Part Two
Somewhere in this darkness there's a
life that I can't find.
Maybe it's too far away or maybe I'm just blind,
maybe I'm just blind.
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Clunky black soles crunched down onto an icy pillar as Sephiroth was transported out of the Underworld. This new place was drastically different from Hell, full of ice and water and cold. A shiver zipped up Sephiroth's spine as he examined his surroundings.
Icy walls stood on either side of the place, water everywhere, almost as if he was in some frozen, hibernal canal. Platforms seemed to be floating everywhere in a random pattern, some of them rising and dropping sporadically, as small waterfalls littered the area below.
/Bubbles? What…?/ Sephiroth raised an eyebrow, not sure what to make of his new situation.
He took a careful step forward, testing the grip of his boots on the ice and snow. When he was sure he wouldn't slip, Sephiroth leapt from where he stood and up onto a higher platform hovering before him, repeating the process before encountering one of the moving structures.
Long, black-clad legs carried him easily from berg to berg, going higher as he went forward, carefully avoiding any of those… giant bubbles. There was a monster he encountered once back on the Planet which employed the use of bubbles, suffocating their victims in them, and he definitely didn't want to chance that same predicament now.
Sephiroth finally stopped ascending as he reached a new area, one much larger than the others. A tall arch was atop it, with ornate supporting columns and a shallow pool in the middle, completely filled with floating, pink waterlilies.
/That's awfully… feminine… for an arena… unless…/
The ex-General took a step forward but stopped himself when he came across a yellow, black and blue clad boy with ballooning pants standing wordlessly on an even higher platform, arms crossed, staring back at him with a pronounced smirk. Looming in the distance behind him was a large, showy castle, with twisted, broken turrets hanging off its sides, and completely surrounded by thick fog - even seemingly… floating on it?
Taking a closer look, Sephiroth managed to see the thin support of the castle through the dense fog, but it was a rather flimsy-looking thing; how it was able to keep the massive castle standing was beyond his reasoning.
After checking out the strange palace, Sephiroth let his gaze fall onto the smug-looking boy once more. Pale with a proud stature and well-built for one so young, his short silver hair glittering… it was very strange…
/That boy looks like I did at his age… even the eyes…/
"You look like you've seen a ghost," the teen spoke in a smooth, deep voice, one eyebrow raised in amusement. "That blue bastard got you, huh?"
Sephiroth said nothing, merely watching as the boy flicked his head to the side in a move that seemed to be nothing but a force of habit, the hair swaying out of those bright aqua eyes for bare moments before falling right back into place again.
"We've been expecting you. I personally didn't think you'd come, but…" he trailed off, shrugging.
"I don't suppose this is the Coliseum, is it…," Sephiroth asked, though it came out more of a statement than a question, since the waterlilies practically confirmed that suspicion on their own.
"Of course not. Hades is an idiot, but he's not stupid. He still needs the kid. Selfish guy, really. Well," the boy gestured with a black-gloved hand for him to come forth, and Sephiroth wordlessly complied. "Let's go."
Sephiroth looked at the teen - who stood nearly an entire foot shorter than himself - and quirked an eyebrow. "Where?"
The boy pointed to the wicked-looking castle. "Hollow Bastion."
With nowhere else for Sephiroth to go, the older man followed as the silver-haired teen stepped onto a lift suspended by nothing but a thin wire, leading them towards the castle gates. To Sephiroth's surprise, the ride was surprisingly smooth, considering the circumstances of the contraption.
After a short span of silence, the boy turned his head towards Sephiroth to look into his eyes.
"I'm Riku, by the way."
The silver-haired man nodded in greeting, forgoing his own introduction. It seemed as if - somehow - this Riku was already well aware of who he was, anyway.
Not too long after they stepped off the lift and onto a ledge outside the tall castle gates. Mako-enhanced eyesight spotted monsters laying in wait in the shadows, their large yellow eyes slightly glowing out of the darkness. Some of the small, ant-like creatures advanced as they passed but backed off immediately as soon as Riku shot them a commanding look.
Sephiroth smirked lightly, /we really are alike. A simple gaze makes them listen./
He peeked at Riku from the corner of his eye. The boy's face was emotionless as the two of them walked through the castle door and into a grand room, a massive staircase flanking either side of a gargoyle fountain in the middle of the room. The area was lavishly decorated with plush rugs, large statues and other such gothic decorations lining the walls.
Sparing a look upwards, Sephiroth noticed the room went up three floors but the stairway itself only managed to reach the second landing. /…interesting…/
"This place can be a little stuffy, Maleficent likes all this hoity-toity bullshit," the boy said, gesturing around the room.
"Maleficent?"
"Yeah. She's…" Riku smirked, making his way up the stairwell. "Well, you'll see."
Sephiroth unconsciously spread his wing as his companion spoke, but the boy caught the motion immediately and stared, apparently awed by the sight.
"…you'd think I would've noticed that before." Riku looked into the man's eyes knowingly and asked, "present from Hades?"
Sephiroth nodded, facing forward again. "I suppose."
"It's not bad. It suits you."
The man shook his head and smirked lightly. "Oh? How would you know what suits me?"
Riku shrugged and pulled open a heavy set of doors. "I don't, not really. It just… seems to fit." The boy gestured for Sephiroth to step through the doorway first but the older man refused, opting to simply follow Riku for the time being.
The double doors led to a large library, the walls completely filled with books and then some. Rows upon rows of bookshelves stood almost haphazardly about the room, their placement creating a dense maze of sorts.
