Whew, thank God that this story didn't get taken down or reported or anything because of what happened last chapter! You guys are really invested into this whole dark theme thing! Well, like I said, it'll get a whole lot worst from there, so if all of you want to skip ahead to the summary that I'll type down later, go ahead!

WARNING! VERY SUGGESTIVE THEMES LISTED IN THIS CHAPTER! IF YOU WISH TO SKIP, PLEASE GO DOWN TO THE END OF THIS CHAPTER AND GO TO THE AUTHOR'S NOTES FOR A SUMMARY!

Disclaimer: Mage of Hope doesn't own Kingdom Hearts series, only the OCs! Mage of Hope also doesn't own the song "Silent Solitude" that was originally composed by OxT for the anime, "Overlord," and the version used in this chapter is the English Cover version by Studio Yuraki. Link: watch?v=ngOnaG0Fk08


Her stomach acid rises in her throat.

Ignis throws everything up. Anything she previously ate before, her gastric juices, her saliva, everything, while she cries. After she had...killed the soldiers in that particular area, she didn't know just how much time had passed. She could hear nothing but the crackling flames licking in the air along with the ashes from the charred buildings and corpses. She didn't stay to find out what was going to happen if she stayed, so she just...ran. She ran and ran, entering and exiting streets that felt all the same to her no matter where she went.

She ran and ran until she felt her lungs were on fire and her feet felt heavy, as the ensemble she wore got thicker and more constrictive since she kept it on and haven't returned it yet. Time is torturing her, making her think that she's going to die at any moment, and then giving her back some vigor the next. In the end, her legs gave in first instead of her lungs and she tried to drag herself along the ground to make it to...somewhere, anywhere! Anywhere that didn't spot a sight of death anywhere, but she knew that could never happen. Not while the city is still burning.

After throwing up everything, there's nothing left in her stomach, but her mind continues to recall all the deaths of the innocents she's witnessed and even her own part in slaughtering those soldiers all by herself. Her body forces her to throw up as a result, as if trying to undo what had occurred and return him to the beginning of this entire mess.

Pain. That's what Ignis is feeling right now. It hurts, like her insides are burning and just waiting to burst out. The tears won't stop, and her body can't stop trembling and shriveling like an earthquake as her memories kept remembering the scene over and over again.

...She killed someone. No, not just one person, but many soldiers back there. She killed them without mercy, without even a hint of hesitation. Even if the reason was because they were corrupted men who killed innocents for fun and that she had to stop them, it would just feel like one big excuse for her to use to justify her actions. No matter how "justified" her actions were killing the bad soldiers, she still felt sick at her own actions.

Coughing violently, gastric juices then started dripping over her lips. They passed out of her mouth and dripped down her jaw. Despite the nausea having a heavy toll on her, she doesn't even taste bile anymore, only the taste of iron. Mixed with the juices is something red. Blood. She never got any injuries fighting the soldiers, so she could only assume that her own throat is bleeding because her stomach keeps trying to throw up even though there's nothing left inside. It hurt. Everything hurt. She wanted this pain to stop. She...

Wait. Why is she suddenly worrying about herself? She doesn't deserve it. No, she felt like she deserved this pain. She can't care about herself. Not after all she's done. Not after killing those soldiers and letting down the innocent people she chose to protect. She was too slow, she should have acted more faster, more accordingly, and because of her, those innocents died. Men, women, children, and even an innocent infant that was born just a few days ago died all because of her.

Those innocent lives...Even if she wasn't the one who killed them, even if the soldiers were the ones that put an end to them, there was no denying that she didn't act fast enough to save them. Their lives, their futures, their dreams...All of them were shattered like mirrors, destroyed by her because she didn't act fast enough.

Even if she regrets it, she cannot be forgiven. Even if she sees them again in the afterlife and gets on her knees and apologizes for an eternity, she cannot be forgiven. She failed to save them after all. They never asked to be saved by her, and yet her duties as a Keyblade wielder made her act as a protector, a hero, to save each and every single innocent life in this world.

But she failed. She failed to save the innocent lives in that one district and even that other brother, and worst, she gave into-no, not the darkness. The darkness cannot be blamed for her sudden burst of emotions. She gave into her own anger, her own vengeance, and as a result, she slaughtered each and every single one of those soldiers that killed the innocent. As a Keyblade wielder, it was always her sworn duty to protect the innocent, and yet she failed that.

Worst, while she did feel sick towards her own actions, she didn't even feel one bit of sympathy towards the soldiers she killed. They...they laughed while they killed the innocent. They did horrendous things to the women, shot down children like they were target practice, and killed not only the men, but innocent little boys as well. All with grins and smiles on their faces, like they were justified in their own actions. Ignis may not want to excuse her own actions, but there was no way she would ever justify the actions of monsters.

Something bright shined in her path, forcing her to look up and shield her eyes as the morning sun began to rise. Ah, it was morning time already? How much time had passed between the time she ran away and the time she was...lamenting on her actions? No, it didn't matter anymore, but what did matter was that she already wasted enough time lost in her grief.

She stood up and glanced around. The city of Notre Dame was still burning even after so much time had passed. By her estimation, it seemed like literally yesterday was when the start of hell began. She walked up to a bunch of mirror shards scattered on the ground, having guessed that they came from the broken window nearby when some soldiers tried to break into the building, and took a good long look at herself.

Ignis was a disaster. Her ensemble was covered in dried vomit and the blood of the ones she killed, as well as the blood of Liam, whom she cradled in her arms when she first found his corpse. Part of her ensemble was torn up, making it impossible for this ensemble to ever be used on stage ever again.

She took a deep breath and glanced up at the road ahead of her, as though the light of dawn was leading her to the next step of her choice. Right, she needed to find Esmeralda. She was a walking mess right now, and she didn't care, because what truly matters are the other innocent people in this city. They still needed to be rescued and led out of this city as soon as possible, including Esmeralda.

Her mind was aching, tired from lack of sleep and from all the fighting and magic she's had to use. However, her heart was urging her to do the right thing. Admittedly, she wanted to pack up her gear and leave the world of Notre Dame, but that would mean abandoning the people, and she refused to do that. That's something only a coward would do, and no righteous hero would do such a thing. They would stay and protect the innocent until their last, dying breath.

So, Ignis will follow her heart as always and protect anyone in need, daring any enemies to try and take her own. She would rather die than let them hurt another single innocent ever again.

Body tired, yet eyes burning with a determined vigor, Ignis marched forward, summoning forth her Keyblade, which shined brighter than before with her newfound determination to save the innocent rather than herself.

But, that determination faded away at the sight of warfare before her very eyes.

All over Notre Dame, the city is chaotic with fire, soldiers, and the innocents. The soldiers are much more sturdier, stronger, and better trained, sweeping through the streets and doing whatever they pleased to the burning buildings and the innocents. It was essentially a repeat of what happened the night before.

The night where she lost control and killed a second time.

Feeling a lump in her throat, Ignis forced it down through a swallow, winching at the painful fore in her throat before brandishing her Keyblade and charging forward.

She couldn't lose control again. Not like last night. No, she wasn't afraid of falling to the darkness, but that's not entirely accurate. If she did lose too much control, she would indeed sink to the depths of darkness and allow it to take control of herself. She may be using the power of darkness, but that doesn't mean she forgot that darkness can still corrupt if controlled horribly.

No, she was afraid of losing herself.

