General Disclaimer: I am just borrowing, unless it is an OC, then it's mine!
So, this is a third draft of a story written a while back. It's not fully redone yet, but I figured I would start with the first chapter at least.
If you don't like it, I can't help you. Just please don't bother putting rude reviews. If you like it then please let me know.
This will update slowly, I don't have much time with my life. Thanks for the patience.
Thanks to those who tried to beta, your life is busier then mine, you win x.x
Asigl
Kingdom Hearts: Heart Light Your Way
The wind was cold as it blew around her, her body sinking into the dark abyss.
Eyes opened sluggishly, catching the shadowed movement of her hair blowing past her face as she fell. What had happened? Where was this place? A fog seemed to cloud her mind, her thoughts loose upon the wind around her.
Maybe, it's only a dream?
The wind seemed to shift, her body rolling slowly to face the darkness below… Wait. Light reflected in her silver eyes as a large platform covered in colorful stained glass lay beneath her. In the darkness, the light shone brightly, and the illuminated picture lay before her. The young woman saw herself in the picture, eyes shut as though sleeping. Around the sleeping form of her image was a blur of dark images, surrounded by the unmistakable shapes of flames.
What? Her mind racked for answers only to be met with a fog as the wind began to pick up around her. She was falling. Falling. The image before her cleared slightly, her hand was clutching something over her chest. The station grew closer rapidly, she crossed her arms before her to protect her face and tried to curl up into a little ball. The object in her hands seemed to shine.
Her shoulder screamed in pain as the young woman impacted with the station, the platform shattering into a multitude of shards. Pieces cut at her skin and clothing as she continued to fall. The shards seemed to keep pace, and at one point it felt as though she were floating again as everything moved so slow. A peak out to the darkness around her beheld the large shards of the station, the glass showing dancing images upon them. Yet they were too blurry to make out. Her mind within its fog.
Then the world sped up.
The young woman cried out in pain as she impacted again suddenly, her back slamming against the station below her and creating a spiderweb of cracks along its surface. She fought to regain the breath that had been taken from her as the impact had come, her ears catching the musical sound of the shards surrounding her hitting the ground around her. She let out a pained groan, pushing herself up from the station when pain erupted in her left shoulder pinning her to the floor. The scream that followed echoed in the darkness, her body curling to the side and just barely missing being impaled by another shard of the platform. The sounds ceased around her as she took in the sight of the shard in her shoulder. A closed eye greeted her own as the blood pooled slightly below her. The shard was hot as she tried to gain a hold upon it, finally grasping it close to her shoulder as she tried to pull it up. Her hand slipped only once, opening new wounds on her palm and fingers before she managed with a cry of pain to pull the shard free.
Hot tears fell down her cheeks, her hand going to her shoulder in an attempt to keep the wound from bleeding. This was no dream. Just a nightmare.
::Is that what you think?
The voice seemed to echo in her mind, her eyes opening again to the darkness surrounding the dull glow of the station below her.
~It does seem that way doesn't it? When would this happen in real life after all…
"What..?" Her voice cracked out. The voice in her mind had spoken again, it seemed different somehow though.
~Perhaps this is just in your mind. If that's the case then just lay down and die.
-That's Enough!
There were more then one, but the young woman couldn't see. Pushing herself up shakily she managed to get to her feet, staring out into the darkness.
~Well now, at least she got up. Maybe there is strength in her yet.
"What are you talking about? Where are you? Who are you?" She called out, stepping shakily in a small circle like a wild animal as her head whipped from side to side. Silence. Was she going mad? It must be the blood loss. The young woman knelt on the floor, holding her shoulder as she cried softly. What was going on? Why was this happening to her? Why her?
::Because it can't happen to anyone else.
The young woman looked up, a small ball of light lazily drifting down before her. It hovered before her, just out of reach as she knelt upon the ground.
"What do you mean, it can't be anyone else? What's going to happen?"
