Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. It belongs to its rightful owners.
CHAPTER TWO: CHAKRAMS
HIXARI
"I would rather walk with a friend in the dark than alone in the light."
— Helen Keller
PERHAPS I HAD been a tad bit stoic lately.
My blank face had become as much of a part of me as the silver in my eyes, or the black in my hair. It lied hidden in the shadows of the bedroom I had yet to leave. There was no purpose in it these days. My lips remained in their thin line, having long forgotten the pleasures of anything. I had fallen victim to the true nature of my existence—nothing.
It wasn't uncommon. In a place where all everyone knew was nothing, my symptoms of desolation were typical. In fact, it was celebrated. The ones who cared the less carried out things that others couldn't. They were the most successful ones.
Heartless, cold, and unfeeling . . . that was the way of our people. I supposed the actions of my peers had rubbed off on me sooner rather than later.
My usual silence had been interrupted by the sound of my bedroom door opening. It forced an eerie creak to resonate through the dark room. A ray of light from the other side of the cracked door flashed a streak of white on my dresser. It brought life to the light gray, metal walls, and matching flooring. Through the rectangular hole in one of them—a makeshift window for those who craved a view—neon signs from the city below the castle gleamed. They never turned the things off, making it hard to get the room pitch black while I slept.
A person emerged from the light of the door. Their boots echoed footsteps; their black hood was thrown over their head to conceal identity. It made it difficult to tell who it might have been. It could have been any of the members that inhabited the floating castle. Though, there were only four members who walked into my quarters without so much as a knock. That, and the long, thin limbs should have been enough to narrow the options down.
The person's gloved-hand shut the door behind them when they were in. The room had once again been enveloped in the dark solitude it had previously. Other than the neon lights outside, there was no sign to prove that my suspicions were right. And they were, for the person reached up to pull the hood off, neon lights flashing against fiery hair and green eyes.
The man scratched the side of his face sheepishly, right under his eye where the diamond-shaped marked sat, and a sigh of relief escaped my lips at the image. Thankfully, it wasn't Xemnas coming in to tell me that I had to go out looking for Roxas. Due to my newfound nonchalant attitude, I had become his favourite to pick at. He knew that I would have no trouble.
Of course, I wouldn't have, had I not saw the boy a few days ago. He already had enough hell coming his way. He didn't need my presence adding on to it.
"Sorry if I woke you up." His reserved tone sounded genuine, but it was obvious he didn't really care.
He, too, didn't seem to give a damn about anything as of late. His whole demeanor had changed since the happenings involving Roxas. He had began to be less sympathetic, whether it be in talking, or handling another's life.
I had witnessed him do things that would make one tremble. Things that would make the average person question his sanity. Even so, he didn't seem to have a problem with it, so neither could I.
"I heard you were looking for me."
I nodded, pointing a finger to the spot beside me on the small, white bed. "Sit."
He didn't object. His six-foot-three frame listened to my command and sat. The crappy mattress groaned at the added weight, but neither of us paid attention to it. He had already been staring at his nails, and I had busied myself with studying his face. It was something that I had saw countless times. However, this time, it seemed aloof.
The flicker in his eyes revealed that something was off. His lips were tilted down in the corners, and his thin eyes were narrowed far too much to be able to see out of. Similar to an untamed lion, his presence came with a sense dominance, like everything else in the room was inferior to him. It was for show, clearly, but his large towering body and blank face made it believable.
The look on his features was reckless. It was almost as if he was telling me that he had done something stupid. I prided myself on being able to read his face better than anyone. And as his eyes trailed up to the ceiling, I sighed. My suspicions were correct for the second time.
"What did you do, Axel?"
"I found Roxas," he answered, blandly.
The colour drained from my face. That was why he had turned on "alpha male" mode. It was because he was defenseless. He had found the person that he shouldn't have. He was trying to protect himself both mentally, physically, and, once upon a time, emotionally.
"He looked so different," he continued. "I mean, he looked the same, but he looked happier or something. I don't know."
"He has a—quote, unquote—life again," I pointed out. "No more black cloaks, no more hiding, no more white bedrooms, no more missions, no more . . . being an empty shell. Wouldn't you be different if you got away?"
He shrugged his shoulders and moved to lie back on the bed. When he threw a thin arm over his face to shield his eyes from the outside light, I knew that everything was bothering him.
I decided to change the subject. "I went to see her."
That made him sit up again. "How? I thought you hid her in the old mansion in Twilight Town. Aren't those guys still in that place? I thought it would've been hard to see her. You didn't get caught?"
I shook my head at all of his questions. "No. I snuck in. I just wanted to check if things were all right."
"And you call me the reckless one, huh?" He joked. "What would you have done if you got killed? If you faded away?"