She's afraid of failing more innocents than she already has. She's afraid of letting down people who desperately need her. Who desperately need someone to save them. Most of the soldiers who's sworn to protect the innocent have already betrayed them for their own selfish needs, and besides Conrad and his own men, she didn't see any other soldier willing to help out the innocents, so it was all up to her.

As frustrating as it was, she...she couldn't bear the thought of killing the soldiers again, no matter how much they deserved it. It wasn't just because she didn't want to lose herself again, but she also cherished life. Even if killing them meant they couldn't harm again, she still couldn't bring herself to do it.

Armed with her Keyblade, magic, and a newfound courage, she rushed forward not to defeat her enemies, but to protect the innocent.


Many hours later...

Heroes are people who protect the weak and innocent. There are countless tales about them; how they rescue people, how they stop the bad guys and defeat monsters like the evil dragon, how they use flashy and super cool moves to take down their foes and save the world, and how they're a shield, protectors towards the innocent and enemy to evil.

Ignis did indeed dream of being a Keyblade Master. It was one of her top goals. Being a Keyblade Master meant much more than venturing out to other worlds and exploring them. It also meant taking the role of Keyblade Master very seriously. To use the powers she was trained to do to help people. Like a true hero would.

Ignis...did not feel like a hero.

Right now, all she felt was fear. Anger, terror, horror, frustration, guilt, anxiety, all sorts of negative emotions flowing inside of her, just waiting to burst out as she continued trying to protect innocents left from right, from one street to another.

She forced her tired body forward with tears tracking down her face, crying for the innocent souls lost when she was too late to save them. The streets were decorated with puddles-no, rivers of blood, along with the remnants of more corpses piling up. After knocking out or immobilizing the soldiers she defeated, she would always either heal the injured civilians with her magic or give them her own potions so they could heal up on their own before sending them off, urging them to get to safety and/or leave the city.

No matter where she went, the scenery was always the same. Corrupted soldiers killing innocents after doing whatever they wanted with them, whether it was interrogating, torturing, and other worst things to them. Each repeated performance sickened Ignis to the core, and all she could do to stop it was to save whoever was still alive and stop the soldiers from doing whatever they wanted.

Without killing them.

What shocked her even further was that it wasn't just the soldiers partaking in the slaughter, but also some of the civilians as well. When she had turned her back on the soldiers she defeated, she didn't even consider the civilians taking vengeance on the soldiers for killing their loved ones. The first time it happened, she could only stand and watch in utter shock and horror as the civilians killed the soldiers in cold blood; the immobilized and conscious soldiers screaming for mercy before they were put down. It was only after those soldiers died that snapped Ignis back to reality before she had knocked out the civilians before glancing down at them with the same horror and disgust she viewed towards the soldiers.

Worst, she couldn't...she couldn't view those civilians as monsters, because she understood why they did what they had-no, wanted to do.

And it wasn't just the soldiers that the civilians killed. No, they actually killed some of their own as well. Innocents killing innocents...and for what? Because they wanted to pillage their own homes. Because they were jealous of one person taking their loved one as their husband or wife and thought this would be the perfect opportunity to get away with the crime. Because they were "blocking" the way to their escape. And...because some of those innocents were actually gypsies. Now, it wasn't just the soldiers she had to stop, but also the civilians trying to kill their own people as well, regardless of race.

She remembered befriending a bunch of orphans from an orphanage and teaching them numbers through some fun activities, like Hopscotch, and even buying them some food. And she had arrived in time to hear their screams of agony as they were burning to death, trapped inside the very same orphanage they grew up in, trapped and killed because some soldiers thought that they were just "wasted pieces in life." She nearly gave into her rage once again, but controlled herself enough to give them a severe beating before knocking them out.

She could feel her sanity draining as time passed, yet she kept it together because she still held the strong belief that killing was wrong. Master Eraqus always taught her that killing was to be a last resort only when it was absolutely necessary, and even though the soldiers more than deserved death, she couldn't do it again. She thought, even in her naivety, that if she knocked them out and immobilized them, the soldiers would be punished by the law and...and...

Deep down, she knew that would never come to pass. Not as long as Frollo was Minister of Justice. If anything, he would probably commend his men for such...inhumane actions and for doing their duties before releasing each one, probably even rewarding them with gold medals or whatever they served as rewards in this beautiful, yet cruel world.

Things only escalated from worst to goddamn hell when she arrived at the cemetery. She had hoped to find some of her other friends that she befriended before, the little gypsy boy named Reuben, his older and beautiful sister, Rose, and their kind mother, who would be praying at their husband's gravestone.

Instead, she was met with their corpses sprawled on the ground, covered up by large white sheets that were covered in bloodstains. Their innocent blood.

If her throat wasn't so sore, she would have screamed. If she had anything left in her stomach, she would have vomited. All she could do was gasp and breath heavily, hyperventilating at yet another gruesome sight that she had failed to prevent.

Their corpses weren't alone. Clopin and a few other gypsies were tending to them, having been the first people to discover their corpses before her. They all wore sorrowful expressions, having known them even longer before she had.

"What...what happened?" croaked out Ignis, standing still like a statue as her mind was unable to comprehend with the fact that once again, her friends laid before her, dead.

Clopin glanced up at Ignis with a depressed expression on his usually cheerful face. "They...We were too late to save them. When we arrived, little Reuben was...cut up in many places. Sweet Rose and her mother were..."

One of the gypsies spoke up, finishing what Clopin had intended to say with a raging expression. "Those soldier bastards...! They defiled both Rose and the Mademoiselle! They were screaming and begging for mercy, but those bastards only made the situation worst! When they saw we arrived, they slit their throats before escaping! When I get my hands on them, they'll be sorry they even existed!"

"Calm yourself! Right now, we must...we must bury them," another gypsy said, trying to calm down her companion. "They...it would be more appropriate to bury them right next to their father."

"Even so, to murder and defile them right in front of their father's gravestone-! Even if he was not a gypsy by blood, he was just as much as a gypsy as the rest of us!"

"I know! I wish it didn't come to this either, but-!"

While the two gypsies argued amongst themselves, Clopin noticed Ignis treading towards the sheet-covered corpses, almost like in a zombie-like state, kneeling down and grasping onto the sheets, wanting to see for herself what the corpses looked like, if only to pay her final respects. Clopin, knowing that the sights of their corpses would only traumatize the young girl, grabbed her wrist and shook his head sadly.

"Don't. Please. You mustn't," he begged softly, engaging his soft eyes towards her own. "This sight...is beyond brutal. If you were to take even a single glance at it, I'm afraid...you might shatter."

Hand trembling, Ignis slowly released her grip on the sheets and backed away. This whole massacre was already too much for the young girl to handle ever since yesterday, and if she were to see more of her friends' corpses, especially after they've been...defiled, she might truly break, just like Clopin said.

Unable to contain her rage towards the unfair and unfortunate fates towards this innocent family, Ignis let out a scream and fired her most strongest fire spell at grassy hill, incinerating every blade of grass on that hill she targeted and not leaving a single trace behind. The gypsies were startled, but calmed themselves when Clopin raised a hand silently to them, ensuring them it was alright as he stood up and walked towards Ignis, who was glaring darkly at the ground and gritting her teeth.

"Ignis-"

"Fuck...FUCK!" yelled Ignis, clenching her fists at her side. "Once again, I have to hold it in, even after all this?! I...I tried, I tried so hard, and yet, everyone keeps dying because of me!"

