I don't own Kingdom Hearts or any of the characters. If I did, half of them wouldn't end up getting killed off in the end, Siax and Vexen would never exist..and so on. And thanks for the review, it really helps. And if anyone else has any suggestions or other input on the story feel free to let me know, it would help me out ^_^ (This is my first story, so I'm kinda new at this...) This chapter is slightly longer then the last, with the introduction to the Organization. Anyway, on with the story!

What to know from this chapter on: (Might come in handy later in the story :) The members of the Organization are also allowed to contact each other. The members who were finished at Castle Oblivion are still gone, as well as Xaldin. Leaving the group reduced to seven.

Lightning crashed above in the darkened sky of the World that Never Was. Rain fell, trickling down the flickering neon signs. A spiral burst of darkness formed at the end of an alleyway and a cloaked figure stepped out. He looked up toward the large castle floating above a vast crater, while pulling off his hood to reveal spiky, red hair. Now what does he want? Axel let out a heavy sigh. He continued toward the stronghold and stopped at the steps of the giant skyscraper.

Axel, it's time. It was Xigbar.

Another one? One thing after another. Alright, I'm coming..

After the first few members were wiped out in Castle Oblivion, it left more work for the rest of the group to cover. Including him. True, a lot of that was his fault, but he didn't regret it. Axel lazily waved his hand and a portal appeared. He entered the blackness and disappeared.

***

Sora pushed open the large mansion doors and peeked inside. Light spilled in through the first floor window and shined off of the shards of glass from the broken displays. Riku put a hand on Sora's shoulder. "You can go in, you know," Riku laughed.

"Oh, right. Sorry," Sora replied, stepping inside. "Which room are we supposed to go in? Upstairs or the basement?"

"The basement's computer room is probably going to be the best bet. DiZ is usually in there working on something. The King should already be there waiting to meet us."

"So what's this about?" Roxas asked. Sora could tell he wasn't exactly thrilled to go back down the the computer room. He seemed to avoid it whenever possible.

"Come on!" Kairi called from the top of the stairs, motioning for them to come. Riku and Sora ran to the top of the stairs, while Roxas came at his own pace. They followed her into the library and down the stairs into the computer room. Sure enough, there was the King. He greeted the group with a smile.

"Hello, Sora, Riku, Roxas, Kairi," the King walked forward and shook each of their hands individually as he said their names. "Thank you for coming. There is something we need to discuss."

DiZ was sitting toward the front by a three-screened monitor, typing. He didn't seem to notice their entering. Or, if he did, he didn't acknowledge any of them were there. Roxas folded his arms and stood in the back of the room. Relax, Sora told him. Don't stress about it.

Easy for you to say, he replied, looking down at the ground. He sounded calm for someone holding a grudge. To Sora, being a nobody sounded rough. Roxas had briefly described it to him once before, 'you can't feel sorrow, happiness, any kind of emotion'. Sora rested his hands on the back of his head and faced the King. Kairi lightly nudged Sora's arm and gestured toward Mickey. "Wha-? Oh, yeah. So, your Majesty.. uh, is there anything wrong?"

"Well," Mickey sighed and clasped his hands together. "Something is not right with some of the worlds now, and it seems to be spreading. I'm not sure what it is, but it's more then just your average heartless attack."

"Nobodies?" Riku asked.

Mickey shook his head and continued. "I wasn't sure, so I asked DiZ what he knew."

For the first time DiZ spoke. "I told him I hadn't seen any signs of a disturbance in any of the worlds," He rose from his chair. "I looked into it and something was wrong. When I arrived at the castle to inform the King of my findings, he told me that there has been several attempts in the past week to infiltrate the Cornerstone of Light. Something, or someone, is attempting to lower the castle's defenses."

"And what was it?" Kairi asked curiously.

"We never did find out," Mickey said. "But we're workin' on it. My suspicions are that it's Organization XIII again. They have been quiet lately, so maybe they've finally come out with some sort of plan. Sora, you've faced and defeated one just recently."

"Ya," Sora nodded. "Xaldin. Are they mad or something?"

"I dunno," Mickey sighed. "It could be something else entirely different as well, like Maleficent."

"What are they after?" Riku asked.

"It's not clear, but the attackers seem to be focused on reaching the Keyholes."

"The world's heart," Sora realized.

"That's right," the King nodded. "To get to the point, we would like you four to go look into it. Check around the worlds, and try to find anything you can."

"Wait a sec," Roxas interrupted. "What happened to Namine?" The room went silent. It never occurred to Sora before, that she didn't attend. Mickey looked at DiZ and back to Roxas, hesitant.

