Woof. Apologies for the delays. Life just kept on trucking uncaring of how I felt or was doing, but it's here now.
Also, what's canon? Is it edible?
Navigating to The Land of Departure had been far easier than she was expecting, especially from within the confines of a Gummi Ship. Star charts were readily displayed on one of the ship's consoles and boasted a live representation of their position within the cosmos. Far easier than having to pause every so often to reorient herself among the stars. "You said you've been here once before?" she asked, idly noting how the ground felt beneath her steps.
"Yeah," Sora replied. "A member of the original Organization XIII, Marluxia, led us here. Called it 'Castle Oblivion'."
Aqua repeated the name to herself quietly, a strange sense of hesitancy as well as faint familiarity welling up within her as they neared their destination. "Why was it called that?"
"'To find is to lose, and to lose is to find'," he quoted. "Uh." Sora paused and brought a finger to his chin. "But was all that memory stuff because of the castle or Naminé?"
"Naminé was the one who was playing with our memories," Donald answered. "Come on, Sora, it wasn't that long ago."
"Hey, give me a break! A lot's happened since then."
She gave a sad smile at that. Sora couldn't have been older than seventeen, and yet he had already been forced to deal with so many threats. There was a part of her that felt responsible for that, but with existing keybearers able to be counted on two hands, it was understandable that he was the one that had to rise to the call.
As they continued to approach the malformed castle of The Land of Departure, Aqua could only sigh at the knowledge that Robin wasn't here to see her home. While Riku and Mickey had elected to take the day to recover, Master Yen Sid had personally requested Robin's presence for several topics; topics which he only intoned as 'a great importance'. Considering that Master Yen Sid was the pinnacle of arcane mastery, part of her worried that he had sensed Grima's presence, and that when she returned back to Master Yen Sid's tower, it would be to the absence of Robin.
She didn't truly believe that, of course. One way or another, she knew that Robin, or at least Grima, would have found a way to escape. The chatter of her three companions faded away as she stopped walking. When she had sealed this land away, the mountain's peak had been surrounded by powerful magics formed by the ritual passed down form Master to Master. Only the most foolhardy of people would dare approach it, and when they did, they would seamlessly appear within this space.
A long winding road equal parts rubbled dirt and stone, with the path itself a sheer cliff that showed no signs of stopping, all of which led to a building that looked as if someone had smushed a clay sculpture together. She stared up at the warped facsimile of her home. Roofings and spires that were once gold had turned green, bright whites of the exterior morphed to a dulled bronze, and the once gentle curves became angular and geometric. The scene hadn't changed since she was last here, but now, so many years after the fact, it felt different all the same.
"Uh, Aqua?"
"Quiet, Sora!"
She huffed at the scuffle between Sora and Donald, pushing down the amusement in favor of focusing on the task before her. Master Keeper materialized in her hand, a whisper of recognition coursing through her arm. Near thirteen long years had passed since she locked this realm. Thirteen years in which Ven had done nothing but sleep. "I'm home," she whispered to herself.
With grand, ceremonial movements, Aqua leveled the tip of Master Keeper at the doors, holding it with both hands. An ethereal keyhole blossomed into existence on the door of the transformed castle, the sheer latent energy of the spell gushing through it sending the excess fabric of her clothing rippling in the air. The whisper of recognition turned to one of excitement, the eagerness something she shared. Aqua chambered Master Keeper to her shoulder and thrust forward, the keyblade instantly gathering power and shooting it into the keyhole.
After only but a few brief moments, the build up reached a crescendo, the arcane lock created by Master Keeper disintegrating into crystalline shards of glass. On the now darkened exterior of the malformed castle, the image of the place she called home rose into place. The sound of gears clunking into place repeated several times as portions of the castle shifted, rotating and expanding until at last, with one final flare of energy that chased away the gloomy clouds, her home returned.
Aqua took in a deep breath as the air finally felt right. How many times had she dreamed of this moment? To finally return home and walk the halls of The Land of Departure? She gave the trio beside her a brief smile before stepping forward, ignoring the hazy memory of a hooded man in purple standing at the base of the stairwell.
The doors opened exactly as she remembered. Brace herself slightly with her back foot as she pushed, and put a bit of magic into her hands for just an extra kick. As if she had never been gone, the doors warmly creaked open, gently resting against the enchanted door stops she knew Terra had had to repair once or twice as part of his training.
