"I have long dreamt of this day, Reclaimer."
How long has it been now? Four months? Damn. Guess that's what happens when real life decides to bring the Hammer of Reality down on your head, huh?
Well, I won't keep you. Anything I have to say can wait until the end of the chapter. Take your time. I might go pour myself a cup of hot cocoa while I wait.
Disclaimer: [Insert generic and possibly comedic statement about not owning the Kingodm Hearts Franchise, while still owning all original characters here]
Chapter Thirty Two: A Parting of Ways and a Reunion
-LD-
Wednesday, June 30th 4794 P.C.
Alliance HQ
The Frozen Fields
Riku stared blankly at the metal door in front of him, silently wondering what Xanthos could possibly want to see him for, especially considering the fact that he was about to leave for Radiant Garden to drop off Hayner, Pence and Olette.
"Well, are you gonna knock, or what?" Dawn's voice asked from the black box clipped to Riku's belt. "We're on a bit of a time-crunch, you know. Or do you want to miss Kairi's birthday?" Riku grimaced at the thought and raised his hand to knock on the door.
Only for it to slide open, revealing Xanthos' form in the doorway. "Are you going to stand out here all day or what?" The Chaser asked, beckoning for Riku to enter.
The room in question was one of the largest Riku had seen so far in the new Alliance Headquarters. Several suits of segmented pieces of armor, all an identical shade of bluish-gray and shining in the light despite their age lined three of the four walls. The fourth wall however, was lined with no fewer than seven iron furnaces, with large silver colored fires burning within. Workbenches filled most of the floor in the room, covered with various materials ranging from broken pieces of armor to a large cobra snoozing on a pile of broken hammers.
"What's with the snake?" Riku asked, pointing at the sleeping serpent.
Xanthos turned his head to see where Riku was pointing. "Oh, that's Doc. My sister's pet," he said, striding toward one of the work benches. Doc slowly opened one eye and blinked twice while staring at Riku before yawning and going back to sleep. "Don't mind him. He's a lazy creature, just like all the other Cure Cobras."
"'Cure Cobras'?" Riku repeated as he followed Xanthos.
"Their venom heals," the Chaser explained. "And they grow to be pretty damn big. I've been using Doc for a few experiments since Jenna arrived with him. He's actually the reason you recovered so quickly."
"He is?" Riku turned to look at the cobra, which seemed to be wearing a smug smile on its face.
"You know it," Xanthos said, shoving a pile of scrolls and assorted metal pieces off of a nearby workbench, causing Riku to wince from the sudden cacophony of sound. "But he's not why I called you in here. This is." Riku glanced down at the workbench, where a single, silver bracelet decorated with faintly glowing blue lines running across it could be seen.
"You brought me here to give me jewelry?" Riku asked, staring at the bracelet. Xanthos smacked him on the back of the head.
"It's not jewelry, you brat," he said. "It's armor. Put it on."
Riku continued to stare at the bracelet for a moment before looking back at Xanthos and saying "I know you're old, but I think even you should know that a bracelet doesn't exactly count as armor." This, of course, earned him another slap on the back of the head.
"Just shut up and put it on," the Chaser growled.
The silver-haired teen complied with a chuckle and slipped the bracelet onto his right wrist. Much to his surprise, the bracelet shrank in size once it was in place until it fit snugly against his skin. The blue lights briefly became brighter before returning to their normal intensity.
"Is it supposed to shrink like that?"
"Yes," Xanthos said, lifting up Riku's arm to examine the bracelet. "It's synching up with your mental wavelengths, so hold still."
"And why is it synching up to my brain?" Riku asked, doing as Xanthos said and remaining as still as possible while the lights on the bracelet grew brighter once again.
"Because it needs to synch up with the person wearing it," the Chaser explained. "Keyblade Armor is finicky. Each individual set of Keyblade Armor is unique, specifically designed for the wearer. Several sets may end up being nearly identical, but there is always something different. Whether that difference lies in color, general appearance, or even how it was made, the fact still stands."
Xanthos grabbed hold of Riku's wrist and hoisted it up to eye level. "When it began the synching process, it automatically began customizing itself," he continued. "Not only that, but you'll be able to activate your armor with a thought, as well as modify its appearance as you wish."
Letting go of the teen's wrist, Xanthos strode away toward a large sheet of paper nailed into the wall that was covered with a wide variety of diagrams, equations, sketches of the human brain, and a particularly well drawn image of Xanthos kicking Axel with a humorously large boot.
"And of course, I've gone above and beyond the necessary requirements for crafting your armor," the Chaser said proudly. "For starters, I improved on the old mind-synch formula and implementation techniques. Unlike the old design, which required one to wear one or both pauldrons on their person at all times so they could easily hit it to activate the armor, I've made it so the mind-synch is constantly active, allowing you to activate your armor with a single thought. That and it allowed me to reduce the size of the visible armor pieces, so your enemies won't suspect a thing."
Riku barely had time to process what Xanthos had said before he found himself pulled forcibly half way across the room to a space void of papers, tools, material and tables. "Now, your armor is truly unique, even by Keyblade Armor standards," Xanthos rambled on. "Previous suits of Keyblade Armor were nothing more than a glorified shield with one purpose: to defend the wearer against the forces of Darkness and provide them with a somewhat-stable environment in the Lanes Between. Yours however is designed for so much more. As such, I've decided to call it the Advanced Keyblade Armor Mark I."
