towerofanimus | 018 - Let's go together...

[His head's still spinning. The images he saw-- glimpses of possibilities-- still haunt him in a haze. Images of himself descending into darkness, losing control, making mistake after mistake. The specifics are lost and distorted. There are vague whispers--

You were just the delivery boy.

Quit while you can.

Of course, that's not all he saw. Somewhere in the bombardment of futures, he caught snippets of himself and the Replica, darkness bubbling out of him, Kairi assuring him that it's okay, and so much more...

It's too much to take in so, like his double, this Riku makes his way to floor 100, albeit absentmindedly. The sight of Destiny Islands ensnares him in a trap; he can't look away, much as he wills himself to do so...

And so he makes his way over to his double, breathing a heavy sigh.]

What a mess...

[It's so good to see their home as it should be, as it hopefully will be again when they've restored things - it's a reminder of the things they are fighting for,the place that Riku is longing to return to, ironic as that is... but it's so easy to get lost here too.

Company makes it easier not to though and Riku turns his head to shoot his double a tired, wry smile - he is almost tempted to mirror that sigh.]

You can say that again.

You know, I'm almost tempted.

[Heh. But that'd be a bit redundant, wouldn't it? They both know how messed up that mirror was, and both probably faced twisted visions, prophetic or otherwise. The question is, what did his double see?

Maybe they should get to the point.]

So, what'd you think about that mirror? Don't know about you, but I don't even know what to make of it.

[He laughs lowly at that, his eyes drifting towards the faked horizon again as he words his answer.]

I don't really know what to think either. Part of me tells me to keep what I saw at a distance, because even if it's real there is nothing I can do right here and right now anyway... but on the other hand, it's hard to just shake it off and pretend I never saw any of it.

Yeah, that's the problem. I mean, obviously some of it would never apply to me-- those bits and pieces I saw about working with Maleficent weren't my experiences, and I never got trained by anybody.

[So that's two possible paths wiped clean off the board, one he's sure his double can relate to. After all, wasn't that how things went for him?]

But it was just so much, hitting us like rapid fire. And what if some of those visions do mean something? Then what?

[Riku throws his double a quick glance when he mentions Maleficent and nods... yeah, he can definitely relate to that path. And to the experience of seeing something that obviously never happened for himself.]

Yeah... I never worked for the Organization either.

I'm stuck on that too. [After all, some of those visions were had been significant to the immediate future of his timeline.] Just before Zo dragged me here, I was about to fight Roxas to get back Sora's memories. But lately I've been wondering about that... if there aren't alternatives after all. The mirror definitely hasn't been much of a help with that.

Well, you've got a chance.

[He pauses, brow furrowing. He knows by now that Roxas is just another name for Sora's Nobody, but the situation in his double's world is so foreign to him. Sora never lost his memories-- his Nobody just got fake ones, so it's not something he can really compare to his own experiences.

Still, there's gotta be something he can do.]

I mean, this whole Roxas business is nothing like what I've experienced, but I figure there's always some other option. The alternatives just aren't always easy. Heck, most of the time, the unbeaten path's littered with all sorts of bumps and roadblocks.

[Does he have a chance? Does he have a choice? Maybe, maybe he does... Thanks to his training with Terra, he is so much stronger now than he was back then, so he doesn't have to worry nearly as much about Roxas killing him. And still...]

...Months before the tower, Naminé told me that the fastest way to wake Sora is for Xion and Roxas to disappear. Otherwise he might awaken to a world where close to nobody would remember him... where he wouldn't remember Kairi.

[That's what's at stake as far as Sora goes - and it's really so much more, because they need Sora, because Sora is the one who can safe the worlds the right way. Leaving him to sleep is not an option, but is there really any way to justify the sacrifices necessary? Riku doesn't know.]

To a point, Xion made her own decisions... I tried to give her that at least, even if the choices are between worse and worst. With Roxas... I didn't think I'd have any time anymore. The Organization was closing in on where we are hiding Sora.

[There is no time and that is the true root of the problem. Riku shakes his head and sighs; there is no use agonizing over it right now, not when they have so many other problems, but... right now he can't help it.]

[Riku shuts his eyes, breathing out through his nose. So that's it, huh? Forgetting Kairi and the worlds forgetting him... For someone like Sora? Yeah, that'd sting. Somewhere in the haze of visions Riku saw, he could've sworn he went through something similar. Something about his heart getting smashed and him diving into some kind of computer... But that's different, isn't it? He's pretty sure nobody forgot him.

Nonetheless, something just doesn't feel right. Yeah, Sora's important. In his double's shoes, Riku'd definitely push as hard as possible to wake his friend back up. But for that kind of cost? Having seen Xion himself and having met a few versions of Roxas, it's just hard to imagine shoving them on death row. It's just... amoral. But then again, if it's for Sora...

He grimaces. What a mess.]

Is there any way to stall? Anything you can do at all? You've got a Keyblade now, and I'm sure you're a lot stronger than you used to be.

