0. [Unknown World~White Room]

White. All that filled up his senses was white Nothingness.

He couldn't feel anything under his hands.

He could not taste anything on his tongue.

He could not hear his own breathing.

He could not smell anything on the air.

He tried to form a thought, some sort of sarcastic quip to cut through the silent torture of the situation. But the moment a thread of thought began spinning, it frayed and dissolved into nothing. Blurring into white.

But there was a moment, one so long ago, where the white is broken, disturbed by a bolt of blue. Sight, taste, hearing, smell all burst back into life as a hand is placed on his head.

But still, agonizingly, he can not move. Can not speak.

"I know it's a lonely place, but you'll be safe." The blue crashes through his head, protective, assured and sad all at the same time. The smell of sweat and blood dances through his nose, coarse stone cools his fingers. "Terra and I will be back to wake you up before you know it."

He wants to scream, yell and beg her not to leave. "I'm here! I'm awake! Please, don't leave me alone! Take me with you!"

But all that forms is a twitch of his fingers, that the woman in front of him misses, a single tear streaking down her cheek. And then the blue blurs from his vision, sweat and blood fades from his nose, rough stone disappears from under his fingers, and the last thing he hears is the closing of doors.

"Aqua... please don't go..." His last thread of thought, before it is cruelly frayed and dissolved back into Nothingness.

Kingdom Come

The warm sand underneath made for a nice little makeshift bed in the hot mid afternoon sun, the sound of the waves and of the chirping gulls having rocked him off for a quick unscheduled nap.

But now, he didn't want to open his eyes. Sora really, really, did not want to wake up. Was scared that when he opened his eyes, all he would see would be white.

'Come on Sora.' He growled at himself. 'It was just a dream. Nothing else, get over it.' The emotion had been so real, his heart ached. 'No, come on. Just crack your eyes, it will be fine.' Eyes cracked, the blue of the sky assaulted his eyes, the salt spray dancing through the air, stopped on his tongue, the sand, coarse and warm beneath his fingers and the crow of gulls weaved through his ears.

With a deep breath, Sora sat up, arm quickly wiping away tears. "Thank The Breeze..." he mutters, hand on his mouth. "Just a dream... Just a dream."

"Skipping out on work again?" A familiar voice pipes up from behind him. "Honestly, not a responsible bone in your body."

"C'mon, Riku." Sora smiled, flipping his face around to his best friend. "The sand was just so warm and inviting. How could I possibly ignore it?"

Purple hair swayed as Riku shook his head. "C'mon airhead, you owe me and Kairi a few hours working on the yacht." He held out a hand to Sora, who smirked, grabbing it. Letting himself be yanked up.

"Guess I do." All thoughts of White and Nothingness buried deep, deep, in his heart, he followed his friend down the beach.

I. STATION OF AWAKANING
I've been having... these weird dreams lately.

The dream was not white this time.

This time Sora looked up at the sky, Kairi and Riku sat on either side of him, smiles on their faces.

'A good dream' Sora thought with a grin. Closing his eyes.

They snapped open quickly as he felt the sensation of falling, but as that happened, the sensation stopped. His eyes found his friends, who he noticed had arched their eyes to the sky.

"A shooting star?" Sora noticed tracing his friend's eye-line. And then the sensation took him again. Falling, falling, he was falling.

The ground buckled, the sand falling out from beneath his feet, Kairi and Riku spinning around, reaching out their hands, slowly, calmly, with smiles on their face.

Sora thrashes against the falling, reaching out for his friends, but his fingers barely brush against theirs, and he continues falling. Straight, like an arrow or...

Eyes snap open again (When had he even closed them?) And he can see the island beneath him, the beach empty, birds nowhere to be found. He closes his eyes... I don't understand this.

That's the moment where he crashes into the ocean, falling deeper, and deeper and deeper into the briny deep.

He does not know how long he was sinking, but there's a moment, it comes quickly and unexpectedly where the fall slows and a bright light burns below him.

Eyes squinting, he makes out the light, a platform made from magnificent stained glass at the bottom of a dark landed softly, way to softly for the situation. "So what is this place?" Sora muttered to himself. "...Stupid Sora, this is just another dream. Looking down at the person etched into the glass, Sora cocked his head. "Though why do I feel like I've met you before...?" The green lit glass just glowed back, the black haired girl's red lipped smile blazing beautifully. "Ugh. So what, just sit here... That's boring."

With a huff, Sora flopped down onto his back, glaring at the dark sky above him. "What are these dreams even supposed to mean?" A brief blink of light answered the question from on high. "Oh great... Now my own head is mocking m... Wait..." The light was getting bigger, brighter... "No, it's getting closer... Oh shit!" With a start, Sora threw himself to the side as something slammed into the glass, with a vicious shock wave of sound and force.