Riku fixed him with a deadpan stare. "The 'Advanced Keyblade Armor Mark I'?" He repeated.
"My design, my name. I'm certainly not going to call it something like AKA. That's just ridiculous." Xanthos defended. "Just activate your armor and I'll explain most of what it can do. But I'll need you to hand over that device on your belt storing your AI."
Instinctively, Riku took a step away from the Chaser. "And why would I do that?" He demanded.
"Because it will save us time and trouble," Xanthos said. "I've already gone over all of this with your AI while you were recovering from your injuries. Isn't that right, Dawn?"
"It's alright, Riku," Dawn's voice spoke from Riku's side. "We can trust him."
The silver haired teen glanced down at his side where Dawn's storage unit was clipped to his belt.
"Are you sure?" He asked.
"Just do what the man says so we can get off this snowball," Dawn quipped.
Riku sighed in defeat and handed the unit over to Xanthos. "So, how do I activate my armor?"
"Simple. Just will it to activate," Xanthos said.
Still unsure about the whole situation, Riku glanced down at the bracelet. In his mind's eye, he imagined a suit of knights' armor appearing over his body. Immediately, he felt a cold, tingling sensation around his wrist where the bracelet was. The blue lights on the bracelet began to shine brighter and brighter until they completely washed out the room around Riku. For a few seconds, he couldn't see anything but the light.
When it finally faded, however, he found himself staring though what appeared to be a slightly tinted piece of glass. Xanthos had somehow produced a full-sized mirror, allowing Riku to take in the appearance of his armor.
The armor was segmented, covering the more vital parts of his body, while allowing for maximum flexibility and movement. It was mostly the shoulders, chest and back, forearms, knees, lower legs, hands, wrists and feet that had actual armor pieces on them. The sections of armor were colored silver, with a faint bluish hue to it that caught the light at just the right angle to shine brightly. On the side of his gauntlets and on the back of his ankles, Riku noticed sharp hooks that curved along the edge of his armor. The hooks, oddly enough, shared a similar design to the blade of his Way to the Dawn.
Underneath the armor segments was a full-body, black flex suit made out of some organically-designed material that Riku couldn't help but feel as though it had been made to look like muscle. His face was hidden by an angular silver helmet with a visor-tinted the color of a golden dawn that was set in place over his eyes. A pair of prongs lined with golden patterning jutted from either side of the helmet and were angled back from the head and at a slightly upwards angle. A black cape was fixed to his shoulders, fluttering softly in a non-existent breeze.
Dawn let out a low whistle. "Not bad. Lookin' good there Mister Badass."
"Thanks," Riku said as he turned to face Xanthos. "So, why exactly did I have to give you Dawn just to put on my armor?"
"Because now I'm going to transfer Dawn into your armor," Xanthos said as he turned Riku around and began doing something to the armor on the back of his neck.
"You're going to what?" Riku asked, as he felt something jab him sharply through the armor.
"I'm transferring your AI into your armor," Xanthos repeated. "Without an AI to monitor the systems, this version of the Keyblade Armor is no different than the original designs that have been used for thousands of years. And where's the fun in that? Things get boring if they stay the same forever and ever. Change is important. After all, what else makes us truly human, but change?"
Riku winced as whatever Xanthos was doing caused a minor electrical shock. Before he could gripe about it, the visor in front of him lit up with several holographic projections.
"There we go!" Xanthos said cheerily. "Now that Dawn's been connected to your armor's systems, you should see a HUD appear. Do you see it?"
"What's a HUD?" Riku asked, watching dozens of blue numbers fill his vision.
"Heads up Display," the Chaser simplified. "It should appear as a holographic display inside your visor. Do you see it?"
"All I see are a bunch of numbers," Riku grumbled. Suddenly the numbers vanished. In the upper corner of the visor, a small box appeared with Dawn's face in it. "There we go, I can see it now."
"Good, let's get started then," Xanthos turned his back on Riku and went to pick something up off of the table behind him.
"Sorry, that was my fault," Dawn admitted sheepishly. "I was running a diagnostic to make sure none of my systems were damaged during the transfer. Did you know your architecture is very similar to the Dawn's First Light?"
"Don't get any funny ideas," Riku warned her.
-LD-
Cynthia's Manor
Unidentified World
Cynthia rose from her seat at the grand dining table. The majority of her 'children' were present, with only those currently off world having been excused from the weekly supper. The idle chatter had ceased, leaving the hall as silent as a tomb. All eyes were on the twins, Kiram and Etos, having returned from their mission to reclaim the Compass after nearly a month.
Proudly, Kiram raised the Compass; a black-orb decorated in the long-unused language of the Chasers, and offered it to Cynthia. A grin spread rapidly across her face as she all but sprinted to her sons' side. She took the Compass in her hands and turned back toward the rest of the room.
"This, my children, is the Compass," she said. "After the Keyblade War, the surviving Chasers scattered themselves across the stars and placed themselves inside a series of Cryptum, which would place them into a preserved sleep, keeping them alive until they were one day awakened to pass their knowledge on to newer generations." She turned and strode around the table, heading back toward her seat.
