"Did you normally use to do that sort of thing?" Sora asked as the two of them walked down a nameless alleyway. Ven was walking alongside him, and Sora was afraid that the two of them were actually going to the library. He had always hated academics in school when he lived on the Destiny Islands, and he would still find any reading boring.

"What?" Ven hadn't been paying attention to Sora, instead running his blue gauntlet over the smooth surface of the buildings. "Hey, this Lunarian tech is pretty cool. I wonder how they fit it all together, it seems to just be one smooth plane."

"Oh," Sora said, "It looks cool, I guess."

Ven laughed and replied, "Never mind. What were you saying?"

"I was asking if you used to plot with Aqua like just now." Sora said, also studying the smooth building they had just walked past. People passed in and out of the entrance freely, making Sora wonder what the building's purpose was.

"Yeah, I guess." Ven said, "Thinking about it, I guess it happened more times than I realized. After a while, I guess Aqua and I never really thought about it. It just happened." The two of them walked in tandem, Ven's easy and carefree stride in time with Sora's excited and quicker footsteps. Their armour clanked on the cobblestones as they walked forward.

Sora nodded and asked, "So where are we going?"

"No idea." Ven said, "You don't want to actually find a library, do you?"

Sora shook his golden helm vigourously, causing sunlight to be reflected in all directions. They continued walking nonchalantly around the town, taking in the relaxed atmosphere. People moved about with a purpose, but they were content, and not rushing with their heads down like they did in Traverse City.

"You okay?" Sora asked, causing Ven to look up curiously.

"Of course I am." Ven said, "Why wouldn't I be, apart from the looming threat of the Divine Beings." They laughed a little, and Ven asked, "What about you? You're the one with people to worry about. Hell, you have Roxas in there as well, you're the one that needs to be asked if you're alright."

Sora shrugged. "Being away from Kairi, I think about her a lot. It's like when we were younger again and couldn't imagine being without her. Maybe it's just our Hearts that have changed, though." He smiled a little, then said, "Roxas is a little annoyed at all these pent up feelings. He says that if he spends much more time in the cesspit of hormones" Sora made air quotes on the last three words, causing Ven to laugh again, "He'll end up having a crush on Kairi too."

Ven laughed again at that, and Sora said, "He wants to see Lea and Xion again. The two of them drifted apart after he left the Organization, and everyone wants friends, don't they."

"I never really thought about Roxas after we were restored," Ven said quietly, "I sometimes forgot he was living inside you. He used to disappear a lot, always on missions or with Xion, Lea and Naminé."

"I can hear you, you know."

It was obviously Roxas, his voice instantly distinguishable from Sora's. His voice was more melancholic and brooding, sad yet upbeat at the same time, and he continued, "Yeah, I always liked being with Lea, Xion and Naminé. I felt like they understood me, having been Nobodies as well. That, and I never liked talking about the past much."

"We would've listened," Ven said, "You missed out on a lot of friendship you could've had."

Roxas shrugged, "I was happy with Xion, Lea and Naminé. And we talked about a lot, it's not like I was holding anything in. I was happy with them, I really was. So long as I was with them, I was content. I didn't need any friendship other than the one I had with them."

"You had more of a friendship with Naminé," Ven said, "It sometimes seemed like you were trying to hide it."

Roxas shrugged. "I just don't like talking about it. Besides, it's not like you needed extra information. All you needed to do was get Kairi to wheedle everything out of Naminé."

Ven chuckled, "Well, yeah. Lea also got a lot out of Xion."

Roxas sighed good-naturedly, "I said a lot to her. The way she'd look at you, it was like I could say whatever I wanted and she'd be fine with it. Her eyes were so wide, it was like they could take in everything I said. After a while, I saw that in Naminé too. We shared everything, like we were the same person. "

Roxas' head twitched, and Sora spoke, "It was the same with Kairi. It's weird, because she and Naminé were so different, but both of them had this way of drawing everything out of you and loving you all the same."

"Well, it's not like you needed any help talking." Ven said, "Besides, Naminé and Kairi were almost the same person."

