Light: Hah! I finally got this damn thing up!

Tegan: Good thing, too. I thought you were going to drive yourself crazy writing this chapter.

Light: Me too. I didn't think I'd have so much trouble. I mean, summer's always a busy time for me, but this one fight! Augh, I had to re-write it like five times!

Salem: Loadsa fun there, huh?

Light: *grumbling, muttering, and cursing the fanfiction gods*

Salem: Right...Well, I guess that's that. Enjoy the new update, folks! Remember, Light doesn't own anything except the story and us. If you like it, leave us a comment in the box below!


"Natsu, get out of the way!"

The warning came too late. Or rather, Zero was much, much faster. Like, way too fast. Vanitas didn't even see the jackass coming; he was damn blur. One second he was standing on the other side of the room, the next he stood where Natsu had been. The Fairy Tail wizard had no time to react before one single hit sent him flying. Within seconds, he hit the wall with enough force to crack the marble. A shower of dust and plaster rained down on Natsu as he slid down to the floor.

Zero smirked, flicking debris from his fingers. "Pathetic."

Going against his better judgement, Vanitas threw his Keyblade at him, hoping to use a Strike Raid to buy some time to get over to that moron of a Fire mage. As much as he hated to admit it, he was going to need Natsu's help in order to take this freak down. Vanitas couldn't do it by himself.

His leg screamed in protest as he tried to make his way over to Natsu. A blow from Zero earlier had most likely fractured one of the bones. Not broken clean through, though. Vanitas knew full what a broken leg felt like. And although this hurt like hell, it wasn't nearly that bad. He could power through it.

Shit! Move, you stupid piece of—

They had been screwed right from the start.

With Natsu's keen sense of smell, finding their specific lacrima had been a breeze. Easiest mission he'd ever been assigned. Granted, they only had it so easy because that Dragon Slayer had locked onto Zero's scent. So as soon as they found their tunnel, he was waiting for them at the end of it. After some pointless banter that didn't get any of them anywhere, Natsu launched himself at the Oracion Seis lunatic and jumpstarted their ass-kicking.

"Yes—keep scurrying, you little rat." An energy blast of some sort hit Vanitas square in the back. The force of the blast knocked him right off his feet and he went sailing through the air. Shock tore through him in the form of a shout, one that quickly cut off when he hit the wall like a sack of bricks, sliding down until he joined Natsu on the floor.

"N-Nice of you to," the wizard groaned. "Ugh…to drop in."

Vanitas scowled. There was a faint, coppery taste in the back of his mouth. Blood. Had he bitten his tongue? His cheek stung, too. Probably scraped it against the rough brick. "Shut up, asshole…"

Dammit all. This was insane! Zero was ridiculously strong. Was he some kind of monster? A demon? No human could ever be this powerful. There was no way. The boys were getting knocked around like a couple of ragdolls. And then there was the dark magic. Zero's repertoire comprised of this destructive dark energy that ripped through nearly everything it came in contact with.

Their clothes had taken quite a beating from it. So full of holes, the boys might've looked like a pair of street rats. And then there was the ever-growing list of injuries. Vanitas' leg, as well as a bruised rib or two. A nasty gash on Natsu's shoulder dripped blood down his arm. But Zero, he wasn't even breaking a sweat. Sick freak was enjoying this…

This was nothing like anything Vanitas had ever faced. Yeah, he'd gotten himself into some real tight spots before. Getting in over his head wasn't really anything new.

But damn, this fight right here pissed Vanitas off! As much as he hated to admit it, there was a considerable power gap between the boys and this…this freak. And being so greatly outmatched, it made Vanitas furious. Anger surged inside him, had him seeing red. He couldn't stand this. How were they supposed to take Zero down if he kept pummeling them within an inch of their lives?

Vanitas needed some kind of battle plan. But that was the crux of it, wasn't it? Tactics had never been his strong suit, not when he had brute force on his side. Vanitas had always been a sort of creature of instinct. Now, he was starting to regret not taking someone along like Salem or Lea, who could come up with clever little plans on the fly. He just didn't know how to get around Zero's magic.

Forget having an immunity to dark-type attacks; that just didn't fly. He'd originally thought that since Zero's spells were all akin to lasers, Vanitas could just skirt around them. But that wasn't the case with these things. Zero could alter the direction and trajectory of his attacks, even after they had already been fired. Even if one of the boys moved out of the way, he could just flick his hand and the attack would turn and hit them from behind. It made getting close next to impossible; Natsu and Vanitas were forced to go on the defensive just to keep themselves from getting blasted into oblivion.

And it wasn't like they were really long-ranged fighters. Natsu had maybe one or two spells that he could fire off at a distance, so did Vanitas. But none of them were particularly strong. If they couldn't get in close to use their more powerful attacks, what the hell were they supposed to do?

Dammit! Vanitas decided then and there that he didn't like being the prey. He was starting to fucking hate it. In a choice between "hunt" or "be hunted", he'd gladly take the former.

He rolled out of the way, catching his forearm on another one of those blasted spells. I think I actually miss the good old days when I was the one wrecking things. Tormenting Ventus and his friends was a helluva lot easier than being the good guy…

He could have cursed himself for thinking like that. What was he thinking? Vanitas didn't want to go back to those days.

Another blast hit him in the side. The dark, spiraling magic sent him crashing into the pillar at the center of the room. Vanitas howled as he felt his ribcage crack.

Anger soon gave way to a different emotion. Vanitas recoiled as panic twisted his gut into a tight, complicated little knot. His chest felt tight, making each frenzied beat of his heart feel like a stab. He couldn't breathe. This overwhelming sense of dread washed over him, a dizzying sense of helplessness. In a way, this fight reminded him of that final battle in the Keyblade Graveyard. More to the point, his final battle with Ventus after he had taken his counterpart's body away from him.

