Elements of the heart

by Saro0fdemonz

Conditions

"Is that all you've got boy?" the armored stallion asked the shaking form of a young colt. The colt shook his head, standing upright and charged forward, the stallion easily sidestepping and slamming his hoof against the back of his head, knocking him down to the ground.

"With every attack there's an opening, if you find that opening than you can defeat any enemy that challenges you. But you've got to look for it. You've got too many openings."

"I'm sorry Sir, I'll do better Sir" Pip said as the stallion helped him to his hooves.

"Don't try too hard boy. You've already got the battle instinct; otherwise you wouldn't be training under me. You need to be able to tap into it at will without thinking and just letting it happen." Without warning the commander spun, slamming a hoof across Pip's face, sending the colt flying across the sparring arena. Pip pushed to his hooves slowly, the commander walking over to him.

He lowered a hoof to help him and Pip sprang forward, pinning the stallion on the ground only to be flung backwards by a powerful kick. Pip rolled in the air and skid as he landed, quickly rushing the commander who again sidestepped, this time Pip was ready for it and spun at the last moment, slamming his hind-hooves into the stallion's chin. Pip panted a little, watching as Chrome Mist stood with a chuckle

"There ya go boy! You found your opening." Pip grinned, almost failing to catch the wooden sword Chrome tossed him.

"Let's move on to the next part of your training."

------

Applebloom sat guard outside the throne room, Nyx and Riku standing with her. Inside, plans were being made for the seal. Sora, his friends, the Element holders, and the Doctor as well as the Princess' of course were inside working out a plan.

They had asked Riku to join them but he had decided it best for him to stand guard outside and have them fill him in on the plan later. Applebloom smiled a little, noticing every now and then the two would glance at each other then find something else to look at it.

"So Nyx, Ah think ah recall a certain friend o' mine tellin me somethin 'bout listenin to mah heart and findin my special somepony. Have ya'll taken our advice and started lookin fer a special somepony yet?" Nyx blushed slightly and cleared her throat.

"I've already gone over this with you Bloom. I can't be with anypony..." Riku looked at her.

"Why? Did something happen?" he asked. The concern in his voice made Applebloom want to cry. These two were so perfect for each other and couldn't see it.

"No...Nothing happened...not exactly...it's just that..." Nyx stammered in her attempt to explain, unable to find the words.

"If you're not comfortable talking about it then you don't have to Nyx." Riku said softly

"Nyx is an Alicorn Riku. That means she'll live for an extremely long time, probably even forever." Applebloom explained

"So I'm just going to watch everypony I care for fade away while I'll be alone and ageless." Nyx said calmly, though her body shook a little with held back sobs.

"I see...you're afraid of tying yourself to someone because you know you'll lose them." Nyx nodded sadly, her wings fluttering a bit. Applebloom resisted the urge to smack her head against the wall behind her. She had to figure out some way to get these two together, but how? They were already close. Even Applebloom could see that much.

Maybe Belle and Scoots can help me out with this she thought to herself, smiling as the two stole another glance at each other. Applebloom couldn't help but wonder what had happened between them during the fighting.

"Nyx, during the fighting, ah heard ya scream. Me and th' others couldn't really try t' help ya as we were in a situation of our own. What happened over there? By the time we all got there all the fightin was already over."

"Well...I spotted nightmare moon and chased after her. When I found her she was trying to force Spike to join her by using Rarity's safety as a bargaining chip." Nyx smiled a little, remembering the determined look on the dragons' face.

"He refused to join her and was determined to save Rarity. But when I got there Spike was worn out and Nightmare had him pinned. So me and Riku jumped in to save him." Riku chuckled.

"I didn't do much. You're the one that tackled her and saved Spike."

"Well if you hadn't distracted her I never would've hit her"

"I'm sure you would've eventually Nyx."

"Then there was the sword..." Nyx stopped, lowering her head.

"Hey, don't blame yourself for that."

"What?" Applebloom looked between them; a painful silence clung to the air around them.

"You didn't have to do that Riku...what if you had died?"

"I didn't though." he said softly. Applebloom stood slowly.

"Ah'm gonna go check in on them." she said quietly, sneaking her way into the throne room to give them some privacy. She walked over to her friends as they went over the plan, her thoughts drifting toward Pip. She wondered how his training was going, sighing a bit to herself.

------

"With Sora buying us time the Crusaders could act as a second wall of defense." Twilight suggested

"Oh no no no Twilight. I will Not have my sister doing something so dangerous."

"Rarity...I do things just as dangerous everyday helping Nyx. I've done things even more dangerous over just the past few days!" She argued, Spike nodding a little.

