Authors Note: Hey everyone. Thanks again for your reviews. They really brighten up my day.
Anyway, this chapter was a BEAST to write, but i did it. It took quite a bit of thought, and some of the scenes could have been better, but I really tried my best. I hope you all enjoy it.
"Whew" another 10K chapter. Geeze. When I edit my rough draft, I just go ham because there is so much detail that needs to be added. I easily doubled my word count from the first draft.
Anyway, please enjoy.
Warning: Spelling…Nuf said.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
A Heart in the Void
Chapter 7
Louise walked out of Kirche's room after a long talk. It was late in the night, and she was exhausted, emotionally, physically, and mentally. However, there was one thing she had to admit.
She…really did feel better.
Who knew that Kirche, the person who had tormented her since day one, could be so personable? In all the time they had shared at the academy, Louise had envisioned Kirche to just be some flirty slut that took joy in only two things, making her life miserable and boys.
However, after their talk, there was so much more to the red-head than she first thought. As Louise continued to walk back to her room, her mine reflected back on the conversation she had with her rival.
Louise had followed Kirche into her room after the whole incident with Fouquet. Roxas had not been seen since, and they doubted they would be able to find him anytime soon. He was good at making himself scarce when he didn't want to be found. But at the moment, that really didn't matter.
Currently, Kirche was sitting at her desk with her arms folded while Louise sat on the bed, her head down as she continued to think about the past few days. Tabitha had retreated back to her room, so it was just the two girls there, alone.
There was a very awkward silence between them for the longest time. The silence was unbearable, so Kirche took the initiative.
"Louise…"
"Why?"
Kirche blinked a few times before she raised an eyebrow. "Why what?"
Tears started to stream down Louise's face as she chocked on a sob. She looked up at her rival, not even caring what kind of state she was in.
"Why am I so bad at magic? Why can't I do anything right? I study, I practice, I try every day to be the best I can be, but I always fail. Why is it that I can't do the things you do? Why does it come so easy to you when I give everything I have and always come up short?" She cried as more tears streamed down her face.
Kirche didn't show it, but she was actually quite shocked that Louise was acting like this. She thought the girl was made of steel and that nothing she said could ever get to her.
How wrong she was.
"It's so humiliating." Louise continued as she looked down at the ground, her tears gently splashing on the wood floor. "I am supposed to be a noble, but I can't cast magic. Every day I get called a Zero because I have never been able to use even the simplest spell. I don't have any friends because who would want to be friends with a Zero. A nothing."
As Kirche continued to watch the girl break down in front of her, she would only cringe at all the times she had been the one that had started the teasing in class. At the time, she didn't think anything of it because Louise would never show that she was affected by it. But now she could see that Louise would hid all of that hurt behind a mask.
Kirche gave a small sigh. That was something she could relate to.
"However." Louise started, catching Kirche's attention. "I finally did something right at the summoning. I was able to call forth a familiar." She said as she looked back at Kirche. "He was stubborn and rarely listened to me, but it gave me hope. It gave me hope that I was not a complete failure as a mage and that I could amount to something if I tried hard enough." She then looked down at the floor again. "He didn't even care that I couldn't cast magic. He didn't look down on me, insult me, or belittle me in any way. I thought I had finally found someone that could look past that part of me." She said as she bit her lip.
"But I even messed that up to. Now my Familiar is ashamed of me. The one person that didn't care that I couldn't cast magic, the one person that treated me just like everyone else, is ashamed of me." She chocked on another sob. "And yet again when I try and help him, I end up hurting him even more because all I ever do is fail." That was when the floodgates burst open. Louise started to sob into her hands in front of her rival. All the bottled up emotions she had contained suddenly flooded out of her.
Kirche could only watch in pity as her rival continued to cry. Louise looked so broken, something Kirche didn't think could happen to Louise. But everyone had their limits…and it seemed that Louise had just reached hers.
Slowly, Kirche stood from her seat as she sat on the bed next to her. She put a comforting arm around Louise's shoulder as gently pulled her close.
Usually, Louise would have tried to pull away from Kirche, but she was too much of a mess to do anything about it. She simply rested her head against her rivals shoulder and let her tears fall. Right now she didn't care who it was, she just needed someone to be there for her.
Kirche just sat there and let Louise vent all of her emotions until she finally calmed down a bit. When her sobs turned into a few sniffles, Kirche gave her a soft smile.
"You know Louise, I used to be enrolled in an academy at Germania, but because of some unfortunate circumstances, I was forced to move here to Tristain." She started.
Louise wasn't looking at her directly, but she was listening.
"I got into a bit of trouble and had to move. When I first came here, I was so frustrated at the situation, that I guess I took it out on the first person I could. Imagine my surprise when a family rival attended the same academy as me. That made you a prime target to vent my own frustration." She said as she gently rubbed Louise's shoulder. "What added to the frustration was that all the boys in this academy could not see me beyond my looks, just like my ex-fiancé."
Louise rubbed her eyes as she looked up at Kirche. "You're…ex-fiancé? You were supposed to be married?"
Kirche nodded. "He was a disgusting old geezer that could give Count Mott a run for his money." She said before she smiled at Louise. "My family claimed that getting married to him would boost their status as nobles, but I didn't believe it for a second. A girl can tell when a guy only wants her only for their body." She said as she gave a sigh. "Naturally I refused to marry him. And that created bad blood between our two families. To make a long story short, I had to move here because my reputation was slandered by that man and his family."
Louise's eyes widened. "T-That means…"
"Yeah." Kirche said as she gave a solemn smile, one that Louise had never seen on her usually seductive face. "There was a lot of things said about me that I would rather not share, but people talked behind my back, made fun of me, and mocked me mercilessly. My so-called friends turned against me and I was completely alone." She turned back to Louise. "So my family sent me here to get a fresh start. I met Tabitha, who is a bit reserved, but is a great listener."
Louise raised her eyebrow at that, causing Kirche to laugh. "It may not seem like it, but Tabitha does hear every word you say through her book." She said before she gave a sigh. "But she was the only friend I really had here. The boys only saw me for my body and most of the girls were jealous because of it. All I had to take my frustrations out on was my families rival, you."
