Chapter 7 Hollow Bastion

There are no coincidences; fate happens as it was planned. As for whose plan it is…I couldn’t tell you. Not yet. But, Sora, we are friends. We will always be friends—always. Everyone you’ve met along the way—Riku, Mickey, Donald, and Goofy—we’re all here for you. Don’t forget that.

Riku’s gone. Pete and Maleficent took him away, and it’s all my fault, because I was careless.

After Sora had returned to the study in Disney Castle with Mickey, he wandered away to brood alone in the corner.

“This is terrible! Poor Riku.”

Jiminy cradled his head after Mickey brought him up to speed.

“Say, fellas, hasn’t Riku got all the journal data inside him?” Goofy was thinking with his arms crossed.

“If Maleficent casts him into the darkness…then the whole datascape will go kaplooie.” Donald’s face was tense with concern. Riku’s abduction meant Maleficent had the data itself in her clutches. While they still didn’t know what significance the lost memories held, it was easy to see how they might be used for evil.

“How many worlds still have bugs, Jiminy?” Mickey asked.

The cricket climbed atop the computer’s keyboard and pressed several keys with his feet. “Err…just one, it looks like. We were so close, but now…” Jiminy shook his head. They really were almost done. But now, Riku was gone.

“That was your way home, huh…?” Sora murmured faintly. “Guys, I’m so sorry. I really blew it.”

None of this would have happened if I were stronger. It didn’t matter to Sora that this Riku was a vessel for data. Riku was Riku—his best friend.

“It’s not your fault, Sora. And don’t you worry. I’ll take care of this.” Mickey smiled and summoned his Keyblade into his hand.

“Y-yo-your Majesty?!” Jiminy sprang into the air.

“Well, why not? I’ll find another way to fix the bugs, and rescue Riku, too!” the king declared before Sora and the others.

“Let me help, Mickey. This time, I won’t let anyone take the Key…” Sora tried to call his Keyblade into his hand, but it didn’t appear.

“Huh? That’s weird. The Keyblade’s not… I can’t summon it!”

True, Maleficent had broken the Keyblade, but it had never failed him when he willed it to come. Now that it was broken, did that mean it would never come again?

“Sora…I’m sorry. Maleficent destroyed your Keyblade,” Mickey told him sadly.

“For good?”

“I have to be honest with you. That Keyblade was something we wrote into the datascape from the outside. Now that we’re trapped inside the datascape, there’s no way for us to get it back.”

“But I want to—”

Sora lowered his gaze. I really…really hate this. I can’t do anything.

“I know. But you’ve already done a lot for us! It’s time for me to see what I can do,” Mickey said emphatically. “Now, you all sit tight right here!”

With those words of farewell, Mickey opened the door and set off with a resolute stride.

“I’m worried. Do you think the king needs help?” Donald watched him go with a hint of concern.

“Aw, he’ll manage. You don’t get to be king for nothin’!” Goofy replied.

Donald crossed his arms, clearly thinking hard about something. “Well, he can show those Heartless a thing or two, but…”

As the others talked, Sora stood still, lost in thought.

“Now Maleficent and Pete are on the loose. And let’s not forget…” Jiminy deflated with a great sigh.

“The bugs… Gawrsh, this worryin’ thing is contagious.”

“But he definitely said to sit tight.”

Ever so quietly, Sora began edging sideways as Goofy and Donald conversed. I can’t just sit here and wait.

“Sora, what do you think we should do?” Donald asked, but there was no sign of the boy.

“…Um, Sora?” Donald ran all over the study. Sora wasn’t there, not even under the desk or behind the bookshelves.

“He was there a second ago.” Jiminy gave another sigh. Now they had one more problem to worry about.

“Uh, fellas, you don’t think…?”

Goofy turned toward the door of the study.

Sora arrived at the final world where bugs remained, Hollow Bastion, and took in the sights and sounds of the mysterious machinery that surrounded him.

Even if I don’t have a Keyblade, I can still help. I have to save Riku, at least.

A familiar form cut across Sora’s path up ahead.

“Pete!” he shouted, running up to him.

“Hmm? You again? What’s a has-been like you doin’ here?” he scoffed rudely, all but saying that without his Keyblade Sora was no threat to him at all.