"Well, we're here."
/This place reminds me of Nibelheim…/ Sephiroth shuddered involuntarily. "And where exactly is 'here'?"
"It's… just a library. Maleficent told me to bring you here, but I can show you your room first, if you want."
"My room?"
The boy nodded and ran a hand absently over the binding of a random book. "Yeah. You'll be here for a while."
Sephiroth glared down at the boy. "No. I need to find someone."
"Look, it's not my decision." Riku turned and crossed his arms, leaning into a shelf. "I need to find someone, too, and I stay here." He tilted his head. "Well, most of the time."
"I'm still unaware as to why I'm here," Sephiroth started, resting a hand on his hip. "I don't even know where 'here' is…," he raised his arm, gesturing about the expansive library, "I have no clue who this 'Maleficent' is, nor any idea who you are, therefore I do not intend on staying in this place."
Riku's frown deepened as the man went on.
"I have my own business to attend to."
The boy huffed and grumpily pushed a piece of hair behind his ear. "I already told you. This place is called 'Hollow Bastion'. You'll meet Maleficent soon, and if you're worried about Cloud, don't." Riku shrugged. "Hades won't do anything with him, he still needs his… services."
"What do you know about Cloud?" Sephiroth hissed out, "how is it that everyone I've met so far seems to know of both him and me?! I have no clue who any of you people are!"
Riku snapped forward, narrowing his eyes. He stood mere inches away from the taller man, bravely glaring up at him, and spat, "join the fucking club, Seph. You aren't the only one who's still fucking clueless about everything, and I'll be damned if you dare yell at me again. So why don't you just stop your bitching and go along with it, because you have no choice."
/"Do what you're told, boy."/
Sephiroth was dumbfounded. The sudden rage he saw brew in the boy's eyes nearly mimicked his own when he was angered, the clear aqua darkening to a fiery, piercing jade, with the mood swings that emerge right from left field… and not only that, but the boy was actually standing up to him, not backing down even under the Sephiroth's equally cold glare.
"Get out of my face," Sephiroth said curtly. The boy's aqua eyes slitted even more.
/This little bastard…!/ "Stand down!" the silver-haired man growled, sorely tempted to strike Riku for his insolence.
Minutes of tense silence passed between them. Sephiroth managed to suppress the urge to shove the boy backwards into a bookcase several times, but just barely, and he was sure Riku was entertaining similar thoughts, from the look in his eyes.
/Then let him,/ Sephiroth thought as the showdown wore on, /and then he will deal with the consequences./
Neither one lashed out, but they didn't back off, either, until a chilling female's voice echoed through the library.
"Riku, our guest, please," she beckoned, her voice practically slithering, and sounded more snake-like than human.
The boy stepped backwards, pursing his lips in disapproval. "Maleficent calls," he said mockingly, before turning quickly around, and taking even strides which wove through the maze of books, Sephiroth in tow.
Riku led him up a set of stairs and pressed a button hidden next to one of the shelves. A bookcase shot out and slid off to the side to reveal a dark, hidden passageway.
The trek to Maleficent's quarters was unsurprisingly quiet as the two made their way through what felt like miles of hallways and endless 'lift stops', as Riku called them. The entire castle seemed more and more like one massive maze to Sephiroth as they went on with their journey. He studied his surroundings thoroughly, taking mental notes of suspicious doorways and blind halls, doing his best to catalogue the layout of the place when he had time to explore - if he was feeling ambitious, that was.
Guests were filing out of the room Riku led him to, and the boy halted to let them pass before they went through the door themselves.
Something resembling a stuffed potato sack was well on its way down the hall, jiggling with every step, as a pirate with a hook for a hand escorted a large, lilac-skinned, white-haired woman - or what appeared to be a woman - through the door. The woman tactlessly leered at Sephiroth as she scuttled by on oily black tentacles, licking her painted red lips in an obscene manner before she winked at him, provoking nothing but an involuntary shudder of disgust.
A tall, deathly thin man clad head-to-toe in black and red with a turban atop his head slid out next, a long, serpentine staff clutched in one of his bony hands. An obnoxious-sounding parrot accompanied him, flapping at the man's side and squawking loudly about nothing Sephiroth cared to listen to.
When the room eventually cleared, Riku jerked his head towards the door and stepped in. The boy had a confident walk, brimming with cockiness and pride, to which Sephiroth rolled his eyes and slipped through the portal behind him.
He was greeted by a tall, slender woman with a sickening green pallor, dressed in long, black and purple robes, with something that appeared to be twisted dragon's horns upon her head, doing nothing but adding to her already unfriendly appearance. She looked up at the both of them, smile playing upon the small mouth which seemed to accentuate her already elongated face.
"Hello, Riku," she purred in that same dour voice that graced the library, addressing the boy before turning to the taller man and nodded. "Hello, Sephiroth, a pleasure you could join us." The man grunted dismissively.
"Is there a problem with your accommodations, General?"
One of Sephiroth's eyebrows quirked. /General… it's been a long while since anyone's called me that…/
"If you have questions, I will gladly answer them. But I must warn you, I have business I must attend to shortly." She smiled at Riku. A pained expression rose to the teenager's face but faded quickly as it came.
Sephiroth cleared his throat before asking, "why am I here, exactly?"
Maleficent's eyebrows arched. "What have you been informed of thus far?" The smooth, eerily calm way she spoke was unsettling.
