Chapter 2

Dark World

SHE DIDN’T KNOW HOW FAR SHE’D WANDERED through the endless darkness. It didn’t matter where she was, whether in a forest or on a mountaintop.

There was no passage of time here in the Dark World; all she knew was she had been walking for so, so long. She had no idea how much time had passed back in the worlds of light. All she could do was keep trudging forward.

Aqua raised her head, surprised to see a castle she recognized among the gloomy, alien sights.

“Could it be?” She gasped. That was the castle where Cinderella had met Prince Charming.

Why would Cinderella’s world be in this dark realm…?

The large clock on one of the castle’s towers was stopped at midnight—the moment when Cinderella’s magic wore off.

As Aqua started walking toward it, monsters suddenly appeared, barring her way. The foes down here weren’t the Unversed she had once fought. Aqua summoned her Keyblade and swung it, casting a spell. Her strength hadn’t faded, exactly, but she was exhausted from her endless journey.

The creatures dispersed into nothingness.

If this castle isn’t an illusion, it could mean something’s wrong in the realm of light. As Aqua walked closer, the road in front of her became more and more fractured. She would have to make her way forward across barely traversable wreckage.

Even down here, the castle was still shining with light. It was like the darkness had swallowed it whole.

Her chest fluttered.

In all her time walking, Aqua had never encountered a single building to serve as a landmark, but now, that had changed.

Now, she had the castle.

Aqua continued down the broken path, and more monsters barred her way. Maybe they were excited at this new development, too.

Aqua looked back and saw a whole mess of buildings just as warped and twisted as the road.

The whole castle town must have been swallowed by this world—just as I was.

Everyone in this world thought they were safe. Not just the people…but the dog waiting for his owner…the cat curled up in her nook… So much life. Trees and flowers… There’s no deeper sadness than discovering all that you knew is gone. The grief in this place is too much to fathom.

Aqua clenched her fist.

I must press onward— Nothing will come of looking backward. As she tried to encourage herself, the ground beneath her crumbled again, until there was nothing left of the road to the castle, while the hands of the clocktower began to turn. Time was moving, but now she had no way forward.

A lone gear lay nearby.

There is no “time” in the Dark World, but maybe—

When Aqua tapped the gear with her Keyblade, it glowed and began rotating, both winding back the time of the castle’s clock and restoring the broken road.

How wonderful it would be to be able to reverse time like this. To spend one more night beneath the stars with my best friends.

Aqua raised her eyes toward the sky, a deep black expanse without the smallest glimmer of starlight.

She thought back to that night before their Mark of Mastery exam.

I wish the three of us could go stargazing again, and look for shooting stars.

Aqua resumed her course toward the castle, wondering why her mind kept drifting back to those bygone days. I mustn’t dwell on the past—I mustn’t give in to the darkness. I have to keep moving forward.

Aqua made her way toward the castle, defeating whatever monsters attacked her.

When she reached the plaza in front of the castle, she looked behind her and saw that this distorted world was still part of the realm of darkness. She hadn’t made it back home after all.

“Aqua.”

She knew that voice.

She spun around. Terra.

Sure enough, he was descending the steps of the castle.

“It can’t be. What are you doing here?” she asked as he approached. My chest feels tight— I thought I sent you back. “You should be in the realm of light. Oh no! Did you not make it out?”

Or did something happen there…?

Terra only stood in front of her, smiling gently.

“Why won’t you say anything to me?” Aqua reached out to Terra, but her hand passed through him. “So what are you, a memory among these shadows? Are you here to…try to tell me not to lose heart?” she murmured as her friend vanished into light.

This is all a vision. The world keeps our thoughts alive. But where did the people who lived here go once their world was taken away? At least they’re not here. So, they haven’t fallen to darkness. I’ll take what solace I can from that.

Aqua entered the castle, but instead of the great hall, she found a forest.

This world—it was Snow White’s. Has it been lost to darkness, too?

Out of the corner of her eye, Aqua spied a glass coffin, the very same one the young princess had slept in. When she hurried over to it, she saw someone inside.

“Ven?!”

She called his name, but Ven soon disappeared in a flash of light.

Another illusion.

“Ven. What did you come here to tell me?” Aqua gazed softly at the empty casket.

I know I promised to wake you up. I’m sorry. But I have to find a way home before I can help you. I just want you to know that it’s been you who keeps my heart strong. Keeps the dark away.

Aqua quickly turned around as she sensed a presence behind her. It was an enormous mirror—more memories.

That’s right. This is the mirror I saw in Snow White’s castle.

