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Chapter 10 – Cull and Void

Ben led the Keyblade Knights to a castle-like structure standing beside a small lake. Several large ball-shaped Heartless floating around outside the front door.

"Shadow Balls," Sora whispered. "We can take care of them. You keep saving the Omnitrix until you need it."

Sora and Riku charged forward, springing at the Shadow Balls and cutting them down. They followed up their assault by taking on several Shadows that were drawn out of hiding to attack them from behind. Riku and Sora swiped at the last Shadow Heartless at the same time, destroying it.

"I got it first," Riku teased him with a smile.

"Did not!" Sora replied as he waved for Ben to come to the front entrance.

Ben paused to flip through the Omnitrix.

"Is it working?" Sora asked.

"So far," Ben flipped through all the aliens. Riku was especially curious to see the small ghost-like images representing the creatures in Ben's watch. After he had finished he turned to Sora and said, "I'd better wait to size up Driscoll before I decide which monster to use."

"We can do this, Ben. I'd be lost or captured without your help," Sora said. "Stop looking so sad."

"It's what Kevin told me," Ben sighed. "He said I could do anything."

"He's right," Riku said.

"A Plumber named Magister Labrid told me the same thing just before he died."

"You're worried about Kevin. That's a good thing. It means you've really have forgiven him."

"Right," Ben smiled.

The three teenage boys walked inside and looked around at the renovated Plumbers base.

"They've redecorated," Ben said.

"It's reminds me of the old castle in Hollow Bastion," Riku recalled.

"Me too, but it doesn't look like they have a keyhole here," Sora replied. "It would have been the prefect place to look for it."

"As if you will ever find it," Driscoll said as he stepped onto the dais.

Ben saw that his usual silver armor had turned an iron gray. The crown of horns on his helm were much longer and the shoulder pad on his right arm resembled the wing of a bat with a Heartless face on it. His hands had long claws coming out from his fists. A Heartless like logo had replaced the Forever Knight crest on his chest.

"He's been overwhelmed by the darkness, too," Riku warned Ben.

"Yuck!" Ben winced. "That is a new look for you."

"Still joking as if you were a ten year old playing with your little toy during summer vacation, Tennyson? You should know better by now."

Ben bit his lip, knowing Driscoll to be partly correct. Still, he reminded the Forever King about the truth.

"And I beat you all by myself with the old Omnitrix," Ben said. "This ones improved."

"I'm not by myself this time, boy."

"I know. That's why I brought back up."

"The Keyblade wielder's will not be able to stop the new rise of the dark realm and the power of Kingdom Hearts."

"You know about Kingdom Hearts, too," Sora said, "because of that image in the Archamada."

"Yes. The ultimate power hidden in a spell book and what Plumber wouldn't think it was a myth?" Driscoll replied.

"Since you don't believe in magic, but then you found those reports and the map."

"He just didn't find the reports," Ben told Sora. "He wrote them."

"Very good guess, Tennyson," Driscoll said.

"Guess? I.D. number12906 was your I.D. number when you were a Plumber. My grandfather told me all about how you betrayed everything the Plumbers believed in because you wanted to be a thief."

"Just like your friend Mr. Levin."

"Kevin only knew the part of the story you wanted him to hear to feed his rage against us," Ben said becoming enraged, "but you've kept back the rest."

"And what would be the rest, Tennyson?"

"You were the lone Plumber the Knights said showed up that night by the lake. You saw the Keyblade Knight trying to deal with those creatures that showed up and decided to do your usual thievery. You wanted a Keyblade for your collection. So you shot a Keyblade wielder. And when you tried to take the Keyblade it disappeared right out of your hand. You run off, leaving him lying there, vulnerable to being killed. You called for backup and when it came you let those Plumbers walk into a situation that gets two of them supposedly killed. But my grandfather kept his cool. He wanted to talk to them and got the fighting to stop."

"You do have quite an imagination," Driscoll chuckled. "Have you also figured out what happened to those other Knights?"

"No, but it obvious an agreement to end the conflict was signed and this world was handed over to the Plumbers."

"Which makes their incursion a violation of the treaty."

"You brought us here!" Sora yelled at him. "You used those reports to justify your own actions to Kevin so the darkness would grow stronger in his heart. But, Kevin still had a little light left. You tried to destroy him before he could tell us what you planned to do to us."

"Your own evil proves you're on the wrong side, Driscoll," Riku added. "Our hearts believe Ben Tennyson. Whether there is evidence against others who wielded Keyblades for doing a crime, we're not like them."

