A portal of light emerged in the forest, a young man stepped out, clad in red and bronze armor from head to toe.
In a flash of light, the armor disappeared to reveal Terra, a Keyblade wielder.
The unfamiliar feeling from going from his armored form swept over him immediately following it vanish. He had used the armor only rarely, and this was the first time he had used it outside his world.
His blue eyes blinked a few times, and he shook his head gently to shake the fuzzy feeling off, "Hope I get used to that soon…" Terra took a few steps forward to look at the place he had gone into, and immediately came to the conclusion that something was wrong.
The forest was really quiet. As in no animals made a sound, leaves were still, and there didn't seem to be a breeze either.
"Signs that the darkness is near," Terra concluded.
As a Keyblade warrior, Terra could sense the presence of the darkness, something he had been taught by his Master. The dark feeling was coming from deep within the forest, where the sky was becoming really dark and a dark purple smoke was coming from there as well.
"If it has anything to do with the Unversed, then I better go check it out," he said aloud, remembering what he had been told about the monsters his Master had spoken about. However, before Terra even took a step, a small violet blue creature scurried past him.
'Unversed!'
The little menace was heading in the direction of the smoke. "How convenient," Terra said before giving chase.
"How very interesting," Maleficent thought, seeing the male run after the creature in the forest via a dark green vision portal.
"Soon he'll be heading to my domain, just like the other did."
Maleficent had been getting all kinds of guests today, first the strange monsters she knew as the Unversed, followed by a female foreigner, and then the newest one from the forest.
None of them would be a problem under normal circumstances. The Unversed were keeping her enemies at bay while the Kingdom nearby was under a deep sleep, and Princess Aurora's heart was in her possession.
However, the two others had Keyblades, which she was sure of. And that was a problem in its self. Her soldiers were being useless as always, not being able to destroy the female, instead falling victim to the Unversed and their own stupidity.
It was because of that that the female would soon find Aurora's heart, and she didn't seem to be trying to find it in the first place. Just sheer dumb luck on her part.
If her plan to rule all worlds were to come to fruition, Maleficent had to keep Aurora's heart. But how would she handle the female Keyblader?
After thinking deeply for a few moments, the evil witch of darkness had a solution. One that would work in many ways, and that made Maleficent laugh in glee.
Even as Terra took off after the single Unversed in the forest, Aqua was encountering a problem of her own.
She had wandered into a seemingly deserted castle nearby, and realized too late that she had fallen into a trap. And she was cursing her naivety for such a mistake.
While expecting the Unversed, she was instead attacked by walking bird and pig creatures armed with bows, axes, and spears. She had not been overrun or overwhelmed, she just kept on running deeper into the castle, Keyblade in hand, and the situation had not gotten any better since.
"I had only come to find Ven, but I'm fighting for my life instead," Aqua said, coming into a dead end. "This is the story of my life…"
Giving a sigh of disappointment, Aqua shook her head, determined to go on, but she soon heard a few scarce sounds coming from behind her. She had been found.
The little buggers that had caught up to her were pigs, literally. Knee-height and wielding spears, Aqua could easily take them. But she had a couple problems. The first was the area, stuck in a dead end and no other way out than the way she came, and the second being she couldn't avoid them.
She was in a pickle.
One of the little porkers lunged at her, spear aiming for her torso, but she side stepped him before kicking him like a soccer-ball back where he came from. Landing with a literal thud, the monster got back on its feet and, in a surprising move, jumped up and down a few times excitedly and squeaked to its fellow.
Still at a fighting stance, Aqua tilted her head in confusion, "Okay?"
The other two pigs jumped in a similar manner, and ran off. The lone soldier jumped and squeaked at Aqua before running off as well.
As soon as they were out of sight, Aqua's Keyblade disappeared from her right hand, and she was left baffled. "Why had they let me go? I was right where they wanted me…"
Turning around to look at the wall behind her, Aqua seemed to figure out why. Where there was supposed to be a wall now stood a black portal of some sorts.
