Nightfall, Part Four

It was a good thing, really, that he had just replaced the fuel core. That was Roxas's immediate thought when the proximity alarm at the front console began beeping madly and Riku yelled over his shoulder, "We have incoming!"

He'd been considering making a late lunch, three pinellos in one hand and contemplating things like soup and pasta and wondering if there was any pastry dough left in the deep freeze. He was standing just so, one arm on the pantry door when the call came, and without even thinking he shoved the pinellos back into the icebox and raced to the front of the truck.

"Activate the drive accelerator, we can outrun them if they're still more than thirty clicks behind." Roxas leaned over the back of the driver's seat, peering at the rearview mirror to gauge the distance of the four specks there, approaching fast up the road, black shadows in the afternoon sun. "That's far enough, everyone strap in-"

"Oh, shit," Riku said, at the same time that Kairi, looking very small and curled in the passenger seat, uttered a tiny, throaty squeak.

Through the windshield, on the horizon, four more specks appeared, careening towards them head-on.

"Shit," Roxas echoed, and then like the thought that immediately followed, "Drive! Kairi," he grabbed her by the shoulder, shoved her onto the floor wedged between the seat and the console. "Stay low. Riku," he spun, steadied himself on the doorframe and matched stares with the Replican, Riku nodding without him even having to say it. "Whatever you do, don't stop."

Roxas skidded into the living area, but Sora was already tugging on his blast armor, suited from the waist up, helmet in his hands. He grinned, huge and bright and dangerous, and pulled it on. "You said you had a mana rifle?"

He nodded, scampered over to the weapons locker and jerked it open, pulled out the metal monstrosity, ten pounds of polished brass and steel, glass scope, pneumatic pump, and raw mana ammunition. He turned to pass it along to Sora, already pulling down the ladder for the roof hatch, grin still prominent beneath his helmet, the only part of his face that could be seen.

"They're coming from both directions," he offered as Sora hefted the weapon, climbing the first two rungs to push the hatch open, wind screaming through the small opening as Riku picked up speed.

"Well then," Sora intoned, settling the weapon against his shoulder. "You're the Lightwielder, come up with something fancy."

"Fancy," Roxas echoed, and hit the ground as the truck skidded to the left.

Fancy, fancy. He'd already passed out from exhaustion once, and although he'd recuperated at an excellent rate, youth being on his side, the Art itself was still depleted and hadn't had time to grow enough to fill his stores. He had a little bit available he could use without side effect and without exhaustion, but it wasn't enough to take out eight Angels, or multiple Angels at all, even assuming Sora could eliminate some. If he had a way to magnify it-

Oh. Fucking brilliant.

He scrambled around on the floor, opening doors and cupboards, clothes and other domesticities spilling out and rolling across the floor as the truck skidded and swerved, tires screeching, and Roxas clinging to keep from tumbling himself. Sharp, metallic thunks hit the outer panels, bullets not strong enough to penetrate the truck's armor but enough to cause surface damage that he didn't have the equipment to repair. Behind him, in the driver's seat Riku cursed, spun the wheel and Roxas grabbed hold of the cupboard he'd just opened, a wave of canned food rolling across the floor in a rumbling crash, and somewhere above him Sora crowed.

"I got one!"

Something that sounded like an explosion echoed beyond the truck's walls, followed by Sora cackling, another round of ammunition firing.

Roxas found his feet just long enough to stumble back to the weapons closet, where he should have looked to begin with-and sure enough, in the lowest compartment, there it was-old-fashioned for such a modern vehicle, but some people still found spyglasses useful.

He grabbed it just as the truck swerved again, grabbed a can of diced pinellos as it rolled past and used that to smash the soft brass against the floor, denting and prying it apart just enough so he could wrest out the biggest lens. He caught his finger against a raw edge, ignored the pain and left the mess to rattle across the floor with everything else.

"Roxas!" Sora's voice was high and far too excited through the open hatch, only his legs and feet visible, heat pouring down with the sunlight. "Still waiting on that something fancy!"

"I'm coming up!" Roxas scrambled across the floor, dodged rolling cans and t-shirts and a hairbrush, grabbing the ladder just in time or another, sharper swerve would have sent him toppling into the bank of appliances. "Can you cover me?"

