The Seven plus One Equals Reunion
Alirah took one gaze at the Enchanted Dominion castle. Fauna spoke of fairy tales and happy endings. No matter how many times you show here, Alirah just couldn't believe in happy endings. There's no such thing, She told herself, they're just something adults tell us to make to the world seem brighter. She folded a strand of hair behind her ear. Her fingers ran over a lump. "Huh?" She took it out of her hair. "This is…" It was the rose clip Riku made for her. She smiled at it. "I forgot I even had this in my hair," she chortled, "Riku…he made this for me…" she tightened a fist around it. "Maybe…maybe he…" Then she remembered. She had to return to the room she was in. She put it back in her hair, "I'll hang onto it." She smiled one more time at the castle and then proceeded through the door.
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Alirah appeared in the white hallway. She sauntered out into the middle. Looking to the stairs she assumed led to the next floor, and the door, she couldn't find Riku. "RIKU!" She shouted. Her voice echoed throughout the hall. No one responded. "Hey Hiano?" He slithered to her neck, "Riku and I went through the same door right?"
"Right?" He nodded.
"So we should come out the same way, right?" She pressed. Hiano nodded again. "So why isn't Riku here?"
"The same way, just not at the same time," He explained. "You ran into trouble. It's feasible to say that Riku is having some trouble too." He reassured her, "Maybe he's being held back."
"That is a good summation," The two looked towards the door. There stood Xehanort, his signature depraved smirk plastered on his face. Alirah took a fighters stance. Hiano bared his fangs. "Another possibility is he's not on this floor anymore. Or he may not even be in this castle."
Alirah cocked an eye. "What do you mean?" she asked. "Where exactly are we? And why isn't Riku here with us?"
"Hmm-hmm-hmm," he chuckled. "You always were one for questions." He remarked reminiscently. Alirah furrowed her eyebrows. She hated it when he referred back to the past. It only reminded her of how much he knows her. Xehanort raised a hand, gesturing to the room they were in, "You are in a place known as Castle Oblivion. This Castle thrives on memories, be they good or bad. In this place: To find is to lose and to lose is to find." Alirah cocked an eye. "You will find those that you knew and you will lose those that you know."
Xehanort dropped his gaze to Hiano and smirked. Alirah put a hand onto him, protecting him from the Dark Master. "For arguments sake," she hissed, "Who am I going to see here?"
Xehanort crossed his arm, and closed his eyes. He hummed thoughtfully. Alirah had no doubt in her mind that he was thinking of a way to further screw with her mind. "Seven plus one know you as a child," he began, "three minus one only heard about you," Hiano scratched his head with his tail, "One you will know but he will not know you and the last knows you but not with her mind. What will this castle grant you in the long run?" He finished. Alirah raised a confused eye and gaped her mouth. Is that really all he's giving me? "You love puzzles," he tapped his bald head, "Think about it." he snapped his fingers. A force field formed in front of the stairs. "Once you figure it out, the shield will drop and I shall tell you what became of your former beau." Alirah clenched a fist. Once again, you toy with me. "Oh and, just because I love to aggravate you, Hiano can't help you. And…" He trailed off. He sprang forward. Alirah stepped back and tried to draw her blade. Xehanort grabbed her by the hair, holding her up straight and punched her in the stomach. Tanya had the wind knocked out of her. Xehanort dropped her. Hiano slithered out, wrapping around her. "Do not worry, Guardian," he grumbled happily, "She's fine." Alirah coughed up spit, looking shakily up at him. "See." He chimed. He held up his fingers. In between them was Alirah's clip. Her eye's widened. "This is a lovely charm," he marveled tauntingly, "And well crafted. I don't recall Terra ever making this for you." He rolled it around, analyzing every angle. Alirah, keeping a hand over her stomach, pushed herself up, glaring at the old man. He bent down and flashed it mockingly in her face. "Is this a memento from Riku?" he chimed.
"Give…it…back!" She choked. "BWAH!" She coughed again, curling forward. Hiano
Xehanort clenched it in his fist. "I'll take that as a yes." He walked passed her.
Alirah got to her knees. The muscles in her stomach felt bruised, but she still got to her feet. She stumbled for the old master. "Give that…BACK!" She hissed, regaining her breath.
"I will," Xehanort laughed, "Once you solve my riddle. And give a good debate as to what your answer is." He walked past the barrier and went upstairs. "See you soon." He vanished up the stairs.
"XEHANORT!" She roared, falling back down to her knees. Xehanort was gone. Alirah punched the ground.
"Her certainly loves to arouse your anger, doesn't he?" Hiano hissed.
"Yes he does," she grunted, going back to her feet, "But he and Eraqus did love to give me puzzles. And I love solving them."
