Echo in the Void
"The voice…
it spoke to me while you were sleeping.
It told me things.
Like a whisper on the fleeting winds of hope.
It told me…
That I could be…"
One
He floated silently through the void.
Like an empty vessel, nonexistent in this world. An abstract thought drifting through the inner-workings of the mind. No feelings or thoughts or dreams came to him while drifting through this nothingness of his home. After all, what right does the non-existing have to think or feel or dream?
Roxas.
There was no response. There shouldn't be anyway. He had no ears to hear, no mind to perceive. The ears and the mind were no longer his. Granted, they weren't his to begin with, but that didn't matter. Nothing mattered in the void to begin with, and never should have.
Roxas…
The body that did not exist shifted in it's movements, gearing itself toward the ground that wasn't there. There was a soft thud of soundlessness and the vessel suddenly became upright and stable.
Awaken.
The blue, empty eyes that did not truly belong to him opened forcefully, as if wrenching oneself from a terrible nightmare. He looked about. His eyes, unseeing in the blackness that stretched out to infinity before him, tried to make out something… anything he could recognize.
At once, thoughts began to fill the space that was once his nonexistent mind. Rapid, the mind's eye could not fully see these thoughts as they rushed by. Only flashes of things could he make out. A face, red hair, fire, a boy about his age… a … keyblade?
There was a flash of soft light that shone possibly miles and miles above him. Blue eyes peered upwards, attempting to remember the concept of light and… existence.
His legs gave way. His body crumpling to the ground as he fell forward. He found himself unable to remember to stand or to walk, or to hold his balance. A fist… his fist, pounded the nothingness that he once stood on out of frustration, no sound emanating from it. Finally, he pushed himself up onto his knees.
A name floated by his ears, soft and friendly. He immediately recognized it as his own.
"Roxas…" The boy whispered, peering at a pair of hands that moved into view. His own hands.
Roxas stood at once. His eyes peering up once again towards the light that still shone there. He opened up his hands and held his arms out and away from the body that he claimed as his own and then shouted, at the top of his lungs.
"My name is ROXAS!"
The sound of his voice faded from his mouth as soon as it left, possibly sucked away by the void. Roxas lifted his hands to his throat, and was about to question what exactly was going on when a sound, characteristic of a loud gong, filled the area.
As if commanded, Roxas looked down at his feet and was surprised when the darkness around them lifted away and revealed a large, circular platform filled with more light and an image of some sort. He turned his head and took a few steps backwards in an attempt to get a better view of the image at his feet.
Much of the image, he recognized, was fire, circling about the areas of the outer circle. In the middle were two people. The one on the far right he could only make out as… himself, dressed in a long black cloak. In his hands were…
"Keyblades."
He had no idea what keyblades were but they were obviously some sort of weapon… A weapon he knew how to use well, it seemed. In the image he was leaping into battle against the person directly in front of him.
The other depicted in the image was dressed in a black cloak, too, and had long red hair pushed back behind his ears.
"Axel…?" The name came to him, but the memory did not.
The birth, unnatural. And again, the rebirth unnatural still…
Roxas' attention was directed towards the light again, where the voice from before seemed to be emanating.
"Who are you?" Roxas asked, unsure of where he was or even… why he was at this point.
A name is unimportant. Or… perhaps, all the importance in the world if that's all it takes to define existence.
"Speak English!" Roxas was frustrated, mostly from the fact that he couldn't quite think clearly yet, nor remember much of anything at the moment.
Emotion? A surprise. Perhaps you do not yet recall what it is you lack
"What I lack? Where am I and what am I doing here…?"
A complicated question. Unfortunately you do not deserve to hear an answer… yet.
"What do you mean!" Roxas was in no mood to play any games with the strange voice.
He began to think clearly and could recall simple knowledge anyone at his age would know at this point and yet, could not reclaim any of his memories. They were there… but far out of reach, it would seem.
Tell me. Are you willing to fight for the knowledge that you crave?
There was a small flash of light out of the corner of Roxas' eye. He lowered his head and turned, coming face to face with both keyblades depicted in the image he stood upon.
Biting his lip, Roxas stepped towards the weapons, his hand outstretched. But his hand came in contact with something solid that he could not pass. He pressed his hand on the invisible wall standing in his way and suddenly felt angered and rather foolish.
