loops along the shoulders, where he put the potions for easy access. He slipped it onto his back, feeling out how the improvised straps dug into his shoulders, to determine if they needed to be wider. That should be good enough. At least, for now. He stood up, looking over the people coming and going, being everything from normal people to fantastical creatures, with no one batting an eye at the oddities. He started to walk around, getting a lay of the land and looking for any sign of Hoshi, Alias, or Morgan. “You’re here somewhere,” He paused briefly, something he couldn’t place keeping the doubt at bay. “If you died on me, I’m going to kill you.” He went through the first district, through every street, checking every shop, finding every back alley he could, but found nothing that helped his cause.

They aren’t dead. They couldn’t have just died like that, they wouldn’t. They’re too stubborn, too tough for that… right? He looked up at the sky, uncertainty slowly creeping in. He then dipped into a quiet spot, one that everyone seemed to be giving a wide berth for one reason or another. “I need you to come in clutch for me, Tsu. Please. We both know they can’t be dead. Find ‘em and keep an eye on ‘em. We both know I can take care of myself, just make sure they’re okay until I get to ‘em.” Then, he heard something he didn’t expect. A bark, like that of a dog… no, a puppy, somewhere nearby. It was quiet and somewhat muffled, but he could make out that it wasn’t happy. It was… angry? No, it sounded more scared than angry. He looked around to find the source, and found himself staring down the third district’s gate. By what Zac said, I’m guessing there’s either Heartless or something similar running around in this district. I should let them know… no, it could be too late by then. Just run in, grab the pup, and get out. What could go wrong? With that, he pushed open the gate, and made his way into the third district.

The two shadows stepped backwards, fearing the power they felt from Alias's keyblade. They knew they weren't a match for it in their current state and they'd just be a liability to their red allies floating above. Alias noticed this and thought twice about attacking retreating enemies. But they weren't retreating. The two shadows moved towards each other until they touched and began to morph. "Alice, go to the door. I don't know what they're doing, but as soon as I finish them off we're out of here. I just need you safe."

Alice did as he said, but turned to watch him. He reminded her of a knight from one of the stories her mother read to her when she was younger. Strong and wielding a sword, well, somewhat of a sword ready to defend the princess. Was she a princess? She never thought of herself as one. She was just Alice and in all her imagination she never imagined herself a princess. It seemed too boring for her. She wanted adventure and for the first time in her life she was experiencing it. Even if it was a little frightening in the moment.

The two shadows fully merged and morphed into what appeared to be some kind of shadow knight. It didn't have a sword or any other weapons besides its claws, but it had a helmet with an open faceplate that showed nothing but yellow glowing dots for eyes. The new shadow knight twitched and jumped in place, getting used to its new form. Alias was honestly freaked out. He didn't even know these things could do that. But he was glad he got to see it. It reminded him not to underestimate the Heartless. They were trickier than the ones he's faced so far. He wasn't scared though. He was thrilled. He needed to get stronger to find and save his friends and experience was the only way to do that.

"Heh. A knight against a King. This should be fun." He said with a smirk before pointing to the three floating weird hat shadows. "I doubt you Heartless are honorable. No offense, it's just what the name implies. But let this be a one on one. Code of chivalry and all. After I beat your friend or friends here you can attack me all you want." Alias figured the Heartless were smarter than they looked. I mean, the two clearly knew their power separately wasn't enough to fight him.

The red shadows seemed to oblige his request. Alias nodded and turned his attention back to the shadow knight in front of him. The knight took the moment of distraction to charge at Alias to get in close before he could use his keyblade to keep it at bay. It was smart. All it had was its claws and it used them well. The knight slashed Alias across the cheek before landing behind him. Alias turned and lifted his left hand to feel the blood dripping from the cheek. He winced at the pain from the cut. "I was right. No honor. But smart. Now I don't have to feel bad. Die and release the hearts you stole."

The knight stepped back in fear, this time from the wielder of the blade, sensing his killing intent. They had made a grave mistake. Before the knight's foot could land Alias was already in front of them, not far to begin with since the knight preferred close range. Mistake number two. Alias stabbed the heart emblem on their chest, using the clearly painted target. His keyblade pierced the heart causing the shadow knight to evaporate into shadows releasing the two stolen hearts as well as some small green orbs, a bottle with some green liquid, and some munni!?

Alias didn't have the time to worry about the strangeness of it all as he had three other enemies to deal with. He lifted his arm placing his keyblade behind his back blocking a ball of fire. He turned around with a look of annoyance. As he turned the green orbs and munni pulled towards his body as if he were a magnet. The green orbs latched onto his face healing the cut from earlier and the munni transported itself to his wallet. He wasn't aware any of this was happening, hyperfocused on the three in front of him. "I knew it. A knight and mages. Didn't know you could throw fire though, but the red makes sense now. I have magic too y'know? Wanna see?"

They did not want to see. The flame shadows responded to his question sending three fireballs at him. He could block one, but what about three? Alias glanced back to make sure Alice wasn't in the path of the flames and ran away from her and the door. The flames hit the floor burning it a bit, but doing no real damage, but they did hit the green vial from earlier causing it to explode into a green mist. Alias wasn't sure what it was, but he didn't entirely trust it in the first place after Alice talked about drinking poison.

He planted his feet firmly on the ground and lifted his keyblade into the air. "My turn. Those who dare dishonor the rules of a fight, face the wrath of the King's might!!!" Three bolts of lightning fell down from out of nowhere, striking the three red mages. They weren't dead, but they were in a shocked state with the lightning still coursing through their bodies. They must've had some kind of resistance to the lightning. It made sense with fire being close to lightning. He decided to put them and the hearts they contained out of their miseries. He threw his keyblade like a boomerang cutting them each in the air before it materialized back in his hand.

