In Paris.

During a bright morning, Ken nearly dozed off as a crowd of towns people gathered for a main event. His mind drifted and he forced himself to wake up. He, Mickey, Goofy, Donald, Tahm and his guard watched Pheobus and Esmerelda exit the from door, with a particular friend that needed a fresh start, guiding Quasimodo out from the building he was bound to through out most of his life. Ready to meet the towns people once more, Mickey yawned to a mutual feeling. "We been up and about for over two days, let's hope we solved the problem in this place first."

Tahm nodded and let the mouse know. "Then we should discuss our next move, Hofneil and the others ordered me to report to you about their finding and for us to fall back to the gardened city. Me and my men are ill equipped to descend down into that... nightmare."

Ken grunted to that. "Bryn's waiting for you and you be there in no time."

Goofy, Donald and the guardsmen watched a small, blonde girl in purple slowly approach Quasimodo, giving him a small hug of acceptance and guiding him into the crowd of society. The shield bearer sighed in satisfaction. "Looks like our business is done here."

Donald nodded and watched a trio of teenagers walk out of the building, giving the captain and woman a parting and joining up with the group. "But why's Hofneil suggesting we take his ship for this?"

Tahm laughed at the naive. "Magitinus, Cid and those two mechanics out did themselves with that ships function and details. A simple arrival into that fortress is ill advise and... lets just say we were never planning on giving those heretics any quarter."

Sora overheard and asked even more naive. "What do are they going to do? Shoot us into the fort?" Tahm stared at him in silence, hinting that was exactly what was planned. Sora gasped and was openly protesting. "Are you all crazy?!"

The Commissar rolled his eyes and answered. "Magitinus will explain along the way, you'll live through it."

Kairi and Riku watched Quasimodo be carried by two of the towns people and being celebrated properly, the silver haired teenager took a deep breath and asked. "This is something Hofneil and his men do all the time?"

Tahm wouldn't exactly say. "We are part of the Astral Millitarium, not the Imperial Navy. But boarding an enemy vessel is a tactic they use."

Sora swallowed and asked. "So we really are going to be shot into there?"

Kairi agreed with how suicidal their approach sounds. "If we are lucky, it would just shoot us into where those guys are."

Riku wished that was the case. "But it would be stupid to make a whole room near the edge when there are several people wanting you dead."

The church bells rung and the group watched on to find Quasimodo feeling happy and at peace. The group disappeared into a corner and in a flash of light, found themselves on board a gummi ship that was built with warfare in mind. They found Magitinus looking out the window and finding a particular ship shining light in questioning and flying its nose to the direction of it, it took off as Sora asked. "Could you tell us what you're plan is?"

Magitinus turned towards them and pointed to the right of the ship and to a tunnel resembling a boarding pod. "If you were informed, you know that a simple arrival is not enough for our entry and they might be aware enough of our presence to stop us from entering the traditional way."

That made sense, though Sora felt a familiar consciousness warning him about where he is going if he goes past the door. Jiminy jumped out and asked. "Once we start, we will be going straight into all kinds of trouble."

Riku, Kairi, Donald, Goofy and Mickey looked to be in mutual feeling as Magitinus put it into perspective. "The confines of this ship will be the last haven we have before we descend into hell."

Hofneil climbed up a set of stairs and instructed bellow. "I will join you shortly once we begin our travel." The seemingly unarmed marine let the group know he was listening in. "It is what you were warned about. You will, metaphorically, descend into our world. Sora, are you and your friends ready?"

The boy took a deep breath, nodded and walked in to find thirteen harnesses strapped to seats, with a screen as the main focus, he was taken by surprise. "Wow." Riku counted the thirteenth and stepped in. "...We already lost someone... but why thirteen?"

Magitinus looked to be smiling. "For those who can fight, although we did not expect our first casualty so soon."

He gave a moment of silence for the one soldier missing from the picture as Ken asked. "You're coming with us?"

Magitinus nodded as a servo skull flew by his side and dropped a strange gun Ken was familiar with. "That's the thing you used to wreck that Soulgrinder."

Magitinus beeped. "We are going into a place with machinery like it and foes that will be well armored. The Meltagun would fire a beam like that of the sun, that thing you have has improved upon its evolution?"

Ken showed Cadia's Light and nodded. "I heard it became something comparable to a hot shot version of a lasgun. It's not that different other than one thing, armor means nothing to it."

Magitinus tapped his fingers together. "It can puncture even ceramite armor, the armor of a Space Marine, with ease. It is beyond the standards of the lasguns machine spirit, but I believe the machine spirit wished to become much more." Ken blinked and took the compliment well, he gasped and realized something was wrong as Riku asked the tech priest. "You are saying that because this could be your last chance to make peace?"

The tech priest wasn't denying it. "It is no apology, but I wish to see its evolved power, just for one time."

Ken whistled in good will. "I still forgive you, besides... I got an idea of how we can really mend the bridges before... setting up the bridge."

Those words caused Sora to simply sit down into a seat and get ready, Kairi guessed with another festival in mind. "A going away party for them?"

Donald snapped his fingers. "Now that's an idea!" He went in next. "Come on Goofy, lets do this!" Goofy chuckled and went in, both sitting by Sora and noticing something was off. Donald asked. "Sora?"

The boy kept it in and smiled fore them, Riku went in next and wanted to lecture. "We just been to a festival days ago, you're thinking of another one now?"

Sora shook his head. "That's... not what I was thinking about."

Riku yawned and joked. "Go take a nap Sora, it's going to be a while before we get there." That was an idea, the spikey haired boy yawned back and went to trying to nap, Kairi entered and found a harnesses right next to her friends. Taking a rest of her own as Ken entered feeling dizzy and found a seat to the far end. Snoozing away and hearing talk of strategy.

At Radiant Garden.

Leon and Cid looked upon two generators in the southern districts of the town and felt the defenses were a tad paranoid. The engineer debated. "That mechanical shrimp has a point if we have to fight big guns."

The man with the gun sword agreed to that. "If we do, but the canons sound handy if those brutes at the vale come knocking."

Yuffie noticed someone coming and winked. "Just aim and watch. I wonder how-" Cough Tahm and his guardsmen arrived with something of an inspection to finalize. "Adequate for the time we have. They found the final passage to the domain of the heretics. Now we wait and hold position."

Yuffie saluted cutely and let the Commissar know. "We have the castle ready in case trouble is coming and we need to hide all these people. This isn't the first time this sort of thing happened."

Tahm nodded as Cid let him know. "And just in case, I got her all fixed up while you were off."

The Commissar hummed and took the mans word for it. "I seen it, it looks suitable enough for battle. Men, we should have sufficient fire power from our Valkyrie to fight back against the enemy, but it is only to a limit."

Cid took offense to that. "How about I show you, ya old vet."

Tahm smiled and sighed. "Then lead the way."

The five took off, Leon smiled and looked up to the sky. "Good luck kid."

With in a mental dream scape.

Sora was looking upon a tranquil shore and had a few things in his mind. None of them making a cohesive pattern, a familiar voice asked. "Scared?" Sora looked to his left to find a boy with golden blonde, spiky hair, holding two particular keyblades in hand. "...Roxas. Was... what that thing was saying to Hofneil true? Once he and the others go back home... things aren't going to get better for them?"

Roxas sighed and patted Sora on the back. "Any world that allowed Mc. Krazypantsoff to be in the power he is has to be messed up. But then again, Resira said he was an exception to the usual rule. You know Hofneil and his friends are trying to set things right for the worlds as well as their own."

That Sora understood as his keyblade formed on his lap. "They are, if it wasn't for them, we wouldn't have been able to get things back to normal. If it wasn't for Resira," He felt it difficult to just let go. "Then Hofneil's power sword became a keyblade."

Roxas wanted to know how that happened. "Someone that close to war was picked... but why?"

The two noticed Riku, Kairi and Namine sitting by them, Sora took a deep breath and told the three. "Hofneil got a keyblade while fighting that... thing responsible for some of the chaos back there."

Riku growled and asked. "It was that same demon we saw in the dream?"

