A/N: When I say edited, you say chapter!

Edited! …

Edited! …

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

Silence was heavy and pressuring— a weight that lay heavily over the teenager's shoulders as he sat with a tense sort of posture. The nonexistent noise thrummed and vibrated in the air as if it was alive, and it became almost suffocating as breath seemed harder to come by. Sora sat with his back flush against the wall, his good leg drawn up to his chest as he rested his chin on top of his knee. The other leg proved impossibly to draw forth in a similar manner— any pressure on his ankle caused sparks of pain to burn and smolder in response; as long as the action was optional, he would prefer to keep as much extra weight as he could off of his limb.

Seconds had turned into minutes, minutes into hours, and so on and so forth. Sora's mind was dulled and glazed over as the time continued to tick on and on. He had no idea really how much time had passed. He didn't have a clock to keep an eye on, and any figures or numbers that he landed on were probably exaggerated with the sheer lack of anything else to focus on. All that he had to focus on was the sharp white that was surrounding him, the small stains of blood that had been left in the wake of his fight with Xaldin, and the small size of the prison that he had been barred inside.

Thoughts were dangerous in a situation like this. It was better to wipe clean your mind rather than to have it filled with the 'What If's and the 'How Could I's. When Sora would find his mind wandering into these unknown regions, he would struggle to snap back to himself before damage could be done. Before he could think of Goofy lying limp on the ground, or of the way that Donald had crawled over slowly, the duck letting out a wavering whine of sadness at the sight of his fallen friend. Before he could think of what must have happened to Sora's other friend once the keyblade bearer had been struck down by the Organization. Before he could think of Kairi, and picture a bright, shining sword pressed against her throat. Before he could think of the King and wonder whether or not he had even noticed the fact that Sora had been gone. Before he could entirely rip his mind apart shred by shred.

He grimaced deeply at this, shutting his eyes and forcing himself to take in a slow breath, imagining air filling his lungs gradually from the bottom up. And once his lungs were filled, he hesitated, holding it the gasp and counting mentally. 1…2…3…4…5…6…7… And then he released it all in a sigh, his head giving the smallest hint of a shake as if he was trying to shake off the thoughts. But it seemed to be just like trying to clear away thick strings of cobwebs. It didn't matter how hard you tried to clear it all away— there would always be a few strands, seemingly invisible, that you could not see. And then before you knew it, another cobweb had been crafted— quick in speed with its appearance, but just as intricate and striking as ones before it.

However he tried his best to shake clear anything and everything from his mind, struggling to render it blank and struggling to keep his expression apathetic. He stared across the room and burned a hole into a specific spot parallel to where he was seated. Sora's joints were stiff and locked together from the sheer amount time he had spent in the same position, and he was no doubt sure that if he stood up, his body would likely creak in pain.

He twisted his head around to look over his shoulder, towards the door that was a little ways behind him. He tilted down forward, craning his neck and ranging his hearing out as far as he could. He struggled to snatch even the smallest hint of a noise going on through the other side of the wall. However try as hard as he might to grab the tiniest hint, he couldn't make out anything. Silence was swallowing everything around him it seemed, and as Sora shifted with a small wince, he felt his chest constrict with a sense of claustrophobia. The amount of quietness taking up every inch of the prison made him feel even more alone than he did before. And he hadn't even considered that possible.

He shook his head again, feeing his mind spin slightly on itself. No.he thought fiercely to himself, slicing through the idea as soon as it was possible. He couldn't allow himself to feel alone; that was just what the Organization wanted. He wasn't alone, because there was no singular doubt in the boy's mind that his friends were looking for him. They had to be— right? Yuffie…Leon…they all had to notice that he was gone after the fight. They had to be wondering where he was. They just…they just didn't have any idea on how to find him. That was it. Sora knew that if the situation was flipped – if he had discovered of another friend's capture – he wouldn't have a clue either.

So Sora knew there was only one option left. His last resort. A final attempt.

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

"So where do ya think we should start?" The question came in a manner of almost aloofness, though both knew that the situation was anything but. Goofy, having been the one to speak through the silence that was hanging inside of the Gummi Ship prior, had leaned forward in his chair to put his nose close to the glass. Laid out before them like a map lay the many worlds that they were open to visit. Of all shapes, masses, and size, there was hardly a limit to which they could go first. However this was a danger more than it was a real good. Each world held its own aspect…how were they to know which one to visit first?

