A/N: I apologize to everyone who was hella confuzzled by my timeline-skewy antics the last couple of chaps. Still, the general consensus I got from y'all was that, while it was confusing, you were still invested in finding out what comes next. So, to quote the magnificent Billy Currington, "I must be doing something right." But anyways, just so you know, we're leaving the confusing future bits alone for now. The next several chapters will focus on the 'here and now' as it were. (Meaning that, at this point in the story, Naminé is still in the Organization's custody.)
Now, I have a request to make of you all, if you'll indulge me. While I am sincerely grateful for every single review, follow, and favorite I get, it's the reviews that mean the most to me BECAUSE in order to be the best writer I can be, I NEED you guys-and-gals-and-others to tell me what I'm doing right and what I need to improve upon. I don't mind the generic "Hey, good job man, love the story, update soon please!" type of reviews, but I much prefer the more insightful ones. And knowing that people are enjoying and thinking critically about my stories gives me a lot more enthusiasm to continue them. Not that I don't write these things for my own fun too, but if no one gives me any feedback my short attention span kicks in and my brain gets preoccupied with one of the other myriad story ideas spinning around upstairs (which, for those of you also reading The Others and wondering "what the hell?" that's part of it; I got focused on this because it was getting more attention…and then work and games ate up my life…). So please, help me to help you!
But for now, just kick back and enjoy the update.
A Year Reclaimed.
Chapter 10: The Next Step.
(In which Riku learns a thing or two about Thinking With Portals…)
Castle Oblivion; a random-ass hallway, or 'corridor' if you're British:
Riku could do nothing but stare up with wide, unblinking eyes in stark terror at the hooded figure, as he lowered his hood and flipped out his swag silver-blue manlocks. Orange eyes set in a cross-scarred face narrowed in an impression of contempt at the young man, who was presently breaking out in a cold sweat.
You might be wondering why the generally unflappable Riku was reacting this way when, just earlier that day…in his frame of reference, anyways…he had gone 1v2 with Saïx and what he had thought was Xemnas without a shred of dread. Well, that's because Riku was a lot stronger back in that future. While this Riku had his older self's knowledge and experience, he was currently held back by a body that was a perfect imitation of himself when he was fifteen years old, fresh after being possessed by a Super-Heartless and still struggling with Darkness.
TL;DR: Riku had as much a chance to win this fight as a level 5 Magikarp had of beating Mewtwo.
"Riku…interesting," said Saïx in a (mono)tone that made Riku's skin crawl. Despite the minimum of inflection, it conveyed a sense of "oh, look, something that would be wonderful fun for me to dissect…without anesthesia."
"Vexen was just raving about a runaway Replica…could that be you? It must be; there's no way the real Riku has ascended this far already," Saïx continued. Without saying anything more, he extended an empty hand out to his side and manifested Lunatic in all its spiky, terrifying glory.
Riku mentally cycled through the cards he had in his deck; the best he had was a 6, and based on what he knew of Saïx he was surely going to open with something a lot stronger. What was more, having never fought Saïx in Castle Oblivion before, Riku had no clue what Sleights he might have.
There was only one thing Riku could do in this situation, seeing as he was backed into a corner up a creek with a snowball's chance in…wow, sorry, that kind of ran away from me…point being, Riku did the only rational thing he could do here.
He called up a Corridor of Darkness in the middle of the corridor of sterile-white and dove through. Discretion is, after all, the better part of valor.
"Wait, we're going back to Twilight Town?" asked Xion. She, Sora, Donald, and Goofy were all crammed into a little Falcon-model Gummi ship Cid had loaned them, it being the only serviceable Gummi ship available.
"We are? Why?" added Sora.
"Master Yen Sid uses powerful magicks to hide his Tower from ne'er-do-wells," explained Donald, "Which is why it's called 'the Mysterious Tower'. To get there on a Gummi ship, you'd need a very special Navi-Gummi that we don't have. We could go and get it from home, but Merlin told me about a shortcut we can use to get there from Twilight Town."
"Aw, I bet yer jus' puttin' off goin' home cuz you know Daisy's gonna be steamed at ya for bein' gone so long," said Goofy.
"Shaddap! What-a you know, anyways," Donald grumbled as he sat the ship down in Station Plaza.
After everyone had disembarked, Donald conjured his staff and pointed it at the Falcon, which glowed briefly before lifting off and shooting away into the sky.
"What the!? Donald, our ship–" Sora exclaimed, pointing after the already-long-gone ship.
"I know, I know, calm down," said Donald, "Merlin sent word ahead to Master Yen Sid, and he told Merlin that he would have transportation arranged for us. We were only borrowing the Falcon from Cid, anyways."
"Huh. If you say so, Donald," said Sora, who looked as if he had already lost interest. Donald led the party up the stairs, into the train station, past the ticket counter, and onto a purple train with stars and moons painted on it.
A moment after the doors closed, the train took off, but disappeared in a flash of starlight before it ever left the station.
Riku had no idea where exactly his Corridor spat him out, other than that it was clearly still inside Castle Oblivion. A split-second after he emerged, another Corridor opened before him and Lunatic came flying out, spinning in a manner similar to a Strike Raid.
Riku's eyes widened as he instinctively summoned Soul Eater and tried to knock the flying weapon aside.
[5 Lunatic + 6 Lunatic + 6 Lunatic (17 "Moon Raid" Sleight) -BREAKS- 6 Soul Eater (Block)]
Saïx's Sleight shattered Riku's block effortlessly, breaking his Soul Eater card and tearing open a gash in his shoulder as he was bowled over. Riku rolled to the side to evade Saïx's follow-up charge and summoned a new Soul Eater, his mind running frantically to think of a way out. As far as he could tell, he had two options; play cat-and-mouse until Saïx had to reload his deck, and then rush him with everything he had, or Duel him and hope like hell he won.
