Tainted Eyes

****Kingdom Hearts is the property of Square Enix, not myself****
This is rated 'R' for violent content and sexual situations.


Tainted Eyes: Part III: Dark Rooms

Kairi tried desperately to pull the dark stranger's hand from her throat. Her feet were barely touching the ground, and his grip was strong enough to squeeze the air from her, but not merciful enough to let her pass out.

"W...Why...." she gasped with what little strength she had.

The stranger's free hand travelled up her thigh slowly. "Why not?" he spoke softly... smoothly. "We have crossed paths and I shall do what I will with you. What is the purpose of you asking why? No matter what the answer, you wouldn't want this. So 'why' is a meaningless question. Or rather, the answer is meaningless to you. To me, the answer was always known."

"An... Ans...?" tears streamed from her eyes.

"The answer?" he smirked. "Darkness is the answer. Sins. Urges. And the ability to do whatever I want, whenever I want." He lifted his hand from her thigh and removed the hood from his dark cloak. He shoved her hard to the wall and turned on a few dark lanterns, allowing dim orange light to flood the room. Kairi saw him more clearly now. He wore all black leather clothing, including a sleeveless leather shirt that showed off his muscular arms as he threw the cloak aside. His hair was jet black, and long enough to hang over his dark, black, empty eyes. His face wasn't rough at all. It wasn't feminine, but it wasn't coarse. This man had a wicked, dark sort of beauty to him.

Now released, Kairi rubbed her throat, looking for somewhere to run.

"You want to return to them?" he asked, already knowing the answer. He approached her slowly, and she backed against the wall in fear. He moved like a shadow... with a dark, flowing, eerie grace. And as she stared into his dark eyes she felt paralyzed. Without the courage to act or even scream, she only stood helplessly as he kissed her. It was so cold and unfeeling. But she did feel something.... Darkness. It felt as though it was flowing into her and seeping into her blood, her spirit, her mind.

"What are you hiding, Kairi?" he spoke after breaking the dark kiss. His lips still barely touched hers. "What will I find in that dark side that you don't show to others?"

"Nothing that will help you," she murmered, her voice shaking. "Nothing to make you happy."

As she spoke his cold hands slid up her shirt and roughly grabbed her small breasts. He pushed her against the wall, staring into her teary blue eyes as she winced and cried out. Kairi saw his face darken, as though the shadows in the room embraced him. She shut her eyes to block the sight of him, and suddenly felt his breath on her ear as he whispered to her.

"You don't know what brings me happiness. And you're afraid of what I'll find in you. What do you want Kairi? Open you heart to me, and I'll give you anything you desire."

His words echoed in her mind. It was as if she could see them as well as hear them. The words flowed into her and joined with the darkness. Anything.... Anything....

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" she screamed, pulling away. "Get out of my head!"

But even as she pulled away it was as though she could still feel his hands on her. She looked down at her body to find not. S. She covered her ears to block out his words, but it didn't spare her. Darkness was falling around her.

"LET ME OUT! GO AWAY! FREE ME NOW!"

He only smirked. "Free you? Do you mean you want me to free your friends as well? Or should I free... just you?"

