Mad at Mouse Part 16

“What do you want?” Riku asked the shape shifter, starting to believe he would receive no straight answers from this girl.

She shook her head, “Why are you being so confusing?”

“I’m confusing?” He responded flatly.

“You haven’t even asked my name! You have no idea who or what I am!” She almost yelled, her moods flipping so fast Riku was having trouble keeping up.

“Then what is it? Your name. Who are you mystery girl?” Riku felt his temper rise. This silly weak little girl had done something to the King, and she showed no remorse.

She snapped into serious mode again, “I am known as Destiny. My power has been stolen, my titles striped from me, my duties stand abandoned. I seek to know why Keyblader. I seek to fill the gap before disaster falls upon us.”

Riku felt the words sink in, and groaned, “Not again.”

An eyebrow rose. “Again?” She gestured for him to continue.

“The Worlds are in danger again. You need a hero right? To fix things?”

“The duties of Guardian cannot be taken up by a hero.” She voice held distaste for the very word. “And those duties are not the only ones left untended. I find no reference to the Wardens, to the High Mages, to the White Knights, to the Watchers. Not to speak of a dozen more. Nothing of the councils. The Worlds have grown so isolated.”

Riku’s regarded her, she seemed entirely serious. “I have never heard of those.”

She nodded sadly, “I know of the Watchers, there were many on the World the mouse found me on, but the others...” She shrugged. “I do not know how the positions were handed down, but that only the Keybladers stand ready to defend the Worlds, and only a handful of those... something has gone badly wrong in the years since I took up my vocation.”

Mad at Mouse Part 15

I didn’t notice him at first, too intent on my research.

Then I felt a trickle of power, and startled, I leapt up and promptly got tangled over my chair, falling and landing hard on the cold floor.

Twilight.

He stood over me and offered a hand.

I considered it. On one hand it was an offer made in good faith, on the other the mouse had collapsed when I took his hand.

I took the hand, and felt the sudden flow of power. It was alive. My skin went a dusty blue, a nice change from the pale grey, and I hoped futilely that the Keyblader had not noticed.

As a plus, the Keyblader didn’t collapse. Good. The fault lay with the Mouse, or maybe the Dark Heart.

He did appear slightly paler.

“What was that?” He demanded, twisting his hand out of her light grip. Oh dear, he had noticed.

She shrugged, drifting back towards the desk she had been working at.

He scowled at her. “Is that what you did to the King?” He demanded, looming over her.

She sighed and tilted her head, looking him over carefully. “You are the Twilight Keyblader.”

“Riku.” His eyes narrowed, “My name is Riku.”

“I haven’t met any Kings. I certainly haven’t attacked any.” She said carefully, and softly. She was proud of that, just slightly. He had to strain to hear her.

“Mickey. King Mickey. You arrived with him.” Riku growled.

“The mouse?” She asked, trying for innocent confusion. “The Dark Keyblader?”

Riku’s paused. His frowned deepened. “You didn’t know who he was?”

She shrugged again, “Keyblader. Carrier of the Dark Heart. Almost got me torn apart by Heartless. Saved me from those same Heartless. Collapsed after the fight.” She stated the facts as simply as possible. She glanced down at her hands, and traced the silver webbing, were they scars? They had not gained colour along with the rest of her.

“What are you?” Riku asked, and finally there was confusion and honest curiosity.

“I’m...” not a Guardian, I was no longer guarding, my mind flickered over all my past titles and jobs, most of them no longer relevant, most of them had never been important. “Nobody. No one important. Not anymore.” She settled on.

“No.” Riku slashed his hands, “How did you do that draining thing?”

He wasn’t going to let that go, was he? “I am designed to hold a great deal of power, young Keyblader. I am currently almost empty. You on the other hand are overflowing with energy. Naturally power flows from the overflowing cup into the empty cup.”

Riku frowned. Held up a hand while he thought, “That doesn’t match up with the magical theory I know. Power acts like gravity, drawn to the densest power.”

I laughed. “Would it help if I equated myself to a black hole?” Oh course basic magical theory wouldn’t cover what I was. It probably barely covered what he was.

As he considered this, I considered the pile of books on the desk. There were only a few dozen, but none of them had held the information I needed.

“Why are you here Keyblader?” She asked suddenly.

