Hello everyone I finally return after a long absence due to my job and school. They seriously assign me too much homework it takes up almost all my time hardly giving me any time to write at all. But I'm going to update as much as I can and I assure you that this story will be completed. Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, I loved what everyone had to say about it. So without further ado let's continue with the next chapter.
We didn't even step foot in the room for five seconds and Xigbar was already shooting sharp spikes at us from some hidden area of the room. I scooped Namine up into my arms and jumped out of the way of the attack. One of Axel's chakrams flew into the direction that the bullets had been shot from.
"Riku over here," he said and I turned to see him standing in front of a severely wounded Zexion. Roxas stood next to Axel with his Oathkeeper and Oblivion in hand waiting for the next strike while Demyx kneeled beside Zexion, looking over his wounds worriedly.
I was at their side in a split second, setting Namine down gently next to the redhead and immediately moved passed Axel to see the damage that was done to my companions. Demyx only had a wound to the shoulder, which didn't look severe…however Zexion was another story. Several projectiles were stuck in both of his shoulders, one in his side, and another that looked like it had been inches from reaching the area where his heart would have been. Even though Zexion didn't have a heart, a blow to the chest like that could prove to be fatal.
"What happened?" I asked a little rougher than I would have liked, though I always was like that when I was worried about something.
Zexion struggled to move himself so that he was facing me, but was stopped by Demyx's arm. I heard Namine gasp from behind me.
"You shouldn't be moving," he said. By the look on his face, the sitarist was obviously concerned for the dark-haired boy.
"I'm…fine," Zexion stated and winced slightly when he moved his arm, his breathing was heavy, "I let my guard down…As I…as I t-tried to absorb the bullets into the Book World…a few of them managed hit me," he explained.
He rested a hand over the one in his chest, "This one managed to go…through the book and hit me r-right underneath from where...my heart should be," he said as his eyelids began to fall, his figure becoming transparent for a brief second.
"He's fading!" Demyx exclaimed as he began to shake Zexion awake, but there was no response.
Not good, if Zexion was fading that meant that he was on the verge of dying, I had to get him to stay awake. A burst of energy rushed through me as I pushed Demyx out of the way, gripping the scientist's shoulders tightly, relieved when he winced at the pressure, "Don't you dare die on me bookworm!"
His eyes opened slightly, "I really…hate it when you c-call me that," he said, his outline beginning to fade
"No Zexion, You have to hang in there!!" Demyx exclaimed. Axel and Roxas turned around with a look of shock in both of their eyes.
This wasn't good; Zexion wouldn't last much longer if he wasn't healed. I looked up to Namine, my eyes pleading with her.
"Namine, please help him. Hurry!!!" I said frantically.
I moved out of the way as her footsteps came closer, making sure she had enough room. I watched as she kneeled down next to my teammate, placing her both if her hands against the wounded area of Zexion's chest. Suddenly laughter erupted around the room, causing all of our heads to turn. Organization XIII's top sniper, who seemed to look uglier now than he had before, hung upside down in midair smirking at the scene.
"Well if it isn't the little traitor," his annoying surfer voice said mockingly.
I stood up silently; never taking my eyes off of my next opponent. I gripped the Way to Dawn tightly; he was going to pay for what he did to Zexion.
"Well somebody doesn't look too happy, all I need is for you to hand over the girl and everything will be solved," Xigbar stated nonchalantly.
Now I was fuming, to think he actually had the guts to ask me to hand Namine over to him. I stood in front of her more protectively.
"The day I give her to you is the day that hell will freeze over," I spat.
Xigbar gave me a look of disappointment before dropping to the floor to stand in an upright position. He scratched the back of his head lazily.
"Well I thought we could do this the easy way," he mumbled to himself.
"Come on Zex you have to hang in there," I heard Demyx cry and turned to look over my shoulder.
