Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories
The Imbalance of Reality
By
Daniel Wood
Chapter 1: Adam
So much has changed.
The world we once knew…it no longer exists.
I had it all.
Only to lose it forever.
That which once was…can never be again.
Survival demands it.
My name is Adam, son of Mahanah.
Well, it was.
I'm not the same person you once knew.
For those of you who may remember me, you will know that I was the son of a proud and noble ruler of a peaceful world. Putting it mildly, my life has gone through many ups and downs. My father lost a battle with Sharak, the source of all darkness.
Along with his life.
Thanks to me and my brother, who was violently scarred by the monster. He unleashed his terrible power, along with his spawn, the Heartless on our world, Castle Mahanah. We were exiled to Traverse Town, and later recruited by the Council of Light, powerful beings dedicated to the preservation of life. For years we stayed at their sanctuary, training to become powerful warriors. To wage war against the Heartless, and to one day fight alongside our most powerful allies. His majesty, King Mickey, and the wielder of the powerful weapon known as the Keyblade.
One day, Sharak attacked again. I lost yet another home, another family member and for a brief time, my memory. Through great pain, loss, and despair, I, allied with my best friend, the Keybearer, Sora, and a handful of the universe's greatest heroes, managed to destroy Sharak and his followers. At the same time, we were able to rid all worlds of darkness.
Eternal happiness, now and forever.
A year after Sharak's destruction, I had inherited my father's position as ruler of Castle Mahanah. I prided myself that under my rule, things would remain as they were.
Darkness was gone forever. Never to return.
It was the day we had all been fighting for.
I cannot tell just how…relieved I was.
Good things come to those who wait, I guess.
Anyway, I was blessed with my people's smiles and respect. I was also blessed with the loving wife by my side, and my first child would soon be here. And at eighteen years of age, I indeed had my whole life ahead of me.
For reasons, I have only just come to understand…it was not to be.
NONE of this was to be.
I honestly don't recall where it all went wrong. The only things I am sure of are what I'll now say.
This all began when the unthinkable happened.
My world was once again being consumed.
During the apocalypse, I came into conflict with an enigmatic individual whose identity eluded me until all other answers came to light.
I failed.
I failed to save everything.
I failed to stop my life falling apart.
And now…here I am.
"Where…where am I?"
Adam woke up to find himself lying on the floor. As he started to come to his senses, he began to notice how beautifully marbled and decorated the room was. Standing up, the teenager realised that the hall he was in didn't match those of Castle Mahanah, Hollow Bastion, or any other world he had visited before.
"Where did I get these clothes?!"
Adam was dressed in a black, leather trench coat, the sleeves and the edges of the coat decorated with white lightning patterns. He was wearing black gloves with the fingers and thumbs coloured white.
He was also wearing black Lycra trousers that were beautifully decorated with white flame and skeletal patterns. His boots were leather and were both half black, half white in the form of very curved patterns.
"What's going on? Why am I here? I…I can't remember…"
"Welcome."
The voice startled Adam. He looked around to see that no one was in the hall but himself.
"Who's there?" asked the teenager.
"There is much for you to discover here. Not just about your past, but yourself in general."
"WHAT – IS – THIS – PLACE?" Adam was tired of not getting the answers he wanted.
"Welcome to Castle Oblivion. Where to find is to lose and to lose is to find."
"'Castle Oblivion'? Cheery name for a world that looks beautiful."
"There is much more to this world than meets the eye," the voice assured.
"I kind of gathered that," admitted Adam.
"How much of yourself will you be able to gather before you leave?"
"What are you talking about?"
A strange hooded figure appeared behind Adam, dressed in a raincoat. Adam spun round to face the individual. Immediately, his eyes narrowed in confusion. He felt a certain familiarity with this person as he struggled to remember more.
Had he encountered this person…or someone very similar before?
"I bring word from the Superior," the stranger said. "You will meet him in due course."
"The Superior?" Adam's confusion turned into shock when he thought back to the self-proclaimed 'superior of all'.
"Sharak is here?! H-he CAN'T be!!!"
The Unknown pondered at the adolescent's response. He found it…amusing how the source of all darkness, the Heartless' father, had indeed been the superior of all. So much had changed.
"There is more to this world than meets the eye," the Unknown said, before throwing a card to Adam. The teenager looked at the card inquisitively.
"What's this for?" he asked.
"You are incomplete," explained the Unknown. "Although you are closer to being at your prime than you were in your previous incarnation, you are still a long way away from realising your true potential. The card will draw out your memories, where you will relive the most important events of your past. Along the way, you will remember that which you previously missed. Ask yourself this, though. Will you still be incomplete when you get the answers you want?"
Adam turned to the door in front of him.
"The answers are waiting on the other side, huh?"
Adam began to walk up to the door and then stopped. He knew that the Unknown had gone as soon as he had turned his back on him. He knew that the question he had asked was for himself. But…he also knew that his senses had never been that powerful before. Not even during his training with the Council of Light.
What was going on?
