Timeless
Chapter 8: Something to Fight For
(Sept. 25, 2007, 40 minutes to midnight – CTL)
A bright rectangular doorway appeared in the middle of the security room of Castle Luminous. Sky stepped out, looking quite excited with his latest lead. Cid and Leon looked up from their work upon his arrival.
"You guys!" Sky exclaimed. "I got them back! My memories! I know where the Righteous Hearts are hiding!"
"Really?" Leon sat up, very interested in this new information. "What changed? Where'd you go?"
"I went back to Destiny Island. Kairi unlocked the memories of my kidnapping and I found out where they took me. They're underneath this castle! Right here!"
"What?" Now Cid was on his feet, balling his fists and accidentally knocking over his chair. "Those assholes are in the castle? How the hell is that possible?"
"There's a network of laboratories beneath the waterways that we didn't know about. I can only assume the Hearts found them before we fully restored the castle."
"We don't have cameras in those sections!" Cid growled. He was taking the news as a personal attack on his abilities to perform his duties the secondary head of security. "I'll send a team down there and search every corner of the place until the Hearts are found! Who are we looking for?"
"Dr. Hojo is their leader."
"Hojo?" Cid paused. "He was one of the top scientists from Shinra."
"Ah HA! So there was a connection! See, Leon?" Sky smirked proudly at the older brunet. Leon merely rolled his eyes. "Get Sazh to gather up his security team. I'll meet up with them in a minute." Sky checked his watch. "We've got less than an hour until midnight and we still don't know how the Hearts will unleash their attack." Before Sky could act, a loud, high-pitched noise filled the room. The three men covered their ears in pain, trying to shout words over the noise but finding it difficult to hear one another. And then, the sound abruptly stopped. All the monitors in the room went out.
"Shit!" Cid cursed as he tried restarting the systems. Nothing would respond. The lights in the room and the hallways began flickering. "What the hell's going on? We still got an hour!" The monitors suddenly came back to life, but they all displayed the same thing: a darkly-lit room with a white banner hanging across the top with the words 'Righteous Hearts' written on it. "Uh… guys?" Sky and Leon rushed over to the screens, watching carefully.
After a moment, two figures walked on screen, their faces obscured by balaclava masks. One of them was holding a pulse rifle and the other was holding a sheet of paper. Sky could only assume that the one with the sheet was Dr. Hojo himself, leader of the Righteous Hearts movement.
"Attention, citizens of Radiant Garden-" Hojo said.
"Wait, citizens?" Sky yelled. "Is this broadcasting live to everyone in Radiant Garden?" As he said that, his phone began ringing in his pocket. Answering it, he said, "What?"
"Sky, are you getting this broadcast?" asked Tifa on the other end of the line. "All the TVs in my bar suddenly switched to some video of the Righteous Hearts!" Before Sky could answer, his phone beeped, indicating he was getting another call.
"Hang on, Tifa," he said, pressing the hold button and switching to the other call. "Yes?"
"Sky, this is Aeris," said Aeris. "We've got trouble! The monitors in all my patients' rooms are displaying footage of the Righteous Hearts! I can't get them to turn off!"
"Oh, for fuck's sake!" Sky cursed, dropping the arm that was holding his phone. "Cid, Leon, this thing is broadcasting to everyone in the whole city!"
"I'm already working on shutting it down!" Cid called, typing in commands to his terminal in the hopes of regaining control.
"-have asked the Restoration Committee to stand down," Hojo continued, completely unaware of the distress he was causing Sky. "But thus far, they have refused to acknowledge us, even going as far as putting their people in danger. They hold their own interests above that of the population. We have been more than reasonable in the allotted time we gave them, but their silence will be the downfall of everyone in Radiant Garden. They have half an hour to comply with our demands before we unleash our next attack, and I promise it will not be a merciful one."
"Nothing's working!" Cid growled. "They've locked the whole system!" A Door appeared next to Sky, and Tifa and Yuffie stepped through. A moment later, Aeris emerged from a separate Door.
"What do we do?" Yuffie cried. "The people will be panicked about this!"
"If they will not listen to us, then perhaps they will listen to their own people," Hojo said from the monitors. "I urge the citizens of Radiant Garden to rise up against their tyrants and take up arms. Show them that you are the life of this city, not them! Take down this corrupt government while you still have time! We will help you overthrow these tyrants! The Righteous Hearts will lead Radiant Garden into a new golden age!" The video cut off and the monitors resumed their regular duties of displaying security feeds across the city.
