Disclaimer: Honest, I don't own Kingdom Hearts. Just this story, people, that's all…(And I wish I could say Roxas was mine too…)
Chain of Hearts, Chapter 14: World That Never Was (part 3) By Nagori Kirashi"Hey, Saïx," Zexion said, wandering over to him.
The blue-haired leader turned as if agitated.
"What?" he demanded. Zexion seemed unphased.
"Lexaeus' scent is gone. I'm almost certain that Sora and Roxas have something to do with it," the younger one reported. Saïx looked thoughtful for a moment. It was well-known that when another member's scent was gone from Zexion's radar, it was almost certain something had happened to them.
Something permanent.
"They're turning out to be more of a nuisance than I expected them to be," Saïx said, raising an eyebrow slightly while turning his shoulder to the other member. He began to pace in thought. "Zexion, I have a job for you."
"What is it?" he asked. Zexion didn't yet respect Saïx in the same way he did Xemnas when he was there. Not even enough to report the new scent he'd picked up earlier, though it was unfamiliar and didn't seem like much of a threat. Still, a job from Saïx was a chance to get out of patrol duty, and anything was better than that.
"I need you to lead me to Sora. He's moving too fast for me to track."
"Is that all?" Zexion commented with a calm smile. "I thought you'd have more for me than that."
Saïx grinned. He had certainly asked the right person.
"One more thing," Zexion said, turning back to the smiling leader with a serious face. "When this is done, can I have that Kairi for myself?"
"I doubt you could get her from the gambler," Saïx said with a tone so casual it would have made Sora sick. "How about Naminé? You could take her."
"We'll see," the younger one of them said. "So you're looking for Sora? This way, he's still moving. We can trap them on their way here."
Saïx nodded, still grinning inside. Everything was going as planned.
-,-,-
"C'mon, guys, hurry up," Sora said to the ones behind him as they made their way along, still faced against an exhausting number of creatures. They were now on the outside of the castle itself, following a huge winding path filled with stairs and landings. This part of the castle was strangely geometrical for a fortress based off of creatures as oddly-shaped as the Nobodies, such as the weaker ones they had made their way to at some point.
Sora was swinging his Keyblade in front of him in an almost rhythmic pattern that matched that of the speed he was running. Naminé was in the middle of the group, riding nervously in the arms of the same Samurai Roxas had called on as it fought off anything that tried to attack itself or her. Riku ran along at great strides, dancing around every attack aimed at him so they missed and were attacked instead. As Goofy held his shield in front of him, warding off the oncoming attacks and occasionally striking back with it, Donald used his magic to blow away everything in his way. Roxas used double Strike Raid with both Keyblades at once to demolish anything that even thought of drawing near to him, and as for Hayner, the relentless fighter with his berzerker-like tactics was unstoppable. Sora actually felt sorry for anything that got in the way of Hayner and his knife.
Soon they were drawing near the upper end of the stairs, and right before Sora led them to the next area of the castle, he paused to take a few gasping breaths of air. The others eventually did the same.
"Hey, let's finish off these ones, then just rest for a moment," he said to them, his breath heavy. He was forced to use up more strength to knock away a Creeper that was lurching itself at him. The group had stopped at the end of a set of marble stairs built into a walkway that trailed up the side of the castle, and after the entire group had reached the end of it, they wondered if it was at all possible to do what Sora had suggested. The horde of Nobodies swarming up the side of the castle after them was still incredible, although the end of it was barely in sight. Moving like a heavily-compacted army, the horde of Nobodies seemed impregnable.
Sora and Roxas both looked at eachother suddenly, then stepped in front of the group. They all became quiet, and a series of thoughts crossed back and forth between Sora and Roxas' heads like morse code as they worked out their strategy.
Then, leaping into the air, Sora and Roxas used their feet to kick off of eachother at a timing that was to both of their advantage, and they landed perfectly so Roxas was standing in front of the rest of the friends and Sora was on the far-side of the huge swarm of Nobodies.
Roxas nodded once at Sora, whose eyes met with Roxas' own as he gave a nod back.
Then they let their Keyblades fly. Sora spun in a circle as he let his go, sending it so it cut through the air just above the mass of creatures. At the same time, Roxas flung one, then the other, using his entire body to hurl the two blades directly towards Sora's own Keyblade. Both did it at a timing that was so perfect it seemed impossible.