Just like when he saw the X-Blade crumbling away right in front of him.

Zero loomed over them, his smile cruel and mocking. But Vanitas didn't see that bastard's ugly mug. Instead, it was his old Master that he saw. Xehanort loomed overheard, sneering at him. Ridiculing and berating Vanitas. This heavy, dark aura crashed over him like a fifty-foot wave. Panic held tight around his neck in a vicious chokehold. That nervous, anxious tension churned in his gut just like those first few years of his existence.

It was as if he were thrown back in time to those days he wanted so desperately to forget.

"Pathetic. Is this truly all that you are capable of?" A brutal kick slammed into yet another of Vanitas' badly beaten ribs with a jarring crack. "Pathetic. Such a waste of my time. I can't fathom why I bothered to expend my energy on a whelp such as yourself."

The blows continued to rain down as Vanitas lay helpless on the ground, unable to lift even a finger to defend himself. The pain paralyzed him, left him racked with agony and swimming in a sea of anguished helplessness. Every hit sent him reeling, His vision blurred until he could barely make out the tiles underneath his nose.

How was he supposed to win this?

He needed his Unversed. He couldn't win this without them.

It's no use. I can't win this. I'm too…I'm too weak…

"NO, YOU'RE NOT! You're selfish, rude, and a total jerk, Vanitas. But you've never, EVER been weak!"

Ventus' voice was as strong as canon fire. Or a bomb. He screamed in Vanitas' ears, tearing into every negative, self-pitying thought beating into his mind like the overbearingly annoying, overwhelmingly positive ray of sunshine that he was. But something was different. That ray of sunshine, that hippy-dippy flowerchild was now a screaming, raving terror. He wouldn't let up. Like a wild dog, he snapped and fought until Vanitas felt that his ears might bleed from it all.

"A-Ahugh…!"

In fact, maybe his ears were bleeding. His head sure felt ready to burst.

"I thought surviving was the most important thing for you? Isn't that why you LEFT the Organization with Salem in the first place? Isn't that why you've been fighting this entire time? TO SURVIVE?!"

"Weak," Zero cackled as he continued to beat into Vanitas and Natsu. "So very, very weak. Such a disappointment!"

"…Shut up…"

"And what about our friends? Salem, Angie, Jade, and Tegan! The other wizards? They're all counting on YOU to get this done. You can't give up now!"

"Shut up." Vanitas' teeth gnashed. Too much noise. Too much…

"And what about ME? I need to get back to my body. I need to find Terra and Aqua, remember? But I can't do that if you stop now. Come on, Vanitas, please. You have to get up, please! I CAN'T DO THIS WITHOUT YOU!"

"SHUT UP!"

Vanitas' voice exploded out from him. It was a bellowing war cry—this great, howling scream like a dragon's fiery shriek that shook Nirvana for a mile in every direction. Vanitas screamed until his throat felt raw and his voice grew hoarse, but he didn't care. He simply didn't feel the pain. Not from screaming or from Zero's beating. He didn't feel any of it. There was only rage.

Always rage…

He didn't even notice that Darkness whipped into a frenzied cyclone around him, forming a protective barrier around him and Natsu that kept Zero at bay. The guild master of Oracion Seis found himself pushed back by a wall of snapping, violent energy.

"Noise," Vanitas muttered in a rough, gravelly voice. "So much fucking noise…"

Vanitas staggered as he clamored up to his feet. As drained as he was, it took a considerably amount of effort to pull himself upright, despite his injuries. He could barely put any weight on his leg and breathing anything deeper than a thimbleful of air seared his chest. But the anger and the roiling fury churning away inside did him wonders.

His head felt much clearer now. That sense of powerlessness had all but vanished. Vanitas cursed himself for allowing that weakness to get the better of him. Only briefly, though. Because there were bigger issue to deal with than beating himself up for now.

Zero was a powerful foe. Without a doubt, he was stronger than anything Vanitas had ever faced. With the exception of Xehanort, he couldn't think of a more dangerous enemy. But that didn't count for shit. Vanitas wasn't going to let himself get beat by a chump like this. He was too stubborn, for one thing. And another, Vanitas would rather kill himself than let some power-hungry psychopath do it for him. Especially one with such a twisted set of ideals.

Destroying things for the sake of destruction itself? What a damn joke. Vanitas was far from a saint himself, but at least he always had an actual reason to for what he did. Not that it was a very good reason, in retrospect. Yeah, he'd admit as much. But for as screwed up as his moral compass was, as least Vanitas had one.

No. Vanitas would defeat this clown, and pound his sorry face into the dirt. Sure, Zero was stronger, but Vanitas had the conviction—the pure, unadulterated spite—to continue on. He was a survivor, after all. Like a damn cockroach, he was going to make sure that he came out on top.

Natsu's not the only stubborn moron here.

A sudden thought occurred to him, one that made him laugh.

Natsu frowned as he heard the low, sinister laugh bubbling up from Vanitas' throat. He tensed.

Something smelled…off. He didn't know what it was exactly, but he couldn't help but wrinkle his nose. There was this weird scent surrounding Vanitas. Something that smelled strongly of mold and stale air. It strangely reminded him of a dusty old cellar that hadn't been aired out for ages. Just like the weirdos running around in the black coats.

And Vanitas' eyes were doing that crazy "light up" trick again. Yellow eyes weren't exactly uncommon. But ones that lit up? Now that was weird.

He'd noticed the strange trait once before, back in the cave when they were rescuing Happy and the others. At that time, it had been barely noticeable; Natsu thought that maybe he had made a mistake and imagined it. But now, within the swirling black fog surrounding them, those things glowed brighter than any lantern he'd ever seen. Vanitas' eyes were probably on par with one of his own fireballs.

The laugh was creepy. But coupled with those freaky peepers?

