Chapter 36
***Recap: Riku returned to the mansion with Xion and brought her to speak privately with Namine. As they spoke, he left for a mission back to Prydain with Sam to seek out a future-seeing pig named Hen Wen and ask for a vision of Hinata's future.***
Sam revved up the engines of the ship the moment Riku came aboard the deck. Strong chilling winds swirled around them as they lifted into the air and left the atmosphere. Ben worked beside Sam at the control station, using his long metal fingers to quickly click through the navigation options and set their course for Prydain while humming a happy tune to himself, brimming with the excitement of finally being able to go on another mission.
Riku leaned against the railing of the ship, staring down at Twilight Town shrinking below them with a stern expression on his face. He flinched when he felt a sudden moist tongue slide against his cheek, and looking over, he saw Jack floating beside him with his bony tail wildly wagging. Riku broke the slightest hint of a smile as he reached up and scratched Jack behind the ears before wiping away the dog slobber from his face.
"We should be arriving in less than thirty minutes," Sam informed him as she walked up to join him. Leaning back against the railing and facing him, she added, "I don't really know why we took the ship. The world seems close enough to use your dark portal thing."
"It is," he shortly nodded. "But we need the magic drive of the ship to change our clothes when we get there. We'll need to be able to blend in."
"Won't the black coats keep us hidden?" she asked, crossing her arms and shutting one of her eyes as Jack floated over and licked her cheek.
"Yeah, but we don't want to be hidden, necessarily," he explained. "Just blending in enough where we won't look out of place."
"Well alright," she accepted his answer. "What sort of world is this Prydain?"
"A lot of trees," he recalled. "And little to no technology, but a lot of magic and enchanted stuff."
"Oh," she simply replied. "So sort of like the forest around the mansion?"
He wordlessly nodded, staring out at the stars around them. The world was so close that they didn't need to fully accelerate the FTL Drive to get there in a half hour, so the stars were still sparkling specks that covered the black space rather than the long white streaks they had grown accustomed to when flying from world to world.
Realizing he wasn't in the mood for talking, Sam fell to silence and looked around the ship. Jack had left their sides and was bounding around the ship, enjoying being back in space almost as much as Ben, who was still strumming away at the controls with a hummed tune that grew louder with every minute.
"Why did you want to come along?" Riku unexpectedly inquired after a few minutes.
Sam glanced over at him shortly, before averting her attention back forward. "I… wanted to ask that pig about my dad…"
Riku was silent for a moment before asking, "What about him?"
Sam inhaled deeply, before speaking, "Did Hinata ever tell you what happened to my dad?" She glanced at Riku, seeing him shake his head, then shifted her weight as she turned her gaze back to the shimmering stars. "About two years ago, my dad went out on his solar ship; he used to go out on joyrides every couple months and would just fly around for a few days before coming back home, but that time… he never came back…" She slightly tightened her grip around her arms.
"...I'm sorry," he softly spoke. "I didn't know."
She shook her head, "It's alright. I mean, not really, but what are you going to do, right?" She sighed before continuing, "Anyways, after a couple weeks, we started to get really worried and it didn't help that some of my dad's workers at the shop started telling us he probably just abandoned us. It wasn't long after that, that my mom started getting super depressed and locked herself away in her room. Then James started going on about how Dad was probably killed by space pirates or something since he'd never actually abandon us… but…" She shook her head, noticing Riku looking over at her as she admitted, "I can't believe he got taken down by pirates. And I don't believe he just abandoned us either…"
"What do you believe?" he asked.
She was silent for a moment, thinking it over, before confessing, "I don't really know, honestly. Maybe he got stuck in a similar situation as Hinata: got stuck on a planet and then couldn't leave because of the border, and… maybe he doesn't know the border went down. I mean," she shrugged, "that's possible, isn't it?"
"Depends on how far he went on his joyride and the timing of everything," Riku replied, lightly digging his finger against the wood in the railing as he brought his gaze back to the stars. "But yeah, it's possible."
"So, that's why I want to see if that pig can tell me anything," she finished explaining, "at least give me some closure if nothing else."
"Yeah…" he mumbled softly.
They fell into silence for a minute before Sam let out a long sigh and pushed herself off the railing with an awkward, breathy laugh, "Well-uh, now you know... Good talk." She patted him on the shoulder and walked away, heading below deck for the few remaining minutes of the ride.
Riku looked after her as she disappeared down the stairs with a frown on his face, but didn't say anything as he turned his attention back to the space surrounding them, taking every little detail of it in.
"So," Ben spoke up with his trademark cheery voice, "we're going on this mission for what now?"
The corners of Riku's mouth tipped into a smirk as he replied, "For Hinata; we're looking for a pig that can give visions of the future so we can see if she can safely leave the mansion."
Ben nearly gasped as he ran over to Riku. "Oh, really?" he asked in a fanciful tone as he clasped his metal hands by the side of his face. "You mean, we might be able to go out on the ship regularly again? And she'll be able to come, too?"
Riku's smirk slightly grew as he nodded, "Yeah, but it depends on what the vision shows, or if it even shows the right thing at all. But Hinata thought it was worth checking out, so here we are."
"I'm sure the vision will show good things!" Ben replied, his voice still dreamy as he patted Jack on the head as he floated by. "Hinata is very capable! She can handle whatever that Organization throws at her."
"She can handle a lot," Riku agreed, his frown returning as he added, "but even together, we wouldn't be able to take on the entire Organization."
Ben looked at Riku for a moment before commenting, "It doesn't seem like you have a lot of faith in the vision being good."
"It's not that," he admitted with a sigh. "I just don't know how a vision can assure us she'll be safe."
"Well, I know one thing," Ben pulled himself up to sit on the railing, his long, thin legs dangling in front of him. "Hinata isn't the type of person that can handle being stuck in one place for long. You should have seen her on Bentopia." He swatted his hand and laughed as he recalled, "She was complaining about being bored and wanting to get out within the first day I let her stay at my house, and she was so injured, she could barely move!"
Riku chuckled. "Yeah, that sounds like her."
"Can I go with you to the planet?" Ben asked, getting Riku to look up at him surprised. "I'd like to see the vision for myself! And I can even record it so you can show it to Hinata later!"
Riku slightly averted his gaze as he mulled it over, and then nodded. "Alright, but you'll need to follow my orders if we run into any trouble, alright?"
Ben jumped up from the railing, landing right beside Riku as he saluted, "Yes'sir! I'll be the best behaved robot there ever was! And I'm much more capable than you might believe!" He posed proudly and pointed upwards. "I was, after all, a navigator for the notorious Captain Flint. I still have a few tricks up these rusty old sleeves."