[It seems like an impossible choice; especially if it was just for the sake of one person, but... the thing is, it isn't. In the end, in OU!ku's universe, it's just as much about the worlds as it is about Sora, about the fact that they need a hero that can act as a hero should - as Riku can't regardless of having the Keyblade or not.

He has lost the chance to be the kind of person that's needed for that with Kingdom Key, and well... instead he's become the other kind of person that's needed, the kind that can make the calls the greater good of all requires, that can act on necessity, regardless of the costs - or at least that's what he thought. The certainty of his path that he felt back at that roof top, the knowledge of having no other choice but to defeat Roxas or die trying... it's been so long that it's faded. The walls that he'd built then in preparation of big might-be of sacrificing himself to the Darkness and forsaking and chance to return home... the time in the Tower has crumbled them, and for the first time Riku wonders if maybe that isn't quite as good a thing as he had previously thought.]

I am, and it certainly won't hurt that I don't have to fear dying at Roxas' hand quite as much, but... it doesn't change that the core of my problems is time. It took Xion months to make up her mind about what she wants to do.

For all that I might want to, I can't allow Roxas the same.

[The Organization is too close, too much in a frenzy after losing both of their Keybearers and Riku has no idea if he could stall them all by himself, if they attack as a unity.]

So there's really no other option...

[No other allies he can turn to? He's tempted to ask about Donald and Goofy-- they've gotta still be around, right? And they've sure never let him down. Their King's gotta be out there somewhere. Leon's gang, Merlin, there's gotta be allies who'd be willing to help.

But if what his double said is true, then they probably don't remember Sora. Would they even listen to someone who's more or less a stranger? It's a tough call. The fact that he and his double come from such drastically differing universes doesn't help. It leaves Riku guessing what may or may not have transpired. What allies his double even has...]

And you're sure you have to do this alone?

[Sad to say, with Xion's death the number of this Riku's allies have dropped to a grand total of three. And out of them...]

Naminé and DiZ aren't fighters. [Or well... At very least, Naminé's manner of subduing someone isn't something Riku wishes on anyone. Or wishes her to use in first place - not when it isn't absolutely necessary. As for the third-] And Mickey... As things stand he's acting as my fail-safe of sorts.

[Mickey is the one who'd make sure that things would go well, that Sora would awaken and get ready to safe the worlds, if the worst were to happen and Riku didn't survive the encounter with Roxas. It's not strictly necessary anymore if he makes it back, but...]

Even if I did have allies beyond that- [Which he doesn't.] -I wouldn't be in any position to get them anymore.

[Not given that suicide run Roxas had been on just before he had ended up in the tower.]

Sounds like you're boxed into a corner...

[Ugh. What can he even suggest? With every word, Riku's double nails in a feeling of helplessness. Being locked into one possible outcome with no sign of escape. What can he even suggest now? After all, the other Riku's right. DiZ doesn't fight, and while he can't speak for his Naminé, the one he met in the tower hardly seems like a fighter.

And Mickey, well, he never got to met the guy, so all he has is his double's word. Nothing more. So what other options exist? Well...]

Couldn't you, I don't know, try to calm him down? Knock him out, take him somewhere safe, and then try to explain-- just for closure's sake if nothing else. I get that you don't have time to let him decide, but if it really does boil down to him giving up his existence, shouldn't he at least know why?

[It's already enough comfort and relieve to see that his double is just as troubled when presented by this situation; not because Riku wants to see him just as distressed - far from - but at least that means that he (likely) isn't missing anything.]

That's the plan. It's the least I can do for him - I can at least attempt it. The real trouble is beyond that... I just-

[He cuts himself off and shakes his head.]

Xion was too much already; it shouldn't take Roxas too.

[It's necessary - Naminé had told him that and she too, would prefer that it wasn't - but that doesn't mean he is anywhere near entirely fine with it; especially after giving it two additional years of thought. Xion... Roxas... Naminé too... It's not fair, he knows it isn't, but saying it out loud when he doesn't know how to change it seems just childish.]

Yeah...

[At that thought, Riku wilts, arms dropping in his lap. Is it really fair to take others' lives and throw them away? Of course not, but just like his double, he knows that saying that won't change the situation. Nor will this conversation, really; they can hash out plans all they like. Come up with ideas, but unless they guarantee a way back to their worlds, it's all just penciled in.

So what to do? Well, one thought pops into his head.]

All I can really say is that you should do what feels right. Try to pick the roue that works best for everyone, but don't limit yourself. For all you know, there could be some other route out there you just haven't discovered yet. Don't know how likely that is, but you never know.

[It's frustrating, all of it, the things he can't do, the thoughts he has, the knowledge of his own helplessness; Riku's eyes drift towards the far as his hands clench into fists - and then he flinches and snaps his head towards his double upon hearing that advice, starring at him for a minute, before he shakes his head yet again and laughs.]

That's a familiar piece of advice. I guess, there is something to it then, after all.

[Not that he's ever doubted that, but... he hadn't quite expected to be on the receiving end.]

018 - Let's go together...

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject