Talis: "How are you really going to find time to re-do these, what with your summer classes and Tumblr roleplays and life in general?"
Chairman: *gives Talis a look* "I'll figure it out. I owe the people who read my story before at least that much, and I owe it to you to tell your story."
Talis: "But what does this have anything to do with Kingdom Hearts?"
Chairman: "First of all, hush. Second of all, it's not another story; it's a flashback chapter, explaining where the heck you all came from! So don't criticize my methods, you...or I'll sic your 'best friend' on you..."
Talis: "Fine...but you didn't make that scene yet. Chairman LoneStar doesn't own Disney, Square Enix, Kingdom Hearts, or any of the elements of this story that may or may not be related..." *sigh*
~~~~~~TKtK~~~~~~
Previously in The Key to Knighthood…
From the cloud of dust, a man rode up on a motorbike, but this was not the ordinary motorbike. Colored green and black (remind you of anyone?), the bike had many secret compartments to hold all sorts of weapons and other miscellaneous items. On either side, the Crest of the Royal Knights was emblazoned in bright green. The man riding the motorbike looks just like Talis and Xaltis, only with blue eyes and white hair. He sported a dark blue T-shirt, blue jeans, and blue and white sneakers and his Royal Knight Crest tattoo was visible on his upper arm. As he pulled up before them, he stopped on a dime, kicking up dust which spread outward from the bike. "Salus in Lux Lucis, brothers...never thought I'd find you two this quickly."
"Hey, wait a second...guys! I really don't remember how to get back!" Xaltis rushed to catch up with them as they fade into the distance.
~~~~~TKtK~~~~~
Chapter II: Flashbacks Already?
Central Corridors, Royal Chambers, Arceo Citadel
Lusevera, Hikari Lux Lucis
5:02 S.S, February 27, 1BSF (6AR)
A dash to the left, a jump to the right, Talis ran through the castle, Kaosuraito drawn and ready for battle. He hadn't encountered any enemies yet, but that didn't mean it couldn't happen. After all, it wasn't every day that the main infiltration alarm sounded and the mere idea that that occurred was enough to cause chaos to run rampant throughout the castle. Too soon, Talis reached the Central Corridor. He poked his head around the corner, taking care to step quietly as he moved slowly down the hallway. It wouldn't do to be surprised by any possible intruders. At each door, he stopped and, after poking his head in to see if things were normal, he moved on. Finally, he reached the end of the corridor and the large doors before him marked the entrance to the King's bedchamber. Leaning his head against the door, he heard pained feminine sobs coming from inside. "What...?" He pushed open the door and walked slowly into the King's room, sword still drawn, but held more tentatively. "Who's in here? Answer me!"
Crossing the threshold dividing the antechamber from the main bedroom, he found the Crown Princess, Raina Lyte, in tears at her father's bedside. "Princess, are you alright?" He rushed to her side, kneeling next to her. Being her sworn protector – and her best friend – he could do no less.
Hearing a voice of comfort, she turned immediately and buried her face in his chest. "Talis, it's just terrible! It's not fair! I'm...I'm not ready to be Queen!" she sobbed, her usually strong voice muffled in Talis's armored jacket and through her tears. "There was so much - I had to learn - so much - he had to teach me - " The tears overwhelmed her and she gave in to her emotions, crying freely now.
"Why do you need to be...? No, it couldn't be that..." He turned to the bed of the King and observed. He noticed the pale skin first and, trailing up the arm to his ruler's face, saw by the cold, empty, lime-green eyes the King was dead, cut down in his own bed. "No, no, no, no! This isn't fair! How could the King be gone?! Who could have done this to him, to take our leader from us like this in cold blood?" Talis began to cry, not in sadness as the Princess did, but rather in rage. "The person responsible for this shall pay dearly...this I swear, by my word as a Knight. Princess, please excuse me. And don't worry about a thing; you'll be a great Queen, just like your mother. You'll rule justly and fairly, and everyone will love you, because we already do. Keep your head up, because that's how the King taught us all to live, isn't that right?" With those words, Talis released his hold on his friend and ran out of the room, eager to start searching for answers.
