Star Shard (Complete)

[Kuu]

'Huh? W-wait up - it's been a while since I've done this...'

Kuu gingerly stepped close to the ledge and looked down, blinking a little at the ground far below.

'Hmm... that's a little farther than what I can make in one jump...' he muttered as he gauged the distance from the cliff to the bottom. He took a few steps back then took a running jump off the ledge, but slipped on the last step and did a fantastic backward somersault in mid-air before hurtling down to the ground. His movement thrown, he found the snow coming up at him at tremendous speed, and was only just able to pull off an Aero-based spiralling maneouver to land in a spectacular almost-bellyflop onto his hand and balls of his feet.

In an effort to make the fall look more on-purpose than it was, Kuu draw his sword and held it in an easy combat stance, in a loose reverse hold behind his back. Now that he was much closer to the encampment, he could make out the various battalion and unit flags, and the easily-recogniseable golden dragon that marked the emblem of the Chinese Army. He hoped nobody he knew was in this group to comment on the ridiulous display he put on just now.

As the King whispered his question, Kuu was brought back into a more serious mood by his efficient diplomatic tone. He nodded and began racking his brains for what he remembered of the identification features of Imperial military flags.

'Well... there appear to be roughly three or four units, maybe more, and that black flag, that means artillery. Wait, wow, there are two commander's standards, it would seem that the officer in charge here must be a shang xiao or something - that would broadly translate as a colonel, maybe even a major general...'

Kuu let out a silent breath. 'Whatever it is, this is far beyond the armament capacity of your ordinary border patrol. It's almost as if they're geared up for war.'

He turned to the mouse king. 'I'll see if I can go talk to them. Though this silver hair might make them think I'm a demon, it would be a far more convincing misunderstanding if I was accompanied by an anthropomorphic mouse, if you excuse me for saying so -'

His words were interrupted by shouts from the camp, and the sounds of weapons being drawn as the sentries left their posts to aid whatever was causing the ruckus on the other side of the camp. Kuu's expression darkened.

'It looks like whatever I saw in the snow made its entrance,' he said. 'We'd better go help them - in any case, we may make a better impression if we come to their aid now instead of popping out of the snow.'

He leapt from their hiding place and ran with quick light steps through the snow towards the encampment, where sounds of battle grew ever louder.

[Zephiris]

Mickey frowned. War? If this was meant to be a border patrol like Kuu had originally mentioned, then perhaps the threat was outside of China’s borders. This thought eased him a bit, despite warfare being a morbid subject to the normally cheery mouse. The country’s history was long and wrought with battles. If its borders were threatened now, then not too much was amiss. It was not his place to mess with the internal affairs of the worlds. . . yet he felt he had to check to make sure.

And what was with the odd weather?

The King nodded at Kuu's words, and was about to voice his agreement when the shouts resounded before them. His mousey face mirrored the young man's expression as they looked grimly towards the camp. "Oh, dear. You're right, we gotta help. Try to stay outta sight until we get to the heart of the trouble itself."

In a flurry of snow the two dashed towards the cries. They rushed along the perimeter of the pitched tents - Mickey didn't exactly have to bend over double, but he tried keeping his ears low all the same - to avoid being spotted by the soldiers, pausing only once for a harried looking warrior to race by with a bundle of weapons.

At last the rows of disciplined military set-ups opened to reveal the skirmish. The offenders were none other than a horde of Heartless - and a plethora of Shadows flickering in the snow before the dark hulk of a single Assault Rider. Though under normal circumstances an individual Shadow was little match for the blade of a seasoned Chinese soldier, it was soon apparent few of the men had ever seen the likes of Heartless, much less the Rider, and the fight was a rough one.

Without a moment of hesitation Mickey leaped up and over the squall, gold flashing as the Kingdom Key D instantly manifested in his grip, and swung at the great centauric beast. There was a clang as the creature’s pike rose to greet him. The next instant Mickey had pulled away, and reappeared again on the fringes of the Heartless’ sight.

