Application
Player Information
Name: Kal
Age: 20 /sob
AIM SN: Guardian795 or walkthedawn
email: otherpromise@gmail.com
Have you played in an LJ based game before? Yep
Bonus: How did you hear about Siren's Pull? dear_mun
Character Information
General
Canon Source: Kingdom Hearts
Canon Format: Video Game
Character's Name: Riku
Character's Age: 16
Conditional: If your character is 13 years of age or under, please clarify how they will be played. N/A
What form will your character's NV take? Riku's will take the form of a simple, black, PDA-style phone. It'll have an attached pen to write if he wishes, and audio/video will work at the touch of a button. It will have a slide-out keyboard to also type in text, and it can easily fit in his back pocket or one of those large ones on his ridiculous jeans. And how cute, a little Keyblade symbol on the back of it!
Abilities
Character's Canon Abilities: Having grown up with plenty of free time, Riku has spent a good deal of his childhood being Sora's rival. In doing so, they both began to learn how to fight each other with wooden swords. Riku, at the beginning of Kingdom Hearts, was by far the stronger and faster of the two. However, as he slowly sank further into the darkness, he began to lose his initial bright determination and strength against his friend.
When he was possessed, he could control the darkness to an extent that only Xehanort's Heartless could and once he was freed from that imprisonment, he was able to control a little bit of that. Accepting himself, or learning to, Riku has the potential to master both light and dark and become the most powerful keybearer out there. Sadly, this is not the case now, and might not be for a long time.
Riku now can make use of several aerial attacks, as well as using his trademark Dark Aura and Dark Shield. He knows a lot of high-level magic spells and is a great defender in fights, while Sora takes the initiative to fight head-on. He knows a high-level Cure spell and can also bring a fallen teammate back from unconsciousness quickly. He's considered one of the most powerful characters, second only to Sora (or perhaps equal now), and has been called a perfect fusion of Dark and Light, using the path of Dawn.
Coming to terms with himself, and giving up his form as "Ansem", Riku has lost the ability to call Dark Portals and summon the Guardian, but that's as of now. The potential to use the Heartless again, or at least his minion, is unknown.
Riku also has one "miscellaneous" ability: he can sense/smell Darkness, no matter where it is, and can identify people according to their "scents" (which might have been a mistranslation for "sensing"). While he doesn't use this much in the second game, he uses it often in Chain of Memories and references it several times when he's come across an extremely dark character.
A more extensive list of abilities and further explanation can be found at the Kingdom Hearts Wiki.
Conditional: If your character has no superhuman canon abilities, what dormant ability will you give them? I think he has enough abilities, but depending on how things work out darkness-wise, there's always that option to use his darker powers some months down the line?
Weapons: Riku makes use of Way to Dawn, his own Keyblade, which is in the shape of Soul Eater with minor adjustments.
History/Personality/Plans/etc.
Character History: Riku's story begins on Destiny Islands, his hometown. As a child, he spent most of his days playing on the far off island with his childhood friend, Sora. They often would challenge each other to races or mini sparring matches, always testing each other and growing stronger. Birth By Sleep Spoiler: Some time when he was young, Terra appeared on the island and greeted Riku, realizing he had the potential to be the next Keybearer. He told him he should train hard, but to not tell anyone of what transpired in their meeting. Spoilers End Here
And so Riku took to trying to become stronger, training and pushing himself every day to be a little better. But even this did not culminate until one night, during a star shower, a little girl appeared on their island. Her name was Kairi, and immediately the boys latched to her and made her their friend, sensing that she was important. They grew fond of her, not only as a friend but perhaps, one day, as something more, and they took to trying to impress her. Riku, being older, stayed the stronger and faster of all the Island kids, but it was Sora that she warmed up to the most. And so, instead of just focusing on trying to impress her with skills and wit, Riku turned to another route. Ever since he had heard the story of the man who left the Islands, had seen Terra and Kairi come to the Islands from nowhere at all, he had known there were other worlds out there. And that boy, obsessed with trying to find a way out, began to plan. Eventually, those plans became a raft that they would build together and take to the outside, regardless of the consequences. Kairi and Sora enthusiastically joined in, but it soon became apparent that Riku was changing into someone the two of them weren't sure of any longer. In jest, Kairi said they should take the raft and go, that Riku had changed, and that they should stay together.
But that was not how it would be.