"Sure, just stay low for a second." Sora was level with the roof, both elbows on it, rifle secure against his shoulder and neck bent so he could peer through the scope. Grin still on his face as he fired a round towards the side of the truck. "So what is it? Your something fancy?"

Roxas pulled himself up a few rungs, just until he could feel the air currents pulling at his hair. "You ever fried ants on a flagstone with a magnifying glass?"

Sora adjusted his aim, turning more to the side, and fired off another round, letting out a whoop when another explosion resounded, shaking the truck as it bounced dangerously on the road. He cackled again, then cleared his throat and said, "No, actually, I always thought that was kind of cruel."

"Yeah, so did I-but you understand the concept, right?"

"I get it." Sora's grin widened, all his teeth showing. "Almost ready."

Another turn, another fire, and then Sora twisted to face the rear of the truck, the hatch itself guarding from behind. "Okay, make this fast, and don't get shot!"

"Right, I'll just dodge bullets if I see them," Roxas muttered, and pulled himself up.

The buzz of motorbikes surrounded them on all sides, the six remaining Angels circling the truck, speeding far ahead and doubling back, racing headlong towards the front to make Riku swerve, trying to knock it to the side or make him slow down, stop, crash, anything that would result in the four occupants being dead and the truck and all its supplies in the road pirates' possession. Each pass left a series of mana bullets showering the truck in buzzing green bursts, some glancing off harmlessly and some denting the armor and some passing dangerously close to Sora's head.

"Make it fast!" Sora repeated, all but screaming over the hot wind whipping past them and Roxas gripped the lens securely in his hand, lifted it up to catch the sun, searching for an angle. He dug deep, finding the bit of Art he could draw on and gaging it, letting it help him direct the light through the lens and then, just as he opened his eyes, let it flow up and through in a blinding flash.

The light that passed over the road was like a laser, sweeping across with a flick of Roxas's wrist and instantly four of the motorbikes and their occupants screeched and tumbled and skidded away, nothing but charred, smoking wrecks of man and machine alike remaining. Roxas felt his spine go cold, felt Sora's voice rising beside him in exclamation.

"Holy Seven in the fucking sky!"

Roxas sank back against the hatch, not certain if he could afford another pass but the two remaining Angels were circling warily, considering the smoking remains of their comrades, and then abruptly fled, speeding away down the road, Sora firing a few cursory rounds in their wake.

He breathed out, felt his body starting to shake with adrenaline and finally, through the heat and the noise and the wind and the pounding of his own pulse, another sound that was part of the cacophony began to resolve itself with the way the truck was listing from side to side. Sora, still high on the fight and chuckling at his side, paused as well.

Kairi was screaming.

Roxas moved first, because he was in Sora's way, and without waiting for the other boy he dropped the lens in the mess already on the floor and hurried to the pocket door, leaning through it and taking in the scene before lurching forward and grabbing the steering wheel to steady the truck. Riku was slumped over it, one hand on his neck and deathly limp, the driver's side window a spiderweb of cracked glass around a single, tiny hole. Kairi was still where he'd left her, wedged on the floor, hands clasped over her mouth and tears rolling down her face, screaming into her own skin, eyes wide and unseeing and locked on Riku's unresponsive form.

Sora shoved through the door, hatch still flapping loose and clattering against the roof, ignored. He shoved his helmet off, reaching down to pull his Replican upright, murmuring his name and in that one brief, shining moment Roxas could see the concern and fear and love rolling over his heart unfettered like a tidal wave breaking over all of his shields. Roxas turned away from them, back to Kairi, holding the wheel steady as the road sped straight ahead, not daring to stop the truck with the fight only minutes past. He knelt as far as he could like that, reached out to pull Kairi's hands from her face, blocking her view of the driver's seat. "Kairi. Look at me."

"They shot him," her voice squeaked, mouth moving over the words again and again after she said it, eyes wide and blind and staring up at him, trembling under his hand. "They shot him in the neck-I saw-there was blood, there was so much blood-"

"Shh." Roxas settled his free hand on top of her head, smoothing her hair to the side, loose and tangling out of her plaits and wet with panicked sweat and tears. He slid over the surface of her heart, watching how the netting and the veils shivered and shifted and trembled along with her, but they would solidify again on their own, in a few moments. "Breathe. Look at me, okay? Breathe."

