Now that Riku's powers were restored, him and Mikhail were protecting the airship from the mutated heartless while they set course for the Land of Forests. In the meantime, Zero kept herself busy by cleaning her sword and keeping an eye on Four. Eventually, Four thought her prolonged staring meant that she wanted to have a conversation with her, so she approached her older sister.
"Hello Zero! Or if I may call you older sister-"
"Don't ever call me that."
"Right, Zero it is. Um, well, since you're an Intoner too then I think you should also ask Riku to help fight your inner darkness. If there's one thing I learned is that being an Intoner is nothing but a curse, you deserve a shot at living a normal life too, you know?"
"Fuck off or this sword will end up in your flat chest."
"Yeah, sure! I just wanted to ...say that."
Zero let out a deep sigh. 'That bitch gets an easy way out and wants to act like everything's perfect now, but I don't let anyone intervene with my own goddamn life.'
Once the coast was clear, Riku returned to the airship and Mikhail flew next to them.
"Hey, wait a second dummy." Zero went over to the guardrail. "You look different."
"She's right, it's like you evolved...I didn't even notice it at first," Riku said.
"Wha- no way! What the heck?!"
Riku looked over to Zero. "Dragons can do that?"
She shrugged. "Don't ask me."
"Guess that means I'm like a grown-up now! Right? Riiiiight?"
"Wrooong. Now go take patrol."
"What? But I'm so tired! Can I rest up for a little bit? Please? Pretty please!"
"Go ahead, but just so you know, that knocked off a few adult points for you."
"Aw, no fair!"
"What? Being grown-up sucks."
Mikhail went to lie down on the airship's upper deck, leaving Riku and Zero alone.
"By the way, how'd you manage to fix your arm?" Zero asked.
"...Magic."
"That's some pretty strong magic then. You know, I'm starting to believe there's more to you than you're letting on."
His eyes went wide. "Uh...what makes you say that?"
Zero shook her head. "Usually I don't pay attention to your bullshit, but ...I can't get over that you suppressed Four's Intoner powers without killing her. Maybe the foreign country you're from has some weird magic I'm not aware of. Where'd you say you were from again?"
"Um...far away...on a small island. You wouldn't be able to find it on a map."
"Oh, so you're from some backwater island? That explains why you're so weird."
"At least I have an excuse." He muttered.
"You just love pissing me off, don't you?" She turned to leave.
"Can I ask you something before you go?"
She sighed. "What the fuck could you possibly want?"
"Do you remember when I asked you about the flower in your eye?"
She raised an eyebrow. "Why are you asking me this now?"
"Just curious I guess. So...how did the curse you have from the flower affect you?"
"Does this have anything to do with Four? Because I swear to god I will march over there and-"
"No- no, she doesn't have anything to do with it." He rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed. 'I really hate that I have to say this to her.' "I- um- just want to get to know you better. That's all."
"Oh. Next time just start off with that then, dumbass. When I got cursed that's how I became an Intoner. I got the power of song...and other stuff."
"How, uh, do you like being an Intoner?" He asked awkwardly.
"It sucks."
"Yeah, I bet." He said under his breath. "That's all I needed to know. Thanks."
"Whatever. Thanks for not making it awkward." She walked away from him. 'Why was he asking those dumbass questions? Is he hiding something? Does he actually want to get to know me? No of course not. He's acting weird for some other reason. God knows what.'
As the airship was approaching the Land of Forests, it seemed like it would be smooth sailing from there on out, little did they know, there was an ambush waiting for them.
"Well what do you know. Everything's not going to shit," Zero said.
*BOOOM*
Luxurious: Three has more 'love' for the heartless than the other two I think, but she leans more towards Ansem SoD in terms of her experimenting.
Knight: Yeah I just based Three off of Aqua's look. Gotta love the aesthetic.
Anon: Getting Octa down took some soul searching. I channeled some FMA while writing the chapter so that's how Ed and Al snuck in there:) Would you believe me putting Ravus in there was just a really lucky coincidence bc I completely forgot he turned into a daemon in game. I'm starting to think some of the Intoners and their disciples match via personality rather than utility wise I guess. You got the S&M duo with Four and Dec, Three and Octa are weird and hyperfixate on different things, etc… uh don't know where else I'm going with that others.
Patrick the observer: it was a brief moment of self-awareness before she basically lost all sense of herself soooo :v Tbh if the Org was in the story they'd snatch up all the intoners.
