Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is owned by people more talented than me. Like, out-of-college talented. Not like this spod.

Twisted Sentiments

Chapter Six- Sound and Fury

Pete was lost.

Well, why wouldn't he be lost? Whose idea was it to create one gigantic castle to live in? Okay, they might have been showing off and Pete knew he always wanted to live in one expensive, glitzy mansion just to rub it in those loser's faces but did this guy had to do the same?

He was at the fourth intersection he had reached today. And, judging from the suspiciously familiar-looking pipe that was protruding from the floor, the first as well. Damn it, why did all the corridors in this place all look the same? It would be nice to have signs pointing to where you need to go but unfortunately, Mr. big shot Ansem the Wise didn't think to be so considerate. If he had just gotten even the slightest of hints as to where in the world he was suppose to go, maybe he might actually be able to do something.

Honestly, Pete was beyond this type of drudgery. Didn't he used to be Maleficent's envoy to the worlds, giving enterprising bad guys command over Heartless if they want a finger on the ole darkness pie? He was the top dog, only second to great big bad witch herself. He was on top of the world and only those Keyblade wielding brats stood in the way. So what if Pete always failed? He prided in his own innate tenacity. Ole Pete never says never, even if the boat-boy king and his other irritating court lackeys get in the way. Surely that's why Maleficent let him stay on, one of the best in the business? If he was as bumbling and stupid as his detractors have named him, then he would have gotten the boot years ago.

But no. Suddenly, this uppity dork calling himself the Phantom Blot waltzes in and all Pete's reduced to do is give this to that, carry this over there and for heaven's sake, get out of the way or I will feed you to the Heartless. From what Pete could see, there was nothing special about that bloke. Just a man who covers himself in a black sheet. What was so great about him that Maleficent now has him hanging around like he's top dog instead of the real deal? Nothing special at all.

From the way Maleficent harps on about him though, one would think that the Phantom Blot was the answer to all their problems. As if. They've been doing fine without the Blot. Even in the data journal thingy, they got out of that place just fine without Mr. Ink Makes Right! What was he doing when he was fighting for his life against Heartless that were only computer blocks? And what has that lot doing when he was out recruiting tough guys and Heartless to swell Maleficent's ranks, huh? Sunning himself in prison?

That tears it. Pete was tired and confused and lost and hungry. He had spent close to ten minutes wandering through these hallways with nothing but Heartless for company. Bad enough that he had to waste one of his special Heartless in the town and not have it accompany him here in case a couple of Keyblade folk pop by. Now he might not even find the study that he was looking for. And the last thing he wanted was for Maleficent to be angry at him again.

"If only I had a map," Pete grumbled to himself. "Oh, why does Maleficent always make me do the boring stuff?" Out of his pocket, he pulled out a disc. This stupid, accursed disc was the source of his woes today. Maleficent and that Blot had told him enough times just how important the disc was, as if he'd do something stupid like drop it down a pipe. "I never had to do this kind of nonsense." He lamented. "What's so important about a computer?"

Nevertheless, Maleficent gave him a job and he should stick to it. If he doesn't do well, how did he expect to get a position in Maleficent's new world order? He was not going to be left behind while that stupid Blot hitches a ride on the gravy train leading towards success. Oh no, old Petey was here first and he was not going to let some yahoo get a slice of their victory!

With a determined grunt, Pete sauntered off and took a right at the intersection. He'll find the study sooner or later. Not even those Keyblade dorks will get to him before he can find it. After all, thanks to the Heartless running interference, they'll be far too busy.

TSTSTSTSTSTS

The first thing that struck Sora when he stepped outside was the shadows.

For one brief moment of madness, he thought that the darkness had descended upon Radiant Garden and had overtaken them. Only when he blinked did he realize that he was in an unfamiliar part of the city. The buildings around him were twice the size they were before. The sun peeked through the shadows created by the buildings around him, as if to remind him that the light was still there, still fighting through the darkness.

"Place has changed quite a bit since you were last here, huh?" Yuffie teased behind him. "We've been a bit busy."

"More than a bit busy." Sora marveled at the architecture around him until he noticed that there were no people around. "Where's everyone?"

"The alarm's got them locked p in their houses." Tifa replied, closing the door into the Seventh Heaven behind them. The man with the dog was gone so they were able to close the bar early today. "Every once in a while, we get these Heartless attacks and we just want the general populace to be safe."

