Duel of the Keyblades-Ch. 11

The leviathan stared at them with its empty yellow eyes without as much as a blink. As the Keyblades flashed into their hands, the boys charged at the giant Heartless. Roxas mowed down the lesser Heartless with his dual blades, never once breaking his pace. As the last minion vanished in a cloud of smoke, Roxas bent his knee and braced himself. Taking the cue, Sora placed his yellow boot on his twin's back and leapt in the air with his weapons bared and poised to strike. But their opponent saw the attack coming and swatted the brown-haired warrior with its free hand.

"Sora!" the blond boy cried out as he watched his friend sail through the air and land on the floor with a groan.

He dashed over to Sora and helped him up just as the Heartless levitated and prepared to swoop. The gale force of the wind generated by the creature's wings knocked the boys off their feet as they crumpled in a pile safely out of harm's way. The Heartless dove again hoping to deliver the final blow with his blade and finish them once and for all. But he missed, allowing Roxas to deliver a barrage of blows to his thick black arm. The creature let out a glass-shattering shriek and violently twisted around, letting its tail thrash him. The crescent-shaped blade on the end of the creature's black tail could have taken his head off if he hadn't raised his Keyblade on time. Sora rose to his feet and hurled his Keyblade at the Heartless, catching him right in the chest.

With another screech, the creature plummeted to the ground. The weapon Sora hurled at it reappeared in his hand as both boys stood panting and trying to catch their breath. It didn't take long for the creature to regain his second wind. He lunged once more, hoping to chop them down where they stood. This time, Roxas and Sora worked together in order to subdue their opponent. Both of them leapt to the air, raining blows on the Heartless. As the black monster reared back, raising his hands to protect himself, both boys launched a simultaneous side-kick, knocking it to its back. They jumped together and buried their weapons deep into the black cavity shaped like a heart. They stepped backward, tensed and ready for the next assault. But thankfully, the Heartless began to dissolve and vanish in a cloud of smoke.

The two boys said nothing, afraid that one word would jinx their luck. When the silence was too much for them to bear, it was Sora who spoke up.

"Is he...you know...?"

"I think so," the other Keyblade wielder replied.

"Now what do we do? How do we get to Kingdom Hearts?"

Roxas fell silent again. His hand clapped his forehead and pinched at the bridge of his nose. He had come all this way, faced certain death with his newest friend and it was all for naught. He had completely forgotten how he was going to reach Kingdom Hearts other than by reaching the heart-shaped moon. He stared up at the celestial body, hoping against hope that the solution would just present itself. As he shut the world out of his consciousness, his memories brought him back.

He was at the fortress, the night before he was sent to Twilight Town. He stared at the moon with its strange shape wondering about his own heart. Could it be there?
As he stared hard in concentration, the strides of black boots on the floor and the rustle of a black trench-coat were inaudible.

"A beautiful sight, isn't it, Roxas?"

The youngest of Organisation 13 looked at his leader. The olive-skinned man stared out the tower window of the Castle that Never Was, where he had led the surviving Nobodies six years ago. After wandering the dark metropolis for days after the attack, Xemnas looked up to the sky. The heart shaped moon that he heard about from his forbidden research. According to legend, it held the key to entering Kingdom Hearts and recovering what he had long searched for. All he needed was time to figure out a way in.

He had found a portal that led to an abandoned castle hovering above the city and made it his permanent residence along with the rest of his followers. They would be safe from harm as long as they remained there, he supposed. But even then, he could take no chances. He had lost too many of his young followers to keep them with him. The last member of the Organisation was too young by far to be a hunted fugitive. He needed a home, friends, anything but the life of emptiness. It was decided amongst his senior followers that Roxas would have to go and get a new start elsewhere. He looked at his young charge, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Xemnas," the young boy's voice broke the silence. The older male looked at Roxas. "Will we ever get there? To find our hearts?"

The grey-haired man sighed.

"I don't know, Roxas. That's what I hope, more than anything else. There's just one thing that may stand in our way."

"What's that?"

"A key," said Xemnas "During my research, I came across an old legend. It tells of a Key, a weapon so powerful that it could do more than protect its wielder. It is said that this Key could be used to unlock the final door into Kingdom Hearts."

Roxas' eyes widened at that.

"But it's only a legend. No one has ever found the Key since its last wielder disappeared mysteriously, many years ago," the man shook his head in disbelief "Yet another dream that we cannot hope to lose ourselves in."

He placed his hand on the young boy's back, leading him away from the window.