Kefka leaned against the wall, breathing heavily. He hated showing weakness, and that battle with that...stranger...had hurt him. He'd need to rest before he continued his plans and thinking. There was just soo much to plan...but he was getting close. Soon, everything would be ready and he could leave this...cartoonishly stupid world.
Lord, he hated this place. His fists clenched in rage. He hadn't known defeat in...he couldn't even remember when. He pushed himself off the wall, walking thru the door to the third district.
Scowling to himself, Riku quickly replaced the blindfold, wrapping it around his eyes with practiced ease. He didn't even need to take off the hood anymore; the motion was that natural. He knew no one was watching him, but he felt eyes on his back. Even knowing that the sensation came from the sullen darkness inside him didn't make it go away.
Uncomfortable and unwilling to admit he was upset, Riku made for the Second District. There would probably be more people there, which was why he usually stuck to the Third, but he felt like he'd lost his cultivated anonymity tonight. He needed to blend into a crowd, needed to slip away from the mess he'd made in the tavern and find the shop that sold potions. That was why he was here, after all. He put his hand against the door, intending to shove it open, but pulled back in surprise as the wood moved of its own accord under his hand.
Kefka furrowed his brow as the door met with resistance. He pushed a little harder, and the door opened. But he had pressed too hard, and he half fell thru, bumping into the man on the other side.
He recovered and looked at the other man, expecting to meet his eyes, only to be greeted by a blindfold. He blinked in confusion. He opened his mouth to growl something at the new stranger, but instead...
"Pardon, my lord." His tone was deferential. Kefka expressed an inward suprise, shaking his head, trying to clear it...maybe that battle had taken more than he thought. "I mean..." he cleared his throat. "excuse me...sir."
He made to move past this odd, silver haired and blindfolded man, but a wave of dizziness hit him. He felt like...his mind was floating in water. He felt like he was laying on the ground, as if gravity had been thrown off balance.
Kefka fought to remain still, and only took a step to the side to let the blindfolded man pass.
That battle was far too much if its affecting me like this, Kefka thought to
'My lord...?'Riku was too shocked by the honorific to curse or even scowl at the man who had bumped into him. He drew back and would have blinked in surprise, had his eyes been uncovered
( ... )
He looked up again at the sound of the voice. It had a vibrancy to it that literally knocked Kefka back so he was leaning against the nearby wall. He regarded the stranger in his black cloak...
and he felt pain. In his chest, in his heart of all places. What was...going on? The dizziness was overpowering, making it hard to think.
"I could ask the same..." he managed, just barely keeping back a perfunctory 'my lord.' Who was this...boy!? This couldn't be the battle. There was a strainging, an urge he couldn't understand for all his knowledge.
In an instant, he heard a scream, then laughter from a deep voice. Reality stretched, and Kefka's heart pounded in his chest...
and then he blinked. Only an instant had passed. The memory was gone, like a snowflake in a firey grip. He only leaned against the wall in silence, trying to hide his irrational fear of the boy before him.
Riku frowned harder, counting on the blindfold and the large black hood to hide his expression. The man didn't seem threatening on the outside, but his scent set off every alarm in Riku's head, putting the young man on high alert. The longer he stayed around this stranger, the stronger the darkness in him seemed to grow. And now the man wanted to know who he was... it was time to get away, and quickly.
Riku drew back, letting the hood of his cloak fall further over his face, obscuring his features more completely. "I'm nobody," he muttered in the same quiet but forceful voice. Backing up a step, he headed for the door he'd originally intended to pass through. As soon as he got a few potions to quiet the persistant ache in his leg, it would be time to get out of here, if only this strange man would let him get away.
Kefka pushed himself off the wall, staring t the retreating form. He felt a wild surge, an urgency was all he could call it. It filled him with a boost of strength that let him stand straight and tall, calling after the boy in his most chilling voice.
"No. You're somebody. Whomever you are, you can never be nobody."
He watched the boy with intense eyes. He moved to turn away, but something else grabbed at him. Kefka gasped, loudly...then set his mouth in a fierce grin.
"you can never escape." he called after him.
All at once, his surge of energy left him, leaving him fighting to even stand.
If the first words made Riku wince, the added phrase made him whirl, tense and taut in an almost fighting stance. It took every ounce of control he had not to draw his sword. A thousand retorts sprang to mind, all of them pranoid in varying degrees. Could this man know who he was? What he'd been? What he'd done? Who was inside him? The thought made his skin crawl. Mentally, he resolved to save his writing for the deep hallways of Castle Oblivion. People in the real world must never see his face.
Fingers twitching, itching for a weapon, Riku forced himself to stay calm as he stepped back. "Like hell I can't," he spat, low and defensive with a light, bitter twist. A quick sniff told him that no one else was close enough to see; needing to get away, to vanish, and most of all to prove the stranger wrong, he called his power to him. The air around the young man thickened as tendrils of darkness formed around his feet. They licked at his long coat as he stepped sideways, beginning to dematerialize, ready to vanish into the shadows.
Kefka felt weak, detatched. Kefka heard the boys words and watched at the tendrils of darkness enveloped him.
