Darkness…

Blackness…

Emptiness…

Absolutely nothing for miles…..if they existed.

"…..I've been having these weird thoughts lately…."

In the middle of it, a male youth plunged down onto the void, his brown-spiky-haired head first, followed by his black coat covering a red bodysuit with shorts. A chain hung from them. Fingerless gloves covered his weak hands. A necklace danced around his neck as he fell. He had no knowledge of falling. No senses at all.

"Like…is any of this real…or not?" his eyes opened. They were blue.

His name was Sora.

He merely existed as he plunged further…..further…..further….

After a big sudden flash of light, he was standing on a sandy beach. The sea was calm, and the sun was shining over the nearby palm trees. He looked towards the horizon, shielding his eyes from the sun…and he saw someone.

That someone was another male youth, probably the same age or older. His silver hair fluttered in the breeze as he held out a black and blue gloved hand towards the one on the beach. His bright blue eyes were calm…inviting. And he didn't seem to care about the huge wave heading for him.

The brown-haired boy on the beach wasn't. He yelled out the other's name, 'Riku', and ran into the water. He was too late as the wave swept over both of them, enveloping them both in water.

Sora struggled to swim, holding his breath for fear of drowning. 'Riku', however, didn't budge. He was floating, yes, but he was as still as a statue, still holding that same hand out.

Sora tried to reach him, but the current got the better of him, and he was pulled back. He surfaced to find that it was, for some reason, sunset already. He only considered it for a second as he hobbled back to the sandy beach.

This time another person was there. A girl. She waved a dainty hand at Sora as he made his way back. Short, red hair crowned her pretty head. Her tank top was white, her skirt over shorts was pink, and her belt was purple. Her big shoes had all three of these colours. Her wristbands were yellow, and a second one on her right wrist was black. A necklace hung from her neck. Her warm and happy eyes were bright blue.

She giggled as Sora stopped by her side to catch his breath. He tried to tell her what had just happened, but could only pant her name: 'Kairi'. She then grew silent, and Sora soon found out why when she looked in the direction she was looking: towards the sky. He stared, mouth agape. A meteor shower was occurring and in the middle of it, someone was falling, and that someone was himself.

Then it was as if the sand beneath his feet was giving way. Sora felt as if he was falling; the sand was giving way. 'Kairi' gasped. He reached out to grab her, but to no avail. He fell. He was in the place of the person who was falling: like a two-second premonition.

He fell into the water, but didn't seem to break the surface. The girl reached out to him with a horrified face. From Sora's view, it was as if she was standing on water. He could see the soles of her shoes.

He sunk deeper and was afraid to release the breath he was holding in. His body then straightened itself and he was falling feet-first.

Then his feet touched ground. His legs nearly collapsed from the sudden touch. Sora looked around, not that there was anything to see.

He let all the air out and found he could breath.

He stepped forward, and the dark ground moved. It separated into several doves which flew off the real ground he was standing on. No, not ground; a platform.

It was one large artistic picture of a girl. Her red hair was neatened by a green headband. Her short body was adorned in a green overall-skirt over a simple white vest. Her black shoes were Mary Janes. Her solid-black eyes were beady, hence their colour. Her plain face bore a smile…or, at least, an upside-down arch. She was surrounded by another three people. One: A buff, sunglasses-wearing man with a blond Elvis hairdo. Two: A skinny, spectacled man with red-brown hair that bent downwards ridiculously. Three: A middle-aged woman with a large rear, wearing dark blue triangle sunglasses.

"So much to do," a disembodied voice spoke softly, "….so little time."

Sora looked around, frightened.

"Take your time; don't be afraid. The door is still shut."

Sora sighed, knowing that cooperation seemed to be the best option as of now. He relaxed his body and let his arms slump to his sides.

"Now, step forward. Can you do it?"

Sora took a shaky step forward.

The platform rumbled, and three pedestals emerged in a triangle formation on the edge.