"Just don't try anything too drastic," Riku told him, almost regretting his decision to allow him to tag along. "And don't run off, either."
Holding up his far left copper finger, Ben exclaimed, "I pinky promise! That's something I learned on Montressor when I helped out at the Benbo Inn! You wrap your pinkies together and no matter what, the promise can't be broken."
Riku stared at Ben's outstretched finger for a moment before shaking his head and looking away, "Yeah, I'm not doing that…"
"Oh…" Ben replied sadly, slightly lowering his finger as his eyes began to glow a somber blue.
Ben was brought out of his depression as he noticed the ship beginning to slow. His blue eyes instantly blinked back to their bright yellow and he skipped back to the control panel. "We've just arrived! We'll be ready to beam down in a couple minutes!"
"Alright, thanks," Riku told him as he finally stood from the railing. "I'll go get Sam."
He turned to head below deck, but was surprised when he saw Sam coming up the steps, with her staff already holstered at her side and a long twined necklace draped from her neck; it had a simple white rectangular charm with a thick blue stripe down the center.
Sam noticed Riku's gaze on her necklace; she reached up her hand to grab the charm before explaining, "It used to be a hair piece my dad had given me before he disappeared, but it broke during Axel's, uh, 'visit' to Montressor." Clearing her throat she added, "So, I just decided to make it into a necklace instead."
Riku slowly nodded and looked up at her, changing the subject completely. "Well, we're here. You ready to go down?"
"Ready as I'll ever be," she replied as she walked to the railing to look down at the planet below.
From the ship, she could barely see past the thick gray clouds that surrounded the world and when she could peek through the holes, she only saw spurts of green mixed with white along its surface.
"Did it always look like this?" she asked.
Riku walked up beside her and shook his head. "No, but it was a different time of year when Hinata and I came here. It's probably just snow."
"Huh," Sam smirked, "I can't remember the last time I saw snow. Hardly ever snows on Montressor."
"Yeah, " Riku agreed as he double checked to see if he had everything he needed. "It hardly ever snowed back on the island either. Only on the mountains."
"So this should be interesting," Sam shivered, just at the thought. "Sure hope the magic drive knows the weather."
"Me too," he concurred, before suddenly turning around. "Actually, I need to grab something before we head down." Without waiting for Sam to reply, he went below deck and reappeared moments later wearing a strange necklace around his neck.
"What is that?" Sam asked as she fully turned around from the railing and examined the green pendant hanging from the long chain. She stared at a soft glowing light in the center of the pendant, which almost seemed as if it were pulsating with power.
"Some sort of summoning charm," Riku explained. "I got it from someone I met here last time. I doubt I'll need to use it, but better safe than sorry."
"Huh," Sam noted as she continued to stare at it. "Wasn't from a girl, was it?" she glanced up at him with a smirk.
He scoffed, "You really think I would have accepted it if it was?"
"Not if Hinata had anything to say about it," she snickered in response.
"Alright! Ready for landing!" Ben chimed with Jack happily floating by his side.
Without waiting for their reply, he pressed a large button on the control board, instantly covering all of them with a bright light and vanishing them from the ship. An icy wind ambushed them the moment they were on the surface. They opened their eyes to find themselves in a winter wonderland. The snow that covered the ground as far as they could see was glistening from the soft sunlight that shone through the clouds, and the tall trees, bare of leaves, were covered with icicles that distortedly reflected the world around them. Jack instantly let out a string of barks as he bounded headfirst into the snow repeatedly, sending piles of icy puffs into the air behind him.
Sam held out her hand, catching a few falling snowflakes in her gloved palm. She tore her eyes away from the scene around her and looked down at her own outfit. Thick royal purple gloves covered her hands, all the way up to her forearms and meeting with the long sleeves of her gray dress that hugged her form before falling loosely from her hips. All of it was mostly hidden under a wool cape clasped above her chest, that was a deep dark purple which almost appeared black without the light. Its oversized hood shielded her head from the falling snow as the loose, excess fabric pooled around her shoulders before draping down her sides to the bottom of her dress. Underneath everything were thick snow boots, sharing the same purple hue as the cape. She peeked under the cape, and smiled that her necklace was still hanging comfortably from her neck.
She looked back up, and noticed Riku standing a few feet away from her. A long navy blue cape was wrapped around his shoulders, fastened with a pair of gold buttons over a thick sleeveless gray-blue tunic. Underneath was a tight, olive-green shirt with sleeves reaching down to his wrists that were covered with dark brown gloves. His pants were loose and gray, tucking into knee high boots that were the same exact color as the olive green shirt. Sam looked up at his face, noticing his long silver hair loosely tied back.
"Wow…" Sam breathed out as she looked back down at her own outfit and held out the sides of her cape. "That magic drive isn't messing around."
"I know, right?" Ben agreed, causing both Sam and Riku to turn to look at him.
"What the hell?" Sam breathed, stepping forward in disbelief and kneeling down in the snow.
In front of her stood a short copper robot that barely reached above her knee. Its body was a cylindrical boiler with a metal pipe protruding from its back where small puffs of smoke were chuffing out its top. The head was a similar shape with a coned top that was flattened out at the tip. Two round eyes shone like small, bright lanterns and a seam was riveted between them, buttoning straight down the face to what seemed like a mouth, which made up the bottom half of the head. The arms and legs were thick and clunky, giving a slight shake when they moved.
Small horizontal shutters slowly closed over the round eyes, before reopening in a slow blink as the robot opened its mouth. "Isn't this great? I've never been in a different body before!"
Sam's mouth fell agape when she heard Ben's voice escape from the tiny robot in front of her. Riku came up beside her and also knelt down, looking Ben's new body over.
"I wasn't expecting you to change, too," Riku admitted, while Sam struggled to find her voice. "You didn't change when you went to Atlantis."
"Probably because the Atlanteans have machinery like me, and here on Prydain I would have stood out too much!" Ben surmised as he looked down at his new body and held out his hands. "Regardless of the reason, I feel like a new me!"
He looked forward, past Riku and Sam, seeing Jack bounding through the snow. With a slight hop, he ran forward, toddling past the others to get his friend's attention. Jack paused his antics and looked over, happily barking as he floated down to Ben, their heights almost similar.
"We're finally the same size!" Ben chimed, patting his large hand on Jack's head, a bit harder than he intended from the heavier weight.
"Well I certainly wasn't expecting that," Sam commented to Riku as she stood back up straight. "Especially not for him to change size so much."
"Yeah," Riku agreed, standing as well as he watched Jack and Ben chase each other in the snow, circling them. "But at least at this height he won't stand out as much."
