Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.
I follow Maleficent through one of the many portals within Hollow Bastion, and all the while I contemplate the recent events. The blood of one and the lives of countless are on my hands, all just to allow this moment to happen. After what was undoubtedly the longest day in my existence, performing the darkest of deeds, I finally get to see one of my friends again. The question that resides within me, then, is was this meeting worth it? How can I put merely seeing Sora again above the lives of others? It is only now, after all has been said and done, that I begin to ask myself that. Maybe I should have been asking these questions before they held relevance, before they were even able to manifest themselves. It is too late to ask myself these questions though, and I cannot be burdened by the past. Doing so will only lead me to my demise, and that is a prospect I don't particularly enjoy.
During the trip, I begin to think about those questions again, and unable to stop the thoughts, I let myself slowly but surely answer them. Gaston, his death was imminent anyways. The world was going to disappear soon enough anyways, and with it he would disappear. And he was the one responsible for opening the door to the world, wasn't he? I never told him to burn the castle. I never told him to do anything. It was all his fault. And yet, as far as my heart is concerned, it's still my fault. It's still my fault.
When I emerge from the portals, I gasp at the sight that greets me. It is night, with stars dotting the sky to weave one massive tapestry, and yet it is bright enough to qualify as day. Everything is subject to the overpoweringly bright lights of the buildings, and the buildings are everywhere. There is an area where the buildings yield to allow people a place to walk, but like the rest of the area it is illuminated by lamps that lack subtlety in their profiles, harshly proving the urbanization of the area. Everywhere else there are no street lights, nor does there need to be street lights. Numerous lights frame the buildings, drawing the eye to their gaudy colors. Every last inch of the area is bathed in neon glow, and if I were to look to the ground instead of to the sky, I would think it was day.
I look to Maleficent and notice how unimpressed she is by the sight. In fact, she seems rather disdainful towards it. Apparently she prefers the more secluded, isolated emptiness of Hollow Bastion to the bustling commune of this place. Everywhere there are people, and amazingly enough they walk on by, not caring to cast a second glance to the sorceress in their midst.
And yet, amongst all these people there is no Sora, nor is there Kairi. I peer into the crowd and into the lights, but I find neither of them.
"I thought you were taking me to see my friends." I remark, quite angry at Maleficent for this out and out deception.
"Oh, you'll see your little friend in due time. He's on another world right now, but he'll be here soon enough." The fact that Maleficent used the word "he" confirms that it will be Sora that I get to meet. Everything else she says causes me to throw her a questioning glance, wondering why she would bring me here when, as far as I was concerned, there was nothing here. She doesn't take long to notice this and answers my unasked question.
"Before he arrives, I have something I want you to do. It is-"
"That's not part of the deal." I cut in, interrupting her. She looks rather angry for being interrupted in mid-sentence, but she says nothing to indicate it being one way or the other.
"This is part of a new deal then. You do what I ask, or the Heartless will swarm this place en masse. Every person before you, they are fools to not run from me, but they are living fools nonetheless. Do you want to be responsible for making them dead fools?"
"How would I be responsible?" I ask angrily. "You would be the one summoning the Heartless here."
"And yet," she begins to say in a deliberately remorseful tone, "all of these people will live to make another foolish decision if you just do as I say." I pause for a second, wondering if I really want more blood on my hands. I've somehow managed to downplay my lingering guilt over Gaston recently. I rationalized his death during the trip here. I told myself that I really actually thought that it was Gaston who needed to die, and the cloaked man was right when he said Gaston would have died anyway. But, even then, I am still responsible for his death. It was my fault that Gaston did what he did, opening the door to his world, and allowing everything to be completely obliterated. At the same time, though, I didn't exactly tell him to do what he did. I just gave him the courage to do it. And, how was I supposed to know that having that castle burn would open the door to the world? It was simple, unadulterated ignorance, and I really can't be held responsible.
I've been telling myself that for the past hour or so.
"Let them die." I finally say. I'm not truly ready to knowingly put blood on my hands, even despite my slow but steady metamorphosis into a "harbinger of darkness" as the cloaked man put it. Still, part of me is ready to believe that Maleficent is just bluffing, and I want to see whether or not she is.