"True," Sora said. He was quiet for a moment, and then said, "Maybe it was something to do with her Heart." He paused while Ven looked up at him quizically, then continued, "The way we could tell her and Naminé and Xion things so easily, things we wouldn't normally tell others. Maybe the reason they could accept so much and the reason we felt so open was because their Hearts could embrace ours, and strengthen it."

"Maybe," Ven replied. He laughed a little, "Why didn't we think of any of this when we were alive? We were just as experienced then, so I wonder why we're coming up with all this."

"Probably because you don't reflect on your life when you're living it," Roxas said quietly. It took Ven a second to realize it was Roxas talking instead of Sora. The way they switched voices was confusing, especially since Roxas had had a body a long time ago.

"What are you talking about?" Sora cut in. It was funny seeing the two of them talk, almost like Sora was talking to himself. Ven shook his blue helmet. Why was he so fixated on what Sora and Roxas talking looked like? It wasn't like him, it wasn't. He was always the light-hearted one who helped out Terra and Aqua. And here he was dramatizing the fact that Roxas and Sora shared a body.

"What do you mean you don't reflect on life when you're living it?" Sora said again. Ven was about to speak, thinking the question was directed at him, when Roxas spoke again. "I'm not sure what you mean. What are you talking about?"

"This is life." Sora said, "We are still living it. This is our life right now, a second chance, and it's up to us to make the most of it."

"A second chance given by Light." Roxas corrected, "He gathered us at the Keyblade Graveyard and made us gather the remnants of former Keyblade Masters as his vessels."

"This life is still ours, no matter who gave it to us." Sora said firmly, "And even though the Divine Beings don't think we're worth anything, even though they just think we're weak and useless, we're going to show them that we're not. We're going to show them that they shouldn't have brought us back, even if it did mean their resurrection. Because we're going to send them right back to Kingdom Hearts. And it doesn't matter who gave us the lives we used to do that, whether it be a Divine Being, an Ancient, or a fluffy pink elephant waltzing through the Lanes Between."

Ven couldn't help himself. He laughed harder than he had ever laughed in his period as a Remnant, and in his previous life as well. Even when Lea had accidentally burnt Roxas' pants off, or when he had walked in on Terra and Aqua, or when he saw Rayne run circles around Jack. His mirth in the past seemed minuscule compared to the hilarity of what Sora just said. His armoured legs clanked as he knelt on the pavement clutching his torso, which was a golden colour, different from the light blue the rest of his armour was. He laughed for almost half a minute, after which Sora started kicking him in irritation. It seemed irrational to laugh at something as ludicrous as a fluffy, pink elephant waltzing through the Lanes Between, but it was like something in his Heart had been unlocked, and he laughed without inhibition for another thirty seconds before he controlled his convulsions.

"Always the optimist, Sora." Ven giggled. "That was inspiring." Sora grumbled in irritation, but Ven was telling the truth. His Heart felt lighter and he found his gauntlet was clenched in excitement. He trusted Terra and Aqua more, but this was truly inspiring. Bringing to the surface emotions Terra or Aqua, or even Eraqus couldn't invoke in most people.

Then Roxas cut in and asked, "But should we be trying to kill the Divine Beings?"

Sora stiffened and heatedly asked, "What do you mean!? Of course we should be."

"But it can't just be that simple." Roxas said, "Remember last time when Light was completely destroyed because of Pierce and Lorans all those years ago? The Ancients had to come in and fix everything. Well, what happens if we kill all three and nothing happens? What's going to be left?"

"Well, what do you suggest we do?" Sora asked, "Do we just let them walk all over us and give up this Realm to the gods?"

"I don't know." Roxas said, "But I'm just not sure if this is a traditional battle, where we can just physically beat back the Divine Beings."

"You have a point." Ven said. He thought a bit and continued, "If Corruption's gone, then everything will live forever. If Light or Darkness is gone, then what will happen to the worlds? And what if all three are gone?"

He made to kick the wall of another building they were walking past, but refrained from doing so when he saw the house was made of wood. "We don't know enough. We don't know how connected the Divine Beings are to this world." He sighed, "So what can we do?"

