A/N: For the love of all that you hold dear, do NOT read this chapter if you haven't read the previous ones! It will completely ruin the story. There isn't much I can say about this chapter except for that; you'll just have to read it for yourself. And, of course, review (or no soup for you!).

The atmosphere aboard The Bahamut was tense to say the least. No one said a word to each other; they were all silently fearing the worst and hoping for the best. As they slowly lowered through the thick black clouds of the night sky, what greeted them turned the blood in the Keybearer's veins to ice. Sora hadn't averted his gaze from the porthole the entire flight, and now, his eyes were glazed in disbelief. Pressing a hand to the window, all he could do was look on as the ship descended. The once peaceful surface was pockmarked by blazing fires, spewing the thick black for into the air. They were everywhere, making the islands look like a map of stars. Sora's fist was clenched tight; he had hoped with everything in him that everyone was safe. The Gummi Ship began to hover directly over where Sora had made his latest departure, beginning a slow descent to land.

"Cid, keep the engine's running." Cloud said over his shoulder. "Sora…Sora! No!"

Sora couldn't wait a minute longer. They were still a good distance above the beach, but he didn't care what happened to him at this point; he was completely fueled by pumping adrenaline and the look-before-leaping instinct that he had relied on his entire time as the wielder of the Keyblade. The side door cracked open with a loud hiss, and before Cloud and Exsul could stop him, Sora had dove out head first. He tucked his chin and in one fluid motion rolled forward as he hit the sand, springing to his feet and drawing his weapon as he ran towards the center of the island. Exsul and Cloud exchanged glances before they followed him out the door, allowing the ship to drop a few more feet before doing so. Cloud landed in a crouch, placing a hand out to brace himself, with the other hand grabbing the handle of his Buster Sword. Exsul was right next to him in a freefall until he was just a few feet from the sand, floating down harmlessly until his feet touched the ground. He had an elegant-looking white staff clutched in his hand, adorned with a serpentine dragon wrapped around the top. Without saying a word, the two of them ran after Sora as quickly as they could.

Sora was running as fast as his feet would allow him, eyes darting back and forth. There was nothing in sight; no Heartless, no threats, no friends…the place was deserted. He came to a wide open clearing, and that's when his heart sank deep into his gut. There was what looked like several people crouched or sitting in the sand in a circle, though he couldn't make out who they were. One of the nearby flames shifted slightly in the wind, offering a brief silhouette of what they were all crouched around; faint wisps of shoulder length silver hair spread across the sand.

Riku! Sora thought. He immediately took off running, his eyes slowly adjusting to the dark of the night. As he got closer, he could make out the faces of Leon and Yuffie, then Tidus and Wakka. They were all clearly on edge and spun around in his direction as if startled and ready to pounce, then relaxed when they saw his glowing blue eyes approaching.

"Sora! Oh, thank God…" Yuffie said, exasperated, as she flung her arms around him.

Sora scooped an arm around her waist to steady her, then looked from friend to friend with a somber expression on his face. Wakka looked about to pass out at any given moment, his right arm hanging lifelessly at his side. Tidus had Wakka's left arm draped across his shoulders, straining to support Wakka's weight. His left eye was swollen shut and he had a deep, angry gash caking the left side of his face in blood. Leon was down on one knee, resting his arm on the pommel of his Gunblade, his face expressionless and sucking in deep breaths as if his life depended on it. Sora's mouth hung open as he took in the sight of them, and as he moved his gaze to the ground at their feet, his face shattered. Riku was lying in the sand, barely conscious, with a hand draped across his abdomen and a small trickle of blood pouring from the corner of his mouth. Sora immediately, yet calmly walked over to his friend and knelt beside him, taking Riku's hand firmly in his. By now, Cloud and Exsul had joined Sora at his side, eyes wide as they took in the sight before them.

"Riku? Riku! Can you hear me?" Sora called to him.

"S…Sora…" Riku said weakly, rolling his head to the side. His eyes cracked open into dim green slits and a smile crossed his lips. "I knew you'd come."

"Riku…" Sora's voice was cracked and sad, and all at once grateful to hear his voice.

"She's safe, Sora…I made sure…she's hiding in the cove with Selphie and some of the locals…"

Riku didn't wait for the question to come from Sora's mouth; he didn't have to. Tears welled in Sora's eyes at the news that Kairi was safe, but also for seeing Riku in the state he was in.

"I tried…I tried to be…like you…be a hero…" Riku began to explain, his voice growing weaker.

"You are a hero, Riku. You did great…you just leave the rest to me, okay?" Sora said with a lump growing bigger and bigger in his throat, then turned to the gathered crowd. "Someone…get a doctor…please!"

Riku squeezed Sora's hand gently.

"Sora…it's too late…please, just stay here for a minute…"

Sora wrapped his other hand around Riku's, holding on for dear life.

"Don't leave me…don't you dare leave me…" Sora begged, tears welling into his eyes.

Riku's smile grew, and his eyes blinked heavily.

"Goodbye, my brother…"

A tiny, unnoticeable spark of light passed from Riku's hand into Sora's. Sora began shaking his head in protest as Riku's hand slipped limply from his. Sora just stared at his hands for a moment, then grabbed Riku's lifeless body by the shoulders, shaking him.

"Riku…wake up! Wake up! Please, for the love of God…" Sora's voice pleaded through broken sobs.

