HOKAY PEEPS LISTEN UP. This fic has kinda been stuck in the much-abused and never-looked-at "Game X-Overs" section until I can find out whether it belongs in the KH or TWEWY section more, and come up with a compliant summary.

Yes, writing Shantotto does require the use of a rhyme dictionary from time to time.

One of my reviewers just made me lose the game. You know who you are. XD

Um…(holds up a sign that says "Beware of Snake")

Okay, on to the chapter.

In which dreams are weird and someone is running.

Chasing The Truth

By FlikFreak

Chapter Six: Destati


A shadowy figure bit his lip and ran as quickly as he could manage. The dusks pursued him, but any that managed to get close to him was quickly disposed of with a bolt of lightning or a quick burst of flame. It was never much, and didn't always destroy his pursuers, but it did enough to buy him time.

He had to hurry. The Zoners were going to arrive at any minute, and he had to warn Sora…but would Sora trust him? Sora didn't even know him.

Yet, he reminded himself. We would have met eventually, anyway.

And the Neku boy…he was one especially worth warning. After all, if the Zoners got their hands on him, it would mean only destruction for more than just Shibuya and everything else the former proxy held dear. Unless…

I can't waste any more time! The figure thought sternly as he shot a flurry of lightning bolts from his hand at the small group of dusks behind him. He jumped the wall and looked for another place to hide. I have to warn them before they get here!


The sudden wave of fatigue that Neku felt washed over as quickly as it came, only to return again…and then leave…and return…and leave again. When the process finally ended, leaving him rather dizzy, Neku found that he was floating peacefully in whatever realm he had been sent to. A sense of calm had wrapped around him, warm and comforting, but still somehow powerful. As eerie and strange as this place was, Neku felt at peace here, and yet somehow it even seemed familiar. He could just float there, sleeping forever if he wanted to, but something called out to him, waking him from his trance. Neku could barely drag his eyelids open to find out where he was, but he managed to do it.

He wasn't floating. He was falling. Slowly, gently, he was falling. The warmth wrapped tighter around him, shielding him from the icy cold darkness in the void he had somehow made his way into. If this was a dream, it was incredibly real.

Something deep in his heart seemed to move. It was a difficult feeling for him to lay a finger on. If he was able to move his hands freely and get past his exhaustion, he would have pressed a hand on his chest in surprise, but he was so tired…no, not tired. Calm. He just didn't want to move. "What's…what's happening to me…?"

The power that sleeps within you has begun to awaken.

The voice startled him. It was powerful like a king's, yet gentle like a mother's. Neku tried to place a finger on where it came from, but only came to one conclusion: he wasn't hearing it in his head; he was hearing it in his heart. "Power?" he echoed. "But I don't want any power…I just-"

You seek to aid those you love, do you not?

Neku couldn't help but agree. "I do…but how am I supposed to help them? I don't even know what's threatening them. I'm being chased by these Zoner people, and no one knows what's wrong with Rhyme. What should I do?"

Power is not only something that one uses to fight with. In other forms, power can influence what one believes and thinks and accepts as right or wrong. You yourself have witnessed and used such a power before.

Of course he had. In the Reaper's Game, he had been able to read people's thoughts and imprint on them. The Conductor had imprinted his will on nearly the entire city. Hanekoma had bound Rhyme's soul to a pin and thus saved her. Neku's perception of power had become so twisted that he could hardly come up with an answer. "But what does this have to do with what's happening now?"

The power that you hold is the key to saving your friends, including Rhyme. But to obtain it, you must first pass a test.

"A test?" Neku repeated. The voice didn't reply. "Wait! What do you mean by that? And what do you know about Rhyme? Do you know what's wrong with her?"

Your trial begins.

Deciding that he wasn't going to get an answer, Neku resigned himself to asking questions later. He felt the warmth and comfort slither away and allow him upright, where he landed on solid ground. "This place actually has a floor?"

He stepped forward, his footstep echoing softly. When nothing happened, Neku looked directly upward, making out a tiny glimmer of light above. Or, perhaps, just far away. Was this some sort of dark realm or something? No…it couldn't be that. It was dark in here, sure, but it wasn't actual darkness…not the kind of darkness that the heartless would spew out while he fought them in the UG when Sora had partnered up with him months before. Neku breathed in, an effort meant to calm himself, but it only served to set him on edge more. There was a powerful force coursing around him that he could feel but couldn't see or hear. He looked in front of him, and oddly enough he could make out his hands and feet clearly. With nothing more to do, all alone in an empty realm, Neku returned his gaze upward.

What is it you seek?

"That's a really general question," Neku grumbled, crossing his arms. "Right now I just want answers. I wanna know why these Zoner guys are after me, and what's wrong with Rhyme."

Answers?

"That's what I said, wasn't it?"

You could just as easily ignore your problems. After all, you did so before, did you not?