Unnerving.

A small fireball sprang to life in Natsu's palm, illuminating a wide, toothy grin. Okay, considerably less unnerving. Maybe…

"I guess I really am a disappointment," Vanitas sniggered. "And an idiot, too. I can't believe I didn't think of this sooner…" He reached into his pocket and pulled an item out. The light from Natsu's fire reflected off of five pieces of red glass, metal framework, and a long chain. A star-shaped charm?

Natsu remembered seeing one just like it hanging off of Tegan's belt, only hers was gray and black. The Dragon Slayer frowned. What gives?

The two yellow lights turned towards Natsu, indicating that Vanitas was now looking directly at him. The teen sighed as he rubbed the charm's chain between his fingers.

"Kinda wish that it'd been someone else," he muttered almost ruefully. "But beggars can't be choosers, I guess…"

He tossed the charm in Natsu's direction. Being unable to see well, he fumbled around before catching the strange object in his free hand. In doing so, a drop of blood from his finger smeared across the topmost point of the star.

"Wh-What the…?!" The charm grew hot in Natsu's hand. An odd, tingling feeling raced across his fingertips and the glass star lit up

Vanitas grinned and snatched the trinket back without any explanation. "Just what I like to see," he murmured, sounding pretty darn pleased with himself. "Yo, Charcoal breath. Think you can still fight?"

Now that was the stupidest question Natsu had ever heard. He grinned right back and jumped up, wincing a little but otherwise filled with renewed vigor. Without warning, he surged forward with flames in hand to intercept a powerful blast of magic that came straight for them as Vanitas released the barrier. The spell hit him head-on, but the Dragon Slayer managed to keep it contained. Probably from sheer stubbornness alone. The magic was strong and managed to push him back about a foot before finally dissipating. But by that time, Natsu was still standing strong, albeit smoking.

"Think you can…keep up…?" He panted heavily, but the triumphant smirk said it all. He was ready to duke it out. Of course, Vanitas had quickly learned to expect nothing less.

But then, something even more unexpected happened. All three of them—Vanitas, Natsu, and Zero, too—all stopped dead in their tracks. A new presence had entered the room. And a strong one at that. But before anyone could react, a blast of magic came flying at the boys. From behind Zero.

A bright blast of light hit Natsu square in the chest, knocking him over. If not for Vanitas grabbing him by the shoulder, the wizard could've gone down for the count right then and there. Or, at the very least, knocked right through the floor. As it were, the light was intense. It burned Vanitas, who drew back with a hiss as he flexed his stinging fingers.

"What the fu—?!"

Footsteps echoed through the air. A slow, yet methodical pace. And then a man appeared at the chamber entrance. Vanitas recognized the blue hair that fell just above his high-collared jacket, as well as that strange red tattoo running down one half of his face.

It was that guy from the waterfall caves—the one who had attacked him and Natsu when they rescued Jade and the Cait Shelter brat. That…Dammit, what was his name again? Gerard? No…

"Jellal…" Natsu crouched forward at Vanitas' side, zeroed in on the man in a way reminiscent of a wild beast setting its sights on prey.

Yes. Jellal. That's the right was the wizard who'd apparently caused a lot of trouble for the Fairies before. And considering how he'd attacked them before, on top of Natsu's ferocious response to him showing up out of the blue, Vanitas was inclined to believe it. The tension radiating off of the lunatic pyro was enough to put him on edge.

There was something very off about that Jellal guy. Just like before, just being in the same room sends a strange shiver down Vanitas' spine.

Zero smirked. "So, have your memories returned?"

A dark, evil grin curled the man's lips. Jellal nodded ever so slightly.

"Vanitas," Ventus whispered in his ear. The blond didn't make an appearance this time around, choosing to stay hidden. Maybe that was for the best. The hair at the back of Vanitas' neck stood straight up. "What are we going to do?"

"I don't know," he hissed. "Shut up for a second, Ven. Let me think…"

This complicated things. From what he understood, this Jellal guy was major trouble. Natsu had fought him once before and gotten his ass kicked numerous times before finally beating him on account of some miraculous bullshit. "Power of friendship" and all that nonsense. From the looks of things now, the guy used strong Light magic. That was a problem where Vanitas was concerned. Couldn't let himself get hit by that stuff. But still…

This just complicated things.

With some new power stocked up in his Wayfinder, fighting Zero would've been easier. But now they had this guy thrown into the mix?

Remember, you've been through worse. The circumstances aren't ideal, but they're manageable. Don't panic…Dammit. Gotta play this smart.

"Jellal!"

Play it smart? Yeah, sure. That was easy for someone like Vanitas. But the idiot Fire wizard next to him?

Not a single, fucking chance.

"You moron!"

Natsu took off after Jellal without a second thought. Not toward Zero and certainly not towards the open back he presented to the enemy. This left Vanitas to cover his stupid ass while the wizard charged. He didn't dare take his eyes away from the Dark guild standing in front of him.

But then Natsu cried out in pain, and Vanitas caught a whiff of something burning. An acrid, charred smell burned his nose. Burnt fabric. Someone had set Natsu's clothes on fire?

"Golden flames?" He heard Ventus' exclamation of shock but didn't dare turn around. It made him wonder though.

Natsu was a Fire wizard. And as a Dragon Slayer, he had a natural immunity to it. Yeah, Natsu could be hurt by the stuff, if only a little. If the guy would juggle actual fireballs with his bare hands, he had to have something going for him. But if he and Jellal had already fought before, wouldn't he know that using fire against him would be useless?

The confused expression on Zero's face—the very first Vanitas had seen from the creep—clued him in that things were starting to get weird. Curiosity started to creep in. Taking a chance, the Keyblade wielder glanced over his shoulder.

