AN: Just a little something to show that I haven't completely fallen off the face of the earth. I haven't done much, been too busy. But I have added a few more things to deviantart than I have here because this site and I aren't always on friendly terms when it comes to logging on. Sooo, even though very few people care, I'm thinking about working on Just Another Mission, since that's gotten a tiny bit of affection from readers. I'll see. Right now, I'm working on something else, which I will post in a frwe days. I have to make the chapters shorter on DA, so I'm waiting 'til I've written a but more before I post it here. (It's FMA, if you must know. xD)

Darkness enveloped the duo, but they were not afraid. How could they fear what they themselves had come from? And one day, they would go back to the darkness, to return from whence they came.

They had been sent to this dark world, to see if there was anything that could be salvaged from it. It had been quickly determined that it could not be saved. Beings of darkness (a different kind of darkness) had overtaken it, and they swarmed over everything like roaches.

There had once been light here, as was discovered by the young blonde. His dark haired companion had to practically drag him away from the source, for they were in danger. They had managed to stop the tide of mindless heartless before, but now they were about to be surrounded.

After a quick discussion (barely two words were spoken), they came to the conclusion that there was nothing worth salvaging, or, at least, that was what they would tell their superiors. Despite having the semblance of complete obedience, neither of the two was willing to die for whatever this once light-filled world had hidden in its depths.

But now they had a new problem: they couldn't leave yet. Xion could not open the portals that were used to move from world to world, and for some reason, Roxas couldn't either. Now they were stuck, and it seemed like a fight would be necessary to ensure survival.

The young pair called their weapons, and they appeared at the same time, as if to show off their kinship, for the weapons were exactly the same. Now each youth held a keyblade, the weapon of legend, and they were ready to fight.

The heartless did not hesitate, mindless brutes that they are, and Roxas and Xion were swamped by hundreds of them without pause. Taking the fight as an interesting challenge, the two couldn't help but smile as they sent the heartless back into the darkness. Shouts of triumph traveled across the empty and barren land, along with whoops and cries.

She soon had her back to his, not because she didn't enjoy watching her companion fight, but because it was easier to fight this way. The yells of triumph soon turned to grunts of pain and expelled energy. Sweat glistened on their exposed skin, and under their long coats it was getting hot as well. His arms were getting sore, but he would never tell her that.

He swiped at another heartless; she dodged and slashed one across the head. They worked together like a well oiled machine, as if they had been together forever, or as if they had been given life just for this moment to come to fruition. He called out to her as a heartless passed him by, and as if sensing exactly what he meant, she slashed it, without even turning to look at it. They were practically telepathic in the way they knew each other's movements.

Together, their weapons clashed into the heartless. The hordes just kept right on coming, letting the two work on some of their more complicated fighting techniques. At one point, he actually did a back flip as she rolled underneath him, utterly confusing the oncoming heartless, who had focused themselves on a specific, generally unmoving target.

It felt like they had been at this forever, but their enemies just kept on coming, and so did they.

They had their backs to one another again, but this time they were leaning on one another. Though they would never express it in words, their heaving chests and deep, gulping breaths spoke louder anyway: they were getting tired- very tired. Who knows how long they had been fighting? And no one knew how long they would have to keep fighting. There was no escape, only empty land.

Due to fatigue, mistakes were now being made- dangerous mistakes. A dodge to the left, when it obviously should have been to the right. An over-the-head slash, when a kick in the face of the enemy would have been a whole lot safer. Wounds were their reward for these mistakes, and these wounds only added to their overbearing weariness.

Unexpectedly, he heard a whimper amongst the fighting. Surprised, he turned around to find his companion bleeding heavily. Normally not the type to need help in a fight, she was now asking for it. What was he to do? Of course, he wanted to help his friend, but how? He could barely hold himself up at this point, never mind help her as well.

With no other alternative coming to mind, he pushed her down and continued to fight alone. Yelling, he told her to get down, while he kept their enemies away from her. Now the only one fighting, it seemed their mindless enemies weren't quite so mindless. They all went straight for her, and it was only a matter of time before they succeeded in what they wanted.

In a last ditch effort, now at the end of his strength, he laid across his closest friend, trying to shield her from the blows of the clawed heartless. They tore at him unceasingly, shredding his black coat to ruins, and lacerating his body until it was practically unrecognizable. She screamed, and, face slightly contorted, he tried his best to comfort her, until he no longer had the breath to speak. Terrified and scarred by the death of her friend, there was nothing she could do.

Despite his valiant frame of mind, she was not spared. Her life ended shortly after his, although she was not unhappy about her death. Losing her closest friend was unbearable, and she very nearly welcomed her end.

Together, as they had been thinking at the start, they would someday have to go back to the darkness that they had come from. Little did they know that that day was today. Based on a decision made by their superiors, it had been finalized that today would mark the end of their very short lives, for they were no longer useful according to their plans.