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Sora shuddered and opened his eyes at the sound of Riku's tenure. He gasped for air as if he had been drowning. However, the young hero still made no attempt to rise and gazed at his friend with dull, dead eyes.

"Riku….." the name was a whisper-a heartbroken, apologetic croak. Riku crouched and held out a hand but the boy on the ground made no effort to lift his arm and be helped to his feet.

"Riku….." Sora croaked again, handing his friend the Ultima Weapon, "Take it. You were right before….in Hollow Bastion…..you were right."

Riku took a step back.

"Sora, what are you talking about? I can't take this it's yours! You are the rightful master of this Keyblade. It chose you. Now come on, we have to—"

"No, Riku. I'm no Keybearer. I'm….I'm just the delivery boy."

The silver haired young man felt tears threatening to fall as the Keyblade materialized in his hand. It had rejected its chosen weilder and there could only be one reason for it.

"No….Sora…..Your heart….must be dying. There's just no way your heart can be…..weaker than mine. Sora, you can't just give up like this….it isn't like you!"

Sora lay his head down and closed his eyes as if he were being crushed to death by weights and completely exhausted. Kairi squeezed his hand again, tears lining her cheeks as well as she realized Malefiscent had taken more than her friend's strength. Turning to the others, the auburn-haired Princess of Radiant Garden spat bitterly,

"That Witch! It's bad enough she took his will to wield—she had to take his will to live as well!"

Namine nodded,

"Yes, Sora is feeling the weight of what he feels to be his failure as well as the weight of all the worlds that are counting on him. The pressure is too much for him and he is dealing with it the only way he knows how…..by waiting for it to crush him."

Riku kneeled again next to his friend, his tone laced with concern,

"Sora you don't have to fight this alone. Wasn't it you that said your friends were your power? Well we are all right here. All you have to do is stand up."

He held out his hand again. "Please, Sora. You've come this far. Are you really gonna give up now?"

"Come on, Sora we'll support you but first you have to get on your feet. You can do this!" Kairi encouraged.

"Sora come on. GET UP!"

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Roxas giggled as he watched Antiform play in the waves, chaising Shadows into the attacking Samurai and acting a little like an innocent being as it chittered and chattered like a monkey.

The Nobody's mood was ruined as a wave of nausea overtook him. Something was wrong with Sora and it had nothing to do with the fact that the two were apart for five hours. This fact was irrelevant because Maleficent had cursed the two and made it possible for them to exist normally without having to reunite. However Roxas knew that he was being duped and snarled facing the gaunt shadow that approached him.

"Show yourself Maleficent. You can't hide from me!"

The lady laughed and stepped out of hiding,

"Do not cross me Roxas. I do not take orders from you Stop goofing around and do your job and keep in mind that every slipup, every disobedient act…every single rebellious action you do shall cost Sora dearly. Each time you disobey his heart and mind, even his will erodes. If you prefer, I shall help him deteriorate more swiftly."

Roxas snarled at her and swung the Oblivion. He had been betrayed. Everything Maleficent had told him had been a lie. He had not helped his other by joining the Dragon Lady. He had made things far worse for Sora and it made his blood boil to know that once again, he was being strung along for someone else's purposes.

"NO! I will NOT be used AGAIN!"

The dragon Lady snickered and pointed a finger at the attacking Nobody,

"You fool. Perhapse you require a demonstration to remind you what exactly is at stake, as well as the power you are trying so unsuccessfully to rebel against."

Roxas suddenly found himself in the same room as his Somebody and his friends. Riku was holding out a hand to Sora, who was on the ground—weak, drawn, and pale as death. The spkey-haired Keybearer lifted a hand to close around the offered hand of his friend. Roxas perked up as Sora began to rise, but the Nobody's hopes were dashed as he noticed Maleficent curling her finger.

"No wait—don't!"

His plea was of course ignored, and Roxas was forced to watch as the strength, will, and fire once again left the brown-locked hero, forcing Sora to the cold, clammy ground with a heavy sigh. This time, he looked as if he didn't even have the strength of will to keep breathing. The Ultima weapon again appeared in Riku's hand, and Kairi broke into heartbroken sobs. Roxas saw Namine shed a tear as well, then felt a tightness in his chest as his Somebody refused to open his eyes even a little.

"Stop it." Roxas whispered. Again he was ignored. Sora began to look very peaceful—the prompting of his friends no longer reaching him as Maleficent continued to drain him dry. Roxas panicked as the Keyblade hero began to fade into light as Axel had faded to Darkness years ago.

"STOP THIS! Maleficent please I'll do anything you want just please stop!"

The witch stopped the assault with a satisfied smirk.

"You are a good boy. The Keybearer will be mine wether you cooperate or not, however keep in mind that wether Sora comes to me on his own or you deliver him to me—his fate remains the same: he will perish. However your cooperation determines whether he parts quickly, or writhes in Death's hold. You decide my pet. You descide."

The witch left, and Roxas found himself again on Destiny Islands, Antiform chasing the Shadows mischievously. The Nobody fell to his knees, lifted his head and wailed in frustration, then voiced his stress. Nothing was going the way he wanted, and because of his actions, Sora and his friends were now in a worse situation than they had been before and were now, to put it mildly, doomed.

"Namine…What have I done?"

He had to go on. He had no choice. He would build Maleficent's Castle of Hearts and hope against all hope that his Other would not get in the way.

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"SORA! Get up Sora! PLEASE GET UP! You cant die now, I won't let you!"

Axel pulled the screaming, frantic Kairi off the pale Keybearer, and Riku bent down once againto talk to his best friend and get him out of the hole he had fallen into. The older boy's heart ached for Sora as he felt his friend being eaten alive by the poison. Riku knew that deep inside was a fire that refused to be put out. It wasn't dead it just needed a little stoking.

"Chosen wielder of the Keyblade, You are the Key that will open the door to Light. It's a big challenge isn't it Sora? Funny, I've never known you to back down from a challenge. Now get up!"

Sora made an attempt to rise, but his knees buckled and he sank to the floor again. It was better to stay down and drift into Nothing….where the fear and pain couldn't reach him. Better to rest and be numb. His friends would be better off now that he was no longer a target. Sleep…..yes that is what he needed….sleep

"Sora!"

Ignore it. Ignore the voice. Just keep falling….ignore the voice and drift into sleep….

"SORA!" Riku was frantic now, "Sora wake up!" he turned a desperate eye to Namine "He's drifting! He's going further into Darkness! His heart—"

Namine nodded tears in her eyes,

"Yes Riku. Sora's heart is dying. The poison is killing it and pulling him closer to Darkness. As his heart fades the emblem on his chest glows brighter and the deeper he goes. Look, the tinge of Darkness is already tainting his skin."

It was true. Sora's pigment had become a sickly grey. Riku shed a tear as he ran a finger gently over a grey spot on Sora's neck, the stench of Darkness rising steadily from it. Soon, Sora would be just another Shadow….destined to wander the Realm of Darkness for all eternity.

"Sora….no….NO…..You can't….YOU CAN'T!"

"He won't."

TBC