Natsu was…on fire. Normally, that wouldn't shock Vanitas; he'd seen the guy set himself ablaze plenty already. (The aforementioned juggling had resulted in one such instance before.) Besides, these looked too yellow to be Natsu's flames. And then there was Jellal standing not too far behind him, hand lifted and smoking suspiciously.

As the golden flames swirled around Natsu, that nefarious smirk melted into something more akin to peaceful serenity. Jellal looked less like a psycho and more…calm. He had an air of tranquility surrounding him. Weird for a guy who'd just been brought back from the dead facing the man responsible for putting him there in the first place.

"Fire Dragon Slayer magic can be amplified by the power of Fire."

"Huh?" Vanitas scowled. What was this loon going on about now?

But Natsu seemed to pick up on it pretty quickly. As he stared down at the flames, they quickly seeped into his skin. He felt a surge in his magic power, a noticeable boost in energy. Confused, he turned to look up at the man he considered his enemy.

"So your memory has not returned," Zero concluded.

"Try not to sound so disappointed." Jellal shook his head. "Natsu Dragneel—Fairy Tail's own 'ray of hope'. I remember as much…So I know that Nirvana will be stopped. That will never change."

"What the heck are you talking about?" Vanitas demanded. Memory? "Whose side are you on?!"

Uncertainty crept little by little into the man's expression. He went on to explain that he had no memory prior to waking up in that cave, save for a few little bits and impressions. Jellal Fernandez had lost the majority of his memories. He admitted to feeling that he had done terrible things in the past, but he just couldn't remember.

Vanitas found that all hard to swallow. It just felt too damn convenient. Sudden memory loss at a time like this? Yeah, right!

Only an idiot would fall for something like that. Does he think we were born yesterday or something?

That was like, one of the stupidest tricks in the book. Real amateur hour.

Ventus, however, didn't seem as convinced. "Wait a sec, Vanitas."

The hesitation in his counterpart's voice brought out a rude scoff. "Don't tell me you believe this crap? Ventus, don't be an idiot!"

"I don't know! Something's really weird though. I mean, look at his face. I think he…I mean, he might be serious."

"We don't have time for this crap," Vanitas muttered. How he could've possibly been drawn from such a naïve twit was completely beyond him.

"I…I want to save Wendy's guild," Jellal said quietly. "And I want to stop Nirvana. I want…I just want to be of help."

"Bullshit!" Natsu shot up from the ground, fist aimed straight into Jellal's chest. The blow winded him and knocked the man clean off his feet. But before he could collapse on the ground, Natsu grabbed large fistfuls of his jacket and hauled him back up. Smoke poured heavily from his open mouth and although Vanitas couldn't see it from where he stood, the expression could only be described as ferocious.

"You're saying that you forgot all that," he raged. "Everything you've done. You expect me to believe that you don't remember it at all?! And after all that—all the things you've done, and how much you hurt Erza—You expect me to just forgive that so you can play friends?!"

When it seemed as if he was going to pulverize the guy, Vanitas decided that he had no choice but to step in. Dammit, they were running out of time! He wanted to scream and tear into Natsu. His fingers itched to punch that stupid face of his. They didn't have time to waste on this sad sack. Not when they had Zero and that stupid lacrima to deal with! For crying out loud, they needed to destroy this damn city!

"Take care of him later, you moron," he ordered. "Natsu, get your stupid ass over here and help me—AUGH!"

A hand clamped down on the back of his neck, squeezing painfully until he felt the bones in his spine creak and grind. Zero lifted Vanitas up. "If you two want to fight all on your own, can't you do it somewhere else?" He shook his head with a dry, condescending smirk. "You are beginning to annoy me!"

Before Vanitas had a chance to free himself, he was airborne again. This time, flying through the air and knocking over Natsu and Jellal like a couple of bowling pins. As they fell to a heap on the ground, Zero laughed and prepared another spell. Vanitas swore and struggled pull himself out of the pile while dragging that useless Fire wizard, but a blow to the head stunned Natsu. His wits were about as jumbled as a bag full of marbles; totally helpless.

"Fucking hell!"

"M-Move!"

Jellal rammed his shoulder into Vanitas' back, shoving them both flat against the floor as he took the hit head-on. The spell exploded upon contact, causing the entire room to pitch and rumble. Jellal somehow managed to stay on his feet, but it only took a few seconds for the pain to bring him crashing down.

"Oi!"

Natsu stared wide-eyed as Jellal fell. "H-Hey…!"

Scrambling, the wizard crawled up to Vanitas' side. Natsu hovered over Jellal, taking in the numerous injuries scorched into the man's body. "What the…Why would you…?"

Despite being in obvious pain, Jellal offered a small, weak laugh. He sounded winded; air rattled around in his chest and just that one little chuckle sent into spasms. "You can kill me later if you like," he choked, spitting up blood from the corners of his mouth. "But for now, accept this. Please…"

It took visible effort to lift his shaking hand. But when the man finally did, Jellal held it out to Natsu. A small, golden flame appeared in the center of his palm. "This…is the Flame of Rebuke. I won't ask for your forgiveness. I don't deserve it. But you to take this power to…to defeat Zero."

He pressed this offering onto Natsu, who just stood there, staring wide-eyed and apprehensively. Vanitas stood over the two, Keyblade drawn and eyes trained on Zero. He kept his distance up until now, but who knew how much longer he would stay like that. "Natsu, just take it already."

The Fire wizard started and looked up, this confused, dopey look on his face. Vanitas sighed and shook his head.

"Look, I'm not saying that you should up and make friends with this loser," he explained crossly. "But we're running out of time. He's offering you power, so take it with your own hands. When it comes to war, power is all you need."

