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Kingdom Hearts: Dark Dawn	By : RotSeele Category: Kingdom Hearts > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 3168 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I do not make any money from this story.

Chapter List
- 16
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- 18
Seventeen - Tsenacommacah/Jamestown

Kaoru dangled his feet in the cool, clear water of the river, staring at his reflection in the gently rippling water. His thoughts raced back and forth like hyperactive chipmunks, dancing between everything from if he would ever find his friends and Sora to how he was going to help Pocahontas in her endeavor to free her friend. He also wondered how he was going to fight the cloaked strangers when he didn’t even know how they worked and operated, or what their real motive was. He only knew what he had experienced, and he’d barely survived that in one piece. He knew what the black rods could do, especially to a human, but he didn’t understand how they worked. He looked at his hand then, but his skin was unblemished. There were no signs of where the rod he’d removed from Gaston had singed him.
Rinally touched his shoulder and sat beside him, removing her shoes as she did. She slid her feet into the water and wiggled her toes. “So one of the birds says Pocahontas is on her way back. Seems like her talk with her dad didn’t go so well.”
Kaoru smiled slightly. “I don’t doubt. I mean, from what I understand, this whole place used to belong to Pocahontas’ people and then the people in Jamestown showed up out of the blue and started taking over. I doubt her dad’s that eager to let us wander into the village.”
“But we’re here to help.”
“I don’t think that matters.”
Rin blew out a breath. “I wonder what we can do here, really. If we can’t get into either place, we’ll just be sitting here until something happens. And that something is usually bad.”
“We won’t sit around until something happens. We’ll figure something out.”
“Something bad is definitely going to happen, though.”
“Yeah,” Kaoru agreed softly. He tilted his head back and looked up at the sunlight trickling through Grandmother Willow’s branches. “The question is, what?”
“You don’t think They will make more monsters like Gaston? You barely survived that.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
“Well, it’s true.”
“I’m getting stronger. Besides, I think I’m on equal footing this time around. There’s not that much darkness concentrated here.”
Rin hummed. “That’s true. If anything, the light still dominates out here. And I haven’t seen any Heartless since the first one we saw when we got here.”
“I know. Don’t you think that’s strange?”
“Definitely.”
“That only means one of two things. Either They haven’t released the Heartless here yet, or there’s nothing important about this place that They need to release the Heartless for.”
“You know, I really didn’t see any Heartless back on Belle’s world, either, at least until they attacked the castle. Just that one that Gaston had in the cage. I’m not sure They’re using Heartless as weapons. Remember what that guy said? They had no interest in Belle, just the Beast.”
“But why?”
Kaoru shrugged. “Well, I think he wanted to see what would happen if he put that rod into the Beast. You saw what happened with Gaston. I think They want to see what it’ll do to someone who isn’t corrupted by darkness.”
Rin leaned back on her hands and wiggled her toes in the water, frowning. “So what you’re saying is, They experimented first on Heartless, learned that They could control them, and now they want to see what it’ll do to people?”
“Not just any people. People who are light-oriented, but not fully.” Kaoru twisted to face her, holding one finger up like he was making a point. “They can’t use Belle or any Princess of Heart, because they’re full of light. The rods won’t work on them, not like how they want. But that guy wanted to see what it would do to the Beast. He’s light-oriented, but there’s still a touch of darkness in him, too.”
“But that guy didn’t stick around to see what happened to Gaston. Does that mean he already knew what would happen if he stuck that rod in someone who was darkness-oriented?”
“Not necessarily, but I figure that wasn’t why he was there. He wanted something specific, and didn’t get it. There wasn’t a reason for him to stick around.”
Rin tapped her fingers against her lips and canted her head to the side. “So what’s the end game in all this? You said when you were little, you saw a rod like the ones we have sticking out of the chest of a Heartless. You heard Sora say that They were controlling it. Then, in Traverse Town, we fought that one Heartless that had a rod inside it, too. So, obviously, They’ve already figured out that They can control Heartless with these rods. You’d think that would end there, right? Even if they have to fight Keyblade wielders like you, They still have the advantage, you know? Why bother trying to find out what these rods do to people, light-oriented or otherwise?”
“I don’t know.” Kaoru said, looking away from Rin and blowing out a sigh. He looked back at his reflection in the water. “Every time I think we get some answers, we end up with more questions. I wish we could find Sora and Riku. They have to have answers, since they’ve been fighting against these guys for years.”
“Well, let’s think about what we do know.” Rin pulled her feet out of the water and leaned to the side so she could curl her legs beside her. “We know that They are experimenting. Which means, whatever their end game is, they’re not sure that they can reach it yet. They want to test these rods on people, and not just anyone. So far, we know They wanted to test one of those rods on the Beast, who’s the closest to Belle, a Princess of Heart. We don’t know if They’ve experimented on anyone else. They’re also here, on this world, and from what we’ve learned, Pocahontas’ friend, John Smith, has started acting strangely. But she’s not a Princess. A princess, but not a Princess.”