Bookworm was struggling to keep his eyes open, his figure fading slightly every now and then. I couldn't help but feel worried; Zexion was one of the few people that I actually got along with in the Organization. My eyes softened as they locked with Namine's, her brilliant azure orbs looking to me with concern.
"Namine I need you to heal him…do whatever you can to save his life while Axel, Roxas, and I take care of Xigbar," I said to her.
She nodded and placed her hands back on the injury points, "The wound in his chest is deep Riku…it's going to take some time and a lot of concentration on my part," she explained. Demyx looked up to me with confusion.
"What am I going to do Riku?" he asked, pointing to himself.
"I need you to do something more important…I want you to protect Namine at all costs. If she gets hurt in anyway…well let's just say you won't like what I will have in store for you," I replied, my tone deathly serious.
Demyx shuddered and pulled his sitar off of his back, "Don't worry I will. She'll be safe with me Riku," he said.
I nodded, "Good," I said while turning to Namine. Our eyes clashed with each others once again for a split second, before she looked away to concentrate on curing Zexion's wounds.
"Please be careful Riku," she said, her back was to me, a green light emanating from her palm.
I smirked, "Don't worry I will be. Besides Axel and Roxas are with me so you have nothing to worry about. Just concentrate on saving Zexion, we'll be fine," I assured her.
She chuckled slightly, "Of course," I could hear the smile in her voice. Before I could give her a reply Axel's voice interrupted my train of thought.
"Riku! We kinda need a little help here!" I heard him exclaim and immediately turned around at the sound of a gun being shot.
An army of sharp projectiles were being shot from what looked to be a hidden area in the wall above. So that's where the bastard was hiding. I summoned a shield around Axel, Roxas, and myself before leaping into the air with my keyblade in front of me. The glass like bullets breaking as they came into contact with my dark shield. I was going to lure him out and allow Axel and Roxas a chance to attack him. I looked around for anything that could make Xigbar stand out.
'There!' I thought, seeing a hidden balcony from where he was shooting from. He glared upward at me and as gravity began to pull me down, I headed straight to where he was hiding, my keyblade ready to strike him. Just as I was about to slice him in half he teleported off of the balcony.
"Heh, Saix was right Riku, you have gotten weaker. You should have been able to land that blow to me no problem," he chuckled and shimmied down an invisible string so that he was right in front of me.
"Saix doesn't know what he's talking about," I spat while summoning a dark sphere of energy to my hand.
"Easy there Riku. No need to resort to that, the Superior is actually willing to forgive you if you hand the memory witch o-"
I fired the dark matter into his chest before he could finish his sentence, catching him completely by surprise. A spark ignited in his eyes as he clutched his chest tightly and began to fall to the floor below to where Axel and Roxas were.
"Axel! Roxas! Get him!" I shouted and jumped over the edge of the balcony toward them so I could aid in the fight.
"You guys think you can hit me, don't make me laugh. I wasn't called the Free-Shooter for nothing," he said while pulling his twin rifles off of his back and began to shoot multitudes of bullets towards all three of us.
Axel was able to dodge most of them by retaliating with fireballs and Roxas summoned three shields with the Nobody insignia to surround him. I landed on the ground without a scratch due to my dark shield, the sound of clashing weapons made me turn around quickly. Xigbar had barely been able to block the attack of both of Roxas's keyblades. Now they were having a test of strength and it was clear to me that Xigbar had the advantage as Roxas winced and clutched his side. The Free-Shooter took this opportunity and knocked Roxas to the ground, shooting several sharp projectiles at him. I took off in a sprint, I would be damned if I let another comrade get hurt today. A fireball moved passed me and was able to shield Roxas just before the bullets came into contact with his form. Axel was in front of him immediately afterwards, giving a look that made it evident that he was furious. Xigbar just laughed as Axel began to grit his teeth to keep calm.
"Heh, still overprotective of that boy aren't you Axel?" Xigbar asked, amused by the chakram wielder's actions.