Sky and the others could only stare in shock at what they had just witnessed.
"What are we doing just standing here?" Sky suddenly demanded. "We know where they are! Let's get them!"
"Sazh's team has mobilized in the waterways and are awaiting orders," Cid called.
"Send them ahead and tell them to start searching. I'll be down in a minute." Just then, all the phones in the room began ringing uncontrollably. "Don't answer those. We neutralize the threat first and then console the people." Leon and Aeris looked like they wanted to argue, but Aeris stopped when her attention was drawn to the monitors.
"What's that?" she gasped, pointing at the screens. An eerie green plume was coming from all the sewer grates and vents attached to the base of the castle. It moved quickly across the city, flooding the streets and filling the air with a green hue. People walking the streets paused to see what it was and then quickly covered their mouths and noses. "Oh my god, they're poisoning the people!"
"I don't think so…" Leon murmured.
The people caught outside in the green smoke didn't collapse or show any signs of pain. They simply stood there, looking thoroughly confused. And then several of them began shouting at one another. Their arguments escalated until a shoving match broke out. From amidst the chaos, a young woman grabbed a large stone off the ground and pitched it through the window of a coffee shop. The patrons of the shop ran outside and began screaming and shouting at each other. Pretty soon, long after the green smoke had cleared, there were mass amounts of people on the streets fighting.
"Yuffie, Tifa," Sky ordered.
"Already on it, boss!" Tifa called as she and the petite ninja created Doors to leave so they could calm the angry citizens.
"We got a situation here!" Cid called from one of the monitors. Leon and Sky rushed over only to see many of the downtown video feeds full of protestors, people carrying crudely-made, hastily-put-together picket signs that read 'Down with Restoration Regime!' and 'Protect your people, not your own interests!' The crowds did not look happy and several were carrying close range weapons such as bats and staffs, using them to smash in storefronts and vehicles. Others were lobbing Fire spells at the buildings around them, shouting for a revolution. "I counted five of these mobs around the city, at least 300 people in each one. And they're converging on the castle fast!"
"What the hell's gotten into them?" Sky shouted angrily. "Why are they reacting this way?"
"Phase one of the attack," Leon explained. "That green smoke must've been the chemical Lucrecia warned us about, the one that causes increased aggression and fear."
"Then why aren't we affected?"
"We're inside the castle. We have our own ventilation system that gives us filtered air."
"So if we step outside, we'll be infected?"
"No, I doubt the chemical is still airborne. It looks like it dissipated rather quickly, but those who inhaled it will stay under its influence for a few hours. We need to be cautious when dealing with them."
"Oh, and how are we supposed to deal with an angry fucking mob without hurting them or letting them hurt us?" Sky crossed his arms over his chest.
"According to Lucrecia, the chemical doesn't make people violent. Something has to trigger it, namely that broadcast that the Righteous Hearts just aired. It sent them into a panic and that's why they're rioting. But if we speak with them and try to reason with them, we might be able to reduce the effects of the chemical."
"There is no reasoning with them! Just look at them!" Sky pointed at the monitors, where fires were blazing and the crowds were screaming for the heads of the leaders. "They're out for fucking blood! Our blood!"
"Well, we can't just let them run through the streets destroying everything we worked so hard to rebuild! And we still haven't found the passage into the waterways, which means any minute, all those people could be killed by a terrorist attack! Any minute! Do you understand that? We need to get them off the streets and back in their homes where they'll be safe!"
Sky nodded, turning back to Cid. "How are the others dealing with it?"
"They're working on it," Cid said, pointing to one screen where Aeris was standing in front of a crowd, waving her arms to get their attention. On another screen, Yuffie had a rioting mob contained inside a Protega bubble. In the case of Tifa, it looked as though she had given up on diplomacy and was fighting with a few of the protestors. Despite being quite outnumbered, she was easily holding her own against the 50 or so protestors brave enough to face her in battle.
"This is a disaster…" Sky moaned. "Leon, let's go help!"
"What about Hojo?" Leon questioned.