"Woah... this place is amazing!"
She smiled at Sora, a bit of pride surging through her. "Isn't it?" Aqua took in another breath. Not a speck of dust out of place. Everything looked just as they'd left it. She quirked her lips, a sardonic grin taking place. Until Terra and Ven were deemed worthy of being Masters, this place was under her care now. With a silent huff, she continued onward, the pitter patter of her companions ringing out behind her.
"This is where you guys lived, right?"
Aqua nodded her head. "Slept, ate, fought; The Land of Departure was the home for many aspiring Keyblade Masters. Its history goes back a long way, and its architecture was modeled after the original home of keyblade wielders." She shook her head. "But we can talk about that later." As they neared the pillar at the top of the staircase, Aqua paused. The moment she walked around that pillar, Ven would be in plain sight, perhaps exactly as she had left him. Near thirteen years since she had left the Realm of Light and hidden Ven within the secrets of their home. Giving Goofy a grateful nod for the reassuring hand he placed on her back, she took one final step, her lips curling into a sad smile. With measured steps, Aqua approached the three seats at the back of the hall, crouching down beside the center one.
"I'm sorry I'm late, Ven," she said quietly, cupping his cheek. Breathing softly as if he were asleep, Ven didn't respond to her touch. "I got held up along the way." She could feel tears welling up in the corner of her eyes. "Ven?" When he didn't respond, she shook him gently. "Ven, please. Open your eyes. Please!" Thirteen years, and still nothing. She let her arms fall, interlacing her fingers together and resting them on the armrest of Ven's chair. "All these years, and your heart hasn't found its way home yet?"
The tiniest whiff of Darkness akin to the air from the Realm of Darkness sent her instincts aflame. This was her home. Her sanctuary. Darkness this potent had no business being here. She shot to her feet and quickly scanned the room, focusing on the red and black figure strutting towards them.
"That was a neat trick, Keyblade Master! All those long hours spent trying to find him, and he was hidden underneath their noses."
"Vanitas!" Sora echoed his name at the same time as her, the trio entering an aggressive stance. "Why are you here?" she continued. Master Keeper hissed with indignation at the presence of their foe, almost clearly whispering to her to expel the intruder from the halls of its domain.
"What, am I not allowed to visit my brother?" he snarked.
Sora, Donald, and Goofy all summoned their weapons, charging forward to engage him. Vanitas, for his part, simply warped through them, his form blurring and looking as if he had been past them the entire time before he blurred once again. Aqua scanned the room once more, turning around when two passes revealed nothing. Upon noticing the figure sitting atop the central chair, she grit her teeth.
"So my dear brother wants to keep sleeping. What will we ever do with such a lazy head?"
She could feel the whispers of Darkness surging within her. Rage. Anger. Disgust. For once, Master Keeper was in agreement.
The annoying familiar mixture of chains and gears flashed into existence, blocking her overhead strike borne of frustration. The struggle between their blades budged slightly in her favor. Vanitas growled quietly, barely able to be heard over the grinding of their keyblades before forcing her back through the air. "You've changed," he grumbled, opaque faceplate not revealing any sort of expression. "I think I like it!"
"Aqua, I'll handle him!"
She shook her head, not taking her eyes off Vanitas as the parasite stalked towards her. "This is my fight, Sora. Vanitas is from my era, not yours." Her Dark Suit slowly began forming around her, the fibres trailing from her left pauldron and crawling their way protectively, comfortingly, across her body. "I'm not the same person you fought all those years ago," she said. Aqua leveled her casting hand to the side, fourth tier Barrier magic effortlessly gathering at her fingertips. "Can you say the same?" The way Vanitas' body tensed up as she sealed the both of them away from the rest of the hall told her everything he didn't.
Magic roared through the air at the exact same time, her defensive cast of spherical Aerora exploding against Vanitas' Dark Firaga and harmlessly dispelling it into a smokescreen. Battles carved into her body and mind told her that her foe would be appearing where she once was. The repeated roar of flames rising into the air confirmed that suspicion. Aqua dashed forward and sent a burst of Arcwind upward to destabilize Vanitas, wrenching her spell hand down and calling forth a focused bolt of Thundaga with the same motion. The outcry of pain brought a streak of malicious satisfaction to her focused face, primal urgings she normally held for the Heartless flaring up and begging to be directed at Vanitas. It was something she so desperately wanted to indulge in, but both the warnings of Master Keeper and the knowledge she had an audience kept her from doing so.