::As goes light, so goes darkness. The balance between them is fragile at best, yet there are forces behind the scenes that wish to make war occur once more. I'm sorry I can't tell you more right now. It wouldn't help you anyway, you must take the first step on your journey yourself. All I can give you is a destination to Depart from…
"What destination, where am I going?" The orb of light was silent for several moments, the station beneath her starting to shake. The young woman looked around as the station itself seemed to crumble around her. "What should I do? Help Me!"
The station shattered beneath her, and again she fell. A bloody hand reached out towards the orb of light as she fell. The darkness seemed to gather around her, swallowing her as her vision dimmed to just the small dot of light.
~You must find the Light in the Darkness…
::Let your Heart light the way…
-Fenrir…
The light faded to darkness then, her mind drifting again to unconsciousness as she fell into the abyss.
Chapter 1: Meteor Shower
Stars sparkled in the night sky, their light dulled by the small lantern nearby as nimble fingers laced together another piece of stained glass with the small piece of leather. The vibrant green star was taking shape and a small smile graced Aqua's lips as she took a moment to look up. She had read about these charms in a book- they traditionally were made with seashells- and Aqua was quite pleased with how her own versions came out. Two other stars, a blue and a golden one, lay next to her completed beside several various colors of glass. Quickly her fingers worked, weaving the small charm into the star that would become Ventus' way finder. Finished.
Aqua held the charm up, examining it. The ties were tight, and the magic would help ensure they would last, perfect. A streak of light in the sky. Then another. The star shaped charm was shifted down from view as Aqua took in the sight of the meteor shower before her. It was a rare occurrence to see meteor showers in the Land of Departure, Aqua only witnessed two others in the past. Once when she was brought to the land at a young age, and again when her keyblade manifested itself during her training. It always seemed that they would bring about a mark of change, these falling stars. What could it be this time? The exam was in three months time. When it occurred she and Terra would be tested for keyblade Mastery. Aqua looked down at the charm in her hand, was it because of this?
A feeling pushed into her chest, warm, light. Was this just the Land of Departure's way of silently encouraging her along her path? Blue eyes looked up again, the smile returning to her lips, only to fade shortly after. "What…?"
In the sky a wave of energy seemed to pulse, not unlike lightning rippling within clouds. A star was coming down, large in a streak of violet-blue energy. No, not a star. Aqua rushed to the edge of the clifftop, way finder left with it's siblings as she followed the path of the falling star. She peered over the edge of the railing as the star hit the water, energy discharging around the foaming waves before an object bobbed to the surface. Aqua's feet were light running down the stairs alongside the mountain cliff face that led to the water. Her body moved by instinct, rushing to aid the person she had seen bobbing along the surface of the water.
"Aqua!" Master Eraqus' voice carried from the stairs, he had appeared so quickly.
"Master, in the water look!" His face peered over the dark waves, giving a sharp nod to her when he saw the body. It was all the response Aqua needed as the water surrounded her form. Swiftly through the unusually calm waters she swam to the body, hooking her arm up under their own as she treaded water. It was a woman, her long hair floating within the water like a net cast adrift. Aqua pulled the woman against her chest, resting her head on her shoulder as a current seemed to begin pulling the two along. She looked back to the small cove to see her Master holding his keyblade in front of his body, the tip glowing with magic as the current pulled them both back to land.
"Stay calm." Eraqus told her as he waved his keyblade, the water surging and pulling the two onto solid land. The woman's weight shifted onto her body from the water, Aqua gently guiding her to the ground as the water receded. in the light cast by the lanterns Aqua took in the unconscious form. The woman's skin was a sun kissed dark olive, her face sharp and angular. Long dark hair was piled up around and beside her figure, small fragments of what seemed to be beads or glass glittering from within. Her clothes- a fitted top that exposed her midriff and shoulders, and a log pair of loose pants- were in tatters and seemed singed in some places. Small cuts and what seemed to be burns dotted her arms and exposed skin, but it was nothing compared to her shoulder.