"The power sleeps within you…"

On one pedestal, a triangular shield appeared in a flash of light. It was pure orange. In its centre, was the letter 'N', in white. The shield floated and rotated.

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

On another pedestal, a staff appeared in another flash of light. It was silver; all of it. On its tip was a sphere with four spikes pointing in separate directions. It had one cartoonish eye that was on its right side. There was an empty space on the left. Like the shield, it floated and rotated.

"Now, choose and choose well."

On the third pedestal, a sword appeared. The metal was pure-white, and the hilt was pure black. On the hilt, there was a small, white circle with the letters 'CN' in black. It mimicked the other two.

Sora smiled, thinking about showing this to his friends. Getting to them would be a problem though.

He walked towards the sword, jumped, and held it in his hands.

"The power of the Warrior. Invincible courage. A sword of terrible destruction," the voice said. "Is this the power you seek?"

Sora nodded and held the weapon tight. It disappeared in a flash of light. He jumped off the pedestal.

"Your path is set. Now…what will you give up in exchange?"

Sora jumped off the pedestal and looked from the shield to the staff. He shrugged and made his way to the latter.

"The power of the Mystic," the voice said as Sora held the staff. "Inner strength. A staff of wonder and ruin. You give up this power?"

Sora nodded and the staff disappeared from his hands in another flash of light.

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

"Yes..," Sora spoke for the first time. He was beginning to trust the voice.

The shield disappeared, and the pedestals sunk into the platform with a jolt. Sora was forced off. He looked around, agitated. The platform began to break apart from the outside inwards. Sora fell as the whole thing was destroyed.

He landed on another platform gently. This one showed another female, probably the same age as the last. She was also the same height and wearing a pair of Mary Janes. Her pink shirt had a flower with green petals in its centre. Her nose-less face was frowning, the eyebrows thick and making her eyes look like semicircles. Her blonde hair had a black headband. Her fists where on her hips. She was clearly annoyed.

Sora preferred the other one.

"You have gained the power to fight."

At this, the sword Sora had chosen appeared in his hand. He swung it to test its weight.

"Alright! You've got it! Use this power to protect yourself and others."

"Okay," Sora replied.

"There will be times when you have to fight."

Black splodges appeared on the platform's surface. They solidified in the form of short, black beings. They possessed hands, flat feet, and zigzagged antennas. Their round eyes were solid yellow.

"Keep your light burning strong."

Sora ran forward, not having a choice.

One of them jumped over him; he ignored it.

Another sunk into the ground, came by his side as a shadow, solidified, and scratched his leg.

Sora hissed. In anger, he hit the creature on the head, stabbed it in the chest, and did a three-sixty spin move into its side. It disappeared, probably defeated.

The other creatures disappeared, but not for long. One of them approached Sora from behind.

"Behind you!"

Sora gasped and turned around. He attacked the creature in the same way he attacked the one before. After killing it, he ran to the other ones that came along. He succeeded in defeating them all.

The platform got encased in blackness. One of the dark creatures sunk into it. Sora also began to sink, struggling. It was no use; it was like quicksand. He was fully submerged.

He was then on his back, fighting nothing but air. Sora was still alive. He got to his feet and was on yet another platform. This one showed various silhouettes of feminine figures framed by hearts. The biggest one of them was on the middle.

A translucent door stood near the edge. Sora examined it. He couldn't open it. After performing various tasks, such as pushing large objects and lifting them, the door solidified. It opened, bright light coming from within it like a portal. Sora shielded his eyes, but, somehow, got used to it quickly. He stepped forward.

Now, he was elsewhere. It was very familiar, a place next in his island home. Three people where also present other than himself. Wakka, Tidus, and Selphie. Sora knew them well. He went to Wakka first.

Wakka was the oldest of the bunch. A ridiculously large, blue headband covered his forehead and most of his hair. In his right hand was one of his large spheres he used in battle.