"Sora." The boy turned at the sound of his name and caught the radio earpiece Leon had thrown at him. He threw similar ones to Donald, Goofy and King Mickey. "You guys know how to work that thing?"

They all nodded. "Piece of cake!" Sora said.

"Alright then. We can be in constant communication during the battle but that doesn't mean we should get chatty. Keep chatter to a minimum." Leon narrowed his eyes at Yuffie who began to blush a deep red.

"You stay safe now, okay?" Aerith said. She had changed from her usual flowery outfit to her old, pink one and she was now carrying a staff determinedly. "I want to see everyone back here when we're all done. Got it?"

"Don't worry!" Sora smiled and punched the air with a hardened glint in his eye. "Those Heartless aren't going to stand in our way."

"Good. We'll see you later then." Leon hefted his gunblade against his shoulder and ran towards the right.

"Always with the dramatics." Tifa shook her head and ran after their leader, followed by Aerith and Yuffie.

"Good luck!" Goofy called out to them. He turned to the King and said, "Well, now where do we go?"

"I can help with that." Tron's voice piped through the radio transceivers now placed in their ears. "You'll find Radiant Garden quite different since you were last here. Already, several citizens have been lost quite frequently in the streets."

"So where to for Ansem's castle?" The King asked.

"Take a left and then the third right." Tron advised as quartet took off, following his directions. "The pathway to the postern is still there. There's still a fair bit of construction left and we're still trying to finish up some road-"

"Heartless!"

After turning right as per Tron's suggestions, Sora and his friends were surprised as two Morning Stars launched themselves at them. In Sora's hand, Oathkeeper emerged in a brilliant flash, much to his astonishment. Behind the two spiky Heartless, Sora could see two Bookmasters and at least five Surveillance Bots emerge from the darkness. Their beady yellow eyes were zeroed in on the quartet, their flickering movements suddenly coming to life at the sight of them.

"No you don't!" Sora used Oathkeeper as a shield and bounced a Morning Star into the air. Mickey had somersaulted already to intercept the second Morning Star and the two Keyblade Wielders threw the two Heartless at their comrades, creating shockwaves that soon cleared the way ahead, knocking the other Heartless back. Donald and Goofy soon followed up with bolts of lightning and a few throws of a shield swiftly dispatching any lingering Heartless.

"Come on!" The King rallied. "We can't be bogged down by the Heartless!"

"Incoming!" Tron called out. Sora looked up and saw a mass of Surveillance Bots emerging from shadows in the sky. Sora readied his Keyblade to shoot them down with Thundaga only for Tron to pipe in his ear again. "No need, Sora. Let me show you what Cid and I have managed to devise."

They heard a familiar sound as balls of light began to converge on the ground around them. Sora watched in awe as five circles of the claymore defense system arranged themselves into a circle. They each shot out a beam of light that all combined into one brilliant ball of light that proceeded to spit out laser bolts at the flying Heartless. The light became too intense for the heroes, who all had to shield their eyes. By the time Sora looked back, the barrage annihilated the Surveillance Bots, leaving nothing but embers of darkness and floating hearts.

Donald whistled in appreciation. "Wow!"

"Leon thought it was a bit ostentatious," Tron said smugly. "But I think it has a certain charm to it, don't you think?" Sora could only nod dumbly, even if the program couldn't see him.

"Let's keep moving!" Sora saw Mickey run ahead and soon followed. The four ran through twisting streets and differing neighborhoods that Sora did not recall ever being there the last time he was here. It was amazing to see how much Radiant Garden has grown and regained its former glory. Here and there, Sora could still see signs of construction and some dilapidation but he was sure the Restoration Committee was working tirelessly to recreate the home that they had lost. There were never this much buildings or this much civilization before. Where there had once been blue wasteland stood new and proud housing, where the ground was cracked and barren now it was paved. It was as if a flower that he had last seen as a mere bud has begun blooming.

