//------------------------------// // Exorcised // Story: Hollow Heart // by Dapper Guy //------------------------------// I hunger… A pale figure sailed through the night sky of the Neverland world. The white specter flew towards the towering clock tower, Big Ben. The clockhand’s shifted and soon it would be midnight in this world. It was almost time for the heartless, Phantom, to go out in search of more hearts for it to devour. The Phantom drifted slowly in front of the face of Big Ben. His white cloak flapped in the open air, as hidden eyes surveyed the world around him. He watched the lesser heartless below crawl around the streets, a swarm of endless locusts. If he could’ve felt anything, it would’ve been pity at how mindless those Heartless were. Big Ben rung out, midnight had finally come. More hearts, I need more hearts… The white cloaked specter flexed its black claws with anticipation. It began to descend to the city below, ready to feast on the countless, sleeping masses. A sudden, unfamiliar sensation began to rise up inside of his chest. The Phantom looked towards the sky. Three objects, one green, one blue and one red, were heading towards his clock tower. He had never felt anything such as this before. He didn’t like it all. He felt his ethereal form shiver as the three figures began to draw closer. He flew unseen towards them, trying to make sense of what had causing this feeling. Phantom dove down below, weaving in and out of houses, chimneys and through solid walls. When he was directly below the three, he flew upwards. The sensation was there again, urging him to run away. He shook his formless head, now wasn’t the time to waste on such thoughts. These creatures had strong hearts and they will be his. Yet as he approached the red figure, he couldn’t help but want to flee. When he was close enough, Phantom recognized it as a human. The top of his head was covered with spikey brown hair. It wore overly, large yellow shoes on its feet and a white and red jacket. It looked towards him, staring at the formless face beneath the hood. Another human, with a green feathered cap flew by his side, a golden ball of light circling around his form. The other was some kind of bird in a blue jacket, holding some kind of staff that radiated powerful magic. He disregarded the other two as he stared at the young boy. For some reason, he struck that nerve wracking sensation deep inside. Flying swiftly towards his clock tower, Phantom hovered in front of the clock’s face. No matter, what can one human hope to do against me… The young boy put a hand forward. Small flecks of light began to glow around his outstretched hand, forming together into a long slender shape. A large sword formed in his hands. A golden heart was affixed to the top, with golden filigree traveling down the side. The handle guard was gold and blue. Below it, an ornate white heart with gold lining. Phantom felt his very being tremble with fear. Keyblade… The boy raised his weapon, pointing it directly at him. His piercing blue eyes stared into the emptiness within his hood. No... No... I will not fall like the rest… He charged forward, black fire rising up from his form. I will not fail… I will not fall to you... keyblade wielder… He could feel the countless hearts deep within him surging up, surrendering their power to him. I will be the end of you, keyblade wielder… His claws clashed against the fabled weapon, searing his hands at the mere touch of it. I will devour your heart… Krsshh! Phantom swiped at the keyblade again, trying in vain to disarm its wielder. With every attack, his blows gradually grew weaker, weighing down with exhaustion. Yet, he couldn’t stop. Even if he ran and hid, the keyblade would hunt him down until he was destroyed. The keyblade wielder pointed his weapon at Phantom. At the tip of the blade, a small spark ignited and grew into an immense ball of fire. “Fire!” The keyblade wielder’s spell launched forward, striking Phantom in his core. He could feel the intense heat searing him from the inside. Phantom could hear the pleas of the hearts inside him, crying out to be released by the keyblade. Redoubling his efforts, Phantom conjured up fire of his own. His hands became wreathed in violet flames, twisted magic of the darkest kind. The dark fireball shot out, straight at the keyblade wielder. It hit him square in the chest, knocking him several feet before he regained his composure. The boy's breath was shallow as he clutched his stomach in pain. However, victory was still far from Phantom's grasp. “Sora!” Several pink flowers blossomed above the keyblade wielder’s head. His burns began to fade away from Phantom’s attack. The white bird with a blue jacket held his staff above his head, his magic pouring into the keyblade wielder. With renewed strength, the keyblade wielder pushed forward, swinging down the