Sora nodded. "You don't want to know what it was doing to the church."

Kairi was just as angry about the implications. "He was trying to mess it up. Is nothing sacred to him?"

Riku shook his head and warned her. "No there isn't, that thing is a Daemon Prince... someone who use to be human before throwing all that away."

Namine sighed and drew. "That only makes it worse."

Sora and Roxas came to that agreement, the spiky haired boy asked his friends. "No matter what happens or how we part from those guys, they did a lot for us."

The group agreed wholly and Kairi had her right hand under her head. "That's going to be the hardest part. All of them are giving everything to protect the worlds, they helped us too many times. They are heroes," She was mentally preparing herself. "They came from a place far away from ours, yet it felt like our hearts had always been one."

Riku nodded and smiled proudly. "That's why its hard. When they do go back home, it might be the last time we see them."

Sora smiled and felt better. "No matter how far away we will be, they will always be in our hearts."

The feeling of smooth sailing dulled the worry, Roxas tensed and looked to Namine like there was something that needed to be done, the blonde girl asked. "If what we hear about is true, anything is possible in there. Do you think you might be able to-" Roxas nodded and smiled arrogantly. "We might need the impossible to go down there."

He found an odd humor as Namine teased to him, seeing that the trio were in their dream bliss and not listening. "Seven keyblade wielders together. With … one more in the boarding party, that will also mean thirteen people are going into the chaos."

Roxas found that more hilarious and laughed to it. "That will make those grim dark wise guys lighten up... even if it is going to go crazy in there." Flicker, the two found themselves looking at each other in a boarding pod, anxious for the final battle. They noticed the screen catching something in a blip, the hour draws near.

At the top of a tower with in the Realm of Heavens,

Aqua was feeling dry as the Heartstone was giving off a pink glow more vibrantly, the evocators were on work for nearly three days. Moonfang was cautious about something being too easy, Raelorian and his judicators kept a valient watch as Gashen observed. "The way this is going, that stone would be at its full power, Lady Aqua... do you think your enemies know of this?"

That was what Aqua was afraid of happening. "It's why you and some of the others are here to keep watch, they will try to destroy the stone above everything else."

Realorian had his hand cannon ready as Gashen was feeling more at unease. "And if the story is true, your enemies are not that easy to expel from this realm. Chaos is one thing and we ensure it never sets foot, but darkness," He kept a firmer watch as Raelorian was looking around, like something was watching him. "What do we make of the place in between, the blackness of the sky? That is always there, it's in order with the celestial bodies."

Aqua was thinking that to be a good point. "It's like how a friend of mine talked about a balance between light and darkness. The Realm of Azyr isn't a realm of pure light, it's a realm of Order. Hmm."

Gashen asked as the tension reached its limit. "If you are thinking about the balance between order and chaos, stop right there. I think the more... correct term, is freedom. Where there isn't a law beyond what you have on your own, that... alone isn't what we are fighting."

That Aqua was getting at. "It's when those with that freedom, completely damages the rules. That is when it becomes disorder, chaos."

Gashen pointed to her and was in complete agreement. "Exactly and those damages can... and have, shattered the laws of physics, the basic idea of right and wrong, common sense, cast into the void, where your only option is either following the strongest or becoming the strongest, where you're not obligated to do things that would waste your time. We battle powers of Chaos because, through that, you end up becoming a slave of a different kind."

Raelorian agreed with that and whistled to Aqua a term she would definitely understand. "For the poor souls that follow Chaos, whether willingly or because it is all they know, they are often called Slaves to Darkness. Trapped with in their own madness, their own wants, having to to survive against those that would betray them for their own gain. Does that sound like freedom?"

Aqua shook her head and watched dark creatures slither from the shadows, twitching and approaching the stone, Arresia glared at them and ordered. "Hold the line! We are almost done!" The liberators charged after the flooding darkness as the judicators readied to fire, flapping bats by the dozens flew from the darkness of the sky. The cross bows fired and the hammers swung, the prosecutors done brutal combat with their hammers and a great hammer as Nerax snipped any important looking Unversed. Aqua readied her keyblade to as she and Moonfang readied for battle. They looked up to find three odd parts flying toward them, a white copter, a jet and what looked like an upper torso. The copter split into a set of arms, the jet unfolded into legs. The torso connected the arms and legs with electrical energy and readied a fist towards her, unaware of Nightscale and Loru flying from above, pelting the parts to, to the ground with what looks like comets. Nightscale flapped his wings to blow a thunder storm and caused the unversed to be in a quick disadvantage as the sheer power shoved it to the ground. Nightscale flew down to claw at the unversed Lorustro smashed at the arms and caused both of them to break apart. Aqua was speechless and watched the Stardrake bite down at the set of legs, shattering the pelvis and leaving just the torso remaining. The torso flew away and fired laser beams, stinging Nightscale and angering him. Lorustro took out a mighty bow and arrow, firing swift and true to let the monster know it wasn't escaping. Nightscale charged at the unversed to continue its brutal attacks, tearing the armor apart and leaving its head for a chomp.

FLAP!

Night Scale nearly fell off the platform and flew back to the sky as Lorustro noticed floating jars trying to pelt his comrades in arms. He aimed his shot at a green herbal smelling one out of doubt as Nightscale wasted no time clearing a swarm of five red jars. Aqua sighed and shot a fire ball at three blue jars, Lorustro noticed and had Nightscale bombard the green jars, asking him. "Nightscale, we should land once this... mages are dealt with!" He shot a blue jar and left it for Nerax to snipe it with his own arrow and eagle. The Star Drake landed and the Templar lowered his hand to Aqua. "Do you wish to take this to the skies?"

Aqua snapped out of the hint of envy and shook her head. "That... trinity armor, wasn't exactly the easiest thing to fight alone."

Lorustro rolled his eyes under his helmet. "Nightscale alone, would have crippled it before it could fight back. I doubt that is all that is coming, come on we are only a small army and you might need a higher ground."

Aqua felt a wink at her and was tempted to take the offer, smirking at him. "This is what Ana sees every time you do this?"

Lorustro wasn't going to lie about it. "Eh she had a Retributor Squad among other things. I wouldn't have been able to get away with this," He counted in his head. "It's probably my rank and how she kept herself that low for a while," He went back to serious duty. "But we shouldn't banter, should we try this to obliterate those things or not?"

Aqua accepted the offer and sensed something from the shadows. She felt a bolt of dark energy being fired at the heart stone and jumped in the way to block it, Lorustro had a change of plans as he, Nightscale and Moonfang saw an intruder approaching. A black figure with red high lights and a helmet masking his face, holding a keyblade, having a quick one for Loru. "It's ever wonder you don't have many friends." The Drakesworn cringed like he felt that, the price for being a prideful motivator, Aqua tensed, refused Loru's offer and was ready for battle. "Vanitas, get lost!"

Simultaneously

Ken was having a dream of a raging storm and woke up, he looked upon the blipping and heard various stomping coming. Mickey found himself comfortable in a seat and buckled up as Hofneil, Pyriel, Nathanel and Dabriel entered, stirring the nappers up. Sora yawned. "We...we are here already?"

Pyriel nodded. "It was approximately four hours, but we are. You're rest should be enough to push through this mission."

The harnesses were held tight as Riku noticed the lines of a fortress, with a blip on the very top and leading downward to a hall way in the belly. The screen had a visual of the hallway making a split, the hall way to the left lead to a series of massive rooms. The hallway to the right had what looked like smaller rooms and a massive one in the end. The teenager pointed to that room. "That has to be where Zagor is hiding. Told you."

Ken swallowed and asked nervously. "And the blip is the safest place we can actually get to," He had a flash back of the Soulgrinder as the other teenagers had a flash back of the Defiler. All four of them had a mental note of larger monstrosities that Zagor very likely has at his disposal, Ken skipped over his question and asked. "Well we don't have to really go the other way... that's a death trap." Nathanel agreed wholly. "We need much more equipment to deal with a daemon engine. You only dealt with one at a time."

