Realm of Darkness
-Depths of Darkness-
There was nothing like being surrounded by endless darkness.
Aqua thought she of all people would've gotten used to this feeling by now; the chilling intimacy, the fear of what lay hidden in the shadows, and yet she still couldn't quite shake off the anxiety squeezing her heart. The only thing that kept her even a little bit at ease was being surrounded by Terra and Ventus. Terra's strength and Ventus' levity were like stars that lit up a black sky.
Of course, Aqua was a master at many things besides the keyblade, she kept her emotions in check for the sake of Sora and ventured into the Realm of Darkness in hopes of one day finding him. Today was supposed to be no different, their search took them all the way out to the Depths of Darkness; a vast, barren terrain that they expected would be crawling with pureblood heartless.
However, it was unusually empty, and without any heartless to fight, there was a lull into silence.
The Realm of Darkness was already a creepy place, and everyone looking around pensively as their footsteps echoed across the cavern definitely didn't help with the mood, so Ventus decided to lighten things up.
"Soo...what kind of place do you guys think Sora ended up anyways?" He asked, aimlessly swinging his keyblade around.
"Nowhere good, probably. I just hope it's better than that Earth place," Terra said.
"Oh yeah for sure. It makes you appreciate the other worlds we've been to before, right?"
"Definitely. I'll take princesses and fairies any day over killer death robots."
Ventus turned back to Aqua. "What do you think?"
"..."
"Aqua?"
Aqua, who was staring off into space, snapped out of her daze. "Oh... I'm sorry. What were you saying again?"
"Hey, you okay? We can call it a day and go back home if you want, just say the word," Terra said.
"No, I'm fine, really...my mind was on... other things. Terra, Ven, don't you think it's strange how there's no heartless around here?"
"Oh, yeah, I guess there's not. I've been wondering why it's been weirdly quiet."
Ventus crossed his arms. "You're the one who's gung-ho about destroying the heartless, thought you would've been the first to notice."
"Don't tell me you're slacking off Terra," Aqua said, joining in on the teasing.
"You do know me or Aqua can take point instead, right? Even you need to take a breather sometimes."
"What? No way, I'm in top form, see-" He tried to prove his point by flexing his swole biceps. "Besides, how do you know there's not just some giant heartless boss coming up? That's usually how these things go."
"Doubt it. I mean...I don't feel the presence of a single heartless. That's highly unusual, especially for this area. I'm worried this means something terrible is coming up," Aqua said.
"Aqua, you say that every time we come to the Realm of Darkness. Last week you said something was stalking us and it ended up being a small fry heartless, now it's this. I think you've been pushing yourself too hard lately," Terra said.
"So... you think I'm being paranoid, is that it?"
"You know I didn't say that, Aqua. I can clearly see how fatigued you are from being here, and because I've known you for so long, I know you're trying to hide it by putting on a brave face. You don't need to do that anymore, not while I'm here to protect you."
"Terra, that's..."
*beep-beep
"Hm?" Aqua pulled out her gummiphone. "...A message from Mickey?"
"Ooh from the king? It must be important," Ventus said.
Terra nodded. "Might be an update on Sora's whereabouts."
Aqua opened the text message, then read it aloud.
Mickey: Hey Aqua, sorry it's been a while. Hate to say it, but I got bad news to share with you all. Found out Riku's in a world far away from our own and he's in a lot of trouble.
He needs our help to find the light, problem is figurin' out what world he's in exactly. I got a hunch that it's tied to the Realm of Darkness so I'll be catchin' up with you guys soon and I'll explain everything then!
"So that kid's in danger too, huh? Well, we have to do everything we can to set him back on the right path," Terra said.
"Agreed." Aqua put the gummiphone away. "...Mickey said he'll meet us in the Realm of Darkness soon so we should stay put here."
"Yeah, that's the wisest thing to-" Terra stopped himself when he saw Ventus wander off alone. "Hey, Ven! Didn't you just hear what Aqua said?! Quit being so hardheaded!"
"I know but you guys have got to check this out!"
Terra and Aqua exchanged tired glances with each other.
"...Fine, but after this, no more distractions," Aqua said.
Once they joined Ventus's side, he pointed to a peculiar black root that stretched out into oblivion.
"This is what you wanted to show us?" Terra asked, unamused with whatever he was looking at.
"If this is it then we should head b-"
"No, no you guys aren't getting it! There's something weird about this thing, it feels like... like it doesn't even belong here," Ventus said.
"What're you talking about? Fits right in with all the other creepy black stuff we've seen," Terra said.
Curious by Ventus' vague description, Aqua bent down to examine the black root herself. True, it looked no different than any other strange entity the Realm of Darkness conjured up. In fact, if Ventus didn't point it out, she likely would've thought nothing of it. However, when she brushed her hand up against it, she could feel an otherworldly, eldritch-like presence take hold of her. It was worse than a chill snaking up her spine, it was more like a hand resting on her shoulder, a haunting feeling like no other. While it was only a brief moment, that was enough for Aqua to snatch her hand back and hold it close to her chest.
"Aqua, what's wrong?!" Terra demanded.
"...Ven's right. That...thing, is not like anything I've ever encountered in the Realm of Darkness before...or anywhere for that matter."
Ventus stuck his tongue out. "Ha ha, told ya!"
"Get real, Ven. Take this seriously," Terra said.
"I am. Look, I know we're supposed to wait for Mickey, but it wouldn't hurt to investigate this...well, I don't know what this is exactly, it kind of looks like a plant root. Whatever it is, I think it's connected to why all the heartless have disappeared from this area."
"Think it has anything to do with whatever situation's going on with Riku?" Terra asked.