"Thank you, Talis. I'll remember your words, and take control of this kingdom. My father's legacy will never be tarnished." She looked to her father's bed one last time as she got up, standing resolute. "Wait a second, what's this?" She spotted a chain lying on the ground, sporting an odd but familiar charm, and picked it up slowly. "This is the symbol of...but that doesn't make any...I've got to tell someone..." She ran as quickly as she can out of the room.
Specific Location Unknown
Shadow Desert, Hikari Lux Lucis
8:15 F.S., June 8, 1BSF (6AR)
Talis woke up almost as quickly as he had fallen asleep earlier, thinking back over the dream that seemed so real, for in fact, it was more than a dream; it was a memory. "That day was one of the worst, no, the worst day ever. Not only did I find out that the King was murdered, but that the murderer was one of our own, my own brother, no less. I've had this dream every night for the past nine months, and even though it's all over now and X is back on the side of light, this dream still haunts me...but why? The worst is over; we're finally heading back home. We're just stuck in this godforsaken desert...which is so damn dark!"
"Go back to sleep, Talis! Yeesh!" The voice of his elder brother rang through his head like a grate.
"X, hush, you've been asleep all night...stop being a lazy prick." He shot back, not even realizing they were speaking in their minds again.
"Did you just call me a prick? We can still do this mind thing, and I know you, I know your mind. You're a prick too!" Xaltis retorted, his voice sounding smug as if he were facing his brother at that very moment.
"Hence why I call you a prick; don't threaten me in my head. You wanna fight? We can do it right here like men!"
"We can't mentally fight each other, you know?"
"Oh, can't we, now? Rector mihi ut quis ago in meus mens."
Talis entered his own mind to find Xaltis standing around, looking confused and embarrassed. "How
the heck – how is this even possible, T?"
"The family spellbook is more extensive than you know, brother. You never paid attention as much in our classes, did you?" Talis answered smugly as the pair found themselves at the Station of Awakening, or at least, a place that looked a lot like it, in his mind. "The location is different than I expected, though."
This is the Station of Transcendence, Talis. Due to the mind link you now have with your brother, as well as your status as Keyblade Wielders, you two can come here and speak with each other, regardless of where either of you are. This ability will, in time, extend to other Keyblade Wielders you may meet, should you choose to foster such relationships.
"Rather convenient. It'll do, though," Talis responded.
"You know what? You're right; it will do. 's the perfect place for me to hand you your butt," Xaltis said, cracking his knuckles.
"Are you sure this isn't to hide your shame once I kick your butt? How would it look, a professional knight getting his butt handed to him by his little brother, hmm?"
"Cut the trash talk." Xaltis summoned Knight's Absolution, to his surprise, and Penitence to his hands. "Oh hey, look at that! I can use both! Which leaves you with nothing, I presume?"
"Grr...steal my Keyblade, will you? And here I thought you were reformed...but you do have a point. I wonder...can I...?"
Kaosuraito appeared in his left hand and another of his old swords, Nensho, appeared in his right. "Hello, old friends, nice to see you again. Will you fight with me today?"
"Yes, we will, Master Knight. Just point us in the right direction." Nensho was a white blade, sporting flame designs of red and orange.
"Your swords talk to you? What the hell?"
"We talk too, Keybearer; you just haven't bothered to say hello yet!" a peppy feminine voice rang in Xaltis' head.
"What? Absolution? Penitence?"
"Penny, if you please. My formal name is far too...formal," the cutesy voice answered.
"Actually, that's just for Penny. I prefer my formal name. Anyway, yes, we talk as well; we're connected to your mind. And since your mind is connected to your brother's, he can hear us as well, which is why you heard his swords talk," another voice, gravelly and male, followed.
"This is very confusing...I need a minute."
"Well, you can't have it, X. You called me out and now you're gonna get it, right here in the Station of Transcendence, and it's gonna end a little differently to our last battle, brother, but not by much. No holding back, but no death blows, got it?"
