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So review six things. Find a new TV show on the internet and binge it. Read a book series. Take a nap. All of these are repeatable.

Think of a game you wanted last year and get it. You said that you normally couldn't get them all, right?

Or, Batman. Batman is always a good choice.

Why would there be courtroom puns? Neither Superman nor Batman are lawyers. Maybe a few journalist puns, or detective puns.

Haha, totally forgot it was Friday. Oops. Oh well, these things happen.

Spoiler: Chapter 13 - Darkness

Xehanort stood, calm and proud, amongst eleven other black hooded figures. Behind him was yet another army, but this time there were Nobodies along with the Heartless. Worst of all however, was the trembling group surrounded by a ring of Gigas Shadows and Gargoyles. Children. Xehanort was using innocent children as hostages! The air was thick with tension as a deadly quiet seemed to settle over the battlefield. Sora could feel the others shaking with rage beside him. Xehanort stepped forward, a malicious grin on his face. Only then did Sora notice that he was wielding two blades. The addition was sickeningly familiar. The Keyblade of Heart, the very weapon he had stabbed himself with all that time ago to release Kairi’s heart. He shuddered.

“I saw into your heart when my Keyblade connected with you Red Hood,” hissed Xehanort. “I saw everything. Your strengths, aspirations... fears, weaknesses. “

Sora gave Red Hood a sideways glance but with the helmet on it was impossible to tell his reaction.

“I knew that if your friends were successful in rescuing you, I would need a way to make sure my plans succeeded. I refuse to endure another failure. So I used what I learned about you, you and your family, to seal my victory.”

Batman was practically growling with suppressed rage as he stepped forward. “You sick-”

Xehanort raised a hand coolly, then glanced at one of his companions. The hooded figure broke away from the group to retrieve one of the children. The kid came stumbling forward whimpering and shaking.

“Here's how this is going to work,” the man growled. “I and my associates are going to release every single one of your hearts, to ensure that none of you ever interfere in my plans again. And if you fail to comply, we shall turn these children into Heartless here and now.” He pointed his Keyblade at the wild-eyed child beside him.

Sora was shocked, frozen. Xehanort had never taken things this far before. Shaking his head, he attempted to rationalize the situation. He was sure many kids had been taken by darkness before now. Heck, entire worlds had been destroyed. Why should they give up now? Even if they did surrender, Sora knew the man would leave the children to the Heartless anyway. ...But, that still didn't make sacrificing them right. In fact, Sora felt in every fibre of his being that leaving the children to the Heartless was evil and despicable in every way possible. Feeling dread close in around him, Sora gazed around at the others.

“This is so wrong.” Dick whispered hoarsely.

“Nothing we haven’t dealt with before” Batman mumbled. “You all need to keep him distracted while I come up with a strategy.”

Tim raised his eyebrows at that, and despite everything Jason couldn't help but grin.

“We can try,” Dick said. “But hurry up B. There's only so much monologuing a villain can manage.”

As Batman disconnected from the conversation to concentrate, the five others stared blankly at each other at a loss. Finally Red Hood stepped forward.

“Isn't making all of us into Heartless a little much baldy?” He questioned. “Technically you only want me right? You could turn me into an evil zombie right here and now, use my Nobody for whatever it is you need it for, and the others couldn't do anything about it because of the hostages. Turning us all into Heartless is overkill really. “

Shaking his head Xehanort sighed. “Have I not made myself clear? I am not taking any more risks with you or any of your comrades. You might have fooled me once, but it won't happen again.”

Now Sora came forward to join Jason. “You know Xehanort, using children is pretty low. Even for you.”

This time the man laughed. “My dear boy,” he grinned, “aren’t you a child yourself? And I have used you for my own gain in the past. Why then should this come as a surprise?”

Sora bristled. But before he could counter, Robin joined the others and surprised him as he said. “Sora isn't a child. Nor am I for that matter. We are distinguished warriors, not defenseless innocents. What you are doing is an unforgivable and cowardly act.”

Sora looked over at Robin gratefully, but the young crime fighter was too busy glaring heatedly into Xehanort's eyes to notice.

Xehanort inclined his head, frowning. “Your disrespect is concerning, but not altogether unexpected considering your age.”

The two simply glared daggers at one another for a few seconds.

“I grow tired of this little game” Xehanort said at last, hoisting his Keyblade up so that it's tip rested on the petrified boy's chest. “Come forward now, or I shall release this child’s heart.

“Go” Batman whispered quietly. “When visibility is reduced, I need everyone to begin a surprise attack and fight to protect the hostages until I can evacuate them to safety.”

Sora had no clue what the man was planning, but he understood there wasn't time to ask. They would all have to trust that things would make sense in due time.

They were walking forward now, hands held up in a placating gesture, and Batman whispered so quietly that they all had to strain to hear, “Sora, you stay by the group of hostages and take down any Heartless. The rest of you, hold off the cloaked figures.”

Then he fell silent as they approached the awaiting enemies. Stopping several feet from them, the Bats and Sora watched as Xehanort directed six of his warriors to move forward, Keyblades raising menacingly. Panic coursed through Sora. The figures came nearer with each step. Their fleeting chance of escape was practically nonexistent. Nothing was happening! Time seemed to slow down as the dark Keyblade Wielders lifted their weapons for the final strike.