Raximus: Three figured out a way to keep them from turning into darkness, at least for the most part. Sure she's figured out the pureblood from the emblem heartless.
Keybladelight: I'm glad you liked the chapter, wasn't sure how people were gonna take a chapter focusing on an Intoner. Might do another in the future. Yes, I'm super excited for MoM as well!
"Shaded Truths"
Out of nowhere, they were attacked by heavy cannon fire which caused the ship to plummet down the sky. Although the airship crashed and burned, everyone was able to make it out in one piece, but the same couldn't be said for the soldiers who shot them down because Zero was determined to see to their ends.
"I'm gonna slice the shit out of every last one of you!" Zero screamed.
"I'll join you," Four said, tightening her combat bracers. "I detest The Land of Forests and now I'm stranded here thanks to those fiends."
"Just don't get in my way or I'll end up 'accidentally' stabbing you."
"Th-That's Lady Four of the mountains!" One of the soldiers gasped. "What's she doing here teaming up with that demon?!"
"I've had a change of heart." Four ran ahead, grabbed the head of a soldier, then slammed him on the ground. She kicked his body back up so she could use him as a meat shield and protect herself from the soldier's incoming sword strikes.
"Stop holding back men just because she's Lady Four! Anyone who stands against Lady Three must be destroyed!"
While the soldiers were focused on Four, Zero threw herself into the fray and slaughtered them left and right. The two sisters were an unlikely duo, but their combined forces were no match for any of the men. Four punched the last soldier in the gut, then threw him over to Zero who cut his head off.
"When they're both covered in blood like that you really see the family resemblance," Dito said.
"Those two are cut from the same cloth," Riku said.
Zero stomped forward, not even the blood of men was able to satiate her fuming anger from the loss of the airship. "Goddamnit! Everything could've been so fucking easy with that airship! I'm gonna kill all of these sons of bitches!"
"Cover all of your bases next time."
"How was I supposed to predict THAT? Fuck...now it's back to- hey, wait, where'd he go anyways?"
"He?" Decadus asked.
"Mikhail. She's not a big fan of using his name," Dito said.
"Why not?"
"Because I'm a jerk, mostly."
"At least you admit it," Riku said.
"This is why I don't say your name either."
"Ah, these lands bring back good memories, does it not Lady Four?" Decadus asked.
"Not at all. The Land of Forests is as filthy and dangerous as a place gets," Four said.
"I dunno. Seems pretty tame to me," Dito said.
"Far from it. There's all sorts of dangerous, non-human species crawling all over the place."
"Yeah, that's kind of racist."
"What- no it isn't! I'm not a racist or anything, I'm merely telling the truth."
"Heh, straight out of the racist playbook."
"Right. What happened to you being a good person?" Riku asked.
"So now I have to be nice to elves and ogres in order to be a good person?"
He sighed. "We still have a long way to go."
"Hey, you do know where we're going, right Z?" Dito asked
"What does it look like?"
"Not sure if I should answer that..."
"Three's shrine is that giant tree up ahead," Four said.
"And where is that?"
"I'm not sure, sorry. I've never had the misfortune to travel there by foot."
"Perfect. Just another reason why I'm gonna kill that bitch for what she did to my airship."
"Uh, I mean well technically it's still my airship..."
"What?"
"Nevermind!"
"And we're not killing Three either. As long as we can save her," Riku said.
"Fuck that's so boring."
Zero was leading the way, mowing down every soldier that dared cross her path. However, the further they ventured through the forest, the further they moved away from the light until their path was entrenched by darkness. That's when they were attacked by enemy soldiers that were unlike any soldier they encountered before.
Zero's face recoiled in disgust. "Ew...what the fuck is that?"
A platoon of soldiers came out from the shadows in droves, dragging their swords on the ground. With black masses of flesh ravaging their bodies like a parasite, there were few words to describe their grotesque appearance. It almost looked as if they were in the process of turning into a heartless, but the darkness stopped just short of claiming their hearts.
"—Get out of the way, Zero!" Riku charged in on the soldiers, he shot a Firaga Burst at the enemies, but they used their shields to block the attack outright.
'Smart for a bunch of heartless. Or are they soldiers?' He spun his keyblade around in his hand before hitting them with a Dark Thundaga instead that did some damage, but it didn't stop them from marching ahead. 'Feels good to have my magic back at least.'