Aqua felt something tug at her heart, as if what was in front of her was very bad. That was not too unexpected, as darkness filled the place, but this portal seemed to be far worse. But, if it was connected to the Unversed she had seen on her way to this world, she had to check it out.
"If I don't, who knows what will happen to this world," Aqua thought, before giving a silent prayer and walking through the portal.
As soon as she stepped through it, the portal vanished behind her.
"Okay, so no going back that way," Aqua said aloud before moving on.
Terra had lost sight of the Unversed, but instead found something else. A large and spooky castle over a deep gorge.
"That's something you don't see every day," Terra said aloud. The phrase he had said reminded him of something. And with a quick thought he remembered a small conversation he had with a friend back home.
'Before he had left to fight the Unversed, Terra had been near the training ground, sitting on a rock and watching the stars while thinking deeply. His friend Ventus, or Ven for short, had gone to bed, so he was all alone.
Or at least he thought he was. His other friend, Aqua, had just finished her training course and was on her way back to her room when she stumbled across Terra.
"Hello Terra, what are you doing out here?"
"Nothing, just looking up at the stars," Terra replied, just as a shooting star came flying across the heavens.
Giving a gasp of surprise, Aqua put a hand to her chest, "That's something you don't see every day."
"Sure don't," he replied with a smile.
Aqua looked at Terra, "Mind if I join you?"
Moving a couple inches to the side, Terra motioned for her to sit next to him, "Sure."
Sitting down on the rock and crossing her legs, Aqua kept looking up at the sky, "So, tomorrow is the Exam."
Terra nodded, looking at Aqua, "You ready for it?"
"I am, but still can't help but be nervous about it," Aqua replied.
"You'll do fine," Terra replied, putting his left hand on Aqua's right. The two had a secret relationship that not even Ven knew about. Terra thought it had been born out of all the training they did together, but Aqua had told him it had been something else, though she had not been explicit as to what. Either way, the relationship was tight and not too far into the boyfriend-girlfriend stage. Holding hands was literally all they did, though Aqua gave a good wink and love-struck stare from time to time.
Aqua pulled her hand away, "So will you. But there's something I need to talk to you about."
"I'm all ears," Terra said, being more attentive.
"I'm just wanting to make sure that, if something happens to me, you'll come to my rescue, okay?"
"What do you mean?"
Aqua put her hands on her lap and her smile vanished, "Just promise me you will."
Terra thought about it, and nodded. "I will, Aqua."
She looked at him, "Promise?"
Putting a strong arm around her shoulders and whispering into her ear, Terra replied, "I promise."
Seeming to be pleased, Aqua smiled at his words. She then got off the rock and stood up, "See you tomorrow."
Terra nodded.
As she turned around, Aqua went "Oh!"
Terra turned to look at her, "What?"
"One last thing."
"Yes?"
Aqua was smiling, "I'm still waiting for our first."
Terra looked slightly confused, "First what?"
"You know what I'm talking about. I mentioned it yesterday while we were at the beach."
Then it hit him. Terra felt a blush form across his cheeks, and he tried o hide it from Aqua. Too bad she had seen him anyway. "I'm not sure yet."
"Remember what you told me. 'I swear I'll be the one to give you your first kiss.'"
Terra held back a chuckle, he couldn't believe that she had memorized what he said word for word.
Aqua had her hands on her slender hips, "You meant what you said, right?"
Terra looked at her and quickly nodded, "Can't go back on my word now, can I?"
Aqua smiled and gave a wink, "I'll be waiting eagerly for it."'
Terra reached the castle has soon as he finished remembering what he had promised Aqua. Her first kiss. That seemed rather childish of him to promise her that, but he had to open his big mouth in front of her and paid for it, he had wrote a check that his mouth could not cash and he knew it.
He was too stubborn to admit it, but he had sworn it, and he had to keep his word.
Deciding to keep Aqua in a corner of his mind for the time being, Terra went on into the castle, and found it to be very empty.
Not a good sign…
But as he went further into the castle, he still found it deserted. And as soon as he entered a large circular room he began to wonder if he had been led on a wild goose chase. 'Knowing my luck, that is more than likely the case—'
Before he could finish, the ground he was standing on gave way under his weight, and the next thing Terra knew he had fallen into a dark pit.