"We all have Rarity. And we're going to need everypony we can get if this is going to work." he said to her, a claw on her shoulder. Rarity sighed, and nodded. She knew it was true, but the thought of losing anypony after she had almost lost Spike was too much for her. As if he knew her exact thoughts, Spike pulled Rarity into a gentle hug.

"If we don't do this Rarity, we'll lose everything and everypony we care about."

"Well, we've got Riku and Nyx as well. They can help the Crusaders and defend the barrier. Though it will take Celestia or Luna's power to hold a barrier strong enough." Twilight said, rubbing her temple with a hoof. She had been going over plans for hours now and it was starting to take its toll on her. Luna draped a wing over her shoulder, bringing a smile from the Unicorn mare.

"It will have to be you sister. I have things I must tend to." Celestia said from her place in the circle. Luna looked at her sister in momentary confusion, wondering what could be as important as the entire fate of Equestria. The look on her sister's face told her it was something that must be done, the younger Alicorn merely nodding in response.

"If Flutter is gonna be doin somethin this dangerous then ah'll be there t' protect her." Big Macintosh added, making the shy yellow pegasus turn red. She buried her muzzle in his neck with a soft sigh.

"That is a wonderful idea Macintosh. In fact, I think that all of you should be there. Spike, I'll be expecting you to use those spells I taught you to protect Rarity and your friends. Braeburn, I expect the same of you, though I know I don't have to say it." The stallion chuckled a little, rubbing a hoof against the back of his head.

"So, our basic plan is this. Sora and his friends will take their place in front of the Seal; the crusaders as well as Nyx and Riku will be behind them as a second wall of defense. As a final resort, Spike, Macintosh, and Braeburn will be protecting us inside of the barrier which I will be holding. Together you all should be able to buy enough time for the Elements to gather their energy and reseal the heartless. Then Sora can lock it forever and we can be done with this." Luna said, going back over the plan to be sure everypony understood.

"You make it sound so easy Princess." Sora said a bit louder than he would've hoped.

"I understand that it won't be an easy task. Even with the healing spells you and Riku used we are all still worn out from the past few days. I worry most for Rarity and Fluttershy though. This could be harmful to their unborn foals." Rarity blinked and blushed.

"Wh...what?!" She gasped. Spike just stared between Luna and Rarity in shock.

"Were you not aware? I apologize if I ruined the surprise."

"b...but how could you possibly know?"

"Luna has certain talents that allow her to know these things. Similar to Pinkie Pies 'Pinkie sense'." Celestia explained. Rarity's blush deepened. She rested a hoof on her stomach then looked at Spike. Neither could find any words for that moment. There were none that could be said. Though the two of them were now more determined than ever to make sure the seal was fixed. They had too much to lose.

"Well shoot, is there anypony here that ain't carryin a foal?" Applejack joked, all eyes turned to Pinkie and Braeburn slowly. The pair were silent for a moment before realizing what their friends were staring at them for.

"Hey! I think I would know if I was gonna be a momma! Besides me and Braesy haven't even..."

"Okay Pinks! Ah think they get it!" Braeburn interrupted, his cheeks flushed red.

"In any case this only gives us more reason to finish this while we have a chance to. If we wait any longer then we may not be able to seal the heartless at all. I've been studying the cracks and it could burst at any given moment." Twilight's voice showed a bit of the panic that was flooding through her at the moment, though not much, it was enough to catch everyponies attention.

"Listen Twilight. We all understand th' situation, but we're plum tired and if we just mosey on up to that seal as we are, we're probably gonna mess things up. Ah know we are runnin out of time, but what use are we if we can't keep our eyes open?" Applejack said gently. Twilight looked around at them, noticing they had bags under their eyes and were fighting back yawns. Twilight sighed a little, realizing just how tired she was as well.

"We will have to risk another night. Get some rest everypony." Celestia said to them. Luna watched as her sister stood and headed for the door.

"Sister, what matters do you need to tend to that are keeping you from holding the barrier?"

"I cannot say dear sister, please just trust me." Celestia said without turning to face her younger sister. Luna sighed a little, caught by surprise as something pressed against her. It took her a moment to realize Twilight had fallen asleep against her.

"Alright sister. I trust you."

------

The two stared at one another, barely noticing as Applebloom slipped into the Throne room.

"Riku...I'm sorry..."

"Nyx, you don't have anything to apologize for. We both did what we felt we had to do. It was stupid of me to throw myself in front of that sword and it was just as stupid of you to creep inside my heart like that." Nyx stared at him for a moment. She had thought they had been inside his mind. Was that horrible darkness truly his heart?