"̷̣̈́L̴̨̜̆͝a̸͚̾̈́͜d̷͚̐ÿ̸͍͍́͐ ̷͓̘̔T̸̬͉̎͝h̷̨̘̓ṛ̷̓͠e̷̔̆ͅë̴́͜͠.̴̱̠̓͝.̴͔̊̀ͅ.̵́́ͅL̷̬̗͑ä̷̻͓́̿d̸̩͆y̴͈͝ ̸̨̱͐T̶̳̅̈h̴̛̘ř̶̡ë̶͚̱́̾e̷̠̺̍.̴̨̠̎́.̷͓̉͜.̴͍̓̒"̶̱̻͆̐
̴̻͔̾̉"̵͙̮͘W̵̰̞̄̿h̷̝̔ě̸̼r̸͇͒͆ẹ̷̫̀́ ̶͉̗̍̿å̵̝͆ṟ̷̗͝e̶͔̝̐̆ ̶͙͈̋y̵͈͋͝o̴̧͂u̷͈͛.̸̟̇͊.̸̢̩̂.̸͈͉͒Ţ̴̝̀͘h̵̡̠͆r̴̥͙̔́e̷̲̍e̸̢͚͗?̸͖͋"̷̙̾̚
"Heartless are the gift that just keeps on fucking giving," Zero said.
"I don't know why they look like that...heartless and human at the same time," Riku said.
"I'm afraid this could be Three's doing," Four said.
Once the heartless soldiers had them surrounded at all sides with no chance of escape, they were forced to fight back. Zero and the others were doing their best to get some hits in on them, although Four mainly hid behind Decadus for the duration of the battle. At the same time, Riku was multi-rushing the heartless soldiers, utilizing every magic-infused move in his arsenal and taking full advantage of the near-limitless powers it granted him.
However, right when Riku was about to finish the soldiers off, they abruptly retreated back into the darkness.
"Perhaps they ran away," Decadus said.
"No, they're still here. In the shadows," Riku walked around the area for any traces of darkness he could pick up, but they were the ones who found him first.
"Y̵̟̖̖͕͛O̷̫͐́U̶̢͚̬͎̎̽̅ ̴͍̝̪̳̅W̵̢̹͇̯̹̽̾̐͝I̶͇͓͔̩͐̓͜͝L̴͎͙̂L̴̝̓͑́͆͌ ̵̟̣̃P̷̧̛̱͍̖̌̎̆́Ḁ̸̗̍̿Ỳ̴͔̣̟̤ ̴̲͚̟͖͕͌͋͘͝F̷̨̣̄ͅÕ̴̝̲͉̤̅̓̈́͠R̸͎͍̠̾͐͝ ̷͚͉͎͒͂͋̆Ỳ̷͉̹͋̽͠O̵̺̎̾U̴̗̫͗̀̀͠R̷̻͙̤̾͑ ̴̡̋̓͛͐C̵̠̮͈͔̤̏̀͂̍̕R̸͈͇͊͋̉͘Í̴̫͊́͝M̵̟͍̿Ȇ̷̢͙̫͑̏S̵͓̝̈ ̵̧̼̰̪̥̾̾Ȃ̸̻̟̎͋̓͌G̸̤̟͈̻̰̅͋̈́̃͆A̵͎͓̔Ḯ̷̼̲̹̕N̵̘͓̺̦̯͐̽̌S̷͍̰̃̊̏͊̽T̴̘̗̰̑͋̈̐ ̴̨͓̾͐͌̐L̶̡͓͈̼̿͜Ä̸̙̪́̋̑̑D̴̡̥̘̂͑̒̾͝Ÿ̵̩́ ̴̥̲̩̜̓͝T̸̜̽̅̈́Ḫ̸̡̨̬͛̉̈̏̕Ŕ̴̤͖̄͘͝E̵̪͐̉͊̿E̷͎̙͈̝̓͗̂!"
When he least expected it, the heartless soldiers rose from a black pool circling around him. One of them grabbed him from behind, then they all piled on top of him. He could hear muffled screams from the outside, but there was only one voice that was loud and clear.
Let it consume you.
"I'm not going out that easily." He held his keyblade close to his chest. "You're done."
Back bolts of lightning ripped through the sky and incinerated the pile of soldiers upon impact. It was a risky move that would've proved fatal if Riku didn't also cast a last-second Reflect spell on himself before the electricity could surge through him as well.
Fortunately, he emerged from the melted corpses with only a few black smudges on his face. 'That was probably the last of my magic for now, but that's the least of my problems. I can't let that voice get in my head again.'
"What formidable powers. Now I'm curious about the sorcerer who taught you such magical prowess," Decadus said.
