This chapter would be also in bits, telling what happened to each people. I know… D: Sorry… My bad organization skill…
Special Thanks: Twister Atma, Insanecat6, sakuraswolf, khrocks94, BonneNuit, XxXmaximuM-RideRXxX, blusky07, Jellybeans-steh, mei lynn 64, unholynight, Dancing Flurry, IlOvEgAaRa666, VampireFangs103, Jayrin Paige, yaoifanandanimemanga. Thank you!!!
Enjoy!
Chapter 10
Decision
Axel immediately looked up when he noticed that the stream of life was trembling even more violently than before. Roxas looked around, watching out for any harm that would come to them. They were both still touching each other, not willing to let go. They enjoyed each other's touch and they wanted it to stay forever, but they knew that nothing was ever forever for them. With a short huff, the King let go of the angel, turned around and took a step. "This place is about to crumble. We have to get out of here," he whispered under his breath, loud enough for Roxas to hear.
"What?" Roxas blinked. "What about the souls? Without them, the Balance would be disrupted and Sora…"
Axel jolted at the name Sora, but he didn't say anything.
The blond looked around hesitantly, contemplating on what he wanted to do. When the blond angel was about to take a step forward to approach the King, he stumbled as the area became more and more unsteady. He tried to grasp onto something so that he did not fall down. His eyes were widened in fear as he realized that the stream of life was splitting apart. He could see the blackness that was formed on the ground as the stream of life was torn in two and as if it was water, the green hues started pouring off from the stream, down and down and down until it was swallowed by nothingness.
Roxas lost his balance. He was standing right at the edge of the crack and Axel was several feet away from him. Axel immediately rushed to catch the angel. The angel gracefully fell to his arm and the King leapt away from the area as fast as he could, carrying the lithe blond bridal style, avoiding the spirits who had gone berserk and the crumbles of the stream of life that had apparently turned into acid water in its self-defense mechanism. Axel hissed as a droplet of water fell on his shoulder and started burning through his clothes, travelling into his skin.
The angel noticed and worry immediately graced his face. "The stream of life…" he whispered.
"The longer we stay in here, the more violent the stream of life will become in order to eliminate its 'intruder'," Axel explained clearly and calmly even though he was clearly panting, drained and exhausted.
"Intruder?"
"You."
There's a sly smirk plastered on his face. Roxas smiled when he saw the smirk, the same cocky and confident smirk that he had become familiar with. The same smirk that would make him felt that everything would be alright as long as Axel was there. Roxas swallowed, "Nothing would be alright. No matter what we do."
"Let me go, Axel. I can get out of here by myself," the blond's voice was determined.
"You think I would let you go?" the redhead smirked.
Roxas raised his eyebrows, "No?"
Axel smirked again and quickly dashed away, going to the exit. He could see it, just several steps away from them. His emerald eyes scanned the area carefully for any signs of danger. He could sense danger, but he couldn't find the source. There was nothing there except shrieking spirits, seeking for ways to escape. He narrowed his eyes.
"There's… something in here," Roxas whispered.
Axel didn't speak. The area was strangely still and it was quite for a while, until it started rumbling again. "There!" Roxas shouted, pointing to one corner of the stream of life that was intact and then, it was raining acid.
--
The sky was getting dark as it was time for the sun to disappear from that part of the world. It was a windy day. Demyx sneezed as he was preparing dinner for him and the redhead angel. Once in a while, he would check on Kairi. The aid kit was placed near where she was sleeping, so that it would be easier and faster to get if Kairi somehow got worst and began bleeding again. He breathed a soft sigh of relieve as he found out that Kairi was okay when he took a peek. The redheaded angel had been moaning in her sleep, trashing around uncomfortably. Demyx couldn't help but worry over the angel's well-being.
"Xion again…" he mumbled as he stirred the chicken soup he was brewing with a spatula, staring blankly into the empty rack in front of him. He shrugged. "Axel will take care of it, right?"