A low quiet hum radiating over their heads was the only warning before a series of hissing noises erupted from the surrounding area and smoke began to swirl into the air, reducing visibility in seconds. All of them knew that this momentary distraction was the time to move. Leaping into action, Jason drew his swords and lashed out at the two hooded figures in front of him. Tim kicked at the one before him on Jason's left while Batman seemed to have completely vanished on his right. In a matter of seconds the entire scene had dissolved into chaos. The Bats were using the distraction to the fullest of advantages, pushing their enemies back and refusing to let them find their bearings between a blur of slashes, punches, and kicks.

Sora darted in the direction of the children the moment the fighting had begun. He only found them when he was within two feet, the smoke was so thick. There were five kids, all huddled together and cowering as Heartless surrounded them. With a fluid motion Sora cut through the creatures and circled around the children checking for more enemies. Heartless and Nobodies were lurking a few feet away but hiding in the shadowy smoke. It was only then with a jolt that he remembered there was another child with Xehanort. Only moments after the thought struck him, Nightwing came sliding to a stop next to Sora and placed the kid on the ground; he was either to weak or too scared to stand. With a quick wave Dick leapt back into the smoke, leaving Sora to circle around the children, protecting them as best he could.

It was extremely difficult to fight when he couldn't see. It came down to lashing out at anything that came into view. Sora desperately hoped his friends would stay away from him, as he wouldn't be able to distinguish them from the enemies. But from the sounds of metal clashing on metal and angry or pain filled yells, he was fairly confident that they were being kept preoccupied.

Jumping off an approaching Darkball and reducing it to a cloud of swirling darkness, Sora flipped over the group of children to come face to face with a Dragoon. It caught him by surprise and he made to jump out of the way of its lance before remembering the children were behind him. Planting his feet into the ground he flicked his Keyblade up and took the entire impact of the attack. It broke his defense and he stumbled back, barely managing to catch himself before he tripped over the kids now huddling together on the ground.

“Don't worry guys.” He said encouragingly despite the huge, menacing creature approaching them. “I’ll make sure nothing happens to you!”

Sora would have preferred to attack the Nobody from behind, but knew he couldn't in this situation. So he charged foreword, directing his blade into a break in the creature's armour. It flinched, but didn't dissipate, instead swinging its lance heavily back down. Knocking it away, Sora sidestepped and twisted his Keyblade into another weak spot as the creature thrust its lance at him yet again. It dissolved from his attack just as its lance tore his sweater, half an inch from his skin. Too close. A muffled scream had Sora turning instantaneously to see three Mega Shadows closing in on the children. His heart sank. They were so huge. He raised his Keyblade quickly. Sora had been hoping to preserve all his magic for possible injuries but this couldn’t be helped.

“Fire!”

The first creature stumbled back, flames licking its chest. The other two stopped in their approach long enough for Sora to lunge at them. He swung his Keyblade smacking the Mega Shadows backwards. All three enemies were now a safe distance away, but they hadn't dissolved. It would take more than that to down these monsters. Sora braced himself, but just as they began to charge, flashes of light tore through the smoke and cut into the creatures, making the area explode in dark mist. Seconds later, Sora was staring up at the Batwing, with Batman leaning over its side, hovering several feet above the ground. At Batman's outstretched hand, he understood immediately and picked up one of the children, carefully handing the crying child up. He felt exposed as he knelt down again and again, knowing that an army of Heartless and Nobodies hid just out of sight. But Batman was taking care of any enemies that ventured to close with exploding batarangs. Finally all the children were secure and Batman sped off into the open sky without another word. Feeling a wave of relief, Sora turned to find out that much of the smoke had cleared by the presence of the plane, and what he saw terrified him.

Dick was lying on top of a bush, not moving. He had a bunch of Braig’s arrow-laser-things sticking out of his chest. Mercifully, his chest was still moving, but he needed medical attention right away. Tim was lying still and, based on the long narrow crater between him and Isa, he had been thrown pretty far. Was his leg supposed to bend that way? Damian was lying next to him, half-frozen. Literally. And Jason…

Jason was kneeling in the middle of the clearing, holding his upper arm, blood running down his fingers. His helmet was broken again, showing off a good portion of his upper left face. Xehanort had the Keyblade of People’s Hearts leveled directly at his chest. Isa and Braig were standing on either side of Jason, hands pressed firmly on his shoulders. The other nine hooded figures were standing back, not getting involved until they were needed.

Braig leaned down close to Jason’s ear. “Now, be a good boy, or I’ll shoot the little one full of holes. Got it?” He raised his arm towards Robin, his finger tightening on the trigger.

However, he wasn’t able to finish his threat. At that moment, Sora dived in, swinging his Keyblade so it knocked both the Arrowgun and Xehanort’s Keyblade off of their intended courses. His next swing blasted both Braig and Isa away from Jason. Finally, he whirled, aiming his Keyblade at Xehanort.

Free to move now that that nut job with the eye patch wasn’t pointing a gun thing at his brothers, Jason drew his gun with his good arm. Eye Patch hadn’t quite caught his balance from Sora’s attack, so he leveled his gun at him and fired. Repeatedly. The first shot landed in the *******’s shoulder, but the rest passed through thin air. He looked around wildly, trying to find where Eye Patch had teleported to. A small metallic click had him diving to the side, glowing purple arrows slamming into the ground behind him. Jason looked up. Eye Patch was dangling upside down in midair, ponytail swinging above him, an angry grin on his face.

“Oh dear, now that’s just not polite. Shooting before your opponent is ready?” That condescending tone twisted in Hood’s gut. He really wanted to shoot this ass in the face. Before he could, Eye Patch vanished again.