"I'm self-taught."
"Oh, that's quite impressive for such a young man."
"It's not a big deal."
"Don't be so bashful, Riku. Men who can hold their own in battle is an attractive trait to women," Four said.
Zero shot daggers at Four who held her arms up in defense. "Wh-which I mean in the most platonic, non-romantic way possible of course!" She added.
"I- I can hold my own in battle as well Lady Four," Decadus said.
"Not now, Decadus."
"Hey, Four, you said something about Three earlier. Anything I need to know about her?" Riku asked.
"She's a freak and not in a good way," Zero said.
"She's not a freak, she's just a little out there. Unfortunately, she takes a liking to performing experiments on her soldiers...as you can see. Oh, if only I had been better a little sister for her, then she wouldn't have gone so far off on the deep end."
"...You can be a better little sister for me if you drop dead," Zero said.
She gave her a weak smile. "You have a great sense of ...humor, sister!"
"That wasn't a joke."
"So does Three...cut them up? And then poke and prod at them...nnnngh...how cruel...and punishing. If only I could be one of her test subjects," Decadus said.
"...I don't know all the details, but she turns men into beasts," Four said.
"Those soldiers were more than just beasts," Riku said.
From thereon, their encounters were just more and more heartless which was right up Riku's alley. He blazed a trail through the darkness for the others to follow until they were confronted by a formidable foe. A Rock Troll heartless emerged from a pit of darkness holding a cage of faeries in one hand and a battle axe in the other. To top it off, the Rock Troll bolstered a small unit of heartless soldiers they had also to contend with.
"What are those things?" Riku asked.
"-We're not things you incompetent fool! We're faeries! Whimsical faeries! And if you could hurry up and save us instead of standing around like clueless morons, we might be in the mood to part you with some wisdom!"
"Looks like we don't have a choice. Zero, stick with me and we'll fight the Rock Troll, the rest of you guys try to take on the soldiers."
"Gladly. I rather not lift a finger to save a bunch of flying pests anyways," Four said.
Zero pulled out a large, broad sword. "You sure have a fetish for saving people."
"A...fetish?"
"Heh, you're such a virgin."
They both jumped out of the way as the Rock Troll hammered its battle axe on the ground. The Rock Troll was a hulking, albeit sluggish heartless, it didn't know too many attacks, but the ones it did know were devastating. Just a few swings of its battle axe and it already chopped down a few of the encompassing trees. Riku and Zero could only get a few hits in at a time before they had to retreat from the falling trees.
Luckily, it worked out great for Four and the others since the trees ended up falling right on top of the heartless soldiers.
"Damn it! Can't you do anything?" Zero asked.
"I'm thinking of a way that won't kill the faeries."
"For fuck's sake..."
While Riku and Zero took cover behind a fallen tree, the Rock Troll stuck its axe in the ground, then swung around on it, hurling rocks in every direction.
"Think of something faster!"
"Alright, alright. Just be prepared to cover me."
"Fine."
As soon as they left behind the tree, Zero ran forward and cut through the rocks flying at Riku. Now that Riku had an opening, he shot an Aeroga spell at the Rock Troll. A forceful gust of wind swept the heartless off its feet, then Riku and Zero seized the opportunity to slash the hell out of the heartless until it was reduced down to a heart.
With the heartless defeated, Riku picked up the faerie cage from the ground. "You guys okay?"
"Barely! I thought for sure one of us would die from how sloppy that fight was! You should all be ashamed of yourselves!"
"So what's this wisdom you were supposed to tell us?" Zero asked.
"Hee hee hee! I can't believe you actually fell for that! We only said that as a joke, guess I can't be too surprised. You are all about as stupid as they come."
"Yeah, almost as stupid as that big dumb dragon stinking up the Valley of Faeries," Another chimed in.
"Where's that?" Riku asked
"Just up ahead, but I doubt you'll be able to find it since you guys are so-"
Zero opened the cage, then crushed all the faeries inside and wiped off their remains on her leg. "Any objections to that?"
"For once, no. At least we know where Mikhail is now, I was getting worried about him."
"Don't. Idiots like him never die young...then again, you're still alive."
He rolled his eyes. "...Whatever."
They went ahead into the Valley of Faeries in search of their missing friend. Like before, there was heartless to defeat and a confusing forest to navigate. This time around, they found themselves traveling through an undergrowth of tree roots where the sunlight barely passed through.
"I'm surprised we haven't been running into more of those vile demons," Decadus said.
