#corrupted riku

[bearpillowmonster]

I loved the potential memes of Vinesauce's Corruption Stockpile of KH. Sora looks like a Veggietale.

[haunted-xander]

Thinking about the parallels between Riku losing himself to darkness because he (believed) his life-long friendship had been broken and replaced and Terra losing himself to darkness because he wanted to protect his friends/friendship more than anything else

[blue-eli]

Ink October day 11: Firebreak

A strip of land that has been cleared, plowed, or planted with fire-resistant vegetation to prevent a fire from spreading.

[venjamin-kingdomhearts]

tbh i don't know much about the Sora = MOM theory but i think it's gonna be partially true. but not in the way most ppl think. i just genuinely believe that whatever "MOM" is is going to possess Sora at some point and that's our final battle. so many people have tried to make sora a vessel in the past, and sora has been sanctuary for so many hearts, there's no way he wouldn't be a great target for possession

[soft-serve-soymilk]

Actually the fact Archie and Riku bear similarities should not be a surprise. Riku was the precursor blorbo to Lyon, and hence, the precursor influence in developing modern Archie~

[localcryptideli]

The push and pull between making a sketch you are proud of and wanting to post it, and being too afraid of it being fed into some AI to post it anywhere.

[dawnled]

actions speak louder than words / @herocarved !

forehead - sender presses their forehead against receiver's

the last thing he remembered was falling asleep , though not really of his own will ---- the Mansion's basement had long since become a familiar setting , the mechanical beeps & hums almost soothing , the walls so blindingly white it made him wonder if they might eventually purge him of his sins .

from white , into darkness , into---- whatever , wherever , this was ; a dreary , dusty old canyon for which he had barely gathered a name , with people he barely recognised .

The Keyblade Graveyard .

some of the faces he did know , from his time keeping tabs on the Organisation for DiZ - Xemnas , Xigbar , Vexen , Saix , Demyx , Luxord , Larxene , Marluxia - and one , particularly Ansem , he of course knew from his own personal struggles .

but the others -- the others were unfamiliar to him , though one ( a man that the oldest man , xehanort , called 'terra' ) seemed to tickle something at the back of his mind , like a hazy childhood memory .

not that he has time to think about it - he's barely able to find his composure in this strange , new place , completely unknown as to the who's , how's or why's , before it's all replaced with inexplicable pain , so searing hot that it's almost blinding . his heart sears inside his chest , burning as if it's being pulled out of his chest ( maybe it is ) and then the world , once more , turns black .

the next time he wakes , the world feels even more tilted on its axis than before ---- and though it takes him a moment , his stomach drops at the realisation why .

he knows what it's like to be possessed , knows the sensation of powerlessness all too well - he begs , pleads any part of his body to do anything ---- but nothing does , not even an inch . in his dysphoria , he can barely make anything out between his blindfold & the hood raised over top of his head ; but through the dust that's beginning to settle , in the distance he swears he can see----

" sora . "

his lips don't move to say the word , but his inner self does - internally , he's a bit grateful the name doesn't escape him , for he's scared of what voice he might hear if it did - and as he widens his tunnel vision , he sees more ; people he knows , people he doesn't , and is that---- him , too ?

the relief at seeing sora again , alive and seemingly well, is enough to overpower any current confusion - so much so that it feels like his knees are about to buckle , and whoever's in control ( xehanort ? ) even seems startled at having to put a bit more energy into keeping himself upright .

whether or not this is his sora , safe and sound in the future , or some alternate universe where things went differently , riku doesn't know - he vaguely recalls some background chatter of 'vessels', 'guardians', 'Keyblade Wars', though he hadn't been of mind to pay whole attention - and while there's crushing guilt at having left his own sora's side for even a moment , this moment , baffling as it is , also brinegs a little bit of relief .

at least there's some sora , somewhere , who's awake , safe and fighting -- even more relieving , a sora who has a riku right by his side , determination striking in his features .

whether it's because of his lack of comprehension of the situation , or because of his being from a different---- world ? time ? ---- things seem to go by too quickly ; all he remembers is the eldest of their number talking ( " together , we shall unlock the Keyblade War's secrets " ) before the very world itself trembles , giving way to a labyrinth the likes of which riku's never seen .

