CHAPTER 8

REVIVE

RIKU WALKED THROUGH THE SPACIOUS HALL on the way to the next world.

He wasn’t afraid of the darkness anymore. There was darkness, and there was light—and both of them made him what he was. He understood that now.

“Riku… Riku…,” a voice called.

He stopped, looking around. “Who’s there?!”

He knew that voice. And that smell, too.

“I know you can feel it—the grip that I have on your heart. You have let in the darkness, Riku.”

It was the voice inside him—the whispering of Ansem.

“Yes… And that means your very heart itself will become all-consuming darkness.”

“I’m not like that now!” Riku shouted.

Once he’d lost a fight to Sora and couldn’t accept what it meant. But he was a different person now. His heart wouldn’t be swayed anymore by Ansem’s temptation.

“Oh, but you are,” Ansem replied, undaunted, and Riku’s body began to float off the ground.

“What’s happening—?!”

“The deeper the darkness runs inside you, the stronger I become. Controlling you is effortless.”

As he heard those words Riku found that his body wouldn’t obey him—he was paralyzed, unable to move a muscle.

“No—” He finally managed to squeeze out a word, and then a sphere of white light began to drift down toward him.

“What?!” Ansem’s voice was shocked.

The light circled Riku and glowed brighter. He fell out of Ansem’s control as if strings that held him up were cut, tumbling backward and hitting the floor with his behind.

“Must you interfere again?!” Ansem raged, but the stench of his darkness grew fainter, and Riku could move freely again.

“Whew! Sure glad I made it in time! That oughta keep Ansem busy for a while.” The ball of bright light settled in front of Riku and took shape—it was King Mickey. “Sorry I couldn’t get here sooner, Riku.”

The king was looking down at Riku with a smile, where he still sat sprawled on the floor, and he could hardly believe it. “Your Majesty… It’s really you?”

“Uh-huh!”

Riku eventually got to his feet and uncertainly leaned over to poke at the king’s belly.

“Whoa!” King Mickey yelped.

But Riku kept poking him. The fact that the king was really here made him happier than he knew how to say. He grabbed the king in a hug.

“What’s the big idea? That tickles!” King Mickey laughed, wriggling.

Riku laughed, too. “You’re not an illusion this time. I’m so glad you made it here.”

Finally he let the king down and weakly sank on the floor again himself.

“I promised you that I’d find a way, didn’t I?” said the king, looking straight at him.

“Yeah… Sorry. I’m okay. I guess I’m just relieved. I’ve been alone for so long that actually not being alone feels…well, it’s nice.”

The king felt warm. He was really here. It was so long since Riku had been around anyone else for real…it made his heart pound. Slowly he got up again, laughing at himself a bit. “But how did you make it here?” he asked. “I thought it was too far.”

“I found a card to help me.” The king took it out to show him. “I needed a way outta the realm of darkness, and then all of a sudden, this card appeared right in front of me. When I picked it up, I could see your heart beyond the darkness. That’s what let me find you.”

“This card…?” Riku took the card and looked at it closely, at the picture of a big clock tower and a train. It was a place he’d never seen before.

“I guess the card thought its place was to be with you,” the king added.

“…Maybe you’re right,” Riku said quietly, turning to him.

“Okay, Riku. Let’s go.” With that, the king looked a little more stern, determined.

“Right.” Riku climbed the stairs and held the card up to the door.

The twilight lingering in the sky cast a beautiful glow on streets lined with brick buildings. A deeply peaceful atmosphere pervaded everything, unlike any town Riku had ever seen.

“What is this place? I’ve never been here before…” He turned back to look at the king. “Have you ever seen it, Your Majesty?”

But the king wasn’t there. He was nowhere to be seen.

“Huh? Your Majesty?”

“That little king is gone.” A voice rang out in the quiet streets.

Riku whirled to see Ansem there and automatically fell into a fighting stance with Soul Eater.

“You must fight all alone…against my dark powers!” Ansem called.

But Riku only let his stance relax.

“What’s this? Are you giving up? Finally ready to surrender to your fate?”

Riku shook his head. “You’re not the true Ansem. I can smell it.”

Ansem narrowed his eyes.

“The Ansem in my heart smells darker. Nastier. But your scent…just isn’t that.” Riku took a deep breath, staring hard at whatever stood before him wearing Ansem’s shape. It wasn’t the scent of darkness—it was something else. Something with more kindness, something that smelled right. And he knew it from somewhere.

