"Listen, kid. In this life, our choices usually fall under two categories – the coward's choice, and the honest man's choice."
"I'm not a man!"
"That's irrelevant."
Sweat dripped down my face, the sun beating on my back in its usual merciless fashion. These buggers again? I thought, and my father's words spilled through my mind once more.
"The coward will lie, cheat, and run from any problem in fear, but the honest man confronts it. You take the option of confronting fear, every time it's presented to you. Understand?"
"Yeah, Dad, I understand. Can I finish my ice cream now?"
Black, twitching creatures that almost had human bodies (if you ignored the antennae sticking out of their head) surrounded me. I sighed.
"You guys suck, you know that?"
I knew they didn't understand. These monsters – these heartless, the shells of people after their hearts have been devoured – can't comprehend language. They can't even comprehend emotion; only instinct. They're getting so bad that the leaders of some worlds are paying to have them exterminated, even if their absence only lasts a short time.
My mind raced for the quickest way to get rid of them. Fire? No – that really only takes out large numbers if you cast a ring around yourself, which was a little more effort than I liked to put into these shadows – the lowest-ranking heartless. Blizzard would only hold them still, unless I used Blizzara, which was still a bit too much effort. But thunder – that was the spell to use.
A heartless leapt towards me and I jumped backwards, right into three other shadows. I pointed my right index finger towards the sky. Thunder, I thought. Lightning cracked all around me, zapping all the heartless. They melted into the ground, avoiding any physical attacks. Thunder! I thought a second time, and they dissipated into black smoke. Physical attacks may completely miss when they fuse with the ground, but they can't run from magic.
I felt a tickle on my shin and looked down to see a blood seeping out of a little scratch. They actually hit me this time, huh? Friggin' pests. Next time I'll pay more attention to the suppression. I was a better "exterminator" than most, because I could feel the presence of darkness in the world I was lending a hand to. Why I had this ability, I wasn't really sure – but something told me I got the intuition from my father.
The sun was beginning to set, finally, and a breeze kicked up so that I could cool off as I headed for the inn. A free meal and place to lay my head was part of the deal I'd cut with the town mayor, along with 700 munny every day no one was eaten by heartless. The flow of darkness entering the world's heart was beginning to settle, and soon a more relaxed guard could take care of this world. Meanwhile, I would do what I could to enjoy my stay here.
I found the hotel I was staying in, without incident. The food wasn't great, but it was filling, which was all I needed. Everyone was quiet, no one bothered me with useless chit-chat, and I could have a peaceful night. Relatively peaceful, anyway. I knew the moment my head hit the pillow, I'd be lost in that same confusing dream.
Everything is black, and sound is muted. I try to speak, call out to see if anyone's there, but my voice is incredibly weak. A sound rings in my ears, so loud I can barely stand it – footsteps are approaching me from the left.
"You shouldn't be here." It's a man speaking, his tone soft but decided, firm.
I try to tell him I don't want to be, I try to tell him I'm trying to get home, but my voice is still too weak.
"You're not corrupted. Why are you here?"
Suddenly I can see him. He's taller than I am, with hair longer than mine, wearing a black hooded coat, and his eyes—
My own eyes snapped open to morning sunlight, brighter than I could handle, and I blinked several times. I took a deep breath. "I never do see his eyes," I growled.
The scratch on my leg had healed over, and after pulling on the usual – torn up cargo pants, faded red hoodie, slightly shredded converse – I took a deep breath and carefully considered if any part of me felt heavier than usual.
After a long, analytical moment of normalcy, I decided to take a walk around town and see if I could find anything unusual on the move.
The morning sun casts a warm glow on my back as I move around town, and for a moment, I feel peaceful. At ease. Even a little… at home.
I stop myself a moment. No. This is not home. This is a job. I closed my eyes and cracked my neck. "Gotta keep my head on straight," I said quietly to myself, but the emotion I was usually able to beat down reared its miserable head.
"Do you have to go to the bathroom before we head home?"
"No."
"Try anyway."
"But I—"
"Miyuki. What did I just tell you?"
I sighed dramatically. "Fine…"
He chuckled and kissed my forehead. "Go on, kid."
I was only six. It wasn't that unusual for a parent to insist their kid go to the bathroom even if they don't feel like it, but I still knew something was wrong. When I finished washing my hands, I heard screaming from the ice cream shop. Heartless were in the ice cream shop, devouring everyone – including my father. I cried so hard I couldn't breathe, and suddenly I felt as though I was being pulled down – as if gravity's force had multiplied. The last thing I remember seeing of that world is my father's heart lifting from his body – then I was in Traverse Town.
I was too little. Too weak. Too scared. Anger rocked through me and I walked at a faster pace than usual. I'll never stand by and watch someone be torn apart like that again. My left hand felt a little heavy, a little weak, and I turned that way, quickening my pace towards the alley where I sensed the darkness' presence. I neared the edge of the shadows of the alley, my body feeling slightly heavier with each step.
I slowed to a stop at the sight of a masculine figure standing in front of a swirling black and blue sphere of what I could only imagine was raw darkness. He wore a long black coat, identical to the one in my dream, though the hood was pulled up so that I couldn't see his face.
I stared awestruck at the figure before me. This isn't a heartless, is it? I took a step towards him, the sphere of darkness behind him disappearing – but even with the sphere gone, the presence of darkness lingered. I'll bet he's just a higher-level heartless. But if he's human…
"Do you have a heart?" I asked, not expecting a response.
The hood snapped up towards me – I knew he was looking at me now. He's not a heartless. "You're human," I mumbled, then stepped towards him a bit more. "Are you alright?"
He took a step backwards. What's he doing? Why isn't he answering me?
"Can you speak?"
He stepped backwards a bit more. Does he think that portal's still there? His next step was uneven, and with a sharp thunk, he was on his back.
I cautiously walked over to him, keeping a distance of at least three feet between us. I know you were in my dream. I just can't figure out why. It's not like I've met you. His hand twitched.
"Now look," I spoke quickly, taking a step back, "I know you're not a heartless and you have a brain, so just so you know, one wrong move and you're toast. Got it?"
He slowly sat up and his hood fell backwards, revealing long silver hair and a black blindfold.
"So you are human!" I cried victoriously, and he jumped a little, his head snapping towards me. "That can't have felt good. Here, let me give you a hand up." I reached towards him, waiting for him to reach out and take my hand. He ignored me and stood up on his own. "Um…" Can't he hear me? I scared him when I yelled… So what's the matter with him? "Are you okay? That sounded really painful."
He pulled his hood back up and walked past me, holding one hand out, palm-forward in front of him. Another sphere opened up, and he walked right into it, the black and blue smoke wrapping around him until he completely disappeared.
What…? He just walked right into it? Where's he going?I waivered a moment, considering whether or not I should follow.
Suddenly the option was clear to me. "Yeah, I understand," I mumbled, and I ran into the darkness.
"You take the option of confronting fear, every time it's presented to you."