"All I've been told is that I must stay here, but not why. Earlier I was…," he gestured with his hands, not quite sure how to word his situation, "…found, I suppose, by Hades. He said something about my… my old enemy." Sephiroth smirked, feigning a wicked hatred in his eyes. "I would just love to see him again."
Maleficent smiled knowingly, and bowed her head. "Ah, yes, Hades' new plaything. He has plans for that one."
The ex-General stiffened. "Such as…?"
The woman laughed, the harsh sound raising the hairs on the back of Sephiroth's neck. "A secretive one Hades is… I know not the details, but I assure you, the consequences are dire," she cooed.
Gloved hands clasped together at the small of Sephiroth's back. He nodded shortly and responded, "I see. Though I hope he doesn't hurt him too badly, I'd be rather grateful if I could cause the boy some anguish of my own…," Sephiroth added as an afterthought. Even if it was a blatant lie, the response seemed to please Maleficent, who gave him a twisted smile.
"Of course. Is there anything else, my dear?"
"May I leave as I wish?"
Maleficent opened her mouth to speak and closed it again, rethinking her response. She deliberated a moment before answering, "I will let you come and go as you wish. You may leave in several days, General."
"Very well."
She bowed slightly and motioned towards the door with her hand. "A pleasure, General." She turned to face Riku and said, "my dear, please escort our guest to his quarters. I shall be back shortly."
"Yes, Maleficent."
The boy nodded and started towards the door, gesturing for Sephiroth to follow. Once they were out of earshot of the room, Riku broke the silence. "She doesn't know about him, you know."
"Cloud?"
The boy nodded, his hair bobbing in his face. "Yeah. Hades has his own agenda."
Sephiroth sighed loudly and tilted his head back, muttering, "Strife had better not be harmed."
"He will be if he doesn't follow Hades' orders. He's pretty strict when it comes to his contracts."
Sephiroth let his head fall to his chest, silver bangs swishing side to side with every step, and exhaled a slow, shuddering breath before he continued. "Why would he ever enter such a contract with that… thing?"
Riku whispered his answer, almost intending for it to be for himself alone, but the older man's Mako-enhanced ears easily heard his words. "Love makes you do stupid things…"
"And how do you know all of this?" Sephiroth asked, pretending he hadn't heard the boy's quiet statement.
"I just know," he replied simply.
"And yet Maleficent doesn't…?"
Riku shook his head. "No. I don't know why just yet, but she… just doesn't." The boy stopped shortly and retrieved a silver key from his pocket, dropping it into Sephiroth's hand as he tilted his chin at a broad wooden door.
"You can stay there." For the first time since they met, the older one gave Riku a small smile.
"Thank you."
Riku smiled back and shrugged, burying his hands into his deep pockets. "Don't worry about it." He sighed and cocked his head to the side. "We're more alike than just the way we look, you know."
The silver-haired man unlocked his door and answered with his back towards Riku. "I believe that's an understatement," Sephiroth mumbled before turning around. "Would you like to come in?"
"Nah, that's ok." Riku scratched the back of his neck and made a face. "You won't take too long, right? I'm supposed to play 'tour guide' for you, so…"
"Oh." The man slipped the key into his pocket. "I'll only be a minute." A hand grabbed the hilt of the Masamune and he murmured, "just want to put this away."
Riku's beautiful aqua eyes widened in awe. "Whoa…," he breathed, a faint blush creeping onto his cheeks. "I must be really out of it today. First the wing, then the sword…" He blinked, his eyes never straying from the long, deadly-looking blade. "How couldn't I have noticed that…?"
Sephiroth smiled inwardly, recalling the first time he saw his beloved sword, sure he had a near identical expression on his face.
"You're a swordsman as well?"
The boy nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, I used to play-fight with my best friend Sora all the time back home…" Riku trailed off, another pained expression showing itself on his face. He shook his head and looked back up at Sephiroth mere seconds later, and gave him a crooked half-smile. "That's a really impressive blade."
"The Masamune."
"Masamune…," he breathed, trying out the name. "It's… incredible."
Sephiroth stepped into his new quarters, motioning Riku inside. "Do you have a sword of your own?"
"Huh? Oh. No, back home I only had a wooden one…" Riku made another face. "I've never used an actual sword before."
Placing the Masamune upright into a corner, Sephiroth responded, "that's alright. The first time I handled something other than a training sword was when I was about your age… 16, 17?"
"15. I'll be 16 soon, though."
"I see." He gestured elegantly towards the door. "Shall we go?"
Riku nodded slightly. "Sure."
The two of them strode quietly out of the room down twisting and turning hallways, Riku randomly pointing out rooms and their purposes. Sephiroth was slightly disturbed by the sheer number of bedrooms the castle held while there were so few occupants inside, but Riku only shrugged when he was asked about it.
The two chit-chatted idly, trading stories about swordfights they've had, years of training and other things of that nature, neither of them revealing anything too personal. They both shied away from several topics - namely those relating to their respective homes, only really talking about them when referring to old sparring partners or places they've practiced. So far, the most personal information Riku told Sephiroth was that a boy, Sora, was the one he was looking for.
Sephiroth, on the other hand, hadn't needed to explain his situation with Cloud at all to Riku; the boy seemed to know enough about both himself and Cloud than he let on, accidentally letting out the occasional cryptic message but also refusing to elaborate when the older one asked.
The tour stopped momentarily at a nearby kitchen by Riku's request - rather, by the request of his growling stomach. The boy fixed himself a small lunch of only a piece of fruit and a sandwich, which Sephiroth declined, and ate it quickly before leading him back to the library.