"The Compass contains the location of all thirteen Cryptum, written in the language of the Chasers. A language that no one today knows, aside from me." Cynthia raised the Compass to eye-level and began to trace a series of lines across it. Each line began to glow a faint crimson. The Compass floated away from Cynthia as the light intensified. Then faded away.
Everyone in the room looked on with confused expressions. Then the light's flared up again. This time, a holographic figure began to take form around the Compass. It looked like a man with shoulder length hair, staring blankly at his semi-transparent feet. Then the figure looked up, and Cynthia let out a cry of shock.
"Hello, Cynthia," the image of Xanthos said, glaring at her with eyes glowing silver.
"Xanthos," Cynthia barely managed to whisper. "But, how?"
"I don't even need to see you to know you're the one who was after the Compass," the image of Xanthos continued, ignoring Cynthia in the process. "Who else would know about the Compass after all this time? More so, who else would send a pair of incompetent children to retrieve it but you?" Kiram and Etos both winced.
"They think they were so clever, sneaking into my current home and stealing the Compass, which was ever so conveniently placed out in the open with no security measures in place to guard it," the image said. "I imagine they were oh so proud of themselves for completing your task."
'Told you it was too easy," Etos whispered to Kiram.
"Shut it," Kiram whispered back through his forced smile.
"Needless to say, this isn't the real Compass," the Xanthos image continued. "And this isn't even the real me. This is a recording that can only be activated by you, Cynthia, because only you would be so rash as to attempt to activate the Compass without verifying the authenticity of the device." Cynthia flushed red at the image's words. "I've destroyed the real Compass, Cynthia."
"You what?!" Cynthia roared.
"That's right. I destroyed it," the image continued smugly. "It's a shame I can't see your face. But I digress, and the recording time is almost up. So I'll get to my point. I haven't forgiven you for what you did during the War. So, I'm going to make good on my promise, and I'm going to kill you. By activating this, you've sent me your location. And I'm coming for you."
The image flickered and vanished as the fake Compass fell to the floor. The entire room looked up at Cynthia with mildly terrified expressions. Cynthia gazed blankly at the fake Compass for a few moments.
"I vote that we try to slip out of here before someone notices us," Etos suggested to his twin, whispering through the nervous grin plastered on his face.
"I'm all for that," Kiram muttered. "On the count of three?"
"One."
"Two."
The Compass lit up again and a female voice filled the room before the twins could reach 'three'.
"Thank you for utilizing the Xanthos message delivery system," it said. "This device will now self-destruct. Enjoy your trip to Hell."
The reaction in the room was instantaneous. Several of her children began casting shielding spells, while Cynthia's hands flew out in front of her, driven by instinct. A shield of sapphire over a foot thick appeared from thin air an instant before the Compass exploded with a tremendous thu'um. The shield held against the explosion, but was knocked backwards, leaving her with a massive lump on the side of her head.
It took her a couple of minutes for the room to stop spinning around her and for the ringing in her ears to fade away. Her once illustrious dining table, a work of art in and of itself, was covered in scorch marks and deep scratches where shrapnel had torn through it. The end section of the table had been completely obliterated.
Several of her children closest to the focus of the blast had managed to cast protective spells in time, or had been shielded by others. However, more than fifteen were wounded, or had bits of the table jutting out of their bodies in various places. Their moans of pain filled the hall like a grim choir.
Twelve of her children, however, hadn't been as fortunate as the rest. Their bodies were shredded, blackened and burned to a point beyond recognition. She wouldn't know who had been killed until she did a full headcount of all the children currently in her home.
"And here you thought you were safe."
Cynthia's blood ran cold as a deep, gravelly voice filled the hall. The kind of voice that radiated power, demanded respect, and commanded reverence. The hall fell silent, save for the muffled groans of pain from the injured. Standing in the entryway to the dining hall was a dark figure, his appearance partially hidden by the light behind him.
"Did you not claim that on this world, the 'ghosts' of your past could not find you?" The man said as he strode into the light. "Perhaps you should have heeded my warnings, Cynthia."
With each stride, the man's features became steadily clearer, as though he were emerging from a thick fog. His clothing composed of a white and black coat with a red inner lining, which was worn over a white shirt with two thin black belts, as well as white gloves and calf-high black boots. He was bald except for thin eyebrows and a curled, silver goatee. His ears were pointed and his eyes glittered like topaz. He had broad, hunched shoulders and a crooked back, appearing overall as a somewhat feeble old man. But Cynthia knew better. His posture was certainly deceiving given what he was capable of.
"Are you sure you're well enough to be moving around?" Cynthia asked, moving forward to help guide the man to a nearby seat. "You're still recovering from regaining yourself as a whole."
"I've fought my share of battles in worse shape than I am now," the man said, fixing her with a bemused look. "You should be worried about yourself. Your fellow Chaser now knows for certain that you are alive. And I imagine he will find a way to be here in less than a day."
"By which time I will be long gone," Cynthia growled. "I can't allow him to stop me. Not when we're so close-"
"'We'?" The man repeated. "'We' are not ready. 'We' are nowhere near ready."
"But I thought that once you were recovered-"
"Patience, girl. Something you should have learned by now," the man interrupted. "Maleficent is moving forward with her plans to procure the Cornerstone. We shall let her. She doesn't know what sort of powers she is attempting to harness. She has no appreciation for true Darkness, only those fangled shadows she believes to be powerful. She will only destroy herself. And so, we wait. We watch. We bide our time until Maleficent lays the groundwork for our plans. Then we shall act. Do I make myself clear?"
