-Disclaimer.- Darn it, Bilbo; you forgot to remind me about the disclaimer… It's always your fault when things like this happen.

((A/N: Bahahaha, you know, when I was first writing this, I was pretty worried about whether or not you guys would hate dark storylines. But nope! That doesn't seem to be the case, hehe, based on your guess. Also, I've read several of your stories, and you're definitely right on the 'vivid imagination' thing; you're a pretty awesome writer, actually. Anyways, sorry about the delay, life is pretty hectic right now and I didn't have internet until today. I'll try to keep this much of a delay from happening again. Alright, to the story.))

Who I Am

I sighed, pacing around outside of the tent as General Shin and Shadow spoke. What were they talking about in there…? And why wasn't I allowed to hear? Well, of course, there was the possibility of me being a traitor, but, pfft, like that mattered…

"May I have a word…?"

I jumped at the all-too-familiar voice, dismay and dread washing over me as I turned around to face Chaos. He was still in Lucade's form, just with a black version of what would have been a normal outfit on this world. He was smiling innocently, but I could see the cruelness held in his gaze. How had he gotten in here?!

None of the humans around the area seemed to really care; in fact, most of them were asleep in their tents by now. There were only a few of them still out, and they were paying attention to their own business without so much as a glance my way. I wanted to yell for help, but knew that it would do me no good.

Reluctantly, I nodded, and he moved over to the very edge of the cavern with me following. Somehow, he had found the only place that was secluded, as it was well-hidden by the tents and temporary buildings that were scattered about.

"How…?!" was the first thing I said, taking a step backwards, towards the solid cavern wall behind me that would lend me no aid. Chaos only chuckled.

"You were naïve to leave the entrance open for even so long as the ten seconds that it took to close behind you."

"Perfect…"

"Not for you, but perhaps for me. Have you located the Guardian, yet?"

I glared at him. "No, of course not! And if you think-"

Before I could finish, he silenced me, first putting his hand over my mouth so that I couldn't speak, and then slamming me harshly against the nearby cavern wall. So harshly, in fact, that I felt like the whole cavern was rapidly spinning, beckoning me to just simply fall unconscious on the stone floors. Chaos smiled at me, putting a finger against my lips – at least, I was pretty sure he did, as everything was still blurry. "Shh. Be quieter, hm? You wouldn't want them to hear us; who knows what they'd do to you if they found out you were a spy for me? I'd hate to see such a beautiful creature like yourself be unnecessarily harmed… Actually, I'd love to see it; I'd just rather it be at my hands, and not theirs."

I pushed him away, and he let me, taking a step back. I smirked, still standing against the wall and only speaking after I no longer felt like I was about to pass out. "Honestly, I'd probably rather face their wrath than wait to find out what you're going to do with me…"

He smiled disarmingly at me. "I won't do anything to you, if you behave. However, that seems to be an issue so far… I promise that I'll show you why your continued disobedience isn't a good idea…"

I rolled my eyes. "That's the second time you've said something like that. What does that mean?"

"As I said: I'll probably have to show you, soon. It would be in your best interests to not find out, though…" I could see just by the look in his cold eyes that he loved toying with me, but I wouldn't give him the satisfaction of showing any fear. So, I simply shrugged.

"Whatever…"

"Heh… Now… What had we been talking about? Ah, yes, the Guardian. You haven't found him, then?"

I paused, then nodded reluctantly. "Right. And… you're sure that the Guardian is a man?" I wasn't sure why, but all of a sudden, I realized just how commanding General Shin had been… Perhaps…?

Chaos nodded. "Positive. The Guardians technically don't have a real gender, but appearance and personality wise, all the Guardians and Protectors are men."

I smirked, suddenly incredibly annoyed. "Do the gods have an issue with women…?"

He chuckled. "I like seeing that fire in your eyes. No, I doubt that they do; in fact, the one who accidentally created the universe and the Guardians would be considered a woman, based on her personality and preferred appearance. Exactly like the Guardians and the Ayanumi, neither she nor her counterpart have a real gender, but they both have a preferred form that is very much the opposite of the other."

"Al…right… By the way, since you seem to know everything… What's the difference between a Guardian and an Ayanumi, exactly…?"

He glanced at me cautiously. "You don't know…?"

I smirked again. "I never exactly had time to find out…"

"Not true; that's something your Protector should have told you when he told you what you were… Odd that he didn't trust you enough. Perhaps he knew your fate before you did…"

I shook my head, looking around to make certain that nobody was listening. "No… No, that's not true. He would have told me; even if he knew what I could do, he wouldn't have abandoned me to my fate."

"Then why did he?"

I froze, looking at him. "Wh-what?"

He laughed. "I've already said that I'll tell you what happened with your planet, but only after you take care of the Guardian. Think of the truth as a reward, when this is all over. And you do want to know… don't you?"

I paused, and then was horrified that I had actually considered going along with his plans just to find out what had happened with Cantus. Would I really sink that low just to get what I wanted?! Was this who I was becoming so quickly?! No… I wouldn't let Chaos turn me into his pawn… "Never. I'll find the Guardian, and we'll stop you."

