Chapter 58: Consequence
A/N: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. It is the property of Square Enix and the Walt Disney Company. I do not own Dresden Files, which is the property of Jim Butcher.
This is a creative work that I do not profit off of in any way whatsoever.
Hello, my dearest readers! I hope you are all doing well.
I'm glad to be back in the thick of things. After a nice break with Hayner, Pence ad Olette, I thought it best to go back to Roxas and Axel and Xion. I feel as if I've been rather slow on the writing front lately,
Read on!
oooo
Your stomach is in knots as you approach the castle. This is your home. It's all that you've ever known. All that you can remember, even though there's only a few years of actual memories. Ever since Master Xehanort dropped you off here…that seems like a lifetime ago. In a way, it was. You recall nothing of what happened before you arrived here. No memories of parents or siblings…no memories of home.
Is this still home? Master Eraqus never meant for you to leave…this is a prison…a nice prison…but a prison all the same. It's not fair. Nothing is fair…nothing has ever really been fair.
"Ventus, you're alone? I thought Aqua would—"
Master Eraqus…you can't bring yourself to look at him. He's always been so kind. So gentle. But that was a ruse…wasn't it? Was it?
"Well, what matters is that you're home."
The Master kneels down and his hands are firm on your shoulders. It's not a hug. But it is protective. Like a shepherd. Or a teacher. Or a warden.
"You don't belong outside this world yet. You need to stay here, where you can learn—"
"In your prison?"
The words are out of your mouth before you can stop yourself. But after everything you've seen and everything you've heard, you can't help it.
"What?"
Master Eraqus is startled…alarmed…scared? You've never talked back to him before. You're not even sure you've ever seen him scared before. But then again…maybe he's always been scared.
"That's your excuse…for keeping me imprisoned here, isn't it?"
There's fire in your words. Venom. But you can't help it. Even when the Master raises himself to his full height—he is so, so much taller than you are—you cannot help the words tumbling out of your mouth.
"What did you hear?"
How dare the Master respond like that—like he's annoyed. Like you were just talking out of turn. But you have the right to get some answers!
"That I'm supposed to be some kind of weapon…Some kind of…X-blade!"
"I knew it," Master Eraqus says as he rubs his scar. It's an old scar—deep, jagged. You never knew where it came from. You never cared to ask. "Xehanort—he could never let it go."
The Master sighs and tells of a time long before you arrived in the Land of Departure. Xehanort talked at length about the possibilities that might come forth if darkness were to blanket the worlds. Xehanort is particularly engrossed with the Keyblade War of old. A legend that says that ruin brings about creation. He seeks an apocalypse out of sheer curiosity. And at the core of the Keyblade War…is the X-blade. And how Master Eraqus clashed with Xehanort and Xehanort called upon the darkness…forever branding the Master. Giving him his scars.
"I failed," Master Eraqus says, his voice quiet with regret and shame. "I had the chance to stop him and couldn't do it. But I will not fail again."
With a flash, Master Eraqus summons his Keyblade. Summons Master's Defender. And he directs it at you.
"Master! What are you…"
The words stop. You cannot speak. You can barely think. All that you can see is Master Eraqus raising his Keyblade against you.
"The X-blade has no place in this or any world. Xehanort has made his purpose clear…and I am left with no choice," Master Eraqus says. His voice does not waver. His resolve is harder than steel. "Forgive me…but you must exist no more!"
The Master's Keyblade shimmers with light and he shoots it out at you. Chains that glow brighter than the sun. Your legs don't want to move…they're heavier than stone. You shut your eyes.
"Ven!"
You jerk your eyes open. Terra is standing in front of you. He looks huge, in full Keyblade Armor, red and black and gold. And he is standing right in front of Master Eraqus.
"Master, have you gone mad?"
"Terra! I command you—step aside!" Master Eraqus shouts. He won't be dissuaded, he won't be defied. This isn't the voice of a teacher. This is the voice of the Guardian of the Land of Departure.
"No!" Terra's reply is blunt and his armor begins to fade in a flash of light. He holds his Keyblade out, shielding you as best he can.
"You will not heed your Master?" Master Eraqus gasps, his tone accusatory. Again and again, he and Terra have been at odds. But never like this…there won't be any coming back from this.
"I won't!" Terra spits. He is in complete defiance of Master Eraqus. You never thought…not in your worst nightmares was this ever a possibility.
"Why do all my attempts to reach you fail?" Master Eraqus says. His tone is no longer rigid. It's as if he's on the verge of tears. Master… "If you don't have it in your heart to obey, then you will have to share Ventus's fate."