He looked around, realizing they were standing in the same spot he and Hinata had beamed down to the first time they had come to Prydain. The creek that had once babbled beside them on his last visit was frozen solid, and beyond it Riku could spot Taran's farm. The straw roof was covered with ice crystals and the windows in the stone walls were shut tight. But at the entrance, Riku noticed that the door was broken down, the top half barely clasped to the doorway as the rest was splintered on the ground.
"Something isn't right…" Riku mumbled before sniffing the air. "There's darkness here."
Sam frowned. "And you can tell that how exactly?"
He looked over to her and explained, "I can smell it; darkness has this distinct stench that's hard to miss."
Sam sniffed and shook her head, "I don't smell anything except maybe the trees."
"Last I checked you've never fallen into darkness," he replied, holding out his hand and summoning Soul Eater. "So you can't really be expected to know what it's supposed to smell like."
"Fair enough," she shrugged, accepting his answer.
"I don't know where it is, but there's a ton of darkness here; we need to be careful." Riku looked back to the others and told them, "Stay close, alright? I'm going to check out that house."
Ben and Jack immediately ceased their play and nodded to Riku as they came back to him. Riku looked to Sam, making sure she was ready before he began walking forward, leading the way to Taran's home.
Sam reached to her sheath, pulling out her staff as she followed close behind, looking around at the winter scenery that surrounded them. Not a single animal or bird could be heard or seen around them, giving the entire area an eerie silence. Riku bent down as he went under the half-door, stepping over the scattered debris on the floor as to not make a sound. He walked a bit further into the home, allowing the others some room to follow him in as he looked around. The dim light from outside shone through the windows, casting a dreary glow over the destroyed home. Every table and chair was torn apart, the wood and straw that once made them up, disheveled on the ground. Broken glass from pictures and bowls lay shattered across every surface, crunching beneath their feet with every step.
"Where are we?" Sam asked with a hushed voice as she looked around.
Riku frowned and sighed, "It used to be Taran's home."
"Oh," Sam realized as she slowed to a stop. "What do you think could have happened?"
Shaking his head, he admitted, "I have no idea."
"Hey, guys," Ben called out to them with a whisper. "Check this out!"
They both turned towards him to see the small robot standing by the large stone furnace. On the front of the center stone was a dark engraving: a skull with four horns, two protruding from either side. Riku narrowed his eyes as he stepped towards it, noticing a thin purple mist expelling from the stone.
"What do you think it is?" Ben asked as he climbed up on a broken stool and reached up towards the engraving.
"No! Ben, stop!" Riku exclaimed, but was too late as Ben's metal hand had just barely touched the engraving, making it flash with a purple light, before dimming back out to nothingness.
A thick tension filled the room. They stood perfectly still, waiting to see if anything was about to happen. Riku looked around, his heart pounding in his ears as Ben averted his gaze, fully knowing he had disobeyed an order.
"It was probably nothing," Sam whispered before being abruptly hushed by Riku.
"Something's here," he told her shortly, tightening his grip on Soul Eater as he stared at the stone where the glowing emblem had been.
A thick black sludge began excreting from the seams of the stone, spreading over the entire furnace until it covered the walls. Ben yelped and jumped from the stool he had been standing on, staring up at the black goop that was dripping down to the floor.
Sam coughed and brought her hand to her nose. "What is that smell?"
"Pure darkness," Riku replied, keeping his gaze fixed on the growing dark pool. "We walked into a trap." Without looking away, he barked out orders, "Ben, Jack, get to cover! Sam, can you do a continual beam of energy with your arm?"
"Yeah, I think so," she replied, flipping back her cape from her left shoulder before holding out her mechanical arm, powering it up.
As Ben scampered behind a knocked over table with Jack, the darkness leaked to the ground surrounding Riku and Sam, making them stand back to back. From the pool, yellow glowing eyes began to appear in clusters as Shadow Heartless crawled out of the goop. Behind them, Armored Knight Heartless rose up out of the ground, their purple skin melded with their thin metal armor that was met with the sharp blades attached to their arms. They twitched and stumbled behind the Shadows, glaring at the two of them with their glowing eyes through their helmets.
Sam gulped as she looked at the group, realizing that her and Riku were completely enclosed. She winced from a sudden heat striking through her left arm, and looking over she saw the crystal in her mechanical arm glowing brighter than she had ever seen it, emitting a wave of heat from being over-charged.
"Ready?" Riku asked over the gurgles and clangs of the Heartless while glancing over his shoulder. She only nodded in response, about to reply with words, before Riku abruptly and tightly linked his arm through hers, yelling, "Now!"
Without hesitating, she released the charge in the crystal, holding out her arm towards the Heartless as a bright beam of pure energy shot out. Seeing the beam, Riku held out his free arm, summoning a blast of dark firaga as he swung around, carrying Sam along with him. He spun her in a complete circle while the beam and his fire took out the entire wave of Heartless, causing the enemies to burst into a black mist and leave behind a plethora of green orbs. Riku slowed his momentum and placed Sam back on the ground. She stumbled forward with a loss of breath, still trying to figure out what had just happened as the crystal in her arm dimmed from the excess use of power so it could recharge.
Before she could ask what he had just done, another wave of Heartless appeared, yet much less numerous than before. Shaking her head, she grabbed her staff from her sheath and joined Riku in taking out the rest of the enemies.
Riku fired a string of dark aura towards a group of Heartless, watching them burst into black mist as he soaked up the green orbs they left behind. He turned to slash towards an oncoming enemy, when he suddenly felt his communication device vibrating in his pocket. Jumping back to avoid being hit, he reached into his pocket with his free hand and pulled out the device.
"Who is it?" Sam yelled, firing a short blast into the creature pursuing Riku.
"I think it's Hinata!" Riku called back, "Something might be wrong!" He pressed the center button to answer, bringing up her hologram, yet it was fuzzy and flickering in and out of existence. "Hinata, what's going on?" he jumped forward and sliced through an enemy.
Hinata's voice came out in spurts, none of her words audible as her hologram barely connected.
"I can't understand you," Riku replied once her choppy voice had ceased. He ducked under an attack and added, "Things aren't going exactly to plan; there are Heartless here. Something's definitely wrong-" he looked back to the device, seeing that it had lost connection. He frowned as he stuffed it back in his pocket and got back to fighting.
As the last enemy finally fell, the pools of darkness soaked in between the cracks in the floor, disappearing from sight. Sam resheathed her staff, trying to take in a full breath as drops of sweat gleamed on her skin. She looked over at Riku, seeing him dispelling Soul Eater and stumbling back a step, seemingly just as breathless as her.
"That was amazing!" Ben exclaimed, jumping out from his hiding spot, "The way you guys worked together for that joint attack and the huge explosion! Wait until we tell Hinata abou-"
"I thought I told you not to do anything drastic?" Riku curtly interrupted him, causing Ben to stop short. "You're lucky Sam and I were here with you to fight those guys off. You need to start listening to me the exact moment I give you an order. Alright?"
