Right, so I know this chapter is late. Just...I dunno. Something came up in my personal life, and I have no idea why, but this chapter was just hard for me to right. So, I'm sorry it's late, but please, enjoy it now.

Also, before the chapter begins, I found a few KH facts online that I thought were interesting:

First, I saw like the crackiest pairing ever the other day. Namitas. Namine + Vanitas. Just...what?

Also, I found out that both Zexion's VA (Vincent Corazza) and Larxene's VA (Shanelle Gray) have some odd roles on their resumes. Miss Gray voice Wendy in the Wendy's fast food adds (I will never look at that place the same way again), while Mr. Corazza voiced Tuxedo Mask in the english dub of Sailor Moon. This series gets weirder by the second.

Finally, whether this is true or not can be disputed, but I read a report online that SE wanted to produce a Kingdom Hearts anime. But Disney, since they own the entirety of Kingdom Hearts, original things included, told SE up front, if there was to be an animated KH series, they would animate it themselves. So, no KH anime produced by Square, and (probably) animated by BONES.

I think I speak for a lot of people when I say: that blows. Big time.

Chapter 35: The Last Keybladers

The next day came to Ivalice, with Ed, Al, and Riku still within Kalyn's chambers. Oddly enough, the girl was nowhere to be found when the three woke. After their little talk last night, Riku and Kalyn sat in silence for an hour or so, before they decided they should get some sleep, and they descended down back into the shadow city of Lowtown. Fortunately, neither Ed nor Al noticed their absence, and they could pretend like nothing happened.

And nothing did happen! Right? Sure, Riku could admit that Kalyn was a very attractive woman, even if she was a bit rough around the edges. Kind of snide. Cold, in a way. And even Riku, loveless loser that he is, could also admit he felt a bit of a spark between himself and Kalyn. But it wasn't that kind of a spark. Far from it, he told himself all night. It was just a part of him reacting to someone who had the same dreams and desires that he had when he was younger.

Even several hours removed from that weird twinge in his heart, Riku was still trying to convince himself it was nothing. It's just a shallow, physical attraction. He told himself. The door leading to the rest of this hidden base was locked, leaving the heroic trio to stew inside for the time being. She has a nice body, and shows it off. Nice long, toned legs, rich, deep eyes... The white haired boy cringed, catching himself. Okay, stop! This is not me. I'm not a romantic. For god's sake, I'm not Sora!

Like a finely tuned machine, Dawn's voice ringed in his mind. That you are not! The Spirit chirped. Every opportunity she got, she would throw her two cents in. Besides, the girl dresses like a hooker...

If I didn't know any better Dawn, I would say you're jealous of her.

Jealous? Me? She sounded insulted. Why would I be jealous of the Queen of Tramps?

Well, you sound jealous. Riku noted. Dawn huffed loudly.

It makes no difference whether I am or not! After today, she'll be out of our lives for good.

"Hey. Riku!" Ed snapped his fingers in front of Riku's face. "Earth to Riku." The Warrior of Dawn broke his concentration, returning to the real world. "You were going all spacey on us."

"Sorry." He apologized. "I was just thinking about something."

"Was it Kalyn?" Al asked. As if on instinct, Riku's face reddened instantly.

"What? No. No. Just...what are we going to do today?"

"Yeah right," Ed snorted in a disbelieving tone. "Anyone could see you were making eyes at her all of yesterday."

Riku shrugged, trying to play it off. "Well, you have to admit, she is kind of attractive."

Ed blew a raspberry. "I couldn't pass her bitchy attitude to see whatever it is you're seeing."

Just then, the lock on the door clacked open. It swung open, revealing Kalyn. "Be careful what you say, Elric." She warned. Today, the Dalmascan girl had done away with her hauberk and helmet, instead wearing a light blue leather vest, lined with ringmail on the insides. She also wore something akin to bicycle shorts that ended just above her knees. Kalyn still wore her greaves, vambraces, rerebraces and boots, and was armed with her rapier, crossbow and shield. "The walls here possess ears."

The off-worlders then noticed that Kalyn was accompanied by two people, both of which looked too old to be apart of her normal cadre of orphans. One was a male Hume, the other was a female Viera.

"What's this?" The Hume mused. "Might these be suitors for the for our self-crowned Queen of Lowtown?" He was a tall man, with slick, short dark blonde hair. He wore an embroidered golden vest over a white, high-collared shirt, tight leather pants, shin pads, and open-backed steel sandals. He carried himself with a mixed air of dignity and arrogance, and had a narrow, sharp, and shrewd face.

The Viera sniffed the air. "They look strange. And smell equally odd." She declared in a voice thick with an odd accent. The Viera stood even taller than the man beside her. She had dark skin, red eyes, and long, thick white hair. She had the lapine features of all Viera, with two rabbit ears poking out from her dark metal helmet. Her manner of dress was... exotic seemed the most appropriate word. Her entire outfit was crafted of a dark metal, but it only covered a minimal amount of her body; shins, thighs, waist, ribs, breasts, and arms. The rest of her body was exposed. She also wore black stiletto heels, that were another trademark of her race.

Ed glared at her after the comment. "Who are you calling strange?"

"Easy kid," Kalyn chided sardonically. "Fran just follows her sharp intuition. Which is usually right." She smiled wickedly at the joke. "Anyways, this is Balthier," she motioned to the man, "and his partner, Fran," she motioned to the Viera woman. "They are Sky Pirates, and happen to be my mentors in the art of thievery, two years ago."

"Sky Pirates?" Riku asked quizzically.

"Adventurers and bandits who travel around Ivalice in airships." Kalyn explained quickly.

"We happen to fall into both categories." Balthier quipped.

The Rabanastre thief continued the introductions. "Balthier, Fran, this is Edward, Alphonse, and Riku. They are...from outside Dalmasca, visiting the city, and ended up getting mixed up in one of our operations the other day."

"They do not look like they even come from Ivalice." Came Fran, in an inquisitive manner. She turned to the trio. "Where do you hail from, boys?"

Since none of the three knew anything about Ivalician history or geography, they had no idea what to say. After an awkward amount of stalling, Kalyn jumped in and saved them.

"It doesn't matter where they come from." She said hastily. "Their just a bunch of kids that got taken here by mistake, and will soon be out, back on the streets." Both Balthier and Fran gave Kalyn, the Keyblader, and the alchemist brothers shrewd looks, but nothing really came of it.

"Interesting," Balthier said, not completely convinced, it seemed. He then faced Kalyn. "I think it is about time we take our leave. Mooring too long in Rabanastre can be hazardous to his health. Farewell, Kalyn."

The three Ivalicians shared nods, before Balthier and Fran left as quickly as they came.

"What were they here for?" Alphonse asked, after they had left.

"Archades is appointing a new Lord Consul sometime next week," Kalyn began. "And they are planning on throwing a fete for him. They were here to..."scout the accommodations", as Balthier put it. And to prime me for information, seeing as how they haven't been in the city in almost a year." Almost immediately, the abruptly added, "So, when are you three leaving?"

"Why are you so eager to get rid of us?" Riku argued.

She frowned at him. "I think I explained it well enough yesterday."

Riku was about to say something, but Ed cut him off. "Enough Riku." The diminutive Keyblader said. "She doesn't want us here, and I really don't want to be here either. I'm sick of being crammed in such a small space." He groaned bitterly. Kalyn crossed her arms in a satisfied manner. The Queen had gotten her way.

Then, a crazy idea entered Riku's head. "What are you going to do?" He asked the brunette thief.

"What's it to you?" She sneered in counter.

A sneaky smile appeared on the Keyblader's face. "Well, remember what we talked about last night?" He questioned slyly. A look crossed Kalyn's face, a look somewhere between annoyance and worry.

"Last night?" Alphonse repeated. "What happened last night?" His older brother shrugged.

"I dunno." Ed said. "I was asleep the entire time." Fullmetal then eyed the two older teens with his suspicious eyes. "What happened between you two?"

"Nothing happened!" Kalyn snapped. She then turned to Riku. "You're walking on dangerous ground kid."

Something in Riku made him press on. "Come on. Don't deny it. All you did last night was talk about how you hated the life you were in. You wanted freedom. So I'm curious. Was that just talk? Or are you really going to do what you want to with your life?"

Kalyn's hand palmed at the hilt of her rapier. "What I do with my life is my business!" Even with her threatening tone and stance, Riku didn't back down, so Kalyn turned away and left through the door. "All three of you, leave. Now!"

Ed and Al looked at Riku, before the three followed out of the door. "What the hell was that about?" Ed asked Riku.

"None of your concern." The group entered the main portion of the hideout, Riku following Kalyn, and Ed and Al following Riku. "Come on!" Riku continued, Kalyn ignoring him. The various orphans were watching the spat with confusion. "You poured your soul out last night. You can't just ignore that."

It looked like the young woman was going to keep walking, but she stopped dead in her tracks. The air in front of her was rippling, like a heat mirage. From the rippling came the cold, malicious form of Vaniele Trinity.

"You should be more concerned about your own soul, than hers." Vaniele threatened with a cruel and terrible glower on her face.

The Ivalicians were paralyzed by the sudden appearance of the Immortals, Kalyn included. Riku just stared the remaining Trinity Sibling down.

"What are you here for, Vaniele?" Riku asked, Way to the Dawn appearing in his hand. "To avenge the brother I struck down?"

Vaniele barked in laughter. "Hardly. If I were any other kind of person, I would thank you for eliminating that annoyance I called brother from existence." Twin bowie knives appeared in her hands. "No. Recently, your Dawn powers have been judged a major threat to our goal. So I am here to eliminate you."

"Bring it!" Riku called.

Lightning-quick, Vaniele vaulted over the frozen Kalyn and dashed at Riku. The silver-haired teen was just as fast, meeting the Immortal and blocking her first slash. She followed up, but he dodged, and rolled away as Edward joined the fray. Fullmetal Fury cut through the air, narrowly missing Vaniele's head. The female Immortal had ducked the slash, following that up with a kick to Ed's stomach, before going after Riku once more.

