CHAPTER 7

MONSTRO

crossroad

“THAT SNAKE OF A VIZIER NEARLY HAD THEM… IF ONLY someone hadn’t left him to handle it all alone.”

In the dark room, Hook glared at the silver-haired boy—Riku.

“Hey, I did my part,” Riku said almost indifferently. “I brought the princess, didn’t I?”

He was looking at Maleficent as he spoke. Her back was turned to them.

Would she really keep the promise she’d made to him?

Riku understood what he was doing. But he couldn’t resist the lure of that promise. And if she really did mean to keep it, he’d do anything. That was what he had decided. If it meant he would have what he longed for… If it was for Kairi.

“Jafar was beyond help, consumed by his own hatred. One must beware of letting it burn too fiercely,” Maleficent murmured, slowly turning to face the others. “By the way, Riku, have you not noticed…?”

She gestured toward the dais in the center of the room.

“What?”

“We had a deal, yes? You help us, and we grant you your wish…”

In a wash of dim light, the image of a girl appeared on the dais. She almost seemed to be sleeping there…

“Kairi!” Riku knew it wasn’t real, but he ran over to the dais.

“Go to her. Your vessel is waiting.”

“Why are you doing all this for me?” Riku said, his voice low with mistrust as he glared at Maleficent. “What’s the catch?”

“Catch? Why, there’s no catch.” She bent down to look into Riku’s eyes and said sweetly, “Silly boy. You’re like a son to me. I only want you to be happy.” Her hand softly stroked his cheek.

“I seriously doubt that.”

“Believe what you wish. But lest we forget, I have kept my end of the bargain.”

Riku turned away. “Where’s the ship?”

“My ship it is, lad. But this is no pleasure cruise!” said Captain Hook, brandishing the namesake hook in place of his left hand. “It won’t be a pleasant voyage.”

Without another word, Riku walked out of the room.

The Gummi Ship took off from Agrabah and drifted easily through the Other Sky. For whatever reason it seemed to be a quieter route, without many obstructions.

“So, we picked this up back there…” Goofy had the paper they’d found after trapping Jafar in his lamp. He handed it to Jiminy Cricket. “Any idea what it is?”

“It looks like there’s a lot written on it…” Looking troubled, Sora peered at the paper now in Jiminy’s hands.

“It looks to me like you’ve found yourselves a piece of Ansem’s report,” Jiminy replied.

“That’s what this is?!”

“Yep, I’m pretty certain.” Jiminy looked up at Sora, who was leaning right over him, and then began to read it.

“Heartless… Those who lack hearts…,” Sora murmured. “The darkness in people’s hearts…”

“Wasn’t Leon saying something like that?” said Goofy. “The Heartless seek out the darkness in people’s hearts.”

Donald gripped the control stick tighter. “Yeah. And he said to be careful.”

Sora was thinking hard. Just like anyone else, he got scared sometimes, and he hated things sometimes. There was darkness in every heart, Leon had said.

So then…

“It looks like there must be more to the report somewhere,” said Jiminy.

“That part doesn’t make any sense,” Donald remarked. “We’ve gotta find the rest of it.”

Goofy tilted his head. “Gawrsh, I wonder if the king’s read it…”

“What’s that?!” Donald shouted.

Sora stumbled into the cockpit and saw…

“A whale! It’s a great big monster whale!” Goofy ran in circles around the Gummi Ship. The whale rolled its colossal body around in space, and the ship shook as it passed by.

“Monstro!” cried Jiminy Cricket.

“You know the whale?”

“I certainly ought to! He’s a whale of a whale, and vicious besides!”

Monstro turned about and came up in front of the Gummi Ship again.

“Whoa!” Donald pulled on the control stick with all his might, trying to reverse course, but Monstro opened his colossal mouth and came straight for them.

“It’s too late! He’s gonna swallow us!” Sora yelled, and the Gummi Ship was already inside the whale’s mouth.