Louise frowned a bit before she gently pushed Kirche away. "If you went through something similar, then why did you always make fun of me?"
Kirche gave another small sigh. "Because it made me feel better about myself. It made me forget about the pain I went through. That's kind of why I date all those boys. It is just a temporary fix; bit the attention also helps me forget."
Louise frowned again before she wiped the rest of her tears away. "I guess it does. When Roxas first became my familiar, I was so mean to him…and to a degree, I still am. I once tried to take his weapon away, thinking that it would help me become a better mage, but I was just fooling myself. Roxas is not strong because of those weapons. I was steadily pushing him away, to the point where he is ashamed of me now."
Kirche nodded before she gave a small grin. "People tend to have a breaking point when pushed too far, wouldn't you agree?"
"Shut up." Louise snapped as she gave Kirche a small shove, but she had a small smile on her face as she did so.
Knock knock
"Come in" Kirche called as Louise quickly wiped the rest of her tears away. The door opened to revile Siesta standing there with a tray of tea for the two girls. She had a smile on her face as she walked in and sat the tray on the table. She then gave a small bow left out the door. Kirche stood from the bed and walked to the table, picking up two cups of tea before she returned to the bed. She offered Louise one of the cups which she accepted graciously.
After taking a small sip, she turned to her rival. "Kirche, what am I supposed to do about Roxas?"
Kirche sipped her tea as she thought about it. "The first step would be to figure out why he is mad at you."
Louise lowered her head a bit more, already knowing the answer. "I already know why. It was because of the way I treated his friends, how I view Commoners as a whole, and the fact that I lied about it."
Kirche nodded as she hummed in thought. "Roxas seems like the kind of person who will believe actions over words. But has anything changed? Do you still view commoners the same way?"
Louise bit her lower lip as she thought back on Roxas's question. If she had known about what was in Count Mott's basement, would she have done anything about it?
"I don't know. I was raised to believe that nobles were above them. That they didn't matter, but…"
"But?"
"But after I saw what was in Count Mott's basement…" Louise said as she gave a small shiver.
Kirche could agree. That was a truly horrifying scene. "Yeah."
"What about you? Weren't you the same?" Louise asked.
Kirche gave a small chuckle. "This is not about me, remember?" She said a she took another sip of her tea. "All I can suggest is that you show him that your views have changed. Of course, I don't know if just saying it will be enough because Roxas is a very unpredictable person, someone that even I can't really read."
Louise lowered her head as she thought about it. What Kirche said really did make a lot of sense.
"Thank you." Louise said as she gave Kirche a small smile.
Kirche grinned right back. "Don't think I will act any different around you though. You are just too much fun to banter with…Zero."
Louise narrowed her eyes at Kirche before she grinned right back. "I didn't expect anything less from you, cow."
"A cow I may be, but I can use that do my advantage." She said, as she pushed out her chest slightly. "However, I don't think it works very well on Roxas, which it why I like him so much." She said, getting Louise's attention.
"You stay away from him, he is my familiar."
"He is still a growing boy, hormones and all. He will eventually succumb to his desires." Kirche said as she struck a small pose.
The two girls shared a small laugh before Louise stood from the bed and walked toward the door.
"Louise."
Louise turned back to see a small smile on Kirche's face. "If you do need to talk to someone, I will be here. We may banter a lot with each other, but I now consider you a friend, despite our family being rivals."
Louise lower lip trembled a bit before she turned around and walked out the door. She really didn't trust her voice at this moment.
Louise finally made it back to her room. She opened the door, but really didn't expect someone to be there waiting for her. Usually when they got into a fight, Roxas would find a place to sleep outside.
She quickly changed into her night gown before crawling into bed. Her heart was much lighter now thanks to her new friend. Who knew Kirche was like that under her own mask.
It was a couple days later that Roxas found himself in the headmaster's office with Louise, Kirche, and Tabitha. They were all standing in front of the academy headmaster, his secretary, and Professor Colbert in order to confirm some things about Fouquet.
"What a load of Bull." Roxas stated.
"It may be unfair Roxas, but that is just the way it is. People will always want to pin the blame on someone." Colbert responded.
"Yeah, but what did Henrietta have to do with it? It was not her fault Fouquet decided to rob the treasury."
"That is true, but because she was there, the guards were more focused on protecting her, thus leaving the treasury vulnerable. We also knew that Fouquet was still out there and advised that the princess not come to the familiar exhibit, but she came anyway. Naturally she was blamed for the theft of the staff of destruction because she didn't listen to us."
Roxas shook his head. He really didn't understand this world. Why would they pin the blame on Henrietta? She had nothing to do with it, but people still blamed her for it just because she was at the exhibit.
"Which it where you all come in." the headmaster said, causing everyone to look at him. "We need your conformation on a few things. Lately, some people have reported a suspicious figure being seen going in and out of an abandoned cabin in the woods not too far from here." He said before he turned to his secretary. "Mrs. Longueville, if you please."
Longueville nodded as she pulled out a roll of parchment. "I was able to make a drawing based on the testimony of the witnesses." She said as she unrolled the paper to show a hooded female figure. It was clearly Fouquet.
"That's her!" Louise said, pointing to the picture. "There's no mistake."
Roxas looked at the drawing and nodded. It was a really good drawing, almost exactly like how Fouquet looked.
"If this is true, we need to alert the palace. They can dispatch the knights." Colbert stated.
Headmaster Osmond shook his head. "That will take too long. We need to stop her before she escapes with the staff of destruction. Is there anyone who is willing to take this assignment?"
Immediate, Louise stepped forward and raised her wand. "I'll go." She said "We need to stop her before the princess gets into more trouble. The faster we get the staff of destruction back, the better."
Kirche frowned before she too raised her wand. "I can't lose to the Zero now, can I?" she said with a smirk.
Louise grinned right back. "You already did. I was the first to volunteer."
Roxas rolled his eyes as he watched the two squabbles. But Tabitha caught his interest when she raised her staff.
"You as well Tabitha?" Kirche asked.
"I'm worried."
Kirche squealed as she lowered her wand and pulled Tabitha into a hug. But, Tabitha being Tabitha kept her emotionless face. "Thank you Tabitha. You really are the best."