He disregarded the latter as way too high risk; failure meant a pretty good chance of him being beaten or worse, yet victory didn't guarantee that his Duel Sleight would be strong enough to significantly damage Saïx. Option A wasn't devoid of risk either; any mistakes and he was still a goner.
Riku groaned and jumped back away from Saïx's charging attack. The Luna Diviner charged after him with a bored expression, swinging Lunatic with minimal effort that translated to catastrophic force. After all, such a large weapon would obviously have a bunch of mass, which means a little force generates a lot of momentum. Riku knew that if Saïx landed a clean, solid hit, the claymore would strike him down like a wrecking ball.
Then, something clicked in Riku's head; a subconscious connection of neurons brought about by the accelerated frenzy of adrenaline-fueled brainstorming and sheer desperation. Knowing that he couldn't match a Nobody's stamina, hoping against hope that he could somehow pull this off yet rationally knowing he had no chance, he remembered something crucial, that he hadn't given any serious thought to at the time. Namely…
He hadn't had any Cards when he used the Darkness to shatter the pod.
Riku froze up, his eyes widening as he realized what this meant. Master Yen Sid had once told him how Master Aqua had used an ancient Keybearers' spell to create Castle Oblivion, intended to preserve the balance between Light and Darkness by imposing it's strange combat system on those who entered. Except it had never seen a Keyblade Master of Light and Darkness before.
Riku didn't have his Keyblade handy, but he still had his Heart. Saïx closed in, swinging too fast from too close for Riku to dodge–only for Lunatic to bounce off the Dark Barrier that sprang up around him. Riku adopted his trademark smirk, threw his hand up even as Saïx's eyes widened in surprise, and blasted him back with Dark Aura. Riku walked forward, flames of darkness flickering over his body as his Dark Armor materialized.
Saïx snarled and charged Riku again, this time with a Lunatic in each hand, throwing one while he flipped the other into a reverse grip. A Corridor of Darkness opened under Riku's feet and he fell through, popping back up out of the floor behind Saïx and slamming a ball of Dark Firaga into the small of his back. Howling in pain, Saïx swung behind him, but Riku coolly ducked and side-rolled through another Corridor, this time dropping out of thin air above Saïx and roundhouse-kicking him in the side of the head. Then he vaulted straight backwards, summoning a Soul Eater and using it to bat aside the next Lunatic that was flung at him.
"Give it up, Saïx," said Riku, "The rules of this place don't bind me as they do you. You can't win this fight, but I don't have the time to waste on you, either. Let's take a rain check on this; next time we fight, somewhere outside of this castle, it'll be a more even match." Riku silently hoped that, when that day came, he'd have regained enough of his strength to match Saïx when he wasn't constrained by the rules of Castle Oblivion.
Saïx leered at him and retorted, "I don't know how you figured out how to use the Darkness without a Sleight, or open Corridors without a Map or World Card, but if you think that's enough to guarantee you victory–"
"I don't," Riku cut in, matching Saïx's glare with one of equal coldness, "It does. But…due to recent events, I find myself not wanting to destroy you…but there are people who need my help, so I will if it comes to that. I know that right now all you care about is pleasing your precious 'Superior'…" Riku trailed off. Something in the back of his mind was nagging at him. He was forgetting something important…
"Hey, A–Lea, there's something I've been meaning to ask."
"Oh yeah? Like what?"
"Well…Naminé told me what you did, in Castle Oblivion, and I was wondering…why?"
"You mean, why did I run around throwing my chakrams into everyone's plans?"
"Yeah."
"Well…heh, back then, me and I…Saïx…we were planning on breaking up the Organization from the inside and taking down Xemnas, seeing as he was the one who had made us both Nobodies. Plan was that Saïx would focus on getting closer to Xemnas, become his number-two man kind of thing, while I'd do what I do best; mess everything up. I was already under orders to get rid of Marluxia and Larxene, since they were traitors that Xemnas knew about, but I also used the confusion to take out Zexion to clear the way for Saïx to move up in rank. He scored brownie points because he was the one that recommended me for the job."
"Huh, I was wondering what ever happened to Zexion…but wait, what happened? To Saïx? How'd he go from conspiring against Xemnas with you to becoming…you know…?"
"That's a damned good question, man. Best I can figure, it happened sometime during the Year of the Sleeping Sora. Back then, he was still pushing our plan, but then we had a falling out over…uh, can't seem to remember exactly…had something to do with Roxas, I think?"
Riku blinked. "No…no, you don't want to serve Xemnas, do you? You and Axel, you're planning a rebellion, right?"
Saïx's jaw dropped and he staggered back. "How…HOW could you POSSIBLY know that!?" he demanded.
"Does it matter?" asked Riku. A Corridor opened behind him. "Let me go…and you'll have another ally against Xemnas."
"HOW DO YOU KNOW HIS NAME!?" Saïx roared, his orange eyes manic and his heart (the organ, not the Heart, obviously) racing.
Riku smirked again, finally feeling truly in control of the situation. "I know a lot of things, Isa. If you and Lea want your Hearts and freedom back, you'll work with me."
Saïx seemed to freeze up for a moment, not even appearing to breathe…then his face smoothed over as his cold façade reasserted itself. "Vexen. He must know, somehow, and imparted all of this to you. You're just a means of conveying a threat."
'OH FOR FU–grrgh, two steps forward and five steps back,' Riku seethed inwardly.
"First I'll destroy you, Replica, and then I'll find Vexen…" Saïx trailed off and his eyes widened again when he hold out a hand to summon Lunatic…and nothing happened.
'Oh, hey, he's out of cards. Aaaand we are back to square one, ladies and gentlemen,' Riku thought with a mental sigh of relief. As Saïx rose into the air, Reloading, Riku struck him with a Dark Splicer, coating his Soul Eater in a dark flame for good measure and rapidly slashing at Saïx with everything he had. Saïx took the hits but finished Reloading and retaliated with vigor, and as Riku jumped back to avoid his assault a twisted yet brilliant thought came to him.
