erodingearth | ⊕ 03 [action]

⊕ 03 [action]

[This takes place on Friday, the last day of the experiment.

Terra's been feeling a strong desire to train today. Pullups and pushups in the clearing, combat training in the battle dome... He's got stamina to spare, but there's no doubt he's pushing himself; usually he has the sense to stop once in awhile.

He can be seen in the forest near house 39 exercising in the morning or over in the battle dome past noon. ...Or maybe even passed out on the grass on his way back to the house, towards midnight.]

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[He makes a sharp gesture with his free hand.] Stop. Don't-- Just stop that! It's like you're making excuses.

Why... Why did you resort to the darkness? Why did you give in? [There's a tone of helplessness there. He had seen something of himself, of the simple hopes he had aspired for, when he met Riku. And now he had been tainted with the darkness as well.] The world has to be rid of it.

[He should've been more careful. Maybe it would've been better if Terra never found out about this...

At least, that's his first thought. But a world without darkness? Why would Terra...?]

I know I can't excuse what I did before. I gave in because... because I thought it'd make me stronger. And I was jealous. Jealous of Sora's Keyblade, of his new friends, everything.

I made a lot of mistakes, Terra. Turned against my friends, captured those Princesses, and I almost lost myself in the process.

[He'll let all this sink in before he gives his opinion on darkness.]

[Each word is like a blow in itself. Terra wants to block it out; the jealousy, the mistakes, the desire to become stronger -- they're too similar, compounding upon his existing feelings of confusion and distress.

He doesn't say anything. He focuses his energy on trying to contain his emotions. But his eyes are alight and brimming with frustration.]

[Deep breaths. There's no turning back now. Besides, he's not about to shy away from his own stance on the issue.]

I screwed up more than once. By the time I got by body back and helped Sora close the door, I thought about darkness the same way that you do. I really did think it was something to be ashamed of, that the worlds would be better off without it.

[He places a hand to his chest.]

But whenever I tried to push it away, it just got a stronger hold on me. I kept running away from who I was. There's darkness in every heart. You can't just erase it.

[By now, he's probably dug himself into a pretty deep ditch.]

I didn't realize it until somebody showed me the way. She helped me accept my darkness without turning from the light.

[Why yes, he's suggesting a middle ground.]

[He doesn't really know what Riku is talking about. Not really. His lowest moments had been those moments of anger flashing out and taking hold, those times when Master Xehanort had expressed his beliefs of darkness and how they conflicted with Master Eraqus'. That shame of losing control, of using the darkness as a powerful weapon to get what he wanted.]

You sound like them.

[He can't help but make the comparison. He focuses on the negative of Riku's words. Those words that reminded him of each temptation, each situation he had so narrowly avoided where he had the choice of using his darkness. Even in Luceti, facing Vanitas... And now Riku, his successor.]

You really think so?

[Sigh. He manages to make the dark armor disappear. It's not like he meant to switch into it in the first place.

But he can tell that Terra's... not too happy about this.]

Trust me, if I could go back and fix everything, I would. But I can't take it all back; all I can do is move forward and make sure it doesn't happen again.

[He's having a lot of trouble letting go of all of those intense emotions bubbling beneath the surface. His hands are clenched into tight fists, and he can feel energy building in his left hand.]

Even now, though, you're using it. That armor is a sign of it, isn't it? The darkness inside you. After all of that, how can you... [He struggles to find the words. Darkness was a stain on the heart, something that could take control and take over. That was why he had been denied the Mark. Why he had sought Master Xehanort's guidance.]

[He gives in then, with a seething growl. He can't take it anymore, and he turns sharply away from Riku. The energy gathering in his left hand takes shape as a large black fireball, and he violently hurtles it at the nearest wooden dummy. The dummy is incinerated under the intense heat.

Terra tries to control his breathing as the energy surges out. He can't speak.]

[Riku opens his mouth, as if to say something, but the sudden dark firaga catches him completely off guard.]

Terra! You're...

[It's easier to think clearly now. Easier to let the anger drain out. Terra exhales, not yet turning.]

...Power like that. How can you use something like that, after all you've been through?

It might be the same power, but I don't use it for the same reasons.

[He places one hand on his hip.]

It's not about jealousy or being better than anyone now. I use this power to protect the things that matter.

[A beat.]

You know, like my friends.

[It takes a long moment for that to sink in. It might be a very stifling silence.

Then, a sardonic sound as Terra's gaze drops from the burnt spot where the dummy had once been.]

That sounds familiar.

Because that's one thing that hasn't changed.

[Even when he was with Maleficent, he still wanted to protect Kairi.]

[His thoughts are all caught up in a whirlwind right now. He believes Riku, and yet it also conflicts with what he's learned from both Master Eraqus and Master Xehanort. They couldn't all be right, could they? It was hard to deny what he had seen just now with Riku...]

You strayed in a big way, Riku.

Yeah, I know.

[And yet again, he doesn't sound proud of it.]

[I've strayed too. He's just as guilty as Riku is. Maybe even more, if his giving Riku the Keyblade influenced his decisions.

The anger is gone. He feels drained as he turns around to face the other.]

...I'm sorry. I'm in no place to judge.

[He shrugs.]

It's fine. Most people think of the darkness that way; I shouldn't have expected anything different.

[He still feels somewhat restless, which is keeping him from dismissing his Keyblade. But the fact that Riku's strange armor has disappeared helps.]

I don't understand what happened. Why did your clothes change like that?

It's what happens when I tap into the darkness. But that's not all. I'm a lot faster in Dark Mode. Stronger, too.

[A beat.]

But it takes a lot out of me when I use it.

"Dark Mode." [Well, it's a simple and straightforward way to describe it.] It's a lot of power. I'm not surprised it's tiring. [Maybe he hadn't been in touch with the darkness long enough to necessarily feel how tiring it was.]

I try to only use it when I have to, just so it doesn't wear me out. At least when I don't have my cloak with me.

[Which he doesn't right now.]

When I do, I can use it without any strain.

...Cloak? [That sounds odd.]

Yeah. The black coat I wear sometimes; it protects me from the darkness.

Like my armor? But if it's your own darkness... [He trails off, trying to figure it out himself.] It suppresses your darkness?

It keeps me from being swallowed by it, so I guess you could say that.

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