Chapter 54: Pain II
But I'm going straight ahead
With the scar
Blake pushed back Adam's bloody red blade, leaning to the side to allow Sora to jump forward and engage him. Sora and Adam's blades clashed against each other, utilizing only the most excellent of swordplay to effectively counter each other.
Sora gave a spinning strike at Adam's side, not even flinching when he blocked. He retreated when the man came at him with vertical cut, the attack missing his shoulder by barely a centimeter. He then dodged rolled to the left to avoid a blade of darkness coming at him.
Sora then jumped at him, unleashing a Blizzard Edge. His blade missed, but the spiky column of ice was able to jut up from the ground and nail a hit.
Almost.
Adam had balanced on the tip of the icy edge and kicked off of it, flipping backward in the air. He then blocked the next onslaught of Blake's dual wielding katana and cleaver. She hacked at him rapidly, using her natural flexibility to avoid his sword. This clash continued as the descended, Blake making sure to keep him from making any moves as the fell.
Her amber eyes bore into his soulless red slits, her black hair billowing behind her. This was a face she'd known for years, a face belonging to someone she'd grown to care about very much.
But she did not dare stop attacking.
"Can you do it Blake?" Adam said to her, leaning back to gain falling distance. "Can you bring yourself to hurt someone you love?"
"Hmph." Was the only response she got. Her blade changed to her kusarigama mode. Rapidly swinging the cleaving blade around herself and launching it at Adam. Adam parried the move right away, sending the sickle spiraling.
But he knew that's exactly how Blake's fighting style worked.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Dozens of shots were fired from the end of Gambol Shroud, pushing the blade back at Adam each time he sent it away. Blake twirled the weapon expertly, throwing back at him while gripping the ribbon tightly. The blade swiped at Adam's head, missing as Adam tiled his head back. The man then charged his sword with dark energy again, sending a blade of black energy at his once partner.
On a dime, Blake conjured a clone and flipped off its shoulders and over the blade of blackness. Once the blast had hit her clone, she sent her own energy wave at Adam. The lavender-ish energy propelling through the air dead at its target.
Adam gritted his teeth at the attack, sticking a landing on the solid floor before leaping forward, escaping the blow.
"THUNDAGA!"
Large bolts of powerful magic rained down on the sword user, he was forced to duck, weave and flip in order to escape each attack. Once he caught sight of the magic casting keyblade wielder, he dashed right at him with blurry speed.
Sora halted his casting right away, meeting Adam again in a head-on sword clash. He blocked high, bringing Adam's sword point down to the floor. Adam chuckled and flipped high over to Sora's other side. Sora quickly swung into a block of his stab move. The two pressed against each other, their eyes meeting with the same fierceness as in their last fight.
"Why did you allow yourself to become this way Adam?" Sora asked sincerely. The boy was no longer angry at Adam, harboring hate for the bull faunus would only cause the darkness inside him to become more potent.
He'd learned that now.
"I allowed nothing." Adam said back without emotion. "It is the humans who changed me."
Darkness smirked around his sword, pulsing powerful to push Sora away. The darkness then condensed into spearing tendrils, now zooming at the approaching Blake.
Blake in response dodged the piercing objects, slashing them in halves as she passed them. She zipped up to Adam, swinging an uppercut with her cleaver. Adam didn't even flinch. He kicked Blake in her knee, bring her sword to a stop. He then grabbed her by the wrist with one hand, making her drop the cleaver at the same time.
Swinging Wilt with the other.
"Blake!" Sora cried out.
The faunus girl swung backward, arching backward to that Adam's sword passed under her belly. She then delivered a hard heeled straight kick to his mouth, stunning him. The blow had loosened Adam's grip on her wrist, giving her the time to grab her felled weapon and press her attack again.
"You little…" Adam gripped his face, Blake smirking as a crack formed on his mask.
"Don't be so dramatic." Blake taunted him, though she was certainly wary at the same time. Adam was angered easily, but that very sage rage was dangerous even to the most trained of fighters. It was quite the double-edged sword, working both for Adam...and against him.