"Really Riku?" Driscoll laughed. "You were Maleficent's little envoy of darkness. Keyblade wielders can be evil."

"Riku is not evil!" Ben insisted.

"So you would side with them, Tennyson?" Driscoll laughed. "You are the fool."

"I'm sorry if I sound a little clichéd Driscoll, but 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend'."

"I see why you like these Keyblade Knights. They are the same kind of snappish brat you've grown into, Tennyson," Driscoll growled. "However they are correct. I do have plans for all of you. But where are my manners? You have met my new friends."

Driscoll lifted his hands. Ninja Heartless identical to the one he, Gwen and Kevin fought walked out from behind the curtains.

"Those are new," Sora said.

"I fought one after you were captured by the Forever Knights. Those Ninja Heartless are tough."

"They are a fine mix of mechanical technology and the worst nightmares," Driscoll chuckled. "Just as Charmcaster has learned to mix her Clay Beasts with Heartless. She uses her craft well."

"Where is Charmcaster?" Riku asked.

"She stepped out for a little night air. She said something about finding a princess."

Ben's eyes widened with fear.

"Gwen!" he shouted.

Ben turned towards the entrance. Two Heartless Ninja were baring the way. The Heartless had moved the Null Void projector to block the only way out.

"No one leaves until we are done, boy!" Driscoll screamed with both a rage and a pain in his heart. Black smoke seemed to pour out around him. His cape unfurled into two large red wings. He hovered off the platform, laughing with a strange and terrible maniacal voice. "I will beat you into the ground like I beat that miserable excuse of a creature you called Kevin."

Ben turned the dial on the Omnitrix.

"You like growing wings Driscoll, then try to out fly me!" Ben shouted and slammed his hand down on the Omnitrix. Ben transformed into a man-sized creature that looked like a huge red manta ray with golden yellow wings. He flew up into the air.

"Jetray!" he hissed before ordering, "Sora! Riku! Take care of the Heartless. It's time for me to cut open the this tin can!"

***

At that moment, Gwen was doing what she could to treat Kevin's degraded condition.

The girls had aided him in walking over to the softer roadside grass. Kevin rested his head in Gwen's lap as she gently sent small streams of light energy washing over him. Kevin endured the treatment as if he were fighting a killer disease eating away at his insides. He cried out several times as his body battled the darkness still attempting to take his heart. His tormented shouts drew more Heartless out of hiding. Kairi used her Keyblade to slay them before they could reach him. Kevin's face and shirt became drenched in sweat. Gwen brushed dampness from his face with her shirttail, wishing it were as easy to wipe away his pain.

"I'd better stop for a moment," she said. "You look exhausted."

"So do you," he whispered. "I must be giving you an ear ache with all the hollering I'm doing."

"My ears aren't what's hurting me right now."

Kairi plopped on the ground close by them and took out a potion bottle to drink.

"Here Gwen," She offered one to her. "This will strengthen you."

"What is it with you and those potion bottles?" Kevin remarked as Gwen took the bottle.

"I guess I knew you were hurt when I first saw you," she told him.

Gwen drank half of the potion before insisting Kevin take a little. It relieved the dryness in his throat more than his aches.

"I've been a pain in the neck more than being in pain," he said after he finished swallowing the drink. "I got to be yelling louder than Ben's crazy alien."

"You mean the white one called Echo Echo?" Kairi said taking a sip from her bottle.

"Yeah," Kevin seemed to be straining to recall the creature's name from his mind. He admitted, "Gwen, I'm still forgetting things. It's not working."

"I have help you hold on to it," she said. "Without trying, you might -."

She bit her lip.

"Whatever you do, don't cry," he warned her again while trying to smile. "I'm wet enough already without you raining all over me."

"I'm sorry I hurt you before."

"You were protecting Ben. It was the right thing to do."

"Your mana keeps fading," she told him. "When I use my light in soft pulses, it tries to strengthen."

"Heartless aren't living things. They wouldn't need mana," he paused before asking. "Gwen, do I have any family?"

"Yes."

"When - if I disappear, promise me you won't tell them what happened to me."

"Don't worry. I'm going to save you, Kevin," she gave him his Plumbers' badge. That's my promise."

Kevin held the device in his hand. He couldn't remember how he had gotten the badge in the first place, but somehow knew it was his.

