Awakening

He stumbled through the dark. He was growing fearful, and in his fear, grew irritability. He found his feet settle on solid ground, but in front of him remained a long, dark corridor, endless in its void. He shouted the name of his friend with all his might. The echo of his voice bounced through the corridor. Then, strangely, it bounced back towards him, but what he heard was not what he spoke.

“KIERA!”

He scowled. He shouted her name again. A few seconds later, it came back:

“KIERA!”

“What is going on!?” He exclaimed. 

He cried out for her one last time, and for the third time, the same name returned to him.

“KIERA!”

.

The corridor melted away. The ground behind him liquidated into nothing, and he fell. He fell for a few agonizingly long seconds. Then, something yanked him back. He floated, then stood once again on solid ground.

.

A figure appeared in front of him. It was a girl, long, creamy orange hair wearing a black coat. Inside his chest came an intense flutter.

“~~~?” He spoke. 

The girl raised her head. Slowly, she turned around. The figure warped, and stuttered into another girl, from brown eyes to amethyst, from unkept, unbalanced orange hair, to flowing silver hair, with a crown braid. His fists clenched. He ran to her, attempting to reach out and grab her. 

.

Suddenly, the ground beneath them burst into doves, and beneath them shining stained glass, glowing soft pinks, golds, and blues. He covered his eyes from the blinding light. When the doves cleared, he could see the heart of another. The silver haired girl in the glass sat peacefully, holding the “Dreamseeker” Keyblade in her hand, and in the friendship circles above them, was a boy with striking blonde hair and glowing blue eyes, a boy just like him.

.

“Forget me, ~~~”

He looked up to see the orange haired girl again, staring down at the ground. 

“No! I can’t! I won’t forget you!” He shouted, “Come with me!” 

“Unlike you, ~~~, I won’t run from my problems. This is my fate. Let me go, and find peace.”

“I WON’T LOSE YOU AGAIN, ~~~!”

Once again, he tried to dash towards her. But his strides slowed, as if gravity was attempting to crush him. His vision blurred, as he drifted out of consciousness. 

“No…! ~~~!” He grunted, still trying to push forward.

As the darkness swallowed him, he heard:

“Forget me.” 

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

“There’s something I need to know. There is this girl. I see her at night. I always chase her, but she always runs away. I knew her…once upon a time. I remember she was someone very important to me; and I think you know where she is. Please, I need to see her, Naminé.” 

She hesitated for a long moment. 

Finally, she replied, “I can show you where she is. But know this ~~~, you may not like what you see. I hope you can be prepared. The fate of people like us are never happy ones….”

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

“At last. The keyblade’s chosen one.”

“Who are you talking to, me, or Sora?”

“To half of Sora, of course. You reside in darkness. What I need is someone who can move about the realm of light and destroy Organization XIII.”

“Why? Who are you?”

“I am a servant of the world.” 

The man laughed. 

“And if I’m a servant, then you should consider yourself a tool, at best.”

“Was that…was that supposed to be a joke? ‘CAUSE I’M NOT LAUGHING!”

He summoned his keyblade and slashed at the mysterious man. However, he went straight through him like a cloud.

“My apologies. This is only a data-based projection.”

The boy suddenly screamed in fury. He whirled behind him and slashed the projection repeatedly.

“You. Took. EVERYTHING from me!” He shouted, “You took away my friends! You took her from me! I promised we’d be together!” 

The projection disappeared. The boy panted and gasped for breath. Then, the man reappeared a few feet away.

“Come, over here.”

“I hate you!”

“You should share some of that hatred with Sora. He’s far too nice for his own good.”

“My heart belongs to ME! Give her back!” 

He summoned his keyblade once again, and cut through the man with all his strength, once, then twice. The projection disappeared. 

.

There was a loud whirring sound. The boy gasped. He had unintentionally opened a pod. What he saw halted him in his tracks. There, inside the pod, was a silver haired girl, sleeping peacefully in the protective bubble shielding her. 

“Kiera…” he breathed.

The Kingdom Key shimmered away as he straightened. There was a tug in his chest and his lip quivered. Tears filled his eyes.

“~~~, if you can hear me, I’m sorry,” he croaked, “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to keep our promise. I hope…one day…you can forgive me.”

He closed his eyes and dried them. He sighed deeply.

“I know what I must do now…I just wish…things could’ve been different…” 

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

“Kiera…! Kiera…! Come on, it’s time to wake up!”

She stirred, and slowly peeled her eyes open.

“Ven…?”

.

The light was blinding. She covered her eyes as they struggled to adjust. When she came to, She made out three familiar figures: One was a tall boy, one looked like a duck and dog standing on two legs. Finally, she could see clearly.

“Sora…?”

The boy grinned.

“Sora!” She exclaimed.

She lept down and embraced him. Sora giggled and squeezed her tightly. Donald Duck and Goofy danced in glee around them. 

“You’re alive!” Sora cried, “I can’t believe you’re alive!”

“‘I’m alive’? When did I die?” Kiera half-laughed.

“What? You don’t remember?” Donald asked.

Kiera shook her head. 

“Oh, who cares? You’re back now and that’s all that matters!” Sora resolved.

Kiera grinned. They embraced again. She felt an unusual warmth from him that she hadn’t experienced before: comfort, relief. Kiera didn’t think too much about it, however. It was time to get their bearings again. Where exactly were they?