"That's because the only vile demons here are those faeries," Four said.
Right on cue, a faerie buzzed around them like a fly. "—Bumm de-de dum dum! Well lookie here! Good morning you slow-witted, brainless buffoons!"
"You just had to open your mouth Four," Dito said.
"Well, how could I stay silent when I heard such nonsense from an ugly, grisly looking girl with an inferiority complex? Although, I suppose someone like you who couldn't bag an ogre if you tried would feel the need to put down others in order to feel slightly better about yourself."
"Listen here you-"
"Four, just ignore her. Be the bigger person," Riku said.
"You know, faeries aren't much of 'people' now are they? So I believe it's fair game."
"That's not how any of this works..."
"Awww, she's so helpless that she needs a big man to tell her what to do?" The faerie teased.
"No, that's not what I was-"
"You know I hate people like you. The noble, chivalrous type who thinks they can do no wrong when really you're just feeding girls a load of crap so you can get them to like you. What a sad, pathetic loser."
At that point, Four had enough of the faerie's slander and engaged with the creature against her better judgment. Little did the faerie know, Four was just as much of a pro at the insult game.
"Actually, you're the one who keeps stalking us so that makes you the loser here. It's like you faeries don't have anything else better to do with your short lives except make everyone else miserable. Why don't you just die already? Oh- sorry did that sound harsh? Good. It's not like your life is worth anything."
"Aw, do you actually think you're hurting my feelings? YOU'RE the ugly one who will never blah blah blah [literally who cares about what this faerie is saying]."
"God this is hilarious. The two people with the worst inferiority complexes out bitching each other," Dito said.
"Says the imp who's gonna grow up to be fat and ugly. You should kill yourself now to save the trouble," The faerie said.
"Alright. How about you fly a little closer so I can rip your little wings off and stuff them down your throat!"
"Now- now, Dito and Lady Four. You shouldn't worry yourselves with such frivolous matters. They're only trying to provoke you."
"You're right. There's nothing more frivolous than these winged rats," Four said.
"Great...this is bringing out the worst in you Four," Riku said.
"Riku...don't sound so disappointed in me. I-I'm still trying to be a good person."
"Saying you're a good person and trying to be one are two different things. These faeries are jackasses, but that doesn't mean you stoop down to their level."
"Easier said than done..."
"No one said it was going to be easy, but you still have to do it."
"Booooring. Are you two done squabbling yet? Now where was I?"
"About to fucking leave," Zero said.
"Oh so now the insecure whore has something to say? Guess what? You look like you got pimped out from a low-grade brothel, what does-" Zero killed the faerie before she could open her mouth up again.
"Well deserved," Four said.
Riku sighed. "Are we getting closer to Mikhail at least?"
"Yeah, I can smell his rotten stench from here."
"How can you tell? I think he kinda smells like you," Dito said.
"What the fuck are you trying to say?"
"I- I mean, 100 times worse than you. It's not even close. You smell great!"
"You were right the first time," Riku said.
"I'll kill you too like that faerie if you keep pushing it."
"Hey, I had to get you back for calling me an idiot earlier."
After a long trek, they finally found Mikhail who was trapped on the cave ceiling in a tangle of thick ivy. "Wahhhh! Zero! Riku! Help me! Help meee!"
"And now I have to free him too." Zero went around the cave and cut down every stalk of ivy that bounded Mikhail to the ceiling. Once he was free, he fell on the ground white a giant thud.
"You okay Mikhail?" Riku asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine now! I was really scared, I thought you'd guys would never come!"
"I'm starting to wish I didn't," Zero said. "How the hell do you get lost so damn often?"
"I dunno! It's not my fault!"
"Yeah, it is! Just do something useful for once and destroy that wall."
"No problem!" Mikhail bashed his head into the cave wall, creating an opening for them to pass through. "You shoulda seen it! I got all caught up in that ivy, it really hurt!"
"How come you didn't just use your fire or bite through the ivy?" Four asked.
"I was panicking, okay!"
"...This is the same dragon who tried to kill us at Cathedral City?"
"God, no," Zero said
"Hmph, I hope you're not mean too like your big sister, Four," Mikhail said.
"No, nothing of the sort. I'm a changed woman."
"Yep, Four the saint here who tells faeries to kill themselves," Dito said with a smirk.
"They totally deserved it though."
"Can't argue with you there."
"You're not helping Dito," Riku said.
"Ha, and that's the beauty of it."