Pulling his helmet off, he closed his eyes. Years ago, Batman had given him some sensory deprivation training. He hadn’t really used it since he had come back from the dead (or from the darkness or wherever Nobodies came from. He hadn’t been listening), but he hoped he remembered enough to be useful now.

There were the sounds from Sora and Xehanort’s battle. Metal clashing against metal, the scuff of feet on the grass, angry banter, the distinctive whine of magic. Dick, Tim and Damian, breathing, barely, but breathing. The nine other hooded figures were breathing as well, almost as still as his fallen brothers. And the small click of a trigger, to his left.

Red Hood lifted his gun in the direction of the noise and squeezed off four shots. Three thuds hit flesh, and the ponytailed ******* cried out in pain. Opening his eyes again, a fierce grin spread across his features. None of the injuries were fatal, but with three bullets in his legs and one in each shoulder, Eye Patch wasn’t going anywhere any time soon. All that was left was X-Face.

Sora was winning. It didn’t seem like Xehanort had recovered from his fight with Sora and Jason the previous day. Had it really only been a day? Seemed like longer, but then, if it had been, Xehanort wouldn’t be limping from a knee injury or wincing from a shoulder wound, would he? Jumping back, Sora tossed his Keyblade in a Strike Raid. The Keyblade of People’s Hearts went flying, landing in the dust half a field away at the same time Sora’s Keyblade smacked into his palm. He dashed forward, sweeping his Keyblade in a move which would definitely toss Xehanort’s other Keyblade out of his hand.

The nine hooded figures raised their hands simultaneously, glowing darkly. Nine dark orbs crashed into Sora’s chest and sent him flying back. He landed heavily, vision swimming. A shadow fell over him as he fell unconscious.

Jason’s heart stopped. X-Face was standing over where Sora had landed. The Bats were crumpled behind him, still breathing, but not looking too good. Mullet head had a massive claymore positioned over Dick. “Enough. It is clear that these pitiable creatures are the things tying you to the light.” He turned his cold yellow eyes up to Jason. “Perhaps, if I eradicate them for you.” He raised his claymore, then brought it down, straight for Dick’s head, in what was sure to be a killing blow.

Time seemed to freeze, and then suddenly, he was falling. Everything went dark. He closed his eyes. He had reached terminal velocity, the fall would kill him. Wait. Something was slowing him down, turning him upright. His eyes snapped open as he landed, both feet touching solid ground. Jason looked around, confused.

He was standing on a black surface, surrounded by infinite darkness. “Where am I?”

It is called Dive to the Heart. Jason whirled towards the voice. Standing in a spot which Jason would swear had been empty a second ago was, well, Jason. The entirety of its being was made of darkness though, with the exception of glowing yellow eyes. Unlike the Heartless Jason had seen so far though, this one stared at him with intelligence in its eyes. It is normally a place for Keyblade Wielders to Awaken. But it is also a place we may speak.

“Who are you? What do you want?”

I am your darkness. And I want to help you.

Jason snorted. “Yeah right. Why should I believe you?”

You must. Or the ones you have given your heart to will die.

“So that’s it then. I give in to darkness, and Xehanort wins.”

No. I am your darkness. He wishes to put in his own darkness. His wishes are not mine.

He blinked. This was unexpected. “What do you mean?”

I am your darkness. You must be you. I do not exist otherwise. Dark Jason cocked his head slightly. I can give you power. To save the ones you have given your heart to.

Tempting. “What’s the catch?”

I am your darkness. I wish to continue. Do not drive me out again.

Hmmm. “If we do this, we do it my way. You don't try to take over-”

It was not I who tried to corrupt your heart. Xehanort had very persistent darkness. It was a piece of this which tried to express itself. But what hurts it also hurts me.

“Fine. But we have to figure out a way to get rid of that later. You help me with that, I won’t let Dick do his little ‘light hug’ again. Agreed?”

Dark Jason paused, mulling it over. Very well. He melted into the floor, and Jason stepped back in surprise. As soon as his foot landed, light burst out, the darkness peeling from the floor like butterflies. He raised his hands to protect his eyes.

When he lowered them, he was standing on a stained glass window. The design was strangely personal. It featured him, his eyes half closed as if he were falling asleep. He was wearing his uniform, but his helmet was in his outstretched hand. His other hand held an All Blade and a gun was strapped to his thigh. The background was ringed with the symbols of his family. The Batsymbol. Nightwing’s bird. His own bulkier version of the Batsymbol. Red Robin’s sigil. Robin’s R. A more delicate version of the Batsymbol, the one Batgirl uses. The middle was littered with disjointed images. A tire iron, exactly like the one he had used to steal the Batmobile’s tires. A cookie. A batarang and a birdarang. A green circle, overlaid with a crowbar. Red crossed arrows over a starburst. It was his life, done in brightly coloured glass. The light shone again, and Jason opened his eyes.

Spoiler: A minor question I had regarding this chapter which is kind of a spoiler but not really

Ok, so Arrow and I weren't sure whether to call them Braig and Isa or Xigbar and Saix. Were they Somebodies at the end of DDD? In the cutscenes, I'm pretty sure they were Xigbar and Saix but Sora defeated them, so by technicality, they should be somebodies again, right?

You guys have fun with that. Let me know when the regime changes. Or when the mods beat you all down into submission. Not back into submission, that implies we were there to begin with. But still, one or the other.

*Sits in corner and reads*

Those are the recommended rock care instructions. The Bare-Minimum Human Care instructions are eat, sleep at some point, water. Not necessarily in that order.

