Chapter 7- Trials
When Sairu opened his eyes again, he realised where he was now: the same stain-glassed platform where he encountered Naminé, depicting the sleeping Sairu with his blade in his hand, the images of Traverse Town and Radiant Garden as the background, and to the top left, an arrangement of people in a heptagonal order, depicting Sairu's most cherished friends. Then, a hollow voice spoke, yet there didn't seem to be anyone else there. Sairu couldn't pin it exactly, but he was certain that it was a male voice: "Do you want to be strong?" "Huh?" Sairu said in response, looking around in sheer confusion where the voice was coming from, only for it to answer with a demanding tone of voice: "You know deep down, that despite your current strength, you cannot protect those who yet remain from your weakened state. Your failure to save your friend is what has weakened you, to the extent that you cannot succeed in saving the rest of them" the voice stated in a tone of voice reminiscent of a teacher scolding their pupils.
"What do you want from me? Are you going to help me or are you abandoning me?" Sairu retorted in a similar tone of voice. At this, ahead of Sairu, emerging from a dark corridor, was what he least expected to see: a replica of himself, dressed in his former attire before donning his cloak, but there was a noticeable difference between them: this one had a tan skin complexion, his eyes were an empty amber yellow colour, his red hair was streaked with stripes of silver with a sombre expression upon his face, and a black object strapped to his back, leaning across his right shoulder. "Who are you? You look like me, yet you're different" Sairu asked curiously, and subtly disgustingly. "That is an easy question, idiot. I am you, or to be more precise, your true self, the darkness you hold inside" the same voice responded as his demeanour seemingly changed as he now bore a sinister grin across his features, that reminded Sairu of a certain pink and purple cat, but with a much darker nature. "There is no way you are my true self! I know who I am better than anyone!" Sairu angrily retorted, but then, to his horror, his doppelganger erupted into a bout of incredibly high-pitched laughter. When it came to an end, "The weak always deny the truth! I am you, and you are me! Everything we've ever had to endure together, all that resentment, all that loneliness, that despair is what gave me life! I am symbolic of our suffering, just as you are symbolic of hope and camaraderie. And yet, you're the one who rules this body. You are weak, even more so since the loss of your friend" At this Sairu froze in shock as his counterpart continued.
"If I have to explain it to you, the loss of your friend shrouded your heart in despair, even though you recovered well from the trauma, but not completely. The despair that came with that trauma was what increased my power to give me something of a physical form in this realm, and now, I plan to defeat you and I will take my rightful place as the king of this body!" Dark Sairu exclaimed as he reached for his blade, revealing it to be an entirely black version of Sairu's blade, but in place of a crescent moon, the charm attached depicted a perfect black circle, a new moon. (A/N: I know it sounds like a lot like Bleach with the inner hollow and what not, but I did not copy it). Seeing this, Sairu's own white sword appeared in his left hand, and he and his dark self flew at each other with breathtaking speed. Once their blades clashed for the first time, an explosion of energy rang out, shaking the two combatants, yet not deterring them from their battle. As they retreated to their original positions, both swung their blades in a wide arc, releasing a wave of black energy from Dark Sairu's blade that collided with the white counterpart from Sairu's blade. In the instant where he was rendered blind, Dark Sairu flew forward and successfully cut Sairu across his chest with a shallow yet quick swing. This exchange of attacks continued in an almost mirrored fashion, perfectly anticipating the opponent's moves and countering them.
Eventually, Sairu leapt backwards, only to be chased down and attacked again, as he feebly attempted to block the rapid assaults of his adversary's black blade, receiving more shallow slash wounds across his abdomen. At this, Sairu suddenly disappeared for a second, confusing his dark self, only to immediately appear from behind and strike with a powerful swing, inflicting a rather deep gash across Dark Sairu's back. Yet, despite the heavy hit, Dark Sairu grinned menacingly, and then, he swung his blade in a wide arc at Sairu, who blocked it, only to suddenly fall forward, and lie spread-eagled on his back, unable to move. "What... is this?" he struggled to say as he laid there, and the force keeping him down added pressure to his wounds. While this prevented any further blood loss, if it continued, his body would collapse from this pressure all the same. "Gravity. Our blades may look different, but their powers and abilities are fundamentally identical, though I specialise more in the use of gravity to restrict movement and cause a slow and very painful death" Dark Sairu explained gleefully, his sword at his side as he slowly walked to Sairu, who was gritting his teeth enduring the pain as best he could. Although he couldn't get up, he could turn to his left and somehow, still see the images of his friends, instilling something familiar in him: a wave of tranquil calm.