Aqua walked on into the portal and wondered if she had walking into another dead end, but soon came to the conclusion that she had not when she found herself in some sort of living quarters. The place was barren, save for a single black pauldron in the center of the room.
The weird part was a light red aura coming from the pot.
Taking a closer look, Aqua soon realized that she was looking at a heart. A glowing pure heart.
Taking her Keyblade out, Aqua stood, "Who did this?"
In a green and black cloud, a woman stepped out clad in black robes and holding a staff in her right hand. She didn't look friendly. Not at all.
"You child are in MY castle, in MY domain, without MY permission. That makes you a trespasser," she said angrily.
Aqua raised her weapon in preparation for an attack, 'Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.'
"However, seeing as you have made it into the castle and survived, maybe you can assist me."
"How is that?"
"You see, this heart belongs to the dear Princess Aurora, and when I took this castle I found it here. She must have it back, wouldn't you agree?"
Aqua took a few steps forward, "Why are you deciding to help me?"
"The peasants think I was the one who stole the heart, but it was someone else with powers mimicking and surpassing my own. And I am a powerful sorceress," Maleficent said.
Aqua didn't quite know what to make of the situation, but she knew that there was a heart that needed to be returned. "Alright then, how do I get it back to the Princess?"
Maleficent smiled, a seemingly wicked smile.
It didn't take long for Terra to collect himself after that fall. In an empty dungeon, he used his Keyblade to open the lock and escape into a dead end. Or at least that was what he thought, as a portal suddenly appeared.
"Now, if that's not suspicious enough as the rest of this place, then I'm not sure what is," he said aloud. Briefly considering not to enter, Terra felt a very familiar feeling coming from inside. Only this time, it wasn't the power of darkness.
It was a much warmer feeling. One he knew by heart…
'Aqua?'
He didn't just think it was her, he 'knew' it was her. There was no mistaking it.
And it was that feeling of certainty that he stepped through the portal.
"So, I just touch the heart, and then I can take it to Aurora?"
Maleficent nodded, "Correct."
The girl reached out her hand to the heart, the air around it getting warmer as she inched her way to it.
But when she touched it, she felt a cold sting prick her finger. Retracting her hand in pain and giving a quick yelp, Aqua saw her finger had been pricked, a drop of blood coming out of the wound. "What the—"
The heart vanished, and in its place was a needle, which was connected to a spinning wheel that glowed green.
A feeling of dizziness overcame her mind, and the whole world started spinning, but Aqua looked in Maleficent's direction while grasping her Keyblade with what strength she could muster, "W-what did you do to me?"
The witch only laughed, and Aqua turned to the exit. She grabbed her left wrist, and her arm started to go numb, followed swiftly by her legs, then her head started to feel heavy, and finally her vision started to get fuzzy
And the last thing she saw was Terra looking right at her.
Terra saw Aqua reach out to him and he was about to speak, when Aqua screamed, and a red aura came from her chest. A red aura that was warm and bright.
Her heart.
And it moved back to Maleficent before Terra could figure out what was going on. Catching Aqua before she hit the ground, Terra's face was mixed with feelings of confusion and anger at Maleficent, "You witch!"
The newly freed heart made its way over to the sorceress, and she laughed, "That's one down. Now, to deal with Aurora." And she disappeared before Terra could do anything.
Turning his attention to Aqua, whom he held in his arms, Terra saw her eyes, halfway open but blank. Her eyes that were once bright blue were now empty, devoid of life.
"No, Aqua…" This cannot happen!
As grief started to overcome him, Terra heard a voice, "All is not lost dear."
Terra looked up, and saw a small blue light flying towards him, followed by a green one, and finally a red one. The lights flashed, and three women appeared before him. Fairies.
"Who are you?'
The red one answered, the leader, "Flora."
The green one, tall and the oldest from the look of it, "Fauna."
The blue one, short and sort of plump, "Merryweather."
Flora walked up to Terra, "We're friends of Aurora, and we're here to help you Terra."
The man looked at Aqua, still as a statue, and nodded, "Anything to help Aqua."