“I finally understand,” said Riku. “You’re the one who guided me when it began. You came to me pretending to be Ansem, and you gave me the card…to make me face the darkness.”

“That is correct.” As the man spoke, some kind of mist rose around him. Then, it slowly dispersed—to reveal someone else.

The man’s face was swathed entirely in red wrappings like bandages, leaving nothing of his expression visible. But the one eye that peeked out gazed straight at Riku.

“DiZ, or so I am known. I have been watching you all along.” The man’s voice was deep and even.

“Really,” said Riku. “Who are you? And what do you want from me?”

DiZ folded his arms. “For you to choose.”

“Choose?” Riku echoed.

“You are special. You exist between light and darkness… You stand in the twilight. You must meet Naminé and then choose.”

“Naminé?” Riku couldn’t recall hearing that name before. “Who’s that?”

“You will soon know.” With that, DiZ was gone.

“Hey—wait!” Riku ran forward, but there was no trace of him—not even a scent. “…Who is Naminé?”

For a moment, he hung his head in confusion, but then stood tall and started walking again.

There was no one in this town. No Heartless, either. And yet it didn’t feel at all lonely or neglected—it still felt somehow welcoming. What a strange place, Riku thought.

At the edge of town, there was a wall with a big hole in it. He could smell something from through there. The scent was tinged with darkness—but there was something else, too.

Could it be Naminé…?

He climbed through and found himself in a dusky forest. From far through the trees, light shone. He began to run toward it.

The Replica ran.

This town bathed in the evening glow, where Axel had led him—he had a vague memory of it. This was where Sora and Vexen had almost fought. And then…Vexen had fallen.

Axel had told him that he would be able to gain new powers from destroying Zexion. And even if he couldn’t become the real thing, if he got those new powers, he could be something else—not a fake, not a copy of another person.

But was it really true?

He wasn’t sure.

New powers did nothing to change the fact that his heart was empty. He was still the same… And if there was a way to change anything, it would probably happen when he destroyed the real one, the Replica thought.

If I can do that…something will change, right?

The Replica went through the hole in the wall at the edge of town and ran through the shadowy forest. Axel had told him that if he went to the place where Vexen had died, he would find Riku.

And when he found Riku…when he fought Riku, maybe something would change.

The sunset shone red on the tall gate. Beyond there, Riku could see a white mansion.

“…Maybe Naminé’s in there,” he murmured.

From behind him, someone spoke. “Hold it.”

Riku turned, and staring back at him was a copy of himself—the Replica, out of breath as if he’d come running.

“Hmph. You’ve changed. Your own darkness doesn’t frighten you anymore.” The Replica raised his sword.

“How can you tell?” said Riku, not bothering to raise Soul Eater in return.

“Because I’m you.” The Replica edged closer.

“No, I’m me,” Riku shot back.

The Replica paused, smiling a little. “‘I’m me,’ he says… Must be nice being real. A fake like me could never get away with saying that.”

Then he jumped and slashed out at Riku, who barely managed to block.

The Replica was strong—much stronger than when Riku had fought him before.

“Not bad, for a fake!” Riku flung him back, but the Replica spun in the air to regain his balance and landed in a crouch.

“That’s right, I am a fake—just a phony!” the Replica shouted, standing tall. “The way I look, the way I feel, everything I remember! And even this newfound power!”

With those words a dark aura rose from him.

It was evil and a scent Riku knew—the man he had just been fighting on Destiny Island.

“I took his power—Zexion’s power, it’s mine now. But still…!” The Replica leaped up again, swinging his sword, and Riku felt the ringing impact through Soul Eater.

Riku stared into a face that looked exactly like his own. And yet—it was different somehow.

“I thought finding some new strength would let me become someone else—someone who isn’t a copy of you! But nothing changes… I’m still empty!” the Replica cried, pushing Riku back hard.

Riku crashed into the gate and fell.

“Everything about me is borrowed. As long as you’re around, I’ll never be more than a shadow!” Breathing hard, the Replica lunged for Riku again.

“So what? I’m me,” said Riku. “And I won’t let you defeat me!”

He parried and tackled the Replica to the ground. And then he had Soul Eater at the Replica’s throat.

“So…it’s over…,” the Replica grated.

“It will be if you keep going.”