The silver-haired man sat at a secluded table underneath a broad set of stairs on the lower floor of the library. His eyes quickly raked the shelves, measuring the off chance possibility of finding anything worth flipping through.
"…though I read enough six years ago for an entire lifetime," Sephiroth muttered quietly to himself, supporting his chin on a fist.
"What was that?" the teen asked, padding silently towards the table. He easily pulled himself up and onto it to lounge, both legs dangling over the edge.
"Nothing," the man replied, watching Riku closely. The silver-haired teenager shrugged off Sephiroth's utterance and folded his hands in his lap, both aqua eyes fixed on a sole spot on the floor.
They sat in absolute silence, the ticking from a clock the only noise in the entire room other than that of the swishing sound of Riku's billowing pant legs scraping together.
Out of the blue, Riku asked, "can I touch it?"
Sephiroth's eyes went wide as he stared at the younger one. /…the last boy who asked me that was Clo—oh… I see…/
Gleaming feline eyes followed the boy's gaze upward as Riku stared directly at the bluish-black feathers of his wing. Riku smirked at the man and arched a thin silver eyebrow when Sephiroth turned back to him, the somewhat embarrassed surprise not quite faded from his face.
"Don't get dirty thoughts, old man, I barely know you."
A slight, near-imperceptible blush rose to Sephiroth's pale face as he rolled his eyes, fully extending his wing. "Quiet."
Riku's black-gloved hand reached forward to tentatively pass his fingertips over the sleek midnight feathers. The silver-haired man bristled as the unique - and admittedly pleasant - sensation somehow passed straight through the soft plumes themselves, shooting through the nerves of his wing to send a shiver down his spine.
"What's it like?" the boy questioned curiously.
He shuddered as Riku moved his hand from the feathers and traced a finger up and down its length. That feeling wasn't unpleasant at all, not at all… in fact, the older man actually found it terribly stimulating…
Sephiroth suddenly grabbed the boy's wrist and pulled Riku's hand off to the side. "Enough," he gasped out, quickly crossing his legs.
Fortunately for him, Riku hadn't noticed Sephiroth's little outburst, still very much enthralled with the beautiful wing itself.
"Can you fly?"
Delicate silver brows knitted together. "…I haven't tried."
"You should."
"Why?" Sephiroth asked.
Riku arched his own eyebrow and upped Sephiroth's with a smirk. "It'd be really cool if you could fly."
/Like a typical teenager./ "Perhaps."
Riku braced himself on the table with his palms and leaned back, dropping his head behind him to expose a long, pale neck. The silver-haired man had to look away from the beautiful boy - the residual effects from that hand on his wing were tempting enough.
Sephiroth pushed his lips to his fist and murmured, "Riku?"
"Hmm?"
"What's your purpose in Hollow Bastion?"
The teenager tilted his head to the side, his silver hair just the right length to brush lightly against his shoulders. "I'm not sure yet. I just ended up here."
"Have you left at all?"
Riku shook his head, pulling one leg up to his chest and left the other dangling off the edge. "No, I've got the same order as you. Can't leave until Maleficent says. Actually, today was the first time I've even been out to Rising Falls."
"'Rising Falls'…? Is that area out front?" The boy nodded. "Oh." Sephiroth placed his chin on his fist again. "How long have you been here, now?"
"A couple days, I think? I'm not sure, really." He pulled himself up and hugged the leg at his chest, blankly staring off into space. The normally aloof ex-General caught the soft look of loneliness in the Riku's eyes and was painfully reminded of his own youth, those years spent in Hojo's lab, isolated from the rest of the world until he was deemed worthy of enrolling into SOLDIER.
Even when surrounded by others he felt that sting of loneliness, singled out from the crowd because of his hair, or his eyes, or that skill beyond his years with swords. It wasn't until years later he met Zack - or rather, Zack met him -, the extremely outgoing, optimistic, newly-promoted SOLDIER who, to Sephiroth's great surprise, went on to become his first actual friend, opening doors to other things…
Then, of course, came Cloud…
A break in Sephiroth's icy façade came when he asked, voice uncharacteristically soft, "are you lonely?"
The boy sighed deeply and hugged his leg tighter. "Only without my Light…"
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Cloud stretched briefly, absently swiping the thick, black blood of a slaughtered Heartless from his brow, the tournament far too simple up to that point for the blonde fighter's skill level. The weak competitors were nothing but simple child's play for him after all that he'd been through - even the monsters in Midgar's slums posed more of a challenge. He hoped that kid and his animal companions he saw earlier made it as far as he had.
At least fighting a human opponent would be worth the effort.
"Hey, kid!" came Phil's voice, followed soon after by audible hoof falls.
"Yeah?"
"You'll be fighting again after this kid finishes his next battle, so ya know," the satyr said. The blonde nodded.
"I'm familiar with tourney procedure by now, Phil, but thanks." As quickly as he came, the little red goat-man trotted away.
Cloud headed to the arena's waiting area and sat on a stone bench, chewing on his lower lip. Today was the day he was supposed to kill Hercules, but he still had no idea how to go about it. The man was a demigod, after all, and he himself was… a Heartless with a heart.
The blonde groaned, dwelling on the sheer impossibility of his predicament.
Deciding to forgo the situation details until later, Cloud got up to watch the little spiky-haired kid as he clumsily attacked the Heartless, aided by a magic-casting duck and… something that appeared to be a very tall, lanky dog on the offensive.