The waves broke softly on the shore. The sea and sky went on forever. The fronds of the cocoyum trees swayed in the sea breeze, and the sunlight was warm on their faces. It was Destiny Island. Sora’s island.

“It’s true! I saw it myself!” Sora shouted after Riku.

“Are you sure you didn’t just hear it this time?”

“What’s the difference? I’m telling you, there’s a huge monster in there!”

The two boys stood in front of the waterfall. The cool water pouring down sparkled in the sun.

“All right, suppose there really is a monster… You think we can catch it by ourselves, Sora?”

Kairi wasn’t there. They were both still little. This was years in the past.

“Yeah! You and me can do anything! …Listen there, can’t you hear it growling?”

Sora tapped Riku on the shoulder and looked toward the bushes beside the waterfall. There was a dark passageway behind the bushes. Back then, Sora hadn’t known what would begin in that cave.

“Ssh. Quiet,” said Riku, staring into the passageway. “We’ve gotta be careful…”

They tiptoed inside.

There was a little cave with tree roots twining around the rocks. The ceiling had a great big hole in it, and they could see out to the bright blue sky.

Stepping into a new place they’d never seen before—just that much was a daring adventure for them.

“See? It was just the wind making that noise,” said Riku, looking up at the sky.

“Aw, that’s all? I wish it was a monster!” Sora folded his hands behind his head and let out a sigh. “Huh? Wait, what’s that over there?”

There was something in the back of the cave. Sora ran over to it.

Riku followed him, less hurried. “A window…or a door?”

It was a big wooden door, taller than Riku and Sora combined, with golden decorations, like something in a castle out of a fairy tale.

“A door…?”

“But there’s no way to open it.” Riku looked closely, but there was no doorknob or keyhole to be found.

“Geez…is that really all that’s here?” Sora kicked at a pebble.

Riku turned back to him. “Hey, Sora.”

“Huh?”

“When we grow up, let’s get off this island. We’ll go on real adventures, not this kid stuff!”

Just then, the wind blew over the hole in the ceiling and howled—the sound Sora had thought was a monster.

But it was somewhere new. A cave they had never been into before. And there could have been a monster. It was enough adventure to make their little hearts pound. A real adventure, though—what could be waiting for them out there? What would they find? Riku just couldn’t stand to be stuck on this island.

“Sure…but isn’t there anything fun to do now?” said Sora, not minding it much.

He couldn’t quite understand what Riku had just been saying. He hadn’t given much thought to having a real adventure together someday. That was far off, and he wanted to find something to do now. Something fun, right now, at this very moment.

“Oh, I know! Did you hear about the new girl at the mayor’s house?”

At that, Riku looked up.

“I heard she……”

The wind went on howling.

That was back before Sora and Riku had met Kairi…

Back when they knew nothing outside of their islands.

“Knock it off!”

Sora startled awake at Donald’s shout and sat up.

He must have been dreaming. When had all that happened? It felt like such a long time ago…

“Hey, Sora, are you okay?”

Goofy was looking upward with his shield ready. Beside him, Donald was stamping his feet.

“What are you guys doing?” asked Sora. “Where are we anyway…?”

“Well, we can’t be anywhere but inside Monstro,” said Jiminy Cricket.

“What about the Gummi Ship?”

“It must be somewhere in here, too.” Jiminy looked worried.

Suddenly a treasure chest came flying at them from somewhere up above.

“Whoa!” Sora jumped back.

“I think that big ol’ whale just swallowed everyone. And for today’s weather…expect showers!” Another treasure chest fell and clanged against Goofy’s shield. “A-hyuck! Heavy showers!”

“Hey! Who’s up there?!” Donald shouted angrily into the air.

“It’s me.” They could see someone moving up in front of them.

“Hm?” Donald frowned, staring hard.

“Pinocchio! Well, as I live and breathe! If it isn’t Pinocchio!” Jiminy scurried toward the figure—it was a boy.

“Pinocchio?” Sora, Donald, and Goofy looked at one another and followed Jiminy. The boy wore a yellow hat and a fine white shirt over shorts, and he was frantically rooting through a treasure chest.