Riku had long wanted to open the door in the Secret Place, sensing that was the key to their departure from Destiny Islands forever. Tugged on by his jealousy of Sora, by his need to leave and start anew, he opened it and let the Darkness in. Heartless flooded the world and the world itself began to disappear. Kairi, in the process, lost her heart, and Riku gave into the Darkness, sure it would be his guide to his true desires. It was there that he met "Ansem", a hunched over figure who allowed him passage into Hollow Bastion, where he met Maleficent and her minions. Instead of trying to force Riku to her cause, since she sensed his strong heart, she instead filled him with lies about Sora and how he had forgotten and abandoned him when he found new friends. While skeptical, when Riku saw Sora laughing with some new acquaintances, he had all the proof he needed. To further seal the deal, Maleficent showed him the heartless Kairi, comatosed, and promised to help him scour the worlds in search of her heart.
Riku couldn't agree quick enough. Maleficent gifted him with the darkness and allowed him passage to any world he wished, but her influence in every action he took was clearly shown. She urged him to collect the other Princesses and bring them to her so that she could open a door in Hollow Bastion that perhaps held the key to restoring Kairi's heart. Instead, she believed that all of the Princesses together would simply open the door and give her more than enough power to quickly conquer any world she wished. Riku played into her hands, only wishing to bring Kairi back, and obtained the Keyblade from Sora. When he tried to use it to fight his old friend, Sora took it back and defeated him, crushing the boy's hopes of showing Kairi how strong he had become for her and his own worth.
"Ansem" approached him again, offering to lend him more darkness so he could conquer any who stood in his way. Instead, he took over Riku's body which had been his plan all along. Allowing Maleficent to do as she wished, "Ansem" knew she would gift him with darkness and make him a worthy vessel. He tried to use Riku's body to defeat Sora and open the door, but Riku refused to give in. He took the boy's body instead to the End of the World, where he drew Sora in to use him and the Keyblade to open the door to Kingdom Hearts. After a long battle, Sora triumphed, "Ansem" disintegrated, and Riku appeared once more inside of Kingdom Hearts. He urged Sora to close the door on him and King Mickey (who had come to help), and told him to take care of Kairi, as he was then lost in darkness.
Somehow, Riku appeared in Castle Oblivion instead and found his way in the bottom basement. He made his way slowly to the first floor, "Ansem" guiding him and taunting him all the way. Wishing to use him for their own gain, Vexen, Lexaeus, and Zexion each tried their hand at taking the boy as a trump card against the upper level Organization members, who were using Sora in just the same way. Vexen extracted data from Riku's fight with him in order to make a replica to be of use instead, but when the replica was taken from him, Zexion sent Lexaeus to deal with Riku. Riku fought against the larger man but was incapacitated; "Ansem" took over his body and killed the Organization member, and then attempted to fully dispatch Riku. King Mickey appeared as an afterimage, trying to help him keep going. He faced off against Zexion, who nearly won him over by using Light to hurt the Darkness in Riku's heart, but Namine intervened and reminded him that he didn't need to be afraid of the Darkness, since it was only just a part of him that he could control. He defeated Zexion and took his leave.
He met Naminé, who showed him that Sora was sleeping so he could regain the memories he had lost during his stay at the Castle, and she offered to lock away the Darkness in Riku's heart forever. He refused, saying he'd rather face "Ansem" himself and regain what was his. "Ansem", however, had not been "Ansem" at all, but a man named DiZ who was only attempting to get Riku to break free of the Darkness. However, he still had to face the real "Ansem" in his heart and drive him back. Upon doing so, he only realized that the Darkness within him was still strong enough to overpower him, and that he'd need to work towards another solution. He departed Castle Oblivion and took the Road to Dawn, walking with the King out of the plains.
They parted ways (see: Riku left him) when the Darkness began to grow stronger within him, and he went back to DiZ to offer his services to aid in Sora's awakening, donning a blindfold in order to keep back the Dark within him. For the next few months, Riku aided in protecting Naminé, keeping watch over Sora's progress, and probably running small errands for DiZ on others worlds when he wasn't keeping an eye on Organization XIII. He ran into a girl named Xion and easily overpowered her due to her anger and recklessness, but when he went to look at her face beneath the hood, he was met with a sight he didn't want to see. Baffled, he left her, giving her the chance to live and telling her that her Keyblade was a fake and no good. Riku disappeared for some time, reappearing once more to help Xion on Destiny Islands. Even knowing what her fate would be, he gave her the option to choose what would be best for her; seeing her with Sora's face only confirmed that she would have to disappear anyway. He stayed with her and helped hide her from the Organization members until she was captured again, when he began to keep an eye on her as Sora's progress began to slow and become complicated.