Goofy and Donald had set out in the ship for the sole purpose of going out to begin a more in-depth, fine-tuned search for Sora. They had exhausted the search inside of Hollow Bastian, and their efforts had ended up to be a little bit less than satisfactory. So they had been forced to expand their radar, a seemingly-simple idea to begin with. But now it seemed to be more complicated; with so many options to choose from and with them having such a strong lack of knowledge on where exactly their keyblade bearer was, they were now at a little bit of a loss. At the lack of response, Goofy turned over to eye Donald, who looked just as confused and thoughtful. "Where do ya think Sora could be?" he prompted.

The duck's reply was a little late. "I don't know," Donald answered, his eyes narrowed down into slits. As if he needed a better vantage point, which was probably the case thanks to his stunted size, the duck stood and got up on his toes, leaning forward and all but pushing his beak into the glass window. His blue eyes combed the expanse of the galaxy in front of them rapidly, as if grasping for some kind of clue that they could branch off of. "Hmm…" He glanced back at Goofy. "Well? …Which worlds did he like?" The magician asked, his question a little desolate as he had come up with nothing. It was to be expected, though. They knew nothing— they didn't know if the brunet had been taken by someone, they didn't know if he just ran off, they didn't know if he went out looking for Riku…they didn't have a single fact to lean back on. They were grasping at straws right now, and whether or not that was the most effective thing in the world, it really was the only thing they could possibly do.

There was silence again. That lack of noise that also carried with it the implication of lack of awareness. Goofy seemed to be momentarily stuck; but then again, he always seemed that way when it came to putting him on the spot and making him think. However it only took a few moments for the other to reply— a factor that came across as not only surprising but also a little bit impressive as well. And when he did speak, his voice was high and upbeat, an optimistic turn as he landed on: "He liked Ariel's world."

At the mention of the underwater world, Donald swung his chair around to look towards where it lie. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously as he gazed at the peaceful world. For once it seemed that Goofy actually had a point. Underneath the waves of the ocean, Atlantica was filled with songs and musicals, without a single shred of Heartless or even Dusks or Nobodies. If Sora left to try and escape the pressures and danger that came along with their quest, however out of character it seemed for the teenager, he would most definitely go here. There wasn't much amiss under the sea, and with the way that Sora and Ariel had grown so close over the years, he would also have a friend to confide in there. It seemed like Atlantica was the best place to—

"Or he could be training with Phil at the Coliseum!" Goofy added suddenly, jerking Donald out of his thoughts as the duck let out a sharp squawk. He turned to look back the other, Goofy already having spun his chair around to look way on the other end of the map, to the world that contained Meg and Herc and everyone else as well. Donald's blue eyes were wide, and he opened his mouth to say something, but he didn't get the chance to. "He could be trying to get up the status of 'True Hero!'" Goofy went on, seeming proud of himself for the other answer. "He was always really angry over the fact that we were still considered Juniors, right?"

"Wha-"

But Goofy still was not finished. "Or maybe he went to Halloween Town!" he volunteered, suddenly finding ides coming as easily to him as notes did a composer. "He really liked visiting Santa Claus in Christmas Town. And he liked hanging around Halloween Town with Jack! Remember that time when he—"

Donald scowled, shaking his head and cutting through the dog's words abruptly. "You can't do that!" he squawked angrily. Goofy stiffened with surprise from the sudden shout from the duck, snapping his mouth shut with a clamp. "He's in Ariel's world, we already figured that out, you big palooka!" Donald shouted. "You can't just throw everything in at once like that! Then we don't have any idea where we should go, and then we're getting absolutely nowhere! You gotta take it one at a time or we'll never find Sora! You got it?"

"…Sorry, Donald?"

"You bet you are!" the hot-tempered duck snapped, dropping down into the chair with a smack. He leaned forward and grabbed the controls, jabbing a finger into the air for emphasis. "To Ariel!" he yelled, turning the ship around and heading for their chosen destination readily. Goofy kept quiet and did not object as Donald chose this world first— it probably didn't matter much where they started in the first place. Instead he turned away to stare out the window, watching as stars and other worlds flashed by as they departed from Hollow Bastian.