Ben stared up at him, his lantern eyes opened wide and innocently. Ever so slowly, he lowered his gaze and nodded. "Yes'sir…"
"It's fine…" Riku sighed, as he turned and walked out of the destroyed home.
Sam followed him outside, thankful for the chilled breeze. "What was that?" She asked.
"Some sort of summoning mechanism," Riku explained. "I haven't seen one of those on a regular world before though. Something isn't right here… There weren't even Heartless the last time I was here…" He reached into his pocket, pulling out the communications device and pressed the center button to call Hinata. A blue light pulsated around the seams before suddenly flickering out. Shaking his head, he put it back in his pocket. "And for some reason our calls aren't connecting… I hope Hinata's alright. Maybe we should head back."
"I'm sure she's fine," Sam assured him, stepping aside as Ben and Jack ran past her to play in the snow. "What could have happened in the half hour we've been gone?"
"I don't know, but-"
"Look, let's just finish the mission we came here to do, then we can hurry back to make sure she's alright." Sam interrupted him, before licking her lips and adding with a softer voice, "This might be my only chance to find out what happened to my dad…"
Riku met her pleading gaze with a small frown. He sighed and reluctantly nodded, "Alright, we'll find the pig."
"Thank you," she smiled.
"Yeah, whatever, let's just get moving." he waved her off, walking a bit further through the desolate farm.
"Well, do you have any idea where this Taran kid could have gone?" Sam asked, looking around. "'Cause he obviously isn't here anymore."
"I don't know where to find him," he replied, reaching under his shirt and pulling out the charm from his necklace, "But I know someone who could." He looked down at the green glowing charm in his palm and slightly smirked, "Never thought I'd use this again…"
Closing his eyes, he tightened his hand around the charm. Sam watched him from a few feet away with her arms crossed. She noticed the glow of the charm beginning to brighten considerably, its green light seeping in between Riku's fingers and shining against the surrounding trees. The wind picked up in intensity, whirling around them, causing Sam to shield her face with her arms as snow and twigs were thrown through the air.
A sudden roar from an unknown creature caused Sam to open her eyes again and immediately gasp at the sight. In front of her stood a dragon-like creature she had never seen before. Its scales were a dull black, mixing with its purple underbelly. It stood on two massive, clawed feet, and rather than arms it folded two black wings against its sides. Two long horns protruded from its long narrow head, from where two glowing green eyes stared at Sam.
Sam swallowed hard, staring back at the creature with a mixture of awe and fear before she heard Riku's voice calling out to her. She looked up to see two other men standing behind the creature, speaking with Riku.
The first man was tall and slender with fair skin. He had pronounced cheekbones that led to a pointed chin. Long blonde hair fell freely behind his back, contrasting well with the dulled blue trench coat he wore. Brandy-brown belts were fastened around his waist, matching the knee-high boots on his feet; the belts held up a long rapier sheath buckled alongside his back. His left hand was concealed in his jacket as he smiled warmly and slightly bowed in Sam's direction.
"This is Bedivere," Riku introduced the tall man to Sam, before motioning to the other much shorter man beside him, "And this is Mordred."
Sam looked beside Bedivere to see Mordred. He stood only a few inches taller than Sam with a gruff look about him on his weather-beaten face. His hair was black and reached to his broad shoulders; the top of it was tied back, keeping it out of his face. A single scar went over his chin up to the right side of his nose. His black eyes looked Sam over, making her feel uneasy. She tore her gaze from his and looked over his clothes. He wore a thick, dull grayed cape with a full fur lining around the the top of it, where it clasped above his chest. Underneath, she could faintly make out a dark burgundy tunic which was cut low to show off a heavy chainmail. A claymore was sheathed around his waist, almost grazing the snow on the ground beside his thick worn-black boots.
"U-um," she found her voice and cleared her throat as she looked back up at them. "I'm Sam. Nice to meet you…" she spoke slowly and unsure as she looked the group over.
"I was expecting to see you and Eirian," Riku spoke up, getting Bedivere's attention as he motioned towards Mordred, "But not him."
"Happy to see you too, kid," Mordred retorted with a grumbly voice as he looked him over. "What's with the sash over your eyes? You blind now?"
Riku let out a breath, "No, I can see just fine, but good to see you haven't changed, Mordred."
"Mordred was with Eirian and I when I received your call for aid," Bedivere explained, standing tall and ignoring their banter. "We have been travelling together for the past several months and thought it would be rude of me to leave him behind, so I brought him along. I do hope that does not cause any trouble."
"No, it's fine," Riku assured him. He looked towards Eirian and half-smiled, getting a low growl in response, making him step back.
"Be calm, Eirian," Bedivere soothed, running his hand along Eirian's scaly head. As her growls ceased, Bedivere looked back to Riku and commented. "You've certainly grown since we last met."
"Yeah," Riku chuckled, glancing uneasily at Eirian. "Hit a bit of a growth spurt."
"I'll say…" Mordred added, "Last time I saw you, you were just a runt."
Bedivere cleared his throat, cutting in on Mordred's comment. "May I inquire the reason you called on me?"
Riku looked to Bedivere, "Oh, yeah. Remember that Taran kid we had to track the last time I was here?"
"Indeed I do," Bedivere nodded.
"You mean that whiney pipsqueak with the pig?" Mordred asked.
"Yeah," Riku nodded, "We came here for the pig, but…" he motioned behind them towards the broken barn. "Doesn't seem like he lives here anymore. So I thought you could help track him down."
Bedivere smirked, "That is my speciality. I would be honored to oblige."
"We're getting paid for this though, right?" Mordred crossed his arms, "Could use some extra gold."
Riku sighed and retorted, "If you do anything useful, I might consider it."
"What are you talking about? Of course I'll be useful!" Mordred scoffed, flinging one of his hands at him. "What about the girl?" He motioned his head towards Sam silently standing a few feet away. "How is she supposed to be useful?"
"You'd be surprised," Riku smirked over at her, causing Sam to break a small smile in return.
"Is she your new girl or something?" Mordred went on to ask, before snickering, "Finally took my advice and got rid of that red-head, huh?"
"Uh, n-no," Riku quickly shook his head, his cheeks flushing from the unexpected insinuation. "That's not-"
"Wait, what?" Sam cut in, not fully overhearing their conversation.
"We're not together," Riku got the words out, noticing Sam's eyes immediately widen.
"Definitely not," She quickly added, shaking as if she were grossed out at the thought, "I wouldn't be with him if he were the last guy in the universe."
