AN: Okay, so, you know how I listen to KH and FF and other anime OST's to get into the mood of a certain scene, whether it's sad, tragic, happy, or epic and actiony! Well...for this chapter, I had a battle orchestra triumphant cover of Kairi's theme from Youtube playing. xD Look up "Kairi (Kingdom Hearts II) Orchestral Battle Arrange by Jericho George." :D Cause that amazing shit is what I had in my ears while writing this fight for my main girl!
P.S: The Angel of Light does not refer to Kairi though...
End of AN!
Kairi's Keyblade met billowing darkness - and a dark shield cracked and strained against her strike.
Billowing dark energy erupted from the man, sending her flying off to the side.
She flipped around in the air before she hit the wall. She planted her feet on it, bending her knees, and then launched herself straight back at the man again.
He turned, swiping an arm with a furious look. A wave of dark purple flames erupted, sweeping toward her.
She changed her trajectory in mid-air, flipping up over the flames, coming down with an overhead strike.
The man raised an arm, stumbling back.
Kairi's strike hit, tearing down through that arm as she landed in front of him.
The man screamed, falling back now, the darkness intensifying.
A circular wall of flames roared out from him in all directions.
Kairi cast barrier dome, shielding herself from it.
When the flame wall passed, she let it drop.
She stared around her in shock.
The purple flames were rapidly eating their way up the walls of the surrounding buildings and homes, disintegrating wooden beams and burning holes through the walls. Glass shattered and popped, exploding everywhere above them.
Kairi cast another barrier just to protect herself from that.
She heard, through the roaring flames, nearby voices of those in their homes beginning to cry out - to scream.
"What are you doing?" she shouted out, horror in her Heart. "You're going to destroy- everything!"
The man strode forward, reaching a hand of clawed fingers out to her, imperious. "You rats have infested my city for far too long! And the only solution to an infestation...is to burn them out. I will raze this city to the ground if I must, and build a shining new one atop the defiled ashes! For that is God's Divine Judgement! And judgement is mine!"
Kairi stepped back, as Nightmares suddenly began to appear all around the man. Two large elephant looking ones, a dozen Komory Bats, and even two of those Keeba Tigers!
"You, gypsy witch, will be the first to taste the righteous agony of Hellfire!" the man shouted, raising his arms to the air.
"No!" Kairi yelled, gripping her weapon and flying forward.
Frollo waved an arm again, sending another wave of fire for her.
She leapt up over it, just like before.
But this time, the Komory Bats were there to swarm her.
She slashed and turned, falling back to the ground again.
She heard roaring, and saw the Keeba Tigers racing through the flames at her.
Kairi exploded with light magic, blasting away the Bats save for a few stragglers. She did a sideflip away from the Tigers, sailing high. She righted herself in the air, hovering there. She thrust out a hand, sending out several projectiles of ice; they struck the Tigers, encasing them in blocks of ice.
"Your wretched spells are no match for the powers of God!" Frollo shouted, thrusting a finger out at her.
Over the man's head, a huge miasma of purple grew, and then-
Out popped a giant Nightmare.
It was bipedal, with a thin lower body and a muscular upper. It had a helmet on its head, and a collar of spikes. It had huge, four-barreled rocket cannons on its hands, wrapped in purple chains. It had a long, thin tail, ending in a semi-circular blade of green. The Nightmare roared, and huge wings erupted from its back, with spikes hanging from the underside, and pointing out from the tapered ends of them.
Kairi gasped at the sight. She looked around her. She looked to the remaining Nightmares. She looked at the disgusting man himself...
Her Heart burned, it twisted-
Her body pulsed with golden light, electricity crackling across her chest - right over her Heart. And then, several streaks of golden energy erupted from her chest, flying out and curving down to hit the ground in front of her.
Before her, pillars of light rose up - then shrank down and materialized into an all-too familiar form.
Several distorted, twisted, female looking monsters of light. Exactly the same as the one from the islands - and exactly the same as each other. Identical, like Heartless were to each other.
Kairi felt another pulse - and then a half dozen more lights erupted out of her, joining the others. She held a hand to her Heart, stumbling back.
The light roared between her fingers, a huge beam firing out, causing her to fall to her knees with a pained cry.
