Chapter 10 Lost Light
'Hearts vary in power from individual to individual. Some have great light or great darkness. Both are powerful. However, there are other kinds of power a heart can posses. A rare type of power is the ability of a heart to be host to another when the other is lost. Any heart without a home can seek and find refuge in a person whose heart has this host power. These refugee hearts become dormant and sometimes the host is not even aware that they are carrying the extra heart. It is even possible for these host hearts to carry more than one refugee heart at a time.
While it appears to be effortless for a host to welcome in the lost heart, research has yet to confirm how that refugee heart is then able to leave the host... to welcome in the lost heart, research has yet to confirm how that refugee heart is then able to leave the host...While it appears to be effortless for a host to welcome in the lost heart...'
It takes Zack a moment to realize he has read the last line three times and he sighs. Sitting back in his chair, he rubs his aching eyes, trying wake himself up. A glance at the clock in the corner of the computer screen tells him it is 7 AM already, but the shades over the windows keep the one room house dark except for the bluish light of the computer screen.
On the couch against the wall Riku is sleeping where he had crashed at about 3 in the morning. However, this wasn't Zack's first all nighter in his search for information on Ven and pushed on, reading through paper after paper on experiments, findings, and theories. The documents, like the one he is trying to read at the moment, all discuss hearts and the connections between hearts, but despite the overwhelming amount of information he has already sifted through during the night, none of it had told him anything specific about Ven.
Reaching in to his pocket, Zack pulls out a small plastic pin from his pocket and rolls it between his fingers. Maybe it had foolish to get his hopes up when he had first seen the name on the file. He's lost track of how many promising leads hadn't panned out in the end and it is looking like this file is another one of them.
It hadn't been a total waste of time. The information on hosts and sleeping hearts had confirmed what Master Yen Sid has suspected, but it hadn't told Zack where Ven's heart had ended up.
There are so many worlds out there and so many hearts that could have given Ven's refuge. From reading, Zack knows host hearts are rare, but he doesn't know how to tell if someone had the ability. And then what the document had said about the host not knowing of the other heart...if even the host didn't know about Ven's heart, how is Zack supposed to find it?
But he will, one day. He will search every world and scrutinize every person until he finds the answer. And when Ven's heart is released and returned to his body, Zack will find him. He can see it now.
A hundred heartless guarded the door, but none would so much lay a finger on Zack as he fought through the hoard. Then shinning and gleaming the doors would swing inward at his touch. Standing there with a smile would be Ven looking the same as Zack remembered. Ten years hadn't changed him one bit. Golden blond hair swept up it spikes and blue eyes wide with happiness. Ven would run to him and fall into Zack's arms with whispered promises of never leaving again.
Zack sits up straight at the hand on his shoulder and blinks at Riku standing next to him. He had dozed off long enough for the computer to turn to its screensaver.
"Sorry," Zack grunts rubbing his eyes with one hand. He reaches for the computer mouse to wake up the screen, but Riku moves in front of him, blocking him.
"Why don't you get some rest, Zack," Riku says gesturing towards the couch that he had been sleeping on.
Zack shakes his head and picks up the pin that had fallen out to his lap when he'd dozed off. "We're over halfway through the file. I'll sleep when we finish."
"I'll keep looking Zack, but you need to sleep," Riku says. "When was the last time you got a decent amount of sleep?"
The honest answer is a week ago when Zack got a whole six hours of sleep in one night, but Zack just shrugs. "I get enough sleep."
Riku raises a disbelieving eyebrow at him. "Tell that to the bags under your eyes."
"I'm fine," Zack says now irritated. He tries to reach around Riku to get at the computer mouse, but Riku shifts to block him again.
"You just fell asleep in this chair," Riku says. "Go rest. I'll wake you if I find anything important."
Zack wavers, feeling the draw of the sagging couch and the promise of sleep. "Anything important," he says. "Even the smallest thing. Wake me, okay?"
"Yes, now go," Riku says gesturing for Zack to get up.
Zack groans as he stands, his muscles stretching for the first time in hours. He barely glances back as he shuffles across the room to the couch that serves as the closest thing to a bed and reaching it he falls with little grace onto his back.
He looks at Ven's pin one more time, running a finger over the stupid words, before slipping it into his pocket. The bluish light of the computer screen lights up the far corner of the room where Riku sits on the edge of the chair, leaning close to read off the screen, but Zack's eyes finally shut and he escapes into his dreams.
