The Final Run

[The Brass Duke]

"Our orders are to begin the ground assault..."

"I see," said the Brass Duke, folding his arms while he pondered the merits of such a direct invasion. "The golems deployed are not nearly strong enough to hold off the endless hordes of Shadow Spawn, I'm afraid, but unlike those pantless women soldiers you've got parading around here, my golems are like fodder. They never tire, they will disobey no orders, and need not breeathe or eat."

He walked up to face the Alexandrians. "Fret not with the small fry--my moogles are elite knights, and due to their sizes can be quite the thorn in the side of Darkness...go directly for the head honchos of this place. The golems will do their best to aid you. I will stick back here and head down with the others. Cobalt...you will stay here, as well. I do not want to see what dreadful fate is in store for you should those idiots in the castle catch you."

He turned back to Sai and tapped his cane to the ground. "Leave her to the Sisters? Like, a personal vendetta..or something? Interesting...traitors among the brightest. I would have suspected me before the bible-thumper. Hmph...Well, what ever! We've got a castle to take apart!"

[MeadowSong]

[glow=purple,2,300]At the balcony's edge just off the north wall of the Silent Ballroom, MeadowSong watched the endless black sky, the raining, fading light, patiently. She remained quiet, even as a droplet red as blood took space in the aether. The Red Rose had breached The World that Never Was--bypassed even the Harbinger, supposedly the gatekeeper--and was making nice headway towards their imminent doom.

She rested her chin in her flawless jet hands and dreamily viewed the next wave of events. Dodging a catastrophic spell of dramatic proportions the way Alexandria's fleet just had seemed to MeadowSong to be overly drawn out. Of course that impish Duke of theirs would burst in last minute, stealing glory. Of course, of course. He'd have crash-landed straight on the Rose if it made him famous, she thought.

"But soon they will all meet the same fate as Pixie Hollow...I'm waiting for you, my dear Rose General. I'll have you, and all of your precious friends...in time. Then we'll see who the true Master of Darkness is...Kefka, you fool...pray you at least put on a good show before you die. Acteur...my dear, I wish things had passed differently. And as for the rest of you...clean your britches and shoes, for you will be cowering before your Mistress, refreshed and impure. Start up the Chaos Engine--prime the Eldritch Machine! I have guests coming! Hahahahahahahahahaha!"

The faerie-witch took flight and shot up from the parapet with drill-like motions, and similar speed. When she came to a halt she threw out her hands, and darkness began pouring from them like waterfalls. Eyes glowed in the stuff, and MeadowSong gave the a wink before letting go and making her way up to the machine's primer.

"This is the end."[/glow]

[The Brass Duke]

"Shields!" barked Commander Lily, handing said headgear to soldiers, one-by-one in single file. Commanders Sharon and Erica were each passing out armor and shields, respectively, in the background. Knights produced their Keyblades and practiced killing sweeps and daring swoops in preparation for battle.

"The General and Sisters of Light are counting on the Brave, Fearless Knights of Alexandria to do their sacred duty," called Executive Officer Erin from the control bridge. "We must strive--strive to both impress and honor our fallen sisters in this quest! For all the times we have fallen into darkness, we must now make up for that today, threefold! We must end the Fallen's reign of evil, once and for all!"

Women saluted and cried out in an explosive roar, shaking the platform they stood on. The Brass Duke stepped up before the battalion once more and cleared his throat.

"First I will address the Nobody, for you have ears and eyes in the General's Court, as well as some insight to our final battle. I admit myself ashamed I had neglected to inform you of my payment. My golems and moogles are not simply knights of justice because they want to be, no, no. In fact they are all under my hire and I supervise them in the ways of economy. I expect that once this is all over I will be receiving that nice big plot that old witch had back in Radiant Garden. House Brass is in need of a new setting, and the city's just not for me."

[Hercules]

A lot had happened since his pep talk with Gabranth and Kim Possible on the bridge of the Rose. They were ready to begin the biggest assault of their lives, going head-on into enemy territory. As Hercules ran down the halls toward the hangar bay so he could join the fray, he couldn't help but consider a few of Phil's words of knowledge.

"Rule number 323: If you're caught in a war, your best weapon is your head."

"Rule number 20: ALWAYS think things through."

"Rule number 1: Survive."

