Fast Food Madness: The Epic Return V2

"Your heart's strong, and so is the desire within it," Riku answered, not missing a beat. "The Heartless sense it and are using their power more forcefully against you." Riku furrowed his eyebrows, glancing at Sora out of the corner of his eye. "Focus the strength of your heart against the darkness," he continued, voice calm as he instructed Sora through this. "It should remove the illusion and you'll see the Heartless in its true form."

 

Sora nodded slightly, lowering his hand from his head. He furrowed his brows and shut his eyes, staying calm and composed on the outside because of Riku's mannerism. His friend's calmness would help him see the truth, he was sure of it. After a few seconds, he opened his eyes and looked up, seeing that they had changed their appearances. He no longer saw Kairi, the brunet staring at them and seeing them for what they really were.

 

After the moment's silence, Riku quickly glanced at Sora before his sight darted back to the enemies hovering nearby. "What do you see?" he asked, grasp still tight on his Keyblade.

 

Sora blinked, and the images of Kairi reappeared. Everything appeared a bit fuzzy, and he winced. "I can't overcome it," he realized aloud. "Not completely. It always changes back to..." He didn't say her name, not wanting to associate her with these awful Heartless again.

 

"I know how it feels," Riku admitted, eyes on the creatures hovering around them. "It takes patience and concentration. She's not associated with darkness, and never will be. Believe that, know it, and concentrate with your heart on the darkness. The illusion will fade." Riku furrowed his eyebrows. "If that doesn't work, you'll have to resort to violence again. And I know you don't want to do that." He wasn't necessarily pressuring Sora, because the Heartless didn't attack until the illusion was seen through. He just wanted Sora to get through this the easy way, not the hard way.

 

Sora nodded seriously, agreeing with Riku. He most certainly did not want to use violence against any creature that looked like Kairi. His heart would break if he had to do that. But at that moment, he thought of something else. "Can't you just fight them, Riku?" he asked as soon as the idea popped into his head. They didn't appear that tough, not in their natural form. Sora just wanted to leave this conflict alone and run away from the problem, though he wouldn't put it so plainly to himself, since running away isn't good.

 

"I can, but you'll only see me attacking Kairi," Riku stated, still standing in his fighting stance. He turned his head slightly to look at Sora. "If you don't overcome this, the Heartless will follow you and pull the same tricks. Are you sure you want me to defeat them alone?" The question was in his eyes, but so was the certainty that Sora could defeat this. But if his friend preferred he do away with the Heartless, he would go ahead and defeat them.

 

Sora didn't respond, only frowning as he looked over the Heartless that were impersonating his girlfriend. Riku's first sentence echoed in his mind: "You'll only see me attacking Kairi." That was the last thing in the world he wanted to see at that moment, or any moment, for that matter. He suddenly switched his Keyblade to his left hand and used his right hand to reach into his pocket, pulling out the charm Kairi had given him so long ago.

 

Riku's aquamarine eyes glanced down at Sora's hand, recognizing the item immediately. Huh, Kairi must have let him keep it, he thought, understanding it was for purposes like this. Still the same promise, he was sure.

 

Sora looked down at the charm for a moment before shutting his eyes, trying to picture Kairi's face so that he could separate her from the Heartless that were surrounding him. The real Kairi was gentle and full of light, while these things were vicious and seeming with darkness. The differences were endless. So why couldn't he see these horrible creatures for what they really were?

 

Riku looked away, letting his sight rest on the enemies still hovering in front of him and Sora. He would give his friend a little privacy; he was obviously fighting what was going on here. Riku remembered how long it took him to stop picturing... No, he wasn't going to think about that again. For all he knew, the Heartless could catch his desire as well. He defeated that a while ago, and he wasn't going to deal with that pain again.

 

Sora furrowed his brows, feeling the Heartless playing mind games with him. Kairi's image faded away in his mind and was replaced by pure darkness. The brunet winced, summoning his Keyblade away so that he would have a free hand. Then he lifted a hand and gripped his head, struggling. Back off! he mentally shouted at the Heartless, frustrated beyond belief that he couldn't seem to beat this thing.

 

Riku saw the Heartless stir in their places and he instantly looked down at Sora, his eyes widening a little. He glanced back at the Heartless and tightened his grip on the Keyblade. They just weren't letting up on Sora, and it was ticking him off. At the same time, though, he was worried for his best friend. "Focus, Sora," he said, voice growing tight.

 

Sora ground his teeth together, gripping his head more tightly when he felt physical pain. It felt as if somebody had just punched him in the temple. No, worse than that, it felt like they punched him once and then pulled back and did it again, over and over again. He subconsciously tightened his grip on Kairi's charm, only to hear a snap. His eyes widened at his focus was lost, the teen opening his eyes and seeing the broken talisman in his hand.

 

Riku glanced down at the sound, eyes falling on Sora's hand. His grip on his blade loosened for a moment in slight surprise, but he immediately grasped it tightly again. No time for distractions. Soon, if Sora didn't get control over this, he was going to have to defeat the Heartless himself. It would not only make him feel better, but would relieve the stress falling on Sora.

 

Sora looked down at the charm, shock in his eyes. After a moment, he recalled the situation around them. He glanced up at the Heartless, seeing that their illusion stood strong. "Fight them yourself," he said stiffly to Riku. "Find me when you're done." He turned and walked toward the path to leave the area, carefully holding the charm in his hand so he didn't lose any pieces.

 

Riku's eyes trailed Sora, but when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye, he summoned his dark power to him. The Heartless' target had been Sora, and it didn't look like they were going to give up on him. Riku shot Dark Aura orbs with a cry toward the ugly Heartless closest to him, before they turned on Riku and started to move in his direction. He only gripped his Keyblade, ready for the fight.

 

Sora turned around at a certain moment, having thought he sensed one coming for him. But when he saw all five of them going for Riku, he turned back in the direction he had been going. Wait, he suddenly thought. Five? There had been six earlier. He grunted when he felt a sharp pain in his side that pushed him up against a hard railing, the wind being knocked out of him as he looked to the being that hurt him. It looked just like Kairi.

 

Riku blocked an attack from one of the Heartless, both hands on his blade. He pushed it off with a grunt and swung, knocking two of the enemies away for a few seconds. He sensed one coming at him from the side and he turned, deflecting the attack and retaliating, a sharp cry leaving his lips.

 

Sora tried to stand up using the Keyblade to help him, and he eventually was on his feet. But he remained doubled over as he tried to catch his breath, the teen also avoiding looking at the Heartless that was in front of him. He grunted when he felt a strong arm pick him up by the front of his shirt, and he was finally forced to look at his opening. It flickered from Kairi to the Heartless, which surprised him. But then it changed back to Kairi right before the enemy threw him across the battlefield and into an ice-hard pile of snow.