Sora ran Oathkeeper through every Knight and Soldier and every other kind of Heartless that stood in their way with ease. Alongside him, Mickey was relentless, not giving the Heartless any edge with his Keyblade and strikes of Light. Donald and Goofy worked in a tandem forged from years of companionship. Any Heartless trying to surround the two Keyblade Wielders were soon sent packing by either Goofy's well-aimed shield strikes or Donald's blistering magic. The four of them worked in coordination, making up for each of their weaknesses and covering each other. Tron kept the claymores pinning the Heartless that would swarm them down, a brilliant array of shredding laser fire. With their work, any Heartless that opposed them were nothing short of mincemeat.

But it was still distressing to see that for all the work of the Restoration Committee, the Heartless were still there to try and retard it all. Not in one street or alleyway or square did Sora see a peep of life. Doors were barricaded shut, windows closed, blinds drawn. Anyone would have thought that the place was a ghost town, life suddenly sucked out of its veins cleanly and with precision. Here and there, Sora saw signs of life that had been abruptly interrupted: a vending cart upended here, an abandoned stick of ice cream there. It was disquieting to see the effect of the Heartless's presence.

It proved yet another notch on the long list in Sora's head that has to be set right. It was a list that was getting longer. The assault at Disney Castle, the renewed assault and growing latency of the Heartless and now this broken peace in Radiant Garden. The world had suffered so much, its scars still fresh within the minds of its population. They did not deserve this.

No one did.

"We've managed to rebuild a staircase that leads to where the postern is now." Tron explained to them as they ascended an unfamiliar set of stairs. Behind them, they heard the blaring rapid fire of a laser array shredding through the denizens of darkness. "It should make accessing the castle easier now."

Sora opened his mouth to reply but stopped in his tracks along with Donald, Goofy and the King when they heard a familiar braying voice.

"Oh doggone it! How did I end up here again?"

From the entrance waddled a bulk of a creature, jowls moving in cacophony along the air. His beady eyes blazed with irritation and frustration as he waved his arms in an exaggerated manner. "Honestly, why does Maleficent always gives me the boring jobs? I ain't cut out for this sort of work!" He whined loudly.

"Pete!"

Pete's eyes bugged out once he heard his name. He found two Keyblade Wielders, the Captain of the Royal Knights and Disney Castle's Court Mage staring angrily at him. Behind them, two large balls of light began emerging from the ground and a thousand cross airs centered themselves on the former boat captain-turned scoundrel.

"It's not what you think."

TSTSTSTSTS

"Whoah!"

The Sector 5 marketplace had proven to be the most populous and vibrant area of Radiant Garden after they had officially retaken the name. It was created to be the center piece, the nucleus from which the city will grow once more. As such, it was more than a mere marketplace. It was the center of all community activity in the burgeoning city. This was where everyone met everyone, where people can just meet with other people and socialize. It was proof positive that the once dead world of Radiant Garden was beginning to bloom once more.

But now there was no one around. Except for a giant flying monstrosity currently holding court.

"Close your mouth, Yuffie." Leon said tersely. He and the rest of the Restoration Committee, a name that has stuck since the beginning and will continue to stay there until all of Radiant Garden has been restored, were standing in what he'd grudgingly call shock and awe. They've had Heartless attacks before of varying sizes. Most of the time, they'd just have the claymore system take care of it. After the modifications that Cid and Tron introduced to it, the claymore system was fast becoming more efficient than sending out Committee members on patrol. Only when a Heartless of sufficient size and power did they venture out into the battlefield themselves. Sometimes certain creatures needed finesse that a barrage of laser beams simply wouldn't provide.

Time and time again, the Heartless just keep attacking and attacking. The residents knew that this would have to be something that could just never be rid off. Even when before the Heartless appeared, strange monsters from eldritch worlds had been attacking their residence again and again. Everyone had become accustomed, almost jaded. They'd have to be just to face up to the relentless, endless threats to their home. Anyone not made of sterner stuff would have dissolved by now.

This was just another day for the Restoration Committee.

Today's monster was rather exotic, to say the least. It was a giant, winged bird thing that was created out of a mishmash of different creatures. Its wings were an intimidating array of yellow sabers, all sharpened to kill. Just to further that concept, its tail was formed out of an array of human skulls, waving lazily on the air. Within its beak was a huge, rather incongruous treasure chest, something to defuse the monstrosity of this Heartless. At the moment, all it was doing was lazily drifting on the air, peering at the four people left in the market. The alarm had gone throughout the entire city and Leon was glad people took heed of it. There would be no casualties today.