The Keyblades seemed to fly towards eachother in slow motion, and finally they struck dead-on in the center of the inconceivable enemy crowd.
Then the others found themselves being blown backwards onto the ground as a huge explosion of light took place. While Sora and Roxas braced themselves by kneeling down and leaning into the glaring blast while shielding their arms in front of them, the entire army of Nobodies was left exposed to the attack, and by the time the light had disappeared and the two Keybearers had taken a step backwards, the Keyblades had already returned to their hands.
The entire area was empty except for them. The only Nobodies that remained in the area were Naminé and Roxas himself; not even the Samurai carrying Naminé had survived.
Riku sat up, followed by Donald.
No one said anything for a long moment, and at last the two Keybearers returned to the group.
"Holy shi—" they heard Hayner gasp from the ground. "I think I just wet myself…What th' heck happened?!" He nearly spit.
"Don't ask," Roxas laughed. Suddenly Sora gasped as he looked at Roxas, and when the blonde looked down, he realized why. His clothes, he noticed right away, were no longer the same black attire that was shared by the rest of the Organization. He smiled at himself and touched the familiar light-weight skater clothing that he had first been introduced to in Twilight Town. Opening his mouth at first to speak, then letting his words out instead as a sigh, he shut his mouth once more, then looked up at his friends and smiled.
They were all smiling back.
"Now there's the Roxas I remember," Hayner said, coming over to him and punching Roxas on the shoulder. Sora felt comfortable to be sharing his emotions with Roxas once more; at the moment, he could feel Roxas' mood shifting to a more cheerful one, and it caused Sora to go into a series of smiles as well.
"Hey, we still gotta find Kairi, you two," Donald reminded, not wanting to break up the group's happy moment but knowing he had to. "If we hang around here much longer…"
"Axel!"
Roxas was staring past the group at the figure who appeared ahead of them, blocking them from the door. His eyes were lowered so much that they looked almost closed, and his entire figure looked like it were almost drooping. Knowing there was something not quite right, and also knowing that the only reason Axel usually ever greeted anyone in a mood like this was because of what he was about to do to them, Roxas was instantly on his guard.
"Hey, kid," Axel said. "I'm sorry I gotta do this, but you know Saïx…"
"Yeah," Roxas said darkly. "I know Saïx."
"Woa, this isn't my decision," the red-headed intruder defended himself right away. "If it were up to me, I'd let you and that poor Kairi go. But I know that if I wait for the other guys to catch you first, they're not gonna be all nice about it like I am."
"Nice my ass," Roxas shot. "Since when do you care, anyway? If you're so worried, then why don't you get us out of here?"
"I can't do that," Axel said simply. "Besides, you know they'll find you eventually. Don't you remember what it's like to go one-on-one with those guys? Because right now they're searching for you in pairs."
"Let them come," Sora answered for Roxas darkly. "We can take them. Didn't you hear? There's two of us now."
Axel sighed again.
"Alright," he said at last. "I'm not taking you guys in, obviously you won't come. I'll just keep trying to break Kairi out—"
"You leave Kairi alone!!" Sora yelled, but stopped and looked over in question as Roxas put a hand in front of Sora's chest for him to stop.
Quietly as if he had barely just decided himself, Roxas said to Sora, "If he wants to find Kairi, let him go. He's just trying to help…That's what friends do."
Sora paused for a moment, and at last he listened. He lowered his eyes for a moment, then lifted them again to look at Axel and say, "Hey, good luck."
"You too," Axel said respectfully with a shrug as he began to disappear. "I really hope the best for you."
After Axel had left them, they stared at the spot he had last been, each wondering if they really weren't in for more than they bargained for. Sora himself felt internally grateful for the heads-up, were they to actually run into one of these groups that Axel had mentioned.
But still, what was up with that guy?
"C'mon, let's just rest up quick," Sora said, turning to Roxas at last. "Then we can move on ahead. This is a pretty good spot, if you ask me."
"Aw, man, I agree with him," Hayner groaned, sitting back down. He looked tired, and being someone who fought like he did, none of them doubted he was.