“Start talking, Pete! Where are you keeping Riku?”

“Well, shucks, if you wanna find out that bad, you’re gonna have to catch me—ya nitwit! And good luck tryin’! I just finished riggin’ the joint, Pete-style. You won’t last ten steps!”

Pete sneered and dashed off.

“H-hey! That’s what you think!”

“So long, sucker!”

Pete disappeared through a door into a great castle, and Sora ran after him in hot pursuit.

Inside, there was a large hall with two staircases going up either side.

“C’mon out, Pete!” Sora shouted, only for red-and-black blocks to suddenly appear surrounding him.

“Hey! Pete must want to trap me in.”

“Gah-ha-ha-ha! You’re a real piece of work, waltzin’ in here when you can’t do nothin’!” Pete bellowed with laughter atop the blocks.

“I can do enough to wipe that smug look off your face!”

“Oh, I’m shakin’ in my boots. Heartless? Get ’im!”

At Pete’s command, the Heartless arrived. What do I do? I can’t fight them without my Keyblade.

“Now you all play nice while I finish settin’ up our little puppet show.”

“Get back here!” Sora shouted, but Pete hopped down from the blocks and out of sight. All that remained was Sora and a lot of Heartless. The monsters were getting closer and closer.

A single Heartless leaped at Sora and clawed him on the cheek.

“Ow!”

These guys would be nothing if I only had my Keyblade…!

Just then, Sora heard a familiar drawl and heavy footsteps. “Look out, Sora! Waa-ha-hoo-hooey!” Shield in hand, Goofy whirled into the blocks and sent them flying.

“Goofy!”

The captain of the guard stood protectively between Sora and the Heartless, then charged into the throng and dispersed them. He looked back at Sora with a grin. “Gawrsh, Sora! The king said to stay put. You shouldn’ta run off on your own like that.”

Sora could tell Goofy was a little exasperated, and he did feel bad. He had ignored the king’s concern, run off on his own, and then gotten himself trapped. If it weren’t for Goofy’s arrival, there was no telling what could have happened.

“I know, I’m sorry, I just—”

All I can do is stay put in the study and let the king handle it. I don’t have my Keyblade anymore.

“Nope. Not another word. Let’s get goin’.”

“All right…I’m going.” Sora obediently started trudging off toward the exit.

“A-hyuck, goin’ where? It’s this direction!” Goofy called from behind him, sounding puzzled.

“Huh? We aren’t going back?” Sora asked. He turned around. I mean, I can’t fight anymore…

“We’re chasin’ after Pete, aren’t we? We gotta hurry, before he gets too far!”

“You’re not mad? Thanks, Goofy, I owe ya.”

Goofy looked so confused that Sora started getting confused, too. And then the captain laughed.

“Owe me for what? Ya said it yourself, Sora: Friends don’t keep score.”

“Right!”

Sora grinned and ran over to Goofy. He could barely resist the urge to hug him.

My Keyblade isn’t all I have to fight with. I still have my friends.

“You didn’t happen to see Donald, did ya?” Goofy asked Sora as they started walking.

“Huh? Donald’s here, too?”

“We were lookin’ for ya together but musta got split up somewhere along the way,” Goofy said worriedly.

“I hope he’s okay. We’ll have to keep an eye out while we look for Pete.”

“I wonder where he could’ve gone…?”

Sora and Goofy started their search by climbing the stairs to the second floor from the hall.

“Pete went through there, right?”

“I think so.”

Sora couldn’t be sure because he hadn’t been able to see around the block wall. Still, he knew something suspicious lay ahead.

At the top of the stairs, Sora and Goofy found a big door directly across from the entrance.

“Doesn’t seem to…nnngh…wanna open…” Goofy tilted his head in curiosity as he banged on the door.

Sora also gave it a close look. There were strange indentations carved into its surface. “Wait, check out these slots on the door. This shape must be the Heartless’ emblem,” he murmured. It was shaped like the mark on the Heartless.

“You’re right! That is odd.”

“If we find the pieces that fit in the slot…”

“I’m sure you’re right, Sora. Let’s track down the pieces that go in the emblem!”