No words were exchanged as they clashed against each other. Spell against spell, keyblade against keyblade. Ten years of nothing but her thoughts to accompany her. How many times had she gone through this exact scenario? Of fighting against Vanitas one more time and making him pay for making Ven's heart go into such a deep slumber Aqua let out a roar of rage as she let the elements wash over her body. Though she was far too inexperienced to be able to note every detail that flowed through the fibres of her Dark Suit, she could still feel the major flows. Thunder, Blizzard, Fire, Aero, and though Master Keeper grumbled otherwise, Darkness supplied by her armor helped bind it all together.
Vanitas dodged every magically infused strike she gave, and that was all. There was no counter attack. No blocking. She was far too battle hardened to have let him do so earlier. Thirteen years of endless fighting, and Vanitas was no better than last she saw him.
"You're disappointing me," she hissed, ice magic flowing off Master Keeper and binding their keyblades together. "You talk such a big game, but you can't back it up." Whether by her Dark Suit, by the Darkness aiding her, or sheer strength she had cultivated over the years, Vanitas slowly lost ground as she continued pushing against him. "Just disappear." And so he did. Aqua quickly gathered her footing after the sudden loss of reciprocated force, Barrier magic dancing at her fingertips as she searched for her foe.
"You forget one thing, Master." The sheer vitriol in Vanitas' echoing voice made her pause. "You might be able to utilize Darkness now, but I was born from it!"
Dimly, she was aware of the modified elements that assaulted her. Thunder that lingered in her armor, sending uneven spasms throughout her body. Smokey fire that burned the air from her lungs and sent her into coughing fits. Chilling ice that made her forget where she was and instead return to that dark, lightless place where she was all alone. Magics that whispered of Robin's touch shooed the malevolence away, making her realize that the worst of the pain was quite literally all in her head. Memories of a time that still felt like only yesterday but were a lifetime ago.
"You're still far too weak to even do a dent to this body!"
Aqua laughed as she pushed herself onto her feet. Idly, she noted that the massive Barrier she had cast to isolate them from the others was getting close to breaking, both from how long it had been up as well as the collateral damage of their spells. "Why Vanitas," she purred, "is that a hint of fear I detect from you?"
The way his body tensed up said everything he refused to.
"Is the big bad Master too strong for you?" she jeered, dismissing Master Keeper. Inside her heart, where she knew aggression and revenge were bubbling up, she began drawing on the bonds she had with Grima, looking forward to the exhaustion his gift would grant her when it meant potentially getting rid of Vanitas. "Aww, it's okay," she continued. "I'm sure if you just talk things out things will get better."
"Careful there, Master."
She brought her hand up to defend against his overhead strike, dense panels of Barrier blocking his keyblade in place of her own.
"You might just get taken down a peg."
"All I'm seeing is empty blusters," Aqua countered. She narrowed her eyes. There. Fell Legacy had returned, and already she could feel the siphoning ability of it drawing away from her life force. "Face it, Vanitas. You've been left behind. I've done nothing but grow while you've stayed stagnant the entire time." She whirled her hand over her head, Fell Legacy blocking Vanitas' strike against her back. With a simple mental command, Aeroga knocked Vanitas away, the parasite stumbling back a few steps upon landing. "And now, a memory's all that you'll stay!" She lunged at Vanitas, intent on pressing the advantage his momentary instability presented. Instincts screamed for her to whirl around. Fell Legacy clashed against his keyblade, her mana reserves dipping slightly in order to keep the stalemate exactly that.
Once more they exchanged silent blows, this time at a more ferocious pace. Where Vanitas left trailing ribbons of viscous Darkness in his wake, Aqua was faintly aware of the transient pink petals that marked hers, the same petals that appeared whenever Fell Legacy landed a blow. The manifestation of her essence used as fuel. It was beautiful, in a way. By now, they were moving so fast the trails of energy looked like imprints in the air, like the line that a stick might leave in sand.
For a brief moment, she debated dismissing her armor in order to cast Cure. While all the blows they had landed on each other were nothing more than glancing things, they still added up. Heat and frost had seeped through her armor and left her effected skin raw and sensitive, and she was sure that several bruises were starting to form where she wasn't quick enough to properly defend. She was equally sure that Vanitas was far worse than her. "Had enough?" she taunted, taking note of the visibly cracked appearance of the massive Barrier.
