Second Life

Author's note: For those of you who had finished reading the previous story "Second Chance", welcome to the sequel!

To those who either hadn't finished reading the previous story yet or haven't even started, please go and read that first to avoid spoilers.

You can find it(as well as many others) on my profile by simply clicking onto my name TASHASAUROUS and scroll down until you find it.

Without further delays, let's begin. Please knowlage that I also do not own Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy. Both rights belong to Square Enix.

CH1: Nightmares.

Eleven years ago...

"It's a bit weird that there aren't anybody around this time." Lea whispered as he and his best friend Isa who followed him as they both snuck into the hallways of the castle of their home, Radient Garden, where both boys were born and grew up in. For ages, the two teens had tried and failed to take a better look inside of this place, as they were curious on what Ansem the Wise, the town's ruler, was up to behind these walls. Now at the age of sixteen, they figured that this was their chance, though there was still a possibility that they would end up caught again, and if they're not careful, they'll end up locked in a cell.

Something that Lea didn't want to do, despite being the daredevil that he was, not to mention on being dangerously adventurous. He loved the thrills, the fun.

"If you keep talking, then you'll draw attention to us again." Isa pointed out in a whisper. Like his best friend, Isa was adventurous himself, but not as so as the redhead. While they both were born in the same town, they only met ten years ago, when Lea had approached the lonely Isa and invited him to play. Ever since then, the two boys had become close friends.

Despite their differences.

Lea was just about to respond by childishly sticking out his tongue, when all of the sudden, a blood curdling scream that sounded like the sound of dying agony filled the hallways which made Lea stop, and also caused him and Isa to glance around, startled, until the screaming stopped. It had become deathly silent. This never happened before, not even when they were standing in this very spot many times before.

"What was that?" Lea asked, now having a horrible feeling in his gut.

Isa quirked an eyebrow, muttering, "Whatever it was, that seriously didn't sound like a tea party." in a hint of sarcasm.

"That's not even funny, man." Lea retorted, clearly worried. "Something's wrong, and we gotta find out before we can get outta here."

"What? Are you crazy?" Isa asked, now staring at his friend in disbelief.

"Aren't I always?" Lea shrugged with a smirk.

Well, that was true. Lea was always been somewhat crazy, and well, it's hard to say. No really, it is hard to say, especially with red-haired guys(even if they are cute). Plus, the redheaded teen had a good point. Something was wrong, and they were possibly the only ones who can find out before the guards come and capture them, and either throw them out like before, or lock them into prison. Neither were appealling, that's for sure. But the guards were seemingly absent today. So was Wise Ansem.

Finally, Isa sighed, and replied, "Let's be careful."

"C'mon, it's not like we're not careful." Lea grinned even further, before leading the way to follow where the sound came from, even if they were a little bit lost since the halls were like a maze. Eventually, they could hear something that sounded like a wind, and someone was talking.

But it wasn't clear enough as they made it to a door, which, both boys believed was the office of Ansem himself. Lea and Isa glanced at each other, now getting more and more nervous, before they both risked in opening the door, slowly to take a look. But they blinked as they opened it wide, because the room was empty, save for a chair, a desk, some tubes with hearts like lava lamps, and shelves filled with Books.

However, their attention was drawn to another doorway which, no doubt led to some kind of lab. The talking seemed to have come from there.

Lea and Isa decided to see if there was anyone there, and silently and slowly made their way into the lab, though the gut feeling inside their bodies was getting worse.

Inside the main lab, before the boys would enter, was Xehanort and Braig, and the corpses of Even and eleven year old Ienzo, both lying deathlike, as their bodies were slowly fading away into the darkness, caused by the seemingly no longer amesia Xehanort who, unknown to all others except for Braig, had taken over Terra's body a year ago.

"Hey! Is this how you wanted it?" said Braig, shocked at he witnessed this, though he had an idea that this was part on his new job description.

The single-eyed guard began to approach his ally, asking, "Xehanort! You wanna fill me in?"

"I am..." Xehanort trailled off, as he held up his right hand and summoned his old-self's Keyblade with an animal symbol on it, dark and gothic like.