Mordred instantly guffawed from her words, repeating them under his breath through his laughter.
Riku looked over at Sam with a frown, seeing her shrug in response. Letting out a small breath, he informed them. "Hinata and I are fine; she's back home. Sam's just her friend."
"Ahem," Bedivere cleared his throat, cutting in on the conversation, already pondering about their mission. "If I recall correctly, when we were tracking Taran, he was travelling with royalty,"
"You're right," Riku recalled, looking away from Sam and bringing his hand to his chin. "Princess... Eye, or, something…."
Mordred stared at Riku for a moment before chuckling heartily, "Princess Eye? What sort of dumb name is that?"
Riku groaned and defended, "At least I'm trying to remember something."
"Are you guys always like this?" Sam spoke up, causing Riku and Mordred to look over at her.
"With Pipsqueak here, at least." Mordred replied, roughly hitting Riku against the back of his shoulder, making him stumble forward.
Sam watched with silent amusement as Riku grumbled under his breath and rubbed his sore shoulder as the three of them bicker amongst themselves, before bringing her gaze down to Eirian. The monstrous reptile boredly laid on the snowy ground, its bright green eyes watching Ben and Jack scamper through the snow right outside the broken barn. Sam glanced back up at the three men, still discussing their plan of action, before stepping towards Eirian.
Once beside her, Sam knelt to the ground and softly placed her hand along Eirian's side, feeling the texture of the scales even through her glove. Eirian emitted a low growl, causing Sam to look over to see the creature staring at her with slightly narrowed eyes.
"Oh, sorry," Sam whispered, lifting her hand off. "I won't touch you…" she clasped her hands in her lap. "I've just never seen anything like you before."
"She's a Gwythaint." Bedivere spoke up, getting her attention. Sam glanced up to see all three of the men looking down at her. "And I am very surprised she is allowing you so close to her."
"Well, she growled a bit when I touched her," Sam admitted.
"You're lucky she didn't bite your hand off," Mordred told her with a laugh, "Right, Bedivere?"
Bedivere audibly sighed, giving Mordred a look before he addressed Riku, "I believe I know the Princess that was travelling with our target."
"You do?" Riku asked, not taking his gaze away from Sam beside Eirian.
"Yes, shortly before Taran's capture with his pig, there was a young maiden brought into the castle," Bedivere recalled. "I wasn't part of her capture, but I did guard her cell for a night. I shortly spoke with her, and she told me she was from the Kingdom of Mona, which would make her Princess Eilonwy, daughter of King Regat."
"That name sounds right," Riku agreed, finally looking away from Eirian when he decided she wouldn't attack Sam. "Do you think Taran would be in her kingdom?"
"It's quite possible," Bedivere nodded, "It would be a good place to start, at least."
"Let's head there then," Riku agreed as he turned around and held out his hand. "Kingdom of Mona… right?"
"Yes," Bedivere simply assured him.
"Alright," Riku nodded and a black portal sprang from the ground. "Let's get going then."
"What in the blazes is that?!" Mordred exclaimed, staring at the pulsating portal with his mouth agaped.
"A path to the Kingdom," Riku shortly told him, "Just walk inside."
Mordred scoffed, "Yeah right, how do I know it's not some sort of trap? It looks a lot like those black pools those shadow creatures crawl out of."
"Indeed it does," Bedivere agreed, "However, I have seen Riku create one of these portals before. It is completely safe, I assure you."
Mordred shook his head and grumbled under his breath as he stomped forward. "Kid just waltzes back here expecting us to drop everything..." He glanced up at Riku with an unsure look, before disappearing into the portal.
"Is he always that… grumpy?" Sam asked once Mordred disappeared.
"He's usually worse," Bedivere jested, barely smiling at his own joke. He looked over to Eirian and knelt beside her while running his hand along her smooth scales, whispering in a language neither Riku nor Sam understood.
Letting out a low growl, Eirian walked forward. Riku jumped back, not daring to get in her way as she entered the portal.
"She'll be alright in there?" Sam asked.
Bedivere borderline chuckled as he stood back up, "She is not happy about it, but yes." He nodded towards Riku as he walked forward, "I shall see you inside."
As he disappeared into the portal, Sam got up from the ground and walked towards Riku. "You sure we can trust these guys?"
"Bedivere, yes," Riku assured her, looking into the portal. "I'm not too sure about Mordred, but as long as he gets paid, he shouldn't cause trouble."
Sam nodded, "Hopefully Taran and that pig will be there."
"Yeah," Riku let out a breath, before glancing around and calling out, "Ben! Jack! Come on, we're leaving!"
"Be right there!" Ben yelled back, his voice far in the distance.
Riku shook his head, "I wonder if it was a mistake bringing those two."
"They're fine," Sam dismissed his worries. "Sure, Ben set off that trap, but nothing we can't handle."
Riku scoffed and was about to reply before he heard Ben yell out in fright. "Heartless! Heartless!"
"Dammit," Riku groaned, looking over and seeing Ben and Jack racing their way with Shadow Heartless chasing after them. "Just get into the portal!"
Sam reached for her staff, but Riku stopped her.
"Just get in the portal," he told her, "It's already draining enough to keep this open for everyone. We'll just let those guys be."
"Whatever you say," Sam shrugged, stepping back as Ben squeezed between the space in Riku's legs and escaped into the portal with Jack right behind.
Riku nodded to Sam and they both entered the portal, allowing it to disappear behind them before a single Heartless could follow them in. Once inside, Riku almost stumbled forward, feeling a sudden drain of energy. Sam caught his shoulder, keeping his balance.
"You alright?" She asked him with a whisper.
"Yeah," he assured her, standing back up straight as he looked ahead of them, seeing the rest of the group slowly walking on ahead towards the bright light at the end of the Corridor. "I've never used a Corridor to transport this many people before. It's using a lot more power than I thought it would."
"Hey, Kid!" Mordred called out to them, walking backwards so he could face them.
Riku held back a groan as he replied with a slightly exasperated voice, "What?"
"Are you the one that made this?!" he yelled, "Or was it that Ansem guy?"
Riku clenched his teeth and twitched his head, hating the way Ansem sounded coming from Mordred. "I forgot he knew about that…" he whispered, barely loud enough for Sam to hear.
Sam glanced over at Riku, noticing the sudden brooding aura that overtook him. Raising her own voice, she replied. "He used darkness to make it!"
"Seriously?" Riku harshly whispered to her.
"What, am I wrong?" She asked him in return.
"Always knew you'd put it to good use eventually!" Mordred replied with a hearty laugh as he turned back around, looking around at the swirling darkness around them with awe.
Riku shook his head with a hardened expression. "Don't just tell people that," he scolded Sam with a whisper.