Kairi tensed her lips and didn't wish to think about the variety. "And some of them are not as obvious to defeat as undoing the lock." Dabriel nodded as he made sure his missile launcher was in place. "The best course of action to destroy those monster enmasse is anti tank weaponry like a missile launcher or a melta." Bleep! "If you suspect the fortress to be... acting out of the ordinary, press the button Cricket and it should bring us back." Magitinus stepped in and pressed a button to close the door. He had a servo skull float to the screen, the ship swayed a particular direction and the tech priest watched a count down of a minute. He went to a harnass right next to Ken and kept something hidden. Sora tensed and knew the time was for when the boarding missile fires, Ken asked the tech priest. "You... have something in case things get bad in there?"

Magitinus nodded. "It's in case of an emergency, you should have no fear, for that will unmake you in there."

The minute counted down for what felt like an hour. Boop! Shhhw. The group of twelve felt like the missile was fired, the blip changed from a minute to ten rumble! Rumble! CRASH!

With the feeling of a fast slam, the passengers held on and undid the harness immediately. Hofneil took the lead, charged at the hatch and kicked it open, stepping out into a moderately decorated room, decorated with blasphemous symbols of chaos and the ground itself had the symbol of Chaos Undivided. Hofneil drew out his keyblade as his battle brothers stepped out to follow, looking above to an image not for the faint of heart. Ken wiggled his way out and was left witnessing something that made him take out his blades and aim. Sora, Riku and Kairi ran out with Goofy, Donald and Mickey behind them. They saw a vast tide of heartless shadows forming together into a core and together, took the shape of a symbol to Chaos Undivided. The shadows squirmed with in a red center and to the core was a black orb, resembling an eye. Magitinus stepped out and took his more electrical weapon. The eye shot out a connected chain of squirming shadows and gave the group a reason to split apart, the shadows with in the arrows shot themselves against the five keyblade wielders and at Goofy and Donald. Sora and Riku slide into the core and attacked it in unison as Kairi locked her aim and flung a star letting loose angelic feathers. Ken focused on some charge shots as Hofneil swung against the heartless swarm and felt some of the numbers thinning.

Nathanel, Pyriel and Magitinus had their guns ready as Mickey heard something from behind a door. Like something was tearing through. "Watch out guys!"

Sora and Riku listened to something being smashed, they jumped back and watched tide form into a twister.

BASH!

Mechanical tendrils pierced the door and pushed a hole through as Donald readied a stormy spell and raised his wand in the air. Goofy had his shield ready as the tendrils ripped open a large hole, letting through a figure that aimed a long double barreled gun of a right arm at the space marines. A mixture of a robotic machine and flesh, on its left shoulder was a collection of twitching mechanical tentacles. The machine was box like with legs on the bottom, from its back where smoke stacks and in the center was something of a sarcophagus. Bound in wires that merged with the flesh, with in the sarcophagus was a horned man looking in a maddening frenzy. "SPACE MARINES! DIE! DIE!"

BOOM! BOOM!

"DIE!" The space marines rolled out of the way of gun fire, Hofneil took the four shots, shrugged it with his armor and charged at the head. The heartless swarm dived down and swatted the Space Marine back, Mickey and Sora dived into the swarm and stood side by side, they jumped all around to let loose explosive orbs as Dabriel warned the smaller, more vulnerable party members. "Watch out for that Helbrute and its reaper autocannon!" The Hellbrute watched the desctruction and barreled towards a landing Riku, with its tendrils lashing to him. The teenage jumped back and skid to the right to avoid the aiming guns. Dabriel aimed his missile launcher and fired, aiming at the Helbrute's chest and causing it to laugh in pain. Ken fed his melee keyblade's power into his more ranged one and fired quick scorching shots at the sarcophagus, the Hellbrute pointed his tendril at him. The demon tide shot from the massacre and at the boy, who flew into the ceiling and lead the swarm to a dive bomb of light from Kairi. Goofy sent Donald into the air to let loose a storm of lightning, doing significant damage to the demon tide.

The Helbrute slapped Sora, Mickey and Hofneil back toward the missile pod and asked in a craze. "YOU THINK YOU CAN KILL ME? HA! HA! HA!" He aimed his tendril into the air and caused the swarm to recede. "DWELLERS LOST TO THE DARK! PIN THEM DOWN, IN THE NAME OF THE WAR MASTER!"

The demon tide sank into the orb and left the many attacking that slightly confused. Kairi gave the injured a quick heal as Pyriel gave Hofneil a quick jab with a needle. Riku remembered the initial trick the tide did and signaled at the orb. Nathanel agreed and fired his heavy bolter into the void, Ken fired charged shots into the void and was the first to watch the tides burst in large, dark chains snared and caused the many to feel a pain that burned into their souls. The Helbrute laughed in triumph and charged at the pinned Space Marine Captain. "IN THE DARK, YOU WHELPS FINALLY PROVEN YOUR USE! DIE LAP DOG!"

Sora tried to force out of the chains as Hofneil forced himself out and parried the tentacles. The chains became tighter and the pain was becoming overwhelming, something shined with in Sora and shot at the eye. A boy with golden blonde, spiky hair, duel wielding a keyblade of light and darkness. Sora gasped. "Wha... Roxas?!"

The Hellbrute turned to the sight of a keyblade wielder striking the core in a rather aggressive manner and with oathkeeper and oblivion, stabbed the eye. Causing the tide to halt and recede into the eight pointed star, spinning out of control and dissolving, Roxas landed and turned around to confront the Helbrute that was howling. "HOW?!" Roxas smirked and answered. "You didn't expect somebody to do this?"

He taunted and set the Helbrute off into a firing frenzy, Roxas wall jumped and watched Magitinus take out his melta gun and fire a heated beam at the brutes back. Fire scorched from the Helbrute's chest and caused it to spasm. "WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! NOOOO!" It kept shooting at Roxas and burst into flames, into a glorious explosion. Leaving behind a pair of legs that fell limp on the floor and bled.

Roxas landed and turned around to an elevator. The group followed him without much of an argument, Hofneil asked formally. "It... was good that you came to our aid at a moments notice. Could you explain how you... did that?"

Roxas bluntly answered. "This place isn't just tied to darkness it is tied to all that Chaos junk that... can mess around with whats real."

The marines were not sure if they should identify Roxas as a daemon or not as Sora bopped himself in the head. "So you can act outside of me?!"

Roxas nodded. "While I'm here. I figure that out from seeing that world going absolutely nuts one moment and becoming... normal once it got kicked out."

Riku spoke in the boys defense. "Roxas is a bit... special among us, he can be trusted."

Roxas smiled away from the others view as Magitinus approached like he didn't care where he came from. "Trusted enough to distract that abomination, among other things."

Mickey wanted to ask. "What was that thing anyways?" Kairi, Donald and Goofy stepped in as Nathanel answered. "It is a tradition of ours to take our most wounded battle brothers and wire them into a war machine called a Dreadnought so he can continue to fight in the war for millennium. The Helbrute is a perversion of that idea, a Chaos Dreadnought where the pilot is... less than willing and instead of always being sleepy, it is off the rocker."

Dabriel looked back at the wreckage. "He must have been a figure head before he was double crossed, commanding those Heartless like he did."

Ken shivered and followed in with the marines. "Sheesh! They... were waiting for us."

Riku felt chills from that. "And that was the welcome," Magitinus looked at elevator buttons and pressed down. "Well it's far too late for regrets now."

Hofneil agreed and broke from his stoic tone. "We either kill these heretics or we are going to die here." The elevator made a long descent down, past glowing red lights that flickered on and off. The feeling that something was watching them, waiting for just one of them to make a fatal mistake and drag them into the darkness. Yet, danger did not come. The sound of a faint buzz filled the air, like it was static, a sick attempt at the melody of an elevator? The elevator stopped at the bottom and slowly opened, revealing an ordinary hall way. Riku was the first to speak his mind. "...Something isn't right, after... that... there is no way this elevator would have... nothing."

Hofneil agreed with him and took the lead. "There is no way this hall way would have nothing. This... is clearly a trap," The other marines agreed as Pyriel recommended to the group. "Just clear your mind and don't think about anything else besides the mission."