"Dying because of you?" Clopin placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head. "No, this is not your fault at all, Mademoiselle! It was those soldiers following Frollo's every order! They are the ones who must be blamed for all of this, not you!"

"They killed..." started Ignis, raising her head with pain and regret evident on her face. "They killed so many innocents, and earlier, I...I killed them. I killed...so many soldiers...They killed innocents, even my own friends, even a baby-! I...got so angry, I gave into my anger and...Oh, God...I just realized something..."

"What?"

Fear and terror replaced the pain and regret on her face as she stammered back, hugging herself. "I...I broke so many rules from my Master's teachings and beliefs...I'm not supposed to...to give into my anger...I'm not supposed to let anger control me...I'm not supposed to kill unless absolutely necessary...But I did all that. All that and worse."

Clopin understood that perhaps those teachings were supposed to be morally good, but in this particular situation, sometimes teachings had to be broken. "Mademoiselle...You had no choice. You had to resort to that, even if it was wrong, because if you didn't, those soldiers would have killed you, just as they did so mercilessly with many other innocents-"

"But that's just it! I HAD A CHOICE!" yelled Ignis, her fingers curving like claws as she dug deeper into her arms. "Many were frozen or knocked out because of my magic, and I had intended to just...immobilize them and leave them like that, but because I got so angry with them, I wanted to kill them. So, I killed any soldiers attacking me, and I even killed those that were already knocked out and immobilized! I killed them not just because I wanted to stop them, but also because...because I wanted to!" Ignis was breaking down, trying to keep her composure, and yet her confession was only making her emotions go haywire as she began to wept. "In the end, I'm no different than those soldiers, who also killed for fun!"

Clopin watched in helpless fascination as mixed emotions started forming and changing all over Ignis' expression, displaying her sorrow and regret towards the innocents lost, and the anger and hatred towards the soldiers. He glanced down at her appearance as sorrow filled his eyes even further than just the thought of losing his gypsy friends to the corrupted soldiers.

Just around 2 days ago, at the Festival of Fools, there was a heated debate over who was the most beautiful girl in Notre Dame: Esmeralda or Ignis? Now, Ignis' appearance was coated with dirty, ashes, blood, and even stains of vomit. She looked as though she hadn't slept nor rested ever since the mad search for Esmeralda started early yesterday morning, and it was evident that she had done her upmost best to try and protect as many people as possible while trying to stop as many soldiers as she could. Clopin and his gypsies even heard how Ignis was going around and even tried to help both the civilians of Notre Dame and the gypsies, and they found themselves having a newfound respect and admiration for Ignis.

To see a young girl who didn't have to do anything with this entire mess and didn't deserve this tormenting was heartbreaking, and yet, there was also beauty in her heroic actions.

Clopin was unable to hold back his anger towards the ones responsible for not only causing so much pain to this young girl, but to all of the innocents of Notre Dame as well. "They should pay for what they've done," muttered Clopin, clenching his fists. "Ignis, giving into your anger is wrong, but those soldiers acted a lot worst than you. They killed innocents for fun. No noble soldier would ever condemn such a thing."

"...But I did the same. I killed the soldiers because I wanted to. It wasn't fun, but-"

"No, you're different," denied Clopin, shaking his head and clasping his hands onto her shoulders to force her to look up. "You protected as many innocents as you could. Their deaths are NOT your fault. You saved many of the gypsies as well, and I wish to express my thanks to you. Even if you had killed and given into your anger, you did it for us. For the innocents. You're a true hero."

Hero...that was a word best suited for people who protected innocents. Ignis tried, and yet all the innocents she protected ended up getting killed later. She certainly didn't feel like a hero.

"I...I don't...I'm not..." Ignis' gaze was downcast as she thought back on the final moments of the innocents, when she was trying to fight back against the soldiers and witnessed many of the innocents dying. "I...I just want the innocent people to be safe. I want the children to be safe. I want Esmeralda to be safe. I...I just want this to end."

"And you've done more than enough," assured Clopin, squeezing her shoulders to assure her that everything was going to be okay. "You alone stopped many soldiers. You tried your best to find Esmeralda. And most importantly, you protected and healed all of the innocent and wounded. You don't have to do this anymore. Come, rest at the Court of Miracles. We will handle the rest."

"Clopin, are you serious?!" hissed one of the gypsies. "She may have saved many of our people, but she is still an outsider! We do not know if we can trust her!"

"She has already earned my trust as well as Esmeralda's and many of the other gypsies she's saved from Frollo and his men!" Clopin said, glaring at the gypsy. "At least many of those gypsies would support my decision in this! Besides, look at the poor Mademoiselle! She is tired, hungry, and possibly even injured from Frollo's men! She deserves some rest, no?"

As Clopin and some of the other gypsies were arguing on what to do, Ignis realized something important. That's right...she didn't even check if there were anymore Unversed left in this city. She had been so fixated on helping out the innocents and stopping the soldiers, she forgot to check that there might be another enemy amongst the shadows of this city. She whipped out her Unversed Cleanser from her bag and activated it, instantly getting a signal that showed the location of only one single Unversed in this world. Just one? Well, whatever the case may be, even if it was only one single Unversed, it was still a threat, a threat that Ignis needed to stop no matter what.

Ignis quickly took Clopin's hands off her shoulders and backed away; a worried expression now worn on her face. "I-I'm sorry, Clopin and everyone else! I have to go to do something!"

As she turned around and ran from the cemetery, Clopin called out, "Wait! Where are you going?"

"There's something important that I have to do! You and everyone else get to safety!"

Following the location of the signal that the Unversed Cleanser was telling her, Ignis hurried to the location, noting that the only Unversed was beginning to move after staying in one place the last time she took note of the Unversed's location. She grimaced at the sight of the flames still licking at the remnants of the burnt buildings and the piles of corpses lying on the road and tried her best to ignore them as she focused on the one Unversed's location. It...was too late to save those already dead anyways.

An arrow narrowly missed Ignis, only managing to crack the surface of the Unversed Cleanser she was holding, utterly rendering it unusable and useless. Ignis panicked and leapt back, summoning her Keyblade in case there was yet another battle she had to engage. She turned her head and saw an archer soldier taking out another arrow from his quiver, ready to take aim at her.

Ignis raised her Keyblade, ready to defend herself when she heard some cries and turned her head slightly to see two kids struggling to get away from two soldiers holding a tight grip on their wrists. They were beaten up badly, with the young gypsy girl sporting a bruised lip and a black eye with her hair tangled all over the place, while the other boy had bleeding scratches and was just as roughed up as the girl. Ignis recognized them as the kids that she saved a few days ago near the cathedral, right before she had engaged in a fight with the soldiers and the Lieutenant. The sight of them made Ignis' heart rip itself up into pieces as she saw their desperate and scared eyes lock onto hers. Come to think of it, there was another person with them that day that she also saved; a young girl that was holding a baby at the time that was ordered by the Lieutenant to strip down before Ignis had interfered.

Scanning the area, she was even more horrified to learn the fate of the young girl when she saw her corpse on the ground. And just like many of the female corpses she had seen, the young girl was also...she barely had any clothes on and she died with wide, empty eyes; a sword embedded in her chest once her "usefulness" was up. Lying next to her was the baby she had been holding, also deceased, along with the freckle-faced soldier whose body was pelted with arrows. It seems that he died trying to protect the innocents, at the very least.

