"Shrouded in darkness, an eternal slumber.
A fate worse then death lies within.
Do you enter?
Are you scared?
You should be-
Your heart is not worthy."
Awakening frantically from his sleep, Shade begins clutching at his heart, which was beating much faster then normal. He looked around, his pupils dilated, searching for voices he had been hearing so often within his dreams. There was no one around, nothing but the silent darkness creeping around in his room.
He tried to lay back down, and go to sleep, but he just couldn't. The voice, it was so familiar, it reminded him of someone he had known long ago, but, for some reason, he just couldn't remember. No matter how hard he tried, it only hurt to think about it, as if the memory had been forcefully wiped from his brain.
"What did it all mean... just who was that calling to me in my dreams? What could it want with me? What do I have to do with anything? My heart is not worthy... eternal slumber... shrouded in... darkness."
His vision began to wane, as the darkness surrounded him once more, and back to sleep he went, but this time, his dreams were much more vivid then before.
He saw it, a face, the owner of that tender voice. It was so fuzzy, so unclear, but he saw it, a girl. She looked at him, her eyes shot red with tears of disdain. She was so clearly troubled, so frightened, and worn. Her long blonde hair was singed and dirty, her solemn face covered in lashes and bruises, her body with cuts and blood stains from head to toe.
Just looking at her filled him with grief. "Who are you...?" He asked, but she did not respond. "What do you want with me?" She merely stared, then pointed behind him. He turned around, and saw what could only be described as terror in physical form.
Where he stood, was but a door between worlds; and behind that door, was a world of anguish, and horror. Blood, all around, gushing, and oozing from the cracks on the ground. Tortured souls screams echo in harmony to the awful sound of searing, lashings, and beatings.
Strange creatures roamed in this twisted realm, that were the pitchest of black, darkness itself seemed to have taken form. They were committing atrocious acts of torture, burning out the eyes of their victims with searing lava, gnawing on their misshapen, frail bodies, and some would go so far as to rip them apart and dance around in their blood.
The sight of such a world almost caused Shade to slip into madness. He curled up and told himself it was all just a dream. The girl put a hand on his shoulder, and he began to feel a strange familiar warmth. "Your heart, is not yet worthy; but someday... someday you will be mine." Her voice begins to get deeper, and more demonic. "Someday... you will embrace the darkness. Just... like... her."
By the end, her voice had completely changed to that of someone possessed. Her eyes and mouth began leaking blood as the door sealed behind him. The room began to fill up, drowning him in the bright red liquid. He couldn't breathe, his senses began to slowly shut down.
"Fate is written, but it is so easily changed.
Life is given, but can be so easily taken away.
Have you given up?
Are you going to give in to the darkness so easily?
Be strong.
Even in the darkest of hours, there is always the light."
"Follow that light, use it to guide you.
Even though the right path may sometimes be hidden.
If you look inside your heart.
You will find your way."
Shade wakes up on a large circular platform. On the platform are pictures of seven angels, as they appear to be sleeping while floating through the air.
"Do not be fooled by their illusion.
Step forward.
become blessed by the light, and see them for what they truly are."
A bright beacon of light appears in the middle of the platform, it is warm, and alluring. Shade becomes entranced with its beauty, and walks inside. It made him feel happy, an emotion he hadn't felt in quite some time. It reminded him of all the wonderful things he and his mother used to do before she passed away.
The light began pouring into his body, mind, and soul. It made him feel strong, like he was able to overcome any challenge, as if someone was was watching him, someone who always had his back.
The gentle angels that were once asleep had awoken, and they began to scream as they were deformed and turned into monstrous looking demons. Each one taking on a theme, the seven deadly sins.
"Now you see them.
The seven guardians of sin.
They seek to challenge you.
But do not be afraid.
As long as your heart stays pure.
You will always be protected by the light.
Now, prepare yourself.
They come.
Out of the deepest reaches of the shadows.
take up arms.
Defend yourself.
The answers you seek will come in time.
For now, you must... survive."
A strange, shadowy blob begins to take shape upon the platform. It begins squirming, hissing as it grows human like appendages, until finally, it becomes whole. Staring back at shade was none other then himself, a shadowy, disfigured version with soulless eyes that just seem to suck you in like a black hole.
It begins walking towards Shade, slowly, menacingly. Shade falls on his back, and tries to squirm away as he is overcome with terror, and fear. The shadowy figure smirks as he creeps closer, and closer, ever drawing near.
"Just what the hell is going on?" Shade clutches his fist."What are you?!" His head began to shake, his eyes sealed tightly shut, muttering to himself that it was all nothing more then a dream. "You aren't real... you aren't... This is nothing but a dream, I'm dreaming.. I have to be."
Closer, closer, closer, his shadow, and the entity merged. It begins cackling madly, the taste for blood freshly looming on its mind.
