Kairi was first through the door to the main beach followed closely by Mickey and Riku. She ran down the plank and onto the sand as fast as she could fear rising in the pit of her stomach. But all her fear melted away. As she passed under the bridge she was able to see a figure with spiky brown hair standing near the water.

"Sora!" She called happily racing towards him.

"Kairi wait!" Riku called after her, but she didn't hear him.

"Sora!" She said again now right next to him. But Sora didn't acknowledge her and his eyes were closed. "Sora?" She said concerned putting her hand on his shoulder. He flinched at her touch and turned his head slightly in her direction, but she could see his eyes were still closed. Then, without warning, he slapped her across the face.

"Kairi!" Riku shouted and she could hear him and the others running across the sand as she fell to the ground in surprise more than pain. Sitting in the sand she looked up at her kindest friend to see him summon a keyblade of pure darkness and put it to her throat.

"Sora," she said starting to cry, "Sora please."

"Sora's not here anymore," Shadow Sora said in a voice that was so much like Sora's but so far from it. Then Sora's eyes opened to reveal that the beautiful blue color Kairi loved so much was gone, smothered in darkness.

"No..." she whispered not believing that Sora had lost and was gone. "No!" She cried, but Shadow Sora just smiled evilly and pulled his dark keyblade back before swinging it down at her head.

She flinched at the sudden clash of metal on metal. Riku had reached her and was standing over her blocking Shadow Sora's keyblade with his Way to Dawn. "Stop it Sora!" He shouted in a slightly fearful voice.

"Don't call me Sora!" Shadow Sora shouted angrily in the same disturbing voice before jumping away from Riku and facing all that were assembled on the beach. "Sora is no more. I shattered his heart and now he has fallen into oblivion." He stopped and smiled before extending a hand to point at each of them. "And soon you will be joining him."

"You bastard!" Cloud shouted and charged across the sand. He swung his massive sword at the possessed Sora but it just bounced right off the dark keyblade Shadow Sora held out before him. Cloud was unphased and regained his balance to swing again. The others, Donald, Goofy, Mickey, Tifa, and Yuffie, ran to help while Riku pulled Kairi to her feet.

"Run!" He shouted at her.

"But-"

"Go!" He said pushing her roughly towards Aerith who grabbed her hand and pulled her away as she watched Riku run towards the fray around the boy who looked so much like Sora but wasn't the boy she had grown up with.

"Kairi help me," Aerith said pulling Kairi's attention away from the battle. She turned to see that they were in front of the Seaside Shack and Merlin was lying at their feet. "Let's get him inside."

The carried him in and carefully set him on the ground. Kairi looked around spotting Cid lying face down on the ground by the stairs and Leon trying to stand using the wall as support. He started to fall and Kairi ran catching him and helping him sit back down.

"Leon! What happened to Sora?" She asked frantically.

Leon held his head with his thumb and index finger. "He woke up. But it was the wrong part of him that woke up."

Kairi covered her mouth with her hands, shaking her head to try and deny what Leon had said. But she couldn't.

A low moan came from over by the stairs as Cid pushed himself onto his hands and knees. Kairi looked back at Leon who nodded that he was alright so she got up and hurried over. Cid sat up holding the back of his head.

"Cid are you alright?" Kairi asked crouching next to him.

He groaned and craned his neck to look at her. "Only if there really is three of you."

Kairi pulled his hands away much to his displeasure and inspected that bloody mess that covered the back of his head.

"Aerith!" She called as Cid groaned again. Aerith, who had been kneeling over Merlin, looked up and hurried over while Leon took her place next to the unconscious wizard. Aerith quickly looked Cid's head, "Curaga," she murmured and the soft green light made the blood disappear and the cut scabbed over. She straightened up as the light faded and went back over to Merlin.

"Kairi," Cid said trying to get up, "Kairi its Sora. He attacked us."

"No," Kairi said placing her hands on Cid's shoulders to keep him down. "That isn't Sora. He told me himself. He said...he said that Sora was gone."

A single tear falls out of her eye.

"Sora's gone eh?" Cid said rubbing his chin. "Well I'd believe that he's not in control of his body but gone? Nah. That kid is just too stubborn."

"You really think there's hope?"

"Of course there's hope!" Cid exclaimed frowning at her for doubting. Then ignoring Kairi's protests he stood swaying slightly and stumbled over to Aerith and Leon. "You guys go," he said to them as Kairi walked over as well. "I'll watch over the old coot. Just hurry up and get Sora back to normal."