"It's what you're using though, isn't it?" She asked, putting her arms out at her sides. "What's so wrong about it?"
"You aren't wrong, I just-" his voice trailed off and he let out a breath. "Forget it, it's fine."
Leaving her behind, he walked on ahead until he matched his pace with Bedivere's. He walked beside him in silence for a moment, watching as Jack floated over to Eirian, barking to her as she made strange throaty noises in return. A slight smirk appeared on Riku's face from their interaction.
"Is everything alright?" Bedivere inquired, getting Riku's attention.
"Yeah," Riku quickly assured him before asking, "How long have the Heartless been here?"
Bedivere was silent for a moment, "The shadow creatures?" When he noticed Riku nod, he recalled, "Several months now. It started with just a few sightings here and there, mostly in the north. However, within the last three months they have spread across the entirety of Prydain. The animals of the forest have been driven out or completely devoured by them, and even the most skilled of bounty hunters are unable to travel far alone or by foot."
"It's that bad?" Riku asked, slightly shaking his head. "That doesn't make any sense… where are they all coming from?"
"I have a theory, yet I think it will be better discussed outside of this portal, so you can rest." Bedivere replied.
Riku breathily laughed, "Thanks for looking out for me."
Bedivere smiled to himself before asking. "Is Lady Hinata well?"
"Yeah, well, sort of," Riku honestly admitted, "She's sort of why we're here."
"So I take it things worked out between the two of you," Bedivere commented, glancing over at Riku, noticing the smile on his face.
"Yeah," he chuckled, "Things definitely worked out."
"I am happy to hear it," Bedivere's smile grew as he looked back ahead of them, realizing they were nearing the bright light.
They walked into the light and were immediately greeted by chilly winds and snowflakes falling on their faces. Riku walked to the front of the group to see that they were in the middle of a town. People walked all around them, barely paying any mind to them, despite them just appearing out of a random portal, but sent wary glances towards Eirian in the center of the group.
A tall wall, made entirely of thick logs with spiked tops, surrounded the outskirts of the town and the double-doored gate was well guarded by fully armored men. Even from where Riku stood with the others on the main path, he could see men fighting off a group of Heartless right outside the town wall. Homes and buildings of all shapes and sizes filled the town, alongside a hill that led up to a stone castle with tattered red flags fluttering from the wind atop the towers.
"Kingdom of Mona…?" Mordred slowly asked in wonderment as he looked around and stepped forward to be beside Riku. "We just traveled a week's worth journey in a few minutes?" He looked up at Riku with an unmistakable admiration. "You did that?"
Riku couldn't help but smirk a bit smugly, "Not just a runt anymore, huh?"
Mordred scoffed with a bit of a chuckle, "You're alright, Kid." He turned around towards the others, specifically looking to Bedivere. "Now what? Where to next?"
Bedivere was softly running his hand along Eirian's back, keeping her calm from the commotion around them. He scanned their surroundings, taking all of it in, before speaking. "Taran lived on a farm before, so it is safe to assume he would go back to such a lifestyle even after moving."
"So, we check the farms?" Sam asked.
Bedivere shortly nodded, "That, or we could possibly check the castle. If Taran was in good company with the Princess, he could very well be there."
"I say we split up," Riku finally turned around to face the group. "Sam and Mordred, check the farms, Bedivere and I will check at the castle." He looked over to Sam, noticing her unenthused expression at the thought of being alone with Mordred. "It'll be quicker. We don't have a lot of time to waste."
Sam let out a breath and nodded, "Alright, that works with me."
"And Jack and I will go with Eirian!" Ben exclaimed, patting his metal hand along Eirian's leg as Jack barked in agreement.
"Are those things with you too?" Mordred asked Riku with a hushed voice.
Riku sighed, "Yeah, they wanted to tag along." Crossing his arms, he asked, "Ben, where are you planning on going with Eirian?"
Ben brought one of his hands to his large chin, "Hmm…"
Eirian suddenly let out a deep throated sound, getting low on the ground and nudging Ben with her pointed snout.
Ben looked over at her and gasped excitedly before scurrying up onto her back, his weight had little effect on Eirian as she easily stood back up. Ben pointed upwards and exclaimed, "We shall scan the town from the skies!"
"Are you sure that's safe?" Sam asked.
"It'll keep him out of trouble," Riku shrugged, before replying to Ben, "Just stay around the town, don't wander off."
"Yes'sir!" Ben saluted as Eirian spread her wings.
With a strong flap of her wings, she instantly soared into the air, causing everyone around her to shield their faces from the gust of wind. Jack barked jovially as he floated after them, leaving the group alone on the ground.
"Never thought she'd make a friend," Mordred commented to Bedivere, watching Eirian fly away with Ben and Jack.
"Hmm," Bedivere slightly hummed in response with a smile on his face. "Yes, it is rather surprising." He looked away from Eirian to Riku, "Shall we then?"
"Yeah," Riku agreed, looking to Sam. "Call me if you find anything."
"What if the call won't connect? Didn't that call with Hinata drop earlier?" She asked, placing her hands along her hips.
Riku frowned and thought it over for a moment, "Then just come find us at the castle."
"Whatever you say," she shrugged in agreement, before nodding to Mordred, "You ready?"
Mordred half-heartedly nodded and walked forward, passing her to walk down the path towards the farmland. "Any excuse to get a move on," he mumbled under his breath. "Hopefully we'll actually get to kill something."
Sam sent Riku a look before turning around to follow after Mordred.
"Are you certain you trust Mordred to be alone with your companion?" Bedivere inquired as he and Riku watched them walk away.
"Yeah," Riku simply replied, turning around to look up the steep path that led up to the castle. "She'll blast him if he tries anything."
"Blast him?" Bedivere repeated with a hint of amusement in his voice, turning around as well. "Is she a mage?"
"Something like that," Riku chuckled, stepping forward and slightly wobbling as his head throbbed. He stopped and placed his hand on his forehead, taking in a deep breath of the icy air.
"Should we take a short rest before heading to the castle?" Bedivere asked. "There is a tavern nearby."
Riku frowned and looked up at the castle, taking note of the steep hill and the way his head was aching. He swallowed to wet his dry throat and reluctantly shook his head, "No, we don't have time to waste, I'll be fine."
He felt around his tunic, searching for where his potions got stored in his new outfit. Pulling out a thin vial from a satchel attached to his belt, he clinked off the lid and drank the contents, instantly feeling a mild rush of adrenaline. Placing the empty vial back in his pocket, he began walking forward.
Bedivere nodded as he followed after him, "Very well. At the very least, have something to drink," he reached to a leather flask attached to his belt and held it out to Riku.