time passes with simply him , ansem & xigbar , & though neither say a word to him , he can feel both of their eyes on the back of his head even through his hood -- neither of them need to say anything , particularly ansem , for riku to be on full alert , shoulders tense even through the possession .

as if fate abhors him even in this timeline , the Guardian who approaches him is the him of this time ---- though surprisingly , sora's not by his side . something cold , dark & bitter churns in his stomach , though perhaps it's his imagination if xehanort does not let it show , & the battle , cruel as it may be , begins .

he's surprised , when it seems to be mostly ansem & xigbar doing the fighting , as xehanort uses him to watch from a distance -- though eventually , the sora of this time does arrive , just as this time's riku is beginning to tire .

then , does he understand , as ansem bids them farewell - the reason why xehanort had kept him in the wings .

soul eater is a cruel weapon , a reminder of all his misdeeds -- it crackles to life in a shadowy cloud of darkness , and from that and the natural stance his body takes , xehanort's possession or no , realisation seems to click for both of his opponents . their offensive stance suddenly seems conflicted , hesitant , uncertain , as if they don't know how to handle him .

xehanort , of course , takes the opportunity - having spent so long in the shadows of the organisation , trailing their every move while sora slept , riku's swift , nimble , well adapted to the dark . each attack is precise , each block calculated , no matter how much riku internally struggles to stop it .

it's only in a particular flurry of attacks , when one comes perilously close to piercing sora's heart , that desperation fuels him enough to take control -- xehanort's ( his ? ) footing stumbles , and , whether out of instinct or opportunity , sora takes the moment to swap their momentum , flinging him back a few feet , where he stumbles & falls to his knees .

" no ---- ! "

the word escapes him , though whether it's because of him or xehanort , he's unsure -- but he pushes , pushes , and pushes some more , no matter how much , how hard , it hurts him .

you won't use me for this --- ! not again --- !

he's pushed through possession once before - he'll do it again , a thousand times more , if he has to .

anything , to help sora - to get out of this horrendous nightmare , to get back to being by his side .

the struggle becomes more physical , hands clutching at his skull , dragging through the long strands of his hair - it hurts , whether by xehanort's hand or his own , but it at least releases him from the confines of the organisation coat's hood . sunlight reaches through a bit more easily than before , and then suddenly too easily at all - one hand has dragged through to release his blindfold , which catches in between his fingers .

that , if nothing else , seems to be enough to startle this sora and riku both .

he dares not wonder as to what they see , that could shock the two of them so much they would stagger .

" sora . "

that time , he knows , the name does escape him - it hurts to speak it , like he's a parched man in the middle of a desert ( maybe he is ) but also because it feels like sacrilege to do so .

there's the off - side sound of guns , ones he knows to be xigbar's , that he can barely note keeps the other riku busy ---- but sora's staring , staring and staring still , and if riku wasn't so grateful for sora to be looking at him at all , he was sure he'd be shying away , if not flinching away from his gaze . but , so far , keeping eye contact with sora seems to be the only thing helping him to keep control , painful as it is - and it's as searing hot pain flares through him once more , prickling wet at the corners of his eyes , that sora moves .

he runs , faster than riku's ever seen him - he hasn't seen sora do anything , recently , floating peacefully in that pod of his - until he's right by riku's side , skidding to a halt and kneeling right in front of him . his hands hover , mouth slightly parted , like he doesn't know what to do , where to touch , what to say , only that he has to do , say , something .

" sora . "

it's the only word riku finds he can say now , for how he had loathed to say it before - it's quiet , raw , desperate , his silent plea for help as his legs give out , his arms trembling with his effort to stay in control .