This man wasn't going to be an issue, whether he was Natsu's enemy or not. Vanitas could tell with just a glance. Jellal's injuries were too great. Not that he was going to die from them; they weren't exactly fatal wounds. With time, he'd be able to heal. Unless the internal bleeding was worse than he thought. But that was beside the point. For the moment, he was useless. To them and Zero. Jellal wouldn't be able to attack them, even if he wanted to. But he wouldn't be able to help them either.

Vanitas saw it in his eyes. The guy had just about given up. Whether that meant he'd lost the will to continue on, or he realized that he just didn't have the strength left in him to keep fighting, the Keyblade wielder didn't know. But one thing was certain, Jellal was done.

No gumption left in him. What a loser…

Natsu frowned, caught deep in thought. But after a moment, he cautiously took the hand offered to him. As soon as he did, the fire exploded, growing into a bright, brilliant flame. One that Natsu eagerly consumed up with gusto and a vigorous appetite. Soon, a golden, fiery aura surrounded his body. The air turned sweltering as gold-tipped flames danced frantically around the Dragon Slayer.

"Thanks for the meal." Reinvigorated by the Flames of Rebuke, Natsu rose to his feet with ease. He appeared more focused than ever.

As he came to Vanitas' side once more, the Keyblade wielder grinned. "About damn time, you stupid lizard…Ventus, come out here." Light shimmered as the boy reluctantly appeared at his counterpart's side. Vanitas nodded to the barely conscious man lying on the ground. "Stay here."

The blond frowned, brow drawn in a look of confusion. He started to open his mouth. Vanitas glared back, daring him to say just one little word. Ventus' jaws snapped shut, but his frown darkened. The boys exchanged a quick series of glances. They went back and forth, almost as if they were having their own little silent conversation. Finally, the dark-haired teen threw his hands up in the air.

"Just keep an eye on him, will ya?!" Turning away from Ventus, Vanitas brought his Wayfinder out in front of him. The glass charm felt incredibly warm in his hand, almost burning. After invoking the new power contained within, he raised it high above his head.

"Give me power!"

The explosion started at his feet. Great bursts of black fire travelled up the length of his body, catching the tattered ends of his clothes and burning deep into his skin. It was frightening to watch at first; they moved with a mind of their own and sunk deep into his skin. He watched as the flames traced patterns along his arms, leaving a heavy layer of ash in their wake.

He felt no pain. Nothing at all. Not even as the fire began to spread. But then, why should they hurt? This was a D-Link, after all. Vanitas shouldn't have been so surprised.

The transformation was brief, only taking up a handful of seconds. In place of the loose-fitting clothes he had come to appreciate, Vanitas had to bite back a frown as he realized that he was wearing yet another bodysuit. Another black, skin-tight thing. It wasn't as claustrophobic as his old one—his arms were bare up to the elbows, along with his neck and the tops of his shoulders.

Vanitas looked down at his hands. A thin layer of soot had stained his palms and fingertips. Glowing red lines traveled from his wrists, up his arms, and across his chest. They felt warm against his skin. Kind of like sitting in front of a fire. Although, that could have been because there were parts of his suit that were actually on fire. The ends of his sleeves glowed, as did the collar. Unlike the soot making up the rest of his suit, those parts were more like smoldering embers. Little wisps of smoke curled up from his clothes. And that tattered piece of cloth that he used to wear around his hips on his old suit had been replaced by a long, twisting black flame. A…A tail?

How strange. This was nothing like the D-Links that Ventus had used. Vanitas didn't recall him ever transforming the way he himself had just done. Then again, Vanitas could've sworn that when Tegan used her Wayfinder to borrow power from him, she had changed a little, too. So maybe it was because their Wayfinders weren't the same as the one Ventus had. Different properties?

Vanitas glanced down at himself. "At least there's no helmet…"

"You ready to do this?" Thankfully, Natsu took the sudden transformation in stride. If anything, the knucklehead looked more excited than ever.

The wizard pounded his fists together. "Let's do this."

"You take the right, I take the left?"

"Sounds like a plan."

They wasted no time in jumping back into the fray. Natsu roared as he charged Zero from the front. While the Dragon Slayer kept their enemy occupied, Vanitas ran around the side. Thanks to this new D-Link of his, he found that his store of magic had been replenished. It allowed him to cast a Haste spell on himself that allowed him to dart in with greater speed than the magic would have normally allowed him.

"Dark Firaga!"

Haste wasn't the only spell of his that got a boost, it seemed. Vanitas felt immense satisfaction watching Void Gear spit out a fireball the size of a watermelon, nailing Zero directly between the shoulder blades. The attack wasn't particularly devastating, but it knocked him off balance just enough to send the man into Natsu's eagerly awaiting fist.

Yeah, satisfying as hell.

The hit landed and Vanitas took a risk, turning their two hits into a four-hit combo by striking at Zero's knees to stagger and then leveling a blast of lightning magic that sent him flying for once.

"How do you like that, you bastard," Natsu crowed, sending the man skyward with a breath of fire.

"Incoming!" Vanitas snatched the back of the Dragon Slayer's scarf and pulled. He managed to get them far enough by the time Zero came crashing back down. Good thing too. After smacking into the ceiling with a surprising amount of force, his descent was closely followed by a couple of heavy blocks of stone and some various other debris.

The boys stood side-by-side as Zero pulled himself up from the rubble. The guild master actually appeared disheveled. There were dark scorch marks all over his clothing and a tear in the sleeve of his jacket. Dust and cobwebs stuck to his hair. When Zero swiped the pad of his thumb across his cheek, it came back stained with red.

So he can be hurt after all. This could either be really good or really, really this had been any other battle, Vanitas might have been excited by the thought of drawing blood from his opponent. But now?

The air surrounding Zero felt dense and heavy. Not necessarily cold, but certainly alien enough to send a trickle of dread up and down Vanitas' spine.