This was going to be huge. Hercules didn't even have to see the teeming masses of heartless below to know that much. He also knew that he would be able to soak up a lot of damage that would otherwise be directed at his friends, so he had to draw a lot of fire.

As his battle fury grew, so too did his golden aura. He felt the power of the gods coursing through him as he rushed forward out of the hangar and took into the air. No pegasus with him today, so gravity would be his guide to the ground. This, however, was totally planned.

Now, no one can really say that Herc is one of the worlds' foremost strategists, but he had something a lot of people in the battle didn't: real experience. The Alexandrians surely had that, but a lot of what was left were probably cadets whose only real battlefield know-how was accumulated from what had transpired during this incident with the Fallen. Herc had battled monsters, natural disasters, even Hades HIMSELF and had come out on top every single time.

Like a golden rocket, he plumetted to the ground, drawing as much power into himself as he could. "LOOK OUT BELOW!!" he called to those below, warning them as best he could that he was about to unleash something pretty hectic. Hopefully, the soldiers and the other allies there would know to get down while the Heartless did not.

Too late to worry about that now! Like a comet, he crashed into the earth, sending dirt, stone, and what-have-you blasting outward in a massive, circular shockwave. Whomever was standing would be flat on their backs at this point as the greek demigod charged from his landing spot into the largest group of enemies he could find, making a specticle of himself all the way.

"I'll clear the way! Hit 'em with everything you got!" he called out, doing everything he could to protect everyone around him. He could soak up a lot of damage, they couldn't. He could help them survive.

[Cloud]

"I'll show you 'holes'..." came a voice near Kefka just as the mad clown had shouted his order to Abigail. Yes, for all his madness and all his attacks, he had completely forgotten that Cloud was still very much alive, very much able to do damage, and very much about to hurt him even more than he could imagine.

The SOLDIER revved Fenrir as hard as he could, rocketing toward Kefka from above. At the last second, Cloud leapt from the seat of his signature ride, allowing the roaring machine to crash down on the mad Clown like a kamikaze jet plane sans pilot. It would continue to push forward, engines locked into full gear by Cloud just prior, attempting to slam the Clown into the ground right at the foot of the just-arriving soldiers and Sai, right where Cloud himself would land, buster-sword in hand, ready to duke it out with the crazed heartless monstrosity.

"It's over..." he said, getting himself into position with the Buster Sword at the ready. "Let us through or else..." he warned. Behind him, Hercules had just landed, a fact Cloud was keenly aware of as he could feel the shock of the demigod's landing in his legs, the result of a loud THUMP in the ground. Luckily, he was far enough away that the shockwave did little more than make his coat flutter just in time to make his threat all the more menacing.

"Make your decision, Kefka... I don't have time to play games."

[Sai]

On the ground, Sai found it strange that the Duke chose this moment, in this place, to list his price. He didn't care much, himself and frankly he very highly doubted that even Beatrix or Agrias would either. The Mistress of All Evil's domecile in Radiant Garden was of no concern to any of them, and as far as Sai really knew, Villain's Vale was as of the moment, completely uninhabited.

"Take what landscape you desire which is unclaimed, Duke..." Sai muttered with the same uncaring tone he always held. "As it is empty at the moment, I can see no one who would dispute ownership with you," he he concluded before pointing his wand forward to take out a large group of heartless before him.

Above, Hercules made his descent. Sai heard his call from above and noted that he would have to move if he wished not to suffer the demigod's attack himself. Unable to move fast enough unaided, he resolved to point his wand behind him and summon a gust of wind to propel himself forward and out of the way. As he came back to his feet, he could feel the impact behind him just as Cloud would land before him...

The heartless were numerous. Whether or not Cloud's attack on Kefka had landed remained to be seen. The Castle of Naught laid ahead... and atop it, a monster...

[Abigail Crescentlight]

Abigail watched as her attack failed to hit its target, robbed of victory by the Galleon. She recognized the ship as belonging to the Brass Duke, and knew that he must have been the one who intervened. Unable to fight against the Slave Crown upon her brow, blank eyes would travel to the ground, watching as the soldiers of Alexandria, her allies and friends, began to fill the battlefield.

Without a word, without a care, she leapt from her perch and landed on the ground. She walked with a determined stride past the crater that was once Memory's Skyscraper toward the rabble that was assembling. She walked undaunted by the Heartless who knew her to be their "ally" thanks to Kefka's presence. A white mage made dark by technology, walking through darkness with the determined stride of an executioner. She didn't even flinch when Cloud made his assault on Kefka himself.