Riku’s face became serious again. “What do you want?”

Mad at Mouse Part 14

The first thing the Queen did, after ensuring that the King was receiving the best possible care, was send for the Keybladers.

Donald and Goofy wasn’t happy about being sent away when the King was in intensive care, but they went.

Riku arrived as soon as he got the news, flinging himself through the Dark between Worlds and arriving far sooner than Minnie expected him.

He bowed, quickly but correctly, the boy had been studying, “Your majesty? The King?” He asked, taking in her worried front, and fearful had had happened to his friend.

“We won’t know until he wakes.” She said, “I have been assured that they are doing everything possible.”

Riku’s eyes met hers, and he could see the fear lurking there, “Was it the Heartless?”

Minnie sighed, “He still has his heart.” She looked away, towards the hospital wing “But whatever happened has weakened him.”

“What do you know?” Riku asked softly as the Queen fell into troubled thoughts.

“He arrived with a young woman. Mickey was already unconscious. She was bruised, battered and barely standing. Somehow she breeched the castle’s wards, but only managed a few words before collapsing.” The Queen glanced back at him, considering.

Then they heard the noise of clanking chainmail, running towards them. Riku shifted to defend the Queen.

It was one of the guards. He come to a stop and gasped for breath, “Your majesty! She’s awake! She’s in the library!”

Riku tilted his head at the Queen.

“I ordered her placed in one of the guest rooms, we didn’t expect her to wake so soon. I gave orders she was not to be engaged.”

Riku considered. “You think she’s dangerous.”

“I hope she means no harm, but we do not know her story.”

Riku nodded. “I want to see the King. Then afterwards, I will speak to her.”

Mad at Mouse Part 13

Nightmares. Lost souls. Death cries. Broken hearts. Vanished dreams. The earth torn apart. A cry in the night. A tear drops. So many dead or dying. Everyone is dying. I cannot stop it. Nothing I can do. Nothing.

I wake.

Birds sing, dawn breaks and I wonder how long I have been sleeping.

The sky is blue, the clouds are fluffy, the grass is too green and the sun is shining cheerfully enough that I wish it catches a cold.

There is a mirror in the room, and I catch sight of a stranger. There is a bit more colour in my cheeks now, and my hair is entirely black, as well as being long and straight. I’m still too pale, like all the colour has been washed out of me. I’m all stark lines and flat planes.

There are clothes laid out for me, and a bathroom attached to the room.

I expected to wake up in a cell or a med bay. This is something else altogether.

I don’t remember my eyes being that dark, but better black than pink or red I suppose.

I slip out. The door isn’t locked, there are no signs, no one stands guard.

My first stop is the library. Still there is no one to encounter. For a moment I wonder, but there are books to read, research to be done, and plans to be made.

My hand runs over a shelf of books, and a multitude of images enter my mind. There, and over there is another one.

I lose myself in the research.

Mad at Mouse Part 12

The flicker of light was the only warning they had before something tore through the air, a silver rent in the fabric of the Universe.

“Guards!” Queen Minnie called, pushing away from the desk and preparing to defend herself.

The others, her trusted friend Daisy and the engineer Gadget Hackwrench were not combat trained.

“Oh, what now?” Daisy demanded, glaring at the slit in the air.

A pair of guards rushed in, spears at the ready. Beagle brothers, new recruits, although Minnie had yet to be able to put names to faces. Too busy. She put the thought aside for later, if there was a later.

“Do you want me to get readings off it, your majesty?” Gadget asked distractedly, already pulling things out her overalls.

“Yes.” Minnie said, as the portal, for what else could it be? Shimmered and widened.

A figure stepped out.

A woman, black hair lined with silver, pale silver eyes, stick thin, grey skin. And carrying the King.

The woman looked around, her pale eyes not truly focusing, she slumped, stumbled, and dropped to one knee.

“Mickey...” Minnie gasped, taking a step forward.

The woman’s eyes snapped to hers. “You’re... song... had to...” She shivered, her entire body shuddering, and when it ended she carefully lay down the King.

She pushed herself to her feet, stumbling backwards, then swaying in place.

“Ma’am?” One of the guards asked.

The woman closed her eyes. “There were Heartless. A fight. We were...” She trailed off. “We were...” She swayed again before crumbling in on herself.