From out of the beam, a wide, burning pillar flew up into the sky. Lightning flew down its length, scorching the ground and causing stone to fly everywhere. Then it shrank down and became a large orb. Kairi watched it warp and expand, and contract, and then it exploded, blinding her.
When Kairi blinked away the light, she could only stare.
Towering in front of her was a feminine being of light - over twenty feet tall, maybe thirty. She was lanky and thin, with orange spirals and intricate patterns running up and down the visible parts of her form. Long, orange tendrils, dozens of them, hung down from her head to touch the ground at her feet. She wore a flowing, loose dress, sleeveless and thigh-length, made of orange and white light itself, with a hem lined with Heart symbols. Her clawed hands held twin, burning orange mini-scythes - sickles? Sickles burning with flames of orange energy. And from out of her backside, through slits in her outfit, huge, feathered, angelic golden wings of light emerged.
Fashion...sense...?
The giantess of light turned her head - looking right down at Kairi.
"Destroy...this Darkness?" came her voice, distorted and deep, yet feminine indeed.
Kairi nodded, and gave a weak grin, rising to her feet again. "Yeah - destroy."
"What is this? The witch summons a troupe of demonic succubi to-!" Frollo raged.
The giantess took a world-shaking step forward, slashing a huge sickle down through the air. A burning vertical beam of light energy was carved in the air, which flew forward and slammed into the giant Nightmare - carrying it backwards through the stone archway and into a wide open, huge city square in front of a massive cathedral. Pieces of stone fell down atop the Nightmare elephants, causing them to roar and struggle. A half dozen of the normal sized light monsters turned to light, streaking forward past Frollo, re-materializing before the trapped Nightmares - and not hesitating to start tearing into them with claws and shrieking voices.
The remainder turned and flew at the Keeba Tigers, who had just freed themselves of the ice, wildly slashing this way and that, leaping onto them and opening their maws wide. The Nightmares thrashed and cried out as dark tendrils flowed off of them, being sucked into the light monsters' mouths. Then, as literal chunks and pieces of them began to be ripped off, leaving gouges of dark energy in their forms.
The giantess flickered and crackled, flying forward on air like a wrathful spirit, her golden wings spreading wide. She bypassed Frollo and the elephants, seeming to just- phase through them all, going on into the huge open square. Going to engage the giant Nightmare further!
Kairi gripped her weapon and surged forward, surrounding herself in a barrier, going straight for Frollo!
Suddenly, a man in golden armor with a blue cape appeared, lunging into her path. He raised a long sword up in a flash, clashing with her - stopping her. Sparks flew at the point of impact, sputtering up between them.
Kairi startled, her feet touching the ground again. "What?!"
"What is happening here?" the man spoke. "Who are you, to attack the honorable Judge Frollo?"
"Ah, Captain Phoebes," Frollo spoke, satisfied. "This gypsy witch has attacked me - in mind and body. For which the punishment is death."
"Honorable? Do you not see that?!" Kairi exclaimed. "Look at him! That darkness, those monsters! He's insane - he's going to burn everything!"
Captain Phoebes stared into her face. His eyes flickered. He glanced back at Frollo. His eyes found the Nightmares. He looked all around, as if for the first time. At the flames. The houses. He looked at Kairi again, now. Into her eyes. She saw the conflict playing out on his face in real time. He screwed up his face, his jaw clenching... He threw another look back at the other man. "Judge Frollo, are this girl's allegations true?"
Frollo raised a hand. "This witch and her entourage of unholy succubuses has proven to me that my city is beyond saving. The only hope left is to destroy it, and rebuild. Just as God once decreed with the Flood. Though, this Flood shall be done with fires, not waters - and it will be done by my own hands!" he declared, in a ringing voice that carried, a madness on his face, as a wide grin split his features.
The Captain's gaze went to the monsters of light, then came back to Kairi. "Are you- responsible for those things?"
"Only the glowing ones," Kairi stated firmly. "And only to get rid of his! Those ones!"
"Do not be deceived by the witch's lies!" Frollo called out. "Every word from her tongue is sweet honey, meant to ensnare you. You are a man who follows orders, Captain, and I order you to destroy this gypsy witch!"