Sora nodded at Goofy’s idea. “I wonder where they could be, though…?”

“We’ll just have to poke around.”

As they walked away from the door, still talking…

“A-hyuck!”

“Donald!”

…they spotted a familiar white bottom and blue outfit exiting the castle.

Sora and Goofy dashed down the stairs and outside after their friend, but Donald was nowhere to be found.

“There he is!”

“Where?”

Goofy pointed out a passage lined with several blocks. Sora couldn’t see Donald, though—he was probably already gone.

“Let’s hurry!”

They dashed off again, only for Heartless and moving blocks to get in their way.

“Stay behind me, Sora!”

“Sorry, Goofy.”

Sora made his way forward with Goofy and his shield protecting him. Not being able to use his Keyblade was really getting on his nerves.

After making their way through the path littered with blocks, they found a gondola that resembled a large cage. It appeared to lead underground.

“Guess we’re supposed to ride it…?”

“Looks that way.”

Sora and Goofy got on board, and the gondola descended. They arrived at a dim subterranean passageway.

“Where did Donald go?”

“I get the feeling he’s around here.”

In front of them was a fence that resembled the iron bars of a cell. It didn’t look easy to get around.

“Isn’t that him?” Goofy asked.

Sora could make out Donald’s silhouette beyond the bars.

“Donald!”

He turned around at Sora’s shout.

“We finally caught up.” Goofy smiled, and Donald hurried over to the fence.

“Sora! And Goofy! Where did you wander off to? This is no time to go missing!” Donald said while poking his face through the bars.

“Aren’t you the one who went missing?” Sora tried to protest, but Donald only scolded him further.

“Oh, whatever! Do you have any idea how worried I was?”

Still, it was no surprise that Donald was worried about Sora when he didn’t have his Keyblade.

“Sorry, Donald. I dragged you guys into a real mess, and I hardly even know you.”

Donald and Goofy shared a glance when Sora apologized.

Then, Donald erupted into laughter. “Now just wait a second! It was no trouble at all,” he said, looking up at Sora.

“Huh?”

He wasn’t sure what would motivate Donald to say such a thing.

“We kinda like gettin’ dragged into your messes!” Goofy laughed.

“Um…why?”

“It’s no fun watching from the other side of a computer screen! We’ve been looking for an excuse to help—so we can go on adventures together, just like old times.”

They wanted to have adventures together… It made Sora happy. He had always been on his own, but really he’d had everyone watching over him the whole time. Now, he wouldn’t be alone at all.

“We may not be a new Keyblade, but you sure can count on us!” Goofy patted Sora on the shoulder.

“I don’t know what to say. But I’ll start with ‘thanks’!” Sora said, blushing.

Donald waved his staff and said, “You just leave the Heartless to me. I’ll show ’em who’s boss! Now, how do I get out of here?”

Now that he mentioned it, that iron fence was still between them and Donald.

“How did you get in there?” Goofy asked.

“I used my magic on some Heartless, and then the bars came down,” Donald replied. “Like this!”

Donald flourished his staff, and a fireball shot out of the tip. As he did, the lamp-like object next to him blazed to life, and the fence keeping the three apart rose upward.

“Whaddaya know! This thing responded to your magic.”

“It did? Er, it did! Just like I…planned?”

Sora and Goofy cracked up as Donald sputtered unconvincingly. Though it was Sora’s first time spending this long with the two of them, for some reason it felt like they’d been friends for a long time.

“By the way, I found this inside.” Donald showed Sora a few peculiar, sparkling shards.

“You think they’re…”

“…pieces of the emblem?”

Sora and Goofy looked at each other.

“Wak? What do you mean?” Donald cocked his head.

“Let’s get back to the door!”

“Huh?”

Leaving Donald still confused, Sora and Goofy ran for the gondola.

“W-wait for me!”

“Better keep up if you don’t want us to leave you, Donald!”

“Cut it out, Sora!”

Donald hustled after Sora and Goofy, waving his staff around.

With all three of them aboard, the gondola rose aboveground. They returned to the castle along the same path as before. Once he was inside, Sora looked back at Donald and Goofy and called, “Hurry it up! Last one to the door’s a rotten egg!”

“Huh?”

