Beckoning the Darkness (Mickey)

[Angelus]

Darkness was absolute. There was no denying that. It has been, and always will be within the hearts of those who exist. That much was proven true just by time itself. But this world, this world was almost the embodiment of darkness.

The hearts of those who lived in this world were stained with darkness, and only a few showed any signs of light within them. Having been here once before this lone champion of the darkness knew just how easy it was to corrupt those that had yet to be corrupted. He also knew how easy it was to turn those who had into the beings born of darkness.

"Heartless. Darkness incarnate." the corrupter whispered, a smile forming on his face. It was a slight smile, nothing impressive, but yet it seemed almost out of place on this dark warrior. Darkness eminated from him, and this made him an even greater magnent for those of which he spoke. Even if he possessed a heart of light, or a heart that was neither swallowed by the darkness, nor basked in the light, he would still have been a key target of the Heartless. After all, he possessed a Keyblade.

"The bane of the Heartless' existence. Does it not seem ironic that the weapon created to combat the darkness is wielded by one who has all but been consumed by it?" The warrior's shadow began to move, and with it, a raspy voice began to hiss.

"Why must we wait master?" these were the words the hissing became. The one referred to as master held up his hand, and his smile vanished.

"Hush my pet. We will act soon enough. But for now we wait. I wish to see if we are truly alone."

[King Mickey]

Trying to Understand

Mickey wasn't doing a very good job of getting home as soon as possible. It was strange. He should have wanted nothing more than to be back at the castle again. But he would get back home and then what? Rub noses with his queen, say hi to everyone else, and then sit around, feeling restless. Answers wouldn't come by waiting.

Truly, if he wanted to have an active hand in restoring the balance, he had to do more than tiptoe around the darkness. In order to have balance, there had to be both light and darkness. Both had their respective faults. But living aligned with the light for so long made the light's faults less obvious and the darkness's faults that much more glaring. Yes, the darkness was scary to someone like him. But that wasn't the only reason he fought so hard against it.

Still, the darkness had to have its positive points. Didn't it?

Port Royal was certainly one of the darker worlds, evidenced by the perpetual moon that hung in the sky. An abundance of clouds would often block out even that light. What better place, outside of the Dark Realm itself, to ponder the darkness?

So, here he was, wandering the streets of the town, which seemed to be eerily empty. No people, no Heartless, not even any stray animals. It wasn't long before he discovered the probable reason.

A familiar-looking man with a shadow looming behind him came into Mickey's view, and the first thing besides that giant shadow that caught the king's eye was the Heartless emblem on the man's chest. Wary, but without summoning his Keyblade, Mickey stopped several feet away.

"Weren't you in the jungle with the Champion?"

[Angelus]

His ability to smell the darkness or lack thereof had not led him astray. He was in fact, not alone. It was a good thing that Caliga had taken to hiding only moments before, else this warrior of light may have attacked upon seeing the duo. The moon high in the sky, there seemed to be quite a storm ready to wreak havoc upon the town. Something that part of Everto was wishing would happen. For where there is chaos, there is opportunity.

Everto's gaze was focused on the moon, and although his eyes were not resting upon the king, his ears were paying attention to everything he had to say. Everto spoke, his gaze not moving for even a moment.

"Ah there are many jungles within the Sea of Stars, both literal and philisophical, just as there are many champions."[/color] Everto slowly shifted his body to face the king, and his head slowly corrected its position. He looked the short Keyblade wielder over, and smiled.

"But I suppose it would do no good to avoid the question, so answer it I shall. Indeed twas I of which you speak within the jungle deep. Begging your pardon, but I know not your name. May I ask of it, or am I obliged to speak to you my own first?" A simple shrug of his shoulders was all the movement he made after shifting his gaze to the mouse, and if the mouse was lucky, it would remain that way.[/size]

[King Mickey]

Introductions

Mickey tilted his head. The manner in which this man spoke was quite polite, not at all like others of the dark he had run across, with the exception of Riku. There was something oddly soothing about his speech, but Mickey forced himself not to dwell on it.

"Mickey," he offered simply at first, then decided to add to it. "King of Disney Castle."

He remembered this man trying to form an alliance with the Champion and failing. Since the only concrete thing known about the Champion at this point was that he liked to destroy worlds, specifically Radiant Garden, the king assumed that must mean this man before him was also interested in destroying worlds. It was stereotypical to think, but those associated with the darkness inevitably seemed to return constantly to destruction. This one was probably no different.

"And what's your name?" It would be interesting to see just how long this interaction remained cordial.

[Angelus]

Of Mice and Men

So the mouse was a king? That certainly piqued Everto's curiousity. He'd never heard of many kings leaving their kingdoms for any reason short of a catastrophe that would plague it should they have chosen to stay. But then again, this was simply conjecture. Mickey could simply be exploring the worlds.

"Well then your majesty, I suppose that for supplyng me your name, you are privy to the same information with regards to me."[/color] He took a few steps to the right, avoiding the first few drops of rain. He could not do so for long, as the few drops quickly turned into a roaring downpour. Lightning flashed up above the two warriors, and thunder boomed. The wind began to gust, and as it passed through the trees it howled, as if it were a wolf.