Roxas shrugged, "I'm not sure. We were never the planners or the thinkers of the group, were we? We'd just follow orders."

Sora took over and said, "We trust in our Hearts. Besides, I thought you had faith in Eraqus, right? He'll think of something. He and Jason worked on building the biggest collection of books there were. They'll know what to do."

"And if they don't?" Roxas said, "If this Realm is going to get invaded by the three Divine Beings? We don't even know why they need empty vessels. Before, they possessed whoever they wanted."

"I think that has something to do with what happened at the end of the world, when Light was killed." Sora said. "Dawnomar, the Ancient who appeared and fixed everything, he made sure that something like that could never happen again. He sealed away the three Divine Beings, or weakened them. Maybe it's just taken them this long to work their way free, or maybe this is the extent of their power, locked up by Dawnomar."

"Then this would mean they're not the all-powerful beings they claim they are." Roxas said quickly, "It would mean that if we were to destroy their vessels, they wouldn't be able to interfere."

Ven nodded, but still didn't feel as confident. Was fighting the right way? It was what Vanitas had wanted in order to make the X-Blade. Maybe there was another way. Again, Ven wished for Eraqus' presence. Terra and Aqua were reassuring to be around, but Eraqus always seemed to know what to do. Ven hadn't said this to anyone, not even Terra or Aqua, but he would follow Eraqus to the ends of the earth and against even the Rikkisons and the LE if Eraqus asked it of him.

Of course, Eraqus would never do that, never turn against the LE, but in the Keyblade Graveyard, as he had been a part of the air and the wind, thoughts that never crossed his mind plagued him. What if the LE had turned upon Eraqus? What if Terra and Aqua didn't join him? Jack, despite being a fellow apprentice, would not hesitate to follow his father if it came down to it.

Sora was looking at him, tilting his gold helmet to the left, but Ven decided not to voice his thoughts. Thoughts like that were best left unsaid. Instead, he asked, "What would happen if we weren't here? What would happen to these Realms?

Sora shrugged. "It's times like these when we need Jason and Eraqus. Those two always knew what to do."

"It's funny," Ven said, "In the LE, everyone else looked up to you and Jack, even though Jason was the one who led the LE."

"Everyone else?" Sora asked quickly, "What do you mean?"

Ven kicked himself for being so oblivious and shrugged, not saying anything. Unfortunately, Sora was always persistent, to the point where he could even get Riku to open up, and he kept on pestering Ven, undeterred by Ven's uncharacteristic silence.

"Come on," Sora was saying, "If we can't trust each other with our feelings, then who can we trust? What's wrong? It's not like we're not going to be friends if you say something weird. I mean, you lived in my Heart for a decade."

"You were a cute kid." Ven said, "What happened to him?" Sora didn't say anything, and Ven sighed. "It's nothing much. It's just that I trusted Eraqus, and even Terra and Aqua, a lot more than I trusted Jason or you. It's nothing personal, but they just meant a lot more to me than you did. I'd still follow you, but it's just," he sighed and shook his head.

"Hey, it's fine." Sora said, "It just means you trust them more than you trust me, which, considering you grew up with them, seems pretty reasonable. I'd trust Riku and Kairi over Terra or Aqua."

"You can't really be worrying about that, can you?" Roxas interjected, "I'm not going to hide that I trusted Lea and Xion more than Riku and Kairi."

Ven opened his mouth and was about to respond when the two of them suddenly whipped their heads in the direction of the castle wall. Two vessels of Corruption were approaching quickly, and they would be on the city walls within seconds. They thought they had been discovered, but the two Grandmasters converged on the castle wall and didn't move, possibly waiting for something.

"We should go tell Terra and Aqua." Ven said, "They need to know what's going on."

Sora shook his head and started running towards the castle wall. "We need to find out what they're doing. If we tell them and come back, they might be gone."

Ven mumbled something, but had no choice and followed after Sora. He wondered what they were doing here, and if it had anything to do with Mr. H and the Mistborn. His Heart clenched tightly, as the two of them, or three including Roxas, rushed to where the Grandmasters were.

