The Quest: In the Name of Friendship

by UkyoRafa

COMPLETE! A story about friends who are separated by the dark menace of the Heartless, and about their struggle against this dark force. Will they ever meet each other again? Crossover KH, Ranma 12, Final Fantasy VII, Street Fighter, Darkstalkers, etc...

36. Chapter ThirtyFive: THe Unwelcome Ally

Howdy! How've you been? Well, whatever the case, I hope you're doing better than me... I've got really bad news.

You know I'm always telling you "Don't worry; this semester's going to be better than the others?" Well, that's not the case this time. This semester is my worst nightmare.

Why, you ask? Let me put it this way. I'm going to be staying at the University TEN freaking hours Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. On Thursdays, I get to spend nearly ELEVEN lovely hours and on Tuesdays TWELVE delicious hours inside the school. But that's not the worst part. I also have to go on Saturdays! Granted, only for two hours, but still! That wrecks my weekend completely, because I won't be resting on Sundays, oh no; I'll be doing homework, studying for exams, and putting circuits together... If I'm lucky, however, I'll get all of those things finished during my free hours.

Long story short, with any fortune, I'll be updating the story around April (we get one free week). I hate my life! ... Actually, that's just desperation speaking. I love Engineering and Japanese, but I sooo much want to finish them already!

I can only leave you with one promise: if I don't have to do any homework, to study for any exam, or to put an electrical circuit together, I swear with God as my witness (how melodramatic) that, no matter how tired I am, I'll write AT LEAST one to two pages daily. I really wished it wouldn't have to be like this... but I had to choose this career. Way to go, Rafa, you blockhead:P

Anyway, enough of me whining. Before going on to the chapter, I want to make a few comments regarding one of the latest reviews, the one made by Dark5523. Concerning the Opposite Armor and the Phantom, I say, hang on! The story is nearly over, but I'm still not done! Concerning Monstro, you didn't miss it nor will you: I simply chose not to add it to the story. I didn't think it was vital, since there is no keyhole in there in the game. I know there are some interesting events that include Riku, but hey, they're not crucial to the outcome of the storyline in the way I have handled the narrative thus far. The tale is quite long as it is. I'm aware that there's a Monstro stage in the game but in my defense, there's no Hyrule or Gaia. Anyway, I apologize for this little detail :)

Two more things: I hope to have the story finished by June when, if I'm lucky and have money, I'll be able to play KH2 and then decide if I should write a sequel or not (again, chances are I will). And finally, this chapter has a special narrator and I want to keep it a surprise. Don't worry, you'll find out who he is later in the episode. Besides, many of you will probably guess who he/she is after reading the first pages. Still, I had a lot of fun with it.

That's it. I'm terribly sorry for the huge note, but I had to tell you these important matters. Enjoy and pray I don't get a heart attack during these following months:)

Chapter Thirty-Five: The Unwelcome Ally

Narrator?

"Where am I?" I asked. I felt really weak and I could see nothing but darkness. There were many malignant presences about me. But I wasn't frightened. I slowly got to my feet and repeated the question. Whoever had brought me to that strange place should better start answering if he or she didn't want to get destroyed. Not that I wasn't thinking about killing said person either way. "Where am I? I can feel you. Answer me, damn it!"

"You should better calm down." A strange voice said. A man stepped into a spot of light in front of me. He was tall and had long, silvery hair. His skin was dark and his eyes were yellow. Of all the evil presences about me, his was the most powerful. I could even say he would be a respectable rival. "You're welcome, by the way."

"For what?" I asked, taking a step towards him. "Was it you who brought me back to life?"

"Indeed." He answered. "I am pleased to meet you, my friend. My name is Ansem."

"Ansem, eh? Well, I can't say it's a pleasure, because it isn't. Either way, thank you for reviving me, I suppose. To show you how much that means to me, I'll spare your life. Now please be kind enough to point the way out of this pit."

"My good comrade, it's not that simple." He laughed.

"Hmm. I would be careful if I were you. It seems to me that you don't know who you're talking to." I hissed.

"Do you really think you can hurt me?" he challenged.

"Something tells me you want to find out." I answered. I noticed my sword lay beside me. I grabbed it and pointed it at the dark man. "Even though you are a complete bastard, I am feeling rather benevolent today. I'm back on my feet, after all. I suggest you move before I lose my patience and go through you."

"Bold words. Let me tell you something, friend: I too am feeling benevolent. For that, I will allow you to consider putting your sword aside and listen to what I have to say."

"I answer to no one."

"Just a moment, my friend. That's all I ask."

After thinking about it quietly for nearly a minute, I decided that this man perhaps deserved some pity. He had, after all, brought me back to life, although I don't have the least idea of how he did so. And so I put my blade down and with an exasperated sigh, I said: "I'm listening."

"You have heard of the Heartless, haven't you?"

"Once or twice. What about them?"

"I control them. They answer only to me and to no one else. Some of them I created. They are very powerful and have destroyed many worlds. My ultimate goal is to have them cover all of the worlds in darkness. I wish darkness to unite the worlds... it is an idea of a Utopia, if you wish. I was going to make a portal to the door of ultimate darkness... but some nosy brats have been getting in the way of my plans. They rescued the Princesses of Heart my creatures had managed to capture. Those girls of pure heart were the key to creating the portal and those boys freed them. Yet that is of no importance now. I have another plan... yet I fear that these brats will intervene again. That is why I revived you... I want you to kill them."

"And...?"

"Oh, I think you will be rather happy to drive your steel through them. I believe you know a few of them..."

It didn't take me long to know who he was speaking about. No doubt I was anxious to kill each and every last one of those bastards...

"One of them already died." Ansem added with a triumphant voice. I looked at him in the eyes as he smiled with satisfaction. "His heart is lost in the river of darkness the Heartless have created. He is all alone... I'm sure he could use some company."

To drive my blade to each and every single one of those brats was surely something I greatly desired. Those weaklings had also intervened with my plans... they had also ruined me once. Revenge was surely a delightful pleasure I did not want to miss... Yet as I thought about it more carefully, I realized that I had a mission to attend to first and this mission was more important than revenge. And besides, Ansem's talk was beginning to smell like an order.

"So is that my prize?" I asked. "I get to have my vengeance and you will just cover the worlds in darkness? I rip their guts out and you become king of all the worlds?"

"I will grant you more power, still." He replied. "You will be even ten times more powerful than you were before. You were already legendary in your time... Think about the destruction you will be able to cause by just wishing it."

He didn't answer my question directly. Nevertheless, I was already aware of his intentions.

"No, thanks." I replied.

"What?" he asked, confused by my answer.

"Revenge is sweet, I'll give you that; but I have duties to attend to. I have to follow orders that come from someone even greater than you."

"...My friend, this isn't exactly a request." Ansem said, darkly. "It would be best for you that you did as I have told you to. You stand no chance against me."

"Hmm... Interesting. You actually think you can beat me." I snarled.

"Would you like to find out, comrade?" he cackled. "Then have at you."

"It's a shame. I really didn't want to kill you, because after all, you brought me back from the dead. At least I didn't feel like doing so right now." And with that said, I threw myself at him, aiming my sword at his chest.

Yet just as I gave a step forward, Ansem raised his hand and an unknown force that came from everywhere and nowhere stopped me in midair. It twisted my arms as if they were made out of rubber and I dropped my sword. An instant had just passed... and the man who should lie lifelessly on the ground before me held me with a malevolent force, manipulating me as if I were just a puppet.

"I thought you said you were going to kill me." He mocked. "Look at yourself. I could attach some strings to your arms and legs and make you dance if I wished."

"How can this be!" I barely exclaimed. That force even kept me from speaking correctly. "What the hell is this!"

"I told you: you stand no chance against me." He said. "You see, my friend... when I brought you back to life, I took certain precautions." And as he spoke, I saw that many creatures began to emerge from the shadows. Their yellow eyes peered at me quietly... yet I could hear them laugh. In my head, I heard their laughter. They all mocked me. I hung there helplessly – a little kid with an invisible leash... Those bastards. I hate them... I hate them all!

"If you're going to kill me..." I growled. "Then do it now. Stop wasting my time."

"Do me a favor. Take a good, long look at your right arm." He said, with an almost commanding voice.

Slowly, even reluctantly, I turned around and looked at my arm. I don't know whether it was anger or perhaps even fear that started to tingle through my veins. There was an emblem. It was the same cursed symbol that the creatures around me had on their chest. The same damn symbol Ansem had on his chest.

"What is this...?" I asked and then the unknown force made me look up.

"Is it really so hard to see?" Ansem mocked. "You, my very unfortunate friend, have become a Heartless. Bound to me by darkness. You live because I do. For I control the Heartless... You are nothing without me." He started to circle me as he went on. "Every Heartless of my own creation has an emblem. You are the only one with a special symbol carved on the arm. Do you know why?" he stopped in front of me and smiled. "Because you are special. Because, if I wanted to, your power would only be second to my own." With that said, he began to walk around me yet again.

"Do you think that is going to get you my help?" I muttered. "If you want those brats death, you're just going to have to kill them yourself. Finish me already! I'm not afraid of death; I've faced it before. My only regret will be not killing you or your lackeys, Ansem..."

"Don't make me laugh!" he cried, although he didn't sound amused. "It's not going to be that easy, worthless rat!" he approached me, grabbed my head, and forced me to look at his eyes. "Death is too good for you, isn't it? It would be a release to you rather than a torment. No, my friend, you will not die. I've thought of a better punishment for you, my rebellious Heartless!"

The mysterious force ceased its grip on me, letting me fall on the ground. The Heartless laughed at me. They didn't notice it, but I heard them. Anger and hatred began to consume me, but I couldn't feel them burning within me. I felt as weak as a lone ant that stands against a spider. I could see in his putrid eyes what my... "punishment" would be. And just to think about it made me growl in insane rage.

"I will leave you without your power." He sentenced. "Wander through the world aimlessly... you will be at the mercy of any enemy. But not the Heartless, no. They will simply walk by you and occasionally throw a punch or two at your little helpless face. Oh, but I'm not such a bad guy, really. Here: I will let you keep this." He added, kicking my sword at my face. I looked up at him from the ground, feeling anger like never before. Those eyes... he glanced at me as if I were some sort of failed experiment. "You disappoint me. You could've had power beyond your imagination."

