The Grim: A Kingdom Hearts Tale

Mercen-X · 09:49 PM

Sora the Keyblade Master of Light
Riku the Keyblade Master of Dawn

Xanalia the Lurking Shadow
Xykel the Shadow of the Sun & Moon
Xorteh the Slithering Serpent
Slaxeum the Unknown Guru
Nexas the Twilight Tracer
Xacnihlos the Hex Bringer
Xewlecran the Majestic
Raxdjon the Magus
Kratox the Red Dragon
Xelxa the Herald Angel
Xepter the Pale Enigma
Thiasmax the Arcane Wonder
Xacirh the Rage of Whirling Winds

Mercen-X · 09:58 PM

The Heartless & The Nobody

"When a person loses their heart to the darkness, the heart is separated from the body and is changed into a sentient being called a "Heartless." The discarded body also retains its sentience; it becomes a "Nobody."
However, such is not the case for all creatures. Many strong-willed individuals possess such resolve against the darkness that they are able to harden their hearts to it; they then become "Gems."
There are seven princesses whose hearts are so pure that no darkness could ever possess them; they are called the "Princesses of Heart." It was only by their purity that they did not become Heartless or Nobodies when their hearts were stolen.
Unfortunately, the same could not be claimed entirely for young Kairi. After her heart was broken and given to Sora, her body remained as it was. However, when Sora freed Kairi's heart from his body, he also liberated his own heart and became a Heartless and his body disappeared to the World That Never Was where it became a Nobody. Though his friends attacked him, Kairi recognized him and protected him. In an unforeseen circumstance, Kairi had given up her body, allowing her to share her light with Sora and free him from the darkness. Although they appeared to be themselves, both were merely half of who they were. In this same instant, Kairi's body also became a Nobody.
Technically, Sora and Kairi were now Heartless. However, the purity of Kairi's heart had made them something more.
As to the trinity that encompasses life: those without hearts cannot truly die. A question is then raised as to what becomes of the soul when the body is destroyed. This becomes the Grim. The raw energy released from the body and uninhibited by the heart possesses the potential to do good or unleash tragedy. The Grim are childlike in form and behavior. They act on their own instinctual desires. At times, this may lead them to help the living. At others, they become far more dangerous than any Heartless or Nobody."

Begin: Yojimbo

Sora whipped out two keyblades. "Guardian Soul! Fenrir! Combine!" He brought the keyblades together and they both disappeared in a blinding pillar of light. "Yojimbo!"
Suddenly standing between Sora and the army of Heartless, a mysterious man in a wool cloak appeared out of the pillar of light. His face was hidden beneath a large straw hat.
"Go!" Sora shouted.
Yojimbo turned to Sora with a curious look. He then gestured by rubbing two of his fingers against his thumb.
"What?" Sora wondered aloud, clearly not understanding.
"I'm a mercenary." Yojimbo explained in a low, hardened voice. "I don't fight for free."
Sora was taken aback. "Fine." He tossed some munny which Yojimbo caught in hand. The Heartless were already swarming in on them both as Yojimbo examined the funding.
"Hmph. I guess this'll do." He said at last.
As a number of Shadow Golems leapt upon Yojimbo, he threw open his wool cloak revealing the dull attire he wore beneath. There were three long blades on his left hip and a bag to the right. He dug into the bag and pulled out a handful of bladed items. As he launched the throwing knives into the onslaught, the approaching Heartless were blasted back. Plenty of Heartless were destroyed and though the Golems didn’t disappear, they also did not recover quickly.
Sora took this opportunity to attack with a third keyblade. He whipped out the Ultima Weapon and charged into the army of Shadows. Slowly, he whittled down the ranks of Shadows, Neoshadows, and Omnishadows and rid himself of the powerful Shadow Golems.
As Armored and Iron Knights began to appear within the field, Sora turned to the lone warrior who deftly dodged the attacking Heartless until he was left with no choice except to counter.
"Yojimbo!" Sora shouted.
Yojimbo did not respond.
"Yojimbo!" He shouted again.
Yojimbo merely stared at Sora.
With a frustrated growl, Sora dug out a bag of munny and hurled it through the air. Yojimbo caught the substantially larger sum of munny and gave an affirmative nod. He then threw open his wool cloak and stepped out, placing his right hand on one of his three blades.
Sora watched Yojimbo for a moment and then prepared to jump as high as he could.
"Wakazashi!" The mercenary shouted and with one swing, he took out half of the Heartless horde.