As this was going on, Kalyn finally managed to regain her composure. "Scatter!" She yelled, ordered, to those around her. Her battalion of thieves sprung into action, obeying their Queen, and scurried away through various entrances.

Vaniele was twirling her knives around, the blades flashing through the air, as the bounced and sparked off of Al's armoured arms. Not getting anywhere, Vaniele maneuvered around the lumbering suit of armour, now behind his back, and once more going after Riku. Riku went for a downward slash with Way to the Dawn, but it was blocked by a sweeping kick. The last Trinity Sibling lunged at Riku with both of her knives. The Keyblade Master narrowly avoided getting nicked by the weapons, his head weaving left and right to avoid the strikes. Vaniele then went for a inward scissoring cut, but Riku dodged it by ducking quickly. He went for a thrust to Vaniele's gut, but his foe simply sidestepped the Keyblade. It looked like she was going to bring her bowie knives down on the crouching Riku, but she never got that opportunity. A twang rang through the air, and something burrowed itself in between Vaniele's shoulder blades. Kalyn was still in the room, having fired a crossbow quarrel right at the Immortal. The pain stunned her just long enough for Riku to elbow Vaniele in the face, and then a downward slash along her stomach.

"You three, with me. Now!" Kalyn barked at the three other-worldly warriors. She then bowled herself into Vaniele, knocking her down and causing her to bounce against a wall, hard. Kalyn ran back into her own quarters, the others following.

"What are we going to do in here?" Ed asked, as Kalyn shut the door, hoping to buy them more time. "We're completely trapped!"

"How soon you forget." Kalyn went over to a carpet hanging from the wall and pulled it down, revealing her secret entrance to the Garamsythe Waterway! "Hurry. We don't have a lot of time. There's an entrance to the surface not too far from here." With that, Kalyn jumped through the entrance, pass the waterfall, and into the sewers below.

With the only other option to fight Vaniele in this cramped area, Alphonse, Edward, and Riku took the plunge, diving over the edge and into the water below.

The jump wasn't too high, and they ended up landing in ankle deep waters (knee deep for Ed), which was a little jarring. Al took special care to avoid getting his blood seal wet. After a few moments of gaining their ground, they saw Kalyn slogging her way through the sewers, towards a large set of stone stairs.

The boys went to follow, but quick trek was halted when Vaniele reappeared, shooting through the hole in Kalyn's quarters, wings deployed, and diving down onto the party. She was specifically aiming for Riku, who rolled away to avoid being clipped. The female Immortal turned around, skimming above the water and charging for Riku again. This time, they clashed, Keyblade striking with and against the twin knives.

Vaniele continued to strafe and dodge around Riku nimbly, keeping the Elrics at bay, while repeatedly striking at Riku, knives grinding against the wing of Way to the Dawn. Vaniele proved way too quick and agile for any of the three heroes to damage her, and her fighting style of rapid thrusts and lightning-fast slices kept her opponent's continually on the defensive. Kalyn fired another shot from her crossbow from atop the stairs, but the sailing projectile was easily slashed to bits by Vaniele.

Several thrusts and wicked fast cuts came from the Immortal, but were all quickly blocked by Riku. The combos were slowly pushing Riku backwards through the scummy waters, and Vaniele was always quick to keep Alphonse and Edward away from her and her prey. Wings unfolded, Vaniele easily jumped over Riku, tumbling behind him and continuing the attack. Every few seconds, she would zip away from Riku, either repositioning her attack or knocking the Elrics back.

The speed and ferocity of the attacks made this a maddening experience.

Checking over his shoulder to the stairway, Ed saw that Kalyn had already abandoned them. Damn thief, can't trust a single one of them! The aerial Immortal was slowly overwhelming them. She was fast as a flash, able to dodge attacks with ease and able to rain down a flurry of precise attacks. It also didn't help that the water they stood in made it more difficult to move in.

An idea formed in Ed's head in that instance.

"Riku! Move away from her, quickly!" Riku responded to the command instantly, kicking Vaniele in the face before using the Dawn Skates to slide across the water's surface. Ed followed up by stabbing Fullmetal Fury into the water, a red array appearing under Vaniele. In a great eruption, the water was instantly boiled, shooting up in a cloud of superheated steam.

"GYAAHHH!" The scalding mist was hot enough to even burn Vaniele's skin, causing the Immortal to writhe in pain, pausing and staggering blindly and erratically.

With the distraction, the three teenage boys headed for the stairs where Kalyn disappeared, traversing them as fast as their legs could carry them, and passing through a metal gate to arrive on the sun-drenched surface of Rabanastre.

"Took you three long enough." Kalyn's voice rang out. The girl in particular was standing off to the side of the entrance to the Waterway, looking apprehensive, as she was cloaked by the shadows.

"You know, you could have done more than just abandon us entirely." Ed snapped. Kalyn blew him off with a dismissive gesture.

"I don't remember ever being appointed your caretaker." She then approached the three, the small group of four walked briskly through the streets of Rabanastre, most people not knowing Kalyn was a wanted criminal. "Now do you see why I want you three gone? I imagine that having a psychopath descend upon you is a regular occurrence?"

Riku ignored the question. "We'll get out of your hair soon enough, but why did you stay and help us? You could have scattered with the rest of your crew and left us to our own devices."

Kalyn gritted her teeth in response. "You can't take a hint, can you?" She growled lowly.

"You know, you can just let us run free now." Ed said impatiently. "Not that you have any problem with that, as we've already seen."

The thief replied by pointing forward. "I can't just 'let you run free'. You and that woman will end up ruining half the city. This path," the way she was pointing, they took it, "will take you out of the city and to the Giza Plains. Do battle with her there and then do whatever it is you please. Just don't bother me anymore."

Riku was about to start another argument with the Dalmascan girl, about why she was so ready to get rid of them, when the street gave way suddenly. Around thirty-metres to their left, a blast of energy shot forth from beneath the ground, displacing bystanders and stones alike in a gout of dust. Rising from that dust, seething in anger, was Vaniele, wings spread outward as she climbed higher and higher into the air. The citizens of Rabanastre had the common sense to flee following the appearance of the Immortal, who instantly locked her gaze on the white-haired form of Riku, dive bombing him like a falcon.

This time though, Riku was ready for the clash, remembering Vaniele's weakness from the other two times they fought. He fired a Ray of Dawn blast at the swooping enemy. She veered out of the way, redirecting her course after avoiding the blast. She was still unable to absorb such a powerful type of energy. As the diving Trinity sibling approached Riku, he pulled something out of her book, jumping straight clear over her, and raking the tip of his Keyblade through her back.

The blow through Vaniele off course, causing her to tumble through the air, and skid across the stones upon landing. She went for another charge, but had to veer off course again, or else run into a barrier of spikes created by Ed. Mid-dodge, she was hit by a second Ray of Dawn, which sliced through the side of her arm, and caused her to float away from her adversaries.

Vaniele quickly landed, folding her wings up, as the heroes slowly closed in on her. Riku held his Keyblade up in a threatening manner, ready to blast the Immortal if she tried anything funny. "Give it up Vaniele!" He shouted. Alphonse and Ed stood to his sides while Kalyn stayed behind, uncaring at the moment. "We know all your tricks. You won't be able to do anything to us."

Vaniele grinned slyly at the threat. "Oh really? Well, then I will let you in on a little secret." Her wings unfolded again. Riku jumped into his battle stance reactively. "Every Immortal always carries a little 'trick' close to their chest, just in case. My brother was a cocky fool, so he never had to chance to use his. But I won't play so recklessly."

The circuitry lining that covered her body began to shine with an even more intense light, growing thicker and pulsing with electric blue life. Vaniele held her arms at forty-five degree angle, as the knives she gripped began to shake and glow with a sickly orange energy. Her body began to emit same orange, plasmatic haze, as the blue circuitry lining shone brighter still. With one final gout of the fog-like aura, Vaniele's eyes turned into shining orbs of energy, the same colour as the energy running down her body, and her bowie knives had transformed.

Their hilts and guards were akin to fencing foils, and even the blade maintained a similar thinness to a foil's blade, except that the blades were not made of steel, but instead were long, burning orange lasers.

The newly upgraded Immortal grinned, an emotion on her face that was a cross between satisfaction and anger. The glowing eyes caught Riku once again, and she prepared to charge after her target.

But she wasn't fast enough. "That's your secret move? Not impressed, lady!" Riku declared, before thrusting Way to the Dawn out again. "Take this! Ray of Dawn!"

The gold and black beam fired for a third time, intending to do more damage to the energy absorber. This time, Vaniele stood her ground, staying immobile as the beam made contact. No impact, no explosion, no pain, no blood. This time, the bolt of Dawn energy was absorbed directly into Vaniele's body, like it was any other type of energy! Chuckling darkly, Vaniele paid Riku back in kind, by opening her mouth and firing her own energy blast.

It hit the stone ground before Riku, knocking up a dust cloud and forcing the silver-haired teen and his alchemist allies away from one another. Vaniele was quick to capitalize, flying out of the dust cloud and descending upon Riku with her new energy swords.

Her swordsmanship had improved with her weapons, as Vaniele hovered about Riku, darting at him with lightning-quick thrusts, and spinning the blades in her hands, creating wide, wheeling slashes. This is just too ridiculous! He was able to either block or dodge all of the attacks, sparks flying from his Keyblade, and narrowly avoiding the energy foils. It's like she's using the exact opposite of Dawn's strategy from the other day. Energy absorption instead of nullification, and overwhelming offence instead of impossible speed! Every time the wheeling, darting sabres came near his body, he could feel the intense, smoldering heat and the dull buzz that they gave off. It uncomfortably reminded him of Xemnas and his aerial blades.