He charges, his Keyblade in hand. He brings it down and Terra parries with Ends of the Earth. Again…and again…and again…
"Enough, Terra! He's right…"
There…you said it. You didn't want to admit it, not even to yourself. But Master Eraqus is right. If you're part of some grand weapon that could bring on the Keyblade War…then you cannot live. If Vanitas can't be beaten, it has to be you.
"Quiet!" Terra snarls as he continues to match the Master blow for blow. You can't bring yourself to watch anymore. Your best friend defying the Master…
"Terra…"
Master Eraqus leaps back and light churns from his Keyblade and then it erupts in a burst of energy. It hits you and Terra and you're both knocked back. Is it nearly over? You feel Terra lift you up by the chest.
"You may be my Master. But, I will not…let you hurt my friend!"
"Has the darkness taken you Terra?"
Terra doesn't respond. He throws you to the side and you feel a corridor to the Lanes Between open up. You have no idea where it may lead. You open your eyes and you lift your hand feebly.
"Wait, Terra…"
xxxx
Xion flung awake, clutching her chest. Her heart was beating so fast, it hurt. The fear…the betrayal…the fear. Had it…had it all just been a dream? It had seemed so real. Could…could it have been a memory? She had certainly dreamt plenty of memories before. But it wasn't one of hers and it wasn't one of Sora's either. Could…could it be Ven's? The Land of Departure was where Ven had grown up with Terra and Aqua…trained by Master Eraqus. Yes…that had to be it. The tall man who had emerged from Terra's heart, in Kingdom Hearts, after Sora had beaten Xehanort…that had been Master Eraqus, hadn't it?
"Terra, Aqua, Ven. Forgive your foolish teacher…Ven, I put you through such a harrowing experience…And Aqua, I left you with such a heavy burden."
Slowly, Xion felt her heartbeat return to normal. It gave her time to think about everything that had happened…though her thoughts remained mostly on Master Eraqus and the way Ven had cried into his Master's chest.So much had happened that day, Xion hadn't given much thought to that specifically. Beyond Master Eraqus leading Xehanort into Kingdom Hearts—and then they became young boys, instead of old men as they did so—she hadn't given much thought to that at all…there'd been so much fighting to focus on.
But there was more to it than that. She had never really known, never asked, never even thought to ask about what it'd been like for Ven growing up with a Keyblade Master. She didn't like talking about what had happened in the Organization and Ven had seemed to recognize this. He never asked her any questions that made her feel bad.
Xion's insides squirmed with guilt. Ven had been so nice to her—always so kind. But she hadn't always been as nice to him…she hadn't ever asked what might be bothering him or how his day might be going…but he was always so reassuring. He was a lot like Sora that way…or a lot like Roxas.
Roxas…
Xion blinked the last bits of sleep from her eyes and looked around. She was alone in the bedroom of the Gummi Ship. She didn't know what time it was—it was always hard to tell that when they were traveling. Axel and Roxas were nowhere to be found—though the stuffed dragon that Roxas slept with lay smushed under his pillow. Her own stuffed animal, her grey tiger, had fallen onto the floor of the ship. Xion bent down to pick it up. Had she had dreamt Ven's memories because of her stuffed tiger? It did look a little bit like Chirithy. It was very soft in her hands.
Xion smiled—vague memories tickled at the back of her mind. Memories of when Sora was a very little boy, before he had ever gotten his Keyblade. When he was small, didn't Sora have a stuffed animal of his own?
Xion walked out of the bedroom, into the main part of the cockpit. Roxas and Axel were sitting on one of the couches, eating bars of sea-salt ice cream, to fuel the ship. Xion grinned and padded over to them, the floor of the ship was pleasantly cool under her bare feet.
"Hey, sleepyhead," Axel reached out a hand as Xion squeezed in between them. He ruffled her hair, making it even messier than it had been before.
"Ick!" Xion shrieked. "Axel! Cut it out!"
"Sorry, kiddo," Axel teased. "But it's a rule—you stay late in bed, you get a messy head."
"Ha-ha, ha-ha," Xion smiled, taking Axel's distraction as a chance to steal his ice cream bar and take a large bite. "How long was I out? The last thing I remember is saying good-bye to Tarzan and the gorillas. Oh, and the elephants."
"Not much more to it than that," Axel said, reaching to steal his ice cream back. He jabbed Xion in the ribs with one hand and used the other to yank the ice cream out of her grip. "You passed out about as soon as we got on board. You feeling okay, kiddo?"
"Yeah," Xion said. "I think I'm alright. Um…Axel, has Ven ever talked to you about how things were back when he was training?"
"No, not really," Axel answered. "Why do you ask?"
"It's gonna sound weird," Xion said, picking up a fresh bar of ice cream. "But I dreamt one of his memories."
"You did?" Roxas piped up. "That's not that weird."