"Clear as crystal," Cynthia said, bowing her head toward the man. "Master Xehanort."
-LD-
Alliance HQ
Hangar
The Frozen Fields
Hayner tapped his foot impatiently as he kept his eyes trained on the entryway to the half-frozen over hangar.
"Would you stop that?" Axel grumbled from his perch on a stack of crates. "They'll get here when they gets here."
"They're late!" Hayner retorted. "And it's freezing out here. Seriously, would it have killed you guys to put some heating out here?"
"Hey, would you want to crawl around the heating ducts with an ice pick, clearing out ice chunks that go on for yards and yards?" The red-haired pyro retorted.
Hayner seemed to consider it for a few moments, before shaking his head. "Point taken."
"Exactly," Axel said, laying his head back down on his makeshift pillow.
"We're all cold," Pence added, shivering in spite of his thick coat. "You don't hear us complaining."
"You're cold? Try growing up on a tropical island where it doesn't snow," Riku said as he and Xanthos walked into the hangar. "Then you can complain about being cold."
"'Bout time you showed," Hayner said, suddenly cheerful. "I'm sick of all of this cold. Can we go now?"
"Sure," Riku said, leading the way toward where the Dawn's First Light Mk. II was docked. "I've gotta get you guys dropped off in Radiant Garden before I head home, and if we don't hurry, I'm going to be late."
"Says the guy who took his sweet time getting here," Hayner muttered to Pence.
"Do you have a wedding to go to or something?" Axel asked, leaping down from the crates to walk alongside the silver-haired Wielder. "Secret rendezvous with your lover?"
"No," Riku fixed Axel with a deadpan stare. "If we don't hurry, I might miss Kairi's birthday."
"Wait a second. You're going to ditch us to go see Kairi on her birthday?" Olette said, grabbing Riku by his arm and spinning him around to face her. "You're not even going to offer to take us along, even though you know we're her friends too?"
"I… uh… I mean," Riku stammered, taken slightly aback by the glare the brunette had fixed him with.
"We're coming with you," Pence said, clapping Riku on the shoulder as he walked past. "You might as well make your peace with that."
"You guys do realize that I don't have enough food to keep you guys fed for a long time, right?" Riku said as Hayner and Pence passed him.
"We stocked you with dehydrated military rations," Xanthos said. "You've got enough food to feed all of you for at least a month."
"Thanks," Riku grumbled.
"Don't sound so down," the Chaser said with a laugh. "You think you'd enjoy the company."
Riku spared a quick glance at the trio from Twilight Town as they made their way onto the Dawn. "I guess you're right," he admitted. "It might be nice to actually travel with a group for a change."
"Glad you see it that way," Nikki said, surprising Riku as she draped her arm around his shoulders. "I'm coming with you as well."
"You are?" Riku asked. Nikki nodded.
"Duh. I've spent the last seven years of my life following my Master around," she explained. "Do you really think that I'm going to pass up an opportunity to go somewhere without her supervision for a change?" Riku was about to respond, but she cut him off. "Hell no! So you're stuck with me, whether you like it or not, until I get to Radiant Garden and secure a ship of my own."
"Fantastic," Riku muttered as the sapphire-eyed brunette, happily let go of him to grab hold of her bag.
"Sounds like you're in for one hell of a time," Xanthos said, offering his hand to Riku. "It's been a pleasure, Riku."
"Same to you, Xanthos," Riku said, accepting his hand. He paused as they shook. Xanthos' movement's seemed a bit stiff and he wore an almost unnoticeable expression of anxiety. "Is something wrong?"
"Hmm? Oh. It's nothing," the Chaser said, nonchalantly waving the question off. "I've just… got an old score to settle." Riku's eyes narrowed as a flicker of gold passed through the silver in Xanthos' eyes.
"If you say so," the silver-haired teen said. "I won't press you for details, but if you're out for revenge, it usually doesn't end well. I should know."
"Thanks for the advice, kid," Xanthos said with a chuckle. "But it isn't anything like that. I just have a promise to keep that's almost five-thousand years overdue."
"Good luck with that, then," Riku said, turning away from the Chaser.
"Oh, and Riku," Xanthos added as the teen walked away, "be sure to let me know how that armor works out for you. I'm looking forward to hearing about it." Riku gave him a thumb up to show that he had heard him, as he headed begrudgingly toward his now slightly crowded ship.
"You guys all ready to go?" He grumbled as he reached the group waiting for him to open his ship up to them. They all responded with what was more or less a general 'yes', except for Olette, who had been pulled away briefly by Xanthos.
"Is there something wrong?" She asked as he pulled her just out of earshot of the others.
"Nothing," Xanthos gave her a reassuring smile. "I just wanted to remind you that I expect weekly reports on your progress. And to keep practicing your Forging whenever you have the chance."
"Of course, Master," Olette said with a smile. Her expression, however, quickly slipped. "Are you sure I'm ready to go out to other worlds? I mean, I only got the Keyblade less than a month ago. How can you be sure that I'm ready?"
