Ciela's Keyblade Audition [wip]

[Ciela River]

The day was just about reaching its end, and Ciela was outside, in the back yard, plucking the newly dried clothes that she had left in the sun. Dark clouds lurked the horizon, threatening to unleash a storm on the Islands. She had to hurry, and the cry that came from within the tiny house just reminded her of the fact.

”Sweetie, hurry up. The storm’s coming!”

”I’m coming, mom!”

The dark-haired girl tucked all the clothes she was holding safely under her left arm and scurried inside the small house. Immediately, she spotted her mother in her nurse uniform. ”You off to work? Ciela asked. Her mother nodded. ”Yeah, I’m a bit late,”she answered, before hurrying over to her and kissing her forehead. ”Take care, sweetie. I’ll be back by morning.”she said, before rushing out the front door. Ciela sighed lightly, before going over to the couch and lying down flat on it. She really needed something to do. She’d already finished her homework. She had done all of her chores. She hadn’t bought any interesting books in the past days… what to do? The question continued to repeat itself slowly in her mind, and with every second, her eyelids grew heavier. God, she was tired… large, purple eyes slowly fluttered closed…

Crash.

The sound of shattering glass suddenly snapped her from her sleep, and her eyes snapped completely open. Ciela jumped up from the couch, and looked about. Everything seemed calm, and quiet, but…

On mere instinct, she rushed forward, grabbed an umbrella and tore the front door open. And there, she saw a nightmarish scene. A dozen of tiny black little creatures, with large amber colored eyes was edging closer to her house. Surely, they didn’t even seem dangerous. And yet, she knew they were. Just the sense of fear they struck onto her was a warning. Suddenly one of them lunged forward, only to vanish and reappear a few inches away from her. Ciela couldn’t do anything – she just swung the umbrella at the thing to shoo it away, and watched it fly away. The other suddenly flocked together and hurried over to her. All Ciela could do was swing her umbrella at them, or kick them. But, it was no use. They just refused to give up, dammit! And, it seemed like they were multiplying. A dozen had suddenly turned into two dozens; and they had all appeared out of nowhere. Ciela couldn’t fight them all… it was so… tiring… and yet she continued to slash and cut at the things, until the umbrella dropped from her hands. Voices shouted in the distance. But everything was becoming a blur, and suddenly, she fell forward. The only thing she could see now was blackness…

- - - - - - - - - -

Darkness. Emptiness. Nothingness...

That was all she could focus on. She felt light. So, so very light. Almost as though she was flying. There wasn’t anything. No pain, no nothing. Am I dead? she thought, but her numb state of mind didn’t tell her anything. Eyes opened slowly to find nothing but a black abyss; upon which she floated. Below extended a light colored pillar, and she looked down at it curiously as she landed lightly upon it.

”… What happened?”she asked, to nothing in particular. There was no one around her, after all. ”…Hello?”she called out, once again.

Welcome, child.

[/I]

The voice came as a whisper and Ciela couldn’t find a ring to it. She didn’t know if the voice belonged to a man or a woman, and all she could do was look about. ”Who are you? Is this… is this Heaven?”she asked. No. It couldn’t be. Heaven… couldn’t be so dark.

No, child. You are still alive.

”What is this place?”

Calm down. These things take time.
When you’re ready, step forward.

Well, this was a dream. Something like that. It had to be, because it just seemed so unreal… so surreal, that it couldn’t be true. Yet, she wanted to listen to this voice thing. But… but… she couldn’t. What had happened to her house? Her home! Her mother! Damn… she had to get out!

Take it easy. You can’t rush your choices, and you can’t live in hesitance.
Take your time, but don’t let it pass.
When you’re ready, step forward.