"My name is Everto Angelus." the Champion of Darkness said bowing slightly. He turned his head slightly, and saw that people had begun to run for shelter. He held out his hand, and instantly eight were turned into Heartless. They were all Shadows, nothing too impressive or difficult to dispatch, but they didn't need to be. Right now they only served one purpose...

They were to test this king. Everto smiled, and once he did, the Heartless lunged at Mickey.[/size]

[King Mickey]

Forced Fight

Rain was so cliche right now, the thunder and lightning even more so. Something in the air told Mickey this wasn't going to stay a normal conversation for very long. And how right he was, for Everto turned toward some people fleeing the storm and turned every single one of them into Shadow Heartless.

"No!" But there wasn't anything he could do to stop it, and now they were lunging at him. He had no choice but to defend himself.

The Kingdom Key D was in his hand in a burst of light just in time to fend off the two fastest Shadows. They exploded into oblivion, but Mickey didn't pay them much attention. Several more quick strokes of the Keyblade, and the remaining Shadows were dispatched.

Rainwater was soaking into his clothes and fur, and he had to shout over the thunder. "Why'd ya do that?!" He glared at Everto as best he could through the torrential rain. "They hadn't done anything to you!"

[Angelus]

Explanation

Rain had soaked Everto's hair, and his clothes had absorbed so much water that it felt as if they had doubled in weight. But this didn't hinder Everto's movment in the slightest. Two Shadows that had followed the Keyblades' natural homing beacon had lept at Mickey, and Everto became nothing but a blur as they were destroyed just before reaching their target. Everto stood behind the king, facing away, and chuckled.

"In worlds of darkness, thou must always keep thine guard up."[/color] He became vanished from view again, and quickly returned to he was originally standing. A black and red Keyblade rested in Everto's left hand, with an appearance as twisted and corrupted as its master.

"Relax your majesty, I was merely testing your capabilities. I turned only those with no light left in them that were prime targets of the Heartless, so no prescious innocent was lost. Imagine my surprise to find out that not only were you strongly alligned with the light, but you have a Keyblade as well."[/color] Everto dismissed his weapon, and Caliga quickly appeared.

"Master, may I steal his heart."

"No Caliga, you shan't be stealing his heart today. I have this strange notion that his destiny does not include an end by our hands, and I've no intention of tempting fate."[/color] He walked over to Mickey, and placed his hand on Mickey's shoulder.

"I feel that Caliga's question warrants my warning. He is obedient, but stubborn as well. If he wants your heart badly enough he will not heed my request." He began to walk toward the nearest pub, and motioned for the king to follow.

"Come. I have much I wish to ask of you, unless you would rather us begin a conflict of our own."[/b][/size]

[King Mickey]

Just Intrigued Enough...

The demand for an explanation was barely out of his mouth when Everto's voice came from behind him. He knew better than most to always keep his guard up, especially in worlds where this much darkness abounded.

Everto's assurance that those he had turned into Heartless were going to eventually fall as easy prey to the darkness didn't really make the king feel all that much better. But the deed was done, and there was nothing he could do about it.

He would have dismissed his Keyblade, but another voice broke through the sheeting rain. A sinister, almost sibilant voice. It wanted to know if it could steal the king's heart, and Mickey tensed, ready to fend off whatever was coming for him. But Everto dissuaded Caliga from acting on its desires.

When Everto moved to put a hand on Mickey's shoulder--a feat in and of itself, considering Mickey's short stature--the king looked up at him. "Okay. Made a note of that." He wasn't going to let some Heartless run wild and overwhelm him. He would be ready if that happened.

Then, Everto headed toward shelter, what looked like a pub of some kind. Mickey wasn't much for pubs, but considering the world they were on, their options for places to talk out of the fury of the storm were limited. So, he followed. Curiosity beckoned him.

[Angelus]

Curiosity Can Be Lethal

[/center]

Mickey's decision to follow the Keyblad wielder of darkness was a wise one indeed. If the two were to enter combat Everto had Mickey outnumbered, and he could always make more Heartless. But despite the fact he could do such a thing, Everto had only seen Mickey's skill with the Keyblade, no more, no less. They had made it to the pub, and Everto opened the door and went inside. Caliga had remained out and about up until this point, and quickly returned to being Everto's shadow.

Everto found a place where the two strange looking men could sit, and quickly picked a seat where he and the mouse could face each other.

"I shall be the gentleman and offer to let you ask the first question. Ask anything you'd like, and I shall answer truthfully."

[King Mickey]

What to Ask?

Upon entering the pub Everto had led him into, Mickey dismissed his Keyblade and hopped up into the opposite chair at their table. His short legs just barely dangled off the edge. What questions to ask this dark Keyblade wielder? Mickey had many questions, but most of them were questions regarding the Champion, which he doubted Everto would know the answers to.

"Hmm..." He scratched an ear in deep thought. There was not anything he could think to ask of Everto, no matter how much he wracked his brain. Everything always came back to the Champion. The meeting in Deep Jungle hadn't been enough. There was too much he didn't know, and none of that was anything Everto could make clearer for him.

"Sorry 'bout this, but..." He hopped down from his chair. "I gotta go somewhere. What I'm lookin' for isn't here." With that, he walked out of the pub, back into the rain, and headed for his gummi ship.

It was high time he headed home.