Organization XIV - The Story So Far

After the Great Keyblade War, the World was broken into a million fragments and scattered throughout space. Over the ages, life on these world fragments has gone on, most people blissfully unaware of the cataclysm that created their new circumstances.

As the worlds grow further apart, separated by shimmering walls, people sink further into their complacency; and the will of one man, a man who wishes to see their bloody history repeat, is about to overtake the wills of light and darkness both.

In the shadows, a twisted plot grows as he gathers strength and numbers to his cause, his only opposition scattered to the wind. The Heartless begin to move, and as worlds slowly blink out, their lights vanishing from the night sky, a pair of children on the destined islands continue with their daily lives.

No hero rises to face the tide of darkness, and worlds continue to fall. Wielders of the Keyblade never surface, the one man who could make sense of this crisis, Ansem the Wise, has been gone for years. As Disney Castle dispatches a pair of emissaries to locate their hero, their king wanders the realm of darkness in search of a way to stop the flood of evil.

And then, a small kingdom in the distant world of Asylum is pulled into the dark. In the absence of any champions…

A pale hand flattened against the table with a loud thud. It belonged to a gaunt-looking man with scraggly black hair.

…One must make new ones.

He was tall, with cold eyes, and spoke with a gravelly voice. There wasn’t a hint of emotion in his face or words. “We’ve only got a meager force here, few soldiers with no battle experience. None of us were a match for the enemies that overtook this world. You’re like us, whatever you are. Empty, but calculating. I don’t know how you found this place, or where you come from, but if you know of a way to leave this place, and find people to join our cause, I have no choice but to rely on you.”

The man sat down. “Your mission is to find people with the power to fight and bring them to me. Are we understood?”

“Yeah. I understand.”

“My name was Reumos, before all this. What do I call you?”

“I have no name.” Said the boy, expressionless. “But call me Gestalt.”

“Strange name.” He shifted in his seat. “Now, don’t waste any time. The stars are vanishing as we speak.”


With that, a young man with brown, spiky hair, wearing dark clothing, and a blank look on his face walked out of the room, disappearing into the shadows.

Emerging from an alleyway, the boy stepped into dim streetlight, looking at the rustic town around him. Wooden signs hung in front of businesses, and while there was a calm atmosphere about this place, the few people out on the streets had an anxiety about them. There was something lurking just outside this quiet town's walls.

Stairs led up from the plaza, past an ostentatious two-story shop, an understaffed bank, up to a gate. Two more such gates were set into the walls by the plaza. Large, heavy-looking wooden doors. The young man sat down on a short wall, looking up at the night sky, then around him at the district again. Where do I begin looking for anyone who can fight?

"Hey."
 
"Oh, good, you're here!" The Supreme Kai of Time turned to face the man who had just walked in. He was one of their most trusted Patrollers, though he often refused the title. Tall, with rather long, scruffy hair of a dark brown that wouldn't have reflected his Saiyan heritage. He wasn't terribly broad, but every ounce of him was muscle. He seemed rather proud of that fact, as the sleeves of his denim jacket were ripped off, and with only a tank top underneath, his shoulders were on full display.
 
The man's jeans were tattered from numerous missions, but he retained a youthful smirk as he crossed his arms. "So, what's today's mission?"
 
"See for yourself," said the Supreme Kai of Time.
 
The man stepped forward to look at the scroll she was examining, one wreathed in the usual black glow. In it was depicted a planet he knew all too well: Vegeta, where he'd spent his youth. But a large patch of black marked the planet, a patch that shouldn't have been there. And not only that…
 
"Is it moving?" he asked. "What is that?"
 
"We don't know."
 
As the two watched on, the dark mass expanded, squirming and writhing over itself as it slowly overtook every inch of the planet, which slowly broke into pieces, each one simply vanishing into the ether.
 
"What the hell…SKT, do you have any idea what that was?"
 
The diminutive Kai shook her head. "I've never seen anything like that before. But that's not how Planet Vegeta was destroyed, so we need you to go back and fix it…Dispatch."
 