“So there has to be another reason that They’re here. Something we haven’t figured out yet.”
“Do you think it’s as simple as Sora and Riku having never been here?”
“I don’t think so. I mean, if it were just that, then why bother drawing Sora and Riku’s attention in the first place?”
“Point made.” Rin tilted her head back and looked up at the drooping branches of Grandmother Willow’s hair. She blew out a sigh. “What if we’re looking at it too deep? What if it’s as obvious as They’re just trying to control people?”
“Why would They want to control people?”
“Why does anyone do anything?” Rin retorted tartly. “It doesn’t make any sense otherwise. That guy we met before wanted access to the Beast, but ended up making Gaston change into that monster. He didn’t stay around to watch it happen, so we can assume They already know what happens to people who are dark-oriented. They want to know what happens to people who are light-oriented. They don’t want to draw Riku and Sora’s attention so they’re not doing anything drastic, like using the Heartless to make the world implode, like what happened to our worlds. And They don’t know we’re here yet.”
Kaoru frowned at his reflection in the water. “We’re not even sure that They’re the ones responsible for unleashing the Heartless on our worlds.”
“They’re the ones who are using them.”
“Guilty by association?”
Rin nodded. “By themselves, the Heartless shouldn’t have been able to grow so strong as to devour all these worlds again. Especially if there are Keyblade users keeping on top of everything. I think They were trying to do something, it backfired, and they needed to cover it up.”
Kaoru didn’t refute her, but he wasn’t quite sure she was right. There were too many questions and not enough answers. He only knew what he had seen and experienced for himself. He had watched the man from the mysterious organization of no name (so far) drive one of those rods into Gaston, turning him into a monster. He had learned from that same man that he had really wanted the Beast, not Belle, who was a bigger prize than her husband, but for what purpose Kaoru hadn’t the slightest clue. The man hadn’t exactly been forthcoming with that particular bit of information. If Rin was right, that They were experimenting on controlling people, then there was something else that they were after. It was something much bigger than simply seeing what the black rods would do to someone, light-oriented or otherwise. He wasn’t even certain the destruction of Paradise City or Rin’s Sky Islands was the fault of the organization. He was sure They’d had a hand in it, but he wasn’t sure if the blame could be placed solely on them.
Kaoru looked up from his reflection and looked at Rin. “I think what we have to do is set aside any assumptions we might have, and look at what we’re faced with right now. We have to help Pocahontas save her friend. If he’s really being controlled, then we have to figure out how to save him. If we keep trying to figure it all out before we have anything more than what we do, we’re going to start thinking in circles, and we’re going to get frustrated.”
Rin nodded. “You’re right. We really need to get a notebook or something so we can keep all our facts straight. We only know what we’ve seen and suppose everything else.”
“If we keep moving forward,” Kaoru said, “we’ll find out everything. Then we’ll have to work to stop it.”
“Aren’t we already doing that?”
“I mean really work. We can’t count on Sora and Riku to do everything.”
Rin smiled and gave Kaoru’s shoulder a light push. “I’m here to back you up, Kaoru. I’m your pocket healer, after all.”
Kaoru smiled back at her. Before he could say anything else, Grandmother Willow suddenly shook, waking from her nap with an almost violent tremor. Her eyes widened as if in fear. Kaoru and Rin turned to face her, both tense and ready for action. Moments later, Pocahontas sailed her canoe through Grandmother Willow’s branches, and she wasn’t alone. There was a young man in the canoe with her, looking pale and shaken, sporting bruises on his face and a hastily-bandaged arm that he hugged to his chest. The bandage was stained with blood and looked fresh. He had short brown hair that looked wet as did his woolen clothes, and had his cap pulled down over his eyes, as if he were trying to hide his face.
Pocahontas paddled her canoe right up to the tree stump and Kaoru reached to steady the vessel as Pocahontas climbed out. She turned and offered her hand to the young man. “Here, Thomas,” Pocahontas said gently, “come on. These are my friends.”
Thomas at last looked up at Pocahontas, then turned his gaze onto Kaoru and Rin. His eyes widened at the sight of Rin’s hair, pointing at her with a little stutter. Rin frowned, folding her arms over her chest. “Yes, it’s pink. Yes, it’s real. Now get out of that boat so I can heal you.” she snapped.
Pocahontas smiled sympathetically at the young man and helped him out of the canoe. Grandmother Willow looked at Pocahontas with worried expectance. Pocahontas smiled weakly. “I was on my way back from the village when I saw him in the river. Thomas is a good friend of John,” she explained, “and he was hurt. I couldn’t leave him to drown, and I couldn’t let him die.”
