[IC] Kingdom Hearts: Reversal of Light & Darkness

**Lady Celeste** · 06-09-2018, 10:26 AM

DISCLAIMER :: This RP is loosely based on the RP "Kingdom Hearts: Renaissance", and features a world and characters originally created by Heson Shadowbane. Some details may be added or changed as necessary to avoid spoilers and/or fill in any information gaps.

Spoiler: KHR Storyline

Since the beginning, light has served as a counterbalance to the darkness, especially in the hearts of men. Over the years, there have been many who sought to destroy the light and plunge the world into darkness, but for every such evildoer, there have also been a number of brave souls ready and willing to fight back against the darkness so that light may prevail. Sora was one such soul; together with the many comrades he has met in his young life - including his childhood friends Riku and Kairi, as well as the ever-loyal Donald and Goofy - he has fought to keep the darkness at bay wherever it may arise.

Sora's most frequently emerging foe, known simply as Xehanort, has made himself known directly or indirectly in a number of forms, including the likes of Ansem and Organization XIII, and has until now been defeated time and again, even if only temporarily. Few have doubted that Xehanort would still pose a threat to the light, but no one expected his latest return to take place the way it did, as he ambushed Sora at a crucial moment while the young Keyblade wielder was alone. Sora himself was last seen lying motionless in Xehanort's arms, seemingly comatose, just before Xehanort disappeared with the boy and fled to parts unknown.

With Sora missing and Xehanort still at large, the darkness has now become bolder than ever, rising yet again to claim more worlds as Xehanort prepares to finally gain the total control that he craves. But the light will not be defeated so easily; Sora's friends and allies - particularly Master Riku, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy - have taken charge of the search for him and for Xehanort, seeking to stop the latter's plans before it's too late. And more recently, acting on instructions in a dream from Sora, Master Riku is now leading this small band in search of new Keyblade wielders to aid them in their cause, all the while journeying from world to world to continue the fight against the darkness.

At this crucial point in their quest, where will you stand?

Spoiler: Short Version

Spoiler: Kalenas Arc Storyline

When the new chosen Keyblade wielders first met in Traverse Town, an attack on the inexperienced heroes brought the ragtag group together as a team.

An attack led by Alinara Duskblade of Kalenas.

The unusual balance of the world of Kalenas meant that its forces of light were not always good, and that its forces of darkness were not always evil. Alinara Duskblade, though technically aligned with the light in the traditional sense, was born of the darkness of Kalenas, which is currently aligned with the traditional light as it seeks to restore the balance that has been upset by the corrupted light of Kalenas, which has now threatened Kalenas' dark forces to the point of committing a wide range of atrocities in the name of the light.

Xehanort was able to take advantage of this misunderstanding by claiming to be affiliated with the persecuted dark forces of Kalenas, offering to aid them if she would likewise strike a blow against the “corrupted light” by hunting down the new Keyblade wielders before they can pose a threat to the darkness. Riku, upon realizing Alinara's mistake, tried to explain things to Alinara and begged her for help to save Sora, but Alinara harshly refused and left with Xehanort, earning her the mistrust of her would-be comrades to varying degrees, but in particular drawing the resentful ire of Ardeth Bay, a newly-chosen Keyblade wielder from the Archaic Lands, for her perceived mistreatment of Riku.

Alinara eventually realized her mistake after being contacted by Sora, after which she left Xehanort's service and returned to her native Kalenas to continue the fight to liberate Kalenas' dark forces, even if she has to do so alone. Unbeknownst to her, however, the new Keyblade warriors' travels have also recently brought them to Kalenas. Another encounter is inevitable, but whether or not Alinara can gain the trust of Riku and his allies - especially Ardeth Bay - still remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, as the new Keyblade wielders continue their mission, some of them have by now started to form friendships and look after one another, especially following Riku's shocking revelation in Traverse Town that their native worlds are most likely either overrun or destroyed by now. Ardeth in particular has found this comfort in a newly-blossoming relationship with fellow Keyblade wielder Wilhelmina Rosewood, Crown Princess of Crystal Oasis City, from whom he has received much-needed emotional support in the most difficult moments of this quest. It's still too early to say what will become of their relationship, but Mina's close connection to Ardeth will be crucial for him to keep a level head if and when the group meets Alinara again.

