"If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary-wise; what it is it wouldn't be, and what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?"
- Alice (Alice in Wonderland, 1951)

CHAPTER ONE:
Out of the Darkness

Heartless... The name explains what we are very plain and simply:

Beings that came from the darkness within hearts of humans...
Beings that were created when a heart was consumed...
Beings without feeling and emotion, only the hunger for hearts...

This hunger, simply isn't instict.. It's much more complex than it seems. We strive for hearts because we do not have our own. We are jealous of those who have them. The only thing we can feel is the darkness. We weren't always like this, we were just like them.

Before, we could feel, as if we had hearts...
Before, we looked like humans...
Before, our golden eyes weren't the only thing that shined in the darkness around us...

My name is Kieran, and I was the first heartless ever born...

This is my story...

I opened my eyes... It hurt... It looked like... white. I cowered away from it, shutting my eyes tightly and curling up into the fetal position as the darkness that eminated from my body swirled around me.

"It's alright, my child... The light won't hurt you... Do not be afraid of it..." I heard a deep voice say. Light... Is that what this was? It felt burning, but warm. I could still see it shining through the darkness of my eyelids. I felt something on my face, covering my eyes. I didn't know what it was, what I was, or where I was. Comfort came to me as I was pulled to my feet and shrouded by darkness. I felt something around me that seemed to embrace me. Then there was another light that flashed for a quick second. I opened my eyes again; I could see now. A figure with tan skin and orange eyes was looking at me, his limbs around me as we were in a ball of darkness.

"Who are you...?" I questionged in my mind.

"My name is Xehanort. I am your Master." the man answered aloud. I tilted my head, examining how his lips moved and a sound came out of his mouth.

"M-Master..." I said, copying his mouth movements and breathing out. I pondered the word for a second as I looked away from him. I looked down at my chest and then to my feet. I was no longer covered in darkness. I raised the limb on my right, examining it. Something covered me, just like the man in front of me had on him, except it was a shade or two lighter. I looked at the man again.

"Who am I...?" I asked.

"You are my creation... Your name shall be Kieran." Master answered.

"Kier-an...?" I questioned. He nodded.

"Don't worry... I will help you... Everything will make sense in due time." Master said. I nodded and leaned my head against his chest. He was my safe place... He was my home.

My birth had been about a month ago. Upon the first time I looked into a mirror to see myself, I was in amazement... I looked similar to the Master. Not quite like him, but I had similar features that were slightly different. I had two golden eyes that glowed, like his orange ones. I had a nose, a mouth, a voice, two ears, a neck, a torso, two arms with a hand on each and two legs with feet. I also had a mark on the left side of my rib cage; Black and heart-like, outlined and with stitches crossing through it in red. It ran right below my breast to my hip. The Master clothed me, fed me, and made me human. I learned what emotions were and how to feel them. I learned what the world around me was like. Quickly after that, I learned how to fight. The Master taught me first how to revert into my true form, as a he taught me how to use all different kinds of magic. The only weapons I used were Magic Rings; bracelets that were used to strangthen my magic. A little bit into my training, another one who looked like the Master was introduced to me. This one was closer to the age of my body though. The Master said he was training him as well to become the "X-blade", whatever that was. His name was Ventus. When I first trained with him, his weapon scared me. It resembled a key. I'd never seen it before. The Master had always just used magic to train me, though later he explained what this weapon was. It was a Keyblade. The Master was also skilled with this weapon, but he thought it was too early for me to be exposed to it before... Ven must have been important if the Master was willing to expose me to this keyblade even though he thought I wasn't ready... Master kept on calling us brother and sister, so that was what we were led to believe. Ven grew to be my younger brother. The family I could never have. My bond with him obliterated the bond I had with Master. I had deep respect and loyalty for the Master, but I developed something else for Ven... An obscure feeling which told me that all I had to do was protect him. I always wanted to be around him, keep him safe. Ven showed me more about the world than I had ever learned with Master. He introduced me to the stars, the moon, the clouds... He made me fear the light no more...