Not yet. First you must decide…
Roxas lowered his hand and clenched it into a fist, his eyes peering intently on the weapons floating before him.
The Keyblade… The voice began. In some hands it can be considered a tool, in others, a weapon. But in the right hands it can mean both.
Before Roxas' eyes he could see the invisible wall dissipate, leaving the blades open to him. He took a step forward.
At this point in time only one of these two keyblades will be open to you.
Roxas glanced over at the keyblade on the right. It's body was largely white, with the top being a different color.
Do you choose the path of the light, who's goodness knows no bounds? The path of the Oathkeeper?
His gaze shifted to the keyblade on the left. It was the complete opposite of the white one. Completely black, it looked like the perfect weapon.
Or do you choose the shadow? The bringer of death and the path of Oblivion?
He stepped forward once more. This time, both keyblades were in arms reach. They both looked tempting. But which should he choose?
It is your choice, Roxas. And be glad, because for once you do have a choice…
The boy stood quietly, glancing between each weapon and thinking intently. Slowly his gaze shifted to the image of himself on the circular platform. In the image he was holding both blades, why should he only choose one? Then his eyes moved towards the face of the man named Axel, his eyes narrowed slightly as he made up his mind.
Roxas reached out with both arms, grasping the hilt of each keyblade.
He tried wrenching them from where they floated but they would not budge. He then tried to release his hold on the hilts but, to his horror, his hands would not budge. A red light flashed from the bottom of each keyblade and traveled up it's length, it reached the hilt and then surged, violently, into his arms.
Roxas screamed, the pain from the red light was a thousand times worse than any thing imaginable. He could feel his muscle's convulse and, finally, perhaps mercifully, he was allowed to let go. Exhausted, Roxas fell backwards against the hard floor.
The voice laughed, Perhaps you cannot hear. I said choose one. Darkness or Light!
After a moment Roxas stood once more as anger pulsed freely through his body. "And I said I choose BOTH. I choose the Twilight!"
Roxas reached for both blades again, and held them tightly in his grasp. The red light came once more, and filled his body with everlasting pain. Roxas gritted his teeth and shut his eyes, refusing to let go. After what felt like an eternity the light disappeared and Roxas wrenched both keyblades from their places. He took a step backwards and twirled the blades in his hands. Looking up towards the light with a triumphant sneer.
The voice laughed in response, Now I know why it was so easy to awaken you. Your will alone is stronger than any heart. It is your desire to be that allows you to even exist. Perhaps there is hope for you yet, boy of Twilight.
"Now do I deserve an answer? Do I deserve to know what I ask? Who are you?" Roxas half asked, half demanded up at the voice and the light. "And what about my memories? Why can't I remember?"
Perhaps. Do not worry, your memories will come to you in due time. But, as I said before, you must fight to prove you deserve what you seek!
Without warning the voice and the light disappeared. The only source of light now was coming from the circular image that he stood on. Looking back down Roxas was shocked to see dark creatures rise seemingly out from the ground under his feet. Not missing a beat, the boy got into a fighting stance that seemed second nature to him, not requiring a memory or a thought.
"If I have to fight to figure out what the hell is going on then, lets fight!"
The Boy of Twilight lifted his keyblades, one of Darkness and one of Light and charged the dark creatures that stood as obstacles before him. He would get answers.
One way or another.
To Be Continued…
Author's Note: So I beat Kingdom Hearts 2 and I really liked Roxas and Axel. But I thought Roxas was dealt an unfair hand in his life and I wanted to at least give him a second chance. So I decided to continue the story of Kingdom Hearts sometime after the second game, but from Roxas' point of view. Expect to see a lot more characters later and, don't worry, Roxas is going to regain his memories pretty fast.
So, tell me what you think. No flames, but tons of constructive criticism is entirely welcome and expect to see the second chapter soon since it's already written ( I just have to change a few things.) And thanks for reading.
Disclaimer: (This will be said only once, but will count for the entire story henceforth.) I do not own Roxas, the keyblades or anything from the Kingdom Hearts games, Disney or Final Fantasy that appears in this story. And I intend to make no profit from it as it's a work of Fan Fiction.