He chuckled. She always hesitated before saying his name, like it was embarrassing. And it was a little silly, but it was a name he was proud of. It helped that it wasn't his real name.
 
"Bring it on, then." Dispatch grabbed the scroll, and in a flash of light, appeared on the surface of the planet. He placed a hand on his sword, ready for a fight…but then stopped. He recognized these creatures. Small, black, almost ant-like, with glowing yellow eyes. "Wait…this is the day the planet was destroyed?" Memories flashed through his head, his teammates as they stood to fight the horde of monsters as he himself ran for a ship to escape the dying world. His grip tightened. No. That wouldn't happen again.
 
Dispatch drew his sword. "Hey, SKT! I've seen these things before! SKT? HEY!" No answer. Dispatch just closed his eyes and smirked. "Alright, you little bastards. This might be outside of orders, but it looks like I can't exactly get new ones right now. So why don't we just see if you've grown up as much as I have?"
 
The man was about to dive into the sea of monsters, but just then, the world cracked under his feet. "Already?" he grumbled. "Could they have given me any less time?!"
 
His blade sliced through the nearest of the black creatures, meeting with little resistance even as dozens of them swarmed him. He cut a path to the edge of the newly-formed island, and jumped to the next, hoping that he could find their leader, or whatever passed for one, and that ending them would set history back on track.
 
His search was fruitless. Even the other members of his race, the ones he knew should have been there, were nowhere to be seen. Only more of the damned beasts. As he cut down what could only have been his hundredth one, though it felt like his thousandth, Dispatch lost his footing as the world itself shuddered beneath him, and the chunk of the planet that he'd been standing on hurtled upwards into the void. Everything turned black, and when the darkness cleared, he was somewhere else entirely.
 
Instead of the vast wasteland devoid of life, Dispatch landed in what seemed to be a quiet little town. The buildings were relatively small, brick cubes, packed tightly together, and the streets paved. The place gave off a quiet, safe sort of aura, completely unlike the chaos he'd just witnessed. This couldn't even be the same planet, but there wasn't another near his former home for straight weeks of travel.
 
Jarred by the sudden change of scenery, Dispatch could only look around in confusion and voice the only thought that ran through his mind: "What the hell just happened?"

All the same, he wouldn't figure anything out just by standing around, so he started to wander the town. Maybe he could find someone who knew more. Or, he dared for just a moment to fantasize, maybe even his old comrades...

Looking, slightly stunned, at the muscle-bound man, the young man hid, peeking out at him from behind a corner. Didn't take long for me to find someone after all. I guess the sword's a dead giveaway. Glancing at the smaller one strapped to his own waist made him re-think that one. ...Can't really call myself 'strong', though. I'm just a scout.

Adjusting his weapon to try and make it less prominent, the short swordsman tried to come up with a way to approach the strong-looking guy. I'd better see what his deal is, first.


And so, Gestalt began to quietly tail the man as he wandered the streets. He didn't stick out much, but the guy was bound to catch him sooner or later.

A young woman brushed her short hair over her ear as she waited outside the door of a small, quaint little store in the middle of a quiet, serene shopping district. The night air was cool to the touch, and a smile brushed upon her lips as softly as the breeze brushed her skin. 

She started, snapped out of her reverie by thoughts of her past. The stone pavement below her had cracked, as it had on that day. She shook her head, and looked to the sky. Dark, as night, like it always seemed to be. Yet not nearly as dark as the sky had turned that day, clouding over the clearest day in her city. The woman bit her lower lip, the smile gone, her gloved hand gripping the weapon that stood beside her. She looked inside the shop, to see two youngsters fussing over the merchandise, talking with the shopkeeps. She sighed, and returned to her vigil. A few minutes later, the door opened, a bell dinged, and the two youths spilled out of the shop, waving back inside.

"Come, children." Her voice was flat, yet with a slightly smoky accent. "It's time to be headed home. You remember the rules, don't you?"

"Yes ma'am!" Piped up the boy. "Stay close, no runnin', and watch the back!"