"Because I'm the one that trained you," Xanthos said, grasping the teen's shoulder reassuringly. "If I didn't think you were ready to go out on your own for a while, then I wouldn't be letting you. You can stay here and run simulations all you like, but in the end, experience in the field is better than the experience you can get from a safe simulation." He released her and gestured for her to head back to the Dawn. "Besides, I have an errand I need to run off-world and I don't know how long I'm going to be away. It could be a matter of days, a couple of weeks, hell, I might even be gone for the next year or two."
"A year?" Olette repeated. "Why so long?"
Xanthos' smile quickly turned into a mild grimace. "It's… extremely personal. Something that I need to take care of on my own. And quickly."
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Olette asked. Xanthos shook his head.
"Not this time, kiddo. Not this time," he answered. "Now get going. Your adventure awaits!" He pushed her toward the ship.
"Alright everyone, let's go," Riku called out. "I'm running behind as it is."
"If you hadn't taken your sweet time getting here, you wouldn't be," Hayner pointed out as he boarded the ship.
"Oh, shut up," Riku grumbled, closing the hatch behind him as the last of his new passengers passed him.
Xanthos waited until the Dawn had rocketed off into the sky and he was left alone in the hangar. The smile he had been wearing vanished instantly, replaced with a venomous scowl. A dark portal opened up next to him. Without hesitation, he turned on his heel and stepped through.
-LD-
Thursday, July 1st 4794 P.C.
Destiny Islands
Kim Jensen idly watched the gentle lapping of the ocean against the beach of the small, island off of the coast of Exin. It had been a miserable two months on this backwater world. Not only did she have to play along with the charade of being friends with the local Keyblade Wielders that Naleten had crafted, she was stuck waiting for them to return so the plan could be carried out.
As it was, when the familiar sounds of a dark portal opening reached her ears, she couldn't help but grin. Finally, the time had come to put her mother's plan into action. Finally she could drop this damned charade. She turned to welcome her company, only to have her smile and eagerness vanish as her caramel-color-haired sister stepped out with some young man in tow.
"Keila," Kim spat her sister's name like poison.
"Kimberly," Keila's voice was filled with equal loathing.
Kim ignored her and glanced at the young man standing disinterestedly in the background. "Devin."
The young man nodded stiffly at her. "Kim."
"You're the contact?" Keila asked, without even so much as a 'How do you do?'
"For Mother, at least," Kim replied. "She wants you to follow along with Maleficent's plans for the time being. Her lackeys are gathering on an island fourteen kilometers north of here. I suggest you get going."
"I guess I should say thank you," Keila muttered as Kim brushed past.
"I guess you should get going," Kim retorted. "The sooner you get this done, the sooner I can go home." And with that the blonde, shoved her way past the two and vanished into the night.
"Well, she's always a thrill to be around," Devin commented with a hint of sarcasm. "Her acting personality is better than her usual bitchy self."
"That's Kim for you," Keila noted as she began to walk north. "You've met her before?"
"Once or twice," Devin said as he fell into step beside her. "I got contracted to acquire the same artifact as her a few months back. Naturally, I beat her to it. So I lauded it over her for a good two weeks before ditching her. From what I've heard, your 'mother' wasn't too happy about that."
"So basically, you're the real reason Kim got stuck here," Keila simplified. "Not bad."
"Hey, it's not like I intended to do that," Devin said defensively. "Boy, you should have seen her try and seduce me to get the artifact. It was said in a laugh-out-loud kind of way."
"You must have an iron will to be able to resist Kim's womanly charms," Keila said dryly. "Her looks alone make her practically every guy's type."
"Well, she's not mine," Devin said with a shrug.
"I highly doubt that," Keila scoffed.
"Is she a female?"
"Duh."
"Then she's not my type."
That got Keila to stop in her tracks, while Devin continued to walk on, seemingly without a care in the world.
"Hold on a sec. You're telling me that you're…"
"Eeyup," Devin replied with a small grin. "I just don't flaunt it in everyone's face." The grin on his face slipped and fell as a small beep-beep-beep began to play from the inside of his pocket. "Excuse me for a moment."
He produced a small object that looked like it had been made from molten silver, somehow confined to an egg-like shape. The silver began to glow with a faint red light as it shifted and displayed a series of numbers and letters, all of which vanished quickly before Keila could get a decent look at them.
Devin, however, seemed to understand whatever it was. With a mildly irritated grunt, he tucked the silver egg away inside its pouch on his belt and turned to face the caramel-haired Keyblade Wielder.
"That's my cue," he sighed. "Duty calls."
"Wait, you're leaving?" Keila asked, feeling slightly confused and left in the dark. "I thought you were supposed to stick with me until I finished the job."
"No, I was only paid up until you retrieved Oathbreaker," he pointed at the staff of ironwood currently strapped to the Wielder's back. "I've only tagged along this far because I wanted to see Oathbreaker in action. But alas, Fate has other plans for me, it would seem." He pretended to faint dramatically.
"Okay, now I see it," Keila said with a smirk at her companion's antics.
"I take offense to that," the mage said as he dusted himself off. He fixed Keila with a serious expression for a moment, as though he were about to tell her that her goldfish had died.
"What?" The Wielder asked.
"In the temple, when Caritas spoke to you, she mentioned something about being bound to two Darknesses, remember?" He asked.
Keila winced. Of course she remembered. Caritas' parting words had plagued her mind, while she was awake and asleep for the past five days she had spent traveling with Devin. As they walked through the portals of Darkness, she had done nothing but replay the spirit's words over and over again. "Your fate is bound to two beings of Darkness and unless you free yourself from them, you will NEVER become a Keyblade Master."