This voice… this voice had to be joking! That… that phrase about hesitance and rushed decisions had always been his! Eade… the boy that had left so many months ago… the one that had blinded her right eye… a surge of sadness and hatred resurfaced, when she though she’d started to bury them. …Why am I thinking of this? I need to get out…

But…

With a light tremble to her slim frame, Ciela edged toward the center of the pillar. Immediately, a sudden gust of wind blew across the place, and the pillar lit up with bright blue light as a thousand petals flew away. The pillar was made of stained glass, and it depicted her, Ciela, with a wide smile on her face and surrounded by tiny sparks. ”Wha—“ she started, but halted. This… it was almost meant to be; almost like this world belonged to her, and solely to her.

She suddenly needed to find out more about it.

You’re ready now. Good luck.

With that, the pillar suddenly shattered and Ciela found herself falling yet again. Falling, falling through the dark…

- - - - - - - - - -

From a bird's eye view, Ciela stared at the new pillar as she fell toward it, it resembled the previous one; but was colored in bright pink and bore an image of her mother embracing her. She stared at it and couldn't help but feel a knot in her throat. She had left her mother behind in the Island, with all those tiny black monsters... what had been of her? As the question hit her mind, she landed lightly upon the pillar.

As soon as her feet touched the stained glass, three stone pillars emerged from the floor. In a flash of light, three objects appeared over them. A sword, a shield and a staff.

Before you go on, you must pick your weapon.
Take your time.

Ciela sighed. Well, this voice wasn't being any help at all. Still, she walked a little bit around each pillar, examining the three strange objects that were now presented to her. They all seemed normal to her, but... if she had to pick... then the sword seemed like the most logical choice. So, she turned to the sword's pillar, climbed up on it clumsily, and took a firm hold of the sword.

Is this the path you've chosen?

Ciela looked down at the sword in her hands and felt her body tremble lightly. What... what if she made the wrong choice and ended up messing up? Hurting someone? She knew she'd never bear to do that. She couldn't. She just couldn't. Tears slowly crept up to her eyes and spilled down her cheeks.

"I... I don't know... I can't..."she stammered out, letting the tears spill. This was too much... so much for her to handle. She couldn't do it. She... she just wanted to go back home! She needed to know if her mother was alright, if their home was still standing!

"I can't do this... I can't..."

It's alright. Take your time.
It's normal that you're scared.
This isn't a task for a child like yourself.
But your heart is strong enough to pull through.

Ciela sighed lightly and reached a hand up to wipe her tears. She clutched the sword to her chest. "I'll take the sword,"she whispered quietly. Immediately, the sword vanished from her hands and Ciela was left standing on the pillar.

Good choice.
But now, you must give up a power.
Which will you choose?

Give up a power? Did that mean she had to ignore one of the other two weapons left? Ciela looked at both, and then moved over to the pillar that held the staff before taking a hold of it.

Are you sure that you'll give up this power.

Ciela nodded once, and with that, both the staff and the shield vanished in a flash of light. Below her, the stained glass vanished, like grains of sand floating away, and she felt herself fall once again.

- - - - - - - - - -

The fall lasted a little bit longer than the previous one. Ciela didn't like the feel of it. It was similar to the feel that she had when fighting those black creatures. A cold, empty sensation that washed over her... she didn't like it at all. It felt almost like being suffocated, like someone was smothering her, like being unable to breathe... finally, the next pillar came into view; this time displaying an image of her, as a child, hugging a panda plushie. Behind the image, the silhouette of an older looking girl seemed to stare over her shoulder. The pillar was of a soft green color. Ciela couldn't help but stare at it, and wonder what it represented this time... a part of her believed that it represented her naive demeanor, but she couldn't understand it. In a matter of seconds she landed on the pillar and stared about.

"So... what happens now?"she asked aloud; to no one in particular. At that very point, suddenly, a tiny swarm of those very little black creatures that had attacked her back at home rose from the ground. Ciela stared at them in disbelief. "What kind of joke is this?!"she yelled, furiously. The sword she'd picked up at the previous pillar suddenly appeared in her hand, enveloped in light. All Ciela could assume was that she was meant to fight this things...