Spoiler: Kalenas World Info

**Lady Celeste** · 06-09-2018, 10:29 AM

The main gates of the massive city parted to let in the new arrivals. Apparently they'd been expected; what could best be described as a royal carriage awaited them not far from where Undine had dropped them off, and insisted on transporting them the rest of the way to the city of Phenos despite it not being that much farther away on foot. Some of the others thought the gesture was a bit excessive, but none of them would refuse the hospitality of their newest hosts, so they were soon helped into the carriage one by one by men in gold-embroidered robes and impeccably polished armor.

Still, Ardeth did not fail to notice the way they looked at him in particular. He'd gotten used to being stared at by outsiders, even in the cities in his native land, as the traditional robes and tattoos of the Medjai were not very inconspicuous in a crowd. But this was different; while most foreigners would simply give him curious looks behind his back and then look away once he saw them, some of these escorts eyed him with poorly concealed suspicion, never once letting him out of their sight even as their 'High Priest' - who awaited them inside the carriage - warmly greeted the group and began talking with them.

Ardeth pretended not to notice for now. After all, he certainly didn't look like a typical champion of Light, so it wasn't impossible that they were still unsure about him for the time being.

But just the same, it was all still starting to unnerve him, so he tried to take his mind off of it by looking out the carriage window at the passing scenery. The river that they passed over was calm and pristine, and despite the lack of much plant life besides grass, the vibrant green of it stretched on for miles. The so-called 'Holy City' stood proudly among the mountain tops just up ahead; an ample amount of sunlight shone through the otherwise-cloudy sky, making it look like the entire city was shining as well.

This was apparently the next stop of their journey: one step closer for them to free their worlds from the darkness' reign of terror, and one step closer for Riku to save his friend. Ardeth overheard the man called Junithal expressing his sympathy for Sora's plight and offering to help them in whatever way he could, which put Ardeth a bit more at ease.

That wasn't saying much, however, by the time the carriage entered into the city. The creatures - 'constructs', Junithal had called them - that lurked around the city gates had an unnatural air about them that seemed very out of place compared to the rest of the city, putting Ardeth even more on edge. Occasionally some of the townspeople spotted him in the carriage window and eyed him with the same suspicion that he'd seen in the eyes of their escort, and Ardeth could even see a few of them whispering among themselves as they passed him by. Meanwhile the others were being greeted with noticeably less suspicion.

Riku had apparently noticed, because he briefly spoke up that he had once fallen sway to the Darkness but was now striving toward the Light, to the surprise of some of their escorts as they turned their attentions away from Ardeth for the moment. It was odd, how any mention whatsoever of the Darkness could put them so much on edge; it hardly surprised Ardeth after witnessing its evil firsthand, first in his own homeland and then not too long ago in Kirito's native land, but these people seemed almost inhuman in their obsession with it.

Clearly there was more to this place than met the eye...

**CrimsonLady180** · 06-12-2018, 08:36 AM

Wilhelmina quietly took in her new surroundings feel a bit in awe of them and the people who inhabited the land. She could see the uncertainty as onlookers watched the newly chosen warriors of light, but none more than Mina's newly founded companion, Ardeth. He seemed to be gaining more suspicious look from other while some may stare at the way she was dressed with her black dress decorated with lace and decals of plant life that could be found on her home world easily exposing parts of her body which seemed to gain some disapproving looks from women while men seemed to try their darnedest not to stare too long. Wilhelmina shifted uncomfortably under the gaze pulling her cloak around her to put herself as well as others at ease and not to give off the wrong impression.

She could feel her nervous were getting to her slowly but surely a each of them were assisted into the carriage and took the seat across from Ardeth so she can look out the window when she was able to deciding this would be a good a time as any to look at the book to see what information the book had of this world and record her journey so far. She gently pulled the blue book with strange markings on the cover from her bag as she gently flipped through the pages to get the section to write down her thoughts and feelings. Luckily the book didn't require a writing tool at all, but to run her index finger over the page to record her thoughts.