"Power is unimportant." I replied. "Nothing matters to me, but her will."

"She is nothing more than a memory, at the most." Ansem laughed wickedly. He stepped back and the strange force returned to lift me from the ground. I don't think I've ever felt so much hatred for anybody. Never before had I felt so disgraced. And so impotent. The bastard had insulted her and I couldn't pierce him with a single thrust. Suddenly, I began to feel shame... her honor had been stepped on with dirty soles and there I hovered in midair, suspended above the ground by a force I couldn't understand. But Ansem wasn't going to let me go just yet. He still had to pour a bit more salt on the open wound. "She's a memory, which is what you will become in time, with any luck."

"I refuse to remain a memory!" I exclaimed, mad with rage. "I will not become a hermit whom time looks upon with pity! I would rather find death first!"

"Then stab yourself, comrade!" laughed Ansem, victory shone in his eyes as he saw me broken. "You will still turn into reminiscence: one of a cheap test that chose to leave this plane of reality out of mere dread!" and with that said, he flung his arms upwards, wrapped me within a magical bubble and sent me flying high into the black sky above our heads.

The veil of darkness about me grew faint and after a few moments, acquired the shape of a mountain which lay surrounded by a haze of wicked magic. Then I saw crystals and diamonds: shiny stones turned to sand covered the ground of yet another cavern that grew smaller and smaller, until it became a little dot lost amongst a cloud of bright stardust and shattered asteroids that circled what appeared to be a broken planet. It had no color and barely possessed a spherical shape. Only the stardust about it gave away its presence in the emptiness of space which I now traversed.

I passed right through a blue nebula with red, tiny stars lurking inside of it. Later on, I saw a great meteor that remained static, patrolled by many ships that had the Heartless' symbol painted on their fuselage. And shortly after that, the space turned into an orange sky as I fell hard on the rocky ground of a plant whose sun had begun to hide behind a great castle. I rose to my feet a bit dazzled, yet the refreshing scent of water about me in the form of mystical walls made me feel somewhat better.

I thirsted a lot. Without much thought, I dashed at the bizarre waterfalls and drank from them. The liquid was cold. Deliciously cold, I daresay. I only needed a few gulps to ease my thirst. Then I took a few steps back and fell to my knees.

Anger and desperation started to escape my body in the form of bitter tears. I seldom have cried before. However, I had never felt so hopeless, so frustrated... so weak. Too weak, in fact, that I even considered following Ansem's suggestion. Slowly, I crawled to my sword, grabbed it and pointed its blade at my stomach. It would only be a quick flick of my wrists and only darkness would remain.

Yet as I was about to drive my weapon through my body, I thought more carefully about Ansem's words. He had been right about something: one way or another, I would turn into a memory. I didn't want that to happen, but the bastard had left me without a choice. I had once dreamt of acquiring so much power that I would be able to travel through space without the need of a ship or a magical bubble. People from all the worlds would tremble before me and would kneel down asking for forgiveness for what they had done to me... But that dream was beyond my grasp now. This became most clear to me as my knee started to ache and I then comprehended I had hurt it by kneeling so abruptly. Just by kneeling!

Willing or no, I would become a memory. Nevertheless, although I did not like the idea of becoming nothing more than a thought, I certainly did not want the worlds to remember me as a coward who took away his own life because he had been unable to deal with the cruel trap destiny had set for him. It certainly was the easiest way to put an end to my suffering, but it was also the most humiliating. No, suicide was not an option.

Rage and hatred soon took over despair and self pity, just the way it should have been from the very beginning. I practically scratched my tears off my face and cursed myself for being so weak; because deep in my body (not in my heart, since Ansem had left me without one) I knew she wasn't happy with those thoughts.

"ANSEM!" I cried to the sky above me. "I hate you, Ansem! I HATE YOU! Insufferable son of a bitch! I swear I'll kill you!" I got up and walked forward without turning to see where I was going. "I'll send you to hell, Ansem! I'LL KILL YOU, EVEN IF IT'S THE LAST THING I DO!" and then I tripped on a large pebble and hurt my knee again.

My breathing had sped up and even my head had begun to ache. I sat down and took a glance at my wounded leg. The wound was small, but it had already stained my pants with blood. Suddenly, I kept still. My breaths began to come out of my mouth more slowly. I closed my eyes and let my head rest on my wounded knee.

"I'll kill you, even if it's the last thing I do." I repeated in a low voice. "Even if it's the last thing I do..." and I burst out in laughter.

I had just realized the irony of my words. Ansem had told me that I was bound to him. I was his creation. I lived because he lived... That meant that if I indeed killed him, then I would die, too. I had been right: destroying him would surely be my finest and my last moment.

"Oh, how sardonic can life be sometimes!" I said to myself as I got up with sword in hand. It was then that I realized something else...

My blade. I could still hold it. No other man had the power to handle that blade. That amazing power was still mine: Ansem had been unable to take it from me; the power to overwhelm my opponents with just a snap of my fingers was gone. I was just an ordinary human. Well, perhaps not ordinary. I could still swing my sword with skill and technique far beyond the reach of anybody. Ansem had weakened me to the point in which I could die from a mere gunshot. Yet I could still give battle. I could still take lives.

I remained in deep thought and soon came to the conclusion that I had three choices, any of which would ultimately lead to my death. On one hand, I could pierce my chest with my blade and end it right there. But I had already gone through that. My second option was to do nothing. I could simply stay out of everybody's way and wait for Ansem to triumph or to be defeated. If the first happened, he would eventually grow tired of having me wander through his almighty dark empire and he would put an end to me, or I would simply die of old age like a miserable fly nobody cares about. Or I could face him and try to send him to oblivion... No question about it. The third option was the most convenient, by far.

Subsequently, this choice lead me to another two possibilities. I could try to face Ansem on my own. As I thought of this, I instantly realized this would no doubt prove to be disastrous. He had suspended my body in midair by just looking at it. He would kill me in the blink of an eye, or worse yet, lock me inside an inescapable, eternal prison...

In the end, I had been once again left without options.

"How sardonic can life be sometimes." I said under my breath, not knowing whether to feel amused or furious.

There was no time to lose. I would kill Ansem and end with my torment or die trying and end with my torment all the same. I have never liked to quit either way. There were some Heartless not far from where I stood. They had already noticed me, but didn't pay any attention to me. Behind them, were four small ships. The enemy wasn't exactly numerous. I quickly ran at them and slaughtered them. They opposed little, if any, resistance. Sheathing my sword, I boarded one of the vessels. The controls were not very complex; I had operated vehicles much more complicated than this. In a matter of seconds I took off and once again became lost in the darkness of space again. I passed through many Heartless ships; none of them attacked me or appeared on my radar. This is why, after a few minutes of flying aimlessly, I was surprised to notice my radar had picked up a signal.

I decided to follow it.

(Change of scene)

The signal, which had been quite faint at the beginning, was now very clear. I had flown for nearly seventy hours without rest, doing nothing but to follow that signal. I was amazed to see that no other Heartless' ships were around. Perhaps they knew better than to attack the vessels I was tracking. I don't know if the other transports had any radar, but I was lucky to have one on board. Maybe this was some new technology the Heartless had just uncovered. But I digress.

I chose to keep my distance from the ships, for I knew that if I went too close to them, I would surely be vaporized in less than a second. I stayed just outside radar range (or so I hoped) and observed them impatiently, but without making any rash moves. I really wanted to get off this cursed vessel. Nevertheless, I had to remain cautious. I had to wait for the others to land on a planet before I could make an approach.

My hands clenched the controls with both fear and anger as I slowly came closer to them. I couldn't believe what I was about to do. I was still shocked by my own decision. I had chosen to take the side of the very same brats that had foiled my plans.

Many times I questioned my resolution. In the end, however, I had decided that Ansem was an even greater threat. He had offered me, ME, a position in his empire. As if I were a gullible politician... The others had at least shown respect by fighting against me. I'm a proud person. But that doesn't mean that I can't tell when I have been beaten fairly. And those brats had indeed given me death honorably.

This is why I ultimately decided to go to them.

At long last, they landed on a small planet. I circled it for a while before I descended. The place was a small town, warm and with kind people. It actually reminded me a bit of the other town I had visited a few years ago. But that didn't matter. I stepped out of the ship and as I did, it shrank to a minuscule size. I decided not to question myself about this and picked the tiny vessel with my hand to put it in my pocket.

Where the hell had they gone to? There was no sight of them anywhere near. Even their ships had vanished. No doubt they had also taken them with them. Thankfully, the place, as I've already said, wasn't too big. I went up some stairs and went through a large wooden door. And as I stepped into the dark plaza, I remained still.

There was a fowl presence on the air. It stank. I began to get very mad. And I must say that perhaps that which angered me the most was the fact that the essence of this invisible monster was very similar to my own. It reminded me of what I had become. It told me that I had been reduced to a helpless being dependent on the life of that which I hated the most... This made me long for death more and more. There was only one way I could get what I wanted.

I unsheathed my sword and started to cross the plaza without fear. If any Heartless dared to stand in my way, I would quickly assassinate them without delay. I could feel their eyes on me. But none dared to come out of the shadows in which they hid.

"Pathetic foes." I hissed. "I can't wait to see you all dead. I may go along with you, but at least I will smile in my final moment."

I went through a smaller door which was just under what appeared to be a scientific lab. It lead into a house riddled with Dalmatians. They all stared at me in silence and some of them even growled. Yet I had no time to take out my anger in a pack of helpless dogs. I had more important things to look up to. I went through the house with no difficulty, amazed at the quantity of Dalmatians that lived there. I don't know exactly how much they were, but it was easy to tell there were about a hundred of them, perhaps a bit more.

I exited the house and became very still and very quiet. There they were, right in front of me.

Only eight of them were in sight and none of them looked familiar to me. To tell the truth, I wasn't sure that these even were the individuals I was searching for. I was almost certain that they were, but I had to make sure. And so I moved a bit closer and remained within the shadows. I practically melded with them. I suppose that was a gift I had gained as a Heartless. I was practically invisible.

There were three girls, two strange animal-like creatures, one big strong-looking guy, and two young boys. They were all talking about unimportant stuff. I still had to listen to them to see if they were the ones.

"So, Sakura, what's he like?" asked one of the girls, the youngest of them. She had dark red hair and blue eyes. "Surely you've kissed him, haven't you? Is he any good?"