Instead, she would walk right behind Kefka and swing her staff to send a wave of light energy at the heroes. It wasn't strong. A lot of her offensive magic wasn't, but it should be enough to push them back and give her "master" some room. She stood there, waiting for an order from Kefka afterwards.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wall-E nodded in response to Oeilvert. They all thad their parts to play in this battle, and the little robot was ready to do his! He was a small thing, with not a lot of truly magnificent battle features, but he would do all he could with the upgrades he got from the Brass Duke. He fired up his little hovercraft boots and stayed by Oeilvert's side, providing whatever support he could.

Looking on the battlefield, Wall-E would point out certain elements to Oeilvert, acting in a way as a sort of extra pair of eyes while the two manned the bridge of the rose. "Woah!" he'd say every once in a while, trying his best to be a little tactician until the green mage gave indication that they were to move into the battle themselves.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kim Possible was NOT one to go down without a fight! When the women of Alexandria were called to the hangar, she took her leave of Hercules and Gabranth and made her way there herself. She might not have blended well with the group, but she definately wouldn't let that stop her as she stepped up to claim some equipment along with the rest of them. The confusion had caused the one handing out helms and shields to pause, staring at her a moment, but when Kim gave her famous "I can do anything" glare back to the woman, that was all the convincing that needed to happen.

So, along with a whole legion of soldiers, Kim leapt out of the Rose with shield and helmet equipped under Sai's orders. She fell through the air, not once feeling out of place (I mean, let's just try counting how many airplanes she's jumped out of in her time). It was a little weird to be doing this without a parachute, but when Sai created his wind cushion to help them fall like feathers, she smiled and landed gracefully.

She didn't have time to celebrate her little victory over gravity, as the heartless were already on the attack. She used her shield to protect herself while employing her own hand-to-hand combat style which had gotten her out of a great many binds over the years. She was about to knock out one particular heartless when she heard Hercules calling from above. She hit the floor just in time to avoid the shockwave.

Jumping to her feet, Kim Possible went right back to work, but called out through the battle, hoping someone could hear her. "So, what's the sitch here?? Do we have a plan, or do we just keep fighting until something gives??"

[Atticus the Fallen]

The Dark One watched from above as the madness began on ground level. He stroked the head of the one known as "cuddles" in his arms, considering every move and plotting every eventuality. As chaos took form on the battlefield, he would heave a light sigh as he looked down to the youth he held so tenderly.

"Little one... things are going dangerous here. This is a place for soldiers, not for wide-eyed and curious children like yourself. Run home, my friend... tell everyone we will have victory over the light very soon..." he muttered, his voice strangely soft and caring. Above all else, let us remember that Atticus is a caretaker to the heartless first.

As the fallen allowed little cuddles to leap into the shadows about him, he turned his attention below once more. He could feel through the aether as darkness began to gather. Apparently, Meadowsong had reactivated the eldritch machine. A good move. Though, it may mean she would be sacrificing Kefka if he were still on the battlefield when she fired. He had expected that the mad clown might not survive this night, but he didn't want it to be because of that.

No... Kefka was insane, and a loose cannon, and very likely a murdering psychopath even to his own kind when the light was gone, but to blatantly attack their own kind was too much for Atticus himself to condone. He sent out his will, reaching into the mind of Kefka to speak once more.

"Whatever you plan to do, do it..." he muttered. "The battlefield is no longer a safe place to be. You will want to retreat soon..."

[Gabranth]

Indeed a lot had happened while up on the bridge of the Rose with Hercules and Kim Possible. Though the pleasantries were soon over as chaos would soon ensue. Still, even though he had yet to find his path among all that's happened, he felt a need to follow the reckless demigod into the fray.

Hercules however had already turned and ran to the fight, as well as Kim. His heart rate climbed as he ran through the halls heading to the hangar. Gabranth ran into past the soldiers who were getting their arms, and for a moment he thought he caught a glimpse of the red headed girl taking up arms herself. Confused from the rush to catch Hercules he merely thought nothing of it and kept pressing forward.

After some time of running through the halls, he finally made his way to the hangar of the Rose. “Better late than never....” he thought to himself as he readied his decent. Below a hole several feet in diameter could only have been caused by one person, so he must be heading in the right direction.