"He doesn't look so tough." Tifa said, breaking the silence.

"Looks like you guys got a doozy over there." Cid remarked into their earpieces. "I've got Tron using the claymores to keep the path clear for the other guys. You think you're going to need any of that firepower?"

The corner of Leon's mouth twitched at the thought, something that Yuffie quickly pounced on. "Ha! No way is Mr. Macho here going to let the artillery do all the talking! We're taking this baby the old-school way, right?"

"Sora and the King need it more than us." Leon quickly replied. "We've dealt with threats like this before and we'll continue to do so again."

Aerith only sighed at that statement. "You just have to prove something to us, do you?"

"I'm not-" Leon began only for the creature to let out a hideous roar and lunged at the quartet. "Break!" Leon called out and they all dodged the creature's attack, forcing it to swerve back into the sky. Its tail of skulls flexed and began shooting out balls of destructive energy. "Scatter!" Leon commanded tersely yet again as the four separated just as the pulses of energy smashed into the street, blowing away chunks of masonry and rubble.

"Ouch." Aerith grimaced through their comm. Links. "That's going to take a while to fix."

"As if we haven't had enough construction to fill our daily schedule."

"Keep the chatter to a minimum." Leon said. He took one look at the creature and quickly sized it up. "Can you get a scan of it, Cid?"

"Already on it." Cid muttered. Leon could hear clacking noises in the background before Cid's voice piped in again. "Alright, as far as scanners say, this sucker is completely impervious to most frontal attacks. The only weak spot is the end of the tail there."

"Figures it would have such a non obvious weak spot." Tifa scoffed. "Remember that big, thin Heartless that kept throwing those fire sticks?"

"Oh yeah!" Yuffie chimed in. "That guy was a pain. Why did he have to be so tall? And why is it we couldn't hurt him anywhere but in the head?"

"I said-" But once again, Leon was interrupted by the gigantic Heartless as it lunged at him specifically. Leon rolled out of the way easily and stood up, peering at the great beast against the sun.

"Looks like this boy's got a bone to pick with you." Cid said.

"Then we'll just use that to our advantage." Leon replied. "I'll play along as the bait. While he's concentrating on me, Tifa, Yuffie, you two will have to hit him where it hurts. Aerith, try to herd the Heartless to me with long range magic and provide support. Take this monster down swiftly and efficiently. We don't want it making more damage now, do we?"

"Roger!" All three responded enthusiastically. It was slightly morbid how all four of them were willing to throw themselves at harm's way just to protect some people. But if no one was going to do it, who will?

"Right." Leon said as he hoisted his gunblade and pointed it straight at the circling beast. "Let's put on a show, big boy." He let the ambient magic draw to him and raised his gunblade straight to the air. "Here goes," He muttered as the magic and fire coalesced into a long, shining blade of fire and light.

"Show-off." Yuffie muttered.

Leon ignored her and swung his gunblade back and then swung it forward, shooting out a large fireball. It exploded upon contact with the creature's skull, causing it to roar in fury. From the corner of his eye, Leon saw Aerith twirl her staff and black clouds formed around the creature, pointing towards Leon. The clouds began shooting bolts of lightning on the creature, forcing it to move forward lest it get hit again and again. The Heartless soon obliged and began flying towards Leon, its tail shooting more spheres of energy all aimed at him. Leon concentrated, timed his strikes ad deflected them all back towards the Heartless, blasting ineffectually against the creature's giant treasure chest. "Anytime now." He muttered again.

"Aw, don't get your panties on a twist, Leon." A blur of smoke and shadow began to flit on the buildings around them, surrounding the flying creature. As the creature made another flying lunge at Leon, who just dodged as always, Yuffie appeared out of nowhere somehow hurtling in midair straight towards the creature's tail and brought her oversized shuriken hurtling towards the end of the creature's tail. Her effort was rewarded by a piercing cry that was soon followed by another when Tifa jumped off an adjacent building and landed a straight kick at the same spot.

The creature tried to retaliate by swinging its tail to attack them only for a sudden shell of light to envelop them, protecting the two females from the brunt of the creature's attack. "Thanks, Aerith!" Tifa called out cheerfully as the two landed on the ground.

"No problem." Aerith replied sweetly.

