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Kingdom Hearts: Dark Dawn	By : RotSeele Category: Kingdom Hearts > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 3169 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I do not make any money from this story.

Chapter List
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Twenty-Two - Tsenacommacah/Jamestown

“How can we beat that?” John Smith whispered from behind Kaoru and Pocahontas. “It’s huge!”
Pocahontas looked at Kaoru and Guardian. “I don’t know if there’s much we can do, but you can, can’t you, Kaoru?”
Kaoru gripped Guardian tighter with both hands. His armor shimmered with prismatic light, an incredible display. But beneath that display and armor, his heart was hammering in his chest. Someone was dead. Someone had been completely taken in by darkness. There were dozens, hundreds, of people watching him. Lives depended on him. Is this what Sora deals with whenever he goes to a world he’s never been to before? Is this what he feels like when he takes on the darkness? When he takes on someone so inherently evil that you don’t want to save them?
“You ought to get these people out of here.” Kaoru said at last. He forced his fear down and grasped onto all the courage he could muster. “I need Rin, too.”
“I’m here.” Rinally stepped up beside Kaoru, grasping her staff tight in both hands. Her fingers were stained red with blood. Tears had made streaks on her face, but she wasn’t crying anymore. She looked toward Pocahontas. “Your dad’s okay. My magic got the bullet out and I healed up his wounds. He’s lost a lot of blood, so he needs to take it easy for a while.”
Pocahontas looked back at her father, then at Kaoru and Rin. “Will you be okay?”
“We’ll be fine.” Kaoru answered. Rin nodded.
The Darkside/Ratcliffe hybrid finally seemed to notice them and let out a bellow. It lifted a massive leg and the ground shook as it lurched forward. Kaoru looked at Rin, then charged forward, Guardian held out and low as he ran forward. Rinally was right behind him. Neither looked back to see if Pocahontas and John were doing as they had told them to do; their fight wasn’t behind them, but ahead of them.
Ratcliffe’s voice boomed out in a vindictive laugh, as loud as a peal of thunder. His hand came swinging in toward Kaoru and Rinally, but they were ready for him. The witch unleashed the most powerful Firaga spell she had at the hand coming straight for them, then threw herself to the ground as Kaoru swung Guardian over her head, following the fireball with a powerful slash fueled by light. The Keyblade cut through the darkness with ease, creating a gaping wound in the hand. Rin rolled to her feet and swung her staff like it was a weapon on par with Guardian. She unleashed a Blizzara spell into the wound, and the ice coated the dark flesh of the hybrid Heartless, creeping up and up until it reached Ratcliffe’s forearm. The beast roared and slapped at the ice with its free hand, shattering it. By that time, Kaoru and Rin were already moving, forcing the monster to turn to chase them and ignore the people Kaoru and Rinally were leaving behind.
Kaoru jumped up onto Ratcliffe’s arm as it came in to smash him, launching a flurry of attacks into the darkness-bound flesh of the Darkside/human hybrid. Guardian tore rents in the darkness, flinging motes into the air with each slash of the Keyblade. Kaoru danced away from the monster’s counterattack, his shield of light glimmering into existence around him as he fell from the arm, bouncing lightly on the ground. Rin lifted her staff and unleashed a sequence of spells, ranging from lightning to fire to ice to wind. The spells crashed into the Heartless hybrid’s chest and drove it further back, and enraged it further. The massive palm of the Darkside/Ratcliffe swung in toward her, tearing up the ground as it came closer and closer. Rinally started running, but even she knew she wouldn’t make it far enough away to avoid being hurt.
Rin felt the oppressive weight of the Darkside/Ratcliffe’s hand against her back, and then she was flung into the air. She somehow kept a tight hold of her staff even as she soared through open space. The ground rushed up to meet her and she closed her eyes tight, not wanting to watch her death come. Instead, she bounced. Once, twice, three times, she bounced before she came to rest at the tree line. Rinally opened her eyes to see the faint glimmer of a golden, translucent ball surrounding her. A squeaking gasp escaped her when the glimmer shattered into motes of light and she was dropped fully to the ground, landing hard on her rear. She twisted at the waist to see Kaoru drawing back Guardian and throwing it hard toward the Darkside/Ratcliffe’s face. The Keyblade rotated end over end until it smashed into the monster’s face, driving its head backwards. His armor glowed brightly with prismatic light, and another shimmering orb of golden light surrounded him as he was hit with a giant orb of pulsing darkness. He was sent flying backwards, hitting the ground hard and bouncing because of the orb-like shield. He came to rest with Guardian dug deep into the earth, his head bowed and his chest heaving for breath.
Rin ground her teeth and shoved herself to her feet even though her body protested it, and she raced toward Kaoru as fast as she could, drawing on her mana to cast a Cure spell upon him. They were both incredibly tired; Rinally herself was nearly out of mana, and they hadn’t been to a world where they could stock up on items. She could only imagine how Kaoru was faring. She reached Kaoru just as the Darkside/Ratcliffe monster lifted his hand toward the sky with the intention of squashing them. She gripped his shoulder, kneeling beside him. He looked up at her through the blonde of his bangs, panting harshly. Rin saw that her minor healing spell had sealed up a slice he’d gotten on his cheek, but his skin was still crimson with freshly-spilled blood. Then they both looked up toward the massive hand that was overshadowing them.
