I'm…falling?

Immediately, Ruby knew it was a dream. Part of it was the whole 'falling into the ocean but being able to breathe' thing, but there was something else, too. A lightness of step, a strength she'd never known before.

And yet, even knowing it was a dream, there was no waking up.

Just falling.

FWOOSH

Ruby yelped as the ocean floor below shone like the sun, shattering into thousands of pieces until all that was left was a large, circular platform bearing a beautiful stained glass window. It was difficult to tell exactly what it depicted when she was so close, but she had a feeling that the abundance of yellow was somehow very important.

Don't be afraid.

It wasn't a voice, exactly; after all, voices had a sound, a lilt, a melody. Instead, it was more like a thought coming in from outside. A quietness.

Who are you?

The thought paused, considering its answer.

A friend.

Suddenly, before Ruby could ask anything else, a set of tall, white double doors popped up from the platform. They were beautiful, in a way, but there was also a sense of danger lurking within, like one might feel from an open fireplace.

Through this door lies a double-edged sword.

It will keep you safe, and yet draw them nearer.

It will protect those you care for, while exposing them to danger.

It will strengthen your body, while shattering all you know.

And if I don't go through?

The thought paused again.

Then no one else will.

Ruby frowned. If this really was a dream, then it didn't really matter what she did here…but what if it was more than that? What exactly was the door? Could it really be that bad?

Don't be afraid.

Ruby walked to the door, cautiously grasping its handle.

You are the one who will open the door to the light.


Another platform, another piece of stained glass. This one incorporated a lot of black, but again, it was difficult to tell what it depicted when she was so close.

There will be many dangers on your quest…

Like puss oozing from a wound, small, dark shapes formed from the edges of the platform, their beady yellow eyes blinking hungrily. Grimacing, Ruby reached for her wooden scythe, only to find that it was conspicuously missing. It was only by a stroke of luck that she stepped back just as a shadow jumped towards her, its malevolence resonating through the very air itself.

But don't be afraid.

Ruby backed up to the platform's edge as the shadows made a circle around her, her head whipping around frantically as she searched for a way to escape.

While courage remains, the light will never fade.

A shadow leaping forward. A defiant shout.

A key.

What the…?

Acting on instinct, Ruby brought the strange object up to protect herself, watching in awe as the shadow was sent flying backwards. In fact, all the shadows seemed wary of the key, backing off a little as they reassessed the situation.

But the light does not give freely. It needs its own help in return.

It didn't seem like a particularly powerful weapon…in fact, she wasn't sure it was a weapon at all. Crimson red save for a long, winding green vine, she couldn't help but find it rather comforting to hold, even if its edge seemed clumsy and impractical.

Still, she supposed beggars couldn't be choosers.

Bring it on!

Ruby's strikes were clumsy and imprecise as the shadows made another attack, her mind defaulting to the primal bash-with-a-stick method of fighting rather than utilising her scythe training. Still, even with the key's supposed blunt edge, it cut through the shadows with surprising ease, their defeated corpses dissolving into nothing.

Are…are they gone?

Not yet.

Without warning, the platform shattered, sending Ruby further into the darkness.

The final station remains.


For once, there was some fall time before Ruby fully descended onto the final platform…but unfortunately, the stained glass image she saw was not an enlightening one. Some white-haired girl in an elegant dress, her piercing blue eyes looking down. Was she the voice, maybe?

Unfortunately, before Ruby could contemplate this any further, the harsh quasi-reality of dream gravity took effect.

BOOMF

The darkness will not always take such simple forms.

Ruby jumped to her feet as another shadowy figure materialised before her. Unlike the others, however, this one was humanoid…in fact, other than the overlay of shadows, it looked like an ordinary, if pretty, young woman.

There will be those who seek to use you, to corrupt the light you hold.

But these will not be shadows.

They will be people, using darkness for their own ends.

Remain vigilant.

Ruby found herself readying the key as the shadowy woman grew and grew.

For the darkness that is accepted is the most dangerous of all.

Seeing the attack coming a mile away, Ruby dodged to the side as the giant slammed her fist down upon the platform. Grunting, Ruby retaliated with the key, but unlike the small shadows from before, this one refused to disintegrate so easily.

The giant roared.

Yet, if your heart is strong…

CRASH. The giant brought both fists down like the wrath of God.

…the dark will hold nothing against you.

This time, Ruby's scythe training came back to her. Screaming a fierce battle cry, she jumped far higher than she ever thought possible and landed on top of the giant's arm, racing to the top. Just a little more, and…

SLICE

There was a light thump as Ruby landed behind the giant, not even looking back as its head fell into the abyss.

You're a friend, right? Or at least, that's what you said before.

Ruby focused hard as the dream began to fade around her, the vibrant colours of the stained glass twisting and merging with the void. There wasn't much time left.

Hopefully there was enough for one last question.

Then can you tell me what this key's called? Please?

Somehow, the thought seemed to smile as it, too, faded with the dream.

A keyblade, a symbol of hope and destruction.

As for yours, I believe it's called…

'The Last Rose of Summer'.


"Bwah!"

Ruby sat upright with a jolt, her breathing ragged and uncertain.

What was that? Was it really a dream? It didn't feel like one, and yet…

Wait. Where was she?

"Ruby…?"

The warm, comfortable bed from back home was gone…and in its place was a cold, slightly damp cave, its walls covered in crude scratched-on drawings. Other than that, there was something vaguely resembling a door ahead, but with its lack of a handle or doorknob, it was more like a gold-trimmed plank of wood.

Then there was Blake, if you could call her that.

"Ruby, where are you?!"

"Blake, I'm here!" Ruby shouted back, standing up to face Blake. "What's- …oh. Oh my god."