"th-that was your heart?" she choked out in surprise. He nodded.

"That's what the Darkness does. It just eats away at you until there is nothing but the darkness." he smiled at her, noticing the shock and worry on her face.

"But, there's a light there now. Protecting me from that darkness. I can't explain it, but I can feel it." The Alicorn blushed as Riku sat beside her.

"It's because of you Nyx. Because you broke me free of that darkness and brought me into the light. So stop apologizing and blaming yourself for what happened. If any of it was your fault, which it wasn't; You've already made up for it." She blushed, resting her head against his shoulder. Riku stiffened a little but relaxed, smiling at her. The two nearly jumped out of their skin as Celestia exited the throne room.

She gave them a knowing smile that vanished just as quickly as it appeared. She nodded to them and walked down the hallway, the others soon making their way out of the room. Applebloom grinned, seeing the two of them so close, breaking out into laughter as they blushed. Scootaloo yawned and looked at them, raising an eyebrow.

"Sooooo...Bloom, Belle, how about we go...do something...somewhere else, like right now." Scootaloo said, tugging on Applebloom's tail and gently pushing Sweetie Belle down the hall. Nyx sighed, hiding her face in her hooves.

"You ok Nyx?" Riku asked, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. It felt so warm and comforting...she shook herself and took a deep breath.

"I...I'm fine...I just need to think is all..." She stood slowly, feeling Riku's eyes on her. She took a slow breath to calm her thoughts, not noticing as Sora stepped out of the throne room. He gave them a small smile and took a seat in front of them.

"So the plan is pretty simple. Me, Donald, and Goofy will use our heartless form to hold back the Darkness once its set free. Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Applebloom are gonna be behind us as backup in case we can't hold it all back. And you and Nyx are gonna be behind them keeping the Elements safe." Sora explained.

"Seems Simple enough." Riku said quietly.

"You ok Riku?" Sora asked

"yea. I'll be fine buddy. I'm just worried about that heartless form." It seemed like there was more he wanted to say, his eyes landing on Nyx for a moment then back to Sora, but he remained silent. Sora decided it best not to press the issue and yawned.

"Well. The Princess said for all of us to go get some sleep so we'll have enough energy to break the seal."

"You seem awful cheerful for someone about to face down a tidal wave of death." Nyx commented.

"It's kind of a rule of ours. No frowns, no sad faces. Just smiles and hope." Sora said with a grin, Goofy and Donald nodding agreement from either side of him.

"Yup! Besides we do things like this all the time." Goofy added with a smile of his own. Donald just yawned loudly and stretched a bit.

"I say we go to bed already."

"Good idea Donald, we'll see you guys tomorrow" Sora said, walking away with his friends to their room.

"yea...tomorrow..." Riku said quietly, staring at his hand.

"Riku...you aren't thinking of leaving again are you?" Nyx asked him softly. He shook his head.

"No, I already promised I would stay." Riku stood slowly, dusting off his cloak.

"I guess I'll see ya in the morning Nyx." he said, walking down the hall.

"Uh...yea..." she watched as he walked away and sighed to herself.

what the hay is wrong with me?! Do I really have a crush on this guy? He isn't even a pony! But... Nyx shook her head and sighed, heading to the room that had been given to her. It wasn't too far away from her mothers' room, or rather Luna's room. Nyx climbed into the bed, realizing just how tired she was as her head hit the pillow. Even in such a big comfortable bed she barely managed to get any sleep, her thoughts always drifting to the strange boy in the cloak.

------

She sighed, burying her muzzle in his neck.

"Can you imagine it Spike? A foal of our own." Rarity swooned, lost in the wonders of motherhood. Spike smiled at the sparkle in her eyes, knowing she was imagining dressing up the poor thing or going to the spa together.

"I didn't think it would actually be possible..." he admitted. Rarity looked into his eyes, tilting her head a little. Spike felt his heart skip a few beats as he stared back into her eyes.

"What do you mean Darling?"

"well...I'm a Dragon...you're a Unicorn...I don't need Twilight or a bunch of books to tell me that we won't have a normal foal." Rarity was a bit taken back by what he said. She hadn't really thought of it until now. Just what kind of child would they have?

Rarity gently kissed his cheek, noticing the slight shivers running through the dragons body. over time she had learned about little things that gave away what he was thinking. Right now, he was worried. She smiled at him, blushing as he brushed her mane out of her face with a claw.

