Chapter 30 Doppelganger
"Gwarsh, how did we end up outside?" Goofy asks, scratching his head as he looks at the clear bright sky that had replaced the white ceiling.
"This is impossible," Riku says, facing the huge building before them with bronze statues armed like gladiators one either side of the entrance. "We were in MEKA…"
Kairi shields her eyes from the sun. "Where are we?"
"It looks just like the Coliseum, but it can't be," Sora says. He scuffs the ground with his shoe scattering sand with his toe. Like the sky, the ground had been tile moments before, but now they had somehow travelled worlds away to the Olympus Coliseum.
Donald gives their surroundings a suspicious look as he takes a step back, reaching from the doorknob of the heavy white double doors that had brought them here. "Maybe we should head back," he says, turning around only to squawk in surprise. "The door! It's gone!"
Sora spins on his heel. "What?" He stares with disbelief at the empty air where their way back should have been. "What the hell is going on here?" He asks knowing no one knows the answer.
"Oi!"
The shout turns their attention to the right where a familiar figure is moving towards them on short, furry legs.
"Phil," Sora says with relief. Maybe the satyr would know what is happening.
Phil for his part gives Sora a hostile look. "Do I know you?" He asks. Surprised, Sora starts to reply, but Phil cuts him off with a raised hand. "Doesn't matter. Sorry kiddies, Coliseum ain't open to spectators today."
"But Phil -" Donald starts to say, but the satyr is already walking away.
"Come back Friday," he calls over his shoulder. "That's when the show is." He hops up the front steps and disappears into the coliseum leaving the group outside more confused than before.
"Who was that?" Kairi asks, feeling like the only one left out.
"Phil runs the Coliseum here and trains heroes," Riku says, remembering back to briefly meeting Phil on his search for Sora. "Why did he act like he didn't know us?"
Sora looks the coliseum, frowning. "Let's go find out," he says and takes the lead towards the big double doors. The man in the black coat had said Ven was in the castle and Sora isn't going to waste time standing around asking questions. Yes, this sudden change in scenery didn't make any sense, but he is going to keep moving forward until he gets back to MEKA where he can wring a black coat's neck for answers.
Shouldering open the heavy doors, Sora enters the vestibule outside the arena where an annoyed Phil rounds on him.
"Do I have to spell it out for you? Get lost."
"Cut it out, Phil," Sora snaps, ignoring Riku who is trying to keep him from storming up to the short satyr. "You know who we are and we need your help."
"I never met you before in my life, kid," Phil says, not at all intimidated. "Now get out of my coliseum before I throw you out."
"Okay, that's enough," Kairi says, stepping forward. She puts herself between the two, pushing Sora back towards the others. "We're getting off on the wrong foot. Phil, my name is Kairi," she says. "And these are my friends Donald, Goofy, Riku, and Sora."
"The hot head?" Phil asks, crossing his arms.
"Yes," Kairi says, throwing a look at Sora. "Sorry about him. He's just worried because we're trying to find out friend Ven."
"Don't know a Ven," Phil replies rudely. "Lot of people come through here. Can't expect me to remember them all."
"I know, but Ven is special," Kairi says. "He's a keyblade wielder, like us."
"Keyblade?" Surprised, Phil forgets he is supposed to be glaring at Sora and his arms drop to his sides. "You some of Master Eraqus' apprentices?"
Now it's Kairi's turn to be surprised. "Yes," she says and Phil let's out a laugh.
"Then why didn't you say so," he exclaims shaking his head. "Your teacher's been sending Terra and Aqua to me for years. Nice to see some new faces. Even Mr. Hot-head there."
"You know Terra and Aqua?" Sora and Riku ask at the same time.
"Taught them nearly everything they know," Phil says, his chest swelling with pride. "Those two are real heroes." With a critical eye, Phil sizes them up. "Eraqus must think you guys are up to snuff too, so let's see. Come on. This way."
Oblivious to the wide eyed stares the group of five is giving him, Phil hurries deeper into the coliseum. Left alone in the vestibule, the group of friends turn once more to each other. "What the hell is going on?" Sora says, repeating his question from before. He looks to Riku who rubs his temple and shrugs, an action repeated by everyone.