"Okay, five minutes, how about?" Riku asked them, then glanced towards Sora's pockets. "Got any snacks on you?"
"I'll check," Sora said, then pulled out a bag of squished pretzels. "Oh yeah, these're from Aerith, you want some?"
"Sure," Riku said, taking a handful of pretzel fragments. When he had only a few of Aerith's pretzels left, he took one that was actually still whole and thought, 'For good luck,' then tucked it into his pocket. Feeling amateur but not wanting to discrace himself by admitting it, he decided to just forget about what he had just done, and he sat back camly and began to polish off his Keyblade Way to Dawn with his palm. Eventually it would be time to leave again, and the same weapon that lay on his lap like a broken wing would be soaring through the air and carving out the fate of dozens, possibly even hundreds more Nobodies.
Riku glanced over at Roxas and Naminé, then wondered why he had ever doubted them. At the moment, both Roxas and Sora were laughing about something, and the two couldn't have seemed less harmful or more content.
Then he saw Donald and Goofy come over to him.
"Hey, so how much more time are we gonna be spending at this here place?" Goofy asked him, sitting down.
Riku wasn't in a very talkative mood, but deciding it was but a small price to pay for their company, he replied, "Not much longer, I suspect. Those two over there seem to be enjoying themselves quite a bit; I think we should give them at least a few more minutes. It's not good to waste time, but it's also not good to press yourself."
"Where'd you hear that from, huh? Was it Merlin?" Donald asked the older boy with a smile. Instead, the image of a quiet girl from the Radiant Garden began to form in Riku's head, quite the opposite from the wizard that the magician before him spoke of.
"No, just a…good friend of mine," Riku replied with a smile. "She's pretty smart like that sometimes."
Thinking that he was referring to Kairi, Donald and Goofy tried to change the subject.
They had no idea that the girl Riku had really been speaking of was Aerith.
-,-,-
A small, mousy figure ran through the castle. Almost nothing remained of the army that had been flourishing there moments before; nothing he couldn't handle, anyway.
It was King Mickey.
He held his own golden Keyblade in his hand, scurrying on two bounding feet, not even trying to avoid being seen were there anyone there to see him anyway.
'I gotta find Sora and them guys,' he thought to himself. 'I gotta warn them what else I know.'
It was all thanks to Axel, actually. The red head had tipped him off after they'd crossed paths on the dark streets. Though Mickey had no idea why exactly Axel was being so drawn towards doing the right thing, the king was ever-grateful for the tip.
The last thing that any of the worlds needed was for their last hope to be sacrificed to bring back what had brought the Keybearer forward in the first place.
'Keybearers, there are two of them,' he reminded himself of the plural form as he rounded a corner. 'Or at least I hope there still is.'
-,-,-
Sora sat closer to the group.
"A trap?" he asked Naminé, and she nodded.
"I just heard something about it," the quiet girl confirmed.
Riku nodded thoughtfully, as though he had thought of the same thing many times. "There does seem to be something unusual about all of this…we still don't know what their goals are this time, assuming they're any different, but why a meeting, and why would Axel mention 'taking us in'?"
"Well, whatever he meant, um…Just because Saïx thinks he can use us, I don't think we'll be walking into anything if we're careful," Sora said in reply.
"Right, if we're careful," Riku agreed, then added seriously, "but what if we're not?"
"Don't worry about it," Roxas told them all, leaning against a wall nearby with Hayner, both taking their precious leisure time seriously. "You guys need to calm down a bit."
"See," Riku said, using Roxas as an example that resulted with a glare in return. "That's why I'm worried. Calming down is something that isn't an option here."
Nobodies of various types were still appearing occasionally to give the group a hard time, and after several just minutes of staying in the area, the group had already formulated a well-organized system of taking turns to fight the next invading creature off. Just as Donald destroyed the next one, it meant it was Hayner's turn. Although he groaned when he stood, the soldier-like fighter took his duty seriously once he was up, keeping a strong lookout in every direction including up. Hayner really did fight like a soldier, one that was ruthless in his ways and layed fury upon whatever became a threat to the life he loved.
"She has a point," Riku said, having come over to join the talk-session. "Roxas, guard up at all times, remember."
"I know, I'm serious," Roxas protested honestly.
