Chapter 20- Tears, Believe
The next afternoon, Sairu had returned to the pod room to look up at the pod that contained his sleeping friend, gazing with sadness and excitement at once. His sadness stemmed from the events of yesterday, with Xion's disappearance, and yet he still felt that Sora's long-awaited awakening was now closer than ever. Further, after he admitted the truth to Roxas, Sairu also felt as if a weight was lifted off his shoulder, because, despite that the truth may make Roxas act against their wishes, he nonetheless felt somewhat responsible for these events; if he had not picked up that Keyblade and used it on Sora, Roxas would not have had to suffer as he was now, yet was well aware that he was not entirely to blame. The Organization themselves were equally guilty for bringing this pain upon their colleague;
As he stared more, he then felt a presence behind him: Naminé. "Sairu" she spoke quickly as if she couldn't speak again in the next second. "Naminé, what's wrong? You look ready to collapse" "Roxas and Xion... at the... clock tower" she said gasping for breaths in between. Hearing this alarmed Sairu yet excited him. Suddenly he noticed Naminé beginning to fall but he caught her in his arms in time. "Are you alright, Naminé?" he asked worriedly. "I'm fine, just couldn't sleep with worry last night. But you've got to go after them in case... that happens" she stated breathlessly with emphasis on 'that'. Knowing what she meant, Sairu looked at her and nodded in understanding. After making sure she was alright, Sairu proceeded to leave until "Sairu... promise me" Naminé called after him "Promise me you'll come back in one piece" she finished sadly, her eyes fighting to hold back tears. Seeing her deep concern for him touched Sairu, who gave her a determined smile as he nodded. "I promise" With those final words, Sairu disappeared into a dark corridor that waited for him with Naminé watching him with fearful eyes.
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The dark corridor had brought Sairu to Market Street, which took him by surprise, knowing that he was off the clock tower as Naminé had told him. But as Sairu emerged, he did not have time to give it any real thought. Although there wasn't a Heartless in sight, Sairu was suddenly feeling a powerful negative vibe which set him on high alert and his answers were confirmed, as another dark corridor had appeared in front of the pathway, leaving a cloaked figure standing in place. Although he thought he hadn't met him before, Sairu couldn't help but think there was something familiar about this man other than this sense of worry. The figure in question had a tan skin complexion with amber coloured eyes and long silver hair that reached to his mid-back, with bangs framing the sides of his face. The authoritative aura that came from him evoked a chilling thought in Sairu's head: this was the leader of the Organization in person.
"Why are you shocked to see me? Do you not recognise me... Sairu Leonhart?" Hearing his own name unsettled Sairu more so than he was already, but did not answer all the same. Seeing this, his obstacle merely sniggered derisively as he spoke "Interesting... From what memory serves, you were always very talkative and exuberant. Have you really matured that much that you are speechless in my presence? Surely I am familiar to you, even after all this time... when my research took an amazing leap forward" Hearing the word 'research' finally triggered Sairu's memory; the man responsible for everything in his life beyond five years of age. "So you come slithering out of your hole like the snake you are... Xehanort" Sairu spoke with venom in his words, to which Xemnas simply shook his head, all the while with an evil smirk upon his features.
"It really has been a long time since last we were face to face. I am no longer Xehanort... You may address me as your lord, but I am now Xemnas, the Organization's Superior" Xemnas replied mockingly, seemingly amused. Sairu couldn't help but give a light humourless chuckle. "My, I am honoured" he quipped sarcastically. "Never thought the leader himself would directly intervene, but for what reason I wonder" Xemnas merely gave an 'hmph' at Sairu's display of sarcasm. "You and your fellow gadfly have truly complicated matters for my puppet. But in the end, Xion will absorb Roxas into herself, which therefore means we will have a complete puppet with the Keyblade's power as our own. Soon, Kingdom Hearts will be complete and our goal will finally be achieved" Xemnas boasted to which Sairu could only feel disgust but instead, erupted into a bout of uncontrollable laughter.