“Hmph… Death doesn’t frighten me,” the Replica said stonily. “Good riddance to a phony life.”

He wasn’t afraid of being destroyed. He was afraid…of forgetting.

And of being forgotten.

Will Sora remember me? he wondered. Or will his memories of me get mixed up with the real one, so he forgets that I existed?

“My heart was never real. Even what I’m feeling now is probably all fake.” The Replica smiled faintly and light began to surround him.

“What are you feeling?” Riku asked, staring down at the copy of himself.

“What happens when a fake like me dies? Where will my heart go? Maybe it’ll just disappear.” The Replica gazed up at the sky.

The warm red sky over this town was so beautiful. A nice thing for a last sight, the Replica thought.

“It’ll go somewhere,” said Riku. “Maybe to the same place as mine.”

The Replica’s mouth curled in a bitter smile. “Tch. A perfect copy to the very end. That’s…okay.”

But as he said that his voice seemed serene. Enveloped in light, his body vanished.

Riku picked up Soul Eater where he’d let it fall and looked back behind him.

The gate was open as if to invite him in. Slowly, almost cautiously, Riku stepped through.

Inside the mansion, everything was dim and shadowy. There was no sign of anyone here, not even a scent.

“Is this the right place…?” Riku wondered. He crossed the spacious entrance hall and climbed the stairs to the second floor and went into a room at the end of the corridor. Inside was a white room, almost like all those marble halls in the castle. But no one was there. He peered closely at a picture pinned to the wall. It was a drawing on white paper torn out of a sketchbook, showing himself and Riku laughing together.

“Who drew this…?” Riku murmured, reaching up to touch it, and the moment his fingers brushed the paper it began to shine. “Huh?!”

The light surrounded him…and when he came to, he was standing in another bright white room. There, quietly gazing at him, was a girl with pale blond hair.

“Are you Naminé?”

“Yes.” She gave him a tiny smile.

He knew that voice…that scent.

This was the voice that had spoken to him when the darkness nearly swallowed him up on Destiny Island. And the same scent. It was her, Riku was sure of it—Naminé. “I see…,” he said softly. “That was you.”

“Huh?” For a moment she looked confused.

“Never mind. It’s okay.”

“Um…” Naminé tilted her head at him ever so slightly. Then she said, “Please… Come this way.”

He followed. Past her, he could see some kind of device, taller than him and shaped like a flower bud. And Sora was inside of it.

“Sora!” Riku ran to it without another thought. “What have you done to Sora?!”

“Nothing. He’s only asleep. To get his memory back.”

“What’s that mean? Please tell me…”

Naminé nodded and calmly began to explain everything that had happened to Sora in the castle.

After she’d finished telling him about Sora, Riku stared at her for a moment without speaking.

Sora had lost his memory here in Castle Oblivion—and he’d gained new memories. But he had chosen to cast those new memories aside and return to how he was before he stepped into the castle.

That was all that Naminé had to tell him.

“So Sora decided to go back to how he was…,” Riku murmured, looking up at Sora’s sleeping face inside the pod.

“You have a choice to make, too,” Naminé said from behind him.

Riku turned to look at her again. “Why me, too? No one’s messed with my memories.”

“It’s not about your memories. It’s your darkness.”

“My darkness…?” As Riku said the word, the stench of it seemed to grow thicker around them.

“In your heart there is darkness, and in that darkness is Ansem. He might be at bay for now, but eventually, he’ll awaken, and he will take over you just like he did before. But I have powers you can use against him. My powers can put a lock on your heart. That way, Ansem could never escape from inside you.”

Riku looked up at Sora again. “What happens to me if I let you do that? Will I forget everything like Sora?”

Naminé said nothing.

“I will forget, won’t I?”

“The darkness in you will be sealed tight along with your memories. You won’t remember the darkness anymore. You’ll go back to how you were. Riku… You have to choose.”

Still looking at Sora, he made a tiny laugh. “He looks like he doesn’t have a care in the world… Will I sleep like that, too?”

“Yeah.”

Sora’s sleeping face was so peaceful. With a little sigh, Riku looked back at Naminé. “Figures. Sora always does what he wants. Whatever we were doing together, he’d find a way to slack off. Even when we were trying to leave the islands…I was the one doing all the work making the raft.” Riku closed his eyes, thinking of those far-off days on Destiny Island.