Yet as they made more progress towards Atlantica, Goofy could not help but turn and look at all the others they were passing up, unable to keep from deliberating each time they passed another destination. Agrabah…Sora always liked spending time with Aladdin; Goofy could remember the time that the pair of them had had a race to see who could run through the entire maze of the Bazar the fastest— Sora had lost, but he had lost laughing. They passed up Port Royale as well— Sora always had the best of times there, always ranting about how amazing a feeling it was to be a pirate. And the Pridelands— the keybearer was enthralled at the fact that he had been turned into a lion for that specific world; not to mention that the entire land seemed filled with adventure of all different sorts.

In short, Sora liked every world. The boy found light and happiness in every single place that they visited— so how were they supposed to know where he had gone. Sora could literally be in any world, there wasn't one real answer that stuck out to them. Goofy frowned, a shade of disappointment and frustration edging on him as he tore away his gaze to focus on where they were going again. But the worry remained in the back of his mind like a ghost. Because all of a sudden this seemed like a much less simplistic thing than they had first anticipated.

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

The ground was rapidly growing boring. Hours passed and it wasn't moving an inch, or going anywhere at all. Despite the fact that it was something that was expected, the fact was a little bit of a let-down. After all it really was one of the most interesting things in the room; it was one of the only things in the room. Sora was starting to debate whether or not to get up and move to sit down in a different location. But as he started to move to try and take action on the idea, he found that his muscles were taut and worn from being still for so long, and as a certain degree of pain settled over him as he tried to move, he figured that he shouldn't attempt it. He should just stay put.

Maybe the ground moved if you just stared at it longer.

After hours of silence and hazy nothingness, there was a small sound. The noise was slight, but as it broke through the quiet it was pretty much the equivalent of a bomb going off. The teenager's shoulders went rigid and tense as he heard the door begin to open, however he did not turn. His grip around his good ankle tightened slightly, and he reaffirmed the way that his chin was resting on his knee. But his eyes were filled with interest now as he heard the door become ajar, and the teenager could hear his heartbeat pick up as blood began to roar in his ears.

Before he could debate whether or not to turn around and actually see who was there, Sora spoke up first. His voice was flat and hollow as it came out of his mouth, but he did little to notice the small detail. "I already fought today," he said. He couldn't actually keep track of the days exactly, but he knew that the last time he had been carted off couldn't have been more than twenty-four hours ago. In the long time that he had been here (weeks? Months?) he had been dragged out of his prison into the other room filled with Heartless what looked to be each day. And really that was all he could manage; his body was ached and rang with pain for hours even after he had finished a fight. If he had any injuries that would prove fatal in the long run, he was offered the smallest bit of potion to ensure his survival. However that did nothing for the fizzled energy that left Sora's eyes ringed with bags and his legs burning.

"I know." Sora cursed mentally at reply, very easily picking out the Organization member just by the sound of his voice. Sometimes he had the worst luck. The brunet held back as scowl as Axel kept his hand on the doorknob, his forehead creased as he leaned against the wall. His green eyes were fixed intently on the teenager, and Sora pictured sarcastically in his mind the gaze burning a hole through his clothes just like the fire that he wielded. "I was just coming in to check on you," Axel went on, the redhead clearing his throat with a small cough in the back of his throat. "I've been assigned to guard the door ever since you got back, but I haven't heard a single thing this entire time."

Sora didn't reply. He didn't even turn around to look at him.

Axel seemed befuddled. Almost miffed at the lack of response. "What's up with you?" he asked, raising his eyebrows at the boy. "Usually we can't get you to shut up. Much less get you to stay still."

Sora blinked slowly. And when he spoke his voice sounded akin to rain beating on a hollow log. "I thought that was what you wanted," he rasped, his words almost a whisper. He turned his head just slightly to look at Axel in the peripheral vision. The redhead seemed to have realized the flaw in his voice, stopped short for a second as he blinked, as if surprised. But then he cleared his throat again, moving his eyebrows as if telling himself: 'Well yeah, I guess you've got a point there.'

Silence filled the room again. Outwardly, Sora's face was blank if not a little pained as he looked emptily forward. But on the inside his mind was racing a mile and minute, and as he glanced over to where Axel stood again, he realized that the man was clearly beginning to leave. So, shifting a little bit, Sora gave his own little cough, causing Axel to stiffen with surprise. Sora hesitated a moment or two before mumbling out the first thing he could think of. The man straightened, looking even more confused as he leaned over a little closer. "What was that?" he asked, when the boy's voice was much too quiet to hear.