The Captain frowned. "She's only a girl, sir, surely she-"
"Stand aside, then!" Frollo shouted, stomping forward. Darkness flew out from him, wrapping around the armored man, lifting him up and hurling him into the wall. The man fell, dropping his sword with a clatter.
Kairi lunged at Frollo, conjuring Light Blades around her as she did, twirling them around her as she slashed for him!
Her blades bit into his arms and body, causing him to step back. The darkness grew around him, his eyes narrowing.
Kairi threw herself forward, stabbing her Keyblade straight for his chest.
He raised an arm-
She teleported around him in that instant, and instead thrust her weapon into his back.
It struck home, burying itself over a foot deep in.
Kairi tore it free and slashed up diagonally, then back down the same way! She slashed her blade straight across, then dragged it up to the other shoulder! She twirled and jumped up, kicking the man in the center of his back, alight with burning white gashes of energy now. He flew forward, landing on his face with a wracking gasp of a noise. The darkness around him bled away, as he raised a trembling hand.
Kairi stalked forward, strode around him, and kicked him in the ribs so hard he flew up into the air, coming back down on his backside. She gazed down at him, fury coursing through her. Her weapon shook in her hand, at her side. Sparks sputtered from the end of it...
The man gazed up at her with fear and hate alike. "You...damnable witch...Divine Judgement...awaits you...in the pits of Hell..."
Kairi's mouth twisted. She let out a shaky, hateful laugh. "You first-"
She startled back with a cry, as suddenly the monsters of light manifested around her - and descended onto the fallen man! Their claws tore into him, moving at such speeds they were blurs. His voice wailed out-
Kairi stared, her world spinning, shaking her head. Her hand rose to her chest. "Stop-" she started.
But it was already over.
The monsters retreated, and wispy dark tendrils drifted up into the sky, leaving an empty spot on the stone.
Kairi stared at them, looking all around her, as the rest gathered around her. All of them, looking at her with those burning white eyes of swirling energy...waiting...
"Enough..." she said, trembling.
The monsters turned - looking to the fallen Captain Phoebes, still unconscious next to the stone wall. "More...darkness-"
"NO!" Kairi shrieked. "I said that's enough! You're DONE NOW!"
The monsters lingered, tilting their heads at her almost collectively. Then, one by one, they evaporated, and balls of light converged on her chest.
Kairi staggered back, feeling an intense burning coursing through her body - and then it faded. She breathed, reaching up to pull sweating strands of hair from her face. She hurried over to the fallen man, dropping down and shaking his shoulder. "Hey - are you okay?" She hesitated, then cast a Cure spell.
After a moment, the man gasped, his eyes fluttering open. He turned over and stared at her. "The gypsy girl..."
"I'm not a gypsy - or a witch," Kairi refuted. "I just- I was just-" She stopped, choked. "It doesn't matter now anyways."
The man sat up, looking around. "Where's Judge Frollo?"
Kairi stood, stepping away. "He's- gone."
The man stared at her, rising to his feet - after retrieving his sword. His eyes narrowed at her. Then, he sheathed it, turning away. "The people of Paris need help - more than I need to apprehend some gypsy witch who probably did us all a service," he spoke, before rushing off past her.
Kairi breathed. She held her hands to her chest, looking down at the ground.
She heard a great roaring noise, and the world shook, tearing her from her own mind and feelings.
She looked toward the rubble of the archway - past it - into the square. She ran and leapt up over it all, landing in the square herself. She glanced around - then up. Up, up...
Atop the massive cathedral, she could see the giant Nightmare diving and darting about, as the giantess of light was standing tall on the rooftops, swinging her weapons to send out huge lancing beams of light for it. The Nightmare aimed its cannon arms, and a barrage of explosive rockets flew out toward the giantess.
She flickered and darted left, then back, then right - avoiding the brunt of the attacks. Then, she suddenly bent her legs and launched herself out into the air, spinning like a ballerina - her scythes held out from her body, creating a golden ring of energy around her. She slammed into the giant Nightmare, cutting into it and taking it backwards. The pair of them fell down to the ground, the Nightmare slamming through the front of a building, which crumbled atop it.
The giantess landed on all fours, her weapons let go, her claws digging several feet deep holes into the stone ground. Lightning and lines of light flew out from around her hands, ripping up the ground and causing miniature explosions of stone chunks. Light burst from her palms, and she shot back up to her feet, her back arching unnaturally before finally straightening out. Her fingers curled, and her weapons teleported back into her grasp.