Here we go! An extra long chapter, just for you guys! And a bunch of other people on the internet...

Spoiler: Chapter 12 - Something Wicked this Way Comes

As soon as they arrived in the cave, Bruce was already gearing up and gestured to the screen quickly before turning to check his weapons. An audio channel was open, directly linked to Riku. “What's up Riku?” asked Sora. “What did you find out?”

“Nothing about Hood’s problem if that's what you were thinking. Sensors have picked up an enormous surge of dark energy on the outskirts of Gotham. We're talking about hundreds of Heartless, at least. And not the wimpy kind either. “

But no Xehanort?” questioned Jason.

“Well that's just it.” said Riku. “I think that Xehanort is summoning all of these Heartless to make sure he accomplishes his goal properly. This time he has back up. I think he also wants to try and turn Hood evil again. The large concentration of Heartless will probably speed up the process.”

“How do we know that he is aware Hood is back to normal, or even that he has this darkness issue?” asked Tim.

“We don't. But considering that we are dealing with Xehanort here, I wouldn't put it past him to have found out. He still has that piece of his heart in Red Hood remember, so it's very likely he knows about his condition. Maybe he thinks Hood will come to his side willingly if he is overcome by darkness.”

“Will he?” asked Dick before Jason could speak.

“Don't know. It's up to Hood. Darkness affects people in a variety of ways. But it is never good in the long run. In the end it all comes down to will power; if you can control the power the darkness brings or not.”

“So just to get this straight: you think Xehanort is going to turn up in this area that all the Heartless have appeared in, and bring the other vessels of darkness with him?” asked Sora wearily.

“Scanners already show that something other than the Heartless is creating a portal there. And I can't imagine it would be anyone else.”

“Wait a second!” Tim said sharply. “We're just supposed to run into that mess without a solid strategy? The odds are way stacked against us! Why aren't we taking our time and coming up with a plan?”

“Yet again, the matter of your self-proclaimed intelligence proves to be questionable.” Damian growled. “We have to go and defeat the Heartless before they attack any more innocent people, Drake.”

“We won't be much use if we are overrun by, what was it, thirteen dark warriors and hundreds of Heartless?!”

“Only twelve now that Hood's back to normal,” interjected Sora

Tim rolled his eyes. “Well, that's a relief. Seriously, isn't anyone worried about this?”

Batman had had enough of the bickering. He walked over to the group of boys pulling on his cowl. “I understand your concern Red, you're absolutely right. But innocent people’s lives are at stake here. If in every single crisis we chose to strategize instead of act, many people would die because of our inability to take the initiative. We will have to stay close to one another and work as a team.”

He shot a warning glare at Jason and Damian.

“It is also vital to use your comm. units and stay in touch. With this kind of battle, initial strategies usually fall apart because of the unpredictability and number of the enemies. The most important thing is to stay in contact with one another, and work together when possible. Improvise and strategize as you go. Understand?”

All present nodded, though Tim looked hesitant.

“Get ready then!” Batman ordered. “I want us out of here in three minutes.”

Riku’s voice crackled to life again. “If you're lucky you will be able to take down most of the Heartless before Xehanort and his buddies arrive. It will be difficult enough just facing them.”

“Understood.” Batman ground out as the others rushed away to get ready.

Ten minutes later the Batwing was nearing the specified location. An air of tension surrounded the group huddled inside. Everyone could tell this was not going to be an easy battle. Even Damian and Tim refrained from snapping at each other, merely glaring out opposite windows. Sora stared out the window too, trying to spot their enemies the moment they came into view. It wasn't difficult. A speck of black was rapidly approaching, vividly standing out against the surrounding greenery as Batman brought the plane into a quick decent. With dread, Sora watched as the black blob became more defined; it seemed to be slithering and bubbling with the volume of creatures that made it up. Then, they were close enough to make out the sheer unimaginable number of Heartless that were slithering amongst each other. As they came to a bumpy stop roughly 100 yards from their enemies, it was as if a blanket of black shadows covered the entire field for miles in front of them.

The Heartless weren’t too far out of Gotham. In fact, a major road expanded through the mass of creatures, effectively cutting off civilians. The tall black forms and twinkling lights of buildings contrasted vividly among the setting sun.

They exited the plane quietly, all waiting for an order from Batman, who in turn put a finger to his cowl.

“Riku, I assume no humans have turned up yet?”

“That's correct, though as I said, the portals have been established. They could come at any time.”

Batman then turned to look at his fellow crime fighters. “We are going to fight in pairs, and I don't care if you don't like it. We need to have each other’s backs at all times. I want everyone to stay close regardless, but pairs will help us to avoid unnecessary risks. Red Robin, you're with Nightwing. Red Hood, go with Sora. Robin, you're with me.”

The waves of Heartless were already beginning to drift towards the intruders, their yellow eyes locked on to their victims.

“Go!” barked Batman, and the three teams charged forward.

The moment the order left his mouth, Batman launched himself at the mass of darkness. He grabbed one of the Heartless (from the files he had downloaded from Riku’s computer, he knew this one was called an Invisible) around the neck and twisted. The neck didn’t break, but the head did pop off, so he counted it as a win. It didn’t seem like these creatures had much of a skeleton though, which took breaking bones and crippling them out of the picture. He would either have to pummel them until they dissipated or go for fatal blows. The idea made him a bit ill, but it would be faster than beating them. Besides, the creatures would simply return to this “Kingdom Hearts” place and reform as Heartless once again.