"If we don't deal with these mobs first, it won't matter whether or not we capture Hojo and his goons!" Sky pulled his phone out of pocket, speed-dialing the commander of his security task force responsible for navigating the waterways. "Sazh, tell me you've found the laboratories!"
"Not yet, sir," a voice replied from the other end. "We're working on it, but these waterways are very extensive-"
"You've got 20 minutes!" Sky hung up on Sazh, stuffing the phone roughly back in his pocket and grabbing Leon by the arm. "We don't have time to argue. Let's quell this insurrection."
(May 1st, 2012 – ATL)
Sora walked into the command centre of Disney Castle and leaned over the king's shoulder, observing the screens closely. Many were focused on the bases off-world, but one in particular had his attention. It had been an hour since Snow White had unexpectedly called a meeting for all the Princesses of Heart. She claimed to have discovered a new method of pure light manipulation that they could use against the Heartless and Maleficent. However, because of the nature of its experimental state, it was requested that no one else be present, lest the spell backfire and accidentally kill anyone with a shred of darkness in their heart. So King Mickey and a few of the commanding officers agreed to watch on the monitors from Disney Castle.
"How's the meeting going?" Sora asked.
"Looks good so far," Mickey replied. "They're just starting now. Snow White served tea a moment ago." On the screen, the four princesses were sipping out of tea cups and discussing strategies. Cinderella paused mid-sentence, placing a hand delicately against her forehead. She waved off Belle's assistance, smiling in a pained sort of way. Sora frowned at the interaction.
"Something's wrong," he murmured more to himself than anyone else. No sooner had the words left his lips, Cinderella collapsed to the ground. She was followed quickly by Belle and Kairi. Immediately afterwards, the monitor switched to white noise. Before they could blink, all the monitors in the room flickered out. "Shit!" Sora wasted no time holding his arm up to summon a Door to Light, but nothing happened. He froze in shock.
"Re-establish contact!" Mickey shouted at the nearest technicians. "Get Cid on the com, tell him the monitors went out! Sora, what's wrong?"
"I can't create a Door to get to them!" the Keyblade Master said frantically. Searching in his heart, he realised the reason. The connection between his heart and Kairi's was broken. That could only mean one thing and it was one thing he prayed to whoever was listening that it wasn't true. There was only one way to find out for sure. "I'm taking a gummi scout ship out to Snow White's villa!"
"Don't be foolish!" the king retorted. "It's too dangerous to fly through the Heartless domain! That's why the Corridors of Light were established in the first place!"
"Yeah, well now they're out of commission, so what else am I supposed to do? Kairi's in danger!" Sora didn't wait for permission to go; he simply raced out of the command centre towards the gummi shipyards. His heart was hammering in his chest and he kept hoping that he was wrong about his suspicions.
It was a difficult journey manoeuvring through enemy-infested territory, but Sora managed to break through to the world of the Dwarf Woodlands without drawing too much attention to himself. The scout ship landed in a clearing near the villa, kicking up dust and dead leaves in its wake. He jumped out of the cockpit the moment the hatch was open and dashed into the villa. What he saw made him stop dead in his tracks.
Belle, Kairi, and Cinderella were lying motionless on the floor amidst shattered tea cups and crumbled biscuits. Their eyes were half-lidded and there was dried blood around the corners of their mouths and noses. Snow White was nowhere to be found. Sora stood in the doorway of the villa, frozen to the ground, unable to summon any thought or noise. He could only stare at the lifeless body of his last childhood friend. The connection between their hearts was broken because hers was no longer beating.
In a few shaky steps, Sora stood next to Kairi, stooping down beside her, and fingers poised close to her neck. He already knew the truth, but he clung to that small chance of hope that he was wrong and he'd find a pulse. He pressed his fingers against her neck and waited. After a few seconds of nothing, he stood up straight. Very slowly, he turned around and walked back to his scout ship. With trembling hands, he flipped on the com system to send a message back to Disney Castle.
"T-this is Sora," he mumbled, finding his voice weak and barely audible. He cleared his throat and tried again. "I need a medical team and a coroner here." He paused, hesitantly looking over his shoulder back at the villa. "I was…too late. They're dead. All dead." He bit his lip to keep it from trembling. "No sign of Snow White but it's unlikely she made it far." Keep it together, he told himself. "Send an investigation party as well. We n-need to find out what happened. Sora out." He flipped the com button again to save and send his message. It would take some time for the message to reach the castle and for the others to react and send the teams. Plenty of time for Sora to recuperate after seeing such a sight.
