After however many long months I am back…at least for the time being. I'm working a lot more than I expected this summer so my free time is severely limited. I'll write when I can, which will hopefully be increasing over the following weeks. Anywho…this ones the second installment of my Killswitch Engage songfic series. Enjoy
When Darkness Falls
After so many years; after so many battles; after so many loses;
The cycle begins anew.
As you walk the path of least resistance
Is it as simple as you claim it to be?
Stepping out of the transport ship I had hitched a ride on, I couldn't believe what my eyes were seeing. Water; trees; people; houses; food; dogs; rocks; fun. It had been so long since I had seen any of these things but what was truly unbelievable was the fact that the islands hadn't changed a single bit in the time that I had been away.
"Riku! Riku, is that you? You're finally back! Sora, Sora come quick! He's finally back!" A familiar voice called out in the background of the nostalgic environment. I slowly turned and walked to the front of the craft to meet the unmistakable smile of Kairi and the unforgettable smirk of Sora.
"Looked who finally decided to show up," Sora said his characteristic sarcasm.
"Happy to see you too, man. Geez, I'm here not even 5 minutes and you're already back to your old games. Damn, you guys look different…" Lost in the moment, I walked with my two old friends around the island talking and catching up for the rest of the afternoon. That was probably the happiest few hours of my life. If only it could last.
Your tongue, your eyes
Your lies, they do deceive you
I awoke the next morning a pounding the front door. I had crashed at Sora's last night and would probably do so until I found a place of my own. Still groggy and only half dressed, I walked to the window and looked out to see the unnaturally energetic Sophie bouncing round the front door with her characteristic stupor.
I darted back to the chair where I had draped my shirt and then made my way to the door. I opened it far enough to be able to see out without letting her in. My stomach was killing me, it'd had been years since I had an actually meal, and I knew that if Sophie got inside I would never get my chance to eat breakfast.
"It is true, you are back!" Despite my careful placement of the door, Sophie flung herself through the half open door way putting me into a painful embrace. She continued on in her normal speed questioning, never leaving time to breathe or for an answer. But none of that mattered as pain was quickly enveloping me yet again.
Fighting for air and an escape to the pain, I forcibly removed Sophie from her death grip around my chest. She was a small girl, so pulling her away wasn't much of a problem. It was keeping her away that was hard. You see, even for the years that I was gone, Sophie never lost her "touchy-feely" personality.
"Please, Sophie, stop. I still pretty banged up and I can't kill you to make it stop like I normally do with those monsters." I had meant it as a joke, but something in what I had just said had caused the blood to drain from her face.
Taking a few steps backward, Sophie quietly said "I have to go." She then turned and ran away, completely void of that energetic spark she was known for.
Normally, I would have chased her down to try and figure out what is wrong, but after a couple of steps and a shout, my stomach reminded me of my growing hunger. I knew that I would see her and the others later, so I forgot about it for now and gorged myself in a good home cooked meal.
I stand firm in my solidarity
The path I walk, I walk it with my own resolve
A few plates later and one overly full stomach, I got myself cleaned up and walked outside. I had no idea where Sora had run off to, to be honest I didn't really care. He had his own life and I had stuff that I had to do as soon as I could. I slowly walked the streets and beaches of the islands, slowly working my way to the old docks.
I didn't want to bring attention to myself and what I was doing, so I just jumped in and started to swim rather than taking off with one of the remaining boats. The swim was a couple of miles so it would take a while, but after so many years of fighting, the swim was nothing.
About thirty minutes later, I arrived at the old beach feeling refreshed from the exercise. From the looks of the foliage and rocks, no one had been here in a really long time. The bridge was in pieces, ripped apart by some storm most likely; the shack was crumbling with rotting wood chunks laying everywhere near it; the pond was near invisible behind all of the overgrown plants, only being noticeable by the small stream that now ran down to the sea.
I didn't have time to reminisce as the islanders would soon notice my absence, and judging by the look of this place, they wouldn't be to happy to find me here. Pulling a small blade from a hidden pocket on the back of my leg just above the knee, I began to slash away at the brush. Just enough to get through, I didn't want to leave a gapping hole in the underbrush.
Finally making it to the rock cliff that housed the door I was seeking, I was hit with the impression that someone, not just nature, had destroyed this place. There was a fairly large rock sitting directly in front of the small cave I needed to enter into. Even my trained body wouldn't be able to move this rock alone, so I sat back and thought.
About an hour later, I had finally opened a hole large enough for me to squeeze through. Digging the dirt out from under a thousand pound rock is so much easier than moving it. I slowly walked into the pitch black cavern, carefully placing each foot in front of the next.
When darkness falls we are reborn
Our dream since the fall of man
We are reborn
If I learned anything while I was gone, it was lots of nifty tricks. Channeling energy into my hand I managed to get it to glow a dull yellow, giving me barely enough light to see the door on the other side of the room. I almost wished that I hadn't learned the glow trick, for what I saw was beyond comprehension. Not only had the door been left unsealed, but the door was open! I could feel the dark energy flowing behind that door with unprecedented power.
"I knew you would come here." A voice sprang up all around me. "Sora was right. He said that you would come straight back here once you returned."
