A.N. This is only a mention to give credit where credit is due. An image inspired one of the scenes in chapter 10 and is a driving force behind the next few chapters. It is a model edit titled "Riku is Dead" done by DeviantART user Vanitas4ever. Don't worry, the creator is aware that i'm using their work, and actually gave me permission to do so. Once again, thank you to Vanitas4ever and to all the others who are here to support this fic and help make it great. Ok, that out of the way, back to the story.
Bait, Chapter 11
Sora stared at the ruthless man with a seething expression. How much he wanted to hurt him, to inflict ten times the pain he had forced Riku and himself to endure.
"Why... WHY DID YOU DO THAT TO HIM?! Do you even think of your own side? Riku was one of the seven lights! If he dies, you and your organization's plan will backfire!"
"That is exactly what I had in mind..." Xigbar answered icily. "I don't want the X-blade to be forged!"
"What?" Sora replied in shock. "But I thought you were already half Xeanhort... So shouldn't you share his ambition?"
"I don't want to be fully possessed, don't you get it!"
"You didn't seem to mind the prospect of possession all those months ago!"
"Things have changed! I've done things that are unforgivable even by our standards! They see what's in my mind and, I'll be rejected! Turned into a Dusk! It's a worse fate than being taken over!"
For someone who releases such a cunning aura, this guy doesn't think things through... Sora thought in disbelief.
"I don't think corruption should matter... "
"I broke our rules! Even as recently as the span of time your precious Riku has been here!"
Sora's eyes widened, then narrowed at what Xigbar's remark implied. His next words dripped with fury.
"What else did you do to him?!" He snarled.
"You'll have to pry THAT answer from my cold, dead, hands!" Xigbar answered, summoning his weapons.
XXXXXXXX
"Master, can't we remove the blade? I think it's hurting him!" an alarmed Kairi asked.
They had to use the largest gummi ship they had, the full group of people was too large for a smaller and faster ship, and now with one extra member on board who happened to be wounded, they were going to need the space. Luckily the ship was meant for longer journeys and came equipped with a barracks. The small group was now congregated in that room, with Riku lying on one of the lower bunks.
Kairi was seated at the bedside holding a damp cloth to his face and whispering soothingly into his ear. Occasionally he would grab at the hilt protruding from his chest and cry out weakly every time his hand struck it. She ultimately had to grab his hands and hold them down at his sides to keep him from hurting himself worse, while Riku shuddered with every fresh wave of pain.
"I'm sorry Kairi, but the blade is in too deep to do that. We can't risk him bleeding to death if it struck something vital. It's best to do that in a place better equipped to handle such a situation. I can at least give him something to ease the pain for now."
He searched through the cabinet meant for emergency supplies on the other end of the room, where he retrieved a small vial containing a clear, colorless liquid, which he applied a single drop directly into his wound. The stuff must have been potent, because even that small amount was enough to help Riku settle down and quickly fall into a deep sleep. Kairi sighed in relief.
"I hope Sora and the others get out of there okay." Kairi said quietly.
Yen Sid looked at Kairi and gave a nod toward the ship's cockpit, where the communication center was. He had been in there talking to the rest of their small party moments earlier.
"Lea just got back to me, he managed to get Sora out of there, claims that he took a blow to the head and passed out, but seems fine otherwise."
"Thank goodness Lea got to him!" Kairi half screamed. "That awful man would've killed him, he seems a ruthless enough fighter. He stabbed Riku, who was defenseless!" Yen Sid held out a hand, signaling her to calm down.
"Not so, from what Lea was describing, it seems Sora defeated him and got struck by debris from his own magic. It would be a humorous thought if the situation wasn't so grim, knowing the type of fighter Sora is..."
The thought actually chilled Kairi, who remembered the cold fury Sora was in when the Organization member challenged him. He must have lost control of his powers.
Donald, Goofy and Mickey barged into the room at exactly that moment, each showing different levels of alarm at the sight sitting before them. Mickey ran straight to Riku and took his hand, staring at Yen Sid with a questioning look.