He sat in the pilot seat of his scout ship and allowed himself to mourn the loss of his last connection to Destiny Island. It was one of the few times he broke his promise to Kairi to not cry anymore.
(Sept. 25, 2007, 6 minutes to midnight – CTL)
Sky and Leon stood outside the castle gates down by the Bailey, watching as a crowd of angry and scared citizens approached. They only had 6 minutes to convince these people that the Restoration Committee was looking out for their safety, and that the mobs should disperse and go home. Leon seemed fairly convinced that these were educated people who would see reason and leave. Sky knew better, having dealt with crowd control like this before. It hadn't ended well then, and he doubted it'd end well now.
When the people were in earshot range, Leon called out, "I know what you've all heard!" The people at the front of the mob stopped, glaring at Sky and Leon. "I know the Righteous Hearts have you all scared! But I promise you, we're doing everything in our power to stop them!"
"You don't care about us!" one protester screamed, pointing her finger at Leon. "If you did, you'd step down like they asked!"
"Yeah!" another protested shouted. "We're the ones who will pay for your arrogance!"
"Stand down!" someone cried. "Listen to your people! Stand down!"
"I don't believe this…" Sky muttered. "What'd I tell you, Leon? You can't reason with them. They're crazy!" Leon ignored Sky for the moment, still trying diplomacy.
"Do you really think we'll be better off with the Righteous Hearts in control?" he called to the people. "They're terrorists! Their only goal is to seize control and manipulate all of you! We're interested in your wellbeing! They're the ones threatening you!" From amidst the crowd, a rock came hurtling towards Leon. He narrowly avoided being struck.
"Ok, that's it!" Sky roared, suddenly protective of Leon. "You've done things your way, now it's time for me to do things my way." He summoned his Oblivion Keyblade and used it to draw a line in the ground. "Anyone stupid enough to cross this line? C'mon, I dare you!" At first, the people looked dubious, then they turned angry, but none were brave enough to take Sky up on his threat. "That's what I thought! Go home! Let us handle the bad guys!"
"You're the bad guys!" someone shouted. A man broke away from the crowd and ran at the line in the ground. Sky narrowed his eyes, casting a spell under his breath. The line erupted into tall flames, forcing the man to stop dead in his tracks and back away. After a few seconds, Sky let the flames die down.
"Anyone else?" he asked seriously. No one else attempted to cross the line. "Good. Move along, citizens! Everything is fine!" He raised his hands in an attempt to subdue the riots. "Return to your homes! We have this under control!" Just then, the ground shook and there was a terrible noise, like metal scraping against metal, and the courtyard of Castle Luminous burst open, revealing a hideous and massive beast. It let out a deafening roar as its wings stretched out to the sky, shaking the debris from its scaly skin. Screams of terror filled the streets as protestors fled the scene, abandoning their picket signs and flags in search of cover and safety.
"Okay, so we don't have this under control…" Sky muttered to himself. "Leon, what the fuck is that thing?"
"It looks like a Bahamut!" Leon called. "But those went extinct thousands of years ago! The Righteous Hearts must've figure out a way to revive one!" The Bahamut resembled something of a dragon, with a great wingspan, a long whipping tail, and a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth. It took off from the castle and swooped overhead, heading straight towards the downtown core. "We gotta stop it! They're destructive by nature!" Sky and Leon took off after the creature.
An explosion rocked the city as the dragon-like monster slammed into the nearest building, causing screams of fear and chaos to echo across the streets, reverberating off the buildings and under-construction skyscrapers. People ran in different directions, trying to escape the danger while inadvertently causing it by trampling one another, knocking each other down. Sky and Leon pushed through the panicked crowds, assessing the situation. There was the fierce Bahamut flying across the sky high above the city, firing magic bursts from its mouth. There was pandemonium in the streets. There were allies in the distance attempting to fend off the Bahamut and protect the citizens.
People were sent sprawling to the ground from the next explosion that went off, the force of the shockwave knocking them off their feet. Leon and Sky took refuge behind a wall, hoping to plan their next course of action.
Crouching low, Sky waved Leon closer so he could hear what was being said. "One of us is going to have to track down Hojo while the other leads everyone into battle against that Bahamut!"