"Bring it on, kid; we've danced this dance before." Xaltis spun both Keyblades in his grasp before pointing them outwards from his body at an angle.
Talis ran at Xaltis with a shout, his blade pointed directly at the center of his brother's chest. "Time to show you why I defeated you the first time! Nensho Hiko!"
"Yes, Master Knight!"
Xaltis stood, his Keyblades already crossed to defend his position, so the last thing he expected was what happened next. Nensho began to glow red-hot and ignited and, at that very moment, Talis threw the flaming blade into the air and jumped up to follow. "フライング強度 の火災に!" Talis landed on Nensho, which had become a flaming board, and Kaosuraito held in its normal position over his back. "Come on!" He launched himself at Xaltis, swinging Kaos as if signing his name in the air. "No stopping this fire!" He slammed into Xaltis and slashes him with Kaos, then jumped off of Nensho as it slashes him on its own. Kaos, then Nensho, Kaos, then Nensho, in an almost endless cycle of slashes. "This will be your end!" Talis landed, with Kaos and Nensho crossed in his hands, as Xaltis lay smoldering on the ground.
"OK, OK, I give! Now get this fire off of me!"
"Fine..." He released his swords, snapped his fingers, and the fire dissipated. "Now, do you remember why I beat you last time? I'm stronger than you, X. Don't ever forget it. Solvo mihi ex meus mens." Talis exited the Station, leaving X to brood on his latest defeat, which, even at the hands of his brother, stung quite harshly.
How did he beat me...again? Absolution and Penitence come to his hands, this time as points of reflection. Even with my new power, I still can't beat him...just like last time…Solvo.
Talis fell back to sleep outside their minds while Xaltis lay awake, thinking back to past times. I'm at the mercy of my own memory now. Great, like I really needed to relive this. Xaltis' mind returned to the last time he and his brother faced each other in combat, which ended in a similar fashion.
Outer Embankments, Shadow Citadel
Shadow Desert, Hikari Lux Lucis
Time Unknown, April 15, 1BSF (6AR)
Talis glowed with green fire as his irises seemingly grew to cover the entire stretch of his eyes. The short black jacket he wore almost religiously was extended at the coattails and the edges changed to look more haphazard, as if ripped. Kaosuraito glowed white and changed shape, first becoming wider and more curved at the blade, then splitting at the hilt. "Kaiso...help me save my brother," he whispered, holding the sword to his face. "X! You may be a traitor, but you're still my brother, and I will bring you back home, conscious or not!"
Xaltis summoned a sword to his hand with a dark overtone, the blade thin but straightened. The hilt was shaped like a black flower with dagger-like extensions and a chain from the back end with the Crest of the Royal Knights at the end of the chain. "Hey, Talis, say hello to Knight's Demon, the tool for your destruction! You'll rue the day you set foot in my domain!" X an as fast as he can, then brought Demon to bear at Talis, who blocked the sweep easily. Both attacked each other with the finesse and strength of evenly matched, seasoned swordsmen. "Talis...I can't believe you still haven't cut your hair! You look like a girl!"
"Ng...quit talking about my hair, yours is worse! At least mine is straight! Yours is so wild and crazy!"
They separated and came at each other again, harder than before. Each slash by one man was parried by the other, neither brother giving an inch. It was a testament both to their training together before this event and the force of will the two had that they still managed to be evenly matched. Despite the desperation of such a fight, the two were still enjoying the meeting; warriors such as they were always enjoyed the heat of battle.
"Seems like we're evenly matched, eh, Talis?" Xaltis seemed to be gaining a bit more ground now as Talis' blocks were weakening. X pressed his advantage as he mused, "At least you've not gotten lazy."
"Not a chance, X!" Talis jumped back and the tip of his blade glowed blue for the slightest fraction of a second before he yelled, "Blizzaga!" A giant globe of ice appeared seemingly from nowhere and flew straight at his opponent.
