Chapter Twenty Two: Contrast

Ansem Report 14

When I had departed years ago to rally the heartless, I had expected that to be the end of these reports. I had all I needed to know to accomplish my goal, so recording my findings was a meaningless effort now.

Yet after ten years, I have found reason enough to review my work.

Those hollow shells left behind by the strongest heartless. The Nobodies. I had considered how they might be filled and shaped by others.
But left alone, what would these Nobodies fill themselves with?

Light?

Or Darkness?

Kairi held the dark lamp before her, a vortex of magic vacuuming the geniefied Jafar. Right as the genie was sealed, the lamp itself vanished into nothing. Just another phantom of the past that was brought back for no other purpose than to menace her. Besides Axel's brief attack and that strange voice, enemies were her only company up until now.

Of course, this world brought a big difference. Kairi had hoped that the further she went, that eventually she would meet a memory of one of Sora's friends. But actually seeing Naminé and Riku did so much to lift her lonely heart. It was a sign that her journey wasn't for nothing, that she was closer than ever. Yet, what should have been a joyous moment was marred by separation, as both of her friends slipped through her fingers again.

"Then perhaps," Ansem struggled to retort as he lifted one of his hands, "you should choose which of your friends matters more!" In a flash, he managed to fire a bolt of darkness towards Naminé and the boy. Naminé raised the keyblade in her hands to block it, but the blast knocked the two of them into the depths of the cave.

"NAMINÉ!" Kairi cried out as her friend and the boy in black fell, one hand reaching out to them on instinct. But the feeling of light slipping away caused her to grip the keyblade once again with both hands. It was only a moment that her attention was split, but it seemed almost as if that small window of escape was enough, as Ansem's form became more solid.

Kairi felt the spell she was trying to weave falter, ready to snap at a moment's notice against the darkness pushing back against imprisonment. Even so, she didn't stop casting the beam of light at Riku. "No! I'm not giving up! Riku, can you hear me!?" Riku had held Ansem back before in Hollow Bastion. Maybe the two of them together could stop the dark seeker for good.

Ansem scowled as he tried to gather darkness in his hands. "You. Are wasting. Your—!"

"KAIRI!"

Her eyes widened at the voice of her friend, and for a moment, he was visible again. "RIKU! Hold on!"

"Listen to me! I can't do this for long!" Riku strained as he reached out, trying to draw on the light to strengthen himself for just a few more seconds to speak. "Ansem's planning something, and Naminé and that boy in black are—!" He was cut off as darkness coursed through his body.

Kairi shook her head and tried so desperately to hold on with her light. She looked her wayward friend in the eyes and pleaded, "Riku, please! Don't give up!"

Riku's eyes widened at her words, but slowly he began to nod. "If you think I'm worth fighting for, then I won't ei—."

"ENOUGH!"

At Ansem's snarling voice, a blast of darkness finally broke the attempted sealing spell. Kairi held up her hand in reflex, watching as the form of Ansem retreated into darkness once again.

It was bad enough watching Riku being taken by darkness, despite the two of them trying to fight Ansem. Even worse, searching the caves for Naminé and the boy just turned up nothing. Even if she knew the boy was too different from Sora to really be him, the resemblance was just too uncanny. It just seemed like her friends were slipping away from her.

Riku was being consumed by darkness, even as he had begun to fight against Ansem's corruption.

Naminé had vanished once again after their reunion, after getting a keyblade that mirrored Kairi's own.

And even though she hadn't seen any sign of Sora, her heart could feel that he was somewhere close in this castle of illusions.

All of her friends were in danger. Danger she barely knew how to fight. Despite the keyblade in her hands and light at her command, there was little Kairi could do to help them. The only path she had was to continue her ascent and hope to find them again. As she walked up the marble steps through the castle proper, another thought came to her. Who was that boy? The one in the same kind of coat Axel wore with Sora's face. He seemed determined to keep Naminé safe, but was he friend or foe?

As she began to reach the top of the stairs,she stopped at the swirling sound of darkness. Her eyes widened at a blur of a black cloak coming through it. Was it someone else? She called her keyblade to her head, ready to fight.

*THUMP*

But Kairi's grip loosened as she realized the figure had unceremoniously fallen to the floor. Wincing, she made her way over to the small black cloaked figure picking themselves off the floor. She began to extend a hand as she asked, "Are you okay?"

Getting to their feet, the black cloaked figure pulled off their hood as they answered back, "Yeah, I'm fiiiii…" The boy's words seemed to fall out of their mouth as he saw her. Though Kairi was hardly any better. This was the same boy from before, and just as it was then, his resemblance to Sora was uncanny.

The boy took a step back, steeling himself as Kairi regained her composure and asked firmly, "Where's Naminé?" He made a stand against Ansem while crying out her name. That wasn't something a person did for a total stranger.