"Finally, a challenge." That creepy, sinister energy rose up from the ground and gather around the Oracion Seis wizard, forming a thick green cloud. Haunting screams grew louder, wailing feverishly as Zero held his arms out. Lips curled into a wolfish snarl as his red eyes glowed monstrously.

Dammit, will you just keel over already?

"Come on, Natsu, we have to take him down," he hissed. Vanitas' fists were clenched so tightly that he felt his nail—worn and chipped as they were—bit into his palms. Calm down, dammit. He had to calm down.

Natsu, for all his impulsive tendencies and seeming lack of strategic thought, simply nodded sternly. He whispered a few words low under his breath. Vanitas strained to hear, but he managed to pick up on what the other was thinking.

Sounds like a plan at last, he thought with a hint of satisfaction.

The two rushed off to execute the scheme, charging Zero head on. Another frontal assault? Zero laughed, welcoming their imminent destruction with a zealous, wild grin.

Up in the relative safety of the arched doorway, Ventus hovered. He wasn't entirely aware of it, but the boy paced circles around Jellal, who watched him carefully, just barely hanging onto consciousness.

"They're running out of time," Ventus muttered anxiously, biting his thumb. "What are we going to do?"

They were running out of time. Only had a few minutes left to destroy the lacrima, but Zero was still standing in their way. He was still going strong. Didn't look like he was anywhere close to going down. Even with their new power, Vanitas and Natsu didn't seem any closer to defeating the man. What were they going to do?

Jellal wasn't in any shape to help. Ventus didn't have a body. He was pretty much useless, too. And they were all on their own. Nobody was coming to help. So what to do?

Ventus fretted as he hovered around, walking a ghostly circle around the blue-haired man at his feet. He thought and he thought hard, racking his brain for a solution. What could he do to help? Was there even anything he could do? Now, more than ever, Ventus wished that his friends were here with him. Terra and Aqua would know what to do.

He just felt so lost and it was tearing him apart. There was this selfish sense of self-preservation kicking in that didn't want to accept that Vanitas was in over his head. After all, if he went down here, Ventus would be in even more trouble than he already was. And it killed him to think like that. Ventus didn't want anything to happen to Vanitas. As weird as it was to admit it, the two were friends. At least, that's how Ventus saw it.

"They…They will…be…alright..."

Ventus looked down. Jellal was hanging onto consciousness for dear life, but he somehow managed to stare up at the boy with a calm, level gaze. Despite heavy, ragged breathing rattling around in those poor, battered lungs of his, he seemed remarkably peaceful.

"I know th-that they can…that they c-can defeat Zero," he assured Ventus, offering a pitiful little smile. "I…ugh…believe in them."

Ventus bit his lip. How weird. Usually, he was the one who never gave up hope. He was the eternally optimistic one, wasn't he? No matter what happened, he always seemed to pull through with a smile. And now here he was, losing his head while some random guy he didn't even know—who was about five seconds from passing out—had more faith in their friends than Ventus. Times sure have changed.

Maybe not for the better…

His arms shook as he tried in vain to suppress a powerful tremor that ran through him. Ventus turned to glance back at where Vanitas and Natsu were making their stand. Where, whether they liked it or not, they were making their final stand.

Come on, you guys…You've got to pull through!

Vanitas ducked under another of Zero's energy blasts. Keeping low to the ground, he continued to charge forward. Just like before, Zero manipulated the spell, causing it to arc and completely change direction. The swirling mass of green energy chased after him as he wove through the wreckage filling up the chamber. As he suspected, the magic kept hot on his heels.

Perfect.

Stopping dead in his tracks, he turned to face the attack head-on. As it came barreling towards him, he noticed for the briefest of seconds that Natsu was doing a good job at keeping Zero occupied. Now that was even better.

Just as he felt the crackle of electricity on the tip of his nose, Vanitas rolled out of the way. With a flick of his wrist, he called up a scorching wave of black-tipped flames that incinerated the wild energy. It was practically consumed by them.

Not bad. Certainly better than Natsu's earlier attempt. From the looks of it, Zero's spell—Dark Capriccio—was definitely some type of dark magic. It was hellishly strong. The spell's mobility presented a problem, but from the looks of it, the spell lost power and momentum over time.

The difference had been slight, so no wonder Vanitas hadn't noticed it until now. That would also explain why Zero hit them with that spell as quickly as possible. That last attack also seemed a little squirrely towards they end before Vanitas countered it. Instead of deftly maneuvering around obstacles in its pursuit of Vanitas, the attack just blasted through them. So did Zero's ability to manipulate the spell weaken the longer it was out as well?

This is something I can exploit.

Almost out of time. It was now or never.

Vanitas looked down to his ashen hands. He didn't know how much longer he could hold this up either. And he shuddered to think about fighting Zero without this new power. Had to make it count. "Time to see what this thing can really do."

Zero knocked Natsu back with one vicious punch to the stomach. As the Dragon Slayer staggered, Vanitas let loose a bellow and charged forward. One hand went for Natsu, pulling him back by his belt. The other went for Zero. When the guild Master went to launch a counter attack, Vanitas slid around him at the very last second. Zero had lunged forward, leaving his back compromised.

"Take this!"

His fist went straight for the small of Zero's back. Vanitas felt the jarring shock run up his arm as he connected with the man's spine. The punch wasn't enough to topple Zero completely, but he did stumble ever so slightly. Digging his heels in, Vanitas felt the tips of his fingers start to burn. Across the way, Natsu looked at him. Vanitas nodded.

The wizard took up his position. "Fire Dragon's…Roar!"

"Dark Firaga!"

A wall of fire came on Zero from both sides faster than he could move to evade them. The flames engulfed him, forming a twisting cyclone of scarlet and black. Vanitas had to bring his arms up in front of his face. Even so, he felt a painful sting across the surface of his palms. His forearms burned. Not even his new D-Link had enough strength to protect him from the inferno that they had created.