Her thoughts moved from her feelings of missing home, her desire to save it and the others' home worlds, to the mission at hand, Sora, the people she met so far, but when she started thinking of Ardeth she could help but glance up at him. She was glad she met someone that made her think so fondly of home and hoped he felt the same feeling of a budding friendship with her as she did with him. Wilhelmina was concerned if he was okay considering the stares he was receiving even now from the carriage, the passerby were staring at the carriage as they whispered to one another noticing those stares were more tied to Ardeth than anyone else. Snapping the book shut and putting it back into the safety of her bag, "Hey, Ardeth...," she began as she was going to offer some comfort with her words along with a pat of her hand on his but both her words were cut short causing her hand to return to her side as they have arrived at their destination.

Gently clearing her throat as she covered her mouth with one hand gathering her nerves as she exited the carriage while walking not too far behind the rest of the group quietly. When Riku spoke up about his experience with Light and Darkness earning more stares from onlookers making it seem as if Riku spoke of something forbidden or perhaps taboo of some nature with how people were eyeing him.

"Something tells me this place is will be unlike most," Mina muttered softly to herself but only loud enough for Riku or Ardeth to possibly hear her voice filled with concern. With how odd things were going it made her curious about the temple that was mentioned briefly in her book since perhaps the belief the inhabitants of this world have may influence their strange behavior or perhaps the people who ruled the land or even both. Her racing thoughts only caused her to worry more about what was in store for them making Wilhelmina's pace a bit quicker to stay closer to the group.

**Lady Celeste** · 06-13-2018, 09:04 AM

The carriage came to a stop in front of a large castle at the heart of the city, the constructs from earlier standing guard at the doorway alongside two guards, while other such guards and constructs patrolled the castle and the general area. As the occupants of the carriage disembarked, Ardeth and Wilhelmina lagged slightly behind the rest of the group. Thus, when Mina spoke up about the unusual nature of this world, Ardeth heard it clearly, and was able to respond without being heard so easily.

“Yes; I know what you mean.” Ardeth said, about to ask more when he caught a glimpse of one of the constructs out of the corner of his eye. The constructs’ soulless gaze made them seem like statues, and perhaps that was what they were... and yet somehow some part of them still felt more alive, almost human even. That, in all honesty, disturbed Ardeth even more than the suspicious stares of the townsfolk. Looking down at Wilhelmina’s book, Ardeth figured she might have more information about this world and was about to ask what she’d found, but then High Priest Junithal addressed the group before Ardeth could say anything more.

“Chosen children of the Light, welcome to the sacred city of Phenos.” The High Priest said, speaking with an almost instinctively trustworthy voice that sounded like it had never been raised in anger. “We have anticipated your arrival and prepared accommodations for each of you here at Castle Phenos during your stay here. Also, should you wish to visit the rest of the city, I will be more than happy to give you all a full tour once you’ve all had time to rest from your journey.”

**CrimsonLady180** · 06-14-2018, 08:22 PM

Wilhelmina glanced over at Ardeth in response but was at a lost for words feeling the uncomfortable gaze of the constructs. She shifted slightly away from to the constructs being so close to them made her skin crawl, hearing its eerie hollow breath was unnerving. Coming from a place full of life it was hard to believe that something like this was normal. To have husks of life wandering around yet people she believed to be normal were the oddities in a place like this.

'It was so strange... And that temple... This must be something that's connecting all if a religious figure was in power like this...,' Wilhelmina thought to herself thinking to the image of the temple on the page. Perhaps it will be on the tour so she could learn about this mysterious temple. Suddenly Mina was snapped from her thoughts when the High Priest began to speak and welcoming them to the city sounding much like what she would assume a religious figured would sound like as he let everyone know there are rooms for them at the castle and an offer of a tour once everyone was settled.

