Fipp: Holy hell I wrote a Kingdom Hearts story! Wow it's been a while, and it makes me feel old because the last time I put serious effort into writing a Kingdom Hearts story it was a sequel to a KH3 one. I find it amusing that after all these years, I can still write another KH3 story if I wanted.
Either way, good to get back into this franchise.
000
The Deep and the Dark, the Light
Waves lapped against the black sands of the shore, and Aqua wondered if tides existed in the Realm of Darkness, but she dismissed the idea. If she stayed long enough, the waves would either get closer to her or further, but considering that time had little meaning here to begin with, it was not something really worth the effort to think about. Beside her sat her companion, grabbed in a black coat, the hood covering his face, obscuring his face from her view, and Aqua was tempted to ask him if he would be so kind as to remove it, but again those thoughts were dashed as well; the amnesic man had seemed more than comfortable to stay full covered, and any attempt to try and learn anything personal about him would end in failure. Whoever this man was, his time in the Realm of Darkness had taken its toll on his mind, stripping his memories from him, and anything beyond what little she had learned would result in cycling through the same bits of conversation, and though he had forgotten he had spoken them.
Still, it was better than nothing, than being alone, and even if he was not much in the way of conversation the fact that there was someone here was more than enough.
"I have often wondered what lies across this sea," the man said suddenly.
Aqua turned where she sat to face him. "You have?" Conversation were still nice to have however.
"In my travels, I have noticed this realm has had many different environments to it, all strange and unnatural compared to what is found in the Realm of Light, but I am still curious to see how this world is formed."
"Not like we don't have the time to explore," Aqua offered with a shrug of her shoulders, looking back to the waters. "We should build a boat."
"I have thought that as well, but I do fear for sea dwelling Heartless."
"Yeah." The water itself was also off putting to her, there was something about it that made her want to avoid it at all costs, out of curiosity, she once splashed at it with her hand, only to recoil it as soon as her palm was wet. It was cold, but a different kind of cold that sent a spike of something unpleasant up through her arm, chilling her to the bone. If that was what she felt from simply touching it, than she would do everything she could to avoid from being submerged. However, it was nice to just sit here, and relax under the dark moon, she had been fighting for so long, her own guilt and faults constantly thrown at her by the darkness itself that she was glad that for a state of repose. She knew that eventually she would have to move, the Heartless would eventually come to find them, and after fighting for so long and keeping on the constant move had been ingrained into her and she knew that after so long she would only become restless with time.
Still, a part of her was hopeful, that maybe if she stayed on this beach for long enough then...
She heard a pair of foot steps behind her, the sounds of people walking onto the beach. For a moment she doubted she heard it, but they became closer and hope flourished in her chest and she quickly turned back.
She did not know what to expect in hoping for the boy the man had described, but she was doubtful of the two figures before her, each one wearing the same cloak as the man.
000
He gripped his weapon tightly in his hand as he glared at the figure before them, who stared out to the open sea.
"I recall memories, a certain deja vu," the figure said, turning around to meet them. "Once, when you were still a fledgling Keyblade bearer, even more so than you are now, that we stood on this same beach, back when it had been swallowed by the darkness."
"Are you sure of which you that was?" the youth asked, straightening his stance. "There's so many of you that I'm having a hard time keeping track."
"Yes, if I recall, it was the Heartless you met that day," the man answered. "I still recall the things that were said to you that day, about how this island was a prison surrounded by water, and even after all these years, my thoughts on this place have changed so little. The day I first left this world was perhaps one of the greatest moments in my life, even though I was a young boy at the time."
"Did you say you were a boy?" the knight behind the youth asked, peering over his shield.
"Are you saying that these islands were where you came from? That we're both from the same world?"
"That is correct," the figure said. "Unlike you however I held no warmth for this place, but like your friend I wished to escape."
"Leave him out of this!" The youth went back to gripping his weapon.
"An amusing child he was, but I can admit that he was a second-rate vessel." The figure glanced over the three before him, noticing how they tensed. "I assume that you now know about the first vessel I had used."
"I know about them and what you did, King Mickey and Yen Sid told me everything, and we will find a way to get him back, even if I don't know how yet."
The figure laughed. "Than look no further than in front of your eyes! This form before you was his, when I was the apprentice of Ansem the Wise, when I had lost my memories, he had put up a valiant fight, but in the end my influence was greater than his and it was what led to the fall of Radiant Garden and the darkness that would reign across the universe."