The process from earlier repeated with these Heartless dropping things as well. There was more munni and green orbs, but there was also a blue cube and a red star shaped gem with three floating diamonds connected to it by some kind of invisible force. Before he could walk over to them to investigate Alice ran up and hugged him from behind. "Oh, you did it! You really are a knight! No, you said you're a King. Why didn't tell me you were a King? Most Kings I know would've said something about it when I called them rude. I'm so sorry, your Majesty. Thank you, your Majesty." Then she realized she was holding onto the King without his permission and immediately let go and stepping back. She didn't want to end up like one of those Heartless, he called them.

"It's okay and please don't call me your Majesty. It's weird. And how many kings do you know anyway? They sound like the rude ones." Alias responded as he turned around to face her.

"Just the ones in the history books my sister reads me. Though we don't have a King right now, just the Queen. Her husband, the prince died just recently, but I don't know them personally."

Alias, satisfied with her answer, turned around and walked towards the items that the fire mages dropped. "Well, I'm a King but I'm not from this world or your world because I don't know what you're talking about. My home is Destiny Islands." He picked up the red shard and looked at it closely. It was interesting and strange. He decided to hold onto it for now. He placed it in one of his many pockets and then walked over towards the blue cube. The green orbs didn't react like they did before. They only seemed to do anything if he was injured, but the munni collected itself as well. He picked up the blue cube and put it in his pocket. He figured it'd come in handy later.

"Destiny Islands..." Alice said imagining the place. "It sounds wonderful. Like a dream. Why would a King ever want to leave there?"

"Adventure." He said as he walked back over to her. "But the decision was taken out of the hands of everyone else."

Alice wasn't quite sure what he meant by that. "I understand adventure. That's why I'm here, but what do you mean?"

"Nothing. Let's unlock this door." Alias said walking over to the door. He had to have faith that everyone back home was okay, not just his friends and his dad, but everyone. He'd find them all and restore their world.

"You put on quite a show, but as I said, that's not my key." The talking doorknob repeated snapping Alias from his thoughts.

"I know, but this isn't an ordinary key. Just keep that mouth open." Alias aimed the key at the keyhole. "I hope this works." He muttered to himself. He was just guessing at this point, but this was a magical key. It had to be able to unlock a talking door. The keyblade reacted to his thoughts, a light shining at the tip of the blade. A beam of light projected from the blade straight into the keyhole. There was a click and the door opened ajar.

The doorknob was amazed. "Wow. I think you got my cavity too, kid."

Alice ran towards the door full of excitement. She thought they'd never get out of that room. She opened the door fully and yelled out into the World of Wonderland, "Mr. Rabbit, wait!!!" Before running off.

Alias ran after her. "Thank you, Mr. Door. Alice, wait for me!"

---

A horned woman in a dark cloak stood atop the fireplace in the strange room Alias and Alice just left. She rubbed the green crystal orb atop her scepter. "Xehanort was right. This boy is interesting indeed. Will you walk in the light or fall to the darkness, you cursed child of Radiant Garden?" She laughed maniacally before disappearing into a dark portal to begin her plan.

Lucian froze mid-knock, startled as the door slammed open. His his eyes widened, taking in the sight of the short, bespectacled old man who stood at the top of the steps, wielding a strange wand-like staff, and glaring at him.

“I-I’m sorry! I—uh…” Lucian stammered, taken by surprise by the wizard’s rapid shift in tone.

Lucian hesitated for a moment before taking a cautious step inside, his eyes darting around the chaotic yet oddly charming interior of Merlin’s workshop. The size of the place took him by surprise, it seemed impossible that all of this could fit inside the small building he’d seen from the outside. As he wandered further in, his attention was drawn to the countless bookshelves, bubbling cauldrons, and all sorts of odd things scattered about. It was like stepping in to a storybook.

Lucian rubbed the back of his head. “Thank you, sir. I have so many questions uh…” He trailed off as something on the wall caught his eye.

His gaze lingered on the portraits lining the walls, taking in the faces of people Merlin had presumably worked with. One particular painting stood out—a young Zac, looking much the same, but more determined and earnest. Lucian smiled faintly at the thought.

But then his eyes landed on her. The large portrait in the center of the wall showed Morgan, or at least, someone who looked like her. The Morgan he knew never looked this… happy?

Lucian’s mind raced. Was this really Morgan? If it was, what had happened to her since this portrait was captured? “That portrait. That’s Morgan, isn’t it? She… she told me to find you. She said you’re someone with great knowledge and that I needed to protect something important.”

@Sadu

Behind Zen-Aku's eyes, Dotty floated in the void, watching Taivas doing his darkness absorbing thing. "Wow! Han got weird new powers. Dylon's gonna be so jealous that i got to see it first!" She giggled. Meanwhile, Zen-Aku was watching with something resembling... Curiosity... This mans power reminded him so much of Master Org's... Whoever that was. Wait, who was Master Org and why did that name suddenly come to mind? As an armoured Heartless formed up near him, he quickly spun and decapitated it with a single swish of his cresent-moon blade. The Armoured Heartless's body quickly ran over to its head, grabbing it and trying to balance it atop its neck, before the head rolled off and disappeared, the Heartless then waved goodbye as it also disappeared. As he seemed to finish absorbing the Heartless, Zen-Aku approached him.

"Your powers are strange, but oddly reminiscent. You absorb Hearts... Where did you learn this technique?" He asked.

"Long ago in a distant land-" Dotty began, putting on her dark, broody voice. Talking only inside of his head "Han the Handsome was but a common thief with a magic bow, looking to-" Zen-Aku did his best to block out Dotty's badly written high-fantasy melodrama re-enactment, but soon he began to feel the strain, better not put too much on her today, in case he was needed again.