"What's the matter?" The strange shadowy creature said in Shades voice. "Are you afraid? You shouldn't be, for I am you, and you are me. We are one Shade... we are one with the darkness. I am the embodiment of your sins, I... am the embodiment of the true self."
"No! Stay away!" Shade screamed, his body shaking in utter fear as he looked upon the creature in horror. He stared deeply into its soulless, red eyes as it began to draw nearer, and nearer. A large smile printed upon its devious little face, rows and rows of razor sharp teeth lining its gums.
"I'm not you! I'm not...!" The creature merely laughs as Shade feebly tries to crawl away. Blood begins oozing from its sockets, coating the floor in its wake, leaving a slim trail of red behind him. The creature holds out its hand invitingly, looking upon Shade expectantly to grab it.
"Shade... join me, Shade. Embrace the darkness, embrace... eternity."
"No... I...I won't. You.. you're not real! This is all just a dream.. I'm just dreaming... you're not real!"
The creatures smile quickly turned into a large frown. The hand he was holding out so invitingly began to morph, and change, into a large, serrated blade. "Fool... if you will not accept your fate, then I shall force it upon you." The shadow raises its blade high into the air, readying it to strike a fatal blow.
Shade covers his face with his hands, in a desperate, but futile attempt to guard himself from the blade.
The shadow swings at him, mighty, and fast. With such speed it was nearly a blur, but Shades' hands glow with a bright, yellow light, and within that light, a large, silvery blade that was in the shape of a key appeared.
"The key of all keys, the key that unlocks the door to the heart itself
A weapon that all darkness fears.
It has chosen you
Become one with your very being.
Is it a curse?
Or a blessing?"
"What is this?" Shade said in disbelief as he slowly began to open his eyes. "It's so warm... just touching it fills me with this... unbelievable power. But, were did it come from?"
The shadow looks down at the blade as his arm begins to sear from the touch. It leaps back with unfathomable speed, and begins shrieking uncontrollably. Shade gets up, and looks at his new blade, confused, yet impressed with how light it was.
The shadow charges towards Shade with the intent on impaling him through the heart, but the Key-blade acts on its own, and guards his blow once again. The shadows Blade-like hand snaps like a twig, and it squeals in pain as a dark liquid gushes out of the freshly made wound.
Without any sense of control, Shade swings his blade, and slices the creature as it was rapt in agony, splitting it right in half. More of the dark liquid gushes out of its disembodied corpse, until it turns to mush, and fades back into the darkness.
"Just what the hell was that thing...?" Shade says to himself in a hushed voice. He looks around, his mind still in disbelief to the recent events. "This is all so unbelievable... " He holds his palm to his head as he takes a moment to ponder over things.
"Come on... just wake up... wake up dammit..." He began slapping at his face, desperately trying to wake himself up, but his efforts proved to be futile. He lifts up the key-blade, his eyes red, and filled with tears as he stares at it, hoping to understand its meaning.
"So it is done.
Your fate is sealed
You, chosen of the Keyblade
Your journey has only but begun.
Peril and danger await you upon every corner."
As soon as the familiar voice turns quiet, a large set of spiraling stairs made of light appear on the far corner of the platform. They appear to go on almost endlessly.
"Enough of the fucking riddles already!" Shade exclaimed agitatedly. "I just want to get out of here... I just want to go back home!"
"But do not be afraid of your destiny.
Embrace it, with open arms.
For only you are able to change it.
Now go
Walk one with the light
You, who was chosen by the Keyblade.
You, who all darkness fears."
"Dammit! Would you just listen to me!?" Shade screamed, but the voice grew silent once again. He turns reluctantly towards the stairs, thinking of his apparent options. There was no other choice, nothing else remains but an endless void of darkness.
Hesitantly, he begins walking towards the stairs, Slowly taking his first steps as he climbs on upwards. Each step was warm, and strangely gratifying, it was like walking on a mountain of clouds. As he looked back, he noticed the stairs beginning to vanish below him. Panic overtook his senses as he began to run, desperately trying to avoid falling into the endless gaping maw.
Each step caused more, and more to vanish, until it eventually caught up to him. He took one final step as the stair beneath his foot vanished, causing him to plummet helplessly into the ever looming darkness below. The warmth he felt turned cold, his emotions became riddled with fear, and despair.
The darkness practically swallowing him whole - he fell, and fell for what felt like hours on end until eventually he felt that he could no longer breath. Gasping for air, he clutched at his throat, scratching at it ceaselessly, like a strangled animal being drained of all life. He quickly began to losing consciousness, his eye lids gradually coming to a close, until he was lost in the all consuming nothingness.
A familiar voice echoes through the darkness
"Shade?
"Don't you remember?
"You made me a promise.