"Wait, isn't defeating the Bahamut our top priority?" Leon questioned.
"If we let Hojo get away during this mess, we'll never see that fucker again! So, one of us has to catch him." He could tell by the look on Leon's face that the older man didn't want to miss out on the action. Neither of them did. Despite the danger, Sky was actually looking forward to the fight more than tracking down bad memories. "The question is how are we going to decide who does what?" He looked Leon in the eye. The other man was wearing a look of concentration and confidence.
"There's only one way to settle this," he answered, raising his fist. "Rock, paper, scissors?" Sky froze upon hearing those words. The only person he ever played that game with to decide important decisions was Riku, and at that moment, Leon was reminding Sky very much of how Riku acted, right down to his facial expression.
But despite the resemblance, there was something unique about Leon that made him so special, something that made Sky realise just how badly he had fallen in love with him.
"Oh god, if we don't make it…" Sky whispered as he reached out, unable to stop himself. He leaned forward, one hand latching onto Leon's neck, and closed the distance between their lips, pulling him into a passionate kiss. There was a moment of hesitancy behind Leon's movements, just a moment of shock, but the moment passed and Leon was tangling his fingers into Sky's hair, deepening their kiss.
When Sky withdrew, breathless, Leon murmured, "And if we do make it?" Sky smirked, thinking himself clever.
"Then we'll fuck, I promise," he laughed. Leon couldn't help but burst into chuckles.
"Then let's finish this," he said, holding his hand at the ready to decide who would get to fight the big battle. "Winner faces the Bahamut." Chanting the words, "Rock, paper, scissors!" he splayed his hand flat while Sky produced a fist. "Paper wins." Sky scowled at his loss, straightening up to head to the laboratories.
"I'll see you later then," he said as he turned to leave. "And I mean it! After this battle, it's just you and me!" Leon grinned.
"I look forward to it. Take care of yourself!" They departed each other's company and went their separate ways, Leon to the city centre, while Sky headed for the castle.
For the first time in a long time, Sky's heart was doing back flips. It had been so long since he had felt giddy about anything, let alone love. Hell, it had been so long since he had been in love, he almost couldn't remember what it felt like. He had spent so long living with the grief of losing Riku that he had to remind himself just how good it felt to feel this way about someone and have them return his emotions. Now he had a solid reason to fight his hardest.
(May 1st, 2012 – ATL)
Sora waited outside Snow White's cottage, feeling numb inside. The healers and investigators were still conducting a search of the premises and running checks on everything to determine exactly what had happened. After some time, Merlin came out and approached Sora.
"Well," he began. "As near as we can tell, they were poisoned from the tea." As the wizard said that, three sheet-covered gurneys were wheeled out of the villa. Sora watched them leave, his eyes never wavering away from the one with the body of his red-headed princess. He stopped the coroner a moment, uncovering the body slowly. They had been merciful enough to close Kairi's eyes. She almost looked peaceful. Sora frowned slightly, feeling his facial features dissolve into grief, but he quickly composed himself. He would not show weakness in front of his allies.
"Goodbye, Kairi…" he whispered only loud enough so that he could hear it and, he hoped, so that Kairi's spirit may hear it wherever it was. Leaning down, he placed a delicate kiss on her cold cheek and smoothed out her limp hair. "I'm so sorry I failed you…" He closed his eyes, taking a slow, shuddering deep breath, and waved the coroner away as he covered up the body once more. When he opened his eyes again, he was focused on Merlin. "And Snow White?" he asked darkly, revenge already on his mind.
"No trace of her anywhere in the villa. But that's the peculiar part. It's like she hasn't been there for days! We'll need to consult the video footage of their meeting to confirm this theory, but we checked the cup Snow White was using, and we found no traces of poison, no DNA samples, not even a fingerprint! What we did find, however, was a lingering trace of darkness." Sora's frown deepened.
"How is that possible? Princesses of Heart can't be turned into Heartless."
"We're not sure. Like I said, we'll need to check with the video footage, but I suspect a Mimic was at work here."
"A Mimic?" Sora turned away from Merlin, suddenly alarmed. "She could be anywhere! Anyone!" Then his heart was filled with dread. "What about the real Snow White? Where is she?"