"You-!" Ignis readied for her magic when she stopped upon seeing the two soldiers pressing their blades against the two kids' throats. Getting the message that they would no doubt kill them if she tried anything, she lowered her arms, ceasing any form of magic. When the two soldiers pressed deeper and drew thin lines of blood against their throats, Ignis internally panicked, wondering what she had done wrong until she remembered that she still had her Keyblade in her hand, so she lowered it down on the ground and raised her hands to show no harm. It was only after that that the two soldiers slightly lowered their blades, and the two kids were safe. For now.

The archer smirked and called out to Ignis. "It'd be best if you stopped resisting and listen to what we have to say."

The smirk on the archer's face made Ignis glare at him; her eyes fueling with fires of hatred as it took everything out of her not to just rush up and slug him right there and then. "What...do you want?" she demanded, trying to act tough when in truth, she was afraid for the children. She felt an icy chill grip her soul as the archer lowered his bow and arrow and strides towards her. Out of fear, Ignis backs away slowly while resisting the trembling urge to re-summon her Keyblade and hold it up in front of her as a shield, lest the archer and the other two soldiers sees that as an attempt to start a fight and slit the children's throats right before her eyes. Her confused, fearful, and innocent eyes continued holding a gaze towards the archer's eyes as he grew closer, noting malicious lust and intent in his eyes as he licked his lips.

Just like with the Lieutenant.

Ignis felt a slight bump on her back and just now realizes that she's up against a wall, now noticing that she accidentally walked backwards to it as she was trying to get away from the archer. The archer comes closer and stretches an arm towards her, and seeing as she couldn't fight back in fear for the captive children's safety, she squeezed her eyes shut and looked away. She was instead caught off guard when the archer gently places his hand on top of her head. Slowly opened her eyes, Ignis watched as the archer started stroking her hair, his fingers brushing and smoothing out her red hair, and for just a moment, Ignis let down her guard, thinking that she could still somehow convince the archer and his two soldier friends to release the children.

Letting down her guard was a big mistake.

Ignis saw a flash of a malevolent grin on the archer's face before his fingers clenched roughly in her hair before yanking his hand forward, pulling Ignis' body forward along before the archer flamed her head back against the wall with brutal force. It was hard enough to cause a severe head wound before Ignis held the back of her skull, crying out from the thunderclap of pain that still rang on her head as tears of pain formed on her eyes.

Then, the archer threw Ignis roughly to the ground, painfully twisting her arms and then pinning them down behind her back with trained military precision. Ignis could barely gasp out a cry of pain before she felt a pair of cold, metallic cuffs locking her wrists in place. The archer grasped her hair again, pulling with even more force than before and forcing her head up before slamming her head against the concrete ground. He kept repeating this action over and over again, each slam more brutal than the last, all while the two soldiers pointed and laughed at Ignis' pain, while the two children watched in horror, traumatized by the scene before them.

Only when the archer was bored with his rough treatment on Ignis, did he release his grip on her hair and shoved her body away against the wall. Ignis' face was...beyond brutal when the archer was finished. New wounds were exposed to her face, like blood drippling from the corners of her lips, blood overflowed from her nostrils, bloody scraps on her forehead, and bruises on her face. It was horrible and excruciatingly painful for Ignis, but despite the pain, she knew she would accept the pain if it meant protecting the children.

"Hey, I think you went a bit too far with her face," spoke one of the soldiers holding the children captive. "At least keep her lips puckered up. We still need them."

The other soldier agreed. "Yeah, and I hope you didn't break her teeth, either. Eh, but it's not like she needs teeth to warm us up."

The archer shrugged. "You may be right, but I still wanted to take my revenge out on her for killing our friends from yesterday. The little bitch deserved this much pain, no?"

Killing their friends from yesterday? Ah, he must have been referring to when she went on a blind rampage and killed the soldiers. She was taught that if you did something extremely bad to someone, they would do the same back, kinda like karma. But, even though her actions had shown consequences, she still couldn't let the soldiers get away with this, so once she finds an opening, she'll rescue the children and get the hell out of the area.

The archer turned to Ignis gleefully. "Now, you're going to do something for me and my friends. You're going to warm us up and let us do whatever we want to you. If you don't..." He pointed his thumb back towards the children, signaling the other two soldiers to raise their swords against the two children. The two children let out terrified screams as they tried to break free from their captors, unable to defend themselves or run away.

"Stop it!" Ignis yelled, wrenching as hard as she could against her cuffed restraints. She may not know the children, but they were just innocents in all of this, and she wouldn't allow more innocents to die before her very eyes. But, she had a good idea of what the archer was trying to imply when he told her that she was to keep him and his friends..."warm."

Ignis' gaze turned back towards the two children, both pure, innocent, young, and clearly terrified. What was she was forced to do...it wasn't fair. It wasn't fair. But, she didn't have a choice anymore. She knew that if the soldiers wouldn't stop nor release the children unless she...if she...But, if she did this...this immoral act, then it would be a small price to pay in exchange for the children's lives.

That didn't mean the process wouldn't hurt. No, it was probably going to be pain beyond what she could imagine.

"Such a good little hero, aren't you?" taunted the archer. "We'll start with your mouth first, and then...well, we'll deal with removing that dirty outfit of yours later. You'd look so much more prettier without it."

Ignis stared in horror as the soldiers-no, monsters approached her, making her shrink back against the wall like she was a trapped prey, cornered with nowhere else to go. She bitterly accepted her fate, glancing up at the eyes belonging to the two innocent children. Yes, if what she had to do would guarantee the safety of the two children, then she would do this for them.

But, would it have been worth it?


Many hours later, in the night...

With a shaky, blank expression, Ignis' consciousness repeatedly slips in and out, only vaguely aware that she's still alive and walking, but just barely.

Lethargy courses through her entire body, her balance almost non-existent as she sways from one side to the other like an uncontrollably pendulum on the road ahead. Her senses are numb and her willpower is constantly wavering, close to giving up everything until the constant reminder that there are still innocents in need of her help springs her back to life.

After walking for who knows how long, her legs finally caved in from the...rough treatment she received from the soldiers and she nearly collapsed to her knees before she leaned against the walls for support. In the end, she had to resort to using the walls as a crutch, almost tripping on nothing every time she took a step forward. If it weren't for the still-burning fires around multiple buildings and homes in Notre Dame, she wouldn't know where to go.

She felt so...dirty. Weak. Helpless. Worthless. Useless. Disgusting. She's become the embodiment of vulnerability, and as if knowing that wasn't enough, her own pitiful appearance kept reminding her of that fact.

In her current state, her body was close to collapsing, and yet it was her own willpower and strong desire to continue protecting the innocents that forced her to push her body forward. Any regular person would have broken down and stayed in one place, sobbing their heart out and losing the will to live, especially after the horrible experience Ignis went through. Ignis felt so broken and was indeed crying, unable to forget the shaky thoughts out of her head while also focusing on her task, and yet, her desire to protect was what kept her going. To continue to protect with what power she had even after everything that's happened.

After the whole..."ordeal" with the soldiers, after giving into their demands and pleasing them to their hearts' desires, they didn't keep their damn word. They said, as long as she did everything they told her to do, they wouldn't harm the captive children anymore. She did everything they asked for, in order to keep the children safe. Nobody else was around to help the children, so despite the horrible experience, she obeyed their every command, sacrificing more of herself to the soldiers in order to ensure the children's safety.