They started to slow down as they approached the wall where the Grandmasters were talking, and they both strained their ears, or what substituted for their ears as Remnants, to hear what was being said.

"Should we allow ourselves to be possessed by Corruption any longer?" It was Astelik, talking with another unpossessed Grandmaster.

"Allow?" Agatha asked scornfully, "Corruption has forced it's way into our bodies, we have no choice in the matter. You have become foolish in your possession if you think otherwise. What do you want to say, Astelik? You were never one to bandy words like a child."

"I find my mind free to wander, now that Corruption has so kindly relieved us of our normal duties." Astelik said, "Amazing how eloquent one finds oneself when the usual toils of maintaining a body are lifted from our figurative shoulders."

"Indeed," Agatha said, her voice maintaining its frosty tone, "You now seem to have the capability to waste time rarely given to us. Talk."

Astelik chuckled and said, "I have been theorizing what Corruption really wants. He has told everyone his goal is to decay the world into Nothingness, but I disagree. He is plotting something on Gran Pulse that he has not shared, even with his own vessels, but he cannot be planning the death of a Divine Being."

"Corruption is the by-product of the clash between Light and Darkness," Agatha said, "I have gleaned this from the morsels of information Corruption has left us. You are trying to say that Corruption's true purpose is to prolong the clash indefinitely so that he, too, may prosper, are you not?"

Astelik nodded, and Agatha responded curtly, "You have yet to tell me something of value."

There was a brief pause, then Astelik continued, "Why did we become the Grandmasters, all those centuries ago? Remind me, for time and Corruption have worn away my memories. Did we do it for the prestige and power, or did we think we were acting justly?"

"Your sentiment is something that I have most certainly not missed." Agatha said acerbically, "If this is how you choose to use the time we remain unpossessed, I will remember to spend it elsewhere. Sentiment was something we gave up eight hundred years ago. For stability and stagnation."

"Stability and stagnation," Astelik said heavily, "If Corruption sends this world into disarray, Light struggling against Darkness, it will disrupt what we worked to build such a long time ago. My question to you is whether we should oppose Corruption."

Agatha laughed again, but this time she seemed to be laughing out of mirth. "Now you question the morality of things. Your hatred never wavered as you clawed your way to Kingdom Hearts, leading the other nine of us. Your determination never shook as we burnt worlds and slaughtered millions, crushing anyone that opposed us for the sake of the pledge we made, for stability and stagnation. And now you wonder what the right thing to do should be."

"Perhaps it is guilt," Astelik wondered, "Or my own selfish delusions to cover up waning resolve. But I wonder now, if it had been better had we not existed. If we had let the Realms of Light fend for themselves, and not carried on the existence of the Keyblade Wielders. We held the lives of the Keyblade Wielders in our hands, and we could have let them die out. But we chose to take control of the other worlds with Kingdom Hearts. We chose to force the different worlds under our rule, instead of letting them fend for themselves. I wonder if we did the right thing."

"You sound like how you did when you were but a Master Candidate." Agatha snorted, "Spouting nonsense about the right thing, as if such a thing exists in this world. Corruption has worked it's way into your mind, scraping away at your intellect."

The two were silent for a moment, and then they were joined by a third vessel. She too, was in possession of her mind, and she spoke to them. "Well, well. Look at the three of us. Corruption must be confident indeed if it is allowing all three of us freedom at the same time."

"Alethia." Astelik said, but didn't say anything else.

"My, aren't we cagey," Alethia said, "Can our glorious leader be feeling angsty? Do his emotions run wild amidst Corruption's lovely influences?"

When Astelik still didn't answer Alethia leaned back against the glittering city wall and asked, "So, do you think Corruption will catch Marek and Sora's little descendent? Corruption should have guessed Marek might burst through our own Portal as a means of escape. That Remnant is even more reckless than our illustrious leader used to be." Alethia remarked, lightly tapping Astelik's armoured shoulder.

"Do you intend to display your completely inept vocabulary as you attempt to describe Astelik?" Agatha asked cuttingly, successfully dampening Alethia's mood.