The kid - Sora, the announcer proclaimed - made Cloud think of himself when he was younger… his skills with swords weren't at all polished back then either; at least not before Zack and Sephiroth took him under their wing, both of them training him hard, practicing with different techniques and numerous stances, each one changing slightly to account for the opponent's height and weight.
The blonde smiled slightly whenever Sora and his teammates were victorious in battle, all three of them jumping around and cheering before the brown-haired boy thrust his sword into the air triumphantly.
Sword…?
Cloud squinted and looked closer at the peculiar sword the kid was holding.
[…what the hell…? Is that a key…?] Cloud's eyes widened slightly.
[…no way, that can't be the… but… he's a kid…!]
Before he had a chance to find out, Cloud sensed Hades behind him even before the god could announce himself. He tensed, a plan of attack for taking down Hercules still very much unformulated.
[Maybe I should just Omnislash him…] Cloud smirked despite himself. [Yeah, that'll work.]
[…in my dreams.]
"That little punk is your next opponent, okay?" Hades spoke suddenly, pointing over Cloud's shoulder at Sora and his team. "Now, don't blow it. Just take him out."
[The kid?! What the fuck?!]
"The great god of the Underworld is afraid of a kid?" he replied quietly, a hint of mockery in his voice. Shaking his head, Cloud continued, "sorry, but my contract says—"
"I know! You think I don't know? I wrote the contract!" Hades interrupted, gesticulating wildly in back of him. "I know it says you're only required to kill Hercules in this tournament. But you've gotta fight that kid to get to him." A bony blue hand clapped the blonde on the shoulder.
"Come on," Hades leaned forward, closer to Cloud's pierced ear, and lowered his voice. "Hey, it's like that old goat says: Rule 11: it's all just a game, so let loose and have fun with it! I mean, a casualty or two along the way is no big deal, right?"
Cloud rolled his shoulders with distaste, showing the god that his hand was completely unwanted. The blonde fighter frowned and stepped out of the holding area, making his way away from Hades and over to the bleachers so he could watch the kid's last fight before the final Seed.
[The kid better lose this round, I can't… I can't get kill a fucking kid… even if it is…]
Mako-enhanced ears heard the Hades mumbling at his back, but Cloud was unable to pick up anything he said… which, he figured, was probably for the best. Cloud was definitely not in the mood to deal with that jackass any longer.
Sitting at the sidelines in time for the last fight, Cloud sighed as the last opponents of the tournament appeared within the barrier of the arena. […wow. A Large Body and some weak magi… I'm so sorry, kid…]
Sure enough, Sora and the others took out the Heartless almost effortlessly, receiving minor damage from the balloonish stomach of the Large Body and weak fire spells from Nocturnes. Cloud groaned loudly as his name was called, summoning him into the ring.
Cloud walked in slowly, his red mantle billowing out behind him, and watched the boy from the corner of his eye as he stepped into place opposite the kid, where he could studying him briefly before the fight… before he took him down.
The boy looked a lot like himself, Cloud noticed, with that same, slightly effeminate round face and impossibly blue eyes, all of it sitting below a head of unruly, spiky hair. Cloud couldn't help but frown; if Sora's hair was a golden blonde instead of dark brown, the boy could've been a miniature replica of himself.
[…only with baby fat, of course.]
The blonde waited until the introductory music for the fight drowned out before lifting the Buster Sword. He quickly decided he had no choice but to take the defensive, as the kid had already started to rush forward to attack. Cloud didn't want to dispose of the boy quickly, though; he wanted to test him, checking both strength and abilities, the same way Zack had with him back in ShinRa, and at least give the kid a fighting chance…
Sora's attacks were erratic and clumsy, severely lacking the fluid grace he himself had, and Cloud easily parried and dodged the boy's inept swings. The blonde thought Sora did have the potential to be a greatly skilled swordfighter somewhere down the line, given both time and the right training.
[…too bad he's not gonna make it past this fight…]
Sighing, Cloud decided to get the job over with. He pointed his sword outward and dashed forward, grazing the boy's arm as he practically flew by.
Sora cried out and flopped backwards as a low-level lightening spell crackled and shot a few good jolts through Cloud's body. The blonde stumbled momentarily, his body tingling from the attack, as the weird-looking dog rammed forward to drive Cloud back and away from the brown-haired boy.
Cloud swung the sword up in a high arc and followed it through with his body, quickly slashing downwards as he landed. Both slashes connected solidly with the dog, who barely had time to yelp before it slumped to the floor. Cloud took the opportunity to swing at the animal again before he could be cured, effectively knocking him out of the fight.
[One down, two to go…]
The boy looked frantic. "Goofy!" he cried, dashing forward to help his friend.
Cloud shook his head at the boy's compassionate nature, selflessly putting his own safety at risk for his teammate's. Deciding to use the boy's distraction to his advantage, Cloud dashed forward and quickly drove the sword into the boy's side.
Again Sora cried out and stumbled, but instead of simply falling, the boy flailed, swinging his key in Cloud's - general - direction. Before he could block the attack, the key slammed hard into Cloud's jaw and was gone, as Sora turned back to his dog friend.
The blonde blinked, a blinding white flashing before his eyes. [What the hell was that?!]
Cloud's vision was blurry, wavering in and out as he blinked again. Of course, with all the fighting he had done in his lifetime, Cloud had been hit in the jaw before… but this time was much, much different. The key had effected him somehow, disabling him for a few crucial moments as he teetered on his feet.