Riku hesitantly took the flask and undid the top, motioning it towards Bedivere, he said, "Thanks." He swigged it back, instantly retracting it when a thick, almost syrupy liquid hit his tongue. He shortly coughed and wiped his mouth with his sleeve, noticing Bedivere's short chuckle as Riku looked back at the flask. "What is this? Some sort of alcohol?"
"Aged mead, to be exact," Bedivere informed him, the unmistakable amusement apparent in his voice as he took back the flask and gulped a drink.
Riku lightly coughed again, "I'll stick with my potions, thanks."
"Very well," Bedivere replied, smirking as he refastened his flask to his belt.
Riku's cheeks flushed with a bit of embarrassment as they continued to walk in silence. After a few minutes, he cleared his throat and spoke up, "So, uh, about the Heartless?"
"Yes," Bedivere nodded, moving out of the way of a passerbyer. "I believe there is a source of darkness these creatures are coming from. They are inexplicably appearing from the north, which is where the Horned King used to reside before he was slain." He noticed Riku look over at him as he continued, "My theory is, that even after his death, a residual darkness is still present, if it not from him, then no doubt from the Black Cauldron."
"But I thought that the cauldron was destroyed?" Riku asked.
"To our knowledge, yes," Bedivere nodded, "However, a fraction of its power or darkness could have been left behind. And combine that with the possible darkness left behind from the Horned King-"
"You get a festering pool of darkness for the Heartless to crawl out of…" Riku finished for him, looking back ahead at the castle.
"Precisely" Bedivere agreed, placing his arms behind his back as they walked. "I am unsure what is to be done about the situation. There is no way any of us could have known this would occur from our actions a year ago."
Riku lightly scoffed, "Yeah, but I'm the one that killed the Horned King… And I used darkness to do it. That might have triggered it."
Bedivere side-glanced at him, "Do you mean you remember what happened when you shortly transformed into that Ansem fellow?"
He shook his head, "It's still a bit cloudy. I can remember parts of it…" He noticed Bedivere looking at him questioningly. Letting out a breath, he tried to explain, "Um, when Ansem took me over again, I was able to look in his memories and figure a few things out. Couldn't make sense of most of it though."
"Hmm," Bedivere shortly hummed in response, looking back ahead of them. "That is rather intriguing. I couldn't imagine such an experience." he glanced over, seeing Riku with his gaze downcast, and cleared his throat, "But we will stop talking about it. I can tell it wears on you."
Riku strained a smile, "Yeah, a bit." Taking in a deep breath, he looked back up, realizing they were finally nearing the castle. "It's weird being back here."
"Indeed," Bedivere agreed. "You were rather different when you were here last."
"Yeah," Riku breathily laughed, "Thanks for helping me out again, even after all this time."
"Of course," Bedivere shortly bowed, even as they walked. "The passage of a year is hardly sufficient enough time to break the loyalty of friendship."
"I guess that's true," he replied, suddenly pausing when he felt his communication device vibrating in his pocket.
He reached into his pocket, pulling out the device and pressing the center button. His heart slightly sank when a blue hologram of Sam appeared, rather than Hinata's. Despite Sam only being a mile or so away, her hologram flickered in and out of existence.
"Hey, Sam," Riku greeted, "Find anything?"
"Yeah, we-" her voice warbled a moment, "Taran's n… can… farm, no Hen…" The hologram suddenly vanished as the call dropped.
Sam stared at the dead device for a moment, grumbling as she put it back in a satchel on her hip.. "We've never had problems with connection before, but we get here and nothing works."
Letting out an aggravated breath, she crossed her arms and looked out at the town from the doorway of the old farm she and Mordred found themselves in. Snow was still falling from the sky, keeping the ground covered with a thick layer of white, sparkling ice. Despite the cold, Sam felt a frustrated heat in her cheeks. She could hear Mordred's grumbly voice a few feet beside her.
"How could that brat lose the damned pig, again?" he complained. Shaking his head, he looked towards the town's gate that was only a short walk away and pulled out his claymore from his sheath. "I can't take standing around here doing nothing, I'm going to go kill something…" Without waiting for Sam to reply, he stomped off.
"Not a person, I hope…" Sam replied under her breath before turning around and heading back inside the farm.
A instant warmth met her from the crackling fireplace in the main room, where an older man was sitting in a creaky wood rocking chair with a thick quilt over his legs. His gray hair was long, falling far past his shoulders as his eyes stared blankly into the fire. Sam looked away from him and noticed a blonde-haired girl, that appeared to be around the same age as her, walk into the living room from the kitchen. She wore a regal blue dress that reached to her ankles and her hair was braided into an ornate bun. Her matching blue eyes were saddened as she made eye contact with Sam and strained a smile.
"I'm sorry we're unable to help you," she told Sam with a proper, accented voice.
"It's alright," Sam strained a smile in response. "What did you say your name was again?"
"Eilonwy," she half-heartedly curtsied.
"Princess Eilonwy," the older man corrected from his spot on the rocking chair, before letting out a string of coughs.
"Yes, Dallben," Eilonwy softly acknowledged him before looking back at Sam. "If only you had come a few days prior, we may have still had Hen Wen."
"And maybe that boy wouldn't have wandered off with her!" Dallben added with a grumble, ignoring the slight glare Eilonwy sent him.
"Taran didn't mean to lose Hen Wen," Eilonwy reminded him with a bit of a huff in her voice. "He's already apologized and feels awfully terrible about the whole ordeal!"
"Good!" Dallben nodded, coughing at the end. "That boy's caused enough trouble! About time he learned a lesson."
"Dallben!" Eilonwy scolded. "Why, if the outer walls weren't crawling with those creatures, I'd toss you out this instant!"
Sam smothered a slight snicker as Dallben waved Eilonwy off and went back to his silent sulking, before clearing her throat and asking, "How exactly did Taran lose Hen Wen?"
Eilonwy looked back to Sam, the anger in her eyes diminished. "Honestly, I'm not entirely sure, Taran refuses to speak of it. In fact, he's barely spoken at all since the incident, only to say he's sorry." Slightly shaking her head with her hand on her chin, she explained, "All I know, is that he was outside with Hen Wen for a morning walk and they wandered outside the city walls and towards the forest. But I don't know what happened after that."
"It was the Horned King…" Taran suddenly spoke up, making Sam and Eilonwy turn around to see him standing at the foot of a set of creaky stairs. His shaggy orange hair was disheveled, tied back sloppily while the loose strands fell to his shoulders. His empty, brown eyes stared down at the wooden floorboards as he scuffed it with his boots. "The Horned King took Hen Wen…"
"Taran, you can't be serious," Eilonwy stepped towards him with her arms crossed. "We watched Riku slay the Horned King!"