... so, she swung the sword wildly around her, to slash and cut at the black little creatures. It didn't do any good - they kept popping up at random places. And, the more she slashed them, the more showed up. "You guys are making me sick!"she yelled, before rushing forward. She brought the sword down on a couple of those tiny monsters, and saw them vanish. At that very moment, Ciela felt something cling to her head tightly, and stopped dead. One of the tiny creatures had actually jumped onto her head and refused to let go. For one second, she was paralyzed and couldn't even breathe. One second later, she let out a shriek before shaking her head insanely, until the creature fell off her. At that point, she started slashing at it, violently. This creatures had hurt her. They had probably intended to destroy her home, and she didn't know if they had succeeded... she hated them. Oh, so deeply.

Why did they keep appearing?!

She shrieked and spun the blade around, thus killing yet another swarm of the creatures. With that, they vanished...

"Is that it.?!"she yelled toward the abyss. Immediately, the voice answered her.

No, child.
You may have defeated these Heartless, but...
They will continue to come at you.
But you must be strong...
The worst of your trials is yet to come.

A flash of light suddenly revealed a spiraling staircase near the edge of the pillar. It was, too, built with stained glass, and from what she could see, it led to yet another pillar. So, without even bothering to think about it, she sighed and started going up the stairs.

What did that voice mean, saying that the worst of my trials is yet to come...?

- - - - - - - - - -

After what felt like an eternity of running up, Ciela found herself standing on a teal colored pillar. But... the image there, surprised her. It showed a red-haired young boy, his eyes were bright hazel and he was sitting on the edge of the circle. She also saw her own image, a sad expression painted easily on her face. Eade... what? Why?

"... Why do you show me his face...? I... I don't even love him! He left! He...!"she spoke, again, to thin air.

You know that's a lie, child.
Even if you are mad at him for leaving you,
You must understand how much you love him.
Eade never meant to hurt you, let alone blind you.
You have to find it within yourself to forgive him.

At that point, everything around her vanished, and instead Ciela found herself staring straight into a blue sky, the clear sea and golden sand... she realized she was staring at Destiny Islands, at the beach that she loved so, so much... and felt a tight knot in her throat. "What's happening?"she asked, but nothing answered her. Great. The voice had abandoned her.

Sudden voices snapped her from her mental rants and she followed the sound, until she found herself standing at the edge of the sea, staring at her younger self and the same red-headed boy from the pillar. She stared at them in complete shock, when she realized what was going on. She was witnessing a flashback of the day he left...

"I gotta tell you something, River,"said Eade, looking down at the sand. "Sure, what's up?"the younger Ciela asked, with a tiny smile drawn on her face. Eade sighed and hesitated for a few seconds; before he spoke again.

"I'm leaving the Islands."

Ciela stared up at him in shock, as though she couldn't understand him. "Huh...?" she asked, lightly, drawing away from the redhead. Eade glanced down again.

"I'm sorry, River, I--I can't stay. Not after what I did to you," he touched the eyepatch with one shy, cautious finger, and Ciela brushed his hand away. "But-- but that was an accident," she said, slowly backing away. Eade tried to lay a hand on her shoulder, which she violently shrugged away.

"River!"

"You can't leave, you can't! Don't--" at that point, she broke to tears and collapsed to the ground. "Don't leave me... please..."she begged. Eade sighed once more.

"I'm sorry, River. I'm leaving tomorrow."

With that, he left...

The island, the sea, everything vanished suddenly, leaving Ciela atop the pillar, with her eyes full of silent tears. "What was the point of that?! I mean, aside reminding me how much it hurt when he left?!"she yelled at the voice. No answer. "ANSWER ME!"she snapped in distress.

I'm sorry, child.
You needed to know he truly cared
Otherwise, he would have become the Darkness in your heart.
Don't let someone you know turn into a source
Of hatred and rage.
Your toughest trial is coming...
Good luck, child.