"We travel around the universe in a ship that runs on ice cream," Axel added. "Kiddo, dreaming one of Ven's memories when you were both stuck inside Sora's heart is barely a blip on the radar."
"Still," Xion said, taking a bite of ice cream. "It was…I guess it just made me realize I don't know Ven that well. And it's not fair either, he's really nice."
She trailed off. Ven's memory was, well, scary. How awful did Ven feel that his Master would be so desperate to make sure Xehanort's plans wouldn't work that he would kill him. And what was worse…Ven had wanted it.
"Enough, Terra! He's right."
Xion bit her lip. That was kind of like how things had been for her and Roxas. Xemnas had wanted them to be weapons to complete Kingdom Hearts. And he tried to get her to fight Roxas over and over, all while she'd been stealing Roxas's strength. Her stomach tightened. She had chosen to go away, to return to Sora, in order to restore Roxas and stop Xemnas. How different was that, really? She had wanted to sacrifice herself.
That would have been the right choice and you should have done it in the first place. Instead, you were selfish and you almost got Roxas killed. You should have had Riku destroy you as soon as you realized you were hurting others.
Xion sighed to herself. She wondered whether she should bring this up to Ven, the next time they met. But then again, that could really upset Ven. He'd always been so nice to her—she couldn't hurt him like that.
"You know, I suspect this ice cream might be the root of your dreams."
Xion blinked—she hadn't noticed Jiminy Cricket. He sat on the table, his journal in hand. Next to him was a single bar of ice cream, with only a few tiny bites taken out.
"All of this sugar and salt," Jiminy shook his head. "It's just can't be healthy. You need vegetables and other healthy food in order to grow strong—and get a good night's sleep."
"You sound like Isa," Roxas said. "He's always talking about that stuff. Remember the wheat-grass juice?"
"Yeah," Xion giggled. "That was great. I hope he's doing alright. We haven't heard from him in ages."
"Tell you what," Axel said. "After we check in with King Mickey, we can see if we can call Isa. It's only been a couple weeks. What sort of trouble could he have gotten into?"
oooo
After eating more than seventy bars of sea-salt ice cream between the three of them, Roxas was beginning to think that Jiminy had a point about all the ice cream. In any event, they arrived at Disney Castle in the afternoon. By now, he was very used to parking their ship in the Gummi Garage. What was odd was that this time, Horace wasn't the one who was waiting for them. Olette was waiting for them, wringing her hands.
"Thank God," Olette whispered, hugging Xion and then Roxas as soon as they got within arms' reach of her. Her voice was shaky, like she was about to start crying. "Thank God you're all safe."
"Did something happen?" Roxas asked, his voice catching. Olette blinked, her green eyes shiny with unshed tears. Oh no…
"Yes. No…um, sort of," Olette said, biting her lip. She looked from Roxas to Xion and then back again. "See, what happened was, the King thought it would be a good idea for us to start taking a more, um, on-hands sort of training. And that meant simulations."
"Er," Roxas said. "I guess that sounds kind of tough."
"Let me guess," Axel said. "Something went wrong, you and Hayner and Pence all thought it was really real, and you watched people die. And then you woke up."
"Well, yes," Olette said, rubbing her arm. "I think Hayner might have taken it hardest. He barely comes out of the barracks to eat anymore. He keeps saying that he needs to get stronger."
"Well, for what it's worth, we got a lot to tell the others," Axel said. He patted Olette gently on the shoulder. "But after that, all of us can get together. Sound good?"
"Yeah," Olette said. "I think that sounds alright."
"Attagirl," Axel said. "Come on, you can stand with us when we give our report to the King."
They walked on towards King Mickey's study. Despite Olette's uneasiness, the halls themselves appeared as bright and cheery as ever—though Roxas was fairly certain that some of the portraits and statues were new.
"It's good to have you back," Olette said. "I'm not sure how long it's been for you, since Ienzo said that time worked differently on other worlds, but it's been more than two weeks for us."
"Whoa," Axel said. "Two weeks?"
"I still think that's weird," Olette said. "Didn't you go to Twilight Town pretty much every day to watch the sunset?"
"Eh…things were rough back then," Roxas answered. "But I think the Organization tried to keep everything tightly scheduled, so they probably didn't want us to wind up on a world where the timeline would be too different."
"It is a bit of a conundrum," Jiminy Cricket piped up. He leapt from Axel's hood to ride on Roxas's shoulder. "I would think there'd be much to learn from just how much time passes between worlds."
Before Roxas could respond, they arrived at the doorway to King Mickey's study. Out of habit, Roxas knocked, though at this point, he wasn't sure they really needed to, since they'd been here so many times.
As always, the study was very crowded. King Mickey was waiting for them at his desk, with Donald and Goofy. Standing in front of the doors were Master Yen Sid and Master Aqua. Ven and Terra were there too, in a corner, and there was…
"Riku!"