Come on! You're not losing to this freaky bitch! Dawn cheered from inside his heart. Just cripple her, stop her offence, and show her your moves! Put that freaky bitch in her place! Even in the heat of battle, the Spirit was unusually chipper and energetic.

Easier said than done. Riku returned. He quickly blocked an x-cut with a Sun Shield. At least he could still use his non-offensive Dawn abilities. I need a distraction, for starters.

Ask and you shall receive apparently, as just then, Vaniele paused for a moment. With a quick shove of her boot, she pushed Riku back far enough for her to twist around, seeing Ed and Al trying to formulate an attack of their own. The energized Immortal quickly whipped one of her energy foils through the air, the blade bending and extending like an actual whip, and striking the ground and unleashing a burst of energy that upturned the ground once more, holding the Elrics at bay for the time being.

Couldn't ask for a better moment!

Riku launched himself into the air, planning on diving down on Vaniele, stabbing her right between her wings. But the Immortal once again proved her intuitive awareness in combat, turning around and sidestepping the attack moments before Riku would have hit her. While recovering from the overextending lunge, Vaniele acted quickly, scraping her energy foils at Riku.

With wide-arcing and wheeling blows, the orange sabres tore through Riku's vest and shirt, and biting hotly into his pectorals. His entire body staggered for a moment after each hit, the vicious, burnings strikes instantly taking there toll on the Keyblader. Because of the heat of the energy weapons, no blood was drawn, but instead, they left behind angry, red, smoking scars all over his chest as the wounds were instantly cauterized. It was a miracle that Riku didn't pass out from the pain of the five burning slashes, which Vaniele promptly followed up with a thrust kick, knocking her foe far away, stumbling to the ground.

Riku was slow to get to his feet, his breathing shallow and ragged. "Is that all you got?" The taunt was empty. He felt like a white-hot iron weight was being pressed down onto his chest. All the same, he assumed his fighting pose once again.

Vaniele cocked her head sideways, her face twitching in anger. "Your mouth just doesn't know when to quit." She snapped, before snapping her left energy foil forward. The orange laser blade extended forward, snaking through the air and coiled around Way to the Dawn and Riku's right arm. The searing pain returned as the orange whip burned through his sleeve and onto his skin. The right blade was soon to follow, wrapping around Riku's neck, lightning-fast.

This was too much for Riku. He struggled against the vice like grip of the coils, gurgling in pain through his constricted airway, writhing in pain from his burning bindings.

But Vaniele was far from done. She tugged on both of her swords, hoisting Riku off the ground and whipping him through the air, his body crashing into a stone wall at a high velocity! His body was screaming in agony and Riku was trying to release that scream, but could only grunt and gurgle aloud.

AUUGH! Dawn? DAWN! Help me! Please! Dawn? Sora? Kairi? HELP!

No answer came to him, from his own heart or from the real world, as Vaniele continued to throw him around like a ragdoll, whipping and smashing him into buildings, walls, fountains, and the street, before finally releasing him, semi-conscious, and sending him flopping along the wrecked streets of Rabanastre.

A grin of utter satisfaction and adulation spread across Vaniele's face, her glowing eyes shining even brighter (if that were possible). "My, my, my..." She exclaimed with subdued excitement. She was dragging her energy foils along the streets, leaving large gouges of stone slag as she approached the dazed Keyblade Master. "So this is how the new Warrior of Dawn falls? And after all I have heard. After all that bravado..." Vaniele shook her head. "Here I thought you would be a challenge. But when I consider your past opponents... It seems I overestimated your talents. Josef was a fool, you would have lost to Zexion if it weren't for Namine, and Sora was the one that finished Xemnas." She made the final, slow steps towards her prey.

But one last blockade was thrown between her and her objective. The Elrics and Kalyn dashed from the sides, imposing their bodies between Riku and Vaniele. She stopped dead in her tracks, the satisfied grin turning to annoyance.

"You sure are persistent. Fitting, for a bunch insects."

The three paused, one eye trained on Vaniele, the other watching the barely moving Riku. Edward was about to say hell to the hesitance, when Kalyn spoke up.

"Ed. Al. Get Riku out of here." She ordered calmly. "I'll hold her off." The thief drew her rapier and un-slung her shield.

"What?" Ed balked. "Are you crazy? She'll tear you to pieces!"

"Why do you have to argue with everything I say?" Kalyn asked back. "Just go! Run for it while you have the chance!"

"And abandon you?" Alphonse replied. "We couldn't do that!"

Kalyn gritted her teeth. "Do you idiots really get so attached with everyone you meet? Why do you care about me? Run, run now!"

Although they had their objections to running away, especially Alphonse, but they begrudgingly complied with the thief, Alphonse hoisting Riku over his shoulder, as Vaniele and Kalyn stood off.

"Your throwing away your life, for those three?" Vaniele mused, curiosity crossing her face. "What reason could you have for that?"

"None." Kalyn stated simply. The Elrics had already started their retreat, slowly making their way up the street, the injured Riku in tow. "And I don't need one either. Sometimes the best answers in life come from following one's heart."

"What a stupid girl." Vaniele muttered. "'Following your heart'? That's what every hero proclaims before they do something rash and die."

Kalyn glared down the energized Immortal, assuming a fighting stance. Shield out, sword at her side. "Whatever. I could care less what you think. For the past two years, I've been living for everyone and everything but myself." A trembling energy was building inside of her, something she hadn't felt in sometime. She then cried out defiantly, "So from now on, my life is all about me, what I want, what I need! To hell with what other people think, and to hell with the world around me!"

Around twenty-metres ahead of Kalyn, Edward noticed a very familiar aura spreading around the environment. The world slowly turned to a sepia tone, and everything either stopped or slowed down. The final Blank Medallion of the group floated out of Riku's pocket, shining white against the sepia sea, and aimed at Kalyn, who was motionless.

"You got to be kidding me!" Ed called in disbelief. He noticed that somehow Al was immune to the time slow. "She's a Keyblader! What did she do to deserve one?"

"Well, she did stand up to Vaniele." Al brought up. "And she is sort of sacrificing herself for us."

Edward grunted in annoyance, leveling Fullmetal Fury at the shining Medallion. "Either way, this means we're seeing more of her, and she's going to annoy me further." He fired a ray of light from his Keyblade, through the Medallion, and sending it into Kalyn. "Give me a break..."

The sepia aura began to recede, as Edward and Al continued their retreat, and Kalyn and Vaniele continued their stare down.

"I suppose I can't get you to stand down." Vaniele said. Kalyn just glared daggers at her. The Immortal shrugged. "Oh well. I'll enjoy cutting you to shreds, after that damn bolt you shot in my back!"

Vaniele set off again, cruising above the ground. Kalyn brought her shield up to defend, but Vaniele easily slashed through the top of the wooden shield, the burning blades also searing through the leather straps of the shield. It fell off of Kalyn's arm in a broken, burning heap.

Kalyn quickly spun away from her opponent, whose momentum carried her farther way from her. She went for the attack, swinging her rapier at the airborne Immortal, only for it to be blocked by one of the energy foils. Being an energy weapon, it easily slashed through the steel rapier, like it was nothing. One more slash reduced the blade to a stump attached to the hilt. Vaniele followed with another wheeling, spinning strike, which Kalyn barely dodged. The orange foil narrowly missed hacking off her arm, and instead tore off her right rerebrace. She quickly took two steps backwards, and drew her crossbow. But before she could even fire it, Vaniele brought her foil down on the weapon, smashing it into burning splinters.

It was clear that Vaniele was toying with Kalyn, seeing her as a lesser foe compared to Riku, using much slower and more deliberate swords swings. Still, Kalyn was a thief, not a trained warrior, and so even this tactic was a little overwhelming. She kept back-stepping away from the superheated shafts of orange light, waves of heat washing over her with every slash. And with every slash, Vaniele got closer to slicing Kalyn up...

Damn it! She cursed mentally. Vaniele's last slash was too closer for comfort, severing a few strands of caramel hair from her head. Damn it! This is becoming a sad, recurring theme in my life...being left helpless by forces I can't control. Vaniele lunged forward, forcing Kalyn to twist her whole body around to avoid being skewered by the energy foil. She gnashed her teeth together, growling fiercly under her breath. I've been trapped these past two years. All of Dalmasca has. Utterly helpless. No more! She hopped backwards, freeing more space between her and Vaniele. From now on, I fight for myself. For what I want, for my heart. I won't be trapped anymore!

Kalyn reared back, fully intent on socking the energized Immortal before her with a strong right hand...

But, as the fist flew through the air, as Vaniele brought up a foil to block the attack, before the fist and sword could meet, a bright light emanated from thin air, catching Kalyn and turning her entire world to white.

When the flash faded, she stood atop a large pedestal, seemingly made out of stained glass. The center of the tower pictured herself, arms spread wide, standing between sea and sky. To the left of her image were a set of circles. Most of these circles were blacked out, with the exception of one, which showed the face of Riku. The outer-most ring of the pedestal was composed of very fine swords, each one pointing outward from the pedestal. Each sword had a single wing jutting from the right side of their crossguard.

Kalyn slowly realized what had transpired before her arrival in her heart. She looked at her fist and called out, to no one in particular, "A-Am I dead?"

No. A voice replied. It was mysterious and inaudible, sounding out only in Kalyn's mind. You are not dead. You simply have been chosen.

"'Chosen'?" Kalyn repeated. "Chosen for what?"

To wield a great power. A power that means many things for many people. But for you... It means you shall be able to open your heart, the power of freedom.

"'Freedom'?" She repeated again, this time more awestruck than anything else. "If you're offering freedom, then give it here!" She reached up to the sky, towards the slim amount of life filtering downwards. "I don't care what the consequences are, just give it! Please!"

Your willingness is refreshing. The voice replied, before a tiny orb of brighter light descended from the sky, this one a pale blue colour. It stopped just short of Kalyn's outstretched fingertips.