"Well then, I will leave the matter to you three." Osmond said as he gave a satisfied nod.
Colbert on the other hand was anything but thrilled. "You cannot be serious headmaster! They are just students. Fouquet is a triangle class mage. Even when she robbed the treasury, there was little to nothing they could do about it. What will make this situation any different?"
Osmond thought about it for a few seconds before he turned to his secretary. "Longueville will be accompanying them. She is a very talented mage herself. But not only that…" he said as he looked at Tabitha. "Tabitha is ranked as a chevalier, so that really should be enough experience to accommodate for the rest." He finished with a nod.
Colbert bit his lip slightly, already knowing that little bit of information about Tabitha. However, he still worried about his students. It did not help that the queen told him specifically to watch over Tabitha when she came to Tristain. He knew who she really was and what would happen if anything happened to her. However, despite all that, he consented with the headmaster's logic.
After she heard that, Kirche looked down at the girl she was hugging. "You're a chevalier already? Why didn't you tell me?"
"Didn't ask." Was all Tabitha said as she tried to flip the page of her book while simultaneously being hugged by the taller red head.
Roxas casually looked around at the scenery. The amount of trees and greenery in the area was actually quite refreshing. They were currently in a wagon that was manned by Longueville, being pulled to the destination that Fouquet had been last seen.
Currently, he was sitting on one side of the wagon, gazing off into the trees with Tabitha sitting next to him, reading her book as she usually did. Louise and Kirche sat on the other side of the wagon, squabbling about god know what. However, there was something that Roxas did notice between the two. The tense atmosphere between them seemed to have evaporated. And what was left was actually more like how he, axel and … would banter with each other.
Roxas frowned a bit as he tried to remember the last person's name. Every time he was about to say her name, it escape him before it would come out of his mouth. It was actually extremely frustrating. Who was that girl? By now, he knew that someone else had sat on the edge of twilight tower with him and axel, but who was she? Why couldn't he remember her? He continued to think about it until it gave him a small headache. It was obvious that he was not going to remember today, so he decided to focus on other things.
He glanced over at Louise and Kirche, who were arguing about…chest sizes? Whatever that meant. He glanced at Louise, still feeling a bit angry at her. He had taken every opportunity to avoid her because just being around her got him riled up.
But Roxas fell like being angry right now, so he turned his attention to the headmaster's secretary.
"What is the staff of destruction anyway?" he asked, trying to spark a conversation. His question seemed to get more than just Longueville's attention though. Louise and Kirche immediately stopped arguing and Tabitha lowered her book a bit.
Longueville turned to look at him for a second. "It is a wand with incredibly destructive powers."
"Why do you think Fouquet would want it?"
"Who knows? It could be for anything. Power, Money, to gain an advantage over someone else, a higher status as a noble, you name it. Every mage seeks more power than they already have. The more power you have, the more influence you have as well." she said. "I'm guessing that Fouquet is a mage that lost her nobility status, so she resorts to mercenary work."
"So she is basically a commoner with magic abilities?"
"That's right."
Roxas turned his gaze up to the sky. "Hmmm, she is one lucky person then."
Everyone paused as they looked at Roxas, completely surprised. "What do you mean by that? Losing your nobility is worse than death to a noble." Louise said sharply.
"Why? Fouquet is a commoner. Sure, commoners may be oppressed and mistreated by nobles…" He said with a small glare, causing Louise to cringe. "But they can go wherever they want to go, do whatever they want to do, and be whoever they want to be. They don't have to live in a mold like most the nobles I see around here. They don't have to try to be someone there not just to keep up appearances…" He gave her another look. "Truthfully, I would rather be a commoner than a noble."
Longueville was facing away from Roxas, but her mouth had dropped open. Truthfully, she had never seen it like that. She had always seen her loss of nobility to be the ultimate humiliation of her life. But what he was saying was actually very true. Sure, Nobles may have money, status, big houses, and servants, but commoners really do have something that is worth more than all of that.
Freedom.
However, despite having this, Commoners still envy, and aspire to be nobles.
She was not the only one that was shocked by his statement. Louise and Kirche were both staring at him with their mouths open while Tabitha was just looking at him, the only way you could tell she was surprised was the slight widening of her eyes.
Roxas looked at their surprised faces before he gave a small scoff and leaned forward. "You want to know something interesting? Ever since I was first summoned, the people I have seen the happiest are actually the commoners. The only time they are not happy is when they are oppressed and threatened by nobles…like Count Mott."
There was not much conversation that went down afterwards as everyone thought about Roxas's words. They were very confusing. Any commoner would die to be a noble, but from Roxas's point of view, it was opposite. He viewed nobles as the ones that were confined within their own nobility, while commoners were free. And to a point, what he said was true. There was nothing that was really expected of commoners. But nobles, there was so much expected of them, almost to the point where it did bind them down.
It didn't take much longer before they arrived at the abandoned lumber shack in the middle of the forest. There was literally nothing around except the shabby house. They parked the wagon just out of sight so they could creep closer without being detected. Roxas gently pressed his back along the side of the cabin before he turned his head and peaked through the window.
Roxas gave a small frown as he saw absolutely nothing in the cabin. It was completely abandoned, and from the looks of it, no one had lived there for a very long time.
"Hmm." Roxas hummed before he turned to the others, who were hiding in the trees. He waved for them to come over, signifying that it was safe.
Soon, the group approached the entrance of the building before Tabitha stopped them. She stood in front of the entrance before she waved her staff. Seconds later, she gave a small nod before she turned to them.
"No traps." She said before she turned back to the door and pushed it open.
"Tabitha, wait for me." Kirche said as she waltzed in right behind her.
"You go in there as well. I will stay out here and keep watch." Louise said.
Roxas didn't even look at her as he walked to the entrance of the door. He stopped before entering and turned to Longueville. "And what about you? Are you coming in?"
Longueville bit her lower lip slightly before she shook her head. "I will scout around the area to see if I can find where Fouquet went." She said.
Roxas nodded. "Be careful."
Longueville then bit the inside of her cheek before she turned and walked into the forest.