Xion came to him with her decision, and, having grown somewhat attached to her (since she looks similar to Kairi and wears Sora's face), Riku found himself dismayed at her departure and waited for the result he knew was coming. As Sora's progress halted altogether, he left to confront Roxas, finding his memories of Xion had begun to unravel. He helped Roxas fight the Heartless that had gathered to slow his own progression to The Castle That Never Was, but then took it upon himself to strike the boy down. In the end, Roxas proved too much for him; Riku gave into the darkness and took on the form of Xehanort's Heartless in order to defeat the boy. He brought him back to DiZ and resigned himself to skirting around the issue of his transformation, but soon revealed his new form to the older man, who only laughed in shame. As the seven days of Roxas' capture went by, he stepped in more than once to assure the boy wouldn't slip out of the digital illusion, and to keep Naminé from revealing too much to him. DiZ became angered by her constant interference and ordered Riku to kill her (and Axel, for his constant appearances) once she had finished Sora's restoration.
When Roxas finally went back to Sora, Riku went to take Naminé out of the Mansion, and DiZ confronted him, telling him to fulfill the command given to him. Refusing, Riku let Naminé leave and stood his ground as the Heartless came. When finding her again with Axel, the man revealed Riku's true order to kill her, but Riku let them both go, citing that he owed them. As Sora made his way throughout the worlds, Riku followed and kept an eye on him, leaving clues when he went to other worlds or got too far ahead of the boy. Eventually, when Kairi was kidnapped, Riku tried to go after her, and found he couldn't get her away from Saix before the man took her to the World That Never Was. Instead, he focused his efforts on getting Sora, and himself, there safely.
When he finally arrived in the dark world, he bypassed anything else and went to find Kairi, encountering Saix as he was trying to keep the girl from leaving. He attacked him, and when Saix eagerly invited Riku to fight him elsewhere, he almost took the invitation. Kairi called out to him, forcing him to stay, and took off his hood. Despite what he looked like, and the sort of memories that might trigger in her, she urged him to go with her to Sora and the two made their way to his side. Forming a Keyblade for Kairi out of his own, he helped her in the incoming fight, and then made way to leave when Sora caught up to them. Kairi revealed to Sora that it was Riku, not Xehanort's Heartless, and Riku confessed that he didn't want to be found and was too ashamed. But he agreed to go with them and finish the fight. They took out the rest of Organization XIII, and eventually found DiZ, Ansem the Wise, attempting to destroy Kingdom Hearts. When his machine exploded, Riku's form was reverted back to his own, and he gratefully accepted the chance to fight at Sora's side and protect him.
Through another series of battles, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, the King, and Pluto all went through a Dark Portal to home. Riku and Sora finished off what was left of Xemnas in one final battle, which left Riku injured, and found their way to the Dark Margin. Staying there for a time, Riku admitted his jealousies to Sora, and the two reconciled. Finding a letter in a bottle from Kairi that was sent some time before, it opened the Door to Light and the two went home to find their friends again.
It was some time later that a letter arrived from King Mickey, detailing a new quest for them, and that's when Riku will be arriving from.
Point in Canon: Post-KH2 Ending; just after receiving the letter from King Mickey.
Character Personality: At the beginning of the series, Riku was portrayed as a competitive, brave, confident, and strong boy with a good head on his shoulders and a good sense of humor. Mature for his age, he still kept up the appearances of being the strongest and the best despite his own small insecurities and jealousies towards his friend Sora. By delving into the darkness, he allowed his heart to grow weak and vulnerable to the whims of people who would use him for their own gain instead of doing what he felt was right.
After suffering through the trials of Castle Oblivion and after moving on with the shadow of Xehanort's Heartless over his heart, he came to realize his mistakes and began to atone for them for the next two games. The end result showed Riku as a different sort of young man by the end of the series, grown both physically and emotionally.