With all the height she could muster from her frame, Kalyn lifted herself up, clasping both hands around the pale blue light.

Quicker than she cared to think, Kalyn was pulled back into the real world.

Vaniele was expecting Kalyn's fist to meet her sabre, which would end with the sabre slicing through her hand, arm, and vambrace. Instead, the sabre struck with a solid object. Something that offered resistance to the stream of energy. Vaniele checked to see what had happened, and was shocked to see what was locked with her energy foil.

Quickly, she separated herself from Kalyn, who was still recovering from her trip into her heart.

She was shocked herself, when she saw what she was now gripping. Where nothing had been there before, Kalyn now held a new sword in her right hand. No, more than a sword... it was a Keyblade! Her Keyblade! Both the hilt and guard were unique for a Keyblade, with the hilt being curved, and shaped like the wing of some elegant, white bird. Instead of a fully-circular guard surrounding the hilt, the guard was only on one side of the hilt, shaped like a simple arc of dark blue metal, with three rain drop shapes jutting out from arc, pointed ends facing out. The blade curved and waved, like an undulating wave of water, shining like blue crystal, or a sheet of ice. Where the wave blade ended, it curved in on itself, like an actual wave, and the teeth of the key shot out from inward curve, taking the form of a large, white swan wing. The keychain itself was a winged sword hanging from a blue and white chain.

"You..." Vaniele snarled, trying to hide her flabbergasted nature. She didn't want to face the truth of yet another Keyblade appearing. "What is that?"

Another voice entered Kalyn's mind, whispering words to her. The grace of water. The voice was different, but somehow familiar. Freedom.

With newfound confidence brimming in her, Kalyn smiled in an self-assured manner, talking back to Vaniele. "Freedom." The simple word flew off of her tongue, making her smile even more. "It is my freedom!"

Glowering madly at her foe's newfound confidence and boldness, Vaniele suddenly saw Kalyn as more than something to toy with. She could be a legitimate threat to her mission and her life. As such, Vaniele decided to take the easy way out.

Wings unfolded, she took to the air, dashing over Kalyn and right after Ed and Al, planning on finishing Riku off. But she couldn't get close enough for the final blow, as a geyser of water suddenly shot out from the street, blasting her in the face and forcing her flying backwards, crashing against a wall. Behind her, Kalyn stood, her Keyblade pointing at where the geyser appeared.

"This fight in between the two of us, Vaniele." Kalyn warned her enemy, who, for the first time since assuming her upgraded form, had faced a set back. Kalyn then raised her newly-acquired Freedom above her head, a blue beam of energy firing into the clouds. "Water of Hermes!"

As the beam shot high above, pools of blue energy appeared in the sky, unleashing a rainfall of glowing blue energy, which fell down in a cascade, most of it falling around Ed, Al, and Riku. When the cascade ended, Riku was engulfed in blue energy, the new scars on his body fading, and consciousness soon returned to him.

"Riku?" Alphonse asked, as the white-haired teen began to stir on his shoulder. "Take it easy. You're still hurt."

"No. I'm not." Riku retorted, sliding off of Al's shoulders. His clothes were in tatters, but it was true, all of the wounds Vaniele inflicted were gone. He looked over at Kalyn, who was facing down the recovered Immortal.

"So... do we let her fight by herself?" Ed asked. Riku nodded in silence, still amazed what had transpired in the past few minutes.

Vaniele got back to her feet, cricking her neck. Her mouth was a hard line, anger flashing in her glowing eyes. "So...you've found your freedom, eh?" Vaniele snarled, annoyance and anger very visible upon her. Her wings suddenly shot outward, her orange aura shining fiercer, reflecting her own rage.

"Too bad the only freedom you're going to know is the freeing embrace of death!"

"We really should start packing warmer clothing."

The party of Sora, Kairi, Dayne, Mulan, Mushu, and Rin had just reached the foot of the Tseng-Shao mountain pass, and already they could feel the crisp, cold mountain air wafting down from the snowy trail. Both Mulan and Rin seemed unfazed by the temperature, but the others were not. Mushu had retreated into Mulan's tunic, his head popping out, while Dayne had buttoned up his coat, crossing his arms over his chest for good measure. Sora and Kairi were no so lucky since they were not equipped with the best winter clothing, as Sora's statement referred to.

"Well, at least you're not coldblooded." Mushu replied between chattering teeth.

"True enough." Kairi offered the small dragon. "But Sora, it's not we travel to cold worlds a lot. The only place that has been really cold so far was Christmas Town, and the world provided us with warmer clothing there."

"I though you have been here before." Rin said. Sora nodded in reply. "Then, how did you stay warm your first time climbing the pass?"

Sora held his chin in thought for a moment. "You know what? I don't really know. Everything sort of just worked out without me thinking about it." Dayne rolled his eyes.

"You're the strangest hero I have ever known." Dayne sighed. He then breathed into his hands, rubbing them to try and get a little warmer.

Rin spoke up again. "So...what shall we do?" The young woman asked. "I mean, we cannot progress as we are now. Sora and Kairi could freeze to death."

Kairi's eyes lit up with an idea. "Actually..." She summoned Oathkeeper and stepped to the side of the group. "This gives me an idea. We can create matter with magic, things like rocks, ice, and water." She pointed Oathkeeper forward, channeling her energy through the white Keyblade. "So, if we can create matter like that, then..."

With a pulse of light, a bundle of winter clothing appeared on the frosty grass, much to the surprise of the group, especially Dayne and Sora.

"Now that's something..." Dayne remarked.

"Yeah." Sora agreed. "I never thought of using magic for a practical use like that."

Dayne shook his head. "No. What I meant was, using magic to create complex objects made of matter that are not part of the elemental prism is an extremely advanced technique." That bundle of clothing before their feet was a testament to how far Kairi's skills had grown in the past month.

"Well, what are we waiting for, then?" Mulan offered. The Chinese woman was as dutiful towards her country as ever.

After finding a place to change discreetly, Sora and Kairi emerged in their magically conjured attires. For Sora, Kairi had crafted him a pair of boots, dark blue snow pants, a thick, red and black jacket, and a grey wool toque with a paopu fruit on the front. Kairi's winter clothing consisted of thicker boots, thick wool stockings, and a rose red jacket, complete with a fur-lined hood. She even conjured a silver-blue jester toque for Dayne.

Now outfitted to defend against the cold, the party head off, traversing the rocky and snowy mountain pass. Along the way, they encountered the usual mobs of Heartless that had plagued Sora's journey from the beginning, although they were nothing more than an annoyance nowadays. Though this did give the group more time to properly analyze Rin's fighting technique.

The woman was armed with a dao blade, which she had kept hidden up one of her sleeves, but she didn't seem too keen on using it as a weapon, preferring to use it to block the attacks any Heartless threw at her, or to use the flat to sweep them away. Instead, Rin showed off some impressive martial arts skills, using wide, sweeping arm movements, fast kicks, and palm thrusts to hold the offending Heartless at bay, or to stun them. The barehanded blows didn't kill any of the Heartless, but it did hold them off long enough for the others to finish them.

But, towards the end of one of the skirmishes, while the others were preoccupied with the menacing Assault Rider Heartless, a lone Shadow behind Rin launched itself into the air, intent on diving down and feasting on the girl's heart. Although he could not pass the naginata of his foe to help her, Sora offered all the assistance he could.

"Rin! Watch out!"

At the warning, Rin turned around to see the ant-like fiend descend upon her, razor sharp claws twitching readily. Without thinking, Rin lashed out with her dao, the small sword striking the Shadow and obliterating it instantly, turning the demon into black powder. The deed done, Rin's sword arm dropped to her side, her mouth agape at what she had done.

A few moments later, the others dispatched the remaining Heartless and gathered around the apparently shell-shocked Rin.

"Rin?" Kairi asked the stunned woman. "Are...are you alright?"

"I'm not cut out to be a warrior." Rin replied quietly. "That thing was not even alive, but...look at me." The girl was literally trembling. "I killed it and I'm quivering...I feel-"

"Calm down." Dayne cut in, his voice a little cold. "This is normal for a...'first-timer'. I was thirteen when I took my first kill." He then walked up to the shaking woman and held her arm tightly, trying to stem her frail nerves. "I threw up right after it happened, and I couldn't sleep for days afterward. If this is your first battle, then it is understandable for you to have shot nerves. But you can't just give up after one bad experience. Move forward, and see what happens before you make you final call."

Rin looked back up at the tall warrior, eyes as big as the moon. She gulped. "Dayne..."

A new voice entered the fray, calling out from the sky.

"Do you always have a motivational speech at the ready, you false hero?" The voice was obviously and painfully familiar to Sora, Kairi, and Dayne. It was Tallgeese.

The cyborg Immortal flew from the sky, hovering a distance away from the heroes with a smirk of superiority on his face. His armour had changed, as he was now equipped with a new chassis plate, this one dark blue with three silver chevrons arranged in a line. His wings had changed too, now shaped like large angular triangles, but locked in place, like a jet bomber.

Instantly, Dayne let go of Rin and marched forward, rage plastered over his face. He quickly drew High Streak, dragging the blade through the snow.

Tallgeese laughed at the sight. "Ha-ha! You always did have the best reactions, Deuce."

"Shut up!" Dayne snapped. The sight of Tallgeese already sent him off the deep end, every word the mechanical monstrosity spoke just pushed him deeper.

"Who is that?" Rin asked Sora.

"Or what is that?" Mulan rephrased. "He looks more machine than man."

"An enemy." Sora stated. "And someone I think Dayne has a personal grudge with..."

"Well it seems I don't need to get your attention." Tallgeese mugged confidently, despite the fact that Dayne was trudging ever closer, a murderous look in his eyes. "So why don't we take our little battle somewhere where we will be allowed more privacy."

"Fine by me." Dayne growled in agreement. Tallgeese grinned wickedly before jetting off farther into the mountain pass, down towards a side trail. Without second thought, Dayne charged forward through the snowy ground at top speed, dead set on tearing Tallgeese into scrap metal.