Roxas entered the cabin to see Tabitha and Kirche looking around. Kirche was checking the cabinets, sending dust spewing in all directions with each door she opened. Tabitha was checking the nooks and crannies of the building.
"There's nothing here!" Kirche said in frustration before she slapped the table. Dust flew up between her fingers and settled around her face, causing her to cough. "Let's get out of here already." She said as she made for the door.
Roxas nodded before he followed behind Kirche.
"The staff of destruction."
Roxas and Kirche whirled around to see the same rectangular box that Fouquet had stolen from the treasury. It was right here, unguarded and unprotected. Fouquet just left it here while she was off doing god knows what. But why would she leave it here out in the open? Why would she not take even the smallest measure to ensure its protection?
Roxas's eyes instantly narrow. "It can't be that eas…"
Suddenly, a scream erupted from outside. Roxas, Kirche, and Tabitha all looked towards the door of the cabin, but before they could even make a move to exit, the roof started to crack above them. Immediately, they looked up to see a number of earthy fingers smash through the walls near the roof before griping the wood. It didn't take much force after that before the entire roof was complexly torn from the cabin.
Roxas's eyes widened as he saw a very familiar earth giant standing there, staring down at them while they were still in the cabin. Suddenly, the Golem dropped the roof and drew back its massive fist. Roxas panicked a bit as he saw Kirche and Tabitha looking up helplessly as the giant thrust its fist at them. There was nowhere to retreat to.
Immediately, Roxas summoned the Oathkeeper in order to increase the power of his spell. "REFLECTAGA!" he shouted.
A dome of light surrounded the three as the massive fist smashed into it. The shield shattered into fragments of light before the fragments exploded, completely obliterating the walls of the cabin and destroying a good portion of the Giants fist.
Luckily, Tabitha and Kirche were inside the shield, so they were unaffected, but they were too busy staring at Roxas to escape.
Roxas took a deep breath before his eyes widened yet again. The earth giant stretched out its broken arm before pieces of earth broke away from the ground and started to reshape the damaged limb. Roxas turned to Kirche and Tabitha, who were still staring at him. He growled in frustration.
"What are you doing? MOVE!" he shouted.
The two girls were knocked out of there stupor as they once again looked up; only to pale as the massive fist was once again heading in their direction. Only this time, there was an escape route. Immediately, the trio ran through the broken walls of the cabin right as the fist complexly destroyed what was left of it.
Now that they were out in the open, the three got a good look at the colossal giant. It was no doubt Fouquet's golem, the same one that invaded the treasury a few days back.
"Fouquet is here." Roxas said as the oblivion flashed into existence in his other hand.
"Yeah, she is." Kirche said as she glanced over at Roxas. "That spell was quite impressive. I really should stop being surprised when I am around you Roxas." She said with a wink.
Roxas didn't pay attention to that as the golem turned to face them. It was about to charge, but a blue blur flew right in front of it, causing it to halt in its tracks. Immediately, Roxas's eyes widened as he recognized that blur.
"Sylphid!" he called.
Immediately, Tabitha gave a whistle, causing the dragon to fly in their direction and land right behind them. Tabitha and Kirche quickly jumped on before turning to Roxas.
"Roxas, we have to go."
Roxas frowned as he looked between the golem and Sylphid. He would love to go right now, but there was only one problem.
Where were Louise and Longueville?
He may be pissed off at Louise, but there was no way he was going to leave her to die out here. Nether her nor Longueville.
It didn't take long though because he caught sight of a girl with pink hair run up behind the golem.
"FIREBALL!" Louise screamed.
A small explosion went off on the golems shoulder, breaking a small chunk of earth off of its body. The golem turned to Louise, looking at her like she was only an annoyance before it turned its entire body toward her.
"FIREBALL!" Louise screamed desperately. Again, only a small explosion went off on the golem's body, but it did nothing to slow the creature down.
Roxas saw her futile attempts to stop the beast, but it was getting closer…And she was still not moving! "Louise MOVE! RUN!" Roxas shouted.
"NO, I am a NOBLE! I won't run away and soil my honor." She said before she waved her wand again. "FIREBALL!" She screamed once again. Another explosion barely harmed the massive creature as it finally stood in front of her. Louise had tears of frustration cascading down her face as she looked up at the creature. Once again, she had failed.
The golem raised its arm before swinging it down at the vulnerable girl. Louise could only look helplessly before she closed her eyes tight, waiting for the blow to come.
The blow came, but not in the way she was expecting. Immediately, she felt the air get knocked out of her lungs as something hit her in the stomach. Her eyes flew open as she gasped, only to see the first of the golem narrowly miss her and smash into the ground. She felt the fabric or Roxas's hood smack her in the face before she turned to see a mop of spiky blond hair right next her.
Roxas gasped for breath as he held Louise over his shoulder while sprinting away from the golem. That was way too close for comfort. He looked behind him to see that there was a bit of distance between them and the golem before he gave an angry growl. He not-so-gently dropped Louise on her butt, causing her to help in pain.
"What the HELL is wrong with you!" he said through clenched teeth. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
Louise looked up at her familiar. "What do you expect me to do? I am a noble! I don't run from a fight!"
"I expect you to use your brain. Did you seriously think you could defeat that thing? Were you going to stand and fight when all it would do is kill you in the end? What will that accomplish? Your one life will end. Your once existence…" He said as he turned away and looked at the golem, who was once again approaching them. "You have no idea how lucky you are to actually exist. What other people would give to have that gift."
Louise stared up at him before she lowered her head, a few teas falling down her cheeks. "But…"
Roxas blinked as he turned back to the girl. He felt his eyes widen again as he saw her countenance. He had never seen her like this before. Never seen her so…vulnerable.
Louise choked on a small sob. "But, I can't run away. I can't just run while my familiar to fight alone. It's so hard to be a noble and not be able to use magic. It is so humiliating." She said as more tears streamed down her face. She then looked up into Roxas's perplexed eyes. "I can't stand being the Zero anymore."
For the first time in his life, Roxas felt a small amount of pity for the girl in front of him. He could see the hurt in her eyes, they pain she had to endure throughout her life and the toll it had taken on her. It seemed that she had also gone through quite a lot in her lifetime.