He shrugged. "Ah, Ayanumi… I'm already several steps ahead of you. I already know who the Guardian is, and just how doubtful they are of you. If you make a single mistake, they'll abandon you, and you'll just have to see my side of things for once. I don't know why you refuse to look at things in a different light; just consider the other side's way of thinking, for once. How do you know that what I'm doing isn't right? How do you know that it isn't the gods that are evil, and not me? You can never really be certain, until you know the full truth; a truth that I won't tell you until you decide to fight with me instead of against me. I'd rather have you on my side before telling you everything; knowing the truth will just assure your place, in the end."

I shook my head after his little monologue. Gah, how I already hated monologues… "Not going to happen. I'll tell the Guardian everything; I won't lie about my situation. He – or she – will understand."

He grinned at me. "Ah, but you see… you've already lied to the Guardian… At least, in front of them."

Without explaining, he just simply walked away, out into the public area. I almost ran after him, but didn't want to start a scene. So, reluctantly, I sat down against the wall. If only I had seen the shadow just barely showing from around the corner of the building that was supposed to be keeping me hidden…

-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-

Only about five minutes later, General Shin walked over to me, followed very closely by Shadow. I was just sitting against the wall, trying to think without even realizing that my being over here would probably be strange. Immediately, I jumped up. "Oh! Sorry, I just, wanted to be alone for a moment…"

General Shin shrugged. "Quite hard to ever truly be alone nowadays, so I understand. Anyways… Shadow and I agreed that it may be best for you to stay in our sights for now, just to make sure that nothing goes wrong. However, we will allow you to lend your aid, if you are willing…"

I nodded quickly. "Of course! Yes, of course I'll help. Thank you."

She smirked. "I'm taking a huge risk here, you know, so if you turn out to be a traitor after all…" She didn't complete her sentence, letting the threat hang in the air. I shrugged.

"I understand completely. Don't worry; I'll do my best to help you. I promise you that much. I can't guarantee anything, but…"

"Neither can we, so the agreement is mutual."

"Right…"

Shadow sighed. "The truth is… these people know that their lives are basically over. We want to try our best to make sure that that's not the case. However, if we all do die… as I said before: you must keep fighting. Alright? We're placing our faith in you, just as much as you're placing your faith in us."

I nodded. "Understood. I hope it won't have to come to that, but if it does… well, I'll fight him until my last breath. I promise."

General Shin nodded. "Good. Now, come with us."

Shadow looked just as confused as I probably did. I tilted my head. "Where…?"

"The ruins of our old keep, of course. We need to make sure that there aren't any enemies spying on us; with you here, that should be easier and far less dangerous. Not like it would be anyways, of course, but at least we can get this done more quickly."

I nodded again, and she turned on a heel, walking away. I glanced at Shadow. "Do we follow…?"

He chuckled slightly. "That would be best, yes. She can come off as quite rude, but she really has all of our best interests at heart."

I couldn't help but ask my next question. "And, I don't mean to be forward, but… Will I get to meet the Guardian anytime soon? I just want to make sure that I won't be ambushed or something…"

He nodded, looking after General Shin. She had turned her head back to look at us, her blue eyes like daggers as she waited for us to follow. Shadow smiled slightly. "Yeah, I'd assume so. You have nothing to fear from us, though, so don't worry. Alright?"

"Got it…"

"At least, you won't have anything to fear unless we don't follow her…" He smiled jokingly at me, but then sighed, walking after General Shin. That was the first time I realized something: Shadow could seem upbeat at times, but was that really how he was…? He actually seemed to be pretty depressed; of course, I couldn't tell without seeing his eyes. Actually, now that I was thinking about it… was that why he wore those glasses? So that I couldn't tell what he was really thinking…?

It annoyed me for some reason that I couldn't read Shadow's thoughts; ever since I had discovered that power of mine, I had relied heavily on it without even meaning to. Now, though… who was I without my abilities? I couldn't even use my own swords as adroitly as I should have been able to. I didn't even know my purpose in life; not really. I wasn't a Guardian, so I wasn't meant to protect my world. I wasn't meant to protect the Guardian, either. I was just… what? What was I? Who was I? Was this my destiny, then? Had I always been meant to become a slave to Chaos' will, like he was determined to make me? Was that… who I was? A puppet, and nothing more?

No… I decided, walking swiftly after Shadow and General Shin. No… I won't be a puppet. That's not who I am. I… I'm going to stop Chaos. I will, no matter how long it takes. No matter what I face, no matter what I lose… I will stop him. Cantus… if you're still alive… that's my promise to you. I will stop Chaos, and… even though they've abandoned me… I will save the gods. I'll save the universe. I'll save everyone. And Chaos will see just how wrong he is about me… Everyone will. Everyone! I'll show you all who I am… Chaos, Cantus, Shadow, Mara, Minerva… even the gods that so easily abandoned me… I'll show you all who I am! Who I really am! That's my promise to you all… and that's one promise that I will keep… no matter what!