Sora paused before raising his voice. "I said I was thirsty," he repeated, sparking his voice with a touch of irritation now. "Go get me something to drink."

Axel leaned against the doorframe, raising his eyebrows. "I dunno," he said slowly, Sora twitching in anger at the smug tone that vibrated through the man's entire voice. "I usually only do favors for people who ask nicely." By his tone, the man was implicating that he was yet again trying to make a joke. And in response, Sora yet again did not even crack a giggle. He scowled openly, glaring at the wall across from him now as he pointedly turned from the Organization member. "So it looks like you're a little out of luck with that attitude."

"Get somebody else to do it then," he sighed in a sharp manner, still refusing to look at him as he shot his irritated look to the wall instead, as if the source of the problem was there across from him.

"Can't," Axel replied almost immediately after, as if he had been expecting the reply. "Xaldin and Xigbar are off on a mission. And Luxord is too busy with that stupid Solitaire game he set up two hours ago. So you're stuck with me, kid." While normally the statement, still in such a barbed tone of voice, would have brushed Sora the wrong way, now he only blinked, his blue eyes filling slowly with interest. Thankfully his face was turned away from Axel's, so the small change in his demeanor went unnoticed. "So, in other terms…what was that? Can you say it a little louder?" the red-haired man egged on.

Sora held back yet another angered sigh. Mentally, as if the answer wasn't already clear enough, he weighed his priorities. True that there wasn't much argument in the face of what he needed to do, Sora still found the idea of appealing to Axel utterly appalling. The teenager bit down on his lower lip for a second before muttering out the words yet again. "Get me a drink please," he grumbled out of the corner of his mouth.

Axel still thought he was pretty darn hilarious though. "I'm so sorry, I'm a little hard of-"

Sora snapped in half, throwing his head back in a sign of extreme frustration. "Pleaseget me a drink you idiot!" he yelled, stressing each word.

The Organization Member blinked, his face turning sour with the sudden yell. But the man seemed to realize that Sora wasn't going to bend, and he was finding no humor in the man's antics. "Fine," he said in a small exhale, pushing off from the frame of the door to stand upright. "I'll be right back," he said this as if Sora could move anywhere else from where he was sitting right at this moment. Sora didn't respond to the other, merely staring straight forward, and Axel gave out another huff, turning and walking away. Whoops, didn't mean to offend you. Sora thought bad-temperedly, rolling his eyes. Thankfully Axel didn't see this either as the older of the two turned around and headed down the hall, his steps quick as he retreated, swinging the door shut loosely behind him.

A small, almost inaudible clicking noise followed Axel's departure. Nearly nonexistent in the first place, the Member of the Organization paid no heed it as he continued to walk down until he rounded the nearest corner. The rain that was still pounding overhead helped to stifle the noise as well; the weather was the only thing that could be considered acting in Sora's favor since he'd gotten here. However the subtle noise stuck out blatantly to Sora, and the boy's face was split into a wide grin. Twisting his head back to look over his shoulder, Sora's eyes flickered down to his keyblade. As Axel had turned his back to leave, the teenager had taken liberty to push his keyblade ever so slightly to that the tip of the weapon was just barely over the threshold. The door was propped open, an inch of space between it and the wall.

Sora immediately forced himself into action. The teenager knew that he had a very limited amount of time, and so even as his body ached and cried in objection as he got up, he forced the thoughts away with a rough hand. Axel could be back any minute with the water, and if Sora wasn't long gone by then, there was going to be serious trouble to pay for. All favors seemed to point in the teenager's direction— most of the Organization was either out or busy with their own things to be walking around the castle. And the only factor that had been holding him inside the room – a constant surveillance of a battle-ready guard – was now gone, having left his post to go get him a glass of water. All that was left for him to do now was to find his way out…wherever this was.

He really hoped that this wouldn't blow back in his face.

Cautiously, Sora stepped out into the hall. His heart was held in tight constraints like claws, and as Sora looked wildly back and forth, to the left and to the right, it banged so hard against his chest that it was almost painful. He had no idea where he was— he still hadn't figured it out. All he knew for sure was that he was most likely in some place that was very big….and verymuch the same color. Everything was bleached white and frankly, looking around, Sora could attribute this place to a maze. It all looked the same and Sora knew that if he wasn't able to keep track of where he was going, then he would get very lost very quick.