"You know," Goofy says thoughtfully. "It was like he thought Master Eraqus, Terra, and Aqua were still around. But the Phil we met knew they'd disappeared."
"So what are you saying?" Donald asks. "You think that this isn't really Phil?"
Riku rubs his temple again. "That makes even less sense."
"Get in here already!"
Phil's voice comes from the arena and as a group the five of them head after him. Sora is so caught up in studying Phil to try and determine what is going on with him that he doesn't realize there is someone else in the arena until Phil shouts again.
"Oi Herc!" Phil calls to a skinny boy who'd been practicing at the far end. "Get over here. I got some people I want ya to meet."
"That's not Herc," Sora says, staring at the teenage boy who is running clumsily over to them. "Right?" Sora adds wondering if maybe he is losing his mind.
"Herc's older. And bigger," Riku says slowly, but he can't deny the unmistakable similarities between this Herc and the strong hero he had met.
The too-young-looking Herc reaches them slightly out of breath, but he smiles and says, "Hello. I'm Hercules, but you can just call me Herc."
He stretches out his hand to Sora who hesitates before shaking his hand. "Sora," he says, too confused to say anything more.
Herc smiles at him and moves on to the others, greeting them each and asking their names. "Nice to meet you all," Herc says politely and then turns to Phil. "I broke 45 barrels in 18 min-"
"Hold yer horses Herc," Phil says interrupting him. "These aren't your average joes. These guys are keyblade wielders. On their way to becoming real heroes like you are."
"Really?" Herc asks, looking them over and Sora, Kairi, and Riku smile and nod back as best they can.
"But they're gonna have to work to get there," Phil says. "And that's what I'm here for. Let's start by seeing what you're made of. If you're not totally hopeless I might give you a few pointers." He points to Sora. "You first," he says, jerking a thumb over his shoulder to indicate he wants Sora to head into the battle area.
"We don't really have time -" Sora starts to say, but a voice behind him drowns him out.
"Can I show you what I got too?"
They turn to see another boy whose dark blue eyes stare out with a mischievous air through the slits in the helmet masking most of his face. There is something familiar about him that Sora can't place. Phil, however, groans and runs his hand over his face. "Sheesh, don't you ever give up?"
"No way!" The masked boy says. Hearing his voice again makes the hairs stand up on the back of Sora's neck, but he doesn't know why. "I wanna to be the best and I gotta have the best trainer."
Phil raise his eyes to the sky with a scowl, but that doesn't deter the newcomer who makes his way over to the group cheerfully. His blue eyes meet Sora's as he introduces himself.
"I'm Zack. Zack Fair."
…
The dark city outside the Organization's castle is the same as it was on Roxas' first day minus the rain. He shivers, remembering the confusion and the fear and Rexick's terrible smile.
"You cold?" Axel asks. "We could head back if -"
"No," Roxas says quickly and Axel raises an eyebrow at him. "I've spent too much time at the castle these last couple days and I'm not that cold."
Axel considers him a moment. "Alright," he leads the way down the street. "So what have you been up to without me? Xemnas been assigning extra missions with half the force at Castle Oblivion?"
Roxas shakes his head. "No. And it's weird. He's only been sending me to Twilight Town to take out heartless. I won't complain about not getting stuck with recon or anything, but going to the same world and fighting the same heartless everyday is getting old. Even the Darkside at the train station isn't all that exciting anymore."
"He's been sending you after that Darkside alone?" Axel asks, his voice sharper than before, remembering the fiasco that had been Roxas' first attempt at taking on a boss heartless. "After what happened last time?"
"I'm stronger now," Roxas says, rubbed the wrong way by what Axel is implying. "I can handle it without your help."
"I know you're stronger, Rox, but boss heartless are dangerous to go after alone."
"I handled it," Roxas says curtly.
Axel sighs and runs a hand through his hair. He hadn't meant to offend Roxas, but all he could think about was that first time against a Darkside where he'd almost watched the giant heartless crush Roxas.