" sora . "

help me . i'm sorry . i didn't mean to . i never wanted to hurt you .

and sora knows , because of course he does - and riku knows , because of course he does , too ; he can tell in the gleam of those beautiful starry sky blues that sora knows all he wants to say ---- all the apologies , the pain , and maybe all the heartbreak and love things , too .

sora knows , and he shows it , in how gently he pries riku's hands where they dig stinging crescents into his scalp - his hands are warm , so warm , soft and gentle and kind , as they wrap around his own , and anything of sora had been Too Much , so all of this at once is So Much it's Overwhelming , so much so that riku could cry .

maybe he is , just a little bit - his eyes are burning , prickling at the corners , and he's never allowed himself to be vulnerable in front of sora , of all people , before , but he'd long since told himself that none of that mattered anymore if it meant he got to see sora again , alive and happy and well .

even if he was no longer by his side .

" i know . "

the words are so much of a comfort that riku overflows , more from the fact it's sora's voice than anything else - and then , suddenly , he can't see , delicate , warm fingers brushing through his hair as sora's forehead is pressed to his own .

the fighting has stopped , the outside noise no longer so overstimulating - there's just him and his struggle to keep control , emotions running so high he doesn't think xehanort could take control again even if he wanted to . sora , sora , sora , every part of him sings , so much so that he trembles with it , and oh how he wishes he could stop the tears , if only to see more of sora's face .

" you did good . "

i didn't .

" you protected me . "

did i really ?

" i believe in you . "

that , at the very least , he can believe - if there's anything he knows , it's that sora's always believed in him , even when he didn't deserve it .

it's those words , that little bit of hope , that seem to finally release the hellish shackle on his heart - the world taints black , even beyond the tears , and the darkness takes him , leaving only the phantom warmth of hands upon his skin .

" i believe in you . "

thank you .

[silvcrignis]

“…. What do your hands do.. Sir?” (It’s for Claude, from Riku who is grounded because he keeps watching the pool stick gif..)

What a loaded question to ask but Claude was hardly surprised. Men with backgrounds like theirs tended to engage in… Risk taking behaviours & Claude could hardly criticise him when he was the same way… Well actually he COULD, a commonplace fallacy was that being a hypocrite invalidated whatever opinion one was giving but being a hypocrite did not make someone wrong necessarily.

The hands in question were currently steepled together on his desk a silver brow raising at the question & the... Term being used to address him. Riku was not fucking stupid & neither was Claude. They both knew exactly what he was doing.

However considering how much a brat Riku had been lately Claude was not feeling very generous given his own rather… Spoiled rich boy composition, erection or not Riku would have to learn that if he wanted something he needed to BEHAVE HIMSELF & apparently he was going to learn that through crushed expectations & possibly very frustrating nights.

“Play the piano, violin & sometimes the pipe organ when I feel… Feisty,” he hummed innocently, his eyes widening as if he really thought that was what that question actually meant.

[kagehisanotsu]

Man I'm like so many games away from it but I cant wait to play birth by sleep.... so interested in terra

[gulava]

The way the original Coded for mobile (the version without cutscenes) is lost media and because of the time it came out, it is not watchable even on Youtube without the cutscene version of scenes playing out...

I have often said both versions of dialogue in COM and Days are relevant. Same case here. Dialogue taken from khwiki.

"But, because of these bugs, I could not complete the restoration. Out of all available memories, I was selected to be a vessel to hold them all together."

In this version of Coded, Data Riku states he's responsible for restoring the journal as he is what holds the memories together. He is what holds Sora's memories together. Maybe it's a small difference to "shield them from corruption" but it's the wording that gives me pause.

Coded shows us that Riku is what holds Sora together. KH3 utilizes "show, don't tell" by telling us otherwise but then showing us the truth.

Sora is told to look for the light in the darkness. He finds Riku.

He is told to go to the person holding him together. He goes to Riku.

It's always been Riku.

[spicypepperjack]

Miles and Gwen Kingdom Hearts AU by @edithsotoart from Tumblr and Twitter (https://twitter.com/EdithSotoArt), commission requested by me

Given Miles and Gwen's personalities, I see them as sun/moon characters. Miles would be light-sided because he's a positive guy and is one of the most idealistic Spider people. On the other hand, Gwen would be lean towards the darkness due to all her past trauma and angst around being a hero.

I'd think that Gwen would be the more corruptible among the two if there was a Xehanort-type character (like Venom) because of all of her self-doubt and insecurities; whereas, Miles would be the one to help her stop her inner darkness from consuming her.