Time moved too slowly to capture the next few frames of movement in the eyes of the soldiers. Light blazed from the keyblade; there was a leap, and a downward slash; then a dome of light formed and the Rider was thrust into the ground.

The duel lasted only a few moments more, and then the Heart was freed. Mickey stood back to watch it rise, frowning. His encounter with the Door suddenly resounded fresh in his mind. But he shook his head and turned around, striking a lingering Shadow that had tried its luck sneaking at him from behind. He assumed the soldiers and Kuu had made short work of the rest. The group wasn’t too big, but was definitely drawn here by something, the King thought. He had a terrible feeling it was discord and conflict that had summoned the Darkness.

Quiet reigned. Mickey turned around, and bowed respectfully to the group of warriors. Many others who had been alerted by the sound of shouts began emerging from various parts of the encampment. One man in gold plaited armor stepped forward. Quickly, Mickey made eye contact with Kuu. It would be the young man’s job to negotiate these waters for now.

[Kuu]

As per the King's instructions, Kuu kept himself low against the snow, his pale attire and silver hair proving useful in remaining vaguely unseen. He shifted between the tents with relative ease, making his way swiftly and undetected towards the centre of the conflict. Nothing prepared him for the sight he saw before him - dark, bug-like creatures, constantly looking around in maddened twitches, over which a huge four-legged beast with the upper torso of a man, looking disturbingly like a soldier in Chinese armour, wielding what looked like a guan dao with a jagged, lightning-shaped blade. He had never seen anything like it.

He watched as King Mickey leapt in to engage the largest enemy, a peculiar, key-like weapon materialising in his hands as he slashed with swift acrobatic movements that were far too fast for his foe to follow. Snapping out of his shocked state, Kuu gripped his sword and moved to take out the smaller foes. Looking about, he saw that the swords of the soldiers were not doing too much damage - it seemed that ordinary steel would not do the job. With this in mind, he summoned up a wind to surround his sword, and then with two swift turning steps, covered the distance between him and the nearest of the dark creatures, delivering a swift slash that knocked it away from the line of struggling Chinese soldiers. Flopping down onto the snow, he spiralled back onto his shoulders to kick away the other two enemies before flinging himself onto his feet to finish them with a smooth, looped slicing motion.

Now there's some space between the soldiers and the rest of them, he thought. Time to finish this.

Moving his leg around in a circular motion, he flung himself about in a continuous spinning motion, his sword outstretched and balanced by one leg while the other drilled into the ground, throwing up a flurry of snow that was caught in his summoned wind to become a small snowstorm. The tiny snow-tornado moved through the ranks of the dark creatures, flinging all of them into the air. Bringing the spin to a stop, he leapt upwards after his now airborne foes, slashing at them as he kicked off each one to reach a higher target. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mickey swat away one of the creatures into the air, so Kuu took the chance to seize the disorientated creature and spiral downwards into the ground in a full-body drop.

Down you go.

The creature collided with the ground and disappeared upon impact. All around him, he could see that the other creatures he had attacked were also disappearing in slimy wisps of black smoke. It seemed that Mickey had also had no trouble dispatching the big one - it seemed that the King business hadn't been just for diplomacy and show. But perhaps more disturbingly, the soldiers were now leveling their weapons at them, and restless murmuring flowed in a hostile undercurrent amongst their ranks.

...Maybe I overdid it with the whole spinning thing, sprang the sheepish thought. The ice whirlwind thing didn't really help with my whole snow demon image.

Suddenly, there was a shout from behind for the soldiers to stand down, and a glint of gold armour appeared from the lines of the standard dull green -

'There are only two people I know who use that move,' came a soft voice.

Kuu's ears perked as they recognised the even tone of the gold-armoured man's voice, and his eyes widened as they remembered the unassuming, weathered features of a man he had known in another life, so many months ago.