The others just watched as Dayne and Tallgeese slowly left their sight, turning into specks against the background. It was Rin who finally spoke up.

"What...what should we do?" She asked in a small voice. Sora broke out from the group, stepping forward.

"You all go ahead." He declared. "Investigate this guy in the black cloak. Find out whatever you can. I'm gonna help Dayne." Before he could set off, he felt a hand rest on his shoulder. It was Kairi.

"Sora, please..." She looked away, almost embarrassed for some reason. "Just be safe. Please."

Sora smiled at the request. "I will. We'll be back. Dayne and me both." He sealed his promise with a quick kiss before setting off as fast as he could, desperately trying to catch up with Dayne.

"We should go too, Kairi." Mulan said, as Sora himself grew smaller and smaller.

The redhead nodded. "Yeah. Right." It was better than doing nothing and waiting.

And so the three girls and their dragon companion continued their trek up the mountain, eventually arriving at the clearing where Sora had once confronted two different swarms of Rapid Thruster Heartless.

Kairi didn't know exactly what to expect when the group started this hunt for this presumed-Nobody, but she honestly thought finding it would be harder. Instead, when they entered the clearing, they found the enigma, wearing the traditional cloak of the former Organization XIII, just standing there, arms folded behind his back, looking directly at the entrance of the clearing.

Whether he was an actual Nobody or not was still a question to be answered, but just the sight of the cloaked shadow caused Kairi to pale.

The figure took notice of this change in complexion, as he slowly started to step forward to the three girls, who all went for their weapons.

"What's the matter, Princess?" The Unknown's voice was low, threatening, and demeaning. "You look like you've seen a ghost." He – for he was a male – then stopped and looked at his cloak. "Oh wait...I guess you have." He then proceeded to laugh at his own joke.

"Who are you?" Was all Kairi could managed. Oathkeeper had sprung to life in her hand, pointed at the unknown.

"So many things wrong with asking a non-being who he is..." The Unknown muttered, but still loud enough for Kairi and the others to hear. "I am a Nobody if that is what you are wondering, Princess." The way he said 'Princess' made her skin crawl.

"Then, what are you doing here?" Kairi asked, having gotten over the shock of seeing the unknown. "Are you with the Immortals?"

"The Immortals?" He barked roughly, with laughter. "Don't even compare me to those misguided fools. And I am not related to the Organization either. No, I'm an entirely new breed of Nobody."

"What are you doing here?" Kairi reiterated. She continued to press on. "What do you want? Who do you work for?"

For the first time, the Nobody withdrew his hands from behind his back. He wagged a finger at Kairi's request. "Now, now. I can't tell you everything on our first encounter. But..." His hand went back behind his back. "I can say that I am here to give you... a test!"

Lightning-quick, the new Nobody drew his weapons from nowhere, his arms whipping forward and displaying his tools. They were a pair of a special type of sword. Three and a half feet of a silver, pale purple, and green. After about a foot or so of straight blade, the sword's design changed, curving outward into a sickle-shaped hook. The hook was sharpened on both edges, so the weapons could be used as a sword, sickle, or axe. The Nobody emblem was branded on the blade just before the blade curved outward.

As soon as his dual sickle-swords – known as khopeshes – were visible, the Unknown charged forward at Kairi, leaving a trail of snow behind him. Spinning the blades around, the Unknown hammered on Kairi's Keyblade, using his khopeshes like axes. The relentless assault caused Kairi to slip backwards quickly against the slick surface of the snow.

Despite his constant offence, Kairi could tell he was holding back. His attacks were lacking a lot of power, and were not the fastest slashes she had faced. Whatever his mission was, she assumed he wasn't suppose to kill her. I guess I have learned a lot about being a warrior. Kairi reflected briefly, before kicking it into gear.

Sidestepping an overhead hack, Kairi quickly casted a Gaiaga spell, causing a boulder to shoot out of the snow-covered ground and into the gut of the Nobody. He staggered back in pain, as Kairi came at him, Oathkeeper wreathed in the flames of her Firaga Blade spell. The Unknown showed off his impressive skills with the khopesh, able to hold to blades at odd angles yet still block effectively, also showing that he could swap between the sickle-edge and the axe-head sides of the swords as quick as a hiccup.

Seeing that her melee attacks were getting her nowhere fast, Kairi shoved off of a khopesh, creating space between her and this new foe, and used another Firaga spell, this time causing pillars of fire to shoot out from the ground and charge at the Unknown. He simply shifted to the left, avoiding the flaming geysers with ease, before charging his quarry again. Keeping her strategy going, Kairi weaved and dodged away from the Unknown's charges, firing spells at him left and right. Large chunks of ice sailed through the air, but the khopeshes easily hacked through the aerial icebergs; arrows of lightning were the next magical onslaught to be summoned, but they only exploded into the snow, as the unknown easily zipped past them.

He quickly got into close range again, hammer the axe-head of his weapons onto the white Keyblade. "I must admit, you are pretty good." He sneered, condescendingly. "Better than I thought. Better than what a Princess should be able to do." The Unknown then kneed her in the gut, causing her to crumple in half. "But that's still not good enough to face me!"

Before the Nobody could capitalize, Kairi slammed Oathkeeper into the snow, pumping light energy into it, and causing the snow to explode, rise up, in a blinding cloud. Unable to see, Kairi jumped away and followed up with another new spell of hers.

"Exploda Firaga!"

Pinpoints of red light began to gather around the cloud of snow and the Nobody, before each one suddenly expanded like a starburst. Each fiery red star unleashed a flaming explosion, creating a fiery funnel cloud that surrounded and overwhelmed the black-clad villain. Finally, all of the fireballs gathered and transformed even further, erupting into a violent gout of searing, white-hot flame that shot high into the sky, eventually dieing down and leaving a dark cloud of smoke, concealing Kairi's foe.

Kairi took one step back, as the billowing smoke slowly disappeared. "I know you're not dead. Come on out!"

"Such a smart Princess." The Unknown cackled, revealing himself by leaping straight through the top of the smoke cloud, khopeshes raised high. His cloak was slightly scuffed, but other than that, he was unharmed. "Now it's time for me to get serious!" Whatever his plans were, the Unknown's counter was cut short when bolts of flame filled the air and striking him in the chest. Mulan had joined the fray, jian sword drawn and with Mushu resting atop her head, serving as artillery.

The Unknown landed, kicking Kairi away, so she would not interfere, before charging Mulan. More fireballs were shot in his direction, but he either dodged them, or shrugged off the ones that hit him. Only a few feet away from her, Mulan lifted her jian, allowing Mushu to light the sword ablaze. With her flaming, ancestral sword, Mulan clashed with the whirling khopeshes of the Unknown, sparks and flames flying left and right from their duel.

"You're pretty good for a regular human, you know that?" The Nobody commented, mid-duel. With his arms spread wide, he began to whirl around, slamming his khopeshes against the flaming sabre. "But it's not enough to face me, without quivering to my menace!"

With a rising slash, the Unknown forced the jian to point skyward. Mulan stumbled off balance, and the Nobody kicked Mulan away, before returning his attention to Kairi.

The redhead was also quick to return to her duel with the black clad man. He ducked a Keyblade slash, before lightly stepping away from Kairi, who kept on slashing and missing the Unknown. Eventually, he stopped dodging and started blocking, Oathkeeper bouncing off loudly when it hit the khopeshes. Eventually, he stopped playing defensive and went for the kill, ripping the sickle-swords downward. Kairi raised Oathkeeper to block, but that's exactly what the Nobody wanted her to do. The hooks of his swords wrapped around the outer bar of the Keyblade, entrapping it in their grip. He then pulled the hooked weapons forward, drawing both the Keyblade and Keyblader forward to. Kairi's head careened into the head of her enemy, striking her down with a vicious headbutt. The blow rattled her head, knocking her for a loop, and caused her to lose grip of Oathkeeper and sending her crashing down.

The black clad enigma discarded the masterless Keyblade, and looked down on the prone, gazed Kairi. "Now, before I depart, I will leave my mark, Princess, so you will always remember to quiver before a true menace!" He was about to bring his right khopesh down, ripping the curved weapon through her chest, when Rin finally decided to knuckle up and interfere.

What happened next happened too fast, even for Kairi or the Unknown to react fast enough. With a swift kick, Rin smashed into the enigma's right wrist, forcing the weapon to fly from his grasp. She followed with a sweeping motion of her arm, displacing the Nobody's arms from their position. With his chest open, Rin went for the kill without even thinking, plunging her dao into the left side of the Nobody's chest, right where his heart would be.

Even so, the Nobody still reared back in pain and gasped, as the steel blade dug deep into his chest. Rin sighed with relief, her hand still grasping the hilt of her blade, white-knuckled.

Kairi watched in disbelief. Rin, the girl who showed intense discomfort just striking down non-living beings like the Heartless, went right for the kill on this Nobody. She had thrown away all of her fears to save her, someone she barely knew.

A bright light flashed from the pouch Kairi wore under her jacket. The world around her slowly turned sepia toned as the Blank Medallion ritual was initiated, time halting for all but Kairi. The shining trinket managed to find its way out of her pouch and jacket, floating in the air, waiting to be sent to its new master. Kairi recalled Oathkeeper and shot the magical keychain deep into Rin's soul.

As the world returned to normal, Kairi realized she had just fired the final Blank Medallion her group had. First Waltz, and now Rin. She thought nostalgically. It seemed like a million years ago when they made Waltz a dormant wielder. And we can't forget Edward. This is certainly an interesting group we're collecting.

Rin's relief was quickly dashed by the Unknown. "That was pretty good." He groaned. Quickly, he dislodged the dao blade and threw it away. Rin backed away in surprise. "But I'm surprised you haven't learned this by now..." With a single open palmed blow, the black cloaked man tossed Rin away. He then collected his discarded khopesh and went running at the downed woman.