"You promised me you'd always be there for me, to always protect me.
"What happened to you, Shade?
"You've grown so cold... so distant.
"It's like you're not even the same person anymore.
"Please, Shade... I just want things to go back to the way they used to be.
"I miss being held in your arms.
"I miss that look you'd give me when I stared into your eyes.
"Does that promise mean nothing to you anymore?
"Do I... mean nothing to you anymore?
"Shade?
"Shade...?
"Shade!"
Shade awakens, still falling in a never ending pit of shadows. He begins quietly muttering to himself as he drifts alone, in his confusion, and empty feeling of loneliness.
"Darkness...
"Darkness...
"Darkness...
"Darkness...
"Swallowed...
"Consumed...
"I... I can't breathe...
"I can't think...
"I can't... feel...
"It's all so cold... so hopeless...
"Why?
"Why...?
"This is all so... fucked... up...
"I just want to die...
"...Or
"Am I...
"Already...
"Dead?
"Dead...?
"Could it be...?
"Could this really be what death is like..?
"No warmth.
"No light.
"Just darkness...
"Darkness...
"Darkness...
"Darkness...
"Darkness..."
The all consuming abyss – with its cold, icy, clutches, and its never ending hunger. Those who are unfortunate to fall inside, meekly seek the aid of the light. But unfortunately for those poor, lost, souls. Within the bowls of darkness itself, no light may ever seep its shining embrace through – no eyes shall ever witness its glorious radiance ever again.
"We know what you did..." A voice whispers in the darkness.
"We know who you are..." A different voice whispered again.
"Shade...?" A distinct voice emanates through all the others.
"Why..? Why must I suffer for you? Why must I bleed?" There was no mistaking it. That voice, it was hers. That mysterious girls.
"Why...
"Why...
Why...
Why...
I hate you Shade!
I hate you!
Hate you!
Hate you!
It's all your fault..."
All Shade could do was listen to these horrible words, and whispers. Each one filling his head with fear, resentment, anger, but above all else – sadness.
Sadness was the emotion most felt as he floated in endless darkness, listening to her words.
Shade was no longer being. It was as if he had lost his true self – become but a feint shadow in the ever looming pool of darkness. Every second that went by – torture. Endless torture, befitting hell itself.
Shade wondered, he wondered if this was something he had deserved.
He could no longer remember his past – he could no longer remember his self.
Stripped away, bare. He wanted to scream, but nothing came out. Only endless whispers flooded in. Whispers of betrayal, whispers of deceit. This whispers became maddening – he clawed at his face, seeking reprieve from one pain, with another.
But nothing worked. The whispers only managed to get worse – faster.
That was when he saw her, once again. She slowly floated down, her hands embracing him openly. Shaking, he reached out for her. Her hands cold, lifeless. As he grasped them, they became disfigured – blackened. Claws erupted from the finger nails as they latched on firmly to his wrists.
Shade squealed, horridly in pain. He looked up at her face, that merely greeted him with a satisfied grin. Her smile opened – wider, and wider. Sharp fangs lined her bloody gums, and a putrid smell of death wafted from her breathe.
"Shade... finally... we can be together again.." The girl cackled crazily. Her body mutating into a horribly disfigured monstrosity. It wailed loudly as bones popped from its blackened flesh, smearing globs of blood all over shades horrified face.
The darkness around them began to be absorbed by the creature, and slowly, it grew, and grew into a giant abomination. Shade was pulled inside of it, only to wake up moments later in the palm of its hand. The Shadow looked down at him from above, eyes red, faceless.
"Do you finally understand?
There is no escaping me... there is no escaping yourself.
There will always be darkness, Shade.
Embrace it.
Embrace me..."
Just as the creature finished speaking its last words, it rose up its left hand, and quickly crushed them both together.
The creature stood still, his eerie, red, eyes staring emotionless at his crushing palms. A look of frustration appears on that stale face of his. Its arms beginning to shake, as if meeting with some form of resistance.
Its eyes glowing brighter, shock, and surprise painting his featureless face. His palms slowly began to open – and as they do, a bright, luminescent light gleamed through the small, widening cracks of his hands.
The creature howled out furiously, shaking more so now then ever. But all its efforts seem to be in vain, his palms growing wider, and wider apart as Shade makes himself fully visible. In his clutches, the Keyblade, held in both hands above his head as he wedges open its crushing grip.
"Shade...! Please, stop! You're... you're hurting me!" The creature said in a pleading manner, taking on the voice of the girl yet again.
The words took Shade out of his guard for only a moment, but moment enough for the creature to grip Shade from below, and toss him down onto another large, circular platform. Similar to the one he stood upon before.
The landing took the wind out of him momentarily, and causing him to grunt in pain.
"Why are you doing this..?" Shade said, fumbling to get on his feet.