"Ladies, let's concentrate!" Cid interjected. This thing isn't licked yet!" Just to prove the engineer's point, the creature began floating in the center of the square and opened its treasure chest, this time pointed at the two girls. It began spitting out large coins at an almost indecent speed. The barrage would have pulverized the two girls if it wasn't for Leon jumping in front of them and slashing repeatedly into the air, deflecting the coins away from them. Aerith brought up the rear and sent her own barrage of Firaga towards the creature, trying to draw its attention. "Shouldn't you two be doing your job?" She added after another ostentatious twirl of her staff.

"We're just getting warmed up." The two separated, Yuffie appearing and disappearing to and fro on the buildings to the left while Tifa ran up the walls of the buildings to the right. Both made a beeline for the creature's tail. The combined strikes from both shuriken and fist succeeded in dislodging the tail and the creature let out a painful howl, abandoning its coin attack and flying high into the sky.

Leon and Aerith joined the two fighters, who were panting from all the exertion. Aerith quickly cast Cure on the two, recharging their reserves of energy. "Is it over?" Yuffie gasped.

"Not by a long shot." Cid remarked, punctuated by another hideous roar. Suddenly, the four had to jump back as something exploded into a pillar of light at the spot that they had been occupying.

"What was that?" Aerith asked nervously.

She soon got the answer to her question. The four looked up and saw that the creature had returned and was flying at them in blinding speeds. An angry red aura was surrounding it as its body began spewing more and more balls of powerful energy. "Let's try not to get hit." Leon snarked as the four separated, each running in their own direction. The balls of light all exploded into large pillars upon making contact, forcing them to dodge, roll and run for their life as the flying monster continued strafing run after strafing run. The air was filled with smoke and dust as the creature systematically pound its way through the square, trying to destroy the four that had tried to do it in.

"We've got to stop this guy!" Leon heard Aerith say frantically through the comm. link. "If this keeps going on, the square's gonna be destroyed!"

"We'll rebuild where necessary." Leon replied professionally. "Right now, concentrate on trying to herd it to where it can do the least damage."

"That's easier said than done." Tifa added. "I can't see the thing and I'm running blind. Anyone care to turn around and look for it?"

"Watch out!" Yuffie called out. "Tifa, he's bearing down on you!"

"What!"

"Everyone, converge on Tifa's location!" Tifa only cursed under her breath as the giant shadow of the flying Heartless covered her own lithe form. Her rapid pace had to halt as the creature settled in front of her accompanied by a huge gust of wind that nearly blew her away.

"Oh great." The bartender said in disbelief. She had no chance of dodging the insane speeds this berserk Heartless can do. There were no alleyways or side streets to duck into, just a long line of tenement buildings that she hoped dearly would survive this onslaught. The Heartless in front of her let out a long, drawn-out roar of anticipation, telegraphing its next attack. Tifa braced herself, arms held crossed, feet planted firmly on the ground. She wasn't going to run away but her heart beat like a jackhammer against her chest.

This was going to hurt.

The creature beat its thin wings and the wind began to turn into a torrent of power. Tifa felt the creature hurl itself towards her and willed herself to not look away, to stare it straight in its dead, beady eyes. However, instead of the cataclysmic impact she had been expecting to crash into her body, a black figure darted in front of the Heartless and stopped it within its tracks. The shockwave created by the clash nearly took her off her feet but it was the shock of recognition that nearly did her in.

"Cloud?"

The swordsman didn't answer back but instead took a step forward. Letting out a lunge and a cry, he shoved the Heartless back with a slash from his sword, sending the creature back into the sky. "Rain down!" He followed it up by swinging his sword in a fiery aura and calling down a barrage of meteor shots, eliciting more cries of pain from the mutilated monster. Only then did he turn around and see Tifa.

Soon, the rest of the Restoration Committee found them there. "Nice of you to drop by!" Yuffie said in a way of a greeting."

"Are you staying for long?" Tifa asked tersely only for Cloud to look away at the question. "Have you found him?"

"Nearly," Cloud answered. "It'll take some more time. But for now, I'm here." He looked at Leon in the eyes. "If you'll have me."

Leon only nodded. "We've been having a bit of an infestation lately." He said wryly, pointing at the writhing creature in the air. "The Committee's always looking for some help and we'd be glad if you gave us a hand."