"This isn't good." Master Eraqus muttered quietly as he took up position opposite Aqua, looking down at the woman's shoulder. A large wound trickled blood slowly, pierced straight through to her back.
"What happened to her?" He shook his head, preforming a small hand movement he often used for spells as a dull green glow enveloped the woman's shoulder.
"Aqua, begin to heal the other wounds while I tend to her shoulder." A nod and a second green glow came from Aqua's hands, spreading out over the woman's unconscious form. Several silent moments passed before the woman coughed, water coming up from her mouth and forcing the two to stop and turn her to the relatively uninjured side. "Easy now, you seem to have gone through quite the ordeal young lady."
"W-Who?" The woman asked, coughing as the water came up.
"It's alright, you're safe." Silver eyes looked up from the ground, cloudy and seeming to be in a daze. Aqua smiled down gently, trying to be reassuring as the eyes slid shut again, the woman taking small breaths. A few moments later and Eraqus gave a small grunt, the green glow from his spell vanishing.
"I've done what I can for now, let's get our guest back to the castle." Aqua gave a nod, helping to pull the woman up. The woman was taller then her, Eraqus holding up the majority of the woman's weight as they both made their way back to the castle. Aqua glanced up as they made their way inside the castle grounds, the stars in the night sky twinkling back, the meteor show was over. They happened rarely in the Land of Departure, but when they do, something always happened.
The sun was beginning to shine through the window, creating a soft glow as Eraqus turned another page in the book within his hand. Nothing. He had hoped the castle's library would hold the answers he sought, yet to no avail. Despite being the Master of this world now, there were still secrets left to uncover. The sound of sheets shifting beside him drew his gaze to the bed he sat by. Secrets such as how this young woman came to find his world, without the use of any travel options he knew of, falling from the sky like a shooting star.
Another thought had also been troubling him, particularly about the young woman herself. Darkness. He could feel it permeating the young woman to the very core, yet along with this darkness was something else. Something he hadn't expected. The mark of the keyblade. It was clear as day to him, imprinted upon her very heart. But who was she apprenticed to? This troubled him greatly, and it was only out of such desire for knowledge that stayed his blade in the dark of night once Aqua had been sent away. Darkness must be destroyed, no matter the cost, and yet he stayed his blade. Or more so his blade stayed him. Every keyblade held a degree of sentience, it was how they chose their masters.
Yet the Master Keeper refused his request. HIs eyes drifted down again to the book before him, a journal kept by his own Master's teacher. Eraqus had exhausted the knowledge in his old Master's journals, nothing lay within as to the Master Keeper's actions, the blade's new secret remaining shut to him. The cover closed, nothing in this one either. With a tired sigh he placed it back upon the nightstand atop tho other journals. What was it about this young woman who held the power of the Keyblade within? How could such a being steeped in darkness still exist and be a wielder? Why did she arrive? The girl's condition suggested an altercation, she was attacked by someone and left to burn. Why?
"Master Eraqus?" Eraqus looked up from his pensive state, he had not heard Aqua's soft knock and the young woman now stood within the door. "Is everything alright?"
"Yes Aqua, everything is fine." He glanced back to the bed where the unknown girl lay, still asleep. Answers may have to wait until she awakened. "It appears our guest is recovering still. It could be some time before she awakens. Until that time we shall wait."
"I understand." She watched as her master stood, stretching slightly as he did before stepping up to her and placing a hand upon her shoulder.
"You did well last night. While it was reckless and foolish to jump into the dark waters, you did so with conviction and steadfast purpose to save another. I am proud of you." Aqua gave a small nod, to which he returned before stepping back again. "You will make a fine Master when the time comes."
"I hope so." Aqua replied with a quiet voice.
"Trust in your heart Aqua, the strength it has can not be measured through words alone." Eraqus said, watching the moment of doubt slip away from Aqua's form. He stretched slightly, feeling his back crack from the poor posture he fell into while reading through the night. "This old body complains daily, I am not as spry as I used to be."