The three of them were silent again, then Astelik said quietly, "Corruption will fail to snatch Frost Rikkison from the other Divine Beings or the Remnants."

"Ah, a wonderful way to start conversation, don't you think?" Alethia said, "Not traitorous in the least."

"You consider the Remnants to be a threat?" Agatha asked, "We could have defeated them even without Corruption's power. They don't stand a chance."

Astelik shook his head, "The Three Divine Beings seem intent on stopping them. Perhaps they are more than they seem."

"Or perhaps someone's armour has gotten in a twist." Alethia said, "Or a rust, or whatever conundrums suits of armour go through. Oh, the trials of being stuck in Keyblade Armour."

Agatha snorted disparagingly, and Astelik continued, "The point still stands, Corruption's plan to use our influence and use the templars and Dragoons will never work. Their Hearts are filled with Light, and Corruption is foolish to think he can overpower their Hearts with himself."

"Corruption believes their faith in our reputation enough to sway them to his cause." Agatha said in a cold voice that revealed nothing. Her voice was like the smooth Lunarian-made wall that let no influence in and no emotion out.

Astelik shook his head and started walking across the battlements, "Corruption believes many things. He has spent his long life dodging between Light and Darkness. Out in the open, he lacks the mind to act competently."

"And why are you sharing your doubts?" Agatha asked, "Even if you happen to be right, there is nothing we can do to break out of Corruption's grasp, unless you have somehow stumbled upon a way to expel Corruption from your broken body."

"I wanted someone to share my thoughts with." Astelik said, "The three of us are the only ones who are still alive. The other seven are simply empty husks of armour that Corruption flaunts in our face day by day."

"Again, you have reverted to childhood," Agatha said, "Since when did you feel the need to share your weaknesses with the rest of your comrades?"

"Do not pester the poor man," Alethia said, "My, Corruption's possession has made him sentimental and you crabby. I wonder what shall become of me."

"You have become more flippant and obnoxious." Agatha said, "Our bodies were broken after our little fight with the Remnants, and when Corruption put us back together, it also put our Hearts back together."

"And we act like how we used to be when our Hearts were strongest." Alethia said, "Interesting theory, Agatha. Astelik's mind has deteriorated, and yours has sharpened. A pity it has also had the undesirable side-effect of sharpening the edge of your wit."

Agatha was about to respond, when Astelik said, "Arcostan and Aelothum are returning. We should reign in such thoughts or risk being felled by one of our comrades."

"May I remind you that you were the one who started this gloomy conversation?" Alethia laughed. If she had face, her eyebrows would be raised.

Astelik didn't reply to that, and the three of them greeted Arcostan and Aelothum as they thudded onto the hard material of the wall. Ven and Sora, who had been holding their breaths, figuratively of course, were relieved to the extreme when they heard Aelothum say, "We lost Marek on the mountains of Agart."

"What is your plan?" Astelik asked. His voice was even, and betrayed no inkling of what he had been discussing with Agatha and Alethia. The five Grandmasters started to walk along the battlements, and Ven and Sora quietly followed on the buildings adjacent to the walls.

"In your thoughts you mentioned Summoners who dub themselves the Mistborn." Corruption said, "Could they have spirited them away?"

"They are based in the desert north of here." Astelik replied carefully, "It is unlikely they could have reached south of us without getting notice."

"How else could they have disappeared had the earth not swallowed them?" Corruption asked, "You say they are based in the north?"

Astelik nodded, and Corruption continued, "Then we shall gather up our forces and march on their base. Speak to the head templar."

Astelik nodded again, and walked off, beckoning Agatha to come with him. Aelothum stepped forward and said, "I shall accompany you. Agatha and Alethia, follow Arcostan and meet Avomis at the city gates and act as the advance party."

The three of them nodded and headed off, and Sora and Ven quickly did the same. Looking up, they saw the sun setting into the ground, and ran off to meet with Terra and Aqua.