Aqua saw herself reflected in the glass—and then the young woman inside reached out for the real Aqua and yanked her through the surface.

The world within was the great hall of the castle, where the mirror used to be, but now there were so many mirrors that Aqua struggled to keep her bearings. She didn’t know which one she had come through anymore.

All she could see in any of them was herself.

I keep telling myself I can’t lose hope, I can’t fade away into the darkness—but that girl in the mirror is about to fall.

Is this what it means to face your demons?

Only your heart is hollow enough to be a demon’s.

Aqua heard a voice—her own voice—and gasped as her reflection casually stepped out of the mirror toward her with a laugh.

Aqua darted backward and summoned her Keyblade. “That’s not true! My heart is strong! I’ll prove it!”

No one can save you. And no one wants to.

The smirking doppelgänger attacked her body with her Keyblade, and her heart with her words.

Your bonds of friendship only tie you down.

That’s not true. It’s thanks to Terra and Ven that I’ve made it this far. They keep me from giving up hope.

You’ll never see the realm of light again.

I will. I know I will. After all, Terra and Ven are waiting for me. We’re held together by the bond between us.

Is there any point in continuing this fight?

Yes—it’s the only way forward. I have to, so I can see my friends again.

Are you really worthy of being a Keyblade Master?

My strength hasn’t failed me yet. I will continue to press onward, as a Keyblade Master.

Just let go of everything and fade into the darkness.

I won’t—I can’t. But my heart is in so much pain; she’s relentless. Which one of us is the real me? Maybe the things she’s saying are true. Maybe she’s the part of me already lost to the darkness. But… But still…

“I won’t give up on my friends!” Aqua shouted as she struck the phantom with her Keyblade.

The reflection vanished.

Terra and Ven didn’t have anything to say. But my shadow… She wanted to destroy me. I’ve talked to myself a lot since falling into these shadows. But with the phantom, it’s as though all my doubts have gained a voice of their own.

Aqua glanced at her reflection in the mirror again, but it was apparently through moving on its own.

She’s the weakness in my heart. I know I’m alone here. Have the uncountable hours in the shadows whittled away the courage I never really had?

I’m losing this fight. The darkness has found the cracks in my heart. Is this…the last apparition before it takes me over?

Aqua turned away from the mirror and began walking again. Before her was a forest of thorns, part of the world where a witch named Maleficent had cast Princess Aurora into slumber.

Had this world fallen prey to the darkness, too?

Aqua spotted people beyond the briars.

“Terra? Ven?”

Are they…phantoms…?

I don’t care if they are or if I fall into the darkness. I want to see them again!

The thorny vines grew to obstruct Aqua’s path and reached out to grab her, forcing her to hack them away.

She could see her two friends still some ways ahead.

Progression through the forest was a process of fending off brambles and defeating monsters.

Everything is trying so hard to keep me away from them, so why am I still seeing those visions?

I know they aren’t real…but I miss them.

She chased them through the forest to a giant creature unlike anything she had ever seen. A whole crowd of them, in fact.

Aqua mustered the last of her strength and charged.

I miss them.

She thought of Ven’s smiles, of Terra’s determination, of Master Eraqus’s warmth, of Mickey and the other friends she’d met on her journey.

I’m not alone— We’re all connected.

Shoulders heaving, she tried to catch her breath once the last of the monsters was gone. There waiting for her were Terra and Ven.

Terra slowly turned around.

“Aqua, you’re—”

He was speaking—she’d thought he was nothing more than a vision.

“Terra. You spoke?” she asked.

He opened his eyes. “Can you see me?”

“Of course!”

They weren’t… They aren’t illusions? “Terra!” Aqua rushed over to her friend. “I can see Ven, too.”

“Ven? He’s here?” Terra looked around uncertainly.

“Terra, what’s wrong? Don’t you see him?”

“Where are we?”

“A world the darkness has consumed. It’s Enchanted Dominion,” she told him, but he still seemed confused.

Terra shook his head quietly. “Consumed? The worlds fell?”

“What’s gotten into you? How do I know that you’re Terra?”

This is still hard to believe; I can’t understand how Terra could be here. I thought I was chasing illusions, that they were the weakness in my heart playing more tricks… No, there’s something strange about this Terra. And if I’m right—

“Ven! Can you speak?” she said, but the boy’s head remained lowered.

Maybe this Terra isn’t real after all…

“Aqua, listen. I promise this is me. But I’m not myself.”

“What do you mean?” She stepped in between Terra and the silent Ven, then turned to face him.