Xaltis was hit by the iced attack and fell to the ground with a frozen arm. "Damn...ng, cheater!" He broke free of the first ice attack and then came running at Talis again.
"Not cheating, winning. Blizzaga!" Another ice blast froze Xaltis' other arm. "Blizzara!" A third froze his legs to the ground.
"Now, my dear brother, time for you to face the light of judgment. Kaiso! Shinzui!"
"Yes, Master Knight!" An orb of light began to charge at Kaiso's tip and Talis pointed it towards the sky as if he planned to take all the light from the stars as well. Kaiso then absorbed the light gathered there and the blade appeared to be stretched to a good four times its original length. Of course, that was not the case; the light gathered there only made it appear to be so. As it was, however, the blade of light was much more potent than the steel that the original blade was made from. "Brother! Accept the light!" Talis makes a horizontal slash in his direction, then vertical, then right-slant, then left-slant. He performed about five or six cycles of this before pointing Kaiso to the sky again and firing a beam of light into the heavens.
None of the slashes managed to hit Xaltis, which surprised him…until he attempted to move. "Wh - what are you doing, Talis? Where is that going?" Xaltis looked up in the sky with a large measure of fear. He tried to break free of the makeshift ice prison he found himself in but it seemed this was somehow more powerful than the ice he broke his arm free from.
"Oh, you'll see." He turned his back to Xaltis, and intoned in the quietest of voices: "Final Shinzui..." The light that Talis shot into the air revealed itself and explodes, letting loose countless arrows of light which all headed straight for Xaltis.
"NOOOOOOOOOO!" The innumerable number of arrows pierced Xaltis in all directions, coalescing in a blinding light, followed by a giant cloud of dust which enveloped the two of them.
~~~~~TKtK~~~~~
Specific Location Unknown
Shadow Desert, Hikari Lux Lucis
8:30 F.S., June 8, 1BSF (6AR)
Laying on the desert sands, Xaltis reflected longer on the last two fights with his brother. That last battle, I was so full of darkness, I couldn't see straight to know that it was wrong to fight Talis...and I paid the price. But is my heart still so full of darkness now, after I've returned to the side of light? I don't understand it...
~~~~~TKtK~~~~~
Specific Location Unknown
Shadow Desert, Hikari Lux Lucis
10:30 F.S., June 8, 1BSF (6AR)
The morning light grew dimmer as the First Sun approached setting, and Xaltis was still deep in thought, but Talis and Kalin seem quite well rested.
"Morning, brothers!" Kalin greeted his older triplets.
"Morning, Kalin! Morning, X!" Talis responded.
"Morning, guys," Xaltis greeted half-heartedly.
"You alright there, X? You look like you can't even stand on your feet!"
"I'm fine, Kal, just tired. I didn't get much sleep last night. No worries." Xaltis picked up his cloak, which he used as bedding for the night, dusts it off, and drapes it around himself, walking off.
"I wonder what's wrong with X, Kal."
"Nightmare, maybe? How about you ask him instead of me, dude? You do share a mind, remember?"
"Good point! Rector. X? You alright, bro? You seem incredibly lost."
"I...I just don't know, Talis. It's like this. When we fought in the Shadow Citadel, I felt so powerful, like nothing could beat me, and when you did beat me, I realized that darkness was not helping me. But then last night, when we fought again, I felt like I was right back there, in that dark place. I couldn't even put a scratch on you, but you basically obliterated me. If you brought me out of there, then where is my strength?"
"X, the strength you're looking for isn't anything I can give you; you have to find it on your own. I mean, I can help you, but only so far. The rest is up to you, and how much you are willing to work to find what's in your heart. That's where it is, man."
"My heart? Excuse me if I sound ungrateful for the advice, but that sounds pretty corny, T."
"Yeah, it does, but it's true. Only then can you access the power that hides inside of you. And once you find it, I have a feeling you'll be pleasantly surprised. You're far more powerful than you know. Remember what that Voice said?" Talis started to walk to a door that appeared seemingly out of nowhere.