"Then, I'd just be gone. You of all people should know important she is to me . . . to us. You've done so much for her, don't you at least want to know if she's okay?"
He shrugged his shoulders again. "I guess . . . How is she?"
"Okay. She's doing better. She grew a lot in the past few years."
"Still small?" he asked, and chuckled once I nodded. "Same ol' Short Stuff."
A silence had developed around us after that. What else were two hollow bodies supposed to communicate about? We had very little happening around us as it was, but our time apart had forked something large between our bond. No . . . our existence had wedged us in different directions. How could one communicate with someone who barely liked anyone, let alone himself?
I lied back on the white bed. That was how we were meant to spend the rest of our days. We were meant to carry on as people without much purpose. Roxas' presence had softened the blow while he was here, giving us the option of "friendship" to rely on. Now, there was nothing to do—partially because so many things had changed. We were off on our own adventures, some more than others, and not really having time for each other anymore.
Him being here was the first time that I had laid eyes on Axel all week. Opposed to us spending almost every waking moment together like we used to, things had clearly switched up.
A finger tapped against my forehead, shifting against the hairs that my created my bangs. Long and calloused; my eyes looked around in search of the man they belonged to. Practically glowing green ones had bore into mine before they even met. With a sigh, he wrapped his hand around my bicep, and forced my upper-half into a sitting position. It took very little effort. The chains of my cloak rattled against my chest in near protest.
"Hey," he breathed. "Come with me. Let's go do something fun."
"Like what?" I asked.
It wasn't uncommon for his versions of fun to be something bad. He could find amusement in fading away if he was in the mood for it. Thrill and adrenaline was what he thrived off of, and I couldn't say that I was the same. It was all the more reason for me to be suspicious of his request. If he wanted me with him, his intentions surely weren't the purest.
The redhead stood up, pulling my body right along with him. "You're always asking questions. Just relax and come on, will ya? Have some faith in me."
I sighed. Axel was one of my best friends, after all. Turning his offer down made me realize how rare it was for us to be together, anyways. So, when I nodded my head in silent agreement, he lifted his hand to create a portal for us to go through.
He didn't say anything else; he simply threw on his hood. His hand had reached out to grab mine, forcing it over my head like I was a child who couldn't do it herself. That wasn't the case, of course, but there wasn't much room for protest. He grabbed my arm, and pulled me into the portal behind him before I could get a word out.
It was beyond me what he was planning. It was hard to figure out things when he was involved. All that I knew was that it wouldn't be something safe nor fun, and I highly doubted that he was taking us out for ice-cream. He wasn't the type of person to just hang out anymore. He liked to stir things up. Me being with him was his favourite excuse to show out, though I prayed that he would show me different just this once.
The portal led to the empty city streets of Twilight Town. The sky dances in tones of oranges and blues; the wind brought about breezes and whispers of teenagers on their summer vacation. Of course. Someone like me shouldn't have guessed otherwise—someone who knew exactly what the hell he wanted. He wanted nothing more than to drag me alone with him to find Roxas. And in that moment, I didn't know what was more disappointing: the fact that he was still stressing about him, or the fact that he had whisked me away to follow his own sorrows.
I snatched my arm out of his grip as the portal vanished behind us. The look he gave me was obviously confused about my sudden attitude. He should have known why. There was not a person in these worlds more against seeing Roxas than I was. That said, I walked down the tiled streets without him, ignoring the furrowing of his small brows.
There was no reason why we should have been in Twilight Town. We were some of the only ones who knew of Roxas' whereabouts. I knew that neither of us had it in each other to terminate the kid, as shocking as that sounded. He didn't even remember who we were. There was no point in hunting him down if we weren't going to hurt him, and he couldn't remember where he was last year. It was Axel's way of being problematic, something that I was starting to wonder if he enjoyed.
His long legs took long strides to catch up with me. In fact, he passed me up, strolling past as if I wasn't there to begin with. I sighed, jogging after him. Just like there was no point in us being here, there was no point in ruining our own little personal reunion with a change in mood. He must have came to that conclusion, too, for he had slowed down to allow me to fall into step beside him.
The town was usually bustling with beings of different races, ages, or species. There seemed not to be a dull moment in the quaint area. From ringing clock towers to battle arenas, there were things to keep the active youth busy. The same went for adults, who occupied themselves with train trips and thriving businesses. Though, today was different. I had yet to hear someone actually communicating, or to see someone pass for that matter. It felt like the whole world was on an endless standstill.
The further we went into the town, the more I could see that I was right. The people who had been walking along the streets weren't moving. Instead, they were seemingly frozen in place, smiling on their lips like they were unaware of what was happening. None of them moved an inch. Especially one elderly woman, who stayed glued to her spot next to her still-standing poodle.