Adam used the power of the card to realize his memories. And then he entered the door.
Elsewhere in the Castle.
"Certainly took long enough for him to finally show up," muttered Larxene.
"As usual you lack the patience to truly appreciate the worthiness of waiting for events to come full circle, Larxene."
"And as usual, you're a stuck-up stress-head who REALLY doesn't like it when things don't go your way, Vexen."
"Mistaken as always," sighed No. 4 of the Organization. "So in denial of your own bad temper and countless other faults that you assume others to be as pathetically unappreciative and helpless as you are."
"Oh, yeah?! What about the time when YOU…??!!"
"ENOUGH."
A silver-haired unknown entered the room.
"Oh, goodie! Another worm! I mean, how NICE it is to see you, Zexion!" Larxene's sarcasm hardly went unnoticed. Nor did her ability to lie through her teeth.
"Spare me your false pleasantries," retorted No. 6 of the Organization. "Try acting like a professional for a change and concentrate on the task at hand. As laughable as it sounds, we need your help if this is to succeed."
"Very rarely do we see you on this level of the castle, Zexion," remarked Vexen. "You really are taking this seriously. Enough to dirty your own hands."
"Sharak must be dealt with. I am prepared to do whatever it takes to make sure he doesn't interfere with the proceedings this time."
"Do you really think it's possible that he survived?" asked Larxene.
"I am certain that they both did," replied Zexion. "If Adam did, so did those who were the strongest."
"How many do you reckon will remember that which….officially never happened?"
"Only those who matter," explained Vexen. "Only those closest to the real heroes and villains."
"Like us for instance?"
No. 8 of the Organisation faded into existence.
"I'm SOOO glad that our wait is over. Now the party can really begin."
"Be careful with how you handle this, Axel," warned Zexion. "The Organization has gone to a LOT of trouble to put things right. We've done all we can to ensure the course of history goes as it's supposed to."
"Relax, Zexy. Things will work out like there're supposed to. Now, I think Adam's finished strolling down memory lane. Who's gonna say congratulations?"
"Well…" grinned Larxene, evilly, "the kid's obviously gonna be very upset, having learnt the truth. SOMEONE'S gotta slap him back to his senses."
"Always the one for mind games," smirked Axel. "YOU breaking him even more will certainly shape him up good and proper."
"Larxene," reminded Vexen, "don't let your love for psychological warfare make you forget what Adam is to be used for. We need him. The Superior commands it."
"Don't worry, Vexie. I won't destroy him…just shatter him in a way he can be put back together."
"Have fun," smiled Axel.
No. 12 of the Organization disappeared to take care of Adam.
"Sometimes I believe that Larxene's passion for bringing despair upon others means more to her than the Organization's best interests", sighed Zexion.
"You think?" asked a sarcastic Axel. "But it's as you said, Zexion. We need her if this going to work. Sharak MUST be dealt with this time. And for good. And Larxene's perfect to make sure Adam shapes up to be quite the little exterminator."
"Peacekeeper, Axel," reminded Vexen.
"Whatever you want to call him, things are going quite nicely this time around."
Axel chuckled.
"Y'know, it's funny. Adam was asked whether or not he'd still be incomplete when his stay here comes to an end. It doesn't really matter how good or how bad Humpty Dumpty is put back together. The outcome is still the same. Adam will be no more."
"NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Adam burst out of the room, desperate to escape the endless nightmares.
As the doors flung open and slammed shut by themselves, Adam skidded to a halt in the middle of the room. And fell to his knees, crying his heart out.
When he had arrived in the castle, he had forgotten all the important memories.
He wished he'd remained that way.
The moment he set foot in that room, it all came flooding back. The memories of good and bad, the pain of surviving.
Adam was literally reliving the events, fighting for his life, again. Being subjected to the same tragedies again.
He was forced to watch how his mother died. Slain by Heartless as a result of Sharak trying to gather himself once more. Adam was there when the Heartless destroyed his home, when Sharak killed his father and exiled him and his brother, Jaron.
They had both been taken in by the Council of Light, trained to fight Heartless and be symbols of hope. Adam had rebuilt his life, finding new friends and a new family.
But the bad times never ceased.
Adam lost his home and his family again. Sharak attacked, the Council of Light were destroyed, along with their world, the World of Heaven. Adam had also lost his memories on that occasion.
He thought it sad. He could only remember those he loved and hated the first time round. He feared that regaining his memories would bring disaster. It did. Adam was nearly traumatised for life. And nearly crippled for life. Sharak had destroyed him yet again, taking away the Destiny Islands, along with his new friends, Kairi being amongst them. And now, at Castle Oblivion, he was forced to remember, and bring more pain on himself. The irony was bitter. Very bitter.
Now at Hollow Bastion, Adam awoke, confined to a wheelchair. But again, not alone. With new friends Leon, Cloud, Aerith, Yuffie and Cid to help, Adam was once more able to survive. Although he had no idea how much longer he would be able to do so.
