The Hearts of Destiny
By: Xlatem Sumato.
Disclaimer: I do not own any characters except my own; all rights belong to Square Enix and Disney. This story is purely for the enjoyment of others whom are also fans of Kingdom Hearts.
*Note: This FanFiction takes place after the final battle with Xheanort, our heroes are finally relaxing.
Chapter 1: Two Friends' Departure.
Everything had finally calmed down. The long and slightly stressful adventure in which had been scripted by Master Xehanort was finally over. My name is Xlatem, my world had been swallowed in the darkness and it never came back. I was angry, though I wouldn't allow the rage and pain to control my heart; my master had always taught me that… That is until he was taken along with the world; however I was the only one to safely escape, at least to my knowledge.
Let me explain a little bit of my story before I move on to how I came to be here on Destiny Islands. My world, Netro Amusa is where I came from. It was a quiet place; no one ever threatened it, to say the least everything was very peaceful around there. When I was younger a man came to my town in the world, he was searching for something, and in the end he found just what that was… Me.
However I wasn't the only exception, another, my best friend Rien was also what he was looking for, we both had the ability to wield the Keyblade, a weapon the protects the light, and the two of us had very strong lights inside us. At the time as kids we both were too young and naive to fully understand what this meant, but that's not where it ended. A few years later when I turned 15 I was invited to train with the master of our world, Rien too.
I remember how cool I thought it was when I could summon the Keyblade to my hand at will. My master taught us very carefully, made sure we had three important elements: Respect, Discipline, and a strong heart. I practiced with my childhood friend all the time, daily spars to test which of us was the better wielder. Though I knew Rien was stronger I also knew that I could be strong. Something happened though… Something terrible….
I remember that day vividly, as if I was living it over and over in my mind, just like a movie. I woke up early that morning, my mother and father was both downstairs eating breakfast. I however had other plans. I rushed down the stairs, running over to my mom, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "See ya guys, I'm off to go train with Master Ryushika. I should be back later!" I called out as I ran for the door. My folks were used to me just leaving out of excitement; I spent more time with the master and Rien than I did at home. My parents only smiled and wished me luck. I could feel the energy surging throughout my veins, the anticipation of going to see my best friend and train. That's when I saw it… Master Ryushika had given us knowledge of these creatures… Heartless! He told us these things started appearing but this was the first time I'd ever seen one up close and ready to attack. It came forward, its claws slashing outward at my legs. I jumped back, my hand extended quickly to my right side, my hand enveloped in a white flash, the little specs spun around my hand. A sliver colored Keyblade materialized in my grasp, firmly I gripped it not exactly knowing what to expect from this thing. It already tried to attack, though it seemed pretty weak, a basic type of heartless I suppose?
Well my training didn't go to waste; this was the moment I was looking forward to! I jumped forward from my stationed spot and let the blade coming down hard against the small darkness, watching it evaporate into a small cloud of black. That was it? I thought it was rather too easy, and of course that was the plain fact. A couple more of them emerged from the grounds; about six of them were around me in a small circle. I couldn't help feeling slightly intimidated by all of this, especially since it was me against a group. I knew I could handle this but help would be nice. I had to think quickly because the Heartless were closing in on my person. I stood paralyzed; I don't know why I wasn't attacking, I had the power to but I just… Choked…. In one motion I saw them all leap up, my eyes shut, and I thought that was it until I heard a loud grunt and stepping noise from the concrete.
"C'mon Xla, you gotta keep up!" No mistaking that voice, I heard it pretty much every day. It was Rien, and he was helping me, another lesson our master gave us, "Friends will always help friends, it's a special bond you have with others, hearts tied together."
"Thanks…" I mumbled quietly. I was happy he was here to help, I really was, I was just slightly disappointed in myself for not being braver. Of course I wasn't someone to boast about how good I was, no… I was humble about my ability and strength, but I did have pride just as everyone else does. I raised my Keyblade, my eyes scanning around, seeing as a couple more heartless appeared. Rien and I stood back to back, both of our eyes shifted to the sides to look at each other.