“Riku’s getting annoyed…” When Kairi had said that, he’d turned to see Sora’s clueless face. But just remembering that made him laugh.

“That’s it,” Riku decided. “When this slacker wakes up, I’ll tell him off. I told him to take care of Kairi, and here he is just taking a nap! But I can’t say anything if I’ve been asleep, too.” With his eyes open, he faced Naminé. “I don’t need a lock on my heart. I’m ready—I’ll fight Ansem.”

“But what if his darkness overtakes you…?” She peered back at him nervously.

Riku wasn’t nervous about that anymore. “If that happens, then the darkness will show me the way.”

“Yes…you’re right.” Naminé smiled, bright and certain.

“Why do I get the feeling you knew what I’d say all along?”

“I didn’t know. I hoped. I wanted you to face the darkness, because you’re the one who can.” Naminé clasped her hands together.

Riku shrugged. “So that’s the reason… That’s why you came to my rescue inside of all that light in the form of Kairi.”

“You knew?!” Naminé exclaimed.

“I knew when I met you. You and Kairi smell the same.”

Right…what he felt from Naminé was Kairi’s presence. He didn’t know why they had the same scent, but right now, he didn’t need to know.

He stretched his hand out to Naminé.

“Huh…?” she said.

Without a word, he took her hand and held it tight. “Look after Sora.”

“I will. I promise.” She squeezed his hand back.

“Okay. It’s a promise.”

Riku looked up again at Sora’s sleeping face.

See you, Sora.

He opened the door that Naminé led him to, and on the other side, King Mickey was waiting for him.

“So, I guess ya decided not to go to sleep, huh?” The king greeted him with a grin.

“How’d you know about that?” Riku asked.

“I heard it from DiZ.” The king turned to look at DiZ, who was standing there behind him, arms folded.

“You…know him?” said Riku.

“Well, I’m not quite sure.” King Mickey cocked his head. “Got a feeling that I’ve met him…somewhere…”

Riku stepped closer to DiZ. “Hey… Just who are you?”

“I could be nobody…or anybody,” DiZ said in his deep bass voice. “The choice is yours whether to trust me or not.”

“You sure do like pushing choices on other people,” Riku remarked.

DiZ went on as if he hadn’t heard. “You have pushed away slumber, making the choice to face Ansem.”

“Do you think that was stupid of me?”

DiZ’s slight smile was just barely visible between the wrappings over his face. “You have chosen your own path. My only part is to watch over you.”

“That doesn’t tell me much,” said Riku, almost offended. “Are you supporting me or turning your back on me?”

“That will be your choice as well. Believe what you want to believe.”

Riku stared hard at DiZ. Believe… That was something he hadn’t been able to do until Naminé spoke to him in the form of Kairi…until he found King Mickey.

“Just believe. The light’ll never give up on you. You’ll always find it, even in the deepest darkness!”

That was what the king had told him. But he hadn’t been able to believe. Maybe that was the one thing that Sora was able to do when he couldn’t, Riku thought.

But now…now he was all right. He could really believe…in the king, in his own strength, his heart, in the light, and in the darkness.

“This is a card that will draw out the darkness in your heart,” said DiZ and tossed Riku a single card. “Finish your business with Ansem.”

“If I use this, Ansem will appear?” said Riku.

But DiZ, instead of answering, only vanished.

“Hey, c’mon!” Riku ran toward where he’d been standing.

King Mickey spoke up. “We can defeat Ansem together!”

Slowly, Riku turned. “Sorry. I have to face him alone.”

“But why?” The king looked shocked.

“There’s no point in doing this if I can’t do it on my own. But…I do need a favor. If I lose to Ansem, he’ll enslave me. If that happens, use your powers to destroy—”

“Sure thing!” King Mickey cut him off. “I’ll be right there to save ya.”

“Huh? No, not that, I want you to dest—”

“No way! No matter what happens, I’ll be there to help ya. That’s what I decided. Unless…you don’t really believe I’ll come through…” The king was smiling broadly at him.

“It’s my choice to believe in you, Your Majesty.”

“And I believe in you, too. You’re not gonna lose, I just know it.”

“Thanks,” said Riku.

If the king said so, there was no way he could lose. I know I can beat Ansem.

Riku nodded firmly and turned to the door to hold up the card.

Through the door, the air was thick with the stench of darkness—Ansem’s smell.

