Chapter 1 - Slumber
"When you gaze long into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you."
Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)
Darkness.
I open my eyes. Again, darkness.
Where... am I? How did I end up here?
One step forward and the floor flickers beneath my feet, light flaring forth to blind me. I gasp and raise my arms to shield my face. Detaching from the ground in fragmentary retreat, are those... are those black birds? A flock of ravens awoke upon my intrusion and had spread their wings to take flight, soaring off into the great void. One by one they rejoin the abyss, mystifying me with their grand departure. Glassy colors stain the giant platform I now stand on. Dark undertones depict a pale sinister woman wearing black and violet robes, emerald flames surrounding her while pig-nosed goblins decorate the rim. Green energy glows atop the bronze slender staff she holds.
Mute words boom within my mind's eye.
Too many wants... and too many needs...
Take it easy...
Huh? Who is this? I look around, unable to find the source. It sounds so far away, but very near at the same time. Is this my subconscious talking to me? Or a figment of my imagination?
Don't worry. You're still you.
Of course! Why would I be someone else?
Walk forward. Can you do it?
Tch. I can walk, no problem. Who do you think I am?
The familiar sensation of my bones shifting under my skin gives me odd satisfaction. I don't know why, but unusual relief comes at the thought I'm in complete control of my body. Faint light soon shines down on me from up above, bestowing me warmth.
Seek the power of your heart.
White pedestals emerge from the ground at opposite ends. Two swords rest afloat – a classic skeleton key and the blade of evil's bane. One gleams silver like its crown-shaped teeth, the guard golden in contrast, and a trinity of circles dangles from the hilt. The second beholds a glossy black finish and crimson guard, and a heart silhouette shapes the sharp tip. No keychain graces the heart-breaker.
When in times of dire need... Survival is of the essence.
Light beams, a third pedestal appears, and red bleeds violet into a demonic scimitar. Its length spans like a wing, free of its chain and guard except for the aqua jewel embedded onto its handle. Spite resonates from the eater of souls, the consumer of memories and light.
Choose a weapon.
I listen only because I have nothing else to do.
Several strides take me towards the black sword, which teleports into my hands without warning. Dormant energy caresses my fingertips, betraying an ominous power trapped within polished lacquer.
A blade made from the purest of hearts. A blade that can open the deepest, darkest part of a person's heart. It influences the belief of cynicism.
I stare skyward into darkness, words drifting and subsiding into silence.
Is this the weapon you choose?
Hesitation. Flash. It breaks off into a flurry of sparkling lights. I turn around to dash straight for the silver one, daring myself not to look back. Blunt benevolence comes at my beck and call; it seems harmless, more at willing to bring peace than senseless violence.
A blade meant for a frail-hearted being. A blade that can release a captive heart from a heartless being. It beholds the role of heroism.
Is this the weapon you choose?
To choose the weapon of light, which would shackle me to responsibility, to save innocents in need of safety over my own – I wanted none of it. Bewilderment halts this train of thought. But, why? What brought up these emotions?
The weapon disappears upon perceiving my inner turmoil, to seek another master worthy of wielding its power. Loneliness chills the folds of my empty fingers, despite my profound relief. I dash by the edge, eyes on the centermost sword, and leap to stand on its respective pedestal. Shimmering light encircles me in answer to my summons.
You chose the blade of darkness.
It's a blade no one can wield, a blade made for you. It reveals the path to your truth.
I don't get the chance to think when the pedestal collapses all of a sudden, and I stumble off.
A single shadow crawls across the platform and springs out from its two-dimensional image, antennas twitching as if drawn towards something. Small impish limbs and large floppy feet, and unblinking golden marbles for eyes – what's that supposed to be?
There are times when you have to fight and if you want to search for your truth, darkness will try to hurt you.
And this monster brings friends, lured by the scent of fear. They lunge all at once, resulting in explosions of black mist when nimble footwork slices two in a single strike. I pull my guard up, daring the rest to attack.
Valiance intimidates them to retreat and they sink back into the glass floor. I smile, victorious, placing the blade on my right shoulder. Where did they come from and what did they want with me, I've no idea, but a dream doesn't have to make sense. Might as well play along.
Don't think you've won...
My heart skips a beat when humanoid shadows reinforce their cowardly counterparts, slithering faster than the last. The sword abandons me in spite of my anxiety and I swallow hard, treading the minefield of monsters surrounding me. I've nowhere else to run.
...Darkness will just come back and grow stronger.
They forsake solid form and splotch the glass, puddles of darkness growing like a disease. What should I do? Where should I move? It's everywhere! What'll happen to me if I get captured? Indecision distracts me long enough for darkness to pool beneath my feet. I start sinking, my frightened heart pounding faster the more I struggle in vain.
Your fears are groundless.
Liquid coldness prickles my skin, choking my senses numb. This darkness feels different from before. It doesn't want to protect me at all, more like swallow me whole where no light can be found, to keep me asleep forever so I'll no longer have the will to exist. I realize too late nobody can survive by themselves. Not even me. Now, more than ever, I want somebody – anybody – to save me from this horrible nightmare.
Perceive your weaknesses and grow strong.
Familiar pressure eases into my heart, benign darkness stifling all my fears and worries, rekindling my dwindling spirit. Somewhere out there, somebody watches over me. That had been my last thought before I slipped into unconsciousness, a dreamless slumber within a dream.
Never lose heart. This is only the beginning.