Surely, this would be enough! It had to be!

"Now, Natsu," he shouted. "Go!"

What happened next could only be described as frantic insanity.

Zero howled as he fought to escape the flames. But they were much stronger, melting the stone under his feet and growing taller and taller with each second. Soon, the flames managed to lick the ceiling. Natsu—his magic making him fireproof to a certain extent—leapt at him, ramming his elbow into the man's gut. Another howl. The two fell to the ground. Natsu rolled off, clamoring back to his feet as fast as possible. Vanitas took up his next position and brought his Keyblade out in front of him.

One minute left.

"Come on…"

Zero finally dragged himself out of the fire, breathing raggedly as he struggled to get his bearings. Soot covered most of his face in large, splotchy patches. The ends of his hair had caught in the inferno, charring at the ends. Now, they looked ragged and as rough as a wad of steel wool. The smell of burnt hair hung heavy in the air. Angry, festering welts covered his arms and most of his chest where his bare skin had met with open flame.

He was a total mess. A burnt-to-a-crisp, angry, seething mess. Some stupid part of Vanitas saw this and, despite all common sense and logic, laughed. A cruel laugh. A mocking laugh. One that reminded him of his old days.

Thirty seconds.

"Is that all you got," he jeered. "What happened to pulverizing us? I thought you were going to wipe the floor with me and Natsu?"

Thirty five seconds remaining and Zero growled, his eyes locking onto Vanitas like that of a feral beast.

It was a bad idea, and yet Vanitas continued to taunt him. "Come on, old man. I'm standing right here!"

Twenty seconds and the air around Zero snapped. Murky streams of dark magic rose up from the ground around him. A noxious miasma of screaming, tortured voices.

"Come get some!"

Vanitas sent a fireball whizzing his way. Zero deflected it easily, expectedly, and charged forward, howling furiously. Faced with a raging tank in the form of a six-foot-something brick wall of a wizard coming right at him, Vanitas made the smart decision and put as much distance between them as possible.

Fifteen seconds. Ten seconds. Nine. Eight…

Just a little bit more. Come on, you bastard…Come to me.

Seven, six, five…

Almost there…Now!

"Dark Canon!"

Vanitas threw Void Gear up in the air. Just as Zero got within arms' reach of him, it transformed into its alternate form. The guild master was nearly on top of him when Vanitas unleashed the canon blast, hitting Zero dead center in the chest.

This attack never would have worked from far away. Zero could have dodged it or deflected it with his own magic. But a blast from this close? He didn't even have time to blink. Using the remaining energy from his D-link to bolster the attack, Vanitas managed to succeed in knocking him completely off his feet.

As Vanitas fell forward onto his knees, he threw his fist into the air. "Get him!"

Natsu ran past him, rapping his knuckles against the Keyblade wielder's as he charged. Engulfed by those golden flames, he looked like a comet streaking its way through the room.

"I'm not going to let you win," Natsu cried. "For Wendy and Carla, for my friends, for everybody in Earthland…Fire Dragon's…" The flames swelled around him, tripling in size as the wizard called on every last ounce of magic. This was it! "Crimson Lotus!"

Stamping his heel into the ground, Natsu pivoted. His arms swung in a wide circle around him, pulling the flames into this blazing cyclone, a mighty torrent of shinning gold and brilliant scarlet. This powerful spell shook the room as it caught Zero in the chest, unleashing a merciless barrage.

Caught up in the attack, Zero was helpless. Immobilized. Stunned. He couldn't stop himself as he sailed through the air. There was a loud crash, a glassy, shatter, and one final thud signaling to Vanitas that their plan had worked.

The combination of his shotlock and Natsu's Dragon Slayer secret art kicked up all the dust and soot that had accumulated inside the chamber. Vanitas coughed and wheezed as it filled his lungs. His eyes burned.

Standing in the middle of the room was the crumbled remains of the pillar. Split in half right in the middle and smoking. Great big chunks of marble lay strewn across the floor. Some were small, fitting neatly in Vanitas' palm. But there weren't many of those lying around. The majority were these massive, heavy boulders that cracked and broke through the floor. One such chunk of marble had come dangerously close to squashing Vanitas flat. As it were, it sat quite close to his back leg. Way too close for comfort.

Scattered among the pillar's broken remains were another kind of rubble. Smaller than the pieces of marble, it was easy to overlook them. But as the haze cleared and bits of moonlight seeped in through the cracks in the ceiling, Vanitas took note of something shinning all around him. Bits of crystal fell all around him, radiating a faintly magical aura.

And at the center of it all, lying half-buried under marble and crystal, was Zero's body. He lay there unmoving, so Vanitas hoped that he was unconscious.

"Did we…Did we do it?" Natsu hobbled up to his side, leaning heavily on his left foot. The guy looked exhausted. Whatever magic he had been given had clearly been used up for that last attack. If Vanitas had to guess, the guy probably didn't have much energy left in him. If any at all.

Vanitas imagined that he looked pretty much the same. Every muscle in him ached. His normal clothes had returned, so clearly his D-Link had run out as well. Pain that had been dulled by a combination of adrenaline and the power he had borrowed from Natsu reared its ugly head once more, maybe even stronger now. There was this agonizing throb in his leg and his chest felt tight.

Had they done it? The lacrima was ruined, shattered beyond repair. There was no way that Nirvana could use it anymore. But what about the other ones? Vanitas knew that they had destroyed their right on time. Had the others destroyed them as well?

He didn't have to wait long for an answer. When his legs dropped out from underneath him, Vanitas initially contributed it to his own exhaustion. And that bum leg of his. But then he heard the creaking.

