Chapter 29: One Heart, Two Paths

Sora felt dizzy and tired, but forced his eyes open. He was in a white metal room, propped up against a wall. His eyelids drooped as drowsiness set in once again, but he smacked his cheeks to stay awake. This wasn't the time to be sleeping! He had to find a way out!

But, he soon realized, there was no way out. There wasn't even a door in the strange room.

"Hey!" he shouted. "Where are you, Luxord?"

A dark portal opened, and if Sora was expecting the gambler, he was soon disappointed. Larxene stepped out and smiled smugly. Sora drew his Keyblade and swung it threateningly.

"Oh, please, put that silly toy away," the lightning user said, still smiling. "If you kill me, you'll be trapped in here, now won't you?"

"What do you want?" Sora growled.

"Oh, not too much," Larxene came closer and tilted his chin up. "We want you."

"Me?" Sora had to swallow his pride. He had to hear what was happening, and if anyone could tell him, it was Larxene. She liked to talk a lot, and Sora knew that.

"Of course," Larxene replied, taking the bait. "We can't turn Roxas into a Nobody, so we'll just use you to make a new 'Roxas'."

That was all Sora needed. He slapped Larxene's hand away. "Good luck with that. There's no way you're gonna get me or Roxas to be a Nobody."

Larxene smirked. "We'll just see about that, boy. Hope you're not still tired." She vanished into a dark portal.

Sora didn't have to wait long to see what she meant. Heartless appeared everywhere, everything from small Shadows to Fat Bandits. The Keybearer swallowed the lump forming in his throat. He readied his sword and charged.


"So where is he?" Roxas thought as they reached The World that Never Was. Donald and Goofy seemed surprised that the world was easy to access, but Roxas wasn't. Their friends from the Organization had said they'd get everything ready, and Roxas assumed that it also meant making the world easy to find.

"They've locked him in a room without doors or windows," Axel replied. Frustration radiated from his voice. "The only way in is if you break through the wall or if you use a portal."

"They're also dumping in a ton of Heartless!" Demyx added. "I think they're trying to turn Sora into a Heartless the old-fashioned way to create another Nobody!"

"You'll have to break the wall down to rescue him," Lexaeus said, trying to push the conversation back to where Sora was being kept. "It's in behind the wall in Naught's Approach. You remember where that is, Roxas?"

When Roxas said he did, Axel added, "Be careful. All the Nobodies are looking for you and your friends. They're everywhere."

The Nobodies' voices were gone as quickly as they had appeared, and Roxas repeated all the information to the others.

"That's a problem," Olette muttered. "How do we get in?"

"A summon?" Pence suggested.

Kairi shook her head. "I don't think even Maleficent's powerful enough to get in."

"Gawrsh, but can't Genie bust in?" Goofy pointed at the lamp still in Roxas's hands.

Roxas glanced down at the lamp, then nodded. "Kairi, can you hold on to the lamp?"

Kairi pointed her Keyblade it, and the lamp glowed. The glow shot to the blade and all the way down the hilt. She dispelled the Keyblade and nodded. They'd be able to call the genie when he was needed.

"Then let's get going!" Hayner said, ready to save their friend.


Axel had been right to say to watch for Nobodies. They were everywhere, patrolling corridors, standing guard, even sitting on ceilings so as to remain unnoticed. If it weren't for Olette and Donald's magic blasting the monsters before they had even seen them, they'd never have gotten through.

They reached the wall in question after defeating dozens—no—hundreds of Nobodies. They had no time to congratulate themselves, though. Kairi set to work summoning the Genie of the Lamp as Roxas and the others knocked back the swarming Nobodies.

Once the Genie was free, Kairi asked the blue-skinned djinn to break down the wall. A snap of his fingers, and the wall tumbled down in a small explosion. That done, the Genie snapped his fingers again and cleared the rubble. Oh, and he didn't forget the Nobodies. Another snap, and they all vanished in a poof of smoke.

The path now clear, Roxas charged into the room and smashed a few Heartless. "Sora! Are you okay?"