Now, no longer overly confident, Riku has retained his bravery and competitiveness as he finally settles into a comfortable niche as protector of his friends. His demeanor in the second game gives the appearance of a young man who is laid back and reserved, almost resigned, and he's shown to be realistic and well-grounded. He isn't as forward with his wishes and his impulses, instead opting to hold true to Sora's quest so that his friends can go home. He holds the upmost loyalty to them, sacrificing everything and anything he had to keep them safe and to see Sora restored to his former self. Even in doing this, the regret Riku still holds in his heart is something to remember, since he almost even doesn't go back with Sora and Kairi out of shame for what he's done. He may have done a great deal to redeem himself, but in his eyes, that isn't comparable to the sins he's committed in his selfishness. He once had the option to seal away the darkness, but Riku's underlying sense of justice had him accepting his punishment and fate for what he had done, knowing he had to stay awake and protect the boy he had hurt and thrown away. This part of him shines through again later when he professes that he has no right to give into revenge and help DiZ destroy people for the sake of his anger, since he had done the same before to someone he cared for.
One trait Riku has that has never gone away is his natural curiosity; because of his longing to know, see, and discover more than he knows, he opened the door to his world and let in the darkness. His curiosity has led him astray but he's reigned that in since the beginning of the series; even so, he still wishes to see more of what's out there, and to not feel so cramped on a never-changing island. He's kept his quirky sense of humor, making teasing aside jokes about Sora and his friends, but they aren't nearly as spiteful as they once were, since he's moved beyond his petty jealousies of Sora and has come to accept himself for who he is, darkness, light, and all.
Character Plans: At first, Riku will just try adjusting to a new society and to the fact that he can't go off to another world because he's not too fond of this one. When he catches any sort of whiff that Organization members are here, he'll look into that, and will probably go about trying to help and protect Naminé from anything in this new world. Beyond that, he'll mostly start to adjust to having to stay in one place, fend for himself, get a job, and actually work for a different sort of greater good that extends beyond "kill Heartless, bring back the Light".
Appearance/PB: Default | Blindfolded | Xehanort's Heartless and Guardian (just in case)
Writing Samples
First Person Sample
[Voice]
Where did the island go? This isn't...
Another world? But how? Sora? Kairi? Are you two here? Hello? This can't be right. I thought we were finished with -- ow. Slow, Riku. That still hurts.
Would anyone mind telling me where I am, and what happened to my island? I can't be the only one here.
Third Person Sample
Riku and Sora were back to back, reflecting Xemnas' many lasers with quick percision and grace. They maneuvered, never showing a faulty side, their blades smacking the red lances back and out of the way with ease. Twisting, turning, their blades whirling around...it was almost like a dance. A deadly dance.
Within a minute, the lasers faded to light, leaving the two temporarily blinded. Riku fell to his knees, hands down on the ground in exhaustion. The light cleared slowly, and he looked up to briefly see the shadow of Xemnas before one of his lasers smashed into his chest, sending him flying back. "RIKU!" he heard from Sora as he landed, twisting in unimaginable shock and pain. How had Xemnas managed to get to them so quickly? He should have sensed him, smelled him even from a distance. Disappointing, he chided himself, hand flying to his chest in pain. He lifted his head to see Xemnas' laser pointing at him, the other reared back for a shot at Sora. His eyes connected with the Superior's for one brief moment, emerald against that strange red gold, and the teenager forced himself up.
How he managed it, he wasn't sure. Riku jumped in front of the attack, facing Sora, his keyblade striking against the laser in Xemnas' hand. He felt Xemnas push away from him, and he dropped from the air, feet prepared to land... He stared at Sora, the two lost in time for the briefest of moments - I can't let you - and locked in a standstill of wills, before he put a hand on the boy's chest and shoved him out of Xemnas' line of fire. He felt a rush of wind go by his side before the sting of another laser into his upper left thigh. He cried out in pain, twisting over the weapon. No time, no time to hesitate now. He moved his body purposely, despite the pain; the hand wrapped around his keyblade was held out to Sora, the two meeting eye-to-eye. "Sora!"
The young boy jumped forward, his fingers intertwining with Riku's and turning the keyblade around. Riku twisted again to allow Sora to continue on his path in the air towards Xemnas, and as he fell, he saw both his keyblade and Sora's collide with the Superior of Organization XIII. Through a series of flips and bounds, Sora had tossed Xemnas into the air and had landed back by Riku's side. He held out his own keyblade. "Riku..." he said, offering him his bladed hand. Resting his hand on Sora's, the two pointed the keyblade at Xemnas, and a bright light formed, shooting like a laser right into the Nobody before them. It struck the man, and the two keybearers leaped from their positions, running for Xemnas and attacking him with everything they had.