He took the small salt container and started pouring the crystalline chemical into the pot of soup. He knew exactly how much he needed. After all, he had been spending most part of his life cooking, either to feed himself or to earn money out of it. Making sure that the liquid of the porridge he was cooking at the same time had been absorbed into the rice, he put out the cooking fire and took a big bowl that would be used to contain the porridge. Having done all that, he set the porridge down on the small table in the front area, right in front where Kairi was slumbering.
He returned to the kitchen soon, stirring the soup for a little while more before putting off the fire and taking the whole pot, setting it on the table while humming a very soft, familiar song.
Kairi stirred at the song. She opened her eyes slowly and started sitting up little by little, taking care not to hurt her fragile body. She wiped off the sweat that had formed on her forehead using her arm. Everything came into view gradually and she could smell something—food. It smelled really nice and her stomach was starting to grumble.
"Feeling a bit better?" Demyx asked softly, moving the chicken soup to a small bowl to give it to the angel.
Kairi blinked, unsure of what to answer, but then, she nodded.
Demyx smiled and returned to hum that familiar song.
"That song…" Kairi whispered. "It's the song… that Roxas used to sing… long ago…" she breathed, looking to the side, eyes glued to the floor, remembering the time when Roxas used to sing, when the blond's angel purpose was merely to entertain the rest of Celestia, singing happily and beautifully.
"It had been so long ago," Demyx released a soft, calm laugh, walking to Kairi, carrying the small bowl of soup that was releasing soft puffs of steam.
"It was the song of the Sacred Celestian's. How do you know that song? Humans shouldn't…"
"I know Roxas," Demyx explained. "And you can't quite say that I'm a human, considering that… I've been living in this world for thousands of years and hadn't aged since I'm twenty-one."
Kairi frowned lightly. "Who are you?"
"My name's Demyx and you are Kairi?"
"How do you know?"
Demyx smirked knowingly. "I know," he didn't explain much as he gave the bowl to Kairi. "Drink it while it's hot. It will make you better, I'm sure."
Kairi nodded, taking the bowl to her hands slowly, watching the white, slightly mucky liquid before she began to seep it down slowly. The sweetness and the savory taste assaulted her tongue. She sighed silently, enjoying the warmth and taste, quite surprised that a mere bowl of chicken soup could calm her down so much.
Demyx watched as the angel slowly finished the soup. "You want more? I have a whole pot there," he pointed, grinning, happy that Kairi seemed to enjoy the soup he made.
"No," the redhead shook her head. "I'm fine, thank you. How do you know Roxas?" she pressed on, seemingly determined to find the answer.
Demyx grinned even brighter. "The angel who fell down from the sky, kind, shy, and compassionate," he smiled gently. "His voice was the most beautiful of all."
Kairi's face grimaced at the word 'was'. "Roxas stopped singing… he stopped…"
There was an awkward silence.
"And… the story about an angel with the most beautiful voice became merely history and myth in Celestia," she added silently.
Silence.
--
Riku jolted from his slumber. Apparently, he had fallen in sleep in the library. He looked around, immediately waking up and alerted. He thought he sensed something…something… that was of Sora…somewhere. But then again, he might be only dreaming about the brunet. After all, Sora had been missing for who-knows-how-long. It was almost impossible that Riku just sensed him out of nowhere. The silver-head released a long sigh, standing up, and letting the books that were sitting on his lap to fall down ungracefully on the floor. His eyes were half-lidded, indicating how tired he was.
When he stepped out of the library's double door, the sky was already dark and gloomy. The cloud also reflected the color and became darker. He saw a familiar face once he was outside. It was Namine. What was Namine doing out so late? Usually, she would be programmed to sleep early and be in her chamber until morning. The silver head angel approached the blond angel.
"What are you doing?"
"God…" she mumbled, her blue eyes were blank, devoid of any color or emotion. They were half-lidded and she looked as if her soul had been sucked out of her.
"God?..." Riku glared, demanding more out of the angel.
"Summoned. Eliminate. Perish. Failure. Creation." Her speech was jumbled and she didn't seem to be communicating with Riku at all. She merely stared into the nothingness in front of her, as if enticed, as if she were a dead zombie. Her blond hair was covering her face, dark and expressionless. Her pair of wings was spread out wide, shaking and quavering, as if in fear and horror.
