Fast Food Madness: The Epic Return V2

Riku continued forward, still not sensing any threats. But he did think of them. "Another thing I hate about this place," he started, "is how powerful the Heartless are. It's almost scary." He remembered his past here, and how sometimes he had to run away from the Heartless because he couldn't handle them. This was where they originated mostly, so it only made sense that they were so powerful.

 

"...But there aren't any around, are there?" Sora asked, getting that vibe because of that fact that Riku was weaponless. That, and he didn't hear any noise that would have let him know that Heartless were in the area. If this place was so full of darkness, why weren't the Heartless abundant in number and attacking them?

 

Riku shook his head as he spoke. "I don't see any," he said. He furrowed his eyebrows a little and turned to look back at Sora and Roxas. "It's almost like they're hiding. Remember how their numbers started dwindling?" He was mainly talking to Sora with the last part, that being the reason his friend was sent home in the first place. The Heartless had gone down in numbers, which was good. But he still wondered why they appeared so abundantly in the first place.

 

Sora shook his head at the memory, the brunet being reminded of why the Heartless were so numerous in the first place. Nathaniel. "I remember," he said, looking at the back of Riku's head for a second before he looked around again. "What does that have to do with anything? This is their home; they should be surrounding us right now."

 

"That's what I don't get," Riku said, his eyes roaming the place again. "They're not immediately attacking. Whatever's going on here is doing more than we thought." If the Heartless weren't running at them, what could that mean? Maybe they just hadn't spotted them yet... It wasn't like the enemy to hesitate.

 

Sora blinked, feeling his instincts kick in. He turned his head to the right, but couldn't see anything. He heard a faint noise from his left though, and he turned his head to look in that direction. He saw the outline of a person, but he couldn't tell who it was. "Riku?" Sora said, stopping and turning in the direction of the person who was maybe forty feet away.

 

Riku stopped walking and turned around. "What?" he asked, staring at Sora with concerned eyes. The way Sora had said his name alarmed him a little, and he turned to face the direction Sora was. He narrowed his eyes to make sure he was seeing things correctly. Then he brought his arm back, summoning Way to Dawn as he got into his stance.

Roxas looked in the direction Sora and Riku were, trying to see what they were looking at. He couldn't see it very well, but all it was to him was an outline of a person. A person, in the Realm of Darkness? The boy furrowed his eyebrows and tightened his grasp on his Keyblades, not liking the feeling he was getting.

 

Sora glanced at Riku out of the corner of his eye, seeing that he was in his battle stance. That only confirmed that Sora really had seen somebody out there...but who? He didn't have time to ask that question, though, when he heard the person speak.

"I was wondering when you would finally come," Xehanort's Heartless, also known as Ansem, called to the three teens. He and his cohorts had been working at strengthening the Darkness in their own ways in order to get their enemies to come to the Realm of Darkness. It was about time that they finally arrived.

 

Riku ground his teeth together at the voice, able to see the man perfectly from where he stood. "What're you doing here?" he practically growled, his eyes narrowed as he glared at his worst enemy. Xehanort's Heartless, also known as Ansem. He tried not to show how surprised he was to see him here, but he should have sensed that much Darkness. Why didn't he?

 

Ansem smiled, stopping about ten feet away from the trio of Keyblade Masters. "Why are you so surprised, Riku?" he asked, looking at the boy he had formerly possessed. "You know that I reside in Darkness." That was exactly what this place was: Darkness. Of course, he wasn't the only person that lingered here. His other companions would reveal themselves whenever they saw fit, though, so he wasn't concerned.

 

Roxas stared at the man before him, not knowing who he was. But he had a striking resemblance to Xemnas. He wanted to ask what was going on, but he didn't think he could find any words.

Riku tightened his grasp on his Keyblade now that Ansem was closer. Yeah, he knew he resided in Darkness, but he didn't think he'd ever run into him again. But, Riku was here for a reason: he needed to take care of the overwhelming Darkness that was threatening to reach other worlds. Riku's eyes widened slightly, starting to connect the pieces. "...You lured me here, didn't you?" he said, voice low. If Ansem was here but no Heartless were around, and the Darkness was overpowering, it only made sense.

 

A low chuckle left Ansem's mouth, the man staring down Riku with the same grin on his lips. "Of course," he responded simply. "You were all lured here, but not just by me," he said, sweeping an empty hand and motioning to all three of the Keyblade Masters. Ansem, though a powerful force within the Darkness, wasn't strong enough to cause the force to build up as much as it had in the past few days. He had his two comrades to thank for that.