The old partners' weapons clanged in unison, each swinging as hard a they could to land a hit. Blake jumped toward Adam, bringing up a spinning two sword slash. She spun rapidly enough that Adam had to block several times.
"That's enough…" Adam growled, He pulsed out his dark aura. Unbalancing Blake as he intended. The man dashed forward and bashed her in the chest with his shoulder. His smirked even wider as he knocked Blake free of breath, breaking her into a coughing fit. Then man then drew his sword…
And slashed her.
While not particularly deep, the slash had managed to make a thick wound in her shoulder. Blake grunted in pain as she dropped her katana, grabbing her shoulder with her right hand in agony. Leaving her completely open.
"Time to say goodbye." Adam's red eyes glowed brightly with menacing rage, he brought his chokuto down for her head. Which would surely split her in two.
"Prism Windmill!"
Sora came striking Adam with a rapidly spinning keyblade in front of him, rainbow energy coming off of it in waves. The light energy singed the dark swordsman, as well as taking heavy blunt damage from the keyblade itself. He was sent backward, flipping again to land on his feet. He glared murderous daggers at Blake and Sora, the boy having cast a quick Cura on the girl and helping her to her feet. Blake nodded at him appreciatively, their collectively determined looks at each other before turning back to Adam himself.
How could she? Adam was seething with such rage that he swore he was trembling. How could Blake, a faunus, trust a stupid human? Did she not remember the terrible treatment she endured as a child? That racial slurs and physical injuries she'd sustained from humans that decided it was their right to harm her? But she was willing to trust them!
It...was...absolutely...disgusting.
And it only pissed of Adam more and more as the fight progressed.
"I shall show you…" Adam's anger managed to tremble his voice. In fact, it sounded like he had two voices now. He drew out his rifle, Blush. Holding it in his opposite hands as dark energy pooled into its cartridges. He then brandished his sword, holding it readily at his side.
"How foolish you both truly are!"
Pointing his gun, the man fired blast after blast of darkness enhanced dust bullets. Blake and Adam immediately took the evasive, ducking and rolling to escape. Adam was an excellent marksman with what shouldn't have been a very accurate weapon, especially from his distance. The bullets grazed past them, even while they were in motion. Adam could anticipate their movements and fire accordingly.
Fine, if he was going to play that way.
"Balloonga." The boy conjured several giant orbs of magic. Adam tensed as he remembered this technique from their last fight. The spiky boy and the catgirl began to slash the balloons apart, making them reform into smaller balloons and launch after Adam.
Adam managed to slice and shoot through the majority of them, but he did miss a few. They didn't hurt as much as they did last time he noticed. Well, that could only mean he had gotten much stronger since then.
But he wouldn't be satisfied until he sliced Sora's neck open.
Sora and Blake were charging at him again, and his frown deepened in focus. They were upon him in the blink of an eye, Sora and Blake trading places as they attacked. Whenever Sora's attack missed, he would switch out behind Blake and she'd attack. Whenever one was blocked and left open. The other dived right in to defend them. It was flawless teamwork. And that in and of itself did not please Adam one bit.
He rapidly assaulted the two; seemingly a little less controlled than he was before. Almost roaring like a caged animal as he did what he could to kill them. But it was no use, Sora dn Blake fought perfectly in tandem. He used brute physical strength, but their combined strength was much greater. He tried to outspeed them, but it was nothing to their speed. He sent out blade after blade of dark energy, Blake would jumped and twirl over then. While Sora would create a thin sheet of ice on the ground to slide forward.
It was beyond aggravating.
"BLIZZAGA!" Sora fired a condensed blizzaga spell ahead of Blake. The magic hit the floor and wall, creating w thick and long slope of ice along the floor and wall respectively. Blake nodded at him before leaping onto the icy slide, riding it straight for Adam.