"Please, just tell me... tell me what all of this is about! I'm tired of these fucking games! I'm not playing them anymore!" He gripped his blade tightly within his palms, and took on a steadier, more battle-ready position.
The giant creature raised its arms high into the air. It began humming a melancholy tune, a tune that made Shade feel uneasy. Before his very eyes, a giant orb of shadows appeared above the creatures head. Smaller orbs began raining down above Shade, globbing onto the ground into thick piles of blackened ooze.
The ooze piles began to combine with one another into bigger, and bigger piles, until something began to manifest within them. Shadowy abominations, much like the one Shade had fought off before began to take form from the piles. Each one a near direct copy of Shade, as they fumbled around, blood oozing from their mouths as they all reached out for him.
"Join us...
Become... one...
Accept... Accept...
We are you...
You.. are... we..."
They called out for Shade with his own voice. Their tones devoid of emotion, devoid of soul. Their movements strange, like lifeless puppets as they inched forward.
As Shade was surrounded, terrified – the keyblade began to warm up within his hands. It glowed with a fiery, bright light that filled him with courage. As the creatures snarled, and lunged to attack him, fangs, and claws all bare.
He deflected each one as they pounced from all directions – the creatures hissing in pain as the blade touched them, scalding them.
"Why... resist...!
The light... lies...
Drown... drown in darkness..."
They attacked relentlessly, each time Shade would strike one down, two more would take its place. The shadowy globes continued to rain down, forming newer, and newer entities by the second. Shade knew at the rate things were going, he'd soon quickly be over run.
That is when he was struck with an insane idea – to throw the Keyblade into the giant ball of chaos above. He did not know why, just a gut feeling, a feeling that this had to work, that it must. So he did just that, mustering all of his might, he gripped the Keyblade tightly within his hands, and threw it with all the power he could find within himself.
The Blade twirled rapidly in the air, until finally colliding with the large ball above. As it hit, it seemingly vanished into the endless maw of darkness within. Shade was struck with a moment of doubt, unarmed, and defenseless as the creatures lunged at him again.
He covered his face, and screamed as the creatures were seconds away from tearing into him. Suddenly, during the bleakest of moments a glimmer of light erupted from the orb, causing it to explode into a spectacle of combined light, and darkness – together, into one. The creatures summoned by the orb dropped down into the ground, screeching, and wailing in unfathomable pain.
They slowly began to disintegrate into nothingness – from which they belonged. The giant monstrosity was taken completely by surprise. The explosion blowing off its enormous hands, causing them to leak blackened, bloody, goop all over.
It screamed, and screamed, taking on the voice of Shade, then the girls simultaneously, and another he had never heard before. The creature collapsed to its knees, causing a loud boom as it did. It looked at Shade, stared deep inside him. It's blood red eyes leaving a permanent stain inside of his soul as he looked not with anger, not with hate, just complete, and utter nothingness.
A shining orb appeared within Shades palm, and from within that orb, popped back Shades Keyblade, back to its rightful place – to its rightful owner.
He gripped the blade tightly, his hands shaking with anger as he hovered over the beast of darkness, and shadow. "Answer me damnit!" Shade yelled in anger, and frustration. "That girl.. the one who's voice you stole.. who's face you stole! Who is she..? She seems so familiar but.. why.. just why...!? Why can't I remember her!? Damn you! You tell me right now! Who the hell is she!?"
The beast merely stared in silence, unblinking, unmoving. The silence only serving to agitate Shade more and more as he grits his teeth and quivers in rage. "You were so damn talkative before.. what the hell happened? What's wrong with you..? Say something! Tell me! Tell me! Who is she!?" Who!?"
The creature continued to merely stare, as silently as the ever-looming darkness itself.
"That's it.." Shade muttered under his breathe. "I've had it! I've had it with you! I've had it with this! I want to wake up, do you hear me!? I want to wake up right now!" Shade screamed in a fit of rage then plunged his keyblade deep down into the stomach of the beast.
The creature bent forward, its eyes full of shock, and terror. The blade began to burn away at its shadowy flesh, leaving a feint mark of what appears to be a keyhole in its wake. The keyhole glowed with a shining light as the keyblade connected inside. A shell of light energy then surrounded the beast, forcing shade to quickly avert his gaze as it consumes it with blinding potency.
When Shade reopened his eyes, the creature was gone completely; in its place was a small wooden door with small trickles of light sprinkling out from the small cracks and openings.
"Is this... the exit?" Shade said as he inspected the door in disbelief. It had a strange heat permeating from within. It was inviting, welcoming. Shade slowly approached and placed his hand on the knob. Just as he did, the door flung open, and quickly sucked Shade inside.
"The door is now open.
The seal, unlocked.
All worlds shall be one..."