Chapter 23

"No... nooo... it can't be true, it just can't be!" Sora exclaimed as he sank to the ground in despair.

Roxas had quickly dispatched the Dusk that arrived after it delivered it's message, enraged at what it implied. It showed up in the middle of a magic training session to inform all those present that Xehanort had procured all 13 of his dark vessels and was now awaiting their side of the clash.

"So he did it..." Yen Sid said, his own voice clouded by barely concealed emotion. "He managed to get all 13 vessels. He's ready to make his move."

"That must have been what Riku was kidnapped for..." Sora said, his voice shaking. "They wanted to try to make him their final vessel. And it looks like..." He slammed his fist to the floor and let out a great, heaving sob. "...they succeeded. Riku's gone. We'll never get him back!"

"Sora..." Kairi was at a loss for words. She too felt grief that they most likely lost one of her best friends to Darkness, but watching her beloved struggle with his own grief was making the pain worse. She hesitantly placed a hand on his shoulder. Sora seemed dead to the world and made no motion that he knew of her presence.

"What of the guardians of light? Terra and Riku now belong to Xehanort, we're short two guardians!" Aqua exclaimed

"No, we're not... It is truly fortunate that Lea and Roxas are on our side. With you, Ven, Sora, Kairi, and Mickey, that makes 7 keyblade wielders in total." Yen Sid responded. "We too are ready to meet them. We must meet them on his terms, or Xehanort will refuse to meet us in battle and continue to threaten the worlds."

"BUT WHAT ABOUT RIKU?!" Sora bellowed, jumping up and looking at the entire group angrily. "AND TERRA? AND THAT ISA GUY LEA CONTINUES TO GO ON ABOUT? I'M NOT GOING TO GO OUT THERE AND KILL OFF OUR ALLIES BECAUSE THAT BASTARD WANTS TO POSSESS THEM!"

"Sora!" Yen Sid said in a firm voice. "You need to calm down!"

"HOW CAN I CALM DOWN WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT KILLING OUR FRIENDS LIKE THEY MEANT NOTHING AT ALL!"

"Sora... I know you're hurt, but you need to listen to him!" Mickey exclaimed. "It may not be too late to save them!"

Sora sank back to the floor, the same defeated expression on his face as before.

"But how do we know that? None of you have been in that black abyss I was trapped in before. I never would have made it out of there on my own. And they're all been possessed on top of that. It's like being a prisoner in your own body, we'd never be able to get close enough to rescue them without Xehanort taking over and attacking. It's too late for them!" He stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

"He still doesn't have his temper under control..." Yen Sid sighed.

"Don't mind that, Master. I'll go talk to him..." Mickey said, turning to leave the room himself.

XXXXXXXX

Mickey and Kairi quickly made their way toward Sora's room after Yen Sid dismissed them, a feeling of foreboding quickly passing over them both. They felt like something would go horribly wrong if they didn't talk to him soon.

They were horrified to discover their suspicions were correct, as a truly awful sight met them as they reached Sora's room.

His door was locked, however they were able to break it down quickly due to Riku having to do the same thing once before, meaning the frame was weakened. Inside, they saw Sora, grey in the face and struggling as he hung from the rafters, a makeshift rope made from bed sheets around his neck.

"Get help, QUICK!" Kairi exclaimed as she ran to his side, lifting him so that the rope no longer strangled him. She summoned her Keyblade and cast Fire on the rope, burning it loose. She caught him as he fell, choking and struggling to catch his breath. Tears ran down his face and he was shaking violently. He was frightened after the near death experience.

"Shhh, easy, it's ok, you're ok!" Tears ran down Kairi's own face as she comforted the boy in her arms, humming the same lullaby she comforted Riku with when he was so sick after the Organization had imprisoned him. The memories that surfaced as she hummed the melody made the tears flow even harder, knowing that she might never see the last boy she sang that lullaby to again, and that she had almost lost the boy she hummed it to now.

Yen Sid ran into the room, closely followed by Mickey, and was at Sora's side instantly, lifting him from Kairi's arms and laying him on the bed. He frowned at the bruises that were forming around his neck from where the rope was tightest. He carefully turned the boy's head, making sure he had not broken his neck, and finally laid a hand on his forehead, summoning a mass of soft blue light. Sora fell asleep quickly, and Kairi, still so frightened after what she had witnessed, laid her head on his chest and sobbed bitterly.

"You... don't you ever try to leave me like that again!" She said angrily, though her actions took on a more protective and comforting demeanor. She had taken his hand and was stroking it gently, as she looked into his face, as though trying to find out how much pain he really was in. She gently kissed his forehead before leaving his side.

"This... is more grave than any of us thought. The strain of the upcoming battle is proving to be more than Sora can handle. I never thought he would go so far as to try and take his own life!" Yen Sid said urgently. "He needs time to come to grips and recover, but time is something we just don't have..."

"Then we'll just have to distract Xehanort until Sora recovers." Mickey said defiantly.

"Are you sure about this?" Yen Sid asked.

"Without a doubt!" Mickey began, though his resolve wavered slightly as he asked "How much time do you think he'll need?"

"I'm not sure..." Yen Sid said, deep in thought. "It depends strongly on him, and I don't know how far gone he is. But, maybe I could alter time in his dreams and help him recover that way. Yes, it should hopefully only take a couple days. But, I'm begging you, please try to stay alive. We've lost so many who are near and dear to us already!" Yen Sid said as he turned back to the sleeping boy before him.

End of Chapter 23.