“Wak! No fair! You didn’t say anything about a race!”

Sora sprinted up the stairs to the door, two at a time, and turned around breathlessly. “First!”

“Gawrsh, Sora…Ya can’t go runnin’ off like that…” Goofy was catching his breath with a hand against the wall.

“No more sudden races!” Donald sat leaning against the wall with his feet splayed out.

“Are you sure you two aren’t out of shape?”

“Of course not!” Donald shot to his feet and protested.

“Let’s hurry up and try the pieces, Sora. Hopefully it does the trick with the door.”

Goofy moved away from the wall as well, then stood before the door and hurried Sora along.

Sora took the pieces Donald had found and tried placing them in the indentation on the door. It was a perfect fit. The fragments let out a dazzling light, and the door opened.

“It worked!”

“You said Pete went through here, right?” Donald peeked uneasily through the crack of the door. They could feel a breeze whistling through. The door must be an exit to the outside.

“Yeah… Something about a ‘puppet show’…,” Sora muttered nervously. What did he mean, “puppet show”? And why does that have me so worried?

“Whatever’s in there, fellas, we’d better watch out,” Goofy advised.

Sora nodded, then looked at what lay ahead. He was afraid; anyone would be. But we have to keep moving and save Riku!

“Pete’s the one that’s gonna have to watch out!”

Sora stepped through the door, with Donald and Goofy close behind. After a moment, the floor suddenly began to rise. By the time they realized what was going on, it was already moving pretty fast, and they finally figured out that they were riding on a gigantic gondola.

“Wow! Where do ya think it leads?” Goofy wondered idly, gazing up at the sky.

“Look out!” Donald pushed Sora out of the way as Heartless suddenly descended from the air. The winged monsters were trying to get at Sora.

“Stay back, Sora!” Donald leaped and cast a powerful Thunder spell on the Heartless.

“Here I go!”

Goofy followed it up by whirling into the Heartless at high speed, scattering them for good.

They were coming after me, and all I can do is escape. It was hard, but Sora did his best to at least keep moving and not get in the others’ way.

Once they had managed to defeat all the Heartless, Donald and Goofy sat down on the spot, looking a bit worse for the wear.

I shouldn’t have made them race me earlier.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t do more to help…”

“That doesn’t sound like you at all!” Donald stood up and tapped Sora in the chest with his staff. “This isn’t the first time you’ve lost your Keyblade, right?”

“Huh?”

When Sora reacted with surprise, Donald just waved his staff harder.

“That didn’t happen to this Sora,” Goofy reminded him.

“I forgot!” Donald finally put two and two together, then got ahold of himself and looked up at Sora. “But you’re still you!” His face was completely serious.

Filled with happiness, Sora grinned. “Donald, Goofy…I’m glad I have you guys.”

“A-hyuck! Where did that come from?” Goofy wondered.

“It’s just…weird, ya know? When I’m with you two, I feel like I can do anything. Don’t laugh, but… Well, it almost feels like we’ve done this before.”

The other world with another Sora, data, bugs—Sora still didn’t really get it all, but he felt just the tiniest bit of warmth in his chest when he was with these two.

“Well, that right there is a sign you’ve found true friends!” Donald crossed his arms and said with a nod.

“It’s kinda fun to make the same friend twice,” Goofy added.

That did sound like fun. Sora wasn’t sure what his counterpart in the real world was like, but he had him to thank for friends like these. I’m me, so that other Sora is and isn’t me, I guess. What’s he like, I wonder?

“But right now, it’s time to get serious,” Donald said with an earnest expression.

“Right! Don’t forget, Riku’s still waitin’ for us!” Goofy continued.

“Okay, c’mon!” Sora called.

At almost that exact moment, the gondola stopped. The wind was howling up here; this was probably the top of the castle.

“That looks like the entrance over there.”

Sora and crew climbed up and up, taking out the blocks and Heartless that hindered them along the way.

“Hmm, do ya think it’s a dead end?”

“Hey, that looks kinda suspicious down below.” Sora peered downward from the high floor they had reached.

“Huh? Where?” Donald poked his head out from behind Sora.

“Can we jump down there?”

As Goofy joined them, the weight of both him and Donald knocked Sora off balance.