He swore inwardly at the distraction, noticing after the fact that the duck had ample time to heal the boy, and the boy, in turn, to heal the dog.
The blonde dashed forward again, aiming at the duck - most likely his biggest threat at the moment.
Cloud purposely overshot his mark on the first pass, flying past and disorienting the spell-casting fowl. With SOLDIER reflexes on high, Cloud spun around and instantly dove for the duck again; this time, the Buster Sword sliced into the duck's side, its blood staining the pristine feathers a deep crimson.
The duck - Donald, as Sora cried out earlier - attempted to shoot fireballs at the blonde warrior, but to no avail. Cloud was too fast as he shot towards the duck again, jamming the tip of his sword into its stomach and jumping up, very nearly gutting it as the duck passed out.
For good measure, Cloud placed his foot beside Donald's limp body and swept it out of the arena.
He turned around just in time to see the dog weakly advancing on him, as the boy apparently hadn't healed it enough; Cloud estimated one or two more hits would remove the dog from the battle.
Pleased with the dash-and-slash tactic's results so far, Cloud lunged forward toward the tall animal. The Buster Sword tore through the dog's flimsy shield as if it was made of aluminum, piercing the dog's chest. The damage wasn't bad enough to kill it - the wound was a deep gash at most - but the dog's knees quivered uncontrollably at the sight of its own blood.
Figuring he should take down the dog before starting in on Sora, Cloud pulled the sword back and thrust forward.
…and it didn't connect… but the dog fell anyway.
[The… the damn thing fainted!]
Chuckling a bit, the blonde turned around to face the little boy. Sora was trembling terribly, the key jangling in his grip, on the verge of tears as he looked at his fallen friends. He felt bad for the kid, but… that was the way these tournaments went…
Cloud's cape billowed to the side in a gust of wind as he lowered his sword. Sora simply stared, the key poised, but he was unwilling to attack just yet, instead taking a few tentative steps forward before he stopped a few yards short of the deceivingly strong blonde.
With a sigh, Cloud yanked his cape off of his wing, letting the frightening black appendage spread to its full width. The boy's blue eyes were wide with shock at the sight of the rather cherubic blonde bearing a single, wicked demon's wing.
[…may as well get this over with…]
"Farewell," Cloud murmured as he began flapping his wing, hovering slightly over the ground. Hades had let him in on the secret of channeling the powers of a Heartless a long time ago, and to make the boy's death relatively quick and just a little less painful, Cloud decided to utilize what Darkness he had inside him.
The teen furrowed his brow and crouched, readying himself to defend against the attacks from the demon. Cloud pointed his sword to the ground and flew forward, grazing Sora's shoulder as he passed by. To counter the move, the boy swung the key in a wide arc, just narrowly missing the blonde's foot.
Cloud circled him quickly and slashed low at the boy, the tip of his blade digging into Sora's calf. Tears fell from the brown-haired teen's innocent face but Sora didn't falter, instead watching the blonde intently, weapon poised and ready to strike.
[Gods, don't cry, kid, be strong… don't be weak!!]
But without mercy Cloud went to attack again, whipping the Buster Sword around his body… but didn't feel any contact by the time he reached his starting position. The kid had vanished from sight.
Cloud looked around quickly for the brown-haired boy, but Sora was nowhere to be found…
…until Cloud felt the cold metal of the key Sora wielded slam hard into his back and slide down before the boy rammed it straight into his side. The blonde let out a loud grunt at the harsh contact and glided away, that familiar white pain and dizziness washing over him again, only this time much more intense.
Cloud didn't show his discomfort, of course, as the long years of training and battle had disciplined him, allowing him to stay composed even during the worst pain. It was something Sephiroth taught him, back when the man was still the great General: to your opponent, show no hurt and show no mercy.
Sora rapidly became more confident with his attacks and advanced eagerly on Cloud. The blonde skillfully strafed left and spun to dodge the attack before he shot forward and drove the sword deep into the boy's side. Sora sobbed in disbelief, sliding himself off the end of the Buster to place a gloved hand on his wounded side in attempt to slow the flow of blood.
As Sora struggled with his hurt, Cloud's control of the Darkness was fading fast. The blonde suddenly collapsed, his wing unable to support his weight any longer. He fell to the ground and stumbled, another wave of dizziness washing over him. Glowing, Mako-drenched blue eyes passed over the frame of the boy, his small, still-growing body shaking violently, and Cloud slowly lifted his sword.
Sora felt Cloud's gaze and looked up, eyes wide in fear, not wanting to go on with the battle any longer. The older one kept staring, noticing the boy's quivering lower lip and quick intakes of breath, and Cloud felt his hands trembling.
[I can't do this…] the blonde thought as he took a step backward, [I can't kill this kid.]
Sora shook again and pouted, his large eyes clearly expressing the pain he felt.
[I can't do this, he's too much like me…] Cloud took another step backward, lowering his sword slowly. From the corner of his eye, the blonde spotted something that kept flickering from an icy blue to a fiery red, and immediately knew what it was.
[Do you hear me, you fucking ASSHOLE, I'm not going to kill this fucking kid!!]
A deep rumbling sounded followed by a sharp quake in the arena. Suddenly, a large, three-headed dog flew over the Coliseum walls and landed close to Cloud and the boy, its vicious jaws snapping as it leaked a viscous black liquid. Dumbly both of the ring's occupants gaped at the massive beast as the hilt of the Buster Sword slipped from Cloud's slackened grip, the heavy weapon clanking to the ground.
