The Station of Awakening

Chapter two. I included some bits of both the Awakening in Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2, because there were good bits in both of them. I liked the whole question and answer bits of the original Awakening, but the Darkside was rubbish. I could defeat it with my eyes closed. The Twilight Thorn was much more awesome, and I kinda felt sorry for all the Nobodies, because they're not going to have much of a part until really late on. Oh, you'll see...

I don't own Sonic the Hedgehog or Kingdom Hearts, savvy? On with the story!

The calmness is astonishing. No sound breaks the silence. Even the air is still. The only thing that moves is me. The only sound I can hear is the sound of the blood rushing through my veins. I never knew it could be so loud. I feel oddly warm but heavy, like the burdens I've bourn really are pressing down on me.

I'm standing on a huge pillar made up of millions upon millions of shards of coloured glass, forming mosaics. The darkness over the edge stretches on forever. The mosaic on the top of the pillar where I'm standing shows some dude in ugly pants holding the same key as the one I wielded during the battle. I can't decide if this is a dream or not.

A voice calls through the darkness. It makes no sound, and there isn't actually proof that it ever existed at all. It's like something is placing thoughts into my head for me.

So much to do, so little time... Take your time.

Why? I'm not exactly going anywhere.

Don't be afraid. The door is still shut. Now step forward. Can you do it?

My leg isn't even stinging anymore. I take a few steps forward, trying to see where the voice is coming from. It could just be me going crazy, especially seeing as I'm doing what it asks. Three pedestals rise up from the mosaic; one carries a sword, one a shield, and one a staff.

Power sleeps within you. If you give it form, it will give you strength. Choose well.

What, I'm supposed to take one? Well, if you insist. I go eeny-meeny-miny-moe and end up with the staff. I pick it up. It feels warm to the touch and smooth, yet sturdy.

The power of the mystic. Inner strength. A staff of wonder and ruin.

Nah. I'm more of a beat-em-up kinda guy. Besides, it sounds like magic, and magic doesn't exist. Everyone knows that! I put the staff down and go for the sword. It vibrates in my hand, like its singing.

The power of the warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction.

That's more like it! The sword vanishes in bright light. I get the feeling I'm going to have lots of flashes of bright light on this adventure.

Your path is set. Now, what will you give up in exchange?

Pity, I like being all powerful. I pick up the shield. It feels cold and hard, and completely impenetrable.

The power of the guardian. Kindness to aid friends. A shield to repel all.

That's the only one that doesn't even sound remotely bad! I put it back down. Looks like the staff has got to go. What's the point of this anyway? The pedestals crack and fall through the mosaic revealing the void beneath. Cracks spread through the whole pillar from the holes, and the whole thing crumbles away. I fall with it, but land softly on my feet on another station, this time with a beautiful woman in a ball gown on it. She looks like she's sleeping.

You've gained the power to fight. Use this power to protect yourselves and others.

Sorry, but I had that already. I summon the keys, each appearing in both hands. Now I can get some well earned practise! Unless I'm dead: then I won't need it.

There will be times you have to fight. Keep your light burning strong.

A few of the weird shadow things appear. Great: I can't even escape them in my dreams! I take the heads off a few with my big keys and the rest run away. Pity they couldn't have all done that at Tails' workshop. They meld together on the floor where the keys can't touch them and engulf the whole mosaic. I feel another freefall coming on.

I'm wrong.

The darkness pulls me in. I can feel it crawling under my skin like lice. I try to get a grip on something, must everything's turned to mush. I shut my eyes as my head goes under, feeling the darkness suddenly wash away. I'm on yet another mosaic, but this time with a bunch of hearts and female silhouettes on it. This dream is starting to get a bit repetitive. A door appears across from me, but my hand goes straight through it when I try and open it. A tinkle sounds from behind me, and a chest appears.

It's locked, but I've got some big keys.

I whack the chest with the silver key and it pops open. It's more fun than actually putting it in the keyhole. Like it would fit anyways. The chest opens to reveal...

Nothing. How anti-climatic. However, the door does become material. I open it to reveal a blinding white light from inside. Enough with the light thing, OK?! It doesn't open fully, which is fine because I'm quite small. The light fades away to reveal the altar on Angel Island, minus the scary storm clouds. Amy, Tails and Knuckles are all sitting around or leaning against the stone pillars. Finally, I'm scot-free!

Hold on. The door won't open just yet.

Damn.

First, tell me more about yourself.

This guy must live on Mars. Some days it feels like everyone knows who I am! How am I gonna talk to him anyways? I shrug and go over to Amy. She smiles at me, but her eyes seem dead.

"What's most important to you?"

Well, I wasn't expecting that.

"Umm... My friends. Why?"

"Are friends such a big deal?"

I start at her response and edge away. I don't think it's actually Amy. This must be what the voice was talking about when it said 'tell me more about yourself'. It feels important, somehow, even though I'm just answering questions. Tails comes next.

"What are you so afraid of?" It feels like I've only got a few options. I can't say water for some reason. I guess that's too obvious. These must be questions to see into the heart of you.

"Getting old. I wouldn't be able to defend people then."

"Getting old? Is that really so scary?"

That's easy for him to say. He's only eight years old. Knuckles is last. Normally he'd beat me up for ignoring him for so long, but this Knuckles doesn't even seem to notice.

"What do you want out of life?"

"To see rare sights."

To see rare sights, huh?"

Yes, Knucklehead, that's what I said.

The day you open the door is both far off and very near.