"So be it." she replies, and by her tone, which lacks any emotion whatsoever, I can tell that she is prepared to make her threat reality. Just as I begin to see the Heartless come forth I intervene.
"Wait. What is it…what do you want me to do?" I ask, the resignation clear in my voice.
"Good, good. This isn't much work. I just need for you to run a quick errand. Too easy for someone with your talents." I choose not to believe anything she says, partly because I'm still doing "not much work" from our first deal, and partly because she attempted to compliment me. Her voice was rather strained when she was doing the latter, almost mocking me.
"So what is it then?" I ask again, and this time she actually gives me an answer.
"I want you to test the bell in the second district of this world."
"Second district?" I ask confusedly, wondering what she's talking about, something I find myself doing often nowadays.
"Yes. This world is called Traverse Town. It is broken up into three districts. This is the first, perhaps what you would call the business district. And that's really all I will tell you. I don't have time to give you an entire speech on this world, I have things to do as well."
"Where is the second district?"
"I'm sure you can figure that out on your own. Ask one of the natives, if you must." Maleficent then hurries off through the crowd, and only the occasional murmur or whispered gasp shows that people actually notice her, but nobody runs, they just let her pass. After she has disappeared from sight I lean uncomfortably against one of the street lamps, looking around the town.
Eventually I lay eyes on one store that looks promising. I just walk forward, up a small series of stairs and through double doors into a snug shop. Immediately upon walking in I look to my right and see a burning fireplace, and in front of me and to my left is a counter, behind which is a man I presume to be the shopkeeper. He has short and spiky blonde hair and a face that seems warm-hearted and angry at once. A toothpick is wedged between his teeth, and every few seconds he fiddles with it, almost wishing it were something else. His shirt is a uniform and sterile white, while his pants are an equally bland blue. He looks over to me and quits fiddling with his toothpick, and begins to speak without removing it.
"What'd'ya want?" he half yells and half asks.
"Oh…I was wondering where the Second District is." I casually say, trying to act like anyone else would and not arouse any suspicion.
"What the…? Where's the Second District? You $@&*#^ pinhead! You don't even know where the Second District is! How have you survived all this time…oh, of course. Yer visiting Traverse Town, aren't you? Come from another world, eh? Yeah, I've seen someone from another world come in here recently. He was looking for something too. Didn't find it though. I think I can you help you out more than I could him. After you exit the shop, just head right and immediately take another right, then follow the sidewalk until you see two very large and wooden doors. Through those doors is the Second District. But…I'd think twice about leaving the First District. Most of the people have stayed here, where the Heartless can't get to 'em."
"The Heartless?" I ask, more to myself than to him. Had Maleficent gone back on her deal? No, that couldn't be it. It sounded like the Heartless had been here for a much longer time. Cid then answered the question I had asked aloud to myself.
"Yeah, the Heartless. They've been a plague on the worlds for what seems like forever. Heh…maybe they have been a plague forever. If only they'd just disappear…" The words flowed from Cid's mouth and his eyes adopted a certain wistfulness. "But, that's not going to happen now, is it? Anyways, the Heartless have been cleared out from this district. A friend of mine by the name of Squa…er, Leon did the job. However, even he couldn't get them all. So, he pretty much just contains them to the other two districts. But it's been tough for him to do even that. The Heartless are spawning with incredible speed. Especially in the Gizmo Shop."
"The Gizmo Shop?" I inquire, rather curious as to what the Gizmo Shop is.
"Ah, it's really more a place where kids go on field trips than a tourist attraction. A bunch of clocks and useless gears, that's all it its. But, some of those gears can cause the bell to ring if they're moved right. A lot of people have been trying to figure out how to stop that. I can't tell you how many times that bell has rung because some kid who can't comprehend the words 'don't touch' shifts one of the gears."
"Well, it's been nice talking to you." I say, and it's only partially a lie. "Thanks for the information…"
"Cid." he says, and I give him my name in return. He bids me farewell and tells him to stop by for any and all accessory needs as I walk back through the double doors. When I come back out I notice the lack of people. I look around and see that some of the neon lights on the buildings are slowly fading away, and shadows are cast onto the ground, and they seem to dance as the level of brightness of the neon lights fluctuates and the lights flicker in and out of existence. The lights then brighten for one final moment before dying completely, and only the dim glow of the street lights prevents complete darkness from occurring. I realize how late it's gotten, and normally I would take the opportunity to sleep to prepare for the next morning, but normally I didn't have something important to do.
