Chapter 21: Divine Hate II
Hollow Bastion's castle doors were locked, and Sora lacked any form of Keyblade to open them. Before he and Beast could continue exploring, thunder echoed above them, signaling rainfall.
"We must wait for this storm to pass," Beast declared.
They sat against the massive double doors, hardly protected from the storm. As time faded, Sora drifted off into a dream.
A relentless melody played somewhere in the castle's depths. The rain grew stronger as Sora ventured into the macabre estate. Even the ceiling fell victim to the downpour. Sora had entered some maze-like dungeon, where a lingering fog thick enough to blot out the corridor walls presided.
The floor was stone, also flooding up to the ankles. He suddenly found himself amid the rising waterfalls. This was where he felt the temperature drop. Right before he felt his body freeze, he noticed Riku's face in the rising water. He appeared larger than life itself.
The pale image of Riku's face displayed neither hatred nor sadness; however, Sora sensed impatience. He needed to act fast.
Swiftly, Sora leapt from platform to platform, securing his position near the broken stone gateway. His surroundings were nigh impalpable due to the storm, but he could still make out the lift stop just up above the gateway. Wasting no time, Sora zeroed in on the magical lift, activating its machinery before hitching a ride toward the twisted kingdom.
As the castle's enormous silhouette loomed closer, Sora saw Riku's face again, this time after he'd closed his eyes. Instead of impatience, Sora sensed a devil-may-care aura from his best friend's visage.
Sora's eyes shot open, quivering with rage. The lift was no longer taking him to the castle; it was lost in an abyss of falling rain with nothing above or below him. Clutching the prison-like safety bars, Sora felt his own hate manifest into tears.
That's when he saw him, a man in a black coat, walking on thin air. At first, he appeared to be a phantom riding the wind, but Sora soon saw a humanoid figure moving steadily closer to the lift platform. With every silent step the hooded figure took, Sora felt his heart pump colder and colder. By the time the mysterious man reached the enclosed lift, Sora no longer felt human.
Suddenly, he sensed someone moving behind him; it was yet another coat-wearing individual, but this person was armed with glowing, red laser blades on both hands. The second hooded man was standing inside the lift with Sora, and he looked ready to attack.
Looking ahead once more, Sora noticed the hooded man outside the lift was now brandishing his own special weapon. It was an ancient-looking Keyblade. The last thing Sora remembered before waking up was seeing a chilling, blue eye lodged in the ancient weapon's blade.
Back in the real world, Sora reawakened to the sound of Beast roaring into the sky. The rain had stopped. It was time to get moving.