Shaking off his shock, Sora took a good look at the object that had lodged itself into the glass. "A sword?" The hilt was large and yellow. A chain dangled off of the end of it, ending in a charm that resembled a mouse. The blade that extended though... "What kind of sword has a round blade?" None really, so was it a spear then? If it was the fact that it had a hilt was weird. Really weird.

"Guess I just... Grab it then?" The question was stilted... unsure, even as his hand wrapped around the grip, lifting it out of the glass, like it was no more than water. As the weapon cleared the glass, the end of the blade brought to mind a whole slew of questions. "A Key... You're kidding me right?" Sora muttered, giving the weapon an experimental swing. "...Did Kairi put something in my lunch again, because this is weird even for me."

"Really shouldn't underestimate the Keyblade." A voice sounded behind him, getting the boy to swing around.

The figure who had talked was covered head to toe in black, face obscured in shadows by a hood. "The Keyblade is a weapon that can ruin lives and destroy worlds. It is hardly a toy." The figure let out a laugh, raspy and bitter. "Learned that the hard way."

"Destroy... worlds. This dream just keeps getting weirder and weirder." Sora sighed, shouldering the weapon. "Look, guy, I just want to wake up now, so whatever you have to say, say it, so I can do that."

The figure stayed silent for a moment, before shaking his head. "You're so sure that this is a dream... That's not going to work." The boy clicked his fingers, and at the noise, Sora noticed that the shadows started moving onto the platform.

"What is that, what did you do?" He screams as the shadows seem to lift themselves out of the glass, beady yellow eyes gleaming hungrily at him.

"You don't have faith in the Keyblade, so, I need to teach you the hard way." Stained glass stairs appeared behind the figure. "Once you're done here, follow me, we'll have a proper chat."

"Wait, no, what are these things? What did you do? Stop!" But Sora's pleas for answers were ignored, as the other boy kept walking up the stairs before fading into shadow. "Skies fall on him..." Sora cursed, glaring at the shadows given life, who had moved to block the stairs. Sliding into a fighting stance, Key... Keyblade held to his side, he snarled. "Fine then, come get a piece of me."

The shadows did not disappoint, two of them leaping forward, set to descend onto him. Sora was quicker however, rolling under them, and slicing at the one that hung back, expecting the Keyblade to just make a dull thunk when it made contact, he almost lost his balance as it cleanly sliced through the creature... "Okay, Keyblade, actually acts like a blade." Twisting around, he dodged the jab of one of the other shadows, before impaling it on his new weapon, watching in morbid curiosity as it went up in smoke.

"Now, where's lucky number three..." Sora muttered, eyes dancing around the platform. Unable to pick up the shadow, he looked back to the stairs... "Guess I can just..."

The weapon in his hand swung hard enough, that it should have shattered the glass, crushing the half solid shadow under its force, the small hand that had grasped at his ankle fading into dust. "Winds... That's unsettling." Turning to the stairs again, Sora set his mouth in a grim smirk. "Gonna punch that jerk right in the nose."

Sora slid to a stop at the top of the third flight of stairs. Having fought his way across two more platforms, fading in from green, to yellow, to blue, he now found himself face to face with the hooded boy again.

"Good job, you made it." He snarked, clapping his hands. "Although not easily, it seems." Taking in the sweat shining on Sora's forehead and the short, sharp breaths the boy was taking. "You could have taken a break on one of the platforms you know? We're hardly in a rush here."

"Slip into the waves, you jerk." Sora ground out between breathes. "Gonna... punch you... in your stupid face."

"Woo, scathing." The boy laughed. "Well, I guess now's when we get down to the nitty gritty, and talk some more about the Keyblade." The hooded boy's tone became solemn, almost reverent. "When Darkness engulfed the World, the Keyblade was the tool that led all who lived beneath the sky into the Light." With a quick dash, the boy twisted around a wild slash from Sora. "Okay, I get it, exposition is boring, and you're angry." The boy observed, a flash of light coming to light briefly, as Sora's Keyblade was summarily blocked by the one now in the hooded boy's hand. "But it's also necessary, because you need to know these things Sora..." The boy casually deflected and dodged the tired swings thrown at him. "Damn it, I cannot talk and keep ducking your tantrum." The boy vanished, reappearing at Sora's side. Before Sora could react, a gloved hand was wrapped around his collar and he was thrown clear across the room.

A solid bounce later, and Sora was on his back, gunmetal grey steel resting on his neck. "If this was a Dream, you would have won. Because this is your head, and everyone is the Hero in there head, right?" Silence stretched between the two, before the boy sighed. "Sora, there's a storm coming, it's been brewing since you were a kid... I'm a remnant, one of the first victims caught up in the maelstrom." Removing the blade from Sora's throat he stepped back. "You're special, Sora. As unrefined as you are, there's so much potential burning deep in your heart, a Light that could connect every world out there."