Great, more riddles. The Master Emerald shines brightly and transports me back to the mosaic place. This time there are stairs between them, leading me forward. Each of them has the image of the boy with the key, but in different colours. This is sounding less and less like a dream as time goes on. You can't dream of people you've never seen before. I charge up the stairs, hacking away at the shadows that appear, until I reach a door. This one is already material, so I charge through it. Patience isn't my strong point.

To my disbelief, the door only leads to another mosaic. This one, however, seems a little different. Like there's something following my every move. The silence is unnerving. I get the feeling that something is moving behind me. I spin around ready to chop the head of whatever shadow has followed me here, and get a surprise.

A monstrous white husk pulls itself over the side of the pillar. It has thorns growing out of its back and a strange insignia on its face. It's not a shadow creature, whatever it is. This is gonna take two keys; I summon them both. The husk seems to laugh at the appearance of the weapons, but it has no mouth. It's disturbing.

At first we stand off against each other, neither of us making a move. It's only too late when I realise it's actually used it power to grab hold of me when I wasn't watching. I'm lifted into the air and pinned there by thorns. I can feel their sharp edges against my skin, but they don't cut me. The husk seems to look at me, though it has no features on its face to be able to do that and makes a grab for me.

It didn't pin down my keys, though.

I manage to move myself just enough to avoid the attack and bash it over the head. It flies backwards, standing on the darkness itself. I wish I could do that. Its arms become like spaghetti and lengthen out so it can grab me, even from that distance. It throws me up into the air, and as it does, releases the thorns. It brings an arm up to slam me into the ground, which I use as a means to propel myself through the air and clobber it over the head again. I'm not impressed by its strategies yet. It falls to the ground and slithers over the side. I stand in the middle of the mosaic and ready myself for a surprise attack.

The whole pillar falls to the side, like Angel Island did. I decide to use the same trick again and jab the keys into the side before I fall. The husk is standing on the bottom of the pillar, holding a massive ball of energy. It must have gathered it while I was standing around like a lemon. It lets go, shifting the pillar enough to send me flying.

It positions itself beneath me, ready to annihilate me with an all-consuming blast. I take the initiative, hoping that the inverted key is stronger than it looks, and chuck it at the ball of energy like a boomerang. It slices through it, causing a massive explosion. I get caught in the aftermath but, also like a boomerang, the key returns to me.

That doesn't soften my landing much.

Luckily, the husk takes it worse and is incapacitated. I take this moment to hack away at its head. I leave no lasting marks, but I can only hope that the keys are doing the same thing that they did to the shadowy things. It isn't long before the monster pulls itself to its feet. We retreat to opposite sides of the pillar, almost in unison. We must be thinking the same thing.

It suddenly flips over and swings its arm across the stage. I get caught unawares and sent flying. I barely manage to hold onto the side of the station and pull myself back up. The husk starts shooting thorns at me, which I find I can actually use the energy of to move myself through the air. I name you 'Reversal'!

I use Reversal to get up close to its head and hack away at it. It's much easier when you're carrying two weapons instead of one. It's a pity my left arm isn't as strong as my right. I'll have to work on that. The beast shies away from my attacks and soars into the air. I can't ignore how gracefully it moves. It's completely unlike the shadow monsters I fought before.

Then it plummets.

We seem to be doing a lot of that.

It slides along the mosaic, sweeping with its arms. I barely avoid being knocked aside. It becomes stiff, forming a living cage over my head. Numerous thorns shoot out from its head, which is dangling near the ground. It could only be more obvious if it had a sign saying 'hit me'. I use my newly-created Reversal to get close to the head, and unleash hell upon it.

It's a pity that it catches on.

It starts wrapping its head in thorns, which send me flying when I try and cut through them. Little husks start spawning and attacking me. I ignore them and focus my attacks on the main body. It's a good thing I already have so much fighting experience or I'd slip under.

The husk pulls itself back up before bending over like a contortionist. Its eyes glow an eerie yellow, and it suddenly looks more like those shadow creatures than I ever would have imagined. It suddenly springs into the air and becomes a halo. It would be holy if it wasn't so deadly. Purple light gathers in the middle of the halo, thrumming with energy.

I tighten my grip on the keys.

Thorns spew out more than ever, but with my invented Reversal, I dodge them easily. I try to get an attack in edgeways, but it's spewing out so many of the thorns that I can't get a chance to attack. I can only dodge and wait for it to return to its original form.

It does just as I begin to tire. It slides along the ground like it's been deflated before jerking back up. I'm really starting to tire now; my joints are hurting and I'm having trouble getting my breath back. I've never had such a dynamic battle before, even when I fought Shadow. The husk doesn't even seem damaged, and I've no way to tell what its health is like.

I must have caused lots of damage because it starts going berserk, like it's become desperate. It swoops around the station, belting thorns at me like there's no tomorrow. I feel them slice through my skin now and then, drawing blood each time. I use Reversal to try and catch up to it. It moves really fast, but not as fast as me! I dash up to its face, take one final look at its featureless visage, and cross chop with both the keys.

The husk screams in pain, its voice echoing from nowhere. It claws at its face with its hands, trying to tear the skin off. It's really disturbing.

It's even worse when it falls on me.

I'm flattened for a second before the creature dissolves into darkness. It feels like tar, sticking to my skin. I can't pull myself out of it. It moves like its alive coming to devour me. It crushes my chest. I can't breathe. I never knew it could be so... heavy. I try to reach out for something – anything to grab onto. I grasp at thin air, until I brush against something that feels like rough fabric. I hold on with all my might.

Whatever it is, it pulls me out of the darkness.

I get a brief vision of big ears before I fall unconscious.