"Alright, you can have the body back if you agree to ask the questions i need answering." He said to seemingly no-one.

"Oh, sure, i got tons of questions for him! I think you really wanna catch up with your besty." As she said, that, a flash of light happened and now the little girl was stood there again. "So, Han the Handsome!" She began. Then she took a deep breath MybrotherDylanisyourbiggestfaneverandhesaysthatyourbowdoeslightningdamagebecauseinpoodlewolfepisode214yourbowsstringsaremadeoflightningbutithinkitdoesthunderdamagebecauseinepisode118yourbowissaidtohavebeenmadebythegodofthunderthatthatyoustolefromthetempleofstormsandwhatkindofthundergodmakeslightningweapons! She took another 10 seconds of uninterrupted breathing in before continuing "SowhatsthedealwithyouandwhatsthedealwithyouandCatPrincessofCatatoniaonecomicsaysyouarelonglostsiblingswhilethegamessayyoureboyfriendandgirlfriendbuttheycantbothberightbecausemummysaysthatsinsectswhateverthatmeansandyoudhaveweirdlookingbabiesbutyouradogandshesacatsoofcourseyourbabiesaregonnabeweirdlookingalsowhatstherecipeforthatpotionyouusedonLordFurballinepisode79thatmadehimtellyouthetruthabouthowtopassthewizardsgatetosaveInventicusfromthesuccerbusofpugsworthplace-" If he began walking away, she would follow him continuing to ask questions one after the other, only stopping for about 8-11 second intervals in order to fully breath in before continuing.

"No, ask him about his power!" Zen-Aku told her.

"I DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDUH!" She yelled at the ghost in frustration. "SoareyouactuallydescendedfromalovegodorwasthatjustsomethingtoimpressthePrincessandcanyoureallyjustpullarrowsourofyerbuttandfirethematpeople-"

Merlin continued to puff on his pipe as he turned his head, looking up to the photos, before pointing at the largest with the end of the pipe. "Ah yes, my greatest pupil." And then, he fully introduced her, as she had never been able to do herself. "Princess Morgan Pendragon, would-be Queen of Camelot, had things been different. I take some fault for that... I have had many students over the years, and right proud of each and every one of them I am. But none were quite so dedicated as she. Not for lack of trying, you see... while I consider myself quite the wanderer, Camelot will always be my true home. And so I spent many a long night in my tower with her, reading every kind of magical book you could imagine. She studied every form of magic there is to study, and in time mastered White Magic. Didn't care for my own magic, blue magic... said it was too silly, too, unbefitting of royalty." He let out a long 'hmph' and took another puff off his pipe.

Merlin was like any old man, desperate to tell a story, and easily lost in the details of questions that he took one at a time. Which meant, it was a few long moments of silence, before he blinked a few times, and turned back to Lucian.

"I say... did you say you know her, you have spoken with her? And she told you to find me?" He stood up suddenly, walking up to Lucian and leaning over to him. "What is this, important something she told you to protect?"

Lucian’s mind raced as he listened to Merlin speak. Princess Morgan Pendragon? Queen of Camelot? That wasn’t the Morgan he knew, or at least, not the Morgan he thought he knew. The idea of her being royalty, let alone someone trained by this Merlin, was almost impossible to reconcile with the cold, distant person he’d spent so much time with on the islands.

He stared up at the painting again, his eyes lingering on the version of Morgan that felt so different from the one he’d left behind. “She… she never told us any of that…” he murmured. He’d only just learned that he was a prince not too long ago. And now this? It was as if everything he thought he knew was unraveling.

“I… I don’t know what it is exactly,” Lucian admitted, gripping his Keyblade a little tighter. “Right before we left the island, she… she pulled this light, or magic or something out of herself, and placed it inside my heart. She told me it was important, that I had to protect it, but she didn’t explain what it was. Just that I needed to find you.”

@mattmanganon

Taivas

Taivas’ feet soon touched the ground. He opened his eyes and looked over at Dottie. He turned around to face Dotty. Looking immensely annoyed by being calling Han The Handsome. His keyblade disappeared since he felt they would be safe for the moment. Tavias’ hand moved to rub the bridge of his nose. “Take a deep breath and repeat your question.” This was spoken in a whisper as if he was saying this to himself. He moved his hand away from his face before opening his eyes.

“I don’t know how I got this power. All i know is that i’m able to use the darkness to protect myself for those creatures. And my name is Taivas.” He looked quite angry staring down at her. He took another deep breath as his face relaxed. He was quite curious about how she got her abilities. “Perhaps you can help me; I am looking for these people. Have you seen them before?” He pulled out the locket and showed Dotty the picture inside. Tavias hoped they would at least recognize one of the people in the picture.

Dotty stopped as Taivas stopped and responded to her, telling her to start again. "OOOOOOH!" She responded. "Ok, i think i'm really sorry, Han, im just really excited to finally meet you." She took a deep breath and shook herself off, before she centered herself and then began again. "MybrotherDylanisyourbiggestfaneverandhesaysthatyourbowdoeslightningdamagebecauseinpoodlewolfepisode214yourbowsstringsaremadeoflightningbutithinkitdoesthunderdamagebecauseinepisode118your-" at this point Zen-Aku jumped in, putting a ghost hand across her mouth, she her voice becoming muffled as she continued talking.

"He means ask my questions again..." the gruff demon grunted.

"Ooooh!" She muffled again, before the invisible clawed hand moved away from her face. "Ok, so Poodlewolf, you know, your bestie, wants to know where you got your cool powers from too...? Becauseinepiso-Mmmmhmhhmmmhhmhhhmm" Her lips then were pulled together as Zen-Aku grabbed her mouth to hold it closed while he listened to Taivas' response. She then looked at the locket as he presented it, she then looked at the ghostly Zen-Aku, who slowly took his hands away from her mouth. She opened her mouth to continue, but then saw Zen-Aku pinch his finger and thumb together to indicate he'd shut her up if she started again. "Hmmm..." She looked the locket "Nope! And why are you going by Taivas now?" She laughed. "Ooooooh, i get it!!!" She went into a hushed whisper. "You're in disguise." She whispered, then winked at him. Zen-Aku's ghostly form then facepalmed, watching the naive child completely misunderstand the situation she was in.