Aqua and Terra had gotten to the gates first, although it wasn't a gate separating the city and the wilderness. This gate was merely separating two sections of the city, and the walls were plastered and beset with merchants crying out what their unique products were. Some were trying to sell animal parts, some sold rare ores from foreign regions, some even books they claimed were more informative than any other that could be found in Baron.

"The people here seem happy." Aqua said out of the blue, "It's nice to see."

Terra looked at her, then said, "After Traverse City, it's a welcome change."

They waited for a bit taking in the good-natured citizens, yelling as they haggled over the plethora of products being sold, laughing with their friends as they walked around without a care in the world, and despite the noise, Terra was finding himself comforted by the hustle and bustle of the city. It was steady and sure, as if business had been conducted this way for an eternity, and the consistency felt reassuring.

Darkness was falling, and the sky was tinged purple, shading the thick clouds that were drifting towards Baron with an unearthly glow. It would probably rain, no doubt giving the crops they saw as they came in. Fitting that the rain, which gave life to this city, would come with such grand and carefree heralds. As Aqua was looking up, Terra nudged her and nodded towards Sora and Ven weaving their way through the crowd.

"How was your day?" Aqua asked casually, "Did you have fun?"

Ven nodded quickly, and was about to say something when Terra wondered, "What does our informant look like?"

"Enoch only told us that he'd be meeting us." Aqua said, "So I guess we just wait here until it happens."

As if on cue, a man came up to them and said, "You are the ones blessed by the Producer?"

Looking at him, he seemed average and easily overlooked, good qualities in a spy. He had an average figure. Not too tall to stand out, yet not too short to be considered peculiar. He had an open demeanour about him that suggested to every passerby that he was no threat, and someone of little consequence. Most useful of all, his hair was a simple black colour, quite unlike Cassandra's flowing emerald hair, or Torak's flaming crimson mane.

Looking down at him, Terra nodded. "Do you have what we need?"

The man nodded. "The one you are looking for is called Frost Rikkison. She is stationed in Troia, on the other side of the planet."

Terra turned to the others and asked, "Where is that?"

"Not to worry," the man said, "Return to our home, and Enoch will guide you there."

They all nodded and thanked the man, but Ven said, "You'll be under attack in days." He let the impact of what he'd just said sink in, then continued, "Sora and I overheard the Grandmasters talking. They were chasing Marek and thought the Summoners had hidden him."

Ven looked at their informant and said, "You haven't, have you?"

The spy shook his head and said, "No, we haven't. You are certain of this imminent attack?"

Sora nodded. "We have to get back quickly to warn Enoch and the others."

The spy nodded, his brown eyes suddenly intense under his inconspicuous face. "Then I shall accompany you back."

"Your place is here, isn't it?" Terra asked, "It's where you've been assigned." He made to place his hand on the spy's shoulder, but the spy shrugged it off and said, "If their attack succeeds, my homeland shall be no more. How could I hold my head high if I hid away on the pretext of duty."

"You'll just slow us down." Aqua said, "We can't fly as fast if we were to carry more than one person on our Riders."

The spy smiled and said, "I too, am a Mistborn, even if I do not dwell in my homeland. One of the criteria for selection is the ability to escape if detected." His black hair glimmered and flowed about slightly as he gathered in his power. "Come, let us take flight. Do you want to send the fastest ahead to warn my brethren?"

"That sounds like a good idea." Ven said, "I'll meet you there." He grinned and jumped on his Rider that seemed to materialize from nowhere and flew off. He quickly gained altitude and plunged into the voluminous clouds, hiding himself from the sight of the citziens.

The others smiled, then summoned their own Riders. The spy's hair flowed again, and suddenly flung out itself, as long as Cassandra's had been, like his own personal aura of Darkness. He muttered an incantation of the same kind as Enoch's and a black mass propelled him into the sky where he disappeared from sight. Terra, Aqua and Sora quickly followed him, and almost fell off their Riders in shock when they saw a huge dragon flapping its sharp and angular wings. The spy grinned as he sat astride it, hanging on to it's grey spikes that seemed able to cut through even Keyblade Armour. It's tail seemed fragmented as it waved about, and it seemed to be so thin it appeared to be two-dimensional.