And all he did was laugh. No suprise at the darkness. Simply a cackle that was known to raise the hackles of any beast, including Heartless. It was madness, Kefka knew. But then again, of course it was. Why in all the worlds, should his Lord's gift to him ever leave him? His idle thoughts only made him laugh harder, arms limp at his sides and face contorted with exhaustion and confusion.
He needed to leave...too much had happened here. He'd follow the actions of this young man escaping into the shadowy darkness before him. It was time he left this town. He needed quiet, to think.
The laugh set Riku's nerves on edge. It was a chilling sound, like a cold knife scraping against bone. He was only too happy to get away from it. Knowing it was cowardly but not caring at the moment, Riku disappeared completely, letting the darkness that was as cold as that laughter envelop him, swallowing his body completely.
Moments later, he reappeared in the first district, deep in an alley, out of public view. With no one else around, he was able to breathe a soft sigh of relief. The long gash in his leg throbbed beneath its makeshift bandages, reminding him of his mission here. Straightening, he pushed the disturbing encounter out of his mind, and as he did so the stirring in his heart quieted to a more normal level. He could think about this later. Right now, he needed to do his errand and get the hell out of here. Straightening, Riku strode out into the First District square.
Lord, he hated this place. His fists clenched in rage. He hadn't known defeat in...he couldn't even remember when. He pushed himself off the wall, walking thru the door to the third district.
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Uncomfortable and unwilling to admit he was upset, Riku made for the Second District. There would probably be more people there, which was why he usually stuck to the Third, but he felt like he'd lost his cultivated anonymity tonight. He needed to blend into a crowd, needed to slip away from the mess he'd made in the tavern and find the shop that sold potions. That was why he was here, after all. He put his hand against the door, intending to shove it open, but pulled back in surprise as the wood moved of its own accord under his hand.
"What the...?"
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He recovered and looked at the other man, expecting to meet his eyes, only to be greeted by a blindfold. He blinked in confusion. He opened his mouth to growl something at the new stranger, but instead...
"Pardon, my lord." His tone was deferential. Kefka expressed an inward suprise, shaking his head, trying to clear it...maybe that battle had taken more than he thought. "I mean..." he cleared his throat. "excuse me...sir."
He made to move past this odd, silver haired and blindfolded man, but a wave of dizziness hit him. He felt like...his mind was floating in water. He felt like he was laying on the ground, as if gravity had been thrown off balance.
Kefka fought to remain still, and only took a step to the side to let the blindfolded man pass.
That battle was far too much if its affecting me like this, Kefka thought to
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and he felt pain. In his chest, in his heart of all places. What was...going on? The dizziness was overpowering, making it hard to think.
"I could ask the same..." he managed, just barely keeping back a perfunctory 'my lord.' Who was this...boy!? This couldn't be the battle. There was a strainging, an urge he couldn't understand for all his knowledge.
In an instant, he heard a scream, then laughter from a deep voice. Reality stretched, and Kefka's heart pounded in his chest...
and then he blinked. Only an instant had passed. The memory was gone, like a snowflake in a firey grip. He only leaned against the wall in silence, trying to hide his irrational fear of the boy before him.
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Riku drew back, letting the hood of his cloak fall further over his face, obscuring his features more completely. "I'm nobody," he muttered in the same quiet but forceful voice. Backing up a step, he headed for the door he'd originally intended to pass through. As soon as he got a few potions to quiet the persistant ache in his leg, it would be time to get out of here, if only this strange man would let him get away.
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"No. You're somebody. Whomever you are, you can never be nobody."
He watched the boy with intense eyes. He moved to turn away, but something else grabbed at him. Kefka gasped, loudly...then set his mouth in a fierce grin.
"you can never escape." he called after him.
All at once, his surge of energy left him, leaving him fighting to even stand.
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Fingers twitching, itching for a weapon, Riku forced himself to stay calm as he stepped back. "Like hell I can't," he spat, low and defensive with a light, bitter twist. A quick sniff told him that no one else was close enough to see; needing to get away, to vanish, and most of all to prove the stranger wrong, he called his power to him. The air around the young man thickened as tendrils of darkness formed around his feet. They licked at his long coat as he stepped sideways, beginning to dematerialize, ready to vanish into the shadows.
Reply
And all he did was laugh. No suprise at the darkness. Simply a cackle that was known to raise the hackles of any beast, including Heartless. It was madness, Kefka knew. But then again, of course it was. Why in all the worlds, should his Lord's gift to him ever leave him? His idle thoughts only made him laugh harder, arms limp at his sides and face contorted with exhaustion and confusion.
He needed to leave...too much had happened here. He'd follow the actions of this young man escaping into the shadowy darkness before him. It was time he left this town. He needed quiet, to think.
But at the moment, all he could do was laugh.
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Moments later, he reappeared in the first district, deep in an alley, out of public view. With no one else around, he was able to breathe a soft sigh of relief. The long gash in his leg throbbed beneath its makeshift bandages, reminding him of his mission here. Straightening, he pushed the disturbing encounter out of his mind, and as he did so the stirring in his heart quieted to a more normal level. He could think about this later. Right now, he needed to do his errand and get the hell out of here. Straightening, Riku strode out into the First District square.
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