Donald had just sat down and turned to Goofy to say something when suddenly they saw a short familiar figure running along the stairs leading up to where they sat. Sora wondered if the approaching warrior knew there were at least three Nobodies following them, but his answer was confirmed when the stout figure made a leaping twirl and destroyed his persuers with the golden Keyblade he carried.
"King Mickey?!" Goofy exclaimed, nearly falling flat on his face in awe. They knew that seeing the king in a situation like this did not require a bow, although at least some aknowlegement was appreciated—especially when it was a surprise like this.
"Your majesty!" Sora also said, standing as the short figure came to a stop next to them.
Riku felt the most awkward of them all. He felt like a little kid again as he ran over, kneeling down next to the figure and hugging him right in front of everyone else. It was a brief hug, however, and while still kneeling down, he asked, "What're you doing here?"
"I have to warn you guys," the king began right away. "It's not safe. I don't know if you know this, but to be blunt, Axel told me that they're going to use you and Roxas as a sacrifice to bring back Xemnas!"
"What?!" Roxas was the first of those left sitting to jump to his feet. Confusion and fury stirred around inside him through Sora, who was forced to share Roxas' realization of just how much he had been playing right along with Saïx's plan when he had rejoined the Organization. The blonde could feel a sick sweat on himself, and the most Sora could do was offer a not-so-calm smile.
"We gotta get you out of here!" Mickey told them, jumping slightly as he spoke.
"No, I'm not leaving without Kairi," Sora said firmly.
Donald sighed. "Figures…"
"Well we still have to move on," Mickey said. "We can't just stay in one spot like this!"
"He's right," Riku said deeply, straightening tensely with clenched fists. His voice was steadily growing more apprehensive, and Riku could hear his own heart beating faster as he looked around. "We've been here for way too long—we have to get out of here!"
"Go, c'mon," Goofy urged the group that was already on its feet, and the group ran through the doorway to the next open area.
It wasn't until they were on the other side did they realize their mistake.
"Well hello," Saïx said, standing in front of them. "That was quite reckless of you. Next time you should watch where you're going."
They all stopped. They were already past the doorway, and Zexion was standing in their way, blocking them from returning in the direction they had come. The cunning member seemed to have come from nowhere.
Naminé grabbed onto Roxas' sleeve tightly as Roxas' Keyblades appeared in both of his hands.
Then they were surrounded, as if all the Organization had been called upon by some unknown force. They were outnumbered, and suddenly everything felt lost. Only Axel, Xemnas, and Roxas himself were not standing somewhere among the circle that surrounded them.
"Sora!" Kairi suddenly cried, taking a step forward away from Luxford's grasp. He was holding her in front of himself by one wrist, and as she struggled forward with her other hand, he grasped that one as well to hold her back. "I knew you would come, Sora! I knew you'd save me!"
Sora's head snapped around several times, taking a moment to realize where Kairi was at, thanks to the echoes that took place in the strangely accoustic area. When he saw her, no more than twenty or so feet away to his left, he yelled her name in return, his fingers grasping themselves more tightly around the Keyblade that he hadn't even realized he was holding.
"Shush up, you're the captive, not the pep-girl," Luxford threatened quietly to his hostage.
"Hold on, Kairi, I don't know if we can't take them all at once—" Sora began, taking a step towards her, but cut off in alarm as a huge brutish hand put itself on his shoulder. He turned, then was taken severely offguard by what he saw. "Woa, what…?"
Lexaeus laughed a deep off-note bellow, then clenched his other fist into a ball and swung it at Sora's head before he had time to react. The friend was down instantly, and Riku, Roxas, Donald, Goofy, Kairi, and all the others cried Sora's name. A few of them just yelled rude obscene names, as if hesitating to do more than verbal damage.
Then they were all attacking. Riku was running at Lexaeus, who disappeared and was replaced by Larxene. It was a tactic of surprise, though it did nothing to sway Riku as he continued to charge. The calm look in his eye as he held his Keyblade over one shoulder caused her to falter in surprise, then clench her fists. He noticed that in Larxene's grasp there were a multiple kunai-like knives, clenched between the knuckles of her fingers like tiger claws. It was more like a line of thin yellow spears held between her fingers that were ready to be thrown or swiped outward any moment.