At some point after they became a couple, they gave each other half-paopu fruit necklaces not only to symbolize their love, but to also connect to each other across worlds and to shine within the darkest of darknesses.

Essentially, Miles is Sora to Gwen’s Riku.

[luxmoogle]

Do you have any headcanons or thoughts on Vaniku, like how that starts and plays out? 👀

Scenario A) Sora's still missing and has left a convenient opening in Riku's heart for Vanitas to worm into, looking and sounding like the one Riku really wants. ..A desperate replacement.

Scenario B) Sora's heart belonging to another leaves Riku's aching and an easy target for some darkness to corrupt and twist, seeking comfort from someone resembling the subject of Riku's affections

[thevaudevilledemon]

Disney Duels 2: Round 15 of 15: Corrupted Heroes

If I had a nickel for every time I ended these polls with a Kingdom Hearts vs Star Wars match-up, I'd have two nickels... which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.

And no, we are not looking at Darth Vader stats, this is pre-Vader Anakin we're talking about here.

[yoroshiu]

Sora: Expectations vs Reality (Coded vs KH1, CoM, and 3D)

Another Sora analysis because I can't help myself haha (help). But there's been a couple of posts that talked about this topic and it's really rewired my brain, so I also want to take a stab at it. I feel like this isn't something that's looked into/analyzed as much compared to other interpretations of KH's narrative, especially in terms of Sora, or at least I haven't seen it as much across platforms in a mainstream sense (though I do think it's been on the rise in recent times).

So if you're willing to bear with me, then get ready for another long post!

As the title indicates, and as mentioned, other people have brought up, Data-Sora creates an in-universe (and IRL) set of expectations for the actual Sora. While Coded is technically a rehash of KH1 and CoM's plot to an extent (hence its reputation besides its amazing gameplay), the point is to gather and present the stakes KH2, Days, and BBS introduced and set up what Sora's goals are going to be leading into 3D and 3.

The way it chooses to do so is to put a simulated Sora to the test, to see if he can "handle the hurt" and while he manages to do so, as many others have pointed out, Data-Sora's decision about remembering the pain to connect to others contradicts Sora's decision to forget at the end of CoM. Coded dictates that Sora can handle the pain of those within him and/or those who need to be saved. But 3D contradicts that as well. Many say that this indicates a potential point in Sora's development as a character and person, and while I agree, I want to focus on what has shaped him to this point in the first place. I must add, though, that Sora in 3, in terms of what he knows/is aware of by the end, understands a lot more than I've seen some people give him credit for, but this is another opinion in of itself.

Reading full-on long paragraphs might make this even harder to get through so I'll try to place some parts in bullet points (I get info-overloaded easily sometimes due to long paragraphs too ToT):

Coded, as said before, while initially having Data-Sora find/fix the missing/corrupted data in Jiminy's Journal (KH1 aspect), turns into a test to see if Sora can handle the "hurt" of the people he needs to save (CoM aspect).

Data-Sora proves he is willing to take on that "hurt" and can handle it. Which Sora by KH3/ReMind also manages to show.

But this neglects a few things about Sora's character before that point:

Data-Sora in the first part of Coded has guidance from Mickey, Donald, Goofy, and Data-Riku especially D and G who have experienced their KH1 development and are currently ride-or-die for him. The KH1 experience ends up being different for him.

Even though he fights Data-Riku, it can be chalked up to the bugs/possession rather than anything malicious, which contrasts with real Riku before the Ansem possession.

Data-Sora losing his keyblade happened due to Maleficent rather than Riku. Rather than Goofy and Donald leaving him, he's the one that storms off and even then they go after him.

When we get to the CoM portion, Data-Sora doesn't have his memories of what happened in the first half, hence he goes straight to Castle Oblivion without the KH1 experience (also he's initially guided by Mickey, Data-Riku, and Data-Roxas)

In this case, it's a test of strength rather than what happened in CoM where Marluxia and Larxene hoped to break Sora to make him their puppet.