"You shouldn't be asking that sort of questions, Kairi!" another one, one that had a white bandanna, answered. "You're a little too young for that, aren't you? That sort of information is PG-13!"

"Hey, I'm fourteen!"

"I bet he's good." One of the lads said. This one had long, blonde hair tied into a pony tail. "Look at her. She wouldn't be blushing if that weren't true."

"You are so dead, Siegfried!" exclaimed the girl with the bandanna as she captured him with her arms and applied a headlock. "Take that back!"

"Ouch! No way!" he laughed.

"Come on, Sakura, take it easy." The man said, separating the two of them. "I bet Siegfried was only kidding."

"So was I! It wouldn't have happened if he wouldn't have been so weak!" she mocked.

"Right. And you're so very strong whenever you think about him, aren't you?" the lad retorted.

"No!" the girl cried, blushing more than ever while the others laughed at her.

I couldn't remember when the last time I had a normal conversation had been. It seemed so long ago. I did remember some things, though. But they weren't important. This wasn't important, either. I was beginning to get tired at their childish talk. Yet it was vital for me that I remained quiet and still in the shadows.

"Don't be like that." One of the weird animals – a giant duck – said. "At least you can tell us when was it that you officially started 'dating'."

"Okay, I suppose that can't hurt much." The girl replied. "It sort of happened during the battle of the Sanctuary. In the house of Aquarius. Right after we finished fighting, it became somewhat official. Hyoga said something like 'it was about time'."

"I can say." Said the last girl, a tall, attractive gal with long, dark brown hair and blue eyes. "I suppose it's no mystery to you that we were all waiting when the two of you would get together."

"All of you?" the girl with the headband asked.

"Yeah. Well, except, perhaps, for the clueless. I regret to say that my baby was totally oblivious to the situation between you and him."

"I really can't get tired of saying it, but he had always been too slow." The blonde young man laughed.

"Well, I couldn't tell. I wasn't there when it began to happen." The other strange creature added.

"What was it in him that attracted you, Sakura?" asked the big man. "If you wouldn't mind telling us, that is."

"Not you too, Ryu!" she exclaimed. "This is just too embarrassing! Besides, shouldn't we be worrying about the Heartless? What if they come out of nowhere and suddenly attack?"

"That won't happen." The second boy said. His hair was spiky and brown, very much like the one of someone I knew. "If they dare come this way, we can take care of them with this." He unsheathed a strange sword in the shape of a key. "So come on, Sakura. Spill the beans!"

I then knew they were the ones. Not because they had mentioned the Heartless, no; any of the townsfolk could've talked about them. I knew because the minute this lad unsheathed his weapon, I felt a strange fright within me. I tried to suppress it but I couldn't. And not only that; I also felt rage. I had already been angry, yet somehow, just to lay my eyes on that thing made the blood in my veins boil. No doubt that blade was the Heartless' bane.

There was no need for me to hide any longer. I stood up and started to walk toward the brats. All of them heard my footsteps as I came nearer and raised their guards. I would've been very disappointed if they wouldn't have done that.

"You've come a long way." I ventured to say.

"Do you have anything against that?" asked the young boy with the blade that makes me shiver, taking a menacing step forward.

"...Maybe, maybe not." I retorted. I'm not sure if it was fright, rage, or even just plain stupidity that made the answer.

"Who are you?" asked the tall, attractive girl, standing beside the boy. And as she did, she unsheathed a blade I had seen before... a sword whose touch I had already felt. "Show yourself!" she demanded.

With weapon in hand, I stepped into the light. I was careful to stand with my body slightly facing my right side so that they would not see the emblem on my arm. I didn't want to let them know just yet. None of them recognized me, but I could see a strange fear in their eyes. This quenched my fury a little.

The tall girl's sword had cut me once before. But she had not been the one to slice it through my flesh. That could only mean that its former master had been the one Ansem had talked about...

"Renamark, is it?" I muttered, remembering the sword's name. "That's what he called the blade, correct?"

"...You've met Wilheim." She inquired.

"Indeed." I said. "And to see you holding it the way you do can only mean one thing. He is dead." I couldn't help but to smile. A sudden burst of joy spread through my body. "There's only one thing I regret about it: that I wasn't there to see him kick the bucket."

"How dare you speak about my brother like that, bastard!" roared the lad with blonde hair, while the others babbled incomprehensible words of rage. He was about to lunge himself at me, but the girl, who had remained quiet thus far, stopped him by putting her hand on his chest. She took a step toward and raised the blade.

"Big mistake." She jeered. "I really hope you can defend yourself, fiend, because if you can't, I'll tear you apart sooner than you can possibly imagine."

Her words had been too bold, too daring. I knew only too well that I was likely to lose to her if I decided to accept her challenge. Yet she had lightened a fire in me that I couldn't put out. With a chuckle, I pointed my sword at her and waited for her to do the first move. I had to know if I was still strong enough to kill one of them.

But suddenly, the cursed sword, Renamark, was engulfed by a magical flame. I nearly froze as I felt the girl's power grow more and more, as it reached a level beyond anything I could imagine. I could feel that she was as strong, if not as strong, as the young man who had carried into battle against me before her...

She threw herself at me and tried to cut my stomach with a swift blow. I parried and counterattacked, hoping to drive my blade through her neck. She quickly stepped aside and swept me off my feet with a nimble kick. Once on the ground, she tried to stab me. I managed to roll away from the sword, but was unable to avoid her foot, which she had aimed at my face. I hit a wall and felt how my nose started to bleed. I felt anger in my again. I got up and tried to pierce through her, momentarily forgetting about my plan. I just wanted to end with her life at that very instant. But the girl was clearly much more powerful than me. She easily stepped aside again and swung her blade across my chest with great speed. I was able to cheat death by stepping back, yet the sword touched my skin and opened it. I yelled in pain as its fire entered my body and started to gnaw my chest. The powerful wind come from that sword also succeeded in throwing me against the wall. I fell on my butt, desperately trying to put the ghastly fire out. I managed to do this sooner than later, luckily. However, when I reached for my blade, I realized my opponent already had the tip of her weapon pointing directly at my chest, threatening to pierce me with a single move of hers if she wished.

"Way to go, Ukyo." Cheered the boy with the key-like weapon. "That'll teach him to speak about Wilheim with some respect."

"Indeed, you should learn to watch your mouth whenever I'm around." She growled. "Don't you ever talk about my baby like that again..." but then she paused as she looked at my right arm and noticed the emblem. This could very well be my final moment. I came to believe this even more as she raised her sword at my neck and said: "Any last words before you die, Heartless?"

"He's a Heartless?" asked the dog-like creature as he stood beside the girl. "Gwarsh... what do you know?"

"Just finish him already!" pressed the giant duck.

"...This can't be." I muttered with fury. I don't think I've ever longed for death more than at that moment. I couldn't believe a girl, a mere girl lacking the power of a goddess, had beaten me so quickly. So easily. I had been ridiculed like never before. Ansem had control over me, so my defeat at his hands was understandable, to some extent. But this kid had outsmarted me in just a matter of seconds. "This can't be...! My power is gone! Dear mother, I'm so lost!" I cried, holding back tears of rage and despair.

"Say your good-byes already." She said. "Then I'll end this."

She was really going to kill me. I suppose that the loss of Wilheim – her boyfriend, I should think – had turned her into a merciless mistress of death when it came to eradicate a Heartless. It was then that my anger faded a little and I ventured to smile.

"...You're good." I confessed. "I guess the sword has something to do with it, but you're pretty good." As I said this, I tried to convince myself that, although terribly humiliating, I had suffered a fair defeat. The child may not have had the power of a monster, but she was a worthy adversary. She would've given me a lot of problems if I was to still possess my old powers and she was unquestionably infinitely stronger than I was at the present. No doubt all of them were. "I don't know if you're as good as Wilheim was, or even better, to tell the truth." I forced myself to say.

"Hmm... A Heartless that pays respect to others." The man with the red headband said. "The only other Heartless that did this was Digaia. But he was hundreds of times much more powerful than this one here..."

"He must be preparing some sort of trap!" said the duck. "Finish him now, Ukyo! Just finish that Heartless!"

"Stop calling me that!" I demanded angrily. I think none of them were expecting me to say that. "Stop calling me 'Heartless'!"

"Huh?" muttered the girl with the white headband. "What did you say?"

"I... I thought the Heartless couldn't get offended by having someone call them 'Heartless'." The girl with red hair said.

"I don't like to be called like that." I claimed. Slowly, I got back on my feet. My adversary didn't harm me, but she didn't put her sword away either. "I may be one, but I don't like the idea at all. I prefer to be nothing." I said.

"...You fought against Wilheim, right?" my opponent mused, a thoughtful glance in her eyes. "When? Where?"

"Not too long ago, I should think." I answered. "In a far away land. I battled against him and some others. He was a fearsome opponent. I didn't expect that he would bring me off balance, yet he did. That is why I have great respect for him. Yet I also despise him." I paused for a moment and then added: "He never mentioned that he had a girlfriend. Or a brother, for that matter."

"Oh, God..." the girl with the bandanna murmured, covering her mouth with her left hand as she stared at me in fright and awe.

"I bet he had more important things to deal about at that moment." My opponent said. "He spoke about you. All of our friends who fought against you did. I now know who you are. You fit their description perfectly; I don't know why I didn't think about it before." Then she lowered her voice to a whisper, as if by pronouncing my name too loudly would cause my old power to return to me. "Sephiroth."

I couldn't help but to feel a certain joy as she pronounced my name with such fright. But then I quickly saw in her eyes that she remembered how easily she had beaten me.

"I see he spoke about me." I said, forcing a smile on my lips.

"Ukyo, kill him." Suddenly muttered the girl with the white headband. Everyone, save for my opponent, turned to her in shock. Her voice had sounded very frightened. Perhaps I would've enjoyed that if the words would've been different. I suppose there is no need to tell you that her sudden plea took me completely by surprise. "Please, Ukyo. Remember what Ryoga and the others told us. You can't let him live!"

"Calm down, Sakura." Intervened the man. "Look at him. There's no such power as the one our friends told us about left in him anymore."

"This must be really killing you, huh?" snickered Ukyo. "The great Sephiroth... completely defeated by a girl."