"Talis?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks...I needed that. Let's get outta here."
"Sure, no problem, man. Solvo." Talis walked out of the door and then awoke from his mind.
"Is he alright, T?"
"Why don't you ask him?" Talis pointed to a now smiling Xaltis.
"Feeling OK, bro?" Kalin asked Xaltis.
Xaltis turned and responded with a grin, "Yep! Now let's go home, eh?"
"You're right, it's still a long way back to the castle, so the sooner we start the better." Kalin started packing up the camp. "Hey, open up Reminiscence for me, so I can dump this stuff in there." Talis opened yet another compartment on his motorcycle's shell and Kalin put all the supplies and bedding inside it. Once he finished, he closed the compartment. "OK, done! Time to go!"
Talis swung his leg over the left side of the bike to get on and Kalin and Xaltis launched their hoverboards, ready for takeoff. "Let's get outta here."
Talis revved Reminiscence's engine and took off in the direction of the castle, followed by, or rather, flanked by Kalin and Xaltis. "Hey, bro, while I was gone, did you ever learn how fast Reminiscence goes?"
"You mean it goes faster than you're pushing it now?" Kalin queried.
"Guess that's a 'no'," Talis' face now sported a feral grin. "Just watch...deprehendo ventus quod solvo vinculum secundum volo." As he spoke those words, Reminiscence glowed with a faint blue light. Yet another compartment opened, this time on the rear of Reminiscence, revealing twin wind propellers, which moved Talis and his bike at impressive speeds.
"What the...hey! Get back here!" Kalin pressed a hidden button on his board with his left foot, which caused his board's speed to increase as well, Xaltis getting the message and doing the same.
~~~~~TKtK~~~~~
Shadow's End (Eastern Terminus)
Shadow Desert, Hikari Lux Lucis
11:17 F.S., June 8, 1BSF (6AR)
It took quite a while for them to catch up to Talis, who suddenly stopped to stare at what looked like a giant black cloud. "Talis, what is that?" Kalin asked him, pointing to the same sight.
"It can't be...not here...already?!"
Xaltis looked forward to where Talis' eyes were focused, abject shock on his face. Heartless? Here? How can that be? "We just found out about these stupid things; how can they be here already?!"
"Xaltis. Kalin." Talis summoned Absolution. "You ready to do this?"
Xaltis summoned Penitence, and turns to Talis. "Of course, this is what we got these for, isn't it?"
Kalin summoned his own sword, similar in design to Nensho, but sporting a blue and purple color scheme, as opposed to Nensho's red and orange. "Hello, Ensho. Will you fight alongside me today?"
"Yes, Master Knight."
"Then I guess I'm ready, too, for whatever that is."
"Well, then let's do it, shall we?"
The cloud approached much faster than before, revealing itself to be a giant cloud of Shadows and taller, more slender versions of the Shadow. The Neoshadow. Another type of Heartless that approached them was actually flying, but with no wings. How that was possible, the brothers had no idea. They had the telltale antennae of a Neoshadow, but were not quite the same, for they had armor, lances and were more humanoid. The armor was black and had an odd symbol on the front that looked like a heart with some kind of extension. There were black and yellow boots on all of the flying Heartless as well. The yellow eyes, though, were all the same.
"Those yellow eyes, they're so lifeless, Talis. It's like they have no sentience about them," Kalin commented, as this was the first time he'd seen Heartless.
"I agree; I find it quite scary..."
"Then let's take 'em out so we can stop seeing it, eh?"
"X, X, X, ready to start swinging already?"
Xaltis looked back at Talis with eyebrows raised. "Yes...that's kinda why I have my Keyblade in my hand."
"Fine, then go for it!"
"I thought you'd never say so." Xaltis let loose one heck of a battle cry then threw himself into the throng of Shadows.
"Guess I better go in too." Kalin let loose his own battle cry and jumped into battle against the Neoshadows.
"Which means that you flying ones are all mine. Hmm, kinda wish I could fly, too." Talis let loose his battle cry and headed into battle against the Sky Knights.