Sora was the one to snap back to reality first and got up, wobbly as he was on two unsteady legs. One of the large heads shot forward and slammed into the boy, knocking him back several feet onto the ground.
"Herc!" Phil shouted as a heavily muscled man with a shock of red hair ran into the arena, ready to attack.
"Phil, get them out of here!" Hercules demanded, his hands placed on one of the dog's heads. Cloud dodged the jaws of different head as he bent to retrieve his sword, fully prepared to fight the beast alongside the demigod he was sent to kill.
The satyr nodded and cast a quick cure spell on Sora and his companions, hurriedly leading them out of the arena.
"You alright to do this?" Herc asked, turning towards Cloud. "Cerberus is pretty nasty."
The blonde nodded his response and slashed at the gaping maw of the gigantic beast.
The red-haired demigod emitted a bright golden glow and pulled a beefy arm back, leaning far back on one leg, a powerful fist balled. The leverage he managed on his lower body worked to his advantage as the fist shot forward heavily, landing on the dog's jaw in with a solid crunch. Cerberus howled in pain and reared, lashing its paws out.
The blonde hopped back and then tore his way forward, his sword pointed upward. As Cerberus landed, Cloud pushed up, his massive blade tearing through the beast's sternum. Again the dog roared and the blonde freed the blade, the wound releasing a torrent of oily black blood. Using the animal's pain to garner an opening, Hercules slammed Cerberus a second time with a powerful uppercut, nearly breaking one of its jaws.
Cloud dropped to the ground and rolled out from underneath the creature, leaving behind a line of black gore. He stood shakily, taking a bare moment to right himself before lunging at the beast again.
Using Hercules' attacks to the monster's heads to his advantage, the blonde ran forward, viciously plunging the Buster Sword deep into the animal's throat.
He didn't have time to withdraw the sword as Cerberus again reared upwards, bellowing loudly. Hercules swore under his breath.
"Don't let go! You're too high up!!"
Cloud nodded and clutched the hilt of the sword tightly.
Cerberus seemed to understand the demigod's command and began to shake his entire body wildly back and forth, quickly dropped to the ground and rearing again, thrashing wildly. The second time the beast pulled up, the sword slipped free of the thick cords of muscle in the Cerberus' neck and Cloud fell from the sky, landing on the hard floor of the arena with a thud.
Hercules ran forward, narrowly dodging the dog's large paws as it landed to bring itself back on four feet once more.
The blonde barely noticed the quick slap to his face nor the strong arms that lifted him, tossing him easily over one broad shoulder. As an afterthought, the demigod grabbed Cloud's sword and ran him out of the arena as Sora's team rushed in, fully healed and ready to fight.
"Kid, I got two words of advice for you: Attack!" Phil shouted, and the boy was all too eager to comply.
Once safely outside the arena, Hercules set Cloud down and proceeded to lightly smack his face, waiting for the blonde to respond.
"Hey! Hey, can you hear me?"
Cloud groaned and coughed weakly, swatting at the offender with his clawed hand. His entire body ached, his head dizzy, and he was completely covered with dirt and grime - definitely not in the mood to be smacked around, no matter how good the intentions were.
"Hey you! You alright?" The red-haired man tapped Cloud on the cheeks again. The blonde rolled his head in attempt to evade the other's hand.
"Kid! Kid! Don't do that again!" Phil screamed, his oddly accented voice tinged with worry.
"Ngh…," was all Cloud could manage, his eyes drifting open and closed randomly.
"Can you sit up, at least?"
The blonde lifted his head weakly and shifted, bringing his arms back, somewhat bracing himself on his elbows. "Yeah… yeah." Cloud turned his head to the side and spat out a bit of blood. His eyes raked around the room briefly before he asked, hesitantly, "…where's the kid…?"
Phil and Hercules exchanged wary glances. To the blonde's surprise, Phil was the one who spoke up, his voice uncharacteristically small. "He's still in there."
Cloud sat up abruptly, a look of pure contempt on his face. "What the fuck do you mean he's still in there?!"
The goatling frowned and crossed his pudgy arms in defiance. "He said he wanted to be a hero and went in. Couldn't stop 'im."
"I do not believe you could be so irresponsible, Phil! What makes you think he can get rid of that thing if he couldn't even beat me?!"
Phil tensed up. "I told 'im to be careful!"
"'Careful' won't keep him from harm, Phil," Hercules said, frowning. "That really wasn't the smartest thing…," he trailed off, a sad look on his face.
Cloud stood carefully and grabbed the Buster Sword. "I gotta get out of here, I can't be near you anymore, Phil, sending a fucking kid in there with Hades' fucking pet," the blonde spat, barely containing his anger at Phil's stupidity.
Without waiting for the satyr's defense, Cloud stormed off, pushing the heavy stone doors open and making his way into the courtyard with harsh steps.
[I don't believe this. That kid better be alright or I'm going to murder that little red bastard,] he thought, pacing. […even though I was about to… kill him myself…]
Cloud growled at himself as he walked towards the Coliseum gates, but stopped short as a thought occurred. The blonde shook his head and sighed, shoulders falling forward in defeat.
"I at least have to see if he's alright," Cloud muttered quietly to himself, making his way back to the exit of the waiting area.
The blonde collapsed heavily on the last step and pulled his legs up to his chest, both elbows resting on his knees.
"Damn kid, look what you're doing to me," the blonde sighed.