As if that weren't enough, her dreams were wrought with visions of her abandoning Maleficent, therefore defying her mother's orders. And when her mother came to punish her, Keila would find the Wielder that looks just like her, the Keyblade's Chosen One, standing by her side. He would summon his Keyblade and protect Keila from Cynthia, warning her that Keila was free from her now and forever. And all these dreams had served was to add to the teen's confusion.
"I remember," Keila replied after a moment, keeping a perfectly blank expression on her face. "Why?"
"Because I can tell you've been thinking a lot about it over the past few days," the mage answered. "I may not be the best conversationalist, or the best at reading people, for that matter, especially after knowing them for less than a week. But you're wearing your emotions on your sleeve. And they're decorated with lots of bright neon signs and advertising cheap booze and expensive hook-"
"Get to the point, Devin."
"Right. Sorry," he grinned sheepishly. "As I was saying, you've obviously got a lot going on in your mind. I'm not going to pry or anything, but if you feel the need to talk to someone you can trust, then I want you to give me a buzz."
"And how do I know I can trust you?" The Wielder asked, doing her best to give him a suspicious stare.
"Because I could have killed you at any time during this little soiree of ours and taken Oathbreaker from your corpse," he said flatly. "Look, I only work for myself. Sure, I'll do a job here and there for the highest bidder, but in the end, I don't sell information. You could tell me about a plot to assassinate a VIP and I'll zip my lip and be on my merry way, regardless of how much someone might offer me for the information.
"But this also brings me to my next point, and this is more of a personal request than anything else," he continued, once again adopting a serious demeanor. "After you use Oathbreaker to complete your mission here, I want you to give it to me."
"Wait, what?" Keila stammered. "Why do you want Oathbreaker?"
"Why else?" Devin asked. "Oathbreaker is one of, if not the most powerful weapon in existence. I don't want anyone that doesn't need it to have it. Maleficent has her Heartless and an unknown quantity of Nobodies on her side. Your mother has over two-hundred loyal Keyblade Wielders to do her work, and the Keyblade is nothing to sneeze at." He stepped in close to Keila so they were less than a foot apart. "Do you really think either of them will need such a powerful weapon?"
"Umm… No?"
"Exactly. So I want you to take this," Devin grabbed Keila's hand and placed a silver egg-thing into it, identical to the one he had produced earlier. Keila let out a gasp. The egg was cold as ice, but Devin's hands were surprisingly colder. "When you're done using Oathbreaker, I want you to whisper these words into the egg, 'After the game, the King and the Pawn go into the same box.' That'll open up a portal directly to where I am. Then you'll toss me Oathbreaker, and I seal it away somewhere where Maleficent and your mother can never find it."
"Okay, I got it," Keila said, tucking the egg away safely. "Where are you going?"
"To the great beyond," Devin said dramatically. "It's a big universe with an infinite number of worlds to explore. Who knows where my next job or whim might take me?" He spun around in a circle, arms outstretched to the heavens. "But, if you're worried that you'll never see me again, then all you have to do is say my name into the egg, and we'll be able to communicate." He held out his hand to the Wielder. "It's been fun, Keila. Friends?"
Keila stared at his hand for a moment, before a smile crept onto her face. She gripped Devin's hand tightly.
"Friends."
-LD-
Naminé slowly opened her eyes, once again finding herself standing on the stained-glass pathway lined with countless doors. The man in the black cloak, the fragment of Xanthos' heart, was waiting for her patiently by one of the doors.
"So, I can't even go to sleep without coming here?" The blonde grumbled as she approached the fragment. She had been hoping to catch just a quick nap before the Kingdom arrived at the Destiny Islands. A quick dreamless nap, especially since she and Kairi had spent most of the trip to the Destiny Islands getting to know Nanaki a bit better. And the trip wasn't that long from Padosoan.
"I told you, I needed your help," the fragment replied, without the slightest hint of emotion in his voice. "So you don't really have a choice."
"Everyone has a choice," Naminé pointed out. "It's what makes us human."
"Well, you don't get a choice in this matter," the fragment said.
"I could just wake up," the blonde retorted. "Then I won't have to worry about it."
"You'd have to sleep sooner or later," the fragment said. "And the longer you go without sleep the deeper you'll fall into it when you finally cave. So, you'll just have to make your peace with it."
Grumbling, Naminé followed the fragment as he opened a door and stepped inside. Naminé glanced briefly at the obsidian plaque, decorated with the image of a broken spear and a shattered shield.
Through the door was the wall of light that Naminé had been expecting. She stepped through it, just like she had the first time she had followed the fragment through Xanthos' memories. The light quickly faded, revealing what had once clearly been a thriving city, only now it lay in ruins.
Homes were consumed by flames that roared as they consumed everything in their destructive paths. Weakened structures collapsed under their own weight and left debris scattered on the streets below.
And yet, despite the destruction and chaos reigning around them, numerous Keyblade Wielders threw everything they had at one another. Naminé watched, horrified, as a woman in a black cloak thrust her Keyblade through the chest of a man clad in an organic-appearing body suit. She had barely pulled her blade out of the man's body before the building she was closest to collapsed on her and buried her alive, brought down by some unknown caster's Gravity spell.