Riku swung his Keyblade at her fearlessly.
Larxene wasn't prepared for his speed even after bracing herself, but she managed to duck before being hit. The sadistic female also managed to swing one hand forward in an underhand toss, letting one of the weapons slide from her hands as she did.
Riku, whose weapon was elsewhere, was unable to block it. He felt something tear into his side. Though he heard one of his friends yell his name, he just glanced towards them long enough to see that his side was losing fast, thanks to being so outnumbered and unprepared. Hayner had somehow gotten pitted against Saïx, and the leader took no sympathy that they shared the same fighting style, despite Saïx's being slightly more extreme. The younger one was already beginning to fall.
Riku reached down and felt the gash he had just received. Larxene's knife had only cut part-ways through his side and was lodged there like a piece of glass. He was just thankful it wasn't his neck that got hit. When he took the knife in his hand, now red mixed with its yellow color, he managed to ignore the pain enough to notice the weapon was teemed with an electrical pulse.
When he looked up, Larxene was glaring up at him through the thick girly lashes on her small face, and electricity danced around the ground near her dangerously.
'Oh, great, like Axel's fire, but not quite,' Riku thought when he noticed the electricity. He still accepting her nonverbal challenge and swung his Keyblade forward once more. This time when he struck her, he was shocked through the handle of his own weapon, yet he forced himself not to notice.
Naminé wanted to go join Kairi, but she could only kneel and cower by Sora who groaned unconsciously on the ground in front of her, even as the others continued to fall in combat. Naminé held her hands close to her chest in worry as Roxas still fought on. She knew that many of the members would be burning for revenge, and she had the feeling that they weren't going to pass up a single change they got.
Finally, gaining an unexpected nerve, Naminé dared to leave Sora's side, then snuck in a wide circle trying to sneak behind Luxford.
Just as she had almost made her way behind Luxford, Zexion appeared in front of her. Naminé had no doubt that the tall gambler had seen her in her attempt, and she had assumed she would probably get caught anyway, but she didn't expect it to be like this.
For some reason, however, Zexion didn't do anything; he only stood with his shoulder turned to her as if daring her to run away. Eventually Naminé decided to make her way closer to Kairi, and at last the two were standing together, watching the battle in fear. Luxford payed no attention to her.
Riku, one of the strongest of them there, finally began to sink to the ground after a series of shocks and slashes from Larxene. 'Where's the king? Is he…?'
Glancing around through involuntary tears, he saw the shortest of them run up to him. Mickey lept in front of Riku, blocking Larxene, and then he was next in line to take her. Lexaeus appeared next to the lightning nymph, and together they tried to overwhelm the small king.
'No, we're losing…too easily!' Riku thought desperately, then said aloud with a voice wrung heavily in frusteration, "This can't be happening!!"
Mickey was knocked backwards through the air, landing on his feet lightly next to Riku. Then, with concentration glowing in his eyes along with some other kind of fire, he said without turning, "Riku, keep your hopes up! We'll have another chance later!"
"How do you know?!" Riku said, sitting forward where he was. "How could you know anything at a time like this?!"
The king was already back in battle, though, and Riku was left to question both of their sanity by himself. What ever happened to keeping calm, he thought?
They were going to lose. The entire group had known it the moment they had walked into the area unprepared, and the idea had become final the moment Sora had been cheated into defeat.
At last, after moments of more and more lost hope, Roxas was the last one standing. No one move or said anything for what felt like minutes, standing around the seething blonde as he stood with his legs far apart while holding his Keyblades next to each side. His head was lowered, and his two brilliant sapphire eyes were slowly glancing to each side, glaring a death threat to the first person who moved.
Roxas was like a trap waiting to be sprung.
Naminé and Kairi held her breath, and so did Riku.
Then several of them all seemed to move in at once. While Xaldin was the first to move, appearing at Roxas' left with his spears held out, Roxas swung with a yell, Oblivion clanging into the five long weapons loudly. Next to his right Vexen lept forward, mostly a distraction for when Saïx himself appeared behind him. Roxas wasted no time, and while his Keyblade was still pressed against Xaldin's weapons, he used Oathkeeper as well as Vexen's own shield to leap into the air in a vicious twirl that managed to send Saïx backwards. Every move he made, every step, was for Sora, and Riku envied him that he was too numb and weak to go out and join Roxas in the fight for their friends.
