Chapter 11: The Power of the Heart
While inside of Hollow Bastion, Sora and Riku had to dodge the Heartless while their friend, the Beast, destroyed them with his immense strength. Sora and Riku could help with some attack magic, but the best thing they could do for now is run. Eventually, the trio found the room that Cloud and Squall were in, and the Beast broke down the wall freeing their friends. Squall and Cloud were greatly relieved to see that Riku and Sora were okay, and now the five of them could go and find the Keyblades and Kairi. The team headed back upstairs, and the Beast sniffed around. He looked at the others.
"Be on your guard. They're close, I can feel it. Are you ready for them?" asked the Beast.
The team nodded. The Beast suddenly sensed Belle. The Beast whirled around and spotted who he thought was Belle.
"Belle?" asked the Beast.
Belle transformed into a Shadow Heartless, and this angred the Beast greatly. He chased after it leaving Riku and his team alone... or so they thought.
"Quit while you can," said Shade as he appeared.
Riku and Sora shook their heads.
"No," said Riku.
"Not without Kairi," said Sora.
Shade turned into his more powerful form which was the same as Riku's powerful form only it had a pair of large demonlike wings on the back. He looked at the two.
"The darkness will destroy you," said Shade.
Riku shook his head.
"You're wrong, Shade. The darkness may destroy our bodies, but it can't touch our hearts. Our hearts will stay with our friends. They'll never die!" said Riku.
"That's right!" said Sora.
"Really..." said Shade. "Well, we'll just see about that!"
Riku and Sora are immoblized, and Shade shot a pair of dark orbs from the palms of his hand. Riku and Sora gasped and closed their eyes expecting the worst. However, before the orbs could hit, there was a bright flash of white light, and Squall and cloud had each blocked and orb with their swords. Cloud and Squall looked at Shade.
"They're not going anywhere!" said Cloud.
Sora and Riku looked at their friends.
"Thanks a lot, Cloud," said Riku.
"And thanks, Squall," said Sora.
The team got ready to battle Shade, and Shade laughed at the two boys with the Woode Swords.
"How will you two fight without weapons?" asked Shade.
"We don't need our Keyblades," said Riku.
"It's because we have a much stronger weapon..." said Sora.
"Our hearts!" the two said together.
Shade laughed.
"Your HEARTS? What good will THOSE WEAK THINGS do for you?" Shade said tauntingly.
Riku looked at Shade.
"Our hearts by themselves may be weak, but they've grown much stronger with all the friends we've made and all the experiences we've had. They become part of our hearts, and we become parts of theirs! And so long as our friends think of us now and again, we're never alone!" said Riku.
Both he and Sora get ready with their Wooden Swords. Sora nodded.
"That's right!" said Sora. "We don't need our Keyblades to defeat you! Our FRIENDS are OUR POWER!"
After Sora and Riku said that, the twin Keyblades disappeared from Shade's hands and reappeared in the Key bearers' hands. This shocked Shade, and the battle began. Soon, the team had defeated Shade, and the Beast returned to them. He saw that the Keyblades had once again returned to the two Key bearers.
"It looks like your hearts won this battle," said the Beast.
The two nodded, and the team headed on eventually finding the pieces of the Heartless Emblem and opening up the door that would lead to Kairi... and Shade. What they found shocked Riku for there once again was the Black Dragon that Riku and his friends had fought the last time. Riku looked at the team.
"Looks like Shade's been busy while we were trying to get inside this room," said Riku. "We've defeated this Dragon once! We can do it again!"
The team nodded, and they took on the Dragon. After the Dragon was defeated, Shade appeared once again only this time he was holding a Dark Keyblade. Cloud was shocked.
"Is that-?" started Cloud.
Shade nodded.
"Yes," said Shade. "This is a Keyblade, but unlike your two, this one can unlock people's hearts. I did so with that Dragon."
After that, Shade disappeared. The others were still shocked tho.
"A Keyblade..." started Riku.
"...that can unlock people's hearts..." finished Sora.
They found the Fireglow, and Sora learned to summon Mushu. Riku had also learned a new summon as well. A great lion named "Simba" during his first time as a Key bearer. Then the group proceeds into the Great Hall. Unlike last time, the team hadn't been here, but they had found all of the missing princesses of heart. Sora and Riku headed up the stairs. Cloud and Squall tried to follow, but a forcefield kept them back. Riku and Sora spotted someone.
"Kairi!" exclaimed Riku.
The two ran over to Kairi. Sora tried to wake Kairi up.
"Kairi! Kairi! Open your eyes!" said Sora.
"It's no use," said a voice. "That girl has lost her heart. She can't wake up."
Sora and Riku looked towards the voice and saw Shade.
"What do you mean by that?!" demanded a very irritable Riku.
"The Keyhole cannot be completed so as long as the last princess of heart still sleeps," said Shade.
Riku and Sora looked at each other and then back to Kairi.
"The princess...?" said Riku.
"Kairi's a princess?" said a surprised Sora.