"Meet Neo-Classical Drake." He said, his jet-black hair streaming out behind him, as long and lustrous as Cassandra's. None of the Remnants really wanted to know how his hair had been hidden from them. They were just in awe of the huge animal as it flew through the air.

Sora laughed in amazement, and Terra asked, "We never found out your name."

"Nickolai." The man yelled, his voice almost drowned out by the rushing wind. "What are yours?"

"I'm Terra," the Remnant said, "The others are Aqua and Sora." He quickly put more power into his Rider, falling behind the other three due to his Rider's limitations. They flew through the clouds, water droplets running over their Riders, and they saw the cultivated fields growing crops and maintaining livestock they had seen coming towards Baron through the gaps in the clouds. The farmers had left the fields, though they were still being patrolled by the odd templar or dragoon.

"How much time do you think we have?" Nickolai yelled, "Did the Grandmasters specify a time?"

Sora shook his head vigourously as he glided alongside the huge dragon. He ended up riding slightly above Nickolai to minimize the disruption of the air the Drake's wings made as they propelled its Summoner back to its homeland. "They just said they'd be rallying up the troops today. It could happen anytime after that. They're sending four Grandmasters as a vanguard."

Nickolai nodded, and urged his Drake to fly faster. Aqua gestured at Sora to keep up with him while she stayed behind with Terra. Getting separated in the air could be disastrous, especially since they didn't know when the four Grandmasters would be arriving.

Luckily, their trip was uneventful, and they had only been flying for less than an hour before they saw the mountains of the Mistborn loom ahead, the desert below them tapering out into the brittle soil that lead up to the mountains.

Nickolai muttered something and his drake faded like smoke into the air. He jumped down from a height of a few hundred metres, but landed unharmed. Sora flew down and dismissed his Rider as well, looking back and seeing Terra and Aqua several hundred metres away. Nickolai started to walk in, and Sora followed him into the confusing caverns. The Remnants could sense each other easily, and following his trail wouldn't be hard for Terra and Aqua. They dropped down on the ground a few minutes after Sora and Nickolai did, and went into the cave.

When the four of them arrived in the main council chamber, they were greeted by a rush of activity and a room with an atmosphere so strong it was like someone had cast a Gravity spell on all of them. There weren't any Summons flying around yet, but preperations had been made by every capable summoner, and the combined energy of all of them were enough to have a visible effect on the Remnants. In the center, Enoch was directing the evacuation, sending people fetching supplies from the depths of the mountain, and retrieving valuable books from the libraries. Torak and Cassandra were beside him, their hair glowing and sparkling under the energy from the Feymarch. Looking around, they saw Ven carrying huge loads of supplies, his arms strengthened by Light, precariously balancing a stack of books on each hand.

Nickolai walked up to Enoch and bowed, then asked, "How much time do we need?"

"We need half a day in order to fully clear out the knowledge we have gathered over the centuries." Enoch said, "But all the citizens could be evacuated within the hour."

The three Remnants nodded, and started to help with the clearing of the library. They ran through complex caverns, following the other Summoners who were assigned the same tasks, each of them thankful that they had not had the misfortune to get lost in these caves. The walls sparkled deviously, concealing some exits while inviting the innocent traveller to what was most likely a dead end or a trap. They wound through passages, moving up and down, until all sense of direction the Remnants had once had were lost. Most disorienting of all, the crystals themselves emitted out faint energy, imbued with power from the Feymarch, playing havoc on the individual flow in the area. The Remnants relied on this for sight, and with the energy of each rock fluctuating, they could only follow the flow of the summoners as they ran through the caves. Grimly, Terra knew that Corruption would have the same difficulties in navigating.

They had gotten to the main evacuation point, where they could see Light shining out of an opening, when a sudden rumble shook the whole cave. The Remnants had to stand still in order to concentrate, but once they did, they sense the distinct aura of Corruption. Ven grabbed a summoner, and hoisted him onto his shoulders saying, "Tell us the way."

