Hikari and the Soul Edge
Chapter 12: Darkness Rises
Hikari stood face-to-face with the giant black creature. It drew closer and closer to her. Hikari charged forward and prepared to attack. She jumped up and sliced at the creature's arm, leaving a large wound.
"Take that!" Hikari shouted.
The creature's wound immediately closed up. It then raised its fist into the air. As it slammed its fist down, Hikari rolled out of the way. When the creature's fist hit the ground, a large black pool formed on the ground. Several of the small black creatures from earlier rose up from the pool. Hikari managed to slay the creatures as they came towards her. She then tried to slash at the chest of the creature, but the wound she made immediately healed once more.
"How do I beat something that's invincible?!" Hikari exclaimed.
Hikari then thought of something.
"Light can pierce the darkness," Hikari remembered. "How can I generate a bright enough light?"
Hikari then had a flashback from when she was a young girl. She was in the attic with her mother. The attic was completely dark.
"How do we find what we're looking for, Mommy?" little Hikari asked. "It's too dark."
"Here's a little trick I've picked up from your father," Hazel said.
She focused magical power into her hand. A small ball of light appeared. The light illuminated the entire room.
"How did you do that?!" Hikari asked.
"Magical power in its purest form produces light," Hazel answered. "Your father managed to manifest pure magical power into a sword attack. By watching this, I learned how to do this."
The flashback ended. She began to focus magical power into her sword.
"I have to bring out pure magical power," Hikari said. "It's time to do this!"
Hikari's magic surrounded her sword. The sword began to glow brighter and brighter. The large creature began to back away from the light.
"This is it!" Hikari shouted.
She charged forward with her sword. She then slashed at the creature. At the point of contact, a huge blue explosion of light grew and filled the room. When the light faded, Hikari was alone on the platform. She then began to look around for anything else.
"That was cool," Hikari said.
"You've done it," Arceus said.
Hikari turned around, and Arceus was standing there.
"Where were you?!" Hikari shouted. "I thought you were my guardian or something?!"
"Ultimately, you must be able to handle yourself in a fight," Arceus said. "You have done well."
"Alright!" Hikari shouted. "I want some answers! Where are we?! What were those creatures?!"
"You have earned the right to know," Arceus said. "To properly explain where we are, you must know what those creatures are first. Those creatures are the manifested form of the darkness that lies in the hearts of man. They are known as the Heartless."
"Heartless?" Hikari asked.
"They dwell in darkness and aim to eradicate all light," Arceus said. "The Heartless are demonic creatures. Once they consume all the light in a world, it becomes a chaotic mass of darkness."
"Do you mean…" Hikari began.
"This world was attacked by the Heartless," Arceus said. "This world was once like yours. It was a beautiful place. But a rift was opened between the world of the Heartless and this one. Thus, it was destroyed."
"So what are you trying to tell me?" Hikari asked.
"An opening to the world of the Heartless will appear in the world if an exceptionally large dark power is released," Arceus explained. "There is such a power in your world."
"Soul Edge!" Hikari realized.
"Exactly," Arceus said. "Should the Soul Edge absorb enough souls, the spirit locked inside will be released, causing a rift in the world."
"That's crazy!" Hikari shouted. "So what can I do?"
"The power you just released is the key," Arceus said. "You must learn to summon that power at will."
"Is that what I'm going to learn here?" Hikari asked.
"Exactly," Arceus said. "Let's begin our training. We'll first need targets."
Arceus began to focus his power. Several Heartless appeared when they sensed the energy.
"Use your light to vanquish these foes," Arceus said.
Hikari then began her training. Meanwhile, in the outside world, Kenji, Mog, and Maria were eating a meal.
"I've got a question," Maria said.
"What?" Kenji asked.
"Why are you traveling with Hikari?" Maria asked. "What made you want to team up with her?"
"I just happened to meet her in my travels," Kenji answered. "Once I heard about her situation, I decided to be her bodyguard."
"Why were you traveling in the first place?" Maria asked.
"Just to see the sights," Kenji said. "After learning magic at the academy, I felt that traveling would be good for experience. How about you? What made you want to join us?"
"I guess I can tell you," Maria said. "I'm looking for someone."
"You said that before," Kenji said. "Just who are you looking for?"