"If I'm going to forget things, then there is something really important I should tell you," he said gazing into her eyes. Kevin felt a sudden chill come over him and a familiar scent came flowing into his nostrils. What he really wanted to say was replaced by, "Gwen! Kairi! Charmcaster's here!"

Gwen instantly erected a bubble of light energy around them as some dark power struck their location. After a few seconds the attack stopped, giving Gwen and Kairi the chance to get up. Kevin pulled himself up to kneel beside them. He wished he had something he could absorb within his reach.

Gwen stared at Charmcaster recognizing only by her facial features and hair. She looked far older and more terrible then the teenage witch she remembered. Her clothing was all ebony and indigo blue. Heartless logos were emblazoned on her upper sleeves. Her long silver hair hung loose on her back. Her canvas bag of tricks looked as black as a Heartless.

A tongue flicked in and out from between the rows of zipper teeth.

"Kevin," Charmcaster complained. "You ruined my surprise."

"Charmcaster? What's happened to you?" Gwen asked still gazing at her opponent in shock.

"I've been... endarkened," she replied with a wicked smile. "Unlike Kevin, I like my new look."

"Why are you doing this? If you wanted revenge, you could have faced us without threatening everyone in Bellwood with Heartless."

"It goes beyond just you. Of course I spent years plotting how to get even with you, but when a chance to rule the world comes with it, you have to seize the moment. And as a bonus, I take the two of the people you care about the most away from you. Kevin and Ben will make fine Heartless to destroy you with!"

"I won't - won't let you hurt her," Kevin said as he tried to stand up.

Charmcaster lifted up her arm and clinched her hand. Kevin cringed and sank back to his knees, holding his chest.

"Stay out of this, slave!" Charmcaster rebuked him.

"Leave him alone!" Gwen shouted firing a sphere of light at her enemy.

Charmcaster stepped to one side to dodge the energy bolt. Charmcaster fired a sphere of darkness power back at Gwen, but Kairi cast a Reflect spell to deflect the attack.

"Kevin's not your slave!" Kairi yelled. The girl stood between Kevin and Charmcaster and slightly in front of Gwen.

"We princesses stick together, Charmcaster! I told you I'm a knight. I'll protect Gwen and Kevin!"

"But who is going to protect you, little princess?" Charmcaster questioned as she tossed the pieces of black clay on the ground. Clay Beast Heartless formed out of the ground. Two of them charged Kairi, who had to quickly dodge and strike the monsters to keep them back. Kevin tried to get up, but something continued to hold him down.

Gwen eyes glowed as she drew on the mana around her. She fired electrical beams at Charmcaster. The witch fired a wave of negative energy to meet the challenge. The black lightning and the magenta lightning battled each other for dominance. Both ladies grunted from the strain, but neither relented.

"Still think your better at the spelling bee, princess?" Charmcaster teased.

"I have beaten you before!" Gwen cringed.

Kairi quickly smashed one Clay Beast to pieces. She could see something like a dark shadow, trying to hold Kevin down. It phased in and out enough for Kairi to see glimpses of it. She swiped her Keyblade at it, but couldn't quite make a direct hit. Kairi was forced back by the Clay Beasts. Kevin struggled while he tried not to call out to Gwen for help, however Gwen could feel his distress as more Heartless were drawn in to attack Kairi.

"You can't save them and yourself Gwen," Charmcaster laughed. "It's over for all of you!"

***

Jetray quickly learned Driscoll had his own speed and firepower to match his. The Forever King fired blasts of amber colored laser beams out of the eye slit of his helmet. Jetray countered each attack with his own neuroshock beams from his eyes. He followed up each defensive block with an additional blast of the laser from his tall. Driscoll used his clawed hands to shield himself from the beams. He swooped in, slicing at Jetray's wings, trying to cut him open, but the alien moved just a bit too fast.

In the meantime, Sora and Riku were dispatching the Heartless as quickly as possible. The Ninja Heartless proved to be the toughest opponents for them. Sora quickly learned to duck under the Ninja's arms and slice at their legs, knocking them over. He then hit them several times on the head to slay them. Riku used a blocking maneuver. As the Ninja struck him with one sword and then spun its other arm around to follow up, Riku dodged beneath and sliced the ninja in the side and back, to destroy it. Pieces of the ceiling came crashing down as stray shots of energy fired from Driscoll's visor missed Jetray and hit the building. Sora rolled out of the way of the masonry and glanced up at the combatants. Jetray saw an Armored Knight trying to stab Sora in the back. He zapped the Heartless before it could harm him. Sora figured he should repay the act.