“Whoooaaa!”

“Waaak!”

“Waa-hoo-hooey!”

Sora managed to land on his feet, but Donald fell tail-first and Goofy headfirst. Both right on top of him.

“Oh give me a break!” Sora yelped from under his companions.

“Sorry ’bout that.”

“Hurry up and move!” Donald squawked as he lifted Goofy’s rump off of him. Once the trio was finally back on their feet, they found the entrance to what looked like a dark chamber.

“I don’t think anything good happens in there, fellas…” Goofy peeked inside.

“Pete has to be here, don’t you think?” Behind him, Donald took a look, too.

“Ready, guys?”

“Of course!”

“Leave it to us!”

The two of them turned to Sora and nodded fiercely. The three friends stepped into the obviously malevolent darkness.

“Gah-ha-ha-ha-ha!” Pete cackled as they arrived.

“We’ve got you now, Pete!”

Sora strained his eyes against the gloom and saw him standing in middle of a grand hall as if he had been waiting for them.

“Couldn’t do a thing by yourself, so you went cryin’ to your pals, eh? Well it won’t do ya a lick of good!” Pete folded his arms and crowed. He raised his hands, and a group of Heartless appeared all at once.

“Incoming Heartless!”

“Lemme at ’em!”

Donald and Goofy rushed forward to defeat their foes.

“Heh-heh! Gotcha!”

When Pete raised his arm again, a whole slew of blocks rained down on Sora from the empty ceiling.

“Sora!”

“Look out!”

Goofy pushed Sora out of the way, while Donald blasted the blocks dropping from above with his magic.

Unfortunately, it was Donald and Goofy who got caught instead, and the blocks trapped them in a tight, solid wall.

“I can’t…move…,” Goofy groaned.

“Donald! Goofy!”

Sora called his friends’ names, but he couldn’t even break the blocks, much less attack Pete. What should I do? Is there anything I can do?

“Gah-ha-ha-ha! What a pair of rubes! Why risk your necks for a lump of data? Oh yeah, I know all about this phony. Youse guys made him, just like that phony Keyblade he’s got!” Pete sneered at Donald and Goofy in his trap.

“Don’t you ever talk about Sora like that. He’s our friend in this world and every other one, too!” Donald shouted, wriggling in the tiny space between his body and the wall to strike the blocks with his staff. The wall didn’t budge, though.

“Donald…”

I’m so happy to hear you say that, but…I really am useless now.

“Hmph, maybe on the outside, but he’s just an empty shell. The kid don’t got a heart,” Pete continued.

A heart? What’s a heart?

“That’s not true! We’ve got Sora’s heart right here!” This time, it was Goofy who shouted.

“Oh yeah?” The smile was wiped from Pete’s face.

“You’d see it, too, if you were looking. Why would he keep fighting for us—no matter the danger, no matter how hard things got—if he didn’t care?” Donald added, poking his face just a bit through one of the gaps in the blocks.

“A-yep!” Goofy agreed. “And we’ll fight for him, too. Ya know why? Because he’s in our hearts as much as we’re in his.”

As they declared their unwavering trust, three hearts became one.

“Our friend is our power!”

A warmth spread within Sora’s chest like a beacon cutting through the darkness. My friends are my power.

“Aww, can the mush! Youse guys are finished.” Pete shouted, stamping his foot. “Let’s see your ‘power’ protect you from this!”

The blocks began closing in to crush Donald and Goofy.

“Wak!”

“Yeowch!”

“Donald, no! Goofy!”

What do I do? What can I do? I can’t save them.

“Nighty-night, losers!”

Pete was hopping up and down. I can’t let this happen! I won’t let this be the end of them!

“Stop… Please, don’t hurt them… NO!!!” Sora clenched his fist and punched it into the air—a blinding light engulfed the area.

“What…just…?” Sora mumbled. He couldn’t believe what had happened. In his hand was a Keyblade.

The blocks entrapping Donald and Goofy had vanished in the same instant.

“Wh-what’s the big idea?! I saw Maleficent destroy that thing!” Flustered, Pete began running around willy-nilly.

At that moment, Sora heard a familiar voice. “Sora, you’re just full of surprises!” Mickey came running up.

