Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. It belongs to its rightful owners.
3rd Person P.O.V
Hollow Bastion is in ruins. The was clear for Sora to see as Sora, Donald, and Goofy looked around the mechanical-looking world. This wasn't like any of the others, that was for sure. They were surrounded by walls of water. It was a waterfall going upwards. Though it was a strange sight, Sora was pretty sure he had a feeling that he'd been here before, and after helping Peter Pan escape with his Wendy, he felt as if he'd seen almost everything. But this was different. It was as if his heart had been in this world before despite him having never left his island. It confused him. But, what confused him more was the whereabouts of his three friends.
He had been so close to getting Kairi back in Neverland. She slipped right through his fingers . . . right into Riku's. The older boy commanded that Sora never got to see her again. It broke his heart. However, what really broke his heart was the fact that Riku had stolen Sasuke, too. Sora didn't know whether she was even alive or not. The last memory he had of her was her staring out at the stars covering space. Now the girl was gone with the wind, nowhere to be found.
His blue eyes scanned the area, resting on the giant, bronze, and metal covered castle just beyond the waterfall. Goofy pointed a white-gloved finger at it in shock. "Gawrsh!" he said to get Sora and Donald's attention. "Look at that!"
Sora took a step closer toward the castle. He had never seen the thing in his life, yet, it was so familiar. "I know this place . . ."
"Hmm, that's strange." Goofy scratched his chin as if that simple action would give him answers. Sora wished it could. Maybe then he could find the people that he was missing.
"I wonder why," the fourteen-year-old continued. Placing a hand on his chest, right over his heart, he said, "I feel this warmth inside, right here. Does this mean Sasuke and Kairi are here? They must be, right?"
Donald waved the boy off with a shake of his head. "Aw, you're just hungry."
"Hey, I'm serious!"
"Listen," Donald looked up at the boys in all seriousness. "We lost a part of our crew back in Neverland. I don't know where she is, but it's against my morals to leave a crew member behind. If Sasuke's here . . . if there is a chance she's here, we're going to look. Stop standing around. We have work to do." Without another word, the duck began walking through the reverse waterfall, closer to the castle. Sora and Goofy followed along, knowing there was no point in arguing with him. Not that they would have. He was right. Finding Sasuke was one of their top priorities right now.
They didn't know whether or not anyone was here for that matter. There was always a point in looking, though. You could find a diamond in ruins. That's what Sora kept telling himself as they walked. Maybe this place could be the answer to his problems. Maybe it could be the answer to everyone's problems. But, there was little time to think about that.
Cutting his thoughts short was Riku. He was standing on the ruins floating in the waterfall a bit ahead of him. The boy was talking to someone . . . something. A beast with a deep purple cape. Sora strained his eyes to look closer, to see if he had the two missing girls with him. Sadly, Riku was alone.
"No vessel, no help from the Heartless . . ." Riku spoke to the person. Sora, Donald, and Goofy went silent so that they could listen to the conversation. "So tell me, how'd you get here?"
The beast sighed. "I simply believed. Nothing more to it. When our world fell into darkness, Belle was taken from me. I vowed I would find her again no matter what the cost. I believed I would find her. So, here I am. She must be here. I will have her back."
"Take her if you can," Riku chuckled. Sora's eyes went wide. He was going around stealing girls from different worlds. Is that why he took Riku and Kairi. He was planning something. That was for sure.
The beast growled and Riku summoned his weapon. Before the trio had any time to stop the fight, the silver-haired teen struck the giant beast down. One hit was all that it took. The beast dropped to the ground as Riku watched in triumph. He knew he would win. The people with the sappiest hearts could never beat him.
Sora ran forward, shielding the beast with his skinny body. "Stop!" he shouted.
Riku just shook his head in disappointment. "So, you finally made it. About time. I've been waiting for you. We've always been rivals, haven't we? You've always pushed me as I've always pushed you. But it all ends here. There can't be two Keyblade masters."
Two Keyblade masters? "Where are the girls?" Sora asked. "What are you talking about?"
"Let the Keyblade choose it's true master!"
Riku rose his hand toward the group. Clutching onto the Kingdom Key tighter, Sora felt it begin to shake. The vibrations shot through his arm and made him almost panic. He didn't know what was happening. The Key rose, pulling Sora toward Riku . . . as if it wanted to be with him instead. The brunet tried to hold onto it but it was no use. The Kingdom Key disappeared into thin air, reappearing in Riku's hands. They couldn't believe their eyes.
"Maleficent was right," Riku mumbled. He swung the Kingdom Key around a few times to get the feel of it. It was definitely heavier than his weapon. Looking at Sora, he furrowed his silver eyebrows, and said, "You don't have what it takes to save Kairi or Sasuke. It's up to me. Only the Keyblade master can open the secret door and change the world."
"But that's impossible," Sora snapped. He suddenly felt weak and . . . useless. "How did this happen? I'm the one who fought my way here with the Keyblade!"