Riku was standing at the back of the room, resting against a wall. He looked very tired. His right arm was wrapped in a bandage. Again.
"Hm," Riku said. "It's good to see all of you again."
Xion took several steps forward, her arms outstretched and then stopped a few feet away from Riku. She rubbed the back of her neck and Riku smiled weakly at her.
"Riku, are you feeling alright?" Xion asked. "You look tired."
"I'm fine," Riku said. He reached out and patted Xion weakly on the shoulder. "Really. Like you said, I'm tired."
"What are you doing here?" Roxas asked, stepping up so that he could stand next to Xion. "It's not that I'm not happy to see you."
Roxas frowned and felt his insides squirm with…well, he wasn't sure exactly. It wasn't guilt or anger really. They'd fought each other before. He'd tried to kill Riku for standing in his way, when Roxas had been trying to release the Organization's Kingdom Hearts. Riku had unleashed his deeply suppressed darkness, taking Ansem's form, defeating Roxas, all to force him to rejoin Sora. And that wasn't counting everything he'd done to convince Xion she had to go away.
But then again, everything Riku had done, it had been to help Sora. Help Sora wake up. Help Sora regain his memories. Sora had meant so much to so many others. So many hearts connected to his. At the time, Roxas's only connections had been to Axel, and they had stopped talking, and to Xion, who he could barely remember. Comparing that to Sora—and all the friends he had made, across the worlds.
That was why he had chose you…Brother.
"I came to check in with King Mickey," Riku said. "And Master Yen Sid. I just got in a few minutes before you showed up."
"Have you had any luck looking for Sora?" Roxas asked, his voice cracking. "We've only gotten through once, and even then we couldn't actually talk to him."
"What?!"
"It's kind of a long story," Xion said. "We've got a lot to catch on, Riku."
"I would like nothing better than for you all to catch up," Master Yen Sid nodded. "Camaraderie is not something to be overlooked. However, I must prioritize that you first report the things that you've seen. Tell us everything that you have seen these last few weeks. Leave out no detail, please."
Roxas and Xion glanced at each other and Xion smiled shyly at Roxas. He cleared his throat and started to explain everything that had happened since they'd left Disney Castle. How they had first traveled to Jiminy Cricket's homeworld and how Pinocchio had nearly reverted back to a puppet. Roxas glanced at Riku. He had gone pale.
"He…he'd become a real boy?"
"Yes," Xion said. "And Maleficent and someone called the Coachman put a curse on the Blue Fairy—she was the one who brought Pinocchio to life in the first place."
"Oh, I am well aware of who the Blue Fairy is," Master Yen Sid said. "I have known her for quite some time."
"Fairy…wait a minute," Roxas said. "Is the Blue Fairy related to the other fairies? The ones who've been helping you with all the clothes and helping Axel get a Keyblade and stuff?"
"That is not for me to say," Master Yen Sid said. "I do know that their magic is not particularly similar, even if they both claim to be fae. But continue on then, you were able to stop Maleficent."
"Yes," Roxas said. "We were. The Coachman had set up her wand, I guess it's the source of her power, in this…cursed fountain. And we smashed it to defeat him and save her. Maleficent left after that and, well, actually I'm not sure what happened to the Coachman. We left him frozen on his island."
"And it served him right," Jiminy said. "After all the awful things he'd done."
"After that, we visited a world that Maleficent didn't visit," Xion piped up. "Or at least, I don't think that she did. She might have decided to leave it alone."
"Whether she was or wasn't, the threat with the barriers between life and death does not preclude itself to worlds that Maleficent has decided to get involved in," Master Yen Sid said. "Please, continue."
"There's not much to mention, there," Axel shrugged. "There was this ghost guy—the locals called him the Headless Horseman and let me tell you, the name fit. He terrorized the townsfolk, called on some Heartless, but we pretty much exorcised him, kind of on accident when Roxas and Xion dropped a waterfall on him, so they're all gonna live happily ever after."
"Hm," Master Yen Sid gave a small smile, while Ven and Donald and Goofy all laughed. "There is a certain charm to your wit. Do you believe that the Horseman's presence was tied to this division?"
"Hard telling," Axel answered. "From what I could gather, it sounded like the sort of urban legend—like those Seven Wonders of Twilight Town that Pence goes on about."
Roxas winced and Olette glanced at him, her expression somber. The Seven Wonders of Twilight Town—hunting for those had been one of the things that really started going weird in the digital recreation of Twilight Town. Riku looked like he was going to be sick.
"Either way, the Horseman's gone, so no need to worry," Axel continued. "So after that, we ate way too much ice cream and wound up in Deep Jungle. The Organization did some intel there way back when, but we left it alone for the most part. Turned out to be more important than we realized."