Naminé let out a small shriek of surprise as the wall closest to her exploded outward, scattering chunks of stone and dust onto the street as a man in a black cloak was thrown heavily across her field of vision. The man struck the ground once before flipping himself back onto his feet and sliding back a couple of yards.
His hood flew off, exposing his short-cut bronze hair, and striking silver eyes. Though his face lacked several of the x-shaped scars Naminé was familiar with, the Xanthos that had flown out of the building couldn't have been more than two or three years younger in appearance than when she had first met him
Xanthos' breathing came heavily and ragged as he stared through the hole his body had made in the wall. Sweat dripped heavily off of his brow, forcing him to dry it off with the back of his gloved hand.
A mountain of a man stepped out of the hole after Xanthos. Like many of the other Wielders, he was clad in a crimson, organic-looking body suit and had his face hidden behind a solid black helmet. The Keyblade he clutched in his hands was longer than what seemed reasonably useful, and was thicker than the man's entire upper body. Yet, he swung it around with as much effort as a child would swing a twig.
The man swung his Keyblade down in a wide arc, but both his size and the size of his weapon cost him the speed advantage that Xanthos had with his slimmer build. The Chaser vanished in a blur as the Keyblade hit the ground like the hammer of the gods, shattering the pavement and leaving a small crater behind. A blink of the eye later and he was behind the larger man, bringing his No Name down on his head.
If the attack did any damage, the larger man showed no signs of it. Without missing a beat, he spun around and drove his massive fist into Xanthos' chest, sending the Chaser hurtling into a light post, which bent and snapped under the sudden impact.
The big man let out a deep, rumbling chuckle and advanced on the crumpled heap that was Xanthos.
"Over here, muscles!"
Both the brute and Naminé turned as the sound of a voice distinctly female reached their ears. The brute however, had no time to react before a silver blur slammed into his face, knocking him flat on his rear. The blur landed on the ground next to Xanthos, revealing that it was actually a woman dressed in a silver-cloak, rather than a black one, decorated with ruby-red crosses around the edge of the sleeves. Naminé gave a small gasp as she caught sight of the woman's bronze hair and silver eyes, and even the shape of her face, all similar to those of the fallen Chaser.
"You moron. I told you to be careful," she said, her hands glowing with green light as she cast a healing spell on Xanthos. "You could've gotten yourself killed."
"I'm still here, aren't I?" Xanthos coughed as the woman helped him to his feet. "Thanks, sis."
"No problem, big brother," the woman said, summoning a green floral patterned Keyblade to her hand as she and Xanthos turned to face the giant of a man. "What do you say we take care of this guy so we can get to the portal in time?"
"Ladies first," Xanthos said, gesturing for her to proceed with the first attack.
The woman rolled her eyes at him, but still charged the brute, who had reclaimed his massive Keyblade and was already preparing to attack the twins. Before he could so much as swing his blade around, Xanthos appeared behind him. The Chaser's Keyblade flashed to life and was quickly pressed against the larger man's throat, cutting off air flow.
"Now, Jenna!" Xanthos shouted. The silver-cloaked Wielder let out a triumphant howl as she leapt into the air. Light surrounded her Keyblade, taking the shape of several sharp, curved spikes. And she drove the blade home into the center of the man's chest.
-LD-
Friday, July 2nd 4794 P.C.
Destiny Islands
Sora drew in a deep breath as he stepped onto the shores of Exin. It certainly felt good to be home, even though he knew they wouldn't be staying for very long.
Granted, the only reason they were even back was to celebrate Kairi's birthday with a proper celebration for the first time since the islands were swallowed by Darkness.
The teen glanced behind him as he led their ragtag group toward the heart of the island. Roxas and Naminé were walking arm in arm, enjoying their first real experience of the atmosphere on the Islands. Kairi was walking alongside Nanaki, and pointing out several points of interest, insisting that she would have to take her to several different ice cream parlors, as the off-worlder had apparently never heard of ice cream before.
Richard, having finally woken up from his coma (which he insisted on simply calling a nap), had acquired a small rabbit, which he wore on top of his head by tying it down with a rope.
"Well, well, look who's finally back."
Sora turned at the sound of the familiar voice, and immediately spotted the grinning faces of Tidus and Selphie as they briskly walked over to their group. Tidus was giving Nanaki and Richard both odd looks. They did stick out like a sore thumb, after all.
"Been making some new friends?" He asked, clapping Sora on the shoulder.
"You could say that," Sora said with a grin.
"Got any new stories to tell us?" Selphie asked as she gave Kairi a bone-crushing hug, something that should be impossible for someone with such a small figure.
"I stowed away on a pirate ship," Naminé said with a grin.
"We found a city of gold," Roxas added.
"I finally escaped my homeworld to see the stars," Nanaki said dreamily.
"I had my arm cut off," Sora said with a laugh, earning him a smack from Kairi.
"I got kidnapped, again. And shot," Kairi grumbled.
"I burned an entire island where the only inhabitants were a group of abandoned children that had formed their own government and were insistent that I bow before their leader," Richard chimed it. Silence briefly ensued as the group took a step away from the homicidal warlock.
"Okay then…" Selphie leaned awkwardly away from Richard and whispered into Kairi's ear. "Who is this guy?"
"I am Richard!" The warlock began. "Chief Warlock of the Brothers of-"
"Save it," Roxas said, smacking the warlock on the back of the head before he could get into his list of titles.