He opened a Corridor behind him, linked to the one he had opened earlier but never used. This let him out behind Saïx again, but on the other side of the room. Saïx rushed into the Corridor, thrusting Lunatic in after Riku, who side-stepped to avoid the claymore as it emerged through the Corridor. And, just as Saïx's sword-arm was elbow deep, Riku shut the Corridor down hard.
Saïx screamed in agony as wisps of darkness flew off of the stump of his elbow. Riku forced himself not to heave in disgust and stayed focused on the Big Picture: namely, he was charged with saving the timeline and Saïx was in his way. He reminded himself that Sora and Kairi and Mickey and many others were depending on him. He steeled himself and ignored Saïx's pained cries, jumping up and releasing a Dark Barrage. Then, without waiting for the smoke to clear to see if Saïx's silence meant he had just been knocked out, Riku opened one more Corridor and stumbled through.
"Ah-ha-ha-heh…there goes our ride…" Sora chuckled nervously as the train they had just disembarked disappeared into thin air.
"Transportation's been arranged, Sora," Donald reminded him, taking point as he led the party across the small island inexplicably floating in interspace, towards…
[Cue New World Title Card]
THE MYSTERIOUS TOWER.
Sora jogged to catch up to them, stopping just short of slamming into Goofy, while Donald was sternly filling Xion in on rules of etiquette to observe in the presence of the great and powerful retired Keyblade Master, Yen Sid. He tried to repeat it for Sora's benefit, but the young islander was preoccupied by the gorgeous sunset-colored clouds drifting all around them.
Then his preoccupation was shaken up by the ground shaking under his feet. The ground broke open as a huge metal object tore itself free. It was a towering suit of armor wrapped up in chains, with wickedly curved blades in place of fingers on one hand, and where the other hand should have been was a wrecking ball hanging off a four foot chain. Overall, the monster was at least two to three times the size of the Guard Armor. Donald, Goofy, and Xion immediately summoned their weapons and took fighting stances. Sora, on the other hand, just sighed and laid a hand over his face, causing the other three to turn and stare at him.
"I remember a time when I could go more than five steps without running into a monster of some kind…" he lamented. Then he disappeared and reappeared directly above the metallic monster, Metal Chocobo in hand and a wild grin on his face. "But this is WAY MORE FUN!" he shouted as he zipped down and slammed his weapon into the monster's helm. A resounding clang echoed across the island, but the armor didn't seem fazed. It swung up with the wrecking-ball appendage, but Sora smartly dodged before he could be swept off.
He landed on the other side of the monster, which spun about to face him with speed that seemed contrary to its size. It swung at Sora with its wrecking-ball appendage, but the young Keybearer easily double-jumped over the weapon. As soon as the monster turned its back on them, Goofy put his shield up and Rocketed himself at one of its legs, while Donald started running around to flank the metallic mammoth, flinging a flurry of fireballs, hailstones, and ball-lightning at it in a glorious visual cacophony comparable a fireworks display.
Xion was briefly awed by how fluidly the Trio worked together without exchanging a word or even significant glances. Each man knew where he was supposed to be and what he should do, and how to help without getting in anyone else's way, almost as if by instinct. Xion had felt a similar 'mesh' between herself and Roxas yesterday, as if they had fought together for years and knew each other's tactics inside and out. And even now, somehow, she felt as if she knew exactly what her three companions were going to do, and it took an instant for her to figure her own place in the attack plan. Since Sora had the front, Goofy the rear, and Donald was flanking on the left side, it was only natural that she take the right; so she did, throwing Strike Raid after Strike Raid at the monster.
Unfortunately, Goofy's assault did little more than buckle one leg, just a little, and Donald's magic seemed to be bouncing off of the fiend's armor-like body. Even the mighty Keyblades didn't seem to be doing as much damage as they should have.
The monster retaliated against their coordinated assault with a metallic shriek of rage before making a wide, circular sweep with its wrecking ball. Sora and Goofy both managed to leap over or duck under the chain, respectively, but Xion and Donald both got swept off their feet. Sora gave a vengeful yell and charged straight at the monster, launching into a Sonic Blade, while Goofy leaped into the air to catch a wildly-flailing Donald. Xion threw her Keyblade at the armor, and as soon as it bounced off she summoned herself to the weapon, and then executed an Ars Arcana in midair on its helm.
The armor screamed in outrage and struck out at Xion with its massive serrated claw. She managed to block the blades with her Kingdom Key, but got knocked out of the air and slammed into the ground hard enough to plow a furrow in the floating isle. Donald gave a ringing squawk of "COMET!" and a huge ball of light rained down out of nowhere, slamming down at the armor's feet and exploding, sending the metal behemoth into the air.
"Donald! Check on Xion! Goofy! See if you can knock it higher!" Sora shouted, switching Metal Chocobo out for Lionheart, and then he closed his eyes and took deep breaths, gathering his power. Donald helped a battered Xion back onto her feet and cast Cura on her, and Goofy Rocketed into the air, slamming into the armor and sending it a few yards higher.
"Donald! Xion! Ice the ground! Goofy, get clear!" Sora instructed next.
Donald nodded and started spamming Blizzaga at the ground directly under the airborne armor, while Xion shouted back, "But I don't know magic!"
"Think cold thoughts, then shoot them out of the Keyblade!" Sora advised.
"What?! How?!"
"Don't think about it too hard, just do it and it'll happen!" Sora assured her, "Oh! And don't forget the magic word!"
Xion was skeptical, but she did as Sora told her and aimed her Keyblade at the ever-widening patch of frost-turning-into-ice that Donald was creating, thought the coldest thoughts she could think of, and shouted, "Blizzaga!"
Much to her astonishment, she felt a rush of power flow through her and watched in awe as a massive shard of ice exploded out of the end of Kingdom Key. It struck the patch and hardened the remaining frost into ice. She grinned wildly and tried to cast the spell again…but suddenly she felt short of breath and sank to her knees. Meanwhile, Sora said to Donald, "Alright, let's bring him down HARD!"