"How so?" Master Aqua asked. "Master Eraqus mentioned that world to me once, years ago, not long after I became his apprentice."
"Time works differently there," Xion said. "Sora only visited about a year and a half ago for us, but for his friends Tarzan and Jane, it'd been three years. Maybe more."
"And there's a girl there," Roxas said, picking up where Xion left off. "Abby. She's sort of an unofficial niece to Tarzan. And, well, I'm not sure if this is actually true, but Maleficent targeted her because she thought Abby might be one of the New Seven Hearts, or a new Princess of Heart, or however you want to say it."
Aqua and Terra both looked surprised at that, and then Terra ducked his head. Roxas wasn't quite sure what that was about. Terra looked almost ashamed of himself. Olette blushed a violent shade of red. Riku glanced at her and his eyes widened with surprise.
"And then there was a huge fight," Xion said. "Maleficent broke open the ground in the jungle and she and a witch called Queen La tried to hurt Abby. And they called up some dinosaurs…actually, it's hard to describe, really. Jiminy, did you get a chance to write it all down?"
"Yes I did," Jiminy said. "Anything you've forgotten to mention should be in my journals. If there are any questions, I do believe I have the answers."
"Well, I have a question: What's a dinosaur?" Ven asked. Beside him, Terra smacked his forehead. Roxas could hear Axel mutter something about how he wasn't the only one raising clueless half-pints.
"I have a question as well," Master Yen Sid said, raising a finger. "What was the precise nature of this cursed fountain?"
"Oh," Jiminy said. "Well…to be honest, Master, it was constructed out of mordite, which is what I suspect was actually weakening the Blue Fairy."
"I thought as much," Master Yen Sid said, stroking his beard. "It seems that despite our best efforts, Maleficent still has a supply of that heinous metal. Blast it all."
"Yes," Jiminy said. "If Xion didn't destroy it with her own mordite sword, I hate to think about what might have happened. The Blue Fairy came awful close to dying herself."
The temperature in the room might have dropped ten degrees. Beside him, Roxas could feel Xion stiffen. Master Aqua raised a hand to her mouth. Ven and Terra looked alarm. Olette, and Riku for that matter, looked confused.
"What?!" Master Yen Sid spluttered. His eyes widened and then narrowed in fury. "Did I…did I not…Roxas, Lea, you two are dismissed. I must speak to Xion, alone. Now."
oooo
"I'm not leaving," Roxas said, crossing his arms. Xion winced. She was in trouble enough already. Roxas didn't have to get in trouble with her. Her throat tightened. Roxas was such a loyal friend. But she couldn't, she wouldn't allow Roxas to get in trouble. Not for her. Not now, not ever.
"You are too!" Xion said, swallowing hard. She turned to face Roxas, who was glaring at her. Not at her—at Master Yen Sid. "Roxas, please. You and Ax…Lea, you both go. I'll be alright."
"I'm not going to ask again," Master Yen Sid said. "As the most senior of Masters, though I do not now wield a Keyblade, I am the one in charge of discipline and I will not have you two undermining me. Leave."
Xion felt her ears begin to burn. Roxas and Axel were going to get into so much trouble. This was going to end very badly.
"Roxas! I just realized," Olette blurted, running up and taking his hand. "Um…Hayner and Pence haven't seen you yet. We should go and see them. Right now!"
"What?" Roxas asked. "But—Xion!"
"I think that would be wise," Master Yen Sid said. "Your friends did express a deep concern for your well-being."
Roxas tried to object again, but Olette and Ven grabbed his arms and led him out of the room. Xion glanced up at Axel and gave him what she hoped was a reassuring smile. He patted her gently on the shoulder and then ran his fingers through her hair, before following the others out. A moment later, Terra joined them, followed by Donald and Goofy. Xion was alone in the room with the Masters—Yen Sid, Mickey, Aqua and Riku.
"I believe I made myself very clear," Master Yen Sid said. "That you were to never to summon a mordite sword again. That I absolutely forbid it."
"You did, sir," Xion said weakly. "But I can explain…"
"I do not want to hear excuses," Master Yen Sid said sharply. "My instructions were very clear and as your Master, they are to be followed. It is not often that I forbid a course of action, but you can be quite certain I do not issue such edicts for frivolities."
"Xion," Master Aqua said. "I know that you're probably used to taking shortcuts and using methods that use darkness, because they're more effective. But it's wrong to do so. Even if you think it's easy, it can be really dangerous."
"What?" Xion gasped. "I didn't…I never…I…I'm sorry."
"Now Aqua," King Mickey said. "I'm not sure that's fair."
"Rules are set in place for a reason," Master Aqua said sternly. "You can't over look that, Mickey. Xion put everyone in grave danger."