"Well Xla, can I count on you to wipe the floor with these things?"
"Yeah, think you can keep up with me too?" I remarked by quoting his earlier words.
"Funny. Where have I heard those words before?" Rien chuckled once before leaping forward, the same time I did to slash at our foes. Was this what being a Keyblade wielder was like, always fighting? I have to say it was exhilarating, my first real fight, though one had to wonder, why were the Heartless here? Why all of a sudden did they just show up? As I fought I couldn't shake the question, it bugged me….
I thought when this is over I'll ask Ryushika about this. I listened to Rien breathing rather unevenly, it seemed he was at a loss of energy, and I could say the same. It was impossible, they just kept surfacing, a never ending cycle, our efforts weren't enough. "Rien, it's no good. They just keep coming; we have to head for the Master's house he'll know what to do." All I received from him was a quick nod as we ran off, trying are best to navigate through the Heartless.
When we approached the training grounds we watched our master fight off slightly stronger heartless. "Xlatem! Rien! Stay back!" He yelled out at us. It was wrong for us to disobey but we did. While Rien dashed forward I took a different course of action. I hopped up on a thin railing, running swiftly up it, my form soaring up into the air and slamming my weapon onto an enemy. "Master, what's going on here?!" I asked bluntly.
"The Heartless are here… Something's been tampered with… Xlatem, we don't have much time! Rien and I will fight these things off but I need you to do me a favor… I can only entrust you with this, you're the stronger hearted wielder between you and Rien… When you go inside I want you to go to the farthest point inside the training room and seal this world's keyhole. I will give the signal, please hurry!"
My heart was racing along with my mind, I still didn't understand what was going on, and all I could rely on was the tales that were told to me by Master Ryushika. "Master…." That was all I said right before I ran inside. What was going to happen? I couldn't focus on that right now; I had to heed his last wishes if this was it. I was at the end of the room and pointed my Keyblade at the wall, watching a small key shaped hole appear. I closed my eyes and took a small intake of air to try and calm my nerves. I was stopped all of a sudden though.
"Xlatem…." Rien called out to me in a monochrome tone. I looked back and noticed a strange aura covering his person. What had happened to him? A wicked smirk played on his lips; I could sense a strong darkness coming from him. He raised his Keyblade at me; the rage in his eyes only grew. "R-Rien…. What has happened to you?" My friend… No, my best friend had been taken by the dark, but how could this happen… The master was right, my heart was stronger… He always told us you can't have light without darkness, we were just that.
I couldn't help but wonder how the darkness had taken over him, he wasn't bad… Was it confusion? Doubts of weakness maybe..? All I knew was I couldn't let him get to the keyhole. I shut my eyes for a moment, drawing the inner focus I had, calming myself for this battle. My Keyblade directed itself at his form, a serious look on my face, I was determined to prevail. He came running at me, that was the scary part, but this was no time for weakness, I wasn't going to choke this time. I moved out of the way, my body swinging right around behind him, letting my blade strike him once. I watch as he was knocked off balance, though he wasn't going down easy.
Metal slammed against one another, our blades pushed up against each other, our stances not letting us be beaten down. I used whatever strength to push him back but that was my mistake… He disappeared into the shadows coming behind me, sending a powerful strike to my back. I went flying, my back hitting the ground hard, like skipping a rock, the way it bounces on the water. I groaned out in pain, it stung, horribly. My eyes marveled in what was going on outside, a large ball of darkness covered the skies, pieces and pieces being sucked up into an abyss. I- I was too late… Rien walked forward, not even phased from our run-in back there. His palm stuck out, the dark radiance stood out more than anything. The oddest thing was when I looked up into his eyes I could still see him, the real him… In a single swipe I was airborne, being sucked into the darkness above. The last moments of what I remember was Rien watching me be taken away, along with more and more chunks of my world being broken and swallowed up.