'C-Captain Zhao!' he said, his voice almost reverting back to the higher cadet-like pitch. But this was for but an fleeting moment, as he found a blade pointed directly between his eyes, and the soft coldness of the snow around them seemed to seep deeper into his skin as his former captain spoke his next words -

'One of those two people was killed by Shan-Yu in the Hun War. The other was a young cadet under my tutelege before he abandoned his duty to the Emperor.'

The tip of the blade touched he bridge of his nose.

'Now, tell me which one you are - ghost... or deserter?'

Negotiations... deep, irrevocable failure.

[Zephiris]

It was a pleasant surprise to learn that Kuu recognized the captain of the guard. Then as fate would naturally have it, circumstances took a turn for the unpleasant. A few moments later the exact state of their current relationship was revealed. Mickey, who had braced himself for most possibilities, likely didn't register shock that could even compare to that of the young man currently being held at swordpoint.

"Excuse me," he piped in.

With a few swift movements among the congregation, Mickey also found himself facing the cold steel of sword blades. He regarded them calmly. The Kingdom Key had already vanished back into the planes of his Heart, ready to be summoned again within an instant - though even without it the magical capabilities of the King left him by no means lacking protection. He didn't wish to retaliate, however. Not if he could help it.

"Excuse me," Mickey continued. Now he was minding his words carefully. Cautious of the blades, he bent in a polite bow. "But perhaps Kuu is neither. From my short time with the fella I've gotten the impression he was torn from his duties against his will. We can both explain it to ya, sir.”

Silence. Even then he was not one hundred percent sure of his wisdom for speaking out in the first place, but if the proceedings were to run smoothly from this point misconceptions would have to be addressed first. Had they had time or had the circumstances been different, Mickey would have certainly gone to greater pains to address a man of such status with greater formality.

As it was, both he and Kuu stood in the middle of the first currents of a snowstorm, having battled a horde of Heartless and aggravated the Chinese army just in the last few minutes.

Mickey’s large eyes returned the gaze of Captain Zhao’s dark ones evenly. The man impressed him. Many of the assembled crowd were whispering to themselves, some pointedly glaring with either fear or anger at Kuu, others staring at Mickey with hostility. Just as the two had anticipated, a humanoid mouse was the last thing any of the soldiers would have imagined encountering in their lives - second only to the living shadows they had just witnessed.

Zhao had not yet leapt to any conclusions.

Mickey waited.

[Kuu]

The commander's deep dark eyes moved slowly to gaze into those of the mouse king. 'Your companion is the one I addressed. I must respectfully request that you remain out of this until this affair has reached its conclusion.'

Despite the man being his former teacher, a surge of anger rose from within Kuu at hearing him address the King in such a manner, even if he didn't know who Mickey was. But he had to keep a cool head - it wasn't going to be just his relationship with the commander going out the window here, but whatever knowledge that they gave now was going to be crucial to the outcome of this situation. Kuu was aware that the existence of other worlds was not meant to be general knowledge, but he had to tell the commander something at least akin to the truth in such a manner that he'd be able to believe it.

'Commander... I'm no deserter,' he began evenly. 'I was taken unwillingly by forces beyond my control or comprehension. I can't say what it was exactly even now. This is partly why I appear the way I do before you now.'

Zhao's sword did not move from its hostile position. 'And you tell me this with expectations that I will believe that you were spirited away in the middle of one of China's most arduous campaigns just before you were about to be ranked amongst the Chinese army's battalions? Perhaps you look down on me now that you seem possessed by demon magic, but I assure you that I am going to require something significantly more substantial if you are to safely believe that I will allow you to live after feeding me that tale.'