Roxas still hovered in mid-air as if in slow motion, when suddenly Lexaeus appeared, raising his weapon above his head and aiming at Roxas during his aerial attack. When Roxas was glancing at the ground to time his landing, he suddenly felt a huge object hurtle into his back, slamming him onto the ground faster than he could manage. Once on the ground, he rolled himself over painfully just in time to see Xaldin's many spears hovering above Roxas, preventing him from getting up. A furious light was in the Third Member's eyes, and Roxas could actually feel the tips of the spears shaking with restraint as they remained pressed against his chest.
Saïx held a hand up for Xaldin to stop.
"We still need him, remember?" the Superior replied smugly. "In fact, I think I'll let you have the honors with this one once we're there. Sora, however…is mine to finish."
Naminé, Kairi, and Riku could all feel a heavy pang of doom in their spines, especially Riku as he was yanked to his feet ruthlessly along with the others who weren't even quite conscious yet, such as Sora and Hayner.
It was all turning out perfectly, Saïx thought.
-,-,-
None of them recognized the passages they were being led through. Each of them was being forced along by at least one member while Hayner, whom Saïx had fought himself and learned how unpredictably insane he was, had Saïx himself to drag him onward. The eccentric new Superior even seemed to find it humorous when Hayner kept struggling occasionally while grabbing for his knife, actually succeeding a few times yet being massively overwhelmed by the one leading him along.
By the time they'd been dragged from the battleground to wherever they were at the moment, each of them had recovered slightly, yet they were far from their best yet. When the Organization XIII members weren't looking, though, Goofy would sneak some of his magic to Donald, who in turn used it to heal them all bit by bit with the help of Mickey. They had to make sure it wasn't obvious, not that it did much good now that they were caught.
Sora had awoken by then too, and was now being led along by Lexaeus. Furious that the huge enemy whom he'd learned to despise during that last battle was back again to make his day even worse, Sora could only glare up at the huge thug now and then, though the grin he would receive in return was never satisfying.
Axel trailed along behind the group in silence. He'd been put in charge of making sure that King Mickey himself didn't run away, but only because he was one of the ones there that the Organization cared the least about and knew wouldn't run away anyway. Mickey's face was still lit with a determined kind of anger as he marched along, waiting like Riku for the right moment to attack. When it came his turn to be healed by Donald, though, his mood did improve somewhat, despite the circumstances.
Axel had noticed them healing eachother, all right. But he found it somewhat amusing, so he didn't stop them. The other members, it seemed, were too excited or tense to notice.
"Hey," Roxas said, turning to Sora while still walking down yet another hallway. His voice was loud and almost piercing in the silence of marching feet, though he was trying to keep his voice as low as he could. "I'm sorry."
Sora only nodded in reply, and Roxas was shook firmly by the one leading him forth so he was forced to turn back. They could have easily been in the room right away, though it seemed that the group members were not only giving themselves a time to recover as well but were also savoring the moment before the ceremony.
It was like a victory parade, and the mood gave several of them the chills.
As they continued to walk, Luxford ordered his captive, Kairi, quietly; "Girl, hold your arm out. Like this."
"Don't call me 'girl'," Kairi managed to defend quietly, yet she did as he asked, bending her arm and holding it out next to her as if she were carrying a purse. As they continued to walk in silence, Luxford grinned and placed his hand through her arm, behaving as if he were a gentleman escorting a princess.
Kairi felt invaded by the last action taken upon her, and she swung her other hand at him defensively. Luxford caught it with his free hand right before it hit his face, then kissed it before using it to pull her in a sharp stumbling circle in front of himself so that Kairi was suddenly walking next to his other side. She let out a sharp "Eep!" when he did.
Sora had turned to watch her over his shoulder, and he could feel himself literally growing sick.
"You leave Kairi alone!" he shouted threateningly, pulling away from Lexaeus so fast that the huge figure had to turn completely before he could catch the escapee. When he did, he knocked Sora to the ground so hard that they could hear a noise as his shoulder dislocated itself. Sora's fury and pain filled him to the max, along with his hatred for Lexaeus, and he spun around in a circle while still on the floor and tripped the huge figure. When Sora stood, none of the other members seemed to be paying attention, although they were. His friends were glancing around at eachother as if waiting for someone to do something, yet no one did.