The four marines entered the hall, finding nothing. Mickey followed and tried to ignore the uncanny emptiness as Goofy and Donald followed him. Roxas and Sora entered to look around, the brown haired boy felt something warning him of imminent danger as Riku and Kairi followed, the girl cleared her mind more. "Nothing here is safe, we just need to find out what this danger is."

The silver haired teenager agreed and answered as he felt like he heard breathing. "...Everything."

Ken and Magitinus exit into the hall way. The boy with the mix and matched blades had the vision of the Kharibdyss for an odd reason, the feeling that he needs something strong and big, he asked Roxas. "You said that the Chaos junk is messing around with whats real... right?" The boy from nowhere agreed. "That's the problem here... but," Magitinus pressed a button on the side of his head dripped oil from his front and made it his effort to push the marines. "It's the problem! Move!"

The marines did so with out question, the rest of the group blinked, felt the light flicker off for a second and watched it flicker on, Goofy and Donald nearly dropped their weapons as the teenagers halted for a brief moment to a scenery that blasted the sanity out of their minds, a hall littered with twisted lumps of flesh, gnarling maws, humanoid limbs, tentacles of flesh and glaring eyes. Kairi felt the boys trying to think of something in their minds and pushed them toward the space marines. "Don't think about it, think about nothing! Nothing is our friend here."

The boys did so with no complaint as Mickey yelled to Goofy and Donald. "Just hu-" One of the eyes focused on the group going to the right and the many maws opened, letting loose a combined howl that was incredible. Goofy and Donald wasted no second to follow the group. Tap! Tap! Tap! Tap! Tap! The ground quaked and the sound of beasts rushed behind them, distant for the first second, then feeling like it the beasts were going to arrive in a moment. Donald raised his staff in the air and quacked. "Sora, help me make an ice wall!" The boy obeyed and with a combined will, erected a thick wall of ice. Ken topped that and tapped his fiery keyblade to the ground to summon a giant monster, the Kharibdyss appeared and looked on in instinctual hunger. "That will slow them down!"

The group hauled it past a hall way with more misshapen flesh, the human like limbs reached for them and tried to bite, the swings from the keyblades kept them back and moments in the sharp turn, they heard the ice smashed though and listened to a beasts smashing something into bloody bits. Donald turned his head around to see what went wrong and saw two large, red, metallic beasts mauling the Kharibdyss in unison, with mighty fists, mechanical tendrils and their fanged, fiery maws biting down. Donald quacked. "Rawawarack!" Faced the hall way and caste a haste spell on the party. "Don't look back! Don't look back!"

Goofy tried not to. "That didn't slow them down at all!" Nathanel ran even harder as Dabriel noticed something in the other end of the hallway. "And we can't afford to slow down from those Maulerfiends. Look!"

The group did and Donald recognized a beast with a similar body structure to the Maulerfiends, a monster with four legs, an extra head on each side and a main head biting down upon the flesh. The demon tore it up and chewed as Ken realized. "Those are guns." The fiend glowed in an a fiery red. Sora got an idea, grabbed the techpriest by the wrists and asked. "Donald, Ken, give me a boost!"

The two did so without hesitation, the spiky haired hero jumped high into the air with the disoriented mechanicas and flew at the fiend. Landing on its back and placing the mechanicus down. "D...Do what you did to that Helbrute, hurry!"

The fiend's main head looked up and it growled, Magitinus aimed his gun down at the neck. "That was your plan?! Talk before doing something that irrational!"

PEW! BOOM!

The fiend felt a scorching blast and shrieked, its body short circuited and it fired a barrage of heated beams that let loose screams. Missing the group entirely, Sora noticed the flesh mending itself together and struck down at it to keep it from regrowing. The fiend tried shaking them off and felt another melta shot. It howled in frustration as Kairi gave off a glow and aimed her keyblade at the monster's exposed chest cavity. "HIYAAA!"

PEW!

A flower glowed by the tip of the blade and fired a beam of light at the monster, causing it to burn from the inside out and screeched, it fell forward and landed in a thump, dead. The group eleven caught up they tried running together, the shifting flesh reached out tentacles to try and snare the group, Riku noticed and yelled. "Jump, now!"

The space marines did so, the shield bearer and mage did so, the keyblade wielders did so and watched tentacles wiggling after them, Magitinus however wasn't so lucky and tripped, being caught in it and turning around to see the maulerfiends crush the dead engine and charge at him. Ken, Nathanel and Dabriel aimed their guns in an attempt to save the tech priest, who pulled out a trio of oval shaped explosive packs.

Magitinus ordered loudly. "FIRE! THIS WILL DESTROY THESE MONSTERS IN THEIR TRACKS!"

Nathanel gasped. "But you will be caught in-" He tried to aim his bolter and was trying to dodge the many tentacles, Dabriel had little luck and Ken realized he had to make the shot. Hesitating to shoot the bombs as Riku barked to the tech priest. "Are you crazy?! You will be caught in that as well!"

The tentacles circled around Magitinus's limbs and pulled, the tech priest laughed proudly. "I'm already dead! FIRE!"

Ken aimed, closed his eyes and pulled the trigger, feeling immense guilt as the hot beam made contact with one of the bombs and caused it to rupture, Magitinus saw the beam pierce it and punctured a hole in one of the maulerfiends. He chuckled to the boy. "Excellent shot!"

BOOOM!

The bomb exploded as the maulerfiends were in arms reach of the morsel, it became that of a fire ball that melted through the arms, the central bomb exploded and blew off the chest cavity and the third engulfed the fiends and tech priest entirely." Pieces of tendrils flew and stabbed the pulsing flesh, causing a brief receding as Ken was still in his legs. Nothing remained of Magitinus, save for a scorch mark. Roxas grabbed him by the back of the collar and ordered. "It's like he said, he was already dead, move."

Ken agreed and looked devastated as he turned from the smoldering wreck, finding the fellow keyblade wielders just as speechless. Hofneil took command and saw a vast room ahead, glowing in twisting energies. "Boy, that was not a murder, we would have had to confront two of them in the open room and he was our best chance. Do not let his sacrifice be in vain."

Mickey sweated and tried to keep the thoughts out. "We...we need to keep moving and worry after we get out of this hall."That was agreed with as the band of twelve took their time to fight back against the twisting flesh and make it to the end of the hall. The flesh tried to close in on them and the group picked up the pace to dash to the end, making it to the next room and for a fleshy door to close behind them. Sora, Riku and Kairi gave a quick stare at Ken, who was closing his eyes and expecting the worse, the silver haired teenager barked. "Don't act like we are going to kick you're butt. We... made it across and we knew what was coming when we came. Let's try not to repeat that."

The group focused on the words and agreed as they heard a small clap. Standing before them was Zagor, holding his staff proudly and on top of a massive heartless emblem that was center to an eight pointed star. "Well done surviving my Hall of the Surreal. I was hoping you would have brought those darlings along with you, but credit where it is due. The Admech certainly had plans for THAT."

Nathanel aimed his gun and fired, a barrier of darkness protected the Master of Possessions. The group looked around to find themselves in a room with eight corridors. Three on the left and right, one behind them and another ahead of them, the six to the sides glowed and opened as Sora felt something crawling behind. He turned around to find a red, spider like monster aiming its guns and glowing of darkness, its white teeth, black skin, blue tongue, tendrils and eviscerator talons. Roxas sensed something greatly unnatural from the rifts and guessed. "But you had plans to call in friends of yours?" He looked at the bloated monster. "And this thing is calling them?"

Zagor wasn't speaking and gave away that it was in his silence. He stared down and caused demented whispers to echo. A horde of chaos daemons appeared. Plaguebearers festering, Bloodletters snarling, Pink Horrors giggling and Daemonettes laughing. They came in nearly thirty each, Sora, Donald and Goofy nodded to each other in confidence to a plan. Kairi whispered to Riku. "We do that same thing as before?"