"It's possible, but we won't know until we find out. Either way, there's something unsettling about this...this thing, my heart can feel the evil radiating from it," Aqua said.
"As keyblade wielders, it's our job to keep the peace and put an end to anything that threatens the light. So we'll put an end to whatever this thing is too."
Phoenix Keyblade: *insert trust nobody not even yourself* meme
Anon: Oh no i'd kill for another slice of life segment like they did in kh2, it'd be a nice change of pace for sure. Some of my favorite stories involve previously depressed characters wanting to live again so I'm glad I was able to incorporate that. Yeah it feels so weird mixing the straight disney elements w/ drakengard, I hope it's not giving off crack fic vibes. Thought it be fitting for Three to be the most open to kh stuff while everyone else has varying degrees of tolerance. Tysm, it's been a wild ride but very fun!
Centurious the Azure: Np at all, thank you for taking the time to drop in! Oof yeah I know, I figured it would be a bit unfair though since she was up against two Intoners. Lol don't mind me just casually negating the events of D1. Thanks, the bar scene for Zero was def a highlight for me to write, whether it's real or not is up to yall tho. Yeah you did peep that last chapter, I think most ppl can generally predict where I'm taking things but I will genuinely be surprised if yall can guess how I intend to end these last couple of chapters. Looking forward to when you drop that next chapter of your story!
Keybladelight: It's def been a long time coming! Lol world order is hanging on a thread atp
"Kuroi Uta"
"Alright, let's see..." Dito held a very long list in his hand, checking each 'item' off individually. "We got all the limbs, both halves of the torso, parts of the head, most of the guts, yeah I think we're good here." He scooped up a heap of entrails and miscellaneous body parts then dumped them into a giant wooden barrel.
Decadus shuddered at all the squelching and squishing sounds as the flesh settled down at the bottom of the barrel. "How absolutely abhorrent...and the smell...unghhhh...it's sickening."
"I know right?! I feel like I died and went to heaven! OH you gotta take a look at this Dec, some of it's starting to rot!"
"Blegh..." Decadus covered his mouth with his hand, trying not to vomit.
Eventually, Dito put the lid over the barrel, then slapped the base of it with bloody hands. "Let's get this bad boy over to One! Maybe she'll even let us help put him together!"
"I rather not..."
Decadus heaved the giant wooden barrel over to One, then dropped it in front of her. "Lady One, as requested, these are all the remnants of your younger brother that we were able to scrounge up."
"Thank you." She noticed Dito was looking at her expectantly and so asked; "Yes, Dito, do you need something?"
"Aren't you gonna put him back together now?"
"Yes...I was planning on doing that the next morning."
"Ughhhhhhh. This fuckin' blows."
"I apologize, I wanted you to collect my lesser half first before the animals could get to him. In the meantime, just keep watch and make sure he doesn't run off."
"...That will be rather difficult to accomplish in the state he's in, no?" Decadus said.
"I'm aware. That was a 'joke'," She said this without smiling at all, which further confused the disciples.
"Right...just don't quit your day job..." Dito muttered under his breath.
"-Um excuse me, One!" Four cautiously approached One. "I was wondering if we could, you know, talk about...everything."
One didn't even turn her head to acknowledge Four's existence.
"One, please!" She pleaded. "I've apologized to you so many times, you can't keep treating me like this!"
"Oh, this is awkward," Dito said.
"Painfully so, unghhh." Decadus moaned.
"One!"
"..."
Seeing as how she wasn't going to get through to One anytime soon, Four walked away in defeat and decided to find Three instead—possibly the only sister she had left that didn't outright hate her guts. Not that Four could tell anyways, but Three didn't seem to mind when Four sat next to her on the airship's railing so she took that as a good sign.
"Hey Three..." Four began. "Oh- you're not on that device anymore, that's a bit of a surprise."
"Low battery."
"I'm not sure what that means, but it sounds like I caught you at a good time! So...do you mind if I talk to you, sister to sister?"
"Uh..."
"I'll take that as a yes. I just..." She wrapped her fingers around the folds of her skirt. "I need some advice."
"And you ask me?"
"You are the older sister between us Three! Anyway...I don't know what to do to get One to stop hating me and I thought you might have an idea."
"Give it time."
"But we may not have time! If the world ends or resets or... god forbid, one of us ends up dying tomorrow, then these feelings will be left unresolved!"
"Hm. Is this for her sake or yours?"
"F- For her of course! O- Obviously!"
She rolled her eyes. "...An orc returns to his vomit, so a fool returns to his folly."
"But I - I -" She caught herself from stammering, then held her head down in shame. "You're right...I feel like...I feel like I ruined things between us forever."
"Not so."
She scoffed. "'Not so' you say, as if she didn't just try to kill me."
"As sisters do, and she will always be your sister."
"I know but... actually, why don't you also seem to hate me, Three? Or is it just your usual indifference that you have in every situation that doesn't immediately concern you?" Four's eyes went wide, she didn't mean to say that last part out loud, but luckily Three didn't appear all too bothered by her accusation, that or she wasn't paying attention.
"What did you say?" Three asked.
Four breathed a sigh of relief, it was the latter. "Nothing, never mind. You did genuinely give me good advice, so thank you. I just have to take it day by day..."
The following morning, One had everyone gathered around on the airship.
"Before we set off to the Land of Sands, we should all get an understanding of who the enemy is and how we're going to proceed with this operation. Currently, we have two entities we need to be concerned about; the Flower, of course, and Maleficent. Four, can you provide any information regarding this character?"
"O-Of course, One! So Maleficent is a witch and a master of the darkness, she uses it to command the heartless and control people to do her bidding. She can also turn people into heartless if they're in a weakened state or already influenced by the darkness. That said, I haven't actually seen her in combat myself, so I don't know the full extent of her abilities."