Sora then conjured a flowmotion zip-line for himself, firing spells at Adam as he zoomed at him also. Adam grit his teeth before summoning his shadow doppelganger that stood behind him, mirroring his movements as he engaged his foes.
He dodged several firaga and aeroga; letting the spells tear up shrapnel instead. He swung his blade at Sora, grimacing as it got blocked. He then used his gun and fired at his chest. Sora had been able to lean to the side, though not quick enough to keep the bullet from penetrating his shoulder.
"Agh!" Sora croaked angrily, ignoring the pain to keep fighting. Blake had engaged Adam's doppelganger, dueling it in high speed sword combat. The sound of clashing metal to metal rang powerfully, it was almost like a symphony.
Adam was growing fed up.
How could they be so strong!?
Adam was fighting as hard as he could, but these two fools were pushing back. Even with his doppelganger, it only just barely helped him.
Where does their strength come from!?
Whenever he looked at Blake, that rage heightened. As well as a damning sadness.
How could she just leave that day? He thought that she believed in what they were fighting for. Would she not do anything to free her race from hate and discrimination? What Adam was fighting for was just that! He just wanted faunus to be treated like people should be treated!
But no! Blake had to leave because she didn't have the guts to do what he himself could! He wasn't in the wrong here! Blake was!
She'd taken the wrong side, deciding she'd rather live with her faunus heritage hidden away so she can mingle freely with those vile humans. She'd rather associate with the people that hurt the faunus than fight against them. To Adam, that act itself was the most despicable kind of evil.
Darkness was blasting out of Adam's body so powerfully that he was losing control, now blind with unrelenting rage as he pursued his targets. They needed to die! He wanted them dead! But nothing was working! He attacked and attacked and attacked, but it didn't make a difference. Sure he'd get pretty good hits in…
But their will to go on is what truly hollowed Adam.
No matter what he threw at them, they kept fighting. And he knew they would never stop fighting.
Until he was defeated.
"HOW!?" Adam roared at the two warriors. "How can you be so strong!? How can you keep fighting!? How can you betray the faunus and turn against them Blake!? What is so special about the humans that you would willingly side with them of us!? Over me!"
In that moment, the darkness cascading around his shoulders vanished. His look of utter astonishment only overshadowed by the sudden feeling of weakness. His could hardly hold up his sword and rifle, his limbs trembling as he tried his hardest to keep standing.
"Adam...you just don't understand."
Before he could attempt a retaliation, the boy was knocked into the air by Sora's keyblade. Subjected to being incinerated by several triple firaga. The fiery attacks hammered at him, and his was barely able to raise his arms to shield himself. His suffering did not stop there.
A black ribbon twisted and tightened around his ankle, and he was suddenly pulled to the ground. It's wielder, Blake delivered a double jump kick that sent him into a nearby wall.
"I didn't choose humans…" Blake stated, hacking at Adam with her dual swords. Pity and regret was in her heart, but she was doing what she had to. Her heart broke more and more as she injured her old mentor, but she continued to do so. She couldn't stop.
"And I didn't choose faunus either."
She slashed him across his chest with both blades, eliciting a cry of pain from him.
"I chose to become a Huntress! I wanted to become a noble person, not a criminal! Don't you see?"
Another slash.
"I've met so many wonderful people along the way, people whom have accepted me as a faunus. I felt at home with them. I actually had some true friends, whom love me for who I am."
Two more.
"I still want to help the faunus, but not in a detestable manner like the White Fang does. So no matter who I have to fight, humans or faunus, I will fight... if that's what it takes to protect what matters to me. Then hopefully I can make a difference...and change the world for the better."
Blake slashed him once more before delivering a hard aura enhanced kick that sent him bulleting away.
"Sora!" She called out her ally's name, raising her hand up.
"Right." Sora leapt up to her, grabbing her hand. "Let's do this!"
The boy swung Blake around before hurling her right past Adam. Blake flipped upright and skidded to a stop. She bashed Adam with the blunt part of her cleaver to knock him to the floor.