“Pinocchio!”

“Huh? Oh, it’s you, Jiminy!”

The cricket hopped up and down in front of Pinocchio’s nose. When the others got a closer look, they could see that it wasn’t actually a human nose.

Donald and Goofy whispered to each other.

“Hey, is he…?”

“…A wooden puppet, isn’t he?”

The boy was not a boy at all, but a puppet.

“What in the world are you doing in here?” asked Jiminy, hopping up onto Pinocchio’s shoulder.

“Um… Playing hide-and-seek!”

“I just don’t believe it. Here I’ve been up at night, worried sick about you. Why, of all the— Pinocchio!” Then Jiminy’s voice rose in surprise.

“His nose grew!” shouted Donald, jumping up.

“Pinocchio, you’re fibbing again!” Jiminy scolded. “You know you’re not supposed to tell lies. A lie only grows and grows till you get caught! Plain as the nose on your face!”

“…I’m sorry, Jiminy… I’ll never tell lies as long as you’re around.” As Pinocchio said that, his nose glimmered and shrank back to its normal size.

“You need to be good so you can become a real boy. You promised Geppetto now, didn’t you?”

“Oh, that’s right! Father!” Pinocchio whirled around and ran.

“Where are you going, Pinocch? Wait!”

But Pinocchio kept on running as if he didn’t hear Jiminy at all.

“Come on, everybody!” Jiminy jumped up onto Sora’s head.

“Okay… But who is Pinocchio anyway?” Sora asked as they ran.

“He’s from the same world as I am. We lived together. Never imagined I’d find him in a place like this…”

“Gawrsh, it can’t be good to be inside of a whale!” said Goofy.

“Oh, what a handful that Pinocchio is…” Jiminy took a tiny white handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his face.

The murky interior of the whale’s mouth was full of piles of wreckage from other swallowed ships. There was no exit—Monstro’s teeth were tightly shut. Far in the back, there was one ship that had managed to keep its shape, with a lantern shining unsteadily from the mast, and the Gummi Ship was nearby. It seemed to be stuck there.

“Father!” Pinocchio ran to the old man who sat on the deck.

“Why, Pinocchio, wherever have you been?” the old man said.

“Umm…”

“Pinocchio, wait!”

Just as he was about to answer, Sora and the others clambered up, their faces just showing at the deck.

“Oh, dear me! So the whale swallowed all of you, too?” The old man helped them aboard.

“Oof! Thanks, mister!” Donald nodded to him.

“Pinocchio sure does like to run off,” Sora remarked.

“He must’ve been worried about Geppetto, too,” Jiminy said more charitably. “He’s a good boy, after all.”

“So who are you…?” the old man asked.

“I’m Sora, and this is Donald…and that’s Goofy.”

“My name is Geppetto. I’m Pinocchio’s father. Say, Pinocchio… Pinocchio?” He looked all around, but the little puppet had disappeared again.

“Jiminy’s gone, too!” cried Goofy.

“Let’s go find them!” Sora jumped down from the deck and ran after Pinocchio.

They went down the whale’s throat, and the walls changed from dim to grotesquely colorful. At the end of that narrow passageway, they came into a more open space, all curved and winding, with random differences in height.

“Pinocchio!” Donald called.

Pinocchio paused at the entrance to another chamber, looking back at the trio tentatively. Jiminy Cricket was riding on his hat.

“Sora!” Jiminy jumped onto Sora instead as they came closer. “I just didn’t know what to do when Pinocchio ran off like that…”

He took out his tiny handkerchief again and wiped the sweat from his face.

“What are you doing? C’mon, let’s go back,” Sora said, but Pinocchio didn’t move.

“Y’know, Geppetto’s awfully worried about you,” Goofy added.

“Stop fooling around! This is no time for games!” Sora told him.

It wasn’t Pinocchio who answered. “But, Sora, you used to like games.”

“Riku!”