"What cruel Eidelon saddled me with you...?" He asked.

"But maybe that weird old wizard guy who lives in the square knows?" She replied. Zen-Aku didn't remember a Wizard.

"Wait, what wizard?" The spectral Duke Org asked.

"That old guy with the big beard and the big hat that looks like santa. Oh wait, you guys dont have Santa in your world." She said, looking at the invisible entity. She then thought for a second. Zen-Aku seemed to get a flash of memory as she mentioned that name. The beautiful woman from his memories sat under a large tree, the two of them sat together with a large man in a red suit and a pearly white beard. Zen-Aku had to sit, staring as he wondered why such a happy memory hit him with such a sadness? Dotty then set off at a run towards where she had seen the Wizard, waving for him to follow her.

"Come on Ha-" She stopped and giggled "Sorry." She whispered. "Taivas!" She winked secretively. "Come on, i can show you" She continued waving for him to follow her. "But only on ONE condition." She stopped and pouted. "You tell me where your magic bow REALLY went?"

Levi found himself on an elevated platform, overlooking a plaza with a fountain. He looked down into the plaza, and saw the source of the barking; a puppy, primarily with white fur and several small black patches, barking loudly at a group of… what he could only guess to be Heartless. There were a couple of the familiar shadows, however what stood out to him more were several other small assailants, clad in blue and silver armor with sharp-looking red clawed gauntlets. Soldiers. Alongside them, or rather above them, were several small yellow heartless, each having a cone-shape to them and what looked like stereotypical wizard hats to him. Yellow Operas. He leapt down from his elevated position, hitting the ground with a roll before pulling his bat off his hip. He ran for the puppy, swatting one of the soldiers aside.

Clank!

He didn’t question right now why he knew what these things were called, or why he somehow knew it’d take another two-dozen hits with his bat to take it down, as he had slightly more important things to take care of. He positioned himself between the Heartless and the puppy, flourishing the bat as he looked over them. “Don’t worry, pup. I’ve got you.” The dalmatian looked up at him, but barely had time to react before he picked up the young pup by the scruff, and set them in the open space inside his rucksack. “We’re getting out of here. I’ll make sure of it.”

Plink! Clank! Plink! Clank!

He raised his bat, as one of the Soldiers lept at him, a little too slow as it’s sabaton found his chest, pushing him back. At this rate, they’ll just kill both of us. What was I thinking? He turned back to look at the pup again, seeing it’s fear mixed with just a little bit of hope. This pup’s relying on me… I can’t give up. We had to save ourselves, and we barely got out alive. This pup being here tells me it went through something similar. So long as I’m still going, these monsters won’t hurt ‘em. He then turned back to look at the Heartless, as he opted to tune out any distractions in the best way he knew how. He put his headphones on with a free hand, reached down to the cassette player, and hit play. The familiar notes of the song’s intro playing in his ears as he took a deep breath, and relaxed his body.

That’s the state of my,
State of my,
State of my head.

That’s the state of my,
State of my
State of my head.

He ran ahead, swinging his bat as it knocked away a shadow. He then sidestepped a lunge from a soldier, smirking as he smacked as he smacked it away with a satisfying clang! that hit in time with the beat of the song.

It’s been a
Long, bumpy ride
Sitting back in the saddle.

It’s time to
Get down, dirty up my knees
In the battle

With a brief flourish of his bat, he swung his bat at another shadow, then stepped back in time to avoid a bolt of lightning cast by one of the yellow operas.

So come on,
Round up the boys,
Gonna make the walls rattle

He was caught in the side by a soldier he didn’t see, as he felt the small bruise already on his side while he staggered. Only to then get caught by the claws of a shadow’s lunge, leaving red lines running down his arm, followed up by a yellow opera making itself known by hitting him with Thunder. The sudden pain, along with the brief spasing of his muscles, made him fumble his bat, which clattered to the ground.

Oh our flag is tattered
And our bones are shattered
But it doesn’t matter
‘Cause we’re moving forward

He was well and truly done with these things now. He had to stop them, right here and now, or they were going to hurt this pup. These things, darkness incarnate playing at being monsters… he’d truly had enough of their antics. He held his hand out, as a sliver light appeared in his hand. He ran at the first soldier before pulling his arm back, moving on instinct as if to hit it with his bat.

Shing!

The silver light materialized in his hand as an angular, wickedly sharp weapon. It was nearly five feet long and shocking light, with a mostly straight edge and what appeared to be a bit that formed a diamond shape on one end, the opposite with a sharp point, like that of a war pick. At its tip was yet another sharp point, and on the opposite end was what appeared to be the bow of a key, forming a sharp parallelogram that made up the handguard of the weapon. Hanging from the pommel was a small chain, a keychain at the end having a silver diamond shape that matched the key’s bit. It was his tool, his weapon, his extension of himself, his…

Keyblade.

The keyblade swung through, the edge between the tip and the forward-facing spike catching the soldier at it’s open faceguard and not stopping until his keyblade had crossed his body, causing the soldier to disappear in a dark cloud.

Round ‘em up,
Round ‘em up, let’s go
Round ‘em up, let’s go

He stood tall, resting True Light’s Flight over his shoulder, relaxed but still ready as he looked over the remaining heartless for a moment, before leveling the tip of True Light’s Flight at the Heartless, the smirk on his face turning from something to make the pup less nervous, to something much more genuine. He was still outnumbered, but now he had a chance. “Who’s next?”