"What do you want outta life?" he asked Sora.

"To be strong," Sora replied.

"To be strong, huh?" Wakka remarked.

Sora didn't bother with him. Instead, he went to Tidus. The boy resembled him a lot. His brown hair and blue eyes were of brighter colours though. An 'X'-shaped scar was on his right cheek.

"Hi, Tidus," Sora greeted with a smile. "What's up?"

"What are you so afraid of?" Tidus asked without answering Sora's question.

Sora didn't mind. He put a finger to his chin in thought, "I'd have to say…..getting old."

"'Gettin' old'?" Tidus cocked an eyebrow. "Is that really so scary?"

Sora was about to say something, but went to the last person instead.

Selphie was sitting on the railings, keeping her balance if she ever teetered. She had brown hair, and wore a yellow dress and black sandals. Her hands rested on her knees daintily. Her eyes were a soft jade.

"What is most important to you?" she asked Sora before he could so much as open his mouth.

"Friendship," Sora answered immediately.

"Is friendship such a big deal?" Selphie cocked her head.

"You want to be strong……you're afraid of getting old……you want friendship……"

"That's right," Sora spoke.

"Your adventure begins at midday. Keep a steady pace and you'll come through."

"Sounds good."

"The day you will open the door is both far off and very near," the voice explained.

Everything faded to white.

Sora now stood on a fourth platform. Its picture was of a very, attractive young lady. Her red hair reached her lower back and covered her right eye. Her left eye was half-open in a seductive sort of manner and had blue eye shadow. She wore a skimpy, sparkly red dress with its line cut, exposing a long and graceful leg. Her high heels matched the colour. Her red lips were smiling softly, not seductively. Her delicate arms were covered in purple gloves that reached her shoulders. One arm was hugging an anthropomorphic, white rabbit with an exaggeratedly, large, and goofy smile. He was clad in red overalls that reached his feet, yellow gloves, and a blue bowtie with yellow pocadots. A tuff or orange hair stuck out of the top of his head.

Sora stepped forward.

More of those dark creatures appeared from the ground. Sora equipped his sword and fought them off. There where more this time. He swung the sword with all his might, killing them with incredible ease.

He smirked as the last one evaporated into nothing, "Is this the best they can do?"

Panes of multicoloured stain glass materialized at the edge of the platform, leading to another platform like stairs. Sora ran up them, failing to notice that the ones he stepped on disappeared.

He made it to the platform, the last one in the bunch. It showed the image of a skinny, blue-eyed girl with blonde hair that reached her lower back. A pair of blue goggles hung from her thin neck, over her black, long-sleeved tube top. T In its centre, the top had a yellow 'T' in a circle. Her gloved fists were on her small waist, which had a belt securing yellow shorts. With her brown combat boots, she stood on a floating piece of rock, with a smirk on her pretty face.

Sora stepped towards the middle.

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

Sora turned around and looked down. His shadow was, in fact, growing longer in size. It solidified like the small creatures, and arched upwards in Sora's shape…but not for long.

Sora stepped back in fear.

"But don't be afraid."

The shadow grew bigger, extending hands with sharp claws.

Sora's feet neared the edge.

A black, zigzagged foot touched the platform's surface, followed by another just like it.

"And don't forget…"

A huge being stood instead of the shadow. Like the others Sora fought, it had solid-yellow eyes. Tentacles attached to its head like Medusa's snakes. It was human in shape, with a heart-shaped hole in the middle of its chest.

Sora knew he couldn't take on this monster. It would kill him instantly. He bit his lip. He could have run, but had nowhere to go. He swallowed and readied his sword with a tiny whimper.

The monster clenched its fist, summoning power. It then pounded the fist into the ground with a POW!. A black pool suddenly surrounded the hand, and several pairs of yellow eyes emerged. Sora didn't notice, because he was running up the monster's still arm and slicing away at the creature's head.