Focusing her power, she was able to generate a large half circle of physical clones. Sora had appeared on the opposite end, creating just as many.
In only a moment, the clones had converged on Adam, juggling him through the air with their attacks! He was knocked up, down, right, left, every direction possible! It was fruitless for Adam as he felt the godly punishment from the dozens of Gambol Shrouds and Keyblades.
The clones vanished then, leaving only one Sora and Blake each. Adam was still in the air, now falling toward them.
Sora and Blake nodded at each other. Blake switching her weapon to kusarigama mode while Sora's keyblade took the form of one as well. It was brilliantly gold and silver, shining in its own light that it generated.
Blake launched Sora toward Adam, the keyblade wielder unleashing an immeasurable amount of chain scythe slashes to the murderous faunus. Each blow was made to count, and Adam was far too powerless to evade.
Blake's ribbon wrapped around Sora's heel, and Sora smirked readily. The cat faunus then swung around as hard as she could, surprisingly able to support Sora's weight. Sora began whipping around like a chain scythe himself, switching his keyblade back to sword form to pummel Adam from all directions.
Then with a downward stroke, he sent Adam spiraling out of control to the ground.
"Time to end it." Sora landed next to Blake. The girl nodded before leaning her sword back and high over her head. Sora mirrored the same stance, their weapons glowing with vibrant purple and gold energy.
"EAT THIS!"
The large blades of purple and gold speed with blinding speed, crossing over each other as they did so. Their energies were in perfect, and Adam could already feel the heat from the light that shone on his face. The energy even tore a small fissure in the ground as it went after him. Leaving no one to guess the amount of power this attack would hold.
He only had time to close his eyes.
KA-BOOOOM!
It was a brilliant explosion, the violet and goldenrod flames kicking up into the air as it rattled the ground they stood on. The wind was forced to back off by the blast; this epic finish no doubt ending this emotional roller coaster of a battle.
Sora and Blake smiled at each other, fist bumping as the victors. The smoke began clearing, and Adam was left lying on his back. Severely injured and already beginning to fade away. Even now Blake still felt badly for him, even if she knew they had to destroy him. She then looked back at Sora.
"I guess we did it after all…"
"Yup." Sora nodded with a chuckle. "Thanks for your help."
"It was my duty to stop Adam." Blake spoke, eyes going back to the downed faunus. "I just needed to realize that. I couldn't allow you to fight Adam without me, I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I didn't help."
Sora placed a hand on her shoulder, giving it a firm but gentle squeeze. "That part is over now, finally. So stop beating yourself up, the bad guys have already been doing that to us far too much."
A small laugh from the black-haired bookworm. "Fair enough."
"So glad to see you alive and well, Sora."
That voice.
Sora would recognize it anywhere.
Looking from Adam and back to where Neo was, the boy's suspicions were confirmed. He always felt an incredible anger whenever he saw Xehanort's face, one that was so potent that it sometimes hurt. Now was no different.
Xehanort stood there with his trademark hunch, grinning darkly at Sora while the psychotic temptress Neo had appeared right beside him. And she was carrying someone...
"Jaune!" Sora called out with concern.
The boy didn't look injured, just unconscious over Neo's shoulder.
As if his anger wasn't enough, Sora was now battling with concern for his blonde friend. They had forgotten a paramount level of uncomfortability also came with that anger against Xehanort. Those two emotions alone were enough to disturb most people, even to keyblade wielders. Which always made Sora wonder if it was better to fight Xehanort…
Or run from him.
And holding Jaune hostage didn't make it any better.
He was snapped out of his thoughts when Xehanort looked at the floored Adam. The man's shattered mask lying destroyed beside his head, and his hawk-like red eyes looking infuriatingly at Xehanort. He was coated in thick slashes and burns, but it was his exhaustion that really spoke.
He was likely completely zero on aura, probably didn't have the strength even to move.
Darn shame that was.
"I see you triumphed over Adam...again." Xehanort gave Sora a small clap. "Impressive. I was quite sure he'd kill you this time around."