It felt like I had just been hit by a truck; a very, very large truck. "Ansem." I muttered under my breath. I knew better than prepare for a fight, it wasn't his way to get his hands dirty, he was no threat to me. However, whatever was behind that door was a threat to me, the kind of threat Ansem would use. I knew my options, stay and die or run.
So much as I hate to run, when it comes to that or dieing I'll run. And that I did. But unlike I planned, I didn't run all the way back to the main islands. Once I broke through the underbrush and out onto the beach I was meet by a very serious looking Sora.
My beliefs are not antiquated
We are the hope
"Just what the hell are you doing here?" Sora asked with a strange amount of curtness in his voice.
"You know exactly why I'm here. Just what the hell have you been up to while I was gone? And why the hell is that door open? And most importantly, why did you sell me out to that bastard? What the hell is going on here!" I could feel my blood start to boil as the pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place. "…No, you wouldn't. Sora"
"I would and I did. You felt the power behind that door! No one can stand up against that! You know that, otherwise you wouldn't be standing here right now. I did what I promised, I took care of Kairi. If that meant making a deal with them, so be it. The island is safe from them because of it. More importantly, she is safe because of it."
"But at what cost? Sora, you can't expect them to hold any promise forever. They will always be a threat, until we take care of them."
Silence them all with not just words
Let resolution be our voice
"Why bother fighting a fight we can't win when we can make a few small sacrifices and live in peace? Can't you see that Riku? Everyone that we know is safe, what more do you want?"
"But at what cost, Sora? There is more going on here than you realize. The heartless are getting continuously stronger in the other worlds. Once they're done with the other worlds you think those damn beasts will just off and leave you alone?"
"Yes, I do. I gave them the Keyblade to stay away from the islands. If they break the promise, they lose the Keyblade."
I couldn't believe what I was being told. My one hope in ending this forever had forsaken all that he once stood for under a twisted promise. "Damn it, Sora. They already lost the Keyblade. How could you forget that the blade chooses its master, not the other way around!" Just to add insult to injury and to prove my point, I flung my right arm out to the side and a long dark blade materialized. "As soon as you made that deal, the Keyblade came straight to me. The darkness is building behind that accursed door in amounts untold. You're pathetic, twisted attempts to save the island did nothing more than seal its doom."
I stand firm in my solidarity
The path I walk, I walk it with my own resolve
When darkness falls we are reborn
Our dream since the fall of man
We are reborn
"You got yourself into this mess, you get yourself out. I'm taking Kairi and as many others as I can and leaving. My time in the kingdom did me some good, maybe you could use some time down there too."
Sora bent down to pick up the Keyblade but hesitated just inches from it. "Just where are you going to take them? If the heartless are really so strong, anywhere you take them you will be hunted down and killed. What's the point?"
"The point is that I can still take care of Kairi, even we are being hunted down. I haven't lost my will to fight on. And I never will. Even we are eventually hunted down and killed, at least we still have hope; at least we won't have been consumed by the darkness. Beaten, yes. Consumed…never."
At this I continued walking and started my swim between the islands. I wasn't sure what Sora had told Ansem, or what he had planned. I just knew that there wasn't much time. The dark powers flowing from that door were increasing by the second.
When I reached the docks later, Kairi was standing there with a few other people. I jumped out of the water and onto the lower docks. I walked up next to Kairi and whispered in her ear, "We have to go. Now." I don't know if she got the urgency I was trying to convey, or if it was the overwhelming presence of darkness that was slowly enveloping the islands, but she turned and followed me without question.
We are the remnant
We the remnant will silence them all
A thunderous noise came flying across the islands like a tidal wave, knocking many people off their feet. Catching Kairi on her way down, I turned around to see Darkside yet again take reign of the islands. Kairi and I, along with everyone else on the islands broke out into an all out run.
I got Kairi back to the ship and took on last look at the beloved islands. In the distance, I saw Darkside essentially destroy an entire island with nothing but a sweep or his hand. I also saw what I had never hoped to see, Sora's lifeless body hurtling through the air. However, there was a ray of hope for him yet. The blade was still in his hand, and the darkness has stopped growing. "May we meet again, old friend. The door is closed, but we are yet again on opposite sides. May the blade I gave you guide back to us."
We are the faithful
We the faithful will silence them all
I turned round for the last time and jumped into the ship. I found Kairi sobbing quitely, she had seen the same thing I had. I knelt down beside her and placed my hand on her shoulder. "It's okay Riku. I knew this day would come. Ever since he forbid anyone to go to that accursed island, I somehow knew this day would eventually come. The Sora we knew dies a long time ago. I just hope he gets the second chance that you got."
"He will Kairi, he will. From the darkness hidden within a kingdom of light are we born. He will return, just the same as I did. Until then though, we have to keep fighting."
When darkness falls we are reborn
Our dream since the fall of man
We are reborn
Well…that's not quite what I had expected it to be. Not by best work, I know, that's what I get for taking an 8 month break. But its different and that's what I was going for. . Please review, that's about the only inspiration I get to write more. I don't care if it's a flame just so long as you tell me what's wrong. Later.
And if you thought that I forgot, I don't own KH or anything from Killswitch Engage.