Chapter 8 - Light vs Dark

The heart moon shown dimly through the darkness, casting long eerie shadows across the floor of the room. Everything was deathly silent, the murky sky suggesting another storm. A storm where the nobodies and heartless are killed by the needle sharp raindrops, piercing even the toughest layer of armor. That was one of the reasons for the Organizations’ black coats. They had a sealing on it, which prevented the pain a puncture from the drops. Xemnas was still deciphering a way to make a new type of nobody, manipulate them until they could stand the rain. He didn’t care for the heartless; they only made his project better, completing Kingdom Hearts. Things were going wonderfully. Sora and Kairi were separated. Riku was still ashamed of himself, for all the mistakes that he let himself make. Soon Sora’s hope would be crushed. But then again…that last bit light was always the hardest to snuff out.

Two double doors clashed open at the opposite side of the deserted room. Axel. He wasn’t supposed to be here. Oh well. Strolling across to the computer, he stopped and glared out the window. Kingdom Hearts. Maybe he would be human again. Maybe. But they needed Roxas. Badly. How could Roxas have forgotten him? His best friend! Axel approached the computer, and tapped a few keys. A loading bar blipped up. A few more keys, and a rotating picture of Roxas plus a text box figured on the screen. Axel leaned across the keypad and scanned the paragraph.

Roxas. Last seen: Twilight Town.

Current Location: Sora.

“Sora? What?” It made no sense. “Well, looks like I have to go find Sora and see what he can do for me.” Axel turned around, heading for the doors. He had to find Namine. Apparently Roxas and she had been in cahoots with each other for a while, until the disappearance. Namine had said too much, Axel had heard from the rumors. He needed to have a little…er…talk. Footsteps came from outside the hallway, approaching the entrance to the room quickly. This was a restricted corridor in the tower, and he couldn’t get in any more trouble than he already was. There was one way out. Axel materialized his two fire throwing stars, molded them into one flat star about four feet across, and jumped on it. Using his fire, he lifted himself up and headed through the glass window, thank God for those cloaks, and sped around the other side of the towerm, hearing the chinking of glass on the floor far beneath him. Axel landed gracefully on the balcony outside his quarters, and then hopped through the window. It was more fun than a door, plus it was a more fashionable entrance, he figured, even though no one saw. His room has cold white walls, a four-poster bed, along with a personal bathroom. You would see all if this if it weren’t completely pitch black. The only light emerged from the moon heart outside. He was safe now. Nope. No one could catch him. No one knew what he was going to do, or did. Axel held a ball of fire in his hands to find his way across his room, but that light was just enough to catch the cat-like glare of Larxene’s eyes.

“What the!” Axel jumped backwards, dropping the fireball, hastily picking it up, and snuffing it out. Now the glare in her eyes was reflected off the eerie glow from the moon. It was a deathly silent moment to think things over. He didn’t particularly like Larxene. Actually, he didn’t particularly like anyone in the Organization, Except Roxas. Larxene, being the only female in the group, stayed somewhat distant, unless she was flirting with Demyx. She was the exact example of the sexy, seductive, smart, butt-kicking woman that you wanted to stay away from. So he did.

“Where were you?” She simply asked, staring at her newly manicured nails.

“Bathroom.”

“On the balcony?”

“Um, yeah.”

“Climbing through the window?”

“Yup.”

“Liar.” Larxene accused without even looking at Axel. She stood up and waltzed over to him, pointing her finger right on his nose. “You, were Xemnas’s quarters weren’t you. You have a plan to find Sora, and you’re not telling us. ”

Axel shifted his weight to the other leg uneasily. How did she know these things?

“Ahh. Nope. But you are right. I was lying.”

Larxene smiled, actually, it was more of a smirk and a grimace put together.

“You’re lying again. I know what you were doing. You are trying to find Roxas. Searching the only computer in this place.” She backed off and smiled.

Axel thought of something then, “Then that means you were there too, that means you are in just as much trouble as Iam.” Larxene gasped. He walked over and poked her shoulder with his finger. “And you know what that means? That means I didn’t see you, which means you were using your invisibility, and if you know I am finding Sora, that means you were mind reading too, all of which are Xemnas’s potions. You are in double the trouble miss.”

“So what? So what if I want to help. I know you want to find Roxas, and I will help. But only if you help me.”

Axel snorted, “First of all, isn’t your middle name like, Idontneedhelp, and if you did need help, why would you come to me, and what kind of help would you need.”

“You have to promise not to tell. If you don’t tell, I wont tell. Deal?”

“Sure, why not. What do you want.”

“After you’re done using Namine, wanna help me get rid of her?”

Axel chuckled.

“Yeah…sure, I’ll help.”