“Mickey! Why? What did I do?” Sora asked.

“I’m not sure, Sora. All I can say is that something in you has changed. The Keyblade takes its power from the wielder’s strength of heart. But an old friend of mine once said, ‘A heart is so much more than any system.’” Mickey regarded Sora intently. “I gave you the Keyblade as data, and never expected it to match the real Keyblade’s power. I think Maleficent was able to destroy it because it was a copy without true strength.”

Sora stared at the Keyblade in his hand.

“But during your journey, you made a connection…with us. You’ve risen above the system, Sora, and gained power unlike anybody else’s. And that’s what brought your Keyblade back.” Mickey smiled.

“Wow…”

“I guess we were meant to handle this world’s bugs together!”

The four of them then glared at Pete.

“This is where it ends, Pete!” Mickey brandished his Keyblade.

“It ain’t fair! Sproutin’ a new Keyblade is cheating. Better make a strategic retreat, before—”

“Not so fast! First, hand over Riku…or else.” Sora readied his Keyblade, too.

“Uhmmm… Now let’s talk about this…”

Pete was slowly being driven back against the wall. But just then, the world shook.

“Huh? What now?”

The floor shuddered under Sora’s feet, and the world around him blinked in and out.

“So long, chumps!” Pete shouted.

Sora tried to go after him, but visibility was poor and the tremors had yet to stop, so he couldn’t even walk properly. Finally, he made it to the spot where Pete had been. “No! We lost him!”

He was a few seconds too late, but the scoundrel had left behind a single, solitary clue.

“But we found a Keyhole!” Goofy pointed at the object floating above Sora’s head.

“Let’s head inside!” Donald swung his staff in anticipation.

However, Sora drew his lips in a line and took a step forward. “Hold on, guys,” he said quietly. “Leave this one to me.”

“Why?” Donald asked back.

“I never would have made it here without the three of you. But it’s my turn now. Let me be your light, and I’ll show you the way home!”

Donald crossed his arms and looked at Sora out of the corner of his eye while tapping one foot.

“Wh-what is it, Donald?”

“Um, isn’t that hamming it up a little? You just wanna test out your new powers, don’tcha?”

“Yeesh… Let me have my moment.” Sora scratched his head. Donald was right; he did want to test the power of this “connection” Mickey had talked about. He must be even stronger than he had been before.

“A-hyuck! We’ll let it slide this time.” Goofy laughed in exasperation.

“You don’t have to do this alone, Sora. Remember that you’re part of a team. When you get hurt, it hurts us, too,” Mickey stated gently.

“How could I forget? I promise I’ll come back safe. Now, here I go!”

“See you soon!”

As Mickey and the others looked on, Sora held his Keyblade up to the Keyhole. Light shot from it and into the Keyhole, and there came the click of a lock coming undone. Next, a door appeared.

Sora dashed into the opening at top speed.

Within was a chapel with stained glass windows. Pete can’t have gone far, Sora thought, and sure enough, he spied his foe breathing a sigh of relief at finally getting away.

“End of the road, Pete!”

“Whuh? Don’t you know when to quit?”

“Do yourself a favor and come quietly.”

“Hmph! After all the times you’ve ruined my plans? Not likely! It’s my turn to teach you a trick or three of my own!”

Pete suddenly rumbled forward and swung down an arm. Sora blocked the powerful blow, but it nearly knocked him back.

“Nngh!”

It was a contest of strength—Pete trying to force his arm down, and Sora trying to hold it in place with his Keyblade.

“You and your puny muscles got nothin’ on me!”

“I may not have the muscles, but…”

Sora relaxed his arms on purpose, causing Pete to lose his balance long enough for Sora to jump away and blast him with magic.

“Hmph, not bad, bozo… No more Mr. Nice Pete!”

“And you’re gonna wish Mr. Nice Pete was a little nicer!”

Sora closed the distance between them in a flash and lashed out at Pete’s belly with his Keyblade.

“Oof… Not again.” Pete hunched over, clutching his stomach.

“Give up?”

“Heh! I still gots an ace up my sleeve. Come on out and say hello!” Pete called.

And the one who appeared was…

“Riku?”