"They told us he wouldn't come to harm!" The mouse exclaimed angrily. "What happened?"
The old man explained everything that had happened in the past hour, right to the moment that Xigbar stabbed Riku. With almost cruelly ironic timing, Lea arrived carrying an unconscious Sora on his back. Donald shrieked his name and ran to his side, with Goofy and Kairi close behind him.
"Calm down, He's just knocked out!" Lea exclaimed in exasperation as Yen Sid strode past them all and carefully examined him, paying attention not to the swollen lump on his head, but to the way his body responded to certain actions. He looked up after a few minutes with an encouraging look on his face.
"There seems to be no sign of any brain injuries, though he will probably have a nasty headache for a few days, and that wont be hard to treat. He should wake up in a few hours- I'd keep an eye on him for some time though in case something not so detectable shows up later on."
"I hope any memory of that deal I made with him got knocked out of his head," Lea said sourly as he spied the injured Riku lying on the other bunk. "I told him he could beat me senseless if Riku had come to any harm..."
"Master?" The voice was so faint it was almost missed by those present. The sudden increase of activity had brought Riku back to consciousness. Yen Sid knelt at his side, looking at him intently.
"What is it, Riku?"
"Sora... I need... to see him. I need to know... he's safe..."
He was so weak he was having difficulty making that simple statement. Yen Sid carried the still-unconscious Sora to Riku's side, carefully laying him beside him on the bunk so he wouldn't nudge the knife that was still protruding from Riku's chest. Riku lifted a shaking hand to Sora's hair, gently stroking the soft brown spikes. Sora let out a soft moan and called out in his sleep.
"Ri-ku..."
"Shhhh... I'm... right here... Sora... We're both... safe..." Riku fell asleep as he continued to stroke the younger boy's hair, comforted by the knowledge that his best friend was safe.
XXXXXXXX
Though they had intended to return to Yen Sid's tower, Mickey suggested that they go to Disney castle instead, claiming it was closer and better equipped to tend to Sora and Riku. The trip, though cut by several hours, still seemed to take forever due to the tension that filled every crevice of the gummi ship.
The entire group practically fell out of the gummi ship when they arrived. Lea and Yen Sid carried the injured while Mickey led them to rooms within the castle. Sora had been taken to the nearest room they could find, but with Kairi and Yen Sid insisting that Riku be taken to a warm and well lit area, they had to find a room near the castle courtyard, where the sun was always guaranteed to get in during every moment of daylight.
The medicine Yen Sid had given Riku in the gummi ship hours earlier was starting to wear off, he was beginning to tremble from the pain by the time he was finally settled on the soft bed in the room. Yen Sid stood up, looking away from his young charge briefly as he turned to Mickey.
"Mickey, I'll need you to go tend to Sora, and take Kairi with you, she can use this opportunity to learn some basic healing magic."
"Master, can't I learn that at a later time. I do want to be there for both of them, but Riku's condition is worse right now!"
Yen Sid stared at the girl with a look that was both piercing and sympathetic. It chilled her to the bone.
"Kairi, you can still be there for him, it would be a noble gesture to aid the one Riku got wounded trying to protect."
She stared at the whole group, clearly conflicted. Yen Sid knelt at her side, looking at her intently.
"Trust me, I wont let anything happen to Riku."
Those last words gave Kairi enough resolve to turn away from the room and follow the king to Sora's bedroom.
"Master, Kairi has already mastered Curaga, I don't thank she needs any more training, and I thought you said Sora's injuries weren't serious. So why did you just send two people over to care for him?" a confused Lea asked.
"Sora, Kairi and Mickey hold a particularly strong bond with Riku, but Sora's unconscious and couldn't see or hear this anyway. But Mickey and Kairi, I couldn't let those two witness this, it would break their spirits. As deeply as this blade is lodged in his body, it wont be easy to remove it, and impossible to do it painlessly. There is no denying it now, Riku's in for a rough time." The old wizard said grimly.
End of Chapter 11