Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts 2. All the characters belong to Disney and Square-Enix.

Keys of Destiny

Chapter 1: Ambushed

Destiny Island was renowned for being the perfect place to watch sunset. Due to not being the tourist season at that time, very few people were hanging around the beach. The beautiful coastal area was almost deserted. This late afternoon, two teenage boys sat on the biggest tree of a small island subordinate of the main island. The two of them were best friends. Fate had kept them separated for a long period of time. They were only reunited by destiny not long ago.

"Nothing has changed," Riku said, staring at the beautiful sunset.

"Nothing will change," Sora added. It felt great to be back on Destiny Island. He had been away for a long time, called by the duty of fighting the darkness that resided in people's hearts. His enemy, the Heartless, attempted to destroy all worlds. They would have succeeded if Sora and his friends, Donald and Goofy, didn't defeat the master of all Heartless, Ansem. Sora, Goofy and Donald travelled through many worlds to fight the Heartless. Many whom they met on the way aid them on their journey. Now, they were all back to the world where they belong.

After defeating Ansem, Sora, Donald and Goofy were separated from their friends Riku and King Mickey. In order to find their friends again, they set off on another journey. They revisited many places and reunited with old faces. It was a long and tough journey. They were faced with a new type group enemy, called the Nobody. Nobody was controlled by a group of powerful Nobody who refer themselves as Organisation XIII. At the end, Sora, Donald and Goofy defeated the organisation and found their friends.

Even now, Sora could hardly believe their journey had ended. He couldn't complain though, because he found his best friend, Riku. For many times, Sora thought he had found Riku during his search. It turned out Riku was running away from him. Riku's body changed as a result of accepting darkness in his heart. He didn't want to be seen by his friends therefore he hided. Fortunately, Riku was able to regain his original body thanks to philosopher Ansem. Philosopher Ansem was the true Ansem, not the master of Heartless who claimed to be Ansem. Now that all the battles were over and they were finally home, Sora wasn't going to let Riku out of his sight again. Not ever.

Sora took a deep breath and exhaled. The temperature, the humidity and the salty scent of the ocean – he truly felt he was home.

"Riku! Sora!" Kairi, who was also Sora's best friend, came running to the two with a bottle in her hand. "This is for you," Kairi handed over the bottle to Sora, trying to catch her breath.

Sora took the bottle. There was a letter rolled up inside. The letter was marked with the Mickey's personal stamp. "Is this from the King?" Sora pulled out the plug and shook out the letter. Riku and Kairi gathered around to him as he read.

Dear Sora, Riku and Kairi,

How are you all? I am very well, so are Donald and Goofy. We all miss you very much. It has been a month since we last saw you. Are you three enjoying your time together? Donald, Goofy and I are certainly happy to be back at Disney Castle. I half expected to be scolded by my Queen for being away for such a long time with such short notice (if any at all!). Fortunately she was understanding and did not release her temper on me.

The coming Sunday is my birthday. Therefore I would like to invite all of you to my castle. I will send Chip and Dale to pick you up in that morning. Please wait for us on Destiny Island.

There is also something important I have to tell you when you come. I hope I am wrong but I am afraid new trouble may be just around the corner. It is probably the best for me to tell you personally, so I'll fill you in at once when you arrive.

I look forward to seeing you all.

Regards,

Mickey

"Cool! We're going to the king's birthday party!" Sora said in excitement.

Kairi looked more worried than happy. "I wonder what new trouble the king is talking about."

"I think you should be more worried about what present to get him," Riku grinned. He took the letter from Sora's hand and read it again. "He will pick us up this coming Sunday. That is only three days away."

"Riku is right," Sora said cheerfully. "Besides, there's nothing the three of us can't do."

The three of them decided it was time to head back home. Their homes were not located on Destiny Island but on the main continent.

"Let's see who gets back first!" Sora suggested, casting Riku a daring look. Riku gave him a proud look in return.

With a smile, Kairi put her hands on her hip. "You two are up for that again? Don't you guys ever grow up? Well then, I'll count to three. Ready? One, two, three!"

On the count of three, Sora and Riku began to sprint towards the direction of the main continent. As fast as he could, Sora ran. The only thing on this mind was the goal. Cool air brushed his face as Sora ran. Riku was slightly ahead of him. Being the shorter one, Sora had to admit he was disadvantaged. However, that didn't mean he was going to give up easily.

Riku crossed the finish mark a couple of seconds before Sora. "Looks like I kicked your ass again Sora," Riku said, trying to give Sora a smirk and catch his breath at the same time.

"Just you watch, I'll kick yours next time," Sora wiped some sweats off his face and grinned. Kairi caught up with the two from behind.

Suddenly, a huge shadow loomed over them. The three friends looked up together in unison. Flying over them was a group of Nobody. There were at least twenty of them. Sora guessed they were all low-ranked Nobody since none had human shape. There was something different about these Nobody. They still had white thin bodies and a larger head. Unlike the ones he fought before, these ones also had a XIII mark on their forehead. Two of the Nobody were larger than the others. They looked like flying cages, big enough to fit a person.

Before the three of them could finch, the Nobodies attacked. Sora silently summoned his keyblade. He chose Ultima Weapon for its attack power. Riku already had his Road to the Dawn ready.

"Why are there Nobody here? I thought we defeated them all after beating Xemnas!" Sora eliminated one of the Nobody closest to him.

Riku swung Soul Eater at the larger Nobody and missed. "It's not something to be surprised about, Sora. If Heartless can't disappear completely, there will always be Nobodies around. I'm just surprise they got here so quickly without the help of Organisation XIII," he said.

The Nobodies might be advantaged in terms of numbers but they were not match for the keyblade bearers. Within minutes, Sora and Riku reduced their number to six. The two larger Nobodies still stood. There were four smaller ones around. They didn't appear to be much of a challenge – until they screeched.

The instant the sound reached Sora's ears, he felt like his entire soul was shaken. Instinct told him to covered up his ears as fast as he could. It was no use. The screeches seemed to penetrate flesh. Sora felt like his soul was being torn apart by the horrible sound. Riku and Kairi were doing the same. They looked as pale as he did. The only difference was Riku put his hand over where his heart was. He seemed to be experiencing greater pain in the heart than Sora and Kairi. Sora knew the only way to stop the sound was to eliminate the Nobody. He tried to wield his keyblade but failed to even lift it. His body hurt more than he could imagine. Riku collapsed on the sand, he appeared to have fainted. One of the larger Nobody opened its mouth and swallowed him into its belly. The other Nobody swallowed up Kairi in the same manner.

"No! Riku! Kairi!" Sora cried, running towards his friends. The concern for his friends somehow enabled him to move again. The two large Nobody took off as soon as they had their prey. They were flying away. Sora despaired. It couldn't be happening. Not after they finally found each other after so many years. The four Nobodies that were left behind were hindering Sora with melee attacks. Sora fanned off another Nobody with a weak blow. His body hadn't ceased hurting and couldn't summon any strength in his arm. The two Nobodies that carried away Riku and Kairi eventually disappeared into the horizon. With a cry of anguish, Sora cut through another Nobody before he fainted.

After some time, Sora felt consciousness was slowly returning. He had no idea how long he had been there lying face flat on the sand. Though that seemed to be the least of his concern. He had yet to open his eyes or move his body. Besides the gentle sound of sea waves, he could hear someone calling his name.

Author's ramblings: I've always wanted to resurrect Roxas. I think I can only ever do that in a fanfiction. Please review after reading, thanks