Kairi needed no more convincing and threw open the door of the shack with Aerith and Leon close behind. Outside, she gasped at the horrible scene laid out before her. Shadow Sora stood in the center of a ring of all her friends, all Sora's friends, with a cold smile that showed he was enjoying the anguish his actions were causing. Riku and Mickey seemed to be the only ones who hadn't suffered any injuries so far. Cloud was holding his sword in the wrong hand, with his other arm pulled close to his chest trickling blood onto his shirt. Tifa was standing in front of Yuffie who on the ground looking close to passing out. Tifa, while standing, had a similar look like she was close to passing out and clutched her chest with her hand like it pained her. Aerith brushed by Kairi who was frozen in shock as she hurried to them. Shadow Sora was attacking Donald at the moment who seemed reluctant to do anything but protect himself against his possesed friend. Shadow Sora shouted, "Firaga!" and a burst of fire came out of the end of his dark keyblade. Donald quickly called out, "Reflect!" and the fire crashed into the shield he had created. But even with this protection, as the bright light of the fire disappeared, Kairi could see singed feathers and Donald stumbled back. Shadow Sora jumped forward to take advantage of Donald's fallen guard only to have his keyblade glance off of Goofy's shield as he jumped between the two. Kairi could see that Goofy's leg had been cut open during the battle but if it pained him he didn't show it. He stood firm and tried to talk to Sora over his shield.

"Sora! Can you hear me buddy? We don't want to hurt you."

"Shut up you stupid dog," Shadow Sora roared angrily. "That weakling is gone."

With inhuman speed, Shadow Sora swung his dark keyblade at Goofy only to have it collide with Goofy's shield once more. He continued to batter down in Goofy's defenses but King Mickey came to his aid.

"Stop!" He shouted as he knocked Shadow Sora's keyblade back. "Don't give up Sora! We all believe in you."

"I said shut up!" Kairi cringed at the part of Shadow Sora's voice that sounded like the Sora she knew. He would never talk to his friends like this. "I won! I shattered his heart! His body is mine and his light is buried under darkness. You can't beat me! I have the power if darkness, your lights are barely a pinprick. It will be my pleasure to snuff them out for good."

As he had ranted, Riku and silently crept up behind him and swung his keyblade, flat side first, at the back of Shadow Sora's head. But suddenly Shadow Sora turned around and shot him in the stomach with a blast of ice. Riku flew back crashing down on the sand as Shadow Sora approached with a snicker. Standing over Riku he said, "Sora hated you. He hated you for giving in to the dark. He hated you for everything. He blamed you for everything."

The hurt in Riku's eyes was obvious. Shadow Sora's words had knocked him off guard and the beast that looked like his best friend swung his dark keyblade at Riku still sitting in the sand defenseless. But at the last second the swing aimed at Riku's head instead switched directions hitting him in the shoulder. It still hurt alot but it wasn't a serious hit. Those who were still able to charged forward once more to attack Shadow Sora who spun around with a snarl to meet them. Kairi was finally able to unfreeze and she ran to Riku helping him to his feet.

"Riku did you see that?" She asked him excitedly.

"What? That bastard thing telling me that Sora has always hated me?" Riku replied angrily.

"Riku don't listen to him," Kairi said shaking him slightly. "And no that's not what I was talking about. Did you see him lose control?"

"What?" Riku's head snapped up to look her in the eye.

"When he swung at you that last time, he was aiming for your head but at the last second he changed direction and hit you in the shoulder," Kairi said her mind racing. "It was Sora! It had to be. He was able to force that shadow thing to change directions. Riku!" She is shaking him again. "Sora is still in there! He isn't gone!"

Riku grabs her hands stopping her from continuing to shake him in her excitement. He looks over at Leon, Cloud, Tifa, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey trying to surround Shadow Sora. As he watches, Shadow Sora evades them once more moving farther down the beach. They regroup and advance towards him with grim frowns.

"Hold on!" Riku calls releasing Kairi and running out in front of King Mickey who was leading the remaining fighters. "I'll take care of this."

"Riku you sure?" Mickey asks him a concerned note to his voice.

"I'm sure," Riku replied to Mickey but continued to watch Shadow Sora's every movement. With Way to Dawn in his hand he approached Shadow Sora.

Shadow Sora sneered at him. "What did I make you angry? Did I hurt your feelings? Did I make the big baby cry?" He twisted his face into a pout. The same pout Sora used to make when Riku beat him at their races.

Riku paused for a moment before replying, "Let Sora go. Give him back his heart."