"If it'll put your mind at ease Spike, we can speak with Twilight and have her do some research for us. I must admit I am a bit frightened...But I know I'll have my Prince charming there to keep me safe." she rested her head against him, sighing as he draped an arm around her. It only took a few moments for the unicorn to fall asleep, leaving Spike to his own thoughts.

"We'll have to break the seal soon...if we fail...we'll lose everything..." he looked down at the sleeping form of the Unicorn.

"We can't fail..."

------

The colt panted a little, dropping the sword he was holding.

"It's getting late boy, don't ya have a mare ya need to be getting back to?"

"I'm no good to Applebloom like this Sir...I need to be rea..." Pip gasped, finding himself on his back. Chrome's practice sword against his throat.

"You're no good to her dead boy. And if you don't get yourself a good rest that's all you'll be." Pip sighed a little and nodded.

"I like you boy. you've got the talent and the willpower, but you're lacking in the brains department. Its more than just strength and power, much more. Maybe someday you'll figure that out. Now go on, get to your marefriend before she finds somepony else to occupy her time." Pip blushed slightly, thanking him for the training and turning down a hallway toward Applebloom's room.

Chrome smiled a bit and looked around the sparring circle, illuminated only by the light of Luna's moon above. The boy reminded him of himself when he was young. He grinned a little, putting away the training gear.

Pip opened the door to Applebloom's room, blushing as the mare threw her hooves around his neck, kissing him softly. He wrapped his hooves around her, his ears twitching at the sound of giggling behind Applebloom. He broke away from the kiss, his face bright red as he caught sight of Applebloom's friends, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle.

"OH COME ON!" Sweetie Belle yelled, flopping onto her back on the bed

"HA! Pay up!" Scootaloo laughed. Sweetie Belle sighed a little, grumbling under her breath as she handed over five bits.

"what..." was all Pip was able to say before Applebloom pulled him into the room.

"Sorry 'bout that Pip. we got a lil bored and Scoots came up with some games fer us t' play."

"We made a bet on how you'd react to seeing us here." Scootaloo said with a grin, tucking away the bits into her bag beside her.

"Scoots bet that you'd blush like you'd been caught red hoofed doing something you shouldn't, and I bet that you wouldn't be surprised at all to see us." Sweetie Belle mumbled, her sour mood vanishing as Scootaloo kissed her cheek.

"I'll make it up to you. I'll get us some cupcakes, my treat." she said with a smile

"Yea, with MY bits!" Sweetie Belle joked, the room filled with laughter.

"Might I ask why all of you are here?" Pip managed to finally say.

"Well, like we said, we were bored and it was the closest place to get away from Nyx and Riku."

"That reminds me. Ah was hopin ya'll could help me out with those two."

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea." Sweetie Belle said, making the two fillies turn toward her. Pip just took a seat, not understanding at all what was happening.

"What the hay do you mean Belle? those two are PERFECT for each other!"

"You say that scoots but look at them. Riku isn't even a pony."

"Well neither is Spike but he is still marrying your sister!" Scootaloo said a bit angrily

"That's different. Sure Spike is a dragon, but Riku isn't even from here. He is something completely different that doesn't even exist here. How would him and Nyx actually have any kind of relationship? Besides that who even knows how long 'Humans' even live for. I want Nyx to find somepony as much as you two do but we can't force her into something like this."

"As much as ah hate t' say it...yer kinda right Belle. But even so, we gotta do somethin."

"Well what can we do?"

------

They watched as the Stallion paced around the room, lost in his thoughts. Applejack sighed, putting a hoof on his shoulder.

"Macintosh, ya gotta get some rest."

"Ah can't sleep knowin those things might be comin for you or Flutter at any moment Applejack."

"Thanks for worrying about me" Rainbow Dash joked from a nearby bed, managing to lighten the mood a bit.

"Mah point Applejack is we don't know when they could attack. Ya'll saw that thing attackin th' Princess."

"Yea, but Pinkie took him out without a problem." Rainbow argued.

"That crazy mare can do anything." Macintosh grumbled, sitting beside Fluttershy's bed. The worn out pegasus had fallen asleep not too long ago. They were currently sharing the room, not due to lack of space, but to comfort their friend and keep an eye on her. It had been Big Macintosh's idea, and while Rainbow didn't like having to share a room she was willing to be there to protect her oldest friend.

"Listen Macintosh, we know your worried and everything but you've got to get some sleep. Fluttershy is gonna need you to be at your best." Rainbow said with a yawn. Applejack nodded and Macintosh sighed in defeat.

"Alright...ah'll try t' get some rest." he said, laying down next to Fluttershy, smiling a bit as the pegasus nuzzled him in her sleep. Applejack smiled, watching them for a moment before going to her own mare. Applejack sighed, closing her eyes as her head lay against the rainbow maned pegasus.

