Wow... Another really long wait that I have forced upon my readers. I have had writer's block, spring break, volunteer work, homework (the writer's bane), and the brainstorming for Chapter 43 and the Epilogue. But now, the end is nigh. Davy Jones Industries, Ltd. is no proud to present...
Note: The Ironclad of Lore is based off of the ironclad CSS Texas from the book and movie SAHARA.
-*43*-
The Fountain of Forever
Dirst paced nervously back and forth along the sand covered floor, staring down at the floor and watching as his footprints slowly melded together to form one ridge through the sand. The Ironclad of Lore was moving agonizingly slow; every second he wasn't heading towards Lotus Tower was another second that he was fretting about Harmony. He occasionally glanced at the other three passengers. Requiem was relaxing in the wicker rocking chair, nonchalantly rocking back and forth and nodding off to sleep every so often. Trisn stared out of the gun ports, watching the vast black expanse of the Void pass around them. Sidrix stood in a corner of the ship, murmuring words under his breath. Dirst paid no more attention to them other than letting them into his sights. Hope and despair were destroying his mind.
Seconds faded into minutes. Dirst felt useless. If Harmony was alive, she was in grave danger, and he was unable to do anything. If Nire were here, maybe this would never have happened; maybe he would have at least been able to console Dirst. If Harmony wasn't alive, then the time ebbing into oblivion time that Helios was escaping the hell that was Dirst's furious revenge. Dirst could almost feel every nanosecond slip through his grasp. Frustrated, he grunted and slammed his fist onto the iron hull like a gavel. Pain shot through the nerves in his hand, but he didn't care.
"Why won't this thing move?!" he yelled.
Trisn jumped at the sudden exclamation which cut through the quiet like a trireme through the sea. Sidrix calmly looked up at Dirst, as did Requiem.
"The ship runs off of ancient magic. The path and speed of this ship have been preordained by the Nexus Stone. The only thing that would make the ironclad move faster would be a change in the Nexus Stone itself." Requiem paused, then added," Just relax."
Dirst nearly punched the Reflection assassin in the face. "Easy for you to say."
Requiem smiled. "Clearly you don't understand the gravity of the situation. If Helios possesses the Nexus Stone, then he will control all worlds connected by the Nexuses. From there, it is only a matter of time before Helios resurrects Kingdom Dark. And with an unknown keybearer on his side now, he has the ability to obtain the Nexus stone and the Ragnarok key unimpeded. And with those in tow, he can gain what he truly covets, what all Darkness truly covets: Kingdom Hearts."
Dirst's anger was forced from boil to simmer. However, his mind was on reprieve from worry now; his mind was now wondering about Requiem's words. Kingdom Dark? Ragnarok Key? Dirst remembered Riku's speech about the Nexus Stone in enough detail to remember that the Nexus Stone connected all worlds and that it was extremely powerful, but nothing more. He was about to ask Requiem to go into more detail about the new subject when a loud scraping filled the air. The ironclad then lurched, almost knocking the three standing keybearers to the ground; Requiem was almost thrown out of his chair. But just as suddenly as it had begun, the whole episode ended. Trisn looked outside, noticing that there was now a giant green mass outside of the window.
"We've landed," he stated flatly. Simultaneously, the hatch on the ship opened up onto the giant green space. The four exchanged glances, then cautiously strode out of the ship and onto the green. They each studied their surroundings, surprised by the magnitude of their surroundings.
They were standing on a giant lily pad. In the center of the colossal plant was an equally colossal pink lotus flower. Emerging from the enormous flower was a giant column of what looked like fog, which rose hundreds of feet into the grey sky until it wound around a giant diamond made out of one monolithic piece of tan stone. In the center of this piece, right above the end of the column of fog, was a large semicircular opening in the stone diamond. Once all of their gazes were averted from the sky, Sidrix caught sight of an almost imperceptible staircase in the lotus flower.
"There," he said, pointing for the others to see. "That is our ticket up."