"If that's really him, then we'll get him back, starting now!"
"Very well, you are more than welcomed to try and reclaim him." He raised his hand up, and in a burst of darkness his Keyblade appeared. "Do know this though, we already have begun to make our moves on the other two."
000
"Are these friends of yours?" Aqua asked, pulling herself to her feet to face the two stranger.
"Friends?" the man asked, turning in his seat. "I cannot say for certain, but something tells me it would be best to tread with caution."
Giving him a nod, Aqua took several careful steps towards the two figures, her fingers twitching in preparation to summon her (not hers) Keyblade. "You are you two?" she called out when she came to a stop. "Are you friends or foes?" The two stood there in silence, and Aqua could feel their eyes on her, staring her down from head to toe, sending a chilling dread through her.
"You have been here, all this time," one of them said, slowly approaching him, arms reaching out to his sides. "Alone in the darkness, wandering alone. If I had known from the start that you were here, I would have found you much sooner, my old friend."
"Old friend?" Aqua repeated to herself. "I'm sorry I don't-Just who are you two?"
"It would seem however you are not the only one we found," the other figure said, arms folding over his chest. "My old master is here as well, rotting away in both heart and mind, despite having survived his last excursion."
"Your master?" Aqua looked back to the man on the rock, who had managed to stand up on weary legs.
"I think I may know you are..." he said, his voice growing heavy. "Yes, the memories are coming back to me, and to see you here before me, is truly a disappointment, I would have thought you would have perished back at your castle."
"I did," the first man said, extending his arm forward, palm open, and before Aqua had the chance to react a bolt of red energy shot from his hand and struck the unknown figure down. He crashed to the sand with a thud, giving no movement as he laid there.
"No!" Aqua cried out, Master's Defender appearing in her hand as she spun back to the two figures. She barely had enough time to block the blows from the first figure, raising her guard to protect herself from the first hooded figure, who clashed two red energy blades against her weapon. They briefly struggled against one another before Aqua summoned a wreath of flames long her blade that exploded into a blast of fire when she pushed back against him, giving her time to jump back. The man jumped through the smoke however and was quick to fly back at her to swing his weapons at her, but before he could make contact she created a barrier around herself, to which his attack bounced off, giving her time to fire a barrage of ice blocks that struck him right in the chest.
She landed on the ground, her impact lightened by the wet sand, but immediately had to jump back as a line of red lights appeared in the air above her and began to fire down at her. Aqua cartwheeled backwards, narrowly avoiding as the lasers detonated the ground where she had been escaping from, and when they stopped she came to a stop and saw the figure coming towards her, so she planted her Keyblade to the ground, creating a series of mines that began to home in on him as he began to back away.
That's when the ground beneath her opened up in a pit of darkness, and before she could react to it a creature appeared, obscured by the shadows, rushed out from the shadows at her feet, knocking her off her feet and into the air. She tried to recover, but the first man was suddenly on her, striking her with his weapons, sending a painful shock wave through her body as she crashed to the ground, landing where the water lapped at the shore. Aqua did her best to ignore the numbing sensation of the water as she jumped back up to her feet, but as she recovered from her fall one of the figures appeared in front of her, and before she could strike out at him one of his arms shot out and grabbed her by the throat. She coughed as his grip tightened around her neck, effortlessly lifting her into the air as she grabbed onto his wrist with her free hand, and swung her Keyblade at hi-
Another hand grabbed at her wrist, its massive grip so tight that she gave out a strangled cry as she released Master's Defender, the blade fading away in sparks of light. Aqua's breath hitched and her heart filled with a cold dread as she saw what had grabbed her wrist; a large black hand attached to a creature hovering behind the figure, a large creature made of darkness, staring at her with intense yellow eyes, teeth strapped down and two thick antenna growing from its head.
She'd seen this creature before.
The man reached up with his free hand and gripped his hood, and Aqua prayed that she was wrong, but she saw the exact thing she did not want to see; silver hair, yellow eyes on a face that should not have those features.
"No..." she whispered hoarsely, eyes squeezing shut, still hoping this was some trick by the Realm of Darkness. She'd encountered so many of these before, but this felt more real than anything she had experienced. "Please... Ter-"
"Don't waste your breath," the man coldly said. "His heart is long gone, eaten away by the darkness I had placed within him, leaving only room for me to reside."