Before she could ask what he meant, he called his men to return her to her prison. She stared blanks ths they pulled her away, not even realizing that his darkness was still with her.

~~~~~~~~~~

Sora sat next to Riku, calling to him every once in a while. Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie all sat in silence in the cell across from the two.

"What are we going to do once Kairi gets back?" whispered Selphie.

"If she comes back, ya?" replied Wakka.

"WAKKA!" cried Selphie, elbowing him.

"He's right." Tidus said softly. "WE have to get out no matter what. And if we have to, we'll look for Kairi."

"But... but we have to wait for Riku to wake up!" replied Selphie.

"Or drag him out somehow." called Sora, as his hand gently pushed the silver strands from Riku's pale face. Riku looked as though he was asleep, nothing more. It was so odd to see him sleeping. He was always so active, and his mature eyes and playful smirk usually spoke of someone who hardly rested if it wasn't necessary.

They were startled to hear footsteps from the dark hall again.

"They have Kairi!" whispered Tidus. "And she looks scared, but okay, right?"

The others could only stare. Why did they take Kairi? And for such a short time too? They sat silently as the two men, both over seven feet tall, came closer and opened Sora and Riku's cell to throw Kairi back in. Wakka had already convinced Sora not to do anything foolish until they found a way to get both cell doors open. Besides, Sora was only one, and they didn't know of Kairi or Riku's condition.

But they didn't just come to return Kairi....

As one man returned a frightened, oblivious Kairi to her cell, the other went for Riku.

"NO!" Sora cried as he attacked the man, throwing punches like a madman. Never had he been so violent. He would have hurt a normal person, but these men weren't normal. The man moved swiftly for his large size and connected his fist with Sora's jaw. Sora flew back and hit the stone wall, blood oozing from his mouth. The impact of hitting the wall knocked the wind out of him, and he fell to the ground.

"SORA!" cried Selphie. "Leave him alone! Oh Sora! No!" She burst into tears at the sight of Sora's blood. "Don't hurt him!"

"And put Riku down!" yelled Wakka. "We didn' do nothin' to you! Why are you keepin us here? Act like real men and open the door!"

The man paid no attention as he easily flung Riku over his shoulder. But this was all too much for Sora, and he forced himself to attack again… hurling himself at the man once more and trying to kick his knee out.

"Sora! You can't do this alone!!" yelled Tidus. "They'll kill you!"

"PUT HIM DOWN!" cried Sora as he kicked again. And this time, they heard a crack. The man holding Riku nearly toppled over, but he stood his ground. It was the other man who approached Sora, his eyes showing his thirst for blood.

"No! PLEASE! Leave him alone!" screamed Selphie! "We'll do what you want! But don't hurt any of them!"

But the man didn't even seem to hear her. Sora waited for the attack, but it didn't come. He saw something in the man's eyes that told him to stop. And the jail door was shut and locked once more. Riku was taken away from them, as the man who had him limped off.

"Why?" whimpered Selphie.

"They... they want us alive," Sora said as he winced in pain. He slumped to the floor to rest his aching body. "For now... they want us alive...."

~~~~~~~~~~

Riku didn't feel it when they applied the new drug to wake him from his sleep. But his body jolted, and he nearly found himself on his feet. But he was too weak to get that far, and his body fell back again. There was a cold breeze on his body, and he turned his sea-green eyes towards the open window. His senses slowly started to return to him, and he realized that he was on a large bed inside an enormous bedroom. Everything was black. The walls, the blankets, the sheets, the tables... everything. It almost made him feel as th heh he were floating in some kind of dark void. He shifted slightly, to make sure his body really was resting on something.

"Who's there?" he muttered, not really expecting an answer. And he was correct, for no answer came to him. The breeze blew into the room again as if it knew it would be his only answer.

He sat up and stretched and flexed, then hopped out of the bed. He hoped that his friends were each in safe beds of their own, but he had to find them so they could escape, no matter how good the treatment. Images of Kairi being carried off slowly returned to him, and his heart beat faster. The sick realization came that others probably weren’t safe at all.

He tried to open the door, but found that he was locked in. Someone heard him turn the knob, though, because he heard words being said behind the door… then footsteps. Someone was sending the message that he was awake….

He waited for a moment, listening… still a little groggy and weak from the drug. Growing uneasy he decided to move around, inspecting the room. His hand found a switch that activated the lights, which were by no means bright, but still light enough for his liking.

Footsteps and voices grew louder outside the door, and it finally opened. Those few minutes of waiting felt like an eternity to Riku. A man, in dark leather clothing stepped in and closed the door behind him. He searched Riku with the same dark eyes that had searched Kairi moments before. But he wouldn’t tell Riku this.