“It’s not fair.” Rin whispered with a slight laugh to her voice.
“What isn’t?” Kaoru asked, hauling himself to his feet and yanking Guardian out of the earth to hold it ready.
“That we’re so stupidly tired and he’s barely winded.”
Kaoru laughed softly. “Don’t worry. We’ll beat him. You got enough for another spell?”
The hand was coming in closer, and even though it was moving at terminal velocity, it seemed like it was gently floating down toward them. They were fully covered by its shadow now, a massive one that took up most of the field around them.
Rin nodded. “What do you want?”
“Lightning. Lots of it.”
“I think I can manage. But it’s gonna be the last spell I can do.”
“That’s fine. I’ve only got one more in me, myself.”
They split, running as fast as they could - Kaoru to the left and Rin to the right - for the edges of the Darkside/Ratcliffe’s hand. At the last second, they dive-rolled out of the impact zone, avoiding being squashed by the narrowest of margins. They came back to their feet and jumped upon the back of the Heartless’s hand, racing together up the massive arm. As he went, Kaoru slashed at the Darkside/Ratcliffe’s arm with Guardian, tearing rents in the dark flesh and sending motes into the air that dissipated quickly. He dodged the orbs of darkness that were shot at him, the golden shimmering light of Holy Shield managing to stave off any direct attacks upon him and Rinally. Soon, they ran out of room to run up the monster’s arm, and Kaoru leaped into the air to commit to his final attack. He knew that if this attack didn’t put the Darkside/Ratcliffe down, then he was dead. Rin was dead. Pocahontas, Thomas, John, Nakoma, and everyone else in this world was dead. The world itself was dead.
He drew his arm back as far as he could, twisting at the waist to put as much power into the throw as he was able. With a shout, Kaoru threw Guardian toward the Darkside/Ratcliffe hybrid’s face. The Keyblade began to glow, shimmering with the same prismatic light his armor was imbued with. Cascade exploded from Guardian before Rinally’s Thundaga spell hit the weapon, making the motes of Cascade explode into electrically charged bolts of light that speared down into the Darkside/Ratcliffe’s shoulders, chest, and head. Adding to that, the length of Guardian slammed into the Heartless’s cowled face, creating a thunder-crack of noise. The Darkside/Ratcliffe hybrid let out a scream of enraged pain, but between the force of the Keyblade striking him and the combined attack of Rinally and Kaoru, he couldn’t recover fast enough to regain his balance.
The Heartless tipped backwards.
Guardian came back to Kaoru’s hand as the boy fell towards the ground. With what little power he had left, Kaoru wrapped himself and Rin with a Holy Shield, softening their landing. The shimmering orb that surrounded them shattered only seconds after they touched the ground. Then they were nearly knocked off their feet as the Darkside/Ratcliffe hybrid Heartless hit the ground with enough force to rival an earthquake. It was only by some miracle that they managed to keep their balance and keep from falling to the ground as the shockwave rushed under and past them. When it was over, Kaoru gripped Guardian and raised the Keyblade toward the sky. He really wasn’t sure what he was going to do; this was a full-body possession by a Heartless, not a transformation caused by one of the black rods. He didn’t know how to handle this.
It turned out that he didn’t need to worry so much.
As soon as Kaoru’s arm was fully extended, the tip of Guardian’s blade began to glow brighter and brighter with piercing light. It started off as a small orb the size of a baseball, then expanded until it was more of a watermelon shape that gave off a diffused cloud of light around a more solid glow. Kaoru brought Guardian down slowly and gently, aiming that watermelon-shaped orb of light toward the giant Heartless lying stunned before him. As the light moved through the air, it began to expand in size, diffusing more and more so it looked more like a cloud than anything more solid. The Darkside/Ratcliffe hybrid saw it coming and struggled to get to its feet or pull itself away from the bright cloud, but it was no use. As soon as the cloud touched the monster, the light began to adhere to the darkness, climbing slowly up the Heartless’s body until it was completely engulfed.
The massive Heartless writhed and squirmed as the darkness it was made of began to peel off inch by inch. It only took a handful of minutes for the Darkside Heartless to be completely removed from Ratcliffe, leaving the man lying flat on his back on the ground. Above him, a massive orb of mixed darkness and light pulsed and swirled for a minute before it exploded, sending a giant multicolored heart up into the sky before it disappeared.
“Is he alive?” Rin asked softly from near Kaoru’s shoulder.
Kaoru glanced at her, then toward Ratcliffe. The man’s chest was rising and falling, but other than that, he wasn’t moving. “He’s breathing.” he replied. “But I don’t think he’s awake.”