"I'm not sure I understand," Riku said. "This is related to your replicating powers right? But none of what you copy is really real—just replications? You replicated a sword made of mordite?"
His tone was gentle, but a horrible memory still reared in the back of Xion's mind. The first time she had ever even met Riku. Back in front of Beast's Castle. They'd fought…and Riku had picked up her Keyblade and called it a sham.
"It's…it's not fake," Xion stammered. "My powers are real, Riku."
"Indeed," Master Yen Sid said coldly. "Your powers are real. The mordite blade you posses is real."
"The question is," Master Aqua said. "What are we going to do, to ensure that this doesn't happen again? We can't trust you to keep your word."
"Master, Master please."
"Hold on a moment!" King Mickey said. "We don't even know why she did it in the first place. Xion, why'd ya summon that mordite sword?"
"It was the only thing I could think of," Xion gasped, collapsing to her knees. "The fountain the Coachman and Maleficent had bound the Blue Fairy's wand in—nothing we did was working. So I summoned my mordite sword to smash it. And it worked."
"But it's cursed metal," Master Aqua shook her head. "It's very nature is to drain life away. It's evil, Xion. You could have ended up killing the Blue Fairy and you would have killed Pinocchio too. You were willing to take that sort of risk?"
Bile burned in Xion's throat. She hadn't considered that. But it would make sense, wouldn't it. Blood pounded in her ears.
You haven't changed at all. You're as wicked as you were the day Master Xehanort brought you back to serve him. You've always, always been evil. You served Xemnas and the Organization—you kept Sora from waking up, you stole his memories and you stole Roxas's strength and then you tried to hide behind him and have him do your work so you wouldn't get in trouble. And then you hurt Axel, when all he wanted was to keep you safe. And then you hurt Roxas and made him kill you—you should have stayed dead.
"Xion," Master Yen Sid said severely. "You defied your Master's orders, you dishonestly attempted to cover it up and you encouraged others in this duplicity as well, all to partake in powers that you know are forbidden. Had you been honest from the start, I would have brought that into consideration. But I cannot tolerate the disrespect and disdain you have shown me, and by extent all other Keybearers, of times present and past. And most importantly, I must take steps to ensure that this power does not continue."
"I know I wasn't supposed to…" Xion whispered. "But…"
"You knew it was wrong and you did it anyway," Master Aqua said. "I'm disappointed. I thought you were a better person than that Xion."
There was a sudden creaking, but Xion wasn't sure what it was. She rocked slightly, but she didn't fall over. She couldn't let herself fall over. Should she bow? These were her teachers, her Masters…King Mickey…you had to bow to a king.
"I didn't mean any harm," Xion said, struggling to speak. "Your Majesty? Master Riku?"
Riku blinked—he didn't look like he was used to being called that. He glanced at Master Aqua and Master Yen Sid.
"In the past," Riku said. "In an attempt to protect my friends, I did things that I regret. Used power I shouldn't have. It took me a long time to accept that the darkness was a part of me…Master, how different is this situation?"
"Far different, I'm afraid," Master Yen Sid murmured. He stared hard at Xion and his eyes suddenly became glassy. "I take no pleasure in this, child."
He raised his hand and shot out a beam of light. Xion froze. The horrible sight, the memory of Master Eraqus raising his Keyblade against her—against Ven—flashed through her mind. And then her arm was on fire and it was blindingly bright. Brighter than the sun. Brighter than the Cornerstone, but it burned.
Xion crumpled to the floor, clutching her arm. She felt her forehead smack hard against the floor. She looked up but her eyes didn't want to work.
"Master! Aqua!" King Mickey squeaked. "What did you do?!"
"What I had to…" Master Yen Sid said. "But not without mercy…this is not going to be permanent. Not yet."
Xion groaned. Her arm hurt so badly. She wasn't sure she had any Potions left. A Cure spell…she needed a Cure spell. She summoned her Keyblade. And her arm burned hotter than before.
"What?!"
Her Keyblade—there was something wrong about it. It was glowing, shiny like a star, but it didn't actually show up in her hand. Her Keyblade began to shake and then it turned against her. Xion felt a stabbing pain in her shoulder.
"Aaah!"
She fell back on her knees. Her Keyblade…why hadn't it come?! She held out her hand again and tried to summon her claymore. It glowed bright and she could feel its weight but then it slashed her. It hurt. She tried Axel's chakrams…her hands burned like they were on fire, but the weapons didn't show up. Nothing showed up…not the arrows she replicated or the musket from Sleepy Hollow or the cannon from the Land of Dragons. Not even Goofy's shield—the glowing half-summoned shield flew out of her hand and smacked her in the jaw. It hurt. She didn't dare to summon the mordite blade.