Both mages aimed at the armor, now descending, and shouted in unison, "GRAVIGA!"
A black sphere enveloped the monster, which then began to fall MUCH faster before slamming into the ice with more than enough force to make a very cool crater in the island.
Heh, get it? Cool crater? BWAH-HAHAHAHAHA!
Ahem…moving on.
Sora leaped up into the air and took aim at the crumpled heap of the armor, which was already starting to get back up, and began focusing his power. An aura of power held him aloft as radiant orange light began swirling around him and gathering at the end of Lionheart. With a battle-kiai of "RAGNAROK!" he fired a barrage of laser-bolts that bombarded the armor. And he didn't stop at the first one, either. Focusing the extra power he had gathered, he squeezed off two more waves, and after the third round of impacts, there was a great noise of shrieking, twisting metal as several of the chains binding the armor together exploded under the strain.
"Alright, I've seen enough," boomed a disembodied voice across the island. Everyone felt a wave of magical power sweep across the grounds, and the ground seemed to flow together like water, covering the armor-monster once more. Grass sprang up where the earth had been disturbed, and in no time at all there was no evidence that anything had ever happened in the first place. "You have acquitted yourselves admirably against my Adamantine Armour. You may enter, young Keybearers and steadfast companions. Welcome to the Tower of Yen Sid," the voice added formally.
"But there's no door!" Xion noted as the four of them dashed to the base of the tower, hoping to get inside before something else weird came up.
"Let's just see about that," said Sora, pointing Lionheart at the tower.
Nothing happened.
"Huh," said Sora.
"Huh?" asked Goofy.
"Uh-huh," Donald confirmed.
"Huh," Goofy observed.
"Uh-huh!" Sora agreed.
'Boys are weird,' thought Xion.
"Awright, then, wet's try this!" said Donald suddenly. He raised Save The Queen and gave it a wave in the direction of the tower with an incantation of "Libra!"
Before anyone could question the arcane water-fowl, they watched with wide eyes as the air rippled, seeming to part like curtains, to reveal a translucent mirage of a door with a faintly shimmering outline of a keyhole in the center. Sora grinned and aimed his Keyblade again; this time, a bright light appeared at the end before an equally bright beam of light shot out and struck the keyhole dead-center. The ghostly door ceased to be a mirage, materializing in the tower before unlocking with an audible click and swinging slightly ajar.
"Well done," Yen Sid's voice complimented succinctly from nowhere and everywhere at once, although now it seemed to be emanating from beyond the door just a little bit more than from any other random direction.
Riku stopped in the middle of running pell-mell down the halls looking for an exit, using Dark Corridors to bypass any door that got in his way (he had concluded that navigating between floors that way was too unreliable; using Vexen's scent as a point of reference, he determined that he was as likely to wind up farther from the ground-floor as he was to get closer to it) when he heard the distinct trilling of his cellphone.
His newest text message read:
Heya, Player! Your totes adorbes GM here with an extra special just-for-you-handsome BONUS OBJECTIVE! Since it's, like, totally optional and junk, you won't be erased if you fail, but if you don't do it you might, like, inadvertently make a paradox-thingy? And that might fudge you right out of Being anyhow. So…ya better do it, Slick-u! (LOL, new nickname =3)
Your totally off-the-chain bonus objective is: Free yourself from the Destiny Islands Memory World. GL!
Riku stared at the phone for several seconds. "Free myself…what?" he wondered out loud. Then the phone buzzed again as a new text appeared:
Look, dude, that Luxord guy trapped your past-self in the Memory World of your home, and those Organization douches forced Naminé to make you (past-you, that is) forget that it's just a memory. So he thinks he's actually home. If he never leaves the Castle, or stays too long at least, it'll muck up the timeline even worse. You might wanna spring that Naminé girl, too. Good luck, dude.
According to his phone, the second text had been sent from the same number as the first, but Riku was positive that it hadn't been written by the same person. It was all too obvious, really. Question was, who? Riku shrugged and filed the question away for another time. He closed his eyes and focused on the different scents in the castle. He didn't sense himself…but then, it is said that one cannot easily smell oneself, is it not? At any rate, he pinpointed Naminé much more easily.
Unfortunately, she was apparently with Xaldin…and, as before, she was on the very top floor of the castle. As far as Riku could tell, he was somewhere on the fourth sub-level. That put seventeen floors between them. Consulting his phone's clock, he figured he had four hours left before he had to be out of the castle.
'HOW?!' he wondered.
Then he got a third text, which he quickly decided must be from the same person as the second:
BTW, here's a free tip. Your Game Partner can help you pull this off, but you need to let him into the castle. So get to the entrance and the rest is a cinch. Oh, and when you meet him…tell him that Kariya says he's an asshat. Kthnx bye.
So…the second texter was named Kariya? Maybe? Or was the second texter referring to the first texter? Shaking his head clear of distracting thoughts, Riku focused on the goal in front of him; get to the entrance and let this mysterious 'Game Partner' of his in, then find the floor where his past self was trapped in a memory-prison and bust him out, and somewhere along the way free Naminé from Xaldin. That was going to be annoying; he recalled Mickey telling him of when he had watched from the shadows as Sora fought the Whirlwind Lancer at Beast's Castle.
Never one to downplay the strengths of their enemies, he fully believed the King of Disney when he had said that Xaldin had been one of Sora's toughest fights. And he wasn't nearly as strong at the moment as Sora had been then. But his mastery of Darkness and the Castle's prohibitive rules of engagement had helped him get by Saïx, so maybe he could pull off another miracle.
'But first thing's first; to the entrance,' Riku reminded himself. So away he went.