It is strange. That arrogant remark should have infuriated me. I should have wanted to reach for my sword and drive it through her. But rather than that, things stirred inside of me in a different way. I can't explain why, but I actually found that commentary very comical. I bowed my head and let out a low laugh.

"You certainly seem to be enjoying this." I finally said. "What are you waiting for, then? If you're going to kill me, then do it already."

She remained still with a thoughtful stare in her eyes. After a few moments, the blonde kid, Siegfried, walked to me, took Masamune off my hands and practically dragged it away from me. Indeed: I was still the only man who could hold that sword. Although I was now unarmed and beyond any possibility of giving battle, Ukyo did not take Renamark away from my body.

"So you sold your soul and heart to Ansem so you could have your revenge." She inquired. "I guess he just didn't give you enough power."

"I haven't sold myself to anyone." I retorted feeling very offended. "I follow no one's will but my own and my mother's."

"Then how come you have that emblem on your arm?" asked the spiky-haired boy, pointing at my cursed emblem with his blade.

"Only the Heartless have that, as far as I understand." Muttered the red-headed girl.

"I didn't ask to be given flesh again." I explained. "Ansem brought me back to life. Yet the bastard turned me into a mere shadow. He took away my power, because I chose not to help him in his pursuit for darkness."

They all remained quiet for a long while. I guess it's needless to say that none of them seemed to trust me.

"Then why is it that you came here to fight us?" asked the dog-like creature.

"I didn't." I confessed. "I came here to offer you my help."

"Yeah, and coming here insulting the memory of my Wilheim-honey is definitively a solid proof of it." Ukyo grumbled.

"Well, I got your attention, didn't I?" I replied with a smile. Those words didn't make any of them happy. In fact, Siegfried stepped forth and threw a furious punch at my face. I nearly fell down; he did have some strength on his arm. He probably would've hit me more, but the man with the red headband held him and dragged him away from me.

"Don't you dare talk about my brother like that again, you son of a bitch!" he threatened. "I'll kill you if you do! I swear to God I will!"

"You better watch your mouth, Sephiroth." Ukyo added calmly, yet I still sensed anger in her voice. "Any other statement of the sort could cost you your life."

"...Fair enough." I muttered, wiping a trail of blood that had begun to run down my nose. That brad had nearly broken it. Either way, I wasn't angry at all. I supposed that, to some extent, I deserved that blow. I had to be more careful with my words, although I certainly did enjoy the look on their faces. "I apologize." I added, but didn't mean it.

"What's on your mind, then?" questioned the man, letting go of Siegfried.

"Don't tell me you actually want to listen to him, Ryu!" the duck whined. "We should get rid of him right now!"

"Take it easy, Donald. Just let him speak up." Ryu answered and then turned to me with a stern expression on his face as he said: "As long as he keeps his insults to himself."

"Ansem said I am bound to him." I told them, not minding his last words. "According to him, I live because he lives. If he is killed, then I will also die. That's why I want to help you to destroy him."

Naturally, none of this seemed to make any sense to them.

"...You want to die?" asked the spiky-haired kid, to which I nodded silently.

"Of course you understand I could gladly do you the favor." Ukyo said, yet her intention was not to kill me. Not at that moment, at least.

"You may cut me down if that's what you desire." I replied, dryly. "Death will be a release from this body stained with the mark of the Heartless. At least I will have died from the hand of an honorable opponent." I was surprised at my own words. Amazingly, I had been sincere. Ukyo was quite astonished and after a few instants, slowly lowered her blade. "Ansem took away my power: everything I once was has turned into a memory, nothing more. He had promised me great power if I were to serve him and kill all of you. But that power wouldn't have been my own. Besides, my mother had bigger, more important designs that I decided were better to follow. That is why I was reduced to the status of an insect that can barely fend off his enemies; that's why I want you to kill him, so that I can go into darkness and remain there, rather than to lurk about the worlds like a stray dog."

They said nothing for a long time. They turned to face each other with questioning eyes. And at last, Ukyo let out a sigh and asked:

"How do you propose to help us?"

I smiled triumphantly, already savoring Ansem's death.

"You don't know where he is, do you?" I said.

"But you do." Inquired Sakura.

"I can take you there." I added. "I know the way."

Before they could reply, I heard how someone approached. The footsteps came from the waterway that lay at my right. I looked that way just as another of them came into view. He stopped short and stared at me with horror in his eyes.

I really cannot tell you why, but I felt a certain joy and relief when I glance upon him. He had been my enemy in the past; because of him, I had lost the battle against Wilheim, Cloud, and the others. I had underestimated him last time... I suppose it's always good to see a familiar face after a while.

"Well, well!" I exclaimed, unable to contain a laugh. "If it isn't my very small, but very ferocious opponent!" I paused for a second as I recalled his name. "Merryck, wasn't it?"

"H-how is it that y-you are a-alive?" the little hobbit stammered.

"Relax, Merryck." The spiky-haired kid said, pointing his blade at my chest. Anger and fright slightly began to tingle through my body. "It's all under control."

"How can you say that, Sora!" Merryck cried. "T-that fiend is immensely... By God! He's become a Heartless!" he added, noticing the emblem on my arm. I simply rolled my eyes, begging for patience. I was beginning to get tired of this.

"Calm down." Ryu said. "He says he wants to help."

"To help!" wailed the hobbit. "To... how in the... what? You have got to be joking!"

"Besides, he's too weak to do anything. Ukyo beat him very quickly just a few moments ago." He turned around and pointed at Masamune, which lay under Siegfried's foot. "See? He's unarmed now. He can't use any magic or anything of the sort. It's all right, Merryck."

"...Did she?" he muttered as his eyes shone with both calm and wonder. He slowly, even cautiously, approached me and looked at my sword. He remained silent while he studied me carefully. Then he took a step back and muttered: "I somehow cannot grasp the thought that he has come to help us."

"I don't know." Ukyo said. "I don't know if we should trust him or not..."

"Trust him?" said the duck. "He can't be trusted! He attacked you! Even if he's not a Heartless, he's still a menace!"

"I... I have to agree with Donald." Sakura said in a low, frightened voice and turned away from me. "I don't believe he's telling the truth."

"I don't know." Ryu intervened. "He did sound quite sincere."

"Sincere?" the hobbit mumbled. "He's a villain! He can't be sincere!"

"I don't know, Merryck..." Sora mused.

At this point, I was really uneasy about having that cursed blade pointing at my chest. It wasn't long before I realized that Sora was the sworn enemy of the Heartless: the master of the Keyblade – the one weapon they truly hated and feared. And I had been turned into one of those beings. That certainly explained why I had begun to feel so edgy all of a sudden.

"Get that thing away from me." I said. I had not sounded commanding but I also made it clear that I hadn't exactly requested him to do that. "It's beginning to get me nervous."

The boy quickly comprehended what was the matter with me and slowly lowered the Keyblade. I let out a sigh of relief and unconsciously wiped some sweat off my forehead: it was not until much later that I realized this. The effect that thing had on Ansem's monsters was truly remarkable.

"I may be crazy, but I think he's telling the truth." Sora said. I didn't think he would say that after my demand. "What do you think about it, Kairi?" he asked, turning to the red-headed girl.

"I... I don't know, Sora." She stuttered. "I... The Heartless robbed me from my heart once. I don't think I can trust them... even if he claims he's not with them." Sora nodded silently as he caressed her arm.

"What about you, Goofy?"

"Gwarsh... I don't think I can tell..." the dog-like creature mumbled.

"And you, Ukyo?"

"I hadn't made up my mind yet." She said. Up to this moment, she hadn't taken her eyes off me. It was weird; her glance didn't make me uncomfortable, even though there wasn't a smile on her lips or anything of the sort. "What's on yours, Siegfried?" she asked.

"...He insulted Wilheim." He replied sharply and said nothing more.

They all remained thoughtful and without speaking. I began to get nervous again. The awkward silence started to disturb me. I wished they could make up their minds faster. I reckon it wasn't an easy choice. However, I would've greatly appreciated a little more haste on their part. Either way, the best thing I could do was to remain still and quiet.

After what seemed to be an eternity, Ukyo asked in a low and amazingly vulnerable voice: "Did Ansem say anything about him?"

Of course I could've replied lots of nasty things to hurt her. Part of me would've no doubt liked to do that... but somehow, I strongly felt I had to be sincere. I took a deep breath before I made my answer.

"Is he the only one that has died?" I questioned. I waited for her to nod and then went on. "He said his heart was alone, lost in a river of darkness. That's all he said about him." I could see my words had hurt her, but she obviously wasn't mad at me. Not because of that, at least. "I'm not sure... but perhaps you could... we could bring him back to life." I corrected. "By killing Ansem, I would believe. Yet I can't be certain. What I can assure is that the river of darkness of which he spoke will vanish. Chances are you won't see him again anyway... but I suppose there's always hope, even if it's faint."

Those last words deserve an explanation. At this moment, I had become accustomed to the idea that I would see Ansem die, or in agony at least, before I faded out of existence. The desire to go with them had grown too strong. I knew I had to show some sympathy if I were to join them. Nevertheless, I had tried not to sound too seductive or compassioned, for if I had done that, they would've believed I was lying to them.

The girl let out a sigh and sheathed Renamark.

"I have to be honest with you." She said. Not to me; she had addressed her friends. "I trust him. Either way, I can't make a unilateral decision and bring him with us."

"Then let's ask the others." Ryu suggested. "Let's tell them what they think about the idea."

In other circumstances, I would've shivered at the proposal. Yet there was one thing that made me keep my cool. I would face my former enemies completely unarmed. I knew all of them hated me. But Cloud was with them, no doubt. And as much as he detests me, I was aware he knew something important about me: I am no liar.

"Then let's go." I pressed. "The only thing I ask of you is this: if you chose not to take me with you, then at least kill me. At least be considerate enough to put an end to my life."

My plea took them aback; especially Merryck, since he hadn't been there before to listen to my plight.

"...Fair enough." Ukyo said. "Is that OK with you, guys?" she asked her friends.

"Sounds good to me." Sora said.

"...I don't like it, but I suppose we could do that." Sakura added.

"...All right." Muttered Siegfried, the anger in his voice almost gone.