I had been alive for about a year now. The age of my body was nineteen. Ven was seventeen. Ven and the Master were training. I was told to sit this one out. We were in the Keyblade Graveyard as usual. My fists were tightly clenched and my lip was starting to ache from me biting down on it. I was so nervous as I watched Ven. He had been fighting for half an hour straight and was exhausted. His breathing was heavy as he killed the last of the wave of heartless that the Master had sent for him... Another wave of Neoshadows were summoned. They circled around Ven and waited for commands... When would Master stop?

"Please, don't do this, Master! I'm not strong enough!" Ven yelled.

"No... It is because you're trying to hold it in Let the dark impulses waken in the pit of your heart. Release them, here and now! Sharpen your fear into rage." the Master replied. As he spoke, more Neoshadows appeared from the ground. They began to draw closer and closer to Ven. I stood next to the Master, my worried face in contrast with his calm one. Ven... wasn't like that. He was full of light. Sure, there was darkness in him, as there was in everyone, but he wasn't meant to embrace it... He wasn't like me...

The Master continued. "You must! if you do not let the storm within you run its course, it will wipe you from the face of the world, make no mistake! Do it. Embrace the darkness. Produce for your Master the X- blade!"

Then the Neoshadows made their move. I closed my eyes and turned away as I heard Ven scream. I turned back to see them ganging up on Ven, who was getting tossed around like a hackeysack. Without thinking, I turned to the Master and grabbed his sleeve.

"Master, please! Make them stop! They're going to kill him!" I yelled.

"This has to be done, child! You are not to interfere!" the Master said sternly, not bothering to look at me.

I sank down to my knees, still clutching his arm. "Please... Please, Master Xehanort..." I cried. I looked up at him as black tears made their way down my face.

"Inept Heartless..." Master said, snatching his arm away from me. My arms fell to the ground as I looked up at Ven. The Master waved his hand once and the neoshadows vanished into the ground. I wondered why I wasn't like them... They too were heartless. What made me so special? What made me different? I got up and began to follow the Master as he made his way down towards Ven. Before I reached the edge of the plateau we were at, he yelled at me.

"Stay here!" he commanded. I halted immediately as the Master made a portal and walked into it. He reappeared through another portal in front of the unconcious Ven. The Master pushed Ven over on his back with his foot. Then he summoned his keyblade. I gasped... He wouldn't... I watched as the Master raised his keyblade above Ven with both of his hands.

"No!" I cried as the keyblade's tip glowed and a stream of light hit Ven's body.

"Ven!" I yelled. I made a portal, appearing in front of Ven as his heart floated in the air.

"Didn't I tell you to stay put?" The Master yelled. I slid next to Ven, resting his back against my lap and holding him as his heart glowed. He was starting to lift up into the air a little as he was gasping for breath. I looked up as darkness surrounded Ven's heart in the air. The glow about his chest faded and Ven's body dropped like a rock. His eyes were glazed over.

"What did you do to him?" I yelled, tears coming from my eyes again. The Master didn't answer me. I looked behind me as a person landed on the ground. It was a boy in a mask, dressed in dark colours.

"Empty creature from Ventus riven... to you, the name Vanitas shall be given." The Master said to the boy. I understood... It looked similar to the way I was created...

"Yes, Master." the boy answered. The Master walked away with Vanitas short behind. He stopped when he reached me. I didn't look up at him, but I could feel his golden eyes on me.

"You..." he said. I didn't reply. I was still fixated on Ven.

"You're... like me..." Vanitas continued.

"No... I'm not like you..." I said. The boy disregarded my reply and walked into the open portal that the Master had left for him. I stared at Ven for a minute and then closed his lifeless eyes. Then I picked him up and walked into the portal as well.

Authors Note: Sorry for this being short, I just wanted to get it out. Trust me, the other chapters will be longer. They'll range from 2,000 - 4,000 words, depending on my mood and if I get stuck lol. Pictures of Kieran and other pics that will be used later in the series will be posted in the photo album of my website (www . aeonsoul234 . webs . com)under the album with the same title as the title of this story. happy reading ^_^