Riku shrugged his shoulders. "You were just the delivery boy. Sorry, your part's over now." Taking out the old wooden sword they used to play with back at the islands, he tossed it to the ground. It bounced on the tiles a few times before landing in front of Sora. "Here, play with this."
Sora fell to his knees as Riku walked away. This was it. It was over. He wasn't the real chosen one. It was Riku this whole time. Everything that he thought he stood for, the people he met and now carried in his heart and memories . . . they were for Riku. Nothing felt like it was his anymore. To make matters worse, he could hear the sound of Donald's webbed feet walking toward Riku's direction.
"Goofy," the duck said slowly. "Let's go. We have to remember our mission."
They were leaving him, too.
"Oh! Well, I know the King told us to follow the key and all but . . ." Goofy trailed off. He looked down at the defeated-looking teenager. Truth be told, Goofy didn't want to leave him. Neither of them did. He was vulnerable and needed them right now. It would be messed up to leave him. But, they had to. So, hanging their heads low, they followed after Riku in silence, leaving the boy on the ground alone.
"Sora, sorry. Tell her we're sorry, too," Donald whispered. Then, they were gone.
This was really happening. He was back where he started in Traverse Town, all alone and nothing to look forward to. Everyone that he cared about had either left him or turned up missing. If only Sasuke was here. She wouldn't leave. She'd help him get back up on his feet and reassure him that everything would be fine. But now, he wasn't sure that he'd ever see her again . . . if he'd ever see any of them again. For once, Sora was defeated.
The sound of the waterfall and slow footsteps rang throughout the small area. Lifting up his head, he was met with the familiar sight of the now-injured beast. He was limping in the direction that everyone had left in: toward the castle. Sora shot onto his feet and helped the poor beast as he almost collapsed onto the ground. Riku had really hurt him in that fight. If you could even call it that.
Placing a hand on the beast's shoulder, he tried to calm him down. "Hey, don't move," he said. "You're hurt."
"Why . . . why did you . . . you come here?" the beast asked. Sora was at a loss for words. The beast stood up, suddenly attempting to regain his strength. "I came here to fight for Belle. And though I am on my own, I will fight. I won't leave without her. That's why I'm here." The beast limped off toward the castle, not caring if he was hurt or not. He just wanted to find who he was looking for.
"You'll find it. I'm searching for my light, too."
He could almost hear Sasuke's voice in his head. She must be here somewhere, reminding him not to give up. Like she always does. The beast was right, he couldn't leave his friends here. Picking up the wooden sword off of the ground, he followed after him with full intent to find the dark-haired girl in one piece.
"Me too," he told the beast. "I'm not gonna give up now. I came here to find someone very important to me."
The beast nodded and didn't object. He was probably glad to have someone on his side, or because he was so caught up in the thought of rescuing Belle that he just didn't care. Either way it went, he let the boy join him as they walked up the castle steps. It smelled of rusting machines and darkness. Whatever Riku was planning, it wasn't going to be good. Riku himself would shoot that thought down, though. He thought what he was doing right now was a good thing. He thought that he was doing himself justice by opening these doors. No one will ever compare him to brave little Sora again.
The two opened the big double doors leading into the castle. Inside was the foyer, two sets of stairs leading up to the second floor and another door. Though the castle looked like it was in ruins on the outside, the inside was still pristine. This could be backed up by the fact that the walls looked like it had a fresh coat of dark brown paint on it. Sora took another step inside, the beast on his heels. He could feel the density in the air, like someone was sitting on his chest. Everyone was definitely here . . . but it wasn't for good reasons. He could feel the light in everyone's hearts aiding his battles in the castle, but what scared them the most was that he could only feel Sasuke's, not Kairi.
The beast looked around the empty foyer with suspicion. "Be on your guard," he said. "They're close, I can feel it. Are you ready for them?"
Sora didn't know if he was actually ready, but he knew he wasn't going to back down. He walked further into the room to investigate why it was so quiet. That's when the doors leading out of the castle flew open. They turned around to see a tall, beautiful girl with brown hair, blue eyes, and a yellow ball gown. The beast's eyes shot open. It all clicked in Sora's head; that was his Belle. But it was timed a little too perfectly.
"Belle!" the beast called out, only to stop when the woman morphed into darkness. When the darkness faded, all that was left was a Heartless on the ground. He growled out in anger. He was tricked. He rushed at the Heartless, and Sora watched in surprise as the doors shut behind him. A loud locking sound was heard. They were trying to split the two up.
"Quit while you can."
Sora turned around to see Riku, Donald, and Goofy standing in the middle of the foyer. Riku looked slightly irritated but, then again, theses days, when didn't he? A frown grew on Sora's face at the thought of quitting. There was no way that he was going to leave without the people he came here for.
"No," he replied. "Not without Sasuke and Kairi."
Riku rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers. Light swirled around him, changing his previous island outfit into a tight suit of blues, purples, and reds. THe most prominent thing, though, was the giant Heartless symbol on his chest. "The darkness will destroy you," he threatened.
"You're wrong, Riku. The darkness may destroy my body, but it can't touch my heart. My heart will stay with my friends. It'll never die."