"I know what I saw, Eilonwy," Taran assured her firmly, stepping forward. "It was the Horned King!"
"I'm sorry, who now?" Sam asked, completely lost. "You watched Riku kill someone?"
Taran suddenly looked up as Eilonwy spun around to face Sam and asked. "You know Riku?"
"Ye-eah," Sam replied with a slow, drawn out voice as she took notice of their tense expressions. "And something tells me you don't like him."
Taran's frown deepened as Eilonwy scoffed, "That is quite an understatement." She shook her head and flung her arms at her side as she ranted. "Not only did he lie to his love about his intentions, he captured us and led us to what very well could have been our deaths, without a single care or any remorse! Why, he's simply awful!" She took in a deep breath and closed her eyes, forcing herself to calm down. Looking back to Sam, she asked. "I don't suppose you know of his love, Hinata?"
Sam slightly smiled and nodded, "Yeah, she's-uh, sort of one of my best-friends, actually."
Both Eilonwy and Taran smiled at her words. "Then she's alright?" Taran asked, his solemn tone slightly lifted in spirits.
"Yeah, she's the reason I'm looking for Hen Wen, actually," Sam informed them. "But yeah, she's doing fine."
"What a relief!" Eilonwy exclaimed, turning around and clasping her hands around Taran's. "Why, we've been worried sick about her!"
Taran smiled back at Eilonwy, his spirits continuing to lift. "Yeah, especially after the way she ran off with Riku even after we warned her about him."
"Indeed," Eilonwy agreed. "It is nice to know she was able to free herself of him… we worried what would become of her if she remained at his side."
"Oh, they're still together," Sam informed them without thinking, instantly regretting it as Taran and Eilonwy shot their gazes to her.
"You can't be serious!" Eilonwy released Taran's hands and walked towards Sam. "After everything he did, and was no doubt going to continue to do?"
"Well, uh," Sam rubbed the back of her neck, "You see, he's different now. He's not the same person you guys remember."
"I'll believe that when I see it," Taran snidely remarked, crossing his arms.
"You just might get that chance," Sam muttered under her breath.
"Sam!" Riku's voice called out from the distance.
Sam instantly whipped her head towards the sound and quickly looked back to the others, stammering, "I-uh, better go see who that is…" Without waiting for their response, she turned and hurried out of the farm, trudging through the snow to get back to the main path where she saw Riku and Bedivere walking through the farmland.
"Hey!" She called out, waving her right arm to get their attention before jogging to meet them.
"There you are," Riku greeted once Sam slowed to a stop in front of them. "Did you find something?"
"Yeah, about that, I met a couple of people that really don't like you." She began to explain. "Taran and Eilonwy?"
Riku immediately frowned and sighed, "Yeah… I don't imagine they'd be too excited to see me."
"Well the good news is that they still remember Hinata and really like her," she told him, "Bad news is that once they found out you and her were still together, they weren't too happy about it."
"Whatever, I don't really care," Riku waved it off, "Do they have Hen Wen?"
"Oh, uh-no…" Sam shook her head with a sigh. "Taran lost her a few days ago. He said she got taken by the Horned King?"
Bedivere and Riku immediately exchanged a look. "Are you certain?" Bedivere asked.
"That's what Taran's insisting," Sam look between them. "Do you guys know who he's talking about? Eilonwy said she watched Riku kill him."
"It was Ansem, but, that doesn't make sense," Riku placed his hands along his hips and looked away. "Except… maybe it isn't really him… but, his Heartless…"
"Can that happen?" Sam asked. "I thought Heartless were only those shadow creatures."
"Usually they are," Riku turned back to face them. "Unless the person that fell into darkness had a really strong heart."
"You, or really, Ansem, killed the Horned King with darkness, correct?" Bedivere inquired. When Riku nodded, Bedivere continued. "Then is it possible that darkness turned him into one of those Heartless creatures?"
"And his heart was probably already dark, I would imagine anyways since you killed him," Sam added, "So that added with the darkness used to kill him… darkness overload."
"Why would he just now be appearing though?" Riku asked, "It's been a year since that happened."
"Perhaps," Bedivere placed his hand to his chin and looked up towards the sky. "It's taken a while for the darkness to take hold. Worse still is the possibility that he's spent this time growing his power and army before attacking."
Riku let out a breath and ran his hand over his hair. "So basically, I unwittingly unleashed an even worse darkness on this world…"
"Why were you and Hinata even here before?" Sam asked. "I mean, Hinata mentioned it was to destroy that Cauldron thing, but why?"
Riku thought about it for a moment, "Maleficent sent us here." He noticed questioning looks and clarified, "Our previous… employer, I guess. She told us to find a way to destroy the Cauldron because if the Horned King was able to activate it, the undead army it would create would be unstoppable, even by Heartless."
"But now instead of creating an army of undead, he's creating an army of Heartless," Sam commented.
"Basically," Riku shrugged. "Or at least, that's what it sounds like."
"Is there a possibility that this is what Maleficent wanted all along?" Bedivere asked.
"What do you mean?" Riku asked. "You mean, she wanted the Horned King to become a Heartless?"
Bedivere slightly shrugged, "It is not entirely unreasonable. Even without your or Hinata's intervention, the Cauldron would have been destroyed. But without you, the Horned King would not have been killed with darkness, but perhaps by the Cauldron itself or by the citizens of Prydain after the ordeal."
"So basically you're saying this is my fault," Riku sighed, looking away with a deep frown. "Even if it was Maleficent sending me here and Ansem using my body, I still followed through with everything without question…" Shaking his head, he sent his gaze towards the muddy snowy ground and stayed silent in thought for a moment, before saying. "I have to fix this… whether or not he has Hen Wen."
"But what about Hinata?" Sam asked. "We don't know what that call was about. What if she needs our help?"
"As long as she's at the mansion, she'll be safe." Riku reminded her, "But I can't just leave here knowing it's my fault this world is the way it is. It's my responsibility to make it right."
Sam frowned but nodded, "Alright, I'm in."
"As am I," Bedivere shortly bowed. "Mordred will no doubt be happy to hear there is a prospect of a grand battle. Speaking of which," he looked around, "Where is Mordred?"
"He got bored and left the town to kill something," Sam informed him.
"Ah," Bedivere smiled, "I should have known."
"Alright, let's get everyone together and get going," Riku told them, turning around to lead the way.
***Author's Note: Thank you so much for reading this chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed it! AH! It was so much fun to write about Prydain again! I'm glad we're back for a bit! There will be one more chapter of Prydain, we won't be here nearly as long as we were in True Friends ahaha! Anyways, thank you again for reading! And as always, many thanks to my amazing editor, Jackie. ***