So he turned the way opposite that Axel had gone. Turning to his right, the boy looked down quickly to his ankle, feeling a choking sense of suspense and defeat as he realized that he was still hindered by the injury. It was a sickening sight to look at with the way it was so blackened and bruised by its constantly-forced misuse. And the more Sora put weight on it and used it, the longer it was being prevented from recovering. It had been hurting for so long that Sora had forgotten exactly how it had gotten this way in the first place. As he forced himself to stand on top of the injured limb, he was filled with such agony that he wanted nothing more than to collapse back down and take the weight back off of it.

But he didn't have a choice. He glanced back the way that Axel had gone, steeling himself and swallowing thickly as he turned back to the right. Gritting his teeth and holding back the cries of pain that bottled themselves at the back of his throat with each step, Sora pushed himself into a run. His foot screeched with every applied pressure, and as if to get rid of the agony, Sora's grip on his keyblade increased tenfold, his knuckles bleaching over white from the strain. And the young boy ran down the hall as fast as he could carry himself, ignoring the severe limp that caused him to lose five inches with every other stride.

He just had to make it out. He just had to try and do this one thing. If he could make it out of here…well, he didn't really care what would happen after that. He didn't care at all.

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

Axel sighed airily, emerging back into the hall where Sora's room was located. In his hands he held a small tray of food. It didn't contain much, but Axel figured that if Sora was asking for a glass of water, he might as well just offer something more. They wouldn't get much done if they kept starving him like they had been, when you stopped to think about it. "Sora?" he called out, looking up from the tray into the direction he was walking. "Sora, I got you some—"

But Axel's words were cut in half as he came to a sudden, abrupt halt. His green eyes stretched themselves wide, and a cold root of suspicion and horror sank deep through his stomach as he looked at what was a few yards away. The door…how did Sora's door get open? Didn't he close it? In his shock, Axel lost his grip on the tray of food, the metal thing and all of its contents, however minimal, smashing down to the ground in a messy heap.

But the Nobody paid no mind. Instead Axel rushed forward on nimble legs, closing the distance between him and the small space as he stuck his head through the gap the open door had left. Nearly overcome at what was going on, Axel whipped his head back and forth, looking from one end of the room to the other. But it was a pitifully small space that didn't take more than a second to scour. A pitifully small space that was…empty.

It was empty.

The room was empty.

(~**~) (~**~) (~**~) (~**~)

Air was hard to filter through his lungs— no matter how much he gasped, the burning seated inside of his chest didn't seem to lessen at all. Part of it was probably due to the panic that was filling him up to the brim, and no amount of gasps that he took in would cause the sensation to cease. So, fighting against the burning that was rooted deep inside himself, Sora was forced to keep running, his feet pounding in uneven thuds against the ground as he hobbled as fast as he could go.

Sora knew that he only had a collection of minutes before his leave would be noticed. In a perfect world, he would dare to hope that he could have up to an hour maybe. But with the fact that he had only gotten Axel away under the request to go get a glass of water, he was smarter than to assume he had such a surplus. And when he was caught, who knew what would happen. The Heartless could be sent as an obstacle, and with the amount of effort and concentration that was already being put into the simple act of walking, he knew that fighting would be near impossible to do at the same time. Outrunning wouldn't be that good of a chance to put everything on either with his gimp leg.

Coming to a junction, Sora hesitated a bit briefly before choosing to go straight once again. He knew that he had to do all that he could not to get lost. If he took one wrong turn, the flaw could morph into many others. And pretty soon he had the full capability to do a full circle without even realizing it. If he took every turn that was offered to him, he could end up running smack dab into the back of Axel on the Organization Member's way down the hall.

Glancing over his shoulder, Sora spat out a thick curse in the back of his mind. Rampant fear was making his legs slow even more in their limping strides. Hyperventilating almost, Sora shut his eyes tightly, struggling to force himself out of the cycle of panic. If he would only clear his mind, maybe he could try and get himself to go faster, or help his thinking to become clearer. His thoughts were as flyaway and scattered as pins that were dropped on the ground, and though Sora was struggling to gather them together, it wasn't as easy as he anticipated.