Neku clenched his fists. "I'm not like that anymore. Ignoring the Zoners will hurt people that shouldn't be dragged into this, and I know that Beat's going through a rough time, seeing his sister sick like that. He may act tough, but we all know he's a big softie underneath all that." He turned downward, hoping to shield his angered expression by habit but knowing that whoever was speaking could still see him. "And if those nobodies were willing to cut through people to get to me, then I've got a serious bone to pick with them. No one messes with Shibuya without going through me."

Then you wish to protect others?

The statement made Neku think, and he couldn't help but agree. Anyone would want answers if they were being chased by a bunch of people that wanted to use him, but knowing why alone didn't mean anything unless you acted on it. Maybe protecting his friends from the Zoners was what he really wanted…he just hadn't fully realized it. Even so, he knew one thing for certain. "No matter how hard anyone tries," Neku said, looking upward even though he knew the voice wasn't in that direction. "It's impossible to protect everyone. The only way to ultimately keep them safe is to get rid of danger in the first place."

A wise answer.

There was a brilliant flash of light, and Neku had to shield his eyes for a moment. When he looked again, a large bronze door had appeared, reminding him strongly of the door he had once sensed in Dead God's Pad. It cracked open, and Neku winced as a brilliant light shone through it. "Whoever made this place had a thing for blinding people," he muttered.

Enter.

"You don't waste words, do you?" Neku observed, but stepped forward anyway. For a while, he couldn't see anything, but when he felt the light recede he opened his eyes once more. What he saw shocked him.

He was standing right in front of the mural in Udagawa. Standing around him were the familiar faces of Beat, Rhyme, Joshua, and Shiki as she had appeared in the game with Eri's body. Neku's eyes widened, and he was about to speak when something held him back. These weren't the friends he knew.

Correct. These are not your actual friends.

"What're you trying to pull?" Neku demanded. "What kind of twisted test is this?"

Calm yourself. Your companions are alright. I simply want to ask you a few questions…

Neku crossed his arms. "Like what?"

"Why do you hate me?" Joshua said suddenly. Neku whirled around to face the silver-haired boy and was startled at what he saw: Joshua's face was devoid of emotion and his voice was entirely monotone. Neku was suddenly longing for that disgusting smirk to come back to the boy's face; seeing him like this was far more disturbing.

"Joshua…?"

"Why do you hate me?" The boy repeated.

Neku sighed, looking away, his eyes narrowing in anger. "Because you killed me," he replied. "Anyone would hate the guy that killed them."

"But you came back to life, didn't you? I did that."

"Yeah," Neku replied, feeling his blood boil, "After you used me as a pawn in your stupid game. Besides, you're an infuriating, egotistical bowl of snot, Joshua. I swear you get some serious kick out of seeing me angry."

Joshua, or at least the twisted representation of him, did not respond. Neku took the break in conversation to sigh. "But you did bring me back, and you changed your mind about Shibuya. I have to thank you for that at least."

"But you hate people."

This time, it was Shiki that spoke. Neku turned to see her acting no differently than Joshua: monotone and devoid of her normally upbeat personality. It was even more frightening than if she had been angry, as Neku was strongly reminded of when she had been possessed by the red skull pin. He swallowed. "Not anymore. I-"

"You tried to kill me once," Shiki continued, ignoring Neku's protest. "Why?"

It was a hard question for Neku to answer, but he did it anyway, shutting his eyes tightly. "I thought that it would get me out of having to be stuck with you," he said. "I couldn't stand you then, because I still hated people. I thought that it would get me out of the game and I'd go back to being whoever I had been before…but the only thing it would have done would to be to kill us both for good. I didn't know better then…"

"Then why was I your entry fee later?" Shiki demanded.

Neku opened his mouth to reply, but couldn't find the words. "Shiki, I…"

"Just like you, Phones. Can't come up with a straight answer when it comes to stuff like this."

Beat this time. He was just as blank as the other ones. "At least you used my nickname," Neku said with a nervous chuckle.

"We were a team," Beat continued, ignoring Neku's remark. "But when you first heard the suggestion, you turned us down. Rhyme and I could have helped you win much easier, but you said we were just extra baggage, didn't you?"

"I did," Neku replied. "I hated people then. But you still helped me, didn't you? Even if it was just for everyone's survival, you still helped me, and we even teamed up later."

"But you felt nothing when I was erased."

Neku didn't want to look. He knew that Rhyme was behind him, speaking to him, reminding him of that traumatizing day. There had been a mission with no time limit; it was deceptively easy. A trap had been laid…and Rhyme had shoved her brother out of the way just as it struck. It had been futile; by allowing herself to be erased in her brother's place, she had doomed him. Only by Hanekoma's hand had Beat remained alive and Rhyme had returned as a squirrel noise, later to be revived by Joshua, even though she had lost her entry fee permanently. She was still cheerful as ever when she came back, but hearing her now with that haunting, monotone voice…Neku couldn't stand it.