Fauna stepped forward, "I believe we should get out of this infernal place first, then we'll explain how to help your friend."
The three fairies used their magic to transport Terra and the comatose Aqua to the clearing in the forest, the same spot Terra had made his entrance into the world. Setting Aqua down on a small patch of grass in the shade, Terra wasted no time in getting to the point. "What do I do."
Merryweather started, "You have to get her heart back. She lost it when she touched the cursed spindle Maleficent had tricked her into touching."
Terra had missed that part, all he saw was Aqua recoiling in pain and fear, and then she…
Shaking the thought out of his mind, or at least attempting to, Terra's eyes were aflame with anger, "Then that means I must defeat Maleficent. She has her heart."
The three fairies nodded.
"Then I better get going," Terra said turning towards the direction of the castle.
Merryweather asked, "Are you sure you do not need our help?"
"No, I can handle it," he replied.
"Just be careful. Maleficent is very strong, she won't be easy to defeat," Fauna said.
"I'll be careful, thank you."
"But listen, that spindle your friend touched was also the one that our Princess touched, it still carries the protection spell Merryweather put on it. In order for your friend to wake up, you must return her heart and express how much you care about her,"
Terra stopped walking, "What do you mean?"
"You'll know when the time comes. Good luck dear," Flora replied, just before Terra took off in a mad dash.
Meanwhile…
The Kingdom was silent, all those who dwelled there were in a deep sleep, and they would not wake up until their princess did. Aurora was in her chamber in the tallest tower of the castle, protected by the magic of her three guardian fairies. That meant Maleficent was unable to enter, as the magic of those meddlesome twits were nearly equal to her own made her furious.
But, she knew that she could wait, at least for a while. She had Aurora's heart, and that girl's as well, she could use it in some form or fashion. She had the power. From the heart she had taken from that girl, it was very strong and pure, not as pure as Aurora's, but it was pure and powerful.
She stood in the throne room, empty save for the countless number of sleeping nobles that littered the floor like ants. "I'll have to do some extra decorating once the world is fully mine."
Then, she felt a disturbance in her new domain. Her field around the forest had been broken. And she knew exactly who it was.
"That boy…"
Terra kept on running, the words of the fairy Flora in his mind.
Knowing the risk of fighting a sorceress on his own did not concern Terra as he made it to the bridge leading to the castle. He knew that there was a chance for him to lose but he didn't care. 'What matters is retrieving Aqua's heart. I have to keep my promise.'
The run down the bridge was long, but Terra kept going. As soon as he made it to the gate of the castle, he immediately felt a rush of dark energy hit him. Maleficent was inside.
Indeed she was. Standing in the middle of the Main Hall, not looking too pleased with what was going on.
"You dare come before me?"
Terra got into a fighting stance, Keyblade in his hands, "Give back Aqua's heart!"
"You fool. I take orders from NO ONE!" Raising her hands, a wall of energy hit Terra, and the force behind it sent him flying back outside the hall. Landing with a hard thud on the bridge, he struggled to get back on his feet, having the wind nearly knocked out of him.
The sky got dark, the sun disappeared behind a large number of black clouds, and Maleficent started to glow a bright green. "That girl's heart may not rival the power of the Princess, but it can still be used for my future endeavors. Which means I'll have to rid myself of you to ensure my future!"
Terra got back on his feet, "Bring it, witch!"
That was the final straw for Maleficent. She became engulfed with the green and black flames, and what came out of that inferno was something more sinister. Instead of a witch, a large black and purple dragon stood in her place. Yellow eyes and a pair of small black wings on its back. It was almost as wide and big as the bridge, and the structure shook as it gave a mighty roar.
"This must be what she really is…" Terra said aloud. He raised his Keyblade and had to jump back to avoid being hit by the claws on her right hand.
The dragon stood on its hind legs, and in a large effort, blew out fire from her mouth. Terra had little time to react—
'Terra!'
His eyes widened at the sound of the familiar voice, 'Aqua?'
The fire dissipated, and Terra remained in place, the armor on his left arm and shoulder protecting him from the fire, though only barely as the armor was singed and the metal white hot and scorching his skin.