He activated the shock pads in his gloves, located right above his knuckles. He shot a right hook at a Wyvern. It was a glancing blow, just clipping one of the wings, but electricity coursed through the Heartless and it evaporated. Using the momentum from the attack, he kicked out his foot, right into the jaw of a Stalwart Blade. Its head snapped sideways and it too vanished in a cloud of darkness.

Keeping an eye on his Robin (always), he positioned himself to cover him. Robin would lash out with his katana, sometimes throwing a batarang, Batman would block a blow or three, never relenting in his melee assault. After years of fighting with his Robins, his body automatically readjusted itself to provide the best cover for the smaller figure by his side.

A sudden earthshaking explosion sounded from the direction Hood and Sora were in. Both Batman and Robin lost their balance. There was a moment of concern when a flying Angel Heartless took advantage of their moment of weakness and swooped down, but, by some sort of coincidence, Red Robin flew through the air, colliding with the creature. He landed heavily, but due to the Angel slowing his fall, sustained no injuries. Red Robin stood, nodded quickly to the Dynamic Duo, and launched himself into the air, using another Angel as a stepping block to go higher. Once he had attained maximum altitude, he spread his glider cape and flew down to Nightwing.

Batman grabbed another Heartless (a Cymbal Monkey), and smashed his armored forehead in between its eyes. It dissipated, giving him a moment to check his suit. The shock gloves were running out of power. No matter. He had a few back-up cells in his belt. No serious damage to the suit, although a Luna Bandit had gotten a lucky shot in and scratched the Kevlar on his side. It would hold up. He went back into position next to Robin.

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes at his father’s protective antics, Robin decided on a much more useful outlet to his minor frustrations. Namely the massacre of every single creature in front of him. He was secretly glad of the nature of the opponents. Although he fully believed in Batman’s code, he could not help but chafe under the rule, unable to use his abilities to their full potential. Now however, he could make the most of his training, the training he had been receiving since he was a small child. These creatures could not truly die, so killing them wasn’t a sin. And Robin made full use of this, with every swing of his sword. Still, this battle was growing stale. The creatures had no individuality, no real challenge.

A thought popped into his head, one which would hopefully alleviate his boredom. Tapping the comm. in his ear, he spoke quickly, “Dr- Red Robin. Shall we have a competition?”

A bit of static preceded Drake’s reply. “What kind of competition Demon Spawn? Who can defeat the most Heartless?”

“Indeed. Father and myself versus you and Nightwing.”

More static, but instead of Drake replying like he expected, Todd’s voice came on, “Ooh, I like the sounds of this. I want in. Winners get new motorbikes, paid for by the losers.”

Sora piped in, slightly panicked. “Ja- I mean, Hood! I don’t have any money from this world!”

“Don’t worry Sora,” Nightwing was, as always, quick to reassure. “Hood knocked over the entire Chinese mafia a few years ago. He has enough money to buy a fleet of motorcycles, with more besides.” Damian could almost hear the dazzling smile in his brother’s voice. “I’m game.”

Red Robin and Sora both accepted the bet. There was a moment of silence before Batman realized that they wanted him to be in on it too. Rolling his eyes, he simply grunted. The boys had been with him long enough to know what it meant: Fine, but be careful.

A wicked grin spread across Robin’s face. “Then we are agreed. Starting now!” Not one to lose an advantage, he launched himself at the creatures. With renewed fervor, he slashed his way through a ridiculous looking Heartless with no legs and an eye dangling out of its unusually round head. Setting his mind on partial autopilot, he made note of every Heartless’s attack patterns, lopping off a limb or slicing open a chest with every opening. Batman had replaced the power cell in his gloves, sending Heartless after Heartless to an electrified end. He was keeping track of how many both he and Robin had defeated. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust his son to keep the proper count. He simply didn’t want the temptation in front of the boy.

They kept up their assault. At one point, Robin scaled Batman’s back while he was sweeping a Defender’s legs out from under it. When Batman straightened, Robin jumped, using the combined momentum to leap twice as high. He brought his sword down, slicing through the Defender like a hot knife through soft butter.

When the area was finally cleared of threats, Robin turned on his comm. “We defeated one hundred and forty-seven of the incompetent beasts. What is your count Red Robin?”

Tim replied, grumbling the whole way. “One hundred and forty-two.”

Robin crowed with victory! “I expected no less from a lesser being. Surely, the only reason you got that much is because Nightwing was helping you.”

“That’s not true Robin!” Nightwing, interceding again on their argument. When would he learn to stay out of it? “Red actually got most of them. And don’t celebrate just yet. We don’t have Red Hood and Sora’s count.

Robin’s grin fell. He had forgotten about Todd and the intruder. Cautiously, he asked, “Hood? How many did you slay?”

There was a moment of smug silence. “Well baby bat, since you asked so nicely, I feel obliged to tell you…” a dramatic pause. Damian rolled his eyes, “about the one hundred and fifty-eight Heartless Sora and I knocked off.”

“WHAT?!” Todd had not only beaten him, he had beaten him by eleven Heartless? Todd would face his wrath for this.

“It’s true Robin.” The almost too-helpful voice was undeniably Sora’s. Sora would face his wrath too. And Drake. Grayson too, but only if he tried to get in the way. “We were both keeping score.”

Damian was about to tell them exactly what they could do with their scores when a sense of deep foreboding settled over him. He shivered, not knowing why. From the silence on the comm., the others were feeling it too.