She gave up her first kiss to the soldiers. She gave up her own innocence to them. She did everything they told-no, demanded her to do, all in hopes of saving the children.

But in the end, even after giving everything that she wanted to give to a future lover, it was for nothing.

Even after everything that's happened, even after they were satisfied, they still went and killed the children right before her very eyes. It happened so fast, she could hardly believe her eyes. The children's throats were slit by the soldiers; their bodies falling helplessly to the ground like puppets whose strings were cut off, and their blood spilling out of their throats. Their gurgled cries and desperation for life tore Ignis apart, but also invigorated her to do something.

Overflowing with raw emotion, Ignis couldn't exactly remember what exactly happened next, but she did know that she freed herself from her cuffs by summoning her Keyblade and easily unlocking the shackles. Afterwards, it was entirely a blur, but judging by the blood splatters on her body and on her Keyblade, as well as the crippled-up corpses of the soldiers, she could only surmise a guess that she killed them. She did remember tending to the children afterwards, but it was too late for them. By the time she killed the soldiers, they were already gone.

She was...uncertain for how long she remained there, but when she regained herself, she cleaned up the...messes on her body to the best of her ability. First, she healed her own wounds using one of her Potions, and then focused on redressing herself. Luckily, she had her spare clothes inside her bag, which was her original attire that she didn't have time to change into beforehand. She removed the ribbon headband tied around her ankle and put it back inside her bag for safety. As for her ensemble, while it was already bloodied and dirty as well as ripped and torn from the soldiers' rough handling on her, so she removed whatever remained of the ensemble and wore her clothes and armor back on before burning the ensemble, not wanting to see it again as a reminder of her...failures.

She coughed hoarsely after everything that's happened, feeling a burst of a bitter saltiness stinging her raw throat and rising up inside her so suddenly. It took everything for Ignis to quell her vomiting as best as she could and instead began heaving in and out to replace the vomiting. The memories of the awful experiences earlier repeatedly flashed back into her mind, and now, she wasn't even trying to hold back her crying as she continued to move, shaking and hyperventilating as the reminder of her own duty as a Keyblade wielder forced her to continue onwards. Her coughs and heavy breathing turned into more sobbing and uncontrollable gasps; her entire fragile and shaking body overwhelmed in terror and pain. She did her best to stay calm and focused by breathing deeply and slowly, just like the lessons Master Eraqus taught her.

She kept moving onwards, knowing that the people of Notre Dame were still in danger and in need of dire help. She didn't need any help for herself because she felt like she didn't even deserve it. Not after all that's happened, and not after she failed to save so many innocents. She saved them over and over again, helping them out of messes and even healing their wounds, but they kept dying in the end anyways. All she did was prolong their lives a little bit longer, but she still refuses to admit that she can't save every single innocent life in the city because of her moral duty to help those in need.

She thought herself as a selfish, worthless, failure of a person. She tried so hard, even pushing past her own limits, and still, the innocents died, whether it was under her watch or not. She was putting so much burden into her shoulders, that whenever she watched an innocent die, the burden on her shoulder didn't lessen, but instead increased with the weight of responsibility, like it was her own fault that that person died. It was supposed to be the soldiers' jobs to protect the innocent, but because of their orders and because most were corrupted, Ignis was the only available choice at the moment to be the people's savior. If nobody was willing to save the innocent, then Ignis was willing to accept that responsibility even though she didn't have to be involved, but that choice...it cost too much for a young, inexperienced girl like herself. Even if she had been trained to fight and protect, she was still too young and inexperienced, and most importantly, she hasn't had the experience of killing so much. That one time felt so long ago, and earlier today, she did it again, but this time, it was out of vengeance. This time again, it was the same thing.

Ignis kept wandering around, unsure what to do except with two goals still ringing in her mind. Protect the innocent, and find Esmeralda. She protected and saved as many lives as possible, and yet she committed evil, killing, to accomplish that. She's disobeyed so many of her Master's teachings so many times, so when her Master and her friends learn of what happened in this world, they'll resent her. They'll think she's not even worthy of the Keyblade, and she can't help but agree with that.

But, just for a little while longer, until this mess was over, she needs to use the power of the Keyblade to continue helping the innocent people of this world. She may not be worthy of the Keyblade after all the atrocities she's done, but she knows that the innocents need the power of protection on their side, and she is willing to force the power of the Keyblade to protect them with everything she has left inside of her, no matter how broken up, tired, and injured she may be.

Silent Solitude (Studio Yuraki version)

Composed by: OxT

Studio Yuraki

Sung by: OxT

Sam Luff

It's a deep and silent night,

I cannot hear anything!

Sleep for eternity!

The grieving, the fury, enveloped inside

Such a maelstrom, it roars so loud!

I'm losing my way in, the darkness tonight

Silent, I'm fading out!

Cheating out each other,

Betray one another,

What's the point,

When we know everything's

So meaningless?

It's a deep and silent night,

I cannot hear anything,

'cause everything is fast asleep!

Now, the world, so full of sin,

It repeats itself again,

Such a relentless dream!

How much should I repent?

How can I atone?

For the evil that I have done?

Who is it, the person,

The one to forgive

Me, when I forgave none?

Good and evil clash with

God and these emotions!

No one yet can see that

Everyone has been disposed!

In the dark and dirty light,

Where I can no longer hide,

I am exposed, corrupted through!

In the moment, motionless

I will find my punishment!

This silent solitude!

Everyone is cheating,

Constantly competing,

So many are dying,

Nothing stops the fighting!

People will desire

What they can't acquire,

Happiness, they dream of

What's ahead - just out of reach!

And the voice I heard that day,

Still it echoes on again,

It's just beyond my memory!

In my mind, I'll shut the door

To all these intrusive thoughts,

I'm drowning out the noise!

It's a deep and silent night,

I cannot hear anything,

'cause everything is fast asleep!

Now the world, so full of sin,

It repeats itself again!

Such a relentless dream!

Memories of so much bloodshed that's spread throughout the city in just two days flooded Ignis' thoughts. Ignis arrived in this world just a few days ago and enjoyed and explored everything there was to see in the city of Notre Dame. She's made lots of friends, and even though she heavily disliked the problems in the city, she still enjoyed her time and came to love this world, possibly even more than all the other worlds she's visited, though the Hundred Acre Woods was a really close second.

What used to be a cheerful, happy-go-lucky girl that loved singing and exploring to her heart's content was now a broken, traumatized, exhausted girl whose hands are now covered in blood from a situation that was out of her control. No matter how much she tried to save and protect others, she also had to make tough choices - unforgettable ones - that would stick in her mind for the rest of her life. Especially after an earlier event that would definitely mark an impact on her journey.

After all that's happened, her body couldn't take it and she fell to her knees, crouching on the ground and shivering as she had a downcast expression with her head lowered; tears dripping onto the tiles of the stony ground. Even though she wore her original attire, even though she had her armor back on, she still felt...exposed. Even with her armor on, and even with a magical device on her shoulder that would activate and grant her more protection in the form of Keyblade Armor, she would still feel exposed.

No matter how much she would wash herself, the blood would never come out of her hands. Her innocence would never return to her. She loved her friends, and the innocent people in the city, but after so much that's happened, the choices she had to make, she felt like she didn't even deserve to be loved. Her goal of one day finding a lover of her own, she may as discard it if she was going to continue with that mindset.

"...felt so good!"

"I know right? Those gypsy scum deserved what was coming to them!"

