The World That Never Will Be chapter 34
by the infamous and notorious tocasia
3/20/2023
CHAPTER 34
The ship's convulsions and wailing red alarm flashes did not tear their hands apart, no.
Master Aqua broke her grip to fumble for the controls for the onboard weaponry.
What dared disturb their peace? Sephiroth reached further out...
No life crewed the enemy vessels. Only its imitation in the darkness of the heartless, an armada of mindless malice.
...and its accompanying minefield of colorful space debris.
Aqua blazed through an amalgam of rainbow wreckage; ovoid solids, spirals of cubes, chains of rings, rolling asteroids. The gummi ship's flight was different from her glider, but agile enough.
She pushed the engines to top speed.
Raining laser-y death upon the heartless was cathartic. Much better than worrying about her upcoming reunion with Yen Sid.
"You could be helping," she teased Sephiroth, "There's a second set of guns."
"I am helping."
...something did seem strange about the trajectories of the rocks. No enemy ships attacked from the sides or the rear, above or below. Aqua imagined all were victims of biased collisions, crushed to dust or flung aside, leaving her to focus on the path ahead.
"Okay. Thanks."
They made quick work of the diversion, and Aqua never felt they were in any real danger.
Too soon, the turbulence of combat abandoned them.
Sephiroth was satisfied, beyond the exercise of his power. It had been effortless, yet he took pride. They were... making the way safer for others! Heh. Perhaps Master Aqua's nobility of purpose was catching!
He'd watched the heartless die, searching, in the hemorrhaging darkness, for hearts, traces of hearts, minds, souls... something he could use that he may have missed.
He'd seen only Master Aqua's pretty fireworks, her faultless aim, nothing else, no great secrets in the augury of slaughter. Sephiroth decided he did not mind this frustration as much as he once would have.
They were going to find the answers together! It was going to be wonderful!
There wasn't room to spread his wing or pace in the cockpit, let alone emphasize his thoughts with Masamune.
"I wish I was as excited about this as you are," Aqua said.
"You're not?"
"I don't know what to do. I don't know what to say, when I see Yen Sid."
Sephiroth recalled his share of upsetting homecomings. Perhaps... if his precious ally were persuaded to look outward, to manage the situation from outside, instead... that would bring her calm.
"What do you want me to do?" Sephiroth asked.
"Don't do anything stupid."
"Obviously."
"Let me handle it, be polite, and show respect."
"Yes, Master Aqua." His smirk promised to be the perfect picture of decorum.
"I can get us into the tower. Stay by me. You rescued me, so he'll have to at least be thankful, even though your darkness..."
Sephiroth's smile faded. He crossed his arms in dread of preemptive defeat. "Tell me truthfully. Does my presence jeopardize your mission? Should I stay with the ship?"
...he would sacrifice his own questions so that her meeting might go more smoothly? Because of the darkness he couldn't hide, and didn't want? He shouldn't have to do that!
...he'd ask things she'd never think of, information that could be important.
...she could be braver, with him there.
"No! I want you to come with me!" Aqua meant it, with all her heart.
"Alright." His eagerness of belonging overwhelmed her.
"I might need to talk to Yen Sid about some topics alone... but if something goes wrong..."
"Understood. I'll protect you."
"I'll protect you, too." Aqua touched her wayfinder. Sephiroth mirrored the gesture.
"If it is safe to stay and rest a while at the tower, you should consider it. Yen Sid may not extend an invitation to me, but you should have what you need."
Aqua was enraged at the insinuation of weakness. Startled, by the strength of her indignation.
No, her fear. For him to be as overprotective as she'd been in the past, and insist upon further convalescence.
That... wasn't what he was saying.
"I'll think about it," she tried. "I... wish I knew better what to expect."
Sephiroth dispatched bracing, irritating wisdom, with a sagacious nod probably intending to reassure, "Doubt can only be banished by knowledge."
...should I mention Ven? I'll risk sounding bitter.
...how do I address Yen Sid? I shouldn't be too familiar after my long absence, but I am a Master too!
...my questions about Xehanort and the Darkness are serious, but if I speak from the heart, will Yen Sid dismiss me as childish? What if I can't stop my tears?
...I'll have to justify Sephiroth. He'll be a distraction (in more ways than one, snickered her secret thoughts). No, that's not fair... to him, or to me. We're in this together. What if there's a fight and I have to defend him? Will Yen Sid even see us at all?
...how can I carry the pride and grace of a Master, and still ask (beg) for help?
...I am so tired.
Aqua landed the gummi ship, cut the power, and disembarked onto the greenest of lawns borne of perfect magical landscaping.
She hopped from one foot to the other, relieving the soreness in her joints from holding still too long. Her hands felt empty and cold without the vibrations of the steering wheel.
"Well, here we are."
The Mysterious Tower dominated its tiny floating island, adrift on a sea of orange sunset clouds submerging mist-shrouded mountaintops under a nighttime sky. Constructed of cream stone, its base columned with blind arcades, it rose as a tree of branching turquoise turrets, studded with canted oriel windows and decorative crenelations.
The grass wasn't uniform. A footpath had been worn in the dirt and not successfully reseeded. Shrubs grew wild, untrimmed.
Sephiroth craned his neck. The tower was probably taller (and more defensible) than it looked.
Golden star-and-moon-shaped weathervanes tracked not wind, but magic. He focused, to discern what protective enchantments there might be, what threats they may face...
Master Aqua, with obviously straightened back and bravery, ascended the stately ramp of stairs guarding the entrance. She summoned her keyblade in a rush of white light, and, with a tap, the double doors of dark wood swung open.
Sephiroth hurried to catch up to her.
Inside, the staircase was infinite. Its floating spiral unwound into bridges of light and magic more complex than anything he'd yet tried to make. A wonder.
...the interconnected portals, how many dimensions did it span?
...despite all those entrances, a fortress. Secure against attack, on all the layers he could perceive.
He was a guest here, made aware of it with every step. The tingling magic that saturated the air: a distracting ruby-colored buzz. The wards: reaching, touching, judging, allowing him to pass, for now.
Master Aqua seemed far more at home. She'd been here before, the tower whispered comfort to her. Her easy demeanor... she had fond memories of this place. She relaxed her shoulders. Sephiroth took his cue from her confidence.
She passed many doors, in silence. The star-and-moon theme continued, omnipresent.
They climbed higher; stone walls gradated into smoke and then nothingness, until starry void surrounded them.
Master Aqua stopped in front of a red door with a golden triangle on it. A wizard's hat, Sephiroth guessed. Yen Sid was not subtle in his choice of decor.
She knocked. A courteous rap, befitting a petition to one of superior office.
"Enter."