Video Game: Kingdom Hearts SOS: The Road To Light

Steel's eyes opened groggily as he slowly came to awareness. He had been moved out of the street to lean up against a wall and the person who had come to his aid was standing in the entrance to the alley. What exactly they were watching for, he had no clue. He didn't seem to be missing any of his personal effects, so perhaps they were standing guard or looking for something.

He made to get up, not even bothering to hide the sounds of the groaning and shifting that escaped him. The other presence quickly turned to him, and Steel was able to see them clearly for the first time.

"You're Awake!" The woman's tone was both concerned and somewhat exasperated. He supposed that was to be expected, considering that he, a clearly very ill stranger in need of aid, had insisted on not getting a healer. Claiming that it would do no help likely wouldn't have calmed her at all. Still, she had seemingly respected his wish. Not that it had prevented her from grumbling about it. No amount of concern could seem to still her tongue as she complained throughout the entire process of helping him to his feet. "Stupid kids; always... blue... have to babysit them all." He didn't catch everything she mumbled to herself, but it seemed she was no stranger to having to assist strangers down on their luck. He found himself smiling in spite of the situation.

"I'm really sorry to have taken your time, Miss...?" The woman, dressed mostly in red, eyed him with a critical demeanor. He had a feeling he might be in for a scolding in the near future.

"Luara."

"Now what are you doing out on the streets in your condition kid? You in some kind of trouble?"​

 

Taking a deep breath, Stratos got ready for the next round that he would have to deal with. It was a bit surreal to think that he had made it all the way to the finals. One, because being in the finals of a fighting competition, especially one against his fellow SOS members was something he could've quite imagined. Two, because he couldn't help but feel that he hadn't really done much in this tournament. All the same, he was here now, and his opponent was right before him. He didn't look all that worse for wear, and while Stratos could imagine that he had also lucked out quite like him, he was pretty sure this guy was some kind of crazy strong. And so, bringing his keyblade up, he said, "alright Jecht, I'm not really sure who you are but as a fellow finalist, I'm not going to lose. So, let's go!" With that, Stratos fired off a howling gust of wind that was boosted by his sound aura towards the man.

 

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As the situation around them continued to escalate around them, AJ had provided some clarity that did less to ease him and more so put him on edge. He wasn't certain, but the 'Red Society' failed to ring any bells in his head, but the mere mentioning of the name Nequa had sent a multitude of warning bells throughout his body that had quickly got on guard for what was to come and a glare directed towards Luther. Talk of the supposed traitor only served to irritate him further as his fist tightened, yet he restrained himself from calling his keyblade. Kel irritation only grew knowing how right Beuce was regarding their chances. He'd only just gotten healed to the point in which where he could actually move his arms. What he could do now was nowhere near what he could to do normally. Karina eventually attacked and Luther's presumed 'friend' had attempted to defuse the situation. Regardless of that working on not, Kel had remained on in the event something else was tried.

 

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As he waited for Kel to say something Beuce had said that they were not in best condition to go up and fight Luther. Luther then came up to him. 'Oh, and while I'm at it, you may not have quite as much of a numbers advantage as you think. You already know about the Mole, don't you? Well, what's to say they aren't in this very room? Maybe it's you. You're comparatively a newcomer to them, aren't you? What reason do they have to trust you?' "I would not say I am new. You are right about them not having a reason to trust me but, I can not change how they feel. It is up to them to decide all I can do is try and make today better then the day before. Also I have not reason to betray them." He looked over to Alex. At the moment it did not matter who the mole was. "It does not mater who they are it will be found out at some point." Karina then proceeded to attack Luther. "Like Alex tried to get me to tell everything to him about who was in the tournament. Just ask him if I am going to betray any of the SOS. It is not going to happen. Sorry to disappoint." Kel did not say anything to him and he was kind of expecting more then that but what ever. He wanted to find Hades. The best place to find him was around the tournament.

 

As the winds made their way towards the clear favorite to win, Jecht demonstrated why. With his gauntlet hand, the man swiped at the air the moments the air came close enough, the howling gale striking the metal and being simply parried away. Stratos was a bit taken aback by the sight of how effortlessly the man managed to defeat his attack, with Jecht simply giving the boy a cocky smirk. "Well, there's more where that came from." Declaring this, Stratos created four orbs of water that he launched towards Jecht, each one homing in towards the man though coming from a different angle. As they came in from each side, Stratos then fired a blast of fire straight towards Jecht, attempting to trap him in the barrage of elements. The man, in turn, stepped back and lifted the sword into the air. With surprising deftness and speed the man managed to slash through each of the water orbs, neutralizing them, though still took the fire straight to the torso.