"You claimed that friends were unnecessary. They were only something that slowed you down."

He didn't answer. He couldn't even move. He didn't want to turn around and see Rhyme's face as blank as everyone else's; her emotionless voice was already harsh enough for him to endure. Neku grit his teeth and tried to bite back tears. It was too much for him.

"You cannot work up even the courage to look at me?"

"No," Neku replied truthfully. "I can't."

"Why not?"

Neku shut his eyes as tightly as he could, knowing that even though he hoped for it the image around him would not fade. "How I acted before was wrong. Shiki was right; I was no better than the Reapers."

"And?"

"I can't, Rhyme," Neku continued, even though he knew it wasn't Rhyme he was speaking to. "After everything I've done…"

Everyone makes mistakes, Neku. It is only human.

"But it doesn't make it right!" The former proxy shouted. "I'm a different person now!"

But nothing can change your past actions.

Neku sighed. "Maybe not, but that doesn't mean I can't make up for it."

That's right.

With those words said, Neku felt some foreign power forcing him to turn around and face Rhyme against his will. Just before the light engulfed him again, he could see her face. With a wave of relief, he saw that it wasn't blank like the others'.

She was smiling.


Sora never thought he'd had a worse headache since the time he went searching around Wonderland for evidence to prove Alice's innocence. One moment he had been leading Neku to the mansion, the next he had been on his hands and knees gasping for breath. Looking up, he noticed that Remembered Dream had summoned itself into his hand. Startled, he looked up to find Neku lying face-first on the ground, unmoving.

Sora rushed over to his friend. "Neku! Neku, get up! You okay?"

There was no response. The boy was out cold. After placing a curative spell over the boy, Sora dismissed the keyblade and tried to shake him awake. There was no response. "Come on, Neku, please be okay…"

I'm pretty sure he's fine, Sora.

But the keyblade master narrowed his eyes. How can we be sure? For all we know, I could have done this. Do you remember anything?

No. I was cut off again.

You were what?

"Sora!"

The brunette looked up to see two familiar faces approaching. One of them was a familiar blonde-haired boy with a deceptively slim stature, a large struggle bat in one arm. The other was a somewhat stockier boy wearing a red Dog Street jersey, black hair held up by a large blue bandanna. Hayner and Pence. With a wave of relief, Sora called out to them. "Guys! Will you give me a hand? Something's wrong! He's not waking up!"

"Is he a friend of yours?" Pence asked. He knelt down, looking closely to find any injuries. Thankfully there weren't any, but the boy's breathing was somewhat hoarse.

"Yeah," Sora replied. "I was going to show him the mansion and…" he paused, trying to conjure up the memory without success. "It's really just a vague blur; I came to just a few seconds ago."

"What happened to him?" Hayner demanded, though not maliciously, as he lifted one of Neku's arms while Sora got the other. In spite of his thin frame, Hayner was actually quite strong

Sora shook his head. "I don't know. I passed out, and when I woke up he was just lying there. I don't think any Nobodies came or anything…"

Hayner bit his lip. "Come on. Let's get him out of here before something else does."

Knowing precisely what the boy was referring to, Sora left with them as quickly as he could. Unknown to him, a darkened figure was following closely, his eyes curious and alert.


The light had dimmed to a manageable level. Neku found himself on a large platform, this time alone. The platform itself was made of what was probably stained glass; with the image of what Neku could make out was a person. The image was hard to discern at such an angle as his, but he could tell that it was a silhouette-like image of what appeared to be a very familiar girl. A chill ran down his spine when he saw a very familiar graffiti-like skull-and-crossbones symbol on the platform. "The same design on the player pins," he observed aloud. "What's…"

Don't be afraid, Neku.

On cue, a pathway of stained glass appeared, each panel in its own small glimmer of light. More and more appeared, creating a slanted trail upward to another platform that he could see in the distance. Neku hesitated, only taking a few steps forward.

Don't stop walking. Go.

"If I do, will I wake up from whatever dream this is I'm having?" Neku asked. When he didn't receive an answer, he shook his head and started forward.

The pathway was long, but Neku was used to walking long distances. After all, he had lived in Shibuya all his life. Going from Cat Street all the way back to Hachiko wasn't that big a deal for him. The only thing that made him wary was the fact that he was walking on what was probably glass, and his footsteps echoed loudly. That, and the place was just as eerie as the Shibuya River was.

The moment Neku made it to the top platform – which was very similar to the one before – he strode to the center. "I'm here. Now what?"

Your final trial begins.

Streams of pale, black light swarmed onto the platform in front of Neku, converging into one large mass. Within moments the ribbons of darkness expelled revealing the familiar form of…

"Why am I looking at myself?" Neku wondered aloud.