The group headed towards the staircase in the flower. Despite the urgency of their mission, there was a tacit agreement to walk and save energy rather than sprint. After five minutes of walking they reached the staircase in the flower. Dirst climbed it first, then Trisn, then Requiem, then Sidrix in the rear. They all walked out onto a platform next to the column of fog. A strange warmth emanated from it, and a soft noise like a light breeze filled the air. Dirst stuck his hand into the column, and it rose higher and higher without his muscles doing any work. Seeing the way up, Dirst then jumped into the column, followed by the others in the same order as they had ascended the stairs. Dirst then looked straight up the column and into the dark sky, grim resolve prevalent on his face.
"Beware, Helios," Dirst thought,"for when I get to you, there will be no stopping me from destroying you!"
-*()*- -*()*- -*()*-
"Is it done?" Treble asked, staring at Helios.
The albino smiled. "Yes, it's done." He admired his image in the slightly marred surface of the Nexus Stone. He then turned to Harmony, the smile still on his face. "See this, dear? This is all of your little friends' hopes and dreams down the drain. This is your preconceptions dashed. This stone is the beginning of a new age without the hope that led you, Dirst, and Nire, rest his soul, away from your precious Celestial Convent and out into the real world."
Harmony scowled, tears beginning to form. "You sick freak. You are
not my father; you don't care about me at all!"
Helios's smile widened. "Keep telling yourself that, love." Helios turned back to Treble, stone in hand. "Now, we wait for the keybearer's to show up." He then began to turn away to a third person, but he then quickly turned back, smashing the stone into his manservant's skull. Treble didn't even have time to yell, flinch, or blink. He just watched as the blue crystal smashed into his forehead; then he saw nothing. The limp form of Treble collapsed to the ground accompanied by the metallic clang of his Gatling gun. Helios then pulled a handkerchief out of his white blazer pocket and wiped the blood off of the Nexus Stone. He then turned back to the third figure in the room.
"Good work, Anaximander. You'll make a wonderful general in my new Heartless army."
Anaximander smiled back at him, lavender eyes glinting with pride. "Always willing to help, sir." Helios studied his new found helper. Long black hair, around six feet tall, well built, and completely loyal: something that didn't happen much anymore. And he was a dark keybearer, a
true dark keybearer, not an interim fool like Trisn was.
"We'll wait for the four to come up, then we'll introduce them to you and gloat about our victory. Afterwards, we'll commandeer a Nobody, put two of the keybearer's at odds, send them into battle, and escape to begin our assault on Kingdom Hearts."
Anaximander nodded his acknowledgment, then asked,"What about her?"
Helios looked at his daughter. "We'll let her go back with her friends. It's the least I can do as a loving father." His last words were sardonic, and they only served to sicken Harmony even more. As Helios and Anaximander dragged Treble over to the side of the chamber, Harmony could only hope that Dirst would thwart her father's evil plan.
-*()*- -*()*- -*()*-
The ride through the fog column to the opening in the floating stone monolith took around five minutes, all of which Dirst spent once again worrying from hope and despair. However, once all four of them were out of the fog, their mental processes were immediately focused on how to approach the chamber where the Nexus Stone was kept. A myriad of plans were debated, from a small phalanx formation to a silent approach in, but they were all shot down by one contingency or another. So, after a heated debate, the strategy of choice would be a simple, mad rush into the chamber to catch Helios of guard... hopefully.
Requiem was designated to lead the charge, being a decidedly stronger fighter than any of the others. He looked to the others, nodding that they would begin. He pulled his hand up, then raised one finger... two fingers... three fingers...
Then they all charged.
They ran straight into the semicircular opening, keyblades readied for attack. They rushed through a small antechamber hewed out of the tan monolith itself, then into a room made of the same sterile white that the Genesis key had been in. Dirst quickly studied the room, but the only thing he noticed were the figures of Helios, an unknown black-haired male, and Harmony. Upon seeing her, he felt a weight of worry lifted off of his shoulders. He rushed on with renewed vigor, but suddenly an object slammed into his stomach. The breath knocked out of him, he collapsed, gasping for air. He noticed out of his peripheral vision that both Trisn and Requiem had also fallen; Sidrix was nowhere in sight. However, Dirst's head was then slammed into the ground, and the folds of a black sleeve blocked his periphery.
"TRAITOR!" He yelled, his exclamation reverberating around the room.