Kalin looked at his massive cloud of adversaries with determination in his eyes. "I don't know what you things are, but I know you're not friendly. I'm gonna kick the darkness out of all of you with help from the stars!"
The sky around the battlefield suddenly became dark, a bubble of night sky within the larger setting sun, as Kalin's eyes went completely white. "Ensho Hoshi!"
"Yes, Master Knight!" The heavenly stars shined down on Kalin as he spoke in a meditative trance.
"The light of the heavens rains down on those who threaten the safety of others. To eliminate this threat is what I've come to do." Kalin threw Ensho into the sky and it came back down like a shooting star to where he stood. He jumped back and then up to meet it, grabbing the hilt and slamming the sword blade-first into the ground. He leapt into the air and balanced on the end of the hilt with one leg. He moved his hands as if directing an orchestra and each time he brought his arms down, starlight rained from the sky to destroy Heartless. More and more motions with his arm brought more and more stars down, filling the arena with light. Finally, as the onslaught seemed to be finished, he stepped down seemingly on air and gently removed his sword from the ground. In one grand sweeping motion, Kalin spun in a circle with Ensho pointed at his enemies, releasing the light that struck the ground from the stars. "That's the end!" The remaining Heartless in his portion of the battlefield faded into darkness as the light consumed them.
Meanwhile, on Xaltis' end of the battlefield, the Shadows were far more numerous than the Neoshadows Kalin fought.
"Damn these things!" He slashed through one while another swipes at his left arm.
"Stupid Heartless!" He sliced through a third while a fourth sinks into the ground.
"Where are all of them coming from?" He lunged through another. "This is taking way too long. It's about time I use a different approach. Penny!"
"Yeah, X?"
"I'm sending you for a ride, OK?"
"Sure? Where are you taking me?"
"You'll see! I wonder if this still works. Effingo (latin for nine times)!"
Xaltis made nine clones of himself, which divided his section of the battlefield into three diamonds, with him standing at what would be the first vertex of the first diamond. "Didn't your mothers tell you crime doesn't pay?" He threw Penitence at one of his clones, the one directly across from his position, and as the Keyblade spiraled through the air, it created a stream of light that mowed down all the Shadows in its path. "Yes! Pass it on!"
X-Clone #1 sent 'Penny' flying towards another of the clones on the same diamond, with the same effect. Over and over in that diamond until all of those Heartless were gone. "Haven't taken the hint yet?" X-Clone #1 passed the Keyblade over to the next diamond, where the same process occurred starting with X-Clone #4.
X-Clone #4 shouted at the end of that sequence, "Diamond complete! Passing to Seven!" X-Clone #4 passed the torch to X-Clone #7, who completed the sequence in his diamond. "Process complete! Returning Penny to X-Original!" He tossed Penitence high into the air and the Original Xaltis jumped in the air to catch it while re-absorbing all his clones.
"Ready, Penny?"
"I think so, X! Let's do it!"
"Time to get punished!" Xaltis threw Penitence down toward the ground and the Keyblade curved in a wide arc for one final onslaught against the Shadows. Penitence returned to hover over Xaltis' head, spinning rapidly. "Told you crime doesn't pay," he finished as the light envelops the arena.
Talis took on the Sky Knight Heartless with a bit more difficulty than his brothers. "Stupid flying Heartless. Firing all this magic is tiring me out!" While he cut down quite a bit of the Sky Knights with his mage power, there were still quite a lot of them left to destroy. As a few were destroyed, it seemed to him that more would come to take their places, lances stabbing towards him in an endless cycle. It's all he can do to dodge and fire magic at once. With one final "Thundaga!" Talis fell to one knee in exhaustion. His arms and legs are covered with light stab wounds and grazes, from hits that he took from the enemies.
"Talis!" His brothers called out to him and ran towards him from alternate directions.
"Kalin! X! They're too strong!"
Kalin reached his side first. "Nothing's too strong for us, man. Not when we work together."