I glanced up at Axel, raising an eyebrow. "Did you do this?" I questioned.
For someone in his very early twenties, his answer sure was sarcastic. "As much as I hate to tell you no, I'm sayin' it this time."
"Well, if you're not doing it, then—"
"Munchkin, look."
He pointed a gloved-finger to the Town Square. Banners and balloons were hanging all around the area, promoting something called a Struggle Tournament. A chalkboard sat in the corner to keep score of what I was guessing competitors. And in the center of it all, people in their younger years were gathered around something either of us had yet to see. It must have been the battle arena from our previous visits here. However, it wasn't much of one anymore now that the residents weren't moving.
My gaze followed his finger toward the familiar blonde in the middle of the Town Square. Four Nobodies—pesky Dusks, to be exact—were closing in on him from all sides. Yet, his face wasn't contorted in fear like I had been expecting. His blue eyes were squinted in concentration, his brows were pulled low, and his stance wasn't that of a pushover. He had tightened his grip on his Keyblade before jumping into battle with the Nobodies. It was the total opposite of how things played out when I last saw him.
His form was still sloppy, though. He fumbled all over the place trying to gain leverage against his enemies. For creatures as cunning and swift as the Dusks, getting over on them wouldn't be an easy task for someone like him. But, he continued to fight with everything he had in him, and after bringing down the Key on the last one standing, it, too, faded away. He wasn't completely back to himself, but the traces of it were reappearing. Ever the excellent fighter, he had once been.
Noticing it, too, Axel laughed, clapping his hands together in mock amazement. It had scared the daylights out of the younger boy, who had turned to look at us with eyes the size of saucers. I supposed he hadn't been expecting for people to be moving in the standstill world. Nonetheless, it was enough to spark a flame within my other friend.
"Roxas, all right! Fight, fight, fight," he fake cheered, clapping louder.
Roxas didn't respond to his taunting, and I didn't blame him for it. The boy wasn't exactly in his full state of mind. Axel's teasing must have been far more threatening than it really was, even for someone who once had the strength to fight back against him.
Axel took a few steps closer to Roxas to close the distance a bit. It surprised me . . . how anxious the sound of his boots made me. He was never one to hold back once someone pissed him off, and Roxas was stretching his limits lately. It made me nervous for the both of them. For the impending fight that was sure to come. So, I had moved to follow him in an attempt to keep them from each other. Although, it was short-lived since Axel held his arm out to stop me.
I glared at his back hard enough to burn holes had our roles been reversed. He wanted me to stay out of his way. I should have figured as much. He hadn't brought me here to come looking for our best friend. He brought me here as back up—to stop him if he got to riled up. If using me like that wasn't such an Axel thing to do, I didn't know what was.
He walked closer once he seen that I was no longer following. "You really don't remember? It's me. You know . . . Axel."
His hands reached up to pull the hood off of his head. Red spikes spilled out and around his shoulders; green eyes pierced through anything and everything. He was revealing his face in hopes of jogging the teenager's memory. It didn't. Rather, Roxas stared over at him in confusion, not saying a word.
He was an idiot for trying. Roxas wouldn't remember anything.
"Axel?" the blonde repeated.
At that, Axel rolled his eyes. "Talk about blank with a capital B. Man, oh man, even the Dusks aren't gonna crack this one."
There it was. That sense of annoyance that I knew would surface. It was where I came into play. Because that was all that I was good for nowadays, I supposed. Fighting for Xemnas and being Axel's "yes man" was my only occupation.
Axel held out his hands, summoning his weapons. Bursts of fire engulfed his hands; I had to lean away from the sudden wave of heat. And when they died out, his silver and red chakrams were left in their wake. Eternal Flames, they were called, or Weapons of Mass Destruction for lack of a better term. Depending on his mood and severity of the situation, the way he used them could be harmless or fatal. I just hoped that he had enough sense left in him not to use them against Roxas.
Roxas stepped back at the sight of his weapons. "Wait a sec, tell me what's going on!" he demanded.
Wouldn't we all like to know.
Axel turned his head to look at me through the corner of his eye. "This town is his creation, right?"
His creation . . . I nodded. We didn't exist, and neither did this world. Technically speaking, that was. It existed somewhere . . . just not here. This place didn't exist in the endless passageways of space. It was all something that he created for convenience. Why he needed to be reminded of that, I couldn't figure out.
"That means we don't have time for a Q and A." He flashed Roxas a small smirk. "You're coming with me, conscious or not. Then you'll hear the story."
"What?" I threw the hood off of my head as he got into a fighting stance. "What are you talking about? We didn't come here to take him. I didn't come here for that. Don't—"
He cut me off before my rant could continue. "Relax. Jeez, I leave for a few days and all your trust in me vanishes." He sighed, shrugging his shoulders at Roxas. "Women, what are you gonna do with 'em . . ."