'Commander, you saw what we just faced,' Kuu insisted. 'We are facing something beyond our ken, powers not of the realm of men. Surely something must have happened to have nearly two battalions moving through the mountains -'

'Silence,' came the curt answer, but this time, his former teacher's eyes quickly swept over the ranks of surrounding soldiers. Suddenly Kuu understood - the soldiers did not know of any otherworldy matters, and neither did they want to know. They had probably been told something simpler, more realistic, more believable. But the commander had been given more direct orders, ones that were obviously not intended to be leaked to the rest of the the soldiers. It was so in any army - never did everyone have the whole picture in view, and whatever they knew was only the tip of the iceberg.

'Take them to my tent,' Zhao said with his characteristic soft tone, smoothly sheathing his sword. 'I shall interrogate them privately.'

Without a word, he swept away, and Kuu found himself being roughly hauled to his feet. I'm sorry, your Majesty, he thought grimly. Because of my selfish need to know, you got caught up in such a mess...

((Feel free to control Commander Zhao - he's soft-spoken and diplomatic, and has been given instructions from the Emperor to be aware of Heartless while being alert for signs of a possible supernatural explanation for the meteorological chaos caused by the shenlong's absence))

[Zephiris]

Mickey smiled and kept his silence amiably. The Captain was a rational man, and as they listened to Kuu try to state his case, Mickey felt that there would be no immediate threat from him - so long as he was being told the truth.

'Silence.'

The King's eyebrows raised, quickly drawing a conclusion similar to Kuu's. Commander Zhao was aware of things, though Mickey could not surmise how much.

At Zhao's last few words, soldiers around Kuu began to force the young man in the direction of the largest tents, and Mickey too felt a shove on his back. But to this the King drew himself up and turned, his eyes disapproving. The man who had pushed him looked young. A look of surprise flickered on his face when he found himself being stared down by a mouse, the expression accentuating his youth. "Er. . . move along," he faltered bemusedly. Puzzlement drew his brow when Mickey kept his gaze for a moment before turning back, and striding nobly in the direction of the Captain's tent. All the while swords brandished at him from behind.

Nothing was overly pretentious or grand about the Captains's quarters, although they were larger than the other pitches in the garrison. As Mickey ducked under the flap, he saw a long table of various maps and scrolls, behind which stood Commander Zhao.

The man nodded dismissal for all of the soldiers in the room save for one, who stood at the door behind Kuu and Mickey. When the cloth flapped shut the captain began speaking evenly.

“Very well, Xiu – if this is indeed you speaking, and not a demon like you claim – I will listen to your words before I draw my sword again. But for now I speak to the mouse.”

The solemn eyes turned to Mickey, who held them as he did before.

“I know not who you are, but I have heard briefly of a key - the likes of which my warriors have seen you wield - from my Emperor. He spoke well of it. You fought enemies of ours moments ago, and I am not inclined to think ill of you. However, I ask you now to explain your business in the southern lands of China - and your association with this man.”

Calmly, respectfully, the Mickey Mouse relayed his name and status as a king of a distant realm, phrasing his companionship with Kuu as ‘a fella helping a man who was lost find his way.’ He was consciously withholding vital information; he was patiently waiting to glean what he could from Zhao first, or for a moment to ask questions of his own regarding the state of the Land of Dragons. He felt he wouldn’t have long of a wait. All in the tent seemed to feel the tension that precedes either understanding or more confusion.

“Vague,” Zhao noted, a statement. His gaze shifted to the silver-haired youth. “You, then. You left us before the raids of shadow began in earnest, yet now you believe these creatures are connected to the disappearance of the mountain companies. Speak of what you know, or guess. The man at the entrance is to be trusted.”

Mickey, too, watched Kuu. For the scholarly man to broach the vast pool of mysteries first would very likely present a path of comprehension to both sides.

[Kuu]

Kuu managed to keep his face impassive with a herculean effort. Mountain companies? Disappeared? Attempting to piece together this new information with the knowledge in his head, he allowed himself a moment to think. If memory served correct, in Shan-Yu's campaign against the Emperor there had been tales of a demonic army of creatures born from darkness. If one was to make the assumption that they and the creatures they had fought off just now were one and the same, what was the connection between the situation here and the war back then that drew the birth of such beings?