A groan behind him and Riku shifted upright, eyes blinking open, encircled in Sora's arms and confused, hand still on his neck. Roxas looked over his shoulder, watching him. "Kairi says he was shot."

Sora smoothed Riku's hair back and the Replican sucked in another breath, teeth set and eyes pained. "Just grazed me. I'm fine."

Roxas peered at the hand on his neck, noted the redness between his fingers and nodded, turning back to Kairi. "It's fine, see? Riku's okay. It was just a graze."

Kairi blinked, eyes flicking up to Riku, to Sora, Riku again and back to Roxas. "But... but I saw it..." She reached up, rubbed her head, eyes closing and features twisted in confusion. "He was shot... there was-there was so much blood-"

"Roxas." Sora's voice made him turn again, and he nodded to the wheel. "Can you?"

"Yeah." He straightened, helped Sora pull Riku to his feet to guide him stumbling back into the living area. Roxas steadied the wheel, slipped into the driver's seat, watching Kairi more than the road. She was still shaking, but pulled herself back up into her own seat, tucking strands of hair back behind her ears, tearstreaks forgotten on her cheeks.

"I saw it," She murmured finally, staring down at the console.

"You were scared," Roxas said, keeping his voice low and comforting, blood still pumping fast, lightheaded from adrenaline but relaxing into the seat, muscles uncoiling one by one. "It just seemed worse than it was, that's all."

Kairi nodded slowly to herself, after a moment, leaned back in the seat to rub her forehead. Calm settling back over her, soothing away the trembling in her limbs.

Roxas kept the truck at the speed Riku had set, wanting to put as many miles between them and the battle before they had to stop to secure the vehicle before dusk. It was quite a while-possibly an hour, even, when Kairi spoke again, head turned to stare out her window.

"I was so sure," she murmured, voice so soft it was almost lost under the truck's engine. "I thought he was dead."

Roxas wasn't sure if any of them slept properly that night. He remembered that he was the one behind the wheel after they secured the truck for the night, but at some point he crashed off the adrenaline high and Kairi had to pull him bodily out of the seat so she could take over. He had vague memories of sleeping wedged in the space between the driver's seat and the wall, and of sitting in the passenger seat while Sora drove, though he didn't recall him trading off with Kairi. He was sure he'd taken over again at some point up until Riku appeared in the cab, white bandage on his neck, and told him to go sleep on the bunk instead of on the wheel.

He didn't remember getting to the bunk, and couldn't explain why Kairi was curled up against his back, but he woke when the truck rumbled to a halt, morning sunlight spilling through the open pocket door, and he was tired and sore everywhere and the living area was an absolute wreck, junk and cans and clothing strewn across the floor and piled in drifts in the corners, but somehow, still, when he swung the back door open and took a deep breath of fresh air, everything felt better.

The outside of the truck was pockmarked, proof of their encounter with the Angels; they'd covered over the holes that had pierced the outer layer of armor the night before with rubber plaster, sealing them against the Shadows. His truck had seen better days, Roxas figured, but was glad enough that he could lean back against it in the shade and enjoy the morning, cool whitefruit in his hand as a perfunctory breakfast. Kairi was working under the hood today, kerchief tying her hair back and hands quickly turning black from the grease and grime. Her attention had been wandering to Riku a lot, to the bandage on his neck, like she still couldn't believe the wound was that small. Riku himself, efficient Replican that he was, had begun working on the clutter inside, sweeping the actual trash out through the open back door.

Sora, without missing a beat, was out on the pavement in the sun, whirling through his swordforms like relaxing in the comfort of routine. Roxas watched him, mostly out of habit, mostly because the flickering of his sword was hypnotic, partially because the brief but beautiful breakdown of his shields the day before was intriguing. They were back in place now, of course, but Sora was starting to form an explanation. Sora and the thrill of battle, high on adrenaline and laughing amid bullets and explosions; Sora and his sword in the golden mornings, disciplined and perfect in movement and form; Sora and the bottomless pit of fear at the sight of his Replican bleeding and motionless.