…
"A statue, huh?" Herc says scratching his head and looking at the ceiling of the lobby in thought. Sora, Donald, and Goofy had just finished recounting what they had seen the night before to him and Phil.
"Yeah," Sora says nodding along with Donald and Goofy. "And it was painted to look just like Tay."
"Sounds like Hades' got Tay's free will trapped in that piece of wood," Phil says. "If that's true, Tay has to do exactly what Hades tells him. The magic's got him bound tight."
"Can we help him?" Goofy asks, looking from Herc to Phil.
"His best bet is getting that statue away from Hades," Phil says beckoning them to follow him as they walk out of the lobby and into the arena where the competing heartless are waiting for the day's games to begin. "Find the statue and give it back to Tay and the spell will probably be broken."
"Probably?" Donald repeats and Phil shrugs.
"Gods' magic is some strong stuff. We just gotta hope its that easy to break."
Sora glances around the arena and spots Tay in the top corner of the stands. The hood of his beat up red jacket is pulled up to block most of his face, but Sora has the distinct feeling he is watching them. "Alright," Sora says turning back to the group. "Where do we find Hades?"
"He's the god of the Underworld," Herc says. "But you can't just go down there looking for him."
"Why do you say that?" Donald asks.
"Heroes can't fight in the Underworld. It saps their strength." Herc glances around and lowers his voice so they have to lean in to hear. "But there is a way to protect yourself. The other gods use what they call the Olympus Stone when they have to travel to Hades' domain. It lets them retain their powers."
"Would the gods let us borrow it?" Sora asks. He keeps his voice low as well.
"I think I'll be able to convince my father," Herc says glancing at the sky. "But it might take sometime. Phil, I'm afraid I'll have to drop out of the games."
Phil sighs. "I understand, champ. I'll write you out of the bracket."
"Should we drop out too?" Sora asks.
Herc shakes his head. "Stay in the running and keep an eye on Tay," he says. "But be careful. You heard what Hades told him to do."
"Don't worry about us," Sora says, adopting a slightly smug tone. "We'll come out on top."
Phil snorts out a laugh and Donald glares at him.
"I'll be back as quick as I can," Herc says with a final wave before heading back out of the arena.
Once Herc is gone, Phil puts his fingers to his lips and lets out a piercing whistle that gets everyone's attention. "Oi! Listen up," Phil shouts. "It's time we got this show on the road. First competitors to the arena. Everyone else get out of the way."
Sora, Donald, and Goofy hurry to the stands as Phil shoos them away and Sora glances at Tay who is still staring at him from above. Giving him a smile, Sora waves. He is sure he sees the ghost of a smile on Tay's lips before Tay tugs the hood of his jacket to cover his face even more and leans back in his seat, no longer staring at Sora.
The matches go on all day with only a short break for lunch. By mid afternoon there are only two competitors left, Sora, with Donald and Goofy, and Tay. Herc has yet to return with the Olympus Stone and Phil is trying to stall the final match, but the tournament rules only allow him to do so much.
"It'll be okay, Phil," Sora says as Phil searches the papers on the clipboard for his 'lost' announcement sheet that Sora can see right on top. "If we take any longer Tay is going to get suspicious."
"That guy is going to squash you like a bug," Phil mutters, continuing to angrily flip through his papers.
Donald squawks indignantly. "He's not that good."
"You're right; he's not good, he'd great." Phil throws his clipboard on the ground and pulls himself up to his diminutive height to poke a threatening finger at Sora's chest. "He's ten leagues ahead of you and he isn't going to play by the rules. Don't be the hero here. When the match starts, keep your distance. Play defense. Herc'll be back soon so just keep him busy for awhile. I only got two more words of advice for you - don't get killed."
Sora looks across the arena to where Tay is warming up, swing his sword in deadly circles around his head. "We'll be fine," he says with more confidence then he feels. "Let's get this started."
With Donald and Goofy beside him, Sora walks to the marked off fighting area and takes up a battle position on one side. Seeing them, Tay moves into the fighting area as well and faces them in a relaxed position with is sword held in his strange backhand style.
"This is the fight for all the glory," Phil shouts from the sidelines. From his voice, Sora can tell he is unhappy with letting this fight happen. "Rules haven't changed. Bumps and bruises are okay, but trying any harder hits will result in disqualification."
Sora watches Tay's face, now not obscured by his hood, but he shows no reaction to Phil's words and has the same blank stare Sora had seen the night before.
"Ready? Begin!"