Riku had a slightly better idea. "Dawns twist. Just follow me and don't let up." Ken readied his burning keyblade and had it ready to stab the ground as Dabriel turned to the monster and the remaining space marines focused on the daemonettes. Zagor was even more impressed. "Even in the depths of hell, you continue to fight on. Ha! Ha!" He snapped his fingers and ordered. "Devour their souls!"

The bloodletters, plague bearers and daemonettes charged as the pink horrors fired a barrage of fire balls. Sora and Mickey dived straight into the bloodletters as the marines focused the massive daemonette horde down in gunfire and Hofneil carving a suave into them. Riku and Kairi struck into the plague bearer horde. Goofy raised his shield up and let Donald jump on, pushing him into the air, the duck fired a barrage of magical spells to rain down upon the horde. Ken stabbed the ground, burst into flames and flew at the pink horrors like a fire ball, blowing a hole in the horde and firing left and right. Zagor raised his staff and summoned ten flesh hounds and ten blue rays. "You boasted to best a thousand heartless! But can you best the infinite?"

In a quick combo, Riku and Kairi were side by side, spinning together and firing a barrage of light and darkness. It was doing rather significant damage to the flesh hounds and the rays flew at the two, missing badly as the vast horde was being pushed back by the keyblade wielders.

In the back, Roxas dashed underneath the bloated crawler and struck the monstrosity in the fleshy belly. The fiend turned around and raised its talons in the air. BOOM!

The demon felt the might of a missile and kept trying to focus on the random boy that jumped above and struck at it with both blades, avoiding the tendrils when he can and dashing to the side when its two side cannons spewed out darkness, spilling over to the shadows and forming misty heartless. JUMP! THUD!

Dabriel landed on the beasts back held on, he tossed his helmet to reveal a bald man, he took out a grenade and pulled the pin with his teeth. He punched it into the bloated flesh and caused an inward explosion that caused the fiend to bleed. Shadows crawled and pounced at both battlers, Roxas had a realization of what the thing was. "Did... it got this way by eating-" He was disturbed. "That's creepy."

He burst in light and struck the heartless swarm with that light, evaporating them and leaving the disoriented monster to throe the marine off balance. Roxas flung at the monster and let loose, causing the armor to crack and for it to burst in a mixture of darkness and warp energy, it gave a sinister laughter as the boy grabbed the marine and pulled him back to the group.

BOOM! The crawler exploded and left Zagor disappointed. "Heartless and daemon alone is not enough. It is never enough."

He floated into the air and brought a horde of twenty bloodletters, plague bearers, pink horrors and daemonettes. Goofy and Donald landed from their combo and Sora back flipped to their side, thinking the whole thing was becoming pure insanity. The trio raised their weapons in the air and caused a radiant shine, a trinity limit that obliterated the daemons and vaporized Zagor's shield. Leaving him exposed, yet not finished. Mickey and Ken jumped back to the healthy group, Sora panted and barked. "Is that really all you got?!"

Hofneil looked at the emblem and shook his head. "No, it isn't!"

Zagor gave an eerily calm laughter as six figures crawled out of the closing rifts, he gave a slight glare at Roxas and boasted. "That?! That was just bits and pieces of my long research in the Darkness. The putty that molded and bent to my will, that treasonous brother of mine that would have had you if it wasn't going to be-" He stopped and pointed to the door of flesh. "Those pathetic cultists and my pets! None of that matters now! For the ritual is near completion."

Those not of the space marines felt disturbed by one of the obstacles behind them as Hofneil aimed his keyblade towards him. "You mean a ritual to bring in more of your kind?!"

Zagor gasped in shock. "HAAA!" The group felt a sinister smile as the figures took a more recognizable shape, Chaos Space Marines with mutated limbs and appearances that looked like something out of their nightmares. Zagor broke into laughter. "My kind, ha, ha, ha. HA! HA! HA! HA! HA!"

He broke in insane laughter as a winged marine with talons snarled with a combined voice. "We are the ones here!" Another with a maw on its chest spoke with it. "Master Zagor seeks to complete his task for the Warmaster!" Another with crab claws drooled at his prey. "But he does not need them to break you!"

Those not the space marines were horrified by the monstrosities, Roxas was the first to realize and was stuttering, he looked upon them like they were madmen. "They... tossed out there...there-" Mickey nodded and kept guard. "They tossed their light and... let those daemons take them!" Sora blocked that image out. "If they can't get any more desperate."

The possessed took offense as Zagor was more humored and caused the ground to distort. "You naive fool, it takes any one to try and wield the powers of chaos, to wield the powers of darkness!" He yelled with an odd vigor. "BUT TO BECOME ONE WITH THEM, IS THE PATH TO TRUE POWER! WITH THIS POWER, WE WILL FINALLY SNUFF OUT THE IMPERIUM OF MAN AND CLAM THIS GALAXY FOR THE GREAT GODS!" Pyriel aimed his plasma pistol and snorted as it super charged. "Or we can give you this medicine!"

PEW! Super heated plasma shot out to Zagor, the possessed marines waited and watched a massive black talon reach out from the ground, from the shadows. Riku's eyes widened and quickly realized. "...You actually-"

Thud! A sickening voice whispered into the groups minds, feeling like a sting. "We tapped into a power, far superior to what you skimmed across!"

The claw revealed many yellow eyes, a slit maw that stuck out many blue tongues that itself had maws. Sora and Kairi looked like they were going to have nightmares as they recognized the missing marine, Kairi asked. "Gurak?! What did you do to yourself?!"

Thud!

Another hand emerged from the darkness, less a hand and more of a black crab like claw with many yellow eyes, they pulled a figure out of the emblem, revealing a creature with a horned head resembling both a heart and the mark of chaos, a set of red and green eyes, crimson red armor, eyes bursting from the cracked shoulders, an upper torso with two sets of eyes and a second maw on its stomach. On its back were thing wings resembling the heartless emblem and pulling from under was a set of legs with black taloned feet, a monster around five times the size of a space marine and one revealing all the horror unleashed. Zagor relished their terror and announced. "Gurak has ascended beyond his mortal name! He is Darkness Incarnate, the monster from your nightmares, the Abyss itself!"

The head of the creature split apart to reveal a lamprey like maw and a dagger like tongue, letting a whisper sting the intruders minds. "We are Xaw'Rak." The figure let loose a shroud of darkness that consumed the area and surrounded the forces of light in the void, the possessed marines eyes glowed yellow and Zagor let loose an infernal power upon the possessed. "Do you see the looks on your faces? To witness the work of the Great gods in all their glory?!"

The group readied their weapons Kairi, Ken, Donald and Goofy looked at the possessed to the left as Nathanel and Pyriel focused on the possessed to the right, Dabriel counted, placed his missile launcher aside and took out a chain sword to join his battle brothers. Sora, Riku, Mickey, Hofneil and Roxas looked up to the monster. Xaw'Rak charged at the five standing up to him and used both limbs to slam the ground, the five dodged and saw a dagger tongue shot at the Hofneil. The space marine swiped at the tongue to counter as the four more agile keyblade wielders circled around the monster and gave it their strongest combos, they watched the flesh mend and the monster take flight. He opened his stomach like maw, firing down a barrage of dark spikes.

At the left side, Ken's gun like keyblade glowed in fire as he shot a charging possessed in the head. Burning it and drawing its attention, he jumped to dodge and flipped with his melee oriented blade, knocking it to the ground as Donald shot a thunder bolts and Goofy dashing at the injured possessed with his shield. The possessed punctured the shield with its misshapen claws and snarled at the brave, if terrified for his soul, knight. Kairi glowed as the crab clawed marine pounced at her, she dashed towards it like an angelic missile and sent it flying, the marine burned from the holy power and was pelted by a heart shaped star. Howling in pain and trying to fly at her, Kairi saw melting flesh, skid to the right and kept striking with her holy glow, she saw pieces of bone and left it exposed to a finishing thrust in the chest. The possessed marines limbs fell off and saw pieces of its flesh slopping.

