OoG: Temp makes a good point. You guys
were in the middle of something
important. Then sissy-pants Light had to come in screaming about something insignificant. Her girlfriend? No... Oh, right. Her sister. Right.
Anywho, in-character, you kinda must at least check back in with him.
IG:
Day 46
Traverse Town
Time -
Endless Night
You frown at your Vision. Yen Sid... You
know you've heard that name before... Where-
"Ah!"
Donald and Kairi startle at your sudden gasp.
"Sora? What's wrong?" Kairi asks.
"A Vision," you start, then wave your hands. "Nothing... you know, too urgent."
The two breathe a sigh of relief. "But I heard a few names, and I recognized one. Yen Sid was mentioned by this old guy. Said he used to be a Master... I think, a Keyblade Master."
Donald nods. "Yeah, that's in the history books. Master Yen Sid... he used to be a Keyblade Master... but retired from the Order a while back, after the end of the Second Apokoliptian War. He'd just finished teaching The King the basics of Keyblade combat."
"Huh... What about... Terra? Or Aqua? Or Ven? Or... Master Xehanort?"
Donald frowns. "I... don't know about the first three... But Master Xehanort was a major player in the Apokoliptian War. He, Master Eraqus, and Master Fa Zhao were among the only Keyblade-wielding survivors of the war..."
"The Apokoliptian War?" You ask. This... war... thing is still a little insane-sounding to you.
"..." When Donald speaks, it's a very firm, steady voice. "It was bad.
Really bad. That's all you need to know about that right now. If you really, really want to know, there's a book on it in our ship's library."
"Al... right. So, those three were among the only survivors of that battle?"
"... Of that
war... But yes. They were the last Masters of the old Keyblade Order, ignoring Yen Sid. The King became a Master shortly after the war. Fa Zhao vanished off the face of the multiverse around the same time. Master Xehanort, from what I understand, wandered the multiverse, helping where he could, before vanishing around the same time as the last pieces of the Order. Master Eraqus... The last contact the Federation had with him was a request for assistance dealing with something... but the Federation didn't have the resources. After that... well, their main base has vanished, and in its place is this weird castle. We've tried looking inside for him, but anyone who enters... well, doesn't return. And Yen Sid's residence remains impossible to find unless you already know where it is." Donald sighs. "I know he's alive, because the King's said as much, but... well, I guess I can't blame him for wanting to remain hidden. He's been protecting the worlds longer than anyone else I can think of. Of course he'd want to rest."
You scratch your head. "So no one knows what caused the Order to vanish?"
"If anyone did... It'd be the King. But every time I ask, he kinda gives me a look..." Donald sighs. "Whatever happened, it weighs heavily on him."
You nod. "... I can imagine." You remember the islands. You had been almost powerless then. When the Heartless came... the only thing you could do was grab Kairi and run, hoping beyond hope that you could find Riku in that mess... and even then, you couldn't save anyone else.
You groan, and shake your head. No point in worrying about the past. You'll find a way to get them back. That's all there is to it.
Eventually you're all patched up, and you head back to the Mayor's house.
Laguna sighs in relief as he sees you come in with Serah and Light. "Ah, you're safe. That's great. Is anyone hurt?"
"No," you say. "Shinji got attacked by monsters, though. We had to deal with him while Riku and Light went and found Serah.
"I see." Laguna looks over the sisters. Light... surprisingly seems fairly calm compared to how she was a while back.
"Mayor. I... we'll need to talk about our arrangements regarding Serah. Looking back, I think... I was a little harsh."
"I'll be all ears when I'm finished with Riku's group." Laguna gives a knowing smile.
"This is about... the thing, right?" Light asks.
"Yeah," Laguna turns, and a screen appears, with some kind of shifting diagram of the multiverse. "Cortana and I have been tracking something for the past few weeks... heck, it's been on our radar since before you three arrived on our world."
And then you start to see lights vanish at astonishing speeds. Worse, they seem to be in a pattern of some sort.
"Usually, stars go out... mostly randomly. I assume it's because the Heartless simply pop up in a random world and start looking for... whatever it is they're after. But this... it's moving deliberately, from world to world, snuffing each out. It's a bit hard to tell... but it has a direction. Whatever it is, Heartless or otherwise, it's headed
here."
"Oh man..." Riku stares. "How soon...?"
"We have about... three days. Maybe more, maybe less. We've already made most of the preparations to keep the townsfolk safe. Bob has been working full-time on a bunker to keep the citizens safe, though it's not quite finished yet... beyond that, we're not sure if what you did to make our world Heartless-proof will work on this thing. We can only hope."
"Gwarsh, is there anything we can do?" Goofy asks.
"We've informed a number of fighters and mages ahead of the evac order, and recruited them into a evacuation squad to safely escort any stragglers," Light interjects. "The Mayor has a high-emergency setting for the Lightrails, to take any cages to the bunker as quickly as possible. It's not quite finished yet, but it's probably our best hope."
"If all else fails," Donald says. "You can send them to the Gummi Garage. Our ship has plenty of room, at least for temporary housing. But in the meantime... if you can tell me where the bunker is, I can help with construction."
"That'd be appreciated, on both counts," Laguna says. "I'll have to talk to the Moogles about getting the Lightrail set to reroute in that direction, if we don't have enough room in the bunker."
Light nods. "Beyond that... if these things are Heartless, then we can probably use the power of the Keyblade on our side."
Serah frowns. "Light... were you going to join this group without telling me? Maybe I could help, somehow..."
"... Honestly... I'm still not sure I want to risk my life, even for such a noble cause," Light mutters guiltily. "My first priority is making sure you're safe, Serah. Even if I'm giving you a... bit more freedom, that hasn't changed. I can't possibly-" She pauses at the disappointed look on Serah's face.
"... I understand." Serah mutters.
Goofy gives Light a meaningful look.
"U-uh... I do, too." Light manages a small smile. "Maybe we can find some other way to help?"
Dr. Haruno looks between the two. "... Well, starting tomorrow, I'll be moving a lot of my equipment to the bunker. If you two think you're tough enough, you can help me with that."
Serah gives Light an almost pleading look, and Light sighs. "... Sure. We can help with that. Could be a good... uh... chance for sisterly bonding...? What time are we needed?"
Goofy gives a subtle thumbs up.
⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘χ⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘
Music:
https://soundcloud.com/yohanes-doni/traverse-town-from-kingdom
Characters:
KHVD Main Party Sheet
KHVD Main Party Growth Chart
Link Shards
Gummi Ship
KHVD Minor Party Members Sheet
Shop Sheet
Jiminy's Journal
Ansem Reports
oog: Anything further to discuss? After this conversation ends, Day 46 ends. It's been about... 44 days since you guys first arrived in Traverse Town. Daaaannng.