Together, Kaoru and Rinally crossed the space between them and Ratcliffe, coming to stand over the man. He looked pale and his eyes had deep, dark circles under them. He was breathing through his mouth, which made him look like a fish out of water. His eyes rolled beneath the lids rapidly, but he didn’t look like he was going to wake up. Kaoru looked up as John Smith and Pocahontas approached them, stepping tentatively as if they weren’t sure what they were approaching. Judging by their expressions, Kaoru was fairly certain that they hadn’t quite come to terms with what they had just witnessed.
John nudged Ratcliffe with the toe of his boot. “You didn’t kill him?”
Kaoru shook his head. “Keyblades don’t work that way. The only thing they destroy is the Heartless. They can’t kill anyone.”
Pocahontas glanced behind her toward Nakoma, who was still being held tight by Thomas. The warriors of the tribe had gathered Kocoum’s body and were regally bearing it away. The Jamestown men watched with their hats held over their hearts and with solemn expressions. “I wish that were true for all things.” she whispered.
John’s expression softened and he reached to grip her shoulder. She looked up at him and gave a slight nod. John returned his attention to Kaoru and Rinally. “You two are...” he stopped, as if he couldn’t think of what to say. After a minute, he tried again. “You two are definitely special. Those powers... I’ve never seen the like. I doubt I will again. Would that I could have you here all the time...”
Kaoru smiled, but it was short-lived. “You don’t need us here all the time. All you have to do to keep the darkness at bay is keep hope in your hearts. Be kind to one another. Help each other. You might look different on the outside, but on the inside, we’re all the same.” He pointed at Ratcliffe with Guardian. “And keep people like him from trying to fill your hearts with hate and greed.”
“Don’t worry.” John said, his voice hard. “I’m going to make sure Ratcliffe can’t cause any more trouble.”
Pocahontas agreed. “I know that what’s happened has opened many eyes, and hopefully, many hearts. I’ll do my part to heal what has been hurt. I may not have your powers, Rinally, but even so, I don’t think I’ll need magic to heal these wounds.”
Rinally smiled. “Magic is only a short-cut, anyway.”
Pocahontas opened her mouth as if to say something, then stopped as the wind began to blow. She raised her head and turned into the gust, closing her eyes. When she opened her eyes, John looked at her questioningly. She simply set a hand on his arm and smiled before she turned to Kaoru and Rin. She stepped forward and embraced them both, hugging them tight.
“I won’t forget what you both have done for us.” Pocahontas said softly. “I’ll make sure no one else does, either. Be safe, wherever your journey takes you.”
Kaoru and Rinally returned her hug, then, when she released them, stepped back. Kaoru looked at John and offered his hand. “I guess this is good-bye, then.”
John smiled ruefully and accepted Kaoru’s hand in a tight grip. “I guess so. Like she said, be safe out there. I don’t know much about the deal Ratcliffe made, but those strangers in black cloaks are dangerous. Whatever they’re after, it isn’t just about control.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” Kaoru replied. He started toward the tree line, pausing to wait for Rin. When she caught up to him, they turned back to wave at John and Pocahontas, then entered the shadows of the trees.
They stopped just before the former battlefield was out of sight, turning back to watch as John and some of the men from Jamestown hauled Ratcliffe up and bound his hands with rope given to them by one of the braves. Pocahontas had returned to Nakoma and was holding her friend tight, stroking her hair as she cried.
“Do you think they’ll be okay?” Rinally asked.
“I think so.” Kaoru answered. “I believe in them.”
He started walking, heading deeper into the forest. Rin caught up to him and walked silently beside him. Kaoru could no longer sense any Heartless nearby, and figured they had either all been destroyed or absorbed by the Darkside before it had merged with Ratcliffe. A part of him wished that there was something left to fight, because he felt incredibly frustrated. Frustrated because, despite their best efforts, he and Rin hadn’t been able to save Kocoum. They hadn’t been able to stop his death. Kaoru hadn’t been able to stop Ratcliffe before things escalated to extremes. And he hadn’t been able to learn more about the strangers in black nor about the black rods. All he knew was that this organization was experimenting, they knew about the strength of the Keyblades, and they wanted something more than just control over the darkness in the hearts of people and the Heartless.
He wanted the answers he couldn’t seem to find.
Every time he thought that he was getting closer to finally making sense of what he was facing, or what was actually happening, something happened to destroy whatever theory or assumption he made. And, quite possibly worse, there was no sign of his friends.
Ratcliffe said this world was a closed world. What did he mean by that?
Another mystery to add to the others already piling up on his shoulders.
They finally reached the same clearing where they had first arrived to this world, and Kaoru summoned Guardian. His armor appeared on his right arm, covering his entire limb. The silver and gold armor no longer shimmered with the prismatic light, though on the pauldron there was a slight glow. Rinally reached to hook her arm around his, holding tight to him. Holding Guardian out straight before him, Kaoru used his Keyblade to open a portal to the Paths of Darkness. They walked into the realm between realms, unsure where this path would take them.
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Kingdom Hearts: Dark Dawn