Data-Sora went to the KH1 worlds in each room and was made to forget right after getting through each one

But Sora had his memories from even before the first game actively messed with, while also being made to believe that it was the real Riku attacking him. All of that happened without much guidance from anyone.

What this shows is that while Data-Sora is the ideal outcome of Sora's development, I think as a narrative that presents trauma (intentionally and unintentionally), it emphasizes what the real Sora has been through. Theoretically, had things gone differently for Sora, and he had a proper support system on these journies, he would have been able to make the "right" choice. But he didn't have that. He had to figure a lot of things out and had to pull himself through. In a way, it feels unfair to some extent and it creates the expectations vs reality aspect.

And I believe this comes to fruition in 3D:

Organization XIII successfully overwhelms Sora, his heart ends up breaking under the emotional stress of all the people he's connected to as he's pulled into deeper sleep.

It especially sucks considering that the Mark of Mastery Exam was actively messed with in an outright attempt to break Sora (again).

His failure of the exam makes sense considering he couldn't overcome the Darkness in this real-world application like Riku, but it leaves such a bitter taste, right?

(The logistics of the exam can be argued ngl. Isn't it wild that all cases of the exam we've seen have had an external force get involved and have irrevocable damage on the test takers? Taking lives and souls fr.)

So what we get is a failure of those expectations (at least initially). Reality is much more harrowing and vicious. And that's such an interesting thing to do narratively, it feels purposeful. It establishes a depth to Sora that isn't fully seen and even adds to the concept of Data-Sora being his own existence by extension. By KH3, Sora's low self-esteem is directly shown to us and stems from the reality of his journey. He has a lot of unaddressed scars and while the characters view him as a beacon of hope out of love and respect, many of us acknowledge how harmful that's been to him in the most specific ways.

I really, really hope that the upcoming games build on this and address it, because it'd be so satisfying to see all of this acknowledged and explored! It would feel fitting for Sora to go to Unreality and face the reality of himself.

(I'm sorry if this was incoherent, I'm bad at collecting my thoughts on the spot...I'm open to corrections and additional thoughts!)

[mythicalartistx]

Opinions of KH2 novels that happen that are funny/interesting

I saw a lot of sections recently

Riku Axel & Namine are a trio

Their interactions are nice

It's something I didn't know I needed

I love seeing them do stuff in the background while Sora does basic (game moments), instead of focusing what happens in the games during Disney worlds, it shows them

Axel being a grey character

He doesn't know himself if he's bad or good

But some of the others noticed it and gladly call him their friend.

Also when Goofy "dies" he helps him to see if he's alright and even gives him a potion

Instead of initially kidnapping Kairi, he does so with good interest in mind, thinking she's in danger because the organization is after her— Riku and Naminé were going to her but got caught up in a battle with Saïx.

Then Saïx fought Axel and won, obtaining Kairi.

Also Naminé helps heal Axel after he lost to Saïx.

I love his banner with Riku

At one point Mickey is like, I'm glad you're not alone Riku, Riku responds, He's my friend, but then Axel says, Nobodies don't have friends, it's not exactly word for word, but similar.

Axel comments to Riku

Riku eating ice cream and Axel is like is it good, You're like a little kid even though you look like a mean old man. Then Axel steals his ice cream and Riku like bruh really dude there is plenty of ice cream in there.

After Land of Dragons, Axel tells Riku, Seeing Sora made you that happy, and Riku is like I don't feel like telling you. Then afterwards he's like it's creepy how you smile with Ansem's face.

Mickey and Goofy can smell

So Pluto is in the novel sometimes around Axel and of course Kairi. When Mickey first sees Axel after Riku leaves, he sniffs him and is like oh it's you I thought it was Riku but you smell like Pluto.

Then later when Axel helps Goofy after his "death" he is like you smell like Pluto and at this point Axel is like AGAIN!?!?

Maleficent and Riku

Honestly I find this kinda charming and kinda nice.

At one point she calls Pete useless and how Riku was so much helpful and even got him what he was trying to do and gave him Kairi. She then admits that she was using him, but it made her kinda sad or a "thorn in her heart" that he left her without hesitation.