Shade laughs and floats in the air.
"So long as she sleeps, the Keyhole cannot be opened. She must be awakened and add her power to the Keyhole," said Shade.
"We won't let you take her!" said Riku. "Give Kairi back her heart!"
Shade laughed.
"Oh, it is not me that has her heart," said Shade. "You must give the princess back her heart."
Riku feels something strange in his heart and falls to his knees holding his own heart. Sora looked at his friend.
"Riku!" said Sora.
"What's-" said Riku.
Shade laughs.
"Don't you feel it?" said Shade. "The heart of the last princess is responding! You've had it with you this entire time!"
Riku is shocked.
"Kairi's inside of me?" said a surprised Riku.
"I know all there needs to be known," said Shade.
"You're not harming my friends!" said Sora.
"Oh, but I shall," said Shade. "It is time to unlock the princess' heart so that the Keyhole can be complete!"
Shade was about to attack Riku, but Sora blocked the attack with his Keyblade. Kairi called out Riku, and he awoke. Riku stood up beside his friend and glared at Shade.
"Forget it! There's no way you're taking Kairi's heart!" said Riku.
The two fight Shade and defeated him for now. He disappeared leaving his Dark Keyblade behind. Cloud and Squall come up to the two, and the team stared at the Keyhole. The two tried to seal the Keyhole up with their Keyblades, but it didn't work. Squall suggested that maybe the should try to wake Kairi up. Riku nodded.
"I think you're right. If we can free her heart... But... But how?" asked Riku.
Then he noticed the Dark Keyblade. Sora knew what he was thinking.
"A Keyblade that can unlock people's hearts..." said Riku. "I wonder..."
"What are you going to do, Riku?" asked Sora.
Riku didn't say anything and headed over to the Dark Keyblade. Cloud looked at Riku.
"Riku! Hold on!" said Cloud.
"Does he know what he's about to do?" said Squall.
"I think so..." said Sora.
Riku smiled at the threesome and plunged the Dark Keyblade into his heart. When he did so, all of the princesses' hearts returned including Kairi's. Riku started to glow and slowly started to fall. At the same time, his Keyblade went to Sora, and Kairi woke up. Sora looked at Riku.
"Riku... Riku!" exclaimed Sora.
Kairi got up and saw Riku falling. She ran to him.
"Riku!" said Kairi.
Both she and Sora tried to catch Riku before he fell, but he disappeared. Sora and Kairi looked up at the sparkling trail of lights that was once Riku.
"Riku!" said Kairi.
"Come back, Riku!" said Sora.
While inside of Hollow Bastion, Sora and Riku had to dodge the Heartless while their friend, the Beast, destroyed them with his immense strength. Sora and Riku could help with some attack magic, but the best thing they could do for now is run. Eventually, the trio found the room that Cloud and Squall were in, and the Beast broke down the wall freeing their friends. Squall and Cloud were greatly relieved to see that Riku and Sora were okay, and now the five of them could go and find the Keyblades and Kairi. The team headed back upstairs, and the Beast sniffed around. He looked at the others.
"Be on your guard. They're close, I can feel it. Are you ready for them?" asked the Beast.
The team nodded. The Beast suddenly sensed Belle. The Beast whirled around and spotted who he thought was Belle.
"Belle?" asked the Beast.
Belle transformed into a Shadow Heartless, and this angred the Beast greatly. He chased after it leaving Riku and his team alone... or so they thought.
"Quit while you can," said Shade as he appeared.
Riku and Sora shook their heads.
"No," said Riku.
"Not without Kairi," said Sora.
Shade turned into his more powerful form which was the same as Riku's powerful form only it had a pair of large demonlike wings on the back. He looked at the two.
"The darkness will destroy you," said Shade.
Riku shook his head.
"You're wrong, Shade. The darkness may destroy our bodies, but it can't touch our hearts. Our hearts will stay with our friends. They'll never die!" said Riku.
"That's right!" said Sora.
"Really..." said Shade. "Well, we'll just see about that!"
Riku and Sora are immoblized, and Shade shot a pair of dark orbs from the palms of his hand. Riku and Sora gasped and closed their eyes expecting the worst. However, before the orbs could hit, there was a bright flash of white light, and Squall and cloud had each blocked and orb with their swords. Cloud and Squall looked at Shade.
"They're not going anywhere!" said Cloud.
Sora and Riku looked at their friends.
"Thanks a lot, Cloud," said Riku.
"And thanks, Squall," said Sora.
The team got ready to battle Shade, and Shade laughed at the two boys with the Woode Swords.
"How will you two fight without weapons?" asked Shade.
"We don't need our Keyblades," said Riku.
"It's because we have a much stronger weapon..." said Sora.
"Our hearts!" the two said together.
Shade laughed.
"Your HEARTS? What good will THOSE WEAK THINGS do for you?" Shade said tauntingly.
Riku looked at Shade.
"Our hearts by themselves may be weak, but they've grown much stronger with all the friends we've made and all the experiences we've had. They become part of our hearts, and we become parts of theirs! And so long as our friends think of us now and again, we're never alone!" said Riku.