"I imagine she would be dead, seeing as the Corridors of Light are closed to us now. The only way that would happen is if all Princesses of Heart perished. I suspect that there was an operative working here trying to capture Snow White and when they did, they were able to learn all about our plans and our means of transportation. What better way to cut off the worlds from each other than to do away with all the Princesses at once?"
"We're dead in the water…"
"Exactly."
"But that means…" Sora looked up suddenly, realising that without the Corridors of Light to provide safe transportation of supplies and soldiers, the rest of the worlds were vulnerable. "Shit!" He took off without another word, running full tilt back to his scout ship.
When he returned to the scout, he saw a blinking light next to the com button, indicating he had a message waiting for him. He flipped a switch and pressed the com button to play the message back.
"Sora, this is the King. I'm afraid I have some grave news. Please report back to the castle immediately… This is something I have to tell you in person. Stay safe." Sora's heart sank as a familiar panic rose in his chest.
It took half an hour to reach the castle from the villa, but it felt like a lifetime. Sora, feeling like a bundle of nerves and anxiety, stepped out of his scout ship and was greeted immediately by the King.
"There's no easy way to tell you this," Mickey said solemnly, skipping formalities and getting straight to the point. "We sent two dozen scout ships out to check on our off-world bases. Half the scouts didn't return. The other half reported wide-spread destruction of all our bases. We lost 10 worlds in one hour. They were just gone… including…" Mickey took a deep breath, preparing to deliver terrible news. "Destiny Island." Sora's heart skipped a beat. Somehow he knew something like this would happen but he had always assumed it would be years from now.
"Why…?" he whispered to himself. He clenched his fist tightly, holding back the emotions and tears threatening to spill over from his eyes. His family, his friends, his home, all gone. He had nothing to hold on to, nothing to go back to, no one to save. "They weren't even fucking involved!" Without warning, he punched his fist into the hull of his scout ship, leaving a large dent and blood on the wrecked panel. "They were innocent! Oblivious!"
"I know…" Mickey nodded sadly. "I'm so sorry. Maleficent must've figured there was no point in leaving them untouched. I… I don't know what to say." He shook his head and closed his eyes. "We can't hold back the darkness any longer. I've been discussing with the other generals to conduct a mass evacuation of every single remaining world and bring them here. It's the only way to protect them all. We can't afford to stretch our resources so thin." Much of what the King was saying was going over Sora's head. He nodded numbly, waving Mickey off as he wandered away. "Sora?" Sora ignored the king and kept walking, unfocused on a destination, but knowing it had to be somewhere else.
"Riku is dead…" he mumbled, falling deeper and deeper into shock. "Roxas is dead. Kairi is dead. My mother is dead." He choked back a sob, leaning against a wall for support as the king came over. Sniffing, Sora said, "What's the point anymore? What are we fighting for? We're just prolonging the inevitable." Mickey winced, grief-stricken.
"Don't think like that!" he insisted. "We're fighting for freedom and life! We can't just give up!"
Sora scoffed. "Why not? It's so much easier."
"That's not the Sora I know. The Sora I know would never let the darkness win."
"The Sora you know is dead!" Sora snapped, rounding on the king with balled fists. "Along with countless millions of others!" Mickey observed him quietly, taking in that statement and the negative attitude.
"There is one thing that may save us, but I don't know if it will work." Sora's tense stature relaxed just the tiniest bit upon hearing that.
"What thing?"
King Mickey hesitated a moment. "I don't want you to get your hopes up, but Yen Sid, Merlin, Cid, and I have been working on a plan. You remember how you went back in time to save the Cornerstone of Light before the castle was built?" Sora nodded, recalling the faint memory. It seemed like a lifetime ago, back in the days when fighting the Heartless and Nobodies was almost like a game. "We've been doing research for last two years on how to recreate the door that took you back. I won't go into the specifics, but needless to say, we're close to a breakthrough." Mickey's eyes shone with a gleam of hope. "We think in a few months, we'll be ready to start sending people back to warn our past selves of the danger that Maleficent poses. Maybe, if we can figure it out, we could send someone back far enough before Maleficent was even a threat." Sora's eyes widened and he took a deep breath.
"You mean you can make it so none of this happens?" He spread his arms wide, as if to indicate the world around him, the horrible events that had occurred, and the people who were lost. "You can turn back the hourglass?"