"Curaga!" Xion whimpered. "Please work…"
Her fingertips tingled. But the healing bulbs didn't show up. Xion gave a soundless cry and looked up at Master Yen Sid.
"Master…what did you do to me?"
"I have cut you off of your access to your magic," Master Yen Sid said quietly. "A complete and absolute negation of your abilities."
Gone…her Keyblade was gone…it had vanished before, a long, long time ago. Back in the Organization. For weeks, she didn't have her Keyblade. It was the worst she had ever felt at the time. But that had been before she realized she'd been hurting others, just by existing. But now, her Keyblade was gone, her claymore, her chakrams, her shield.
I got those from my friends…
"Riku, if you could bring the others back in," Master Yen Sid said, stroking his beard. "We'll need to reorganize our efforts. If what's been reported about Maleficent targeting the New Seven Hearts is true, then we cannot let any harm come to the other confirmed Hearts."
"Yes," Riku said. Xion kept her head down, not daring to look Riku in the eye. He was right about her—the way he'd shouted at her all that time ago. She was a complete and absolute sham. She shut her eyes to try and stop the pounding in her head.
"I'm not a sham, I'm not…I'm not…I'm not…"
"Xion?"
A large gloved hand took her gently by the arm and the next thing Xion knew, King Mickey was helping her to her feet. She opened her eyes and King Mickey was staring at her. His eyes were wide and round. Before Xion could say anything, before she could even think of what to say, the door to the library opened up with a crash.
"Gwarsh!" Goofy shouted. "Your Majesty! Come quick! He's gone crazy! He's in a real bad way!"
"How could you let them do this to her?!"
"Roxas?!" Xion cried. "No, no, no!"
""What?" Goofy said. "No, not Roxas! Ven! He's attacking Riku!"
"WHAT?!"
oooo
Ven slashed out with Wayward Wind and Riku parried with Braveheart. Ven grit his teeth and swiped back. Riku grimaced. He had never fought Ven before, not even an informal sparring session. He didn't want to hurt Ven.
"Please," Riku said. "Ven, calm down!"
"How can you say that? Calm down? I won't!" Ven snapped. "This is the exact same stuff that made things so messed up in the first place! With Terra and Aqua and Master Eraqus and Xehanort! You tell her Xion she's bad when all she's trying to do is help!"
"Ven!" Terra barked, summoning his own Keyblade, Ends of the Earth, in a flash. "That's enough!"
Riku glanced at Terra. For a moment, there was a fleeting flash in the man's expression that was nearly reminiscent of Ansem. But then it was gone and Terra was shouting at Ven. Ven ignored him.
"She's just a sham to you, isn't she?" Ven shouted and his Keyblade began to glow a brilliant blue-white. "Isn't she?!"
How did he know about that?
That year, that horrible year, when Sora had been sleeping in order to get his memories back, Riku had confronted Xion. He hadn't known who she was—he hadn't seen her face. They'd fought, one night, in the courtyards of Beast's Castle…
This member of the Organization…they're using a Keyblade. How dare they. It's a perversion, an abomination. Keyblades are supposed to protect the worlds. Some legends say they bring destruction. But the Keybearer you know would never allow it. Things have gone wrong.
The Organization member is powerful, but not very experienced. Really, their technique is bad. The fight doesn't last long and their Keyblade goes flying across the way. The Organization member crumples to the ground, whimpering. It's pathetic. But you want answers. You walk over to the fallen Organization member and yank back their hood. And then…
"Your face…Who are you really? And why do you have a Keyblade?"
"Tell me first…why you are dressed as one of us."
You turn your back on them and they're struggling to stand. You step towards their Keyblade before you give them an answer.
"To make sure my best friend…sleeps in peace," You say, right before picking up their Keyblade. Something's wrong about it. Not wrong as in a perversion—it just doesn't feel like a Keyblade. "I don't know who you're supposed to be. But…you can't fight fire with sparks. This Keyblade, it's a sham—worthless."
Just like the Organization member. A sham, a Nobody. It's not natural. They try and protest and then as your back is turned, they charge at you. Again, the technique is awful and it's nothing for you to side-step their attempt to hit you and strike them hard in the back. They drop like a sack of potatoes.
"Find a new crowd. Trust me. Those guys are bad news."
It'd be easy to destroy them now. But you've spent too much time in this world already. And you're not going to get any answers if you eliminate them. Things have gotten complicated.
"Why? You're the real sham!"
"Fair enough…You could say I am…the biggest nobody of them all."
He'd been wrong about Xion, of course. She wasn't a sham. Her Keyblade was real. It might not have been at first but it was now. She couldn't have fought alongside them in the Keyblade War if it hadn't been. Riku's stomach tightened.