Both he and Sora get ready with their Wooden Swords. Sora nodded.
"That's right!" said Sora. "We don't need our Keyblades to defeat you! Our FRIENDS are OUR POWER!"
After Sora and Riku said that, the twin Keyblades disappeared from Shade's hands and reappeared in the Key bearers' hands. This shocked Shade, and the battle began. Soon, the team had defeated Shade, and the Beast returned to them. He saw that the Keyblades had once again returned to the two Key bearers.
"It looks like your hearts won this battle," said the Beast.
The two nodded, and the team headed on eventually finding the pieces of the Heartless Emblem and opening up the door that would lead to Kairi... and Shade. What they found shocked Riku for there once again was the Black Dragon that Riku and his friends had fought the last time. Riku looked at the team.
"Looks like Shade's been busy while we were trying to get inside this room," said Riku. "We've defeated this Dragon once! We can do it again!"
The team nodded, and they took on the Dragon. After the Dragon was defeated, Shade appeared once again only this time he was holding a Dark Keyblade. Cloud was shocked.
"Is that-?" started Cloud.
Shade nodded.
"Yes," said Shade. "This is a Keyblade, but unlike your two, this one can unlock people's hearts. I did so with that Dragon."
After that, Shade disappeared. The others were still shocked tho.
"A Keyblade..." started Riku.
"...that can unlock people's hearts..." finished Sora.
They found the Fireglow, and Sora learned to summon Mushu. Riku had also learned a new summon as well. A great lion named "Simba" during his first time as a Key bearer. Then the group proceeds into the Great Hall. Unlike last time, the team hadn't been here, but they had found all of the missing princesses of heart. Sora and Riku headed up the stairs. Cloud and Squall tried to follow, but a forcefield kept them back. Riku and Sora spotted someone.
"Kairi!" exclaimed Riku.
The two ran over to Kairi. Sora tried to wake Kairi up.
"Kairi! Kairi! Open your eyes!" said Sora.
"It's no use," said a voice. "That girl has lost her heart. She can't wake up."
Sora and Riku looked towards the voice and saw Shade.
"What do you mean by that?!" demanded a very irritable Riku.
"The Keyhole cannot be completed so as long as the last princess of heart still sleeps," said Shade.
Riku and Sora looked at each other and then back to Kairi.
"The princess...?" said Riku.
"Kairi's a princess?" said a surprised Sora.
Shade laughs and floats in the air.
"So long as she sleeps, the Keyhole cannot be opened. She must be awakened and add her power to the Keyhole," said Shade.
"We won't let you take her!" said Riku. "Give Kairi back her heart!"
Shade laughed.
"Oh, it is not me that has her heart," said Shade. "You must give the princess back her heart."
Riku feels something strange in his heart and falls to his knees holding his own heart. Sora looked at his friend.
"Riku!" said Sora.
"What's-" said Riku.
Shade laughs.
"Don't you feel it?" said Shade. "The heart of the last princess is responding! You've had it with you this entire time!"
Riku is shocked.
"Kairi's inside of me?" said a surprised Riku.
"I know all there needs to be known," said Shade.
"You're not harming my friends!" said Sora.
"Oh, but I shall," said Shade. "It is time to unlock the princess' heart so that the Keyhole can be complete!"
Shade was about to attack Riku, but Sora blocked the attack with his Keyblade. Kairi called out Riku, and he awoke. Riku stood up beside his friend and glared at Shade.
"Forget it! There's no way you're taking Kairi's heart!" said Riku.
The two fight Shade and defeated him for now. He disappeared leaving his Dark Keyblade behind. Cloud and Squall come up to the two, and the team stared at the Keyhole. The two tried to seal the Keyhole up with their Keyblades, but it didn't work. Squall suggested that maybe the should try to wake Kairi up. Riku nodded.
"I think you're right. If we can free her heart... But... But how?" asked Riku.
Then he noticed the Dark Keyblade. Sora knew what he was thinking.
"A Keyblade that can unlock people's hearts..." said Riku. "I wonder..."
"What are you going to do, Riku?" asked Sora.
Riku didn't say anything and headed over to the Dark Keyblade. Cloud looked at Riku.
"Riku! Hold on!" said Cloud.
"Does he know what he's about to do?" said Squall.
"I think so..." said Sora.
Riku smiled at the threesome and plunged the Dark Keyblade into his heart. When he did so, all of the princesses' hearts returned including Kairi's. Riku started to glow and slowly started to fall. At the same time, his Keyblade went to Sora, and Kairi woke up. Sora looked at Riku.
"Riku... Riku!" exclaimed Sora.
Kairi got up and saw Riku falling. She ran to him.
"Riku!" said Kairi.
Both she and Sora tried to catch Riku before he fell, but he disappeared. Sora and Kairi looked up at the sparkling trail of lights that was once Riku.
"Riku!" said Kairi.
"Come back, Riku!" said Sora.