Suddenly Lexaeus had returned to his feet, grabbing onto Sora's dislocated arm and jerking him back into line harshly enough to cause him to yell slightly. Fury still locked Sora's face. After another quiet moment, no one stopped Roxas from suddenly turning and punching his other side's arm back into alignment with his free hand. Sora wasn't the only one who gasped loudly when he did, yet Sora thanked Roxas in his head even as he struggled to remain standing.
'Why isn't anyone doing anything?' Roxas questioned Sora, rather than reply to his gratitude. 'When you fell…That was the perfect moment for attack. What're we waiting for?'
'A real advantage, not a turn of events,' Sora thought. 'Don't worry…You'll know when it's time.'
Vexen frowned when he noticed the smile appear on Roxas' face.
"Get in there, you infantile," the scientist threatened him, taking the blonde's arm and shoving him into the room they now stood by. The place they found themselves in next was small, and every one of them recognized it in some way or another. Once inside, Sora and Roxas were marched farther into the room side by side, being what the Organization now considered the main attraction.
They were at Proof of Existence.
The one remaining plaque that didn't glow blue in some sort of way sat embedded in the floor on the other side of the room, slightly glowing red as if blood had already been spilled upon it. To them, this one looked closer to black. The rest of the small monuments there were still a soft teal, including the one of Roxas himself, and he glanced at it wearily.
"Is this it?" Hayner said quietly. Both Roxas and Sora turned, glancing at Hayner guiltily as if both considered it their own fault. "Does it really end…here?"
No one said anything. Riku could still feel the sharp gutted pain from his injuries, yet it meant nothing to him at the moment. Besides, Donald and Mickey were still curing their party whenever they got the chance, and with each time that it was Riku's turn next, he was feeling better and better.
Sora, then Roxas, winced as their hands were jerked behind them and tied together tightly. Both were then dragged into the center of the room by Saïx, who stood silent for a moment as he looked at the other members, then asked them calmly, "Which one dies first? As I heard Marluxia had once ask…The traitor or the slayer?"
Several of them there grinned as they stood in a crescent line in front of the small room, many of them still with their own hostages, and at least half the remaining group began to talk among eachother. Those who had experienced defeat from Sora alone could be heard muttering Sora's name, such as Larxene, while others were whispering about how they felt more betrayed by Roxas and wanted to get it over with.
After a few moments of what became a loud discussion, it was Roxas who was dragged forward to the dark grave first. Once there, he felt Xaldin grab him by the wrists, jerking him backwards before forcing him onto his knees. He clenched his jaw the entire time. As he knelt over what could very well be his final resting place, he tilted his head up to see the others. More than half the faces in the room were lit with excitement while the smaller fraction could barely force themselves to watch. Even Axel watched, though he hated himself for it.
"…No, we have to do something!" Riku yelled suddenly, tearing almost too easily from what happened to be Xigbar's grip. He almost made it to Sora as Marluxia now held onto the bound friend for Saïx, but suddenly Riku was struck by horror as the feeling of darkness seemed to double inside of the room. An image of blackness seemed to creep towards him, although whatever it was, apparently only he could see it. He was in the midst of too much, Riku thought, and the tall male faltered in anguish just long enough to be recaptured.
Was his heart becoming this weak? His face seemed to show he was no longer there, lost in the depths of his own confused thoughts.
Zexion didn't allow himself to show any emotion on his face, knowing that might give away what he had just done to Riku. After all, the two had already revealed their tricks to eachother in a past fight. It was unbelievable, he thought, how easily deceived humans were.
After a moment Saïx stepped forward, having ignoring the last interruption altogether. Hayner tried to pull away from the one restraining him next, stimulated by the taunting smile on the proud leader's face, but he was unable to escape, like the rest of his friends.
Sora stood about eight feet from Roxas, and his eyes met with Kairi's. Nearly an entire room separated them. Standing next in line as Marluxia held the young fighter's hands tied behind his back, he watched with a sick feeling growing inside.
He was sick with fear.