Riku held up Braveheart to his chest, to block Ven's next blow. The look of anger, it was alien on his face. Which was weird, considering that Ven and Roxas had the same face and Riku was well aware of how angry Roxas could get.
Fighting Ven wasn't like fighting Xion or Roxas. His strange style of holding his Keyblade behind his back, Riku had never seen something quite like it before—not even when they were kids and Sora was trying six zillion different ways to try and beat him with their little play spars. But Riku knew a huge part of fighting was not getting hit in the first place and try as he might, despite all of his frustrations, Ven wasn't able to connect a single blow.
"STOP!"
The next thing Riku knew, Roxas was standing between them. Oathkeeper and Oblivion were out—each parrying another Keyblade. Roxas looked like he was about to be sick.
"Please!"
Xion was running towards them—during their fight, Ven and Riku had pushed themselves through the corridors and back into the gardens. She still clutched at her arm.
"Ven, enough!" Xion said, stepping next to Roxas. "He's right…"
Ven froze and after a moment, he dismissed his Keyblade. He clenched his teeth so tightly together, Riku could hear them grind.
"Ven, that was completely out of line," Aqua said. Riku looked over his shoulder. She was walking as quickly as she could without running. "Apologize to Master Riku, right now."
"Um," Riku said. "Aqua, that's alright. He doesn't need to apologize."
"As a Keyblade Master," Aqua said. "You are due respect."
"And as a Master," Riku said quickly, "I feel this is the best opportunity to show grace and forgiveness—please."
The sooner they got this all over with the better. Ven sighed deeply before muttering an apology. Riku scratched the back of his head.
"Um, right," Riku said. "Well…I suppose the next thing to do is decide who it is we need to check up on. If what you and Xion say is true, Roxas, then Maleficent knows that the original Princesses of Heart no longer bear the mantle. It's not really a surprise really, but it still isn't good news."
"Sorry…" Xion mumbled. "If I'd been quicker…better…sorry."
"But Kairi's still one of the Princesses," Roxas said. "Doesn't that mean that some of the other Princesses of Heart could have kept their powers?"
"It's possible," Riku said, scratching his chin. "I think that could be something we run by Master Yen Sid. That's actually what he wanted—to bring you all back to get our new assignments."
xxxx
Master Yen Sid was direct in giving his assignments. For that, Riku was grateful. He didn't like how Ven was glaring at him—or Hayner for that matter. He and Pence had shown up not long after the fight had ended and when Ven blurted out what started the fight, it had taken Axel and Pence to keep Hayner from attacking him—when had Hayner learned to summon the Dream Sword of all things? It seemed that no matter what he did, Riku always ended up hurting someone.
He stole a glance at Xion. Her eyes were shiny with unshed tears, and she trembled where she stood, upright only by clinging tight to Roxas's hand. Behind her, Goofy had a hand on her shoulder. Axel stood behind Goofy, towering over everyone. Neither Roxas nor Axel said a word when Master Yen Sid told them he wanted them to go to the Destiny Islands.
Home.
"Roxas, Lea, I believe it will be most prudent for you to check on Kairi. As one of the New Seven Hearts, it is entirely within the realm of possibility that she will be targeted by Maleficent," Master Yen Sid said. "And we cannot allow that to occur."
"You got it," Axel said, crossing his arms. "Piece of cake. We'll check in with our friend—got it memorized?"
Axel nodded, Roxas gave a small bow and Xion practically prostrated herself on the ground, gasping, before they left. Hayner, Pence and Olette filed out after them. Goofy gave a tight salute before closing the door behind them.
"I don't know about this," Mickey said, shaking his head. "Was it really necessary to do that—take away Xion's Keyblade?"
"I said before and I say again," Master Yen Sid murmured. "I took no pleasure it in it. But it is necessary—if she continues to use the powers of darkness like that…"
"I've used darkness," Riku said quietly. "You didn't deny me the Mark of Mastery for it."
"The circumstances are different," Master Yen Sid sighed. "You fell into darkness but overcame it. You are no longer susceptible to it. Sadly, Xion is not…and her actions may in fact be strengthening Maleficent's efforts. And it's mordite. The devastation that such weapons bring…"
"Could the same not be said for Keyblades?"
"Wars have been fought by those who sought to usurp the proper use of Keyblades," Master Yen Sid said. "Mordite is cursed…the opposite of life. It's evil."
"Not long ago, Xion saved my life," Mickey said. "And she's a good friend."
"Yes…we must hope she remains so. Or else the consequences could be catastrophic."
A/N: And here we have it, my dearest readers! The story continues! I hope you enjoyed reading this—I'm sorry it took quite this long to get it out to y'all.
Thank you for reading, my dearest readers! Please leave a comment if you're so inclined.
I appreciate each and every one of you!