Nathanel gunned back one of the possessed marines as Pyriel shot one in the head with supper charged plasma, managing a frenzy of attacks, stabbed it in the chest, twisted and punched it in the back of the head. Cutting it into two as Dabriel was clawed across the face by a talon and punched it in the stomach with a krak grenade. Walking away towards the remaining possessed as it exploded. Zagor was angered and fired bolts of lightning from his eyes at the marines. "Would you just die already!" BOOM!

Dabriel was knocked to the ground and was still as Nathanel dodged out of the way and aimed at the Sorcerer. Pyriel went to checking on the wound with a taunt. "Not on my watch heretic!"

Sora, Mickey, Riku, Roxas and Hofneil parried the unholy barrage as Xaw'Rak looked upon the marines and at the four pushing back against his brothers. He roared and dived down into the darkness, Sora looked to the ground and found a heartless emblem glowing beneath the team of Donald, Goofy and the two key bearers. "Watch out!" The four noticed, Goofy shoved the possessed as Donald jumped back and the key bearers flew away. Dodging a talon that clawed out and flailed tongues, reaching out and failing. It sank back into the darkness as Kairi slid to the possessed Goofy had problems with and stabbed it in the chest, a glow came from with in and the marine was melting to bones, Ken cringed and shot the prone possessed in the head, ending its existence and jumping to the air for the last of the possessed, he aimed his gun and fired, snipping it across the head and causing it to fall over. Zagor glowed in unholy power and flew at him, swiping with his staff and causing Ken to shoot down.

He noticed the emblem glowing beneath the three marines. "He is jumping! Move!" Pyriel shot a medical needle into Dabriel and refused to leave him. WOOSH!

A crab like claw emerged and grabbed Pyriel, knocking a recovering Dabriel aside and for Nathanel to prioritize shooting the monster. Pyriel kept his defiance and fired an over charged plasma at Xaw'Rak's right eye, bringing it to anger and for it to shoot its tongue at the apothecaries neck, severing his head from his body and dropping him. That caused the forces of good to yell in shook. "No!"

Thud!

Hofneil jumped with all his might at the demons chest, Sora and Riku flew to the fiends sides and attempt to strike at it as Mickey leaped at the demons face to let loose his anger. Roxas looked upon Zagor and dashed after him, going fully aggressive and pushing him back. Zagor swung and hit Roxas in the face, questioning more about him with a hint of fear. "What are you?!"

Roxas wasn't going to answer and looked above to realize most of the best attacks are doing nothing against Xaw'Rak. "He is...regenerating." He barked. "Everyone, get away from that thing, he isn't going down!"

Sora, Riku and Mickey listened as Hofneil punched Xaw'Rak back and fell down against Zagor. "Then what are we to do?!"

Dabriel bull rushed the Master of Possession as Nathanel waved to the monster and shot up at him. "Find a way while I get him busy!" BOOM! BOOM!" Xaw'Rak felt a bullet shoot past him and glared down at the marine who yelled. "Hey, remember me?" Mickey cringed and saw what was coming, Xaw'Rak grabbed stubborn marine with its crab claw and brought him to his face. Nathanel dropped his heavy bolter, took out a crack grenade and tossed it at Xaw'Rak's maw, blowing it shut. Snip! Nathanel was snapped in two and fell to the ground, he sees his feet from the ground and grabbed his heavy bolter, shooting at the demon that scorched his body with fire.

Mickey watched the deadly battle and the first casualty of war. "...We...need-" He saw Kairi pulling a possessed that was burned from the light and had an idea. "The light... seven," He snapped his fingers. "Hey fellas, if you got a keyblade, come to the center, I know what we can do to win this!"

Zagor shook his head and realized. "...Light?! You think that can save you from Xaw'Rak?! You think that exists anymore?" He shot a lightning bolt and sent Mickey flying, Dabriel shoved the Master of Possession back, Sora gasped as Mickey jumped to the upper center and gave off a glow. "So that's it!"

He spun his keyblade at a busy Xaw'Rak and barked. "You dived so deep into the darkness to be these demons, you forgot the one thing that you had."

Xaw'Rak growled and left the charred marine to attack him. Riku appeared from its side and slashed it across the face, Xar'Rak was distracted by that as Dabriel laughed at Zagor. "And that is how you just lost!"

The Master of Possessions grabbed Dabriel by the head and focused the powers of the warp to make his head explode. Kairi jumped into the upper left of the center as Roxas taunted at both followers of chaos. "You lost the one thing that made you whole and now you'll just be one bad nightmare we're waking up from." He shot light at Zagor and caused him to sizzle as Hofneil went to the upper right of the center as he watched his headless battle brother lay dead. "This war is over Zagor, you and your abomination will meet the darkness you sought after!"

Riku agreed with that and jumped to the lower left. Ken spun and shot a fire ball at Xaw'Rak, giving Goofy and Donald the time they need to get to the center, the boy with the gun and fire stick back flipped to the lower right. "Then we can be free to do what we want without worrying about you!"

Roxas jumped into the lower center as Kairi barked. "Get lost!"

Sora jumped to the center, the seven keyblade wielders stabbed the ground in unison as Goofy and Donald raised their weapons in the air. Giving off a flower of light, Xaw'Rak roared and shot a beam of darkness at the force, he was being pushed back, Zagor focused his energy upon his remaining brother. "NO! NO! WE DID NOT COME THIS FAR TO BE SNUFFED OUT! WE WILL SEE THE DARK GODS TRIUMPH!"

Xaw'Rak bellowed. "THIS CHANGES NOTHING! THIS SACRIFICE."

The light glowed stronger and pushed the abomination back, Zagor jumped in front of him and exerted a force of will to push the light. "WILL HAPPEN! YOUR GALAXY WILL BURN!"

Xaw'Rak shot dark beams from his eyes in a vain attempt to push back the light. PEW! The light was vaporizing the marines body and caused it to break apart, he screamed in defiance and evaporated, Zagor was pushed back against the wall and was in disbelief. PEW! WOOSH! The darkness was dispelled and the room returned to a still, if warping station. Zagor laid defeated and was left giving a broken laughter, the station twisted and turned, the Master of Possession felt his body fading into darkness and he embraced it gladley. "Ha, ha, ha, ah, ah ah ha, ha! You have not won! He comes, the Lord of the Black Crusade comes!" The void consumed him and he broke down into a delusion. "Brothers, we did it! Ah, ha, ha ha!" He faded into the void laughing as the remaining nine felt a strong force pulling them away.

PEW! Thud!

The party of nine felt themselves on top of the gummi ship and were looking upon a fortress becoming consumed by a bright twisting cloud. The many were on their rears, looking on at a battle that costed much. Hofneil turned on communications device with quick succession as Jiminy asked in disbelief. "...Please tell us Zagor was bluffing."

Sora and Roxas watched the cloud take form into an eight pointed start, something was coming, the brown haired boy shook his head as the gummi ship made a turn far away from the site. "...He... wasn't, that was the ritual?!"

Riku clenched his fists. "It was either us... or himself. We're not done yet."

Blip!

Hofneil noticed Even of all people on the other end of the call, the space marine yelled. "Where is Ienzo?! We have a Code Black emergency! A code black!"

The scientist gasped and was panicking. "That code... Ienzo is picking up Miss Wanda and her guild right now, they should be-" The marine pointed to him. "Then you issue the alarm and pray for a miracle!"

Even was ready to do just that as he confidently answered. "I don't need a miracle, but we do need a plan."

That Hofneil was going to address. "Leave that to us, Tahm would have already given the committee their instructions! Hofneil out!"

Blip!

Something emerged at the tip of a spear head formation, a fortress like ship with large guns, flying towards Traverse Town. Roxas sensed a terror and went back into Sora. "We need everything we got for this."

Hofneil wasn't going to ask as he watched a four smaller ships of various forms and colors fly out of the rift, one particular looked organic and alive. Ken noticed Brynhildr flying to the gummi ships side and tried to laugh it off. "Ha, we just need to go into that and see if we can't give this thing the boot. Easy!"

The invading ships gun glowed and aimed at Traverse Town, Sora shook his head with a realization. "It... isn't, it isn't going to-"

In the Realm of Azyr.