After a titanic battle, the Keyblade Master known as Sora managed to do the impossible and defeat Sharak. But the victory came at a terrible cost. Adam lost his brother, Jaron.
The pain was almost too much to bear.
Yet again, though, Adam was the survivor.
He was always the survivor.
Where's the fairness in that?! Adam angrily thought to himself. Sora beats Sharak, I lose my family and I'm denied my right to JOIN them! WHY?!
After Sharak and the Heartless were destroyed, all worlds lost to the darkness were restored. Adam could go back to his home. With new people inhabiting Castle Mahanah, Adam stepped up to accept his responsibilities. He led his people on the right path, deep into the light, where he believed no harm would ever come to them. Adam married and had a child. He had grown to accept his responsibilities, and at last enjoy his life.
For Adam, life couldn't get any better than this.
But everything one gains, they are ultimately destined to lose.
Adam could never forget the horror when he woke up one night. This was a year after darkness had been erased. Strange creatures, obviously not Heartless, attacked Castle Mahanah, slaughtering the inhabitants of the peaceful sanctuary. The storm was terrifying, just as cataclysmic as the storm on the night Adam had lost his father.
Different time, different apocalypse, same nightmare.
"NEVER AGAIN!!!" roared Adam as he leapt into the fray, in his fury forgetting about his defenceless wife and child. His powers, which had developed under the tutelage of the Council of Light, had grown. He tore into these bizarre greyish/silvery entities. Their speed and agility were deadly and very off-putting, but Adam was still able to rip them apart with ease.
However, the weight of numbers was against the adolescent. And Adam was forced to turn his attention to the Unknown, waiting for him on the very top of castle. Even at the great height, Adam could still see the enigmatic being. Ignoring the creatures, Adam rushed up to the very top of the castle, on the way checking to see if his wife and daughter were alright. Relieved to see they were still alive, Adam escorted his family and all the other survivors to get off-planet via the gummi-ships. He knew they would work. The meteors were falling down from the sky. The walls that divided worlds were breaking down. People could escape from Castle Mahanah.
Not wanting his family and people to suffer the same apocalypse as before, Adam ordered them all to escape and retreat to Traverse Town. After reassuring his wife that he would be alright, Adam turned his attention back to the Unknown. The Unknown stood tall, back turned on the teenager. The two of them were on the castle roof, on top of the highest tower.
This was where the seeds were sewn.
"I'm tired of history repeating itself," Adam stated.
"Reliving your history is necessary," the Unknown explained, turning round to face the ruler of Castle Mahanah.
"For what?"
"Survival."
"That I can understand," admitted Adam, truthfully.
"Not yet," corrected the Unknown. "Not fully. But you will."
Adam didn't want to remember any of this. He didn't want to remember being unprepared for such a powerful new foe. It didn't matter that his own powers had grown considerably over these last 12 months. This adversary was completely unlike anything Adam had ever encountered before. This…enigma was in the league of Maleficent, Ansem…maybe even Sharak. The Unknown's powers were incredible.
Adam couldn't fight the inevitable, let alone stop it.
Beaten to within an inch of his life, Adam lay on the ground, close to death. The Unknown grabbed his hair and jerked his head back so he could see the horror.
The horror of his life being torn apart again.
"You're…you're not Ansem," snarled Adam, tearfully, obviously in pain. "Those creatures are not the Heartless. You're…you're not even interested in taking my world to darkness."
"Your understanding has grown," complimented the enigmatic individual. "And you haven't even reincarnated yet."
"This is why you're doing this?! To destroy me, then recreate me?! Just to make me more powerful?!"
"No, Adam. To bring back darkness…and to tame it."
The storm intensified even more. The Unknown threw Adam's almost lifeless carcass towards the centre of the maelstrom, high up in the sky. The Unknown then faded out of existence.
The huge glowing sphere of energy then exploded.
Taking Adam and his whole world with it.
Adam, red-eyed and absolutely distraught, had felt all the pain and suffering rush back to him. All those unwanted memories, resurfaced in a flash. How all his shots at peace and happiness had gone in the bin. How all those Heartless and villains had kicked him, clawed him, burnt him. How Sharak had destroyed him physically and emotionally countless times.
Torturing memories. And it was only now that he realised how much they all hurt. Too much. More than anyone should have to endure.
It was all too much.
"Aw, don't cry, little baby!"
Adam paid no attention to Larxene leaning against the wall, her arms folded.
"So what if it's your fault you couldn't hang onto everyone and everything nearest and dear to you?" smiled No. 12 evilly. "You were just born sad, pathetic, immature and irresponsible to begin with."
Adam had stopped crying. He now remained silent.
"Pfft. SOME hero!" Larxene continued belittling Adam as she walked up to the kneeling teenager. "You're no threat to Sharak! You never were! It's no wonder he's like 50 – 0 against you! You're a helpless, hopeless cretin who's only good at being made worthless! And after all your vows of getting even with Sharak, you couldn't destroy him! It was Sora who had to do that for you!"