At Phil's command, Tay leaps forward with his sword aimed right at Sora, but Goofy moves between them with his shield out to block. Tay's sword is deflected off to the side, but he recovers fast enough to block blast of ice Donald sends at him.
Donald keeps up the blizzard magic, forcing Tay to focus his attention on blocking the ice, and Sora moves behind Tay. He steps in for a hit thinking Tay won't be able to fight off both of them, but he doesn't expect Tay to suddenly duck under Donald's magic. Sora finds himself right in the path of friendly fire and yelps as he dives to the side.
Half a second later Donald stops the spell. "Sora!"
"I'm fine," Sora replies as he rolls to his feet, but before he is fully upright, Tay's sword is coming down on him.
Goofy is suddenly there with his shield up and deflects the attack. Tay recovers and launches into a flurry of blows, but Sora is back on his feet and parries each swing. After one block, Tay staggers, letting his sword drop for a second. Sora takes the opening and stabs forward, realizing too late it had been a feint.
Tay had never been off balance. He easily dodges Sora's attack by turning away and as he turns back, he lashes out with his foot, kicking Sora in the stomach hard enough to knock the wind out of him.
Sora falls to the side gasping, and looks up to see Tay towering over him. A fireball from across the fighting area hits Tay in the shoulder and he turns to intercept the next one Donald shoots at him. He deflects it with his blade and it flies back at Donald, hitting him hard and sending him back against one of the columns in the corner. He falls and doesn't get up.
Goofy charges Tay, but Tay swings his sword over his head with both hands. Goofy raises his shield above his head to protect himself, but the force behind the hit knocks him hard enough to knock him out.
Seeing his two friends go down, Sora finds the strength to push himself to his feet. "Cura," he says and the pain in his chest is gone. Tay turns to him with a blank stare and Sora prepares to go down fighting. He is about to charge Tay and hope for the best when a voice that is not his own whispers in his head.
Salvation.
He can feel the magic manifesting around him and acting like he had done this move a hundred times, Sora lifted his arms out to his sides and let his head tip back as the magic lifted him into the air. All that energy just waiting to be released.
"Salvation," he shouts and light explodes out of him. It slams into and through Tay, knocking him to the ground.
The light fades and Sora is slowly lowered to the ground. The instant his feet reach the dirt, the magic fades leaving him exhausted. Breathing hard, Sora looks to where Donald and Goofy are waking back up before stumbling forward to approach Tay.
For a moment Sora thinks he is out cold, but then bright green blink open and Tay sits up, rubbing the back of his head. Sora keeps his keyblade in hand in case Tay is going to attack again, but the black haired man looks up at him with clearer eyes than he had before and says in surprise, "Sora?"
"Are you alright?" Sora asks as Tay pushes himself to his feet.
"I'm fine, but you need to go," Tay says urgently. "Hades has been controlling me, but your spell freed me for a moment. He wants me to kill you. You have to get out of here before-" Tay suddenly gasps in pain and clutches at his jacket over his heart.
"Tay!" Sora shouts and Donald and Goofy echo him as they come up beside Sora.
"Hades...he's…" Tay tries to say, but the pain is too much.
"It's so hard to find good help these days," Hades says coming out of the shadows of the gate where beasts are held during other games at the coliseum. He is holding the statue of Tay in his hand and as he grips it tighter, Tay gasps again and falls to his knees. "Oh well. I guess its time to pull out the big guns." In the shadows behind him, three sets of burning red eyes appear. Sora gasps as a monstrously huge black dog with three identical heads each complete with a mouth full of razor sharp teeth comes out of the shadows and growls at them.
"Play nice," Hades says disappearing in a cloud of smoke as the three-headed dog swipes with his paw and Sora, Donald, and Goofy dive to the sidelines where Phil is. Tay however is still on his knees and defenseless. The huge black paw smashes into him sending him flying before hitting the wall of the coliseum with a solid clunk and falling to the ground.
"Tay!" Sora shouts, but Tay lies still. Sora turns to Phil who's face is white with fear. "What is that?" He asks gesturing at the monster that is watching them as if examining its dinner.
"Cerberus," Phil says in a voice that tells Sora this is very, very bad. "He's Hades' pet. You have to watch out because he shoots- get down!"
Phil yanks Sora down to the ground with him and they along with Donald and Goofy cover their heads as a fireball whips over their head and explodes against the stands.
"Stay down, Phil," Sora says as he, Donald, and Goofy jump back to their feet.