"F-fine," the brown-haired boy managed to pant. He swung at the Soldier that jumped at him, lost his balance, and fell to his knees. He'd been fighting for an hour at least and was feeling it. His arms felt like lead and the Keyblade was too heavy to hold. It clattered a few feet from him and vanished in a sparkling light.

A Defender jumped at the chance and attacked. Sora was smashed into the wall opposite Roxas and collapsed in a crumpled heap. More Heartless swarmed and Sora was buried under claws and darkness.

"Sora!" Roxas shouted again, knocking away all the Heartless in his way. Three large bodies stood between him and Sora, and Roxas gritted his teeth. Then a shield flew into the three like a Frisbee and flew back to Goofy a few feet back.

But now he was too late. The darkness was rising in streams where the Heartless had buried him. Then, the Heartless were all thrown back and destroyed in an instant. The one who had thrown them stood where Sora had been lying and looked exactly like Sora, if Sora wore black and reeked of evil.

"Sora" turned his eyes on Roxas, and smiled, revealing sharp fangs. A Keyblade appeared in his hands, but it wasn't the Keyblade Sora had been wielding before Heartless had piled on him. It was black and sharp with a red hilt.

Roxas couldn't help but take a step back. The aura emanating off of this Sora made him feel sick to his stomach. "Sora, what happened?" Roxas asked, both Keyblades at the ready.

"Sora?" the person repeated, saying the word slowly. "Is that my name?" The Sora look-alike lifted a hand, and Roxas saw the invisible barriers flash as they appeared. "I'm Sora?"

"Roxas!" Naminé shouted from the other side of the barriers. She banged on the invisible walls, but they wouldn't give. "Roxas, that's not Sora! He's become a Heartless!"

The former Nobody paid for his moment of distraction. The Heartless rushed at Roxas and slashed with his new Dark Keyblade. Roxas barely blocked with the Oathkeeper, but a shattering sound greeted him rather than the firm sound of metal against metal. Roxas was knocked back and let out a gasp of pain as his back slammed into the barrier.

But Roxas soon realized his bruised back was nothing compared to what else the Heartless had caused. The Oathkeeper—or what was left of it—was in his hand, shattered to pieces. Even as Roxas watched, the cracked pieces fell apart until not even the hilt was left.

He didn't have time to mourn the loss of his one Keyblade. The Heartless was already swinging again. With nowhere to run, Roxas's only choice was to block again, with the same result. He was slammed back against the barrier again, and the Oblivion's pieces scattered around him.

"No! Get up!" Naminé cried. "Roxas! Run!"

But there was no way he could escape. The Dark Keyblade was already swinging down. He felt the cold pass through him, then darkness.


Where am I?

"What path do you choose?"

Who are you?

"I am you."

You're... me...?

Roxas opened his eyes and found himself falling through nothingness. There was no sign of the voice speaking to him, yet there it was. How are you me?

Roxas found that the sensation of falling stopped. A small purple light floated down to face him, then grew. It looked exactly as he had when he first joined the Organization: lost and innocent blue eyes that hardly matched the dark uniform he wore.

"I'm you from before," the other Roxas said. "What path do you choose?"

What are you talking about? Roxas tried to say it, but no sound came.

Still, the other him seemed to understand, for he said, "That's for you to decide." He took a few steps back, and became a purple light once more. "There are only two more memories for you," the light said. "You must chose your true path after you see them."

The light expanded until it was like a window. Roxas took a step toward it and passed through into the scene it revealed.

It was raining and dark there. The only person in the city Roxas recognized as part of the World that Never Was was Roxas and a child that Roxas instantly recognized as himself.

The other Roxas opened his eyes and pushed himself off the ground. He looked around the dark city, confusion spreading across his features.

That's when they appeared. Many black puddles sprouted up everywhere, and from those puddles came the Neoshadow. The Heartless surrounded Roxas. The launched to attack, but the boy was able to flee.

Roxas ran and ran, but soon Neoshadows blocked the street in front of him. Desperate for an escape, he rushed down an alley and ran right into Axel. Before the red-haired fire-wielder could say anything, Roxas cried, "Help me! Those monsters are chasing me!"

Axel grinned and drew his weapon. "No problem." He threw one and torched all the Heartless scrambling down the alleyway. More took their place, too many for Axel to defeat single-handedly.