“Greetings,” the man said in his smooth, deep voice.

Riku raised his brow, remaining calm and collected as usual. His expression asked his questions for him, and seeing this, the man replied.

“Your friends are fine.”

“They had better be.”

“And you want to know my name, but I do not want to tell you… Riku.”

“For some reason you know my name. Seems a little unfair.”

“There is no such thing as fair, and even if there were, you would be in no position to ask for it.”

“I want to see my friends. Now.”

“You will see them soon enough,” said the dark stranger, approaching Riku with his cat-like grace. A head taller than Riku, he stared down into his eyes. “Your eyes are the color of the sea, and just as vast and deep,” he said, his tone softening. “I doubt you’ve ever seen the light in your own reflection. Sora saw it while you were on the beach, and I see it constantly in your eyes.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Riku asked in a cold tone.

“I want to know what is inside of you that creates that light. That power.” Suddenly he grabbed Riku’s upper arms with inhuman strength and brought his face closer to Riku’s. “I want to possess what’s inside of you, Riku.” His grip tightened. “I want it, and you will cooperate. And you know why, don’t you?”

Anger flashed in Riku’s eye“My “My friends.”

“Exactly.”

“I want to know they are safe. I want to see them freed!” demanded Riku. “Where did you take Kairi?!”

“Kairi is back with your other friends. And before any of them are freed, you will do as I say.” He released Riku from his grasp. Riku seemed completely unaffected by the event.

“You will see them everyday so that you can be sure they are alright,” said the dark stranger with a smirk. “And from now on, let it be known that I am your master. You will do as I say, for at any moment, I can have your friends killed. Do you doubt me?”

Riku didn’t. He knew there was more to this man than met the eye. He could see how many large and powerful men he could control. And he knew this man had power. What kind, he didn’t know. Whether it be simple strength or something else, there was something about him. He shook his head.

“Good,” smiled the stranger, his expression darkening. “But first, you must know that I never jest. It must never cross your mind.”

And with that he activated a large screen that was part of one of the black walls. Riku could now see his friends clearly. And he felt sick. There were two camera shots on the screen, dividing the picture in two. One for each cell. Wakka looked frustrated and spent. Tidus needed food or sleep or both. Selphie was crying uncontrollably. Kairi… she looked so horrified. And Sora… Sora!

“Sora!” yelled Riku. “What the hell did you do to him?!”

“Hm,” responded the dark stranger calmly. “What did happen to poor Sora?”

Riku turned back to the screen as the stranger walked to the door and opened it. He listened as the stranger said a few things in a foreign tongue, and continued to stare at his abused friends until he heard more footsteps behind him. He turned to see a extremely large man limp into the room.

“I thought I told you not to harm any of them,” said the dark stranger coldly.

The large man was kneeling before the stranger now, shaking with fear. “Forgive me, master. He attacked. He tried to stop us from taking the one you wanted and he--”

“SILENCE! You fool. What could that tiny boy do to you? Nothing. Especially compared to me!” yelled the stranger. His expression was so dark and cold now. His eyes were like black holes, sucking up any trace of light that hit them. And suddenly the stranger turned to face Riku. “I told you that your friends were fine. They will be fed and given rooms. But this man threatens to make a liar of me by hurting them when I say they are fine!”

Riku felt intense dread. “Don’t do anything to this man. I just want to see them rested and fed and healed and then freed. Or even just freed. But I want to see something happen now. Send someone else to do it besides him.”

The stranger smiled at him. “Such compassion. But he has proved that he is of no worth. And he knew that he was wronging me. Otherwise…” he placed on hand on the large man’s head as the man still knelt. “Otherwise he would not have such fear in his eyes!!”

And Riku watched in horror as a quick motion from the dark stranger was all it took to turn the man’s head all the way around to face Riku, who was behind him.