The streets were paved with cold cobblestone that made a blizzard feel tropical. Buildings towered overhead with neon blinking signs, buzzing with every flicker on. It was one of those nights. One of those nights where you couldn’t tell what was going to happen, where it seemed even the impossible could happen. There wasn’t any noise, excepting the hum of the signs, and with all the skyscrapers, along with the clouds, not even the heart moon shone here. It wouldn’t have helped anyway; it would have just made everything even more strangely, with the eerie luminesince shining down on the city. Everything looked like a picture; in perfect position, but with so sound, and no movement, except the two cloaked figures strolling across the cobblestones, heading in an alley. Larxene and Axel were the two members of Organization Thirteen that were never seen together. Never.

“I hope you know that if we’re found out, we’re gone. Just like that?” Axel warned.

“I know.”

“The system said that Roxas was with Sora…and Sora was in the memory pod, and those are in Twilight Town…unless he found a way out.”

Larxene stopped walking.

“I don’t think that kid is that smart.”

Axel Laughed.

“That’s true. Come on. Over here.”

They turned into an alley, and found the swirling green portal that they knew led to Twilight Town, and stepped through. The room the pair found themselves in a dank metal room. Axel crossed the room and went through a doorway. Larxene not far behind.

“Crap!”

“I agree. I saw that stain before and I was -” Larxene started.

“Haha,” Axel fake laughed, “Look. Sora’s gone.”

“I can see.”

Axel replied with a “no duh” look.

“Why don’t we head up to town? Maybe we can avoid Namine on the way there. Plus I really need some new nail polish, this stuff chips really easily…”

“Forget about the nail polish! Let’s go.”

“Riku, remember when you and Sora had that big race to the star tree to see who would get to name the raft?” Kairi was having a good time reminding Riku of all her newfound memories.

“He he. Yeah, I remember that. I won…didn’t I.”

“Only because you cheated!” she accused.

“I did not. Stop lying Kairi. I always knew you lied.”

“I do not lie! Oh you got it coming for ya mister!” Kairi stood up and kicked Riku in the shin. He hopped up, rubbing his leg.

“Ow ow ow! Hey! You didn’t have to kick me for that ya know!”

“You completely deserved it.” Kairi remarked smartly, and turned and began to run. “Catch me if you can!” she shouted behind her, sticking out her tongue.

“Hey! Come back here!” After a few more ‘ows’ Riku started after her, gaining quickly. He panicked when he couldn’t see her. “Kairi? Where are you?”

“Right here silly!”

Riku turned around to the laughing face of Kairi.

“You scared the crap outta me. I, we, don’t wanna loose you again.”

“You don’t get it Riku! I’m fine! I'm not some wandering puppy! I am quite capable of learning and living by myself!” Kairi shouted. “Nobody listens to me! Why don’t you get it! I wish things were the way they used to be.”

“Well it’s your fault! Maybe if you were stronger you wouldn’t have been captured in the first place! Huh? Did you ever think of that? It’s all yourfault that we’re in this position in the first place! All you did was laze around on the beach while Sora and me did everything. You’re weak, Kairi! Weak!”

The redhead stared at him, tears creeping up in her eyes.

“You jerk!” She screamed and walked away from Riku.

Riku wasn’t sure if he felt guilty or proud. It was like different waves of light and dark were playing tug of war, fighting back and forth. It was like have an angel and devil on his shoulders, one saying give in to the darkness…come back, the other saying to turn away from that, fight it. He knew he had a lot of sins that needed to be forgiving, a lot of past that he wanted to be erased. But, it was so easy to give in the dark. It’s just...no one there could ever replace Sora…Or Kairi at that. It was going to be hard separating from them. But he couldn’t hurt Kairi like he just did. He wasn’t ready to come back to the light yet. There were few places where he could concentrate, and try to peel himself away from the darkness, a little bit at a time. Kairi saw Riku looking at her and turned her head, sitting with her arms wrapped around her legs.

“Kairi…I’m sorry.” He sat down beside her. “I didn’t mean any of that…it’s just hard. Coming back to everything like this is rough.”

Kairi looked up, but put her head back down and closed her eyes. She wasn’t sure if it was her tears, but she started to see something. Everything was wavy, like water or something. First it was just a white and blue blob, but it was shaping and turning into something else. More colors added, and she saw Riku. But there were two of him. One had almost a dark aura around him, while the other one was, well normal old Riku. It was weird seeing him like this. Was it possible…what Riku was talking about, was he still stuck in the darkness? It was almost as if the dark Riku was causing the normal Riku pain, dragging him back from walking away, making the light in his heart snuff out slowly. She opened her eyes and looked at Riku.

“No…Riku…I’m sorry. I didn’t know…” Kairi leaned over and hugged him, even though he was stiff and confused. But eventually he wrapped his arms around her, and hugged her back. Kairi closed her eyes again, seeing Riku’s aura get just a little bit brighter.

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