Aqua giggled slightly and he placed a hand on her shoulder as he moved past her.
"If you do not mind Aqua, would you keep an eye on our guest while I go find some breakfast?" Eraqus asked, smiling as she gave a nod.
"Of course, with any luck Terra and Ven didn't eat everything yet." She replied and he gave a contemplative frown.
"Hmm, then I should hurry along. If I find out they decided to not spare me some breakfast, I think I shall have them do laps to help burn off that excess energy." He said very seriously as he walked out the door, before glancing back with a smile. "Of course even if they did leave me something, I think the laps would be a good way to direct such energy into productive uses."
Aqua smiled back at his response, and the door closed behind him. She turned to the bed where the slumbering woman lay, taking quiet steps to her side. The covers themselves were drawn up, laying just under the woman's shoulders, the fabric rising and falling gently as the body beneath it slumbered. Aqua's eyes found themselves examining this newcomer thoroughly, the coloring of her skin, the way her hair lay and the glittering beads within it. Her eyes eventually fell down onto the silvery scar that was on the woman's left shoulder, sitting just inside the joint and slightly below the end of the collarbone. It stood out against the tanned skin, interrupting the darkness with a flash of light. Her hand reached out, pressing lightly at the skin. The woman shifted and Aqua's hand jumped back, a flutter of the eyes as the woman's hand emerged from under the covers to lay next to her head as it turned away from Aqua. Then nothing as the woman resumed sleeping.
The breath Aqua was holding released slowly, and instead of looking at the slumbering woman she turned instead to the books that Master Eraqus was reading from. Three books lay next to a small stack of ten, Aqua taking up the first in the smaller stack. The entries written within were akin to journal entries, and after looking at the next book briefly Aqua came to the conclusion they were indeed journals. Why was the Master looking through old journals? Aqua closed the slightly elaborate journal in her hand, looking down at the last book in the pile. It was the most plain, simply bound with a dark leather, it's yellowed pages were surprisingly supple under her fingers as Aqua turned to a random page where the date had been smudged away.
'- the man aggravates me to no end, I should have just destroyed him for what it was worth. Is this punishment for my failings of His Majesty? The darkness that Wulf wields should not exist, yet the Keyblade itself recognizes him… HIM! … Words of the war are sparse between the lands, and even now there is a darkness seeming to cut away at the land, fragmenting it. Kingdom Hearts has begun to fade from the sky, I fear my quest to seek out -'
A soft grunt drew Aqua from the old pages, her eyes going from book to bed as the woman on the bed began to shift. The woman's face was screwed up in anger as her body started to thrash in small bursts against something in her mind. Aqua put the book down, reaching out to attempt waking the woman from her nightmare when silver eyes shot open. It took all of three seconds as Aqua was pinned and pulling at the arm against her neck with one hand that was pinning her to the bed, the other pushing up against the weight of the panicking woman.
"S-Stop…..please, I'm…" Aqua wheezed out as she attempted to speak to the woman, her right arm being pinned by the wrist as the woman continued to press Aqua deeper into the bed. The glazed silver eyes began to fade out as black creeped in on the edge of Aqua's vision, and the attempt at talking ceased. The woman's weight was suddenly flung off her by the shield spell that was instinctively cast and Aqua registered the sound of the woman hitting the door as she coughed, bringing air back into her lungs. There was a groan from the woman, and Aqua pushed herself up from the bed, a hand at her chest as she watched the woman warily.
"nnng…My head…" The woman said, raising her left hand to her head and wincing at the pain from her shoulder. She groaned again as her right hand had slapped against her scar, the hand shifting and tracing the scar as she examined it. Aqua coughed as she tried to take a breath and the woman's head snapped up, her hair partially obscuring her vision before it was pushed aside. "Spirits…what did I do?"
"You tried to choke me…" Aqua supplied, the woman's eyes widening slightly before she looked away and started muttering curses.
"Spirits…damnit…did I have too much last night? nng… my head hurts…" The woman muttered, holding her head before looking back up to Aqua. "Did I do anything else?"