"So I take it you know what the riddle meant?"
"Yes. And it's not a riddle. It's a test. Eraqus did this to me and Aqua all the time. He would start by talking about random things and send us on a quest through the Land of Departure. All we had were: our knowledge of the grounds and our memory of what he had said."
"And what Xehanort said…"
"Got me thinking…" she trailed off. The Nobody, Larxene – before she died – mentioned her number, 12, Organization 13 and the leading seven plus Xemnas. "First part: the math." She knelt down to the ground. Black and purple mists swirled around her finger. She wrote down the math. Seven plus one know her – eight. Three minus one only heard about her – 12 now 11. She knows one, but he doesn't know her. And the last one knows her, but not with her mind – 13. "She said it was Organization 13. But Larxene must have forgotten that there was a 14th member."
"Well there's 13 now," Hiano laughed, "So what's this all got to do with you?" He asked. He had an idea of what the answer was. But like Xehanort said, he can't help.
"People who know me, people that I know – finding losing, losing finding – a castle of memories dealing with my past," She pieced together. "People from my past – more appropriately, people who I knew as a child – are going to be in this castle." She deduced, folding her arms. "And these 13 are the key." She walked up to the barrier. "What will this castle grant me?" she asked the wall. "A REUNION!" She declared. A cheerful victory tune was heard. The barrier dropped. Alirah smiled with triumph. "I'm about to see some old faces Hiano," she chortled, "The only question is: which one's?"
"How many people can you possibly know?" He gasped.
"In my line of work history," she responded simply, "I can know the entire Chinese army and their mothers." She tapped her key chain, telling Hiano to go back into the keyblade. He did so. Alirah continued down the stairs. The only question is: who does Xehanort think I will lose in this castle?
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(Basement POV)
After being appalled by Vexen and Lexaeus's lack of greeting when arriving into the basement, Zexion held a hand over his mouth and nose, keeping track of those in the castle. He detected Larxene's sudden disappearance. That brought him into a slight state of unease. Vexen was expressing his interest in Riku, who he deemed the Hero of Darkness. "I should begin preparations at once." He stated. He went for the door.
"I'd wait if I were you," Zexion warned. Vexen stopped, "I'm detecting someone else…someone familiar." Lexaeus moved his eyes to the Schemer. Vexen crossed his arms and gazed curiously. Zexion closed his eyes and in haled deeply. This smell…pleasant darkness…reptilian…salty sweet…and roses, he ran over in his mind. A figure formed in his mind as to where he's smelt these components before. The figure that formed made his eyes widened. "I know this scent!" He blurted.
"Well, who is it?" Vexen asked impatiently.
"I don't know how it's possible, but it is. It's Alirah's scent!" Lexaeus and Vexen's jaws dropped to the floor. "And what's more is…she's the one who killed Larxene."
Lexaeus grabbed Zexion's shoulders and shook him, "Are you sure?" He boomed, "Are you sure you're not mistaken? Maybe it's someone else!"
"I know this scent anywhere," Zexion said, moving away from the Silent Hero, "Alirah's here and she killed Larxene."
Lexaeus put a hand to his forehead and leaned on his hand against the wall. "How is this possible?" He gasped. "Xemnas said she died nine years ago. She was beaten to death. And yet our own personal sniffer says she's here. And she killed our Savage Nymph?" He explained skeptically. "For arguments sake," he added firstly, "I know it's been nine years since we've seen her," he pointed out, "but to have defeated Larxene! She's not that powerful, but she's no pushover."
"Indeed," Vexen chimed happily, "But neither is Alirah." He smiled. "Alirah always was a handful as a child." He put a hand to his chin. "The fact that Alirah is here and that Xemnas deployed us here in such a hurry…he's planning something. And the news of Alirah's false death was part of it."
"Because he didn't think we'd recognize a ghost. He also didn't think I'd remember her scent." Zexion added. "He planned to have us finish his dirty work. He expected us to kill Alirah." he shook his head, "This is deplorable."
"I do believe you're right," Vexen chimed, "Unless you picked up on her scent, we would have gone in and killed Alirah on the spot." He caressed his chin thoughtfully. "Now what is it about Alirah that has Xemnas so spooked that he would lie to us?" he asked, mainly to himself. "This warrants further investigation. And I think I'll begin with Riku."
"Why him?" Zexion asked.
"One: he appeared first. And two: let's let Alirah get more comfortable with the castle before we have a reunion." He ported out, leaving the two lower numbers with their thoughts.
To be honest with themselves, they weren't sure if they were happy or upset that Alirah was there. Should they be happy because she's alive and well? Or, should they be mad because she didn't try to contact them? Unfortunately, only a face to face meeting will answer those questions. And they weren't sure if they were ready to see her again. Especially Zexion. "Zexion?"
