"Is this the guy you saw?" Cid asked me.
I looked at the main computer screen and studied the picture. Leon wasn't convinced that I had met Ansem the Wise and that he had sent me here to Radiant Garden, so, with Aerith supporting my left side, we walked into the main room of the building. There I met Yuffie -who, along with Leon, rescued me from the Heartless- Cid, and Merlin.
Yuffie kinda reminded as a sort of ninja girl with long black hair and wearing the tight black outfit and ninja stars that stuck out of one of her many pockets. Cid seemed like the mentor to the others. He was probably old enough to be my grandfather, but don't tell him that. Merlin seemed a little more animated than the others, with a large blue robe and matching wizard cap, accompanied by an extremely long white beard.
While Yuffie and Merlin tried to pry some answers from me (Where I came from? How I got here? etc.) Leon took Cid aside and explained the situation to him, asking him to pull up an image of Ansem. With the swift movement of his fingers, Cid swept through file after file on his many computer screens until he found what he was looking for and called me over.
It was only a head-shot, but that was all that I needed. The sharp face, blond hair, and slightest view of a maroon scarf confirmed that that man was the same person I'd met before.
"Yes," I said, then turned to Leon and added, "That's him."
"I don't believe you," Leon stated with an unconvinced voice.
"Leon," Aerith exclaimed, obviously surprised by her friend's reaction.
"She may be working for the Heartless," Leon argued.
"Then why could they attack her?" Yuffie pointed out.
"It's true. They did some pretty good damage on her leg," Merlin added. "My magic couldn't destroy the darkness within her wound."
"That doesn't proved anything," Leon objected.
As they continued to bicker, I couldn't help but feel insulted. They were arguing about me as though I wasn't even in the room. I looked at Cid and saw that his hand was on his head and was shaking it back and forth, probably thinking the same thing I was.
I balled my hands into fists, no longer able to stand it. "Enough!" I yelled and everyone went silent. More calmly, I continued. "Leon has every right not to believe me. If someone told me some dead guy had sent them to find me, I'd be suspicious too." Leon opened his mouth to speak but I cut him off. "But answer me this,Leon; If I was working alongside the Heartless, would some evil essence help me create this?" I held out my right hand and my Keyblade appeared in a small explosion of white and black feathers.
Everyone's eyes went wide and Cid nearly fell out of his chair next to me.
"That changes things," Leon muttered.
I smiled triumphantly, but a sudden wave of dizziness came over me as my eyes closed and I felt myself sway back and forth. Strong hands were quickly placed on my shoulders and guided me a little ways to the right. The arms softly pushed me down until I was sitting in a chair and a distant voice that I later made out as Cid's told me to take deep, calm breaths.
The entire time it felt as though I was getting frostbite on my injured calf, but I tried my best not to cry out in pain and instead focus on taking deep breaths as Cid instructed. Eventually, my head stopped spinning and my stomach settled. The pain in my leg was still there, but was not as bad as earlier. I opened my eyes and saw Cid kneeling in front of me with concerned eyes.
"You alright now?" He asked me.
I nodded slowly, not eager to having my brain do flips and tricks again.
Everyone in the room sighed in relief.
"You gave us quite the scare there," Cid stated. "You sure you're okay?"
"Yeah," I replied, then looked down at my hand; my Keyblade was still there, but the white feathers seemed somewhat dull and gray. "I need to work on that."
"Work on what?" Yuffie questioned.
I lifted my Keyblade and place it on my lap for everyone to see. "Ansem the Wise explained to me that I have a certain gift. Supposedly in my possession is both the power of Light and /Darkness. I don't know how I got it, I just do." I then went on explaining what had happened to me; how I met Ansem, the situation with growing darkness, and the disappearance of Sora, Riku, and Kairi, as well as my family. When I asked Leon the question that had brought me there, however, I was in for some bad news.
"I haven't heard from those three since Sora and Riku took their Mark of Mastery exam," he told me.
"So Ansem thinks they might have been kidnapped?" Cid inquired.
I nodded. "If that's true, there's also the chance that my family is with them."
"But those three together are quite a match not to reckoned with," Leon pointed out.
"Yes. It's more than likely that they were split up so their lights won't combine," Merlin added.
"That doesn't matter thought," I stated. "I have to find them or everything will be blanketed in darkness. I won't let that happen."
"And we all agree too," Aerith replied. "We just got our home back and we're not letting the Darkness take it again; but you have to realize that you don't know where to start looking and you're in no condition to travel."
"And you won't be saving anyone until you learn how to use that Keyblade of yours," Leon said with a smirk.
I groaned, less because of what Leon said and more of me getting cocky back at the courtyard. Because of that, I wasn't going anywhere until my leg healed. Then a thought came to me, and I turned to Merlin. "Merlin; Is it possible for spells you've casted to be manipulated by a different source of magic?"