Riku let go of the angel. Namine continued to walk, approaching the stairs where God resided. The silver head angel couldn't follow her. He knew that there was a barrier formed near the Chamber of God, preventing any entry. He had tried to confront God before, but it was in vain. He ended up getting injured and hurt by the barrier. Only those who had been summoned by God could get through the barrier. He watched as the blonde angel disappeared from view, silently bidding farewell. If what he comprehended from Namine's speech was correct, then that would be the last time he met the angel. It was time for her existence to be erased. She was a Nobody in Celestia after all…
Question was… should he stop her? There was still time…
--
Axel immediately dodged as soon as he looked at the direction Roxas was pointing at. There was an enormous tarantula crawling on the wall. The tarantula was white and shining, morphing and changing its color wherever it went like a chameleon. Axel hissed as the acid liquid of the stream of life rained down on him. He shielded the angel using his body, making it so that he acted as Roxas' umbrella.
"Axel! Put me down! You'll…"
"Quiet, Celestian," Axel growled angrily, barely managing to avoid the poisonous attack of the enormous color-shifting tarantula. "Is this your God's creation?" he hissed with a tone full of malice.
Roxas narrowed his eyes, upset for being treated and spoken to like that. He let out a small huff and summoned Oblivion. With ease, he slipped away from Axel's tight grip. If his guesses were right, the stream of life shouldn't be acid for him even though he was the intruder. God… must be protecting and shielding him from harm, because he had still yet to fulfill his final mission.
Right when a drop of acid hue of green made contact with him, he knew that he was right. He was unharmed. He suffered no damage from the water. The droplet was no different than normal rain. Axel's eyes widened for a moment before he realized the same fact. He had forgotten about that. "I'm okay, Axel. I'll take care of this thing," Roxas said without regarding the King, watching the tarantula's moves carefully. The giant animal might be big, but it was agile and quick.
Axel narrowed his eyes, hating the fact that he couldn't do anything. The rain kept dropping on him, making blisters and burning through his skin and muscles. Axel dropped on his knees and Roxas immediately came to his aide. "Axel!" he shouted worriedly. "You should get out of here. I'll protect this place," he knelt beside the King, trying to shield the redhead from the rain, but found out soon that it was almost impossible as it became heavier, threatening to sweep and melt everything in its way.
Roxas was careless. As soon as the tarantula found its opening, it swiftly crawled through the walls of the stream of life, changing its color so no one noticed its movement and spurred toxic liquid at the direction of the King and the Angel. It was too late to dodge. Roxas' eyes widened moments before the white, gooey liquid came out of the beast's mouth.
--
Xion was still shaky as she landed right in front of the little shack. Her eyes were blank and her face expressionless and merciless. She was deeply horrified and scarred at what God would do next if she failed again. She gripped her sword close. The sword was shining and glistening in the dark, having been sharpened carefully hours ago by the angel. If she were about to make sure that Kairi was "cleaned" properly, she had to take her to that place, where no angels would survive, where reincarnation was impossible, where their soul would be incinerated together with their body.
She was trembling silently, looking at the door that would lead inside the shack uncertainly. She took a deep breath afterwards, narrowing her eyes, and placing a sadistic smile on her face. "All for God…" she whispered and took a step forward.
Slowly, she opened the door and droplets of water began to pour from the sky, which turned into a heavy rain soon. She pulled up her hoodie, making sure her face was hidden beneath her black hoodie, making sure that her entire being was hidden behind her oversized black cloak.
The door opened, creaking creepily.
Demyx and Kairi immediately snapped their attention to the intruder. Their chattering was cut off immediately. Kairi dropped the bowl she was holding and it dropped, clanking on the floor. "Xion?" she swallowed harshly, terrified, even more horrified when she noticed the razor sharp blade Xion was holding, the very same one that Xion used earlier to stab her.
Demyx looked at Kairi, puzzled, but then, he shifted his attention to the black haired angel.
"Your…wings…" Kairi narrowed her eyes, noticing immediately that Xion's wings had turned black. Black…
Xion took a deep breath, taking a dangerous step closer to them.