A brush of wind gently licked his face, causing him to look up. Sylphid just landed in front of him with Kirche and Tabitha riding on her back. He then turned back to broken girl. He knelt down and placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up into his blue eyes.
"You can on do the best you can. I know you want to fight, but this is probably the reason why you summoned someone like me." He said before he turned to Kirche and Tabitha. "Take Louise and go!" Roxas said as he stood and turned toward the Golem, who was now standing in front of him. Roxas didn't back down. He didn't show any signs of fear in his eyes as he looked up at his large opponent.
Kirche had jumped off of Sylphid before yanking Louise off the ground and tugging her toward the dragon. She then turned to Roxas. "What are you going to do?"
Roxas looked up at his friends. His desire to protect them doubled as he felt power surge within him. He gave a deep breath as the power continued to rise. He then turned to the golem. "I am going to finish this." He said dangerously. It may have not been necessary for him to do this, but Roxas had to admit that he was curious about how this was going to turn out.
Suddenly, red arcs of electricity shot around his body. His coat flashed red for a brief instant before turning back to its original black. Roxas closed his eyes and gave another deep breath as he drew from the power he was feeling. The arcs of electricity bounced around him again, though more frequently this time as his coat flashed red again.
Kirche, Tabitha, and Louise watched as Sylphid took off into the sky to observe the battle.
"What is that?" Kirche asked as she saw Roxas's coat flash a different color.
"I-I don't know" Louise answered back.
Suddenly, the golem raised its arm, ready to smash Roxas into the ground. It thrust its fist at him with a devastating force. The passengers riding on Sylphid could only watch in horror as the fist soared at Roxas while he was just standing there.
Just before it was about to make contact, Roxas opened his eyes. "Drive, Valor."
Immediately, a crimson red energy surrounded the nobody before it was released in an explosion. The first of the golem was completely destroyed, and it was sent stumbling backwards.
Kirche, Tabitha, and Louise stared with their mouths open as the light faded away to revile Roxas. The only difference was that he was wearing a different coat, one with a very particular design.
Roxas stood there with his Oblivion in one hand, and the Oathkeeper in the other. Red arcs of power bounced around his body and his entire being seemed to glow with a crimson aura. His black jacket had transformed into a dark red one with a massive nobody symbol going done the front and the back. His gloves were crimson with nobody symbols on the back of them as well, while there was various shades of black and crimson that decorated the rest of the coat.
Roxas had never felt this kind of power in this life. He didn't know where it came from, but right now he was going to use it to protect the people he cared about.
"ROXAS! LOOK OUT!" Louise screamed.
Roxas looked up, only to notice that the golem had raised its other arm before thrusting it right in his direction. Immediately, Roxas crossed the Keyblades in front of his body and braced for impact. The fist smashed into the Keyblades with an extreme force. Roxas felt his feet dig into the ground as he was pushed backwards. However, he managed to stop the Golems fist in its tracks. He drew back the oblivion and slashed at the fist with his new enhanced strength.
The fist didn't stand a chance as it was cut cleanly in half by the Keyblade. Immediately, the arm detached from the rest of the body before it crashed to the ground, breaking into hundreds of pieces.
Kirche, Tabitha, and Louise all had their mouths handing open as the watched the insane display of physical strength.
"Just who is he?" whispered Kirche.
Roxas clenched the Keyblades in his hands before he looked up at the now armless golem. It didn't take long before it started to regenerate its limbs, so Roxas decided to move. He dashed forward with a new speed, sprinting towards the golem's legs. Immediately, he slashed at the two earthy appendages, slicing them clean through before passing underneath.
The golems entire body crashed to the ground as its legs disintegrated. Roxas turned to look at the golem as it lay there flat on its front. Immediately, he turned and leaped into the air.
"Brave shot!" he said as he slammed his Keyblades into the ground. Pillars of red energy erupted from the two Keyblades as they shot at the golem. The golem's body didn't stand a chance as it was smashed to pieces by the shockwave. Soon, the entire golem disintegrated back into the earth.
Roxas took a deep breath as he looked at the crumbled mess that was once the golem's body. Even he was surprised by the amount of power this form held. The only drawback was that he felt a complete disconnection from his magic. The Valor form enhanced him physically, but he would not be able to use magic. However, from the look of it, the form granted him more than enough power to accommodate.
Suddenly, Roxas felt all of his strength leave him. He fell to the ground, heaving as his clothing returned to their normal color. He dropped the Keyblades to the ground, causing them both to vanish in a flash of light. As he continued to pant, he scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. The drive was not supposed to make you this exhausted when you used it. In fact, when Sora used it, he would always return to full health. He was never exhausted after he used it, so why was it affecting him so mu…
Oh…
Roxas shook his head as the answer came clear. When Sora used the drive, he would borrow the strength of one, or both of his friends in order to attain the full power of the drive. Since Roxas didn't have anyone's power to borrow, he was left to use his own. Therefore, he could not use drive for as long as Sora could, and when he did, it would leave him exhausted.
Roxas gave a sigh as he realized that he would need to do a lot of practicing with these drives in order to attain their full potential.
Suddenly, he was pulled from his thoughts when the ground started to rumble again. Roxas looked up in horror as he saw a fresh golem erupt from the ground. He grit his teeth before he jumped away to avoid another haymaker, but he lost his footing because of the amount of fatigue the Drive had given him. He was physically exhausted.
"Roxas needs help! Give me the staff." Louise said as she ripped the rectangular box from Kirche's hands. She then leaped from the dragons back. Luckily, Tabitha saw this coming and chanted a spell to slow her decent. Quickly, Louise opened the box, and pulled out the staff.
Roxas saw Louise gliding down to the ground before she opened the box. Right when she pulled out the staff, his eyes widened and his mouth dropped open in complete bewilderment. There was no possible way.
"Take this!" Louse shouted as she waved the staff at the golem, but there was absolutely no affect. She looked at the weapon in confusion. "It's not working!" She cried as she continued to wave the staff around. The golem turned its attention to Louise as she tried to get the staff to work.