Adam didn't argue back. His refusal to take abuse from others had seemingly gone.
"Finally realised how much of a failure you are?" asked Larxene, innocently. "It's alright, sweetie."
Larxene summoned her daggers. She held them in-between her right fingers and yanked Adam's head back with her left hand. The teenager still didn't look up to Larxene. He just stared off distantly.
"I'll put you out of you misery. It's only fair for pet owners to put their animals down. Out of their misery."
Before Larxene could deliver the killing blow, Adam's right hand shot to life and grabbed Larxene's right hand, squeezing it and forcing her to drop the daggers.
"Ouch!" screamed Larxene. "You're crushing my hand!"
"I remember you," Adam spoke at last, still not looking at Larxene, who tried to get her hand free but to no avail.
"You were the one who led those creatures to attack my home," Adam seethed in anger as he at last started to show some emotion again. "You were the one who nearly killed me. You…destroyed…MY…HOME."
Adam rose to his feet. Larxene was now on her knees, grunting in pain and struggling to get free as Adam was crushing her fingers. But Adam had now become more powerful than ever before.
He turned to look at the surprised Larxene. His face was like a vicious animal.
"YOU – STOLE – MY – LIFE!!! LARXENE!!!"
Adam threw Larxene to one side. The Organisation member landed on her feet, summoning her daggers again, ready for battle.
"And I…am going...to kill you…for it," seethed the teenager.
"Now that was not a very nice thing to say!" smiled Larxene evilly. "I was only just playing before. Now you've gone and made things personal!"
"That was you, you ignorant broad."
Elsewhere in the castle.
"I think your experiment may have gone too well, Vexen."
"Nonsense," denied Vexen. "Everything is going according to plan."
"If the plan was for Larxene to get the stuffing knocked out of her," reminded Axel, "then it would have been an instant success right at the start. But last time I checked, we're supposed to be moulding Adam so that he knows his place."
"And that's what we're doing, Axel."
"He has a point, Vexen," Zexion entered the conversation. "Adam is progressing too fast. True, Adam was supposed to remember what happened after Sharak was destroyed, but that remembrance has fuelled his rage beyond our expectations. Perhaps it would have been wiser to make him remember piece by piece instead of force-feeding him those memories all at once."
"But that's where Adam's greatest strength lies, Zexion. In his unpredictability. Being torn between too much darkness and very little light makes him a great anomaly, potentially the most unpredictable and powerful being in existence."
"Even more powerful than Sora and Riku combined?" asked Axel, doubtfully.
"Potentially," nodded Vexen. "Potentially powerful enough to even keep Sharak at bay, if not destroy him."
"Emphasis potentially, Vexen."
"You cannot believe your own eyes, Axel? Larxene has never struggled so greatly before."
"You're still not listening, Vexen. The project is going too well. Adam is matching Larxene taunt for taunt. He can instantly recognise the presence of others by sensing them miles away. His powers are growing too rapidly. If this does not come to a halt soon, he could destroy the Organization AND this castle. Before turning his attention to the universe."
"Calm yourself, Zexion," assured No. 4. "Just a few moments more and Adam will be ready."
"He's ready now."
Larxene entered the room.
"Is he taken care of?"
"Just about," sighed Larxene, visibly exhausted. "Thought the disrespectful, little runt would never go down."
"You didn't kill him, did you?"
"Of course, I didn't! What kind of an idiot do you take me for?"
"Do you really want us to answer that question, Larxene?" grinned Axel.
"Enough squabbling!" declared Vexen. "Where is Adam now?"
"Buried," grinned Larxene, pleased with what she had done. "But don't get into a stress, Vexie. He's very much alive. Just stunned and crashed out. Not surprising when the nearest wall comes crashing down on top of you. Along with your whole wide world."
The doors were torn apart as Adam smashed through them into the room. Larxene and the others spun round with shock in their eyes.
"LARXENE!!!"
Vexen turned to Zexion, "You know what to do."
No. 6 nodded and disappeared.
"Why can't you just be a good little boy and DIE?" Needless to say, Adam's unexpected survival had infuriated Larxene.
"Ladies FIRST," sneered Adam. He pounced on Larxene and started pummelling her relentlessly.
"GET OFF ME!" roared Larxene as she kicked Adam off of her and followed it up with vicious lightning strikes and teleporting in and out of thin air, beating Adam senseless with a flourish of kicks and punches.
Adam surprised Larxene yet again, though. He blocked one of her kicks and grabbed her wrist. Bewildered by the adolescent's growing powers, Larxene was unable to defend herself from a violent punch that sent her flying across the room. She landed hard against the wall, causing the plaster to crumble and creating a huge imprint in the wall that she very painfully slipped out of.
Axel and Vexen had just been observing the confrontation. Vexen told Axel not to interfere until things got out of hand. And it seemed as though things were just about to.
Adam turned his attention to the two of them.
"I know you two," announced Adam, although he was still greatly confused as to how he knew that. He hadn't met either of them before. He remembered everything of his past. The only Organization member he had met before was Larxene; he had no memories of any other Unknowns.