This time, Ryu got a hold of Masamune and carried it with him as they took me into the waterway. He didn't struggle as much as Siegfried, but it looked to me that the blade weighed a ton on his hands. He gave me a quick glance in which I could read his thoughts: he couldn't tell how it was that I, who had become as weak as a mouse, could carry that with such ease. I decided to leave the explanations for later. After all, I wasn't there to tell them about me or to make any friends. I was simply following that line: "the enemy of my enemy is my friend."

We entered a cave in which the rest of the group's integrands rested. There were a lot of them. Even if I did have my old powers, I know figured it would've been very unlikely that I would've killed all of them. They would've had defeated me sooner or later... This experience was turning out to be a tormenting lesson of humility.

As you may already have guessed, I wasn't exactly received with a warm welcome. As we came into their view, I saw many new faces and some others that were familiar to me. The first of my old enemies that I saw was the succubus that had fought against me in Never Land. Her face turned into a surprised and horrified expression as she took a step back. Then I noticed the two men in shiny armors; I especially remembered the one clad in green color, since he had cut my hand last time we had met. Evidently, neither of them was happy to see me. Afterwards, I saw the young man with the yellow bandanna. He looked quite shocked. His mouth was widely opened, but he could utter no word. And last, but not least, I saw Cloud and Tifa and, to my surprise, other opponents of old: Cid, the cocky pilot; Yuffie, the young ninja, and Vincent, the dark man.

When these latter ones glanced at me, they all quickly withdrew their weapons. Cloud started to run at me, ready to unleash a devastating strike. I didn't move or try to reach Masamune.

"Get out of the way!" he cried to the others, mad with rage. "I'm going to tear him apart!"

"Cloud, stop!" Ryu yelled as he jumped in front of him, forcing him to halt. My oldest and fiercest opponent looked at the man with fury and amazement.

"What in the world do you think you're doing!" he demanded.

"Who is he?" asked one of the men I didn't know: his build was similar to Ryu's. He had blonde hair and thick dark brown eyebrows. "Wait a minute... is that Sephiroth?"

"Sephiroth?" I heard someone mutter. A strange man then appeared from behind Cloud. He also had blonde hair, but was covered by a green hood. His ears were unlike anything I had ever seen before: they were very long and very pointy. I guessed he was an elf. I had never seen this man... yet in his eyes I saw profound hatred towards me. He was armed with a sword and a shield. "Is this the foe that drove his blade through my darling? I cannot possibly understand how is it that he has come back to life for the third time and I do not mean to. Step aside, Ryu. I shall cut him down right now for the evil he has caused."

I didn't give much importance to his words. I had killed many people in the past: I wouldn't be surprised to find out that I had slain some one dear to him. But as he slightly stepped to the left, I saw the person he had spoken of. I can't deny I was taken a back by the sight of her.

She stared at me with her pretty, stunned eyes in silence. I can't say if fear had overcome her – if her heart had suddenly stopped and she was about to regurgitate. It certainly did seem that way. But on the other hand, maybe she was just surprised... yet not panicky or anything of the sort. If she was here, then why not me? To tell the truth, I think I was more startled than she was...

"What the hell...?" I muttered under my breath, unable to take my bewildered eyes off Aeris. She looked back at me and then I realized she was simply shocked, but not afraid. She remained calm as her glance started to drive me mad. As unbelievable as it may sound, she actually forced me to turn away from her.

It was then that I became aware of what was happening around me. Ryu, Sora, and Ukyo had blocked Cloud and the others' path to me, arguing that I had come with no intention of killing them. My enemies didn't seem to believe them at all: a heated argument had begun... and I had been completely oblivious to this because of that girl.

"I can't believe you are stupid enough to fall for this!" Cid yelled. "Get out of the damn way so we can end this!"

"At least hear him out!" Sora answered. "He's unarmed! He hasn't tried anything so far!" it was a good thing he didn't mention that I had attacked Ukyo at the beginning. And thankfully, none of the others said anything about this matter.

While they argued, the rest of the group's integrands slowly started to come forward. They all looked at me with both angry and mistrusting eyes... Indeed Ansem had left me weak: I began to feel intimidated by their glances.

"Just give him five minutes, damn it!" exclaimed Ukyo angrily. "That's all I'm asking!"

"You're out of your mind!" replied one of the two armored men I had faced in Never Land. I recalled his name: Seiya. "Don't you get it? This son of a bitch tried to crush the world we were in! He tried to kill Wilheim!"

The discussion went on for a few minutes. I'm surprised no one tried to sneak past them and kill me while they weren't looking. During all that time, I found myself at a loss of words. I had elaborated some sort of speech, confident that I would get them to trust me. But Aeris had simply stolen all my thoughts. I couldn't keep my mind off her. How? How was it that she also lived?

"SILENCE!" unexpectedly demanded a feminine voice. The cry had been so loud it had actually quieted all of them down. As they turned to her, I realized it had been the succubus who had yelled. And as I looked at her again, I noticed another succubus standing right beside her. They were almost exactly alike, save for certain subtle differences in their bodies and eyes... "Stop bickering! We are not going to get anywhere if you keep on fighting like this." She paused as she faced me. After taking a deep breath, she went on. "Let him speak. I want to hear what he has to say."

"He's got nothing to say!" Cid retorted. He then glanced at an enormous man, the biggest of them all, and said: "Octavius, blow this guy's freaking head off with that shotgun of yours!"

"Be at ease, pilot." He replied calmly. "Although you have told me many grim stories about this enemy, he has not tried to attack us so far, even during our verbal battle. To me, he is just a herald of the Heartless, perhaps even a spy. But for my part, I like to listen to the messages that my antagonist has for me before I decapitate his bearer of news." So far, I believe he was the only one who had noticed the emblem on my arm.

"What are you talking about...?" Yuffie muttered with confusion, but was quick to observe the symbol. "He's a Heartless now? That's yet another reason not to trust him!"

That statement snapped me out of my trance and made me lose all patience.

"STOP CALLING ME THAT!" I roared and all of them fell silent. "I may have the goddamn emblem on my arm, but I'm not on those idiots' side!"

"Of course not: you're on nobody's team. You have never been." Cloud promptly intervened. "You just want to destroy the worlds and us with them!"

"Think what you will, Cloud!" I answered. "If you aren't willing to change your mind and you don't want to listen to me, then slay me if it makes you happy. I'm unarmed – you'll never have a better shot."

My adversary and his friends became quiet as surprised filled their faces. They slowly lowered their weapons yet didn't drop them. Doubt still dwelled in their eyes. And after seeing that they weren't doing anything, two creatures – another elf and a fairy, I presumed – stepped forth. The fairy, who had been sitting down on her friend's shoulder, flew into the air just high enough so everyone could see her.

"Let him speak." She said. And this time, there were no objections.

Once again, I related my story to them. Most of them heard me attentively, yet some others simply turned away from me with disgusted faces. This was Cid's case, who was quick to ask after I had ended my tale and remained silent for a few moments: "Is that it? Okay, Cloud. Kill him already."

"...Wait a minute, Cid..." my old opponent muttered with a thoughtful expression on his face.

"What's there to think? Finish him!" the pilot pressed.

"Cid, I think you should listen to Cloud." Vincent said.

"Not you too!"

"We all know Sephiroth is a monster. But out of all of us, Cloud is the one that knows him better." He declared. He then turned to my old enemy and asked: "What do you think about this?"

Cloud said took his time to answer. Everyone in the cave turned to look at him. For a moment, I thought that he would have the last word as to what would happen to me...

"You're right, Vincent." He announced at last. "Sephiroth is a monster." With anger in his eyes, he turned to me as he recalled all that we had been through and went on. "He destroyed my hometown and assassinated many people... He tried to shatter the world with a meteor. He tried to kill us many times, including that occasion in Never Land and..." he paused for a second. He looked back and I comprehended it was difficult for him to continue. "He killed Aeris."

As he finished saying this, the elf clad in green that I've mentioned before took a step forth, his sword aiming at my body. There was mad fury in his eyes. But before he could come near me and stab me, Cloud put his hand on his shoulder, stopping him.

"Hold on, Link." He muttered. He took a deep breath and then confessed: "But one thing I can tell you. During all the time I was with him, during all those missions... even during all those fights against him, he never once lied to me or to anyone." I had been right.

"Oh, come on, people! Wake up and smell the humus!" a boy suddenly cried, making us all turn to see him. He was a young lad with brown hair, white skin, and different colored eyes: one was blue and the other green. "You can't trust someone who's got a Heartless badge, no matter if he says he's not with them! He could either be hiding his real power from us to unleash it when we least expect it or he could take us right into a trap!"

"Dante's got a point." Said a young man who held what appeared to be a blade attached to a gun. "How can you know he hasn't been changed by the Heartless?"

"Actually I..." Tifa intervened shyly. "In Ansem's reports, I never read that he could bring someone back to life and turn him into a Heartless. It didn't say anything of the sort. Therefore, we can't know if Sephiroth's spirit has been changed." I was getting rather vexed of hearing him argue about all of this. Yet I stayed quiet.

"Okay, guys, here's what I think." Sora announced. "Let's say we take him with us. Suppose he is indeed faking that he has no power and is just waiting to unleash it the moment we drop our guards. Well, if that's the case, then let's not drop our guards: let's keep a watch on him all the time and we should be all right."

"But what if he wants to lead us into a trap, like Dante said?" asked a young red-haired girl.

"Let's face it, Ariel: we're going to have to fight the Heartless one way or another." The boy answered. "I think he's our best chance on finding Ansem. If we don't listen to him, it's likely it'll take an eternity for us to look for him." he then seized this opportunity to say in a loud, clear voice: "I say we take him with us. I don't know what the rest of you guys think."

"No way!" Yuffie cried. "I'm not putting my life on the hands of this monster!"

"Please, stop shouting!" demanded the elf with the fairy. "I am tired of this nonsense! We are just exhausting ourselves and not getting anywhere! We must make a decision now. I must be honest: I trust in Sora's judgment. The child is smart: I do not think he can be easily deceived."

Again, silence filled the cave for a moment. And then, the blonde man similar to Ryu in build, ventured to make a proposal.

"Why don't we vote?"

"That's a good idea, Ken." Yuffie said. "I say we get rid of him."

"Damn it!" unexpectedly exclaimed Ryoga. We all looked at him as he put his hands on his head and said: "I wish Wilheim was here and he was still a vampire – at least he could've read his mind!"