After his laughter died down, Sairu laid his eyes on an un-amused Xemnas, a cocky smirk upon his face. "You really thought everything through. Your plan is almost perfect, except for two factors: First, you never accounted for Roxas's independence, nor Xion's for that matter; despite that Roxas is weaker now, he can still potentially defeat Xion, making your plan for Xion useless. Secondly: my friends and I, especially myself, are much stronger than we were when we defeated Ansem a year ago. We will stop you no matter what" he finished with a determined gleam in his eyes.
Whilst noting his determination, Xemnas was unfazed as he smirked again, which Sairu took as a bad sign. "It matters not. Either way, I cannot allow you to interfere when she absorbs him. You are correct that I did not foresee Roxas's betrayal, but in his weakened state, along with the fail-safes I have placed, he will be absorbed by her. Normally, I would not stoop so low as to sully my hands exterminating pests like you, but you have forced me to rectify the situation directly. Prepare as I demonstrate the infinite void between our abilities"
As he said these words, he immediately summoned his blades and lunged at Sairu with lightning speed, yet before he struck, Sairu suddenly felt an attack come from behind: repeated laser-like strikes to his back from the real Xemnas as the clone faded from view, only to manifest right next to him and strike him with powerful agile swings of his blades, until Sairu fell forward, landing on his front. Then, Sairu's form suddenly began to distort in a rippling fashion until he vanished completely. Sensing the danger, Xemnas then began looking for him until, as he looked up, noticed Sairu directly overhead, attempting to skewer him with a direct attack, but Xemnas anticipated his movement and created a square barrier of nothing over his head, blocking his attack until: a wave of white energy struck him dead on from behind, yet he appeared relatively unscathed as he saw the real Sairu dash at him with breathtaking speed of his own, using his technique to blind Xemnas temporarily as he charged the Superior with what appeared to be many of him at once.
For a brief instant, Xemnas was clueless as to which one was the real Sairu then he noticed something and blocked the nearest which disappeared in a rippling manner, only for another to reach his target and inflict serious damage with his blade engulfed in seemingly white flames; Sairu's new Night Piercer . Then, to his surprise, the injured Xemnas retaliated with a combo of his own, combining acrobatic skills with sword skills so that Sairu could not predict his movements, allowing the Superior to inflict an identical amount of damage to the boy in question. Following this, all the clones that Sairu had created disappeared in the same rippling fashion as the last one retreated to heal his wounds, but to his horror, a second clone gave him a swift blow to the back, preventing him from doing so, leaving him in worse shape than he was previously. Then, Sairu noticed that everything was being shrouded in darkness only for him to be surrounded by thousands of lasers in a dome fashion with Xemnas floating overhead, his arms held high above him.
As Xemnas then swung his arms down, Sairu instantly knew what this meant, but he was able to quickly conjure his Full Moon Shield, but it took all his concentration to keep it going. And because his main concern was defence, Sairu was unable to absorb the energy to heal himself, even more so because of Xemnas's affinity for the power of nothing. After only half a minute, Sairu was now too weak to maintain it, so the shield collapsed and the last wave hit him dead on, critically injuring him but not fatally. As the technique came to an end, Xemnas set foot on the ground once more, approaching the weakened Sairu laying before him. He was barely conscious, his entire body marked with unusual burn marks, and even some singe marks in his hair. Then, Xemnas conjured his blade one more time, and slashed Sairu across the right side of his face, causing Sairu great pain as he yelled. As Sairu removed his hand, he turned to look at Xemnas, with absolute hatred in his visible eye, which now bore a thin pink line running down from above his singed eyebrow to his lips.
"It appears that you have survived my strongest attack single-handed, an impressive feat indeed. Despite that you clearly did not exhibit your full power, the fact you were able to injure me so thoroughly is a testament of your strength. However, I am still not convinced as to why he chose you to begin with" "What do you mean?" Sairu asked, confused to what he meant. With this, Xemnas turned his back to Sairu, and replied "You are aware of the dormant power within you, are you not? What I will say is that power will lead to a great change to this world one day. For that reason, I have scarred you in acknowledgement of your skills rather than finishing you off. You are too weak now to be of any hindrance. Farewell, we shall likely meet again" With that, Xemnas conjured a dark corridor and disappeared as Sairu lay there, clutching his face in the burning pain from the scar. Suddenly, Sairu felt a searing pain from his back, pain so great that Sairu could do nothing but pass out, his mind having collapsed into shock.