He was standing above them up on a rise. His stunning blue eyes regarded Sora coolly. “Or are you too good for games now that you have the Keyblade?”

“What are you doing here?!” Sora demanded.

Riku jumped down and put a hand on Pinocchio’s shoulder. “Just playing with Pinocchio.”

“You know what I mean! What about Kairi? Did you find her?”

Riku smiled thinly. “Maybe. If you can catch us, I might tell you what I know.”

“Come on!” Sora stepped toward him, but Riku grabbed Pinocchio by the arm and fled. “Hey, wait!”

He broke into a full run after Riku.

“Sora! Wait up!” Donald yelled after him.

“What, Donald?!” Sora stopped and turned. Donald and Goofy were looking at him uncertainly, and Jiminy seemed concerned, too, from his perch on Donald’s hat.

“Why is Riku here?”

“How should I know?!” Sora snapped, stamping his foot.

“But…isn’t that kinda fishy? I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”

“We have to follow them. Or we might never see Pinocchio or Riku again!” With that Sora kept running.

Donald and Goofy exchanged glances, thinking for a moment, then nodded and followed Sora.

The long, narrow passageway was brightly colored but gloomy. Riku paused and hunched over to catch his breath. Pinocchio wasn’t with him—he’d run off somewhere else again.

“Why do you still care about that boy?”

Hearing the uncanny voice, Riku turned to find Maleficent standing there behind him. He frowned and looked up at her silently.

“He has all but deserted you for the Keyblade and his new companions.” Maleficent touched his cheek and Riku brushed her away.

“I don’t care about him. I was just messing with him a little.” Riku’s eyes gleamed with a fierce, cold light.

“Oh, really? Of course you were. But beware the darkness in your heart. The Heartless prey upon it.”

“Mind your own business!” Riku shouted, but Maleficent quietly vanished.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy ran down a long passageway.

“Gawrsh, I don’t see Pinocchio or Riku,” said Goofy.

“They have to be in here somewhere…,” Sora said grimly.

He had no idea what Riku was thinking.

Why is he doing this? Sora thought. We’re supposed to be friends.

But now…

“Sora! There’s Pinocchio!” Donald ran toward where Pinocchio was standing, peering at them curiously. And Riku was beside him.

“Riku!” Sora cried.

Riku only stared back without a word.

“What’s the matter with you? What are you thinking? Don’t you realize what you’re doing?!”

“I was about to ask you the same thing, Sora,” he replied, shaking his head. “You only seem interested in running around and showing off that Keyblade these days. Do you even want to save Kairi?”

“I do…” Sora stared down at the Keyblade glinting in his hand.

Finding Riku…and finding Kairi. That was what he’d first set out to do. But now, that wasn’t all.

He didn’t want any more worlds to be destroyed like Destiny Island. He didn’t want anyone else to go through something like that. So he was trying to lock all the Keyholes.

That didn’t mean he’d forgotten about Kairi.

Even now, he was thinking how much he wanted to see her and how he had to help her.

But…if he only tried to save Kairi, that wouldn’t solve anything in the end.

“Please, give me back my son!” Geppetto called from behind them. He must have been unable to stand just waiting for Pinocchio to come back.

“Father!” Pinocchio tried to reach Geppetto, but Riku caught him from behind.

“Pinocchio!”

“Father, help!”

“Sorry, old man,” said Riku. “I have some unfinished business with this puppet.”

“He’s no puppet! Pinocchio is my little boy!” cried Geppetto.

Riku gave him a chilly smile. “He is unusual. Not many puppets have hearts. I’m not sure, but maybe he can help someone who’s lost theirs.” He picked up Pinocchio.

“Wait—are you talking about Kairi?” said Sora.

“A puppet that lost its heart to the Heartless… It might hold the key to helping Kairi.” Riku smiled for real. “How about it, Sora? Let’s join forces to save her. You and I can do anything.”

Sora held the Keyblade, ready to fight.

“What, you’d rather fight me? Over a little puppet?” Riku stared at him unblinkingly.