"Sorry to disappoint." Sora spat.
"Is that…?" Blake started to whisper to Sora.
"Yeah...that's Xehanort."
"What do we do?"
"Just...wait." Sora contemplated giving that answer at first. But the more he thought it over, the more time passed. Xehanort wouldn't wait forever. "He obviously came here for reason...if he attacks us, we'll run.
This did not loosen their tension though, their guards were up even if Xehanort didn't see it. This was not a man to be underestimated. The moment any foolish person let their guard down, it would be the end of them. Adam had turned his gaze away from Xehanort, taking to looking at the ceiling above instead. He almost looked...serene. As though he'd come to terms with something. No one could tell what was on the bull faunus's mind, he remained mysterious even though he was almost completely faded away.
His eyes moved over to Sora and Blake. It was not a look or remorse, nor apology. No, regret was not the emotion those eyes displayed.
It was something else, something far more important.
"The White Fang is finished..." The man said without delay, already knowing. "I guess in the end are efforts were for naught...heh."
He then focused his eyes on Blake.
It was only then that she saw a tear escape one eye.
"I shed a single tear like this one once before...on the day you left." Adam admit, even when a tear had escaped his chiseled features, he remained as passive as he always had been. "And I shed one now...as the dream of faunus equality lay out of my reach. I have no one to blame but myself for that..."
His expression hardened. "So you better make the world a better place for the faunus Blake. If you trust the humans to help you with that...then I guess I cannot stop you."
Blake looked at her old mentor sadly. Her heart clenching at seeing him almost gone. Was this similar to how Ren felt when he lost Nora?
Now Adam's attention was on Sora.
The two enemies just looked at each other. Neither of them saying a word. There was a bit of heat in their staring contest, but there was something more. Something more abstract.
Adam gave a firm nod to the keyblade wielder.
Sora nodded back, knowing exactly what Adam was saying to him.
And just a few seconds after, he had disappeared for good. Adam had done terrible things, unforgivable things...but perhaps in his last moments, something genuine was there after all? He couldn't be completely sure. And perhaps it could be figured out later. Right now Sora looked at Jaune, held over Neo's shoulder.
Adam may have been gone, but the tension in the room had only gotten higher now.
"What do you want with Jaune!?" Sora barked, not even bothering to control his emotions.
Xehanort smirked. "Well I'll spare you the details then...Mr. Arc here is going to join my Organization."
'What…?' Sora resisted a gasp. No, he couldn't...this was absolutely not good in any way at all!
"He'll make a great vessel for my heart, he already has a strong light within him." Xehanort nodded at the idea, as though it was the greatest idea in the worlds. "And strong lights can create even greater darknesses; his potential is unlimited. Yes, he will do a fine job as my apprentice."
"I WON'T LET YOU! LET HIM GO!"
"Sora, don't!" Roxas tried to stop his original.
It was too late though.
Sora hand already shifted into Final Form, now flying at Xehanort with Oathkeeper and Oblivion in hand. He'd be damned to the Underworld if he let Jaune get taken by Xehanort. Too many friends had been taken already. He was going to end Xehanort here once and for all!
"How simple."
Sora was shocked to see his keyblades stopped dead center by Xehanort.
With a single finger.
"You fight recklessly. You'll get yourself killed like that." Xehanort reprimanded the boy. "You must learn boy."
With only a tiny flex, Xehanort had not only sent Sora flying and tumbling back to his original spot. But he'd also completely knocked him out of his drive form.
Forced out of his strongest drive form...with a single finger.
It didn't get much more one-sided than that.
Xehanort continued where he left off, Blake helping Sora to stand at the same time. "Tell me Sora. Do you even know how you discovered Remnant? How you just so spontaneously were able to find it?"
What was he saying? What did it mean? Sora was wracking his mind for answers, trying to make sense of Xehanort's words. Sora had come here because of the dream, it just happened to be his luck that Xehanort was here on Remnant at the same time too.
Right?