"Why indeed," the former proxy's mirror image spat out, his eyes narrowed angrily.

Not sure if this was a trick, Neku decided to approach cautiously. "Who are you?"

"I'm something you were never able to conquer," the other Neku sneered. "Something you were never able to beat. I'm you."

Neku stared blankly. "What are you talking about? I'm me! Not you! You're just a figment of my imagination!"

The other Neku's eyes glowered in rage. "Liar!" He screamed. "Even if I'm not you, I'm still the same! Just like me, you hate people! You'd be better off without just an extra load to lug around!"

"No!" Neku shot back. "You're not me! I'm a different person now!"

The imitation laughed humorlessly. "Heh, keep telling yourself that. Why don't you take a look at the monster you've been!"

With that, Neku saw his own self twist and writhe into a new shape. His entire body became black, rising and twisting into an inhuman form. Neku fell off his feet and stared as the shape grew larger and larger, longer and longer. Its neck flattened and a serpentine head hissed loudly at him, long fangs protruding its maw. Part of its body wrapped around the platform while more of it rested on it, and a pair of glowing yellow eyes glared at Neku menacingly.

Neku quickly recognized the creature as a giant cobra, and wasted no time in panicking. With terror in his heart, he spun on his heels and run. He had to get out of here, fast! Just go down the pathway and back onto that other platform and–

The ex-proxy stopped just short of the edge of the platform, waving his arms wildly to stop what would have been a fatal fall. The pathway was gone, and there was no turning back. He turned around just in time to see the cobra lashing out, and he dove out of the way just in time. At least he could still dodge like he had in the Game.

"Are you nuts?!" Neku screamed. "How am I supposed to fight this thing?!"

Fight not with a weapon, Neku. Fight with your heart.

"With my heart?" He asked, diving out of the way as another attack shook the world around him. "And how do you suggest I do that?"

Do not be afraid, Neku Sakuraba. Your heart is the mightiest weapon of all.

Neku narrowed his eyes. "Easy for you to say," he grumbled. "You're out there and I'm down here, fighting a giant snake. Why don't you come down here and give me a better hint than that?!"

There was no time to comprehend what exactly happened next. The snake lunged, fangs bared, and Neku acted entirely on whatever instinct he had just gained. He caught the snake just as it would have struck him, one hand on its upper jaw and another hand on its lower. He trembled as the strength of the beast's mouth threatened to clamp closed, but Neku continued to push the jaws apart, sweat beading on his forehead. With a burst of strength, he shoved the snake's head to the side and dove away, causing the creature to crash into the floor. Part of the platform cracked and shattered downward, causing Neku to flinch and flee to the other side to prevent more damage. The snake shrieked, slithering away.

With the platform vacant, Neku bent down to catch his breath. He examined his hands. Luckily he hadn't caught on any of the monster's teeth, and he was unscathed for the most part; the only sign of the struggle he had was a small cut on the back of his right hand. He winced and wiped off some of the blood that had oozed out. "Did I win?" he asked no one in particular.

A menacing hiss answered him. Nervous, Neku glanced over the edge of the platform in time to see the great serpent spiraling upward. He had no time to run when the snake caught him in his tracks, coiling around him tightly and immobilizing his attempt to escape. As Neku struggled in its grip, the great cobra peered at him with hungry eyes.

This is it, he thought. Was he going to die here, in a dream he would never escape? Either squeezed to death or chomped on by a snake the size of the Shibuya River? Neku's eyes began to shut as all hope seemed lost…

Your heart is the most powerful weapon of all.

He snapped awake. Now he knew what it meant. The memories raced through his mind.

"I thought you couldn't afford to lose."

"You ain't my partner anymore, man. You're my friend."

"Promise me you'll come back!"

"Give up on yourself, and you give up on the world."

"I'm not backing down. Ever. I made a promise."

"We have something to fight for, and we're going to defend it with all we've got."

The snake released its grip, shrieking and slithering back as a sourceless light exploded into existence. But the light did not end, and the serpent slowly evaporated away, scale by scale and bit by bit, and finally the slim remainder of the beast fell down off the platform and into the endless abyss. Now released from his enemy's grip and free of the menace altogether, Neku collapsed to his knees, gasping for breath, not bothering to wonder about what had saved him. "And stay there," he wheezed.

Well done, Neku Sakuraba. You pass.

Neku stood. "Glad to hear it," he mumbled, "Though I'm more glad that I'm still alive."

Your journey has only begun. Keep your light burning strong, Neku.

The platform cracked further until there was not a single place left to flee. The glass shattered loudly, and Neku screamed in fright as he fell further into the dark abyss, this time head-first. The warmth from before wrapped around him tightly, easing him into a trance. His eyelids fluttered closed, and the last thing he remembered from that eerie place was the feeling of something within his heart stirring…