"My father," Maria said.
Kenji became more interested in her story.
"By what I heard from my mother," Maria said, "I learned that my father is a shinobi from a hidden village. I was told a long story about how my father was on a mission when he met my mother. The two of them fell madly in love."
"What happened?" Kenji asked.
"My mother was from royalty," Maria continued. "When my grandfather found out about their love, he forbade it. Despite their love, they couldn't marry without my grandfather's approval. While they couldn't be together long, they did spend one night together."
"I can guess what happened then," Kenji asked.
"When I was born, my grandfather didn't really approve of me," Maria said. "But he loved my mother enough to let her keep me."
"I've got one more question," Kenji said. "If you're supposed to be royalty, wouldn't you have bodyguards and stuff protecting you? Why would you need to learn ninjutsu?"
"I was never much for letting others protect me," Maria said. "I told my mother that I wanted to study at a nearby ninja academy, and she let me. In fact, she once said that my skill reminded her of my father. Because of this fact, I thought that I might as well look for him. By what I can guess, he'll look somewhat like me, and we'll have similar techniques."
"So you ran away and became an assassin so you could draw him out and find him," Kenji said.
"Yep," Maria said. "I will find my father. When I do, I'll bring him and my mother together so they can finally be happy. I don't care what my grandfather thinks."
"It sounds like a noble goal," Kenji said. "But finding your father won't be easy."
"I never said it would be," Maria said. "But I will do it."
"You know what?" Kenji said. "Your mission kinda reminds me of Hikari's. She wants to find her family too, but at least she knows what they look like."
Kenji then stood up.
"We have to get moving," Kenji said. "If we're going to live long enough to find your dad and Hikari's mom and brother, we'll need to train for the battle ahead. You and I can train together."
Maria then stood up also. The two of them, with Mog flying close behind, left the lodge and prepared for their training.
Fourteen days later, at the base of the volcano, the lava had hardened into rock. The rock slowly began to quake. Eventually, Nightmare's demonic hand burst from the rock.
Back at the door, Metaknight was resting. Out of nowhere, his eyes opened wide.
"He's back," Metaknight thought.
He looked at the door.
"I hope you had enough time to train, Hikari," Metaknight said.
Just then, Kenji, Maria, and Mog came up the hill and came over to Metaknight.
"Did you sense the surge too?" Metaknight asked.
"Surge?" Maria asked.
"I think I felt something," Kenji said. "Nightmare's back, isn't he?"
"Yes," Metaknight said.
"So where's Hikari?" Maria asked.
Metaknight pointed at the door. Just then, the door began to open. The heroes watched as Hikari stepped through the door. She looked ready for battle.
"How did she disappear in that door?" Maria asked as she looked at the door.
"Just how strong did you get?" Kenji asked.
"It took the whole time, but I finally have my technique down," Hikari said.
"So can you beat Nightmare?" Maria asked.
"If I can get him in time," Hikari answered.
"What do you mean?" Kenji asked.
"I can summon up my power long enough for a few attacks," Hikari said. "Afterwards, my energy is drained completely."
"So make the battle quick and easy," Kenji said. "Alright, let's go to battle!"
"Not yet," Metaknight said.
"Why not?" Hikari asked. "We're ready!"
"If we rush into battle without a day's rest, we will be defeated," Metaknight said. "We cannot afford to lose."
"But if we wait, he'll get away!" Hikari complained.
"We must rest," Metaknight said in a stern voice.
"Fine," Hikari eventually said.
They then took the day to rest. The following morning, the heroes got ready to leave.
"I will fly ahead and keep an eye on him," Metaknight said. "You three will walk on the ground. Two of you can sense energy well, so you can follow the trail. Whatever you do, avoid any unnecessary battles."
"We'll see you soon," Hikari said.
Metaknight's cape transformed into a pair of wings. He then flew ahead at a great speed. Hikari turned towards her friends.
"Ready to go?" Hikari asked.
"We've been ready," Maria said.
"Kupo!" Mog exclaimed.
"Then our goal's in sight," Hikari said. "We will not stop until Nightmare's been defeated!"
The three heroes gave one final cheer and began to follow Nightmare's trail. They knew that the final battle was close at hand.