The fire, however, didn't seem to bother him much. Instead, still having a cocky smirk on his face, the man rested his sword back down before looking back to Stratos. "That little pipe of yours is a sword right? You don't think you can win just like that kiddo, do you?"

Grimacing at the taunting of the man, Stratos knew that he didn't have a limitless supply of magic at the ready to keep barraging him with. And even if he did, it was pretty clear that Jecht was just letting him get away with it, and could probably counter whenever he felt like it. Even knowing this, he likely didn't have a chance in closer quarters, but he didn't really have much of a choice in this scenario. Taking a deep breath, Stratos readied himself yet again as he charged his keyblade with lightning, cherry blossoms beginning to fall from the sky. Letting loose a thunder bell at Jecht, the man seemed ready to parry the attack, only for Stratos to then vanish from where he was. The underworld ringer was caught off guard as Stratos then appeared behind him and a giant cut had appeared on Jecht's torso. As the thunderbell was getting close to him, Jecht went to strike at it again, only for him to then feel the impact of the slash, knocking him away only to then be hit dead on by the thunderbell.

The crowd went silent as Stratos managed to hit Jecht with a series of powerful strikes, the man being pushed back and somewhat motionless after the attacks hit. However, his posture soon returned to normal as he rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck. "Alright kiddo. Good warm up. But let's show the crowd how pros really fight, alright?" Stratos's eyes went wide as the man seemed to still be pretty healthy despite the damage he sustained, and even more so as Jecht sprinted towards him. The man seemed almost entirely unburdened by the weight or size of his blade as he raised it with one hand.

The blade igniting, Jecht slashed at Stratos and the boy in turn brought his keyblade to guard against the attack. One, two, three. Jecht continued to slash at Stratos repeatedly only for him to continue guarding against the attack, if only barely, and feeling the weight and heat behind each strike he managed to. However, as the rhythm continued, Jecht then brought up his foot and kicked Stratos in the gut. Being thrown off and winded from the kick, Jecht then used his blade to knock Stratos's keyblade out his of hand before going for a headbutt. Dazed, Stratos then was knocked off his feet and away as Jecht punched him with metal gauntlet hand.

With his senses being a bit out of whack, Stratos took a moment to reorient himself, catching his breath and picking himself up from the ground. Jecht didn't look too worried to press his advantage, and instead still seemed to be smiling as Stratos appeared to still have some fight in him. Summoning his keyblade back to his hand, Stratos steadied himself as he pointed his blade at Jecht, ready to keep the fight going.

 

Ananta ended up laying there on the ground for awhile. She didn't notice her grandmother had disappeared. She was taken out of her anguish by Aux's voice, causing her to shoot up. Looking up to him, she wiped her eyes and stood up. "I suppose I'm okay. Somehow saw my Grandmother..." she scratched her head. "Any idea on that? Like, did you see something similar...?" she asked. "Where's Luna? Have you seen her yet?"​

 

Luna sat there on her knees with her head down in defeat and guilt, awaiting her demise. "It's my fault.....All my fault......I....I'm sorry....Mama....Papa...." A tear dropped onto the ground as her apology left her lips. Before Frollo's blade had reached Luna, another blade countered his. "What?!" Frollo looked up to see who had stopped him. Ursula loosened her grip on the princess to see who had interfered. The minute she lowered her guard, the stranger had fired at Ursula a beam of light.

"You will not lay another hand on my daughter." Luna's eyes widen and immediately shot her head up in the direction of the voice. There stood an armored man with long silver hair and sword in his hand. Tears started to fill her eyes. She couldn't believe who or what was in front of her. The man drew his sword and pointed it toward Frollo and Ursula. "The sins that you claim that my daughter bears....They weren't hers to begin with. They were responsibilities that I left her and my son with." Frollo scoffed at the man's words. "Your words are meaningless, fool. Whether their your sins or not, she still has to pay the price for committing such heinous sins." Ursula chuckled as she spoke up. "Haha! It's still the same in the end Pops! You're dead! And soon your little girl will be too for her mistakes!!" Luna shut her eyes tight as she looked down. "She's.....She's right....." Luna let out quietly. "She's right. I did nothing when I saw your majesties being cut down......I ran away from the people who needed me most.....Our people needed someone to rely on....Someone to let them know everything was going to be alright....A leader.....They needed a strong leader but I ran away because I was scared......I lost not only a King and a Queen....I....I lost my mother and father!!! What in the gods' name was I supposed to do?!?!" The man sighed as a sad expression crept on his face at the sight of his daughter in shambles.