"Our moment has come," Saïx said, grinning down at Roxas. All the other members had been waiting for this speech for some time now, sick of the many others that had finally led up to it. "Soon, Xemnas will return, and the Organization—"
"You mean what's left of it," Roxas sneered rudely from the floor, then cringed as Xaldin struck the side of his face. Sora yelled Roxas' name helplessly and pulled forward, yet he was restrained by Marluxia. He had never felt more helpless, only able to watch as his own reflection was pushed around.
"As I was saying," Saïx continued, ignoring Roxas like he had Riku, "the Organization will be returned to its former glory…"
"Not for long, it won't!" Sora vowed, pulling away from Marluxia harder than ever. He was next to receive a harsh blow, stumbling to the floor, and by the time he was yanked to his feet he could already feel a bruise forming on his face. Sora avoided Kairi's eyes altogether.
"Enough with the interruptions," Saïx fumed, then calmed himself slightly. "Obviously you two are in a hurry to get on with it."
"No!" Kairi yelled, then whispered, "Please…"
She couldn't look. Both Kairi and Naminé were allowed to hide in eachother's arms for the moment, yet neither could help themselves from looking up at the scene occasionally.
'Roxas,' Sora thought desperately as the dark-clad Organization member holding his other side captive took a knife from Saïx. It was shaped like a flat spear, similar to the lower half of the Nobody symbol that both victim and assassin shared, and it reminded Riku of Larxene's weapons. Sora thought regretfully, 'If only my hands weren't tied behind my back, then maybe I could…'
'Don't worry about me,' Roxas thought back to Sora almost urgently. He wasn't going to make Sora feel worse by reminding him that the more he worried about Roxas, the more his feelings filtered over to himself. Even as much as Roxas refused to let the other boy know it, he could still feel himself regretting it as fear began to cling to his insides like a cold tangle of thorns. An icy sweat was beginning to form itself on the back of his neck.
The blonde stared down at the glowing slab beneath him as if it were fire, then clenched his teeth and shivered when he felt the blade being held beneath his neck. Axel took a small step forward, his eyes wide in fearful anticipation.
Suddenly it was Xaldin who cringed in pain, and the knife he held fell to the floor, away from Roxas. When Xaldin stumbled backwards, they could all see that the center of Oblivion was stuck directly through him as if it had just formed there suddenly.
'Roxas must've made his Keyblade appear in his hands!' Sora thought excitedly to himself. 'And since Xaldin was already leaning over Roxas, as close as he was, then Oblivion must've appeared…through him!'
It was a horrifying concept, but it was also a miracle to the friends who stood by captive.
"Here, Roxas!!" Hayner jumped out from the group, now that the ones guarding them were too stunned to hold them all back at once. Hayner grabbed his knife from its sheath, then flung it towards Roxas, who still leaned forward on his knees with his hands tied. Despite his overall helplessness, the calm look on Roxas' face suggested that he couldn't wait to get up and fight.
Hayner's knife spun through the air like a boomerang, and after several fast-moving seconds, it cut straight through the bindings around Roxas' hands. The knife managed to free Roxas without so much as scratching him, then returned to its owner's hand once more.
Now freed from the ties around his wrists and no longer bound by Sora's own fear, Roxas stood slowly.
Xaldin was doubled forward, still cringing outloud as the dark Keyblade remained plastered through his mid-section.
"You have something that's mine," Roxas said deeply, glancing down at Xaldin's fearful eyes over his shoulder with a look of casual hate. Then the young wielder turned. Grasping the same handle that had first come into his grip moments ago, he wrenched it with all his strength from his would-be killer, tearing the dark member's breath away permanently. It was not Roxas' body that fell upon the cold red stone before disappearing in a whisp of darkness.
Stunned by his own victory for a moment and by the thought of how different things might have turned out just now, Roxas was unable to move for a moment, and so was everyone else there.
"C'mon, guys, let's go!" Sora yelled to them abruptly, not even flinching as Hayner's knife swiftly pierced through the air and freed the hands where the Kingdom Key was already appearing. Marluxia had already stepped back and his scythe was clenched tightly, the weapon just waiting to bite into Sora's flesh. Even still, Marluxia gripped it nervously as if expecting the worst.
The tables had turned.
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