"Three, can you corroborate on any of this?" One asked.
Three shook her head. "Didn't get a chance to read her entry."
"...In other words, we'll be up against a powerful opponent. Since she intends to use Riku to open Mercurius Gate, we'll have no choice but to defeat her," One concluded.
"I think we can manage against one measly old grandma," Gabriella said.
"Well she also has a henchman that works for her, Pete, but he's nothing more than a bumbling fool. I doubt we'll even have to face him," Four said.
"Still, that is good to know. As for Riku, we'll beat him to Two's shrine, then Three will use Armisael to detain Riku as he's arriving in her chambers. After that, we'll touch bases with the mouse and figure out where to go from there."
"About that...not that this isn't a very well-thought-out plan or anything, it absolutely is-"
"Four, just say what you mean instead of dancing around the topic."
"It's just that...he's probably...already...most definitely there by now."
"How is that possible? He traveled on foot."
"Well, yes, but actually...no. He left using a dark portal, and you can instantaneously travel from location to location using those."
"instantaneously?! Why didn't you say anything?!"
Four rubbed her arm. "You didn't want to talk so..."
"So you said nothing?! That's vital information Four, for all we know, he could be anywhere in Midgard!"
"That doesn't mean we shouldn't try going to your sister's shrine if we know that was his last known location," Gabriella said.
"Ugh...yes, you're right Gabriella, as usual. We'll still head to the shrine, even if only for Two and, hopefully, Five's sake. Perhaps they can give us clues about his whereabouts."
"Atta girl, now quit being so doom and gloom for once!"
"I'm finding it increasingly hard not to with each new 'reveal'. Hopefully, that will be the last one for the time being."
And because the universe had to prove her wrong at every turn, that was not the last 'reveal'. While everyone was on the airship preparing for their trip to the Land of Sands, trouble arose when they saw Mikhail eclipse the sun.
Everyone preemptively drew their weapons for what they perceived was an impending threat, but when Zero boarded the airship, she appeared to be unarmed.
"What do you want, Zero?!" One demanded.
"Put your weapons down. I'm not here to kill you."
"As if I'd be so foolish as to take your word at face value! Why else would you be here if not for another futile attempt to stop the Flower?!"
"You would've been dead yesterday if that was the case."
"Is that so? Then please do tell us what your reason for being here is."
"She wants your guys' help!" Mikhail blurted out.
One shook her head, laughing at the mere thought of it. "...I'm sorry, I must have misheard you, Mikhail. Did you say Zero wants our-"
"No, you heard him right." Zero interrupted. "I want us to temporarily work together to save R— s-stop the Flower, I mean. Ahem."
"A-Are we sure this is Zero and not that elf going around impersonating everyone?" Decadus asked.
"Is it really so hard to believe I'd ask for help?!"
"YES!" Everyone said.
"Look, I just thought One had a plan or whatever to stop the Flower. That's about the only thing she's good at."
"If I recall correctly, your plan for stopping the Flower was to kill all the Intoners. Why aren't you falling back on that anymore?" One asked.
Zero scoffed. "Are you seriously fucking doing this right now? I knew I shouldn't have come here..."
"I was only teasing, you needn't get so worked up. As for your question, we're planning to defeat the Flower and save Riku using something called the 'light'. According to a talking mouse, that should do the trick."
"...what?"
"His name is Mickey Mouse! I think he's one of Riku's friends, he said all they had to do to save him was use the power of light," Four said.
"Oh, that makes perfect sense."
"You think so?"
"Hell fucking no."
"Then Three, you should show Zero the tiny mouse in the device so he can explain it to her."
"Can't. Not enough battery. Emergency calls only."
"Good to know I'm not the only one who lost their goddamn mind," Zero said
"No, it's true!" Four insisted. "Where Riku comes from, they use the power of light to solve all their problems, and so now we're going to do that too!"
"'May your heart be your guiding key'," Three said.
"Wait...Riku's said something like that before...I think, but how would you know about any of that?" Zero asked.
"Three apparently learned a great deal of information about Riku and his past from that peculiar device she has," One said.
"What... else did you find out about him?"
"He's from a place called 'Destiny Islands', which he destroyed before. His best friends are Sora and Kairi. He used to be Maleficent's apprentice..." Three listed off the top of her head.
"Oh, so he wasn't kidding about being from a backwater island..." Zero thought for a moment, weighing her options. 'None of this makes any goddamn sense, but I guess stupid situations get stupid solutions.' "...Fine. Let's do it."
"Just like that?" One asked.
"Well, obviously I came here because I hit rock bottom and I have no other options or places to go. So I honestly don't care what fairy tale bullshit we have to pull, as long as we can save him."
"And we will, along with the entirety of Midgard from the brink of destruction. If you're serious about this, then I suppose I can extend the invitation to join us on our way to Two's Shrine. Granted you don't antagonize anyone."
She crossed her arms. "Sure. As long as you don't piss me off, I won't piss you off. Fair?"
"...Yes, that's fair."
"Yay! Now we're all traveling buddies!" Mikhail said.
"Don't call it that," Both Zero and One said.
"Um...ok, I'll think of a better team name for us then!"
"You really don't have to-"
"I know you think it's lots and lots of responsibility but I can do it! Just you wait, I'm gonna come up with the bestest team name for us you ever heard of!" Mikhail beamed.
"Mikhail, you need to learn proper grammar," One said.
"Grammar? What's that?"
"...I have much to teach you, don't I?"
Surprisingly, the journey from Elfheim to Two's shrine remained uneventful. As promised, Zero kept to herself, sharpening her various weapons and swords for the upcoming battle. Occasionally Octa would pester her for sex, pointing out there was in fact a sex dungeon hidden in Four's airship (Four refused to comment on this) but she blew him off each time until eventually, One called him, and the rest of the disciples, over.