Instead of his black coat, Riku was wearing a purple-and-black suit with a strange symbol on it. He seemed like a completely different person.

“Stay back, Sora! Hrrrngh!”

Sora was about to run over to him, but he stopped at Riku’s warning. His friend’s face was twisted in agony.

“Riku? Wha…what’s wrong?”

“I took the liberty of takin’ his liberty away. All I had to do was load some of those bug thingies into your pally’s data-matronics. Now, let’s see what my new minion can do. Your master orders you to attack!” Pete said with a smirk.

“Hrgh! Not a chance…,” Riku groaned, fighting back.

“Hmm? No dice, eh? Guess we need a little more juice…”

Pete picked up a block from the floor and threw it at Riku, and it vanished into him. Sora remembered that the blocks themselves were bugs. If these blocks were the source of the glitches throughout the worlds, then it would be easy for them to contaminate Riku; he was the personification of the worlds’ data.

“Arrrgh!” Riku collapsed to the ground.

“Leave him alone!” Sora yelled, then ran over to Riku and helped him up.

“That oughtta do it. I’ll just leave you two to get reacquainted. So long!” Once again, Pete ran off, but now wasn’t the time to chase him down. Riku… I have to help him!

“Riku! Talk to me!” Sora called out, but there was no response from his fallen friend.

I heard a scream, Sora. What’s going on in there?!

Sora could hear Mickey’s concerned voice. He raised his head and pleaded desperately. “Mickey, it’s Riku! They put bugs in him!”

I can’t do anything on my own. I need Mickey’s help…but how?!

What?! Riku, can you hear me? Riku!

As if Mickey’s thoughts had reached him, Riku opened his eyes.

“C’mon, Riku!”

But Riku began to drag himself away from Sora, almost like he was trying to run from him, and then leaped back. Surprised by the sudden movement, Sora looked at his friend. Riku was frozen, staring fixedly at the ground as if he was fighting something within himself.

“Can’t you hear us…?”

“Nngh… Strike me…down…”

“What?”

Before Sora could ask him more about what he meant, Riku fired a blast of magic from his hand.

“Riku!”

Sora swiftly dodged the spell, but Riku could easily read such a simple motion. He closed the distance between them all at once and attacked.

“Stop it, Riku!”

Sora was a goner at this rate. I have to find a way to stop him…! Knocking aside his friend’s blows, Sora delivered a series of strikes with his Keyblade that only hurt him a little.

“I’m sorry, Riku!” He swung the Keyblade wide and hard, and Riku went flying through the air and crashed to the ground.

“…Riku!”

Some of the red-and-black blocks began to emerge from Riku’s body. They were in there deep—how could he get them out?

As Sora plopped down on the floor in exhaustion from the battle, a powerful light shone behind him.

“Sora! Riku!” Mickey and the others appeared from the beam. “Well, if the bugs have taken over Riku…then that means…he might not ever wake up—unless we get rid of the bugs first,” the king explained, gazing at Riku in concern.

“So if I debug him, Riku will come back to us. Guys, I gotta go inside to look,” Sora said with unwavering determination as he knelt down beside his friend.

“But what about you?!”

“Who’s to say if it’s even safe inside Riku?”

Worried, Donald and Goofy tried to stop their friend.

“I know it’s risky. But if a friend needs me to be there, I’ll be there—to help!” Sora looked at Mickey, Donald, Goofy, and Jiminy in turn. “I want to help everyone.”

Their expressions softened.

“Well, I guess that’s Sora for ya,” Jiminy commented, both happy and a little chagrined.

“Still can’t talk you out of it, huh?” Donald shook his head with a smile, too.

“A-hyuck! But we’ll do everything we can to help you out!” Goofy gave Sora a hard slap on the back.

“Thanks, guys.”

A smile appeared on Sora’s face, and he gathered the strength to stand.

“I’m going.”

The four nodded deeply, and Sora held the Keyblade out toward Riku’s chest. A Keyhole rose out of his body, and a door opened.

“Sora, don’t forget—you’re not going in there alone,” Mickey assured him. “Your friends’ll be right there fighting alongside ya in spirit, no matter where ya go.”

Sora smiled as he ran into the light.