The boy slowly curled his hands into fists as he tersely said, "She's safe, Kairi."

At the mention of her name Kairi tightened her grip on the key. She barely knew this boy but he already knew her name?! "Safe where? Who are you anyway?!"

"My name is Roxas," he introduced himself as he raised one of his hands, a familiar flash of light calling the keyblade to his hands. "And I can't let you go without a fight."

Kairi's blood ran cold and her eyes widened as she saw the familiar silver and gold keyblade in Roxas' hands. The Kingdom Key.

Sora's keyblade.

"Where did you get that?" Was it stolen? A fake? Something else? Kairi wasn't sure, but one question raced to the front of her mind and she demanded, "Did you do something to Sora?!"

"He's fine!" Roxas answered back, holding out a hand. Shaking his head he began to explain, "It'd be trouble if I told you everything, but he's alive."

Kairi looked back at Roxas' eyes as he tried to explain, trying to understand what he was thinking. That sort of explanation and the way he was acting seemed straightforward enough. But that left one question. "Why do you have to fight me anyway?"

Roxas gripped his keyblade with both his hands and settled into a stance. "I need to prove that I'm strong."

Kairi's eyes narrowed as she questioned, "Is that really it?" The line wasn't just clichéd, it sounded like Roxas didn't really care about it much himself.

He closed his eyes with a sigh before tightening his grip on the keyblade, "There's someone I want to see again."

Kairi gasped quietly as she recalled how Naminé mentioned someone she cared for deeply. Maybe someone who would put their lives on the line with a sense of honor.

Maybe it was Roxas.

But she had no time to dwell on maybes, as Roxas rushed forward and she had to parry the swing from his keyblade.

Naminé watched the crystal ball as it showed Roxas and Kairi lock blades before the latter pushed back. Taking a chance, Kairi went on the attack as she swung her keyblade at a blocking Roxas. Unfortunately, her gamble was a mistake, as there was just enough of a gap for Roxas to dodge away and start casting magic.

Axel chuckled as he saw the fireballs Roxas began to shoot from his keyblade. "Guess he's taking a page out of my book."

Naminé clasped her hands tighter as she watched Kairi stand her ground, not moving to defend. But before the spells reached her, she began to swing and knock the barrage of magic back at Roxas. Zexion raised an eyebrow as he saw Roxas respond in kind to parry the spells back. "Fascinating. The two of them have become capable."

"I don't know if that's enough." Larxene crossed her arms as she watched the two combatants bat the spells back and forth between them "The princess is fighting for her friends," she spat out as she rolled her eyes and continued, "What's Roxas got to fight for besides living?"

Naminé had an idea, or perhaps it was just wishful thinking. However, she dared not say it out loud. She couldn't bear exposing it before Marluxia and Larxene and their cruel scrutiny.

Axel put his hands on his hips as he shook his head and asked, "I think that survival is a pretty good motivator. What are you really getting at?"

In the crystal's projection, Kairi had managed to gain the advantage by outlasting Roxas, one final flurry of reflections finally forcing the latter to block and stumble back. Marluxia stepped forward and tapped the crystal ball and raised an eyebrow. "The right motivation can drive even a rank amateur to beat the odds. How else could you explain Sora's victory over Ansem and all his darkness?" As Kairi rushed forward to attack, she was brought to a stop as a burning firestorm of energy began to glow around Roxas and he regained his footing. Marluxia closed his eyes and turned to the group, "Survival can spur one to action, but its longevity as motivation is lacking."

Larxene began to smile, and Naminé knew she wouldn't like what she had to say. "But we might have a way to fix this. It all depends on you, Naminé."

She swallowed the lump growing in her throat as Larxene looked to her and Marluxia walked ever closer. "What do you mean?"

Marluxia opened his eyes as he looked down on her. "You hold sway over his memories as he is connected to Sora. All you would need to do—."

"No."

The words were out of her mouth before she could even think about the answer. But the strangest thing is that Naminé realized she meant it with everything she was.

Of course, that was before she had time to worry about the consequences. Larxene barking out a laugh. "No? Did you just say no, little witch?

Marluxia leaned down, a sinister wind beginning to gather around him as he questioned, "Are you refusing our commands Naminé?"

Naminé cringed as she knew what Marluxia's power could bring. Petals that sliced at the slightest touch, the threat of death in the air. When he first explained their initial plan for Sora and she refused, that power was used to bring her in line. The easy thing to do would just be to apologize and think of a way to change Roxas' memories.

But the idea of changing him so completely and fundamentally made her sick. To erase the one person who saw her and cared. Someone who gave her the slimmest hope that she was real? No, she dreaded that far more than any pain. She clenched her fists as she began to look back at him. "I won't change Roxas' memories, Marluxia."