Name: Kal
Age: 20 /sob
AIM SN: Guardian795 or walkthedawn
email: otherpromise@gmail.com
Have you played in an LJ based game before? Yep
Bonus: How did you hear about Siren's Pull? dear_mun
Character Information
General
Canon Source: Kingdom Hearts
Canon Format: Video Game
Character's Name: Riku
Character's Age: 16
Conditional: If your character is 13 years of age or under, please clarify how they will be played. N/A
What form will your character's NV take? Riku's will take the form of a simple, black, PDA-style phone. It'll have an attached pen to write if he wishes, and audio/video will work at the touch of a button. It will have a slide-out keyboard to also type in text, and it can easily fit in his back pocket or one of those large ones on his ridiculous jeans. And how cute, a little Keyblade symbol on the back of it!
Abilities
Character's Canon Abilities: Having grown up with plenty of free time, Riku has spent a good deal of his childhood being Sora's rival. In doing so, they both began to learn how to fight each other with wooden swords. Riku, at the beginning of Kingdom Hearts, was by far the stronger and faster of the two. However, as he slowly sank further into the darkness, he began to lose his initial bright determination and strength against his friend.
When he was possessed, he could control the darkness to an extent that only Xehanort's Heartless could and once he was freed from that imprisonment, he was able to control a little bit of that. Accepting himself, or learning to, Riku has the potential to master both light and dark and become the most powerful keybearer out there. Sadly, this is not the case now, and might not be for a long time.
Riku now can make use of several aerial attacks, as well as using his trademark Dark Aura and Dark Shield. He knows a lot of high-level magic spells and is a great defender in fights, while Sora takes the initiative to fight head-on. He knows a high-level Cure spell and can also bring a fallen teammate back from unconsciousness quickly. He's considered one of the most powerful characters, second only to Sora (or perhaps equal now), and has been called a perfect fusion of Dark and Light, using the path of Dawn.
Coming to terms with himself, and giving up his form as "Ansem", Riku has lost the ability to call Dark Portals and summon the Guardian, but that's as of now. The potential to use the Heartless again, or at least his minion, is unknown.
Riku also has one "miscellaneous" ability: he can sense/smell Darkness, no matter where it is, and can identify people according to their "scents" (which might have been a mistranslation for "sensing"). While he doesn't use this much in the second game, he uses it often in Chain of Memories and references it several times when he's come across an extremely dark character.
A more extensive list of abilities and further explanation can be found at the Kingdom Hearts Wiki.
Conditional: If your character has no superhuman canon abilities, what dormant ability will you give them? I think he has enough abilities, but depending on how things work out darkness-wise, there's always that option to use his darker powers some months down the line?
Weapons: Riku makes use of Way to Dawn, his own Keyblade, which is in the shape of Soul Eater with minor adjustments.
History/Personality/Plans/etc.
Character History: Riku's story begins on Destiny Islands, his hometown. As a child, he spent most of his days playing on the far off island with his childhood friend, Sora. They often would challenge each other to races or mini sparring matches, always testing each other and growing stronger. Birth By Sleep Spoiler: Some time when he was young, Terra appeared on the island and greeted Riku, realizing he had the potential to be the next Keybearer. He told him he should train hard, but to not tell anyone of what transpired in their meeting. Spoilers End Here
And so Riku took to trying to become stronger, training and pushing himself every day to be a little better. But even this did not culminate until one night, during a star shower, a little girl appeared on their island. Her name was Kairi, and immediately the boys latched to her and made her their friend, sensing that she was important. They grew fond of her, not only as a friend but perhaps, one day, as something more, and they took to trying to impress her. Riku, being older, stayed the stronger and faster of all the Island kids, but it was Sora that she warmed up to the most. And so, instead of just focusing on trying to impress her with skills and wit, Riku turned to another route. Ever since he had heard the story of the man who left the Islands, had seen Terra and Kairi come to the Islands from nowhere at all, he had known there were other worlds out there. And that boy, obsessed with trying to find a way out, began to plan. Eventually, those plans became a raft that they would build together and take to the outside, regardless of the consequences. Kairi and Sora enthusiastically joined in, but it soon became apparent that Riku was changing into someone the two of them weren't sure of any longer. In jest, Kairi said they should take the raft and go, that Riku had changed, and that they should stay together.
But that was not how it would be.