"Close call…" Gritting his teeth to block the pain, Terra reared back with his Keyblade just as the dragon began to ready another fire attack. But this time, he had an idea. A simple bum's rush right under the belly of the beast, and he thrust his weapon up into the sternum with a primal scream. A loud roar of pain from the dragon echoed for miles, and a flash of light that could also be seen for miles blinded all who saw it.
Except Terra, who opened his eyes to see that the dragon was gone. He had done it, he had beaten the witch.
Lowering his weapon, and feeling sure she was gone, he felt a warm energy floating from above. Looking up in astonishment, he saw not one, but two hearts floating in a circle above his head, just out of arms reach. Even though they were that far away, he lifted a hand to see what would happen.
And the two hearts scattered in separate directions, one towards the castle, in the direction of the tallest tower to be exact.
The other was heading—
Terra gasped, "Aqua!" And with that he took off towards the forest.
Merryweather saw it first, as the heart arrived like a bolt of lightning to the clearing where they were, and it hovered over Aqua's chest.
"Terra did it!" She said excitedly.
Fauna nodded, "Then that means…"
"The Princess' heart must have also been released," Flora said.
"Then we should go to her!" Merryweather said, taking off in her pixie form towards the castle, followed by Fauna and Flora in close pursuit.
Terra came into the clearing where Aqua was, and saw that the fairies were gone. Not wanting to worry about them at the moment, his eyes soon found Aqua.
He saw the heart hover over Aqua, and as soon as Terra walked up and knelt beside her, it went into her chest, returned to where it belonged.
But after a few seconds, she didn't wake up.
"Aqua…"
'Express how much you care for her.' Flora's words came to his mind. 'How much I care for her…'
He wanted to save Aqua, she was more important than anything in his life, to lose her was for him to lose part of himself.
So, with that thought in mind, Terra leaned in towards Aqua, and gently pressed his lips to hers.
The kiss only lasted a few split seconds before Terra pulled himself back.
He whispered, "Please wake up…" He held her in his arms, praying that all he had gone through to save her had not been in vain…
Closing his eyes tightly, Terra was about ready to scream when he heard it.
To a sound too in audible to be a word, Terra opened his eyes, and saw a pair of bright blue eyes looking right back at him!
Aqua's eyes blinked a few times, "Terra…?"
It worked! The male knight smiled with his eyes watering up slightly, "Welcome back, Aqua."
"Sure you'll be okay?"
The two stood in the clearing, ready to resume their journey. Aqua still had to go find Ven, who was out looking for Terra, while Terra had to search for Xehanort.
Terra's words of concern touched Aqua a bit, "I will be. Trust me, that mistake from before won't happen again."
The male knight chuckled a bit, "Hope not, I may not be there in time to save you next time."
Walking up to Terra, Aqua was only inches from him now when she said, "Of course you will. I know it."
Terra's smile faded, "Truth be told, I thought I lost you back there, Aqua."
The female knight put a hand to his cheek, "I'm never gone, we're always together, terra, even when we're far apart."
Terra put his hand over hers, and nodded with a smile, "Right."
Aqua turned to walk away but then turned back around, instantly wrapping her arms around Terra's neck, catching him completely by surprise, but the male knight put his arms around her slim waist. "Thank you, Terra."
A few seconds later she reluctantly pulled herself off him, "By the way, how did you wake me up anyway?"
Terra blushed instantly, not too sure how to answer that, "I—uh…"
Putting her hands on her hips, Aqua had a playful look on her face, she knew Terra inside and out to know what had happened, "It's okay, I can already guess."
"It wasn't like I didn't have other ideas, okay?" Terra said putting a hand to his forehead.
"You gave me my first kiss when I wasn't even conscious," Aqua said, and Terra wished he had run away at that moment.
Terra hoped she would just let him be, since he was as red as an apple already, but instead he heard her say, "Well, guess what, it doesn't count. So, you still have to give me it, okay?" And with a light giggle, she vanished into a portal, and left the world, leaving Terra to gawk at his predicament.