keyblade at Phantom and striking at his core again. The battle continued raged on far above. Phantom drew on any reserves of power from the hearts inside to protect him. With each swing of the keyblade, he shifted the protective power of his core to another element. But each time he thought he had the upper hand, the keyblade tore apart his defenses. Fire burned him, ice chilled his innards and lightning sundered him. Phantom tried and tried again to outwit the keyblade wielder but was met only with failure. As he felt his body convulse violently, Phantom knew he couldn’t take much more. I…refuse… to lose…to you, child… The keyblade wielder looked afraid, almost as if it had heard him speak. Phantom flew towards Big Ben. Raising his arms to the night sky, several balls of white fire erupted out of Phantom’s hands. Soon there were twelve ghostly balls of fire encircling Phantom. His hand gestured towards the clock face. The white fire danced in the air as they began to hover in front of the clock. Each one hovered in front of a number on the clock. Time’s up…keyblade wielder… Big Ben’s hands started to move on their own, increasing in speed as they began to move. The number twelve in ghostly white lettering appeared over the keyblade wielder’s head. He looked up in confusion until he saw it begin to shift and change to eleven. Apprehension dawned on him as he looked back at the clock to see the hour hand moving towards eleven. Your heart…is…mine… The keyblade wielder darted forward, keyblade pointed directly at Phantom. Phantom surrounded himself in a sphere of white fire. People down below watched in amazement as a large explosion appeared in front of Big Ben. I win… The tip of the keyblade pierced through his protective wall of fire. What is- The keyblade wielder charged through with the keyblade gripped firmly in hand. Pain wracked his body as the keyblade pierced through his core of hearts. Phantom wrapped his claws around the keyblade wielder’s throat. Not...yet...my time…isn't... He looked on into the wielder’s eyes. He stared back at Phantom but not with fear. Courage burned deeply beneath his blue eyes, striking fear into Phantom. “Light!” The keyblade began to glow bright until it shone like a miniature sun. The blade slashed Phantom in half, finally shattering his core. No… Phantom felt his body begin to fade away. He could feel himself being pulled back into the endless void of darkness. His vision began to grow cloudy, the world around him turning pitch black. Phantom felt the countless hearts he collected bursting free from his core. Released from their captor, they returned back to the great heart, Kingdom Hearts. A pain like no other he had ever felt lanced through his body. The one great heart he had first devoured freed itself from Phantom. I…I…have failed… Without the power of his stolen hearts to sustain him, Phantom faded away. Back into darkness he was born from. Sora watched as the powerful heartless fell before disappearing. “Whew, we finally beat him,” he said, wiping the sweat from his brow. It had been a rather tiring fight. If it weren’t for Donald’s magic, Peter Pan’s quick thinking and the keyblade, he wasn’t sure he would’ve made it. “Can’t believe how strong that Heartless was.” “No kidding,” wheezed Donald Duck in his raspy voice. The court magician flew over to the top of Big Ben and lay on the roof. “What was the deal with that Heartless anyway? We sealed the keyhole to this world a while ago. Stupid Heartless.” “Tink says it’s been eating up hearts all around London. Will they get their hearts back, Sora?” asked Peter Pan. The green clothed warrior looked on deep in thought while his oldest friend, Tinkerbell, buzzed around Sora. Sora tapped his chin. “I don’t know, Peter. Once we beat Ansem, all the worlds taken be the heartless should be restored.” The keyblade warrior tugged on the sleeve of his jacket. “We’re going to have to trust our hearts that everything will work out.” Sora felt his turn back to Big Ben. Throughout that entire fight, he could’ve sworn he felt something different about that Heartless. It had remained hidden, waiting for the right time to go out and hunt for hearts. Why did that Heartless, seem, different? Shaking his head, he decided it was best to forget about it. It was just another Heartless that needed to be defeated. “Okay, we need to head to that Heartless World next.” Peter Pan nodded his head. “Don’t forget, Sora. You have to bring Kairi to Neverland. You’ve got to show her how to fly.” Sora smiled earnestly at Peter Pan. “You bet. Let’s go Donald,” said Sora, ushering his friend to get up. “It’s time to fight Ansem.” Donald muffled a groan of protest but finally got up. The two waved good-bye to Peter Pan and Tinkerbell as they made their way to a save point. I won’t let the Heartless devour anymore hearts. It's time to defeat Ansem.