Meanwhile, at the Station Plaza, a cataclysmic battle had concluded between dear friends. As Roxas clutched his head in pain, Xion emerged from darkness, falling to her knees. "Who are you... again?" Roxas asked, his mind erased of seemingly all memory of his close friend. As he approached Xion, "It's weird. I feel like I'm forgetting something really important" he wondered aloud. "You'll be... better off now... Roxas" Xion said calmly albeit weakly. As she then began to fall, Roxas saw and responded to catch her, resting her head in his arm. After he caught her, Xion's body began fading into the light, shard by shard. "Am I... the one who did this to you?" Roxas asked, saddened and confused. "No..." Xion replied weakly. "It was my choice... to go away now. Better that, than to do nothing... and let Xemnas have his way. I belong with Sora. And now, I am going back... to be with him" she elaborated, as she reached for Roxas's hand that was holding her. "Roxas... I need you... to do me a favour. All those that I've captured..." she then said, in pain at the thought "Kingdom Hearts... Set them free". Hearing this evoked confusion in Roxas as he summarized questioningly "Kingdom Hearts... Free them?" He then noticed that Xion's legs were turning into white crystal. "It's too late... for me to undo my mistakes. But you can't let Xemnas... have Kingdom Hearts. You can't"
"Goodbye, Roxas" Xion then said, this time smiling while he looked at her in confusion. "See you again. I'm glad... I got to meet you. "As she said this, she then turned her eyes at the clock tower overhead, as she remembered something "Oh... and of course, Axel, too. You're both my best friends. Never forget" and she reached to hold his head sweetly in her left hand. "That's the truth." With those last words, Roxas's confused expression suddenly changed into horror as he remembered. Grasping her now limp hand defiantly "No! Xion... Who else will I have ice cream with?" he asked despairingly, but Xion did not respond, her expression utterly serene with a matching smile. Then, Roxas noticed that Xion's entire body became encased in crystal-like matter until her body began to fade away in his hands, with Roxas looking at the sky as the remnants of his friend faded. He then noticed that where once laid, a single thalassa seashell remained. As Roxas reached for it, his mind was filled with one last memory: a smiling Xion looking at him atop the clock tower. "Xion" he added as tears cascaded from his eyes. For a time, he kneeled there, crying over the loss of his friend, yet the memory began to fade slightly.
After a while, Roxas's crying stopped, and as he wiped away his tears, his expression now bore anger and determination as he remembered Xion's favour: free Kingdom Hearts. He rose to his feet then made his way to the Market Street, where he noticed an unconscious Sairu on the ground, lying on his left side. Roxas couldn't believe what had happened to him; he somehow knew that Sairu was strong, but for him to be beaten so thoroughly worried him. To Roxas, Sairu had been a comrade he could trust as his mind replayed the events of the previous day: "I was responsible for you birth, Sora and I both. We desired to save our dear friend and the process brought you into existence. By telling you such necessary yet sensitive information, I could only hope to redeem for the suffering we unintentionally put you through... I pray your suffering comes to an end in due time when you have decided". After his recollection, Roxas then approached the unconscious Sairu, and began to lift him, mounting him on his back and made off on his way.
Eventually, Roxas had arrived at his destination: the old mansion. Here he approached the locked gate and propped the unconscious Sairu against the wall. Looking at him with determination, Roxas then brought out a Potion, his last one and poured it over Sairu, healing his wounds slightly. After, Roxas nodded his head towards Sairu and began to depart. After he was out of earshot and sight, a dark corridor opened and out stepped Naminé, who had sensed Roxas approach, and emerged to find him gone, but to her horror, she found Sairu badly injured and she quickly approached him and engulfed them both in a dark corridor, taking him inside.