Oh, my eyes are seein’ red,
Double vision from the blood we’ve shed
The only way I’m leavin’ in dead

His challenge was met by a yellow opera starting to cast another bolt of lightning at him, which he responded to by leaping at it, his keyblade appearing as a silver blur as it struck the heartless again and again, and knocking another two of them back.

‘Cause that’s the state of my
State of my
State of my head

A pair of shadows rushed him as he landed, however were met with Levi using the flat of his keyblade to block their claws, staggering them and giving him the perfect opportunity to turn two shadows into four shadow-shaped pieces, then two clouds of darkness.

They don’t know
Where we’ve been
We’ve got that concrete-street skin

He looked over at the remaining heartless, then his eyes widened a little as a much larger one formed. It had a spherical body shape and a front covered in armor, with two massive arms and a tiny head, topped with a little metal hat. Large Body. He kicked the fallen bat up into his free hand, before leaping to the side in time to dodge a charge from the large body. A soldier tried to capitalize, only for it’s lunge to be blocked by the flat of True Light’s Flight, causing it to stumble and fall back. A quick pair of follow-up strikes kept it from getting up again. “Not ideal, but could be worse. Now then, let’s go.”

The only way I’m leavin’ is dead
That’s the state of my,
State of my,
State of my head.

@mattmanganon

Taivas

The blonde man looked at Dotty again, feeling the annoyance building up in his body. He took another deep breath, trying to stop himself from walking away. His interest perked up when she mentioned a wizard. The wizard might know where to find the people in the picture. “Perhaps you can lead me to where this wizard is?” He didn’t know this place well, so he hoped Dotty would know where the wizard lived. However, bits and pieces of this place were coming back to him. A memory of himself walking between the different districts looking for someone.

Following behind Dotty, his eyes were scanning the area in case more heartless tried to ambush them. “My bow? Oh, it’s hidden in my home. And do you know the name of this wizard? ” He asked, hoping the name would spark some memory. However, the image of an old man with a beard and a big hat seemed familiar.

"A light... that she placed in your heart? Oddly specific choice of words, I wonder if that's on purpose or not." He stood up straight, puffing on his pipe for a moment in thought, before he motioned for Lucian to follow him, and headed to go up the stairs. "What do you know of hearts? Not a lot I imagine. You have the face of a young lad who has recently been freshly introduced to many new ideas. I'd wager you have not had that Keyblade at your side for very long, have you?"

He waved a hand dismissively before Lucian could even respond to that, saying "Don't mind my rambling, my place in what is to come is to aid those of you who need it, in the art of magic. I can teach you that much, but as for matters of the heart, those are best left to your own discovery, and should you need it, perhaps someday you will meet a good friend of mine, a fellow Wizard whose understanding of hearts far exceeds my own. In him you may find a greater mentor, but I feel that it will be some time before you are ready for that. What is it he would say, let me think..." He stroked his beard, going up and up one step at a time, before he jumped a bit, finger in the air as he said "Aha, that's right!" He turned to face Lucian, now standing at the top of the staircase, and said "Your Heart will be your guide, so follow it always. He would word it differently, but I say, let him do so, should you ever meet him."

With that he held up his wand, and tapped it on the brick wall near the top of the stairs, and with a puff of sparkles and smoke, the wall vanished, leaving a doorway into a hidden room, and inside, lying mostly motionless on a Sofa, was Morgan. She had fully returned to the version of herself that Lucian knew, wearing the clothes she had been given after arriving on the island, her hair tied back and white, still a far cry from the portrait of her on the wall downstairs but, this was the Morgan he knew.

"And it would seem one heart at least, has found its way home." He motioned Lucian inside, and said "She appeared just shortly before you came knocking at my door, which while no excuse, is my reason for my attitude. She is dear to me, and to see her in such a state had me quite frazzled. I assumed the worst when shortly after someone was knocking on my door, so I hid her away. But if she did as you said she did, then I will trust you. I could not explain why she would not wake, until now." He waved his wand, as if motioning Lucian closer to her, only saying "Go ahead, return to her what she gave you."

@Crimson Flame

Zac casually made his way back to the First District, though he had to stop to deal with occasional pack of Heartless. Over the years, he had grown strong enough that fighting the Heartless of Traverse Town had become more of a minor annoyance than a life-or-death situation, so he had hardly broken a sweat by the time he made it to his destination. Dismissing his Keyblade, he beelined it for the shop in the center of the square, where he knew his fellow mechanic would be.

The bell above the door let out a cheerful ring as Zac entered with an equally cheerful, "Heya, Cid! Great seeing you, as always!"

"What'd you break, this time?" came the cantankerous reply. Cid stood behind the counter, the ever-present toothpick in his mouth as he looked at Zac. Though he didn't sound particularly thrilled to see the young man, Zac could see a hint of a smirk playing at the corner of the man's mouth.

"Ah, come on, is that really how you should greet an old friend?" Zac responded, only to add, "Never mind," upon remembering who he was talking to. He reached into his pocket and pulled at a folded sheet of paper, which he placed on the counter and slid over to Cid. "You're right. I need some parts. Long story short, I got attacked, Sigrid took a beating, and I had to make an emergency crash-landing on a world I was near. I was able to jury-rig a patch job while grounded, but Sigrid's not going anywhere until I can get a more permanent fix."

Cid picked up the paper and read over the list of parts written on it before clicking his tongue. "'Took a beating' is a bit of an understatement, don't you think?" he asked. "They must've caught you napping or something. Not often you get this banged up." He slipped the paper in his pocket as he continued, "I've got most of the parts in stock, but I'll have to machine the rest. Shouldn't take me more than a few hours, so if you can handle the repairs yourself, you should be able to take off by the end of the day. I'll loan you a cart so you can take the parts I do have over to your ship."