Demyx hastily jumped to his feet, guarding Kairi with no protection whatsoever. "What are you trying to do?" he inquired, worry in his voice.
"'Clean' the both of you," Xion replied darkly, raising her blade, ready to stab and take down the blond that was standing in her way.
Kairi's eyes widened. Quickly, she stood up, biting back the pain that was coming back to her again. She pushed Demyx away, effectively taking the sword into her body. Demyx fell on the ground on one of his knees. "Kairi!" he shouted, dashing over to hold Kairi's limp body without delay. "You!" he stared at the dark haired angel with hatred.
Xion narrowed her eyes in disgust. "Silence," she yelled, rushing in and pulling the twenty-inch blade out of the redhead angel's body. The sword was stained with crimson. The red liquid dripping delicately off the tip of the blade, pulled down by gravity. Blood streamed out of Kairi's stomach; painting the dress she was wearing with beautiful ruby. Xion smirked a sadistic smirk. The horror on Demyx and Kairi's face was enough to amuse her. There was nothing more delightful than watching the expression of terror, trembling before her.
With a growl, Demyx tackled Xion down, attempting to take the sword away from her. The angel was caught off guard, while Kairi was worried. She was panting harshly, having no energy to voice a single word. Everything that came out of her throat was either huffs or puffs. The pain was unbearable.
Xion struggled, while Demyx tried his very best to hold her wrists down. "Unhand me, you idiotic human!" she shouted.
"Not when you're holding that sword!" Demyx growled.
"Demyx," a deep, dark voice echoed in the small shack and suddenly, a shade of darkness swift into the room. Demyx let off his guard for a while, gasping as he felt Xion pushed him away. The black haired angel immediately took the chance to grab Kairi. She held her by the neck, pinning her down on the ground, threatening with her sword. Kairi shrieked silently, eyes widened in fear.
Demyx felt himself grabbed by the dark shadow, sharp-ironic claw holding him in place. He snapped his neck to the back instantly to look at the strange intruder. His eyes soon met with a pair of crimson and dark, long hair. The man was wearing mostly crimson cape, but there was darkness surrounding and shielding him. "Let me go!"
"Why?" asked the man.
"Save Kairi!"
"I'm here to take you out of here. The dying angel is not my concern."
"Hand that boy over or I'll kill her!" Xion hissed.
"You'll kill her no matter what and if I hand Demyx over, you'll kill him too, Celestian," the man reasoned, looking calmly with his crimson eyes.
Silence.
"You're pathetic, angel," he regarded at Xion.
"Vincent… Vincent Valentine. You're him, aren't you?" Xion hissed.
Vincent didn't answer. His grasp on Demyx tightened and he took out his gun to shoot Xion. Xion immediately flew away. Black feathers flew and floated in the air as it was shot down by the raining bullets. Every bullet was blocked accurately. As Xion was about to rush in to attack Vincent and snatched Demyx away, Vincent covered Demyx in his cloak of darkness and flew away, disappearing from the area. Xion wanted to give chase, but decided otherwise. She would have to take care of things one by one and Kairi earned the privilege.
The redhead angel gave a soft smile, relieved that Demyx had gotten out. She closed her eyes, accepting her death. Maybe… it was meant to be. All she wanted was just to be relieved of the pain. Before slumbering in darkness for eternity, she silently prayed that Roxas would be okay and also Sora and Riku…
--
Roxas gasped, preparing himself for the pain that was about to come, but… nothing happened. He opened his eyes slowly, looking uncertainly. The beast was still right in front of him, but it paused, as if paralyzed and numb, not showing any movements at all. He blinked when the giant tarantula vanished right before him and the acid rain stopped. He looked around…everything was oddly calm. He held Axel close, kneeling on one of his knees, Oblivion still in his hand.
"Zexion must have found a way to eliminate the illusions."
"This is all illusions?" Roxas asked in disbelieve.
Axel nodded weakly, his energy and power deteriorating.