Roxas blinked a few times before he shook his head, trying to focus on the problem at hand. He grunted as he summoned a corridor of darkness and went within its wispy debts, only to reappear next to Louise.
"That's not a staff of destruction." He said as he yanked the weapon away from Louise. He only had a second to look at it.
It was rusted badly, like it hadn't been used in many years. But the shape of the weapon was unmistakable.
It was an old Keyblade.
It looked vastly different from his, but there was no mistaking it. Right when he touched the weapon, he felt a dramatic increase in his magical potency. It seemed like this Keyblade was more of a magic based weapon like his Oathkeeper. Roxas took a deep breath before he summoned his Oathkeeper in his other hand in order to increase his magic even further. That was the only power he had in him right now.
"ROXAS, BEHIND YOU!"
Roxas turned his head to see the golem about to step on them with its massive foot. There was no way he had the strength to stop that. He desperately looked down at the old and rusted Keyblade. He didn't know where it came from nor how it got there, but right now he needed its power.
"Please choose me." Roxas whispered as he raised both key blades into the sky, putting every bit of magical energy he had into this spell.
"THUNDERAGA"
Immediately, both key blades lit up before they shot a massive bolt of electricity into the sky. The incredible power that went into that spell caused the sky to darken for a brief moment. Everyone in the vicinity only had a second to look up before the sky opened and released a series of massive electrical bolts. They flashed down and hit the golem with an earthshattering force. The golem was completely obliterated while Roxas and Louise were thrown backward by the sheer force of the explosion. Roxas released the Keyblades, allowing the Oath keeper to vanish, while the unnamed Keyblade clanged to the ground.
Dust erupted from the ground as Roxas and Louise roughly crashed to the earth. Roxas lay on his back for a few moments, almost completely drained of physical and magical strength. He poured all the magic he had into that attack, and it was more devastating that he could have imagined.
Louise groaned as well as she gingerly pushed herself to her knees. She then looked over at what remained of the golem.
As the dust began to settle, the only thing left of the golem was a crater. Slowly Roxas sat up and grabbed his head. He really did prefer fighting a person head on rather than using magic…But magic really did have its uses.
He then looked over at the rusted Keyblade on the ground. How in the world did it get there? Why was it here? It must have been here for a long time for it to be rusted that bad.
Louise tore her gaze away from the crater before she looked up at Roxas with awe in her eyes. She had never seen a spell like that one before, and the destructive power behind it was something else.
"ROXAS, DARLING!" Kirche exclaimed as she literally jumped on the boy and hugged him tightly. "That was the most amazing spell I have ever seen. You have to teach me that!" she said as she rubbed her cheek against him.
Roxas felt his heart pound in his chest slightly before he gently pushed her off. "The golem is destroyed…but Fouquet…is still around here!" Roxas said between gasps.
"How right you are Roxas."
Roxas turned to see Longueville standing there with the rusty Keyblade in her hand. He narrowed his eyes at her. "Where were you?"
"Oh, I was right here. I mean, how was I supposed to summon my golem if I wasn't somewhere close? Though I have to admit, the staff of destruction truly lives up to its name." she said as she let her hair down and removed her glasses. "Who knew this rusted old weapon could have such devastating power."
Roxas grit his teeth. "You're Fouquet."
"Indeed. I got the staff, but I didn't know how to use it. Actually, from what I know, no one really knows how to use it. We almost lost hope that it could ever be used, until you came along, Roxas." She said as she tore her gaze from the Keyblade and looked at the group of shocked students.
Roxas narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"
Fouquet smiled. "You see, I saw your duel with Guiche. You can imagine my surprise when I saw the kind of weapons you used, and how much they resemble the staff of destruction. However, you failed to show the same amount of power that was described in the legends of this weapon, but it didn't really matter. For some reason, I just knew you would be able to show me how to use it."
Fouquet then looked at the weapon again. "But that was not the only reason I thought you would be able to use the staff." she said as she looked at them again. Roxas was struggling to his feet, but you could easily tell that he was completely exhausted. "The legends say that Gandalfr can use any weapon, so that would include this weapon as well." She said as she pointed the Keyblade at them.
Kirche, Tabitha, and Louise stared at Fouquet in confusion. Roxas however, was now standing on his feet, though a bit shakily. He took a step forward.
"Don't move!" Fouquet commanded as she pointed the weapon at Roxas.
"Longueville, you don't have to do this." Roxas said as he clenched and released his hand.
Fouquet bit her lower lip a bit. "I am afraid I do. I have no choice in the matter." She said as her expression steeled over. "I need this for later on. Unfortunately, you won't be around long enough to figure out what that is." She said before she waved the Keyblade at them. "THUNDERAGA" Longville shouted into the sky as she mimicked what Roxas had done earlier.
Roxas shook his head as he raised his empty hand.
Fouquet blinked a few times as she looked at the Keyblade in astonishment. "THUNDERAGA!" She shouted once again.
"There is something you need to know about that weapon Fouquet."
Fouquet panicked a bit as she looked at Roxas. There was a bit of fear building up in her eyes as she saw his cold glare.
"A key blade had to choose its master."
Immediately, the rusted Keyblade in Fouquet's hand vanished in a flash of light. Soon afterwards, a bright light erupted in Roxas's hand. It continued to glow brighter until everyone had to shield their eyes from the light.
Soon, it dimmed down to revile Roxas holding the exact same Keyblade, only this time, all the rust was complexly gone and the weapon looked like it had been polished by a professional blacksmith.
Fouquet's eyes widened in fear as she took a couple of steps back. "No, that is impossible!" she exclaimed.
A pillar of darkness erupted from the ground and encircled Roxas. An instant later, he appeared right in front of Fouquet before he grabbed the color of her shirt. "It seems you're not worthy to wield the Keyblade."
Fouquet could only widen her eyes before she was met with an immense amount of pain in her stomach. All the air vanished from her lungs as her eyes rolled into the back of her head. She then fell to the ground, something that Roxas made no effort to prevent.
He looked down at her for a few second before he too fell flat on his back, completely exhausted from the events of the day. Slowly, he raised the new Keyblade into the air as he examined it. The Keyblade seemed to have chosen him, but for some reason he didn't feel a deep connection to it like he did the oblivion and the Oathkeeper. Why was that?