In between providing Mikhail with a proper grammar lesson, One was reconstructing Brother One with the help of the disciples since Three was fast asleep, as was Gabriella.
The only one who was truly keeping a close eye on Zero was Four, she thought she was being sneaky by watching her as she read a book, but Zero could totally tell each time her sister snuck a glance at her. Since killing her was strictly off the table, Zero decided to stare back at her in a way that would make Four feel like her soul was being sucked from her body. After that, she kept her nose in her book for the rest of the trip.
It was midday by the time they reached Two's shrine, and since it was located deep underground, the only structure visible from the surface would be the entrance. However, there was now a gaping wide chasm where the entrance should've been. There were several black roots that had emerged from the chasm, snaking out to the surface and sprawling across the sand dunes into a web-like pattern.
Once Decadus docked the airship, everyone approached the ruins of Two's shrine, laid waste by the mysterious black roots.
After a brief analysis, One said, "Yes, these are the same roots as the ones from Elfheim. I have no doubt that Riku has come here prior."
"Do...you think Riku could be down there with Two and Five?" Four asked.
"It's not outside the realm of possibilities, but that's even assuming if Two and Five are still..."
"No, that can't be!" Cent rushed over to the chasm, hanging his head over the edge. "Yes...I can feel her presence. My lady's still alive!" He announced, alleviating some concerns but raising others.
"Ugh, so is Five..." Dito mumbled.
Cent lifted his head up, turning to One. "We have to rescue them at once Lady One! They may be alive now, but there's no telling how long they'll be or what danger they're in!"
"We most certainly will."
Four shuddered. "So...does that mean we all have to go down there?"
"To save our sisters, yes, but obviously we can't all go."
"Then we should be enough," Zero said.
One blinked then shook her head. "I'm sorry...we?"
"Yeah, the two of us and the dragons."
Four pointed her finger at Zero. "No...I don't believe it! There's no way you're offering to go save Two and Five out of the kindness of your heart! You're clearly plotting something!"
She gestured to the root. "This thing is from the Flower, so it's my job to deal with it and I don't trust you idiots to go down there and not die."
"Are you sure there's no other reason as to why you insist on exploring the chasm?" One asked, smirking.
"Other than killing you under the guise of darkness, no."
"See! I insist I come along with you as well One, at least as your entourage! Zero, absolutely cannot be trusted!"
"But you can?! You were just trying to fucking murder everyone!" Zero shot back.
"I was trying to murder everyone and so were you! Look, I'm going on this mission whether you like it or not!"
"And wherever Lady Four goes, I shall follow. As her disciple, I am bound to her!" Decadus said.
"I have to go as well, I've been away from my lady long enough!" Cent said.
Dito raised his hand. "Well, I'm on team stay here and not die in a dark hole. Who's with me?"
"Don't flatter yourself, you weren't even a consideration," Four said.
"This could very well be a trap we're all walking into, so we shouldn't carry all of our eggs in one basket. Three is still asleep on the airship, so Dito and Octa, you two will watch after her. If any unwanted visitors decide to pay her a visit or we're not back by nightfall, you have permission to take the airship and escape, but neither should come to pass. I believe all the danger will be coming from the inside," One said.
"Yeah, yeah we got it, One. Don't worry, me and Octa'll hold down the fort while you guys are gone," Dito said.
"Yes, that's right. But I doubt anything arousing will happen on your leave, aside from inside my trousers- oh ho ho!"
"Right. We'll count ourselves lucky if the airship isn't on fire by the time we come back," Gabriella said.
With that, everyone boarded their respective dragons, much to One's annoyance, Four was the first and last person to get on Gabriella since she wouldn't allow any extra visitors. Zero wasn't too happy with her company of Decadus and Cent either, but she held her tongue for the sake of the mission. Without further hesitation, the dragons dove into the chasm.
The chasm was pitch-black when they first entered, so their only source of light was the orange glow from Gabriella and Mikhail's fire as they burned through masses of roots blocking the way.
"Gabriella, how close do you think we are to reaching Two and Five?" One asked after some time had passed.
"Not sure. All these roots are overloading my senses, it's hard to narrow down on your sisters."
"...What about Riku?" Zero asked.
"Now if I just said I can barely pick up on the sisters, what makes you think I can sniff out some guy I barely know?"
"Oh-oh-oh! Hey guys, I can still smell...er- um, I mean, I am picking up a faint scent that belongs to Five... hither..." Mikhail said.
"You do realize talking in big words doesn't automatically make you sound smarter right?"
"Tsk-tsk-tsk... I pity you, Gabby. It's a little something called 'grammar', you just wouldn't get it. Isn't that right One, huh?"
"Mikhail, that's not... never mind. So this direction we're going should lead us to Five...and I take Two, correct?"
"Yep! Trust me, the nose knows!"
"Heh, sounds like your senses are finally starting to dull after all these years Gabriella," Zero teased.
"Girl, I wouldn't throw stones in a glass house."
She scoffed. "I'm Zero, the most powerful and formidable of all the Int-" All of a sudden, something pounced on Zero from out of nowhere. Cent was quick to draw his sword to take a stab at the creature, but rather than his blade tearing through monstrous flesh as he anticipated, it shattered a heavy terracotta pot.
Cent returned his sword to its scabbard, then lowered himself back down on Mikhail. "What in the world was that?"
"Zero, are you alright?!" Decadus asked.
"Well of course she is. With Zero's impeccable senses, I'm sure she meant to make a complete fool out of herself just now," Gabriella said.
"Understandable. I would do the same!"
