They say there used to be stars once. An entire sky full of them. Little points of light amid the vast field above our heads. They also said that each star was another world. But who knows if those stories are true. There is no one alive who can remember the stars. Like Sora, they are only legends.

And I don't have time to focus on legends. I have to worry about feeding myself and a younger brother. That is a full time job, especially when food is scarce. Luckily, I know how to fish. The dark waters don't produce the best fish, but they are edible and have been keeping us alive for years. Ever since we were left on our own.

Ours is a story that is not uncommon. Our parents, along with countless others', disappeared. No one can say for sure what happened to them, but everyone knows. It's the same for everyone. Heartless attacks always take people. They come from the great walls of darkness that surround us at all times and disappear into the same walls. The people who are taken are never heard from again. Perhaps some small part of them remains as a Heartless, just like the legends say, but who can say for sure.

It's probably not safe to be out in my boat alone right now, but our supplies are running low so I don't have a choice. I won't be out long, just enough to catch dinner for the next couple of days and then I will head back to Vacant Sands, our island. They say that it had another name once, but no one remembers it.

They say a lot of things. Like thinking about the things that no one can even remember will somehow distract them from thinking about what our lives are like now. Maybe in those long lost days, our island was a beautiful place, but it no longer is. Thinking about that won't get food on the table. It won't stop the Heartless from taking us away. It won't change anything. So why bother?

I haven't gotten a bite in a while, so I decide to head back earlier than I had planned. Rix is always worried when I am out fishing and I don't need him worrying when he doesn't have to. Looking over at my catch, I am a little disappointed. It isn't a very good haul at all. But it will last us a few days, if I skip a couple of meals. As long as I make sure that Rix is getting enough, I'll be fine.

I quickly row the boat towards the lights coming from the houses on the beach. They are the only sign that I am going in the right directions, so whenever I go out on the water, I make sure that I always stay to where I can see them. It's the only small comfort that I have when I am forced to be out there.

On the beach, I start to unload my disappointing catch of the day, when a rumble starts to come from the sky. I've only heard this noise a couple times in my life. Every time I have, I've run away as fast as I could. It's a sound that can only mean one thing. Heartless.

My heart starts to pound. My house is on the other end of the beach from the docks. I will never make it there in time. The Heartless will be on me before I can get halfway there. Then what will become of me. Will I disappear, just like my parents? Just like everyone else. What will become of Rix if that happens to me? Why now?

I drop the fish back in the boat and completely forget about them. What good is fish going to do me when the Heartless attack? I start to run. Maybe, if I run hard enough, I can make it to one of the neighbors' houses for shelter. When it comes to the Heartless people tend to think of only themselves, but surely someone will take pity on me, a 15 year old girl who has a brother to take care of.

Sand flies behind me as I run. I want to scream, but I'm afraid that it might attract the wrong attention. It's best if I just keep running until I reach a door.

But I can tell it's already too late. The rumbling in the sky is gone. It has been replaced by the squeaky sounds of the creatures I have only seen a couple times in my life. They are short, blobby looking creatures that walk on thin legs with antenna coming from their heads. Few people have seen them and survived to tell about them, but I've seen them through windows before. I can tell they are getting closer because the squeaking sounds are getting louder.

I feel like crying. But I don't have that luxury right now. I have to keep running or they will overtake me.

But it doesn't matter. Three of them jump high over my head and land in front of me. I stop, shooting sand with my feet before running right into their waiting arms. I am completely surrounded. They move around me, tightening the circle that they have formed.

What are these creatures? They don't speak, but they are obviously smart. It's like their only motivation is to hunt. To track down people. Do they really steal people's hearts right from their bodies? What do they do with them then?

A new sound comes from the sky. It's not the same rumbling that announces the arrival of the Heartless. It's more of a whistle. High pitched. Even the small creatures stop and look above us.

In the middle of the dark blanket, there is a small light. Is that what a star is supposed to look like? No, it can't be. A star isn't supposed to be moving closer. Or getting brighter. It's moving faster and faster until the light blinds me. I can only hold up my hand to block my eyes that have never seen a light this bright before.

The light fades, swallowed by the darkness again. I can finally see. Uncovering my eyes, I find that the Heartless are no longer surrounding me. They have been thrown back far from me. They seem a little disoriented, shaking their big heads. Pretty soon, they will be ready to attack again.

In the middle of the circle that the Heartless used to be making, something is sticking out of the sand. It wasn't there before. Is that what made the light? Did it fall from the sky? What is it?

I should be running away, but I can't. My curiosity is keeping me here. I have to know what this thing is.

I walk up to it. The tip of it is buried in the sand but there is a handle at the top of it. It's rounded and black, with red trimming. I take the handle and pull whatever it is free from the sand. With the tip free, I can finally see the whole thing.

I've seen pictures of similar things in books that barely survived over the years. The few drawings that survived are the only proof that these ever existed.

"A Keyblade."