"Exactly. But please, like I said, don't get your hopes up just yet. We've only just begun to experiment with the Cornerstone of Light." But Sora wasn't listening anymore. He was thinking long and hard about the idea of erasing the last 6 years of his life, going back to make things right, to save everyone he loved. Riku, Roxas, Kairi, everyone. He straightened up a little taller.
"I volunteer." King Mickey stared at him with a mix of admiration and surprise.
"Let's not jump the gun here. Maybe you should sleep on it."
"There's nothing to consider. I'm doing it. I want to end this nightmare."
"It could be dangerous. There's no telling if it will work, where it will send you or when. Even if it does work, there's no way to bring you back! Are you sure?"
"Positive." Sora clenched his fist tightly. "It's my fault that Maleficent escaped all those years ago. If I had dealt with her back then, then we wouldn't be here, mourning the loss of 10 worlds on top of the hundreds we've already lost." King Mickey could see the resolve and determination in Sora's eyes, something he hadn't seen in a long time. He was not about to deny the young man of this tiny glimmer of hope. He nodded, maintaining eye contact with Sora.
"All right, then. We'll bring you up to speed on where things stand with our research." He gestured his arm towards the colonnade leading to the command centre. Sora began walking with a renewed sense of purpose. Maybe, just maybe, he could undo the damage done. Maybe he could save everyone after all. That was something worth fighting for.
(Sept. 26, 2007 – CTL)
Leon's eyes were trained on the beast flying over the city, attacking the civilians and being a general nuisance to their hard-earned peace. He was running down the street, trying to keep up with the Bahamut, waiting for an opening to attack. The fact of the matter was that the Bahamut was too fast, too far away, and too high up to reach. It was going to be a difficult battle.
"Leon!" called a voice. Aeris, Tifa, and Yuffie were further down the street from Leon, and hovering next to them were the three fairies Yuna, Rikku, and Paine.
"What happened to the rioters?" Leon asked quickly as he approached.
"They fled to their homes when the Bahamut broke free," Aeris explained. "But listen, Yuna and her friends have something to say!"
"We don't have time to deal with those troublemakers!" Leon groaned, getting ready to break into a jog away from the group.
"We want to help!" Rikku cried, offended, stamping her foot on an imaginary floor. "We're fairies! We have pixie dust that will let you fly!" Leon stopped running abruptly at this. If they could fly, it would seriously increase their advantage and allow them to fight the Bahamut beast properly.
"That got his attention," Paine muttered, folding her arms.
"Here's the deal," Yuna explained, hovering close to Leon's face. "We'll sprinkle you and your friends with pixie dust so you can fight that monster. In exchange, you have to give us that amulet around the Bahamut's neck."
"What amulet?" Leon squinted to see a sparkle of a gold chain around the beast's neck. It looked entirely uninteresting and harmless, but the price it would fetch undoubtedly had the fairies' interest. "Fine, whatever, the amulet's yours. Dust us up!" Yuna and Rikku exchange a quick high-five while Paine smirked in approval. They flew over each human's head and left a trail of glittering dust behind. As soon as the gold pixie dust made contact with the humans' skin, their bodies began glowing and their feet rose above the ground.
"Holy smokes!" Yuffie cried in delight. "We're flying! We're actually flying!"
"Just keep thinking happy thoughts!" Yuna said as she and her companions flew away. "Good luck! Don't forget our prize!"
Leon narrowed his eyes on the Bahamut, his head already full of happy thoughts revolving around a certain Keyblade Master. "Let's do this!" he ordered, leading his friends into battle.
oOoOo
Sky ran breathlessly through the waterways beneath Castle Luminous, his recently-recovered memories helping to guide him. Sazh and his group were not far behind, tracking Sky's signal with their GPS devices. The tunnels were humid, just like Sky remembered, and the floors were damp and made an echoing noise with each footfall. They were close to the entrance to the Righteous Hearts' headquarters. Sky could feel it.
Rounding a corner, Sky paused. There was an iron gate blocking his path and the button to open it was on the other side. He thought about simply cutting through the bars, but it would undoubtedly cause a noticeable ruckus and alert the Hearts to his presence. In the short time it took for Sky to mull over his options, Sazh and his team had caught up. Without needing to be told of the dilemma, Sazh pulled one of his silencer guns from his holster and fired a precise shot off that engaged the button on the other side, releasing the lock on the gate. The gate slid into the ground.