He opens his mouth to apologize, but a soft sound nearby sets his battle instincts off. He freezes, listening hard and Roxas, noticing this, stops a few steps later.
"Axel? What is it?" He asks, turning back.
Axel presses his finger to his lips and falling silent, Roxas hears light footsteps coming from one of the alleys near them. "Someone's coming," Axel whispers.
…
At the front of the group walking through the streets of the City That Never Was, Amiddon holds up a hand, signaling the others to stop. "Someone is nearby," she whispers and Zack listens carefully, hearing the faint sound of voices ahead of them. He can identify two and to him it sounds like they are arguing.
Moving slower and with more care to stay as quiet as possible, their group of four continues down the alley they are in towards the voices that fall silent abruptly.
"Keep your weapons at the ready," Master Amiddon whispers and Zack nods, reaching for his sword. He's never faced these Nobody monsters before, but according to Master Amiddon they are all formidable opponents.
At the end of the alley the keyblade master crouches, peering carefully around the corner. Standing behind her, Zack does the same and what he sees makes his heart stop and his hand drop from the hilt of his sword.
There, in a back coat that nearly makes him blend into the dark city street, is Ven. His Ven. Alive, awake, and looking just like he had the last time Zack had seen him.
Zack is pretty sure Mickey tries to tell him something and that Master Amiddon grabs his arm to stop him, but he pushes away both and runs out onto the street. Ven's eyes widen in surprise at him - the same crystal blue Zack had waited so long to see again. With the blood pounding in his ears blocking everything else out Zack reaches Ven and throws his arm around him in a tight embrace so he will never have to lose him again.
Ven, however, does not return the hug and with a shout and a shove he sends Zack stumbling back.
"Who the hell are you?" Ven demands, stepping back as Zack, confused and hurt, steps towards him again.
"Ven? What?" Zack feels like he can't breathe. As he watches, Ven moves farther away from him and to the side of a taller boy in a black coat whose red hair matched the blazing look of anger he had on his face.
"Rox, do you know this guy?" The redhead demands and Ven shakes his head.
"Ven?" Zack repeats his voice cracking and the redhead steps in front of Ven, blocking Zack from him.
"Stop calling him Ven," the redhead says, glaring. "His name is Roxas."
From around the redhead's side, Ven's blue eyes peek out at Zack and without any thought other than getting to him, Zack pulls out his sword.
In an instant the redhead has a pair of chakrams in his hands and Mickey is grabbing Zack's arm, yelling to get his attention.
"Zack. Zack! That's not Ven. Look at him!"
"What are you talking about? That's Ven! He looks just like he did." Wrenching his arm out of Mickey's grip, Zack falls back into a battle stance only to find Master Amiddon had gotten between him and the redhead with her hands up to both of them.
"That's what I'm saying, Zack," Mickey says urgently, drawing Zack's attention. "Look at him. He's 15. Ven would be 25 now. I'm sorry, Zack. That isn't him."
Slowly Zack lowers the point of his sword until it rests on the ground. He keeps it there, feeling unsteady on his feet. "But...Ven?" Zack pleads, one last time, but the boy who looks just like his Ven shakes his head.
His eyes look through Zack without recognition. "My name is Roxas," he says
"I don't understand...how..." Zack can't string together the words to ask how the boy standing in front of him with Ven's face and Ven's voice could be someone named Roxas. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out Ven's pin, rolling it in his fingers. The nervous habit does little to calm him.
"We came here thinking Sora's Nobody would have Ven's heart," Mickey says softly. "I think we just found him."
Mickey looks to Roxas and Zack does the same. Roxas stares back, looking angry and confused. In a more subtle way he looks scared with his hands balled into fists and it breaks Zack's heart to know it's his fault.
The redhead, for his part, just looks angry. Pointing his chakram at them he says, "You have ten seconds to tell us who you are and what you want before I put your toasted asses in the ground."
"My name is Amiddon," Master Amiddon says, drawing the redheads attention away from Zack. "This is Ryla, Mickey, and Zack. What's your name?"