"You…you're Axel," Adam confusedly pointed to No. 8, and then to No. 4. "And you…you're Vexen. You engineered this! You set up this experiment!"
"You catch on quick, kid," smiled Axel, summoning his weapons. "Too quick for you own good."
"NO, Axel. NOT YET."
"Haven't got the guts to fight?!" roared Adam. "This is gonna be…"
Bolts of lightning rained down on Adam. The power was intense and brutal. It would have fried a normal human on the spot.
But Adam was now far from normal. Smoke trailed off his body as he stood tall.
Larxene's attack had literally no affect on him whatsoever.
Adam turned round to face her, more irritated than anything else.
"Was that supposed to hurt?" asked Adam innocently.
"No," explained Larxene. "Just to prove that you're too stupid a freak to show that you're hurt."
"Or maybe, I'm too powerful for you, little girl."
"LITTLE??!!" yelled Larxene. "You're one to talk, short-stuff!"
Larxene threw her daggers at Adam, who just teleported out of the way. He reappeared behind Larxene, who swung round, daggers back in hands swinging at Adam, determined to carve him up. The teenager just effortlessly dodged the strikes, like he wasn't even trying. Axel and Vexen, whom Adam had now ignored because of his overwhelming hatred for Larxene, carried on observing the events.
"Let's get this over with," snarled Adam. The darkness in his heart was growing, threatening to consume.
"You said it, runt!" yelled Larxene. Adam's tenacity and power growth had greatly infuriated her. She no longer cared for the experiment. In her eyes, this rebellious teenager had disrespected her like no one had ever done before.
And she was going to kill him for that.
Larxene's speed was frightening, but Adam's reflexes had become greater than ever. Larxene kept missing. Her blows weren't landing, but Adam's were. He teleported away from the lightning strikes, and reappeared behind her. She turned around to be greeted by a brutal backhand that sent her flying, face-first, against the nearest wall. She groggily stood up, nursing a black eye, a bloody nose and a bloody mouth.
No one had EVER done this to Larxene before.
"I was trying to make this as painless as possible, you exiled filth," seethed No. 12. "But you had to go too far. So now I am going to destroy you in a way much worse than we did your wife and child!"
Those words hit Adam harder than a brick to the head. There was still much he didn't understand. He still wasn't sure how he'd ended up at Castle Oblivion following the undoing of his world, his life. But he had hoped, prayed, that somehow, someway, his family had survived and were still alive.
"You're lying," seethed Adam, shaking his head. "You wouldn't DARE kill…"
"God, you really are an idiot! Don't you understand how you're here?! Time has changed! Reality has been restored to the point when Sora defeated Ansem! Your family, your kingdom, EVERYTHING that you built after Sharak was destroyed doesn't exist in this new timeline! Your wife and child are part of a world that should never have been! THAT'S what I meant when I said we destroyed them! By taking away their chance to be here in the first place!"
Larxene was speaking the truth. And Adam knew it. But he didn't want to believe it. Why would he want to? His old life was gone. It had never even happened. This was worse than death, not being born at all.
"Why?" asked a tearful Adam.
"You're so funny to watch," laughed the unfeeling Larxene. "You really are so pitiful."
"So are you, sweetheart," sneered the teenager. "Getting whipped by someone smaller than you. Thinking that words are going to break me. When the truth is you've been getting whipped by me for the last hour. You're getting desperate, trying to resort to desperate measures to beat me, when deep down, you know you can't. Not so pretty anymore, are you? Hurts finding that there's someone who's better than you."
"What did you just say?" asked Larxene, losing her ability to control the situation.
"Deaf as well as deluded," remarked Adam. "Thinking I'm to blame for all my misfortunes. That's you, Larxene. YOU made me into your own worst nightmare. One that's going to be your downfall. Congratulations, dearie. Not everyone's dumb enough to shoot themselves in the heart."
"YOU'RE NOT BETTER THAN ME!!!"
Larxene's temper was now beyond her control. Because of that, she lost her focus and sight of her target. Before she knew it, she was caught in a bear hug. Adam was squeezing the life out of her. Larxene's grunts were full of pain and desperation, she struggled greatly to break free or teleport away but Adam wasn't letting her. She tried to use her lightning powers but Adam was immune to it now. Desperate, Larxene summoned her daggers again but she was in so much pain from the bear hug that they fell out of her grasp.
"What good will those little cocktail sticks do you know, witch?" hissed Adam, venomously. "What threat do a bunch of Ansem wanabies pose to me?!"
Axel, who had had more than enough of just standing still and watching the fight, again tried to intervene but, again, Vexen stopped him.
"There, Axel! Look!"
Dying, Larxene somehow managed to gather sight of Adam's expression. She smiled with joy. At last, progress. Adam's eyes had gone pitch black and pupil-less. Thick, dark smoke emitted from his eyes. Darkness broke out of Adam's heart and started to consume him. Adam paid absolutely no attention to what was happening. The one force he had spent his life opposing, had taken over him. And he didn't care. To him, nothing mattered any more.