Frollo raised his sword once again. "And so I say once more, Smite the wicked and plunge them into the fiery pit!!!!" Ursula got ready to attack. "Time to say bye-bye sweetheart!!" The man immediately went into action as he rushed in to save Luna. The man immediately blocked both of their attacks. "I warned you not to lay another hand on my daughter!" The man swung his sword to knock away Frollo and Ursula. He then plunged the sword into the ground, casting magic through it and sending it as shock waves against Frollo and Ursula. The shock waves sent them flying back against the wall.

The man then turned his head to Luna. "I need you to listen to me loud and clear, do you understand?" Luna kept her head down with her eyes shut tight. "Lunala!!!" The man shouted. Luna's eyes shot wide open. The man took a deep breath before speaking again. "What happened that day was not your fault. Not in the slightest." He shook his head. "You did what you thought was right. Not just as Princess of Solara Lua but as Lunala Kiatespira.....daughter of Aaron and Marisol Kiatespira...our daughter." Luna slowly raised her head to look her father in the eyes. "Do you have any idea how proud you and your brother have made me and your mother? We've watched over you and Lucian both. Your paths and the actions you both have taken, have made us so proud to call you both our children." Tears fell down from her eyes and started rushing down her face. "You...You are? You....You're not disappointed in me?" Aaron shook his head as a smile smeared across his head. "Neither of you never give us a reason to. We support your decisions 100%." Her tears had started flooding down rapidly across her face. "Luna.....You must continue to fight on and walk the path you've chosen. The path you believe will help our people the most. I know you and Lucian will do nothing but your best to aid our people and restore the kingdom better than before." The man turned his body and knelt down to her eye level. He placed both hands on her shoulders and smiled. "You are capable of so much, my child." He placed a hand on her cheek and rubbed away a tear. "You've already accomplished so much. You've expelled the curse of our bloodline and turned that into a blessing. You've even befriended her when she had nothing left. You also were able to control the keyblade and are still unlocking its many secrets. You've found some of the hidden colonies and ensured the world they were in was deemed safe. You even found your betrothed after so long." Aaron's smile grew with each minute. "Don't you see sweetheart? You've done so many things and are still saving people, even if they are not of the kingdom. You are a light leading the people into a new dawn. You and your brother both. You have what it takes. Have I ever lied to you?" Luna shook her head. "No." Aaron smiled before continuing. "Then you should know that my words have and will always ring true." He stood up and reached his hand out to her. "Now....will you stand tall and continue to shine your light? Will you stand up and fight to help people see a new day?" Luna looked up at her father, slowly reaching out her hand with a slight hesitation. She closed her eyes and opened them once more, with a resolve shining in her eyes. Aaron smiled as he saw a light shining in her eyes. She took a hold of her father's hand and stood up.

Luna grabbed a hold of her keyblade."I will." She smiled. "There's people waiting for me to help them. I have too many things that must get done and I won't fall here! For as long as there is air in my lungs, I will continue to fight and I will continue to pave the way toward a new day!" Aaron smiled as Luna turned her head towards Frollo and Ursula. She walked a couple steps ahead of her father. "Whatever actions I took in the past....it doesn't matter....As long as the actions I'm taking now help at least one person, that's all that matters. The actions I've taken thus far...It has helped so many people and it will continue to help people until the day I take my last breath. Then I leave it to another's capable hands." Luna placed her left hand over her chest and closed her eyes before reopening them. She placed her hand back at her side. "And the actions I choose to take now..." Aaron walked to her side and drew his sword. "Is to take you both down! For good!!" Aaron and Luna sprinted toward the two, blades in hand. They raised their blades and with one swift strike....got rid of Frollo and Ursula.