As they walked out of the cave, they encountered more vile, demonic creatures...and heartless too. Riku broke off from the group to make quick work of the heartless while Zero and the others had to contend with the aforementioned faeries.
"Hee hee! I think we know the person you're looking for!" One of the faeries led on.
"Are you talking about Three?" Zero asked.
"Maaaaybe? Life is just full of chance encounters, you know? I try not to waste precious brainpower on the useless ones."
"Like you even possess..." Four stopped herself. "Nevermind, what information do you have on Three that we don't know of?"
"Her location, otherwise you wouldn't be bumbling around in the forest, now would you? Although, I don't really know where she is, I bet our king would."
Zero was quickly growing agitated. "Fine. So where's your king?"
"Oh, who can say? You know dear, nothing in life is certain after all. Although I AM certain you'll find him deeper in the forest."
"What wasted breath," Four said.
"Right? Way to contradict yourself there, dumbass," Dito said.
"I feel as though it's time to part ways since you have an awful track record of murdering faeries, Intoner. Farewell nobodies."
"Thank god."
Riku rejoined the group shortly after. "Hey. Done with those faeries?"
"Yep. Apparently, they have a fucking Faerie King so now we have to deal with that shit."
"I'll admit it, those faeries are getting on my last nerves. Hopefully, the king is the last we'll see of them."
"Huh? How come you guys don't wanna meet the Faerie King?" Mikhail asked.
"Was your brain turned off the last ten minutes? Those faeries are assholes and watch, their king's gonna be ten times worse."
"You think? Well, try not to kill him okay, Zero? Tell her Riku, you're supposed to be nice to things that are smaller than you, right?"
"I think that's above Zero's threshold for kindness."
She smirked. "You know me so well."
After Mikhail broke through a few more stone walls that blocked their path, they made it to the sacred shrine of the Great Faerie King. Zero approached him, already having visions of murder dancing in her head.
"Oh, why hellooo, and you're Lady Zero I take? Lady Three's inbred sister. I could tell from your hideous, deformed face."
Zero crossed her arms. "Can you save the shit talk and get to the point?"
"Oh ho ho? But where's the fun in that dear? Now, what have you worthless lot come to pester me about this time around?"
"Where's Three?"
"She's in the Forest Shrine."
"And where is that?"
"Oh ho ho ho! If I were to tell you THAT information, you'd kill me on the spot, wouldn't you? I've heard of all the nasty rumors from the other faeries about your murderous tendencies, so I won't be making THAT mistake."
She rolled her eye. 'He basically just admitted to being an asshole then. Glad we're on the same page.' "I'm not gonna kill you."
"I find that hard to believe. Did you forget? I'm the Faerie King, no one is more wise or clever, or boundlessly intelligent than I! I see through your ruse, Intoner."
'This idiot just said the same word three times. I'm not drunk enough to deal with this shit.' "I, uh, promise?"
"I find that VERY hard to believe."
"-Let me talk to him instead," Riku offered.
"Take it away. I was just about to kill him."
Riku walked up to Faerie King with his hands in his pockets. "Hey, tell us where Three's shrine is at and we'll be out of your way."
"And what do we have here? You're the pathetic, womanizing loser my faeries warned me about."
"Womanizer? That's a new one."
You're going to accept that? You really are pathetic.
The old you would've killed him on the spot.
"Not this again...get out of my head..."
"Oh? And you talk to yourself too? Seems you're a sandwich short of a picnic, boy. Oh ho ho ho, that was a good one! Oh ho ho ho-" He laughed his last 'oh ho ho ho' when Zero crushed him in her palms and turned him into fairy dust.
"Light's still on up there?" She asked.
"Yeah, it's nothing. I'm fine."
"—Waaaah! You killed him Zero! You killed him! Are you sure you shoulda done that?!" Mikhail yelled.
"Please, dragon. I say good riddance," Four said.
"But- but what about all the information we need to gather so we can-"
"Shut up. We can find it in another place. Let's keep walking," Zero said.
"Besides, even if Zero was merciful, I seriously doubt that thing would've told us much. Honestly, I'm just glad it's over with. Do you know how much I was refraining myself from speaking out against those fiends?" Four went on.
"Congrau-fucking-lations. Do you wanna nice shiny medal to stick up your ass too?"
She sighed. "...I'll be quiet."
Since it was late out, they decided to set up camp right outside the Valley of Faeries. By the time Riku returned with the firewood, Zero, Decadus and Dito were nowhere to be found at the designated campsite.
Riku dropped the pile on the ground, then lit it on fire. "Where did the others go?"