The dark fiend didn't seem to react to the slicing it was getting, but Sora persisted, never stopping to catch his breath.

The monster retracted its fist and waited. Sora fell.

He had to fight its minions now. They were simple. He tore through two of them with one swing, and kicked another off the arena. One jumped and scratched his back.

"Ow!" Sora exclaimed. He gritted his teeth and slashed though the attacker.

They where gone now. Good thing too; the monster was kneeling down and spreading its arms out like a crucifix. Energy collected in the hole in its chest, sending projectiles after Sora, three at a time.

Sora ran behind the slow monster, and attacked the back of its neck. Suddenly, he struck gold as the thing let out a low growl….or something.

It turned around almost too quickly.

Sora's sword suddenly disappeared from his hand. He was defenceless. He barely avoided the monster's downward pound with a back-jump. The monster slapped the other hand on the ground.

Sora fell on his butt. The ground beneath him became encased in the same black pool as before. The dark thing was still there.

"--But don't be afraid……"

Sora began to sink.

"You hold the mightiest weapon of all."

He couldn't breath. He reached one weak hand out, as if someone would grab it and rescue him. The darkness was sucking him in like a giant octopus or something.

"So don't forget……"

He disappeared into utter oblivion.

"…… You are the one who will open the door…………"

K-K-K-K-K-K

Sora's eyes opened and he was greeted with the sunny aura of his island home. He was sitting on the beach. Gentle waves created a calming sound as they broke into the sandy shore. Forgetting everything, Sora yawned loudly, assuming that no one else was there, and laid his head down.

He saw someone staring at him from an upside-down angle.

"Whoa!" He shot up with a jolt.

"Hehehehe!" the girl giggled.

Sora sighed as he faced her kneeling up, "Gimme a break, Kairi."

"Sora, you lazy bum," she said with her hands behind her back cutely, "…I knew I'd find you snoozing around here."

"N-No, this huge…black thing swallowed me up!" Sora exclaimed as it all came back to him. "I could breath, I couldn't--Ow!" Kairi had bonked him on the head.

"Are you still dreaming?" she leaned her red head to the side.

"It wasn't a dream..," Sora said as he calmed down. "Or was it…..? I don't know" he looked towards the horizon. "What was that place……? So bizarre…."

"Yeah…sure," Kairi rolled her blue eyes as she stood at the edge of the beach.

"Say, Kairi," Sora looked over his shoulder, "what was your hometown like….y'know, where you grew up?"

"I told you before," Kairi smiled softly again, "I don't remember."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing."

"Hmmm," Sora was in deep thought.

"But, y'know..," Kairi brightened. "I wouldn't mind going to see it."

"Yeah, me too," Sora grinned. "Along with any other worlds out there…… I wanna see 'em all." He looked off into space, imagining what it would be like.

"So what are we waiting for?" Kairi asked, excited at the idea.

"Hey," a young voice called, "aren't you guys forgetting about me?"

Sora and Kairi turned around.

"So…," Riku said, a log tucked under his arm, "…I'm the only one who's been working on the raft." He smirked.

Sora was about to get up, when Riku dropped the log on him, "Whoa!"

Kairi giggled again.

"And you're just as lazy as he is," Riku said jokingly to her with his gloved fists on his hips.

"Heee…," her cheeks burned slightly, but the silver-haired boy didn't see it, "so you noticed."

Riku sat down besides Sora, who had removed the log.

"Okay, we'll finish together!" she bounced with happiness. "I'll race ya!"

"What?" "No way."

Sora and Riku spoke in unison. They obviously didn't want to race.

"One…two," nevertheless, Kairi was in the mood for it, "…three--GO!"

In one split second, Sora and Riku shared a glance, smirked, got to their feet, and sprinted down the beach like their lives depended on it.

Kairi lagged behind, giggling to no possible end.