Roxas' heart skipped a bit. God was already intervening in the Underworld and there was nothing he could do to prevent it from happening. The only thing he could manage was to do the exact opposite, assisting God…
Roxas noticed something floating down from the blank space in front of him. It was a small paper, containing something. Roxas reached out and the small object landed calmly in his hand. "Kill him for me, my Angel." God's dark voice rang in Roxas' head, as if his head was hollow. The angel bit his lower lip and shoved the object inside his pocket, making sure that Axel didn't notice what he was doing. Then, he went back to attend the King. He took Axel's arm and hung it around his shoulder. With much effort, he carried the King. "Can you move?" he asked worriedly.
"I'm fine," Axel answered calmly, his voice was slightly shaky.
Roxas smiled kindly. "Axel, you can drop that act now, you know," he stated softly. "And… I will drop the act."
"You make me promise you promises," the King chuckled weakly.
"And we always break it, right?"
They walked together, Roxas carrying the redhead, heading towards the exit. Everything was calm and still and the stream of life had returned to its original condition. It was as if nothing happened before, but their wounds were apparent and true.
"Axel…" Roxas whispered.
"Yeah?"
"You're a king now," the blond laughed.
"You just noticed?" the King smirked.
And there was silence…nice and comfortable silence between the two. Roxas suddenly stopped halfway, just right when they were about to get out of the place. "I was just thinking…" Roxas wondered. "If you're the King, you couldn't look like this in front of your subjects, right?" he raised an eyebrow. "Look at you…" he laughed. "A mess," he said, laughing, but it sounded dry. Axel noticed Roxas' fake emotions.
"I think… I can do something about that…" the angel smiled, leaning to the front so that he was face to face with the King. Closing his eyes, he planted a soft kiss on Axel's lips, an angel's kiss that wished for wellness and health. Axel tried to pull away, knowing exactly what Roxas was trying to do.
The angel deepened the kiss, placing his hand in the strands of red hair, pulling Axel closer. They were motionless for a while, until blisters and injuries started to appear on Roxas' lithe body and the King's wounds started disappearing, transferred to the angel. Roxas dropped on his knees a while later, feeling the pain soaring into him. He could feel his skin melting, burning, and aching. He hissed, biting back the pain. Panting, he said, "Sorry, that's all I can do. I haven't mastered…the technique yet…" he whispered, knowing that not all the King's injuries were taken away by him.
"Foolish Celestian," Axel released a huff. He took the blond's arm, yanking it, ignoring the shriek of pain coming from the blond's mouth. He covered Roxas' lips in a passionate kiss, kissing gently, yet at the same time demanding and loving. Roxas released a short breath, smiling awkwardly into the kiss. He moaned, enjoying the kiss, chuckling softly, preparing himself for Axel's tongue, forgetting about the pain momentarily.
Axel smirked into the kiss, parting his lips and breathing hotly into the angel's mouth. Without a single hesitation, he began invading Roxas' mouth with his tongue. It was a taste so familiar… so familiar and delicious that both never wanted to separate, leaving each other craving for more. Roxas blushed brightly, breathing puffs of hot breaths, panting and moaning. Axel groaned, satisfied that he had successfully elicited such reaction from the blond.
His hands began moving, reaching the hem of the blond's torn shirt, reaching around, feeling the skin. They broke apart when Roxas yelped and jumping back in pain. Axel had touched one of his injuries and it stung, burning. Axel merely stared, not apologizing, not saying anything, still holding the blond, but more gently and more delicately, handling the angel with care. His predatory emerald eyes bored into the blond's clouded cerulean.
Roxas was shy. His attention was glued to everything but Axel. His heart was still beating abnormally from the little show of affection. Silently, he regretted ever making Axel promise. Then again, he would always regret something that he had done.
Axel released a small laugh. The laugh was rich and bright, natural… Roxas smiled shyly, finally eyeing the King.
"Let's get out of here," the redhead suggested.
Roxas nodded. "Yeah."
--
Ah, after submitting two arts of Roxas and Riku in DA, this finally got finished, whilst drawing Axel~. Eh, apparently, the arts got done first… xD and it's all on my DA profile. Next chapter will feature a lot more AkuRoku. =D *winkwink, hinthint* I haven't done this since chapter 4 huh? Well, 11 it is!!! Or 12? O.o ~ I hope you enjoyed! Thank you very much!!!