"Really . . ." Riku chuckled. "We'll just have to see about that."
Opening up the palm of his hand, Riku sent a blast of light in Sora's direction. Sora knew that he no longer had the Kingdom Key to protect him. If he were to get hit by that blast it was over. He braced himself for impact . . . one that never came. He opened an eye to see Goofy standing in front of him, protecting him from the attack with his shield.
The dog glared at Riku, clearly upset. "Sora ain't gonna go anywhere!"
"You'd betray your king?" Riku asked in shock.
"Not on your life. But I'm not gonna betray Sora, either, 'cause he's become one of my best buddies after all we've been through together! Him and Sasuke no matter where she is!" Goofy turned around to give Sora a thumbs up, causing the boy to smile from ear to ear. They weren't leaving him after all. Goofy waved to the duck standing at Riku's side. "See ya later, Donald! Could ya tell the king I'm really sorry?"
Donald glanced up at Riku before running over to stand with Sora and Goofy. Sora couldn't believe this. They were really coming back. He should have know that they were. They're some of his best friends. "Hold on, Goofy! We'll tell him together," Donald said, looking up at the brunet. "Well, you know . . . all for one and one for all."
Goofy chuckled. "Well, I guess you're stuck with us, Sora."
"Thanks a lot . . . Donald, Goofy." He could never explain how much this meant to him. How much it meant for his friends to be standing by his side again, even if they were only gone for a few minutes. He thought that he had lost everything. But, he was just now realizing that he never could.
"How will you fight without a weapon?" Riku asked.
Sora shook his head. "I know now I don't need the Keyblade. I've got a better weapon. My heart."
"Heh, your heart. What good will that weak little thing do for you?"
"Although my heart may be weak, it's not alone. It's grown with each new experience and it's found a home with all the friends I've made. I've become a part of their heart just as they've become a part of mine. And if they think of me now and then . . . if they don't forget me . . . then our hearts will be one." Sora gripped the wooden sword in his hand. "I don't need a weapon. My friends are my power!"
"You'll find it. I'm searching for my light, too."
The Kingdom Key in Riku's hand began vibrating, just like it had only minutes ago. It disappeared, returning in Sora's hands, it's real owner. The one with the truly beautiful heart.
Riku grew angry, summoning his old Keyblade, and getting into an attack stance. Sora, Donald, and Goofy summoned their weapons, too. He didn't want to fight him, but if this was what it was going to take to set everything straight, then this is what he had to do. Riku charged for them and Sora blocked his attack. He was so fast. He looked like a blur of black, blue, and red sliding around the foyer. This was going to be tougher than any of the fights he's had so far.
Riku did a backflip, dodging all of their swings. The only thing that seemed to be hitting him was Donald's magic. So, the rest of them used magic against him. Riku didn't seem to be liking it, but it was helping them win the fight, so Sora didn't care. He knew that the older boy was hiding his friends away from him. And he was determined to get them back . . . at any cost.
Sora jumped in the air while Riku was dodging Donald's thunder spells. He slammed his Keyblade down on Riku, knocking the boy back and onto his butt. He was stunned. The boy stood up, his Heartless suit fading away to reveal his island outfit. He was huffing and puffing, weakened from the attacks. But, without a word he ran away, into the door at the top of the foyer. He wasn't going to risk a major fight right now.
The castle front doors opened and Sora turned around to see the beast. He didn't look as upset as he did before. "So, your heart won this battle?" he asked. Sora nodded, smiling slightly. Now there was nothing that was going to get in his way. He was going to find Sasuke and Kairi no matter what.
Riku ran throughout the castle. He couldn't stand the fact that he was inferior to Sora. Him of all people. The kid who sleeps around on the beach all day and goes on stupid adventures instead of looking for his friends. Why would the Kingdom Key want something like that? Why would it want something so . . . stupid? If he was smart, he'd know that Kairi had lost her heart and would help look for it. If the boy was smart, he would have paid attention to Sasuke this whole time and realized that there was something wrong with her, that she needed fixing. But no, he was an idiot.
And idiot who had just beat him.
He didn't want to think about that. He had to get back to Maleficent and check on the princesses. But he couldn't help his wandering mind. "Why?" he asked himself as he ran. "It was mine."
"Know this . . ."
Riku stopped running and looked around for the source of the voice. A man with a dark cloak covering his entire body was standing behind him. When and how did he get here.
"The heart that is strong and true shall win the Keyblade," the man's deep voice continued.
"What?" Riku questioned. "You're saying my heart's weaker than his?"
"For that instant, it was," the strange man said. "However, you can become stronger. You showed no fear in stepping through the door to darkness. It held no terror for you. Plunge deeper into the darkness and your heart will grow even stronger."
Riku nodded. "What should I do?"
"It's really quite simple. Open yourself to the darkness. That is all. Let your heart, your being, become darkness itself."
So, he did. riku closed his eyes and imagined every shred of light in his heart he had left disappearing. He would become the darkness. He would save the girls. All of this without Sora lurking around trying to one up him. Green mist started to float around him. He will become the darkness. He is the darkness.