"Axel. Five seconds."
"We're not here for you we're here for him," Zack says, gesturing to Roxas, but keeping his eyes firmly on Axel as the redhead's expression turns sour.
"In that case," Axel says, spinning his chakrams in his hands. "Get ready to burn."
"Axel, wait!":
Roxas grabs Axel's wrist before he can start and gives him a stern look. "What do you want with me?" He asks, turning to Zack.
With Roxas' eyes on him Zack can't make his jaw unclench so Mickey answers for him. "A friend of ours, Ven, is missing and so is his heart. We have been searching and found that your leader knows where Ven is and his heart...well... we think that you, Roxas, have his heart."
"What?" Roxas can't help, but let out a breathless laugh. "You think I have a heart? That's crazy! That would make me…" Roxas trails off.
"A real person," Zack finishes for him and from the way Roxas' brow furrows he can tell the boy hasn't dismissed the idea. "But you should be a Nobody. That heart inside you isn't yours."
Roxas takes a step towards him. "But how would I get a heart? I'm a Nobody."
"You're Sora's Nobody," Zack replies. "Sora had Ven's heart and it transferred to you when Sora became a heartless."
"That's -" Roxas starts to say, but Axel interrupts.
"That's the most ridiculous thing I've heard," Axel says through gritted teeth. "Nobodies. Don't. Have. Hearts." His hand drops onto Roxas' shoulder. "Come on, Roxas." He tried to pull Roxas away with him, but Roxas shakes him off, his eyes glued to Zack and more specifically to his hand.
"What is that?" he asks in a quiet voice, pointing to the small pin Zack is holding.
Zack stops fiddling with it and looks from it to Roxas. "It was Ven's," he says slowly.
Roxas nods and Zack can't tell if it is in agreement or if it just means he heard him. "Can I see it?"
Now everyone including Axel is staring at Roxas, holding their breath. Zack holds it out to Roxas who steps forward to take it, fingers brushing Zack's and making his heart speed up.
Roxas cradles the small pin in his palm, examining it, then closes his finger over it and ducks his head as his eyes drift shut.
. . . .
The music was loud and the crowd jostled around him - teenage voices chattering endlessly. He was staring up at a wall displaying colorful t-shirts with prices marked as "Best Deals in Shibuya!"
He jumped as arms curled around his waist from behind. "Hey you," a voice said in his ear and he relaxed, leaning against the boy behind him.
"Hey, you find anything you like?"
"Mmhmm." A soft kiss was planted on his cheek and he laughed
"What's that?" He asked as the boy behind him attached a pin to his jacket. He had to crane his neck to read the small writing on it. "Sexy D," he read aloud and his face heated up.
"It made me think of you," the boy hugging him said, fighting back a laugh.
Knowing his face was bright red, he elbowed the boy in the ribs to make him release him and turned around to face him. The boy was beautiful. Untamed spikes of black hair frame his face and the wide smile made his blue eyes shine bright.
And all Roxas could think of is how much he wanted to kiss him.
. . . .
With a jerky movement, Roxas shoves the small pin back into Zack's hand. The boy in the vision or memory or whatever he'd just seen is without a doubt a younger Zack and Roxas stares at him trying to find the words to demand an explanation for what had just happened.
Zack however looks away, stowing the old pin in his pocket again. "You know everything we've said is true." It's not a question, but Roxas shakes his head anyway.
"No." His voice trembles slightly. "My name is Roxas not Ven. I don't know you. I've never met you - any of you," Roxas says, backing away. "Just stay away from me." A hand grips his shoulder from behind and Roxas relaxes, knowing it's Axel.
"We're leaving," Axel says as he summons a dark corridor behind the two of them.
"Wait!"
Zack can't meet Roxas' eyes for more than a second at a time, but Roxas can see he is desperate. He takes a step forward and Axel moves in front of Roxas to block him. "Take it," Zack says holding out Ven's old pin to Roxas. "Please."