Think.

The movement of the army in the mountains. The number of battalions. The heightened degree of tension. There was something in all of this that amounted to one thing - war. If this was a matter of something other than the realms of men, such as the Hearts that the King had spoken of before, then on that tentative link, a theory could form. Hearts affected by the brutalities of war, igniting emotions such as fear, hatred, anger. If these negative emotions could be channelled or even incarnated into something more substantial, something which could be sensed not only by human means but by a more supernatural method of detection, it could be the root of these dark creatures. Along that vein, one could say that the greater the degree of negativity in one's emotions, and in a higher sense, one's Heart, the more the dark creatures were drawn to it.

'Perhaps this is incorrect,' he began slowly, 'But judging from the size of these battalions, there is conflict in China - considering that the nearest village near the Honshu Pass was destroyed in the war, it cannot be for mere internal reasons or civil war. Therefore, one would assume that this is to consolidate defence of the borders, which would go on to indicate that there is a threat to the nation from its neighbours. More and more battalions have been sent to the Great Wall, but there have been disappearances.'

He paused, trying to sort out his thoughts. Man, it was warm - right in the middle of the snowy mountains, too. 'The dark creatures appeared in wartime, led by Shan-Yu. They have appeared again now, as war draws close again. Thus one could say that they appear where conflict arises.'

How long has it been since I slept?

'With every battalion you send to defend the war, the tension of fear at how much danger the nation is under is raised,' he continued valiantly, even as he felt his eyelids grow heavier. 'Such tension would work to draw the creatures even closer, and soldiers falling prey to such feelings of fear could also have become victims... of... the shadows...'

Great... just when I was getting... to... the good... part...

One Kuu out.

[Zephiris]

Mickey and Commander Zhao watched Kuu intently. The wore similar frowns as the young man drew conclusion after conclusion at Zhao’s request.

And then Kuu fell asleep.

There was a small chuckle from behind him. Mickey turned to the Captain, and saw an expression calm and closed as normal, but with a smile tugging at the lips.

"If that's not Xiu then I don't know what on this world is; I've never seen a soldier fall asleep like that one. Not exactly the most desirable trait for a warrior in the field. But we've had to rely on his brain more than a few times. General Li, if you would. . .”

The man at the door slipped outside, and a few called orders could be heard through the thick tent cloth. In a few minutes Kuu had been borne from Captain Zhao’s tent to that in which, though vacant at the moment, prisoners of war were kept during times of hardship. The Commander evidently had not abandoned his notion that the young man was a deserter - or he was playing on the side of caution until it was proven otherwise.

"Now let us agree to be more open with each other, King Mickey - I fear we have much to discuss. . ."

- ☾ -

"Kuu."

"Kuu. Time to wake up, fella."

At last, Mickey was relatively sure that the silver-haired boy was conscious enough to comprehend his next words; they were important enough to demand full control of the mental faculties. “I gotta take off soon, Kuu,” he chuckled, “but it just so happens you’re my only ride home."

He waited a moment for the young man to gather himself.

“Also. . . the Captain is readying the troops. They're preparing to leave. I should think you’d be able to return and go with them, if ya truly wanted.”

Commander Zhao doubted Kuu no longer. That matter was cleared in the midst of many more topics that brought the King much more anxiety; trouble in China, the Heartless of a Guardian dragon. . . a matter he must track down one of the Light to clarify, for Zhao had claimed the Emperor mentioned a Keyblader was involved. The information they passed back and forth after formalities had been stripped away was troubling. Yet Mickey now had a ghost of a plan in his mind, and was more than ready to set off and see it through.

But I've got things to wrap up here first, he thought with resolution.