"Wilheim isn't here, Ryoga." Ukyo snapped. "We're just going to have to rely on our own instincts. And I propose we take him with us."

"I think we should do that, too." Said a voice from the other end of the cave.

With bewildered eyes, we all turned to face Aeris. I was completely stunned. I didn't expect her to intervene in my favor. And by the look on everyone's faces, I suppose they hadn't anticipated this either.

"Sora is right." She continued. "This is by far our best chance of getting to Ansem."

"Aeris, are you aware of what this bastard did to you?" exclaimed Cid.

"I am." She answered. "But I can't spend the rest of my life hating him for that..." she paused as she stepped forward. And then, she spoke again, but this time, she addressed me. "Though you have been brought back by Ansem to be a Heartless, your eyes haven't changed. I don't see any regret in them whatsoever... but I do see sincerity." She looked down for a moment as she took a deep breath. "I forgive you for what you did to me." She announced at last, to everyone's shock. "Yet I won't forget."

I felt certain gratitude towards her. But not enough to say "Thank you."

"All right, then." Cloud finally muttered, after a while. "If Aeris is okay with it, then I guess we can take him with us. I don't think he's lying. But whatever the case may be, I'm not taking my eyes off him."

"Neither will I." added the elf with the long ears, Link. "My sword will not rest and my shield will be always wary should the need arise to use them."

"You go with him, then." Cid said. "Don't let him get close to me."

"Welcome to the team, I guess." Sora said and offered his hand so I would shake it. I chose to trust him and did as he wanted. After that, Ryu gave me back my sword. I quickly sheathed it. I could only hope I wouldn't get bothered by any of them for a while.

"Now that we have this settled..." said the man with the gun-blade. "We need to ask ourselves another question. Should we go after Ansem, or should we keep on locking the keyholes?"

"Well, I don't know if we're powerful enough to go after him yet..." Ryu mused. He looked at me and asked: "What do you think, Sephiroth?"

"Now you're asking for his advice!" Cid cried. "Jeez, I can't believe this!"

"Now, calm down, Mr. Cid." Intervened Merryck. It indeed was hard to believe that my mortal enemies trusted me. Even so, I wasn't thinking about betraying them, yet I wasn't interested in making friends with them; Aeris said she had forgiven me, but she wouldn't let herself forget. I had not forgiven nor forgotten. It was simply like I've said before: the enemy of my enemy is my friend. "Even though I certainly don't like it either, Sephiroth is now one of us. As such, we should listen to his opinion."

"You know what? Whatever." The pilot grumbled and went to the back of the cave as he gave a big puff to his cigarette. It was amazing: he never got rid of them. But that was beyond the point.

"What do you think we should do then?" asked a cat-woman.

"I don't know much about keyholes." I replied dryly.

"The way we've seen it, every time we seal one, the Heartless lose power." Ukyo explained.

"There's not much more power I can lose." I said. "However, the weaker we can make Ansem, the better it'll be. I saw part of his army, and it's quite large. I don't suppose I glanced at all of it."

"At least he still thinks like the Sephiroth I knew once." Cloud said.

"If that's the case, then we should hurry up and seal the keyhole in this town." Sora muttered. "Folks said they felt an evil presence on the second district. I'm guessing that's where the Heartless are."

"...Can you speak with them or something of the sort?" asked Siegfried. I noticed he was still angry, but at least he had accepted we were stuck in this together.

"No." I answered. "Yet I think I can feel them. Perhaps even smell them."

"That ought to be of some help." Vincent said. "Let's go, then. I think we have rested enough."

We started to exit the cave. I had achieved my goal. Nevertheless, there was a great deal of tension on the group. But to tell the truth, I couldn't care less. Ansem would be dead and I would be there to see him in his final moments so that then I would follow him. Nothing else mattered to me.

(Change of scene)

"The townsfolk were right..." murmured Dante, wary of his every move. "I can feel a weird presence in here. And it's all but pleasant."

"But how come aren't they attacking us?" asked Morrigan in a low voice. "We have breached their territory like a pack of lions that go after a hyena's dead prey. They should have come out to defend their territory. I'm uneasy."

One note before I go on. Up till now, I didn't know most of the group's integrands' names. Nevertheless, I got to learn them later. That's why I guess it's rather ridiculous that I should keep using mere descriptions to refer to them. I remember everything that happened perfectly and I recall who did what.

"They must be waiting that we let our guards down, I wager." Merryck whispered. "Insufferable creatures! The more we face them, the more I dislike them."

"The keyhole must be near." Said Leon. "But where? Where could it be? Anyone's got an idea?"

"Not me." Donald answered hastily. "Sora, Ukyo, and I looked for it last time we were here. We didn't find anything."

"I've got an idea." Felicia announced. "In my opinion, we've got one Heartless' radar with us. Why don't we use him?" Of course, that radar was me.

"You have come up with some very bright ideas of late, Felicia." Octavius said.

"Thank you!" she replied, slightly blushing.

"And what am I supposed to feel near this keyhole?" I asked. The idea of being used as a tracking device did not suit me much.

"The keyhole is what the Heartless use to invade worlds." Vincent answered. "Probably more of them are coming out of it as we speak. If you can truly feel the Heartless, then you should look for the largest group of those creatures."

"...Very well." I snarled. Although I still didn't like the proposal, it was all but absurd. I went ahead of them and walked towards the place where the presence felt stronger. It wasn't long before I stopped at a quiet fountain. The devils about there were very numerous. I couldn't see them, but their smell gave them away. And still, they wouldn't come out. "It's here." I declared.

"Should we break through it?" said Octavius, preparing to unleash a blow. I didn't know it at that time, but I later realized that his strength was brutal enough to bring down a whole brick wall with just one punch.

"Come on, Hulk!" cried the cat-woman. "With you it's always about breaking stuff."

"Then enlighten us with another bright idea if you please."

"Why aren't they coming out?" I muttered thoughtfully, mostly to myself. "Ansem ordered them not to hurt me... could that be why they're not attacking any of us at all?"

"If that is the case, then we have great advantage over them." Suddenly said Link. I was surprised he heard me; but then I took another glance at his enormous ears and understood his hearing was beyond anything I had ever experienced.

"I guess there's only one way we can find out." Sora said aloud, putting himself on guard.

"We're right behind you, Sora!" exclaimed Goofy.

"There we go." Announced Ranma calmly. We all turned to where he pointed and noticed a small bug-like Heartless which had just emerged from the ground. "It was about time one of these bozos showed up."

"There must be hundreds of them..." guessed Akane, raising her fists.

Demean quickly armed himself with his bow and an arrow. With lightning speed, he shot an arrow at the foe and killed it. "Then that is one less." He said.

The rest of the fiends didn't take long to show up. From the ground and out of thin air, came a great horde of Heartless. It flooded the streets of the town like a storm. They hastily closed in on us. There was no way to escape, lest we passed through them. This was, of course, exactly what we intended to do.

"Okay, it's time for Octavius's plan." Felicia said. "It's time to start tearing things apart!"

"Now this is a language I am certainly fond of!" cried the were-bear as he unleashed a vicious blow at the Heartless in front of him, slaying quite a lot of them with that single thrust. I was very amazed – I had only seen such strength in Cloud's most furious attack.

Naturally, this made the Heartless react violently. They all threw themselves at us – this time, they even attacked me. I suppose the orders are subject to the requirements of service even to them after all. But most of them were still no match for me. I grinned as I passed my blade through their dark bodies, making them fall lifelessly on the floor only to disappear after a short instant.

The rest of my new companions fought boldly and ferociously. I was shocked by their power. Even Merryck had become a most dangerous adversary. He rolled underneath his opponents whenever he could and stabbed them from behind or beat them with his impressive fencing techniques. I observed that the one that had the most trouble defending himself was Siegfried; but in spite of that, he was doing quite well. He had already killed almost as much Heartless as young Ariel, who fought close to Link and Aeris.

The enemies kept on coming and falling like flies that enter a cloud of poisonous fume. But suddenly, I felt a strong presence nearby. I looked up and saw that a large number of Heartless had assembled on the roof of a building. They weren't moving. It looked to me as if they were guarding something. None of the others had noticed this. For a moment, I thought it would simply be best if I took matters into my own hands. Yet I quickly realized I was getting tired. As much as I hated it, I would need some help to go on. I looked for my closest two companions. They turned out to be Goofy and Ryoga.

"Come with me." I said to them. "There are enemies on that roof. There is something important there: I can feel it."

Both of them turned to the edifice. When they saw I wasn't lying, they promptly defeated the opponents they were fighting and accompanied me across the battlefield. We made our way through a great deal of Heartless with little difficulty. But I knew I wouldn't last too long at this now intense rhythm.

In order to reach the roof of the building, we had to enter it. We came into a strange room with many mechanisms on the work. What their purpose was, I don't have the least idea. Either way, we were greeted by a large group of Heartless. Most of them were big, lumbering fools with great stomachs and there were some others that appeared to be knights carrying shields with the shape of the head of a dog. These last ones proved to be quite a nuisance, for whenever I tried to roll around them and attack them from behind, they would turn violently and attempt to hit me with their shields. I leapt away from them just in time, but almost always failed to score a hit.

My two companions on the other hand, didn't have much difficulty in getting rid of them. Goofy would entertain them by attacking them with his own shield from the front, while Ryoga hastily leapt behind them and obliterated them with a flash of energy. In less than a minute, all of the enemies had been defeated, but our battle still wasn't over.

Another group of Heartless – not as large, yet seemingly more powerful, made its appearance. They were also knights. Only that these ones didn't carry any shields: they were armed with a spear and a sword. I managed to pierce through some of them while they stood away from me, but when some of them closed in on me, I found myself in trouble. Their attacks were quicker than I ever expected them to be. Just to parry their weapons with Masamune proved to be most challenging. Once again, however, Goofy and Ryoga defeated their adversaries quickly. This time, though, they didn't go unharmed. Even so, the wounds the Heartless had inflicted upon them weren't grave: just a few bruises and scratches. But for my part, I soon found myself without breath and overwhelmed by four knights. Seven of them had come at me and I had already slain three, yet the remaining foes nearly had me beaten. They were so busy with me that they didn't notice Goofy and Ryoga as they approached them from behind and destroyed them in a matter of seconds. I then found myself on my knees, gasping for air.

