Kingdom Hearts III

Keyblade War

Fuchsia Skies

x P R 0 L 0 G U E

A young girl, no older than fifteen, stood along the shoreline of her homeland, the West Destiny Island. The ocean's water lapped soothingly at the sand, nearing her feet, but not yet touching them. She let the warm, tropical wind caress her face, her rosy-blonde hair swaying slightly, as well as her clothing.

The sun was sinking closer to the horizon gradually, its reflection glimmering in the girl's sky blue eyes. It was her favorite sight in the world and she always came to the beach of the west island to see it. Sometimes she wished she had someone to share it with, but other times she wanted it for herself. She was always so indecisive. She wasn't sure where she wanted to go or what she wanted to do.

But she knew that there was one feeling that burned relentlessly inside her. A feeling of longing. Longing for freedom, adventure, excitement; something that was extremely rare on a tiny, welcoming island that only sported tourists once every decade.

She wanted stories to tell and memories that she couldn't forget.

Tales to share and unforgettable memories.

She wanted something exciting to happen, if not to her, then maybe to the island. Something to spice up her life so it wasn't the same old, boring routine every day.

What she didn't know, was that that longing for adventure and freedom was what granted her the power and authority to wield a certain weapon in shape of a key. Little did she know that a certain dream would occur that night, binding her to a destiny that would provide her with everything she had asked for.

xoxo

Darkness… darkness… Too much darkness.

Black, with a tint of indigo.

She was trapped, drifting downward toward nothingness, endless darkness. A strange sensation wrapped around her, like icy cold air, yet it felt like water. The frigid feeling made the little hairs on the back of her neck stand up on end and she felt chilled. She didn't know what to do. She couldn't do anything. She was frozen solid, yet her body still resumed to plummet slowly toward what she hoped was maybe ground.

She waited to stop and finally that time approached. She slowed in her fall, gently turning over so her feet were now facing downward instead of her head. She felt a blockade, something to stop her. Her sneakers pushed down on to a hard, smooth surface. The rest of her slowly floated down and she stopped. She dared to take a step forward, immediately regretting the decision for a blinding light flashed below her and she shielded her eyes from it. As she adjusted to the new sight, she glanced around in wonder as the light grew, doves flying off in every direction.

'What is this place?' she couldn't help but wonder. A picture of a young man, no older than she, stood, garbed in black garments, a silver weapon firmly grasped in his hand was what she was standing on. He had chestnut hair, blue eyes and a fiery look on his face that held a crooked grin. He looked like some sort of hero.

She was mesmerized by the expression he held and the way he was portrayed – through vividly colorful stained glass. The type you'd find in a church.

The platform was large and only held enough space until the picture of the boy ended. Everything else was complete and utter darkness, which, quite frankly, frightened the girl. She didn't know what to do or where to go. She would've been better off falling. At least that was fun.

Suddenly, a voice that had no apparent source sounded. It made the girl stumble backwards in surprise, but she quickly regained her posture. She searched frantically with her eyes for the owner of the voice, but it seemed to just be there. Maybe it was in her head?

"Hello, Sirina. Welcome to the trials of the Keyblade master. Here is where your fate will be sealed. The choices are up to you. The outcomes of your choices are entirely relied on them, so choose wisely."

Sirina bit her lip nervously. What was this strange voice talking about?

"What do you want?" she managed to shout out bravely.

"I want you… to show me if you have what it takes. Now, step forward. Do not be afraid. Can you do it?"

Sirina scoffed inwardly. Was it serious? She took a step forward. Without hearing the voice resume, she took another step. And another. As she neared the center of the platform, the ground shook and around her three gray pedestals protruded from the platform, each offering a different weapon.

"If you give it form, it will give you strength… Choose well."

Sirina took a good look at each weapon. They each held a certain design on them – three circles connected together, two smaller ones attached to the top and a larger one on the bottom. The seal baffled Sirina, but she decided to ignore the possible significance of it and headed slowly toward the golden sword with the blue hilt. The three circles were very small on it and almost hardly noticeable. She cradled the weapon in her hands, feeling the power sink into her. This was the weapon she desired.

"The power of the warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction. Is this the power you seek?"

Sirina stood uncertainly for a moment or two before nodding her head in reply. In response to her answer, the sword disappeared into dozens of tiny lights and sparks. Sirina could feel its power surge through her. She shuddered faintly before the voice spoke again.

"Now… what will you give up in exchange?"

Great. She had to give up a power, too? She sighed and stared at the red and black shield for a long time. Give up defense for offense? That would be unbalanced and disorganized. How would she keep up with enemies physically? Her gaze drifted toward the green-blue magical staff.

Did she honestly need magic power? …Nah.