"ADAM, NO!!!"
Adam froze with horror.
That voice.
He had yearned to hear it again for so long.
Adam's body had become totally eclipsed with darkness. He now stood before the Unknowns and the new arrival like he was composed of thick black smoke.
"Adam…what's happened to you?"
Adam released Larxene from the bear hug. Injured and near to unconsciousness, No. 12 fell to the floor with a bump.
"Jaron?" asked Adam, totally in disbelief. "It…it can't be!"
"It's me, Adam. It's me."
"This is a trick!" roared Adam. "Sharak killed you! These monsters are making me see you to save their own worthless hides!"
"Adam, please calm down! Look at you! Larxene may have torn your life apart, and Vexen may have engineered this, turned you into this abnormal entity but you're only a monster if you let them make you think so! You're becoming worse than the Heartless, worse than Maleficent, Ansem…maybe worse than Sharak!"
Adam looked at his hands inquisitively. They were composed of pure darkness. Jaron was right. Adam was turning into something like Sharak.
"Do you think our father would be proud of what you've become? Is this really what you want?"
"What else have I got left?!" shouted Adam. "I've lost everything!"
"You haven't lost your memories," the Saviour pointed out. "Don't let them haunt you. Treasure them. Both the good and bad. Learn from them. Remember that you're never alone. Your family and your friends are always with you, in your heart and your memories. Never forget that everyone suffers. Everybody's life crashes down. Every life can be rebuilt. Have you let your hate, your desire for retribution, make you forget that?"
"No…" replied Adam, softly. "It's just…"
Axel and Vexen noticed Adam's body changing again. The light started to shine through Adam's heart again. Gradually, it started to erase the darkness of his being.
"I've tried my whole life to rid myself of the darkness," explained Adam, starting to cry. "Even when we did finally do it, it came back. It's always here. I don't know how to deal with it. I can't deal with it."
"Yes, you can," assured Jaron. "You must learn to embrace the darkness. Remember, your darkness belongs to you and you alone. Accept that bad things happen and never let them discourage you. The greater the darkness, so too greater the light. It creates balance. It is necessary for survival."
With that, Adam at last understood what was going on. Why all this had happened. With that learning, Adam's being was now half-light, half-dark. The sight was extraordinary. Truly one of a kind. This human was now an intangible blending of bright light and thick, black smoke, perfectly integrated.
"I…I understand," nodded Adam.
"NOW, TERRON!!!" commanded Vexen.
Everything flickered between black and white for the next few seconds. When it was over, Adam stood tall, back to normal. Only to collapse on the floor.
"I think it's safe to say that two years of planning have paid off rather nicely," smiled Vexen. "Well done, Zexion."
'Jaron' resumed his normal guise of Zexion.
"That was very difficult," admitted No. 6. "I don't know how much longer I would have been able to keep Adam talking before he could see through my disguise."
"What matters is that you sustained the illusion long enough to convince Adam to accept his new incarnation. He is ready."
Vexen turned to Axel.
"Are you glad you waited now?"
"Okay, I'll admit it was worth the wait," nodded No. 8. "I hope you're grateful for me being here doing practically nothing. I'm no mere back-up."
"I dare not call you anything else," Vexen replied. Larxene groaned as she started to come to.
"How long is he gonna be out for?" she asked Terron, standing up and dusting herself off.
"A few hours. More than enough time to do what has to be done."
Larxene gently rubbed her black eye and swollen jaw, before wiping the blood trickling from her nose and mouth with her coat sleeve. She then turned to Adam, who lay comatose on the floor, and then viciously kicked him.
"Next time I get that little piece of garbage, he dies!" she sneered as she spat on him.
"Calm yourself, Larxene," said Zexion. "The experiment is over."
"And it is a success. Just as I planned."
"First time for everything. Isn't that true, Vexen?"
"I would've thought that you'd be too disgraced to be disrespectful, Larxene."
"QUIET," said No. 12, obviously in a foul mood.
"Put your defeat aside," No. 4 suggested.
"Besides, you probably got what you deserved," sniggered Axel. "It's only fair that he beat you and humiliated you."
"SHUT…UP," hissed Larxene. "You clowns owe me big time for this."
"Yes, I admit you did your part," sighed Vexen. "Now, enough conversation. We have other important matters to prepare for. It is time to take Adam to the Superior."
Hours later, outside Castle Oblivion.
"Hello, Adam."
Adam groaned into wakefulness. Standing up, he wobbled a little, struggling to keep his balance. Shaking off the cobwebs, he turned round to face the one who had greeted him.
"You're…you're DiZ, aren't you?" asked the teenager, staring at the crimson-masked stranger, very confused.
"Do you know how you know that?" DiZ asked.
Adam lowered his head and sighed, "No."
"You are doubtless aware that your powers have grown to levels that you previously considered to be unimaginable," explained DiZ. "Throughout your whole life you have been torn between darkness and light."