K-K-K-K-K-K

A few hours had passed. Surprisingly, the raft was completed by the three youngsters. Now, they sat on a small island that was extremely close to the main one. A bridge connected the little landform to the seaside shack. It was dusk, and the setting sun was creating beautiful, lovely hues of punk, red and yellow.

Sora, Riku, and Kairi sat on/leaned against a palm tree that was bent out of shape.

"So there are other worlds out there?" Sora inquired. He was sitting between Riku and Kairi, on the bent out of shape tree.

"Could be," Riku said, arms crossed and leaning against the tree's base. "We'll never know by staying here."

"Think the raft will take us far?"

"Eh, it really doesn't matter," Riku huffed. "Anywhere's better than this boring place."

"So, if you actually get to another world…," Kairi began, sitting furthers away from him on the tree, "…what would you do there?"

"……," Riku thought for an answer. He came up with, "I haven't really thought of that… If there are other worlds out there, then why'd we end up on this one?" He took another breath, "Suppose there are other worlds out there…then ours is a small piece of something much greater. So," he concluded, "we could have just as easily ended up somewhere else, right?"

"I dunno," Sora said monotonously as he put his hands behind his head and rested his back on the tree.

"Exactly," Riku stood up straight and unfolded his arms. "That's why we need to get out there and find out. Just sitting here won't change a thing. It's the same old stuff, so let's go."

Kairi looked at him curiously, "You've been thinking a lot about this, haven't you?"

"Thanks to you," Riku have her eye contact. "If you never showed up here, I have never been so curious."

Sora listened silently.

"Kairi, thanks," Riku finished.

"Heh…you're welcome," she replied, not really knowing what to say.

A few minutes later, the three were walking across the bridge. Kairi was far ahead. Sora was on the middle of the wooden structure, when Riku called out to him.

"Hey, Sora!"

"Hm?" the spiky-haired teen turned around. A star-shaped object was thrown into his hands.

"You wanted one, didn't you?" Riku said as he approached him from the small island.

"A paopu fruit?" Sora looked at the yellow thing strangely. He then shifted his gaze to Riku, "What's it--?"

"Legend has it..," Riku cut him off, "…that if two people share one, their destinies become intertwined," he explained as he passed Sora. "They'll remain a part of each other's lifes…..no matter what."

Sora was still confused.

"C'mon, I know you want to try it," Riku said. His back was turned, but, by his tone, he might have been smirking.

"But, I--" Sora began.

"Ha ha ha ha ha!" Riku let it all out and continued after Kairi, who was already past the shack.

Sora just chucked the fruit off the bridge and ran after him.

K-K-K-K-K-K

Elsewhere……

Somewhere in a cul-de-sac, a boy strolled on the pavement. His hands where buried in the pockets of his light blue trousers. His T-shirt was yellow and had a red vertical line going down the right side, along with a purple collar and the same colour at the ends of the short sleeves. All that crowned his square, pink head were three long black hairs that looked as if they were set evenly apart. His red shoes were tremendously small.

He approached one of the houses and rand the doorbell.

A dingdong sounded, and he waited.

Nothing

"Hm," he hummed to himself. Usually someone would have answered. He rang again.

Still nothing.

He raised an eyebrow…which separated from his entire face.

"Probably working or something," he told himself. He grinned, "Better disturb him!"

He ran freakishly towards a tree. He crouched under a branch, jumped, grabbed the branch, swung around once, let go, and flew towards the window.

WHAM!

The window was closed.

He fell to the grass, leaving his impression on the soil. His eyes swirled funnily, and he grinned dizzily, exposing his long, green tongue. He shook his head. "Ouch."

Suddenly, an envelope fell from the disturbed window and on his lap. He examined it.

It was addressed to an 'Eddy'.

He opened it, "Guess Double D must have put it there for me." He extracted a paper. His iris-less eyes moved left to right. They then widened, he gasped, and ran idiotically away from the house while clutching the piece of paper.