"In all seriousness, what was that thing that attacked you just now? I wasn't able to get a good look at it myself," One said.
"Sure. The next time something tries to fucking kill me, I'll ask it to introduce itself."
"Yeah, that's a good idea Zero! I've been seeing a bunch of creepy crawlies all over the walls, they're like huge pots with spider legs coming out of them! I bet it just wanted to be friends with you, but it was too shy to say anything so it jumped on your face instead!"
"Why didn't you say anything Mikhail?!"
"'Cause I thought you guys saw them too!"
"Clearly we did not! Pots with spider legs sound absolutely terrible!" Four said.
"Terrible? Why, Lady Four, that's just the way of life. If you leave a pot in the wild long enough, it's bound to grow some legs. I read it in a book once, trust me," Cent said.
"Uh...you and books don't exactly bode well, Cent."
Venturing further into the ruins of Two's shrine, they came across a giant knot of tangled-up black roots. Together, Mikhail and Gabriella burned them down, revealing an opening that they were able to fly through. This took them inside the main hall of the shrine where, unlike the previous areas, they were granted some visibility due to the dim glow of torches lined up against the walls. Unfortunately, what they saw was a gigantic spider's nest.
Massive swathes of cobwebs were spread out across the main hall and dozens upon dozens of pot spiders were crawling alongside the walls and floor. At the dead center of the hall were Two and Five, both unconscious and trapped within a huge spider web. There was a mama pot tarantula on that same spider web, spewing fluid onto their heads while the smaller pot spiders clustered around in anticipation.
Four was in complete disbelief from what they had to witness."...Riku did all of... this?"
"It's a possibility, but we won't know for sure until we free our sisters," One said.
"Enough wasting time! I will single-handedly save Lady Two if I have to! AAAAHHHHHHH!" Cent impulsively jumped off Mikhail and landed right in front of the mama pot tarantula. Then the very next second a cluster of pot spiders surrounded him and the next thing he knew, he was trapped in the spider web along with Two and Five.
"That fucking idiot, how is he always getting captured?!" Zero yelled.
"At least now we know they're formidable foes," One said.
"But then how are we ever going to get close enough to save them without getting caught in their trap?" Four asked.
"We light this shithole up," Zero said.
Zero had Mikhail torch the main hall, causing the spiders to scatter or get burned down in the flames. One almost would've considered this a good plan on Zero's end if she didn't get ambushed by a bunch of pot spiders hanging off the ceiling and dragged off Gabriella's back.
"ONE!" Without hesitation, Four leaped off of Gabriella after One. She smashed through a slew of pot spiders and was able to catch her in time before she hit the ground. "A-Are you okay?!" She cradled her sister in her arms. "...You're not hurt or anything, are you?"
"No- now watch out!"
Behind Four was the mama pot tarantula looming over them, baring its sharp fangs that were dripping wet with venom. Holding on tight to her older sister, Four sidestepped the monster, then slipped behind its hairy legs.
"One, don't worry, from now on...I'll be the one to protect you! Just as you've done for me numerous amounts of times, I shall-"
"Four, enough! Put me down already!"
Four set One down and stepped up to face the mama pot tarantula. This would be her moment to shine, her moment to prove herself to everyone, but most importantly One. She would show the world how she had changed, how she was —
Gabriella smashed the mama pot tarantula into pieces with her foot, ending the battle right then and there. "Hey, you guys still alive?"
One nodded. "Yes, we're fine!"
Minor inconvenience aside, Four wasn't the type to easily give up. Sure Gabriella might have literally swooped down and stole her thunder, but she could always heroically free her sisters. That would be her defining moment, her—
"All of you, don't worry, you're safe now!" Somehow Decadus had snuck up from behind and freed Two, Five, and Cent while he was at it.
"But- but ...Decadus?! Where did you even come from?!" Four exclaimed.
"Why, after Zero was so cruel enough to s-shove me off of Mikhail...unghhh..."
"Thank you Decadus, your timing was impeccable," One said.
"No need to flatter me Lady One, it was my honor!"
"But- but- but he just-" Four let out an exasperated sigh. "Aw..."
"Ughhhh, F- Four is that you? Don't tell me you're here to... kill us..." Five muttered.
"No- no I promise I'm not! I've changed, I'm not going to hurt you guys anymore!"
"Ah, that's so...good to hear! I'm ...so happy to have my Four back..." Two said.
"They're exhausted, let's give them some time to recuperate. In the meantime, I'd say this was a mission success, we should return to the surface at once," One said.
After their non-stop series of failures, One believed things were actually going their way for once and that this was a sign of good fortune. However, back on the airship, it wasn't such smooth sailing...
Despite Dito being adamant about not wanting to go into the 'dark creepy death hole', it only took a few minutes for him to get insanely bored waiting around for the others to come back. Octa already wasn't great company so it didn't take long for the devil to find work for his idle hands and he knew exactly where he wanted to take them.
Once it seemed like Octa was distracted, he gave him the slip and ventured off below the deck to One's cabin. He was about to push open the door when a voice called out to him from behind.
"-Dito?"
Dito jumped back and then spun around, relieved to see that it was only Octa. "Holy shit man, don't sneak up on me like that again! What the hell do you want anyways? I thought you were keeping watch."
"Erm yes, I was, but Three's fast asleep and well, eh hehe...little Octa's long overdue for some pleasure time~"
"Ew...thanks for that mental image...I swear you're worse than Five sometimes."
"But that begs the question, what are you doing near Lady One's quarters? Surely you're up to no good as well."
"Look, I just wanna take a quick look at One's brother, that's all."