"You don't need to tell me twice," Phil replies and Sora glances back to see him move to behind some training barrels to stay out of sight.
"Here Sora," Donald says pushing a small blue bottle into Sora's hands that he recognizes as ether. He murmurs his thanks and downs it in two big gulps, sighing as it restores the magic it took to perform that powerful attack. Donald readies his staff and glares up at Cerberus."Three heads and three of us," he says.
"Make that four."
"Herc," Sora says with a grin as the man comes running up beside them. "You made it just in time for all the fun."
"Wouldn't miss it," Herc says sizing Cerberus up in a heartbeat. "Split up and confuse it. Attack the head if you can and watch out so you don't get trampled."
"Got it," Sora says and Donald and Goofy nod. Cerberus sends another fireball at them, but they are already on the move; Sora and Herc heading straight for the monster and Donald and Goofy heading up into the stands.
From the upper ground, Goofy throws his shield and catches the middle head under the eye. It howls and the two other growl in anger. Sora does the same with his keyblade, aiming at the head on his left. It lands a solid hit on the monster's snout, but Sora doesn't see it as he is too busy diving out of the way of another fireball.
Cerberus then begins a rampage of fireballs that are all aimed at Sora. He is forced to roll to the side to avoid the next one and he gets to his feet only to duck under another. The assault continues and Sora is forced to run across the whole arena with fireballs hitting the ground around his heels.
Donald keeps up a barrage of magic, Goofy throws his shield over and over, and Herc mercilessly tries to punch the monster into submission, but Cerberus ignores them. Finding himself running in circles, Sora decides to act. He skids to a stop, turning on his heels, and summoning his keyblade horizontally across his chest. Another fireball comes at him, but he holds his ground and when it hits his keyblade it rebounds off. It flies back across the the arena and hits the center head dead on making the monster reel back with a roar of pain.
"Good work, Sora!" Goofy calls from the stands where he and Donald are still sending magic at the monster.
Sora raises his hand in acknowledgment to Goofy then Quick Runs back to Cerberus' feet where Herc attacking the monster. Sora joins him, jumping up and knocking Cerberus' head with his keyblade.
The monster starts to moan pitifully and Sora knows it is close to defeat. Exchanging a quick look with Herc, Sora jumps up at the same time as him to hit the left head while Donald strikes the middle one with a thunderbolt and Goofy catches the right one with a fire spell.
With the combined attack, Cerberus lets out one more roar of pain before it's eyes roll back in it's head and it falls with a mighty crash to the ground. As Sora watches, black smoke surrounds the still body and when the smoke clears, Cerberus is gone.
"That'll teach Hades," Herc says with a grin and Sora grins back. They both turn to see Tay trying to get to his feet and holding his head where it hit the wall. Herc reaches him first and steadies him with a hand on his shoulder.
"You okay, Tay?" Herc asks.
Tay lets his hand drop and slowly turns to face Herc with a blank expression. Before Herc can react, Tay lunges at him, pushing him against the wall and grabbing his throat with both hands.
Sora shouts, "Stop it Tay!" But his voice is drowned out by dark laughter behind him.
Hades appears in a flash a smoke in the stands with Tay's statue in his hands. "I guess its back to Plan A and my little puppet."
"Let Tay go!" Goofy says and Hades only half turns to him as he and Donald jump on top of him from the stand above.
"What? Hey!" Hades shouts as Donald and Goofy both slam into him and knock him off balance. He falls and in an attempt to keep himself from falling on his face, he drops the statue and it bounces down the stands to the arena below.
With a grunt of effort, Herc pushes Tay off him. "Sora! Get the statue!"
Sora doesn't need to be told twice as Tay picks up his fallen sword and swings it at Herc who is forced to jump back to avoid the sharp blade. Sora makes a beeline for the little painted statue and out of the corner of his eye he sees Donald and Goofy grappling with Hades to keep him down.
Sora snatches the statue up and as soon as he does he feels a sharp shock of energy course through him. All of a sudden he can hear Tay's voice coming out of the statue.
Every star out there is a world and I'm going to see them all one day...They don't know the heartless are coming...It'll always be me and you against the world, I promise...This place gets to you sometimes and you start thinking, is it worth it?...Someday things will change. I know for a fact that you are destined for things greater than this shitty world...When I'm gone you will be all alone. I'm sorry. I just hope you can forgive me.
"Sora!"