Now, being reckless like Hercules wasn't something Gabranth was used to. However, the circumstances time was not in his favor as he too took a leap of faith and began his plummet to the ground below. As he fell he readied his landing as his swords became consumed in the eerie orange flames. He had not noticed that his armor itself had began to glow in a mild glimmer and kick a small cushion beneath him.

Crashing to the ground landing and collapsing to a knee and thrusting his sword to the ground for balance, he landed just shy of Hercules' crater. Small remnants of flame would fall around and simply dissipate from existence as he slowly stood, shaking from the landing. The armor was truly a gift from the Gods.

As he stood looking for the path of destruction that was sure to be from Hercules he heard the voice of a young woman not far from where he stood. “So, what's the sitch here?? Do we have a plan, or do we just keep fighting until something gives??” as it rang across the field. His attention quickly turned, it was the voice of Kim Possible.

He quickly made his way to her. With a swift swipe of his sword to clear the lesser Heartless from his path, he took a step between Kim and the oncoming fray. Parrying off attacks as he spoke to the girl, “I must go after Hercules...”, quickly parrying and thrusting his sword into the ground as to free up a hand, he reached into a pouch on his waist and took out a small beacon type device and tossed it up to Kim before spinning around and ripping his sword from the ground. “...use it, I'll come to your side.”

As quickly as he came to her side, he ran off after the demigod.

[kefka]

"Make your decision, Kefka... I don't have time to play games."

[glow=Yellow,2,300]In the blink of an eye, this one simple peon of Light had been able to outwit the comical genius, and in one fell swoop had the clown at the very tip of his blade.

Kefka seethed, and in a random fit of ADHD became fascinated with the shining metal just tapping at his throat. He tapped it with his nail; the pang echoed loudly, and it only made the madman giggle.

"Why, if all work and no play makes Spikey a dull, dull boy...why didn't Captain Curls dump you off that slab the moment you were shanghaied?" He snorted, and then caught himself. Perhaps antagonizing such a weak fool was a bit over doing things just a little.

"Welp...perhaps I'll have to just listen to you before I meet the same fate as the ground over there your friend just knocked in...kinda like how a dentist rips out a child's--"

Kefka's little show ended nearly as quickly as it had begun. Abigail, just as a good little puppy was expected, had pulled through and dragged her master out of the well forged by the Ex-SOLDIER and gave him some breathing room to get more violent.

"Fantastic, Annabel!" he yelped, jumping back onto his feet and dancing around her in a complimentary circle.[/glow]

"Whatever you plan to do, do it...The battlefield is no longer a safe place to be. You will want to retreat soon..."

[glow=Yellow,2,300]"Retreat?" he wondered. "But I was having so much fuuuuuun! I wanted to play morreeeee! ...Oh well! Looks like the big guy wants us to pull back and outta the stompin' ground. The real show's about to begin...Your friends have quite the evening planned out. Come, Alice."

He proceeded over to the White Mage and picked her up, scooped her under his arm and turned to Cloud. He gave him a mock SOLDIER salute, grinned and pursed his lips to raspberry, and jumped backwards into a Corridor of Darkness; his six tainted wings enveloped both him and his thrall as they passed into the shadows. His laugh was all that remained as Kefka retreated into the palace...straight to the High Altar of Naught.[/glow]

[Agrias Oaks]

Agrias stood there , following Beatrix silently, eying the world around her with sharper eyes. On their way to the bridge, she overheard the speakers-- hearing that Abby was spotted, seeming safe, however not herself. There was an aura, not of evil, but of chaos surrounding the white mage that left the High Seraph startled. She was unreadable in movements and she felt it as she viewed her from the screen. It wasn't long after the conversation between Sai and Beatrix, that the General summoned the attention of the Alexandrian soldiers, followed by the objectives.

'Defuse the situation,' she says...? Where they to attack their changed comrade...? Another forced battle between allies?

“Such foul tactics...” The seraph spoke under her breath, following close to Beatrix. Her mind through the midst of conversation where playing 102 different scenarios of how this could turn out, from worst to best scenarios. “...Light be with us, indeed.” – something about this battle was making Agrias uneasy. Their enemy had an upper hand in having Abigail... but there was trickery afoot. The white mage was not a heartless, so something must be controlling her... like a Oracle could in her time.