Aqua, Moonfang, Lorustro and Nightscale stood before a sinister figure that was laughing loudly. "Bwahahaha! All he does is show off to everyone, do you think anyone likes seeing someone better than them brag."

Lorustro and his steed approached with a rather calm demeanor. "They really don't!"

WOOSH!

The Stardrake charged at Vanitas with claws in hand, actually succeeding in landing a meaningful blow, the fiend with the helmet tried to dodge and met a hammer to his torso. Vanitas landed and wasn't given much of a rest as the sky fell down upon him, Lorustro had his bow and arrow ready. PEW!

Vanitas vanished, Aqua raised her hand up and formed a barrier, blocking the corner from any interference. Ding! Vanitas nearly struck the at the Heartstone and was denied it, he turned around and dodged the breath and claws of Moonfang, sinking into the ground and prompting Aqua to dodge with a back flip and give a quick counter attack. She raised her blade and caused ice to form, Vanitas stilled, disappeared and appeared from above. Aqua dodged and watched Nightscale and his rider charge after the fiend. Pew!

The Stardrake clawed at an illusion, looked around with his guard up and Loru looking behind him and above to hear a taunt. "Too slow! SWAT! Loru was knocked off his Stardrake and swung to his right, parrying Vanitas as Nightscale growled in annoyance, the Drakesworn had his own words to dish back. "Nightscale and I brag through deeds! What can be said of yours beyond just evil?" Vanitas felt cavernous jaws looming down upon him and dodged the brutal sounding snap through a vanish, Loru raised an eyebrow and scoffed. "Exactly. Every tale needs an antagonist, that's what we are to those that can make better of themselves." Aqua would have gave him a nod of approval if she wasn't focused on finding where Vanitas hid to.

Woosh! Purple chains erupted from the ground to snare Nightscale and Lorustro down, they squirmed and moved with the duo to bind them back into place, finding Vanitas glaring at them bored. "That will keep you out of this." Moonfang and Aqua charged and attacked in unison, like a storm chariot.

BOOM!

Vanitas was slammed against a wall and vanished, letting loose a barrage of fire balls that knocked the two around. He caught Aqua from the front and was ready to strike her down. parry! Aqua parried back, giving a determined glare and wasn't giving up. Vanitas saw a faint shine from the sky above and looked up, the sight nearly caused him to break into a panic, he jumped back and focused on attacking the barrier shielding him from the Heartstone. He was bit in the cowl by Moonfang and was tossed to Aqua, who realized something was off. "Where did all your arrogance go?! Hmm?"

She noticed a reflection in the helmet, a comet of storm and lighting was heading straight towards the battle arena, Loru looked up to have a closer look at the comet, he gasped and smiled under his helmet as Nightscale looked up and growled something the Stormcast understood. "Straight back into the darkness that spawned him. Welcome back."

Those words caught Aqua off guard and she was pushed back, Vanitas attempted to think of a come back as the comet made its landing, like a bolt of lightning. CRASH!

The force of the lightning washed over the whole arena, vaporizing the unversed, the chains and even the barrier, knocking him on his rear and for Aqua to turn to the edge of the platform, finding a silver figure glowing in lightning and shining metallic stubs from its back, it shined in holy light and gave off a crackle. A certain figure with a familiar helmet, blue shoulders and in its right hand, a silver hilt Aqua and Vanitas were familiar with, it resembled a keyblade. The hilt lead to the rest of the blade that to little surprise to Aqua, resembled a lightning hammer, the figure held the keyblade with two hands, stood up proudly and glared at a petrified Vanitas. "Begone from the Sigmar's Realm demon!"

The dark figure readied his blade and attempted to say something as the figure burst in lightning and struck him in the stomach, Vanitas felt that, was engulfed in lightning and was sent flying out of the east of arena, falling with electricity overflowing his body. The Stormcast searched and looked down to find the figure vanishing into a shadow, a feminine voice barked to the dark. "AND STAY OUT!" That voice caught the evocators, Nerax, Arreia, the judicators and liberators by surprise. Lorustro casually stood up and felt a little sore from the bindings. "Eager as always Ana, that... certainly gave him a message of that didn't flat out killed him!" Aqua looked still as the Stormcast with wings let her keyblade fade and took off her helmet, to reveal a woman with tanned skin, a braided black mohawk and a scar on her left cheek, confirming once and for all who the wielder is.

She stilled and approached slowly as Moonfang barked and dashed to Ana, giving her a mighty head butt that the Stormcast took with a cough. "Oof!" She petted her steed. "H...Hey Moonfang, were you good while I was gone?"

Moonfang licked her face as Aqua had her turn and dashed to her in an embrace, the keyblade master was near tears as Arreia sighed. "From my reports, Moonfang had been helping Aqua in her quest to gather the fragments of this thing... when the situation calls it. It felt like it was way too long!" The Lord Arcanum saw the Heartstone giving off a radiant pink glow and ordered. "A little more and-" PEW!

The Heartstone finished its bright glow as the Retributors and Knight Venator landed, ready to give their respects, the evocators felt their task was complete and approached the returned Stormcast. They asked many questions and overwhelmed Ana to where she shouted. "Okay, I'm back! I'm back!" She pushed the crowd back and was being given more affection from Aqua and Moonfang, the two let go as Lorustro approached her in silence.

Ana gave a respectful if grudge holding frown. "I knew what you tried to do and I saw that."

Lorustro gave her a respectful bow. "If I was paying any attention I would have found the fragment. Now what exactly was that?"

Ana nearly squeaked from what a long time rival was asking and focused, holding a two handed keyblade that resembles a lightning hammer and answering. "I...I have no idea, Sigmar and Grungi never gave a name for what I got...promoted to."

She stared at him awkwardly, Lorustro took off his helmet to reveal white skin, stormy grey hair and a young, welcoming smile that was completed with dark grey eyes. "A Knight Hammer Blade?"

The smile became prideful and Ana growled. "A...damn it that's actually a good one!"

He and Nightscale laughed with the frustrated Hammer Blade. "Ha! Ha!" He stopped laughing and kept smiling. "But seriously, this is something you been wanting for a long time?"

Ana let go of her grudge and let her hair blow. "Something like it."

BOOM!

A winged stormcast with a lanturn and three on foot stormcasts with a javelins arrived by the stone. The leader of javelins wielding soldiers snobbishly gave in. "Fine, I suppose I could spend some time away from training the next line of Palladors if it is that important to you Tarnos." He noticed the heartstone and its shine. "A once in a lifetime event." Tarnos nodded as five gryphons appeared in the light. "All of us, partook in this moment."

Sathea listened and agreed. "If it wasn't for all of us, Aqua wouldn't have came nearly as far as she did. Be proud to be here Eldriel."

Davas agreed with that. "For we won't get another chance again."

Arreia stepped forward to ask Aqua. "With the power given, would it require a realm gate?"

Aqua remembered the various ways the fragments were used and shook her head. "Not if the user puts their heart into where they want to go." She walked to the stone and stood before it, the light the guide the way. The many Stormcasts waited as Ana and Moonfang approached her, the friend that started her long journey asked. "This had been something you really wanted for a long time and you thought out of hell and beyond to get. Once you start, there is no going back until Order and some kind of peace is restored to your realm." She asked her. "Are you ready to give this a go?"

Aqua envisioned a vast realm with in a cosmos and felt her blade glowing. PEW!

A beam made contact with the Heartstone, it floated high in the air and shot a beam of its own to the north of the platform, causing door sized keyhole to form. The many were in great aw and Aqua found it difficult to believe it, she slowly approached and felt a pathway calling to her, Ana and Moonfang followed her, Loru gasped and asked. "Ana, what...what are you doing?"

Arreia guessed. "Sigmar didn't just reforge her like this out on a whim, there is a greater purpose for her being back." She felt crestfallen and asked her subordinate. "Is it?"

Anatesis turned around and nodded. "The realm Aqua came from is being hit by the Forces of Chaos and it isn't going to be the end of that even if we beat them back. Archaon knows of it and will seek to being ruin like he always has." Aqua turned back and agreed, feeling heavy in the heart. "And he isn't alone... Ana, are you asking... to come with me?" The Knight Hammer Blade nodded. "Ei! The Realm needs all the help it can get."