"YOU'RE NOT ENOUGH TO FACE ME!"

Before the Unknown could leap up, dive down, and reap into Rin, Kairi acted. She fired a lash of light energy, which wrapped around the Nobody's legs, lassoing him and causing him to trip and fall. After the face plant, he looked back in anger, Kairi getting back to her feet. He quickly carved through the tether of light, getting back to his feet too, and preparing for another reaving charge.

"This time, I'm putting you down for good, buddy!" Kairi shouted, aiming Oathkeeper at the mysterious being. "An attack with light in seven colours! A spiraling rainbow whirlwind!" Energy began to gather at the tip of her Keyblade, swirling around in a tornado of vibrant colours.

"Rainbow Rain!"

The energy at maximum, Kairi began to fire off blasts of light so strong, they actually caused Oathkeeper to recoil like a high-powered handgun. She fired twenty-one blasts in all, each one rotating between one of seven different colours. First red, then orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and finally violet. Each light blast zipped through the air, crashing into the Unknown at unbelievable speed and power. The magic bullets hit with great effect, causing the enigma to stagger back and cry in pain.

When all twenty-one shots hit, multi-coloured energy began to charge up at Oathkeeper's tip once again, forming an even larger ball than the first barrage.

"Shining Prism Blast!"

The orb fired its payload, this time forming a stream of rainbow energy, moving just as fast as the first shower of bullets. The beam made contact with the Unknown, who, this time, had the sense to cross his arms and protect himself. All the same, he cried out in pain as the rainbow blast washed over him, burning his cloak some more. The attack finally subsided, leaving the black clad figure smoking and crouching in pain, gasping for breath after the vicious attack.

Still, Kairi was frustrated she had not inflicted more damage. He's a strong one... I'm sure that attack would have done away with an Immortal. How strong is he? Another concern that dawned on her was that he said he was a "new breed" of Nobodies. Was he implying that there was more than one?"

"My, my, my, my..." The Nobody choked out. "Hah...Wasn't that something special, Princess?" He dusted himself off, standing back to full height. A corridor of darkness appeared behind him. "My name is Prioscox. You'll do well to keep that in your pretty little head, Princess." And with that, the Unknown now known as Prioscox stepped into his corridor and vanished back to wherever he came from.

Kairi took a sigh of relief, withdrawing Oathkeeper. Mulan sheathed her jian and helped Rin back to her feet, the dormant Keyblader bowing in thanks, before the three girls gathered together again.

"Man, who was that guy?" Mushu asked. "He was even crazier than the other hooded psychos!"

"Yes...that man was something else." Rin replied, still a little breathless. She then turned to Kairi. "I'm sorry for getting myself in your fight." She bowed once more.

"'Sorry'?" Kairi chuckled. "Rin, you saved me from getting hacked to pieces. You saved me, and managed to get over your fears in a single moment." Kairi clasped Rin's hand and smiled. "Thank you." Rin smiled at the compliment.

Mulan spoke up. "I think we should go and find Sora and Dayne. That...mechanical thing looked very strong."

"You're right." Kairi agreed. "They may need our help."

"There they go again..."

Two Rabanstran youths, known as Vaan and Penelo, were sitting atop a building, far away from the battle involving Keybladers and Immortals. Currently, they were staring at the sky, watching various airships fly by.

"Have I ever told you that it's my dream to fly one of those?" Vaan asked his surrogate sister.

Penelo put a finger to her cheek. "Hmm...About ten times every day for the past two years." She teased.

"Oh, yeah..." Vaan replied.

Suddenly, a large explosion rocked the city of Rabanastre, drawing everyone's attention, including Vaan and Penelo's.

"What do you think is going on there?" Penelo asked.

What was going on was the battle between Vaniele and Kalyn. Vaniele was currently airborne, darting left and right with her wings widespread, slashing at Kalyn every time she flew by. But only sparks were drawn as Kalyn managed to block every single strike of the energy foils. She was very lucky that the Keyblade greatly enhanced the abilities of the wielder.

After several more fly-by-attacks, Kalyn finally decided to go on the offensive. The Keyblade was a peculiar tool when fully awaken, as, like when Edward received his, Kalyn instinctively knew how to use the powers of her Keyblade.

With distance between herself and the flying Vaniele, Kalyn called out, "Surging Font!" Immediately, dozens of geysers began to shoot from the ground, at random spaces and intervals, impeding the speed of Vaniele. She was forced to break mid-air and dive around to avoiding being smashed by the high-pressure spouts of water. "Hydros Slash!" Kalyn sliced Freedom through the air, unleashing a razor sharp, high-speed wave of water. Still preoccupied by the Surging Font attack, Vaniele was barely able to dodge the Hydros Slash, as it clipped off the side of her left wing. The force of the razor wave and the missing piece of her wing was enough to cause Vaniele to spiral out of control and crash.

With Vaniele down for the moment, Kalyn could hear the telltale clang and clatter of Imperials moving out. She turned around to see a small platoon of Archadian soldiers approaching her location. "I've wanted to do this for a long time..." Kalyn said to herself, voice dripping with anticipation. She raised Freedom into the air and brought it down to the ground. "Crashing Wave!"

Freedom unleashed another wave of water, this one wider and blunter than the Slash. The Crashing Wave raced across the street, meeting the Imperials, crashing into them and scattering them across the plaza.

"Don't turn your back on me, girl!"

Kalyn spun around again to see Vaniele back on her feet, hefting a huge boulder over her head. She tossed the piece of rubble at the newly minted Keyblader, but she was ready. She held Freedom horizontally in front of her. Water gathered in front of her, forming a disc-shaped water shield. Although it was not an extremely thick disc of water, the ability increased the surface tension on the shield, making it near impossible for a physical object to penetrate the surface of the shield. The piece of rubble made contact with the shield, but could not break through, and instead fell to the ground, useless.

Surprised by the defensive skill, Vaniele could not react fast enough to Kalyn's next move. She summoned another spout of water, riding it towards the Immortal and taking her down with a spinning heel kick. While Vaniele was still flying back from the kick, Kalyn landed and sprinted towards the energized Immortal. She brought Freedom down on her, only for it to be blocked by one of her foils. Vaniele managed to twist around, climbing into the air and getting above Kalyn, raining down slash after slash all the while. Still, despite her foe's constant assault, Kalyn and Freedom were in top form. The power flowing from the Keyblade increasing Kalyn's fighting skills with every passing second, allowing her to block every single strike. After a particularly wild swing, Vaniele was open for a brief second, which allowed Kalyn the time to unleash another geyser. Shooting up from the ground, the spout smashed into Vaniele's chest and sent her flying away.

It seemed water was the perfect element to counter Vaniele. Being matter instead of energy, Vaniele could not absorb it. Even using her sabres against them proved ineffective, as they only sputtered and smoked, threatening to short out at any moment.

Meanwhile, halfway across Rabanastre...

"Where did those two go now?" Riku asked in bewilderment. Although he was healed, his shirt and vest were still torn to tatters, having eventually fallen off, leaving hims bare-chested.

"I have no clue." Ed said, exasperated. The two alchemists and the warrior of Dawn had been following the fight all around Rabanastre. But, because of the ferocity of the battle, it was certainly not an easy task. "Jeez... those two must have circled the entire city. Twice!"

Suddenly, a spout of water shout up high into the sky.

"I guess we should head in that direction." Alphonse pointed out.

"Curse you and your damned waterworks..." Vaniele spat, having narrowly avoiding being caught in a huge geyser (the very geyser Alphonse spotted). "Every time I tangle with these Keybladers, it just turns into a big hassle. And every time they get a new one, the hassle become bigger!"

"Tell it to someone who cares!" Kalyn shot back, grasping Freedom with both hands and charging her opponent once more. Vaniele held her foils in a cross shape, blocking the running slash and drawing sparks. She pushed Kalyn back and then floated backwards herself. With a quick flick of her foil, she transformed the beam blade into its whip form, lashing outwards. Quickly, Kalyn offered Freedom's blade to the snaking energy whip, as it wrapped about the curving blade of her weapon. Vaniele tugged fruitlessly, trying to drag Kalyn close to her so she could carving her up with the second blade, but Kalyn wouldn't allow it, planting her feet to prevent the Immortal from attacking her.

Looking behind Vaniele, Kalyn saw where their fight had moved to, and an idea began to formulate. Modifying a move Riku used often, Kalyn summoned a geyser of water under her feet, riding the torrent forward and into the air. As Kalyn launched forward, and Vaniele tugged away, the Immortal lost her balance, allowing Kalyn to tackle her foe without getting attacked in return. The momentum was enough to cause the two to tumble back and away, into a hole in the street...the hole Vaniele had created when she came to the surface!

The two girls fell down the pit and crashed into the scummy waters of the Garamsythe Waterway, both taking a moment to get back to their feet.

"So you knocked me into the sewers..." Vaniele grunted. "So what?"

"'So what'?" Kalyn chuckled. "Wow, you really are stupid. We're in a sewer. I mean, just look at what we're surrounded by." Kalyn spread her arms wide, and sloshed her legs around in the pool of water. Realization spread across Vaniele's face. She was calf-deep in a Kalyn's element! Just imagine what kind of damage she could cause...

Not taking that risk, Vaniele spread her wings and flew out of the hole, going high into the air.

Played her like a fiddle... Kalyn smirked. She then stepped under the hole herself, and conjured up another geyser, rocketing her into the sky after Vaniele.

While Vaniele was fast in the air, Kalyn was launched at an even faster velocity. Vaniele managed to overtake the highest towers in the city, but Kalyn even managed to overtake her.

"You should have stayed grounded, bitch." Vaniele called out. "You're in the sky. This is my domain. You're finished!"