"Leave it Lexaeus!" He spat. "Until I meet with her, she might as well be dead."
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(Upstairs POV)
A shiver ran down Alirah's spine. "What is it?" Hiano asked, sensing her discomfort.
"I'm getting the distinct feeling someone's upset at me."
"Something like that." Xehanort laughed, leaning against the door.
Alirah scowled and ran up to him. She stopped at the foot of the steps, holding out her hand, "GIVE ME THE CLIP BACK XEHANORT, NOW!" She roared.
"Say please and I might." He mocked. A fire ball flew passed his head and hit the door. "Very well," he shrugged, taking out the clip, "You can have it." He threw it to her. Alirah put it back in her hair. "Now I believe you wanted to know what became of Riku." He reminded her. He looked passed her, "Why don't you tell her?" he called out.
Alirah cocked an eye and looked behind. Her heart dropped. There stood Ansem, a smug animalistic grin on his face. Xehanort ported out, leaving them both to talk. Alirah drew her blade. She was prepared in case he decided to attack her. "Do not worry," he reassured her, "I'm just a messenger." Alirah still kept her blade at the ready. "Riku is another floor ahead of you. Possibly halfway through his second memory. How he must be suffering right now," he taunted.
"Why do you say that?" She spat.
"Because he fears the darkness. Which probably explains why he's afraid of you," he added slyly.
"Why would he be afraid of me?" Alirah asked skeptically.
"Because you control darkness," Ansem retorted, holding up a clenched fist, "And should he give in to the darkness, you could control him with ease."
"I would never do that to him!" Alirah roared. "Never would I ever use my powers on Riku like that."
"You took control of Terra," Ansem remarked, "Why wouldn't you do the same to Riku?" Alirah grunted, remembering the day she and terra were ambushed and when Maleficent possessed him. I had to or else…"I bet you were tempted to play puppet master with him." he continued to goad, "To make Riku bend to your will." Alirah widened her eyes. Ansem let out a huge laugh. "Maybe I should rethink killing you. You're so much like me I should consider having you serve me."
"You're crazy!" She howled. "I'm nothing like you!"
She ran for him and struck out with her blade. Ansem effortlessly raised a hand. A small shield formed, bouncing Alirah back. "If you didn't want to accept my offer, you could have just said no." Alirah sat up and gritted her teeth. "But the fact remains," he pressed, "By the time you find Riku, he'll belong to me once again. And when he is, I'll use his hands to destroy you." Alirah dropped her gaze. She couldn't let that happen. "Or," she looked back up. Ansem stepped to the side, clearing the way back to the last floor, "Will you leave this castle and spare yourself further pain?" Alirah sat on her knees. Her eyes were locked with his. She considered his words and Xehanort's. To find is to lose, to lose is to find. Once she finds Riku…maybe she'll lose him. She's lost so many people in her life, could she really handle another. "What is your choice?"
She tightened her fists and rose to her feet. "Riku continued on knowing he'd be facing the darkness," she stated in a low growl. "If I turn back now, I'll never hear the end of it." She drew her blade again, taking a stance. "No matter who or what gets in my way, I'm not leaving until I find Riku. And I'll strike down anyone who gets in my way!"
Ansem bobbed his head. "Just what I'd expect from a keyblade master." He held up a card. "This card will clear the path for you. But know this," he added ominously, "Each memory will bring you pain. The further you go, the farther back into your past you will journey. Reliving and seeing events and people you have tried to forget. You'll have sensations where darkness will flow into every pore of your body, turning you into something not of this world." Alirah believed that part. The Forbidden Mountain's dark energy messed with her head. Do you think you can handle it?"
"I've been dealing with you, Yensid and the old man for 15 years," she stated confidently. She crossed her arms, "I can handle a few ghosts. As for the dark magic," she shrugged nonchalantly, "It's my specialty. I'll manage."
"I'll hold you to that," He chuckled, "Until then," he waved as he ported out, "Enjoy your reunion." He was gone.
Alirah looked down at the card. "I won't lose to you this time Xehanort," she declared, tightening her grip on the card, "I will be walking out of here." She touched her fingers to her clip, "And Riku will be with me."
OH MY GAWD, I HATE IT WHEN I DO THIS. I write a chapter, but it feels like I do a half assed job. UGH! Which is what I did with this one. I want Alirah to visit her memories, while Riku visits his. I'm sure some of you caught onto that.
I plan to role with this and make my next chapter better and longer. The chapters that involve the worlds will be longer than ones dealing with the castle. Just a warning.
I really am open to ideas and suggestions. If you guys have any just send them to me. I could use some help with this story.
Till next time.