Sora tightened his grip on the Keyblades, glaring at Ansem even though the man wasn't looking at him. They had all be led here, according to him. But he implied that he wasn't working alone. Who else would have been evil and cunning enough to help him with this?

 

Riku furrowed his eyebrows, his grasp on his blade tightening. "Who else?" he demanded, glaring at the man that stood only feet from him. He thought he had defeated Ansem for good, from overpowering his heart. And he had, but he resided here now, forever trapped. But who else could have the same fate?

Roxas stared at Ansem, pondering his words. They were all meant to come here? Who brought them here then? He didn't understand who else this Ansem guy was talking about.

 

"Hello, Roxas," Smith said, standing about ten feet away from the blond who was at the rear of his group. He didn't hold his weapon in his hand, figuring that Roxas would be too stunned to attack him right away. Besides, he wanted to enjoy the tormented look of fear and anger that would surely appear on Roxas's face when he saw his old enemy before him.

 

Roxas's eyes widened at the voice, the boy whirling around instantly. His eyes were wide with fear and surprise, but then his expression changed to show pure fury. "You!" he hollered. Smith. He was here... Roxas should have known that he would be up to something like this.

Riku glanced out of the corner of his eye at the new appearance, but his eyes immediately went back to Ansem. He didn't know who that other guy was, but he obviously held pure darkness within him to belong here.

 

"Glad to see that you haven't forgotten me, Nobody," Smith said evilly, staring at Roxas with his amber-colored eyes. It had been a while since the Keyblade brat trapped him in the Realm of Darkness, but today was going to be the day that he made Roxas pay for his actions. And once he got done with Roxas, he would attack Sora, since he had helped send here. Of course, he could only go after Sora if the brunet's own enemy didn't finish him off first.

Sora gripped his Keyblades tightly, looking back and forth between Ansem and Smith. It occurred to him that Riku and Roxas didn't know each other's opponents, but that didn't matter. Two evil people against three Keyblade Masters...They could handle it, right?

 

Roxas furrowed his eyebrows more over his blue eyes, staring down the amber in front of him. "It's hard to forget somebody as cold-hearted as you, Smith," he said, his voice like venom when he spoke the name. He hated him, so much.

Nathaniel walked forward from his place in the shadows, seeing the tension apparent between Roxas and Smith, and Ansem and Riku. Now it was Sora who stood alone, but not for long. "Greetings, Sora," he said, a smirk on his lips as he stopped near the brunet. He had his arms crossed over his chest, his shield and sword temporarily forgotten. A little taunting never hurt anyone.

 

"I'll take it as a compliment," Smith said, a smirk appearing on his lips as he looked to Roxas. He was cunning, cold-hearted, and overflowing with darkness. He was glad that his enemy saw it as well, because that was exactly how he was. Dark.

Sora turned around at the voice, a sharp gasp leaving his lips when he saw the person he hated more than he ever hated before. He gripped his Keyblades tightly and glared at him, gritting his teeth together at the sight of the person who had the nerve to break Kairi's heart. Prince Nathaniel.

 

Roxas growled slightly, bent over and prepared to charge if need be. Smith ticked him off more than anybody else ever had before, and he thought he was gone for good. Unfortunately, that wasn't how it was.

Nathaniel saw the look of hatred cross over Sora's features, but he didn't mind. It actually pleased him. "So tell me," he started, arching an eyebrow. "How's my Princess?" The last time he had seen her, before he died, she hadn't looked her happiest. He wasn't happy either, that Sora had won. But now it was time to take back what was his: his life, and his future queen. And with the help of Ansem and Smith, that was going to be possible.

 

Sora's eyes widened slightly in fury, the brunet tightening his grip on his Keyblades without thought. "Shut up, Nathaniel," he growled, his hatred coming through in his voice. He hated having Nathaniel refer to Kairi at all, but calling her his princess? That infuriated Sora more than anything else.

"Somebody's got anger issues," Ansem said, amusement coming through in his voice at Sora's rage. He had never seen the Keyblade wielder so furious before, not even when he had threatened to destroy the worlds. It was surprising to see him like that, but he was enjoying it, since the insolent brat deserved to go through painful emotions after all he had done to him.