"You don't want to know," Four said.
"Oh...that."
They sat in silence for a while. Four stared at the campfire, listening to the fire cackle on the lumber and watching the embers fly out into the night sky. She turned to Riku who was polishing his keyblade, then nervously swallowed. "...You know, I have to admit. Being a good person is a lot harder than I thought it would be. I guess I just got so caught up in my own lie that I forgot what it meant to be a truly kind person."
He put his keyblade down, then looked up to Four, which made her even more nervous. "I was in your same position too a long time ago, but my friends helped me to get where I am today."
"Do you think um..." She hesitated, her heart was ready to pound out of her chest with how nervous she was and it made her so afraid to put her thoughts into words. But all she could do was let out a deep sigh and cast her worries away to the fire. "I...I know you told me before that you didn't want to be friends with me but...I was hoping you changed your mind about that. About being friends...so you could help me be kind as well. I-I understand if you say no, there's still a lot I have to-"
"Sure."
Her eyes went wide. "S- Seriously? After I embarrassed myself to you so many times?"
"Yeah, I'm not that much a jerk and I think... you're different now. You're not lying to me anymore."
She smiled at him. "...It's all thanks to you."
"-Oh! Oh! Can I be a friend too?" Mikhail asked.
Four nodded. "Why not? I mean, even though you're a dragon-"
Riku elbowed her.
"Wh-Which there's nothing wrong about that! You're still more tolerable than most humans I've come across."
"Ha- ha thanks! So what should we talk about now that we're all buddies? Oh yeah. How do you like your sister Four?"
"She hasn't left the best impression on me."
"What happened to you remembering how good of a sister she used to be?" Riku asked.
She shook her head. "Clearly I made it all up in my head. She hates me and that'll never change."
Just when they were enjoying their peaceful night together, Dito and Decadus were dragging themselves across the dirt towards the campsite.
"And here comes these buffoons," Four said.
"What happened to you guys?" Riku asked.
Dito pulled himself off the ground. "...Zero happened."
"E-every crevice of my body aches...oohhhh..." Decadus groaned.
"God... and I thought Five was rough. How the hell do you manage that every night without your dick falling off?" Dito asked.
"On the contrary, Riku has yet to have a night out with Lady Zero," Decadus said.
"How would you know that?"
"Why, Lady Four shared it with me."
"Are you kidding me, Four?!"
"My bad...I kind of bad-mouthed you back when I was trying to kill you and everything."
Dito burst out in laughter. "No way, you've gotta be shitting me! And now that raises more questions. So what is it, pretty boy? You don't swing that way or are you just not packing it big enough down there?"
"Oh hush Dito, I wouldn't be talking if I were you. Riku might just come over there and make you sorry," Four said.
"Oooh so scary."
"Keep pissing me off and you will be scared," Riku said.
"—Sounds like you guys are having fun." Zero stepped over Decadus, who was still pathetically lying on the ground, then she looked over to Riku. "Hey, what're we having tonight?"
"Haven't caught anything yet. I was getting firewood while you guys were doing...whatever."
"Damn it, if this keeps up we're all gonna have to start eating like my dumb dragon."
"What's wrong with eating maggots? You guys are missing out, I think they're super yummy," Mikhail said.
"Alright, then how about we all play a game to take our minds off starvation? I'm feelin' a game of 'fuck, fuck, kill' tonight! Who's with me?" Dito asked.
"What the hell is 'fuck, fuck, kill'?" Zero asked.
"Whatever it is, I'm not interested," Riku said.
"Everyone's heard of 'fuck, fuck, kill'-" He elbowed Decadus. "Right Dec, big guy?"
"I've never heard of a game with such a profane name."
"Damn you guys suck. Basically, it's a game where someone lists three people and you have to decide whether you want to fuck or kill each person."
"Actually Dito, I believe it's 'f*ck, marry, kill'. My sisters and I used to play that game all the time when we were young," Four said.
His face scrunched up. "That sounds waayyyy more lame, but whatever. You guys in or what?"
Riku stood up. "Nope. Think I'll go catch some fish."
"I'll play. I got shit else to do," Zero said.
"Oh-oh! Can I play? Can I play?" Mikhail asked.
"No. This is an adult's game," Zero said.
"What but-"
"No but's and you better not eavesdrop either or I'll kick your ass. Just go back to sleep."
"I think I'll pass as well, but I don't mind watching you guys play," Four said.
"Whatever, 'course the prude wants out. That just leaves the three of us. Why don't you go first, Z?"