Meanwhile, after tending to his relatively shallow wounds, Xemnas appeared atop his throne, whilst to his left, Saïx had also appeared. "Xion is no more" he stated bluntly to his lord. Xemnas merely closed his eyes in meditation before he opened them again and responded "It is probably for the best" Before his tone changed from complacent to serious. "Get me back my Keyblade wielder. Fetch me Roxas" With a simple nod of his head, Saïx disappeared to give the orders.
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At the mansion in Twilight Town, Sairu remained unconscious in his room as Naminé worked her magic to heal his wounds desperately, but her efforts were superficial, despite her best. She eventually gave in and stated, defeated, "It's no use" Then to her surprise, a flash of blue light suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and after the light disappeared, Yen Sid stood in place to which Naminé was shocked as tears streaked her face. "DiZ informed me of what had happened to Sairu, and whilst you have done your best to help, I shall take care of him now, my dear" Feeling that this may be the last time she ever saw him, Naminé then proceeded to lean down over Sairu and gave him an innocent peck on the cheek. After she was finished, Yen Sid nodded to her and with a wave of his hands, both he and Sairu disappeared into a blue light.
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It was a peaceful morning in Hollow Bastion, a world that had never seen so much change in its recent years; with the return of the worlds, also came the return of many of its inhabitants, meaning the town was remodelled as best as could be done. Ever since Sora had sealed the Final Keyhole and defeated Ansem a year ago, the Heartless quality had since declined in quality, but the sheer quantity proved to be challenging for the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee. This group had only been established for a year but already, their efforts to rebuild their home were well underway and given their aptitude for combat, keeping Heartless at bay helped the citizens to focus on their reconstruction. Their goal: to return their home to its former beauty, or perhaps into something better.
Leon was finally able to breathe easy after the latest onslaught of Heartless had attacked the town, prompting Cid to propose his latest project for a town defence system, known as the Claymores, which have proven effective against menial Heartless, but the committee nonetheless had to step up to fend off the stronger Heartless, which given their long experience with them, allowed them to finish quickly. Just as Leon had sat down on a sofa in the back room, he noticed a familiar blue light flash before his eyes, which confused and worried him. He hadn't seen that flash of light in over fifteen years, and for him to come could only mean grave news.
His suspicions were confirmed when Master Yen Sid appeared before him, who greeted Leon with a brief nod of the head as he waved his hands and brought the unconscious Sairu before him, which served to horrify Leon. Having not seen his brother in over a year, as well as his present state, Leon was beyond horrified. "What happened? Is he..." he exclaimed angrily and fearful, and to his relief, Yen Sid responded "Fear not, my old friend. He is very much alive, having sustained major damage in a great battle with a dangerous foe. I have healed his physical injuries, but I am afraid he will remain in this coma-like state for some time. Exactly how much time, I cannot say. But I assure you... he is safe now" Hearing this only served to horrify Leon further and he reached into his pocket, pulling out a round object which he brought up to his mouth as he spoke "Cid, we have an urgent situation. Get everyone down here immediately" "Roger that, Leon. But what is the situation, if I may ask?" Cid asked in response. For a few seconds, Leon did not know what to say but then settled "Sairu's home at last, but he's not in good shape"
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Elsewhere, a battle had been waged between two robed figures in black at Memory's Skyscraper: one approached, with long silver hair and a black blindfold over his eyes. Opposite him laid an unconscious Roxas, as Riku rendered him so with a surprise attack. As Riku stood over the unconscious Roxas, he brought the black Keyblade up, before aiming its teeth and striking the ground next to Roxas's head. For a few seconds, Riku stood there in contemplation, until he sensed something: Roxas had recovered, wrestling his Keyblade from the ground and lunged at Riku who leapt back. Riku tried to intercept him with a Dark Firaga attack as Roxas ran at him, but Roxas intercepted the attack by swinging his Keyblade behind and leapt at Riku, but missed as Riku sidestepped him and leapt nearer the skyscraper, with Roxas watching him scornfully.