“Show yourself, Ansem. I know you’re here. I can smell it.”

In response, Ansem slowly took solid form.

“I have watched you fight. I know your strength. Your skill with the darkness has grown. It has matured.” He looked down at Riku with a loud, cruel laugh.

“So, what about it?”

“There’s something I don’t understand… Why do you accept the darkness but still refuse me? You and I are much alike. We both follow where the darkness leads. Indeed…we are the same. So why? Does some part of your heart still fear the dark?”

“That’s not it,” Riku replied. “The truth is…I just can’t stand the way you stink.”

He stood ready with Soul Eater. He knew that when he used his full strength, the darkness would pour forth from him. But he wasn’t afraid of that anymore. Now he understood—all he had to do was believe in himself.

“You are a fool. You of all people should know my powers well by now.” As Ansem spoke, an enormous shadow rose behind him. It was the darkness that lived in his heart—or perhaps that was his heart itself. It took a vaguely humanoid shape, but more like a colossal Heartless, looming over Riku.

“Oh, I know. Or did you forget?” Riku retorted. “I used every ounce of strength you had to give—and Sora still beat me! Your powers aren’t all that impressive.”

Riku launched himself at Ansem.

“Very well. In that case—you will sink into the abyss of my darkness!” Ansem cried as if he’d been lying in wait. From behind him, the shadow struck down at Riku with its fist.

“—Ngh!” Riku raised Soul Eater and blocked the blow, but its terrible force nearly crushed him all the same.

But he would be all right. He trusted the king. And himself.

“Take this!” Riku pushed away the shadow’s fist and leaped for Ansem’s head. But the shadow swept him aside, protecting its master.

“I have nothing to fear from your power!” Ansem crowed.

“You think so?” Riku smirked and let the darkness free from within him. “I know how to use the darkness. But you only let it use you!”

He ran in to attack again.

The shadow slid around to block Riku’s way, swinging its fist—but Riku leaped atop it, using it as a step to spring off as he brought Soul Eater down on Ansem’s head.

“You imbecile!”

The moment Soul Eater struck Ansem’s body, darkness lashed at Riku. He raised one hand, trying to ward it off so he could see, and landed.

He must have hurt Ansem with that, Riku thought. He regained his balance and stood again, not wasting another moment before rushing Ansem again with Soul Eater out to slash at his side. “This is the end, Ansem…!”

“This…is hardly…the end!” said Ansem, even as he collapsed to one knee.

“You can’t beat me—and neither can the darkness!” Riku turned to see Ansem likewise looking back at him with a nasty smirk.

“Your darkness… I gave it all…to you… My dark shadow…lingers… Someday…someday, I will return!” Darkness burst forth from Ansem as he began to fade.

“Wha—?!”

That darkness would swallow up everything…but a ball of light appeared above Riku.

“…Your Majesty?”

“Gosh, Riku, I know you wanted to do this alone… But you don’t mind just a little help, do ya?” King Mickey’s voice rang out. The ball of light glowed brighter and brighter. “C’mon, Riku. Let’s get outta here.”

And then the light outshone everything.

“Did I…beat him?” Riku wondered, looking around.

They were in a marble hall like before. The king answered him gently. “You did it, Riku.”

“But…” He could still smell Ansem’s scent clinging to him.

“So, Riku, what happens next? Are ya goin’ home?”

“I don’t know. It’s still here. It’s really faint, but I can still sense him…” Riku looked away for a moment, then faced the king again. “I can’t go home until it’s gone. But I think his darkness might still have a hold on me.”

“Your darkness belongs to you. Just the way your light does.” King Mickey went on, his voice gaining strength. “Up till now, I thought darkness was somethin’ we should try to get rid of. But while I spent time with you, I changed my mind. The road you chose, it’s like…darkness and light back-to-back. And for you I think they might come together in a way nobody’s seen before. I’m wonderin’ where that road leads. I’d like to see for myself. That is, I’d like to walk that road with ya.”

Nobody had ever said anything like that to him before—that they wanted to travel with him on his path.

“Your Majesty, I…I don’t know what to say…”

“Aw, you don’t have to call me that. We’re pals.” The king grinned at him.

Still a little embarrassed, Riku rubbed the back of his neck but returned it. “Okay. Fair enough, Mickey!”

The king—or rather, Mickey Mouse—nodded to him.