"Can I ask what for? Lady One's not here to lead the procedure so you'd be looking at nothing more than a mangled corpse." But the grin on Dito's face told him all he needed to know, which made him shake his head in disappointment. "Listen, Dito, while I'm not one to impede on a man's ...hedonistic pleasures, this is Lady One we're talking about. It would be best not to step on any toes, considering how... irritable she is as of late."
"Relax Octa, no one's gonna know because you're not going to tell anyone." Dito pushed open the door, then went to the barrel tucked into the back corner of her room. There were multiple sorts of locks and chains reinforcing the barrel, but due to Five's frequent BDSM sessions, Dito was adept enough to unravel each chain and pick each lock with ease. All that was left was the lid, which he stuck his spear into the lip and tried to pry open.
"Dito, I believe this is the most I've ever seen you apply yourself," Octa said.
"Oh, shut up. You'd jerk off all day if it were up to you."
"Ho ho, you're not wrong, although I'd much rather prefer intercourse!" This brought him to a sigh. "Unfortunately, my lady is as closed off as ever, and you'd think Zero would be more open to the prospect but no! What is a man and his engorged member to do in his time of drought? Oh...hopefully, they're able to bring back Five safe and sound, I fear she is my last hope for a night of horizontal tango."
"Man, and people say I'm fucked up? Well, since you're still here, help me crack this baby open, will ya?"
"Eh, are you sure this is a good idea, Dito? He was sealed inside for a reason, I don't think you should-"
"Yeah? And I don't think you should leave Three to go jerk it but here you are. Sure One would love to hear that."
"Touché. Well, I suppose there's no danger in opening the barrel considering the dismembered state he's in." Octa's pinky finger alone had the strength to pop the lid right open.
Dito rubbed his hands together, then peeked inside the barrel. "Now let's take a look at all the- wait, what the fuck is this?!"
Octa also decided to take a look inside, but all he saw was Brother One's naked body lying at the bottom. "Erm...what's wrong?"
"'What's wrong'?! One was only halfway done when she stopped working on him, but now he's totally put back together!" Suddenly, Brother One rose from the barrel and snatched Dito up by the neck.
Acting fast, Octa wrestled Dito out of Brother One's tight grasp, then tried to shove him back inside the barrel but he was able to slip out and fall to the ground. Octa and Dito attempted to corner Brother One, thinking he would go through the door, but he unexpectedly escaped via a dark portal, taking his sword and clothes along with him.
Octa and Dito both stared at the now empty barrel, completely dumbfounded by what just happened.
After a long, awkward silence, Dito turned to Octa, threw his arms up in the air, and said, "Oh fuck Octa, look at what you did, man! One's gonna fucking kill you!"
"ME?! Not after I tell her that this was all your doing!"
"Look, no need to point fingers, we were both equally responsible. Luckily no one saw anything so we can probably fix this before the others get back."
"—Saw what?"
They spun around to see Three standing in the doorway.
"Whaaaaat? Psshhht I have no idea what you're talking about!" Dito said.
She tilted her head. "But I saw One's twin brother escape."
"W-Well there's a good explanation for that!"
"Which is?"
Dito elbowed Octa. "Go on Octa, tell her!"
"Stop roping me into this! This has nothing to do with me!"
"Hm...I should tell One," Three said.
'Shitshitshitshitshit! How do I get out of this?! Wait, I have an idea!' "Ah, you know Three, I wouldn't do that if I were you...unless you want me to slip out that you were cutting locs off of everyone's hair while they were asleep. Something tells me One wouldn't want to hear that."
Three's eyes widened. "You...saw that?"
"Uh...y-yeah. Yeah, I sure the hell did!" 'What the fuck I just made that up! Whatever, let's roll with it.' "Oh and you bet your ass I saw that other thing you did too."
Three actually started to look nervous.
"Erm, and what was this terrible act Lady Three committed exactly?" Octa asked.
"Don't ask." She let out a begrudging sigh. "Fine, I'll help. Anything you need."
"That's more like it. We just need to figure out something that'll cover our asses until I can come up with a good excuse. If all else fails, we pin everything on Decadus."
Three and Octa nodded. "Agreed."
When the others finally returned to the airship, it was already evening. While they were setting up camp on the desert grounds, Three, Dito and Octa very nonchalantly joined them. Since everyone was busy gathering supplies and prepping for the night, they were able to slip by undetected and avoid any scrutinization from One, who seemed to be preoccupied with something else entirely.
However, once Two and Five caught sight of Three, they weren't going to let her sneak by as easily.
"—Three!" Two and Five ran up to Three then pulled her in for a giant hug.
As Three melted into their embrace, she caught herself feeling emotions she hadn't in a very long time. Unbeknownst to her, a small part of herself missed Two and Five dearly, especially Two, because she never thought she'd hear her voice again or see her with that smile that used to light up the world.
"Two? I ...I thought..." She was getting choked up, and even though she couldn't articulate herself, Two was able to fill in the blanks.
"I know, I guess you could say I took a really long nap like you." Two rubbed the back of her head, laughing at herself a little in an attempt to lighten up the mood.. When she realized Three was still very distraught, she held her younger sister's hands. "Don't worry Three, I'm here now and I'm here to say."
"But what about..."
She squeezed Three's hands tight. "There's no use in dwelling on the past, besides, I have all my wonderful sisters here to make me smile! There's so much I missed out on already so come on, join us at the campfire! I want both of you to tell me everything—beginning to end! Let's talk all night if we have to!"
"Hmm, even the sexcapades?" Five asked.
Two smiled warmly at her sister. "Yes, Five, that too."
"—I didn't save you two so you could talk about sex all night," Zero interrupted, coming up from behind. "We need to discuss what happened to Riku first."
They all walked back to the campfire together where everyone else had already gathered.