After a few minutes of trekking up staircases that hung in the air, suspended between portals, Sora and friends entered the study of the venerable retired Keyblade Master, He-Who-Trained-The-King, Yen Sid. The man in question looked every inch the epitome of 'sorcerer'. A long, luscious steely-gray beard; intense, piercing eyes that combined tiny pupils and non-existent irises to look simultaneously maniacally wide AND cunningly beady, which made his stare as intimidating as stares can get without being conveyed through a bat-like cowl; flowing star-patterned robes that sometimes crackled from the sheer mass of magical power woven into it in a manner similar to static electricity so intense that his pocket lint could warp time and space itself (which was how Yen Sid figured he kept losing the keys to his Gummi ship). And quite literally topping off the look was his hat, so pointy and starry and magically-charged merely resting on an unworthy head could cause all kinds of ridiculous magical shenanigans.
But that's a story for another time.
"Sora, the Keyblade's Chosen; it is good to meet you in good health, valiant child," Yen Sid spoke as soon as they stepped into the room, the door swinging shut behind them. But softly, not banging shut to give them all a cheap scare, because unlike SOME long-bearded, pointy-hatted, cryptic-as-shit magical mentors, Yen Sid was emphatically NOT a troll. (But we love you anyways, Dumble-daddy).
"Donald and Goofy, stalwart companions to more than one Warrior of the Keyblade; it is good to see you both again," he added, smiling softly and gently inclining his head in their direction; Donald and Goofy both snapped crisply to attention and saluted the wise archmage. Finally he turned his imposing gaze onto Xion, who admittedly felt a bit nervous but resolved not to let it show, and continued, "And young Xion, the mysterious new Keyblade-wielder, having appeared from seemingly nowhere…a pleasure to meet you as well, child."
"Uh, yeah, you too," replied Xion.
"So…you're a real Keyblade Master?" asked Sora, eyeing the old man critically.
"I was," replied Yen Sid, "I am now retired."
"But you can still teach, right?" asked Sora, taking a step forward, "Because some friends of mine got captured by some really tough guys. But if I were a Master, they'd stand no chance, right?"
"The path to the Mark of Mastery is a long one, Sora. It is not achieved on a whim," said Yen Sid gravely.
"Aw, c'mon. I've already saved the Universe once! How many more times does it take to get a promotion?"
"That is not how it works, young man. Until now you have been fighting only the Heartless. Creatures with no intelligence to speak of, until you faced the one that called itself Ansem. In that fight, Ansem's strength was withheld by the effort to contain your friend, Riku, who was fighting to reassert himself the entire time," said Yen Sid, "Along the way you had help from many people, especially Donald and Goofy, both of whom have proven themselves in battle many times over the years. Make no mistake, Sora, you are strong for a fourteen-year-old, and your feats thus far are not insignificant. But you are not even ready to begin the path towards Mastery. You are but a novice…although, with Masters Aqua and Mickey in the Realm of Darkness, with Ventus asleep in Castle Oblivion, and with Terra missing, you and your friends, Riku, Roxas, and Xion, are the best hope we have."
Sora frowned and opened his mouth to challenge Yen Sid's words, but Donald preemptively smacked his knees with his staff. "Don't argue with him, Sora!"
"While Mastery is yet beyond your grasp, it is always possible to improve yourself. Which is why you have come here," Yen Sid continued, somewhat more kindly.
"…right," said Sora hesitantly. "So, how do we get started? When will we be ready to rescue Roxas and Naminé?"
"Hold on, young man," said Yen Sid sternly. "You are getting too far ahead of yourself. Before you can think of rescuing your friends, you have to focus on gaining strength. Without the allies you had on hand, you would never have been able to defeat the Organization members that assaulted Hollow Bastion. And that was not even their full might; and to rescue the captives they have taken will require fighting them in their own territory."
"I get it!" Sora snapped, causing Goofy and Donald to gasp in shock, "I need to be stronger, fine, but how long will it take?"
Yen Sid narrowed his eyes, and Xion shivered at his steely gaze. Goofy and Donald both looked nervous, but even Donald didn't appear inclined to butt in. Without a word, Yen Sid slowly rose up and extended his hand. A Keyblade, Star Seeker, appeared in his hand, and he pointed it at the wall to his left. Bright stars of magical light gathered at its tip, and a beam of light shot out and struck the wall, causing an ornate silvery-white door to appear. "If you are truly so impertinent, then step through the door and see how pitiful is the measure of a novice's rage in the face of true power," said the old master with disconcerting calmness.
Sora only nodded before summoning Kingdom Key and stepping towards the door. Goofy and Donald didn't hesitate before making to follow him, and after only the slightest instant of uncertainty, Xion followed as well. Yen Sid said gruffly, "Not you three. Just Sora. Unless you also think yourself ready to fight the Organization, young lady."
Goofy and Donald froze in their tracks, but Xion's stride didn't falter. As they approached, the door opened to reveal a swirling vortex of magical energy, and the two young warriors of the Keyblade stepped through.
Sora and Xion emerged on a dusty, barren field under a gloomy, sunless sky. A stiff wind blew dust all over the place, and through the dust Xion could make out an odd silhouette. The mere sight of it gave her chills, and an unfamiliar face flashed through her mind, but it was gone just as quickly and try as she might she couldn't recall his features. Sora started towards it with resolute steps, and Xion followed without delay. As they drew nearer, the dust cleared.
The strange figure was covered in armor that featured a strange helmet with two long ear-like protrusions standing up. It knelt before a weapon, a massive Keyblade unlike any Sora had seen on his journey; it looked even bulkier than Metal Chocobo. A strange noise suddenly came from the armor, and words filtered into Sora and Xion's minds. "Aqua…Ven…"
Sora dropped into his fighting stance, and Xion summoned a Keyblade of her own. Sora had Kingdom Key, so she tried to summon one of Roxas' Keyblades; first, she tried to call on the neat black one, Oblivion, but it wouldn't appear. Confused, but unconcerned, she tried for the white one, which Sora had called 'Oathkeeper'. It appeared in her hand without delay.