"Fine. Be that way," Richard huffed.
"So why are you guys back so soon?" Tidus asked. Selphie smacked him on the arm.
"Don't be rude, Tidus. You know Kairi's birthday is tomorrow," the brunette chided.
"Your birthday's tomorrow and you didn't tell me?" Naminé immediately rounded on Kairi, wearing a look of a hurt and indignation.
"You're all but my twin and you didn't know my birthday was tomorrow?" Kairi asked, fixing the blonde with a deadpan stare. "You're not a very good liar, Naminé. Nice try though."
"Does that mean Naminé's birthday is tomorrow as well?" Sora asked, scratching at his temple in confusion. "Since she's your twin and all."
"Well, because I was never actually born, I can't really have a birthday," Naminé explained with a half-hearted smile.
"Well, that's pretty lame," Selphie said. "Everyone should have a birthday. It's not so much about celebrating the day you were born; it's more like celebrating being alive."
"I guess I really can't make an argument against it, now can I?" Naminé said with a smile. "Especially since you put it like that."
"That still doesn't answer my question," Sora pointed out. "Are you going to celebrate your 'birthday' with Kairi tomorrow?"
"No, I don't think I will," Naminé said after considering it. "I didn't come into existence on the same day she did. So it would make sense for me to have a separate birthday, right?"
"Floats my boat," Roxas said, taking Naminé by the hand and squeezing it gently.
"So, you guys came back for Kairi's birthday and not just the festival?" Selphie asked, tilting her head to the side out of curiosity.
"Festival?" The group of Wielders repeated in stereo.
"You know, the Sun's Shadow Festival?" Selphie said. "Happens only once every sixty years? Once in a lifetime opportunity? It's kind of a big deal, you know."
"The Sun's Shadow Festival is tomorrow?" Sora asked, a grin larger than what should have been physically possible stretched across his face. "As in 'tomorrow' tomorrow?"
"What other tomorrows do you know of?" Tidus muttered. "Of course it's 'tomorrow' tomorrow."
"Would someone please explain what a festival is?" Nanaki muttered, as the group began walking in the direction of town.
-LD-
Unbeknownst to the group of teens and the warlock slowly making their way into town, a man dressed in a silver cloak was keeping a close eye on them from his perch atop a nearby home. His golden eyes glinted faintly in the mid-morning sun, giving his angular face a slightly sinister look to it. Jevenan, the Nobody in charge of Nobodies under Maleficent's command, grinned as he watched the group slowly walk away.
"The Sun's Shadow Festival," he muttered softly. "A festival to celebrate a day of night, to celebrate the Sunrise Eclipse. And what a wonderful festival it shall be." He cackled quietly to himself as a dark portal formed around him to take him to his comrades. "A day of night that shall forever go down in history, as the day the darkness looming just out of sight unleashed its unholy fury upon the world, drowning it in everlasting Darkness!"
-LD-
Yes, this chapter is what many would consider a "filler" chapter. However, to me, it's not "filler". It's an intermission, because this chapter marks the turning point in Looming Darkness where the action just won't stop right up until the conclusion of Part I.
So, just a few quick notes about this chapter.
I've slightly modified the general layout. Nothing too major, mind you. Just a few aesthetic changes that I like a bit better. [EDIT: Apparently Fanfiction doesn't like my changes and put everything back to the usual format. How irritating.]
This chapter was ready just over a month ago, but as I said, real life came down around me. My beta/bestfriend of sixteen years finally moved out of the country to be with her husband. I don't even know when the next time I'll see her in person is. And I've spent the past couple of months coming to grips with that. Still not quite there, but at least my creativity is in full-on power mode.
Which brings me to a bit of fantastic news. This chapter is the first of three (that's right, THREE) that I'm releasing this week. I would've had them out sooner, but between letting my beta get settled overseas, as well as coordinating times when we can edit together halfway across the world when we both have to work fulltime is a pain in the ass. But, we managed to find time to get this one ready, and tonight (and probably every night the rest of this week) we will be editing the other two. And, even though these three chapters are a little shorter than average, I'm certain they'll more than make up for it in content.
You know, it's times like this that I wish Fanfiction had a blog option. Maybe I should just make a seperate blog...
Anyway, I'm rambling so I'll get to my next couple of points, starting with some of the things I've "missed" during the four months of silence.
1. Dream Drop Distance was released (Review pending for next chapter)
2. The 2012 Presidential Elections (If I saw one more political ad, heads were gonna roll)
3. A trip to New York with my family (I actually missed that one in real life. I couldn't get the time off from work)
4. Assassin's Creed III was released (Review pending in future chapter)
5. Halo 4 was released (Review pending in future chapter but HOLY CRAP THOSE GRAPHICS ARE BEAUTIFUL)
6. The two-year anniversary of the release date for Looming Darkness (broke my heart when I realized I didn't have a chapter ready back then)
So I've missed a lot. But, you know what? I've missed all of you the most. It's great to be back and in the zone better than ever before.
Shameless Advertisement: Want to keep up to date with the news on the latest chapter or other random things that I've got floating around in my head? Dying to know when the next chapter is set to be released? Don't hesitate to follow me on Twitter! ShadowHorizons.
See y'all real soon!
Aspicio, diluculo Infinitas Noctis.
Shadow Horizons