[Kuu]

Kuu woke to the steady voice of the King in his hear, gently stirring him from his sleep. 'M-Mickey...? What... ah! Sorry! I forgot to mention, I have a habit of going to sleep at weird times - I apologise...'

He couldn't believe he fell asleep at such a critical moment. It was hard enough for him to get the whole tactfulness thing right, but he wished that his sleep patterns would have the sense to read the mood before deciding that it was time to switch off. Sometimes he wished his life wasn't so complicated - if the whole world-hopping thing wasn't weird enough, he had to be an irrepressible narcoleptic at the same time. But no time to mentally digress about his personal problems - his features grew more serious at the gravity of the King's words.

He detected that something had changed with the situation while he had been asleep - there was most certainly a threat connected to the dark creatures he had fought earlier, and obviously the King had at least some idea what was going on. But what had drawn this conflict in the first place? Why, after the wounds of Shan-Yu's invasion had been washed away, did need for such military movements arise?

'I can certainly get you wherever you need, but... I was under the impression that I was to travel to Atlantis,' he voiced his initial thoughts. 'Although... I don't know how the situation has changed while I was out. As great a help you've been to me in teaching me how the use my Star Shard... I don't think I'm good enough to be in two places at once.'

But even so... both seem to be quite grave situations. Where can I be of most service? Now that I've been given the power to traverse worlds freely, how can I best use this ability?

Kuu twisted his body around and sat up cross-legged on the mattress. He needed to get more information if he was to know how he could help the King. 'Mickey... what were those dark creatures? Why are they appearing in the Land of Dragons?'

[Zephiris]

"I'm not telling you the army is departing to give you an obligation to join it, Kuu!" Mickey insisted, gentle but serious. "I'm tellin' you in case you desire to bear swords with them again, and take up the duties you left, rather than travel the worlds and become wrapped up in the many struggles of the Realms.

"You're exactly right. You can't be in two places at once; you can't be both Xiu and Kuu or whoever you're known as in the Lost City. Yep, the unknown situation in Atlantis (and many other worlds) still has my tail in a knot, but it doesn't have'ta concern you if you don't want it to. It's your choice. . . although, I would appreciate you helping me outta here before acting on any decision you make."

Mickey winked, and then sat down on a threadbare cushion nearby Kuu. Silence fell for a few moments. I met many fellas of Light today, the King thought to himself. There would be a need for respectable allies like Kuu and the Captain in times to come.

Kuu's voice broke the quiet.

"Mickey... what were those dark creatures? Why are they appearing in the Land of Dragons?"

It seemed his interest in the worldly affairs was something that could not be simply cast aside once awakened. Mickey took a slow, deep breath, and explained.

"They're a branch of what I talked about earlier, the 'Heart' concept that got ya confused earlier. Those were Heartless, manifestations of the darkness in people's Hearts. They consume the Hearts of others to make more of themselves. I can guess they're here because of a surplus of conflict, or some weakening in the Land of Dragons. . . and that's what worries me.

"The Keyhole to the Heart of the Land of the Dragons was sealed. This doesn't completely stop Heartless from hunting the Hearts of people, but hordes are pretty much unheard of unless they seek something bigger. Captain Zhou told me odd weather patterns have destroyed crops, leading to civil unrest everywhere in the country; men are being sent to the borders to shield the weak interior. There have been claims that the ancestral Guardians have been disturbed, and ya know, I don't like the sound of any of it."

He watched Kuu with steady eyes. "I'm definitely looking into it when I can, but now you know almost as much as I. What do you plan to do, my friend?"

[Kuu]

'Heartless...'

An unpleasant sensation crawled down the back of Kuu's neck like a bead of sweat freezing as it made its way down his spine. It seemed that the power of the Heart as the King described it had far more to it than he had initially given it credit for. What other powers were there in the worlds that he did not know of, things he did not understand? What more responsibilities did his ever-expanding knowledge impose upon him? What if his quest for wisdom not as innocent as he had intended - that it was not only an uncertain path into realms unknown, but a constantly growing burden that dragged him closer and closer to an inconceivable darkness he had yet to comprehend?