Zac let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Cid, you're a lifesaver!" he said as he turned for the door...only to be stopped when Cid cleared his throat.

He finished writing something in a small notebook, tore the paper out, and set it on the counter. "Forgetting something?" he asked as he tapped the paper.

Zac swallowed nervously and walked back over to the counter. He picked up the paper and felt his blood run cold. He set the paper, which was actually a receipt for the parts and labor, on the counter and clasped his hands together. "That's just a little bit higher than I can afford right now, Cid. I've still gotta restock for when I take off! Any way you could put that on my tab? You know I'm good for it!" he pleaded.

Cid narrowed his eyes at Zac. Sure, he never had to wait long for Zac to repay his debts, always with interest (that he never asked for), but it was a routine he had grown too familiar with over the years. Still, looking at the young Keyblade wielder, Cid was reminded of the first time they met, how Zac's passion for Gummi ships and even flight in general reminded him of himself. Cid rubbed the back of his head and sighed. "Alright, fine," he muttered. "Last time, got it? If people find out about all the breaks I've given you, I'll be out of business."

Zac beamed and picked up the receipt, a reminder of what he owed Cid. "Thank you so much! I'll even bring you a souvenir next time I see you!" He turned to leave, then stopped once more. He turned back and asked, "Before I forget, have you seen any new faces around? The world I was on got taken by darkness, but I managed to get a few people off-world before it was lost. Some others stayed behind, but since people tend to find their way here, I was wondering if you might've seen them?"

Cid thought for a moment before answering. "Well...there was this one girl a little while ago, before you got here. Short, brown hair, liked the color blue. She called herself 'Hoshi.' I told her to hang around until Leon came by and he'd get her situated."

Zac slowly nodded. He thought back to when he made his way to Cid's shop, but couldn't remember if he had seen her or not, though he hadn't been actively looking for her. "He must've found her, then," he muttered. With a shrug, he added, "Well, if I see any of the people I brought, I'll be sure to let them know at least one of their friends are okay." With that, he exited the shop and, within the next hour, he was on his way back to his ship with a cartload of new parts.

“If that’s an invitation…” Hoshi locked in step behind Leon and Launchpad. They passed through the large wooden doors, and Hoshi’s jaw dropped; the quaintness of the previous area opened into something grand; it would have been vibrant as well if more people were out. Her head rounded the scene of the large plaza. She wondered at the contents of the shops, and marveled at the large, white-sided building at the far end; a chiming of a bell from that very building filled her Heart with a measure of warmth and charged her spirit. This felt like a world that she’d want to return to with the others some day.

She was entranced to the point that she had half checked out of the conversation happening directly in front of her. She shrugged as she drifted back into the banter between her new apparent allies. “I mean, I got separated from my friends. I need to find them if I can.” The pair looked at each other.

”You’ve got more friends?” Launchpad asked. "They also got Keyblades or-?" Leon elbowed him in the knee (He was short)

“Uh… Yeah. Of course I’ve got friends.” Hoshi replied with a degree of snappishness; how could they think she, or anyone for that matter, wouldn’t have friends.

"What Launchpad means-" Leon butted in "is that we are more than happy to help you search for your friends.” With any luck, they could lure her out of the city and towards wherever they were supposed to be guiding her to. It was times like this that made Leon annoyed that higher ups didn’t give him the information that he needed.

”Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Always happy to help anyone in a pinch. What do they look like?”

“And they can hold their own if they have to,” she added, answering Launchpad on the down low; she was starting to see where that might not be the best way to talk to him. “There’s four that I’m looking for. There’s Levi; bit taller and skinny; short blond hair.” Launchpad took out a note and pad from… Somewhere, he didn’t appear to have any pockets in his armour and he began scrawling down what she was describing. ”Then there’s Lucian; he’s got long blond hair, and just this real kinda… gentleness about him. Then there’s Morgan; she’s got this really long silvery hair,” Hoshi made a gesture of hair falling with her hands, “and sorta Icy eyes; turns out she can use Ice magic. Finally there’s Alias; darker skin and black hair that he usually wears in dreadlocks. Kinda muscly for his age too. I think most of them got away on a ship that this guy named Zac had. He had a Keyblade too; he was pretty good at using it, like he had had it for a while…”

“Alright, i think i got some composite sketches of your pals.” Launchpad replied shortly after she finished. He turned the notebook over to her to confirm the likenesses.



Hoshi reeled back and blushed a bit. She couldn’t be too taken aback by the sketches though. She hadn’t realized how hard it was to describe how people looked; she wished she had had a photo of them on her to make it easier to ask.

She stopped by the entrance into a small hotel and quickly recomposed. “You mentioned something called “the Heartless” back there… who or what are those?” The end of her question trailed off slightly; she suspected she already knew the answer.

"The Heartless are…" Leon seemed to get something of a thousand yard stare.

”Heartless are these cute little black guys who run around, but don’t let that cuteness fool you, they like to rip your Heart out and slurp it down like a cop in a donut factory.Like we said, we hunt them.” Launchpad twirled his Trident.

"Nobody knows where they came from. Every place aware of them has their own theories. Some out-of-control super-weapon from a war long forgotten? The remnants of a god who was shattered? Some cruel act of nature? I think it’s one of those things we’ll probably never know…" He slowly locked eyes with Hoshi. "Or would drive us all mad if we ever found out…" He then shook his head. Meanwhile, Launchpad pointed across the street.

”We live up there, you wanna come on up? Put some coffee on?”

"Or plan our moves to find your friends somewhere safe?" Leon added.

“Yeah. Somewhere safe… I think I need to lay down for a bit too.” She wiped her brow.