“You’re using the name ‘Terra,’” he said. “That means you’re seeing me the way you remember me. But your heart is just painting the picture that it so wants to see. The real me is lost in shadow.”

That came as a shock— Hadn’t she sent him back to the realm of light? How could he be lost in shadow? “Then you’re here, trapped in the realm of darkness.”

“No. My heart has ties to the dark. That must be why we can talk.” Terra started to walk slowly, his eyes fixed on some point in space. “But I can’t see anything, Aqua. If you say Ven is there, then he’s like me—an illusion created by your heart.”

“I understand. Then, you and Ven are safe in the outside world?”

“I think.”

“That’s good.” Aqua placed a hand on her chest in relief. She was so worried Terra had been trapped in this dark place, too. She had assumed all this time that she had sent him home to the realm of light along with her own Keyblade—at least her final wish had been granted. “But how did you find me?”

“I looked here,” Terra replied, pressing his hand to his chest, “and heard you in the darkness.”

Aqua had more questions: “Right, but why does your heart have ties to the darkness now? What did you mean ‘lost in shadow’?”

He lowered his eyes. “Forget about me. Aqua, Xehanort is trying to locate Ven,” he said, instead of providing answers. Why was he talking about their enemy now?

“He’ll never find him,” she replied, attempting to put his mind at ease. “I hid Ven well. I think the reason he’s not talking to me here is because he’s still there sleeping.”

A moment later, Terra’s face contorted in agony. “No, I can’t control—!” As he clutched his head, his hair turned white, and something changed in his expression.

“This place,” he said. “Is it the Chamber of Waking?”

A shudder ran through Terra’s body, blurring him until there were two of him: one looked like her friend, and the other had white hair.

“Who are you, really?” Aqua instantly moved to shield Ven.

“You don’t know? My name—” The white-haired Terra was interrupted as the other seized him from behind and cut him off.

“Aqua! Get back!”

“Terra!”

“I messed up. Xehanort is part of me. Now he’s using me so you’ll tell him where you hid Ven!”

The two Terras grappled with each other.

“Silence!”

Darkness was creeping in, tearing apart the forest.

“I won’t give in! Aqua! You have to—”

“Still you struggle!” The white-haired Terra seized hold of the real one.

Aqua had to do something. She ran toward them, but in the next instant, the shadow of another dark giant appeared in the air and snatched up Ven in one hand, then Aqua in the other.

“Aqua!” Terra shouted.

“Now you can be one with the darkness!” shouted the one with white hair, and the dark creature squeezed Aqua tight.

“Ven…” Aqua looked over at her friend, still asleep despite the danger.

“That is enough!” Terra roared.

Chains burst out around his body—Master Eraqus’s spells.

But the whole area was still sinking into darkness, until she could no longer see Ven, or Terra.

I’m sinking into the darkness.

Now I can be…one with it…

Aqua’s Wayfinder slipped from her palm…

Somebody, help me. Please.

…and into the hand of someone else.

“Aqua, are you okay?”

The mysterious person returned the Wayfinder to her and folded her hand over it as she sank, then gently drew her close.

“Mickey, how did—”

That kind grasp belonged to Mickey Mouse, leading her by the hand until they were on solid ground again.

“Terra! Ven!” she yelled as she came back to her senses. Unfortunately, darkness closed in again as more of those creatures she had been fighting moved in to surround them.

“No time to talk.” Mickey got his Keyblade ready.

“Dwellers of darkness…” Aqua followed his lead.

“They’re called Heartless!” said the king, and the two of them stood ready for battle.

Countless numbers of them piled together into a gigantic wave that rushed toward Aqua and Mickey—but she wasn’t alone in the fight this time.

I’ve been alone so long that I forgot how reassuring it felt to have someone else at my side. I’ll be fine, though.

“It ends now!”

Aqua cast spells, while Mickey whirled his Keyblade beside her. When she managed to bind them with a spell, she followed up with blows from her Keyblade until the swarm split apart and the creatures began to flee.

“Better not push our luck,” said Mickey as he put away his Keyblade.

Aqua nodded and let the battle end there.

“Gosh. I never thought I’d find ya in the realm of darkness, that’s for sure. So, um, what happened?”

Aqua looked down. “Have you seen Terra or Ven?” she asked.

“No, just you,” he answered.

Aqua squeezed the Wayfinder at her chest. “I’m sorry. The darkness in this place, it’s getting to me.”

“Oh. But, you’ll be okay.”

“Right,” she replied, her eyes still downcast.

“Say, we’ve been looking for ya a long time. How come you’re in this place?”

Before she answered, though, Aqua had questions of her own.