"This isn't a joke—"
I wouldn't have minded reprimanding him for what I knew he was about to do, but things didn't turn out that way. The ground began to shake from vibrations caused by who knew what. I stumbled a bit, my words falling short until they were nothing but squeaks. The both of them took that as a chance to ignore me, going back to their conversation once the tremors stopped. I supposed my warnings would have done no good, anyways.
"What's going on?" Roxas snapped again.
"Number thirteen: Roxas," Axel started. "The Keyblade's chosen one."
"Okay, fine! If you aren't gonna talk, you asked for it!"
The redhead's smirk grew a tad bigger. "Now that's what I like to hear!"
He charged at the boy at full speed. One second he was there, and the next he wasn't; I looked around the field for him in confusion. So had Roxas, who sprinted out of the way when a wall of flames were sent in his direction. It wasn't one of his stronger tactics, but it could definitely do some damage. That much was obvious in the way Roxas's shirt caught on fire. The boy patted out the flames to salvage his white jacket. It wasn't fast enough, though, for Axel had set his chakrams ablaze, and hurled them in his direction.
I had been focusing on worrying about myself lately. It was what one did if they wanted to survive in our line of work. Regardless if we were an Organization or not, we were still lone-wolves in ways that were understandable. But, as I stood there watching my best friends fight, something in me wouldn't allow it. I couldn't do it. I couldn't not do anything about the situation they were in. Even if Axel wasn't using his full potential, it was still too much for Roxas right now. Empty or not, what would I be if I let my little brother be beaten down?
I opened my palms in front of me, then. With a flash of light, blocks of steel appeared within them, melting away to reveal a rod of metal in each palm. A thick, metal chain connected them at the end. It was my given weapon—nunchucks—though I doubted they would do me any good in the current situation. My hands gripped onto each one and pulled the apart, the chain extending until it pooled around my feet. The silver blade popped up on one of the nunchucks. If I was going to do something, I was going to need my chain-sickle.
I swung around the sickle a few times by its chain, throwing it at the flaming chakrams heading toward Roxas. Luckily, the weapons collided, the chakrams getting entangled in the sickle before they could reach him. I yanked the chain back, and they came flying backwards. Both my weapon and Axel's came clanging around my feet. The flame on the chakrams had died out by then, just like the thrill of the fight.
The chakrams disappeared in a fit of light. They reappeared in Axel's hands, whom willed them away with a frown.
"All right, all right. I get it." He waved me off.
I willed my weapon away as well. The thing was, Axel didn't get it. Granted, we were not sympathetic people with hearts, but he should have been able to see how overwhelmed Roxas was. He couldn't move like he used to. He couldn't react like we used to. I should have known, both Axel and I spent our time teaching him how to defend himself. Hell, Axel even more than me in most cases. Was it the memories that made me want to protect Roxas, or was it the bit of "caring" that I felt when he was around? If one could call it that.
Roxas opened his mouth to spout more questions. However, he jumped at the sound of the portal of darkness spawning behind him. All three of us turned to look at it with renewed interest. It hadn't been Axel who had summoned it. Rather, it was a man bound in belts and buckles who stepped out of it.
His entire head was wrapped in red fabric save for his eyes and mouth. Black belts secured the fabric in place. It matched the scarf around his neck and the burgundy cloak blowing around him. His sleeved arms were clasped together behind his back. His presence was strong, I concluded, for once he stepped further, all of us must have felt like taking a step back.
Him.
"So, it was you," Axel grumbled to him.
He wasted no time in summoning his chakrams again, throwing them and flames at the man. He was never one to talk out things. I hadn't expected any less. He was always straight for the fighting—a more "fight now and ask questions later" type of guy. When one had the strength to back it up, he could do as he pleased.
But, the chakrams bounced away from the man as if he had a shield protecting him. Axel's surprised expression spoke for itself. He hadn't been anticipating that happening, and neither had we.
The man turned to the blonde almost urgently. "Roxas, this man speaks nonsense!" he said, motioning toward the redhead.
Axel scoffed. "Roxas, don't let him deceive you!"
"Roxas!"
"Roxas!"
The two men began shouting at Roxas to get them on their sides. Seeing as how Roxas was living a semi-normal life up until now, the pressure was starting to get to him. Even I could see that. His gaze bounced back and forth between the two yelling men. And before I could do anything to save him for it, his eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he collapsed on the ground.
He had passed out due to too much happening.
Axel stared at his limp body with furrowed brows. I sighed, wrapping my small hand around his arm to pull him away from the scene.
"Come on," I urged. "It's time for us to go, Axel."
This was one of my most hated chapters. *sighs* I'm so glad that it's edited now. The word count is a bit over doubled, too!
~ Insane