Xehanort chuckled at his dumbfounded expression. "The heart is such a powerful thing, as you well know. It contains everything that makes us whole begins. Our souls, the essence of our bodies, our thoughts and wishes..."
Sora did not have a good feeling about this.
"And a keyblade wielder whom becomes a master must learn to manipulate the heart, this is one of the marks of true mastery of the keyblade. Once learned, one can manipulate the heart in any way they wish, even the things inside them. Like memories or...dreams."
Xehanort held his hand out to his side, as if to suggest. "Did you honestly think that you and Ms. Rose would just so easily be able to connect hearts from across worlds? Such thinking is absolutely trivial. Two beings' hearts cannot simply locate and connect with each other so randomly."
He placed that same hand on his chest. "You see, I am the reason you are here right now."
The spiky haired keyblade wielder suddenly felt unable to stand. He felt like his brain was turning jelly as Xehanort's words rang through his head. Everything he'd done up to this point. Ever since day one when he first landed on Remnant. Everything was due to Xehanort's manipulation?
Like a mind reader, Xehanort nodded. "The only reason you and Ms. Rose have formed a connection through the heart is because I connected them. By manipulating you both to have similar dreams, I built the red string of fate that would bring you to each other. And...to me."
"No!" Sora shook his head, clenching his fist angrily. "It's a lie!"
"Is it now?" Xehanort questioned, enjoying every second he was tearing Sora's mind apart. "Do you recall the memory witch Namine? Was she not capable of manipulating your heart? And more specifically, your memories?"
Sora couldn't deny that. He was right, Namine had the ability to alter his memories. And even create completely fake ones and make them seem real. And during his journey through Castle Oblivion, he'd never been able to tell the difference.
"If a mere nobody can manipulate memories, then surely a keyblade wielder, whom are trained to manipulate hearts, can do the same. Nothing is in the realm of impossibility for a master of the legendary keyblade."
Then man held his arms out wide, as if embracing the very air.
"Yes. You have played into my clutches from the very beginning, there were no coincidences. I manipulated your destiny and suited it to my needs, I am much more powerful than you may imagine."
He fixed Sora and Blake with a glare, one that he was sure sent chills down their spines.
"And now, the time for battle has come." He said as he turned around. "In exactly ten days, the Organization as well as my Heartless army, will assault the entirety of Vale. On a scale much grander than that of the malicious Nobody Valkyrie. Prepare your armies...and meet me then."
A psychotic, toothy smile was on his face. "Until then, you'd best return to the Academy before it is overrun, and I'm sure you do not have much time."
A moment later, Xehanort, Neo… and Jaune...were gone.
Sora pounded the ground with his fist angrily. Just when things were getting better; the odds get thrown against them and they are thrown in a deeper hell than they were already in.
"I can't believe it...all this time...dammit!" He screamed.
"Sora…" Blake wished she could say something, but she knew nothing would help. Xehanort plans were coming to fruition. Jaune has been kidnapped and is going to be forced to fight for him. And to top that all off, their friends were in danger!
Before she could try to snap Sora out of his lamenting rage, the boy stood up. Adopting a look most fierce.
"Let's find the others. We've gotta get back to Beacon."
Plot twists anyone?
So all the secrets that have been built up in this story are finally out in the open. In the end, Xehanort was behind everything. He manipulated Sora and Ruby's dreams so he could bind their hearts. He also brought the Heartless to Remnant. With all these preparations, it was only a matter of time before Sora went to Remnant to find Ruby and fight the Heartless. Also about Jaune being captured, I was supposed to write a scene in one of the two previous chapters depicting his capture by Neo. But I forgot...
I'll edit it back in at some point.
AND THREE CHAPTERS WRITTEN IN ABOUT A DAY AND A HALF! DAMN I'M AWESOME! XD
Now there are only about two to three more chapters before this Arc ends, which means the final Arc is just around the corner!
With this chapter written out, I'm going to be taking a break for a little bit. I might write out Weiss and Yang chapter's just so I can finish this arc, but otherwise I need writing break to get the creative juices flowing again. At least for this story anyway.
