Kingdom of Chaos

Chapter 5: Tidal Drift

Author: Sketchy Sunshine of OSTOCOM

Rating: PG-13, just to be on the safe side

Author's Note: This chapter picks up from chapter three.

See chapter one for summary, disclaimer and other goodness. Otherwise, here's chapter five! XD

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Riku drew the Soul Eater with bated breath, feeling the stench of darkness choke his senses. The king's presence was lost in the mire, and Riku felt panic tug at his chest. "Mickey! Your Majesty! Where are you?"

There was an answer…but it didn't come from Mickey.

Riku…you fool. Did you actually believe you were free of me?

Riku clutched at his head in pain. He couldn't tell whether Ansem's voice was coming from within or without him. I am free of you…you have no power over me!

I do not need to control you to have power over you, the voice answered. And I do not need you to accomplish what I will.

Then why won't you leave me?

Because… the darkness smiled at him. I want to see you happy once again.

This time, Riku knew which direction it was coming from. It was outside of him, directly ahead. He automatically reached up and ripped off the blindfold.

He was alone.

Riku spun around, searching for the king, or even for Ansem. But nothing greeted his blurry vision except the obsidian beach. The smell of darkness left with the blindfold's constraints…there were no clues as to where Mickey had gone.

"Mickey!" Riku's voice echoed desperately into the wind. "Please! Answer me!"

Only silence responded. As Riku waited, he first felt a creeping dread sink into him. Once again, he was alone…without his friend and confidant, without an enemy to confront, even without the demonic voices in his head. The loneliness made his blood run cold.

Not again…I can't be alone in the dark again…

The dread quickly hardened into anger. It boiled away the ice in his veins, and made the scenery before him swim in muddled colors. And I won't be. They can't force me back into the dark…not Ansem, and not the black-robed men.

Riku pulled the blindfold back over his eyes. The world went black, and the smells of light and dark returned. He no longer felt Ansem's presence. If they want me to play on their terms…then I'll beat them at their own game.

His senses seemed clearer now that he could no longer see. He could smell a distant power to the south, in the direction he and the king had been traveling. All the power is gathering there… he told himself. That's where the king must have been taken. That's where the men will be…and Ansem.

Riku walked in the direction of the smell, no longer stumbling around the beach blindly. He was fueled now, using the darkness to seek out his companion. Perhaps it was what Ansem intended all along, but he didn't care. There was a path before his darkened world, and he followed it as he felt the sun set on the ocean.

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It was dawn before Riku sensed something new. He could feel the slight warmth of the rising sun against his skin, and knew he was still traveling south. But the sun's light was of no use to him now, and its warmth no comfort against the ache inside. All that mattered was that he keep pressing onward, keep commanding the darkness to show him his next step.

But now, he could sense a presence not far ahead. The person was laying face-up in the sand, ignoring the slow waves that occasionally rolled over them. Riku tried to identify them. Something smells funny…musky, like a storm. But it tastes metallic, too. He sniffed harder, then clenched his teeth. It smells like thunder. Thunder and darkness.

Larxene lay motionless as Riku approached, her breath coming in quick, shallow gasps. She caught the silver-haired boy out of the corner of her eye, and grimaced, trying to move.

In his mind's eye, Riku could not distinguish her features, but he could tell what kind of being she was. "You're another one. Another one of the people who won't leave me alone."

Larxene sucked in her breath and glared up at Riku. "Don't let me stop you, jerk. You think I wanted to see your face first thing in the morning?"

"What are you doing here?" Riku demanded.

Larxene wheezed, "I'm taking a nap. Now get lost."

"I have a lot of questions, and you're going to answer them…" Riku searched in the dark for her identity. "…Larxene."

"And what if I tell you to go play somewhere else?"

"Then I'll kill you." Riku unsheathed the Soul Eater. "Right now, I am extremely pissed. No more riddles. I want solid answers."

"You'll have to fight me if you want any—" she stopped short as Riku raised the Soul Eater above her head. Her eyes widened in panic as the blade plummeted towards her. "DON'T!"

The thick desperation in her voice halted the Soul Eater inches from her face. "Then tell me! Where did you come from?"

Larxene winced in resignation. She barely managed to lift a finger towards the ocean. "The same place we all came from. Chaos."

"We?" Riku questioned.

"The other Twelve and I."

Thirteen… Riku remembered the note in his pocket. "But what do you mean by Chaos?"

"Stupid boy. Don't you understand anything?" Larxene groaned as she attempted to move again. "Where you come from, things exist. Light and darkness exist. Where do you think they go when they are destroyed?"

Riku didn't answer, but demanded more with a wave of the Soul Eater. She continued, "They cease to exist. They come here…they are enveloped in Chaos. Nothing actually exists here."

"Then how can we be sitting here talking? I know I exist," Riku asked.

"Well aren't you special," she spat. Even though the blindfold, Riku could feel Larxene glaring at him. Something about his comment annoyed her greatly. "These are the Borderlands. The space between existence and nonexistence. This is the only place were the shadows can live out lives. Mirrors of lives, anyway."

"If you don't exist, then why do you care if I kill you?" Riku said coldly.

"Well, I don't know if you've used your eyes lately, but Chaos is not a fun place to be," Larxene taunted. "Even the shadows of existence want lives. Being in the center of the void is pure turmoil. Finding your way back to the Borderlands takes an extreme use of force and will…" she stifled a yell as a thin, icy wave rolled up and back again. "…Which is the only reason I'm too tired to kick your ass right now."

Riku stood, realizing what this meant. "Sora killed you. You went back into Chaos…and just now used all of your power to regain form."

"Oh look, he has brain cells after all," Larxene said sarcastically. "And I'd rather not have to repeat the experience. So thanks for your sympathy."

"But if this is a realm of nonexistence, then how do I get back to existence?" Riku asked. "Or how does Sora?"

"If we knew that…" Larxene's furious gaze met Riku's even though his blindfold. "…Why would we be trying to control you and the Keyblade master?"

Riku felt a shot of dread course through his veins. "Axel knows…" he said under his breath.

"Axel?" This caught Larxene's attention immediately. Her eyes lost some of their anger, and became more focused. "Where is he?"

Riku responded, "That's what I need to find out. He'll know what happened to the king, too."

Riku began to walk back down the beach. Larxene managed to gather her returning strength and prop herself up on one elbow. "Hey! Where do you think you're going?"

"To go play somewhere else," Riku mocked.

"You still think you know so much," Larxene called back. "Once I get my strength back, I'll roast you before you get halfway there."

Riku immediately spun around and walked back to her, gripping the Soul Eater with white knuckles. "Then perhaps you'd like to offer me some advice for the road."

Larxene winced again as he raised the blade. "This is a Kingdom of Chaos, boy. There are no rules or laws. You'd be smart to use that to your advantage."

Riku stood for a moment, turning Larxene's words over in his mind. He sheathed the Soul Eater. In the darkness, he saw his destination: the dull glow of city lights, a hub of activity for shadows. He did not know how far he still had to travel, or if the king or Axel were there already. But he had to be there now.

But if there are no rules, I can do what I want. And if they can appear or disappear at will…then perhaps I can too.

Riku concentrated, blocking out everything else from his senses: the sound of the ocean, the biting wind, and Larxene's seething metallic scent. He focused his own power, his own darkness into the destination. There were no rules, and no distance between himself and the city. I am here…and I will be there.

Larxene watched in shock as Riku flickered, and then disappeared.

"Damn him."

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That's it until next time! Next chapter will probably go back to Sora and co.

Thanks for reading! XD