I AM SO SORRY YOU GUYS. I had such a hard time with this chapter -___- I didn't forget or abandon the series though! It just took a long time to get what I saw in my head into writing. Hope you guys enjoy~ ;D
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Not surprisingly, in such a tight room filled with so many people completely unopposed to eavesdropping, everyone had heard your conversation with [him]. Also unsurprisingly, you were far from everyone's favorite person upon hearing such revelations. Turns out people don't like it when a friend hides important facts and events from them – who knew?
"So, everyone remember the plan?" Zack asks, a hand hovering over the door leading into the hallway from the lounge.
"Kill the intruders –"
"And rogue SOLIDERs!" Sora interrupts Riku with a finger pointed in the air.
"And reconvene in the training room once the floor is cleared," Noctis finishes.
"It seems weirdly quiet, doesn't it?" Reno asks, pressing an ear to the wall.
Sure enough, as soon as your group had gathered in the lounge, the sounds outside almost immediately came to a stop. It was eerie, and definitely a little unsettling, to think that people might be on the other side of the wall plotting similar strategies to kill all of you.
"Don't focus on that," Leon chastises.
"Just focus on clearing the floor," Cloud adds with a small nod.
"This is the worst pep talk EVER," Yuffie complains with a huff as Zack and Genesis wrench the doors open.
For unknown reasons you find yourself flinching, expecting to see a massive army outside the room. When you're greeted with silence you slowly and hesitantly open one eye, then another. All you can see is your friends slowly filing out of the room. [He] glances over his shoulder at you, pausing in the doorway instead of following the group. You freeze in your tracks, unable to move. He shoots you a small smile and a wink before jogging after everyone else, and you almost burst into tears of joy at the playful action.
You're not forgiven, but it's a step in the right direction.
Zack, Axel, Genesis, Yuffie, and Leon lead the group into the unknown, followed closely by Cloud, Reno, Roxas, and Riku with direct instructions to span out and cover as much of the floor as possible. Xion, Sora, Noctis are to take the left side of the hallways, and you, Ven, Terra, and Aqua are assigned the right. Normally, you'd be terrified, especially since the hallway is dead quiet. But after the argument you just had... battle is the last thing on your mind.
"Why so quiet?" Terra asks, slapping your back.
You jump a bit at the sudden contact, stumbling forward slightly as you glance over at the brunet.
"You're so deep in thought," Ven adds with a raise of his eyebrows.
"Sorry," you mumble, running a hand down your face as the four of you turn down yet another wide, stark-white hallway. "Just distracted."
"Gotta be focused, [Name]," Aqua reminds you with a kind smile and a sly wink sent your way.
You can't help but laugh quietly and nod in agreement, nervously fiddling with the handle of your sword as you turn your focus ahead. Before you can reply, a rumbling sound echoes throughout the otherwise silent hallway. Looking over your shoulder, your eyes widen as a pinkish-purple burst of flames rounds the corner at an impossibly fast pace. Without thinking you jump out of the way, through an open door and landing in an empty bedroom. Clenching your eyes shut you hide your body behind the door, holding tight as the flames rush past. Oddly, the air doesn't heat up with the flames; in fact, the air cools considerably, chilling you to the bone.
After a few painfully long seconds, the burst of air suddenly comes to a stop. Slowly, you open your eyes and partially open the door, peering outside. Sprawled out on the ground a few feet away are Terra, Ven, and Aqua. They're unconscious but clearly breathing, their bodies free of burns or injuries. If you didn't know better, you'd guess that they're sleeping.
"The subjects are secured."
Your heart practically skips a beat as you glance down the hallway. Walking towards your friends is Vexen and Professor Hojo, smugly self-satisfied expressions on their long faces.
Since when have they worked together...?
"And what of the girl?" Vexen asks, looking around the otherwise empty hallway. "She couldn't have outrun these flames. It seeks out human bodies."
Hojo frowns, slowly scanning the area. Your heart races as his gaze turns towards your door, and you swiftly duck your head inside the room.
Had he seen you?
Footsteps echo through the hall, each step causing your heart to race more. After much too long, the door is ripped open, revealing a certain smiling scientist. You take a step back, eyes wide and frozen in fear.
"Found you," Hojo chuckles with a wide grin.
Reaching out, he grabs your forearm with a gloved hand, pulling you roughly towards him.
"Let go!" you snap, clawing at his hand with your free fingers as he drags you out of the room and into the hallway. Your eyes land on your unconscious friends lying before you, and for a moment all fight leaves you. "... Are they okay?"
"Comatose," Vexen explains, and your eyes dart up to his, narrowed with distrust. "It's a special formula I created. They can only wake up with my assistance."
"I don't care," you retort, wrenching your arm free and subconsciously rubbing the sore appendage as if it's infected.
"Such a horrible attitude for such a special girl," Vexen mocks with a barking laugh, summoning his large, deep-blue shield. "Leave us, Professor. Take the trio; I can handle the brat."
You glare at the Nobody before a rustling sound is heard behind you. Glancing back, your eyes widen when you spot Ven, Terra, and Aqua's bodies fall into nothingness, swirling black and purple portals consuming them before you can even react.
"No!" you exclaim, starting to run towards the portals as fast as your legs can take you.
A wall of ice appears in your path, causing you to skid to a stop to avoid slamming into it. Through the smooth sheet of jagged ice you're able to see the Professor standing on the other side, facing you. Through the blurred and distorted view, you're able to make out a solitary sinister grin.