”Sure, Sure.” Launchpad replied, walking over to the door, he fetched a large ring full of small keys on it from his pocket and went through them. ”Let’s see, Aunt Suzies, Mr McD’s, Thunderquack, Thunderquack, Thunderquack, Drake’s, Commander Nebula’s, Ah, here it is.” He opened the door and lead the small group up a flight of stairs to a small apartment. It was actually fairly well kept, considering it was a pair of bachelors. Leon walked over to his workbench and almost immediately got lost in working on his gun. Launchpad looked at Hoshi. ”Don’t worry about him, he’s a little… .” He looked to see the glazed look in the Lilties eyes. ”He’s been through it.” He sighed.

“Guess I can relate a little bit.” Hoshi watched Leon tinker away. The thought of her islands, torn asunder and fallen into Darkness wrenched her Heart twofold.

”Pick a bed or a couch if you need to lay down. Want me to take your coat?” He asked. ”I’m used to being a Chauffeur.”

“Oh… Yeah… this thing.” Hoshi had all but forgotten the black trench coat the man back on the island had wrapped her up in. How she had managed to fight off even one Heartless with it hanging mere inches from her feet was beyond her, though clearly she had managed. She pulled it off of herself, handing it to Launchpad. “A guy gave that to me, just before he… well he pushed me, and next thing I knew I was in this town.” She stepped tiredly to a nearby couch, and flopped down onto it. “He said something about it protecting me in the ‘corridor.’ He was wearing one just like it, actually.”

"The beasts of The Space Between are innumerable and sadistic. They want not only your heart, but your memories. Hold onto your memories if nothing else." Leon replied from behind his bench, he still had that glazed look in his eye, as if he was saying this on autopilot. "There was a legendary hero among my people, a Knight of untold skill and valor, saved many. A parasite stole his memories and he became a raving madman. It took a brave young boy to finally kill him." A single tear seemed to roll down his cheek, despite his facial expression and voice not changing at all. "Our memories are what make us who we are. Without them, we are but hollow shells seeking that unseen light." He finally finished reassembling the plasma cannon that Commander Nebula had specifically forbade him from bringing and checked the sights. The glaze in his eyes seemed to disappear and he looked around, feeling the wetness on his face, he moved his armour-plated hand up and wiped it away, a look of confusion across his face as he looked at the small smear of wet across the silvery metal glove.

Hoshi cocked her head up. Though she had only just met the pair, something in Leon’s expression suggested he wasn’t the sort to talk the way he was in that moment; not regularly. What he said felt familiar, and similar to the talks she and the others had had before the islands were attacked. The promise to always stay true to one another stuck out to her more in that moment than it had since they had been together. Even if she lost all else, she’d never lose the memory of that pact. “Memories…” She lowered her head to the pillow. “Something we can always go back to.”

”Yeah, like this one time, me and my best pal, Mr McD, we fought this witch Magica DeSpell over this magical harp, but the real kicker is that neither of them got it, turns out it was cursed and an ancient minotaur came and took it.” He chuckled. ”Ah… Good times.” Launchpad then grabbed a blanket from the other room and brought it to her, it smelled a little musty, like it had been sitting in the back of a cupboard for a few years, but at least it would keep her warm. Leon slowly walked over to the window, before hopping up on the sil, keeping guard as he looked out.

Hoshi accepted the blanket from Launchpad, sharing in the amusement of his ordeal over the magical harp. The smell was easily ignored as she spread it over herself and began to find some shred of relaxation. She gazed past Launchpad to the slivers of night she could see through the window. “I have to find my friends,” she spoke through a heavy yawn. Her eyelids weighed down, and soon enough she had nodded off.

Levi stared down the Large Body, righting his footing Two Yellow Operas, and a Large Body. This seems manageable. He glanced behind him, noticing his back was to the fountain once again. Wasn’t paying attention and cornered myself, though. That’s not great.

We’ve been shot up, beat up,
By the fallin’ of the arrows
(Arrows, Arrows, Arrows)

The Large Body smacked it’s stomach, then charged at him. Distinctly lacking anywhere to go, Levi took the only option available to him. He planted his feet, raised True Light’s Flight, and shifted to use the flat as a shield. The Large Body’s armored belly collided with the keyblade, but only pushed Levi against the fountain, while the Large Body fell straight back onto it’s rear as if it had run into a brick wall.

Yeah, I’m full of deep cuts
Right down to the marrow

Levi attempted to strike the Large Body with True Light’s Flight, however it only succeeded in bouncing off it’s front armor plate. So, he strafed around it, and ran at the Yellow Operas. They attempted to cast their lightning at him, but he had recognized the pattern in their attacks. He waited until the last moment, and then stepped to the side, then again, evading both bolts of lightning not by evading the bolts themselves, but by evading where the Yellow Operas were aiming.

But there’s no doubt we’ll get out
From the bottom of the barrel
(Barrel)

He had to admit, if it wasn't for the life-and-death struggle, this would be fun. The constant movement, the slight burn of his muscles, the adrenaline, it was all so similar to what he felt when running or working out in general. He lived for this feeling.

He leapt up, catching one with his keyblade and reducing it to a black cloud, but the other started to fly straight up, far out of his reach. He didn’t think as he raised his hand, uttering a single word that popped into his mind. “Aero.” With that, a gale of harsh wind struck the flying heartless from behind, not killing it, but pushing it back into his reach. From there, it only took one swing.

Oh our flag is tattered
And our bones are shattered
But it doesn’t matter
‘Cause we’re movin’ forward

Finally, he couldn't help himself. He was having too much fun with this to keep it in.

”Round ‘em up,
Round ‘em up, let's go
Round ‘em up, let's go!”