Sirina started toward the pedestal that held the staff. She grasped the staff in her hands, examining it, waiting for the voice to ask her if it was the power she wanted to distinguish.

"The power of the mystic. Inner strength. A staff of wonder and ruin. You give up this power?"

Despite Sirina's doubts about the staff, the voice actually made it sound pretty worthy. But Sirina shoved her thoughts aside and nodded. The staff disappeared in an explosion of more sparks, but this time Sirina didn't feel the same sensation she did when the sword faded.

"You have chosen the power of the warrior. You have given up the power of the mystic. Is this the form you choose?"

As Sirina thought about her decision, she couldn't help but gaze down at the ground below her. That piercing stare that seemed so alive. The boy was quite dashing, with his spiked chestnut hair and that unruly grin.

Sirina shook her thoughts from her head and nodded in reply to the voice. "…Yes."

Disregarding her captivated stare at the picture that she was standing on, the ground began to shake uncontrollably. Sirina soon found herself falling within the darkness once more. Fortunately the fall was brief and she wound up on another fluorescent glowing platform with a picture on it. The illustration was the first thing Sirina's attention was drawn to.

A silver haired, turquoise eyed, masculine teenage boy stood proudly, the same way the brunette boy had. His arms were much more muscle toned and his silver bangs were covering most of his face. In his hand he was holding a curved sword with plenty of pointed edges along the end. It was dark red and black in color.

Sirina was even more mesmerized by this boy than she was with the last. His oddly colored, almost neon looking eyes just seemed to drag her in. Who were these guys anyway?

Before another thought could mold itself into Sirina's mind, the sword she had chosen on the other platform took shape in her hand. She felt that strange, overpowering sensation once more and had to stop herself from grinning when she felt almost powerful.

"You've gained the power to fight…"

Sirina allowed the grin to spread across her face at the voice's words, swinging her sword confidently a few times before stopping to wipe the sweat from her brow.

"All right! You've got it! Use this power to protect yourself and others…"

'Well, obviously!' Sirina couldn't help but think. She waited a moment for the voice to continue, but when she heard nothing but her own steady breathing she glanced around for something the voice might've wanted her to do.

Suddenly, three spots on the ground were engulfed in small, round black circles. The circles seemed to squirm a bit before their inhabitants slowly emerged from them, yanking their murky claws from the depths of the blackness. They were small creatures and were hunched over, their claws and arms moving slowly, as if they were unable to sit still. Their heads twitched from left to right and the black antennas on their heads matched those movements. They had glowing, yellow eyes that held nothing but emptiness.

All in all, they looked nothing other than demonic and threatening.

Sirina's grip on her sword strengthened as she prepared herself for battle.

"There will be times you have to fight. Keep your light burning strong."

Sirina nodded, a determined look taking place on her face as the first shadow creature leapt at her. She blocked its claws with her sword and retaliated with her own attack, sending the shadow flying. Another one swiped at her. She kicked it out of the way and spun around quickly, striking the third one with her sword. It didn't take her long to dispose of the enemies, for they dissolved into the air with three strikes from her sword.

Panting heavily, she stood up straight and waited for further directions.

She then heard a small noise, almost like the sound of wind and her grasp on her weapon tightened. She glanced around alertly when the voice warned her.

"Behind you!"

Sirina spun around on her heel, her blonde hair whipping around her face as she struck at the shadow on instinct, sending it flying and crashing against the glass floor. More of the little circles appeared, their creatures clawing themselves out. She prepared herself once more for battle and quickly dispatched of them with her sword.

Breathing even more loudly this time, Sirina recovered from her exhaustion and stood up, finding herself fearing more of them coming.

Instead, the entire platform was beginning to turn black, the inky substance swallowing it whole slowly. Sirina looked around frantically for a way out, but saw no such thing. The shadows wound their way around her struggling legs, snatching her into their clutches. She held her breath and waited to resurface, another cold feeling rushing over her body.

When she finally rid herself of the horrible shadows, she found herself on top of yet another stained glass plateau. She heaved a sigh. When would this 'dream' be over? It felt entirely real, but it couldn't be… could it?

This platform contained an image of a red haired girl with big, cerulean colored eyes and a soft delicate face. She was dressed in a white and pink short dress with more zippers than you could count. Her slim hands didn't hold a weapon, but a yellow, star shaped fruit. Her face didn't have a solid, confident grin either, but a sweet, heartwarming smile instead.

When Sirina broke her gaze from the new picture, she realized that there was a set of thin, white double doors on the other side of the platform. They seemed transparent, but they were definitely there. She approached them, hesitating to touch them, but did so anyway. She tugged at their golden handles, but when the doors didn't relent, she sighed and dropped her hands to her sides again. She took another look around the platform, her blue eyes catching sight of a small red treasure chest. She found her way over to it and kicked it uncertainly, causing it to open up, only to disappear.