“First tell me: How long’s it been in the realm of light?”

How much time has passed since I began wandering in this dark world?

“About…ten years,” Mickey told her hesitantly.

Aqua raised her face to the sky. “Interesting.” I had a feeling it had been a while, but…ten whole years.

Aqua looked intently at her Wayfinder. “After we last spoke, I took Ven somewhere safe, and then I went after Terra. But Terra was about to fall to darkness, so I had one choice. I stayed here in hopes of giving him a chance.”

“I…didn’t know.”

Now it was Mickey’s turn to lower his gaze, and Aqua knelt down so she could look him in the eyes. “What about you?” she asked. “What could’ve brought you here? Has something happened in the realm of light?”

“It’s the Heartless. They’ve been attacking worlds and taking their hearts. And worlds with no hearts vanish into darkness.” Mickey finally met her eyes again.

So that was why other worlds were appearing here?

“But if we can lock the door between the two realms—light and dark—from both sides, we can protect the other worlds. So ya see, I came here to find the key on this side. Turns out, it’s not so easy getting into the realm of darkness. The points you can cross have become unstable. It’s only when a world gets consumed that an entrance appears in the realm between. So I waited for my chance to sneak in,” he explained, then placed his hand softly on the Wayfinder Aqua held. “But hey, when I got here, I felt a warm, familiar light. I followed it to find my way…to you.” Mickey smiled.

“The charm. So they were helping. Terra and Ven brought you and I back together again.” The king nodded, and Aqua turned her eyes to the Wayfinder. “But, the worlds are still in danger. Terra—did he make it back to the realm of light?”

Mickey shook his head. “We still haven’t found him.”

“I see. Well, wherever he is, he’s fighting. He’ll beat his darkness. And I know he wants me to fight, too.” She gripped the Wayfinder tightly.

“I think you’re right. He’ll be just fine.”

“Yes. But what about Ven? He won’t wake up unless I’m there with him. I have to go. I have to find a way back to the realm of light.”

I have to awaken Ven, then find Terra— Aqua stood up.

“Good. Then let’s locate that key and go home together!” Mickey smiled reassuringly.

“Does that mean you know an exit?” Aqua asked.

Mickey scratched his head and replied, “Well, uh, I was so busy finding a way in, that I didn’t give a lot of thought to where there’d be a way out. But, together we’re sure to find one!”

Aqua burst out laughing. Now that she thought about it, Mickey had been surprisingly prone to leaping before he looked. She still remembered how he went bouncing all over the universe with that Star Shard.

“You haven’t changed at all,” she commented, fondly remembering their time together.

Mickey started laughing, too.

Ahh, when was the last time I laughed like this?

“May our hearts be our guiding key,” the king murmured, looking out ahead into the darkness.

“There’s a phrase no one has used in ages.” She knew that saying; it was one from long, long ago.

“Keyblade wielders used to say those words to each other. And now, it’s something I like to try to remember.” Aqua nodded to show she understood, and Mickey held out his hand. “So. Ready?”

She gripped it tight with renewed determination. “Ready!”

We’ll be fine as long as we’re together. We’ll get out of here and finally go home.

Aqua and Mickey set off on another dark road—a mountain trail through an unfamiliar forest. The way was full of those monsters called Heartless. But she wasn’t alone.

At long last, they arrived at a beautiful beach beneath a wide blue sky.

She knew this place.

But if it was here now, then this beach had met the same fate as the other worlds she’d encountered.

“So many worlds have been lost. And now they’re trapped here in the dark. Wait—you know this place, Aqua?” Mickey asked her.

Apparently, he wasn’t familiar with it himself.

Aqua thought of the two little boys she had met on these gorgeous sands.

“Hey, you two mind telling me your names?”

“Yes. I visited once, and I met two boys I considered passing the Keyblade on to. But because Terra had already given one of them the power, I didn’t.”

“Aqua. What were the boys’ names?”

“They were…Sora and Riku.”

Yes, she still remembered their names, and Mickey seemed to recognize them somehow, too.

“I see. We’re getting warm,” he said while taking in their surroundings. “Well, it’s Sora and Riku who’ve been helpin’ me. We’re tryin’ to get that door shut for good.”

Aqua couldn’t hide her surprise. “The same boys?”

“Aqua, if this is where my friends first got the Keyblade, it also must be where we’ll find its counterpart. The Keyblade of darkness has gotta be here on the dark side of their world.” He sounded very sure.

No sooner had he spoken than a tremor ran through the earth, signaling the return of the swarm of Heartless they had beaten earlier.