Luna stood up straight and sent away her keyblade. Aaron placed his sword back into its sheath. Aaron looked at Luna and with no time to react, felt the arms of his daughter around his body. "Papa!" Luna's tears ran down her face once again. Her father tightly embraced his child. "My little girl..." A tear dropped from his eyes. "You've grown up so much....I almost can't recognize you....I've missed you and your brother so much.....We both have..." Luna spoke up. "I swear to you and Mama right now....I will bring you guys home....You're not dead.......when me and Lucian restore our kingdom...You both will come back......I swear we'll do everything in our power to bring your majesties back home, safe and sound." The man shook his head. "Your main focuses should be on our people...not us....However...We believe in you...Both of you..." He pulled away before stroking her hair. "You must continue on your path. Find your brother and save our kingdom. This is a journey you must face without your mother and I." He smiled once more. "Your mother and I want you to know that we love you. That we love you and Lucian so much and we are so very proud of you." Luna smiled through her tears. "I love you too....Papa....We both do." Aaron hugged his daughter once more before letting go. "Now hurry. Our people are waiting." Luna nodded her head before running ahead. She stopped in her tracks and looked back. Her father was no longer there. She wiped her tears before speaking softly. "You have my word.....Your Majesty." Luna knelt on her right knee with her right hand over her heart. She stood back up and continued to walk as the fog grew clearer and clearer.

Luna saw Ananta and Aux up ahead. Ananta had asked Aux where she was. "No need to worry. I'm right here." She walked up to the two. "I apologize if I worried either of you. I'm alright. More importantly, where to next?"

 

For quite some time, Marx was stuck hugged next to the large three headed dog. He wondered if the others faired better than he did. Done with being a teddy bear he decided to turn his keyblade into his flail form and threw it upward around a stalagmite then hoists himself upward out of the dogs grasp. Soon after he landed on the ground he heard the dog waking up and dashed his way out of the room slashing any Heartless that was in his way. Then coming to a fork, Marx looked around unsure on where to go. “Great... Where to now?” He muttered to himself until seeing a figure down one way that seemed familiar to him which made him call out, “Hey! Wait!” Marx was following the mysterious figure but lost them a few turns later and seeing Aux, Luna and Ananta talking to a heavily muscular man. So he walked over to rejoin with them. “Glad I caught up with you guys, I was getting tired of that- those dogs teddy bear. Not sure how long it realizes I left. Now, where to?” Asking kinda abrupt while crossing his arms and looking around for the giant three headed dog in case he wasn’t followed.

 

Luna looked around the area for at least some sort of clue to help them escape. A man had then appeared in front of him as he was thanking his father. The man soon drew his sword, claiming the group in front of him were just illusions Hades had made. He had called them sirens or nymphs. Luna rose her hands up while the man's sword was aimed at them. Aux was then a bit puzzled at the man's claims. Luna turned to Aux and explained. "Sirens and Nymphs are different creatures. Nymphs are kind of similar to fairies with the difference being in size. They're usually found in nature, for example, among woods, lakes, and/or mountains. Sirens, on the other hand, get confused with mermaids, however the difference is that sirens are half-human half-bird creatures that would use their songs to entrance anyone that hears it." Luna paused, thinking it might be strange how she would know this, so she decided to explain. "I did a lot of studies on that particular subject. It was mandatory that I know that information.....They're kind of common back home and we've maintained peace with them for centuries so it was best that my brother and I learn as much as we could." Luna then turned back to the man as she lowered her hands. The man had then put away his sword and introduced himself as Hercules, son of Zeus and Hero of Thebes. Aux had introduced himself and the other two to Hercules. Hercules turned to the two girls and saluted them with a friendly smile. Luna smiled back before taking her right leg and placing it back to curtsy. "Very nice to meet you Hercules!"

Luna stood back up and then turned to Aux. "Zeus is the God of Thunder and the King of the Gods. To put it simply, he's a very very important person." She paused once more. "I had to do a lot of studying. Hehehe..." She scratched her head, feeling a bit awkward. The girl turned back to Hercules. "What would the son of Zeus be doing in a place like the Underworld? If you don't mind me asking that is!" Luna was a bit curious to the appearance of Hercules. She then looked around to perhaps find a clue or lead as to how to escape. She turned back to Hercules. "Would you happen to know an exit out of the Underworld? If it's not a bother to you!"

 

As Karina launched an assault onto Luther, she found her keyblade pass right through where she thought his body was and strike the stone of the ground with a loud clangor. Luther appeared into vision behind her, sword to her back. "Honestly, you're the easiest type of person to beat, but we have other things that need doing, so it'll have to wait." He walked over to where Alex had exited. "You'd think you would've learned your lesson after the first time. Oh well, your trust is no concern of mine." The man said before exiting the room.

Beuce, meanwhile, gave a sigh of relief. "It's best we just let him go for now. If he works for Nequa, you can be sure we'll see him again. Maybe at the time, we'll all be in better shape to take him on. For now, it really isn't a good idea." ​