It started off as a low groan, which was why he didn't notice it at first. But eventually, the noise grew louder and louder, echoing through the halls. Within a half of a minute, the din became so loud that Vanitas winced, feeling it all the way in his molars. Soon, the floor was shaking. Boulders started rolling around. Holes in the ceiling expanded as more and more material rained down on their heads. Vanitas and Natsu rolled along in the debris as they felt the room pitch to one side, knocking into each other.

The Dragon Slayer broke out into a wide, stupid grin. "I guess so!"

Vanitas grunted. He'd rolled and knocked his face against a bowling ball-sized chunk of lacrima. Ow. "Y-Yeah," he muttered. "Now let's get out of here!"

The others had to have been successful. So he could only imagine that all this shaking meant that Nirvana—already an ancient hunk of junk and now lacking a functioning power source—couldn't keep up. There was no way that it could stay upright for much longer.

The giant city was probably falling apart as they sat around like a bunch of idiots!

"Time to split!" He struggled to get his footing on the shaky ground. But the fighting seemed to make his injuries worse; putting any weight on his bad leg sent Vanitas crashing back down in an instant. Dammit, he didn't have time for this!

Vanitas brought Void Gear out in its Glider form and scrambled onto one of the floating gears. Leaning over the side, he snatched Natsu by the scarf and hauled him up onto the other. With the roof coming down on them, the boys were frantic to find an escape. But first thing's first…

"Vanitas!" Ventus waved his arms frantically. Rubble falling from the ceiling passed through his spectral body as he tried and failed to keep it from hitting an unconscious Jellal. The boys struggled for a few precious moments in trying to drag his limp body up onto the Glider's main board, settling on using his jacket to just tie him down and be done with it.

"Hang on tight!"

The tunnel was an absolute nightmare, pretty much falling apart at the seams as they raced down the various twists and turns. Vanitas had never been happier to have Natsu and his dragon senses along for the ride. With that nose of his, they were able to navigate the rapidly deteriorating path without going down any dead ends.

"Look out," Ventus cried. A large section of the ceiling came hurtling down towards them. While Natsu went to protect Jellal's head, Vanitas tried to steer the Glider off towards one side of the tunnel where the falling debris had already formed some cover.

They needed to get a move on, and fast. Vanitas had died once already. Getting smashed flat by a bunch of rocks would just be insulting. Yeah, he was not having any of that!

"How much farther, Natsu?"

The Dragon Slayer put his nose to the air and took a frantic sniff. "Not much longer," he groaned. "I think. Just…a little further!" The air was beginning to smell cleaner. Not as much dust. They had to be getting closer to an exit.

If only he still had a bit of magic left. If there was one thing Natsu knew he was good at, it was busting through buildings. Something as old as Nirvana wouldn't stand a chance against one of the Fairy Tail guild's most destructive wizards.

But for now, he'd just have to rely on Vanitas and his weird vehicle.

His weird…vehicle…Ugh…

Vanitas watched from the corner of his eye as Natsu continued to groan. The wizard was uncharacteristically pitiful, pressing himself against his gear. What was wrong with him? He looked really green…

"Wait, didn't somebody mention that Natsu gets motion sickness from moving vehicles?"

Oh, Ventus was right. Vanitas fought off the urge to groan himself. If that idiot dare to hurl his guts on his Glider…

Don't you dare. I swear to every higher being listening, if you puke on Void Gear, I'll kill you, Dragon Slayer!

Just a little further and this nightmare would be over.

In fact, he could actually see some light from the end of the tunnel. A portion of the wall had crumbled away, giving them a clear shot at the sky. Vanitas could actually see dawn starting to break. They were almost there!

But Nirvana was really starting to fall to pieces now. The floor had all but gone out from under them, leaving gaping holes and bare rafters. Most of the foundations had crumbled away. Nirvana was barely left standing on its ancient, rotted skeleton of rotten beams and corroded pipes. This place was going to come crashing down in no time at all.

"C'mon, just a little further. Come on…!"

He urged his Glider to go faster than ever before. Every little shred of his will he fed into his Glider. They had to go faster. Dodge every obstacle standing in their way. They couldn't be stopped here.

He had to reach the end. Had to get back to his friends!

Vanitas had never wanted something this badly. And the funny thing was…His Keyblade seemed to feel that too. Void Gear raced down the tunnel like a bolt of lightning, leaving its wielder hanging on for dear life, pressing his face down against the gear until he could feel the groove bite into his cheek. But before he knew it, Vanitas felt cool air running through his hair.

He didn't bother to look up until he heard Natsu's ecstatic, if not a little miserable, crow. When he did, he found the last traces of starlight looking back at him. Behind them, the city of Nirvana leaned over to one side as its overburdened legs trembled under the weight of tons and tons of heavy stone. With on great, big snap, two of the eight supports broke. The once feared city toppled like a tower of cards, crashing into the mountain side.

Vanitas peeked out from under his arm to watch it all go. A giddy rush coursed through him, filling his chest with unexpected glee. They had done it!

Natsu and Ventus cheered behind him. Even Jellal, who couldn't possibly know what was going on at that moment, seemed to have a bit of a smile of his dust-covered face. Vanitas didn't cheer along with them, but that didn't mean that he felt any less overjoyed.

They won. Oracion Seis couldn't use Nirvana to torment anyone now. Nobody could. The threat was over and the people of Earthland were safe. He hadn't expected that to feel so great. Despite the exhaustion making him want to curl up in a ball and sleep for one hundred years, and the way his bruised bones felt like he had been run over by a steam roller, Vanitas felt…fantastic. He felt like he could take on a thousand Heartless all by himself.

So this is what it felt like to be proud of doing something good for once.

I kind of like it…


Jade: Finally!

Tegan: We did it!

Salem: Victory is ours!

Light: *breathes a sigh of relief* Now I can get onto the good stuff.

Tegan: Wait, you mean there's more?

Light: I've got a few things in mind. Wrapping up some loose ends and all that.

Jade: Oh dear...