"Good." The smile returned. "Let's be off." Pointing her spear toward the back streets, she lead the way at a brisk, even pace. The two youths behind her babbled on and on about their day tomorrow, and their chatter turned to white noise after a time. On they walked, taking care to not walk under dimly-lit arches or through the tight, imposing alleyways. Though their route was circuitous, they arrived in the Fourth District safely. 

All was well, until laughter was rent apart into screams behind her.

Whipping around, the two kids rushed to her, bumping her and nearly knocking her down. Towering above her was a large, armored creature, surrounding by dark orbs of gnashing teeth and ghastly visages. The armor shook and rattled, and the woman's eyes widened in shock. She was brought back to that day, where she had ran through the streets, ran until her lungs nearly collapsed, rushed towards his side, reached for that hand. 

Reached for the hand that darkness had swallowed, at the point where light met the utter black of dark. 

Scooping both children over her shoulders, the woman turned and ran. The creatures darted after her, whizzing in an awful, discordant unison as the great and mighty armor clanged behind her. "Someone! Someone, please help! Protect the children, please! Please help! Anyone!" Bursting through the doors to the fifth district, she spotted their residence in the distance. I just need to make it there, she thought. Please... Anyone!

The sounds of destruction immediately caught the small swordsman's attention, and he abandoned his pursuit of the buff guy in favor of investigating. He recognized the creatures; he hadn't seen these varieties, but they were similar in nature to the ones he'd come across once before. Now, the question was, should he go back to the strong-looking person, or intervene? It looked like there were two kids out there, desperately hurrying to the Fifth District, and a lady with a polearm trying to escort them.

Zipping out in front of the towering monstrosity, Gestalt yelled to get its attention, pulling out the short-sword he was carrying. This isn't ideal. I'm not sure I can even damage this thing.


Waiting for it to send one of its massive, floating hands down to crush him, the boy slipped out of the way, pivoted, and struck its gauntlet, to no effect. The shock made his hands go numb immediately, and he barely dodged its other fist. Worse, he'd only delayed it for a few seconds, as it simply stomped past him, losing interest. The others, however, all began to converge on him, quickly surrounding Gestalt and closing in.

Clutching his only weapon, unable to feel it, he held it out defensively. These things moved erratically, and one false move spell the end. As three of them moved in, maws gaping wide to tear into him, he ducked and rolled out of the circle of monsters, ending up next to a wall. Jumping and kicking off of that wall, he sliced through the bunched-up group, cutting most of them in half. He spun around as he landed, keeping an eye on the ones he missed. That should clear my path.


Sprinting ahead, he moved in front of the armored one again. "I can buy a few seconds. Move fast and you might get them to safety."

It may not be related to my mission, but I don't think I can stand around while these things attack people. ...Even if it's irrational to think I can win.

As he wandered the streets, Dispatch heard sounds of combat. No, it was less combat and more some kind of chase. He leapt up to a platform nearby, and from there to the roof above. No good, the buidlings obscured his vision. Where were they, then? The sound was faint, and if he wasted time trying to figure out where it was coming from, someone was probably going to die, but he hadn't sensed a soul since he'd gotten to this town.

Dispatch shook his head. He'd never been the best with that anyway. He closed his eyes, trying to focus. He found his destination near-immediately; one power, along with two much smaller ones, and a number of...something else. They weren't quite like any energy he'd felt before, almost like some kind of negative form of energy. Hollow, but at the same time dense. Were these the creatures that attacked his planet? Dispatch found his targets and opened his eyes. If he thought about it for too long, those people were going to get hurt.

He bounded across the rooftops, but found that in his stupor, someone had beaten him there. A young man with spiky hair. That wasn't one of the powers he'd sensed, but the boy was fighting those things far better than anyone not giving off any energy should have been able to. The boy had some moves, destroying several of the creatures with what appeared to be little effort before jumping in front of the biggest one, some kind of armored monstrosity. Their leader, maybe, but that wasn't important. Dispatch jumped down, standing beside the boy, between the monster and the three powers he'd sensed.

"Look like you could use a hand." He drew his sword, and turned toward the armored monster. "Let's see what you can do, huh?"