This got Braig's attention, as he muttered, "Hey! Do you remember now, or..." shocked to see the Keyblade again, before asking in his second theory, "Wait, did you never lose your memory?"

However, the only reply he got was Xehanort leaping towards him in a matter of second, and the next thing Braig knew, he had a Keyblade struck into his chest, into his heart, as he choked a gasp and scream of agony, which the latter didn't get a chance to come out of his mouth. It seemed that Xehanort had other ideas.

Because the silver-haired man says, "That's not my name. I'm not "Xehanort.""

As Braig's remaining eye widened in shock, still choking, eventually, in a quick death, he collasped to the ground, exhaling loudly, as his heart came out of his chest before it disappeared into the darkness, possibly forever.

"My name... is Ansem." said Xehanort, having stolen the real Ansem's name.

Just as he said this, he heard a gasp of horror, and when the man looked up, at the door way, two unfamiliar teenagers stood, seeing the three dead bodies on the floor. One boy had bright red hair, and the other boy had blue hair, which, in Xehanort's returned memories, strongly reminded him of Aqua who foolishly sacrificed herself in an attempt to save Terra.

Lea and Isa had just arrived and had just witnessed Braig's death. Lea had to force down the scream of terror, but he couldn't even mask the fear on his expression. Isa looked pale and a bit green in the face. The boys were absolutely horrified at this, before they looked up and the answer to this was in front of them.

It also answered the absence of Ansem the Wise, though Lea and Isa both theoried that Xehanort had murdered him the same way the silver-haired man had just killed Braig, and had murdered another man and a child.

When Xehanort began to smirk, Lea quickly turned to Isa and managed to stutter, "L-Let's get outta here!"

"I vote for that." Isa nodded quickly in agreement.

But just as the boys were about to run, Xehanort was faster and was upon them, before whacking both boys onto the floor to prevent them from escaping, as he could sense that, while the teens had no idea, they both had strong hearts and growing powers within them, which would be perfect for his goal.

Stunned and suddenly in agony at the unexpected attack, Lea and Isa struggled to get back up, as Xehanort aimed his Keyblade at them, glancing at Lea first who froze in horror, unable to move. He was going to die, and he didn't want to.

Without thinking, he muttered pleadly, "H-hold on! I don't want to die! I'm not ready!" even though he sounded pathetic, he didn't care.

"Death awaits for you. You will remain dead for all eternity." Xehanort chuckled.

He then prepared to stab Lea who eyes' widened and he tried the shield himself with his arms as best as he could, unable to scream.

"LEA!" Isa screamed, as he pushed Lea out the way, and took the blow, the keyblade in his chest, gasping loudly.

By the time he recovered, Lea watched in absolute horror as he best friend was stabbed by Xehanort. "ISA! NOO!" he screamed out, but his pleas were drowned.

The Keyblade was then pulled out, and Isa collasped...right into Lea's arms as the teen held his now dying best friend. His body was being covered in darkness, and his chest glowed, an orb of light slowly coming out. Lea somehow knew it was Isa's heart.

"I-Isa! Isa!" Lea began to sob, cradling his best friend as the body was beginning to disappear. "Don't-Don't leave me! I'm so very sorry! I should've just moved!" tears pouring down his eyes.

"Shh...It's not...your fault." Isa wheezed, gently placing a finger gently onto Lea's lips.

"P-please don't go!" Lea begged. "It's all my fault!" which he knew that it was, because if he hadn't gotten the stupid idea to explore this castle, none of this would've happened to either of them.

Isa smiled, and then said with his dying breath, "I won't forget you...G-Got it...memorized?" and then...he closed his eyes and went limp, and his body was almost consumed by the darkness.

Lea could not take it, "Isa? ISA!" he screamed, then sobbed harder and harder, cradling the body of his now dead friend close to chest, and cried, "Come back...! COME BACK!"

But then, without warning, Xehanort grabbed hold of him by the back of his shirt, yanked him off the ground, and threw him into the wall behind him next to the door into the main lab. Lea cried out in pain at the sudden move, and to his horror, Xehanort aimed the Keyblade at the middle of his chest where his heart was.