Eyes widening just slightly, the boy came to a sudden halt, skidding a few feet on the ground as his head snapped up to look at the sight before him. And for a second time, he spat out a mental curse. Two hallways branched off, one going left and the other bending right; both were going in opposite directions, and neither of them provided a clear-cut hall that went straight. Sora's mind raced and spun, and the teenager looked back and forth, looking as lost as a kid without their mother in a store. Struggling to make sense from one to the other, the keyblade wielder looked back and forth, debating inwardly. Throwing out his hearing to reach forward, Sora listened for the sound of rain. Surely the way out would sound louder than the one that led just further into the building?

He panted in and out shallowly, head spinning as, after so long, he was put under such sudden strenuous activity. Deliberating left him torn, and the longer he tried to think through his options, the longer he stood stock-still. He knew that it wasn't possible for him to keep this up; time was running out, and he was really pushing it by stopping short. He turned towards the left, grasping for a sign that the rain sounded louder in that direction. But no sooner had he twisted to the side to listen out, did he go rigid, his eyes widening to be a million times their normal size as a sudden sound ripped itself through the castle.

It was a scream. The description was an understatement in itself, though. The noise was undoubtedly a shout, but it was much more than that. It was a noise of pure anger and fury, unbridled and rampant. It seemed to shake the entire building around Sora ad break it apart, though he knew that such a thing should have been impossible. Nevertheless, as the shout rattled against his eardrums, a burning rush of white-hot fear immediately washed over Sora. He stiffened, whipping around and looking down the hall as his pupils were blown out with horror. Yards and yards down these never-ending halls, Sora felt his heart freeze over as, in the shadows and recesses that gathered what seemed like miles away, he could have sworn that he could see the glint of yellow, glaring eyes. Heartless?

Gasping sharply at the thought, Sora turned back around, jerking back into motion before he could give himself even another second of hesitation. He chose without thinking, breaking into a pain-filled sprint as he took the hall that went down to the right. It was darker down this way, and he realized after he had run forward for a while, that the shadows were growing thicker and thicker. Not in terms of the Heartless, however the darkness was just as oppressive. It pushed down and yawned over the teenager, and he found himself stumbling even more, overcome with the throbbing panic racing through every inch of them. Hesitantly, slowing in his sprint and grimacing deeply at the rawness that was stabbing through his ankle, Sora paused, stopping again as he turned, taking a small step backwards as he tried to decide whether or not he had possibly made a mistake in choosing right over left. Could he still have time to double back and choose the other way?

However as soon as Sora took that miniscule step back, he found his leg suddenly out from underneath him. The boy lost his balance abruptly, and as if someone had yanked a rug out from underneath him, he was suddenly crashing down. He slammed into the ground with a heavy thud, the teenager grunting thickly in agony as he slammed into the floor. His head spun like a top, and he knew that if there was anything to be helped, it was probably his head; hit it much more, and Sora wouldn't be surprised if he just went brain dead.

Grimacing deeply, Sora sat up from where he was on his back. He ducked down close to his chest, reaching up and rubbing his forehead to try and scrub away the hurt as a low whine seated itself in the back of his throat. What did he even slip on, anyway? Blearily, he opened his eyes into half-lidded slits, straining through the dimness and searching for an answer. It was hard to see in the dark, but as Sora sat there, he slowly realized that there was a rumbling noise around him now. And as he dropped his arm to the ground, Sora stiffened as he could feel a certain degree of sliminess underneath his palm. As shock flashed through him, he looked down, tensing his fingers as he drew his hand along the ground, sure enough feeling the cold touch of water meeting his skin.

Sure enough, he was outside. By some sort of miracle, he was now standing in the fresh and cold air, he was standing in the free air. He almost couldn't believe it. Sora found himself laughing even before he knew it. It was nervous laughter, he couldn't know how close the others were to him, but it was happy all the same. He was out, he was out! Shaking himself to clear his thoughts, Sora started running again, his legs sore and his head dizzy from breathing so sharply.

He tensed, making the connection as he finally realized what the odd hollow rumbling was. It was the rain. Sora's head snapped up at the thought, his eyes growing wide again as, in a sharp scramble, he pushed himself back up. Ignoring the ringing in his leg, Sora limped forward heavily, noticing the smaller things now such as the way the temperature dropped, and the way that the rumbling began to get louder and louder the further along he walked. The air seemed to get thinner and heavier at the same time, and eventually, after what felt like ages, Sora finally made his way…out.