He collapsed upon Riku's chest, gripping his shoulders tightly, tears flowing freely from his eyes and soaking Riku's shirt. The others all looked on in grief for their fallen friend, and their collective hearts broke for the agony Sora was in. Yuffie came up behind him, slid to her knees, placing a hand on his shoulder and laying her cheek against his back as his sobs steadily grew louder. Suddenly and without warning, Sora threw his head back, letting out an angered scream. The bellow was low, rumbling, and full of rage. It shook the very ground they were standing upon as the gathered friends looked on in shock. Sora scream faded and he gritted his teeth, seething with fury; his normally soft and comforting blue eyes burning like wildfire.

Unexpectedly, his head whipped around towards the ocean, and that's when his horrible nightmare became a reality. Standing in the distance, a tall figure wrapped in darkness hovered just above the water, eyes glowing eerily with pale green light and tendrils of long silver hair peeking out here and there. Suddenly, the distance between the two of them became thick and obscured, and several sets of glowing amber eyes burned in Sora's direction. Lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating the creatures blocking Sora from the shore…Heartless, easily numbering in the hundreds. They all looked so much more twisted and evil than Sora had remembered. Half of them had a trisected mouth, almost beak like, with rows of sharp and foreboding teeth, backs covered in foot-long spikes; the other half of them had snaking black tendrils protruding from their skin and wisps of ebony smoke encircling them, creating an absence of light wherever they stood. Sora exploded from where he knelt at Riku's side, inadvertently knocking Yuffie on her butt as he did so; he was charging at them headlong, Keyblade drawn and at the ready, burning blue eyes locked on eerie green.

Cloud stood tall and looked down at Riku's prone and lifeless body, as if not noticing Sora's outburst of anger. Exsul's eyes shifted to Cloud, and he raised his bowed head to speak.

"Cloud, what is it?" Exsul asked, examining Cloud's face.

Cloud stared down at a solitary puncture wound in the center of Riku's chest, and suddenly his face went pale. His mouth hung open slightly as he studied it; it was about two inches long, and looked like it had come from some type of blade. Cloud's hand relaxed against his abdomen, his fingers absently tracing a small scar he had hidden beneath the fabric of his shirt.

"No…it can't be…" Cloud said, his voice barely audible and with a tint of horror to it.

"What is it?" Exsul insisted on an answer from him.

"Exsul, with me. The rest of you, stay here and guard the cove. Do not, by any means, leave the cove, understood?" Cloud's voice was commanding without being domineering.

He didn't wait for either reply or protest; he grabbed his sword in hand and took off running after Sora, Exsul close on his heels.

Sora was like a man possessed by some unseen devil; hacking and slashing, punching and kicking his way fiercely through the horde of monsters that stood between him and the mysterious figure. He was unstoppable, no matter how many tried to take him down, his actions fueled by bloodlust. Cloud and Exsul, to say the least, had their hands full; Cloud was using every trick he had to keep them at bay with his Buster Sword, while Exsul took down some with his magic and some with the staff at his side. They tried desperately to catch up to Sora, but were steadily being outnumbered.

"Cloud!" Exsul shouted over them. "Get down!"

Cloud knew better than to not listen to a teammate during battle; he dove between a few of the Heartless, rolling harmlessly out of the way, crouching in preparation for whatever the mysterious sorcerer had planned. The Heartless had stopped dead in their tracks, watching as Exsul rose into the air, piercing beams of white light cutting through them from the center of his chest. In an instant, there was a growing dome of brilliant iridescent light that encompassed them, Exsul hovering at its epicenter. In a blinding flash of light, the half-globe exploded noiselessly, followed by a shockwave of dust and air. When the light faded, Cloud looked in disbelief as the gathered Heartless had been completely obliterated. He ran over to Exsul, who was kneeling heavily in the sand, and slowly hefted him to his feet.

"Next time, open with that…" Cloud said cooly.

Exsul offered a small laugh, winced, and grabbed his ribs. Whatever he had done, it appeared to take a lot out of him.

All that remained between Sora and his goal was a single Heartless, its trisected maw gaping open with an unearthly howl. Sora hefted the Keyblade, viciously and unforgivingly beheading it as Cloud and Exsul caught up to him. Sora was breathing heavily, still seething, teeth clenched dangerously tight. Cloud placed a hand on his shoulder to calm him, causing the keyed-up Sora to spin around and nearly attack him. Just as Cloud opened his mouth to offer Sora some calming words, a smooth and chilly voice cut the air.

"Good…give in to your hate, your anger…your darkness! It will make this all the more enjoyable, Keybearer."

Sora's eyes narrowed as he turned slowly to face the voice, realizing it was coming from the darkness-shrouded figure with the green eyes. Exsul had gotten himself upright again, and was looking upon the figure as well, his gaze returning to his usual cold and expressionless façade. The figure's voice had sent a shiver down Cloud's spine, who stared in disbelief as the dark entrails slowly dissipated, revealing the man's long flowing silver hair and a single angelic wing protruding from his back, enclosed in raven-black feathers.

"Good to see you again…" The man said, a wry smile crossing his thin lips. "Cloud."

Sora and Exsul's eyes fell on Cloud, who had been in a state of disbelief. Cloud's eyes narrowed, and all of a sudden he was the hardened warrior once again.

"Sephiroth…"