“There must be a sou-” before she could finish her thought, the Rose rocketed back and forward and plunged downward toward the barren, shadow-filled lands bellow, “Ahh! We must move quickly! Sai, the ship-- your magic is strong... I will take care of the enemies bellow for the Alexandrians!” she growled, and rushed out and past the teleport pods , jumping out of the falling ship with sword extended downward. “I have had enough of this! MASTER CLASS CHANGE-- DRAGOON!” she roared, her form glowing that familiar holy light and more. Her sword, took form of a golden spear, when the light vanished, her ordinary dragoon clothes were replaced by a scaled-gold version of it-- armor of High Dragoon. “ROAR THROUGH ME, SAVE THE QUEEN!” she directed the spear downward at the heartless bellow, “JUMP +11!!”

A holy glow surrounded her spear along with her form as she wrapped around the length of it. When she made contact with the ground, the wind separated, and the ground around her spewed upward, dragging everything standing above it up, hurling about into the air. A radius of 40 feet around would be pelted by rocks and holy.

'Not again... First it was Beatrix...then it was I... now Abigail? They have gone far with their distasteful tactics... no more... I will drag them all down!”

“Miss Agrias!” called out a voice from above. It was Ellin who had jumped after the woman for unexplained reasons...has she been behind Agrias all this time??

“Don't hurt Abby!! I'll talk to her!!” she cried, disappearing from sight through a shadow portal.

“E-ellin, wait?!” the knight asked bemusedly, but before she could say anything else, the girl was gone. She stared at that empty space above, smiling to herself... she somehow knew Ellin could get the job done... her heart was pure-- even if pure dark on the outside-- that purity was for the good of Abigail.

Agrias continued to work bellow, carving a path for the other soldiers...

[glow=green,2,800]The chaos erupted onto the ship... that little priest girl works fast. She went about, listening to the orders of General “once-one eyed” with a grin. That brunette really had a grudge against the thief, didn't she? It was fine, she didn't care much for it. When she saw an orange blur at the corner of her eye, she quickly turned to find Kimmy in her sights with tin man and muscle boy. She sported a helmet and a shield... that was new. Shego broke from Alexandrian formation, and began to chase after the true prize: Ms. I can do Anything.
[/glow]

[The Brass Duke]

With positive confirmation giving him incentive, the Brass Duke signaled to Cobalt that it was time to begin assisting the Sisters of Light and their many companions. He turned to Hyperspace where still more and more Golems loaded with Moogle pilots were rocketing down to the City of Naught and raised his cane arm.

"Deploy Aether Missiles, and tear the platforms to bits!" he ordered. "I want this hideous place leveled by the time I return to this ship!"

And, with that, the Brass Duke took Cobalt by the wrist and vaulted over the side of the ship, descending fast to the solid ground below. However, before they became a flattened puddle of guts and bone, Brass threw out his free hand and gasped a single sober sorcery; a gateway of energy opened, and they passed through like it was nothing. Before they disappeared completely, Cobalt had fired off his own, and another gate opened on a nearby skyscraper wall.

When they disappeared through the hole, miraculously they reappeared in Cobalt's, unharmed and ready to march the gates of the palace. Alexandrian Soldiers, Keyblades and shields in tow, rushed by in formation.

"Looks like the show's begun," said Brass. "Here comes Sai, too. Welcome back! Should we be following Eye-patch, or--?"

One, two, three. Heartless fodder were endless, and by the time Oeilvert and his faithful companions Wall-E and Locke arrived to the district occupying the grand palace, they were surrounded once more. Familiar faces within Beatrix' ranks were in patches nearby, boosting the sorcerer's confidence threefold.

Removing his wand, Oeilvert turned to Wall-E. "Large Body, to the right--I'll take on the four Shadows over here--woah!" Hercules' crash jolted the sorcerer from the ground, knocking him hard onto one of the Shadows, flattening it straight into its own shadow. When he recovered his balance, Masheck flooded his perimeter with light emanating off the tip of his wand.

"Bless this hallowed circle, for no evil may penetrate! Wall-E, to your right--Lightning Bolt!" Just as a Rhapsody came zooming in to snatch the robot, it was struck, and as it burned the tainted heart which formed its body floated lazily upward, and straight into the broken moon that was Kingdom Hearts. The sorcerer watched its ascent, frowning.