"Why don't you quit?" Roxas called out angrily. "Come on Sora" Riku retorted playfully, "I thought you were stronger than that". Hearing this, Roxas responded "Get real. Look which one of us is winning" yet this took Roxas by surprise as he heard himself. "So it's true. You really are his Nobody. Guess DiZ was right after all" Riku spoke, which only got on Roxas's nerves. "What are you talking about? I am me. Nobody else!" he retorted, summoning a second Keyblade, the Oathkeeper, to his left hand, and ran to strike. Riku dodged him again, but this time, Roxas was able to rotate and attempted to strike him again. Sensing he couldn't dodge this, Riku conjured a Dark Shield to intercept the attack, but the recoil caused to fall to his knees in pain. "Riku, please! You have to stop him" a girl's voice cried out to Riku pleading. "How many times do I have to beat you?" Roxas stated angrily. "All right" Riku spoke to the voice. "You've left me with no other choice" he stated as he rose to his feet. "What?" Roxas asked, confused. "I have to release the power in my heart- the dark power that I've been holding back" he stated as he removed the blindfold, now looking at Roxas with determination in his eyes "Even... if it changes me forever" he finished, and he proceeded to emit a cry for power as he became shrouded in darkness, with Roxas readying himself for the next round.
As the darkness faded altogether, Riku was no longer himself: as he folded his arms, his new form is revealed to be that of Ansem, the Seeker of Darkness, whilst dressed in the black coat and Ansem's guardian floating behind him. In an instant, he disappeared, only to reappear right in front of Roxas, and the guardian immediately grabbed Roxas, holding him above, squeezing the life out of him until Roxas fell unconscious, dropping his Keyblades, clattering to the ground until they faded away. "I have accepted it" Riku then spoke, now with Ansem's voice.
After dismissing the guardian and placing Roxas on the ground, a dark corridor opened behind him, with Riku-Ansem quickly pulling his hood up, obscuring his face as DiZ emerged behind him. "DiZ... he could feel Sora" Riku-Ansem said. DiZ simply scoffed at the remark. "Oh, he told you how he 'felt', did he? Ridiculous. A Nobody cannot feel anything" he said staring at the unconscious Roxas. "If he had met Sora, things might have been different" Riku-Ansem explained. "Yes, perhaps you are right. But on a separate note, Sairu had engaged in battle with the Organization's Superior yesterday, but unfortunately, he lost the battle" Hearing this took Riku-Ansem by surprise, since he knew Sairu was no pushover in combat, having sparred with him a number of times.; to hear Sairu had lost was not something he expected. "Where is he?" he asked, curious as to the whereabouts of his friend.
"Naminé explained to me that a man wearing blue robes had taken Sairu away to heal his injuries. From what memory serves, that means Sairu is now under Yen Sid's care, or has been sent home to recover. Either way, it is now up to us to cross the last bridge to restoring Sora. We must depart" With that, DiZ conjured a dark corridor and walked into it, while Riku-Ansem picked up and threw Roxas over his shoulder as he followed after DiZ. As he journeyed through the dark corridor, he was filled with worry for Sairu as he remembered all they went through at Castle Oblivion, and the lengths they went to restore Sora. But, he also knew that despite everything, Sairu was powerful with a strong heart that loved those around him. His growth had stunned Riku beyond recognition, and knew, just as the moon was blanketed by shadows, he knew that in time, the moon's pale light would shine in the night sky once again, as dictated by its cycle.
A/N: And done! My third story is now complete. Hope you all enjoyed this rendition, as I think it's my best one yet! Now, I'm going to be away, sadly for the next two weeks, three tops as I take a long-awaited trip. When I get back, I assure you I will have another great story. And in addition, I would very much like to write a prequel when I return, about the events of the past that I never got to mention.
See you again soon! Please enjoy and review!
P.S. Complements go to Gry17 who gave me the idea for the battle at the beginning. Thanks again.