"What the…?" She shrugged it off and turned around to see a wooden crate and barrel side by side. She walked over to them, as well. What was she supposed to do with them? She nudged the crate and it slid along the glass floor easily. She smirked and gave it a good push, straight off the edge of the platform. She waited to hear the bang of it smashing, but no noise could be heard. She picked up the barrel and walked over to the edge of the floor, tossing the barrel over to see if that made a sound, but she heard nothing.

Sighing in defeat, Sirina turned around to face the white doors again. They looked solid now. She tilted her head in confusion and tried them again. This time, they opened, even though it took a lot of power to move them. It was like they had been shut forever!

A blinding light emitted from the opening and Sirina immediately let go of the doors' handles to shield her eyes. She found herself engulfed in it and on a large, boat-looking platform soon after. The place looked tropical; almost like Destiny Islands. It looked like the 'half-boat' structure was connected to the island somehow. There were docks, a waterfall, a huge tree, and a beach below the platform.

Around her were three children, as old as her, standing like statues. Their stares were completely still, solid, and lifeless.

"Hold on. The door won't open just yet. First, tell me more about yourself."

Sirina sighed in exasperation. She didn't want to play any of the voice's weird trivia. She wanted to wake up from this horrible dream.

"Alright, fine, I'll do it your way…" she grumbled, walking over to the messy haired blonde boy. He stood completely still, except for his head that turned almost robotically toward her, his mouth forming the words, "What are you afraid of?"

Sirina attempted to avoid the boy's statue-like stare, but he didn't move until she answered his question. It was kind of hard to think when someone stared at you so sternly.

"Um… being indecisive? Getting old?" Sirina couldn't think of a scarier thing than aging and dying. "…Death?"

"Are all of those really so scary?" the boy asked, his head turning back to its original state. His voice held no emotion, just emptiness.

Sirina bit her lip and turned towards the brown haired, green eyed girl, who sat on the railing of the plateau, swinging her feet. She seemed more lively than the boy, but her face was still as solid as ice. "What's most important to you?"

Sirina almost jumped backwards from the sudden sound of her voice and thought for a moment. "Friendship… love… adventure."

"Is all that stuff really that important?" The girl then continued to stare lifelessly at the sky.

Sirina rolled her eyes at the weird behavior and then approached the last child with orange, gravity-defying hair and a blue ball spinning on his finger.

He turned his head toward Sirina, looking the most alive out of the trio. He sported a crooked smile before asking, "What do you want outta life?"

Sirina thought hard for this one and it was easy, since he didn't stare at her so harshly, but instead concentrated on his ball.

"To experience unimaginable things… To see rare sights… To have stories and memories to share that no one else would. To have my own life to remember, instead of spending it admiring others." She smiled with her answer that sounded so wise.

"Really…?" the boy sounded astounded, but when right back to spinning his ball, as if he hadn't asked the question at all.

The voice repeated each of Sirina's words distinctively and asked her,

"Is this the path you seek?"

Sirina nodded and waited a moment for the voice to continue.

"I have determined your fate. Your path is set. Your adventure will begin at dawn. You are tied to the three heroes – the trio that are tied to the door, in which they need you to open. Are you ready?"

Not waiting for a response from Sirina, a blinding white flash engulfed her, leading her to hopefully the last of the stained glass platforms.

The stained glass picture was the most confusing one of all. It was a short figure, garbed in a black cloak, its long, black nose sticking out a little from the shadow the cloak's hood cast upon its face. The coat looked much too big for the small person and its sleeves hung over its hands. But there was a long, golden weapon protruding from one of the opening of the sleeves. It looked very similar to the one the brunette boy had been holding, except it looked more powerful and majestic and had some kind of mystic glow to it. The same 'three circles' seal hung off from a keychain on the hilt of the key shaped blade.

Mesmerized by the picture, Sirina neglected to hear the sound of a shadow creature tugging itself out of its dark hole. She winced as a shooting pain raced up her spine. She heaved forward from the impact and whirled around to see the black enemy hurling itself at her, claws outstretched. She flung her arms in front of her face in an attempt to protect herself as a strange warmth surrounded her palms and the golden sword appeared in a flash to guard off the monster.

The creature shrieked as it hit the sword, grasping it with its claws to keep its balance. Sirina grunted as she swung her sword forward, sending the enemy flying through the air and collapsing to the ground. Hearing light footfalls, Sirina turned around to see three more shadow creatures slowly creeping their way toward her.

She grinned and charged at them, thrusting her sword at them and doing a series of several acrobatic flips and dodges. Finally stabbing her sword through the empty chest of the remaining monster, Sirina relaxed her muscles and sighed.