Mikhail perked his head up as Zero and the others arrived. "Hey-hey-hey! Now that everyone's here, I want to tell you guys the new team name! I thought really long and really hard about it and I finally figured something out! So instead of traveling buddies, we can call ourselves the 'dragon-intoner-lucky-friendship-squad'! Or the DILFS for short!"
Zero's face recoiled in disgust. "Ugh..."
"What's wrong, you don't like it? But-but I worked really hard on the name!" He cried out.
"Doesn't sound like it..." Dito muttered under his breath.
"Well, I for one love the name, Mikhail! There's nothing better than Daddies I'd lo-" Zero slapped her hand over Five's mouth.
Zero was struggling to come up with a reason that wouldn't completely shatter Mikhail. "It's not that I don't like the name...it's just..."
"It's just what?!"
"It's missing the disciples, is it not?" Four pointed out.
"Oh yeah, you're right! Then... the 'dragon-disciple-intoner-lucky-friendship-squad'!"
"So the DDILFS? That's even better," Dito said sarcastically.
Four was seriously thinking about the prospect of a team name and decided to weigh in with her own thoughts. "Well, back when we were children, we used to go by 'Utahime 5'. I guess with Zero that makes—"
"No, don't even think about it," Zero said sharply.
"I-I suppose it would be a misnomer since most of us aren't even Intoners anymore..."
"Ah, but do you know what's not a misnomer? The 12 of us, and I counted to make sure!" Cent said.
"I think you're confusing 'misnomer' and 'misnumbered' because that's not-"
"And since there are 12 of us, I propose we be called ...wait for it...the 'twelve-some'!"
"Heh heh, might as well call it an orgy at that point~" Five said.
"Okay, let's reel it in and revisit this topic at another time. Five, Two, it's time we hear your accounts about your interactions with Riku," One said.
"So ...when I woke up, I immediately felt there was something off about him. He kidnapped me, stole my powers, and was acting very standoffish- er at least more so than usual. Naturally, I could only assume he wanted to take me out on a romantic getaway, but that ended up not being the case," Five started off.
"H- How could you think any of that was romantic, Five?" Four asked.
"Um- how could I not?! Anyways, back to what I was saying...so as we were walking into Two's shrine, he kept going on and on about the Flower. It was awfully boring conversation, but it was just like One warned us about with our powers. So I decided I was going to snap him out of it by talking some much-needed sense into him and then we found you, Two."
Two nodded along. "Right, when he arrived inside my chamber, I...I honestly thought he was there to kill me. And at the time, I wanted nothing more than to die, so I allowed him to perform whatever magic on me as he pleased, thinking that it would put me out of my misery. He put me into this deep sleep, and when I woke up from it..."
...
For a moment, I thought I was finally dead because all of my strength was drained out of me.
That huge burden I carried with me my entire life had finally been lifted, and I felt so unbelievably happy.
But then I saw Five and Riku, and we were all still back in my shrine, so I realized that I hadn't died after all. Instead of killing me, whatever Riku did freed me from the Intoner's song. I guess the realization hit me like a ton of bricks, and I suddenly felt very weak, I nearly collapsed but Riku caught me in his arms and brought me down to the ground.
"TWO?!" Five scrambled over to Two, squeezing the limp hand that had fallen to her side. "You're alive, thank goodness! Now don't you ever do or say scary things like that again! I...I thought you were really dead this time!"
"I'm sorry for worrying you Five. Ah...I'm so embarrassed right now..."
"All that matters is that you're alive. Riku, I'm not sure what you did, but thank you."
"..."
"Riku?"
Then Riku's hands started feeling very cold on my body, like ...ice. He dropped me on the ground and just went totally berserk, I think he was in great pain but we weren't really sure how to help him. If that wasn't bad enough, the whole chamber started violently shaking, almost like an earthquake. We started seeing those black roots snake around the walls and ceiling and we realized we had to get out of there as soon as possible.
"Two, come on!" Five grabbed her sister's hand, pulling her close. "Let's escape from this dreadful place!"
Two motioned over to Riku who was still suffering from a mental relapse. "What about him? He saved me, w-we can't just leave him here too!"
"Trust me, darling, he'll be perfectly fine. He has your powers now."
"Wh...What?"
I didn't understand what Five meant by that; "Riku had my powers now", but she insisted and we didn't have time to argue so we ran up the staircase.
Unfortunately, Five tripped on her way up to—
TWO! Stop, why would you even mention that in front of everyone?!
Okay, okay, *I* tripped up the steps, not Five. My mistake. Anyways, that both took us down and my chambers were already crumbling away at that point so we thought we were goners. Then Riku came out of the darkness and caught us both in his arms. His hands finally felt warm again, and I thought we were safe.
When we reached the main hall, he set us down and Five tried her best to reach out to him.
"You two okay?" Riku asked.
Five looked over to Two, who nodded, so she nodded as well. "Yes, we're both fine, but...are you? You don't seem like yourself at all and I'm worried about you."
"You don't know what you're talking about. Nothing is wrong."
"That's not true! I know this is something to do with the Flower, but it's not too late for you Riku! I know you, the real you, is still in there somewhere! I can see it on your face every time you try to fight it back!"
I want to think something Five said got through to Riku, but he ran away, so I don't know for sure. We couldn't follow him either because the black roots from the chamber started growing into the main hall and at that point, we were trying to get out of there, but as you can see, we weren't successful.
...
"So...yeah, that's the long and short of it," Two said.
"Then he hasn't thrown in the towel just yet? Maybe things won't completely fall apart tomorrow," Zero said.
"Hee hee, hearing you say that sounds especially strange coming from you!"
"What the hell are you trying to get at?"
"Nothing, I'm just glad that Riku's made you less cynical, that's all! I can tell he's a very special person to you."