Not sure he really wants to hold the pin again, Roxas hesitantly reaches out a hand and takes the pin from Zack, careful not to let their fingers touch. Once it's in his hand he quickly stuffs it in his pocket and retreats through the portal Axel had opened. With a final glare at the strangers to make them think twice before coming back, Axel follows and the corridor vanishes with him.
Watching them go, Mickey takes a step towards Zack, reaching up to put a comforting hand on his friend's arm, but Zack moves away. "Zack?" Mickey calls after him, but Zack doesn't turn. With his shoulders hunched and his eyes on the ground Zack heads back through the dark city streets they'd come.
"I'm sure Roxas is just confused is all," Mickey says jogging to keep up with Zack's long strides. "Maybe if we go and explain to him again he'll come around."
Zack doesn't look at him. "We've done what we can,"
"What do you mean, Zack?" Mickey asks casting a worried glance at Master Amiddon and Ryla who are watching Zack silently. "We're getting so close. Didn't you see Roxas' reaction when you gave him that pin? Sure looked like he had Ven's heart."
"That wasn't Ven!"
Zack stops and rounds on his friend, letting his frustration get the better of him. "It looked just like him but that...that...Nobody monster wasn't him. Ven's gone, Mickey! He's been gone for years! But he's haunted my dreams every night. Never ageing, never changing, always just out of reach and -" He takes a deep, shuddering breath. "And now that Nobody is wearing his face. Torturing me. I can't go back and talk to that fake again. I...can't."
Breathing hard and feeling drained, Zack turns away from the others. He runs his hands through his hair and pulls it hard, trying to regain some of his lost composure.
"Alright." Master Amiddon's voice is soft and her hand is gentle on his shoulder. In other situations Zack would have pulled away, but he's too broken to shake off the comforting touch. "We should go back to Traverse Town and decide what our next move should be."
Zack nods, not trusting himself to speak without his voice cracking. Keeping her hand on his shoulder, Master Amiddon summons a light corridor. Zack goes through first, slipping out of her hand and Mickey follows a pace behind. Master Amiddon goes to follow only to be stopped by Ryla.
"Master, what about Xemnas?"
Detecting an all too familiar stubborn tone to his apprentice's voice, Master Amiddon faces her with her arms crossed. "What about him, Ryla?"
"We're here and we're not even going to scout out his castle?" The younger keyblade wielder asks, gesturing to the castle taking up most of the city's skyline.
Keeping her voice even, Master Amiddon replies, "A friend of ours is hurting. We came here to help Zack and now what is best is for him is for us to return to Traverse Town."
"I would hardly call someone we just met today a friend," Ryla mutters under her breath.
Master Amiddon's eyes narrow. "Ryla," she says in a warning tone.
"Well what are we going to do if we go back with him?" Ryla asks throwing her hands up in an exasperated gesture. "Comfort him? Be there for him? We barely know him! We're already here in The World that Never Was and Xemnas is here too. Let's finally go after him and stop with this tip toeing around the universe in Organization XIII's shadow!"
With a sigh, Master Amiddon reaches out to Ryla, but the younger apprentice pulls away. "Ryla," Master Amiddon says again in a softer voice. "You must not let your anger blind you. The two of us alone cannot lay siege to a castle. Xemnas will be taken care of in time, but right now the matter of Ventus is more pressing. We are leaving."
Master Amiddon points to the corridor and Ryla knows nothing will sway her master's decision. In her anger, the words tumble out before she stop herself. "Because running away is all you know how to do, right?"
It was a low blow against her master and she knows it. Casting her eyes to the ground, Ryla hurries through the light corridor before she can see the hurt in her master's eyes.
Merry Christmas! It's a little late, but my present to you is an angsty Zack. You're welcome!
CatLoverx33: Let's just say Rexick's trip to Castle Oblivion probably won't end well for him ;)
By my estimation there are about 4 or 5 more chapters left in book 2 and then it's on to book 3. I know you're all thinking, how can she pull that off? There is so much left to happen for just a couple of chapters! Fear not! I have a plan! (kinda)
For now, though I will wish you all a Happy New Year and leave you with a quote from Mariah Carey:
All I want for Christmas is your review :D