"I know Judge Frollo said to interrogate and kill those that got in our way, but they did 'get in our way,' so it was only that we killed those in our way!"

"Did you have to take down those children, though? They're annoying little brats, but I think cutting off an arm or two would have been enough to shut them up!"

"Of course! They were in the way, and their wailing was so annoying! Plus, they're only gypsy scum, so nobody will miss them!"

Heading towards Ignis' direction was yet another group of corrupted soldiers, and just like many of the other soldiers in the city, they took advantage of their orders and did as they pleased, using their authority to please themselves while not caring one bit about any innocents despite it being their sworn duty.

And they had the unfortunate fate of running into an unstable Ignis.

"...You killed them…?"

Her hollow voice was shaky and low, and yet it resounded through the street. The soldiers finally took notice of her and recognized her as the girl who defeated, and yet spared them, based on her red hair.

Seeing as she appeared tired and vulnerable enough to kill, and thinking that she was in no position to fight, one of the soldiers decided to entertain her by happily answering her questions before he and his friends killed her.

"Yeah, that's right! We took them down because they were in our way!"

"...Them? Men, women...even children? Even babies? People who couldn't even defend themselves?"

Another soldier even had the audacity to grin. "It was so much fun watching them run away when they had no chance of even surviving the night! Believe me, I wanted to spare the women to have some more fun with them later, but well, we couldn't leave any witnesses, now can we?"

"...Why kill them? The innocent people...they had nothing to do with your search for Esmeralda...They weren't even in your way...They were just minding their own business, but then you...you all..."

"That's where you're wrong, missy," said another soldier. "They were in our way. They were just there at the wrong place at the wrong time. If they had been safely inside their homes, they wouldn't have gotten killed. It was their own fault for being out in the open during our investigation! Then again, it wouldn't have mattered, since arson is quite a nice stress - reliever!"

"Besides!" laughed another soldier. "It's not like anybody's going to care! So there were a couple of casualties during our investigation! So what? Gypsies were amongst the people, so they were just in our way! Nobody's gonna care about a bunch of filthy street rats-"

"YOU SHUT YOUR MOUTH!"

Ignis' hollow tone took in a sudden intense sharp spike that sounded inhumane and caused the soldiers to back away, nearly driving them off when they tried to draw near. For a moment, they felt fear unlike anything they've felt before, like they were facing a demon.

But, one look at the pitiful-looking girl, and the soldiers relaxed, feeling a bit too overconfident in themselves. They were trained soldiers, and they were ordered to kill anyone who got in their way. This young girl, however powerful she may be, spared them before, and she was in no condition to fight them, so it would be easy to eliminate her in one fell swoop.

The soldier who was interrupted before, was both annoyed and angered that she not only was defending the gypsies, but also interrupted him midsentence. "How dare you interrupt me, bitch?!" He slammed his boot at her face, kicking her across the ground and surely leaving a bruise on her face.

Ignis laid sprawled to the side and seemed unresponsive, almost as though she was dead. However, she seemed to be alright as she sat up with her expression still downcast. It was almost as though she didn't even feel the kick or was deliberately ignoring the pain of her now-bruised cheek.

"You all...Do any of you have even a single hint of remorse for killing them?"

Knowing that she was referring to the innocent peoples he and his men killed, the soldier that kicked her before merely sneered. "Why should we care about people that got in our way of duty?"

Staggering to stand up, Ignis's entire body trembled not from fear, but from killing intent. Her entire, frail body emitted a deep hatred along with a killing intent exuding from her eyes shimmering with tears. Blood trickled thinly from her tightly clenched lips as she struggled and was failing to hold back her emotions.

"I see...So, just like the others, you all chose to forsake the innocents-! They did nothing wrong, and they were minding their own business, but then you went and ruined their lives by killing them-!"

Instead of fearing the girl before them, the soldiers merely laughed mockingly, finding nothing wrong with their own approach and thinking of her as some overdramatic, naïve girl. "They were commoners and gypsies! Nobody was going to pay any attention to useless piles of trash taking up air and space! If anything, we did the city a favor by lowering the useless part of the population!"

Their apathetic words only further enraged Ignis' already overflowing feelings. "YOU-! They could have been saved! They weren't even involved with your orders, and they were innocent people! You all swore a duty to protect the innocent and weak, but instead, you just took advantage of your positions and slaughtered them like cattle! AND YOU DARE CALL YOURSELVES SOLDIERS?!"

"Some of those 'innocents' you keep talking about? They were killing each other, too," revealed one of the soldiers. "I don't know the full reasons why, but I heard it was for more food, to get the girl they want, an opportunity to steal more money while the chaos was happening all over the place, and a whole bunch more. We only hastened the massacre, and got rid of the filthy street rats that nobody was going to miss."

Eyes widening at the realization that he was going to continue belittling the gypsies and "justify" his actions, Ignis clenched her teeth, summoning her Keyblade in her hand and squeezing the hilt so tightly, her knuckles turned white like snow. She growled lowly, "Just shut your mouth-!"

But the soldier continued, purposely taunting her and unaware it would be the very last mistake of his life. "Nobody loved those filthy street rats and even more people are going to be satisfied when they're all lying dead on the ground! People like Judge Frollo will be so proud of our work! I hope those gypsies who study witchcraft are burning in the depths of-"

"JUST SHUT UP!"

That soldier never got to finish his sentence before his jaw was slashed open. Ignis didn't kill the soldier, at least, not yet, but she did allow him the privilege of suffering before death. Blood erupted from the spot where his jaw used to be, and unknown gurgles and what seems to be screams escaped from his open mouth as the soldier clawed and struggled to find a way to stop the pain. He accidentally stumbled and squashed at the fallen meat on the ground that was once his jaw before falling over, struggling and rolling around violently.

The other soldiers cried out and backed away from their critically injured comrade before glancing at the seemingly vulnerable girl with fear evident in their eyes. Enhancement magic flowed throughout Ignis' body and coursed through her Keyblade, which allowed her the temporarily, superhuman strength to slice a man's jaw off. Even if enhancement magic wasn't the cause of her sudden burst of strength, her overwhelming emotions would have given her strength regardless.

Before the soldiers could do anything, they saw Ignis glaring each one of them with equally deep hatred; her mind screaming to avenge the innocents and ensure that no corrupted men were to stay alive tonight. They were either frozen or quivering in fear at the sight of a single girl snarling like a beast and hollering at them with deep hatred as she raised her weapon.

"How dare you?! HOW COULD YOU?! They were innocent! All those people you killed for selfish reasons! Even the gypsies were innocent! It didn't matter what race they were from, THEY WERE ALL INNOCENT! You could have helped those innocents, but instead, YOU KILLED THEM! My own power may not have been enough, but at least I TRIED! I tried saving as many people as possible, but they still ended up dying because of people like you! If only you had helped-! If only...! If only you had used your own power and authority and disobeyed your orders to protect the innocent! BUT YOU'RE ALL MONSTERS JUST LIKE THAT DAMN FROLLO!"

Some of the soldiers unsheathed her sword and tried to rush her, intent on taking her down as quickly as possible. However, Ignis proved to be the better and faster opponent as she mercilessly killed them by firing beams of light at them, ripping holes in their armor and watching their corpses fall to the ground. The other soldiers, knowing they were now no match for her, tried to make a break for it.