Sora and Blake's limit is called Shadow Sickle Chain.
I think that's all I have for now.
Any questions or qualms you may have, let me know through PM or review.
That's all for now.
Later!
IMSOAWESOME
"Come on Miltia! We're almost out of here."
"I'm coming!"
The Malachite Twins ran through the thickly wooded forest together. Where were they headed? Even they didn't know. All they knew was it was better than staying with OrganizatioN XIII. Now that the two sisters were free they could escape and never be drawn in again in their violent clutches.
"I can't believe you actually trusted a Beacon student to help you." Melanie shook her head, stepping over some fallen over logs. "That was pretty foolhardy."
"I was trying to find you Melanie." Miltia said lowly. "Vanitas said he was going to kill you if I didn't bring the keyblade wielder..."
"But you didn't bring the keyblade wielder!" Melanie snapped. She quickly regreted it when she saw her sisters downtrodden frown. She wasn't angry at Miltia. Far from it. No, she was simply scared. Scared of Organization XIII. Scared of Vanitas. If they didn't disappear soon, then Vanitas would surely find them...
"I know...but I was desperate, and that Blake girl is one of the keyblade wielder's friends. Perhaps he followed after her and is fighting the Organization as we speak...I dunno..."
Melanie sighed. Perhaps Miltia was right. The keyblade wielder probably did chase after that black-haired chick. If so then he undoubtedly has run into the Organization by now. Meaning he was likely keeping them pretty busy.
Hopefully.
"Well, whats done is done." Melanie hugged her sister affectionately. "Let's just keep going."
Miltia returned the hug, all in all glad to have her sister back. "Okay."
"Well isn't this just touching."
The girl's pulled apart right away, not out of embarrassment, but the sound of the easily recognizable voice brought out a fear so powerful it nearly threw them into outright panic.
Vanitas's slow steps got ever closer, the twins staring at him in incredulous shock as he took his time approaching them. Miltia hid behind her sister fearfully, her eyes wide and horrified. Melanie wished she could hide as well, but whatever fear she felt was definitely tripled for Miltia. She'd always been the sensitive one.
"How...did you find us?" Melanie questioned, holding her arms out to ensure he couldn't get close to Miltia.
"Idiots." Vanitas rolled his eyes, he didn't even wear his trademark smirk. Instead he just looked cold and empty. If there was any emotion there, it was probably anger. Though obviously his anger wasn't in any way because of them. "You honestly thought you had a chance to escape me? Don't kid yourselves."
His Dark Void keyblade appeared in hand. "I've got some stuff to clear up at Beacon soon. But before that I'm going to erase the two of you."
Miltia let out a tiny squeak of horror. Melanie knew it would come down to this eventually. She looked at him with hardened eyes, her voice remaining strong. Even so, it betrayed a bit of plea, which only got more noticeable as she spoke. "You...you don't have to kill us, you can just let us go...it's not like we know much about you or the Organization anyway. So who are we going to tell? The police? We're just trying to go our own way."
Vanitas nodded, taking the words in consideration.
For about half a second.
"Those are good reasons, and I think you played 'em off pretty good." Vanitas stated. Then he gaze darkened with rage. "Buuut...I'm pretty pissed at someone right now. And since I can't kill him...
Vanitas vanished.
Reappearing directly in front of Melanie, he gripped his hand tightly around her neck. Melanie couldn't hide her fear anymore, and her sister just started at the scene shakily. They were cornered, no one could save them. Was this as far as they went? She'd only just gotten her sister back! Why did this have to happen.
Organization XIII...
Was there anything that could possibly be more evil than they?
"Y-you're a monster..." Miltia forced out. She knew it was the end for her and her sister, but she would not give him the satisfaction of breaking her. She shared a glance with Melanie, her dear slightly older sister gave her and apologetic smile.
"Babe..." Vanitas's frown turned into a psychotic beam. "You don't know the half of it."
