Chapter 6

Lea's presence was proving to be a godsend to Aqua, as it afforded them both a chance to get some rest while Riku recovered. They took turns, one standing guard while the other rested. Even though they had one ally in the village in the form of that Moogle, they still took no chances.

It was Lea's turn to stand guard, but Aqua was having trouble getting to sleep that night. So many thoughts weighed heavily on her mind. She was just a short journey from finally being free of the Realm of Darkness. They were going to save Ven, and maybe Terra too. There was a war on the horizon, and that twisted old man Xehanort was behind it. There was a new generation of Keyblade wielders, and she was currently being accompanied by two of them, both of whom she had encountered before in some way or form.

The novice, Lea, had as much of a reckless personality as he did when she met him in his youth in Radient Garden. He had a tendency to be hotheaded, but she could tell that deep down, he cared a great deal for his comrades.

The master, Riku, still held traits that reminded her of Terra- stubbornness, inner conflict, and skill and power with a Keyblade. But she was beginning to see traits of Ven in him too. Based on what she had learned of his history from both him and Lea, Aqua could only guess that Riku had been through a lot for someone so young. She was glad that the other boy she had met all those years back- Sora- had stuck with him through most of it.

She had kept her mind occupied by tending to Riku. She was currently grinding herbs she had purchased from the apothecary into a thick poultice, making a remedy that was common but potent in this realm. If made correctly, it had strong properties to draw out infection, further assisting the slow progress of the medicine already in Riku's body.

As she waited for the poultice to set, she went to Riku, keeping a close eye on his condition. She could tell his fever hadn't broken yet without even touching him- he was trembling, his silver locks plastered to his forehead with sweat.

But there were other signs that told her he was improving: his pulse had finally gone down to a natural level, his breathing was slow, deep, and even, and the injured arm looked better than it did when she first dosed him with the medicine- the swelling had gone down, the angry-looking veins branching out from the wound were less pronounced, and the area was less tender to the touch.

A soft sigh escaped from Riku's lips as Aqua applied a layer of the poultice to his arm and bandaged it loosely to keep it in place. The damp paste felt cool and soothing against the injury.

"Just wait, it'll feel even better than that when it starts working..." Aqua said, more to voice her thoughts than anything.

Lea and Riku's master, Yen Sid, was an accomplished healer. She had wanted to write down every successful technique and remedy used in this realm and leave them to him for his records. Many of them were so simple yet worked so well, that it would lead to advancements in other worlds. However, would those worlds be accepting of them, knowing they were commonly used in the realm of Darkness? Only time would tell.

XXXXXXXX

"Looks like the medicine is finally working..." Lea said as he came to take his own turn to rest and had decided to check up on Riku's condition for himself. The fever was finally going down, probably because Aqua had been forcing him to drink for the past hour or so. Riku was starting to show signs of dehydration, he had been sweating far too much during the full force of the fever. It was a simple fix, but their water supply was starting to dwindle again.

"It's a good thing that Moogle was generous with the medicine. If I had to turn to the black market, we'd have no money to get more food and water now. I'll really have to thank him now!" Aqua said as she slung a pack over her shoulder, intending to go back into the village to refresh their supplies.

Riku had improved enough that he no longer required their constant presence. Lea was more than certain he would wake in a short time, probably as soon as while she was in the village. He hoped that was so, since he wanted to get out of this realm as soon as possible.

XXXXXXXX

There's no way in, how can I get to him? He could be in danger right now. How can I get to the Realm of Darkness?

Those thoughts had been chasing themselves in circles around Sora's head for the past day and a half. Every time he tried to access Riku through the bond they shared, he kept finding himself in a hazy world of pain. He had gone to Yen Sid in a panic after that. The old man assured Sora that Riku was safe, after confirming that he was in fact injured, but was currently in the care of Master Aqua and Lea.

"LEA!? How did HE get to the realm of darkness?" Sora asked in outrage after Yen Sid explained this to him.

"I'll have to ask him that myself, he is a long way from the training mission I assigned him. But at least, all of them are close enough to the point of safe passage I had given them that I can sense them all easily. They're just waiting for Riku to recover enough to get them all to that point, but they're all fine."

"So after all that... what is it that you need me to do?"

"Sora. For a long time now, I have sensed the presence of another entity dwelling within your heart. I have come to realize during that time just who that entity is. And we need you there to free him and return him to his own body."

"But wait, if I release him, wouldn't that also mean I would fade away?"

"Kairi is also going to play a part in this for the same reason. Remember how she brought you back after you became a Heartless in the act of releasing her heart? She still has that ability as a Princess of Heart."

"Master? This entity...just who is he?"

"A young Keyblade wielder named Ventus."

End of Chapter 6