"Nice shot," Sky commented. Sazh nodded quickly as they all ran through the now-open corridor.
"You have a Keyblade, you know," Sazh joked as he jogged ahead. "Y'know, the one that unlocks any door?" He cleared his throat awkwardly. "Sir." Sky huffed a tiny chuckle.
"Don't make me demote you, Sazh. You're a good soldier. But you're a smartass."
Further up ahead, there was a flight of stairs that took them further down into the labyrinth of hallways and underground passages. Sky slowed his steps and silently indicated to his teammates to step lightly. They were approaching the first set of doors, and beyond them, no one knew what lay ahead. Two soldiers got a hold of a door handle each, and in a silent countdown, they wrenched open their doors. Sky, Sazh, and the security team charged in, weapons ready.
Immediately beyond the doors, there were two startled men wearing lab coats. "Hands up!" Sazh shouted, getting around besides the scientists. "Hands where I can see them! Down on the ground, now!" As Sazh dealt with the two scientists, Sky and the remaining team members continued on through the facility. Several guards split off from the main group to investigate the rooms they passed, but Sky was determined to find Hojo, and he knew exactly where the deranged doctor would be.
By the time he had reached his destination, the rest of his team was missing, making arrests throughout the whole compound. He came upon a door labelled 'Lab E' and froze. Through this door was the setting of his nightmares, the place where he had endured the worst three weeks of his life. His hands trembled as he reached for the knob, turning it slowly. The door creaked open at an agonizing pace, revealing the laboratory where Sky remembered being strapped down and tortured. The room was vacant of life, but all the equipment was out, indicating that someone had been there only moments ago.
Sky's eyes darted to the door within the lab that led to a room that he had never set foot in, but he could only assume it was Hojo's personal office. He dashed over to the door and pulled it open. Just inside, with his back to Sky, was the leader of the Righteous Hearts himself. Hojo appeared to be in the process of collecting a stack of file folders and documents, obviously about to flee the compound. He turned around when he heard the door open, putting on a rather brave smirk when he recognized Sky.
"Ah, if it isn't the dog of the Restoration Committee," he sneered. "How's life as a puppet treating you, Keyblade Master?" Sky bared his teeth and rushed at Hojo, pinning the doctor to the wall with his Keyblade, causing the files and papers in Hojo's hands to spill across the floor.
"Vermin like you don't get the right to speak," Sky hissed. Hojo began laughing, despite the pressure on his windpipe.
"Go ahead, kill me. Turn me into a martyr for my cause. We are Righteous! The people will hear of this injustice and know our cause to be true! In the end, we will win."
"You really think the people will follow the terrorists who attacked them? You're out of your mind."
"We shall see in time."
"Too bad you won't be around to see it." Sky applied more pressure, his hearts burning with anger. All the rage he had felt when he was held captive came rushing back to him. He was blinded by thoughts of vengeance and justice. Hojo sputtered and choked for breath, but otherwise, he did not defend himself. He honestly believed his death would only strengthen his cause. And perhaps that was what infuriated Sky the most – the arrogance and fanatical devotion that Hojo had. It was enough to make Sky want to snap Hojo's neck, not just for the things he had done in this timeline, but for all the atrocities he had committed in the other timeline as well.
And then a strange thought occurred to Sky. What would Leon do?
Sky suddenly backed away from Hojo, banishing his Keyblade all together. Hojo collapsed on his desk, coughing and holding his tender throat. Sky's senses returned to him and his rational thought came back. It was wrong to kill Hojo now. Killing him wouldn't erase the bad things he had done. It wouldn't wash away the memories in Sky's mind. It wouldn't even make Sky feel better. What good would killing Hojo do? And what would Leon think? After all the conversations and advice that Leon had given, Sky just couldn't bring himself to end Hojo's life. Taking a deep breath, Sky closed his eyes. This was one of the rare times he'd show mercy.
"You have the right to remain silent…" he murmured as he approached the barely-conscious doctor, binding his hands together. "You have the right to a fair trial…" And then, as more of an afterthought, he added, "And you have the right to live…"
So Sky had learned something after all from Leon. He only hoped it wasn't too late to tell Leon so. They still had a Bahamut to deal with.
oOoOo