Cloud only gave him a small smirk and nodded back. "Looks like it's about ready to be sent back to the darkness." He said, shifting the bandaged First Tsurugi down on the ground.

"But it doesn't look like it'll play ball with us." Leon observed. "Aerith, think you can hit it from this far?"

Aerith shook her head. "Range is too much for me. Someone will have to get up there."

"But it's too high, even for me." Yuffie said. "Man, if only Sora was kind enough to teach us how to Glide, we'd be over there in a jiffy!"

Tifa only smiled. "I know what to do." She turned to Cloud and nodded before stepping away from him. She turned back to him and said "Ready when you are!"

"Right," Cloud nodded and set First Tsurugi on an angle against the ground facing Tifa. "Tifa's going to bring that thing down here." He said to the rest of the Committee. "Aerith, once the thing is down, Bind it to the ground so it can't escape. Then you, Leon and Yuffie, can finish it off." The rest nodded in affirmative to Cloud's orders. "It's all yours!" He shouted to Tifa.

Tifa took a deep breath and exhaled. Suddenly, she took a running start and jumped towards First Tsurugi. Cloud caught her feet by the blade's flat end and began to push against her momentum. Tifa arced back, planting her feet against the sword and, buoyed by Cloud's swing, was thrown straight into the air, making a beeline for the flying creature.

Using the momentum of Cloud's swing, Tifa caught the creature's head on a flying kick, sending it backwards. Tifa began to fall and, with a grunt of exertion, caught the treasure chest and hauled herself up on the creature's now vertical body with a flip, whirling in the air. "When will you Heartless learn?" She muttered angrily. Tifa pivoted and used all of her energy and strength and brought down a downwards punch towards the creature's chest. The wind whipped around her as Tifa clung into the rapidly plummeting monster before being thrown off by an almighty crash, sending her flying into the air and on the ground. "Aerith!" She called out.

"I'm here!" Aerith responded. Concentrating she closed her eyes and muttered to herself words to help her center her magic. She swung her staff and shouted, "Bind!" Sparks lighted up around the creature and soon it was thrashing in place, trying to break free of the powerful hold. "Your turn!"

"Yuffie!" Leon shouted, running towards the creature, his weapon's blade still alight with power.

"I've got your back!" Yuffie was running perpendicular to him, her shuriken out and ready as well. Both ran at the exact same speed, years of teamwork and practice in play here. The creature tried to struggle and break free but it was no use. Their blades clashed as they sliced their way through the Heartless beast. The creature writhed and choked and let out one last defiant scream as the darkness overtook it and disappeared, leaving behind nothing.

"We...did...it!" Yuffie panted before collapsing on the ground. Everyone ran up to her except for Leon who just smiled as the sounds of gentle snoring began to fill the air. He pressed a button on his comm link and said, "Cid, you there? Add that one to the tally."

"That makes it number 8566," Cid quipped. "Damn, that's not even counting the ones Sora and his party tore through."

"Oh yeah, Sora!" Leon suddenly looked concerned. "How are they?"

Cid snorted in laughter. "I'll let you hear for yourself."

TSTSTSTSTSTS

"Ow! Ow! Quit it!"

Sora tried to muffle his laughter behind his hands as Pete ran across the postern. Behind him, the claymore turrets loomed menacingly, shooting out a bolt of light every now and then into Pete's posterior. Donald and Goofy were laughing with abandon now, having tried and failed to contain it all. Mickey just smiled at his once-boss, enjoying the moment.

"Stop laughing! Owwww!" Pete tried to shake his fist at them only to receive several more laser shots. "Why, when I get my hands on you-"

"You'll do what, Captain Pete?" Sora said seriously only to break down laughing once more. This was not what he had envisioned to see here. A job that needed the assault of a major duty Heartless as distraction would mean at least that this job would be important. But if it was so important why send a bungler like Pete around? He had expected a heavyweight like the Phantom Blot but now they had to make do with this doofus.

Well, at least they didn't have to do anything. Just let Tron direct the lasers and their job is done.

"Oh this isn't worth it?" Pete lamented. "Just you wait, I'll get back at you mugs for this!" He turned tail and ran for it only to yelp back and jump into the air at another shot and another rousing chorus of laughter.