She scoffed. "...shut up."
Five and Two shared a smile with each other, thinking the exact same thing.
"What's with that stupid grin on your face?"
Five waved it off. "Oh no reason, carry on!"
"Those black roots also seem to be a recurring element," One said.
"I saw some of those fuckers back in the Land of Seas too," Zero said.
"I noticed that the constitution of the roots in the Land of Sands and Forests are both the same. It's safe to say that the roots aren't external elements, rather they all originate from a single point. That being the entity behind Mercurious Gate."
"What're you talking about? We destroyed that place years ago."
"Apparently not. It's been reconstructed right under our noses."
"I believe it's to do with the heartless," Four said.
"Yeah, no shit, what else could it be at this point? Well, looks like that's where we're heading tomorrow, if we don't find him there, he'll sure as hell find us."
"...That's what I'm worried about. Maleficent has likely already come to the same conclusion as us, so we can surely expect to be greeted by her presence."
"So? We'll just kill her."
Four pressed her lips together. "Um..."
"What? If you have something to say then spit it out."
She twiddled her fingertips together, getting incredibly nervous from Zero's gaze. "P-Please don't kill me for saying this...I just think we should proceed with more caution. After all, we don't even have a clear plan yet on how we're going to save Riku and defeat all these powerful enemies."
"Actually, Four's right...Three, any word on when we can expect to see the mouse?" One asked.
"Not yet. Is this an emergency?"
"Absolutely."
"Then I'll call." She dialed Mickey's phone number, then waited for him to pick up.
*ring-ring
"...Oh! Hey there, Three! Great timing, I was just getting ready to touch base with ya! How are things going on—"
"Three, what the fuck is that thing?!" Zero yelled.
"I have no idea either, but it looks so cute! Like an adorable stuffed animal!" Two said.
"Oooh now I want one as a pet!" Five said.
Mickey let out an audible sigh that caused a voice from the other side of the screen to speak out.
"—Mickey, what's wrong? Who are those girls you're talking to?"
"—Aqua, here, could ya talk to them instead for me? I think it might be easier for them to hear it from you."
"—O-Oh okay, sure." The screen transitioned from showing Mickey's face to Aqua's. "Hello, my name is Aqua, it's nice to meet all of you. Mickey's told me about how Riku's been possessed by a ...parasitic...demon flower? I'm sorry, am I understanding this situation correctly?"
"Yeah. That about sums it up, and if we don't end this soon, he's going to get ripped apart from the inside out," Zero said.
"That sounds...awful. I know we've only just met, but Riku is a friend of ours as well and it breaks my heart to hear he's going through such tremendous suffering."
"Yeah...uh, mine too."
"Rest assured, we will do whatever it takes to bring him back to light and make sure your wor- excuse me- Midgard is free from this demon."
She rolled her eye. "Can't exactly do any saving when you're in the middle of fuck knows where."
'I can tell she's going to test my patience.' "...We've been following this black root that Mickey tells us is connected to Midgard. I'm sure once we reach the end, it'll lead us to all of you."
"Sure, whatever the hell you have to do. I still say we go to Mercurius Gate first thing tomorrow. Maybe we can't help Riku without you and your weird pet but we can hold him down and stop Maleficent."
"Mickey's...not my pet. He's a friend. And I don't advise you to face Maleficent head-on, not without a keyblade wielder anyway."
"Unless you can be here by tomorrow morning then we don't have a choice. We're already on borrowed time and we have no clue where Riku is right now."
"What do you mean by 'borrowed time'?"
"Maleficent intends to use Riku to open Mercurius Gate and free the Flower. Which would spell disaster for us," Four explained.
"I see. Unfortunately, I can't make any promises on our end, all I can say is that you should do whatever feels right in your heart."
"But- we need the light, don't we? Without that, i-it's hopeless...we're powerless..."
Aqua smiled, but her expression remained stern. "Listen to me, the power that you desire to save your friends and to protect the people you love has always existed within each and every one of you. Whether we're here or a thousand miles away from you, light will always stay by your side, and when the time is right, it will lend you its strength."
"...Where do you people even come up with this stuff?" Zero asked.
"Excuse me?"
"Ha ha, what Zero means to say is thank you so much for your words of encouragement! We will definitely heed your advice," Four said.
"Sorry, not to change the subject, but I just wanted to let you know how pretty you are! And I love the color of your hair!" Two said.
"Thank you for the compliment, the feeling's mutual!"
"I can't wait for you and your adorable mouse friend to come to Midgard! You're both gonna have so much fun here!" Five said.
"In case you forgot this isn't a fucking party!" Zero snapped.
Suddenly they heard Mickey's voice. "—Aqua, heads up, trouble's comin' our way!"
There was a lot of commotion on the screen due to the black roots trying to attack them, until the gummiphone lost connection altogether and the screen went black.
"Oops, I didn't jinx it, did I? Oh well hopefully the cute guy with the tight butt's okay," Five said.
"Five, that can't be the only thing you're concerned about," Four said.
"Of course not, okay...well maybe a little! But you have to admit that guy was super hot!"
"Uh- obviously, I'm not arguing that, but there's something called 'decorum', you can't just..."
While Four and Five began their usual bickering, Two turned to One. "One, you've been awfully quiet. What do you think of all of this?"
"My thoughts haven't changed. Although frankly, it's still absurd and confounding, I simply have to accept this is the way the world is now."
"Then I think the plan for tomorrow's pretty straightforward. We go to the gate, kill Maleficent, tie Riku up, then wait for those weirdos to find us," Zero said.
I find it so fascinating when humans are filled with hope.
The future isn't promised,
And yet they go on each day, believing that their world isn't unraveling by the seams...
Flowers for the Dead