Reluctantly, Ryoga offered his hand to me as he asked: "Are you okay?"

"...A little weary." I admitted. "Let's get going." I added, getting to my feet. I only needed an instant to regain a bit of my strength.

"You know, a 'thank you' would be nice." he grumbled.

"Perhaps another day." I answered and walked past him. I heard him growl in a low voice but was silenced by Goofy, who said:

"Easy, Ryoga. He ought to learn some day."

The boy merely let out an exasperated sigh as they both kept up with me.

We exited the building and found some stairs that lead to its roof. I was about to go first, but Ryoga stepped in front of me and began to climb. I was slightly angered by this, yet then I realized that it was probably for the best if he went first. I had to remember that I had no more unlimited power within me. And so I followed him while Goofy climbed behind me.

The Heartless on the roof weren't so numerous anymore. I noticed some of them had already gone down to the battlefield to try to stop the onslaught of the rest of our companions, not to avail. All of them had been already killed or were about to be. The few enemies that remained on the roof didn't look too menacing. They were just dark balloon-like creatures made of solid shadows. They flew at us when they saw us, snapping their jaws up and down repeatedly. Goofy stopped them with his shield; Ryoga shot them a wave of energy which went through them, and I simply held my sword against them – they impaled themselves on Masamune as they flew against me.

All of the enemies were dead after a few moments. I quickly scanned the place, looking for anything suspicious that the Heartless wouldn't want us to find out. All I saw was a large bell.

"What are we looking for here, again?" asked Ryoga. "I don't see anything of special importance."

"I think they were trying to protect the bell." I retorted.

"Maybe they were just waiting for their turn..." Goofy guessed. Unlike Ryoga, there was no sarcasm in his voice.

"No other roof has Heartless on it." I observed, returning the favor by keeping calm and polite. "They were guarding the bell. Let's ring it."

Goofy ran at the rope that hung from the bell and pulled it hard. It began to ring loudly, deafening all of our companions' battle cries. As we looked down, we noticed something strange. The wall of the fountain where I had felt the strongest presence of the Heartless had changed.

"I was right after all." I said.

"I guess you were." Ryoga admitted. "Either way, I still can't see the keyhole."

"Then tell him to pull the rope again."

"One more time, Goofy!" cried the lad. The knight did as he was told.

This time, we got to see the metamorphosis. The wall spun revealing yet another hidden decoration. I can't remember the painting very well, however.

"...Still nothing." Said Ryoga after a few moments, but this time, he hadn't meant to mock me.

"The presence is getting closer." I replied. I then turned to Goofy and said aloud: "One last time!"

"Here goes!" he answered and pulled.

The wall now revealed a painting of two dark trees standing side by side. There was a glitter... and the keyhole became visible.

"There it is!" Ryoga exclaimed. "Sora, there's the keyhole! Seal it!" but before Sora could do such a thing, a dark barrier appeared on the wall.

The Heartless stepped away from the fountain as the ground began to shake. Even we could feel the tremor that shivered the plaza. This kept on going for a few instants and then, out of nowhere, appeared a very big Heartless. He could best be described as a giant knight.

"Him again?" cried Goofy as he stood next to us and looked upon the new foe. "I thought Sora had beaten him last time for good!"

"...He's changing." Ryoga muttered.

Indeed: the Heartless' hands, which floated about his body menacingly, unexpectedly flew down, becoming the foe's feet. His large boots equally turned into his strong arms and finally, his helmet opened up, revealing a mere shadow with two shiny yellow eyes. That was the real essence of the evil power I had felt on the fountain. It seemed most dangerous...

However, our companions didn't hesitate. Most of them pressed on the attack against the rest of the lesser foes while Shun, Hyoga, Ukyo, Siegfried, and Sora met the enormous, bizarre knight head on. Ryoga and Goofy themselves were about to leap down to the battlefield. But before they could do such thing, Leon, becoming aware of their intentions, raised a hand and cried:

"You guys stay up there! Be on the lookout for more Heartless!"

Of course, I wasn't thinking about going anywhere else. Not because I didn't want to help them (which I didn't, but I still felt the desire to battle more Heartless), but because I knew I wouldn't be able to survive the fall. And to think that I could fly through the skies once upon a time...

The enormous enemy began to attack our companions by bringing down its legs with fury upon them and by swinging his claws widely. They were quick to evade these attacks, yet their own blows hardly did any damage to the armor. Siegfried soon had to step back and continue his battle against the other fiends, finding himself unable to even scratch the lethal enemy. The rest of them kept on battling: they had more chance of a survival than the rookie.

"Gwarsh, it looks that he's become stronger." Goofy said.

"I wouldn't know." Ryoga said. "But they all have become stronger too, haven't they?"

"I guess so. So far, none of them has been hit."

At the moment, I remained quiet, watching attentively as the battle kept unfolding.

The enemy's attacks became faster and more aggressive by the minute. Slowly, he was gaining ground. Yet it was right about that time that Hyoga stepped back and went to Seiya's side. I saw the latter nod as the Cygnus's saint stepped behind him. Then Seiya unleashed his powerful Pegasus's Meteor Punch. I remembered that attack and how annoying it had turned out to be. Nevertheless, I chose to save my memories for later and keep on watching.

The giant Heartless stopped all of Seiya's hits and was hardly damaged by them. However, he was unable to move his legs and arms during the saint's technique. Hyoga seized this instant to run as fast as he could to his enemy and catch his legs with his hands. He concentrated all of his energy on his fingers and summoned a freezing wind to him. The monster seemed taken aback as he noticed that his legs had been frozen in the blink of an eye. Hyoga swiftly leaped back just in time to avoid the Heartless' claws, which were no longer under the effect of Seiya's attack.

The enemy's legs were completely fragile and defenseless. Yuffie took advantage of this and threw a quick shuriken at one of them. The Heartless' foot shattered like a mirror crashing against the ground. He then desperately swung his claws as if they were some sort of twister to keep our companions back as he madly struggled to free his foot from the ice. Fortunately, Akane found an opening and rolled forward between the Heartless' arms. In the midst of cries and attacks, she got to the frozen leg and broke it with a powerful punch. With great rage, the enemy tried to tear her to pieces with his claws, yet she managed to escape the arms just as Ranma went to her rescue.

The Heartless started to attack him furiously and the boy kept leaping back. More enemies joined their larger comrade in a frantic attempt to slay the lad. Ranma kept jumping back. I saw that he was slowly forming a spiral with every skip.

"That's it, Ranma..." Ryoga muttered under his breath. He had sounded quite excited. "You've got them now."

The rest of our companions below stepped as far as they could from the lad. I waited patiently to see what weapon Ranma had under his sleeve that was so terrible that everyone escaped from him.

"A-ha! Fell for it!" he cried as he came to a sudden stop. "Take this: HIRYUU SHOTEN-HA!"

His voice echoed on the walls of the buildings about him and his foes. A dreadful wind emerged from under his feet, which quickly formed a devastating tornado of energy. The large Heartless was horribly resistant: he was merely sent against a wall. He knocked it down with his large weight. His arms and torso had no more than a few dents in them. Ranma's attack had not been useless, however, for all the lesser Heartless that had come after him were turned into dust.

I then felt a presence at our backs. I quickly turned around and slashed a weak Heartless that had charged at me. Ryoga and Goofy faced the way I looked as well, only to find themselves, like me, against a small horde of soldiers and bug-like creatures. Goofy, like always, used his shield to smash his opponents; Ryoga relied on flurries of punches and kicks to terminate his and occasionally, employed his steel umbrella. As for me, I slaughtered most of them with Masamune. But there were times when I felt overwhelmed and I had to take advantage of the long fall behind me. Many Heartless died under my blade, yet many others faced their doom on the pavement below.

The last of the Heartless was soon killed. Thinking we had once again emerged victorious, we dropped our guards. It was quite a big mistake. Because just as soon as I lowered my sword, a group of dark balls of shadows appeared before us. Without warning, they lunged at us, snapping their jaws powerfully. They were so fast that I merely had time to raise Masamune up to my face to avoid having it bitten off. The Heartless knocked me back and I felt no more ground under my feet. I started to fall, yet as my voice was about to come out of my mouth in the form of a scream, I felt a hand grasp me. It had been Goofy, who held me tightly and prevented my fall. I looked at him for a moment and then turned back only to see the group of dark balls spin around and come back for us. But before they came near us, an unexpected wave of energy came from Ryoga's palms obliterated all of them...

"That ought to teach them!" he exclaimed triumphantly.

"Uh... Ryoga...!" muttered Goofy. As I noticed his worried expression, I began to feel an enormous flow of power which came from the large Heartless. I faced him and saw it was about to unleash a potent blast of energy from its torso. And he was aiming directly at us. "Help!"

"Oh, damn it!" I cried. "Do something!" I added, surprising even myself. I'm not of the kind that asks for aid.

Help did come, but not from Ryoga. The Heartless' arms floated about its upper body tranquilly; they had stopped their frantic attacks. Sora seized the moment to jump on one of them. He used it as a step to leap high into the air, and on his way up, he swung his Keyblade at the enemy's trunk. The hit was true and powerful. Though he didn't shatter the fiend, the Heartless' blast, which came immediately after Sora's attack, was deflected to one side. It went up to the sky and exploded, for one moment, making the night as bright as the day. Goofy sighed in relief (and I believe I also did).

Maddened by the boy's intermission, the Heartless send his razor sharp claws after him. Sora managed to parry them a couple of times in midair before Shun's chains caught up with them and held them in their place. The Andromeda's saint was aided by his brother, who had a firm grip on his shoulders, successfully keeping him on the ground.

"Fry him, Shun!" the Phoenix's saint shouted.

An electrical buzz filled the air about us as the arms of the Heartless were assaulted by an incredible wave of electricity. His claws began to twitch. But the power of the chain wasn't enough to destroy them. Nevertheless, the saints didn't stand alone. Aeris, Dante (who, as I had heard, had been recently trained to power up his magical spells by the magician who reseeded within the town, Merlin), and Donald quickly got to their side and cast a mighty thunder spell on the fiend's hands. The claws now went into a wild spasm and broke into pieces after a minuscule instant.