I follow Cid's instructions to the letter and rather quickly wind up in front of two wooden doors, besides which is a plaque reading "Second District". I take a moment to celebrate my victory before heading through.
The Second District is of a far different nature than the First District. While the First District was filled with garish lights representing every imaginable color, the lights of the Second District had a more subtle profile. By no means were there no lights. The lights were still everywhere, but they were all white lights, providing a soft glow that I never would have thought to notice. They were merely there, while the lights in the First District were able to hold the full attention of anybody passing by them.
The lights aren't the only difference. The buildings are numerous, with shops and hotels everywhere, but they are not as prominent as the buildings in the First District. These buildings appear to have just been shoved to the side, and they circle the entire area. The center is a place completely free of the buildings, and it has an almost park-like feel to it with its benches and its single fountain, behind which is a mural. It seems to be a rather ambient place, but I fail to be able to take in my surroundings to a fuller extent, as my eyes shift from side to side, keeping a constant watch for any Heartless. Cid said that the place was filled with them, and I'm inclined to believe him.
I find no Heartless however, yet as I take a single tentative step several Heartless appear as if from nowhere. These ones are almost like the shadows, but they are actually standing, and in addition to armor, they have the same heart symbol I saw in Hollow Bastion and on one of the other types of Heartless. Upon seeing this I decide to associate that symbol with the Heartless, and I make a quick mental note as such before whipping out my sword. As I do I stare into their eyes, and they have a maniacal look about them. The shadows had empty eyes, the dark balls had gleeful eyes, and the armored shadows have maniacal eyes. So many different eyes, yet the same intention lies behind all of them, to rob me and everyone else of the very essence of life. For attempting to steal my heart, they'll pay.
It takes only a couple of seconds to dispatch of them. They do not have strength in numbers, nor are they individually strong, so I begin to feel confident about things, ready to believe that it'll be smooth sailing from here. However, this makes me wonder. Maleficent must have really wanted this done, otherwise she wouldn't have made such large threats. So I wonder what's so important about ringing a bell that anyone could get to. This seems to be of dire importance to Maleficent despite its simplicity.
I eventually just put the questions aside and continue to walk with a natural instead of a cautious step. I keep my sword out, but I let it drop to my side, lazily dragging across the ground. Not too far along another group of Heartless pops up, and these ones are destroyed easily as well. Soon enough I go up a brief flight of stairs, turn to my right, and I am faced with the entrance to a building. Above the door the words "Gizmo Shop" appear, with the "z" in gizmo rather noticeably backwards. I push against the door leading inside and take a quick survey of the Gizmo Shop's interior. It looks like something straight from a child's book. Everywhere there are gears or platforms creating arrayed in a confusing manner, and yet there almost seems to be a pattern to their placement. Infinite perplexities collaborate with infinite simplicities to form a twisted, bizarre setting that would give anyone a headache if they just stared at it for too long.
I begin to walk forward, and as I do a group of Heartless obstruct my way. I quickly dispose of them, but another group immediately takes its place. I slash madly at them and they quickly go away, and yet another group spawns in their place. This time I have to work to defeat them, stringing attacks together fluidly while blocking their attacks. As soon as the last Heartless is destroyed, a fourth group rises to challenge me. I shake my head and once more obliterate them. Yet another group takes its place. Every time I destroy a group of Heartless, another just rises and replaces the vanquished group. Soon enough I begin to fatigue, and I wonder how many more Heartless there are. I realize what Cid meant, and I realize how much I had erred in my overconfidence. After almost an hour of intense battle, I feel ready to faint, and with the last of my strength I strike down the last Heartless in a group. Thankfully, no more Heartless appear. I then begin to collapse, my body striking against the floor as my legs refuse to carry my weight any longer, and everything turns black.
Author's Note- Phew. This was a fairly long effort, mainly because I didn't have much free time. But, here it is, my next chapter! It's even a bit longer than usual, but not necessarily long. Well, as always, go ahead and review. This is your chance to tell me if I did any good or not, and I'm hoping that you'll go ahead and take that chance. New reviews = Happy me!