A light emerged from the spiral staircase that led to the next pillar, and Ciela dashed forward to the stairs.

She couldn't wait for this to be done and over with.

- - - - - - - - - -

Finally, she made her way to the top of the next pillar. This one was orange and showed her, Ciela, sleeping peacefully. The eyepatch was gone and she looked calm and happy. Light poured upon the pillar; though she couldn't see the source. She stepped closer to the center.

The closer you get to the light,
The larger your shadow becomes.

Well, yeah, that was obvious, but what did it have to--

Suddenly, Ciela found herself caught up by a wicked fear and turned about to find... nothing. There was nothing there, except for her shadow.

But suddenly, her shadow started to tremble lightly. It rose from it's place and took a whole different shape - a large, demonic looking creature that towered over her. A black aura seemed to leak from its feet, stretching toward her. And all she could do was stare in horror. She staggered away from the darkness that threatened to reach and swallow her.

Again, the sword appeared in her hand; and Ciela ran forward to slash at the creature. A swarm of the same tiny beings that had attacked her on Destiny Islands emerged from the darkness it emitted, thus pushing her away from her objective. "Stop f*cking attacking me!"she snapped at them, as she slashed rather fiercely at them. A few of them vanished, and she was able to jump over the remaining ones. At that point, she slashed at the huge demon that threatened her.

Keep fighting, child.
You can do this.
You're stronger than you think.

"But what if this thing--"she couldn't finish, the creature tossed a fist at her, and she flew backward. Her head hit the ground, and for one second, everything became so blurred that she thought she was going to lose consciousness. Immediately, she saw a bunch of the tiny creatures come over her, and she panicked.

... I--I went through all this for nothing...? It can't be, I-- I can't die yet! I can't! I WON'T!"

A sudden burst of light fell over her, and scared the creatures away. Ciela noticed a sudden warmth on the hand that held the sword; and found that the sword was being enveloped with light yet again; and mere seconds later, she was holding what appeared to be a large key. It was spiraling in shape and the handle was shaped like a pair of wings. The teeth of the key resembled a star.

You have called on your true power.
Congratulations, child.

Ciela didn't get it, but she couldn't waste any time--she rushed forward to slash at the creatures. The smaller ones vanished easily after a few blows. The larger one... Ciela rushed toward it, and slashed, cut, hit, smashed at the demonic creature, rage and determination dripping with every blow. The creature refused to fade, but Ciela didn't give up--this creature could have killed her, and Ciela had so much to live for! Her mother, her school, her home, her dreams... even for Eade...

She brought down yet another harsh, fierce blow on the creature, and then...

A burst of black smoke, and it was gone.

Ciela stared into the empty space for a moment; and felt the Key vanish from her hands. A weak smile spread across her face.

Well done, child.
You have mastered your power.
Now, it's time for you to go back home.

And with that, Ciela felt her consciousness slipping away slowly as night closed over her.

- - - - - - - - - -

"Darling?"

"H-huh?"

Purple eyes opened to a bright white room, and the first sound she picked up was her mother's voice, against a constant, anoying beeping sound that drilled into her head. "Mom?"she mumbled, silently. She heard a relieved sigh. "Oh, honey, you're awake. I'm so glad you're okay..."Ciela suddenly noticed her mother was holding her hand tightly. She felt a tight knot in her throat and scrambled up to hug her mother; but a sharp pain on the back of her head sent her back onto her pillow. She had no doubt now, she was hospitalized.

"...Wha--what happened?"

"Apparently you slipped down and hit your head on a step when you were heading out... I thought you weren't going to open your eyes anymore, Ciela, please, be more careful."

Ciela listened intently, and felt tempted to tell her mother about that strange world she'd seen, about the black creatures, the key... but, chances were, she wouldn't believe her. "Okay, mom. I promise..."she mumbled, before closing her eyes and falling back into sleep.[/size]

END

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