Jackie nodded, keeping her expression stoic and neutral for the kids' sake. "Thank you! I'll use that time wisely." Pulling the kids sharply enough to nearly dislocate their arms, Jackie ran down two flights of steps before stopping and bending down as she turned to the youths. "You two need to run, run as fast as you can. Your house is just across the way, you'll be safe. I'll watch from here. Go! Go!!!" The two hesitated, the girl putting a hand to her mouth in worry, stifling tears. The boy tugged at her sleeve, and the two ran full sprint. Jackie drew her spear as she watched, and the instant they rounded the corner, she bolted backwards up the stairs. 

She came to the wild young man standing near a new person, a bulky, long haired person. "Just in time, eh?" Jackie saw a flutter of movement in the corner of her eye, and instinct propelled her heavy, tired legs to burst one last time. "MOVE!" she cried out, diving into the spiky haired young man, trying to push him out of the way.

He didn't put up much resistance, and the two tumbled out of harm's way as the titanic enemy slammed one of its metallic limbs into the pavement where they'd been seconds before. "Thanks. Can you still move?" He asked, getting to his feet, his eyes glancing at his rescuer, then immediately back to the enemy.

Now!

Dispatch saw his chance when the armored creature attacked the young boy and the woman. It had left itself wide open - he jumped up, slashing through both its attacking hand and its torso. Cracks webbed their way around the monster's arm, but it was sturdy, and had righted itself before he could capitalize on it. And now that he observed it up close, it seemed like it was less one monster and more like five, operating together. Then if he could just take out the center one...

"Hey, you two! I've got an idea! Cover me!"

Jackie tumbled and rolled with the man, standing alongside him. Jumping back, she took aim with her spear at the legs of the creature as one of them explained he'd need cover. Nodding the affirmative, her hands sparked with a green, crackling lightning energy, and with a heavy step forward, drove the spear through the air. The spear shot into one of the legs, sparking and bursting with energy, blackening the metal armor. Putting her hands together, she summoned more of the energy, which roared to life at her fingertips and searched and singed the air hungrily as it looked for a new target.

"Can do," she smirked.

Taking up a ready stance, Gestalt fixed his eyes on the creature's hands. "I'll intercept the left one, you take the right." Even if I can't cut through that, I can still knock it off course long enough.


He felt the earth beneath his feet, focusing everything he had on preparing to stop the one hand from moving. For just a moment, that was all that mattered to him. The instant everything else began to move, he sprung into action, launching himself at the left arm, grabbing it and using their combined momentum to swing it out of the way, careening off into the shallows nearby with a splash.

Dispatch smirked, his energy sufficiently charged. These two were pretty good, but now it was his turn.

"HA!" He lept forward with a yell, and a burst of energy exploded from his palm, engulfing the armored monster. When the smoke cleared, its damaged arm and leg had been destroyed, and its torso and remaining leg crackled and sparked. Okay, so this thing was a little hardier than he'd thought. Still, it had one leg and no arms, and neither he nor his apparent allies were all that tired. The only question now was, which of them would finish it?

The creature spasmed and twitched where it floated in the air, turning as if to bolt. In an instant, Gestalt was in the air, smacking it back into the pavement below and hopping out of the way. Its defense was weakened by that blast, it looks like.


The monster seemed ready to collapse from the sudden onslaught. Without its lesser friends for support, or its limbs to fight back with, it had few tricks up its sleeve, and it appeared to be dizzied by the sudden turnabout.

Jackie, watching as the two worked in tandem, seized her opportunity by darting forward as the torso began to rise. Rushing past the monstrosity, she ran straight for the wall, undeterred by the rumbling behind her. Using her planted spear, she jumped on the end, letting her momentum carry her as far as possible to get the maximum resistance...

And timed her jump backwards, spring boarding up and over the monster. Clasping her hands together, with both index and middle fingers extended, she lifted her hands behind her head, "THUN..."


And drove them forward at the point of release, releasing immense lightning through the core of the monster. "...DAGA!" 


She lighted on the ground, breathing deeply but heavily. "Thank you... That would have been messy with the kids near."