“We’ll have to hurry. C’mon!” Mickey urged, then charged forward with his Keyblade. Aqua followed his lead, and the two of them fought their way across the island against the Heartless.

So the Keyblade of darkness is on this island…?

Shadows swallowed the beach, the sea tossed violently, and dark clouds filled the sky in a storm, but Aqua and Mickey still pushed forward.

Mickey pointed at a thicket. “Let’s keep goin’,” he called, and Aqua realized there was a cave hidden behind it.

“What is this place…?” she murmured.

There were drawings on the wall of the cave, and a door in the back wall.

“I bet it’s in here.” Mickey opened the door. Darkness lay beyond it. “There!”

A gleaming golden Keyblade was floating within the murky interior.

“Is this what you’re after?” she asked as he stepped forward.

“Yep, it’s just the key I was looking for. A Keyblade from the dark realm!” The Keyblade’s glow vanished when Mickey took it in his hand. “‘The Door to Darkness…tied by two keys. The Door to Darkness…to seal the light,’” he intoned, almost like a spell. “Welp, we’ve got the keys. Now we find the ones to close the door.”

“Sorry?” Aqua asked, puzzled.

“The door between the two realms—it won’t let a heart with light pass through. So only darkness keeps spilling out. We can lock the door by using the two Keyblades, but we need help on both sides to get the door shut.”

“Well, then, since you’ll be doing the locking, let me be the one to close the door.”

Aqua was willing to accept that role; of the two of them, Mickey was the one who belonged on the other side.

Mickey shook his head. “Sorry, but the job’s taken…by somebody else.”

“Huh?”

Just then, another quake shook everything around them. Light washed over them for a moment, and then the darkness returned.

She had spotted a boy in that light—a boy with silver hair.

Riku.

When they opened their eyes after the blinding flash, the world had returned to its gloomy state, except for one difference—the large white door.

“Is that the one?”

“Yep, the door to Kingdom Hearts.” Mickey looked over at it, then turned back to Aqua. “Well, it’s not the Kingdom Hearts you know. Not exactly. But even though it’s smaller, it’s still the heart of many worlds. And even if it’s not a complete Kingdom Hearts, we definitely can’t leave it open like this, or darkness will escape and destroy the remaining worlds.”

Another Kingdom Hearts—the heart of many worlds. Why would such a thing be here now?

“It’s time,” Mickey continued. “With this key and Sora’s in the realm of light, we’re gonna close this door.” He returned his gaze to the portal in question. “Now, all we need is Riku.”

Riku and Sora… I never would have imagined those two boys I met back then were tied up in all this.

“There!” Mickey shouted, and she saw Riku running through the darkness. “That’s everybody. Come on, Aqua—”

Before Mickey could finish, the mass of Heartless appeared yet again, this time making a beeline for Riku.

“Oh no!”

As Mickey sprinted after the boy, Aqua sprang into the air, held her Keyblade out toward the swarm, and unleashed chains of light. She had to stop it. “Back off!”

“Aqua!” Mickey came to a halt.

“Go without me!”

“No, I—! Aqua!”

The wave of Heartless overtook Aqua, carrying her out of the cave and back onto the white sands of the Destiny Islands. Aqua swung her Keyblade with all her might.

The battle for the realm of light…is not won. Thanks to Terra and Mickey, I know what’s at stake.

I’m not afraid. I will face the long darkness.

The next time someone wanders into the realm of darkness, I’ll be here.

A light to cut through all the shadows. I will be their Wayfinder.

Aqua threw herself at the Heartless.

And one day, I’ll return to Terra and Ven.

“I am Master Aqua. And that’s a promise,” she declared, perhaps more for her own sake than anyone else’s.

She slammed her Keyblade home.

“Aqua…”

Now alone, Mickey gripped his dark Keyblade tightly, then held it up to the door.

“Now, Sora! Let’s close this door for good!” he called to his friend on the other side.

And as light engulfed the king…

Aqua lay on the sands of the Destiny Islands, alone.

“It’s beautiful.”

Dusk slowly stole across the sky, turning it to night.

“Terra, Ven…”

She remembered how they used to watch the starry sky together.

I wish the three of us could go stargazing again, and look for shooting stars.

Just me again.

But I saw Mickey, and I know that this world is connected to its counterpart.

Light began to rain upon the world, proof that the Destiny Islands were going home to the realm of light.

They did it. The worlds are being restored. Mickey closed the door.

And as this world met its end, the darkness pulled Aqua down once again.

May our hearts be our guiding key. You’ll know…where I am.