Herc's shout breaks through the jumble of Tay's thoughts and brings Sora back to reality. He turns to where Herc is still fighting off Tay and throws the statue. Herc shoves Tay back, right into the path of the statue. It strikes him in the chest and on impact it shatters like it is made of glass. Tay stumbles back as the pieces fall to the ground and turn to ash.
A red light travels from the ashes to Tay and makes him glow briefly.
"Tay?" Sora asks taking cautious steps towards him.
Tay raises his head and clear green eyes look at him in surprise. "You did it. You broke the spell."
"Wah!" "Gwarsh!"
The two of them and Herc all turn to see Hades erupt in flames and send Donald and Goofy scrambling back. "This isn't happening!" Hades shouts flickering between red and blue.
"Enough Hades," Herc says stepping forward. "Leave now or you will be taking on all of us?"
Hades glares at him as Sora steps up beside Herc with Tay at his side and Donald and Goofy hop down the stands to stand with them. "This isn't over," he says in a final threat. He disappears in a puff of smoke and when that fades, Sora and the others relax.
"That showed him," Sora says pumping his fist in the air.
He feels a hand on his shoulder and turns to Tay who says, "Thank you, Sora. I wasn't strong enough to fight off Hades alone."
"Don't mention it," Sora says with a grin. "I'm just glad you're back to normal."
Tay nods and turns to Herc. "Sorry for the trouble I caused." Phil makes his way over to them and Tay glances at him. "And for ruining your games."
"They might not have gone as planned, but we still got a winner," Phil says. He holds up the small gold trophy. "Congratulations Sora, you won the Phil cup."
"Really? Awesome!" Sora says. He throws an arm around both Donald and Goofy and pulls them into a quick hug. "We won!"
"Yeah, yeah. Just remember if Herc had stayed in the running you pipsqueaks wouldn't have stood a chance," Phil says as he thrusts the trophy into Sora's hands.
"Hey!" Donald shouts in annoyance, but Sora doesn't hear Phil's comment. He is looking past Phil at Tay who had slipped away unnoticed from the group and is now heading towards the exit of the arena.
"Wait, Tay." Sora chases after him. "Where are you going?"
Tay pauses and turns to him. He glances at the others as they come up behind Sora. "I'm going to go find Hades and teach him a lesson," he says.
"And then what?" Sora asks.
Tay looks away for a moment, a frown on his face. "There's someone I have to find. He was my best friend before I died and the only light I ever had in my life. It's been more than ten years since then...I wonder where he ended up."
"Oh," Sora says thinking of his own mission. "I'm searching too." He looks at Tay and feels an understanding between them. Both wanderers in search of a lost light.
"Well, if you're going after Hades you are going to need this," Herc says handing Tay the Olympus Stone.
"What is it?" Tays frowning at the storm and lightning bolt depicted on it.
"It lets heroes fight in Hades' Underworld," Herc says. "You won't be able to defeat him without it."
"Thanks, but I'm no hero," Tay says trying to hand Herc the stone back.
Herc refuses to take it though. "Don't worry about what you did when Hades was controlling you," he says. "He could have done that to anyone."
Tay lowers his eyes to the ground and shakes his head. "I was so desperate to get out of the underworld. I knew nothing good would come of it, but I still made a deal with Hades."
"Herc is right, Tay," Sora pipes in. "One mistake, one moment of weakness, doesn't mean you can't be a hero. What about when you were alive? Wasn't there someone who thought you were a hero?"
Tay raised his head to look at Sora in surprise. "I guess there was always one person who thought of me as a hero," Tay says slowly.
"Then there you go," Herc says smiling. "Being a hero to many or a hero to one doesn't matter. It's all about strength of heart. The Olympus Stone will work for you as long as you believe in yourself."
Looking from Herc to Sora and then down at the stone for a long moment, Tay finally says, "Thank you, all of you, for helping me get away from Hades. I might not be able to put an end to him for good, but I'll make sure he gets the message to never bother any of you again."
With a final nod to them, Tay turns away and heads for the exit of the arena. Just before he goes out, Sora calls after him, "Good luck Tay! I hope you find who you're searching for."
Tay looks back for a moment. "You too, Sora." And then he's gone. Off to find the Underworld and Hades, and then to search of his lost light.
Sora, Donald, and Goofy say their final goodbyes to Herc and Phil before leaving the Coliseum as well. Outside they move to the green transport circle and return to their gummi ship.
"Where to now?" Goofy asks as they take their seats at the controls.