"No!" she grunted, kicked at his legs, but he gave no reaction.
"You have been through so much, suffered in this oppressing darkness for so long, and for what? You've made claims that you fought to protect your friends, but where did those promises lead you?"
"Shut up!" She tried to pry herself free of him, but she could barely move against his grip.
"Best to accept the fate that had befallen them," said the second figure as he came into view. "But do not worry, soon that suffering will no longer inflict your heart." The man reached out towards her, gently caressing her cheek, an act that sent chills down into her very bones, and when he pulled it back he reached up and removed his hood.
"Wha..." Aqua weakly gasped, seeing the face of the man, the same features as the one holding her. How could there be two of him?
'What did he do to you?'
"We'll bring Ansem back with us," man said. "Even though his mind is fractured, he could perhaps provide a wealth of information still, you however?" He looked to the man holding her, who tightened his grip.
"You will drown in absolute darkness."
"Goodbye, Master Aqua."
She was then thrown high into the air, she tumbled through the air, desperate to try and regain her composure, but she had been thrown away from the beach and over the black waters of the sea, before she crashed into it. In desperation she tried to swim up, trying to keep her head above water, but the sea was cold and heavy, and seemed to pull her down despite her struggles, and soon the surface was calm as she was dragged into its depths.
000
"Impressive, I must say," the man said, kneeling on one knee, a hand pressed against the ground, across from him the three glared at him, weapons raised in defense. "My other selves found themselves underestimating your strength, but I will not make that same mistake."
"So you're saying you want more then? Fine, I can go all day!" called out the Keyblade-weilder.
"Another time perhaps, but for now I wished to see some of that resolve you have. You intend to bring salvation to those who had been connected to your heart by whatever circumstance?"
"Yeah, I do. I can't say I know all their stories, but I do know they've all been though a lot, and that they deserve to saved, to have peace."
The man stood up, and boy in the eyes. "Very well, I honestly wish to see how you go about that, but be aware of the strain that may have on your heart, or do you not care?"
Shadows wrapped around the man, and in a flash of darkness he was gone, leaving the three to relax.
"Ah phooey," the mage grumbled, foot tapping on the ground "We've been seeing a lot of these Organization members around lately, and from what we've been hearing from the others they've really been acting up."
"There hasn't been a single world we haven't seen them on," the Keyblade-wielder said. "Twilight Town, Olympus, Corona, San Fransokyo, and even here. I don't know about you guys, but I really don't like seeing these guys on my home, even less now that I know he actually grew up here."
The knight gave no response, and instead pointed forward. "Hey guys, what's that?"
"What's what?" the mage asked.
"He left something behind when he teleported away."
"Huh?" They Keyblade-wielder walked forward to where the man vanished ad saw something glimmering in the sunlight. He reached down and scooped it up in his hand and saw what it was; a small charm, in the shape of a star, orange glass held together by bits of metal.
Even though he had never seen it before, something in his heart ached.
000
"Why did you do that?"
"Do what?"
"Don't play ignorant with me boy, you know what I am talking about. Even though I always had a stronger influence over this body than you, I was never able to completely erase your presence in what it did. No matter how much I tried to will it, the trinket of your was always protected; I could never throw it away, or destroy it, and you have been able to keep it hidden from my other selves so that they could do nothing about it."
"Your point?"
"Why suddenly leave it behind? Do you have some semblance of hope that boy will be able to reunite you with your friends? If you think that, than you continue to be an optimist fool."
"I just have faith, that's all I can do right now, and I'm more than confident in where I place my faith."
000
Aqua wildly trashed against the water, if she could call it that. It was dark, the weight of it pressing against her from all sides, and every movement she made only served to tire her out faster, and tried to look for the surface, to see the light of the dark moon, but already she could see nothing anywhere around her, even though she had only been submerged for a few moments. Her breath gave out and air escaped from her lungs, and as her mouth opened she felt a numbing coldness enter her body, reaching into the core of her body, further draining her of any strength she had. She did not drown though, she felt herself choking on water, the air being pushed out, but she did not drown even though she found herself constantly choking on water. Desperately she tried to reach for something, anything to to help, but every single movement only served to further drain her.
Master's Defender was summoned into her hand, she tried to pour her strength into it, to try and do anything, but already she could barely feel her limbs, and to her horror it slipped out of her fingers and sank into the dark quicker than she, soon vanishing out of her limited sight line. She wanted to scream, to cry out for someone, anyone, to come and help her, but she dreaded the knowledge that was unlikely, that she would get another second chance like she had with Mickey.