Sora stuttering to a halt on his feet, breath coming fast, sword clattering to the ground. His hands shuddered in midair for a moment before his arms wrapped tight around his stomach, eyes squeezing shut and sank to his knees, doubling over with a soft groan of pain.

Sora, deathly ill-and this was the only hint of it he'd seen so far, after six days on the road.

Roxas started to climb to his feet but Riku had already jumped out the back door and was racing across the pavement, silver hair like a banner, to drop to his knees at Sora's side. Hands soft and gentle on his back, his shoulders, and for once the neon red guilt across Riku's heart was overshadowed by concern. Roxas took a few careful steps toward where they were huddled together, Kairi somewhere to the side doing the same, hands hovering in the air helplessly.

"It'll pass," Sora was saying through his teeth, voice tight and strained and his face was pale, limbs shaking, sweat beading on his forehead. Riku smoothed his hair back, murmured something vague and comforting that was lost under another pained moan, high and weak and so unlike Sora that Roxas's stomach turned, the idea of the fruit in his hand suddenly bitter and unappetizing.

Sora breathed out, finally, long exhale as his body relaxed. Riku exhaled in almost the same way, hands on Sora's shoulders and pushing him upright. "You should lie down, okay?" He licked his lips and Sora nodded, one hand up automatically to slide around Riku's shoulders so the Replican could lift him to his feet, like they'd done this so many times now it was natural.

Riku's eyes locked with his, over Sora's shoulder as they passed, a silent plea to not ask questions, to let it be for now. Roxas barely nodded, just a little tilt of the head and that was enough, staying where he was out on the pavement until they disappeared inside.

Roxas bent to pick up the sword off the ground, wooden handle still warm from Sora's hands. He turned it over, watching the glint of sunlight off the blade, then went to collect the sheath and Sora's discarded shirt.

"What do you suppose is wrong with him?" Kairi breathed out, watching him replace the sword in its sheath and shake out the shirt to clear off the sand and dust and drape it over one arm.

"No idea," Roxas muttered, and tossed the half-finished whitefruit into the pile of trash behind the truck.

Sora spent the day lying in the lower bunk with a cool, damp cloth over his eyes. Riku refused to leave his side, so Roxas and Kairi took turns driving and sleeping on the upper bunk. By the time they sealed the truck before dusk, Sora appeared to be sleeping peacefully, Riku was somewhat relaxed and cleaning up the mess in the living area again, and Roxas and Kairi were wide awake.

Kairi closed the door to the cab so Sora could sleep in peace, and curled up in the passenger seat with a book of word puzzles that had been among the household goods strewn across the cabin. She chewed on the end of a pen while she worked, occasionally begging assistance from Roxas, who did his best, and it was pleasant and quiet enough company for the night. The hum of the engine and Kairi humming under her breath, the darkness outside rolling and crawling like always, but somehow quiet as well.

If there were a few thumps and scuffles from the living area, Roxas figured it had to do with Riku's cleaning efforts, or possibly Sora waking up and going to use the shower. He didn't consider it too carefully, focused on driving and Kairi pondering a three-letter word for mischievous, and that was when Riku slid the pocket door open a few bare inches, just enough to speak through.

"Roxas," he said, and his voice was low and serious and there was an edge to it like desperation. "Stop the truck."

Roxas looked back to him, and from Riku to the windshield in front of him. "You want me to stop? In this? Are you fucking kidding me?"

"Please." Riku hissed the word through his teeth. "I need your help. Both of you."

Roxas swallowed, almost argued, but remembered his own complaint several nights ago, for his passengers to stop asking questions and trust him, so instead he flipped all the floodlights on and hit the brakes, bringing the truck to a slow halt. He pulled the parking brake but didn't kill the engine, leaving it to rumble as he and Kairi both stood, Riku pushing the door fully open so they could pass.

"Stay behind me," he said, looking at each of them in turn until they both nodded in understanding that he was absolutely, dead serious. "And don't panic."