"Go ahead."
He smirked. "How about...me, Decadus and Riku?"
"I can't decide. You're all equally terrible."
"Sure. Still gotta pick someone though."
"How about I kill all of you?"
"You know that's not how this game works."
"Kill Decadus, then fuck you...and Riku."
"It would be my pleasure to die by your hands," Decadus said.
"This game is fuck, marry, kill. Remember?"
"...I'm not marrying anyone."
He rolled his eyes. "So you can kill hundreds of people without batting an eye, but you're too chicken to say who you want to marry?"
"Because it's not real. I'm not stupid enough to fall for that made up fairytale shit about 'love' and 'marriage' or whatever."
Four gasped. "How can a sister of mine say such terrible things! Who hurt you?!"
"The bitch who put me in this miserable fucking world." She stood up. "I'm done playing."
Meanwhile, Riku was sitting by the riverside with a fishing rod in his hand, waiting for a bite. 'A lot's happened today. Those half heartless half soldier guys make me wonder about what type of person Three is. If she's that far gone into the darkness, it might even be too late for her. Guess I shouldn't worry about now, I'll just enjoy this time I have to myself.'
I agree.
"...of course. I told you to get out of my head."
So be it.
A shadowy figure manifested from across the river, sitting in his exact same position. When Riku walked closer to the river, so did it. And when he summoned his keyblade, so did it. "...What's going on?"
The figure had disappeared in the blink of an eye and appeared behind him somehow. Riku spun around, ready to attack, but when he saw who it was, he nearly dropped his keyblade. "No...not you again."
"Is that any way to speak to an old friend?"
Riku was so shocked because the person who stood in front of him was none other than himself. Or to be precise, a past version of him that no matter how far he tried to separate himself from, always ended up returning to him in his shadows.
"You look surprised, but you speak so much about your past, I thought it would be fitting to bring it back to you."
"Whatever plot you have to destroy the world isn't going to work. The darkness doesn't scare me!"
"Hm. You're right." It paced back and forth around him. "Maybe your heart's 'strong', but I will shatter your mind into pieces so thoroughly you won't even know who you are anymore. Little by little, I will bring you back closer to your former glory. That's a promise."
"Like I'm scared of your threats. Just give it up already, I've fought my darkness before, and I'll do it again!"
"You only fought your darkness because you were surrounded by the light of others. In this world...only darkness awaits you."
"—Who the hell are you talking to?"
"Huh?" Riku turned his head to see Zero walking up to him with a concerned look on her face. The figure had also seemingly sunk back in the shadows. If it was here at all. He couldn't decide if any of it was real or not.
He released his keyblade. "...What do you want Zero?"
"Wow. That's how you fucking greet me now?"
"I doubt you're here for a friendly chat. Let me guess, you don't want any fish tonight and you were gonna complain to me about it?"
"You got me."
"Well, I already set up some traps in the forest so you're welcome."
"I'm surprised you actually listen to all of my bitching."
"Hard not to. It's all you ever do."
"Careful. I'm already in a bad mood. Dito's game sucked and I was this close to wringing Four's neck. Don't know how the hell she's related to me..."
He shrugged. "He just wanted to stir up some trouble so I left."
"I should start doing that. At least the one saving grace is the food's not gonna taste like ass tonight."
"Just be warned I'm not much of a cook so don't complain about that either."
"You can leave that to me. I'm a pretty damn good cook."
"Wouldn't have guessed it. Years of practice?"
"It's more of a recent skill. An ... old friend of mine wouldn't eat anything I made for him unless it was up to his standards."
"Sounds like he was a picky eater."
"Like you wouldn't believe." She sat down on the patch of grass next to him. "So what're you gonna do when this is all over?"
"I'll keep looking for my best friend until I find him. Heh, I already know you probably wouldn't like him."
"Not if he's anything like you."
"It's more like he's the better parts of me."
"...So he has a nice ass?"
He glared at her.
"What? That was a compliment. You're welcome."
"So you staring at my butt is supposed to be a compliment?"
"Heh, it's not your dogshit personality. People like you who give up everything just to save one person are the bastards I hate the most."
"Why's that?"
"Because...they're the ones who die first."
Throughout all of the pain and hardships,
The Intoner and the keyblade weilder found they shared the same hurt:
The loss of someone they held dear to their hearts.
Flowers for the Dead
A/N: Welp. Sorry to those who weren't able to read CH9 on release, FF net decided to not work on the one day I decide to update :,)