Xaltis reached his brothers and puts a hand on Talis' shoulder. "Or did you forget? We're the Knight Brothers! Sworn protectors of the Crown! These Heartless are small potatoes!"
Talis rose, re-invigorated by the support of his brothers. "You're right, guys. Let's get rid of the Heartless, Knight-style!"
Talis, Kalin, and Xaltis each faced different directions and started walking slowly until they form a semi-large triangle. On the ground around them, a pattern similar to the platform at the Station of Awakening appeared, only with three tangent circles instead of seven. Each circle held a Knight at its center. Talis began to speak, "We, the Knight brothers of the Kingdom of Hikari Lux Lucis, in order to protect the kingdom previously named and the citizens thereof..." Talis' circle glowed as Kalin continued the speech, "...do solemnly swear to always uphold the positions of Knights of the Royal Court, to enforce the laws set in place by those who came before..." Kalin's circle glowed as Xaltis finished the speech, "...and also swear to always remember the words engraved on our castle, every building, and in our hearts..." Xaltis' circle glowed as they shouted the motto of the Kingdom. "Salus in Lux Lucis!" All three circles were glowing incredibly brightly and the brothers were floating on level with the Heartless. Each pointed his sword (or Keyblade) in a separate direction and followed it faster than the naked eye could see to slash at the many Sky Knights. After who knows how many slashes, the brothers landed facing each other, Kalin, then Talis, and finally Xaltis, and crossed swords in the center of the glowing circles. The light emanating from all of them destroyed the five or six Heartless barely hanging on after that attack.
The sky cleared after the Limit, or rather, after the Limits destroyed all of the Heartless that came in their direction and the brothers began to celebrate, overjoyed at their victory. However, something was a little different.
"X, your robe! It's white!"
Xaltis looked down at himself. His formerly green robe was indeed now white with golden accents, and the Crest of the Royal Knights on the back was golden as well. Even the clothes underneath were now white. "Oh snap! It is! How...?" Then he looked down at his Keyblade, which also changed. "Whoa...what's this?" The Keyblade he held in his hand was now more streamlined, with sharper edges and a castle-shaped hilt.
"I don't know how I know this, but I think that this one's called Evolution, X. You reached what I was telling you about earlier and it didn't take long at all; you found that power that was hidden inside of you. Congratulations, big brother. Your mind has cleared somewhat clear. I'm proud of you."
"As am I, X. Just wait until we get home and we can show the girls!"
"Right! We have to get home! Hey, look!" Xaltis pointed into the distance. "Is that what I think it is?"
Just over the horizon was a lone spire, the tallest of the spires on the castle that the Knights called home.
"It is! Our castle! We're closer to home than I thought! Let's go, guys!" The three ran to their respective vehicles and rode off into the setting sun, eager to get home to their family and friends.
~~~~~~TKtK~~~~~~
Talis: "Well, you did it, LoneStar! You got us home! Sure you almost killed us with Heartless, but that's OK, 'cuz I got a new Limit!"
Chairman: "You're lucky too, 'cuz I didn't plan it that way. And besides, your brothers got Limits too. You even have a Trinity Limit! And X has a Drive!"
Xaltis: "That's my Drive? Sweetness...Thanks, Chairman!"
Talis: "What?! It's his Drive? How come?!"
Chairman: "Because 1. I say so, and 2. He worked for it. X needs something to separate himself from you as a main character. It's to show his power and growth that he's been able to achieve, even in such a short time."
Talis: "Fine, fine, I accept. Congrats, big brother. Now, Chairman! Don't you have some things to say to your readers?"
Chairman: "Actually, yes I do. Thanks! Hey everyone! First off, I want to thank everyone who read Chapter 1 thand even more thanks to the reviewers. Secondly, I'm still looking for ideas for any element of this story, including for the main adventure, but especially for Limits, whether solo or in partnerships, so send me any ideas in P.M.s and I'll be sure to credit if I use them. Actually, I'll credit you whether I use them or not, because all ideas are equally important. Just keep on reading and I'll keep on writing! Love you all!"