"You were sleeping." Aqua started, sliding to the edge of the bed and pausing as she collected her thoughts and breathed in more. " Having a nightmare, I tried to wake you up. It's not your fault."
"Says the woman I tried to choke to death…" The woman muttered, rubbing at her shoulder. They sat in awkward silence for a moment, the woman glancing around at her surroundings and at Aqua. The woman cleared her throat and their eyes met. " Where am I again?"
"My home." Aqua responded and the woman gave a nod, looking around again at the unfamiliar surroundings.
"And you are…?"
"Aqua."
"Aqua…" The woman repeated, taking a breath and letting it out slowly as she placed a hand to her head. Aqua watched her cautiously as the woman remained quiet while staring at the floor before her. Silver eyes darted back and forth slightly as the woman sat thinking, then took in her appearance and noted the charred parts of her pants. With a sigh the woman gave a nod. "Alright, I think I got it now."
"Got what?" Aqua asked, her brow furred with confusion.
"That I died and went to the spirit realm only to try and kill an angel, I guess it's what I deserve." The woman said in a matter-of-fact voice, letting out a heavy breath of annoyance. Aqua stared at the woman with a look of surprise.
"You aren't dead."
"Huh?" The woman looked up at Aqua, the blue haired girl having recovered a bit from earlier. "I'm not?"
"No." Aqua shook her head, and with a small smile added, "and I'm not an angel."
"Oh, I see." The woman said looking quite a bit more relived. "So, where am I exactly then?"
"You're at my home, the Land of Departure." Aqua replied, she didn't move from her spot sitting on the bed just yet, but it seemed that the woman didn't actually want to hurt her. "Which world did you come from?"
"World? What do you mean world?" The woman asked, and before Aqua could respond the door pushed open and the woman scrambled away slightly since she was near it. Master Eraqus appeared in the doorway, looking from Aqua then to the now awake woman on the floor.
"I see our guest has awoken." Master Eraqus said as he stared at the woman for several moments, before turning to Aqua. "Terra and Ventus are in the training yard, you should join them."
"Yes Master." Aqua replied, pausing in her direction to reach out a hand to the woman and help her up. "We can talk later Miss…"
"Fenrir." She replied as she took Aqua's hand and stood, ending up a few inches taller then Aqua. Fenrir scratched the back of her head slightly in embarrassment.. "Just…no 'Miss', it makes me feel old…"
Master Eraqus watched as Aqua apologized quietly, and an awkward silence seemed to fall between the two. He cleared his throat gently and the two young women noticed him again. Aqua left with a small smile after a small farewell, and as the door closed behind her he noticed the tension in Fenrir's form. Her height seemed similar to his own and Terra's, and her form suggested that perhaps on her world she was a warrior, the mark of the keyblade upon her heart certainly tinted his view about her. As did the darkness.
"I am Master Eraqus, Master of the keyblade and guardian of the light." Eraqus began, drawing himself up as he introduced himself. He would have patience when it came to the matter of the darkness surrounding this young woman, Fenrir. Perhaps he may be able to bring her into the light and cleanse the taint. Fenrir shifted slightly before giving him a slight nod of the head.
"Fenrir, Sun Hunter clan." She replied almost automatically, pressing a hand to her head afterwards as she winced in pain. Eraqus narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Is there something wrong?" He asked, and she shook her head slightly.
"I don't know, my head just feels clouded." Fenrir replied.
"Can you recall how you arrived here?"
"I don't even know where here is…My village…" Fenrir grunted in pain and held her head as Eraqus watched on. It was the next few words that began to sow doubt in his actions within his heart, and give him a somewhat clearer perspective on the darkness of Fenrir's. "I can't…I can't remember…I…"
"It's all right." Eraqus said softly, placing a hand on her uninjured shoulder. She flinched at the touch momentarily, and he waited until Fenrir collected herself before guiding her to sit. "Let us start with what you do remember, tell me of your home."
