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Sora looked worriedly at his friends. Ever since they’d arrived here, they’d had to fight continuously, with each opponent being more powerful than the previous one. They hadn’t even met the strongest of them yet. Ansem would be their final opponent, and a fight with him would be imminent now.
Kairi got up again and wiped the sweat from her forehead. “Come on, let’s go through.”
“You sure you can go on?” Sora asked, worried. “Ansem might be waiting for us behind the portal…”
Kairi looked at him determinedly. “We’ve come this far, we can’t give up now. Don’t worry about me. I may not look like it, but I’m tougher than you’d think.”
Sora smiled at her. “I know that.”
“Yeah, let’s finish Ansem off and get the king back!” Donald called with excitement.
Sora nodded. “Alright, let’s go then.”
They passed through the portal and, to their surprise, they came to a small place that radiated a mysterious beauty. Glistening little waterfalls flowed out of the cliff walls, and scattered rays of light illuminated the darkness of the cave. The light shone directly on a door at the end of the cave.
As Sora’s gaze fell upon it, he noticed that he had seen this door before. Was it the same door from his dreams?
“There’s a door here?” Donald asked, not expecting a door in a deserted place like this. Especially not one that was of excellent quality, with all its ornamentation and stained glass windows. Curious, Sora approached the door when he suddenly heard a voice.
“Huh?” he said in surprise.
“What’s wrong?” asked Donald.
“Don’t you hear something?” he asked his friends. Kairi and the others shook their heads as Sora heard the voice again.
Careful. This is the last haven you’ll find here. Beyond there is no light to protect you.
But don’t be afraid. Your heart is the mightiest weapon of all.
Remember, you are the one who will open the door to the light.
Sora listened closely while the others stared at him in confusion.
“I don’t hear anything,” Donald finally said.
Sora turned to them. “Strange. That voice seemed so familiar.” He remembered that the voice had the same sound as the voice that had spoken to him in his dreams. “Maybe it’s just my imagination.”
Donald had the feeling that Sora was slowly losing his mind. After all the fighting he was probably at the end of his strength, too. “Maybe you’d better take a rest!” he suggested, calling him back to reality.
Kairi took a step forward towards the door. “Well, let’s see what’s on the other side.” She reached for the doorknob but Sora held her back. “Wait!”
Kairi looked at him in surprise.
“Whatever’s beyond that door, it’s gonna be dangerous. Maybe Donald is right. We should take a final rest,” he suggested, taking the voice’s warning to heart.
“Yeah! A rest sounds good!” Donald replied.
Goofy nodded. “Uh-huh, we should fight Ansem at full strength.”
Donald put his wand aside and found a ledge to settle down on. He closed his eyes and sighed in relief.
Goofy leaned against a wall and let his mind wander. He thought of the king and fervently hoped they would bring him back safe and sound. He pictured them having a huge party back at the castle, with Sora and Kairi joining them, too.
Exhausted, Sora sat down and leaned against the door. He knew, beyond this door, their fates would be decided. Beyond this door, he might find Riku again. Then they could finally return to the island together. There was nothing he wished for more.
That suddenly seemed rather strange to him. He was thinking back to the times when he had everything—his friends and his home. Yet at that time he had wanted nothing more than to leave the island. Now he missed the simple days he had spent there with Riku and Kairi. Back when everything was still fine.
Suddenly, he was startled out of his thoughts when he felt something warm on his shoulder. Kairi sat down next to him and leaned her head against him. Her eyes were closed, and she seemed to be lost in her own thoughts.
Sora looked at her. Did she want the same thing he did? Would a peaceful life back on the island make her happy? He could tell that Kairi loved the adventures they’d had together. Surely, she would want to go on another one. And he would probably want that too after a while. An adventure that was exciting like this one, but without all the suffering and huge responsibilities. They would travel the worlds again and visit all their newfound friends. Riku would come with them, and so would Donald and Goofy.
His gaze now wandered to his two friends. They had had so much fun together, and if they really did have to go their separate ways after defeating Ansem, he would miss them terribly. But at least Riku would be with him again. And Kairi…she was always there. Then he remembered her warning.
There’s no guarantee that we’ll stay together once this is all over.
The thought that Kairi would no longer be with him troubled him. She was right, anything could happen the moment they faced Ansem. Maybe they would win, but what if they didn’t? And what if he couldn’t protect Kairi from Ansem? His eyebrows furrowed as he brooded more.
Suddenly he felt a warm hand cover his. Kairi smiled at him. “Your heart’s uneasy again.”
Embarrassed, Sora looked away from her. “I’ve been thinking…what if this is our last moment together…” he said in a low voice.
Kairi lowered her eyes to the floor. Unlike Sora, she knew the fate that awaited her. The mysterious man’s words were still ringing in her head.
No matter what you do, you cannot stop the things that are destined to happen.
She didn’t want to believe him, but something inside her knew that he was right.
Sora, Donald, and Goofy would continue their journey…without her. She was prepared for this, but Sora wasn’t.
She took Sora’s hand firmly in both hands and looked at him. “Sora…remember what I told you. Wherever you go, I’m always with you.”
Sora looked at Kairi’s hands, which closed around his. She was right, they would always be together. After all, their hearts were connected. No matter where she was, a part of her would always stay with him.
He leaned his head against hers with their hands intertwined. They closed their eyes and dreamed together while feeling each other’s warmth. Sora wanted to remember this moment. He wanted to remember Kairi’s warmth that flowed through him one last time before the final battle. He absorbed all of it and kept it inside his heart, where it would never be forgotten.