Sora's throat was dry, as he sat up, staring into the depths of the hood. A hint of blonde poking out from beneath it. "You could have killed me... Why didn't you, isn't that what you want?" None of this was making sense, which considering his dreams lately, was quite the statement.

"That's the last thing I want, Sora. You saved me, saved my heart from fading into the Darkness." The boy flipped his Keyblade through the air, catching it by the blade, handle pointed at Sora.

"Isn't that dangerous?"

"The Keyblade will never hurt it's wielder, it is... Incapable of that." The hooded figures posture tensed, and even though he could not see them beneath the hood, Sora could feel his eyes burning into his very soul. "I'm not a good person. I'm selfish Sora. Selfish and desperate, but I can't see any other way, any other choice.'

"Like I said there's a storm coming, and I don't have the ability to fight it. Not right now, and maybe not ever again."

Sora gulped, the intensity was almost too much, he could feel the edges of this world shaking, blurring. "But I think, that you can be that person. I think that in you, you have the potential to be a Hero, the wall that weathers the storm. Sora, you are the key that will unlock all worlds, all hearts. Their safety will be found within your Light, the storm passing across them, never touching them."

Sora's hand moved forward, shaking. He felt sick, like his head was about to explode, a feeling which just continued to get worse as his hand got closer, and the light dimmed further. "But never forget Sora, always remember, the stronger the light, the longer the shadows."

As his fingers wrapped around the hilt, the world fell away, the Platform and it's light, leaving Sora and the hooded figure alone in the Darkness. "But it's okay Sora, because Light can never be extinguished, not entirely. It can only be dimmed."

Nodding, Sora felt his vision slipping, the hooded boy vanished, the Keyblade slipped through his fingers, and his eyes burst open to the sight of a bright blue sky, the taste of salt spray on the wind, the smell of dense foliage along the rock line, fear streaked across Sora's face in desperate tear tracks.

And the feel of ancient leather, resting under his fingers, a desperate aria ringing through his head.

"In your hand, take this Key.

So long as you have the makings, then through this simple act of taking, its wielder you shall one day be.

And find me, friend—no ocean will contain you then.

No more borders around, or below, or above;

So long as you champion the ones you love."

[NEW JOURNAL ENTRIES]

[Unknown World~White Room]

Characters~Aqua

A blue haired girl who was the only comprehensible feature of an unusual dream. A figment of Sora's imagination, he doesn't understand why the girl makes his heart ache.

First Appearance: Kingdom Hearts II; Birth By Sleep Secret Trailer (2005)

Characters~Ven

A character in a dream Sora keeps having. Sora has never seen him, but seems to be seeing from his point of view. The name was provided by Aqua.

Characters~Terra

[ERRORDATA NOT FOUND]

[Unknown World~Station of Awakening]

Characters~The Boy in the Black Cloak

This boy appeared in Sora's dreams.

He summoned Shadows to combat Sora for unknown reasons, but also introduced Sora to the weapon known as The Keyblade. When Sora attacked him out of frustration, the boy quickly knocked Sora to the ground, placing his own Keyblade, a wickedly curved, gunmetal grey affair, on Sora's throat.

With Sora dead to rights, he then flipped his Keyblade, grabbing it by the handle and passing it to Sora. The world vanished, and all Sora was left with was a powerful sadness, and a tragic aria ringing through his ears.

First Appearance [ERROR DATA NOT FOUND]

[Destiny Islands]

Religion~The Church of Shared Existence

While there is, in effect, only one Religion on the Islands, there are 3 very distinct sects of that one religion, and a person will usually only practice their faith beneath that sect for their entire lives.

The three sects are those of The Winds, (Representing Freedom) The World (Representing Balance) and The Waves. (Representing Order) Children will usually be raised in their sect from birth, the beliefs being taught from parents to children. Even with this practice, no one ever draws lines, and children are encouraged to play with anyone, regardless of their sect, as ultimately, all 3 share the same beliefs.

First Appearance: Kingdom Come (2016)

Religion~The Seven Winds

Within the Shared Existence, The Seven Winds are messengers from other Worlds, carrying with them the Hearts and Emotions of others to The Islands in times of great stress, or need. Their depiction within art is not of a living creature, or being, but instead the gusts left in the wake of a great phoenix that burns brightly in The Heart of the World.

First Appearance: Kingdom Come (2016)

[Heartless]

Pureblood~Shadow

A shadow made flesh. It's bright, sickly, unblinking yellow eyes, coupled with its erratic, twitchy movements, can drive even the strongest man away in fear.

They do not seem to have the capability for anything other than violence.

First Appearance: Kingdom Hearts (2002)

I've had this narrative in my head for a Kingdom Hearts AU for a loooooong time, probably about 3 or 4 years before I even posted the first version of this back in 2012. Though I was never really happy with the version I had posted up, and had no idea where to take it from there.

I think that I've got a grip on where I can, and want, to go from here, so I'm coming back to it and revamping the story entirely.