"This will be a long night." he breathed. Soon, Beatrix and Agrias ran by, a throng of Alexandrians in hot pursuit, and Oeilvert turned to Wall-E once more.

"There's our signal. Boost the right flank; I'm gonna give them aerial." He tapped his wand on his belt and pulled away, revealing a growing stick of wood. When it finished maturing, a full-sized flying broomstick replaced the twig, and the sorcerer mounted it, took flight and signaled to the general and Seraph.

"Shadows...and a large, purple thing...looks like Armor. They're blocking the front gates!"

[General Beatrix]

'Not again... First it was Beatrix...then it was I... now Abigail? They have gone far with their distasteful tactics... no more... I will drag them all down!”

“Miss Agrias!” called out a voice from above. It was Ellin who had jumped after the woman for unexplained reasons...has she been behind Agrias all this time??

“Don't hurt Abby!! I'll talk to her!!” she cried, disappearing from sight through a shadow portal.

Through the Telepod and straight into the fray, Beatrix charged, oblivious to the fact Agrias has leaped over the side of the ship (presumably to not waste time) and had begun the Master Assault, a precursor to full-scale and all--out warfare.

Through the Aethers of Hyperspace the general descended in her transportation sphere, surveying the bright cataclysm that was the Grounded Seraph, leaping high and striking singly with force enough to destroy battalions.

It was electrifying to see Save the Queen--now a holy Keyblade, her very own sword's Sister--in marvelous polymorphing action; the devastation was haunting.

...but she had no time whatsoever to become lost in her fascination. The Telepod sphere dispelled the moment it touched landing point, and hundreds of nearby Shadows were lying in wait, ready to ambush this beacon of light.

She took a defensive position while the enemy circled her, using her blade to see behind her as well as shield. Too many, she thought. Her sword would be enough to take them all down, but Beatrix remembered that she was standing in the Heartless Home-field, and throngs would respawn in seconds.

She straightened herself up and crossed her arms while she thought. The Heartless charged, their arms and legs flailing tentacles in the dimness beneath Kingdom Hearts.

Too many, and Agrias is all the way over there...

"General!" cried a voice from beyond. It was an Alexandrian officer, who stood with her platoon on the outer ring of Shadows.

"Second Lieutenant Penelope, reporting! Please, General Beatrix, leave the smallfry to us--Mister Sai's orders! ...Ma'am. You must breech the castle walls, and fast! Miss Abigail has been taken back inside with the deranged clown, ma'am!"

She was relieved her faithful soldiers had remained loyal to her all this time. She only just now realized how truly blessed she was.

Agrias came barreling down on an entire wave of scum in the distance, and thunder roared in its wake, followed by a brilliant flash of divine lightning. Beatrix took in as much of its warmth and radiance as she could before responding to the barking soldier.

She turned, gave the woman the Salute of Alexandria and rushed off in the direction she'd seen Agrias last. She was obviously on a rage path towards Kefka...so too must Beatrix.

Trust me, Clown...I will give you genuine suffering in the time to come...I may have been a puppet to you all, and gave you the power to hurt Agrias once...but a being free of darkness...you are a monster I will not regret killing in cold blood.

Beatrix hoisted her blade as she ran, and when faced with a wall of Large Bodies, gritted her teeth and sped up. Their bellies being the perfect trampoline, Beatrix decided to utilize them best as she could. As she came close, the nearest Body lunged forward, weighed down by its massive bulk, and Beatrix jumped, first onto its head, slashing at its right arm on the way up, and then onto its back.

Staggering, the Large Body knocked itself into five others, and they fell in a domino fashion. Her handiwork here done, General Beatrix finished the Heartless off by stabbing Save the Queen down into the monster's apparent spine. It began to convulse and she knelt on its back. She prayed silently, briefly, and then jumped, ripping the sword clean out of the inky black flesh.

She rose high, and when she reached about eighteen feet above the masses, she lifted her blade over her head with both hands.

"Call--Eidolon! Bring forth, [glow=red,2,300]your Divine Judgement! Great Alexander![/glow]" Beatrix' forehead grew a horn and her back illuminated in light; the light then projected an image of six grand wings of pure gold, extended, unfurling to unleash devastating holy power. She whistled low, and then threw down her arms, releasing the Holy Keyblade. It dropped into a needle dive, falling unnaturally quickly, and then pierced the moist street side.

