Disclaimer: You know what? I'm not even gonna say it. If you don't already know by now, see the previous twelve chapters.
As always, a tremendous THANK YOU to all of my fans/reviewers/favoriters. Your support has been amazing, and I really do appreciate it. If anyone is interested in doing any fanart for this fic, feel free to PM me or leave a note in a review.
On another note, I have decided to merge the fic that
On with the show!
Chapter XIII: Grit, Guts, and Glory
The fighting has more or less subsided now, and the military personnel have withdrawn to other areas of the city.
We're hunkered down in an abandoned building—one of the few that still has some semblance of structural integrity. Sora and Riku have strung up some work lamps, Roxas has managed to find an outlet that miraculously still works, and I found some old chairs and a table in another room.
The small workspace has become a make shift War Room; there's a map of Radiant Garden stuck to the table with pushpins.
Sora's face is grim and intense as he stares at the map.
Riku and Roxas are just as serious as he is, but not quite as angry.
"So, what do we know so far?" I wonder out loud, half out of curiosity, and half because the silence is killing me. I tie my hair back with a rubber band as I wait for an answer.
Riku leans forward and points at the map, somewhere near Main Street, I think. "Anyone got a pen?" he asks.
Roxas shakes his head. "Nope. Sorry, dude."
Sora pats his pockets before following suit. "Me neither."
I search my pockets too, but all I have is a dried-out Sharpie and a tube of lipstick. I never wear lipstick anyway, so I surrender the tube to Riku. "This is all I've got." I smile apologetically.
Riku just shrugs. "It'll work." He draws a circle around the center of the map surrounding City Hall.
"As far as we can tell, this is Ansem's perimeter. The Heartless here are pretty nasty, so it's probably a good idea to stock up on potions and stuff before we go in." Riku explains.
Roxas takes the makeshift marker from Riku and crosses out the streets that intersect the circle. "Ansem's got this area pretty well covered, too." he adds.
Sora pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs, whether from stress or frustration, I can't be sure. "Looks like the best course of action would be to come in from the West." Sora points to the map.
"That's a good plan. There's only one main street there, and the buildings will help hide our approach until we're right on top of them." Riku nods.
I can follow the plan of attack just fine, but when it comes to this 'Ansem' person, I'm thoroughly confused. "Who's this 'Ansem' you guys keep talking about?"
"He's the head-honcho around here." Roxas explains. "He's been creating and releasing Heartless into the city."
"Oh. That's not good." I admit, unsure of what else to say.
"Riku, I want you on the rooftop directly across from the entrance until Roxas, Kairi, and I break the perimeter. I want you to let us know if they see us coming. Once we're in, I want you to come and join us on the battlefield." Sora's tone leaves no room for even a hint of insubordination, and Riku nods.
"Got it."
"Roxas, I want you to take point on this one; take out as many of the bastards as you can on the way in. Grimm and I will cover your six."
My lips twist into a frown at Sora's choice to use my last name instead of my first. I really thought we were making some kind of progress...
"No problem, boss." Roxas' impish grin is almost a mirror-image of Sora's, and my heart twinges at the reminder.
"Let's get moving. The longer we wait, the more time Ansem has to release Heartless into the city." Sora says and strides for the door.
My teeth saw into my bottom lip as I debate confronting him again—I'd really rather not have this conversation in front of Riku and Roxas.
The two of them slip out the door ahead of Sora, and I seize my opportunity.
"What's with you?" I wonder. "I thought we were past all this..." I'm trying really hard not to pout or whine, but I'm pretty sure I'm not succeeding in either one of those endeavors.
Sora's body immediately tenses and he rakes a hand through his hair, eyes throbbing, his face a mask of tempered violence and unwavering control. "We're not discussing this now." he says, his voice hard and measured. "I should never have kissed you. This is too much of a distraction." he sneers.
I pull him to me stung and confused, wrapping my arms around him, leaning my head on his chest. "Don't." I try to drum up the anger, the righteous indignation that I know I should be feeling, but I can't quite get there. "Please don't pull away from me again. Don't shut me out. Let me help you; we can get through this together."
Sora's answering smirk is equal parts condescension and irritation. "You're so naïve. Do you really think life is that simple? All sunshine and rainbows and shit?"
His words are like slaps, and I curse myself for believing his facade of benevolence, because now it hurts so much more. "N-no..."
Sora removes himself from my grip and takes a few steps back. "Good."
Anger surges through my veins, potent and hot and raw, and before I can stop myself, my hand cracks into the side of Sora's face.
"Where do you get off—" I begin, really about to let him have it, but his immediate and vehement response stops me cold.
Sora grabs my hand, his eyes pulsing with fury. "Don't fuck with me, Grimm. I mean it. I don't care if you hate my guts, but right now we need to work as a team. This is exactly the reason that I didn't want you to join—you're completely controlled by your emotions. Get a hold of yourself." he lets go of my hand roughly, leaving me to dash at my eyes as the tears spill over onto my cheeks.
"And keep up."
I suck in a breath, wipe my eyes one last time, and follow him out of the room. "Yes, Master."
***DMS***
I slink along behind Sora and Roxas as we make our way through the alleyways toward city hall.
Roxas looks back a few times to smile at me in encouragement, but that does nothing to dispel the stony silence that has descended upon our group.
Sora keeps his eyes forward, completely refusing to acknowledge my existence.
