My attempt at re-telling the Kingdom Hearts literature from a more 'reality-based' point of view. All Kingdom Hearts material is owned by Square Enix and related parties. I own none of these.

He felt himself sinking, his back flowing against gentle waves. He was drifting, no, he was sinking.

"Where am I...?"

He weakly opened his eyes. Blue oceanic ripples covered his vision. There was a bright light above the watery surface, yet it dissipated and rippled over the surface. His senses had begun to go numb and he lost consciousness again.

The next time he awoke, it was on a glowing white surface. He got up to his feet and looked around. The circle of light was as if someone had cast a big stage light on an otherwise dark and empty stage floor. The circle of grey light had cracks and fissures emanating from the centre The sight frightened him, as if it was something he had not wanted to see. He slowly began to walk away from the light's fold, the dark outer realm called out to him.

"What is this place?" he murmured as he took his first step out of the light, but no more than half way down had he set his foot when a foreign voice echoed in his mind.

"Don't you recognize this place?"

A sudden jolt that froze him in place. He was standing on top of a platform that extended deep into the darkness.

"Who's there?!" he called out, looking frantically into the darkness.

"Don't be afraid. I know why you are here."

It was difficult to understand the voice because it was neither masculine nor feminine. Instead, the words flowed into the boy's mind. He looked around, hoping to see someone, but he was all alone within the circle of light. A faint golden light began to glimmer at the platform's centre.

"I can guide you, but only until you are ready to stand on your own."

The words echoed in the boy's mind as he approached the growing stream of light. By the time he reached it, it had grown to nearly half his body's size.

"Will you be able to do this?"

The light began to fade, revealing traces of an object embedded in the origin of the platform's cracks. What was left from the light's flow was a silver blade with a chrome hilt and a purple jewel at the center of the hilt.

"Do you have what it takes...?"

The boy studied the swords from its hilt downwards. The blade was halfway within the center of the platform. There were runes on the blade's hilt, adorned with an oval jewel at the blade's cross guard. How could he not reach out for it?

"You will discover endless possibilities..."

He grabbed the sword. It felt cold and sent a single pulse through his entire body.

"But from within these possibilities, you must find your own path..."

His arm felt stronger, as if the pulse had just filled him with energy. He began to pull the sword slowly from the gash.

"Believe in the human heart and it's potential..."

Rays of light began to shoot from the gash, but the boy did not stop.

"Believe...and bear..."

The blade was nearly free of its prison. The shooting rays of light burst into powerful streams.

"Bear the burden..."

The scars on the surface began to fill with the same light. Black cracks began to fill and merge, enlightening the entire surface.

"Bear the burden...and obtain the salvation you seek..."

The gashes on the surface quickly healed as the platform became blindingly bright. The boy covered his eyes with the back of his hand, as the voice echoed.

"Never forget; seek the goodness in others if you want to continue down your path."

The surface was flowing with streams of pure white light. The shinning stream flowed into the depths of darkness like a waterfall.

"If you ever find yourself in doubt...return here and become one with me again..."

The waterfall quickly subsided, and the remaining puddle of light on the surface erupted into the air, transforming into dove-like creatures as they spread their wings and took towards the surface.

"Because I am you...and you, are me."

The boy stood in awe. What was once a scarred grey surface had now come alive with color, shards of glass coming together to form a mosaic. The sword dissipated from his hand.

The outer rim of the platform depicted a shape resembling twin intersecting circles with a single star in between, while the center of the platform depicted mosaic art of a sleeping boy clad in silver shirt. Surrounding the boy were six empty circles.

"That's...me?" he whispered. No sooner had he completed his fragment, that the platform began to glow. It would light up for a second, briefly go dim and then light up again, almost like the beating of a heart. The boy looked skywards where dancing blue rays reflected on a watery surface.

Leo Caelius awoke in his bed, the light of the moon still fresh and bright in his room. He sat upright briefly before resting against the wall of his window, gazing at the county outside.

Leo's world was a small one. He had lived in the county neighbourhood with his grandparents all his life. The houses were small unit plots with a rectangular courtyard and standard sized garage upfront. By day, the neighbourhood would be crawling with people, but no one was out this late at night. At least, that's how it usually is, but one room remained untimely lit in the house across Leo's. It was the Erebus household, consisting of young Ayla Erebus living with her grandparents. She and Leo had spent their childhood together. They were content in this peaceful neighbourhood that had access to all the world's facilities at walking distance. Ayla and Leo were the county's most promising young couple and this meant everyone knew about them.

Leo tried to concentrate on the room through the curtains, not perturbed for a second by the dream he just had. His deep black eyes barely reflected the moon's light and his spiky light brown hair glistened. The light being on at this time meant Ayla was working on something, but Leo couldn't imagine what could be so important as to stay up till 3 AM. He couldn't see her, but he could picture her. Ayla, with her sleek gentle frame, hazelnut hair and tender black eyes, was most probably sitting at her study, either jotting down notes or just because she was not sleepy. Unbeknownst to him, Ayla was looking back at his room from behind the curtain. She could make out his silhouette through the window and knew he had just had another dream. The two smiled at one another from behind their windows.

The light in Ayla's room went out. Leo retired to bed as well. His mind pondered towards the strange feeling that had pulsed through him. It was a mix of nostalgia and unease, as if he was forgetting something important. It did not stick to him for long though, as Leo fell asleep within a few heartbeats.