"That may be true," Kalyn countered, raising Freedom above her head. She was about to reach the apex of her geyser-assisted leap. "But it won't matter if I won't let you use your domain!" At the tip of her Keyblade, Kalyn had collected a massive sphere of water! "Say goodbye. Torrential Hammer!"

Kalyn swung Freedom down at Vaniele, unleashing a massive, high-pressure stream of water. The flood completely engulfed Vaniele, nullifying her speed and sending her diving down through the air and to the city streets below. She crashed into the streets, which gave way to her landing in the form of a massive crater, but the stream did not stop. Kalyn continued to unleash the fast, vicious blast of water, which in turn continued to crush and wash across Vaniele. The stone streets prevented Vaniele from escaping its watery wrath, the stream crushing her with such might that it shattered nearly every bone in her chest cavity, and turning her organs into past. Eventually the stream died down, and Kalyn settled to the ground herself, aided by a spout of water to act as a cushion.

The first thing Kalyn did was check the crater. Vaniele was in awful shape, her body was gnarled, twisted, and malformed, her wings were a metallic ruin, and blood was trailing from her mouth. Her energy aura had died out completely and both foils were out of sight. When she saw Kalyn, Vaniele tried to move, but could only struggle feebly, blood sputtering from her mouth. Kalyn showed no pity towards her dieing foe, only flashing a confident smirk as the remaining life faded from Vaniele Trinity, whose body evaporated into black powder, gone forever.

With her foe gone, Kalyn took a moment to exhale, before a victorious smile spread across her face. She then gazed down at the shining blue Keyblade known as Freedom. Her Keyblade. "Hmm, you really are something else."

"Kalyn!" Riku called out. The Dalmascan girl turned about at the sound of her name. Surprisingly, she was left speechless at what she saw. Riku, bare-chested, his muscular upper body on display to the world.

"Um...hi..." She managed feebly. She tried to hide her feelings, but a small blush crept across her cheeks.

Riku raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong?" He then looked down at his own chest. "Oh." He realized. Then it really hit him. "Oh!" He hurriedly tried to cover his partial nudity, the two older teens posturing embarrassingly. Alphonse just watch dumbfounded, while Ed gave an annoyed sighed.

"Now is not the time to be bashful!" He declared, throwing off his red jacket and tossing it to Riku. The silver-haired teen quickly covered himself as best he could with the too small coat.

"So Kalyn, did you defeat Vaniele?" Alphonse asked.

The Dalmascan girl nodded and Ed laughed. "Well alright!" The Fullmetal Alchemist declared. "Looks like this is all about to end. One more Immortal down and we gave out our last Medallion." Of course, Ed's excitement was due to the fact that he wanted out of the craziness of being a Keyblade Master and wanted to get back home and start searching for a way for him and Al to get their bodies back.

"You mean our adventure is almost over?" Kalyn said in a slightly-whining tone.

"'Our adventure'?" Riku questioned. "Wait...you're coming with us?"

"But what about your the orphans you look after?" Alphonse asked.

"I'm sure they'll do fine without me." Kalyn replied. "Sometimes, you just have to...let go, and have a little faith." She gave a knowing wink to Riku, who smiled slightly in return. The Keyblade Master of Water then clapped her hands and declared, "Well, what are we waiting for? I would not mind seeing this special airship of yours."

"Before you couldn't stand us," Ed grumbled. "Now you can't wait to spend all day with us in a confined space?"

Kalyn rolled her eyes. "Well, I never did say I would complete stomach all of you." She quipped, sardonically and dryly.

Dawn had her own opinion to the situation. Great. The Queen of Ho-Town is going to be joining us...

Relax Dawn, Riku told the Keyblade Spirit. I think it will be alright. Besides, I kind of like her.

Of course you like her, Dawn said flippantly. She has boobs. And you have a dick.

Riku mentally face-palmed.

When they finally reached the clearing Tallgeese had in mind, Dayne stood on the snowy ground, looking up at the still, floating form of Tallgeese.

"So, Deuce...Claudio...Dayne," Tallgeese began, deliberately speaking slowly to aggravate his foe. "Tell me. How does it feel to face me with standing next to R-"

Dayne cut the cyborg off with a growl. "If you speak her name, I swear, I will rip your head right off of your shoulders!"

"Very well then," Tallgeese conceded slowly, mentally noting Dayne's reaction. A panel opened on Tallgeese's leg, forfeiting to him a black laser rifle, which he quickly gripped. "Now, I suppose we should settle this rivalry we have."

"I wouldn't call what we have a rivalry, but so be it!" Dayne gripped High Streak and focused his energy. "Prism Chain Arts, Aerial Style: On Hell Bound Wings We Fly!" The two yellow energy wings sprouted from his shoulders, taking to massive flaps, kicking up snow, before Dayne took to the air, zooming straight to Tallgeese. Unfortunately for Dayne, the Immortal was more than prepared, as his armour deployed six black, orb-shaped probes, with red lights mounted on the front. The six propes formed a circle around Tallgeese. Dayne paid no mind to the ring of probes, but soon regretted the lack of action, as the probes created an electromagnetic barrier. Dayne collided into the electrical forcefield, frying his body on the intense current.

"GYAAAH!" The warrior screamed, as several thousand volts coursed through his body, causing it to spasm violently. With his self-declared rival trapped on the energy wall, Tallgeese leveled his rifle and fired a laser bolt at Dayne, passing right through his chest. The blast was enough to knock Dayne off the barrier, causing the wounded ex-Immortal to fall into the snowbank below, blood leaking from his chest. His energy wings ceased to be.

Tallgeese gloated with a malevolent laugh. "How do you like my Titan Armour, Rivera? It renders me completely impervious to your attacks, while I am free to pick you off with my rifle."

"Deuce, Claudio, Dayne, Rivera..." Dayne growled in reply. The wound on his chest had already closed up. "Pick a name and stick with it!" More energy charged around Dayne as he got to his feet. "Prism Chain Art, Thundaga Style: Dragon Lightning Cannon!"

A dragon-shaped blast of lightning fired from Dayne's palm, snaking towards Tallgeese. The probes reacted quickly, erecting their barrier and negating the lightning attack completely. Tallgeese snicked proudly and loudly again.

"Is that the best you have to offer?"

"Far from it!" Dayne countered. He stuck High Streak into the snow and spread his arms wide. Orbs of flaming energy appeared in each hand. "Prism Chain Art, Firaga Style: Flare Pulse!" He then brought his hands forward, aimed at Tallgeese, and unleashed the energy, firing a series of fireballs, machine-gun fast! But, once more, the attack was futile, as every blast of flame was blocked by the electromagnetic barrier Tallgeese had forged with his probes.

Dayne did not give up though, as he snatched High Streak and launched himself into the air again, this time bringing his heavy bladed down on the energy shield. The wall sparked and wavered, and for a second it looked like Dayne was going to break it down, but Tallgeese quashed that event before it happened. Firing point-blank with his laser, Tallgeese riddled Dayne's body with laser blasts, like he had done back on Twilight Town. The shots took all the energy out of Dayne for the time being, causing him to hang dead in the air. Tallgeese dropped his shield and punched Dayne in the face with a robotic fist, a painful crunch sounding out as Dayne was driven back down into the snow.

"You're disappointing me, Dayne." Tallgeese boomed from the sky, his gun still trained on the bloody, struggling body of the ex-Immortal and bodyguard. "Is what Kaiser said true? Is the soul and energy gone from you? Are you just an empty shell now that Ra-"

"I said NEVER say her name!" Dayne raged loudly. His wounds had healed up again, and he was back on his feet, facing Tallgeese. He put on a brave front, but he was exhausted. What the hell was happening to him?A couple of shots and he was nearly out of gas. Had all of his energy really left him when Rain passed away?

"You really have spent too much time with the humans." Tallgeese stated in a dark tone. He fired another laser, this one ripping through Dayne's knee, forcing him to kneel. "You've become too sentimental. You can't even let go."

Another shot was fired, but this one failed to hit its target. A silver and yellow blur flew through the air, arcing around in front of Dayne, deflecting the laser, before arcing back to its owner, Sora.

"And another contender enters the fray." Tallgeese chuckled at Sora. "I hear that Our Lord has declared you a weakling."

Sora gritted his teeth as he joined the side of his ally. "Dayne," the brunette began. "Are you alright?"

"Why did you come?" Dayne questioned, ignoring the question.

"We're strongest together." Sora responded. "I though you could need the help."

Dayne closed his eyes and got back to his feet. "Thanks." He muttered quickly.

Sora nodded before returning his attention to Tallgeese, aiming the Kingdom Key at Tallgeese and unleashing a Firaga fireball at the cyborg Immortal. But, like all of Dayne's offence before, it was nullified by the energy shield the probes crafted.

"What the...?" Sora gasped in shock.

"He changed armours." Dayne explained. "This one is designed to defend against attacks while he takes pot-shots at us with his rifle."

"I wouldn't describe it that way, but yes." Tallgeese intoned. "And a weakling like you, Sora, will never be able to break my impenetrable shield!"

"Stop it, stop it! Just stop it!" Sora yelled out, his hands balling tightly into fists. "I am tired of you Immortals. You're a constant pain in my ass, and I'm equally pissed with you calling me weak! I am not weak!" The Keyblader then began to breath in and out heavily. Tallgeese couldn't help but laugh again.

"Say that all you want," the Immortal boomed proudly. "But you can't close your eyes to the facts. Unlike your companions, you have yet to defeat one of us Immortals in one-on-one combat, and you have lost at least one person on the last two worlds you've been to. Who do you think you will lose this time? Dayne? Kairi? Face the facts you simpering fool, you're out of your league! You'll never stop us and you'll never be able to protect you precious friends!" Tallgeese then let loose, raining laser after laser on the young Keyblade Master.

Sora didn't move an inch, standing his ground and swinging his Keyblade left and right, deflecting every single shot with ease and skill, leaving both Dayne and Tallgeese stunned.