As the Large Body charged again, he planted his feet again and stopped the charge. This time however, instead of attacking head-on, he strafed around the Heartless, and struck it’s unarmored backside in a flurry of bat and blade. The Large Body ignored the onslaught, simply standing back up and attempting to face him, which he met by strafing to keep behind it. Levi was a little surprised when it jumped into the air, and was knocked away by the shockwave that came with it’s landing, but was fine otherwise.

”Oh, my eyes are seein’ red
Double vision from the blood we’ve shed
The only way I’m leavin’ is dead,
‘Cause that’s the state of my,
State of my, state of my head”

As it turned to face him, Levi didn’t give it the chance, circling behind it and keeping at it with his offensive until, at last, the Large Body dispersed into a mass of black smoke and a heart being released, flying up into the sky.

”They don’t know
Where we’ve been
We’ve got that concrete-street skin!”

“The only way I’m leavin’ is dead,
‘Cause that’s the state of my,
State of my, state of my head.”

With a final sigh, he let his shoulders sag as his keyblade disappeared in a flash of silver light. He then started towards the ramp that he had completely ignored on his way in, and made his way back into the first district.

---

Once he got back to the outdoor dining tables, he sat down and let the pup out of his bag. “Hey, bud. How’re you doing?” The small dalmatian barked at him as he lifted it out of his rucksack, and it licked his face. “Glad to see you’re okay. Just don’t go running off into dangerous places like that, okay? That could’ve been a lot worse.” The pup barked, then wriggled from his grip. It started to run off towards another direction, and Levi groaned slightly in annoyance. I’m not going to let this pup win a Darwin award on my watch. He got up, and chased after the puppy, as it led him through the first district and eventually, into a well-furnished home.

As he followed the pup in, he was met by a masculine voice from around the corner, speaking with a tone of reprimand. “Don’t run off like that, Patch! You had your mother and I worried sick!” Levi slowly stepped inside before calling out. “Hello?” He was met with a full-grown male dalmatian who rounded the corner, and surprised Levi a little when he spoke. “Hello there. I take it you’re the soul who saw my Patch home?” Levi took a second, then shrugged. Eh, we’ve got magic, other worlds, and giant keys that kill monsters made of darkness. After all that, talking dogs seem the least surprising. Levi’s smile then returned, he squared his shoulders, and opted to talk to this fully cognizant creature like an equal. “He’s the one who got back here. I just got him out of the third district.” The male dog straightened up a little. “The third- with all these Heartless creatures running about?” The dog shot a brief glare back into the room he came from, then his expression softened.

“Well, it’s good to have my Patch home safe and sound, at least. My name is Pongo, might I ask yours?” Levi nodded, smiling slightly. “Levi. Say, while I have you here, I’m looking for a few friends of mine.” He then went off, listing general descriptions of Alias, Morgan, and Hoshi. Pongo thought for a moment, then shook his head. “Now, I can’t say I have. However, I can promise to keep an eye out for them. And while I have you here, I can’t just have you return one of my pups and leave empty-handed, now can I?” He then rounded the corner, and returned with a pouch of munny hanging from his jaws, which he dropped in front of Levi. He didn’t want to be rude and refuse the gift, so Levi bent down and picked up the pouch. “And if you would be so kind as to bring any other of my pups that you find back here, that would be appreciated as well.” Pongo said, giving a respectful nod to Levi. Levi returned the gesture, and started outside. “I’ll bring them straight back if I find them.” With that, Levi gave a small wave and left the house, heading back towards the shopping area near the front of the first district.

@Eviledd1984

"Ok, i believe you!" Dotty chirped as he told her where he had hidden his magic bow. She then turned and began marching through the districts towards where she had seen the old wizard man. "I only saw him, didn't get his name. Looked like a Tim or maybe just Wizzo." She seemed to ponder for a second. As she did so, the spectral frorm of Zen-Aku floated in front of Taivas' face.

"Save yourself you fool." Dotty saw this and immediately looked around.

"Save yourself?" She asked. "OH NO, IS YOUR BESTY IN TROUBLE??" She cried. She ran towards him and grabbed his leg, trying and failing to lift him out of harms way.

"Oh he's in big trouble all right, you're going to be the end of him..." Zen Aku sighed. Dotty then looked down at her own hands in mute horror.

"Am i venomous?" She asked.

"No, if he died from you touching him, you'd be poisonous." Zen-Aku explained.

"I'M POISONOUS!?!?" She screamed, starting to hyperventilate a little in absolute terror. Zen-Aku's spirit then rolled its eyes as it sunk down in front of her.

"You are not poisonous. You are not venomous... You are Dotty." Her breathing quickly slowed to survivable levels. "You are only you. Except when you put on the mask-" Dotty then threw her arms across her face as if a superhero flourishing their cape.

"Then i am the great Poodlewolf..." She said in her deep and broody voice.

"I'm never going to convince you i'm not this fictitious character am i?" He asked.

"Hehehe, that's exactly what Poodlewolf said in ep-mmmphhmpmphmmmmph." Zen-Aku quickly held her mouth closed before she could begin giving them a long description of some grim-dark fantasy melodrama. The pair then looked at Taivas who had only been privy to half of the conversation.

"Just lead us to the wizard..." Zen-Aku ordered in a hushed tone. Dotty nodded and he let go of her mouth. She then looked at Taivas.

"Poodlewolf says i need to lead you to where i saw the Wizard." She said, staring him directly in the eyes, before getting up and walking over to him and taking his hand. She looked both ways across the street. "Daddy says to hold onto someones tail before crossing the road." She then whispered "But seeing how we're in disguise, we have to use hands." She looked down at her free hand and wiggled her fingers. "I don't get how pets get by with these things." She stated. As they crossed over the road and she lead him through to the streets.


As they finally arrived in the Third District, she pointed at Merlin's house. "The wizard went in there last time i saw him."