"Hold on tight." The redhead grabbed Roxas and jumped backward into a dark portal, which closed before any Heartless could follow.

When it reopened, Roxas and Axel were in a white room, and Axel was holding on tightly to Roxas. "Oi! Vexen! Got another one!"

The old scientist turned and frowned. "He hardly looks like fighting material." Vexen set down his beaker and looked Roxas up and down. "What's your name, boy?"

"I don't have one," Roxas said, frightened.

Where was he? Who were these people? One of what? All those questions went through Roxas's head as the old scientist looked at him funny.

"Don't have one?" Vexen repeated. "Then whose Nobody are you?"

"What's a Nobody?"

"Wherever did you find this boy?" Vexen asked the other Nobody.

"On the streets getting chased by Neoshadow," Axel replied with a shrug. "He's definitely a Nobody. No doubt about that."

Vexen frowned, his brow furrowed, and he turned back to Roxas. "You know... The Keybearer was turned into a Heartless for a short time and returned to his original form. It's possible this boy is the Nobody resulting from that. It would certainly explain the lack of memories."

"W-what are you talking about?" If Axel hadn't been holding on to Roxas so tightly, he would have bolted.

The blond scientist continued like he hadn't heard. "We'll call him Roxas. That's a suitable name for a Nobody." He went over to a cabinet and pulled out a cotton swab and some kind of liquid. "He's Number XIII, Axel. You do the honors."

The redhead nodded and lifted Roxas's sleeve. He touched the boy's bare flesh, and flames spread from his fingertips. Roxas let out a cry of pain as the flames shaped into XIII and then put themselves out after burning the mark in.

That done, Vexen dampened the cotton swab and rubbed whatever the foul-smelling liquid was onto the burn. Roxas tried to pull away. The liquid made it hurt more than even the flames. It felt like his arm was on fire all over again, this time though with flames so hot it felt like ice against his skin.

"That should do it," Vexen said, capping the bottle and throwing away the swab. "The scar should fade in a few days. I'll alert the Superior that all preparations are complete." He turned back to his experiment and probably sent a mental communication before he went back to work.

The memory faded as it ended. Roxas—the real, current Roxas—turned to yet another light, this one white. It turned into him again, this one wearing the shabby clothes he'd awaken in on the train. It nodded to the whiteness forming behind him and vanished as the other had.

This memory was empty except for sounds. Roxas heard someone—Naminé, he realized—shouting his name. Then Selena's voice, weak and hoarse, said, "Naminé, his memories have shattered. They can be pieced back together with time, but he must have something in the meantime, else his heart and soul will break and he will die. Please, I've written some memories that I thought to give him if he chose not to fight the Heartless with Sora and the others. Give him those, and we shall give him the choice of whether to fight or not at a later time."

"What are we going to do with him?" inquired Varan. So she'd been there too, when Selena had brought him back.

"He'll be safe, don't worry," replied Selena. "I already know where he'll be staying."

"Still, pulling strings like that... Don't you think someone will notice?"

"No, they won't. People can't see what's beyond their noses sometimes. We'll be safe until then."

"But what about Sora?" Naminé asked. "Won't he notice? Kairi too! Riku will be suspicious as well..."

"We'll put up the charade long enough for his sake," Selena replied sadly.1

The whiteness faded back to the nothingness Roxas had been in before. The two lights floated to either side of him.

"So which path will you choose?" asked the dark one.

What do you mean? Roxas asked. What paths are there to chose from?

"There are as many paths as stars in the sky," replied the white light. "It is up to you to chose."

But what can I do without the Keyblades?

It was the dark one that answered. "Keyblades are a guiding light down your path. The two you had would lead you to your goal, but down their former master's path, not yours."

"If you chose a path," continued the white one, "Keyblades will appear to protect and guide you."

"Now chose!"

I chose... Roxas closed his eyes. What path did he chose? He reached for both lights. He knew what path to take; he just hoped it was the right one.

"A good choice," both lights said in fading voices.