A short chuckle was all Vanitas gave her. Before she could react, a Dark Firaga shot out from his keyblade and towards Ven, exploding on contact with the Barrier but leaving a large spiderwebs of cracks at the impact site. As soon as Vanitas lunged forward, she did as well, a quick spurt of teleportation magic relocating her above Vanitas and in prime position to launch him away. Fire and smoke plumed out as she struck, a bastardized and vastly overpowered version of Fire Raid having been flooded through Fell Legacy and detonating outward right as she struck Vanitas.
Aqua took quick, measured steps towards Vanitas, pausing by his head and aiming her keyblade down with both hands. Distantly, she was aware of Sora calling out her name, but she didn't care. She had a chance to make Vanitas disappear right in front of her. So many mistakes and terrors from her past had been haunting her, and right now she had a chance to completely eliminate one of them. "Leave us alone!"
She let out a wrathful scream as she thrust down, intent on releasing whatever Vanitas had for a heart, only for another keyblade to block her strike.
"Aqua!"
She reflexively gave an annoyed click of her tongue as she leapt away from the block, the desire to end Vanitas overcoming the glee at seeing Ven finally awake. "Ven, get away from him," she said coolly, grateful that the resulting clash of energies between their keyblades had been enough to finally destabilize the Barrier. No longer needing to focus on maintaining the spell, the burn of energy lightened slightly, enough that she could viscerally feel the difference. "If we end him now, we won't have to deal with him later."
"He's already defeated, Aqua! We don't have to do this!"
She narrowed her eyes. In the back of her mind, and in the part of her heart where Master Keeper resided, she knew he was right. But the rest of her demanded otherwise. "We don't. But we should." She stepped forward, stopping when Ven entered a defensive stance. "You really don't want to do this...?"
"We're supposed to be Keyblade Masters, Aqua." Tears welled up within Ven's eyes, the boy she thought of as a brother taking a choked breath and tensing up even more. "We're not supposed to kill!"
For a long while, Aqua said nothing. How could she? Ven had stayed here for the entire time she was gone, sleeping away. He hadn't spent an eternity in the Realm of Darkness, alternating between endless fighting and endless walking. He hadn't spent a near decade all alone with nothing but his thoughts as company, thoughts that slowly became more and more corroded by the whispers of his surroundings. He was still idealistic and naïve. "Ven—"
"Well, that was an interesting development."
"You." She whirled around, leveling her spell hand at Vanitas. In the corner of her eye, she noted Sora, Donald, and Goofy joining them, the parasite having slipped through a pool of Darkness and appearing near where they once were.
"A Master giving in to Darkness, and this time without any help. Who'd've thunk it."
She tightened her grip on Fell Legacy, restraining herself from continuing her assault.
"But three guardians of Light, all ready to fight?" Vanitas laughed. "Not something I care for. But you know what I do care for? Now that Venti Wenti is awake from his slumber, I just know that he'll come visit so we can catch up." A portal of Darkness flared into existence behind him. "Don't keep me waiting too long, brother."
Aqua let Fell Legacy burn for a second longer before letting out an exhausted breath, the drain on her essence ending as soon as she dismissed her keyblade, her armor following shortly after. Light, the second time wasn't any easier than the first.
"Aqua! Are you okay?"
She looked up as Sora approached, concern and hesitance mixed on his face in equal measures. "I'll be okay," she responded. "Just need to rest a little, maybe eat a bigger meal when we get back." She turned towards Ven with a smile. "How about it, Ven? Feeling hungry?"
Ven paused at that before nodding. "I mean now that you mention it, I could do with some food." He grinned and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Oh!" He looked over at Sora, Donald, and Goofy and held a hand out. "Sorry, I'm Ven."
The trio introduced themselves, Sora reaching out and grabbing Ven's hand and giving a light shake.
"Sora?" Ven repeated quietly, staring at their hands. "I get it, now."
"Huh?" Sora's confusion was one she internally echoed.
"Sora?" Ven said once more. "Thank you."
"Uhh, sure."