The wind began to grow to a gale as Marluxia scowled, "You should reconsider your answer. Allow—"

"Actually, you're the one who should reconsider, Marluxia." At Axel's words Marluxia's winds came to a stop. He raised an eyebrow as Axel made his way over with crossed arms and a frown on his face. "Tampering with Roxas' memories is off the table."

Marluxia glanced at Axel and demanded, "On what grounds do you question my order, Axel?"

Zexion walked next to Axel and explained, "On the grounds said order goes against the direction given by the Organization's true leaders. We cannot risk altering his mind to the point that it drives him to madness."

Axel held two hands up as he sighed. "Look. I get wanting to get a leg up with all the upset plans. But take a look at what we have." Placing one hand on Marluxia's shoulder, he gestured to Naminé and the crystal ball. "Two keyblade wielders that we're training up, and one of them isn't doing half bad." In the image being shown, Roxas was flinging blasts of fire at a dodging Kairi before unleashing a burst of flame that knocked her back. Axel smiled and put both of his hands on Marluxia's shoulders. "The plan is working. Okay? Just relax, and we'll take care of keeping them motivated."

The room was silent for a moment as Axel's words sunk in. Finally, Larxene clicked her tongue and returned to watching the crystal ball. "Would have been funny to make him go nuts for Naminé. I was looking forward to making Sora crazy with that."

Marluxia moved one of Axel's hands off as he narrowed his eyes. "We will be watching this closely."

Axel smirked as he patted Marluxia on the shoulder with his remaining hand before letting go. "Don't worry. You'll get what you've earned."

Naminé wondered if she and Roxas would be so fortunate.

Though now that hope seemed a little less distant.

Kairi's sneakers squeaked on the hard marble as she avoided Roxas's fire infused swings. Even dodging away, she could feel the sweltering heat radiating all around him. Clearly, Roxas wasn't just copying Sora, he had picked up some power that neither Sora or Riku had learned. A power that wasn't making things easy.

But then again, Kairi had a power of her own as well.

She jumped over Roxas as he charged forward with a wave of fire. Aiming her keyblade at him as he turned in surprise, she called on the power of light. Roxas swung to try and interrupt, but a shining spark rotated around her and intercepted the attack.

The clash of metal and magic was enough for Roxas to stop wide eyed and take a step back. It was likely what kept him from feeling the full force of the spark exploding into a dazzling shimmer of light magic. Even so, he cried out as the spell caused him to stagger back. Kairi saw her chance and rushed forward to try and knock him down with one last overhead swing of the keyblade.

Roxas caught the attack with his own sword, but the blow caused him to drop to his knees as he held her back. He gritted his teeth as he put both hands on his grip and tried to push back. "No! I can't lose!"

Kairi stopped for a moment as he saw a familiar glimmer in Roxas' eye.

"I won't lose!"

A touch of darkness.

Kairi let go the instant that darkness began to explode forth from Roxas. The blast of shadow that comes from him knocking her away. She watched wide eyed as Roxas gasped for breath as he struggled to his feet.

The moment where she saw his eye as he tapped into darkness haunted Kairi. It wasn't the consuming hunger that Riku had which was fostered by Maleficent. It was despair she saw, the fear that something precious would be ripped away from Roxas which drove him to tap into that power.

She wasn't even sure he knew what he'd done as he began to look at his hand as the shadows gathered around it. All she knew was that she couldn't let him throw himself away. Especially if he was who Naminé cared about.

"Can I ask you something, Roxas?" Her question snapped Roxas out of his stupor and he gripped his keyblade tightly. Kairi simply stepped forward and questioned, "Is giving yourself to darkness really the best way to help someone you love?"

"Love?" Roxas furrowed his brow before shaking his head. "I don't know. All I know is that I have to make it back." He pulled back to swing, shadow gathering in his hands, "And if darkness gives me that power—!"

"Even if it changes you and you lose yourself?" Kairi's plea made Roxas stop mid-swing. Kairi placed a hand on her chest as she asked. "Would your friend be happy with it?"

Roxas gasped and in that moment the darkness faded away from him. He looked to his hand before screwing his eyes shut. In that moment, Kairi began to relax as she saw him pull away from the abyss that had consumed Riku.

However, that relief was short-lived as a dark portal appeared behind Roxas. He glanced at it before sighing and dismissing his keyblade. "Looks like I'm done here." He reached up to his hood and pulled it over his head. "Kairi, I hope you make it through this."

With those parting words before Kairi could even move to reach him, he stepped into darkness before the portal vanished. She stood there, hand outstretched to where Roxas was. Even though she didn't quite know him, her heart could tell that he needed as much help as Sora, Riku and Naminé. And she knew that it would take more than a keyblade to save them.

But maybe what Kairi needed wasn't an unbreakable weapon or unstoppable magic. Maybe all she needed was to trust her heart. It led her here, and she was sure that somehow she managed to reach Roxas' heart.

Maybe she could reach the hearts of her friends too.