Sidrix sighed. "You whole people are too gullible. Your emotions cloud your judgments. Requiem even told you that I was not to be trusted, but you did it anyway. And look where your trust has gotten you. A dead end."
Slowly, Dirst's head was lifted so that he could look around the room in detail. In the center of the white chamber was a fountain of crystal clear water the spewed out of a small floating orb. The water was then channeled into two floating plates, where it was then shot into the air and into the bottom pool again. Dirst also noticed the two figures more in detail. He first studied Harmony; she looked unharmed, but her eyes looked depressed and defeated beyond all limits. He then turned to the unknown; black hair, tall, strong, with maleficence in his piercing lavender eyes. Dirst also noticed a keyblade in his hand. One mystery solved.
Lastly, Dirst studied Helios. The albino was dressed in a white blazer, white trousers, a white collared shirt, and a purple ascot. He carried a black umbrella and wore a black rose boutonnière in his lapel; he looked every bit a gentleman. Then, to his utter shock and horror, Dirst watched as Helios pulled a crystal out of his pocket. It was oddly shaped, light blue in color, and around a foot in length: Dirst remembered the description from Riku's words. It was the Nexus Stone.
They had failed.
"Surprised?" Helios asked, staring directly at Dirst. "I must admit, you put up a good fight, but it has all been in vain. You lost so much, came so close, yet failed miserably. You, Nire, Riku, Requiem, Trisn, and my daughter: you all sought my demise and failed miserably. Now I have the Nexus Stone, and Anaximander here will help me achieve complete domination over all things through Kingdom Hearts. You could have been very helpful tools in my plan, but you decided to go to the light... save Trisn. I coaxed him to the darkness, which in turn coaxed you, Dirst, into the light. If you haven't seen it by now, Trisn is your Reflection, your other. He has sought to undo you, seeking the darkness. Now, I bid you all adieu."
He conjured up a dark portal, which Anaximander promptly entered. Then, Helios turned back around.
"Have a nice day."
He then disappeared into the portal. In response, Sidrix promptly let go of his victims and disappeared into a dark portal of his own. Once again free to their own devices, Dirst hurried to Harmony. She was bound by her hands, and Dirst quickly cut her bonds. She immediately fell into his open arms, sobbing and repeating over and over in a whisper," He's my father." Dirst held her close, putting his head next to hers. She felt slightly better in his grasp, but she was still shook up by the sudden realization that dawned upon her: the evil of Helios ran in
her blood.
After a few minutes of consolation, Dirst gave Harmony a quick peck on the cheek, then let go and faced Trisn. He was sitting on the ground, staring at the floor with a pensive look. Requiem sat farther off, noting the hatred that was boiling in Dirst's eyes. He looked between the two, noting the uncanny resemblance he had never looked for before.
Dirst drew his keyblade, advancing towards his other. "You. You were helping Helios."
Trisn jumped up, drawing his keyblade, a negative image of Dirst's Lightside, in defense. "What?! I hate Helios. He imprisoned me in the godforsaken Prison of the Void for my hospitality! Is that reason for helping him?"
"You chose the darkness. You operated through the darkness in him!" With that, Dirst charged forward, attacking Trisn with a quick swing of the Keyblade. Trisn parried, and the two began combat. A flurry of blows were exchanged between the two others. They battled and battled until they began moving around. Requiem ran over to Harmony and led her away from the fray between her love and his Reflection. Slowly, the two battled their way up to the Fountain of Forever, neither gaining any advantage or wounding the other. They stepped into the water, still fighting. Dirst stepped back and swung low at Trisn. In turn, Trisn swung downward to block the blow, but in the process he hit the ball from which the water spewed from. Instantaneously, a blinding light enveloped them, ending the fight for the moment.
Harmony and Requiem averted their eyes for a few moments, then the light faded. They turned back, and Harmony gasped as she saw neither of the two there. She slowly walked forward, her pace slowed from shock. As she neared the fountain, she stopped, listening to the splash of the fountain on the water. Then suddenly, a white circle opened up in front of her. Harmony looked away, and the circle disappeared. She quickly turned back and looked at the figure before her. It wasn't Trisn.
But it wasn't Dirst either...