She looked at her fellow stormcasts with a frown that told them enough, Arreia was respecting the silent wish and ordered her men. "And this... is her battle... not ours." The Drakesworm Templar babbled. "B..B-" he stopped and was given a nudge from Nightscale. "..." He smiled to her. "With the kind of power you unlocked, you don't need someone taking that glory from you. Good luck."

Ana felt the hurt words and promised him. "You wouldn't have, but remember what we were reforged to do."

Loru does. "Protect the Realms and its people." He kept a duty bound pose as Arreia repeated it. "To Protect the Realms and its people. None of us are stopping you three." She gave a relaxed smile. "Farewell for now, strike true into the forces of darkness and make a tale that will be sung through the ages!"

She yelled out to her men. "For the people of the realms! Only the faithful will triumph this day." The many gave a repeat of that phrase. "Only the faithful!" Cheering and celebration was heard, making the pain of departure even harder, the trio stepped through the keyhole and found themselves in a cragged path in between the void.

The cheering became distant, until it was but a faint memory. Aqua wondered. "How was that possible?!"

Ana blinked and looked upon her keyblade, she placed it over her shoulder and wondered. "It came not so long after I was reforged again. It kept feeling like... something or someone was cheering for me, like a distant storm."

Aqua wondered and had two distinct memories, one was of an anvil on the moon, a memory that was dear to Ana, the other was of a boy giving praise. Ana noticed and asked. "You had a hand in it when you tried to piece together my soul?"

Aqua guessed so. "That might have been it, but there is someone from the realm we are going back to... that speaks a lot about you."

Ana know exactly who she was talking about. "Kendry?! How did you figure that-" She felt confused as Aqua guessed. "Because he kept you're memory is his heart." She blushed and confessed. "Like many others, calling you back from the dark."

Ana took a deep breath and had a few tears of pride as Moonfang saw a keyhole in the distance, shining its way into a cosmos. The Stormcast found a good comparison. "Like how people you know if and those who never heard of you. That's the sign of what a heart is and what makes it strong to endure life's hardships."

Aqua remembered words from an otherwise unsavory foe and interpret it in a way that was less savage. "To keep going no matter what beats you back." There was one more question she had for Ana. "How long ago did you have that keyblade?"

Ana counted. "It happened when I was reforged and was given my old hammer, it turned into what you saw while the tempestos hammer is back in reserve. I was put through a trial of illusions at around... I think the time you built that stone back up."

She looked back to the glittering keyhole back home. "And the Heartstone is going to be kept in tighter storage. For now. I know enough about a keyblade to work with it, it feels like my old hammer."

Aqua agreed with that. "But that is just using the keyblade like it is a weapon, rather than like it is apart of you. If it wasn't a hammer?"

Ana agreed back. "I wouldn't have given that evil thing what he deserved, that trial... that retraining was one of the reasons it took me so long to get there. But it will be more than enough for the three of us to get things back in order."

Aqua nodded with something on her mind. "It will do for now, returning home is just the beginning of another journey. Hmm."

Ana listed the remaining objectives. "Then ya got to find out how to fix ya friend and free the other while putting up with more trouble. It will be home, so-" Aqua felt more positives on the way and found herself standing in front of the keyhole. "So we have time."

She noticed something wrong and watched from with in the cosmic gate, a world with a particular town in the way of a ship glowing its massive gun. Anatesis recognized the patterns of Chaos. "This is what everyone been fighting?!" Aqua was ready to draw blood if the gun does what she thought it was going to do.

At Traverse Town.

Wanda oversaw her men going into the much larger train, the demigryphs stationed with in the rear kart and seeing to her anxious Gryphon being nice and comfortable with the others. "I know Stallwing, but this is just for political purposes, we will be back soon!"

The gryphon obeyed and was nice and comfortable with in. She found a smugly smiling Ienzo waiting for her out of the cart, he confessed. "Most of this was done because of you. This could prove a promising adventure for all of you."

Wanda admitted and pointed to the cart with her men. "Besides business, this world is pretty much the only one in the realms we know. We need to figure out how to deal with the Forces of Destruction when all this is over with. They can get into pretty big numbers."

Ienzo took the offer and walked into the cart, turning around to give a charming smirk. "And the town could use someone with a bit of experience in salvaging settlements. The garden has seen better days."

Wanda pointed her thumb behind to the town ringing a bell. "If we can keep a tank up and running, fixing some old ruins would be like eating cake. Consider it good as new in a couple days like this one."

She readied to enter as she heard the sound of a beam from behind, Ienzo looked to find the beam right by the bell tower and looked up, to find a massive ship. A mixture of confusion, shock and terror filled him as Wanda turned around to see the beam expand, disintegrating the tower and causing the world to rumble. Ienzo grabbed her by the back and dragged her in. The train door closed and it tooted its horn as the apocalypse was occurring. It chugged as the rumbling was becoming out of control, explosions and what was felt like a scream shook the train. The men were asking questions of panic as they saw green light outside, they crossed over to a tunnel in between.

WOOSH!

They felt something push from behind and nearly fell, Wanda looked baffled and her heart was pounding as Ienzo's eyes widened. He realized what happened and crouched into a corner, still and stiff, the general felt she understood what happened, looked like her whole world came undone and joined with the man to crouch and brood. She wanted to say something, stopped and curled up in a ball.

At the gummi ship.

Sora and the group watched in horror as a beam fired on the world of Traverse Town from the gun ship. They watched the explosion vaporize the settlement and cause the world to give off a glow, it blow into chunks and causing the keyblade wielders to feel a death scream in their hearts. BOOM!

The world burst in fire, rocks scattered and the beam cleared, leaving behind a faint pink glow that flickered away. Even a space marine like Hofneil was left still as Mickey asked with his heart hurting. "Thats...thats what Abaddon can do?!"

The space marine nodded as he watched the many shedding silent tears. "...In one dreadful moment, a world and its inhabitants... murdered." He saw many ships making a flight to Radiant Garden and a mixture of peril sparked. Riku asked the Space Marine. "Tell us what we need to do!"

Hofneil pointed to Kendry. "Our solution is before us, but if we do not defend the next world, it will be the next one to perish."

Kendry swallowed and counted as Sora blurted out. "But it took everything we got just to beat those guys-" Kendry agreed and looked to Brynhildr as he felt his heart lighting the way. "It... might need that as well. But-" Riku heard a suggestion that is completely suicidal. "But if you go in there by yourself, they will destroy you IF you're lucky."

Hofneil agreed with that. "The Black Legion... a traitor legion that makes up of various Chaos Space Marines from other factions. The Word Bearers, World Eaters, Thousand Sons, Emperors Children, Death Guard, Night Lords, Iron Warriors and the Alpha Legion. That doesn't begin the renegades."

Ken kept a still. "And they are heading straight to my home world! If I can go in there and give them the boot like the Eldar... that will... be it."

He looked to the group like he was talking mania as Hofneil sighed. "Then we will provide you with the time you need to banish the Black Legion. You have the strength to best a Chaos Space Marine, but heed the numbers."

Ken got it and felt something calling to him. "Yeah I got it, one wrong move and game over!" He looked to a terrified Sora, perked and cheered for him. "Come on I heard and seen you fight back scarier things than this! You all can do this!"

The perking was breaking through the fear as Kairi flared up in agreement and cheered to the group. "We will do this! Are we going to let this evil have its way?"

Sora broke more from that, stiffen and answered like a knight. "No Ma'am!"

Kairi gave a rally to Riku, who felt the motivation and stood ready. "No we will not!"

Ken laughed and let himself disappear into the light. With in Brynhildr, he left a texted in open chat, Kairi took the message and texted back as Mickey asked. "Then we should get there soon before they do!"

Hofneil went to his seat and raised his hand. "And I know just the thing to do it!" He formed his keyblade and pointed yonder, encouraging the other four to do the same. A beam shot to Radiant Garden and the ship traveled with the light of the beam. Leaving Brynhildr to fly to the Planet Killer for a battle for