The Summoner stuttered something, but his voice was temporarily lost in the shock of being carried. His voice shook as he started to direct Ven, and he immediately rann off. Terra, Aqua, and Sora looked at the Summoners, and they each grabbed a Summoner (who willingly volunteered), and sped through the tunnels.

The Remnants went slowly at first to let the Summoners get used to the speed, but they were soon sprinting through the caverns while the Summoners shot out the directions in quick gasps. They had been running for a few minutes, when they almost crashed into the escaping Summoners, almost splattering them against the cave walls. Being crashed into by a suit of armour imbued with Light without any reinforcing could very well be fatal. The leading summoner said, "You have to help. Cassandra, Torak and Enoch stayed behind to hold them off."

The Remnants nodded, continued on for half a minute before they got to the main cavern. If they hadn't seen Enoch, Torak and Cassandra in the middle, they wouldn't have known it was the same place. All the other exits had been sealed off with rock, and huge columns of hot rock spanned the gap from ceiling to floor, dripping with slag. Fire danced around the cavern walls, casting blinding light through the whole cavern. More importantly, it projected raw energy of the Feymarch around them, making it near-impossible for Corruption to see them.

Enoch's brow glistened with sweat that was actually blue, making it look like his forehead was covered with hoarfrost. Torak's beard flickered dully and the fiery red was mixed with black, as if his fire had died out to a few embers. Cassandra's hair hung limply behind her, seeming like encumbering seaweed that would drag her down to the floor. In front of them, the familiar shapes of Ifrit, Rubicante, Shiva, and Barbarrica. They stood tiredly in front of their summoners, exhausted from their battle.

"You cannot defeat me, Mistborn." Avomis intoned, "My power is inexhaustible. Even Panthera Cantus was unable to withstand my might."

Cassandra's eyes sparked anew with anger at the reminder of the deicide Corruption had committed, and she yelled, "Maelstrom!" at the same time Torak yelled, "Hellfire!" A tornado of fire roared in Avomis' direction, but he darted up to the ceiling, using the stone pillars that had been summoned, and dashed down to slash at Cassandra. Terra jumped in and parried the blow, being pushed back into the wall by Avomis' momentum. Arcostan followed forward, dispelling, the fire and running at Torak. The two staves met in a ringing explosion, and despite Torak's bulk, his arm jerked up as Arcostan blew away his defence. Ven quickly threw his own Keyblade, making Arcostan's staff hit Torak's arm instead of his sternum. Nevertheless, Torak bellowed in pain as his shoulder was broken or dislocated, and he stumbled away, clutching his shoulder as his now useless arm dropped his staff. Instantly, Rubicante and Ifrit disappeared, leaving Agatha free to slip past Shiva and kick Enoch into the wall.

Aqua ran over to cure Torak and Enoch, but it seemed the three Remnants had entered the fight just as the three lead Summoners were about to fall. Avomis dashed over to Cassandra to finish the job, when a black claw erupted out of nowhere, making him run into the wall some metres away.

A man in a black cloak appeared, and the ethereal claw returned to his arm. "Geez, you still haven't gotten everyone out yet?"

He jumped over Arcostan to attack Agatha, who raised his staff and started to summon something. "YOU'RE JUST SO-" He kicked Amiox's staff away and would have struck the Grandmaster himself if Alethia hadn't intervened, "ZETTA SLOW!"

Well, that was a long chapter for me. And almost all of it was talking.

You might have noticed that I'm using the word Templar now, instead of Paladin. This is because it was pointed out to me that paladins don't exist due to the shattering of the mirror on Mt. Ordeals in FFIV:TAY. That's what I get for not playing the game.

Happy new year. I'm well aware it's not 2014 for 80% of the world, but it's New Year here, so I'm wishing you all a Happy New Year.

Hope you enjoyed all that talking. I finally started to give the Grandmasters some character, and also tried to flesh out Ven, Sora and Roxas. Truth be told, I forgot about Roxas until recently. Oops.

Neo-Classical Drake is a monster taken from the game The World Ends With You. If you want, you can find a picture here:

twewy. wikia wiki/Neoclassical_Drake

Anyways, hope you enjoyed that, 'till next time.