This is Our Story: Descent Through Time
by Teller of Chronicles
Disclaimer info- I don't own Negima, or Kingdom Hearts. If I did, some events in Negima wouldn't have happened as they did. Same with KH. Some of the OC's I do own though. Just putting it out there.
AN- so… of all my side stories I have planned (and don't think I'll ever get to xD), this one is probably more based on the primary series, in this case Negima, than the others. However, it will incorporate aspects of my main story, and I guess in some sense provide spoilers for parts of it.
Anyways, being in the Negima section, I apologize for the very crude quality of what's to follow. I don't profess to be a writer, nor do I have any skills in writing, so if you're used to authors like Serac, kafka'sdragon, Ambrant Arandel, Furu Kei, Hydriatus, Theru, and all the other absolutely gifted Negima writers, please feel ready to cringe at how terrible this work is.
Chapter 1- Running Away
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"Yes, Luxord?"
"I must say, Shoxuaj. I've never seen you put in so much effort to get rid of this world. Are these… what is this system of worlds called… ah, the Ruins of Mahora, Is the name bothering you?"
"Not quite that. I could care less about the name. There's something bothering me about the people who remain on the nearby Mars. I've picked up the trace of a magic aura similar to one I've felt in the past. The Heartless with me seem to be attracted to the town tainted with the aura. Here on the map."
"So, when we eliminate this town, we'll be sure to make the source a special priority."
"No. Not yet."
"No? Remember your place Shoxuaj. I am after all your superior in the Order."
"I understand, but let me try something. We've been having trouble destroying the world so the Heartless can consume the heart. Maybe, this source holds the key to finding the heart of the world. For now, call of the campaign on this world. Let me make this person my pet project. If we can feed the darkness in the aura of this person, they'll be key to our success here."
"As you wish. You are the Ancient Scientist after all. I bid you good luck then. Just keep us informed with what's going on."
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Her breath came out in staggered gasps, as she kept on pushing her body to the limits. Her muscles were sore all over. With each step, the only message her brain received was pain.
Behind her, the monsters of shadows kept moving forward, the yellow eyes staring at the back of the girl's dress. The stars overhead twinkled in an irregular rhythm, seemingly mocking the girl for trying to escape the inevitable.
'Have to keep going… I can't... let them get to me.'
How long had she been running? At this point, it almost didn't matter. For what seemed to have been hours, the little girl's feet kept pounding on the dusty surface of Mars. Her black hair shined with sweat, her braids coming loose, letting her hair down to her back. She held the last evidence of her existence in her hands, knuckles white as she gripped to the bound family tree.
As long as Chao Lingshen could remember, the seven year old had heard nothing but stories of terrifying monsters born from the darkness. For seven years, stories trickled into her small town of 5,000, stories of the utter destruction of cities back on Earth and some of the more prominent cities here on Mars.
But she hadn't given it much thought. Her town was located within the cliffs of Valles Marineris, out of the way of most cities, most of humanity for that matter. The only people who visited were travelers who wanted to see the world and had responded to the call of the gorges. 'Very few people came, why would monsters?' she had thought.
But of course, she had been proven wrong. Only ten hours ago, as the sun set, they had attacked. Salty tears ran new paths down her dust-covered face as she once again remembered how her mother had brought her to the edge of the town, where a tunnel would bring her to the surface, overlooking the system of gorges.
"Mommy! No, please don't leave me!" Chao was crying as her mother placed her at the edge of the lift.
Deborah Springfield, now Deborah Lingshen, reached up to pat down the messy hair of her daughter. She tried to soothe and strengthen her daughter, her own fear threatening to surface. She hugged Chao and whispered into her ears. "Chao, right now, you have to be strong. Be strong for mommy and daddy. You need to go right now. They're after mommy, and if you're with me, then you may get hurt too, and I don't want that."
Ignoring her daughter's screaming protests, Deborah pushed Chao into the tunnel, pulling a star tipped wand from her pocket. Chao could only look in confusion as her mom turned around to face the approaching monsters.
Deborah was struggling emotionally. She wanted to do something more for Chao. Anything to comfort her youngest child as she stood there, tears streaming down her face. She wanted to turn around, tell her that she would always be with her. Tell her that it would be alright. But she couldn't, because the fear in her heart told her that it might not be ok. If only… he was still here.
Hesitantly, Deborah cast one last look at her daughter, tears brimming in her own eyes, before whispering something.
"Chao, remember that I always love you."
Screaming, Chao tried to rush back to her mom, but instead was forced to halt and cover her eyes with her arms as the star on the wand glowed and flashed brightly. The brilliant light was only momentary, because the next thing Chao knew, the entryway to the lift collapsed, rocks blocking the last path to her mom.
She stood there numbly, her hand reaching out to where her mom had just been.
"Mommy… I love you too. Don't leave me… Please Mommy, come back… come back…" She collapsed on the ground where she was, weeping into her arms as realization struck her that she was now an orphan.
She was pulled out of her grief by the sound of a snarling monster, appearing through the rubble as a puddle of… darkness. Chao took it as her cue to run, and did so, proceeding out of the tunnels, into the harsh Martian night.