"A Keyblade? Who are you?" the armor asked them. "I know you. We've met before, way back when." Xion got the feeling it was addressing Sora directly this time. Then she felt a wave of confusion from the armor, and by the look on his face Sora felt it too. "No, that wasn't you. You're not the one I chose. Where is he? Xe…ha…nort…"
Xion instantly felt uneasy at the sound of that name, and Sora felt a strange twinge of anger. A face flashed through his mind as well, the old man from his dreams, but it was gone before he could recognize him.
"Is that you?" the armor asked. "Xeha…nort…Xehanort!"
The armor rose up to its feet, and Sora and Xion noticed the cape streaming behind it for the first time. It pulled its Keyblade out of the ground and held it out to its side with one hand. Then, without warning, it launched itself at them with such speed that the air warped around it. Although Sora and Xion managed to roll out of its path in time to avoid taking a direct hit, the force of its passing still bowled them over, only to quickly be sucked back in by the tailwind.
The armor planted its feet firmly in the ground, braking itself short and turning around to catch Sora and Xion with a backswing that sent them both flying. Sora managed to catch the ground with Kingdom Key's teeth, and with his other hand he caught Xion's.
But before they could do anything else, the Lingering Will was upon them once more.
A few minutes later:
Goofy and Donald, both very ill at ease, sat in silence in Yen Sid's office. There was little they could do, save for wonder and worry. Then, unexpectedly, Yen Sid stood back up and gave a resounding clap. In an explosion of starlight, Sora and Xion both appeared in midair and tumbled to the floor. Goofy and Donald both cried out in alarm at the sight of them.
Sora's clothes and Xion's coat were torn to shreds, and both of them looked as if they had been beaten to within an inch of their lives. Bruises, scrapes, cuts, and it even looked as though they had a few broken bones. Neither one could seem to catch their breath for their pained wheezing. Needless to say, Donald wasted no time casting as much healing magic as he could on the both of them.
Meanwhile, Yen Sid walked around his desk and stopped in front of Sora, staring down at him with imperious eyes. "Now, do you understand how far away you truly are from being a Master, boy?"
"What…what was that thing?" Sora gasped, having managed to get up to his knees and clutching his bruised stomach.
"A mere Remnant of one who was much stronger than you…and yet, he too proved unworthy to be a Master," replied Yen Sid. "He, too, gambled everything he was on a desperate battle to help his friends. And his fate should serve as a grim reminder that there are more powerful things in the world than a hero's resolve. It was a Keyblade Master that reduced a kind-hearted and well-meaning young man to that empty shell."
'Xehanort,' Sora thought to himself. "I…I understand, Master Yen Sid. What do we have to do?"
"For now, you need to recover from your…trial. Tomorrow, I shall begin training you and Xion in the proper handling of the Keyblade."
"Yay…" wheezed Xion from where she was still laying on her back.
Meanwhile, at the Legion of D–I mean, Castle Oblivion!
The moment Riku opened the door to Castle Oblivion, he felt something whoosh past him, though he didn't see anything. For that matter, he didn't see anyone waiting for him outside. Then he heard a man's voice behind him. "Took you long enough! Did you take the most non-Euclidean vector you could find? You're so zetta slow…"
Riku whirled around in an instant, calling up Soul Eater and a Dark Barrier at the same time, to face the possible-friend-possible-foe.
"Ha! Jumpy much? Exponential reflexes, though…but your awareness is a total negative integer," jeered the punk-looking man that now stood before Riku with his arms crossed. "Had I wanted, I could have subtracted you from existence without a sound…I think the Composer has a seriously hyperbolic estimation of your ability."
Riku tentatively lowered Soul Eater, though he didn't dismiss it, and raised an eyebrow. "You've got a thing for math puns, huh? You're the Game Partner Joshua sent, then."
"Precise figuring, there," the man complimented, though his voice was still rich with condescension. "How about that, the twerp can add two and two. My name is Sho Minamimoto, former Officer and one-time GM of the Reapers' Game…now reduced to a Player…but hey, could've been worse! The Composer could have erased me out-right for trying to take him out of the equation, but he had the foresight to know that I could still prove useful to him, so he threw me in a hole in Limbo until such a time as he needed a radical variable to solve his problem. And voila, here I am!"
"Wait…you're a Reaper? And you tried to take out Joshua? And now you're working for him?!" Riku asked in quick succession.
"…okay, not so quick on the uptake after all."
"How do I know I can trust you?" Riku asked critically.
"Logic isn't your strong suit, is it punk?" Sho countered, "There isn't a single reason you should trust me…but the Composer wouldn't send me to be your Partner if he didn't think you could handle me. Unless, of course, he considers you non-integral to his formula…"
At that, Riku smirked, causing Sho to look confused. "If you have to resort to playing lame, transparent head-games, I've got nothing to worry about from you, after all," he reasoned. Then a thoughtful look came over him. "One thing I don't get, though…why did you need the door opened for you? Why couldn't Joshua just put you here? He obviously has the power."
"Heh, smug little brat doesn't know as much as he thinks he does," Sho said to himself; Riku stoically ignored the obvious baiting. "Two reasons. The first is to do with the mechanics of this castle, which I won't waste time getting into as they would obviously go over your fractal brain," said Sho, adopting a face that was mostly serious, but still heavily tinged with pomposity, "The second is that His Prissiness had a special errand for me to run before joining you here," he added.
"And that would be?" Riku asked impatiently.
Sho's constantly smug grin widened to full-blown shit-eating proportions before he said, "The Composer never told me I had to share that intel with you. So I'll exercise my right to keep my thoughts to myself on that one. If it ever becomes relevant to our mission, I might clue you in…if I'm feeling generous. And before you think about making any demands of me, know this; even though I'm on that high-and-mighty brat's shit-list, you and I are still supposed to be Partners, and thus on equal footing–in theory, anyways–so no 'pulling rank', as it were."
"Ass-hat indeed," muttered Riku, just loudly enough for Sho to hear him. Then louder, "Kariya sends his regards, by the way. Now let's get on with our mission already."