The stranger smiled coldly at Riku. “See the fear in his eyes….”

And Riku saw. The man’s eyes held nothing but terror. And his neck was slack now, all the bones broken. The stranger let the man’s body fall to the floor. Riku felt sick, but had nothing in his stomach to vomit up.

“What a mess,” muttered the stranger. He called more men in to take the body away. When they were gone, he shut the door again. “The window,” he said, staring at Riku. “Look outside.”

And Riku walked over slowly at looked outside the open window, hardly even realizing his own movements. He just stared. He let his mind wander to his island. Anything to get that gruesome murder out of his mind. After standing there a while he saw a group of large men toss the dead man’s body to the ground. They looked tiny, and Riku realized that he was on a floor several storip. p. This dark place was a castle! He didn’t even realize that the stranger was behind him until he saw an arm lift to his side. The stranger pointed to the body, and without warning, fire erupted from his hand. It spiraled downward and hit the body, causing it to burst into flames.

“Now,” said the stranger. “You will never think to doubt me when I say that your friends will be fine as long as you do what I say. Do not test me, Riku.”

~~~~~~~~~~

The teens were all asleep on the cold floors of their cells after Selphie’s crying slowed. They huddled up together to keep warm, intending to stay awake to watch over each other. But exhaustion got the best of them.

Only Kairi remained awake, wondering what that evil man could be doing to Riku. She looked to Sora, who was sleeping beside her, hoping that his injuries weren’t as serious as they seemed.

For some reason that man’s words wouldn’t leave her mind. They were booming inside of her. She wanted to sleep, but at the same time, she was afraid of the nightmares that would come to her. She ran her hand through Sora’s brown hair, wishing for something soft to take away these harsh thoughts.

What did he mean when he said he would free just me?

She hoped that Riku would wake up soon, and find a way to get them out of this cell. She would find that her wish would be granted soon enough… but it wouldn’t be Riku’s doing.

Once more, after countless hours of waiting there in the cold, dark jail cells, footsteps were heard once more. Kairi whispered softly to the others, waking them. It took a while for Wakka to wake Selphie, who had cried herself to sleep.

“Five of them this time,” whispered Wakka. “One for each of us?”

“Oh no!” cried Selphie. “And they aren’t bringing Riku back!”

Their cell doors were opened, and each teen was grabbed and pulled out of the cell. This men had inhuman sgth,gth, and Wakka’s face told the other teens to comply for now. Not that they had the strength to fight now anyway. Each teen was pulled down the hall, away from the cells, and up a long, dark flight of spiraling stairs. There were so many floors, and a few of the teens nearly fell back down the whole lot of them. But they were pulled or pushed along, and after a long while they found themselves in another hall. They realized that wherever they were, it was huge. It looked like a mansion from the inside. No. Much bigger. Everything was so luxuriously decorated… and dark. The colors were so dark. The only lights were from dozens of dim torches.

Sora looked around, thinking about this strange place. He saw that it was made too look older than it was, and that there was probably a lot more technology behind this place than it let on. They were probably being watched right now….

The teens found themselves being led down a hall with a red carpet and many, many doors. Each large man stopped in front of a door, and each door was on the same side of the hall. Suddenly the men flung the doors open and pushed each teen inside. Sora and Wakka jumped up and immediately tried to force themselves out of the rooms. But they were shoved in again by the mammoth men watching their doors. And each door was closed, leaving the teens separated… each in a room of their own.

Sora was angry at being pushed around again. He stood up and looked around his room for a long while, hoping that no one was in there to drop anymore surprises on him. He found the light switch and turned up the lights as high as they would go. Good… no one was there. He peered through a door that seemed to lead to a room behind his. It was dark inside, except for the moonlight that was shining through it’s windows. Sora stayed in the doorway, not knowing what to make of this room. Suddenly he felt a hand fall on his shoulder from behind.