"Torn between them?"
"For every blessing you have received, you have been at peace. For every tragedy you have endured, you have been at war. Every bad thing that has happened in your life has filled you with rage and a desire to gain retribution. There have also been times when you have had to suppress your anger, further adding to your bitterness. And all those times you have been happy, only to wake up one morning to lose it all many times over, has made you lose your desire to fight that which has taken everything away from you."
"And yet…there's still some part of me that's trying to hold on to hope?" asked Adam.
"Precisely. You are truly unique. You walk the path of twilight, which is a plane of existence that is neither darkness nor light. That is not unheard of, but what is unheard of is how you have reached this stage of existence. Your heart has not perished, it never did. Neither did your soul, spirit or body. All of your being is intact, but never have darkness and light fought over someone like this before."
"So what happened to me exactly?"
"In order to ensure reality's survival, balance must be maintained," furthered DiZ. "When Ansem was defeated before, Sharak had returned. He was not meant to but he did anyway. His desire to conquer everything interfered with the Organization's plans. History was altered. Sora and his companions were forced to wander down the endless road. Not knowing of their supposed future, they were in exile for two years. Sharak would keep them waiting until he was ready to put his plan into action."
"And no doubt Sharak couldn't take care of Sora and the others yet because he wasn't powerful enough," concluded Adam.
"Correct. But his arrival hampered the Organization, crippling it. They could do nothing but watch, wait for the opportunity to correct all this before it was too late."
"Correct what?
"Sharak's darkness was vast and infinite. If it grew out of control, consumed everything, reality would cease to be. Although that never happened, something just as bad occurred."
Adam stared long and hard at DiZ, knowing instantly what he meant.
"We removed darkness from the universe. Leaving only light."
"Exactly," nodded DiZ. "Without knowing it, you and all your friends were bringing about the end of the universe. Although none of you were bringing darkness back, you were all basking in the light. They need one another to survive. Both darkness and light. Without light's opposite, the imbalance followed, threatening to tear reality apart. We did all we could to hold back the apocalypse but it was too much. We had to bring darkness back."
"But how could the loss of darkness affect the Unknowns?"
"It is a complex situation to explain. All that you need know is that somehow, someway, the loss of such a force affects ALL. We knew what we had to do."
"How did you manage to…roll back time?"
"That I will keep to myself," was the reply. Adam's eyes narrowed. DiZ smiled and chuckled.
"There is no need for you to know. Besides, is it really such an important matter to know how you are here other than you just are?"
"Okay, I'll let it drop. For now."
A silence fell over the two.
"So…" said Adam, sadly. "Sharak had to be brought back so that life could go on. My life had to be undone in order to ensure survival."
"Your emotions are better controlled," remarked DiZ.
"That doesn't mean I have to like any of this!" yelled Adam, tears coming from his eyes.
"Indeed. You would be inhuman to react any other way."
Adam calmed down, sighed, and stared into DiZ's face.
"So I'm still caught in the balance?" asked the teenager.
"Yes. But because of how you are trapped, locked in-between two forces, you are now unpredictability incarnated. As such you can see and hear better than you've ever seen and heard before."
"Then that's how I know you and others I meet," realised Adam. "I can now look deep into the beings of others. By doing so, I know them intimately."
"Your strength and healing abilities are also greater than ever. They are at the levels of gods."
"And that explains my ability to teleport."
"Indeed. In time, you may learn that you have other abilities. But you are still incomplete because this is all new to you. You have yet to master control."
Adam turned away from DiZ, looking at the road that led away from the castle.
"What must I do?"
"Sharak knows. He knows we have thwarted him. He is one of the few that remember that which once was. He will not accept this. He will seek vengeance."
"And again…it is up to me to stop him," sighed Adam.
"The whole experience has left him severely weakened," explained the masked stranger. "He is no longer in control, but he still remains a threat. He has to be destroyed properly this time."
"I understand."
DiZ stared at Adam inquisitively.
"I know what you are thinking. You are thinking that you are all alone. No friends, no family, no allies. Just you against the world. And no one else knows what has truly happened. You will yet be surprised."
Adam turned round to face the masked stranger again.
"What do you want from me, DiZ?"
"I want you to fulfil your new role. To do what you need to do for yourself. I want you to choose."
"Choose what?"
"The kind of person you are. Only then can you proceed with the task ahead of you."
"To make sure that neither Sharak…nor ME…interferes and disrupts the imbalance."
"You learn quickly, son of Mahanah."
"You've explained all this to guide me, but why?" asked Adam. "How can I know for sure that you're on my side?"
"How can you trust someone like Sora?"
"Now, wait a minute! That's a different matter entirely! Sora…"
"My point exactly," nodded DiZ. "You trust Sora because you choose to. That's the way it always works. You either trust someone or you don't. That's all there is to it."
"And if I'm wrong to trust you?"
"Then you are wrong. But then you could also be wrong to not trust me."
Adam sighed and shook his head.
"Don't you just love choices?"