Aqua spent the trip back to the gummi ship filling Ven in some of the things that had happened, their hosts chiming in from time to time with bits of information she herself wasn't fully aware of. Having others to fill in the silence made slipping past details regarding her time in the Realm of Darkness significantly easier, though that didn't stop any of her companions from sending her concerned looks from time to time. Even the trip within the gummi ship itself was filled with history lessons and failed subtle glances, with more and more of the latter coming from Ven. At the very least, when they finally arrived at Master Yen Sid's tower, the looks from Sora, Donald, and Goofy (the majority of which came from the middle member) were no longer around to bother her, having gone ahead when Ventus asked for her to remain behind. Aqua turned towards Ven questioningly, the boy she thought of as a younger brother sitting down towards the bottom of the stairs.
"The stars have changed a little, haven't they?"
She sat down next to him, following his gaze towards one of the more prominent constellations from this part of the worlds. "They have."
"The missing stars... those are worlds that have yet to wake up, right?"
She glanced over at him and tilted her head slightly. "Wake up?"
"When a world falls to Darkness, it enters a slumber. They can't return until they wake up."
Memories of those shattered islands came to mind. Of countless ruins of water and earth floating among a vast expanse of crystalline features. "Hopefully they're dreaming pleasant dreams," she remarked.
"If they were anything like my dreams, I bet they dream of the past, and of things their survivors experience."
"Huh?"
Ven brought his thumb and points together in a rectangle, pulling his hands closer as if to capture a picture of one of the constellations above them. "When I was asleep, I dreamt of you and Terra. The times we had together. I also dreamt of Sora, and all his friends." He chuckled. "I also remember these weird animals. They were so nice and cuddly."
A melancholic smile spread across her face. On one hand, she was glad that Ven's time alone was peaceful, but on the other, a part of her was jealous that she had had such a difficult time.
"It's like... like even though I was asleep for so long, I was still part of some huge adventure!"
"I've had adventures of my own as well," she quietly uttered. "Adventures that let me grow so much from where I used to be." Aqua pulled out her wayfinder and held it up to the night sky, every pane of glass glittering in time with the stars above. Her smile turned happy as Ven pulled his out, the green charm having not lost any of its luster across the years.
"When we find Terra, let's share stories."
Her charm felt the slightest bit warmer as he said that. "Yeah." Aqua turned around when the doors leading into the tower creaked open. Peeking out from behind, Robin's gaze bounced between the two of them.
"You're Ventus, right?" he asked, stepping out fully.
Ven stood up and pocketed his wayfinder, moving up the stairs to greet Robin. "Call me Ven." He held out a hand. Though she couldn't see his face, she knew he was beaming. "You're Robin, right?"
Robin met Ven's hand in kind, clasping his arm around the wrist; a greeting from Regna Ferox he'd taken a liking to. "I see Aqua's spoken about me." He glanced at her, smiling. "Good things, I hope?"
"She said that you helped keep her safe while she was in the Realm of Darkness, and that you helped elevate her magic skills." Ven turned to look at her, his expression hardening briefly before her turned back towards Robin. "I can't thank you enough. Ten years is a long time to go without anyone." Ven paused, slouching slightly. "I... I was asleep the entire time, so it all just flew by, but Aqua..."
Robin placed a hand on Ven's shoulder. "I know," he said simply. "You should go on in. Get some food and rest while you can. Things are going to be picking up soon, so it's important to partake in the peace and quiet while it lasts."
Ven nodded. "Right. See you, Aqua!"
She waved back as Ven slipped through the door, his footfalls fading away. "What did Master Yen Sid want to talk to you about?" she asked when Robin descended the stairs.
"Less me he wanted to talk to and more Grima." He jumped onto the ground beside her and leaned against the stairs, staring at the bordering trees in front of them. "Speaking of which." As before, the change was seamless, the only sign of who was in control being their eyes. "It's time we've had a talk, Light Bearer. There are far too many things left in the air between us. If..." Grima paused, his eyes tightening. "If things go poorly in the future, I— we— would rather they not be left unsaid."
"Okay," she said after a moment. "Where do we begin?"
Grima looked up at the stars, taking several quiet breaths before speaking once again. "The truth of my existence, and the nature as to how I found myself in the Realm of Darkness. Light Bear— Aqua. Before everything you know about me, I am still the wings of despair and the herald of ruination. And, no matter how long it took to happen, I am the reason my world no longer exists."
Next chapter should be out July 18th.