The silver-haired young man placed his hands on his knees, closing his eyes into a frown as he ruminated on the King's words. 'It appears that danger does not sit idly anywhere,' he mused. 'Aid will be required both here and everywhere else. This situation in the Land of Dragons is very strange, to put it mildly - such an unbalance in the forces of nature would require something immensely powerful to be its cause...'

Say... a dragon, perhaps. Judging by the changes in weather patterns, it sounds like it might have to be one of the more powerful dragons... a shenlong? But then again, what in the world could be powerful enough to subdue a dragon?

His frown grew deeper in the face of his own helplessness. He was not one who usually found himself to be in such a situation - he was the problem-solver, the mediator, the answer. It was not a pleasant feeling to be the one unable to do anything except pass on messages and vague hypotheses fantasised around information both insubstantial and insufficient. 'I've got to be stronger than I am now,' he muttered, half to himself. 'I'm not going to be any help anywhere. Not like this. I've got to become far, far stronger.'

Kuu's eyes opened. 'The Land of Dragons has its entire army working towards keeping the peace, and they know what they're fighting - at least a little,' he spoke. 'But Atlantis - I know for a fact that they'll never have encountered such a thing. There will be no-one to defend them. As much as I worry about the state of affairs here, I think that I am needed more at Atlantis as of this moment. Once the situation has been resolved in the lost city, I'll try to get back here as soon as I can.'

He breathed a sigh. 'Though I don't know how much help I'm gonna be, I'll do what I can,' the scholar said. 'Let's go, Mickey.'

Kuu took hold of his Star Shard and held out his hand for the mouse king to take. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the interior of the little bookshop in the market square of Radiant Garden as the star-shaped charm on his chest began to glow...

[Zephiris]

King Mickey listened to Kuu's words in solemn silence. He was a strong young man. Mickey's appearance had jarred his life and thrown it in another direction, but there was no sign of panic or anger at this new fate. He was applying reason and logic - and, passively, courage. Here was a boy worthy of admiration. The mouse listened to the scholar's final words, and then nodded.

King Mickey reached for Kuu's hand. Instantly they were engulfed in a familiar blur of color and light, and then found themselves surrounded by books and other odd knickknacks, standing in the center of the peaceful store. Warmth washed over him. Until then he hadn't realized how cold it had been in the Land of Dragons.

Mickey drew himself up after the light had faded. Though his companion was a good couple of feet taller, the King locked eyes with him before speaking. "Kuu, you're a good fella. Be careful out there. Though Heartless prey on the darkness in people's hearts, you can bet there are some who will also take advantage of your Light."

Then the King flipped his hood over his ears, and with a smile made his way to the shop exit. He paused before reaching it, turned around, and said, "I'm sure we'll meet again, Kuu. If you need to find me for whatever reason, I think you'd do well to ask for those who know of Disney Castle. Even if I'm not around, there are others there who can help you."

He winked, opened the door, and prepared to leave the peace of the quaint bookstore.

[Kuu]

Mickey's words troubled Kuu. While many would be confident in their own Light, that they wouldn't stray into the darkness, Kuu wasn't sure. It had been a feeling which had been niggling at him for a while now - something which had really been thrown into relief by his encounter with the Heartless. They were dark, malicious and unsettling, but despite how hard he tried to force his mind upon these easier aspects of the darkness, there was something about it which inexplicably but irrevocably caught his attention in a different way. Perhaps it was curiosity. Maybe even fascination, dare he say it. But whatever it was, he felt there was something deeper and perhaps something not so malevolent about the darkness which he could not simply put aside.