Riku had long wanted to open the door in the Secret Place, sensing that was the key to their departure from Destiny Islands forever. Tugged on by his jealousy of Sora, by his need to leave and start anew, he opened it and let the Darkness in. Heartless flooded the world and the world itself began to disappear. Kairi, in the process, lost her heart, and Riku gave into the Darkness, sure it would be his guide to his true desires. It was there that he met "Ansem", a hunched over figure who allowed him passage into Hollow Bastion, where he met Maleficent and her minions. Instead of trying to force Riku to her cause, since she sensed his strong heart, she instead filled him with lies about Sora and how he had forgotten and abandoned him when he found new friends. While skeptical, when Riku saw Sora laughing with some new acquaintances, he had all the proof he needed. To further seal the deal, Maleficent showed him the heartless Kairi, comatosed, and promised to help him scour the worlds in search of her heart.
Riku couldn't agree quick enough. Maleficent gifted him with the darkness and allowed him passage to any world he wished, but her influence in every action he took was clearly shown. She urged him to collect the other Princesses and bring them to her so that she could open a door in Hollow Bastion that perhaps held the key to restoring Kairi's heart. Instead, she believed that all of the Princesses together would simply open the door and give her more than enough power to quickly conquer any world she wished. Riku played into her hands, only wishing to bring Kairi back, and obtained the Keyblade from Sora. When he tried to use it to fight his old friend, Sora took it back and defeated him, crushing the boy's hopes of showing Kairi how strong he had become for her and his own worth.
"Ansem" approached him again, offering to lend him more darkness so he could conquer any who stood in his way. Instead, he took over Riku's body which had been his plan all along. Allowing Maleficent to do as she wished, "Ansem" knew she would gift him with darkness and make him a worthy vessel. He tried to use Riku's body to defeat Sora and open the door, but Riku refused to give in. He took the boy's body instead to the End of the World, where he drew Sora in to use him and the Keyblade to open the door to Kingdom Hearts. After a long battle, Sora triumphed, "Ansem" disintegrated, and Riku appeared once more inside of Kingdom Hearts. He urged Sora to close the door on him and King Mickey (who had come to help), and told him to take care of Kairi, as he was then lost in darkness.
Somehow, Riku appeared in Castle Oblivion instead and found his way in the bottom basement. He made his way slowly to the first floor, "Ansem" guiding him and taunting him all the way. Wishing to use him for their own gain, Vexen, Lexaeus, and Zexion each tried their hand at taking the boy as a trump card against the upper level Organization members, who were using Sora in just the same way. Vexen extracted data from Riku's fight with him in order to make a replica to be of use instead, but when the replica was taken from him, Zexion sent Lexaeus to deal with Riku. Riku fought against the larger man but was incapacitated; "Ansem" took over his body and killed the Organization member, and then attempted to fully dispatch Riku. King Mickey appeared as an afterimage, trying to help him keep going. He faced off against Zexion, who nearly won him over by using Light to hurt the Darkness in Riku's heart, but Namine intervened and reminded him that he didn't need to be afraid of the Darkness, since it was only just a part of him that he could control. He defeated Zexion and took his leave.
He met Naminé, who showed him that Sora was sleeping so he could regain the memories he had lost during his stay at the Castle, and she offered to lock away the Darkness in Riku's heart forever. He refused, saying he'd rather face "Ansem" himself and regain what was his. "Ansem", however, had not been "Ansem" at all, but a man named DiZ who was only attempting to get Riku to break free of the Darkness. However, he still had to face the real "Ansem" in his heart and drive him back. Upon doing so, he only realized that the Darkness within him was still strong enough to overpower him, and that he'd need to work towards another solution. He departed Castle Oblivion and took the Road to Dawn, walking with the King out of the plains.
They parted ways (see: Riku left him) when the Darkness began to grow stronger within him, and he went back to DiZ to offer his services to aid in Sora's awakening, donning a blindfold in order to keep back the Dark within him. For the next few months, Riku aided in protecting Naminé, keeping watch over Sora's progress, and probably running small errands for DiZ on others worlds when he wasn't keeping an eye on Organization XIII. He ran into a girl named Xion and easily overpowered her due to her anger and recklessness, but when he went to look at her face beneath the hood, he was met with a sight he didn't want to see. Baffled, he left her, giving her the chance to live and telling her that her Keyblade was a fake and no good. Riku disappeared for some time, reappearing once more to help Xion on Destiny Islands. Even knowing what her fate would be, he gave her the option to choose what would be best for her; seeing her with Sora's face only confirmed that she would have to disappear anyway. He stayed with her and helped hide her from the Organization members until she was captured again, when he began to keep an eye on her as Sora's progress began to slow and become complicated.