Lightning, which had begun as sparks jumping off the pommel, began crackling and dancing in a perimeter around Save the Queen, and soon the earth within crumbled inward on itself, each crack shedding new divine white light. Pink diamond-shaped arrows launched from the crevices, bursting forth and destroying everything inside the barrier in a brief blinding light. The illusory image of Alexander stood towering over the half-sphere.

When the light dissipated, Beatrix descended slowly and lightly as a feather and collected her sword; her projected wings dissipated and she continued on in a run, Agrias just a couple yards away.

When she caught up with the Seraph, she took Save the Queen and held it before her face. "By the Might and Grace of Cosmos, Lady Abigail will be rescued from Kefka's mad tentacles. I swear this on my heart! Agrias, together we can do it!"

"Reflect!" she chanted, and a prismatic crystal of ruby red light encircled the general, enveloping her and protecting her from sorcery. She extended this power onto the High Seraph at her side, only so that she could shine, uninterrupted by the lowly fodder that lay in wait beyond.

"Let us scale this tower of Darkness and behead its king and queen!"

[Hercules]

When a bull enters a china shop, things break.

When Hercules enters the battlefield, enemies break.

Pretty simple and straight-forward, isn't it? You point the big guy in the right direction and very little can stop him, nor does much really want to try. He was a paragon of strength and power, if perhaps not the brightest bulb in the pack. The measure of his finesse was pretty much "punch the bad guy until he stops moving".

That's not to say that it wasn't WORKING. With a single punch, Herc could send heartless by the tens into the air, exploding into puffs of smoke. He didn't have a keyblade, so the hearts themselves weren't exactly rising to Kingdom Hearts (as weak as it was), but he was at the very least putting heartless down for the count long enough to buy the soldiers WITH keyblades the time to strike true.

His entire plan had been to find the heart of the battle, stay there, and absorb as much damage as he could to give everyone else proper time to form a better plan, and he was doing a fair job of it. The only downside was that it meant he was surrounded by some of the worst of the heartless (namely darksides, dark balls, angels, and other such nasties) and that his energy reserves were getting pretty low. Believe it or not, this demigod couldn't keep that golden glow up forever.

Just as his aura was about to break from weariness, he caught sight of Gabranth charging through the battle toward him. With a smile, he felt a newfound surge of energy, knowing that the armored judge had his back. He sent a powerful stomp into the ground, knocking several heartless around him into oblivion before looking over his shoulder at his unlikely friend.

"Glad to see you could make it!" he jested, smiling in that winning fashion of his. "Thought for a second you were gonna let me take all the glory!"

[Sai]

The silver mage walked calmly through the madness of the battlefield, not moved in the slightest by even the most horrific of casualties on either side of the battle. In a sense, it worked in his favor. It allowed him to think more clearly in a time and place where clear thinking could keep one alive. As he strolled along, he took into account several aspects of the battle, and with a swift flick of his wand would draw in stray MP balls to keep his reserves high. Those with Keyblades would be doing the majority of the damage here, not him, but in the time to come, he would need his magic to deal out as much pain as he could so that they light wielders could finally deliver the final blow... and end this long, drawn-out insanity once and for all.

As he walked along, he came across an unusual sight. The Brass Duke! Sai hadn't seen him pass, but then again, who knows with the chaos going on. He did look behind him a moment to double check. He wouldn't be able to tell at first glance if it was an illusion or not, so one should always make sure. He was convinced, however, the instant Brass spoke.

"Welcome back! Should we be following Eye-patch, or--?"

Sai considered this a moment, having seen Agrias and Beatrix charge triumphantly and inspiringly toward the gates. That was when he realized something.

With the overwhelming stench of darkness all around them, he had failed to notice the gathering within the castle itself. Darkness was drawing itself to a central point, preparing to unleash itself upon the world. Sai recognized a charging pattern when he saw one and calmly looked to the Duke.

"The ground troops will need cover very shortly..." he said without a hint of concern. "Your mechs cannot be effected by darkness, provided there is no moogle inside, correct? I'd say you have a minute at best to put as much metal between the oncoming blast of darkness and anyone we wish to shield from becoming our enemy..."

With that, Sai calmly strolled past Brass. He only lifted his wand from time to time to dispatch an oncoming heartless. Lucky for him, this was few and far between. After all, he didn't have anything they wanted. "I'm going to the tower... There's something that belongs to me at the top."