Riku turned and stepped forward so they could get through the door, Roxas sliding it shut behind him, Riku's arms spread to either side as though to defend them. Roxas couldn't quite see past him in the confines of the cabin, but sliding up on tiptoes he could see that the bunk was empty, the covers thrown aside carelessly and there was still some clutter on the floor, and if he peered over toward the corner near the rear door-

There was a patch of shadow that was darker than it should have been, and as he watched it shivered, slithered, slid up and peered around the edge of the bunk with blinking yellow eyes.

Kairi's breath caught at the same time that Riku repeated, "Don't panic," in a tight, hard voice, at the same time that Roxas made out the edges of the shadow-not like the regular Shadows, this one had a human form, almond eyes and tendrils of darkness trailing from its limbs like tattered fabric, head tilting curiously, covered in what might have been messy, spiky hair-

Roxas's hand shot out to grab Kairi's wrist as she backed away, something meant to be both comforting and horrified when he whispered, "It's Sora."

The creature trilled as though it recognized the name, slinking further out of the shadows and venturing just slightly towards them on all fours, human in shape but not moving in any way remotely human, limbs bending up at unnatural angles, body twisting with animalistic grace. Riku crouched just slightly, as though anticipating a spring at any moment. "I can't catch him like this, he's too fast. I need your to help me contain him."

Roxas licked his lips-he had only fought Shadows with photology once in his life, and in a contained space like this it was a recipe for disaster. He squeezed Kairi's wrist where he was still holding it, and without even thinking it fully she straightened, still propped against the wall, but her free hand lifted up to close around the god-knot at her throat, and, voice shaky, she started to sing.

Roxas would have expected the hymn for the light, but Kairi was always smarter than he gave her credit for. It was the hymn for darkness instead, echoing, soft sounds to welcome nighttime and soothe the dark in all its unknowable vastness. The creature blinked limpid yellow eyes at her curiously, slinking a bit forward and swaying from side to side, relaxing on its limbs as its eyes drooped, lazy and pliant and almost purring along with the tune. Roxas knew that feeling-he got it, whenever Kairi sang the hymn for the light, his Art stirring and vibrating and resonating with the song, saturating his limbs and coiling around him, drowning him in peace and contentment.

"You can catch him now," Roxas whispered, low enough to go unheard by anyone but Riku. The Replican nodded, took a cautious step forward, then another when the creature on the floor continued to sway, not even noticing him. Riku knelt before it, wrapped his arms around it and the creature just purred, sank into his embrace like a loving pet. Riku looked back at Kairi and nodded, and the last note of the hymn faded away.

The creature, this thing-the bit of animated darkness that had once been Sora, maybe still was-it screeched, and it was the most horrifying, bone-chilling sound Roxas had ever heard and he instinctively slid closer to Kairi, whether to protect her or himself he wasn't entirely sure. The thing writhed and clawed and beat at Riku's arms, tight and strong and holding it still, shaking it slightly.

"Sora!" Riku's voice made its head jerk in attention. "Fight it. I know you can, come on..."

The thing hissed at him, thrashed and then its head tilted back almost painfully and it shuddered, darkness sliding from its face and hair and shoulders like thick black ribbons and beneath it there was Sora, as human as always, eyes closed in sleep.

Riku exhaled as the darkness slid off of his body in coils, sucked back and away into the netherspace it came from, leaving Sora limp and unconscious in his arms. The Replican cradled him for a moment, face pressed to the crook of his neck for several long seconds before he looked up at Roxas and Kairi, still by the door and frozen there like they weren't quite sure it was over.

"Thank you," Riku murmured, and the two nodded almost in tandem.

Several thoughts floated together in Roxas's mind, the way the creature had reacted to Kairi's song, Sora's lack of symptoms until just today, Sora at his bedside imploring him to be more careful with his Art and Cid, nearly a week before in the cool morning behind his barricade, telling him that no one could keep Sora alive-

"He's infected," Roxas said, finally releasing Kairi's wrist and feeling something deep in his heart and the pit of his stomach sink. "With the antiphotology Art."

Riku looked up, blue-green eyes wide and round and the pain that slid over his heart in that moment was so acute Roxas could feel it. He nodded, just once, a short jerk of the head.