He looked up to his father, who showed no sign of discomfort. Instead, Batman moved, towards the feeling, which was coming from the other side of a hill to the north of the field. Robin followed, keeping close.

Near the crest of the hill, the other two groups met up with them. Batman’s eyes narrowed at their conditions. Nightwing and Red Robin were both pale under their masks, and sweating more than they should have been from the amount of exercise they had gotten fighting the Heartless. Sora was decidedly ill-looking, his face pale and his eyes unfocused. It was impossible to tell what Red Hood’s face looked like under the helmet, but his posture was slumped and his movements a bit slower than usual.

They sat for a moment, almost at the top of the hill. A moment simply to sit and rest. All of them wanted to spring into action right at that second, but they knew it would be a bad idea to go in at less than full strength. After a while, the feeling of dread slowly faded. Or perhaps it simply affected them less. Either way, the group finally stood and walked those last few steps over the hill.

There was a moment of stunned silence, broken by Sora’s almost hopeless voice. “No…”

~*~​

As soon as Batman barked “Go!” Dick leapt into the action, showing off his overenthusiastic acrobatics as usual. Red Robin followed close behind, bo staff clutched tightly in his hands. Nightwing hit the first Heartless feet first, throwing it backwards as it dissipated into dust. With a fluid motion he pulled his escrima sticks from their compartment and turned sharply on one foot, downing another three shadows that were closing in on him.

Tim ran up the first large Heartless he saw (a Neoshadow), and flipped off it swinging his electrified bo staff in a wide arc, effectively wiping out four Heartless. As they vanished, a few Gargoyles took their places, surrounding Tim as he landed. He struck out at them in quick successive strikes, and though they stumbled back, it was obvious that they were too heavily armoured and wouldn't fall easily. He wished he could just use some kind of anaesthetic gas on these guys, but he knew it wouldn't affect them. The creatures didn't even breathe air. They had to have a very interesting biological make up. Leaping to his feet, Tim took out a few batarangs and aimed them at the weaker looking spots between the Gargoyles plated skin. One of them stumbled back and vanished, while the other three swiped the projectiles away with their claws and charged. Tim pushed off the ground with his bo staff and leapt onto the head of the nearest one, dodging its deadly looking claws. He shoved his bo staff into the creature’s neck, then flipped off it behind another. He kicked out at its legs, and leapt aside as it fell heavily. With a final kick he finished it off, then turned to face the last one. But it had disappeared.

Suddenly a huge explosion rocked the battlefield. The ground seemed to tremble and both Red Robin and Nightwing, along with all the Heartless around them, lost their footing and stumbled. What the heck had that been? Tim turned his head in the direction of the noise, Jason and Sora's direction.

A huge force slammed into Tim's side, forcing him off his feet and up into the air. He hadn't accounted for the airborne Heartless that hadn't been affected by the tremors. He scowled; that was pure carelessness. Once airborne, he was unprepared for how open and unprotected he was as numerous winged Heartless closed in around him. All he could manage was to put his staff up in defense before a charging Avalanche's claws thrust him backwards with surprising force.

“RED!” Nightwing yelled as his partner went flying far into the ocean of Heartless.

Concerned, he began fighting his way through the hordes of creatures in Tim's general direction. It was like trying to beat back a moving wall. The more enemies he took down, the more appeared in front of him. He was about to contact Jason and ask if he and Sora were okay when Red Robin came gliding back in his direction. Relief immediately flooded through him.

“You okay?” He asked as Red Robin landed.

“Little winded, but fine.” Tim ground out. They were both breathing hard from the amount of time that had passed since the beginning of the fight.

“I caught a glimpse of Hood and Sora while I was gliding back by the way. There's a huge flaming hole in the ground, but whatever caused it seems to have avoided damaging either of them. Hood was stumbling a bit, but I didn't see any injuries.”

Sighing in relief, Nightwing flipped backwards. “Thanks for the info Red!”

Nightwing then began jumping from Heartless to Heartless, jabbing at them before twisting away and hopping onto the next one. He had just landed on a Windstorm who had been causing a particular amount of trouble when he heard Damian’s voice come through his comm.

“Dr- Red Robin. Shall we have a competition?”

Grabbing the Heartless's wings and performing a move which was very much like a German suplex, Nightwing glanced over at Red Robin a few yards away.

The kid had paused for a millisecond in mid attack before ducking the Heartless's razor claws and then back flipping, kicking up at the creatures head when he was on his hands.

“What kind of competition Demon Spawn?” he panted as he punched a Darkball that had gotten to close. “Who can defeat the most Heartless?”

Tim could nearly hear the overconfident smirk in the kid’s voice as he replied. “Indeed. Father and myself versus you and Nightwing.”

Tim was preparing to respond with a subtle insult when another voice broke in. “Ooh, I like the sounds of this. I want in. Winners get new motorbikes, paid for by the losers.”

“Ja- I mean, Hood!” Sora's concerned voice piped up. “I don’t have any money from this world!”

So Jason wanted in too. This was getting interesting. Tim sidestepped another Neoshadow’s attack and swung a deadly strike at it with his staff as Nightwing joined the conversation.

“Don’t worry Sora. Hood knocked over the entire Chinese mafia a few years ago. He has enough money to buy a fleet of motorcycles, with more besides.” Lashing out at a Dustflier, Nightwing jumped back and displayed an evil grin. “I'm game.”

There was a pause as they waited for Batman's approval before a grunt gave them all the affirmation they needed. It was one that said: Fine, but be careful.