Sho's grin shrank away, to Riku's surprise, and he cocked his head thoughtfully. "So, that sissy put those two in charge? Ha! What a radical theorem!"
Some distance outside of Castle Oblivion…
…an odd duo of the utmost oddness was just lounging about in mid-air, as winged entities residing beyond the veil betwixt Life and Death are often wont to do.
Laying on his back with his arms folded under his head and a lollipop in his mouth, the orange-haired young man named Koki Kariya was deep in thought while staring up into the abyssal darkness of the sky over Castle Oblivion. Sitting criss-cross-applesauce next to him was his pink-haired turtleneck-and-corset-wearing partner-in-crime, Yashiro Uzuki. She observed the progress of the newly-minted duo of Riku and Sho on the screen of her smartphone, which somehow showed them even though there were no cameras in the castle for her to hack into. But she was a goddamn psychopomp, so logic could go suck an egg for all she cared.
"This whole thing is totally cray-cray, right? It ain't just me, right, Kariya?" she asked, still trying to puzzle out why Joshua would have even kept Minamimoto alive, much less assign him as someone's partner. Everyone in the Reapers knew that the one thing that the Mad Mathematician was an unqualified failure at was cooperating with others. For all her cruelty and viciousness, even Uzuki could appreciate the value of a dependable partner, like her Kar–her partner, Kariya…
Ahem.
After all, even if he was a lazy piece of shit with no sense of ambition or purpose, he always came through for her, as good partners do.
"Yeah, it's crazy alright. No doubt about that," Kariya agreed. "I've been wracking my brain trying to figure it all out."
"Wait, you're actually using your head for something other than a crime against hair-fashion?" Uzuki asked incredulously, taking her eyes from her screen to spare him a glance.
Not bothering to legitimize his partner's barb with any kind of reaction, Kariya raised one hand into the air to tick off the items on his list of 'weird shit that's happened today'. "First, the Composer Himself personally approaches us for a mission, which came with a probationary promotion to Officer and assignment as Game Masters. I don't know which one is weirder, that we were both put in charge of a Game together or that we were put in charge of a Game when we were still just Harriers yesterday. Second, he tells us that our world was just a small part of a larger Multiverse and gave us a huge info-dump about things called 'Kingdom Hearts', 'Keyblades', 'Heartless', 'Nobodies', and other crap that makes my head spin. Third, he sends us to this 'world' where there's no RG and UG, and tells us to help this Riku kid 'fix history'. What the hell is that even supposed to mean? And last but not least, 'Oh, hey, Minamimoto is still alive and I'm making him a Player in this bizzaro Game you'll be supervising, and you won't have any Noise or any other Reapers to help you, either'. So there's all that, too."
"Well, we're actually supposed to help them, not try to erase them–"
"Which is also really weird!" Kariya interjected.
"–So we don't really need Noise or other Reapers, do we?" Uzuki asked rhetorically.
Kariya sat up, pulling one of his legs up and propping his right elbow on his knee. "I don't know about you, but when Pi-face flips his shit and goes rogue, and we have to erase him, I'd feel better having some back-up."
"Tch, we've got each other, dumbass. What other back-up would we need?" Uzuki sneered, even as her cheeks heated up.
"Dunno if you remember, Yashiro, but we got our asses kicked by Joshua's Proxy and that butthead punk friend of his. You sure we can take that bag of crazy?"
"He won't be able to summon any Noise either, Taboo or otherwise, and if he steps out of line," Uzuki stood up, reached out her hand, and summoned a revolver with a flash of pink light, "I'll totally blow his brains out myself," she finished with a wicked grin.
Kariya blinked, and then shot her a grin. "My fearless guardian angel, huh?" he teased, causing Uzuki to blush furiously. "Alright, enough sappy crap. Hand over the phone, Yashiro, it's my turn to watch 'em."
"Like, whatever! Get your own!"
"I can't portal in there!" Riku snapped, angry and confused that this one door was seemingly rebuffing him. He couldn't open it, any attempt to bypass it with a Corridor came to nothing, and it was the last barrier between him and the Destiny Islands memory-world where his past-self was being held prisoner; his best guess was that this door refused to yield precisely because the floor beyond it was being used as a prison.
In other words, the Organization must have sealed it off somehow to keep the other Riku inside and anyone who might want to help him, out. "If I had an actual Keyblade," he muttered angrily. His Mastery over Light and Darkness seemed to let him break most of the Castle's 'rules', such as needing cards to open doors or fight and being able to access his Dark Mode at will, but he was still limited to using his old Soul Eater.
"Keyblade…hey, that sounds familiar," commented Sho, who was leaning against a nearby wall and had been watching with immense amusement as Riku struggled against this one obstinate door.
Riku shot him a dirty look and said, "Don't tell me you're actually going to make yourself useful here?"
"I just might, actually," Sho replied. "I just recalled that His Prissiness had something for me to give to you," he continued as he pulled a glimmering pin out of his pocket. "I was wondering what use you could have for it. After all, the Underground doesn't exist in other worlds beyond our own. So what use could a Player Pin be to you, when their power only works in the UG? But you just reminded me that he did say something you being completely worthless without something called a 'Keyblade'…"
Riku belligerently ignored the ex-Reaper's insult and turned to face him fully. Sho tossed him the pin, and the instant Riku caught it, it flashed brightly before being replaced by a very familiar token…
"Joshua…" Riku muttered in awe. "Thank you." Riku held the token in the palm of his left hand and summoned Soul Eater in his right, and slammed the hilt of the weapon into the token, and in a burst of Dark Fire the weapon became his Way to the Dawn.
"I see," said Sho, his tone and expression entirely serious for once. "The 'pin' was just a carrying form that would allow me to transport that Keychain to you. Very clever, Joshua."
"Sounds like someone knows more about the Keyblade than he wanted to let on," remarked Riku, pointing his Keyblade at the door and unlocking it easily.