Sora chuckled out his last laughs until he noticed something on the ground. A shiny round object was reflecting rays of the sun. Frowning, he walked over to it and bent down. He picked it up and saw that it was a disc that had not been there beforehand. Pete must have dropped it when he was hit by that last laser bolt.

"Whatcha got there, Sora?" King Mickey asked as he, Donald and Goofy walked over to him.

"I don't know." Sora replied. He turned over the disc and suddenly let out a gasp. The other side was blank except for two things: an alarmingly familiar symbol and one word scrawled messily next to it. Mickey knelt down and, upon seeing the word, muttered into his comm. Link, "Gather everyone at Ansem's Study. We just got our missing piece into cracking the rest of the encryption." Sora only nodded as he tried to puzzle out the word on the disc.

Repose

TSTSTSTSTSTS

The air was thick with tension.

They were in Ansem's computer room, looking over the giant Heartless Manufactory that had caused so much chaos before. Sora, Donald and Goofy stood behind Cid as he muttered words and typed in symbols into the computer. Tifa had not joined them, instead preferring to stay in Ansem's study with Cloud, much to Sora's surprise. He had last seen the swordsman disappearing into the light with his nemesis. Sora had questions but he felt that Tifa deserved answers so they left the two alone while the rest of the Restoration Committee, minus a knocked out Yuffie who's sleeping it off at the bar, gathered around Ansem's computer.

"There!" Cid suddenly shouted in triumph, jolting everyone. "Found something!"

"Did you unlock it?" Sora asked eagerly. Leon had briefed them about the kind of information that was locked into the computer. Most of it was logs on all the research that Ansem conducted beforehand, with annotations added in by the apprentices. Xehanort's name kept popping up like a diseased bug, often with entire reports written by his hand. Most of the research was done around him as he insisted on trying to unlock what was within his murky past. Sora couldn't care less where that monster came from, only that he was gone for good.

Still, apparently there was a substantial amount of information still locked behind some incredibly good security. They had been trying for months to try and crack the code only to fail again and again. Even with Tron's help, who could very well be able to access data with considerable finesse, they were getting nowhere. Cid and Merlin had figured out that there was a part of the code missing, presumably in some sort of physical object. Without it, the information was of no use and would be locked away forever.

Pete's involvement had been a stroke of good luck.

"Nope," Cid replied to Sora's question, scratching the back of his head abashedly. "Still can't get past through the main firewalls. The code's locked with a two0tier password and all I can figure out is the second tier needs a hell of a lot of words."

"So what did you find?" Leon asked calmly, letting the engineer get to the point.

"Well," Cid looked at Sora slyly and said, "I've managed to find a door that should unlock the information we need. Seeing as how we can't find the password to it, or should I say the key…"

"You want me to go in there and unlock the door?" Sora said. "No problem!"

"We'll take care of it!" Donald proclaimed.

"Absolutely!" Goofy added.

"Now hold on!" Cid warned. "This ain't going to be some picnic, despite what Tron would say. The world inside the computer's changed quite a bit since you guys were there last. Heck , you might surprised."

"Also, the defenses behind this data are beefed all the way up to eleven. These won't be your normal Heartless or whatever that old Master Control Program was slugging. Whoever coded this data was a pro and we still don't know much about them guys in black coats. Who know's what they've got in their arsenal."

"I know." Sora said solemnly. That symbol had dispelled any doubts in him. He knew what to expect and would be ready to meet whatever it was. "Come on, beam us up!"

Cid smirked and saluted them before turning back towards the computer and pushing a few buttons. "You guys be careful now, alright?" Mickey admonished.

"Don't worr-" Before Sora could finish, a beam of light came from the giant red monitor and began derezzing him, Donald and Goofy into blocks of light. The light soon disintegrated, following the laser beam until there was nothing left of the trio.

"I hope those three make it out alive." Aerith said softly. All everyone else could do was nod.

BAH

I'm sorry but that had to be the most fillertastic chapter yet. I promise I'll do better next time. It's like Traverse Town in KH1 or Hollow Bastion in KH2: a sort of necessarry evil to get through along with doses of foreshadowing to help things speed along. Not to mention Sora doesn't get to do much here, which will be remedied in the next chapter, I rpomise you that.

So, as always, please leave your thoughts!