Axel didn't reply and began to spin his twin chakrams in his hand at rapid speed, fire beginning to engulf the entire surface area to the point that it looked like Axel was holding two giant frisbees in his hands. I took advantage of this opportunity and silently dashed behind Xigbar now that he was taken off guard and waited patiently for the opportunity to land a strike. I didn't wait long, just as Axel threw once of his newly created weapons of fire, I was able to prevent Xigbar from teleporting by slashing him straight across the back. He let out a cry of pain and fell to the ground, his dual rifles falling from his hands several feet away.
'It's over now,' I thought with a smirk on my face. A sense of déjà vu overwhelmed me as I stood over Xigbar's injured form, blood oozing out of his back. It was the same exact way I had defeated him before, though it was easier this time because Axel and Roxas had aided me. I was about to deliver the final blow when Axel stopped me. I looked to him with confusion.
"You wouldn't mind me doing the honors huh Riku?" he asked while focusing a death glare on the Number II of the Organization, who was struggling to get up, his disks of fire waiting to taste blood. I knew what this was about and I didn't question him.
"If you want, it's not a big deal to me," I said, dismissing my keyblade and began to walk over to check on Roxas.
"It'll be quick and painless," he said, cracking his knuckles.
I didn't turn around, quick and painless meant slow and painful from Axel's point of view. Xigbar's screams echoed through the room along with the sound of the tearing of flesh. I shuddered, I couldn't stand Axel's ways of torture and despite the fact that I could probably kick Axel's ass any day…well I wouldn't want to be on his bad side. I kneeled beside Roxas.
"You okay?" I asked, noticing he clutched his abdomen rather tightly.
He gave me a nod in response, "Even though Namine cured me, the wound still hurts if I put too much strain on it," he stated. The sounds of torture died down several moments after that, followed by the sound of Axel's footsteps.
"How are you kid?" Axel interrupted as he walked over to the boy's other side, his coat decorated with blood.
"I'll live," he replied and began to stand up, "Good news is that the wound didn't open."
"Yeah that's always a good thing," Axel replied in a softer tone while putting a hand on the boy's shoulder.
"No Zexion!!" Demyx exclaimed causing us to forget our conversation and look over to where Namine, Demyx, and Zexion were.
I speed walked over to where they were while Axel helped Roxas to stand, a large shield of water surrounded the three of them and several of Xigbar's bullets had lodged their way into the liquid force field. The water dispersed as soon as we had reached our other comrades.
"What wrong with him Dem?" I asked.
He was silent for a few moments and took a deep breath, "Zexion he's…dead."
My voice was caught in my throat at the Melodious Nocturne's words.
'That can't be possible.'
Zexion lay still, motionless; it didn't even look like he was breathing as Namine continued to use the cure magic on his chest area. The bullets that were stuck in Zexion's flesh lay next to Namine, blood coating the once brilliant neon pink objects. I closed and unclosed my fists, dammit…how could I have let this happen? A comrade had died, how could I have allowed that to happen? It's all my fault, I shouldn't have made them come here…it's all my fault. Demyx had his back turned to the scene, unable to bare the sight on seeing Zexion lying dead next to him, he was taking it hard.
"Dammit bookworm, I told you not to die!!" I shouted while punching a nearby wall. Axel and Roxas were uncharacteristically silent, their eyes lowered to the ground. There were several long moments of silence, each of us morning over the loss of a friend. Namine was silent and continued to try to heal him despite the fact that Zexion was already dead. I was about to tell her to stop and that there was no point to try anymore, but I couldn't bring myself to say it. I lowered my head…dammit this can't be happening.
"W-Who…said that…I-I was d-dead?" a voice snapped me out of my grieving.
Everyone looked up and Demyx turned, shock plastered on all our faces except for Namine's as Zexion slowly began to open his dark eyes, a smirk crossed his features. Demyx, Axel, and Roxas crowded around him, which had caught him by surprise.