Darkness cradles my descent, slow and smooth like the bottomless sea. Diving headfirst into the unknown, I close my eyes from the faraway light. I plummet without stop, body twirling with the currents. Where am I going? Why am I always falling in my dreams? Iridescence prickles my senses and eyelids dare to open, spying a portrait of violet glass flames burn a man's skin dark. Long silver hair flares around broad shoulders and this person wears a black trench coat, surrounded by a prized collection of beheaded souls.
Blades whirl from the abyss, many blades spinning to embed themselves into mosaic. Angelic wings and demonic eyes and broken keys of chain-link metal shakes the earth and fells the rain and parts the wind, shattering the platform into a million pieces. Someone manifests from the chaos and I squint to see – myself? I'm falling? I slip into the doppelgänger's place and now I'm falling all over again, falling through the reflection of an airborne ocean.
Ripples show a girl reaching out to me, red hair – blonde, or brown? – wearing a pink skirt, or a white dress – and she disappears into the distance.
I breathe, and remembrance brings me back to a familiar beach.
"What are you waiting for? Come on! Come on!" Someone tugs me by the hand with a girlish giggle and eager bounce to their step. We leap off the makeshift port and tread golden sand. Green eyes are a darker reflection than my own, crinkling at my annoyance.
"What is most important to you?"
The capricious lilt stuns me into silence. Selphie giggles again and lets go, small fingers splayed on a yellow dress. Plastic bops the back of my head and I whirl around, spotting an orange coif, blue bandana, and roguish grin. "Hey~! You okay?"
Something bounces at my periphery. I pick up the beach ball and smirk, in the motion of absentminded routine, and kick it hard. Wakka catches it fast, brown eyes glinting behind shade and misty waterfalls. "What do you want outta life?"
Nonchalance dulls the surprise and I narrow my eyes. Running passed us at the speed of lightning, Tidus flashes a smile, brown hair bleached by tropical heat and too much saltwater. "What are you most afraid of?"
The reality around me shifts like a lucid dream. I know these kids, I grew up with them, but they're not acting like themselves.
Darkness breathes life into familiar violet flames and it catches palm trees and innocent lives on fire, sweeping across the evening sky to snuff out the light. No more sunlit days, and no more starlit nights. Plantation wilts, wood decays, and sand disintegrates. Islands disappear to make way for the abyss.
The emotions I felt – the anxiety, indecision, and confusion – was it all just an illusion?
Your choices determine who you are just as mistakes shape your lifestyle.
Mosaic platforms emerge to pave my path and I ascend, climbing spiraling staircases into white oblivion. I race toe to toe with my own heartbeat and for every step I take I skip three. I'm running for so long I forget to breathe. Where am I going? Why am I not reaching the end?
Would you like to sleep in the darkness of your past?
I don't know. I don't care.
Or would you rather pursue the light of your future?
Why are you asking me these questions? Does it really matter? I just want to get out of here and wake up to a world where everything makes sense, where everyday I dream to explore other worlds.
...Awaken in the twilight of the present.
Images and unfamiliar scenes rush into my head without warning, but of the first: two teenaged boys stand side by side and the girl with auburn hair begins the countdown for the longest race of their lives.
"Three! Two! One! Go!"
I see a sky so blue and an ocean so pretty, where unbreakable land bridges the space in-between. Laughter fills the silence, sunlight extinguishes the darkness, and winds carry simplistic happiness. Sora and I are racing neck-to-neck, Kairi running not too far behind, the both of us looking back to give her cheerful smiles.
"Don't be afraid..."
Sora and I race to find the puppet boy first, organic colors comprising our blurry background. Pinocchio flees inside a lime green doorway followed by a scream of fright. We enter a chamber to see a parasite monster imprison him within its ribcage.
We exchange knowing smiles, relaying fierce determination through eye contact. Withdrawing our weapons, we charge and I swing my blade down with all my might, clashing against armor, creating sparks –
"Darkness will never misguide you."
Soul Eater and Kingdom Key clash, sparks flying off between us in more ways than one. I wear darkness on my sleeve and Sora brandishes the blade of light, glaring at me, as if I'm the enemy and he's the hero. Fighting me, in devotion to Kairi – to reach her and save her, the princess – from the evil monster, his best friend –
Sora strikes me at my blind spot and I collapse, but I don't dare give up, instead dash up the stairs through a door leading to a corridor. Sprinting, and sprinting, my thoughts a chaotic train track, my heart beating so fast it's about to burst –
At the end of the road, I find a mysterious robed man waiting.
"And don't forget..."
Sora dashes up the stairs and finds Kairi comatose on the ground. Hurrying to her side, he kneels down and lifts her torso, shaking her, calling her name, hoping to awaken her. The Princess does not budge.
Kind, angry, and determined eyes glare at the person responsible. Colorful multitude of unstable energy floods from the keyhole-shaped portal behind me, where darkness leads to the hearts of all worlds hidden.
I peer through a one-sided mirror while the puppeteer pulls my body at the strings. Descending a flight of stairs with heartbreaker in hand, I observe this devastating scene unfold before my very eyes. Charging at each other with our blades drawn again and again and again once more, dancing around raining slices and piercing jabs and magic spells –
Sora swings to deflect the fatal strike to his heart and I somersault to dodge the parry. Disintegration erodes the body, shedding human flesh, blood, and bone for immortal darkness to take over.
Olive skin, amber eyes, platinum hair, black cloak billowing, muscled arms crossed over his chest, a devilish smirk gracing his unwanted presence. Maniacal laughter echoes – singing his victory, his domination.
"You stand on the brink of light and darkness."
Word Count: 2,200.
Rewritten as of Aug. 3th, 2012 at 2:03 PM