“Pinocchio’s not just a puppet. He has a heart. Or at least a conscience!” Sora retorted, his voice full of strength and determination. “It’s a tiny little voice, but I can hear it loud and clear. And it’s telling me that letting you have Pinocchio is wrong!”

“Then you leave me no choice, Sora.” Riku let go of Pinocchio with a shove and looked down, balling his fists.

“Pinocchio! Pinocchio!” Jiminy hopped over from Donald’s hat to Pinocchio, who just barely opened his eyes.

“Jiminy… I’m not gonna make it…,” he said weakly, but then his nose grew a little. “Oh! I guess I’m okay!”

Pinocchio got to his feet, and Jiminy happily hopped up and down.

Just then a huge Heartless dropped down from above them—the Parasite Cage.

“Wak! Incoming!” Donald held out his wand. The Heartless was a big ball, with a wide mouth like a crack, and long arms waving like seaweed in a current.

“Riku…” With the Keyblade ready, Sora stared at him, but Riku seemed to look right through him. A black haze surrounded Riku’s body…the same as the dark energy that had engulfed him back on Destiny Island.

“Where are you going?! Riku!”

But Riku disappeared into that black glow, as if to drown out Sora’s shouting.

“Waaaak!” The Parasite Cage spat bubbles at them, knocking Donald back.

“Jiminy, Pinocchio! Geppetto! Get back, guys!” Goofy held up his shield in front of them.

Sora was staring after Riku, where the black glow had dissipated. Donald yelled his name, and he rushed at the Parasite Cage.

“Graaaah!” Sora brought his Keyblade down on its head. The impact was almost like striking metal, and the thing opened its mouth.

“Sora!”

“Aim into its mouth, Donald!”

“Blizzard!” Donald waved his wand and a great cluster of ice flew into the Parasite Cage’s mouth. At the same time, its rubbery arm smacked Sora and sent him flying.

Goofy ran to him. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine! Let’s get rid of this thing!” Sora rubbed his mouth and got up again with the Keyblade ready.

“Wak!” When Donald’s magic struck the Parasite Cage, it opened its mouth again. And then Sora rushed in, swinging the Keyblade with all his might.

Riku…!

It sounded like Riku knew where Kairi was.

And Riku…was turning to the darkness, trying to save her. Maybe.

Sora didn’t know what to do about it. Those feelings flowed into the Keyblade, and it seemed as if he hit the Parasite Cage with them.

He’d jumped into the thing’s mouth, and the others were getting nervous for him. Just as Donald called Sora’s name, light shot out of the Parasite Cage’s mouth.

“…There!” It spat out Sora and its body turned into light. Then the glowing heart slowly floated up, and the Parasite Cage dissolved with the light.

That was when Monstro’s body itself began to shake.

With all the fighting, the whale must have decided that it wanted the rabble-rousers out of its belly.

“Sora, let’s get out of here!”

“Right… But where are Geppetto and Pinocchio?”

The trio ran back toward the Gummi Ship.

“I told them to go ahead and get aboard,” said Jiminy Cricket, who at some point had taken up his perch on Donald’s hat.

“Gawrsh, I hope they’re okay…”

“Anyway, we’d better hurry!”

And just as they flung themselves aboard the Gummi Ship, there was an enormous tremor, and a blast of wind attacked the ship.

“Qua-waaaak!”

“Wahoo-hooey!”

Monstro sneezed and the Gummi Ship shot back out into the Other Sky.

“Whew…,” Donald sighed, holding on to the control stick. Behind them Monstro, looking a little ill, swam away to find somewhere more peaceful.

“I hope Geppetto and Pinocchio are all right…,” Goofy worried.

“Yeah. Hopefully they landed safely somewhere… Quack!”

“I just know they’re all right,” said Jiminy. “So long as they’re together, Pinocchio will be a good boy, no matter where they go.”

Sora sat huddled on the floor with the Keyblade across his lap, almost inaudibly murmuring his friend’s name. “Riku…”