"I was going to ask you guys," Mickey said, looking down. "She was here awhile ago, and I asked her if she can go get you guys. Riku showed up, so when no one came, I sent him go go find you. I figured she was talkin' with all of you." Kairi looked from Sora to Riku will a concerned expression on her face and Roxas slowly shook his head. Riku folded his arms and looked down at the ground, as though he was thinking it over.

Sora broke the silence. "Well, let's go do something about it! Your Majesty, I'll do it," he said with a confident tone. The other three nodded in agreement.

"Great," Mickey smiled back. "I'll be doing the same. Good luck on your journey, all of you."

Sora grinned. "Okay guys, let's board the gummi-" Riku and Roxas snickered. Sora threw each of them a look.

"Okay," Mickey chuckled. "Why don't you stop at Hollow Bastion first? You can visit Leon while you are there, but be sure you see Merlin. He has a gift waiting for you."

"Awesome- I mean- thanks," Sora said.

Kairi walked up in between Sora and Riku, and put her hands on their shoulders. "Are you guys ready to go yet?" she teased.

"Ya." Sora replied.

They said their good-byes and left for the gummi ship.

***

Axel appeared in the stronghold's meeting room followed by Luxord. He glanced around at the vacant chairs in the circle. Some turn out.

"They're here," Demyx said openly.

"Very good Demyx," Xigbar said sarcastically. Axel let out a silent laugh and rolled his eyes. None of the members were very fond of Demyx. Once Vexen was gone, he quickly became the new target. It surprised them all that he turned out to be one of the surviving members. He was clueless... the only thing he seemed to be good for was being sent out to do the menial work. "Y'know, I bet that you-"

Siax narrowed his eyes. "Silence. That is enough."

Xemnas waited silently until the room fell quiet. All eyes turned to him.

"Now then," the Superior spoke. "Let us begin. Progress on Kingdom Hearts has improved.. But it is not nearly enough. Losing members has slowed our progression-"

"That's an understatement," Xigbar said under his breath. Axel nodded.

"-but help will come soon." The groups suddenly became attentive. Luxord and Xigbar began to silently converse, while Siax remained impassive.

Axel sat up in his chair. "What do you mean, 'help is coming'?" he asked with interest in his voice. All heads turned once again, to Xemnas.

"That is of no concern at this moment," He answered in his calm, monotone voice. "You know what our objective is. Once we get to it, we may move on."

"And what of Namine?" Siax asked.

"Leave her for now.. there is no need to use her yet. See to it that she is guarded so she can not escape." Siax nodded in response. Xemnas turned toward the rest of the group. "You know what to do. Demyx, I am assigning you to deal with the heartless. Axel, I need a word with you. The rest of you are dismissed." The group vanished through individual portals, leaving Axel and the Superior in the meeting room.

There was a moment of silence until the last portal disappeared. Xemnas rested his arms against the arms of the chair and looked down at Axel. "You were not successful in your efforts of disposing of him."

Axel shifted uncomfortable. This might not go well.

Xemnas continued. "After your defeat, he moved on as they planned for him, to complete Sora. If Sora has awakened how is he still here?"

"I don't know," Axel said, surprised it was going another direction. Maybe he was going to let it slide? "He somehow just held on or something." I didn't exactly stick around long enough to find out, he thought to himself.

Xemnas looked deep in thought. "Do something about it," he said, finally.

"Meaning?"

"He is still a traitor to the Organization, therefor, he must still be eliminated."

Axel paused. Going back on the order would mean he would be finished as well, but Roxas was his friend. He said the first thing that came to his head. "Maybe he is still of use to the Organization?"

"...Go on," Xemnas spoke with slight interest. Axel couldn't tell if he was serious or just amused, so he continued.

"Roxas hasn't done much damage yet, in fact, he might not be able to recall anything still. But we may still be able to use him for part of the plan. Having a keyblade may also speed up our progress." He let it sink in a bit, then looked to Xemnas. He seemed to be debating over whether there was a downside to it or not.

"Very well," he said. "This will be your task. I don't care how you do it, convince him, use Namine if necessary. He has one chance." A dark portal formed over Xemnas and he was gone. Axel leaned to the side of his chair, resting his head on his fist.

"Fine by me," he grinned.

***

Hooray, you sat through an Organization meeting! What to look forward to next chapter: Hollow Bastion, and the Organization's 'help'.
Thanks for reading, feel free to add whatever input ^_^