K-K-K-K-K-K

He made his way to another house and arrived at a window to a basement. He saw someone watching a poorly animated movie, and knocked on the window loudly. However, the yellow person inside didn't seem to hear it.

"Ed!" the boy yelled "Open up!"

The window slid open, causing a similar effect.

"WHAO!" the three-haired one fell inside and onto a desk of broken and/or tasteless toys headfirst. He then fell on the floor in a split formation. Slowly climbing to his feet, he approached 'Ed', and gently………slapped him upside the head.

"Oof!" he fell on his side, looked up, and grinned wide, "HI, EDDY--!"

"Later, Ed!" 'Eddy' jumped as if he needed to go badly. "I gotta tell you something!"

"Ooooh," 'Ed' climbed to his feet. He was a tall fellow with widespread eyes at both ends of a thick, black unibrow. The jacket he wore was plain green and covered a white and red horizontal striped shirt. His trousers, like Eddy's, were plain blue. His shoes were small, also like Eddy's. His head was supported by a thick, yellow neck and didn't have a chin. "Please tell me it's a chicken!"

"No chickens, Ed!" Eddy hollered. "We have a problem." His arm stretched so his hand could grab a hold of the big guy and pull him towards him. It had a reverse effect and Eddy was pulled towards Ed instead. He whispered in his ear, "But don't tell anyone."

"Hmmm," Ed thought…..for about thirty seconds. He said, "Not even Sarah?"

"No, not Sarah," Eddy responded, irritated.

"Jimmy?"

"Heck no!"

"Kevin?"

"NOOOO!.!.!.!.!" Eddy screeched. "It's top secret!"

"Good morning, baby sister!" Ed waved over Eddy's shoulder.

"Huh?" Eddy looked behind him.

Two people stood there.

"Ed!" an angry redhead girl yelled, her mouth growing to gigantic proportions, "WHAT'S WITH ALL THE RACKET?.!" She wore a simple pink T-shirt, and blue pants. Circle-shaped, white earrings were hooked around her earlobes. "Jimmy and I are trying to PLAY!" she gestured at the other one.

He was a pale boy with hair that resembled a chicken's wattle. His clothing was like the others: simple. Blue top, white pants, and black shoes. He also wore a retainer.

"Hit the road, Sarah!" Eddy didn't notice that he was pointing with the same hand that held the message. "Ed and I are--!"

"Watchya got there, Eddy?" Sarah pointed at the piece of paper.

"Uhh," Eddy put it behind his back, "….nothing….right, Ed?"

"But you said--MMmmmm-ffffff!" his lips were literally grabbed from his head by Eddy. They stretched three feet.

Eddy put on a fake smile.

"Jimmy," Sarah said.

"Y-Yes?" the boy squeaked.

"Cover your ears."

"Yes, Sarah," he did so.

"ED, MAKE EDDY GIVE ME THAT PAPER OR I'M TELLING MOM!" she was suspended in midair as she yelled this sentence.

"It's just a piece of--!" Eddy was cut short by a yellow hand on his shoulder. He gulped and looked behind him, "Uh….oh."

WHAP! POW! WHAM! YAPP! WHUP! THWAPP!

Sarah and Jimmy covered their eyes in amusement. They giggled, snuck a peak, wished they hadn't, and listened to the sounds of Ed and Eddy struggling.

The smoke cleared, and Ed was seen standing on Eddy, who was seeing stars.

"Here you go," the oaf handed his sister the message.

"What's it say, Sarah?" Jimmy asked.

Ed stared with a small, banana-shaped smile on the left side of his face.

Eddy groggily got up, bruised and rubbing his head.

"…..ugh," Sarah fainted.

Ed's smile disappeared. "Sarah!"

Jimmy was also frightened, and bent over to help her.

Eddy…

"Hm," he glanced at the two fanning and trying to awaken the fallen girl, "now why didn't that ever happen whenever she was about to beat us up?"