Roxas could feel his senses returning as the power coursed through him. He stood shakily and raised his arms. Two Keyblades appeared to replace the two he'd lost. One was gold and white with a star for the key. The other was black and silver with twisting black wires to form a black sun shape. He opened his eyes and swung his new blades, ready to fight.

"How?" the Heartless Sora growled, stepping back. "You should be a Heartless!"

"Don't think so," Roxas said, swinging his black and silver Keyblade.

The Heartless tried to block with his Keyblade, but had as much luck as Roxas had had earlier. The Dark Keyblade shattered like it was made of glass, leaving the Heartless completely defenseless as Roxas stabbed him with the gold and white blade.

Choking, the Heartless held the Keyblade as if to try and pull it out of his chest. The darkness steamed from the wound as Roxas held the blade in place. Soon, Sora—the real one—collapsed, the Keyblade passing harmlessly through his body.

The barrier sparkled and vanished without a trace. Naminé rushed in with Kairi, each hugging their respective other close to them.

"Roxas! I was so scared you were going to die!" Naminé whispered.

"Sora! Open your eyes! Please!" Kairi begged. She was crying, but stopped immediately when Sora muttered something about pizza and let out a loud snore. She slapped him, but the islander didn't so much as stir.

"He's fine," Riku said, shaking his head. "What about you, Roxas?"

Roxas smiled weakly. "I'm... okay..." He felt dizzy, like he was going to faint, but for some reason he couldn't.

"Your Keyblades need names," Selena said.

Pence shook his head. "I think Roxas needs some rest first."

"They haven't connected yet," Selena explained. "Until he says their names, they'll draw too much power from him. They aren't complete yet. Say their names, Roxas, and we'll handle the rest."

Roxas looked down at his two blades. "The Shining Hope," he called the gold one, the names coming to him as he looked at the Keyblades, "and the Dark Prophet," he called the other.

If was like a weight was lifted from him. The blades vanished, and he at last was able to close his eyes and fall into a deep sleep in Naminé's arms.


1 Anyone recognize half that conversation from Chapter 2? Now you get it in context! :)

Okay, that was the chapter. Tell me what you think. If you see typos, tell me! Thank you! :)


Varan's Discussion Room

Crickets Chirp

...Okay, so I guess I get forgotten simply because Vivi's cuter than I am. ...sigh... That, or Sailor's improved a lot on her in-fic explanations and doesn't need little old me explaining things outside the story anymore.

As always, if you have questions, ask.


Vivi Omake

"No, again, Vivi."

Vivi tried the spell again. Unlike the many spells Yen Sid had taught him the day before, this one was difficult—too difficult. The boy chanted the incantation and waved the staff Yen Sid had given him and hoped that it would work.

Of course it didn't. The spell went "wild" as Yen Sid put it and instead of creating a glowing sphere as it should have, created a miniature black hole. The magician quickly banished it before it did too much damage to the courtyard.

"Let's take a break," Yen Sid said. He led Vivi inside to his study and poured some of the tea the brooms brought. "What do you think your doing wrong?" the magician asked.

"I... I don't know," Vivi muttered. "I'm just no good at—"

"There's the problem," Yen Sid interrupted. "Magic is all about believing in yourself and magic. Your problem is that you don't believe in yourself. All the belief in magic in the worlds couldn't save that spell if you don't believe in yourself a little."

Vivi bowed his head. "But the spell's so hard. There's no way I can do it..."

Yen Sid shook his head. "You cast those spells yesterday without any trouble," he pointed out. "Believe me, if I thought you weren't ready for such a spell, I wouldn't ask you to try and cast it." The old magician stood and walked over to a collection of books. He flipped through one that appeared to be a book for beginners and showed the boy the light spell he was trying to cast. "See? It's not quite as difficult as your making it. Try again, would you?"

Vivi nodded and stood. He took a deep breath and concentrated. I can do this. And he could. The light flashed and swirled into a bright sphere. "I did it!" Vivi cheered! "I can't believe I did it!"

"Of course you did it," Yen Sid replied. "See what a little believing in yourself can do?" He snapped the book shut and placed in on his shelf. "We'll do potions next," he added, seeing that Vivi was a little tired from so much spell casting. It was never good to push it with new apprentices, even those with such much power.