"Your heart will be mine." Xehanort sneered.

Lea shivered, then closed his eyes, and braced himself. This was it. This was the end. His life was now over. His last thoughts were, "Isa...I'm gonna be with you shortly. Love ya, man."

As his tears fell again, he felt a sharp and agonizing pain in his chest and right into his heart. He screamed in such pain. Then...it went silent. As the keyblade was pulled out, Lea groaned in pain, moaned, trying to hold on, until...he fell next to his friend, onto his back. His body was now being covered in darkness, and his heart was now floating up and vanishing.

Lea was dead.

Present day-one year after Kingdom Hearts II(and Second Chance).

The now twentyseven year old Lea gasped loudly as he jolted upright in his bed, panting as his body was covered in cold sweat. His heart was racing, the very heart that once lost and had then recovered a year ago, and now was threatening to burst out of his chest. Blinking rapidly, he glanced around, before sighing. He was in his room, the room of his childhood home in Radiant Garden which was being rebuilt. With the help of Merlin and the Restoration Committee, Lea had rebuilt his house and made his parents' room into a girl's room for Xion and Namine, while he and Roxas shared Lea's room.

He had bought some new furninture for his house which he shared with three of the former nobodies, and been the responsible guardien for them. While it was still unclear, in responise of his revival, Lea's memories and friendship with Roxas, Xion and Namine gave him, Sora and Kairi the power to bring the three of them back, turning them into complete human beings with hearts of their own, as the Kingdom Hearts Xemnas created reconsided their hard work and with the explosion from Ansem's device helped the matters.

After that, Lea took it upon himself to take care of the three teens after Sora, Riku and Kairi had returned home in Destiny Islands, and King Mickey, Donald and Goofy returned to Disney Castle. As for the redhead, instead of heading towards Twilight Town, he decided to return to his old home and brought Roxas, Xion and Namine with him which they agreed with. After stating to Leon and his group that Lea would help in restoring the town, the redhead and his three friends were made as honoray members, along with Riku and Kairi, since Sora, Donald and Goofy were made since the trio's first trip back after a year of sleep.

That was a year ago now. Things were starting to get back on track, but that didn't mean it'll ever be the same, not for Lea. Since returning to his childhood home, each night, he'd been plunged with dark memories in form of nightmares, mostly about his first death and the death of Isa.

It wasn't fair, really. Lea got his heart back, Roxas, Namine and Xion were made human while Sora and Kairi remained complete themselves, his parents were dead, and Isa was long gone forever, and he knew that the latter was his own fault.

Each time he remembered their deaths, Lea would silently cry to himself. Right now, he could feel his tears silently fall and he didn't stop them.

"Axel?" came a tired voice. Lea glanced to see that Roxas as sitting up, but still half-asleep. "You okay?" the blonde-haired teen asked.

Lea faked a smile and replied, "I'm fine. Just had a nightmare. Go back to sleep, Rox'."

The teen didn't argue as he immediately fell back into the paradise of his pillow and instantly back in dream-land. Lea sighed as the smile faded from his face. He couldn't tell Roxas about his nightmares, not yet. While he did tell the kids about his past with Isa, and how Xehanort ruined everything, Lea still hasn't told them about how horrifying the experince was.

After some time, Lea and the others agreed that his nobody's name was his new middle/nickname. Plus, he was used to it by now.

He looked up at the ceiling, as it was still in the middle of the night, the normal around-shaped Moon in the sky along with the stars glowed brightly.

'Isa...' Lea thought in his mind. 'I'm sorry. I wish I...I wish I could've prevent that from happening. I still think about you, you know. I miss you, man, even though we didn't have good times as Nobodies.'

Sighing again, he decided to try and catch up on more sleep, so he layed back into his bed, and covered his body up to his shoulders and closed his eyes, praying not to have anymore nightmares.

What he and the others were unaware of, is that the nightmare was about to continue and get even worse.

That's the first chapter done. Look out for the next one either today or sometime this month. Please send in reviews. I'd really appreciate it.