After that everyone was escorted to their rooms, so Wilhelmina quietly entered her own to look around. She felt odd and out of place, already wanting to leave the room filled with the quiet stillness only broke by the clicking sound of her heels on the floor as she headed for the window overlooking the city. "What a strange place... I get the feeling this is a fancy prison...," she muttered to herself shaking head then touching the window feeling as if no matter where they go they will be watched. Her hand dropped to her side not wanting to be alone in this place. Wilhelmina turned from the window and headed for Ardeth's door knocking on it, "Hey, Ardeth... Can I come in?" she asked then patiently awaited his reply while glancing around the hall. It seems she was right about the constructs watching their every move, so she returned her attention to the door.

**Lady Celeste** · 06-15-2018, 02:22 AM

Ardeth, for his part, also couldn’t help but feel less and less comfortable in this place as time went on. Nevertheless, the relative privacy of his designated room was a welcome break from the stares of the townsfolk, and the amenities offered in each room were certainly very generous, so Ardeth decided to make the most of it for now. He set aside his weapons and removed his turban, just about to prepare for a shower, but that plan was quickly scrapped following a knock on the door.

“Hey, Ardeth... Can I come in?”

“Wilhelmina?” Ardeth asked tentatively. Thankfully he was still decent, so he didn’t need to keep her waiting, and opened the door to see that she was indeed there.

“Of course; come in.” He said, stepping aside to let her in and close the door behind her, and then walking slightly ahead of her to move his turban and weapons out of the way so that she could sit. Ordinarily this might have seemed highly improper to say the least, for an unmarried man and woman to be alone together in the same bedroom, but Wilhelmina was a dignified lady from a respectable background, and Ardeth had always been taught to treat women honorably. So there was no shame in the two of them simply talking together in one of the only places in the castle where they could find any semblance of privacy, especially now that something was clearly troubling Wilhelmina at the moment.

**CrimsonLady180** · 06-15-2018, 08:55 AM

A soft smile closed Mina's lips when she saw Ardeth feeling quite at ease feeling more than happy to be out of that hallway. She clutched her book carefully in her arms knowing that if someone finds the book, it can bring about serious consequences. The power within is the essence of the First Queen that lives on and it is up to every Queen to protect it, so much so that the book is only heard as a figment of legend for those who have heard the whispers of it while few know the truth of its existence. And being in a such a suspicious place makes Wilhelmina worry that someone may try to posses her family's heirloom.

"Hello. Sorry to intrude, I hope I didn't come at a bad time...," Wilhelmina replied softly as she made her way inside Ardeth's room doing a small curtsy then sat down. "Forgive me for bothering you when you were probably enjoying the peace and quiet, I just... Well... I feel rather uncomfortable being alone in that room. Would it be alright if I stay with you? A least for a little while? Perhaps I may show you this to aid us on our quest, I know this isn't something I'd normally do sharing my secrets with someone outside of my family but you remind me so much of home that I want to trust you..." Mina began to trail off before catching herself causing her to blush a bit in response to feeling so silly.

"A-Anyway I came wanting to share what I have knowledge of this world which still a bit of a puzzle to me, but I plan on going on the tour to see if I can figure out why this place isn't right. I think it has to do with this temple I read about briefly on our way here," Wilhelmina said as she opened the book easily flipping through the pages until the glowing pages of this world were revealed as if they were alive. With her slender index finger Mina pointed to the page she spoke of as she gently shifted the book to her lap facing Ardeth so he could read for himself then glancing up from the page to Ardeth's face see what he may be thinking.

**Lady Celeste** · 06-17-2018, 06:11 AM

Wilhelmina didn’t want to be alone in her assigned room, and honestly, Ardeth was beginning to feel the same way. It was hard not to view this place as a glorified prison with how isolated the rooms were. The castle staff were doing their best to be gracious hosts and cater to anything they needed, and Ardeth was certainly grateful for that, but he understood Wilhelmina’s concerns and had no objections to letting her stay and talk for a while.

Then Wilhelmina took out a book that she had apparently kept secret from them until now. Ardeth felt honored to have been the first person in their little group with whom Wilhelmina would share this secret, but he did not say so just yet, not wanting to interrupt her. The book was revealed to contain some form of magic, and apparently included chapters on this new world and who knows how many others; this would surely be useful for them to better understand this world and any others that they might encounter. Apparently this book also mentioned a temple somewhere in this world where they might find some much-needed answers.