His aloofness stings, but if I'm being completely honest with myself, I really should be used to it by now...
"We're almost there." Sora says quietly. "How are we looking Riku?" he continues, adjusting his earpiece.
"You look alright from here. There seems to be some kind of disturbance drawing their attention on the opposite side of the compound." Riku's deep voice is made tinny by the earpiece. "Now's as good a time as any to strike."
Sora nods once, curtly, completely immersed in his role as leader. "Copy that. Moving in now." Sora turns to regard Roxas and I, his eyes narrowing into spiteful slits when he looks at me. "Let's move."
Roxas explodes into motion at Sora's command, tearing across the street, his Keyblades flashing as he rips into the Heartless guarding the entrance.
The two creatures disappear in a cloud of darkness, and Roxas motions for us to follow him.
And then all hell breaks loose.
Great, hulking things lope around the corner of the building, holding jagged-toothed swords and bleeding malice into the air. Their horrible eyes burn with hate and the scars on my back flare with phantom pain.
"Invisibles!" Sora shouts, but his voice is coming from somewhere a million miles away.
My hands are quaking, trembling with terror that pierces straight to my core, spreading through my bones with a black, feral intensity.
I ready my Keyblade, clutching the grip with both hands hoping to stop the tremors from spreading to the rest of me. I manage to keep the trembling contained to my arms, but the keychain on my weapon jingles with the motion.
One of the creatures is practically on top of me, swinging its weapon hard in fast, clearly intending to remove my head from my shoulders.
I raise my Keyblade just in time to block, but that's not saying much.
The sheer force of the impact is incredible; it nearly breaks both my wrists and wrenches the weapon from my grip. Th shockwaves from the blow reverberate up into my teeth, rattling my jaw and blurring my vision.
The next blow drives me to the ground; my arms burn with the effort of holding on to the Keyblade.
And they just keep coming, great, double-handed hacks with the impact of an asteroid. I sink to my knees, spent and exhausted. I throw myself out of the way of the next blow just in time, and the Invisible tumbles forward, slamming its sword into the dirt.
I take advantage of the opening, plunging my Keyblade into its chest up to the hilt.
One down, only a few thousand more to go.
The battle is slow and brutal—if this is what the Wielders go through every time they travel to other cities, it's no wonder they have such an intense training program.
Roxas seems to be wearing out a little as well, if the line of red on his brow is any indication, but Sora and Riku don't seem to be any worse for the wear.
The two of them are an unstoppable war machine, spewing fire and ice from the tips of their weapons as the tear into the hulking beasts surrounding them with an effortless finesse and coordination that surpasses even world-class swordsmen.
Roxas is a force to be reckoned with in his own right, his dual-bladed assault is the stuff of legends, his blades whirl and twirl in ferocious, flourishing attacks that lay waste to dozens of the creature.
And me?
It's all I can do to defend myself, let alone fight back.
And even though I tell myself that I'll be alright, in the back of my mind, I know:
Sora was right. I'm not ready for this...
Time runs together in a haze of blood and sweat and fear. We're hopelessly outnumbered, and despite my best efforts to keep my cool, the trembling has spread to my entire body—though I can't say whether it's from fear or exhaustion; it's really a toss-up at this point.
Riku's holding his own against at least six of the Invisibles, or whatever-they're-called, and Sora's fighting someone—something?—with a Keyblade.
The fight is fast and furious and savage from what I can glimpse:
The figure attempts to headbutt Sora, but Sora is too quick, his counter is as fluid and effortless as it is deadly as he brings his knee up into the figure's visor, shattering it.
The figure drives the pommel of his Keyblade into the side of Sora's knee; Sora's face contorts in an agonized grimace and he goes down hard.
That's all I have time to see before I'm paying for my survey in blood; one of the Heartless cracks the back of my head with the pommel of its sword.
A sheet of white fire explodes behind my eyes, and I can feel the blood flowing from the gash in my scalp—I'm probably going to need stitches...
I'm dizzy and nauseous and in pain, but that doesn't stop the Heartless from dragging me back to my feet and holding its saw-toothed blade to my throat.
Sora and the masked boy are at it again, their blades grating and ringing and flashing in the afternoon sun. Sora goes down again, and the boy dismisses his Keyblade, going to work on Sora with his bare hands.
I cover my face with my hands.
Oh, gods no... I can't watch this.
"See. Your leader is not as invincible as you believe him to be." The Invisible holding me gurgles in a deep, guttural voice.
Sora takes a knee to the face, and I'm unable to keep myself from screaming at the sight.
Just as the boy's foot is about to crush Sora's throat and end his life, a loud voice intervenes.
"Vanitas. That's quite enough." An olive-skinned, shirtless man in dark pants and boots strides around the side of the building.
However, before he can say anything else, he's bowled off his feet by a ball of white light.
"Pearl!" A high voice cries, and the head wound must have done more damage than I thought, because suddenly, there's a mouse-like figure with a golden Keyblade soaring over our heads, and Merlin's here too, which is also impossible.
I swoon—the only thing that keeps me on my feet is the Invisible's hold on me. I have just enough time to wonder what the heck is going on, and then, I'm on the grass, floating and drifting in an almost-ethereal emptiness as darkness takes me.
So...Reviews would be nice. Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?
I'm debating writing the next chapter in Sora's POV. How do you guys feel about that? Let me know what you think!
Look Sharp,
~Script