Thomas shivered as Rinally took hold of his injured arm and pulled it away from his chest, unwrapping the bandages to reveal a long, ragged wound that was red and puffy. Kaoru knelt beside Rin, taking hold of Thomas’ arm when Rin told him to. “What happened to you?” he asked.
Thomas sucked in a breath as Rin’s cool healing magic coursed through him, and he let out a soft curse as he watched the wound on his forearm began to heal itself under Rinally’s careful guidance. “John happened to me.” He looked at Pocahontas, his expression apologetic. “He’s gone completely mad. He and Ratcliffe are as thick as thieves now.”
Pocahontas shook her head. “That’s not possible. That’s not the John Smith I know.”
“It’s not the John Smith I know either,” Thomas said, “but it’s true. I... I’m not proud of it, but I snuck into Ratcliffe’s house to try and see if I could figure out the reason for John’s sudden change. I remember how he was with you, with me, with everyone in Jamestown, how he defended us from Ratcliffe’s insanity and how outspoken he was about being friends with the savages - I mean - the Indians, rather than pushing them out. But ever since those strangers came, John started agreeing with Ratcliffe. He even helped develop plans to attack your village, Pocahontas.”
Pocahontas stiffened. “No. He couldn’t. He wouldn’t!”
“He did. I saw the plans. Ratcliffe has been stockpiling weapons in his house, guns and the like, that your people have no chance against. They caught me, him and John. Ratcliffe ordered John to kill me.” Thomas waved his other hand toward his face, where the bruises were fading with the help of Rin’s magic. “He did this to me. I managed to escape and got out of the house to the street. I saw Ratcliffe give John a knife and he ordered John not to let me go this time. I got this,” he gestured to the cut along his arm which had now closed up and was slowly fading, “when he cornered me in an alley. He wasn’t himself, I saw that. His eyes were completely soulless. He really was going to kill me, but it seemed like after he cut me, he regained his senses. He let me go.”
Kaoru looked toward Rin. Her lips were drawn in a thin line as she focused on healing Thomas’ wounds. He looked toward Pocahontas then, taking note of her stricken expression. He let go of Thomas when Rin finished healing him and reached to touch Pocahontas’ shoulder. “Don’t worry, Pocahontas. We’ll fix this. From what Thomas said, John isn’t fully under Ratcliffe’s control. He fought against the order he was given so that Thomas could escape to warn us.”
Pocahontas closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath to calm herself. She opened her eyes and regarded Kaoru with a serious expression. “I don’t want to choose between my people and my friends.” she said at last. “I can’t choose between my people and my friends. I want to save everyone.”
Rin grinned widely. “You don’t have to choose. You have me and Kaoru to help you. Kaoru can go with Thomas back to Jamestown. I’ll go with you back to your village.”
Pocahontas looked somewhere between torn and relieved. “But my father-“
“What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him.” Rin said. “I don’t have to go in your village. I just have to stay outside where I can see everything. You said yourself that you thought my magic was something from the gods. If your father can’t see me, then he’d have no reason not to believe the same thing.”
Pocahontas looked up at Grandmother Willow, a pleading look in her dark eyes. The old willow tree was silent for a while, her eyes closed in thought and her lips pursed. Finally, Grandmother Willow opened her eyes and regarded all those before her with a slight frown. “I don’t approve of tricking your father so,” Grandmother Willow said at last, “but sometimes deception is necessary. I think you should do as Rinally says, my dear. Sometimes it’s better to ask forgiveness than permission.”
Pocahontas smiled, but there was a tinge of worry to it. She nodded. “Okay. Thomas, do you think you can get back into Jamestown safely?”
Thomas flexed his arm, marveling at the unbroken skin and the barely visible scar. “Huh? Oh, yes. There’s a way out that John showed me once that I don’t think Ratcliffe knows about. I’m sure we can use the same way to get back in.” He looked at Kaoru, frowning a little bit. “But, do you really think you can do anything to help?”
Kaoru smiled. “I’ve had some experience in this area before. I just need to get into Jamestown, and then I need to get to John Smith. If we can make sure we’re alone when we get to him, then I can help him.”
Thomas smiled, though there was still a little uncertainty in it. “All right. But we have to hurry. I don’t know how much time we have left.”
“We work well under pressure.” Rin replied, giving Thomas a bright smile.
Thomas looked up at Pocahontas. She lifted her shoulders slightly, but moved to get back into the canoe. The others followed her in, making it quite the tight fit. Grandmother Willow parted her branches to allow Pocahontas to guide the canoe out and onto the river. “Be careful, all of you.” said the ancient tree. “I sense there is a storm coming, a violent and terrible one. It may be wiser to take shelter than stand out in the rain.”
- 16
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- 18
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Kingdom Hearts: Dark Dawn