"Riku! Riku get up!"
"Come on! This isn't funny!"
Riku couldn't open his eyes, they were too heavy. Heck, his body was too heavy to do anything but breathe.
"Gwarsh, Donald... I think he's kicked the bucket..."
"No, he's still breathing! RIku! GET UP!"
"No..." Riku groaned, struggling to sit up. Donald and Goofy- both quite injured themselves -helped him up instantly while he continued "Not yet... I think."
He was caught in a pile of rubble, a once beautiful castle now in ruins. He was aware of something sticky running down his back, but ignored it in favor of something- or rather, someone - more important.
"Sora? Sora answer me!" Riku's groggy mind suddenly became as sharp as pins. "SORA!" He tried getting up but Donald and Goofy held him back
"Wait! You're not fully healed yet!"
"Hold yer horses! I'm sure he's fine-"
But Riku shoved them both off, scrambling among the bits and pieces of architecture, screaming for his friend. He stumbled, scraping and bruising himself. He was suddenly aware that his entire back ached, that he was tired, he was lost, alone. Still he picked himself up and screamed "SORA!"
No response except for the wind.
He whirled around, looking for any sign, ANYTHING saying Sora was alive. Instead he found his own light trail of blood. He lightly pressed his hand to his back, finding a gash from the collapse that ran shoulder to hip. It was a miracle his spine was still intact. He pulled his hand back, finding it stained red with blood. He shook his head, and yelled again "SORA!"
Donald and Goofy removed their hats, respectfully silent. Riku sobbed a little before Goofy said quietly "We've already searched for ages... I guess he got his wish..."
Riku's fists balled up from the unfairness of it all, and he then declared "No. He didn't and I'm going to prove it!" Riku then began tearing up the wreckage around him, calling for Sora even as his voice became hoarse.
Then his prayers were finally answered: a pale hand. His heart sank when it wasn't moving, but Riku plowed through the debris anyways, saying "Hang in there Sora! I'm coming!" It took an agonizing few minutes to excavate just the torso of the boy.
Sora looked just about as worse for wear as Riku. There was a gouge above his eye that trickled blood down his face, his skin was sickly pale, and Riku was pretty sure his arm was not supposed to be twisted that way...
Riku brushed Sora's cheek in an attempt to wake him, afraid anything more would further hurt him "Sora, Sora please wake up."
Sora stirred "Ri...?" He coughed up some blood.
"Yes, it's me Sora." Riku then wrapped his arms around Sora's middle and began tugging the rest of him out "Now lets get you out of here-"
Sora suddenly screeched curses, and Riku stopped.
Sora was biting his lip, then whimpered "Dammit my stupid fucking leg!" Riku realized that there may have been injuries he didn't see underneath the rubble, and then began clearing away more boulders "Donald! Goofy! Help me out here!" They instantly complied, and they all cringed at what had happened.
Sora's leg had been speared by a piece of debris.
"Dammit that ruins my week." Sora muttered.
Riku's laugh was hollow "I think it's gonna be more than your week." He then tried getting Sora's leg off, but this only caused another string of cursing. "Kingdom Hearts! Be easier with the leg!"
"I'm being as gentle as I can. Say, do you know where Kairi is?"
Sora stiffened, his eyes growing wide. He looked around, panicked and yelling "KAIRI!" He then made an attempt to get up, but sank right back down, howling in agony.
"Sora, I know it hurts but calm down." Riku said softly. Sora's scream withered away, and he was left clutching his broken arm and tears streaking down his face.
"Aero! Curaga!" Donald said, raising his staff and healing the two. Sora winced as magic set his arm back to how it was supposed to be, and quickly removed his leg from the piece of debris and fixed it up. A burning feeling in both his and Riku's stomachs told them that they must've had some internal injuries.
Sora then scrambled to his feet and looked for Kairi. He sank to his knees, whispering "I couldn't protect her."
"Sora, do you even know what happened? She might be-"
"Maleficent." Sora hissed, starting to tremble with rage "Maleficent turned into a dragon and carried her off! She's long gone..."
Riku knelt down next to him "Come on, she could still be in this world-"
"No she isn't! I... I remember before blacking out she said 'Now, my princess, time to leave this world!'..."
They both paused, something much worse dawning on them.
"Do you think she's aware Kairi's a Princess of Heart?" Riku asked. Sora looked dead, staring at nothing with broken sorrow.
"Well we're pretty sure Kairi's gonna be fine-" Goofy began before Sora stood, and started stumbling away through the wreckage, not bothering to even be careful. Riku was about to follow when Donald asked "Have you learned anything from here?"
Riku stopped, and thought for a moment. "Well, the princess of this... Ah..." Riku kicked a hunk of stone "'castle'-her name was Aurora, I think-has been taken. Some guy named Philip is missing as well... Why the long faces?" He stopped when he saw Donald and Goofy wearing worried looks.
"Aurora's a Princess of Heart, too." Goofy explained.
"If Maleficent has her and Kairi, it's not much better than we thought it was." Donald continued.
Riku watched Sora again, seeing how he was now on the bridge, and sighed. "I've gotta keep an eye on him. Bye." Riku then carefully caught up with Sora.
"Hey, it wasn't your fault." Sora looked at him, his expression still morose and self-blaming.
He looked away and closed his eyes "Yes it was."
"No, it wasn't-"
"Just drop it, okay? I'm not in the mood for arguing over something that was my fault." Sora sighed "Let's just get back to the stupid Highwind..."
"Sora-"
Sora whirled around and screeched at Riku "I PROMISED I'D PROTECT HER AND I FAILED! I FUCKING FAILED RIKU!"
Sora teared up a little, then resumed walking, looking tired, beaten. Riku followed, but took one last glance at a symbol of happy times crashing around them.