The giant Nightmare freed itself from the rubble of the building, throwing itself forward, tackling the giantess.
She fell backwards, landing hard. A sickle slashed across the Nightmare's chest. The other was raised and slammed down straight into its face! She twisted unnaturally around beneath the monster, flipped herself up in defiance of gravity, and then lifted up and tossed the Nightmare straight up into the air!
The giantess touched her feet to the ground, her head tilting back so far it looked like she'd broken her neck - then she raised her sickles and began to twirl them. Burning energy formed into discs around them, sputtering and crackling. The discs grew and grew, dwarfing even her own width...
And then twin, burning orange beams of light flew up into the air, straight for the flailing Nightmare.
They accelerated exponentially as they moved, slamming into the Nightmare before it could react, and carrying it up further into the skies!
The giantess's attack died away. She lowered her weapons. Then she dematerialized into a streak of light, flying up into the air like a comet, leaving a golden, long trail.
Kairi stood there, watching on in pure awe.
The Nightmare flared its wings and recovered itself finally, slowing down and righting itself in the air. Its gaze fell down to the streaking light monster. It raised its huge barreled arms, beginning to fire off rapid blasts of energy.
The light comet zig-zagged chaotically, dodging and avoiding the blasts - continuing to ascend. Then, like the energy beams it had fired, it suddenly accelerated in the blink of an eye, closing the gap!
The giantess curved at the last second, darting around behind the Nightmare and rematerializing in full form and body. She closed the short gap in a flicker of motion, and Kairi saw ten, burning white claws burst out of the Nightmare's chest.
The Nightmare thrashed, trying to turn and fight - to escape.
The giantess opened her mouth wide...then wider...wider...and, like a horrific serpent, she started to just- take the monster's head into her mouth. Then, the shoulders! She got down to the arm cannons before-
Her gaping mouth slammed shut with an explosion of white light and bolts of lightning.
The Nightmare fell apart, in two, and evaporated into mist and fragments of crystal.
The giantess closed her mouth back to normal in an instant, letting out a loud, echoing shrieking noise that Kairi heard from all the way at ground level.
The giantess lowered her head in a snap - and Kairi could tell she was looking right at her. Suddenly the monster vanished into particles of light...only to reappear right in front of Kairi!
Kairi stepped back, clenching her fists.
The giantess dropped to her knees in a blur, her arms hanging limply at her sides - like a toy that had lost its battery. Just...done, and didn't know what to do with herself?
Kairi stared up into her face.
It really wasn't as terrible as the normal sized ones. The giantess looked much more definitively like a woman, with sharper, more defined features. Cheeks, a recognizable nose, even glowing white lips...
She could almost be called beautiful, really. Like an avenging angel or something...
She was much more- well, humanoid. Not so twisted or misshapen.
Kairi raised her arms, reaching out for her. "You've done enough. Time to come home," she said quietly.
The giantess's swirling white eyes fixed to Kairi, that head tilting slightly. "Return...home."
Her form faded away into light particles, leaving a large orb of energy in the air. The orb flew forward, entering Kairi's Heart like a truck.
Kairi fell backwards completely, landing on her back on the ground, gasping and breathing shallow, hands clutching at her chest, as an explosion of agonizing fire filled her-
But as soon as it began, it faded, and she gasped with relief.
As she stared up into the sky...
A light bloomed, forming into a Keyhole.
Kairi stared up at it, frowning.
She hadn't found Ephemer here. Why?
Had they gotten separated? Sent to different worlds?
Had he been sent to the wrong one, or had she?
If it was Kairi who was off course, then the only choice she had was to...
She breathed in a deep breath, sitting up. She wiped sweat off her face and stood, raising her Keyblade to the heavens.
I'll just have to find you again. Not just for me - but for Skuld, and Amaya, too.
Kairi couldn't bear the thought of finally reuniting with her friends in the outside world, and having to see the looks on those womens' faces when she had to tell them she had met their lost, old friend...and she hadn't come back with him. Hadn't brought him back to them.
No matter what it took, no matter where this new journey took her - she was not finishing it without the young man called Ephemer squarely by her side.