Dispatch whistled his approval as he sheathed his sword. "You weren't too bad yourself. Don't worry about it. So hey, I got a question, might sound kinda weird...where am I, exactly? Was on my home planet fightin' off a bunch of monsters...kinda like that one actually, but smaller. Anyway, next thing I know, ground's falling apart and then suddenly I'm here."

He rubbed the back of his head. "And while I'm on it, you wouldn't happen to have seen any of three other people, would you? You'd probably know 'em because they've got tails."

Simply nodding his appreciation, the young man's features relaxed. He hadn't even noticed that he'd tensed up so much.

Still listening to his impromptu allies, Gestalt's eye caught something in the shadowy mass as the creature they fought disintegrated into black smoke. In the distance, the lesser creatures that had gathered around it scattered, fleeing in fear. When the strange smoky substance vanished, there was a short, messy cluster of papers left in their place, as well as a crystalline, heart-shaped object that let off a soft rosy light. But as it flew away into the night sky, the darkness swallowed it once again.

Sheathing his weapon and walking over to them, he picked up the documents, shuffling them into the correct order based on page number before giving them any significant examination. "Those things are dangerous and don't hesitate to attack people, but I don't know any details. It's what I'm trying to find out, actually." ...And apparently they drop homework when they're defeated?

"I haven't seen your friends, though. I'm sorry. I'd remember if I'd seen anyone else with a monkey tail."

Jackie's smile and demeanor faded, her shoulders slumping as she sheathed her spear to her back. Watching as one of them gathered up strange papers, her eyes flicked rapidly, her thoughts racing. He looks stable enough to hear the news... To wit, he took falling here in stride, it seems, but its never been easy. Clinical, or empathetic? 


"I've lived here a while and seen all sorts, and I've not seen your friends. I can answer more questions, as a resident of this little world, but let's sit down." Waving them along, she pointed back towards where the kids ran off. "There's a little shop down there, I'll get us some drinks. You'll need one, trust me."

Dispatch raised an eyebrow. "O-kaaaay?" he said. He wasn't sure how a drink was going to help him ask questions, or even what other questions he should ask. As long as he figured out where he was, he could find his way back, right? And if she hadn't seen his team...well, he was used to that. He glanced back at the spike-haired kid and jerked his head. If the woman could answer his own questions, maybe she knew something about whatever this kid wanted, too.

"That's perfect." Gestalt said, turning back to the group to stand with them. "A group Q-and-A sounds like it'd be extremely helpful for all parties."

Dispatch stepped forward first, and nodded. "Better believe it."

His brash demeanor had vanished. The sight of this world, broken and drained, resonated a little too personally with him. Too many times he'd seen a world destroyed, completely vaporized, or even erased. To just leave the place in ruins? That was pathetic. Low. Disgusting. And it was all the more apparent just how devastated the world was. Something like that was beneath even the worst of the tyrants he'd battled. Not to mention the all-too-recent bad memories it dredged up. These monsters had to be annihilated.

"So, where do I start?"

"We'll form a coalition, unite for as long as it takes to accomplish our goal. Our mission is to root out the cause of this evil and destroy it if possible, and if not, to mitigate the damage." He growled, standing up. "I can't pay you, as we have virtually no capital, but I can offer room and board within the castle. As we know very little, our first step is in gathering information."

"We did find this." Gestalt offered, stepping up to the table and sliding the Ansem Report over to his boss. "It was dropped by one of those Heartless creatures in Traverse Town."

"Heartless?" He asked. "I assume Traverse Town is another world, one where you two came from?" The man glances through the report, his look becoming even more grim. "...I see. The serial indicates that there are more of these reports. This is exactly what we need!"

The tall man walked around the table, coming closer to the trio and extending a hand to both Jackie and Dispatch. "My name was Reumos, and I was the king of this world. It's nice to meet you both."

"'Was Reumos'?" Jackie interjected, but shook his hand all the same. "And apologies, while I just came from Traverse Town, I originally hailed from the Cliffs of Mirth. I am presently known as Jacqueline Roussieau, your... Lordship?" She gestured to the large castle all about them. "What is this castle, what is your stake in all of this, and frankly... Why is this town deserted?"