Xion came to him with her decision, and, having grown somewhat attached to her (since she looks similar to Kairi and wears Sora's face), Riku found himself dismayed at her departure and waited for the result he knew was coming. As Sora's progress halted altogether, he left to confront Roxas, finding his memories of Xion had begun to unravel. He helped Roxas fight the Heartless that had gathered to slow his own progression to The Castle That Never Was, but then took it upon himself to strike the boy down. In the end, Roxas proved too much for him; Riku gave into the darkness and took on the form of Xehanort's Heartless in order to defeat the boy. He brought him back to DiZ and resigned himself to skirting around the issue of his transformation, but soon revealed his new form to the older man, who only laughed in shame. As the seven days of Roxas' capture went by, he stepped in more than once to assure the boy wouldn't slip out of the digital illusion, and to keep Naminé from revealing too much to him. DiZ became angered by her constant interference and ordered Riku to kill her (and Axel, for his constant appearances) once she had finished Sora's restoration.
When Roxas finally went back to Sora, Riku went to take Naminé out of the Mansion, and DiZ confronted him, telling him to fulfill the command given to him. Refusing, Riku let Naminé leave and stood his ground as the Heartless came. When finding her again with Axel, the man revealed Riku's true order to kill her, but Riku let them both go, citing that he owed them. As Sora made his way throughout the worlds, Riku followed and kept an eye on him, leaving clues when he went to other worlds or got too far ahead of the boy. Eventually, when Kairi was kidnapped, Riku tried to go after her, and found he couldn't get her away from Saix before the man took her to the World That Never Was. Instead, he focused his efforts on getting Sora, and himself, there safely.
When he finally arrived in the dark world, he bypassed anything else and went to find Kairi, encountering Saix as he was trying to keep the girl from leaving. He attacked him, and when Saix eagerly invited Riku to fight him elsewhere, he almost took the invitation. Kairi called out to him, forcing him to stay, and took off his hood. Despite what he looked like, and the sort of memories that might trigger in her, she urged him to go with her to Sora and the two made their way to his side. Forming a Keyblade for Kairi out of his own, he helped her in the incoming fight, and then made way to leave when Sora caught up to them. Kairi revealed to Sora that it was Riku, not Xehanort's Heartless, and Riku confessed that he didn't want to be found and was too ashamed. But he agreed to go with them and finish the fight. They took out the rest of Organization XIII, and eventually found DiZ, Ansem the Wise, attempting to destroy Kingdom Hearts. When his machine exploded, Riku's form was reverted back to his own, and he gratefully accepted the chance to fight at Sora's side and protect him.
Through another series of battles, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, the King, and Pluto all went through a Dark Portal to home. Riku and Sora finished off what was left of Xemnas in one final battle, which left Riku injured, and found their way to the Dark Margin. Staying there for a time, Riku admitted his jealousies to Sora, and the two reconciled. Finding a letter in a bottle from Kairi that was sent some time before, it opened the Door to Light and the two went home to find their friends again.
It was some time later that a letter arrived from King Mickey, detailing a new quest for them, and that's when Riku will be arriving from.
Point in Canon: Post-KH2 Ending; just after receiving the letter from King Mickey.
Character Personality: At the beginning of the series, Riku was portrayed as a competitive, brave, confident, and strong boy with a good head on his shoulders and a good sense of humor. Mature for his age, he still kept up the appearances of being the strongest and the best despite his own small insecurities and jealousies towards his friend Sora. By delving into the darkness, he allowed his heart to grow weak and vulnerable to the whims of people who would use him for their own gain instead of doing what he felt was right.
After suffering through the trials of Castle Oblivion and after moving on with the shadow of Xehanort's Heartless over his heart, he came to realize his mistakes and began to atone for them for the next two games. The end result showed Riku as a different sort of young man by the end of the series, grown both physically and emotionally.