"We'll see each other again, Miss [Name]. Keep that heart safe," Professor Hojo tells you before he turns and leaps into the rippling darkness, the black waves gently overtaking his body as the ice wall collapses to the floor with a shuttering crash, like falling glass.
With a quiet hush, the portals also disappear, leaving the shining white floors unassumingly empty. Your heart yet again starts to race and your eyes widen in fear, shaking your head slowly as reality sets in. You let your guard down and your friends are now gone, taken who knows where.
Fingers angrily gripping the hilt of your sword, you peer over your shoulder. You can practically feel the flames coming out of you as your eyes land on the chuckling Nobody behind you, his body weight resting on his shield as he watches you.
"What did you do with them?!" you shout, turning to face the Nobody as you point your sword at him.
He merely shrugs, the ends of his sandy hair moving with his shoulder.
"None of your concern," he replies monotonously. "You're not the only one Xemnas is interested in, I'm afraid."
An embarrassed look flashes over your face before you stiffen, bringing your sword closer to your body as you charge towards him. He watches in amusement, clearly enjoying your frustration and rage.
"You can't beat me!" he cries with a simple flick of his finger.
A jagged rock of ice juts out of the ground underneath your feet, tripping you and sending you tumbling to the side. Quickly, you gather yourself and roll out of the way as a stream of sharpened ice flies towards you. The shards fall to the ground with soft 'tinkles' as you jump to your feet.
"You sure about that?" you ask with a smile as you raise your free hand.
Bright red-orange flames immediately appear in your palm, soon engulfing your hand and dancing around your body. Vexen's bright green eyes widen in surprise for a moment before he relaxes into a grin.
"Some silly magic won't be enough to defeat me," he retorts, snapping his fingers.
Your body feels like it's plunged into freezing water as ice forms at your feet, crawling up your legs and your torso like a snake. With all the concentration you can muster you try to summon the flames, but it's too late – half of your body is frozen solid. In the reflection of the white floors you can see pinkish-purple flames floating towards you, swallowing the floor as it almost dances across the surface.
"It's a shame you were left alone," Vexen muses as your horrified gaze snaps up to him. You can't see him past the expanding flames; you can only hear him. "Now you'll be trapped in our world."
With another snap of his fingers the ice holding you in place evaporates, and you scramble backwards, cautiously watching the approaching flames. They only continue to grow, hurrying towards you with graceful precision. Your back hits the wall, and before you can even take a full breath the flames cover you. Your body grows pleasantly warm as unbelievable exhaustion hits you, your mind shutting down as all of your worries disappear.
You're unconscious before you hit the floor.
[♥]
The world is bright.
Blinking, you squint as you raise a hand, blocking out the shining sun from your eyes. Slowly, your vision adjusts, and you frown when you realize you're in what must be a classroom. You're seated at a single desk, facing a blackboard and a podium at the front of the room. Large windows frame the view of the ocean in the distance, palm trees partially blocking the sight.
You glance down, practically doing a double-take when you realize you're wearing a pale blue skirt, a button-up white shirt, and a plaid tie in varying shades of blue.
A school uniform?!
"Yo, you okay?"
Looking to your right, your jaw all but drops to your desk as your gaze lands on Reno. He's seated next to you, wearing the same shirt and tie as you, except he's wearing tan slacks. His elbow is resting on your desk as he leans in towards you.
"U-Um..."
"You're not getting sick, are you [Name]?"
"Yeah, you look a little pale, got it memorized?"
You glance forward, then to your left. Sure enough, seated in front of you is Roxas, with Axel on your left.
"I-I..." you stammer, swallowing loudly as you run a hand through your hair. "I'm... fine?"
A hand lands on your forehead, and you glance over at Reno who's watching you with concern.
"You feel a little warm," he comments, removing his hand as he seats back in his chair.
"Keep your hands to yourself," Axel snaps, emerald eyes narrowed in discontent.
Roxas rolls his eyes before chuckling and glancing back at you.
"Does it ever get old sitting between these idiot brothers?" he teases, just barely ducking his head out of the way as a rolled-up ball of paper flies towards him. "I was just kidding! Geez, Axe."
Axel smirks, leaning back in his seat as he twirls a pencil between his fingers. You glance between the three, feeling more confused than ever.
"Where are we?" you ask, and all of their gazes snap over to you.
"... Class?" Reno finally replies with a raise of his eyebrows.
"Saix is late, that lazy bum," Axel adds with a huffing sigh.
"Saix?!" you repeat, eyes wide.
"Okay, now I'm getting worried," Roxas mutters, looking over at Axel. "I think I'm gonna take her to the nurse."
Just at that moment Saix bursts in the room, wearing a pale gray suit and a sullen expression on his face. He still has the infamous 'X' scar across his face.
"Missed your chance," Axel tells you with a wink as he pulls out his notebook.
The class immediately quiets, expectantly staring up at an annoyed Saix.
"Page 157. Exponents," he snaps, turning towards the board as he flips through the textbook clutched in his hands.
The class groans, opening up their books to the stated page. You frown, sitting back in your seat as you glance down at your desk. Sure enough, a brand new textbook is sitting there. With a sigh you open the book, tuning out the lecture as your gaze lands on five words stamped on the inside cover.
"PROPERTY OF: DESTINY HIGH SCHOOL"
"Where the hell am I?" you mumble under your breath as you slam open the book to page 157.
And, more importantly... How do you get out?