Sora took out a Drive Sphere and squeezed it in his hand.

"Give me strength!" he shouted.

Driscoll and Jetray both turned when they saw a flash of bright light. Sora's clothing had a bright red flame pattern on it. He also held two Keyblades, one of which looked like Kairi's good luck charm. Sora leaped up and battered Driscoll with Kingdom Key and Oathkeeper. The Forever King tried to block every hit, but the Keyblade master landed a few good blows to his head, stunning him. Jetray used that moment to grab Driscoll by his wings, spin him around and throw him against a wall.

Sora and Jetray exchanged glances.

"You thinking the same thing I'm thinking?" Sora asked.

"Yeah! Tag team!" Jetray exclaimed.

He swooped down and grabbed the Sora by the shoulders just as Driscoll flew towards them. He flipped Sora towards him and yelled, "Here Driscoll! Catch!"

Sora struck the villain with the same level of furious Keyblade blows he did before, making him disorientated again. Jetray followed up with the same maneuver of seizing the Forever King by his wings and throwing him into the wall. By now, Riku had dispatched the remaining Heartless and shouted, "Hey! You two shouldn't have all the fun without me!"

The next time Driscoll got knocked down, Riku struck him with a good amount of additional blows. Finally Jetray caught Driscoll by the shoulders.

"Time for another spin!" he decided.

Jetray flew into a tornado spin going so fast they were both a blur of red and blue. Sora and Riku had to back up as small pieces of debris and dust got caught up in the whirlwind.

"TENNYSOOOOOOOOON!" Driscoll screamed as Jetray flung him across the room and into the wall with such force, his body left a deep indentation. Jetray floated down to the floor. The Keyblade Knights could see Jetray wasn't able to keep himself steady and quickly helped hold him up.

"Ben? You okay?" Riku asked.

"You look a little green," Sora told him looking at the gill slits on his chest.

"I'll be alright," Jetray answered as he steadied himself. He actually felt like he was going to throw up, but the queasiness pass. "I guess I've discovered my top speed limit."

Driscoll peeled himself off the wall and staggered towards them. He reached for what looked like a remote control resting on the arm of his throne chair. When he pressed the button, a whoosh of suctioning force sprang up behind Jetray, Sora and Riku. The Null Void Projector had started and began pulling them towards its mouth.

"You brats need to take a long time out," Driscoll laughed.

Sora was the closest to the machine. He lost grip on both his Keyblades and his clothing reverted back to its normal colors as he slipped closer to the machine.

"Sora!" Riku yelled.

"I need put on some weight," Jetray said as he reached for his Omnitrix icon, turned the dial and pushed it. The green light enveloped him again and expanded much larger then Riku had expected. He found himself looking up at an enormous, muscular lizard monster about twelve feet tall with a thick, tan hide. His nostrils flared and he let out a loud roar.

"Humongousaur!" the beast bellowed.

The creature reached forward and grabbed Sora with one hand while using the other hold onto Riku.

"Sorry Driscoll, but the Null Void is for criminals!" Humongousaur reminded him.

The beast used his tail to topple the Null Void projector over. Instead of breaking and shutting down, the machine sped up. Humongousaur grew more massive to keep himself from being pulled closer. He tucked Sora and Riku in his arms as the machine kept tugging on them.

"No! No!" Driscoll shouted.

The Dark Forever King had lost his grip on his throne and got pulled across the room. Humongousaur, Sora and Riku could only watch as Driscoll clawed at the cement floor until he lost his hold completely and got sucked inside the Null Void.

"And the trash takes itself out," Humongousaur snarled. The creature then heard a beeping from his chest. He growled, "Aww man! Don't time out now!"

Humongousaur swiped his tail at the Null Void projector again, sending it crashing against the nearest wall just as the Omnitrix shut itself down to recharge. Ben, Sora and Riku landed to the floor.

"Ouch!" Ben groaned.

"Ben! What happened?" Riku asked as he and Sora helped him up.

"No!" Ben turned the dial on the Omnitrix. "It's out of power!"

"So Kevin was right about you using it too much."

"I can't help you guys anymore," Ben groaned.

"Yes you can!" Sora said. "You've proved you can fight without it."

"I think Charmcaster is going to have me out matched at this point. You go after her. I'll be right behind you," Ben insisted.

"Don't worry, Ben," Riku assured. "We'll deal with her."

Sora and Riku ran outside.

Ben sighed.

"What do I do now?" he thought.