"Hey tough guy."
Roxas looked up to see Kirche standing there with a seductive smile on her face. "What?"
"You comfortable down there?"
"I am completely exhausted. Give me a break." He said as he lowered his head again.
Kirche gave a small shrug before she walked over to his side and grabbed his arm. "Well, I guess it can't be helped then." She said as she slung his arm around her shoulder.
Roxas laughed a little as he struggled to his feet. He leaned against the tall red-head. He had to laugh again as he was reminded of the time that Riku and Sora were in the same position. Sora had to basically drag Riku out of the realm of nobody's.
Suddenly, he felt his other arm being wrapped around another shoulder. He looked to his side and noticed that Louise had done the same thing as Kirche. She avoided eye contact though as she simply supported the exhausted nobody.
Roxas looked at her in confusion before he shrugged. He let them take him back to the cart while Tabitha levitated Fouquet off the ground and followed them.
The Ride back to the academy was uneventful. Fouquet was unconscious for the trip, and Roxas was lying on the floor of the carriage, sleeping. He was spent from the fight with Fouquet and from using drive for the first time.
Tabitha was manning the cart while Sylphid was flying above them.
Kirche moved over to Louise. "Hey Louise, did you know Roxas was that strong?"
Louise shook her head as she stared at her sleeping familiar. "I had no idea."
"Hmm." Kirche hummed as she looked at Roxas as well. "That spell was incredible. How is he able to wield the staff of destruction?"
"Keyblade."
Louise and Kirche looked at Tabitha. She didn't turn her head when she spoke. "Yes, I remember he said it was a Keyblade. Isn't that the weapon he uses to fight? How did one end up here?"
Louise shrugged as she continued to stare at the sleeping boy. "I don't know. I really don't know. Ever since Roxas came here, there has been one question after another with no answers."
Kirche nodded in agreement. "You got that right. I swear my curiosity is going to drive me insane unless I get some answers. Every time I think I have seen all that Roxas can do, he pulls something like this. It's almost frustrating because I am usually really good at reading boys. But Roxas…"
"Believe me, I know. He is my familiar after all and I still know nothing about him. How he is such a good fighter, how he can use all these strange but powerful spells? He never says anything about it."
Kirche massaged her forehead in frustration. "It's giving me a headache just thinking about it, but I think we have to wait for him to open up. You remember what happened last time we tried to force information out of him.
Louise nodded as she thought back on their failed attempts to learn about her familiar.
"What do you think Tabitha?" Kirche asked.
"I don't know." Tabitha said. But even though she said that, her mind was just as boggled at there's. She was never one to try and barge into someone's past, but Roxas was such a curious character that even she wanted to know who he was.
It was later that day that they were all standing in front of headmaster Osmond. Fouquet had been taken to the dungeons, but the staff of destruction was nowhere to be seen. However, Louise, Kirche, and Tabitha all knew where it went.
"You all did very well today. Fouquet will be handed over to the palace. You three will be the main event at the ball tonight and you will be receiving some form of reward from the Royal family." Osmond said. Louise and Kirche looked excited about this, but Tabitha stayed neutral.
"And Roxas?" Tabitha asked.
Osmond looked to the ground for a second in shame. "It isn't fair, but since he is not a noble, he won't receive anything."
Roxas shook his head. "I don't really care about that, but I would like to ask you something."
Osmond stared at the nobody before he nodded his head. "I don't mind. Ladies, please prepare for the ball." He said as he ushered the girls out of the room.
Once they were out, Roxas turned to Professor Colbert and Osmond. He needed to know where that Keyblade came from.
"The staff of destruction…" he started as he raised his hand. Immediately, the old Keyblade flashed into existence, causing Osmond's and Colbert's eyes to widen. "Where did you get it?"
"How did you…" Colbert started.
"This weapon-" Roxas said as the Keyblade flashed out of existence. "Is a very powerful weapon known as the Keyblade. There are very few people that can use them, myself being one of them." He said as he raised his hand again, causing the Oathkeeper to appear.
Colbert and Osmond stared at him for the longest time as they absorbed this new information. Finally, Osmond gave a sigh. "It's a memento from a man I briefly met. It was about 30 years ago now. I was attacked by a rather vicious and wild dragon. When it was about to kill me, a massive bolt of lightning struck it down with such force that it completely disintegrated. I was so confused until I saw a man standing there with the weapon in his hand. He was wearing the strangest armor I have ever seen in my life. I approached to thank him, but he fell to the ground. When I checked on him, the most curious thing happened.
"What happened?"
"The armor he wore seemed to just vanish in a flash of light, leaving an elderly man lying there. He was very injured and was mumbling the same sentence over and over again."
Roxas blinked a few times. 30 years ago, a Keyblade master came here. That didn't really surprise him because wielders of the Keyblade were tasked to protect the worlds, but it was strange that the Keyblade master was injured like that.
"What happened to him?"
Osmond looked to the ground. "I brought him to the academy, but his wounds were too great. I tried to get him to tell me where he was from so I could call for his family, but he never listened to me. He just kept mumbling the same thing up until his very last breath."
Roxas frowned. "What did he say?"
Osmond intertwined his fingers as he rested his chin on them. "I have failed you as a master, Xehanort."
Roxas felt his breath hitch in the throat. His eyes widened immensely as he heard those words. Xehanort was the somebody of Xemnas, who was the leader of Organization 13. But that didn't make any sense. There was no way that Xehanort would have been training under another Keyblade master 30 years ago. Heck, he was probably not even that old when he became a nobody.
Osmond didn't see Roxas's reaction as he looked down at his desk. "He only lasted a few days, but he died in the most peculiar way. His entire body seemed to just evaporate into particles of light. The only things that were left behind were the staff of destruction and an old journal."
Roxas forcefully pushed his questions to the back of his mind as he looked at the two older men. "He left a journal?"
Osmond nodded. "It is kept in a library below the academy, but I won't open it unless I get explicit orders from the queen. I am sorry."