Chapter 1: Dragoon

"Then that is the path you must walk, my disciple."
"Where will I find them, Master?"
"Travel beyond the realm of chaos. Enter the city of scattered souls. The citizens of Traverse Town should be able to point you in the direction of Radiant Garden. When you've reached Radiant Garden, inquire after the Ansem Tower. From there, finding them should be simple."
"I understand, Master. I am leaving immediately."

----

"Welcome to Traverse Town." A teenage boy said as the young man entered the town through the large wooden doors that closed it off from the rest of the world.
"Who are you?"
"Me. No one, really. You can call me Tom."
"You're a local?"
"No. I came here after my world was destroyed by the Heartless. It hasn't been restored so I have to make due here."
"Anyone around here know where I can find the Radiant Garden?"
"Hmm. Cid used to run the Accessory Shop just up those stairs." Tom said; a thumb pointing behind him. "Radiant Garden was his homeworld so when it was restored, he went back. I don't know how to get there myself. But maybe Cid left a clue."
Taking the teen's advice, the young man walked over and entered the Accessory Shop.
He noticed the salesman behind the counter.
"Hello!" The man said. "How can I help you?"
"I need to get to Radiant Garden."
"Ho! Hmm. Sorry. 'Fraid I can't help with that."
"A kid outside said the previous store manager lives at Radiant Garden."
"Ah yeah. Cid. You hope to find a clue in here somewhere then, right?"
"Is it gonna cost me something?"
"Hmm. Well, not exactly. How about you just scan my wares and see if there's something you like on the shelves?"
The young man eyed him suspiciously. He took a look around the shop just as the man asked. When his eye finally stopped on an item, the man started to speak.
"That would be a Wind Ring. There are a number of elemental rings to find. This one protects you from the violent winds. You could ride a tornado and come out no worse for the wear."
"How much?"
"Two thousand..."
"Buying this Wind Ring... would earn me a look behind the counter?"
The man tilted his head slightly. "Buy anything you want. But nothing in this shop shares the worth of this Wind Ring."
The young man reached into his pocket and pulled out a small bag of munny. He set it on the counter and received his Wind Ring from the manager.
He then walked leisurely around the counter, as if he'd just put down munny on a share of this shop.
The man stepped aside and watched carefully as the young man ransacked the area behind the counter. A crashing sound made the man jump.
"Hey! Be careful! You inconsiderate clutz!"
Finally, he found something. "A warp gummi..."
"What's that? A warp gummi..? Hmm. Hey now, if you're interested in gummis, there's a second floor to this building that houses the Gummi Synthesis Shop. It's run by moogles."
"Moogles..?"
"Yeah, moogles... what are you, ignorant?"
The young man stood up and began to walk away.
"Hey! Are you gonna pay for that?"
"It's not yours." He said, tossing the warp gummi up and catching it as it fell.
"No, the thing you smashed, you lunk."
"I don't have any more munny."
"Then I'll take back that ring."
"I don't think so." The young man turned back to the man behind the counter and watched him leap back in terror. The young man's eyes were hot-coal red and black mist spewed from between his teeth.
"All right, all right. No need to get upset. Take it. J-just, take it."
"Thank you." The young man said as he exited the shop.

----

"Radiant Garden isn't in this ring. I'll need to use a wormhole in order to reach another." The young man said as he hovered in space within his Gummi Ship, the Sheridan. Suddenly, an alarm alerted him to his pursuers. "Pathetic Heartless." He stopped and studied the image displayed on his monitor. "Hmm... accompanied by a Nobody's flagship. Great. These damn things are always equipped with jump magnets. My only way out is to fight."
"You're talking to yourself." A teasing voice came in over the intercom. "...and people say Nobodies are crazy."
"You're evesdropping! How did you activate my intercom?"
"I... persuaded a few moogles to tinker with a radar gummi." A malevolent laugh came over the speakers.
"Who are you, you creepy hyena?"
"Xanalia; the Lurking Shadow of Organization XIII-X."
"Thirteen-Ex?"
"We're the new regime of Nobody misers who'll be bringing the cold metallic hand of tyranny to all worlds consumed by the darkness."
"How can you rule worlds that have been destroyed?"
"Silly boy. Surely, you must know. For every world destroyed by a darkness that has torn its heart away, the now unnecessary crust reforms in a chaotic realm we call the World That Never Was."
"Realm of chaos..." The young man said to himself.
"Hmm..? Did I say something of interest?"
"Nothing you say interests me." The young man said as he powered up the few weapons aboard his ship.
"No-no-no. None of that now." Xanalia's voice said over the intercom as Heartless and Nobody vessels began to swarm in on the Sheridan.