"g'night everypony."

------

She smiled as the unicorn slept, turning her attention to the night sky outside her window. Luna had carried Twilight to their room after she had fallen asleep. She didn't want to wake her and besides that she looked so adorable when she was sleeping. Luna smiled to herself for a moment, thinking of what they would have to do. She turned her attention back to the mare that lay beside her.

Painful memories rose up inside of her, quickly pushed into the back of her mind. She stood, making sure not to wake Twilight and snuck out of the room. She quietly walked the halls of the Castle until she came to the library. If there was a place to give her the answers she needed, it was here.

------

The halls were silent, save for his footsteps. He had originally intended to go to his room and rest for tomorrow, but his thoughts kept resting on Nyx and he found he couldn't sleep. Instead he began wandering the halls, not really sure what to do. Walking helped him to think though, whether it was a walk on the beach back home or just pacing. Though he could only think of one thing that night. He sighed and spun, his Keyblade appearing as a figure stepped forward from the darkness.

"Oh? So you can sense me. That's interesting. Tell me, you wouldn't happen to be the one named 'Riku' would you? The Traitor, the one hidden in darkness?"

"Who wants to know?" Riku asked calmly

"Where are my manners. You may call me Xayir." the figure lowered the hood of his cloak, a small grin on his face. A large scar ran up his cheek and over his eye. His other cheek was still red from having Pinkie's hoof slam into it.

"So I can take a guess that you're the one that Revived the Organization?"

"I wouldn't say revived, more like begun anew. Xemnes was an old fool, though he did a wonderful job. His failure allowed the creation of many powerful Nobodies."

"What? that's Impossible!"

"Oh is it now? What of his attempt to create Kingdom Hearts. What was it that old fool said before he died. Oh yes I believe it was something along the lines of "Anything Could Happen" You should remember that. It is what gave you back your form after all. Though you seem unchanged since that day. How many years has it been? Four? Five years?" Riku gritted his teeth. He had noticed it too. Over the years Sora had grown but he hadn't changed at all.

"What are you getting at?" Riku asked, a bit of his anger showing in his voice.

"You're special Riku. Your control over the darkness is a marvelous gift. Your talent for it is simply amazing and now it doesn't even touch your heart. Add that onto the power Kingdom hearts gave you and well.."

"wait, the power kingdom hearts gave me? Just what the hell are you talking about?" The man held out his hand with a smile.

"Come with me Riku, and I'll answer everything. But I'll require that you do me a favor." The smile turned into a smirk

"I want you to kill the Elements."

------

"MY QUEEN! She is coming!" She smiled to herself, standing from her throne.

"Have them ready, I don't want her escaping. She has done us the favor of bringing herself to us. Do not fail me." He saluted and flew off to relay her orders to the others. The Queen walked down the steps away from her throne as the pony she had been waiting for entered her throne room.

"Princess Celestia. To what do I owe this visit?"

"Chrysalis. Surely you have noticed what is happening throughout Equestria. I come to you seeking your help." The Changeling queen threw her head back as she laughed, the horrible sound echoing throughout the caverns that were her castle. She lowered her head, sighing as her fit of laughter stopped.

"Why would I bother to help you Princess?" she said the word with as much hate as she could muster. The Alicorn Princess ignoring it.

"If you don't, then all of that love you need to feed your changelings will vanish, along with you and the rest of Equestria." Chrysalis stopped circling and turned to look at her. Raising a hoof to call off the attack, her changelings gathering around her instead of leaping at the Alicorn.

"Go on."

"There is a powerful seal which holds back the majority of the Darkness and Evil of Equestria. But it has begun to degrade and break apart. If we do not fix it, then all of Equestria will be devoured by Darkness."

"So you want my help and you've come alone? I knew you were quite the foal Celestia, but this has to be your biggest blunder." The changelings leapt towards Celestia, a barrier blocking their way. Celestia glared at Chrysalis as Shining Armor made his way out of the shadows.

"She isn't alone." He said, his horn glowing has he held the barrier.

"She has us." Cadence said as she too came out of the shadows, her wing resting on top of shining armor, her horn glowing and adding her magic to his barrier.

"And you are going to help us." Celestia declared, her horn and eyes glowing. Chrysalis began to step backwards slowly, the barrier getting closer to her, her changelings running from the magic that had flung them out of Canterlot. The Queen sighed in defeat.

"Very well..." Celestia nodded, the glow vanishing from her horn. Chrysalis saw her chance and ran, screaming as she felt chains wrap around her.