Chapter 10- Answers
The next day, Sairu stood in the pod room of the basement in the mansion, wondering how his sleeping friend was doing. As it stood, the situation was not favourable: he had been informed of the then recent endeavours surrounding the restoration of Sora's memories when he arrived three weeks ago, and from discussions with Naminé and DiZ, it seemed that time was dragging on and slowly turning against them. Considering all that was happening with the Organization and Xion, Sairu knew this growing problem was not going to end with a wave of a hand, yet he couldn't help but wish that it was possible.
As he stared at the pod before him, Sairu heard the shuffling of footsteps and the flap of wings as Lunar Bahamut came to rest on his shoulder, and as DiZ walked into the room. "This was the last place I expected to see you here. You do not strike me as one who worries persistently over their friends" DiZ spoke in a humorous tone, as Sairu turned to face him and responded "I won't deny that, but I feel so helpless, that all I can do is just stand around all day, hoping that the day will come when he'll wake up and act as if there's nothing wrong with the world" Sairu said, slightly saddened. At this, DiZ nodded in return and responded "You have not been a burden in the least, Sairu. Admittedly, you have done very little, but sometimes, even the littlest gestures can have the greatest successes, such as your late night stroll the night before" At this, Sairu's posture stiffened as he braced himself for the worst. "Whilst you disobeyed me and went gallivanting off to Castle Oblivion, you did, however, create a possibility for this situation to improve. Riku informed me of all that happened, and currently, I imagine he is rendezvousing with the puppet as we speak". Hearing DiZ's spiteful tone, something in Sairu began to darken.
"DiZ, I have to ask... why do you have such prejudice against beings like Nobodies or even Replicas, like Xion?" Sairu asked, feeling that he had to know, and thought for a moment he saw pure hatred in his single eye, until DiZ responded in a calm manner "In the past, I had placed my trust in certain individuals who I felt were loyal comrades and friends, yet they were driven by their instincts and strayed from the path that I hoped they would walk. Their instincts overcame their rationality, succumbing to the darkness they held inside and becoming Heartless and Nobodies. It is as simple as that: ones I trusted, who betrayed me, had forsaken their existence for their instincts. The Replicas themselves are essentially nothing more than facsimiles of real people, connected with the Nobodies by one simple fact: they are entities that have no place in this world" At hearing this, Sairu's visible eye widened and responded, disgust evident in his voice "I see your point. However, I disagree: You can't regard all Nobodies and Replicas as the same as those who betrayed you, and from what I understand, Sora here was the exception. Surely, you are aware of what we did to save Kairi" DiZ remained calm at this statement and responded in silent anger "I am indeed aware of what and you and Sora did for your dear friend. But have you forgotten, Sairu, that it was a Replica that stole the life of your dear friend? Yet, if you ask my opinion, despite your ties with him, it was a situation that benefited us"
At this, Sairu's expression hardened into outrage and he exclaimed "It didn't benefit anyone! A Replica indeed stole the life of Ienzo's Nobody, my best friend, but why should I bear such hatred against all Replicas and Nobodies?! I nearly became engulfed by my hatred for that Replica, but unlike you, I was reminded that I still care for the people that I have left. As long as they're still here" and he slammed a hand on his chest to emphasize his words "I have the resolve to protect them. I will protect them; that's why I have no hatred towards Nobodies or Replicas, because the love and friendships I still cherish overcome the hate I feel towards those who stole Ienzo from me" Hearing this, DiZ was stunned by the depth of the boy's resolve, but at the same time, silently chided him for his stubbornness. After recovering his composure, DiZ turned and serenely left the pod room, without saying a single word.
As Sairu stood there, he turned to gaze at the pod behind him and spoke in a calm level voice "If you were awake right now, I bet even you wouldn't stand for his prejudice. Don't worry. Riku, Naminé and I will sort this mess out, and we'll all be the first thing you see when you wake up. Rest for now... Sora" With those final words, Sairu reached into the pocket of his cloak and pulled out the fob watch, clicked it open, and the watch face glowed a brilliant white light, a portal of a pale blue colour appearing in front of him; with that, Sairu walked into the bright light with Lunar Bahamut still upon his shoulder, to the dimension beyond.