"If we lived in a world without choice…would you have a will of your own?"
Adam didn't say anything.
He just began to walk away.
"Before you go…" DiZ's words stopped Adam, "know that Sora and Riku will be arriving soon. Sharak is miles away from here but he will not stop until all his enemies lie dead at his feet. It is your responsibility to help preserve the balance of opposites."
"So what will the Organization be doing with Sora and Riku?" Adam was interested in knowing this.
"There is great corruption in the Organization," explained DiZ. "There are those who will aid both heroes in their quests. Others who carry the Organization's best interests at heart will see that they are carried out. But there are others who are more interesting in fulfilling their own selfish desires."
"Could Larxene be one of them?" asked Adam, casually.
"What you must know, is that there is more to deal with this time than just Sharak."
"I kind of gathered that," smiled Adam. "Tell Larxene I'll be more than happy to renew her acquaintance. Same goes for Vexen. I OWE HIM BIG."
"You could tell them yourself."
"You mean join the Organization?"
"There is much more you can do with others than by yourself."
"Thanks, but no thanks, DiZ. I couldn't be in the same room with either of those two without beating them to within an inch of their sad lives. And that Axel dude gives me the creeps. Besides, I think there's much more I can do outside Castle Oblivion than inside it."
"It is your choice, son of Mahanah."
And so here I am.
Wandering the path.
Having lost everything again, I remain here, still carrying the scars. I was seventeen when I lost my world and my family. I am seventeen here and now. Truly an outcast of a realm that…"officially", has never been.
I am still confused…BEYOND confused how everything could have changed so much in an instant.
I am now permanently caught between light and dark, with powers beyond comprehension at my beckoning.
I understand, but I am still incomplete.
Who knows? Maybe one day, I won't have to do this anymore. Maybe my story won't end in pain, misery and death, after all.
Who knows?
One thing I know for sure is that Larxene is going to get what's coming to her one day. Both the egotistical witch and that slimy bookworm, Vexen. Hopefully Sora will be the one to send them to oblivion. My only regret is that I won't be there to dish out justice. Nor will I be there to see it.
It is nightfall. I have been wandering down this road, walking further and further away from Castle Oblivion. I tire of walking on this single path. DiZ's earlier query haunts me. If there was no choice…would I have free will?
It seems I do not. The only path available to me is the one I am walking on.
Or so I like to believe.
As the path begins to divide into two, I see my favourite man of mystery waiting for me.
I ask him what my choice is this time.
"Which twilit road will you be walking on?" DiZ asks me. "The road to dawn – or the road to nightfall?"
I think about my decision long and hard. I think about having to accept my darkness as…my weapon, my ally. I'll never lose sight of the light. NEVER again. But…Sharak will be ready when the sun goes down. That's when and where he'll be most deadly.
And that's what I need to face, unflinching, to conquer all my fears.
"I'm heading for the place of nightfall," I tell DiZ as I begin to embark on my deep dive.
Having made my choice, I turn to see, to my absolute astonishment…Sora.
He looks…younger than the last time I saw him. Mind you, it was two years from now that we first meet. Where we become friends to defeat Sharak. If time's returned to the point where the Keybearer defeated Ansem, then it makes sense that Sora's fourteen again.
I wonder if he remembers it all. I wonder if he remembers Jaron and Sharak. It's possible, I suppose. He IS the Keyblade master, after all. The one who destroyed Sharak and rid our universe of darkness. If anyone should remember, it's HIM.
I want to ask him, though, just to be sure. Every fibre of my being wants to run down this hill, to the road below that he's walking on, give my friend a hug and let him know that I'm here.
Yet I know I can't. And so does DiZ.
I would be inhuman if I reacted any other way.
I shed a few tears as Sora continues his journey. I wonder where Donald and Goofy are. Surely they must be with him?
Then I smile to see them chasing after him.
Obviously, they were taking a nap.
Sora and his companions are reunited again, so they carry onwards to the castle.
I shed a few more tears. I know that if I interfere here, I change history. Even the smallest thing I do can affect the course of time. I could bring about the apocalypse, like Sharak did.
I sigh in despair as I lower my head. I never really understood those rules about meddling in the affairs of other worlds before. Now I do. They were there to prevent disaster.
Maybe…someday, I'll be able to help out, be reunited with my friends without destroying everything.
I INTEND to.
As DiZ said, I will yet be surprised.
So will you.
"You have passed the most important test," DiZ tells me. "Maintain that caution and decisiveness…and you will pass all of the others."
"I don't care for tests, DiZ," I tell him simply. "I only care about writing a happy ending. And THIS time…I'll do it RIGHT."
"One last choice." DiZ's words stop me again.
"Adam is no more. His life has been undone. To be replaced. So who are you now?"
Again, I think about this choice long and hard. Finally, I choose my name.
It's a good a name as any, I suppose. DiZ's name is proof of that.
I snap my fingers, making my new shades appear. I put them on my face, and turn round to answer the question.
"Hi-Jax. I am Hi-Jax."