He rested his clawed hand over his other one and leaned forward, scowling at his own stupid mistakes. "…worrying about a kid I was supposed to kill… I can't believe I was so stupid…"
A familiar scrape of the heavy doors to the arena's waiting area sounded, followed by heavy, slapping footsteps. Cloud merely assumed it was Phil coming to apologize and ignored it, still much too angry at the satyr for even thinking of letting Sora go and fight the three-headed dog.
But, to the blonde's great surprise, Sora popped Cloud's field of vision, and seemingly unscathed. Before the blonde could even begin to open his mouth, the boy spoke. "Hey, are you all right?"
[…I should be the one asking you that, not the other way around…]
"Yeah."
The brown-haired boy seemed to hesitate a moment as if testing the tempestuous water that was Cloud's attitude. "So why did you go along with him, anyway?" Sora finally asked, knitting his brow.
[How the hell did you know that…?]
"I'm looking for someone," Cloud said quietly. He looked up into the boy's pure blue eyes and continued with a nonchalant shrug, "Hades promised to help."
[…and why am I telling you this?] "…I tried to exploit the power of Darkness, but it backfired…"
The blonde man stood slowly, casting a blank look towards the far wall of the courtyard. A slight breeze picked up, blowing at the blonde spikes atop his head, flaring the red mantle. "I fell into Darkness, and couldn't find the Light…," Cloud trailed off, talking more to himself than Sora at that point.
Sora bit his bottom lip and tilted his head, watching the blonde intently. "You'll find it. I'm searching, too."
"…for your Light?" Cloud sighed gently and reached into his pocket, pulling out a piece of paper with a very, very old technique planned out on it, 'Sonic Blade', one of the first Hades taught him.
[You have to be strong, Sora. This is the least I can do. I'm sorry…]
"Don't lose sight of it," he murmured. Cloud turned to face the young boy and pressed the paper into his hand.
[I hope this can help you more than it helped me.] The blonde turned to leave the Coliseum. […and we both have to keep searching.]
Cloud slowed his pace when the boy spoke again, voice betraying happiness at the new ability the blonde had given him.
"How about a rematch sometime?" Sora giggled as he added, "fair and square, no dark powers involved."
Cloud stopped walking, simply leaving the boy at his back, mulling the suggestion over a bit. With a slight shake of his head, the mercenary raised his eyebrow and smirked. "I think I'll pass."
The blonde started toward the exit again. He could feel Sora's eyes still on him, watching him leave. Cloud closed his eyes before opening the door to the Coliseum exit and took a deep breath, giving a quick shake of his head. Cloud spun to looking in Sora's eyes; for some reason unbeknownst to him, the brown-haired teen's face lit up happily at the acknowledgement.
"Sora?"
The boy's face broke into a wide grin. "Yeah?"
"You're that legendary 'Keyblade master' I've been hearing so much about… meaning you've been to a lot of different worlds, right?"
Sora nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, I guess. We've been to a few places so far. Um, in our Gummi ship." He tilted his head to the side, eyebrows furrowed. "How come?"
"Have you…" The older man stopped and glanced at the ground, not so sure he should even ask… it was a stupid question anyway…
[Why even bother asking…]
"Have you ever met anyone with silver hair?" Cloud looked at his palm as he asked, curling the metal fingers absently.
[Stupid. No.]
"Of course!"
[What?!] "You have?" The man stepped forward, skeptical.
"My friend Riku!"
Cloud cringed, involuntarily clenching his fists in disappointment. "Oh."
[…goddammit… stupid to get your hopes up, Strife…]
Sora walked forward and reached his hand out as he caught the brief, saddened look on the older man's face. "You can come with us, if you want," he blurted, nearly tripping over his feet as he suggested, "I can help you look…"
"…why would you do that?"
The boy shrugged and fell quiet for a bare moment before breaking out into a wide grin again.
[Just like Zack.]
"Because… it's the right thing to do!"
[…just like Zack.] "…I don't want to impose…"
The boy waved off the comment. "You won't. I can have Chip and Dale drop you off in Traverse Town." Sora grinned sheepishly and kicked at the ground. "After the tournament, I kinda need the supplies, so…"
Cloud's eyes flitted around the entrance to the arena. "Where's the rest of your party?"
"Huh? Oh." Sora jabbed a thumb behind him. "They're still in there. Phil's still helping 'em."
"I see." Cloud scratched the back of his head absently. "Sorry, about that…"
The spiky-haired boy bit his bottom lip and averted the blonde's gaze. "Don't worry about it… I don't blame you. Hades made you do it, right?"
[… exactly my stance on Seph and Jenova.] "Yeah."
Sora smiled again and buried his hands into his pockets, rocking back on his heels as he jerked his head backwards, gesturing to the waiting room. "I'm gonna go get my friends. You're coming with us to Traverse Town, then?"
The blonde nodded. "If there's no problem with it."
"Ah, I don't have a problem with it! I offered. But… Donald might, though…"
Cloud snorted. "That pain the ass duck, I'm guessing?"
Giggling, Sora replied, "yep! I'm still getting used to him myself, actually." Cloud smiled a little at the remark. "I'll go get 'em." The boy then turned, jogging clumsily into the arena.
The blonde man's smile broadened as he shook his head and let out a long, ragged sigh. "Damn kid…"
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A/N: Doot doot… revised 4/29/04. …and added about 2000 words… heh… heh… ahem. …what!? It's justified revising, dammit! The first time around, this chapter had a major lack of description…obviously. And Seph was OOC to me. I guess he's not so bad now, but yes. Anyway.