“AAAAAHHHHHH!!!!” he screamed and whipped himself around.

“HEY! HEY! It’s just me!” yelled Wakka.

“What the… damnit! Wakka! I’m glad to see you… but… damnit!”

“Yea,” said Wakka. “You wouldn’t believe dis, brudduh. But all our rooms are connected,” he said, pointing back to the now open door at the side of Sora’s room. “An’ the back door of each room leads to a large bathroom,” he said, flicking on the lights inside the room that Sora was peering into.

“It looks like we’re all sharing the same enormous bathroom!” exclaimed Sora, his voice echoing in the massive room.

“We are!” called Tidus, as he walked over to them, already inside the massive bathroom. “The showers are off that way,” he pointed. “And the toilets are in the other direction. The whole bathroom is the length of all six of our bedrooms put together! Don’t worry, all the stalls for the toilets and showers and stuff are separated by walls. This place is all fancy with marble everywhere and stuff. What’s with the change of heart all of a sudden? They’ll even let us see each other!”

“Six rooms?” asked Wakka. “Is Riku here?”

“No, I haven’t seen him. But I see six doors, so I just assumed one of them led to his room.”

Kairi and Selphie walked out of the door that led to Wakka’s room, into the bathroom. Obviously lost. But soon they all found comfort in each other. They all examined bathroom together, with it’s many fountains and marble statues. Then they went from bedroom to bedroom, marveling at everything inside. The two mysteries were Kairi and Sora’s rooms, which each had a locked door on the side. Kairi’s room was the on the far end, with Selphie’s next to her’s. Tidus’ was in the middle of the five, then Wakka’s, then Sora’s. Since they were all connected through side doors, they came to the conclusion that Riku’s room was probably behind the locked side door in either Kairi or Sora’s room. But then, what of the remaining door?

They all sat in Sora’s room to talk. His room was red, the color of blood. They talked about escape after they realized that, while they were connected, they were still locked in.

Suddenly, they saw a glow from the corner of their eyes. One of the picturemes mes held a blank screen inside, and they had just assumed there was no picture. Now the screen was and and they saw the dark stranger. Kairi shuddered when she saw those dark eyes and pale features. No one knew what had happened to her, or that she had already met this man.

“Greetings,” said the man on the screen. “It is good to see you all in one place. You are now my guests, and you will remain here for quite some time. Please make yourselves comfortable, for there is no escape. You are being watched at every turn, and you already know that you are no match for the countless men under my control here. Besides, if we catch any of you trying to escape, there will be consequences for the others.” And then the dark stranger moved out of view, and behind him was Riku, tied to a chair, a gag in his mouth. The stranger moved back into view almost immediately. “Now, be good children. If you need anything at all, use the panel on your dressers to call someone for food. Also, there is a cold storage in each room. Please enjoy your stay.”

“Who are you?! And what are you doing to Riku?!” cried Sora.

“Riku will be fine as long as he cooperates,” smirked the stranger. “And me… my name…” the screen started to fade out “…is Livion.” And then he was gone.

Livion…. The name echoed in Kairi’s mind.

~~~~~~~~~~

Livion turned to Riku and ran his fingers through the youth’s silver hair. Hen ren removed the gag from his mouth.

“I think I gave them quiet a scare,” he mused.

Riku only glared at him.

“Don’t look so angry, Riku. You might even enjoy what I have in store for you.” And then he kissed the bound teen. Riku tried to pull away, but Livion’s hand grabbed his throat. “Remember,” he said, pulling away for only an instant, “If you fight me, they will suffer.” And so Riku stopped fighting. But he couldn’t stop the sickness that welled up within him as Livion’s tongue slid into his mouth. And Livion delighted in the fact that this kiss was a million times more passte tte than the cold kiss he forced himself to give Kairi.

“Get used to this,” Livion whispered in Riku’s ear. “It is only a taste of the beginning.”

~*~*~To be Continued~*~*~