However, Ignis had no intention on letting them escape nor live. She leapt up to the rooftop of a nearby building and manipulated the fires of several other buildings under her magical control, creating a wall of fire that blocked out their means of escape. They turned and tried to run the other way, but the wall of fire quickly extended to become a circle of fire, entrapping the soldiers within. They fearfully glanced up at Ignis, meeting their frightful eyes with her hatred-filled ones.

"I won't forget any one of your cruel actions! I won't forgive any one of you! YOU EVEN KILLED CHILDREN AND BABIES!" Ignis yelled.

The circle of fire started to close in on the soldiers, and they all huddled together to try and stay alive. Ignis couldn't help but take in immense pleasure in seeing them scared for their lives. Now, they were starting to understand what all their innocent victims felt, being tortured and killed by them. The fear of dying increased for them as the fires grew closer and closer; sweat dripping down their skin as their armor made it incredibly difficult to breath and move around freely.

"You're not knights! You're not heroes! You're not even fit to be soldiers! YOU ALL DESERVE TO BURN IN THE FIREY PITS OF HELL WHERE YOU BELONG!"

With that said, Ignis allowed the circle of fire to engulf the soldiers entirely, watching and not once looking away with the cold, enraged expression on her face. The soldiers screamed and frail their burning bodies around; the fires sheering away at their skin and delivering unimaginable amounts of pain to them as they felt their life extinguishing before their very eyes.

Their last sight of life before they faded away into nothing was the moonlight and the lights from the fires directing them to the sight of the girl in shining armor. The lights may have illuminated down on the girl, but the darkness of the night perfectly described what she looked like.

A demon in shining armor.


Wow...WOW! That was...quite the chapter! Probably, no, DEFINITELY mores than the last chapter! And cue in the angry comments. Id did warn you guys that there was going to be dark themes in this arc! Summary time!

Summary: Following the events from the last chapter, Ignis didn't quite know how long she was just standing around after having killed a second time around, with the second time being her killing a bunch of soldiers. Afterwards, she just ran away, confused and scared of herself until she finally stopped somewhere in the city, where she started puking.

She was puking because she realizing her own actions from killing the soldiers. That she did so because she wanted to and out of vengeance. She thought it was a wrong thing to do so not just because of taking a life, but also because she killed for the wrong reasons, even though the soldiers were way worst than her because they killed innocents for fun. Even though killing the soldiers meant less danger to the innocents, she still didn't feel okay with her actions.

Even though she was sick, tired, and clearly not in her right mind, she thought that she didn't even deserve to rest because she killed the soldiers. Even though they were the bad people, she still cherished life and thought that her friends and Master Eraqus would see her as a monster for killing. This goes to show how deeply kind she is, and yet so easily guilty and emotional she could become.

After a while, she managed to calm down a bit and resolved herself to continue her task of protecting and helping the innocents, as well as finding Esmeralda and taking her to safety. She's still shaky from killing, but she knew that it was her duty as a Keyblade wielder to continue protecting the innocent people in the ciy no matter what.

Many hours passed, and Ignis was growing more exhausted and more mentally unstable. She still protected and saved innocent lives as best as she could, but she ended up witnessing a lot of horrible things. The corrupted soldiers were still killing innocents and burning down their homes, but worst of all, some of the innocent people were even killing their own people, taking advantage of the opportunity to steal from them, kill out of jealously, and other things that forced Ignis to immobilize those kinds of people and not just the soldiers. Because of her fear of killing more, she refused to kill anymore and continued to knock out and/or immobilize the soldiers before pressing on.

Upon stumbling onto the cemetery, Ignis saw Clopin and some gypsies gathered around some dead bodies covered in white sheets, and Ignis learned from them that the dead bodies belonged to some of the friends Ignis made a few days ago; Reuben, his older sister, Rose, and their mother. What was even more horrible was that not only were they killed by having their throats slit, but the murderers behind their deaths, namely more corrupted soldiers, had defiled both Rose and her mother's bodies before killing them and making their escape. It was even more messed up because these actions were done right in front of their father/husband's gravestone.

Ignis went to try and see their corpses, but Clopin stopped her, informing her that she would never be the same again should she actually see the state of their bodies, stating that it was beyond brutal. Ignis felt so enraged, she fired a high-leveled fire spell at some hill to let off some steam, but it wasn't enough. She angrily wonders how long she has to hold in her anger towards the soldiers, revealing a deep desire to kill them for what they've done, and yet holding herself back because of her ideals.

Clopin, realizing that she was blaming herself for the innocent family's deaths, hastily rushed over and tried to comfort her, ensuring her that none of this was any of her fault, and that it was the soldiers that killed them that was their fault. But Ignis, feeling responsible for the lives she's saved, kept denying that fact, claiming that she wasn't fast enough and that she should have tried even harder, saying that she was no different than the soldiers because she killed. Of course, Clopin rebukes that, saying that she was nothing like the soldiers and that she only killed to protect the innocents, whereas the soldiers only killed the innocents for fun.

Clopin, feeling sorry for the girl, but admiring her heroism for not only protecting the innocent people to the best of her ability, but also his own people, offers her to stay at the Court of Miracles for the time being so she could calm down and rest up. Some of the other gypsies protest this, leading to a huge argument between Clopin and the gypsies who supported his decision against the other gypsies who opposed his decision.

Realizing that the only enemy wasn't just the corrupted soldiers and that there might be some Unversed in the city, Ignis took out her Unversed Cleanser and noticed there was one single Unversed left in the city. Knowing that she couldn't leave that alone, she turns around and runs off, rejecting Clopin's offer to stay at the Court of Miracles in order to deal with a more serious threat and hopefully bring more safety and peace to the city.

While Ignis was heading towards the destination of the Unversed, she was suddenly ambushed by an arrow that missed her, but destroyed her Unversed Cleanser. She summoned her Keyblade and took a fighting stance to defend herself when she was confronted by three soldiers; one was an archer that had shot an arrow earlier at her, and the other two soldiers were holding two children that she knew hostage. She already received the notion that should she try anything, the children's lives were forfeit, so she stopped and listened to what the soldiers had to say, or rather, she had to do what they told her to do.

The archer backed her up against the wall and proceeded to beat her up as revenge for killing his and the others soldiers' friends. He cuffed her hands behind her back and informed her that unless she wanted the children to die because of her, she was going to have to do what they had to say. For the sake of the children, Ignis was forced to agree and it was highly suggested that she was...defiled by both the archer and the two other soldiers.

Much later, in the nighttime, Ignis was stumbling out of what was indeed a very horrible experience for her. She was crying nonstop as she used the walls for support while continuing onwards, even more tired and messed up than ever before. Additionally, her ensemble outfit was so torn up and ruined, she ended up removing and burning it after wearing her original attire with her armor on.

Even after doing everything the soldiers wished for her to do, they still ended up killing the children right before her very eyes, breaking their promise. Enraged, she killed the soldiers brutally, though she couldn't recall that memory, only seeing as she was the one who killed the soldiers as she had blood all over her body and that the soldiers were dead.

Even though she still held a strong desire to continue protecting the innocents and finding Esmeralda, that didn't stop Ignis from feeling so ashamed, filthy, and regretful. She had given up a lot of herself just to ensure the children's safety; her first kiss, her innocence, and a whole lot she didn't wish to go into detail, but it was all for nothing because the soldiers killed the children in the end anyways, making Ignis feel worthless and undeserving to even have a Keyblade.