Eventually she stopped struggling and let the waters take her, and even though her body no longer could move, she still fought to stay alert, to stay awake and fight off the desire to give in and sleep. She knew that if she gave into those feelings that she would never wake up, so she put her entire will into resisting the desire that became much more welcoming with each passing minute.
Then she saw something shimmer in the dark, in the corner of her eye, and in a sudden burst strength poured into her limbs, and she twisted and turned into the water, arms reaching out to try and grasp, but for ever how much sudden movement she had gained, she was unable to reach out to her very last hope.
Aqua could only watch hopelessly as her wayfinder drifted away into the cold dark.
000
He looked at the trinket in his hand, turning it over carefully, the sunlight gleaming off the glass. It was comforting to hold it, it bringing a sense of familiarity to it, but where this came from he did not know. Then, from the corner of his eye, she spotted something else, down by the beach. Ignoring his friends he made he was to what was lying half-buried in the sand, the waves washing over it. Pocketing the charm for now he reached down and picked up the item, surprised to see what it was.
"Is that a Keyblade?" the mage asked.
"But what's it doin' here?" the knight added. "Who do you think owns it?"
The youth did not answer, as he looked at the weapon ("My blade is called Master's Defender") there was another pang of sadness in her heart.
000
She tried not to think, which proved difficult. It's not like there was much else for her to do here as she floated endlessly.
She tried not to think about how she would possibly be in this state forever, and realize that no matter how long she stayed here the idea terrified her.
She tried not to think about what was going on in the outside, of all the worlds that had fallen to the darkness and how she could do nothing to stop it.
She tried not to think about her ruined home, once filled with warmth, light and comfort, now a sterile and hollow place.
She tried not to think about her master, the man she saw as a father, and how he was gone and that she had lost the only thing she had left of him.
She tried not to think about the friend whose body had been taken from him, and she does not know what had been done with him since that day.
She tried not to think about the friend who was still asleep and still alone.
She tried not to think about how this might be how she died.
She thought all of this however, and much more, and nothing did anything to make the situation bearable however. Except for one about what the man on the beach had told her, the name that had given her hope.
'Terra... Ventus... Please save them... Sora...'
000
Something else caught his eye, a shimmer of reflection out in the water, and placing the Keyblade back on the ground he walked into the water, soon finding himself thigh-deep in the waves. Looking down he looked for the shimmer of light amongst the sand and seashells through the clear ocean water until his eyes finally locked onto what it was he had saw from the beach.
It was another wayfinder, but instead of orange glass, this one had blue glass, floating in the middle of the water, gently floating with the tide.
He reached down for it, plunging his hand into the ocean, and as his hand was about to reach around it, it began to give off a bright light.
000
Light. There was light. At first Aqua had doubted what she was seeing, but with each passing second the small point of light, shaped like a star, grew in size. It was warmer now around her, feeling began to return to her limbs and around the light the darkness gave away to bright blues. She reached out for the light, pushing herself to grab at it, hoping that this was not another trick of her mind or the hell she was in.
When her hand entered the light, something grabbed her hand; the hand of another person, and she felt herself being pulled towards it.
000
Aqua awoke slowly, her body curling slightly against the sand, body bathed in warmth as she heard the sounds of waves crashing against a shore and the occasional cry of gulls. Her body aching she rolled over onto her back and had to screw her eyes tightly shut at the bright light above her before raising her arm to block it from her. Eyes blinking blearily she opened them and looked at the blue sky and white feathery clouds, confused where she was.
"Are you okay?" Another shape entered her field of vision, she didn't know what it was, but it somehow struck her with a feeling of familiarity.
"Ven?" she asked weakly as her eyes started to adjust to the light.
"Ven?" the figure asked, the image becoming clear, and she found herself looking at a head of spikey brown hair and deep blue eyes. "I'm Sora, and you're Aqua, right?"
"Sora?" she repeated. "You're Sora?" Her head turned, and she looked across the beach, and not too far she saw two other figures, Mickey's mage and knight, Donald and Goofy, and at Sora's feet where Eraqus' Keyblade and her wayfinder. Rolling back onto her side she slid it towards her, thumb lightly stroking the glass before she turned back to Sora. "Thank you."
000
Please be well,
Mrfipp