Roxas stared at Osmond. He was very curious about this. He really wanted to know what had happened to this man. But he saw the determined look in Osmond's eyes and realized that the man was not going to budge on the matter.
Taking a deep breath, Roxas looked at the two men. "The staff of destruction, or the Keyblade…It chooses who wields it and since I am the only one around here that can wield Keyblades, it had chosen me to be its new master. I am sorry, but I cannot give it back to you."
Osmond stared at Roxas for a while before he gave a small nod. "After all you have done to protect my students and defeat Fouquet, you deserve as much. I will just have to tell the palace that the staff has been safely put back in the vault. It's not like anyone would ever use it anyway."
"Thank you." Roxas said as he turned and walked out of the office.
Just as the door closed, Colbert turned to the headmaster. "When should we tell him that he is the legendary Gandalfr?"
Osmond shook his head. "When it is needed. If people find out that Louise is a void mage, there may be an uproar. When void is needed, we will have to tell them."
It was later in the evening and Roxas stood on the balcony in his usual attire. He was looking at his new Keyblade. It had a longer range than the oblivion, but it was clearly meant for magic like his Oathkeeper. After the sheer power of that lighting spell, he could tell that much. Its color mostly consisted of dark red and black. It had three sharp spikes on the end that signified the cuts of the key. It looked actually frightening up close as a dark, flames-like pattern cascaded up the framework. It was a really intimidating weapon.
His thoughts then turned to the conversation he had with the headmaster. They Keyblade came from another master that found himself on this world. But what really bothered Roxas were the man's last words.
I have failed you as a master, Xehanort.
Xehanort. It could not be the same person, could it? How could it be?
"Roxas."
Roxas was pulled from his thoughts as he turned to see Louise standing there in her dress. He blinked a few times. She actually looked good in those elegant clothing. "You look nice Louise."
Louise felt her face grow a little warm. "Why are you standing out there?"
"Kirche is surrounded by boys and Tabitha is at the dining table. The cool air is nice, and I thought I would familiarize myself with my new Keyblade." He said before he let the weapon vanish.
Louise raised her eyebrow. "You really have another one of those, don't you?"
"Yeah."
Suddenly, the lights dimmed a bit as soft music began to play. Roxas looked behind Louise to see that many of the men and women in the ballroom were dancing with each other. He then looked at Louise, who was still standing there, staring at him.
"What?" Roxas asked.
Louise didn't say anything as she raised her hand out in front of her.
Roxas blinked a few times, obviously not understanding the gesture. "What are you doing?"
"I will honor you by letting you dance with me."
"Dance?" Roxas said as he scrunched his eyebrows. "I have never danced in my entire life."
"It doesn't matter. I know you will be able to learn it quickly, so…" Louise then did something that Roxas thought she was completely incapable of doing. She smiled genuinely before giving a small curtsy. "Will you dance with me, Gentleman."
Now it was Roxas's turn to pick his mouth off the ground. How in the world was he supposed to say no without feeling like a complete ass? He rubbed his temples in frustration before he looked her in the eyes.
"Sure, I guess." He said as he took her hand. She led him away onto the floor before she grabbed his hand and placed in on her lower back. She then took his other hand and placed it in hers before she rested her hand against his shoulder.
Roxas stood there like a rock, having no idea what he was supposed to do.
"Just follow me, ok?" she said a she started to move. Roxas immediately followed. "Your way too stiff! Loosen up a bit." Louise ordered.
Roxas nodded before he took a deep breath and tried to relax. It took a few moments, but he was finally started to get it, though Louise still had to do all the leading. If this was the only thing he had to do, then it would be okay.
"Roxas?"
"hmm?"
Louise glanced to the side, her eyebrows slightly scrunched. "I am sorry."
Roxas blinked a few times. He could not believe what he was hearing. He never thought he would hear something like that come out of Louise's mouth.
"You're sorry?"
Louise nodded. "Ever since I summoned you, I have been nothing but cruel. I tried to starve you, whip you, and punish you. I guess I acted like that because I wanted at least one aspect in my life that I could control. I took all my frustration out on you."
Roxas didn't say anything as he continued to listen to her speak.
"And I am sorry about…You know." She said as she looked into his eyes.
Roxas knew what she was talking about. Truthfully, he didn't really care about all the stuff she did to him. What really made him angry at her in the first place was how she treated commoners, and how she lied to the princess just to save face. Roxas stared into her eyes. He could see the conviction of her words just from the look. She really meant what she said.
"I forgive you then, I guess." He said with a small smile.
"You do?" Louise said as she looked up at him.
"Yeah." Roxas replied. He really was Sora's nobody. Sora forgives everyone without a second thought, so why shouldn't he?
Louise smiled a bit as she broke eye contact. She stared at the ground for a few seconds before looking back up at Roxas with a grin. "Don't think this will stop me from getting one of those weapons though."
Roxas rolled his eyes as he huffed. She would not be Louise is she didn't ruin the moment. "Yeah…good luck with that."
They continued to dance for a little until Louise glanced up at him again. "Roxas, why do you keep saving me? You could have easily let Fouquet crush me…So why didn't you?"
Roxas looked at her in confusion. "Simple, because you are my friend."
"You consider me a friend? Why? I have never treated you nicely. I never did anything for you."
Roxas shook his head. "That's where you're wrong. You have done something for me that no one else could have."
"What?"
"You gave me a chance to exist."
Authors Note: Yes. Done with chapter seven. What did you think? Did you like the development? Did you hate it? Louise is still going to act similar to her usual self, but she is going to tone it down a bit. Amway, please leave a review, and let me know.
What are your thoughts on the big revel of the origins of the staff of destruction? I have big plans for this, and it is going to be a lot of fun. I hope you like it as well.
Oh, and before I forget, I would like to ask what you would like the new Keyblade to be called. I have run through a few names myself, but they just didn't feel right. What are your thoughts? Please leave a comment in a review if you have a good idea, please. Thank you for reading, and please look forward to the next update. It is going to be a fun one.
Side note: If any of you think that there was no way that Roxas could have stopped the golems fist like that, then please think back to the final fight in KH2. If Sora can bat a sky-scraper like it is a baseball, then Roxas can freaking to it as well.
Until then, Later!