“Then we are agreed. Starting now!” Damian barked.

Both Nightwing and Red Robin set into their work with a renewed drive. There were no more interruptions to their combat. They were circling each other, constantly taking out Heartless as quickly and efficiently as they could. Tim was keeping precise track of the creatures slain in his mind. Nightwing was aware and left the record keeping to his younger brother. He was concentrating on precise strikes that would take enemies out the fastest. With something to focus on, the task of clearing the battle field passed much more quickly. As Nightwing sliced through a Mega Shadow, it came as a shock to him that when he whirled around in an attack ready position. There were no more enemies to face.

“We defeated one hundred and forty-seven of the incompetent beasts. “ Damian’s voice rang out over the comm. link. “What is your count Red Robin?”

Tim frowned and crossed his arms. Nightwing couldn't help grinning at the reaction. Was he pouting?

“One hundred and forty-two.” Tim mumbled.

As expected, Robin’s voice was laced with unsuppressed superiority. “I expected no less from a lesser being. Surely, the only reason you got that much is because Nightwing was helping you.”

Nightwing raised an eyebrow. “That’s not true Robin! Red actually got most of them.” He paused and turned towards the figures of Red Hood and Sora, which were too far away to talk to directly, despite being visible in the now empty field. “And don’t celebrate just yet. We don’t have Red Hood and Sora’s count.”

“Hood? How many did you slay?” Robin asked slowly.

“Well baby bat,” Hood’s voice rang out, “since you asked so nicely, I feel obliged to tell you…”

Nightwing held his breath despite himself while Red Robin rolled his eyes.

“…about the one hundred and fifty-eight Heartless Sora and I knocked off.”

“WHAT?!” Robin's angry voice shouted through the comm., making Tim flinch.

Sora's happy voice finally joined the conversation. “It’s true Robin. We were both keeping score.”

Suddenly the conversation fell silent. Tim stood still, feeling his senses prickle with fear. He glanced over at Nightwing who was standing stock still and frowning. Red Robin wondered if his face was as pale as Nightwing's. Probably, if how he felt was any indicator.

Fighting off a wave of nausea, Tim saw Batman and Robin start to move towards the direction the feeling seemed to be emanating from. Ignoring their instincts, he and Nightwing followed. By the time they had all met up with one another, everyone was looking pale and weak. Sora especially seemed to be effected badly by whatever this was. But the colour began returning to their faces after a few minutes passed. Resting was obviously the smartest option before facing whatever it was that seemed so foreboding. Nightwing was thankful that Batman was allowing it.

Finally Batman began walking forward and the rest obediently trudged behind him. But when they saw what was waiting for them, the little colour they had regained vanished.

“No.” Sora whispered.

~*~​

Hood surged forward the moment Batman barked the “Go!”, guns blazing. With startling accuracy, he managed to fire into the seething darkness and get headshots every time. Sora could only stare in wonder, even as he blocked a claw headed for his heart. He ducked inside the swing, running the Lance Soldier through the chest. Momentarily blinded by the rush of darkness, he heard rather than saw the Driller Mole coming up from behind him. Almost lazily, he stepped to the side and slashed through it when it drove past him. This entire adventure in this world may have been one confusing thing after another (masks and metas and blood tests and guns), but he knew Heartless, and he knew how to fight them. Gripping his Keyblade with both hands, he did what he did best.

Thankful he had thought ahead this time, Jason pulled yet another magazine out of his pocket, reloading his gun for what seemed like the millionth time. He was facing off against this massive Heartless with tusks curling out from its lower jaw and a horn sprouting from its forehead. Not going as well as he had hoped. The thing was ridiculously armored. It lowered its head, trying to gore him with the horn and he got an idea. Diving to the side and grabbing one of the tusks, he rode the monster as it straightened, launching himself into the air. Landing lithely on top of its head, he grabbed the horn and reached down, discharging his freshly loaded magazine into its eye. Well, until his gun jammed. Unfortunately, that only seemed to make it mad. It shook his head, launching him again.

Carefully standing up (ribs, only bruised, not broken), he growled. A round-headed Heartless tottered its way into his path and, frustrated, he kicked it towards the massive creature, just as the larger one gave out a roar. Somehow, the tiny round thing landed in the big one’s mouth. Sighing, Jason dropped his jammed gun and summoned an All Blade, walking back towards the monster –

– which exploded. Jason, luckily out of the blast radius, still managed to catch a piece of tusk on his helmet. That, plus the earth below him moving in response to the explosion, had him without balance for a few moments. Hoo. Dizzy.

Sora, hearing the explosion just behind him, whipped his head around. “Hey, are you alright?”

“Just peachy.” Shaking his head to clear out the cobwebs, he asked, “So why did the thing explode? Was it the tiny Heartless it swallowed?”

“It swallowed a Heartless?”

“Well, the one I kicked into its mouth. Round black head, cracked open like an egg, skinny, no arms, swirl on its head?”

“That was a Minute Bomb. Those explode.”

Under his helmet, Jason grinned. Excellent. He could do something with that. Exploding Heartless had the potential to liven up this otherwise pretty boring battle. Heartless were easy. Before he could reply though, his comm. crackled. “Dr- Red Robin.” That was Robin’s voice. Wonder what he was up to. “Shall we have a competition?” Ooh, that sounded fun.

“What kind of competition Demon Spawn?” There was a dull thud in the background, as if Tim had punched something. “Who can defeat the most Heartless?”

“Indeed. Father and myself versus you and Nightwing.” The poor child seemed so confident. Well, he did have Batman on his side.