"Thank you, gymnastics!" She smiled victoriously, when she heard a strange sound. She turned to see a small light emanating from the middle of the platform. She trudged toward it curiously, only to have it expand to a blinding extent. She shielded her eyes, dropping her sword.

When the light finally faded, there was floating, stained glass stairs revealed, and leading up to another platform. Her eyes dropped to the floor to find her sword, but that had disappeared along with the light. Muttering angrily under her breath, Sirina jogged her way up the large stairs, huffing and panting when she finally reached the next platform.

This platform was, for lack of a better word, the most confusing one yet, if the other one hadn't been. All it held was an illustration of three, black cloaked strangers, the shadows of their hoods hiding their faces. There were some places in which the cloaks would bulge out, as if signifying that they were hiding something under the coats. But what interested Sirina the most, were the weapons each one was holding in their hand. The sleeves weren't oversized like the ones on the other character, so their hands were very visible – and also very covered by bronze armor. The blades were different for each figure and they looked much more powerful, exotic, and detailed than their predecessors. Sirina continued to gape at the picture when the mysterious voice decided to speak up again.

"The closer you get to the light, the greater your shadow becomes."

What?

Sirina spun around to see her shadow stretched out across the majority of the stained glass. It hesitated before reaching one hand out of the glass, coming alive. Her shadow looked completely ordinary, only towering over her, but its exterior didn't stay 'ordinary' for long. Its large hands began to grow claws, stretching up to ten feet long. Its feet became one big pointed, crooked claw, and its long hair wrapped itself around most of its face, whipping around like tentacles. Its glowing yellow eyes bulged through the 'hair' and, finally, a hole expanded across its chest. Except, it wasn't a normal, round hole. It was the shape of a heart. As if someone had just reached into the shadow and yanked out its heart, leaving the space it took up right there in the open.

Sirina turned to run, but there was no escape. She had no choice but to face the beast. She bit her lip and turned, staring the shadow right in the eyes, her sword appearing in her hand once more, as if on cue.

"I'm not seven…" she muttered to herself. "I am not afraid of my own shadow!"

"That's right! Don't be afraid. And don't forget…"

The sentence remained discontinued and Sirina took that as encouragement to lunge at the monster. She stood, attacking its hung low hands as it attempted to attack her. She swung furiously at its claws, grunting and panting as she did. The shadow didn't show one sign of pain or hurt. She stood there, her hair hanging in front of her fiery eyes as the air she inhaled felt like a million pointy icicles. Nothing was working!

Suddenly, she felt something wrap around her ankle and her feet flew out from beneath her, her chin slamming into the ground, her teeth crashing on top of each other. She moaned in pain, turning to see what had attacked her.

"Why you little…" She reached over, grasping her sword tightly as her knuckles turned white. Her face was red as she screamed, charging herself at the little 'helpers' the shadow had retrieved from the darkness it created.

When Sirina had disposed of the lesser creatures, she turned around to look up at the beast. "C'mon, you coward! Stop sending for your little assistants and fight me!"

As if to respond to Sirina's taunt, the shadow dropped to its knees, stretched its arms out, and bulked out its chest, the hole in its chest glowing purple. It shot black beams from it, missing Sirina every time. She clenched her teeth and climbed up on to its hand.

"C'mon, you can do better than that!" she taunted, sprinting up its curved arm. She made her way on to its shoulder, striking at its head several times. Finally, it relented. It roared in pain, grasping its head and collapsing in defeat.

Sirina managed to jump off of its shoulder before she hit the ground along with it, landing safely on her feet. Despite her flushed face and messy hair, she held a satisfied smirk as her shadow sunk into a black lake.

Sighing from exhaustion, Sirina stood her sword up, leaning against it breathlessly. As if the fighting weren't enough, a black circle had appeared under Sirina, instantly grabbing her from her sword, causing it to fall with a loud 'clank'.

She opened her mouth to scream, but a black tentacle wrapped itself around her mouth. She tried to tug at it, but then more tentacles wound themselves around her arms. She was sinking and the black, murky puddle felt like quicksand, swallowing her gradually.

"You will meet the trio that saved the world and underwent numerous hardships to do it, sacrificing themselves for the people they cared most about. And you will become a part of their story. You are the key that will open the door to the final battle…

The Keyblade War."

xoxo

Sorry for such a long chapter! If that's a bad thing… Ha, anyway I know it seemed like a humongous, long, droning retelling of what happened to Sora in the Kingdom Hearts, but I assure you that the rest of the story will not be that way. Remember, this is a direct sequel from Kingdom Hearts II, but I had to start it off from a different character's view to get the storyline right on track. So next chapter, you get to see what happens to the famous Keyblade Wielding Trio, mmkay, guys?

Well, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of one of the most epic fics I plan to write and please, don't forget to hit that purple button and…

Review .