He was out.

Sora was stunned in the face of what he had accomplished, stuttering mentally almost as he wondered crazily whether or not he was being tricked with this. But as he stood and stared, he knew that he wasn't. He was outside in the fresh air, in the pouring rain; out from his prison room and away from the wave of Heartless that had beaten and battered at him countless times. He was away from the plot of the Organization to complete Kingdom Hearts, and he was out of the threat on his friend's lives. His hair was immediately wetted down, slicking close to his head and hanging down in front of his face messily. And he was freezing cold as his clothes stuck fast to his skin. But he paid no heed to the trivial matters, only pushing forward into a limping sprint once more.

He ran for what seemed like an eternity, but it was a blissful one. One filled with fresh air, cold wind, and streaming water that was just as soothing as it was frigid. He had never been so happy to run awkwardly around aimlessly in the rain. He knew that he was still running short on time. He knew in a matter of minutes probably, he had the potential to be stopped. Sora looked over his shoulder as he dragged himself through the street, trying to look back the way he had come to see whether or not there was anybody already following. But through the sheets of water raining down around him, it was impossible to see anything that was more than a few inches in front of your nose. It was like he was in his own room, secluded from everything and everyone else. But that made it dangerous as well as comforting. This way he was blind to anybody that could be following him. And surely by now there was at least someone? Who had let loose that one yell?

The thought made his heart tug with worry, and it did not relax even as he walked further, only fostering with each added step. The street was filled with so much water that it was more like a flood, water reaching nearly past his ankles as his shoes were entirely soaked through, even more so than his clothes, which he didn't think was possible in the first place. He gritted his teeth, locking back his jaw and flinching as he almost slipped repeatedly as he was left to wade through the street. Narrowing his eyes against the water, he was only guided along by what looked to be neon lights. Their harsh, muted glows allowed him to keep track of where this street was going, wherever it was heading.

However as he straightened, he could see that ahead there was another shining source of light, different than the others. This one was lower, and it held a softer kind of glow than the ones hanging from dark shrouds of buildings over the street's path. He knew this kind of shine— the density of the color, the shimmering kind of edge. His heart leapt up to clog tightly in his throat, and the young boy felt that there was kind of inability to breath in the face of what was now in front of him. It was…it was a way out. If he could just reach it before any of the Organization Members reached him…

His heart soared; he was going to get out.

His throat burned and the sheer relief that he was experienced seemed to rise up to flush his cheeks red and cause his eyes to burn. Sora picked up his run now fueled by the possibility of an exit, his strides sloppier now as a smile broke out over his face. He didn't know whether it was rain or tears that were making trails down his face, but his shoulders were shaking erratically, and his breath came in harsh gasps that scraped against his throat. Reaching out his arms, Sora pushed himself further and further, watching the green glow get brighter the closer he came.

And, senseless in the face of…well…everything, the boy found himself letting out a sharp yell before he could even realize what he was doing. The portal was close now, and its green glow was reflected inside of Sora's own depths. "I'm here!" he screamed, almost as if he hoped that if he yelled loud enough, his friends would be able to hear him and know that he was okay. That he was coming back. "I'm coming! Wait for me!"

Finally, the green portal was close enough, and as he stepped forward into it, his feet splashing into the green light as he felt warmth cover him from head to toe. Upon the first touch between him and the transport, Sora collapsed, unable to keep himself up anymore. There was a feeling of serenity, a sense of comfort that was customary to him whenever he came into contact with the gateway. And lying against the ground, spluttering against water that threatened to rush into his mouth. In the back of his mind, he was almost positive that he heard voices— at least two of them. Raised in shouts that managed to raise themselves over the roar of the pounding rain.

But the fact was distant as his mind clouded over. Slowly sensations were stripped away from the boy, and he felt the cold floor cave out from underneath him. He grew numb and cold and the sound of the rain shrunk away as well. Everything was vanishing in time; everything of the Organization and everything that Sora had been struggling with. It blinked away quicker than he could anticipate and pretty soon he was oblivious. And gone.

He was going into another world, he was sure.

He was going back home.