When the laser rain subsided, Sora still stood, the smoking Kingdom Key at his side. "From now on, I won't hold anything back. I will be as strong as I can. Fight with all of my heart, and never look back. Nothing will stop me." He then raised his head, cerulean eyes burning with a fierce determination that had never been seen in those orbs before. "Not you, not Cassius, not anyone. I will be strong. For everyone. For Dayne, and Riku, and Kairi, Roxas and Namine. Everyone! I will defeat you – we will defeat you! And I swear, that I will protect and save everyone around me! I will not lose another soul, and I will save those already lost!" The determination in his eyes began to pour outward, forming a powerful, pulsing aura around him. "Do you hear me Tallgeese! This is not a promise, this is my strength! My desire to protect!"

The sensors within Tallgeese's helmet were going haywire, reading Sora's strength, displaying astronomical figures. My word... Tallgeese balked mentally. His strength...I can't believe this. He's stronger than Dayne on the Infuse... I think he might be stronger than Cassius...!

Sora waited no longer, as he jumped into the air, higher than ever before, shooting like a comet towards the cyborg Immortal. The probes came to life, erecting the barrier, but Sora did not care, as he slammed Kingdom Key onto the energy wall, the two forces sparking together. Tallgeese once again drew his blaster and fired at Sora, but the Keyblade summoned a Reflega barrier mentally, blocking all the laser shots. Unable to drive Sora off of the energy wall, Tallgeese watched helplessly as Sora pressed Kingdom Key harder and harder into the wall. Seconds later, the probes began to spark and overload, exploding into fiery wrecks as the barrier fell, the probes turned into useless scrap.

Without anything to impede him, Sora continued his shooting star ascent, bringing his Keyblade down with a powerful double-handed slash, the silver bladed weapon tearing through Tallgeese's chassis and body, eventually coming out the other side and slashing his left wing in half! Sora fell back down to earth with grace, while Tallgeese spun out and hit the snowy ground in a heap. Dayne tried to capitalize on this, leaping in the air, planning to bring High Streak down on the cyborg.

It was not to be, as Tallgeese quickly teleported away, tens of metres away from the two heroes.

Even though he had only taken one hit, Sora's blow had disabled both his shields and flight, rendering the point of his Titan armour pointless. He had lost today.

"Very well, Sora, I will concede victory to you." Tallgeese breathed, bowing in a mocking manner. He would not admit to the boy that his power levels reached a point he had never seen before. "But I have some words for you Dayne," he looked at his subject, a shat-eating grin on his face. "You may have won today, but the victory is not yours. It is Sora's. A spectre still hangs above your head, and you have yet to vanquish it." And with that, Tallgeese vanished.

Dayne fell to his knees, grasping his sore body, previously riddled with laser blasts. "Damn it..." He moaned. Something was seriously wrong with him. His energy was being sapped constantly in battle. It was if his body was breaking down.

"Dayne?" Sora asked, approaching the downed warrior. "Are you okay? You look-"

"I'll be okay." He offered. "It's just...Just, I'm still feeling the burn from the beating Cassius gave me." Sora offered him a hand, a useless gesture since Dayne was so much larger than Sora. All the same, he took the hand and got back to his feet. "That was...something else there, kiddo."

Sora looked away for a moment. "I just got so frustrated with them stepping all over me. I'm just pretty frustrated overall."

"Yeah." Dayne could understand why he was feeling that way. The last week or so had been hell on all of them. "Let's go find the others." Dayne offered, and Sora agreed with a nod.

The two walked back to the main mountain trail and quickly ran into the girl's group, with both groups sharing their tales as they descended back down the mountain. Sora and Dayne quickly relegated their quick encounter with Tallgeese, leaving the girls to explain their encounter with the ghostly Unknown that calls himself Prioscox.

"So, how did those rumours turn out?" Dayne asked the girls.

"Very real." Mulan replied. Mushu nodded rapidly.

"Black is back," the dragon guardian responded. "And the loonies are back in black!"

"Are you sure he was a Nobody?" Sora asked. He was still a little disbelieving that the humanoid Nobodies would be back. He had enough trouble with them in his first two outings. And he still couldn't remember the first encounter!

"He said he was." Kairi replied. "His weapons had their insignia on them, and he vanished through a corridor of darkness."

Dayne grinned jaggedly. "If it walks like a duck, looks like a duck..."

The redhead was quick to agree. "My thoughts exactly." Kairi shivered. "It gave me the creeps standing up to that guy. It was like Saix was back from the grave or something."

"And he said he wasn't working with your current enemies." Rin added. "The Immortals, correct?"

"Yep. And I think implied that there were more Nobodies besides him." Kairi stroked her hair back a few times. "He was holding back in the fight too. He didn't use his element, and he was able to survive some of my strongest attacks."

"Great," Dayne mumbled dryly with a roll of his eyes. "Just what we need. Another group of super-powered beings with psychological issues." The group finally made their way out of the mountain pass, and back to the bases hills.

"Either way, we'll win." Sora said optimistically. "I know it." The others in the group nodded and offered their sentiments of agreement.

"Then I suppose this is where we will depart." Kairi declared.

"Wait, what?" Sora questioned. Dayne had a puzzled look on his face too. Kairi drew the two boys for a private conversation.

"I gave out the final Medallion." Kairi whispered to them. "It's Rin. She's our last Keyblader."

"Oh." Sora blinked. "Then I guess it is really is our time to head out."

"Well it was nice seeing you again Sora," Mulan said. "I hope that everything goes well for you in the future."

"And it was nice to meet all of you." Rin added, her typical smile and wide eyed expression on her face.

"You too Rin." Kairi returned, giving the young woman a light hug. "We'll come back to visit sometime."

"Take it easy you three," Sora said, waving goodbye. Dayne nodded at all three as his farewell, and the off-world warriors departed, walking away to a safe distance to get back to their ship.

With the others gone, Mushu spoke up. "So where does that leave us hero?" The energetic dragon then began to crawl around Mulan's body in an energetic manner. "What might our next, great adventure be, baby girl?" Mulan turned to Rin, who looked kind of loss with the sudden arrival and departure of the Keybladers.

"I was thinking, without Sora here, maybe we could offer Rin some more training?"

After a second of shock, Rin turned to her idol, eyes wider than they have ever been. "Really? You would train me?"

"Of course." Mulan replied. "You certainly have some skill, and you're not without bravery." Mulan then stepped next to Rin and put an arm over her shoulder. "Besides, us girls have to stick together."

Back in the mountains, deep in the Tseng-Shao pass, Prioscox had retreated to report back to his current leader. His commander was a female Nobody, although she kept her body draped in darkness, obscuring her view from even Prioscox.

"So, what did you think?" The female Nobody asked. Her voice was cold, collected, almost devoid of emotion. Like a typical Nobody.

"It was very interesting..." Prioscox replied. "Although I'm very sour that that stupid Immortal Tallgeese broke up the group. I only had a chance to match blades with the girl."

"And it looks like she gave you a time." The female pointed out, motioning to the burns on Prioscox' cloak.

"She certainly is strong." Prioscox conceded. "Not that strong. But she does have potential. Could be a hard fight, dealing with that one. She has a fire!" He said the last sentence with a bark of laughter.

"Not likely. Either way, report back to base with your findings. He should be very interested in your direct contact with Kairi." Prioscox summoned a corridor and was about to leave, when his commander spoke to him again. "One more thing. Two days from now, we will all be gathering at The Castle That Never Was in the early evening, to finally dealing with that witch."

Prioscox nodded at the order, but the other Nobody was not done yet, having one last piece of news for her compatriot.

"And also, Lord Anarados will be joining us on that day."

To Be Continued

Jeez, that was an ordeal for some reason. Anyways, I am sorry for taking so long to update guys.

But we are now in the home-stretch of the fic, with only three worlds left to venture, and all the characters uniting together. But at the same time, it looks like we have more to deal with than the Immortals. Who are these Nobodies? How many are there? What are they after? Who is this 'Anarados' person? Tune in...a long time from now for those answers!

Also, if you can decipher Prioscox's name to its proper form, you will get the name theme for these new breed of Nobodies.

Journal Set #14

Kalyn Dun-Imnan

A resident of Rabanastre, Kalyn's life was put in upheaval when her nation was occupied by the Archadian Empire. The experience has left Kalyn bitter, angry, and borderline nihilistic. The group's encounter with Kalyn seems to have sparked something within the girl, which lead to her becoming a Keyblade Master and defeating Vaniele Trinity.

Rin Tae Sabian

A young woman from an unknown world who recently found herself in the Land of Dragons. She desires to accomplish the final wish of her late mother and become a warrior, but her unwillingness to kill puts her at odds with this desire. She briefly encountered the party, gaining a new outlook on life, and temporarily conquering her fears. She is a dormant Keyblader.

Prioscox

A Nobody of unknown origins and power, working for an unknown cause. He is entirely shrouded in mystery. His element he wields is unknown, but he does wield two khopeshes in battle.

Keyblader Profile #2

Kalyn Dun-Imnan

Keyblade: Freedom

Master Element: Water

Class: Thief

Pre-Keyblade Powers: Very agile, proficient with a variety of weapons and armour.

Post-Keyblade Powers: Enhanced agility and strength, able to manipulate water in various ways, and her Keyblade can conjure a limited amount of water.

Chapter Preview

Dayne: And now we're back to the place where it all went wrong.

Sora: Cheer up, man. This is almost all over.

Kairi: I wonder how this will turn out in the end?

Cassius the Heaven: Quite simple. It will end with our victory!

S/K/D: Cassius!

Sora: We won't lose this time, we will win! I made a promise!

Cassius: Try as best you can, fools. You may have survived the fiery depths of hell, but you won't ever ascend the heights of heaven!

Next Chapter: Dayne's darkness and Sora's strength. Genesis of Destiny Chapter 36: Heaven's Wrath!

Dayne: Whether I live or die, I will do this by myself. That is the only way!

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Sir Angelo