Meanwhile, out in the Destiny Islands, on the islet with the bent paopu tree, Riku was holding a frail sleeping form in his arms, but now, she was beginning to stir, and sure enough, her eyes opened and looked up at the blindfolded Riku. "Are you..." Xion asked. "Riku" he simply responded. "Sora's friend." "Sora? You know Sora?" she asked in surprise as Riku rose to his feet "Yeah" he confirmed as he offered a hand, which she took, rising to her feet. She then said "Thank you. You saved me, but I don't know why... you did" At hearing this, Riku replied "I guess... I just felt like it" he said, walking away towards the bridge. "Riku, please... Tell me more- about Sora and that girl he's always with" she said, stopping him in his tracks. At this, Riku stood, with his back to her, as if contemplating something and then answered "You mean Kairi" "Kairi. That's right. She's the one who looks so much like me" Xion said, as Riku walked back to her "To Sora, she's someone very special"
As she walked towards one of the trees, Xion responded "It's just... I remember things about the two of them. But I'm nothing more than a puppet- something that somebody created. So why would I have... their memories?" she said with a lowered head, placing a hand against the tree she stood by. She then raised her head, turning to face Riku and asked "Do you know where Sora is now?" Riku responded bluntly "That secret stays with me". Hearing this, Xion turned away and asked in response "Why's that?" Riku responded "Xion... your memories... they really belong to Sora" At this, Xion turned to face Riku, shock adorning her face. "So you mean... I'm like, a part of him?" After saying this, she rested her head in her free hand as Riku explained "When his memories were scattered, some of them... found their way inside you. Now, Sora has been put to sleep so that we can piece together his memory. Except..." "You can't, because part of it is inside of me. That means... he can't wake up" Xion finished. "Yeah. You got it. But, if you go with me to Sora right now, we could give the memories inside you back to him" Riku replied.
At this, Xion raised her head from her hand to turn and look at Riku, flicking her bangs out of her eye as she said in a seemingly joking manner "So, do you hate me for taking your friend away from you?" "Nah" Riku remarked. "I guess... I'm just sad" At this, Xion looked dejected as she lowered her head and answered "I'm sorry, but... I can't go with you. It's my friends- they need me. And I need them too" As she spoke, the memory of her encounter with "Getsuryu" flashed in her mind: "Then... just remember: whatever comes your way, never face it alone. If there is anything that asserts our existence otherwise, it is the people we associate with, those we call our friends. If you ever question your identity, your friends can always reassure you".
After hearing her response, Riku walked to her and clasped her shoulder gently. "Maybe... you should take some time and think about it. Figure out who really needs you more. And where you belong" he said reassuringly. "How will I know where I belong, truly?" she asked sadly. "I'm not sure I can promise you I'll come up with the right answer" she said as she looked to the ground again. "Well, the answer you come up with can't just be right for you. It has to be one that works best for everybody, you and your friends, and everyone else" At this, Riku removed his hand from her shoulder and walked away, where a dark corridor waited for him. After he was out of her sight, Xion raised her head again and said sincerely "I'll try. Thank you, Riku"
Meanwhile, in the other dimension, an exhausted Sairu was barely standing and taking ragged breaths, using an unfamiliar looking sword to hold himself up. Unlike his Lunablade, this was a greatsword which sported a larger black blade edged in white, and running down the length of the blade, the phases of the moon were depicted, with a full moon near the tip of the sword and a new moon depicted near the guard, which was modelled after dark grey dragon wings spread wide. Finally, a grey dragon's head with golden eyes was depicted atop the wings with its mouth engulfing the base of the sword.
Then in a flash of light, Sairu's sword reverted to its original form, and overhead, Lunar Bahamut floated, seemingly devoid of exhaustion himself. "You must rest. Your stamina with this power is remarkable, but you have already pushed yourself to your limits" he remarked in a concerning voice. Then, Sairu fell to his knees, his blade lying on the ground beside him. Slowly and arduously, he rose to his feet again. "I... know. But it's not good enough... If I can't push myself, I can't get stronger. As it is... despite having trained for three months, I wasn't and am not able to master that new form. If I were to face a member of the Organization in battle now, I'm likely to fail. Please, just one more... time" but as he finished speaking, or more accurately, rasping, he fell forwards, as the world around him blackened. At this, Lunar Bahamut closed his eyes, focusing his energy and then, the fob watch in Sairu's pocket activated, and the unconscious Sairu was taken back to his room, lying on his front on the four-poster bed, left in a comforting state of dreamless slumber. Unbeknownst to the peacefully sleeping boy, he would not wake for a long period of time.