Wait.

Were they planning on doing this without him? Not gonna happen. So Jason piped up. “Ooh, I like the sounds of this. I want in.” Should probably make it more interesting though. He did need a new motorbike. “Winners get new motorbikes, paid for by the losers.”

Suddenly, Sora was pulling at his sleeve, the most worried look on his face. “Ja- I mean, Hood! I don’t have any money from this world!” That was a good point. His weird translucent yellow coins were worthless here except as interesting baubles.

Nightwing, unable to keep quiet as always, spoke up. “Don’t worry Sora. Hood knocked over the Chinese Mafia a few years ago. He has enough money to buy a fleet of motorcycles, with a lot more besides.” This was true. More thuds, followed by Dick’s most annoying, evil tone. “I’m game.”

There was a slight pause as everyone else waited for Batman. He grunted. Jason grinned and shut off his comm.

Sora was, again, confused. “I don’t get it, what were we waiting for?”

“Batman. If he’s not in on the game, it’s not as fun. That grunt is Batspeak for ‘Fine, but be careful’.”

Sora blocked another strike. “How could you tell that?”

“Years of practice. Now focus kid. I really want that motorcycle.”

Sora shrugged. He wondered if motorcycles were anything like the Light Cycles from Tron’s world. Still, a competition seemed like fun. Jumping, he landed himself in the middle of a group of Heartless. Bringing up his Keyblade, he fought off six of them at once, smacking one and either pushing it back or dazing it, then moving on to the next one. He fought around the circle, attacking before any of them had time to recover. He finished them off then leaped into the next group. The entire encounter took about thirty seconds. He was careful to keep count of how many Heartless he took out. Keeping track of Jason’s was a bit harder, but he managed.

Running another few Heartless through, well, the hearts, Jason smiled to himself. A competition was just the right motivation. Keeping track of both his and Sora’s kills was simple, he still had one of his guns and the All Blade made everything easier. Spinning under a Heartless carrying a book, he slashed upwards, spearing it, while at the same time firing off his gun at another three Heartless. He stuck close to Sora, mostly so he could keep count, but also because he was starting to get a feel for the kid’s fighting style. Back in the streets, when they had been fighting their first horde, he had noticed that Sora had a very loose style, not like the tightly controlled styles of anyone trained by Batman. He had though at the time that it was a weakness, but looking at it again, it fit. Against a group of thugs, the kid could put up a fight, but would probably lose. But one on one or against a group of mindless creatures like the Heartless and Nobodies, this style was definitely best.

All too soon, they ran out of Heartless. They were exhausted, but happy. Jason turned his comm. back on, just in time to hear Robin’s smug little voice. “We defeated one hundred and forty-seven of the incompetent beasts. What is your count Red Robin?” He pulled off his helmet and smiled at Sora. He knew where this was going.

“One hundred and forty-two.” Ouch. Jason could almost hear the pout in Tim’s voice. Losing to the Demon Spawn had to hurt.

Of course, Robin made everything worse by gloating. “I expected no less from a lesser being. Surely the only reason you got that much is because Nightwing was helping you.” He was gloating too soon. He was completely ignoring the fact that Jason and Sora were in the competition. Oh well. This was entertaining to listen to.

“That’s not true Robin!” Dick, ever quick to defend his younger brothers. “Red Robin actually got most of them.” This was probably true, but Jason wouldn’t have been surprised if Nightwing had weakened a bunch of them before Red Robin finished them off. “And don’t celebrate yet. We don’t have Red Hood and Sora’s count.”

A small silence, followed by Robin’s voice, full of trepidation. “Hood? How many did you slay?”

Jason grinned. “Well baby bat, since you asked so nicely, I feel obliged to tell you…” He stopped, just realizing that he hadn’t confirmed his count with Sora yet. Switching off his comm., he asked, “Sora, just double checking. One fifty-eight?” Sora nodded, and Jason turned his comm. back on, continuing, “about the one hundred and fifty-eight Heartless that Sora and I knocked off.”

“WHAT?!” The enraged shout made everything he had been through in the past two days worth it.

Sora smiled. “It’s true Robin. We were both keeping score.” He didn’t really care about the prize, but the competition had felt really good. It reminded him of fighting (and usually beating) his friends back on the island.

Did that mean they were friends now?

That happy thought was washed out of his head a moment later when a feeling of dread washed over him. Almost instantly, he felt sick. He hadn’t felt this way since he had stabbed himself. He looked to the hill across the clearing. Somewhere on the other side, something massive and dark was happening.

He turned his eyes over to Jason, who looked just as sick as he felt. Grimly, his companion pulled his helmet back on and started towards the hill. Sora followed, noticing that the other two groups were doing the same. When everyone had sat down near the top of the hill, he took a moment to check on his other friends’ conditions. Nightwing, Robin, and Red Robin were all pale and sweating. Batman didn’t seem to be affected, until Sora noticed that his mouth was pressed tighter than usual and his hands were tight fists on his lap.

All too soon, Batman stood up. The rest of the group followed, seeming to be feeling much better. Sora still felt sick though, and from Jason’s slight stumble when they started up the hill, he did too. He didn’t have time to dwell on the fact though. They climbed over the hill, and what Sora saw horrified him. Unable to speak more than a whisper, Sora spoke. “No.”

See, it's behaviour like this that makes the rock sticky. It's also not good rock care. Rocks need to be kept in someplace warm and dry and preferably sunny for at least four hours a day.