Shadow Sora laughed, "Over my dead body!" He continued to laugh. "You get it? 'Over my dead body'. But you can't kill me. If you kill me you kill him too!"

Riku glanced over his shoulder and locked eyes with Kairi standing next to Leon and Donald. She nodded confidently to him. As he turned back, Shadow Sora was already raising his keyblade to swing at Riku, but Riku was quick and able to get his own keyblade up in time. The metal keyblades crashed into each other with an earsplitting screech of metal on metal. Both refused to give ground and their faces were no more than three inches apart as they stared each other down over the locked keyblades.

"Geez," Riku said tauntingly, "How did you beat Sora? You can't even beat me."

"Oh yeah? Watch this," Shadow Sora growled back.

He turned to the side and their keyblades fell apart. He tried to jab Riku in the side as he spun past him but Riku turned just in time so the dark keyblade cut nothing but air. Shadow Sora jumped into the air trying to come down on Riku from above, but Riku created a dark shield above his head. Shadow Sora crashed right into it falling to the ground. As he hit the sand butt first, Riku laughed coldly.

"What was I supposed to watch again?"

Shadow Sora got to his feet with a growl.

"Are you going to run away to your mommy? Tell her big scary Riku knocked you on your ass?"

Shadow Sora clenched his teeth and his hand balled into a fist.
"Oh thats right. You have no mommy. Your just a demonic bit of darkness left over from a dead nobody. Compared to Sora you are nothing. Nothing but a goddamn dreg of a son of a bitch who got his ass handed to him by two teenagers."

With that Shadow Sora lost it. With a wordless scream of fury he launched himself at Riku. He attacked in a frenzy like a wild animal, all his attention was on Riku.

"I-" Shadow Sora said between swings, "am better-than that-snivelling-pathetic-bastard."

After the last word, he swung with all his power and succeeded to send Riku to the ground and knock his keyblade out of his hand. Riku heard the others shout to him and could hear them running towards him. Their cries were drowned in a roar as Shadow Sora swung his keyblade down at Riku's head. He didn't notice the satisfied smile that ghosted Riku's lips.

Shadow Sora's keyblade stopped about an inch above Riku's head. "What the-" Shadow Sora began confused as he fought his own arm which was slowly but surely raising back up lifting the dark keyblade away from Riku.

"No," He said in disbelief. "No, you can't, I won't let you."

But the keyblade continued to rise until it was above Shadow Sora's head and screaming, "No!" he unwillingly threw his keyblade over Riku's head towards the docks and watched it fall onto the sand. It disappear in a flash. Shadow Sora clutched his chest in agony. He stared up at Riku who was now standing.

"What did you-how did you-" he struggled to ask.

"I know my best friend. I knew he would never give up. You made a mistake. You thought you were better than him and let your guard down to him when you were fighting me. Sora won he, is taking his heart and body back."

The others stood behind Riku as they watched Shadow Sora stumble away from them still clutching his chest. With a scream he turned to face the ocean holding his arms out to his sides. Out of Sora burst his shadow which tumbled through the air and landed on the water's edge. Sora collapsed to his knees and then fell on his face in the sand.

"Sora!" Kairi and Riku and all the others yelled as the rushed towards him. He stirred rolling over onto his back. But before his friends could reach him another got there first. His shadow pointed it's black hand to the sky and a forcefield dome appeared over it and Sora leaving Riku and the others outside. They watched helplessly as Sora struggled to sit up. Shadow Sora bent down and grabbed him by the front of his shirt.

"Hey! Leave him alone!" Riku yelled through the forcefield. The shadow looked up tilting its head slightly as if pondering what Riku had said.

Sora, more awake now, tried to pull himself out of his shadow's grip. It turned its attention back to him, and without warning, without emotion, without hesitation, it plunged its hand into Sora's chest.


Finally! Geez I only started writing this story just so I could write that scene. Its been in my head forever and I've finally gotten it written down.

OK so we are almost done! Can you believe it? Probably only one chapter to go, or maybe two. We will see. But don't get too sad. I've started my second story! Its called MEKA which stands for Master Eraqus' Keyblade Academy. Its about what would happen if Terra, Aqua, Ven, Sora, Riku, and Kairi all lived in the Land of Departure with Master Eraqus. Check it out! So far I only have one chapter posted but I got a couple more ready to go.

But don't worry I'm going to finish this story before I devote my entire attention to my second one. So review and let me know what you think of my latest cliffhanger! Just when you think Sora is going to be OK his shadow comes back and fucks everything up again! That bastard is always in the way! Haha so yeah review and check out MEKA :)