If I am good, does that mean I am of the Light? Are those of the Light so universally just, so indisputably right, to the extent that they encompass all good things? Are Light and Dark so fatefully separate that its conflict is irresolvable and eternal? And if I am not good - if I am evil - what will happen to my Light?

One was always so keen to follow the Light, as it always seemed the more preferred option. Those of the Dark were shunned as evil and astray by all of the Light. But what if, in turn, the Light were as equally blind in its brightness as the Dark was in its impenetrable shadow? Was not being one truly equal to being the other? Were the Light and Dark so utterly absolute that they dictated the way of things so completely - or were they simply names, mere words imposed upon concepts yet incomprehensible to the minds of men?

Names, he thought, Have no power without meaning. Their link to the object they embody is the reason they have power. So if Light and Dark are just names... then what is their true meaning?

It seemed there were still many questions that awaited him, and even ones the King couldn't answer. Whatever it was, it would be impossible for him to reach as he was now. He would have to become stronger, continue travelling the worlds to unearth an answer. Maybe this step into his past was the beginning of that journey.

As the King turned to leave, something made Kuu reach out towards him, and call after him, 'Wait!'

His hand still outstretched, he wondered why he had called him so. He knew the King was busy and had already invested far too much time in relieving him of his ignorance than he should have, and yet, something had compelled him to do it. He felt that the debt he had left to repay was too much, and that there was something which he needed to tell him that would ease it. It had happened before, just about when they warped to the Land of Dragons, but he had lost his chance. It was as if a word was being summoned from within him, and there was nothing he could do to stop it from spilling out.

No, not a word. A name.

As he spoke, something happened to his senses, as if they had all slowed down but sped up at the same time. A silence crept rapidly over his body, each inch of his existence breathing in once, then being still. Across his eyes, a plethora of dreams and images washed over them, and his whole being felt them in a deluge of vibrant incomprehension, yet this feeling was undoubtedly his own. A brief pause, transitory in length, then the entire sensation condensed and rolled off his tongue with the name he spoke, and his mind went blank as he felt a sense of removal from within his very self -

Kuu blinked, wondering why his hand was outstretched. 'Well... then I guess I'll be seeing you around, Mickey,' he said, withdrawing his arm sheepishly. 'I do hope it's soon though - I'm not sure if I'll be able to cope with all the tasks before me with quite as much competence as you're giving me credit for, but I'll do my best.'

He gave a sigh. 'I wish I could do more for you though,' the silver-haired youth admitted, touching the band that bound his hair. 'I mean, more than just a message. Maybe when I'm stronger, more knowledgeable... perhaps then I might be able to be of better use to you - sorry.'

[Zephiris]

Mickey stopped and turned. Then he stepped forward reflexively in alarm, for something astonishing had come over Kuu. Before he could take another step the silver-haired boy spoke. The King stopped and held his place, eyes narrow. . . and then they flew wide; he felt an odd, inexplicable change that even he could not describe. There was a silence. After a moment the mouse nodded, but said nothing.

And then, as if a wave had broken over his head, the boy returned to himself. It quickly became evident that he did not recall what had just transpired. Likewise, the King said nothing on the matter, though he mentally tucked the soft-spoken word into a protected corner of his heart, and vowed to never forget it.

"Now don't you dare apologize," replied Mickey, his words severe although his eyes - which had been quick to hide the shock of a minute ago - were light. "Your best is far more than enough; I'm only crediting you to try. I'm sure in the future you're gonna be capable of much. It was truly an honor to meet you, Kuu. . ."

But now I must be off.

With a small bow, the King turned once more and stepped out to the beautiful new streets of Radiant Garden. His mind was reeling and he knew a grim path would lay before him once he left this world, but his heart had been warmed. Walking through the rebuilt town, Mickey felt an optimism that had forsaken him as of late. The Worlds still possessed light. True, it was becoming dwarfed in scale to the rising darkness, but so long as these pinpricks of brightness shone through the black, the King felt they still had hope.

Fin