Now, no longer overly confident, Riku has retained his bravery and competitiveness as he finally settles into a comfortable niche as protector of his friends. His demeanor in the second game gives the appearance of a young man who is laid back and reserved, almost resigned, and he's shown to be realistic and well-grounded. He isn't as forward with his wishes and his impulses, instead opting to hold true to Sora's quest so that his friends can go home. He holds the upmost loyalty to them, sacrificing everything and anything he had to keep them safe and to see Sora restored to his former self. Even in doing this, the regret Riku still holds in his heart is something to remember, since he almost even doesn't go back with Sora and Kairi out of shame for what he's done. He may have done a great deal to redeem himself, but in his eyes, that isn't comparable to the sins he's committed in his selfishness. He once had the option to seal away the darkness, but Riku's underlying sense of justice had him accepting his punishment and fate for what he had done, knowing he had to stay awake and protect the boy he had hurt and thrown away. This part of him shines through again later when he professes that he has no right to give into revenge and help DiZ destroy people for the sake of his anger, since he had done the same before to someone he cared for.
One trait Riku has that has never gone away is his natural curiosity; because of his longing to know, see, and discover more than he knows, he opened the door to his world and let in the darkness. His curiosity has led him astray but he's reigned that in since the beginning of the series; even so, he still wishes to see more of what's out there, and to not feel so cramped on a never-changing island. He's kept his quirky sense of humor, making teasing aside jokes about Sora and his friends, but they aren't nearly as spiteful as they once were, since he's moved beyond his petty jealousies of Sora and has come to accept himself for who he is, darkness, light, and all.
Character Plans: At first, Riku will just try adjusting to a new society and to the fact that he can't go off to another world because he's not too fond of this one. When he catches any sort of whiff that Organization members are here, he'll look into that, and will probably go about trying to help and protect Naminé from anything in this new world. Beyond that, he'll mostly start to adjust to having to stay in one place, fend for himself, get a job, and actually work for a different sort of greater good that extends beyond "kill Heartless, bring back the Light".
Appearance/PB: Default | Blindfolded | Xehanort's Heartless and Guardian (just in case)
Writing Samples
First Person Sample
[Voice]
Where did the island go? This isn't...
Another world? But how? Sora? Kairi? Are you two here? Hello? This can't be right. I thought we were finished with -- ow. Slow, Riku. That still hurts.
Would anyone mind telling me where I am, and what happened to my island? I can't be the only one here.
Third Person Sample
Riku and Sora were back to back, reflecting Xemnas' many lasers with quick percision and grace. They maneuvered, never showing a faulty side, their blades smacking the red lances back and out of the way with ease. Twisting, turning, their blades whirling around...it was almost like a dance. A deadly dance.
Within a minute, the lasers faded to light, leaving the two temporarily blinded. Riku fell to his knees, hands down on the ground in exhaustion. The light cleared slowly, and he looked up to briefly see the shadow of Xemnas before one of his lasers smashed into his chest, sending him flying back. "RIKU!" he heard from Sora as he landed, twisting in unimaginable shock and pain. How had Xemnas managed to get to them so quickly? He should have sensed him, smelled him even from a distance. Disappointing, he chided himself, hand flying to his chest in pain. He lifted his head to see Xemnas' laser pointing at him, the other reared back for a shot at Sora. His eyes connected with the Superior's for one brief moment, emerald against that strange red gold, and the teenager forced himself up.
How he managed it, he wasn't sure. Riku jumped in front of the attack, facing Sora, his keyblade striking against the laser in Xemnas' hand. He felt Xemnas push away from him, and he dropped from the air, feet prepared to land... He stared at Sora, the two lost in time for the briefest of moments - I can't let you - and locked in a standstill of wills, before he put a hand on the boy's chest and shoved him out of Xemnas' line of fire. He felt a rush of wind go by his side before the sting of another laser into his upper left thigh. He cried out in pain, twisting over the weapon. No time, no time to hesitate now. He moved his body purposely, despite the pain; the hand wrapped around his keyblade was held out to Sora, the two meeting eye-to-eye. "Sora!"
The young boy jumped forward, his fingers intertwining with Riku's and turning the keyblade around. Riku twisted again to allow Sora to continue on his path in the air towards Xemnas, and as he fell, he saw both his keyblade and Sora's collide with the Superior of Organization XIII. Through a series of flips and bounds, Sora had tossed Xemnas into the air and had landed back by Riku's side. He held out his own keyblade. "Riku..." he said, offering him his bladed hand. Resting his hand on Sora's, the two pointed the keyblade at Xemnas, and a bright light formed, shooting like a laser right into the Nobody before them. It struck the man, and the two keybearers leaped from their positions, running for Xemnas and attacking him with everything they had.