Most of her was normal enough. A black raincoat, black trousers, a pair of practical walking boots…the usual stuff. But her eyes, her wonderful, golden eyes had been consumed by the void, replaced by an impenetrable darkness.

"I can't…I can't see you! Ruby?!"

Without thinking, Ruby went to rest a hand on Blake's shoulder, hoping to reassure her through touch if nothing else. Her hand, however, went straight through Blake's body, and she couldn't help but feel a deep-set chill as she pulled back.

"I…I need to get out!" Blake screamed, clawing at her eyes. "I need to get out of here!"

POOF. In the blink of an eye, Blake was gone.

"Ruby! Where are you?!"

That was when Ruby noticed that there was more than one Blake.

Swearing under her breath, Ruby rushed out of the cave, wincing as she was forced to pass through another Blake on her way out. Was doing this hurting the real Blake, somehow? That is, assuming there even was a real Blake.

I'm thinking kinda logically about this considering the circumstances, Ruby noted. Maybe it's that dream, makes everything seem sort of mundane. Now, I just need to find-

"Ruby?!" a thousand Blakes called out.

…Blake.

Ruby gulped.

Okay, there's one, two, uh…a lot of Blakes here. Can't be that hard to find the real one, right?

Ruby buried her head in her hands.

Oh, who am I kidding? How am I gonna find the real Blake in all this mess?

But then, just as Ruby was about to give up...she heard it.

Blake was crying.

God…why am I feeling sorry for myself? It's Blake who's in trouble! I can't just give up like this!

Reinvigorated, Ruby charged forward once more, letting the power of the coming storm flow past her as she ran and ran, not even noticing her pained bare feet as she came onto the beach. Like everywhere else, it was covered in Blakes, but there was something different here.

The raft, carrying one, solitary Blake.

"I'm here! Just hold on!"

Now in a full sprint, Ruby leapt as far as she could, snarling as sharp winds snapped at her arms. Still, the elements were no match for her tenacity, and with a yell, she landed soundly on the incomplete raft, looking around for Blake as soon as she found her balance. Unlike the rest of them, this Blake was curled up rather than standing, and as Ruby enveloped her in an embrace, she knew that this one was real.

"Shhh. It's okay…it's okay."

"Ruby? …Is it really you?" Blake asked hoarsely, desperately looking around despite her stricken sight. "I was afraid that you'd…you'd…"

"I'm fine, really! You're the one we should be worrying about. Are you blind?"

The rain continued to pour as the storm worsened, pushing the raft even further out to sea.

Blake shook her head.

"I don't think so. I can see something…a city, like the one from my dreams. I just can't see anything else."

"Do you have any idea why?"

"I wish I did. Maybe some of this would start to make sense."

FWOOSSSSSH

"Um, Ruby? What's that sound?"

"Oh. That's just the waves."

"They sound kind of…big."

Ruby gulped, looking towards the veritable tsunami that was on its way.

"Yeaaaah, you could say that. Blake, you trust me, right?"

"Of course I do!"

"Then when I give the signal, you need to jump and swim as hard as you can, okay? And whatever you do...don't let go."

"I…yes," Blake confirmed, clumsily grasping Ruby's hand. "I understand. Do what you need to."

With as much calm as she could muster, Ruby guided Blake to raft's beach-facing edge. Given the roughness of the sea, it was a gift that the raft hadn't drifted out further, but even as it was, it would still be a struggle to get to shore intact.

Not she was going to tell Blake that.

"Now! Jump!"

Ruby had to strongly resist the urge to gasp as she hit the water, the sudden chill nearly freezing her in place entirely. Through sheer force of will however, she broke out into a swim, pulling Blake along as the waves fought against them. For every inch they pushed forward, the maelstrom pushed back, but with no other options, they were forced to continue regardless. After a minute, and with her lungs desperate for air, it seemed like they had finally made it to shore...

At least, if not for the invisible wall that blocked their path.

What? Damn, to the surface, then!

BUMP. Another wall.

A wall ahead, a wall above…?

Ruby looked back to Blake as her mouth opened, gasping for air that didn't exist.

I'm sorry, she mouthed, before the water took its course.


Yang was a heavy sleeper by any definition, but when your little sister vanishes from her bed in a flash of light, there's a certain basic instinct that thrusts you awake. Then, there'd been markings on the ground, mysterious footprints that had led her to the main island's rickety old pier.

A pier where she would be forced to watch Ruby and Blake die, knowing that if she dove in after them, she'd just be adding to the death toll.

You couldn't fight a storm like this. Not alone.

You can save them, you know.

Yang's head whipped around as the storm raged on, even as a calm, feminine voice pierced through the chaos.

"What? How?!"

Give in to the darkness. Let it flow through your body, your mind, your heart…

Only then will your friends survive.

It was a long shot. Hell, Yang wasn't even sure what the voice meant. But at the same time…what did she have to lose?

Just one little touch of darkness…

Yang screamed as her arm twisted painfully, a black and purple substance oozing around it like burning tar.

Yes…perfect.

"I won't…let them die!"

Punching forward with more strength than she'd ever known, Yang cried out as a dark portal appeared under Ruby and Blake, swallowing them whole.

Yang fell to her knees, exhausted.

"Are…are they safe?" she wheezed out, grasping at her still throbbing arm.

For now, but...aren't you forgetting someone?

Something slimy gripped at her legs, and looking down, it took all of Yang's willpower not to panic.

"What?! Let me out!"

Then you would prefer that the Heartless devour you?

Out of the corner of her eye, Yang spotted a shadowy shape forming from nothingness, staring into her with hungry yellow eyes. She sighed, relaxing her body as it sunk down into the darkness.

Yes, that's it. Accept the darkness, Yang Xiao Long. For if you do…

Not even the brightest light will stand in your way.