"Don't do that!!" Demyx complained gripping the boy's shoulders, "We all thought you were dead."
"Gee aren't you the optimist Dem," Zexion replied sarcastically before turning to Namine, "Thank you…I owe you my life. If there is ever anything you need…"
She shook her head, "No…you have already done something for me that I am thankful for," she said while focusing her eyes on me color decorating her cheeks.
"Well in any case…welcome back Zex," Axel said.
I shoved my hands in my pockets as I watched the scene before me and smiled before turning my attention over to Namine who was now walking towards to me.
"Don't you want to go see your friend Riku?" she asked as she placed herself next to me, watching as Roxas hit Demyx in the head with his Oblivion for saying something stupid.
I shrugged, "I'm not exactly the type of person to show my feelings," I replied.
"But…you are happy right?"
I turned my head to her, giving her a look of confusion, "What do you mean?"
She let out a giggle then, covering her mouth to try to stop the laughter from coming. Okay I was now officially confused, what was her problem?
"What's so funny?" I asked.
Namine calmed herself down and looked up to me, "It's easy for me to see that you are happy that your friend is still alive, your eyes say it all," she explained and beamed at me.
I scratched the back of my head and cleared my throat, "Well…of course I am. I mean what type of person would I be if I wasn't relieved?"
Namine nodded, seeming satisfied with my answer. She then placed her hands behind her back and turning her body to face me, she looked almost nervous. I was confused, why did she look so nervous? She shouldn't be afraid to ask me anything.
"Hey Riku…did you f-feel the same happiness w-when you um…saved me?"
I felt like my breath was knocked out of me, I wasn't expecting her to ask something like that…especially since the answer is so obvious. I raked a hand through my hair to hide my flustered face before answering her.
"Of course Namine…why do you ask?"
The artist smiled and shook her head, "No reason…I guess I was just curious," she replied.
"I see."
I pulled her into a half hug, grateful that she was brought into my life.
"Thank you Namine...for saving Zexion."
"U-um d-don't mention it," she stuttered.
Axel, Roxas, Demyx, and Zexion got up from the ground and made their way towards us, Demyx helping Zexion to walk. I removed my arm from around Namine's shoulder and let a smirk reach my lips and punched Zexion lightly on the shoulder.
"Glad to see you're still among the living bookworm," I teased which earned me a glare from Zexion.
He sighed, "Why do I even bother getting mad anymore, you'll never listen to me anyway."
"Easy Zex. Riku's happy you're okay too, he just has a funny way of showing it," Demyx chimed in. The Cloaked Schemer let out a scowl of annoyance.
I found it funny that despite being on the brink of death that Zexion could still be the same anti-social and serious individual that he always was.
"Well not ruin this little reunion or anything…but I think we should continue on our way before the rest of those Organization bastards attack," Roxas said.
I nodded, "Yeah you're right Roxas. We don't know when the next attack will be so we better get moving," I looked to Zexion, "Are you still able to fight?"
"Yeah I'm okay now. Demyx you can let me walk on my own," he said.
"You sure?" the musician asked, reluctant to let him stand.
"Yeah...I'll manage," Zexion replied, removing his arm from around Demyx's shoulder.
"Good. Let's get moving!" I said.
The six of us began to move cautiously to the other side of the room, making sure that Namine was placed in the middle to protect her from any type of attacks. I felt her grab onto my shirt, but didn't push away; it actually felt nice to have her cling to me. I shook my head…no that type of thought is irrelevant right now, I needed to stay focused on taking down the rest of Organization XIII before I could worry about what would happen between Namine and myself.
'The rest of Organization XIII better be ready for the fight of their lives.'
Okay so yeah it ended on a cheesy note. Sadly I feel kind of disappointed with this chapter, I don't know to me it just seemed rushed or something, but I hope it was still okay. Definitely not one of my better chapters, well again I apologize for the lack of updates. AP classes really suck like that, hope you all enjoyed it, and as always reviews are always appreciated.