Then at one point Riku goes to see Maleficent and Maleficent is like oh you're alive and he says I see you came back from the dead. And it's great exchange.

He wanted to see if she'd fight the nobodies/ organization 13. But when he goes to her he wonders if he is betraying Mickey by doing that and he thinks it's all for Sora.

Riku opinion of DiZ request

So DiZ got Riku to do some things... that isn't great and afterwards he wonders if that was right.

After seeing how DiZ treated Naminé and views nobodies he is like Should I have fought Roxas? He was thinking Should I have destroyed him for him to go back to Sora? What if there was another way so he could still be here?

And I wanted to point it out that he obviously questions whether it was right and he was just following DiZ because he wanted Sora back and thought it was the ONLY way and much would have rather Roxas to stay as a person too.

DiZ offers Naminé ice cream

At one point Naminé goes back to the mansion in the middle of KH2 and she finds DiZ which she is surprised by. DiZ was harsh and mean to her at the beginning of the game and is weary of him,

But this dude straight up offers her sea salt ice cream like he didn't want her destroyed or want Riku to get rid of her (which Riku was like NAHHH I won't because he saw them as people and Sora was waking up). And then he says there are plenty more, you can share with friends 😀😁 LIKE COMPLETE SWAP

Saïx fight Riku and Naminé

First when Riku and Naminé is fighting Saïx while Axel gets Kairi, Saïx slaps Naminé and causes her to fly back.

Then he is like oh you're trying to protect your home from darkness (assuming he might corrupt it or by getting Kairi) and then he's like but you did that once before. LIKE 😭😭😭 THAT WAS UNCALLED FOR

And then he tells Riku he sold his Soul for Power. JUST wow, great character but man is he cold sometimes.

I never want Saïx to touch Naminé again though... Saïx over here hurting Axel and Naminé.

Donald and Goofy no longer tease about Kairi

So... In KH2 there are moments where Donald and Goofy tease Sora about Kairi with possible romantic implications

(though I'm not exactly sure since that is the English version which could have some transaction errors and there's a lot of added romantic moments because of English version)

In Halloween town, Sora also imagines himself dancing with Kairi when Jack and Sally dance, but in the novels none of these things happen. Donald and Goofy don't tease him about Kairi.

Shang and Mulan = Sora and Riku

So in land of the dragons when Sora sees Mulan and Shang he tears up and thinks of himself and Riku cause he missed him.

This does happen in the game, but it's more explicit here that he missed him and thinks of Riku and himself when he sees Shang and Mulan.

Sora always wanted to fight by Riku's side

In the novels throughout the ending battle Sora is so excited and is just glad to fight by Riku's side and he had always wanted to have him as an ally.

He states how he always hoped and dreamed he'd be able to.

He feels so excited and just glad to be able to do so.

Also want to point out that they feel better together and they're okay in the dark realm because they have the other

Sora doesn't care as long as Riku is okay

At one point Sora says, so what if he's in organization 13, it's fine.

Donald is like it's not they're a bad group of people.

This just shows how much he cares about him.

Axel pretends to betray Riku and Naminé to help Kairi

He told them he was going to and would give them their location and reassures them that he doubt Xemnas would come over.

And Xemnas ends up being the one going over....

[harveybwabbit92]

[R/n is teaching her and Belial's daughter how to be a menace to society.]

R/n, giving Isla a kit-kat bar.: Okay, watch me.

{she unwraps her chocolate bar, Isla copies her and is about to break it but R/n stops her.]

R/n: No no, Don’t break it, you eat it like this! 

{R/n takes a big bite out of her bar, Isla watch her for a few seconds and happily does the same as R/n chuckles.}

R/n, pats Isla on the head: Great job you sweet-pea, you’re doing mama proud!

{R/n looks over her shoulder and smirks.]

Riku, who was watching in horror: (To Belial) Save that innocent child from that monster, before she corrupts her even further!

Belial, looks confused: I don’t understand. Is that not how a kit-kat is meant to be eaten?

{R/n cackles maniacally as Riku looks at his father in despair.]

Riku: Oh no, it’s already too late for you.