"Do you see it now? The difference in strength between us? It was you who was born into this world as the ruler of this body, but as time went on, you gradually grew weaker and weaker day by day. If this continues, you will be unable to fight altogether, and fighting is what we live for" Dark Sairu explained in a sombre voice as he knelt before Sairu's head, looking down upon him. "Before you ask, I mean everyone, not just you and me. It's in an animal's nature to fight for their right to survive, a most basic concept and instinct that drives the course of our actions. If we do not fight to profess our strength, it will fade and we will become prey in that scenario. And for that, I cannot allow you to rule any longer. I will become the king, and we will be weak no more" Dark Sairu then rose to his feet and raised his blade, before bringing the tip to point down to the ground, increasing the pressure, until, to his horror, Sairu miraculously began to rise until he stood on both feet again, a determined look in his eyes as he looked at his opponent.
"Im- Impossible!? You should have been crushed by the pressure and robbed of your last morsel of strength! How can you be standing?!" Dark Sairu exclaimed in horror, until he remembered what he just said: "You're using your own gravity to repel the force of my own" Dark Sairu said in realization. "Yes. Gravity is an absolute force that is unparalleled by other such forces, in which case, gravity against gravity was the only alternative. Though, in all honesty, I'm only using a small portion of that power" Sairu said in a calm voice, which confused and befuddled Dark Sairu. "What else would be able to help you repel such gravity?" "... My friends" Sairu simply said. At this, Dark Sairu's expression erupted into anger as he retorted "Don't be a fool! How can such nonsense be the way to repel such power?! Tell me how!"
Sairu simply stood still at this, then replied "I realised a great truth. And you were right. I had unconsciously let my failure to protect Ienzo cloud my mind, thus weakening my resolve to fight. Had I not encountered you here, I would surely fall on continuing my journey to help my friends who yet remain. Originally, because of Ienzo's fall, I felt it was my sole duty to protect those who remain, even though my heart wouldn't allow it. That notion was slowly eating me alive, and robbing me of my strength. But... Now, I know what I can do and what I'm living for- fighting to protect those I still cherish. Those images of my friends" he said turning to face behind him, at the images of his friends "reminded me of my true strength"
At this, Dark Sairu's posture stiffened at the firm and unyielding resolve of his counterpart, until he seemingly relaxed and even smiled, though this was laced with subtle malice. "Good. Now that you've had this epiphany, you have released yourself from the shackles of your despair. My purpose has been fulfilled, so I will let my coup d'état slide for now. But if you even doubt yourself again for a second, I will take hold. So long, partner" he said as he slowly faded away in front of Sairu's eyes until he was completely gone.
After this, a blinding light suddenly filled the room, prompting Sairu to shield his eyes. Once the light disappeared, Sairu lowered his arm and examined his new surroundings, which seemed to be some sort of canyon in the night. It was dark, and the sky was littered with thousands upon thousands of stars overhead, with huge, wide, cylindrical mounds of earth, and further overhead, a moon shone in the night sky. Sairu was bewildered as to his current location, but his reverie was short-lived as the moon's light suddenly intensified, until at last, it too faded, and when Sairu lowered his arm again, he was greeted by an unusual sight: having seemingly appeared out of nowhere, a dragon of sorts now floated in front of him. It was a dark charcoal grey colour, with a teal coloured front that stretched down from the dragon's chin to the very tip of the tail. Two wings protruded from its back with purple-pink tissue forming much of the wings' structure, and its eyes were entirely a fierce glowing amber colour. Sairu was simply mesmerised by its appearance, then to his astonishment, the dragon spoke to him: "You have succeeded in the trial I instigated. As your reward, I shall train you and bestow you my power and camaraderie in times of need"
At this, Sairu's mesmerised gaze faded with a look of understanding on his face as he nodded and responded "That would be much appreciated. My name is Sairu, it is an honour to make your acquaintance" he said as he respectfully bowed, though this made the dragon laugh in good humour. "There is no need to be so formal. You are the son of Getsuryu, I see" he said once he ceased laughing. "So you knew my father, didn't you?" Sairu asked politely, still embarrassed from the dragon's laughter a second ago. "Indeed I did. Your father was a good man, and a close friend of mine. It is I who I am honoured to meet you, Sairu. You take after your father quite a lot in appearance and somewhat in personality, but you have your mother's eyes and kindness. Yes, I knew her. She was an immensely kind woman with a heart that only knew how to love. You have my condolences for their passing" the dragon said with a sombre expression. Sairu nodded in gratitude and then asked the dragon "Then what is your name? If we are to be comrades, then it would help to know your name" Sairu enquired politely, at which the dragon nodded and responded "I am referred to as... Lunar Bahamut"