That had been ten hours prior, but Chao had not stopped running yet. She couldn't stop yet. Not yet. She needed to find help, any help.
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In a space ship orbiting over Mars, a single figure watched a live feed from the surface of the planet. On it, he watched as Chao ran from the monsters, the Heartless. His lips curved into a smile as he watched the almost amusing spectacle. From his point of view, the Heartless were almost toying with the young girl. They had taken down opponents many times faster than this girl.
And yet, they chased her with a speed more comparable to a small dog, rather than a ferocious demon. The young girl hardly knew that she was at the mercy of the monsters. As she grew more tired, as her pace started to reduce, after fourteen torturous hours of running, the Heartless were practically prodding the girl along. The hidden camera zoomed in on the face of Chao, letting her pained face fill the bridge of the ship. He looked at the tears, the dust caked face, the hair marred with sweat, before rising.
'It appears that she is ready.' The figure walked to the center of the room, preparing his items, and summoned a pitch-black orb. He stepped through it, and disappeared from the bridge of the ship.
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She was nearly dead now. But the monsters wouldn't let her lie down yet. Every time they neared her, they would scratch at her back, raking her legs with sharp claws. Not enough to tear out flesh, but just enough to induce pain and fear in the young girl's head, forcing her to run more.
Finally, her legs gave way. The young girl pitched forward, her eyes beginning to close from exhaustion. She was barely able to drop her book and put her hands in front of her to break her fall. Chao could hear the snarls of the monsters as their prey had finally collapsed. Letting out victorious whoops, they leaped at the fallen girl. Chao closed her eyes and cringed, preparing for the worst.
'I'm sorry Mommy… I failed you.'
The sound of what seemed to be flesh being cleaved from bones caused the girl to scream, expecting more pain to shoot up from any of her limbs. But it didn't. When sounds of terrified yelping reached her ears, she decided to risk a look up.
Only a foot in front of her was a man in a black cloak. His hood was on, so Chao couldn't see the face of her. He had created a transparent shield around her of some kind, and the monsters were trying to get through to her. Chao watched as the man simply moved his hands around, a gray beam of energy flying out occasionally to catch a monster in the torso. Realizing there was another person, the monsters turned and looked puzzled at the presence of the newcomer before leaping at him. Chao looked on in wonder as the Martian sky filled with what looked to be a pink heart, rising in the sky whenever a monster was defeated.
The man kept fighting in a methodical manner, slowly clearing away the group of monsters that had followed Chao. When a monster leapt at him from the side while he was preoccupied, Chao screamed. Hearing her scream, the man looked at her before disappearing in a gray smoke as the monster clawed through him. Almost immediately, the man appeared behind the monster as it landed, a black gloved hand prepared for a downward strike. Before the creature could respond at all, the fist landed, destroying the monster in a fine mist.
While the monsters were confused, Chao looked around. She saw the book that she had dropped, and crawled over with what strength she had left to grab it. Before she could take further action, exhaustion took over Chao, and she slumped over on the ground, asleep.
The man walked over to Chao, the last of the monsters dissolving into a mist. He bent down and checked her vital signs. 'Good, she's still alive.' He picked up Chao, her book still grasped in her hands, and carefully carried her over to the warp he had come from.
For now, Chao's flight was done.
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"Well, Luxord? What do you think?"
"You told us to pull back from the planet for a single town, and you only get one person? Please tell me she has the aura you're looking for."
"No, she actually has very little aura compared to what we had picked up. But she must be a part of the family or something, because she has some."
"So, your plan failed?"
"Not quite. It's very diluted, but she still has some magic aura. We should take this opportunity to teach her some. Of course, we'll monitor her growth."
"But how will she react to the Heartless?"
"She won't. I'm going to take her to a facility. She seems capable of learning some magic. Whoever she is, she has to have lost someone. We'll use that loss and feed the darkness into her heart."
"Well, it might help to look through this book you brought back too."
"Hm, it appears to be a family tree. Chao Lingshen, mother Deborah Springfield. Hm, Springfield… I feel like I should know that name."
"Shoxuaj, don't think too hard. We'll take care of it later. For now, let the girl rest. She deserves it, for getting your interest and surviving the torture you put her through. I almost feel sorry for her."
"Luxord, I really think you're getting soft."
"I said almost!"
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AN - So… reviews? Is it too confusing? Too little action? Too weird? Again, I suck at writing, so any input at all would be immensely grateful.
Quick details - Shoxuaj is probably the most enigmatic to you, because he is after all, an OC! I hope I don't reveal too much about him, because he's pretty central to this plotline as well as my main story, although the details revealed in the main story are more significant. If I can, I'll try to make him a fleshed out character without dropping too many spoilers at who he really is. That will come from the main story. If I ever get that far along xD
To KH2 fans, Luxord may be OoC (I hope he isn't though ), but he's, IMHO, one of the more shallow portrayals in the game, so I took some liberty with his personality.
Anyways, I shall update (hopefully) sometime in the near future. Here's to hoping for the skill to write (albeit at a subpar level). And time to work on / type up the story.