"Dunno," Sora says pulling up the ship's list of known worlds on the screen. He fights back a yawn before adding, "Ven's heart wasn't at the Coliseum and thats the only clue Zack gave us."
"Zack said King Mickey went to search the worlds on the edges of the universe thinking Ven's heart could have gone there," Donald says. "We could look at some of those worlds as well. Maybe we'll even run into the King and find out what he knows about Ven."
"Good a plan as any," Sora says looking over the list of the worlds. Since most of the worlds on the edges of the universe are unexplored, the ship doesn't have any record of them. "I guess we'll start with the farthest known world out-" Sora is forced to stop by a yawn. "And then we can search from there."
He selects the name Destiny Islands from the list of worlds and the screen changes to a map of how to get there.
"Maybe you should take a nap, Sora," Goofy suggests seeing Sora yawn again. "Did you not sleep last night?"
"I slept some," Sora says with a shrug. In truth he'd spent almost the entire night tossing and turning and worrying about what Hades was doing to Tay.
"Take a nap," Donald says. "We can drive the ship."
"You sure?" Sora says and Donald nods shooing him out of the captains chair. Sora moves to the back of the ship where the passenger seats are and stretches out over four of them. "Alright, but if some of those heartless ships come-"
"Don't worry Sora," Goofy says giving him a smile. "We got this."
Donald yanks the thruster and the ship jumps forward, racing off into space at a jarring speed. Still a little reluctant, Sora closes his eyes, listening to Goofy and Donald bicker over the proper speed, but soon their voices die away as sleep overtakes him.
...
Zack was sitting on the couch in his room back home in Traverse Town. The TV was on and static covered the screen. Its glow created a circle of light in the dark room that Zack couldn't see beyond. He could hear footsteps over the white noise. Armor boots came into the light next to the TV, but the rest of the man remained in shadow. Pale fingers briefly stood out against the fuzz on the screen, then they touched the button on the bottom of the TV and it went black, taking away the circle of light and plunging the whole room into darkness.
The footsteps moved closer, right up to him, and the man stood; a shadowy figure in the dark. It was hard to say if it was his familiar scent or maybe his familiar footsteps that gave it away, but Zack knew who he was even though he couldn't see his face. His body shook with the strength of his hope and his fear of being wrong. "Ven?"
Zack felt him sit on his lap and wrap his arms around his neck. He felt fingers run through his hair and the man leaned in so their foreheads touched. "Ven…" Zack said straining his eyes to see the man's face in the dark, but he remained in shadow. A tear slipped out of Zack's eye and rolled down his cheek. A soft hand brushed it away and gently rubbed the spot.
And then his lips were pressed against Zack's. Every memory of Ven flashed before him, overwhelming his senses. His laugh, his smile, his voice, his touch, his warmth. It was all there in a single moment and Zack held him closer, deepening their kiss.
After a time that felt all too soon to Zack, he pulled away. Zack was crying earnestly now, and soft hands were there again to wipe away the tears. "Please don't go," Zack begged, clutching him tighter. He let out a sob when the lips he knew so well brushed briefly against his forehead. "I don't want you to go again," he said in a broken whisper.
"I'm sorry, Zack."
The TV turned back on and through his blurry vision from the tears that were still falling, Zack could see he was alone. He closed his eyes and buried his face in his hands, trying not scream at the squeezing pain he felt in his heart.
"Zack?" Someone is shaking him, calling his name, drawing him back. Everything goes white and then black and Zack blinks his eyes open to see Riku crouched beside the sagging couch in Hollow Bastion he had fallen asleep on. He looks at him confused, slowly realizing it had only been a dream.
"Sorry to wake you," Riku says taking a step back as Zack sits up, running a hand slowly through his long hair. "But I found something."
Zack looks at Riku and sees the seriousness in his expression. Putting his hands on his knees, Zack pushes himself to his feet. "Show me."
Gah! The song From Where You Are by Lifehouse was made for Zack. It is his song to Ven. If Zack's dream didn't give you enough feels, go listen to this song. Seriously, it is beyond perfect.
LightzMusic22: Does Tay's return mean trouble for Zactus? Hmmm…. I'm not going to say anything about that right now :P
TopazDragon98: Lots of missing Ven feels in this chapter :(
CatLoverx33: Thank you
So now that I've gotten you all excited about Tay, I have to tell you he won't be back for a long time. Sorry!
And after the longest chapter to date in this story (seriously this is sooooo long) I leave you with a cliffhanger! I'll let you know next time what game changing piece of information Riku found :)
Until then, review!