All of this had happened too quickly; Sora was still in midair. And now, seeing that his opponent was completely defenseless, he aimed his blade at the head. And again, he wasn't alone. Leon, Demean, and Ukyo held their weapons firmly as they ran to the Heartless from different directions. The foe found nowhere to run. Sora fell on the head with his deadly attack while the others slashed the torso, Leon with his mighty sword which now gleamed with a blue glow; Demean with his sharp knifes powered up by Tish's magic, and Ukyo's terrible blade, which breathed fire and moaned horribly as she unleashed the blow. All four attacks found their marks and this time the Heartless' armor was cut like tin foil. It let out a faint cry as it fell to the ground and disappeared into the night. There were no more enemies around. The battle was over.

The magical barrier protecting the keyhole vanished. Sora arrogantly swung the Keyblade a few time before pointing it at the hole and shooting a small ray of white energy which made it disappear. And when this happened, I felt a sudden pain on my chest and nearly let go of Goofy's hand. Indeed, sealing the keyholes would certainly make Ansem weaker...

"We did it!" Goofy exclaimed, with a laugh. Ryoga cheered too, as well as the rest of our companions on the plaza. Then he remembered we were still hanging from one side of the building. "Oh, sorry!" he said. He pulled me back to safe ground. "Are you okay?"

"...Somewhat tired." I replied. "Thank you."

Now, I was aware of what I said. It didn't escape my mouth: I simply said it to annoy Ryoga. I eyed him while I thanked my other companion and noticed irritation on his glance. I couldn't help to smile as Goofy chuckled and exclaimed:

"See, Ryoga? I told you he ought to learn!"

(Change of scene)

After this little episode against the Heartless, my companions bid farewell to the magician who had trained Dante and were thanked by the townsfolk. I was thanked too: I remembered the days of old, when I was the head warrior of SOLDIER. People praised me for aiding them when they were assaulted by fierce monsters. I remembered slaying those foes without even breaking a sweat. In the days of old, people loved me (and others (the minor part) hated me, for my work for Shin-Ra sometimes led me to do things thought wicked) and looked up to me. Cloud once admired me. But those days had long passed. I recalled them only for an instant as the people spoke to me. I said nothing to them, slightly confused by my feelings on the matter, slightly not caring about it at all.

We got ready to depart from Traverse Town. But before we left it behind us, we had to discuss which world we should visit next to seal the keyhole within. According to the group, there were two places known to them that still had an unlocked keyhole in them. One of them, the one they chose to travel to first to my discontent was Never Land.

"What's the matter, Sephiroth?" asked Cloud, a bit mockingly, as he saw I wasn't exactly euphoric. "I thought you didn't care what others thought about you."

"Coming to you all was awkward enough." I replied. "And now I must go with you as your defeated pet to face that damn dragon and the pesky brat. Pardon me if I'm not exactly blazing with happiness, Cloud." I added, to which he smiled and chuckled in a low voice. I didn't bother to get mad at him. I was stuck with him and the others for a long time. I didn't want to get myself in an even more uncomfortable position.

"If I may be so bold as to ask..." said Demean. "How is it that you know where Ansem and his Heartless dwell? How did you find out? After all, it is unlikely that he revealed this to you after you rejected his offer."

"He banished me from his world in a transparent bubble." I explained. "I saw as I left the world in the horizon, as well as some other things. I landed in a world which I don't know, but maybe you do. All I remember from it was an ominous castle in the distance and waterfalls that shot their currents upwards."

"Hollow Bastion." Tish quickly declared. "So if we take you there, will you know your way?"

"I think so."

We quickly boarded the ships. It wasn't necessary for me to go on alone in my lone ship. At least that's what the group thought: they wanted to keep a close eye on me. So it was that I traveled in the same ship as Cloud, Link, Sora, Kairi, Donald, Goofy, Ukyo, Octavius, and Siegfried. The first two sent their girlfriend in another ship.

I thought that the trip would be a torture. I reckoned Cloud and Link wouldn't stop telling me that if I so much as looked at Tifa or Aeris in a manner that displeased them, they would kill me without question. I thought they would all mock me, perhaps even hit me. At the very least, I imagined a silent trip in which all eyes would be fixed with quiet rage at me.

But actually, nothing of the sort happened. Octavius remained quiet, speaking from time to time with the rest of my companions about unimportant stuff, behind the ship's controls. Cloud and Link spoke amongst themselves about their couples and surprisingly barely looked at me. The same proved to be true for Donald and Goofy. Even their dog, Pluto, which I understood seldom left the Gummi ship, wagged its tail at me. I also met a quiet little cricket, Jiminy, who almost always remained close to Pluto. He wrote down the adventures of the group in a little journal and added my inclusion to the party.

But what was more amazing was that Sora, Ukyo, and from time to time, even Siegfried talked to me. Yet the thing that actually shocked me the most was that I welcomed their words. I didn't know why, but I had no anger towards them. Nor did I felt friendship. Just... tranquil coexistence, if you may.

(Change of scene)

"Did I ever tell you the time Wilheim and I got dead drunk?" Siegfried said to his friends with a smile.

"I know the story, although I've never actually heard it." Ukyo giggled.

"It was back when we were both vampires." He said. "We got drunk a couple of times. It was always when we fed from some poor intoxicated guy. And when I say intoxicated, I really mean it. Though I doubt Wilheim and I had much tolerance for alcohol, the guys we drank from would've scared the wits out of you because of their state.

"I remember the second time a little better, since it didn't happen that long ago, at least to me. On the first occasion, we had gotten drunk by accident. But this time, we meant to get inebriated! I remember saluting every person that walked our way, as well as humming Beethoven's Ode to Joy at the top of our lungs. We staggered across the street, laughing at nothing...!" then he fell silent. All of them, except for Octavius, laughed along with him and stopped when he did. His smile turned sad as he added: "That night I remember telling him how much I loved him, how much he meant to me... how much I appreciated him taking care of me."

They all remained quiet for a few moments. Then Ukyo put her arm around her and said: "Don't worry, Siegfried. We'll get him back."

"Yeah... I know we will." He muttered.

"...I remember he once told me..." Sora intervened. "That he was scared to death of women, while you could talk to them without even flinching."

Siegfried laughed merrily when he heard this.

"That's true!" he said. "There was one time in which we came across four beautiful damsels. I hastily went to their side and started to talk with them. Mostly I flattered them. I wasn't scared at all, whereas Wilheim stayed next to this guy called Pierre, his face red as a tomato, and take into account that he was a vampire back then: his unnaturally white skin had changed into a crimson red color!" and they all laughed.

I was very curious about something. Since I wasn't feeling cut off the conversations or angry, I ventured to comment: "You don't look like him at all."

There was a brief silence following my statement. But then, Siegfried replied:

"Wilheim wasn't my brother per se. We met each other when we turned fifteen and were turned to vampires at seventeen... Yet he looked after me as my older sibling. That's why I called him 'older brother'. We were always together... That's why I say he was my brother. Not because we came from the same mother. As far as I know, that wasn't the case. Still, none of us could tell, since we lost our real parents at a very early age. We met each other in the streets of our country, just by the time the Great War was starting."

"It must have been awful for you." Octavius said. "To roam about the streets of Berlin with that merciless gunfire and those horrid bombings."

"I still don't know how we survived that..." he confessed.

"It's strange." I said. "I thought he was the one that had turned you into a vampire."

"No. He was turned with me by the same monster." He replied. Then his voice turned a bit angry as he named him. "His name was Magnus. He was the most evil being I ever met... I'm glad he's dead."

"Is that so?" I asked. "How was he evil?" there was no sarcasm or mockery in my voice. I was simply curious.

"That Wilheim and I had to feed every night was bad enough." He explained, far from being offended by my words. "But in addition to that, we had to take victims to Magnus as well. The bastard would slaughter and degut them in front of us and would then drink what little blood was left in them. He didn't need much, anyway. He was too powerful for that. We were his slaves out of his mere amusement."

"Why didn't you kill him?"

"Come on, do you really think that thought didn't pass through our minds countless times? We would've killed him if he weren't so damn powerful. We only defeated him once: and it wasn't even a physical battle. All we could hope to do was to escape from him."

"It seems to me that you did that, at least." I said. "But when did you kill him?"

"I don't know about that." He answered. "But I can tell you about the last time we ran away... Wilheim had an idea one night, after we had tried to convince him to let us leave. Naturally, he refused. I became so mad at him that I lost all my fear towards him. But I could see that my brother was still very frightened of Magnus. I didn't care about dying. I actually longed for death, as did Wilheim. Yet we refused to bring it upon ourselves...

"Anyway, Wilheim proposed that we burned the castle where Magnus slept. And so we did. We were free for four years; but one night he appeared before us and beat us with his amazing strength. He took us back to his hiding place, to our miserable, little room and our two coffins. The following night... he killed me."

"Killed you?" I asked, shocked by the statement.

"He's come back to life because of Wilheim, I think." Ukyo intervened. "Because of what he did. Gabrielle, a powerful oracle, told us that when he sacrificed himself, he stirred many things. That's why, according to her judgment, Siegfried is alive."

"Interesting..."

"Anyway, I helped Wilheim kill Magnus. Ryoga, Ranma, and Akane, and other two guys called Mousse and Shampoo lend a hand too. That was thirty-one years after you were gone, I think..." she said, glancing at Siegfried as she did.

"How... did it happen?" Kairi asked softly and curiously.

"It's a long story..." she replied. I noticed in her voice that indeed the tale was long. She hadn't said that because she didn't want to narrate it.

"Well, how much time do we have before we reach Never Land?" asked Cloud.

"According to Tifa, we will be there in at least another six hours." Octavius answered.

"That is enough time. Come on, Ukyo. Tell the story. We are all eager to listen to it." Link pressed.

"It would be a nice entry on my journal." Jiminy said.

"What are you talking about?" Ukyo replied. "You barely say a word when we are traveling. Now you want me to tell you all those things?"

"If it's worth telling..."

"Come on, Ukyo. It's time someone other than Demean told us some stories." Donald said. "Not that I don't like them, though..."

"He's right, Ukyo! It's not going to hurt you!" Goofy said.

"Even Sephiroth wants to hear about it!" Sora added.

The commentary hadn't been exactly accurate. Not because I wasn't interested, but because of who I was, obviously. They all looked from Sora to me in silence, not knowing whether to laugh or tell him to shut his mouth. Whatever the case, so far he had been kind to me. So I decided to save his skin.

"I'm all ears." I said.