"I suppose," the wizard answered.
"Would you let me combine your healing magic with my Keyblade's magic so as to heal my leg?" I continued.
Merlin thought for a while, staring at the ceiling and stroking his long white beard. After several moments, he looked back at me and nodded. "But will you manage using magic in your current state?" He asked.
"I'm willing to do anything if it means stopping the pain. It feels as though salt's being rubbed into it," I replied.
"Very well." Merlin walked over to me and Cid slowly began removing the bandage around my leg.
When my wound was fully exposed, I felt sick to my stomach; four very visible purple claw marks ran along the back of my right calf. My normally pale tan skin was light-gray around the injury and my blood veins were visible but instead shaded a sickening black.
The sudden exposure to the open air stung, but I held off the urge to cry. A lump formed in my throat and I swallowed it hard, then looked back at Merlin and nodded nervously.
Cid backed away and the room became silent as Merlin started to move his hands in a dancing motion over my Keyblade. A bluish energy soon came from his palms, causing the Keyblade to pulse with the same light and the white feathers returned to their proper color.
I felt the energy growing within the weapon and the light of Merlin's magic soothed me. It was so calming that I was having a hard time keeping my eyes open.
When Merlin was done casting his spell and pulled his hands away, the Keyblade did something none of us could have fathomed; It rose into the air, surrounded by the blue light of Merlin's magic. We were all too stunned and had no time to react when it pointed itself towards my chest and shot forward. But just as it seemed it would pierce my heart, it exploded in a twister of black and white feathers that danced around me. No one dared move as the feathers went down to my leg and placed themselves on my injury. It felt somewhat ticklish but I merely watched the spectacle, awe-stricken.
Once all the feathers had wrapped a sort of cast around my leg, there was a flash of blue light and the feathers disappeared, taking my wound with them. We were all so surprised that the room remained silent for what felt like seasons... until Yuffie broke it.
"Well, it worked."
I snorted at how simple-minded the comment was and before long, we were all laughing.
XXXXX
It was well-late into the afternoon when things finally settled. Aerith prepared dinner and while we ate, Leon and the others told me the story behind Sora, Riku, and Kairi. I won't go deep into the details, but let's just say it wasn't a happy beginning. Like me, their home was destroyed by the Heartless. Sora was swept to a place called Traverse Town, Riku was manipulated by an evil fairy named Maleficent and was taken over by Darkness, and Kairi lost her heart.
When they brought up the story of how Sora and Riku had to fight, I was immediately reminded of my fight with my eldest brother, Genji. I honestly don't remember what we were fighting about, but the last thing he said to me was as clear as day and remains even now a large hole in my heart; "I wish you were never my sister!"
I had felt somewhat at fault- though I can't recall why- and wanted to apologize, but the Heartless attacked before I got the chance. The thought then occurred to me how much Riku and my brother had in common. Both had a hard time controlling their temper, fought for some ridiculous reason with a loved one, and were dangerously exposed to the Darkness. Suddenly, I was more scared than ever that my brother might end up like Riku did, and told the others.
There were mixed theories, but one thing was certain; Defeat the Darkness soon, or I'll never get my brother back.
XXXXX
I couldn't sleep that night. I stared at the ceiling for hours, looking out the window and sometimes catching sight of a star going out in the dark night sky. Merlin had explained to me that each star represented a different world, so it was pretty easy to figure out that once a star vanished, that world was gone. There were so many I can only imagine which ones my loved ones were on and if they were at risk of disappearing as well.
But what if I can't save them all? I asked myself. What if I run out of time? Where could I send them after I rescued them and who would protect them in my absence while I search for the others? When will this nightmare end and why must I be involved?
The five 'W's' dominated my mind and before I knew it, the sky was starting to become pink, announcing the near arrival of dawn. I silently crawled out of my bed, cleaned myself up a little, and headed for the front door. Just as I turned the knob, however, a voice stopped me.
"You're up early."
I quickly turned around to find Cid at his computers. His eyes were droopy and black circles were under them.
"Couldn't sleep either?" I asked him.
Cid nodded his head. "Too busy setting up the new security system for the town. Those kids are tough but they have to rest some time."
"It's as if they're yours," I teased.
That made Cid laugh a little. "Then I must have been crazy after the first one. But no, I've just been taking care of them since they were little. They don't have parents so I'm the closet thing to a father they got."
I smiled. "You raised them well."
Cid sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I try." Looking back at me he added, "Where were you going, anyway? Isn't Leon going to train you?"
"Not until after dawn. There's something I wanted to check out," I replied. Cid made a nervous face and I quickly added, "Don't worry; if I see any Heartless; I'll bolt out of there. I won't do any fighting until Leon deems me fit. Please?"
Cid pondered for several moments before sighing once more and nodding his head. "Just stay out of trouble."
"I will." I turned back towards the door and left.