Kingdom Hearts III: Essence of the Heart
Chapter 10: Dive into the Heart
Sora lay in his bed, wide-awake, the day's events in mind.
'Essence Links? Bound Legion? What's happening?' he thought to himself.
"Are you joking? My master's strength is great enough to crush me under his heel." Delta's words played in the boy's head over and over again, "I'm ranked only as the fourth strongest of the Legion!"
'Only the fourth…' Sora continued to think. 'How can there be Essence Links stronger than Xehanort's?' he wondered. His next thought sent shivers down his spine. 'Just how strong is the leader?'
'…And what about Will?' His thoughts moved on. 'Can I trust him?' he worried. 'I mean, he carries a huge sword and hidden chains. His best friend is a big black wolf. He dresses totally in black, controls his blood with his mind, and I saw those tons of weapons!' the Keyblade master listed. 'What if he hurts someone? …What if he hurts Kairi?'
Sora eventually faded into slumber. While he expected his usual dreams, involving swimming pools filled with pudding or beating the crap out of Xemnas while Kairi cheered him on or maybe even that nightmare with George Bush (1) and the crocodiles, he was instead standing on a stained-glass pillar. He recognized it as the Awakening. He'd first been there when he fought against a Darkside, before the Heartless attacked Destiny Islands. The second time, he had fought against Roxas. However, he saw the image that he hadn't noticed on the Awakening Station during the latter time. Instead of one of the Princesses of Heart, he was portrayed, his eyes closed. Why was he here?
"Wow, a visitor. It's been a long time since I've had one of those." Sora turned around to see the speaker. Standing there was Roxas, no longer wearing his Organization XIII garb. "If you're keeping me in here at least give me a TV or something."
"Roxas?" Sora was quite shocked.
"Who else lives inside your heart (2)?" his Nobody asked rhetorically.
"What are you doing here?" Sora asked, "And for that matter, what am I doing here?"
"You didn't think I just vanished did you?" Roxas mocked.
"No," the brunette lied. "Could you just tell me why I'm here?" He changed the subject. Roxas nodded.
"It probably has something to do with that," the blonde answered, pointing to his right. Sora's eyes followed to see a taller, larger Awakening Station. There was a transparent staircase, like the ones that had connected the Stations portraying Cinderella, Aurora, Snow White, and Belle. It led straight up to the colossal tower.
"What is that?" Sora inquired.
"That's what I'd like to know," his counterpart replied. "It only showed up about five minutes before you did." Roxas took one experimental step onto the staircase to see if it was definitely solid. He began cautiously ascending up the stair case. As he did this, Sora suddenly charged up next to him, climbing the steps quickly and without a care, "Hey wait up!" Roxas called after him, picking up his pace.
Sora reached the top of the enormous stained-glass pillar and gazed across the glass surface. Roxas arrived at the top at nearly the same time as Sora, pausing at the end of the final step. The Keyblade wielders looked out in awe at the great image portrayed on the Station's climax. In the center stood Sora, Kingdom Key in hand. On his right was Riku holding his Way to Dawn. To his left was Kairi with her Destiny's Embrace. Roxas and Naminé seemed to hover above. Roxas held the Oblivion in his right hand and Oathkeeper in his left. Naminé held a white Keyblade unknown to the boys. Its guard was an upside-down heart, its white blade had white chains twisted around it, and the teeth were two of the cards from Castle Oblivion. Its keychain, partially obscured, was a white crayon. Sitting below the trio was Will, Claymore drawn. A heart surrounded the entire group. In the crevice between the two divided ends at the top of the Heart was a small circle with King Mickey, wielding the Darkside, inside. On the spaces to the left and right of the heart's bottom were two more circles, holding Donald and Goofy respectively within, weapons drawn. The ring around the edges of the surface was filled with a pattern of a symbol made of the outlines of two Kingdom Key's crossing each other in an X shape.
'Thorn would feel left out.' Sora thought briefly, remembering the wolf's depression when not being introduced with the rest of the group. He returned to the matter at hand.
"Whaddya think this is?" Sora asked his Nobody.
"I'm not all-knowing, Sora; I don't know everything about this stuff. In fact, the only Station that ever connects with yours is Kairi's when you're together so I can see Naminé," Roxas explained. Kairi did have her own Awakening during the week they had been home, so of course she'd have a Station. Where else would Naminé stay anyway?
"Beautiful isn't it," a male voice chimed. The two boys twisted their bodies in the direction of the voice. They saw a figure, dressed in the robes which Delta had worn with his back facing them. A symbol, different from the one on the back of Delta's robe, was on his back (3), "But beauty, like everything else, must be eliminated,"
Sora and Roxas jumped back and summoned their Keyblades as they saw the new person.
"You're from the Bound Legion aren't you?" Sora was still on guard as he spoke.
"I see we've got a genius on our hands," the figure darkly joked. He turned to meet the Kingdom Key, launched forward from Sora's hand in the form of Strike Raid. The Essence Link waved his hand, casting a Reflega spell that sent the Keyblade back at Sora. "Now, that wasn't very kind of you," the Essence Link mocked as the Keyblade struck its wielder with much force, knocking him over and leaving him completely disarmed. Roxas was about to make a move, but suddenly the cloaked being flickered right past him.
"Don't underestimate the Legion," the male threatened, pressing his foot lightly on Sora's throat. "It'll be the death of you." Roxas attempted to intervene, but he was knocked down by a Blizzaga fired by the Legion member, slightly freezing his side.
"Sora, you're a great disappointment," the caster insulted the Keyblade master. "I've seen enough, as have you." A large corridor of darkness opened. The Essence Link turned to enter the portal. "I'll let you live for now, Sora, but don't expect any mercy next time. I recommend you get stronger." The Legion Member then vanished into the dark corridor. Sora could see Roxas, half-frozen, on the floor a small distance away. Before the teen could call out to check on his Nobody, he blacked out.
Journal Entries
Limit Breaks: Sora's Strike Raid
Author's Notes:
(1) Don't ask how Bush fits into KH, I just wanted to write that.
(2) Oh, Roxas. Such an ironic thing to say.
(3) This is the Leader again.