“That makes sense.” Ardeth noted. “The High Priest seems to be the primary ruler of this city, so this temple is surely of great importance to them.”

On that note, however, Ardeth hesitated. He knew what it was like for one’s entire culture to be built on secrets, and if that was the case here, then perhaps it would be best for everyone involved not to interfere in matters they knew nothing about, lest they end up doing more harm than good. And yet, on the other hand, sometimes it really was best for such dark secrets to be brought to light, so that the root of the problem could finally be exposed and dealt with directly.

“All I ask is for you to be careful.” Ardeth said at last, genuinely concerned. “We barely know anything about this world, and I’ve seen how dangerous some secrets can be.” That statement carried a great deal of personal weight, but now was not the time to delve too deeply into his own past. Wilhelmina had shown a great deal of trust in him, so he owed it to her to repay that trust in kind, but for now they needed to stay focused on the present.

“But whatever is plaguing this world, we will stop it.” Ardeth said, not wanting to be too pessimistic either. The tour being arranged for them would begin soon, and now they had an idea where to start looking for answers, so for now all they had to do was wait until then.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Ardeth got up and opened it to find a castle messenger standing outside.

“Chosen of the Light,” the messenger said, “the High Priest’s carriage is waiting outside should you wish to start the tour.”

“Thank you.” Ardeth replied politely. “We’ll be there soon.”

With that, the messenger took his leave, and Ardeth stopped to retrieve his sword before returning to hold open the door for Wilhelmina.

**CrimsonLady180** · 06-22-2018, 01:14 PM

"Mm-hmm! I thought so too! Besides something about him seems... off to say the least, but my people aren't so highly religious. We believe in harnessing the magic of nature around us to not disturb the balance around us, like light cannot exist without darkness and vice versa. That is... Until now since the balance has shifted in favor of darkness...," Mina happiness fade for a moment thinking of the people she left behind wondering if she should of stayed at her mother's side to defend their world. "Should I of stayed back...? Perhaps I shouldn't of left home...," she muttered softly to herself now falling deeper in thought as her fingers gently ran her fingers over the pages of the book.

Ardeth words barely reached her while being wrapped up in her thoughts, but enough for her to respond, "Yes. I'll be careful," her voice was more monotone than usual. After a moment someone knocked on the door talking to Ardeth, it seems the tour would begin soon then a soft sigh escaped her lips then returned to her soft smile. "Looks like it's time to go, I'll meet you there since you may need a moment to ready yourself. Until then!" Wilhelmina said returning the book to her bag gathering her sparkling smile back then went ahead to join the others for the tour. Some of the others seemed to have been waiting a bit while a few others we not too far behind her. Mina stood quietly to herself as she waited for the tour to begin.

**Lady Celeste** · 06-23-2018, 03:28 PM

The same carriage from before waited outside, pulled by a new set of steeds while the previous horses were being cared for in the stables. Junithal once again awaited the group inside the carriage, and once everyone was inside, the carriage set off to begin the tour.

Junithal spoke at length about the many districts, sacred landmarks, and various other sites of interest that they visited, and Ardeth listened attentively every step of the way, despite the occasional stare or whisper directed at him and the others. But then, as one stop in the tour brought them close to the city's walls, Ardeth heard the unmistakable sounds of battle and stood up.

“Stop.” Ardeth said with enough force that the carriage driver instinctively obeyed and stopped the carriage, after which Ardeth all but leaped out and ran to see what was going on.

An untrained band of thugs was currently attacking the guards at the border, accompanied by a handful of visibly decayed walking corpses. The guards were fighting valiantly, and by now the ground was already stained with the blood of the bandits as they were cut down, but the sheer numbers were starting to wear down on the guards.

Drawing his sword, Ardeth immediately started to rush into the fray to aid the guards; one guard almost struck Ardeth as he jumped in, but quickly changed his attack to a zombie that was getting close. Junithal, on the other hand, slowly stepped out of the carriage after Ardeth ran out, taking his time to follow the sounds of battle, and watched the battle as two constructs moved to his side.