"HA! I know something about everything, like a true Renaissance man!" Sho boasted, "In fact, I'm a one-man Renaissance!"
Riku rolled his eyes and said, "Wait here. This…I can handle myself."
A few minutes later…
Riku returned, surprised to find that Sho really was waiting where he had left him. He was fiddling with some kind of puzzle-cube that appeared to be made up of smaller cubes of different colors of light. Upon noticing Riku's return, Sho made the light-cube disappear and cracked his knuckles. "Alright, 'partner', anything else we need to do before we can get the hell out of this bland-ass excuse for a castle?" he asked.
"Just one thing," Riku assured, pointing Way to the Dawn forward and using it to open a Corridor of Darkness directly to the top floor of the Castle. "There's a girl waiting to be rescued."
A/N: I could unload a torrent of apologies again, but I think if I did that every time, it would eventually render the apologies meaningless. I just have to accept that, right now, my schedule is not conducive to timely writing. Hopefully, this will change soon, but I won't make any promises that I don't know I can keep. I hope you all can forgive my tardiness and bear with me. At the very least, know that I don't take your patience for granted, nor do I have any illusions of grandeur regarding my own humble work. That some of you are enjoying this enough to keep coming back for more is already way more than I ever dared to hope for, and I pray to someday be the writer you wonderful people deserve ^_^
(Feel free to tack on the obligatory Dark Knight joke, if you so wish =3)
Now some actual Notes regarding this chapter! Yes, I realize how cheap I'm being by side-stepping any integration of CoM OR TWEWY combat mechanics into this story, despite Riku .being in Castle Oblivion AND being a Player in the Reaper's Game. And while I'm totally doing this just to save myself a bit of a hassle, I do have some semi-half-assed justifications. I'm not so lowly as to feel that I'm entitled to blatantly disregard established lore to suit my own laziness. That's a big no-no in my book. I will, however, latch onto any conceivable loophole that might let me get away with such a thing. Besides, in a story what really matters is that there's enough dramatic tension present that the readers care about whether or not the protagonists succeed, right?
First, Riku being able to break the card system; this is probably most-definitely the cheaper of the two loopholes, but here it is: Riku is confirmed to be the first (known) Keyblade Master to have true control over both the Light and the Darkness. That right there already opens up the possibility of him being able to do all sorts of other things that have never been done before, BUT that's not to say that I'm going to use that as an excuse to have Riku make ass-pulls left and right. There still has to be some underlying reason and probability. In this case, note that Castle Oblivion's unique world mechanics are not natural qualities of its world, but features of a defensive enchantment that Master Aqua laid upon the Land of Departures. Note also that the purpose of said enchantment is to protect the world from the forces of Darkness.
My logic is that, as one who has mastered his Light and his Darkness, and brought the two into harmony, Riku could theoretically be exempt from this enchantment's restrictions. As one who has truly mastered Darkness, Riku is not a slave to it, and thus does not pose a threat to the world of Castle Oblivion. And before anyone asks, "Then why would CO consider Sora a threat to the world?" let me remind you of this often-overlooked plot point.
Sora was a Heartless during Chain of Memories.
Yes, yes he was. A Heartless in human form? Yes, just like Ansem was. A Heartless that can feel emotions? Yes, because he actually still had his heart, just like all other Heartless do. That's the misleading thing about the Heartless; they aren't actually heartless, Nobodies are. The Heartless only behave as if devoid of emotion because they're hearts are shrouded in Darkness. Kairi didn't actually turn Sora's Heartless back into a human being, she just made him look like Sora again, and shared her Light with him so he could act like Sora. He wasn't really properly Sora again until his Heartless and Nobody–Roxas–were reunited in KH2. That's my theory, at least, and I'll hold it as long as Nomura doesn't make a point of telling me that I'm wrong. Assuming that my theory is true, the enchantment on CO would recognize Sora as a potential threat and affect him as it would anyone else.
Second, the extreme unorthodoxy of the Game Riku is in. It is confirmed that the different worlds in the Square-Disney Multiverse (Squeesneyverse?) have their own quirks. Their own subtly different laws of physics, as it were. Example, the Curse of the Aztec Gold in Port Royal, which explicitly does not affect outworlders like Sora, Donald, Goofy, or Luxord, or the lack of human beings in the Pride Lands being SO absolute that not only does Sora automatically transform into a lion when he goes there, but even mere humanoids like Donald, Goofy, and Pete are also forcibly transformed into much-less anthropomorphized animals. I could go on, but I won't.
Point being, it should be fair to presume that the Underground/Realground and the existence of the Noise (which are otherwise very Heartless-like) are 'quirks' specific to the TWEWY world. So yes, I'm using that bit of KH lore, "Different worlds have different rules", as an excuse to let Riku boycott the combat rules of the Reaper's Game. However! He is still bound by other rules. He did have to give up an entry fee (which will be elaborated upon), he is in danger of being erased if he cannot win the Game, or if anything unfortunate should happen to Minamimoto, or if they fail in any of the 'missions' required to repair the timeline. To say nothing of other complications that have yet to arise…
Fufufu…
And then there's Minamimoto himself, who will most assuredly prove as much a hindrance as a help, if not more so, to our dear Riku. And to those who were paying attention in 3D, it's clear that the Light Puck can exist outside of the TWEWY world, so that's still on the table.
We can all agree that the best fanfics are the ones that can stand on their own without having to break the lore of the source-canon, but surely a fanfic that only makes a few little breaks here and there can still be good, right? Right?
Or is this whole thing not nearly as big a deal as I'm making it out to be? Am I being overly nitpicky and apologetic of my own work? Doth I protest too much?
I guess that's for you to decide. Hopefully, you all enjoyed this story regardless.
NEXT CHAPTER! We'll probably open with Riku again, but the focus should be more on Sora and friends, and we might even check in on those lovely people we left in the future. Whatever comes next, I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I'll enjoy writing it ^_^
Wolfman, ow-out!