She eventually collapsed and ended up in a bit of a depressed state, so she didn't even notice more corrupted soldiers heading her way. She questioned them why they had to kill more innocents, and, seeing that she was going to die anyways, decided to answer her questions. Her questions were met with gleeful joy, mocking, and insults towards the innocents, especially towards the gypsies, slowly and effectively enraging her. Eventually, she snapped and reached a breaking point that caused her to actually slice a soldier's jaw open with her Keyblade.

Some of the soldiers tried to attack in retaliation, but they were quickly taken down by her in an instant. Filled with hatred and not thinking straight, Ignis angrily expresses her anger towards the unjust treatment for killing the innocents and that the soldiers were going to pay for what they've done. The remaining soldiers tried to escape, but Ignis used her magic to prevent any means of escape, trapping them in a circle of fire before declaring that they deserved to burn in Hell before watching them burn to death.

And that's the end of the summary! And this chapter leads to a huge changing point in Ignis' ideals and part of her personality! Now, she's no longer playing the nice girl and is now showing absolutely no mercy to her enemies. With everything that's happened to her, ESPECIALLY what's happened to her during this chapter, it was no wonder that she snapped and caused some major character development.

What happened at the cemetery for that innocent family...yeah, the girl and her mother were "defiled" in the same way Ignis was later on. I actually got that idea from a chapter in the Akame Ga Kill manga. Luckily, that didn't happen in the anime, but it really was messed up in the manga and heavily implied, so I wanted to add that even further to the dark themes.

I don't really want to turn this story into a Rated M story, so I decided to put really suggestive themes when Ignis was..."defiled." If I had turned this into an Rated M story, then you guys would see the "experience" that Ignis went through, and I would have made it as horrible as possible. Horrible in writing? No. Horrible as in experience description? ...Yes. Look, long story short, Ignis is NOT going to forget that experience. Nobody could.

And, the first kiss thing? Yeah, her first kiss was actually taken by Vanitas back in the Sleeping Beauty world, but because she was unconscious at the time, she didn't know that. She thought that her first kiss was taken along with her innocence by the soldiers who forced her to do indecent things.

I also want to explain something in this chapter. This chapter revealed that it wasn't just the soldiers killing the innocents, but also innocent civilians killing amongst themselves. You see this kind of thing like with riots, like people killing to get what they want. Innocents killing each other for various things, for stealing things, to kill them because they're annoying, for them to get out of the way as they make their escape, to get the last bread on the stall, a whole bunch of selfish things. They turned on each other and revealed more of humanity's bad side to Ignis. I'll elaborate that on the last chapter of this arc, which isn't next chapter, but very close by.

Next up, the song lyrics in this chapter from the song, "Silent Solitude. I want to explain and elaborate more about them, and you might understand why I chose this song. Hell, you could even hear this awesome song and incorporate the meaning into this chapter. I always choose songs that have some sort of connection in this story, kinda.

The first three lines, "It's a deep and silent night, I cannot hear anything! Sleep for eternity!" The "deep and silent night" literally means at nighttime, where after all the bloodshed's finished, it's completely silent. The song also kinda refers to Ignis' perspective, and the "sleep for eternity" is a reference to the death theme that's going on.

The next lines, "The grieving, the fury, enveloped inside, such a maelstrom, it roars so loud! I'm losing my way in, the darkness tonight, silent, I'm fading out!" Ignis is losing more and more of herself as she feels so much sorrow and fury towards the situation, and as the situation grows more worst, so does her emotions, and she feels more like she's losing herself.

Another set of lines, "Cheating out each other, betray one another, what's the point , when we know everything's so meaningless?" The cheating and betraying part is referring to the supposedly innocent people backstabbing and killing one another for their own selfish reasons. Kinda like, if they're going to die anyways, why not go out with a big bang or something like that. Like, doing what they want before they die.

"Now the world so full of sin, it repeats itself again, such a relentless dream!" The world of Notre Dame is now revealing more of its dark colors and as time passes, it shows more and more sin to Ignis. No matter how many times she saves people, the massacres, stealing, and other sins continue over and over again, and yet, she continues to strive for a better future for the world, relentlessly fighting for it for the innocent people.

"How much should I repent? How can I atone? For the evil that I have done? Who is it, the person, the one to forgive me when I forgave none?" It's a clear perspective for Ignis, as she thought of herself as a killer for killing in the first place, thinking that she's evil and horrible like the soldiers. She's pleading for someone for forgiveness when she knows that she'll never forgive the soldiers for killing the innocent.

"Good and evil clash with God and these emotions! No one yet can see that everyone has been disposed!" There are themes of good and evil in this arc, and religion is heavily influenced, especially since Judge Frollo was the cause of the entire situation. Ignis' intentions are good and her desire to protect innocents is pure, but she did have to resort to doing evil things like killing.

"In the dark and dirty light, where I can no longer hide, I can exposed, corrupted through! In the moment, motionless, I will find my punishment! This silent solitude!" Dark and dirty light can be referring to the balance between light and darkness and how her conflicts and the path she's chosen has led her up to this point. Her actions already exposed her as a kind and strong girl willing to protect the innocent, but as time passes, she no longer shows mercy and is "corrupted" by now willingly killing, knowing that she'll most likely suffer the consequences and will accept any punishment for killing, even if it means being kicked out and forced to be alone for her remainder of her life.

"Everyone is cheating, constantly competing! So many are dying, nothing stops the fighting! People will desire what they can't acquire! Happiness, they dream of - what's ahead - just out of reach!" Once again, this refers to the people fighting amongst themselves for their selfish desires, fighting for their own selfish happiness that may never come because either they're going to die fighting amongst themselves or by the soldiers.

"And the voice I heard that day, still it echoes on again, it's just beyond my memory! In my mind, I'll shut the door, to all these intrusive thoughts, I'm drowning out the noise!" Finally, this goes back to Ignis' feelings, and how it's like she's hearing the voice of the dead, telling her to avenge the dead. In reality, she wants to find a peaceful solution to all of this and ignore the nagging voice before caving in.

The thing is with Ignis, is that she's taking too much by herself and blaming herself for innocents dying when it was beyond what she could have done. She did everything within her power, and yet it was not enough. It didn't seem like it was going to be enough to save the city, and yet, Ignis still persisted because she believed there was still at least a bit of hope of trying to save the world she was in. I described as her having huge defense, and there's more to it than physical stats. She's literally acting like a shield to protect, but eventually, there will be gaps and weaknesses in that shield that'll eventually make the shield crack and be destroyed. That's kinda what's happening to Ignis when her mentality broke under all the stress, pressure, and especially what happened to her this chapter.

The reason she felt so negative and insecure towards her friends' and Master's opinion is because she feels she has a responsibility as Keyblade wielder to help others, which isn't wrong, but she's neglecting her own health and life to do so, becoming self-sacrificing. Her last meeting with her friends didn't end up well, if you can recall, making her think that they still hate and think of her as a nuisance. And her Master would never accept her path of finding balance because it involves using darkness, and she's already broken so many of his teachings and rules, she thought she might be kicked out as a result.

The thing is, she's overestimating her friends. If they knew what was happening to her, they wouldn't hesitate to save her and help her save the city no matter what. If this was Vanitas, however...Well, he would take Ignis away forcibly from the world and destroy it without hesitation using his Unversed, especially after all the things that's happened to Ignis.

That's all from me! This arc is almost done, yet not quite there yet! You'll have to wait and find out more! Read and review!